King Cake

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King Cake

If you are planning a Mardi Gras party, you will want a King Cake. King Cakes are a long-standing tradition in New Orleans at Mardi Gras. A small plastic baby is often hidden in the cake, although you can use a bean or even a whole pecan or almond.

Tradition has it that the guest who finds the “surprise” in their piece will host next year’s party. Be careful to warn guest so they don’t break a tooth or swallow the “prize”.  You can also use the whole nuts inside the cake and just set the baby on top of the cake when serving.

The “cake” is really a sweet cinnamon swirl bread.  The yeast dough is rolled out, spread with butter and cinnamon sugar, and rolled up. Then the dough is shaped into an oval shape.

After it is baked, the king cake is decorated with colorful frostings, sugars or both. Traditionally the colors used are yellow, green and purple, but, hey it’s your cake have fun with it.

If you want just the sugars, and no frosting, then brush the king cake with a beaten egg before baking and sprinkle with the sugar then. Otherwise, you’ll decorate the cake once baked and cooled.

King Cake

1/4 c. butter

16 oz. container sour cream

1/3 c. sugar

1 t. salt

2 packages active dry yeast

1 T. sugar

1/2 c. warm water

2 eggs

6 /2 c. flour

1/2 c. white sugar

1 1/2 t. cinnamon

1/3 c. butter, softened

Colored sugars and frostings (recipes follow)

Heat together the first 4 ingredient to about 100 degrees. Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in large bowl and let stand 5 minutes. Add butter mixture, eggs and 2 cups of the flour. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed and gradually work in enough flour to form a soft dough. Knead until smooth and elastic, about ten minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to grease top and cover. Allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Stir together 1/2 c. sugar with cinnamon and set aside. Punch dough down and divide in half. Roll out one piece of dough into a 28×10-inch rectangle. Spread dough with half of the butter and sprinkle with half of the sugar mixture. Starting at long end roll up jelly roll fashion and pinch seam to seal. Shape dough into an oval shape and pinch ends together. Place seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining piece of dough except remember to add the toy baby, nut or bean if you want the “surprise”. Cover and let rise about 20 minutes. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool before decorating with tinted frostings and colored sugars. Makes 2, serving 24.

Frostings

3 c. powdered sugar

3 T. melted butter

3 t. milk

1/2 t. vanilla

Green, yellow, red and blue food coloring

Combine sugar and butter and add enough milk to make the glaze a drizzling consistency. Add vanilla and divide mixture in three small bowls. Tint one bowl yellow, one green and one purple, using both the red and blue food coloring. I often don’t bother to tint the frostings, but rely on the tinted sugars for color.

 

Tinted sugars

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

Food coloring

Place 1/2 c. sugar in each of three small bags and add a couple of drops of food coloring to each. One use yellow, one green and one both the red and blue for purple. Shake the bags to distribute the color. You should only need a couple of drops of each.

 

Decorate the cake by making bands of the colored frostings and then sprinkling on the sugars.

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Scrooge 2.0

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I was thinking the other day, about how popular the story, A Christmas Carol, still is today. Charles Dickens first published the story in 1843. Dozens of versions of the story have been made into movies.

When someone is called a Scrooge, we certainly know what they mean. It isn’t good.

But, if you think about it, it is kind of unfair to old Ebenezer.

He was an awful person. Stingy, cold and uncaring. But he changed. Isn’t that the whole point of the story?  In Scrooge’s case it took three ghosts to wake him up. The point is, he woke up, before it was too late.

So I think we all have the chance to choose which Scrooge we want to be. We can be the first Scrooge, who makes poor Bob Crachit work long hours, for little pay, and cares more about money than people. It is a pretty lonely life.

Or we can be the second Scrooge. Scrooge 2.0, if you like. This is the guy who learns to love again. He learns to care and to find a generosity of spirit. According to the story, he lived the rest of his life that way. Better late, than never.

So what makes someone the new and improved version of Scrooge?

Well, the obvious stuff is to be generous. Which does not have to mean giving money to people. You don’t have to give money away. Heck, you might not have money to spare. But if you can afford too, sharing some of it is a nice thing to do.

It is about being generous in spirit, though. Spending time with someone who needs the company.

It could mean donating your time to a charity, or just helping out a friend.

It means trying to accept people who think differently than you. This one can be hard- trust me.

