The last food that I experienced for the first time was a fried Plantain.
Prior to that trip, I had never even seen a Plantain.
He would slice them, fry them, smash them and refry them, salt them and serve them as a chip for another afternoon snack.
I absolutely loved all of the new foods that I experienced.
I continued to make these items when I returned home from the island.
I never really had a recipe for the Plantains but I had my memories of watching the chef prepare them.
My children and grandchildren recently took a trip to Puerto Rico. It's another island that loves Plantains. As they were describing the foods that they experienced on the island, it brought back memories of St. Lucia. I was especially interested that they had eaten Fried Plantains and liked them.
I hope some of my readers will make this recipe and create a new food memory.
Remove, drain on paper towels ( they drained them on pieces of brown paper bags)
Use a meat mallet ( or whatever you have on hand that would smash a Plantain ) I use a stainless steel measuring cup, smash them to 1/8"thick
Place them back in the oil and fry 2 minutes per side, until golden brown and crispy.
I've included a dipping sauce recipe, but you can just eat them without it if you choose.
1 TBS finely chopped cilantro, parsley or rosemary... etc. ( whatever herb you have available).
This one comes from Bhutan, a country in the Himalayan Mountains.
I started a collection of my favorite recipes when I was living in Steamboat Springs, Colorado in the 70's. I had been to college, joined the Peace Corps, returned to college and then had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I was a free spirit and decided I needed to take some time to ski. I was raised in Michigan and when I was in High School, I joined the ski club and that passion was ignited. I chose to spend time in Colorado. Colorado had such an impact on my life that I decided to invest in some land there in 1990 . Twenty Four years later we increased that 2.5 acres of land to 5 acres. It's our retirement vacation spot in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. While I was there in the 70's I worked in 3 different restaurants to support my skiing habit. I also did some freelance design to afford the best ski equipment. I became obsessed with cooking and recipes and that's when I started a collection of my "Best of the Best" recipes.
It all started with the influence of my Aunt Faye. I talk about her at the beginning of the blog.
Here's one of the recipes that I made often in Steamboat. It's a perfect Hippy in the Kitchen recipe.
I previously posted it under a category about St. Patrick's Day. I decided to give it it's own post today.
Aunt Faye's Stone Ground Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread.
Stone Ground Whole Wheat flour is best. This makes 1 - 7" loaf. I often double or triple the recipe and make 2 - 3 loaves at a time.
Mix both flours, salt and soda, sift thoroughly.
Cut in butter with fingers.
Dough should be dry enough to knead, but not too dry.
Knead the dough on a floured surface about 30 seconds.
Make a 6" - 7" ball and place on a baking sheet with a little cornmeal.
Cut an X in the top with a floured serrated knife.
Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.
Most of the time, I don't wait to cool it. I slice it and serve it hot with Fresh Irish Butter.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
I'm sorta diggin' Kale at the moment.
I think it's very Hippy!
Here's what you'll need:
1 - Rimmed Sheet Pan lined with foil.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
1 (2 lb.) Butternut Squash , peeled, seeded and cubed into bite sized pieces.
1 Red Onion, cut into wedges.
2 TBS Olive Oil
8 C loosely packed Kale Leaves, stemmed removed and roughly chop the leaves.
1/3 C of your favorite Ranch Dressing. (I like to make mine from scratch) recipe to follow!
1/4 C Slivered Almonds........ toasted, or not! It's kind of a hassle to toast such a small amount.
In a medium mixing bowl:
Toss the Squash and Onion in the Olive Oil.
On the rimmed sheet pan, in a single layer:
Squash
Onion
Bake for 45 minutes.
Remove the pan to a rack and cool completely.
In a large serving bowl:
Roasted Squash and Onion
Kale Leaves
Toss well.
Drizzle with Ranch Dressing.
Sprinkle with Almonds.
This is the only Ranch Dressing I use.
Homemade Ranch Dressing:
1 C Mayonnaise
1/2 C Sour Cream
1/2 tsp Vinegar
1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/4 tsp Paprika
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 C Parsley, minced
2 TBS fresh Dill, minced
1 TBS fresh Chives, minced
1/2 C Buttermilk ( add at the end)
Combine all ingredients, except the Buttermilk!
