CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING

This is a POSITIVELY DELICIOUS frosting recipe. What a nice variation from classic chocolate frosting!! It has a smooth, thick texture and tastes great by the spoonful!!

 

This is my new "go to" recipe for frosting snack cakes, brownies and cupcakes, it is quick, easy to make and tastes great!!

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (I used Jiff)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 - 3/4  cup half and half (see note)
2  2/3 cup confectioners sugar

Mix the peanut butter, cocoa powder, vanilla and a few tablespoons of the half and half until it is smooth and creamy.  Add the sugar, salt and the rest of the half and half (*see note below).   Beat with electric mixer until smooth and shiny.

That's it... what could be easier?!?  We LOVED this frosting!!

NOTE: The recipe said to start with half cup of the half and half and if you want it thinner, add the remaining 1/4 cup of half and half (one tablespoon at time)...beating until smooth.

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Mastering The Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1 Redux

In honor of Julia Child's 100th birthday, we are revisiting Mastering The Art of French Cooking. 

I got to spend Julia Child's 90th birthday with her and a few thousands of her closest friends.



In 2009, my friend Ann, signed me up to cook a recipe from Mastering The Art of French Cooking.   Of course, I couldn't cook just one.

Recipe of the Week: Julia Child’s stuffed duck, baked cucumbers, and blackberry flan

Today’s post is the ninth in a series of weekly Julia Child recipes. Kudos to this week’s contributors, project manager Ann Burrola and her friend Lucinda, who not only prepared Pâté de Canard en Croûte (Boned Stuffed Duck Baked in a Pastry Crust), but also made baked cucumbers AND blackberry flan.
 “ the procedure may take 45 minutes the first time because of fright”—Mastering the Art of French Cooking Volume I, p.570 
This week’s recipe for the Pâté de Canard en Croûte covers 7 pages in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1. This is certainly not a record for a Julia Child recipe (French bread covers 22 pages) but, based on this alone, the recipe could be considered daunting to any cook. What are we saying? A recipe that requires deboning a duck, preparing stuffing, sewing the stuffing into the duck, making a pastry crust, wrapping the duck in the pastry, and then decorating it with pastry cut-outs, is daunting! However, Julia provides detailed written instructions and clear illustrations so that anyone will know exactly how to accomplish the simplest and most complicated dishes in her cookbooks. “You’ve got all the directions and if you can read, you can cook,” she wrote.

When the call went out to write about cooking from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I signed right up. Then I e-mailed my friend Lucinda and told her “WE” had signed up to cook out of Julia’s book. She wanted to make the most complicated recipe in the book and I wanted to make the easiest one. We made them both and threw in dessert. Since Lucinda blogs, I told her to write the post and I would do the pictures. So here goes…
Lucinda’s Story
When I saw Julie & Julia, someone asked me if I had ever made the stuffed duck. I hadn’t, but thought I might give it a try. “Great,” Ann said, “you make the duck.” Ann didn’t know the recipe is seven pages long, with an eighth page for the farce or forcemeat stuffing.
The recipe has three main components. The farce, which is stuffed into a de-boned duck, which is then wrapped in a crust. I made the forcemeat and the crust and set about to de-bone the duck.


De-boning a duck takes about 45 minutes.


Julia says if you de-bone a lot of them you can cut your time by 25 minutes.


One was enough. Ann timed it. It took 45 minutes.


Once I had the duck de-boned, I stuffed it with the farce.


Then it needed to be sewn up.


At this point, I was really glad that I never went to medical school.


Once the duck is stuffed you brown it.


Then wrap it in a pastry crust.


Of course, Julia wants the crust decorated.
Now the duck goes into an oven for 2 hours and time marches on….
Let’s recap:

• 15 minutes making farce
• 15 minutes for pastry 
• 45 minutes for duck de-boning
• 15 minutes for trussing
• 15 minutes for browning
• 25 minutes for cooling
• 2 hours for baking
• 2 1/2 hours for resting 

About 5 1/2 hours into Pâté de Canard en Crouté, it was time to start the vegetable. Ann peeled, seeded, and cut her cucumbers for her Concombres au Beurre—basically, cukes baked in tons of butter!


