Baked Cabbage

This recipe is my husband's mom's recipe.

Baked Cabbage

1 head of cabbage, cut up

8 ounces Velveeta, cubed

2 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups milk

1 cup bread crumbs

2 Tablespoons butter or olive oil

Bring large pot of water to boil.  Add cabbage.  Cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile melt the butter and mix with breadcrumbs or mix the olive oil and breadcrumbs together. Set aside.

Make cheese sauce with butter, flour, salt, milk and Velveeta.  Start by melting butter, adding in flour, then slowly adding milk, stirring until it begins to thicken.  Melt in the cheese. It will seem runny but will thicken as it bakes.

Drain cabbage.

Dump half of the cabbage into a 9x13" baking dish. Pour 1/2 of the cheese sauce over.  Repeat layers. 

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. It's ok to have color like this.  It's flavor as my husband would say.

Top with buttered breadcrumbs and bake for 15 more minutes.

Honey Mustard Parmesan Baked Chicken

Honey Mustard Parmesan Baked Chicken

3 Tablespoons homemade mustard
1-1/2 Tablespoons honey

3/4 cup dry bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

olive oil or melted butter

Slice chicken breast halves into nice strips

or leave whole. (I slice off the back to make it even and take off the tip so it bakes more evenly.)

Dip in honey and mustard mixture.

Then in Parmesan and bread crumb mixture.  (I used my homemade goat Parm which was shredded)

Lay on greased cookie sheet.  Mist/drizzle with a little olive oil spray or drizzle with melted butter. Bake tenders at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  If you do whole pieces then bake for 25-30 minutes.

Homemade Mustard

I learned this recipe from a personal cooking class with Chef Gaby.  Check her out!!

Homemade Mustard

2 Tablespoons ground mustard (start with whole seeds, toast (optional) and grind then measure)
6 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1-1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire (optional) -  I did not use
1 Tablespoon malt vinegar (optional) -  I did not use
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large egg yolks
2 Tablespoons sugar

Using a cast iron pan toast your seeds.  The main picture above was made with toasted seeds (your mustard will be darker).  This picture shows the seeds toasted.  They turned from golden yellows to a much more brown color.  Careful not to burn!!

This picture shows untoasted seeds.  You can mix and match toasted and untoasted to your taste/time preference.   Chef Gaby would use a mortar and pestle.  I do not have one yet so I use a coffee grinder that I use for spices only and gently pulsed until the balls were gone but not too powdery.

Place all ingredients over a double boiler.  The best is to use a round bottom metal bowl over a saucepan that has the water in it so you can whisk and get all the ingredients stirred   Whisk continuously until it thickens.  Takes only a short amount of time.  

Store your mustard in the fridge.  It will be very light and airy.  If you like honey mustard add some honey to your mustard.  Makes a great dip for chicken fingers.

Homemade Ricotta

Homemade Ricotta

Leftover whey from cheese

OR

1/4 cup vinegar

1 gallon milk

LEFTOVER WHEY VERSION: Turn on fire and bring on the heat! I don't stir, I just walk off.  You'll notice clumps and bits heading to the top. Drain into cheesecloth lined colander.

MILK VERSION: Heat milk until almost boiling, remove from heat and add vinegar.  It should separate.  Drain into cheesecloth lined colander.

Can be frozen and used later. Fantastic for lasagna or stuffed shells.

Homemade Mozzarella

You can easily double this recipe and save time!

Homemade Mozzarella

1 gallon whole milk (not ultra high pasteurized*)  - I use our own goat milk
1-1/4 teaspoons Citric Acid Powder (cow's milk recipe says 1-1/2 tsp)
1/4 teaspoon liquid rennet, liquid
1/2 cup cool water cool (divided in half)

salt to taste

Put the cool milk into a stainless pot, preferably a double boiler. Dissolve the citric acid into 1/4 cup of cool water. Stir into the milk. Bring the temperature of the milk to 88 degrees and remove from heat. Mix the rennet into ¼ cup cool water and stir into the milk for about 10 seconds.  Use the spoon to slow down the turning of the milk so it can rest.

Allow the milk to set for 10-15 minutes to coagulate. You should be able to press down on it and it should bounce back a little.  If you cut it with a knife it should break clean.  I always  start checking it at 8 minutes.

Using a large icing spatula cut into 1" grid vertically.

 Then use a bent ladle to cut to cut 1" horizontally.  Let rest for 10 minutes.

Place the pot of curds back onto heat and slowly bring the temperature of the curds to 108 degrees. Hold at 108 degrees for 35 minutes.  Since I use a double boiler it doesn't require much if any heat to hold that.

Stir every 5-10 minutes to keep the curds from matting together.

 They will slowly turn into a more curd like product.

Drain the curds into a colander for 15 minutes. SAVE THE WHEY for RICOTTA!!!
(While you are waiting fill a bowl with cool water. There needs to be enough to cover your cheese.) 

Place colander on a plate, sprinkle with salt.  I use about 1/2 teaspoon. Heat in the microwave for 50 seconds. Remove from microwave and work to mix the curds together. Return to microwave for another 25 seconds.

Divide mozzarella into the size you want.  Shape into balls.

 Place in cool water. Place in fridge until mozzarella is completely cool. 

I pat mine dry, then freeze on wax paper lined cookie sheets.  After they are frozen I use a vacuum seal system to put them in bags.  When thawed they are just as good as fresh.

Shredding the cheese....

for pizza!!

*The proteins in ultra high pasteurized milk have lost their ability to set into curds.

