tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46687634750944719712024-03-13T02:46:08.435-04:00Kaffee & KuchenIn Germany at 4pm there is Kaffee und Kuchen Zeit - or coffee and cake time. It's a chance to sit and chat with friends while drinking coffee and nibbling something delicious. I hope that is what this blog will be. A chance to share some recipes, kick back, and enjoy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger98125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-21132280797399754932012-10-15T16:34:00.001-04:002012-10-15T16:34:30.286-04:00Rockport Apple Weekend<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Lv4kcwtAwT_4nC6AauA6FT2HyWPlZoiDSC8IAXD7KK_29PFjZYd3U3mWlU5iJXklblQGaxSDmF3McOBdiWzT-wQuhFj_WZg2iLd02GbUXXaWQ9Co05h8YBNKqith0JH6uc7pFljX6F3Q/s1600/IMG_6811.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Lv4kcwtAwT_4nC6AauA6FT2HyWPlZoiDSC8IAXD7KK_29PFjZYd3U3mWlU5iJXklblQGaxSDmF3McOBdiWzT-wQuhFj_WZg2iLd02GbUXXaWQ9Co05h8YBNKqith0JH6uc7pFljX6F3Q/s320/IMG_6811.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I had kind of lost the inspiration to
post here for a while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt that I had
run out of fun stories, or anything meaningful to say.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-3sumAS0U53iuaSaf-Gn5BPrGH5wYuQ0Y792fRTj8TcNOyMVk9mpGmLCnqPi-jZz1-l-do6XbdH_GD9AFe6EXKrRfvvD2kut_wl52Nh_gr54rVEkKY6NC7oh6L328BuUQz3PDHu7blxeX/s1600/IMG_6814.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-3sumAS0U53iuaSaf-Gn5BPrGH5wYuQ0Y792fRTj8TcNOyMVk9mpGmLCnqPi-jZz1-l-do6XbdH_GD9AFe6EXKrRfvvD2kut_wl52Nh_gr54rVEkKY6NC7oh6L328BuUQz3PDHu7blxeX/s320/IMG_6814.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Perhaps that is slowly coming back.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLNXK3daVlqWiuoWtsj5_CBJa25abkX-mlV88iC0gJ5mJJqlnol2I3cWXNUOwTAJ2nAO9q8i48qOTNQ2TiQdzBY2g21Rnr1R9Km84gKfySU4Jx-Xxb1ljFPPd127lYccwO-mTu8njkcr7/s1600/IMG_6838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLNXK3daVlqWiuoWtsj5_CBJa25abkX-mlV88iC0gJ5mJJqlnol2I3cWXNUOwTAJ2nAO9q8i48qOTNQ2TiQdzBY2g21Rnr1R9Km84gKfySU4Jx-Xxb1ljFPPd127lYccwO-mTu8njkcr7/s320/IMG_6838.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So instead I wanted to share with you a
montage of photos taken by a friend of mine (Thank you Leila!) a few weekends ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I saw all of these, I thought I had just
participated in one of those super-posh food magazine weekends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know what I mean, when you look through
food magazine articles about some fabulous get-together that super wealthy and
exclusive people have all while trying to appear as casual as humanly possible.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1K0ylxcFwAXKsEOjoABQI8CGtU8tjC3nKmWLCWO3Y2SIeKYTxM9rPra9VdEUrT93BTEhaCdHYzWaV47I5VOeYJ7kaJSLlC4yrfEwq5lHwo_47H9Smawnv7Qd_YgtgS76WjK6STLccZgUi/s1600/IMG_6839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1K0ylxcFwAXKsEOjoABQI8CGtU8tjC3nKmWLCWO3Y2SIeKYTxM9rPra9VdEUrT93BTEhaCdHYzWaV47I5VOeYJ7kaJSLlC4yrfEwq5lHwo_47H9Smawnv7Qd_YgtgS76WjK6STLccZgUi/s320/IMG_6839.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I went to Rockport, Mass. to visit some
friends, and while I was there, I put them to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cut, cored and peeled 2 full pecks of
apples, which in lay-speak is approximately a “sh*t-ton”, or so I was
told.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We then canned those apples for
apple pie filling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>2 pecks turned out to
be far more than we needed, as I managed to make 12 cans (2 of which exploded
and needed to be refrigerated and not stored) and 2 apple crisps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">But the beauty of a rainy cool autumnal
day when apple, cinnamon and sugar mingle together throughout a tiny apartment
overlooking a sleepy fishing harbor reawakened something creative inside of
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that or the mixed drink we
created using the leftover apple and lemon preserving juice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Either way, perhaps I will make a
reappearance here.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPiH2ZOZ1HG_U5oaDac8Q1GC61fh4TR8DgG6y25_5MLx2QAzqvvCLfmfKR4Qd0PezE4uhhLs1Z1UThVT8SxtzUUVCVaiwadJB1eT3g95L-c2BDOUa4RVAXdtsj7WDcFExMK6pMFkaKrfqS/s1600/IMG_6919.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPiH2ZOZ1HG_U5oaDac8Q1GC61fh4TR8DgG6y25_5MLx2QAzqvvCLfmfKR4Qd0PezE4uhhLs1Z1UThVT8SxtzUUVCVaiwadJB1eT3g95L-c2BDOUa4RVAXdtsj7WDcFExMK6pMFkaKrfqS/s320/IMG_6919.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><br /></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-80947241048799016672012-07-11T17:32:00.000-04:002012-07-11T17:32:23.011-04:00It's Hot Out - Let's Have Soup!<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In between my freshman and sophomore
years at college, one of my roommates invited some of us to go sailing in Casco
Bay here in Maine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another roommate and
I traveled up and we spent the next few days motoring around the bay in a
sailboat under cloudy cold skies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
should also say that both my roommate and I were intensely sea sick for that
time as well.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8eCAPMch2wN2LFk0gdK3jFMaCNz0ccF7HPRPTxucVT69wqB5740Hd0kzrTYYzYlcCnFwEjBOZAl05JQRhucvKxBkhQNkc-YwO5Jnpqf6-RYELgleuQ_WRro4HqT7cd1pIP9b3zUGmwJW/s1600/ScaredLobster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8eCAPMch2wN2LFk0gdK3jFMaCNz0ccF7HPRPTxucVT69wqB5740Hd0kzrTYYzYlcCnFwEjBOZAl05JQRhucvKxBkhQNkc-YwO5Jnpqf6-RYELgleuQ_WRro4HqT7cd1pIP9b3zUGmwJW/s320/ScaredLobster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Don’t get me wrong it was beautiful, but
I was at that time unaccustomed to the fact that Maine can be 55</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">° at midday
during the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also was not very
windy, which meant the “sailing” portion of our trip turned into using the
diesel engine on the boat to slowly maneuver us around island (this engine was
referred to as the ‘diesel donkey’).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thus the seasickness I had was not of the “chumming for large sport
fish” variety but a dull and constant nausea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxEB-hyGnRnRdPDFG5QrgEtIamUcG5H_NLm6lemJG6l9aGGYq62PZ6tcFDtimqzbpNi2D0Ohm6cwoVlJTWFWD2GheC2vsa0Ku5gtpamx_jtJjnYQvC9BmmE5kJPMkd0EIMjPycYHz15C-/s1600/AngryLobster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxEB-hyGnRnRdPDFG5QrgEtIamUcG5H_NLm6lemJG6l9aGGYq62PZ6tcFDtimqzbpNi2D0Ohm6cwoVlJTWFWD2GheC2vsa0Ku5gtpamx_jtJjnYQvC9BmmE5kJPMkd0EIMjPycYHz15C-/s320/AngryLobster.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Angry Lobster!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">There were
of course some wonderful experiences; stopping on an island and shell hunting,
sleeping all together on the tiny galley table that pushed down to become a bed,
and lastly stopping at a restaurant on the final day for some lobster
bisque.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The lobster bisque was very
tasty although I could only manage to swallow a few sips, again due to that
lingering seasickness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVwx-O-s-h9Ug96A7WOv1WWYSz-E4zMaSeYFxsEzMezOEg8kTf40PMmH4EdJGBKHfcs6rnpnLR_HAIu552Gwyo5waPFnoU3k32Ao9ysdidf_Sq1fRA4iBt-FiCw3YGszMTTt1__NriDu-x/s1600/CornOnCob.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVwx-O-s-h9Ug96A7WOv1WWYSz-E4zMaSeYFxsEzMezOEg8kTf40PMmH4EdJGBKHfcs6rnpnLR_HAIu552Gwyo5waPFnoU3k32Ao9ysdidf_Sq1fRA4iBt-FiCw3YGszMTTt1__NriDu-x/s320/CornOnCob.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Now, as I understand it lobster
stew/bisque/chowder has basically 4 ingredients; broth, cream, butter,
lobster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And although this combination
is very delicious, it is not the lightest meal to consume.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the stew sits any longer than 30 seconds,
the layer of butter separates to the top making a lovely orange shimmer along
the surface of the bowl or pot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDFcUr2w-7Bfyz0yQni2BCXQawyuV5T3MhoqGcReM6w5O5N_XtKgrPHZRreLLyr1NYk4vVL9IgC4QOojZx6UBYBubjdA8mNfAgQCQOa7NeN3_GA_vpMKUt1YqyFJh1fs7LYgRyR5V-MaTz/s1600/Bowls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDFcUr2w-7Bfyz0yQni2BCXQawyuV5T3MhoqGcReM6w5O5N_XtKgrPHZRreLLyr1NYk4vVL9IgC4QOojZx6UBYBubjdA8mNfAgQCQOa7NeN3_GA_vpMKUt1YqyFJh1fs7LYgRyR5V-MaTz/s320/Bowls.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Since this summer has been decidedly
un-Maine-like where it has actually been warm to hot even, the idea of
consuming a large bowl of cream and butter didn’t sound that appetizing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, lobster prices are incredibly low right
now, and Joe and I try to reserve tucking into whole steamed lobsters for when
we have company, which lead me to thinking about lobster bisque.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So how should one go about making a lighter
version of the traditional bisque? By adding vegetables of course! So the next
time you feel like making soup during this incredibly hot summer, may I suggest
a lovely Lobster Corn Chowder.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Lobster Corn Chowder<br />
<em>This recipe is really an amalgamation of recipes, but it is most closely
related to the </em><a href="http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/lobster-and-corn-chowder.html"><span style="color: blue;"><em>Williams
Sonoma Lobster Corn Chowder</em></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I had a bag of frozen lobster stock ready
to go for this dish, but if you don’t I recommend using the one in the above
recipe link.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 1-1/4 pound lobsters<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 slices of bacon, diced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 medium onion, diced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 medium carrots, diced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1/4 c. white wine<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">4 cups lobster stock<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 lb. potatoes, diced (red skinned or
fingerling)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 ears fresh corn, shucked<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2/3 c. heavy cream<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 scallions, sliced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">10 cherry tomatoes, quartered (optional)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Fresh chives, chopped<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Hot sauce, optional<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a large pot place 2 inches of water,
heavily salted. Place the lobsters in, cover and steam for about 7 minutes, or
until the lobsters are bright red.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Remove lobsters from pot and set aside to cool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Next, cut the corn off of the cob, and
reserve both the cobs and the kernels.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a large stock pot over medium-high
heat, sauté bacon to render the fat, add diced onion and continue to cook for
another 5 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add diced carrots and
cook another 5 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next add the
white wine, and scrap off any brown bits on the bottom of the pan, simmer until
the wine is mostly evaporated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the
lobster stock and corn cobs, bring to a boil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Next add the potatoes, and the white part of the scallions, and cook for
about 10 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the heavy cream,
bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Toss in corn kernels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Continue
cooking for another 10 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Pull lobster meat from lobsters – knuckle
and claw meat can be left intact, but chop tail meat into bite sized
pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add lobster meat to the chowder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Just before serving add in the remaining
scallion greens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ladle into bowls and
add chives and tomato quarters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A dash
or three of hot sauce in each bowl is a great addition right before eating – it
will enhance the creaminess!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-70732659776158597882012-05-16T20:11:00.000-04:002012-05-16T20:11:08.382-04:00Baking Biscuits<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When my grandfather moved out of his home
in Delaware after my grandmother passed away, my family was able to take
whatever items they wanted before everything was donated to charity or
sold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I met my father at the train
station in Wilmington in a rental van we would use to bring all my loot back to
Washington D.C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ5hDHI7ZIUfPyTE0OT4zEXdzXqsYc1Bq7IqQ4VMpiRKyqymARys1HkSYrX63Af0atCtOU3MvPxwsG8xe-RZyknmAcu1mMLF5PSdYEmzse802jywSlIGqs0q5LsnqHSV8R2LMiouzwNrud/s1600/Cookbook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ5hDHI7ZIUfPyTE0OT4zEXdzXqsYc1Bq7IqQ4VMpiRKyqymARys1HkSYrX63Af0atCtOU3MvPxwsG8xe-RZyknmAcu1mMLF5PSdYEmzse802jywSlIGqs0q5LsnqHSV8R2LMiouzwNrud/s320/Cookbook.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">My father and I had the run of th<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a>e house for the day and we went through pretty much
everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was on the lower end of
the priority list for taking things, so there wasn’t much left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when you are a college student who has
just moved into an apartment the 60’s and 70’s décor, housewares, and furniture
your grandfather owns is very exciting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I chose with awe some of the golden colored wine glasses used only for
special occasions – two sizes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which I
later found out my grandmother had collected at gas stations as part of some
kind of promotion in the early 60’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
nabbed the two twin beds for the new apartment, a turquoise Chinese tea set and
some cookbooks.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwh8RHkylDKqUxWaFgn9m_g_PsJz8LTsRPr9xAeit0h0idFOyvnLYmoGQHgUkM5_fjojSpwLC9ce_xXxrixTFTC_bbqttHA8DCOQWlDUj29HruGC39fVSNFjwImakYscXHCjBIWua-xcS5/s1600/Ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwh8RHkylDKqUxWaFgn9m_g_PsJz8LTsRPr9xAeit0h0idFOyvnLYmoGQHgUkM5_fjojSpwLC9ce_xXxrixTFTC_bbqttHA8DCOQWlDUj29HruGC39fVSNFjwImakYscXHCjBIWua-xcS5/s320/Ingredients.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I had just gotten into cooking, and so I
did not understand the treasure trove of cooking references that my grandmother
had collected over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figured
I would grab some that looked interesting and then leave the rest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am sure I probably left behind a first
edition of Mastering the Art of French Cooking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What I now have in my possession is an early copy of the Better Homes
and Gardens Cookbook, the one with the red checks and in 3 ring binder format
as well as a first edition of the Physiology of Taste as translated by M.F.K.
