Got Eggs? Souffle! Souffle! Souffle!

 

Pure perfection

Yesterday's egg collecting

OK I waited 8 months for my new chickens to become hens and lay eggs.  I always ask for abundance and this time I got it.  Yesterday these sweet feathered friends gave me 8 beautiful brown and blue eggs.  Now what?  Souffles of course.  First I made myself a lemon souffle for my birthday "cake"  topped with a raspberry coulis.  It really doesn't get any better than that.

Next I made a classic Julia Child cheese souffle made with my goat milk cheddar cheese:

And last night I made chocolate souffle....yes I had a few strawberries and whipped cream

When I was a student at the Cordon Bleu School of Cooking in Paris in 1982 I learned to make this gorgeous and fun dessert.  First you must learn the technique for a souffle and then choose savory or sweet. I want to share this with my Seattle granddaughters on my next trip. 

perfectly beaten egg whites

chocolate souffle

                                                       blood orange/passion fruit souffle 

Souffle     means "to puff"  in French.  French cooking is the origin of this dish and it is a classic delight.  Souffles can be sweet like chocolate  or lemon or they can be savory like cheese or lobster.  Although the timing is sensitive it is not a difficult dish to make.  The expertise comes in the method.  That is usually the trick in French cooking.  All of the flavor comes from the egg yolk have of the combination.  You make a roux of butter and flour, add a little milk or other liquid and allow the roux to thicken the liquid.  Let the liquid cool and add egg yolks, one at a time.   And that's your base....add more flavorings like lemon or orange/passion fruit juice, citrus zest or other intense flavors and set this aside until your souffle dish or ramekins are prepared and your egg whites are beaten stiff but not dry.  When it's time to mix the base with the "poof" take gentle care in folding (not mixing) the two together by starting with adding 1/4 of the whites to the base and then continuing 1/4 egg whites at a time until fully incorporated.  Gently add any more ingredients like broccoli or lobster or raspberries before filling the baking dish (s).

Preparing the souffle dish is important too.  If sweet, butter the dish then coat the butter with sugar and put in the fridge to get cold before filling them.  If savory, butter and then coat with Parmesan cheese.  This will give the outside of your souffle a little flavor and crunch of its own.

Fill the souffle dishes 3/4 of the way full and make sure the rims are clean before popping them in a hot oven.  An aluminum foil collar is optional but if the baking pan has adequate space left it's not necessary Now NO PEAKING until the last 2 minutes of baking.  If you open the oven door too soon the souffle with fall.

I used Anne Burrell's recipe for my basic lemon souffle:  I prefer baking in just one 6 cup souffle dish but the little ramekins are cute

Next fruit souffle:  blood orange/passion fruit.  I used the exact same method and substituted 3/4 cup blood orange/ passion fruit juice for the lemon juice and blood orange zest for the lemon zest.  So fresh and delicious

I used Claire Robinson's recipe for chocolate souffle.  It's easy and reliable but not as traditional.  Still it's impossible to find fault with any of it.

Now when you make a cheese souffle the only mentor I have for this is Julia.  A perfect Julia Child masterpiece  You can watch the entire French Chef episode on YouTube

Julia's ingredients:

Sauce:                                                          8 egg whites (1 cup)                      1 cup of cheese

3 TBs Butter                                                 1 tsp cream of tartar

4 1/2 TBs flour                                              pinch (large) of salt

1 1/2 cup warm milk

salt, pepper, nutmeg, cayenne

6 egg yolks

Place in 400 deg oven and once in reduce to 375 deg.  Bake for about 30 minutes.  A little jiggle is ok.  I followed this recipe for the blue background cheese souffle above.  You can see it's perfect

Bon Appetit!!!!!!!

January 2021 challenge 1570 exercise minutes for the month

 

OK  I'm going to pat myself on the back one more time and then go back to posting food stuff.  After completing the December challenge---just barely then January offered a new one: 1570 exercise minutes for the month.  Holy Cow that makes it 50 exercise minutes a day.....every day for 31 days.  OK forget about it.  Never mind.  No can do.  But wait.....is it possible?  I get my morning workout walking Charlotte for 2.25 miles....that's usually 40 minutes.  Then in the evening we go out for a short walk....maybe 15 minutes of getting my heart rate up to a working level (Not too hard when your 72) and I also get on my mat and do some Yoga or Pilates or stretches so maybe it is possible.  Well on January 24 I hit my 1570 minutes.....with 8 more days to go in the months.  Now that January has come to a close I not only met this challenge but added 520 minutes to it......2090 minutes That's almost 35 hours of exercise.  Well good for me.  Along with that I was alcohol free and mid month went sugar and flour free as well.  With all of that I should have shed 25 pounds, n'est pas?  I'll accept 5.  I'm afraid to read what my Apple Watch challenges me for February.