Add the Buttermilk at the end, to desired consistency.
Place in a jar, (Shake, Shake, Shake) and store in the refrigerator until chilled.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
Butternut Squash Stew:
3 TBS Vegetable Oil
1 Vidalia Onion, Diced
3 Garlic Cloves, sliced.
2 TBS Tomato Paste
1/4 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
Water
1 1/2 C Dried Chick Peas, rinsed
1 Pound of Butternut Squash, peeled, cut into medium sized cubes.
1 Bunch of Swiss Chard. Remove the stems and cut them into pieces. Reserve the leaves (roughly chopped) to be added at the end of cooking.
1 Piece of Parmesan Cheese Rind plus Grated Fresh Parmesan Cheese for Garnish.
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste.
Crusty French Bread for serving.
In a large skillet on medium high heat:
Heat the Vegetable Oil.
Add:
Onion
Garlic
Cook until soft for 5 minutes.
Add:
Tomato Paste
Red Pepper Flakes
Cook for 1 minute.
Add 1/2 C Water.
Scraping any of the browned bits.
Transfer to a 6 quart slow cooker.
Add:
Chick Peas
Squash
Swiss Chard Stems only. (leaves will be added at the end)
Parmesan Cheese Rind.
Salt to taste.
Add: 7 C Water.
Stir and cover.
Cook on low for 8 hours.
Just before serving, add the Swiss Chard Leaves and continue to cook, covered for 10 more minutes.
Season again, to taste with Salt and Pepper.
Stir.
Discard the Cheese Rind.
Serve in large soup bowls topped with Grated Parmesan Cheese.
Garnish with pieced of Crusty French Bread Slices.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
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Sautéed Onion and Garlic. |
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Add Tomato Paste! |
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Add Onions and Beans to the Crock Pot. |
|
Add Squash and Swiss Chard stems. |
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At this point, it's covered and cooked on low
for 8 hours. |
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The Soup is done! |
Bread is not something the the average baker makes. I have always enjoyed a great baguette in Paris or a crusty Pain de Campagne from the South of France. I don't mind making it if it's easy. Somehow I always thought it was a long, difficult process. If you love a hot loaf of bread, slathered with butter but were afraid you couldn't make it, I have some foolproof recipes here!
We have a Bread Cloche. It's a Terra Cotta vessel for baking crusty Artisan Bread. It's the answer to making complicated breads, easy!
My wife is a bread connoisseur. She never had a loaf of store bought, sliced , white bread until she went away to college. Can you image that? It was difficult for me to conceive, never enjoying Wonder Bread as a child. I even ate the crust! I don't think I would have survived my childhood without a daily sandwich made with Wonder Bread.
Then, I discovered France.... what a life changing experience for me to sit at a Paris Cafe in the morning and enjoy a cup of some of the best coffee I had ever had, along with a crusty loaf of French Bread with homemade butter! The Baguette!
As I continued to travel throughout France, I eventually discovered Pain de Campagne and again, I was hooked. I never ate another piece of sliced, white, Wonder Bread!
Since this Blog was created in memory of my Aunt Faye, I have to start my Bread Post with her recipe and the story about her Irish Soda Bread. Then I'll continue with my latest adaptation of a recipe that I recently discovered on a Blog I follow, Chef in Training, for the Easy, Crusty, Pain de Campagne and continue with a few of my other favorite Bread recipes.
I started a collection of my favorite recipes when I was living in Steamboat Springs, Colorado in the 70's. I had been to college, joined the Peace Corps, returned to college and then had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I was a free spirit and decided I needed to take some time to ski. I was raised in Michigan and when I was in High School, I joined the ski club and that passion was ignited. I chose to spend time in Colorado. Colorado had such an impact on my life that I decided to invest in some land there in 1990 . Twenty Four years later we increased that 2.5 acres of land to 5 acres. It's our retirement vacation spot in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. While I was there in the 70's I worked in 3 different restaurants to support my skiing habit. I also did some freelance design to afford the best ski equipment. I became obsessed with cooking and recipes and that's when I started a collection of my "Best of the Best" recipes.
