Blueberry Coffee Cake

June 10, 2019June 10, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

King Arthur has some really great recipes and this one is no exception. They called this a Blueberry Breakfast Cake but I think it’s more like a Fruit Danish. I used blueberries, which the recipe called for, but this would be great with raspberries, apple, peaches…almost any fruit. Because of the ricotta cheese and sour cream it has a consistency similar to a cream cheese danish. It is simple to make and not cloying. Great with a cup of coffee or a glass of milk.

Ingredients:

3 large eggs

heaping 1/2 cup of sugar

6 T melted butter

1 cup small curd cottage cheese or part skim ricotta

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup AP flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease an 8” round pan that is at least 2” deep. If your 8” pan is too shallow, use a 9” round pan or an 8” square. Shape really doesn’t matter.

Beat the eggs and sugar together. And yes, a HEAPING 1/2 cup of sugar. First time I’ve seen that in a recipe.

Add the melted butter, cottage or ricotta cheese, sour cream and vanilla. Beat until well combined.

Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder, add to creamed ingredients, and stir or beat gently until combined.

Pour the batter into your prepared pan and scatter berries over the top.

Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out moist but with no obvious smears of raw batter. The edges should be lightly browned. It should appear set throughout but jiggle a little when you gently shake it. Baking time is between 45 and 50 minutes.

Once it comes out of the oven generously sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar. Let it rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to firm. Cut into wedges or squares, depending on the pan you used, and serve warm.

Enjoy!

NOTE”. I baked mine in a 9” round pan for 45 minutes. I recommend checking it after 40 minutes. Much depends on your oven and the size of your pan. I will try this with a combination of apple and cranberries next. A little bit of sweet and tart together. Also, the cinnamon sugar is optional. Instead you might want to lightly dust with powdered sugar as you serve it or make a glaze and drizzle a little over the cake.

Goat Cheese Spread with Honey

June 5, 2019June 5, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

When you have guests and want to serve adult beverages and a snack, cheese, fruit and crackers are perfect. I was hoping to find the fresh goat cheese spread that our favorite party store usually carries but they were all out. I have a few good hard, savory, even stinky cheeses to serve but wanted a milder, spreadable cheese. Sometimes necessity is the mother of invention. I put together a real simple, 4 ingredient spread that tastes pretty darn good. Unlike cream cheese, goat cheese has a little kick or zing. But if you’re one of those people who dislike goat cheese, cream cheese would work in this recipe.

Ingredients:

10 oz package goat cheese at room temperature

8 oz lemon (or plain) yogurt

zest of one lemon

2 T honey plus a little more to drizzle

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until everything is incorporated.

Use a spatula to transfer the spread to a serving container and refrigerate.

Before you refrigerate, have a sample first. Because a good cook tastes everything before serving their guests.

Drizzle wth a little more honey before serving. Enjoy!

NOTE: Like I mentioned earlier, this would also be good with cream cheese as well…might taste a little like a bite of cheese cake actually. You can add a little more zest or honey based on your personal tastes. May also be good with a little fresh mint or thyme mixed in.

Chicken Tagine and Apricots

May 26, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

For my birthday last week I received a TAGINE! I’ve been looking at them for the last year and even had one saved in my Amazon shopping cart. My friends know me so well! Great gift. A Tagine is a shallow, round, (typically earthenware) pot (mine is cast iron) with a conical lid designed to keep moisture and flavors in. The cast iron base makes it ideal for using on top of the stove or in the oven. I seasoned the cast iron a few days ago so I was all set.

I was also gifted a cookbook so I would know where to begin. The introduction in this cookbook, Tagines & Couscous, by Ghillie Basan, speaks to the fascinating cultures that left their mark on the region and are reflected in Moroccan cooking. Classic Tangine dishes include lamb, dried prunes or apricots, preserved lemons, green olives, honey, onions, and spices. Other recipes combine duck and dates, fish with lime, tomatoes and cilantro, or beef with beets and oranges. The first problem I encountered was finding the right spices available where I live. One of the spices, rãs-el-hanout, contains 15 different ingredients. I had 11 of them and had never heard of a couple, so I got online and ordered it. Ultimately it was less expensive than trying to make up my own. I did put up some preserved lemons which will be ready in a few weeks. Several recipes call for smen which is aged (or rancid) butter and is an acquired taste that I think I will pass on acquiring. I will just use glee or regular unsalted butter. I still hadn’t found an appropriate piece of lamb to use and I was anxious to experiment so I made a dish with chicken. I kind of cobbled together a couple different recipes. I’ll tell you what I did as well as what I would change the next time.

