Hoisin Glazed Corned Beef

Posted on March 23, 2012 by sparecake

I’m moving soon. To say goodbye, I had a going away party on St. Patrick’s day. I made a few nearly traditional dishes, including this corned beef. It was SO GOOD. My roommate Alex ate practically half of it himself, he just couldn’t stop! I recommend making this ASAP.

Kyle's feeling dreamy.

Ingredients:

Corned Beef:

  • 4 pounds corned beef brisket
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon pickling spice (should come with the corned beef)
  • 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns

Glaze:

  • 1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced (I used powdered)
  • couple dashes of pepper

Sauerkraut Relish:

  • 1 1/2 – 2 cups sauerkraut, drained well
  • 4-5 tablespoons ketchup
  • 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • few dashes of hot sauce (about 5 to 7), optional
  • 1 tablespoon Worcheshire sauce
  • A couple pinches of celery seeds

Combine the brisket, garlic, pickling spices and peppercorns in a large pot. Add water enough to cover the meat, with a good amount of water on top.

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is tender.

During the last half hour or so, make both the sauerkraut and the hoisin mixture. Combine all the sauerkraut ingredients in a saucepan over low heat and cook until any watery liquid is gone.

Separately, mix the hoisin, honey, soy sauce, pepper, and ginger together.

Pour 2/3 of it into a small pot and place on the stove over low heat to reduce until slightly thickened.

When the brisket is tender, remove it from the water and put it in an oven-safe dish, fat-side up. Turn on the oven’s broiler.

Brush the un-thickened third of the sauce over the brisket, then broil until the top has crisped, 4-5 minutes.

Slice the meat against the grain, and serve with sauerkraut and the reduced sauce.

This disappeared fast – I want to make it again already!

Hoisin Glazed Corned Beef

From Vanilla Sugar.

Corned Beef:

  • 4 pounds corned beef brisket
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon pickling spice (should come with the corned beef)
  • 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns

Glaze:

  • 1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
  • couple dashes of pepper

Sauerkraut Relish:

  • 1 1/2 – 2 cups sauerkraut, drained well
  • 4-5 tablespoons ketchup
  • 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • few dashes of hot sauce (about 5 to 7), optional
  • 1 tablespoon Worcheshire sauce
  • A couple pinches of celery seeds

Combine the brisket, garlic, pickling spices and peppercorns in a large pot. Add water enough to cover the meat, with a good amount of water on top. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is tender.

During the last half hour or so, make both the sauerkraut and the hoisin mixture. Combine all the sauerkraut ingredients in a saucepan over low heat and cook until any watery liquid is gone.

Separately, mix the hoisin, honey, soy sauce, pepper, and ginger together. Pour 2/3 of it into a small pot and place on the stove over low heat to reduce until slightly thickened.

When the brisket is tender, remove it from the water and put it in an oven-safe dish, fat-side up. Turn on the oven’s broiler. Brush the un-thickened third of the sauce over the brisket, then broil until the top has crisped, 4-5 minutes.

Slice the meat against the grain, and serve with sauerkraut and the reduced sauce.

Posted in Dinner, Party! | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Hearth Bread Pizza Dough

Posted on March 21, 2012 by sparecake

Last weekend we played Settlers of Catan. The exciting, relevant part of this is, that we played it with food! This pizza dough was the base of our board pieces.

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 cups warm water
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 packet or tablespoon active dry yeast
  • 6 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Dissolve the sugar and yeast with the water in a large bowl. When the yeast has begun to bubble, stir in one cup of flour, followed by the oil and salt.

Add the next 4 1/2 cups flour, stirring together until the dough holds mostly together in one big lump.

Sprinkle the remaining half cup of flour on a clean surface and turn out the dough to knead. Knead for 3-4 minutes, then stop to clean, dry, and grease your bowl. Knead several more minutes, until smooth and springy, then form into a ball.

Or...a blob...

Put the dough into the ball and turn to grease all over. Cover and let rise somewhere warm and draft-free for an hour, or refrigerate for several hours.

When ready to eat, preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Roll out the dough, stopping to let it rest 2 minutes if it keeps shrinking back. Decorate your pizza as desired.

Bake the pizza 15-20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.

It’s a good dough, perfectly suitable for cutting into hexagons!

