Lemon Poppy-Seed Muffins

The Date: 8 April 2012

The Occasion: Easter Lunch

The Recipe: Food Network’s website. Original recipe here.

How it went:

I really loved these! They would have been best warm, but I had to bake them Saturday and take them to Easter lunch Sunday afternoon. I still thought they were great, especially zapped in the microwave.

I had poppy seeds in the pantry already, but after reading online that they go bad unless frozen or refrigerated, I went out and bought new ones just to be safe. I put the new bottle in the freezer, so next time I should be OK to use them.

What You Need:
2 C flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 C butter, at room temperature

1 tsp finely grated lemon zest (about one whole lemon, zested)

2/3 C sugar, plus extra for sprinkling on top

2 eggs, at room temperature

4 tsp poppy seeds

1/2 C milk

Your Turn:
Preheat oven to 375. Line 12-cup muffin tin with papers, or butter insides of cups. Zest one whole lemon with a fine grater. 

Sift together into a medium bowl

· 2 C flour

· 2 tsp baking powder

· 1/4 tsp salt

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together

· 1/2 C butter (1 stick)

· 1 tsp lemon zest

· 2/3 C sugar

until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 

Scrape sides of the bowl, then add the 2 eggs, one at a time, beating well after adding each one.

Stir in 4 tsp of poppy seeds with a spoon.

Now, this is the important part. This will determine whether your muffins rise properly or not. You really have to just barely blend the ingredients; don't overmix it.  Mine didn’t do so well this first time. Using a spoon, gently fold in about 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture. Don’t over-stir it! Then fold in about half of your 1/2 C milk. Fold in another 1/3 of the flour mixture. Don’t overmix! Fold the rest of the milk, then the last 1/3 of the flour mixture.

Divide the batter evenly among your 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with sugar. 

Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Serve warm, if possible. 

Happy (belated) Easter!

Steel Cut Oats with Berries and Pecans

The Occasion: Breakfast

The Recipe: From the steel cut oats package, with tips from my friend Nina about adding frozen fruit!

How it went: This is my favorite breakfast now. I sit right next to the stove while it’s cooking and read while I wait for it to finish, lifting the lid every so often so it doesn’t boil over. It’s a wonderful morning routine.

What You Need:

Country Choice Organic, Irish Style Quick-Cooking Steel Cut Oats (using different oats will mean different quantities and cooking times, but feel free to experiment!)

Chopped pecans

Brown sugar

Frozen berries

Your Turn:
Bring 3/4 C of water to a boil.

Add 1/4 C steel cut oats.

Reduce heat and cover. Simmer about 5-8 minutes, until all water is absorbed. Don’t go too far away! They will boil over if you don’t lift the lid every 30 seconds or so to let the steam out.

In the meantime, prepare your bowl with

· Brown sugar

· Frozen berries

· Chopped pecans (toasted, if you’d like)

(Quantities are up to you)

When the oats are done, stir them into the bowl with your nuts, sugar and fruit. 

Savor alone or with coffee to start your day off right!

Peach-Berry Cobbler

About the Recipe: The potential issue with this cobbler, if you're not careful, is a mushy center. You really have to bake it a good long time. I've made it often with frozen fruit, but it's more risky. Fresh fruit is less likely to create excess liquid to cause mush.

What You Need:

1 stick of butter

1 & 1/2 C flour

1 & 1/2 C sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 & 1/2 C milk

about 2 1/2 C blueberries (fresh or frozen)
2-3 whole peaches, pitted, peeled and sliced (or 2 C frozen peach slices)

Your Turn:
Place the stick of butter in a 9x13 casserole dish and melt in the oven at 350. Yes, a whole stick of butter. Don’t think about it too much. 

While it’s melting, whisk together

· 1 & 1/2 C flour

· 1 & 1/2 C sugar

· 2 tsp baking powder

· 1/2 tsp salt

Add 1 & 1/2 C milk and whisk to form batter.

Pour batter into dish over melted butter. I try to pour it in near the edges for a more even batter/butter distribution. Otherwise the butter pools in the corners as you pour the batter into the center.

Scatter fruit over top.

Sprinkle sugar over the top. Bake 60-70 minutes at 350 until batter is brown and fruit is bubbly. You don’t want it to jiggle. If you shake the dish and the middle looks jiggly, put it back in. Cover with foil if the top is getting too dark. Let sit uncovered for about 30 minutes before serving.

A few recipes that aren't mine

I've made a few things recently that turned out excellent, but are so insanely easy, it's not worth a play-by-play of how to make it. I'll just give you the links and let you give it a whirl on your own.

