Weekly Garden Thread - November 16-22, 2019

November 16, 2019 | Diana in Wisconsin/Greeneyes

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Perfect.

[Liz]

Did I leave anything out? Flaky pie crust, Nutella, caramel, chocolate chip cookie dough.
After baking, while still warm, serve w/ ice cream, hot fudge sauce and caramel sauce.

Million Dollar Cookie Pie

ING 1/2 cup ea butter, sugar 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar, large egg 1 1/4 tsp vanilla 1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp ea salt, b/soda 1/2 cup semi/choc/chips 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips Pastry for a single-crust pie
3/4 cup ea chocolate hazelnut spread, Dulce de Leche

COOKIE DOUGH stand mixer/paddle/cream butter and sugars on med 2 min. Add egg and vanilla; mix a min.
Add whisked/combined flour, salt, b/soda; mix/combine. Stir in choc/chips and set aside.

CRUST Line pie plate w/ rolled-out dough. Trim and flute edges. Saran/chill.

NUTELLA/CARAMEL LAYER:trace outline of the pie plate on parchment; place traced-side town on counter. Scoop Nutella into circle center; spread evenly to fill in the entire shape. Freeze 10 min; remove from freezer, spread Dulce de Leche over the top, and freezer 10 min...then carefully peel off parchment.

ASSEMBLY Lay disc in pie crust. Add cookie dough and gently press in about halfway up, reserving any remaining dough (if any) for cookies. Bake 350 deg 20-30 min (top is golden brown; center almost set. Remove to counter; sprinkle w/ sea salt flakes. Cool 30 min; then slice.

SERVE with scoop of ice cream and chocolate and caramel toppings.

[4everontheRight]

Do you have a recipe to share for your Siracha of death? I still have ghost pepper plants in the garage and between them they have about 10+ peppers left. I grew so many this year that I had enough to make a huge batch of red pepper flakes as it were & wanted to do something else with the last batch.

[Oshkalaboomboom]

Do you have a recipe to share for your Siracha of death?

I sure do. You can easily make it with your 10 Ghost peppers and throw in some store-bought Jalapenos if you want, but not really necessary. I originally made mine with Tabasco peppers then switched over to Death Spirals to give it a bit more bite :-)

Sriracha Recipe from Foolproof Preserving - America's Test Kitchen

Prep: 15 Minutes
Cook: 45 Minutes
Age: 1 Day
Yield: 2 Cups

Why this recipe works: Sriracha is a fiery-red Thai-American hot sauce fondly known
by its loyal followers as rooster sauce. Traditionally, Sriracha is made from a
fermented chile mash, which is a process that can take over a week. We wanted a
simple, streamlined version of rooster sauce we could make at home without the wait.

Our first test consisted of processing chiles, vinegar, water and garlic, along
with a bit of sugar and salt. We cooked the mixture down to a ketchup-like
consistency, which resulted in more of a chili-garlic paste than Sriracha. By
adjusting the ratio of liquid to chiles and garlic, we were on track to a pourable
hot sauce. We also swapped out white sugar in favor of brown; tasters preferred the
richer, deeper notes of the dark brown sugar. We were getting closer to a more
balanced hot sauce; however, we were missing the fermented flavor of the original.

To achieve the unique flavor, we whisked 2 tablespoons of fish sauce into the chile
mixture along with the sugar and salt. A quick simmer on the stovetop thickened the
Sriracha and allowed the flavors to meld. Passing the finished product through a
fine-mesh strainer gave us a smooth sauce.

Finally, we found it crucial to let the sauce sit for a day to develop its flavor
before serving. Although it's tempting to store this sauce in plastic squeeze
bottles, we found it better to store it in glass; the plastic can add off-flavors to
the sauce as it sits. This Sriracha cannot be processed for long term storage.

1 1/2 pounds red jalapeno or Fresno chiles, stemmed
1 1/4 cups distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup water
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
5 teaspoons salt

1. Working in 2 batches, process jalapenos, vinegar, water and garlic in blender
until smooth, about 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to medium saucepan and whisk in fish
sauce, sugar and salt.

2. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer,
skimming any surface foam, until thickened, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove pan from heat
and let cool for 5 minutes.

3. Process mixture in blender until smooth, about 1 minute. Strain Sriracha through
fine-mesh strainer set over bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much sauce as
possible.

4. Using funnel and ladle, portion Sriracha into 2-cup glass bottle. Let sauce cool
to room temperature. Cover, refrigerate and let flavors mature for at least 1 day
before serving. Sriracha can be refrigerated for up to 6 months; flavor will mature
over time.

[Oshkalaboomboom]

I usually grow only sweet peppers with a few Jalapenos and maybe an Ancho/Poblano on random years.

Have you seen the colored Jalapenos developed by the botanists at New Mexico State University? I grow them to put a bit of color onto the terrace. You can buy seeds from New Mexico State University's Chile Pepper Institute or I can send you some if you're interested. Here is an article describing how and why they developed the 3 varieties: Chile Pepper Institute

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I have NOT seen the colored Jalapenos! I will check out the link, Thanks! :)

If you have seed to share, I’d love some - if it’s not too expensive to mail them from Spain!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Well, if I wasn’t diabetic - I am NOW. That dessert has it all! ;)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Oshkalaboomboom]

Send me a private message with your address and also if you’d like any seeds besides the colored Jalapenos.

[tubebender]

Our Rose is still blooming...

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Beautiful!

Adding roses beside the greenhouse, facing south, is in the works for next Spring. :)

[tubebender]

I cut up & cleaned another 25# Pumpkin for Lady Bender to cook down for pies and cookies etc today

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I’m DONE with Pumpkins, but I still have quite a few Butternuts - though they’ll keep through the winter. We have them in the (unheated) basement in coolers to keep them at a steady temp. An experiment for us this year.

[MomwithHope]

Tip on the squash if they are in coolers in the basement. A brother found out that going over them with a q-tip and some peroxide, especially around the stem and bottoms, will keep away any mold. He had a basement full and didn’t lose any - Chicago. They were just laid out on newspaper.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Thanks! :)

[tubebender]

It’s just not warm enough to grow hard shelled squash here on Humboldt Bay...

[Liz]

A nice breakfast for holiday company served w/ pears baked w/ brown sugar, butter and cinnamon.
Throw it all in the oven while you all chat w/ a cup of coffee or cold glass of juice.
Or micro everything. Hash browns make the little nests. A quick and easy breakfast.

Eggs in Potato Nests / serve four

ING cup frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed, 3/4 cup grated Cheddar, 4 eggs

METHOD Stir together hash brown potatoes and cheese.
Divide in sprayed ramekins, covering bottoms and pushing slightly up sides to form nest. Crack one egg into each nest.
Fork-pierce egg yolks several times. Bake 350° til whites are set and yolks cooked as desired, 18-20 min.

SERVE buttered whole wheat toast and apricot jam on the side.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I LOVE that idea! Beau is a HUGE breakfast eater (I’ll have a Bagel and coffee, Thanks!) so having new ideas for breakfast is always welcome. Thanks!

[Liz]

You can tweak the recipe----add cooked chp bacon or breakfast sausage to the nests.
Cook/serve in cast iron skillet adding 2-3 eggs for your hearty eater.

[MomwithHope]

That’s more like what I fix as one of my rotating breakfasts, hash browns with some real bacon bits and an egg on top, just cover with a glass lid so the top if the egg steams just a bit. I like the freeze dried hash browns from Costco in the little milk cartons. It’s also a good pantry item. Sometimes I use some minced capicola (our homemade) instead of bacon. Another thing I like to use those dried hash browns for is quickie not-from-scratch potato pancakes. Add hot water to reconstitute the potatoes, drain and add some powdered Idaho potatoes flakes, milk, salt pepper and onion powder. I like my potato pancakes just like a pancake with potato batter but hubby likes the bits of potato from the shredded hash browns.