Corned Beef the Next Day and the Next

March 17, 2016March 17, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, and because we love it no matter the day, I made a corned beef on Sunday with cabbage, potatoes, carrots, and onions. I cooked it all afternoon and the house smelled wonderful. I posted the corned beef recipe that I use last April. It was taught to me by a dear friend who used to host a St. Patrick’s Day celebration every year. There were just two of us feasting on a large pot of meat and veggies so we had a lot of leftovers. Some people hate leftovers. At our house we love them. I think usually they are more interesting when they are repurposed. But that is not always true.

Leftovers Day 1

The Brits, who I’m told are not famous for haute cuisine, have a dish called Bubble and Squeak. It’s basically a recipe for frying up leftover cabbage, mashed potatoes, and meat. I decided to give Bubble and Squeak a shot using my own interpretation and the leftovers we had. It’s not complicated.

The Ingredients I used:

1 small onion diced

2 cloves of garlic sliced

2 stalks of celery chopped

1 T canola oil

1 T butter

Chopped cooked cabbage

Diced corned beef

Boiled potatoes and carrots smashed

Heat the oil and butter in a heavy skillet over medium high heat and sauté the onion, celery and garlic until tender.

While the onions are cooking slice and dice the corned beef.

Smash the potatoes and carrots.

Add the cabbage and corned beef to the skillet.

Top with the smashed potatoes and carrots and heat through.

Now if you’re extremely talented in the kitchen flip the bubble and squeak over in the pan. Use a plate or pan lid to assist with the flip so that both sides are lightly browned. If you’re not extremely talented follow my lead…brush a little butter on the top and put the pan under the broiler until the top is lightly browned. Slice and serve.

I know. It looks pretty grey and boring. And maybe not even very appetizing. It was “okay.” If I’m to make this again I need to think of a way to jazz this up a little and make it more exciting. Suggestions are welcome!

Leftovers Day 2

Rueben Sandwiches. This was my mother’s favorite sandwich. A favorite of mine as well. This is an easy dinner to prepare and doesn’t require a recipe. Good bread is a must.

The ingredients I used:

Combine Ketchup, Mayo and Sweet Relish to make Thousand Island-ish sandwich spread.

Assemble the sandwich and grill.

This repurposed leftover was much more successful. I served it with homemade dill pickles and vegetable chips. You can put a little of the magic sauce on the sandwich before grilling and serve additional sauce on the side.

Looks a lot more appetizing than Bubble and Squeak doesn’t it??

I still have leftover corned beef. Maybe corned beef hash and eggs tomorrow.

Braised Country Style Pork Ribs

February 27, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

This is a Dutch oven dinner. I have several Dutch ovens in varying sizes and shapes and I love cooking in them. The cast iron provides perfect even heat, they go from stove top to oven to table, and clean up is pretty easy. Very often, when we think ribs, we think barbecue. I do love country style ribs barbecued but this is a good change of pace. A very homey, cold weather, comfort meal like your mother or grandmother would have put on the table. And it makes the kitchen smell wonderful when it’s cooking. One of my Dad’s favorite meals is a boiled dinner and this dish has a lot of the same components.

Ingredients:

2# of country style ribs

2 T canola oil

1 onion rough chopped

2 carrots sliced

2 stalks of celery rough chopped

1/2 head of green cabbage rough chopped

4-6 cloves of garlic sliced

2 T tomato paste

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 tsp red pepper flakes

2 bay leaves

2 1/2 cups broth (vegetable or chicken)

salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 325.

Heat oil in the Dutch oven over medium high heat. Salt and pepper the ribs and brown them on all sides. Remove them to a platter and set aside.

Add the onion, carrots, cabbage and celery to the pan drippings and cook, stirring occasionally, under tender. About 5 minutes.

Add the garlic and tomato paste. Stir and cook until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 1 minute. Deglaze with 1/4 cup cider vinegar.

Stir in the broth, pepper flakes and bay leaves. Return the ribs to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook in the oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Remove the lid and cook for 30 more minutes allowing some of the liquid to evaporate and the meat to brown. The meat is very tender and the broth flavorful. When you plate this ladle some broth over the meat and vegetables.