CHALLENGE: 2020 December fitness Happy New Year

 Read this carefully.  I earned this award by moving 178.4 miles in the month of December.  This translates to over 5.75 miles per day....14,400 steps EVERY SINGLE DAY in the 31 days in this month.  It  reflects this whole darn year of 2020, doesn't it?  Some days are easy with no reminders of the big picture and some (like Monday---rained hard all day long--) days I was reminded of every challenge.  I am proud of reaching this goal.  Congratulations to you too for meeting all of the challenges of 2020 and I hope that 2021 will be a good one for us all.   Now go out and move a little!

Edit note:  At the end of this day I added a couple more miles making the total 180 miles exactly!

The BEST CORNBREAD ever

 Who doesn't love a good piece of cornbread?    I have tried a lot of recipes.....some simple.....some loaded with cheese, jalapeño chilis, creamed corn.....but I just love this one.  King Alfred Baking Company, formerly King Alfred Flour has a plethora of great baking recipes but I do go back to this one 

Try it with Brad's quince jam:

Try it with a bowl full of vegan chili

Or just try it warm with butter....have you tried Goat milk butter?  It's about $5/pound but so worth it

Mis en place

I use buttermilk in place of regular milk when I have it

• Dry Ingredients:
• 1 3/4 cups (206g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 cup (156g) cornmeal
• 1/4 cup (50g) sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon salt, to taste

• Wet Ingredients:
• 1 1/4 cups (283g) lukewarm milk I use buttermilk whenever I have it
• 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, melted, cooled
• 1/4 cup (50g) vegetable oil
• 1 large egg

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9" square or round pan (a cast-iron skillet will work fine, too), shallow 1 1/2 quart casserole dish, or 12 muffin cups.

2. Weigh your flour and cornmeal; or measure each by gently spooning into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. In another bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the milk, melted butter, vegetable oil, and egg.

4. Pour the liquid all at once into the flour mixture, stirring quickly and gently until just combined. Don't over mix: stir the batter just enough to bring it together and evenly moisten the ingredients.

1. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, or scoop into the muffin tin. I love these silicone muffin cups

2. Bake the bread for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges just begin to pull away from the pan and a cake tester or paring knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

3. Remove the bread from the oven and cool it on a rack for 5 minutes before cutting; serve warm.

4. If you have any leftovers and they go stale try making them into croutons.........really you almost wish there were some stale ones.

This is what they look like after 20 minutes in the muffin cups in a convection oven:

  

Bon Appetit, y'all

Thanksgiving for one ---gobble gobble

 What a crazy weird year this has been.  Whoever thought a Thanksgiving dinner for one would be on my social calendar?  Well here we are:

I started out my day in the kitchen reflecting on the true gratitude that I have for my family, friends and my health.  This is my newest rose: "True Gratitude"

With all the other adjustments to make I decided to cook my dinner on Sunday.  I did and it was wonderful day spent in my kitchen:

A simple Thanksgiving dinner.  On the menu: spicy stuffed turkey breast roasted on ciabatta bread .  Next: steamed green beans with portabella mushrooms, pancetta and caramelized shallots  And for dessert: poached pears with creme fraiche,  grated ginger dark chocolate and dried/poached cranberries and apricots.  What no soup?  No pies?  No mashed potatoes?  This year is different.  I made exactly what I wanted and loved.

recipe: Spicy stuffed turkey breast - original recipe Giada de Laurentiis

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 teaspoons toasted fennel seed ground
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 cup crumbled store-bought cornbread  I use the cornbread recipe from KAF  It's the best
• 1/2 cup milk at room temperature
• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage casings removed
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino cheese
• 2 teaspoons Calabrian chili paste
• 2 2-pound boneless, skin-on turkey breast halves, butterflied
• Six 1-inch thick slices ciabatta bread
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

stuffing mis en place

turkey mis en place

open the butterflied turkey breast and place half of the stuffing on one side ( or the middle)

Fold over turkey with skin on top

tie baker's twine around breast to secure stuffing and position

Use a little olive oil on skin and sprinkle and rub in spices

Line roasting pan with 1" thick pieces of ciabatta bread

Place prepared turkey on top of bread

Roast at 425 and 350

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Mix together the fennel seed, salt, oregano, onion powder and smoked paprika in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Mix together the cornbread and milk in a medium bowl. Allow the mixture to soak for 10 minutes. Stir in the sausage, Pecorino and chili paste. Use your hands to mix well.
• Lay the turkey breasts skin-sides down on a cutting board so that they are open like a book. Pat half the stuffing onto each skinless side, leaving a 1/2-inch border, then close each half so the skin sides are up. Tie each turkey breast tightly with 4 pieces of butcher's twine about 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart. Rub the seasoning mix all over the turkey.

