Scratch Cook - Home Cooking

French Onion Soup - A Quick Slice of Heaven

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 11:56:00 +0000

As I havent posted in a long time, here is a quickie. French Onion Soup seems to have this mystique of high culture yet comfort food. The fact of the matter is it is pretty easy to "Whip up" as they say. The only hard part is the base or stock for the soup might take some time if you start with good beef bones.

So for stock, get about a quart or so of beef stock. For the onions, slice and saute three large onions (I serving six, here) in butter until browned. After the onions are done, put them into the beef stock to simmer and the flavors to distribute. Ladle the soup into broiler proof crocks making sure to distribute all the onions. Top with ripped up bread chunks and cheese. Here I used Ramano, but a better melting cheese is preferable. Then pop it under the broiler until the top looks good, remove and serve. It is as simple as that. As our family is under the weather, this particular batch came loaded with crushed garlic as well.

Most Unusual Home School Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 01:31:00 +0000

Well we have a pig or a cow coming in several days so we defrosted a bunch of ribs, roasts, and stew meat kicking around the bottom of the freezer. One of the items was probably a five or six pound standing rib roast (prime rib). As we found in our refrigerator several days after defrosting, I decided we had to cook it off this evening so it didn't go bad.
I put a nice dressing on the outside of some home made BBQ sauce cut with some tomato sauce, olive oil, salt, LOTS of pepper and rosemarie. Into a 475 degree convection oven for 20 minutes. Then I take it out, turn the oven off, cool the oven down and put the roast back in at about 170 and finish it off. I pull it when the center is 135. Ahhhh. Let it cool down. Refrigerate it over night, slice it the next day for the home school lunch.

How is This Food Related?

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 17:36:00 +0000

Scott came back from his European concert band tour. Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp's Southern Winds Concert Band 2010 has some great tunes which I'll get posted somewhere. In any event, this was a second encore number they used to close their shows. This was recorded at their homecoming concert in West Michigan. Listen to the power in the 40 - 60 second mark of the clip. Not bad vocals for a concert band. Listen or download all songs here: http://tinyurl.com/22okxy9 Be sure to check out the opening to Pory & Bess, & Stars & Stripes. Oh yes, Scott came home about 20 pounds more then when he left.

You MUST Make This Ketchup!

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 13:54:00 +0000

I've looked at this post for several months now and this morning finely whipped up a batch as a base for BBQ. I haven't taken it to BBQ yet, but this ketchup is all natural and made with ingredients we always have on hand in our household. The taste is EXACTLY ketchup. Follow the recipe, don't ad lib to start and you will not be disappointed. No refined sugar, no HFC, nothing. Now I will add some love, and Emeril says, and it will move to BBQ.

Amount	Unit	Ingredient
24	ounces	tomato paste
1	tbsp	whey
0.5	cup	fish sauce
0.75	cup	honey
Several	cloves	Garlic
0.25	tsp	cayenne pepper
0.5	tbsp	allspice
1	stick	cinnamon

Sugar - The Bitter Truth

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 10:29:00 +0000

This talk is simply outstanding. As a personal testimony, I started drastically reducing my carbs in the very early part of this year and the result is staggering. I'll have more to share later. Yes, I still do eat bread, just a slice every now and then. Also you will need to check out the book: Good Calories Bad Calories as that is singing from the same hymnal as well.

Whole Grain Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 21:26:00 +0000

Here is a brief look at some whole grain pizza. I'll have some more pics later, but this is some good stuff. Mix up the dough, let is sit in the fridge at least 24 hours. Pull it out two hours ahead of cooking. Make the pizza, cook it on the grill.

Josiah March Quintet 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 21:57:00 +0000

Well, 2010 Ensemble came and went. Yes, the Fab Five scored a "1" again. The judge had some good constructive comments for the lads. I had even more fun with iMovie on Sunday. Anyway, enjoy.

Lard and No Knead Bread Reposted Per Request

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 11:48:00 +0000

The two posts below are reposted per request. The bread is a sourdough that is pretty envolved getting the starter going. I'll post a no knead spot tomorrow that is truly about 3 minute hands on experience and you won't believe how it turns out. So, see you tomorrow....

