Sonia Tastes Hawaii

The Akaka Falls Inn Cooking School...

 

For some reason, I've had the Akaka Falls Inn on my mind quite a bit lately...specially the cooking school part of it...maybe because I've been trying to get the recipes we tested, shared and taught in the many cooking classes we offered and put them together into a possible cookbook with bits of stories and anecdotes about the Inn and the classes.

Image - The Akaka Falls Inn, B&B and Cooking School façade - watercolor by Wanda Boyer, circa 1998.

All one summer, our cooking school hosted a series of keiki (children's) cooking classes, designed as a trip around the world. Food from a different country was chosen for each class. Countries covered were, if I remember correctly, Spain, Mexico, Italy, Greece, China, India and Japan.

The menu for each class consisted of a salad, entree, dessert and an appropriate beverage. We gave the students the name of the country we were going to cover a week ahead and they were to learn all they could about that country during the week - since our classes were all during the summer, they were out of school and their research did not interrupt their regular schooling homework.

The backyard at the Inn was quite large and housed over 30 varieties of fruit trees and plants (bananas, papayas, pineapples, mango, macadamia, mountain apples, vee apples, coconuts, figs, plus several different citrus), as well as an herb and small veggie garden (lettuces, mesclun mixes, spinach, cherry tomatos, basil, assorted peppers, rosemary, dill, chives, garden onions, etc) and quite a few tropical and exotic flowering trees and plant.

The kitchen and dining room used for the keiki cooking classes were the smaller and more intimate B&B kitchen and dining areas, with a homier feeling than the larger kitchen used for our regular cooking classes.

During the class, we would discuss the recipes, prep the ingredients, cook the food and while the food was cooking, the kids took turns going into the backyard in separate groups (some foraged and others cooked) to pick the garden stuff for the salad and to pick flowers and greenery for the table centerpieces.

Photo: Stacy and Melanie

The girls expressed an interest in making the table arrangements and learning complex napkin foldings from the many books on the subject in our Inn library.

When the food was served and we sat at table, after the young gentlemen pulled the chairs for the ladies, we would discusss all they had learned during the week about the country we were featuring.  It made for very interesting table conversations.

Besides the recipes, cooking and the learning of the different countries, the keiki also were 'gently' instructed on table and dinner time  etiquette.

Photo: Daniel & Asa admiring and serving the Spanish Paella they had just helped cook.  Salad in the foreground.

For one of my favorite Spanish Paella recipes click HERE

For my favorite Flan recipe click HERE

For the Spanish Paella class, we started with a mixed salad, the paella and ended with flan.  The beverage was a mock (virgin) sangria.

Virgin Sangria

 

1 quart pomegranate juice

2 cups orange juice

1 cup white grape juice

1/2 sugar

1 orange sliced thinly - rind on

2 lemons liced thinly - rind on

2 limes sliced thinly - rind on

2 kiwis, peeled and sliced thinly

Any other fruit you wish to add

Just before serving add a liter of Sprite for fizz.

 

In a large glass or ceramic pitcher, mix juices and sugar until sugar dissolves. Wash orange, lemons, limes and slice into thin slices.

Remove kiwi skin and cut into thick slices.

Place all fruit into juice and let flavors meld in refrigerator.

My friend Georgia Banyon used to help me with these Saturday morning classes.  I think we enjoyed them as much as the keiki seemed to.

 

On the morning of July 23, 2000 a fire destroyed the Akaka Falls Inn.  The photos above were collected from family, friends, previous Inn guests and neighbors after the fire destroyed all of ours.  The quality is not as good as I would want because they had been saved to floppy discs, but we are very happy to have these and many more that were sent to us from everywhere afterwards.

 

 

Picadillo a la Criolla

Picadillo is one of those typically simple home style dishes that lend themselves to the interpretation of the cook.  Originally served mainly in homes, it can now be found on the menu of many Cuban restaurants.

Traditionally, picadillo was made with ground beef, but more and more cooks are using ground turkey.  Some people add equal amounts of ground pork or ham to the ground beef or turkey.  Others like to add diced fried potatoes.  Some do all of the above!!!!!

Picadillo is mostly served over white fluffy rice.  You might also see it with a topping of fried eggs - sunny side up!  It is also used as the filling for some meat pastries we call "pastelitos de carne" (meat pastries) which I like to make using puff pastry.

