This is a very difficult time for me and I’m not sure how to put my feelings into words just yet.

My husband, Joe, suddenly passed away, May 18th at around 12:00 noon. I’ve written about Joe often over the past three years and most will recognize him by his pet name, Mr. Tastebuds. We were married 27 years and even though I’ve always considered myself a very independent person, I did not know just how dependent I was on Joe until yesterday. And it’s not the big things like paying the mortgage! It’s the little things like who brings in the mail and makes the morning coffee.

I’ve cried until I have no more tears but it does not make the hole in my life and heart any smaller. I was not ready to give him up just yet…not ready at all. I have my family and my friends but I don’t think I have ever felt as alone as I do right now. As my yahrtzeit candle burns and finally flickers out at the end of day seven, I doubt my tears will stop.

And of course Joe is everywhere in our home. I’ve found that if I stay in my office, I am somewhat isolated and I can get some things done without breaking down. But as soon as I walk out my office door, I am surrounded with memories. From his jacket hanging on the back of the kitchen chair to the magazine folded open to the last article he read and his glasses carefully placed to the side. Joe is not only in my heart and mind, he is everywhere I turn or glance. And I am not ready to put these tangible memories away. People tell me to take my time and there will come a day when I can let go, but I don’t think I want that day to come. I don’t want to let go of my husband.

You all know that both Joe and I are huge Rottweiler lovers and even the dogs are sensing a loss. Although Eva, our youngest female Rottweiler, is very bonded to me and rarely leaves my side, this morning I found Eva, all alone, curled up in Joe’s bathroom. She has never laid down in Joe’s bathroom before, not ever. It broke my heart.

I’ve made 100s of decisions in the last few days and I am facing 1000s more in the next few months. As to what I will be doing next year or even tomorrow, I don’t have a clue.

At this point I’ve decided to put my blog on hiatus. I’m not sure how long I will be gone or even if I will ever be back food blogging again. But I want to thank each and every one of you for taking the time to visit my blog. And to our special friends, you all know who you are, please stop every once in a while and think of Joe and I. And I promise I will feel the hug, I always do!

Take care,

Michelle

PS: It was very difficult for me to write this post. It just makes Joe’s death so real. I am having a horrible time just getting my own head around what happened so if I don’t respond to your comments and emails, please understand that I just can’t right now. I just can’t.

I think I’m going to start a new category on my blog, Disgustingly fattening…but ohhhh so good! And I think I will begin today!

Yep the Bacon Butterscotch Doughnuts are just that and DEeee-licious! Bacon is very popular now and has been for a few years and people are putting bacon is cookies, cupcakes and just about anything sweet.

In 2009, Mr. Tastebuds found an article on fancy schmancy doughnuts in our local paper and one of the photos was of the Bacon Butterscotch Doughnuts and they really did look good. Apparently these particular doughnuts were a hot commodity in the Chicago area. But at the time, bacon or doughnuts was not on my agenda so I put the news article in my ToDo File. Mr. Tastebuds has not been feeling well lately and I thought these doughnuts might perk him up a bit and they did especially the doughnut holes!

Since I’ve not made doughnuts in a while, I decided to make two different doughnut recipes. The Baked Yeast Doughnuts were very good but more like a brioche bagel and I cut them into regular sized doughnuts with my round, graduated cookie cutters and baked them on a baking sheet. And the second recipe, which I’ve made before, is really the texture of a cupcake so the batter is thin and these I baked in my mini doughnut pan. Both recipes were very good but what wouldn’t be good with a delicious butterscotch glaze and a sprinkling of bacon and maple syrup!

Baked Yeast Doughnuts

2 1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1 packet yeast or 1 oz fresh yeast
1 tsp honey
1 egg
4 TBL butter, room temperature
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla
1 tsp oil, to oil the proofing bowl

1. In the bowl of your KA mixer add yeast, 1/4 cup buttermilk and honey. Let yeast thoroughly dissolve.
2. In a prep bowl lightly whip the egg.
3. Melt butter in the microwave. Set aside to cool a little bit.
4. With our KA mixer on medium speed, gradually add the flour alternating with the remainder of the buttermilk and lightly whipped egg until thoroughly mixed.
5. Continue mixing on low and add the sugar, butter, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Dough should form a soft, somewhat sticky ball of dough.
6. Put 1-2 tsp of Oil in the bottom of your largest mixing bowl. Take a paper towel and dip it in the oil and thoroughly oil the sides of the bowl. Put dough ball into bowl and then flip the ball over to make sure that the entire dough ball is covered with oil. Cover the bowl and let rise until at least doubled in size.
7. When dough has doubled, remove dough to a floured pastry cloth and knead until dough forms a soft dough, adding flour as necessary.
8. Roll out dough about 1/2″ thick and cut the doughnut. Remove the doughnut a parchment lined baking sheet and then cut the center hole. DO NOT cut the center hole until the doughnut has been placed on the baking sheet.

9. Continue cutting the doughnuts and placing them on the baking sheet about 2″ a part.
10. Cover and let rise again for about 30-40 minutes.
11. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until doughnut is a light golden brown in color.
12. Remove to a rack and cool thoroughly.

To make the Bacon-Butterscotch Doughnuts:
1. Bake the doughnuts. Make the ButterSCOTCH sauce and Mapled Bacon, recipes below.
2. When the doughnuts have cooled, dip in the ButterSCOTCH sauce. Plate and ladle some sauce over the top, enough to puddle around the doughnut and sprinkle with Mapled Bacon. Serve.

Baked Mini Cake Doughnuts

1 Cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla
1 Egg
4 Tbs butter

Makes about 12 Mini Doughnuts

1. Melt the butter in the microwave. Set aside to cool.
2. In a small bowl slightly beat the egg and add the vanilla and mix in the buttermilk and butter.
3. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and gradually add to the liquids. Batter will be similar to a cake batter.
4. Prepare the mini doughnut pan by greasing each cavity.
5. Using a teaspoon measure, scoop out batter and place, one tsp at a time into each cavity of the mini doughnut pan. Each cavity will hold approximately 5-6 tsp of batter. Fill each cavity until just slightly under the rim.  If you over fill the doughnut will rise to much, fill in the middle hole and instead of a doughnut it will look like a flat cupcake.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Doughnuts will be very light colored, not browned at all. 

8. While the doughnuts are warm, I find it easiest to run a grapefruit knife with a bent tip around the edge of the doughnut to loosen it and then carefully lift the doughnut out.
9. Place doughnuts on a rack until completely cooled.

ButterSCOTCH Sauce

1/4 cup (4 TBL) butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup of cream
1/2 tsp salt
1 TBL scotch whiskey (You can add more scotch to taste)

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, melt the butter over medium heat and add the sugar.
2. Add the sugar and stir until sugar is completely melted.
3. Whisk in the cream and salt until blended thoroughly blended
4. Lower heat to simmer and cook until sauce thickens.
5. Remove from heat and add the scotch and mix.

Mapled Bacon

5 strips of bacon
Maple Syrup, enough to evenly glaze the bacon

1. Fry the bacon until crispy.
2. Remove to paper towels and drain until completely cooled.
3. Break up bacon into small 1/4″ bits.
4. Place bits in a small bowl and add enough maple syrup to completely coat the bacon.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

For the last two years I just can’t seem to eat enough apples. I’m not sure if there have been extraordinary harvests or maybe I am just going through a taste phase! I eat one or two apples every day and try to cook with them as much as possible and sometimes just sauté slices of apples as a side dish and we really enjoy it!

