Monday, October 25, 2010

TJ's Ice Cream

I actually won this recipe on a D.C. Ghost Tour. It's Thomas Jefferson's recipe, or so say the spirits.

Ingredients:
1 quart heavy cream
6 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla or grated vanilla bean

Directions:
Scald the cream, and then gradually add to it the egg yolks, which have been beaten until creamy and then beaten some more (to teach them a lesson) while gradually adding the sugar and salt. Leave on the stove, stirring constantly until the moisture is thick. Remove from the stove and strain. Now stir in the vanilla, and pour the mixture into a hand-crank ice cream freezer, around which ice and salt have been packed in a ratio of 1 part salt to 3 parts ice. Crank freezer until ice cream is thick. Pour out the ice cream into a mold which is surrounded with salt and ice in a ratio of 1 part salt to 4 parts ice. Place in a cold spot until it sets and serve immediately. Makes 3 pints.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hooray for holiday baking! I love this time of year. It's going to be a little bit trickier this year to make food I can enjoy since I can't have milk, but so far so good. With only slight changes I was able to make these beauties milk-free. This is based on a recipe I found online somewhere last year.


Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp milk or non-dairy milk
1 cup pumpkin
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cooking oil
1 egg
1 TBS vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips (I used non-dairy chips)

Directions:
Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt ingredients in large mixing bowl. In medium bowl combine baking soda and milk. Mix together. Add pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg and mix. Dump pumpkin mixture into flour and stir together until completely mixed in. Add vanilla. Mix. Add chocolate chips and mix. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Note: dairy-free chips are not difficult (or expensive) to find. Check labels. I found that the Kroger's store-brand chips are milk-free.

Indian Vegetable Curry

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
2 large carrots, sliced
2 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 head cauliflower, broken into small florets
2 large potatoes, peeled and cubed

Directions:
1. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and carrots; cook and stir until tender. Season with curry powder, turmeric, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.
2. Add the cauliflower and potatoes to the pan, and stir to coat with spices. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Stir occasionally.

Spinach and Kale Saag

I tried my hand at Indian food for Heather's Holi Hai birthday and found these recipes to be especially good.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
2 teaspoons cumin seed
1 green chile pepper, seeded and diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons ground turmeric
1 pound chopped fresh kale
1 pound chopped fresh spinach
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. In a large skillet or wok, melt butter over medium-high heat, and cook and stir cumin seed, chile pepper, garlic, and turmeric until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
2. Stir in the chopped kale and spinach a little at a time, adding the tougher parts first (the stems and thicker leaves). Continue to add greens, and cook and stir until all greens have been added and all are thoroughly wilted. Stir in the cumin, coriander, and salt. Cover; reduce heat and simmer until greens are tender, about 10 minutes, adding water as needed to keep the greens moist.

Carrot Soup with Sesame and Chives

Heather made this last night and it was delicious, so I'm sharing with her permission:

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons butter
3 1/2 cups chopped, peeled carrots
1 cup chopped leeks (white and pale green parts only)
1/2 cup chopped celery
6 cups low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon oriental sesame oil
2 cups 1/2-inch bread cubes (from day-old French bread)
1 1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large pot over medium hear. Add carrots, leeks, and celery. Cover and cook until vegetables soften slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add broth: bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 25 minutes. Cool slightly.

Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return to pot. Whisk cream, sour cream, and 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil into soup. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)

Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter with remaining 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add bread cubes and saute until golden brown and crispy. About 4 minutes.

Ladle soup into bowls and mound croutons in the center of each. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and chives.

Apple Crisp

Use a 8x8 or 9x9 pan, or a pie pan. Also, slice the apples pretty big.

4 Cups peeled, cored, sliced apples (about 6)-granny smith, gala, pink lady, etc. Do not use red delicious.
Place them in a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with a little granulated sugar.
Blend: 2/3 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 oatmeal, 3/4 tsp. cinnamon, 3/4 tsp nutmeg.
Cut in: 1/3 cup soft butter or margarine.

Top the apples with the crumb mixture.
Bake 30-35 minutes at 375.

Tater Tot Casserole

This one comes from my friend Laura Jayne:

In the bottom of a 9x13 pan, press 1 lb hamburger to a thin layer (or leave it chunky--whatever your preference).
Sprinkle in 1 grated onion (or dry onion flakes).
Add 1 can of green beans (or use frozen ones).
Cover with 2 cans cream soup (mushroom, celery, or chicken) mixed with 1 cup milk.
Top with tater tots.
Bake 350 for 45 mins.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I got this from a dairy-free website. I substituted canned tomotoes and canned green chillis for the mexican tomatoes.

2 14 ½ oz. cans chicken broth, 2 c water

¾ c Mexican tomatoes

1 bay leaf, 1 clove garlic, ¼ tsp. cumin

1 pinch crushed red pepper, dried

12 oz. chicken, diced

1 can black beans, rinsed (or kidney)

1 can corn

2 green onions, sliced

¼ c fresh cilantro, chopped

2 T lime juice

Salt and pepper, to taste

7 corn tortillas

In a large stock pot, place chicken broth, water, tomatoes, bay leaf, garlic, cumin, red pepper, chicken, rinsed beans, and corn. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 – 10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked. Add green onions, cilantro, and lime juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with crushed tortilla chips.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup.