Cucumber Sandwiches

Small batch for just 2 sandwiches.

 

2 Tbls. butter
2 Tbls. cream cheese or chevre
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped

1/8 tsp salt

4 slices of soft artisan bread

1/2 of a cucumber, thinly sliced or spiraled into noodles

The butter and cheese need to be soft. Stir the butter, cheese, mint, and salt into a smooth mixture.

Spread the mixture onto one side of each piece of bread, then add cucumber slices/noodles and form sandwiches. Cut them diagonally into quarters.

Deep Dish Chicken Cobbler

 

Filling:

1 lb. chicken meat

1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

1 cup minced celery

3/4 cup chopped onion

2 cups potato, cut into 1/2" cubes

1/2 cup grated parmesan (or other cheese)

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

2 tsp tomato powder

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp fennel seed

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup water, soup stock, or cream

Crust:

2 3/4 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

6 Tbls oil

1 1/2 cup milk or water

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place the chicken in a greased pan over medium-high heat and let the outside brown, flipping occasionally, while you prepare the rest of the filling. The chicken does not have to be cooked through at this time.

Chop the vegetables, mix the filling ingredients in a large bowl. When the chicken is seared on the outside, cut it into small pieces and stir into the filling.

In a separate bowl, stir together all the crust ingredients.

Grease a large pie pan, and press 1/3 of the crust dough into the bottom, with wet hands to smooth it out to fill the space. Pour the filling into the pie pan, evening out the top. Place the rest of the dough on top, using wet hands to smooth it out and completely cover the filling. 

Bake for 1 hour, or until the internal temperature reaches at least 165 F, checking in several spots.

Cranberry Pie with Spiced Crust

 

Crust:
1 3/4 cup flour
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cold water
1 egg

Filling:
4 1/2 cups raw cranberries (18 oz)
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn starch
1/8 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Whisk together the flour and spices. Cut in the butter. In a separate bowl, dissolve the brown sugar in the water, then beat in the egg. Stir the water mixture into the flour mixture in 2 parts, forming a smooth paste. Form into a thick disk, wrap in plastic, and chill while you make the filling.

Use a food processor to coarsely mince the cranberries. Stir together all the filling ingredients.

Roll the crust dough into a thin crust and place into a 9" deep-dish pie pan. Fill with the cranberry filling. Use leftover dough to make a decorative top crust. Cover with foil and bake for 60 minutes, then remove foil and bake for 10 minutes.

Sweet French Toast

 

4 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
6 slices of bread
Butter


Preheat skillet and melt a thin layer of butter in it. Beat the eggs, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract until the mixture is light and homogenous. You can use an egg beater if you want to truly blendin the spices, but a manual whisk is sufficient.


Set the stove heat to medium. Dip pieces of bread into egg mixture, coating both sides. Cook on each side until browned. Add more butter to skillet between batches.

Serve warm with syrup, jam, honey, or any desired topping.


This is good with thick chewy bread, or slightly dried bread, but using a regular soft sliced bread is perfectly fine.

Peach Scones

 

Makes 12.

 

2 cups pastry flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 Tbls baking powder

6 Tbls cold butter, cut into pieces

2 eggs

1/3 cup plain yogurt or sour cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup peaches, diced small (fresh, canned, or frozen)

Preheat oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with parchment.

If the peaches are frozen, they need to be thawed and not too cold.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, sugar, nutmeg, and baking powder. Cut in the butter until there are no large chunks.

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, yogurt/sour cream, and vanilla extract.

Stir the wet ingredients and peach pieces into the dry ingredients, until a loose, wet dough is formed.

Drop spoonfuls of dough onto the baking sheet; lightly press down the top of each one. Sprinkle the tops with sugar, if desired.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Let rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes before moving them to a cooling rack.

Lemon Chicken

 

4 chicken breasts
3 Tbls butter
1/3 cup soup stock or water
1/2 cup lemon juice1 1/2 Tbls corn starch
1 Tbls honey
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper 

 

optional: 4 small potatoes

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Melt butter in a skillet. Add the chicken and optional potatoes, chopped into large pieces. Cook chicken pieces for 3 minutes on each side, over medium-high heat. It is ok if the chicken is frozen. If the chicken is too large for all pieces to fit in the skillet, use 2 skillets or cook the pieces in batches.

