Lemon Blackberry Bread

Let me say that I am just starting to feel comfortable baking...and I haven't even scratched the surface.  This year I'm hoping to do my first cake from scratch and maybe whip up a meringue or two - stay tuned for that!

I don't know exactly what my turning point was but I know that once I had accumulated all the standard ingredients and equipment baking became so much easier.  I read through recipes and can mutter "got it, got it" under my breath as I look at what is required.  And it's easier on my budget to pick up oddball ingredients as needed versus trying to buy everything at once.

The other day I had what Oprah would call an "aha" moment over a baked good while out to lunch with my husband. We were at Market Street Diner in Sun Prairie, WI which is a cute diner with a bakery and I was lusting over some lemon blackberry bread with a crumbly top that they were selling for $5.79.  My husband was keeping our budget in mind and urged me to resist buying it.  After I was done pouting (mostly fake - you girls know what I mean) I suddenly realized that I could probably make something like that.  As soon as we got home that day I started looking for recipes. 

Now the reason the lemon blackberry bread is sharing the stage with some cornbread on the plate below is this was our offering to my friend's Super Bowl party where we brought appetizers themed to our team.  And my team is...the Vikings!  So my husband throught up doing the purple and gold breads, cute huh?  I put half  of the berries in the food processor to dye the bread that day...it won't normally be so purple.

Lemon Blackberry Bread

This recipe came to me by way of Recipe Girl who credits Bob's Red Mill as her source.

Topping

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unbleached white flour
4 tbs unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp lemon juice

1.  Combine ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Bread

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
4 tbs unsalted butter, softened (or use 2 tbs butter and 2 tbs applesauce for a lower fat version)
1 egg

1 cup unbleached white pastry flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

2 cups blackberries
1 tbs grated lemon zest

1.  Heat oven to 375.  Spray a 9x5 pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2.  In a medium bowl combine and mix sugar, milk, butter (or butter/applesauce combo) and egg until smooth.
3.  In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt.  Stir into sugar mixture until just combined. 
4.  Add blackberries and lemon zest.  **Note - if you taste the batter at this point (and you should) it will taste like cookie dough, so yummy!
5.  Pour batter into pan and sprinkle with topping.  Bake approximately 50 minutes or until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean.

If you are anything like me and having baked goods in the house is too much of a temptation then check out this magazine for some exercises to do while the bread is baking.  As soon as I post this I'm finishing the latest batch of bread and getting on the floor for some sit-ups.

Valentine's Day French Toast

I believe in the power of traditions.  They can act as a cord that ties a family together.  One that is tight enough to pull people together from hundreds of miles but loose enough to make participation a choice.  My mom always made an effort sure our family celebrated special days and now that I'm married I have been searching for new traditions for 'my' family.

I've never been a breakfast person but lately I've been dreaming about making French Toast.  Growing up we went to church and then out to brunch each Sunday.  While others were ordering omelete's, hash browns and whole wheat toast (another family tradition) I would order a burger with a malt.  Maybe potato pancakes mostly because I am addicted to ketchup ("Ketchup Queen" is a nickname of mine and no, I don't want to make my own, I prefer Heinz).  While I still prefer the types of breakfast foods you top with salsa and sour cream, I am starting to appreciate the sweeter side of breakfast and homemade French Toast seemed like a sweet way to celebrate Valentine's Day.

After scanning my usual sites and cookbooks for recipes I fell onto another of Heidi's keepers from 101 Cookbooks.  Heidi sold me by the way she cuts her French Toast into heart shapes and I announced to my husband that we had a new tradition.  

I sent the word out to my mom and dad that we were going to have a special holiday brunch and like all good moms my mom knew just what I needed.  This year my Valentine's gift included a heart shaped cookie cutter.  I didn't get a picture of the final product but here is a work in progress snapshot.

Valentine's Day French Toast

Original recipe found at 101 Cookbooks here.

