Morning Glory Muffins
Mix together in a large bowl:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 cups sugar (brown works best)
3 tea cinnamon
2 tea soda
1/2 tea salt
Stir together in another bowl
3 eggs
3/4 cup applesauce (I use 2 grated apples instead of this and 1 apple)
1/2 cups oil
1 tea vanilla
2 cups grated carrots
1 medium apple
8 oz crushed pineapple
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup raisin
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Mix wet ingredients into flour mixture. Makes 24 muffing
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Mom's Basic Recipes pt. 3
Apple-Nut Coffee Cake
(using doubled)
1 cup flour
1/2 baking powder
1/2 soda
1/8 salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 stick margarine
1 egg
1/2 tea vanilla
1 large apple grated
1/2 cup sour cream
Cream butter and sugar, beat in egg and add grated apple and vanilla and sour cream. Add dry ingredients and pour into greased pan.
In a separate little bowl:
melt 1 TBL butter and add 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup chopped nuts and 1/2 tea cinnamon. It will be crumbly--crumble over batter and bake at 350 for 25 - 30 minutes
(using doubled)
1 cup flour
1/2 baking powder
1/2 soda
1/8 salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 stick margarine
1 egg
1/2 tea vanilla
1 large apple grated
1/2 cup sour cream
Cream butter and sugar, beat in egg and add grated apple and vanilla and sour cream. Add dry ingredients and pour into greased pan.
In a separate little bowl:
melt 1 TBL butter and add 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup chopped nuts and 1/2 tea cinnamon. It will be crumbly--crumble over batter and bake at 350 for 25 - 30 minutes
Mom's Basic Recipes pt. 2
Sweet roll recipe
You can use this for either cinnamon or orange rolls
This will make 2 dozen rolls
2 cups very warm tap water
1 TBL yeast
½ cup sugar
Let sit unti mixture is bubbly—yeast is active
Stir in:
4 cups flour
½ cup dried milk ( you can use warm milk for the 2 cups water or 1 cup water and 1 cup
buttermilk)
1 TBL salt
3 eggs
2/3 cup oil
(for orange rolls: add 1 tsp orange zest)
Beat together until mixture is smooth and elastic
Add:
2 ½ - 3 cups flour
It is best if the dough is a little sticky. That will diminish as the dough rises.
Turn out onto the counter, let rest 5 minutes and knead until smooth.
Let rise. Punch down. Let rest 5 minutes and roll into long rectangle
Filling:
Cinnamon - melt ½ cup butter and spread over dough. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3
cup brown sugar—drizzle corn syrup over the whole thing (about 1/3 cup) and sprinkle
generously with cinnamon. Roll and cut into ¾ inch pieces. Let rise and bake.
Orange - directions are the same except use 2/3 cup sugar and add orange zest—
I usually mix the orange peel in the sugar and process with the food processor. It is
probably 2 tsp. I also drizzle the dough with 1/3 cup thawed orange juice concentrate.
It will be messy.
You can use this for either cinnamon or orange rolls
This will make 2 dozen rolls
2 cups very warm tap water
1 TBL yeast
½ cup sugar
Let sit unti mixture is bubbly—yeast is active
Stir in:
4 cups flour
½ cup dried milk ( you can use warm milk for the 2 cups water or 1 cup water and 1 cup
buttermilk)
1 TBL salt
3 eggs
2/3 cup oil
(for orange rolls: add 1 tsp orange zest)
Beat together until mixture is smooth and elastic
Add:
2 ½ - 3 cups flour
It is best if the dough is a little sticky. That will diminish as the dough rises.
Turn out onto the counter, let rest 5 minutes and knead until smooth.
Let rise. Punch down. Let rest 5 minutes and roll into long rectangle
Filling:
Cinnamon - melt ½ cup butter and spread over dough. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3
cup brown sugar—drizzle corn syrup over the whole thing (about 1/3 cup) and sprinkle
generously with cinnamon. Roll and cut into ¾ inch pieces. Let rise and bake.
Orange - directions are the same except use 2/3 cup sugar and add orange zest—
I usually mix the orange peel in the sugar and process with the food processor. It is
probably 2 tsp. I also drizzle the dough with 1/3 cup thawed orange juice concentrate.
It will be messy.
Mom's Basic Recipes pt. 1
I can't believe I have yet to post the following recipes.
