Tzimmes Chicken with Apricots

March 27, 2023

Tzimmes Chicken with Apricots

Sheet pan meals are always welcome in my kitchen! Tzimmes Chicken with Apricots comes together on a baking sheet making dinner prep and cleanup easy and breezy. Plus, it transforms tzimmes from a side dish into a meal.

Tzimmes

What in the world is tzimmes? If you grew up in an Ashkenazi Jewish household, you are familiar with this carrot side dish that made an appearance on the Passover and Rosh Hashanah dinner tables. It consists of carrots and dried fruits, like apricots or prunes, that are stewed together with warming spices.

The word tzimmes is a Yiddish word that translates into English as “a fuss.” Spoken by Ashkenazi Jews of central and eastern Europe, Yiddish combines German and Hebrew into a separate language that has its own pronunciation, idioms, and vocabulary. Interestingly, some Yiddish words have made their way into the English vocabulary, such as glitch, nosh, schlep, and schmuck.

So, how is tzimmes, the carrot side dish, a fuss? I imagine the peeling, chopping, and stewing of the ingredients is part of the fuss. But really, this veggie dish is relatively easy and is a sweet counterpoint to a savory entree like brisket or chicken.

And it uses one of my favorite dried fruits: apricots.

Apricots

There is something very plush and luxurious about apricots. When fresh, they have velvety skin and tender but firm flesh. Yes, they are sweet but have just a touch of tartness to them.

Plus, they are so cute!

My husband’s grandmother had an apricot tree in the front yard of her Garden Grove home. He says they were the best apricots and I sometimes wonder what variety they were.

Once apricots are pitted and dehydrated, that sweetness is concentrated. But so is the tartness. The dried fruit is chewy with a musky, tangy, sweet flavor.

Something that really appeals to me about this sheet pan meal is that the entrée and the side dish cook together. Chicken plus carrots and apricots topped with a sweet and savory marinade? That equals dinner in under an hour in my book.

Ingredients for the marinade include lemon, garlic, and spices.

Lessons Learned

Feel free to use all orange carrots in this dish. I happened to buy a bag of multicolor ones and wanted to use them up.
It’s easiest to use your hands to toss everything together in a large bowl. But if that grosses you out, wear food-safe gloves or use a large spoon.
Don’t be deceived by the chicken thighs in my photo. The ones I buy are usually much larger. So for once in my life, I can say, “in this photo my thighs are small.”

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Epicurious for the tzimmes chicken with apricots, prunes, and carrots recipe.

Tzimmes chicken and apricots prepped on a sheet pan and ready for roasting.

Tzimmes Chicken with Apricots

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

3 lbs chicken thighs
1 lb rainbow carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 red onion, peeled and quartered
1 cup dried apricots
⅓ cup olive oil
⅓ cup honey
⅓ cup lemon juice
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 Tbsp minced garlic
Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 F/204 C. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil and set aside.
Place chicken, carrots, onion, and apricots in a large bowl.
Stir together the oil, honey, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, cumin, lemon pepper, and garlic in a small bowl. Pour the oil mixture over the chicken mixture and toss to coat everything.
Arrange the chicken on the prepared baking sheet then add the carrots, onion, and apricots around the chicken. Pour any remaining juices over everything.
Roast for 30 to 35 minutes or until chicken is done (meat thermometer reads 160 F/71 C) and carrots are fork tender. If carrots are not yet tender, remove the chicken from the sheet pan and cover it to keep warm while the carrots continue cooking for an additional 10-ish minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

Keywords: tzimmes chicken with apricots

Citrus Salmon with Fennel

March 20, 2023

Citrus Salmon with Fennel

With a slightly sweet and zippy marinade, Citrus Salmon with Fennel is fancy enough for a special dinner but easy enough to throw together on a regular ol’ weeknight. Plus, it has fennel!

Fennel

I know what you’re thinking: fennel is what makes sausage taste like sausage. Actually, it is the dried fennel seed that is a must in Italian sausage made in North America. And yes, I associate it with sausage, too.

However, fresh fennel bulbs aren’t the same thing as fennel seeds. The fennel plant consists of a large, dense white bulb that grows above the ground. From the bulb grow rigid green stems that are topped by wispy, feathery green fronds.

The fennel plant produces flowers, which in turn produce teeny tiny fruits called schizocarps. When they dry, these tiny fruits split into individual fennel seeds. These aromatic seeds are crushed, ground, or added whole to sausages, spaghetti sauce, and other dishes.

I think I will start saying “I’m adding the schiz now” every time I use fennel seeds.

Wait! This recipe doesn’t even use fennel seeds. We are using the fennel bulb, the white part.

What does this taste like? When raw, the sliced bulb is crunchy like celery but not as watery. It has a slight anise flavor, is kinda bitter, and has some vanilla-y undertones.

When cooked, fennel becomes a little more mellow and is a nice addition to chicken, pork, and seafood dishes. The texture is soft and similar to sauteed onions.

Don’t throw out the green tops! The wispy green fronds are fresh and grassy tasting with a definite anise flavor. They make a nice garnish for whatever dish you are making.

In this recipe, the fennel is the star vegetable and pairs nicely with the salmon and citrusy marinade. I garnished the finished dish with the fennel fronds for extra color and freshness.

Salmon, shallots, fennel bulb, orange, and garlic.

Lessons Learned

Don’t overcook the salmon. I think one of the reasons that so many people don’t like fish is because 95% of the time it is overcooked and dry with hard edges. High heat and a short cook time is the key.
Don’t freak out that the fennel is hard. You are giving it a quick saute, kind of a precooking, before finishing it in the oven alongside the salmon.
A nice bread to go with this: Ligurian Focaccia.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Feasting at Home for the roasted pomegranate salmon recipe inspiration.

Finished salmon and fennel garnished with blood orange slices.

Citrus Salmon with Fennel

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

Marinade:

1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup orange juice
2 tsp orange zest
2 tsp Dijon mustard
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper

Fish and veg:

1 lb salmon filet
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, sliced thin
2 shallots, sliced
½ cup white wine
Garnish: fennel fronds, thinly sliced orange

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400F/204C. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Place the salmon on the prepared sheet.
Make the marinade by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisking until they are incorporated. Pour the marinade evenly over the salmon and set it aside to marinate.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the fennel and shallots until they soften, about 5 minutes. Tip in the wine and cook until it evaporates.
Scatter the fennel mixture around the salmon on the baking sheet. Add fennel fronds if desired. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until done, but not overdone. It will continue to cook once you pull it from the oven.
Garnish with fennel fronds and fresh orange slices before serving.

Keywords: citrus salmon with fennel

Winter Salad with Farro

March 8, 2023

Winter Salad with Farro

Salad and winter are two words that just don’t seem to go together. I mean, brrrr. However, this Winter Salad with Farro isn’t some flimsy amalgamation of summer lettuces.

This salad brings some crunch and chew with cold-season crops and farro.

Farro

For years I thought farro was the spiraled head of ferns yet to be unfurled. Silly me. That is a fiddlehead.

Farro is three types of wheat: einkorn, emmer, and spelt. If you do any kind of bread baking, I’m sure these names are familiar to you! These wheat varieties are ancient grains that have been around for a long time and have fed much of the world’s population for many centuries. They have recently gained notice and popularity in the U.S. and other parts of the western world.

The hulled wheat grains usually come with the bran removed, which shortens the cooking time. Boil the grains in water until they become softened and puffed. Add the cooked farro to soups, salads, or eat as is.

Nutritionally, farro contains good doses of vitamin B3, magnesium, and zinc. It is a good source of plant-based protein with 6 grams per one-fourth cup. Additionally, it's a heavy hitter in the fiber department.

What does it taste like? Farro has a nutty and woodsy flavor profile that is warm and earthy. It provides a satisfyingly chewy texture like other whole grains do.

Salad ingredients are chopped and ready to party!