We had a crowd so I doubled the original recipe.  For a first timer the toughest part was making sure the FT in the pan didn't burn along with dunking and prepping the next batch of bread.  Thankfully my mom organized the rest of the meal (fruit, hash browns, sausage).  By next year I'll be swinging this feast on my own!

butter or oil for the pan

2 eggs

1 can evaporated milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

18 slices cinnamon raisin or english muffin bread (cut into hearts or, more traditionally, triangles)

1.  Heat griddle or frying pan to medium hot and butter or oil generously.  Continue to butter pan in between each batch of FT.
2.  Beat egg with a whisk or a fork.
3.  Add milk, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Mix thoroughly.
4.  Dip into egg and milk mixture.
5.  Brown on both sides on a well-greased griddle or frying pan.
6.  Serve with syrup or if feeling very festive, top with whipped cream, strawberries and chocolate shavings.

Serves 5-6.  Refrigerate leftovers and eat within a few days.

I hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day and let's keep the love flowing all year!

Spicy Green Beans

As previously discussed, winter in Wisconsin is not for quitters...and right around February I feel like quitting. The dogs have to be walked three times a day and those walks have been getting shorter and shorter lately. I have even resurrected the "let's build a fence" conversation from last winter to avoid going outside as much as possible.


But today, even as 9 inches of snow is predicted to fall in the next 12 hours, I have some hope for spring. The sun was shining when I got home from work at 5:00 and I swear I heard a duck quacking this morning. If I squint and look at the blue sky I can pretend it is already April, which truly isn't that far away.

In keeping with my spring theme I decided to salvage some week old green beans that have been languishing in the fridge with the recipe below. I'm so glad I did, the sauce and the flavor hid the fact that the beans should have been eaten sooner. And what a great trick to have up my sleeve for the next time that happens...

Spicy Green Beans

I found this recipe on 101 Cookbooks (here) and Heidi gives credit to being inspired by a recipe in Anna Getty's Anna Getty's Easy Green Organic, to be published by Chronicle Books, March 2010. Good recipes travel well.

Heidi recommends slicing the beans into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces and I would agree with her. The sauce is better able to coat the beans and it gives the dish some extra character.

I considered leaving out the golden raisins but I decided to practice what I preach and follow the recipe exactly the first time and I'm glad I did. They add a subtle sweetness that balances the spicy creaminess of the beans. From the original recipe I did cut the amount of butter called for in half and I used light sour cream to cut calories. 

1 pound green beans, sliced into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic, minced
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced

3 bay leaves

1/3 cup white wine

1/2 teaspoon hot paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/3 cup light sour cream
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook the green beans in a pot of well-salted boiling water for a couple of minutes so they lose their raw edge. Drain and dunk in ice-cold water to stop the cooking. Drain again and set aside.
2. In a small bowl pour2 cups of golden raisins with the leftover boiling water from the beans. Cover for five minutes, drain and set aside.
3. Heat your largest skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil, garlic, onion, and bay leaves. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the onions and garlic start to brown just a bit.
4. Add the wine and cook until it has mostly evaporated.
5. Carefully remove the bay leaves. Stir in the paprika, cumin, coriander, curry powder, salt, crushed red pepper flakes until onion/garlic mixture is covered.
6. Add raisins and stir until raisins are heated through. Add the butter and green beans.  Stir until the butter has melted.
7. Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream, almonds and cilantro. Taste and add more salt and some pepper if you like.
8. Serve and enjoy.


Serves 4 to 6. Refrigerate any unused portion and eat within several days.

Something warm right before the snow...

One of my Christmas gifts the year I decided to be a vegetarian was a cookbook from my husband.  How to Cook Everything Vegetarian (check it out here) by Mark Bittman truly is a bible of cooking...and it's very thick...and really heavy...and I loved it as the supportive gesture it was but found it incredibly intimidating.  So after paging through a few times it kept my other unused cookbooks company for a while until I recently dusted it off and actually (gasp) cooked from it! 

One of the brilliant things about this cookbook is Bittman offers up each of his recipes with variations.  He allows you to get familiar with the basics before challenging you to mix it up.  What I love is once you know the basics you will probably be able to come up with variations on your own and then you will really feel like you are cooking.

You can find dried lentils at any grocery store but if you have a local Indian grocery I suggest looking there first.  You should find a better selection of lentils and usually spices, like the curry powder used here, are sold in bulk at a cheaper price per unit.

I made this recipe last week and we loved it so much I remade it tonight.  I like to serve it with broccoli topped with sriracha (you will find out there are actually few meals that I don't serve with a side of broccoli and sriracha).  Easy, quick, delicious - what more can you ask for on a Monday night?  Especially right before it snows again...stay warm.

