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I bet that sloppy joe would be good over polenta as well. The possibilities are endless if we get out of the "bun box."
We did our big shopping trip to the larger town northeast of us on Tuesday, so an easy dinner was ideal. My husband pan-cooked boneless ribs, and I roasted sweet potato chunks that had been tossed in olive oil. We also had microwaved fresh broccoli.
I'm interested in whether the flax seeds softened in the soaker.
I baked my no butter cranberry scones on Monday morning and had one for breakfast. I set aside another two and froze the other five. I used half King Arthur AP and half King Arthur Irish-Style flour. Frozen cranberries work better than fresh. Blueberries would also be good.
Monday's baking continued that afternoon. I baked Black Raspberry Jam Oatmeal Bars for dessert over the next few dinners. I baked Oat Cakes, a current great favorite of my husband and me. I also tried the Italian Breakfast Cookies again, this time using the correct flour. However, they seem a bit flat in appearance. There was a certain amount of chaos in the kitchen, with my husband and the dog while I was working on mixing them, and I am wondering if I omitted the baking powder.
Mike has his priorities straight: plan dessert and then think about dinner!
Dinner on Sunday was black-eyed peas, cooked with a meaty ham bone from the freezer. I sauteed celery and red bell pepper to add to it, along with 2 tsp. reconstituted dried onion, the ham from the bone, and some brown rice. I added ½ tsp. of thyme and some black pepper. It was good for a day when the high temperature was 61F.
Yum, yum! Strawberry Shortcakes to go!
Sounds delectable, Mike!
Saturday brought some rain and cooler temperatures, so it was an excellent day to try baking bread in the cloche that I acquired through Skeptic last fall. I checked online and decided to season the bottom with avocado oil (high smoke point to 500F). For the recipe, I started with the Crusty Cloche Bread at King Arthur but proceeded to change most of the ingredients to make it more whole grain and to include buttermilk. I let the bread machine do the mixing and kneading. After the first rise, I sprinkled the cloche bottom with farina, then shaped the loaf and put it in the cloche to rise for 30 minutes. The King Arthur recipe uses a cold oven, so I decided to try that way. After I slashed the loaf, I put it into the mostly cold oven (was still warm from seasoning the cloche bottom), set the temperature to 400, then started timing. After 35 minutes, I removed the top and let it go another 10. The loaf was beautiful. We had some with dinner tonight, and we all agreed that it is delicious.
I had looked at a video at Breadtopia about using clay bakers, and I think it helped me with shaping the boule. The video also gave suggestions on how to transfer a loaf from a banneton to a hot surface, so if I try preheating the cloche, I will also try those techniques.
Chocomouse's comment reminds me that I did not post what I made for lunch today.
I also made a frittata for lunch on Friday, using 3 1/2 eggs, 1/4 cup low-fat mozzarella cheese, and the leftover asparagus, mushrooms, and cherry tomato side dish from Wednesday's dinner. It stuck in one spot, so the flip over was not so great. I think that I need a new nonstick frying pan. I have half of the frittata to warm up for tomorrow.
I'm reluctant to use flax seeds, since the human digestive system cannot break them down to avail itself of the nutrition. I often wonder what the point is of adding them to breads, although some people may like the crunch. I want to try that one flax seed bread recipe again but see if substituting sunflower seed in the soaker will work just as well. My attempt to use flax meal instead did not go so well.
On Friday, I made broth from the bones of Wednesday's chicken and froze it. For dinner, I used leftover chicken to make a stir-fry with soba noodles, carrots, celery, red bell pepper, green onion, broccoli, and the defatted drippings from when the chicken was roasted. It was a meal that did not heat up the kitchen on a day with temperatures in the mid-80s.
I baked my Scottish Scones (no butter, just a bit of oil) recipe on Thursday, this time using half whole wheat pastry flour and half regular pastry flour, with a tablespoon of avocado oil rather than canola oil. We had them with leftovers at dinner.
I also made dough for my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers. I will bake them sometime next week.
My husband planted seed for snow peas in our garden this morning. The snow peas did poorly last year, so he was not sure he would plant them again this year.
So far, we are on track to have a normal rainfall this month. We are lucky that it is coming in gentle downpours.
On Wednesday morning, I baked a small Bundt cake, using a recipe originally for a Bundt loaf pan. The recipe is Blood Orange Yogurt Loaf, but I replace a third of the flour with barley flour, and I use avocado oil rather than coconut oil, and add a tablespoon of milk powder. The cake will rest overnight. Tomorrow I will make a glaze for it. I still have four blood oranges, so I will zest and juice them and freeze it for another cake later in the summer
I also baked two loaves of my Buttermilk Whole Wheat Grape Nuts Bread. I experimented a bit by dropping the salt to 1 tsp. for the two loaves and reducing the yeast by 1/4 tsp. I have been concerned about excess sodium in the bread since the Grape Nuts and malted milk powder also have sodium. It is my husband's favorite bread, but his blood pressure has been higher than it should be, so I hope this works.
That is good that you are taking the time to make good meals for yourself, CWCdesign.
That chicken finally thawed, so dinner on Wednesday was roast chicken. I used the giblets (yes, this one had giblets) to make broth that I used to cook bulgur to go with it. The star of the meal, for me, was the first asparagus of the season. I cut it into 1 1/2-inch pieces and mixed it with half a pound of thick-sliced mushrooms, and a container of cherry tomatoes. I tossed the vegetables in olive oil and a bit of garlic powder, then roasted for 15 minutes at 450F on a parchment-lined pan. I sprinkled Penzey's Sunny Paris over it and put it back into the oven for another three minutes. My stepson and I enjoyed it, but my husband, who is not an asparagus fan, had microwaved broccoli instead.
I am now out of Sunny Paris and wish that I had ordered it. However, I have some samples of Fox Point, so I will give that one a try next time.
My husband planted out the two bell peppers that overwintered in the house. He also planted beans, spinach, and lettuce. He planted some bell peppers in a pot (these will likely end up overwintering in the house). He also started some regular tomato plants and one cherry tomato plant. We ordered some honeynut (the small butternut squash variety) seeds today, and some of those will be planted as soon as they get here.
Joan--We do seem to have a knack for picking some of the same foods or meals. 🙂
I do my stew completely on the stove top in a heavy Le Creuset pan, either the 5 1/2 - qt. or the 71/2 qt., depending on how much. After I brown the meat in avocado oil (low smoke point), I add minced garlic for about 40 seconds, then a cup of red wine to deglaze the pan. I return the meat to the pan, along with water, the spices, and the seasonings, except for the tomato paste, bring it to a boil, then let it simmer covered for two hours on the stove top. I think that the wine and the long simmer help tenderize the meat. I then add the carrots and potatoes, bring to boil, then cook on low medium heat (how exactly do I describe it?) for about 40 minutes, then add the sliced mushrooms, before adding the peas an hour after the potatoes and carrots.
I can see how it would work well in the oven, since that is what I used to do when I would make pot roast.
On Monday morning, I baked my Pumpkin Snacking Cake, which should keep us in dessert for three days. Given that the weather has cooled, and it was only in the 70s today, I also took the opportunity to bake another batch of the orange pecan biscotti, so that I can take advantage of the zest from my remaining Cara Cara oranges. I also baked Dutch Oven rolls (2/3 whole wheat) to go with the stew we had for dinner
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