Fischer (this may actually be worth a little money).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it is the Better Homes and Gardens
Cookbook that I remembered fondly, and one that I use still for basic
recipes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">My grandmother studied home economics at
Cornell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She may have taught for a few
years before having children and practicing home economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, unlike where you think this story is
going, my grandmother was not the “make it from scratch” home ec. teacher in
June Cleaver attire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She loved
convenience foods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A classic meal during
the holidays or any family gathering was canned ham, canned pineapple, macaroni
and cheese (this was just cooked elbow macaroni tossed with shredded cheese –
no sauce, no gooey stringy cheese – I hated macaroni and cheese for a very long
time) and canned crescent rolls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps
a salad or some frozen vegetables.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTOuTSPSb4lrquLFlWuu9-1mFc3lkIoe6_isAo9I7WQXTwGai77-UA4jmXiz37kKzaK-qyoJqtmufNhJMgPd36d1VXg-lPtBbf9vu8_W-3Ypk2NA9DsOILlKzBvBV9QoHE-vMZsxM8SlCp/s1600/Well.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTOuTSPSb4lrquLFlWuu9-1mFc3lkIoe6_isAo9I7WQXTwGai77-UA4jmXiz37kKzaK-qyoJqtmufNhJMgPd36d1VXg-lPtBbf9vu8_W-3Ypk2NA9DsOILlKzBvBV9QoHE-vMZsxM8SlCp/s320/Well.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So as you can see, I did not necessarily
expect to find gastronomic treasures in my grandmother’s library of cookbooks –
although I still wonder what I would have found had I known what to look for at
the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However that Better Homes and
Gardens cookbook did get a lot of play as a reference for cookies, roasting
temperatures of meats and so on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
prefer that cookbook with all its jewel-toned pictures and recipes for far more
Jell-o molds than anyone could possibly need than any more recent edition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it is to this cookbook that I turn when I
need recipes for biscuits or boiled frosting or everyday cake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzFyt7jV6xkaumPkPc6YPlSz-swbW9s_z_CfZ3Cu__WVU3BkIN2bEK9a_Q6OI5eAQ8TCxcyBh4ovO7zJtO3iFWY-rdwjAHmBFl5jH3lt8qZrYLqBHTxqY-rWpTdgaXwoMPDGWMfvpagd_/s1600/Prebaked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzFyt7jV6xkaumPkPc6YPlSz-swbW9s_z_CfZ3Cu__WVU3BkIN2bEK9a_Q6OI5eAQ8TCxcyBh4ovO7zJtO3iFWY-rdwjAHmBFl5jH3lt8qZrYLqBHTxqY-rWpTdgaXwoMPDGWMfvpagd_/s320/Prebaked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Today I am going to tell you about the
biscuits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So many people are so ardent
about biscuits that I was rather hesitant to try and make them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if they are not fluffy, what if they
turn into hockey pucks, what if they just taste bad – all of these were very
real fears that inhibited my biscuit making endeavors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The trickiest part of it is those six words
in each biscuit recipe – do not over work the dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How are you supposed to know!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where is that elusive fine line between not
well mixed and over worked?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will the
dough change colors?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will they become
inedible?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will the oven explode with
terribly formed lumps of dough!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
horror!!</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZvikInanuwHbf8sc_vV-47MkvNgGXQ_gRn-jvyjyng7JrF_NX0hh2dRh6ZK1szZ3U424OJbtKcWsRNU55wegC9LHxFkwQniZpOd_ul9mt0Sv3X4egA5wsytuiF8eyEaNoKSFlZaoltNj/s1600/Baked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZvikInanuwHbf8sc_vV-47MkvNgGXQ_gRn-jvyjyng7JrF_NX0hh2dRh6ZK1szZ3U424OJbtKcWsRNU55wegC9LHxFkwQniZpOd_ul9mt0Sv3X4egA5wsytuiF8eyEaNoKSFlZaoltNj/s320/Baked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Biscuits are in fact not that scary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem I realized is that most people
don’t get tactile with the biscuits early on the in the process, and herein
lies the secret to not overworked biscuits; use your hands!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After cutting in the butter, toss those two
knives or pastry blender aside and rub the pieces of butter into the flour with
your fingers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is (1) a lot less
time consuming (2) a better way to determine the proper point at which to add
the milk and (3) is the only sure-fire way to add love into your biscuits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Once you have the whole thing down, you
will be able to whip up biscuits at the drop of a hat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8KaFMKv7P4TV_pNkzCsDw1zchToNebhDcf94HwV30YogON2GQNXkS3HguG_3GCWKixowFYwNizDWirdmTfn-72xPxx8UQnZO2V2vxGVMZQPktNBBUxm36NagrJouQl90O8igU1eJSCb6i/s1600/Split.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8KaFMKv7P4TV_pNkzCsDw1zchToNebhDcf94HwV30YogON2GQNXkS3HguG_3GCWKixowFYwNizDWirdmTfn-72xPxx8UQnZO2V2vxGVMZQPktNBBUxm36NagrJouQl90O8igU1eJSCb6i/s320/Split.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Biscuits Supreme<br />
As adapted from <em>Better Homes and Gardens</em> 1968</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I have begun adding other ingredients and
flavors to my biscuits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try adding any
kind of fresh herb, or pesto to the biscuits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Scallions and chives are wonderful for biscuits on top of chicken pot
pie or other casseroles*. The green biscuits pictured above have a parsley
pesto in them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cups all-purpose flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. butter, cut into ¼” cubes<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb and 1 tsp. baking powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. cream of tartar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2/3 c. milk (anything but whole milk
works fine), plus extra for brushing<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 Tb. Chopped herbs or pesto, optional<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat the oven to 450</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Combine flour, baking powder, cream of
tartar and salt in a large bowl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add
butter and begin to cut in, when the butter pieces are reduced in size by half,
begin using your hands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rub the pieces
of butter quickly between your fingers to break them up, and toss the flour
over the pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Continue until the
butter is mostly worked in, and the flour seems a bit heavier looking – there
will still be a few larger clumps of butter, but that is ok.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Next, make a well in the center of the
flour, add in the milk and the herbs or pesto at this point if using.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To stir, use a fork and moving around the
inside of the well, begin pulling in flour from all sides of the bowl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Continue to stir with the fork until the
dough is all wet and very difficult to stir.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Move the dough out onto a floured board
and knead a few times to combine the dough into a cohesive ball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>3-6 times should be all you need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll the dough out to about 1” thick and cut
into rounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reshape the dough into a
ball and roll out again, cutting new biscuits until there is only enough dough
for one last biscuit – this one can be hand shaped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place the biscuits on an ungreased baking
sheet and brush with a little milk or melted butter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating mid-way
through if necessary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Serve warm from
the oven!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">*You can add these biscuits to anything
you plan to place in the oven to bake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For an easy chicken and biscuit recipe use the above biscuit dough and
place onto precooked chicken, veggies and a lightly thickened gravy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes or until
the biscuits are brown on top and the chicken mixture is thick and bubbling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-54898325903959931372012-04-25T19:14:00.000-04:002012-04-25T19:14:54.922-04:00Super Power Cookies<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In college, my girlfriends and I looked
for any opportunity to dress up and have a party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I say dress up, I’m not referring to
nice clothes; no I am referring to costumes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And in college this all equates to an excuse to drink and decorate your
dorm room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just like Halloween but multiple
times a year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As with Halloween, the
costumes are, ahem, not the most modest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdP36BKkV2RAEWbWo52v_VMb8_EVz0GYaWV7251ttxt1y_9a3DZWNzYnwNPpheKJZCfowba5mYKiY07f0QQVOA_LwywXtSWQHttdYDA1dMzMBMXs7Zz4CxYSEShuYVYk9raflZCtYhpFcn/s1600/Beans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdP36BKkV2RAEWbWo52v_VMb8_EVz0GYaWV7251ttxt1y_9a3DZWNzYnwNPpheKJZCfowba5mYKiY07f0QQVOA_LwywXtSWQHttdYDA1dMzMBMXs7Zz4CxYSEShuYVYk9raflZCtYhpFcn/s320/Beans.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Sophomore year, a friend of mine was
taking a course on super heroes (I know, it seems ridiculous, but I took two
classes that involved quilts).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
managed to convince her professor that she should get extra credit if she
threw, and documented, a “Super Heroes” party.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He agreed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friends all went
into crazy planning mode, with mix tapes, theme drinks, and decorations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DKJEHGwUAxiKiHKRhAR_2vfMBSLt3UlZwTPUAdClrkWZo4d7e0eQ_DCnNne75xN_PJHATnN-8Rmdvsfkjh9CZCIZNBFpQOid-FjXGOwVrI4fx_JzXJur-g7EL_01vVcyTx72oFq_FUBu/s1600/Applesauce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DKJEHGwUAxiKiHKRhAR_2vfMBSLt3UlZwTPUAdClrkWZo4d7e0eQ_DCnNne75xN_PJHATnN-8Rmdvsfkjh9CZCIZNBFpQOid-FjXGOwVrI4fx_JzXJur-g7EL_01vVcyTx72oFq_FUBu/s320/Applesauce.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">At the time, I found a recipe online for
“power cookies” and I figured this would be appropriate fodder for keeping
super powers up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, this was before I
had really honed my skills in the baking department, and needless to say these
cookies were not very tasty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although,
if you put enough intoxicated college students in a room with cookies – even
terrible cookies – they will get eaten.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizyTA50-c6WDBBbrD4eDM6vwWfEoDWv7r5P3dLPDHAgv0N0l7hJhyl2xC32qQH0yoMcgMJI9MRRqKpEzXtRKXHEEg9NPVGNNO9Dc3TYgvnn9MzRwRHBdRnJtIkU4nv5KINcJP2Bd7v8Ia_/s1600/WetIngredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizyTA50-c6WDBBbrD4eDM6vwWfEoDWv7r5P3dLPDHAgv0N0l7hJhyl2xC32qQH0yoMcgMJI9MRRqKpEzXtRKXHEEg9NPVGNNO9Dc3TYgvnn9MzRwRHBdRnJtIkU4nv5KINcJP2Bd7v8Ia_/s320/WetIngredients.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Recently, I had been thinking about those
cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One, because a friend mentioned
that in London it is totally acceptable to have fancy dress parties, akin to
our Super Heroes party, and I thought it would be wonderful if all of us know
at the very end of our 20’s were to do something like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ridiculous, but wonderful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Second, I have seen lots of recipes and
even ads for something called breakfast cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In looking at the ingredients or nutritional
value of said cookies, I would not consider them acceptable for breakfast. And
I suppose that some of these cookies probably are better than a pop tart, I
still wouldn’t want to each that much sugar to start my day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTEpCdqZweETgEcIHYop1voTiEle_9guEXw6GnskvhgHFyAc-fe9uTArueMH4rGQ7wdhujjObpojMqWlsUL5ExyS1Z3fsRdYnxAa2k0kf4t0dQwg33wcFSnZ_1XsfcfeNpKd_osZlsejdM/s1600/OnSheets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTEpCdqZweETgEcIHYop1voTiEle_9guEXw6GnskvhgHFyAc-fe9uTArueMH4rGQ7wdhujjObpojMqWlsUL5ExyS1Z3fsRdYnxAa2k0kf4t0dQwg33wcFSnZ_1XsfcfeNpKd_osZlsejdM/s320/OnSheets.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In going back to the original power
cookie recipe, I made some changes and when I tested these cookies – they were
actually pretty good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I brought them to
a regatta this weekend for the rower’s to eat, and although I didn’t see too
many get consumed while I was there, I heard good reports regarding the overall
flavor and texture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These cookies would
be a great way to start your day, or an excellent and protein filled snack;
especially if you need to keep up your super powers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYthBA24jAZezZu0a-fpdyVYeY9aRgHY7mSaalQKWmpaUGdszbz2sBKwhf6UTK8alsgNZuP-_f64BGQvt7ShLobTtDAa-7hojPtCckztwP_SdZYiSMjBYB5ZouqpaHVU56euVPohVaXJ1u/s1600/Regatta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYthBA24jAZezZu0a-fpdyVYeY9aRgHY7mSaalQKWmpaUGdszbz2sBKwhf6UTK8alsgNZuP-_f64BGQvt7ShLobTtDAa-7hojPtCckztwP_SdZYiSMjBYB5ZouqpaHVU56euVPohVaXJ1u/s320/Regatta.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Please excuse the blurriness of this image, I took it with my phone at the regatta, while the cookies were still in the ziplock bag.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Power Cookies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from Sara Sue on
allrecipes.com <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I highly recommend using dried beans
rather than canned beans for this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
the original recipe, I used canned beans, and the cookies then tasted like
beans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dried beans also yielded less
moisture, so I added unsweetened, spiced, applesauce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you can’t find that, just get the organic
unsweetened kind and add spices to the batter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c. dried cannellini beans, soaked
overnight, and simmer for 2 hours until soft (should yield 2 cups beans)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. granulated sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. dark brown sugar, packed<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 tsp. vanilla<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c. unsweetened applesauce<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">4 cups oats<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. baking powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. baking soda<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. pitted dates<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. shredded coconut<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. raisins<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat oven to 375</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">°</span></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a food processor, grind the oats into
coarse flour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not necessary for it
all to be powder, as some larger bits will add texture to the cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Move the flour to a bowl and add the baking
powder, baking soda and salt, stir to combine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Next, place the beans in the food
processor (don’t worry about cleaning it between uses), and process until they
are smooth, like a thick hummus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Move
beans into the bowl of a stand mixer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Add sugars, vanilla and applesauce and mix until well combined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Add the oat flour mixture to stand
mixture and mix until just combined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Next, pulse the dates in the food processor to chop them into smaller
pieces, about the size of the raisins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Add the dates and raisins to the dough and mix until incorporated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Line two baking sheets with parchment
paper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Scoop dough with a heaping table
spoon and loosely shape into a ball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Press the dough down slightly on the board, but not to flatten the
cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cookies will not rise or
flatten while baking, so there is no need to space them out very much.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Bake for 15-17 minutes, rotating half-way
through, until golden on top.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Allow to
cool and store in an airtight container.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-81412103719333658862012-04-19T05:57:00.000-04:002012-04-19T05:57:09.422-04:00Best Bratwurst<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Now that the weather has turned warm again, we can all spend
a little more time outside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are
like me, then you want to combine being outside with eating and drinking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joe and I have developed a pretty good system
of doing just that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when we take it
on the road – that’s when things really get good.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4XXmvAIOzwFAB-JYvEY_YKJRhjb9M7JdS4i6DN6dsWBWwir3O_U5dvVKMAaIZ1cnHG-3OadOmjtGGgHCrobCBk64-4v3gqFV9WJzu4kQjNYfbRedWISD6IiGVwEQOjvTEChgkxC-cG4LW/s1600/Sides.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4XXmvAIOzwFAB-JYvEY_YKJRhjb9M7JdS4i6DN6dsWBWwir3O_U5dvVKMAaIZ1cnHG-3OadOmjtGGgHCrobCBk64-4v3gqFV9WJzu4kQjNYfbRedWISD6IiGVwEQOjvTEChgkxC-cG4LW/s320/Sides.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Please let me explain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t mean that Joe and I are good at getting drunk in public
(although…), I mean that we enjoy a long afternoon of eating a little, drinking
a little and repeating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We developed
this while living in California.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
was a street festival in a little beach town that offered tickets to various
restaurants at a discounted price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
instance the Thai restaurant would sell you a spring roll for 2 tickets, and
tickets were a dollar each.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The point
was to wander around and sample food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Joe and I just took it to the next level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We would try a dish of something, then head
in to a bar to try a drink of something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Usually there were one to two drinks for every dish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The whole event was called a “Stroll and
Savor” but when you outpace the eating with imbibing it quickly becomes a
“Stagger and Savor” which is what we affectionately call it now.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_6YAy4MoCbu8-EyLzXHQ66oMhOXYXetzSNcB3KQV2LN3Ji0OeOoKLnX0WNTn2JYPSKnhdRnPVfF6pvazsedwELnVp6KT0ncfqX0VahV5O2_pa2DpYkBvDEt0-GY_ZL68wrUiFik8gKZly/s1600/Ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_6YAy4MoCbu8-EyLzXHQ66oMhOXYXetzSNcB3KQV2LN3Ji0OeOoKLnX0WNTn2JYPSKnhdRnPVfF6pvazsedwELnVp6KT0ncfqX0VahV5O2_pa2DpYkBvDEt0-GY_ZL68wrUiFik8gKZly/s320/Ingredients.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">We do this still on nice evenings; walk to our bustling one
block main street, sample various appetizers and happy hour specials, then
stagger our way home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How, you may ask,
does this tie into being outside – well I like to sit outside while we are at
restaurants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some people like to get sporty in the sun, I
like to get full.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvP4LFFwyRHMzGu5LrnryYTM4ZPdAmPiQf3dzHO9JGvwL7DVmk4c3ER9zvnuVbuDJkPTZuRdyh5F7FulnYO2rBTVJ2QaY5SjRHiBq2lO1XnKYdvybT6u4hhT7nsx2DKA6hJDoybwIjuEQ/s1600/InBeer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvP4LFFwyRHMzGu5LrnryYTM4ZPdAmPiQf3dzHO9JGvwL7DVmk4c3ER9zvnuVbuDJkPTZuRdyh5F7FulnYO2rBTVJ2QaY5SjRHiBq2lO1XnKYdvybT6u4hhT7nsx2DKA6hJDoybwIjuEQ/s320/InBeer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The first time I ever did something like a stagger and savor
was in Germany at a wine festival.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
were booths of vendors giving away samples of wine and other vendors selling
food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After hitting two or 3 wine
vendors, my friends and I would go to a food vendor and share something like a
crepe or pastry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijM5cWFlHKkLkmLa9sA2-CqpSaewUG1EzsYGWhyphenhyphenBKRyGrDUNKXzbR8kGgdJXEDU9Etn-Gq9CFhCody3m5hcnnmEL5tGd8FBxIF7XkK9WcWK8oQfigwcRRQneS5y9K7DoYx49cVPRDeGfe3/s1600/OnGrill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijM5cWFlHKkLkmLa9sA2-CqpSaewUG1EzsYGWhyphenhyphenBKRyGrDUNKXzbR8kGgdJXEDU9Etn-Gq9CFhCody3m5hcnnmEL5tGd8FBxIF7XkK9WcWK8oQfigwcRRQneS5y9K7DoYx49cVPRDeGfe3/s320/OnGrill.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Where we decided not to share was at the Brat tent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The traditional way to eat German sausage,
was one sausage on a piece of rye bread with lots of onions, sauerkraut and
mustard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are lucky, like we were
on this occasion, you will sit with Germans who ask you disparaging questions
about America and American culture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“No,
not all women marry for money in America. Yes, I understand that all of our
reality-dating shows are based off of that premise. No I cannot offer you any
high-profile examples of for love marriages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yes, I suppose you are right; we are a pretty greedy lot.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPCBVrIQEREGEvZOwCxLzY1hE_eyubakaKHd4NaCyUFXHrfH0bCelbMY9eoFj7wHpuawIp7Hg06rr53nfWaVu8ORV9W-RqkMCWNB7a9W3ze6MzmJtCUJym5_pG1g267eZJusGSmNhktPFT/s1600/Grilling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPCBVrIQEREGEvZOwCxLzY1hE_eyubakaKHd4NaCyUFXHrfH0bCelbMY9eoFj7wHpuawIp7Hg06rr53nfWaVu8ORV9W-RqkMCWNB7a9W3ze6MzmJtCUJym5_pG1g267eZJusGSmNhktPFT/s320/Grilling.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">But really, I would like to focus back on the food
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is super easy to
prepare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hardest part will be in
procuring the best ingredients.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
best to enjoy this meal outside with plenty of cold beer or white wine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you want to stagger around afterwards,
please be my guest.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvedQ-b60iSGd05v9duq1HBekdoXelOKUM60BqOiENm0F2BP47y35j-uQo0v_prUEOGNowopPW6PVxAXYz92StmpOUGOp10j3jOtQGYNERBg1wtZT1Q8hAFVZogtUzDkuerV0qRRJVd9f/s1600/OpenFace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvedQ-b60iSGd05v9duq1HBekdoXelOKUM60BqOiENm0F2BP47y35j-uQo0v_prUEOGNowopPW6PVxAXYz92StmpOUGOp10j3jOtQGYNERBg1wtZT1Q8hAFVZogtUzDkuerV0qRRJVd9f/s320/OpenFace.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Beer Brats <br />
As with most things in life – local is always better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are fortunate enough to find local
sausage, local bread, local sauerkraut and local mustard – do it! If not, try
to get the best quality of all of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For instance the kosher sauerkraut in the refrigerated section of the
grocery store is far better than the canned version.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">4-6 bratwursts, uncooked<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">2 large yellow onions <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">1 large keg can of beer, or 2 bottles of beer (dark or
medium lager is good)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">4-6 slices of 100% rye bread – or dark whole grain loaf<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Fresh sauerkraut<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Strong whole grain mustard<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Poke the sausages with the tip of a sharp knife several times;
this will help prevent the sausages from explodi<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a>ng while
you cook them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place them in a large
saucepan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cut one onion in half, and
then into slices, add to the sauce pan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Next, cut the remaining onion in half and cut off top, but leave the
root end intact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Peel off the skin, and
add the onion halves to the pot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cover
with beer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer for about 10-12
minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check back frequently to make
sure the beer doesn’t boil over. Meanwhile, prepare your grill for the sausages
and the onion halves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Drain the sausages and onions from the beer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reserve the slice onion pieces for the
sandwiches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grill over medium-high heat
the sausages and onion halves until the sausages are golden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Set out a platter with the rye bread,
sauerkraut, boiled onions and mustard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">To serve, each person makes and open-faced sandwich using
the above ingredients; the more mustard and sauerkraut the better. <o:p></o:p></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-47919090920127674032012-04-11T20:12:00.001-04:002012-04-11T20:12:58.694-04:00Pie Fail<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I’ve been in a slump recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I must admit, these last few weeks have
resulted in some epic fails in the kitchen. When that happens I tend to lose my
temper and begin to throw stuff (equipment, food, etc.) around the
kitchen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also then decide not to eat
dinner but to have multiple glasses of wine instead.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG0B-Y24nN2HOiJDpFqr9qIn6JCpyApWDZdigDLQlkzMGSYLjfUvLsm9OZ79f2Mk9_OYVJMYMlVNv4cAb9Hx5uqOnGb5GAh_KiS0uK21z_kJBIE7u5_U44RWWuTeN0W9WhYjzkL-zF2uRp/s1600/Gingersnaps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG0B-Y24nN2HOiJDpFqr9qIn6JCpyApWDZdigDLQlkzMGSYLjfUvLsm9OZ79f2Mk9_OYVJMYMlVNv4cAb9Hx5uqOnGb5GAh_KiS0uK21z_kJBIE7u5_U44RWWuTeN0W9WhYjzkL-zF2uRp/s320/Gingersnaps.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Joe really enjoys it when that happens.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Case in point, I decided to use up some
of the frozen fruit from last summer that is residing in my freezer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had a bunch of frozen strawberries,
rhubarb, blueberries and raspberries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
I figured that a straw<a href="http://www.blogger.com/" name="_GoBack"></a>berry-rhubarb pie would be very
nice for dessert on Easter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, I
have a lovely recipe for strawberry-rhubarb pie that I came up with a few years
ago, that I wanted to try and make again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGObl7pgzSlKTj2btjKbgp_fr7X7mX_caL-Rm2meph0iJkk4MSYeCP5Q2QAuSOXiGoQ-8qqsbpE_KSbfwzfv7Wy7XasV5GGHKn-nBLkKlvnJv59HXivNXD7m4How_uPL8a8tl1oIW9omDB/s1600/Crumbs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGObl7pgzSlKTj2btjKbgp_fr7X7mX_caL-Rm2meph0iJkk4MSYeCP5Q2QAuSOXiGoQ-8qqsbpE_KSbfwzfv7Wy7XasV5GGHKn-nBLkKlvnJv59HXivNXD7m4How_uPL8a8tl1oIW9omDB/s320/Crumbs.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I got out my bags of frozen strawberries
and rhubarb, added them to a sauce pan and began to cook them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought this would help release some of the
juices and extra water from being freezer-burned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nope, I got juice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just straight juice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The strawberries completely disappeared and I
had a saucepan full of liquid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I
added some corn starch and let it bubble.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then I added some fresh sliced strawberries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I had a bright pink warm fruit soup.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1R0RFODZgQOiFfn15TgAWraAbw7gVL3Ctn1OqCBBXtfsnbExqulAhBzkdsSc8nxMUJUwwxWK5WQU7ieuSgK9jJpEadFOub9s5C0-fIfxTckhS5cDM7iYXYOih8KpHIkEqOxdHWTATuFIO/s1600/Crust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1R0RFODZgQOiFfn15TgAWraAbw7gVL3Ctn1OqCBBXtfsnbExqulAhBzkdsSc8nxMUJUwwxWK5WQU7ieuSgK9jJpEadFOub9s5C0-fIfxTckhS5cDM7iYXYOih8KpHIkEqOxdHWTATuFIO/s320/Crust.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So then I turned my attentions to the
crust. It was perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Figures. The one
time I actually manage to crush the cookies fine enough and not add too much
butter, my filling is what doesn’t turn out. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii0if5_jG-lWDhSlGv1YGfVGCoIWLOIEvwi9Hd42PTh_X8dQjTReJysuR63cV_9gq5M4Q2cF_s3I_odnO7hMf46jYBnGlxgHKLMIN5mWfenTu2wwg_IzdYQtsbk3DOjYahetQhW9GvHB55/s1600/Frozen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii0if5_jG-lWDhSlGv1YGfVGCoIWLOIEvwi9Hd42PTh_X8dQjTReJysuR63cV_9gq5M4Q2cF_s3I_odnO7hMf46jYBnGlxgHKLMIN5mWfenTu2wwg_IzdYQtsbk3DOjYahetQhW9GvHB55/s320/Frozen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Not to be deterred, I decided to add egg
yolks to the mixture hoping that when I baked it, it would turn into a custard.