It all started with the influence of my Aunt Faye. I talk about her at the beginning of the blog.
Here's one of the recipes that I made often in Steamboat. It's a perfect Hippy in the Kitchen recipe.
Aunt Faye's Stone Ground Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread.
Summer of 1974 , Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Note:
Stone Ground Whole Wheat flour is best. This makes 1 - 7" loaf. I often double or triple the recipe and make 2 - 3 loaves at a time.
1/2 C all purpose flour
2 1/4 C whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3 TBS butter
1 1/3 C buttermilk
Mix both flours, salt and soda, sift thoroughly.
Cut in butter with fingers.
Make a well in the center of the flour, add buttermilk and stir until blended,
Dough should be dry enough to knead, but not too dry.
Knead the dough on a floured surface about 30 seconds.
Make a 6" - 7" ball and place on a baking sheet with a little cornmeal.
Cut an X in the top with a floured serrated knife.
Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.
Remove, rub the top with butter and cool completely,
Most of the time, I don't wait to cool it. I slice it and serve it hot with Fresh Irish Butter.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
Easy, Crusty, Pain de Campagne:
3 C All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Yeast
1 1/2 C warm Water
In a large mixing bowl:
Flour
Salt
Yeast
Whisk well.
Add Water and mix with a wooden spoon until well combined.
The dough will be sticky, that's OK.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to sit at room temperature overnight, (12 - 18 hours).
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Heavily flour a work surface.
Form the dough into a ball on the flour.
Loosely cover it with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
At this point, put a Cast Iron Dutch Oven or Terra Cotta Bread Cloche (with a cover), in the oven to preheat for 30 minutes while the bread is resting.
NOTE: don't forget to use Oven Mitts when handling the hot Dutch Oven or Cloche!
Put the dough ball in the vessel , cover it and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove the cover and continue to bake for 15 minutes.
This will create that crusty exterior of an Artisan Country French Bread.
Serve warm, slathered with homemade butter!
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
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This is our Bread Cloche! |
Here's my first recipe posted on my Blog for a very similar Cast Iron Dutch Oven Bread:
Our favorite recipe for rolls in on the blog. They're Buttered Rosemary and Sea Salt Rolls from The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. They're served at every family gathering, every holiday dinner.
Here's a recipe for homemade bread and I've taken the concept of the rolls and applied it as an option for this bread recipe. My wife was raised on homemade bread. She never had sliced bread as a child. I can't even imagine that. I was raised on nothing but white sliced bread from the grocery store. I have since acquired a taste for homemade bread. My first experience with homemade bread was in Europe, the first time I had a Baguette in Paris. I also spent some time in Germany and fell in love with German Bread. I also have a recipe from Aunt Faye for Stone Ground Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread. I've made that since the early seventies. Since I acquired a passion for Cast Iron Cookware, I love bread made in a Dutch Oven.
Cast Iron Dutch Oven Bread:
3 C flour
1 3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh active dry yeast
1 1/2 C tepid water
In a large bowl:
flour
salt
yeast
Whisk well
Add water gradually, with a wooden spoon, mix well
Cover with a tea towel to rise overnight or at least 12 hours.
Place the Covered Dutch Oven in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees.
Remove the Dutch Oven and place it on a stove, remove the cover.
Rub a thin layer of Crisco in the entire interior of the pot using a paper towel.
Flour a work surface
Remove dough from the bowl and , with floured hands, work it into a ball
Place it in the Dutch Oven, cover it
Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minute
Remove the cover, continue baking for 15 - 20 minutes more
The top of the bread should be golden brown
Remove it from the oven
Brush the top with melted butter, sprinkle it with Sea Salt and Fresh chopped Rosemary.
Allow to coo in the pot until col enough to handle
When the bread is still hot, brush the top with melted butter, sprinkle with sea salt and fresh chopped rosemary.
Serve with additional butter
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
Cast Iron Irish Soda Bread:
I love handmade bread. I don't make it often enough. My aunt had a great recipe for Stoned Ground Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread. It's one of my favorite bread recipes. Here's another good Soda Bread recipe. It's make in a Cast Iron Skillet, that adds to the goodness and the homemade factor!
