A few months ago I found myself with quite a few vanilla beans. This usually happens in the holiday seasons when Costco is selling them in 10-packs. I decided it was time to learn how to make Vanilla Extract. It turned out to be easy. One of the advantages of making it yourself is not having additional preservatives, sugar, or other chemicals.
To make it at home, you need a tightly-closing bottle that holds about a cup of liquid, and is clean without other scents.
Vanilla Extract
5-Whole Vanilla Beans
1-Cup (approximate) Vodka or Bourbon
Split the vanilla beans lengthwise, leaving about an inch at the end uncut. Place the beans into the bottle. Fill the bottle with the vodka or bourbon. Seal the bottle tightly and place it in a cool, dark place for six weeks, shaking the bottle twice a week or so to mix it up.
That's it. If you top off the bottle as you use it, it can last quite a bit longer than you might expect.
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
New Fried Chicken Recipe
Folks-
A few months ago, a newspaper published what they believed to be the original recipe for "Colonel" Sanders' Kentucky Fried Chicken. I tried it, and, you guessed it, changed it. In some ways, this is just a tad easier.
I guess I'll call it "Edly Fried Chicken."
Edly Fried Chicken
2-Cups Flour
2/3-Tsp Salt
1-1/2-Tsp Italian Seasonings
1-Tsp Celery Salt
1-Tsp Black Pepper
1-Tsp Dried Mustard
4-Tsp Paprika
2-Tsp Garlic Salt
1-Tsp Ground Ginger
3-Tsp White Pepper
1-Tsp Turmeric
1/2-Tsp Chili Powder
1/2-Tsp Garlic Powder
1-Tsp Chicken Bouillon
3-Eggs
2-Tbsp Milk
Chicken cut into parts
Enough cooking oil to fill a large frying pan 1/2" deep
Beat the eggs and milk together. Throw all of the dry ingredients into a gallon-sized plastic bag and shake them together until they are thoroughly mixed. Rinse and pat dry the chicken parts. Throw the chicken parts a couple at a time into the bag, and shake it to coat them. After coating the chicken parts in the dry ingredients, dredge them through the egg mixture, recoat them in the dry mixture, and set them aside for at least a half-hour in the refrigerator. Once the chicken parts look like they are coated in batter instead of powder, fry them at medium heat in a large skillet with at least a half-inch of oil in the bottom. Turn them over after at least twenty minutes and continue to fry until all pieces reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
Note: Omit the chili powder, garlic powder, turmeric, and powdered chicken bouillon to essentially copy the KFC recipe. For an even more faithful version, use 1/2 Tsp Thyme, 1/2 Tsp Basil, and 1/3 Tsp Oregano instead of Italian Seasonings, and add about 1 Tsp MSG for the modern version.
A few months ago, a newspaper published what they believed to be the original recipe for "Colonel" Sanders' Kentucky Fried Chicken. I tried it, and, you guessed it, changed it. In some ways, this is just a tad easier.
I guess I'll call it "Edly Fried Chicken."
Edly Fried Chicken
2-Cups Flour
2/3-Tsp Salt
1-1/2-Tsp Italian Seasonings
1-Tsp Celery Salt
1-Tsp Black Pepper
1-Tsp Dried Mustard
4-Tsp Paprika
2-Tsp Garlic Salt
1-Tsp Ground Ginger
3-Tsp White Pepper
1-Tsp Turmeric
1/2-Tsp Chili Powder
1/2-Tsp Garlic Powder
1-Tsp Chicken Bouillon
3-Eggs
2-Tbsp Milk
Chicken cut into parts
Enough cooking oil to fill a large frying pan 1/2" deep
Beat the eggs and milk together. Throw all of the dry ingredients into a gallon-sized plastic bag and shake them together until they are thoroughly mixed. Rinse and pat dry the chicken parts. Throw the chicken parts a couple at a time into the bag, and shake it to coat them. After coating the chicken parts in the dry ingredients, dredge them through the egg mixture, recoat them in the dry mixture, and set them aside for at least a half-hour in the refrigerator. Once the chicken parts look like they are coated in batter instead of powder, fry them at medium heat in a large skillet with at least a half-inch of oil in the bottom. Turn them over after at least twenty minutes and continue to fry until all pieces reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
Note: Omit the chili powder, garlic powder, turmeric, and powdered chicken bouillon to essentially copy the KFC recipe. For an even more faithful version, use 1/2 Tsp Thyme, 1/2 Tsp Basil, and 1/3 Tsp Oregano instead of Italian Seasonings, and add about 1 Tsp MSG for the modern version.
