The Charmed Kitchen

Peach Pancakes

Fresh peaches are one of my favorite fruits. Got a few more at the local farm market than I could eat fresh, so I have been cooking with them. I thought adding them to pancakes might be a good idea. I was right. The pancakes were so good. They were fluffy, studded with diced fruit and very tender. I added some cinnamon and vanilla to the batter for extra flavor. I served them with a little local maple syrup. Shared them with a friend- who also thought they were yummy. Here is the recipe. Enjoy!!

Peach Pancakes

2-3 peaches, pitted and diced – I left the peels on
¼ c. sugar
1 2/3 c. flour
3 T. brown sugar
4 t. baking powder
1-2 t. cinnamon
½ t. salt
2 eggs, beaten
1¼ c. half and half
¼ c. oil
2 t. vanilla

Place diced peaches in a small bowl with the sugar and stir until sugar is dissolved. Best if you can let this mixture sit for a couple of hours. I did it the night before and left them in the fridge overnight, to get juices out of the fruit. If you just can’t wait- leave the peaches steeping for at least 30 minutes. Mix dry ingredients together and set aside. In another bowl combine the eggs with the half and half, oil and vanilla. Stir in peaches, with any juices, into egg mixture. Fold in dry ingredients until just mixed. Oil a hot skillet or griddle and spoon batter into pan- about ¼-1/3 cup at a time. Cook over medium-low heat, flip when pancakes appear a little dry around the edges. Keep pancakes warm until all of them are cooked. Makes 10-12- or more- depending on the size you make them.

Beet and Carrot Salad

I enjoy the sweetness of both beets and carrots. This simple and tasty dish combines the earthy flavors of both vegetables in a raw salad. It’s a great side dish, and nice to make on a day when it is too hot to cook. I had some on a bed of greens with a couple of hard cooked eggs for lunch.

 Beet and Carrot Salad

1 large- or 2 medium- beets

2 large carrots

4 T. olive oil

4 T. cider vinegar

2 T. honey, or to taste

1 t. fresh dill weed or about 1/2 t. dried

dash of hot sauce

salt and pepper to taste

Peel beets and shred or grate them using a hand grater or food processor. Place in a mixing bowl and set aside. Peel and shred the carrots and add to the beets. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over the beet mixture. Stir to coat and chill until ready to serve. Makes about 3 cups.

Peachy Chef Salad

I was asked to do a cooking demo using local, seasonal produce. I made several dishes that night, including a salad made with fresh peaches. It’s a simple recipe, that is a great meal for a hot day. A Honey-French dressing is combined with fresh, diced peaches and served over a bed of greens. Then, top the salad with cheese, meats or both. You can add some nuts, too, if you like. I made it for lunch today and topped the salad with sharp cheddar cheese. A friend added bacon, too. Either way, the salad was very tasty.

Peachy Chef Salad

Dressing:
1/3 c. honey
1/4 c. white wine vinegar or cider vinegar
1 t. paprika
1 t. dry mustard
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. olive oil

3 cups chopped peaches

Salad:

6 c. torn salad greens
12 oz. cooked chicken, turkey, ham etc, cut into strips
1 c. cubed cheese

1/2 c. cashews, optional

In blender, combine first five ingredients and start running machine on high. Add oil in a slow stream until mixture becomes thickened. Pour into bowl and stir in peaches and chill, several hours if you can. When ready to serve arrange greens on one large platter or on smaller salad plates. Arrange meat and cheese on platter or plates. Spoon over the dressing, add cashews, then serve. Serves 4-6.

Peachy Chef Salad with Cheese and Bacon

I got this recipe from a friend of a friend. I tweaked it a little from the original, but it is pretty much the same. It is so simple and a great soup for a hot day. The sweetness of the watermelon pairs nicely with the earthy flavor of the beets. The mint also adds a nice little pop of flavor. The color is pretty cool, too. I shared this recipe with a friend and she said she just drinks it like a smoothie. I find it a refreshing start to any meal, especially on a hot day.

Cold Beet and Watermelon Soup

1 part diced beet (cooked)

1 part diced seedless watermelon

a spring of mint

Put in blender

Add Chicken or Vegetable stock to taste/consistency

Add salt if desired

Dollop with Creme Fraiche or Sour Cream or even Greek Yogurt, if desired.

