Archive for February, 2009Yield: 6 Servings INGREDIENTS 8 (1 inch thick bread) – stale or fresh white loaf bread, crusts removed, cubed 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, cut into cubes 1 large Golden Delicious apple, peeled, cored and finely diced 6 large eggs 1 cup half and half or whole milk 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 3 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar Pure maple syrup, heated for drizzling PREPARATION Cover the bottom of a large soufflé dish or deep cake pan with half of the bread crumbs. Scatter cream cheese cubes evenly over bread. Sprinkle the apples over the cream cheese. Cover with remaining bread cubes., In bowl, beat the eggs, milk, cinnamon and vanilla extract until well blended. Pour this mixture over the bread and let refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F Bake the casserole until the eggs are set, the apples are tender and the top is lightly browned approximately 35-45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly for the custard to set. Serve with warm maple syrup and dust with confectioner’s sugar. Yield: 2 quarts
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil 2 large carrots, cut into chunks 2 celery stalks, cut into chunks 1 medium onion, halved 1 garlic bulb, halved Reserved chicken bones 2 quarts cold water 4 sprigs of fresh parsley 2 bay leaves
PREPARATION
Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to stockpot and heat for approximately 30 seconds. Add the vegetables and sauté for 3 minutes. Add reserved chicken bones, water and herbs. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and allow stock to simmer for approximately 1 hour. Remove from heat and strain stock to remove any solids. Use immediately or place in an airtight freezer container for later use. Super easy and delicious snack! INGREDIENTS 1 cup canola oil 2 packages of Hidden Valley Salad Dressing mix ¼ teaspoon garlic salt ¼ teaspoon lemon pepper 2 packages oyster crackers PREPARATION Preheat oven to 350 degrees F Mix oil with spices in a large bowl and then add the crackers. Coat the crackers with the oil mixture. Place the coated crackers on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the oven for approximately 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Store crackers in an airtight container. Yield: 3 dozen cookies
INGREDIENTS
3 cups flour ¾ teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup granulated sugar 1 egg, beaten 1 tablespoon milk Confectioner’s sugar for rolling dough
PREPARATION
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until light and fluffy. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. While mixer is on low, gradually add the flour mixture and beat until the mixture pulls away from the bowl. Divide dough in half and wrap in waxed paper and chill for a minimum of 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F Sprinkle rolling surface with confectioner’s sugar. Remove one package of wrapped dough from the refrigerator. Keep other package of dough refrigerated until ready to use. Sprinkle rolling pin with confectioner’s sugar and roll out dough approximately ¼ inch thick. Cut into desired shapes and place 1 inch apart on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper or a Silpat. Bake for approximately 7-9 minutes or until the cookies begin to brown lightly around the edges and then remove from the oven. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 2 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. Once the cookies are cooled, ice with your favorite frosting recipe or dip one edge in chocolate ganache.
Source: Alton Brown - FoodNetwork
Wedding Reception Brunch What type of wedding reception is right for you? When you envision your wedding reception, do you dream of sunrise at a beautiful beach or the mist rising from the mountain tops? If you are planning a sunrise wedding ceremony, you’ll need to develop a menu for your wedding reception brunch. Whether your wedding ceremony is on the beach or at the top of a mountain, you’ll want to serve your guests a wonderful breakfast or brunch after the ceremony. Traditional wedding brunches include classics such as quiche, frittata and Eggs Benedict. Setting up omelet and French toast stations are welcomed by your guests, along with a nice selection of fruits, muffins and breads. If your budget allows, carving stations with ham, turkey or beef tenderloin will add a touch of luxury. Drinks should include Mimosa’s, Bloody Mary’s, Bellinis and of course don’t forget great coffee, teas and juices. Here’s a sample menu from my upcoming book Simple Wedding Reception Menus for Your DIY Wedding.
Sunrise Brunch Menu
Brunch Basics Omelet Station Cinnamon Bread Custard with Fresh Berries Ham, Leek and Three Cheese Quiche
Carving Stations Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Gorgonzola Sauce Roast Turkey Breast with Cranberry Conserve
Breads Mini Blueberry Muffins Homemade Cheese Danish Lemon Ginger Scones Buttermilk Biscuits with Goat Cheese and Chives
Desserts Wedding Cake or Cupcake Tower Mini Cheesecakes with Fresh Raspberries
Beverages Peach Bellini’s Mimosa’s Bloody Mary’s Coffee, Tea, Juices & Imported Water
Aren’t these cute? Amazing what you can do with a couple of cupcakes. My daughter and I made these last night using two types of cupcakes and the directions from a wonderful book entitled Hello Cupcake by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson. It has step by step instructions on how to make some awesome cupcakes. Most of the designs use cupcakes as the foundation, but much of the detail is created with candies, cookies, decorating sugars, cereal, and the like. Overall, the author gives very detailed and easy to understand instructions in completing each cupcake design. The author states that most of these cupcake designs can be created with tools that you already have in the home and she particularly stresses that Ziploc bags work well as a pastry bag. She is correct in that many of the tools that are needed to complete the custom cupcakes are things that you readily have at home, however I would disagree that the Ziploc bags are an adequate substitute for a pastry bag.