In keeping with the “Julia aesthetic“, Ann ventured to Washington's Eastern Market in search of a fromagerie to acquire the proper butter. Sticks of American butter from the Safeway, with their skimpy 80% fat content, would not do. For Julia, we needed a block of European-style butter with its slightly higher fat content.
During all the baking and resting, there was dishwashing, table setting, and gardening. In the garden, I picked some blackberries. Ann said she saw a blackberries recipe in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. “Let’s make dessert!”
We found the recipe for Clafouti aux Mûres and gathered the ingredients. While the cucumbers baked, we made the batter for the clafouti and got it ready for the oven.
In the movie Julie & Julia, Julie talks about de-boning her duck but she never mentions the presentation. After you bake and cool the duck, you have to carefully cut it out of the crust while leaving the crust in tact. You take the now cooked duck and remove all the trussing string. Then, you re-stuff the duck into the crust for a lovely presentation.


Voilà …


Dinner is served. After dinner is served and the dishes are washed and the trussing needle is stored away and Julie & Julia is gone from the theaters and the DVD grows dusty on a shelf one might ask, “Why take on such an exercise?”
The key to the long-lived appeal of Julia Child was her ability to get us into the kitchen without fear, to move us out of our comfort zone and try something new, and most importantly to have fun. I love a challenge and nothing says “challenge” like ten pages of recipe! Ann wanted to take part in the blog and have fun in the kitchen. What could be more fun than taking plain old salad cucumbers and transforming them into Concombres au Beurre? 
Now when people ask me, “Have you ever made Julia’s stuffed duck?” my reply will be, “But of course.“ When they ask Ann if she actually ever used Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, she’ll say, “Sure!”
I may never make Pâté de Canard en Crouté again, but when I see a non-descript salad with slices of cucumber tossed on top I will think of how much better they would be had they been cored and sliced and baked in rich butter the way Julia taught Ann to do it. I will remember the unctuous duck, the succulent cucumbers, the clafouti with blackberries from my garden and the sound the wine glasses made as we toasted Julia.
Do try this at home! 

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ZUCCHINI PICKLE RELISH

This time of year, there is an overabundance of zucchini, so I've been making relish out of it. A friend kindly gave me a wonderful recipe last year and I was thrilled with the outcome of my first pickling adventure. Unfortunately, I only made half of the recipe and we ran out quickly because we used it in EVERYTHING from tuna fish, to potato salad, to hot dogs, to you name it... you would NEVER guess it was made out of zucchini.

This season, I'm making TWO batches. I also (nervously) tweaked last years recipe a little with amazing results; we love this recipe, it has a perfect bread and butter pickle flavor.

12 cups unpeeled zucchini (chopped small)
3 cups sweet onion (chopped small)
1 cup celery (chopped small)
2 large red bell peppers (chopped small)
2 cups peeled carrots (chopped small)
1 cup pickling salt (see important note)
3 cups white vinegar
3 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons DRY mustard powder
1 tablespoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon corn starch

Wash and dry the vegetables before cutting them (the only one you should peel is the carrot).  Coarsely chop the vegetables, then put them in the food processor (2 or 3 cups at a time) and pulse them a few times to get them small enough for a good relish (but not too small). The chop size should look like the next photo.

CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE

Measure the vegetables AFTER you chop them in the food processor.

Mix the small chopped vegetables and 1 cup of pickling salt. Place this mixture (covered) in fridge overnight (The salt will draw excess moisture out of the veggies).

IMPORTANT NOTE: After the vegetables have chilled overnight, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you rinse the salt off of them.  I used a colander and rinsed the veggies three times (in small batches). Whatever method you choose to rinse the salt off, just make sure you rinse, rinse, rinse then squeeze as much water out of the chopped veggies (with your hands) as you can. Set aside.

In a large, non-aluminum, pot, mix the vinegar, sugar, celery seed, spices and corn starch. Bring to a boil (to dissolve the sugar). Add all of the rinsed vegetables to the pot and bring BACK to a boil. Once it is boiling well, turn heat to medium low and gently boil everything for 20 minutes, stirring every five minutes or so.

While the relish is simmering, sterilize 7 pint jars and 7 (two piece) screw on lids. I do this by putting the jars through a hot cycle in my dishwasher (but I don't put the lids in there). Keep the jars in the (unopened) hot dishwasher after the last cycle.

For the lids, I just wash them with hot soapy water, rinse them well and then pour boiling water over them in a large saucepan which I keep warm on a burner.

Also, while the relish is simmering, bring your  hot water bath to a boil, here's how: Place a rack on the bottom of a large stock pot (or something to keep the jars up off of the bottom of the pan) and fill the pot with water (water should be deep enough to cover the jars by 2". Bring to full boil.

