Fight Snow Day Woes with Fresh Bread and Soup

So what do do you do when you have the day off of work unexpectedly and it is freezing cold out with even colder winds?  You dig in and make soup!  Since I had the ingredients to make fresh homemade soup and I thought a wonderful addition to it would be fresh bread.  Plus, an excuse to turn on the oven was also welcome given the cold wintery day outside.  My boyfriend said this soup only rated 3 stars in his book because everything else we have been eating has been so much better.

So today's variation of Irish Clam Chowder comes from New Covent Garden Soup Co.cookbook which was given to me years ago by a friend from Scotland.  The twist on the Irish Soda bread was found on the 101cookbooks.com website.  Both recipes have been modified as that is just my way.

Irish Clam Chowder
Serves: 6

About a pound of scallops

3 leeks, sliced very finely

2 medium potatoes

About 5 slices of bacon

12-16 oz of sweetcorn

6 oz sour cream

1 cup cream

2 cups chicken stock

2 oz. butter

1 teaspoon honey

2 teaspoons flour

Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh parsley to garnish

Saute leeks, potato and bacon in butter for about 20 minutes until soft.  Add 3/4 of the stock and cook for 10 minutes, then add sweetcorn. Mix flour with remaining stock and add to the saucepan and heat until warmed through.  Add the sour cream, cream and scallops.  Heat gently until the scallops are firm.  Be careful not to cook too quickly or for too long or the scallops will become tough.  Add honey just before serving and season to taste.  Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve with crusty bread.

Seeded Soda Bread

Seeds: 12 Tablespoons seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, poppy, flax etc.)

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 cup spelt flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400F.  Combine chosen seeds.  Sift flours, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.  Stir in all but 2 -3 Tablespoons of the seeds.  Make a well and pour in the buttermilk.  Stir just until combined.  Add extra buttermilk if needed.  Knead on lightly floured surface for one minute.  Place dough on a lightly floured baking sheet and mark with an X cutting 2/3 of the way through.  Brush with buttermilk and sprinkle remaining seeds.  Bake 35-40 minutes or until golden brown on top.  Cool on a wire rack.  Makes 1 loaf.

Cheesecake

There are so many recipes for cheesecake out there, but essentially they have the same ingredients with variations in the flavor, the different crusts you can make as well as how to actually bake them.  I used to make cheesecakes regularly, especially when I lived in Germany and had different options due to different types of cheese available.  I am lazy when it comes to actually baking the cheesecake, so I don't use a water bath, but if you decide to use one, the cheesecake will not crack like mine does and it also keeps the text more consistent.  Both methods work, but depending on time and desire, pick which you would rather do.

Being that I have made so many cheesecakes in the past, I don't really follow a recipe.  I did read about 3 recipes before I made this particular one only because I didn't want to miss an ingredient that I used to use.  I nearly did forget to add the sugar, but remembered in the nick of time.

At any rate....
Cheesecake

For the crust:
about 1.5 to 2 cups of graham crackers crumbs
about 1/2 cup sugar
5 Tablespoons butter (note: I always use unsalted butter)

Mix together well and pat into a spring form pan.

For the filling:
4 8oz packages of cream cheese
4 eggs
2 Dessert spoons sour cream
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup - 3/4 cup sugar
Vanilla extract (about 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon)

Mix all the filling ingredients until smooth.  All ingredients should be at room temperature to ensure maximum smoothness.  Heat the oven to 350-375 F.  Pour the filling on top of the pressed crust.  Smooth the top.  Bake for about 1 hour 20 minutes, or until center is set.  Remove from oven and cool.  When cool release from the spring form pan.  Refrigerate overnight and serve chilled.

Shrimp Bog

So who knew that bog meant rice?  I always knew that a bog was related to cranberries.  Even more interesting was actually seeing a working bog to grow them in Wisconsin.  However, this recipe has nothing to do with cranberries and everything to do with shrimp.  The recipe came from the book Edible by Tracey Ryder and Carole Topalian.  They do explain that a bog is close to a pilau and that it probably got it's name because rice also grows in a bog...who knew?