Homemade Sauerkraut

If you like sauerkraut you should try your hand at making your own.  It's easy to do and you can in it jars to have on hand for anytime.

Homemade Sauerkraut

In this ratio...

5 pounds cabbage

3 Tablespoons canning salt

As needed...Brine --1 quart water plus 1-1/2 Tablespoons salt (heated until salt dissolves, then cooled)

Buttermilk Waffles

Buttermilk Waffles                                                             Printable Recipe

1-1/2 cups flour 
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups buttermilk (or 1-1/2 T lemon juice and rest filled to 1-1/2 cups with milk)
6 Tablespoons butter*, melted
2 eggs

In medium bowl whisk together dry ingredients.  In separate bowl mix together liquid ingredients.  Add liquid to dry and whisk until thoroughly blended (batter will be thick.)  For my iron I use 2/3 cup of the waffle mixture. Each iron is different so check your directions to get a good idea how much to use.  

Close lid and cook until it is as brown and crispy as you like it.  This time I made it in a special iron. If I use a round one I break the waffles into quarters, cool them, and then freeze them.  I toss them into a gallon freezer back and for a quick snack or breakfast pop in a toaster to heat.

V7 Vegetable Juice Blend

Make your own vegetable juice blend full of Vitamins A, C and E,  potassium, iron, and magnesium to name a few. Nothing added like the "natural flavoring" or citric acid that the store sold juice shows as ingredients.  You control the salt.  Notice mine is called V7 not V 8 as I did not use watercress which is listed as one of "their" ingredients.

 V7 Vegetable Juice Blend

2 quarts canned crushed tomatoes or approximately 2-28 ounce cans (use low sodium so you can control your own salt)*
4 celery stalks
2 carrots
1/2 beet (or 2 Tablespoons beet juice)
2 Small handfuls of spinach
4 small handfuls of iceberg lettuce
2 sprigs of fresh parsley
salt, as needed

Send all through juicer. (If you are using already juiced beets then just add that to the juice at the end.)  Mix, add salt to taste, and enjoy!

That is a 1/2 gallon canning jar in the top picture so that is how much what my juicing made. 

*You could use fresh tomatoes but I have not worked out the pound/quart ratio yet.  I hope to make some when our garden is ready to harvest and can some for later.

White Chicken Chili

Play with the seasonings as you like.  If you like it spicier add more chilies and/or cayenne.  If I were making fajitas I would add lime juice and onion powder so it's nearly the same chicken meat and you could use the same here

.

White Chicken Chili

olive oil

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts

1-1/2 t cumin

couple dashes dried red pepper (cayenne) (more as you like)
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/2 cup diced onion
2 - 15 ounce cans Great Northern beans (white), undrained
2 cups chicken broth
4 ounce can green chilies, undrained
up to 1/2 cup sour cream

In a medium bowl add about 1/2 Tablespoon of olive oil, seasonings, and chicken.  Turn to mix and coat. For best flavor grill chicken. Cut into nice size chunks.

Meanwhile, cook onions in a little bit of olive oil until soft.  Add broth and beans.

Stir in chunked chicken and cook for 20 minutes.  This will soften the beans a bit more and thicken your soup. 

 Stir in sour cream.

To serve, top with tortilla strips and more sour cream if you like.  

Fauxy Sauce (Soy Sauce Substitute)

I had a chef come teach me about spices and herbs and one of the recipes called for soy sauce.  My husband can't have soy so rather than have her come up with a new recipe I scoured the internet to find out what people subbed soy sauce with and worked out this combination of ingredients. Rather than call it Soy Sauce Substitute I thought it would be more fun to play on the word faux (meaning false) and call it Fauxy Sauce.

Fauxy Sauce - (said foy -like soy)

2 Tablespoons chicken or beef broth
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons molasses
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
dash white pepper
1-1/2 cups water
salt to taste - I used 1 teaspoon to start then added 1/2 teaspoon at the end as my broth was not very salty since it was homemade

Stir together all the ingredients in a small saucepan.  Bring to boil and cook until reduced.  I reduced mine by about half.  That is when I tasted it and added the last 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Crock Pot French Onion Soup

This soup smells fantastic cooking all day.  If you want it on a week day and don't have time to caramelize your onions before you leave the house cook them the night before and put them in your fridge.  In the morning you can put it all together come home to a tasty soup.

Crock Pot French Onion Soup

2 Tablespoons olive oil

8 cups sliced onions

1 Tablespoon sugar

1/4 cup white Chardonnay wine

7 cups beef broth

salt, as needed

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1 Bay leaf

1 teaspoon Kitchen bouquet (aff link) (optional for color)

3 Tablespoons cornstarch mixed with a little bit of water

Heat oil in large non stick skillet over medium heat.

Cook and stir until they begin to turn translucent, about 15 minutes.

Sprinkle with sugar, reduce to simmer and cook for, stirring often until brown and soft.  Should take about 30-40 minutes.  At first it won't seem like they are browning and then the color comes. Stir wine into onion mixture and cook for a minute or so. 

Pour beef broth into crock pot, add onions, bay leaf, thyme and Kitchen bouquet*. Stir.  You can add salt here or wait until the end after the soup has time to cook and mix flavors.

Cover and set on low for about 8 hrs or high for 4. When you are near serving time gently stir in your cornstarch slurry to thicken the soup. 

We served ours with grilled cheese sandwiches.  You could float a crispy piece of bread sprinkled with cheese on top and broil it. 

* I needed the Kitchen bouquet as my homemade broth wasn't very dark and I wanted more color.