Like usual, I am in the mood to bake and cook different things that were common to our breakfast/lunch/dinner table growing up. When I first moved to Salt Lake, I requested my mom send me an email with all of these recipes now that I had to make them on my own. Now, one would think that I would save these emails in places that are a) memorable and b) accessible. However, I am not the most technologically savvy person and forget to remove them from my old email accounts (that continue to just receive SPAM throughout the year while I'm not ever checking it).
Anyway. That was a lot of exposition to some pretty basic/staple recipes.
Creamed Soup Base
This is the original recipe that I have adapted into the cheese/broccoli or potato soup
1 potato, diced
½ large onion
Saute in 2 TBL butter or olive oil until the potatoes just start to brown on the edges.
Add:
4 cups chicken broth
You can add any combination of the following:
Potato soup:
2 more potatoes, diced
1 cup sliced celery
cooked bacon—as a garnish
Cheese/broccoli:
1 lb package of chopped borccoli
Orignial Recipe:
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 medium green pepper, diced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Whatever you have chosen, let simmer 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Add 2 cups milk
¼ cup corn starch
¼ cup cream
8 oz. grated sharp chedder cheese
Let simmer 10 minutes and serve
Like usual, I am in the mood to bake and cook different things that were common to our breakfast/lunch/dinner table growing up. When I first moved to Salt Lake, I requested my mom send me an email with all of these recipes now that I had to make them on my own. Now, one would think that I would save these emails in places that are a) memorable and b) accessible. However, I am not the most technologically savvy person and forget to remove them from my old email accounts (that continue to just receive SPAM throughout the year while I'm not ever checking it).
Anyway. That was a lot of exposition to some pretty basic/staple recipes.
Creamed Soup Base
This is the original recipe that I have adapted into the cheese/broccoli or potato soup
1 potato, diced
½ large onion
Saute in 2 TBL butter or olive oil until the potatoes just start to brown on the edges.
Add:
4 cups chicken broth
You can add any combination of the following:
Potato soup:
2 more potatoes, diced
1 cup sliced celery
cooked bacon—as a garnish
Cheese/broccoli:
1 lb package of chopped borccoli
Orignial Recipe:
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 medium green pepper, diced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Whatever you have chosen, let simmer 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Add 2 cups milk
¼ cup corn starch
¼ cup cream
8 oz. grated sharp chedder cheese
Let simmer 10 minutes and serve
Thursday, October 28, 2010
A couple of special links
Alas, I do not have any recipes to share at this moment. Though Nik made an impromptu dinner featuring a meatloaf that is both incredibly delicious and packed full of vegetables. I need to have him tell me what was in it, then I promise to post it up.
However, today I have some special links to share with you.
As you may or may not know, I have a deep devotion to dairy. It is hard for me to think of anything more sad than the idea of living a life of being lactose intolerant. My mom told me not long ago that I was lactose intolerant for the first few years of my life; which might explain the subconscious need to make up for lost dairy. My interest in dairy currently only extends as far as the consumption of it- though one of my life goals is to make artisan cheese. And artisan mustard. But that is another story.
You may not share my intense feelings about cheese and dairy, but I feel you will delight in some of the links that I am sharing today...
http://cheeseunderground.blogspot.com/
An entire blog. About cheese. I think it is sounds miraculous. She is a clever writer, so Midwestern that you can almost hear the accent through the text. There is nothing pretentious about it: just a person sharing their love for and experience in the dairy world of Wisconsin.
http://www.wicheesefest.com/
A festival in Wisconsin- where else?!- that features locally-made cheese. This year it is the weekend of my Dad's birthday, so I don't think I'm going to be able to make it. BUT- trust, I will find a way to be there in the years to come...
That is all for now. I needed to post these before I lost them!
However, today I have some special links to share with you.
As you may or may not know, I have a deep devotion to dairy. It is hard for me to think of anything more sad than the idea of living a life of being lactose intolerant. My mom told me not long ago that I was lactose intolerant for the first few years of my life; which might explain the subconscious need to make up for lost dairy. My interest in dairy currently only extends as far as the consumption of it- though one of my life goals is to make artisan cheese. And artisan mustard. But that is another story.