My daughter and I attempted the Ziploc bag piping and found that it did not come out as nice as using a regular pastry bag and tips. We abandoned the Ziploc technology about half way through the project, so our panda’s facial feature are not as clean as we would have liked for them to be, however we piped on the claws and I think you can see the difference.
By all means, try the Ziploc bags, however if you are going to be making lots of custom cupcakes, I would recommend purchasing a regular pastry bag and tips and using those for the detailed piping work. For convenience, you can purchase plastic disposable pastry bags that will work just fine with the coupler and tips that come with a standard pastry bag. When you allow your little ones to help you in the kitchen, along with having a great time, children receive lots of extra educational benefits in spending time baking with you. Consider these: 1. Math – baking offers children an opportunity to sharpen their math skills. Whether your child is helping you measure out ½ cup of oil or determining how many sticks of butter equal ½ cup, the math skills that they are learning in school are being put to use in a very practical, real life manner. What better way to solidify these skills, than by baking a chocolate cake! 2. Culture – If you try different dessert recipes from around the world and discuss them as you work together, your kids will learn about the customs, holidays and language of the dessert’s country of origin. Perhaps this would include some special recipes that you brought back from your travels in other countries. 3. Organization – Getting ready to bake requires preparation – reviewing the recipe, determining the ingredients that are necessary, checking the pantry to make sure all ingredients are on hand and compiling a shopping list for those ingredients that need to be purchased. All of these steps will develop your child’s organizational skills and patience. 4. Following Directions – Baking is a process and certain steps must be followed in sequence to ensure the desired result. You can help your kids read the recipe and follow the instructions step by step in baking a dessert. You can also ask them questions during the process like “what would happen if we frost the cake before its cooled?” 5. Responsibility – Give kids age specific tasks and responsibilities when you bake together. Young, preschool children can be taught to wash fruit or participate in kneading some dough. Older children can break and beat eggs, measure out ingredients and frost cakes or cookies. They all can take part in the clean-up process. Giving your kids some responsibilities in the baking process can teach them about completing projects and the importance of cleaning up after project. These lessons can be valuable in completing school projects and the ongoing tasks of getting them to clean up their room as they get older! Yield: 8 biscuits These are a delightful cross between a scone and a biscuit with the tangy flavor of goat cheese. INGREDIENTS 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon freshly grated black pepper ¼ cup chilled butter, cut into ½ inch cubes 1 – 5 ounce log soft fresh goat cheese 1 cup buttermilk (plus a bit extra for glaze) PREPARATION Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or use a Silpat. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Using fingertips, rub the chilled butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in the chives. Add the cheese and the buttermilk; stir in with a fork until a sticky dough forms (bits of cheese will be visible in the dough). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently about 8 times with floured hands. Do not over-knead! Form into a round, about ¾ to 1 inch thick. Cut the round into 8 wedges. Use a pastry brush to brush on some extra buttermilk over the surface of the wedge. Arrange the wedge on a baking sheet, slightly separating the individual wedges. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Serve with generous dollops of butter. Yield: 12 tartlets INGREDIENTS 2 frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed 1 tablespoon butter 1 tablespoon olive oil ¼ cup finely sliced red onion ¼ cup finely sliced yellow onion 2 scallions, finely sliced 1 tablespoon finely chopped chives 1 egg 1/3 cup heavy cream 1 teaspoon salt 3 ounces goat cheese
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F Take a 2 ½ inch round cookie cutter and cut out 12 rounds from the 2 sheets of puff pastry. Press the rounds of dough into a 12 mini muffin tin to form a cup and allowing room for the filling. Cover with plastic wrap and keep the prepared pan in the refrigerator or freezer (depending on length of time before baking tartlets). In a skillet, combine butter and oil and then add the onions. Cook gently until the onions are translucent and caramelized, stirring frequently for about 15-20 minutes. Once cooked, add the scallions and chives. Set aside to cool slightly. In a bowl, whisk together the egg, cream and salt. Add the cooked onions to the egg mixture, stirring thoroughly. Pour into the prepared pastry cups with a spoon. Break up the goat cheese and place on top of the tartlets. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately. Source: Danny Boome – FoodNetwork – Episode #RB0107 |
<
|
