Sugar cookies

    I had hoped to save some of those cookies... but somehow I turned my back, and ' Poof !', all four trays where gone... maybe I should weight the children and find out who the culprit (culprits ) are.

Making sugar cookies

'Rosy, don't lick your fingers....'

Emilie decorating the cookies.

   Here is a basic recipe I have used over and over again for years, I had it on my last blog too.
   It's the perfect dough for kids to make shaped cookies.

Sugar cookies

2/3 cup real butter ( room temperature )
¾ cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ spoon salt
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla

-Beat sugar and butter till smooth.
-Mix in rest of the ingredients
-Place in the fridge for at least an hour.
-Roll out about 4 mm thick, cut out shapes and bake in 190 degrees oven for about 7-8 mn per batch.
- Cool on wire rack and decorate as you wish.
-These cookies keep very well in an airtight container.

The cordial is finished !

    For those who are curious about what became of the cordial I made in the summer, here is the news.... it is delicious !

    I simply strained it, and bottled the thick, sweet alcohol in a simple glass bottle. The berries I used on ice-cream, and with natural yoghurt.

    I could have strained it through a coffee filter, or cheese cloth, but I did not feel the need for a perfectly clear drink. It is perfect just as it is... next year I will make more and give it away as Christmas gifts.

    Here is the original post : http://roland-designs.blogspot.no/2013/08/the-time-of-red-currants.html

All you need a is a sieve and clean glass bottle

The finished liquor, or cordial

Mexican beans

Here is a simple, but tasty recipe we tried out for a Sunday dinner.

I simply cooked it my cast iron pot, doing the frying in it first then adding the rest of the ingredients.

Mexican beans

-          2 pks bacon
-          1 onion
-          Garlic to your preference
-          2 carrots in pieces
-          1 ts chilli powder
-          1 ts cummin
-          1 dl fresh coriander ( or 1 ts coriander powder )
-          3 cans of beans
-          1 can peeled tomatoes
-          1 small bottle of cheap beer
-          Salt
-          1 lime

Fry the bacon with the onion, garlic, carrots and spices. 

Rinse the beans, then add them to the pot with the can of tomato and the rest of the ingredients.

Bring to boil, then turn down the heat and let it simmer for at least 20 minutes.

Add the lime juice/zest before serving.

Serve with sour cream, soft tortillas or bread.

Red currant liquor

   This year we had so many red currants so I just had to try a few different ways of using them, I had read about making berry liquor and after a little research I settled for this recipe.

250 ml cheap vodka/ or other tasteless liquor
250 g sugar
250 gram berries

    I put everything in a large glass jar and shook it everyday till the sugar was disolved, now it sits in the back of a kitchen cabinet and I will strain it before Christmas.
 

First day, later it just got murky... hope it will be sweet and tasty by Christmas.

Red currant jam

    When it comes to the harvesting of fruits, it is the garden who decides.... not you. All the rain we have been having this summer has made my currant bushes produce a lot of berries. A day or so ago I looked at them closely and saw that this was the time to use them, or they would spoil.

So many berries, ripe for harvest

Roland showing off how many berries we picked

    Making the jam did not take very long, picking the berries took all day, but it is fun. One of our  neighbour was cutting his grass, he looked over his edge and said we could also pick his berries if we wanted. Almost everyone in our area seems to have a red currant, or raspberry bush or two, but most people do not seem to make jams, they just go to waste. Some do freeze them, but the old fashion art of canning for the winter seems to be hobby, more than the duty of garden owners.

   I had been saving glass jars in anticipation of the jam making season, of course I only saved jars that had been used for honey, jam, or other mild content - Not pickles, or jalapenos as residues on the lid might have an effect on my jams.

    Here is the recipe I used : http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2011/06/red-currant-jam-recipe/

    It was easy and straight to the point, I did use less sugar, about 800 g per liter of juice. The jam set perfectly, and I now have 9 jars that will last up to a year if kept in a cool, dark place, and one jar that had not gotten air tight - this one went in the fridge and will keep quite nicely there.