It means not assuming people are poor because they are lazy. There are lots of reasons folks may be down on their luck.

It means being more patient.  This is one I need to work on- especially in traffic!!

It means treating people with love, rather than hate.

It means trying to find value in people- even if it isn’t always obvious.

It means being a little less judgemental.

Be nice to kids.

Be nice to animals.

It means loving yourself. You deserve to be loved.

 

I know there are plenty of the old Scrooges out there. Call me an optimist, I think a lot more people are like the new Scrooge. The Scrooge who knows what really matters in life. Most of those people didn’t have to be visited by three ghosts to figure that out, either.

I am also not sure we can change other people to be more caring and loving, at least not as easily as Dickens did. Dickens had three ghosts to help him out, after all.  But we can work on ourselves. In the end, only we are responsible for how we treat other people.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be in the post- dream Scrooge world? Surrounded by people who open their hearts to others, people who give, not for recognition, but just because it is the right thing to do.

I know those people are out there. I know a lot of them. I am blessed to have a lot of people like that in my life. I hope you are, too.

 

Happy Holidays.

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Dehydrating Vegetables

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Dehydrated Vegetables

I have dehydrating on my mind this week. I taught a couple of dehydrating classes, and I bought a new dehydrator. Nothing like a new toy to get you excited about doing something.

I preserve a lot of food by dehydrating it. Once you get over the initial investment in a dehydrator, the cost to dry food and to store dried food is pretty minimal. I just got a very nice dehydrator for $30. Not a big investment at all.

Dried fruits are probably the most common home dried foods. Apples, grapes, pineapple, strawberries and cherries are among my favorites. But the dried vegetables are so useful and versatile, I enjoy them as much as dried fruits. I think you will, too.

 

Drying Vegetables

Most vegetables should be dried at the lower range if you have an adjustable thermometer on your dehydrator-around 125-degrees. The big thing to know with vegetables is that some of them need to be blanched first. Blanching is just steaming the vegetables for a few minutes and draining, if needed, before drying. Blanching kills certain enzymes, prevents browning and assures a better end product.

Vegetables that need blanching include green beans, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, greens, winter squash, corn and beets; this is not a complete list, but a good start.

Vegetables that do not require blanching include onions, celery, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, spinach, zucchini, cucumbers and garlic and also herbs.

Broccoli and cauliflower do not dehydrate well.

Tomatoes are probably the best vegetable to dry for the home gardener and cook. They are so easy to make and so tasty. Just cut plum tomatoes in half and scoop out the seeds. Lightly spray the trays with non-stick spray and place the tomatoes cut side up for the first 12 hours. Turn them over after that until they are dried. I like them pretty crispy, but keep them in the freezer to keep their color and flavor longer. After a year they will turn black if stored at room temperature. Larger tomatoes can also be dried. Just cut them in slices and squeeze out the seeds. Cherry tomatoes are just cut in half and squeezed to get out the seeds. With small cherry tomatoes I just make a cut large enough to get out the seeds and leave them whole.

How do I use them?

Veggie chips-zucchini and cucumber slices can be used instead of chips in dip.

Powders- Tomatoes, celery, onion, pumpkin and garlic can all be powdered and used to flavor soups, stews sauces, cheeses, dips and more. I add powdered veggies to pasta dough. Mushroom powder is one of my favorite ingredients.

Reconstituted as fresh- potatoes in casseroles are wonderful.

Dips- Peppers, onion and celery all add great flavor.

To thicken sauces- Shredded zucchini, peppers, onions celery and tomatoes all work well this way.

Soups and Stews- most any dried vegetable is most often used this way. Easy to just let them simmer together until tender and all their flavors will enrich your stock

Chowders- Corn and potatoes are great in these dishes

Dried vegetables are best stored in a cool, dry place- I often freeze them for best shelf life.

Vegetables in photo: Starting left with bright green and going clockwise: Celery, potatoes, red peppers, mushrooms, carrots, cucumbers, onions and tomatoes. In the center- mixed sweet peppers.

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My Favorite Chocolate Frosting

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Chocolate Frosting on a Chocolate Cupcake

When a friend asked for something chocolate for her birthday dessert, I knew I was going to make cupcakes. I also knew what frosting I was going to make to top them.

This frosting is really wonderful. Creamy, full of chocolate flavor and not too sweet. Dark chocolate is melted, then little cubes of cold butter are beaten in. The frosting is finished with some powdered sugar and a little vanilla.

