Sardinian Minestrone
I get a daily email from La Cucina Italiana - in Italian - with a score of recipes. To my utter dismay, Conde Nast discontinued the English version of the magazine several years ago. (They have recently started up an online English version, but I think the Italian site is better. I have my browser auto-set to translate into English.)
But I digress...
A few days ago, the email had a soup they labelled Il minestrone sardo della longevità, la ricetta di famiglia. The Sardinian minestrone of longevity, the family recipe.
How could I resist?!?
The article goes on to explain the Sardinian diet is mostly vegetarian, and almost all locally produced. Not a lot of White Chocolate Mocha Creme Frappuccino's or Double Quarter Pounder's with Cheese being consumed.
The recipe concept sounded great - and we just happened to have dried fava beans, dried chickpeas, dried white beans, and Fregola. Fregola is a Sardinian toasted pasta about twice the size of pastina. [Our pantry ingredients can be a bit esoteric, at times...)
Knowing that my suburban-Portland-in-January ingredients wouldn't pack the same punch as local Sardinian, I punched up the flavors with a couple of ingredients - I swapped out the original water for chicken broth and added a small package of diced pancetta and some of our home-grown oregano. To keep it vegetarian, a good vegetable broth could be used and omit the pancetta, and to make it vegan, just omit the added pecorino at the end.
As it was, it really came out good!
Sardinian Minestrone
adapted from La Cucina Italiana
- 1/2 cup dried fava beans
- 1/2 cup dried white beans
- 1/3 cup dried chickpeas
- 4 oz diced pancetta
- 2/3 cup Sardinian fregola
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow or white onion
- 2 medium-sized carrots
- 2 stalks of medium-sized celery
- 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
- 2 cans diced tomatoess
- 3 medium-sized potatoes
- 1 fennel bulb
- 3 quarts chicken broth
- chopped parsley
- fresh basil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup finely grated pecorino cheese
Leave the legumes to soak for about 8 hours, in a large basin full of water, then drain and rinse them well.
Prepare the sauté in a pot, first heating three teaspoons of oil. Add the pancetta and cook a bit and then adding chopped onion, celery and carrot.
Cook for about five minutes, stirring often, and then add the chopped garlic (stirring for 20 seconds) and then diced tomatoes, potatoes and fennel, chopped parsley and basil and drained legumes.
Add enough broth to cover everything with about a finger, turn up the heat to the maximum and bring to a boil.
At this point reduce the heat and cook for about an hour and a half, until the legumes are soft, adding broth from time to time if necessary. Then pour the Sardinian fregola into the soup and cook for about ten minutes.
Once ready, the minestrone should be served in bowls with the addition of a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkling of pecorino cheese.
Suggestion: Depending on the season, other vegetables from the garden can be added, such as zucchini, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, green beans. The variety of legumes can also be changed to taste.
The soup is really hearty, flavorful, and filling. It was perfect for a chilly January evening - and will be great for lunch the next few days. And, as the recipe suggests, it will be a perfect seasonal dish, swapping out various seasonal vegetables.
I see more of this in our future.
The Battle of the Bulge
I think this is Week 18. I've kinda lost track. What I haven't lost is very much weight since my last missive.
Fortunately, I've now stayed below 230 for a couple of days, so I may be in that new decade. I have been bouncing from 235 to 229 for several weeks, now. And, to be totally honest, I have not been trying very hard.
It's winter. It's cold. I need to walk but I'm lazy. Even the gym was too far away in my lazy state of mind.
A few days ago, I started looking into a gym closer to home - there's one that is a half-mile from our front door. Yesterday, we signed up. It doesn't cost anything with our Medicare Advantage Plan, so Monday, I start on the treadmill. And as soon as I build up a bit of stamina - and the weather gets a bit warmer - I'll be walking to the gym.
Baby Steps.
We've both been eating reasonably well - just too much of a good thing. It's definitely time to get the portions back under control - and to start moving, again.
