It’s funny when you think about it. People spend tons of money to
eradicate dandelions from their lawns, but will go to an upscale
restaurant and pay good money for a salad with mixed greens including
dandelions. Dandelions were not always considered a weed. In fact,
immigrants brought the seeds to America as a vegetable.
While the greens can be bitter, they can also be tamed when paired
with certain ingredients. Combining dandelions with tomatoes, vinegar,
cheese or other dairy products, and bread or cereal products will make
them less bitter when eaten.
Dandelions are packed with nutrients, and if you don’t spray your yard with herbicides, you can likely find them under your own feet. Free, tasty and nutritious. Sounds like a win all around.
The plant is pretty much edible from top to bottom. The leaves for
salads, soups and other dishes. The flowers are used for wine, jelly and
the “burger” recipe at the bottom of this page. I recently baked
dandelion flowers into muffins. The roots are roasted and used as a
substitute for coffee. If you haven’t eaten dandelions before my only
question is, what are you waiting for?
A classic dish using dandelions is dandelion gravy. Some versions use
bacon, others not. This one uses bacon, sour cream and is served with
boiled potatoes.
Dandelion Gravy
Dandelion Gravy
4 strips bacon
3 T. flour
1 c. water
1 lb. dandelion greens, washed and chopped
½ c. sour cream
1 T. sugar
1 T. vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Hot boiled or baked potatoes
Fresh chopped parsley, optional
Chop bacon and cook in skillet until crisp. Leave bacon in the pan.
Remove all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat and stir in the flour
until smooth. Add water and dandelion greens and cook over medium heat
until greens are tender- about 5- 10 minutes. Add more water if mixture
is too thick. Turn off heat. Combine sour cream with sugar and vinegar
and stir into dandelion mixture. Adjust seasonings. Spoon gravy over
potatoes.
Serves 4.
Note: If you want leave out the bacon instead add 3 tablespoons of oil to skillet along with the flour.
The next 2 recipes come from Dr. Peter Gail, my mentor and dearly
loved friend. I will always remember Peter when I cook with dandelions.
Dandelion Pita Pizza
Pita bread, toasted English muffin, or toasted bread
Spaghetti or pizza sauce
Fresh dandelion greens of any age, chopped fine
Grated cheese (any kind)
Cover bread with sauce, add chopped greens, top with cheese, and toast in oven until cheese
melts. For a more sophisticated treat, chopped dandelion greens may be sauteed in olive oil with
onions, mushrooms and several cloves of crushed garlic, and then spread on the pizza and topped
with cheese.
Dandy Burgers
1 cup dandelion flowers, green removed
½ cup flour, any kind
1/4 cup onions, chopped fine
½ tsp salt ½ tsp garlic powder 1/4 tsp thyme 1/4 tsp basil 1/4 tsp rosemary 1/8 tsp pepper enough milk to make thick batter. Peel dandelion flowers and put in 4 quart mixing bowl. Add onions and mix together. Blend flour and seasonings together, add to the flowers and onions, and blend thoroughly. Add milk slowly, blending it in until you have a thick batter. Heat olive oil in frying pan to cover bottom. Form batter into golf-ball-sized balls. Place in oil, and squash down flat to make a 2″ diameter patty. Fry till brown on both sides. Remove and serve on small rolls as you would hamburger sliders.
This post is dedicated in loving memory of Dr. Peter Gail
These rich rolls are a traditional at Easter. At least they are in my
house. The dough is rich and slightly sweet. The frosting on top adds
to their sweetness.
Hot cross buns can be served at breakfast, brunch or even as a dinner roll. I have served them with coffee, after dinner. So I guess they can be a dessert, too. If you have leftover hot cross buns, you can use them to make bread pudding. I do!
Because the dough is rich, they are slow to rise. If they aren’t jumping out of the pan after an hour or so, don’t worry. They do rise quite a lot in the oven.
After they cool a bit- pipe on the icing in the crisscross pattern that gives these rolls their name.
Hot Cross Buns
2/3 c. sugar
1 t. salt
2 packages active dry yeast
About 5 cups bread flour
1 ½ c. milk
½ c. butter
2 eggs
1 c. raisins
Icing
¾ c. powdered sugar
1 T. milk
In bowl combine sugar, salt, yeast and about 1 ½ c. flour. Heat
together milk and butter until very warm. Beat milk mixture into to
flour mixture and beat 2 minutes with electric mixer. Beat in 1 egg and 1
cup flour and beat 2 more minutes until batter thickens. Stir in
raisins and enough additional flour to make a soft dough. Turn dough
onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, about 10 minutes. Place
dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top, cover with a towel and
allow to rise in a draft free place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Place dough on floured surface and divide into 15 equal pieces. Cover
with towel and lest rest 15 minutes. Meanwhile grease a 9×13 inch pan.
Form dough into smooth balls and place in prepared pan. Cover and let
rise until doubled, about an hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat
remaining egg. Cut a cross in each bun and brush with the egg. Bake for
25 minutes or until buns are golden. Remove buns to wire rack to cool 15
minutes. Make frosting, place in decorating bag and pipe onto buns.
