Brownies of Agreement

Yes, “Brownies of Agreement”. It took almost seven years for Mer and I to find a brownie recipe we both love. Then we turned it upside down with bacon…but that’s another story…er, recipe.

Brownies of Agreement

Ingredients:

  • 4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
  • 3/4 cup salted butter plus extra for the pan
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 3 large eggs, beaten
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly butter a 13×9″ pan. Combine butter and chocolate in a large glass bowl. Heat over a double boiler (or in the microwave), stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are melted and combined. Cool slightly. Add sugar and vanilla, mixing well. Add eggs. Add flour and stir until just combined. Pour into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until edges are slightly wrinkled and skewer inserted in center comes out moist and crumby. Cool until bottom of the pan is barely warm to the touch. Invert onto large cutting board and cut into squares. Yields 16-18 generously-sized squares.

No-Egg Company Cake

I don’t know about you, but whenever I have company coming, and decide to bake at the last minute, I’m inevitably out of one or more of the ingredients I need to make whatever it is I want to make. With 18″ of snow on the ground and a 2WD pickup, there was no way I was going out for eggs or white sugar today, so here’s the recipe for the no-egg company cake that is cooling on my dining room table as I type.

In the absence of eggs, the reaction of baking soda and vinegar provides the leavening needed for a light, fluffy cake. This recipe can be used as a base for any number of mix-ins – add chocolate chips for a chocolate chip cookie cake, cocoa or melted baking chocolate for a simple chocolate cake, cinnamon, nutmeg, and raisins for a spice cake, or galangal, pepper, coconut, and ginger for an eastern flavor.

No-Egg Company Cake

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 cup half and half
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 3/4 cup melted butter
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350° F; lightly grease a 13×9″ pan. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a separate bowl, stir together remaining ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry, stirring until just combined. Pour into pan and bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool.

Quick Chocolate Spice Frosting

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup softened butter
  • pinch salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 5 cups confectioner’s sugar
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/4 cup strong brewed coffee, cooled
  • 2 tablespoons whole milk

Mix together butter, salt, cinnamon, sugar, and cocoa until ingredients are well-combined and butter is evenly distributed. Slowly add coffee and milk, adding more milk if needed to achieve desired consistency. Spread on cooled cake.

Slow-Cooker Beef Goulash

There was a really. good. sale. on “beef stew meat” (pre-cut chunks of bottom round roast) recently, and having blown through our standard slow-cooker fare, I tossed together a new one, which has been simmering away (and making me very, very hungry) all day. As you can see in the picture below, the tomato paste likes to burn and stick to the sides of the crock pot – if you’re not like me (I happen to like burnt buts), you may want to scrape the sides down with a spatula every so often.

Slow-Cooker Beef Goulash*

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds bottom round roast, cut into chunks
  • 12 ounces tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup dried minced onion (use fresh if you have it; I didn’t)
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 5 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Toss everything except the vinegar in your slow cooker, and stir to combine. Cook on low for 5-7 hours, stirring occasionally. Just before serving, stir in vinegar. Serve over buttered egg noodles with plenty of sour cream.

*Yes, I’m perfectly aware this isn’t a traditional goulash, but “Slow-Cooker Beef Fauxlash” sounded silly.

A Locavore’s Holiday Quiche

Mer and I travel to spend time with family on the holidays, so its difficult to have traditions of our own. Our Yule/Christmas tradition (which sometimes happens on Yule, but almost never on Christmas) involves a screening of A Solstice Carol and anything we want for dinner. In past years, this has included cereal (I’m a huge fan of Marshmallow Mateys, and in fact prefer them to their brand-name counterpart), donuts, and bagels with lox and capers. This year, we were inspired by our local winter farmer’s market. The sweet potato came from Two Gander Farm in Oley, PA, the cheese was Alpine from Birchrun Hills, and the fresh eggs were from Turning Roots.

Holiday Quiche

Ingredients:

  • Two unbaked pie crusts (pre-bought or use your favorite recipe)
  • One large (2/3 lb) sweet potato
  • 6 ounces prosciutto
  • 6 ounces nutty cheese (Emmentaler or a strong Swiss will do nicely)
  • 6 whole eggs
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350° F. Place pie pans on a cookie sheet and line with pie crusts.

Peel the potato and grate it using the largest hole of a box grater. Sprinkle grated potato in the bottom of the pie shells, dividing evenly. Grate the cheese and sprinkle on top of the potato. Slice the prosciutto finely and add to pies. Beat eggs well and add milk, salt, and pepper. Carefully and slowly pour egg mixture into pies, pressing ingredients as needed to eliminate bubbles.

Bake for 45 minutes, or until quiche is just firm to the touch. Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream or crème fraiche.

Quick Tomato Curry

Quick Tomato Curry

Meredith says that curry is somewhat of a mystery to her.

I was browning some chicken with an uncertain future tonight, and asked her how she’d like it. Lemon pepper? Garlic? Sauced? We decided on curry, and I showed her a simple, basic curry, full of deep, smoky flavor and the tang of tomato sauce, made from pantry items.