Victor made a pot of soup for dinner, tonight. And there will be plenty of leftovers for a couple of lunches. There are no quantities listed - it's soup. Make it as thick or thin as you like.
Sweet Potato Soup
- Sweet Potatoes
- Carrots
- White Beans
- Onion
- Garlic Powder
- Aleppo Pepper
- Chicken Broth
- S&P
Peel sweet potatoes and cut into cubes. Cut carrots into bite-sized pieces.
Sauté chopped onion in olive oil. Add sweet potatoes and carrots. Add chicken broth and spices and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes and carrots are tender. Add beans.
Remove a few cups of vegetables and set aside. Blend soup with an immersion blender. Add reserved vegetables back into the pot.
Check for seasoning and add additional S&P, if desired.
Top with a dollop of sour cream and a drizzle of Aleppo Oil, if desired.
***Aleppo Oil - mix Aleppo pepper and olive oil and heat over low heat until fragrant.
And out of the freezer came Schiacciata - a bread from Tuscany I baked a while back.
I used a recipe from Bianco Lievito.
Italian Schiacciata
from Bianco Lievito
INGREDIENTS
For the Biga
- 1 kg Bread Flour (W280 - 320)
- 440 gr Water at 16°C (60°F)
- 10 gr Fresh Yeast (or 2gr if you use dry yeast)
For the Dough
- 1000 gr Biga
- 250 gr Bread Flour (i like stone milled flour)
- 400 gr Water
- 40 gr Salt
- 40 gr Olive Oil
- 5 gr Malt Powder
- 1 gr Fresh Yeast
DIRECTIONS
For the Biga
To prepare a good biga that have the right final temperature (around 20°C or 68°F).
Form a rough dough and let it ferment for 18h at 19°C-20°C (66°F - 68°F).
For the Dough
Mix the flour, biga, malt, yeast, and a first part of the water into the stand mixer bowl.
Halfway through the process, add the salt dissolved in the remaining water, working the dough until it is well-kneaded and elastic. Finally, finish with the olive oil, adding in many times.
Move the dough onto the table, form a loaf, and grease the surface with olive oil.
Let the dough ferment at 26°C - 28°C (79°F - 82°F) for 2 hours (approximately), until it will double its volume.
Move the dough onto the work surface and divide it into desired portions. Let each portion rise on a floured table, placing them cut side up for 45min.
After this time, arrange the dough in a well-greased iron baking pan and stretch it with your fingers until covering the whole pan surface.
Wet the surface with an emulsion of salt, oil, and water and add to taste some rosemary leaves all over the surface.
Let rise for about 30min and bake.
Bake at 220-230°C (428°F - 446°F) for about 30 minutes, slightly opening the oven door during the last 5 minutes of cooking.
The recipe is a bit convoluted and definitely takes some time - but it's really good!
Rye Bread
It's cold, wet, and raining outside - perfect weather for baking a loaf of bread. I decided on Rye Bread for something different - I haven't made any in a while.
There are a bazillion different types and styles of rye bread out there, from a dense German-style Pumpernickel to a light sandwich rye from the grocery store. I went for a Scandinavian Rye, today - a mixture of rye and wheat with a bit of sweetening.
It has a softer crumb and a good crust.
This particular recipe comes from BBC Food.
Scandanavian Rye Bread
adapted from BBC Food
- 175ml full-fat milk
- 175ml water
- 2 tbsp dark soft brown sugar
- 1 x 7g sachet of fast-action dried yeast
- 250g rye flour
- 200g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1 tbsp fine sea salt
- 2 tsp caraway seeds
- sunflower oil, for greasing
Put the milk, water and sugar in a small saucepan and heat very gently, stirring constantly, for just a few seconds until the liquid is lukewarm and the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the mixture into a bowl.
Stir in the yeast and leave for 10 minutes until there is a light froth floating on the surface.