I poured the watery mess into my crust, shut the oven door and proceeded to
pace around the kitchen for the next 45 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I opened the oven door approximately 40
times, which I am sure helped in the cooking process.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6e0Rek_hevoVwpVguDg9R02JNkyrfpSgxQiJx-05vzq4nxx0W2zA0_aqiqNUWVSVC5rPoCQiv3Nvv7GXpzLo-ylj1LPtP1BpEft2PS2KPwtkNnH_BghZW7pwa2XRN-km3xkObeV_JtZt/s1600/Cooking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6e0Rek_hevoVwpVguDg9R02JNkyrfpSgxQiJx-05vzq4nxx0W2zA0_aqiqNUWVSVC5rPoCQiv3Nvv7GXpzLo-ylj1LPtP1BpEft2PS2KPwtkNnH_BghZW7pwa2XRN-km3xkObeV_JtZt/s320/Cooking.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I reported back to Joe every time I
peeked at the pie, “I think it’s gonna work!” Five minutes later, “It’s not
going to work.” Another 2 minutes later, “I think it might just work!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you can see I was delightful on Easter
Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">After the crust started to turn dark
brown, I knew I needed to take the pie out and hope for the best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t jiggly, so I took that as a good
sign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I fell asleep with a full
belly of Easter dinner before we could try the pie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which I should have taken as a bad sign (for
the pie that is).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqt1Eflwu1k4BKuOKBzfUTIWKzFprid1-hoiSEtAoooYsss0g7mWfYDlOkKfIBIPrNLwCaa_aJRnn3TOQowZG2u0FFr1sDfK-ukI5OPKp7LuHk6Yg-Dq67xn7gd9iBVeDSxNi-Vb2QEziv/s1600/PieAbove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqt1Eflwu1k4BKuOKBzfUTIWKzFprid1-hoiSEtAoooYsss0g7mWfYDlOkKfIBIPrNLwCaa_aJRnn3TOQowZG2u0FFr1sDfK-ukI5OPKp7LuHk6Yg-Dq67xn7gd9iBVeDSxNi-Vb2QEziv/s320/PieAbove.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The next day, after dinner I cut into my
pretty pink mess and it slumped all over my pie server.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It failed.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">But it tasted ok, and I have not gotten
sick from it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I’ll take this as not
quite an epic fail, just a normal sized fail.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAf2gVugOgUC61xqleDpt-zlP_4JH8kIYHGJMGxKRMwnkeB72hVsqNHhnmyz-mbhifwwU0lglnNtO2IxA5GQJfdJZzWvBhGlBQ1m33vElMgk7IIuWNqXO_u3_OpMPPGXOTDg8f02aa3ByV/s1600/PieSide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAf2gVugOgUC61xqleDpt-zlP_4JH8kIYHGJMGxKRMwnkeB72hVsqNHhnmyz-mbhifwwU0lglnNtO2IxA5GQJfdJZzWvBhGlBQ1m33vElMgk7IIuWNqXO_u3_OpMPPGXOTDg8f02aa3ByV/s320/PieSide.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Spiced Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie with
Gingersnap Crust<br />
Don’t worry this is the original pie recipe, and if you use fresh fruit your
results will be much better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Crust<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">25-30 Gingersnaps<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c. sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c. flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c. butter, melted<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Filling<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c. slice rhubarb (about ¼” thick)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 pint strawberries, sliced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. cardamom<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. cinnamon<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. nutmeg<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 Tb flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat oven to 350°.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pulse the gingersnaps in a food processor to
begin to crush.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add sugar and flour,
continue pulsing. Drizzle in melted butter until the crumbs have all changed to
a darker color (moistened from the butter).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Press the crumbs firmly into a pie plate,
spreading evenly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake for 15 minutes,
or until the crust is fragrant and crumbs are no longer loose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cool crust slightly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">While the crust bakes, combine rhubarb,
strawberries and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cook for about 5 minutes to release some
moisture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add spices and remove from
heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Toss filling with the 2
Tablespoons of flour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pour mixture into
crust and bake for 35-40 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let
pie cool to set about 2 hours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-36698399755894146922012-03-21T17:18:00.000-04:002012-03-21T17:18:15.854-04:00Gnocchi Guru<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">A friend of mine asked me if I could make
gnocchi this past winter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She told me
that her daughter had gnocchi at an Italian restaurant in New Hersey and had
really enjoyed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was hesitant to
buy the dehydrated shelf stable gnocchi at our local grocery store for fear
that it would not measure up to her daughter’s expectations.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG8xvhNYXK8UdTnbA2N572BEM3YAsOS4CeiZZ6mxxl03LpZT2uzvqcMSpNLqXJ85M7ykCgn3vezZctfzK5sVbXn8Bz8cP-w2fNlSdYhV-j2SCNVjlWwynkjdsVvzEMALlmTfEX1UB_Frgr/s1600/Potatoes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG8xvhNYXK8UdTnbA2N572BEM3YAsOS4CeiZZ6mxxl03LpZT2uzvqcMSpNLqXJ85M7ykCgn3vezZctfzK5sVbXn8Bz8cP-w2fNlSdYhV-j2SCNVjlWwynkjdsVvzEMALlmTfEX1UB_Frgr/s320/Potatoes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I have made gnocchi before, and each time
with different results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have poured
over many a recipe, website and magazine article.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even got a secret family recipe from a
college friend once for his grandmother’s gnocchi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But due to the mixed results I seem to
produce, I was a little hesitant to volunteer to be a gnocchi guru.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTJ6kwj8MgU8FwF4B4DtFLLdTUOVcRktD9RxJQwne1CEFS1uHRoSQqa2BQLvm_eeGZMIhiC3DrIX9MA469Hy0oklLqEO9NGzdf_0MJVpA9pvrrsiy0NLYUE8ZS886dW0D8VFBDe2uU1CTF/s1600/dough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTJ6kwj8MgU8FwF4B4DtFLLdTUOVcRktD9RxJQwne1CEFS1uHRoSQqa2BQLvm_eeGZMIhiC3DrIX9MA469Hy0oklLqEO9NGzdf_0MJVpA9pvrrsiy0NLYUE8ZS886dW0D8VFBDe2uU1CTF/s320/dough.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In looking over even more recipes, I
found one that included some egg, and seemed to give some step by step
instructions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gnocchi could be
produced in a grand total of 2 hours, which is the max attention span time
limit when making food with children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There was enough “waiting” time in which small ones can leave the
kitchen and run around before coming back and getting to work.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtbYFss6-jg7UpZOKI-w__SzRYg49X4W027FZiEVl0bHOmqCh_zgUqGZsSZ_UZL60miXf9-nmI7yfXeynv0H2je2Rpf3cVwINM_utMURGcvzylBeSFNCbgcFahMl2I0NvXEbe6ux3G97Pi/s1600/Rolling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtbYFss6-jg7UpZOKI-w__SzRYg49X4W027FZiEVl0bHOmqCh_zgUqGZsSZ_UZL60miXf9-nmI7yfXeynv0H2je2Rpf3cVwINM_utMURGcvzylBeSFNCbgcFahMl2I0NvXEbe6ux3G97Pi/s320/Rolling.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I find that the most difficult part in
making gnocchi; is making it look good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You can gently roll the little sections of dough off the back of a fork
and create a little groove with dimples or you can simply stick your finger
into each piece and flick it to create a small hallow space.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thankfully, a friend volunteered to do th<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a>at part, which is why these gnocchi look good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I lose patience after about a dozen segments
and the appearance of my gnocchi deteriorate greatly as the process wears on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxvGYUnhMwQl10gso23JF3ZzuoQtBLLiab-Ag-1T6LqWso-n03RWCBexT-mR4uq7BHOToSyEi5KvULhEIHQ4CfHjgrlD0UPn8tFyVbQAc3Y8xhabyuplgNAxOv57do2wkFwZ4Zlofds94g/s1600/Cutting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxvGYUnhMwQl10gso23JF3ZzuoQtBLLiab-Ag-1T6LqWso-n03RWCBexT-mR4uq7BHOToSyEi5KvULhEIHQ4CfHjgrlD0UPn8tFyVbQAc3Y8xhabyuplgNAxOv57do2wkFwZ4Zlofds94g/s320/Cutting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">This was a wonderful project to take on
with friends, children playmates and a little booze.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It make the tedious turn into a joyful
experience, and I think that is exactly the way almost every meal should be
approached. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The adults here were so
enamored with the gnocchi that several very picky children expressed excitement
in trying the end result.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7m2BHluoM2jaCTDkjdPRBrVdjyGIGX8rXzn7vqmudnkAHmDe0AZ7CJCmMlPdlzT6YAkPv8BNO2XestiFKVT9xqtPSvQw3_57V_-TXI07hrFyzKFdU_WZQ8gI-r5d5RgOyecSXKszR-FVh/s1600/Grooving.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7m2BHluoM2jaCTDkjdPRBrVdjyGIGX8rXzn7vqmudnkAHmDe0AZ7CJCmMlPdlzT6YAkPv8BNO2XestiFKVT9xqtPSvQw3_57V_-TXI07hrFyzKFdU_WZQ8gI-r5d5RgOyecSXKszR-FVh/s320/Grooving.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And for the little girl who was to
compare the homemade gnocchi with her restaurant version – she told me it was
even better than that dish she had in New Jersey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that is a pretty wonderful compliment.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVwN7X1Bv6aeWK6YglC74wm6h_y9en56iyPlkZ41ZoriwzoDRjeTAC_MAqPVq643Fc0BTyzuGP6d914zX35WujLoX8TH07VFhT13zOdlSoZK2SvyYoFKQBX-UNiEqW4Eckx1K_A1DLT7MW/s1600/Cooked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVwN7X1Bv6aeWK6YglC74wm6h_y9en56iyPlkZ41ZoriwzoDRjeTAC_MAqPVq643Fc0BTyzuGP6d914zX35WujLoX8TH07VFhT13zOdlSoZK2SvyYoFKQBX-UNiEqW4Eckx1K_A1DLT7MW/s320/Cooked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Homemade Gnocchi<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><a href="http://www.food52.com/users/11890_jenifer_mangione_vogt"><span style="color: blue;">Jenifer Mangione
Vogt</span></a></span></i><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> found on </span><a href="http://www.food52.com/"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><span style="color: blue;">Food52.com</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>1
½ pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed and pricked all over with a fork<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 – 1 ¼ c flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 egg yolks (whites reserved)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Pinch of nutmeg<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Large pinch of salt and pepper<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat the oven to 425</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°. </span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roast the potatoes in their skins for about
45minutes to an hour (depending on their size).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They are done, when the skins appear to be a bit loose, and there are
some darker brown spots on the potatoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Let the potatoes cool.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Peel the potatoes, removing the thicker
tough layer just under the skin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grate
the potatoes on the large holes of a box grater, and place in a large bowl. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Add in the egg yolks, flour, nutmeg, salt
and pepper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Begin to stir this together
to fully incorporate everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once
the mixture becomes more stiff, use your hands to fully combine into a
dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the dough won’t stay together
easily when pinched, add some of the egg whites. Or if the dough seems too wet
and sticky add a bit more flour – keeping in mind you will need some flour to
roll the gnocchi out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Once the mixture is combined, divide it
into 4 even pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll these pieces
out into a ½” diameter rope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cut the
rope into ¾” pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll each piece off
the back of a fork, pressing slightly to make groves in the gnocchi, or simply
press your finger into each piece, roll it gently towards you and then flick it
away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place the gnocchi on a parchment lined baking
sheet in a single layer, and freeze for about 15 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted
water to a boil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once the gnocchi are
frozen, drop 7-10 in the pot at a time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Once they float to the surface, skim them out, and place on a kitchen
towel lined sheet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Repeat with remaining
gnocchi until all are cooked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this
point, you can refreeze the gnocchi to save them for later, or you can add them
to a sauce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">We baked ours in a mixture of cheese,
spinach and heavy cream for an easy gratin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-24793973757161916222012-03-15T10:46:00.001-04:002012-03-15T10:46:16.850-04:00Buns in the Oven<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";">I hope you are marinating your corned beef from <a href="http://kaffee-and-kuchen.blogspot.com/2011/03/luck-o-brine.html"><span style="color: purple;">last year’s recipe</span></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mine is right now, as we ‘speak’ slowly braising away in my crockpot at home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I actually managed to corn it for the appropriate amount of time this year… I know I may be jumping the gun on serving the corned beef tonight rather than on the 17<sup>th</sup>, but why not right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this year, I have for you a hot cross buns recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It comes from the cookbook as I got from a friend during the Smithsonian Folklife Festival.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I shared with you her <a href="http://kaffee-and-kuchen.blogspot.com/2011/10/my-oh-my-its-fish-pie.html"><span style="color: purple;">fish pie recipe</span></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, I neglected to tell you about her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";">Joyce McRaye was a presenter during the Scotland exhibit in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival during the summer of 2003.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine Mrs. Doubtfire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yup that’s Joyce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And although this may sound corny, her and I became instant friends during her two weeks spent with me in a tent kitchen on the National Mall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And here’s where I get really corny; in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anne of Green Gables</i> series (I know, it’s silly but I love them) there’s a phrase that sums it up nicely: The race that knows Joseph.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the books they don’t really even explain it, but there are some people in life that when you meet them you just know they are a kindred soul.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";">Joyce may have been 50 years my senior but we were kindred souls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We got scolded multiple times for giggling too loudly behind the stage when other people were presenting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when I had to interview her during a cooking segment we would just laugh and tell each other inside jokes –it was not my best interview.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";">As a parting gift Joyce gave me her apron, oven mitt, and a cookbook she had helped develop with the Scottish Women’s Rural Association.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have consulted that cookbook many times for various recipes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the oven mitt is the only one I use, every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wonderful thing about the cookbook however is the bluntness with which the recipes are written.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a rural Scottish woman you were expected to know some basics and these recipes are mostly just ideas in paragraph form for various dishes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";">I decided this year for St. Patrick’s Day to make hot cross buns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know using a Scottish cookbook seems a bit heretical, but what the heck right? The buns were hearty with a nice flavor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not at all like the rolls you see in the grocery store around this time of year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you need something to fill you up prior to imbibing gallons of green beer on Saturday, this is a great way to get things started.</span><br />
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Scottish Hot Cross Buns</div>
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The recipe calls for the milk to be ‘blood-warm’. Which I love. You would <em>never</em> see a temperature of an ingredient having anything to do with blood or death here in America. But a Scottish rural woman would know exactly how warm that would be, having probably slaughtered many an animal for dinner. I will spare you and call the temperature lukewarm. Also, this recipe is in grams – there are some conversion tools online if you don’t have a scale.</div>
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<br />
250ml lukewarm milk<br />
¾ package yeast<br />
2 Tb butter<br />
1 Tb sugar<br />
2 eggs, divided<br />
½ tsp. salt<br />
350 grams flour, plus more for kneading<br />
50 grams golden raisins<br />
50 grams candied orange peel, chopped (if you have lemon or lime, that’s fine too)<br />
1 dash cinnamon<br />
1 pinch all spice<br />
1 pinch ground cloves<br />
<br />
For the Glaze:<br />
2 parts powdered sugar to one part orange juice<br />
<br />
Dissolve the yeast in half of the milk, add sugar and let sit for about 5 minutes. Melt the butter in the remaining milk and add to the yeast along with the salt and one egg. Stir together to break up the egg, and then add in the flour. As the dough comes together, move onto a floured surface and knead for about five minutes, or until the dough is smooth and only slightly tacky. <br />
<br />
Place dough in a clean bowl and loosely cover with a kitchen towel. Allow to rise for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. Once rise, punch down the dough and add in raisins, candied peel and spices. Gently knead together; you may have to push in any escaping raisins or bits of peel. <br />
<br />
Cut dough into 8 equal pieces and form into balls. Place in a parchment paper lined 9x13 pan, cover loosely with a towel and allow to double, about an hour. <br />
<br />
Preheat oven to 450°. Beat the remaining egg with a tablespoon of water. Brush the buns with the egg prior to baking. Bake for about 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through until golden brown on top.<br />
<br />
While the buns are baking whisk together the orange juice and sugar. Once buns are cooked and cooled slightly, brush lightly with glaze, and if you are so inclined drizzle a thicker x over the tops of the buns. <br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-82700744517986837962012-02-29T20:16:00.000-05:002012-02-29T20:16:03.359-05:00Lascivious Lentils<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><em>To begin with, I must share a little
story, and then on to the post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A friend
of mine noted on last week’s recipe that he was going to cook it as he was
trying to impress a vegetarian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I
have acted as wing-man before and I am happy to oblige with any kind of recipe
suggestions for just such a purpose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
know that if I was a vegetarian, even if I didn’t really like kale or tofu I
would be very impressed by any man cooking me a vegetarian meal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are certain meals, I think that can
immediately upon seeing the effort that goes into them that can ‘impress’
someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I considered asking him to tell
me after the date and dinner if he succeeded in ‘impressing’ her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if the answer is yes, I may start rating
all of my post on a scale of how likely they are to ‘impress’ someone. (We all
know what I mean by ‘impress’ right?) And, Matt, if that worked the recipe
below might work as well, I rate it a 7 or 8 on the impressing scale.<o:p></o:p></em></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Lentils are apparently a super food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or at least I think they were at some
point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To be honest I am a bit tired of
hearing about super foods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just like
to eat food, ok? So I will eat what I like and if that happens to be extra good
for me, then so be it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I find that
when we brand something as really great for you or cancer defying or age
slaying that people tend to focus too much on consuming only those
products.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Don’t get me wrong, I love the Alice and
Wonderland idea of taking a tiny bite of something that says eat me and then
shrinking down in size.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, we all
know it doesn’t happen that way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
since only celebrities seem to be able to drink kale juice three times a day