Quick Tomato Curry

Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs chicken drumsticks
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1/3 cup curry powder*
  • 4 cups tomato sauce

Melt the butter in a dutch oven or heavy stock pot over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned. Add curry powder; stir to coat. Cook until highly fragrant. Add tomato sauce. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 1 hour or until chicken is fully cooked and tender and sauce has reduced. Serve over rice or cous cous; garnish with yogurt if desired.

*I use my own mild homemade curry powder. There are plenty of recipes on the internet for mild to hotter varieties. Whether you use your own or a store-bought variety, I’d recommend tailoring the quantity to your taste.

Tip: If you prefer to use store-bought curry, seek out your local ethnic market, where you can find fresher, less expensive curry powder than what you’ll find in your supermarket’s spice rack.

Pat Nelson’s Funny Cake

I’ve posted my personal funny cake recipe on this site before, but this week my Aunt Beth sent me a scanned copy of my Grammy’s recipe, complete with a “good luck” note at the bottom. Almost all my memories of Grammy are from the kitchen, whether she was cooking or sitting at the kitchen table being outspoken and fabulous. I’m proud as hell to be able to share this here. (Click to enlarge)

Funny Cake

Fresh Purple Potato Casserole

Purple Potatoes

We’ve been lucky, on a few occasions, to be gifted with a bag of mushrooms from a fellow vendor at the mid-week market where we sell our jewelry. This was a lucky week. It’s also been a busy week, so we didn’t get to play with the mushrooms until today. Cut up and combined with gorgeous, just-picked purple potatoes from our market neighbors Jack and Doris, the ‘shrooms became a meaty, earthy, fresh, end-of-summer dish that I’ll remember for a good long time.

Fresh Purple Potato Casserol

Fresh Purple Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

  • 1 quart purple potatoes
  • 1 quart mixed mushrooms (we used button and porcini, because that’s what we were given)
  • 1 1/2 sticks butter
  • Salt to taste
  • 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

Wash potatoes and mushrooms and pat dry. Slice potatoes approximately 1/4″ thick, halving or quartering large potatoes as necessary to achieve a consistent size. Set aside. Slice or roughly chop mushrooms. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 1/2 stick butter. When butter has melted, add half of the potato slices. Salt to taste. Cook until potatoes have taken on a blueish hue and are barely fork-tender. Remove from pan and set aside. Repeat with 1/2 stick butter, salt, and remaining potaotes. Set aside. Add remaining butter to pan. When melted, add mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms have given off their liquid and pan is almost dry. Remove from heat.

Combine potatoes and mushrooms in a large mixing bowl. Turn out into 8×8″ baking dish and top with parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° F for 30 minutes.

Serves 6-8.

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Black Beans and Rice

As a direct follow-up to last week’s Balsamic Pasta and Peas, here’s another one of Mer’s creations. With no pictures, for now, because even though we eat this once a week on average, I never remember to break out the camera.

Black Beans and Rice

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 3 shallots, diced
  • 2 cloved garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 cups black beans, drained and rinsed (if canned) or soaked and cooked (if dried)
  • Medium-grain rice, prepared as per package directions
  • Cheese or sour cream (optional)

Heat the oil in a large, shallow pan over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until golden. Add garlic and cook until lightly browned. Add beans and stir fry for 5 minutes. Serve over rice and garnish with cheese or sour cream.

Balsamic Pasta and Peas

Balsamic Pasta and Peas

This was Mer’s delightful creation one night, so I’ve left it in her words rather than the format I typically use for recipes. It’s simple and flavorful and yummy.

Take take two strips of bacon, fry them crispy, and remove them from the pan. Saute half a teaspoon of garlic paste, several shakes of oregano, several shakes of basil, several shakes of dried onion, and saute until brown. Add two cups of cooked pasta (I used mafalda, but just about anything would work in a pinch), toss, and saute until it’s sufficiently brown. Add in a cup of peas and the bacon (now crumbled), toss and keep cooking until everything is hot and yummy. Plate, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, nom.

Tomato Chicken and Rice

I’m not going to spoil this one with a lot of preamble. Try it – it’s really, really good.

Tomato Chicken and Rice

Ingredients:

  • 3-4 lbs chicken parts (bone-in, skin-on)
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup dried minced onions
  • 1/4 cup garlic paste
  • 1/4 cup dried basil
  • 2 tablespoons dried parsley
  • 2 teaspoons ground rosemary
  • 5 1/2 cups tomato sauce
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 2 cups rice

Brown the chicken pieces in the oil in a cast iron dutch oven. (If you’re using skinless chicken, you may need to add additional oil or butter.) Remove from pan and set aside to cool. When meat has cooled, remove meat from bones and return meat to pan. (Now would be a good time to package up those bones for some future chicken stock.) Place over medium heat and stir in onion, garlic,  and herbs. Cook until chicken begins to brown. Add stock, tomato sauce, and rice; stir to combine. Increase heat to medium-high. Boil for 2-3 minutes. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally and adding water if necessary, for 45-50 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.

The end result yields an insane amount of chicken-rice…stuff that freezes well and tastes damn good.