Put all the flour, rye and white, in a large bowl, stir in the salt and caraway seeds, then make a well in the centre. Pour the warm yeast mixture on to the flour and mix with a wooden spoon and then your hands to form a soft, spongy dough.
Turn the dough out on to a well-floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until it is smooth and elastic. Kneading this dough can be hard work so you’ll need to roll up your sleeves and give it some welly.
Put the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover loosely with oiled cling film. Leave to rise in a warm place for about 1½ hours or until it has doubled in size.
Put the dough on a floured work surface and knock it back with your knuckles, then knead for another minute.
Shape the dough into a fat oval or round loaf, pulling the dough from the top and sides and tucking it underneath to make a neat shape.
Place the loaf on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and score the surface 4 times with a sharp knife. Cover it loosely with the oiled cling film and leave to prove for a further 40–50 minutes until it has doubled in size once more.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Bake the loaf in the center of the oven for 40 minutes or until it is well risen and the base sounds hollow when tapped sharply. Cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
There's just enough caraway to be flavorful without being overpowering and the tiny bit of brown sugar mellows the rye.
All-in-all, a very good loaf.
I still have a goal to try and replicate the rye bread we used to serve at David's Delicatessen in San Francisco. It was da bomb.
No idea who is running the place, today. David was old when I worked there in the '70s, and I doubt the bakery that supplied the bread is still around, either.
I do have a recipe that is a three-day project...
We shall see...
In the meantime - this was pretty good!
Dutch Crunch Rolls
A friend posted an article on Dutch Crunch bread, today, and it got me thinking..
Sourdough rolls were king when I was a kid growing up in San Francisco. Nothing could beat a salami sandwich on a crusty crunchy Larrabaru roll. We had a deli at the corner - Edgewater Delicatessen - and for 50¢ we could buy a salami sandwich. On our more poor days, we could buy 25¢ worth of salami and a 10¢ roll - and make our own sandwich for 35¢. More times than not, we paid for them - at least in part - by collecting bottles. It was definitely a world of high finance.
Larrabaru disappeared in the mid-70s, as did their uniquely crusty bread.
At that point I was living all over the USofA and sourdough was something I got on those rare occasions I was back in San Francisco for a visit. I finally moved back home in 1989 and rented a flat on 9th & Judah in the inner Sunset. A few blocks away was Andronico's Market - an upscale grocery store that was a tad too expensive for everyday shopping but a great source for the unique. (Andronico's was bought by Safeway in 2017 and it just ain't the same...)
One of their unique offerings was a hand-carved Turkey Sandwich with Lingonberry Sauce on a Dutch Crunch Roll. They cost about $3.95 - pricey for the times - but definitely in the Top Ten list of favorite sandwiches I have eaten. What I didn't know at the time was that Dutch Crunch rolls were really the rave in the Bay Area. A few really good bakeries were supplying everyone.
I would buy the sandwiches for dinner, to take to a Giant's game out at Candlestick... I definitely had one at least every two weeks.
And then we moved east and Amoroso Rolls and Philly Cheesesteaks took over. Dutch Crunch rolls were but a memory.
And then we moved to Oregon. There was a bakery not too far from us that advertised Dutch Crunch rolls, but, in the time of Covid, generally didn't have any. I found a couple of recipes online for them, but never made them.
Until today.
Dutch Crunch Rolls
adapted from Baking Sense
Bread Dough
- 1/2 cups (120ml) slightly warm water
- 1 cup (240ml) slightly warm whole milk
- 15g (1tbsp) butter melted
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 packet dry yeast (7g)
- 1/2 cup (70g) whole wheat flour
- 3 cups (420g) all purpose flour
Topping
- 1 cup (178g) rice flour
- 1 packet (7g) dry yeast
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 3/4 cup (180ml) warm water
Instructions for 8 rolls
Mix water, milk, butter, sugar, salt and yeast. Add the whole wheat flour and 2 cups of the all purpose flour and mix until it forms a thick batter. Switch to the dough hook and add the
remaining flour. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl and cling to the dough hook.Knead on medium speed for 5 minute until the dough is smooth and elasic.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover the bowl and set aside to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured
surface and divide into 8 equal portions.Roll each piece of dough into a smooth ball and set on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Cover with a damp kitchen towel and set aside to rise for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile. mix the topping.
