Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad

 

For Easter dinner this year, it was just the two of us in Verandah. We decided to grill lamb lollipops and potato salad, and, for dessert, leftover Graham Carrot Torte.

We had a few dozen Brussels sprouts left over from Beef Bolognese and Pasta. In that recipe, you remove the outer leaves and keep the rest of the sprout for later. These are what we sliced thin, removing any tough cores.

To the sprouts, add 6-10 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled and 1/3 c. raisins (or dried cranberries. Toast 1 cup of chopped walnuts in a saute pan over medium heat for 5 minutes, tossing to toast. Add to the sprouts, bacon and raisins/cranberries.

Whisk together: 

• 3/4 tsp. dijon mustard
• 2T maple syrup
• 3 T apple cider vinegar
• 3 T extra virgin olive oil
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Pour over salad and toss. 

Smitten Kitchen's Carrot Graham Layer Cake

I love Smitten Kitchen. This recipe came up this week on her Facebook page in time for me to make a dessert to take to an invited dinner. I also made simple Goat Cheese Ice Cream (no honey-thyme sauce or roasted cherries)  and added half a vanilla bean to the cooling custard. I'll bring just enough for a small scoop with the cake (and some to leave.)

Gerry couldn't find Graham cracker crumbs in the store, so brought home a box of crackers. About 6 crackers crumbed with a rolling pin or meat tenderizer made 3/4 cup with some to sprinkle on top.

Cake: Use 9-inch pans lined with 9-inch parchment rounds and spray with cooking spray. Next time, I will use 7-inch pans and make four layers for a pretty cake. 

Mix: 

• 1 cup of all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup finely ground graham cracker crumbs
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. fine sea salt or table salt
• 1-1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• /4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp. ground ginger. 

 Set aside.

Place in a mixing bowl:

• 3/4 c. both granulated and dark brown sugars
• 3/4 cup PLUS 3 T. neutral oil or melted butter (I used Canola oil.)  

I mixed this with a hand mixer - the recipe calls for whisking together.  Add three eggs and mix some more. I learned the lesson to crack the eggs into a separate bowl or cup and NOT crack them individually into the bowl with the other ingredients. For perhaps the first time ever. I had a bad egg while baking (broken yolk and brownish color, but not terribly foul-smelling). I had to start over with all these ingredients (sugars, oil and eggs.)

When the eggs, oil and sugars are well-mixed, add 3 cups of shredded carrots and mix well with a spoon.

Mix in the flour mixture just until all the flour is mixed and none shows separately.

At this point, I had prepared the two pans I had and cut an extra 9-inch round of parchment.

I measured one heaping cup of batter into each of the two pans and another heaping cup into a separate bowl, trying to keep the batter as even as possible.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes. Sit the pans on racks to cool for 5 minutes and then turn out on the rack (slipping a knife along the edges.) Bake the third pan for the same 15-18 minutes.

Cool each layer and then frost, layering as you go. Sprinkle with extra graham cracker crumbs.

Frosting:

• 2 8-oz packages of cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup or two sticks of unsalted butter at room temp.
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Beat all four ingredients well with a mixer. Keep at room temperature to frost.

Reuben Bowls

This is a recipe I found in the February 2023 Bethel Living (Maine regional free mag, page 24) that inspired me to experiment with making Corned Beef Four Ways in Two Days.

These bowls were yummy! I've adapted it a bit from the recipe.

Make twice this dressing recipe, whisking together, and setting aside.

• 1/4 c mayo
• 2 T sweet pickle relish
• 4 tsp. catsup
• 1-1/2 tsp. prepared horseradish
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper

Make the bowl:

• 2 tsp. caraway seeds
• 1 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
• 1/4 green cabbage, very thinly sliced
• 1 c. chopped fresh red peppers, separated into1/2 c each
• 1 c. shredded carrot
• 3/4 lb. cooked corned beef, sliced or shredded into bite-sized pieces (see post link above) 
• 1-1/2 c. sauerkraut, drained
• 1 c. shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/4 thinly sliced cornichon pickles
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced

In a large skillet over medium-high heat toast the caraway seeds for about 30 seconds and set them aside on a plate.

Return the skillet to medium-high heat and heat the oil. Add the onion and cook stirring slightly until lightly golden, about 3 minutes. Add the cabbage and carrot and season with salt and pepper. Add 1/2 c. red peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is crisp-tender, 5 minutes. 

Stir in the corned beef and sauerkraut, tossing until warmed throughout, 1 minute more. Top cabbage mixture with Swiss cheese, cover, and cook until cheese is melty and bubbly.  OR place large spoonfuls in 4-6 small baking dishes and melt cheese briefly under the broiler. 