Lessons Learned

Most farro sold in the U.S. is pearled, meaning the hard bran has been removed. Check the back of the package to follow the cooking times listed. Cook it on the stove, in a pressure cooker/instapot, or crockpot.
Lacinato kale is sometimes called dinosaur kale or Tuscan kale. It is the darker, thinner, and more tender cousin of curly kale. If you can’t find it, you can sub in curly kale but the texture won’t be the same.
I like the riot of colors in this salad. It’s perfect for brightening up a dreary winter day. But, if you’d rather use green cabbage instead of purple, parsnips instead of carrots, or nuts instead of pomegranate, I won’t mind. You’re an adult, so do what you want.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Fed and Fit for the winter veggie coleslaw recipe.

Winter Salad with Farro

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

Salad:

4 cups lacinato (dinosaur) kale, destemmed and chopped
3 cups purple cabbage, thinly sliced
2 cups carrots, grated
1 cup pomegranate arils
2 cups farro, cooked and cooled

Dressing:

¼ cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp almond butter
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp honey
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground black pepper

Instructions

Assemble the salad by combining the kale, cabbage, and carrots in a large bowl. Toss in the pomegranate arils and farro. Gently stir to mix together.
Make the dressing by combining the soy sauce, garlic, almond butter, lemon juice, honey, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a small mason jar or screw-top jar. Shake together until thoroughly mixed.
Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Depending on how saucy you like your salad, you might not use all of the dressing.

Keywords: winter salad with farro

Guinness Beef Stew

February 27, 2023

Guinness Beef Stew

Beer and beef meld together to become a savory stew with tender meat. Guinness Beef Stew is chunky and hunky in all the right places. Plus, it contains a whole bottle of Irish beer!

Guinness: the beer and the book

Wait. What? Is there a connection? Actually, there is. Read on.

The Beer

Guinness, the beer, predates Guinness, the book of world records, by two centuries. The brewery was started in Dublin, Ireland in 1759 by Arthur Guinness. His full-bodied porter stout, made from roasted barley, hops, and brewer’s yeast, had a unique taste that became popular far beyond Ireland’s shores.

A bottle of Guinness extra stout, dark and delicious.

He wasn’t just a brewer, this Arthur, he was an entrepreneur as well. He started exporting his dark beer to Great Britain and other parts of Europe. The beer was sold in parts of Africa starting in 1827 and accounts for a whopping 40 percent of Guinness volume internationally.

The Book

So, about the book of world records: it started off as an argument. There was a disagreement among some members of a hunting party as to what was the fastest game bird. One of the men involved in this argument, Hugh Beaver, was the managing director of Guinness brewery.

There was no googling the answer in 1955, so the question remained unanswered. Through a series of inquiries, connections, and light-bulb moments, Beaver oversaw the compilation of a book that included little-known facts and trivia that he thought would be of interest to the general public and settle any good-natured disputes. The Guinness Book of Superlatives and Now Records was born and given away for free as a marketing tool for the brewery.

Beaver was right; the public couldn’t get enough of this type of information. The book was a hit and went on to have an updated edition published yearly. The now-named Guinness Book of World Records has sold over 100 million copies worldwide.

I just don't know about this: a person jumping off a bridge in his underpants with a crowd watching.

We bought a copy every year in our home when I was growing up. At the time, the paperback copy was about three or four inches thick. The bottom right corner of the cover always curled up and the binding broke a few months after purchase, but my brother and I read it from cover to cover, eyes straining because of the minuscule font size.

Beef Stew

We’ve read about the beer and the book. So now, the stew. It contains Guinness. The end.

Actually, why add beer? Doesn’t the alcohol mostly evaporate? So, the point is…?

Taste. Beer, especially a malty, dark stout like Guinness will add an “I don’t know what’s in this, but it’s delicious” taste to your beef stew. Plus, it's fun to tell people that you've included an entire bottle of beer in a dish. Sweet mercy!

Hunky chunky beef cubes browned and awaiting the stew.

Lessons Learned

Don’t cut the beef cubes too small. Meaning, don’t cut them into bite-size pieces. You will wind up with smushy little beef turds floating in your stew. You want big 2-inch cubes that can withstand the 2-hour cook time needed to tenderize the meat.
Take the time to brown the beef in batches. I have learned the hard way that if you dump all the beef in at the same time 1) it will not brown, 2) it will steam to an ugly dark grey color, and 3) it won’t taste as good.
I wish I could say there is a substitute for Guinness, but I can’t. There just isn’t one. I’ve made this without the beer and just used more broth in its place, but it isn’t the same.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Recipe Tin Eats for the Irish Beef and Guinness Stew recipe and Darcy Beau on Unsplash for the bridge photo.

The luscious stew is served with mashed potatoes.

Guinness Beef Stew

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours 10 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

2.5 lbs beef chuck roast, cut into 2” cubes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
6 oz bacon, diced
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 cup onion, chopped
2 cups carrots, peeled and chopped
2 cups celery, chopped
3 Tbsp flour
1 bottle (14.9 oz) Guinness beer
4 Tbsp tomato paste
4 cups beef broth
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme

Instructions

Dry the beef pieces by blotting them with a paper towel, then sprinkle salt and pepper on all sides.
Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add as many of the beef cubes that will fit but don’t crowd the pan. You will most likely need to do this in two batches. Allow the beef to brown before turning it over to brown the other sides. Transfer the beef to a plate and repeat with the rest of the cubes.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the bacon to the pot along with the garlic and onion. Cook for five-ish minutes until the bacon is starting to brown. Add the carrots and celery and saute for another 2 minutes.
Sprinkle on the flour and stir to coat the veggie mixture with it.
Tip in the beer and scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan using a spatula. Add the tomato paste and broth, then stir to incorporate. Throw in the bay leaves and thyme.
Now, place the browned beef cubes into the pot and dump in any juices that have accumulated. Press the beef down so that it is submerged and liquid just covers it.
Lower the heat to medium-low or just at a simmer. Cover the pot and cook for 2 hours. Remove the lid and allow to simmer for 30 minutes longer. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

Keywords: Guinness beef stew

Creamy Vegan Rutabaga Soup

February 22, 2023

Creamy Vegan Rutabaga Soup

Think creamy and dreamy soups can’t also be vegan? I thought so, too. But Creamy Vegan Rutabaga Soup proves us all wrong.

I know you’re thinking “rutabaga, just why?” Well, why not? Rich in vitamins C and E, as well as calcium and potassium, rutabagas are a superfood-ish root vegetable and the star of this soup.

It all starts with the magic of mirepoix.

Mirepoix

What is mirepoix? It is a sauteed veggie foundation of many casseroles, soups, stews, and meat dishes. The ingredients include carrots, celery, and onion.

French in origin, the combination was supposedly named for a 17th-century duke in the town of Mirepoix. His personal cook finely chopped the aromatic vegetables and then sauteed them in fat like butter or oil to intensify their flavors. Unfortunately, the cook’s name is forgotten in history, but that is how things go.

Many cultures and countries have their own version of mirepoix. Of course, the ingredients are slightly different as are the names: Cajun holy trinity, German suppengrün, Italian battuto, Polish włoszczyzna, and Spanish sofrito. Once sauteed, the veggie combos go into stealth mode.

You don’t know they are there but they undergird the dish and allow the other ingredients to shine.

The classic mirepoix ratio is two parts onion, one part celery, and one part carrot. Chop the veggies all the same size to cook at the same rate. Once they become softened, the other ingredients can be added.

It is a good foundation for vegan soups.

Vegan Soup Recipes

Celery, rutabaga, carrots, parsley, and onion all await the chopping block.

I get it. Not everyone in your family wants to eat something vegan. However, soups are an easy way to incorporate a vegan element into your menu without too much fuss or fanfare.

No one needs to know this is vegan. It can be our secret.