Topping
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the oil to the warm water then add it to the dry ingredients.
Whisk until combined. Set the topping aside for 20 minutes until bubbly.
Brush the topping generously onto the rolls. Let the rolls rise another 20 minutes.
Bake until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.
As you probably have noticed, i didn't get the same crackle that a traditional Dutch Crunch roll had. I think the topping was too thick. Another recipe I found stated the topping should be the consistency of glue. The posted recipe was closer to paste.
Yet, another, stated the topping should be spread on immediately after forming the rolls and allowed to rise with it on.
'Tis the season to be baking bread, so I can see myself experimenting a bit more with this. But... as-is, the taste is great - and that's the important part!
Welcome 2023
Out with the old, in with the new...
Here's a reprint of my take on New Year....
If my mom ever cooked anything special for the new year, I really don’t remember it. The first time I recall hearing about good luck New Year’s foods was when I was in the Navy. Working with lots of guys from down south, Hoppin’ John entered my vocabulary. As I got older and moved around the country, more traditions arrived.
When I lived at Lake Tahoe, working for the Hyatt, I worked with a lot of Mexicans. They made tamales and brought them in for everyone to share. Somewhere, I remember King Cake – that was probably Boston. Black-eyed peas and cornbread followed me around the USofA, and landing in Pennsylvania, it became Pork and Sauerkraut. Victor would divorce me if I ever made pork and sauerkraut – so much for good luck.
After years in the restaurant and hotel business, the very last day I want to be out is New Years Eve. It’s even worse than Mother’s Day. I don’t know if you can even imagine the horror of delivering pizzas on such a night, or dealing with drunks throwing glasses in the general vicinity of a casino fireplace. We were still finding shards of glass for weeks after that one…
Other than a few small house parties, First Night in Boston was probably one of the more fun of the New Year festivities I’ve experienced. Definitely the most unique. Outdoors in a cold, snowy Boston with performances ranging from classical to contemporary in a score or more different venues. And the crowds were relatively well-behaved.
We had bullets raining down on us when we lived in San Leandro – why people think it’s a good idea to shoot guns into the air boggles my mind. We flew across the country on New Year’s Eve 1999 to bring in the year 2000 with Victor’s family – on a near-empty flight in deserted airports – remember Y2K?!?. And, as 2003 turned into 2004, being locked out of Times Square after seeing The Producers with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick less than a half-block away was pretty aggravating. We ended up heading back to our hotel and had a champagne toast with the bartender, the Beverage Manager, and a couple from Norway as the clock struck twelve.
Normally, I eschew crowds – especially the throngs out on a New Year’s Eve – but I do think I’d like to ring in the new year in a European city, Rome, London, Paris, Florence, Barcelona… I dunno… Outdoors in a huge plaza, somewhere – and within walking distance of wherever we were staying. The biggest stipulation being within walking distance of where we would be staying. I wouldn’t want to have to deal with any sort of transportation. And I could definitely envision a moonlit walk through Paris at 3am…
So... New Year's Eve 2022 was fun and quiet. My brother and sister-in-law came over for homemade pizza and Aperol Spritzes.
Mike and I bored Victor and Debbie with antics from our Navy Days... We were both in The Gulf of Tonkin around the same time - he on the Saratoga (CVA-60) and me on the Ranger (CVA-61). Mike was an Airdale - working on the flight deck. I was a Commissaryman working mainly in the Bake Shop working 12 hour shifts 7 days a week baking thousands and thousands of loaves of bread, rolls, cakes, pies, donuts - you name it. I had the easy job.
