Mother Thyme

Baked Beans

2012-05-28T12:02:00.000-04:00

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope you are enjoying this beautiful day having a barbecue with family and friends and honoring all the great men and women who serve our country.

If you are having a gathering today and still need to get your side dishes together I have one for you.

Baked beans are such a staple side dish at summer picnics. How often do you find yourself just picking up a can of baked beans at the market to heat up. Easy, right? I'm right there with you. I've done it many times before myself. That is until I discovered the secret recipe to Bush's Baked Beans. Ok, maybe I didn't but it sure tastes like I have.

I didn't want to create a baked bean recipe that was basically just doctoring up beans that are already made. I wanted to create from scratch the classic recipe for baked beans; more importantly I wanted it to be easy. If it isn't easy then why just go by a can of them then.

Friends, these are easy peasy. Most of the time involved are these simmering on the stove. Better yet, these can be can be made vegetarian, just omit the bacon bits.

Once you try these, you'll never want to buy the canned baked beans again.

Baked Beans

Click here for a printable version

Serves 6

Ingredients

3/4 cup molasses

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

3 teaspoons ground mustard

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

3 15.5oz cans navy beans (like Goya) rinsed and drained

2 tablespoons bacon bits (optional)

1/2-1 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large bowl stir together molasses, brown sugar, tomato paste, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, ground mustard, garlic powder, onion powder.

Add in navy beans and coat was sauce.

Pour into a large saucepan and stir in bacon bits and 1/2 cup water. Add a little more water if desired. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and boil for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cover and reduce heat to low and let simmer for 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove from heat and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Rhubarb Berry Yogurt Muffins

2012-05-24T00:04:00.000-04:00

What is your favorite recipe to make with rhubarb?

I think many of us associate rhubarb as an ingredient to be used in the popular rhubarb pie. It is one of my favorites and I have a recipe that I developed years ago for Rhubarb-Strawberry Pie that is something I look forward to making each year when rhubarb is in season.

I also like to use rhubarb in other recipes. One of my favorite ways is dicing it in an arugula and spinach salad tossed with goat cheese, strawberries, walnuts and a balsamic reduction. Friends, this is good stuff. The tart and crunchy rhubarb compliments this salad so well.

Oh wait, we aren't talking about the salad today are we? It is something I usually just toss together for a quick lunch. In the meantime let's talk about these muffins.

This past Saturday was our first time back to our local Farmers Market for the season. It was a beautiful morning as we strolled through the market checking out the local produce. Most of the vendors had rhubarb that is in season.

With my fresh rhubarb in hand and the many possibilities to make with it such as pie, chutney or the salad I just teased you with, I also like to incorporate rhubarb into muffins.

What I like to do is shred the rhubarb in a food processor opposed to dicing it. This way you get little flecks of rhubarb in each bite. If you don't have a food processor you can easily use a grater. It just takes about two stalks to get enough shredded rhubarb.

These muffins are then tossed with some sweet berries. I like to use a mixture of strawberries and blueberries to compliment the tartness of the rhubarb.

You can make a batch, toss them in a resealable bag and freeze these so you always have fresh muffins on hand. A quick zap in the microwave or defrosted on the counter and you have a muffin to enjoy in the morning with a hot cup of coffee as you begin your day.

Rhubarb Berry Yogurt Muffins

Click here for a printable version

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

1 cup shredded rhubarb (about 2 stalks)

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch of ground ginger

1 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or a mix)

For topping

1/3 cup brown sugar

Pinch of ground cinnamon

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 12 cup muffin tin with liners and set aside.

Chop two rhubarb stalks and place in food processor and pulse until shredded. Alternatively use a hand grater to shred rhubarb. Set shredded rhubarb aside.

In a large mixing bowl combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ground ginger. Still just until ingredients are combined.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add yogurt, melted butter, egg, vanilla extract and stir with flour mixture just until combined, don't over mix.

Fold shredded rhubarb and berries in batter just until combined.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan about 3/4 full.

Sprinkle top with additional brown sugar and cinnamon.

Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until tester inserted into the center of muffins comes out clean and tops are golden brown.

Place on wire rack to cool.

Jam Squares

2012-05-21T12:00:00.000-04:00

What's your favorite jam?

I love of browsing little shops and finding unique blends of jams. I sometimes have four or five different varieties in my pantry ready to crack open to spread on a piece of warm bread or to enjoy on my morning toast with coffee.

My mother just returned from a three month stay in Hawaii. Must be nice, I know. The one thing she knows she can always bring me home is food from her travels. And when she was in Hawaii she brought me back a jar of Maui Papaya and Pineapple Jam; sounds good, doesn't it?

I found a recipe for Jam Squares on Yumsilicious Bakes for this month's Secret Recipe Club and I knew these bars would be perfect with my fresh Hawaiian jam I just received.

Yumsilious Bakes is written by the very talented Avanika and has a variety of you guessed it, yummy and delicious sweets that had my drooling. I had fun browsing through all the great recipes and settling on just one was difficult but I am so glad I picked these Jam Squares to share. They are incredibly easy, and you can fill these bars with any type of jam you prefer.

I modified the recipe just slightly. I cut the recipe in half so I could make these in an 8"x8" pan and I could have a thick crust. I also modified the amount of jam as I wanted there to be a nice, thick layer of jam in between the layers.

These are perfect to whip up and take to a summer picnic with some fresh summer jam that we'll be whipping up with all the berries that will soon be in season.

Jam Squares

Click here for a printable version

Adapted from Yumsilicious Bakes originally from All Recipes

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

6 tablespoons butter, room temperature

7oz jam

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray an 8"x8" baking pan with non-stick cooking spray or lightly grease with butter and set aside.

Add flour, sugar, walnuts and butter to a medium bowl. Using a pastry blender or a fork, combine butter with dry ingredients until mixture is combined. Alternatively, place ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times until combined.

Reserve 1 cup of the mixture and press the remaining mixture on the bottom of prepared baking pan to form crust. Press until mixture is firmly in place.

Spread jam on top of crust and sprinkle with reserved flour mixture.

Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack completely. Cut into desired size squares.