The Charmed Kitchen

Reuben Bread

This would make a great bread to serve for your Super Bowl party. I taught a bread baking class last week and we made one in class.  If you are looking for a twist on a Reuben sandwich try baking all the traditional ingredients into a loaf of bread. By using quick rising yeast, this bread can be ready to eat in right around an hour. It tastes amazing, and looks pretty impressive, too. Easier than you think, it will look like you spent all day making it. Plus, you can switch out the ingredients in all sorts of fun combinations.

 Rueben Bread

3 ¼ c. all purpose or bread flour, you can use a little rye flour, too

1 T. sugar

1 t. salt

1 package quick-rising yeast

1 c. hot water

1 T. oil

¼ c. thousand island dressing*

6-8 oz. thin sliced corned beef

4 oz. sliced Swiss cheese

1 c. sauerkraut, rinsed and squeezed dry

1 egg white, beaten

Caraway seeds

Set aside 1 cup of the flour. Combine remaining flour with the other dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in water and oil and gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Roll dough into a rectangle about 16 x 8. Spread dressing down center middle of dough. Top with meat slices, cheese and sauerkraut. Cut one-inch wide strips of dough from filling to edge on both sides. It will sort of look like fringe. Alternating sides, fold strips up and over the filling at an angle. Carefully lift loaf onto greased baking sheet and place at an angle. Cover with a towel and place sheet on top of a roasting pan half-filled with simmering water for 15 minutes. Brush with egg white and top with seeds. Bake in a preheated 400-degree for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly before slicing. Serve warm and refrigerate leftovers.

* You can make your own Thousand Island Dressing by combining equal parts of ketchup, mayo and sweet pickle relish.

Note: The variations for this bread are almost endless. Some favorite combinations are ham and Swiss with mustard, roast beef and cheddar, chicken, broccoli and cheese, Spinach with ricotta or feta and onions, pizza, assorted fillings. You get the idea. Use your imagination and have fun. Just be careful not to overfill, or the bread will be hard to move, use fillings that aren’t too runny and always use cold fillings.

If you want to use regular yeast use warm, rather than hot water. Also, don’t let dough rise over boiling water. After kneading cover dough and let rise 45 minutes. Punch down and assemble as in original recipe. Cover with a towel and let rise until dough looks puffy, about 40 minutes. Bake as directed above. These breads can also be frozen.

Red Lentil Soup with Curry

It was chilly and I had a taste for soup. I needed something quick, so I decided to use red lentils. The name is a little misleading. Red lentils are more a salmon color than red, and they cook to a pale yellow. Tasty, no matter the color. They  are smaller than the more common brown lentils and they cook quickly. They are tender in as little as 10 minutes. For this soup, since I wanted to puree them, I let them cook until really tender, about 20 minutes. The soup came out quite nice. I topped it with a little sesame oil and basil, for added flavor. The cashews added some crunch.

You can also use red lentils to thicken a soup without flour. Just add a few and let them coo 20 minutes or longer. They will begin to fall apart and thicken the soup.

Red Lentil Soup with Curry

2 t. oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 c. stock- I used chicken, but veggie stock would work
2 c. red lentils
1-2 T. curry powder – add according to your taste
2 t. turmeric
Salt and pepper to taste
Sesame oil
Basil, cut into thin strips
Cashews

Heat oil in stockpot and cook onions until golden brown. Add the garlic and cook another couple of minutes. Add stock and heat to a boil. Rinse lentils and add to the pan. Cook at a simmer, covered, until lentils are soft- about 20 minutes. Add seasonings and adjust to your taste. Puree soup until smooth. Thin soup with additional stock or even water, if needed. Ladle soup into bowls and top each with a drizzle of sesame oil, some basil and a few cashews. Serves 4-6.

Crab Rangoons

If you are looking for appetizers for the Super Bowl, you might want to make Crab Rangoons.  These tasty bundles of crabby/ cheesy goodness are so simple to make. Because they are small- I don’t use a lot of oil to deep fry them. Just a couple of cups of oil in a small saucepan- fry a few at a time and you are done in no time at all. Of course, if you have a big crowd over for the game, you might want to use a bigger pot with more oil.

Crab Rangoons

1 can (6 oz.) crab meat,drained well

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese

dash of hot sauce

wonton wrappers

oil for frying

Combine crab meat with cream cheese and hot sauce. Place a wonton wrapper on work surface and place a teaspoonful of the crab filling in the middle. Fold 2 corners in to just touch. Take one of the remaining corners and roll up into a tiny roll. Dampen edge with a little water to affix. Repeat with remaining filling. You should get a several dozen. Pour 1-inch of oil into a small saucepan and heat to 350 degrees.  Fry rangoons a few at a time until golden and drain on paper toweling. Keep warm in 300-degree oven until ready to serve- but best served right after you make them. Serve with Sweet and Sour Sauce.

Pineapple Glazed Chicken Wings

Rumor has it that chicken wings are one of the most popular appetizers served on Super Bowl Sunday. If you want something different than Buffalo Style wings, you might want to try them with a pineapple sweet and sour glaze. No matter who you are cheering for- your guests will cheer for these.

