Pie Crust Options

Pie Crust Options

Graham Cracker Crumbs and Butter
Ground Nuts and Butter
Wheat Flour and Butter or Lard (with a little water)
Oat Flour, Butter, and Nuts
Golden Flax, Nuts, Butter, and Oat Flour

When you think about it, a crust is just an additional layer on the bottom of a dessert. It is sometimes also a layer on the top of a dessert. Many people are intimidated by pie crust because they have a crumbly, flaky texture in mind that is difficult to create, especially when it is on the bottom of a second layer that is full of fruit juice or custard. Frankly, the only way to keep a crust from getting soggy is to construct it mostly of ingredients that won't easily absorb moisture.

Of course, the thing that doesn't absorb moisture is oil. So plenty of butter, oil or nuts will do the trick. The place where most people get hung up is in trying to roll out a sheet of pastry that doesn't want to stick together. Forming a sheet of pastry that can be maneuvered is a function of gluten, but glutinous and stretchy is the exact opposite of what we want a crust to be. Because a glutinous crust will absorb liquid like a sponge. One solution is to forget the rolling and simply press the crust mix into the bottom of the pie plate.

The top might be a little easier to roll into a maneuverable sheet because it is smaller in diameter, but crumb crusts on top are also appetizing in appearance and quite delicious. Think Dutch Apple. The crust in the photo of this delicious Pumpkin Creme Pie is made with oat flour, sugar, spices, ground pecans and butter. Oat flour is easily made by putting oat flakes in a coffee grinder. Pecans are also crushed in the coffee grinder. Mix these things together right in the pie plate and press them against the bottom and the sides.

 Many years ago, pie crusts were made with a variety of trans fat concoctions, which are certainly impervious to liquids, but they are also pretty impervious to healthy digestion, so these solutions should be relegated to history. A good quality lard, however, is a fine oil for pie crust if you want something traditional. Mix, stir, and handle as little as possible to avoid activating gluten.

For the crusts listed above use 1/2 cup soft butter, and whatever combination of dry ingredients you like or have on hand. You can grind most nuts and seeds in a coffee grinder to get the amount needed for your crust. Add nuts and dry ingredients until you get a crumbly mix that can be pressed easily. Spices and sweeteners can be added at your discretion. Sugars tend to scorch easily, so you might want to be somewhat sparing with these.

Apple Custard Cake

Apple Custard Cake

There are many recipes for apple cake. The two things that set this one apart are: cooking the apples which helps create a custard texture, and browning the butter which gives it an extraordinary flavor.

Sliced apples - about 6 medium apples
I happened to have some Asian pears when I made this and I used a bit of pear along with the apples. Four apples and two pears will make an even more fabulous custard than the apples alone.

1/2 teaspoon Cardamom

1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 cup bourbon or dry white wine or brandy

2 eggs

2/3 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup flour (This can be oat flour, wheat flour, fava flour or some combination of these.)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Put 1/2 cup butter in a skillet over low heat to brown. When butter is browned, set it aside to cool.

2. Peel and slice apples.

3. Put nutmeg, cardamom​, sugar, flour, bourbon, vanilla, salt and baking powder into a mixing bowl, and add the partially cooled butter.

4. Put the apple/pear mix and 2 generous tablespoons butter into the skillet to begin softening. Sprinkle the fruit very lightly with cinnamon.

5. While the fruit is softening in the skillet, add the eggs to the mixing bowl. This should take 10  -  15 minutes. The fruit should be partially cooked, but not mushy.

6. Let the fruit cool a little before adding to the rest of the batter so as not to cook the eggs.

7. You can bake the custard in a glass pie plate or in individual custard cups. At  340, the cake will take about 35 minutes to bake. The individual cups may be done at around 30 minutes.

Sprinkle with a little powdered sugar. Serve while still slightly warm with whipped cream. It's also good cold!

Spiced, Dried Kale

 Spiced, Dried Kale

No matter how you regard kale, it is easy to grow. And if you or your friends grow it, you might run out of ways to use it. Drying it with a little olive oil and a few spices gives you a way to use great bunches of it in all kinds of places that it would not ordinarily fit. And because of the high nutrient value of kale, it makes a great food additive.

To dry the kale, coat a baking sheet with olive oil, and load it up with kale that has the center stalk removed. Sprinkle on a little salt, chili powder and/or curry powder, and set it in the oven at 200 degrees. It may take a couple of hours to dry. A heaping tray will dehydrate down to the place where it can fit into a pint jar. When it is crispy and crumbles easily, remove it, cool it, and store it in a glass jar.

Now you can use the dried kale just like an herb. 

Sprinkle it in eggs. 

Mix it into casserole dishes and add it to salad dressing. 

Or crush it very fine and use a bit in marinade. 

