Yesterday I spent the entire day (ok maybe not the entire day), but a the better part of the afternoon defrosting my freezer. Sure, I do the occasional chip chop here and there, just enough from around the freezer door so it will close, but ever few months I notice that everything in the fridge is not staying cold and that the freezer is not freezing stuff. Thats when I know its for real time to defrost. So a few days ago when I noticed my bananas were turing to liquid in the freezer, I knew it what I had to do….Completely empty the fridge and melt/hack away the 2-4 inches of ice build up that accumulated. It is such a freaking pain in the ass.So on this defrosting day, I took all the stuff from the freezer, stuck it in a cooler, and the rest of the stuff, which is basically all veggies, I just tossed on the table. As I am hacking away with a metal spatual, a wooden spoon, and a constant rotation of pots of boiling water, I was thinking about dinner. I figured I might as well just eat up as much of the veggies as I could, you know, so I didn’t have to put them back in the fridge. And also, I was getting pretty annoyed because this particular defrosting session was taking way longer the anticipated, which made making dinner seem like another pain in the ass. I figured I might as well just eat everything that is already out on the table, which pretty much narrowed down the “whats for dinner” conversations because it was already all over the place. And so dinner was a humongo salad for me, and for the mister, I made him a monster of a veggie sandwich. (my salad was exactly the same stuff as the sandwich, minus the bagel) Easy, fast, super duper yummy, pretty and piled so high with tons of veggies that the fridge is pretty much empty now.
Look at the is beast. I don’t call it a monster sandwich for nothing.
The stuff included in this monster veggie sandwich..
Romaine lettuce, tomato, avocado for there is not real sandwich without them. Thinly sliced radishes, cucumber,a and onion for nice crispy crunch. Shredded beets, carrots, and purple cabbage to give more crunch and a bit of sweetness. Then of course there needs to be something pickled, so I used banana peppers cause they are the SHIT!! And lastly some hummus for a nice creamy finish (plus a bit of protein) and yellow mustard because mustard on everything is just right. Heres to a mountain if goodness that is no longer in the fridge! Served with a another mountain of roasted parsnips and carrots (more stuff from the fridge) and a tall glass of iced tea.
Lucky that today is farm share pick up cause the fridge is pretty much on empty.
Yea it’s Thursday!!!!
-C
A Monster Veggie Sandwich
Note. This is just a guide.. Feel free to use whatever veggies you fancy.
Either a bagel, 2 slices of bread, or a big chunk of baguette (use a gluten free bread if you want or need too)
Hummus- Homemade or store bought
Mustard
Something pickled like pickles, banana peppers , jalapeños or all three
Lettuce, spinach or some kind of leafy green
Tomato
Avocado
Onion
Radishes
Cucumber
Shredded Carrots
Shredded Beets
Shredded Cabbage
To assemble. Ready your bread.. Toast if you want, and stick it on a plate
On either side, smear the hummus and the mustard.
Pick a side, start to stack by evenly disrupting veggies on top of veggies. Place the second piece of bread on top and giving a little smooth to keep it together.
And go at it. Cut in half or don’t. Have a napkin or a long sleeve ready to wipe your face.
The other day the mister and I started reminiscing about some of our earliest memories of what our parents fed us or what they used to eat when we were growing up. One of the dishes that we both remember eating was the classic creamed beef on toast, or as my mom use to call it, shit on a shingle. Yup, shit on a shingle. (who ever started calling creamed meat on toast is a freaking genius) I think that as a kid, I liked the dish just for the mer fact that I could say the word shit and get away with it. I think my mom liked it for few reasons; she could make a big butt load of it really fast, for a crap load of kids, on the super cheap. And I think that she just really like it.
Shit on a shingle is one of those foods that I like to call “trash food”, you know stuff like beefaroni or pork and beans. Stuff that we all loved as little kids but might think twice about feeding to anyone now. ( I’ll still feed nick a can of beefaroni.. he likes it) As a throwback to our earliest food memories, (also a lack of food in the house and wanted to make something fast, easy, and cheap.. thanks mom!) I made the mister my rendition of the classic. Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on toast. Not quite as trashy as creamed beef (lentils, mushrooms and onions are not trashy) but you get the same reminiscing feeling. I guess I could call it something like “stuff on a shingle” or lumps on a shingle”, but what kid (or adult) would want to eat that. Let’s just stick with shit, it makes it more awesome to eat it.