Lentils and Potatoes with Curry
From How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman

Although the recipe calls for brown lentils the first time I made this I used red lentils (masoor dal) and it had a wonderful flavor.  The second time I made this I used yellow lentils (toor dal) and it was definitely a more mild flavor and I didn't care for it as much as I couldn't taste the difference between the lentils and the potatoes which seemed weird to me.  Both times I served this over rice with a side of flat bread. 

1 cup dried brown lentils
3 1/2 cups water (Bittman also recommends using coconut milk or vegetable stock)
1 tbsp curry powder

2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

salt and freshly ground black pepper

yogurt and minced fresh cilantro for garnish (if desired)

1.  Combine the lentils, liquid and curry powder in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
2.  Turn heat to medium-low, cover pot partially and let cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils start to absorb the water a bit (about 15 minutes).
3.  Add the potatoes and cover the pan completely.  Cook, undisturbed, for about 10 minutes, then stir gently and check to make sure the lentils aren't too dry.  If so, add water.  Add salt as the lentils cook up and become tender.
4.  Cover and continue cooking until the lentils are soft and beginning to turn to mush and potatoes are tender at the center.  When its ready the mixture should be moist but not soupy.
5.  Top with plain yogurt and cilantro and serve plain or over rice.

Makes 4 servings.  Per Bittman this will easily freeze and one of the variations he recommends for this recipe is to add 2 tbls butter as the lentils are cooking for a creamier mixture.

Dinner Party...with 5 chairs...

I am the proud owner of a moderate sized home which is big enough for my husband, our two dogs and our two cats..ok yes, the home is really a small zoo.  While I do have bathrooms (1.5), bedrooms (3) and kitchens (just 1) what I don't have is more than 5 kitchen chairs which is why when Doug and I decided to host some guests we picked our three closest relatives to come over and join the fun.  Shannon and Jon, gamely drove up from Brookfield and my brother Kevin joined us from Madison for a night of good eating. 

Everyone contributed one of their favorite dishes which is one of the best ways to throw a dinner party.  We started with Shannon's homemade hummus and fresh veggies.  She was wonderfully patient in explaining how to make it but I can't try something new without written instructions so she's promised to email me her recipe.  I will say that hummus is a wonderful low-fat alternative to traditional "veggie dip" and that it was especially good with the fresh sweet red pepper strips she had brought along.

Kevin made one of his specialty salads which consisted of a chopped head of organic romaine lettuce sprinkled with feta, walnuts (which I pounded with my vintage wooden rolling pin), craisins and topped with a store bought Raspberry Balsamic vinaigrette.  Kevin was hoping to concoct a homemade dressing out of balsamic vinegar and olive oil and when he mentioned this I looked at him so blankly he realized there was no balsamic vinegar in the house.  We went with plan B (still delicious) and I added balsamic vinegar to my grocery list.

Here's a picture of the salad.  It only looks greasy because of the flash, trust me that it was a home run.

Next we moved onto some pasta with zucchini, summer squash and pesto and parmesan breaded chicken for the meat lovers.  Both were super easy to make and I'm going to give you the basics below but feel free to experiment.

Pasta with Zucchini, Summer Squash and Pesto

Inspired by Molly in her book for sale on Amazon.  She recommends using a mandoline to slice the zucchini up as thin as the noodles which is a genius way of serving this pasta. 

I decided to add the summer squash since it was sitting right next to the zucchini at the store and just seemed to go together.  You could also cut some cherry or grape tomatoes in half and add those to give a richer flavor.  This would be a great summer dish with produce right out of the garden and some freshly made pesto but it also is hearty enough to serve as a winter dish.

One final note - since I didn't have a mandoline I asked Shannon to slice the zucchini and summer squash into thin slices and she did a terrific job.  I highly recommend her services if you happen to run into her. 