Makes 15.
These cupcakes would make a great dessert for Easter- or any time. They are also a fun dessert for kids to make.
I started out by making a double batch of my classic white cupcakes- recipe follows.
I also made a double batch of white chocolate frosting. You could certainly make a vanilla buttercream, if you prefer.
To add a little color to the cupcakes, I divided the batter into three bowls and tinted each of them a different pastel color.
As I filled the pans, I just added a spoonful of each of the tinted
batters in them. They came out really nice. I made three different
cupcakes: bunnies, chicks and nests.
Details on how to make each of them are listed below.
Classic White (Vanilla) Cupcakes
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners. In a
medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one
at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder,
add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until
batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan. Bake 20 to
25 minutes. Cupcakes are done when they springs back to the touch.
Makes 12.
White Chocolate Frosting
6 oz. white chocolate – if using bars, chop before melting
1 stick (4 oz.) cold butter, cut into cubes
1-2 c. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
Melt chocolate. I just melt mine in a microwave safe dish, but you
can use a double boiler. Let chocolate cool down a little. Beat butter
into the melted chocolate. Beat until smooth and then beat in the
powdered sugar and vanilla. Whip until frosting is smooth and fluffy. I
normally beat for 5 minutes or longer. If too thick, add a few drops of
water or milk. For this recipe, I made a double batch of frosting.
Bunnies
extra white chocolate
food coloring- pink or red
chocolate chips
pastel ( pink) M&M’s
Make bunny ears by melting some white chocolate and putting it in a
piping bag or bottle. On wax paper, make outline of the ears in white
chocolate and allow to cool/harden. Place a drop or two of pink or red
food coloring in a microwave safe bowl and add some white chocolate.
Melt in microwave, being careful not to burn the chocolate and stir
until it turns pink. Pipe the pink chocolate into the middle of the
ears. Allow to harden before peeling off of the was paper. Using a star
tip, pipe frosting on cupcake. I made three layers – to add height to
the cupcake. place ears on cupcake and add chips/candy for eyes and
mouth.
Chicks
Frosting tinted yellow and green
mini chocolate chips
fruit roll up
Using star tip, pipe the chick’s body onto the cupcake in yellow
frosting. Pipe on head and wings. Pipe green frosting around chick to
form a nest. Use mini chips for eyes and cut fruit roll up for beak.
Nests
Frosting tinted green
egg shapes malted milk balls- or you could use jelly beans
Pipe green frosting on cupcakes to make nests. Add three, or more, candies in the middle for eggs.
I enjoy making pasta with veggie- based dough. The colors are so pretty, and I love the way they taste. So, since it is almost Easter, I went a step further and used my veggie-based dough to make pierogi.
They remind me a little of Easter eggs. I used a potato and cheese filling, so that part is pretty traditional. The pierogi are also a nice choice for a meat-free dinner.
I served them with sauteed onions and sour cream. Here is the recipe for the pasta and the pierogi filling.
Rainbow Pierogi
All of the vegetable doughs were mixed using a food processor. If
you want to mix them by hand- puree the veggies first. Once the doughs
are made allow them to rest at least 30 minutes. Since veggie pasta
dough tends to be a little softer than traditional pasta- I actually
prefer to make them a day ahead and chill. Chilling the dough, even for
an hour, will help. The traditional pierogi dough was mixed in a stand
mixer.
To make the pierogi a little sturdier, you can also make regular
pierogi dough and mix a little of that dough in with the veggie-based
doughs.
When ready to roll out your dough, grab a hunk of each dough and press them together. If the the dough is a little sticky that will help. On a floured surface, roll out to the desired thickness. Folding and rolling a couple of times helps to mix up the color pasta better. I use a template to make my pierogi- but you can cut them out with any round cutter or even a glass or jar. Spoon filling of your choice on center of dough circle. Fold dough in half over filling and press edge with fork to seal. Wetting the edge of the dough will help the dough to stick. Don’t overfill or pierogi will split. Test a couple first to get the hang of it. Place a few at a time, into salted boiling water, and cook until they float. You can eat them as is, or brown cooked pierogi in butter, in a skillet. Serve with grilled onions and/or sour cream. We would often make a larger batch and then freeze them, uncooked, on wax paper-lined baking sheets. When frozen they would be transferred to a freezer bag or container. Place right from the freezer into boiling water when ready to use.
Carrot Pasta
1 c. flour
1/2 t. dried dill
1/3 c. carrot puree
1-2 T. water, if needed
Beet Pasta
1 c. flour
1/2 t. dill
1/3 c. beet puree
1-2 T. water, if needed
Spinach Pasta
2 c. flour
1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, cooked, drained, reserving some of the liquid
Mix this dough as for other pastas, but don’t be too quick to add
reserved liquid. While kneading you’ll get water out of the spinach. May
require more kneading and rolling than other pasta doughs. Be patient,
it’s worth the work.
