A Taste of Alaska

Microwave Popcorn

2012-03-07T12:00:00.000-08:00

This is really more of a confession than a recipe.

About 12 years ago I did a principal internship at a local middle school (my husband fondly calls it the year from hell). I spent the year doing a lot of bus duty and discipline. You know, middle school kids are a bundle of hormones and not always pleasant to be around, esp. the students in the office because they made a silly middle school choice. One of the people I worked closely with was our school safety officer, Mr. J. Most days Mr. J would bring a student into my office for one thing or another. We did morning breakfast duty together, lunch duty together and he was usually a part of bus duty in the morning and the afternoon. We became good friends and since he was a young single guy, he often hung out with my family (I did have 4 boys at home), had dinner with us and watched football on Sunday afternoons.
Well, Mr. J's birthday was coming up and we needed to plan something very special for him, he worked so hard you know. The lunch supervisor and I decided to fill the cab of his little pick-up with popcorn. We spent days after work popping corn in the microwave (no fat to stain the seats). Finally the big day arrived and we snuck out to the parking lot and filled the cab with the popcorn, stuffing the last bit through a crack in the driver's side window.
At lunch, I told him the assistant principal wanted him to go to the city park. One of our finest was spotted skipping school and Mr. J needed to go reign him in. Mr. J left in a hurry to go retrieve the offending student. He came huffing back into the lunch room and announced, "Someone has filled my truck up with popcorn!"
We looked as innocent as possible (it even worked). He asked me who did such a thing? I innocently answered, "Who has a stay at home wife that would have time for that and who sent you to your car?"
Mr. J jumped to the conclusion that it must be the assistant principal who did this to him. He rushed into the A.P.'s office and made some comment. The poor A.P. didn't know a thing about it.
The offending student turned out to be eating lunch in the lunchroom, Mr. J spent some time shoveling popcorn out of his truck (and had popcorn in there for months after) and we got away with a great prank. Mr. J may still not know who really did this to him and he moved now so retaliation is not an option!
Well, other than stuffing it in cars, I love to eat popcorn. I eat it when I have a webinar and often in the afternoon I have some to keep me going. I used to buy the bagged microwave stuff, but there is so much about how unhealthy it is I was beginning to feel a little guilty about my afternoon snack. I have been seeing several pins on pinterest about popping popcorn in a brown bag it made me remember Mr. J's birthday gift! So, I purchased a pkg. of brown paper bags, measured out 2 Tbsp. in each bag and folded the tops and taped them shut. Now, in the afternoon or before a webinar, I pop a bag of popcorn, add a little salt or Mrs. Dash and enjoy my popcorn guilt free.

Microwave Popcorn
brown lunch bags
2 Tbsp. popcorn kernels per bag
tape, optional

Put popcorn kernels into paper bag. Tape shut, if desired (I do this because I made a bunch and take them to work, I don't want a mess in transport). Pop in microwave for 2-4 minutes, removing when popping slows down, 3 seconds goes by without a pop. Remove, add salt, butter, Mrs. Dash, chili powder or other flavoring. Enjoy

March 7 , 2012 Daylight 10 hours, 49 minutes, 47 seconds Current Temp 20 º F

Moose Parmesan

2012-03-05T12:00:00.000-08:00

Everyone needs an easy, go-to dish, they can get on a plate quickly and it is good enough for company. It is a no-brainer when you are tired or nothing sounds good. I have Moose Parmesan. It is easy and fast, I almost always have moose cube steaks in the freezer, and the rest are freezer/pantry staples. It includes pasta and that always makes my husband happy. By this time of year, I'm using jarred marinara since our tomatoes are all gone and I've switched to whole wheat pasta, my husband is still not convinced. We had this for dinner a couple of nights ago. I was tired (and pretty grumpy) so I needed something easy and something that would make up for my grumpiness. You can use beef, or chicken or pork, pounded thin. I think this made up for my mood.

Moose Parmesan
4 moose cube steaks
seasoned bread crumbs (I use garlic, salt, pepper, onion powder and oregano)
1 egg, beaten
flour, for dredging
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups marinara
8 oz. spaghetti
4 slices good mozzarella
4 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese

Dredge steaks in flour, dip in egg, dredge in seasoned bread crumbs. Heat olive oil in skillet, add moose. Cook until browned and cooked through on both side. Place a slice of mozzarella on each piece of moose. Keep warm in low oven and let cheese melt.
Heat marinara sauce and cook spaghetti as directed. Place 1/4 of the pasta on each plate, top with 1/2 cup marinara. Place moose on top of marinara, top with 1 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese.
Serves 4
March 3, 2012 Daylight 10 hours, 36 minutes, 16 seconds Current Temp. -19º F

Manhattan

2012-03-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

Today I am in San Francisco going to a conference. I've been to this particular conference three or four times, it always has good information. The conference is located in one of my favorite places and the ocean just smells right. My friend, Nancy, has come with me several times, but I am alone this trip. Nancy's uncle, Robert, used to live in San Francisco. He was a very proper, retired, fourth grade teacher. We would go to lunch or to dinner with him at the Cliff House, downstairs where they still used table cloths, you must have table cloths. And Robert would order a Manhattan.
Robert passed away about a year and a half ago at the age of 92. I won't eat at the Cliff House, but while I'm in San Francisco I'll have a Manhattan and think about Robert, his love for Sara Palin, orchids and his crisp button up shirts.

Manhattan - Robert ordered his extra sweet and straight up.
1001 Cocktails

dash angostura bitters
3 measures rye whiskey
1 measure sweet vermouth
cracked ice
cocktail cherry

Shake the liquids over cracked ice in a mixing glass and mix well. Strain into a chilled glass and decorate with the cherry.

March 2, 2010 Daylight 10 hours, 18 minutes, 49 seconds Current Temp I don't know, I'm in
California, and it is a lot warmer here than in Fairbanks!

Chocolate Raspberry Biscotti with Almonds

2012-02-29T12:00:00.000-08:00

About once a month the Sunshine Committee at work organizes a luncheon and the proceeds go to a nonprofit in town. February's luncheon was for the Heart Association. It's fun to gather for lunch, see people from different departments and floors that you don't usually see and sometimes we play BINGO. Now don't get too excited, but we do play for prizes! I have played every time the BINGO cards come out and I never win. I announced, "I don't know why I even get a card, I never win." It's fun to play and complain about not winning, so I do, often and loudly. Well, this time I won! And not once but twice! I tried to share my second winning BINGO card with someone at my table, but no one would bite. So I left with two, very cool, prizes. One of the prizes was a cookbook of 50 best biscotti recipes. Now I HAVE to make biscotti. I started with a chocolate chip version. While they were delicious, I needed to work on my shaping technique and the chocolate chips make a mess when you cut them for the second bake. I had to try again.
These are made with cocoa powder and raspberry jam is added. They are really good. I thought about dipping half in chocolate or white chocolate, I'll do that next time. I also did the second bake for 10 minutes so they aren't teeth shattering hard, but if you want dunkers make sure you do the second bake for the full 15 minutes. These were yummy with my mid morning coffee, my after nap snack on Saturday and for breakfast on my way to church on Sunday.

Chocolate, Raspberry Biscotti with Almonds
The Best 50 Biscotti Recipes
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 medium egg
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 cup raspberry jam
1 cup slivered almonds, toasted

In a medium bowl, cream sugar and utter. Mi in egg. In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa and baking powder; add to butter mixture. Stir in jam. Divide dough in halves or thirds. On a well-floured surface, shape into logs. Transfer logs to a parchment paper-lined or lightly sprayed baking sheet, and bake in a preheated 325º oven for 25 minutes or until firm and lightly browned. Cool on a rack for at least 5 minutes. Cut logs on the diagonal into 3/4 inch slices. Return slices to baking sheet, leaving space around each slice, and continue baking for 10-15 minutes or until desired crispness. Cool completely on rack.

Tips:
When shaping the logs make them about 1 inch high. I used a tape measure to keep it even.

Cool at least 10 minutes, but don't let them completely cool or they are too hard to cut.

Use a sharp serrated knife to cut, try not to cut back and forth too much or the edges crumble.

I put them in a ziplock to take the extras to work and they got all soft. Probably because I didn't bake them to full crisp on the second baking. It is something to work on.

February 29, 2012 Daylight 10 hours, 5 minutes, 16 seconds Current Temp. 0º F

Wheat berry and roasted butternut squash salad

2012-02-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

I like to shop at a little store called Home Grown Market. It has all Alaska grown/produced items. I buy my honey there during the winter, we get some lamb chops, we buy beef when we don't get a moose or I just want beef and pork from a local farm off Eielson Farm Road, and I buy wheat berries that are grown down the road in Delta Junction. I like knowing where my food is coming from and we like to support our local farmers.
I love the taste and texture of wheat berries, the chewy texture, the pop when you break through the berries and the creamy, nutty taste. I'm always looking for new ways to add them to my lunch. This is a layered salad. I soak the wheat berries overnight in water with lemon juice, then I cook them until they are tender, about 30 minutes. Then, I add what ever I have in the fridge. I like tomatoes and cucumbers, celery for crunch and sugar snap peas for sweetness. You use what ever you like.
I make this salad for lunch for work. I usually eat at my desk since that is a busy time of day for me. It is a nice change from lettuce and I'm not a big sandwich person. Anyone who knows me will laugh at the picture, I do eat an apple every day, but I eat way more chocolate than two little pieces!

Wheat berry and Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
1 cup wheat berries
1 med. butternut squash
English cucumber, seeded and diced
Sugar snap peas, cut in half or thirds
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
avocado, peeled and diced
8 Tbsp. feta cheese
Salad dressing (I use a spicy Italian vinaigrette)

Soak 1 cup wheat berries 12 to 24 hours in 3 ups water with 3 Tbsp. lemon juice (you can skip this step, but you digest the wheat berries better if you do this). Place wheat berries and all remaining liquid in saucepan and bring to boil, turn down to simmer for 20-30 minutes or until berries are tender.
Peel butternut squash, cut in half and remove seeds. Cut in 1" cubes. Place on cookie sheet and add about 1 Tbsp. olive oil, toss to coat. Roast at 450º for 40-45 minutes stirring once half way through cooking time. Let cool.
Add 1/2 cup wheat berries, 1/4 of the butternut squash to plate or container ( I usually get 4 and do them all at once for the week). Layer vegetables on top, dividing vegetables into fourths. Top with 2 Tbsp. of your choice of salad dressing. Makes 4 salads

Tips:
I eat this for lunch with chicken or salmon. YUM!
Use what ever veggies you like or happen to have on hand.
Sometimes I add apples or pears and top with blue cheese instead of feta. Then I use a blue cheese vinaigrette.

February 24, 2012 Daylight 9 hours, 48 minutes, 50 seconds Current Temp. 5º F

Maple Bourbon Sour

2012-02-24T12:00:00.000-08:00

I am a little schizophrenic when it comes to the cooking magazines I read. I really want to eat in a more healthy way, and I want my husband to be around for a long time so I want him to eat healthily too. So I subscribe to Cooking Light, Clean Eating, and Taste of Home's Healthy Eating. I love to read about different foods, places, and techniques so I subscribe to Cook's Illustrated and Cuisine at Home and I love the photography in Bon Appetite. I read a lot of magazines!

Well, I've made a February resolution (it is too late for a New Year's Resolution or a Birthday Resolution, so why not?), I am going to cook 5 recipes from Cooking Light and 5 recipes from Clean Eating each month. Why the resolution? I said I read a lot of magazines, I didn't say I cooked from them. I want a healthier dinner plate in front of myself and my husband and maybe a few healthier treats too.
I have a plan, before I make my menu for the next two weeks, I'll read Cooking Light and Clean Eating with small stickies, I'll place a stickie on the pages of the recipes that I will cook so when I'm writing the menu I'll already have an idea of recipes that look good. We will eat healthier, live longer and be happy forever after! That is the plan.
So, I present the first recipe I put a stickie on from March's Cooking Light: The Maple Bourbon Sour. March is maple season after all, and I am all about using seasonal ingredients. I'll get to the other healthier recipes next week.

Maple Bourbon Sour
Cooking Light, March 2012
6 Tbsp. bourbon
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. maple syrup

Place ingredients in shaker with ice, shake until cold, strain into glasses with ice. Drink and feel healthy. Serves 2 (or one if you drink like me)

February 24, 2012 Daylight 9 hours, 28 minutes, 26 seconds Current Temp. 9 ºF

Thank You Bars

2012-02-22T14:01:00.002-08:00

Sometimes the only way to say "Thank-You" is with something sweet. Well, at least that is what I think, and practice. I love the fact that I work with some people that just do what needs to be done, with a smile on their face and don't expect a thing in return. I like to bake for them to say thanks. I hope it makes their day happier, just like the things they did for me made my day happier.
As part of my great pantry purge (see details here), I made these cookie bars for our building's custodian. Terry is always cheerful, always happy to help, even if it means emptying the garbage for me twice in a matter of 30 minutes, or chipping ice outside at -30 so we don't slip. He is calm and cheerful, especially when I'm hyperventilating about a small thing that needs to get done and I'm in the middle of training. He is one of those guys that helps you look good. Thanks Terry.

Thank You Cookie Bars
1/2 cup butter
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 350º F. Cut butter into 7 or 8 pieces, put in 9 X 13 pan and melt butter in oven. When butter is completely melted remove pan from oven. Sprinkle cookie crumbs evenly over butter and press down. Pour sweetened condensed milk over crumbs. Sprinkle chocolate chips and peanut butter chips evenly over crumbs and milk. Bake 20-25 minutes until edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.
Makes 24 cookies

Tips:
I used a bag of mixed peanut butter and chocolate chips. I also have a bag of Reese's peanut butter cup chips I will use for another batch.

I used a pastry brush to brush some of the melted butter on the sides of the pan to prevent sticking.

I cut 12 big squares then each square diagonally to make 24 triangles.

I'm buying a new camera tonight. Let's see if my pictures improve!

February 22, 2012 Daylight 9 hours, 14 minutes, 48 seconds Current Temp. 10 º F

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

2012-02-20T07:24:00.000-08:00

To say I am a little forgetful is an understatement. Really, I just have a lot on my mind and every once in a while something really important slips out!
One morning I was getting dressed. I dress in lots of layers because I live in a ~~cold hell-hole~~ winter wonderland. So, I have my undies, my camisole, my tights, my slip, my skirt, my shirt and then my jacket. I am always cold so lots of layers. While I was getting dressed, I couldn't find the particular shirt I wanted. My husband said it was hanging up down in the laundry room. I put on my camisole, my tights, my slip, my skirt and my jacket and went downstairs to get my shirt.
Mason, my youngest was sitting at the table eating. He said he needed a check for school pictures that day, so I wrote a check for him. He kissed me and off he went to high school. I got coffee, made my lunch, let the dogs out and in, kissed my husband and off I went to an early meeting with my boss. I was in her office and we were visiting a moment. She said she liked the pin I was wearing and I looked down to see which one it was. AND I SAW I FORGOT TO PUT MY SHIRT ON! I got so busy with everything else, I was only wearing my camisole. Thank goodness it was a loose, heavy one, I'm cold and don't have the sexy, low cut, and lacy varieties, and I had a jacket on, but I was sitting there in my boss's office in my underwear. I couldn't even think. We finished the meeting and I went straight home and put my shirt on. Luckily, I have never forgotten my shirt since.

These cookies are also made of lots of layers. If you forget a layer you will probably miss it, unlike me and my shirt, but I'm sure you don't let things slip out of your mind like I do. These cookies are part of the great pantry purge click here for full explanation

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
adapted from the Pillsbury Calendar in my kitchen
One package oatmeal cookie mix
1 cup peanut butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup peanuts, chopped
1 pkg. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350º F. Spray 9 X 13 pan with cooking spray, line with parchment paper with two sides hanging over edges, spray lightly again.

Make oatmeal cookie mix as directed on package (or make your own favorite oatmeal cookie recipe). Spread on the bottom of prepared 9 X 13 pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat peanut butter, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla together until creamy. Carefully spread over par-baked cookie crust. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the chopped peanuts, press into peanut butter batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and middle is set. Remove from oven and evenly spread chocolate chips over the top. Let sit about 5 minutes to melt. Spread evenly with off-set spatula or knife. Sprinkle remaining peanuts over the top, pressing lightly to adhere to the chocolate. Cool completely.

Remove from pan with parchment paper. Peel paper off sides of cookies. Cut into 1 inch squares.

February 20, 2012 Daylight 9 hours, 4 minutes, 4 seconds Current Temp. -8 º F

Better Than Sex Caketini

2012-02-17T12:00:00.000-08:00

So we come to the end of Valentine's Day week and the Better than Sex theme. The drink of the week comes to us from The Snappy Gourmet. I came across this a while ago and have been saving it for this week. The combination of the cake vodka, pineapple juice, coconut milk and vanilla pudding are genius! We are going to have a couple of these, watch the sun set at 5:25 (exciting that we are over 8 hours of daylight!) and then who knows what will happen.
Enjoy your weekend.

