I'm in the middle of making some Crimmus cookies. Dough is chilling as we speak. Will share a recipe with pictures tomorrow if all goes according to plan.
In the meantime, enjoy this clip of the true meaning of the holiday.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth. . .
If you're like me, and I know I am, you might not read recipes carefully prior to going shopping. Then you're in the middle of baking and realize that you can't finish the recipe.
What to do?
Well, generally, it is best to go back to the store. Or find a different recipe.
But we can SUBSTITUTE. Sometimes we can even SUBSTITUTE for a SUBSTITUTE!
Here are some quick fixes for what you might be missing.
ALL SPICE: Use a mixture of half cinnamon and half cloves.
BAKER'S CHOCOLATE: You can replace an ounce with a tablespoon of Crisco and 3 Tablespoons Cocoa powder.
BUTTERMILK: You can use yogurt in most recipes, or make some buttermilk by pouring a cup of whole milk over a tablespoon of white vinegar and letting it sit for five minutes.
WHITE SUGAR: Brown sugar, just use 25% more.
Seriously, though. Nobody keeps buttermilk in their house, right?
What to do?
Well, generally, it is best to go back to the store. Or find a different recipe.
But we can SUBSTITUTE. Sometimes we can even SUBSTITUTE for a SUBSTITUTE!
Here are some quick fixes for what you might be missing.
ALL SPICE: Use a mixture of half cinnamon and half cloves.
BAKER'S CHOCOLATE: You can replace an ounce with a tablespoon of Crisco and 3 Tablespoons Cocoa powder.
BUTTERMILK: You can use yogurt in most recipes, or make some buttermilk by pouring a cup of whole milk over a tablespoon of white vinegar and letting it sit for five minutes.
WHITE SUGAR: Brown sugar, just use 25% more.
Seriously, though. Nobody keeps buttermilk in their house, right?
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Roast Chicken (Farm Style)
I thought I give a simple recipe for chicken where you didn't have to butcher and brown it first.
I don't know why you wouldn't want to do these things, but some people are weird.
This recipe is easy in terms of ingredients, but needs a dutch oven to work properly.
In fact, I think that this recipe might only require THREE ingredients. Four, if you count water.
You won't get a crispy skin, which is sad.
1. Buy a chicken. You'll want a roaster. Nothing major. A four pound bird.
2. Preheat the oven to 375.
3. Remove the giblets and rinse the bird.
4. Place the bird in a dutch oven, breast side up.
5. Add 3/4 cups water and 3 tablespoons butter into the dutch oven.
6. Lay five strips of bacon over the top of the bird, perpendicular to its line of symmetry.
7. Put the top on the dutch oven.
8. Put the dutch oven in the proper oven.
9. Leave it in there for 75 minutes. (Some recipes call for constant basting. I don't have a baster, so in order to keep the bird from drying out I leave the top on the dutch oven. Its easier.)
10. Take the bird out and put it on a plate for slicing. (Eat the bacon or share it with the dog.)
11. Pour some of the fat out of the juices. (It should be floating on top.)
12. Add 1 cup of water to the oven juices.
13. Place that on the stove on high.
14. Boil and reduce the volume to half.
15. Hey, you've got gravy!
I suppose I should add a recipe for biscuits. . .
I don't know why you wouldn't want to do these things, but some people are weird.
This recipe is easy in terms of ingredients, but needs a dutch oven to work properly.
In fact, I think that this recipe might only require THREE ingredients. Four, if you count water.
You won't get a crispy skin, which is sad.
1. Buy a chicken. You'll want a roaster. Nothing major. A four pound bird.
2. Preheat the oven to 375.
3. Remove the giblets and rinse the bird.
4. Place the bird in a dutch oven, breast side up.
5. Add 3/4 cups water and 3 tablespoons butter into the dutch oven.
6. Lay five strips of bacon over the top of the bird, perpendicular to its line of symmetry.
7. Put the top on the dutch oven.
8. Put the dutch oven in the proper oven.
9. Leave it in there for 75 minutes. (Some recipes call for constant basting. I don't have a baster, so in order to keep the bird from drying out I leave the top on the dutch oven. Its easier.)
10. Take the bird out and put it on a plate for slicing. (Eat the bacon or share it with the dog.)
11. Pour some of the fat out of the juices. (It should be floating on top.)
12. Add 1 cup of water to the oven juices.
13. Place that on the stove on high.
14. Boil and reduce the volume to half.
15. Hey, you've got gravy!
I suppose I should add a recipe for biscuits. . .
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Chicken Gumbo
Gumbo was, of course, invented by Hank Williams, I think sometime in the 18th century right before he was the president of Texas.
