Monthly Archives: September 2011

The good, the bad and the great green tomato

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I’ve been up and down and all around with the good, the bad and the great green tomato.

I’ll begin with the good news. I spent a lovely weekend at Fall Mushroom Camp, hiking through the peaceful woods on the White Earth Indian Reservation by day and gazing up at a black sky illuminated with millions of sparkling, bright stars at night. The 3rd Annual Fall Mushroom Camp was sponsored by White Earth Tribal & Community College Extension Service. Experienced mushroom gatherers taught our group of 25 campers where to look for bright orange lobster mushrooms, honey mushrooms, chicken-of-the-woods and shaggy manes and specific detailed characteristics to help us identify each kind. My hiking boots put on miles as I became familiar with gills, partial veils and spore prints. The proficient foragers shared their reverence and respect for nature as they taught us how to harvest the edible fungi.

All of the meals were prepared for campers on-site by a trained chef who used the wild mushrooms we had collected from the forest in creative ways. He served up exquisite, flavorful soups, chowders and entrees. I came home late yesterday afternoon with lots of lobster mushrooms and honeys and a realization that I need a warmer sleeping bag if I am going to be sleeping in a tent with temperatures that plunge to 35 degrees at night. Brrrr. I was cold.

It was a refreshing, rejuvenating and educational weekend with not one bit of technology involved. I was totally disconnected from the electronic world. Nature was my classroom. The other campers were my friends. We talked and learned about one another without twittering. It was an amazing weekend.

Now, the bad news. On Friday, before I left for Mushroom Camp, my hard drive crashed. The people at Bemidji Communications tell me I’ve lost everything I had stored on my computer. They are not able to retrieve anything. Photos, recipes, columns — all gone. I do have an external drive that I’ve saved some of my things on, but I can’t really remember when I last did that. I’ve learned a computer lesson the hard way. I am thankful there is so much more to life than what is stored on a computer. And, lucky for me, my husband is willing to share his laptop computer with me while I wait for mine to come home from the doctor’s office.

After preparing not-too-sweet Emma’s Green Tomato Pie with a friend, I was inspired to create a more savory green tomato treat. I took the picturesque baked tart to a meeting of food professionals in the Twin Cities. I knew they would be critical taste-testers and would offer constructive feedback. I heated the baked tart in a 350-degree oven just until the cheese got soft and melted. When the rustic-looking tart was cut into small squares, it became a delectable warm appetizer. It would also make a wonderful meal when paired with a salad of fresh greens, some fruit and nuts and dressed with olive oil and vinegar.

Unfortunately, the picture I took of the Cheesy Green Tomato Tart was lost forever when my hard drive crashed. I’ll make it again soon and add a photo to this post later. You can read about Emma’s Green Tomato Pie and see that photo in my column this week. Just click here.

If you’ve got green tomatoes, make this tart. Take time to walk outdoors in the sunshine. And, make this day a good one.

Cheesy Green Tomato Tart

  • 1 large onion
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 to 2 pounds green tomatoes
  • 15 Ritz crackers, ground
  • 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Eichten’ Hidden Acres Tomato Basil Gouda
  • 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Swiss cheese
  • Pastry for double crust pie
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Line 9-inch tart pan or 9-inch pie plate with pastry. Sprinkle cracker crumbs over the pastry shell. Set aside.

Peel onion and cut in half lengthwise. Slice each half. Saute sliced onion in butter over medium heat until tender.

Core clean tomatoes. Slice into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Arrange slices in a single layer over crumbs in shell. Fill in spaces with small pieces of tomato. Sprinkle 1 cup of cheese over tomatoes. Spread cooked onions over cheese. Cover onions with remaining cup of cheese. Arrange tomato slices over center of cheese layer.

Top all with lattice crust. Place pie on foil-lined baking sheet. Bake in preheated 425-degree oven for 20 minutes, until crust begins to turn golden brown. Reduce heat to 350 degrees. Continue baking for 40 minutes, or until pie is bubbling.

Tips from the cook

  • Use any soft cheese that readily melts when heated. Provolone and Monterey Jack would work well. I buy made-in-Minnesota Eichten cheeses at my local natural food co-op.
  • You can watch a very short video that will give you a view of Cheesy Green Tomato Tart as I demonstrate how to make the lattice crust over the top of the tart. Click here.