Using oil instead of butter, plant-based milk instead of dairy milk, and vegetable broth instead of chicken broth are ways of changing any vegetable soup recipe into a vegan one. These small pivots also bring different flavors to the forefront of a recipe. Try it and let me know what you think.

Lessons Learned

Peeling root veggies like rutabagas can be approached in a few different ways. Use a good quality vegetable peeler (a dull one will not be kind to you) to peel them whole. Since I don’t have one at the moment, I cut the veg in half and use a sharp paring knife to peel the outside.
Play around with the amount of liquid to get a thicker or thinner soup. Omit the wine if you don’t like it or have it and sub in more broth.
Looking for another vegan soup recipe with rutabaga? This one is delicious.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Yummy Addiction for the creamy roasted rutabaga soup recipe.

Immersion stick blenders are miracle workers!

Creamy Vegan Rutabaga Soup

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

4 cups rutabaga, peeled and diced
4 Tbsp olive oil, divided use
1 ½ cups onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup white wine
6 cups vegetable broth
¾ cup coconut milk
Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400F/204C. Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Dump the rutabaga cubes onto the sheet and using your hands toss the rutabaga with the olive oil to coat the pieces. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring once to turn the pieces over.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add the onion, celery, and carrots. Saute for 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and nutmeg and cook for another minute.
Pour in the white wine and scrape up any brown bits, also called fond, stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add the vegetable broth and bring to a simmer.
Tip the roasted rutabaga into the soup pot and allow the soup to simmer for 20-ish minutes or until the rutabaga is tender all the way through.
Pour the soup into a blender that can handle hot liquid and blitz until smooth. I prefer to use an immersion stick blender, which is much easier.
Stir in the coconut milk. Set aside some coconut milk to drizzle on just before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Keywords: creamy vegan rutabaga soup

Salmon Wellington

February 13, 2023

Salmon Wellington

An inside peek at salmon wrapped in puff pastry.

These little packets of goodness are fancy enough for guests but also make for a perfect weeknight meal. Salmon Wellington comes together fast and includes a good hit of omega-3 fatty acids. Win-win-win!

Types of Salmon

My mother-in-law always seems to have good things to eat in her fridge. She regularly has fresh and freshly smoked salmon on hand. When family, friends, and neighbors go fishing off the coasts of Oregon and Alaska, they share their catch with her and I’m envious.

The salmon caught in the Pacific Northwest is typically one of the wild Pacific species. These include Chinook (also called king), chum (dog), coho (silver), pink (humpback), and sockeye (red).

Seriously, why do salmon species have two names?

One is a common species name (like Chinook) and one is a nickname (king). Either name may be used by fishermen, fishmongers, and regular people like you and me. Fishermen and fishmongers are regular people, too, but you know what I mean.

Atlantic farmed salmon with mushrooms, spinach, onion, and garlic.

What will you most likely find at your local grocery store? It depends on where you shop. At my local market, there are only two choices: Atlantic salmon (which is farmed) and sockeye (which is labeled wild caught).

As a general rule, Chinook is the most expensive while chum and pink are the cheapest (and often only available canned). The other varieties fall somewhere in between, price-wise. The good news: all are delicious and available fresh, frozen, or canned to accommodate every budget level.

Farm-raised Versus Wild-caught

I’m not talking about your son’s ex-girlfriend, silly. We are still on the subject of salmon.

We all want the answer to the question: which one is better, farm-raised or wild-caught? I’ve read the pros and cons of both and it seems you could go either way.

Farm-raised salmon:

Have higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids (which are good for you) than wild-caught because of the farm’s highly controlled diets.
Are given antibiotics, which can be passed along to you when you eat them.
Have higher levels of PCB, a type of pollutant, which has been linked to various medical problems.

Wild-caught salmon:

Have good levels of omega-3 fatty acids but it varies because the diet of the fish in the wild isn’t consistent.
Feed on smaller fish that may have eaten plastic waste in the ocean, which then gets passed along to you.
Have higher levels of mercury than farm-raised salmon, which is not good for you.

Given all the information, I’ve come to a conclusion. I don’t know which one is better. So, I eat what is available and within my budget.

I think salmon is especially good when wrapped in puff pastry a la Beef Wellington.

Wellington

We’ve talked about Beef Wellington before and I made a vegan version of it here. The Cliff Notes explanation: a savory filling that usually includes sauteed mushrooms is wrapped into a puff pastry log and baked until golden brown. It is cut into slices to reveal the inside and served.

Consider this the pescatarian version of this famous dish. This riff includes sauteed spinach, garlic, and mushrooms along with a salmon fillet for the filling. It is crispy on the outside, thanks to the puff pastry, and tender on the inside.

Puff pastry packets being brushed with egg wash.

Lessons Learned

I like to remove the skin from the salmon fillet before placing it inside the pastry but you don’t have to. You’re an adult, so do what you want.
The flavors of this dish are subtle and clean. If you want to zhush it up with other spices, have at it.
There is no dairy in this recipe, so your DF peeps will be happy about this.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Diane Morrissey for her Salmon Wellington recipe.

Salmon Wellington

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups baby spinach
4 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 cup diced onion
1 box (1.1 lb) puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed
4 Tbsp plain bread crumbs
2 Tbsp fresh dill
1 Tbsp lemon zest
4 salmon fillets (1 lb total)
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)
Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400F/204C. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet. Sauté the garlic, spinach, onions, and mushrooms until the mushrooms have released their liquid and the spinach is wilted. Continue to cook until the liquid has evaporated. Set aside and let cool.
Roll out the puff pastry sheet on a floured surface. Cut both sheets in half so that you have 4 pieces. These pieces will be folded in half to enclose the filling and sealed, so sprinkle 1 tablespoon of bread crumbs on half of each pastry piece.
Evenly divide the spinach-mushroom mixture over the bread crumbs and sprinkle with dill and lemon zest. Place the salmon fillet on top of the spinach mixture. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper. Using a pastry brush or your fingers, brush the egg wash on all the edges of the pastry.
Lift and fold the empty half over the salmon and press to seal the edges. Crimp the edges with the tines of a fork. Cut slits on top to allow the steam to escape. Brush the pastry with the remaining eggs wash.
Bake for 25 minutes or until crisp and golden brown. Garnish with parsley and serve warm.

Keywords: salmon wellington

Homemade Pop Tarts

February 2, 2023

Homemade Pop Tarts

As inexpensive as prepackaged toaster pastries are, you might be wondering why make your own. First of all, you get to add as many sprinkles as you want! Plus, Homemade Pop Tarts taste better than the store bought kind and are absolutely worth the calories.

Pop-Tarts and Pop Art

Pop-Tarts are the only food I know whose name was inspired by an art movement. Cereal giant Kellogg’s started mass production of Pop-Tarts in 1964 but at the time called them Fruit Scones. I know, yawn.

Pop Art was an art movement in mid-century America and the U.K. This movement was a mash-up of popular culture and ordinary objects painted in bright colors. Instantly recognizable examples include Andy Warhol’s Campbell soup cans and Roy Lichtenstein's graphic art.

Graffiti inspired by pop art and Roy Lichtenstein.

Some brilliant person at Kellogg’s changed the (very boring) name of their Fruit Scones to something that reflected the current pop art movement. And so, the name Pop-Tarts was born. You can read all about it on the Pop-Tart history timeline.

Originally, the rectangular-shaped pastries were available in four different types of fillings: apple-currant, blueberry, brown sugar cinnamon, and strawberry. Eaten straight from the package or heated in a toaster, they became popular breakfast fare. Frosted varieties soon followed as well as new flavors and the addition of sprinkles.

Pastry dough with mounds of strawberry jam.

Sprinkles

Sprinkles are merely powdered sugar, egg white, and food coloring piped into thin lines, left to dry, and broken into tiny pieces. Where did they originate? Their past is complicated and slightly murky like that of your best friend’s ex.

