The Charmed Kitchen

Rich Butter Cookies

Some cookies are just classic. These butter cookies are a family favorite. Simple, rich and delicate. I had a cookie baking class with some kids a couple of weeks ago. We made these cookies in class, and the kids loved making them. The kids rolled the dough into balls, and then pressed the tops in nonpareils, before baking. Others, they left plain, then baked them. Once baked and cooled, they dipped the cookies in melted chocolate, and topped with sprinkles. Simple and very good. Topped with pastel-colored sprinkles, these would be a nice cookie for Easter, too.

Rich Butter Cookies

1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
2 ¼ c. flour
1 t. baking powder
¼ t. salt

Beat sugar and butter together until fluffy and then beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and stir into butter mixture. Chill dough at least a couple of hours. Roll dough into ¾-1 inch balls and roll in sugar, sprinkles or nuts. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet and bake in a preheated 375 –degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Cookies will flatten somewhat. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.
Variations: You can bake plain cookies and then dip cooled cookies in melted chocolate and then in chopped nuts or sprinkles.
Form into balls and place on baking sheet then press a nutmeat into the center of each. When cool you can drizzle with a small amount of melted chocolate or glaze.

Mushroom, Leek and Asparagus Quiche

Sometimes there are happy accidents in the kitchen. This recipe is one of those. I had made kolachy for a class I had recently. Kolachy are filled cookies, made with a cream cheese based dough. There was some dough leftover, and I did not want to waste it. I decided to use it for a quiche. Well, technically a tart, since it was baked in a tart pan. I looked through my fridge for what I had, and came up with the combination of leeks, mushrooms and asparagus. I also had a nice chunk of Swiss cheese, so away I went. The rest was pretty easy. I just added the eggs, half and half and seasonings to complete the dish. You could, of course, use any crust recipe you prefer. I must admit, the kolachy dough worked really well. I would most definitely make this recipe again, using the cream cheese crust. I did include the recipe for the kolachy dough at the bottom of this post. So here is the recipe. Hope you enjoy it.

Mushroom, Leek and Asparagus Quiche

1 unbaked pie shell*
2 T. oil or butter
1 c. sliced leek- white or light green part only
4 oz. sliced mushrooms- I used baby Portobello
8 oz. asparagus, trimmed and sliced
4 oz. shredded Swiss cheese
2 T. flour
3 eggs, beaten
¾ c. half and half
1 T. fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill
Salt and pepper to taste
Hot sauce to taste

Roll out crust to fit a 9 or 10- inch tart pan. Place crust in pan and trim edges. Chill crust until ready to use. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In skillet, heat oil or butter and cook leeks until tender. Add mushrooms and continue cooking until mushrooms are golden. Set aside. Steam asparagus for 3-4 minutes, or until just tender. Set aside. Combine flour with cheese and toss to coat. Spread cheese in prepared tart shell. Top with the mushroom and leek mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Combine the eggs with the half and half, dill and hot sauce. Pour over the mushrooms mixture in the tart shell. Add the asparagus. Place in preheated oven and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Turn down heat and cook for 20-25 minutes longer, or until crust is golden and filling has set up. Serves 4-6.

 
* While I would normally use a more traditional pie crust, I ended up using the dough I normally use for my kolachy. It was leftover and seemed like a nice choice. The kolachy dough is 3 sticks of softened butter, 8 oz. of cream cheese and 3 cups of flour. Mix all ingredients until smooth and chill until ready to use. It was leftover, so hard to say how many crusts a full recipe would make. I would think you could easily get three crusts from one recipe. You can, of course, use your favorite pie crust recipe.

Crumpets

I love crumpets when I make them myself. They are a cross between a pancake and an English muffin. Crumpets should be moist, soft and light. The ones I’ve tried from the grocery store are heavy and dry. If the only crumpets you have ever tried were from the store, you probably don’t like them either. I think if you make your own, you will be surprised at just how tasty crumpets can be. I’d suggest serving them with jam and clotted cream. You will need crumpet rings to cook them in. Crumpet rings and English muffin rings (they are pretty much the same thing), can be purchased online and in some specialty cooking supply stores. Many years ago my father made some for me from cans. We saved cans from things like canned tomatoes or corn. He cut off the lids on both sides and then cut the cans to about 1 1/2 inches in height. There is a rough edge, so I am always very careful when handling them. Buying them is probably a better idea.