You might think we crazy, but in the last 30 years or so with the increased use of new oils in cooking, we've made a turn back toward more traditional use of oils. Given you can not go to the store and purchase lard, pure lard, we decided to procure our own. As it is, we have a friend raise our hog and from that hog we get all the pig fat we can. This is what we do with it to get our lard. It is great to cook with and the pie crusts are out of this world. Look for an apple pie soon to come.
Oils like your mama used to use. (Well, maybe grandma)

Here is a quick video on a sourdough version of the no knead recipe that is so wildly popular on the web. This is my own adaptation, professionals beware.

1 cup sourdough starter - 50% water, 50% flour
1.5 tsp salt
2.5 cups flour
1 cup water

That is the whole recipe. The flour mix totaling 3 cups for this was:
.5 cup King Aurthur white (in the starter)
.5 cup King Aurthur white (in addition to what's in the starter)
1.5 cup King Aurthur wheat
.5 cup rye flour (not sure what brand)

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Cover the bowl with kitchen wrap and let it sit out on the counter for 12 hours. Next, put the very wet dough onto a floured surface, fold it together and place into a well floured proofing basket for 90 minutes.

Place into a preheated (450 for 30 minutes) dutch oven , slash, cover, and bake 20 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake for another 15 minutes until the loaf is at the desired color. Remove and place on a cooling rack.

A Very Quick and Easy Humas

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 22:29:00 +0000

Here is a very quick and easy humas. One 25 ounce can of chick peas, 1/2 teaspoon of powered garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2/3 cup of olive oil. You can put this on bread, eat with vegetables, crackers, or as I like, with a spoon. Please use the garlic and salt here as recommendations. If I wasn't posting this, I'd probably double the garlic for this much oil and chick peas.

If I'm making this for a crowd, I'd probably go at least three times the recipe. With the flat bread we did the other day, I think it was this times three. There are many many variations of this. I've had probably all kinds. This is a very plain Jane version.

Bread Baking Season Again

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:50:00 +0000

Ahh... it's bread baking season again. Finely cold enough outside that the warmth of the kitchen doesn't compete with the AC. I took my favorite seven grain out for a drive today. I started it yesterday morning with the seven grain soaker and the preferment. The preferment was a strong sourdough variant after about 30 hours.

I took the dough after several 90 minutes rises and rolled it out in 470g logs and let rise a final 90 minutes or so. I had two even 470s and a 520g left over. I took that one, shaped it into a boule and let it proof in a soub bowel. I put that one in at 450 in the preheated Dutch oven for 20 minutes, then pulled the top off for another 15 mintues. The loaf shaped ones when into the usual loaf pan and did the usual cook off.

So tell me, what do you all bake? Has bread season started in your house?

Scott's Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Concert

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:46:00 +0000

Well, another summer is almost gone. This doesn't relate too much to food, but it is exciting to see Scott hungry for playing his tuba. He was pretty jazzed, no put intended, about getting into Blue Lake.

He ended up playing the tuba for about four to six hours a day for ten days with university professors as instructors. I'll follow this up with a post of his recollections of the week. Enjoy.

A Longer Video of the Parade

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:31:00 +0000

Remember, this is 2:15 AM after marching for an hour after waiting 45 minutes to get to the starting line.

What a 4th of July Parade

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 01:09:00 +0000

I am not a late night person. This parade started at 12:00 AM on July 4th. The kids did very well. I think we got to bed at 3:30 AM.

Gatlinburg, TN from Scratch Cook on Vimeo.

A New Flick On the Orgins of You Food

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 01:55:00 +0000

Well, after Fast Food Nation, comes a new movie Food Inc. Anything with food in it, and I'm there.

With Special Thanks To Those Who Serve

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Mon, 25 May 2009 11:55:00 +0000

This fine veteran's day we salute our military for all of their service to our country. Here is a fun piece on the softer side of US military service. Enjoy.

Josiah March Quintet

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 19:53:00 +0000

You've got to know where the hot ticket items are. The Joshia March Quintet is the hippest thing since Herb Alpert or bell bottom pants. The fab five took a number 1 - High score for their efforts. Below is a high resolution upload of the video. If your browser does not support the Vimeo site, there is a youtube link further below.

Excellent work for the 13 - 15 year olds boys.

Michigan School Band Orchestra Association Festival

Josiah March Quintet from Scratch Cook on Vimeo.