Never put the desert in the center. It's such a problem!

Yay nerdy pizza!  I’ll be submitting this to YeastSpotting.

Hearth Bread Pizza Dough

From the King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook.

  • 1 3/4 cups warm water
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 packet or tablespoon active dry yeast
  • 6 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Dissolve the sugar and yeast with the water in a large bowl. When the yeast has begun to bubble, stir in one cup of flour, followed by the oil and salt. Add the next 4 1/2 cups flour, stirring together until the dough holds mostly together in one big lump.

Sprinkle the remaining half cup of flour on a clean surface and turn out the dough to knead. Knead for 3-4 minutes, then stop to clean, dry, and grease your bowl. Knead several more minutes, until smooth and springy, then form into a ball. Put the dough into the ball and turn to grease all over. Cover and let rise somewhere warm and draft-free for an hour, or refrigerate for several hours.

When ready to eat, preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Roll out the dough, stopping to let it rest 2 minutes if it keeps shrinking back. Decorate your pizza as desired. Bake the pizza 15-20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown.

Posted in Bread, Dinner, Party! | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Baked Teriyaki Chicken

Posted on March 19, 2012 by sparecake

This is basically my new favorite thing. The chicken is flavorful all the way through and gets super tender, and any extra sauce goes really well on rice. It’s sweet and salty and just super good. Best of all, it comes together from things you should have most of at home!

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon cold water
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger (I used about the same amount of ground ginger)
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 12 skinless chicken thighs (I don’t know if I had mutant huge ones or what, but I only got 9 or 10 in)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9X13″ dish.

Combine the cornstarch, water, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger and pepper in a small saucepan and stir together. Simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, until sauce thickens and bubbles.

Place the chicken in the greased dish. Brush the chicken with the thickened sauce, flip the chicken, and brush again. I apparently didn’t thicken mine enough, as it was more of a “pour on” than a “brush,” but… well. Impatient. It still worked!

Sooo attractive!

Bake for half an hour, flip the chicken pieces, and bake for another half hour, until no longer pink and the juices run clear.

This probably makes the most sense to serve with white rice, but I had it with rice pilaf and it was really good. I’d forgotten how much I apparently like rice pilaf!

Yum!

Baked Chicken Teriyaki

From What’s Cookin, Chicago?

  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon cold water
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 12 skinless chicken thighs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9X13″ dish.

Combine the cornstarch, water, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger and pepper in a small saucepan and stir together. Simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, until sauce thickens and bubbles.

Place the chicken in the greased dish. Brush the chicken with the thickened sauce, flip the chicken over, and brush again. Bake half an hour, flip the chicken pieces again, and bake for another half hour, until no longer pink and the juices run clear.

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Creamsicle Cheesecake

Posted on March 16, 2012 by sparecake

I’ve been meaning to make this cheesecake for well over a year. One of my coworkers mentioned loving cheesecake, and that pushed it over the edge, finally. Good thing, as it turned out fabulous!

Ingredients:

Crust:

  • 1 10 ounce box of Lorna Doone shortbread cookies (they’re easier to find than I expected)
  • 1 stick salted butter, melted
  • tiny pinch of sea salt

Filling:

  • 4 8 ounce blocks of cream cheese, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 3 eggs plus 2 yolks
  • 1 cup orange candy slices, chopped small, divided
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

The orange candies are the half moon, sugar coated ones. When you cut them up, don’t let them pile up or they’ll just stick back together in a big blob. Keep the bits as well separated as possible.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 10″ springform pan.

In a food processor, grind up the cookies to small crumbs. Combine the crumbs with the melted butter and salt in a large bowl and stir until evenly moistened. Press into the bottom of the springform, and a bit up the sides if you don’t like a thick crust.

Bake for 12 minutes then set aside to cool. Reduce oven temp. to 325 degrees.

Brush any stray crumbs out of the food processor, then get it ready to go again. Mine has an 8 cup capacity, and was at the very max with this recipe. I thought for a while I might have to pour it into a bowl and use my hand mixer, but the Black & Decker powered through in the end.

Begin by combining the 4 blocks of cream cheese and the sugar until smooth and lump free. I didn’t actually get that well combined in this stage, as the processor was having a rough time.

