Pork and Apple Chili

This is a case of cooking for the blog.  I was going to make a simple pork and beans "something" to use the chops I had gotten on sale, but that isn't post-able.  So I "invented" a chili while I was at the market, then googled the idea and got new ingredients to add I hadn't thought of, but had on hand.  This happens a lot.  There are no new recipes in this world, just variations on something someone else made up.  I can't attach this to any one specific recipe.  Everyone makes chili their own way.

We'll get to the chili in a moment.  I just wanted to share the cornbread I made to go with it.  I used a round casserole with a rounded bottom.  The loaf came out looking like a flying saucer.  So cute!

OK, back to dinner.  I spent half a rainy day working on this, only to have it clear up just as the cornbread came out of the oven.  At least I got to pick a pepper off the bush, and find out they are indeed bell peppers.  From the shape, I was worried they might be hot.  I'm putting the pepper in this recipe as a jalapeño, but the bell worked fine in mine.

My friend gave me a seasoning mix from her Dove chocolate business.  The ingredients read like a mole base and I was out of chili powder, so I used that.  It worked well in this case and did not taste like chocolate.  If anyone feels inclined, add a teaspoon of cocoa powder for an unusual flavor note.

*3/4 lb pork stew meat, cut into 1" pieces
2 C low sodium chicken broth
1/2 C diced onion
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced
*1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tb chili powder
*2 small or 1 large apple, such as gala or golden delicious
1 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed, or 1/2 cup dry soaked and cooked
2 Tb brown sugar
*1/4 C apple cider vinegar
1 6 oz can tomato paste
dash cloves
salt to taste
*shredded cheese and/or cilantro, to garnish

1.  In a medium saucepan over medium heat, brown pork and onions, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.  Add pepper and garlic and cook 1 minute.  Add broth and chili powder and bring mixture to a low boil.  Lower heat to a simmer and cook until pork starts to fall apart, at least 1 hour.

2.  Dice apples (peeling optional).  Add remaining ingredients except garnishes and return to a simmer.  Cook until apples begin to soften, about 5 minutes.  Don't cook too long, or they'll lose integrity and melt into applesauce.

3.  Ladle into bowls and serve hot.

Difficulty rating  :)

Supermarket Humor

I have two good shopping related stories to share today.

The first was in the baking goods aisle.  I went to grab some flour and overheard a couple talking about buying some.  Because of specials, a 5-pound bag was 20¢ cheaper than a 2-pound.  They were standing there trying to decide if it was worth buying the 5 pounder, when they did not need quite so much for whatever they were making.

First of all, I find it funny that someone couldn't use five pounds of flour in the three or four years you have before it starts to go funny.  Mine last three months at most.  Then, the woman actually did the math on the seventy-five 1/4-cup servings that the package said it contains to come up with over 18 cups of flour!  To be fair, I've always found it funny that a 50-pound bag of sugar has the number of servings listed on it.  If you're buying a 50-pound bag of sugar, you're not counting them unless you get stuck with inventory and recipe-costing.

My other story is about marketing.  The packs above are tubes of fruit purée that have become popular. They're easy to put in a lunchbox for kids or gym bag or purse for adults.  They have recently become a hot enough item to have their own shelf at the market, and several brands make them.

But these pouches are not a new idea.  They have existed for several years… in the baby food aisle.  Exact same product, except the adult ones sometimes have yogurt.  The ingredients are nearly identical, including the level of preservatives and other ingredients you may not want to give an infant or toddler.

But here's the kicker: in the baby food aisle, these pouches are double the price - or more.  Same product, similar size.  Plus, there are more coupons available for the non-baby version.

Just a little reminder to be a smart shopper.  And it's still cheaper to poach your own fresh fruit and make purée of it in a food mill.  Just my two cents.

Orangeade

I picked a couple more fruits off the tree than I needed, and decided to make orangeade.  It's basically the same thing as lemonade, with less sugar.  Watered-down orange juice may not sound appealing, but it's very refreshing and light.  You can make it sparkling with some soda water, or into an adult drink with vodka.  You can freeze it into ice cubes to add to a punch bowl or iced tea.

I tried to edit the photo of the finished product, but it really does look too yellow.  That's mainly because one of the "oranges" I picked turned out to be a lemon.  Grafted tree.  Thought it was a Valencia.  I also cut corners and didn't soak the peel in the simple syrup.

Which brings up the subject of mixing up your citrus fruits.  Go ahead and use some lemon juice.  Or mix grapefruit into it. You just have to pay attention to how much sugar you use and adjust it for the ratio of fruits.