Classic Pierogi Dough
2 c. flour
1 t. salt
½ c. water (you can also use half milk and half water)
1 egg
Mix all ingredients together and knead on floured surface until smooth.
Cover and let rest at least 15 minutes. Roll out thin and cut into
circles. Re-roll scraps. You should get between 20-30.
Pierogi Filling
1 lb. Potatoes, peeled and boiled 4 oz. cream cheese – normally I would use farmer’s cheese or cottage cheese, but cream cheese was what I had 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese 1/4 c. chopped sweet onion, optional salt and pepper to taste Mash potatoes with other ingredients and season to taste.
Focaccia is a wonderful Italian flat bread. Baked in a jellyroll pan, it is about an inch thick, and is often used in savory dishes with cheese and other toppings. It is also sometimes split to make sandwiches. When I make focaccia, I often add sauteed shallots, garlic and fresh rosemary.
This time I made a lightly sweetened version. It only has 1/2 cup of brown sugar in it total- but gets a lot of natural sweetness from the dried fruit and orange juice. Loaded with dry fruits it is a great dessert, but could also be served for breakfast or brunch. If you have some dried fruit you were looking to use in something- this is a great recipe for that.
It is moist, and has a wonderful flavor and texture. You can leave it plain once baked, or add a powdered sugar glaze.
In a bowl combine the fruit and orange juice and let stand 20
minutes. Drain fruit, reserving 1 cup of the liquid. Heat liquid until
it is lukewarm. In the bowl of an electric mixture combine yeast with
warm juice and sugar and let stand 5 minutes. Add flour, half the brown
sugar, seasonings and butter and mix until dough is well-mixed. Knead
dough with dough hook for 5 minutes, dough will be sticky. Add fruit and
mix until evenly blended. Transfer dough to floured work surface and
just roll around to coat with the flour. Place in oiled bowl, turning to
oil top. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place to double,
about 11/2 hours.
Note: At this point, if you would rather, you can punch the dough
down and wrap it, then chill it overnight. Bring to room temperature
before continuing.
Press the dough into an oiled 15×10 inch jellyroll pan and let it
rise, loosely covered, for about 1 hour. Dimple the dough using your
fingertips and sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake in a
preheated 400-degree oven for about 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Can be served warm or at room temperature.
Note: The focaccia is just fine the way it is, but you can drizzle it
with a powdered sugar glaze, or dust with powdered sugar. It makes a
great breakfast dish, or the base for fruit shortcake,. If you wish to
use large pieces of fruit like apricots, pineapple or mangoes, dip
scissors in oil and use them to snip the fruit into smaller pieces. I
sometimes also add 1/2 c. chopped nuts to the dough when I add the
fruit.
Note: Any focaccia made with fruit, vegetables, meats or cheese
should be refrigerated. Also, baked focaccia can be wrapped well and
frozen for a couple of months. Just defrost in the wrapping and then
warm a little, if desired.
If you are
looking for a fun dish to serve for Easter, you might want to bake a
batch of bunnies. They can be served with Easter dinner, or with
breakfast or brunch.
The honey-sweetened yeast dough is rolled into ropes, and then the ropes are formed into these bunny shapes. After the rolls are baked, they are brushed with a mixture of warm honey and melted butter. This is a fun recipe to make with kids.
I make them every Easter. Sweet and so cute, they are sure to be a hit when you make them.
The dough is chilled before rolling, so you can mix up a batch in the
evening- put in the fridge- then roll them out the next day. They are
actually pretty easy to make.
You can add raisin “eyes”, if you like. It is an option.
Honey Bunnies
4-5 c. flour
2 packages yeast
1 t. salt
2/3 c. evaporated milk
½ c. each water, honey and butter
2 eggs
Raisins, optional
Honey glaze
1/2 c. honey and 1/4 c. butter or margarine heated together until warm.
In bowl combine 1 c. flour, yeast and salt. Heat together milk,
water, honey and butter until very warm and beat into the flour mixture.
Beat 2 minutes on high speed. Beat in 1 cup flour and eggs. Beat 2 more
minutes, until batter thickens. Stir in enough flour to make a stiff
batter and chill, covered with plastic wrap for 2-24 hours.
Place dough on lightly floured surface and divide into 15 equal
pieces. Roll one piece of dough into a 20- inch rope. Cut rope into a
12- inch piece, a 5-inch piece and 3 one-inch pieces. Coil 12 inch piece
to form body, five inch piece to form head and one inch pieces to form
ears and tail. Place the body on greased cookie sheet and then place the
head next to the body, making sure they are touching. Place ears and
tail on the bunny, making sure they make good contact with the rest of
the “bunny”. I tuck them under a little. Repeat with the remaining
dough. Let rise, covered until doubled, about 25 minutes. Bake in a
375-degree oven for 12-15 minutes. Remove to cooling rack and brush with
honey glaze. Place raisins on each to make eyes, if you like. Brush
with additional glaze before serving, if desired. Makes 15 bunnies.
Dough is rolled out and cut into pieces for each of the bunny parts
I thought it was a good time to post a cheerful, holiday recipe. I think we can all use a little cheering up this year.
