Kürbiskernweckerl (Pumpkin seed rolls)

16 Friday Jul 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Bread, Photos, Recipes, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

Now here is a bread that really sounds interesting. Give this one a try. Try this variation: Change the seeds to sunflower seeds and call the rolls Sonnenblumenkerne Rolls. Just a thought. Thanks Gary for passing this recipe along. Might be good with rabbit! It might also be wise to use a scale that is calibrated in grams/ounces, as suggested by Maria below. Cheers!

Kürbiskernweckerl
(Pumpkin seed rolls)

Source: The Inverse Cook, via Gary Payne
Yield: 10 round rolls

Pâte Fermentée
50g (1¾ oz) (3½ T) Flour, Type 700 (strong white flour)
30g (1 oz) (2 T) Cool Water
2g (¾ oz) (1½ T) Fresh Yeast
1g (¼ oz) (½ T) Salt
Mix together and let rest for 12 hours in a cool place, or 1 hour at room temperature and in the fridge overnight, 12-16 hours.

Soaker:
25g (⅔ oz) (1⅓ T) coarse Rye Meal
50g (1¾ oz) (3½ T) Pumpkin Seeds
25g (⅔ oz) (1⅓ T) Flaxseeds (linseed)
100g (3½ oz) (7 T) Warm Water
Stir the ingredients of the soaker together and let stand covered for about 12 hours.

Dough:
250g (8½ oz) (2 c) Flour, Type 700 (strong white flour)
50g (1¾ oz) (3½ T) light Rye Flour, Type 960
140g (5 oz) (⅔ c) Cool Water
10g (⅓ oz) (⅔ T) Barley Malt
15g (½ oz) (1 T) Pumpkin Seed Oil or Vegetable Oil
10g (⅓ oz) (⅔ T) Salt
10g (⅓ oz) (⅔ T) fresh Yeast
Soaker ingredients
Additional pumpkin seeds
Sesame seeds

Directions:
Combine all ingredients to a shaggy mass and let stand for 10 minutes. Knead for 10 seconds, either on an oiled surface or drag the dough in circles with a strong fork in the bowl. Let stand for another 10 minutes, then knead again for 10 seconds. Let stand for 10 minutes, then tip the dough onto an oiled surface and fold it onto itself a couple of times. It will be sticky, although not excessively wet like ciabatta dough.
Let stand for 40 minutes at room temperature. Agitate / Fold the dough after 20 minutes.

Divide dough into ten pieces weighing roughly 73g (2⅔ oz) (⅓ c) each, shape round, moisten the surface and press with the wet top into a bowl of pumpkin and sesame seeds (I omitted the sesame).

Proof for 50 minutes.

Bake at 240°C (465°F) for 20-25 minutes reducing the heat to 200°C (390°F) after 10 minutes.

Lapin à la Crème de Moutarde (Rabbit With Mustard Cream Sauce)

13 Tuesday Jul 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Rabbit, Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes

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The photo to the left is the completed, and braised, Lapin à la Crème de Moutarde. Please understand that there are as as many variations to this classic dish as there are people who make it. Therefore, if you come up with something different or you want to add something else, do so. This recipe is not “set in stone”. That’s what makes it so interesting. If you braise the dish, think white wine. Just some ideas.

Lapin à la Crème de Moutarde
(Rabbit With Mustard Cream Sauce)

Ingredients:
3 lb Rabbit, cut into serving pieces
1/4 c Butter
3 T Plochman’s Stone Ground Mustard
1 c Cream
7 sm Red Potatoes, quartered
1 med White Onion, sliced
6 sm Shallots, sliced
2 lg Carrots, cut to bite size
4 slices Fennel, fresh and thin sliced

Preparation Time: 10 mins Cooking Time: 1 hour 30 mins Oven Temp: 350°F

Directions:
Combine the mustard and the cream. Set aside.

Butter an oven proof casserole dish. Add the vegetables. Place the rabbit in pan. Roast until vegetables are tender and rabbit is browned – not pink or bleeding. Coat the rabbit with the mustard/cream sauce. Serve with the roasted vegetables and any extra mustard/cream sauce that may be left. The photo to the right is an oven roasted version.

