Sweet Potato Pound Cake

Sweet Potato Pound Cake

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups white sugar

2 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

Orange Glaze

1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar

5 teaspoons orange juice

2 tablespoons grated orange zest

Brown Butter Glaze

4 ounces (1 stick) butter

2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 to 4 tablespoons milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Set aside

2. In large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add mashed sweet potatoes and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time (the batter will look curdled). Add flour mixture to potato mixture. Beat on low until combined.

3. Pour batter into 10 inch tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Cool cake for 20 minutes in the pan, then invert onto serving plate.

4. To make the orange glaze: in a small bowl, combine confectioners sugar with 3 to 5 teaspoons orange juice to achieve drizzling consistency. Spoon over warm cake and sprinkle with orange zest if desired.

  To make the browned butter glaze:

1. Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Immediately remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to brown.

2. Carefully pour butter into a bowl, leaving sediment behind.

3. Add sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk to butter, and stir until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add more milk. Use immediately.

Caramel Glaze

Make the glaze by heating the butter, milk and brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and then remove from the heat. Drizzle over the warm cake. I like to place a sheet of aluminum foil under the cooling rack to catch the drips for easy clean up.

*  Your choice of glaze 
** Roast the sweet potatoes for optimum caramelized flavour

Rose Petal Jam

Rose Petal Jam

1/2 pound pink or red edible rose petals*
2 cups granulated sugar, divided
4 1/2 cups water
Juice of 2 freshly-squeezed lemons (approximately 1/2 cup) 

* All roses that you intend to eat must be free of pesticides. Do not eat flowers from florists, nurseries, or garden centres. In many cases these flowers have been treated with pesticides not labeled for food crops. The tastiest roses are usually the most fragrant.

Clip and discard bitter white bases from the rose petals; rinse petals thoroughly and drain.

Place rose petals in a bowl and sprinkle enough sugar to coat each petal. Let set overnight.

In a saucepan over low heat, place remaining sugar, water, and lemon juice; stirring to dissolve sugar. Stir in rose petals and let simmer 20 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil; continue boiling for approximately 5 minutes until mixture thickens and the temperature on a candy thermometer reaches 221 degrees F. or until a spoonful dropped onto a cold plate jells and holds its shape. Remove from heat.

After boiling, transfer the jam into hot sterilized jars. Fill them to within 1/4-inch of the top. Wipe any spilled jam off the top, seat the lid, and tighten the ring around them. Cover, label, and store in a cool place.

Makes 1 pound of jam.

Pineapple Meringue Cake

Pineapple Meringue Cake

2/10 inch spring form cake pans

350 degrees 25 minutes

Cake

8 egg yolks beaten

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter

1 cup cake flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon coloured. Cream butter and sugar together when light and fluffy add beaten egg yolks. Sift dry ingredients together into mixture starting with the dry ingredients alternating with the milk finishing with the dry ingredients. Pour batter into buttered and floured cake pans lined with parchment paper.

Meringue

8 egg whites

1.5 cups sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Slowly whip egg whites with cream of tartar  adding sugar at a slow and steady rate. Spread meringue on top of cake batter. Sprinkle 1.5 cups chopped pecan pieces. Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cream Filling

1 pint whipping heavy cream

2 cans crushed pineapple drained

3 Tablespoons icing sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Construction

Place one layer cake side down ,spread cream filling on top of meringue. Place other layer with meringue side down on top of the bottom layer. Spread remaining cream over cake.

Incredibly Crisp Gingersnaps

Incredibly Crisp Gingersnaps

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 cup sugar in a shallow bowl, for finishing

2 or 3 cookie sheets or jelly roll pans covered with parchment or foil

Directions

Set racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a bowl; stir well to mix. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together on medium speed the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes until very light, fluffy and whitened. Add the egg and continue beating until smooth. Lower speed and beat in half the dry ingredients, then the molasses. Stop the mixer and scrape down bowl and beater. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients. Remove bowl from mixer and use a large rubber spatula to finish mixing the dough. Use a small ice cream scoop to scoop out 1-inch diameter pieces of dough. Roll into balls between the palms of your the hands, then roll in the sugar. Place the balls of dough on the prepared pans leaving about 3 inches all around each, to allow for spreading. Bake the cookies for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until they have spread, the surface has crackled, and they are firm to the touch. Slide the papers from the pans to racks. Store the cooled cookies between sheets of parchment or waxed paper in a tin or plastic container with a tight-fitting cover.