These slightly sweet bunny breads are a
great addition to your Easter table. They can be used for breakfast or
brunch. They could also be served with dinner, minus the candies!! The
dough itself has plenty of cinnamon flavor and a slightly dense texture.
They are moist enough to eat just the way they are, or spread with
butter. My favorite parts are the feet- which are a little crunchy. The
recipe makes 6 bunnies. I chose to decorate mine with melted white
chocolate and candies, but they are also pretty when left un-decorated.
This would be a fun decorating activity for kids, too.
Cinnamon “Bunny” Breads
6-6½ c. flour
¾ c. sugar
2 pkts. Active dry yeast
1 T. cinnamon
1 t. salt
1 c. milk
½ c. water
¼ c. butter – half a stick
5 eggs – save one for brushing the breads
White chocolate and tiny candies for decorating
In mixing bowl place 2 cups of the flour with the other dry
ingredients. Heat milk, water and butter together until very warm.
Butter does have to melt completely. Place milk mixture in bowl with
flour mixture and beat for 3 minutes. Add another cup of flour and beat
another 2 minutes. Beat in 4 eggs and gradually add enough flour to make
a soft dough. Place dough on a floured surface. Knead until smooth.
Return dough to bowl and cover, allowing to rise until doubled, about an
hour. Grease two large baking sheets, or cover in parchment or use a
silicone liner. You will put 3 bunnies on each sheet. Place dough on
floured surface. Divide into 6 pieces. Each piece will be a bunny. To
form a bunny, take about a third of one of the pieces of dough. Shape
into a round and place on a greased baking sheet. This is the body. Use
about ¼ cup of the dough to form the head. Flatten the head a little on
one edge and tuck the flattened part under the body. Pinch off a tiny
piece for the nose and place on the head. Divide the rest of the piece
of dough into 6 pieces. Use 4 pieces to form the feet. Shape into balls
and tuck one edge under the body, like you did with the head. Use the
last two pieces for the ears. Roll each into a tube, shape a little to
look like ears, and stick one edge under the head. Repeat with the rest
of the dough pieces. You’ll end up with 6 bunnies. Cover with plastic
wrap, then a towel, and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled,
30-60 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine remaining egg with a
tablespoon of water and beat to combine. Remove the plastic wrap from
the bunnies. Brush the bunnies with the egg mixture, covering
completely. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and bread
sounds hollow when tapped lightly. I switched the baking sheets in the
oven after 10 minutes, so the bunnies bake evenly. Cool on rack. Once
cool, decorate with melted chocolate, piped on to make whiskers. You can
also use the melted chocolate to affix candies. Makes 6 bunnies.
I am in love with these scones. They are just what a good scone should be, tender and crumbly, without being dry. The orange flavor comes form the orange zest used in the recipe. It is subtle, but there.
I love scones because you can have them for breakfast or with a cup of coffee or tea. You can also use them as the base for a shortcake dessert by splitting them, adding sweetened fruit and whipped cream.
I was in the mood for scones, but wanted to try something new. I had come across this recipe in an old file of mine. I had ripped it out of a magazine a long time ago. They looked promising, so I decided to make them. I made few changes from the original recipe. I was very happy with how they came out. I think you will be, too.
Orange and Cream Scones
2
c. flour
¼
c. sugar
1-2
T. orange zest, I used 1 tablespoon, but could have used more
2
t. baking powder
½
t. salt
10 T. unsalted cold butter, cut into ½ -inch cubes
1
egg
½
c. cold half and half
1
t. vanilla
Extra
flour
2
T. half and half or orange juice to brush the scones
Extra
sugar for sprinkling on top- 3-4 tablespoons
Preheat oven to 375. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or use a silicone liner. Set aside. In a large bowl mix together the dry ingredients. Using your fingers, rub the butter into the flour mixture until it looks like coarse crumbs. You can also use a pastry blender, but what fun is that? In a small bowl, beat together the egg, half and half and vanilla. Pour into flour mixture and stir until mixture starts to hold together. I am going to save you from messing up your counter with this next part. Get an 8-inch round cake pan and sprinkle flour in the bottom of it. Don’t be stingy, be sure there is a layer over the whole pan. One or two tablespoons should do it. Go back to your dough and sort of knead it in the bowl. That is why I said to use a large bowl. You don’t really need to knead it on your counter. Use a wooden spoon, rubber spatula or your hands to get the dough to form into a ball. Make sure you get all the dry bits from the bottom of the bowl. This isn’t a yeast dough. The idea is to get it to stick together with as little actual kneading as possible. Trust me, this is how you end up with super tender scones. As soon as the dough will hold together, and form into a ball, use a rubber scraper to get it into the floured cake pan. Press the dough evenly into the pan. Now a fun trick. You want to turn to the pan over so the dough ends up on the prepared baking sheet. You don’t want to do this slowly or the dough might plop out too soon. You also want to dough to come out. In one motion turn the cake pan over quickly onto the baking sheet. You want to actually slam it firmly on the baking sheet. Then lift up the cake pan. If all has gone according to plan, you’ll have a perfect 8-inch circle of dough on the baking sheet. I could have told you to just place the dough on the baking sheet and form it into an 8-inch circle, but I prefer the cake pan method. You get nice, even edges. There will be some flour on the dough. Leave it there for now. Using a bench scraper, or a long knife, cut the dough in half, then in half again, like cutting a pie. The dough is pretty moist, so the extra flour on top should make them easier to cut. Repeat two more times so you end up with 8 wedges. Pull them apart a little, so they can expand when they bake. I used a metal spatula to do this. If there is still extra flour on top and it is bothering you, you can brush it off. Using a pastry brush, brush a little half and half or orange juice over the scones. Then sprinkle the tops with the extra sugar. Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes 8. Great plain or served with jam.