Ingredients:

2 tsp rãs el hanout

1 tsp salt

3 T olive oil

2 chicken breasts cubed

1 T unsalted butter

1 medium red onion halved and thin sliced

4-5 cloves of garlic sliced

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 cup water

2 T honey

1 cinnamon stick

1/2 cup dried apricots

fresh parsley for garnish

Combine 2 T olive oil, rãs el hanout, and 1 tsp salt. Add chicken and turn well to coat. Heat 1 T olive oil and 1 T butter in the base of the Tagine over medium heat. Brown the chicken in batches and transfer to a plate.

Add the onion and a little salt to the Tagine and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally until soft. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.

Add the chicken and the broth along with any juices that have accumulated on the plate into the Tagine. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking bring 1 cup water, cinnamon stick, apricots, and honey to a boil in a heavy sauce pan. Cook until apricots are very tender, adding more liquid if necessary. Once apricots are tender simmer until the liquid is reduced to a glaze.

About 10 minutes before the chicken is done add the apricots and syrup mixture to the Tagine. Discard the cinnamon stick.

Cover and finish cooking. Ladle chicken and apricots and broth into bowls with couscous (or rice if you don’t have couscous) and enjoy.

NOTE: So I told you exactly what I did. This is what I would change. Next time I would increase the amount of spice to a tablespoon of rãs el hanout vs 2 tsp. I would use chicken thighs instead of beast meat which, without skin and bone, I always find a little dry even in the Tagine. I would also use cilantro because I think the flavor would be a better compliment than parsley. And, of course, I need to buy some couscous. The aroma was wonderful! I’m excited to try a lamb dish next.

If you don’t have a Tagine you could prepare this same recipe in a heavy skillet with a lid for simmering.

Savory Swirl Buns

May 12, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

This is a recipe that my daughter found and shared with me. The recipe was called “herby everything cheddar swirl buns” but I modified the recipe and you may want to modify it as well. They look like cinnamon rolls, sans icing, but they are a savory, serve with dinner, bun. They are easy to make and can be changed up to suit almost any palate. I think they are best eaten warm out of the oven. I shared half the recipe with a neighbor and a couple buns that were leftover I made into croutons and served them with tomato bisque.

Ingredients:

1 cup warm whole milk (my daughter used buttermilk)

1 packet instant dry yeast

1 T honey

2 eggs, beaten

2 T butter, melted

3 1/2 – 4 cups AP flour

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups (total) shredded Parmesan and asiago cheese

2 T basil leaves chiffonade (a fancy word for slicing basil into thin ribbons…stack, roll, slice)

2 T everything bagel spices

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 cup roasted tomato pesto

This recipe is so easy when you use a mixer with a dough hook attachment. Heat your milk (or buttermilk) to between 105 and 110 degrees. In the bowl of the stand mixer combine the warm milk, yeast, honey, eggs, butter, salt, and 3 1/2 cups of flour. Using the dough hook, mix until the flour is completely incorporated, about 4-5 minutes. If the dough seems too sticky add some or all of the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean towel and let it sit at room temperature for about an hour or until it has doubled in size.

While your dough is rising make your filling. Grate your cheese and combine the cheese, basil, everything bagel spices, and crushed red pepper.

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a 9×13 pan or two 8” round pans with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray.

Once the dough has risen, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 10×16 rectangle. Spread the dough with the pesto.

Sprinkle the seasoned cheese mixture over the dough, lightly pushing it into the pesto.

Roll the dough into a log, pinching the edges to seal. Using a sharp knife (or dental floss) cut into 12 rolls.

Put the rolls into the prepared pan(s) and cover with plastic wrap or the clean kitchen towel.

Allow the rolls to rise for approximately 30 minutes. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the buns are golden brown.

Brush the buns with butter when you take them out of the oven. Enjoy with a nice pasta dish or soup.

NOTE: The original recipe called for 1/4 cup of basil pesto, 2 cups of cheddar cheese and thyme. I changed it up to 1/2 cup of sun dried tomato pesto, fresh basil, and 3 cups total of Parmesan and asiago cheese. More cheese and more pesto. They can only make these buns better! This recipe could be made a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator overnight covered with plastic wrap. Don’t let them rise until you take them out before baking. They will rise as they come to room temperature. Any combination of cheese and pesto and herbs that appeal to your tastes or compliment your meal would work just fine.

