A Fall Flavor

Old-Fashioned Gingersnaps

2 c. flour

 2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/4 c. dark molasses (not blackstrap)

1/2 c. firmly packed light brown sugar

1/3 c. sugar

3 Tbsp, peeled and grated fresh ginger

1 large egg, beaten

Turbinado sugar

Position oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven.  Preheat oven to 350°.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment and set aside.   

In medium bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, the 2 tsp. ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together butter, molasses, brown sugar, sugar, 3 Tbs. fresh ginger, and egg.  Add the flour mixture.  Stir to combine.  Cover and chill 1 hour.  (I did not do this step!)

Place turbinado sugar in a small, shallow bowl.  Make small balls out of dough and roll in turbinado sugar.  Place on baking sheet (2" apart).

Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are crisp and centers are still chewy.  Switch baking sheets between racks and rotate them front to back halfway through.  Remove from oven.  Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.

These are so good!!  I didn't have near enough fresh ginger, but it was still very good and the turbinado sugar adds a nice dimension to the cookie!!

Hello!

Does anyone even read blogs anymore?  Does anyone read THIS blog anymore?  I wouldn't blame you if you didn't because it's not been updated in so long!!  I practically just use it as a recipe reminder anymore myself!  :-)  But let me see, SOOOO much has happened since we last met.  Sheesh!  I'm not even sure WHEN we last met.  I guess I might have told you about Riana  -- and that was back in January already!  We had a good winter and then came spring quarter.  Things really started to wind down for Tiana and I when it came to school.  In the wind-down things really wound up with scheduling, though!  For the first time since I started school I had a 5 day a week class schedule with lots of extras going on for a couple of classes.  I had 2 microbiology labs a week and in order to do my final project, I also had to do some extra work because my bacteria decided not to cooperate with me!  I also took a photography class that really demanded a lot of time.  BUT in the end, both Tiana and I managed to graduate!  We took a long trip out to Montana and visited some ghost towns and Craters of the Moon.  We came home to have Tiana's tonsils out and then think about getting her ready for her grand adventure to Australia. She's now in Australia and seeming to enjoy it.  She's gone to visit two of our former exchange students and is now with one of them for awhile.  Here's a little glimpse of our summer.

My new Go-to bread

One day I was wanting to make some little sandwich baguettes and looked for a recipe that might be a bit faster than the all day one that I've used before.  I found this one and I love it!

Hot, Crusty French Bread

1 c. warm water
1 pkg. yeast
about 3/4 tsp. salt
approximately 2½ c. flour

In a large bowl, combine water with yeast and salt.  Let sit for five minutes.  Stir in flour until the dough is stiff enough to knead.  Knead dough until smooth and elastic.  Place dough in a greased bowl; cover.  Let rise until doubled.  (TIP: heat water in microwave for about 5 minutes while kneading and then place bowl with dough in warm moist microwave.  Will take about 30 minutes to double!!)  Form dough into a French-style loaf and place on greased baking sheet.  (Dust baking sheet with cornmeal if desired).  Place immediately in COLD oven (bread will rise while oven preheats).  Set oven to 375° and timer for 30-40 minutes.  Makes one loaf or 4 small sandwich sized baguettes.

Potato Jalapeno Gratin

Got this recipe from AllRecipes.com and LOVED it!!  Do NOT seed the jalapeno peppers.  It wasn't spicy at all and I left all of the seeds in.  I also would suggest maybe some Cheddar for a different flavor profile.  I also used 1 c. cream and 1 c. half-and-half, as if to lighten the recipe a bit!!

2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick 2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese 3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced (wear gloves)

1 pinch salt and ground black pepper to taste 2 cups heavy whipping cream 1 tablespoon paprika

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
2.	Spread 1/4 of the sliced potatoes into the bottom of the casserole dish, followed by 1/3 of Gruyere cheese, and about 2 tablespoons of minced jalapeno peppers. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat the layers 2 more times; top casserole with last 1/4 of the sliced potatoes. Pour the cream evenly over the casserole. Sprinkle top with paprika.
3.	Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole has browned and the potatoes are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

Hello and a recipe

Hello!  It's been awhile again!!  Sooo much going on, not enough time to tell about it!!  So, let's see, back in January we welcomed Riana into our home for 10 extremely short days!  Almost immediately after she arrived we took off for her requested weekend in Canada.  I took my parents to the airport on Friday morning (they were off to help Justin and his family and we took care of Pixie), and that afternoon we took off for Vancouver, B.C.  EVERY meal up there we made sure we partook of poutine, as seen in this picture.  Ok, so not breakfasts, but the rest!

