Cooking thread, anyone?

[PaulOinMA]

Nan is tired of my efforts to use the staying at home as an opportunity to use up food in the freezer and pantry. She wants a crumb-topped coffee cake, a New York coffee cake with LOTS of crumb topping. Recipe from CL colleague Lorraine Lillis, Jersey City, NJ. Really good recipe. Making the topping takes the longest and a helper helps.

I found a couple of other good coffee cake recipes I typed up. I'll post them, too, if anyone wants them.

Crumb-topped Coffee Cake

Lorraine Lillis’ recipe.

A 2 cups sifted flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 ¼ cup sugar

B ½ cup shortening
¾ cup milk

C ¼ cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Crumbs 1 cup butter ½ tsp. salt
2 ¼ cups flour 1 tsp. cinnamon
1 ½ cups sugar Confectioner’s sugar

Hint: Make crumbs while cake is baking.

Preheat oven to 350 °F.

Sift together ingredients A.

Add B, beat for 2 minutes at low speed, then 2 minutes at medium speed

Add C, beat for 2 minutes.

Pour into well greased and floured, 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Bake until lightly browned, 45 – 60 minutes. Test with toothpick.

Crumbs: Cream butter. Combing remaining ingredients and add to butter. Make crumbs to desired size and place on cake. Return cake to oven and bake 5 – 8 minutes. When cooled, sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

Notes: Cake bakes in less than 45 minutes. It takes more than 10 minutes to do the topping.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

Sylvia's of Harlem Mac and Cheese recipe for dinner last night. Leftovers tonight and tomorrow. Made one-and-a-half times the recipe, 18-oz. casserole-ize elbow macaroni. Cheese is white cheddar and muenster. Recipe available online. Yum!

My twelve-year-old and seven-year-old daughters cooked dinner this evening. Mac and cheese with homemade sauce with sautéed onions and mushrooms, sweet cheddar and a little mozarella, made extra delicious when the older cook went outside and picked bay leaves for simmering in the sauce. Cauliflower on the side. They needed pointers here and there about things like preheating the oven or what temperature to use on the cooktop (and reminders to clean up some messes), but I was pretty impressed by their creation (and by my not having to cook it for the most part).

 

[SpaceBus]

I've been busy baking these last few weeks and have gotten to be fairly good. I use about 8 oz whole wheat starter (usually the discard from feeding the , 1 cup whole spelt flour, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup water, 1 TSB honey, and 1 1/2 tsp salt. Usually I let the dough rise for a few hours near the cookstove after mixing and kneading the dough into a ball. After the first rise I knead the bread a bit more and let it double in size. A trick I learned is to put a shallow pan of water in the over beneath the bread (on the floor of the oven in my case), and steam the bread as it bakes. This prevents such a tough crust, at least in my experience. I've been dropping the boule's right on my baking stone with a bit of cornmeal using my peel. After 25-35 minutes (depending on how hot I stoked the fire) I pull the bread out when it stops growing. I haven't taken any photos because the loaf disappears before I think to record the events. As my starter has gotten stronger my loaves have gotten larger and fluffier, which has been awesome. This week I ordered some bulk whole wheat bread flour, spelt flour, and rye flour, and I'm hoping my bread will just keep getting better.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

That sounds excellent, @SpaceBus. I’m really glad you’re having good success. The only thing I’d suggest for improvement is that you try really, really hard to remember next time to take photos.

 

[PaulOinMA]

Roast chicken tomorrow on a bed of potatoes, carrots, celery, onion in a large cast iron skillet. Took it out of the freezer yesterday to defrost.

 

[SpaceBus]

That sounds excellent, @SpaceBus. I’m really glad you’re having good success. The only thing I’d suggest for improvement is that you try really, really hard to remember next time to take photos.

Indeed, I'm a very poor historian
This week I bought a couple of loaves from a local baker, so I'll probably wait a bit to bake any more of my own bread. Soon I need to find some good sourdough recipes for my wife's old 90's automatic bread maker, or make an outdoor wood oven

 

[SpaceBus]

Roast chicken tomorrow on a bed of potatoes, carrots, celery, onion in a large cast iron skillet. Took it out of the freezer yesterday to defrost.

I was thinking about making something similar myself but roasting it in the oven.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

I am a big fan of slow-roasted chicken, and it’s a sad time of year for me when it becomes warm enough outside that I don’t want to use the oven. Yesterday was a cooler day with no sun to heat the kitchen up, so I had a chance to use the oven for roasted chicken thighs and sweet potato fries. I served them along with some fermented daikon and napa, and it was a good dinner. When it’s really hot, we turn to grilling, and I will roast a chicken that way, but I miss the convenience of the indoor oven.

