Tag Archives: recipe

FAMILY, Recipes

Comfort Food

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Wowzer!  the wind has been blowing like a banshee all day and temps dropped from 75  to 45 in about 2 hours this afternoon.  Will spring ever arrive in earnest?!  Vina’s Brownies to the rescue.

VINA’S BROWNIES

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup butter
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup flour
  • 4 tablespoons cocoa
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Cream together the softened butter and sugar, then add eggs one at a time.  Continue mixing and add remaining ingredients then bake in a greased 9×13 inch pan.  Bake about 40 minutes at 350°F oven.

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I sprinkled some dark chocolate Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Baking chips on top this before baking.  Turned out pretty good!  Chips available at many venues, i got mine online at Wal-Mart.

 

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FAMILY, Recipes

Mixed Grain Bread – Scottish

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I have discovered my favourite bread to make!

MIXED GRAIN BREAD – SCOTLAND

Modified from Scottish Cookery Cookbook, 2010

INGREDIENTS:

  • 12 oz (about 3 cups) strong white flour
  • 2 teaspoon salt
  • 8 oz (about 2 cups) whole wheat flour
  • 8 oz (about 2 cups) Einkorn flour
  • 1 oz butter, diced
  • 2 teaspoon yeast
  • 1 oz (1/3 cup) rolled oats
  • 2 tablespoon sunflower seeds
  • 1 tablespoon molasses
  • ¾ pint warm water
  • 1 medium egg

DIRECTIONS:

Sift white flour and salt into a large bowl.  Stir in the wheat and Einkorn flours then rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.  Stir in the yeast, oats, and seeds then make a well in the centre.

Stir the molasses into the warm water until dissolved.  Add the molasses water to the dry ingredients.  Mix to a soft dough. (I used paddle hook on KitchenAid mixer)

Using a dough hook, knead the dough for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.  Put in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 ½ hours, or until double in size.

Preheat the oven to 425°F, 15 minutes before baking.  (I start the oven now, then do the below and leave the loaf and pan on top the stove – the warmth from the oven helps with rising, especially in winter.)

Using dough hook, knead again for a minute or two to knock out the air.  Shape into an oval loaf about 12 inches long and place on a well-oiled baking sheet.  Cover with oiled (important) plastic wrap and leave to rise for 40 minutes or until doubled in size.

Brush the loaf with beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven 35-45 minutes (mine was 35 minutes) or until the bread is well risen, browned, and sounds hollow when the base is tapped.  Leave to cool on a wire rack.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe - Mixed Grain Bread

FAMILY, Recipes

Flour Tortilla – Mexican Style

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Oi!  Finally found a flat tortilla recipe that works for me!  I use freshly ground red wheat berries.  Granted, the experts recommend white wheat, but i just grabbed the red and proceeded.  Figured if it would work with that, it’ll work with any.

Recipe – Mexican Flour Tortillas

Flour Tortillas – Mexican Style

Takes about 25 minutes to mix all together and allow dough to rest.  Cooking is about 20 minutes.  This recipe yields 15 tortillas rolled to about 10 inch diameter, but I halved it and it worked great.

Ingredients:

3 cups flour (white wheat is better for tortillas, but this even works pretty good using red)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

4 to 6 tablespoons butter

1 ¼ cups warm water (approximately but you may need more if using whole wheat flours)

Directions:

Mix the dry ingredients; then drop in the butter.  I squish it round in the dry ingredients with my fingers until the mix resembles coarse crumbles.  Add the warm water and mix.  I prefer using my Kitchenaid Artisan Mixer with the dough hook and let it do the work.  Cover the dough and let rest for about 10 minutes.  Knead a time or two, then tear off about 15 pieces of dough and roll into balls.  I throw the balls back into the mixer bowl, but just put them somewhere and cover – let rest for 10 minutes more.  Now they are ready to roll out.  Dust a bit of flour on your surface.

Cook in a dry heavy flat bottom skillet like a cast iron one for about 30 seconds each side on medium heat or less.

Keep warm or use them immediately for enchiladas or another favorite Mexican dish.

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Cattle, FAMILY, Recipes

Beef Sausage Lasagne

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Recipe – Beef Sausage Lasagne    (Click on the link for a printable version of my personal recipe.)