Photo: while simmering and before most of the liquid had evaporated

The following is the very basic recipe for picadillo.  Below, I mention some of the optional seasonings and ingredients that you can add to make it more "typical".

1/4 to 1/2 pound ground beef (or turkey ground)
1 Tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
1 medium chopped onion
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 a green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup dry white wine (*)

Sauté the onion, garlic and bell pepper in the oil (**) until onion is slightly limp.  Add the ground meat and sauté until brown and crumbly.  Stir constantly so it will not stick.  If the meat is not lean, it will release grease; discard (***)

Add the bay leaf, wine and tomato sauce and cook for a few more minutes, stirring, until most of the liquid evaporates.

(*) I usually mention the following on recipe that contain wine of any kind, but it bears repeating.  Never use the so-called cooking wines.  They are way too salty and loaded with more chemicals and preservatives than regular table wine.  For this recipe, I use an inexpensive dry white table wine, dry vermouth or dry Sherry. 

One of the first things I learned from all of my cooking teachers and mentors was that if it is not good enough for drinking straight out of the bottle it is not good enough for cooking with it either!

(**) The combination of sautéing some veggies and herbs in oil is called a "sofrito".  The above sofrito is about as basic as you can get. 

(***) I now use island-raised grass-fed beef since it doesn't contain as much fat.  The amount of grease rendered when the meat is sautéed is almost negligible.

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS FOR PICADILLO:
You can add cumin powder and dried oregano along with a bay leaf to the sofrito.

Just before adding the tomato sauce and wine you can add a handful of raisins and about 1/4 cup of chopped green olives with pimiento stuffing.  I like to buy the "salad style" olives which are already chopped, but if I can't find them, I use regular pimento stuffed olives and slice them.  The combination of the sweet raisins and the briny olives is quite pleasing to me.  Mix well in the simmering meat.

You can also add a couple of teaspoonfuls of capers and mix well.

Peel, cut and dice a large potato and fry it separately.  Add to the cooked picadillo and mix well.

I don't normally add salt or pepper to the picadillo.  I find that when I use the olives and the capers, the brine is usually enough to season the dish.

 Buen Provecho!

 

Crema Catalana

Although I like many different kinds of desserts, my personal preferences are for those with a custard or cream base.  Whatever you call them; Bavarian Cream, Crème Anglaise, Flan, Crème Brulée, Natilla, Islas Flotantes, Crema Catalana, Leche Quemada...I love them all!

 

For the last couple of weeks I've been playing with Crema Catalana...a Spanish sort of version of the French Crème Brulée originating in the Catalonia region of Spain (think Barcelona). 

 

Although many people think of Crème Brulée and Crema Catalana as the same dessert with different names, Crema Catalana is not as heavy nor rich as it's French relative.

 

Crema Catalana or Burnt Cream or Leche Quemada as it is sometimes called, was originally a traditional dessert served to honor Saint Joseph on his 'Saint Day', March 19th.  My son was born on March 19th and his Cuban (paternal) grandmother first introduced me to this tradition on my son's first birthday. She made it every year on his birthday while we were living with my in-laws. 

 

Saint Joseph's Day is nowhere near Christmas, but Saint Joseph is associated with Christmas...and following that logic, I decided to make it for the first time for our Christmas Eve dinner.

 

My first try tasted good but it was a bit too thin and the amount of calamandin rind I used (instead of orange or lemon rind) was a bit too strong.

 

My second try on Friday before New Year's Eve resulted in a bit creamier and thicker consistency and the citrus rind was a little more elusive.

 

I don't have a salamander (an iron disc attached to a handle which is heated and traditionally used to caramelize the sugar on top) nor do I have a culinary butane torch used by many chefs, so I used the broiler part of my toaster-oven to caramelize the top of the first ones, which I served in ramekins. 

 

The second batch was served in my adorable little green glass pedestal cups and I didn't want to chance putting them under such high heat, so I made the caramel in a pan and poured it over the top of the crema.  The results were not as delicately a crispy topping, but it tasted ok and it did 'crack or shatter' when tapped with a spoon.

 

My two attempts just made me realize that if I'm going to make this dessert more often, I better get one of the butane torches to make my life easier.

 

Crema Catalana

 

2 cups milk (*)

1 short cinnamon stick

1 lemon rind (*)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 egg yolks

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

1 cup superfine sugar (*)

 

Pour milk into a thick-bottomed saucepan, add the cinnamon stick, citrus rind and vanilla extract and bring to a boil. Simmer for several minutes and then discard the cinnamon stick and citrus rind. Set aside.

Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl and add the cornstarch and 3/4 cup of the sugar, whisking until the mixture is creamy. Gradually pour this mixture into the saucepan with the warm milk, whisking continuously so as not to curdle the eggs.

Heat the mixture slowly until it begins to thicken, taking care that the mixture does not boil. Pour into ramekins, small individual clay paella type dishes or heatproof molds.  Allow to cool, and refrigerate for several hours.

Just before serving, sprinkle the remaining sugar evenly over each ramekin or mold. If using a salamander, make sure it is red-hot.  If using a blow torch, use now to caramelize the sugar. 

If using a broiler, turn the broiler on before sprinkling the sugar on top of the dessert. Place the dishes under the broiler until the sugar topping begins to caramelize. Remove from the broiler and serve.

NOTES:

(*) I used one cup each of milk and whipping cream; the texture was silkier.

(*) I found that the rind of a whole lemon (or the equivalent in calamondin orange rinds which was what I used) was too much.  I used only the rind of one small calamondin for my second try.

(*) Original recipe calls for caster sugar which I can't find here.  Caster sugar is a superfine granulated sugar (not the same as powdered sugar) so I took a cup of regular granulated and put it through my small food processor with the metal blades and processed until quite fine.

New Year's Eve 2011

 

I never did make it to midnight last evening...but we did bid goodbye to the old and celebrated the coming of the new with a simple meal composed entirely of pupus and we did light a few pieces of fireworks just to join in the sporadic popping noises around us.

The 'menu', if you can call it that, was composed of just a few spreads on toasted slices of French baguette; whipped cream cheese to which we could add spoonfuls of Caramelized Red Onion & Figs, (a gift from a mainland friend); chunky guacamole made from the very last avocado of the season on our tree mixed with some of the delicious Harry & David Pepper & Onion Relish, (a gift from another friend) and my own pâté made with chicken livers.

My chicken liver pâté evolved from trying different recipes.  Although quite simple to make, the taste is complex and yet deliciously smooth.  If you like the taste of Pâté de foie gras but object to the force-feeding of ducks or geese to obtain the fattest livers possible, this recipe, albeit not the ultimate in haute cuisine, comes a very acceptable second.  Originally made with Sherry, a friend who tried it used Madeira instead and renamed it for me.

Sonia's #2 Chicken Liver Pâté -
Pâté de foie de volaille avec Madeira

2 Tablespoons sweet butter

1 large onion, chopped

1 pound chicken livers, chopped

1/4 cup dry Sherry or Madeira (*)

1 envelope plain gelatin such as Knox

Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste

 

2 or 3 heads of garlic, unpeeled but tops cut

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese 

Sauté the chopped onion in butter until translucent.  Add the rinsed, dried and chopped chicken livers and sauté until all red is gone and livers are done.  Dissolve the gelatin in the Sherry or Madeira and add to the mix.  Add the salt and pepper to taste and finish cooking. 

Meantime roast 2 or 3 heads of garlic to which you've cut the tops and drizzled with a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Quantity depends on your taste, but the roasted garlic taste will be quite mellow and will not intrude but enhance the taste of the livers.

To make the pâté:

In a food processor:  process the cream cheese and add the cooked chicken liver mixture.  Squeeze the roasted garlic into the mix and process until smooth.  Pack tight into a crock or ramekin.  Chill to firm up and serve with crackers, Melba toast, toasted bread points or rounds.

(*) Do not use the so-called cooking sherry.  Use a good dry drinking Sherry instead.  The Madeira is even better.

Whether your own celebrations were as simple as ours or very elaborate, I hope they were enjoyable.  

I am very grateful for all the blessings received the past year and am looking forward to seeing what the New Year has in store for us.

Wishing everyone a very Happy, Healthy & Prosperous New Year!

Hau'oli Makahiki Hou, E pili mau na pomaika`i ia `oe! (Happy New Year, May blessings be ever with you!)

 

Celebrating with friends...Arroz con Pollo a la Chorrera

We had friends over for late lunch/early dinner yesterday and I wanted to serve a Cuban Style Arroz con Pollo a la Chorrera.

