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I made Crispy Oven Fish and Chips with Dill Tartar Sauce for dinner on Friday. We had it with more of the coleslaw I made yesterday.
Earlier in the day, I made another batch of jam, but this time, I only got two 8 oz. jars, with not enough for a third jar, so I moved some of it to a 4 oz. jar to process and the rest went into the refrigerator. I noticed today that the blackberries are easier to seed when they have been refrigerated for a couple of days, and it made the jam thicker. I am not sure why that happens.
Last year, I tried a Rye Blueberry Bar recipe from King Arthur. The filling was horrible, as it seemed to be lacking enough liquid, and the cornstarch formed horrible clumps, which did not make for great taste. I gave it a 3 out of 5 stars because I thought the recipe had possibilities but was not ready for prime time. My review was one of the first, so it can be found near the end of the reviews. I noted that another person also had problems with the cornstarch forming clumps. Many other people raved about it. My husband thought that they were not bad. I liked the crumb topping and bottom but vowed never to make that filling again.
On Thursday, I decided to try the recipe again, but this time using the blueberry chia seed jam that I made on Saturday. I made the same changes to the crust as last time in that I used white whole wheat flour in place of the AP flour, replaced the ½ tsp. cardamom with ¼ tsp. allspice, which is my usual spice for a blueberry pie. I replaced 10 Tbs. butter with 1/3 cup avocado oil plus 2 Tbs. water. This time I used old-fashioned rather than quick oats, as I am hoping it will keep the crust and topping firmer for longer. I deleted the 2 tsp. of vanilla, although last time I used 1 tsp. in the crust. (Indeed, one sign that the recipe needed work was the 2 tsp. of vanilla in the crust and the 1 tsp. in the filling. When all else fails, cover it up with vanilla!) I baked it in an 8 x 8-inch glass baking dish.
We had some for dessert this evening, and we really like my version. It is just sweet enough but not overly sweet. I will definitely bake them again. They would likely work with a chia seed jam made from another kind of fruit, such as peaches or even with regular jam.
I made yogurt on Thursday. I also made my usual coleslaw but this time with red cabbag I found at last Saturday's farmers market. The flavor is slightly different but still delicious.
We had pork sandwiches on the last two buns from the freezer (time to bake more) and coleslaw for dinner.
On Wednesday, my husband pan cooked some boneless pork, and I roasted sweet potato chunks to accompany it. We also had microwaved frozen peas.
Tuesday's dinner was leftover farro stir-fry and more cantaloupe.
I checked the seals on my jam, and one of the three 8 oz. jars did not seal. The lid was stuck on, but the lid depressed and sprung back, so I put it in the refrigerator to eat now. The other 4 oz. jar did seal. That is the second failure to seal this year. I know that the first one was caused by forgetting to wipe the rim of the jar, but I do not know what caused this one.
I picked another four quarts of blackberries in our woodlands on Monday. There are still a lot out there. I seeded enough to make another batch of jam. I also froze enough of deseeded blackberry for two recipes of the Bittersweet Blackberry Brownies. I refrigerated the rest of the berries and will deal with them tomorrow.
I'm going to look around online at devices that might make it easier for me to remove the blackberry seeds. It also has to be easy to clean and set up.
Dinner tonight was the rest of the black-eyed peas with rice and ham, along with some microwaved broccoli. We also had cantaloupe from a local farm stand at the edge of town.
I made a half recipe of Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins Monday, adding a few frozen blueberries to the 1/3 cup that came from our shrub. I used the little oven so as not to heat up the house.
It's good to hear from you, Kimbob.
I like there to be more yeast than salt when I play around with a bread recipe, so I think you are on the right track.
I picked two quarts of blackberries in our woodlands on Sunday morning and was on my way to filling a third when a thunderstorm arrived, forcing a hasty retreat. I seeded enough blackberries for a quart of puree and made three 8 oz. and one 4 oz. jars of blackberry jam. Maybe it is because I seed the fruit, but I never get as much as I do when I make the black raspberry jam. I have a quart of blackberries still and plan to go back and pick more tomorrow and make more jam.
For dinner, I made a farro stir-fry using the rest of the chicken breast meat I cooked last week. The sauteed vegetables were celery, green onion, red bell pepper, mushrooms, kale, and zucchini. I cooked the farro in chicken broth. I used Penzey's Justice blend, which is what I use on the bone-in chicken breasts. It is just enough that my husband does not complain and even enjoys the spice blend. There is enough for one more meal.
It is not really gardening, but the wild blackberries are ripening in our woods. I picked two one-quart baskets and was on my way to filling a third, when a thunderstorm came in, so we had to leave.
We have tomatoes on most of the plants, although I think the Early Girl is not doing so well. The potato plants are rather high and flowering. The green beans have started to produce. The honey nut squash is beginning to flower. The fairy tale pumpkin plants in the grow bag have giant leaves and may be getting ready to flower. We have had a lot of wind, and it keeps blowing the vines in the direction we do not want them to go.
CWC design--perhaps pour some of the water--boiling--over the cornmeal and allow it to rest for about ten minutes? I find that with medium grind, that lets it soften and absorb some of the water. You might also cut back on the salt or increase the yeast.
By Irish Whole Meal, do you mean the flour? It has less gluten than regular flour.
For Sunday breakfast, I made Cornmeal Pumpernickel Waffles, which we had with maple syrup. As our dog was traumatized by fireworks last night (someone in our area paid for a very expensive, 20-minute professional firework show), the waffles were a welcome soother this morning. Then we got a thunderstorm in the late morning. Sigh.
For dinner tonight, we had leftover roasted chicken breast. I also roasted more potato chunks and small carrots tossed in olive oil. We microwaved a few green beans--the first to be ready from our garden.
Thanks, Mike. I saw your post after I used the 2 1/4 cups of marginal blueberries to make Blueberry Chia Seed jam, using a recipe at Kitchn:
https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-easy-chia-jam-with-any-fruit-222310
I used 4 Tbs. of sugar and just 1 Tbs. lemon juice; indeed, the lemon juice seemed a bit strong, which is why I added more sugar. I increased the chia seed to 2 Tbs. and 2 tsp. I will let it rest in the refrigerator for a day or so. My plan is to try it with the Oat Jam bars recipe.
My dental floss method has developed over the years. I no longer start at the end but position the floss under the dough in the middle of the roll. Thus, for a 16-inch roll, I would put it at eight inches. and slice through. If I were making 12 rolls, I would then slice each 8-inch half in half, then slice each of those into three equal pieces. If I'm making nine rolls, I cut the original log in thirds, then each piece into thirds.
If you start at one end and work your way to the other end of a whole log, the rolls at the end are often misshapen.
It helps to use the thin dental floss, not the "tape" stuff. And make sure it is unflavored! The CVS brand works for me.
Use a piece about 12-14 inches long. Place the dental floss under the log. Pick up the right side with the left hand and the left side of the floss with the left side with the right hand, so that the ends are crossed, then pull down evenly.
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