Wild Grape Wine

I finally bottled my wild grape wine, thick, heady and a black purple, like me a whole lot of nonsense.
I shared a glass with John and my brother Mike, it was acclaimed as critical. Wine snobs......bleech!
I bestowed upon a few neighbours a bottle with the following advice
:" Do not drink  now as it still is green, if you do and you die......you were warned. Age until Christmas, if you die then you were naughty not nice. Mull the hell out of it and serve to your guests to speed up their departure."
Still waiting on my pumpkin wine..........fun to make but a dare to drink.

Can you guess what this is?

Morels

Morel season is now ! My friend Dan found his first morel/wild mushroom, sent me these pics.I will be doing my stalking this weekend with an eye for asparagus.

Lattice-Topped Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

Lattice-Topped Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

For crust

2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon mace
6 ounces (1 1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch slices

1/2 cup cold lard, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup cold vodka or alcohol of choice
1/4 cup cold water 
3 tbsp sour cream

For filling

3 1/2 cups 1/2-inch-thick slices trimmed rhubarb (1 1/2 pounds untrimmed)

1 16-ounce container strawberries, hulled, halved (about 3 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

3 tbsp tapioca powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tbsp butter- cut into small bits

2 tbsp milk & sugar (for glaze)

Make crust:
Combine flour, sugar and salt in processor. Using on/off turns, cut in shortening and butter until coarse meal forms. Blend in enough ice water 2 tablespoons at a time to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; cut in half. Flatten each half into disk. Wrap separately in plastic; refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.)

Make filling:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine first 7 ingredients in large bowl. Toss gently to blend. Sprinkle the butter bits on top of the filling.

Roll out 1 dough disk on floured work surface to 13-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Trim excess dough, leaving 3/4-inch overhang.

Roll out second dough disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch round. Cut into fourteen 1/2-inch-wide strips. Spoon filling into crust. Arrange 7 dough strips atop filling, spacing evenly. Form lattice by placing remaining dough strips in opposite direction atop filling. Trim ends of dough strips even with overhang of bottom crust. Fold strip ends and overhang under, pressing to seal. Crimp edges decoratively.

Brush glaze over crust. transfer pie to baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Bake pie until golden and filling thickens, about 1 hour 25 minutes. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely.

Lemon Goat Cheese Tart

Lemon Goat Cheese Tart

Tart Crust

• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

• 10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold

Lemon Curd

• 6 large eggs yolks

•1/2 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice

• 1 cup sugar

• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter

Goat Cheese Filling

• 4 ounces (1/2 cup) fresh goat cheese

• 1/2 cup crème fraiche

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 1 large egg

• 2 1/2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

Burnt Sugar

¼ cup sugar

Tart Crust
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Combine the flour, powdered sugar, and butter in the work bowl of a food processor.  Pulse until a soft ball begins to form on the blade.  Be careful not to over mix. Remove dough and press into the bottom and up the sides of an 11 inch tart pan with a removable bottom.  Place in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove, set aside, and let cool.
Filling
Mix goat cheese, crème fraîche, sugar, egg, and flour together in a small bowl. Pour this mixture into the cooled tart crust. Place in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until just set.  Set aside and let cool.
Lemon Curd
Combine egg yolks, lemon juice, and sugar in the top of a double boiler. Place the top pan of the double-boiler over simmering water.  Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken and wisps of steam will start to rise from the mixture.  Remove from heat and stir in the butter.  Set aside to cool for 15 minutes. Pour over the baked tart when cooled.

Burnt Sugar
Fifteen minutes or so before serving, sprinkle the granulated sugar evenly over the top of the lemon curd layer. Using a culinary torch or a hot broiler, melt the sugar. Chill for a fifteen minutes before cutting into slices.


Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.  To serve, slice into wedges.  Serves 8.

Chicken Fat Pie Crust

Chicken Fat Pie Crust


Save chicken fat and substitute it for the butter the flavour intensifies if you do as such.


