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Intro – May 2020 – Quick Focaccia Need to take something to a potluck? Want to surprise the family with something special for dinner, a TV-watching party, for the first barbeque of the year? Then do try this recipe. Even if you are not a regular bread baker, you may soon become one because of the ease of producing this show-stopper. EnJOY An Italian-born friend, whom my family affectionately calls Nonna, every Friday bakes six slabs of focaccia for her extended, grateful family and also for her friends. When she opens her oven door to remove focaccia, the smell is heavenly. This is not Nonna’s recipe, but it is close.
~Jan Bachman
Sauce 2 T rice wine vinegar 1 t sesame oil 2 T tamari or soy sauce 1 t hot chile sauce 1/2 t crushed red pepper 1 clove minced garlic 1 t finely grated ginger Ingredients 2 bunches trimmed broccolini or baby broccoli 1 T olive oil 2 cups shitake mushrooms, stems trimmed, cut in half 1/2 cup small sweet peppers, diced kosher salt and black pepper to taste 2 T sliced green onions 1 t sesame toasted sesame seeds Directions Combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl, set aside. In a medium saucepan with salted boiling water, blanch the broccolini until bright green and tender, about 3 minutes. Drain, place in a bowl of ice water, and set aside. Heat 1 T of olive oil over medium-high heat in a wok or large sauté pan. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 3 minutes. Add peppers to the pan and sauté for 1 minute. Add the broccolini and cook for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low and add the sauce, toss the vegetables and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer vegetables to a dish. Pour some of the sauce over the top and garnish with green onions and toasted sesame seeds. Works well over basmati rice with grilled salmon. Recipe courtesy of Sonia Nikolic and Restorative Cuisine Is it Friday, Monday, Wednesday, I dunno… either way seems like a good day to make some paleo bagels. I’ve tried to put jeans on a few times a week but who am I kidding, why do I even bother?! .. These bagels will make you feel like you actually went to the bagel shop, put on real pants, and stood in a long line RIGHT NEXT to other people. I miss those days SO MUCH. Looking for cinnamon and raisin bagels? Everything? You can turn these into anything. . These bagels are gluten-free and dairy-free with the option to make them nut-free. Hope you’re all doing well! . I consider bagels to be the equivalent to pizza but for breakfast. They’re addictive and you can never get sick of it. The added bonus is that you can have them savory or sweet! Going paleo I though these were one of the foods I’d never eat again. Boy was I wrong, I eat them way more frequently now than ever before. These bagels are so awesome to have on hand on a busy week day morning. It’s the perfect grab and go breakfast. Whip these up on Sunday and you’re set for the whole week. Double the batch if you’re feeding a few people. My favorite part about these is that you don’t have to boil them and then bake which adds a whole extra step. I need things that are simple to make and these are it! NUT-FREE OPTION You can make these nut-free by swapping out the almond flour with 1/2 cup arrowroot flour. This is a great option if you send your kids with these to school in a nut-free environment. TOPPINGS Everything bagels are my all time favorite. Trader Joe’s sells a mix called Everything but the Bagel and it’s killer on these. Whatever you choose to top these with, add it to the bagel before putting them in the oven. It will stick to the bagel and get super crunchy. Here are some other options:
Easy Gluten-Free Bagels (Paleo)Prep Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 25 mins Resting Time: 1 hr Servings: 6 Ingredients
SERVING SUGGESTIONS Savory:
For easy peel eggs from Pat and Gary Griffin
1 to 6 eggs (hardly worth doing 1. No duh!) - We tried doing 9 at a time but they did not peel as easily 1 cup water Trivet or steamer basket basket in the pot. Secure lid on pot. Close pressure real ease valve. For hard boiled eggs; Press EGG function button or Press PRESSURE COOK, normal/low, 5 minutes Use NATURAL RELEASE (takes about 20 minutes) Release lid, put eggs in cool water for a minute or so, and peel. From Hebe Garcia
Ingredients: 3 good quality sausages, either beef or chicken. 1 Can of chickpeas Olive oil 1 medium size shallot 5 Sweet Peppers (the small kind) 1 cup chopped cilantro 2 tablespoons of capers 2-1/2 cups of Jasmine Rice 2-1/2 cups of chicken broth 1 cup of Spicy Arabiata Pomodoro Sauce ( or if you rather Tomato Basil) Salt to taste Procedure: 1. Slice sausage into preferred size rings, I cut mine about 1/2” thick. In a Cast Iron Skillet brown sausage on both sides, and set aside. 2. Chop shallot, sweet peppers and cilantro. Sauté with a bit of Olive oil (I use my InstaPot as I find it works best for rice at High Altitude) until shallot is translucent. 3. Add sausage, chickpeas, capers and rice, and stir to mix everything well. 4. Add Arabiata sauce, chicken broth and salt to taste. Cancel sauté setting on InstaPot, close lid and set to Rice Normal setting. Enjoy 😊 image courtesy of Maggie Elliot One does not have to be pregnant to enjoy eating and benefitting from this healthy meatloaf. It is so very delicious. One of my daughters came across this recipe while she was pregnant. A celebrity pregnant at the same time (she does not remember who) touted the benefits of eating this meatloaf. My daughter raved about it, so I tried it. Both pregnant ladies were right. Delicious cold as well as hot. One could add other ingredients such as minced carrots to augment its long list of vitamins and minerals. EnJOY The quantities of this dense meatloaf are up to the cook; this is just a guideline. This nutritious meatloaf—providing folic acid, calcium, protein and, thanks to the oatmeal: minerals, e.g., potassium, iron, and zinc, along with fiber and antioxidants—is almost better cold than hot for sandwiches.
The watercress is starting to appear!
Please learn and know the difference between watercress and water hemlock. Cashews 1 cup soak them for 1/2 or an hour. Olive oil or coconut oil Onion 1 coarsely chopped. Lots of clean washed watercress, salt toasted sesame seeds and salt ground together for topping, green onion for topping Saute the onions till translucent then add the water cress til it is well wilted, let cool. Put the cashews and water in a blender on high to make the cream, add a bit of salt. Blend the onion, watercress, and cashew cream. Serve hot or cold as you like it, sprinkling chopped green onions and sesame salt on top. Stay safe, happy and in solidarity with life Scott Markman Chicken breasts with sun dried tomatoes. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (as many as you want), 2 cloves garlic 3 tbs olive oil, sun dried tomatoes ( as many as you want). Drizzle oil in casserole dish, sprinkle crushed garlic over oil. Add chicken breasts sprinkled with salt, pepper and garlic. Add tomatoes which have been soaked in warm water. Drizzle a little more olive oil over all. Cover and bake @350 for about 45 min. depending on # of breasts. When chicken is tender, remove from oven. Serve on pasta and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Delicious!
Get a big pot of water going and add whatever you have.
Simmer and Enjoy. From Iren Schio Send us your pantry recipes! This is a basic recipe. Substitute with what you have in the pantry or fridge.
Ingredients
St. Joseph’s Feast Day, March 19, is celebrated all over the world but probably most enthusiastically in Italy, especially Sicily, and in Italian-American enclaves in the United States. A wonderful custom started centuries ago when sailors returning to Sicily from the mainland were overtaken by a fierce storm. The sailors prayed to St. Joseph that if he helped them reach shore safely, they would gratefully prepare and share a large feast in his honor. St. Joseph did his part, and the sailors did theirs. To this day, people of Italian descent prepare elaborate St. Joseph’s tables for favors granted by their saint. I attended one such feast at St. Peter’s Church in Chicago’s downtown Loop. The hosts set up a separate table for seating twelve children in imitation of the twelve apostles. Strangers were invited in off the street outside to help themselves to some of the food, which kept being replenished. St. Joseph’s tables (generally meatless) usually have lavish displays of flowers, fruits, especially oranges, and breads shaped into religious symbols. In New Orleans, home to a sizable population of Sicilian descendants, the Rouse chain of grocery stores sets up a ‘display’ St. Joseph’s table in some of its stores. To honor St. Joseph in a simpler fashion, I offer this easy recipe for Chicken Cacciatore. The Italian word Cacciatore means ‘hunter’ as this dish originated with hunters who could cook it easily outdoors. It probably was made with rabbit rather than chicken as hunters could snare them while hunting for larger game. Wild herbs for seasoning were readily available. Originally, this stew-like one-pot meal did not have tomatoes as they had not yet been imported from the New World—which makes this dish akin to Hungarian Goulash, also a hunters’ meal, which also originally was not made with tomatoes for the same reason. Wear red for St. Joseph as you cook and eat this meal. EnJOY A New Mexico acquaintance told me she had a new friend who was building an horno for her. While he was mudding the structure, he told her of a dish—Chicken Cacciatore—he enjoyed eating while growing up in a family of Italian descent, but he had no idea how to make it. I also remember eating this dish in Chicago’s Italian neighborhoods but had never made it. “Do you have a recipe for this dish?” she asked. “I would like to make it for my friend.” I checked all of my Italian cookbooks to no avail, leading me to conclude that this is an Italian-American dish. Further research, however, indicated that this dish did indeed originate in Italy—with hunters. Finally, I found two recipes—one from Time-Life cookbook and one from Woman’s Day Encyclopedia of Cookery—and combined the best of both to develop this delicious version.