All right, enough misinformation for one recipe.
Gumbo is the official cuisine of Louisiana and it has many variations. Seafood, sausage, chicken, ham, and all sorts of things can find a good home in a Gumbo. Mr. Williams sings of a filé gumbo. Filé powder is a thickener added at the end of cooking made from the leaves of sassafras. The roots of sassafras contain something called safrole, which is considered a weak carcinogen. The leaves are thought to be safe, but generally speaking okra works just fine as a thickening agent.
Gumbo is often, but doesn't have to be, made with the holy trinity. This is the Cajun version of mirepoix. Mirepoix consists of celery, onions and carrots; the holy trinity is celery, onions and bell pepper.
1. Start by dissecting a stewing chicken into its useful components. A stewing chicken is an older more flavorful bird that requires slow cooking to be tasty. If you can't find one, a roasting chicken works well enough, but will require a little more fine tuning in the seasoning department.
2. Cover your chicken pieces in flour.
3. Brown the pieces in 1/4 cup bacon fat. You want to use a big pot or a Dutch oven for this. (I guess you can use salted butter in lieu of bacon fat, but you really ought to be saving your drippings.)
4. Pour in 4 cups of boiling water and simmer. Simmer the bird until it falls off the bone. (It'll take several hours, so I hope you weren't in a hurry.)
5. After the meat starts to separate from the bones, remove the chicken, chop it into bite size pieces, and set it off to the side.
6. Strain the bones from the stock and set your delicious chicken stock off to the side.
7. Now, in your soup pot, combine 2 cups of skinned tomatoes, fresh corn cut off from 1 or 2 cobs, 1 cup of sliced okra (it's gooey and a little gross), a seeded and chopped green bell pepper, 1/3 cup diced onion, 1/4 cup celery, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup rice and 5 cups water.
8. Simmer that for about 1/2 an hour, enough to get the vegetables tender.
9. Combine the vegetables with the chicken meat and stock.
10. Now season to your heart's content. Toss in some Tabasco, liquid smoke, salt, pepper, or whatever you think will make it taste better.
(If you do add the filé, now's the time to do it. Don't boil the soup after adding the filé.)
Now, while you make gumbo, you might be tempted to speak like Gambit. I don't recommend doing this thing. Gambit is the worst.
All right, enough misinformation for one recipe.
Gumbo is the official cuisine of Louisiana and it has many variations. Seafood, sausage, chicken, ham, and all sorts of things can find a good home in a Gumbo. Mr. Williams sings of a filé gumbo. Filé powder is a thickener added at the end of cooking made from the leaves of sassafras. The roots of sassafras contain something called safrole, which is considered a weak carcinogen. The leaves are thought to be safe, but generally speaking okra works just fine as a thickening agent.
Gumbo is often, but doesn't have to be, made with the holy trinity. This is the Cajun version of mirepoix. Mirepoix consists of celery, onions and carrots; the holy trinity is celery, onions and bell pepper.
1. Start by dissecting a stewing chicken into its useful components. A stewing chicken is an older more flavorful bird that requires slow cooking to be tasty. If you can't find one, a roasting chicken works well enough, but will require a little more fine tuning in the seasoning department.
2. Cover your chicken pieces in flour.
3. Brown the pieces in 1/4 cup bacon fat. You want to use a big pot or a Dutch oven for this. (I guess you can use salted butter in lieu of bacon fat, but you really ought to be saving your drippings.)
4. Pour in 4 cups of boiling water and simmer. Simmer the bird until it falls off the bone. (It'll take several hours, so I hope you weren't in a hurry.)
5. After the meat starts to separate from the bones, remove the chicken, chop it into bite size pieces, and set it off to the side.
6. Strain the bones from the stock and set your delicious chicken stock off to the side.
7. Now, in your soup pot, combine 2 cups of skinned tomatoes, fresh corn cut off from 1 or 2 cobs, 1 cup of sliced okra (it's gooey and a little gross), a seeded and chopped green bell pepper, 1/3 cup diced onion, 1/4 cup celery, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 cup rice and 5 cups water.
8. Simmer that for about 1/2 an hour, enough to get the vegetables tender.
9. Combine the vegetables with the chicken meat and stock.
10. Now season to your heart's content. Toss in some Tabasco, liquid smoke, salt, pepper, or whatever you think will make it taste better.
(If you do add the filé, now's the time to do it. Don't boil the soup after adding the filé.)
Now, while you make gumbo, you might be tempted to speak like Gambit. I don't recommend doing this thing. Gambit is the worst.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)