Absolutely not the Provencal dish.
Veggie Part
4 large bell peppers (We used red, yellow and orange)
3/4 pound fresh tomatoes (cherries halved, romas eighthed, larger ones cut into large chunks, not a fan of grapes but I'd leave them whole)
8 oz package button mushrooms, large ones quartered
1 large zucchini, cut into half moons
1 large yellow squash, cut into half moons
1 large red onion, cut into large dice
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup dry white wine (we used good ole' Three Buck Chuck's Sauvignon Blanc)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons chicken grill seasoning
1 tsp black pepper
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Preheat oven to 425
In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, wine, salt, chicken grill seasoning, pepper and pepper flakes. Add the veggies and toss to combine. Pour into a roasting pan and roast 25- 30 minutes until vegetables begin to brown and caramelize. Meanwhire prepare the fish and make the sauce.
Fish Part
1 lb fish fillets cut into large chunks (We used an assortment of Cod, Pollack, Sole and Flounder)
4 oz Salad Shrimp
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Toss fish and shrimp with olive oil and salt and pepper. When vegetable have begun to brown add these to the roasting pan and continue cooking for about 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through. Remove from oven and...
Sauce
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups vegetable broth
3 Tablespoons cornstarch dissloved in 1/4 water
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon chicken grill seasoning
salt to taste
1 Tablespoon olive oil
In a medium saute pan, saute the garlic, and chicken grill seasoning just until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add the white wine and cook until reduced by half. Add the vegetable broth, bring to a boil and whisk in cornstarch/water mixture stirring constantly until thickened. Add salt to taste. Pour sauce over the roasted veggie/fish mixture and stir gently to combine.
We served this over creamy mashed potatoes and had sweet corn as our side dish. Yum yum yum yum yum.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Bacon! bacon! bacon! Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaacon!
So, it's quite possible I'm completely obsessed with pork products.
Bacon Mach 1
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
1 cup Morton Tender Quick
4 cups cold water
Mix Tender Quick with the water until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (an electric knife...) and pan fry.
Notes: Undeniably the best bacon I'd ever had but still a teens salty. So...
Bacon Mach 2
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
1 cup Morton Tender Quick
1 cup white sugar
4 cups cold water
Mix Tender Quick and sugar with the water until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (This time we borrowed Mary Jo's meat slicer, woooooooooo hooooo, gotta get me one of those.) and pan fry.
Notes: It's amazing the difference a bit of sugar makes. I'm very happy with this one. I do plan on adding a little liquid smoke to the next batch but otherwise perfect.
Bacon Mach 3 (or Fancy Schmancy Underpantsy Bacon)
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
2/3 cup Morton Tender Quick
2/3 cup honey powder
3 cups cold water
2 Tablespoons No salt added Greek Seasoning
1 Tablespoon black pepper
2 capfuls Wright's Hickory Liquid Smoke
Mix all ingredients except the pork loin until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (Again, Mary Jo's slicer, Woot.) and pan fry.
Notes: Although this was good, it wasn't as bacony as I'd like. We're going to use up this one first and then back to the Mach 2 stuff. It did however make me want to put liquid smoke in Mach 2 and call it 2.1.
Bacon Mach 1
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
1 cup Morton Tender Quick
4 cups cold water
Mix Tender Quick with the water until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (an electric knife...) and pan fry.
Notes: Undeniably the best bacon I'd ever had but still a teens salty. So...
Bacon Mach 2
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
1 cup Morton Tender Quick
1 cup white sugar
4 cups cold water
Mix Tender Quick and sugar with the water until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (This time we borrowed Mary Jo's meat slicer, woooooooooo hooooo, gotta get me one of those.) and pan fry.
Notes: It's amazing the difference a bit of sugar makes. I'm very happy with this one. I do plan on adding a little liquid smoke to the next batch but otherwise perfect.
Bacon Mach 3 (or Fancy Schmancy Underpantsy Bacon)
3 lb rib end pork loin roast
2/3 cup Morton Tender Quick
2/3 cup honey powder
3 cups cold water
2 Tablespoons No salt added Greek Seasoning
1 Tablespoon black pepper
2 capfuls Wright's Hickory Liquid Smoke
Mix all ingredients except the pork loin until mostly dissolved. Place the pork loin in a gallon zippie bag, pour the water/Tender Quick mixture over, press out as much air as possible and refrigerate for 3 days. Slice thinly (Again, Mary Jo's slicer, Woot.) and pan fry.
Notes: Although this was good, it wasn't as bacony as I'd like. We're going to use up this one first and then back to the Mach 2 stuff. It did however make me want to put liquid smoke in Mach 2 and call it 2.1.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Sausages how I love thee...
So we made our first sausages. (Boo rah to KitchenAid)
We attempted English banger style sausages and let me tell you they were the best sausage I'd ever eaten.
We followed someone else's recipe with a few minor adjustments and they turned out yummo. Got to show them off too. My brother Pat showed up on Sunday to surprise my mom on her birthday. Near everyone ended up at my house so I made brekky. Homemade bangers, scrambled eggs and toast.
So here's the recipe we used
http://www.3men.com/sausage.htm#English%20Bangers
and the tweaks were
We used a 10 lb pork shoulder roast instead of pork loin (deboned and deskinned and denasty bitted)
For the bread crumbs we used an 8 oz french loaf which we dried and crumbed and that was about 1 3/4 cup of bread crumbs
Because we had more meat than the original recipe called for we upped the seasoning to 4 1/2 tsps
and finally we used an entire can (just shy of 2 cups) of chicken broth
Followed his directions and stuffed the whole mess into casings.