• Lay the bread in a roasting pan and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Place the turkey breasts skin-sides up on the bread and drizzle the remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil over the tops. Roast 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 degrees F and continue to roast until the skin is brown and crisp and an instant-read thermometer reads 160 degrees F, about 40 minutes more. Allow the turkey to rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
  Total prep and cooking time: just under 2 hours.
  ***note:  If you link to this recipe on Giada's website scroll down to comments.  They did publish my comment on this dish
  Next up: Steamed green beans with pancetta, portabella mushrooms and caramelized shallots:
  Ingredients:
  None of these ingredients did I measure really
  fresh green beans.....at least 1 pound, trimmed
  portabella mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
  2 large shallots, sliced thin
  4 oz pancetta cut in small pieces 
  cream of mushroom soup for a sauce I used Trader Joe's
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Method:
• Steam green beans for 5 minutes and blanch in ice water to stop cooking....the color will be amazing
• Sautee the pancetta until light brown.  Reserve rendered fat for cooking shallots
• Sautee the sliced mushrooms in 2 TBS butter and 2TBS olive oil until just soft
• Sautee the sliced shallots in the rendered pancetta fat adding butter if needed
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Pour into a baking dish about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of condensed soup or dilute it and add more
• Toss all of the ingredients together in the baking dish and place in oven at the end of the turkey roasting time or in 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes.  Everything is already cooked.  You just need to warm it all up
• 
  
• and Dessert:
• Poached pears with dried cranberries and apricots served with creme fraiche and grated ginger dark chocolate based on Ina Gartens poached pears recipe
• 
  
• Ingredients:
• poaching liquid:
• 1 bottle of Champagne
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 6 whole cloves
• zest of one lemon cut in strips
• zest of one orange cut in strips
• 4 or 5 slices fresh ginger peeled
• 1 star anise - optional but pretty
• juice of half of the lemon
• 
  
• 4 pears with stem on, peeled
• creme fraiche, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt - dollop for each pear half
• ginger dark chocolate or plain dark chocolate if you can't find the ginger in it
• 16 dried apricots
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 
  
  
  
  
• 
  
• Method:
• In a large sauce pan bring all of the poaching liquid ingredients to a boil and then let simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the whole skinned pears and cook on low for about 20 minutes.  There should be enough liquid to cover the pears but if not you might add a lid that is too small for the pot to help submerge the fruit.  Or turn the pears after 20 minutes and cook with other side submerged.  The fruit should be cooked but still slightly firm.  About 10 minutes before end of poaching add dried fruit.
• 
  
  
  
  
• Heads up!!!!! Cool for at least 4 hours before serving
• 
  
  
  
  
  Before serving cut pears in half lengthwise and remove center core and seeds.  You can do this with a melon baller or an apple corer from the bottom end This will leave a perfect little space for your dollop of creme fraiche (et al).  To serve place pear half in a shallow bowl; spoon over poaching liquid and add 2 apricots and a few cranberries. With a fine grater grate the chocolate bar over the creme and serve.
  
  
  
  
  Bon Appetit and Gobble Gobble
  
  
  
  
  
  
  I remind myself how delicious this dessert is with such wonderful complements of favor: a beautiful subtle sweetness of the pear, the zestiness of the fruit and spices and slight tartness from the champagne, the sour creamy flavor of the creme fraiche.  It's a really wonderful dessert using the fruits of the season.  i hope you add at least this dessert to your repertoire of favorite dishes
  
  
  
  
  Order of the meal preparation:
  Make cornbread first
  Make the pears counting 5 hours before serving
  Stuffing
  Turkey
  While turkey is in the oven prepare the green bean dish
  the turkey needs about 1 hour 10 minutes to cook and 10 minutes to cool
  
  
  I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving no matter what it looks like.  We still have so much to be thankful for......just look around
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Pomegranates!, Margaritas, Jelly

 Sometimes when you ask the universe for abundance you just get it:

I inherited a pomegranate tree badly in need of water and attention.  Last year after a bit of each I was gifted with an abundance of juicy fruit. I consumed as much as one person could and shared the rest.  This year was even better.  They came earlier than expected and in raging abundance.  What to do with all of these beauties.....well over 200.

These look like baubles on a Christmas tree   Well after LuLu and Poppy get to the leaves.  