The shit….. A few mushrooms, a bit of onion, cooked lentils, flour, milk, oil, salt and pepper, and garlic powder. And the shingles.. 2 pieces of thick white country bread. Slice the mushrooms and the onion and toss into a skillet with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until browned and fragrant..Remove from pan.In the empty pan still on medium heat, add in the olive oil and the flour. Whisky constantly, slowly add in the milk. Keep whisking until sauce thickens. Remove from heat. Add in salt, pepper, and garlic powder.Add the mushrooms and the lentils into the sauce and give it a good mix. Oh, and don’t forget to toast up the bread. Now dump that shit all over those shingles! Oh the memories.
If you need to, make it classy by serving it with a cloth napkin and a nice fork and knife. But eat it however you need to. (As kids we like dirty hands and no fork, preferably with a big tall glass of overly sweetened red flavored kool-aid)
Enjoy this fantastic Spring weekend!
-C
Shit on s Shingle (Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on Toast)
One serving
1 cup cooked lentils
2- 3 mushrooms
1/2 small onion
1 cup milk (cow, nut, plant… whatever you want)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper
2 pieces of nice thick but soft white sandwich bread
Slice the mushroom and onion and toss into a pan or skillet with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until brown and fragrant than dump onto a plate. In same skillet, add the oil and the flour and mix with a whisk while slowly adding in the milk. Keep whisking until sauce starts to thicken. Turn heat to simmer and add in the cooked lentils and the sautéd mushrooms and onions. Push down the bread in the toaster.. and when it pops up, dump the shill over it.
There is irish soda bread in your future. I can see it. A nice hardy hunk slathered in butter and honey, crumbs all over the place. So all you have to do know is make it.
I remember reading somewhere (I wish I could remember where) that irish soda bread is just four ingredients, flour, sea salt, baking soda and buttermilk and adding anything else would make it a cake. So when I decided to make irish soda bread, thats all I used. ( I made it with some wheat flour) What you end up with is a highly dense, super fragrant, soft, chewy bread with a crunchy crust. Definitely not a cake.
Note….You can for sure add in a bit of sweetener or even little fat to make it richer and softer, but then it wouldn’t be bread (or so that’s what I read) There are tons of other recipes out there that have other stuff in them. This is just a really simple basic recipe.
White whole wheat flour and all purpose flour mixed together. Salt baking soda and buttermilk. That’s it.All the dry whisked together and in goes the buttermilk. Mix together until dough starts to form then dump onto a floured surface. Handling dough as little as possible, knead into ball.
Place on a baking sheet and dust with flour. Take a sharp knife and cut an X through the top about 1/2 inch deep.
Stick in into the oven for 50 ish minutes, or unit la tester stuck into the middle comes out clean and there is kind of a hollow thunk when tapped on.
And now you have a very pretty, dense hunk of irish soda bread.
Cut and serve with butter and honey (thats how the mister likes it) or whatever you want to eat it with.
-C
Irish Soda Bread
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or you can use all purpose)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk (or your choice if milk plus a tablespoon lemon juice)
Preheat oven to 375
In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda and salt. Mix in buttermilk until the dough starts to come together. If the dough seems to dry, add another splash or two of milk. Dump out dough onto a floured surface and shape into a ball. transfer onto a baking sheet, dust with flour and cut a x about 1/2 inch into the top. Stick into oven for 50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean and the bread makes a hollow sound when tapped.
Let cool enough to handle.