Even though we ate some that night (Bangers and mash) we discovered the taste and texture was considerably better the next day.
Then we decided to make more sausages on Tuesday and come up with entirely our own recipe. So we did
Chicken and Mushroom Sausages
Seasoning
2 Tablespoons Durkee Chicken Grill Seasoning
1 Tablespoon Greek Seasoning
Mix together
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes (partially frozen works best for grinding and cubing)
1 8 oz loaf of fresh french bread cut into cubes
1 15 oz can of chicken broth
1/3 cup dry sherry (not cooking sherry)
4 teaspoons Seasoning
1 lb button mushrooms roughly chopped
2 large onions rougly chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup sherry
A pinch of salt and pepper
Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, mushrooms, garlic and salt and pepper and cook slowly until all the juices are nearly evaporated and the onions are very tender. Add the 1/3 cup sherry and continue cooking until almost all liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Mix together chicken, bread cubes, seasoning, chicken broth and sherry. Allow to sit for a few minutes to allow broth to soak into the bread. Using the coarsest setting put mixture through a meat grinder. Combine the ground chicken mixture with the mushroom mixture and any leftover broth. Mix well and stuff into casings. Allow to sit overnight in the fridge before attempting to twist into links.
And in fact these were the best tasting sausages I've ever eaten. (Though the bangers were a close second)
Other ideas we've got floating around
Chicken Florentine-with spinach, mushrooms and swiss cheese
Country Chicken-chicken, sage, celery and onion (sort of classic stuffing flavored)
Chicken Fettucine-chicken, mushrooms garlic, parmesan and maybe orzo for fun
Beef Vindaloo
Pork solely seasoned with Greek Seasoning
Lincolnshire sausages
We attempted English banger style sausages and let me tell you they were the best sausage I'd ever eaten.
We followed someone else's recipe with a few minor adjustments and they turned out yummo. Got to show them off too. My brother Pat showed up on Sunday to surprise my mom on her birthday. Near everyone ended up at my house so I made brekky. Homemade bangers, scrambled eggs and toast.
So here's the recipe we used
http://www.3men.com/sausage.htm#English%20Bangers
and the tweaks were
We used a 10 lb pork shoulder roast instead of pork loin (deboned and deskinned and denasty bitted)
For the bread crumbs we used an 8 oz french loaf which we dried and crumbed and that was about 1 3/4 cup of bread crumbs
Because we had more meat than the original recipe called for we upped the seasoning to 4 1/2 tsps
and finally we used an entire can (just shy of 2 cups) of chicken broth
Followed his directions and stuffed the whole mess into casings.
Even though we ate some that night (Bangers and mash) we discovered the taste and texture was considerably better the next day.
Then we decided to make more sausages on Tuesday and come up with entirely our own recipe. So we did
Chicken and Mushroom Sausages
Seasoning
2 Tablespoons Durkee Chicken Grill Seasoning
1 Tablespoon Greek Seasoning
Mix together
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes (partially frozen works best for grinding and cubing)
1 8 oz loaf of fresh french bread cut into cubes
1 15 oz can of chicken broth
1/3 cup dry sherry (not cooking sherry)
4 teaspoons Seasoning
1 lb button mushrooms roughly chopped
2 large onions rougly chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup sherry
A pinch of salt and pepper
Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, mushrooms, garlic and salt and pepper and cook slowly until all the juices are nearly evaporated and the onions are very tender. Add the 1/3 cup sherry and continue cooking until almost all liquid is evaporated. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Mix together chicken, bread cubes, seasoning, chicken broth and sherry. Allow to sit for a few minutes to allow broth to soak into the bread. Using the coarsest setting put mixture through a meat grinder. Combine the ground chicken mixture with the mushroom mixture and any leftover broth. Mix well and stuff into casings. Allow to sit overnight in the fridge before attempting to twist into links.
And in fact these were the best tasting sausages I've ever eaten. (Though the bangers were a close second)
Other ideas we've got floating around
Chicken Florentine-with spinach, mushrooms and swiss cheese
Country Chicken-chicken, sage, celery and onion (sort of classic stuffing flavored)
Chicken Fettucine-chicken, mushrooms garlic, parmesan and maybe orzo for fun
Beef Vindaloo
Pork solely seasoned with Greek Seasoning
Lincolnshire sausages
Truffle Oil...big, fat, culinary hoax...
Ever seen the episode of Happy Days where Richie and the guys are all hyped up to go see the strippers? They get there and discover there's nothin' much to see. Yet when someone asks they all talk it up to be bigger than it really was.
White truffle oil...yes truffle oil. That divine, expensive, pig found fungus conveniently infusing extra virgin olive oil. Definitely a cheaper route to go especially if you're just getting your feet wet in the truffle tasting world.
If you'd never had a truffle and were going to hazard a guess as to it's taste and aroma what would you say? Earthy? Deeply mushroomy? Heady? A lot like garlic chives?
What?! a lot like garlic chives? How can this be? I spent eight bucks on this! (Which, trust me is a good price.) Granted it was tasty, but not the lush decadence I'd been led to believe. So I'm refusing to pull a Cunningham. Maybe black truffle oil is the good stuff but for anywhere from $8-35 a bottle white truffle oil ain't worth the money.