I can’t remember the first time I had carrot cake. I do know that I loved it. Carrot cake is a timeless dessert that never goes out of style.
It is a simple cake, but full of flavor from cinnamon, vanilla and
three cups of shredded carrots. The carrots add both flavor and
moisture to the cake. Plus, with all those carrots, it’s like dessert
and a veggie all in one. Practically health food.
It seems like a long time since I baked a carrot cake. Too long. Since a dear friend gave me carrots yesterday, it seemed like the right time to bake one.
I baked the cakes this morning. I only made one recipe, but instead of baking the cake in one 9×13-inch pan, I used two (8×8 -inch) pans. Baking time was about 5 minutes less. Once the cakes cooled down, I frosted them with cream cheese frosting – recipe follows. Now I have two carrot cakes. One to share with a neighbor and one to freeze for another time.
So here is the recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do.
My Favorite Carrot Cake
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
1½ c. oil
3 c. shredded carrots
2 t. vanilla
2 c. flour
2 t. each baking soda and cinnamon
1 t. salt
1 c. nuts
1 c. raisins, optional
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9×13-inch pan. Beat together eggs
sugar and oil until smooth. Stir in carrots. Combine flour with dry
ingredients and beat in. Stir in nuts and raisins and pour into prepared
pan. Bake 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out
clean. Dust with powdered sugar or frost with cream cheese frosting.
Frosting recipe:
8 oz. Cream cheese, softened
3/4 c. powdered sugar
1 stick butter, room temperature
Beat all together until fluffy. Frost cake and refrigerate until ready to eat.
Since
so many of us are eating out of our pantries these days, I wanted to provide
some recipes for things you might already have. I hope you find these recipes
helpful.
Frozen Fruit
I love to buy seasonal fruit and freeze them to use later. I normally have a nice selection of berries and bananas. Sometimes I also freeze peaches, pears and pineapples. In most cases, the frozen fruits can be used in baking recipes. When adding berries to cake batter, don’t thaw the fruit first, unless the recipe tells you to. Banana bread, blueberry muffins, raspberry bread and sorbets are just a few of the recipes I use with frozen fruit. You can also use frozen fruit in savory recipes.
Blueberry Crumb Cake
For
cake batter:
2
c. flour
2
t. baking powder
½
t. salt
½
stick (¼ cup) butter, softened
¾
c. sugar
1
egg
½
c. milk
1
pint blueberries
For
topping:
½
c. sugar
¼
c. flour
½
t. cinnamon
½
stick (¼ c. butter, chilled and cut into bits)
Combine
dry ingredients and set aside. In mixing bowl with electric mixer, beat butter
and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and milk. Add flour mixture
gradually until just mixed in. Fold in blueberries. Grease and flour an 8 or
9-inch pan and add prepared batter. Combine topping ingredients until they
resemble coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter in pan and bake in a preheated
375-degree oven and bake for 35-45 minutes. Use toothpick to test.
Note:
I used a 9-inch round pan and it worked fine.
Blueberry Scones
2
c. flour
3
T. sugar
1
T. baking powder
¾
salt
6
T. chilled butter
1
½ c. blueberries
1
t. lemon zest
2
large eggs
1/3
c. heavy cream
Mix
dry ingredients together in bowl and cut in butter to resemble coarse crumbs.
Toss in blueberries and zest. Beat together eggs and cream and stir into flour
mixture. Mix very gently to avoid bruising berries. Press into 6×6-inch square.
Cut into 3×3 inch squares, then into triangles Place on baking sheet, brush
with a little cream and sprinkle with a little extra sugar. Bake in a preheated
400-degree oven for 20-22 minutes. Makes 8.
Oatmeal Banana Bread
½
c. shortening
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 shortening
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.
Orange Barbecue Sauce
1/2
c. chopped onion
oil
1/2
c. water
1
c. catsup
1/3
c. frozen orange juice concentrate
juice
of 1/2 a lime (about 1-2 T.)
2-3
T. brown sugar
1
T. Worcestershire sauce
1
T. mustard
Cook onion in oil until tender. Add remaining ingredients and simmer, covered for about 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to cook, if needed, to reach desired thickness. Stir often to prevent sticking. Makes about 1 3/4 cups.
