Smells of the season.... Our Favourite Ginger Cookies....

November is over and a quicker pace begins for most of us; filled with tinsel and baubles that make your eyes shine, the laughter and love of family and friends, arms full of hugs, and little surprises that arrive in the mail.  For me, it isn't really the Yuletide season until the baking begins!  There is always a huge list of things I want to make, but I eventually shorten my list as time, resources and room in the freezer dictate!

The first, and for me the most important item on the list is my family's favourite ginger cookies!  Called by many names and with many variations, the ginger cookie is a comfort food for so many people.  Mine has a nice twist; I use all purpose whole wheat flour when making mine!  Almost guilt free! 

First, I cream one and a half cups of room temperature butter in the mixer... remember when creaming butter for any baking room temperature will be soft enough to work without creating lumps!   I add two cups of demarara sugar ( the lovely dark brown sugar with the rich flavour!), and carefully add two whole eggs, one at a time, blending them until creamy and fluffy!  Again, use room temperature eggs when baking!  Adding cold eggs into the softened butter will make it lumpy!  Stir in half a cup of molasses and set the mixture aside.

In a large bowl I stir together three and three quarters of a cup of whole wheat all purpose flour with four teaspoons of baking soda, four teaspoons of powdered Ginger, two teaspoons of cinnamon and two teaspoons of ground cloves.  Make sure to mix them until the spices are well combined;  I just form my hand into a "claw" and stir the mix by hand!  Mmmmm.... it makes the spices smell so good!

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and gently stir them together until the dough forms a soft ball.  At this point you can also work in the fresh zest of one large lemon, but it is always optional!  You could also add a little chopped candied ginger, but not too much!  The dough is already very flavourful!  Chill until firm!  I have found I don't always have time to complete the recipe on the same day, so at this point you can refrigerate the dough for up to a week to allow the flavours to develop a little more or continue with the recipe!  Make sure the dough is covered if you are going to wait so it doesn't dry out!

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit with your racks in the middle of the oven;  my convection oven will take up to three cookie sheets at a time, so I can get more done at once, but if you want to you can bake only as much as you will be needing for the day!  Work the dough a little with your hands until it is soft enough to form.  Shape the dough into balls about one inch in diameter.... and roll each ball in granulated sugar to coat.  You can either freeze the dough at this point for baking later or cook them now!  Place the formed cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet,  leaving space between them to allow the cookies to spread.  I sometimes make huge cookies, sometimes medium sized and sometimes small ones, but the technique is always the same.  I also "cheat" and use self ejecting ice cream scoops to make all the cookies the same size so they bake at the same rate.

Place the tray (or trays) in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes for smaller cookies, and about 15 minutes for large ones.  The cookies are done when the edges are lightly browned and "set", and the tops "crack".  Allow the cookies to cool for about 5 minutes on the cookie sheets before removing them to a plate ... eat them still warm, or pack them in a "zippy" bag and take them with you!  The ginger and cloves are a wonderful combination, and the amount of spice satisfies your appetite!  Mmmmmmm....  magical!

Fall comfort food.... Chicken Fricasse with Dumplings.....

Fall... when nature presents us with her best brocade gown....  I love this time of year more than any other.  Chilly nights, brisk days, drizzle that keeps you inside cooking, a chance to sit with friends enjoying coffee and talking.  Shared recipes, shared laughter, and an early darkness that makes comfort food the best thing of all.

My Mom wasn't a great cook, but there was always something easy to prepare on the stove.  I remember one time when my Uncle came over out of the blue, and my younger brother and I begged Mom to make dumplings for dinner to go with the stew....  I recall my Uncle yelling at my Dad over the phone in a fake accent.... " I am beating za childrens and eating the dumplingzez...".....  still makes me laugh even after all this time.  He liked his dumplings with treacle on them; warm, sticky and messy, sweet with that wonderful molasses taste.  We liked ours with maple flavoured syrup, and later when I figured out there WAS such a thing as real maple syrup I went with that!  However, the BEST thing on dumplings still has to be.... GRAVY!!!!