White truffle oil...yes truffle oil. That divine, expensive, pig found fungus conveniently infusing extra virgin olive oil. Definitely a cheaper route to go especially if you're just getting your feet wet in the truffle tasting world.
If you'd never had a truffle and were going to hazard a guess as to it's taste and aroma what would you say? Earthy? Deeply mushroomy? Heady? A lot like garlic chives?
What?! a lot like garlic chives? How can this be? I spent eight bucks on this! (Which, trust me is a good price.) Granted it was tasty, but not the lush decadence I'd been led to believe. So I'm refusing to pull a Cunningham. Maybe black truffle oil is the good stuff but for anywhere from $8-35 a bottle white truffle oil ain't worth the money.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Indianapolis...
Have I ever mentioned how much I love this town? (Go Colts!)
Karl and I decided to drive up and stay overnight to celebrate our anniversary. We left directly from work Monday night and got to Pat's a little after 10.
Pat cooked us dinner (yummy spaghetti) and we all settled down for the night. The next day Karl and I started our prowling with plans to meet up with Pat and Janice after Pat got off of work.
We hit Tienda Morrello #1, International Market, Meijer and International Bazaar. Mushy peas, curry paste and rose petal jam. The jam is going to be the filling in a cake I think.
P and J met up with us right as we finished in International Bazaar. Together we drove to 86th St. and Trader Joe's.
Trader Joe's is one of my favorite places. Three Buck Chuck and This Fig Walked Into a Bar are just one of the many delights that await you. This trip yielded two loaves of bread, Canadian White and Shepherd's Loaf, Comte sheese, goat brie, greek style yogurt, dried navel oranges, dried white peaches and dried black currants, pistachio nut meats, several sauces including a Thai Yellow Curry and a Masala Simmer Sauce. Other various bits and sundry and the triumph of the trip, White Truffle Oil. I can't wait to use it. My first plan is to pan roast the peruvian purple and yukon gold potatoes with a touch of truffle oil and sea salt. Who knows where I'll go from there...
From TJ's we ended our shopping at Saraga. Janice had never been there before and watching her delighted reaction was almost as good as the shopping. This trip yielded 6 more pounds of my favorite sea salt, honey powder, tofu noodles, udon noodles, soup noodles, carrot noodles, maybe some other kind of noodles, Idris Fiery Ginger Beer, coconut water, cuttlefish crackers and vegetarian crackers. We also bought this incredible double sided griddle pan.
We finished up with dinner at Buca di Beppo and headed home. It was an absolutely lovely day and I love Karl in general and for convincing me to go even though I was being a whiney baby.
I love you babe, happy anniversary.
Karl and I decided to drive up and stay overnight to celebrate our anniversary. We left directly from work Monday night and got to Pat's a little after 10.
Pat cooked us dinner (yummy spaghetti) and we all settled down for the night. The next day Karl and I started our prowling with plans to meet up with Pat and Janice after Pat got off of work.
We hit Tienda Morrello #1, International Market, Meijer and International Bazaar. Mushy peas, curry paste and rose petal jam. The jam is going to be the filling in a cake I think.
P and J met up with us right as we finished in International Bazaar. Together we drove to 86th St. and Trader Joe's.
Trader Joe's is one of my favorite places. Three Buck Chuck and This Fig Walked Into a Bar are just one of the many delights that await you. This trip yielded two loaves of bread, Canadian White and Shepherd's Loaf, Comte sheese, goat brie, greek style yogurt, dried navel oranges, dried white peaches and dried black currants, pistachio nut meats, several sauces including a Thai Yellow Curry and a Masala Simmer Sauce. Other various bits and sundry and the triumph of the trip, White Truffle Oil. I can't wait to use it. My first plan is to pan roast the peruvian purple and yukon gold potatoes with a touch of truffle oil and sea salt. Who knows where I'll go from there...
From TJ's we ended our shopping at Saraga. Janice had never been there before and watching her delighted reaction was almost as good as the shopping. This trip yielded 6 more pounds of my favorite sea salt, honey powder, tofu noodles, udon noodles, soup noodles, carrot noodles, maybe some other kind of noodles, Idris Fiery Ginger Beer, coconut water, cuttlefish crackers and vegetarian crackers. We also bought this incredible double sided griddle pan.
We finished up with dinner at Buca di Beppo and headed home. It was an absolutely lovely day and I love Karl in general and for convincing me to go even though I was being a whiney baby.
I love you babe, happy anniversary.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Cranberry Walnut Salad
Salady bit-
1 12 oz bag of shredded lettuce (or shred your own if you're not lazy)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 small onion thinly sliced
2 oz crumbled blue cheese
Dressing bit-
1/3 cup mayonaisse
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon Sherry Vinegar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
In a large bowl, mix together all the dressing bits until well combined. Add all of the salad bits and toss to coat. Yum, yum, yum, yum, YUM.
1 12 oz bag of shredded lettuce (or shred your own if you're not lazy)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 small onion thinly sliced
2 oz crumbled blue cheese
Dressing bit-
1/3 cup mayonaisse
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon Sherry Vinegar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
In a large bowl, mix together all the dressing bits until well combined. Add all of the salad bits and toss to coat. Yum, yum, yum, yum, YUM.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
WIP (works in progress)
I'm trying to become better at chronicling (I wonder if I spelled that right) the food we experiment with. I've decided to just throw them here and work on them until the recipe is right. Hopefully I'll move them to a post of their own once I feel I've "perfected" them.
