Hummus Recipe

Hummus

• 1 16 oz. can or 1 1/2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
• juice of one lemon or1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 cloves of garlic
• dash of cayenne

Blend in a food processor until smooth. Enjoy as a spread or dip with vegetables, warm pita chip, or toast.
 

My Favorite Corn Bread Recipe

There are many styles of cornbread. Cornbread can be sweet, it can be made with flour or without  flour, it can be rich, it can be cake-like, it can be crumbly, and on and on.

I am not a purist that claims cornbread is not "authentic" if it has sugar, if it has eggs, if it is not 100% stone ground heirloom cornmeal.

I am a Northern girl and apparently that means I am not qualified to judge what "real" cornbread is in some circles.

 My jar of bacon grease that I store in the fridge.

 With that being said I have found that I do prefer a cornbread made with bacon grease and buttermilk, without sugar and without flour, and baked in a cast iron skillet. Some would consider this the most "real" or "Southern" (those words seem to be synonyms) cornbread of all.

You can read a really interesting article about where the whole, "Cornbread should not have sugar," sentiment came from HERE.

Mr. In The Mid-West prefers his cornbread to have a little sweetness and with more bread qualities. (More like the recipe I wrote about in this post.) So,I get to enjoy this recipe all by myself. :) It makes a very yummy breakfast after Mr. In The Mid-West is off to work in the morning.

With all of the disclaimers out of the way I am going to share my favorite cornbread recipe.

No Flour Cornbread

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbs. bacon grease

Mix all ingredients, except for the bacon grease, in a bowl.

Heat oven to 425* F.

Heat bacon grease in a 8 inch cast iron skillet on stove until it is about to start smoking.

Swirl the grease around in the skillet to grease the sides. Pour grease into bowl with other ingredients, stirring as you pour.  

Mix well and pour into hot skillet.

Bake 15-20 minutes. 

Remove from oven and invert on a cooling rack to remove cornbread from skillet. Cool slightly before serving.

This recipe can easily be doubled and cooked in a 12 inch skillet.

What Is Different Is Not The Same: 009

Matthew 12:35

KJV
A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

NIV
 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.

ESV
 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.

NRSV
 The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure.

Quick Tip: Onion Flavored Bagels

I really like onion flavored bagels.

I have not been able to re-create the same onion-y flavor as you would expect from Panera's bakery. I have come pretty close and I will share my tip.

I have tried using dehydrated onion flakes. I have also tried fresh onion minced in tiny pieces. Both with unsatisfactory results.

The most success I have had is by grating the onion with a cheese grater, dipping the bagels (after they are boiled and before they're baked) into the onion juices and spooning some pureed onion bits on top.
This method produces a satisfying onion flavor in the fresh warm bagels. The flavor fades as the bagels age, though, so there is room for improvement.

.
If you know of a better way to make onion flavored bagels let me know! :)

New York Style Bagels

This bagel recipe is the best!

Other bagel recipes I have tried were all more trouble than the bagels were worth.

This recipe has it's fair share of trouble, but the bagels are worth every bit. And I mean it! :) 

They are so chewy and delicious! The crust is my favorite part. It is blistered and crisp. So good! Mmmm!

I hope you give them a try! :)

 I have made these bagels with 1 cup of whole wheat graham flour and the results were still fabulous!

I copied this recipe from Cooking Up A Story.

East Coast Style Bagel Recipe

24-hour bagels
Yield: 12 (2.5 ounces each) bagels
Oven temperature: 500ºF
courtesy of Nicole Rees and Lisa Bell

Ingredients:

Biga(aka Starter)

• 16 oz. (About 3 1/3 to 3 1/2 cups) flour
• 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
• 1 1/2 cups very warm water
• 2 tsp. barley malt syrup or dark honey or molasses

Final Dough

• 4 oz. (Almost 1 cup) flour
• 2 Tbs. very warm water
• 2 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. barley malt syrup or dark honey or molasses

Method

Day 1

1. 10:30am-12:30pm Knead together ingredients for the biga and let rise on counter, covered, in oiled bowl for 2 hours.
2. 12:30pm- 7pm Refrigerate the poolish.
3. 7:30pm-8pm Make the final dough, kneading in the remaining ingredients into the biga. Dough will be extremely firm and difficult to knead at the first, just keep at, kneading at least 10 minutes, or until dough is smooth and stretchy.
4. 8:00pm-6am Let dough rise overnight, covered, in an oiled bowl, in the refrigerator.