images courtesy of Iren Schio This month, EnJOY features two recipes to honor two saints: Irish Coffee to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, and Italian-style Chicken Cacciatore to celebrate St. Joseph’s Day, March 19—with the two recipes appearing in separate weeks. I had the pleasure of growing up on Chicago’s immigrant southside (yes, one word) with many Irish neighbors, who attended St. Cecilia’s Church and School, while my Austrian compatriots attended St. George’s Church and School, and we got along well. The lilt of Irish brogues contrasted with the heavier accent of German speakers. The Irish loved the corned beef my Father brined in our store before St. Patrick’s Day and put in their orders early for their brisket. Mounds of cabbage and overflowing bins of potatoes were at the ready for our customers. As in all large cities around the globe, Chicago annually mounts a big parade downtown after dyeing the dark Chicago River a bright luminous green, but the southside Irish hold a separate parade on a separate day as some people, especially politicians, participate in both—all wearing the green. While at this time of the year, newspapers and magazines feature recipes for Irish food, I want to present to you the authentic original recipe for and history of Irish Coffee. EnJOY Here are two recipes for Irish Coffee. One is a poem, and the other a hot libation—perfect for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, March 17. Both versions were created by the same individual, Joe Sheridan, chef at a restaurant at the Foynes airbase outside of Limerick, Ireland (replaced since by Shannon International Airport). In the mid-1930s, it was decided by the US and Canada that all eastbound transatlantic flights would terminate at Foynes, which could handle water landings of heavy flying boats. In 1942, a westbound flight destined for New York had to return to Foynes because a winter storm developed in the North Atlantic. To warm the disheartened passengers, Joe Sheridan served them Irish Coffee. As is well known, the Irish are a poetic people as evidenced by their literature and music, so it makes perfect sense for a chef to create a poem to help people remember the ingredients of his simple yet satisfying hot libation. FIRST, Joe Sheridan’s poem. . .
NOW, Joe Sheridan’s hot libation. . .
Toast like the Irish: Slainte (health - say slawn-che) — EnJOY
The "mother" in this recipe refers to Brian's maternal Grandmother Helen Vaughan. We are in Phoenix this week where the lemon tree is loaded and ready to pick. Thank you Mary Helen for sharing this recipe (and for the lemons). 4 Tbsp Flour 4 Tbsp Butter 1 2/3 C Sugar Creamed together 2 Lemons (Juice and zest) 4 Egg Yolks 2 C Milk 4 Egg Whites (stiffly beaten) Add to mixture in this order Place in Greased 9 X 13 baking dish, set in oven in a pan of hot water. Bake 45 minutes at 350. Jan Bachman
Ingredients 1 large egg 1/4 teaspoon garlic 1/2 t paprika 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs coarse sea salt black pepper 1 1/2 pounds cod fillets cut into 4-inch sections 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1-2 T butter, melted Directions Whisk together the egg, garlic, paprika, and 2 tablespoons of water in a large, shallow dish. Mix together the panko and a generous pinch of salt and pepper in another large, shallow dish. Season the cod sections generously with salt and pepper. Dip each one into the flour to coat and shake off any excess, then into the egg wash, and then into the panko mixture to coat, patting so that it adheres. As you work, arrange the sections in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking tray. Using a pastry brush, brush them all over with the melted butter. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°. Bake the cod for 16 to 18 minutes, or until just cooked through. The fillets will begin to flake when they are done. Ingredients
4 eggs 3 tbsp flour 5 tbsp Sugar ½ cup butter 1 cup chocolate chips Separate eggs. Melt butter over low heat. Add chips to butter and melt until smooth. Mix sugar with yolks. In bowl with yolk mixture, add smooth chocolate chips mixture and mix. Add flour, tablespoon by tablespoon. Fluff egg whites and fold into chocolate batter. Pour into small, wax paper lined, spring form pan and bake covered with foil at 350° about 45 minutes. I now make this several different ways, trying to make it perfect. One thing I do to make it GF is to use corn starch instead of flour. Also, I sometimes use GF flour. Either works fine. I have been cooking it in a waterbath lately, though that slows down cooking time quite a bit. I have poured about a half cup of chocolate chips into the center of the cake after it's in the sprinform pan, to make it more molten. Finally, I've added flavors, like almond extract, or raspberry, which is very nice. Last night I