Weekend Baking: ABC, 1-2-3 Sourdough Muffins

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I’m happy to report my sourdough starter from Jan Buckner is alive and well. With time spent in a bowl on the kitchen counter and in a jar in my refrigerator, the bubbling starter has kept me busy baking.

Most recently I’ve been enjoying moist muffins filled with grated apple and blueberries. That’s the A and B. The C comes from cinnamon and coriander, giving the muffins a zesty flavor with a subtle hint of pepper.

ABC Muffins are easy to make and easy to eat. They disappear 1-2-3!

May your weekend be filled with autumn sunshine and warm ABC Muffins.

They’re great with ice cream, too.

ABC (Apple, Blueberry, Cinnamon and Coriander) Sourdough Muffins

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup bubbling sourdough starter
  • 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
  • 1/2 cup grated apple

Topping:

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/3 cup chilled butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin tin or prepare with paper liners.

Sift flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, coriander and sugar into mixing bowl. In another bowl, lightly beat egg with fork. Add oil and blend. Add sourdough starter and stir to blend.

Pour sourdough mixture into bowl of dry ingredients. Stir to blend. Gently fold in grated apple and blueberries. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

Mix Topping by combining flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in bowl. Cut butter into small chunks and add to ingredients in bowl. Use fingers to work butter into dry ingredients to create a crumbly mixture. Sprinkle Topping generously over batter in muffin tin.

Bake in preheated 400-degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick poked into center of muffin comes out completely clean. Allow muffins to cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and allow to cool completely on wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 12 muffins.

Tips from the cook

  • You won’t need all of the Topping for these muffins. Extra Topping can be stored in the freezer, ready to be sprinkled over the next batch of muffins.
  • Bake some batter in well-buttered glass custard cups. Serve with a scoop of premium vanilla bean ice cream.
  • Enjoy other sourdough recipes I’ve shared at these links:

Sourdough Pancakes

Sourdough French Bread

Janice Buckner’s Sourdough Coffee Cake

 

Slow-Baked Apple Chunks with Pecans

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Strands of my hair slashed like whips against my cheeks and my fingers were numb as I hauled kitchen tools, pans, cooking ingredients, a basket of farm-fresh produce and little vases of fresh herbs into a large tent set up on the grounds of the historic schoolhouse in Mentor, Minnesota on Friday afternoon. When I was invited to do a cooking demonstration at SistersSojourn, I visualized an early fall day of sunshine, crisp air and leaves just beginning to glimmer with autumn colors.

On the first day of the event, a gloomy sky, a cool temperature and bitter wind did not dampen my enthusiasm. Although my cooking tent was closed on three sides, the inside air was cool. Women wrapped in blankets, some wearing mittens and winter jackets, kept right on smiling as they watched me cook. We had a great time. I turned on the heater in my car for my drive back to Bemidji. I was chilled to the bone.

Saturday morning I was watching a couple of my grandchildren play soccer in Fargo. Once again, strands of my hair slashed like whips against my cheeks. More wind. Cold wind. I came prepared, though. Long undies, wool sweater, wool socks, my new wool mittens purchased from an artist at SistersSojourn in Mentor on Friday — lots of layers. After 2 1/2 hours at the soccer fields, I was chilled to the bone. But, what fun to watch my four-year-old grandson run around a short soccer field, focused on getting his foot to the ball. How exciting to watch my long-legged, 10-year-old granddaughter kick the soccer ball into the net to score.

On this wet, gloomy, cool day in Bemidji, I am tucked inside my cozy abode with a dish of warm and sweet Slow-Baked Apple Chunks sending the fragrance of fall through every room.

Apple chunks bake in apple juice or cider at a low oven temperature for an hour or more, depending on how tender you like the apples. Flavored with cinnamon and coriander, the warm apples, baked with pecan halves, make a simple and sensational topping for Honey Honey Cake. The cake recipe is in my column this week. Click here to get right to the recipe for Honey Honey Cake.

I smile as I think of the wonderful weekend I’ve had. I’m thankful to be warm and snug. I’m happy it’s apple season.