The bars of Olongapo City in The Philippines, the Wan Chai district in Hong Kong, going through typhoons - all of the trouble a 20-year-old and a 23-year-old could get into 7000 miles from home. And there was a LOT of trouble to get into! That we survived is a testament to our good upbringing.
I spent New Year's Eve 1972 drinking homemade apple wine in the forward bake shop with a couple of buddies. The Navy recipe was to open a case of canned apple juice, add a pinch of yeast to each can, and let it sit behind the ovens until ripe. It was pretty nasty, but it did its job.
I had been dressed as Santa the week before... Love those Navy-issued glasses!
It just dawned on me that the apple wine was fifty years ago, last night! That really is several lifetimes ago. At least my taste has gotten a bit more sophisticated - last night was Laurent-Perrier La Cuvee Brut with Aperol!
And just in case you might want to make a pizza, this year... this really is a great dough. It's a 2-day rise, so plan accordingly.
Pizza Dough
- 1 1/2 cups warm water (100º to 105º)
- 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 4 cups “00” flour or unbleached all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 2 teaspoons salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil for bowl
Sprinkle yeast over warm water in bowl of mixer fitted with dough hook. Let proof about 5 minutes.
Mix together flour and salt. Add to yeast mixture. Mix on low speed about 4 minutes or until dough forms a coarse ball. Stop mixer and cover bowl with a towel. Let dough rest about 5 minutes, then remove towel and continue mixing another 2 minutes or so.
Lightly oil a large bowl. Form dough into a ball, transfer to bowl and turn to lightly coat with oil. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.
Punch down dough, re-roll, and return to bowl. Tightly cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
Divide dough into 2 pieces; shape pieces into balls and place on a lightly floured work surface. Loosely cover with a damp kitchen towel and let rise at warm room temperature until doubled, about 2 hours.
And Happy New Year!
Christmas Dinner - 2022
Phoebe and Nancy pulled out all the stops. An outrageous meal with some outrageous people.
Fun, Fun. And More Fun.
We started off with an hors d'oeuvre remake from Christmas Eve.
And then we moved on to the main event - Prime Ribs. Yes, plural. They made two!
Perfectly cooked. of course!
And then it was the side dishes... Mashed potatoes, of course
And a vat of gravy. Phoebe makes good gravy!
Green Beans with chopped garlic
Creamed Spinach
A fabulous salad
and the obligatory dinner rolls
Because we definitely didn't eat enough, we had desserts - yes, plural, again.
Brownies with a mint frosting in homage to Mom..
An Orange Apple Cake
Lots more cupcakes
And Pumpkin Snickerdoodles that I didn't get a picture of.
It was an entire weekend built on excess, and we realize just how fortunate we are that we are able to do so. No one is rich, but we're definitely doing better than so many others. No one has to worry about where their next meal is coming from or in danger of losing their home. We were able to buy presents - and a lot of really good food!
It's a great feeling.
Since my feelings on New Year's Eve are fairly common knowledge, a raucous Christmas is going to morph into a much quieter New Year's Eve.
Stay tuned...
Christmas Eve - Or Why I'm Not Losing Weight Over the Holidays
Lose weight? I'm not even maintaining weight at this point! I get on the scale every morning and I hear the poor thing crying out in pain! I tell it to bear with me. It will get better. Just hold out until January...
It's nigh-on impossible for me to not over-indulge when I'm presented with so many fun and fabulous choices.
Christmas Eve at Phoebe and Nancy's is all about hors d'oeuvres. Everyone brings something and we just graze for hours.
And graze for hours is exactly what I did.
Nancy made a baked brie with a homemade Cranberry Jam...
Victor made his Ricotta Rollatini
Christine made Lumpia
Katie made Chicken and Waffles
And Phoebe and Nancy put together so much more...
Assorted meats
Cheeses
Olives, Peppers, and Pickles
Shrimp
Stuffed Salami
Jalapeno Poppers and Pigs in Blankets
Sausages and Mustard
I somehow missed pictures of Debbie's Olive Cheese Balls and the Buffalo Chicken Wings... But I did get the PB&J Cupcakes
and the chips and dips
And no party is complete without festive beverages. Bill brought the 2022 Anchor Steam Christmas Ale
And I supplied a bottle of Irish Poitin
Needless to say, a good time was had by all!
