Christmas Week -- Blueberry Scones, Mushroom Soup, Christmas Dinner & More

Dried Blueberry Scones
I made these for our annual viewing party showing A Child's Christmas In Wales on Sunday, along with the mincemeat mini-tarts I test baked last week.

1 cup dried Blueberries
2-1/3 cup AP Flour
3-1/2 tsp Baking Powder
3 Tbsp Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1/3 cup Butter
3 Eggs beaten
1/2 cup Dairy (cream, milk, half&half)

Place the blueberries in a bowl cover with boiling water, soak for 10 minutes.  Drain, pat dry, reserve.

Preheat oven to 425F

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.    Cut in the butter.  Stir in the blueberries, then add the eggs and dairy.

On a floured surface, gently knead the mass and pat it into a 3/4" thick round.  Cut into 8 wedges, and place them on a baking sheet.  Brush the tops with additional airy and dust with additional sugar.  Bake 15-20 minutes, until slightly brown.  Traditionally these are served with a dollop of Clotted Cream, sometimes called Devon Cream or Double Cream -- a cream as thick as Greek yogurt.

Mushroom Potato Faro Soup
Sally wanted Potato Soup, I wanted Mushroom Faro soup.  Thus are new dishes born...

3 Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and cubed
8 oz Crimini Mushrooms
1 Cup Faro
1 very large Carrot, cubed
24 oz Vegetable Broth
1 Leek, sliced
1/2 large sweet white Onion, diced

When does a soup become a stew?  The first night this dish was fairly liquid.  The next day it was thick as you see above.  The faro probably continued to soak up liquid overnight.  Either way this was really, really tasty.


Christmas Dinner 

Here are a few pix of the highlights of Sally & Holly's Christmas Dinner.

Here's the 4 lb Eye of Round beef roast that we feasted on.  Sally marinated in red wine after stabbing it and inserting garlic cloves.  Cooked in a roasting bag to an internal temperature of 150F.

These are Yorkshire Puddings.  They're made from a very thin batter of eggs, milk and flour.  These were baked in screamingly hot open topped molds.  Yorkies can also be served in a variety of other ways, with or without fillings.

Here you see the roasted roots that they made -- parsnips and potatoes.  They also made roasted green beans with sliced almonds and Brussels sprouts, but I didn't get a picture of them.

Christmas Pudding
This pudding is a dessert, and Christmas at Sally's would not be the same without it. Here's a video of us lighting the brandy to make it a flaming pudding.  Holly found this technique on a BBC cooking program and it works much better than any we've ever seen.

If you can't see the above video on the email copy of this blog, go directly to the site...

Last, but not least, I've got to show you my new Kilted Cook ensemble, a present this year!

Aubergine Stacks, Blackberry Crumble, Shrimp Alfredo Rigatoni, Berry Mini Tarts

Aubergine/Eggplant Stacks
I've made these stacks many different ways over the years, but this new version I like most of all.

1-2 Eggplant -- enough for 12 slices 3/4" thick x 3-4" diameter
4-6 oz soft Goat Cheese
1 jar or 1 cup Basil Pesto homemade or bought
1-2 Beefsteak Tomatoes -- enough for 8 slices 1/4" thick
1 jar Marinara of your choice

Cut the eggplant slices and lay them out on a baking sheet.  Turn on your broiler, drizzle the slices with EVOO, and broil 4-5 minutes until they start to color.  Repeat on the second side broiling 3-4 minutes.    

Do the same thing with the slices of tomato.  Don't cook either the eggplant or tomatoes mushy, leave them a bit al dente.  Cool and reserve.

In a 9x9 baking dish, lay down 4 slices of eggplant.  Spread each with a tablespoon or more of pesto. Top each with a 'dollop' of goat cheese.  Then top each with a slice of tomato.  

Repeat three more times until you have 4 stacks with 3 slices of eggplant and 3 slices of tomato in each.  Spoon the marinara sauce over the top of everything and bake at 400F for 30 minutes until everything is heated through and the cheese is nice and melted.

Blackberry Crumble
I picked up a box of blackberries from our SW Florida Produce Co-op, and just had to find something to do with them.  

This is the tastiest, easiest crumble recipe I know; good with any fruit, and can be multiplied to fit the size of your fruit crumble.   The recipe below covers a 6x6 baking dish easily.