Whisk the other ingredients together in a small bowl. Transfer the chicken and all its drippings into a baking dish. Pour the lemon sauce over it. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, until the meat is at least 165° F inside. Larger pieces take longer to cook.

Peach Frozen Yogurt

 

3 peaches

3/4 cup milk or cream

2 Tbls honey

1 cup plain yogurt

Cut the peaches into slices, removing the pit. Puree the peach, milk/cream, and honey, until it is liquid. Combine this mixture with the yogurt in an ice cream machine and churn it for 20 minutes, or according to your machine's directions.

Crock Pot Herbed Chicken & Potatoes

6 chicken breasts, fresh or frozen

1 1/2 - 2 pounds small potatoes

1/2 pound string beans 

3 Tbls olive oil

1 Tbls minced garlic

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp fennel seed

1/2 tsp ground paprika

1/2 tsp salt

Place all ingredients in a crock pot. If using frozen chicken, it does not need to be thawed. Stir everything with a large spoon to distribute the seasoning. Cook on low heat for 4 hours.

 

Quesadillas from Scratch

Makes 2 quesdillas.

Tortillas:

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 Tbls soft butter or oil

1/3 cup warm water

Filling:

shredded cheese, such as cheddar, colby jack, pepperjack, mozzarella

refried beans

optional: cooked meat

For tortillas, stir the dry ingredients together. Stir in the butter/oil. Add the warm water. Knead it until it's cohesive.

Preheat a skillet over high heat, then turn to medium once the surface is hot.

Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a sphere. Place between 2 sheets of thick, soft plastic (I use a large food storage zip bag with 3 sides cut off). Flatten the dough into a circle, then roll into a thin circle of dough with a rolling pin. The dough should be thin enough to be almost translucent.

Place one tortilla on the hot skillet. Spread refried beans on top and sprinkle on cheese. Place another raw tortilla on top. Cook over medium heat until the bottom has browned areas, then flip and cook the same. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling.

Cut each quesadilla into 6 or 8 pieces, and serve with salsa, hot sauce, sour cream, or other desired toppings.

Tomato Cream Pasta

1 pound chicken, fresh or frozen

10 oz dry pasta

2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbls olive oil

2 cups diced tomatoes (or a 15 oz can)

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

2 Tbls tomato paste

1/4 cup cream cheese

1/4 cup grated mozzarella

1 cup chopped spinach or orach, fresh or frozen & thawed

Boil the chicken in a pot of salted water until it is completely cooked. Prepare the other ingredients during this time.

When the chicken is cooked, remove from the water and set aside. Add more water to the pot, bring to a boil, and cook the pasta. Shred the chicken while the pasta is cooking.

When the pasta is done, drain the water and add all the other ingredients to the pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the cheese is melted and everything is mixed.

Polenta

Here with jam for breakfast.

Single serving.

1 cup water

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup cornmeal or grits

1 tsp. butter

Bring water to a boil. Add the salt. Slowly whisk the cornmeal into the water. Turn heat to low and stir until it is thick. This is almost instantaneous for a single serving, but longer for larger amounts.  Stir in the butter.

Serve with savory or sweet toppings, as a breakfast, a side dish, or a base for a main dish.

Fried Bread Crumbs

This is a tasty way to use old bread, biscuits, or any type of bread that turned out not quite right.

Pieces of bread, biscuits, scones, or the like; works best if they are dry and/or crumbly

Butter

Toppings (sweet such as jam, syrup, sugar, or savory such as fried onions, salsa, eggs)

In a small pot, melt 1 or 2 Tbls of butter over medium-high heat. Break up the bread and add it to the pot. Stir, adding more butter as necessary to make it all moist, but still distinct crumbs. When it is lightly browned, remove from heat and add toppings.

Hummus Sandwich with Tomato Dip

Spread hummus between two slices of bread, and toast in a skillet over medium heat until the bottom piece is browned, then flip and toast the other side.

Heat together a mixture of roughly equal amounts of tomato soup and olive oil, with seasonings added as desired. It can be as simple as freshly ground black pepper, Italian herbs, or Middle Eastern spice mixes such as za'atar.

Here I've combined about 3 Tbls. each of tomato soup and olive oil, with 1/4 tsp. of a Moroccan spice rub.