What drew me in to cook this particular recipe was the shrimp and rice combination...well plus the picture!  I always like to know what I am supposed to be doing even if it isn't what I determine the recipe should be once I start reading it.  Anyway, the authors state this should take about 30 minutes to make which is due to the time it takes to cook rice, but in this case you get a whole meal.

Sullivan's Island Shrimp Bog

Make 6 servings

1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice

1/2 pound sliced bacon, finely chopped

2 medium onions, finely chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground cayenne powder

2 1/4 cups chicken broth

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 pounds medium shrimp (40 count), shelled and deveined

1/4 cup ver finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves

1 lemon wedge, cut into 6 wedges

In a fine mesh strainer, rinse the rice well under cold running water.  Drain well; set aside.

In a large heavy Dutch oven or stockpot, cook the bacon over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined dish; set aside.  Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat remaining in the pot.  Add the onions to the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes.  Add the drained rice, salt, nutmeg, black pepper and cayenne and stir for 1 minute.

Stir in broth, tomatoes with liquid, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.  Bring to a boil, cover the pot, reduce the heat, and simmer gently for about 20 minutes.  Stir in the cooked bacon and the shrimp and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp is cooked through, adding more broth if the rice seems to be drying out, about 10 minutes.  Stir the bog with a fork.  Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.  Sprinkle with parsley, garnish with lemon wedges, and serve immediately.

Eggs - it's what for breakfast.

I have to say that after butter, I use more eggs than any other ingredient.  At least I can get fresh and delicious eggs in addition to the regular store bought ones.  If you have never eaten freshly laid eggs, then you are truly missing out on some wonderful tasting food.  Even the color of the eggs is better than regular store bought eggs.  I highly recommend to find someone who has chickens and invest in their product.

So yesterday morning after a day on the powder filled slopes I was craving some decent protein for breakfast.  I was also craving green things.  My boyfriend always gives me a hard time for describing things as tasting green, but I really think that is the best description for some green things (like spinach or kale).  However, this morning I opened up the refrigerator and pulled out the herbs I had been hiding away in there which included tarragon and chives.  I chopped up the red pepper I had leftover from something else while my boyfriend beat the eggs.  With the olive oil heating in the pan, we soon had everything ready for a pleasing looking and delicious breakfast.

Basically the recipe is (for 2 servings):

4 eggs, beaten with some milk (1/2 cup maybe)
Olive oil
1/2 red pepper, diced
Shredded cheese
Chives, chopped
Tarragon, Chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the pan with a few tablespoon of olive oil.  Once hot add the beaten eggs and then wait for a minute to cook.  Add the red pepper, chives and tarragon.  Add salt and pepper.  Turn the eggs so they cook throughout (though not quite completely or they will loose their creamy texture).  Just before cooking throughout add the shredded cheese.  Serve and consume immediately.

Summer Spaghetti

I like pasta as much as the next person.  In fact my boyfriend loves the stuff and eats it all the time.  So when he looked through another Canal House cookbook, he spotted in volume 1, Stephan's Summer Spaghetti.  I thought, cool, this will be a quick easy meal.  I never thought that a simple pasta meal could be so infused with flavor that I am tempted to make it every week!  It definitely has inspired me to pull out my tomato and basil seeds to ensure that I have plenty of ingredients to make this pasta again and again when everything is blooming and growing.  Ever since I tasted this pasta I have been dreaming of eating it again.

This is a quick recipe, so I suggest that you complete all your chopping before you start the pasta boiling.