Some historians point to early 20th-century Dutch “hagelslag” (translation: hail storm), which are basically chocolate sprinkles, as the starting point. People in Holland press hagelslag en masse onto buttered bread and call it breakfast. The Dutch really know how to start a day off right.

In the northeastern part of the U.S., people call these itty bitty candy toppings “jimmies.” Supposedly named after their inventor, jimmies have been scattered over ice cream cones and sundaes in the New England area since the 1940s.

Fun fact: the British name for sprinkles is “hundreds and thousands.”

A container of rainbow colored sprinkles.

Sprinkles as a category encompasses several different types of miniature candy toppings that can be round (nonpareils), flat (confetti), or pearl-like (dragees). One of the most common types is the elongated rod-shaped variety that is opaque and multi-colored.

Once relegated to a six-year-old’s birthday cake and the occasional celebratory ice cream sundae, sprinkles have gone mainstream. In addition to cake and ice cream, they now appear on brownies, cookies, doughnuts, pancakes, popcorn, and yes, buttered bread. I’ve even seen them on the rim of cocktails.

They bring a little fun to everything.

Baked pop tarts, nekkid and fresh from the oven.

Lessons Learned

Can you make this with refrigerated pie crust dough? Yes. However, if you are a pie crust aficionado like I am, you will want to make your own crust from the recipe below. It makes a big difference.
I found that the filling recipe makes the perfect amount of filling for the pop tarts! It’s easy to switch out the strawberry for other flavors of jam.
This recipe is very customizable. Not into rectangles? Make another shape. Aversion to the frosting? Leave it out. Don’t like sprinkles (whaaat)? Use crushed nuts or other toppings instead. You’re an adult, so do what you want.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to King Arthur Baking for the tasty toaster tarts recipe and to Juan Camilo on Unsplash for the pop art photo.

A beautifully sprinkled homemade pop tart.

Homemade Pop Tarts

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Chill Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Yield: 9 pop tarts 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
16 Tbsp salted butter, frozen and grated
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp vodka or milk, any kind

Filling:

¾ cup strawberry jam
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp cold water
1 egg, lightly beaten for brushing on pastry

Frosting:

1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp water or milk, any kind
Sprinkles or other toppings as garnish

Instructions

Make the dough by combining flour, sugar, and salt. Add the grated butter and toss to combine. Pour in the egg and vodka and mix just until it comes together.
Split the dough into two equal pieces. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and smoosh it down into a disc. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes before rolling it out. You can make the dough ahead and refrigerate it for up to 2 days, allowing it to sit at room temp 10 to 15 minutes before rolling.
Make the filling by placing the jam in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir together the cornstarch and water until smooth and add to the jam. Allow the mixture to come to a boil, then let simmer for 3 to 5 minutes stirring occasionally as it thickens. Set aside to cool before filling the tarts.
Generously flour a flat work surface. Roll out one piece of dough on the prepared surface into a large rectangle that is ⅛-inch thick. It should be rolled large enough until you are able to trim it into a 9 x 12-inch rectangle. Repeat with the second piece of dough.
Using a ruler, measure and score one of the dough pieces into thirds. On the 9-inch side, you will be scoring the dough all the way across at the 3” and 6” marks. On the 12-inch side, you will be scoring at the 3”, 6”, and 9” marks. You should now have nine rectangles that measure 3 x 4 inches. Whew.
Now, brush the beaten egg all over the pastry that has the score marks. Scoop a tablespoon of the cooled filling and place it in the center of each rectangle. Lay the second piece of dough on top of the one with the filling. Gently press around the mounds of filling to seal it on all sides.
Cut the dough in between the sealed filling mounds using a pizza cutter or sharp knife into the nine 3 x 4-inch rectangles. Press all the cut edges together and then seal with the tines of a fork around all sides.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay the sealed tarts on the prepared sheet and prick the tops with a fork to make steam holes. Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator and let chill for 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 350 F/176 C. Bake the pop tarts for 30 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from the oven and let them cool on the pan.
Make the frosting by stirring together the powdered sugar and water to form a thick but spoonable frosting. Now is the time to add a drop of food coloring if you wish. Drizzle the frosting on the cooled tarts and immediately scatter on the sprinkles so they stick before the frosting dries.

Keywords: homemade pop tarts

Sheet Pan Eggs Benedict

January 30, 2023

Sheet Pan Eggs Benedict

Hosting brunch for a group of friends can be intimidating when it involves poaching eggs and whisking Hollandaise sauce. Sheet Pan Eggs Benedict streamlines the process so you can enjoy this brunch classic without having to take a Xanax.

Eggs Benedict

Like many famous dishes, Eggs Benedict has a disputed point of origin. Two of the more popular stories involve a restaurant in NYC, a hungry customer, and an eager-to-please chef. The results: a stacked combination of bread, pork product, egg, and Hollandaise.

English muffins, Canadian bacon, and eggs.

Delmonico’s Restaurant, the birthplace of Delmonico’s Steak, Lobster Newberg, and the Wedge Salad, claims that chef Charles Ranofer created the dish in the 1860s at the request of a frequent customer with the last name Benedict. The chef included a recipe for the dish in his 1894 cookbook, The Epicurean.

His cookbook is still in print and available on Amazon.

A competing story takes place in 1894 at the Waldorf Hotel where a hungover patron with the last name Benedict ordered "buttered toast, poached eggs, crisp bacon, and a hooker of hollandaise." Just to clarify, a hooker is a measurement used for liquor and spirits that equals 5 tablespoons. Supposedly Waldorf’s maitre d’hotel Oscar Tschirky, formerly of Delmonico’s, added the dish to the menu where it became a hit.

Split English muffins and Canadian bacon patiently waiting on a sheet pan.

Classic Eggs Benedict consists of split English muffins buttered and toasted. Each muffin is topped with Canadian bacon or ham, a poached egg, and Hollandaise. I know you are thinking this sounds like an Egg McMuffin sans sauce and you aren’t wrong; the concept is the same.

One thing that makes Eggs Benedict so popular is that it is comprised of no-nonsense ingredients executed well. Most everyone can make eggs of some sort, but you must know what you are doing to successfully poach one.

You can poach eggs in a muffin tin in the oven, so don't let anyone tell you any different.

This is also true of Hollandaise sauce.

Hollandaise

Don’t bounce out. I won’t give you a history lesson on the origins of Hollandaise sauce. Suffice it to say that its past is more complicated than that of Eggs Benedict.

The sauce is a creamy, dreamy blend of egg yolks, lemon juice, and butter. Most often it is heated over a double boiler and whisked as it slowly warms into a velvety sauce. Hollandaise sometimes strikes fear in the heart of home cooks because it so easily curdles, or breaks, leaving you with a separated, eggy mess.

This recipe makes things easier by coming together in a blender. Once you get the hang of it, you will want to put it on everything from eggs to fish to veggies. It’s indulgent and delicious.

A spoonful of buttery, lemony, creamy, dreamy Hollandaise sauce.

Lessons Learned

Don’t freak out about the Hollandaise sauce. Yes, it is a prima donna in the sauce world but the blender version makes things easier. Be sure the butter isn’t too hot and add it slowly into the blender to prevent it from splitting into coagulated sadness.
Poached eggs in the oven? Yes, friend. The secret is the water at the bottom of the muffin tin. Depending on how runny you like your eggs, bake them anywhere between 10 to 13 minutes.
If you are a normal person, this recipe serves six. If you are my friend, this recipe serves three. Adjust ingredients accordingly.

Hat Tips

Thanks to Add a Pinch for the easy eggs benedict recipe and Simply Recipes for the easy blender Hollandaise sauce recipe.

Hollandaise sauce being drizzled over the whole shebang.