Rice Porridge

For a single serving:

1 cup cooked rice
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tsp honey
1/8 tsp salt

Stir together all ingredients. If you are starting with cold rice, gently heat the porridge on the stove, or microwave for 1 minute.

Barley Flax Bread

2 cups water
2 tsp yeast
2 Tbls honey
2 Tbls butter
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup barley flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup ground flax seed

In a small bowl, stir the honey and yeast into 3/4 cup of warm water. In another small bowl, combine the butter with hot water to melt it.

In a large bowl, stir together the flours, salt, and flax seed. When the yeast is foamy and the butter is at least mostly melted, stir the water mixtures into the flour mixture.

Stir enough to form a loose dough, then knead it on a floured surface, using as much flour as necessary to make it smooth and not sticky.

Coat the bowl and dough with oil, cover loosely with plastic, and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled.

Grease a bread pan. Knead the risen dough gently on a lightly floured surface. Form it into a log and place inside the bread pan. Spread a thin layer of butter onto the top. Cover loosely with plastic and let rise for 30 minutes.

Spray the inside of the oven with water. Place the bread inside the oven and set it to 350 F. Bake for 40-45 minutes, including preheating time.

Basic Sweet Muffins

 2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 Tbls baking soda
1 cup milk, water, or nut milk
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
1 egg
1 Tbls lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla or orange extract (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 F. Grease a muffin tin, or put in paper baking cups.

Stir together the flour, sugars, salt, and baking soda.

In a small bowl, melt the butter/coconut oil. Add the milk/water/nut milk, egg, lemon juice, and vanilla/orange extract. Whisk until completely combined.

Pour the liquid into the flour mixture, stirring until just combined. Divide evenly into the muffin cups, about 1/4 cup each.

Bake for 5 minutes, then reduce the heat to 400 F and bake for 10-12 minutes, until a tester comes out clean.

Makes 10-12 regular sized muffins. Cooking times will be shorter for small muffins and longer for large muffins.

Variations:
Add to the dry ingredients 1 to 1 1/2 cups of a filling, such as dried fruit, chocolate chips, chopped nuts, berries, chopped fresh or frozen fruit, rolled oats or barley.
Use honey instead of sugar.
Add 2 Tbls cocoa powder.
Add 2-3 tsp of spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom, etc.
Add 2 Tbls each of poppy seeds and lemon zest.


This is meant to be a basic recipe that can be customized as you wish for different flavors.

Basic Fruit Crisp

This basic recipe can be used as the template for many variations of the classic dessert.

For a medium sized cobbler, about 9" x 6".

Filling:
3 cups fruit, fresh or frozen                                       
about 1/4 cup sugar (more or less depending on the fruit used)

Topping:
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Prepare the fruit as necessary, such as washing, peeling, chopping it into roughly bite-sized pieces, removing seeds. Stir the fruit and sugar together, then spread into the bottom of a baking pan.

Stir the oats, flour, and sugar together. Use your fingers to rub in the butter until there is no dry powder. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit and bake for 30 minutes.

Variations:
Use rolled barley, rye, or wheat instead of rolled oats.
Use white sugar, brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
Combine any type of fruit.
Add 1-2 tsp. of spices to the filling or the topping.
Add extras to the filling like chopped nuts, dried fruit, shredded coconut, or chocolate chips.
Use coconut oil instead of butter.
Use different types of flour in the topping such as almond flour, corn meal or masa harina.

Apples & Peanut Butter

My favorite for breakfast or a snack.

1 apple, sliced
1/4-1/2 cup peanut butter, depending on size of apple

Optional add-ins, a spoonful:
Ground flax seeds
Chia seeds
Cocoa powder

Barley Scones

2 cups white wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour
2 cups rolled barley
3 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup milk or nut milk

Preheat oven to 425 F. Line baking sheet with parchment.

Sift flour, barley, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Cut in butter until there is no dry powder. Stir in honey and add enough milk to make a soft dough. Dust the countertop and the top of the dough with flour, and roll out the dough to about 3/4" thickness. Cut out scones with a circle cutter, or another desired shape. Place on baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the tops have golden-brown edges.

Makes 10-12 large scones.