Soft Flat Bread

April 27, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

Thank you King Arthur for another great bread recipe. If you like gyros you’ve had bread very similar to this. If you’ve had naan, you’ve had bread very similar to this. King Arthur says these flat breads are like a Taco Bell Gordita or a pita bread. Doesn’t really matter what you call it. What’s important is how it tastes and how it holds up to what ever you decide to fill it with. I made this to accompany our Easter dinner of lamb chops, hummus, and tabouli. It was the perfect vehicle for hummus and tabouli but it is also perfect to use as a sandwich bread. Any kind of sandwich. The bread was easy to pull together and seriously only took minutes to “bake”.

Ingredients:

3 to 3 1/4 cups of AP flour

1 1/4 cups boiling water

1/4 cup potato flour or 1/2 cup potato flakes

1 1/4 tsp salt

2 T vegetable oil

1 tsp instant yeast

Place 2 cups of the flour into a bowl. Pour the boiling water over the flour and stir until smooth. The boiling water is added to the flour to pre-cook the starch in the flour and to eliminate the possibility of a starchy taste in the finished product. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and set aside for 30 minutes.

In a smaller bowl whisk together the potato flour or flakes (I used flakes), 1 cup of the remaining flour, salt, yeast and oil. If you’re using the yeast packets measure out 1 tsp. The packet is a little over 2 tsps.

After you’ve waited the requisite 30 minutes add the potato flour/flake mixture to the flour/water mixture. You can knead by hand or use the dough hook on your mixer. I used my mixer. Knead for approximately 5 minutes to form a soft dough. If you’re kneading by hand King Arthur says to keep your hands and the work surface lightly oiled. Let the dough rise in a warm spot, covered, for one hour.

Once the dough has risen, divide the dough into 8 pieces, cover, and let rest for 15-30 minutes.

Roll each piece into a 7-8 inch circle. The dough is easy to roll and I did not need to flour my work surface.

Once you’ve made the rounds, dry fry them (using no oil) about 1 minute per side in a heavy skillet. They will puff up a bit and be flecked with brown spots. I think cast iron works the best for the dry frying. I used my cast iron pizza pan which is one of my favorite pieces of cast iron. (Thank you Lodge). I let my pan heat over a medium flame for a few minutes before I started cooking the bread. Adjust the flame if the bread is cooking too quickly or too slowly. Too slowly and they will be dry, too quickly and they will be raw inside. I divided one of my eight balls into two smaller balls, rolled those out, and used them to “test” my griddle temperature.

I was skeptical at first, but it really takes only about 1 minute per side. Transfer the cooked breads to a wire rack, stacking them to keep them soft. I stored leftovers in a zip lock bag.

My friend Jane also made these flat breads and used one of hers for an egg salad sandwich. (Sandwich photo credit goes to Jane.) Now I want to boil eggs for egg salad! I will be making these again. They might even work well for personal pizzas.

NOTE: King Arthur says this recipe works best with instant yeast because it dissolves during the kneading process. If you don’t have instant yeast, hold back 1/4 cup of boiling water and dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of warm water. Add to the mixture along with the potato flour/flake mixture.

Tabouli

April 24, 2019April 24, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

Tabouli (Tabbouleh) is one of my favorite bites because it tastes so fresh and clean and makes me think of spring and summer. It is of Lebanese origin and it is a dish that you’ll find on the menu of almost any Middle Eastern restaurant. True tabouli is made with bulgar but I’ve substituted raw cauliflower before (that has been riced) and today I used a bulgar quinoa blend. My daughter is the one who introduced me to tabouli with cauliflower. For Easter dinner I made lamb chops, white bean hummus, tabouli, and a soft wrap bread. It was a perfect combination! If you’ve never tasted tabouli before I hope you’ll try it. I cannot imagine anyone not liking it!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups minced parsley

3/4 cup minced mint

green onions diced

1 cup finely diced tomatoes

1 English cucumber seeded and diced

1 1/2 cups bulgar quinoa blend

4 T olive oil

4 T fresh squeezed lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the bulgar quinoa according to package instructions. If you’re substituting cauliflower use a box grater and measure approximately 1 1/2 cups of cauliflower.

Make a fine dice of the cucumber, tomato and green onion.

Chop the parsley and mint. In a large bowl combine the vegetables and the herbs.

Add the grain. In a separate bowl whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil. Add to the vegetable, herb, grain mixture and stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve chilled.

Not only does tabouli taste wonderful, it looks beautiful on the plate. Also great on the flat bread along with a little hummus.

NOTE: Tabouli does not require precise measurements. If you have a little more or less of mint or parsley it’s ok. If you have red or yellow onion instead of green onions that’s ok too. And, as I mentioned, you can substitute another grain or riced cauliflower. I do, however, think it’s important to use equal amounts of lemon and olive oil.