Josiah March French Horn
Scott Sergeant Tuba
John Gravelle Trombone
Sam Jones Trumpet
Brent Proseus Trumpet

Getting Ready for Summer Time Cooking

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 16:44:00 +0000

In anticipation of the hot hazy days of summer, here is a bit of summer 2008: John, Scott, Maria. With some help from the Beach Boys and Hall & Oats.

100% Whole Wheat In Two Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 00:42:00 +0000

Here is a quick video of a 100% whole wheat bread. This is a short clip, but the bread is about as easy as it is short. I did not get a chance to do a voice over. I took several attempts, but a speaker, I am not.

Mix all ingredients together. Mix until you get the gluten widow. Let dough rise until doubled in bulk, about an hour to 90 minutes. At this point you can punch it down and let it rise again or proceed on to shaping. (Another rise yields tastier bread)

Shape into a ball, let rise in a floured bowl or bread proofing basket. Place into dutch oven (preheated to 400 degrees)

Bake 20 minutes with lid on. Remove lid, bake an additional 20 minutes.

Here is the quick recipe:
430 grams King Aurthur whole wheat
295 grams of water
1.5 tsp yeast
1.25 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
1/4 honey

100% Whole wheat from Scratch Cook on Vimeo.

By Popular Demand

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:01:00 +0000

We've covered a good deal of bread making. This has been very positively received. There were some requests for some more sour dough step by step instructions on how to keep and use starter.

What would you like to see next?
More No Knead? Sour Dough No Kneed?
Don't have time for No knead, you have three hours to crank out some hearth bread, can you do it? Absolutely.
Some "Nourishing Traditions" meals?
How to get a good braise on? BBQ, Stew, are "fire and forget" - great outcome for little effort.
Fish?

Shoot me an email with your requests and we'll see what we can do.

No Knead Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:23:00 +0000

Sourdough Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 19:41:00 +0000

My sourdough starter is now one year old. Thank you Breadtopia.com for the instructions on how to make your own starter. I've kept it alive through probably 50 loaves and a vacation or two.

For this recipe:

6 cups of starter 100% hydration
3 cups wheat four
3 cups white flour
1 tsp of salt

Cate's Birthday Bagels

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 01:05:00 +0000

Mom requested some home made bagels yesterday. It was Cate's birthday, so we have Cate's birthday bagels.

8 Cups of AP flour
3.5 Cups water
4 tsp yeast (double acting or bread machine yeast)
1 tsp salt

Toppings:
Cheddar cheese
Dill
Garlic
Salt
Poppy seeds

Bagels from Scratch Cook on Vimeo.

Joe's Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 21:06:00 +0000

I purchased a grill for the lake after the old one wouldn't cut it any more. You can't cook a steak on 1/2 a BTU. I got a Home Depot $129 special and put it together. On another note, my neighbor bailed me out of a jam yesterday with the boat. In honor of keen insight I made a pizza as the first fruits of the new grill and delivered it to his door.

Sourdough Bread - One Loaf

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 04 May 2008 23:07:00 +0000

Today was sourdough, same starter I started before Christmas. Here are the sequence of pictures. I didn't measure out everything, I had about two coups of starter and added about two cups of flower following the usual directions. It rose until it more then doubled. Punched it down and proofed it until it was over the dish as you can see from the pictures. Cooked at 400 until it was done, about 30 minutes.

Stuffed Pizza; Some say Chicago style.

noreply@blogger.com (Carl) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 23:32:00 +0000

Roll out your dough as thin as you can, about 1/8th inch. Put in a layer of cheeze and you ingredients followed by a layer of cheeze.

Roll out another dough and put it over the top. Roll the circle of dough around the edge. Poke holes in the second layer to vent the bottom layer while cooking.

Then put a layer of sause, cheeze, and more toppings on the second layer. Put in 375 degree oven for 45 minutes.

Here is one of the pizzas just out of the oven. This needs to sit about 10 minutes prior to cutting open to serve. This could use a good salad to join it, but tonight it was just pizza.

Here are the two pies for dinner. The kids are doing the larger one. Mom & dad, the smaller one with a lot more veggies. This takes about 45 minutes to bake at 375 degrees.

Here is a view of the pies cut in two. This is a great dish for a meal. Check out the site www.foodwishes.com for a video on how to make it.