Cut into and serve with a smear of whatever you want
Best eaten within a day or two
One of the best things about winter is that I can have something in the oven at any time and not worry about how hot the house is going to get. I get to spend my free time (or my in between free minutes) baking up all the thing that I would not dare bake in the summer. (lots of bread and cakes) Yeah, I might complain a little about how cold it is outside (to my defense, -20 is kind of a bitch) but then I think of the super hot humid days that come during the summer and cringe. At least when its cold out I am able to get warm, (que oven) but when its super hot and humid, I just turn into something that border lines a wet towel and the rabbit animal… Not so pleasant. I much prefer cooler weather. So no big surprise….I made bread.. or focaccia to be exact. And now you should too because first off, you want to eat it, and secondly, you can probably whip this up faster then it would take to get all of you winter warmies on and leave the house. Don’t leave, just turn the oven on. The stuff, which isn’t a whole lot… Flour and salt. A mixture of honey, water, and yeast. And olive oil. Its pretty much my pizza dough recipe, tweaked with the addition of oil, less flour and no kneading. Mix together the wet and dry…I used my nifty dough whisk, but a wooden spoon or even your hand works. Mix mix mix. The dough should be really slack and sticky. And guess what.. no need to knead! Just make sure the dough is uniformly incorporated…hehe.. uniformly incorporated… sounds weird. Drizzle the dough (don’t worry about making it into a ball, a blob is good) with a little oil and place in a nice warm place topped with a towel to rise for about an hour or until dough has doubled in size. Once is has fully risen, drizzle 2 tablespoons oil in two 9 inch cake pans. Divide dough in half, and kind of smoosh dough into pans. Cover and let rise for another 20 minutes or so. When dough has finished its second rise, drizzle each with another tablespoon of oil and with your fingers, fill out the pan and indent the dough, kind of like playing a piano or tickling a puppy(?)….Then layer your toppings (if you want any) Start with any herbs, then the veggies. Then last, any cheese you got. I used thyme, cracked black pepper, tomato, onion, topped with parmesan cheese. And the other one is just plain old salt. Pulled from the oven when nice and golden brown..set on a wire rack to cool for a few minute and removed from the pans. The mister was practically salivating waiting for a slice… and he was so not disappointed. Crispy outside with soft airy insides… Everything a perfect focaccia should be. The one with the toppings was the favorite for the first night, but for a peanut butter and cheese panini for lunch the next day…plain is the way to go.. My suggestion, do what I did, jazz one up and leave one plain. And then make more if you need too because the forecast call for another week of below zero!!! Oh the things that I’ll get to make! (me being positive) Stay warm! -C
Focaccia with out without stuff
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt plus 2 teaspoons for topping (can use more or less if you want)
2 teaspoons active yeast (or one package)
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon honey (or sugar if vegan)
6 tablespoons olive oil
Optional toppings
Fresh cracked pepper
Thyme or any other spices
Thinly sliced tomato
Thinly sliced onion
Parmesan Cheese
Anything you want!
In a bowl or jar, mix honey (or sugar), yeast and warm water together and let sit for about 5 minutes or until yeast is activated and starts to foam In a large bowl, whisk together flour and 1 tablespoon of salt. With either a wooden spoon, dough whisk, or if you have one, a stand mixer with a dough hook, mix the yeast mixture with the flour. The dough is going to be really sticky so mixing might get a little gloppy, but keep at it until everything is full incorporated.. for about 3-5 minutes and don’t be afraid to use your hand… you can wash it off. Once mixed drizzle with oil and cover with a towel. Let rise for about an hour or until dough has dubbed in size. When dough has double, coat two 8 or 9 inch cake pans each with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Dump dough onto floured surface and cut in half. Take each half a place in pan. cover and let rise again for another 20ish minutes. preheat over to 400 degrees After second rise, lightly take your fingers and push down dough, making little indents all over the surface. Drizzle each with another tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle each with a teaspoon of salt. If using spices or any other toppings, nows the time to layer them on. And do any cheese last! Place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. When done, place on a wire rack and let cool a bit before removing from pans. Done!! To store, place in a paper bag.. best eaten within a few days!
So the mister wants to know…”Why would anyone ever buy those crappy english muffins from the store when they could be eating these?”
Good question…And we will all answer….”Never again! Because I now make the sickest E.M.s around.!”(E.M.s is the cool short way to say english muffins and now that you are going to make your own….man, your so cool!)