Blueberry Muffins

April 20, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

A few times a year King Arthur Flour publishes a magazine called Sift. Every time one comes out my friend Jane and I pick up a copy. So many wonder recipes! This muffin recipe is from the Spring 2019 edition. I made these today to accompany our crab meat quiche for a perfect brunch.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar plus 2 T for sprinkling

2 large eggs

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

1/2 cup milk

2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

Preheat the oven to 375. Line a muffin tin with papers and lightly grease the papers.

In a medium bowl, beat together the butter and 1/2 cup sugar until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl and beating well after each addition.

Stir in the baking powder, salt, and vanilla. Add the flour, alternating with the milk, stirring gently until combined. Scrape bottom and sides of the bowl. Mash 1/2 cup of the blueberries and add mashed and whole blueberries to the batter stirring to combine and distribute.

Scoop the batter into the prepared pan. I used my ice cream scoop. Sprinkle tops with the remaining 2 T of sugar.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until light golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes.

I served ours with crab quiche but they’re perfect for breakfast on their own with a cup of hot coffee or a glass of milk.

NOTE: My muffin pans are dark so I reduced my oven temperature to 350.

Thank you King Arthur for your great recipes that inspire!

Quiche with Crab and Asparagus

April 20, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

I haven’t stopped cooking and baking but I haven’t worked on my blog in awhile. I rely on it myself when I go to make favorites, like this morning when I looked up my granola recipe. I love sharing my recipes with people and this is the perfect vehicle. So I will keep on blogging. It’s Easter weekend and I thought I’d make a special Saturday brunch for the two of us. I found a recipe for crab quiche and made my own modifications. Eating brunch this morning reminded my of going to a little seafood place in Chicago near our daughter that serves awesome crab cakes Benedict. This is an easy recipe that comes together quickly and takes about 50 minutes for baking and 10 minutes for resting so you’ll have time to whip up some muffins or a little green salad to go with the quiche. Another reason this came together fairly quickly is because I cheated and used a prepared pie crust.

Ingredients:

1 9” unbaked pie crust (your own or one from the grocery)

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup whole milk

2 T AP flour

1/2 tsp salt

Franks Hot Sauce (optional)

5 oz Gruyere cheese cubed

8 oz container crab meat

5-6 green onions chopped

asparagus spears cut into bite size pieces

Preheat the oven to 450.

Roll out the pie crust and line a 9” pie pan, crimping the edges. Cover with two layers of tin foil and bake for 8 minute. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5-6 minutes until light brown.

While the crust is baking dice the green onions, asparagus, and cube the cheese.

In a medium size bowl whisk the eggs. Whisk in the milk, mayonnaise, flour, salt, and a few shakes of Franks.

Gently fold in crab meat, onion, asparagus and cheese. Pour egg mixture into the hot pie crust.

Reduce the oven temperature to 325 and bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the edges are puffed up and the center is set. Allow the quiche to rest for 10 minute before slicing.

Slice and serve! I made blueberry muffins to enjoy with ours. And mimosas. Had to have mimosas. I had grapefruit juice, my husband had orange. Both delicious.

I will blog the blueberry muffins next.

NOTE: As always you can change this up. Don’t like asparagus, use broccoli or zucchini. Don’t care for gruyere cheese, use Swiss (almost the same) or cheddar. Add more Franks or none at all. Substitute a little cayenne. Everyone’s palate is different. It also depends on what’s available in your fridge and pantry.

Beef Chuck Roast in Tomato Gravy

January 27, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

A chuck roast is a relatively inexpensive cut of beef that is perfectly suited for slow cooking in an oven, a crock pot or a pressure cooker. Growing up it was one of our regular Sunday dinners. Ours was usually cooked in a brown gravy and served with mashed potatoes and a can of peas or corn or green beans. There were no “exotic” vegetables at our house. When my Dad was cooking for himself he would put a chuck roast in the crock pot with an envelop of French onion soup and a can of cream of mushroom soup. Easy to make and the meat came out tender and the gravy was actually pretty yummy. My husband loves anything with tomatoes so this recipe puts a little different twist on a chuck roast. I cooked the roast in a 300 degree oven for two and a half hours.

Ingredients:

1.5 – 2 pound chuck roast

1 pint jar diced or stewed tomatoes

1/2 cup beef broth or red wine

1/2 cup catsup

3 T brown sugar

2 T Worcestershire sauce

2 T red wine vinegar

1 T chipotle in adabo sauce

3 cloves of garlic thin sliced

2 T olive oil

salt and pepper

1 medium onion quartered

3-4 carrots

3-4 stalks of celery

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven, season the meat with salt and pepper and sear on both sides.