Tonight, we head back over for a Christmas Day Feast - Phoebe is making Prime Rib for dinner.
It definitely does not suck to be me - and I'll deal with the weight-gaining next week.
Right now, I'm going back for seconds!
Christmas Eve 2022
We're off to my sister, Phoebe's in a couple of hours to start the Christmas Festivities! The travel gods are with us - everyone lives within about a 2-mile radius of her and Nancy's home.
Christmas Eve at Phoebe and Nancy's is hors d'oeuvres and exchanging white elephant gifts. Probably a cocktail or two. There's lots of laughter, lots of stories. It's a really fun tradition.
It's a lot like our Christmases back east where we all went to Victor's sister's house and her husband, Tom. created the Feast of the Seven Fish. Family, tons of food, lots of laughter - and full bellies!
We made Crab Cioppino our first couple of Christmases here, but decided to switch it out this year.
Victor is making his absolutely delicious Ricotta Rollatini in an hors d'oeuvre size. I'm bringing a dessert.
There is going to be a lot of food. This family knows how to cook - and cook well.
Knowing I was going to do a dessert, I decided to do something a bit non-Christmas traditional. No chocolate and peppermint, no gingerbread or eggnog... And I wanted it to be bite-sized. Cake and pies and such are great, but they're difficult to portion for crowds. Mini cupcakes really work well.
I had made a PB&J sandwich the other day for lunch, and it struck me that the flavors would make a great cupcake! The PB&J Cupcake was born!
This was a fun one to put together! I had some peanut butter whisky (don't judge) that I wanted to use up and I had some flavorings that I knew would work, so I set off...
I started with a boxed cake mix. They can be doctored up really well and can make for a good base. Not following their ingredient list, I added peanut butter, peanut butter whisky, and a drop of peanut butter extract to the mix, along with 4 eggs. Into the oven for 8 minutes.
Really simple.
The icing was a cream cheese with pureed apricot jam and apricot extract. A bit of melted peanut butter went on top of the cupcake and then the icing. Dried apricots chopped with demerara sugar finished it off.
Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes
For Cake:
- 1 box vanilla cake mix
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1 cup peanut butter whisky
- 4 eggs
Mix ingredients together as you would following the cake mix instructions. Fill 48 mini cupcake cups and bake at 350°F for 8 minutes.
For other sizes, follow instructions on mix box.
For Icing:
- 8 oz block cream cheeses softened
- 8 oz butter, softened
- 1/2 cup apricot jam, pureed
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp apricot extract
- 5 cups powdered sugar
Cream butter and cream cheese together. Add pureed jam and flavorings. Add powdered sugar and mix well.
To Assemble:
Warm a bit of peanut butter in microwave - just enough to make it easily spreadable.
Add a bit to the top of each cupcake.
Pipe icing on top and finish with chopped dried apricots.
'Tis the Season, indeed!
Panettone and Holiday Weight Gain
Ah... 'Tis the Season, indeed.
227.4, this morning. Christmas - the gift that keeps on giving! And giving...
It's really been a yo-yo two weeks. It started with Christmas Cookie Baking at my sister's house, going out to dinner, still not at the gym, too damned cold outside to do anything... And then getting candy in the mail from friends! 2 pounds of Fralinger's Salt Water Taffy from Atlantic City. A tin of Almond Roca.
While I've gained back a few pounds, I saw my Primary Care Dr on Monday for a 6-month follow-up, and I was actually down almost 25 pounds from my appointment in June. Not too shabby!
So... as any red-blooded foodaholic would do, I made a Panettone, today! It's a 2-day process. I started yesterday!
Panettone eluded me for years. It was one bread that was almost there - but not quite. Last year I finally nailed it. This year was even better!