October 23, 2006
What a crock!
or
Karl's Curried Chickpeas and Chicken in a Crockpot
Night before-Drive to Schnuck's to buy cream for coffee. Wander around aimlessly then decide to make bean soup. Buy a few stalks of celery and a packet of Northern beans. Pay for groceries, get in car have husband tell you he'd like to make Chickpeas with Chicken and some Curry. Brainstorm...drive all the way to Pizza King on Weinbach because the one near our house sucks. Eat stromboli. Make another trip to Schnucks (the Washington Avenue one this time) Purchase a package of dried chickpeas and some other stuff not related to this recipe. Come home rinse chickpeas in colander picking out the bad ones. Place chickpeas in crockpot and add enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Cover tightly and leave overnight to soak.
You can skip most of the above stuff and go directly to rinsing and soaking a 1 pound package of dried chickpeas.
In the morning add to the beans and leftover soaking water
2 large onions cut into small dice
1 cup frozen pepper stir fry
1/3 cup Maykway Curry Powder
2 Tablespoons Ship Curry Powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 clove garlic minced
1 cup (or more if needed) water
Stir together then add
4 chicken breast halves kinda burying them in the beans. Add more water if needed to barely cover the beans etc. Turn crockpot on low and leave to cook all day.
September 27, 2006
I brought this to work today and the muffins were so good. (Melissa had five if that tells you anything) Normally I would just go ahead and put the recipe in it's own post, however I'm trying a variation with cherries, blueberries and walnuts and in mix form. The original muffins reminded me of a really good bowl of oatmeal in muffin form.
The 12 grains are hard red wheat, stone ground corn,
rye, oats, triticale, brown rice, soy beans, oat bran, millet, barley, sunflower seeds, and flaxseed. Personally I think some of those things don't quite count as grains but Bob begs to differ and hell, 12 Grain Muffins sounds better than * Grain and Some Other Stuff Muffins.
12 Grain Muffin
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (powdered if you've got it)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk
1/2 vegetable oil
1/2 cup sourcream
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease small muffin tins or line with cupcake liners. In a large bowl mix together first 8 ingredients and stir to combine. Add final four ingredients and mix until just combined. Fill prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and delicious. 24 muffins
12 Grain Cherry Blueberry Walnut Muffin Mix
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1/4 buttermilk powder
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon powdered vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup dried blueberries
Combine all ingredients thoroughly and divide into 2 portions and bag up. For each mix use 1 cup milk, 1/4 vegetable oil, and 1 egg. Mix until just combined and fill prepared muffin tins 2/3 full bake 15-20 minutes until gbd.
I'm making these for brekkie at work tomorrow if they turn out ok I'll give them their own post.
Notes-These were not quite as good as I hoped. I think they had too much leavening and were not quite sweet enough. I'm out of 7 Grain Cereal but my plan is to lower the baking powder to 2 teaspoons, add 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda and up the sugar to a full cup. I may also up the cinnamon to a full teaspoon.
September 12, 2006
I'm planning a good ole fashioned southern feast for dinner tonight. Baked ham with gingersnap glaze, scalloped potatoes, succotash, buttered cabbage and 7 grain corn bread.
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 polenta or grits
1/4 7 Grain Cereal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1/4 sourcream
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg
Preheat oven to 425. Place a small amount of vegetable oil in a 9" skillet and place in oven to heat.
In a medium bowl mix first six ingredients together until blended. Add next 4 ingredients all at once and stir just enough to combine. Let sit for 5 minutes (just about the time it takes to clean up) then pour into heated pan in oven. Bake for ? until done.
I've fiddled with this in a few ways. The second time I made it I used whole wheat flour which I liked quite a bit. I also made a sweet version by adding 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Very yummy too. As for baking time it's 15-20 minutes.
September 4, 2006
Seven Grain Bread has moved to it's own post.
August 29, 2006
Still working on breads. I really liked the blueberry orange buns I made and I've decided to play with it it.
Cherry Berry Bread
In a small bowl mix one cup of warm water with 2 tsps sugar sprinkle one tablespoon active dry yeast set aside until foamy
In a sauce pan heat over low heat 1 cup whole milk with 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter until butter is just melted. Do not boil. If milk get overly hot set aside to cool otherwise stir in 1/2 cup sugar and two eggs and one teaspoon vanilla to combine.
In a large bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir in the yeast/water mix and the milk/butter/egg/sugar mix and stir until well combined. Cover and set aside for one hour. Mixture should be bubbly and risen. If not you screwed up and have to start over. Most likely prob...dead yeast either from being too old or too hot. Buy fresh and watch your liquid temps. I didn't so i get to go on to the next step.
Stir down the yeasty mixture (technical term sponge) and stir in 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups more flour to make a soft, workable, but slightly sticky dough. (if you are using a stand mixer the dough will clean the sides of the bowl but stick slightly on the bottom) Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth and pliable. Form into a ball and place in an oiled bowl turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside to rise until doubled.
At this point you have a great sweet bread dough. It will make yummo cinnamon rolls, heavenly fruit buns, even a passing danish type bread or conchas.
To make the cherry, blueberry buns, punch down the dough and knead in 4 oz each dried cherries and blueberries and half cup of chopped walnuts. Divide dough into 32 equal pieces form into buns and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until golden and hollow when thumped. While still warm frost with
1/4 softened butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
Beat together and add
2 Tablespoons sourcream (more is frosting is too thick)
----
Sun Dried Tomato and Swiss Bread has moved to it's own post.