You may not share my intense feelings about cheese and dairy, but I feel you will delight in some of the links that I am sharing today...
http://cheeseunderground.blogspot.com/
An entire blog. About cheese. I think it is sounds miraculous. She is a clever writer, so Midwestern that you can almost hear the accent through the text. There is nothing pretentious about it: just a person sharing their love for and experience in the dairy world of Wisconsin.
http://www.wicheesefest.com/
A festival in Wisconsin- where else?!- that features locally-made cheese. This year it is the weekend of my Dad's birthday, so I don't think I'm going to be able to make it. BUT- trust, I will find a way to be there in the years to come...
That is all for now. I needed to post these before I lost them!
Sunday, October 10, 2010
My First Cake
Can you believe it? I've never made a cake before.
They scare me: entire blogs exist that mock the amateur crafting of a cake. Yes, ones like Cake Wrecks often make fun of the design and spelling aspects- but I still find myself nervous while thumbing through cake recipes. Oh, and my frosting is always a hot mess. SAD.
Add all these elements together and you will understand why I love making pies instead of cakes.
Yesterday, though, I decided that Nik's completion of the Chicago Marathon merited a little bit of celebrating: I brined and grilled a chicken from my grandfather's farm, made pumpkin biscuits, and fried sweet potatoes for dinner... all topped off with a cake! AS far as cakes go, I knew that if I attempted a multi-layer, filled cake for my first time- it risked being a mess. I had guests coming over and refused to disturb Nik's "cooling down" time after coming home from the marathon. So what kinds of cake are nearly impossible to mess up? Ones with a form other than a simple round... also known as BUNDT cakes.
A year or two ago, we got this beautiful Bundt cake pan from Williams-Sonoma, but it had since disappeared into the back of the "cake cupboard"- full of dozens of cake pans of various shapes and sizes. I pulled it out and whipped together this lovely cake (that was not originally a Bundt cake recipe)...
Carrot Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:
For the cake:
4 large carrots, grated
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground mace
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups canola oil or applesauce (I used the oil this time)
Grated zest of 1 orange
1/2 cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained
1 cup pecans
Over a sheet of parchment paper or a plate, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and mace. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, oil and orange zest and whisk thoroughly to combine. Stir in the carrots. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture until almost completely incorporated. Add the raisins and nuts and fold to mix thoroughly. Pour the batter into the well-greased pan.
Cook at 350 degrees for about 45-50 minutes. Take a thin knife or bamboo stick to insert into cake- if it comes out dry, the cake is done. This Bundt pan didn't take very long.
For the FROSTING:
1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup of white chocolate chips melted
2 TB butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
3/4+ cup of powdered sugar
2 TB milk
Mix together the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, milk, and melted white chocolate until smooth. Then add the powdered sugar until it is the consistancy you desire- I wanted mine thin enough to drizzle, but thick enough to not just drip everywhere.
Et voila. Delicious and Beautiful Cake!
I should totally post pictures...
They scare me: entire blogs exist that mock the amateur crafting of a cake. Yes, ones like Cake Wrecks often make fun of the design and spelling aspects- but I still find myself nervous while thumbing through cake recipes. Oh, and my frosting is always a hot mess. SAD.
Add all these elements together and you will understand why I love making pies instead of cakes.
Yesterday, though, I decided that Nik's completion of the Chicago Marathon merited a little bit of celebrating: I brined and grilled a chicken from my grandfather's farm, made pumpkin biscuits, and fried sweet potatoes for dinner... all topped off with a cake! AS far as cakes go, I knew that if I attempted a multi-layer, filled cake for my first time- it risked being a mess. I had guests coming over and refused to disturb Nik's "cooling down" time after coming home from the marathon. So what kinds of cake are nearly impossible to mess up? Ones with a form other than a simple round... also known as BUNDT cakes.
A year or two ago, we got this beautiful Bundt cake pan from Williams-Sonoma, but it had since disappeared into the back of the "cake cupboard"- full of dozens of cake pans of various shapes and sizes. I pulled it out and whipped together this lovely cake (that was not originally a Bundt cake recipe)...
Carrot Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:
For the cake:
4 large carrots, grated
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground mace
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups canola oil or applesauce (I used the oil this time)
Grated zest of 1 orange
1/2 cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained
1 cup pecans
Over a sheet of parchment paper or a plate, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and mace. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, oil and orange zest and whisk thoroughly to combine. Stir in the carrots. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture until almost completely incorporated. Add the raisins and nuts and fold to mix thoroughly. Pour the batter into the well-greased pan.