1 C fresh-squeezed orange juice (about 3 oranges)
3 C water
1/4 C sugar, or to taste

1.  Wash oranges and remove the peel from one.  Cut them in half and ream (or squeeze) the juice.

2.  In a small saucepan, heat the rind, sugar, and 1 C water to a light boil, so that the sugar is completely dissolved.  Allow to cool slightly, remove peel, then combine with juice and 2 C water, to make 1 quart orangeade.  Chill and serve over ice.

3.  For quicker serve: combine syrup and juice in a one-quart container, then fill the rest of the space with ice.  Shake slightly and give it a few minutes to chill, then serve over more ice.  This will be slightly stronger than the regular way to make it, but two hours faster.

Makes 1 quart, about 4 servings

Difficulty rating  π

Drunken Scones

Happy New Year.  Not sure what it is about this time of the year that makes us put alcohol in everything.  In this case, it serves the purpose of plumping up currants.  I opened a bottle of port for the cookie party and decided to put a tablespoon in with the currants to soak overnight.

Don't think you have a recipe memorized at 5am.  At some point, I realized that I had put in twice as much butter as I was supposed to for my basic scone recipe.  And I had used real butter, not margarine.  So I threw in some oatmeal to absorb it as it melted in the oven.  I eventually realized that this is the fixed version of the oatmeal currant scones that didn't come out the way I wanted them to, just with a little alcohol.

As for the "drunken" part of this recipe, it's one tablespoon (half an ounce) for eight scones.  That's less than half a teaspoon each, most of which bakes off in an oven that is hotter than twice the boiling point of water.  If you've ever had an accident with the bottle of vanilla over a bowl of cake batter, it's the same thing.

*1/4 C currants
*1 Tb port or brandy
1 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
*1/3 C rolled oats
1/4 C butter
2 tsp sugar
*1/3 C milk

1.  Several hours or the night before, pour port over currants.  Heat in microwave for 10 seconds.  Cover and set aside to let the currants plump.

2.  Preheat oven to 425º and line a sheet pan.  Get out a 2-1/2" round cookie cutter while your hands are still clean and you don't have to root through the box with dough under your nails.

3.  In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and oats.  Cut in butter until the pieces are the same size as the oatmeal.  Stir in sugar.

4.  Make a well in the middle of the flour.  Pour in milk and currants, including any unabsorbed port.  Stir to form a soft and sticky dough.  Add a tablespoon more flour if too soft to handle.

5.  Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and press 1/2" thick.  Cut out rounds, squishing together the scraps until all the dough is used.  Do not add any more flour.  Arrange scones (you should have 7 or 8) on baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly golden.  Cool on wire rack.

Difficulty rating  π

Christmas Pudding

I've made Christmas pudding once before, and really liked it, but the recipe makes an awful lot and it's usually only three of us.  Then I saw a comment on some site about making it in mason jars and realized I could do individual portions.

The last time I made it, I went strictly by the Bible's "Steamed Pudding".  This time, I went surfing for other opinions.  What I settled on was pretty close to Jamie Oliver's.  Hey, ask a British guy for a British recipe.  It's pretty much dried fruit stuck together with breadcrumbs.  I made a cake as backup in case my guests didn't like it, but they both finished theirs.  I noticed that his had some odd amounts for some ingredients and started doing the math.  It must have been converted at some point from pounds to metric, making it very easy to convert it back.  My version makes 1.5 quarts, which is slightly smaller than 1.5 liters, but it still serves 8, just slightly less in each serving.  No one is going to notice that they're having one or two fewer bites.

Since I couldn't find Golden Sauce at the last minute, I decided to make Hard Sauce and had to learn what that was.  Spiked frosting.  Really.  It does provide a wonderful creaminess if you hit a clump of ginger like I did halfway through my portion.

1 lb assorted dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, currants, apricots, blueberries, etc)
*3 Tb brandy
3/4 C chopped dates
3 Tb candied ginger, finely chopped
1/2 C butter, frozen, plus more for greasing containers
*zest of 1 orange
1 C flour
3/4 C sugar
3 C fresh breadcrumbs
*1/2 C sliced almonds or other chopped nut
1 egg, beaten
1/2 C milk

1.  If any of the fruits are larger than bite sized, like apricots, chop them smaller.  Grease one 1.5 quart domed bowl or 8 wide-mouthed pint jars with butter.  I found that the Ball brand jars greased better than the Kerr ones.  Not sure why.  Either set up steaming pots or get out a deep roasting pan for oven steaming.