How to rise bread dough

1. The dough should be warm from using warm liquid in the recipe.

2. Coat the dough in water or oil to prevent it from drying out, which will stop the rising.

3. You want to create a little greenhouse for it, so it stays moist and warm. Do this by putting the dough in a bowl, then covering the top of the bowl. There needs to be enough space for the dough to expand. I find it best to cover the bowl with a plastic bag that has plenty of space above the bowl.

4. Make a note of how big the dough is.

5. Give it a warm place to rise in. If necessary, heat the oven to warm, turn it off, and keep it in there with the door closed. Don't let the plastic touch anything.

6. Let it rise until doubled in size. The time it takes depends on the ingredients, temperature, and elevation. Check it every half hour.

7. After the first rise, some recipes will have the dough get thoroughly kneaded again, some will have it gently shaped and left at that. In any case, the same environment must be replicated so that the dough stays warm and moist, and doesn't get smashed when it enlarges during the second rise.

8. For loaves of bread baked in a pan, it should rise until it is about an inch above the pan's rim. And larger than that can cause a collapse. For rolls or other types of loaves, let it rise until it reaches the desired size.

9. Bake it according to the recipe.

This method can be used for any yeast bread, unless the recipe specifies a different method.

Honey Spelt Bread

3 Tbls butter or coconut oil
1 cup hot water
1/4 cup honey
1/2 Tbls salt
.7 oz fresh yeast or 2 1/2 tsp dry yeast
1/2 cup room temp water or milk
1 egg
1 cup spelt flour
4-5 cups whole wheat flour

Stir together the hot water, butter/oil, honey, and salt. Mix in 1 cup of flour. Mix in the yeast and lukewarm water/milk. Mix in the egg. Mix in the rest of the flour one cup at a time. The dough will be very soft. Knead in enough flour to keep it together and and not sticky, but don't expect it to form a sturdy, resistant dough.

Coat with oil, cover, and let rise for 30 minutes or until doubled.

Gently roll it into a log shape. Place in a greased bread pan, coat with oil, cover, then rise again for 30 minutes.

When the dough is about 1" above the rim of the pan, bake at 350 F for 40-50 minutes, until browned on top and about 180° F inside. Let cool until it easily comes out of the bread pan.

Potato Soup

Chopped and boiled potatoes.

3 cups potatoes, chopped into 1" or smaller cubes
1 cup soup stock
1 cup leek or onion, chopped small
1 Tbls. butter
3 Tbls. cream cheese
1/2 cup grated or cubed cheddar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Over high heat in a large pot, cover the potatoes and leek/onion with water and boil them until the potato pieces are easy to pierce through with a fork. Strain out the water. Turn the heat to low. Roughly mash the potatoes, then add the soup stock, cream cheese, and butter. Stir to melt the cream cheese and butter. Then stir in the cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper. Add more soup stock if a thinner consistency is desired.

Chicken & Leek Pie

Pie crust for double-crust 9" deep dish pie
4 lb raw chicken
2 leeks
salt, pepper, nutmeg or mace; or whatever your preferred seasoning mix is
1 1/4 cups chicken stock, made with bones so there is some collagen content
1/2 cup cream

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare the bottom crust in the pie pan.

Cut the chicken into small pieces, removing bones and fat. Thinly slice the leeks from the bottom, up through about halfway of the green part (basically until there is no more yellow core).

Make layers in the pie--first chicken, then leeks, then a sprinkling of salt and seasoning, repeating until the pie is full. I used a Moroccan spice mix for medieval flavor. Pour the chicken stock into the pie.

Place the top crust. Cut a small circular hole in the middle, then make a pastry flower to form a lid on the hole.

Bake for 60-70 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the inside of the pie measures 165 F or greater.

Gently heat the cream until hot, not steaming. Remove flower lid from the pie, pour the cream into the hole, and replace the flower.

Socca

1 1/2 cups garbanzo flour
1 1/2 cups water
2 Tbls olive oil, plus some
3/4 tsp salt
black pepper

Stir together garbanzo flour, water, 2 Tbls olive oil, and salt. Let the batter rest for 30 or more minutes.

Put a cast iron skillet in the oven, close to the top, and preheat to 450 F. When it hits temperature, set the oven to high broil. Remove skillet from oven, pour in a small amount of olive oil to coat the bottom, and pour in the batter. Broil the socca for 5-8 minutes, until the top is browned and crispy.