Cook at 350 degrees for about 45-50 minutes. Take a thin knife or bamboo stick to insert into cake- if it comes out dry, the cake is done. This Bundt pan didn't take very long.
For the FROSTING:
1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup of white chocolate chips melted
2 TB butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
3/4+ cup of powdered sugar
2 TB milk
Mix together the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, milk, and melted white chocolate until smooth. Then add the powdered sugar until it is the consistancy you desire- I wanted mine thin enough to drizzle, but thick enough to not just drip everywhere.
Et voila. Delicious and Beautiful Cake!
I should totally post pictures...
More Fall-like Food
I've been considering the following biscuit recipe for quite some time- on some days, the concept seemed like a fantastical combination. Other times I felt a little bit squeamish adding elements of pumpkin pie to a kind of food that I hold a little sacred.
You see, one of the most delicious and Midwestern dishes I can think of is fluffy buttermilk biscuits douced in a ladle-full of sausage chunks and gravy. Yes, several orders of McDonalds fries are probably more healthy and less full of various starches and fats- which is why you only consume it maybe once or twice a year. But that is clearly a tanget. I love biscuits- and almost all varieties of quick breads. As their name suggests, they are much quicker and easier than negotiating yeast bread recipes.
After sampling one straight out of the oven (PLAIN, mind you), I couldn't help but grab two or three more immediately.
Pumpkin Biscuits. WHO KNEW?!
Ingredients
9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice***
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup fat-free buttermilk
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
3 tablespoons honey
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a large bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Chill 10 minutes.
3. Combine buttermilk and honey, stirring with a whisk until well blended; add canned pumpkin. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until moist.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 4 times. Roll dough into a (1/2-inch-thick) 9 x 5–inch rectangle; dust top of dough with flour. Fold dough crosswise into thirds (as if folding a piece of paper to fit into an envelope). Reroll dough into a (1/2-inch-thick) 9 x 5–inch rectangle; dust top of dough with flour. Fold dough crosswise into thirds; gently roll or pat to a 3/4-inch thickness. Cut dough with a 1 3/4-inch biscuit cutter to form 14 dough rounds. Place dough rounds, 1 inch apart, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400° for 14 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan; cool 2 minutes on wire racks. Serve warm.
***I didn't have pumpkin pie spice. While at the store, I saw a small plastic jar (McCormick Brand) cost a whopping $6. Highway robbery! So I did some quick research and decided that about 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp allspice, a dash of ground cloves and another of mace- all substituted just fine. Granted, I do have the majority of the Penzeys store in the cupboards next to my range.
You see, one of the most delicious and Midwestern dishes I can think of is fluffy buttermilk biscuits douced in a ladle-full of sausage chunks and gravy. Yes, several orders of McDonalds fries are probably more healthy and less full of various starches and fats- which is why you only consume it maybe once or twice a year. But that is clearly a tanget. I love biscuits- and almost all varieties of quick breads. As their name suggests, they are much quicker and easier than negotiating yeast bread recipes.
After sampling one straight out of the oven (PLAIN, mind you), I couldn't help but grab two or three more immediately.
Pumpkin Biscuits. WHO KNEW?!
Ingredients
9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice***
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup fat-free buttermilk
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
3 tablespoons honey
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a large bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Chill 10 minutes.
3. Combine buttermilk and honey, stirring with a whisk until well blended; add canned pumpkin. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until moist.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 4 times. Roll dough into a (1/2-inch-thick) 9 x 5–inch rectangle; dust top of dough with flour. Fold dough crosswise into thirds (as if folding a piece of paper to fit into an envelope). Reroll dough into a (1/2-inch-thick) 9 x 5–inch rectangle; dust top of dough with flour. Fold dough crosswise into thirds; gently roll or pat to a 3/4-inch thickness. Cut dough with a 1 3/4-inch biscuit cutter to form 14 dough rounds. Place dough rounds, 1 inch apart, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 400° for 14 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan; cool 2 minutes on wire racks. Serve warm.
***I didn't have pumpkin pie spice. While at the store, I saw a small plastic jar (McCormick Brand) cost a whopping $6. Highway robbery! So I did some quick research and decided that about 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp allspice, a dash of ground cloves and another of mace- all substituted just fine. Granted, I do have the majority of the Penzeys store in the cupboards next to my range.
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