The below taco is mine with an extra dose of toasted pecans!

And I particularly like chicken with apple and about a month ago I thought about making a Chicken and Apple Taco. So I made just enough for me for lunch one day and it was so good, I made them again for dinner a few days later and even Mr. Tastebuds enjoyed them.

Chicken Taco with Apples and Pecans

Dressing:
1/4 c. Mayonnaise
1/4 Sour Cream)
1 TBL Dijon Mustard
1 TBL Lemon Juice
2 tsp Honey
3 Green Onions, chopped
4 TBL Buttermilk
Freshly Ground Pepper

Taco:
2 chicken breasts, skinless and deboned or you can use leftover chicken
1 TBL Olive Oil
Flour tortillas
1 head of Romaine Lettuce
3/4 cup pecans, chopped and toasted
1 tsp olive oil
1 Granny Smith Apple, diced
1 Macintosh Apple, diced

To sauté the chicken: In a small saute pan, heat about 1 TBL Olive Oil. When oil is warm add the chicken breasts and sauté, turning once, until the juices run clear when pierced with a fork. Set aside and drain on paper towels. When chicken has cooled, tear into bite-sized pieces.

To Toast the Pecans: In a small frying pan over medium low heat 1 tsp olive oil. When Oil is warm add the Pecans. Just toast until the Pecans turn a slightly darker color. These burn easily so be careful. Remove the Pecans and set aside to cool.

For the Dressing: In a small bowl combine Mayonnaise, Sour Cream, Mustard, Lemon Juice, Honey, Green Onions, Buttermilk, Salt and Pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.

For the Taco Filling: In a large bowl break up lettuce and add the chicken and apples. Drizzle with the dressing and toss well. Warm the tortillas over an open flame either on your gas range or a exterior grill. Fill the tortilla with the salad and chicken mix and sprinkle with pecans. Serve.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Rhubarb is such a strange plant and I’ve often wondered if it’s a vegetable or a fruit? Well, I did some research and rhubarb is actually both. It was classified as a vegetable but in 1947 a New York court ruled to classify rhubarb as a fruit for regulation and taxes. Taxes?

I’ve grown rhubarb in several gardens but the last rhubarb plant I bought, I am only allowed ONE rhubarb plant, the stems are green and never turn that beautiful rhubarb red that I was familiar with. And when I stew it, it looks like pea soup and not very appetizing but it sure tastes delicious. My Great Grama used to call rhubarb Pie Plantand sometimes instead of sugar for sweetness, Grama used peaches, strawberries or apple with peaches being my favorite.

When I was young I eat rhubarb raw, taking bite after bite and loving it. But I can not eat rhubarb raw now and believe me I’ve tried but it is gawd awful sour! But one of my favorite snacks was and still is stewed rhubarb and it’s so easy. All you need is rhubarb, sugar or sugar substitute, a little bit of water and a sauce pan and you’re all set.

Since I made Anise Pizzelles this week, I decided to serve the rhubarb with some of the leftover pizzelles. I wasn’t sure how the anise would work with the rhubarb but with my first bite…MAN was it good! And I finished off every single pizzelle and I wished I had a few more.

Stewed Rhubarb

2-4 cups of rhubarb, 1/4″ dice (If you dice up the rhubarb you don’t need to peel it)
1 cup water (you may need to add more water)
Sugar or sugar substitute to taste

1. Dice up the rhubarb
2. In a heavy, bottomed pot, place the diced rhubarb and water.
3. Over low heat, simmer until the rhubarb is completely soft and mushy. Simmer for at least 45 minutes to an hour, stirring frequently to prevent scorching.
4. Add another 1/2 cup of water if the rhubarb starts to scorch.
5. Cool and add sugar to taste. Start with adding about 2 TBL sugar, mix well. Then taste and add additional sugar 1 TBL at a time.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Well, I finally did it! I made Pizzelles and I had so much fun. Well, actually I just mixed up the batter, the pizzelle maker actually baked the pizzelles. And since it has a green light that blinks when the baking is finished, most of the guess work is taken care of which is fine by me.

But getting a pizzelle maker has been a long process of back-orders and discontinued notices. I did have one model in mind, Cuisinart WM-PZ2 Pizzelle Press so my pizzelle experience was delayed. But I finally received my appliance about a month ago and I just could not wait until next Christmas to try it out. So the Cookie Taco was born and doesn’t it look delicious!

I had a lot of fun thinking about fillings and I knew right off the bat I would be using fresh fruit and ice cream. But then I thought I would make a jello and banana variety because I think children would love it! And of course I had to add some sprinkles just to jazz it up a bit. Making the Cookie Tacos is pretty self explanatory so I am not going to bore you with detailed instructions, just fill them up with whatever you think would taste great and look delicious and don’t forget to sprinkle the cookie with powdered sugar.

Anise Pizzelles
Recipe adapted from my sister, Sherry

1 3/4 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 TBL anise extract

1. Melt butter in the microwave and let it cool to just barely warm.
2. Sift flour and baking powder into a small bowl.
3. In another bowl mix eggs and sugar until sugar is completely dissolved.
4. Add anise and melted butter and mix.
5. Gradually add the sifted flour and baking powder and beat until thoroughly mixed.
6. Follow instructions with your pizzelle maker to bake the pizzelles.

To Make the Cookie Tacos:
7. Remove a pizzelle from the pizzelle maker and while it is still hot carefully bend it to shape and place it between 2 stationary objects to cool. I used books to prop up the cookie taco while it cooled.

8. Fill the cookie taco with fresh fruit, ice cream, jello or even pudding or custard. Garnish with diced fresh fruit, sprinkles, nuts, whipped cream and powdered sugar. The pizzelle will soften with the added fillings so it’s best to fill right before serving.
9. If using ice cream, freeze the cookie taco so it will be very cold while you fill it with the ice cream.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

OH my gosh, I think spring is finally here. And if you missed my last post I had four new baby Bluebirds hatch last week which is a sure sign that spring is here. And the babies are almost completely bald and they have not opened their eyes yet but they are so cute!

In between thunder showers we are having gorgeous, sunny days but the nights are cool to down right cold! And the cold makes me crave cinnamon. I have been meaning to make a Russian Braid for several years now and since a Cinnamon Swirl Bread makes a gorgeous Russian Braid why not just combine the two?

Making the Russian Braid was fun and super easy. I did bake my loaves in regular sized bread pans, 9″by4″by3″, and they baked to a great, very even golden brown. I’ve not used my Emile Henry bread pans in such a long time, I forgot how nicely they bake bread!

Sweet Brioche Dough

2 TBL water, tepid
1/2 tsp honey
1 pkg yeast or 1/2 oz fresh yeast
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2/3 cup of Sugar
1 1/2 eggs, room temperature and slightly whipped (save the leftover 1/2 egg for the egg wash and refrigerate until needed)
1/2 tsp Vanilla (I usually skip the vanilla)
1/4 tsp Salt
4-5 cups flour enough to knead into a non-sticky soft ball

2 tsp oil to oil the proofing bowl (I use EVOO, Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1. Stir the yeast in a 1/3 cup of tepid water w. 1/2 tsp of honey, for proofing.
2. In a large mixing bowl, or in the bowl of a KA mixer, place the buttermilk and add the sugar, vanilla, salt and eggs.
3. Mix until the sugar is dissolved and add the yeast and mix well.
4. Add 3 1/2 cups of flour and mix with either the KA mixer with dough hook or by hand.
5. Add additional flour until you can make a soft ball of dough but it should not be stiff. The dough should not stick to your hands and be very easy to handle. If you’re using a KA mixer, when the dough wraps around the hook and there is nothing sticking to the bottom of the bowl, you have added enough flour. **See Note
6. Sprinkle some flour on a counter or pastry cloth and knead until smooth.
7. Put 1-2 tsp of Oil in the bottom of your largest mixing bowl. Take a paper towel and dip it in the oil and thoroughly oil the sides of the bowl. Put dough ball into bowl and then flip the ball over to make sure that the entire dough ball is covered with oil. Let rise until at least doubled in size.
8. Instead of putting a towel to cover, I put the entire bowl in a large plastic bag. Make sure that the bag is not too tight on the bowl and you give the dough ample room to rise.