I had a really outstanding dish of it served at one of the La Carreta Restaurants in Miami just a few weeks ago and after watching a couple of YouTube cooking videos demonstrating how to make it and reading a few recipes on line, I called the restaurant to find out how they made theirs.

When I asked if I could have the recipe I was told no, because the chef was quite protective of his recipes BUT....then the person I was speaking with proceeded to tell me how they made it... No exact measurements or list of ingredients were given, but he did tell me that the chicken was cooked as fricasé de pollo first (no wonder it fell off the bone!) and the rice cooked separately and then put together towards the end of cooking...and replied to my question that yes, the chef used beer and chicken stock for the rice and sherry when making the fricasé...

 

Arroz con Pollo is a typical Cuban dish made with rice (arroz) and chicken (pollo).  A la chorrera is a coloquial term used for a 'wetter than usual' rice.  Most Cuban rice dishes call for the arroz to be 'desgranado', term used to mean fluffy rice, but for paella or arroz con pollo a la chorrera, you want the rice to be much wetter.  You achieve this by drenching it with liquids and cook as you would an Italian risotto, adding liquid as it evaporates or gets absorbed by the rice until you get it to the desired consistency.

 

Some people start the cooking process on the stove and finish in the oven.  I decided to use a combination of the recipes and techniques that I had been told, read and watched on video and came up with my own version.  I have made Arroz con Pollo in the past, but this was my first try 'a la chorrera'.  The entire process was done on the stove.

 

I first served a salad of thin, lightly cooked zucchini ribbons, raw carrot curls and avocado slices on red lettuce leaves drizzled in Calamondin Vinaigrette.

 

For the entrée, I used plump, boneless and skinless chicken thighs, as the results are moister and much easier to eat without having to pick the meat off the bones on the plate.

 

Arroz con Pollo a la Chorrera

 

8 chicken thighs, fat removed as much as possible

4 large garlic cloves, minced

1 Meyer lemon, juiced

1 teaspoon fresh chopped oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

 

Marinate the chicken in the above ingredients in a plastic bag or covered glass Pyrex dish for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

 

When ready to start cooking, sauté the drained and dried chicken pieces in a small quantity of olive oil.  You don't want to bathe it in the oil, but enough that the meat doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.  Turn over a couple of times to get the desired golden-brown crust.  Place on a dish and reserve, covered until later.

 

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green or red bell pepper, chopped

1 medium shallot, chopped

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 dried bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon Spanish or smoky paprika

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Salt to taste

1/2 small can tomato sauce

1 cup dry Sherry

2 1/2 cups Valencia, Arborio or any other risotto rice

1/2 of a 32 ounce box of chicken broth (no MSG)

1 24 ounce can of beer

A generous pinch saffron threads (*)

1 Tablespoon capers (*)

1 Tablespoon fresh oregano

1 1/2 cups Petit Pois or sweet English peas

Strips of red pimento for garnish (optional)

 

Using the same pan and oil in which the chicken was sautéed, start your sofrito (the Cuban version of a mirepoix or Cajun holy trinity) by adding the chopped onion, bell pepper, shallot, garlic and bay leaves, and sauté until the onion and peppers are soft and translucent, but before the garlic turns brown.  Sprinkle with the paprika, cumin and salt (or you can use one of the Goya all-purpose seasonings with no MSG); add the tomato sauce and Sherry scraping the bottom to deglaze the pan and simmer for a couple of minutes.

 

Add the rice and stir around for a bit, a couple of minutes.  Add the chicken broth and half the can of beer, reserving the rest for later.  Add the saffron, capers and fresh oregano (I used the tiny leaves of my stick oregano bush)

 

At this point, put the chicken back into the pan with whatever juices collected while reserving, nestling the pieces into the rice.  Cover and turn heat to the lowest level; let simmer until the liquid is almost all absorbed.  Add the rest of the can of beer and let it continue cooking, covered, until the liquid is almost all absorbed.  Add more chicken broth or sherry if needed.

 

Let it sit, covered for a few minutes until time to serve.  The rest of the liquid will be completely absorbed and the rice will be plump, succulent and full of flavor.

 

The Petit Pois or English peas are not added until the cooking process is done so the peas maintain their plump roundness.  Garnish with red pimento strips if desired.  I didn't, since I used red bell pepper in my sofrito.

 

(*) To get more color and flavor from the saffron, first soak in lemon or lime juice for a little while and using a spoon, mash it a bit to extract as much color as possible.  Since I used Meyer lemons in the chicken marinade, I used Meyer lemon juice to soak the saffron.