added orange flavoring and orange marmalade and orange zest, which I quite liked. IT’S NOT EASY BEING GREEN as Kermit the Frog sings to us. Why not? It should be, as greens are not only good for us but also because they can be incredibly delicious, especially when made from a recipe such as this one for Creamy Garlic Spinach—which is similar to dense well-seasoned steak-house spinach. This is the spinach I learned to love as a child, except my Mother made it with fresh spinach she chopped, after cooking the leaves, in a well-worn wooden bowl with a two-bladed rocking cutting tool having a green handle. She poured the hot strained spinach cooking liquid into a tall glass and handed it to me to drink as she also did with cauliflower, green bean, and carrot water so that the vitamins in these vegetables went into me instead of down the kitchen sink. After all these years, I still follow this practice. Do try this spinach recipe, which has converted spinach haters into spinach lovers. EnJOY Frozen spinach works well in this recipe. There is no advantage to using fresh spinach, and it is much more work. These measurements are not too specific and can be varied according to taste. As creamed spinach freezes well, one might as well make a large quantity and have it on hand.
Brian Bondy We first discovered Limoncina’s stronger brother drink, Limoncello, while visiting the Amalfi coast with Mary Helen and Natalia. I brought home the recipe on a kitchen towel purchased on Capri. It’s a great after dinner drink. As an alternative to sipping, try pouring a shot over lemon sorbet or mix with seltzer water over ice. 6 Ripe Lemons 2 1/2 Cups Vodka 2 Cups Sugar 2 Cups Water ½ vanilla bean. Wash the lemons well. Carefully remove the peel only, cutting away as much of the white pith as possible. Use a carrot peeler. Put the rind in a sterilized glass jar with a lid, and pour the vodka over top, add the ½ vanilla bean. Cover, and store for 10 days. After 10 days, prepare sugar syrup with the sugar and water. Bring them to a boil, and then simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Filter the vodka and lemon peel, by pouring through cheesecloth. Mix with the syrup, and leave for about 10 days to mature. Place in the refrigerator before serving. This liqueur will keep for months and makes a great holiday gift or hostess gift. Note: Chill and serve in chilled liqueur glasses; it is a refreshing summer after dinner drink. Use Grain Alcohol (same recipe) for Limoncello, which can be stored in freezer. Kristen Andreasen
Many moons ago, while living in Manhattan, I had a small apartment across the street from Sullivan Street Bakery. At the time, I just knew it for excellent loaves and pastries, not unlike other neighborhood bake shops. Years later, the bakery owner, Jim Lahey became famous for his No-Knead Bread when the New York Times published his recipe. From that moment on, home cooks everywhere finally had access to an unfussy, simple bread recipe that yielded consistent results. If you have ever been scared of yeast baking, I urge you to give this one a shot. It is easy peasy. With 4 basic ingredients, you'll be looking for excuses to make this bread every week (love handles be damned!). When baking here in Abiquiu, I have found the following tips make a difference: *use bread flour for a chewier texture *use the whole packet of yeast *add a bit more water (the dough should remind you of a wet, shaggy dog) *don't skip the second rise! When you get glowing praise from your friends and family, send me a picture of your creation! I would love to share in your success. (kristen@kristensellsnm.com) 3 cups bread flour 1 1/3 cups warm water 1/4 tsp yeast 1 1/4 tsp salt Mix all ingredients well, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm spot for 12-18 hrs. Fold the four corners of the dough into the center of the dough and place the seam side down on a well floured kitchen towel. Leave to rest 1-2 hrs. Preheat the oven to *450 and allow your dutch oven to come to temp in the pre-heating oven (Be sure to have an oven safe knob) Carefully remove pot from oven and place your dough ball inside. Cover and bake 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake an additional 15-20 minutes (until golden brown) Cool at least 1 hour before slicing (you can do it!) ***Adapted from LC*** https://leitesculinaria.com/99521/recipes-jim-laheys-no-knead-bread.html From Mostly Plants: 101 Delicious Flexitarian Recipes from the Pollan Family By Tracy Pollan, Dana Pollan, Corky Pollan, Lori Pollan with foreward by Micheal Pollan For my birthday this year, I received a copy of "Mostly Plants" by the Pollan Family. The title refers to a quote of their brother Michael Pollan. Pollan says everything he's learned about food and health can be summed up in seven words: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants." A few years ago I added a spiralizer to my kitchen equipment. While you can spiralize almost anything, it works great with zucchini. Zucchini noodles are an ideal gluten-free alternative to pasta. Zucchini has a mild flavor and a similar texture to linguine, so we find it is the ultimate partner to this lemony, garlicky sauce with seared shrimp. This is a lighter, healthier alternative to an old Italian standard. 