A Whole Chicken in the Crock Pot
I made this today (recipe here) and it was seriously excellent. The blog I found it on says it's "fall-off-the-bone delicious," and I tell you... it absolutely was. I got this chicken from my employer at work for Christmas, so it was free, but I also read that buying a whole chicken is really cheap per pound, and you can make broth (which makes for divine soup) with the juices and bones! I also saved 4 cups of chicken, aside from what we ate for dinner, which I'll put in soup or casserole. It seems like a win-win-win situation. The broth is currently in my crock pot, where it will cook all night. I'll skim out all the bones and stuff in the morning, and save the excellent broth for an upcoming soup. Mmmm. I was a bit scared to attempt this whole-chicken-bones-and-all thing, but I'm impressed with myself and thrilled with the result. Please: Try this.

Nantucket Cranberry Pie
I took this recipe from Pioneer Woman to bake for Christmas Eve at my in-laws. Everyone loved it (I liked it more than the Cranberry Chess Pie, myself) and I'll definitely keep it in my favorite pies list. I might do a post on this, since it was so good and I love blogging pies, but Pioneer Woman's post (and photos, of course) are far superior to mine. So just check her recipe out.

Taco Soup
I made this a couple months ago for a friend who had a baby and needed meals delivered. It was a crock pot soup and embarrassingly easy, but she and her husband loved it. For an easy crock pot dinner, this is an excellent choice. It's also flexible. Leave out a certain kind of beans or the green chiles, or add more of anything you like. It's really great with shredded cheese and sour cream on top and a sprinkling of tortilla chips.

Skillet Chili
I've always made chili in a big skillet on the stove, but I've always used ground meat, a packet of McCormick chili seasoning, and whatever ingredients it suggests on the back of the packet. When I came across this recipe for chili, it sounded really similar but with a homemade flair. We loved it, and Husband even said it was better than my normal chili (which is funny because he normally likes packaged things more than the homemade versions). It was extremely good. I served it with rice, which I don't think she suggests. Also, I didn't use the whole jar of tomato sauce. I used tomato paste and some water instead, because I didn't have tomato sauce on hand. I also didn't have celery salt, so I used a bit of regular salt instead. It was really, really good.

Thanks to other cooks and food bloggers of the world for making such excellent recipes available!

Cranberry Chess Pie

The Date: 26 November 2011

The Occasion: Thanksgiving with Pete's family. I am pie-mistress on both sides of the family.

The Recipe: Again, from Williams-Sonoma Pies and Tarts.

How it Went:
I thought it was a little too tangy, but others loved it. I might cut down on the orange zest next time. I was a bit too generous there. Otherwise, it was fairly easy, unique, and tasty. Good texture and flavors. I used a store-bought pie crust for this one too, but I think the handmade crust would be superior if you have the time and inclination.

What You Need:
cranberries
sugar
butter
salt
eggs
flour
buttermilk
cider vinegar
orange zest

Your Turn:
Prepare your pie crust in the pie plate. The recipe asks you to pre-bake the pie crust for about 25 minutes. This matters more, I think, if you're using a homemade crust which is more likely to be a bit wet. The purpose of this pre-baking is to prevent the somewhat juicy filling of the pie from making the crust soggy. I pre-baked my store-bought crust for about 10 minutes, and that worked fine. You just press the crust into the pie plate, and put it in a 375 oven. Ideally, put some pie weights or heavy rice or something down inside the crust to prevent bubbling, but I didn't do that. It's alright. Just keep an eye on the crust. You don't want it to get dark, or overly bubbly, or dry or anything.

Chop 2 C of cranberries, fresh or frozen, coarsely.

Now, start the filling by blending

• 1 & 1/3 C sugar
• 1/2 C butter, melted
• 1/8 tsp salt

Whisk this well.

Now add 3 eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth after each one.

Stir in 1/4 C flour followed by 1/3 C buttermilk and 1 tsp cider vinegar.

Now -- it's time to zest the orange. I don't have a zester, and I'm not entirely sure how zesting is supposed to be done. I have an inkling I did it wrong. But here's how it went.

First, wash off your orange. Then grate it against the fine side of a cheese grater. You'll need 2 tsp orange zest. I think I used a bit too much. Feel free to start light on the orange and add more next time if you think it's bland.

Stir this into the batter well. Now add your cranberries.

Pour the mixture into your partially-baked pie crust.

Oops. Sunset mode.

Bake at 375 for 50-60 minutes, until the top is lightly golden brown and the filing is firm. Transfer to a wire rack and cool before serving.

The cranberries will rise to the top as it bakes, and the orangey custard will firm up underneath them.

Short Version
CRANBERRY CHESS PIE

1 pie crust, partially baked (10 min in 375 oven for store-bought crust)
1 & 1/3 C sugar
1/2 C unsalted butter, melted
1/8 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1/4 C flour
1/3 C buttermilk
1 tsp cider vinegar
2 tsp finely grated orange zest
2 C fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped

Whisk together sugar, melted butter, and salt.
Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
Add flour, buttermilk, cider vinegar, and orange zest.
Stir well.
Add cranberries and stir.
Transfer to partially-baked pie crust.
Bake at 375, 50-60 minutes, until top is lightly golden and filling is firm.