Sadly, Riana's time here was far too short and we had to say good-bye.  Thankfully, it is only temporary because she and her family are returning this coming winter, and Kent and I may just happen to Australia in summer 2014!!!  Tiana should already be there if her plans go through the way she's hoping they do!  

Other than having Riana with us, life has pretty much been the same as it has been now for the last couple of years.  I do my school stuff, Tiana does her's and Kent's along for the ride.  Speaking of rides, Tiana's learning to drive, so that's Kent's other job -- taking her out for practice time!  I'm trying to find time to do some walking with a few classmates, too, so that has been good.  I'm thinking today may be a bust, though!  Bummer because I need it!  I'll see what learning I get done soon!

So, tonight, although we won't really be eating together, I'm going to make these Sauerbraten Klopse.  They're one of Tiana's favorites, so I'll share them, and she'll know where to find the recipe if she craves them Down Under. I'll be serving these with Spätzle and a salad.

SAUERBRATEN KLOPSE

1 lb. ground beef

1/4 c. milk

1/4 c. dry bread crumbs

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

1/8 tsp. ground allspice

1/2 tsp. salt

pepper to taste

2 Tbs. oil

1 c. water

1/2 c. vinegar

3/4 tsp ground ginger

1 bay leaf

4 Tbs. brown sugar

2 tsp. flour

2 Tbs. water

Mix beef, milk, crumbs, cloves, allspice, salt and pepper.  Form into meatballs.  Brown meatballs in hot oil.  Drain off fat.  Add 1 c. water, vinegar, ginger, bay leaf, and brown sugar.  Cover and simmer 1/2 hour.  Skim off fat.  Remove meatballs and keep them warm.  Mix flour and water.  Slowly stir into the pan juices to make gravy.  Pour gravy over meatballs.  Serve with Spätzle.

Have a good day!

New Year's Eve!

Here we are at the end of another year!!  Not much has happened in our lives, but we'll try to catch up a bit here anyway!  School finished up with lots of homework due right at the end.  Of course!  And there was lots to go over for the final, too.  During that time we decided to get Christmas Dinner planned which was to be French cuisine this year.  In order to do it up right, my French co-chef needed his hat and apron to be appropriate.  I think he looked dashing, don't you?!

And these are some of the awesome braised onions he created for our Beouf Bourgninon.

The table was set with a Parisian theme - menu included!

We had not one but two desserts.  The first was a bûche de Noël ...

...and the second was cremé bruleé.  That was really fun to watch when Kent burnt the tops of the cremé!

After a satisfying meal we played B-I-N-G-O and Catchphrase and had an enjoyable day into the late evening!  It was so nice to have this group with us!

That did require that we head out of town for some rest and relaxation, though, so on the Sunday after Christmas we went up to Bellingham and checked out that area, including the little Dutch village of Lynden and up into Canada!  The funny story with that was that at the border the US patrol asked us if we bought anything other than the Tim Horton's donuts that he saw on my lap.  We told him, that Yes! we bought potato chips, too.  He said, "Ketchup?"  But of course!!  Only in Canada (at least on the West Coast) are Old Dutch Ketchup Potato Chips available!  Only the best chips out there!
Now, we're on to a New Year, new opportunities and new paths in life (we hope!)  2013 should bring us (God-willing) 2 graduations, an au-pair and a nursing student.

HAPPY 2013!!!!

 

Sunday Dinner

Today I made a standard pot roast that ended up being anything but standard!!  I started off with The Pioneer Woman's recipe.  And, in my humble opinion, took it to heights sublime!  She suggested using simply onions and carrots.  As far as I'm concerned, that's just not enough!  I added parsnips, celery, whole garlic cloves and potatoes.  As she suggested, I browned the onions, carrots, and my added parsnips and celery as well.  After searing the beef I deglazed the pan with a bit of red wine.  I put the meat in the pot, poured in the broth I made (boxed onion soup mix!) and added all of the veggies to the pot.  I had to cook it over low for a bit on the stove because I had my breakfast meats still in the oven at a much higher than 275º temperature.  After the oven cooled, I put the Dutch oven in the oven and let it do it's thing during Meeting.  The most delicious meal I've made in a long time!  I could have used more garlic.  Those things are like CANDY when they cook that long.  The only thing is the veggies were very soft, but VERY tasty, infused with marvelous flavors!