2.  This step is cool.  Take the frozen stick of butter and run it through the large holes on a grater to make shredded butter.  I suppose you could use melted and cooled butter and it would work just the same.  I was just following the recipe.

3.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Stir until everything is evenly distributed and hydrated.  Either pour everything into the one bowl or pack into 8 jars.  This is the one time the metric came in handy, as I used the 200ml mark on the jars.  Cover the openings with parchment paper and screw down jar lids or tie around the rim with string.  The time I made this in a bowl, I used the press-and-seal type of plastic wrap.  That only works for stovetop steaming.  Don't put plastic wrap in the oven.

4.  Set bowl in a deep pot and fill with water almost to the rim.  Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, and cover.  Steam for 3 hours, checking water level every so often.  Alternately, set oven to 325º.  Set roasting pan on oven shelf, then add jars.  Fill pan with boiling water and bake for the same 3 hours.  Check water level frequently.  Any part of the pudding that is above the water line will come out much darker and almost burnt.

5.  You can "decant" and serve the pudding immediately, or store it in its baking container and reheat when ready to serve.  I steamed them again while we were eating dinner, but the microwave seems to do just as well.  Serve with a dollop of hard sauce on top.

Hard Sauce

1/4 C butter
3/4 C powdered sugar
1 Tb (or a bit more) brandy

1.  Whip butter until soft.  Add powdered sugar gradually and whip until fluffy.  Add brandy and whip to incorporate.  Refrigerate when not using, but allow to come to room temperature to serve.

Serves 8

Difficulty rating  :)

Magic Cookie Bars

This is what I used as the basis for my Seven Layer Bars.  My godmother brought the recipe to the cookie party, so I finally have the definitive recipe.  I see why hers are always so much more moist than mine; she puts the condensed milk on the crust, not over the top.  She also gives them more resting time.  It's a process, but she has it down.  It would probably take me two batches to perfect it.  Not today; I still have cookies in the freezer from the party.

1/2 C butter or margarine, melted
1-1/2 C crushed graham cracker crumbs
1 14oz can Sweetened Condensed milk
6 oz semisweet chocolate chips
6 oz butterscotch chips
3 oz flaked coconut
1 C chopped walnuts

1.  Preheat oven to 350º.  (325º for a glass pan)

2.  Pour melted butter into a 13" x 9" baking pan.  Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs evenly over butter.  Pour sweetened condensed milk over the crumbs.

3.  Top with chocolate and butterscotch chips and coconut.  Sprinkle walnuts on top of all.

4.  Press down gently with a glass or cup to compact the crust.  Bake for about 30 minutes, until nuts are starting to brown.

5.  Cool thoroughly before cutting.  You can slide a spatula round the sides and cut through the cooled bars but do not lift them out of the pan until they have set for several hours or overnight.  You can even keep them in the fridge until ready to cut.  Place pieces (1" x 2" would be the largest I would recommend) in liners to make them easier to stack on a serving plate or gift box.  If not refrigerated, these last two to three days.  In the fridge, you have about a week.

Difficulty rating  π

Grandmother's Oatmeal Cookies

This was a guest recipe from the cookie party.  The baker said she had a little trouble getting them off the baking sheet, so I'm suggesting the use of a silpat or parchment.  The cookies spread out a lot as they bake from so much sugar, so I don't recommend greasing the pan.

I'm not sure who the "Grandmother" is, but this recipe is not the same as the one I use for my Oatmeal Everything cookies.  These were very soft and chewy.  The raisins were especially soft from being soaked.  Santa would not be disappointed.

3 eggs, well beaten
1 C raisins
1 tsp vanilla
1 C shortening (may be part butter)
1 C brown sugar
1 C granulated sugar
2-1/2 C flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
2 C oatmeal
1/2 C chopped walnuts (optional)

1.  In a medium bowl, combine eggs, raisins, and vanilla.  Let set for one hour.

2.  Cream shortening and sugars until very light and fluffy in a large bowl.

3.  Sift together flour, salt, soda, and cinnamon.  Mix well with creamed mixture.  Blend in egg mixture.  Stir in oatmeal and walnuts; dough will be very stiff.

4.  Preheat oven to 350º and line cookie sheets with parchment or silpat.  Drop dough by the spoonful at least 2" apart.

5.  Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the middle is almost set.  Let cookies cool on the sheet for 2 min before transferring to cooling racks.

Yield varies by size of cookie, about 4 dz

Difficulty rating  π

Cookie Party!