13.5 oz pasta (more or less depending on how many you are serving)

1 tbls olive oil
2 medium zucchini, sliced thin by hand or with a mandoline
1 medium summer squash, sliced thin by hand or with a mandoline

1/2 - 1 cup pesto

parmesan cheese (for topping)

1.  Boil water and add pasta.  Cook to desired firmness.
2.  As pasta cooks heat oil in a large skillet.  After 1 - 2 minutes add thinly sliced zucchini and summer squash.  Stir frequently and cook until tender (about 5 to 10 minutes). 
3. When pasta is cooked use a pasta scoop or tongs to ladle the pasta directly into the skillet.  This allows a small amount of water to be transferred with the noodles so the dish doesn't dry out.
4.  Once all the pasta is transferred add the pesto and stir so sauce is evenly distributed.  Top with parmesan cheese and serve.

Makes about 4 servings.  Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

Parmesan Encrusted Chicken

Since I don't eat meat I had to trust my guests when they said they enjoyed this dish.  I know there are many ways to vary this basic concept to add more variety and flavor and feel free to recommend your favorite variations in a comment to this post.  Maybe we'll give it a try next time!

1 cup bread crumbs
4 tbls shredded parmesan cheese

1 egg

4 chicken breasts

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2.  Mix bread crumbs and parmesan cheese together in medium sized bowl.
3.  Break egg and scramble yolk and white together with a fork in a medium sized bowl.
4.  Dip chicken breast into egg and then roll in bread crumb mixture.  Do this at least twice to ensure the chicken breast is fully covered.
5.  Repeat with all chicken breasts and lay them on a cookie sheet when done.
6.  Bake in oven for 45 minutes or until there is no pink in the center (I admit - I usually take a knife and cut into a breast to test for doneness.  Although this isn't very sophisticated at least everyone goes home healthy).

Makes 4 servings. 

Trader Joes Cranberry Vanilla Cake

I like to substitute applesauce for butter whenever I can when baking to cut down on fat.  I find applesauce will lend the same moistness that butter would and I usually can't taste the difference.  If you are curious on trying this method but want to take it slow you can always start by using 1/2 applesauce and 1/2 butter. 

When my husband and I are craving this desert we are once again grateful for buying and freezing the 5 pounds of cranberries from the Cranberry Fest in Warrens WI this last year. 

2 large eggs
1/2 cup applesauce (or 1 stick melted butter)
1 cup cold milk

1 package Trader Joe's Vanilla Cake and Baking Mix

2 cups cranberries (frozen or fresh will work)

whipped cream (for topping)

1.  Follow instructions on box to prepare mix. 
2.  Add cranberries to mix before spreading batter in pan. 
3.  Cook as directed if using butter, if using applesauce the cook time will increase.  Test by inserting toothpick in the middle of the cake to check for doneness (should come out clean).

Top with whipped cream and serve.

Makes about 9 servings.  Refrigerate leftovers to avoid spoiling.

Thoughts on Winter and Soup

“In seed time - learn, in harvest - teach, in winter - enjoy.” – William Blake

William Blake (poet and illustrator, click here to view some of illustrators and here to enter an archive of his work) lived in London from 1757 to 1827.  London winters are no picnic but I’m sure if he experienced a Wisconsin winters he would have said “in winter – soup.” 

For those of us in Wisconsin, I think Christmas and New Year’s are put after the Winter Solstice to distract us from the weather.  By the time we look up from putting away our holiday decorations there are three more months of cold, snow and ice in our future.  Luckily there are various soup and chili recipes floating around to fuel us until the snow melts in April. 

Today I plan on reacquainting myself with Blake ("tyger tyger burning bright") and enjoying some soup with some great crusty bread.

This soup calls for leeks which are from the onion and garlic family and have a mild taste when boiled. I find they mostly act as filler in this soup and although I wouldn’t leave them out you can cut down to one instead of two. The leeks I bought were clean on the outside but I could see they had some dirt trapped between the internal layers once they were sliced.  To get rid of this quickly I soaked the cut sections in a bowl of ice water and used my fingers to separate and clean each section.

We have been buying dried beans which as a whole are easy to prepare.  There are different philosophies on preparing beans and I have had the most success cooking them in a pressure cooker.  If you decide to use this method here is a brief summary.  Keep in mind this process takes a couple of hours depending on how long you soak the beans.