Naan Bread
1/2 warm water
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 teaspoons or 1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt, room temperature (or yoghurt if you must)
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Put warm water in a small bowl, add sugar and yeast and stir until dissolved. Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until it foams.
Blend in the warm milk, yogurt and melted butter.
In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Pour in the yeast/milk mixture all at once and work it into the flour, using your hands. Continue mixing, adding flour or water as needed, until the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl.
Knead for 6 to 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand in a warm place to rise for about 1-2 hours or until doubled in volume.
Punch down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Lay out the dough balls and allow to rise until doubled in volume (about 30-45 minutes). Roll each dough ball into an approximately 8 inch circle.
Preheat a griddle or large skillet over high heat until a drop of water dances on it. Lay one circle of dough on the griddle. Cook until lightly browned on one side, flip and brush the cooked side with a little bit of melted butter. Continue cooking on 2nd side until bubbled bits develop dark brown spots. (A little charring is ok)
Repeat wtih remaining dough.
Notes-These were not as chewy as I like naan to be. The taste was very good so I'm going to try it again with only 2 Tbls of melted butter.
Curried Onion Bread has moved to it's own post and been renamed to Bharji Bread.
Curried Beef Stew has moved to it's own post
All of these are from Sunday August 27, 2006
October 23, 2006
What a crock!
or
Karl's Curried Chickpeas and Chicken in a Crockpot
Night before-Drive to Schnuck's to buy cream for coffee. Wander around aimlessly then decide to make bean soup. Buy a few stalks of celery and a packet of Northern beans. Pay for groceries, get in car have husband tell you he'd like to make Chickpeas with Chicken and some Curry. Brainstorm...drive all the way to Pizza King on Weinbach because the one near our house sucks. Eat stromboli. Make another trip to Schnucks (the Washington Avenue one this time) Purchase a package of dried chickpeas and some other stuff not related to this recipe. Come home rinse chickpeas in colander picking out the bad ones. Place chickpeas in crockpot and add enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Cover tightly and leave overnight to soak.
You can skip most of the above stuff and go directly to rinsing and soaking a 1 pound package of dried chickpeas.
In the morning add to the beans and leftover soaking water
2 large onions cut into small dice
1 cup frozen pepper stir fry
1/3 cup Maykway Curry Powder
2 Tablespoons Ship Curry Powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 clove garlic minced
1 cup (or more if needed) water
Stir together then add
4 chicken breast halves kinda burying them in the beans. Add more water if needed to barely cover the beans etc. Turn crockpot on low and leave to cook all day.
September 27, 2006
I brought this to work today and the muffins were so good. (Melissa had five if that tells you anything) Normally I would just go ahead and put the recipe in it's own post, however I'm trying a variation with cherries, blueberries and walnuts and in mix form. The original muffins reminded me of a really good bowl of oatmeal in muffin form.
The 12 grains are hard red wheat, stone ground corn,
rye, oats, triticale, brown rice, soy beans, oat bran, millet, barley, sunflower seeds, and flaxseed. Personally I think some of those things don't quite count as grains but Bob begs to differ and hell, 12 Grain Muffins sounds better than * Grain and Some Other Stuff Muffins.
12 Grain Muffin
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (powdered if you've got it)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk
1/2 vegetable oil
1/2 cup sourcream
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease small muffin tins or line with cupcake liners. In a large bowl mix together first 8 ingredients and stir to combine. Add final four ingredients and mix until just combined. Fill prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and delicious. 24 muffins
12 Grain Cherry Blueberry Walnut Muffin Mix
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1/4 buttermilk powder
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon powdered vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup dried blueberries
Combine all ingredients thoroughly and divide into 2 portions and bag up. For each mix use 1 cup milk, 1/4 vegetable oil, and 1 egg. Mix until just combined and fill prepared muffin tins 2/3 full bake 15-20 minutes until gbd.
I'm making these for brekkie at work tomorrow if they turn out ok I'll give them their own post.
Notes-These were not quite as good as I hoped. I think they had too much leavening and were not quite sweet enough. I'm out of 7 Grain Cereal but my plan is to lower the baking powder to 2 teaspoons, add 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda and up the sugar to a full cup. I may also up the cinnamon to a full teaspoon.
September 12, 2006
I'm planning a good ole fashioned southern feast for dinner tonight. Baked ham with gingersnap glaze, scalloped potatoes, succotash, buttered cabbage and 7 grain corn bread.
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 polenta or grits
1/4 7 Grain Cereal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1/4 sourcream
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg
Preheat oven to 425. Place a small amount of vegetable oil in a 9" skillet and place in oven to heat.
In a medium bowl mix first six ingredients together until blended. Add next 4 ingredients all at once and stir just enough to combine. Let sit for 5 minutes (just about the time it takes to clean up) then pour into heated pan in oven. Bake for ? until done.
I've fiddled with this in a few ways. The second time I made it I used whole wheat flour which I liked quite a bit. I also made a sweet version by adding 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Very yummy too. As for baking time it's 15-20 minutes.
September 4, 2006
Seven Grain Bread has moved to it's own post.
August 29, 2006
Still working on breads. I really liked the blueberry orange buns I made and I've decided to play with it it.
Cherry Berry Bread
In a small bowl mix one cup of warm water with 2 tsps sugar sprinkle one tablespoon active dry yeast set aside until foamy
In a sauce pan heat over low heat 1 cup whole milk with 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter until butter is just melted. Do not boil. If milk get overly hot set aside to cool otherwise stir in 1/2 cup sugar and two eggs and one teaspoon vanilla to combine.