Super simple to make, but so good. I used dark chocolate chips, but any dark or bittersweet chocolate could be used. If you are using a solid block of chocolate, break it up into pieces before melting. You can melt chocolate over a double boiler, or use your microwave. I used my microwave. I heated the chocolate for one minute, stirred it and heated 30 seconds longer. Be careful not to burn the chocolate, when using a microwave.

There is plenty of frosting to ice 24 cupcakes. You could frost up to 30 cupcakes, if you use less.

 

Here is the recipe.

 

My Favorite Chocolate Frosting

 

12 oz. bittersweet chocolate – you can use dark chocolate chips

1 c. cold butter, cut into cubes

1 c. powdered sugar- or a little more- if you like

2 t. vanilla

 

Melt chocolate and place in a mixing bowl. Let cool 2 minutes. With electric mixer on high speed, beat in the butter bits, adding about ¼ of them at a time. Beat until butter is melted, and incorporated into the chocolate. Beat in the powdered sugar and vanilla.  Beat a few minutes, until frosting is creamy and smooth. Makes enough to generously frost an 8 or 9-inch layer cake or 24 cupcakes.

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Pizza Day in Teen Cooking Camp

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The kids made great pizzas today. We even had enough time to make some tortilla pizzas. They made their own dough, rolled it out, and topped them according to their preferences.

The fresh basil I brought in was a big hit, and a number of the kids opted to add it to their pizzas.

 

 

Here are pics of what they did.

 

 

Posted in Cooking |

Cupcake Baking in Cooking Camp

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The kids baked and decorated cupcakes today in camp. This week’s camp is with teenagers. It is a little different with older kids.

Don’t get me wrong. I adore the little kids, but the older kids are more self reliant. In all, they baked 8 dozen cupcakes- which meant 8 cupcakes per child. I gave them a few pointers for frosting and decorating,then let them just be creative.

Here is some of what they did.

 

 

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Fun with Fruit in Cooking Camp

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Today was all about fruit in cooking camp. The kids made smoothies and several fruit sorbets. They also worked in two teams to make a fruit tray using strawberries, blueberries, mango, watermelon, pineapple, red grapes and cherries.They also had knives and cherry pitters to help them.

They were to make a display that looked like something. The idea was for them to create the fruit tray- and then see if I knew what they had created. One team created a fruit volcano, the other team a day at the beach. I thought they were all very creative. Below are some of the pics from class- and some fun recipes using fruit.

 

Pink Lemonade

2 qts. prepared lemonade

1 pint strawberries, washed and hulled

 

Place berries in blender and add about 2 cups of the lemonade. Process until strawberries are pureed. Add strawberry mixture to the remaining lemonade. Serve over ice, garnishing with whole berries, if desired. Watch as seeds will accumulate on the bottom of the pitcher.

 

Red, White and Blue Fruit Salad

 

1 large pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into cubes

1 qt. strawberries, washed and hulled

2 pts. blueberries, washed

Toss all together and chill about 1 hour before serving. Makes 8-10 servings.

 

Strawberry Sorbet

2 c. fresh or frozen strawberries (allow frozen berries to thaw a little first)

1/4 c. sugar, or to taste

3 T. fresh lemon juice

Place ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place in shallow pan and freeze. If you are using frozen berries re-freezing will take only about 1 hour. Up to 30 minutes before serving remove sorbet from freezer and allow to soften enough to break into chunks. Place in processor and blend again until very smooth. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

 

Fruit Smoothie

1 can (6 oz.) frozen orange juice concentrate

1 large ripe banana, sliced or 1 1/2 c. sliced fresh of frozen strawberries, or 1 1/2 c. sliced fresh, frozen or canned peaches

1 1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. water

2 T. honey

4-6 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in blender, except the ice cubes and blend until smooth, about 1 minute. Add ice cubes and blend 1 minute more until thick and frothy. Serves 5.

 

                                                                Sun Fruit Salad

2 medium bananas, peeled and sliced

1 8oz. carton lemon yogurt

2 T. sugar

2 t. lemon juice

lettuce leaves

8 c. cut up fruit, using what is seasonal

1/4 c. toasted nuts

 

For dressing in blender combine bananas with yogurt, sugar, lemon juice and blend until smooth. To serve arrange lettuce on serving plates. Divide fruit among plates and drizzle with dressing. Makes 8 servings.