**Note: It’s hard to judge exactly how much flour is needed because different brands of flour absorb liquids at different rates. So it’s best to judge by the correct texture of the dough, not the amount of flour.

Russian Braid Cinnamon Swirl Bread

1 recipe of Sweet Brioche Dough, recipe above
1 c. sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Topping:
Lefover 1/2 egg from Sweet Broiche Dough recipe
1 tsp water
1/4-1/2 cup chopped pecans

Makes 2 loaves of bread baked in 9″ bread pans

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
3. Grease 2 bread pans.
4. Once the dough has doubled in size during the first rise, remove the dough and cut it into 2 equal portions.
5. On a floured pastry cloth, roll out one portion of dough into a rectangle at least 1/4″ thick and 4″ wider then your 9″ bread pan.

6. Sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon sugar.
7. Starting at the long end roll up the dough.

8. Cut 1/2″ off each end to tidy them up a bit.
9. Taking a sharp knife, slice the roll of dough into 2 separate pieces.

10. Pinch the end together.

11. Keeping the cut side facing up, twist the bread, right over left.

12. Twist again right over left and continue twisting until you run out of the dough.

13. Pinch the ends together and tuck in under neatly.

14. Pick up the loaf and place it in one of the prepared bread pans.
15. Cover and let the loaves rise for at least 40-45 minutes.
16. Mix the egg with the water.
17. Brush tops of the loaves with egg wash.
18. Sprinkle with chopped pecans.
19. Then brush again with egg wash to help adhere the nuts to the bread.
20. Place the bread pans in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 206 degrees.
21. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack.
22. While the bread is still warm, run a butter knife around the edge to loosen the loaf, remove loaves and completely cool before slicing.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

I know that BBD is a food blog but over the years I have kept you updated on the yearly Bluebird population at Spend-a-Buck Farm. And I am happy to report one nest of babies has hatched! Sorry I don’t have any pictures of the eggs but it was so cold, in fact it snowed several times, when the eggs were laid I just didn’t want to disturb mama Bluebird while she was keeping the eggs warm.

As soon as I open the box, up pop four babies with their mouths wide open! Sorry that the pictures are a bit blurry but the babies don’t know the word “stay” yet.

I have five Bluebird houses scattered about on our 6 acres, but the Bluebirds generally nest in just two of the houses and this year is no different. I have one nest with four eggs which just hatched last week and then I have another box with a nest of five eggs which should be hatching in about two weeks. So far every time a Bluebird has nested in one of my boxes, they have a second nesting and I will keep you updated.

I installed the Bluebird houses in 2001 and we’ve averaged 14 new baby Bluebirds a year. As of 2010 we’ve had a whopping total of 140 new babies! And all have lived long enough to fly from the nest and ironically it is usually around 6 pm that the first flight occurs. Some of the babies can’t quite make the first flight from the nest and the parents start fussing so much so that I can hear them in the house. So I have to go out and rescue the baby and put it back in the Bluebird house, but within an hour or so the baby has successfully “flown the coop”.

We were a bit late taking in our Christmas decorations this year, in fact way late and Mama Robin chose our 5′ exterior Christmas tree that we put on our porch as her nesting spot..LOL! We’re about two acres from the road and no one can see our house any how so we’ll just have to leave our tree up for another month or so until the babies learn to fly.

A few weeks ago my husband came home from work with a surprise for me, a plastic bag filled with live Blue Crabs. Oh yea, that’s what I want to see at 5pm after a rather stressful day, a big bag of live sea creatures. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but sometimes I do wish he would give me a heads up when he is bringing home something unexpected especially it it’s alive!

Although Crab Boil looks very long and involved, it is super easy and you can use what you have on hand. You really only need crabs, water and a big pot and you’re good to go! There’s really no rhyme or reason to my recipe, except I thought it sounded good and I happen to have it available.

The first time I ever had Blue Crabs was actually in Florida and my Mom and I stopped at a roadside stand and bought live Blue Crabs. Although I was only about 20 years old at time, I had worked in restaurants for a while and knew how to prepare just about any kind of seafood with crab being one of the easiest! So if you are in the least bit intimidated with live crab, don’t be.

Michelle’s Blue Crab Boil

10-12 whole, live blue crabs, scrubbed
2 large sweet onions, quartered
2 lemons, cut in half
4-5 medium potatoes, halved
4 medium carrots, cleaned and cut into 3″ pieces
3-4 garlic cloves, peeled
4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
4-5 fresh basil leaves
2-3 ribs of celery, cut into 5″ pieces
2 sweet peppers, either yellow and/or red to add some color, cleaned and cut into 2″ chucks
Freshly ground black pepper, 3-4 turns of the pepper mill
8-12 ounces of beer or you can use 2 cups of white wine
Water, to fill the pot

Garnish:
Parsley
Lemon wedges

1. Scrub the crabs to remove any debris from their shells. Set aside
2. Fill a large stock pot with the onions, potatoes, lemons, garlic, basil, bay, thyme, celery, carrots, beer or wine and enough water to adequately cover everything. Bring to a full boil.
3. When the water is rapidly boiling add the crabs, ground pepper and the sweet peppers. Boil for 8 minutes.
4. Drain.
5. Plate the crabs, potatoes, carrots and sweet peppers.
6. Garnish with some parsley and lemon wedges. Serve.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

As I was going through my latest “La Cucina Italiana” magazine, I found a pudding recipe that sounded interesting and it used rice flour as the thickening. I love rice flour and use it often and with a little salt, pepper and soda water, it makes the best light breading for shrimp! But when I made the Italian Pudding it just wasn’t what I expected. It tasted just fine but it looked rather anemic.

So I thought I would adapt the recipe and use my new vintage mini molds and “poof” it into Panna Cotta. For some reason I am a sucker for anything mini and I just could not resist buying these cuties!!

So I reheated the pudding and added one packet of dissolved gelatin and filled the little molds. And after 24 hours in the refrigerator, it came out just perfect. Now personally, I prefer good old tapioca to Panna Cotta but I just love how the mold turned out! And to jazz it up a bit I made a delicious fresh strawberry sauce. And now the plain pudding was finally a fabulous looking and tasting dessert!