for a year, I choose to just stick with my original plan of eating good food
that is also good for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus if I
stuck to only super foods, I would probably subsist on the bad forms of them;
like kale chips, sweet potato fries and blueberry muffins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">However, if you have not tried lentils
before; please do, they are lovely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
may have even already unwittingly eaten lentils in an Indian dish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many different kinds of lentils
that when recipes call for specific ones (orange, split, French and so on) it
can be overwhelming, especially since my grocery store only carries one
kind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And those are just labeled
“Lentils”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">These regular lentils are a bit softer
and will cook faster than French lentils, and thus they can lose their shape a
bit as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But they are cheap and
readily available and I think they work very well here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another great thing about this recipe is that
it is quick and relatively easy to make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I like to top the whole thing with some Italian sausage (local or
chicken sausage to keep it on the healthy side) but the lentils with vegetables
on their own are quite tasty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Lentils with fennel<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from Gourmet 2007<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c lentils<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">4 c water<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 large carrots, diced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 large fennel bulb with fronds, bulb
diced and fronds chopped<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 medium onion<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="" name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp fennel seeds<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c fresh chopped parsley<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1/8 c red wine vinegar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a medium saucepan over high heat,
combine lentils, water and a large pinch of salt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and
simmer, uncovered for about 15-20 minutes, or until lentils are tender.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some may split but most should still retain their
shape. Reserve about ¼ c of the cooking water and drain lentils.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">While the lentils are cooking, heat the
olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sauté the carrots, fennel, onion and fennel
seeds stirring occasionally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cover and
continue cooking about 10 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add in cooked lentils, fennel fronds, parsley
and red wine, if the mixture looks a bit dry add in the reserved cooking
water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Season with salt and pepper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">If using sausage, prick the sausages with
the tip of a knife and cook in a separate pan while the vegetables are
cooking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once fully cooked, move the
sausages to a cutting board and slice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Serve the lentils topped with sausages.<o:p></o:p></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-25164570463583665592012-02-23T13:58:00.000-05:002012-02-23T13:58:35.051-05:00Terrifying TofuMy uncle seems to think that tofu is an evil substance. He tells me that if you bless the food prior to eating and tofu is on the table it will vanish. He refuses to believe that it can be good under certain circumstances, and I am sure he is not alone on that. Although I am tempted to sneak tofu into some sort of holiday dish and not tell anyone. But don’t worry Uncle Bob, I wouldn’t do that to you.<br />
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Recently a lot of people it seems are trying to eat more vegan meals in an effort to get healthy. Well, this meal does that. In fact the only way I could convince Joe to have this meal the other night was by making a leftover package of crescent rolls from the super bowl to accompany the tofu and veggies. I’ve made this dish before and I am in love with it. When you eat a ton of it, you have that good full feeling, like when eating sushi. I love that feeling. And this dish is super easy, fairly cheap and very quick to make. You just have to get over any lingering fears of tofu first.<br />
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The trick to tofu, is to (1) buy the good stuff and (2) let it drain of most of its moisture. If you can find locally made tofu, or some other artisan brand, definitely buy that, it will have a better texture and even taste. Next, the day before you make this dish, take the tofu out of its package and set it into another container, it will help with the drying out process. To drain the tofu; slice it, then lay it out on paper towels (or kitchen towels), top with paper towels and let sit for about 10 minutes. I usually change out the paper towels once. This will ensure that once you start cooking the tofu it won’t splatter like crazy, and also that it can absorb whatever flavors you are cooking with.<br />
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So if you haven’t tried tofu, or have and it was terrible; give this recipe a shot. You might be surprised. But if you bless the food, and the tofu disappears, at least I warned you.<br />
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Tofu with Kale and Sweet Potatoes<br />
<br />
1lb. extra firm tofu, removed from liquid, sliced into ¼” pieces<br />
2 Tb. Whole grain mustard<br />
1 Tb. Dijon mustard<br />
2 Tb. Olive oil, divided<br />
2 Tb. Fresh ginger, minced<br />
1 medium yellow onion, sliced<br />
2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into ¼” rounds<br />
1 large bag of kale (stems removed if still attached to leaves)<br />
1 lime<br />
1 Tb. Water if necessary<br />
<br />
First, drain tofu on paper towels for at least 10 to 15 minutes. Next, in a small bowl, combine mustards and then spread on one side of the tofu slices. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place the tofu slices, mustard side down and sauté for about 3-4 minutes, or until the mustard has formed a golden brown crust. While the tofu is cooking, spread the other side of each slice with more of the mustard. Flip the tofu slices gently and continue cooking 3-4 minutes. Move the slices out of the pan, and set aside. <br />
<br />
Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the same skillet. Add the onion and ginger and sauté for about 2 minutes or until fragrant. Next add sweet potato slices and as much kale as will fit in the pan. Squeeze half of the lime juice over, and toss everything to coat. Cover the pan and allow to steam about 2 minutes. Continue adding kale until all of it is in the pan. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are softened. Squeeze the remaining half of the lime over everything.<br />
<br />
To serve, place the kale and sweet potato mixture onto plates and top with tofu.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-82386992658091484292012-02-08T17:34:00.000-05:002012-02-08T17:34:37.646-05:00The Have Knots<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I don’t know if you have ever heard of
garlic knots, but they are wonderful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They blow “cheesy breadsticks” out of the water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or rather they make cement shoes for cheesy
breadsticks and sink them in the bottom of a remote lake in New Jersey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, garlic knots have the mafia toughness of
any decent snack or side dish in the tri-state area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Please let me explain my love for garlic
knots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I am a firm believer in the after-school
snack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I used to eat a bowl of cereal
every day upon returning from school when I was young.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then when friends began driving, we were able
to expand our dining options beyond the family kitchen – and I discovered the
garlic knot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friends and I would
visit various pizza places and this was always my menu item of choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Others got slices of pizza or even a shake or
something, but I preferred a small order of garlic knots.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">They are exactly what you are imagining
right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Garlic + Something tied in a
knot = boom garlic knot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s like an
Italian pretzel but a little more bad-ass. And they are amazingly easy to make
at home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus anytime you add something
to a dinner that has been tossed in garlic butter, I think the entire meal gets
elevated to a whole other level: French fries tossed with garlic and butter –
pommes frites.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Need I say more?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">It helps to serve garlic knots warm and
covered in an unhealthy amount of butter and garlic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a side bowl of marinara sauce doesn’t
hurt either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can make these with any
kind of pizza dough you prefer, although I like fresh dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the next time you make homemade pizza,
pinch off a bit of dough and make a few garlic knots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You won’t be disappointed. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Garlic Knots<br />
This dough recipe is for one large pizza, so it will make about 12 - 16 garlic
knots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can always make some pizza
and save a little of the dough for the knots, or have a feast of garlic knots
one night.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 package yeast<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c warm water<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 tsp sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 Tb. Olive Oil, divided<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 ½ c flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 egg, beaten<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">4 cloves garlic, chopped<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c butter<o:p></o:p></span><br />
F<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">resh chopped parsley, optional<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt to taste<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">To make the dough, dissolve yeast in warm
water in the bowl of a large stand mixer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After about 5 minutes, when the mixture is a bit frothy, stir in sugar,
salt and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mix
in the flour until well incorporated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Move dough onto a lightly floured surface and work into a ball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clean out the bowl and then oil with the
remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Place the dough back in the bowl, and toss to coat in oil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and allow
to rise for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When the dough has risen, preheat the
oven to 425</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Punch down the dough and divide into 4
pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take each piece and divide into
3 or 4 pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each piece should be the
size of 1 ½ golf balls (I was going to say paddle ball from the game you play
at the beach, but most people won’t get that reference).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll into a log and then tie into a knot,
similar to making a pretzel, but pull the ends so that there is no gap.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place onto a greased cookie sheet, and
repeat with the remaining dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brush
each knot with beaten egg.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake for
10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Meanwhile melt butter in a sauce pan over medium -low heat, add in the
garlic and a generous pinch of salt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Once the garlic knots are done baking, place them in a large bowl, and
drizzle the garlic butter mixture over them, tossing to coat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sprinkle with salt and parsley, and serve
immediately.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-44547121290633337322012-01-25T20:08:00.000-05:002012-01-25T20:08:54.477-05:00A Kilo of Spinach<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Shopping overseas can be a
tricky business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re never quite sure
if what you’re asking for makes sense, and you don’t really understand the
responses you get.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has happened to
me a few times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In visiting Mexico once
with some friends, I had been prepped for some simple questions in
Spanish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wanting to try out my newly
acquired knowledge, I proudly asked our cab driver </span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">¿</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Cuanto cuesta?
And then stood there staring at him when he answered me in rapid fire
Spanish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friends agreed I should work
on understanding the answers to those questions.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Another time, when I was in
Germany I went to get my hair cut and colored.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I had an idea for what I wanted but surprisingly, “A trip to the Hair
Salon” was not one of the vocabulary units we studied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After muddling through what I wanted, the
hair stylist nodded and said no problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Many highlight foils and a good hour and a half later, she took out
everything from my hair and called another stylist over for consultation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had not yet seen my hair in the mirror.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After some whispers – they both told me it
looked awesome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was dubious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wound up with three very distinct highlight
chunks on my head – white, brown and copper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was pretty shocking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However,
I did not, for the life of me, know how to tell her anything besides how
awesome it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I finally determined
that my hair was pretty cool; cooler than me, so I would just have to pretend.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrt5jfeX5XXGB7-EsBTd9wu_2kMhMrl9XoSPJ27728PjLx0OBMHx6EsT84Cf1LsgOB22lypOU6odCh9ufsu1xJkjfWOwYv0CGjZubyL9uqzaF2fLhwByrXXh4epxwHBwfOkDT8bWO5UzI/s1600/FrozenSpinach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrt5jfeX5XXGB7-EsBTd9wu_2kMhMrl9XoSPJ27728PjLx0OBMHx6EsT84Cf1LsgOB22lypOU6odCh9ufsu1xJkjfWOwYv0CGjZubyL9uqzaF2fLhwByrXXh4epxwHBwfOkDT8bWO5UzI/s320/FrozenSpinach.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">And the other time shopping
in a foreign language has left me with deleterious results was also in
Germany.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was walking past the gypsy
farm stands behind my dorm and saw a very good price for fresh spinach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figured, why not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, the price for spinach was by the
kilogram.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When asked how much spinach I
wanted, I froze. Extreme panic set in as I scrambled to try and remember what
the other delineations of metric weight were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are milligrams, centigrams, decigrams, grams, something,
something, kilograms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had literally
no idea how much spinach I wanted nor did I know what measure I should use in
the purchase.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I told the gypsy ‘Ein
Kilo’ – one kilo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a lot of
spinach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After cramming a plastic
shopping bag full of spinach he looked at me and told me it wasn’t quite a
kilo, and did I want it anyways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
nodded yes. (Similar to <a href="http://www.kaffee-and-kuchen.blogspot.com/2011/09/sungold-sludge.html" target="_blank">my tomato experience</a> this summer).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I completely forgot that I could order the
spinach the EXACT SAME way I do here – half a kilo, a quarter kilo, all would
have worked just as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if I had managed
to remember hectogram I’m sure the gypsy would have thought I was even more
crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So in honor of accidentally
ordering way too much spinach, I would like to share the following recipe with
you. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">A friend of mine made this
last winter, and I have been mildly obsessed with it ever since.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The original recipe is a bit different and
calls for more ingredients.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally,
I like this simple version and I don’t think you miss out on any flavor.<o:p></o:p></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Green Quinoa<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from Martha Rose
Shulman, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">New York Times</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> 1 box frozen chopped
spinach, thawed<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 ¾ c water, divided<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 small onion, diced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 cloves garlic, minced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c quinoa, rinsed if
necessary<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a blender or food
processor, combine spinach and ¾ cup water and puree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There will still be some chunks of spinach,
but as long as it is mostly liquefied, it will be fine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a medium saucepan over
medium-high heat, sauté the onion in the olive oil until translucent, about 5
minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next add garlic, quinoa and a
pinch of salt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sauté about 3 more
minutes, stirring constantly to toast the quinoa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add in remaining one cup of water, bring to a
simmer, cover and cook for about 5 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Next add in the spinach puree, and another pinch of salt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for about 15
to 20 minutes, or until the quinoa is cooked and the liquid is absorbed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fluff with a fork , check for seasonings and
serve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-72312928341479830262012-01-18T18:07:00.000-05:002012-01-18T18:07:47.849-05:00Hmm Bread<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I love baking bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, specifically I love <em>trying</em> to bake
bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know what it is,
especially considering my almost constant failures at each attempt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I love it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I keep coming back for more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Sophomore year of college offered me a
unique opportunity to try out bread baking – I had a kitchen in my dorm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was still when I was actually a pretty
terrible cook and I would experiment quite regularly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took my mother’s Homemade Bread Baking book
back to college with me and began trying things out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may be thinking to yourself – what about
studying Jamie? Yeah I didn’t do a lot of that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I did however manage to read the Lord of The Rings trilogy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I made bread.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkplVE8SNreDF1LuSDY4yAfrfwhY10pYNAkumzLeXY0J-12Lhzrn0XquTAi0pW4Uil5XKA7sjkYBzYULMpovGdKYKRzvHJU5jD6wKvzMP21raANg-AJ4aIAj1d7a0Ki6x4Zo62tCMvkqg_/s1600/Dough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkplVE8SNreDF1LuSDY4yAfrfwhY10pYNAkumzLeXY0J-12Lhzrn0XquTAi0pW4Uil5XKA7sjkYBzYULMpovGdKYKRzvHJU5jD6wKvzMP21raANg-AJ4aIAj1d7a0Ki6x4Zo62tCMvkqg_/s320/Dough.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Now most of the ‘bread’ I am referring to
was largely inedible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I used different
flours and completely disregarded proportions of whole grains to all-purpose
flour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Typically, a recipe for bread
will yield two loves; mine never did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wound up with small loaf pan shaped bricks of varying shades of greyish-brown.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not recommend trying to make 100%
buckwheat bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In fact most of my attempts ended in such
failure that my college roommate at one point begged me to stop making
bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her exact words upon coming into
the room one day were “Did you try making bread again?” and I had to sheepishly
admit that yes, despite it smelling like freshly baked bread in our dorm, I had
produced a 3 pound edible brick (edible being negotiable).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think I single-handedly kept the demand for