I'm not entirely sure where I was going wrong, but time, perseverance, and pure luck have finally played out. Not to mention having a 95°F proofing setting in the oven!
Feathery light, soft, and delicate. Perfection in a 7" paper baking mold.
And just a few calories. The entire recipe is 5405 kcal - five thousand, four hundred, and five calories!
I sliced 2 pieces for me and Victor - 1/8th each - 676 kcal. That's not leaving me much for dinner, tonight. But every feathery bite was worth it.
It is just so much better than the packaged panettone I have bought for years. And, while it does take a bit of time, the actual recipe is quite easy and straightforward.
Panettone
Fruit
- 300gr mixed dried fruits (currants, raisins, cranberries, candied lemon and orange peel, dried cherries, or any combination)
- 6 tablespoons brandy
Dough
- 1 1/2 tbsp rapid-rise yeast
- 5 ounces 98°F milk
- 50gr (1/4 cup) sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Fiori Di Sicilia extract
- 500gr (4 cups) bread flour
- 5gr salt
- 5 large eggs
- 255gr unsalted butter, at room temperature
Place dried fruits in bowl, add liquor, cover and keep at room temp overnight.
Mix sugar with barely warm milk. Add flavorings and yeast and set aside.
Mix flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add yeast mixture and mix to combine.
Add the eggs a couple at a time. Mix on medium speed until the dough begins to smooth out.
Cut the softened butter into 1 tbsp chunks and add the butter a piece at a time, mixing it in fully before adding more. Total mixing time will be about 10 minutes – maybe a bit more. It should be glossy and satiny. The dough will be sticky.
Butter a large bowl and scrape dough into it. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
The following morning, strain the soaking fruit.
Place dough on a lightly floured counter and spread out into a rectangular shape.
Place half of the fruit onto half of the spread-out dough. Fold the dough over the fruit and fold over, again. Pat out, again, add the remaining fruit, fold several times and then form into a ball.
Butter a 7″ panettone mold or paper.
Add the dough ball, lightly cover, and allow to rise for about 3 hours – or until the dough is rising well above the rim.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes. Lower the heat to 300° F and bake for an additional 45 to 55 minutes.
Cool completely before slicing.
It's worth it!
It's Week 11
I think I missed Week 10. No matter - there's a net loss from Week 9 - I'm at 223.3 lbs.
Slow and steady wins the race, so I'm taking it slow and steady.
It's great that it's soup season! I can pack nutrition-dense ingredients into a lower-calorie - and satisfying - meal quite easily.
I don't often make soups from recipes, but tonight's soup was one I found on Eating Well. Naturally, I played with the recipe, but here's their version. Play as you will.
Smoky Chicken-Chile Soup with Tamale Dumplings
adapted from Eating Well
Dumplings
- 1 cup masa harina
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
- ¼ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin or chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Soup
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin or chili powder
- 3 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 (15 ounce) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 4 cups shredded cooked chicken
- 2 cups frozen corn
- 1-2 tablespoons chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 cup quartered and sliced zucchini
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- Chopped cilantro & lime wedges for garnish
To prepare dumplings: Combine masa harina, 1/2 cup broth, cheese, 2 tablespoons oil, 1/4 teaspoon cumin (or chili powder) and salt in a medium bowl. Roll the dough into 18 round dumplings, using a scant 1 tablespoon for each.
To prepare soup: Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and cumin (or chili powder) and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in broth, tomatoes with their juices, chicken, corn and chipotle to taste. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Add the dumplings and zucchini. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook until the dumplings and zucchini are tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Add lime juice. Serve the soup topped with cilantro, with lime wedges on the side, if desired.
The dumplings were good, but I think a stronger cheese might have been better - or, maybe a bit more cumin to jazz them up a bit... The soup, itself, was really rich and flavorful.
A keeper!
Traditional Fruitcake - Sorta
There are so many variations on a Fruitcake, that it's nigh-on impossible to call one traditional. I mean... traditional from the 1600s? Traditional from a can?