Now that your relish has boiled for 20 minutes, remove it from the heat and place it in the hot jars, leaving 1/4" space at the top of the jars (make sure there are no air pockets in the relish). Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, hot, wet kitchen towel and screw on the two-piece lids fairly tight. Lower the jars into the already boiling water and keep them in there  10 minutes for half pint jars and 15 minutes for pint jars.

Remove from boiling water and let cool to room temperature on your kitchen counter. As they cool on your counter, you will hear the lids "pop" when they make the correct seal.  If they don't "pop", just keep them in the fridge.

NOTE: Do not use regular table salt for this recipe because the anti-caking agents in table salt cause the relish to discolor.  If you don't have pickling salt, the next best thing to use is kosher salt (but I highly recommend pickling salt).

NOTE: This recipe makes 7 pints of relish.

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QUICK and EASY STICKY CHICKEN WINGS

This is one of picky-picky hubbies all time favorite things to eat (hands down!!). Wing sections baked in a soy sauce, brown sugar and pineapple mixture, this recipe is  super simple and always a hit at parties. I've been asked for this recipe countless times and people are always surprised how few ingredients (simple) the recipe is.

CLICK ON THIS PICTURE

2 pounds of chicken wing sections
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup brown sugar
½ teaspoon black pepper
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
20 ounce can of pineapple chunks (drained well)

Cut the wings into sections, discarding the wing tip (or buy already cut up party wings) and place in a 9" x 13" (greased) baking dish.  Mix everything else together and spoon over the wings.

Bake in a 350 oven (uncovered) for 1½ hours, turning everything over every 30 minutes or so. Now I know that seems like a LONG time for chicken wings, but trust me, it does takes that long for the wings to "break down" and be super tender, sweet and juicy and sticky!!

Remove the wings and pineapple from the sauce and serve  (discard the sauce). Hubby likes the pineapple chunks, but I don't care for them...your choice.

NOTE: Do not omit the pineapple, the flavor and moisture content of the fruit is important to the cooking process.

NOTE:  The last 30 minutes of bake time, the chicken wings will get shiney and sticky!!

NOTE: If you are still in doubt about the 1½ hour cooking time, click on the above photo and you will get a better look at the wings themselves and you will see they are juicy and not overcooked.

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RED CURRANT and RASPBERRY JAM

It's been gloomy, rainy and chilly all week; fall is right around the corner here in Alaska; that also means it is berry picking time!!

Today I whipped up a batch of red currant - raspberry jam which is picky-picky husbands all time favorite. Lucky for us, these berries grow in the woods around our house and I've been using them to make this jam for over 35 years now.  Hubby likes this recipe so much that HE picks the berries without me asking him to!!

The red currants really brighten up the raspberries and the combination is simply delicious (and gorgeous)!!

3 cups of crushed red currants (measure after crushing)
3/4 cup water
4 cups raspberries (frozen berries are OK)
7 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup liquid pectin (I use Certo)

Crush the red currants (I use a potato masher) and measure three cups into a heavy pan. Add 3/4 cup of water and boil for 10 minutes.  Strain the mixture with a sieve and return the juice to the pan (throw away the solids)

Add the raspberries and sugar to the currant juice and bring to a hard rolling boil (one that can not be stirred down); boil for one full minute minute exactly (stirring constantly).

Remove from heat and stir in liquid pectin until well mixed; skim off any pinkish foam (throw the foam away). 

Pour the hot jam into clean and sterilized jam jars, wipe the rims clean with a clean wet
towel and put on the lids. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes.

Makes 8 cups of jam

A NOTE  ABOUT  RED  CURRANTS

In the woods around our house, we have raspberries, red currants and high bush cranberries. My first jelly making "adventure" (a million years ago) involved high bush cranberries (they grow in profusion around here and they are a lot of fun to pick).

Thinking that I had hit the "berry mother lode", I was so proud of my huge harvest. It wasn't until I started cooking them that I realized they weren't red currants (high bush cranberries smell like dirty gym socks when you cook them). 

 A lot of people DO eat high bush cranberries, but they usually mix them with other fruit to help mask the strong "sock taste".  Let's just say I didn't make that mistake again, lol !!

