From Cook’s Illustrated The New Best Recipe Book
If you have buttermilk on hand, use 2 cups instead of the milk and lemon juice mixture. To keep pancakes warm while you cook the remaining batter, place on a greased cookie sheet , uncovered, in a 200 degree oven. Pancakes will stay warm for up to 20 minutes
1 tablespoon juice from one lemon
2 cups milk
2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1-2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1. Whisk the lemon juice and milk together in a medium bowl or large measuring cup; set aside to thicken while preparing the other ingredients. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl to combine.
2. Whisk the egg and melted butter into the milk until combined. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients in the bowl; pour in the milk mixture and whisk very gently until just combined (a few lumps should remain). Do not overmix.
3. Heat a 12 – inch nonstick skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes; add 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and brush to coat the skillet bottom evenly. Pour ¼ cup of batter onto three spots on the skillet. Cook the pancakes until large bubbles begin to appear, 1½ to 2 minutes. Using a thin, wide spatula, flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown on the second side. 1 to 1½ minutes longer. Serve immediately. Repeat with the remaining mixture, using the remaining vegetable oil only if necessary.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Friday, November 23, 2007
Classic Dinner Rolls
from Williams-Sonoma’s Essentials of Baking
1 package (2 ½ teaspoons) active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature, plus 1 egg beaten
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
2 teaspoons salt
BY HAND: In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Using a wire whisk, beat in the milk, sugar, 2 eggs, butter, flour, and salt just until mixed, then stir with your hands or a wooden spoon until a rough mass forms. Using a plastic pastry scraper, scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead until it is smooth and elastic, dusting the work surface with flour to keep the dough from sticking, 5 – 7 minutes. The dough should be soft but not sticky.
BY STAND MIXER: In the 5 qt. bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the milk, sugar, 2 eggs, butter, flour, and salt. Place the bowl on the mixer, attach the dough hook, and knead on low speed. Add a little more flour only if the dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl after a few minutes of kneading. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, 5 – 7 minutes. The dough should be soft but not sticky. Remove the dough from the bowl.
Form the dough into a ball, transfer it to a lightly oiled bowl, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles in bulk, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
Heavily butter two 9-inch cake pans. Punch the dough down and turn it out onto a clean work surface. Cut it in half with a sharp knife or bench scraper. Cut each half into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Put the balls in the cake pan, placing 7 balls around the edge and 1 ball in the center. Cover the cake pan loosely with a kitchen towel, and let them rise until puffy and pillow-soft when gently squeezed, 30 – 40 minutes.
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C.)
Brush the rolls lightly with the beaten egg. Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 – 25 minutes. Serve immediately.
1 package (2 ½ teaspoons) active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
1 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature, plus 1 egg beaten
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
2 teaspoons salt
BY HAND: In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Using a wire whisk, beat in the milk, sugar, 2 eggs, butter, flour, and salt just until mixed, then stir with your hands or a wooden spoon until a rough mass forms. Using a plastic pastry scraper, scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead until it is smooth and elastic, dusting the work surface with flour to keep the dough from sticking, 5 – 7 minutes. The dough should be soft but not sticky.
BY STAND MIXER: In the 5 qt. bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the milk, sugar, 2 eggs, butter, flour, and salt. Place the bowl on the mixer, attach the dough hook, and knead on low speed. Add a little more flour only if the dough is sticking to the sides of the bowl after a few minutes of kneading. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, 5 – 7 minutes. The dough should be soft but not sticky. Remove the dough from the bowl.
Form the dough into a ball, transfer it to a lightly oiled bowl, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles in bulk, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
Heavily butter two 9-inch cake pans. Punch the dough down and turn it out onto a clean work surface. Cut it in half with a sharp knife or bench scraper. Cut each half into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Put the balls in the cake pan, placing 7 balls around the edge and 1 ball in the center. Cover the cake pan loosely with a kitchen towel, and let them rise until puffy and pillow-soft when gently squeezed, 30 – 40 minutes.
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C.)
Brush the rolls lightly with the beaten egg. Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20 – 25 minutes. Serve immediately.
Vegetable Lasagna
Ted Quanrud, Bismarck, North Dakota
2 boxes lasagna noodles, cooked.
