1 tablespoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Stir it up good. Then put it in whatever you want spiced.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Christmas Pudding
Mix thoroughly together:
6 ounces butter
1 teaspoon mixed spice
6 ounces brown sugar
Add to that mixture:
2 ounces self-raising flour
4 ounces breadcrumbs
Thoroughly combine all of that with:
6 ounces raisins
6 ounces zante currants
6 ounces golden raisins
4 ounces dried cherries
2 ounces candied peel
2 ounces chopped pecans
2 ounces chopped almonds
Stir in:
1 peeled, cored, and diced apple
the zest of ½ an orange
the zest of ½ a lemon
In a separate container, beat:
3 eggs
Add to the eggs:
3 fluid ounces brandy
3 fluid ounces stout
Then add to the drunken eggs:
the juice of 1 orange
the juice of 1 lemon
Stir the egg mixture into the bread-fruit-nut mixture very thoroughly. Then let the whole thing sit for at least 8 hours in a cool spot.
When you come back to the mixture, put it into a greased metal bowl. Cover the bowl completely with aluminum foil. Now cover it again. Now cover it again. Maybe even cover it again. Once you've got it thoroughly covered (have you noticed a trend of thoroughness here?), steam it for 8 hours.
Then put the pudding back in a cool place for about 4½ weeks. To help guide you in choosing a good day to start in time for Christmas, I suggest making the pudding on Stir-up Sunday, which is the last Sunday before the first Sunday of Advent. In the U.S., that's the Sunday before Thanksgiving except when Thanksgiving falls on the 22nd or the 23rd.
Then, on the day you plan to serve it, take it from its cool place and steam it another 2 hours or so. If you're going to err, err on the side of oversteaming.
Take it out of the steamer; unwrap it as many times as you covered it before; slip a rubber spatula in along the sides of bowl to loosen the pudding. Then turn the pudding out onto a heated plate (make sure it's a plate that can handle plenty of heat).
Heat a ladle full of brandy over a flame and when it's warm, light it. Then pour the flaming brandy out all over the pudding as the final presentation when you serve it.
It can be nice to serve with brandy butter.
Merry Christmas!
6 ounces butter
1 teaspoon mixed spice
6 ounces brown sugar
Add to that mixture:
2 ounces self-raising flour
4 ounces breadcrumbs
Thoroughly combine all of that with:
6 ounces raisins
6 ounces zante currants
6 ounces golden raisins
4 ounces dried cherries
2 ounces candied peel
2 ounces chopped pecans
2 ounces chopped almonds
Stir in:
1 peeled, cored, and diced apple
the zest of ½ an orange
the zest of ½ a lemon
In a separate container, beat:
3 eggs
Add to the eggs:
3 fluid ounces brandy
3 fluid ounces stout
Then add to the drunken eggs:
the juice of 1 orange
the juice of 1 lemon
Stir the egg mixture into the bread-fruit-nut mixture very thoroughly. Then let the whole thing sit for at least 8 hours in a cool spot.
When you come back to the mixture, put it into a greased metal bowl. Cover the bowl completely with aluminum foil. Now cover it again. Now cover it again. Maybe even cover it again. Once you've got it thoroughly covered (have you noticed a trend of thoroughness here?), steam it for 8 hours.
Then put the pudding back in a cool place for about 4½ weeks. To help guide you in choosing a good day to start in time for Christmas, I suggest making the pudding on Stir-up Sunday, which is the last Sunday before the first Sunday of Advent. In the U.S., that's the Sunday before Thanksgiving except when Thanksgiving falls on the 22nd or the 23rd.
Then, on the day you plan to serve it, take it from its cool place and steam it another 2 hours or so. If you're going to err, err on the side of oversteaming.
Take it out of the steamer; unwrap it as many times as you covered it before; slip a rubber spatula in along the sides of bowl to loosen the pudding. Then turn the pudding out onto a heated plate (make sure it's a plate that can handle plenty of heat).
Heat a ladle full of brandy over a flame and when it's warm, light it. Then pour the flaming brandy out all over the pudding as the final presentation when you serve it.
It can be nice to serve with brandy butter.
Merry Christmas!
Pumpkin Bread
3¼ cups all-purpose flour
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 cups puréed pumpkin
2/3 cup water
1 cup oil
4 eggs
Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Then add the pumpkin, water, oil, and eggs. Blend all that together well. Pour the batter into 2 greased and floured 4"x8" pans and bake for about 75 minutes at 350° F.
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 cups puréed pumpkin
2/3 cup water
1 cup oil
4 eggs
Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Then add the pumpkin, water, oil, and eggs. Blend all that together well. Pour the batter into 2 greased and floured 4"x8" pans and bake for about 75 minutes at 350° F.