So..... for my young Alaskan friends who are beginning to make jam, don't make that same mistake. This is what a high bush cranberry looks like:

A red currant is very different... they look like this:

NOTE: It is always a race between us and the birds for these red gems. If I wait until they are ALL ripe, the birds usually win, so I pick and freeze....pick and freeze, until I have enough for a batch of jam (these berries freeze VERY well).

NOTE: This recipe uses a liquid pectin called CERTO. I'm guessing that a powdered pectin would work well, but I've never tried it with this recipe. It takes 1½ pouches of liquid pectin (1½ pouches = 1/2 cup). If you use the powdered pectin, make sure you follow the cooking instructions on the box.

NOTE: If you've never processed jam in a hot water bath (it is super simple), go to this web site for some specific instructions:   http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/waterbath-canning-highacid-foods.html

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PERFECT FRENCH FRIES

We don't eat homemade french fries very often because they don't turn out very well. I've tried many potato varieties; I've tried various oils and temperatures; I've tried double frying them (what a hassle that was!) and I've tried baking them... they all come out of the oil LOOKING great but turn limp and greasy in a matter of minutes.

Then, recently, I came across this very simple recipe.  Assuming this technique was just too easy to produce great results, I didn't even mention the recipe "experiment" before I served them.

After about the third french fry, picky-picky hubby offered this unsolicited critique: "these fries are REALLY good"... I knew I had a winner.  I will definitely be using this super easy method the next time we decide to treat ourselves to some fries.

2 pounds of Russet potatoes (make sure they are Russet's)
2 tablespoons corn starch
peanut oil   (peanut oil works the best)
kosher salt

Slice the potatoes into shoestring size pieces, trying to make them as even as possible. Rinse the cut potatoes thoroughly and put them in a big bowl of plain cold water in the fridge until dinner time (at least an hour, but overnight is even better).

Take the potatoes out of the cold water and lay them on an absorbent towel, blotting most of the water off. Coat the potatoes lightly with the cornstarch and shake off the excess.  Let them air dry while the peanut oil heats up to 375 degrees.

A word about the oil:  You will get the best french fries using peanut oil; it has a high scorch level and tastes great.  You can also use regular vegetable oil, but avoid canola oil. Canola oil tastes a little "off" if you bring it up to 375 degrees. I was surprised what a difference peanut oil makes.

When the oil reaches 375, put a big handful of the coated potatoes in the oil and stir to separate them.  After they've fried for a minute or so, stir them again to make sure they aren't sticking together (don't overcrowd your pan).

When the potatoes are light golden brown, take them out of the oil and put them on paper towels to wick away some of the oil. Sprinkle generously with kosher salt (it tastes so much better than regular table salt on the french fries).

That's it!! No more limp, greasy french fries (and NO more double frying!!). Who knew that Russet potatoes, a little soak time, a little corn starch and some peanut oil would make such a great french fry?!?!

NOTE ABOUT CUTTING THE POTATOES: Peel (or wash) the potatoes and cut the sides of the potatoes off (making sort of a rectangle). This will give your potato flat sides to rest on while you slice through the potato.  Stack the potato "slabs" and cut into shoestring size potatoes.

Russet's are those big baking potatoes.

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SHRIMP FRIED RICE

This recipe is light, flavorful, versatile and most of it can be made ahead and just heated together at meal time. It is one of our favorite's (summer AND winter) and double or tripled, it is great for a crowd!! 

 

3 cups of cold COOKED rice (day old rice is best)
5 slices of bacon (save 2 tablespoons bacon fat )
1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
1/4 cup sliced green onion tops
1 pound of  large shrimp
2 eggs beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
dry crushed red pepper flakes to taste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
Sliced cherry tomatoes for decoration
Any veggies you want to add (cooked and chopped)


Spray your largest frying pan with vegetable spray and heat to medium high. Beat 2 eggs and pour them into the pan, tilting the pan so the eggs spread out nice and thin. When the eggs are starting to "set", sprinkle lightly with a few crushed red pepper flakes. Flip the eggs over and remove from heat. If the eggs don't flip over in one piece, that's ok, just keep the pieces as large and thin as you can. Remove from pan.

When the eggs are cool enough to handle, roll them up and slice thinly (to get thin strips of egg). This sounds like a hassle, but it is an important part of the dish; set aside.


Fry 5 slices of bacon until crispy, remove and drain on paper towels set aside (reserve some bacon fat).