It also makes a terrific spice for coleslaw. 

Combine it with a soft cheese for a tasty hors d'oeuvre. 

Use your imagination. It has a pleasantly bitter flavor so it adds some umami to your favorite foods.

I used quite a bit of dried kale in this green goddess dressing and it improved the flavor immensely. Any dressing that tends to be a little bland, such as ranch or buttermilk will perk up with a tablespoon of spiced, dried kale.

I have been known to put just about everything into bread, and dried kale works here, too. Some pressed garlic and dried kale makes a mouthwatering bread.

More Chia Pancakes

Because you cannot have enough recipes for pancakes...More Chia Pancakes

1/2 cup chia seeds
1 1/2 cups hot water
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup coconut flour
5 medium or 4 large eggs
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of cloves

Coconut oil for frying.

1. Stir the chia seeds into the hot water. Let sit for 30 minutes or longer. These can even be kept in the refrigerator overnight if that is more convenient.

2. When you are ready to fry your cakes, mix all the ingredients together in a blender. Blend on medium speed for about a minute.

3. Drop spoonfuls of batter into hot coconut oil to make cakes about 3 inches in diameter.

4. Serve with any combination of toppings: butter, syrup, fruit sauce, nuts

The world will be saved by beauty.   Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Citrus Molasses

Citrus Molasses

Molasses is typically made by cooking down or boiling sugar cane or sugar beets until you have a thick syrup. In the Middle East, molasses is made with pomegranates, grapes, and dates. So basically, it is a thick, sugary syrup.

I found myself a few weeks ago with more citrus than I could reasonably use. When you live in California, sometimes there is a profusion of citrus. I had made orange juice ice cubes and frozen some lemon juice chips as well; and the table was still piled high with grapefruit, tangelos and other assorted​ citrus.

I began juicing and decided to make a citrus blend and cook it down into a syrup. As it cooled down and became thicker, I added a bit of sugar and a bit of maple syrup. I added the sweeteners sparingly because I wanted the syrup to retain some tang. I started with about 3 1/2 quarts of juice and cooked it down to about a third of that amount.  I added a cup of sugar and a 1/2 cup of maple syrup.

The result is a tangy sweet and sour sauce that I have used to:

1. Drizzle over stir fry vegetables Mix with olive oil and tahini and drizzle over roasted vegetables

2. Mix a spoonful in drinks as a flavorful sweetener

3. Create a marinade for fish using equal parts of tahini, olive oil and citrus molasses.

4. As an ingredient in salad dressing

I keep it in the refrigerator and have shared some with friends. I have not yet used it in any dessert recipes, but I am quite certain that it could be drizzled over ice cream or cheese cake for a delightful burst of flavor.

Any fruit or fruit juice could be used to make a molasses. This simple flavorful syrup can retain quite a bit of pulp so you are using most of the fruit.

The drink pictured below was made with about 1 1/2 cups of fresh squeezed orange and lime juice, 1/3 cup of citrus molasses, and 3 cups water. It is light, aromatic and delicious, and it mixed well with champagne!

Where there is great love, there are always miracles. Willa Cather

Color Cole Slaw

 

Color Cole Slaw

We have some lovely purple cabbage in our garden, so it seemed like a good time for a new twist on cole slaw. It's a great side dish and could also be used as a garnish for fish tacos.

2 cups shredded purple cabbage

2 cups shredded Napa cabbage

3/4 cup diced red bell pepper

3/4 cup diced celery

1 1/2 cup grated carrot

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons caraway powder

2 tablespoons dill weed

1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette 

Stir and let sit at least a half hour before serving, so that the flavors have a chance to blend a little.

The amounts are not critical; this my best estimate of what I actually used.

Mighty things from small beginnings grow.  John Dryden

Roasted Potatoes with Tender Chicken

Roasted Potatoes with Tender Chicken 

Tender chicken and crispy potatoes in one dish doesn't seem possible, but it's amazingly simple and quite delicious.

10 pieces of chicken tenders and/or boneless thighs

8 medium potatoes 

Chili powder

Salt

Butter

Marinade:

1/2 cup balsamic vinaigrette

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup water

1. Marinate the chicken for about 1/2 hour.

2. Sprinkle with salt and chili powder

3. Peel and cut the potatoes into 1 1/2 inch cubes 

4. Place the potatoes on top of the chicken/marinade layer. 

5. Gently turn the potato cubes over in order to coat them slightly with the marinade mix, but leaving the chicken on the bottom layer.

6. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt and pepper. 

Bake at 350 for about an hour and a half. At the 1 hour mark, drizzle melted butter over the potatoes. 

Potatoes will get deliciously browned on the outside and soft in the middle. Scoop the chicken and potatoes into a platter with a slotted spoon.

Love comforteth like sunshine after rain.  William Shakespeare