While the meat is browning mix the sauce ingredients; tomatoes, broth (or wine), catsup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, chipotle in adabo, and garlic,

I like adding the chipotle in adabo sauce because it gives the sauce a little smoky flavor and a bit of heat. Depending on your personal taste you can add more or eliminate it entirely.

Once the meat has been seared on both sides remove it to a plate. Line the Dutch oven with the vegetables and put the roast on top.

Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables, cover, and get it in the oven.

Roast for 2-3 hours until the meat is tender and the gravy is thickened. Turn the meat over a couple times as it is roasting. Once the meat is done, slice and serve with a generous scoop of the smoky tomato gravy.

I served the roast beef and tomato gravy with potatoes mashed with sour cream and broccolini.

NOTE: This roast can be cooked on low for 6-8 hours in a crock pot or 35-40 minutes in a pressure cooker on high pressure, allowing for a natural release. I think I will do mine in the pressure cooker next time.

I like using chipotle in adobo but no matter the size of the can there is a lot left over. I now buy the larger can, dump the entire can into my little food processor and pour it in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, I bag the individual cubes in snack bags and store them in the freezer. No waste and the cubes are easy to use.

When I was thinking back to the Sunday dinners of my childhood, I remembered our roasts being cooked in a blue and white speckled enamel roaster in the oven. I assumed crockpots had not yet been invented. However, I looked it up (I googled it of course) and found out Irving Nachumsohn received a patent for the device that became the crock pot in 1940. It was invented to cook a traditional stew eaten by Jews in Eastern Europe on the Sabbath and was marketed as “Naxon Beanery All-Purpose Cooker.” In 1971 the cooker was reintroduced by Rival under the name “Crock Pot” and gained popularity as more and more women joined the work force. Women were able to start dinner in the morning before leaving for work and finish preparing the meal when they came home. Our little bit of trivia for today!

Chicken and Ricotta Meatballs

January 6, 2019January 6, 2019 / featherheadlady / Leave a comment

One of the food magazines that I pick up regularly is called COOK. It has a lot of recipes with ingredients that I usually have on hand or are easy to come by at the grocery. And the magazine has beautiful food pictures!! The January issue has a great recipe for meatballs made with ground chicken and ricotta cheese. With a little planning it’s a meal you can have on the table in 45 minutes, and that included me grinding my chicken breasts in an old fashioned meat grinder! A food processor would work. Or purchasing ground chicken (or turkey) at the grocery would be even easier. The meatballs look a little different than what we’re accoustomed to…my husband saw them in the sauce and said “dumplings??”. But they’re light, moist, and have a great flavor.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground chicken

3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

1/2 cup panko

1 large egg yolk

3-4 cloves of garlic finely chopped and divided

1/4 cup fresh basil sliced thin and divided

2 tsp kosher salt

4 T olive oil

1/2 cup white wine

28 oz of crushed tomatoes

fresh grated asiago and additional basil for serving

First things first. If you didn’t purchase ground chicken you’ll need to do that. Grind your chicken. With the meat slightly frozen, cube it and grind. I used chicken breast but I don’t see why you couldn’t use boneless leg or thigh meat.

Preheat your oven to 400.

In a medium bowl stir together chicken, ricotta, panko, egg yolk, half the garlic, half the basil, and 1 tsp salt. Mix until well combined.

Use a 1/4 cup spring-loading scoop (I call it a cookie scoop) or a teaspoon and shape into 16 meatballs. Place in a foil lined pan. Drizzle with 2 T of olive oil. Bake for 12 minutes.

While the meatballs are cooking get your sauce started. In a heavy skillet, over medium heat, add remaining 2 T of olive oil and remaining garlic. Cook for 1 minute and add the wine. Cook until the wine is reduced by half, 3-5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, remaining basil and 1 tsp salt. Bring to a simmer.

Once the meatballs are done add them to the sauce including any pan juices. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with fresh grated asiago and garnish with additional basil if desired. I served mine over a simple, creamy polenta. It would also be good with angel hair or fettuccine noodles or served with spaghetti squash.

NOTE: I made only slight modifications to the recipe in COOK. I used fresh basil instead of fresh rosemary. One, I didn’t have any fresh rosemary and two, basil just sounded better to me in this recipe. I also used shredded asiago for serving rather than Parmesan. I have a slight preference for asiago but either would be good.

My friend Jane made this recipe before I did and she gave it high marks so I was confident I would like it. However, when you’re mixing the meat and cheese you may be a little skeptical about how its all going to come together. But it does!

I have not made this with ground turkey but I cant imagine that it wouldn’t work. To me, when you’re cooking, a recipe is a guideline and you’ll like it best when you take your personal tastes and preferences into account.