Discussion:
This is a French country classic, and there are endless variations. All are good. Some recipes bake the rabbit, others braise it. We like it either way. The keys are mustard—good grainy mustard, not the bright yellow stuff you get at the ballpark—shallots, and something creamy. We use heavy cream, but some people use Crème Fraîche, others sour cream.

Rabbit has a mild flavor that is all its own. Think chicken breast, but with a slightly different flavor. Rabbits usually come whole, and if you don’t know how to break them down yourself, ask the supermarket butcher to do it for you. The photo to the left is the plated oven roasted version. Serve with a Greek wine, Apelia Dry Red Wine. Cheers!

Fourth of July and Bistro At The Buzz!

05 Monday Jul 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes

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Yup! A Fourth of July Pot Luck at the Buzz! Then on 5 July, starts their Bistro Menu. We will probably go to the Opening Night. Fireworks for sure!

Oh yes! Smoked Salmon and Fresh Garden Vegetable Plate. Just one of the many entrees that were brought for the potluck dinner. Such fun and originality. Yum-O!

And how about Black-Bottom Cupcakes that Robin made and adapted!

Black-Bottom Cupcakes
The Great Book of Chocolate,
David Lebovitz

Yield: 12 full-size or approximately 30 mini cupcakes

For the filling:
Optional: 6 fresh Dark Sweet Cherries, pitted and cut in half
8 ounces cream cheese, regular or reduced fat, at room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
5 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup unflavored vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make the filling: Beat together the cream cheese, granulated sugar, and egg until smooth. Stir in the chopped chocolate pieces. Set aside.

Make the cupcakes:
1. Adjust the rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F (175°C). Butter a 12-cup muffin tin, or line the tin with paper muffin cups.
2. In a medium bowl sift together the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together the water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla.
3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and stir in the wet ingredients, stirring until just smooth. Stir any longer and you will over mix the batter and end up with less-than-tender cupcakes.
4. Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Option – place 1/2 Cherry in center. Spoon a few tablespoons* of the filling into the center of each cupcake, dividing the filling evenly. This will fill the cups almost completely,** which is fine.
5. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the tops are slightly golden brown and the cupcakes feel springy when gently pressed. These moist treats will keep well unrefrigerated for 2 to 3 days if stored in an airtight container.

Two notes:* If you choose to go mini for these, keep the filling at a tablespoon or less, lest you run out, as, ahem, someone else may have.
** Though I’ve only made this recipe once, and therefore don’t think you should take my input as absolute authority, I’ve got to advise against actually letting these guys fill up. Not an issue if you’re going full-size, but if you go mini, aim for 90 percent full.

And here is a plate full of dinner. Salmon, brat, noodles and rolls.

And of course, there is always one Special Delight at every party. Here we have ours. On the right and trying not to look at the camera, is Bailey. A delightful young lady that loves to smile and tease, especially her brother.

Mac’s Leafy Green Soup

04 Sunday Jul 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Recipes, Things To Do, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?

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Really now, you have to try this before you say “YUK!” It really is very good!

Mac’s Leafy Green Soup

Adapted by Bob and Robin Young
Original Recipe by Mac McNeil

Ingredients:
4 Small Potatoes sliced
2 Small Carrots sliced
3-4 c Water enough to cover potatoes and carrots plus ½” water
1 Chicken bullion cube dissolved in 1 c water
2 c Chicken Stock
“fistful” of young and tender Swiss Chard
2 c Kale
2 T Butter

Directions:
In the water, cook the vegetables until the potatoes and the carrots are just fork tender. Add the Swiss Chard with the Kale to boiling vegetables. Cover and cook chard will turn bright green. To long and it turns brown.

Blend all vegetables and water in food processor with about 2 tablespoons butter, add salt and pepper to taste. Sometimes it pays to hold a little of the water used to boil the vegetables to get the desired thickness that you like.

Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs

28 Friday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Food, Food Prep, Grillin' and Chillin', Pork, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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Here is a recipe for Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs that is just in time for the Memorial Day Holiday! Do enjoy and have a great weekend.

Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs

Adapted From: BONNIE Q, All Recipes (dot) Com

Prep Time: 20 Min
Cook Time: 1 Hr 5 Min
Ready In: 1 Hr 25 Min

Ingredients:
½ T ground Cumin
¾ T Garlic Powder
½ T Onion Powder
1 T Brown Sugar
½ T Chili powder
1 T Paprika
Salt and Pepper to taste
3 lbs Baby Back Pork Ribs
1 c Barbeque sauce

Directions:
Preheat grill for high heat.