I’ve been using this recipe for over 30 years and it never fails to please!  Since i don’t eat pork, i use our home raised ground beef which i’ve turned into beef sausage and using these same spices, it turns out awesome.  Make your own egg noodles and simple cut them about 1 1/2 inches wide and whatever length you like (they’ll get wider and longer when you boil them).  I use cottage cheese instead of ricotta and i often buy full fat mozzarella and shred it myself.  Usually have my own tomatoes to chop and cook down.

Here’s the original recipe printed in Betty Crocker’s International Cookbook circa 1980.  Great cookbook and you can see that page 159 has been open quite a lot! The cookbook must be out of print, but there are several vendors offering it at deep discount, but i’m not parting with my copy!!

Recipe - Lasagne beef

 

 

FAMILY, Recipes

Mom’s Goulash

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September’s meal for Refuge Ministries, Mexico, Missouri was an old favorite of ours which was published in the Centennial Baptist Church cookbook shared by Frankie Levingston, the mom of my dear high school chum, Sharie Levingston.

Mom’s Goulash 

INGREDIENTS:
1 lb ground beef (i use our home raised fully grass-finished beef)
2 cups pasta
3 cups chopped tomatoes or 1-15 oz can sauce
1/2 cups chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped peppers (we prefer green beans, okra, or such)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 cup cubed cheese (use your favorite)

DIRECTIONS:

Prepare pasta as per package instructions, drain, set aside.  While pasta is boiling, brown ground beef in a large skillet with chopped onions, add tomatoes or sauce, with optional vegetables.  Stir to just mixed, then add pasta.  Mix carefully then sprinkle about 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese over top along with the cubed cheese.  Replace lid and put on low heat until cheese starts to melt.  Serve over bed of lettuce if desired.

Prep time:  25 minutes

Servings: 6

Author:  Frankie Levingston, Centennial Baptist Church (Mexico, MO) cookbook.

My photos show this recipe multiplied by 10 to prepare enough for the Refuge plus have some meals to deliver to friends and neighbors who are recovering from surgeries.

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Brown the ground beef along with the chopped onions.  Oh, if you forget to put the onions until after the beef is browned, it’s okay, just go ahead and add them.
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My garden produced bunches and gobs of Asian Long Pole Beans, so i chose them for my recipe.  Fresh beans need to be precooked before adding to Mom’s Goulash.  Mine are cut into 1/2 inch length pieces and I added 1 gallon of them.
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Pasta, pasta – Here i’ve placed 14 cups dried pasta to boil, still had to add water and as you can see just BARELY had enough room in this huge pot.  Be careful, pasta really expands.
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Thankfully, a friend had given me a 33 quart canning pot a few years ago.  Always enough room to stir together all the ingredients.  I did soften and melt the cheese before adding it.
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Filled my roaster with Mom’s Goulash to take to Refuge Ministries and prepared the rest for delivery to neighbors.

Hope you enjoy preparing and serving this easy, inexpensive, and tasty dish.

Cheers!

tauna

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FAMILY, FARM, Gardening

Ultimate Recycling

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The most recent issue of Rural Missouri carried a short article on composting.  I never seem to get around to building a compost pile, but i compost all the time on the fly.  I compost straight into the garden or pasture.  The less materials have to be handle the better in my book.  BUT, on a small scale with limited space for growing plus needing a place to ditch those apple cores and coffee grounds, backyard or porch composting is awesome!

Composting:  The Ultimate Way to Recycle

Author,  Pamela A. Keene bases her article on the expertise of Joe Lamp’l, founder of www.joegardener.com and “Growing A Greener World” television show.

Backyard Composting: A Simple Recipe for Making Great Compost

 

Happy Gardening!

tauna

FAMILY, Recipes

Deep Fried Plantain

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From my friend in Democratic Republic of Congo!  thank you!!!!

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Slice the peeled plantain into about 1/4 inch thick slices.
Plantain Recipe (1)
Deep fry until slightly golden and floating.  I used coconut oil and with that the heat must be kept super low – it fries at a low heat.
Plantain Recipe (2)
Lift out of the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on napkin placed on a decorative plate for serving.  Tasty snack suitable for dessert!