Better Than Sex Caketini
adapted from The Snappy Gourmet (see original recipe here)

1/4 cup Pinnacle Cake Flavored Vodka
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup vanilla flavored coconut milk
1 teaspoon French vanilla pudding mix
Whipped cream
Chocolate sprinkles

Instructions

Mix vodka, pineapple juice, coconut milk, and pudding mix in shaker with ice. Shake for about 30 seconds.
Strain into glass. Top with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles as desired.

February 17, 2012 Daylight 8 hours, 43 minutes, 35 seconds Current Temp. 7 ºF

Better than Sex Cake

2012-02-15T13:00:00.000-08:00

As promised, we continue our Better than Sex theme for Valentine's day-week. This cake recipe is very old. My grandmother gave it to me when I was in high school. This is the grandma that didn't bake a lot, so the use of a cake mix is not a surprise. But it is good, sweet, creamy and you don't need a lot to tame that sweet tooth. In the Crazy Cooking Challenge, one of the bloggers made a gluten free version (Find version here from Cheese Curd in Paradise). The most special thing about this recipe is the recipe written in my grandmother's handwriting. It really didn't seem like a big deal until I lost two recipes written in my grandma Stejer's handwriting in our house fire 11 years ago. This tiny connection to my grandma is something special to me.
I made this cake and took it to work for Soup Wednesday, along with a moose steak pottage. Both were really good and the perfect meal for mid-week.
Enjoy!

Better than Sex Cake
1 box German chocolate cake mix
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 jar caramel ice cream topping
1 container cool whip
1 pkg. chocolate toffee bits

Make chocolate cake as directed on box. Bake in a 9 X 13 pan. As soon as it comes out of the oven pike holes in it all over ( I used a chopstick). Pour caramel sauce and milk over top. Let cool and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Top with cool whip and toffee bits.

Tips:
I had homemade caramel sauce in the fridge so I used that instead of a jar (find recipe here)
I didn't have a chocolate cake mix so I used a yellow cake mix and added 3/4 cup of cocoa powder and a little extra water.

February 15, 2012 Daylight 8 hours, 27 minutes, 2 seconds Current Temp. 8ºF

Better than Sex Chex-Mix

2012-02-13T13:00:00.000-08:00

In honor of the sweetheart's holiday, Valentine's Day, and because everywhere I turn around I see something that is supposed to be "better than sex" (my grandmother gave me a cake recipe called the same thing, it will come later this week), I have dedicated this week to all things labeled or named "Better Than Sex" Personally, I am not convinced, but I'll share these recipes with you.
My curiosity with the BTS (better than sex) label on all these things started a couple of months ago when I started to clean out my very old and disorganized recipe box. I noticed I had a couple of cake recipes that all had similar names, but very different ingredients. One cake was called Better than Sex (from my grandma), one was Better than Robert Redford (from an older teacher I worked with about 20 years ago), one was Better than Brad Pitt (from a younger teacher I worked with, but about 15 years ago). I know it will be time to throw my hat in when someone gives me a cake called Better than Justin Bieber! I then ran across a drink called BTS I'll share on Friday and now a Chex-Mix called BTS. So, a week of things that are BTS (I'm not going to take a poll at the end of the week to see if you agree if any of these things are BTS, really).
I made a big batch of this, put some in these heart boxes shown below and some in clear cellophane bags and added a pretty bow as a gift for co-workers. I didn't put the name on it, I do work in a school building after all, just a pink card with Happy Valentine's Day.

I could not find chocolate Chex in Fairbanks. I looked in all three grocery stores so I substituted 4 cups of Cinnamon Chex and 4 cups of Cocoa Puffs Brownie Squares. If anyone in Fairbanks finds chocolate Chex let me know so I can make this again...although it is really good with the Cocoa Puff Brownie Squares.

Better Than Sex Chex-Mix
from Quick Dish

Better than Sex Chex Mix

by TBSPSusan

(1)

Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 30 min
Serving Size: 16 servings

Ingredients

8 cups Chocolate Chex® cereal
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, MINI size

1 cup MINIATURE marshmallows
1/2 cup caramel bits (found by the chocolate chips in the baking aisle -- or chop up regular caramels)
1 Tbsp heavy cream
1/2 cup MILK chocolate baking chips (or more if you're a huge chocolate fan)
1/2 cup vanilla (white) chocolate baking chips
1 tsp coarse sea salt

Directions

Into large microwavable bowl, measure cereal; set aside. Line cookie sheet with waxed paper or foil.
In 2-cup microwavable measuring cup, microwave brown sugar, butter and corn syrup uncovered on High 1 to 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute, until melted and smooth. Stir in baking soda until dissolved. Pour caramel mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Microwave on High 3 minutes, stirring every minute. Spread on cookie sheet. Cool 10 minutes. Break into bite-sized pieces.
Make sure Chex mixture is cool to the touch (so candy doesn't melt.) Evenly sprinkle mini peanut butter cups candy and miniature marshmallows over Chex mixture.
In small microwavable bowl, microwave caramel baking bits and cream uncovered on High about 1 minute or until chips can be stirred smooth. Use a spoon or fork to drizzle over snack. Repeat with milk chocolate baking chips. Repeat again with vanilla (white) baking chips. Quickly sprinkle coarse salt over all while candy drizzles are still wet.
Refrigerate until set. Break apart and store in tightly covered container. Perfect for gift giving.

February 13. 2012 Daylight 8 hours, 13 minutes, 22 seconds Current Temp. 17 ºF

Apple, Onion and Bacon Stuffed Porkchops

2012-02-09T18:00:00.000-08:00

Growing up I spent winters in Kansas and summers in Fairbanks. In Kansas, we lived on a farm, not a working farm, just a big house in the country with some out-buildings. We had a chicken coop and got 100 chickens every spring to butcher in the fall, we also had laying hens for the fresh eggs. We always got 3 turkeys for the holidays, we got a spring pig, a calf and one year we got geese, but they became one of my mom's pets (that is another story). We also had other animals that were pets, a Shetland pony, a goat named Twerp that was my sister's 4-H project, peacocks (my mom loved unusual pets), a de-scented skunk, a raccoon named Heather and a ferret.
One spring the pig got out of the pig pen. Little pigs are friendly and we played with it, scratched it and fed it little treats. Pigs are also extremely smart and this little guy was no exception. He would follow us around like a dog, looking for treats and attention. We named him Peaches and he became a pet, no one ever got around to fixing the pig pen that year so Peaches had the run of the farm. We had summer break and left for Alaska, then came back in the early fall to get ready for school. Peaches had grown quite a bit, but was still as gentle and friendly as when we left. He continued to follow us around looking for treats. He would greet cars in the driveway and people would honk their horns to get someone to come out and move the pig before they would get out of their cars. We started school and Peaches would walk us to the end of the driveway as we waited for the bus then sit under the walnut tree eating fallen walnuts and sitting in the shade until we got home from school.
Fall in the real world (that is what we call everywhere else besides Alaska) is a busy, food filled time. In Kansas, we would pick apples at the apple orchards and spend the week making apple butter, apple pie filling, apple sauce and eating ourselves sick with apples. We would go to the peach orchard and do the same with peaches. We always had a big garden so we would spend days digging potatoes, picking green beans and pulling carrots. Our dinners revolved around what ever was in season and what we had just harvested. One day, shortly after the peach orchard visit, we came home from school, busy with homework and gossip about our day. Dinner time rolled around and we asked our mom what was for dinner.
"Peaches," was her answer.
And then she proceeded to bring pork chops to the table.
We expected the peaches we had picked at the peach orchard, but no, our pet, our friend was on the table. We were appalled, burst into tears and didn't eat that night, or any other night pork was on the menu.
It did take me a couple of years to get over the trauma of that experience. But my husband loves pork chops and he will cook them. He does this wonderful dish of apples, onions and bacon stuffed in pork chops. It is over the top and to-die-for. I'm so sorry Peaches, but sometimes I even request that he make them.

Apple, Onion and Bacon stuffed Pork Chops
4 thick cut pork loin chops, each about 1 inch thick
8 pieces center cut bacon, diced
2 med. yellow onions, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
2 med. crisp apples, cored and cut in rings
8 oz. mushrooms (optional)
splash red wine (optional)

Fry bacon in skillet. Drain on paper towels. Drain skillet of all but 2 Tbsp. bacon fat.
Add onion, saute in bacon fat until soft. Add mushrooms to pan and continue to cook for about 5 minutes. Add a splash of red wine. Add minced garlic and saute for 1 minute more.
In separate saute pan, spray with cooking spray, add apple slices. Cook until tender.
Cut pocket in pork chop down long edge not cutting through the fat side.
Stuff equal amounts of bacon in each pork chop, reserving 1/2 for top. Using 1/2 of the onion-mushroom mixture, stuff pork chops evenly.
In skillet used for bacon, preheat to on medium high, add some olive oil or cooking spray if needed. Place pork chops in pan and cook 3 minutes on one side. Carefully turn pork chops, so not to lose filling, cook second side covering pan and turning heat down to medium low and cooking until pork chops are cooked through about 5-7 minutes.
Plate each pork chop, top equally with remaining onion-mushroom mixture, bacon and apple rings.
Serves 4

February 9, 2012 Daylight 7 hours, 46 minutes, 6 seconds Current Temp. 18 ºF

Chocolate Cake and Crazy Cooking Challenge

2012-02-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

I LOVE chocolate cake, who am I kidding, I love all cake, but especially chocolate. This month's Crazy Cooking Challenge is right up my alley and I knew immediately what cake I was going to make.

The Galley Gourmet http://www.thegalleygourmet.net/ posted this cake in January and I needed an excuse to make it. Really, a whole chocolate cake when there are only two of us home? And it is January so I promised to cook more healthfully, for a while. Well now I need to make this cake, you can't let the Crazy Cooking Challenge down!
I love the recipes on this blog. I cruise through Tastespotting almost every day and I found myself going to this blog time after time. I finally just subscribed to to and put a link on my blog so I could find it easier. This cake was beautiful, and I needed to eat it, up to the little homemade marshmallows on top. So Thank You Crazy Cooking Challenge for giving me the ~~excuse~~ very important reason to make this cake.

Hot Chocolate Layer Cake with Homemade Marshmallows

serves 16

For the Cake

6 ounces (3/4 cup) unsalted butter

13 1/2 ounces (3 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup canola oil

4 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoons espresso powder

3 cups granulated sugar

2 1/4 ounces (3/4 cup) unsweetened cocoa powder

3 extra large eggs, at room temperature

3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

2 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

For the Frosting

2 1/2 cups heavy cream

3 ounces (6 Tablespoons) unsalted butter

1 vanilla bean; split lengthwise and seeds scraped out

6 ounces semisweet chocolate

2 cups granulated sugar

6 ounces (2 cups) unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for dusting

1/2 cup Lyle's Golden Syrup

1/2 teaspoon espresso powder

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 small jar marshmallow cream

Garnish

Vanilla Marshmallows (Recipe Follows)

(You will only need half a batch of marshmallows for the top of the cake. You can make half the batch in an 8x8-inch pan or make the whole batch and store the leftovers for another use. For the cake garnish, cut the marshmallows into different sizes from 1/4 to 3/4 inch square.)

Cocoa Powder for dusting

For the Cake

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line three 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and lightly spray with non-stick baking spray. In a 3-quart saucepan, combine the butter, oil, chopped chocolate, and water over medium heat until melted. Whisk in the espresso powder.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and cocoa powder. Pour the hot chocolate mixture into the sugar mixture and whisk until combined. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then whisk in the buttermilk, vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Evenly divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes. Cool on the rack for 10 minutes, then invert onto the racks, remove parchment and cool completely. (Cakes can be made one day ahead wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature, or freeze for up to one month).

For the Frosting

In a 4-quart saucepan over low heat, combine the cream, butter, vanilla bean, and seeds. Stir until the butter is melted. Remove the vanilla bean and whisk in the chopped chocolate. Whisk in the sugar, cocoa powder, syrup, espresso powder, and salt; making sure the cocoa powder is dissolved. Strain the frosting through a fine-mesh sieve set over a 9x13-inch pan. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours, or refrigerate overnight. (Frosting can be refrigerated for up to three days)

Assemble the Cake

Remove the frosting from the refrigerator or freezer and transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes to soften. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

On a flat serving platter or cake stand (edges lined with strips of waxed or parchment paper to keep it clean while icing), place one cake layer. Using an off-set spatula, spread 1 1/2 cups of frosting evenly to the edges.Add one very thin layer of marshmallow cream. Repeat with another cake layer and another 1 1/2 cups frosting and a thin layer of marshmallow cream. Top with the last cake layer. Spread a thin layer (or crumb coat) of frosting over the top and sides of the cake; refrigerate until the frosting is firm enough to seal in the crumbs, about 30 minutes. Spread the remaining frosting in a smooth layer over the entire cake. Carefully remove the paper strips to make a clean bottom edge.

Mound the marshmallow on top of the cake and dust the top of the marshmallow with cocoa powder. Enjoy!

Tips:

Don't skip the step of pouring the frosting through the fine mesh sieve. Someone (I won't mention names, Dave) broke mine just a few days ago and I haven't had the chance to replace it. The frosting wasn't as smooth as I would like it.

Next time I will not add the marshmallow cream. It was my brilliant idea to add this, and the marshmallow cream is a little thick and makes the layers slide around a bit.

February 7, 2012 Daylight 7 hours, 35 minutes, 22 seconds Current Temp. -6 º F

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Piña Colada

2012-02-03T08:13:00.000-08:00

Dave is especially tired of the cold. It might have something to do with all the wood he has to carry in every day. He decided he wanted to have a summer theme for Superbowl Sunday. We are planning on ribs on the grill (it is supposed to be only -2), corn on the cob, baked beans and Piña Coladas. These just taste like summer, fruity from the pineapple juice, creamy from the coconut cream, and cold, blended with ice for a frosty finish and rum to warm you from the inside out. We are dreaming of summer and if you sit close enough to the wood stove, close your eyes and sip your drink, you can almost believe it is close.

Piña Colada

crushed ice

2 measures white rum

1 measure dark rum

3 measures pineapple juice

2 measures coconut cream

pineapple wedges to decorate

Mix crushed ice in a blender with the rum, pineapple juice and coconut cream until smooth. Pour into a tall chilled glass and dress with the pineapple wedge.

February 3, 2012 Daylight 7 hours, 5 minutes, 24 seconds Current Temp. -4 ºF

Cioppino

2012-02-01T17:30:00.000-08:00

January has been a cold one. We hit -50º F for the first time in 6 years. It's bad enough that it is so dark and cold, but to break cold records is really not anything anyone wants to do.
One of the joys of retirement and my new job is the time and temperature sign across the street. I see it from my window. Every day about 11:15 I check the temperature and get so much satisfaction out of the fact that I'm not doing indoor recess duty or if it is -19º or warmer, outside recess duty. Kids in Fairbanks go outside for their 30 minute recess until -20º. One of my friends said they have had indoor recess for 24 days now. I think my co-workers got tired of me announcing the time and temp. every day with the comment "It's 27 below, I don't have to do indoor recess duty." or "It's 18 below, I don't have to do outside recess duty."
My husband complains every evening about the fact that he has to bring wood in for the wood stove. (I guess it is kind of like his recess duty!) I'm sure it gets old, bundling up, going outside and carrying several armloads of wood. He usually does it twice a day. I felt sort of sorry for him, so I planned a nice warm Cioppino. I don't eat bi-valves and I don't really like shrimp, so I made the soup base, cooked the fish, scallops and clams separately, then put the fish in the bowl and covered with the soup base, then added the scallops and clams to his bowl. We rounded the meal out with a crisp salad and warm crusty bread from the oven. It was heaven. Now that I warmed him up, he can go outside and bring some wood in.

Cioppino
adapted from Cooking Light, January 2012

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 cups vertically sliced onion
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup organic vegetable broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 (35-ounce) can whole tomatoes with basil, rinsed, drained, and coarsely chopped
1 (10-ounce) yellowtail snapper fillet, cut into 8 (1-inch) cubes
4 sea scallops (about 6 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 medium peeled and deveined shrimp (about 5 ounces)
12 littleneck clams, scrubbed
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat; swirl to coat. Add onion; sauté 1 minute. Add garlic; reduce heat to medium. Cover and cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add wine and next 5 ingredients (through tomatoes); cover. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes.
2. Sprinkle snapper and scallops with black pepper. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil; swirl to coat. Add snapper and scallops; cook 90 seconds on each side or until golden brown. Add snapper, scallops, shrimp, and clams to broth mixture. Cover and cook 4 minutes or until clams open; discard any unopened shells. Stir in parsley and lemon juice.

Tips:
I used a can of diced tomatoes with basil. It is what I had in my pantry. The soup was a little thicker than a traditional Cioppino because of it. Drain the tomatoes for a more broth-like consistency.

I cooked the fish separately due to food allergies and my aversion to bi-valves. It was easy to do and would be very doable for a family where kids could build their own bowls with a selection of seafood.

I used Halibut for our fish, you can use any white sustainable fish you like.

February 1, 2012 Daylight 6 hours, 51 minutes, 56 seconds Current Temp. -25 º F

Banana cake with Nutella and Hazelnuts

2012-01-29T20:01:00.000-08:00

I was in a bad mood, a really bad mood. The kind where my husband stays outside to split wood even though it is 15 below and a 25 mile an hour wind and when the bad mood was not his fault (well, maybe a little bit). Even the dogs stayed by the back door and weren't underfoot. There was only one thing to do. Open the Nutella and get a spoon. About half way though the first spoonful, I spied the very ripe bananas on the counter and decided I needed a warm from the oven banana cake. And why not add some nutella? And I think I have a handful of hazelnuts left-over in the freezer. So, this cake was born, my mood improved with the warm smell of banana and chocolate baking in the oven, and my husband thought it safe to come inside. It turned out to be a good night after all.

Banana cake with Nutella and Hazelnuts
adapted from Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That?

3 very ripe bananas
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 extra large eggs, room temp
1/2 cup greek yogurt or sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
grated zest of 1 orange
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baing soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
1 cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour a 9 X 2-inch round cake pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the bananas, granulated sugar and brown sugar on low speed until combined. With the mixer still on low, add oil, eggs, yogurt, vanilla and orange zest. Mix until smooth.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients and mix just until combines. Stir in the chopped hazelnuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Drop spoonfuls of Nutella over the top. Take a knife and swirl the Nutella through the batter. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, turn out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

January 29, 2012 Daylight hours, minutes, seconds Current Temp. -40 ºF

Lemon Drop Martini

2012-01-27T12:00:00.000-08:00

This time of the year I crave citrus. I don't know if it is the cold, the dark or just that there isn't much in the way of nice fresh fruit in the grocery, other than citrus, right now. So because I am feeling a little (o.k. a lot) sour from the Packers' defeat (and football season is officially over) and I am craving citrus, we have the Lemon Drop Martini.
This recipe came from the Bar Book. It was a birthday present from my friend Jim. I'm sure many of my drinks of the week will come from this book. It is quite extensive in the choices and selection of different drinks, with alcohol and without. Hmmm...a drink of the week without alcohol? That would be different! In the meantime, enjoy this week's selection.

Lemon Drop Martini
The Bar Book, Mittie Hellmich

1 1/2 oz. lemon vodka
1 oz. Grand Mariner
1 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

rub lemon wedge along edge of martini glass, dip in sugar to rim glass. Pour vodka, Grand Mariner and lemon juice into shaker, fill with ice. Shake until very cold. Strain into prepared glass. Makes 1 drink.
This is a tart drink. If you like yours a little sweeter, like my husband, add a teaspoon of simple syrup or to taste.

January 27, 2012 Daylight 6 hours, 18 minutes, 44 seconds Current Temp. -38ºF

Fluffer Nutter Cookies and the Great Pantry Purge

2012-01-25T12:00:00.000-08:00

I have the luxury of a large pantry. It was very helpful with 5 kids at home and the ability to stockpile products we used when they went on sale. We used the space wisely and food moved through the shelves almost at grocery store rates. Those 5 teenagers could eat! Once a year I would take an inventory, wash the shelves, move anything that needed to be used up to the kitchen and life would go on.
Well, now that I don't really need a pantry like I used to and I don't have to be so organized, I've let it slip a little. I don't buy much in bulk and I do try more new things knowing that Dave will eat anything once and not wrinkle his nose and announce, "What universe do I have to be in to think this is good?" (o.k. no one ever said that out loud, not even about the fish stick casserole, but it was written all over their faces) We do eat out spur-of-the-moment more often and sometimes unusual ingredients get left in the pantry. Also, some helpful soul will bring over something to round out the meal, it won't get used and sits in the pantry. (I think that is where the box of chicken stove top came from, exp. 2009) And, I hate wasting food (major guilt about throwing away the box of chicken stove top that expired in 2009) so I decided to get organized and use EVERYTHING in my pantry (that hasn't expired).
So a few of the following recipes will have some unusual ingredients for me. I don't usually use a lot of packaged foods, I really like to start fresh but somehow they show up in my pantry. Like the three packages of cookie mix (really?), the 4 bags of marshmallows (large and small), the white chocolate covered pretzels, the jar of green curry paste, and even the funnel cake mix - complete with it's own pouring vessel!
Most of the things I'll make you can too, starting from scratch, like the fluffer nutter cookies I made with a peanut butter cookie package mix, chocolate bars left over from last summer's s'mores, and homemade marshmallows (although I do have 4 bags of marshmallows).

Fluffer-Nutter Cookies
Peanut butter cookies (your favorite recipe)
Chocolate
Marshmallows

Make peanut butter cookies according to your favorite directions. Roll into balls and press down with a fork, only one time (not criss-cross patterns). Bake as usual. When you remove cookies from the oven top with a piece of chocolate and a marshmallow (or 3-5 small marshmallows or one large cut in half).

Using scissors to cut homemade marshmallows for the top of Fluffer Nutter Cookies

This isn't really a real recipe, but they are delicious and after eating one(o.k. maybe two) I sent the entire batch across the street to my neighbor for her sons to eat. Somethings I just can't be trusted with.

My very messy pantry before...stay tuned for the after!

January 25 , 2012 Daylight 6 hours, 5 minutes, 41 seconds Current Temp. -25 º F

Loaded Bread Boule

2012-01-23T11:48:00.000-08:00

I've started to think about what to feed friends at the Super Bowl party. We usually have a few friends and family over for the game. They trudge over in the cold weather, plug in their cars in front of the house and defrost in front of the fireplace before they go upstairs to the family room to watch the pre-game show and vote on their favorite commercials. Food needs to be warm, hearty and portable.
This is a bread boule. A boule is a basic french bread in a circular shape. The picture I saw of this was a large loaf of bread, but I thought it would be fun to make smaller, almost individual sized. These are served hot out of the oven and are filled with garlic butter, bacon and sharp cheddar cheese. They are cut so the pieces are pulled off and eaten, with the gooey cheesy goodness and smoky bacon melted into each garlicky crevice, made by cutting the petals into the bread. This one is the size of a large dinner roll. You could make individual boules or one large one and set it on the table for people to pull off chunks, either way it is a warm treat.

Loaded Bread Boule

basic bread boule
adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day
6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
1 1/2 Tbsp. yeast
1 1/2 Tbsp. kosher salt
3 cups warm water

Mix flour, yeast and salt together in stand mixing bowl. Add the water all at once and mix until all incorporated completely. This can also be done with a portable mixer or by hand. This bread does not need to be kneaded. Pour dough into a container with a lid, but don't seal the lid. Let is sit on the counter for about 2 hours, until it doubles in size and the top becomes slightly deflated. Put in refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to 10 days. (This makes it so much easier to work with)

Take dough out of the fridge and shape into desired loafs. This makes 4 1lb. loaves or 16 smaller boules. Place on a non sided pan or board covered in cornmeal and let rise for about 90 minutes. Slash the tops and slide in a 400º F oven on a pan or stone that has heated with the oven. Place a pan of water on the rack under the bread to create steam. Bake for 30-35 minutes. (Complete directions for this method linked here)
Once the bread is cooled, cut down, but not through, in a grid pattern. You want the whole loaf to stay together but have "petals" (think blooming onion).

For each smaller loaf (increase for one large loaf and/or to your taste)
2 Tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 pieces bacon, fried crisp and chopped
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Melt butter and add garlic, let garlic toast a little in the butter. Remove from heat and pour over the bread, getting between all the petals of the bread. Sprinkle bacon in between all the petals of the bread and top with cheese, pushing it down inside the petals and some over the top.
Turn oven on to broil. Broil bread until the cheese is melted and bubbly, serve immediately.

January 23, 2012 Daylight 5 hours, 52 minutes, 48 seconds Current Temp. -9 ºF

Donna and Saturday Morning Coffee

2012-01-21T14:53:00.000-08:00

You will always be one of my best friends, you know too much.

Friendship: A Collection of Wit and Wishdom

Donna and I meet every Saturday at 9:00 for coffee at Alaska Roasters Coffee House. We drink coffee, eat a cookie from the bakery and decompress from the week. We talk about our kids, our jobs, our husbands, the food we've cooked, the quilts we plan to make, our lives in general. We laugh at ourselves and the foolish things we've done (that would be me) and we encourage each other with what is facing us for the coming week. I wouldn't make it through without my Saturday mornings with Donna.
Donna is that kind of friend that you feel so fortunate to have and wonder what you ever did to deserve her. When our house burned down, 9 months after we bought it, she was sitting there, in a stranger's kitchen, having coffee and calmly waiting for me as I struggled out of bed to face the day. She is the calm voice of reason when I get manic about this child or that, offers reasonable advice for home/work/school/kid situations, and quietly listens as I unfold my woes because I didn't take her advice and she never says, "I told you so."
Donna is a gift.

January 21 , 2012 Daylight: 5 hours, 40 minutes, 9 seconds Current Temp. -19 º F

Roast Beef Salad Sandwiches

2012-01-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

Several years ago, Nancy and I were in San Francisco for a conference in the early Spring. We sat through some great presenters all morning, trying to stay awake because of our late night arrival the day before. We ate most of the catered lunch and decided to walk outside in the sunshine, there was a path along the water across the street. We set out to enjoy the sun, leaving Fairbanks and the dark behind. Half way across the parking lot and on the other side of the street the wind picked up, blowing the salty scent of ocean in our faces. In that instant, I burst into tears. Nancy, who is used to me and my quickly shifting moods, was even startled by this. "What wrong? Are you O.K."
"I'm fine," I choked through sobs "It just smells right."

I lived in Palo Alto for the first 8 years of my life, before my mother moved us to the land-locked state of Kansas. I summered in Fairbanks, also land-locked. And while my dad and mom took us all over Alaska camping, fishing, rafting and just hanging out, I realized something that day.
The California ocean smells right...and smells like family: Grandma laying out on the beach with a towel over her face so she won't get wrinkles, the trees in her backyard where we would climb and eat the fruit, her kitchen where she would use her hand grinder to grind the left over roast beef to make Grandpa's sandwiches for lunch at work, playing cards and needing a shoe box to hold my cards because my hands were too little, watching Mighty Mouse on her T.V. with her dog Mitze ....... all that came crashing over me with that whiff of ocean air. I was completely overwhelmed with childhood memories.
My grandma turns 95 today. She lives in Montana now, about 30 minutes from where my mother now lives. I know my mom will pick her up and take her to Helena for the day, make her a cake and have her spend the night. They will head back to grandma's the next day so grandma can check her cats, she doesn't like to be away from her two cats very long. I'll give her a call and wish her a happy day. And then, I think I'll grind some roast beef to make sandwiches for lunch tomorrow. I wonder if Mighty Mouse will be on?
Happy Birthday Grandma.

Roast Beef Salad Sandwich Filling
Adapted from my Grandma's Kitchen

1 pound cooked roast beef (I usually use left over moose)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped onion
1/4 cup coarsely chopped celery
1/2 cup dill pickles
1/2 to 1 cup mayonnaise
pickle juice, to taste
1/2 teaspoon onion powder, optional
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
sliced red onion, for topping
lettuce, for topping
sliced wheat or white bread

Put beef and onion, celery, and pickles through a meat grinder with the coarse plate, or mince the ingredients or process in a food processor until evenly chopped. Add remaining ingredients, with enough mayonnaise and pickle juice to taste and moisten as desired. Toast the bread, if desired, and then spread with a little butter or mayonnaise. Add lettuce leaves; spread a layer of the beef spread over the lettuce, then top with sliced red onion.
Makes enough for 6 to 8 sandwiches.

January 18, 2012 Daylight 5 hours, 15 min., 42 seconds Current Temp. -38º F

Homemade Marshmallows and 45 below

2012-01-15T18:32:00.000-08:00

Homemade marshmallows in hot chocolate

Saturday was -45 degrees day. It was really cold. Dave complained every time he had to bring wood in for the fireplace, the little dogs complained every time they were made to go outside and I just stayed in and tried to stay warm.
Life slows down a little when it gets this cold. Morning coffee with friends gets postponed, dinner out with friends gets postponed, schools cancel extra activities and everyone just sort of shuffles from home to work and tries to make it to warmer weather without a car breakdown or frozen fingers.
If ever there was a good time to drink hot chocolate this cold snap would be it. And what is hot chocolate with out marshmallows? I'm not talking about the rubbery store bought kind, but the soft, oozy kind you make at home. Homemade marshmallows are so delicious, creamy, melty and so easy! A stand mixer helps with this, but a hand held mixer works too. They need to cure overnight, so make some today (or right after dinner like I did) and you'll have marshmallows for tomorrow. In the real world (what we call the lower 48 or the rest of the United States), you might even be able to make s'mores outside by a bonfire.

melty goodness

Vanilla Marshmallows

makes 20-40 depending on size

From Barefoot Contessa Family Style

3 (1/4 ounce) packages unflavored gelatin

1 cup cold water, divided

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Confectioners' sugar for dusting and coating

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the gelatin with 1/2 cup of the water; set aside.

Meanwhile, combine the remaining water with the sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to high and cook until the syrup mixture reaches 240º F on a candy thermometer. With the mixer on low, carefully and slowly pour the syrup into the dissolved gelatin. Increase the speed to high and whip until the mixture is white, glossy, and very thick, about 15 minutes. Reduce the speed, add the vanilla extract and mix thoroughly.

Using a fine-mesh sieve or shaker, generously dust an 8x12-inch non-metal baking dish with the confectioners' sugar. Pour the marshmallow mixture into the pan. Smooth the top with an off-set spatula and dust with more confectioners' sugar. Allow the marshmallows to stand uncovered overnight to cure.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting surface and cut them into squares or desired shapes. Dust the cut sides with more confectioners' sugar. Store the marshmallows in an airtight container or bag. Enjoy!

The easiest way to cut marshmallows, a tape measure and pizza cutter.

January 15, 2012 Daylight 5 hours, 4 minutes, 0 seconds Current Temp -43º F

Packer-tini - Drink of the week

2012-01-13T20:08:00.001-08:00

Yes, it is that time of year when we are mourning the loss of Monday Night Football, enjoying play-off games and hoping that we'll make it to the Super bowl. In celebration of the Packers in the play-offs we have a drink of the week just for them. This will be the drink of the week until the Packers are finished, so I'm hoping it will be until the Super bowl! This is a particularly good drink of the week, so even if you aren't a Packers fan, you need to try this.

Packer-tini

6 oz. vanilla vodka
6 oz. pineapple juice
1/2 cup cream of coconut
3 oz. key lime juice

Put all ingredients in shaker or pitcher, fill with ice. Shake or stir until very cold, strain into glasses.

Makes 4 drinks

January 13, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 52 minutes, 43 seconds Current Temp. -37 º F

Corn Bread and Plugging Your Car In

2012-01-11T19:46:00.000-08:00

We have had a little break in the 40 below weather for the last couple of days. You might wonder how we get around when it is so cold. Why don't our cars freeze? Well, we have a winterization procedure for automobiles. Each vehicle is equipped with battery blankets or plates, frost plug(s), heat plates under the oil pan and or transmission, etc. All of these heating accessories are generally attached to a three/four-way with the other end extending from the vehicle. Drivers are then able to plug into an extension cord to an outdoor outlet to keep the engine, transmission and battery warm. We also test our anti-freeze to 60 below (F). Businesses provide plug in posts for their employees so their cars don't freeze during the day. Many are set up on timers to run in hour or two cycles. At home, my husbands truck is set on a timer to go on at 4:30am before he starts it at 7:30am.

Plug ins in the parking lot at my work. I get to work about 8:00 am, notice how dark it is?

Notice the row of concrete pillars for the plug ins. Most businesses have a type of these for employees.

Four cars plug into one pillar. Don't forget to unplug before you drive away!

So today we had soup at work again. My suite mates brought soup and I brought sourdough garlic bread and cornbread. It was a wonderful lunch on such a warm day. A reprieve from the cold and catching up with coworkers.
It is supposed to be 40 below again by the end of the week. Stay warm.

Corn Bread
makes 36 servings

2 cups yellow cornmeal
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 Tbsp. for top (optional)
2 Tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can corn, drained and rinsed
1 can Rotel tomatoes with peppers - drained

Preheat oven to 400º F. Grease a 13x18 or a 9x13 inch pan.

Mix dry ingredients together in large bowl, mix wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until just combined. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle sugar lightly on top if desired. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until top is golden and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Tips:
I use a half sheet pan (13X18) and cut into 2x3 inch pieces. If you use a 9x13 you would want to cut smaller pieces, like 2x2 because they are so thick.

I like a sweet cornbread so the sugar on the top is essential for me. I just sprinkle the top until it has a light coat. This is totally optional.

This is easy to half the recipe and use half a can of corn and Rotel, or the whole can and you get a little spicier flavor.

January 11, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 41 minutes, 53 seconds Current Temp. 8ºF

Sunday Dinner

2012-01-09T10:50:00.000-08:00

Sunday dinner at my house has changed dramatically over the last couple of years. When our kids were home they knew that nothing, and I mean nothing, got in the way of Sunday dinner. During the week, we always tried to sit down together for dinner but with basketball, soccer, baseball, concerts, plays and everything else our 5 kids were involved with it mostly happened but it was a little difficult. Sunday everyone was expected home at 6:00 and we had dinner together.
I will never forget the first Sunday dinner Dave and I had alone. I was in the "cook for Sunday dinner" mode and made 3 lbs. of meatloaf, 10 lbs of mashed potatoes, 4 cups of gravy, 2 loaves of bread and a couple pounds of green beans. Dave and I sat down to dinner, just the two of us, I looked at the food on the table and at the two place settings and burst into tears!
Well, I've gotten better at moderating the amount of food I make, but I do love to fix a big dinner for family. We are lucky that Dave's mom and brother live in town. We also have a dear niece and nephew who will be good sports and come over for dinner often. So, while most Sundays are now just Dave and I, we do have family dinner a couple of times a month.
We had a family dinner last night. Dave grilled a flank steak, I made citrus halibut and crusty french bread, a salad and broccoli rounded out the dinner. For dessert I made a grapefruit pound cake with berry compote. It was all delicious, warm for our cold weather and fun to visit with family. After the busy week we had it was good to reconnect, fill ourselves with good food and family love and get ready for the next week.

Grapefruit Pound Cake
Cooking light - January 2012
9 oz. all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
1 tsp. baking powder
5/8 tsp. salt divided
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
6 Tbsp. butter, softened
6 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese
2 large eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbsp. grated grapefruit rind
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup fresh grapefruit juice
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 325º F.
Coat a 10 inch tube pan with baking spray. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dty measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt. Stir well and set aside. Place granulated sugar, butter and cream cheese in a large bowl, beat with a mixer at high speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time. Beat in oil, rind and vanilla.
Add flour mixture and milk alternately to batter, beginning and ending with flour. Spoon batter into pan, bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs clinging. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Invert cake. Cool on rack.
Place juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 3 tbsp. (about 4 minutes). Cool slightly. Stir in powdered sugar and remaining 1/8 tsp. salt. Drizzle over cake.

Mixed Berry Compote
12 oz. bag frozen mixed berries
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 Tbp. corn starch
1 Tbsp. Grand Marinier

Mix berries, sugar and corn starch together. Place in baking dish. Bake at 350º F for 30 minutes. Cool slightly, stir in Grand Marinier. Serve over cake slices

January 9, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 31 minutes, 47 seconds Current Temp -34º F

Chicken Soup - Crazy Cooking Challenge

2012-01-07T09:20:00.000-08:00

So, along with Daring Bakers, I signed up for the Crazy Cooking Challenge. Each month a featured food item is named. Challengers find that item on another blog, make it and blog about it and highlight the blog they found the item on. The food item this month is Chicken Soup. Perfect for January and out 40 below and colder temperatures. I also knew the blog I wanted to high light: Picture Perfect Meals pictureperfectmeals.com/ .
This blog is lovely. The pictures are spectacular, the recipes are always delicious and the stories Cheryl writes are amazing, she has a way of making you feel like you are right in the moment with her. I read a post about her saving a dog from a crevice by a waterfall and I was hooked. If you are only going to read one blog, read mine, but if you are going to read two watch Picture Perfect Meals. I made her pumpkin donuts for work on Halloween this year, and then about 6 batches of the cheese crackers, I think I ate two batches by myself and served the crackers with our Christmas Dinner Salad course. I appreciate the suggestions for food photography from Adam and someday I'll take a good picture because of his help.
So, I used her recipe for Chicken Soup. We did the whole thing, made our own stock one day, then roasted a chicken and made the soup on the next. Dave decided he wasn't too excited about my cooking and baking challenges as it just makes a lot more dishes for him to wash. I now have 7 quarts of homemade chicken stock in my freezer and we had a lovely, warm dinner of chicken soup and cheddar cheese toast.

Oven-Roasted Chicken Noodle Soup

From Picture Perfect Meals: http://picture-perfectmeals.blogspot.com

serves 6

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped leeks (about 2), tender, light green and white parts only
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and diced
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1 small potato, peeled and small-diced
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 bay leaves
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
3 cups cooked chicken, shredded*
2 cups wide egg noodles
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

In a large pot, heat the butter and olive oil. Add the leeks, celery, carrots, mushrooms, potato, garlic and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables soften, about 7 minutes. Add the stock and poultry seasoning and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the chicken and noodles and simmer until noodles are cooked, 10 minutes more.
Season to taste; add parsley before serving.

January 7, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 22 minutes, 17 seconds Current Temp. -24 º F

Surprise Birthday Party

2012-01-05T23:34:00.000-08:00

50 is the new 30.

My husband, Dave, and me at my surprise party.

My birthday was today. I turned 50 and according to the poster on the wall at work, 50 is the new 30.

I had a great day at work full of gifts (I got a new bar book from Jim, can you say drink of the week?) food (we had cheesecake, chocolate walnut torte, lemon thyme cake, frog eye salad, a sweet cranberry and walnut braid, and fresh fruit.

Food outside my office, presents inside my office.

There was yellow "Warning 50th birthday" tape all over and sunglasses and a tiara with pink feathers and signs in the hall. It was all wonderful and fun. It was a fun, fat fiftieth birthday.

Then my husband picked me up from work and we went out for a quiet dinner together. We arrived at LaVelle's, my favorite, I was counting on a great glass of champagne and a blue cheese risotto pancake. Dave gave his name and the Matre´ De said, "I'm sorry, your reservations were for yesterday. Let me see if I can fit you in." I was thinking, "Crap, now I have to sit at one of those tall tables and stools where my feet don't even touch the ground. He left to go check on the seating. When he returned he said he could seat us, grabbed the menus and let us to our seats. When we turned the corner, there were 45 or so of my friends shouting "Surprise!" Boy, was I surprised! Dave had planned this surprise party and pulled it off without me knowing! I was overwhelmed. Friends we has just had dinner with on Sunday and never said anything, my niece, who I had visited with for about 15 minutes earlier, never said anything. My boss, with whom I had a meeting with that day, never said anything. All my suite-mates I work with all day, never said anything...and there they all were!

LaVelle's with friends for my birthday party.

The one gift I asked for was ground beef for our food bank. I was gifted with well over 60 lbs of ground beef, and $50 donation in my name to the food bank.

I am so blessed to have wonderful friends and a family that loves me. Thank you to everyone who came to the party, who helped my husband cover his tracks, who gave gifts of ground beef, even when they couldn't "get their heads around that" and the people who put up with me every day at work. I can't think of a better way to start the second 50 years of my life.

January 5, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 13 minutes, 31 seconds Current Temp. -11º F

Birthday Resolutions and Carrot Martini

2012-01-04T19:47:00.000-08:00

I don't make New Year's resolutions, I make birthday resolutions. My birthday is 5 days after the new year so I wait and start the day/weekend/Monday after my birthday. This year I resolve to learn to take better pictures and add more veggies to my diet. The picture resolution I'm really hoping to keep, the veggie resolution we are starting right now - with a carrot martini. What better way to add veggies than through the drink of the week.
I found this recipe on the blog, daydreamerdesserts.com. What a wonderful way to start on my birthday resolution.

Carrot Martini
from Daydreamer Desserts

4 oz carrot puree (directions follow)
4 oz. orange infused vodka (directions follow)
Place ingredients in shaker with ice, shake until very cold, strain into glass.

Carrot puree
16 oz. chopped carrot
6 oz. pineapple juice
Blend together in blender. Strain through cheesecloth

Orange Vodka
4 oz. vodka
1/2 orange
combine in jar, let sit at room temp for 2 days. Shake once or twice each day.
(Really, use the whole orange and add 12 oz. vodka, you are going to want more than one of these.)

Here's to a happy, healthy year!

January 4, 2012 Daylight 4 hours, 9 minutes, 28 seconds Current Temp. -26º F

Aztec Chocolate Cakes and Desanta-tizing the house

2012-01-01T10:44:00.000-08:00

January 1st brings a bit of a let down around here. It is dark (have I told you that yet?), it is cold (-40º today), the holidays are over and it's time to put the Santas away for another year. I LOVE Santa. I have them everywhere, smalls ones, 3 foot ones, tiny ones. Everyone knows I love Santa, so much so that I can't remember a year when someone didn't give me a new Santa for my collection. This year it was a Santa carrying a wine bottle and a bunch of grapes from my new neighbor, Suzanne (hmm, do you think that says something about me?) I can't even begin to guess how many Santas I have. Maybe next December I'll have a contest to see who can guess the closest, of course that would mean I would have to count them all.

Shelves of Santas in the kitchen.

So because of the aforementioned reasons, I believe it is a good day to bake chocolate cake. I can't make a whole chocolate cake because I'm really the only one who will eat it. Dave will eat a piece and then I'm left with the whole cake. Then later this week, I have a birthday and will have a cake then too, so a whole cake is out of the question.
These small cakes are perfect. They are a rich chocolate with a hit of cayenne and a smooth chocolate ganache over the top. The recipe makes two big single servings or 4 smaller servings. The sweet and the spicy are the perfect thing to warm you up and shake off the fact that the holidays are over, New Year's resolutions are going to start soon and it's time to desanta-tize the house.
Happy New Year!

Aztec Chocolate Souffle Cakes
adapted from Pampered Chef, Cooking for two & more, 2006

1 tsp. plus 3 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1 Tbsp. butter
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (at least 60% cocoa, I use a 72% cocoa bar)
2 eggs, separated
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
Chocolate glaze (optional, see below)

Preheat oven to 400º F. Spray two (or four small) souffle or pyrex prep bowls. You could use cupcake pans also. Coat the inside with 1tsp. sugar, tapping out excess, set bowls aside. Melt butter and chocolate in microwave, uncovered, on hight 1 minute, stirring every 15 seconds. Set aside to cool.

Beat egg whites until foamy. Continue beating, gradually adding remaining 3 Tbsp. sugar. Continue beating until soft peaks form. Whisk egg yolks, cinnamon and cayenne pepper into cooled chocolate mixture. Gently fold in egg whites.

Pour batter evenly into prepared bowls. Bake 16-18 minutes or until cakes spring back slightly when gently pressed with fingertip. Remove from oven; cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto serving plates. Serve with chocolate glaze, if desired.

Chocolate glaze
1/4 heavy cream
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Place cream and sugar in microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds or until hot. Add vanilla extract, chocolate, cinnamon and cayenne. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over cakes.

Tips:
Use really good chocolate, that is the main flavor of this cake so don't scrimp.

It is easier to separate eggs when they are cold, but let them warm to room temp. before beating the whites for maximum volume.

Two cakes are really big, they are very rich.

If you make 4 cakes, adjust the bake time. I start checking them after 10 minutes of baking.

Small Santas lining the stairs.

January 1, 2012 Daylight 3 hours, 58 minutes, 41 seconds Current Temp. -40º F

Chocolate Toffee Cookies

2011-12-30T17:18:00.001-08:00

We have 5 dogs. I want to be perfectly clear that I did not bring any of these dogs home, but somehow I am the one who feeds them every morning, brushes them, brushes their teeth and lets them out first thing in the morning. Four of the five are rescue dogs of one type or another. One was a gift to me from my husband after we lost two of our dogs when our house burned 11 years ago.
Tucker, a golden retriever rescue dog, has developed an anxiety disorder.
All our dogs go into a built in kennel in the garage while we are gone. They have room to move around, blankets to sleep in and they stay safe and out of stuff while we are at work. Tucker will have none of it. After years of happily going into the kennel when we leave, he decided he wasn't going to do that anymore and began to chew everything...the door of the kennel, the wall, the beams that held the kennel together...everything. We tried several things, giving him more attention, scolding him, chew toys with peanut butter, nothing worked. One day, we left him in the house alone. He loves is. And other than sitting on the couch while we are gone (as if we couldn't tell) he is a very good boy and doesn't get into anything. That is, until I left cookies to cool on the table one day.
I needed to run to the store a couple of blocks away to pick something up for dinner - really quick. I took cookies out of the oven, kenneled four of the dogs, and ran to the store. When I came home, Tucker had pulled the table cloth until the cookies on the cooling rack were right at the edge of the table where he happily ate the dozen cookies. Really? I had the cooling rack in the middle of the table and all the chairs pushed in so he couldn't get them, and he pulls the table cloth? At least I had more dough in the fridge and could bake another couple of dozen. These are the cookies, notice no table cloth on the table. I think I learned my lesson.

Chocolate and Toffee Cookies
from Perfect Cookies, Fog City Press

3/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
6 oz semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chocolate-covered toffee candy bars, chopped (I used Heath Bars)

Preheat oven to 375º F. Un a large bowl, combine brown sugar, butter and vanilla. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the mixtrue until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg.
In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and slat. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed just until blended. Add the chocolate chips and chopped toffee and mix with a spoon until incorporated. Drop the dough by heaping teaspoonful onto cookie sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
Makes about 42 cookies.

Tucker, the cookie eater, with his tire, LoBo and Lilly in the back, Hershey next to Tucker.

December 30, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 52 minutes, 48 seconds Current Temp. -26 ºF

Russian Rye Sourdough Bread - A Daring Baker's Challenge

2011-12-28T21:12:00.001-08:00

Rye Sourdough bread, made with out commercial yeast.

I am very worried I just don't have enough to do. The winters are long and dark, and my kids all live somewhere else. I cook, I sew, I work with stained glass, I go to dinner with my friends, I work full time, even though I retired. But I was worried I might not keep busy enough. Something about idle hands...
So, I signed up for Daring Baker sometime in November and anxiously waited to be accepted and get my first challenge. Daring Baker is a group from the Daring Kitchen (http://thedaringkitchen.com). There are two groups Daring Bakers and Daring Cooks. Each month you get a challenge and everyone posts their challenge results on the same day. I found them one day while cruising through Tastespotting and saw about 7 of the same recipe. When I went to those different sites, they mentioned Daring Bakers and I was ready to add that to my list of things to do.
My first challenge was sourdough. Oh! I knew I had this made. I've had a sourdough starter in my fridge for the last 30 years! I wanted to participate in the whole challenge so I decided to make the sourdough from the very beginning.
I set out to make a whole wheat starter and a rye starter. You start with flour and water and let it set out someplace warm. Every day you add more flour and water to feed the little yeasties growing in the flour. After 4-5 days you are able to make bread! The longer you keep your starter the more pronounced the sour taste in the finished bread. The rye starter was a success. I had to remake the wheat starter as the first one never grew yeast. So much for me having this challenge made in the shade. I purchased new organic whole wheat flour and used bottled water and the second time around I was successful.
The following directions are from this months Daring Baker's host Jessica from My Recipe Project.

Russian Rye Bread
Servings: 1 large loaf or 2 small loaves and excess rye starter to keep for further baking.
Rye Starter - Day 1:
Ingredients
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (50 ml) (25 gm/1 oz) whole (dark) rye flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) water (at 104°F/40°C)
Total scant ½ cup (110 ml) (3 oz/85 gm)
Directions:
1. In a Tupperware or plastic container, mix the flour and water into a paste.
2. Set the lid on top gently, cover with a plastic bag, to prevent messes in case it grows more than expected!
3. Set somewhere warm (around 86°F/30°C if possible). I sometimes put mine on a windowsill near a radiator, but even if it’s not that warm, you’ll still get a starter going – it might just take longer. It should be a very sloppy, runny dough, which will bubble and grow as it ferments.
Rye Starter - Day 2:
Ingredients
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (50 ml) (25 gm/1 oz) whole (dark) rye flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) water (at 104°F/40°C)
scant 1/2 cup (110 ml) (3 oz/85 gm) starter from Day 1
Total scant 1 cup (220 ml) (6 oz/170 gm)
Directions:
1. Stir the flour and water into the mixture from Day 1, cover, and return to its warm place.

My sourdough starter warm, on a table next to the fireplace. I had a thermometer close to keep an eye on the temp.