French Silk Pie
I know, I must have lost my mind posting another recipe so soon after putting my Lasagna recipe up. But today is Pi Day (March 14th, or 3.14.) My daughter asked me to make a pie for it, so I looked up my French Silk Pie recipe, and realized I don't have it online. I decided I needed to fix that.
Really, this is a three-recipe dessert: Crust, filling, and topping. You can use my mom's Fool Proof Pie Crust recipe, or a Graham Cracker crust, for it. I'm going to include a whipped cream topping recipe that has the advantage of never separating.
My daughter is trying to make a peanut butter pie filling to put in the bottom of the pie. I'll try to let you know how that goes later.
Please note, you will definitely want a sturdy powered stand mixer for this recipe, such as a KitchenAid. You can't mix this by hand in any meaningful way, and cheaper plastic-body or hand-held mixers can't stand up to the roughly 25 minutes of continual use this recipe calls for. I actually melted the case of the first stand mixer I tried to use for this recipe!
For now, here's the French Silk Pie recipe, shockingly unmodified.
French Silk Pie
1-Cooked and cooled pie crust or Graham Cracker pie crust
1-2 Cups Whipped Cream Topping (see below recipe for a good version)
3 oz Unsweetened Baking Chocolate
3/4 Cup Softened Butter
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
4 Large Very Fresh Eggs
Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler or microwave oven; cool, but make sure it is still a liquid (roughly 97 degrees.) In a sturdy mixers bowl, cream the butter, then add the sugar and vanilla. Beat well for about five minutes. Add the melted chocolate and mix it in well. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing at a medium speed for five minutes for each, and scraping the bowl down between each egg. Do not try to rush this. It will take at least 25 minutes of mixing to do it right. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie crust and top with the whipped topping (recipe follows.)
Whipped Cream Topping
1-Tsp Unflavored Gelatin
2-Tbsp Cold Water
2-Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2-Cup Powdered Sugar
2-Tsp Vanilla Extract
Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small heatproof bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Place the bowl in a shallow saucepan of water and heat over low heat until the gelatin dissolves. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the cream. In a large mixer bowl, combine the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat well until the mixture holds its shape. Add the reserved cream to the gelatin and quickly mix it into the whipped cream. Beat until stiff peaks form.
Really, this is a three-recipe dessert: Crust, filling, and topping. You can use my mom's Fool Proof Pie Crust recipe, or a Graham Cracker crust, for it. I'm going to include a whipped cream topping recipe that has the advantage of never separating.
My daughter is trying to make a peanut butter pie filling to put in the bottom of the pie. I'll try to let you know how that goes later.
Please note, you will definitely want a sturdy powered stand mixer for this recipe, such as a KitchenAid. You can't mix this by hand in any meaningful way, and cheaper plastic-body or hand-held mixers can't stand up to the roughly 25 minutes of continual use this recipe calls for. I actually melted the case of the first stand mixer I tried to use for this recipe!
For now, here's the French Silk Pie recipe, shockingly unmodified.
French Silk Pie
1-Cooked and cooled pie crust or Graham Cracker pie crust
1-2 Cups Whipped Cream Topping (see below recipe for a good version)
3 oz Unsweetened Baking Chocolate
3/4 Cup Softened Butter
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
4 Large Very Fresh Eggs
Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler or microwave oven; cool, but make sure it is still a liquid (roughly 97 degrees.) In a sturdy mixers bowl, cream the butter, then add the sugar and vanilla. Beat well for about five minutes. Add the melted chocolate and mix it in well. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing at a medium speed for five minutes for each, and scraping the bowl down between each egg. Do not try to rush this. It will take at least 25 minutes of mixing to do it right. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie crust and top with the whipped topping (recipe follows.)