These E.M.s are perfect. Easy to make, not overly fussy, and you end up with a super yummy, extremely versatile, individually portion super sweet little disk of bread. And the best part is..nooks and crannies! I think that is why I decided to make these E.M.s, so Nick and I can talk the about nooks and crannies…(Sometimes we need light conversation)
We start with flour and salt whisked together in a bowl. The honey, yeast and warm water are getting on proofing in a jar. An egg waiting to be cracked, some milk, and 2 tablespoons of butter. All this good stuff equals…nooks and crannies!
Oh you like my nifty dough whisk….me too, I use it all the time. Maybe I should have a dough whisk give away ……maybe…..
Everything all mixed together, dumped onto a floured surface and kneaded for 10 minutes by hand…..If you have a stand mixer, you can use it if you want, but you are missing out on the fun of doing it by hand….
When the dough has been sufficiently kneaded, gather dough into a nice ball, coat with a little oil and place back into bowl. Cover with a towel and stick in a warm place to rise for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.
When dough has doubled, punch down and plop out onto floured surface. Dust the bottom of a griddle or in my case, two cast iron pans, with corn meal. Divide dough into 8-10 equal balls and smash into 2 inch thick disks.
Place on griddle or pans and sprinkle more corn meal on top of each E.M. Cover and let rise for another 15 minute.
Now the E.M.s have rested, turn the griddle (or pans) on to low heat. Once your griddle (or pans) gets hot, continue to cook that side for another 7-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip and cook other side for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Once browned, check for doneness with a thermometer. The inside should reach 200 degrees.( if you don’t have a thermometer, fork split one open and check…. you are going to eat it anyway) If the outside cooked faster then the inside, no worries, just pop them into the oven at 350 for 8-10 minutes. I had to pop mine into the oven for to cook completely.
Remove form griddle, let cool a bit, and ……Fresh, fluffy fat, fantastic….Everything and more that a real english muffin should be. Split open with a fork and……. the nooks and crannies! So spot on. Serve with anything your heart desires…I served these with whipped honey butter…. and eat the only kind of E.M. you will ever again eat. Grocery store english muffins be damned!
Enjoy and Happy Tuesday!
-C
English Muffins
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons honey
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon butter at room temperature
1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
cornmeal for pan
Combine warm water, honey and yeast in a bowl to active..about 5-10 minutes or until yeast is foamy.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Mix in butter(I use my fingers) When yeast mixture is done proofing, whisk together mixture with the egg and milk. Add wet to dry and mix until just incorporated Dump out onto floured surface and knead dough for 8 minutes, adding a bit of flour whenever dough starts to get too sticky. Roll into a ball, coat with oil and place back into bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 60 minutes or until sought has doubled in size.
Once the first rise is done, deflate dough and divide into 8 equal pieces(10 for a slightly smaller muffin). Smoosh each ball into a flat disk, about 2 inches thick) and place on a cold cornmeal dusted cast iron griddle. (I used 2 cast iron pans) Sprinkle tops of muffins with more corn meal and let dough rest for another 15 minted. Turn burners on low heat. Let griddle get hot and continue to cook the muffins for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and cook opposite side until gold brown and remove from griddle. To make sure the muffins are cooked completely, stick an instant read thermometer into the center…it should read 200 degrees. (if you don’t have a thermometer, split one open… the tester E.M.) If the E.M.s are not completely cook, just stick in the oven on 350 for 5-10 minutes or until cooked throughout.
Remove and let cool. To serve, split open with a fork and give a light toast. Spread with butter, jam, peanuts butter, anything you want…maybe make E.M pizzas!