In a large bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir in the yeast/water mix and the milk/butter/egg/sugar mix and stir until well combined. Cover and set aside for one hour. Mixture should be bubbly and risen. If not you screwed up and have to start over. Most likely prob...dead yeast either from being too old or too hot. Buy fresh and watch your liquid temps. I didn't so i get to go on to the next step.
Stir down the yeasty mixture (technical term sponge) and stir in 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups more flour to make a soft, workable, but slightly sticky dough. (if you are using a stand mixer the dough will clean the sides of the bowl but stick slightly on the bottom) Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth and pliable. Form into a ball and place in an oiled bowl turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside to rise until doubled.
At this point you have a great sweet bread dough. It will make yummo cinnamon rolls, heavenly fruit buns, even a passing danish type bread or conchas.
To make the cherry, blueberry buns, punch down the dough and knead in 4 oz each dried cherries and blueberries and half cup of chopped walnuts. Divide dough into 32 equal pieces form into buns and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until golden and hollow when thumped. While still warm frost with
1/4 softened butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
Beat together and add
2 Tablespoons sourcream (more is frosting is too thick)
----
Sun Dried Tomato and Swiss Bread has moved to it's own post.
Naan Bread
1/2 warm water
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 teaspoons or 1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt, room temperature (or yoghurt if you must)
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Put warm water in a small bowl, add sugar and yeast and stir until dissolved. Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until it foams.
Blend in the warm milk, yogurt and melted butter.
In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Pour in the yeast/milk mixture all at once and work it into the flour, using your hands. Continue mixing, adding flour or water as needed, until the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl.
Knead for 6 to 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand in a warm place to rise for about 1-2 hours or until doubled in volume.
Punch down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Lay out the dough balls and allow to rise until doubled in volume (about 30-45 minutes). Roll each dough ball into an approximately 8 inch circle.
Preheat a griddle or large skillet over high heat until a drop of water dances on it. Lay one circle of dough on the griddle. Cook until lightly browned on one side, flip and brush the cooked side with a little bit of melted butter. Continue cooking on 2nd side until bubbled bits develop dark brown spots. (A little charring is ok)
Repeat wtih remaining dough.
Notes-These were not as chewy as I like naan to be. The taste was very good so I'm going to try it again with only 2 Tbls of melted butter.
Curried Onion Bread has moved to it's own post and been renamed to Bharji Bread.
Curried Beef Stew has moved to it's own post
All of these are from Sunday August 27, 2006
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Rye and Kamut Bread with Caraway Seed
2 cups bread flour
1 cup dark rye flour
1 cup Kamut flour
2-2 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup Vital gluten
2 Tablespoons caraway seed
2 Tablepoons sugar
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 1/2 teapoons salt
In a large bowl mix together the bread flour, rye flour, kamut flour, vital gluten, caraway seed, sugar, yeast and salt. Add about 1 3/4 cups of flour and stir to combine. Continue adding water until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms.
This does have rye flour in it so it's not going to go completely smooth and if it's not slightly sticky you have too much flour.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes. Watch how much flour you add, you really could end up with a brick. Place in a lightly greased bowl, cover and set aside to rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down and form into desired loaf size(s). Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet, cover with lightly oiled paper towels and let rise until doubled. Brush tops with Starch Glaze* or egg white. Slash tops with a sharp knife and bake at 450 for 10 minutes. Turn heat down to 350 and bake for a further 10-20 minutes until bread is golden, and sounds hollow when thumped.
Because this has rye and a whole grain flour in it you might want to test it with an instant read thermometer. You're looking for 190 at the center of the loaf.
Starch Glaze
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Mix together and bring to a boil. Brush on chewier type bread to achieve a crunchier top.
1 cup dark rye flour
1 cup Kamut flour
2-2 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup Vital gluten
2 Tablespoons caraway seed
2 Tablepoons sugar
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 1/2 teapoons salt
In a large bowl mix together the bread flour, rye flour, kamut flour, vital gluten, caraway seed, sugar, yeast and salt. Add about 1 3/4 cups of flour and stir to combine. Continue adding water until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms.
This does have rye flour in it so it's not going to go completely smooth and if it's not slightly sticky you have too much flour.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes. Watch how much flour you add, you really could end up with a brick. Place in a lightly greased bowl, cover and set aside to rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down and form into desired loaf size(s). Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet, cover with lightly oiled paper towels and let rise until doubled. Brush tops with Starch Glaze* or egg white. Slash tops with a sharp knife and bake at 450 for 10 minutes. Turn heat down to 350 and bake for a further 10-20 minutes until bread is golden, and sounds hollow when thumped.
Because this has rye and a whole grain flour in it you might want to test it with an instant read thermometer. You're looking for 190 at the center of the loaf.
Starch Glaze
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Mix together and bring to a boil. Brush on chewier type bread to achieve a crunchier top.
WIP (works in progress)
I'm trying to become better at chronicling (I wonder if I spelled that right) the food we experiment with. I've decided to just throw them here and work on them until the recipe is right. Hopefully I'll move them to a post of their own once I feel I've "perfected" them.
September 27, 2006
I brought this to work today and the muffins were so good. (Melissa had five if that tells you anything) Normally I would just go ahead and put the recipe in it's own post, however I'm trying a variation with cherries, blueberries and walnuts and in mix form. The original muffins reminded me of a really good bowl of oatmeal in muffin form.