Panna Cotta di Riso con Fragole

1 cup milk
2 TBL rice flour
1 TBL cornstarch
1/4 cup sugar (I used sugar substitute)
1 whole vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped out
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 pkg powdered gelatin
3 TBL water, cold

Spray cooking oil, to oil the molds

Garnish:
A few fresh strawberries, diced for garnish
1 recipe of Strawberry Sauce, below
Rice Krispies Cereal

1. Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds. Set aside.
2. In a small sauce pan over medium low heat add the milk and whisk in the rice flour, sugar, cornstarch and heat until thickened. Stir frequently so it does not scorch.
3. While the milk is heating with a electric hand mixer beat the cream until stiff peaks. Set aside.
4. In another small bowl add the cold water and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Set aside to dissolve.
5. When the mixture thickens add the vanilla bean seeds and stir thoroughly. Turn off the heat and let it set for about 3 minutes.
6. Take about 1 cup of warm pudding and fold it into the whipped cream. Then fold in the remainder of the pudding.
7. While the pudding is still warm, pour it into the gelatin, whisking until well blended.
8. Spray the molds with cooking oil. Pour or ladle pudding into oiled molds and refrigerate until set.
9. To unmold heat the mold in warm water for about 10 seconds and then invert in a dessert dish.
10. Spoon some Strawberry Sauce into the dish and sprinkle with a few Rice Krispies. Serve.

Wined Strawberry Sauce
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 quart of fresh strawberries, cleaned and hulled (save a few whole strawberries for garnish)
2 TBL sugar
2 TBL lemon juice
1 cup sweet white wine (Riesling works out very well)

1. Chop the strawberries into small pieces.
2. In a saucepan over medium-low heat, add strawberries, 2 TBL sugar and wine.
3. Simmer on low heat just until berries are soft and the juice has thickened. This will scorch easily so keep an eye on it and stir frequently.
4. Add lemon juice.
5. Set aside to cool.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Italian Semolina Bread is one of my all time favorite breads. I just love the taste of semolina flour! You can find semolina flour in two varieties, course or finely ground, and either will work in this recipe. I could not find the finely ground semolina until recently and used the coarse ground variety for years in this recipe and it worked out well.

All yeast has an expiration date which is stamped on the package. I’ve not had good luck using expired yeast, so I suggest discarding any yeast that is beyond the expiration date. If the yeast is nearing expiration, you can freeze it. Generally whenever I buy yeast I automatically freeze it, even the fresh yeast. Since fresh yeast comes in a 2 oz cake, I just cut the yeast into quarters equaling 1/2 oz, wrap each slice in aluminum foil, put it in a ziplock bag and freeze it and I’ve not had any problems with my bread dough rising.

Generally if you have problems with bread not rising it is due to the yeast or flour. White flour is generally good for 2 years and after that time it is best to throw it out. For instance Whole Wheat Flour is only good for about 8 months to 1 year and after that time it is not a good idea to use it. I know it’s hard to throw out what looks like perfectly good flour but even if it’s mixed with a fresh white flour, the rise will not meet your expectations. Fresh whole wheat flour does have a naturally sour smell but if the smell is extremely strong and it’s been in your pantry for a while, it’s probably a safe bet that the flour is bad and will effect not only the rise but the taste. So even using it in a breading for say fried chicken is not a good idea.

Semolina and Rice Flours are generally good for at least 2 years same as white flour. But still, it’s best to buy small amounts so your stock is fresh and always store any kind of flour or grain in a sealed, air-tight container. You can store flours in the refrigerator or freezer but even this will not extend the freshness of whole wheat flour!

Italian Semolina Bread
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 1/2 cup semolina flour
1 1/2 cup flour
1 pkg yeast or 1/2 oz fresh yeast
1 cup water
1 tsp honey
1 tsp salt
1 tsp olive oil (to oil the proofing bowl)

Topping:
1 egg
Dribble of water
Sesame seeds

Makes 1 large baguette or 2 small baguettes

1. Put about 1/4 cup water in the bowl of your KA mixer and add yeast and honey.
2. When yeast has thoroughly dissolved add the flour and salt.
3. Slowly drizzle in the remaining 3/4 cup water while continuing mixing just until a soft ball of dough is formed. The dough should be slightly sticky but very easy to work with. You may or may not use all the water.
4. On a floured surface knead the ball of dough for 4-5 minutes. Form the dough into a smooth ball.
5. Put 1 tsp of olive oil into large proofing bowl. Dip a paper towel into the oil and carefully oil all sides of each bowl.
6. Take the ball of dough and place it into the oiled proofing bowl and then flip it over so that the entire ball of dough is covered with oil.
7. Cover the bowl with a plastic bag or kitchen towel and let rise until doubled about 1-2 hours.
8. When dough has doubled, remove and place on a floured surface and form the baguette(s). See below video.
9. Place the loaf(s) on a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover with a light towel or plastic wrap sprayed with Pam. Let rise for about 30-45 minutes.
10. Whip egg with water and lightly brush entire loaf. Sprinkle with seeds and again lightly brush with the egg wash to adhere the seeds to the loaf.
11. Slash loaf(s) with a sharp knife to form an attractive design.
12. Bake at 350 degrees until loaves are golden brown or internal temperature is 206 degrees.
13. Remove to a cooling rack and completely cool before slicing.

And here’s another method for shaping a baguette:

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Since I am so looking forward to summer this year, I decided to post my Bread and Butter Sweet Pickles. And this post has been written and waiting to be posted since last summer!

I love sweet pickles and they are one of my favorite late night snacks. And I particularly like this recipe because it’s a small batch and being I am the only person in my family that enjoys sweet pickles, 4-5 pints per year is plenty for me!

Canning is a lot of fun and I can’t think of anything more satisfying then seeing all my canning jars neatly lined up and glistening. So please don’t be afraid to can. There are some canning rules that can not be broken but as long as you are careful, canning is pretty fool proof. However, there are a few common mistakes that I see repeated over and over. Boiling Water Bath (BWB) means boiling not simmering and the water must be at least 1-2″ above the lid the jar. See below diagram

Bread and Butter Pickles
Recipe adapted a friend

4 quarts or about 4 lbs medium-sized cucumbers, unpeeled and cut into 1/8-1/4″ slices. **See Note
6 medium white onions, sliced
2 green bell peppers, chopped (I used 1 red sweet pepper and 1 yellow sweet pepper to add more color)
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1/3 cup salt (to reduce salt **See Note)
5 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons celery seed
2 tablespoons mustard seed
3 cups vinegar, 5% acidity

Makes about 4-5 pints

1. In a large colander add sliced unpeeled cucumbers, onions, peppers, and whole garlic cloves.
2. Sprinkle salt and gently fold.
3. Fill the sink with ice and nestle the colander in the ice. Add more ice to cover the colander. Let stand for 3 hours.
4. After 3 hours, remove any remaining ice from the colander and drain well. Discard the garlic. If you want to reduce the salt, after the 3-hour icing period, rinse the cucumber mix and drain well.
5. Start sterilizing jars and 2-part canning lids.
6. In a large, heavy bottomed pot add vinegar, turmeric, celery seed, mustard seed, sugar and gently mix. Heat to just boiling.
7. Add drained cucumber mix and heat 5 minutes.
8. With a ladle transfer pickles to hot, sterilized 1-pint jars, filling each jar to within 1/4-1/2″ of top rim (head space). Dampen a corner of a clean paper towel and wipe it around the jar rim to remove any spilled juice.
9. Center sterilized lids on jars and screw on bands.

10. Seal and process in a boiling water bath (BWB) for 15 minutes (20 minutes for 1,000 to 6,000 feet altitude).
11. When jars have cooled, finger tighten seals and store in a cool dark place for a few weeks before using. I usually store all my home-canned pickles in our extra refrigerator in the basement and my pickles stay nice and crisp, although they will darken in color.

**NOTE: Carolyn asked the cucumbers measurement would be in cups. As far as I can figure it would be about 12 cups of sliced cucumbers.