Sweet and Sour Glazed Chicken Wings

12 chicken wings

1 medium onion, chopped

1 can (or jar) of pineapple chunks, drained, reserving liquid- I used a pint jar- if using store bought use the 20 oz. can.

salt and pepper

Sauce:

1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1/2 c. sugar

3 T. ketchup

3 T. sherry

2 T. soy sauce

1 t. minced garlic

1 t. red pepper flakes

reserved pineapple juice

3 T. cornstarch

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place wings in pan and season with salt and pepper. Bake chicken wings in roasting pan for 20 minutes. Add the onions and pineapple chunks to the pan with the chicken wings and return to the oven for 30 minutes longer. While chicken is cooking combine the first seven sauce  ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil. Check baking pan for any juices- Spoon them out and add to the sauce. Combine pineapple juice and cornstarch in small bowl, stirring until smooth and add to the sauce. Return to boil and stir until sauce is thickened and bubbly. Pour hot sauce over chicken and return to the oven to bake 20-30 minutes longer or until wings look nicely glazed and sauce has started to brown. Serves 3-4.

Brussels Sprout Soup

I love Brussels sprouts, but wanted to try them in a new way. I’ve roasted them, steamed them and enjoyed them in salads. I tried them in soup this time and really liked it. Simple, tasty and nutritious, too.

Brussels Sprouts Soup

2 T. olive oil
2 onions, peeled and sliced thin
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. diced ham
4-5 c. chicken stock
1 lb. Brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced thin
2 T. chopped parsley
1 t. thyme
Hot sauce to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in pot and add onions. Cook until onions are wilted and add carrots and garlic. Sauté a couple of minutes and add the ham. Cook a few more minutes, then add the stock and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered, until the carrots are tender, about 5 minutes. Add the Brussels sprouts and seasonings and cook until sprouts are tender- about 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings and serve. Serves 4-5.

Orange Scented Brownies

I had this idea that should have been so simple. Make brownies, but add some orange juice and orange zest for some extra flavor. I wanted something special for a dinner with friends.

Well, the brownies came out fine, but I thought they looked a little plain to take to a dinner. For some reason, I did not want to frost them. I decided a simple orange glaze would be better.

I was wrong.

I took a cup, or a little more, of powdered sugar and mixed it with just enough orange juice to make a thin glaze, which I poured over the brownies. The glaze was thin and the surface of the brownies kind of lumpy. They just did not look nice enough to take to a party.

I thought I might fix the problem by dusting the brownies with powdered sugar. I do that with brownies all the time and it looks nice. Sadly, my glaze had hardened by this time. When I tried to dust the powdered sugar on the brownies it just sort of slid around back and forth. I tilted the pan and tapped most of the powdered sugar off. Now they looked even worse.

Well, even though I did not want to frost them in the beginning- I really felt these brownies did not need frosting- frosting it had to be. I had to have something presentable to take to my friends’ house. So I grabbed a stick of butter out of the fridge and put together a simple cocoa-orange butter cream.

I have to say, I like them with the frosting.  I kind of wish I had just made the buttercream to begin with. But I didn’t.

Sometimes we just need to experiment when cooking, as in life. Sometimes, it is perfect right from the beginning. Other times, you patch over your mistakes and move forward. In this case, the brownies are a little bit of both. The important part, I guess, is to finish what we start. And don’t beat yourself up. Few things in life are perfect. Hope my friends like them….

Orange Scented Brownies

4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
¾ c. butter
1¼ c. flour
1 t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
1 ¾ c. sugar
3 eggs
¼ c. orange juice
2 t. vanilla
Zest of one orange
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13×9 inch baking pan. Melt together chocolate and butter. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Into chocolate mixture stir in sugar, then beat in eggs, juice, vanilla and orange zest. Stir in flour mixture. Spread in prepared pan and bake 20-25 minutes until brownies are firm around the edges. Cool before frosting. Makes 24.

Chocolate- Orange Buttercream

1 stick butter (½ cup) softened
2 c. powdered sugar
¾ -1 cup unsweetened cocoa
4 T. orange juice
1 t. vanilla
1 t. orange zest

In medium bowl, beat together the butter and powdered sugar. Gradually add the cocoa and a couple of tablespoons of the orange juice. Beat until light and fluffy. This takes a few minutes. Add the rest of the orange juice, a little at a time and the vanilla and orange zest. Frost cooled brownies.

Cinnamon-Vanilla Belgian Waffles

No one ever complains when you make waffles for breakfast. Or if you  make waffles for lunch or dinner, for that matter. But the response is even better when you make Belgian waffles. At least that has been my experience.  My theory is, that because Belgian waffles are bigger, people love them even more.  These waffles are light and rich at the same time. They can be used as a dessert, too. For dessert just top them with ice cream, chocolate sauce or whipped cream – or all three. You can even freeze any extras. Oh, who are we kidding? There aren’t going to be leftovers. But if there were, you could freeze them.

Cinnamon-Vanilla Belgian Waffles

2 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
2 eggs, separated
1-1/2 cups half and half- or milk
1 cup butter, melted
2 t. vanilla extract

Sliced fresh strawberries, powdered sugar or syrup

In a bowl, combine dry ingredients. In another bowl, lightly beat egg yolks. Add milk, butter and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until combined. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; fold into batter. Bake in a preheated waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions until golden brown. Serve with strawberries, powdered sugar or syrup. Yield: 10 waffles (about 4-1/2 inches).