The Berries have Started!

The red currants have been picked.

 With a little help from Tommy.

They have been juiced.  Some of the juice was mixed with lemonade.  And some made a deliciously tart sangria with white wine.  The rest is in the freezer.

The black currants have not been picked.  In prior years we have experimented with making black currant wine, but we decided it is too musky for our taste.  We dried the berries one year - took forever and that was just not worth the effort.

We will offer the fruit to friends who can appreciate it (and pick. . .).

Today was the first of the raspberries.  

Picked a quart and a half.

Made juice.

The season has begun. . .

Cinnamon Nut Wreath

I need another "Dish to Pass".  This bread looked so pretty in the recipe that I decided to try it.  I used my goto Challah bread recipe as the base.


After the first rise, I rolled it out into a rectangle.  Then dusted with cinnamon and powdered sugar mix.  Added chopped cashews.  Rolled it into a log.  Pulled the log into a circle.

 Put a can in the middle to keep the center open.

 After it had risen a bit, I used kitchen shears to cut segments 2/3 of the way to the center and then twisted each segment.

 It was allowed to rise more, then baked at 350º.

It's not super sweet.

If you wanted a sweet filling, there should probably also be sugar or brown sugar in the filling.

It could also be served with strawberry butter or strawberry cream cheese.

Wouldn't that be nice!

challah

This recipe comes from:  Rose Behrens.

RECIPE:

• 7 cups flour
• 1 T salt
• 1/2 cup sugar (or honey)
• 2 pkg yeast + 1/3 cup warm water (if using bulk yeast, it's 1-1/2 tablespoons, or 4-1/2 teaspoons)
• 1/2 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup cold water

This recipe makes the equivalent of 3 large braided loaves or 4 medium ones.

I have used this recipe to make many variations, including cinnamon bread, and cinnamon nut wreath.

---

Here are the original directions.  (I tend not to follow them. . . )

Beat eggs in a small bowl.In a large bowl mix oil, sugar and salt.
Add boiling water to large bowl and stir until all is dissolved.
Sprinkle yeast into a measuring cup with 1/3 cup warm water. Wait a few minutes, then stir.
Add cold water to mixture in large bowl. (The stuff in the bowl should now be the right temperature to add yeast. If too hot, wait a few minutes; if too cold, put the bowl in the microwave to heat it.)
Add yeast to large bowl.
Add eggs to large bowl, reserving about 1 tablespoon.
Add flour 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition.
Turn out dough onto floured board and knead for 5 minutes, adding more flour as needed (but not too much). Dough is ready if it springs back after being poked with a finger.
Put back into bowl, cover with dishtowel, and put in warm oven (heated to 170-200, and then turned off beforehand) until doubled - about 1 hour.
Turn out onto floured board and knead for 1-2 minutes.
Divide dough into thirds.
Take one of the thirds, and knead for another minute. Form into 8-12 small "snakes" for bulkies, or 3 large snakes for braid. Make bulkies by knotting each small snake and pinching the ends together. Place bulkies close together pinched-end down in greased pan (I use Pam). For braids, pinch ends of 3 large snakes together and begin braiding. Pinch ends together when done. Place in greased round pan or loaf pan.
Repeat for 2 other thirds. Put formed loaves/bulkies into oven (pre-heated and then turned off, as before) for about 45 minutes.
Remove from oven. Turn oven to 350.
Brush tops gently with reserved egg. Sprinkle with poppy seeds, if desired.
Bake for about 30 minutes (loaves) or 20 minutes (bulkies). Times will vary. Watch for moderate browning on top, but be careful not to allow scorching on bottom.
Remove from pans, and put on dish towels to cool.
YUM!!

Daffodils and the First Asparagus

Today was our first taste of asparagus.

There were 7 stalks - someone has nibbled. . . 

The daffodils are quite late this year.

And they will peak this week.

We haven't checked in a while.

At one point we had 18 different ones.

They are such a cheerful bloom.

They brighten the world after a long, cold, snowy winter.

The last to bloom will be the ones with pink trumpets and the multiples.  So there is still more to look forward to.

Finally a Daffodil

It's been a long time acomin'.  We had a huge amount of snow with few thaws this winter.  Today is our very first daffodil.

There have been some years when we are past-peak at this time in April.

Early Spring Flowers

Finally we have a few spring flowers.

This has brought out the honeybees.

They have been scarce in recent years, so we're glad to see them!

Alas, the snowdrops sit on the north side of a boulder.  They have just appeared.

It's Pizza Night

We were terribly disappointed when the world's greatest pizza place, Nina's, in Norwich, NY, was sold.  The new owners changed the recipes and the ingredients.  The new one is too salty to eat.  (The last one I bought I gave to the chickens.  It was inedible.) Also, the cheese does not have the right texture - more like American cheese.  Sad.

The original owners opened a restaurant about 1 1/2 hours away from home.  A couple of times a year we go there and enjoy a meal and stock the freezer.

I guess it's time to make my own.

I found some 00 flour in our local supermarket.  It is a finer grind than all-purpose flour.  The NY Times had a recipe for dough.  Roberta's Pizza Dough
Pizza Dough

INGREDIENTS

• 153 grams 00 flour (1 cup plus 1 tablespoon)
• 153 grams all-purpose flour (1 cup plus 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons)
• 8 grams fine sea salt (1 teaspoon)
• 2 grams active dry yeast (3/4 teaspoon)
• 4 grams extra-virgin olive oil (1 teaspoon)

So I decided to try it.
It can be made that day.

It turned out to be excellent.  Not too tough, not too bready.  A real Goldilocks dough.

The dough is topped with sliced sausage, mozzarella, parmesan, olive oil.

The sauce is my standard sauce.

It's a keeper.

~~~~~~~

I froze half the dough (I had doubled the recipe to make four pizzas.)
That way, by thawing the balls, I could make two more pizzas.
Today's pizzas are pepperoni

and 

white garlic with black olives and anchovies.

The white one is a favorite!

FWIW, the garlic is "Chesnok Red" from our garden.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My Standard Sauce

Parts of this sauce go back to Hurricane Irene (2011).

Begin by cooking some Hot Italian Sausage in a porcelain lined stock pot.

Add garlic, basil, parsley, and tomatoes (either my own or Tutto Rosa), and parmesan.

Enjoy!

Freeze the extra.

Thaw some sauce.  

Make meatballs.  Bake them in the oven and add to the sauce.

Remember to add the brown bits stuck to the pan.

Enjoy!

Freeze the extra.

Thaw some sauce.

Usually there is too much meat to sauce ratio, 

so add tomatoes, garlic, basil, parsley.

Enjoy!

Freeze the extra.

If there are extra porkchops or chicken pieces,

thaw some sauce and add them.

add tomatoes, garlic, basil, parsley.

Enjoy!

Freeze the extra.

Over time the flavor becomes impressive.

Oh, and don't forget to add some red wine every once in a while.