flour at the Watergate Safeway grocery store much higher than usual.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4pxGy0I1QnbH0CnYMBg0uUE0jKxTrOKBLGxd_NehEItuBNdzJz3lN8xWlzbP8aHBLvSLGCym2_ew9NVa1SpMG-7tT3uCSAh4zs2QBQGU_5IM771x_OntosSa7fRPyXuFW3y1F-pooBFo/s1600/Butter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix4pxGy0I1QnbH0CnYMBg0uUE0jKxTrOKBLGxd_NehEItuBNdzJz3lN8xWlzbP8aHBLvSLGCym2_ew9NVa1SpMG-7tT3uCSAh4zs2QBQGU_5IM771x_OntosSa7fRPyXuFW3y1F-pooBFo/s320/Butter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I have since gotten a little bit
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I am still not great at
making bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can make a really good
Challah thanks to hundreds of tries during my run with the Jewish Cookbook
author.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I can make some other
passable breads.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I am by no means an
expert.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I wanted to share a bread
recipe with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As long as you follow
the directions (very few) and allow the dough to rise (which I forgot once)
then you will have some very health and (almost) fool-proof bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Whole Grain Bread<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from <em>Mother Earth News</em> December 2009</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">This bread works on a pretty simple
formula.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, there are no
sweeteners in the recipe, so the bread will be very “healthy” tasting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it is very nice toasted and slathered
in butter and jam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to
experiment with different grains and flours but be sure to keep the ratio the
same each time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">5 cups flour (I use all white-whole
wheat, but a combo of all-purpose, whole wheat, bread flour etc. could work as
well)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cups other grains (such as Bob’s Red
Mill hot cereals, bran, wheat germ, instant oatmeal etc.)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c vital wheat gluten<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 packets yeast (1 ½ Tb)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tsp. Kosher salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cups warm water<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Wisk together all of the dry ingredients
in the bowl of an electric stand mixer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Add warm water (about 90-100</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">F), and using the paddle attachment, mix
until the dough just starts to come together in a ball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and
allow to rise for about 2 hours, or until the dough has risen and then
collapsed back in on itself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Next, loosely cover the bowl with plastic
wrap and refrigerate overnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When you are ready to bake, take about
1/3 of the dough from the bowl and return the bowl to the refrigerator, and use
the remaining dough throughout the week (yup it will keep).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Working quickly, shape the dough into a ball,
without kneading.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Using your hands, tuck
the edges of the dough up under and towards the center of the mass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, place the ball onto a piece of
parchment paper and push into a cylinder shape. Cover loosely with a kitchen
towel and allow to warm up and rise for about 90 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">At 60 minutes in, preheat the oven to 450</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place a baking stone<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>on the center rack and a heavy duty cookie
sheet on the very top rack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After 30
minutes, make several diagonal cuts into the top of the bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place the dough on the parchment paper
onto the baking stone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pour 1 ½ cups of
water into the cookie sheet in the top pan and quickly shut the oven door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake bread for about 45 minutes, turning the
cookie sheet as necessary to brown evenly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>About 10 minutes before it is done, slide the bread off of the paper and
directly onto the stone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Allow the bread to cool and serve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Repeat baking steps throughout the week with
the remaining dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baked bread can be
frozen as well, so if you bake it, store it wrapped in plastic and aluminum
foil in the freezer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-25628267835438627112012-01-11T18:45:00.000-05:002012-01-11T18:45:07.754-05:00Breakfast, Lunch, Chicken<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When I was a freshman I would pass a
restaurant on the way to an after-school program I volunteered at that had a
sign out front – Breakfast, Lunch, Chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No and, no dinner, just chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I loved it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They served
breakfast, yup, lunch, sure and oh chicken. It still makes me chuckle to think
about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Now, Joe loves roast chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may be his favorite meal, although
claiming an all-encompassing favorite meal is tricky and forces a commitment I
just don’t think anyone can rightfully make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But he sure does love roast chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I like to roast chicken for the leftovers and usefulness a poultry
carcass can offer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stock, soup, chicken
pot pie, chicken salad, chicken and biscuits – the list goes on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So for the price of one chicken you can get
approximately 3 meals out of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like
those economics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnZPxhsoeh0j0OvtIypaA8rdbf1jKn3kjbrhQDkLfFdWeL2AbdElVFjGieI2kAGJl8WbukKAqnZaWWuhhyphenhyphensDBJAgIoYqfXftzTHeyBHnCHJC90cDiW5Swc3SgvHFj2oAHqsGan2iPeJ3zy/s1600/Trussing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnZPxhsoeh0j0OvtIypaA8rdbf1jKn3kjbrhQDkLfFdWeL2AbdElVFjGieI2kAGJl8WbukKAqnZaWWuhhyphenhyphensDBJAgIoYqfXftzTHeyBHnCHJC90cDiW5Swc3SgvHFj2oAHqsGan2iPeJ3zy/s320/Trussing.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I think here it is important to note that
an organic chicken will roast and taste much better than a conventional
chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes the price is higher and the
bird smaller, but it will make all the difference in this recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Conventional birds have a lot of fat on
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So much that I doubt this recipe
would turn out well if everything was soaked in that much partially warmed
chicken fat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t like to tell people
what to eat when it comes to organic, free-range, local, vegan, sustainable or
whatever because everyone has a budget to deal with and their own ideas and
feelings in regards to food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, in
this instance if you purchase an organic bird and taste the results of roasting
it in this manner – you will not be disappointed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(And you may not go back to conventional
whole birds).<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">It has taken me a few tries to perfect
this, or at least to feel confident enough to share it with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The greatest mistake I make in roasting
chicken is to not give myself enough time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I would like to think that I can come home from work, wash dishes, clean
up and roast chicken all in about 2 hours – nope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It always turns out undercooked and not
nearly as wonderful, as when I give the chicken its proper time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the next time you have 4 hours – yes 4
hours (it might be more like 3 and a half) before dinner needs to be done –
roast a chicken.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Don’t let the 4 hour time scare you; you
will only be active for hmm about 30 minutes of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We found out this method from Thomas Kellers’
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ad Hoc at Home</i> and it really changed
the way I roast chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s very
simple and really, really makes some outstanding chicken.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
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<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Roast Chicken and Vegetables<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ad Hoc at Home</i><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">If you don’t have kitchen twine and the
thought of trussing a chicken (think poultry bondage) scares you, don’t worry
about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just try to cross the chickens
legs and use a toothpick to pin the flap of skin up over the cavity of the
bird.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you don’t want to do that –
don’t even worry about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Chicken<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 whole chicken<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ large onion, cut in chunks<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cloves garlic, smashed (not chopped)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 bay leaf<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ lemon, cut into 4 pieces<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 sprigs Fresh thyme, or 1 tsp. dried
thyme<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. dried rosemary<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt and Pepper<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Vegetables<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Remainder of large onion, cut into chunks<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cloves garlic, smashed<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 medium carrots, cut into ½” slices<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 stalks celery, cut into ½” slices<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">6 or 7 small red potatoes, cut in half<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into ½”
slices<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 medium turnip, peeled and cut into ½”
chunks<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 sprigs fresh Thyme<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. dried rosemary<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> <span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ </span>tsp. dried marjoram (if you have it)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt and pepper<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c white wine (optional)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">First, take the chicken out of its
packaging, rinse and pat dry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Allow to
sit at room temperature for an hour. (This is not long enough to worry about
food poisoning)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">After about 45 minutes, begin prepping
the vegetables and preheat the oven to 475</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sprinkle the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place the onion pieces, garlic, lemon, bay
leaf, thyme and rosemary inside the cavity of the chicken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tuck the wings of the chicken underneath the
breast, you may have to break the wings in order for them to stay there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If trussing the chicken, take a piece of
twine about 3 feet long and move it under the middle of the bird.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next bring each side of the twine up over the
wing joints, and along the bottom edge of the chicken breasts, crossing over at
the opening of the cavity – this will plump up the chicken breast. Next, take the
twine and wrap them over and then under the legs tying the legs together and
closing off the cavity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make sure the
little tail flap is tucked up underneath the legs, so that the cavity is
completely closed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Rub the outside of the chicken with
another sprinkle of salt and pepper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place the remaining vegetables in a cast
iron skillet, o<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a>r heavy roasting pan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Toss with olive oil, thyme, rosemary,
marjoram, salt and pepper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place the
chicken on top of the vegetables.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Place pan on the center rack in oven with
the legs and bottom of the bird facing inwards and cook for 45 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, turn the oven down to 400</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> and continue
to cook for about another hour, or until the chicken is fully cooked. Turn the
pan at the time you lower the temperature so that the breast is now facing the
inside of the oven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>About 20 minutes
into the lower heat cooking time, check the vegetables to make sure there is
enough liquid in the pan, if not pour in white wine and continue to cook.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The chicken is done when I thermometer
inserted into the thigh reads 160</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">, and the juice from the chicken runs
clear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You should also have a nice
reduced chicken gravy in the pan with the softened vegetables.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Allow chicken to rest for about 15 minutes
before carving and serve with vegetables and pan juices.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-36859497664398122402012-01-04T08:18:00.001-05:002012-01-04T08:18:39.340-05:00Happy New Year. I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to begin another new year. To get things started right I thought I would share another breakfast recipe with you. Because, if breakfast is the most important meal of the day, then it must be at least equally so for the first breakfast of the New Year.<br />
<br />
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I know some people like to eat foods that will bring them luck in the New Year; black eyed peas, marzipan pigs, and my personal favorite, pickled herring. Yes, that’s right pickled herring. Now, I am not one to turn away foods, but this is one point where I might make an exception. I can clearly remember my grandmother plucking a slimy silver chunk of fish from a bowl at the stroke of midnight, tilting her head back and swallowing. Well, she most likely used a fork and a small plate, but in my childhood memories, she used her fingers and swallowed those suckers whole. I have no idea if she liked pickled herring, but I do know that she liked disgusting her granddaughters with them. <br />
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Apparently my grandmothers’ family believed that eating pickled herring at midnight on New Year’s Eve would bring good luck and good fortune in the coming year. And it would be just like her to make sure she ate one every year at midnight whether she wanted to or not. It was the proper thing to do. Since my grandmother passed away no one has even mentioned procuring a jar of pickled herring, and I don’t think anyone misses the smell. <br />
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For me ringing in the New Year is about having fun with family and or friends. And as long as I can stay awake until midnight (naps are allowed in my book) then it was a successful night. This year Joe and I had friends come visit us in Maine for the holiday and it was wonderful. Complete with sparkly New Year’s Eve tops for all the girls and coordinating Crayola hair extensions purchased from the local grocery store. Yes Crayola apparently makes hair extensions. <br />
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And then in the morning we all awoke at a reasonably late hour, decided to nix the polar bear plunge idea, and cracked open the last two bottles of champagne for mimosas. Using up the holiday Panettone in French toast was a great way to get ready to sit and watch hours upon hours of sports. <br />
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French Toast Panettone <br />
Panettone is a sweet Italian egg bread studded with candied fruits and nuts and can be found in pretty much any grocery store around the holidays. The idea for this came when Joe and I had purchased a large panettone and were unable to eat it before it went stale. Any kind of stale bread makes great French toast.<br />
<br />
1 panettone<br />
4 eggs<br />
¾ c whole milk (or half and half)<br />
¼ c cugar<br />
1 tsp. vanilla<br />
Bacon grease or butter for cooking.<br />
<br />
Slice the panettone into reasonable sized pieces, or if you like the comedic large slices, go ahead and use those. If the bread is fresh allow it to sit out for about an hour before cooking so that the slices are a bit stale.<br />
<br />
Whisk the eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. <br />
<br />
Preheat a griddle over medium heat and add bacon grease or butter (I usually make bacon in shifts to keep the griddle perpetually coated in grease – remember the <a href="http://www.kaffee-and-kuchen.blogspot.com/2010/08/step-4-have-heart-attack.html" target="_blank">pancakes</a> recipe? Yeah.)<br />
<br />
Dredge the sliced of panettone in the egg and milk mixture and carefully place onto griddle. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, flipping occasionally. Be sure the bread is cooked through - it should be a little stiff and should not ooze any of the egg when you press it with the back of a spatula. <br />
<br />
Repeat dredging slices and cooking until all of the bread has been used up. Place cooked French toast on a platter and keep in a warm oven until ready to serve.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-67886266076967314652011-12-16T09:21:00.000-05:002011-12-16T09:21:16.697-05:00Almost Almond MacaroonsWe have come to the end of the cookie testing, and I am glad that I did it. I had a few hits and a few more misses. And as per usual, I have left the most difficult cookie recipe to try for this weekend. So if you hear me cursing and throwing ingredients around the kitchen, don’t be alarmed. <br />
<br />
In hindsight I wish that I had really cooked the s**t out of some new cookie recipes, but alas my time was taken away from me. So I apologize for only giving you a couple of usable cookie recipes and only a few posts this month as well. I feel as though I have really dropped the ball on this whole sharing recipes for the holiday’s thing. <br />
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This week I made almond macaroons after seeing an old episode of Baking with Julia. The cookies seemed so simple to make, and are a favorite Italian bakery treat for Joe and I. I figured, why not. Instead of using the recipe from that episode (mostly because it called for 8 oz. of almond paste and I could only find a tube of 7oz.) I instead used the recipe inside the box. And typically, this method works out just fine. Well, except for the Tollhouse chocolate chip recipe on the bag, I find that it is a little too much butter if you don’t refrigerate the dough before baking, but that’s just me.<br />
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Anyways, this recipe gives you very almond-y flavored cookies which is wonderful, but they are a bit too chewy for me. I feel like a dog eating peanut butter when I chomp into one of the cookies. Aside from that, the cookies are good, and simple to make. <br />
<br />
I think I have narrowed down my Christmas cookie selection to the following:<br />
<a href="http://orangette.blogspot.com/2011/10/out-on-this-limb.html" target="_blank">Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies </a><br />
White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies<br />
<a href="http://www.chow.com/recipes/30219-split-second-cookies" target="_blank">Jam Filled Cookies </a><br />
Chocolate Mint Cookies <a href="http://kaffee-and-kuchen.blogspot.com/2011/11/another-look-at-cookies.html" target="_blank">(previous post)</a><br />
<a href="http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/05/rainbow-cookies" target="_blank">Italian Tri-Colore Cookies </a><br />
And if the mood strikes me, maybe something else.<br />
I’ll let you know next week which ones worked out the best!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1nvK4Ug4lNKCrlwfL3GM5NF643aQgaO7HunTP2oOYqutBv0JdXFUKitIXczJKr_G9ZZ3M-9Yqs0dQsMh-Jcb1BFhlo5PTD4tpiIepFcjK2Q7FiIVYEhyvK9jOeYYYHp_S8hJUiBZn_Sn9/s1600/WithEspresso.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1nvK4Ug4lNKCrlwfL3GM5NF643aQgaO7HunTP2oOYqutBv0JdXFUKitIXczJKr_G9ZZ3M-9Yqs0dQsMh-Jcb1BFhlo5PTD4tpiIepFcjK2Q7FiIVYEhyvK9jOeYYYHp_S8hJUiBZn_Sn9/s320/WithEspresso.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<strong>Almond Macaroons</strong>7oz. Almond paste<br />
½ c sugar<br />
Pinch of salt<br />
¼ c egg whites<br />
<br />
<br />
Preheat oven to 350°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.<br />
<br />
Grate the almond paste and place in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the sugar and salt and mix on medium speed to thoroughly combine. Add in egg whites and mix until the dough everything is well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl several times (about 5-7 minutes).<br />
<br />
Scoop cookie dough into a pastry bag, or releasable bag and snip off one corner. Pipe the dough in a snail like formation onto the cookie sheet. <br />
<br />
Next dampen a cotton kitchen towel and gently smack the cookies to remove the lines from piping. Bake for about 12 minutes or until the edges are a light golden brown.<br />
<br />