In a small jar, combine cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Close the lid, and shake to mix.

Trim the membrane sheath from the back of each rack. Run a small, sharp knife between the membrane and each rib, and snip off the membrane as much as possible. Sprinkle as much of the rub onto both sides of the ribs as desired. To prevent the ribs from becoming too dark and spicy, do not thoroughly rub the spices into the ribs. Store the unused portion of the spice mix for future use.

Place aluminum foil on lower rack to capture drippings and prevent flare-ups. Lightly oil grate, and lay ribs on top rack of grill. Reduce heat to low, close lid, and leave undisturbed for 1 hour. Do not lift lid at all.

Brush ribs with barbecue sauce, and grill an additional 5 minutes. Serve ribs as whole rack, or cut between each rib bone and pile individually on a platter.

Egyptian Fafafel (Ta’amia)

16 Sunday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Beans, Egyptian Food, Food, Party Time, Recipes, Things To Do

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Here is what looks like a good alternative to the hamburger. This is strictly vegetarian, but it has everything in it that I like. I would use the Garbanzo beans instead of the Fava beans. Give it a try. See what you think. Cheers!

Egyptian Falafel (Ta’amia)

Source: Cooking Guide by Tmatem دليل الطبخ العربي
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=122897277730079&id=107993822552848&ref=mf

Ingredients:
1¼ lbs broken Fava or Garbanzo beans
2 large Onions
5 Garlic cloves
Dill, cilantro, parsley, bunch of each
salt and dry coriander to taste
2 chili peppers, optional

Directions:
1). Wash and soak the beans for 12 hours.
2). Chop the greens and the onions.
3). Grind the beans in a food processor. Add the greens, onion and garlic and blend to a medium consistency.
4). Form as patties or in balls and deep fry.
5). Serve with Tahini salad or green salad.
6). You can also add an egg to the mixture or sprinkle sesame seeds on each pattie or ball before frying.

Felcitously & shifa = بالهنا والشفاء = Enjoy your meal = Bon appétit

——————————

That really looks easy to do and it looks like you can add whatever herbs you want. Have fun with this one.

Asparagus Pesto

16 Sunday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Appetizers, Asparagus, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

A couple of days ago, Robin came upon this recipe in the New York Times. Guy Hand, from Northwest News and NPR, has also posted the recipe. It must be good! Yes indeed it is! We sampled it on some Ritz Crackers, but then, anything is good on a Ritz. Enjoy the recipe. Cheers!

Asparagus Pesto

Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings (about 1½ cups)

Ingredients:
Salt
1 lbs Asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch segments
2 lg Garlic cloves, or more to taste
¼ c Pine Nuts
¼ c Olive Oil, or more as desired
¾ c Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice of ½ lemon, or to taste.

Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Add the asparagus and cook until fully tender but not mushy, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well, reserving some of the cooking liquid, and let the asparagus cool slightly.
2. Transfer the asparagus to a food processor and add the garlic, pine nuts, 2 Tablespoons of the oil, Parmesan, a pinch of salt and a couple of Tablespoons of the cooking liquid. Process the mixture, stopping to scrape down the sides of the container if necessary, and gradually add the remaining oil and a bit more of the reserved cooking liquid to moisten if necessary. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste, pulse one last time, and serve over pasta, fish or chicken (or cover and refrigerate for up to a day).

Try this with a Halibut fillet – baked in ¼ inch water, 2 Tbsp butter, Salt and Pepper. Bake about 12 min at 350ºF. Enjoy!!

Egyptian Rice Stuffed Tomatoes

11 Tuesday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Egyptian Food, Party Time, Photos, Recipe: Bob and Robin Young, Recipes, Things To Do

≈ 5 Comments

The other day, I came across this recipe for Egyptian Stuffed Tomatoes. I have no idea why I am so hung up on this recipe, except it is different and Robin can not eat Stuffed Peppers. This recipe comes from an Egyptian FB page and for me, therein lies a problem. Translation! Here is the link to the Original Recipe, Delicious Dishes by Tmatem, Chef Sweetheart. There looks like some really interesting and good recipes on that page, it’s a matter of translation. With that in mind, here is the recipe as well as I can translate it … my Arabic is poor at best!