Sheet Pan Eggs Benedict

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 20
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale

3 English muffins split in half
6 slices of Canadian bacon or ham
6 eggs
Chopped parsley

Sauce

10 Tbsp salted butter
3 large egg yolks
1 Tbsp lemon juice
⅛ tsp paprika

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 F/204 C. Adjust the oven racks so they are in the middle third of the oven.
Grease a rimmed sheet pan. Lightly butter the cut sides of the English muffins and place them cut-side down on one half of the baking sheet. Arrange the Canadian bacon slices on the other half.
Spray 6 wells of a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Place 2 tablespoons of water into each of the sprayed wells. Crack an egg and place it into a prepared well. Don’t break the yolk! Repeat with the remaining eggs.
Place the baking sheet and the muffin tin in the oven (they will need to be on two separate racks) and bake for 10 minutes.
While they cook, make the sauce. Place butter in a small pot and allow to melt slowly over medium heat. Remove from heat when it is nearly melted.
Dump the egg yolks, lemon juice, and paprika into a blender and blitz for a full 30 seconds. It should be light in color and slightly foamy.
With the blender on low, slowly pour in the melted butter and allow to blend until it is thoroughly mixed in. Adjust seasonings by adding more salt or lemon juice. Place next to the stovetop or in a warm-ish spot until ready to use, optimally within 30 minutes.
Assemble the dish by turning over the English muffins so they are cut sides up. Top with a slice of Canadian bacon. Carefully remove a poached egg from the muffin well using a silicon spatula or spoon and briefly drain on a paper towel before placing it atop the bacon. Top with the sauce. Garnish with parsley and a dusting of paprika or hot sauce.
Mimosas are optional. Actually, no they aren’t.

Keywords: sheet pan eggs benedict

Sheet Pan Crispy Chicken with Veggies

January 23, 2023

Sheet Pan Crispy Chicken with Veggies

It’s hard to pass up a meal that involves crispy chicken, especially if it is easy enough to make on a weeknight. Sheet Pan Crispy Chicken with Veggies roasts chicken cutlets along with Brussels sprouts and rutabagas and is ready in under an hour. The secret to the crispy coating: corn flakes.

Corn Flakes

Invented in 1894, the original corn flakes breakfast cereal comes from Battle Creek, Michigan. While it started out as a breakfast for patients at a health resort, the cereal soon became marketed to the general population by the Kellogg brothers. These little toasted flakes of corn have been a mainstay at breakfast tables for over 100 years now.

Crushed corn flakes are a substitute for breadcrumbs in casseroles, batters, and crumb coatings on meats and veggies. They also add crunch to cookies, dessert bars, and French toast.

Crushed corn flakes give the chicken its crispy coating in this recipe. Roast the coated chicken on a sheet pan with veggies. Like rutabagas.

Rutabagas

Rutabagas don’t get a lot of love in the U.S. and it’s too bad. Granted, they are kind of homely looking with a yellowy tip and a purply blue top. They look like a bad bruise that is just starting to heal.

These root vegetables are high in carotene, fiber, iron, potassium, and vitamin C. I learned recently that one serving of rutabaga provides over half the daily recommended amount of vitamin C!

Even though they are root veggies, rutabagas are lower in carbohydrates than potatoes, so they make a nice substitute for those on a low-carb diet. Boil, bake, mash, or roast them once you have peeled off the skin.

In some places they are swedes or Swedish turnips. But I think Scotland has the best name for them: neeps. When served with potatoes, they are called neeps and tatties.

Brussels sprouts, rutabagas, chicken breasts, garlic, and shallots.

Lessons Learned

It’s easy to sub out other veggies for the sprouts and rutabaga. Just be sure to adjust the roasting time for whatever veg you use.
To get 2 cups of crushed corn flakes, you will need around 6 cups of cereal. I like to blitz them in a blender to finely crush them, but you can roll over them with a rolling pin, too.
The original recipe calls for a teaspoon or two of cayenne for some heat. My middle-aged tummy is less and less tolerant of spicy foods, so I left it out. But you’re an adult, so do what you want.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Half Baked Harvest for the sheet pan hot honey mustard chicken recipe and to Wholesome Yum for the roasted rutabaga recipe.

Crispy chicken looking fine with the honey mustard sauce drizzled on top.

Sheet Pan Crispy Chicken with Veggies

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

1 lb Brussels sprouts
1 lb rutabaga, peeled and cubed
2 shallots, peeled and quartered
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast

Crumb Coating

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups crushed corn flakes

Sauce

¼ cup honey
¼ cup Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp smoked paprika
4 Tbsp salted butter, melted

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 F/218 C. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl, toss together the Brussels sprouts, rutabaga, shallots, garlic, oil, salt, and pepper. Pour the mixture onto one of the baking sheets and spread out the pieces into a single layer and evenly spaced. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 25 minutes.
Prepare the chicken by slicing the breast halves lengthwise into thinner, equal-sized cutlets. This will help the chicken cook quickly and avoid drying out. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels.
Make an assembly line for coating the chicken by placing the flour in one shallow pan, the beaten eggs in another pan, and the crushed corn flakes in a third pan. Dredge a chicken cutlet into the flour o, shake off the excess, and the excess, then dip it into the egg wash on both sides. Finally, dip it into the corn flakes and press to adhere the crumbs on both sides. Place the coated chicken onto the second prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cutlets.
Place the pan with chicken in the oven on a separate baking rack from the veggies. They can bake at the same time.
Bake the chicken for 10 minutes or until no longer pink. Cutlets cook quickly so don’t overcook them or they will be hard and dry.
Make the sauce by combining all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and stirring until smooth. Drizzle some sauce over the crispy baked chicken and return the pan to the oven for another minute or two.
Serve the chicken with the roasted veggies and extra sauce on the side.

Keywords: sheet pan crispy chicken with veggies

Cauliflower with Gochujang

January 17, 2023

Cauliflower with Gochujang

Have you told yourself you are going to eat more plants this year? I have and I’ve decided they are not going to be boring. Cauliflower with Gochujang is tastier, stickier, and spicier than a Korean dating show.

Singles Inferno

I don’t like dating shows. Too fake, too crass, and just too much for me. So when my brother told me I should check out Singles Inferno, a South Korean reality dating show, I had my doubts.

The first episode of Season One? So cringe-y that I barely made it through. But I thought I’d give it one more try, so I watched episode two.

And I couldn’t stop watching after that. Everyone is so polite, so pretty, and so Korean! Plus, the commentators are hilarious.

I loved it and am now finishing up Season Two.

Are you surprised by my viewing habits? Probably not.

The premise of Singles Inferno is five girls and five guys on a deserted island off the coast of South Korea with no electricity, social media, or phones. They cook, haul water, and compete in physical challenges together as they get to know each other. It’s not exactly camping but more like adult summer camp at the beach.

The goal: meet someone who is as interested in you as you are in them and go to Paradise, a luxury hotel, where you can get to know them better. And by that, I mean their age and their profession. Compared to other dating shows, Singles Inferno is pretty wholesome.

But there are still some spicy moments, and some involve gochujang.

Gochujang

Gochujang is a popular condiment in Korea. Dark red and spicy-sweet, it is a fermented red chili paste used in all kinds of dishes including bibimbap, meat marinades, soups, stews, and tteokbokki. It is also the base for condiments and sauces to which soy sauce, vinegar, sesame seeds, and other spices are added.

My auntie made her own gochujang from scratch for years. It contained gochugaru (red chili peppers), sticky rice, and fermented soybeans, along with some salt. She would airmail my mom a jar or two when the batch was ready.

Gochujang can be purchased in most Asian markets and on Amazon, of course. Be aware that there are different heat levels from mild to extremely (and I mean extremely) hot. If you’ve never tried it, get a small container and experiment with it on meats and veggie dishes like this one.

Cauliflower florets awaiting their dunk into the batter.