HORRAY, its Saturday!!! I don’t care that I have a bunch of laundry and house work to do, bills to pay, a mangy dog to groom… I get to do it all at home with the music blasting,(maybe some holiday tunes) a lot of coffee, in my comfy sweats and the oven on. Weekends are always a mixed bag of crazy for me but I can usually count on being at home for a chunk of the morning or afternoons and that’s when I jump at the chance to make me some yeasted bread. Give me a couple of hours, my list of chores and watch me go.. I can mix and knead,, set aside to rise and hit up cleaning that toilet. Go back and knead, divided and rise again, then go fold all the laundry. Stick the bread in the oven and watch out, I am mopping the floors. I am nothing if not a fantastic multitasked, much like these rolls. You can serve them as a side for dinner , use them as a sandwich roll, or eat them as the star with a dab of butter and a drizzle of honey. The possibilities are endless. This particular recipe is fantastic for may reasons…. Its pretty simple, not to many ingredients and is made with whole wheat flour. If you don’t want 16 rolls, you can make the dough, bake half and freeze the rest. You could even bake into loaves of bread instead.Yeah, sounds good right? Go ahead, you know you want to. Just do it!I always gather the ingredients.. I have learned over the years that if I have all my stuff out and measured in front of me, I will almost never forget something and that I make less of a mess. It also helps that I find it pretty. So, flours and salt are whisked together. The yeast and honey in a bowl waiting to be proofed. The butter in need of more melting and an egg.. Pretty. Honey and yeast mixed with a cup of warm water. BE CAREFUL with the temperature of the water.. If its to hot, the yeast will kill the yeast and you will have to start over again, but I trust you won’t do that.Now that the yeast is active, mix in melted butter and egg. (Make sure the butter is not hot, warm is ok) Add wet ingredients to the dry and mix.
I have a super awesome dough mixer , it helps to mix and not completely stick like it does to a wooden spoon. Dont have one? Use a wooden spoon, it works the same with a little more stickiness..You have a stand mixer? Well fancy you. No I am not jealous,(maybe a little). I like using my hands when making bread, but you? Go ahead, use your mixer, its cool with me. So mix you dough, you want the dough wet and sticky but still able to roll into a ball. If you need to, add a pinch more of flour, just enough to help form a ball. When ball is formed, drizzle oil and rub all over and place in bowl with a damp towel. Let sit somplace warm to rise for about an 45 minutes or unit dough has doubled in size. A good warm spot..Try the top of the fridge, thats my rising spot.
Once it has doubled, roll out onto a nicely floured surface and..my favorite part, punch it down and knead for a few minutes…. This dough doesn’t need a lot of kneading, just enough to reform ball and get some air out. Now divide and place into well buttered pans. I used two 9 inch cake pans, but a 13 X 9 pan or baking dish would work or loaf pans if you want loaves. Just make sure to really butter the pans.
Little ball of dough turned into big balls of dough. (Yeast is so cool!).Into the oven they go. Right before I baked them I gave the tops a little milk wash, just for color. Do it if you want, you could even do an egg wash, but it’s really not necessary. Oh boy… Fresh from the oven…Take a bit of butter and melt over the top….So lovely! Who wouldn’t want to just tear these beauties apart?
Now eat.. Eat with jam, eat with cheese, eat with peanut butter or with a bit of honey. Or, eat as is…..Just eat it and enjoy you labor of love and the satisfaction that you just made those delicious rolls that you are eating.
Honey Wheat Pull-apart Rolls.
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 3/4 white whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons melted butter
teaspoon salt
2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
1 egg
1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons butter(to rub over baked rolls)
Makes 16 good-sized rolls
In a large bowl whisk together both flours and salt.
In a smaller bowl add warm water, yeast and honey. Stir and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes or until the yeast has grown and is foamy. Meanwhile, melt butter and let sit for 5 minutes. When the yeast has proofed, whisk together with butter and egg. Add to dry ingredients.
With a dough spoon , wooden spoon, stand mixer or your fist, mix (or knead) until the dough comes together and begins to form into a ball. You want the dough to be wet and sticky but add a pinch or two of flour if its to wet and not forming a ball.
Coat dough with a little oil and place back into large bowl. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place(The top of the fridge is great) Let rise for 45 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
When dough has doubled, dump dough onto a well floured surface, flour up you hand and punch down the dough and knead for a few minutes. Divided dough 16 even balls. Now is a good time to preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place in greased pans ( 8 in each) and cove with plastic and let rise for another 20-30 minutes or until dough has doubled and filling out the pans. When the second rise is done, place in oven and bake for 25 minutes or until a nice light brown. If you want a darker crust, right before baking, lightly brush the tops of rolls with butter. As soon as the rolls are removed from the oven take the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter( one tablespoon for each pan) and melt over top of rolls
Note..If you want to freeze any rolls, place in a pan after fist rise and stick in freezer until frozen Transfer to a airtight bag. When you want to use, simply pop out of freezer and let sit for about and hour. Bake as directed above.
