Beef Stroganoff

This is my own recipe. Tonight Ayden ate all of his dinner and Jennifer always loves my Stroganoff (without mushrooms) I'd love to add fresh mushrooms, but then she wouldn't like it so much. The amounts are estimates, I flavor it by taste. I prefer a very strong sauce before adding the sour cream. Saltier the better since the sour cream mutes the flavor.

Beef steak (cheap) sliced against the grain
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 T butter
1T olive oil
Salt and Pepper

I used the handle of a knife and pounded the steak. Not thin, just a bit to tenderize. Add worcestershire sauce and let sit till room temperature. In pan (not non stick) melt butter and add olive oil. Thinly slice steak and fry in batches over medium-high heat, just browned, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Remove and set aside.

1/2 yellow onion - chopped
1 T minced garlic
1/4 cup cooking sherry
2 cups beef stock
3 T flour
2 T ketchup
3 T Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup sour cream

In the same pan already used, sweat garlic and onion. Turn up the heat and add sherry, scrape the pan. Pour 1 cup beef stock, setting aside remaining stock. In a container with a tight fitting lid combine remaining stock and flour, shake. Pour mixture into pan and bring to a boil stirring well. Thicken the sauce add remaining ingredients, except sour cream, add beef. Simmer. Cook egg noodles or brown rice - when finished add sour cream

Engish Muffins.

I have made these a bunch and they have always been a little dense. This time I cut back on the flour making the dough sticky and used the kitchenaid with dough hook to kneed for five minutes at slow-med speed.  I started them last night let raise for an hour. I cut them out and put them on a tray in the fridge overnight. This morning I took them out and put them in the oven with just the light on to let raise. About an hour. Ran to a store and came back. They doubled in size. They still lacked the big air pockets, but these turned out so good and light. The more I cook my own food, the less I like store bought. Just found a recipe for wheat ones. I'll try those next

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1/4 cup melted shortening (I added this to the milk after I took it off the stove to melt)
• 6 cups all-purpose flour (more like 5 1/4, just add five at first and add more as you go. Error on the gooey side)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Warm the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Mix in the sugar, stirring until dissolved. Let cool until lukewarm. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine the milk, yeast mixture, shortening and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Add salt and rest of flour, or enough to make a soft dough. Knead. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise.
3. Punch down. Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut rounds with biscuit cutter, drinking glass, or empty tuna can. Sprinkle waxed paper with cornmeal and set the rounds on this to rise. Dust tops of muffins with cornmeal also. Cover and let rise 1/2 hour.
4. Heat greased griddle. Cook muffins on griddle about 10 minutes on each side on medium heat. Keep baked muffins in a warm oven until all have been cooked. Allow to cool and place in plastic bags for storage. To use, split and toast. Great with orange butter, or cream cheese and jam.

 http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/English-Muffins/Detail.aspx

Spiked Wassail Recipe

Sweet tasting. Almost too sweet. I like my drinks stronger, but this was a good warm drink to share.

• 2 quarts unfiltered apple juice or apple cider
• 1 quart cranberry juice cocktail
• 1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 27 whole cloves
• 15 allspice berries
• 4 (4-inch) cinnamon sticks
• 5 small firm cooking apples of your choice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 medium orange
• 2 cups Calvados (I looked this up, it is an apple brandy. I couldn't find one so I just used regular brandy)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine the apple juice, cranberry juice, and brown sugar in a 6-quart slow cooker. Place 12 of the cloves, the allspice berries, and the cinnamon sticks in a small piece of cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine to make a bag. Add to the slow cooker, cover, and cook on low for 4 to 5 hours.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 375°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Stud each apple with 3 of the remaining cloves and place in an 8-by-8-inch baking pan. Add the water and bake until the apples are just a bit tender when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
3. After the juices have stewed for 4 to 5 hours, add the apples to the slow cooker. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the orange peel in wide strips, making sure to avoid the white pith, and add to the slow cooker.
4. Remove the spice bag and stir in the Calvados. Serve hot (leave the slow cooker on to keep the cocktail warm).

http://www.chow.com/recipes/11803-spiked-wassail?tag=text_block;gallery_recipe_btn
Adapted from "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Recipes for Entertaining" by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann

Richard Bertinet Kneading Technique

I will continue to mention that I use this method to knead. It might make a difference with the bread, but so far every bread I have made kneading this way has turned out great. Ayden likes to get his hands in there and help. Today his hands were so covered that Jennifer had to help clean them off.

http://www.gourmet.com/magazine/video/2008/03/bertinet_sweetdough

Sweet Dinner Rolls

I spent a few hours looking for a good dinner roll recipe. I wanted soft, slightly chewy and sweet dough. I found this one below and my family loves it. So far I've used them for pulled pork sandwiches, hamburgers, PB&J and egg and ham. The pulled pork was the best since they are a bit sweet anyways. They are just good eaten plain. I started kneading bread by the advise of Richard Bertinet. One day I will try the dough hook of my mixer to see if there is a difference, but it's more fun making a mess with the dough. The instructions include different shapes. I have only made rounds, about 12-14 rolls.