4 SERVINGS TIME: 35 MINUTES 1 pound large shrimp (31/ 35 count), peeled, deveined, and butterflied Kosher salt ¼ teaspoon baking soda 4 medium zucchini (about 2 pounds), or 2 pounds store-bought zucchini noodles 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed 1 tablespoon minced garlic (note from Carol... more wouldn't hurt) 1 small fresh red chile pepper (such as cayenne or Thai bird), thinly sliced 2 teaspoons capers, drained ½ cup dry vermouth or dry white wine 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 teaspoon lemon zest 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 teaspoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon Freshly ground black pepper 1. In a medium bowl, combine the shrimp, ½ teaspoon salt, and the baking soda. Mix well until evenly coated. Set aside at room temperature for 10 minutes or refrigerate for up to 1 hour. 2. Cut the zucchini into noodles using a vegetable spiralizer, according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place the spiralized zucchini in a bowl lined with paper towel or a tea towel to remove any excess water. 3. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until shimmering. Add half the shrimp in one layer, cut-side down with the tails sticking up, and cook undisturbed until pink, 1 ½ to 2 minutes. Flip and cook, turning and stirring the shrimp occasionally, for an additional 2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a medium bowl. Repeat with the remaining shrimp, adding more oil to the pan if needed. Set aside. 4. Wipe the skillet clean, return it to medium heat, and add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the garlic, and chile pepper. Cook, stirring, until the garlic starts to turn golden brown, about 1 minute. Add the capers and cook for an additional minute, making sure the garlic doesn’t burn. 5. Add the vermouth, raise the heat to high, and stir until the liquid has reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the butter and stir until melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, tarragon, ½ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper. Pour the sauce over the shrimp and toss until well coated; set aside. 6. Wipe the skillet clean, return it to medium-high heat, and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When the oil is very hot, add the zucchini noodles and cook, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp and all of the sauce to the skillet, mix into the zucchini, and cook for an additional minute. Season with salt and black pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve hot. Food for Thought Who knew zucchini was a great choice for those looking to lose a few pounds? It’s high in water and low in calories, as well as rich in vitamins C, A, and K. Zucchini is also brimming with nutrients like potassium and manganese. Oh, and remember not to peel it—the skin is an excellent source of fiber. Intro – January 2020 The New Year usually gets off to a very wet start—champagne or eggnog or punch, etc. My personal preference to greet the New Year is hot-buttered rum. This is a very old libation much loved by the American colonists, but it probably descended from drinks imbibed at the time in Merry Olde England, whose citizens loved quaffing hot spicy drinks in Winter. One Colonial practice was to warm the ingredients by plunging a red-hot poker into the mug. Rum was cheap and originated in nearby Caribbean islands, where sugar cane was grown with slave labor. The cane was cooked down to molasses which was shipped to New England, where distilleries were built to turn molasses into rum. Nowadays, the entire process usually takes place close to sugar-cane production not only in the Caribbean but also in Latin America. Recently, good friends and I gathered around a blazing fire burning in a firepit set up in the snow and drank hot-buttered rum. We did not feel the cold. National Hot-Buttered Rum Day is coming up soon--January 17. Get ready to celebrate by mixing up a batch of spicy hot-buttered rum mix per this recipe This drink is wonderful on a cold wintry day especially in front of a roaring fire—indoors or out. It can be given to children without the rum, and it will soothe sore throats and reduce coughing. A covered batch of hot-buttered rum mix can sit in the refrigerator for months and still be good. Developed by a bartender in Oregon, this recipe was published in Gourmet magazine in the ‘60s.