1 batch basic marinara sauce (Use Tusterossa plum tomatoes)
Olive oil
2 large onions, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 small zucchinis, sliced
2 carrots, chopped
2 – 10 oz packages white mushrooms, sliced
2 green peppers, chopped
1 bag baby spinach
1 – 2 pound container cottage ricotta cheese
3 cups parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs, beaten
1 large block mozzarella, shredded
Salt and pepper
1. In a mixing bowl, combine cottage (or ricotta) cheese, eggs, and 2 cups parmesan cheese.
2. Shred mozzarella into a separate small bowl.
3. Sauté onions for a couple of minutes in olive oil. Add garlic and continue cooking for 30 seconds. Add zucchinis, peppers, and carrots. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often. Add mushrooms and continue cooking over medium heat.
4. In a separate skillet, sauté spinach quickly in a little olive oil until just wilted. Add to vegetables.
5. Add vegetables to marinara sauce, season with salt and pepper, and simmer. DO NOT OVERCOOK VEGETABLES.
Layering:
1. Add sauce to cover the bottom of a large Pyrex baking dish.
2. Add on layer of cooked lasagna noodles.
3. Add a layer of the cottage (ricotta) cheese mixture.
4. Sprinkle a generous layer of mozzarella.
5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 until dish is full.
6. Finally, sprinkle top with additional parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes, Garnish with parsley.
2 boxes lasagna noodles, cooked.
1 batch basic marinara sauce (Use Tusterossa plum tomatoes)
Olive oil
2 large onions, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 small zucchinis, sliced
2 carrots, chopped
2 – 10 oz packages white mushrooms, sliced
2 green peppers, chopped
1 bag baby spinach
1 – 2 pound container cottage ricotta cheese
3 cups parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs, beaten
1 large block mozzarella, shredded
Salt and pepper
1. In a mixing bowl, combine cottage (or ricotta) cheese, eggs, and 2 cups parmesan cheese.
2. Shred mozzarella into a separate small bowl.
3. Sauté onions for a couple of minutes in olive oil. Add garlic and continue cooking for 30 seconds. Add zucchinis, peppers, and carrots. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often. Add mushrooms and continue cooking over medium heat.
4. In a separate skillet, sauté spinach quickly in a little olive oil until just wilted. Add to vegetables.
5. Add vegetables to marinara sauce, season with salt and pepper, and simmer. DO NOT OVERCOOK VEGETABLES.
Layering:
1. Add sauce to cover the bottom of a large Pyrex baking dish.
2. Add on layer of cooked lasagna noodles.
3. Add a layer of the cottage (ricotta) cheese mixture.
4. Sprinkle a generous layer of mozzarella.
5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 until dish is full.
6. Finally, sprinkle top with additional parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes, Garnish with parsley.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Chicken Marinade ala Kim A.
Carol A's daughter, Kim, introduced us to this great, yet simple, chicken marinade on a July 2007 camping trip to Indian Lake. Just do it!
½ cup cider vinegar
½ cup vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
Poultry seasoning to taste
Mix all ingredients and marinate chicken for however long.
½ cup cider vinegar
½ cup vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
Poultry seasoning to taste
Mix all ingredients and marinate chicken for however long.
Broccoli, Chicken, and Bow Ties
From Barefoot Contessa – Family Style
Chris discovered this dish recently – July 2007 – and thought it would be a good recipe for using the broccoli from our garden. She’s modified it slightly by adding chicken. It’s a great, light dish… just the thing for a summer meal, especially if chicken is included.
Kosher salt
8 cups broccoli florets (4 heads)
2 chicken breasts, sautéed and cut into bite-sized pieces
½ pound farfalle (bow tie) pasta
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Zest of 1 lemon
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup toasted pignoli (pine) nuts
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Cook the broccoli for 3 minutes in a large pot of boiling salted water. Remove the broccoli from the water with a slotted spoon or sieve. Place in a large bowl and set aside.
In the same water, cook the bow-tie pasta according to the package directions, about 12 minutes. Drain well. Saute chicken. Add pasta and chicken to the broccoli.
Meanwhile, in a small sauté’ pan, heat the butter and oil and cook the garlic and lemon zest overt medium-low heat for 1 minute. Off the heat, add 2 teaspoons salt (or less), the pepper, and lemon juice and pour this over the broccoli and pasta. Toss well, Season to taste, sprinkle with the pine nuts and cheese, if using, and serve. We like to serve this dish warm.
To toast the pine nuts, place them in a dry sauté pan over medium-low heat and cook, tossing often, form about 5 minutes, until light brown.