Slow-Baked Apple Chunks with Pecans

  • 2 tart apples (preferably organic)
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 cup pecan halves
  • Apple juice
  • Creme Fraiche or sweetened whipped cream and whole cinnamon sticks, for serving

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Core each apple. Cut to make 4 thick slices. Cut each slice in half to make 8 chunks. Arrange apple chunks in a single layer in a buttered, shallow glass baking dish.

In a mixing bowl, use a fork to mix brown sugar, coriander and cinnamon together. Add butter. Use the same fork or your clean fingers to blend the butter into the brown sugar mixture. Sprinkle the mixture over the apples in the baking dish. Top with pecan halves.

Pour apple juice into baking dish to  a depth of 1/2 inch. Bake in preheated 250-degree oven for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, basting occasionally with the juice in the dish, until they are cooked to the tenderness you prefer.

Best served fresh from the oven with milk or cream, Honey Honey Cake or premium vanilla ice cream. Slow-Baked Apple Chunks with Pecans is a delectable topping for Honey Honey Cake. Dollop with creme fraiche and serve with a cinnamon stick. Can be stored, covered, in refrigerator and reheated in oven or microwave at serving time. Makes 2 to 4 servings.

Hungarian Stuffed Peppers

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It was always this time of year when my Hungarian grandmother would set her enormous enameled pots on the table in her farmhouse kitchen. She’d pile dark green bell peppers, just picked from her large garden, in the deep kitchen sink. After a good rinse, the peppers got cut in half from stem end to blossom end. It didn’t take much time for my experienced grandmother to pull out the white membrane and seeds from each half pepper with a swipe of her fingers. With her strong hands, she mixed ground beef and pork, chopped onions and lots of paprika in a huge bowl.

“Come, Susie. Help stuff the peppers.” As a little girl, I loved pulling the stool my grandpa made up to the table so that I could reach the proper height to help my grandmother stuff the peppers.

It was that kind of happy experience with my grandma that sparked and nurtured my love for cooking, baking and eating.

I carry on the stuffed pepper tradition that was imprinted in me by my Hungarian grandmother and my Hungarian mom. When I prepare a large batch, I mix some ground pork into the meat stuffing. But for just 3 peppers, I use only a pound of ground beef.

For some reason, the ones I make just never taste quite as good as the ones prepared by my grandma and my mom.

But, still, they are a delectable meal that bring comfort and sweet memories.

You’ll find my recipe for untraditional, unstuffed peppers in my column this week. Click here to get that recipe.

 Hungarian Stuffed Peppers

  • 3 green bell peppers
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 1/3 cup uncooked rice
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 (46-ounce) bottle tomato juice
  • Flour for coating meat mixture in peppers
  • Shortening, paprika and flour to thicken gravy

Wash green peppers. Cut in half lengthwise and remove seeds and white membrane from each half. Set aside.

In large bowl, mix ground beef, rice, onion, egg, paprika and salt. Firmly pack meat mixture into pepper halves. Dip all exposed meat in flour. Place stuffed peppers in pot. Pour in tomato juice. Peppers should be completely immersed in juice. Cover pot and bring juice to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer until rice is cooked. Can also form balls of meat mixture, roll in flour and immerse in juice. People who don’t care for green peppers will appreciate the meatballs.

To thicken gravy, melt 2 or 3 tablespoons of shortening in a small pan. Add 1/2 cup chopped onion. Cook until onion is soft. Add enough paprika (about 1 tablespoon) to make mixture in pan red. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of flour. Cook and stir. Don’t let mixture get too thick. Remove pepper pot from heat. Stir in flour-paprika mixture. Return pot to heat and simmer just until gravy thickens, stirring often. Makes 6 stuffed pepper halves.

 

 

Weekend Baking: Sourdough French Bread

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When Janice Buckner sent me home with a jar of her prized sourdough starter, she made sure I was equipped with plenty of recipes that would inspire me to continue to bake with the fermenting mixture of flour and milk that she has kept alive for over 35 years. Learn more about Buckner and her sourdough starter in my previous post.

After making sourdough coffee cake and sourdough pancakes, I was ready to take on a loaf of sourdough French bread.