Rye Starter - Day 3:
Ingredients
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (50 ml) (25 gm/1 oz) whole (dark) rye flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) water (at 104°F/40°C)
scant 1 cup (220 ml) (6 oz/170 gm) starter from Day 2
Total 1 cup plus 6 tablespoons (330 ml) (9 oz/255 gm)
Directions:
1. Stir the flour and water into the mixture from Day 2, cover, and return to its warm place. If you notice it has a grey liquid on top, just stir this back in and continue as normal.
Rye Starter - Day 4:
Ingredients
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (50 ml) (25 gm/1 oz) whole (dark) rye flour
1/4 cup (60 ml) water (at 104°F/40°C)
1 cup plus 6 tablespoons (330 ml) (255 gm/9 oz) starter from Day 3
Total about 1¾ cups (440 ml) (12 oz/340 gm)
Directions:
1. Stir the flour and water into the mixture from Day 3, cover, and return to its warm place. At this point it should be bubbling and smell yeasty. If not, repeat this process for a further day or so until it is!

Russian Rye Bread - Step 1: Production Sourdough
Ingredients
1/4 cup less 2 teaspoons (50 ml) (50 gm/1 ¾ oz) rye leaven (starter)
1 cup plus 2 teaspoons (250 ml) (150 gm/5 ⅓ oz) whole (dark) rye flour
1 1/4 cups (300 ml) (300 gm/10 ½ oz) water
Total 2½ cup (600 ml) (500 gm/17½ oz/1 lb 1½ oz)

Directions:
1. Mix everything into a sloppy dough. Cover and set aside for 12-24 hours, until bubbling. Set aside the remaining starter for further loaves.

Russian Rye Bread - Step 2: Final Dough
Ingredients
2 cups (480 ml) (440 gm/15 ½ oz) production sourdough (this should leave some (½ cup) to become your next loaf of bread!)
2 1/3 cups (560 ml) (330 gm/11 ⅔ oz) rye flour (light or whole)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (5 gm/.2 oz) sea salt or ½ teaspoon (2½ ml) (2½ gm/.1 oz) table salt
3/4 cup plus 2 teaspoons (200 ml) (200 gm/7 oz) water (at 104°F/40°C)
Total 5 cups plus 3 tablespoons (1245 ml) (975 gm/2 lb 2⅓ oz)

Directions:
1. Mix all the ingredients together to form a soft dough. With wet hands, scoop the dough up and put it in a well-greased loaf tin.
2. Put the tin inside a large plastic bag, blow it up, and seal it. This should make a good little dome for your bread to proof inside. Set aside somewhere room temperature to warm.
3. The dough should be ready to bake with in anywhere between 2-8 hours, depending on how warm it is. I proof mine by a sunny window in about 4 hours. If the dough was halfway up the tin when you started, it will be ready when it reaches the top (i.e. almost doubles in size).
4. Preheat the oven to very hot 470°F/240°C/gas mark 9. For a large loaf, bake for 50-60 minutes, reducing the temperature to moderately hot 400°F/200°C/gas mark 6 after about 10-15 minutes. If baking in small loaf tins, bake for 35-45 minutes, reducing the temperature after 10 minutes. If you are unsure about whether it is done, give it a few minutes longer – it is a very wet dough, so the extra time won’t hurt.
5. Leave to cool on a cooling rack, and rest the loaf for a day before eating it.

Tips:
I keep my sourdough in the fridge between uses. The night before I want to use it I put it in a glass bowl, stir in equal weight of water and flour and let sit on the counter overnight. I put 1 cup back in the glass jar in the fridge and use the rest for what ever bread I am going to make.

The rye bread is much wetter than any sourdough I've ever made. But I've always used commercial yeast with my sourdough. I was really surprised when it worked! It was more like a batter than a bread dough.

When my whole wheat starter didn't start the first time, I found a great site on the internet with tips. If you are interested here it is: http://www.sourdoughhome.com

December 28, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 48 minutes, 4 seconds Current Temp. -17º F

Amazon Packages and Scotch Eggs

2011-12-26T10:38:00.000-08:00

My dad called a couple of days ago. He called to make sure my husband was getting home from work before me and was checking the mail. He sent a gift from Amazon and knew he had to send Dave a warning about getting home first.
I love getting the mail everyday. It is like a little present even if it is only a bill or an advertisement. I always ask Dave, "Did you check the mail?" Like he would ever forget because he knows I'm going to ask. I don't usually check the mail, I'm not allowed. You see, the act of receiving mail is very stressful for me. I had an incident once that haunts me to this day. My family knows if they are sending mail to me, CALL AHEAD. WARN DAVE, MAKE SURE TONI DOESN'T CHECK THE MAIL!

We have a large family, are we are spread out across the states. For Christmas, the adults used to draw names and send a gift to that person. My dad and mom were in charge of drawing names for everyone and they let us know. One year I drew one of my brothers. He said there was a book about computers he wanted. I got on Amazon, ordered the book, had it gift-wrapped and sent straight to his house. I was done, on time and something I knew he would love. I was smiling.
And then-

This year's package, luckily not the size of a book.

I came home from school and there on step was a package from Amazon, the size of a book. How could they mess this up so badly? I was ahead of the game and they just messed up my whole Christmas spirit. Did I put the information in the "to" and "from" backwards? It was a busy time of year, I was a Principal of an elementary school at the time and life before Christmas is crazy, but could I have been that rushed and confused? I took the box inside to contemplate the situation. I didn't want to open the box so I could send it back to Amazon, or should I just stick a label on it and mail it to my brother in Arizona? Could they have gotten the address wrong because both states, Alaska and Arizona, started with an A? Was this my mistake or theirs? Did I need a drink at this point? YES. I couldn't have one because I had to get 5 kids fed and all of us back to my school for the Christmas band and orchestra concert. I needed to make decisions and quickly.
So I called the help number on the top of the box. The conversation went something like this.
Me: "I'm calling about a book I ordered for my brother."
Amazon Customer Service (ACS): "Yes, that book was delivered to his house today"
Me: "Um, no, it was delivered to my house. I'm holding it right here."
ACS: "My records state it was delivered to ____(brother's address in Arizona) today and he signed for it."
Me: "I'm holding the book right here, could you have sent two, one to me and one to him? Should I send this back to you?"
ACS: "What is the title of the book you are holding?"
Me: "I don't know, it is something about computers."
ACS: "Can you read me the title?"
Me: (voice a couple of octaves higher and much louder now) "I didn't open the box, I want to send it back to you without having to pay extra postage."
ACS: "My records indicate that only one book was ordered and charged to this acct."
Me (so out of patience as the conversation was a lot longer than this, I'm severely editing my part) "Well then, why am I holding the book now and I live in Alaska?"
ACS: "M'am, could someone have sent you a present?"

ACS: "M'am,

ACS: "M'am?".............

Me: "Oh!"

ACS: "Why don't you open the package and see what book is inside?"
Me (opening the package): "Oh! It's a cookbook from a different brother. Oh, I'm so sorry"
ACS (trying to cover the sound of her laughing with a cough): "Not a problem M'am, you made my day. Merry Christmas."

My family no longer draws names for Christmas (as far as I know), and Dave checks the mail.

Scotch eggs are the perfect little package. The hard boiled egg, a taste of mustard encased in a spicy sausage cover all blanketed in crispy breadcrumbs and baked. I think the original recipes called for deep frying these tasty little morsels, and that would be one way to do it. I like to bake mine and then don't feel quite so guilty for putting more than one on my plate.
I made these delightful little morsels for our office Christmas open house. They were so good, Dave requested a batch for his work on Friday morning. After I baked them, I placed them all into a ceramic dish I heated in the oven. They stayed nice and warm in transport and for serving. Serve them with a selection of mustards.

Scotch Eggs
1 dozen eggs for boiling plus two for coating
2 lbs. sausage (I use our moose breakfast sausage or spicy Italian moose sausage)
yellow mustard
seasoned breadcrumbs (I used homemade seasoned with garlic, sage, salt and pepper ground fine)
assorted mustards for serving (I use dijon, stone ground, and spicy brown)

Boil eggs until whites are set but centers are soft. I fill up a pan with cold water, add eggs, bring to a full rolling boil, remove from heat, let sit 3 minutes, flush with cold water until cool. Peel eggs, rinse and dry.
Preheat oven to 375º F.
Divide sausage into 12 pieces (3 oz. each), flatten into rounds large enough to encase eggs. Squirt a small amount of mustard on sausage and top with egg. Cover egg completely with sausage and pinch to close completely. Roll carefully to make sausage smooth.
Beat extra two eggs in a small bowl, place breadcrumbs in separate bowl. Dip sausage covered eggs completely in egg, roll in breadcrumbs, pressing to ensure a complete coating.
Place on greased baking sheet, bake 25-30 minutes. I usually cut one right away to ensure the sausage is cooked through. Then you have to eat it because you can't serve a cut scotch egg!
Serve with assorted mustards.

Tips:
The eggs are a little harder to peel because they are soft boiled, be careful but don't worry about how the eggs look, they will be covered with sausage. It's not like deviled eggs sitting on a plate.

Use small/medium eggs. The extra large I buy for baking make a really big serving and look intimidating. Buy the smallest available in your store (I know why there are so many recipes that use quail eggs!). The smaller ones also cover easier with the sausage.

Use at least 3 oz. of sausage per egg. I weigh mine, but you don't have to do that. You can use up to 4 oz. and it is a little easier to get the eggs covered.

These hold the heat very well and are great for making at home and packing for a potluck.

December 26, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 44 minutes, 34 seconds Current Temp. -20ºF

Champagne Bar - Drink of the Week

2011-12-23T15:40:00.000-08:00

Setting up pitchers for fruit puree, counting glasses and the ice bucket is ready.

The next two weeks include Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. So much to celebrate, so little time. For Drink of the week (or drink of the next two weeks) nothing works like Champagne. It is the perfect thing for celebrations, good friends, ringing out the old year and welcoming the new. I do love Champagne, I love cheap champagne and I love expensive champagne! I try not to feed my friends the cheap stuff, but sometimes it happens. I will have a stocked Champagne Bar for the next two weeks. I'll go with a case of good Prosecco and have a bottle of my favorite Champagne for New Year's Eve.
A Champagne bar is very easy. Have several bottles of Prosecco or Champagne in the fridge and some juice and other add-ins on hand. Put it all on a side table with some champagne flutes and you are always ready for company. I really like to use the bottled fruit nectar for the fruit juice. My friend Mary said half Chambord and half Champagne is really good, I'll have to try that this year. Don't try to have everything on this list, it is just to give you ideas and to cover many different tastes. (I actually cut and paste this list from the internet from a search, "How to set up a Champagne bar," and I found the exact list on two other blog sites, so it is not original). I'll stick with frozen raspberries, three or four juices, Cointreau, Chambord, and pomegranate seeds.
Happy Holidays, how ever you celebrate. I'll take mine with Champagne.

From our house to yours, Merry Christmas and a Peaceful New Year.

For the Champagne Bar:

frozen raspberries
frozen strawberries
thinly sliced clementines
pineapple wedges
sliced star fruit
sugar cubes
orange juice
pomegranate juice
pineapple juice
peach puree
mango nectar
Cointreau
gin
vodka
creme de cassis
simple syrup
orange peel
lemon peel
whole mint leaves
candied ginger
Chambord

December 23, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 41 minutes, 46 seconds Current Temp 5º F

Lemon Tart and the Darkest Day of the Year

2011-12-21T21:27:00.000-08:00

December 21 is Solstice. I never thought about this date until I moved to Alaska.
Winter solstice is the shortest day of the year. If you check the very bottom of each post, it tells you that day's daylight, a big deal when you have about 3 hours of it and most of that time the sun is coming up or going down, so not really bright. We all look forward to December 23 when we actually start gaining daylight, about 1 minute to begin with, but it is a gain.
Because it is so dark and cold, we have to do something to keep our spirits up. I decided what better way than to make (and eat) a tart, a sunny lemon curd tart. It is full of vitamin C, is a beautiful sunny color and even though he lives in California now it will help us celebrate our son Tom's birthday.
Happy Birthday Tom.

Lemon Tart
Adapted from Ina Garten, Barefoot in Paris

Pastry:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
3 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
6 tbsp. cold unsalted butter
2 tbsp. cold crisco
1/4 cup ice water
2 tbsp. vodka

Combine flour, sugar and salt in a bowl and place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. Put the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and Crisco and pulse about 10 times until the butter is in small bits. Add the vodka to the ice water, add to the flour mixture and process until the dough comes together. Dump on a well-floured board and form into a disc. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375º F.

Roll out the dough and fit into a 9 inch tart pan with removable sides. Don't stretch the dough when placing in the pan or it will shrink during baking. Cut off the excess by rolling the pin across the top of the pan. Line the tart shell with a piece of aluminum foil, and fill it with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and the foil and prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork to allow steam to escape. Bake for another 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

Lemon Curd
1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
4 extra large eggs
4 large lemons
1/8 tsp. salt

Wash and zest lemons (I use a microplane but if you are careful to not get the white pith you can use a vegetable peeler), juice lemons, you need 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice.
Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer for 1 minute. On low, add eggs one at a time, add salt, lemon zest and lemon juice. It will look curdled.
Pour mixture into a small saucepan and cook over medium low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until thick, stirring constantly with a spoon. Whisk briskly when it starts to thicken and cook over low heat for a minute or two. Don't allow to boil. It will be 175º F on an instant read thermometer. Pour into a bowl to cool.

When cooled, pour into cooled shell. Refrigerate.

To serve top with sweetened whipped cream and garnish with lemon zest. Think of the sun.

December 21, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 41 minutes, 34 seconds Current Temp 6º F

Frog Eye Salad

2011-12-20T06:30:00.000-08:00

Family in Alaska has a slightly different flavor to it than anywhere else. Many of us moved to Alaska, away from our families and settled here so others have adopted us as honorary members of their families. Some of us have families that have moved to warmer climates, like Arizona, California and Oregon, leaving us Fairbanksians alone in the dark and the cold (thank you boys...and dad and mom). We adopt, are adopted and family are those around us with whom we rely on and know we can count on. Luckily, my husband does have family here, and we have wonderful friends so we are blessed with a whole bunch of people I am proud to call my Fairbanks Family.

My favorite Fairbanks niece, Nichole, makes frog eye salad for me. She brings it for every special occasion like Thanksgiving, Christmas, my birthday that is coming up soon...
I don't make it myself because I can't be trusted with a whole batch in the house alone with me.

I. Will. Eat. It. All.

So Nickie brings it, I get a serving, the left-overs and I've only eaten half the batch not the whole thing. It is a sweet salad made with mandarin oranges, pineapple and cool whip. The frog eyes are acini di pepe pasta, some people think it is made with tapioca, they are about the same size. I think most people eat it as a dessert but I eat it as anything I can get away with. It is cool, sweet, creamy and the perfect breakfast when the rest of the house is asleep and I don't have to share.

Tips:
Don't try this at home alone - you will eat the whole batch.
I couldn't get the lighting right at Thanksgiving, the picture was way too dark (give me a break, you know I live in the dark all the time. There is no "natural light" and I'm waiting for Christmas for my husband to buy me some lighting..hint, hint.) SO, I asked Nickie to make another batch so I could photograph it. O.K., so my lighting didn't turn out any better. Dave came home and asked where the large cool whip tub of salad was (Nickie had told him). I had already taken the too dark pictures and eaten the whole bunch! It's just not safe at my house.

Frog Eye Salad
1 c. Acini de Pepe pasta
1 can (20oz.) Pineapple tidbits
1 can (15oz.) Mandarin oranges
3/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
8 oz. Cool Whip
2 tbsp flour
2 egg yolks

Cook 1 cup dry macaroni in 2 quarts of water for 9 minutes, or as directed on package. Drain, rinse and drain, then cool.

Drain the fruit (keep the juice from the pineapple).

In a sauce pan, combine pineapple juice, sugar, flour, salt and slightly beaten eggs. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Cool to room temperature. Pour over macaroni, and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, add fruit and Cool Whip and mix well. Serves about 8-10 people.

December 20, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 41 minutes, 59 seconds Current Temp. 18º F

Moose Short Ribs

2011-12-18T08:30:00.000-08:00

This year my husband had the butcher cut short ribs when we had to moose processed. We have never had that done before, usually the rib meat went into the grind and became burger or sausage but luckily one of the hunters that went to moose camp this year wanted that cut. There our ribs sat in the freezer. I didn't know what to do with them. I was reading October's cooking Light, and there was a recipe for Cabernet Short Ribs. I had a couple of bottles of great cabernet from a winery in Oregon when I went to visit two of my boys, and I had the moose ribs in the freezer, I figured it was worth a try. They were delicious! Fall off the bone tender, full of flavor, pure comfort food at it's finest. I had one package left. I decided to make them this weekend, it is dark, it is cold, our kids are all gone, we are feeling sorry for ourselves...quite the pity party! We needed some good comfort food to ease the pain. Oh! They were so good. I don't think I can wait until next fall, when Dave gets the next moose, to have these again. I am willing to buy beef to make these.