So lets start with basics.  Chicken Fricasse is just a way of cooking the chicken.  I use skin on/bone in cuts...  whole legs, or just thighs or drumsticks - the last time I used twelve thighs with the back removed and the thigh bone still in.  Basically, you take your fresh chicken pieces, season them with a little thyme, some salt and pepper, maybe a little paprika.  Then dredge them with all purpose flour to coat them well.  Allow them to sit for a few minutes to let the flour seal, then heat about three tablespoons of oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the pieces on one side for about 5 minutes or until well browned.  Turn the chicken over and allow to "colour" on the other side.  Lift the chicken out of the pan and hold aside while you brown the rest of the pieces. 

Once the chicken is browned, use the oil with the flour in to lightly brown half a large onion, diced into one inch chunks along with about four stalks of celery cut into one inch slices and about four medium carrots also cut into one inch chunks.  Once the vegetables have become translucent you can deglaze the pan with about a cup of chardonnay if you want, or just use chicken stock (or cheat and use boiling water and a chicken base mix).  Place the vegetables on the bottom of a shallow roasting pan (I use my extra large electric skillet for this) and place the chicken pieces over top in a single layer.  Add liquid (water, stock, combination of different liquids appropriate for your final flavour) and turn down to allow the chicken to simmer gentle until tender - for about 30 to 40 minutes. 

At this point I carefully lift the chicken out of the broth and place it on a serving tray.  I make sure I have at least one inch of liquid in the pan before mixing the dumplings.  For six hungry people I use two cups of sifted flour mixed with three teaspoons of baking powder and one teaspoon of salt.  I sometimes stir in about a tablespoon of chopped fresh herbs... parsley, thyme, savory... whatever I feel will enhance the flavour of the chicken.... and then I cut in a quarter cup of butter with a fork.  Finally I stir in one cup of milk and mix until the dough forms a ball in the bowl.  I drop the batter into the simmering liquid a spoonful at a time until all the batter has been used... so a large area pan is best!  Simmer the dumplings uncovered for ten minutes, then cover the pan and allow to simmer for another ten minutes.  Serve at once!  The chicken will be "melt in your mouth" tender, the carrots and celery will have taken on the flavour of the herbs, and the dumplings should be light and savoury.

My favorite side dish is always green beans - especially if I have managed to freeze some from my garden!  Saute them in butter straight from the freezer and serve!  I guarantee you won't have leftovers!  If you do, then maybe you need to add a friend or two at your table and work a little "comfort food" magic over them!

Now it's back to my kitchen to see what other magic I can stir up!  Enjoy!

Thanksgiving is for pie!..... Perfect Pumpkin Pie filling....

When someone tells me they don't know how to make pie I tell them it's really easy!  You just have to remember; it's food, don't be afraid of it!  It should be afraid of YOU because YOU are going to EAT it!

I have been mass producing pumpkin pies since I was thirteen and my Mom needed help in the kitchen.  I come from a large family, and there was never enough time or space for Mom to take care of all the little things.  Quite frankly, she wasn't especially keen on cooking large meals.  She had her moments, but all in all she was always happy that someone else take up that chore.  I used to pore over her old cook books to search out methods or techniques, but we always went back to the "old favorites", and you will too!

Who remembers the old "Royal City Pumpkin" tins?  My original recipe came from the back of one of those cans, and I have tweaked it over the years until it is simple and always delicious!

So, lets start!  First, make your "rough puff pastry" (I use the lard version because the family requests it, but you can use the butter one if you wish).  Roll the crust to line your pie shell, pressing the dough into the bottom of the pan to prevent shrinking during the cooking process.  Now make your filling!  In a large bowl, combine one fourteen ounce can of good quality pumpkin - NOT pie filling! - with three quarters of a cup of Demarera Sugar, one teaspoon of cinnamon, three quarters of a teaspoon of ginger and just a PINCH of ground cloves. 

