Cheesy Kale Chips

 

Ingredients: 

A whole bunch of kale, preferably dinosaur kale. 

1/2 cup of nutritional yeast 

1 5-oz punch of white miso paste

4 TBSP olive oil

1/2 tsp fine salt

1 TBSP smoked garlic powder (or 2 cloves fresh garlic, crushed & minced)

1/4 cup ground (not shredded) Parmesan cheese

1 TBSP or two of water, to thin the mixture/paste

 

Instructions: 

Combine all ingredients into a large (steel?) bowl. 

Cut or tear kale leaves into chip-sized pieces. Remove thick stems. 

Add the kale to the bowl with the paste & mix thoroughly until well coated. 

Spread the coated leaves evenly on several dehydrator shelves. 

Set dehydrator to 125 degrees.

Leave for 12 - 14 hours, or until crispy. 

Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

 

 

Rhubarb Chips

I wanted to make some rhubarb chips that I could add to my cottage cheese and such in the mornings.

Ingredients:

Some rhubarb. 

Some artificial sweetener. 

Instructions:

Chop the rhubarb into tiny little cubes. 

Mix it up with the artificial sweetener, to taste. I recommend a Tupperware type thing with the lid, and shake it up. 

Spread it out on a tray in the dehydrator.

Dehydrate it for a couple of days.

Store it in a glass jar until you're ready to use it.

 it turns out that the artificial sweetener that you use makes a noticeable difference.

The one on the left, the darker one, used the sucralose sweetener. The result is a darker fruit, and more of the rhubarb taste. The one on the right uses a mix of ethritol and monk fruit. The color is lighter, and the rhubarb flavor is lighter , almost hidden underneath the sweetener. 

White Chicken Chili

Ingredients 

 
1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 large Onion, chopped
4 medium Poblano pepper, seeded, diced
2 Serrano chili peppers, seeded, minced
1 TBSP Garlic, minced
1 TBSP Chili powder
2 tsp Kosher salt, or to taste
1½ tsp Ground cumin
1 tsp Ground coriander
1 tsp Dried oregano
3 cups chicken broth, Reduced sodium
2 pounds Uncooked skinless boneless chicken breast
45 oz Canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
⅓ cup Salsa verde
2 Tbsp Fresh lime juice
⅓ cup Cilantro, minced, fresh

Instructions

1 Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onion and peppers; sauté, stirring often, until softened, about 5 to 10 minutes. 

2 Add garlic, chili powder, salt, cumin, coriander and oregano; stir and cook, 1 minute.

3 Add broth, chicken and beans; increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until chicken is cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes. 

4 Remove chicken to a plate; let rest 5 minutes and then shred with two forks.

5 Return shredded chicken to pot and stir in salsa verde, lime juice and cilantro; heat through.

• Serving size: about 1 cup

 

Comment:  Freeze any leftovers in 1-cup containers for easy, portion-controlled lunches for another time.

German Style Sourdough Bread

Stage One: the Mother.  3 or 4 hours. 

INGREDIENTS:

1 TBSP fresh sourdough starter

1/4 cup rye flour

1/4 cup lukewarm water. 

(The target ratio is 1:4:4)

INSTRUCTIONS: 

• Mix together (with a long spoon) in a pint Mason jar. Set lid on very loosely. leave in a reasonably warm space (room temperature) for 3 or 4 hours or until it doubles or triples in size. 

Stage Two: Raising. 14 or so hours. 

INGREDIENTS: 

All of the mother from above. 

1 cup rye flour. 

1 cup lukewarm water. 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

• Mix this together well in a very large mixing bowl. Cover loosely (maybe a dish towel). Let it raise for 14 hours or so. It will double in size or so. 

• IMPORTANT: After raising, take off 2 TBSP of the mix to a clear pint Mason jar, and store it in the refrigerator (up to a week) for the next bake. (Feed the starter if longer than a week or so.)

Stage Three: Third Leaven. 3 or 4 hours. 

INGREDIENTS: 

All of the above (except the starter for the next bake)

3 cups rye flour (or mix rye/spelt flour)

2 cups lukewarm water

INSTRUCTIONS: 

• Mix all together in the same large mixing bowl. Cover again for approximately 3 hours of additional raising time.

Stage Four: Bread Dough.  10 minutes mix, 10 minutes rest.

INGREDIENTS: 

All of the Third Leaven. 

4 cups rye flour (or mix of rye and other flours: spelt, whole wheat or white)

2 TBSP salt

1 cup warm water (adjust as necessary)

OPTIONAL: add flavorings. Options include: 

2 TBSP fennel seed. 

2 TBSP caraway seed. 

2 TBSP anise seed.

1 TBSP coriander seed. 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

• Mix ingredients together. Divide dough in half for two loafs. On a floured board, stretch and fold the dough (do not knead) for 10 or 15 minutes to build the gluten. Keep one side at the top; do not turn the top to the bottom. Rest the loaves, covered, for 15 - 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. 