Cabernet Short Ribs
adapted from Cooking Light, October 2011
8 bone in moose ribs (you can use beef, the recipe called for 16 3oz. ribs)
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 med. onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
6 cloves of garlic, sliced
2 1/2 cups cabernet
1 1/4 cup beef broth
2 tbsp. all purpose flour
2 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper. Heat a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil to pan, add half the ribs and saute for 6 minutes turning to brown on all sides. Remove ribs to plate, repeat procedure with remaining oil and ribs. Add onion, carrots, celery and garlic to pan. Cook 3 minutes stirring constantly. Add wine to pan and bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook for 13 minutes or until reduced to 2 cups.
Preheat oven to 350º F.
Add broth to pan and bring to a boil. Return ribs to the pan. Cover and bake for 1 1/2 hours, turning the ribs after 45 minutes.
Remove ribs from pan, tent with aluminum foil. Strain cooking liquid through a fine mesh sieve over a bowl. Discard the solids. Skim fat, discard (moose really doesn't have a lot of fat, but I left that direction in for the beef). Return cooking liquid to pan. Combine flour with 2 tbsp. butter, cook stirring often until it becomes a brown, nutty color. Whisk in cooking liquid and let boil until slightly reduced and thickened. Stir in vinegar. Serve over ribs.

I served mine with mashed potatoes and a crisp salad on the side. I have a new obsession.

December 18, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 43 minutes, 49 seconds Current Temp. 28º F

Espresso Martini - Drink of the Week

2011-12-16T07:47:00.000-08:00

Ahhh, Friday and drink of the week. I really look forward to coming home, petting the dogs and sitting by the fire with a relaxing drink. Except, it is the holiday season and there are way too many things to do. Presents to wrap, who am I kidding, presents to buy, cookies to bake, carols to sing...you get the picture. So this week the drink of the week will help us with a little jolt of caffeine to keep us going. The espresso martini is one of my go-to drinks. It seems I always have the ingredients at home and can whip one up at a moments notice.
Actually, I have it on good authority that the big man himself drinks one before he makes his big trip!
Enjoy.

Espresso Martini
Sandra Lee, Cocktail Time

1/4 cup Vanilla Vodka
1/3 cup Kahlua
1/4 tsp Espresso Powder
1/4 cup heavy cream (I usually use fat free half and half, but it is the holidays)
ice
put vodka, Kahlua and espresso powder in shaker, stir until powder is dissolved. Add cream and ice, shake until very cold. Strain into glass.

December 16, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 46 minutes, 58 seconds Current Temp. 7º F

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies and Christmas Traditions

2011-12-14T08:00:00.000-08:00

Traditions keep us connected with each other and with memories that keep us going. We have lots of holiday traditions, as I'm sure you do. Some of our traditions we brought together when we got married, some we let go of as it didn't fit our new family, and some we stumbled upon as our family grew. One of our traditions is a game we play with our Christmas Village.

Dave got this for me our first Christmas together. I love it. There is a little school, a museum, a church with a steeple, several stores and a hotel and restaurant. The people are all busy bustling about the village, stopping to talk to each other, singing Christmas carols, shopping or watching the puppet show. The buildings all light up and snow blankets the streets and walkways. There is this one little man, sitting by the Christmas tree minding his own business and peacefully reading a newspaper.

One day I walked by and the man was gone, I searched high and low for him. I found him sitting on the steps behind the church. I put him back on his bench. The next time I walked by he was missing again. This time I found him on the roof of the restaurant, calmly reading his paper. The game was on. I placed him on the steps of the school house and for the last 12 years, that poor man has not been able to read his paper in peace. He is found upside down, balanced on the top of the church's steeple, under the bridge, hidden in the gazebo and in every other possible place in our little village. One of the boys covered him under a big pile of the fake snow, gathered all the villagers in a circle around the mound and had the little minister at the head as though they were having a funeral service (thanks Mason). I don't know which of our boys started this game, but it has become a tradition. Every friend that stops by has to look for the newspaper man and move him. If he ever is on the bench, Dave will hide him so I don't feel sad and cry that we don't have kids home any more. This is a tradition we all look forward to.

Chocolate crinkles are another Christmas tradition I look forward to. I love these cookies! One year when I was in college, in about a three month time period, I made these so many times, by boyfriend at the time asked me to stop! I've learned some moderation, not much, but some. So I save these cookies for this time of year. They are fudgy with crisp edges, sweet and oh so good. These are always one of the first to go on my cookie platter. I hope you enjoy them with your holiday traditions.

Chocolate Crinkles
(I've made these so long, I don't know where the recipe came from)

4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/2 tsp. espresso powder
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1.5 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1.5 cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Add the unsweetened chocolate and butter to a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 1 minute on high. Stir. Heat for 15 seconds and stir, repeat this until chocolate and butter are melted. Stir in espresso powder until smooth and let cool.
Combine eggs, sugar and vanilla. Using an electric mixer beat until the mixture is light in color and thick, about 3 minutes. Add the melted chocolate mixture and stir or mix on low speed until blended. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. All the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture and beat on low speed until blended. Add the chocolate chips and stir with a wooden spoon. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours. The dough should be firm enough to roll into balls.
Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift the powdered sugar into a bowl.
Roll a rounded tablespoon of dough between your palms into a ball (I use my #40 scoop for this). Roll the ball in the powdered sugar until completely coated. Place on prepared cookie sheet. Repeat for all cookie dough, spacing them about 3 inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes until the cookies are puffed and cracked looking and feel firm when touched on the edges. Let cookies cool on the baking sheets.
Makes about 30 cookies.

What are some of the holiday traditions you look forward to?

December 14, 2011, Daylight 3 hours, 51 minutes, 21 seconds Current Temp. 1 ºF

Chocolate dipped Coconut Macaroons

2011-12-12T12:17:00.000-08:00

Chocolate dipped coconut macaroons

Cookies are a such a special treat. They are small enough that you can have one everyday and not feel too guilty, they can be simple for everyday, or dressed up for a special occasion. I love cookies. I came across a world-wide cookie exchange and signed right up. The idea is you submit your name and the organizer gives you three names to send a dozen cookies to, and gives your name to three secret people. You mail your cookies by the set date and then you will receive three dozen cookies in the mail. Cookies as a present in the mail, I'm all in.
I received my names and began planning my cookies. I needed something special enough for the holidays, sturdy enough to mail from Alaska, and rich enough that they wouldn't dry out in the days it takes for mail to get to it's destination. Coconut macaroons were good, chocolate dipped coconut macaroons were perfect!
I got my cookies in the mail well before the due date (one in a row!) and am anxiously awaiting my three dozen cookies via mail.

Toasted coconut and sliced almonds

Chocolate Dipped Macaroon
Perfect Cookies, Fog City Press 2008

vegetable shortening for greasing pans
3.5 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 large egg whites
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 pinch salt
4 oz. chopped semisweet chocolate (or chips)

Preheat oven to 350ºF Grease 2 large cookie sheets with the shortening.

Pour 1 1/2 cups of the coconut and all the almonds onto a rimmed baking sheet and mix well. Toast them in the oven, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Immediately transfer the coconut-almond mixture to a large bowl to cool. Leave the oven on.

To the bowl with the cooled coconut mixture, add the remaining 2 cups coconut, the condensed milk, and almond extract and mix well. In a clean bowl, combine the egg whites, sugar and salt. Using an electric mixer with clean beaters on high speed, beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the egg white mixture into the coconut mixture using a rubber spatula.

Using a large spoon, drop the dough into 2 inch mounds onto the prepared cookie sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake until the cookies are golden brown, about 10 minutes, then transfer to wire racks and let cool completely.

Add the chocolate pieces to a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water, taking care that the bowl does not touch the water. Heat, stirring frequently, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Remove from the heat.

Line 2 cookie sheets with waxed paper. Dip the bottoms of the cookies into the chocolate coating and place, chocolate side down, on the lined baking sheets. Refrigerate the cookies until the chocolate is set. Store in an airtight container at cool room temperature.
Makes 18 cookies

Tips:
Next time I make these I'll make them smaller. I used a #40 scoop and packed it very full and got exactly 18 cookies (like the recipe said). But these cookies are rich and a smaller bite would be better, in my opinion.

I put the pans outside to cool (remember it is really cold here) before I dipped the cookies in chocolate. The chocolate set a little quicker and it didn't run all over the pans.

I melted the chocolate in the microwave. One minute on high, stir then 15 seconds and stir - repeat the 15 seconds and stir a couple of times until the chocolate was smooth and melted.

My first secret cookie exchange pkg. Yummy cookies with a slight licorice flavor
Can't wait to see the recipe on: http://runningandcupcakes.blogspot.com/
Thank you Samantha.

December 12, 2011 Daylight 3 hours, 56 minutes, 55 seconds Current Temp. 29 ºF

Girl's Night Out - Bobby's Restaurant

2011-12-11T00:05:00.001-08:00

We've been through a lot together, and most of it was your fault. Friendship/A collection of wit and wisdom.

A good glass of wine to get the conversation rolling.

Once a month I meet with 5 friends of mine. We have dinner, catch up on news/gossip and fortify ourselves with each other's company to keep us going for another month. We meet last week. We heard about weddings, vacations past and vacations to come and company dinners to make. I love our nights out and can't wait for the next one in January.

This month we met at Bobby's Downtown, a Greek restaurant. The restaurant was quiet enough we could hear each other, but not so quiet that we couldn't laugh and carry on and worry about the other diners. Our server was friendly, fast and took very good care of us. The food was excellent.

Mussels in tomato broth

One of the silly things we do is get a gift for everyone that starts with the letter of the month. This month I received Dijon mustard, a decoupage ornament, a book of drinks, a merry doorway announcement, decorative napkins, a book on friendship, and Wild Alaska Women cards (o.k. they don't start with D, but they are very cool). There is something very comforting and secure meeting with friends that "get" you.

Baklava for dessert

Friendship is when people know all about you but like you anyway.

December 11, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 2 minutes, 0 seconds Current Temp. 26º F

Pear-tini and the 12 Days of Christmas

2011-12-09T13:43:00.001-08:00

I hung up a Christmas quilt at work today. Really, I cheated, I hung up the top of a Christmas quilt I made 7 years ago and have never gotten around to finishing it. It is the 12 days of Christmas and it got me to thinking about that poor person who received those gifts Really, can you imagine having to clean up after all those birds, then having to feed the dancers, pipers, maids and drummers? As for myself, I'm hoping for a new camera and maybe the quality of my pictures will improve (but don't hold your breath, I'm sure it's not the camera).
So, in the spirit of the 12 days of Christmas poem/song the drink of the week uses pear puree. What else would you do with that crowd at your house and a pear tree in the way? Remember to enjoy in moderation and don't get any silly ideas about Christmas gifts.

Pear-tini
from Sandra Lee, Cocktail Time

1.5 oz tequila
1 oz. pear puree* or pear juice
1 oz. fresh lemon juice
3/4 oz. simple syrup
ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake until very cold. Strain into martini glass. Enjoy.
*To make pear puree, use very ripe pears, core and blend in blender until smooth.

December 8, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 7 minutes, 14 seconds Current Temp. 20 ºF

Nutella filled Cookie Kisses

2011-12-07T21:24:00.001-08:00

Nutella, just hearing the word makes me salivate like one of Pavlov's dogs! Adding Nutella makes anything better - toast, bagels, crepes, wood chips....
These are cookies I made to take to a cookie exchange. They are butter cookies filled with Nutella. The cookies are quick, easy and adding the Nutella makes them special. I put them in little candy wrappers and set them on a plate to serve.
Then, the cookie exchange was cancelled due to rain! Now I'll have to eat all these cookies myself!
Let it rain.

Nutella filled Cookie Kisses
adapted from Perfect Cookies, Fog City Press 2008

Makes 24 cookies
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
Nutella

Combine butter with sugar and salt. beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, beat until incorporated. Add the flour and beat on low speed just until smooth and well blended. Cover bowl and refrigerate dough until firm, about 1 hour or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350º F.
Scoop up teaspoonfuls of the dough (I used my #80 scoop) and roll into balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake until the cookies are firm but not browned 10-12 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.
Spread Nutella on one flat side of cookie, place the bottom of second cookie against the Nutella, lining up edges sandwich style. Repeat to make the sandwiches with the remaining cookies and Nutella.

Tips:
These get big really fast, make the cookies on the smaller side, plus then you taste the Nutella more.
Place sandwich cookies in paper candy cups or paper mini muffin cups to serve.
Try not to eat all the left-over Nutella

December 7, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 15 minutes, 18seconds Current Temp. 17ºF

When life give you lemons, make meatball subs

2011-12-05T20:04:00.001-08:00

Sunday was scheduled to be a very busy day. I got up early, made cookies for a cookies exchange I was going to at 2:00, then meatballs for a celebration we were headed to at 4:00. I had planned to post about the meatballs, made with ground moose, and how easy it was to make a big batch and freeze some for those nights I was running late at work or came home and just didn't feel like putting something together. And then the rain started....
As I mentioned last week we have a Chinook blowing through Fairbanks. The temperature is about 40º F above. Now, that might seem wonderful, but to an environment that has been frozen at -40º F for the entire month of November, 40º F above is really not a gift. First, the water that lands on the roads freezes into a solid sheet of ice, it can get inches thick, and next week when the temperature drops back to 20º F below or so there is no way to get the ice off. We just have to wait for it to slowly evaporate and wear off with use. Salt or solvents don't work at those temperatures. Also, we lose our snow cover. The snow really acts like a blanket for the ground and all the underground water pipes and such. Without the cover water pipes freeze, septics freeze and back up, trust me it isn't a pretty picture. There is also the issue with wildlife and their use of the snow to bed in for warmth and protection. So, rain in December in Fairbanks is not a good thing.
As a result, both my parties were cancelled. Now I have meatballs and cookies for dinner.
I had put a sweet barbeque sauce on the meatballs so I made an easy baguette to have with them. We cut the baguettes in half, filled them with meatballs and watched the football game on t.v. It was wonderful found time in a busy weekend.
I wonder how long it will rain?

Moose Meatballs

1 lb. ground moose (you can use beef)
1/2 lb. moose sausage (you can use pork)
1 Tbsp. olive oil (moose is very lean, omit if using beef)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
2 or 3 cloves minced garlic
1 small onion grated
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup steak sauce
1 tsp. oregano

Mix all ingredients together. Mixing well without compacting the meat. Shape into balls (I like small meatballs so I use a #80 scoop). Place on greased baking sheet and bake at 400º F for 20 minutes or until centers are cooked completely through. Let cool and use or separate into portions and freeze. We use these in spaghetti sauce, stroganoff sauce, barbeque sauce, and spicy tomato sauce for sandwiches.

The second pan of meatballs waiting for the oven.

Sweet Barbeque Sauce
1 cup prepared barbeque sauce
1/2 cup apple cider
1/4 cup spicy brown mustard

Mix all together, pour over meatballs.

Tips:
Everyone asks for these. I take them a lot. I put them in a crock pot and keep them warm on low. To serve, place single meatballs on a spoon then a platter or fill a bowl and put decorated toothpicks in several so people can take a few. Refill the plate often so the meatballs are served hot.

December 5, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 24 minutes, 12 seconds Current Temp. 28º F

Barbeque and Bird Feeders

2011-12-04T09:31:00.001-08:00

My neighbor has homing pigeons. The only problem is they like my home, or to be more specific, my bird feeder more than they like their own home. They have taken over my bird feeder. My husband, Dave, decided we wouldn't fill the feeder and the pigeons would go away. He was concerned about the cost of the shelled sunflower seed hearts I like to put out for the wild birds. I, on the other hand, love watching the wild birds come and go and the cost of some seed wasn't going to stop me.
I wanted a bird feeder for a couple of years, I even bought one and it sat in the pantry for about 6 months. One day my brother-in-law screwed it to the fence for me. Dave was not too happy, who knows why, something about a mess on the fence I had him put in a couple of years ago.
I love watching the birds come and go. We get Black Capped Chickadees and Red Poles and now pigeons. I am not happy. The pigeons make a mess all over that fence Dave worked so hard to put in, they eat all the seed and scare the little birds away. Dave was ready to take the feeder down when my brilliant friend, Nancy, suggested he build a cage around the feeder so the little birds can get to it, but the big birds could not. Dave was ecstatic he had, yet another, project! Now, had I suggested this, he would have ignored me, but because Nancy suggested it, he built it. He built a frame from 1x1s and then stapled garden fencing around it and on the bottom. The top opens up with hinges so I can refill the feeder. It works like a charm!

The pigeons can't get in, but the little birds can come and go as they please!

As a reward I made pulled pork. A little taste of summer for us at -30ºF. It is such an easy recipe, everything goes into the crockpot, you turn it on low and leave it for 8 to 10 hours. Dave was pretty happy when he got home. It warmed him up enough to carry in wood for the woodstove while I thought of the next project...