Stephan's Summer Spaghetti

1 pound spaghetti

Salt

1/2 cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic

Great big bunch of basil, leaves chopped

6 tomatoes, halved, cored, squeezed of seed and juice, chopped

Pepper

1 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano

Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat.  Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook until it softens and turn a little golden.  Remove the garlic and discard.  Add all the basil, then the tomatoes, and stir around until just heated through.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

When the pasta is about three-quarters cooked, drain out most of the water, leaving about 1/2 cup pasta cooking water in the pot.  Return the pot with the spaghetti to the heat.  Pour in all the tomatoes, oil, and basil lusciousness from the skillet and let it finish cooking for about 5 minutes.  Stir in the grated cheese.  Serve with a little more olive oil and more cheese.  (Note: I did not use an entire cup of the cheese as I wanted a more subtle flavor.  I did add a little more to the top before eating, but I wanted to be sure all the flavors would come through before adding more cheese.)

Light lunch in winter - Swordfish with lemon butter sauce

Canal House Cooking has amazing recipes and great cookbooks.  I highly recommend their cookbooks to anyone who likes to cook.  Many of the recipes are things they say they eat with their families, which to me means that they are fairly easy and not very time-consuming to prepare.  I altered this recipe as they serve the sauce over salmon, but when we went to buy fish the swordfish drew us in and that became the fish of choice for us.

Keep in mind too that Canal House's cookbooks are based on seasonal fare and this particular cookbook (volume number 4) came out last summer.  I was looking for something lighter for lunch, but we were also lucky as the asparagus was looking really good this week and worked very well with the lemon-butter sauce.

Swordfish with Lemon-Butter Sauce

For the Lemon-Butter Sauce:

2 large egg yolks

8 Tablespoons (1 stick) cold Irish butter, cut into 8 pieces

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Salt

For the fish:

Salt

1 1/2 pounds swordfish (or whatever kind you want), cut into four pieces

Fresh tarragon leaves, chopped

Fresh chives, minced

Whisk together the egg yolks and 1 tablespoon water in a medium saucepan.  Cook over low heat, whisking continuously so the yolk won't scramble.  Add the butter one tablespoon at a time before adding the next one.  If the sauce separates, remove it from heat and add the next tablespoon of butter and it should come back together.  Once all the butter has been incorporated, remove from heat and whisk in the lemon juice.  Season with salt.  Keep the sauce warm by setting the pan in a larger pan of hot water.

Fill another pan with salted water, add the fish and simmer over medium heat until the fish is just cooked, about 20 minutes (depending on the fish).  Transfer to individual plates.  Spoon the lemon butter sauce over the fish and serve garnished with tarragon and chives.

Serves 4

What is in a pound cake?

Old-Fashioned Pound Cake (from Starbucks)

This is a recipe which I stumbled across in a random (by random I mean free) cookbook from Costco.  As I was looking through the cookbook, I realized they were all based around ingredients from Costco.  At any rate, the few things I have tried at Starbucks have been great tasting, so I modified this recipe to fit what I wanted from the pound cake.

Since I live at high altitude I have had to make a few changes to get things to rise the way they should.  I can humbly say that the changes I made to this recipe (some are noted in the recipe) worked very well and the cake rose as I had hoped!  But it also didn't fall!

So what makes a pound cake a pound cake?  Just have a look at the ingredients in the recipe.  There is a whole pound of butter in this cake!  As it is baking, the sweet smells will fill your house with goodness!

Recipe:
4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder (though I used more like 1 1/4 teaspoons due to altitude)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
(I added a dash of nutmeg)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups (4 sticks) butter, softened
2 1/2 cups sugar
7 large eggs (due to altitude I used 8)
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a 10 inch tube pan or a 12 cup fluted tube pan.  In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon until well blended; set aside.   Beat butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Also add the almond extract.  Add the flour mixture mixture alternatively with the coffee, beating until well blended after each addition.  Pour into prepared pan.  Bake for 90 minutes (though mine ended up at about 82 minutes), or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Let cool for 10 minutes.  Loose the cake from the sides and gently remove from the pan.  Let cool completely on a wire rack.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Makes 20 servings.