2.5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp mace
10 ounces frozen chicken fat
1/3 cup ice cold chicken stock


Place the flour, salt and mace into a food processor ( pick one up at the resale store) whir for about five seconds to mix.
Cut the chicken fat into little cubes. Add to the processor and whir about eight seconds. Add chicken stock, whir about five seconds.
Dump ingredients into a bowl and gather together to form a ball.
Cut the dough in half, placing each into plastic wrap and flatten. Let rest in the fridge minimum one hour.
Roll dough out between two pieces of waxed paper dusted with flour. When rolled out into disks place in fridge for a half hour.
Place one disk at the base of a deep 10' pie pan, preferably ceramic or glass, pour in your chicken mixture top and seal with remaining disk perforates with a fork and cut open steam vents. Brush with milk.
Place pie in fridge for one hour.
Set rack on lowest level, preheat oven to 425 F, and bake for twenty minutes lower to 350 F for the last thirty minutes or until done.
Take out of oven, let rest then devour.

Smelts

 

Smelts once brought out generations of families to Point Pelee during their run, caught by the garbage pail full while sipping on my mother's tea. The Americans always came with beer that the park ranger immediately confiscated then disposed of right in front of the poor fellows, even if it was American beer it was still beer. My mother poured the poor gents tea as to ease their pain and to warm their insides, offering such varieties cherry whisky or brandy, apricot brandy, sloe gin, brandy, rye and rum in exchange for smelts. The park ranger always received the plain tea when they came snooping by, we youngsters got cherry brandy - evil (hic) mom.

All loved these tasty little morsels; floured, fried, spritzed with a squeeze of lemon juice accompanied with a squirt of ketchup to dip, children never enjoyed fish so much. The whole of Essex County smelled like a fish fry for two weeks and what a lovely smell it was,  we didn't want to see a smelt until next year. Nothing was wasted as the smelts' heads and visceral were either fed to the cats or tossed into the garden for fertilizer...again feed the cats.

September 2009 I attended a Culinary Guild meeting that had a spokesman from the area's largest fishery, smelts are the only fish not regulated. This is bad, very bad as the smelts are over fished and sold to Asian countries leaving only fingerlings for the locals.

Today as the good son, I took my mother shopping where I spied a package of frozen whole smelts, teased my mother about the smelts as minnows. She told me to buy them for dinner as it has been years since we enjoyed smelts. When we got to her house the joke was on me, they were not dressed, so I cleaned the tiny fish for an hour with a finished product that very much left to be desired. I called my brother for a smelt dinner, he was so anxious he salivated  as it was years too since he last ate smelts. 

The meal was strange but a bit fun as I informed my mother and brother that the menu was "smelt skins”, that was all that was left. We choked down the smelt skins to our dismay reminiscing about the great smelt runs of past with the spurting sound of the ketchup squeeze bottle burping out the red stuff.

My brother informed us that he buys his smelts that are a good size from the Asian Market, as the smelts were caught and processed here, shipped to Asia then shipped back here for us to enjoy.

Stupid!

Bacon Fat Spice Cookies

Bacon Fat Spice Cookies

Makes 20 to 24 cookies (made 22 for me)

Flour - 1 ¼ cups

Sugar – ¼ cup plus 1 Tablespoon

Brown Sugar - ¼ cup

Sea Salt – 1 teaspoon

Cinnamon (ground) – ¾ teaspoon

Ginger (ground) – ¾ teaspoon

Cloves (ground) – ¾ teaspoon

Bacon Fat – ½ cup

Molasses – 2 Tablespoons

Egg – 1

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 Large baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Combine the flour, sugar, the salt, and the spices in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add the bacon fat, molasses, and egg and pulse until the mixture forms soft dough.

3. Take level tablespoons of the dough and roll them into balls. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches / 5 cm apart. Using a fork, flatten the balls slightly, and sprinkle with the tablespoon of sugar.

4. Bake the cookies until they are beginning to brown around the edges, 10-12 minutes. Let the cookies cool slightly on the baking sheets and then transfer to a wire rack.

Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to a week.

Open for Business

Sorry Canada was closed yesterday due to hockey game.

