Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[Jamestown1630]

My husband and I are preparing to test for our Technician's Class radio license, and I've been listening to the local repeater network a lot lately. I love listening to these guys: sometimes they talk shop, and sometimes they just shoot the breeze, and it's simply a really fun and interesting 'culture'.

There's one gentleman who comes on now and then, and frequently mentions that he has just had - or is looking forward to - a piece of Peanut Butter Pie, which is obviously a favorite of his. This tickles me so much that in my mind, I've named him 'Peanut Butter Pie'.

This reminded me that a friend of mine used to make a great one (except for pre-baking the crust, this is a 'refrigerator pie'):

Cheryl's Peanut Butter Pie

Prepare 1 Graham Cracker crust in a pie pan:

1 pack Graham Crackers, 1/4 C. Sugar, 1/4 C. melted butter. Pat into a greased pan, bake 10 or 12 minutes at 325 degrees, and cool before filling.

Cream together:

8 oz. Cream Cheese, 1 C. Confectioners' Sugar, and 1/4 C. Peanut Butter.

Add:

1/2 Cup milk

And fold in:

1 C. Whipping Cream, whipped.

Pour into crust, and make the Chocolate Glaze:

Melt 1 square Unsweetened Chocolate and add: 3/4 Cup Confectioners' Sugar, 1 tsp. Butter, and 2 T. boiling water (or more).

Add enough boiling water to make a consistency that runs, but is somewhat thick. Pour over the top of the pie. Serve the pie well-chilled.

*********************************************************

Last Christmas, a coworker brought to work a tin of Nyaker's Gingersnap cookies, and shared them with all of us. These are really great peppery-spicy ginger cookies that you can buy at a number of places:

http://www.plowhearth.com/nyakers-swedish-gingersnap-cookies-in-gift-tin.htm

Knowing my fetish for interesting containers, she gave me the beautiful tin when it was empty - and I recalled that a friend's mother used to make an almost identical cookie, really the best home-made ginger cookie I've ever had:

Jeanne's Ginger Cookies

3 sticks of Butter

1/2 Cup Molasses (Brer Rabbit or Grandma, DARK)

2 C. Granulated Sugar

2 Eggs

4 C. Flour

2 tsps. Ginger (she always used 3, though ;-)

4 tsps. Baking Soda

2 tsps. Cinnamon

1 tsp. Ground Cloves

Melt the butter and add it to the molasses and sugar. When cool enough, add the eggs and beat well.

Sift together Flour, Soda, Cinnamon, Ginger and Cloves. Add the dry ingredients to the beaten mixture, and blend well on low speed.

Refrigerate the dough wrapped in foil a few hours, or overnight.

Roll dough into small balls, walnut-sized or slightly less.

Roll balls in granulated sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. (They will be a bit soft as they come from the oven, and will firm up on the rack.)

Cool on rack, and store in a tightly covered container.

*********************************************************

I'm not a big red-meat eater; but the following sauce is fabulous, and was a revelation to me the first time we made it. Now, I'll eat any steak with it; and I won't want a steak without it. It can be a little 'spendy', using really good vinegar; but it's definitely worth it:

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction Sauce

2 Cups real, aged Balsamic vinegar

3 or 4 ounces Cold Butter, cut into chunks.

Simmer vinegar in a small pan until until reduced by 2/3.

Add butter one chunk at a time until melted and the sauce has a smooth and velvety consistency. Serve immediately.

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

I’ve got a nasty cold or ‘flu, and I guess it killed my creativity - I couldn’t come up with a ‘theme’ this week. So, our thread tonight is ‘a-little-of-this-and-that’.

(If you would like to be on or off of this weekly cooking ping list, please send a private message.)

-JT

[SkyDancer]

Jewish penicillin .... works every time. Take care, ...

[Lurkina.n.Learnin]

As we go into fall I have been thinking about navy beans. Got any good suggestions on them?

[Jamestown1630]

I know it does! And if you don’t have a Jewish Mama to make it for you - and you’re too sick to do it yourself - Wonton Soup from the carryout is a second best - add lots of cayenne ;-)

(I’d send Hubs out tonight; but he’s down with it, too...God knows where we caught this, in early September!)

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

My husband makes a great ham-and-bean soup; I’ll post it later. (He can’t get the good smoked ham hocks - huge meaty ones - that he likes for it down here, so we only make it when he trips up to his PA hometown and brings some home.)

But here’s the recipe for the famous U.S. Senate Bean Soup:

http://www.senate.gov/reference/reference_item/bean_soup.htm

-JT

[Hoffer Rand]

Made this for Hubby's birthday last week. Tyler Florence Ultimate Lasagna It is yummy and makes a TON of lasagna. The ratio of filling to noodles is lots of the gooey, cheesy, meaty filling to a few noodles. We did it in two pans and froze one before the final cooking. Will see how it does after being frozen.

[trisham]

The peanut butter pie and gingersnap cookies look luscious!

I'm not a fan of balsamic vinegar, I'm sorry to say.

[chajin]

... _ _ _ .._ _. _.. ... _ _. _ _ _ _ _ _ _..

73 de KF4MA

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

Here’s an off the wall question. I bought a Broasted chicken the other day. Can I make a decent broth with the carcass? Or will it ne no good greasy? Hate to wast it!

[trisham]

Football season begins tonight! I’m trying to talk my husband into making jalapeno poppers, but he’s never tried to make them. I had them for the first time last week end, and loved them. Below is a site that offers a recipe for baked jalapeno poppers, with beautiful pictures:

http://peegaw.tumblr.com/post/7005399231/making-baked-jalapeño-poppers

I’m still working on my husband...

[trisham]

Tyler Florence is an excellent chef.

[JRandomFreeper]

Home-made crust less quiche.

In other words... time to empty the veg tray in the ice box.

Just because the whole corn looks bad on the outside doesn't mean it can't be cooked and used. I know I am. ;)

I'm shooting for 250-300 calories per seving.

/johnny

[Jamestown1630]

That sounds great. We often buy the Stouffer’s Party-Size lasagna when we don’t really want to cook, and want leftovers for lunches. But I’ve often thought that we could make it better ourselves, and then always have some in the freezer.

Thanks!

-JT

[KosmicKitty]

My garden is giving me a ton of greens beans - some of which are on the larger side (I pick every day but they hide well.) Anyone have some good/different recipes for string beans?

[trisham]

I may be wrong, but if you rinsed off the carcass I would think that it might be fine. It’s really the bones that matter in a broth.

[trisham]

My husband often makes a crustless quiche. It’s much lower in carbs.

[Jamestown1630]

Hello!

I haven’t learned code yet, but when I put that into one of the translators it comes up:

STTTUNDSTNTTTTTTD

?????

Anyway,

-... . ... ..- .-. . - -— -.. .-. .. -. -.- -.— -— ..- .-. -— ...- .- .-.. - .. -. .

-JT

[trisham]

?

[Jamestown1630]

I’m not familiar with ‘broasted’, unless that’s what those pressure-frying machines do.

Boil the thing, strain it, and then chill the stock really well.

The next day, spoon off the fat.

-JT