Memphis-Style BBQ Pork Shoulder

adapted from Sandra Lee Semi-homemade, Grilling 2006

3.5 lbs. pork shoulder roast

1/4 cup steak rub

1 Tablespoon dry mustard

1 cup apple cider

1/2 cup whiskey

Mix steak rub and dry mustard, rub all over pork roast and let cure in refrigerator 1 hour. Place meat in slow cooker, pour apple cider and whiskey over pork. Cook on low 8 to 10 hours.

Remove meat from slow cooker, on cutting board placed on top of a cookie sheet, shred meat, removing extra fat. Place on buns or Texas style toast and top with sauce.

BBQ Sauce

2 cups bottled barbeque sauce

1 cup Pepsi

1/2 cup yellow mustard

1/2 cup steak sauce

Mix together and warm in saucepan. Serve extra sauce on the side.

O.K., so I'm going to tell on myself. I made this for Dave, it was very good. I was copying down the recipe on the blog and I came to the ingredient of 1 cup apple cider. When I made the pork roast I added 1 cup apple cider VINEGAR. Why I thought I read vinegar I'll never know. So this last time I made it I cooked it in 1 cup vinegar and 1/2 cup whiskey! It was still good, but one of those things I'll never forget (or do again) and one of those things I'll never live down.

December 4, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 28 minutes, 55 seconds Current Temp. 38ºF

Chinook Winds - Drink of the Week

2011-12-02T19:42:00.001-08:00

Fairbanks went from 20 below zero to 10 above zero in the matter of hours. We got a Chinook, a warm wind from the south, and the temperature rose by 30 degrees literally overnight9right now we are 45 degrees warmer than Monday). It is amazing how much easier things are above zero. The house is warmer, you can breath outside without a scarf, you don't even need a coat! (well, almost) So, we are celebrating with a drink of the week that is cool but will warm you up from the inside out.

Chinook Winds
for 1 drink
1.5 oz. vanilla vodka
1 oz peppermint schnapps
1 Tbsp. heavy cream or a little more to taste ( I use fat free half and half and feel guilt free!)
ice
mini candy cane for garnish

Add all ingredients except candy canes to drink shaker. Shake well, until very cold. Strain into glass, garnish with candy cane.

For 6 drinks
9 oz. vanilla vodka
6 oz. peppermint schnapps
3 oz. heavy cream - or substitute
ice
6 mini candy canes for garnish
Fill pitcher with ice, add vodka, schnapps and cream. Stir very well, strain into glasses and garnish with candy canes.

And remember, the roads are very slick when a Chinook blows through. Never drink and drive.
Enjoy

December 2, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 38 minutes, 52 seconds Current Temp. 25 ºF

Caramel Rolls and Black Friday Shopping

2011-11-30T19:05:00.001-08:00

I am not a shopper. Much to my mother's dismay, she is a shopper and, in her opinion, the more shopping the better. If it isn't a food store, I'm really not that interested. So, the idea of getting up at 4:00 in the morning to stand in line (remember, it's cold here) so I can shop, doesn't appeal to me. I'll buy my socks when I get a coupon for buy one get one half price instead of the "real" bargain you get on Black Friday combat shopping.
I am, however, a morning person. I get up early and enjoy the quiet of the morning while my husband sleeps in. So, on Black Friday, I make caramel rolls, or sticky buns. I put on an extra pot of coffee, and when the combat shoppers need a break they stop by my house, refuel with caffeine and carbs and head back out into the cold. I do enjoy the stories of the great finds for gifts and bargains or the rude shoppers that steal the best bargains out of your cart when you aren't looking. I'm just glad I'm not living them.
I've made sticky buns for so long, I think I can do it in my sleep! I make the bread and shape the rolls the night before, cook the caramel, put it all together and stick it in the fridge overnight. In the morning, I set the rolls out while the oven heats and bake. They've risen in the fridge and I only want the chill off them before they go into the oven.
The bread is a wonderful oatmeal bread. When I had kids home I made it every Sunday for dinner. I made mini loaves and they each got their own. I use it for bread, rolls and sticky buns. Even if you don't want to have a sticky bun with the hot sweet caramel, toasted walnuts over a soft, spiced roll you should try the bread on it's own. It is my husband's favorite and I am sure to make it before or after I ask for a big favor! I've made it so long (over 20 years) I don't remember where I got the recipe. I use my Kitchen Aide for most of the kneading, but when I was a principal, I did a lot of it by hand. It was a great way to work out some frustrations.

Oatmeal Bread
Makes 1 large loaf
2 cups water plus 1/4 cup warm water
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp. butter
1 pkg. yeast or 1 scant Tbsp.
1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
3.5 cups all-purpose flour plus extra for kneading

Boil water, add oatmeal, cook for 1 minute. Add salt, butter and brown sugar, mix and let cool. Add yeast and granulated sugar to 1/4 cup water. Let sit for about 5 minutes for yeast to proof and become foamy. Add to cooled oatmeal mixture. Mix in 3.5 cups of flour. Add extra flour until the texture is elastic but still soft and a little sticky. Knead for about 5 minutes. place in oiled bowl and cover with towel in warm area until dough doubles in size, about 1 hour. Shape as desired, let rise a second time, until doubled and bake at 350ºF for about 30-35 minutes until a deep toasty brown. Let cool before cutting.

Caramel Sauce
for 1 batch of rolls
3/4 cup karo syrup
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream
Mix all ingredients together is heavy saucepan. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly until candy thermometer reached 220º F. Remove from heat and let cool.

To make Caramel Rolls (or sticky buns in Fairbanks)
pour caramel sauce into bottom of buttered 11x9 pan top with 1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans. Let caramel sauce cool.

After first rise, roll dough into a large rectangle. Spread with softened butter, top with cinnamon, brown sugar and raisins (optional) Roll into long cylinder shape, starting on the long side of the rectangle. Cut into 17 rolls, discarding the two ends. Place in pan on top of caramel sauce. Let rise for about 1 hour, or cover with plastic wrap, sprayed with cooking spray, and put in refrigerator overnight. If refrigerated, let sit on counter for about 15-20 minutes while your oven comes up to temp. Bake at 350ºF for 30-35 minutes. Let cool about 5 minutes, then turn out of pan upside-down onto bigger plate or pan. Caramel will run down the edges and is very hot.

A few tips:
Sorry not amounts for the butter, sugar, cinnamon and raisins on the rolls. Use a lot, but not so much that you feel like you are really overdoing it. You'll know how much you like after a time or two. I've added chocolate chips, other spices like nutmeg and ginger, add what every you like, but they are really good just like this.

The rolls need to be really cooked well. Place the bigger rolls, usually from the center of the cylinder, on the edges of the pan and the smaller rolls down the center. I have a little trouble with those center rolls being a little doughy if I'm not careful.

Don't try to divide the caramel into two pans. Well, I've tried that and the caramel always gets too hot and then solid as it cools. If you have more success with that let me know so I can try what worked for you.

November 30, 2011 Daylight 4 hours, 49 minutes, 24 seconds Current Temp. -3ºF

Gingered Carrot Cake and New Silver Cups

2011-11-28T21:32:00.001-08:00

Photo from Cooking with Paula Deen; March/April 2010

The bidding started at $100 and was quickly raised to $125, $150, then $200. In the wave of a bidder's card the amount was $300, $325 and finally ended at $350. The crowd clapped and the happy winning bidder took her cake to her table and began to cut pieces to share.
Fairbanks North Star Borough, where Fairbanks is located, participates in Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Age appropriate books are mailed to children ages birth through five. This service is free of charge to the family, so this organization is doing lots of fund-raising to pay for these books.
Once a year they have a dinner, live auction, and recognize members of our community that go above and beyond the call of duty to make life better for children.
After dinner and awards the live auction takes place. Every year there is a cake, baked by the same person who is a board member of the Imagination Library, FNSB chapter. Each year the bidding goes higher and higher. This year the cake was a Ginger, Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese frosting and it was on a hand crafted cake stand made of maple, crafted by the baker's husband. The cake was moist, sweet and with a subtle hit of ginger. The winning bid was $350. Now, that will take care of a number of kids' books this year. I ran into Nancy, the cake baker, at the grocery store and asked if she would share her recipe, so here you have the $350 carrot cake you can make yourself.

As for the new silver cups, I really scored a deal. I won the bid for these cute little cups, they are silver plated and a set of six with a velvet/wood box. I went to Ebay® to see what they might really be worth. I found a set of four, exact same pattern and size, for £ .99, which coverts to about $1.15. It is a good thing I got six cups, that means I only paid about 100% too much! Again, it will buy a lot of books for some kids.

Gingered Carrot Cake
Recipe and photo of cake from Cooking with Paula Deen, March/April 2010
Make 1 (9-inch) cake
1.5 cups vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon lemon zest
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 cups grated carrot
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)
Garnish: Chopped pecans, lemon slices

Preheat oven to 350º F. Spray 3 (9 inch) round cake pans with nonstick baking spray with flour.
In large bowl, combine oil, sugar, and eggs; beat at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add lemon zest, beating until combined.
In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, ginger, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Gradually add to oil mixture, beating until combined. Stir in grated carrot. Spoon batter evenly into prepared pans and bake for 18-22 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting evenly between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish if desired.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes about 5 cups
1 cup butter, softened
1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
6 cups confectioners' sugar

In a large bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice at medium speed with a mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until smooth.

November 28, 2011 Daylight 5hours, 0minutes, 27seconds, Current Temp. -20ºF

Spiced Apple - Drink of the Week

2011-11-26T16:37:00.001-08:00

This week's drink is a warm apple cider spiced up with a touch of peppermint schnapps. It is a light, warm sip while you are pulling out your Christmas decorations or wrapping all those special finds from Black Friday. It is served warm and you can make one or two cups and heat in the microwave or a large batch and keep warm in the crockpot on low. Garnish with a peppermint candy cane or a cinnamon stick for a festive touch.

Spiced Apple
makes 1 drink
1 cup apple cider - warmed on stove top or in a microwave
1 Tbsp. peppermint schnapps
garnish with cinnamon stick or peppermint candy cane

Spiced Apple
makes 4 drinks
4 cups apple cider - warmed
1/4 cup peppermint schnapps
garnish as desired

November 26, 2011 Daylight 5 hrs, 11 min, 58 seconds Current Temp. -24ºF

Thanksgiving Pie Breakfast

2011-11-25T08:42:00.001-08:00

I forgot my camera and used my husband's IPhone, it doesn't do the deliciousness justice!

Every Thanksgiving morning we go to our friends Wendy's and Tom's house for pie breakfast. Wendy makes the most incredible chicken pot pie and everyone brings a dessert pie. We all eat chicken pot pie and an assortment of other types of pie for breakfast. There is always the wonderful basics, pumpkin, pecan, cherry and blueberry. Someone will bring a cheesecake and someone always brings something a little different like gingerbread/pear upside down cake or a pumpkin roll filled with cream cheese. But mostly we eat pie. Dave will eat a piece of the pot pie and then look for blueberry, his favorite. Tom, our blond boy, goes straight for the cherry pie and skips the pot pie all together. I head for the chicken pot pie and settle in for a morning of sheer pleasure. By the end of the morning Wendy will have made 6 to 10, pans of chicken pot pie.

The crust is flaky, light with just a hint of salt and under that bubbles a rich silky sauce with chunks of chicken and carrots swimming in their warm bath. I spend the next hour and a half or so visiting with my mouth full, I can't get enough.
We roll home, warm and full and wishing for a nap, but our family is coming for dinner and we have to get busy in our kitchen.
I hope you had a warm, filling Thanksgiving.

Wendy's Famous Chicken Pot Pie

Stewed Chicken
4-5 lb. stewing hen
1 sprig parsley
1 celery stalk with leaves
1 slice onion
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Put in pot, cover with water, simmer until chicken is cooked through. Cool, shred chicken.

Chicken Pot Pie
6 Tbsp. butter
6 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/34 cup chicken broth
2/3 cup cream or milk
2 cups cut up cooked chicken
1/2 cup diced carrots
Pastry for top

Melt fat, add flour and seasonings. Remove from heat, stir in broth and cream. Bring to boil, boil 1 minute, add chicken.
Roll out pastry and cut to fit top of 1 1/2 qt. baking dish. Cut into 4 sections, place on baking dish and prick pastry. Bake 8-10 minutes at 450º F then reduce to 350º F, place pasty on chicken mixture, bake 5-10 minutes until pastry is browned and chicken mixture is bubbling.
Serves 6

November 25, 2011 Daylight 5 hours, 17 minutes, 51 seconds Current Temp.-6ºF

Cranberry Salad and Cold Weather

2011-11-23T09:55:00.001-08:00

Fairbanks is breaking all kinds of cold weather records this month. Lucky us! Good thing we have the beginning of the holiday season to keep our minds busy and our spirits bright. One of the things I really look forward to is my mother Ruth's cranberry salad. She always made it for Thanksgiving. I make it all year, or most of the year. I make it over and over in November and December for the holidays. I make it in January for my birthday and then in February because it is so pretty for Valentine's day. By then, I'm a little tired of it because I'm the only one in my house that will eat cranberries, I'll make it one more time in July and then I forget about it until next Thanksgiving.

The basic recipe comes from The Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer. Not the updated version of the book, but the 1931 original version. It is a tart, crunchy salad that puts that canned cranberry stuff to shame. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, but don't expect me to share mine.

Cranberry Salad
1 20oz. can crushed pineapple, drained and juice reserved
1 Tbsp. (or envelope) plain gelatin
3 Tbsp. water
2 cups cranberries
1/2 cup sugar (less or more to taste)
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup diced celery
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Drain pineapple, reserving the juice. Bloom gelatin in 3 Tbsp. water. Cook cranberries in reserved pineapple juice with water added (if needed) to equal 1 cup. Cook until the skins pop. Add sugar and cook for 5 more minutes, mixture will become syrupy. Remove from heat and add salt and gelatin. Stir until gelatin is completely melted and mixed. Let cranberry mixture cool about 20 minutes. Add celery, walnuts and drained pineapple. Refrigerate.

What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish?

November 23, 2011 Daylight 5 hours, 29 minutes, 54 seconds Current Temp. 2 ºF

Caramel Sauce and Hockey

2011-11-20T17:50:00.001-08:00

We have season tickets to University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF) hockey. My husband, my brother- -in-law and I go to every game when the Nanooks are in town. The Nanooks are a Division 1 hockey team and started the preseason year ranked 13th in the nation. "Nanook" is Inuit Eskimo for Polar Bear.

We sit right behind the side with the net. You sit with the same people every game, my husband has known most of them all his life. It's fun to catch up with what everyone is doing. Sam's son is playing football now (where did the time go?) and knows all the stats for all the hockey players, Margaret and Ed are headed to Arizona (lucky ducks) and the Roger's family is settled in for the winter, they are at every game with their UAF hockey jersey's on, yelling at the refs when they don't call a play right.

I enjoy the fast pace of the games, but I love the food available at the game. No overcooked hotdogs for me (although you can get them there), no I go for the specialty ice cream sundaes, the spicy barbeque, the fresh fruit smoothies or the caramel apples.

The Fudge Pot has a booth at every game. They sell all kinds of flavors of fudge (cranberry anyone?) and they sell caramel apples.

You can get them two ways. A regular dipped apple, plain or rolled in candy or nuts or, my favorite way, sliced with a soft, creamy caramel poured over the slices, again plain or topped with candy or nuts. I love mine plain. The caramel is warm, creamy and puddles at the bottom of the paper container. The last bites of apple are used to scrape up the caramel stuck to the bottom. They bring out the kid in you, without the sticky caramel all over your cheeks. The caramel apples will set you back $5, but trust me they are worth it once in a while. It got me to thinking about how easy caramel is to make at home and how delicious it would be to pour some warm, creamy caramel over our apple pie this Thanksgiving.

I'm big into practicing before I serve something new to people, and even though I'm pretty capable at apple pie and caramel separately, I had to practice them together before the big day. (Once I practiced wellington so many times, my husband asked for a break from meat! He only eats meat!) So, it was a cold weekend, and I practiced.

Creamy Caramel Sauce
Adapted from; Gifts from the Christmas Kitchen, 1998, Publications International, Ltd.

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

extra heavy cream to thin (optional)

Place both sugars, cream and corn syrup in a medium saucepan. Stir over low heat until mixture boils. Carefully clip candy thermometer to side of pan. (Make sure bulb is not touching bottom of pan). Cook, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes or until thermometer registers 238ºF. Immediately remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Cool about 15 minutes. Check consistency of sauce and thin with extra cream is desired. Serve warm or pour into clean glass jars and seal tightly. Store up to 6 months in refrigerator. Reheat sauce over low heat before serving. Makes about 2 cups.

My weekend was filled with caramel and hockey. What was your weekend filled with?