Raspberry Sauce
2
(10 oz.) packages frozen raspberries, thawed
2
T. brown sugar
1
T. lemon juice
2
t. cornstarch
Press
one package of the berries through a sieve to remove the seeds. You can do both
packages, if desired. Press out as much of the pulp as possible. Place all
ingredients in saucepan and heat to a simmer, stirring often to prevent
sticking. This will take about 5 minutes. Serve as a glaze on meats and
poultry, especially duck or serve warm as a sauce on the side.
Orange-Glazed Chicken
6
chicken breast halves, skinned if desired
1/4
c. melted butter or margarine
6
oz. frozen orange juice concentrate
1/4
c. honey
3/4-1
c. bread crumbs
1/2
c. flour
1
t. paprika
salt
and pepper to taste
Brush
chicken breasts with melted butter or margarine. In shallow dish combine honey
and juice and set aside. Combine crumbs with remaining ingredients shallow pan.
Roll chicken pieces in orange juice mixture and then dip in the crumb mixture,
pressing to coat. Place breaded pieces in greased baking dish and bake in a
375- degree oven for 50 minutes, or until juices run clear. Serves 6.
You
can also use frozen fruits to make sorbets, ices and ice cream
Strawberry Ice
¾
c. sugar
1
c. water
4
c. fresh or frozen strawberries or raspberries
2
c. pink lemonade
2
c. raspberry-cranberry juice drink
Cook
together sugar and water, boiling gently for 10 minutes. Cool and chill.
Meanwhile puree and strain berries to remove seeds. Combine all ingredients and
place in a 13×9 inch pan and freeze. When mixture is almost firm, break into
chunks , place in bowl and mix with a mixer. Refreeze. If mixture gets too
hard, soften before beating and re-freezing. You can also freeze in an ice
cream machine. Makes 8-10 cups.
Blueberry-Red Grape Sorbet
4
c. red grapes, fresh or frozen
2
c. blueberries, fresh or frozen
sugar
to taste- I used a couple of tablespoons
a
few sprigs of fresh mint, optional
Combine
all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. You might have to
do this in a couple of batches. Place in a container and freeze until solid.
Remove from freezer and allow to soften for about 20 minutes, or even a little
less. Mixture should still be frozen, but soft enough to break into chunks.
Place in processor and mix again. Mixture will get smoother and softer. You can
also do this step in a stand mixer or even with a hand mixer. Return sorbet to
freezer, until ready to eat it.
Strawberry Ice Cream
2
c. chopped strawberries
1
c. sugar
1
T. vanilla
2
c. cream or half and half or a combination. You can also use some milk or even
almond or rice milk.
Additional
sugar to taste
Place
strawberries, vanilla and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring
occasionally. Remove from heat and chill. Combine chilled berry mixture with
cream. Add additional sugar if you like. Remember that once it is frozen the
ice cream will not taste as sweet so make this mixture a little sweeter than
you want the final product to be. How much sugar you add varies with personal
taste, and how sweet the berries are. Place in an ice cream maker and process
according to manufacturer’s directions. Once finished put in an air- tight
container and place in freezer. Makes about 1 quart.
Strawberry Sorbet
While
this recipe is made with strawberries, you can use any number of fruits in this
recipe. Use what you have and get creative.
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.
Canned Fruit
Some
of the recipes for frozen fruit can also be used with canned fruit, like
sorbets. Canned fruits can often be baked with, and used for sauces with savory
dishes. Applesauce can be used in all sorts of recipes, too. Here are some
recipes.
Peach Glazed Ribs
2-3
lbs. western-style ribs or 4-5 lbs. spare ribs, cut into sections
salt
and pepper to taste
garlic
powder
onion
powder
2-3 lbs. fresh peaches or nectarines, peeled, pitted and sliced -or- 1 (29 oz.) cans sliced peaches, drained
1/4
c. each brown sugar and vinegar
2
cloves garlic, minced
1
T. soy sauce
1
t. fresh grated ginger
Place ribs on rack in a baking sheet and
season to taste. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 1 hour. Meanwhile combine
remaining ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over medium low heat until
mixture is thickened and fruit is tender. Remove ribs from oven and set aside.
Remove rack from bake and drain off any fat in pan. Return ribs to pan without
the rack and cover with the peach sauce. Seal with foil and return to oven for
30 minutes more. Remove foil and bake an additional 45 minutes for western ribs
and 30 minutes for spare ribs. Serve with rice or pasta. Serves 3-4.
Cranberry Barbecue Sauce
1
(14 oz.) can diced tomatoes
2
T. brown sugar
1
T. minced dried onion
1 T. vinegar
1
T. molasses
1
t. each dried basil, dried oregano and garlic powder
1/2
t. each cumin, paprika and pepper
dash
salt
1
(15 oz.) can whole berry cranberry sauce
Combine
all ingredients, except cranberry sauce in food processor and pulse a few times
to chop up a bit. Combine this mixture with cranberry sauce in saucepan and
cook over medium heat about 30 minutes or until thickened. Stir to prevent
sticking. Makes about 2 1/2 cups.
