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Messages - andiesenji

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1516
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: November 18, 2009, 01:16:29 am »
Your scone mix sounds like a good idea andiesenji. What is your ratio for ingredients?? What are the ingredients - sugar and flour??

I use a "soft" wheat flour that has less gluten than regular flour - can be worked more without becoming tough. 

I generally make a double batch of this to keep on hand all the time.

9 cups flour (White Lily if you can find it or any very low gluten ‘soft’ wheat flour)

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

3 Tablespoons baking powder

1/2 pound butter cut into pats or cubes
                  must be cold.

Put everything into food processor and pulse until it looks like “crumbs”
(This will just fit the 14 cup Cuisinart)

Store in a tightly closed container in fridge or freezer.

To use:

For  8 large scones use:

3 cups of the mix

Add
1 large egg beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream      (you can substitute a large ripe banana for half of the cream)  If the dough is too "wet" add some rolled oats, a tablespoon at a time until the dough is firm enough to hold its shape.

Optional -  1/2 cup sultanas or dried cranberries, dried cherries or any dried fruit snipped into small pieces. 

Mix the dough just until well blended.  Do not overwork to keep scones tender.

Preheat oven to 400° F.

On a baking sheet greased or covered with baking parchment:
Dish the dough into 8 portions with a large spoon or with an ice cream scoop. 

With a silicone spatula dipped in water, flatten the scones so they are all the same thickness - keep a separation of about 1/2 inch between scones.

Place on center rack in oven and bake for 16-18 minutes, until lightly browned.

Pull parchment off baking sheet onto rack to cool or use a spatula to transfer scones if baked directly on pan. 

1517
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: November 17, 2009, 08:55:49 pm »
The stollen turned out beautifully.  The risotto was fantastic.

This morning I baked some scones - strictly "winging it"  as I need to use up my homemade scone mix, which I prepare in large batches and keep in a tub in the freezer (along with all my grains, nuts and various whole-grain flours that are subject to rancidity.  The summer temps here can get well over 110° F., and even though this is the desert, there are bugs.  Pantry moths really love the high desert. 

Anyway, about the scones...   I broke up a couple of medium bananas, added two eggs (my egg man brought me 5 dozen a few days ago) and half a cup of heavy cream - half a teaspoon of mixed spices and a handful of blanched almonds left over from the marzipan.
I mixed this at speed 7 until I no longer heard the almonds bouncing around.  I dumped in about two cups of the scone mix, closed the lid and set it to mix on the spoon setting, peeking through the top opening added more mix until I could hear the motor slowing a bit.  It took one session of 55 secs and a second session of 35 seconds.

I portioned the dough onto a baking sheet with a 6-ounce disher (ice-cream scoop) and baked them off at 400° F. for 18 minutes.

It was much easier than mixing with a Danish dough whisk, my usual process, and the scones are beautiful, very tender.

1518
Introduce Yourself / Re: Greetings from the So.Calif. "High" desert.
« on: November 17, 2009, 08:41:56 pm »
I've added an avatar - my high school graduation photo from 1956.  There have been a "few" changes.   :-))

1519
Chit Chat / Re: What did you name your TM?
« on: November 16, 2009, 06:38:18 pm »
I'm naming mine "Tuffy"  after a MG TC I owned for just short of fifty years and sold last April because it has been a few years since I had been able to drive it (bad knee, stiff clutch) it was still in beautiful condition (fully restored in 2001).

While processing certain things on Turbo, my Tuffy makes the same sound as the MG did when downshifting on a steep downgrade! 

1520
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: November 16, 2009, 06:24:32 pm »
Yes, Thermomixer, I did prepare a batch of marzipan in the Bimby while the pork mincemeat was roasting in the oven.
(Did you see my post on eG?)

The result was excellent!!  My usual marzipan batch is several times the size of the Bimby recipe but it takes me all day and is extremely labor intensive.   It gives me enough to use in all my holiday baking, chocolates and marzipan "ornaments"  but the effort also tires me so much that I have to have a day or so to rest. 
This was so easy and so rapid that from now on I am simply going to make one or two of these small batches as needed. 
Except for the time spent blanching the almonds earlier in the day and putting them into the Excalibur to dry, the entire process, measuring and all, took me less than 30 minutes.  Wow!

Today I have gathered the ingredients and am going to make the stollen from
http://www.ukthermomix.com/recshow.php?rec_id=68

So far this morning, in addition to pulling out and measuring all the stollen ingredients, I've  ground (in several batches) two pounds of granulated sugar into icing sugar to send to my daughter.  She and two of my granddaughters have an allergy to corn and can't use the commercial powdered sugar because of the cornstarch it contains.