November 20, 2011 Current Daylight 5Hrs, 48 Min, 30 Sec. Current Temp. -28º F

Hard Spiced Apple Cider

2011-11-17T07:24:00.001-08:00

O.K., back by popular demand...(drum roll please) The Drink of the Week! I used to post this on my facebook page, but with all their "improvements" there really wasn't a good spot for it. Now that we are closer to the holiday season I'm getting requests to re-institute the drink of the week. So, here we go. I'll post next week's drink on Thursday or Friday so you have the weekend to get supplies and practice. If you sign up for emails from this site, they will automatically come to your email box and you will be set!
This week, with Thanksgiving and all the family and friends that you we will be entertaining, I chose a crisp fall drink that is light and easy to prepare in single drinks or in larger batches. I've given amounts for a single serving and for 4 servings. You can multiply as you need for the occasion.

Hard Spiced Apple Cider

Single drink:
1.5 oz spiced rum (I use Captain Morgan special reserve)
4 oz. apple cider (I used the sparkling kind, it is a holiday after all and I love bubbles)
1/2 oz simple syrup
1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
cinnamon or cinnamon-sugar for garnish

Fill shaker with ice, add all ingredients except cinnamon, shake (or stir if sparkling apple cider), strain into martini glass, top with a sprinkling of cinnamon. (Optional, rub rim of glass with damp, clean sponge, dip rim in cinnamon sugar mixture.

Pitcher for four drinks:
6 oz. spiced rum
2 cups apple cider
2 oz. simple syrup
2 Tbsp. lime juice (or more, to taste)
cinnamon or cinnamon-sugar for garnish

Mix all ingredients except cinnamon in a pitcher of ice, stir until very cold, pour into martini glasses. Garnish with cinnamon or dip rims as suggested above.

November 17, 2011 Daylight 6 hours, 7 minutes, 37 seconds Current Temperature -39º F

Molasses Spice Cookies

2011-11-15T20:02:00.001-08:00

Itis really starting to get cold, -35º F (below zero) is expected byWednesday, and it is getting close to the holidays so those two thingsalways turn my thoughts to cookies. My grandma Stejer was a big baker,she sent boxes of cookies to us for years. I even have pictures of oneof my sons (now 23) eating Grandma's cookies in his blue footie pajamaswhen he was 2. I love the memory of someone caring for us so much,they went to the trouble of baking and sending cookies so we couldenjoy them. I hope I do that enough for my boys.
Grandma Stejer holding my mom on the Montana Ranch (about 1938).

Iloved the sugar cookies with the frosting, nothing is too sweet forme! Grandma always sent these molasses cookies and I always turned mynose up to them. Give me chocolate chip, sugar cookies or those ballsof cookies coated in powdered sugar. YUM!
Luckily, I grew up (inspite of all the sugar) and so did my taste buds. Now don't get mewrong, if you want to send me a box of frosted sugar cookies orchocolate chip, I'll happily take care of them for you, but now I dolove a spicy molasses cookie. Just the smell of them in my housereminds me of my Grandma and all the warm feelings of the holidays.
Thesemolasses cookies are especially good. The spiciness of the ginger,cinnamon and cloves gives the whole house a wonderful aroma when theybake. I make them with a #40 scoop and they are big enough that onewill be enough, but not too big that you can't manage two. They arecrispy on the edges and chewy in the centers. A perfect cookie tostart the cookie season off to a spicy start.
My Grandma would be proud.

Molasses Spice Cookies
adapted from Perfect Cookies 2008, Fog City Press

1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temp.
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses

2 tsp. orange zest
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground giner
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp. salt
sugar for coating

In a large bowl, combine the shortening, butter and brownsugar. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat until the mixtureis light and fluffy. Add the egg, molasses and orange zest and beatuntil blended.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, ginder,cinnamon, cloves and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to theshortening mixture and mix on low speed just until blended. Cover andrefrigeratie the dough until it is firm, at last 1 hour or up toovernight.

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Lightly grease 2 cookie sheets. Pour some sugar for coating into a shallow bowl.

With dampened hands, shape the dough into 1 1/4 inch balls; youshould have about 30 balls. Roll each ball in sugar to coat evenly. Arrange the sugar-coated balls on the prepared cookie sheets, spacingthem about 2 inches apart.

Bake until the cookies are pale golden and cracked on top, about12 minutes; the cookies will still be soft. Let the cookies cool onthe cookie sheets on wire racks for about 1 minute. Use a spatula totransfer the cookies to the wire racks to cool completely. Store in anairtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

November 15, 2011 Daylight 6 hours, 20minutes, 33 seconds Current temperature -28º F

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

2011-11-13T17:50:00.001-08:00

One of the joys of frozen roasted tomatoes and garlic is how easy this dish becomes. It is warm, satisfying and quick. You can make it with canned tomatoes, and once my roasted tomatoes from my green house are gone that is what I'll do, but there is something very satisfying to me to pull together a meal with products we grew, caught or hunted ourselves.
This recipe comes from Ellie Krieger's The Food You Crave, I don't think we have tried anything from that book we didn't like. I like to serve it with brown rice and a crusty baguette, hot from the oven. It is truly comfort food at it's finest.

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta
adapted from Ellie Krieger The Food You Crave

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
One 28 oz. container of roasted tomatoes and garlic (you can substitute 2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes and 2 cloves of garlic minced)
1/4 cup finely minced fresh flat leaf parsley
1 1/4 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 3 ounces)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat the oil in an oven proof skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the roasted tomatoes and garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until the tomato juices thicken.

Remove from the heat. Stir in the shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the feta over the top. Bake until the shrimp are cooked through and cheese melts, about 12 minutes. Top with parsley and serve with brown rice or orzo.
November 12, 2011 Daylight 6 hours, 33 minutes, 39seconds Current Temp. 7º F

Carrot, Apple and Mint Salad

2011-11-12T08:56:00.001-08:00

Our building does a soup lunch once a week. Different people are assigned to bring soup each week and we all enjoy a warm lunch, some socializing, and a new soup. We each bring soup two times during 6 months and we have soup lunch once a week for most of the winter. The suite that my office is in is bringing soup and I am bringing some support, in the form of carrot, apple and mint salad. This recipe comes from Ellie Krieger's book, The Food You Crave. It is a deliciously sweet, crunchy and tart salad that really satisfies.
I used carrots from our garden and shredded them with the food processor. Don't be tempted to make this with pre-shredded carrots, they are dry and tasteless. If you don't have a food processor it is really worth the trouble of grating them yourself. Also, be sure to keep the peel on your apple, the color is beautiful.

Carrot, Apple and Mint Salad
Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave

Ingredients

1/3 cup plain nonfat yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
1 pound carrots, peeled and trimmed
1 Granny Smith apple, cored
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh mint leaves
Salt

Directions

Fold a full sheet of paper towel into quarters and place it in a small bowl. Spoon the yogurt on top of the paper towel. Place it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes so the yogurt can drain and thicken.

In a small bowl whisk together the thickened yogurt and the mayonnaise, until smooth. Whisk in the lemon juice, vinegar, and honey.
Grate first the carrots and then the apples in a food processor. Transfer them to a large bowl and stir to combine. Pour the dressing over the carrot mixture and toss. Add the mint and season with salt.
Serve chilled.

November 12, 2011 Daylight 6 hours, 40 min., 14 sec. Current Temp. 9º F

Whole Wheat, Millet and Dried Fruit Bread

2011-11-10T22:23:00.001-08:00

Ilove bread. I love mixing it, kneading it, baking it, smelling it andeating it. Again, I love bread. This is one of my favorite breads. It comes from the book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day byJeff Hertzberg, M.D. and Zoe Francois (2009). I love the book, but Ido want to say there is nothing 5 minutes a day about it. Their ideais that it takes 5 minutes of active time, however, don't thinkyou can get home from work, spend 5 minutes and have it in and out ofthe oven in time for dinner. It takes a good 90 minutes to rise andthen 40 minutes to bake, that is after you've mixed it and let it risefor 2 hours and sit in the fridge for 24 hours.
Now, don't let myrambling scare you off from this recipe. It is great to put togetheron a Saturday and then bake on Sunday, and Monday, and Tuesday, andWednesday. It makes 4 loaves ( I usually bake two at a time). You canhalf the recipe, but trust me you will want all four. The idea is youmix together a batch of dough and it lasts in the fridge for 7 days,and some recipes in the book up to 2 weeks.
This loaf is a densewhole wheat loaf with millet and dried fruit. I change up the driedfruit depending on what I have in my pantry and that depends on what ison sale. I love this toasted and a smear of cream cheese sends it overthe top. Did I say this was so good?
The directions arelong, but really it doesn't take that much time to put together, thelong part is giving it the time to raise.

Toasted Millet and Fruit Bread:
adapted from Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day, Jeff Hertzberg, M.D. and Zoe Francois (2009)
Makes enough dough for at least five 1-pound loaves. This recipe is easily doubled or halved.

1 cup millet
4 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. granulated yeast, or 2 packets
1 1/2 Tbsp. kosher salt
1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
3 3/4 cups lukewarm water
3 cups mixed dried fruit (I used cranberries, cherries, apricots, and dates)

1. Mixing and storing the dough: Before mixing, toast the millet in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring and shaking constantlyuntil it turns golden brown. Whisk together millet, flours, brownsugar, yeast, salt and vital wheat gluten in a 5 quart bowl, or alidded (not airtight) food container.

2. Add the water and fruit and mix without kneading, using a spoon, a 14cup food processor (with dough attachment), or heavy-duty stand mixer(with paddle). You might need to use wet hands to get the last bit offlour to incorporate if you're not using a machine.

3.Cover (not airtight), and allow the dough to rest at room temperatureuntil it rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2hours.

4. The dough must be refrigerated for at least24 hours before use. Refrigerate it in a lidded (not airtight)container and use over the next 7 days.

5. On bakingday, dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flower and cut offa 1-pound (grapefruit size) piece. Dust with more flour and quicklyshape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around tothe bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarte-turn as yougo. Because of the millet and drid fruit the loaf will never beperfectly smooth.

6. Elongate the ball into a narrowoval. Allow the loaf to rest, loosely covered with plastic wrap, on apizza peel prepared with flour or lined with parchment paper for 90minutes. I use a non sided cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal toaid in sliding.

7. Thirty minutes before baking time, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. witha baking stone placed on the middle rack. Place an empty metal broilertray on any other rack that won't interfere with the rising bread.

8. Just before baking, use a pasty brush to paint the top with water. Slash the top with 1/4 inch deep parallel cuts, using a serrated breadknife.

9. Slide the loaf directly onto the hot stone(or slide the parchment paper and dough onto the stone). Pour 1 cuphot tap water into the broiler tray and quickly close the oven door. Bake about 40 minutes until richly browned and firm. If you useparchment paper, you want to peel it off about 2/3 of the way throughbaking.

10. Allow to cool before slicing, if you can. I always mangle the first loaf because I can't wait for it to cool enough.

Thisbook and the first book by these two authors are great books if youlike bread. There is a recipe for a pumpkin pie brioche that I make forThanksgiving dinner, and a whole wheat baguette we eat almost everyweek. I have both books and use them about once a week.

November 10 Daylight 6 hours, 53minutes, 29seconds current temp. 18ºF

New Wood Stove

2011-11-09T20:23:00.000-08:00

We use our wood stove every day in the winter. If the summer is too cool, we'll have a fire in the evenings. When I get up in the morning, I build a fire, Dave keeps it going by stopping by at lunch and refilling the stove, then when we get home we add more wood and get the embers going again. We load the stove one more time before we go to bed and usually it goes out sometime during the night. So the process starts all over in the morning. This is really unfair, I'll have you know, because I get up first, the house is cold and I build the fire. By the time Dave is up, the house is glowing warmly. I will say, he carries the wood in every day, not a fun job, so I'll stop whining.
Well, this stove was in the house when we moved in, we used it for 10 years and then it was time to replace it. We purchased one of those energy efficient models that got us a tax break, is better for the air, and keeps us toasty on less wood. It was a job to change out the stove.

We unhooked the stovepipe and took the top soapstone tiles off, then moved the old stove. It took 3 men to move it and even then there were a lot of groans and complaints.

We cleaned up the area and got everything ready for the new stove.

We moved the new stove into it's place, again, 3 men, lots of groaning and complaining. It is cast iron and extremely heavy.

So the new stove is in, it is nice and warm, just in time for the colder month coming and a table next to it makes a nice place to raise bread!

November 9, 2011 Daylight 7 hrs., 0 min., 9 sec. Current temp. 10º F.

Sweet and Spicy Smoked Salmon

2011-11-07T21:26:00.000-08:00

Smoked Salmon

My brother-in-law went fishing on the Kenai River this summer and brought home his limit of beautiful Kenai River Reds (sockeye). I have enough to keep me in salmon for the winter. My husband, on the other hand, really won't eat it. He said he ate more than his share growing up. There is one way he will eat it - smoked. I am amazed every time I make this, it is so easy.

My brother-in-law had all the fish filleted and vacuumed sealed in packages. They are beautiful. You can see the little pile of bones in the top right hand side of the picture. It is so important to take the 3 minutes it takes to pull those bones, you don't want anyone to get one caught in their throat!

Grab a pair of tweezers and pull them out one at a time, they are all in a row and you can feel them with your finger if you can't see them. In this fillet, the bones are easy to see and they were easy to pull.

Just a quick brine, you don't want to brine fish too long. Put it in the brine and then refrigerate.

Next is a hot smoke in the smoker (that part is Dave's job). During the smoking process I sweep a sweet and spicy baste on the fish and it is wonderful! I have smoked this in a cold smoker and then cooked it, but Dave has a hot smoker so it is all done in one step. It is a quick process 2 hours to brine, half an hour to dry out a little and we smoke for 2 hours, you can do it longer or shorter, depends on your smoky level preference.

I use this smoked fish to mix with a cream cheese to make a smooth dip, crumble and toss on pasta, but my favorite way to eat it is just as is, maybe with some crackers. I have made this for over 20 years and never get tired of it.

Sweet and Spicy Smoked Salmon:
Salmon Fillets
3 quarts cold water
1 1/2 c salt
3/4 c packed brown sugar
1 1/2 c granulated sugar
1Tbsp. whole white peppercorns
6 bay leaves
1 1/2 tsp. each whole allspice and whole cloves
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 cloves garlic peeled and split
Stir water through garlic well until sugar and salt dissolve. Add fish and put in refrigerator for 2 hours. Rinse fish, rub gently to remove salt. Blot dry and let stand at room temp. 30 minutes until flesh feels tacky.

Put in smoker and brush with:
1/3 c. maple syrup
1 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8-1/4 tsp. ground cayenne (optional)
brush every 20-30 minutes until gone.

November 7, Daylight 7 hours, 13 minutes, 30 sec. Current Temperature 11º F.

Roasted Tomatoes

2011-11-04T12:40:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty cool (as in cold, not as in awesome) summer in Fairbanks. I have a greenhouse for tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers, but we didn't get that many red ones this year. We did, however, get a boxful of green tomatoes. I put them in a xerox box with a couple of bananas and forgot about them in the extra room. A month later my husband remembered them. Most were ripe and ready to go, a few a little too ripe and we got rid of those. Two people cannot eat a box of tomatoes in any reasonable way or time frame. Dave did make wonderful salsa, we ate tomatoes on toast, tomatoes on our sandwiches, tomatoes at dinner and then I roasted the rest. I freeze them and then use them for tomato soup, tomato sauce and chopped and tossed into pasta or any other dish that calls for diced tomatoes.

I usually just quarter or eighth them an cut off any bad spots, lay them out on a sheet pan with some cloves of garlic and add a little olive oil and toss.

Then I roast them in 400 degree F oven for about 35-45 minutes. Let cool a little, peel the garlic and toss in freezer containers. They are wonderful right out of the oven on french bread or toast. And they freeze beautifully.

Hope springs eternal, and I'm dreaming of next year when we will have a warmer summer and more fresh red tomatoes to look forward to.

November 4, 2011 Daylight 7hrs., 33min., 37 sec. current temp. 20 above F!

My tiny kitchen

2011-11-03T15:42:00.000-07:00

The beginning...

2011-11-03T13:59:00.000-07:00

How do you introduce yourself to someone you've never seen, and probably won't? And what drives us to post, picture and share a part of our lives with anyone who wants to take a peek? I can't really answer those questions and yet, here I go.

We live in Fairbanks, Alaska. My husband was born and raised here, I moved here full time in 1981, before that I spent every summer here as a kid. Fairbanks is a wonderful community and we do love it, but our kids are grown and three of the five have moved out of state, and the winters are very dark and cold. So, I really need to stay busy to keep away from "cabin fever" and driving my husband crazy too. I love to cook, esp. bake and thought a baking blog would be something I could do and learn a few things...about cooking, about photography (don't hold these first pictures against me, I'm trying to learn). I'd like to share the unique life we have in Fairbanks, show you what our reality is like and cook my way through this long winter that just started.

November 3, 2011 Daylight 7 hrs, 40 min, 21 sec. Current temp. -5 F