Crumpets

 2 c. skim milk, scalded

3 c. flour

1 t. salt

1 package active dry yeast

¼ c. warm water

¼ c. butter, melted

Cool milk to lukewarm, then stir in flour and salt, beating until smooth. In small bowl place water and sprinkle over with the yeast. Let stand 5 minutes until bubbly. Stir in butter then add this to the flour mixture, beating well. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Grease 2 ½ inch muffin rings, or use 3 ½ oz. tuna fish cans and place in a hot, lightly greased skillet. Spoon 2 tablespoonfuls of batter into each ring, reduce heat to low and cook crumpets 12 minutes per side. Remove from rings and set aside to cool. Repeat procedure with remaining batter. Makes about 32 crumpets. Serve split and topped with jam or preserves and Devonshire clotted cream. You can make a mock version of clotted cream- recipe follows.

Mock Clotted Cream

1 c. whipping cream

¼ c. sour cream

Just beat together whipping cream and sour cream until soft peaks form.

Pineapple Scones

This is one of my favorite scone recipes. Pineapple gives them a wonderful flavor, then they are topped with a crunchy cinnamon  and nut combination. What’s not to love? I am always surprised when someone tells me they don’t like scones. Often, the comment is that they are too dry. My reply is that you haven’t had a good scone. Good scones are slightly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. These scones never disappoint. These are great served warm from the oven, topped with jam.

Pineapple Scones

3 c. flour
1/3 c. sugar
1 T. baking powder
½ t. salt
¾ c. butter
1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
milk
3 T. chopped nuts
1 T. sugar
½ t. cinnamon

In medium bowl mix together dry ingredients and cut in butter to resemble coarse crumbs. Stir in pineapple and stir until dough starts to hold together. Place dough on lightly floured surface and knead 10-12 strokes until dough holds together, but is tender and soft. When you first start to mix this dough- you might think there is something wrong- that you need to add more liquid. Be patient. There is a lot of moisture in the pineapple and as you mix the dough it WILL come together.  Roll or press dough ½ inch thick and cut out with 2-2 ½ inch biscuit cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Re-roll scraps and cut out remaining dough. Brush scone with milk. Combine remaining ingredients and sprinkle over scones. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for about 15 minutes. Makes 21.

Babka

Babka is different from most other breads that I make.  For starters, the recipe makes 6 loaves of bread at once. Great for gift giving in those quantities.  Babka also uses so much less flour than most of my bread recipes. Only 8 cups of flour for the 6 loaves. I often use close to 8 cups of flour for just 2 loaves in other bread recipes. The bread dough is really a batter- so sticky you have to oil up your hands to divide the dough into the bread pans.  This very tiny amount of dough rises to fill  9×5-inch bread pans. The result is a bread that is very light, with a crunchy exterior and tender interior. I can’t say where I got this recipe. I still have the original handwritten recipe, but it isn’t handwriting I recognize. I made it for a baking class the other night and people seemed to really like it. I hope you do, too.  I add raisins to my Babka, but you can all sorts of dried fruits, grated chocolate or nuts. I sometimes drizzle a powdered sugar glaze on finished Babka.

Babka

3 packets active dry yeast
1 c. warm water
1 c. sugar
8 c. bread flour
1 t. salt
5 large eggs
1 stick butter
2 T. oil
Grated rinds of  an orange and a lemon
2 c. warm milk
1 c. raisins
1 egg mixed with 2-t. milk

In bowl combine yeast, water, sugar, 1 c. flour, and salt. Allow to stand 10 minutes. Beat in eggs, butter, oil and grated rinds. Add remaining flour alternately with milk, beating a total of five minutes. Stir in raisins. Dust a large bowl with flour and put in dough. Cover and allow to rise until doubled, about 2 hours. Generously grease loaf pans. This recipe will fill 6 standard loaf pans – 9×5 – inch. Lightly oil hands and divide dough into portions, smoothing tops as you place dough in pans. Cover and allow dough to rise until more than doubled, about 1 hour. Brush loaves with egg and milk mixture. Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours or until bread is well browned and sounds hollow inside when tapped. Mine is normally done at about an hour and 15 minutes. Cool a few minutes in pans before removing to racks to cool. Babka in great eaten warm from the oven. They can be frozen, too.

Homemade Crescent Rolls

Even those these look like traditional croissants, I call them crescent rolls, instead. I grew up with a father who was a baker. I have made traditional croissants. Yeast dough rolled out- then topped with a sheet of butter. Rolled, folded, chilled. Repeated many times to create those wonderful, flaky layers. These rolls have a lot of the same qualities, but in a less time-consuming method. Not quite what you get in true croissants, but very tender and flaky. The secret is butter cut into flour- the same way you incorporate fat into biscuits or pie crust. Then a yeast/milk mixture is stirred in and a batter is created. It is chilled overnight and when rolled out, the  dough is brushed with more butter and shaped into the crescent shape of traditional croissants. Really easy, compared to the original, and a pretty good roll, too. Since the recipe makes a lot, I often freeze some for later. Directions for freezing are at the bottom of the recipe.