The salt in this recipe is to leach out any bitterness in the cucumbers. If you would like to reduce the salt, follow the directions, but at the end of the 3-hour icing period, rinse the cucumber mix and drain well. Then continue on to the next step. This will not remove all the salt, but it will remove a great deal of it.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

A few weeks ago I received a request for an egg-free recipe for my Cinna-bites. Far be it from me to turn down a request for a recipe, but I’ve never worked eggless before! I am allergic to eggs but I have to eat like six eggs in one day to cause any problems so as long as I watch what I eat, I’m fine. But I’m not ever going to turn down a request especially if it’s one that involves some fiddling and I do love to fiddle and fuss with recipes.

The first thing I did was to measure a slightly whipped egg and it was close to 1/3 cup. I then chopped up some tofu extremely fine and just enough to measure 1/3 cup, then added it to my blender along with the butter and then blended well until the tofu was as liquid as possible.

But as soon as I saw that first rise of the bread, I knew I had a winning recipe! Would you look at that gorgeous rise! And look at how nice and fluffy the broiche is, it’s just perfect!

And then the recipe just fell into place, easy peasy. And not only did the recipe work to my expectations, the end result was absolutely delicious. If my original Cinna-bites was in a taste test along side the egg-free version I doubt anyone could tell the difference.

Believe me I sure had my doubts and who would have thought you could substitute tofu for eggs. But it worked out so well, I can’t wait to try tofu in some of my other recipes!

Egg-free Brioche
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

2 TBL water, tepid
1/4 tsp honey or you can use sugar
1 pkg yeast or 1 oz fresh yeast
3-3 1/2 cup flour (enough to knead into a non-sticky soft ball)
1 cup of buttermilk, room temperature (or you can use plain milk)
3 TBL butter, room temperature
1/2 cup of sugar
1/3 cup tofu, if you’re have a lb of tofu, it’s about 1/2″ slice
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp Salt
2 tsp oil to oil the proofing bowl (I use Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Option: 1/2 c. WW flour can be subbed to make the dough more tender

Bread:
1. Stir the yeast in a 2 TBL of warm water with 1/4 tsp of honey, for proofing.
2. While the yeast is dissolving, take the tofu and butter put it in a blender and blend to liquefy the tofu.
3. In a large mixing bowl or (KA mixer) place the milk and add the sugar, vanilla, salt and tofu/butter mixture.
4. Beat until the sugar is dissolved and add the yeast and mix well.
5. Gradually add the flour and mix until well blended. You may or may not use all 3 1/2 cups of flour. The dough should be soft ball, not stiff at all. The dough should not stick to your hands and should be very easy to handle.
6. Sprinkle some flour on counter or pastry cloth and knead until smooth. Form the dough into a smooth ball.
7. Put 2 tsp of Oil in the bottom of your largest mixing bowl. Take a paper towel and dip it in the oil and thoroughly oil the sides of the bowl. Put dough ball into bowl and then flip the ball over to make sure that the entire dough ball is covered with oil.
8. Cover with a towel or plastic bag and let rise until at least doubled in size.

Cinna-bites
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 recipe of Egg-free Sweet Dough , recipe above
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 stick butter
1 c. chopped pecans

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Grease a bundt pan.
3. Melt butter in the microwave. Add the brown sugar to the melted butter and stir until sugar is completely dissolved and then add chopped pecans.
4. Pour about 1/2 of the brown sugar mixture into the bottom of the bundt pan.
5. Now cut off a piece of dough and roll it into a ball a little smaller then a golf ball. Roll the ball of dough in sugar cinnamon mix, careful to completely cover the ball of dough with sugar mix. Place it in the bottom of the bundt pan on top of the brown sugar pecan mix. Keep making the small balls and rolling them in the cinnamon sugar until you’ve completely covered the bottom of the pan. Repeat to make a second layer of cinnamon balls and keep repeating until all the dough is used.
6. Cover and let the dough rise for about 30-40 minutes.
7. Pour the rest of the brown sugar mix over the top.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes.
9. Let cool for about 10 minutes.
10. While the pan is still warm, put a serving plate over the top of the bundt pan and quickly invert it to release the Cinna-bites. Now doesn’t that look delicious!

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

I’ve had Caterpillar Bread on my ToDo List since about 2005 when I saw it posted on a cooking forum. I do remember seeing a similar recipe in one of my very first cookbooks either “Better Homes and Gardens” or “Good Housekeeping” published sometime in the early ’70s. Originally the Caterpillar Bread was made with hotdogs and garnished with ketchup, mustard and onions! The Caterpillar Bread just looked like so much fun to make and you can use any kind of sausage!

Since sausage tends to curve, I did insert a chopstick in the sausage and then parboiled it. When the sausage had cooled, I removed the chopstick and the bratwurst was perfectly straight making it much easier to wrap in the dough. Also the parboiling removed some of the fat from the sausage.

The Bread Bread is a super simple bread recipe and not only makes wonderful Caterpillar Bread it makes very good pizza and hotdog or hamburger buns. And the Caterpillar Bread works very well as an appetizer and is perfect for a Sunday brunch or afternoon snack when watching Sunday football or basketball.

Beer Bread
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

3-4 c. unbleached flour
1 pkg yeast or 1 oz fresh yeast
2 tsp honey
1 1/2 tsp salt
1-12 oz bottle or can of beer (I used Budweiser but any brand is fine)
2 tsp olive oil, to oil the proofing bowl

1. In the bowl of your KA mixer add the yeast, honey and a little bit of beer.
2. When the yeast has dissolved and with the mixer on low add 1 cup of flour and the salt.
3. Continuing with the mixer on low, gradually add the rest of the flour alternating with the beer until a soft ball forms and wraps around the dough hook. You may or may not use all the flour and if you don’t that’s fine. But you want a soft, non sticky ball of dough.
4. In a large proofing bowl add 2 tsp oil and dip a paper towel into the oil and swish the towel around the sides of the bowl making sure to oil the entire interior of the bowl.
5. Take the ball of dough and place it in the proofing bowl and then flip it over so all surface of the dough is lightly covered with oil.
6. Place a towel or plastic bag over the bowl and let the dough rise until doubled about 1-2 hours.

To Prep the Bratwurst:

Because sausage tends to curl when cooked, I inserted a chop stick in each link of sausage. Then I parboiled the sausage for about 6-8 minutes in a large fry pan filled with water. When the sausage was cool, I removed the chopstick and the sausage was perfectly straight!

To make the Caterpillar Bread:

1 Recipe of the Beer Bread
4 links of parboiled sausage about 10-12″ long (be aware that sausage does shrink 1-2″ after parboiling)

Garnish:
1 egg whipped with 1 tsp water (brush on bread before baking and then sprinkle with seeds)
Sesame seeds

1. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces.
2. Roll out each ball of dough into a rectangle about 1/4″ thick and the same length as a link of sausage and wide enough to comfortably wrap around the sausage plus 1/2″ for the lip.

3. Place the rectangle of dough on a parchment lined baking sheet and wrap it around the sausage and pinch the seam together on the side.
4. With a pair of kitchen shears, cut the dough and sausage into 1/2″ slices, careful to not cut through the seamed lip.

5. Twisting and alternating every other section, 1 section to the right and then 1 section to the left, until you have completed each caterpillar.
6. Cover and let the dough rise for 30-45 minutes.
7. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
8. Bake at 350 degrees until bread is golden brown.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Okay, I promise this is my last post for Easter! And it’s a good thing since Easter is just two days away. But I’ve been working on a new vanilla cupcake and I just had to unveil it for the holiday.