To
use: brush on chicken, ribs or beef kebobs last 15 minutes of cooking.
Pear Sauce
½
c. sugar
½
c. balsamic vinegar
1
lb. Pears, cored, peeled and diced, or 8 canned pear halves, drained
2
T. dried minced onion
1
t. minced garlic
dash
hot sauce
pinch cinnamon
salt
and pepper to taste
Combine
all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until thickened, about
20 minutes. Stir often to avoid burning. Serve with pork or lamb roasts. Makes
about 2 cups.
Pork with Pear Sauce
1
lb. Pork loin. Sliced or 4 pork chops
oil
1
large onion, sliced
salt
and pepper to taste
1
recipe pear sauce, See above
In
skillet cook pork in oil, turning to brown evenly until juices run clear when
meat is pierced. Remove meat and add onions, sautéing until onions are browned.
Return pork to pan, adjust seasonings and add1 cup of the pear sauce. Cook 10
minutes, or until heated through and bubbly. Serves 4.
Spirited Applesauce
½
c. butter
2 c. chunky-style applesauce
¼
c. sugar
½
c. rum dark preferred
1
t. cinnamon
½
t. ground cardamom
¼
t. ground nutmeg
pinch
of cloves
Combine
all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over low heat , stirring frequently
until thickened. Makes about 2 cups. Use as a glaze on pork, lamb or poultry.
Serve on the side as you would cranberry sauce. Can be served warm or cold.
Also good with breakfast sausages or as a dipping sauce.
Sweet and Sour Sauce
1/2
c. vinegar
1/2
c. sugar
1/2
c. pineapple juice – from canned chunk pineapple
3
T. catsup
2
T. soy sauce
2
T. cornstarch
1
t. dried minced garlic
1-t.
fresh grated ginger
Hot
pepper flakes to taste
In
saucepan combine all ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stirring as mixture
gets hot, until sauce begins to bubble. It will also get much clearer. Boil
gently 1 minute, stirring constantly before removing from heat. Makes 1 1/2 c.
Keeps in the fridge for a couple of weeks.
Sweet and Sour Pork or Chicken
1-2
lbs. boneless pork or chicken
1
egg
1
t. cornstarch
1/4
t. salt
1
t. soy sauce
Additional
cornstarch for dredging
2
T. oil
1
medium onion, chopped
1
medium carrot, peeled and sliced thin
1
sweet green pepper, seeded and chopped
1
sweet red or yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
1
20 oz. can pineapple chunks, drained, reserving juice for sauce
1
recipe sweet and sour sauce (see note)
Cut
meat into cubes and place in bowl. Combine egg, 1-t. cornstarch, salt and soy
sauce and pour over the meat, stirring to coat. Allow marinating at least 1
hour in fridge.
When
ready to cook, heat 1T. oil in large skillet or wok. Sauté onions on high until
tender. Add carrots and stir fry 3 minutes. Add peppers and sauté 3 minutes
more. Remove to bowl and stir in pineapple. Dredge the meat in additional
cornstarch and sauté in remaining oil until browned and when juices run clear
when pierced with a fork.
Meanwhile,
combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan and heat to boiling. Return vegetables
to pan with meat and pour over sauce to desired amount. Serve over rice, makes 4-6 servings.
Note:
If you make the sweet and sour sauce ahead of time it will get runny when
reheated if made with regular cornstarch. Either use modified cornstarch (Clear
Gel A) or make sauce just before using. You may also want to use only some of
the sauce and save the rest for another use.
Pineapple Spice Scones
3
c. flour
1/3
c. sugar
2
½ t. baking powder
½
t. salt
¾
c. cold butter
1
(8 oz.) can crushed pineapple in its own juice, undrained
milk
3
T. chopped nuts
1
T. sugar
½
t. cinnamon
Preheat
oven to 400 degrees. In mixing bowl combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter
until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add pineapple and stir until dough
forms. It will be sticky. Turn dough
onto floured surface and knead gently 10-12 strokes until dough holds together.
Roll or pat dough to a ¼ inch thickness and cut with a 2 ½ inch biscuit cutter.
Re-roll scraps. Place scones on ungreased baking sheet. Brush with milk.
Combine nuts, sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on scones. Bake about 15 minutes.
Makes about 21.
Canned Fruit Sorbet
If
you are looking for a simple dessert, sorbet from canned fruit is pretty simple.
Any number of fruits could be used. Start by draining the fruit, saving the
liquid. Puree the fruit. If you want to sweeten it, you can use some of the
liquid from the can. You can also add sugar, honey, jam, jelly, preserves, or
maple syrup. You can also use frozen juice concentrates to sweeten. Taste it to
see how sweet it is. For more flavor, you can add flavorings, like extracts (vanilla,
almond, mint), citrus juice or zest, herbs, etc. I sometimes add a can of
coconut milk, for a creamy frozen dessert. Have fun and be creative. Save any
extra can liquids in the fridge for now. Place fruit puree in a shallow pan to
freeze. Once frozen, take the mixture out, chunk it up- you might have to let
it soften on the counter a few minutes- then puree it again in a food processor.