6oz Blackberries

Crumble Topping
3 Tbsp Butter, softened
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup old fashioned or quick-cooking Oats
1/4 cup WW or AP Flour
1/8 tsp ground Cinnamon
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375F.

While that's going on, rinse the berries and set them aside in your baking dish.  In  bowl, combine the crumble ingredients and stir with a fork until everything comes together and there is no loose flour or sugar.  Compact the mixture into a big lump and set aside for 15 minutes in the fridge or freezer to allow the oats to hydrate and stiffen the mixture.

When the oven is hot, break apart the lump over the dish of berries until they are covered with crumbles.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the crumble topping is golden brown.

Shrimp Alfredo Rigatoni
With the availability of jarred Alfredo sauces, this is really simple to make.  Or, you can start from scratch with sauteed garlic, whole cream and Parmesan cheese and make your own Alfredo sauce.  I made my Shrimp Alfredo with rigatoni rather than fettucini, since I already had some of that pasta shape on hand.

12 each 16-20 count shrimp
Alfredo Sauce (jar or homemade)
Frozen Peas
1/2 box Rigatoni

Peel the shrimp and saute them in a bit of oil and butter with a dash of Cajun seasoning if you want.  Set them aside.

Cook up the pasta to package directions, drain and rinse.  Transfer the pasta, shrimp and Alfredo along with the peas to a skillet and heat everything through.  Add a good amount of smoked paprika and serve piping hot!

By the way, "piping hot" does not refer to food being led to the table by a bagpiper.  Nor does it refer to food supplies being piped aboard a ship.  It refers to the high pitched sizzling whistling sound of escaping steam that comes from a really hot dish,

Mixed Berry Mini Tarts
Next weekend we're having our annual watching party of the 1987 A Child's Christmas In Wales movie, starring Denholm Elliott; and of course I'm providing munchies -- Strawberry Scones and Mincemeat mini-tarts.  Sally suggested that I make a test batch of the tarts so I could 'perfect' my No-Fail Tart Crust.  This was the result.

I had some blackberries and strawberries laying about so I just chopped them up and stewed them with a bit of water and sugar, letting them cook down  and thicken to make the filling

No-Fail Crust
This is a slight variation of a classic English Short Crust dough.  Very simple indeed.

1-3/4 cup AP flour
1 stick unsalted Butter 
1/2 tsp Salt 
2 Egg Yolks (no egg whites need apply)
3 Tbsp Ice Water

Makes a dozen mini tarts (2.5").

Preheat the oven to 375F. 

In your food processor, take the flour, salt and butter for a spin until the mixture looks like fine crumbs (10-20 seconds of pulsing). Don't overdo it!

In a small bowl whisk together the water and the yolks. With the processor running, add the yolk mixture and stop spinning as soon as the dough comes together in a ball – about 5 seconds!

Roll the dough out between sheets of waxed paper.  In this case roll the dough out a bit more than 1/8" thick.  Use a ring cutter to make disks that will fit your mini tart pan, trimming if necessary.  Leftover dough gets turned into the lattice or other top crust bits.

Dock the bottoms of the tarts with a fork and bake the empty crusts about 15 minutes until just starting to color.  Remove from the oven and allow the shells to cool in the pan.

Fill the cooled shells with a couple tablespoons of berry mixture, then add the topping crust lattice or disks with a center hole.   Bake the filled tarts about 15 minutes to cook the top crust.   Serve hot from the oven or cool to room temperature.

Did you know that mincemeat really was originally minced (ground) beef or venison, suet, chopped dried fruit, whisky, and spices??  Some modern mincemeats still contain animal fat (butter or suet) so if you're a hardcore vegetarian or vegan, make sure to read the label for the contents.

Stuffed Portobellos, Macque Choux, Romesco and more....

Bad Chef.... bad, bad, Chef.  I haven't posted in weeks....  Not writer's block, just kinda 'stuck chef' block.  Anyway, I'm back;  and here's an extra large collection of recipes and techniques for you faithful readers.

Stuffed Portobellos
Yeah... I know.  Everybody stuffs mushrooms -- big and small.  But these I'm really proud of -- both tasty and beautiful!