Instead of a regular Winter Tea, I had a cookie-swapping party.  Every guest was asked to bring a plate of cookies and the recipe.  I had cards handy to make copies to take home and boxes so everyone could take an assortment with them to share with their families.  To balance the sugar a little, there were nuts and cheese out for snacking.

I made peanut butter cookies, with some turned into PB&J and others with a little chocolate ganache between them for Reeses's style.  I have a lot of ganache left over; I can make a cake and use it for the filling.  Shucks, too bad that I have to make a cake.  ;)

I had already made some gingerbread cookies to keep in the freezer, so I defrosted a plateful and put out icing and sprinkles for guests to decorate their own.  Some were precise, while others were just in it for the icing.

Some of the guests didn't quite get the concept and showed up without cookies.  However, I did get two good recipes out of the event.  You'll get those in the next two posts.  We never got around to the cute arts & crafts project with the recipe cards, but after having cookies for dinner, no one really cared.

Oyster Chowder

Oysters were super-cheap the day after Thanksgiving, so I bought a jar to make soup during my vacation.  Just two servings, since most of my lunches are being taken elsewhere.  I was at Olvera Street yesterday at lunchtime.  Somewhere under all that avocado sauce was a tamale and two taquitos. I got lucky that there was very little spice, but I was so hungry after walking halfway across downtown that I would have eaten it anyway and dealt with the asthma for the rest of the day.

My original plan had been to eat at the Grand Central Market.  When I got there, I was disappointed that it was basically an elaborate food court with very long lines.  The one grocer had nice, inexpensive produce.  I wished I needed some.  For that kind of atmosphere and inflated prices, I'd rather go to the Original Farmers' Market.

And my mountain trip was nice until I slipped twice on an icy hiking trail and got pretty bruised up.  I'm staying active so the muscles don't cramp, hence my two-mile walk from 5th Street through Chinatown and down to Olvera.

I did get good photos of the grape vines across the plaza that are almost as old as the city itself.  Oh, and coming down the mountain from my out-of-the-way, avoiding soft targets day trip, I had to pass a dozen police cars racing to the San Bernardino shooting location.  At this point, I'm just going to do what I want and hope for the best.

Where was I?  Oh right, soup.

1 large (1/2 lb) red potato
1/2 C diced onion
1 8oz jar oysters
1 C milk
1 Tb butter
1 Tb flour
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
dash cayenne pepper
*1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce

1.  Dice potato, skin on if desired, into 1/2" pieces.  In a medium saucepan, simmer potato in water until fork-tender, about 10 minutes.  Drain and leave the pieces in the colander for a bit.

2.  Melt butter in the saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion and sautée until soft, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add flour to the pan and stir until it soaks up the butter and gets pasty.

3.  Add 1/2 C milk and stir in.  Once it heats, it should thicken into a creamy consistency.  Add the rest of the milk and allow it to thicken as well.

4.  Add drained potatoes, oysters with their water, and spices.  Stir soup and allow it to come up to a simmer.  If it is too thick for your taste, add a bit of water.  Once the oysters are cooked, they are easier to break up into smaller pieces with a spoon.  That's why I didn't have you go through the drama of trying to cut them raw.  It's not as easy as it ought to be.

5.  Serve hot with a side of crackers or bread.

Serves 2

Difficulty rating  π

Vacation vs Staycation Menus

As of this moment, I am on a two-week stay-cation.  I was originally going to have visitors from out of town for the first week, but no one wanted to fly in the current world situation.  Can't blame them.

So these two weeks are all about me getting away from it all, but at home.  I'm going on day trips and doing touristy things locally (avoiding soft-target type spots when possible).  After all, I live in one of the most-visited tourist destinations on the planet.

This is also my chance to get back into proper eating habits.  As this posts, I'm at the grocery store loading up on healthy food and reasonably healthy car snacks.  Most days I'll be out at lunch time, but I can easily control breakfast, dinner, and snacking.  This is going to be like two weeks at a health spa, with long walks, lots of fluids, and a relaxed outlook on life.

This is not how I vacation when I go away.  When I go somewhere, I do get plenty of exercise from walking around attractions, but diet and sleep patterns are at the mercy of where I am.  The reason most of us lose vacation weight quickly is because half of it is water retention from salty foods.  A couple of weeks of normal eating lets the rest of it drop off.

So I'm headed up to the mountains tomorrow to play in the snow.  Probably won't need the snow chains I bought, but I'm sure I will eventually.  Then I won't have to run to the auto store at the last second for some.  I can decide at 5am that a snow day sounds like fun.