Lessons Learned

Be sure your batter is fairly thin and runny before dipping the cauliflower florets otherwise you will wind up with a thick and claggy mess.
As written, this recipe is spicy. If you need to tone down the heat, use 2 tablespoon gochujang and ½ cup brown sugar instead.
This dish pairs well with steamed rice and a fresh cucumber salad. Or serve it with Korean bbq ribs and kimchi.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Bon Appetit for the sticky and spicy baked cauliflower recipe.

Is your mouth watering? Mine is. A close-up look at this spicy dish.

Cauliflower with Gochujang

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 ½ lb cauliflower head, cut into florets
¼ cup gochujang
3 Tbsp soy sauce
⅓ cup brown sugar
2 tsp unseasoned rice vinegar
Garnish: toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 F/204 C. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Tip in 1 ¼ cup of water and whisk to form a thin batter. Add more water if necessary.
Dip cauliflower florets one at a time into the batter, shake off excess, and place them on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 25 minutes or until just starting to turn golden brown.
Combine gochujang, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Whisk and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10-ish minutes or until the sauce has enough body to it that it will coat a spoon. Tip in the vinegar and stir.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the baked cauliflower, tossing to coat the florets. Garnish with sesame seeds and green onions.

Keywords: cauliflower with gochujang

Vegetable Soup with Barley

January 12, 2023

Vegetable Soup with Barley

Brothy and chock full of complex carbohydrates, Vegetable Soup with Barley makes for a comforting and yummy-in-your-tummy lunch or dinner. It’s also great to serve family and friends who are omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans.

Or, just hungry.

Yes, a picture of cattle just before a vegan soup recipe. Moo!

What makes a soup vegan?

Vegan Soup Recipes

Not all vegetarian soups are vegan. You may remember our previous discussion about veganism being a subset of vegetarianism. It excludes animal-derived proteins and products, so no meat, eggs, or dairy products like butter and cheese.

This is more like it: carrots, celery, onion, rutabaga, and mushrooms.

If you are a regular soup-maker, you may immediately think of three potential issues with vegan soup recipes: roux, creaminess, and protein source. However, I assure you there is no cause for alarm. These can all be made vegan without too much upset.

Roux is the butter and flour combo that gets cooked together and to which broth is added. It is used to thicken gravies, sauces, and soups like bisques and chowders. Because roux requires equal amounts of fat and flour it is easy to swap out butter and use olive oil or coconut oil instead.
Creamy soups often contain milk, cheese, or another dairy to achieve maximum creaminess. But alternatives like coconut milk, pureed vegetables, and nut butter bring a velvety lusciousness to soups.
For a dose of non-animal protein, look to beans, chickpeas, lentils, peas, or tofu as easy adds to your bowl of bliss.

Other protein sources? Whole grains.

Barley

Barley is a cereal grain that is grown all over the world and is a staple in many cultures. It’s mild and slightly nutty, like most childhood best friends. While it doesn’t contain as much protein as kamut or quinoa, barley is still a good source of plant-based protein that also provides fiber, minerals, and vitamins.

There are two types of barley: hulled and pearl. The difference? Hulled barley is a whole grain with just the outer husk removed while pearl barley is technically not a whole grain because the outer husk and bran layer have been removed.

This soup contains pearl barley, which is easier to find in grocery stores and cooks more quickly than hulled. Use hulled barley if you’d prefer, just be sure to adjust cooking times.

Lessons Learned

Don’t be afraid of the rutabagas in the soup. They aren’t as common as other vegetables and you may have never had them before but they are worth trying. The taste: a cross between potato and carrot.
This is a great clean-out-your-fridge kind of soup. Sub in other veggies for the ones listed here.
If you are making this soup a day ahead, cook the barley separately and add it to the soup just before serving. Barley continues to absorb water and will suck up all the broth in your soup if you leave it overnight. To store leftover soup, separate the solids from the broth (I know, kind of a pain) otherwise prepare to be okay with whatever you get the next day.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Recipe Tin Eats for the pearl barley soup recipe and Robert Bye on Unsplash for the cattle photo.

Mixing up the magic by adding veg broth to the sauteed vegetables.

Vegetable Soup with Barley

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Units Scale

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup peeled and chopped rutabaga
1 cup quartered mushrooms
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup pearl barley
8 cups vegetable broth
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

Heat oil in a stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, rutabaga, mushrooms, and garlic to the pot and saute for 5 minutes. Add the fennel seeds, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper, and cook for 2 minutes until the spices become fragrant.
Tip in the barley and vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 40-ish minutes until the barley is tender but still chewy. Follow the package directions if you are making the soup a day ahead and cooking the barley separately. Add the barley to the soup the day you are serving it.
Serve the soup by ladling it into bowls and garnishing it with chopped parsley.

Keywords: vegetable soup with barley

Borscht

January 9, 2023

Borscht

Borscht is an Eastern European soup that is a shocking shade of deep pink. In addition to its fun color, it’s also a beefy, beety, brothy bowl of goodness. I suggest wearing colorful socks while making this soup recipe.

Colorful Socks

Is there such a thing as soup season? Because I live in Southern California, my take is that soup season (or as I keep seeing on social media “soup szn”) is whenever socks are required for three or more consecutive days.

Colorful socks are a go-to gift. They are fun to give and equally fun to receive. My kids know they will each get a pair or two for Christmas so I like to look for crazy socks year-round.

Store display of loud, colorful, crazy socks.

I recently read that wearing colorful socks can be a form of nonconforming behavior that can affect how we think. Researchers call it enclothed cognition. The idea is that what we wear can make us stand out from the crowd while boosting confidence and performance.

Does wearing crazy socks really make you more successful? Not sure. But they bring a little bit of joy to a dreary day, especially during soup season.

One of my favorite soup recipes involves roasted beets.

Roasted Beets

Borscht ingredients: beets, carrots, onion, beef, cabbage, and fresh dill.

Beets are a controversial subject. People either love them or hate them. I assumed I didn’t like them until I tasted roasted beets.

They are freaking delicious!

We all know that roasting vegetables, particularly root vegetables, draws out all the moisture leaving behind an intense flavor and deliciously caramelized edges. Beets are no exception. They develop an earthy sweetness when roasted and transform this borscht recipe into something special.

Pan of diced beets and carrots to be roasted.

Lessons Learned

This recipe takes 3 hours if you do it all in one go. If you want to divide the work, you can do the bulk of it a day ahead by prepping the meat and veggies. On the second day, you will need only 15-ish minutes to pull the soup together.
The original recipe calls for 1 large russet potato, peeled and diced, added to the mix of veggies that are roasted. I have made the soup several times with and without potatoes and I assure you it is yummy both ways, especially when served with milk bread.
Please do not skip the vinegar at the end. You will miss out on that finishing touch of deliciousness.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Simply Recipes for the borscht recipe and to billow926 on Unsplash for the sock display photo.

Borscht

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours
Yield: 8 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Units Scale

2 tsp olive oil
2 lbs beef neck bones or bone-in beef shank
1 ½ cups chopped onion
8 cups beef broth, divided use
1 ½ lbs beets, peeled and diced into ½-inch cubes
1 lb carrots, peeled and chopped into ½-inch pieces
1 tsp olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
¾ cup chopped fresh dill
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
Sour cream

Instructions

Heat the oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until it is lightly browned on all sides. Scooch the meat over and add the onions. Cook the onions for 5 minutes or until they are softened. Add 4 cups of broth to the pot and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 60 to 90 minutes until the meat is fork-tender.
Preheat the oven to 400 F/204 C. Grease a rimmed baking sheet with oil. Add the beets and carrots in a single layer and drizzle with a teaspoon of oil. Roast for 30 minutes.
Remove the meat from the pot and chop it into bite-sized pieces. Discard bones and gristle. Return the meat to the pot. Add the roasted veggies and the remaining 4 cups of broth. Throw in the cabbage and half of the chopped dill. Simmer the soup for 15 minutes or until the cabbage is tender.
Sprinkle in the vinegar and stir. Taste the soup and add salt and pepper to your liking. To serve the soup, ladle it into individual bowls. Top with a spoonful of sour cream and garnish with remaining chopped fresh dill.