(*) When adding salt be careful if you will be using capers since they are also salty.  I waited until after I added the capers and tasted the broth before I added the salt.

 

Dessert was Crema Catalana, a Spanish version of crème brûlée and I served it with deliciously thin Moravian Ginger Snaps, a gift from a niece and nephew who live near the Moravian Village in Winston-Salem, NC .  I will share the recipe soon.

My table setting was in keeping with the eclectic ethnic mix that live in our island paradise;  this time, a mixture of my love for Oriental porcelain (Chinese Canton Rose Ware) and my Cuban and Spanish heritage and a touch of Moravian influence in the food served.

Happy New Year!

Feliz Año Nuevo!

Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!

Our Christmas Eve or 'Best Night'

Christmas Eve day and evening celebrations are a tradition in our  Cuban side of the family...There is, of course, Noche Buena, which translates to Good Night but not as a 'retiring for the evening' greeting of farewell, but more like "Best Night"... Later the Misa de Gallo, or Midnight Mass and also earlier in the day, at least in my family when we were children, there was the tradition of visiting the convents, old people's homes and churches that displayed huge, elaborate Crèche depicting the Nativity.

My Hummel Crèche survived our fire of July 2000 and as such, doubly special...Some pieces are damaged....Mary's blue mantle is smoky and donkey has lost a lot of it's gray coat; Cow's head and neck lost coloring and Baltazar's head had to be glued back on...but I love it and love displaying it year after year nevertheless.

 

Some of the displayed Crèche from my childhood took up whole rooms and showed villages, lakes, rivers, mountains, shepherds, sheep, cattle, palm trees, villagers, of course the manger scene (sans Baby Jesus until Midnight) and off in the distance, the Three Kings on their camels following the Christmas Star.  No, Santa did not make an appearance in these Crèche scenes.

The Cuban celebration of Noche Buena started very early in the day or even the day before by digging underground pits, similar to how Hawaiians build an imu to roast whole pigs lavishly marinated in mojo, a sauce made with generous amounts of garlic in sour orange juice and olive oil (see a modern version of the Cuban style pig roasting as well as my friend Esther Musibay's delicious mojo sauce). The menu typically includes rice and black beans, yuca also served with mojo, and many other traditional dishes loved by anyone with a smidgen of Cuban blood running in their veins!  Desserts normally run to turrones (almond nougat style sweets, both the hard type from Alicante or the soft one from Jijona, Spain), flan or custards such as the crema Catalana. 

I love setting a festive table and each year try to come up with interesting and different ideas.  This year I went wild mixing bright red (candles, my mother's red goblets, red rimmed dinner plates) with deep burgundy tablecloth, Christmas plaids (ribbon swag on the table, napkins and all the packages I wrapped) as well as pieces from our collection of sea creatures (pearl oyster shells, angel wing shells, starfish, sand dollar, equinoid fossil (of an ancient sea urchin), a few banded sea snail shells and a few more....I added two strings of tiny, tiny little lights my sister gave me recently.

I love using my mother's red goblets circa mid 1960's courtesy of S&H Green Stamps!  The red rimmed dinner and salad plates were a gift from my friend Maritza.  The salad plates on the étagère are Christmas Garland from Fitz & Floyd and special because they also were some of the few things that survived our fire!

For the last 10 years or so, my son and I have forgone the typical Cuban style Noche Buena menu and we sort of let our fancy guide us as to what menu we will choose for our own Best Night meal.

This time we chose a very simple menu of only three dishes... A zucchini ribbons salad courtesy of my Gather friend Katrina Hall, which I served with a Calamondin Vinaigrette made with fruit from our own calamondin tree.  

For our Entrée we chose to make a seafood dish consisting of lobster, shrimp and scallops in a combination of Newburg and Thermidor sauce, served in individual little gratin dishes lined with puff pastry.

Lobster, Shrimp & Scallops in Creamy Sauce

2 sheets puff pastry

2 lobster tails, cut in 1/4 inch chunks

8 sea scallops, cut in pieces

12 shrimp, shelled and devained

1/2 stick butter

2 shallots, finely minced

1/4 red bell pepper, seeded, devained, finely minced

1/2 teaspoon Spanish paprika

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

4 Tablespoons medium dry Sherry

1 cup heavy cream, scalded

4 egg yolks, beaten

Coarse panko

Butter for dotting on the breading

Freshly grated Parmigiano Romano cheese

Unfold puff pastry sheets and roll a few times with a rolling pin.  Place sheet inside each graten dish, fit into the sides and bottoms and cut off the rest with kitchen shears or sharp knife (use the discarded pieces to make cinnamon pastries).  Prick the bottom with a fork and place in 350 F oven to bake and puff up.

