Category: Recipe

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Steam boiled eggs

We have recently begun steam boiling eggs, rather than hard boiling them.  We googled it, looked at several recipes, and came up with this one.

Bring eggs to room temperature.  Bring about 1/2 inch of water in pan to a boil.  Put the steamer pan in the top.  Fill with eggs – our pan holds about 20.  Put lid on pan and reduce heat to low.  Steam for 20 minutes.  (If you are steaming only 1 layer of eggs, then 12-15 minutes should be enough.) Remove eggs from heat and put in cold water.  Sometimes we put ice in the water, but not always.  Let sit for 15 minutes.

Use any eggs you want.  Use a pencil to mark the rest HB (hard boiled).  Put in refrigerator until you want to use them.

We use ours within 5 days, so they haven’t gone bad.  Eggs are sturdy by themselves.  So I would only hard boil enough eggs that would get used in 5 days.

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Fried Rice

 

Fried Rice

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Ingredients
  

Vegetables - 3 cups that could include these:

  • 1 cup diced carrots
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels, defrosted
  • 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas. defrosted,
  • 1 1/2 cup frozen mixed vegetables, substitute for corn and peas above
  • 1/2 cup chopped scallions

Rest of the ingredients

  • 2 tbsp grapeseed, canola, peanut, or vegetable oil
  • 4 cups cold cooked rice
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, almonds, peanuts, or cashews
  • 2 tbsp minced cilantro, opt.

Instructions
 

  • Optional Step - Egg Pancake: There are several ways of adding egg to your finished fried rice. You can simply cook in the beaten egg at the end of cooking, or you can make an egg pancake. To do this, heat the pan and add 1 teaspoon of oil. Swirl in the oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add a beaten egg and tilt the wok so that the egg covers the surface like a crepe. Cook the pancake about 30 seconds to a minute until it's just set. Use a metal spatula and flip the pancake and cook for 5 seconds or until set. Cut into small strips and add to fried rice near the end of cooking.
  • Heat the pan.  Cook egg if making egg pancake. SEE ABOVE.  Otherwise,
  • Add the Carrots and Stir-Fry: Add the carrots and stir fry for 30 seconds, or until the carrots are bright orange.
  • Add the Corn and Peas and Stir-Fry: Add the corn and peas and stir fry for 1 minute.
  • Add 1 More Tablespoon Oil: Swirl the remaining tablespoon of oil into the pan.
  • Add the Rice and Scallions and Stir-Fry for 2 Minutes: Add the rice and scallions stir-fry for 2 minutes, breaking up the rice with the spatula until it is heated through.
  • Season the Rice: Season the rice with the salt and white pepper.
  • Add the Sauce: Pour the soy sauce around the edges of the wok and stir-fry.
  • Finish the Rice: Add the chopped egg pancake and pine nuts. Toss to combine. OR you can stir in 1 beaten egg. Stir-fry until the egg is no longer wet.
  • Stir in the cilantro.

Notes

Stir-Fried Rice in a 12-inch Skillet: If you are cooking in a 12-inch stainless steel skillet, halve the recipe to prevent rice from falling out of the pan.
Substituting Other Vegetables: Substitute up to 2 1/2 cups of vegetables in place of the carrots, frozen corn, and frozen peas. Leftover meat (shredded or diced small) can also be added.
Original recipe here
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Magic Quiche

 

Magic Quiche

Flour is mixed with eggs and milk.  This cooks to form a crust as it bakes. This is based on the Magic Quiche recipe found in the Le Leche League cookbook, Whole Foods for the Whole Family.
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Ingredients
  

Items in the quiche - up to 2 cups combined

  • Veggies, like onions, mushrooms, broccoli, tomatoes, scapes, potatoes
  • Meat, like cooked bacon, ground beef, or sausage; leftover chicken, pork or beef;

Cheese

  • 1 cup grated cheese

Egg mixture

  • 6 eggs
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • Salt or pepper or other herbs to taste, opt.
  • 1 1/2 cups milk or cream

Instructions
 

  • Grease pie pan.  Prepare veggies and meat.  Place in bottom of the pan.
  • Put grated cheese on top of veggies and meat.
  • Blend eggs, flour, herbs, and milk.  Pour over other ingredients. 
  • Bake at 350F for 50 minutes or until golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean.
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Creamed Chicken – A Comfort Food

This month the local cooking challenge focus is chicken.  As we sell our chickens as whole frozen birds, a lot of my chicken meals begin that way – chicken over rice or chicken over potatoes.  But usually I have leftovers, especially if I have cooked 2 chickens at the same time.  These can be made into chicken soups, chicken sandwiches, chicken salad, or chicken casseroles.