Keywords: borscht

Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls

December 21, 2022

Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Plush and pillowy Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls could be a soft place to rest your weary head. Not really. They are too delicious for that.

How are they so tender and luscious? Tangzhong.

Tangzhong

We’ve talked about tangzhong before. And it’s the secret to these cinnamon rolls not becoming hard and chewy the next day as many rolls are. The water-flour roux makes a gelatinous blob that is added to the dough to retain moisture in the finished bread, keeping it soft and springy.

Tangzhong is the Chinese term for this roux. Popular in Asia for many centuries, it is a bread-making technique that not only makes loaves softly plush but also inhibits them from going stale quickly. It is used to make loaves of milk bread.

Making and adding tangzhong to your dough is an extra step, but it comes together in just a few minutes (less than 10). The results are worth it.

Also worth it: good quality cinnamon.

Cinnamon

We all know what cinnamon tastes like, right? Well, sort of. There are several types of cinnamon and they all have different tastes and smells.

Cinnamon is broken down into two main categories: Ceylon and cassia. Within the cassia category are three sub-types that are named after where they are grown. Cassia is from China, korintje is from Indonesia, and Saigon is from Vietnam.

Dough rolled out with cinnamon and spice filling sprinkled on top.

Chinese, Indonesian, and Vietnamese cinnamons are all rich and spicy. Ceylon cinnamon is milder and more floral than the other types and is considered the Ferrari of cinnamons. The King Arthur Baking website has a very detailed breakdown of the different types which I found very informative.

The most popular and widely-sold type in the U.S. is the kind from Indonesia. It is affordable and available. Costco stocks the Vietnamese Saigon cinnamon and is the one I use most.

Yes, the best way to cut these rolls is with plain dental floss. When your dentist asks, say yes to flossing.

Lessons Learned

This recipe looks long and scary. Don’t be afraid. All the individual steps are very doable and easy. Take it a step at a time.
Play around with the spices for the filling. I added some additional spices for fun but you could use just cinnamon. You’re an adult; do what you want.
Good luck waiting for these to cool before icing and eating. It’s really difficult.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to King Arthur Baking for their perfectly pillowy cinnamon rolls recipe.

Inside bite view of an iced cinnamon roll. It's drool-worthy.

Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Proof Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes plus proofing
Yield: 8 rolls 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Units Scale

Tangzhong:

½ cup milk
3 Tbsp bread flour

Dough:

⅔ cup milk
2 ½ cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp instant yeast
4 Tbsp butter, softened

Filling:

1 Tbsp butter, melted
⅔ cup brown sugar, packed
2 Tbsp bread flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground cardamom
½ tsp ground ginger

Brushing:

1 ½ Tbsp butter, melted

Icing:

1 ½ Tbsp butter, melted
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 to 2 tablespoon milk

Instructions

Make the tangzhong by combining the milk and flour in a small saucepan and whisking to combine. Cook the mixture over medium-high heat, constantly stirring, until it thickens. It should look like a loose paste. When you drag the whisk across the bottom of the pan it will leave a clear trail.
Dump the tangzhong into a mixing bowl. Add the milk, flour, salt, sugar, yeast, and butter. Stir together until combined. Using the dough hook on a stand mixer or your hands, knead the dough for 12 minutes or until it is pliable and smooth. It will be a loose and sticky dough. With your hands, shape the dough into a roundish ball and place it in a greased bowl. Cover and let it rise for 75-ish minutes in a warm place. It won’t double in size but will get puffy.
Make the filling by combining the melted butter, brown sugar, flour, and spices in a medium bowl. Stir together until it is thoroughly mixed.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
As tempting as it is, do not punch down the dough. Instead, gently dump it out onto a lightly floured surface and pat it out into a 10 x 12-inch rectangle. It should be ½-inch thick. Measure it.
Now, using your fingers sprinkle on the filling but leave a ½-inch border on one of the 12-inch long sides. Begin rolling on the long side that has filling and continue to roll the dough until you have a yule log. Just kidding, you now have a filled dough log.
Cut the dough into 8 equal-sized pieces by using dental floss or a sharp knife. Lay the rolls down on the prepared baking sheet. And if need be, tuck those tails in underneath. You don’t want the rolls coming unraveled in the oven.
Cover with lightly sprayed plastic wrap and let them rise in a warm place for 35-ish minutes until puffy.
Preheat the oven to 375 F/190 C. Move the rack to the upper third of the oven.
Bake the rolls for 15 minutes or until the temp in the middle of the rolls reaches 190 F/88 C on a thermometer.
Brush the rolls with melted butter after removing them from the oven. Allow the rolls to cool for 10 minutes and try not to devour them.
At this point, you can continue to let them cool, cover them, and serve them later today or tomorrow, or the next day. The icing should go on just before serving.
If you are serving them immediately, make the icing by stirring together the melted butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, and milk until you have a smooth icing. Ice the rolls and serve immediately.

Keywords: milk bread cinnamon rolls

Sugar Cookies with Marbled Glaze

December 15, 2022

Sugar Cookies with Marbled Glaze

No piping skillz, no worries! These Sugar Cookies with Marbled Glaze are classically delicious and uncommonly pretty. Even I can decorate them.

Marbled Glaze

My mom is a fabulous cake decorator. She doesn’t do it professionally, but she could. In our youth, my brother and I were treated to beautifully decorated birthday cakes and holiday cookies all done by my mom’s artistic mind and steady hand.

I did not inherit that gene.

I’m terrible at cookie decorating. My kids do a better job than I do. When I first saw marbled glaze, I thought no way am I doing that.

Marbled glaze is a frosting technique. It is similar to the mirror glaze used on cakes. However, mirror glaze involves gelatin and dries to a shiny finish, hence the name.

The marbly one used on cookies is royal white icing, made from powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract. Plus a little vodka if you are naughty. Food coloring is swirled into the icing, then the top of the cookie is dipped into the icing creating a marbled effect.

Well, curiosity got the best of me. The swirly glaze is so beautiful and I like pretty things. So, I tried it.

The result: stunning cookies! And it was easy enough for a terrible cookie decorator like me to achieve Instagram-worthy results.

This technique works well because of food coloring.

Food Coloring

If you are at all familiar with food coloring, you have probably used liquid food coloring. You can find it in most grocery stores in the baking aisle. It’s water-based, inexpensive, and used in cookie doughs, cake batters, and frostings.

Gel food coloring has a glycerin or corn syrup base so it is thicker and the color is more concentrated. A little goes a long way. Most cake decorators, like my mom, use it in frostings and icings to give them bright and saturated colors.

A few decades ago, gel coloring was harder to find and only sold in specialty baking supply stores. Now it is available at Walmart, Target, Michaels, and of course, Amazon.

For this marbled glaze, you need just a few drops of liquid food coloring and a toothpick to achieve a beautiful, swirly pattern for your cookies.

Baked cookies, sandy in color with barely browned edges.

Lessons Learned

The sugar cookie dough needs its time alone in the fridge for Netflix and chill. Let it have that time. The dough should be cold and fairly firm (not hard) before being rolled out so that the cutters will make clean cuts and the cookies won’t spread when baked.
Have a ruler handy when you roll the dough to ¼” thickness. Don’t eyeball it as I have for years. Once I started using a ruler, I was astounded to discover that I had been rolling my dough too thin for too long. No wonder they burned so quickly!
Don’t bake them too long. They will be tooth-chipping hard. The baked cookies should be a sandy color with just a touch of brown around the edges.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to King Arthur Baking for the holiday butter cookies recipe and to Jake Cohen for the tie-dye Hanukkah cookie inspiration.

Cookie dipped in swirly blue and white icing.