THE LOVELY CRAZY
September 19, 2015 by maximios • Blog
Yesterday I spent the entire day (ok maybe not the entire day), but a the better part of the afternoon defrosting my freezer. Sure, I do the occasional chip chop here and there, just enough from around the freezer door so it will close, but ever few months I notice that everything in the fridge is not staying cold and that the freezer is not freezing stuff. Thats when I know its for real time to defrost. So a few days ago when I noticed my bananas were turing to liquid in the freezer, I knew it what I had to do….Completely empty the fridge and melt/hack away the 2-4 inches of ice build up that accumulated. It is such a freaking pain in the ass.So on this defrosting day, I took all the stuff from the freezer, stuck it in a cooler, and the rest of the stuff, which is basically all veggies, I just tossed on the table. As I am hacking away with a metal spatual, a wooden spoon, and a constant rotation of pots of boiling water, I was thinking about dinner. I figured I might as well just eat up as much of the veggies as I could, you know, so I didn’t have to put them back in the fridge. And also, I was getting pretty annoyed because this particular defrosting session was taking way longer the anticipated, which made making dinner seem like another pain in the ass. I figured I might as well just eat everything that is already out on the table, which pretty much narrowed down the “whats for dinner” conversations because it was already all over the place. And so dinner was a humongo salad for me, and for the mister, I made him a monster of a veggie sandwich. (my salad was exactly the same stuff as the sandwich, minus the bagel) Easy, fast, super duper yummy, pretty and piled so high with tons of veggies that the fridge is pretty much empty now.
Look at the is beast. I don’t call it a monster sandwich for nothing.
The stuff included in this monster veggie sandwich..
Romaine lettuce, tomato, avocado for there is not real sandwich without them. Thinly sliced radishes, cucumber,a and onion for nice crispy crunch. Shredded beets, carrots, and purple cabbage to give more crunch and a bit of sweetness. Then of course there needs to be something pickled, so I used banana peppers cause they are the SHIT!! And lastly some hummus for a nice creamy finish (plus a bit of protein) and yellow mustard because mustard on everything is just right. Heres to a mountain if goodness that is no longer in the fridge! Served with a another mountain of roasted parsnips and carrots (more stuff from the fridge) and a tall glass of iced tea.
Lucky that today is farm share pick up cause the fridge is pretty much on empty.
Yea it’s Thursday!!!!
-C
A Monster Veggie Sandwich
Note. This is just a guide.. Feel free to use whatever veggies you fancy.
To assemble. Ready your bread.. Toast if you want, and stick it on a plate
On either side, smear the hummus and the mustard.
Pick a side, start to stack by evenly disrupting veggies on top of veggies. Place the second piece of bread on top and giving a little smooth to keep it together.
And go at it. Cut in half or don’t. Have a napkin or a long sleeve ready to wipe your face.
Shit on a shingle is one of those foods that I like to call “trash food”, you know stuff like beefaroni or pork and beans. Stuff that we all loved as little kids but might think twice about feeding to anyone now. ( I’ll still feed nick a can of beefaroni.. he likes it) As a throwback to our earliest food memories, (also a lack of food in the house and wanted to make something fast, easy, and cheap.. thanks mom!) I made the mister my rendition of the classic. Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on toast. Not quite as trashy as creamed beef (lentils, mushrooms and onions are not trashy) but you get the same reminiscing feeling. I guess I could call it something like “stuff on a shingle” or lumps on a shingle”, but what kid (or adult) would want to eat that. Let’s just stick with shit, it makes it more awesome to eat it.
If you need to, make it classy by serving it with a cloth napkin and a nice fork and knife. But eat it however you need to. (As kids we like dirty hands and no fork, preferably with a big tall glass of overly sweetened red flavored kool-aid)
Enjoy this fantastic Spring weekend!