Eunhee Lee
Thank Eunhee for this recipe! The only planning needed is to purchase the rice wraps (I used to buy at Smith’s in Los Alamos or you can purchase on Amazon). Everything else is likely in your fridge already. Do not layer rolls over 2 layers as they get sticky and become difficult to remove. If rolls are sticky when serving, tell your guest to remove slowly to prevent damage. (This is not a bandaid!!!) Enjoy! We miss everyone’s beautiful smiles. Vegan Spring Rolls
Thai-Style Peanut Sauce
Directions: Whisk together until consistency of honey Credit to: Jeramyn Feucht, Allrecipes.com for sauce There are a lot of traditions in the Bondy family at holiday time. Fried Bologna at breakfast and wreath cookies - always a favorite with the kids of all ages. ¼ cup butter 40 regular or 4 cups mini marshmallows 5 cups corn flakes green food coloring red hots Melt butter in a 3 quart saucepan. Add marshmallows and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until marshmallows are melted. Add food coloring to make a deep green. Stir in corn flakes, working quickly, spoon cornflake mixture into 24 2” mounds onto waxed paper. Add 3-4 red hots to top and shape round. It helps to spray your teaspoons and waxed paper with Pam. Watch out for the green tongues! Christmas and cookies go together ofcourse. I have many happy memories of cookies sweetening this year-end holiday, but my favorite is of a woman with whom I worked who took Christmas cookie baking seriously. Every December 1, she bought 20 pounds of butter. Every day after work, she would make a light dinner and go to bed early. Then she would awake about two o’clock in the morning and bake a batch of cookies. These would be packed into candy boxes she collected throughout the year at the office, where we had a custom of celebrating our birthdays by buying two pounds of chocolates, passing them around after lunch, and then giving my friend the empty box. These boxes of cookies would be stashed in her freezer to be shared at Christmas, especially at her annual Christmas open house. In addition to all the Swedish recipes she learned early in life, she made Mexican besos (kisses) and a shortbread cookie so rich that she cut the dough into half-inch cubes, sprinkled with red and green sugars. Another woman, with the help of two of her friends, gathered all of her grandchildren into her large kitchen on a Saturday early in December for a full day of baking and decorating cookies while their parents had the day free for serious Christmas shopping. When their parents returned, each child offered them a tin of Christmas cookies. My all-time favorite Christmas cookie is my Mother’s unusual butter cookie, which is offered here for you to try. Please do and remember to leave some out for Santa Claus. EnJOY Christmas Eve in our Unger household always was scented by pine from the Christmas tree, furniture polish in the living room, the fishy smell of tuna salad (the only time in the year that this meal was served due to a meatless vigil), and the best smell of all---Christmas butter cookies. My Mother’s Christmas butter cookies are like no others due to their 1/4-inch thickness and primarily due to the inclusion of sieved hard-boiled egg yolks, which affect the texture and enhance the yellow color. The cookies should be golden yellow, not brown, so one must watch the baking carefully (my Mother would pull up a chair to the oven with its light on to watch color). This recipe was lost for many years until a happenstance long-distance phone call with our long-time next-door Illinois neighbor, Laverne, gratefully brought it to light. On Laverne’s recipe card, this recipe was attributed to another neighborhhood baker with whom my Mother shared it but who claimed it as her own. I still use my Mother’s five old Christmas cookie cutters; they are willed to my children, Lisa, Sheila, and Patrick, and to my granddaughters, Haley and Zoe.
Quite a few years ago I assembled a family cookbook with recipes from members of our extended and blended family. This recipe is from my Grandchildren's French Grandmother Laure Nikolic (and an excuse to include a picture of my much younger grandson). Laure Nikolic Ingrédients 1 stick unsalted butter 1 cup cake flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 3 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla Madeleine mold Set oven to 350°F. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat eggs in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until light and foamy. Gradually add granulated sugar, beating constantly at high speed, and continue to beat until mixture is tripled in volume. Add flour and melted butter slowly. Spoon a rounded tablespoon of batter into each mold. Bake for 8 minutes until golden brown. |
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