Here’s a link to a homemade seasoning mix that I used on the sweet potato fries and chicken. I haven’t investigated the blog thoroughly, but I found the site last summer when I was looking for a recipe for curtido, and I made a slightly modified (because of family allergies) version of the seasoning then. I’m almost out and will need to make some more because it’s great.

Montreal Steak Seasoning - Insane in the Brine

This is a fermenting site (primarily), but sometimes there's a recipe I enjoy so much I feel the need to share it here.

insaneinthebrine.com

 

[PaulOinMA]

Planning Easter dinner. Will probably be pork. Meat counter is closed, so I may just have to buy a vacuum sealed pork tenderloin and cut it lengthwise for stuffing and roll up and tie.

Roast Loin of Pork with Apple Stuffing​

Chamberlain, Lesley, contributing editor. Atkinson, Catherine and Davies, Trish, recipe authors. Russian, Polish & German Cooking. Best of Eastern Europe, with over 185 recipes. London: Hermes House, 2004. Previously Published as The Practical Encyclopedia of Eastern European Cooking.

A spit-roast suckling pig, basted with butter or cream and served with an apple in its mouth, was a classic dish for the Russian festive table. This roasted loin with crisp crackling makes a less expensive alternative.

Ingredients Serves 6 – 8

1.75 kg / 4 lb. boned loin of pork
100 mL / ½ pint / 1 ¼ cups dry cider
150 mL / ¼ pint / 2/3 cup soured cream
7.5 mL / 1 ½ tsp. sea salt

For the stuffing

25 g / 1 oz. / 2 Tbsp. butter
1 small onion, chopped
50 g / 2 oz. / 1 cup fresh white breadcrumbs
2 apples, cored, peeled, and chopped
50 g / 2 oz. / scant ½ cup raisins
Finely grated rind of 1 orange
Pinch of ground cloves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 220 ℃ / 425 ℉ / gas 7. To make the stuffing, melt the butter in a pan and gently fry the onions for 10 minutes, or until soft. Stir into the remaining stuffing ingredients.

Put, the pork, rind side down, on a board. Make a horizontal cut between the meat and the outer layer of fat, cutting to within 2.5 cm / 1 in. to make the pocket.

Push the stuffing into the pocket. Roll up lengthways and tie with string. Score the rind at 2 cm / ¾ in. intervals with a sharp knife.

Pour the cider and sour cream into a casserole, in which the joint just fits. Stir to combine, then add the pork, rind side sown. Cook, uncovered, in the oven for 30 minutes.

Turn the joint over, so that the rind is on top. Baste with the juices, then sprinkle the rind with sea salt. Cook for 1 hour, basting after 30 minutes.

Reduce the oven temperature to 180 ℃ / 350 ℉ / Gas 4. Cook for a further 1 ½ hours. Leave the joint to stand for 20 minutes before carving.

Cook’s Tip: Do not baste during the final 2 hours of roasting so that the crackling becomes crisp.

Paul’s notes: Excellent recipe. Very easy. 3-hours cooking time is too long, and temperature is too high. Will start at 400 ℉ next time, and reduce to 350 ℉ after 1 hour. That is: 400 ℉ for 30 minutes with rind-side down. Flip to rind-side up, baste, and sprinkle with sea salt. Cook for 30 minutes at 400. Baste, and reduce heat to 350 ℉. Cook until done with thermometer.

 

[PaulOinMA]

Side will either be corn spoonbread or corn pudding-stuffed tomatoes.

Corn Pudding Stuffed Tomatoes​

From the Test Kitchens at Taste of Home.

Ingredients

8 medium tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt, divided
½ teaspoon pepper, divided
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup half-and-half cream
1 cup whole kernel corn
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Minced fresh parsley

Directions

Cut a thin slice off the top of each tomato; scoop out and discard pulp. Sprinkle inside of tomatoes with half of the salt and pepper. Invert on paper towels to drain.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and remaining salt and pepper. Combine the eggs, cream, corn, and butter; stir into dry ingredients. Spoon into tomatoes,

Place in a shallow baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 ºF for 38–40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center of corn pudding comes out clean. Sprinkle with parsley.

 

[PaulOinMA]

… I was thinking about making something similar myself but roasting it in the oven …

I roasted it in the oven, but just used a skillet so it is a one-skillet meal with the chicken roasting on the potatoes, carrots, celery, onions.