Stage 5: Baking. An hour or more. 

• Cover a half sheet pan with parchment and dust a little flour on top. Set both loaves on baking pan. NB: if you rest the loaf with the smooth side up, then bake smooth side down, letting the folded edges of the other side shape the top of the loaf. If you rest the loaf smooth side down, then make a few interesting cuts in the top of the smooth loaf top before baking. 

Comment: Let the loaves rest a few more minutes here while the oven finishes preheating. 

Add a (metal) tray or shallow bowl of hot water to the second shelf (preferred). Alternatively, throw in a quarter cup of hot water before closing the oven door on the bread during baking.

Bake at 500 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes. After this, remove the tray of water, reduce heat to 400 degrees and bake for an additional 45 minutes or until tapping on the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow. If needed, bake an additional 10 minutes. (NB: we needed that additional 10 minutes in our kitchen.)

Remove and let rest for at least 10 or 15 minutes before slicing. 

Famous Family Meatloaf

Ingredients

2 large eggs

¾ cup milk

⅔ cup fine dry bread crumbs

¼ cup finely chopped onion

2 TBSP finely chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp salt

½ tsp dried leaf sage or 1½ tsp fresh sage, finely chopped

⅛ tsp black pepper

1½ pounds lean ground beef, lamb, or pork

¼ cup ketchup

2 TBSP packed brown sugar

1 tsp dry mustard

INSTRUCTIONS 

• In a medium bowl combine beaten eggs and milk; stir in bread crumbs, onion, parsley, salt, sage, and pepper. Add ground meat. Using clean hands, mix lightly until well-combined. Lightly pat mixture into an 8x4x2-inch loaf pan.

• Bake in a 350 degree oven for 60 to 75 minutes, or until internal temperature registers 160 degrees.  Spoon off fat.

• Combine ketchup, sugar, and mustard in a clean bowl; spread over meat. Bake for 10 minutes more. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into eight or ten slices. 

NB: This is the meatloaf from our kids' childhood. Lots of memories. Traditionally served with freshly made applesauce and freshly mashed potatoes. 

Purple Kraut Bierock

My brother introduced me to Bierock. It was good, so I had to try it out. 

I did some not insubstantial research on the subject. I guess the recipe comes from a group of Germans who lived in the mist of Russia for a century or two. 

It seems that sometimes it's made with fresh cabbage, and sometimes with sauerkraut. And I had some sauerkraut, some purple sauerkraut. 

Ingredients

    4 or 5 oz Ground beef

    3 or 4 oz Sausage 

    ½ Purple onion, thinly sliced

    2 lg Garlic cloves, minced

    ½ tsp. Smoked paprika

    Dash Cayenne (or other hot pepper) 

    ½ tsp. Cumin

    3 or 4 oz. Shredded cheese

    8 oz. Homemade sauerkraut

    2 cans Buttermilk Biscuits 8 biscuits)

    All purpose flour, as needed

Instructions

    Sauté meatf with onion, garlic, paprika, hot and cumin until browned and crumbly, about 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.  

    Drain the excess fat and allow the meat to cool. Preheat the oven to 350F, shred the cheese, drain the sauerkraut.

    Gently mix together the ground beef mixture, shredded cheese and sauerkraut in a large bowl.

    Roll out each biscuit to 6" circle on a floured surface. Moisten perimeter. Place ⅛ of the filling in the center of each biscuit and fold up the sides like a steam bun to seal. 

    Place uncooked bierocks, seam side down, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 17 - 19 minutes, or until golden. Allow the bierocks to cool on a wired baking rack for 2 - 3 minutes before consuming. Enjoy!

----

Comment: These need more seasoning. Be generous with salt & pepper, and don't be afraid of the hot pepper (but don't get carried away either). Consider doubling paprika and cumin. 

Reheat in toaster oven (modest heat) or microwave. Needs ketchup or ranch dressing or such. 

Experimenting with Fermenting

I did some pickles last month. Someone suggested I try fermenting, too. 
 
So here are my first fermenting experiments. 
 

 
Late September:  

  • (3) jars of red sauerkraut. Red because we had some red cabbages to use. Added coriander because the first recipe I consulted said to. Probably too much. 

  • (1) jar of sweet onions, with a couple of lemons squeezed in to complicate the flavor. 

Early October: 

  • (1) jar Scotch bonnet peppers

  • (1) jar lemon drop peppers, with a little bit of dried lemon peel. 

  • (1) jar cucumber spears with some pickling spices and some fresh dill. Supposedly this will make fermented dill pickles.