Category Archives: Recipe? What Recipe?

Because you asked.. this is where I try to recreate some of my memorable dishes.

Hard verses firm

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Started checking out the difference between “american” style biscotti v. “italian” style recipes. 

No butter or oil yields a harder bite to the cookie and allows for thinner cuts and longer bake.
Today’s version: an adapted recipe for italian style Dried Cherry, Orange peel & Anise version.

  

Cookie time

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Started checking out the difference between “american” style biscotti v. “italian” style recipes.

No butter or oil yields a harder bite to the cookie and allows for thinner cuts and longer bake.
Today’s version: an adapted recipe for italian style Dried Cherry, Orange peel & Anise version.

The long awaited Easter Bread Recipe ( My Mom’s Version)

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img_0499Note: This is a large batch dough and can be both messy and sticky while making. You can use a mixer or processor as well as mix and knead by hand ( just plan to get “close & personal” to your dough if you do)
  • 1 dozen XL eggs
  • 2 1/2 cups of sugar (you can add up to 3 cups – mostly to your taste)
  • 1 tblespoon of sugar (this for the Yeast to proof)
  • Grated rind of 2 lemons and 1 orange (or two if they are small)
  • Juice of 2 Lemons and 2 Oranges
  • 1/4 lb of Bakers Yeast (active live yeast) or 6 packets of Active Dry Yeast (not rapid rise)
  • 1/2 c of Olive Oil
  • 12 cups of flour (more or less)
  • 1/2 stick of butter ( melted)
  • 1 cup warmed milk (118 to 115 degrees)
  • Parchment paper
  • 2 -3 Sheet try pans unless you plan to do them in batches.
  • Big Bowl!
  • clean towel and blanket ( yes a blanket)
Melt yeast in warm milk with the tablespoon of sugar, stir and set aside
Beat eggs w/remaining sugar till well incorporated
Add butter, yeast, lemon juice and grated lemon & orange peels mix together well.
If you have a large surface area you can mix old school style and pour flour on the table, form a mound, make a hole in the center and add liquid mixture gradually as you work by hand.
or
Use a bowl or mixer and add flour 2 cups at a time to liquid mixture.
The dough will go from liquid to sticky mess so you will want to be prepared.
Around the time you hit the 10th cup of flour, you will want to start to work the dough with your hands as you add the remaining flour*.
Coat your hands from the 1/2 of Olive Oil to keep it from sticking (Don’t use flour on your hands) and knead dough.
When you can shape a soft dough round that isn’t so sticky and stays together – you are done.
*Depending go the egg size – you may need less or more flour so take your time.
Oil the inside of a large bowl ( those old fashioned tupperware ones are great by the way). Place the dough in the bowl. Cover and “burp” if using tupperware or cover with plastic wrap. Drape a towel over the top and then fold the bowl into a blanket and set out of a breeze overnight or 6 -7 hours.
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Note:
Now the timeline we use is: 10:00 pm make dough,  7:00 am unwrap and punch it down for the first time, rewrap and let rise again for 2-3 hours, then shape into individual loaves and let rise uncovered for up to 1 hour more.
If you portion out the dough into 1/2 lb portions you can get  5- 6 loaves. If you want to do a large braid, use about 1-1/2 lbs (1/2 per lb), But its up to you. I think 1/4 ld loaves would be nice gifts too.
Role each portion of dough out into a 12- 14 inch role, then either braid or circle around itself ( or any other shape you like). Place on parchment paper lined trays.  You can also place a raw egg (especially pretty with colored eggs) in the center while they cook.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. I noted my oven runs hot so I used 325 for the second batch and let it cook an extra 5 minutes.
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Bake for 30 minutes or until a nice golden brown.

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Some days it’s dangerous to leave me alone with a vegatable peeler. Played a home version of “Chopped” Saturday night;  vita-A slaw; carrots, sweet peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, w/ a lemon, maple syrup, and homemade pear jam dressing 

   
 and baked “roll-ups” with mayonaise, grated cheese and parsley “sauce”, chopped tomatoes, sliced roast beef and atopped with a pepper jelly and tomato paste glaze and melted cheddar

  

Easter Bread; the Saga of the Risen

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Yes.. Its a bundle of something …Because not only does my Mom’s Easter Bread dough recipe use “active live yeast” instead of dried (which was harder to find than you would think) ,  it also indicates that prior to the first rise overnight; you need to make the “sign of the cross” over it and then swaddle it in a blanket too…

Did I mention how much I hate the chemistry of baking. It’s true. I will cook over bake anytime. But I wanted to see how close I could make mine to hers.

And 8 hours later (or was it 9 months because it sur looks full term) a very “risen” dough is ready to handled for a second short raise before shaping and baking.

Unwrapping the baby after 8 hours.

And now for a short 3 hour rise

All done… Oven on

 Now it’s time to shape & bake

A little egg wash

Maybe a little color..

Going classic

 

  and 30 minutes later

But my oven runs hot so the next batch goes in at 325 degrees

Otherwise the taste and texture is good. I can taste the citrus and sugar,  it’s dense with out being heavy. Will be perfect for toasting or as use in a bread pudding if I get tired of eating as is. 



Full recipe to follow shortly.

Tired of Regular Hummus? Try a Roasted Carrot Version!