Crescent Rolls

1 package active dry yeast
1 c. very warm water
¾ c. evaporated milk
1 t. salt
1/3 c. sugar
1 egg
5 c. flour
4 T. melted butter, cooled
1 c. firm butter
Additional melted butter for brushing
1 egg beaten with 1 T. water

Dissolve yeast in water. Stir in milk, salt, sugar, egg and one cup of flour. Beat into a smooth batter and stir in melted butter. Set aside. With pastry blender cut firm butter into remaining flour until particles are the size of small peas. Stir in milk mixture gently, until all flour in moistened. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead a few strokes. Divide into fourths and roll each into a circle. Divide circle into 8 pieces and brush with melted butter. Starting at wide end roll up loosely and place on greased baking sheet with point tucked under. Allow 2-3 inched between rolls and curve slightly into an arc, if desired. Cover with a towel and allow to rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours or until nearly doubled. Brush with egg wash just before baking. Bake in a 325-degree oven for 35 minutes or until golden. Brush again with butter. Makes 32.

These are great served as is, or drizzled with a little powdered sugar glaze.

Note: You can add up to 2 cups of whole wheat flour in place of 2 cups of the white flour for whole wheat croissants. You can also brush the dough with fruit preserves instead of butter before rolling up, or you can sprinkle with chopped chocolate or cinnamon sugar and roll up.

Freezing directions:  just roll them up and place on a baking sheet. Place in freezer until solid. Remove to a freezer bag or container and return to freezer. To use, place frozen rolls on a greased baking sheet and cover. allow to thaw and rise until doubled in size and proceed at with the baking directions. I just do this the night before and bake them in the morning.

Blueberry Kolachy

I have fond memories of making these delicate cookies with my Mother. I think of her every time I make them.  I made a batch for a cooking class the other night, using homemade blueberry pie filling. I have also used cherry, fig, apple and nut fillings. I made my own blueberry pie filling, but you could use store bought, if you prefer. You can also finish off the cookies with a light dusting of powdered sugar, if you like.

Blueberry Kolachy

Dough

3 sticks butter

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

3 cups flour

Blueberry Filling– recipe follows

Powdered sugar, optional

Mix dough ingredients together and chill well before using.

Roll out chilled dough into squares or circles. Spoon a little blueberry filling into the center and pinch 2 ends or corners together. Bake in 350-degree oven for about 12 minutes, or until golden on edges. Cool and dust with powdered sugar. Makes 4-5 dozen.

Blueberry Pie Filling

3 1/2 c. blueberries

3/4 c. sugar, or to taste

1/4 c. Clear Gel*

1 c. water

1 T. lemon juice

In saucepan, bring blueberries and sugar to a boil, stirring often. Combine clear gel with water and lemon juice and add to the blueberry mixture. Return to the boil and cook until thickened and bubbly. Makes 4 cups. You might not need the whole batch for the cookies.

*Clear gel is a modified cornstarch. It is used in commercial pie fillings and in homemade pie fillings, as well. Unlike regular cornstarch, Clear Gel retains it’s thickness, even if you reheat it. You can find it online or in some specialty food stores.

Sweet and Sour Cabbage

I taught a class last night called My Mother’s Polish Kitchen. It is always a favorite class of mine, because it gives me a chance to remember my mom, and to share some of her recipes. This cabbage dish was a favorite of hers. Some years ago, I had gotten after her to get her recipes down, so they would not be lost. Eventually we put together a cookbook of her recipes to share with family and friends. I encourage all of you to do the same. Get those family recipes together.

This cabbage dish is great served with pierogi, or a roast chicken or pork chops. If you cut the cabbage into small pieces, you can also use it as a filling for pierogi. The recipe calls for using a paste-type soup base for flavoring. This was a little change from how my Mom made it, but it was hard to explain what she really did. Using the soup base, was a way anyone could make this cabbage dish. Every time my mom roasted a chicken or maybe a pork roast, she would save all the drippings from the pan. She’d strain them and chill it to remove the fat. She would take the drippings and pop them in a container in the freezer. Once she had a “nice amount”, she would use it to flavor the cabbage. You can see why we used the alternative soup base directions. You could also use chicken or vegetable stock, in place of the water for more flavor.