Let cool on the baking sheet. To remove the cookies from the paper, lift the paper, wet your fingers, and moisten the paper directly underneath the cookie. Then peel the cookie from the paper. This will help get the cookie cleanly off of the paper. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 2 dozen.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-11529313359212757682011-12-01T05:59:00.001-05:002011-12-01T06:03:53.599-05:00Fun in Foil<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">This post will not be about cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will admit to being weak-minded and buying
cookies this week at the supermarket.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And when you already have some cookies in the cupboard, then you really
oughtn’t make more cookies on top of that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVUv1KvsLqH7OGT67pXVK9PN8BdgE9VDAl9L4tC6DdDTvweJuxisLDwBL_ZytLaz_ICVmyGCrOM4saFDlr4RjW_UG-HGQB-3NzCxZjN3Uuh4s7MEUlS9pvBxQqih_Bs3t9zs2nI-vpL97n/s1600/HamAndLeek.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVUv1KvsLqH7OGT67pXVK9PN8BdgE9VDAl9L4tC6DdDTvweJuxisLDwBL_ZytLaz_ICVmyGCrOM4saFDlr4RjW_UG-HGQB-3NzCxZjN3Uuh4s7MEUlS9pvBxQqih_Bs3t9zs2nI-vpL97n/s320/HamAndLeek.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Or at least that’s how I am dealing with
my guilt about not producing another cookie recipe for you, and right before
the Holidays too, sheesh.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-A2z5vvm3JvCq5Obee1diTOiFrRAcfWDh4SF1tnKRT_Gn9EaNStXPtKK63sq9C3x9S_kxCgeY4aI8mEZrBJDpFn0tk7ORB40BtKkkaJ8OZeMklyQ7DexaDxbapIlXebO258DJVOFAcRY8/s1600/Soup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-A2z5vvm3JvCq5Obee1diTOiFrRAcfWDh4SF1tnKRT_Gn9EaNStXPtKK63sq9C3x9S_kxCgeY4aI8mEZrBJDpFn0tk7ORB40BtKkkaJ8OZeMklyQ7DexaDxbapIlXebO258DJVOFAcRY8/s320/Soup.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Instead, I wanted to share with you some
pictures from Thanksgiving and one of the recipes I have now made a few times
which will be good all winter and into early spring.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWs8pqFzLSwy353NpEoyTJpubTnvNEE_I7WoWLzMAAOqfVRM_N1dfkyW9JTk4f54E1qK0wl7MG5z9bpKstj05pkYWeFCYxJwoD_u8Ije1HdR0sJnU3MlyjcNWoXGt0ZfLBo7AP7J_CLcVJ/s1600/MapleWine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWs8pqFzLSwy353NpEoyTJpubTnvNEE_I7WoWLzMAAOqfVRM_N1dfkyW9JTk4f54E1qK0wl7MG5z9bpKstj05pkYWeFCYxJwoD_u8Ije1HdR0sJnU3MlyjcNWoXGt0ZfLBo7AP7J_CLcVJ/s320/MapleWine.jpg" width="291" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As you know I grew some beets and leeks
(I actually managed to get 3 leeks!) in my tiny little garden this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I had a surplus of beets on hand come the
end of harvest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love the idea of eating
things that don’t necessarily seem to work together – and that is what this
recipe is all about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is incredibly
easy to prepare and is a very different way to get that side of vegetables onto
your dinner plate.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEYeBzg0TjhZGRhYfL3GD0DR9qBJvqaV9X7HVzyMgnnmMB2eQOK35IFfg-3MOOpfXKl0MRq7KsVahEdAQPiecm3utXigbmHgtcUQ5lWDTLhsgnkGeB0qtiPZ83ZmczNe62vkrJscAIQZ3/s1600/Crates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEYeBzg0TjhZGRhYfL3GD0DR9qBJvqaV9X7HVzyMgnnmMB2eQOK35IFfg-3MOOpfXKl0MRq7KsVahEdAQPiecm3utXigbmHgtcUQ5lWDTLhsgnkGeB0qtiPZ83ZmczNe62vkrJscAIQZ3/s320/Crates.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I do recommend using Chioggia, golden or
even white beets as standard beets will stain all of your pretty vegetables a
bright pink.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you can find
multi-colored carrots, use those too – it really ups the pretty factor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAr9tOE0xYZi_OR8zNLSJHjGCGnOJfr94z4SGoVj1BsDXgZniTEANIszXWa2D5M5zQPo2Chkh6nsONoVF6vy3HREfJUVTzOM0MU9sSlrwp-qCY180OHFAItQ8Y_cgnhgnJVoZNnaX8pEN/s1600/Leaning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAr9tOE0xYZi_OR8zNLSJHjGCGnOJfr94z4SGoVj1BsDXgZniTEANIszXWa2D5M5zQPo2Chkh6nsONoVF6vy3HREfJUVTzOM0MU9sSlrwp-qCY180OHFAItQ8Y_cgnhgnJVoZNnaX8pEN/s320/Leaning.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Beets, Carrots and Leeks in foil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2-3 medium beets (Chioggia, golden or
white)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2-3 medium carrots<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 large leek<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3Tb white wine<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">3 sprigs of fresh thyme<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp dried tarragon (or 1 ½ tsp fresh)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Aluminum foil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat the oven to 375</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> or preheat
the grill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Peel and chop the beets and
carrots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arrange two sheets of foil,
overlapping each other, on the countertop or work surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pile the chopped beets and carrots onto the
center of the foil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thoroughly wash and
dice the leeks, add to the top of the vegetable pile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gently fold up the sides of the foil to
create a little wall, pour on oil and white wine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the thyme sprigs, tarragon, salt and
pepper and toss to coat vegetables.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fold
foil up over the vegetables creating a tight seal, so none of the liquid spills
out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place foil packet onto grill for
20-30 minutes until it smells magnificent and the vegetables are softened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or, place foil packet on a cookie sheet and
cook in the oven until the vegetables are softened.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Serves 4 as a side dish<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-52884029280254976392011-11-16T17:49:00.001-05:002011-11-16T17:52:58.612-05:00Another Look at Cookies<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Again, let me apologize for not sharing a
good recipe with you last week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a
better one this week – I promise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4_VqFManoKafNuhMOcBzIxZXeSeO-o0nK0zlc8M_zs905fWwtHdv8xMCN6lfjV6nFgtnX06mGeMaeRMNmvEeFg_ScwzbpSB7GO_OdAh7gSA0AzTUZhuScYUuifRd74Ut3ZM2lK8Ovz2w/s1600/InContainer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4_VqFManoKafNuhMOcBzIxZXeSeO-o0nK0zlc8M_zs905fWwtHdv8xMCN6lfjV6nFgtnX06mGeMaeRMNmvEeFg_ScwzbpSB7GO_OdAh7gSA0AzTUZhuScYUuifRd74Ut3ZM2lK8Ovz2w/s320/InContainer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So toward the end of college I was
working for a cookbook author, preparing to work again with the Smithsonian
Folklife Festival’s Foodways section, and waitressing in a bar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That meant I was thinking about and dealing
with food pretty much continually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
didn’t <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">eat</i></b> too much food as I was incredibly busy, subsisting off of
single pop tarts and hamburger halves through thesis writing and graduation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I realized this was a bad idea when I
grabbed a hamburger from the bar I worked at, ran to pick up graduation
tickets, said hello to a friend’s family, answered two telephone calls from my
own family and began choking on said hamburger in front of my former advisor; I
thought I should really move on to something that required less chewing.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSmfkqNj9uWN9Pm0rcLzOCzFf37S8Q4P9vyIrWXvJH_fztQ2h_GpVvwdp0da6zvlOUE9YuYYDS3lvcoZhX9W89wP0TFyzASG_SJsdziCTZQrg1_HAeBHCK3rWJ29Vq82LAgZT6IRaRT-AK/s1600/BallsAndFlattened.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSmfkqNj9uWN9Pm0rcLzOCzFf37S8Q4P9vyIrWXvJH_fztQ2h_GpVvwdp0da6zvlOUE9YuYYDS3lvcoZhX9W89wP0TFyzASG_SJsdziCTZQrg1_HAeBHCK3rWJ29Vq82LAgZT6IRaRT-AK/s320/BallsAndFlattened.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Anyways, around this time I started
tinkering with my own recipes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made a
pretty awesome strawberry rhubarb pie and some wonderful cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wrote down the recipe for the pie, but
neglected to take my cookie recipe to paper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thus, I forgot the recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, I
remember what those cookies tasted like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Have you ever eaten something but wanted
it to be a little more spectacular?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Like, wow this chocolate chip cookie is good, but what if it had peanut
butter in it too?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the way I felt
about the Archway chocolate cookies you find in the grocery store.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had bought them for a project my
step-sister was doing for her special-ed classroom – Ice Cream sandwiches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Archway cookies are big, flat and easy to
handle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They offer a large area for spreading
ice cream which is always a big deciding factor in making ice cream
sandwiches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The chocolate cookies are
good, but they were missing something – mint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now, if you are not a fan of chocolate and mint I am sorry, you are
missing out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdblE9VvwI1R4e0Ry0JrLKhDIuXwNVb-iwzBmN5BGL0I4CthRtPoJKwQv9DYjv5-zK513fL9CHg81UU_TIF4jgPpnPk_enp8uJupYPWQ81m6TpvH3lh07bN4pSB_rq-Rx8gIk5Map8-j83/s1600/Pre-Baked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdblE9VvwI1R4e0Ry0JrLKhDIuXwNVb-iwzBmN5BGL0I4CthRtPoJKwQv9DYjv5-zK513fL9CHg81UU_TIF4jgPpnPk_enp8uJupYPWQ81m6TpvH3lh07bN4pSB_rq-Rx8gIk5Map8-j83/s320/Pre-Baked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">These cookies are a little temperamental,
they are superb when cooked exactly right and kind of duds when baked a little
too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although as long as you use a
timer when baking, you should be fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(I don’t use a timer, and this comes back to bite me in the butt every
so often).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These cookies store well in
an air-tight container making them perfect for baking and sharing, but they
also make a very handsome ice cream cookie sandwich.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRwVo2eOv1IMtkZglkJh3WdAh_FUSwp3JQBMp94THKh_F8SqLvYV48npoRoYjgoKLkabH49CUmjTbdV0ivAQYPiDhVTY43RYXgkzgfBMtzAe8jOvC6Rx1ORxd2OPOK1YZddEu6l1MmQ2sX/s1600/Sunlight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRwVo2eOv1IMtkZglkJh3WdAh_FUSwp3JQBMp94THKh_F8SqLvYV48npoRoYjgoKLkabH49CUmjTbdV0ivAQYPiDhVTY43RYXgkzgfBMtzAe8jOvC6Rx1ORxd2OPOK1YZddEu6l1MmQ2sX/s320/Sunlight.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Chocolate Mint Crinkles<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">as adapted from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bon Appétit</i> Dec. 2000<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 sticks butter, softened<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 ¾ c sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 eggs<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¾ tsp peppermint extract<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cups white whole wheat flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c cocoa powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 tsp baking soda<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp baking powder<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Large Granulated decorating sugar <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat oven to 350°.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Line 4 baking sheets with parchment
paper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the bowl of a stand mixer,
cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the eggs and peppermint extract and mix
to combine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa
powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until just combined.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll dough into 1 ½” balls and place on
a cookie sheet spacing about 2” apart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Press dough on the balls to flatten them to about ½” thickness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Sprinkle cookies with decorating sugar,
and bake until the cookies are firm around the edges, but soft and crackled in
the center – about 12 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rotate
pans if the cookies are baking unevenly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Cool on trays for about 5 minutes and then move the parchment with
cookies off of trays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Allow to cool, and
enjoy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-25087006067806356672011-11-09T19:43:00.000-05:002011-11-09T19:43:12.289-05:00Christmas Cookies Part I<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Alright here is my first installment of
trying out cookie recipes for the Holidays and sharing them with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This week was Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti
from an old <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Food & Wine</i>
recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looked quite delicious and
biscotti keep very well so I thought I would give it a shot.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi073CGy3vaddKRYGmubu6p8YPcN_zRNxgOFHBArr3tWHoMM5Mcs4iyNa4rUVvQp57pPr5n9n_rHpFnX0auglkCjo1HUXBdk9WwsnYzMeLS1-d5hTnQrAHgt6U4utFdBnlTw0hgVNu11ai0/s1600/Pistascio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi073CGy3vaddKRYGmubu6p8YPcN_zRNxgOFHBArr3tWHoMM5Mcs4iyNa4rUVvQp57pPr5n9n_rHpFnX0auglkCjo1HUXBdk9WwsnYzMeLS1-d5hTnQrAHgt6U4utFdBnlTw0hgVNu11ai0/s320/Pistascio.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I don’t know about you, but I have
binders (yes that’s plural) filled with torn out pages from magazines and
handwritten recipes I scribbled down on something random.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hello, torn piece of cardboard or back of “To
Do List” from 2003.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first binder is
very well organized, with tabs distinguishing poultry from appetizers from desserts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, that binder got full real fast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also have a special purple binder
emblazoned with Jewel (the singer) stickers that I brought with me to
college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has in it my own recipes
and other special ones, I know exactly which recipes are where in there and how
each grease stain and food spot got onto the pages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love that purple binder (and no, not just
because it has Jewel stickers all over it).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhueImt45AWV_7JWHLGiaSZM1-pe8Sp-T9XkA0HOa8ZyFMrWESsG1sJFb-e3akKJMxebX-8pVXIapcHcTGlMqgTXk46EfXFxhs3rn5caDg2xcPQWV8eqHBgtDXwFcIchZstqv4-5ain_41G/s1600/Batter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhueImt45AWV_7JWHLGiaSZM1-pe8Sp-T9XkA0HOa8ZyFMrWESsG1sJFb-e3akKJMxebX-8pVXIapcHcTGlMqgTXk46EfXFxhs3rn5caDg2xcPQWV8eqHBgtDXwFcIchZstqv4-5ain_41G/s320/Batter.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The third binder is a bit more
haphazard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s kind of dangerous
actually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I open it I have to be careful
the recipes don’t take out their vengeance on me and cut me with a million paper
cuts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are so poorly thrown
together, some not even hole-punched (gasp!) that I am sure they feel their
very nature has been compromised.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am
always hesitant to reach for that binder because I know it will take me an hour
to go through it and find the recipe I want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Seeing that binder reminds me why I should never take up
scrapbooking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAEaLE1QMWRyy8immqNil4eG3wPyaxWW-ONCYi3tNTIlWElxvgLawRZ9fE7_Cy5GI1ZHrkDIH2znwHBoCYYnhEIRd08Fs8DSjy-WmZXtMWAqSYO0C6s_FGhPVotVfwyTIlbmEjj5deNYHG/s1600/Chocolate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAEaLE1QMWRyy8immqNil4eG3wPyaxWW-ONCYi3tNTIlWElxvgLawRZ9fE7_Cy5GI1ZHrkDIH2znwHBoCYYnhEIRd08Fs8DSjy-WmZXtMWAqSYO0C6s_FGhPVotVfwyTIlbmEjj5deNYHG/s320/Chocolate.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Perhaps if I have a snow day and some
tabs and a hole-punch I can make an honest binder out of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until that day comes, though, I will continue
to add torn pages from magazines to the top of my book shelf and neglect them
with all the others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWg-bE_-Y7yNNgSIdfk7l6a2bERMsNZm-VhcI-vBlGybTaupKq4VAK_T0-BICYI4p_w5UatnxozDHqPkbCH9WtuSRzBddErmuLkYDcfj4wsqPg_s5URAymp4AauTw5fyS9KfFfTJqQlmgP/s1600/BakedOnce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWg-bE_-Y7yNNgSIdfk7l6a2bERMsNZm-VhcI-vBlGybTaupKq4VAK_T0-BICYI4p_w5UatnxozDHqPkbCH9WtuSRzBddErmuLkYDcfj4wsqPg_s5URAymp4AauTw5fyS9KfFfTJqQlmgP/s320/BakedOnce.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Luckily for you though, this recipe came
from the previous well-organized binder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I never had a chance to make it before now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the verdict is – it’s not really worth it
to make these biscotti.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know
right!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a letdown.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had high hopes for these – pistachios,
chocolate, almond extract, more chocolate – what could be bad about these.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It turns out that second addition of
chocolate just doesn’t work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since
biscotti get baked twice, they tend to be crisp and sturdy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These took a little longer to cook then I
prefer drying out parts but not the whole thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were also very delicate to handle and
tended to crumble since I had to move them around so frequently during the
baking process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6huwAZIU3fIBxSa0XJK1fuL_UUUbXwKu2bASYFvV7Wi4vxjyfh65QmN-Ya4Wp4j6Y2t7KHTSCUD4TrG2z_ehdeD2VvYF_p76cjeE7k4KDoOf9AjXpb8C54V8oI4oK6Z88b0qFgLLXVt3G/s1600/Biscotti+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6huwAZIU3fIBxSa0XJK1fuL_UUUbXwKu2bASYFvV7Wi4vxjyfh65QmN-Ya4Wp4j6Y2t7KHTSCUD4TrG2z_ehdeD2VvYF_p76cjeE7k4KDoOf9AjXpb8C54V8oI4oK6Z88b0qFgLLXVt3G/s320/Biscotti+.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">They taste fine, and they are pretty neat
to look at but they kind of leave me with a ‘so what?’ feeling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figure that when trying to make cookies to
encourage your neighbor to snow blow your walk way throughout the entire winter
– you had better make some pretty spectacular cookies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were not snow blower approved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you would like to try them out for
yourself, the link to the recipe is <a href="http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chocolate-and-pistachio-biscotti"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So because of this, I do not have recipe per
se to share with you today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I
am on the prowl for a scrumptious cookie and hopefully I can share a recipe
with you next week!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In the Jamie v. Cookies battle so far:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Christmas Cookies – 0<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Jamie - 1<o:p></o:p></span><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-22981694277240544922011-11-03T05:06:00.000-04:002011-11-03T05:06:32.462-04:00Curious Cannolis<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">First, I need to apologize
to Joe’s Nana. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(by the way it’s
pronounced ‘Nah-Nah’) I fear that she would not approve of the recipe I am
about to share with you here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She takes
her cannolis very seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
qualify as being too fussy or new to meet her exacting cannoli standards, and
for that I understand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I will push
on anyways without her blessing and share this recipe anyways.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKbktb7U3a18uCaVie0JyEfrTp4zCj0mJFnIMHR7D9Gcbhd7lku7LJr2OWKMYUt6cCCif817xKZpTMPrzpA6Q7dI-V96bBv1lDbZ0uIE68RJFq9QyivJwSvE-4HADAA26TIGL6tslrvcQ/s1600/ShellIngredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKbktb7U3a18uCaVie0JyEfrTp4zCj0mJFnIMHR7D9Gcbhd7lku7LJr2OWKMYUt6cCCif817xKZpTMPrzpA6Q7dI-V96bBv1lDbZ0uIE68RJFq9QyivJwSvE-4HADAA26TIGL6tslrvcQ/s320/ShellIngredients.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB2AesV60N3QLBnz0aCGVibpokbmHyyvGrpn2Q7SLV8T-CDTOwlKrIlAW6A0w-AjdlGsZpEU6xqeMaDD_EzEm8HBrFWEduZkVogcob87Pup61rFPLggpUeTl90UmyTdVAg9-JwaYl2gjh/s1600/EmptyForm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTB2AesV60N3QLBnz0aCGVibpokbmHyyvGrpn2Q7SLV8T-CDTOwlKrIlAW6A0w-AjdlGsZpEU6xqeMaDD_EzEm8HBrFWEduZkVogcob87Pup61rFPLggpUeTl90UmyTdVAg9-JwaYl2gjh/s320/EmptyForm.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Oh wait, so you want to
know more about how seriously Nana takes her cannolis? Alright, I will indulge
you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once made cannolis for Joe’s
grandparents when we went to visit around Halloween one year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said his grandfather liked cannolis, so I
thought that would be an excellent surprise to bring along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that and it gave me an excuse to buy
cannoli forms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What are cannoli
forms?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh they are just over priced