Sweet Taste of Victory

 

Canada's Ladies know how to party!

Pepper Cake

Pepper Cake

3 cups flour

4 eggs

1 cup brown sugar

2 ¾ cup molasses

1 cup melted butter

¼ cup milk

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ginger powder

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp clove

½ tsp fresh black pepper

1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts - optional
1 cup of sultana raisins- optional

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Grease and lightly flour 9-inch round baking tins. I used a Bundt mold.
Dissolve the baking soda in the milk. Beat the eggs together with the sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the milk mixture along with the molasses. Whisk together the flour and spices. Stir this into the batter to combine completely. Stir in the melted butter, walnuts and raisins.
Bake for 1 hour, or until the cake tests done and springs back when lightly touched, or when a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
* can be aged like a fruitcake

BAKED FISH (PSARI PLAKI)

BAKED FISH (PSARI PLAKI)
3 - 4 lb. cod
Juice of 1 lemon
3 chopped onions
1 can stewed tomatoes
Parsley, finely chopped
1/2 c. white wine
1/2 c. olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic
Have fish cleaned and scaled. Wash thoroughly, rub with salt and pepper and sprinkle with lemon juice. Put chopped onions in oil and fry until golden brown; add wine, tomatoes and seasonings. Lay fish in greased baking pan and add above mixture over fish. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and garlic. Add a little water and bake at 350 degrees, 45 minutes.

No more pancakes!

Sourdough Pancakes

Sourdough Pancakes
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. sugar
1 1/3 c. buttermilk or sour cream or yogurt or milk
1 c. Sourdough Starter (at room temp.)
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp. Melted butter
Combine first 5 ingredients in a non-metal bowl; stir well. Add buttermilk, Sourdough Starter and egg; beat just until large lumps disappear. Stir in butter.. Wrap and place in fridge overnight. Remove from fridge and let sit at room temperature for at least one hour. For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle. Turn pancakes when tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Yield: 12 (4 inch) pancakes.

Sourdough starter
2 cups unchlorinated water
2 cups unbleached flour

Let it sit out from 2 to 5 days, stirring it once a day. The starter is ready when it develops a pleasant sour smell and looks bubbly.

Buttermilk Pancakes

Buttermilk Pancakes

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp each baking powder and baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1-3/4 cups buttermilk
1 egg
2 tbsp) butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla – optional
1 tbsp canola oil

Preparation:

In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg, butter and vanilla; pour over dry ingredients and whisk until combined but still slightly lumpy.

Lightly brush large nonstick skillet or griddle with some of the oil; heat over medium-high heat. Using scant 1/4 cup per pancake, pour in batter; spread slightly to form pancakes. Cook until bubbles appear on top, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook until bottom is golden brown, about 1 minute. Transfer to rimmed baking sheet; cover and keep warm in 250°F oven. Serve with maple or birch syrup and cultured butter.

Palacinka

Palacinka

Chocolate & Walnut

For the palacinka

2 eggs – separated

1 tablespoon dark rum

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons sugar

1/3 teaspoon salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

1 cup soda water

½ cup melted butter

2 lemons, zest of, finely grated

For serving

10 ounces excellent bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate (for extreme chocolate lovers use 12 ounces, (or more)

1 1/2 cups walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

1 cup heavy cream chilled (plus sugar to taste)

To make the palacinka batter, beat egg yolks, sugar and until light lemony coloured, whisk in milk, the rum, vanilla, sugar, and salt in a large bowl, until well blended. Sift the flour on top, a bit at a time, whisking each addition in until smooth. Drizzle in 4 tablespoons of the melted butter, whisking until the batter has slightly thickened, with the consistency of melted ice cream. Finally, Beat egg whites stiff but not dry, fold into batter whisk in the lemon zest, soda water. Put the remaining 4 tablespoons of melted butter in a small cup and keep it warm.

Break or chop the chocolate into small pieces, and put them in a bowl set in a pan of hot (not boiling) water. When the chocolate begins to melt, stir until completely smooth, and keep it warm, in the water, off the heat.