Here is the recipe. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Sweet and Sour Cabbage

3 lbs. sliced cabbage, about a 3 ½ lb. head or 3 lbs. Cole slaw mix
1 onion, sliced
1 T. oil, butter, margarine or even bacon fat
3 c. water
1 T. paste type soup base or to taste
½ t. thyme
1 t. dillweed
1 t. marjoram
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
¼ c. balsamic vinegar
2 T. sugar
½ c. catsup
1 c. water
¼ c. flour

Sauté onion in oil until wilted. Bring water to boil in large pot. Add soup base and add cabbage. Stir in onions and remaining ingredients, except for the 1 cup of water and flour and cook, uncovered until cabbage is tender. This can take from 15-25 minutes, depending on the age of the cabbage and the size of the pieces. In jar with a tight- fitting lid combine remaining water and flour and shake until smooth. Add to cabbage mixture and cook, stirring until thickened, about 2 minutes. Adjust seasonings. This dish is great served alone, or with pork or chicken dishes or with potatoes.

Won Ton Soup

As part of our Chinese New Year dinner the other night, I was in charge of soup. I decided to go with one of my childhood favorites- Wonton Soup. I figured it was a soup everybody would like. The one problem I find, when trying to make this soup at home, is finding wonton wrappers that are thick enough. The square ones I find at the store are OK, but thinner than the ones in wonton soup at a restaurant. At a local Asian grocery, I have found round wrappers that are labelled for dumplings, and are thicker. That is what I used. They worked out better. You can play around with fillings, too. I used shrimp this time, but have also used chicken and pork as fillings for the wontons.

Wonton Soup

¾ lb. pork chops
1 head bok choy
3 T. hoisen sauce
8 oz. cooked shrimp, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
24 won ton wrappers
2 qts. chicken stock
1 t. ginger
1 t. hot pepper sauce
Chopped green onions
Sesame oil

Bake the pork until cooked. I used boneless pork chops and seasoned them with salt, pepper and garlic. Once cooled, I cut it into thin strips. Set aside until needed for the soup. I then took stems from the bok choy and minced enough of them to make 1 cup. Combine the minced shrimp with minced bok choy, the hoisen and the garlic. This is the filling for your wontons. Slice more of the bok choy- using mainly the leaves, into thin shreds. This will go into the soup later, along with the strips of pork. You should have at least a couple of cups of the shredded bok choy, but more is OK, too. To make the wontons place one on your work surface and spoon a rounded teaspoon of the filling into the middle of it. Moisten edge with water, fold in half and press to seal. I used round wrappers, but square wrappers are fine, too. Repeat with remaining wontons and fillings until done. Bring stock to a boil and add the ginger and hot sauce. Add the bok choy to the simmering stock. Simmer gently for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the strips of pork and the wontons. Cook about 4-5 minutes longer. Finish soup with chopped green onions and a drizzle of sesame oil. Serves 6-8.

Banana Oatmeal Bread

Funny how things work out in the end. I wasn’t planning on making banana bread, but I did. It all had to do with Chinese New Year. This will all make sense, I promise.

We had delayed celebrating Chinese New Year because a couple of friends were out of the country. Once they came home, my friend Amy and I started planning the menu. You have to understand Amy, to know that the whole dinner theme had to work. You see, it is the Year of the Monkey. She wanted at least one thing to have some monkey reference to it. Amy thought maybe a banana dessert, and I had suggested monkey bread. This was all pretty last minute, so I picked up bananas at the store, just in case.

In the end, I made the monkey bread, but forgot about the bananas. I found them last night, still in the grocery bag, all nice and ripe- so I made the banana oatmeal bread. I didn’t need the bread. I could have frozen the bananas and made it at some later date. It had been a long day and I was really tired.  But for some reason I made it anyway.

This morning, I get a call from my brother. He wanted some baked gift for a neighbor who had done something nice for him. Could I help him out? I could, indeed. He seemed pretty impressed when I dropped it off 10 minutes later.

I don’t think there is any deep message here, or special meaning. It’s just that sometimes, things work out. It feels good when it happens.

The bread is actually a really nice recipe. Moist, not too sweet, and a little extra boost of fiber from the oatmeal. It can be a dessert, snack or breakfast. It freezes well, too. So if you have a lot of bananas, make a couple and freeze one for later.

Banana Oatmeal Bread

½ c. butter, softened
¾ c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. mashed bananas
1 t. vanilla extract
1½ c. flour
½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
½ c. oats, regular or quick cooking
½ c. chopped nuts, optional

Preheat oven to 350-degrees and grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time until well mixed. Stir in bananas and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and add to banana mixture. Beat well and stir in oats and nuts. Place batter in prepared pan and bake for 50-55 minutes, test for doneness with a toothpick. Cool 10 minutes and remove to cooling rack. Makes 1 loaf.