And I not only added sprinkles as a topping, I added some to the batter as a little surprise with every bite!

I don’t know if my taste had changed or what but my standby vanilla cupcake recipes that I’ve used for years all of a sudden didn’t taste as good to me as they once did. So I’ve been busy developing a new recipe and I think I’ve aced it! This vanilla cupcake is so good, I even made a dozen for one of my neighbors to enjoy while making their Easter Eggs!

Yummy Vanilla Cupcakes
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

Makes about 18 regular sized cupcakes

2 cups AP flour
7/8 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk
3 egg yolks **See Note
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Optional: 1 tsp multi-colored nonpareils

1. Cream the sugar and butter.
2. Add the egg yolks, buttermilk and vanilla and mix well.
3. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to a sifter and gradually sift the flour into the batter and gently fold it in until is thoroughly mixed.
4. Fold in the sprinkles.
5. Prepare the cupcake tin with cupcake liners and fill about 3/4 full of batter.
6. Bake at 350 degrees until tester comes out clean.
7. Let the cupcakes cool in the tin until easily handled and then remove and finish cooling on a rack.

**NOTE: Save and freeze the egg white for a delicious Angel Food Cake recipe I will be posting within the next week or so.

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cold cream cheese
1 stick butter, firm but not cold
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 c powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla

Combine butter, salt, and cream cheese in mixer and beat on medium speed 2-3 minutes. Add sugar until just incorporated. Don’t over mix. It should be thick but not fluffy. Add vanilla and mix until just incorporated. If you are using food coloring add a drop or 2 at a time mixing thoroughly before adding another drop of color. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before use.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Last October and being it was close to Halloween, my Mom and I were talking candy. And my Mom mentioned that when she was a child she just loved Chicken Bones. Well, I don’t need to be told twice and I put Chicken Bones on my ToDo List.

Well, I figured out the recipe right away, peanut butter hard candy with a just a touch of molasses. I did three candy tests before I found the perfect mix of sugar, molasses and peanut butter but the timing and temperature was critical because peanut butter burns very quickly. Okay I figured out the candy and now on to the candy coating. Hummmm…what to do about the candy coating is as important as the candy center. But then I thought if I put some homemade Peanut Butter Cookies and coconut in my food processor and pulsed to a fine mince, this would work well for the coating! Hey, there’s always a way…ALWAYS! I thought about using finely ground peanuts but they are so oily and found that the peanut butter cookies worked out the best. So Problem #2 was solved!

But then I needed a heat resistant candy mold. I just needed a simple bar shape about 1/4″ wide by 6″ long and about 1/4-1/2″ deep. I didn’t think the mold would be a problem until I started looking for it. I must have scanned 10 different candy supply sites and I could not find the mold or anything even close to what I needed. But it’s very common for me to not find what I need, so I have to be creative with what I have on hand! I looked around my house for something but again NADA! Then I went to Home Depot and Office Max and walked the aisles hoping I’d find something but again NOTHING. By the way never rule out Home Depot, Lowes or Office Max for baking needs. Although the product might not be made specifically for baking or candy making does not mean it won’t work for what you need!

So I went to twitter and posted a tweet to a fellow cook and now soap maker Courtney, aka @glamah and Coco Cooks. Courtney and I have brainstormed plenty of times and we usually come up with a solution. I had thought about using Styrofoam to make the mold but being candy is 300 degrees I was afraid the Styrofoam would melt. Then Heather, aka @voodoolily and Voodoo and Sauce, popped into the conversation and then the ideas started flying back and forth. It’s so much fun brainstorming with creative people. Then Heather suggested using the green florists foam because it was mineral based and heat resistant. WOW…half the fun is figuring out how to make stuff and Heather came up with the perfect answer!!!

To Make the Mold:

Green Florist Foam Blocks (I bought a package of 6 blocks of green foam at Michaels for about $6 and I used all 6.)
1/4″ Wooden Dowel, cut 3-6″ pieces
Aluminum Foil, 6-12″ by 12″ pieces

1. Press 6″ wooden dowel into the foam to form the shape.

2. Taking the dowel in hand and with even pressure on the dowel, run it down the indentation. Repeat, until the cavity is about 1/4-1/2″ deep. Carving the foam is messy so it’s best to either do this outside or over a wastebasket. I used 6 blocks of the green florist’s foam with 3 molds per block.

3. Lay a piece of aluminum foil, 12″ by 12″, over the top of the carved foam block.

4. Starting with the center mold, take the wooden dowel and gently press it the aluminum foil into the bar mold. Be careful because you can tear the foil!! Leave the dowel in the mold to hold the pressed shape.

5. Take another 6″ dowel and press it into another indentation, again being careful to not tear the foil. Leave the dowel in the indention and repeat using another dowel in the last mold.

6. When you completed lining the individual bar molds with the aluminum foil, carefully fold the remaining foil around the block. You can reuse this mold over and over so store it in a safe place for next time. And since the foam is in a block there are 3 other sides for additional candy molds.

And my initial taste test was “Hey, this is pretty good” and Mr. Tastebuds gave it a 4 1/2 stars out of 5!

Peanut Butter Hard Candy
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup Karo Syrup
1/4 cup water
1/2-1 tsp molasses, have this measured out and ready so you can quickly add it. **See NOTE
4 tsp creamy peanut butter, have this measured out and ready so you can quickly add it.

Makes about 50-2″ pieces of candy

1. In a small, heavy-bottomed sauce pan add the sugar, Karo Syrup and water.
2. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a low simmer. Position your candy thermometer in the pan, making sure that the thermometer is in the syrup but not touching the bottom of the pan.
3. Line up your foam candy molds so that are adjacent to your stove top. Candy making is not difficult but you are working with 300 degree syrup so you need to work quickly and very carefully.
4. When candy thermometer is at the Soft Crack Stage, about 270 degrees add the molasses and peanut butter and very gently mix with a fork. The syrup will foam up so be careful that it does not over flow the pan.
5. The peanut butter will melt and blend with the syrup quickly and as soon as it does, remove from the heat and pour the syrup into molds. I used a small ladle.
6. Let set up until hard.

**NOTE: My Mom said she remembered the candy being only “peanut buttery” flavored. Being molasses is such a strong flavor I only used 1/2 tsp molasses but you can skip it if you just want it to be peanut butter flavored.

Chicken Bones
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 recipe of Peanut Butter Hard Candy, above

Coating:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 TBL Fine Desiccated Coconut
6-2″ peanut butter cookies (You can use homemade Peanut Butter Cookies or a store brand, whichever is convenient)

1. Spray the molds with Pam.
2. Make the Peanut Butter Hard Candy and pour into molds. (See above on how to make the molds)
3. When the candy is partially set, with a butter knife score into 2″ pieces. Exact measurement is not necessary, just eyeball it. And you don’t need to cut completely through the candy, just score it and when the candy is completely hard you can just break it a part.
4. When the candy has cooled, remove from molds and set aside.
5. Break up the cookies and add them to a food processor along with 2 TBL of coconut. Pulse until finely minced. Remove from the food processor and place it on a piece of parchment paper.
6. In a small pan add the sugar and water and gently heat until sugar has completely dissolved about 5-6 minutes.
7. Pour the simple syrup into a heat proof glass measuring cup. The simple syrup will thicken as it cools, so periodically you will need to reheat it sightly in the microwave, 5-10 seconds at a time.
8. You can either dip the hardened candy into the warm simple syrup or paint it on with a small brush. Then roll the candy in the cookie/coconut mix.
9. Set aside and let dry over night.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Radiatori is a relatively new pasta shape, first coming on the market between 1930-40. The shape of Radiatori was supposedly inspired by radiator ridges but I think it looks like sea coral so we call in Coral Pasta. Radiatori is a small bite-sized pasta, about 3/4″ by 1/2″, but holds sauces extremely well and is sturdy enough to hold up in chucky meat sauces, salads and main courses and being Radiatori is bite-sized it does appeal to small children.

