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The Artist Wife
Oct. 4, 2006
Quick Bread Rising Method
A friend posted this on another group...I like it in a pinch too:) I wanted to rise my bread really quick last night and I decided to put it in my crockpot. After I kneaded it I sprayed the bottom and sides of the crockpot with nonstick spray put the dough in then sprayed the top. I turned the crockpot on low for ten minutes, tuned it (the dough) after 5 minutes, then turned it off. It was double size in 15 minutes
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Sep. 17, 2006
Sugar Plum Dreams
Hoping and praying to make this recipe for my first canning efforts...thrilled about all the other colors & types of plum! ~ "Gingered Plum Jam" ~ by PaulaG The plums are not peeled; this produces a vibrant ruby-red color.
This recipe yields approximately 4-8 ounce jars of jam.
This is just the perfect amount for DH and me. A food processor is wonderful for processing the plums and if you don't have a water bath don't worry. A large pasta pot with strainer insert works wonders.
2 1/2 lbs plums, finely chopped, unpeeled
3 cups sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 dash ground allspice
1. Place all the ingredients in a heavy large pot; stir to combine.
2. Attach a jelly thermometer to side of pan or place a small plate in freezer to chill for testing jam.
3. Bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat, adjusting heat as needed to maintain an even boil; boil for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. After 15 minutes of cooking check temperature on thermometer or test small portion of jam on chilled plate, return plate to freezer for 1 to 2 minutes, remove and run finger through sample. When the jam is set you can pull your finger through it and it doesn't run back together. During testing, remove jam from heat.
5. As jam sets you will be able to see the bottom of the pot when stirring. The temperature should be about 221 degrees F.
6. Pour the hot jam into 4 sterilized 8-ounce jars, carefully wiping jar rims; cover with lids and screw bands.
7. Process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes, remove from water bath, allow to cool; check seal.
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Sep. 15, 2006
CASSATA
Cassata
Recipe courtesy Anna Tasca Lanza Food Network:Cassata
My Grocery List
lemons
lemon extract
spring-form pans
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Pan di spagna (cake):
6 eggs, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon grated orange or lemon peel
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
Special equipment: 9-inch spring-form pan
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan.
To make the cake, beat the eggs preferably in an electric mixer for 5 minutes. Add the sugar and grated citrus peel and continue to beat until the beater leaves a ribbon-like trail, about 15 minutes. Fold in the flour by hand, one-third at a time.
Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Allow the cake to cool for about 10 minutes then unmold and cool completely.
Sciroppo di zucchero (syrup):
3/4 cup warm water
5 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons orange-flavored liqueur (recommended: Grand Marnier)
To make the syrup: In a small bowl, combine 3/4 cup of warm water with the sugar and the liqueur. Stir the syrup until the sugar dissolves.
For Crema di Ricotta
This recipe needs 3 cups Crema di Ricotta...so I have to do the math on this part:s
for ricotta whipped cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whipping cream
* In small bowl, mix ricotta, powdered sugar, and vanilla until well blended.
*Set aside.
* In a large bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form.
* Add ricotta mixture and continue to whip until smooth.
To form the cassata:
Slice the cake into 2 (1/2-inch-thick) slices. Trim the crusts from the cake then return one of the layers to the springform pan. Spoon half the syrup over the cake then spread a layer of ricotta crema on top. Repeat, carefully placing another layer of cake, drizzling with syrup then spreading with ricotta. Wrap the cake in plastic and chill it for at least 1 hour.
Unwrap the cassata and invert it onto a serving plate. Ice the cassata then decorate it with whole and cut pieces of candied fruit. Chill the cassata for at least 3 hours, then slice and serve.
Glassa (frosting):
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
Candied fruit, for garnish
To make the frosting: Sift half of the confectioners' sugar into a bowl. Add half of the lemon juice and all of the lemon extract. Stir the liquid into the sugar, breaking up any lumps. Sift the remaining sugar into the bowl and add the rest of the lemon juice. Thin the icing with a little water until it has a thin spreading consistency and forms smooth, shiny icing.
Cook's Note: Cassata sometimes boasts a decorative layer of marzipan.
A viewer, who may not be a professional cook, provided this recipe. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe and therefore, we cannot make representation as to the results.
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Sep. 15, 2006
Finally Taking the Plunge or Plums!
LOL! The Plums finally hit there peek here, so I brought enough to make candie out of. It will be for M3's Italian birthday cake. It's called Cassada. I'll be finished the candy, just in time. The price is so right and I'm feeling so confident, that I want to get more Plums. I still want to do the jam recipe, in my recipe group. I decided to candy a mango to add more color to the cake. Plus I want some limes and lemons, hopefully this week. So far the colors will be auborn red, orangy yellow and green and yellow, with the lemon and lime rinds. tee hee I knew this would be fun! M5 said I love canning, yey! I know my dh won't want any :( since it will be too rich for his taste buds. It's for her birthday anyway soo...who knows he may try it. I know I will....Now to focus more on Dh's birthday since His is first:D. Oh... I did a search on the web on how to candy fruit and I found two I really liked. One was on this page "crazy wacka doo"!! (as my kids would say), for chef's, So I'll just give the recipe and the other is on how to dot com. Here's the one from the wacka doo place!
My first advice for anyone making candied fruit is to get a calendar or journal to help you keep track of what step you are at in this long process. This is especially important if you are doing several fruits or citrus rinds at the same time. Yea, you can use this process for almost any fresh fruit both wild and domestic. Use only firm, unblemished fruit in this process and always wash fruit before hand. It will be necessary to prick each cranberry before the first step with a needle otherwise they will burst open in the cooking process and become mushy.