Ingredients

• Dough:
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 2 tablespoons shortening
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup liquid honey
• 4 - 4 1/2 cups bread flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 
  

Directions

Prep all your ingredients a head, this will help to make sure you have everything you need. Pour milk into a saucepan and bring to a scald. Set aside. Pour your honey into a large bowl, add in the shortening and butter. Now, pour in the hot scalded milk. Stir till all the shortening and butter is melted. Add in two cups of flour and mix till smooth. Allow to cool to a temperature of 110F. Add in the salt and yeast. Mix till smooth and allow to rest uncovered for 15 minutes. Add in another cup of flour and stir. Add some flour to a flat surface and pour out the mixture on top. Begin to knead and slowly add in more flour as you need. You may or may not need all the 4 1/2 cups of flour. You just don't want the dough to be to sticky. Knead for 10 minutes. Pour a little oil into a clean bowl. Place your kneaded dough into the bowl and turn over till all sides are very lightly coated. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 1 hour or till double in bulk. Weigh your dough and divide by 12. This will tell you what size to cut each piece of dough. Mine were 3 oz each. It really helps if each piece is the same size. This will help to make the buns cook evenly. Roll each piece into a ball and cover for 10 minutes. This will help the dough to relax and will be easier to work with and shape. If you want to make round buns, you can just place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet at this time and cover with plastic wrap for 1 hour or till double in bulk. You can brush the tops with an egg wash to get that shiny coating. Take 1 egg white in a bowl and beat with a wire whisk till foamy. Brush just the foam on top of each bun. You can also garnish the tops of the buns with poppy seeds, sesame seed, parmesan cheese if you would like too. Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for about 12 to 14 minutes. Serve hot. If you want you, can shape the buns. The first one is the clover, you can cut each piece of dough into three equal pieces and roll them into three balls. Place the balls close together to make a clover shape. To make the "S" shape, take a piece of dough and roll it out with your hands into a rope, about 12 inches. Starting from one end roll inwards to make a spiral about half way. Than from the other end do the same facing the other direction. To make the knot shape roll out the dough into a 10 inch rope and tie into a knot. To make the lip buns. Shape into an egg shape and press a pencil down the middle, but don't cut all the way through. With this bun you may need to do it again after the dough has risen for an hour just before baking. Place these buns onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 1 hour. After the dough has risen use an egg wash; as above and sprinkle any toppings you want. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 - 14 minutes. Serve hot!

Cook's Notes:

”http://www.cookingbread.com/classes/class_honey_dinner_buns.html”

Baked French Toast Casserole

I was asked to share this Paula Deen recipe that I made for Ayden's birthday. Better keep it to special occasions, like any Paula Deen recipe it is NOT low fat and that is why it tastes so good!

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time:20 min   Inactive Prep Time: 8 hr 0 min  Cook Time: 40 min

Serves:  6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Dash salt
• Praline Topping, recipe follows
• Maple syrup

Directions

Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. 

Today I am baking bread

Jennifer asked me to make some bread for a party she is having at our home tonight. It is a simple french bread that I like to make. It makes two large loafs. I decided to make four medium loafs. I also used a soda can with a small nail hole in the bottom to create steam for the first ten minutes. I timed it the first time and the hole and can of water lasts about 10 minutes. I used a tile to bake on.

French Bread

• 2 packages dry yeast
• 2-1/2 cups warm water
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 6 cups all purpose flour (I use bread flour)
• 1-1/2 tsp. salt

Make sure water temperature is 110 to 115 degrees F. Place water in a large bowl and sprinkle with yeast and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes until yeast dissolves and starts to bubble. Stir in 2 cups flour and salt. Cover and let rise for 1/2 hour.
Then gradually stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. (Knead by pressing on the dough, then folding over and pressing with the heel of your hand.) Then clean the large mixing bowl, grease it with solid shortening, and place the dough in the bowl. Turn it in the bowl so the dough is greased (this prevents the top from cracking as it rises).

Cover the dough and let rise at room temperature for about 2-1/2 hours, until doubled in bulk. With your fist, punch down the dough. Divide in half and place one half on a lightly floured surface.
Using a rolling pin, roll dough to a 12x6" rectangle. Starting with the 12" side, roll up tightly. Seal seams and edges by pinching. Repeat with remaining dough.
Grease a cookie sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place loaves on prepared sheet. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray the loaves with a bit of water, then using a blade, made a few slashes across the top of each loaf. Bake at 425 degrees F for 25-30 minutes until loaves are golden brown. Remove from cookie sheet and let cool on wire rack.

By Linda Larsen: http://www.suite101.com/content/frenchbreadrecipe-a1341