Carefully stir the spices and sugar into the pumpkin until no streaks of spice remain.  In a measuring cup gently beat three eggs with a fork until loose, then add to your pumpkin mix.  Open a fourteen ounce tin of evaporated milk - not sweetened condensed milk - and add to the pumpkin mix.  Whisk everything together until it is smooth. 
Now place your filling into the crust, scraping the bowl so you don't waste any of the filling, and place the pie in a preheated HOT oven.  I start my pies at my favorite 425 degrees Fahrenheit, but you know your oven and will use your favorite hot setting... then, immediately turn your oven DOWN to about 325 degrees.... you want to flash the edges so they don't slip during baking, but you want the filling to cook low and slow for a smoother finish.  And now the "magic" made easy!  The reason I use canned milk instead of cream or fresh milk is simple.  Canned milk has already been processed and contains changed proteins that will not cause the filling to split or weep after cooking.  It gives the perfect custard texture and makes for a better final product.
Bake your pie until the center puff up and the custard is firm but not hard in the center.  If your edges begin to brown too quickly you can make a "tent" with foil over the whole pie, but remember to add a hole in the center so the custard gets some colour. 

Serve this either warm or fully chilled, with ice cream, or whipped cream, or just the way it is!  Mmmmm.....  And enjoy!

Good for what ails you.... Country Style Chicken Soup with Brown Rice and Hot Peppers....

The first cold of the season has me whining like a baby.  I ache, my nose is stuffy, I'm having trouble sleeping, and I am soooo tired...  so I decided to make myself a batch of soup to help make me feel better.

Making soup helps to calm my soul.  I adore soup in all it's delicious forms.  If I can use some refrigerator "orphans" or utilize an amazing deal from the store I'm even more thrilled!  After all, isn't home cooking about doing well with what you have?

Start with a good stock;  I got lucky at the market the other day and picked up four roasted chicken halves on for half price!  I paid only a third of the price of two fresh chickens for the same amount of food, and I didn't have to cook it!  After stripping the meat from the bones I tossed all the remainder - skin, fat, bones and what have you - into a large stock pot.  I added enough water to cover the bones really well and let it simmer for an hour.  Once it smelled amazing I turned off the heat and placed the pot in the sink in about three inches of cold water to help cool it, then put it in the fridge for later....  it gelled to perfection and had amazing colour.... and was basically the same price as buying two packages of premade chicken stock and I still have the cooked chicken to utilize!

Today I pulled out my collection of fresh vegetables and prepared them to become soup.  I started with one carrot, peeled and sliced thinly.  I chopped some onion, celery and leeks  as well - using about the same amount of each as I had of carrots.  I crushed two whole cloves of garlic and heated my favorite pan over the flame, coating the bottom of the pan with about two tablespoons of good olive oil.

First I added the onions and garlic, stirring to combine, then the leeks.  When the onions were smelling delicious I added the carrots and tossed everything together to coat it with the olive oil and blend the flavours.  Last came the celery, then I added about half a cup of raw brown rice and stirred it into the vegetables.  I carefully toasted the rice until it began to brown and smell like toasted nuts... totally wonderful!  Then   I also had about two cups of loose beet greens and wanted to add a few slices of Anaheim peppers, but I kept those back until the rice had cooked completely.


When the carrots were brightly coloured I started to add the preheated chicken stock, one ladle at a time, to my rice mix.  I used about eight cups of stock.  You can use more or less, depending on how thick you like your soup.  I gave the soup a good stir, brought it to a steady simmer and placed the lid on the pan.  Then I walked away for about twenty minutes to give the rice a chance to cook through. 

The cooked rice should be tender to the bite, slightly translucent and not sticky.  It has a wonderful, nutty taste that I find satisfying, especially in the fall!

 Now the seasoning;  I crumbled about one quarter of a teaspoon of dried thyme into the soup, and seasoned the broth with freshly ground pepper and sea salt.  A quick taste was all I needed to correct the amount of salt in the broth, as I had not used any at this point.  Also, this is the best time to add those other ingredients that don't require a long cooking time!  I sprinkled my fresh beet greens over the top of the simmering soup, and allowed them to steam lightly before stirring through the vegetables.  You could also use fresh chard, baby spinach or any other dark leafy green... so healthy and so tasty!  The earthiness of the beet greens really compliments the other flavours.  I also added five thin slices of fresh hot pepper - but you can add them to your personal taste! 