Add the eggs one at a time. The liquid of the eggs will help get everything moving and actually blending well. Add the cream, then the vanilla and orange zest. Next, add half of the candy orange bits. Add them slowly, in little bits – big chunks all stuck together will really try your food processor.

Keep processing until smooth, then transfer to a large bowl.

Gently stir in the remaining orange bits, a few at a time, stirring in each addition before adding the next, to make sure that each piece is coated in batter and they can’t stick to each other.

Pour into the crust.

Bake at 325 for one hour, then reduce the heat to 300 and cook another 50 or so minutes, until the top seems evenly set.

Cool completely at room temperature (roughly 3 hours), then refrigerate at least 6 hours.

The center of mine had sunk by morning, but it still looked pretty nice!

Everyone at work was quite into it, myself included!

Creamsicle Cheesecake

Slightly adapted from Vanilla Sugar.

Crust:

  • 1-10 ounce box of Lorna Doone shortbread cookies
  • 1 stick salted butter, melted
  • tiny pinch of sea salt

Filling:

  • 4-8 ounce blocks of cream cheese, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 3 eggs plus 2 yolks
  • 1 cup orange candy slices, chopped small, divided
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 10″ springform pan.

In a food processor, grind up the cookies to small crumbs. Combine the crumbs with the melted butter and salt in a large bowl and stir until evenly moistened. Press evenly into the bottom of the springform. Bake for 12 minutes then set aside to cool. Reduce oven temp. to 325 degrees.

Combine the 4 blocks of cream cheese and the sugar in the food processor until smooth and lump free. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the cream, then the vanilla and orange zest. Next, add half of the candy orange bits, slowly, a few pieces at a time. Keep processing until smooth, then transfer to a large bowl.

Gently stir in the remaining orange bits, a few at a time, stirring in each addition before adding the next, to make sure that each piece is coated in batter and they can’t stick to each other. Pour into the crust.

Bake at 325 for one hour, then reduce the heat to 300 and cook another 50 or so minutes, until the top is evenly set.

Cool completely at room temperature, then refrigerate at least 6 hours before serving.

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Oreo Muffins

Posted on March 14, 2012 by sparecake

A few weeks ago, my friend Hillary came over.

We did some experiments on cookies with cookies in them, trying out every combination of cookies with Oreos, Tagalongs, butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, regular potato chips, and kettle chips. It was super scientific…

There was a bunch of dancing and cookie consumption.

At the end, we agreed that chocolate chips were better than butterscotch, and the texture of Tagalongs held up better than Oreos. I don’t think there was much preference in terms of regular or kettle chips. So… that’s some science-ing for you.

At the end of that, there were Oreos leftover, so I made some Oreo muffins!

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup cold butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup milk
  • 16 Oreos, coarsely chopped (about 2 cups)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease or line a muffin tin.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a small bowl, beat the egg and milk together. Stir into the flour mixture until just mixed in.

Gently stir the chopped cookies into the batter.

Spoon evenly into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Remove from pan and cool slightly on a wire rack.

Serve slightly warm, and enjoy!

They’re surprisingly not super sweet, for something with Oreos in them, but they’re dang tasty!

Oreo Muffins

From…a random person’s springpad?

  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup cold butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup milk
  • 16 Oreos, coarsely chopped (about 2 cups)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease or line a muffin tin.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a small bowl, beat the egg and milk together. Stir into the flour mixture until just mixed in. Gently stir the chopped cookies into the batter. Spoon evenly into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool slightly on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm.

Posted in Breakfast, Dessert | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Honey Barbecue Turkey Meatloaf

Posted on March 12, 2012 by sparecake

While I was up north to take the bar/get ready to move up there for real, I had some friends over. It was the first time I’d seen most of them in a while (except Hillary, who I’d seen the week before in DC to do some cookie science I still need to post…), and it was a good time, with some tasty foods! This meatloaf, which we ate that night, may not be the single most attractive food product ever, but it sure tastes good.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce, divided
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, divided
  • 2 tablespoons honey, divided
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 lb ground turkey

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Stir together the panko, 2 tablespoons of worcestershire, the mustard, 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon of the honey, and the salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Add the ground turkey and gently combine with your hands.

Shape into a loaf on the foil-lined sheet.

Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, tablespoon of honey, and 2 teaspoons of wocestershire sauce together in a small bowl.

Pour or brush half of this mixture over the top of the meatloaf and set the rest aside. Bake the loaf for 45 minutes to an hour, or until 170 degrees in the middle. Brush with remaining sauce and let rest 5-10 minutes.

Transfer to a nicer dish because you’re totally grownups, slice, and serve.

Super tasty, and pretty minimal effort. Went well with the crispy potato bake and some vegetables.

Honey Barbecue Turkey Meatloaf

From Tracey’s Culinary Adventures.

  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce, divided
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, divided
  • 2 tablespoons honey, divided
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 lb ground turkey

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Stir together the panko, 2 tablespoons of worcestershire, the mustard, 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon of the honey, and the salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the ground turkey and gently combine with your hands. Shape into a loaf on the prepared sheet.

Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, tablespoon of honey, and 2 teaspoons of wocestershire sauce together in a small bowl. Pour or brush half of this mixture over the top of the meatloaf and set the rest aside.

Bake the loaf for 45 minutes to an hour, or until 170 degrees in the middle. Brush with remaining sauce and let rest 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving.

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Crispy Potato Bake

Posted on March 9, 2012 by sparecake

Here’s a simple recipe that’s quick to prepare, but then takes a while in the oven, leaving you ample time to figure out your other dishes. It’s rare that I eat a potato product and don’t want either ketchup or gravy, but this can hold its own without any sort of sauce.

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4 pounds russet potatoes
  • 4 shallots, thickly sliced lengthwise
  • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes (optional)
  • 8 sprigs thyme

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl or cup, stir together the butter and oil. Brush the bottom of a 9″ baking dish with a bit of the butter mixture. A pie dish with straight sides or anything with higher sides will do fine. Realistically, it doesn’t even have to be round, just roughly that size.

With a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice the potatoes very thinly crosswise. Place the potato slices vertically in the dish.

Wedge the shallot slices in between the potato bits, then sprinkle the salt and pepper flakes over the dish. Brush or drizzle the remaining butter mixture over the potatoes. Bake 1 1/4 hours, then add the thyme. I imagine it makes sense to strip most of the leaves off the stems of the thyme, and just sprinkle them over the potatoes, but I just threw them on there whole and they still added delightfully. Bake a further 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through and have a crisp top. Serve still hot.

The crispy bits that you have to work a tiny bit to get off the dish are the best. Crispy potatoes are deeeelightful. There weren’t any leftovers, so I can’t tell you how they are the next day!

Crispy Potato Bake

From Fish Food.

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4 pounds russet potatoes
  • 4 shallots, thickly sliced lengthwise
  • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes (optional)
  • 8 sprigs thyme

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl or cup, stir together the butter and oil. Brush the bottom of a 9″ baking dish with a bit of the butter mixture.

With a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice the potatoes very thinly crosswise. Place the potato slices vertically in the prepared dish. Wedge the shallot slices in between the potato bits, then sprinkle the salt and pepper flakes over the dish. Brush or drizzle the remaining butter mixture over the potatoes.

Bake 1 1/4 hours, then add the thyme. Return to the oven for 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through and have a crisp top.

Posted in Dinner | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Iced Lemon Bars

Posted on March 7, 2012 by sparecake

Aw heck, went to an all day course today and forgot to post this before I left!  Anyway…  My friend Tasha’s birthday was recently, and she’s really into lemon desserts. I whipped these up prior to getting MASSIVELY lost on the way to her birthday party. Good times…

Ingredients:

Bars:

  • 2 cups and 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 8 oz unsalted butter, cut into chunks
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 6 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Glaze:

  • 2 teaspoons butter
  • 2/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13×9 inch pan with foil or parchment and set aside.

Combine the 2 cups flour, powdered sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to mix.

Add the butter and pulse until the butter has been chopped to tiny bits and evenly distributed.

Measure out 1 cup of the mixture and set aside. Pour the rest into the prepared pan and pat into the bottom evenly.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until beginning to turn golden. During that time, make the filling. Whisk the eggs together briefly, then add the sugar, lemon juice, remaining 4 tablespoons of flour, and the baking powder and mix.

Take the baked crust out of the oven.

Pour the filling mixture over it, then sprinkle the reserved cup of the flour mixture on top of that.