The 12 grains are hard red wheat, stone ground corn,
rye, oats, triticale, brown rice, soy beans, oat bran, millet, barley, sunflower seeds, and flaxseed. Personally I think some of those things don't quite count as grains but Bob begs to differ and hell, 12 Grain Muffins sounds better than * Grain and Some Other Stuff Muffins.
12 Grain Muffin
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (powdered if you've got it)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk
1/2 vegetable oil
1/2 cup sourcream
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease small muffin tins or line with cupcake liners. In a large bowl mix together first 8 ingredients and stir to combine. Add final four ingredients and mix until just combined. Fill prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and delicious. 24 muffins
12 Grain Cherry Blueberry Walnut Muffin Mix
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1/4 buttermilk powder
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon powdered vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup dried blueberries
Combine all ingredients thoroughly and divide into 2 portions and bag up. For each mix use 1 cup milk, 1/4 vegetable oil, and 1 egg. Mix until just combined and fill prepared muffin tins 2/3 full bake 15-20 minutes until gbd.
I'm making these for brekkie at work tomorrow if they turn out ok I'll give them their own post.
Notes-These were not quite as good as I hoped. I think they had too much leavening and were not quite sweet enough. I'm out of 7 Grain Cereal but my plan is to lower the baking powder to 2 teaspoons, add 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda and up the sugar to a full cup. I may also up the cinnamon to a full teaspoon.
September 12, 2006
I'm planning a good ole fashioned southern feast for dinner tonight. Baked ham with gingersnap glaze, scalloped potatoes, succotash, buttered cabbage and 7 grain corn bread.
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 polenta or grits
1/4 7 Grain Cereal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1/4 sourcream
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg
Preheat oven to 425. Place a small amount of vegetable oil in a 9" skillet and place in oven to heat.
In a medium bowl mix first six ingredients together until blended. Add next 4 ingredients all at once and stir just enough to combine. Let sit for 5 minutes (just about the time it takes to clean up) then pour into heated pan in oven. Bake for ? until done.
I've fiddled with this in a few ways. The second time I made it I used whole wheat flour which I liked quite a bit. I also made a sweet version by adding 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Very yummy too. As for baking time it's 15-20 minutes.
September 4, 2006
Seven Grain Bread has moved to it's own post.
August 29, 2006
Still working on breads. I really liked the blueberry orange buns I made and I've decided to play with it it.
Cherry Berry Bread
In a small bowl mix one cup of warm water with 2 tsps sugar sprinkle one tablespoon active dry yeast set aside until foamy
In a sauce pan heat over low heat 1 cup whole milk with 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter until butter is just melted. Do not boil. If milk get overly hot set aside to cool otherwise stir in 1/2 cup sugar and two eggs and one teaspoon vanilla to combine.
In a large bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir in the yeast/water mix and the milk/butter/egg/sugar mix and stir until well combined. Cover and set aside for one hour. Mixture should be bubbly and risen. If not you screwed up and have to start over. Most likely prob...dead yeast either from being too old or too hot. Buy fresh and watch your liquid temps. I didn't so i get to go on to the next step.
Stir down the yeasty mixture (technical term sponge) and stir in 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups more flour to make a soft, workable, but slightly sticky dough. (if you are using a stand mixer the dough will clean the sides of the bowl but stick slightly on the bottom) Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth and pliable. Form into a ball and place in an oiled bowl turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside to rise until doubled.
At this point you have a great sweet bread dough. It will make yummo cinnamon rolls, heavenly fruit buns, even a passing danish type bread or conchas.
To make the cherry, blueberry buns, punch down the dough and knead in 4 oz each dried cherries and blueberries and half cup of chopped walnuts. Divide dough into 32 equal pieces form into buns and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until golden and hollow when thumped. While still warm frost with
1/4 softened butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
Beat together and add
2 Tablespoons sourcream (more is frosting is too thick)
----
Sun Dried Tomato and Swiss Bread has moved to it's own post.
Naan Bread
1/2 warm water
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 teaspoons or 1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt, room temperature (or yoghurt if you must)
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Put warm water in a small bowl, add sugar and yeast and stir until dissolved. Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until it foams.
Blend in the warm milk, yogurt and melted butter.
In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Pour in the yeast/milk mixture all at once and work it into the flour, using your hands. Continue mixing, adding flour or water as needed, until the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl.
Knead for 6 to 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand in a warm place to rise for about 1-2 hours or until doubled in volume.
Punch down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Lay out the dough balls and allow to rise until doubled in volume (about 30-45 minutes). Roll each dough ball into an approximately 8 inch circle.
Preheat a griddle or large skillet over high heat until a drop of water dances on it. Lay one circle of dough on the griddle. Cook until lightly browned on one side, flip and brush the cooked side with a little bit of melted butter. Continue cooking on 2nd side until bubbled bits develop dark brown spots. (A little charring is ok)
Repeat wtih remaining dough.
Notes-These were not as chewy as I like naan to be. The taste was very good so I'm going to try it again with only 2 Tbls of melted butter.
Curried Onion Bread has moved to it's own post and been renamed to Bharji Bread.
Curried Beef Stew has moved to it's own post
All of these are from Sunday August 27, 2006
September 27, 2006
I brought this to work today and the muffins were so good. (Melissa had five if that tells you anything) Normally I would just go ahead and put the recipe in it's own post, however I'm trying a variation with cherries, blueberries and walnuts and in mix form. The original muffins reminded me of a really good bowl of oatmeal in muffin form.