-C
Shit on s Shingle (Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on Toast)
One serving
Slice the mushroom and onion and toss into a pan or skillet with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until brown and fragrant than dump onto a plate. In same skillet, add the oil and the flour and mix with a whisk while slowly adding in the milk. Keep whisking until sauce starts to thicken. Turn heat to simmer and add in the cooked lentils and the sautéd mushrooms and onions. Push down the bread in the toaster.. and when it pops up, dump the shill over it.
I remember reading somewhere (I wish I could remember where) that irish soda bread is just four ingredients, flour, sea salt, baking soda and buttermilk and adding anything else would make it a cake. So when I decided to make irish soda bread, thats all I used. ( I made it with some wheat flour) What you end up with is a highly dense, super fragrant, soft, chewy bread with a crunchy crust. Definitely not a cake.
Note….You can for sure add in a bit of sweetener or even little fat to make it richer and softer, but then it wouldn’t be bread (or so that’s what I read) There are tons of other recipes out there that have other stuff in them. This is just a really simple basic recipe.
Stick in into the oven for 50 ish minutes, or unit la tester stuck into the middle comes out clean and there is kind of a hollow thunk when tapped on.
And now you have a very pretty, dense hunk of irish soda bread.
Cut and serve with butter and honey (thats how the mister likes it) or whatever you want to eat it with.
-C
Irish Soda Bread
Preheat oven to 375
In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda and salt. Mix in buttermilk until the dough starts to come together. If the dough seems to dry, add another splash or two of milk. Dump out dough onto a floured surface and shape into a ball. transfer onto a baking sheet, dust with flour and cut a x about 1/2 inch into the top. Stick into oven for 50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean and the bread makes a hollow sound when tapped.
Let cool enough to handle.
Cut into and serve with a smear of whatever you want
Best eaten within a day or two
Focaccia with out without stuff
Optional toppings
In a bowl or jar, mix honey (or sugar), yeast and warm water together and let sit for about 5 minutes or until yeast is activated and starts to foam In a large bowl, whisk together flour and 1 tablespoon of salt. With either a wooden spoon, dough whisk, or if you have one, a stand mixer with a dough hook, mix the yeast mixture with the flour. The dough is going to be really sticky so mixing might get a little gloppy, but keep at it until everything is full incorporated.. for about 3-5 minutes and don’t be afraid to use your hand… you can wash it off. Once mixed drizzle with oil and cover with a towel. Let rise for about an hour or until dough has dubbed in size. When dough has double, coat two 8 or 9 inch cake pans each with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Dump dough onto floured surface and cut in half. Take each half a place in pan. cover and let rise again for another 20ish minutes. preheat over to 400 degrees After second rise, lightly take your fingers and push down dough, making little indents all over the surface. Drizzle each with another tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle each with a teaspoon of salt. If using spices or any other toppings, nows the time to layer them on. And do any cheese last! Place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. When done, place on a wire rack and let cool a bit before removing from pans. Done!! To store, place in a paper bag.. best eaten within a few days!
Good question…And we will all answer….”Never again! Because I now make the sickest E.M.s around.!”(E.M.s is the cool short way to say english muffins and now that you are going to make your own….man, your so cool!)
These E.M.s are perfect. Easy to make, not overly fussy, and you end up with a super yummy, extremely versatile, individually portion super sweet little disk of bread. And the best part is..nooks and crannies! I think that is why I decided to make these E.M.s, so Nick and I can talk the about nooks and crannies…(Sometimes we need light conversation)
We start with flour and salt whisked together in a bowl. The honey, yeast and warm water are getting on proofing in a jar. An egg waiting to be cracked, some milk, and 2 tablespoons of butter. All this good stuff equals…nooks and crannies!
Oh you like my nifty dough whisk….me too, I use it all the time. Maybe I should have a dough whisk give away ……maybe…..
When the dough has been sufficiently kneaded, gather dough into a nice ball, coat with a little oil and place back into bowl. Cover with a towel and stick in a warm place to rise for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.
Enjoy and Happy Tuesday!