Brandy Butter
1 stick butter
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons brandy
Cream the butter and sugar together and then stir in the brandy. Chill it long enough to let it harden up before serving.
It's great as a spread atop Christmas pudding, but it's just about as great on any other bread-based goodies you want.
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons brandy
Cream the butter and sugar together and then stir in the brandy. Chill it long enough to let it harden up before serving.
It's great as a spread atop Christmas pudding, but it's just about as great on any other bread-based goodies you want.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Salsa
4 roma tomatoes
½ sweet vidalia onion
2 jalapeños
2 cloves garlic
3 limes
8 ounces tomato sauce
cilantro (to taste)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
This makes quite a spicy salsa for the non-acclimated mouth, so be careful!
Dice the tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, and garlic and mix together in a bowl. Chop the cilantro leaves and add them into the mix, and then juice the limes over the whole thing. Season it all with the salt and pepper and then stir it up well. Pour that mixture into a pot with the tomato sauce and bring it rapidly to a boil. Once it's boiling, cover the pot and let it sit over very low heat for half an hour. Chill and enjoy.
½ sweet vidalia onion
2 jalapeños
2 cloves garlic
3 limes
8 ounces tomato sauce
cilantro (to taste)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
This makes quite a spicy salsa for the non-acclimated mouth, so be careful!
Dice the tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, and garlic and mix together in a bowl. Chop the cilantro leaves and add them into the mix, and then juice the limes over the whole thing. Season it all with the salt and pepper and then stir it up well. Pour that mixture into a pot with the tomato sauce and bring it rapidly to a boil. Once it's boiling, cover the pot and let it sit over very low heat for half an hour. Chill and enjoy.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 ¼ cups bread flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup margarine
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups chocolate chips
Mix the wet ingredients well and then add the dry ingredients. Separate into small balls on a cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes. This makes about 3 dozen cookies.
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup margarine
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups chocolate chips
Mix the wet ingredients well and then add the dry ingredients. Separate into small balls on a cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes. This makes about 3 dozen cookies.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Easy Guacamole
1 ripe avocado (peeled and pitted)
½ cup salsa
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper sauce
Mash the avocado in a medium bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. And serve.
makes: 1¼ cups
½ cup salsa
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper sauce
Mash the avocado in a medium bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. And serve.
makes: 1¼ cups
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Egg Drop Soup
4 cups chicken broth or stock
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 or 2 green onions, minced
Salt to taste
¼ teaspoon white pepper (optional)
A few drops of sesame oil (optional)
Bring the broth to a boil, and then add in the salt, white pepper, and sesame oil. Cook the seasoned broth for about a minute. Slowly and steadily pour the egg into the boiling soup. If you want the egg to be shredded in the soup, stir the soup briskly as you pour the egg in. Garnish it with green onions, and enjoy it hot.
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 or 2 green onions, minced
Salt to taste
¼ teaspoon white pepper (optional)
A few drops of sesame oil (optional)
Bring the broth to a boil, and then add in the salt, white pepper, and sesame oil. Cook the seasoned broth for about a minute. Slowly and steadily pour the egg into the boiling soup. If you want the egg to be shredded in the soup, stir the soup briskly as you pour the egg in. Garnish it with green onions, and enjoy it hot.
Homestyle Butter
1 pint heavy whipping cream
Churn the cream until the butter in it coagulates and separates from the buttermilk. Scoop the butter (that is, the coagulated cream), out of the buttermilk and put it in a bowl. Press the butter against the side of the bowl with a spatula to squeeze out the extra buttermilk, which you then should pour back into the rest of the buttermilk. The more you squeeze the butter, the harder and less creamy it will get. If you're going to store it for a while, squeeze it very well and then rinse it (see below). If you're going to eat it all up right away, you probably don't want to squeeze it so much. Either way, you'll want to eat it up fairly quickly, since it's got no preservatives to embalm it.
If you need to rinse the butter, then after you've squeezed out all the buttermilk that's easy to squeeze, pour in a little cold water (around ¼ cup) and stir it up into the butter. It won't mix in, but it will mix with any remaining buttermilk. Squeeze out the water and pour it off, noting its color. If the water you've squeezed out wasn't as clear as it was when you put it in, then repeat the rinse. If it was just as clear coming out as going in, then your butter is well-rinsed, and should last longer: a week, maybe two, instead of just overnight.
Churn the cream until the butter in it coagulates and separates from the buttermilk. Scoop the butter (that is, the coagulated cream), out of the buttermilk and put it in a bowl. Press the butter against the side of the bowl with a spatula to squeeze out the extra buttermilk, which you then should pour back into the rest of the buttermilk. The more you squeeze the butter, the harder and less creamy it will get. If you're going to store it for a while, squeeze it very well and then rinse it (see below). If you're going to eat it all up right away, you probably don't want to squeeze it so much. Either way, you'll want to eat it up fairly quickly, since it's got no preservatives to embalm it.