 

Grapescicles

Freeze green or red seedless grapes. Eat right out of the freezer. Great snack in hot weather.

 

Watermelon Pops

2 c. seeded chopped watermelon

1 c. apple juice

1/2 c. chocolate chips or raisins

 

Combine watermelon and juice in blender until smooth. Pour into a shallow pan and freeze until thickened. Fold in chips or raisins and pour into Dixie cups. Cover with foil and insert sticks. Freeze until firm, makes 6-8.

Making their fruit trays

Fruit volcano

A Day at the Beach

Strawberry, cherry, cranberry sorbet

 

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Cookie Baking Day in Camp

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Cookie Candies

This is always a favorite day in cooking camp. A hot day, and a kitchen with no air conditioning, did not deter the kids from baking cookies- a lot of cookies. They did such a great job. Here are the recipes for the cookies we made and some pictures I took of their creations.

 

 

Versatile 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.

 

Cookie-Candies

1 c. butter or margarine

¾ c. powdered sugar

1 T. vanilla

2 c. flour

½ c. rolled oats

½ c. chocolate chips

¼ c. milk

finely chopped nuts

assorted sprinkles

shredded coconut

 

Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla. Stir in flour and oats. Shape teaspoonfuls of the dough into different shapes like rounds, ovals, cones cubes etc. Try to make them look like little candies. They will hold their shape very well while baking. Bake in a 325- degree oven for 20-25 minutes on an ungreased baking sheet. Cool. In microwave safe dish combine chocolate and milk and melt. Dip tops of cookies in chocolate mixture and then in one of the toppings you have. Chocolate topping will harden up after a while. Makes about 4 dozen.

Chocolate Sparkles

1 c. butter or margarine, softened

1 ¼ c. sugar

2 eggs

2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted

½ t. vanilla

2 2/3 c. flour

2 t. cream of tartar

1 t. baking soda

½ t. salt

¼ c. sugar

 

Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, chocolate and vanilla. Stir in next four ingredients. Chill dough. Shape dough into 1” balls and roll in ¼ cup sugar. Place about 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 400- degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Makes 5-6 dozen.

 

 

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4th of July

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So what is the 4th of July about? Cookouts and noisy celebrations abound, but what is it we are celebrating? We are celebrating revolution, protestors and people who fought their government.

We were a colony, ruled by a monarchy. Had it not been for those who saw injustice, and tried to fix it, we would be bowing to the queen today. They were brave and very forward thinking.

Had the Revolutionary War gone the other way, they certainly would have been hung as traitors. I’m not sure how many of us today would be that brave.

So in your daily life, remember and honor the rebel. If you see an injustice, speak up. Do something to make this country better.

There is always room for improvement, after all. Think about the people who risked death to fight for the freedom we enjoy today. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Don’t ever take that for granted.

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Garlic Scapes Hummus

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Garlic Scapes Hummus

Around here, garlic scapes are in season and being eaten a lot. I find myself cooking with them in everything I can. Everyone seems to be talking about scapes and looking for new ways to use them. There is even a word for it – scorpacciata.

Scorpacciata is an Italian word that means consuming large amounts of a particular local ingredient while it’s in season. I heard Mario Batali use it once.

Scapes, if you didn’t know, are the tops of hard-neck variety garlic. They are cut off this time to year- to help the plants produce larger heads. They curl as they grow. You should be able to find them at your local farm market. They can be eaten raw or cooked. They can be a little woody when raw.

This time, I steamed the scapes, and added them to my hummus. The end result was really good. The scapes replaced the garlic cloves, adding their own personality to the dish. I switched the dish up a little more, by using avocado oil, instead of the traditional olive oil.

So here is one more recipe to use those lovely, seasonal garlic scapes.

 

 

Garlic Scapes Hummus

 

1 can garbanzo beans, drained- I used a one pint jar of home canned

½ c. chopped garlic scapes- 1 or 2 garlic scapes- steamed 5 minutes and chopped

¼ c. olive oil or avocado oil

2 T. lemon juice – about 1 lemon

2 T. tahini (sesame seed paste)

salt and hot pepper sauce to taste

 

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth. Adjust seasonings. Chill. Serve with pita bread, crackers or fresh vegetables. Also nice spread in a pita bread with sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Freezes well.

Garlic Scapes

 

 

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