I served this with a creamy polenta made with milk, half and half, butter, and asiago cheese. How can that possibly be bad??

My family of origin would not have served this with polenta. I’m confident most of my family would not even eat polenta. If you prefer you could serve this with rice, noodles, or potatoes. Or just serve it with a salad and some good, crusty bread. I know my dad would choose potatoes. I’m grateful that my husband eats almost anything I prepare without complaint. It’s much more enjoyable trying new things when you have a receptive audience.

Beef Tips and Vegetables in Brown Gravy

February 21, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

This is a very simple recipe prepared in a pressure cooker. A couple years ago an electric pressure cooker was at the top of my Christmas wish list. For anyone who is a little afraid of using a pressure cooker and has visions of a pressure cooker lid imbedded in the kitchen ceiling, fear not. They really are very simple and safe to operate. It’s an appliance I wish I had had when I was still working full time and preparing meals when I got home from work. Even as a retired person I am not a good advance meal planner. Five o’clock rolls around and I start thinking about what I’m going to make. The two primary functions of my microwave are reheating leftovers and defrosting frozen solid meat so I can make dinner. While it’s not recommended, because of the amount of time necessary to build to full pressure, with a pressure cooker you could actually start with a piece of frozen meat and have a great dinner on the table in less than an hour. You can brown meat, sauté, simmer and keep your food warm all in one pot. The pressure cooker makes even inexpensive cuts of meat tender and seems to intensify favors in a very positive way. Be careful with salt.

I’m hoping that this recipe motivates my good friend who has a spanking new electric pressure cooker (probably still in its original box) to get it out and give it a try.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 to 2 pounds of sirloin steak

2 T olive oil

1 large onion rough chopped

2 carrots sliced

2 stalks of celery rough chopped

1 cup baby bellas

3-4 cloves of garlic sliced

2 cups of beef broth (I use better than bouillon)

1/4 cup brandy

1 T Dijon mustard

1 T tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

2 T room temperature butter

2 T AP flour

1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped

2 green onions sliced

Heat the oil in the pressure cooker over medium high heat. Cube the beef and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the meat to the pressure cooker in batches and brown. Don’t crowd the meat or it won’t brown properly. Remove to a plate and continue until all the meat has been browned.

Add the onion, mushrooms, carrots and celery to the pot. Cook for 2-3 minutes until tender.

Add the sliced garlic and brandy. Cook until the brandy comes to a boil. Add the mustard and tomato paste to the broth. Return the meat to the pot and pour in the broth. Lock the lid in place and cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.

Release the pressure naturally. Remove the lid, always tilting the lid away from you to allow for any steam to escape. Bring the sauce to a boil. In a small bowl whisk together the butter and flour to form a paste and stir it into the sauce.

Bring back to a boil. Simmer for 2 minutes. Serve over rice or noodles. Garnish with the parsley and green onions.

Enjoy!

NOTE: I keep a few staples in my freezer that make spur of the moment food prep easier. Recipes always call for one or two tablespoons of tomato paste. You can buy tomato paste in tubes but it is more economical to buy the small cans. Open one end of the can and put it in the freezer for awhile. Once it’s frozen open the other end of the can and use the lid to push the tomato paste out. Slice and put each slice into a snack bag. Store in your freezer.

Vegetable and Bleu Cheese Tart

February 11, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

A few Christmases ago my daughter gave me a Nordic Bakery Cookbook by Miisa Mink. It has some excellent recipes for pastries and for savory dishes. We all get tired of making the same meals over and over so tonight I got the book out and decided to make the Vegetable tart. Just yesterday I bought some excellent buttermilk Bleu cheese at a local market that sells cheeses, meats, great olives, wine and craft beers. The cheese was perfect for this dish. Simple ingredients. Nothing exotic.

Ingredients for the crust:

13 T butter at room temperature

3 1/2 T sour cream or crime fraiche

1 cup AP flour

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

Cream the butter and the sour cream or creme fraiche together in a mixing bowl.

Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Stir into the creamed mixture until a dough forms. Form dough into a ball, flatten into a disc, and wrap in plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface.

Transfer the pastry to a tart pan pressing it into the fluted edges of the pan and neatly cut off the excess pastry. (I love my tart pan and I rarely use it. You don’t see how pretty it is until it’s empty.)

Tart Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups broccoli florets

1 1/2 cups cauliflower florets

1 T vegetable oil

1 onion rough diced

1 cup cherry tomatoes halved

2 1/2 oz. Danish Bleu cheese (I used buttermilk Bleu)

3/4 cup grated Cheddar

fresh ground black pepper

The Bleu cheese is the star!

Preheat oven to 400.

Cut the florets into chunks. Boil until they are tender crisp. Drain well and allow to cool.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Fry the onion until it is soft and golden. Set aside to cool slightly.

Once the onion has cooled tip the pan over the pastry and spread the onion evenly. Top with the broccoli, cauliflower and tomatoes.

Sprinkle the cheeses evenly over the top and sprinkle with cracked black pepper.

Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

It’s beautiful! And it tastes great! Serve with a green salad and you have a perfect dinner.

NOTE: You can substitute other vegetables taking care that they don’t become too watery when cooked. Served as an appetizer the recipe serves 6; as an entree it serves 4.

Poached Cod with Tomato and White Beans

February 10, 2016February 11, 2016 / featherheadlady / 1 Comment

I haven’t been blogging for a few days but I have been cooking. A couple of nights ago I made poached cod. We love fish and tomato dishes and this fits the bill for both. Cod is a mild fish available in most grocery stores. In the fish counter or the freezer. Either will work fine for this dish. Unless I have fish that was just caught, cleaned and ready for cooking I soak my fish in milk for at least 30 minutes.

I am convinced that this takes away the fishy smell that turns some people off to eating fish. Making sure you don’t over cook your fish also keeps the fish odors to a minimum. I know people who absolutely refuse to cook fish at home because of the smell. When I make this dish people walking into my house are more likely to say they smell onion and garlic. Everyone loves the smell of onion and garlic!

Ingredients:

1 cod filet (approximately one pound)

2 T olive oil

1 medium yellow onion diced

3 or 4 cloves of garlic sliced

1 pint diced tomatoes

1 cup chicken broth

1 can tomato sauce

1/4 cup capers drained

1/4 cup kalamata olives sliced

1 can cannelloni beans

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Cook the onions until they are tender but not browned. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute until the garlic is fragrant.

Reduce the heat and stir in the tomatoes and the chicken broth. Add the tomato sauce and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.

Stir in the capers and olives. Drain and rinse the beans and add those. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

Pat the fish that you’ve soaked in milk dry. Cut it into serving size pieces and immerse the fish in the tomato broth. Cover the pan and allow it to simmer for 5-10 minutes until the fish is cooked through and flakes. Remove from the heat. Serve the fish, along with the broth and beans, over rice.

One of my favorite fish dishes.

NOTE: You could also add the cooked rice to the tomato broth, break up the fish pieces and serve this as a soup. However you choose to serve it I think you will find it homey and very satisfying.

If you like kicked up favors you could add some red pepper flakes and/or cayenne pepper when you add the olives and capers.

Sweet and Sour Sesame Chicken

February 1, 2016February 2, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

I called this sweet and sour chicken. My husband called it sesame chicken. So there you go. The chicken is coated in corn starch, dipped in egg and quick fried. By quick fried I mean crisped up but not cooked through. Top the chicken with the sauce and finish the dish in the oven. Very simple. I usually like stir fries and typically I make them without meat. But this is my attempt to replicate a dish my husband frequently chooses when we go out for Chinese. Which is not very often. Largely because where we live we cannot readily access any ethnic restaurants. Actually we cannot readily access ANY restaurants. And also because when I make it at home I know that we are getting healthy, quality ingredients. I’m not sure what this would be called on the Chinese restaurant menu. But on our menu it is now sweet and sour sesame chicken. When I make this next I will double the sauce recipe. I would put half on the chicken and reduce the second half and serve it on the side.