 I had reserved the meat from half a chicken when making my stock.  I chopped it loosely and stirred it into the soup to heat it through.....  DONE!

I buttered some lovely bread and grilled it lightly in a non stick skillet to serve with my soup....   

And of course, my favorite critic demanded to taste the final product, but she had to wait until it cooled....

So, soup for my soul, good for what ails you, done (well, except for the stock that I made ahead of time) in about an hour.  Enough for four healthy appetites, or for a family of six on a cold fall afternoon... served with your favorite bread or a wonderful grilled cheese sandwich. 

And don't forget to share with your best friend!

Wrapping the fruit in delicousness... Rough Puff Butter Pastry....

Too many "aspiring" bakers tell me they CAN'T make good pastry!  I say "YES, YOU CAN"... you just need to understand a little of the actual chemistry that creates the final product to correct your technique!  I adore pies!  But every pie needs the RIGHT pastry to make it totally amazing!

Rough Puff Pastry is a basic butter dough with a tender bite and a delightfully flaky consistency.  It should be buttery flavoured, dry without being brittle, never oily textured, and the body of the dough must never be tough.  Most cooks overwork the fat component into the flour, use warmed fat (thinking it will be easier to handle) or knead the resulting mass; this creates gluten, a protein that gives bread wonderful elasticity, but is a disaster with pastry!

I cheat when it comes to pastry.  I make MOUNTAINS of it every year when the apples on my trees come ripe!  There are times when LARD is the better choice for pie crust, but with many people not happy eating that particular fat I will substitute BUTTER into my recipe, or use half butter and half lard.  NEVER use "special pastry shortenings"... the resulting pastry will be greasy, have an unpleasant melt point in your mouth and the layers created by using cold animal fat won't be nearly as flaky.

So lets' start with the basics.  I will give you amounts for five single crusts, but I usually double this recipe and make five large chunks.  Use a BIG bowl to allow your hands to work the dough.  Make sure your hands are really clean and remove your rings, watch, jewelry...   You will need a large knife to literally cut the COLD fat.
 Measure five and a half cups of unbleached all purpose flour into the bowl.  Measure in one teaspoon of salt (I sometimes just eyeball it) and a teaspoon and a half of double acting baking powder.  Stir this together with your hands until the dry ingredients are well incorporated.  Take your butter ( or lard, or combination of the two) out of the fridge and cut it lengthwise into four flat pieces. 
Turn each piece in the flour and cut each slice into four sticks.  Stack all the stick together and cut them into small blocks.  Toss the blocks with the flour mixture.  This is when mixing makes the perfect flaky consistency. 
You don't want to break the butter up too much, but you do want it a little squished.  I press some of the butter to flatten it with my hands, working the butter into the flour until the edges of the blocks are slightly rounded. 

Now comes the chemistry part.  Crack one whole egg into a one cup measuring cup.  Add one tablespoon of lemon juice (fresh is better!) and whip loosely with a fork.  Strain in enough ICE WATER to make one cup of liquid.  Pour the liquid ALL AT ONCE into a well in the middle of your butter loaded flour.  Pulling the edges of the flour into the middle with your hands, mix the resulting mass until it JUST holds together. 
You can add another teaspoon of water if the dough seems too dry to work easily. 

The reason this works?  Acids destroy protein;  the acidic component of the lemon juice acts as a dough conditioner, helping to prevent the formation of the protein - gluten - within the flour mass.  The egg acts as a binding agent and allows the crust to colour nicely when baked.  The double acting baking powder begins to activate when the liquid is added, but continues to create pockets of carbon dioxide during the heating process, making the flakes separate better and causing the characteristic flakiness that distinguishes good pastry!  The other ingredient you need for good pastry?  

PATIENCE!   Now you have to wait!  Divide the dough into five even lumps.  I actually combine two lumps into one at this point because I don't like my double crusted fruit pies to make a mess in my oven, but if you are making custard pies, or you want the beauty of a classic double crust or lattice topped pie keep it in five portions.  Wrap in plastic wrap OR slip the dough into clean plastic bags and put it in the fridge.  Literally forget about it for at LEAST an hour.