Garnish with fresh mint.

With any cold soup- chill well after you make it. You might even want to chill the bowls and spoons.

Chocolate Beet Cake

This recipe came up in conversation with some friends the other day. I have posted it before, but decided it was a good time to post it again. When I say beet cake, a lot of people give me a funny look. First, there are the beet haters, and you know who you are. The people who just don’t like the taste of beets. I get that, beets are an acquired taste. Then there are the people who like beets, but could never picture them in a cake. I bake cakes with carrots in them, and zucchini and even parsnips. Adding veggies to a cake is not so far off. The beets add a subtle red color to the cake, but they also add moistness. The end result is a cake that is full of flavor and has a wonderful, moist texture. Truth is, I don’t really taste the beets in the cake much at all. I taste the chocolate. So here is the chocolate beet cake recipe. I hope you enjoy it.

Chocolate Beet Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup cocoa powder

3 large eggs, beaten

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons oil

1½ cups grated cooked beets

2 teaspoons vanilla

Powdered sugar, optional, or cream cheese frosting- recipe below

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine flour, soda, salt, sugar and cocoa in a bowl; set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs and oil. Beat in vanilla and continue beating until well blended. Slowly beat in dry ingredients until well mixed; stir in beets. Pour into a greased and floured 9×13-inch baking pan. Bake at 350° for 25 to 35 minutes, or until cake bounces back when touched lightly with finger. Cool in pan on a rack. Frost cooled cake or dust with powdered sugar.

Frosting recipe:

8 oz. Cream cheese, softened

3/4 c. powdered sugar- or more to taste

1 stick butter, room temperature

Beat all together until fluffy. Frost cake and refrigerate until ready to eat.

I was so happy to be on New Day Cleveland recently. Got a chance to talk about cooking with herbs and also a little about how to preserve them. Thanks to David Moss and the rest of the crew for making me feel so welcome.

http://fox8.com/2015/08/12/how-to-use-and-preserve-your-summer-herbs/

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Roasted Beet Salad

I got these beautiful beets a couple of days ago. Very fresh and the leaves are even dark red. I had been thinking of how I wanted to cook them. Decided to roast them and then go from there. To roast beets: just wash them and trim off the greens- leaving about an inch of the stems to reduce bleeding. Place beets in a roasting pan and drizzle with a little oil. Cover pan and place in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes. Smaller beets will be cooked in less time- about 35 minutes. Really large beets could take up to an hour. I always check by poking one of the beets with a fork. Let the beets cool a little and then remove the peels. I use a knife to do this. They come off quite easily.

I used three small beets to make this salad for lunch. A friend was stopping in and it was hot. I wanted something cool and refreshing.

Roasted Beet Salad

1 small head Bibb lettuce, washed and sliced into thin slices

2 c. beet greens, washed and sliced thin

1/4 c. olive oil

3 T. red wine vinegar

2 t. sugar, optional

3 small roasted beets, peeled

1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese

1/4 c. hulled pumpkin seeds, toasted

1/4 c. dried cherries

sliced cooked steak, optional

coarse sea salt- I used pink salt

Combine lettuce and beet greens in a mixing bowl. Combine olive oil with vinegar and sugar, if using. Add salt and pepper to taste and toss over the greens. Slice beets. Divide greens on 2 salad plates. Arrange half of the beets on each salad and top with the rest of the ingredients. Sprinkle with a few grains of the sea salt and serve. Makes 2 luncheon salads.

Homemade Graham Crackers

This whole project of making graham crackers started with an innocent conversation with a friend. I had made marshmallows. It was winter and we enjoyed them in hot cocoa. Homemade marshmallows are so much better than store bought, and are pretty easy to make. My friend was talking about what wonderful S’mores they would make. I said something about if I was going to make marshmallows I could make graham crackers, too. We decided to make them some time in this summer. So here we are. I wanted to make something special for a friend’s birthday and she loves S’mores. Seemed like the right time.