Sugar Cookies with Marbled Glaze

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours or overnight
Cook Time: 14 minutes
Total Time: 34 minutes plus chill time
Yield: 36 cookies 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Units Scale

Cookies:

18 Tbsp butter (2 ½ sticks)
1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
1 egg yolk
½ tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

Icing:

2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup milk
½ tsp salt
1 tsp almond or vanilla extract
1 Tbsp vodka (or water)
Food coloring

Instructions

Make the cookies by beating the butter and powdered sugar together in a mixer until combined and smooth. Add the egg yolk, salt, and vanilla extract and beat again. Tip in the flour, one cup at a time, and beat after each addition. Mix until smooth.
Divide the dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and smoosh it down into a flat disk. Let the dough chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 F/176 F. Place parchment paper on two rimmed baking sheets and set aside.
Lightly flour a flat surface. Unwrap one dough disk and roll it out to a uniform ¼-inch thickness, flouring the top if needed to avoid sticking to the rolling pin. Using cookie cutters, cut out cookies and place them on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until sandy in color and just being to brown around the edges. Don’t overbake them. Cool in the pan set on a wire rack.
Make the icing by whisking together the powdered sugar, milk, salt, extract, and vodka (or water) until smooth. It helps to do this in a large, kind of shallow bowl so you have room to dip the cookie tops. Dot a few drops of liquid food coloring on the surface of the icing. Use a toothpick to make a few loops and swirls.
Dip the top of a cookie into the icing and rotate it around 90 degrees before lifting the cookie straight up. You should have a fun, whirly, organic design. Place the cookie on a wire rack for the icing to set. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Makes 36-ish cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.

Keywords: sugar cookies with marbled glaze

Gluten-free Shortbread Cookies with Tahini

December 9, 2022

Gluten-free Shortbread Cookies with Tahini

Every assorted cookie platter needs at least one gluten-free offering. Gluten-free Shortbread Cookies with Tahini should be the one! Even gluten-filled folks will appreciate this because shortbread never disappoints.

Shortbread

GBBO peeps will be familiar with the term biscuit. But if you aren’t, it is what Americans call a cookie. Shortbread is a type of cookie that is traditionally Scottish but is now found all over the world in places that appreciate a buttery bite of heaven.

Normally made with just three ingredients (butter, flour, and sugar) shortbread is a dense and crumbly cookie. It can skew savory with the addition of rosemary or caraway but is normally a mildly sweet treat.

When I was in my teens, I could not wait for Christmas time to roll around because it was only then that I could find Walker’s Scottish shortbread at the local commissary on the military base where we lived. Those shiny red tins and rectangular plaid boxes were the stuff of which my cookie dreams were made.

Scottish bagpiper on High Street in Edinburgh, Scotland. Does he wear his kilt the traditional way, commando-style? We'll never know.

After traveling to Scotland, I discovered that shortbread is not a fancy cookie made only by Walker's. It's made by moms and grandmas. And it needs only a handful of ingredients.

There was no looking back once I learned to bake my own shortbread. Goodbye Walker’s (although I still love you) and hello homemade shortbread. Now, I have fun playing around and making different flavors.

Like tahini.

Tahini

Tahini is a creamy sesame seed paste. Once toasted and ground, the sesame seed kernels become spreadable seed butter or paste. It is similar to nut butter.

The paste is a popular ingredient in many Middle Eastern dips, sauces, and toppings. Most people know about tahini because it plays a starring role in hummus. But it can be used in desserts, too.

Halva is a fudge-like sweet made from sesame seed paste. Tahini is also swirled into brownies, cookies, and ice creams. It adds a slightly bitter and nutty flavor that is delicious.

Bowl of butter-tahini mixture and bowl of flour mixture.

Lessons Learned

If your gluten-free flour blend does not contain xanthan gum, add ¾ teaspoon to the recipe. Looking for a flour-free cookie? Try this one.
The mixer is NOT your friend for this cookie recipe. Creaming the tahini, butter, and sugar together with beaters adds too much air to the dough and the cookies will spread. I used a fork to mash them together, then transitioned to a large spoon to incorporate the other ingredients.
The fridge, however, is your best friend. Be sure to chill the dough before rolling it into logs. Then chill again before slicing or you will be sorry.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to The Loopy Whisk for the tahini shortbread cookie recipe and K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash for the bagpiper photo.

Dough logs being rolled in black and white sesame seeds.

Gluten-free Shortbread Cookies with Tahini

Author: Betty
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours 30 minutes or overnight
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 32 minutes active time
Yield: 28 cookies 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Units Scale

¾ cup tahini sesame seed paste
6 oz (1 ½ sticks) butter, softened to room temperature
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups gluten-free flour with xanthan gum, like Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1
½ cup plus 2 tablespoon cornstarch
¾ tsp salt
4 Tbsp raw white sesame seeds
2 Tbsp raw black sesame seeds

Instructions

Make the cookies by mixing the tahini and the softened butter with a fork or spoon in a large bowl. Add the sugar and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
Pour the flour, cornstarch, and salt (and xanthan gum if needed) into a mesh strainer and sift the ingredients together. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir until well mixed. You will need to use your hand to knead the dough and get it thoroughly combined and smooth.
Divide the dough into two equal portions, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll each portion into a cylinder. Each log should be around 7 inches long and 2 inches wide. Tip the white and black sesame seeds into a shallow pan and swirl them together until mixed. Now, roll each dough log in the sesame seeds until the log is completely coated.
Wrap the logs tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate them again for 2 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 F/176 C. Place parchment paper on two rimmed baking sheets and set aside.
Unwrap one log and cut into ½-inch slices. Place slices onto the prepared sheets, about 1-inch apart. Repeat with the second log. Each log yields about 12 to 14 cookies.
Bake cookies for 12 to 14 minutes or until a light golden color.
To make the cookies perfectly round, place a large round cookie cutter around the cookie while it is hot from the oven and swirl the cutter on the baking sheet in a tight circle around the cookie. It will help shape the cookies to make them look more picture-worthy but will not affect the taste, lol. I don’t have a round cookie cutter so I used the open end of a drinking glass.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes. Then, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before enjoying them with a cup of coffee.

Keywords: gluten-free shortbread cookies with tahini

Gingerbread Cookies with Rum-Butter Glaze

December 7, 2022

Gingerbread Cookies with Rum-Butter Glaze

Gingerbread Cookies with Rum-butter Glaze are the quintessential holiday cookie. Soft and full of all the warming spices, these cookies bring all the Nutcracker vibes. Plus, a rummy, buttery glaze.

Want to make them pretty? Use cookie stamps.

Cookie Stamps

We all have a drawer in our kitchen crammed with various cookie cutters. They are useful for cutting shapes into rolled-out cookie or pie dough. And don't tell, but I may have used them once or twice with Play-Doh.

Cookie stamps, however, don’t cut out cookies. They imprint them with a design. Stamps of this type date back several centuries in Scandinavia where they are used to imprint cookies for special occasions.

Old-school cookie stamps are carved out of wood or made of clay. The stamp, which is basically bas relief, is pressed into the dough. It leaves behind a pretty design, making the cookies edible works of art.

Today, cookie stamps are wood or clay, but most often I see them made of metal. I bought my American-made ones on Amazon. And the dough into which I press them?

Gingerbread with molasses.

Dough balls being pressed by the cookie stamp.

Molasses

Slow as molasses! My dad used to say that phrase from time to time when I was growing up and I’m sure he wasn’t talking about me. He loved the taste of molasses and his favorite was blackstrap.

Molasses comes from sugar cane juice. Boiled once, twice, and three times, the juice concentrates and produces different grades and strengths of molasses. Blackstrap is the result of three go-rounds and is the darkest variety with a strong flavor.

This oozy syrup is an ingredient in candies, cookies, and other baked goods. The flavor adds complexity to the pretty cookies featured here.