Ingredients:

Boneless, skinless chicken breast cubed

(I used approximately 1 1/2#s)

1/2 cup corn starch

2 eggs whisked

1 cup peanut or canola oil

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup pineapple juice

4 T ketchup (I use only Brooks Tangy)

2 T soy sauce

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 cloves garlic grated

1 inch fresh ginger grated

sesame seeds, green onions, and toasted sesame oil for garnish

Combine the vinegar, ketchup, juice, soy sauce, sugar, garlic and ginger and whisk together.

Set the sauce aside while you prepare your chicken. Preheat the oven to 325. Heat the oil in a heavy fry pan or Dutch oven.

Cube the chicken. Put the cornstarch into a zip lock bag, add the chicken and toss to coat.

Whisk the eggs and dip the cornstarch coated chicken into the egg and then drop in the oil for quick fry.

Turn the chicken pieces once and then remove to a platter covered with paper towel to absorb any oil. Transfer the chicken to an oven safe casserole dish and pour the sauce over the chicken.

Bake for one hour turning the chicken pieces after 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with sesame seeds, sesame oil and green onions.

Serve over rice with broccoli or vegetable of your choice.

NOTE: The chicken was tender and tasty but, as I noted above, it needed more sauce. A reduction served on the side would have been a good addition. We also had soy sauce at the table. I think the sauce recipe would also work well for a stir fry with or without meat.

Ravioli with Tomato and Garlic Gravy

January 17, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

Today was ravioli day. Making homemade pasta is fun and rewarding and homemade tastes so much better. Years ago I was a guest in the home of a first generation Italian family in Toronto. Not being Italian I was unfamiliar with the number of courses that constituted a typical Italian meal. We all sat around a table in a small dining room where the table and the fabric upholstered seats were all covered in heavy plastic. The first course consisted of antipasto, a beautiful salad and lots of crusty bread. The leftovers were cleared from the table and the homemade pasta arrived. Spaghetti with a meat sauce. And more bread. It was wonderful. I cleaned my plate and felt very satisfied and pretty full. The table was cleared and in came the fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans and more bread. It was all I could do to eat a few more bites and listened to everyone say, “What’s the matter? You don’t like the chicken?” Who knew the pasta was an appetizer. But I’m a quick study. I learned to take much smaller portions. And to never wear a skirt when the chairs are covered in plastic.

Today our ravioli was the entree.

The first step is making the pasta dough.

Ingredients:

2 cups of AP flour

2 large eggs

I used a food processor. Put the flour in and pulse it a few times. Whisk the eggs and slowly add them in with the processor running on low.

The dough should come together in a ball. If it looks like small pebbles add 1 tsp of water at a time. If it is too wet and the dough is sticking to the sides add flour 1 T at a time. Once the dough has come together in a ball remove it to a lightly floured work surface and knead it by hand until the dough is smooth, a couple minutes. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and allow it to rest for at least 15 minutes.

While the dough is resting prepare the filling.

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil

2-3 cloves of garlic minced

1/2 cup sweet onion in a fine dice

1 cup mushrooms diced

2 cups fresh spinach chopped

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes diced

1 1/2 cups grated Asiago and Paramesan cheese

In a heavy skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat and sauté the garlic, onion and mushroom just until tender and fragrant. Add the spinach and stir until wilted. Remove from the heat.

Stir in the diced sun dried tomatoes and the cheeses and your filling is ready to go.

Divide the dough into six pieces. Flatten into a disk and run through the pasta machine rollers. Continue folding and running through the rollers until the dough is thin and shiny. If, at any time, the dough is too sticky dust it lightly with flour.

Stretch the dough over the ravioli form. Fill each indentation with about 1-2 tsp of filling. Do not over fill.

Put a second piece of dough over the filling and run a rolling pin over the top. Invert and remove the ravioli.

Cover the ravioli with a clean dish towel and prepare the sauce.

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil

7-8 cloves of garlic chopped

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 pint diced tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes

salt to taste

fresh basil

In a Dutch oven heat the olive oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant and tender. Don’t brown the garlic. Stir in the diced tomatoes and sun dried tomatoes.