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Yes – really.. carrots.. ok so it’s not really “hummus” (unless you actually add the Garbanzo beans) but the creamy, grainy texture that the roasted carrots and sesame paste creates with this recipe gives you great mouth feel and flavor. I found the recipe initially on the Joanne Weir website for CreateTV and adapted it some for my taste (and the fact I had forgotten that I ran out of cumin).

Here is my version of the adapted recipe;

This version makes about 1 -1/4 cups of dip  – but its pretty forgiving and I  say double there recipe, it’s that good.
Ingredients
  • 3 large carrots, (about 12 ounces) roughly cut into 1-inch pieces
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil*
  • 2 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste in a pinch peanut butter or almond butter will work too I bet), well stirred (I might use up to 2 teaspoons more next time)
  • 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika (original recipe used 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin)
  • 1 teaspoon of honey
  • Pinch crushed red chili pepper, or cayenne  (or to taste)
  • 2 to 4 tablespoons water
  • Fresh squeezed lemon juice to taste
 
* I am thinking good quality using flavored oils like Lemon, Blood Orange or Chili might rock this dish too
Instructions
Heat up the oven to 375°F.
  • Place the carrots, salt, and olive oil on a large piece of foil or parchment paper. Toss together. Wrap them up and seal the edges so the steam doesn’t escape.IMG_0458 (1)
  • Bake in the oven until tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
  • Open the paper and continue to roast for 5 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven and cool completely.
  • Pour the entire packet of carrots and oil into to the food processor with the remaining ingredients (except for the water and lemon juice).
  • Process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl.
  • Add water if needed to make a thick dip the consistency of hummus.
  • Season with salt and lemon juice to taste. This is also when you can add more honey, spices etc.
Joanne Weir’s recipes calls for serving the dip with thin sliced root vegetable “chips” but for me I used Terra Brand chips. Anything that can scoop will work. To check out the original inspiration for this version, visit Joanne Weir’s recipe here
This will keep in the refrigerator for a few days but I take it out about 20 min before serving.

 

Adapted Chicken Ribollita Chili style soup

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This is a recipe adapted from Giada’s Italian cooking show on food network, that has become a household favorite. I found a repost here on a variation of the recipe: Here

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil ( I find I can do this with less and add if I need to later on)
  •  1 large onion, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 pounds ground chicken (turkey works well or any non-meat type protein)
  • 1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons ground cumin (I use about 1/2 this)
  • 1 tablespoon fennel seeds (I use about 1/2 this and toast it in the pan first)
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder (I use about 1/2 this unless you like smokey flavor)
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 (15-ounce cans) cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 bunch (about 1 pound) Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves chopped into 1-inch pieces ( I use 2 bunches)
  • 1-1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed (worked with frozen ok – and I used the whole bag large kernels)
  • 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • Freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Hint: Want to kick this up a notch – stop by the cheese store and ask for a parmesan rind, about 2 inch piece will do – toss it in the soup early on and let it slowly melt. If you try this – don’t salt until you taste – the cheese has a salty flavor – so you want to taste as you go. Remove whats left of the rind before serving.
Directions
In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt, cumin, fennel seeds, oregano, and chili powder and cook until you can smell
the cumin and fennel, add the ground chicken (The original  recipe had you adding chicken first then adding seasonings but on the broadcast she did it this way and it makes for a better seasoned dish i think).

Cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken is cooked through, about 8 minutes. Stir the  flour into the chicken mixture. Add the beans, Swiss chard, corn, and chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a simmer, scraping up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.

Simmer for 55-60 minutes until the liquid has reduced by about half and the chili has thickened. Add the red pepper flakes and simmer for another 10 minutes. Add pepper flakes earlier in dish if you want more heat. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle the chili into serving bowls. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley*

* I found that I needed something to brighten the dish – so a few minutes before I served it I tossed in sweet grape tomatoes and heated them in it just long enough to get the warm – but still pop when you bite them.  But I bet a side dish of chopped tomatoes on top like a traditional chili garnish would work too as would a sharp chedder cheese

Easter Family Dinner Prep

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Planning for family dinner Sunday with cousins before they leave the Bay Area. So first up; my version of Pear & Cornmeal cake with Rosemary Sryup (gluten, dairy & soy free).

  

Fresh out of the oven with a few modifications; I substituted 1/2 olive (4 tablespoons) oil & 1/2 corn oil (3 tablespoons) for the butter and used dairy free milk (lactaid free milk works too) treated w/lemon juice to stand in for buttermilk.

For the main recipe; 
https://bitetheroad.com/2013/12/28/pear-cornmeal-cake-wrosemary-syrup/

Rainy Sunday Dinner

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Roasted glazed chicken & veggies for dinner adapted from the ONE PAN HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN AND VEGGIES recipe on Damndelicious.net with a few minor modifications such using chicken tenders over full breasts,  as switching sweet potatoes for red, adding carrots and maple sryup.


Inspired by the recent trip the Russian River over the weekend – the meal was a nice mix of local and regional finds. The honey I picked up at Beekind (http://beekind.com), they have a huge assortment of flavors to choose from and happen to be across the street from one of my fav resturants Hole In The Wall which we stopped at for lunch on the drive up.

 
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

The maple syrup came from my recent visit to KayCee Farm in CT which offers small batch, artisanal fresh harvested maple syrup. you can find them on facebook here

Then a special dessert picked up on our rainy drive back at Mom’s Pie, a local institution for those who love pies.