pieces of pipe that you wrap cannoli dough around and then deep fry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-7d77akHOdXzm-CxOcJs2achR5v1os0It1mUcq4sxeCTifyZT1hMxV_eFUY-IqEVC1r5iCvyFIv4Nca4lnAHsbVeWUY_RskCQ3ncxQ23JuLmydUsV27UIiPDEpZ2Q5DNvsE8tAsjT3G1/s1600/PreFrying.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV-7d77akHOdXzm-CxOcJs2achR5v1os0It1mUcq4sxeCTifyZT1hMxV_eFUY-IqEVC1r5iCvyFIv4Nca4lnAHsbVeWUY_RskCQ3ncxQ23JuLmydUsV27UIiPDEpZ2Q5DNvsE8tAsjT3G1/s320/PreFrying.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I made sure to follow a
traditional recipe for both the cannoli shells and the filling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joe advised me that I should keep the filling
in a separate container and only fill them once we were about to eat dessert,
otherwise the shells would get soggy. (I’m telling you, these people do not
mess around!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6srAryrMAAJdyWi9_D0OH086Zl5Cg1eQ626aHz7M0Oa3gZkpcAOvHa1VeyJTRn7UbmfmI9_9AjoUQv0H-n7NFB3RpTToZBBtY8ZZUpg_5QQQ3vZ-VJAugW_SbiyKH8E8kS0rcHPocWWYk/s1600/Frying.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6srAryrMAAJdyWi9_D0OH086Zl5Cg1eQ626aHz7M0Oa3gZkpcAOvHa1VeyJTRn7UbmfmI9_9AjoUQv0H-n7NFB3RpTToZBBtY8ZZUpg_5QQQ3vZ-VJAugW_SbiyKH8E8kS0rcHPocWWYk/s320/Frying.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I managed to keep
everything intact through a Halloween party and a short flight – I typically
carry food with me as a carry on – doesn’t everyone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNC8hCIatliwQ4ZyWTi7kI2jfeal1uE-xFGVa1LaTapfqYfZ0-dS-5yp_xA1-RkKWVzUdcUat9dlZQCN7J0iUtxVZ69rHBCm5FzX3320TEwGu5w1DI-Q7kUwcQQl8t3AThxdVo3UU59hzg/s1600/Cooling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNC8hCIatliwQ4ZyWTi7kI2jfeal1uE-xFGVa1LaTapfqYfZ0-dS-5yp_xA1-RkKWVzUdcUat9dlZQCN7J0iUtxVZ69rHBCm5FzX3320TEwGu5w1DI-Q7kUwcQQl8t3AThxdVo3UU59hzg/s320/Cooling.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When I announced what I
brought for dessert, Joe’s grandfather was excited but Nana was hesitant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She told me she needed to taste the cannoli
cream before I could serve it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I opened
the ziplock bag and she stuck her finger right in and popped it in her
mouth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She closed her eyes and nodded –
it would do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am sure she was being
nice, but at least it passed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And she
told me she couldn’t stand it when they put in different things like cinnamon
into the cream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She went on to tell me
that she would always insist on tasting the cannoli cream before purchasing any
cannolis from a new bakery, and that she had told the proprietors no on more
than one occasion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So at least I had
passed this test.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrgQaoqfQSyODaEgp6zXw0aFqrFZgMR1so9uicM2alDVVGBMn_vvwsup5DreHOSbWkJvcnYGlxn85E6o9RyA-4PRg0QoiiofNGz-PEI_u1qcbpFXNvdJaobJQWxT7kgfitPQuA7aMm8I0/s1600/Shells.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrgQaoqfQSyODaEgp6zXw0aFqrFZgMR1so9uicM2alDVVGBMn_vvwsup5DreHOSbWkJvcnYGlxn85E6o9RyA-4PRg0QoiiofNGz-PEI_u1qcbpFXNvdJaobJQWxT7kgfitPQuA7aMm8I0/s320/Shells.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYy-fliwCIlKgvLxpwQxOXaBi5_YHSTu7dlb1d915WdQYYTabgs5VNpDa-WD4bQFAO6tZ12Wef7mDGoQXwRA7Spkyqf7B-10vjOa9-a-65d9BR_BSSx91ql156ksD_KOEb32e65eac40tP/s1600/Filling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYy-fliwCIlKgvLxpwQxOXaBi5_YHSTu7dlb1d915WdQYYTabgs5VNpDa-WD4bQFAO6tZ12Wef7mDGoQXwRA7Spkyqf7B-10vjOa9-a-65d9BR_BSSx91ql156ksD_KOEb32e65eac40tP/s320/Filling.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">However delicious regular
cannolis are, I thought I would try something a little different for Halloween
this year and perhaps even throughout the Holidays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus, I am super obsessed with pumpkin
flavored things this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Below is the
complete recipe for the cannolis, but if you can find cannoli shells at the
store, or if you can buy empty shells from a bakery – do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not really worth the hassle of frying
your own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought that after one
greasy form slipped into my pot of oil and sprayed the entire kitchen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Save yourself the trouble – unless of course
you want an excuse to run out and buy cannoli forms.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6HFHl94SQQlWk-VFQuQRDM11LMYoQXAdg1e3zu1QAvkyhzntip6vJCmkob5ERkH1oTdDsY0DtB2D99CjWJmNlaZZrsuaoSn-MtjXTnKoGe2BtH64vBqkKKctTM0yHrX2Aw_F0rMvATWoA/s1600/Ready.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6HFHl94SQQlWk-VFQuQRDM11LMYoQXAdg1e3zu1QAvkyhzntip6vJCmkob5ERkH1oTdDsY0DtB2D99CjWJmNlaZZrsuaoSn-MtjXTnKoGe2BtH64vBqkKKctTM0yHrX2Aw_F0rMvATWoA/s320/Ready.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Pumpkin Cannolis<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">As adapted from the recipe
inside the cannoli form packaging.<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Shells<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> 1 ¾ c flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp. salt<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 Tb sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 egg<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 Tb butter, cold and cut
into small pieces<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">About ¼ c sweet Marsala<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 egg white, slightly
beaten<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Vegetable oil for deep
frying<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Filling<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 c ricotta cheese<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c canned pumpkin<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¾ c powdered sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 tsp vanilla<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp anise extract<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp cinnamon<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ tsp nutmeg<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp all spice<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1/3 c mini chocolate chips<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Shells: Sift the
flour, salt and sugar together into a large bowl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make a well in the center, add the egg and
butter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slightly beat the egg, and then
with a fork begin to moisten the flour working from the center outward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add Marsala one tablespoon at a time,
working until the dough comes together (it will still be a bit dry).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cover and let stand for 15 minutes at room
temperature.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Roll out the dough to about
1/16” thick and cut into circles 3 ½” in diameter (or 2 ½” for smaller
cannolis).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then with the rolling pin, make
the circles into ovals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heat oil in a
heavy bottomed pot, so there is about 2 – 3” of oil for deep frying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Wrap the dough around the
cannoli forms, dip your finger into the beaten egg white and wipe it where the
dough overlaps each other t seal it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then turn out the edges of the dough around the form slightly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once the oil reaches 350° begin frying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fry each shell for about 1 or 2 minutes until
golden brown, remove to a paper towel lined platter and let cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once cool, slide form out of shell and wrap
another piece of dough around it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Repeat
until all the shells are fried.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Filling: Blend the
ricotta in a food processor or blender until very smooth, add in pumpkin,
sugar, vanilla, anise and spices and blend until well combined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add chocolate chips and stir to combine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place filling in a pastry bag, or a ziplock
bag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When ready to serve, pipe
filling into each shell, dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Makes about 15-18 cannoli
shells (with some extra filling).<o:p></o:p></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-68461966330057103592011-10-19T19:50:00.001-04:002011-10-19T19:50:59.214-04:00College Cornbread<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">There are so many different ways to make
cornbread that I am afraid to really expound on it as an expert and instead
will channel the dark side, my “Semi-homemade” side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t usually like things that you start with
a mix, or add in premade items and then call the whole shebang homemade and
nutritious, but this is one place where I defer to my pantry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not that there is anything wrong with saving
time and opting for ease, but for me it leaves me feeling guilty and depressed
when I cut open a boxed cake mix or slice into refrigerator cookie dough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heck I don’t even like bisquick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhN1v7gLaQddSyiztC3z9VejUCzpnjtK6he-23r_MAPL629jRZADboTg86_sxTA39Lr6moBFyD6IpLVBsA432_9Ldw5n5tsrE3vSpZQ9wYM7cSP0RKPw8AOyS73fTqDfyxOQap9yv2KnG/s1600/Boxes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhN1v7gLaQddSyiztC3z9VejUCzpnjtK6he-23r_MAPL629jRZADboTg86_sxTA39Lr6moBFyD6IpLVBsA432_9Ldw5n5tsrE3vSpZQ9wYM7cSP0RKPw8AOyS73fTqDfyxOQap9yv2KnG/s320/Boxes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">But I do appreciate these items for their
purpose – which is to be fast and easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And the one boxed starter I use is for cornbread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I have made cornbread from scratch, and
I like the idea of how versatile cornbread can be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spicy, sweet, savory, soft, crunchy and so on
baked in cast iron, papers, tins, molds and pans the permutations are endless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, it is to this recipe that I turn to
the most when I make cornbread.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqzxh3ht-OD_4dRl0zFtuES3Wkd7FVoWDPhS1xxN7GJ714kgBF9H1xipmSgkluPdi66nk0a4P7jIYVmOBWW0eQI9LaPwhJPolw7CBZH99d5jAiFeHoGh-5uYO9Phapxd0G15czj3mrd42_/s1600/Mix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqzxh3ht-OD_4dRl0zFtuES3Wkd7FVoWDPhS1xxN7GJ714kgBF9H1xipmSgkluPdi66nk0a4P7jIYVmOBWW0eQI9LaPwhJPolw7CBZH99d5jAiFeHoGh-5uYO9Phapxd0G15czj3mrd42_/s320/Mix.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I got this recipe from a friend of mine
in college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After coming back from Germany,
three friends and I sublet a very nice town house in Washington DC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was during this semester that I really
started to get into cooking, and where I decided that it was a passion of
mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mostly, this was due to
boredom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t have a job, most of
our other friends were studying overseas, I didn’t have a boyfriend and I
didn’t study in the library. So instead, I learned all the words to 50 Cent’s
‘Wanksta’ and I cooked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzjNqSm9k9fhQZY4t7RVfWn8y07qTCjT9CmeqdtDp4gYlT36S7LZvuSoK-2Tl7cDkKk9rtU1zcBgwWoaLrNQHnl8XsyOGT8dDeSnfBHwqpNhv61JPx-R8DIz0MFYDtDafuUYIZcsmMlCRb/s1600/ReadyToBake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzjNqSm9k9fhQZY4t7RVfWn8y07qTCjT9CmeqdtDp4gYlT36S7LZvuSoK-2Tl7cDkKk9rtU1zcBgwWoaLrNQHnl8XsyOGT8dDeSnfBHwqpNhv61JPx-R8DIz0MFYDtDafuUYIZcsmMlCRb/s320/ReadyToBake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">In fact, I managed to win household MVP
one night because I made chili and this cornbread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, that’s right we had MVP.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You only got bragging rights for it, and it
was largely very arbitrarily determined who won MVP for some action he or she
performed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won MVP for making dinner
one night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend won MVP for putting
out the toaster fire we started while trying to warm up taco shells.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see what I mean. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglq9w23qh9IzngKHouTFazYIpQ6DBqYnxIHOophpbAJb5HnzuSj1dDXy0bt9eaWWCItXOro15lqs-sAmMYK9OYsAYPFx4Np2vqSXt2NfPY4xnhsgJvwYKLwa4ciyTtx4MLQbYeVyzaRei6/s1600/EmptyBowl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglq9w23qh9IzngKHouTFazYIpQ6DBqYnxIHOophpbAJb5HnzuSj1dDXy0bt9eaWWCItXOro15lqs-sAmMYK9OYsAYPFx4Np2vqSXt2NfPY4xnhsgJvwYKLwa4ciyTtx4MLQbYeVyzaRei6/s320/EmptyBowl.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">At any rate, this recipe is cheap, easy,
and can be a pantry staple to have on hand at a moment’s notice. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I typically only make cornbread for stuffing
or when I make chili.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I must confess
that I make the chili simply as an excuse to shove as much cornbread into my
face as I possibly can.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhatHDrjdSrpLbaDe6ZHfeJ4aRjcgmqDH5F62PUoTLrlVPketc3dkLIKqcabWvXsya27z4OugdzNvhoYT6q8vhZDW-SQ7RgT0nsevte_PcwivBZPmRcsxo8yE2O8YVpjRJ2rnvrdr1SuE32/s1600/OnChili.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhatHDrjdSrpLbaDe6ZHfeJ4aRjcgmqDH5F62PUoTLrlVPketc3dkLIKqcabWvXsya27z4OugdzNvhoYT6q8vhZDW-SQ7RgT0nsevte_PcwivBZPmRcsxo8yE2O8YVpjRJ2rnvrdr1SuE32/s320/OnChili.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Mat’s College Cornbread<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I suppose you could use any brand of
cornbread mix, but I like the Jiffy version.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is something very comforting to me about how the picture has not
changed on that box in decades.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also,
this can be halved easily, but I will give you the larger version, as the
cornbread is very delicious, and you will want to eat a lot of it. Well, that
and it’s so hard to find the small cans of corn, making a double batch is just
easier.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 boxes Jiffy Cornbread mix<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 15oz can sweet corn, drained<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 14oz can creamed sweet corn<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 eggs<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 teaspoons sugar<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat the oven to 400</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">°.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">In a bowl
combine all the ingredients.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stir to
combine everything until just moistened and there are no clumps of cornbread
mix left.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Pour into a
lightly greased 9x13” pan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake for
about 45 minutes, or until the top is golden and the sides of the cornbread are
lightly browned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Let cool
slightly and serve.</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-76755747344102743192011-10-12T19:53:00.000-04:002011-10-12T19:53:27.949-04:00My Oh My It's Fish Pie<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Yes, that’s right I am going to be
sharing a recipe with you for something called fish pie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But first I want to bounce an idea off of
you.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC5kJ1RahgEV5K_eMp2XPrRpHnPYO4oP8CGpgPrOW1tRgGfE3GAubxjCRkM53QEAtJdF55hSHctsCimZJ7a1f3OkE4lScjI64iVX5Ju9vXBdlHCcK2UKejtemN6O0EyYx6CavDOpvQsjS0/s1600/Sunflowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC5kJ1RahgEV5K_eMp2XPrRpHnPYO4oP8CGpgPrOW1tRgGfE3GAubxjCRkM53QEAtJdF55hSHctsCimZJ7a1f3OkE4lScjI64iVX5Ju9vXBdlHCcK2UKejtemN6O0EyYx6CavDOpvQsjS0/s320/Sunflowers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I kind of want to test out a ton of
cookie recipes for the upcoming holiday season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Does that seem like something you all would be interested in?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I keep coming across recipes that seem like
they would be wonderful, and so I stow them away only to choose 5 or 6 between
all of them to actually bake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will
typically spend an entire weekend baking cookies and then I hand them out to
neighbors and family.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDlF6LSMUFGRmcmV3DovQM9mLJTkUUevDmIcTm9cIYwbvSgTPklSExG-1qowYQjVsYpNwLKo_dRND_36O22jVWHzihL0Ehr0ujDqljHdOcEjAnjbb1-bwYWZpc727QymwfjY4cSGKN2NmS/s1600/Leaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDlF6LSMUFGRmcmV3DovQM9mLJTkUUevDmIcTm9cIYwbvSgTPklSExG-1qowYQjVsYpNwLKo_dRND_36O22jVWHzihL0Ehr0ujDqljHdOcEjAnjbb1-bwYWZpc727QymwfjY4cSGKN2NmS/s320/Leaves.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">However, this method tends to lead to
madness as most of the cookie recipes are new to me and can inspire foul
language and flying objects if things don’t turn out exactly as I pictured
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, if I make many cookies
leading up to Christmas, I can pawn them off on unsuspecting people and whittle
down my choices through a well-documented pseudo-scientific method. (Although I
will most likely just make a lot of cookies and still choose 5 or 6 new recipes
that turn me into a hyperventilating monster a few weekends before
Christmas.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, cookies? Cool?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s decided then.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMrhNWtsRCmOxPA0oRVtODwaLiEfIKVyee42-9xnXOUn_rUwXrWqoNbmuCf_cdHR4Pl55cZYwPEJeQJqk9r34CC_0lXJMuPfKZQ0ul1jJjwd_fZp8RPT3xqs8TZn1TiwwtTqqCWkaQbIV/s1600/Filling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMrhNWtsRCmOxPA0oRVtODwaLiEfIKVyee42-9xnXOUn_rUwXrWqoNbmuCf_cdHR4Pl55cZYwPEJeQJqk9r34CC_0lXJMuPfKZQ0ul1jJjwd_fZp8RPT3xqs8TZn1TiwwtTqqCWkaQbIV/s320/Filling.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Now, on to that fish pie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This one of the many recipes I took away from
working in the Scottish Kitchen at the Folk Life Festival.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the first recipe I successfully made
on my own after learning it, and it is the only one I specifically asked one of
the cooks to share with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Bkn9qZHAYf6qBLCuxls1qCNGF9mQNr-sjrr75KGSbk3HptFYw1lAdUIsibtc-xCAva8N3wWWTzY3omWCNhqJMEeGB8lsx9BLBxUrTYw1qsKlaObizNTbeMjIUl_6FXSjeeejTwFDx7Qc/s1600/Pie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Bkn9qZHAYf6qBLCuxls1qCNGF9mQNr-sjrr75KGSbk3HptFYw1lAdUIsibtc-xCAva8N3wWWTzY3omWCNhqJMEeGB8lsx9BLBxUrTYw1qsKlaObizNTbeMjIUl_6FXSjeeejTwFDx7Qc/s320/Pie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">It sounds kind of gross, and it doesn’t
look super appetizing, but I promise you – it’s good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like to use this with leftover cooked fish,
but you could always cook your white sauce a bit longer with the fish in it to
cook the fish. I have taken the liberty here to dress up the pie a bit, but
feel free to pare it back and keep it very simple. Oh and when you do make
this, the lighter your mashed potatoes are, the better they will sit on top and
spread out over the pie.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOmbklRcmKfK4hrxo-d8XIxfhp4Cnd1VQg_AMRck8GZDCSSIL8DHdtJdK-9a6_kDqMpeU7-eqBEJa1LmL1v5IXyGne4Ug8evYXfVErVF8VXBO3KlKV4Av_Y1QnL74BypdxuxGSbHVq3iTP/s1600/SlicedPie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOmbklRcmKfK4hrxo-d8XIxfhp4Cnd1VQg_AMRck8GZDCSSIL8DHdtJdK-9a6_kDqMpeU7-eqBEJa1LmL1v5IXyGne4Ug8evYXfVErVF8VXBO3KlKV4Av_Y1QnL74BypdxuxGSbHVq3iTP/s320/SlicedPie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Joyce McRaye’s Fish Pie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any white fleshed fished can be used here (and
I have even seen recipes which call for salmon) such as flounder, haddock or
cod. Also feel free to omit the crust; the pie will work just as well without
it. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Crust<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c flour<br />
5 Tb cold butter, cut into small cubes<br />
1-3 Tb cold water<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Pie<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> 1 large shallot, chopped<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> 2 Tbs. Butter<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ tsp. Thyme<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c. flour<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 c. milk<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ lb. cooked white fish, shredded<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">½ c. frozen peas<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the Topping<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">4-5 medium red skinned potatoes, cut into
1-2” chunks<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> 1 garlic clove, whole<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb. Butter<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">¼ c. milk or cream<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt and Pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For the crust: cut the butter into the
flour until it is course looking, and then slowly add water a teaspoon or two
at a time, until the dough comes together. (This can be done in a food
processor).<br />
<br />
Shape dough into a ball, flatten it to a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and
refrigerate for 30 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Meanwhile prepare the mashed potatoes for
the topping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boil cubed potatoes with
the whole garlic clove in salted water for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until the
potatoes can be pierced with a fork.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Drain the potatoes and mash with the butter and milk until well
combined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add salt and pepper to taste.