Set the crêpe pan or skillet over medium-high heat until quite hot. Pour in a couple tablespoons of the reserved melted butter, quickly swirl it all over the pan bottom, then pour excess butter back into the cup, leaving the bottom lightly coated with sizzling butter. (If the butter doesn't sizzle, heat the pan longer before adding the batter.) Immediately ladle in a scant 1/3 cup of batter, tilt and swirl so it coats the bottom, and set the pan on the burner.

Lower the heat to medium, and cook the palacinka for a little less than a minute, until the underside is lightly browned in a lacy pattern. Flip it over with a spatula, and fry for ½ minute or longer, until the second side is lightly browned, then remove it to a warm platter. Heat the empty pan briefly, then rapidly coat it with butter, fill it with batter, and cook another palacinka. Repeat the sequence, stacking up the finished palacinka on the platter, until all the batter is used up.

Fill and serve the palacinka as soon as possible, while fresh and warm. Keep the platter in a warm spot, and cover the stack with a tent of foil or a large bowl turned upside down. Whip the heavy cream, unsweetened or with sugar to taste, to soft peaks. Stir the melted chocolate, and reheat it if necessary so it is smooth and warm.

Take one palacinka off the stack, and place it with its lacy patterned side down. Spoon a generous tablespoon (or more) warm chocolate in the center of the pancake, and spread it over the palacinka, leaving an inch-wide border uncoated. Scatter a spoonful of chopped walnuts on the chocolate layer, then fold the round in half, hiding the fillings, and fold again into a plump quarter-round.

Fill and fold all the palacinka the same way. For each serving, place two quarter-rounds, overlapping, on a dessert plate, heap some cream on top, scatter some nuts on top of the cream, and drizzle warm chocolate in streaks and squiggles over the palacinka and the plate.

Cottage cheese filling

1 cup cottage cheese (dry curd)
1 cup sour cream
1 egg
3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp raisins
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream

Almond filling

½ cup crushed blanched almonds

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoon sugar

¼ cup sour cream

Fillings 

Jams – apricot and prune are traditional

Sugar

Poppy seed

Nutella
* Note you can double the eggs and increase the milk if you like.

* My favourite filling is sugar, sprinkled on a warm palacinka the sugar slightly melts

Indian pudding

Indian pudding

4 cups milk-plus 1 cup cold milk

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup molasses

1/4  cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

Using a non-stick (or heavy bottomed) sauce pan add 4 cups milk and heat on medium heat until nearly bubbling at the edges and steaming.

Slowly whisk in the meal and whisk slowly until the meal is suspended in the milk, meaning none hanging out at the bottom of the pot. Continue whisking off and on until it reaches a medium thick hot cereal consistency. Again you *can* walk away and whisk every 5 minutes or so.

Turn stove to low heat and continue to whisk off and on while it thickens. No need to be afraid. I have left it unattended for over 10 minutes and it will not scorch, lump or stick.

When it reaches 'thick hot cereal' stage, stir in remaining ingredients. I usually whisk. Mix well to combine evenly.

Leave pudding on low, stirring/whisking occasionally until thickened a bit more; 10-15 minutes approximately.

Pour into a well buttered baking dish, place on the middle rack at 300 degrees bake for one hour, then top with the one cup of cold milk, bake another two hours.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Red Potato Salad with Dill

     

Red Potato Salad with Dill

    2 1/2 pounds of medium red potatoes, with skin on, boiled until just tender (about 25  minutes), drained, and cooled to close room temperature

    1 bunch green onions, chopped (use all of whites and about 2 inches of greens)

    1 bunch fresh dill, finely chopped

    1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. Mayonnaise

    1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. Red wine vinegar

    Plenty of coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

   1. Quarter potatoes. Set aside.

   2. Combine mayo and red wine vinegar until smooth. Add green onions, dill, and plenty of salt and pepper.

   3. Add potatoes and toss well to coat.

    

Overnight Crock Pot Oatmeal

Overnight Crock Pot Oatmeal

Ingredients

1 cup steel cut oats

4 cups water

Dash of salt

Directions

In a crock pot, combine all ingredients and set to low heat. Cover and let cook for 8 to 9 hours.

Stir and remove to serving bowls. This method works best if started before you go to bed. This way your oatmeal will be finished by morning. 