If you need to rinse the butter, then after you've squeezed out all the buttermilk that's easy to squeeze, pour in a little cold water (around ¼ cup) and stir it up into the butter. It won't mix in, but it will mix with any remaining buttermilk. Squeeze out the water and pour it off, noting its color. If the water you've squeezed out wasn't as clear as it was when you put it in, then repeat the rinse. If it was just as clear coming out as going in, then your butter is well-rinsed, and should last longer: a week, maybe two, instead of just overnight.
Blåbærsuppe (Blueberry Soup)
10½ ounces blueberries
2½ cups water
1¼ teaspoon cornstarch
sugar to taste
Stir everything together while cool, and then bring to a boil. Enjoy it hot in a cup or cold in a bowl.
2½ cups water
1¼ teaspoon cornstarch
sugar to taste
Stir everything together while cool, and then bring to a boil. Enjoy it hot in a cup or cold in a bowl.
Dixie Salad
It's just like Ambrosia, except along with all the fruit, you also add the following:
pecan halves
pomegranate seeds
pecan halves
pomegranate seeds
Ambrosia
1 15-ounce can pineapple chunks
1 8-ounce can mandarin oranges
several red apples, chunked, not peeled
maraschino cherries, halved
16 ounces sour cream
many mini-marshmallows
This needs to sit for 24 hours before serving, so plan ahead. Mix the fruit and the sour cream together in a mixing bowl, then mix in the mini-marshmallows. Let it sit in refrigeration for twenty-four hours, but check it a couple of times to see that it's developing the right consistency: it should be thick and pretty cohesive with no extra juices running around. If it's too wet and runny (which is typical), stir in some more marshmallows. If it's too dry (look at the marshmallows), try stirring in a tiny bit of apple juice. Enjoy chilled.
1 8-ounce can mandarin oranges
several red apples, chunked, not peeled
maraschino cherries, halved
16 ounces sour cream
many mini-marshmallows
This needs to sit for 24 hours before serving, so plan ahead. Mix the fruit and the sour cream together in a mixing bowl, then mix in the mini-marshmallows. Let it sit in refrigeration for twenty-four hours, but check it a couple of times to see that it's developing the right consistency: it should be thick and pretty cohesive with no extra juices running around. If it's too wet and runny (which is typical), stir in some more marshmallows. If it's too dry (look at the marshmallows), try stirring in a tiny bit of apple juice. Enjoy chilled.
Maple Cider
2 quarts apple cider
1 cup maple syrup
1 stick cinnamon
3 whole cloves
Put the ingredients together in a pot and heat on a low heat for a long time. You can use a slow cooker, too, if you'd like. It's best enjoyed hot, but can be good cold as well.
1 cup maple syrup
1 stick cinnamon
3 whole cloves
Put the ingredients together in a pot and heat on a low heat for a long time. You can use a slow cooker, too, if you'd like. It's best enjoyed hot, but can be good cold as well.
Maple Syrup
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
½ teaspoon maple flavoring
Bring the water to a boil and dissolve the sugar into it. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the maple flavoring. Enjoy!
2 cups sugar
½ teaspoon maple flavoring
Bring the water to a boil and dissolve the sugar into it. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the maple flavoring. Enjoy!
Wassail
1 gallon apple juice
1 can frozen concentrated lemonade
1 can frozen concentrated orange juice
4 sticks cinnamon
12 whole cloves
12 balls allspice
½ cup sugar
2 quarts water
Put all ingredients in a large pot and heat over a low heat for a long time. It can also be done in a slow cooker. Enjoy hot.
1 can frozen concentrated lemonade
1 can frozen concentrated orange juice
4 sticks cinnamon
12 whole cloves
12 balls allspice
½ cup sugar
2 quarts water
Put all ingredients in a large pot and heat over a low heat for a long time. It can also be done in a slow cooker. Enjoy hot.
Ma Schmidt's Pancakes
2 eggs
2 cups milk
¼ cups sugar
1½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups flour
Mix the eggs, milk, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. When they are thoroughly mixed, add the flour until you get the right consistency. Fry in a pan. The pancakes should be thicker than crèpes, but still pretty thin. Enjoy them hot, topped with homestyle butter, and maple syrup.
2 cups milk
¼ cups sugar
1½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups flour
Mix the eggs, milk, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. When they are thoroughly mixed, add the flour until you get the right consistency. Fry in a pan. The pancakes should be thicker than crèpes, but still pretty thin. Enjoy them hot, topped with homestyle butter, and maple syrup.
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