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I scooped out and pressed the barley cookies and baked them late Wednesday morning. I think that the dough does better with the longer refrigerated rest. The past two times, it rested six or seven hours. This time it was closer to 19 hours. I got the second tray a bit browner than I would have liked, but they are still good.
I also tried a new muffin recipe for mini-Banana Muffins with mini-chocolate chips. It came from the Los Angeles Times Magazine, probably back in the late 1980s or early 1990s. I made a lot of changes. The recipe was supposed to make 24-30 mini-muffins. I ended up with 35 and had to use a pan that I do not like as well, as it has wider, shallower wells that likely would work better for mini-tarts. I froze most of the latter. My husband liked the small size of the muffins and tried one at lunch.
On Tuesday afternoon, I made the dough for my no-butter version of the Soft Barley Cookies recipe in the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking Book. The dough needs to rest "overnight," so as I finished it at 3:15, I will bake them tomorrow. These are soft enough that my husband thinks he will be able to nibble on them in pieces.
I roasted sweet potato chunks and mashed them for my husband to have with his crumpled salmon patty on Tuesday and for the next day or two. I had another slice of the frittata I made yesterday. We agreed that the Banana Chia Seed pudding was even better today.
I also made yogurt.
In an effort to give my husband some diet variety as well as protein, for lunch on Tuesday I tried adapting a carrot soup recipe that I got from Glamour many years ago. I adapted it, since he does not eat onion and does not care much for curry, although I can get the latter by him when it is a background in the spice blend that I use for my chicken or turkey broth. I used about 15 oz. of carrots and 3 cups broth and cooked the carrots until they were softened. I then used the stick blender, which even in a high pot made some mess. The carrots probably needed to cook longer. I blended in ½ cup Greek yogurt, then added 3 1/2 Tbs. maple syrup. We both had some. I would say it is ok but not ready for prime time. However, my husband was happy to have an additional item he could eat.
Thank you all for your kind words. My husband is recovering, but as the nurse warned him, he is having more pain than he did initially, since inflammation comes into play after surgery. I was only able to pick up his pain medication today because due to an error somewhere, the prescription was sent to a city two hours away from us, and the pharmacy chain could not transfer it without the practitioner re-submitting it. Of course, it was a Saturday, so it has taken until today for me to be able to pick it up for him.
I think he may need to stick with softer foods and not push it. I am trying to find special foods I can make for him that also are high in protein, which was one reason I made the Banana Chia Seed Pudding, which he did like, but it would have worked better at pudding consistency. He is not as cooperative in my efforts, probably because the recovery process is hard. I also need to make it foods for him that can be served at room temperature, neither hot nor cold. I'm thinking of trying a carrot soup that uses chicken broth for the base and some Greek yogurt. I usually season it with sweet curry, but he is not a curry fan. I might try a bit of dill.
Sorry you missed the asparagus in your yard, Mike.
For dinner on Monday, I made a vegetable frittata, using my new, deep Staub 8 ½ -inch diameter skillet. I checked Kenji Alt-Lopez's The Food Lab, but he does not have a frittata recipe. I looked online and used, as my base recipe, "Garden Frittata with Goat Cheese and Potatoes," by Kayla Howey. I used organic yellow potatoes rather than fingerlings, as that is what I have. I replaced the peas and fennel bulb with my leftover roasted asparagus, cherry, tomatoes, and mushrooms from last night. I used 1% rather than whole milk, which I do not have. I had to cook it about seven minutes longer, perhaps due to the extra vegetables that I added. It made a tasty meal, and I have enough left over for three lunches. My husband had another crumbled-up salmon patty, a thin piece of bread, and more applesauce.
The frittata stuck around the edges and sides of pan, which required a soak, then a scrub. Next time, I will rub the sides with olive oil as well.
I made Salmon Patties again, as Scott does ok eating those after his oral surgery, as long as he crumbles it up. He had more of the applesauce I thawed, and he managed a piece of bread. To go with my salmon patty, I had roasted asparagus, mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes. Scott does not care for asparagus, so he does not mind my relishing the first asparagus of the season.
That is a nice selection of birds, Mike. We have a crow that is hanging around that we keep scaring away. A rabbit made a nest and had at least three babies. We are not sure if the crow went after the next, or if our dog was curious and started digging. My husband noticed the fur that the momma had used in the next spread around and found it. The crow got one that seemed already to have died we saw two tiny ones in the nest. While I stood guard, my husband used an old Styrofoam cooler, in which he cut an entrance hole to cover it. Meanwhile, Momma was watching but ran off when she saw us. He weighted it down with a piece of wood. The crow came back and was pecking around the edges, so he put bricks there. A second baby rabbit died last week. My husband saw it outside the little hut, but it was gone when he returned, and the crow was poking around. We angled a screen across the front, and the crow seems not to want to go into there, although we still scare it away. It should keep the crow from being able to swoop down. It is week three now, and there is one little bunny in the nest. We hope it survives.
I baked Oatmeal Date Muffins for breakfast on Wednesday that will see me through the week.
On Tuesday, I baked a batch of 10 buns using Len's signature bread recipe. I also made a single batch of Soft Oatmeal Cookies, but this time I used dried cherries instead of raisins.
That was great, Skeptic, that you and Chocomouse were able to sample each other's baking. I've often wished for a bite of some of the great baking and cooking that people on this site do.
For dinner on Tuesday, I made salmon patties, which we had sandwich buns I baked earlier in the day. We used leftover tartar sauce as the condiment, and the results are yummy. We also had leftover coleslaw.
That's a great idea for stiff cookie doughs, Len. I'm making a note of it.
After lunch on Monday, we were out of Bread, so I baked two smaller loaves (7 ½ x 4) of Mostly Whole Wheat Buttermilk Maple Bread. My only issue with this bread is that it seems to dry out faster than it should, and that may be because I replaced 2 Tbs. butter with 2 Tbs. avocado oil. I had the same issue with my Whole Wheat Oat Bran Bread until I added oil to that recipe. I got the idea from Len's signature bread recipe that uses oil. The buns stay soft longer.
Ah, Joan, enjoy your granddaughter's wedding! How lovely!
I made clam chowder for lunch on Monday. I have enough for two more lunches.
For dinner, we had the leftover Chicken Thighs with Broccoli and Orzo. I think it was better today, which surprised me, since broccoli does not usually re-heat well. After thinking about the recipe, I have decided that next time I will mix some spice blend into the Panko that I use to coat the chicken, maybe Penzey's Justice or the Mural of Flavor blends.
Navlys--Giggle, Giggle!
I made yogurt on Sunday.
For dinner, I made Chicken Thighs with Broccoli and Orzo, which is my adaptation of an Aaron Hutchinson recipe from The New York Times. The past couple of times that I have made it, I followed posters suggestions and finished it in the oven. This time, I wanted to skin the chicken and give it a panko coating. I did not want to brown the chicken first. So, I put together the broccoli and orzo base, then put the chicken thighs atop it and baked for 45 minutes at 400 F (original recipe 425 F). I added a bit of water, but it did not dry out. I miss the flavor from the fat in the skin, but I know that my digestive system would have reacted poorly to it. I may increase the thyme when I make it again or perhaps mix some spices in with the panko.
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