Soups are good make-ahead meals. This batch makes about three quarts of soup. I thought it tasted a bit spicy, so I may leave out the paprika and black pepper next time.
Ingredients
1 lb beef stew meat
1 qt organic vegetable or beef broth
2 14-oz cans of organic diced tomatoes
4 organic carrots, sliced
3 potatoes, diced
1 oz red wine
1/4 c unbleached white flour
1/2 c pearl barley (optional)
herbs & spices:
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 whole bay leaf
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp paprika (optional)
1/2 tsp organic granulated sugar (optional, if soup tastes acidic)
Directions
1. Combine ingredients except for flour and pearl barley in the slow cooker, starting with the chopped vegetables, followed by meat, herbs and spices.
2. Cook for 6 hours on "high".
3. (optional) In a separate pot, bring a 1.5 cups of water to boil. Add pearl barley, cover the pot and cook on low-medium for 45 minutes. Turn off heat. Fluff with a fork and add to slow cooker. Stir to distribute the pearl barley evenly throughout the soup.
Garlic Bread Sticks
Let's say that you have a bag and a half of unused hot dog buns. What to do with them? For the most part, it is just bread and not just any sort of bread. It's the kind of bread that one eats meat with. Why not add a some garlic powder and butter?
There are two ways to do this. The first is to use tin foil and bake them until the butter melts and the garlic powder gives its essence to the bread.
The second method is by stove top and is just as easy to do. First you need a flat grill pan or 10" skillet. Basically, a pan large enough to accommodate four halves of hot dog buns.
By the way, the same can be done with leftover hamburger buns too.
Ingredients
hot dog buns, halved lengthwise
unsalted butter
garlic powder
kosher salt, to taste
Directions
If your hot dog buns don't already come split in the middle, do so with a sharp knife and slather the flat sides of the buns with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder and salt.
Place butter-side down onto a hot skillet and fry until the bread is lightly golden brown. Remove from heat and eat.
There are two ways to do this. The first is to use tin foil and bake them until the butter melts and the garlic powder gives its essence to the bread.
The second method is by stove top and is just as easy to do. First you need a flat grill pan or 10" skillet. Basically, a pan large enough to accommodate four halves of hot dog buns.
By the way, the same can be done with leftover hamburger buns too.
Ingredients
hot dog buns, halved lengthwise
unsalted butter
garlic powder
kosher salt, to taste
Directions
If your hot dog buns don't already come split in the middle, do so with a sharp knife and slather the flat sides of the buns with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder and salt.
Place butter-side down onto a hot skillet and fry until the bread is lightly golden brown. Remove from heat and eat.
Mildly Spicy Cheese Sauce (for Nachos)
Ever have leftover parts of food items from a BBQ? This is one easy recipe that uses those leftover slices of bulk cheese.
Ingredients
8-10 cheddar cheese slices, thinly sliced
1/2 c half 'n half or milk
2 tbsp diced green chilies
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp cornstarch
Directions
1. Toss the cheese and cornstarch together until the cheese is evenly coated.
2. In a small nonstick pot, melt the cheese over low heat. Add 1/4 c of the dairy and stir occasionally. Add chilies and spices. Stir to blend together. Add remaining dairy. Stir until cheese has melted. Pour over nachos or serve as a cheese dip.
Herbed Focaccia Bread
This year I have been making a lot of different breads. In a 4-person household, we have already gone through more than 50# of flour this year, though not all of it from my bread making experiments. This recipe ratio and process comes from the Herbfarm Cookbook. The HerbFarm is a farm-to-table restaurant on Seattle's eastside.
Ingredients
2 cups lukewarm water (110 degrees F)
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh rosemary (two large sprigs, stems removed)
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh sage
1 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh thume
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
4 1/2 c King Arthur bread flour, plus more if kneading by hand
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
1. Add yeast to warm water and let sit for a few minutes to bloom (foam up); then add half the herb mix to it. Set aside.
2. Measure out 4.5 cups of bread flour and whisk together in a large mixing bowl with kosher salt.. Pour in yeast-herb water. From outer-to-inner, use a rubber spatula to gently combine the water and flour together. This makes a very shaggy looking dough. On a lightly floured surface, turn the dough out and knead 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic. For a warm, humid day, this dough came together surprisingly easy. Roll it into a ball and put it into a clean mixing bowl. Set a large plate on top and let it rise until doubled in volume for 1.5 hours.
3. In a separate large mixing bowl, mix together olive oil and remaining herbs. After the first rise, empty the dough into the bowl with the herbs and punch down. Let rise a second time for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with a pizza stone or tile.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pour out blob of dough from the bowl onto the parchment paper. The herbs and oil should be on the top part of the dough. Spread out the dough so that it is rectangular or oval. Use your fingers to create dimples in the dough.
5. Transfer the dough with the parchment paper to the pizza stone and bake for 25 minutes.
6. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
 |
| Herbed Focaccia Bread, fresh from the oven |
2 cups lukewarm water (110 degrees F)
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh rosemary (two large sprigs, stems removed)
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh sage
1 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh thume
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
4 1/2 c King Arthur bread flour, plus more if kneading by hand
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
1. Add yeast to warm water and let sit for a few minutes to bloom (foam up); then add half the herb mix to it. Set aside.
2. Measure out 4.5 cups of bread flour and whisk together in a large mixing bowl with kosher salt.. Pour in yeast-herb water. From outer-to-inner, use a rubber spatula to gently combine the water and flour together. This makes a very shaggy looking dough. On a lightly floured surface, turn the dough out and knead 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic. For a warm, humid day, this dough came together surprisingly easy. Roll it into a ball and put it into a clean mixing bowl. Set a large plate on top and let it rise until doubled in volume for 1.5 hours.
3. In a separate large mixing bowl, mix together olive oil and remaining herbs. After the first rise, empty the dough into the bowl with the herbs and punch down. Let rise a second time for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with a pizza stone or tile.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pour out blob of dough from the bowl onto the parchment paper. The herbs and oil should be on the top part of the dough. Spread out the dough so that it is rectangular or oval. Use your fingers to create dimples in the dough.
5. Transfer the dough with the parchment paper to the pizza stone and bake for 25 minutes.
6. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
Kale Chips, the easier way
Nearly year-round, both Trader Joe's and Costco carry bags of pre-washed, ready-to-use fresh kale leaves. This takes a lot of the prep work for these chips away since all you need to do now is remove whatever stems are still attached to the leaves. By the end of summer, the stems are usually thick and woody and not terribly good for eating.
In two 5-quart mixing bowls, separate one Trader Joe's bag of fresh kale leaves into equal portions. With each bowl, you'll be able to spread the leaves in a single layer across two 17" x 11" rimmed cookie sheets.
Add a teaspoon of olive oil to each bowl and work the oil onto the leaves with your hands.
If you are going to lightly salt these, use less than 1/4 tsp of regular table salt or sea salt. A little bit of salt goes a long way. I used a Himalayan pink salt that I ground into a finer texture using a mortar and pestle. You don't have to do this. I just wanted to see what it would taste like.
Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees F oven for 9-10 minutes.
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| Fresh kale ready to be baked in the oven |
Add a teaspoon of olive oil to each bowl and work the oil onto the leaves with your hands.
If you are going to lightly salt these, use less than 1/4 tsp of regular table salt or sea salt. A little bit of salt goes a long way. I used a Himalayan pink salt that I ground into a finer texture using a mortar and pestle. You don't have to do this. I just wanted to see what it would taste like.
 |
| Kale chips, ready to eat! |
Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees F oven for 9-10 minutes.
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