Scatter roasted caraway seeds and cornichons on top, then drizzle with dressing and garnish with green onion

Corned Beef - Four Ways in Two Days

Although I've made corned beef several ways before, I've never tried the Dutch oven or the sous vide techniques. Having lots of time these days, and lots of ideas for ways to use the corned beef (Reuben bowls, hash, etc.), I decided to experiment with four flat cuts of the same brand of meat from Aldi's. They were slightly different in weight. 

Aldi's always has good meats, and interesting cuts, so I bought four 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 pound packages. The flat cuts were packed with 35% of a water-tenderizer-salt mixture which was pretty slimy to wash off.  I washed them and then soaked them in clear water for a few more rinses until they were clean. Before adding them with their spice packets, I cut off as much fat as possible and discarded it. (Now I wish I saved some for the later vegetable cooking, but, oh well.)

I found four recipes on four blogs online that I liked.  Pressure Cooking Today, Quiche My Grits, The Magical Slow Cooker, and Sous Vide Ways are the blogs I decided to use. I followed the recipes somewhat closely, without vegetables* or final seer, keeping the temperature and time according to each technique. I used Guinness and water in the crock pot; Guinness and beef broth in the IP and Dutch oven, but only broth and water in the sous vide. I ran out of Guinness and the results will have to keep this in mind. *I did not plan on including any vegetables like I usually would. One, I didn't want them to alter the taste of the corned beef, and two, I didn't want all those vegetables hanging around all week! (For St. Patrick's Day, I'll cook the cabbage, carrots, and potatoes in some of the saved broth.)

I've included edited versions of the online recipes at the end of this post.

I started with the crock pot, a mixture of water and a bottle of Guinness to cover, and the spice packets included in the package. I cooked the meat on low for 10 hours. I sliced it while very warm, set it aside in a sealed container with some of its cooled juice, and refrigerated it. (Both Gerry and I liked the tastes we did have.)

On the second day, I filled a small Dutch oven (perhaps 3.5-quart) with 3/4 bottle of Guinness, a cup or two of beef broth, the corned beef, and spices. I covered it with the Dutch oven cover and cooked it in a preheated 350-degree oven for one hour, and then turned it down to 300 degrees and cooked for 4 more hours. All the liquid cooked down, leaving a very tender and flavorful beef - but much saltier than we prefer. I'll use it in a hash recipe with no additional added salt. 

At about the same time, I placed the third cut in the IP, covered with spices and 1-1/4 bottle of Guinness and beef broth to make 4 cups of liquid. I sealed the cover, chose high pressure, and 90 minutes. After a 15-minute natural release, I quick released and when the steam was released, I opened and immediately cut a very tender corned beef. I placed it in another container, cooled it briefly, and put it in the refrigerator. 

I started the sous vide a bit later than I'd expected. (With 10 hours to go, I'll be up until 1 am!) I programmed the sous vide with my Anova app at 180 degrees. It was a bit lower temp than I wanted, and I should have added some very hot water. It took about half an hour to get up to 180 degrees. I then placed to sealed bag with spices and 1 cup of beef broth in the sous vide to cook at 180 degree for 10 hours. 

Once the Dutch oven and sous vide techniques were complete, I'm posting my favorite recipe. And the winner is the instant pot! The Dutch oven technique was too salty, as the liquid evaporated. The sous vide was compact and very sliceable (like ham) and not as stringy (stringy preferred for the Reuben bowls I was making.) The slow cooker was good, and very tasty, but the instant pot result was the best in my estimation. And the least time to cook. 

Instant pot, 90 minutes plus a heat up and rest = 2 hours cook. A+

Slow cooker or crock pot 10 hours = A

Sous vide, 10 hours = B+

Dutch oven, 5 hours in oven = B

Nantucket Christmas Cranberry Pie

Fresh cranberries from the south coast of Massachusetts are lovely and they last a long time in the refrigerator. I brought about 2 pounds to Florida with me rather than freeze them at home in Marion.

This "pie" is yummy and could be made in a cake pan, torte pan or tart pan. I used a pie plate. Next time I will use a torte pan lined with parchment so that I can take it out of the pan to slice.

This recipe is from Barefeet n the Kitchen dot com.

Mix 2 cups of frozen cranberries with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup chopped pecans. Stir well and spoon into a well-greased pie plate or pan.

Top with a dough of 3/4 c. softened butter, 1 cup or less of sugar, 2 beaten eggs, 1 tsp. almond extract (lemon would be nice, too) and 1 cup flour. Start with butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add eggs, extract and beat again. Then beat in flour, just to mix well.

Spread this thick batter, but don't worry about it being too smooth. 

Bake for 40-50 minutes and test for doneness.

Fast Marinara

While I was perusing my instant pot cookbooks here in Florida, I came across this Fast Marinara recipe in one called Lose Weight with Your Instant Pot by Audrey Johns. It seemed like a great idea and I will think about canning this one once I get home this summer.