   I did not use his upside-down method, when I make jams I use an old method that I read about in an American books, and have used it since I was 18 years old and it works every time to make airtight jars.

   - Only use jars with undamaged lids ! Wash them, and put them in a pot of boiling water ( not boiled, it has to keep boiling to sterilise them ) Take them out carefully with a metal tang, or two forks and let them dry upside down, and slightly elevated ( so the water can run out ) on a pair of clean dish towels. I usually put a couple forks under the lids and pots, they need to be sterilised and free from water.

   - When the jam is cooked, right away fill the jars to the top, and screw on the lids tight. If a little drips on the side it is no problem, it simply means that it was perfectly filled.

   - Don't touch them, or move them till they are completely cooled down ( this will take quite a few hours ) When they are cold, check the lids, if the lid in indented the suction has worked, if it isn't then put that jar in the fridge, and enjoy it right away.
    Wipe off drips with a wet cloth, and store the jars in a cool, dry, dark place. They should last about a year.

   The reason this works, is that in the cooling process the jams compacts, and make a suction, thus your jar becomes air tight.

I used a simple metal sieve, and two pots to separate the seeds, and peels from the thick juice, it wasn't that messy

Be careful, it is really pink and will stain !

Jars cooling

Easy lasagna

Easy lasagna

Meat Sauce
- 800 g minced meat
- 1 can tomato paste
- 1 can peeled tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 onion
- 4 garlics
- A pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar

- 1 carrot - diced

- 1 celery stick- diced

- Mushrooms – sliced

- Salt, pepper, red wine to taste

Fry the meat and onions, add the rest of the ingredients, add enough water to make a sauce that is not too thick, let simmer on low heat while you prepare the white sauce.

White sauce - Bechamel 
Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees
Make a basic Bechamel with 2 table spoons real butter, 2 table spoons flour, and one cup of milk.
Melt the butter on low heat, add the flour - mix. Add the milk little by little, always stirring, let it cook for a couple minutes, add a little salt, black pepper and a dash of nutmeg.
This recipe fits a 20 x 30 cm baking tray.
Layer the meat sauce and lasagna plates, top with the Bechamel, and some grated cheese.
Bake for about 20 minutes, let it cool and serve with a fresh green salad.

Easy lasagna

Tata Danielle's Pain de noix

     A couple post ago I wrote about my little mix up regarding yeast, and baking powder in regards to a recipe I got from my aunt.

    While the yeast bread was nice, the baking powder cake was much better. So here is the recipe of a very nutritious fruits/nut bread type cake.

     Pain au noix ( nut bread )

3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup walnuts
1/4 cup almonds, or hazelnuts
7 prunes
6 dried figs ( or dates )
2 cups milk
1/2 cups raisins
50 g softened real butter

- Chop up the nuts/dried fruits
- Mix all ingredients
- Place in a buttered, floured pan
- Bake about 40 mns, in a 160 oven, use the toothpick test to see when it is cooked thoroughly.

Enjoy !

Simple red currant cake

We still have some frozen red currants from last year in our freezer. I made so many crumbles with them, and added them to a lot of different deserts, but they are a little tart so it is hard to match them well with other fruits/flavors.

Luckily I found this simpler recipe that was easy, and tasty.

Red currant cake

Simple red currant cake

200 g butter
3 dl flour
1,5 dl sugar
2 ts baking powder
3 eggs
3 dl sour cream (or natural yoghurt)
3-4 dl currant ( or other berries )


-Set oven to 200 degrees, butter and flour a small cake pan (around 25 cm in diameter )
-Blend the sugar, flour and baking powder and butter together till it resemble crumble.
-Beat the eggs,  add the sour cream, blend well, then add the crumble.
-Pour some of the batter into the cake pan, add the berries, then cover with the rest of the batter.
-Cook for 30-40 mins, or till a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

-Serve warm or cold with wipped cream, or ice-cream.