Stir in crushed tomatoes and basil. Reduce heat and simmer.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the ravioli until tender. Approximately 5 minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to remove the ravioli to a serving dish. Ladle sauce over the pasta and serve with grated cheese.

Enjoy!

NOTE: You can fill your ravioli with a meat or a cheese filling. You are only limited by your imagination. I made 48 ravioli and froze half of them. I put them in the freezer on a pizza tray and, once frozen, dropped them in a freezer bag for another day. You don’t really need a ravioli form but I do think you need a pasta maker to roll the dough out properly. I had extra dough and made linguini with it.

Dog Biscuits

January 14, 2016 / featherheadlady / 2 Comments

Dog Biscuits. For the very handsome, lovable canine member of our family. I recently bought a bone shaped cookie cutter and it came with this recipe…from the Cookie Cutter People from Vermont. The biscuits actually smell great! Humans might even like them.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup powdered milk

1 tsp brown sugar

1 T wheat germ

1 tsp granulated bouillon (I used Better than Bouillon)

6 T bacon grease

1 egg

1/2 cup ice water

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine dry ingredients. Measure out the bacon fat and cut it in to the dry ingredients. I used my food processor.

Mix in the egg. Add ice water until the dough comes together into a ball. On a lightly floured surface pat the dough out to about 1/2 inch thickness. It doesn’t need a rolling pin.

Use a cookie cutter to cut out your dog treat shapes. Work the scraps together and continue cutting until you’ve used all of the dough.

Bake for 25-30 minutes. I think mine were a little thicker than suggested so I baked them for an additional 10 minutes.

Our dog loved them! As soon as they came out of the oven he somehow knew that they were for him!

NOTE: Your dog won’t really care if the biscuits are not bone shaped. I’m going to look for a cookie stamp with a paw print on it and make smaller biscuits.

There are lots of reasons to save your bacon drippings. This recipe is one of them. Growing up there was always a metal container in the cupboard that said Grease on the front. My mother kept bacon grease in it along with a pastry brush. She would use bacon drippings on the top of loaves of bread hot out of the oven, to grease a pan (there was no PAM), to sauté onions or to fry an egg. I keep my bacon drippings in the refrigerator. Growing up, they were not refrigerated. And we all lived to tell about it.

Matzo Balls with Chicken Soup

January 13, 2016January 13, 2016 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

This post is more about the matzo balls and less about the soup. I make a decent chicken soup. I fill a heavy kettle with about 6 to 8 cups of water and add a whole chicken cut up, several carrots, stalks of celery and a large sweet onion. And salt of course. I bring the pot to a boil, skim the top occasionally, and simmer for a couple of hours. I take the breast piece out after about 30 minutes and set that meat aside to add back to the soup before serving.

My mother-in-law made the most beautiful chicken soup. Her broth was a perfect golden color and was so clear. It was amazing. I wish I had pictures of her chicken soup. Maybe it was the Kosher chickens she used. Maybe it was because she’d been cooking it up 70 plus years and practice makes perfect. (She lived to nearly 102.) I wish I had paid more attention. I wish I had learned how to make her chicken soup. I wish I had learned her matzo ball recipe as well. They were light and airy and took on the flavor of the broth.

It’s all about the matzo ball. When my sister-in-law calls me, a picture of a giant matzo ball from a Jewish deli in the Chicago area comes up on my phone.

Matzo is an unleavened bread, much like a cracker, traditionally eaten during the Jewish celebration of Passover. Matzo meal is made by finely grinding the matzo bread into a breadcrumb consistency. And matzo balls are made using matzo meal.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups matzo meal

2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

5 large eggs, 3 separated

1/4 cup chicken broth or water

1/4 cup schmaltz melted

Separate three of the eggs and whisk together two whole eggs and three egg yolks.

Beat the egg whites until peaks form and set aside. Whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Add the egg yolk mixture, broth, and melted schmaltz to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.