Combine 1 tsp olive oil and one minced yellow onion in the pot, sprinkling with salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes on saute, low heat until the onion softens. Add 4 minced garlic cloves (I use about 2T of my own roasted garlic) and saute for 2 more minutes. 

Add 1/4 cup chopped basil, some Italian seasonings you might like, 2 T* tomato powder (I use the Spice House but there are tons on Amazon). Then add 1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes (Trader Joe's Fire Roasted are great), 115-oz can tomato sauce and 1 6-oz can tomato paste, and 1 tsp. sugar. Cover and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and then quick release. 

Yummy and quick and easy. Now you have time to make your homemade pasta!

*Optional

Three-way Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Update! We had tons of stuffing left over. I bought 18 more peppers (both poblano and cubano) and roasted and stuffed more and froze them.

My favorite was the turkey so I saved stuffing for 4 peppers. I sauteed more fresh corn and onion and some seasonings until it was beautifully tasty. I also added crumbled queso fresco. I stuffed each pepper, topped with crumbled cotija and sliced Monterey jack and baked until the cheese was melted. I served it with tons of the lime crema (recipe below) and chopped cilantro.   

Much better!!

I wanted to experiment with poblano peppers for the February Gourmet Dinner I am co-hosting at Barbara Wolfe's home here in Verandah. We rode in Babcock Ranch to the farmer's market on Sunday and got fresh poblanos and corn and limes. I'd hoped to find the cheese table  at the farmer's market, but the day was so windy that some of the regular vendors stayed away. The produce stand is simply amazing and they had their tents tied down very well.

The poblanos keep very well in the frig for at least a few days. If I'd thought clearly, I would have tried to get them all the same size. 

I gathered about ten recipes I found together and chose the ingredients I wanted to experiment with: pepitas, chorizo, turkey, and spices.

Note: Because I was mixing meats and drippings from meat, and beef broth in the rice, I decided there would not be a vegetarian version.

First, I cut the peppers in half, leaving the stem intact for at least one of the halves. I removed the extra pulp and the seeds. I placed them cut side up on a grilling stone that I had brushed with olive oil. I cooked these for 7 minutes in a hot 500-degree oven. I turned them over on the grilling stone and left them for the stuffing stage.

               

I had a packet of frozen chorizo from Rosy Tomorrow's Heritage Farm Goodness Box last spring. It had remained vacuum-sealed and frozen, so I took it out to defrost. I remembered her chorizo as spicy, so I was careful not to over spice that meat. In fact, I used the drippings to saute the fresh corn kernels and black beans to give them some spice. So, not in this order, I cooked the chorizo and set it aside, cooked a pound of organic Florida ground beef and set it aside, and also cooked a pound of ground turkey. Less meat would have been fine. (In fact less rice, beans and corn would be fine for 4-6 peppers. 

I cooked rice using 1 cups medium grain white and 1/2 cup brown in my rice cooker, using 2 cups of water and 1 of beef broth. I set the cooked rice aside to cool.

I sauteed kernels of corn from 2 ears in the chorizo drippings. I added two cans of rinsed and drained black beans.

I drained 1 can of chopped tomatoes with peppers (Ro-Tel.)

I had NOT salted or peppered up to this point.

I sauteed 1 yellow onion and 1/2 large Vidalia onion (chopped) with 2 T of my homemade roasted garlic puree. At this point, I added salt and pepper to this mix.

Chorizo: I mixed 1/3 of the rice and 1/3 of the corn and black beans, 1/3 of the onion/garlic and set aside.

After adding the onion/garlic mixture (above), I then added 1 tsp cumin and 1 tsp chili pepper to the onion/garlic mixture for the spice that the beef and turkey needed.  Note: I'll add more spice to taste before filling the peppers. The same with salt and pepper.

Beef: I mixed 1/3 of the rice and 1/3 of the corn and black beans, AND 1/2 of the chopped tomato, adding 1/2 of the onion/garlic mixture I had seasoned.

Turkey: I mixed 1/3 of the rice and 1/3 of the corn and black beans, AND 1/2 of the chopped tomato, and 1/2 of the onion/garlic mixture I had seasoned. I added 1/4 - 1/2 cup pepitas. I added a 1/2 cup soaked raisins; added a nice sweetness.

This left me with no ingredients left but the slightly charred peppers. I chilled all the mixtures in bowls so that I filled the peppers later before baking.  I expected to have plenty left for more recipes later in the week (enchiladas, etc.)

Cheeses: Crumbled queso fresca, shredded Cotija, and shredded Monterey Jack. Sprinkle over all the peppers before baking 10-12 minutes until the cheeses are melted in a 375 degree oven.

Lime Crema: Mix 1 cup of sour cream, 2T mayonnaise, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, 1 lime, zested and juiced, 1 clove of garlic, pressed, and 1/2 tsp. coarse salt. Process until smooth. Double as necessary!