After removing the arils and juicing them the best idea I had was to make Margaritas

Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup pomegranate juice

2 Tablespoons lime juice

nope no sugar

1 shot Tequila

1 Tablespoon Triple, Sec, Grand Marnier, or Cointreau

1 cup ice

you know the rest

I line my rim with half sugar, half Himalayan salt

And when you really have an abundance try making jelly, low sugar. I used this recipe from Pomona's pectin

Pomegranates should be available through November.  Enjoy or just come on over for a Margarita

Quarantine Quilts` That's why we have a "stash"

 What do you do when you're self quarantining and keeping exposure to this stupid COVID virus a minimum?  Well you clean out your closets and garage, dust the furniture, clean out the fridge, take inventory of your PPE and toilet paper and then repeat.  Nana camp is over and when we were in the middle of it there was still time to spend doing something else.  Quilt!!!!!  But wait!  The quilt stores are closed!  Those of us who always have to have a little extra fabric just in case collect quite a stash in the process.  When I left Denver I donated over 200 yards of fabric to organizations that make quilts and items for others.  But fortunately I still have quite a bit of fabric to choose from.

I have finished 3 quilts since March and here's the first one:

I call her "Quarantine under the Sea"  It is an art quilt.  I guess in a pinch it would keep you warm but it was designed by Roxanne as an art quilt.  It came with a pattern and instructions but once I got started it took on a life of its own like most art does.  My goal was to use only fabric from my stash.  The background fabric I bought from Roxanne's   It's perfect because it has a mermaid in the batik.  My favorite fabric designer is Kaffe Fassett.  Most of the piecing fabric is from his collections.

Here's a little closer.  The bubbles and flowers are layered over the other fabrics.  These small pieces are adhered with a fusible web that is activated by the heat of an iron.  Yes I had just enough ( well over 10 yards) fusible web to attach all of the pieces.  Some of the smaller pieces needed the security of some thread stitching as well.

Detail of the mermaid's hair.  I love this.  It reminds me of the gorgeous hair that Pixar gave to Merida in Brave....beautiful red hair with lots of highlights and lowlights.  I know Ariel has red hair too but Merida was my muse.  This beauty's hair is highlighted with pansies, daisies, carnations and dahlias.

I want Merida's hair

And every underwater theme quilt I make must have a jellyfish.  

This quilt was finished in about 4 months and most of it was designed on the floor. All fabrics, materials, batting and threads were used from my stash.

This next quilt has been sitting around for about 10 years.  (shame on me).  I have always loved it but just postponed finishing it.  So the fabrics are really really bold.  I call this "Eat your Vegetables".   It is a traditional quilt about 60" square.  

Now when the quilt itself is so bold you need to quiet down the back:

Kaffe Fassett has a line of woven fabrics as well.  The colors are yummy.  Again I had to go to my stash and see what I had that would complement the front.  I had many colors to choose from but not enough of any one of them.  So I had to piece.  I found three different colors that seemed to be just right.  Tangerine, raspberry and persimmon.  And magically the detail stitching that you can't really see from the front shows up nicely on the back with the solid color.

And after 10+ years this quilt too is complete.  A perfect size for a nap.

Free Wheeling Single Girl.....a spin off and original design by Denyse Schmidt in answer to double wedding ring pattern:

Wow this one was fun!  I started it in October with a group challenge offered by Denyse Schmidt well kind of a sew along with postings every week.  Even though it was pre pandemic it was sort of a community effort.  This pattern is a single ring instead of an overlapping double ring.  Each ring was composed of 4 arcs of 9 or 10 pieces and then joined together so about 40 pieces in each block.  Again I went to my stash.  Yep!  I had enough.  I think I spent 2 or 3 days choosing and cutting the small pieces.  Then when I was assembling each ring I had to make sure there were no pieces repeating too closely.  Each afternoon for about 3 weeks last October I sat in my studio designing and piecing on my little sewing machine.  (I listened to "Luncheon of the Boating Party" by Susan Vreeland a story about Auguste Renoir and his friends.on Audible .  I highly recommend this read) I had some of the background but had to order more online.  Again this is a predominantly Kaffe Fassett fabric assembly.  The background is aboriginal dot.  It's blue with white but "reads" a soft blue.  Contrast that with the brilliance of the pieced fabrics.  

Sometimes the back of the quilt is just as interesting as the front.  This fabric is called "ombre" for good reason.  It is speckled with the same blue dot and ties all the colors together.  Pretty bold: Cool color of blue as primary color with contrast of hot hot colors for the rings and back.  I just finished this quilt two days ago.  It took me a couple of hours to trim all of the threads.  I think I used 5 large spools of thread.  Again all of the pieces, batting (lots of remnant pieces in the batting) and thread were pulled from my stash.  If you look carefully - and why would you?- you can see so many of the same fabric in each quilt. And now my studio has been cleaned out as well.   

I probably have some more unfinished projects in my studio to work on but right now I'm pleased that I finished these three.