Heat butter in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until foam subsides, then cook the minced shallots and red bell pepper, stirring, until any liquid is evaporated and they begin to turn translucent, about 3 minutes. Add lobster, shrimp and scallop, paprika, salt, and pepper and reduce heat to low. Cook, shaking pan gently, about 1 minute or so. Add 2 tablespoons Sherry and 1/2 cup of the hot cream and simmer for about 5 minutes.

While the above is gently simmering, add the remaining 2 tablespoons Sherry and 1/2 cup scalded milk to the beaten eggs in thin, slow dribbles, whisking constantly so that eggs will not curdle.  It should turn into a creamy and smooth eggy custard.  Add custard slowly to shellfish mixture, stirring gently until the sauce thickens to your desired consistency.

Pour the shellfish mixture into the graten dishes lined with the baked puff pastry.  Sprinkle with coarse panko, dot with butter and a few shakes of Parmigiano Romano cheese.  Place under broiler just long enough for the top to turn golden.

Dessert was a rich and silky Crema Catalana which is a Spanish version of a crème brulée.

I also baked a Red Velvet Cake and topped it with Cream Cheese Frosting to take to our friends Gail & Robert's house for a Christmas Day party.  I will post the recipe and photos for the cake later on.

Merry Christmas and Felices Navidades, everyone from our little Hawaiian cottage hale to your home!

 

 

On the Eve of Christmas Eve

On the Eve of Christmas Eve I was ready for the festivities....but not quite ready for the Christmas Eve table setting and menu... I had a lovely pork tenderloin and wanted to try a recipe for Mashed Potato Muffins shared by Joanne W on Gather.com recently - get the original recipe HERE.  For my changes read below.

The menu consisted of Citrusy & Garlic Rub Encrusted Pork Tenderloin sprinkled with Apple Wine, made by our friends Brenda and Kevan (and roasted in our clay cooker); Mini Mashed Potato Muffins and although I had set my heart on a Watercress Salad...since our source didn't have any available for cutting I settled for Petit Pois with Rosemary Seasoned Butter.

I couldn't find my standard sized muffin tins so used a 12 count mini-muffin pan with removable bottom. It worked great.

A simple meal to herald the Holiday in style...

The small calamondin oranges are from our tree...the blue plates were a Freecycle find!

Variations:

Use grated sharp or medium sharp cheddar instead of the ricotta for more umpf
Or
Use grated jalapeño cheese

I used fresh chopped/minced rosemary but fresh chopped/minced dill or chives or garlic chives would work well.

The recipe doesn't call for them, but I went on ahead and added the beaten egg yolks to the mix separately before folding in the egg whites.  I liked the results.

For the breadcrumbs at the botttom of the mini-muffin cups I used fine ground panko.

For those who are gluten intolerant you can either ignore the use for
breadcrumbs in the bottom of the pan or there is a brand that carries gluten free panko -

http://kinnikinnick.com/rss/src/Kinnikinnick-Introduces-Gluten-Free-Panko-Style-\
Br.html

 

 

 

 

Homemade Holiday Gifts - Mixed Bean Soup fixings

Simple gifts sometimes are the best!

Here is something we did about 14 years ago for family and friends and decided to do again this year for close friends and neighbors. 

 

Mixed Bean Soup

 

Combination of several types beans and peas

I used:

Baby limas

Large limas

Navy beans

Black beans

Great Northern beans

Light red kidney beans

Small red beans

Pinto beans

Garbanzo beans

Green split peas

Black-eyed peas

Green whole peas

Green split peas

Yellow split peas

Lentils

Pearl barley

 

Swansons Flavor Boost concentrated broth liquid packets - chicken flavored with no MSG

Goya Adobo Seasoning with no MSG

Dried oregano, thyme and ground black pepper

Fresh garlic cloves

Amounts are up to you and depend on how much of the bean mix you put in the bags.

 

Place the liquid packets of concentrated broth, the measured amounts of seasonings and the garlic cloves in Zip-lock small plastic snack bags.