Being I am still on pain medication which suppresses my appetite, I am very rarely ever hungry any more and sometimes when I make dinner, I just don’t feel like eating. I know this is not a healthy but that’s my schedule now and I have to live with it. But when I made the Goat Cheese Pasta I was starving and I knew that nothing was going to satisfy me but a delicious, hearty meat-filled pasta!

I find I am using the small cherry or grape tomatoes more and more these days. They offer a much better tomato flavor and are so easy to cut into bite-sized pieces. For this pasta I saved some of the cut tomatoes and added them at the very end and they not only added a wonderful red color but a nice, very fresh tomato taste. I served the pasta with a delicious, yet very inexpensive French wine, La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rose.

Pasta with Goat Cheese, Sausage and Tomatoes
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

1 lb of Italian sausage, either mild or hot depending on your taste
1 lb pasta (I used Radiatori Pasta)
1 qt cherry or grape tomatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 oz goat cheese
1 lb mushrooms, sliced
2 TBL Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
7-8 green onions, chopped (save some of the chopped green onions for garnish)
4 sprigs of fresh tarragon, minced (You can substitute 5-6 fresh basil leaves)
Handful of fresh parsley, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine (I used Rose because that’s what I was drinking at the time)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. In a heavy bottomed skillet add 2 TBL EVOO and heat. Add the garlic cloves and sauté on low heat until cloves are golden brown on all sides.
2. While the garlic cloves are browning slice the sausage into bite-sized pieces. In another small fry pan, lightly sauté the sausage until no pink is showing. Drain on paper towels.
3. When the garlic cloves on golden brown, remove to a cutting board and mash with a fork. Return the mashed garlic to the saute pan.
4. Add the onion and lightly sauté for 2 minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms and sausage and lightly sauté for 5 minutes.
6. Start cooking the pasta according to package directions.
7. Add the chicken stock, tarragon, wine, goat cheese and about half the tomatoes. Blend well until the cheese melts. Simmer for 20 minutes or until the sauce starts to thicken.
8. Add the parsley, pepper and the rest of the tomatoes and heat through for about 1 minute.
9. In a large bowl add the cooked pasta and about half the sauce and gently toss.
10. Plate the pasta, top with the remaining sauce and garnish with green onion. Enjoy!

I just started drinking Rose wine again and I am loving it! Rose tastes so good in the early spring and it goes so well with so many dishes. La Vieille Ferme Cotes du Ventoux Rose is not very expensive and as I remember it was around $8 a bottle and well worth the money! It has gorgeous cherry color and has a fruity slight caramel taste which is so refreshing for this time of year. I have a case on order for the summer!

I made some Valentine’s Day Lollipops and my nieces loved them. So I decided to make some more lollipops for Easter and instead of flavoring the syrup, I decorated them with Jelly Belly jelly beans, white chocolate, confections and coconut. And they turned out so pretty!

I’m starting to become quite comfortable working with candy syrup and I’m beginning to experiment a bit. This time I decided to try pouring some lollipop molds before the syrup reached the hard crack point of 300 degrees. When the temperature reached about 275 degree I removed enough for 2 lollipops and poured the molds. And it took a bit longer to set up but the lollipops hardened and popped right out the mold just fine. So for the second batch, I used a different thermometer just to make sure the temperature was accurate and again I started pouring the molds at 275 degrees and once again the lollipops turned out perfectly.

Candy Making Essentials:

Heavy pot
Wooden Spoon
Candy Thermometer
Mold(s)
Parchment Paper
Flavoring
Food Coloring

Considerations:

You will need a candy thermometer as you must bring the syrup up to a temperature of 300 degrees or hard crack point. If you do not reach the hard crack point your candy will not set and if the temperature rises above hard crack the syrup will burn.

Bringing the syrup to the Hard Crack Point is the most difficult thing about making candy. DO NOT leave your kitchen when the candy is on the burner. DO NOT answer the phone. DO NOT clean out your kitchen junk drawer. You must keep your eye on the hot syrup and the thermometer.

NOTE: With this batch of candy I did experiment a bit and found that I could heat the candy syrup to about 275 degrees and then start pouring the syrup into the molds. The syrup will still set up but it does take a little longer to completely harden. But since candy syrup burns quickly after reaching hard crack which is 300 degrees, removing the candy sooner is much less stressful and gave me more time to color and pour the candy.

HARD CANDY RECIPE

2 cups sugar
2/3 cups light corn syrup
3/4 cups water
1 tsp flavoring, if you’re using flavoring
Food coloring

Options: Chocolate, Candy and Confections for decorating (I use Almond Bark for White Chocolate)

Lightly spray the mold(s) with Pam and wipe out any extra oil with a paper towel.

Mix the sugar, water and corn syrup in a heavy pot. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to just a hard simmer. Watch the thermometer carefully. It is important that once the syrup is warm to NOT stir it. When the thermometer reaches 300 degrees/hard crack, remove the pan from the heat and add the color and flavoring.

While the syrup is heating, place a piece of parchment paper on a cutting board. Place the candy molds on the parchment paper. It is easier to transport the molds if they are on a cutting board and the parchment paper will catch any spills.

You must work quickly now as the syrup will start setting up as soon as you remove it from the heat. I used a small ladle to transport the syrup and fill the molds and it worked out very well.

As soon as the candy starts setting up, insert the lollipop stick. The stick may move a bit, but just hold it in place for a minute or so. Or you can find a place to prop up the stick until the candy sets. I set the mold next to a big crock I have and it holds the stick steady until the candy has cooled and set.

When the stick holds in place, move the candy to the refrigerator for a final cooling. The candy will be totally cooled in about 10-15 minutes. Remove the candy from the refrigerator and gently pop the candy from the mold. VOILA…you’ve made a Lollipop.

To decorate the lollipop:
Melt white chocolate or almond bark. Dip the lollipop into the chocolate. Then dip into some sprinkles and top with an edible pearl. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set.

You can use the melted chocolate like glue to attach the edible pearls or candy shapes. With a small artist’s paint brush just dap a bit of melted chocolate where you want to attach the candy and then hold the candy for a moment until the chocolate cools a bit.

Flavoring and Color:
For every flavor and color you will have to make a separate batch of candy syrup. You can cut this recipe in half which will make a small amount. But you’ll have to use a very small pot to heat the syrup and you must make sure that the syrup is deep enough for the Candy Thermometer to accurately gauge the temperature.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Well it’s almost that time of year for lounging around and drinking tall, cool beverages in the warm summer sun. Today is such a gorgeous day, I could not wait any longer for my first sip of Lemonade!

Lemonade has always been one of my favorite non-caffeine beverages. My Mom made the best lemonade but I’ve never been able to duplicate hers. She did not use a recipe just fresh lemons, water, sugar and always slices of fresh lime as a garnish. This weekend I experimented a bit and came up with a substitute. My concoction is a pink lemonade but it’s pretty darn good.