I do have a question though. What is and/or how is Almfire smooth made? Maybe some of our readers can help. Cheers!
12 May 2010 Update: As you can see from the listed source of this recipe, it has taken several people to help me translate this recipe from the Arabic to English. I sincerely appreciate the help and the correct translation and thank all of these people. I do believe that these people are from the Cairo, Egypt area.

Egyptian Rice Stuffed Tomatoes

Source: Delicious Dishes by Tmatem, Chef Sweetheart; Chef Habiba, Rahma Elbatran, http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=126164197396327

The Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1 kilo (2¼ lbs)Tomato (6 tomatoes)
½ the amount of Padding (stuffing) raw
½ c Tomato Juice
½ c Vegetable broth or boiling water

Directions: Tomatoes
– Wash tomatoes, Slice the tops off the tomatoes, keep them
scoop out insides of each tomato
– Sprinkle the cored tomatoes with salt and pepper and place upside down to drain.
– stuff each tomato with the filling mix till the half of it. Replace the tops
– Place in a baking dish and pour the light broth and the tomato sauce over them
– Bake in high heat oven until the rice is cooked then serve

Padding (Stuffing) Raw
Chef sweetheart ♥ ♥ ♥, Chef Habiba

Ingredients:
½ kg (1¼ lbs) of minced Meat (Ground beef or something similar)
1 lg Onion, finely chopped
3 T Butter or Safflower oil
2 c Rice
Salt and pepper to taste
Seasoning of your choice
1 bunch Parsley, chopped
1 bunch Dill, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, peeled and chopped (Garlic Almfire)
1 t fresh Mint, chopped
2 Tomato

Directions: Stuffing
– To prepare the filling mix, wash the rice then drain, combine the tomatoes, parsley, dill, and half the onion
– saute beef and onions for 5 minutes, or until beef is browned. Season with salt and pepper, add it to the rice mix.
– Add the oil or the margarine and stir the mixture well
– This mixture can be used as a stuffing for any type of stuffed vegetables’ MaHshi”

Felcitously & shifa = بالهنا والشفاء = Enjoy your meal = Bon appétit

——————————

So there you have it. Any hints? Suggestions? If you make it or if you have made this dish, let us know how you liked it. Cheers!

Cinco de Mayo Dinner

06 Thursday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Beef, Celebrations, Food, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipes

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And yes, the Barbacoa Beef Cheek Tacos were good. Not quite like we remembered the last ones, but still very good. Our daughter Marnie and Mac both liked them, too. Maybe some proceedural change, but that’s about all. Here is the Recipe Link Cheers!

Lemon Baked Chicken

01 Saturday May 2010

Posted by Bob and Robin in Chicken, Food Prep, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe: Bob and Robin Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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Now here is an easy meal. Chicken, lemon, thyme, asparagus and noodles. How easy do we get?

Lemon Baked Chicken

Ingredients:
2 Chicken breasts, skinless
1 Lemon, zested and juiced
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 T Lemon Thyme
Flat Egg Noodles for 2
3 cloves Garlic, diced
1/2 lbs Asparagus
2 T Butter
1 T Olive Oil
1/2 lbs Button Mushrooms, quartered

Directions:
1). Place the chicken breasts in an oven proof casserole dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Zest the lemon and spread over chicken. Squeeze the lemon juice over the chicken. Place the lemon in the pan along the side. Sprinkle with 1 T Lemon Thyme. Let marinate for 1 hour.

2). Place the butter and the olive oil in a sauté pan over low heat. Place 1 T Lemon Thyme in sauté and cook the mushrooms. Remove from heat and set aside.

3). Place the noodles in a pan of hot water with the garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until done. Drain. Place 2 T butter in the hot pan. Return the noodles,. along with the garlic, to the pan. Add the sautéed mushrooms. Cover and set aside.

4). Pre-heat the oven to 385ºF. Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 45 minutes.

To Serve:
Place a bed of noodles on the plate. Place a chicken breast on the noodles. Make a raft of asparagus and place on the plate. (See photo) Serve with a good white wine. Cheers!