I felt some trepidation as I pulled my large jar of all-purpose flour from the pantry. I’ve done a lot of bread baking over the years with traditional dough that uses yeast to grow. The bread I was about to make would grow only with the power of the bubbling sourdough starter. Jan had marked the recipe as one of her favorites, but there were few directions accompanying the recipe.

The bread-making process begins by allowing a sponge of the sourdough starter blended together with flour and water to bubble at room temperature for 30 hours. Yes, that’s right — 30 hours.

After that, it’s clear sailing. Just stir in some sugar and salt and more flour before kneading the dough to a smooth, satiny finish. Unlike most yeast doughs, this sourdough will feel slightly tacky as it gets formed into a round loaf.

I baked the rotund loaf on a preheated pizza stone. If you don’t have a clay pizza stone or baking tile, just use a baking sheet. Professional bakers of sourdough French bread use ovens with jets of steam to make the crust crisp. I create steam by setting a shallow baking pan on the rack positioned under the bread as the oven preheats. Once I have the loaf in the oven, I pour water into the pan, creating steam and moisture as the bread bakes.

This sourdough French bread has a thick, crunchy crust. The inside texture is moist and chewy with a slight tang — well worth the wait!

Sourdough French Bread

  • 1 cup sourdough starter
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 cups water

Combine sourdough starter, flour and water in glass mixing bowl. Blend well. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow to sit out at room temperature for 30 hours. Sponge will be very thick and full of bubbles.

Add:

  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • Flour to make a workable consistency

Stir enough flour into the sponge to create a stiff dough. This is the time you can introduce other varieties of flour, such as whole wheat or rye, to develop different texture and flavor. The amount of flour you will need will vary with weather and the kind of flour you are using. Knead until satiny, 10 to 12 minutes, adding flour as needed.

The “feel” of this dough after kneading in the flour is different than that of most yeast doughs. It will feel slightly tacky when lightly touched. Shape dough into one large round loaf on a cornmeal-covered pizza peel, baking sheet without sides or a piece of stiff cardboard. Sprinkle top of loaf with extra flour and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise until nearly doubled in size.

Place pizza stone or a baking sheet on rack in middle of oven. Turn on oven to preheat to 400 degrees.

A few minutes before putting bread into the oven, place a shallow baking pan on the lowest rack in the oven, under the preheating pizza stone or baking sheet.

Sprinkle flour over loaf. Use very sharp paring knife or a razor blade to cut a 1/2-inch-deep X into the top of the loaf. Carefully slide the loaf onto preheated clay pizza stone or baking sheet. Pour enough water into the pan on the lowest rack to a depth of 1/4-inch.

Bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 40 to 60 minutes or until richly browned. Loaf should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom with finger. Slide loaf onto wire rack to cool. Makes 1 large round loaf.

 

Start up the sourdough for pancakes and more

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Janice Buckner, of Fargo, North Dakota, has a personality that matches the sourdough starter she has kept alive for over 35 years — it bubbles.

I know, it’s hard to believe. Who has time to monkey around with a bubbling mixture of flour and milk, giving it regular feedings and making sure it has plenty of rest time on the kitchen counter?

I had my first conversation with sourdough queen, Janice Buckner, by phone. Her voice bubbled with enthusiasm as she told me about her mysterious sour substance that has produced coffee cakes that have made her famous with friends and co-workers over the years.

Janice Buckner received her starter from a friend when she lived in Idaho. It was over 98 years old at that time. When she and her husband moved to Fargo in 1976, the beloved living organism made the long car trip sealed tightly in a jar.

Friends and co-workers of the Buckner’s have enjoyed sourdough coffee cakes studded with berries or layered with apple slices to celebrate birthdays. Sourdough English muffins have been formed, baked and packaged in the Buckner kitchen for holiday gift-giving. Sourdough French Bread is a favorite accompaniment to meals served at the Buckner’s dining table.

According to Yvonne Young Tarr in the “New York Times Bread and Soup Cookbook,” the traditional sourdough starter of pioneer lore, which gold prospectors and lumberjacks utilized for making bread rise, is merely fermented dough made by combining equal amounts of flour and milk. When placed in a glass jar or ceramic bowl for several days and kept warm, the milk’s natural organisms launch a bacterial fermentation action in the mixture. The starter will begin to bubble and sour, which you can see and smell, if all goes well. At this point the starter is ready to use. Store leftover starter in the refrigerator, covered. Be sure to restore the starter to its original volume each time you use some for baking. Add equal amounts of milk and flour to your depleted supply. Allow the starter and its added ingredients to remain overnight at room temperature to bubble and sour again.