Remove from oven, drizzle olive oil on top, salt, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

Lambswool Wassail

Roasted apples.

A sort-of medieval recipe, I haven't found a good primary source, only other people saying that it is medieval. A small verse:

Next crowne the bowle full of
With gentle lambs wooll,
Adde sugar, nutmeg, and ginger,
With a store of ale too,
And thus ye must doe
To make the Wassaile a swinger.

No reference was listed, and it sounds fake; but I haven't had time to investigate further. Anyway the recipe is unusual and delicous regardless of provenance.

3 liters of apple juice or cider (I did part unfiltered apple juice, part carbonated apple juice)
6 large apples
2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground ginger
1 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375 F. Remove wax from apples and cut out the cores. Place them in a cake pan and add about 1/2" of water. Roast the apples for 35-45 minutes, until they are mushy and the skin is peeling off.

Meanwhile, put the sugar in a pan and add enough juice to cover it. Heat over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the nutmeg and ginger. Keep it over low heat.

Remove and discard the skin from the roasted apples. I found that different varieties of apple peeled differently, and some apple flesh needed to be scraped off the back of the pulled-off skin, but it wasn't difficult.

Puree the apple flesh in a food processor or blender until it is totally smooth like thick apple sauce. If using a blender, add enough juice to get it to blend, but not enough to really liquefy it. It needs to be thick and drier than usual applesauce.

Set a crock pot on high heat. Pour in the apple juice/cider and the sugar mix. Stir together. Then pour in the pureed apple and whisk it. It should float to the top and resemble a wool fleece soaking in cider. Let it heat up to desired temperature, then set the crock pot to low or warm to maintain temperature for the duration of your winter feast.

How to Remove Wax from Fruit Skins

I don't know about the supposed health problems people say are caused by wax on fruit, but I like to remove the wax so that it doesn't cause texture changes in my recipes, especially in baked fruit or fresh juice.

Heat a pot of water on the stove until it reaches boiling, then turn heat to medium to maintain steaming temperature. Place the fruit (apples, pears, oranges, lemons, etc) in the pot for 1-3 minutes, turning them with tongs to get even coverage. Take each one out one at a time and scrub with a rough cloth to remove the wax. Sometimes the wax is visible, but you can feel the difference on the skin of the fruit, the waxed areas will feel tacky.

It will change the color of the skin over the course of a few minutes, but it does not cook the fruit, or change the taste or texture.

Gluten-Free Nutty Pie Crust

1 1/2 cups nut flour blend (needs to be part almond, part coconut, and can have other nuts as well)
1 1/2 large eggs or 2 small-medium eggs
3 Tbls. butter or coconut oil

Stir all ingredients together into a soft dough/thick paste. Press into the pie tin.

To bake alone, bake at 350 F for 15 minutes. Otherwise, follow instructions in the pie recipe.

Old-Fashioned Peanut Brittle

3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup corn syrup
3 Tbls. butter
1-1 1/2 lbs raw peanuts, shelled
1 Tbls. vanilla extract
1 Tbls. + 1 tsp. baking soda

Set the oven to 200 F. Thoroughly butter 2 baking sheets and place in the oven to keep warm.

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup. Prepare a bowl of ice water to test the syrup. Stir over medium-high heat until it reaches soft ball stage, about 15 minutes.

In a small bowl, stir together the vanilla extract and baking soda.

Add the peanuts and butter to the syrup. Stir constantly until it reaches brittle crack stage, about 20 minutes. Signs to look for: syrup spins a thin thread when dripping off the spoon, peanuts get roasted and brown, syrup turns amber colored, syrup audibly cracks when it hits the ice water. Taste test peanut flavor and candy texture after dropping into ice water.

When it reaches brittle crack stage, take out the baking sheets and place them on cooling racks on the counter or table. Quickly stir the vanilla and baking soda into the candy. It will foam up quite a bit. Stir it in thoroughly, but not too much, to preserve the bubbles. Immediately pour the candy onto the cookie sheets. Use a rubber spatula to spread it thinner, if desired (I like it thicker).

Let it cool completely. To check the hardness, try lifting it with a spatula. If it bends, it is still too soft.

Once it is totally brittle, break it into pieces with your hands.