I had made graham crackers before, but it had been years. They weren’t all that hard to make. Rolling them to the right thickness was the hardest part. You want them pretty thin, but not too thin. I think my first batch was too thin. It got easier as I went along.  They taste really good and are not as sweet as grahams crackers you get at the store. If you like a sweeter cracker, add a little more sugar. I like them the way they are.  Here is the recipe. The link to the marshmallow recipe is at the bottom of the post. Now I just have to get chocolate and we are good to go.

Graham Crackers

1 c. whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. sugar
½ t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking powder
1 large egg
¼ c. oil
¼ c. honey
2 to 3 tablespoons milk
additional milk for glaze
cinnamon-sugar (optional)
In a mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking powder. In a separate bowl, beat egg till light, add oil, honey and 2 tablespoons milk. Stir into dry ingredients until you have a fairly stiff dough, adding additional milk if necessary. Wrap dough in waxed paper and chill until firm, about 1 hour (or longer, if it’s more convenient).

Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead gently until it holds together. Roll dough out till it’s about 1/16-inch thick; make sure rolling surface is well-floured, or you’ll have trouble transferring crackers to baking sheet. Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Cut dough into 3-inch squares, prick each square several times with a fork, and place on lightly greased cookie sheets. Brush the tops with milk, sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar if you’re so inclined, and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until crackers are lightly browned. Remove crackers from oven, transfer to a wire cooling rack, and cool completely. Makes about 2 dozen graham crackers.

Homemade Marshmallows

As promised here is the recipe for making marshmallows. I’ve used this recipe for ages and what I like about it is that it is super easy and still gives you yummy marshmallows. I’ve seen more complicated versions- but why make life harder than it already is? The recipe calls for packets of gelatin. If you want to use sheet gelatin instead, which I did, the adjustments are in the directions. Ether works fine.

                       Marshmallows

1/2 c. cornstarch

1/2 c. powdered sugar

small amount of butter

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin, or 6 sheets of gelatin*

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/3 c. water

2/3 c. corn syrup

1/2 t. vanilla

Combine cornstarch and powdered sugar in a small bowl. Butter an 8x8x2 inch-baking pan. Sprinkle with some of the cornstarch mixture. Reserve the rest of the mixture for use later on. Combine the gelatin, granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until gelatin is dissolved.** Pour gelatin mixture into a large bowl, adding the corn syrup and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer on high speed for 15 minutes. Be precise on the timing. The mixture will be thick and fluffy, marshmallow cream, actually. Pour mixture into the prepared pan, spread evenly and refrigerate overnight. The next day, sift some of the reserved cornstarch mixture over the marshmallows. Sprinkle some more of the coating mixture on a work surface and turn the marshmallow out onto the prepared surface. Cut the marshmallows into 1-inch squares, coating as you go. The marshmallows are very sticky until completely coated. Allow to dry on a rack. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks. Makes about 4 dozen candies.

You can swap out flavorings- using maybe mint or lemon in place of the vanilla. You can also add a few drops of food coloring, if you like. Oh, and when you are at the rolling the pieces around in the cornstarch and powdered sugar stage of the process- don’t wear black. You’ll thank me later for that.

* Note: 3 sheets of sheet gelatin= one packet (1 tablespoon) of powdered gelatin.

** Note: If you are using sheet gelatin place it in the pan with COLD water and stir until dissolved. Then add the sugar and just cook, over medium-low heat until just warm, stirring often. Don’t let the mixture get too hot or the gelatin will not work.

Dissolve gelatin in water

Cook with water and sugar until warm

Basil Butter Cookies

I love basil so much I once owned a cat named Basil. I make pesto and use basil in almost every tomato dish I make. You don’t always have to use basil in savory dishes. Its flavor actually compliments sweet dishes, too. I used dried basil in these butter cookies and the flavor is wonderful. To add a little extra pop of flavor, I finished the cookies with a lemon glaze. Here is the recipe. I hope you like it.

Basil Butter Cookies with Lemon Glaze

1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
2 ¼ c. flour
1 T. dried basil
1 t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
Glaze
2 c. powdered sugar
2-3 T. lemon juice- or enough to make a thin glaze.

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. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet and bake in a preheated 375 –degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Cookies will flatten somewhat. Make glaze and dip the top of the cooled cookies in the glaze. Glaze will harden a little as the cookies set. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.