Whipped Cream Topping
1-Tsp Unflavored Gelatin
2-Tbsp Cold Water
2-Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2-Cup Powdered Sugar
2-Tsp Vanilla Extract
Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a small heatproof bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Place the bowl in a shallow saucepan of water and heat over low heat until the gelatin dissolves. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the cream. In a large mixer bowl, combine the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat well until the mixture holds its shape. Add the reserved cream to the gelatin and quickly mix it into the whipped cream. Beat until stiff peaks form.
Monday, March 13, 2017
Ed's Modified But Still Extra Easy Meat Lasagna
I find it a bit surprising that I have not yet posted a lasagna recipe, but that might be a result of never learning how to make one from my dad. I still need to learn his recipe. Until then, I've found an "Extra Easy Lasagna" recipe from myrecipes.com, and, of course, modified it.
You expected that, I'm sure.
Here's my version:
Ed's Modified But Still Extra Easy Meat Lasagna Recipe
24 oz. Sausage
2-24oz Cans or Jars Spaghetti Sauce (see note)
9 Uncooked Lasagna Noodles (regular or whole wheat)
1-15oz Container Ricotta Cheese
3 Cups grated Mozzarella or Italian Cheese
1/3 Cup Hot Water
Crumble and brown sausage in a large skillet while pre-heating the oven to 375 degrees. Drain off the fat, and stir in both containers of spaghetti sauce. Cover the bottom of a large casserole dish with about a quarter of the meat and sauce mixture, then layer three of the uncooked noodles on it. Spread about a quarter of the Ricotta cheese thinly on top of the noodles, and then layer about a half-cup of shredded cheese on it. Repeat layering with meat sauce, noodles, and cheeses, twice, retaining at least a cup of shredded cheese for later. Pour the hot water around the edge of the noodles. Tightly cover the dish with two layers of aluminum foil. Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes (until hot in the center). Uncover the Lasagna, cover with the remaining shredded cheese, and return to the oven for 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Note on Spaghetti Sauce selection: I recommend using two different sauces in this recipe, but be careful about which. Four cheese may clash with the Ricotta, meat may clash with the sausage. Traditional should go fine, as will tomato and basil, chunky garden style, and many others. You may even want to try this recipe with some kinds of Alfredo sauce and let me know how it comes out!
You expected that, I'm sure.
Here's my version:
Ed's Modified But Still Extra Easy Meat Lasagna Recipe
24 oz. Sausage
2-24oz Cans or Jars Spaghetti Sauce (see note)
9 Uncooked Lasagna Noodles (regular or whole wheat)
1-15oz Container Ricotta Cheese
3 Cups grated Mozzarella or Italian Cheese
1/3 Cup Hot Water
Crumble and brown sausage in a large skillet while pre-heating the oven to 375 degrees. Drain off the fat, and stir in both containers of spaghetti sauce. Cover the bottom of a large casserole dish with about a quarter of the meat and sauce mixture, then layer three of the uncooked noodles on it. Spread about a quarter of the Ricotta cheese thinly on top of the noodles, and then layer about a half-cup of shredded cheese on it. Repeat layering with meat sauce, noodles, and cheeses, twice, retaining at least a cup of shredded cheese for later. Pour the hot water around the edge of the noodles. Tightly cover the dish with two layers of aluminum foil. Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes (until hot in the center). Uncover the Lasagna, cover with the remaining shredded cheese, and return to the oven for 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Note on Spaghetti Sauce selection: I recommend using two different sauces in this recipe, but be careful about which. Four cheese may clash with the Ricotta, meat may clash with the sausage. Traditional should go fine, as will tomato and basil, chunky garden style, and many others. You may even want to try this recipe with some kinds of Alfredo sauce and let me know how it comes out!
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