-C
English Muffins
Ingredients
Combine warm water, honey and yeast in a bowl to active..about 5-10 minutes or until yeast is foamy.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Mix in butter(I use my fingers) When yeast mixture is done proofing, whisk together mixture with the egg and milk. Add wet to dry and mix until just incorporated Dump out onto floured surface and knead dough for 8 minutes, adding a bit of flour whenever dough starts to get too sticky. Roll into a ball, coat with oil and place back into bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 60 minutes or until sought has doubled in size.
Once the first rise is done, deflate dough and divide into 8 equal pieces(10 for a slightly smaller muffin). Smoosh each ball into a flat disk, about 2 inches thick) and place on a cold cornmeal dusted cast iron griddle. (I used 2 cast iron pans) Sprinkle tops of muffins with more corn meal and let dough rest for another 15 minted. Turn burners on low heat. Let griddle get hot and continue to cook the muffins for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Flip and cook opposite side until gold brown and remove from griddle. To make sure the muffins are cooked completely, stick an instant read thermometer into the center…it should read 200 degrees. (if you don’t have a thermometer, split one open… the tester E.M.) If the E.M.s are not completely cook, just stick in the oven on 350 for 5-10 minutes or until cooked throughout.
Remove and let cool. To serve, split open with a fork and give a light toast. Spread with butter, jam, peanuts butter, anything you want…maybe make E.M pizzas!
I have a super awesome dough mixer , it helps to mix and not completely stick like it does to a wooden spoon. Dont have one? Use a wooden spoon, it works the same with a little more stickiness..You have a stand mixer? Well fancy you. No I am not jealous,(maybe a little). I like using my hands when making bread, but you? Go ahead, use your mixer, its cool with me. So mix you dough, you want the dough wet and sticky but still able to roll into a ball. If you need to, add a pinch more of flour, just enough to help form a ball. When ball is formed, drizzle oil and rub all over and place in bowl with a damp towel. Let sit somplace warm to rise for about an 45 minutes or unit dough has doubled in size. A good warm spot..Try the top of the fridge, thats my rising spot.
Once it has doubled, roll out onto a nicely floured surface and..my favorite part, punch it down and knead for a few minutes…. This dough doesn’t need a lot of kneading, just enough to reform ball and get some air out. Now divide and place into well buttered pans. I used two 9 inch cake pans, but a 13 X 9 pan or baking dish would work or loaf pans if you want loaves. Just make sure to really butter the pans.
Now eat.. Eat with jam, eat with cheese, eat with peanut butter or with a bit of honey. Or, eat as is…..Just eat it and enjoy you labor of love and the satisfaction that you just made those delicious rolls that you are eating.
Honey Wheat Pull-apart Rolls.
Ingredients
Makes 16 good-sized rolls
In a large bowl whisk together both flours and salt.
In a smaller bowl add warm water, yeast and honey. Stir and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes or until the yeast has grown and is foamy. Meanwhile, melt butter and let sit for 5 minutes. When the yeast has proofed, whisk together with butter and egg. Add to dry ingredients.
With a dough spoon , wooden spoon, stand mixer or your fist, mix (or knead) until the dough comes together and begins to form into a ball. You want the dough to be wet and sticky but add a pinch or two of flour if its to wet and not forming a ball.
Coat dough with a little oil and place back into large bowl. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place(The top of the fridge is great) Let rise for 45 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
When dough has doubled, dump dough onto a well floured surface, flour up you hand and punch down the dough and knead for a few minutes. Divided dough 16 even balls. Now is a good time to preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place in greased pans ( 8 in each) and cove with plastic and let rise for another 20-30 minutes or until dough has doubled and filling out the pans. When the second rise is done, place in oven and bake for 25 minutes or until a nice light brown. If you want a darker crust, right before baking, lightly brush the tops of rolls with butter. As soon as the rolls are removed from the oven take the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter( one tablespoon for each pan) and melt over top of rolls
Note..If you want to freeze any rolls, place in a pan after fist rise and stick in freezer until frozen Transfer to a airtight bag. When you want to use, simply pop out of freezer and let sit for about and hour. Bake as directed above.