Put 2 tablespoons of the reserved bacon fat in a wok or large frying pan, add 1/2 cup chopped sweet onion and saute until tender; add 3 cups of COLD cooked rice, the crumbled bacon, 1/4 cup sliced green onion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and any other chopped (cooked) vegetables you want to include; gently mix over medium heat.

Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil and one pound of COOKED shrimp (see note). Gently toss, and heat through; gently stir in egg strips just before serving. Decorate with sliced cherry tomatoes.

NOTE: If you are using precooked shrimp, just stir them in at the end of the recipe.

NOTE: If you are using raw shrimp (which I highly recommend), CLICK HERE for my easy cooking method.

NOTE: If you are using  frozen raw shrimp, make sure they are completely thawed and drained and patted dry before you cook them (or they will boil as they defrost and get rubbery).

NOTE: It is important that the rice used in this recipe be made ahead of time and chilled in the fridge. It is a great use for leftover rice. 

NOTE: You will not be happy with the outcome of this recipe  if you use freshly made rice.

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PAUL PRUDHOMME SEASONING MIX CLONE

I've thought about trying commercial dry rubs for a long time, but I have trouble spending several dollars on them since the ingredient list tells me I have those same spices at home!! So...... I've been experimenting with my own spice rack (with picky-picky husband's timid pallet in mind of course). He is (has always been) a meat and potatoes...salt and pepper...mild barbecue sauce kind of guy, so I've had to introduce these dry spice rubs "subtly" (snicker).

Today's post was a big hit. I found it during one of my "2 AM can't sleep" Internet sessions and I failed to write down it's source, I apologize. The spice combo is just right for our taste..... not too spicy, but VERY flavorful and it goes well with just about any meat, even seafood.

PAUL PRUDHOMME (style) SEASONING MIX

1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon paprika
1½ teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon DRY mustard powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

Mix everything (makes about 1/4 cup) and rub, liberally, onto raw meat about an hour before grilling.

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The French Country Table

 Face it.  We will read any French cookbook out there.  It is a sickness. An addiction.  We love it and that is that.  By now, the biggest differentiation between French cookbooks is the photographs. 

Ryland, Peters and Small, always a favorite publisher for cookbooks, publish the French Country Table.   They understand the value of photos, good recipes and basic bookbinding.  The thick muted paper has an old-fashioned feel and is the perfect vehicle for a country cookbook. 

Writer Laura Washburn has taken many of the familiar French dishes and given them a bit of twist.   There is a roasted chicken, but with guinea fowl.  There is a gratin with macaroni (yes, it is just a macaroni and cheese).  The clafoutis is rhubarb instead of cherries.

The pictures are lovely.  It is no wonder that Martin Brigdale has won numerous awards on three continents for his food photography.  The photos show the food at its best!  

 Your carrots should look like the above left carrots, especially if you procured them from one the vegetable vendors pictured!

Carrots with cream and herbs.

2 lbs. mini carrots, trimmed, of medium carrots

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

a sprig of thyme

2 tablespoons crème fraise or sour cream

several sprig of chervil, snipped

a small bunch of chives, snipped

fine sea salt

If using large carrots, cut them diagonally into 2-inch slices.  Put in a large saucepan (the carrots should fit in a single layer for even cooking.) Add the butter and set over low heat.  Cook for three minutes, until the butter has melted and coated the carrots.  Half fill the saucepan with water, then add a pinch of salt and the thyme.  Cover and cook for 10 – 20 minutes, until the water is almost completely evaporated.

Stir in the crème fraise and add salt to taste.  Sprinkle the chervil and chives over the top, mix well and serve.

If you have ever passed one of those sad bags of “baby” carrots in vegetable section, now you have a great idea of what to do with them.  Whip up these carrots in cream and you, too, can transport yourself to the French countryside.

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The Mistress Cook

In 1867 Mrs. Beeton wrote the following:

“Men are now so well served out of doors – at clubs, hotels and restaurants – that, to compete with the attraction of these places, a mistress must be thoroughly acquainted with the theory and practice of cookery, as well as all the other arts of making and keeping a comfortable home.”

Peter Gray’s “mistress” is the 1950’s mistress of the house and not of merely the bedroom.  Peter Gray was indeed a “mistress” of all trades.  He became enamored of the culinary when he was a boy spending time in Paris.  He would eventually become a professor of Biological Science at the University of Pittsburgh.   Along the way he was a printer, bookbinder, gem cutter, fisherman and photographer.