Portobellos -- 4 (two each)
Garbanzos -- 3/4 cup cooked (canned is OK), tossed with EVOO
Beefsteak Tomato -- sliced into rounds
Spinach -- de-stemmed, about 1 cup, packed
Sweet Onion -- 1/2 cup sliced
Goat Cheese - sliced or crumbled
Italian Seasoning to taste

Roast the garbanzos under your broiler for 8-10 minutes until just turning brown.  Reserve. 

Under the same broiler grill the portobellos (brushed with EVOO and dusted with Italian Seasoning) for 3-5 minutes.  Reserve.  Saute the onion in a splash of EVOO until it turns translucent.  Add the spinach, a 1/4 cup of water, and cover for a few minutes until the spinach wilts.

Place the mushrooms open side up.  Divide the spinach and onion among the mushrooms.  Then to half the mushrooms add a slice of tomato artistically surrounded by garbanzos.  Dust the tomato with Italian seasoning. To the other half of the mushrooms add a just a layer of garbanzos and the seasoning.  Top all the mushrooms with strips or shreds of goat cheese.   Broil the mushrooms again (on a lower rack)  until the cheese starts to melt.

Macque Choux
Pronounced "mock shoe"!!  I was reminded recently of this Cajun classic recipe and wondered why I don't make an serve it more often -- it's a very accommodating side dish.  Think of this as a Cajun take on the Native American dish Succotash.  Great with almost everything.  Also really good just as a plate full of yummmm.  This is more of a technique than a fixed recipe.  What you'll need is some:

Celery, diced
Onion, diced
Red and/or Green Bell Peppers, diced
Corn off the cob -- fresh cut is best, but frozen is pretty darn good too
Cream or Half & Half
Cajun Seasoning, to taste

Use about equal amounts of the Trinity -- celery, onion, bell pepper sautéed with a splash of EVOO.  To that add some corn and spice, and cook until just about done.  Then add some dairy and simmer until it starts to tighten up just a bit.

Plate with barbecued shrimp, pulled pork, gator bites, or all by itself,  and dig in!!

Up by the shrimp you'll see a couple spoonsful of the next recipe>

Romesco Sauce

This sauce originated with Catalonian (Spanish) fishermen, who created it from the region's pimento peppers as an accompaniment for all kinds of seafood.   You can buy Romesco, but it's cheaper, and almost easier to make your own.  If you can get a deal on red bell peppers from your local Farmer's Market during 'pepper season', roast your own.  Or you can buy jars of roasted red peppers and use them.

12 oz  Roasted Red Peppers (about 2 large peppers)|
1 large Beefsteak Tomato
1 cup sliced Raw Almonds
1-2 Tbsp EVOO
1/4 cup Parsley
1/2 tsp Salt
2-3 cloves Garlic
2 Tbsp Sherry Vinegar
Juice of half a lemon
Take everything for a spin in the blender until it comes out smooth and thick and creamy.  

If it's too thin, add some Panko bread crumbs and spin again until it's almost as thick as mayo.

Here's the final sauce topping some angel hair pasta with sautéed julienned zucchini:

Guava Goodness
Guavas are in season now, and their aroma fills the house with the scent of strawberries.  

Other than just spooning them out of their skin, we like guava smoothies.  But make sure you spin it real well -- guava have a zillion tiny seeds that will add crunch where you don't want it.

Chickpea, Golden Beet and Pickled Onion Salad
This one came from Forks Over Knives, but of course I tweaked it myself.  Frankly, mine's better!  They wanted you to use ordinary red beets from a jar.  Bah!  If you're going to get closer to the source of food, stop buying jars and cans of stuff.  Buy real whole foods and prepare them yourself.  Eating healthy is a lifestyle.

2-3 large Golden Beets
1 cup sliced red or white Onion
1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 cup cooked Garbanzos -- cook at home --  don't use a can (too much salt and preservatives)
Package of mixed Baby Greens
8-12 leaves fresh Basil
Mustard vinaigrette dressing

Put the vinegar in a screw-top jar and add the sliced onion.  Shake well and set aside for at least half an hour (or a couple days in the fridge) before using.

Peel the beets (much less messy than red beets) and cube them.  Cook until just tender in a half cup or so of water.  Drain and cool.
Lay down a bed of greens and add some basil leaves.  Top with beets and garbanzos and garnish with the pickled onions.  Serve with a mustard vinaigrette on the side.