Pink Lemonade
Recipe developed in the kitchen of BigBlackDog

6 whole fresh lemons
1 cup sugar
Water
1 fresh lime
1 c. unsweetened cranberry juice

Garnish:
1 whole lime, sliced thin
Course sugar **See note
Sugar coated Jelly

Juice and zest 6 fresh lemons. Add enough water to the lemon juice to make 4 cups of liquid. Add cranberry juice and 1 cup sugar or more to taste and the lemon zest. Zest 1 lime and add the zest. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Fill pitcher with ice and lemonade. Moisten edge of glass and dip in course sugar. Garish with fresh lime slices and a jelly.

Note: I usually do the sugar dipping ahead of time. As the sugar dries it will stick to the edge of the glass. This way you only get a taste of the sugar while sipping your drink.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog for Pink Saturday and please visit Miss Beverly of How Sweet the Sound and see what the other Pinksters are up to!

And don’t forget our Pink Saturday motto:

Get Pink !!!

It’s not just a color, it’s an attitude.

AllRightsReserved©BigBlackDog

Crackers are a staple in my house and I serve them many times as a substitute for bread. And Mr. Tastebuds, a brown-bagger from way back, likes to pack some crackers for his late afternoon snack while at work. Generally, I make a batch of crackers or crispy breadsticks every two weeks or so.

Cheese crackers have been on my ToDo List for a long time now and I’m so glad I finally got around to making them. Darn they were good! And they reminded me of when I was young and we used to visit the Detroit Zoo. We always bought those little boxes of Cheez-it Crackers to snack on and feed to the monkeys. It’s so funny how food brings back such vivid memories.

I made two versions of the crackers using similar recipes, one with unbleached White Flour and Sourdough Starter (ducks and chickens) and a Gluten-free version with Garbanzo Bean Flour and Brown Rice Flour (flowers). I’m pretty sure you could substitute any of the gluten-free flours and next time I make the Cheddar Crackers I’m going to use Corn Flour. The sweetness of the corn flour plus the cheddar cheese sounds DE-licious!

The Gluten-free dough was a bit more difficult to roll out and I had to refrigerate it first because it was sticky. But after refrigerating the dough for about 20 minutes it rolled out just fine. And I used my new set of Easter Cookie Cutters to shape the crackers. Aren’t they cute! I made over 150 crackers and they were all eaten by the next day.

I served the Cheddar Crackers with my version of Elly Kreiger’s Sweet and Spicy Peanut Soup which is always so good. Surprisingly everyone, including picky Mr. Tastebuds, preferred the Gluten-free version of the crackers. They said the taste was about the same but the gluten-free crackers were crispier which is what crackers are all about!

Cheddar Cheese Crackers
Recipe developed in the kitchen of BigBlackDog

1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded and lightly packed
1/2 cup flour
1/4-1/2 tsp salt (I used 1/4 tsp salt due to the cheese being a bit salty)
2 TBL sourdough starter

Makes about 75-1″ crackers

1. In a food processor add the butter, cheese, flour, salt and sourdough starter and pulse until thoroughly blended.
2. Sprinkle your pastry cloth with flour and roll out the dough to about 1/8″ thick.
3. Cut the crackers using cookie cutters or a sharp knife.
4. Place crackers on a parchment lined baking sheet.
5. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly browned and crisp.
6. Remove to a rack and cool.

Gluten-free Cheddar Cheese Crackers
Recipe developed in the kitchen of BigBlackDog

1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded and lightly packed
1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4-1/2 tsp salt (I used 1/4 tsp salt due to the cheese being a bit salty)

Makes about 75-1″ crackers

1. In a food processor add the butter, cheese, flours, salt and pulse until thoroughly blended.
2. Form dough into a flat circular disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
3. Sprinkle your pastry cloth with a gluten-free flour and roll out the dough to about 1/8″ thick.
4. Cut the crackers using cookie cutters or a sharp knife.
5. Place crackers on a parchment lined baking sheet.
6. Bake at 350 degrees until crackers are lightly browned and crisp.
7. Remove to a rack and cool.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog

Twenty years ago I made muffins almost every week. In fact I made muffins so much it was a standing joke in my family and if I was asked once, I was asked at least 1,000 times “Make any muffins lately?” But I don’t make muffins very often any more and I’ve sort of moved on to other tasty sweets. I was all set to make my usual shortcakes for some Strawberry Shortcake when I wondered if a muffin recipe would work and I knew exactly the recipe I wanted to use! It is a very special recipe given to me by one of my favorite people ever, Mrs. Widgery. I first met her when I was a young teacher, fresh out of college.

Mrs. Widgery was truly one of the most amazing women I’ve ever known and I will never forget her. Her four children were always prepared for every test and every field trip. She was on many committees at school and was very involved in the community including The Junior League and Girl Scouts. And Mrs. Widgery accomplished all this with a very severe visual impairment. She was such an inspiration although I’m sure she never thought of herself as anything “special”, she certainly was special to me.

I don’t remember buying the silicone tartlette pan that I used to bake the shortcakes, so I’m not sure how it ended up in my cupboard, but this is the first time I’ve ever used it. But it baked the shortcakes very nicely and they just popped out of the pan with no problems at all. The shortcakes came out so delicious, I think this is my new “go to” shortcake recipe.

Blueberry Muffin Cakes
Recipe adapted from Suzanne Widgery

Muffin:
1/2 cup shortening (I use room temperature butter)
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 1/3 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup milk (I use buttermilk)
1 – 1 1/2 cup fresh blueberries (you can use any type of fresh or dried fruit. Dried cherries are delicious!)

Topping:
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon

1. With an electric mixer on low, cream shortening/butter and sugar.
2. Add nutmeg, baking powder, eggs, milk and salt and thoroughly blend.
3. Sift flour and with mixer on medium speed, gradually add the sifted flour to the butter mixture.
4. Clean the fruit and gently fold into the batter.
5. Spoon dough into greased muffin tin, filling each cavity about 3/4 full.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
7. Remove to a rack and cool slightly.
8. As soon as you take the muffins out of the oven, melt 1/2 cup butter in the microwave and add 3/4 cup sugar and 1/4 tsp cinnamon and mix.
9. As soon as the muffins are cool enough to handle, dip the tops in the melted butter mixture and set aside.

For the Strawberry Shortcakes:
Use the above recipe with my substitutions which are in ()s. Skip the butter/sugar/cinnamon topping
Skip the blueberries and substitute 1 qt fresh strawberries, cleaned and diced or crushed (You can add 2-3 tsp sugar if you’d like)
Topping: Whipped Cream, Ice Cream and/or mint

Recipe makes about 20 shortcakes

1. Dice or crush the strawberries and add addtional sugar to taste. Set aside.
2. Since I was going to be topping the shortcakes with fresh strawberries I only added 2/3 cup diced strawberries to the muffin batter.
3. Using a tartlette pan, spray each cavity with Pam.
4. Fill each cavity with about 4 TBL of batter or until about 1/8″ under the rim.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
6. Remove the shortcakes and cool on a rack.
7. Place a shortcake in a dessert dish and top with 4-6 TBL of diced strawberries. If you want to make a Double Decker Strawberry Shortcake, add another shortcake and top with more crushed strawberries!
8. To serve top with whipped cream or ice cream and you can add a sprig of fresh mint. Serve.

AllRightsReserved@BigBlackDog