Transfer carefully back to the oven – if you tilt it the flour mixture on top will all shift to the far side. Bake 20-25 minutes, until the new top is golden. Let cool completely in pan.

Make the glaze by first melting the butter. Two teaspoons seems like a weird amount for butter, but it’s right – that’s 2/3 of one tablespoon, which butter is normally marked out in. Stir the butter into the powdered sugar until it is a thick paste, then add the lemon juice, one teaspoon at a time, until it’s a good consistency for drizzling, and as lemony as you’d like. Drizzle over the cooled bars and then let set before slicing and serving.

I think a nice addition might be to zest one of the lemons you juice, and add the zest into the flour mixture to bump up the lemon flavor even further.

Iced Lemon Bars

From Cookie Madness.

Bars:

  • 2 cups and 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 8 oz unsalted butter, cut into chunks
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 6 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Glaze:

  • 2 teaspoons butter
  • 2/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13×9 inch pan with foil or parchment and set aside.

Combine 2 cups flour, powdered sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the butter has been chopped to tiny bits and evenly distributed.

Measure out 1 cup of the mixture and set aside. Pour the rest into the prepared pan and pat into the bottom evenly. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until beginning to turn golden.

While waiting, make the filling. Whisk the eggs together, then add the sugar, lemon juice, remaining 4 tablespoons of flour, and the baking powder and mix.

Take the baked crust out of the oven and pour the filling mixture over it. Sprinkle the reserved cup of the flour mixture on top. Bake 20-25 minutes, until golden. Let cool completely in pan.

Make the glaze by first melting the butter, then stirring the butter into the powdered sugar until it is a thick paste. Add the lemon juice, one teaspoon at a time, until it’s a good consistency for drizzling, and as lemony as you’d like. Drizzle over the cooled bars and then let set before slicing and serving.

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5 Minute Bread

Posted on March 5, 2012 by sparecake

This is the most basic recipe from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day. Five minutes may be optimistic, but with some very small amount of time a day you can have some really fabulous bread that’s great for snacking with some cheddar cheese or peanut butter for several days. This recipe is easily cut in half or in thirds to make a smaller amount of dough, and less loaves.

Best snack ever!

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups lukewarm water
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons yeast (1 1/2 packets)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • cornmeal for dusting

When measuring flour, the most accurate way to get the right amount is to fluff the flour a bit with a spoon, then spoon it into the measuring cup and sweep off excess to get a level cup.

In a large bowl or container, stir together the water, salt, and yeast. Mix in the flour with a wooden spoon, stirring just until all the flour is incorporated.

This was a 1/3 batch.

Cover and let rise somewhere warm for two hours, up to five hours if that works better with your schedule. You can use the dough now, or loosely cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks.

Same 1/3 batch.

When ready to use, coat a pizza peel with cornmeal. Sprinkle the surface of the dough with a bit of flour, then pull out a grapefruit sized piece. Gently stretch the surface of the dough down to the bottom four times, rotating a quarter turn between each, to form a ball.

Let the ball rise on your cornmeal coated pizza peel for forty minutes. I don’t have a pizza peel, but a well cornmeal-ed plate works well enough.

Halfway through the rising time, place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven, and an empty broiler tray on the bottom shelf. Again, I don’t have a pizza stone either (although I plan on getting one at some point), but the lid to my roommate’s cast iron dutch oven worked just as well. Preheat the oven, with the pizza stone and broiler pan, to 450 degrees.

Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour to keep it from sticking to a knife, then slash an X or a tic-tac-toe pattern in the top of loaf with a bread knife.

When you’re ready to cook, fill a measuring cup with 1 cup of hot water. Open the oven door and flick the loaf off your pizza peel(/plate) onto the pizza stone with a quick jerk of your wrist. Quickly pour the water into the broiler pan on the lower shelf in your oven, then shut the door and bake 30 minutes. If you have a long oven glove, it’s a good idea to wear it to protect your arm from steam when you add the water.

After half an hour, remove the bread from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

Ok, so, you don't need to cut slashes quite so deep...

The flavor and texture will improve if you let it cool completely before cutting, but who has the self control for that??