In The Mistress Cook, Gray brought together a thousand recipes from twelve countries over six centuries.  The recipes are at once simple and familiar as well as exotic and complex.    There is an extended chapter at the end of the book devoted to spices and spice mixes.  There is a chapter full of sauces and stocks devoted to major and minor sauces. 

It is a book written in the 1950’s, so there are no lists of exact ingredients.  There are two pages of instruction for puff pastry.  According to Gray, the best way to learn to make puff pastry is the to do it over and over.  One does not become tennis pro by reading about tennis.  Go ahead and buy puff pastry.

This book is an excellent overview of the history of cooking and cooking techniques.  It is indeed what Gray set out to do, provide a vast collection of recipes over continents and time periods.  One would be best served to find a recipe and search out a modern recipe.

Here is a recipe for a favorite Southern fare – collards.

Collards

I am told by an elderly Southern gentleman of my acquaintance, that this leather-leaved survivor of the past can be rendered edible by boiling it for a week with fat pork.

Seriously, collards only need about 8 hours to cook!

Here is another recipe featuring my favorite cauliflower with the regal name, Crème du Barry. 

Crème du Barry

Cook a small cauliflower in slated water until it can conveniently be divided into florets.  Mix the florets with an equal volume of grated potatoes and a quarter of their volume of grated onion.  Put this mixture in a pan, cover it liberally with milk, and simmer until the vegetables are sludged.  Put it through a sieve or food mill.

Don’t you just love a recipe that has “sludged” vegetables?   Though not that appetizing, sludged is the perfect description for what these vegetables will look like when simmered.  There is not a cookbook publisher out there who would let an author describe veggies as "sludged" and yet it is spot on.

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The Breakfast Book

Who knows what sends us down the path to obsession?   I do know that one of the first cookbooks I bought with my own money was Marion Cunningham's The Breakfast Book.  I have vivid memories of the book because it is one of those "go to" books that I consult often.  I cannot help thinking of that book today upon hearing the new that Cunningham died.  

Marion Cunningham  New York Times obituary

 The best tribute I have ever read of Marion Cunningham came from her friend, David Lebovitz.  In 2006 he easily summed up what made her special.


Readers of Cookbook Of The Day know of our abiding love the egg.  One of my favorite egg dishes came from The Breakfast Book.  It is Marion Cunningham's Featherbed Eggs.  I always referred to them as "feathered" eggs.   This may well be the greatest recipe that any cook can have in their cooking repertoire.  First, it is incredibility easy.  Any man, woman, or child can assemble it with little effort.  Secondly, it can be customized to make it your own by adding virtually anything under the sun.  My particular favorite is sausage!  Finally, it is a "make ahead" dish and perfect for company.  


When you have guests staying over and you are dreading being the breakfast short order cook, simply whip this up in the final minutes of dinner prep.  Now is the perfect time to add your own touches.  Sausage, as I said before, steamed cauliflower, apple slices, use your imagination.   Cover the pan and set it in the refrigerator.   While the coffee is brewing, set your dish in a cold oven and in less than an hour you will have a glorious breakfast with little fuss and big rewards.

Featherbed  Eggs

6 slices white bread
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar, Gouda, provolone or Montery Jack cheese, or a combination
1 1/2 cups milk
6 eggs

Butter the sides and bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Arrange the slices of bread in the dish, trimming the edges, if necessary. Sprinkle the bread with a little salt and pepper. Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the bread.

Combine the milk and eggs in a bowl and briskly stir until the mixture is all one color and completely blended. Pour the milk mixture over the bread and cheese. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, or overnight.

Baking the Featherbed Eggs: Because the dish will be chilled when you are ready to bake it, start it in a cold oven and turn the thermostat to 350 degrees. Bake for 1 hour, or until the bread custard is puffy and lightly golden. Check at 45 minutes, in case your oven is a little hotter. 

My favorite picture of Marion Cunningham was taken in 1987.  She is seated across from another cooking legend, Edna Lewis.  Oh to have been a fly on the wall, or the garden chair.

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Cookbook Redux

SOME HOUSEKEEPING

From time to time we are asked for additional recipes from cookbooks and generally we are happy to oblige.  We welcome all questions, though we have trouble sometimes with how to respond efficiently to comments, so here is an attempt.

Someone asked for an additional recipe from Southwest Tastes.

Can you please post the bbq potato salad recipe out of that book?  There is only one potato salad recipe, but it does have barbecue sauce, so here it is from The Salt Lick in Driftwood, Texas. 