4 C flour
3 TBS sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 C raisins ( I use 1 C golden and 1 C dark)
2 C buttermilk
1 large egg, beaten
Grease a 10" cast iron skillet generously with Crisco or any vegetable shortening
In a bowl, combine:
flour
sugar
baking soda
salt
Whisk gently to blend
Stir in raisins to coat well with the flour mixture
Make a well in the center and add the buttermilk and eggs.
Stir until a stiff dough is formed
Mix with floured hands at this stage
Remove the dough and mound it in to the skillet to form a round loaf
Lightly moisten hands with water and smooth the top
With a serrated knife dipped in flour, score the top with an X - 1/2 " deep
Bake for 1 hour at 375 degrees
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
I have become a huge fan of Clodagh McKenna. I recently saw this recipe for an amazing bread, a very Hippy in the Kitchen recipe.
I simply did a copy and paste of the recipe so my European friends can have the recipe. I highly recommend that you research her other recipes.
Here's a bit of information taken from her website:
Over the past 15 years, Clodagh McKenna has become one of the most recognized faces and brands in Ireland’s Food & Lifestyle sectors.
With her passion for food combined with her business savvy, Clodagh has developed her brand into an emerging business empire encompassing Clodagh’s Kitchen restaurants, her television shows, cookbooks and her food column in Ireland’s number 1 glossy magazine, The Gloss. She is regularly asked to contribute to food columns in national newspapers and magazines.
More recently Clodagh has taken the US by storm with her hugely popular US show, Clodagh’s Irish Food Trails which aired on PBS and Create TV reaching audience levels of 15 million.
In addition to the series, Clodagh successfully published two of her cookbooks, Homemade and Clodagh’s Kitchen Diaries in USA. She best describes herself as an “eater and a feeder”!
Health Bread:
450g (1lb) wholemeal flour
65g (21/4oz) wheat germ, plus extra for dusting
65g (21/4oz) plain white flour
65g (21/4oz) wheat bran
225g (8oz) pin-head oatmeal
2 tsp soft brown sugar
2 tsp bread soda or bicarbonate of soda
1 litre (1 3/4 pints) buttermilk
For the topping:
2 tsp (one per loaf) wheat germ
2 tsp (one per loaf) sesame seeds
Preheat the oven to 230oC/ gas mark 8 / 450oF
Put all ofl the dry ingredients in to a large bowl and mix together. Stir in the buttermilk to make a moist dough.
Lightly grease 2 900g/2 lb loaf tins and dust them with wheatgerm. Divide the dough betweent the tins, smooth the top and make a spacious cross on each one with a floured knife. Sprinkle with wheat germ and sesame seeds.
Cook the loaves in the oven for 10 minutes, and then reduce the temperature to 130°C / Gas Mark 1 / 265 oF and bake for 1 hour.
When the loaves are cooked, remove from the oven and leave in the tins to cool a little. Turn them turn out to partly cool in the tins. then turn them out onto wire racksto cool completely.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
This is a very Hippy Cookie Recipe.
We made these in the late 60's and early 70's.
I've adapted the instructions to make them more current for today's baking.
Delicious Vegan Hippy Cookies:
3 Mashed Ripe Bananas
1/3 C Apple Sauce
2 C Rolled Oats
1/4 C Almond Milk
1/2 C Raisins
1 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Cinnamon
Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl, by hand.
Drop onto a Parchment Paper lined Sheet Pan with a 1 1/2" Cookie Scoop, 2" apart.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
My niece sent me a recipe for Sunflower Seed Cookies. I decided to adapt the recipe and make it my own.
Here's my interpretation of Jennifer's Sunflower Seed Cookies. I kept her name in the title of my recipe to thank her for giving me the original one.
I still consider this to be the perfect Hippy in the Kitchen Cookie. It's reminiscent of what we made in the 60's and early 70's.