I'm also going to chisel some chunks off a loaf of jaggery and see how well the Bimby works to grind it into a usable state.
I have a friend who brought me four hunks of the stuff last year and I have used it sparingly because of having to pound it in a mortar before using it.  Lots of work for a questionable result. 

1521
Chit Chat / Re: Thanks to all!
« on: November 15, 2009, 09:16:20 pm »
I have a suggestion which may be helpful in developing or tweaking recipes - I've used a small, inexpensive recorder/dictating micro tape recorder (hangs around my neck on a lanyard) when working on the very old recipes I am trying to modernize.
Some of the recorders have such sensitive mikes that you can place them anywhere in the room and when set for that function, will pick up anything in the room and will start and stop with voice activation. 

As I measure and go through the various prep procedures, I say what I am doing, how much, how long, what devices or utensils I am using, etc.

I then transcribe my verbal notes into a recipe format.  Occasionally I have to go back and tweak the recipe a bit here and there but with the computer it is a cinch.

I began using this method back in the late '70s, when I did everything on a typewriter and had to re-type the recipe every time I made a correction.  Things are so much easier now.   

1522
Chit Chat / Re: Oh! oh! I just want it!!!!!!
« on: November 15, 2009, 09:07:52 pm »
This is the first I am hearing about a  Carry Bag...    I do not see it listed in the "Accessories" section in my manual. 
How does someone in the U.S.A. order one?


1523
Chit Chat / Re: What are you cooking today?
« on: November 15, 2009, 09:01:59 pm »
Yesterday I did the prep and today I will be finishing and canning a batch of pork mincemeat. 
This is an old family recipe that will eventually be incorporated into a pork fruitcake, stuffing for poultry and possibly some empanadas, beggar's bags (phyllo dough) or tarts. 
This goes back a few generations in my dad's family who moved to Kentucky in the 18th century when it was still the "frontier."
The farm on which I grew up is still in the family and my cousins raise "specialty" livestock and game birds, mostly for the restaurant and hotel trade. 
They send me a ham every year for Christmas and are sending me some pheasant for Thanksgiving.  Last year, since I was hosting a dinner, they sent me a 37 pound turkey that had to be roasted in my bread oven as it didn't fit in my convection oven.  (I then had to "burn-out" the bread oven to get rid of the turkey aroma before I could use it for unflavored breads. ;D

1524
Spice Mixes / Re: Vanilla Extract - from Shayla
« on: November 14, 2009, 12:54:40 am »
Just pull the beans out, split and chop them and put them back in the jar.

I've had vanilla beans develop a sort of dusty coating but no obvious molds.  They can develop mold if kept in a moist container but I don't know if the mold might be harmful.  The alcohol has probably killed any active spores. 

I have a vacuum sealer and vac-seal the beans and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.  (I buy them in bulk from a vendor in San Francisco.)

1525
Spice Mixes / Re: Vanilla Extract - from Shayla
« on: November 13, 2009, 11:17:07 pm »
Okay, made my first batch yesterday.  I hope I did the right thing.  I split the beans and scrapped out the seeds before putting into the vodka bottle.  Looking forward to the cost savings.  How long should I leave it?  700ml bottle 12 pods.

You can begin pouring off small amounts after about two months and topping up the bottle with additional vodka if you need to use it.
For gifting, I generally don't begin drawing the liquid off and bottling until it has "aged" at least six months, longer if possible.

1526
Introduce Yourself / Re: Greetings from the So.Calif. "High" desert.
« on: November 13, 2009, 07:23:28 pm »
Good work - how did the onion go (maybe need to checkthat thread ?)

The onions turned out beautifully.   I have a guest coming for lunch and will be combining them with shaved roast beef in a flour tortilla "wrap" - served with a Waldorf salad. 

1527
Soups / Re: ENHANCED Carrot Soup
« on: November 13, 2009, 07:19:49 pm »
I prepare an almost identical soup (sans chicken) but with the addition of sorrel (a good handful of the medium-sized, still tender leaves). The lemony flavor complements the carrot and ginger and gives an extra "tang" to the soup.
I served it in mugs at our Halloween party with spicy croutons and it was one of the first things to be completely consumed - no leftovers.

Nice idea Andiesenji... I will certainly try it!