Candied Cranberries
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup liquid
3/4 cups of granular sugar
day 2-7 1/4(cup?) of additional sugar
day8 1/3 of a cup of sugar
Equipment
colander
strainers
Jars
In a sauce pan place your washed and needle pricked cranberries. Cover with just enough water to cover and set on a medium heat. Allow to cook for 3-4 minutes. Not enough time to make the fruit mushy but enough time to break down the cell walls so your sugar will penetrate the cranberries easily over the next couple of weeks. Remove your cranberries from the heat and strain keeping the juice aside.
For every one pound of fruit that you just cooked place 1 and 1/4 cup of liquid in a sauce pan. Heat to a boil and dissolve 3/4 cups of granular sugar. When completely dissolved pour this sugar mixture over your cranberries and set this aside. Note here that if at all possible you should lay your fruit in a single layer for the sugar syrup. This allows the syrup to cover every piece of fruit. As I am limited on kitchen space I saved the single layer technique for orange slices and such of that nature but I used glass jars for grapes and cranberries. As all fruits used love to float do weight down your single layer fruits with a plate and your jarred items with a small custard bowl set inside the jar. Leave your fruit to set at room temperature for 24 hours.
On day 2 strain off your syrup and place it in a sauce pan. Heat and dissolve 1/4(cup?) of additional sugar to the syrup and cover your fruit with the syrup when it reaches a hard boil and all the sugar is dissolved.Cover and leave for another 24 hours. Repeat this process for days 3,4,5,6, and 7.
On day 8 drain off your syrup and dissolve 1/3 of a cup of sugar by bring the syrup to a hard boil. This time though you will add your fruit, allow the mixture to reach a boil then place the fruit and syrup back in your container to age for 48 hours.
Repeat this process again on day 10 but leave set for 4 days before moving onto the next step. (See why a journal is important now? It just gets confusing where you are at otherwise.)
On day 14 your syrup will have the consistency of "honey". With many fruits it will also have a golden color as does honey but with cranberries it will be a marvelous scarlet. Drain your fruit in a colander saving the syrup and setting it aside.
When the fruit is completely drained dry it for 2-3 days in a warm, dry place or "in your oven at it's lowest setting with the door held ajar with a wooden spoon." For either method do stir the fruit on occasion to insure a complete and thorough drying of the fruit. For air drying I would imagine that laying your fruit on wax paper would be good but for the oven I used a non stick cookie sheet.
The fruit can be used strait away without drying in fruit cakes and cookies. If you dry them completely you can grind them into a coarse meal to be used as a sprinkle for cakes, breakfast cereals or trail mixes. And they byproduct of fruit syrup? That is a welcome addition to our table I use it for glazes for deserts, on ice-cream or pancakes. And if you are like me, it is never enough to victimize just your family so do pass along your hard work in gift baskets over the holidays.
Other fruit you can candy include but are not limited to: apple, peaches, apricots, grapes, mango, kiwi, pear, citrus or wild fruits. Keep each fruit separate or the flavors will blend and if using small fruits such as cherries do take the time to pit them. Keep sections of fruit uniform in size for each batch and most of all allow this to be a fun project. The possibilities end only where your imagination ends.
I'm on day two now;)
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Aug. 25, 2006
Canning Planning...
I don't know why and I'm sure there are lots of ppl out there that do this naturally every yr., but this is my first time. I've always wanted to can goods. My family tease by say " why is it called canning when you use jars?" or "yuk" So what, I don't care. I think anyone who is a serious cook, has tried to can, at some time. I'm looking forward to it either way. I've been collecting everything I need for a while now. The other day in the Dollar Tree they have all the other tools I need for 1$! I need spatulas and one of those gripping things to take the jars out and maybe one more hand towel. I said I'd come back next week and get them. So today I bought some jars and lids...carrying them home was a feat worthy of all my momma muscles, which have been building stamana by picking up toddlers for 17 yrs. heehee. I've visited some very interesting blogs about cooking, all kinda foods. Other than the bible my favorite books to read are cookbooks, food network. Well I can't tell you how excited I am to start this family tradition of canning. I'm looking forward to seeing and tasting yummy goodies in a jar that I love all summer long. I don't think I'll be able to do the spring favorites. I'll wait till next yr. to do strawberries, but apples, applebutter, peaches, plums, cherries and tomatoes. I may even try a chutney! lol who knows.
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Jul. 11, 2006
no cook peanutbutter balls...uh with chocolate:D
This is a treat, really...it doesn't look like much but it's really good! My cocoa found this in a magazine my mil gave us...who by the way loves to give something whenever she comes by to visit. Southern ppl gotta love em. On the other hand when does she think I'll have time to sit and read gossipy magazines?? It's a delicate thing when ppl give you things that you'd never get for yourself because it goes against your convictions. Even after you search for the right words they ignore you lol! or say somethiing that means oh you're just being silly...here take this! Soo...I throw out most and use some for clippings and throw them out too. One day my dd asked me if a magazine she liked had gossip in them...this spured a conversation about gossip and why it's damaging. .
Back to the Peanut Butter balls.
2 cups crushed graham crackers, or crispbread( which we used rhye, in the photo)
1/2 cup corn syrup, or honey,
1 cup of confection sugar*
2 cups Peanut Butter About,
1 cup of simi sweet chocolate melted
~~~ Mix it all but the chocolate and make lil' balls...then drizzle chocolate over them. Freeze until the chocolate hardens and eat em! My 3 yr. old son doesn't handle chocolate too well but he loves it...so i don't put too much. I've had a hard time finding carob near us..so i'd like to order some on-line. i found two great places I'll keep them here so I won't have to keep them on my puter bookmarks.:D
*Homemade confection sugar~ 2Tblsp. cornstarch 1 cup sugar blend in the blender...watch the powder coming out:)
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