The 12 grains are hard red wheat, stone ground corn,
rye, oats, triticale, brown rice, soy beans, oat bran, millet, barley, sunflower seeds, and flaxseed. Personally I think some of those things don't quite count as grains but Bob begs to differ and hell, 12 Grain Muffins sounds better than * Grain and Some Other Stuff Muffins.
12 Grain Muffin
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla (powdered if you've got it)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk
1/2 vegetable oil
1/2 cup sourcream
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease small muffin tins or line with cupcake liners. In a large bowl mix together first 8 ingredients and stir to combine. Add final four ingredients and mix until just combined. Fill prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and delicious. 24 muffins
12 Grain Cherry Blueberry Walnut Muffin Mix
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 8 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal (Yes, these are two different things.)
3/4 packed light brown sugar
1/4 buttermilk powder
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon powdered vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup dried blueberries
Combine all ingredients thoroughly and divide into 2 portions and bag up. For each mix use 1 cup milk, 1/4 vegetable oil, and 1 egg. Mix until just combined and fill prepared muffin tins 2/3 full bake 15-20 minutes until gbd.
I'm making these for brekkie at work tomorrow if they turn out ok I'll give them their own post.
Notes-These were not quite as good as I hoped. I think they had too much leavening and were not quite sweet enough. I'm out of 7 Grain Cereal but my plan is to lower the baking powder to 2 teaspoons, add 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda and up the sugar to a full cup. I may also up the cinnamon to a full teaspoon.
September 12, 2006
I'm planning a good ole fashioned southern feast for dinner tonight. Baked ham with gingersnap glaze, scalloped potatoes, succotash, buttered cabbage and 7 grain corn bread.
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 polenta or grits
1/4 7 Grain Cereal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1/4 sourcream
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg
Preheat oven to 425. Place a small amount of vegetable oil in a 9" skillet and place in oven to heat.
In a medium bowl mix first six ingredients together until blended. Add next 4 ingredients all at once and stir just enough to combine. Let sit for 5 minutes (just about the time it takes to clean up) then pour into heated pan in oven. Bake for ? until done.
I've fiddled with this in a few ways. The second time I made it I used whole wheat flour which I liked quite a bit. I also made a sweet version by adding 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Very yummy too. As for baking time it's 15-20 minutes.
September 4, 2006
Seven Grain Bread has moved to it's own post.
August 29, 2006
Still working on breads. I really liked the blueberry orange buns I made and I've decided to play with it it.
Cherry Berry Bread
In a small bowl mix one cup of warm water with 2 tsps sugar sprinkle one tablespoon active dry yeast set aside until foamy
In a sauce pan heat over low heat 1 cup whole milk with 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter until butter is just melted. Do not boil. If milk get overly hot set aside to cool otherwise stir in 1/2 cup sugar and two eggs and one teaspoon vanilla to combine.
In a large bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Stir in the yeast/water mix and the milk/butter/egg/sugar mix and stir until well combined. Cover and set aside for one hour. Mixture should be bubbly and risen. If not you screwed up and have to start over. Most likely prob...dead yeast either from being too old or too hot. Buy fresh and watch your liquid temps. I didn't so i get to go on to the next step.
Stir down the yeasty mixture (technical term sponge) and stir in 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups more flour to make a soft, workable, but slightly sticky dough. (if you are using a stand mixer the dough will clean the sides of the bowl but stick slightly on the bottom) Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth and pliable. Form into a ball and place in an oiled bowl turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside to rise until doubled.
At this point you have a great sweet bread dough. It will make yummo cinnamon rolls, heavenly fruit buns, even a passing danish type bread or conchas.
To make the cherry, blueberry buns, punch down the dough and knead in 4 oz each dried cherries and blueberries and half cup of chopped walnuts. Divide dough into 32 equal pieces form into buns and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until golden and hollow when thumped. While still warm frost with
1/4 softened butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash salt
Beat together and add
2 Tablespoons sourcream (more is frosting is too thick)
----
Sun Dried Tomato and Swiss Bread has moved to it's own post.
Naan Bread
1/2 warm water
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 teaspoons or 1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt, room temperature (or yoghurt if you must)
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Put warm water in a small bowl, add sugar and yeast and stir until dissolved. Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until it foams.
Blend in the warm milk, yogurt and melted butter.
In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Pour in the yeast/milk mixture all at once and work it into the flour, using your hands. Continue mixing, adding flour or water as needed, until the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl.
Knead for 6 to 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand in a warm place to rise for about 1-2 hours or until doubled in volume.
Punch down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Lay out the dough balls and allow to rise until doubled in volume (about 30-45 minutes). Roll each dough ball into an approximately 8 inch circle.
Preheat a griddle or large skillet over high heat until a drop of water dances on it. Lay one circle of dough on the griddle. Cook until lightly browned on one side, flip and brush the cooked side with a little bit of melted butter. Continue cooking on 2nd side until bubbled bits develop dark brown spots. (A little charring is ok)
Repeat wtih remaining dough.
Notes-These were not as chewy as I like naan to be. The taste was very good so I'm going to try it again with only 2 Tbls of melted butter.
Curried Onion Bread has moved to it's own post and been renamed to Bharji Bread.
Curried Beef Stew has moved to it's own post
All of these are from Sunday August 27, 2006
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