The only thing really traditional about this is it has fruit and nuts - and it's dark.
As I have stated before, I like fruitcake - in all its guises. Homemade is the best, but I'll settle for a slice from a can if that's all there is.
Today's fruitcake is a mishmash of recipes from lord knows where... I have no fewer than six fruitcake recipes on the site, and all of them have been tweaked at least twice.
Fruitcake
- 2 cups mixed diced glacéed fruits
- 1 cup golden raisins
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup dried cherries
- 3/4 cup brandy
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 5 large eggs
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1 1/2 cups chopped assorted nuts
- 1/4 cup peach jam mixed with 1 tbsp brandy
In a large bowl combine all of the fruits with the rum and let macerate several hours or overnight.
Line the bottom of a well-buttered 9 1/2-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper and butter the paper. Into a small bowl sift together the flour, the baking powder, and the spices.
Cream together the butter and the brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy and beat in 4 of the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
Drain the fruit mixture well and mix the juices into the batter.
Stir the flour mixture into the batter, one fourth at a time, stir in the fruit mixture, the almond meal, and the nuts, stirring until the mixture is just combined, and turn the batter out into the prepared pan.
Put 2 loaf pans, each filled with hot water, in a preheated 300°F. oven and put the springform pan between them. Bake the cake for 1 hour, brush the top with the remaining egg, beaten lightly, and bake the cake for 1 hour more. While the cake is baking, in a saucepan melt the peach jam with the remaining 1 tablespoon rum over moderate heat, bring the mixture to a boil, and strain it through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing hard on the solids.
Cool cake in the pan on a rack for 30 minutes. Remove from pan. Brush the top of the cake with glaze.
Wrap in cheesecloth and soak with brandy. Store in a cool, dry place.
I have made this with rum, whiskey, and brandy. Today was brandy. I have also switched out the dried fruits and nuts. Today's nuts were pistachios and walnuts.
As soon as it cools, it will get wrapped and sit in a nice cupboard waiting for Christmas Eve...
Unless we decide to dive in earlier, that is...
Apricot Macadamia Nut Fruitcake
I started a bit of holiday baking, today...
A bit, because we do not do the insane baking of years past.
We had a lot of fun doing it, but, at the same time, it was all we did for weeks before Christmas.
It's more fun being retired and doing a few things...
Today, was Apricot Macadamia Nut Fruitcake.
The original recipe came from Bon Appetit magazine years and years ago. It's totally untraditional and totally delicious.
I made just one - gone are the days of making 4x the recipe - and set it off to age in some brandy.
Apricot Macadamia Nut Fruitcake
adapted from Bon Appetit
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs, separated
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons apricot brandy
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 3/4 cups flour, sifted twice
- 1 cup dried apricots, chopped
- 1 cup golden raisins
- 1 cup macadamia nuts, lightly chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Preheat oven to 275°F. Grease and flour a 6 cup Bundt pan or 8″ round cake pan and set aside.
Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat yolks in small bowl and add to butter mixture. Mix well.
Combine milk, brandy and vanilla and add alternately with flour in 4 batches, mixing well after each addition. Stir in apricots, raisins and macadamia nuts.
Whip egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and continue beating until stiff but not dry. Gently fold into batter. Spoon into prepared pan and bake until tester inserted in center comes out clean (about 2 1/4 hours). Cool completely in pan.
Sprinkle a bit of apricot brandy on top and serve. Cakes can also be made in advance, wrapped in apricot brandy-soaked cheesecloth, wrapped in plastic and aged. YUM!!
I'm also going to make a traditional fruitcake, this week. I'm just about the only person I know who likes it, but that's okay...
I think we may start the Christmas Decorating tomorrow... Back in our youth, it was always the day-After-Thanksgiving-Decorate-A-Thon. We've slowed down there a bit, as well.
On a positive note, we did get the Christmas cards in the mail.