 Better yet, make it the day before so you can allow the dough to rest and lose any elasticity you may have worked into it as well as letting the animal fat harden again.

When you roll the dough I sometimes use an old, clean sheet as a "pastry cloth".  Flour your surface well, and work the dough into a disk with your hands.  The fat will resist the shaping process and that is GOOD.  Working with a rolling pin, begin to roll the dough into an evenly rounded shape... eventually I will post a video, but not this time!  When the dough will over flow the sides of the pan it is the right size.  If I am rolling a double portion I work the circle until it is TWICE the width of the pie pan so I can "flip" the dough over the fruit filling; that way the pie won't "spill" over the edges when the filling starts to bubble!

Push the dough into the bottom of the pie pan and poke a few holes in the bottom of the crust.  Fill with your prepared fruit filling, top with the second crust, trim, brush with a little water and dust with about a teaspoon of sugar before baking.  I like to use my gas oven on convection bake, with a temperature of about 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Your oven will probably use a different temperature.  Just remember - medium hot to flash the crust but not make the fat melt and run out before the flour can seal it in!

Just the pastry, my darlings....   I will give you the filling recipes later, or you can fill them with your own personal favorites ....    And it's a full moon, so the Kitchen Witch is heading off to better things tonight!

Fall is for the harvest.... French Onion Soup....

Finally taking the leap into cooking and posting my recipes after over 15 years of holding back, I feel as if I am racing towards a point where I was supposed to arrive... somehow, since I always seem to hit the ground running that is no surprise...  I am always asked for recipes and I figure this is the best way to get them to those who want them....

Lets' start today with classic French Onion Soup....  and all the little shortcuts I use to make it completely simple, special and delicious!  This amount will make two very large bowls or 4 small ones.  Increase as you need to make a larger batch.

First, find a large, fresh fall onion, about the size of a softball!  If you are prone to crying when you chop onions there are a few things you need to do first!  I keep mine in the fridge.  I find cold onions are less "pungent" and therefore easier to chop.  Make sure your knife is VERY sharp!  If you wear contact lenses it will work really well to keep you from weeping, but swimming goggles work too...  Peel the onion and cut it in half from the top to the root... and slice it very, very thinly with your knife.  Do it fairly slowly, so you don't make the juices spurt everywhere. 

Next, in a heavy bottom stainless steel pot preheat about one tablespoon of olive oil and about two tablespoons of butter.  When the butter is foamy add your onions all at once.  The bottom of the pot should be covered, but the onions should still sear a bit and not boil!  Turn the heat to medium to allow the onions to caramelize.. but not burn!  You can add a couple of crushed garlic cloves (I find mincing them increases the chance of burning and nothing tastes worse than burnt garlic!) and a teaspoon of dried thyme as well.  Let it cook and be patient!  When the onions are nicely browned and smell delicious deglaze the bottom of the pan with about a cup of a really GOOD red wine!  By good I don't necessarily mean expensive, just one that TASTES good!  A nice, full bodied, rich red will compliment all the ingredients.  I used a Zweigelt-Pinot Noir because I really like it, but a
Burgundy or a full Merlot will also do the trick!  When the pot has sizzled and is simmering add two cans of "consomme" concentrate (yes, I know... cheating... but consomme has the best flavour and who has bloody TIME to simmer beef and chopped vegetables in a "raft" on top of the stock pot for twelve hours?????)  plus two full cans of water to cut the salt.  Simmer this until it smells SO good you have to eat it ... the onions should be transparent and limp, the broth will be a rich dark colour and when you taste the salt should be just right, not overly salty!

To serve this delectable soup I shred about an ounce of Jarlesberg Cheese into each bowl and top it with the steaming soup!  If you want you can make a "Parmesan Raft" for your soup by toasting slices of buttered baguette under the broiler until they are lightly toasted; I like to use butter flavoured with garlic and sprinkle them with Parmesan cheese before toasting.  Float one on each serving and add more cheese if you like cheese (yes, I know... who doesn't like more cheese!).

Add a salad in season, or serve with a beautiful Artisan bread from the local bakery, perhaps an apple crisp for dessert.  Simple.  Pleasurable. Magical!