Stir in about 1/2 of the egg whites. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites until the whites are no longer visible.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes or more. Scoop up about a tablespoon of the matzo and gently form into balls. Do not overhandle. If you find the matzo sticking to your fingers dip your fingers into a bowl of water with a little canola or olive oil. This recipe makes 12-14 matzo balls.

Bring your broth to a boil and gently drop in the matzo balls, Turn the heat down to a simmer, cover the pot and cook for 20-25 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Serve with broth and enjoy! It’s all about the matzo ball.

NOTE: Schmaltz is chicken fat. My daughter brought some to use on our turkey when she came from Chicago for Thanksgiving. There was leftover schmaltz so I used my cookie scoop, made schmaltz balls and froze them. You can google schmaltz and make your own if you don’t have a deli nearby that carries it. Or you can substitute canola oil in this recipe.

If your parent or grandparent or aunt or uncle makes a dish that you adore eating, pay attention. Ask them to show you how to make it. Write it down. Make a video. They will be so proud and happy that you asked. And one day, when they are no longer with us, you will be able to replicate that favorite dish.

Blintzes with Cheese Filling

January 10, 2016 / featherheadlady / 3 Comments

About a month ago I brought my Dad home to Michigan’s Upper after he spent the Thanksgiving holiday with me. A friend came along for the ride and she and I went to Marquette to check in at some of the local breweries and do a little shopping. Marquette has some great little shops with locally made jewelry, pottery, wood crafts, art, and candy. We made lots of stops. A candy store called Donkers that’s been in business since 1896. A favorite restaurant that serves organic and locally sourced foods called Sweet Water Cafe. A unique grocery called the Flying Moose that sells UP Sushi with venison. I have never been a mall shopper so I really love the small, locally owned stores in Marquette’s downtown area. I know this is a convoluted trip to my blintz recipe. But while we were at a little shop called Touch of Finland I purchased a new sauna stove, a box of rocks, and a great iron crepe skillet. The sauna stove replaced our old stove that died a few months previous. The new stove was installed a few weeks ago and is working great! I seasoned my new iron skillet yesterday morning and decided to make blintzes for brunch. The skillet is working great!

Blintzes are my sister-in-laws go-to dish for Christmas brunches. She buys them frozen and heats them up. Don’t get me wrong, they are good. But homemade from scratch is better. Blini is the Russian name for crepes. Blintzes are crepes that are filled with cheese or fruit and then sautéed or baked. I’m filling mine with cheese filling and baking them.

Crepe Ingredients:

4 eggs

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup water

1 cup AP flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 T butter melted for brushing the skillet

Filling Ingredients:

1 cup cottage cheese

6 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

4 T honey

1 egg yolk

1/2 lemon juiced

Prepare the batter by first whisking the eggs.

Add all the other ingredients to the eggs and whisk until the batter is smooth.

Refrigerate the batter for 30-45 minutes. Heat your skillet over medium heat. Brush the skillet lightly with melted butter and put about 1/3 cup of batter on the skillet. Swirl the skillet to distribute the batter evenly and cook for 30-60 seconds. Flip. Slide the crepe out of the skillet onto wax or parachment paper and start the process over again. Repeat until all the batter has been used. (Makes about 12 crepes.)

Preheat the oven to 350.

Now it’s time to prepare the filling and assemble the blintzes. Beat all of the filling ingredients together with a hand mixer. Brush a casserole dish with butter. Put a couple tablespoons of the cheese filling on one end of the crepe. Fold once, then fold the sides in like an envelope and roll. Place the blintzes in the casserole dish seam side down.

Continue filling and rolling. Brush the tops of the blintzes with a little butter.

Bake for 45 minutes. I served ours with homemade apple sauce.

Enjoy!

NOTE: You can make fruit blintzes with an apple or cherry filling similar to what you’d use in a pie. You can top your cheese blintzes with fresh berries or sliced banana. Dust them with powdered sugar. If you want to make a double batch, crepes freeze well. Separate the crepes with wax paper and store in a zip lock freezer bag for use later.

The new crepe pan I got is a de Buyer. It’s iron so it’s an excellent heat conductor. Best used over medium heat. I love my new sauna stove and I love my new crepe pan.