Tofu Black Bean Lasagna
Ingredients
One 28-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
One 12-ounce can tomato paste
1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves
2 teaspoons salt, plus more for pasta
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 small onion, finely chopped
Two 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
8 ounces lasagna noodles
1 recipe Tofu Ricotta, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a large saucepan, combine the tomatoes and their juices, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt, pepper, oregano, onions and black beans. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook to al dente according to package directions. Drain the noodles well.
Spread 1 cup of the prepared sauce in a 9- by 13- by 2-inch baking pan. Make three layers each of noodles, sauce and Tofu Ricotta. End with the sauce and make sure the noodles are completely covered or they will dry out during baking. Bake for 45 minutes, uncovered. Allow the dish to stand for 15 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.
Tofu Ricotta:
1/4 cup raw cashews, finely ground
14 ounces extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil, or 1 tablespoon dried basil
Salt and pepper
Add the cashews to a food processor and grind them. Then crumble in the tofu, and add the yeast, olive oil and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use. Keeps well for at least a week. Yield: about 2 1/2 cups.
Note:
To press tofu, drain any liquid from the block of tofu. Fold paper towels around the tofu and then set a big wrought iron skillet on top of it to press out the excess moisture. Allow to sit for about an hour to press.
Gazpacho is a tomato based Vegetable Soup served cold. It originated in the Andalucia region of Southern Spain.
You can use V-8 Juice instead of Tomato Juice. It simply has more flavor. I use whatever I have in the pantry at the time.
- 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
- 1/2 whole Red Onion, Diced
- 1 whole Large Cucumber, Diced
- 5 whole Roma Tomatoes, Diced
- 1 whole Zucchini, Diced
- 2 stalks Celery, Diced
- 1 dash Salt To Taste
- 1/4 gallon Tomato Juice (4Cups)
- 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/8 cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons White Sugar
- 6 dashes Tabasco
- 1 dash Black Pepper To Taste
Preparation Instructions
In the bowl of a food processor or in a blender, combine the minced garlic with half the red onion, half the cucumber, half the tomato, half the zucchini, half the celery, half the tomato juice (2C), all of the olive oil,all of the red wine vinegar, all of the sugar, all of the Tabasco, a dash of salt.
Pulse until all ingredients are blended well; mixture will have a nice speckled, colorful texture.
Pour into a large bowl, add the rest of the tomato juice, and half of the remaining onion,1/2 remaining cucumber, 1/2 remaining tomato, 1/2 remaining zucchini, and 1/2 remaining celery. ( see note below before reserving the remainder of the diced vegetables for garnish) , reserve the remainder of the diced vegetables for garnish.
Stir mixture together and check seasonings, adding salt and pepper, if needed. Chill soup for at least a couple of hours; soup needs to be very cold! The recipe made 40 ounces and filled a 40 ounce Vlasic Pickle Jar.
Remove the soup from the refrigerator and stir. Check seasonings one last time. Ladle into a bowl and garnish with remaining diced vegetables, fresh avocado, sour cream, cilantro and green onion.
Notes:
At the end, I decided that we would not eat this all at once so I didn't want to keep the vegetable garnishes in the refrigerator for a later date.
I decided to put all of the diced vegetables in the bowl with the full recipe.
I will garnish it only with sour cream, avocado, cilantro, and green onion.
I included the tops of the green onions.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!
This one is a cool recipe from the 60's.
It was so upbeat and different for the time man.
Gazpacho:
Juice of 1 Lemon
2 Green Bell Peppers,seeded and cut into pieces
1 Cucumber, peeled and divided: 3/4 sliced and 1/4 of it diced for garnish
2 lbs. Tomatoes cut into pieces
1 Onion quartered, 1/4 of it diced for garnish
1/4 tsp Garlic Salt
2 TBS Vinegar
2 TBS Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Croutons for garnish
Put the following ingredients in a blender:
Lemon Juice
Bell Peppers
Cucumber slices
Tomatoes
3/4's of the Onion
Garlic Salt
Vinegar
Olive Oil
Pulse to blend, keeping it chunky
Season with Salt and Pepper
Refrigerate until chilled
Serve topped with Diced Onion , Diced Cucumber and Croutons.
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!