* I thought I was brilliant when I came up with this preparation of oatmeal, wearing my smart pants I was. Quickly I came to reality when I wanted to exclaim "Eureka", noticed  the rest of the world was already preparing their oatmeal in the same manner.

Bacon Mayonnaise

Bacon Mayonnaise

1 egg
1 cup rendered bacon fat - warm not hot
2 teaspoons vinegar - I prefer cider
1 teaspoon favourite mustard
fresh black pepper
salt to taste

Crack the egg into your blender add all the ingredients but the bacon fat.Slowly add the bacon fat into the whirling blender until emulsified.
You may add the following to jazz it up a bit
Drizzle of honey,golden syrup,maple syrup or treacle
So next time you have a chip buttie spread the bacon mayo and top with crumbled bacon bits.

Cabbage Rolls - Sarma

Cabbage Rolls - Sarma


2 lb. Sauerkraut washed (kapusta)
4 lb. whole head of sour cabbage
2 onions
½ cup oil or rendered salt pork fat
1 lb. Pork ground
½ lb. Beef ground
¼ cup rice-cook in 1 cup salted water until cooked ½ way through
Salt & pepper
Parsley sprig
7 oz. Smoked spare ribs rinsed
5 oz. Smoked bacon rinsed - Slab bacon not sliced
6 ½ cups water
1 tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
1/8 teaspoon marjoram
Medium - sized sour cabbage. Detach leaves one by one remove the hard centre. Wash the leaves several times.
Stuffing: Chop the onion and fry in ½ cup fat until golden brown and let cool. Add the raw meat, mix it with rice, and dust with marjoram, salt and pepper, and chopped parsley, mix well. Put some cabbage leaves on the bottom of a 3-quart casserole and ½ the sauerkraut. Take one cabbage leaf; place a teaspoon of the meat mixture in the middle of the leaf. Folds two opposite ends of the leaf first, then roll the leaf with the meat in it into a neat, well-packed cylinder from which the meat cannot fall out while cooking. Arrange the cabbage rolls in layers with the smoked spare ribs cut into long pieces and diced bacon cover with the remaining sauerkraut. End with a layer of cabbage rolls. Pour cold water over the dish and bake gently for 3-4 hours covered tightly with aluminium foil and lid placed on
In a separate saucepan make a roux with ¼ cup fat and 1 tablespoon flour and 1 teaspoon paprika. When the cabbage is tender, pour this roux into the dish, shaking the casserole, but not stirring. Cover the casserole and let bake 30 minutes longer. Serve with sour cream.

Ajvar - Serbian vegetable caviar

Ajvar is a Serbian roasted eggplant-sweet-pepper mixture. sometimes referred to as vegetarian caviar. It can be mashed or left chunky, depending on personal taste, and served as a relish, vegetable or spread on country-style white bread like pogacha as an appetizer. Its smoky flavour is a great match for grilled or roasted meats, especially lamb.

You can vary this recipe by adding chopped hot red chilies and onion, and substituting red wine or red wine vinegar for the lemon juice

Ingredients:

2 large eggplants, about 3 pounds

6 large red bell peppers

Salt and black pepper

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

Juice of 1 lemon

1/2 cup good-quality olive oil

1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley (optional)

Preparation:

Heat oven to 475 degrees. Place washed eggplants and peppers on a baking sheet with a lip to catch any juices, and roast until their skins blister and turn black, about 30 minutes.

Place roasted vegetables in a heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let them steam for 10 minutes.

Peel off and discard blackened skins, stems and seeds. In a large bowl, mash or chop vegetables, depending on how smooth or chunky you like your ajvar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add garlic and lemon juice, and drizzle in oil, stirring constantly.

Transfer to a glass dish and sprinkle with chopped parsley for garnish, if desired. Store covered and refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Serbian Cevapcici

Serbian Cevapcici

1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 pound ground lamb
1 egg white
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat a grill for medium-low heat.
In a large bowl, combine the ground pork, ground beef, ground lamb and egg white. Add the garlic, salt, baking soda, black pepper, cayenne pepper and paprika. Mix well using your hands, and form into finger length sausages about 3/4 inch thick.
Lightly oil the grilling surface. Grill sausages until cooked through, turning as needed, about 30 minutes.
Serve with minced onion and avjar.