If you want to make your own starter from scratch, pour 1 cup milk in a glass jar or ceramic bowl. Leave uncovered at room temperature for 24 hours. Blend in 1 cup all-purpose flour. Set the uncovered mixture to rest in a warm spot, but not too warm, or no fermentation will take place. About 80 degrees F. is the correct temperature. Allow to stand for several days, or until it begins to bubble and sour. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready for use. Sourdough starter improves with age, but try to use it at least once a week, and restore it to its original volume each time you use it by adding equal amounts of milk and flour.

In 1973, the folks at Sunset perfected a process for developing a sourdough starter that included a little low-fat plain yogurt mixed in with the flour and milk. After a few days of incubation, bacteria in the yogurt multiply to give typical sour smell and flavor, and the starter is ready to use. You can get instructions for the Sunset method at this link: Sourdough Starter ’73.

Sourdough starter is available in some grocery and specialty stores or online at King Arthur Flour. A live starter and a dehydrated San Francisco Sourdough starter are available at Amazon.

I met Janice Buckner at her home for a sourdough starter tutorial. She took an afternoon break from her job at State Bank & Trust to teach me all I need to know to keep a portion of her ancient starter alive.

I learned sourdough starter should be kept in a glass container. No plastic allowed. Foreign bacteria could be hiding out in the plastic, with potential to kill the sourdough starter.

It’s not uncommon for liquid to form on the top of the starter. If it is relatively clear, it is normal. Just stir it back into the starter. If is is pink or orange — done. It’s contaminated. Time to start over.

Use metal utensils when working with the starter. Keep wooden spoons and rubber spatulas in the drawer. They can breed foreign bacteria that is not good for healthy starter.

Healthy sourdough starter will be full of bubbles. When you leave it on the counter, be sure to use a glass bowl that allows plenty of room for growth.

Starter should be fed with equal amounts of flour and skim milk at least once a week. Each time you remove some of the starter to use for baking or sharing, replace it with equal amounts of flour and milk. The starter will be have a thick consistency, similar to pancake batter.

Her obsession with the fermenting concoction prompts Buckner to keep an extra jar or two of starter in the refrigerator. This allows for  a backup in case, heaven forbid, some starter dies. It also allows her to have some starter ready to share if anyone is interested. Unfortunately, she hasn’t had many takers.

She’s had many requests for her coffee cake recipe. Once the cake-lovers find out they need to have some of the sourdough starter, they quickly lose interest. One person who eagerly took a jar of the starter said, “I feel like I have a new pet!”

I’ve had my new pet for over 2 weeks. It’s still alive. I’ve made Janice Buckner’s famous sourdough coffee cake with apple slices layered over the top. You can get that recipe in my column this week.

I’ve made sourdough pancakes. They are light and fluffy with just a slight tang that pairs well with butter and honey or maple syrup.

Next up on my sourdough to-do list is Sourdough French Bread.

A whole new baking world has opened up in my kitchen. Sourdough starter is the start of many good things — as long as you keep it alive. I must keep this living beneficial bacteria-loving, bubbling fermentation alive. Janice Buckner and her husband will be moving to Maine at the end of this month. A tightly sealed jar of sourdough starter will make the long car trip to its new home.

A trip to Maine for more starter could be an option for me — but, only if I catch the sourdough starter obsession from Janice Buckner.

Sourdough Pancakes

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
  • 1 cup sourdough starter that has been sitting on counter overnight
  • 1 egg, beaten with a fork
  • Milk to thin

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt into glass mixing bowl. Use a fork to mix in oil. The mixture will be crumbly. Add sourdough starter and mix lightly. Add beaten egg and stir to blend. Add milk until mixture is proper consistency for pancakes. Pour onto lightly greased hot griddle. Cook until bubbles form on batter and edges are cooked. Flip and cook until pancakes are brown and cooked completely. Makes about 8 (5- to 6-inch) pancakes.