 

Mix all the beans and peas together except for the lentils, yellow and green split peas and the pearl barley in a large container and mix well.  The reason to not mix in the peas, lentils and barley is they are much smaller and sink to the bottom.

 

Using clear plastic bags, fill with amount of bean mixture desired; add the rest of the peas, lentils and barley. 

 

We used white porcelain mugs large enough to use as soup mugs.

Place the bean mixture bags inside the mugs and the small envelope with the seasonings can be fitted also inside the mugs alongside the bags.  Close the bag tight with ribbon or twistie.

 

Wrap in decorated cellophane and tie with ribbon.  Add gift tag or card with list of ingredients and note to add water and chopped onion.

 

For a couple I used two mugs and one bag of the bean mixture and seasonings.  For individuals only 1 mug with the bag of beans and seasonings.

We had a bit left over which we will cook in our crock pot!

Gifts from the Kitchen - Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls

I'm visiting on the mainland for a few weeks and I helped my niece Madeline make these last night.  Absolutely delicious and could definitely be habit forming!
Wonderful as "Christmas Gifts from Your Kitchen".

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls

1 cup crushed Graham crackers (* see note below)
1/2 cup margarine or butter - room temperature (* see note below)
1 cup peanut butter - smooth or crunchy
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 ounce bag of meltable cocoa chips (* see note below)

Crush the cookies in a food processor or in a plastic bag with with rolling pin.  Mix and cream them with the butter, peanut butter, sugar and vanilla. Form small balls by rolling a small amount between your hands and place on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet or jelly-roll pan. Chill for about half an hour or until firm.

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or double boiler - microwave is cleaner and
easier. You will probably need to zap it a few short times to get it to right
consistency.

Dip each peanut butter ball into the melted chocolate. You might have to put the
chocolate in the microwave a couple of times in between dipping batches of
peanut butter balls.  Place the covered balls back on the parchment covered pan or tray to dry. 

 Store in cool area in a tightly covered container.

NOTES:
* instead of Graham crackers we used Galleticas de Maria, but Lorna Doones,
vanilla wafers or even shortbread cookies can be used.

* we used butter

* the cocoa chips we used were from Wilton's candy melt chips, the cake
decorating company, but German Baker's semi-sweet baking chocolate squares can
be used. Be sure to read the microwave melting directions.

YIELD: we got 55 balls using the smallest size of a spring-release ice cream or cookie dough scoop

SOURCE: Not sure. Very easy, fast and absolutely delicious!

Homemade Queso Blanco

Queso blanco is simply 'white cheese'.  In Cuba we used to also call it farmer's cheese or 'queso de campo'. 

Queso Fresco (Fresh Cheese) and Queso Blanco are slightly different in texture although even in Mexico or South America the two names are sometimes used interchangeably. They are similar in taste and style but made differently.

Queso Fresco is made with rennet and will melt when heated. 

Queso Blanco can be made with lemon juice or vinegar and will soften but not melt when heated but can be sliced and fried.

Equipment needed

Heavy bottom pot large enough to hold the amount of milk

Colander

Large bowl or 8 cup meassuring cup

Cheesecloth

Skimmer

Queso Blanco

1/2 gallon (2 quarts or 8 cups) whole milk*

1 Tablespoon sea salt

3 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar or lemon juice

*I used 1 cup Half & Half and made up the rest of the milk amount with the whole milk.  It gave the cheese a little creamier consistency.

Line the colander with a couple of plies of cheesecloth.  Make sure to place the colander over a bowl or an 8 cup meassuring cup to catch the whey.

Pour the milk in the pot adding the salt.  Heat until just to the boiling point stirring every once in a while.  Do not let it stick to bottom or boil over.

Turn to low and add the vinegar or lemon juice, stirring for a bit.  Turn heat off.

Skim the curds into the colander that has been lined with cheesecloth.    Pour the rest of the whey to drain so that you can catch every bit of curds.  Let it sit for a bit while draining.  You might squeeze it a bit.

Unwrap the cheesecloth and press cheese into the mold, plate or bowl.  If you want a denser consistency, press out the remaining liquid by placing a plate over the cheese and a weight over it.  Let it sit for about an hour or so.

Refrigerate.

Just before serving, I sprinkled with a bit of seasoned salt that was given to us as part of a Christmas gift.

Serve with crackers.

Buen Provecho!