Recently I made Creamed Chicken, a recipe that I grew up with that came from the Mennonite Cookbook.  It is one of those comfort foods, warm and nourishing, good for a winter evening.

Continue reading “Creamed Chicken – A Comfort Food”

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Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

Years ago we found this recipe for Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake. It works well with fresh or frozen rhubarb. Nutmeg and rhubarb were meant for each other. This recipe demonstrates that.
After baking, this cake can be flipped upside down so that the rhubarb is on the top. OR it can be served, as is, from the pan. It doubles well. Below is my rendition of the recipe.

Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

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Ingredients
  

TOPPING (OR the part you put in the pan first)

  • 3 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb .5-.6 lb is about 2 cups
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbsp arrowroot powder or 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour or cornstarch
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg - essential!
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted

BATTER

  • 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour OR combination of whole wheat and all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg - essential!
  • 1/4 tsp salt - optional
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream optional

Instructions
 

  • Place rhubarb in a well-greased 10-in. heavy oven-proof skillet. Combine sugar, arrowroot and nutmeg; sprinkle over rhubarb. Drizzle with butter; set aside.
  • In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. Add the butter, sugar, egg and milk until well-blended. Spread over rhubarb mixture.
  • Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Loosen edges immediately and invert onto a serving dish. I put the serving dish upside down over the baking dish. Firmly holding the 2 parts together, I quickly turn them upside down. Then I let it sit a little to let the cake and rhubarb settle onto the serving dish. Sometimes I need to pull some of the rhubarb off the baking dish and on to the cake.
  • Serve warm or cold. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream, if desired. Yield: 8-10 servings.

Original recipe

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Strawberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake

Several years ago we found a recipe called Strawberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake and used it at Easter for our Easter breakfast. The original recipe has a layer of cake, a layer of strawberry rhubarb filling and another layer of cake. Not wanting to take time to make the layers, I mixed it all together. Here is the recipe with that adaptation.

Strawberry Rhubarb Coffeecake

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Ingredients
  

Fruit portion

  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 3 TBSP arrowroot powder OR 1/3 cup cornstarch
  • 2 cups chopped fresh rhubarb or frozen rhubarb .5-.6 lb. is about 2 cups
  • 1 package 10 ounces frozen strawberries (OR fresh; either way, I do slice or quarter these.)
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Cake portion

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour OR combination of whole wheat and all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk OR 1 TBSP vinegar - any kind - added to 1 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crumb topping, optional

  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted

Instructions
 

Fruit portion

  • In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch; stir in rhubarb and strawberries as they are, fresh or frozen. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice. Cool.

Cake portion

  • In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Mix in melted butter. Add eggs, buttermilk and vanilla; stir until moistened. Mix in fruit portion until evenly mixed. Pour into a 13x9 in pan or 2 round cake pans.

Optional topping portion

  • Combine sugar and flour in a small bowl; add melted butter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over batter.
  • Bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean and cake is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Yield: 12-15 servings.

Original recipe

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Hungarian Goulash

Here is a delicious, oven slow-cooked beef recipe. It comes from Jenny McGruther at Nourished Kitchen. She has written several books, including one by the same name – The Nourished Kitchen – available both at amazon and OCPL.

Here is her recipe with my notes:

Goulash

3 tablespoons lard, butter or oil
3 medium yellow onions, chopped fine (OR 3 cups of vegetable combination, like celery and mushrooms)
¼ cup sweet paprika
2 teaspoons whole caraway seeds
2 pounds beef chuck roast cubed (OR your choice of beef)
1 cup long-simmered beef bone broth, beef stock or water
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (OR plain vinegar)

Heat the oven to 275 F.
Melt the lard or fat in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook the onion or vegetables for a short time to begin to soften. Turn heat to low and continue cooking until soft and tender.
Stir the paprika and caraway seeds into the onion or vegetables, and then stir in the cubed beef, stirring constantly to prevent the paprika from burning. Cook the beef in the onions and spices about 4 minutes, then stir in the beef bone broth and vinegar. Cover the pot and transfer it to the oven. Allow it to cook in the oven until the beef is tender, about 2½ to 3 hours.
Serve over noodles (OR some starch – rice, potatoes, bread).

Other notes: If possible, cook it on the top of the stove in the same pot as you will cook it in the oven. If not possible, you could transfer to a different dish to cook in the oven. Probably, you could also transfer it to a crockpot or slow cooker and cook it on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 5-6 hours. I haven’t tried that to see how that would work.

Enjoy!

Jenny’s original recipe