(Hey now wait a sec... I think I recognize your name  ;)  )

I have sorrel in the garden but never use it, so now I am inspired. Where we live, it grows almost all year round, self-seeding as you say and mostly a nuisance. You've inspired me to put it to better use. And I really like the idea of spicy croutons on top! I'm sure we'll be seeing some recipe posts from you very soon....  ;)

Cheers,
TMB

I use the larger leaves, with the center rib removed, to wrap little bite-sized dolmas - it is particularly good for filling with rather fatty meats.

1528
Spice Mixes / Re: Vanilla Extract - from Shayla
« on: November 13, 2009, 07:15:00 pm »
Vanilla Paste

First, split, chop and crush the beans – I use a granite mortar and pestle.

Place them in a jar and barely cover with glycerin, very good for extracting flavor from the beans.
I use a combination of - 8 Mexican, 4 Bourbon or Madagascar and 2 Tahitian - beans. The combination is because the various types have different flavor components and a blend gives a better overall taste.
Personally, I can do without the Tahitian because they are a bit too “perfumy” for my taste but some people like it.

Soak the beans in the liquid for 4-6 weeks.  Stir the mixture from time to time with a non-reactive spoon – I use one of the large “cooking” chopsticks.

Or you can use the bean with which you have made vanilla extract.

After the soaking period:
Put the beans and the liquid through a food grinder with a very fine die. I use a poppy-seed grinder as most food grinders, unless you can find one of the old ones with a nut-butter disk, won't grind finely enough. (This is a hand-cranked device, not electric.)

If you have or have access to one of the Indian stone mill grinders, it will work very well to work the mass into a smooth paste.  I borrowed one to test it (Butterfly 3-stone wet grinder) and it took 22 minutes to get 1/2 a liter to the consistency I wanted. 
Smooth but slightly runny. 

!!Do not use a blender – I've tried it and the results are not good, the fibers in the bean husks do not get chopped as fine as with the "mill."  I used my Vita-Mix, which usually does an excellent job and I still had the tiny fibers in the mass. 

Use a tablespoon or so of hot water to rinse as much of the residue from the mill as possible, add it to the paste, and spread it over the bottom of an enamelware or stainless steel skillet over very low heat stirring and folding it periodically with a silicone spatula until it has thickened to a paste consistency, i.e., when scraped off the bottom, it should stay in place, not collapse back into a puddle. Commercial pastes include thickeners but I prefer not to use them, even the "organic" ones.

Store tightly sealed in an opaque glass or porcelain jar with the least amount of "head space" - do not store in metal, plastic or in crockery containers.

I want to add that made this way, this is halal and can be used by Muslims.

1529
Spice Mixes / Re: Vanilla Extract - from Shayla
« on: November 13, 2009, 03:16:41 am »
I haven't yet converted it to the TMX.   It is fairly complicated because to smash the fine fibers in the beans, they have to be cut up and put through a poppy seed grinder as nothing else is fine enough (except for one of the Indian stone mills but I don't have one) and I still have to work the mass in a mortar with a stone pestle.  It takes a lot of time and a lot of effort.


I also meant to mention - someone inquired about alcohol-free vanilla extract.   Glycerin will work very well, as will some of the sugar alcohols (no ethanol in them)  but glycerine, as some people spell it,  will extract the flavor compounds from the vanilla beans.  They have to be chopped and crushed before combining with the glycerin and the mass gently heated  to 42° C.  Then allowed to cool and stored away from light for at least three months - six is better - shaking the jar vigorously at least every week (be sure it is well sealed)
The next step is to add 1/3 the volume purified water, shake well and then strain off the liquid into bottles.  Again, it is best to have brown or blue bottles that keep as much light as possible from the extract.
You can save the vanilla solids and add more glycerin for a second extraction but this one will take longer.  I usually just pour off some of the glycerin, then dilute it and top up the level in the jar. 

The ratio is 10 beans to a liter of food-grade glycerin.    My local health food store orders it for me in larger containers than it is usually sold retail. 

Another one that is used for commercial "alcohol-free" extracts is Xylitol. 

1530
Introduce Yourself / Re: Greetings from the So.Calif. "High" desert.
« on: November 13, 2009, 02:55:48 am »
I made a stir-fry with a small amount of beef and a package of mixed vegetables I prepped and froze in August.

I have also made onion confit, similar to a posted recipe but no raisins.  I usually cook ten pounds of onions at a time and can them but wanted to try this smaller amount.  I also did not have to set up my mandoline to slice them, which is a huge effort.

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