Day 2

1. 6am-6:30am Let the dough warm up on the counter.
2. 6:30am-6:45am Divide the dough into twelve 2 ½ ounce pieces. Form pieces into rounds by rolling with cupped palm against surface in circular motion
3. 6:45am-7am Rest the dough rounds for 10 minutes; form round into bagels by poking thumb through the center and then stretching gently with thumbs and fingers into rings. Place the bagels on a semolina-dusted baking sheet ; cover lightly with oiled plastic.
4. 7:00am-8am Let the bagels rise in a warm place 1 hour.
5. 8am-8:10am Turn on oven and preheat to 500* F. Bring a large pot filled with at least 4” of water and ½ tsp. salt to a boil. Add the bagels to pot (in 2 batches). When they rise to the top, cook for 1 minute. Turn the bagels and cook for one more minute. Remove the bagels with the round handle of a wooden spoon inserted into the holes, letting the water drip off. Return bagels to semolina-dusted pan and top with seeds as desired.
6. 8:10-8:25 Bake the bagels on a preheated pizza stone or baking sheet in the top third of oven for 14-15 minutes or until nicely browned on the tops. Repeat for remaining 6 bagels.
7. Cool on wire rack at least 30 minutes before slicing.
8. 9:30am Serve bagels with cream cheese and lox or other toppings as desired.

Reading through this recipe can make you think making these bagels is quite intimidating, at least I would. :) 

It is much easier for me to learn and understand by watching rather than reading. If you are the same way you may find this video helpful. Nicole and Lisa make the whole process look so easy!

What Is Different Is Not The Same: 008

Matthew 12:6

KJV
But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.

NIV
 I tell you that something greater than the temple is here.

ESV
I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.

NRSV
 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.

What Is Different Is Not The Same: 007

Matthew 11:23

KJV
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

NIV
And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.

ESV
 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

NRSV

And you, Capernaum,

will you be exalted to heaven?
    No, you will be brought down to Hades.

For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

Try Something New: Week Twelve

 This week we tried Boston Brown Bread for the very first time.

I have wanted to try Boston Brown Bread for a long time.
It seemed like an old-timey, old fashioned, piece of American history that I was missing out on. 

I relish learning about what people of the past lived like, what they experienced, what they ate, how they cooked, and what their daily life's involved. I had read about Boston Brown Bread being made in pioneer stories and wanted to be able to experience it for myself.  

I found a recipe for Boston Brown Bread in American Classics, a cook book by the editors of Cook's Illustrated magazine that was a wedding gift from my mother. I love the Cook's Illustrated magazine and check out a few issues from the library when I want a treat. :)

I was not sure what to expect as far as flavor goes. I thought Boston Brown Bread might be more of an acquired taste or may be just a bread you enjoyed because of the nostalgia associated with it. The ingredients were kind of an odd combination from my 21st century perspective.

 All of the recipes I have seen for Boston Brown Bread call for at least three types of flour, usually including; rye, cornmeal, and whole wheat, also a healthy dose of molasses, and raisins.

 Boston Brown Bread is chemically leavened with baking soda and buttermilk. I used kefir in the place of buttermilk because I don't have buttermilk. They are both acidic and can usually be interchanged.

Traditional Boston Brown Bread is cooked in small round coffee cans. I don't have small metal coffee cans. I was glad that the authors of the recipe that I was following did not have metal coffee cans either. :) They developed their recipe to be cooked in loaf pans covered tightly with greased aluminum foil.

 My loaf pans were a little bit larger (9x5) than the size of the loaf pans called for (8 1/2x4) so, my finished breads were not very tall.

The breads are cooked by steaming on the stove top. I had to use my water bath canning pots because they were the only pots I had that were large enough to fit my loaf pans inside.

 When the loaves were finished and still warm I had my first taste of Boston Brown Bread. It was delicious!
I was so pleasantly surprised! It is not a sweet bread like banana or zucchini bread, but the molasses does lend a subtle sweetness akin to sorghum. There are no spices that you may expect to be associated with the raisins. I felt that the raisins dotted throughout were a nice accent. The flavors from the cornmeal and rye flour were robust, but, well balanced.

 I would say that you could describe the whole over all flavor as, well balanced. So many of the ingredients could be over powering if they were aloud to be; molasses, cornmeal, raisins, rye flour, whole wheat flour, these are all strong flavors, but I felt that each one could be distinguished and, also, appreciated.

That sums up my review, now on to the recipe!

 Boston Brown Bread

2 TBS. butter, softened
1 cup cornmeal. preferably stone-ground
1 cup rye flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup raisins
2 cups kefir or buttermilk
3/4 cup molasses, preferably dark or robust

1. fold two 16 by 12-inch pieces of foil in half to yield two foil rectangles measuring 12 by 8 inches. With butter, liberally grease two 8 1/2 by 4-inch loaf pans as well as the center portion of each piece of foil.

2. Combine softened butter and all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix until well blended. Add the raisins and mix until uniformly dispersed. While mixing slowly add the kefir (or buttermilk) and molasses and mix until fully combined. Evenly divide the batter between the greased loaf pans and wrap very tightly with the buttered foil.

 3. Set each loaf pan in a large Dutch oven or a roasting pan and fill each vessel with enough water to reach halfway up the side of each loaf pan. (If your roasting pan is large enough, you may be able to fit both loaves in one pan.) 
Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to low, and cover with a lid.

 Check the water level every 30 minutes to make sure the water still reaches halfway up the sides of the loaf pans. Cook until a skewer inserted in the middle of the loaves comes out clean, about 2 hours. Carefully remove the loaves from the pans and transfer them to a cooling rack. Cool for 10 minutes. Slice and serve.
Enjoy!