(Or you can use your favorite mashed potato recipe for this.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Preheat the oven to 375</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">°</span></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll out the dough and place it into 9 or 10”
pie plate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prick the crust with a fork and
pre-bake it for about 10 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">While the crust is baking, sauté shallot
and thyme in butter over medium heat in a large pan for about 5 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next, add the flour and stir constantly until
the flour and butter have thickened and are smooth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slowly add in milk, whisking to avoid
lumps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once all of the milk has been
added, the mixture should be thick but not too stiff, if it is, add a bit more
milk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the mixture is too watery, let
it simmer for a few minutes on the stove.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Add in the cooked fish and peas, stirring to combine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add salt and pepper to taste.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Pour filling into pre-baked crust and top
with mashed potatoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bake for about
15-20 minutes or until the mashed potatoes are golden and the crust is
browned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cool for 15 minutes and serve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-56956934303592567862011-10-05T19:12:00.001-04:002011-10-05T19:12:23.545-04:00Something About SquashOh baby, it is squash season. Not the summer squash season where complete strangers will approach you and force overgrown zucchini upon you. No, this is winter squash season. I have resisted you in the past winter squash, but not anymore.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDlsfsIt7uAVz2TL2TSwRk2D-u8j9B9_HtbK4nN_H4cudTPuz8yRAyZCxitSj4GSh5PXSstK1Z6pn7CSRouMl69ITnV1JfA3aHP5SJqpOW02VfF7mzFo-FfT6nBNOt7E5nyPtk604mEl4-/s1600/Baked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDlsfsIt7uAVz2TL2TSwRk2D-u8j9B9_HtbK4nN_H4cudTPuz8yRAyZCxitSj4GSh5PXSstK1Z6pn7CSRouMl69ITnV1JfA3aHP5SJqpOW02VfF7mzFo-FfT6nBNOt7E5nyPtk604mEl4-/s320/Baked.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I have noticed that winter squash appeal is much bigger in New England than it is anywhere else. Even when I go home to New Jersey for the holidays, I can never find any interesting winter squash. But up here, squash is the predominant vegetable for the entire winter. And right now – I am very excited about that. (Talk to me in March and I will be ready to take a baseball bat to any orange hued storage vegetable that crosses my path.) So excited in fact, that I now have 2 different kinds of squash on our counter and another pureed variety in the freezer. I have been ripping out all recipes with squash or pumpkin I the ingredient list from magazines, and printing anything squash related from the web as I cross it. If you see with Joe or I later this winter, and you notice a strange orange glow about us, it’s not spray tan – it’s beta carotene!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztfB16qdm50Y2EJLK1wEIjwtrmjmQWE4MdJiaEdlZlh2rsrs5kBPoXaP5Q-OlTzBJAim8VYhqBiZzO92iaXfsdkcTAQJ8ZxOGFtakuZ2atMp4XAGFU4ND6BF5CA3t9NyAp54qb_GdnPLf/s1600/ButterAndFlour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhztfB16qdm50Y2EJLK1wEIjwtrmjmQWE4MdJiaEdlZlh2rsrs5kBPoXaP5Q-OlTzBJAim8VYhqBiZzO92iaXfsdkcTAQJ8ZxOGFtakuZ2atMp4XAGFU4ND6BF5CA3t9NyAp54qb_GdnPLf/s320/ButterAndFlour.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Now, don’t panic like Joe is doing right now. Squash isn’t all that bad. It’s pretty, it’s sweet and it is very versatile. So if you are unfamiliar with winter squash or if your stomach turns at the thought of eating it, I’ll ease you in slowly. Butternut squash is one of the easiest to work with, and is most commonly found in grocery stores around the country. You can boil or roast it and then mash it, puree it, bake with it, and so on. But it’s always fun to try something new. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM0bWCwJ4hETcDH_cHRvI6LLSsDrw-NcqEEJql3YzS3DTp-uZNJ5k7B9f3GDquEPkTFUlGE6MdZFnbDDrgdX0vN_g0j4cIFVRdbzksUBJNXXHm3ZMfXzfe6r9ftxvrp1vEqMeTORckh7ik/s1600/LeeksAndKale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM0bWCwJ4hETcDH_cHRvI6LLSsDrw-NcqEEJql3YzS3DTp-uZNJ5k7B9f3GDquEPkTFUlGE6MdZFnbDDrgdX0vN_g0j4cIFVRdbzksUBJNXXHm3ZMfXzfe6r9ftxvrp1vEqMeTORckh7ik/s320/LeeksAndKale.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
That, and everything with a crust tastes good in my book. This is a very pretty dish, and I saw it about 2 years ago in a publication by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association. I have been pining to try it ever since. It definitely sounds like something that zealous vegetarians would be attracted to, but I promise that the average meat loving <strike>Joe</strike> I mean person will like it. <br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXr1woNXtxRSxOponz55d_etLm7YCqQvaXhVNvCVYZk6z8BTNlVongYcNxayOZsu5eDwh8PYxH4WrUSuTDYY5eW-558eBfQF5QsKMJmd_N0NAm2d43RKZLYUciCGTwzy5iDpwI4iaZfgq9/s1600/Sliced.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXr1woNXtxRSxOponz55d_etLm7YCqQvaXhVNvCVYZk6z8BTNlVongYcNxayOZsu5eDwh8PYxH4WrUSuTDYY5eW-558eBfQF5QsKMJmd_N0NAm2d43RKZLYUciCGTwzy5iDpwI4iaZfgq9/s320/Sliced.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Winter Squash and Kale Tart<br />
as adapted from Roberta Bailey’s <em>Harvest Kitchen</em><br />
This recipe takes a long time but it is fairly simple to assemble, especially if you use a premade crust. It also is a bit soft, and doesn’t cut super cleanly, so if you are using a smaller egg, I would recommend using 2.<br />
<br />
For the crust<br />
1 c flour<br />
5 Tb cold butter, cut into small cubes<br />
1-3 Tb cold water<br />
<br />For the Tart<br />
1 ½ cups cooked pureed winter squash*<br />
2 c kale <br />
1 medium leek, chopped<br />
2 Tb butter<br />
1 egg<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">½</span> c whole milk<br />
½ c pecorino, grated (or other hard cheese)<br />
½ tsp dried thyme<br />
1 tsp. dried parsley<br />
¼ tsp. all spice<br />
¼ tsp. nutmeg<br />
Salt and pepper to taste<br />
<br />For the crust: cut the butter into the flour until it is course looking, and then slowly add water a teaspoon or two at a time, until the dough comes together. (This can be done in a food processor).<br />
<br />
Shape dough into a ball, flatten it to a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.<br />
<br />
Preheat oven to 425°. <br />
<br />
Meanwhile, remove thick stems from kale and chop into ½” strips. <br />
<br />
Once the dough has rested, roll it out into a 10” disc, and place into a 9” pie or tart pan. Press the dough in, and remove any excess. Bake crust for 10 minutes, then allow to cool slightly before filling.<br />
<br />
In a large skillet, sauté leeks in the butter until softened, about 5 minutes. Add kale and a few tablespoons of water, cover and cook until just barely wilted. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool slightly.<br />
<br />Lower oven temperature to 350°. In a large bowl, mix together egg and milk. Then add in pureed squash, cheese, herbs, and spices. Stir in the leek and kale mixture, coating everything. Pour filling into par-baked crust and bake for 55-60 minutes, until the edges of the tart are golden and the center of the tart is solid. Allow to cool for 15 to 20 minutes, slice and serve.<br />
<br /><br />
*If you don’t just happen to have pureed squash laying around, take a small butternut squash (or something more fun like Hubbard, Winter Luxury or Kobocha), peel, seed and chop into 1” cubes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roast in a 375<span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">°</span><span style="font-family: "Georgia", "serif";"> oven for about 30 minutes, or until soft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Toss into a blender or food processor with a tiny bit of water to get it going. Puree until smooth, and set aside for another use!</span><br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-7885459798290747952011-09-28T17:33:00.001-04:002011-09-28T17:33:29.389-04:00Imperial Appetizer<br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #666666;">I
love crabs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Specifically, I love blue
crabs, and I miss them sorely now that I no longer live along the mid-Atlantic
seaboard.</span> </span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love blue crabs so
much, that when Joe and I were preparing to leave for California, I bought a
giant tub of Old Bay seasoning to take with me, in case they didn’t sell it out
there (they do). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Blue
crabs as I am familiar with them exist from New York down to North Carolina and
I am deeply in love with everything about them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Just the thought of a big steaming pile of crabs covered with Old Bay
can make me salivate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a long
history with blue crabs; catching them, cooking them, racing them, reading
books about them and so on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I will
only share a little of this knowledge with you here today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is due mostly to the fact that I did not
cook with blue crabs this weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBHO7cA_zaIO-paX4MaLx_kokG97GQqN63kYozeCAxgmDUpO7oY6gL7iMsPArdQr26AF7VG8ER6fUpLS5RX4-iHf6e-9WB8CG1mLz9bIKprLBgwg_s3OgOsqwBfdTMeIyXOzP-OjF4VGK/s1600/miniPeppers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBHO7cA_zaIO-paX4MaLx_kokG97GQqN63kYozeCAxgmDUpO7oY6gL7iMsPArdQr26AF7VG8ER6fUpLS5RX4-iHf6e-9WB8CG1mLz9bIKprLBgwg_s3OgOsqwBfdTMeIyXOzP-OjF4VGK/s320/miniPeppers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Here in
Maine we have the Jonah crab or the Peekey-Toe crab.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The meat is stringy and sweet but I think it
lacks the depth of flavor and heft that fresh blue crab has.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a pinch (yes, pun intended) local crab
will suffice for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, this is not a
crab cake recipe, as the Maine crab meat couldn’t hold up to the ingredients or
flavors in my recipe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead I am going
to give you my version of Crab Imperial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Basically,
crab imperial is the stuffing when anything is ‘stuffed with crab.’ It’s darn
tasty and there are several different schools of thought which, can be much
disputed depending on where you are and with whom you are conversing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like my crab imperial to have a little zing
and to not have any breadcrumbs in it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can make this into a straight dip, or
stuff it into things, like mushrooms and shrimp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_I638fxvheZRtMsAcc8H-7DcfQnguW4wB9Cv5OVMKc6l3rLPtAgzFsDoETcsI9JODKau4rVftt9EdJ2h_fFW4e3oa5RSxlp5d9YkBC055ut2PwhtPDh6cADaAaw4HnHW7NIjkuXgeW6v/s1600/ReadyToBake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_I638fxvheZRtMsAcc8H-7DcfQnguW4wB9Cv5OVMKc6l3rLPtAgzFsDoETcsI9JODKau4rVftt9EdJ2h_fFW4e3oa5RSxlp5d9YkBC055ut2PwhtPDh6cADaAaw4HnHW7NIjkuXgeW6v/s320/ReadyToBake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This
weekend I stuffed tiny little bell peppers with the crab since they are all
over the farmers’ markets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some crab
imperial recipes call for minced bell pepper, so I thought this would be a
unique twist on it.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Don’t
worry I’ll share my wild and crazy crab stories with you another time, maybe
when I have access to fresh live blue crabs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvQ9ZB2POqwdUrjzbwbaQdlgHOSbpbnbM1n9PPlZZj2kOrQ7vxhd2dJEWAgqQjOeKuKrmh2h4I6RHG4IU6N_ILZZ7CyjdrU0Z0yCQxPBNL4rKkZloTcLD_PUwLcNvlMlNXRNpaLjsciTx/s1600/SinglePepper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvQ9ZB2POqwdUrjzbwbaQdlgHOSbpbnbM1n9PPlZZj2kOrQ7vxhd2dJEWAgqQjOeKuKrmh2h4I6RHG4IU6N_ILZZ7CyjdrU0Z0yCQxPBNL4rKkZloTcLD_PUwLcNvlMlNXRNpaLjsciTx/s320/SinglePepper.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Crab
Imperial<br />
I like to use fresh crab.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
usually canned blue crab available in the supermarket, but it is usually from
the Philippines, extra salty and overall not very good tasting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you can get fresh local crab meat – use
that instead. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 8 oz.
container fresh local crab <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">3 Tb
mayonnaise <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 tsp.
Dijon mustard<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">½ tsp.
shallot, minced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">¼ tsp.
capers, chopped very fine<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">¼ tsp.
Worcestershire sauce<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">¼ tsp.
Old Bay Seasoning<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">8 mini
stuffing peppers<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Shredded
cheese for sprinkling<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Preheat
the oven to 350</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">°</span></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Core the peppers by
running a knife vertically into the pepper around the stem, and pull out the
stem and seed core.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flick out any
remaining seeds and pull out the white pith if it is thick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leave the pepper intact.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In a
small bowl combine mayo, mustard, shallot, capers, Worcestershire sauce, and
Old Bay. Stir until everything is well coated. The mixture will be runny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stuff crab mixture into peppers and sprinkle
with shredded cheese.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Bake
for 10-15 minutes, or until the peppers are soft, the cheese is melted and the
crab mixture looks a bit more dry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Serve
immediately. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4668763475094471971.post-8058476093616313912011-09-21T20:17:00.000-04:002011-09-21T20:17:26.588-04:00Sungold Sludge
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I went a little tomato crazy this
weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been very enthralled with
the whole canning food –pioneer life trend that’s been happening recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is not to say that I am any good at
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Currently, I have a few bags of
frozen fruits, multiple jars of jam and a garden I need to deal with, but that
does not mean I have “put up” enough for Joe and I to subsist on for the
winter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really I just like the idea of
being useful and home-makey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I got it
into my head that I would try canning tomatoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98NFoCCWcO3udt9h7eXo3cesuQNvHhcLUpO2VtJyVJwBMc8InVwCcFAsucyhUQVK6srSt435zMGtJQ2snnYCFssqR4xWqN7ULIWuGxofF4hgl2XXWTnmyPkSYgeMCWtwyugA6kHnqA4k2/s1600/Pint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98NFoCCWcO3udt9h7eXo3cesuQNvHhcLUpO2VtJyVJwBMc8InVwCcFAsucyhUQVK6srSt435zMGtJQ2snnYCFssqR4xWqN7ULIWuGxofF4hgl2XXWTnmyPkSYgeMCWtwyugA6kHnqA4k2/s320/Pint.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Sure I could do something useful like
make tomato sauce, or can whole tomatoes to use later in soups and sauces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was distracted by a recipe in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bon
Appet</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif";">í</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">t</span></i><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"> for homemade ketchup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>‘Yes!’ I thought, ‘I can make my own ketchup, it will be very useful and
delicious.’<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So I immediately e-mailed a local farm
and placed my order for a crate of 2<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">nd</span></sup> rate tomatoes at a discounted
price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A measly $25 for a crate I would
pick up at the farmer’s market on Thursday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Perfect.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When I got to the farm stand I was armed
with 2 cloth bags to transport the tomatoes home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I smilingly approached the man at the stand
and told him of my order.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said oh
yes, we have seconds for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can
help yourself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY1MXzbQdbYMKxPF9a28Jr0YZ8G2TtyobRhnKAtH4ZJa9VBLAAIIa8khLJE47wfnnBc8JJKQlxFEJFZZCd4rxVsy_43MgRxM21Yq3OvAcChhGVs9AMoRZbkXhtUwIDOm1jPNf2j4F85rNG/s1600/Closeup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY1MXzbQdbYMKxPF9a28Jr0YZ8G2TtyobRhnKAtH4ZJa9VBLAAIIa8khLJE47wfnnBc8JJKQlxFEJFZZCd4rxVsy_43MgRxM21Yq3OvAcChhGVs9AMoRZbkXhtUwIDOm1jPNf2j4F85rNG/s320/Closeup.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I asked him how much was a crate of
tomatoes (meaning how many tomatoes would I be getting), he told me a crate of
tomatoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I nodded my ascent as if I got
the joke and wasn’t at all trying to ask an actual question.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I was handed an empty crate which now
looking back was the size of a pallet (well, maybe not quite that big, but it
was rather large) and told to fill it up with whatever I wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I started grabbing handfuls of different
colored tomatoes and placing them into the black plastic crate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I got about halfway full, my heart
started racing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘Oh gosh, what am I
doing, the recipe only calls for 5 pounds of tomatoes.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I interrupted the man again and asked how
many pounds he thought a full crate was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Oh about 35 pounds, he calmly replied looking at my crate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him I thought I was ok with just a
half full crate and I would still pay full price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He told me no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was going to need to fill it up more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got a few chuckles and stares from other
patrons at the stand noticing my panic and red flushed faced as I continued to
plop tomatoes into the crate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijw8CWjAGTFhihJ63YmsHhya2_vc2WkGJOKiy0tFJpDlIz9TkMarhsieXI5hDpB0gyVYfG0w0dwJiYLVHnF-LJ9JXpL-4YLWLRRiMWZd4Tc2mnvtrdnBMUCQm0VDNuve84rwYuACD45Zli/s1600/CastIron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijw8CWjAGTFhihJ63YmsHhya2_vc2WkGJOKiy0tFJpDlIz9TkMarhsieXI5hDpB0gyVYfG0w0dwJiYLVHnF-LJ9JXpL-4YLWLRRiMWZd4Tc2mnvtrdnBMUCQm0VDNuve84rwYuACD45Zli/s320/CastIron.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I tried pushing them around to make it
seem like more, the opposite of what children do to food they don’t want at
dinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I re-approached the man and told him the
crate was full, I was ready to pay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He,
thinking he was being helpful, looked up at the sky and nonchalantly added 10
more tomatoes to my crate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The one time
the baker’s dozen elicits panic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We then
poured the tomatoes into my two bags, and I swear that when I picked them up it
was closer to 50 pounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been
lifting weights, so I’m pretty sure they weighed more than 35 pounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">After lugging my 60 pounds of tomatoes
home, I moved them into a wide shallow box, as the weight of all of them piled
on top of one another was beginning to crush some of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I tried to push to box over to the side
of my kitchen but apparently I am unable to push 75 pounds of tomatoes with one
foot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAMOdEF6Q1F9CuWBASoz4fjbiJKUSAW661mQRn1Wr37wOLumXwTYj6qkvhy-jS19a53WS4TCy1MXlnu0oq-CoPbSIEI972S-6dXjsES33Mz9A_Jg9sMtVG2ydLU5cAgvvxasTF5H4T_llZ/s1600/Sautee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAMOdEF6Q1F9CuWBASoz4fjbiJKUSAW661mQRn1Wr37wOLumXwTYj6qkvhy-jS19a53WS4TCy1MXlnu0oq-CoPbSIEI972S-6dXjsES33Mz9A_Jg9sMtVG2ydLU5cAgvvxasTF5H4T_llZ/s320/Sautee.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When Joe came home and asked how my day
was and what I had gotten at the farmer’s market, my reply was ‘Ok, don’t get
mad at me, but…’ and thankfully he knows what that means – I have gone
overboard on something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I showed him the
box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">He agreed that it was over 35 pounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElETbYw-iCWnsKEOq8F7w8-WqJyrXt1wo5FE_ayWuamUEvfG8IFm1Y9kpKqA1RfFy-poMEMR_pqvVCqfPB8qGxOjyAfarlK6g3Li0OZpCDUt4kr0VflymgJvjr1WK0MSag0aNa8bAVC6b/s1600/Sludge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElETbYw-iCWnsKEOq8F7w8-WqJyrXt1wo5FE_ayWuamUEvfG8IFm1Y9kpKqA1RfFy-poMEMR_pqvVCqfPB8qGxOjyAfarlK6g3Li0OZpCDUt4kr0VflymgJvjr1WK0MSag0aNa8bAVC6b/s320/Sludge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So to wrap this story up; yes I did make
ketchup, no I did not use all of the tomatoes in that batch, and when you
quadruple a recipe you also have to quadruple the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ketchup turned out alright, not really
ketchup as we know it (so I’m calling it catsup – because who really knows what
catsup is) and it’s a bit spicy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too
spicy for Joe, so now I have 12 pints of catsup that I ‘put up’ this weekend in
case this winter we have to douse everything with homemade ketchup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More likely this will become a Christmas
present to at least 11 people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeeHJ7xLT_n6Mupz86dg6cQBPAVST6tI3JDMO7GPAP_nr2rRdG5VtEEQyQRJTgsS7Wl697dUTUe59z6wal_HH1r-NMrbLR5X7BrNIEWnAU6tHr8aXCQzDgL8OqAeiCesGtOrrNM7XIczv6/s1600/Plated.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeeHJ7xLT_n6Mupz86dg6cQBPAVST6tI3JDMO7GPAP_nr2rRdG5VtEEQyQRJTgsS7Wl697dUTUe59z6wal_HH1r-NMrbLR5X7BrNIEWnAU6tHr8aXCQzDgL8OqAeiCesGtOrrNM7XIczv6/s320/Plated.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">With the remaining 10 pounds of tomatoes,
I made a vat of tomato sauce and froze it on Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what I am going to share with you today
is not a recipe for tomato sauce or <s>ketchup</s> catsup. I will share
something far more manageable in the tomato realm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although I love this so much that next year I
may only grow Sungold tomatoes and make this all summer long. So that when Joe
asks me what’s in the garden I’ll have to say “Ok, don’t get mad at me, but<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a>…”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOk5juELHnnLEOR-53560uMq9XU9UOCRNl8wBcr6pBTMpbONwGSq9VJanvREuBDS_XfeOUsDWYmCCMDTonNMAVQ1R5aA5oR1dUI2Kc2UIk3hU9vwoNa-ucf7keXvL8vhUshSnpKIhFuXHN/s1600/InSunlight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOk5juELHnnLEOR-53560uMq9XU9UOCRNl8wBcr6pBTMpbONwGSq9VJanvREuBDS_XfeOUsDWYmCCMDTonNMAVQ1R5aA5oR1dUI2Kc2UIk3hU9vwoNa-ucf7keXvL8vhUshSnpKIhFuXHN/s320/InSunlight.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Bess’ Sungold Sludge<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Sungold tomatoes are the small orange
tomatoes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are as sweet as candy and
just as pretty in my mind. My friend Bess, makes this delightful treat in the
summer when her crop of Sungolds are ready.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I always secretly hope she will have some each time I see her.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 pint of Sungold tomatoes<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">2 cloves garlic, minced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">1 Tb olive oil<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Salt to taste<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">For assembly:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Fresh basil leaves, sliced<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Goat cheese (or cream cheese)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Toasted French bread slices<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat,
add garlic and sauté for about a minute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Slice some tomatoes in half and add to skillet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the other tomatoes and stir.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Adjust the heat as necessary so the garlic
doesn’t burn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cook, stirring
occasionally until the skins of all the tomatoes have burst.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a tomato doesn’t split open, gently press
on it with a spatula or poke it with a knife, but be careful of any juices
spitting out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Once the tomatoes have split, lower the
heat a bit and continue to cook another 7 minutes or so until the juices are thick
and syrupy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add salt to taste.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">To serve, spread goat cheese on toasted
bread, spoon the sludge over top and sprinkle with fresh basil.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1