If you want a sandwich loaf, then once you’ve formed the dough into a ball, stretch it a bit into an oval and place in a well greased non-stick bread pan. Let rise 1 hour 40 minutes if refrigerated, or just 40 if the dough is fresh.

Place a broiler tray on the bottom rack of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees. Slash the top of the loaf.

Place the loaf in the preheated oven, and pour 1 cup of water in the broiler tray. Bake 35 minutes, then remove from the pan and allow to cool completely on a rack.

It’s delicious! I’m a big fan.

Boule

From Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day.

  • 3 cups lukewarm water
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons yeast (1 1/2 packets)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • cornmeal for dusting

In a large bowl or container, stir together the water, salt, and yeast. Mix in the flour with a wooden spoon, stirring just until all the flour is incorporated. Cover and let rise somewhere warm for two hours, or up to five hours. Use dough immediately or refrigerate up to two weeks.

When ready to use, coat a pizza peel with cornmeal. Sprinkle the surface of the dough with a bit of flour, then cut off a grapefruit sized piece. Gently stretch the surface of the dough down to the bottom four times, rotating a quarter turn between each, to form a ball. Let the ball rise on your cornmeal coated pizza peel for forty minutes.

Halfway through the rising time, place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven, and an empty broiler tray on the bottom shelf. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour to keep it from sticking to a knife, then slash an X or a tic-tac-toe pattern in the top of loaf with a bread knife.

Fill a measuring cup with 1 cup of hot water. Open the oven door and flick the loaf off your pizza peel onto the pizza stone with a quick jerk of your wrist. Quickly pour the water into the broiler pan then shut the door and bake 30 minutes.

Remove the bread from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

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Homemade SpaghettiOs with Meatballs

Posted on March 2, 2012 by sparecake

I haven’t had SpaghettiOs in years, but I’d be willing to stack these up against those any day. Besides being quite tasty, I imagine they’re also healthier as they don’t have corn syrup. They’re also more exciting, as I found out that there’s even tinier star pasta than I’d seen before!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH

Ingredients:

  • 6 oz ground chicken
  • 3 tablespoons pesto (I skipped this)
  • 3 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • pinch pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 onion, coarsely chopped
  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped medium
  • 1 small celery rib, coarsely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, with juice
  • 4 oz (about 1 cup) ditalini pasta (or other small shape like stars!)
  • Parmesan cheese (for garnish, optional)

Combine the chicken, pesto, bread crumbs, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Mix by hand until well combined. Roll into 3/4″ meatballs, about 1 teaspoon each. Place on a plate, cover, and set aside in the refrigerator.

Place a large dutch oven over medium heat (or high, if it’s a really heavy cast iron oven), and add the olive oil, heating until the oil shimmers. Add the onion, carrot, and celery and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion is softened.

Add the garlic and cook a further 30 seconds, then add the broth and tomatoes. Scrape any browned bits off the bottom and mix in the liquids.

Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook another 15 or 20 minutes, or until the carrot is softened. Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with an immersion blender until smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can pour the mixture into a regular blender, in batches.

Return the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Add the meatballs and the pasta.

Cook 12-15 minutes, until the pasta and meatballs are cooked through.

Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Delicious and nutritious! I’m pretty sure kids would be happy to eat this.

Homemade SpaghettiOs

From Tracey’s Culinary Adventures.

  • 6 oz ground chicken
  • 3 tablespoons pesto
  • 3 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • pinch pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 onion, coarsely chopped
  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped medium
  • 1 small celery rib, coarsely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, with juice
  • 4 oz (about 1 cup) ditalini pasta or other small shape
  • Parmesan cheese (for garnish, optional)

Combine the chicken, pesto, bread crumbs, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Mix by hand until well combined. Roll into 3/4″ meatballs, about 1 teaspoon each. Place on a plate, cover, and set aside in the refrigerator.

Place a large dutch oven over medium heat, and add the olive oil, heating until the oil shimmers. Add the onion, carrot, and celery and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion is softened. Add the garlic and cook a further 30 seconds, then add the broth and tomatoes. Scrape any browned bits off the bottom while mixing in the liquids.

Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook another 15 or 20 minutes, or until the carrot is softened. Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with an immersion blender until smooth.

Return the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Add the meatballs and the pasta.  Cook 12-15 minutes, until the pasta and meatballs are cooked through.

Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

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