The mixture should get nice and creamy. If it is too hard to process, you can
add a little of the reserved can liquid. Taste again to see if it needs more
sugar, or more flavorings. The flavor changes when frozen. It is ready to eat
at this point. You can freeze it again and process it one more time for an even
smoother result. Store in freezer until ready to enjoy. You can combine
different fruits. Fun project for kids.
Dried Fruit
Dried fruits can be added to baked goods, salads, granola, oatmeal or be eaten just as a snack. If they are hard, you can soften the fruit first, by placing in warm water or fruit juice. You can also melt chocolate and add dried fruits and nuts (optional). Stir together, then drop by spoonfuls on wax paper for an easy candy. Here are some of my favorite recipes using dried fruits.
Raisin Scones
2
c. flour
2
t. baking powder
½
t. baking soda
½
t. ground nutmeg
½
t. salt
½
c. cold butter
1
c. raisins
2
T. sugar
1
egg, separated
¾
c. buttermilk
additional
sugar for sprinkling
Preheat
oven to 375 degrees. In bowl combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter until
mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add raisins and sugar and toss to distribute
evenly. Mix egg yolk with buttermilk and add to flour mixture, stirring to
combine. Turn dough onto floured surface and knead gently 10-12 strokes. Cut
dough in half and form each half into a six inch circle. Cut each circle of
dough into 6 wedges, but do not separate. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and
brush with egg white. Sprinkle with extra sugar and bake 18-22 minutes. Makes
12.
Cranberry-Buttermilk Scones
3
c. flour
¼
c. plus 2 T. sugar
2
t. baking powder
¼
t. salt
1
¼ sticks,(10 tablespoons) chilled butter, cubed
3/4
c. dried cranberries
½
c. buttermilk
3
large eggs
1
t. water
Preheat
oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour with ¼ c. sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Rub in butter with finger tips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in
cranberries. Combine milk with 2 of the eggs and beat together. Stir egg
mixture into flour mixture and stir until dough begins to form into a ball.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 10 stokes until dough
holds together. Grease 2 nine inch cake pans. divide dough in half and place
one piece in each cake pan. Press dough out evenly. Combine remaining egg with
2 teaspoons water and beat until well mixed. Score top of loaves with sharp
knife into 8 wedges each. Brush with egg mixture and sprinkle with reserved
sugar. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes. Cool 5 minutes, turn onto plates
and cool right side up. Cut along score marks. Serve warm. Makes 16.
Whole Wheat Biscotti
¾
c. whole wheat flour
½
c. flour
1/3
c. sugar
1
t. baking powder
¼
t. salt
½
c. walnuts
¼
c. golden raisins
Combine
all
Add
2
eggs
1
t. vanilla
Shape
into loaf 2”x11” on oiled sheet. Bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes. Slice thin
and place on cooling rack on baking sheet then return to oven, reduce heat to
300-degrees bake 25 minutes.
Oatmeal Raisin Squares
4
c. oats
2
c. flour (whole wheat pastry flour)
½
c. brown sugar (¼ c. honey)
1
c. pecans, chopped
1
t. baking soda
1
t. salt
1
½ c. butter, melted (1 c. applesauce, ½ c. olive oil)
2
t. vanilla
½
c. water
2
c. raisins
Zest
of 1 lemon
½
t. cinnamon
Non-stick
cooking spray
Heat
oven to 350. Spray a 9×13-inch pan, set aside. Combine oats, flour, sugar,
nuts, soda, salt pour in butter and vanilla, stir until well mixed and set
aside. Heat together water with raisins, zest and cinnamon and bring to a boil.
Simmer two minutes and remove from heat to cool a little. Process until almost
smooth. Press half of the oatmeal mixture in bottom of pan. Spread the raisin
mixture over the oat meal mix and then top with the remaining oat mix. Press
down firmly. Bake until golden on the top, 35-45 minutes. Cut once cool. Makes
24 squares.
Granola
3
c. rolled oats
1/4
-1/2 c. each of any of the following to equal 1-2 c. total
Sesame
seeds, sunflower seeds, wheat germ, peanuts, pecans, almonds, hazel nuts,
pumpkin seeds, walnuts, coconut (chop up any big pieces)
1
t. cinnamon
1
t. orange peel
1/2
t. nutmeg
1/4
c. oil
1/4
c. honey
2
t. vanilla
Dried
fruit to equal 1/2 -1 1/2 cups. Some choices could include: raisins, dried
cranberries, cherries, pineapple, dates, figs, apricots, bananas, blueberries
etc.
In
large bowl combine oats with seeds and nuts and toss well with seasonings. Heat
together oil, honey and vanilla and pour over oat mixture, tossing to coat
evenly. Spread on a cookie sheet and bake in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes.
Halfway through the baking time stir mixture so the edges won’t burn. Remove
from oven and return to large bowl. Toss with the dried fruit and allow to cool
before storing in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Use in 1 month.
Makes 5-7 cups.