Potato Salad

5 large Idaho baking potatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1/2 cup juice drained from dill pickles
1/3 cup barbecue sauce
1/3 cup vinaigrette salad dressing
1/2 to 1 cup mayonnaise, or to taste

    The day before serving, scrub the potatoes and boil them in salted water until tender but still slightly firm when pierced with a knife point;they should not be mushy.  Plunge them into ice water, and when cool enough to handle, peel them and cut them into 3/4 inch dice.
     Season the potatoes with salt, pepper, and celery seed.  Marinate the onions in the pickle juice for a few hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.  To serve, drain the juice and add the onion s to the potatoes.  Add the barbecue sauce and salad dressing, tossing to coat evenly.  Place back in the refrigerator at least one hour before serving, and just before serving, add the mayonnaise.  Adjust the seasoning and serve.

Enjoy! Send us photos of the finished recipe.



 A couple of people wanted to know how to reach us on e-mail:  lucindaville@gmail.com


Thanks to  Brocante Home for our housekeeping picture!

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EASY BUTTERSCOTCH CANDY BARS

This delicious recipe (posted by Ellen b. over at MGCC) was originally a cookie bar; but you know me, I can't leave a recipe alone, so I doubled the topping ingredients and the end result was almost like a candy bar. I served them at a BBQ, recently, and they were inhaled by kids and adults alike. They are SO easy to make, but a warning here... they are totally addicting!!

 

COOKIE BASE (original version)
1½ cups all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup butter (room temperature)
¾ cup brown sugar

Mix the flour, salt and brown sugar, then cut the room temperature butter into the mixture. To do this, I used my stand mixer with a wire whisk on medium high and it gave me fine crumbs like this, which is perfect. Put the crumbs into a 9 x 13 baking dish that has been sprayed with vegetable spray.

Level the crumbs out with your fingers and then pat them down evenly. I used the bottom of a smooth  measuring cup to tamp down the crumbs, which produced a nice flat layer like this:

Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 15 minutes.

While the cookie base is baking, mix the following ingredients in a microwave safe bowl:

BUTTERSCOTCH TOPPING (my version)
12 ounces of butterscotch baking chips
½ cup light corn syrup (I use  Karo syrup)
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons water
¼ teaspoon salt

Melt the above ingredients in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds (my microwave took about 75 seconds). When the mixture is completely smooth, add two cups of coarsely chopped (and toasted) pecans.

After the cookie base has baked for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and spread the butterscotch-pecan mixture over the top and put back in the oven for another 8 minutes.

Cool completely before slicing.

Store in lightly covered cookie jar.

Thank you for sharing the original recipe Ellen b.

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Not A Cookbook -- A DERECHO

We are fine...no life lost.   Here is the info by the numbers:

ONE

bad ass storm 

FOUR

days without water, phones, electricity

SIX

large trees down

ONE HUNDRED FOUR

degree temperature at its max

FOUR HUNDRED

pounds of food lost

 

What a mess!   We are still in recovery mode, but we will be back up to speed, soon.

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EASIEST BREAD STICKS EVER !!

If you have a stand mixer, these bread sticks practically make themselves!! Just throw everything in the stand mixer at once, and let it mix for 3 minutes, let it raise for an hour, shape them then let them raise again and bake... that's it!!

 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, put

2/3 cup warm milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons of yeast

Stir it up just a little (with a spoon), then add

1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons butter (room temperature)
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt

Put your paddle blade on, and mix for three minutes on medium low speed, it should look like this (the walls of the bowl should be clean)

Take the dough out of the bowl and spray the bowl with some vegetable spray and put the dough back in. Cover with plastic wrap and then a dish towel, and let it raise for an hour. It won't get huge because there is only 2 cups of flour, but it should be nice and puffy

Divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll them out to (about) the diameter of your thumb.  Place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet (or just a lightly greased sheet) a few inches apart and lightly spritz them with vegetable spray. Cover them with plastic wrap and gently lay a THIN kitchen towel over the plastic wrap.

Let them raise for about an hour, then remove the plastic wrap and bake them in a pre-heated 375 oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until they are golden brown, then remove them and brush them with butter. Some times I brush them with butter and then roll them in Parmesan....Mmmmmm. Serve hot!!

 

NOTE: I'm sure this recipe would work very well in a bread machine as well.

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