• Measure beans and add water covering beans by at least 3 inches.
• Soak beans in water for 1 to 2 hours.
• Drain and rinse soaked beans.
• In pressure cooker add water to cover beans by about 2 inches.
• Cook on medium heat until you hear the pressure cooker whistle.
• Unless I am in a hurry I usually let the cooker sit and release the pressure gradually so I don’t have to manually release the steam and water discharge which can be messy

Simple Cabbage and Bean Soup

Thanks to Sara for passing this recipe on and suggesting adding white beans for some extra protein.  I have to admit I didn't have any thyme so I omitted that both times and was still pleased with the flavor although I did salt it more liberally. 


When dicing the onion, carrot, celery and potato keep in mind the size of chunks you want in a soup.  Taking the time to dice them smaller will give of a variety in each spoonful. 


Some great uses for the leftover cabbage would making a homemade slaw, adding it to pasta or just doubling this recipe and freezing some for another time.

Nods to Everyday Cooking for the original recipe.

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, diced small
2 medium carrots, diced small
2 ribs of celery, diced small

2 medium leeks, white and light green parts only, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 garlic cloves, minced (yields about 1 tsp minced garlic)

1 medium potato, peeled and diced small
6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth (I prefer Imagine’s “No Chicken” broth)
2 bay leaves

1/2 head green cabbage cored and thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1 can (15 oz) cannellini or great northern beans (or about 2 cups dried beans soaked and prepared)

1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme (or substitute 1 tsp dried thyme)

1.  In a stockpot or heat olive oil over medium-high (about 2 to 3 minutes).
2.  Add onion, carrots and celery; cook until softened stirring occasionally (about 5 minutes).
3.  Add leeks and garlic and cook until leeks start to soften (about 2 minutes).
4.  Add potato, broth and bay leaves and bring to a boil.
5.  Stir in cabbage, beans and season with salt and pepper. Return soup to a boil for 5 minutes.
6.  Reduce to a rapid simmer. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender (about 15 to 20 minutes).
7.  Remove from heat; stir in thyme and serve.

This will make 6-8 servings of soup and it freezes beautifully for later enjoyment.

Scrapbooking and Peanut Butter Coconut Curry

I think the best recipes come from friends. The tried and true, the keepers, the bird in the hand, the honey crisp apple of recipes. That is the case with Peanut Butter Coconut Curry we made tonight which came to me from my best friend Rebecca, who got it from her mom, who had gotten it from her sister, who...and that's where my trail runs cold.

Before we get to today's eats I have to say I just spent a day and a half at my first scrapbooking weekend and I loved it. The women, the creativity, the food, the food, the food...I felt like I was taking advantage of so many people's "best" recipes. I also love the idea of women not apologizing for taking a weekend for themselves to spend time with old friends and make new friends.  I was working on a heritage album of pictures from my grandparents and so appreciate the ideas and support I received.

I myself brought Molly's Banana Bread with Chocolate and Cinnamon Sugar found here to the scrapbooking event.  If you are in the mood for a food blog, take a few minutes and check Orangette out. Molly has never disappointed me with a recipe and I love her stories around each one (since I'm reading her book right now too there are a lot of recipes being tried in my household).

But without further adieu, here is the recipe my husband, Doug, and I whipped up tonight (truthfully, Doug did the whipping and he impressed me with his ability to convert teaspoons into tablespoons to avoid dirtying another utensil). Chicken or shrimp would pair nicely with this traditional Thai curry although we think it is filling without a protein mixed in. I also like to serve this with a side of broccoli or green beans and a splash of sriracha sauce. Note that it may not look like much in the picture but it tastes divinely smooth and delicious.

Peanut Butter Coconut Curry

1 tsp olive oil
1 small red onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 1/2 tsp)
1 serrano pepper, seeded and minced
4 tsp fresh ginger, minced (I have used ginger powder in pinch also)

4 tsp curry powder
4 tsp cumin

1 can light coconut milk (13.5 ounces)
5 tbls creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced
5 tsp tamari (substitute soy sauce if you have no tamari)
4 tsp honey
1/8 cup lime juice
1/8 cup ketchup
3/4 cup water

1. Heat oil over medium in a large frying pan or wok.
2. Saute onion, garlic, serrano pepper and ginger until onion is translucent.
3. Add curry powder and cumin and saute over low for one minute.
4. Add coconut milk, peanut butter, cilantro, tamari, honey, lime juice, ketchup and water. Bring sauce to a boil whisking often to combine ingredients into a smooth texture.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve over rice. Makes about 5-6 servings.