Chris discovered this dish recently – July 2007 – and thought it would be a good recipe for using the broccoli from our garden. She’s modified it slightly by adding chicken. It’s a great, light dish… just the thing for a summer meal, especially if chicken is included.
Kosher salt
8 cups broccoli florets (4 heads)
2 chicken breasts, sautéed and cut into bite-sized pieces
½ pound farfalle (bow tie) pasta
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Zest of 1 lemon
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup toasted pignoli (pine) nuts
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Cook the broccoli for 3 minutes in a large pot of boiling salted water. Remove the broccoli from the water with a slotted spoon or sieve. Place in a large bowl and set aside.
In the same water, cook the bow-tie pasta according to the package directions, about 12 minutes. Drain well. Saute chicken. Add pasta and chicken to the broccoli.
Meanwhile, in a small sauté’ pan, heat the butter and oil and cook the garlic and lemon zest overt medium-low heat for 1 minute. Off the heat, add 2 teaspoons salt (or less), the pepper, and lemon juice and pour this over the broccoli and pasta. Toss well, Season to taste, sprinkle with the pine nuts and cheese, if using, and serve. We like to serve this dish warm.
To toast the pine nuts, place them in a dry sauté pan over medium-low heat and cook, tossing often, form about 5 minutes, until light brown.
Oriental Salad
Carol A. does it again!
Salad Ingredients:
1 bag spinach, chopped
8 celery stalks, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
½ package alfalfa sprouts
10 ounces mushrooms, sliced
2 bunches scallions, chopped
1 cup cooked (brown) rice
cashews
Dressing
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup peanut oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Directions:
Mix together all salad ingredients, add dressing, and serve.
Salad Ingredients:
1 bag spinach, chopped
8 celery stalks, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
½ package alfalfa sprouts
10 ounces mushrooms, sliced
2 bunches scallions, chopped
1 cup cooked (brown) rice
cashews
Dressing
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup peanut oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Directions:
Mix together all salad ingredients, add dressing, and serve.
Alder-Planked Salmon with Asian Marinade
From “The Best of Cooking Light”
Chris and I love salmon and have it for dinner quite frequently. Chris ran across this recipe in “The Best of Cooking Light” and, honestly, it’s one of the tastiest salmon dishes we’ve ever had. We had never grilled on a plank before, but now we plan to use planks in many more of our grilling adventures. Just try it and let us know what you think.
Ingredients:
1 (15 x 6-1/2 x 3/8 - inch) alder (or other hardwood) grilling plank
½ cup rice vinegar
½ cup (low-sodium) soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon ground (fresh?) ginger
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 (3-1/2 pound) salmon filet
¼ cup chopped green onions
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
1. Immerse and soak the alder plank in water for 1 hour and drain.
2. To prepare grill for indirect grilling, heat one side of the grill to high heat.
3. Combine vinegar and next six ingredients in a large zip-lock plastic bag; seal. Shake to combine. Add fish, seal. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes, turning once.
4. Place plank on grill rack over high heat; grill 5 minutes or until lightly charred. Carefully turn plak over; move to cool side of grill. Remove fish from marinade; discard marinade. Place fish, skin side down, on charred side of plank. Cover and grill 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Sprinkle with onions and sesame seeds. Yield: 9 servings (serving size; 5 ounces).
Chris and I love salmon and have it for dinner quite frequently. Chris ran across this recipe in “The Best of Cooking Light” and, honestly, it’s one of the tastiest salmon dishes we’ve ever had. We had never grilled on a plank before, but now we plan to use planks in many more of our grilling adventures. Just try it and let us know what you think.
Ingredients:
1 (15 x 6-1/2 x 3/8 - inch) alder (or other hardwood) grilling plank
½ cup rice vinegar
½ cup (low-sodium) soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon ground (fresh?) ginger
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 (3-1/2 pound) salmon filet
¼ cup chopped green onions
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
1. Immerse and soak the alder plank in water for 1 hour and drain.
2. To prepare grill for indirect grilling, heat one side of the grill to high heat.
3. Combine vinegar and next six ingredients in a large zip-lock plastic bag; seal. Shake to combine. Add fish, seal. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes, turning once.
4. Place plank on grill rack over high heat; grill 5 minutes or until lightly charred. Carefully turn plak over; move to cool side of grill. Remove fish from marinade; discard marinade. Place fish, skin side down, on charred side of plank. Cover and grill 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Sprinkle with onions and sesame seeds. Yield: 9 servings (serving size; 5 ounces).
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