I used a Magnalite Roaster this time. Here's an photo from 2018 when I used a large skillet.

 

[SpaceBus]

My best sourdough loaf so far.

 

[fbelec]

I roasted it in the oven, but just used a skillet so it is a one-skillet meal with the chicken roasting on the potatoes, carrots, celery, onions.

I used a Magnalite Roaster this time. Here's an photo from 2018 when I used a large skillet.

paul that looks delish. i have a question. what happens to all the fat that is draining from the chicken during cooking? i love chicken but as i'm getting older i'm having a problem with chicken fat or my body is.

 

[PaulOinMA]

Thanks. There's also butter in the chicken cavity and on the veggies. Recipe called for too much butter, I think, and it can be reduced.

I guess the chicken fat drains onto the veggies. I save the skillet drippings and use the chicken carcass to make chicken soup. Good layer of butter-fat on top of the drippings after it cools in he refrigerator, which can be scraped off, if needed.

Did you see that the new NOVA is on fat? Recorded it this week. Haven't watched it yet.

The Truth About Fat

Could it be that body fat has more to do with biological processes than personal choices?

www.pbs.org

I decided to use a Magnalite Professional roaster this time after looking up now much Griswold size 12 skillets are going for on ebay. the picture is Griswold 719 small logo.

 

[PaulOinMA]

… i'm getting older i'm having a problem with chicken fat or my body is …

What's the problem? I think I had way too much fat for my gall bladder to handle a year or so ago when we made homemade pizza. Put too much pepperoni on mine, and I ate the leftover pepperoni.

Felt really nauseous later and actually ended up kneeling in front of the toilet throwing up twice. I did a search, and think I had way too much fat for my body to process.

I mentioned it to my NP at my annual physical last year, and it really got her attention. I told her it was a one-time event, and I've been watching my fat intake more after that episide.

 

[SpaceBus]

My wife has decreased gallbladder function so we have to be careful about deep fried foods and stuff like that.

 

[SpaceBus]

This was without kneading the dough and just letting it rise over night. It's not as good as the dough I kneaded yesterday.

 

[SpaceBus]

I got some Rye flour today, so I'm excited to try that soon. For tomorrow morning's loaf I'm rising the dough in the fridge over night.

 

[fbelec]

it's funny when i was a kid my mom used to make chicken like that and i had no problem now chicken fat and now more than 3 slices of fatty bacon. anyway nice job

 

[DuaeGuttae]

Tonight’s dinner was cheesy scalloped potatoes and ham with sautéed Brussels sprouts leaves (not the sprouts, the leaves from the plant which are rather like collard greens) on the side. It was a big hit, but I didn’t have as much leftover as I had hoped. Only when cleaning up the dishes later did I discover that the child who had helped me by washing potatoes and bringing them to my cutting board had left four of them on the drain rack.

 

[SpaceBus]

View attachment 259287

Tonight’s dinner was cheesy scalloped potatoes and ham with sautéed Brussels sprouts leaves (not the sprouts, the leaves from the plant which are rather like collard greens) on the side. It was a big hit, but I didn’t have as much leftover as I had hoped. Only when cleaning up the dishes later did I discover that the child who had helped me by washing potatoes and bringing them to my cutting board had left four of them on the drain rack.

It's ok, we left 5lbs of mixed local potatoes in the car and they all sprouted and got soft...

 

[PaulOinMA]

We had folks over for a dinner years ago. We were thinking about the dinner later and didn't remember one side dish. It was still in the oven.

 

[begreen]

It's ok, we left 5lbs of mixed local potatoes in the car and they all sprouted and got soft...

Plant 'em!

 

[SpaceBus]

Plant 'em!

Yes, I'm going to plant them in some stump holes once I grind them out.

 

[DuaeGuttae]

My kids have somehow learned of the existence of eggs Benedict and want to make that dish. I told them that we couldn’t unless I made the English muffins in advance. Today was a good day to make some sourdough muffins, so I cooked them up this evening and turned some of them into pizza sandwiches for dinner.



Tomorrow morning is the planned eggs Benedict project. I’ve never made a Hollandaise sauce before and am not sure it even sounds appealing to me. I’ll try it, and if I never post again on this thread, you’ll know that it has done me in.

@SpaceBus, I don’t know if you and your wife enjoy English muffins, but they are quite easy. I just use a sandwich bread recipe and cook the rounds on a griddle instead of baking a loaf.