JBug's Kitchen Antics

Oregon Strawberries Are Amazing

Most of you already know this but I'm Canadian and grew up in what I thought of as the far north, although to someone that really lives in the far north of Canada it is "central Ontario" or as North Bayites brag "the gateway to the North". Weather being what it is, strawberry season starts in late June and finishes mid July.

Thankfully, we don't have to wait that long for the sweet season to arrive here. According to the Oregon Strawberry Commission, "There are many reasons why Oregon strawberries are so sweet, red and juicy but one of the most important ones is our climate. Oregon has a long mild spring and early summer. We have lots of rain and often have cool nights and warm sunny days. These conditions are perfect for growing the sweetest strawberries. The berries stay on the vine and ripen slowly, allowing the sugars to increase before harvest."  

I'm here to tell you, I've never had a sweeter berry than the ones here and I'm not just sayin' that because I happen to live at heaven's gate. How do I know this, you ask?

I just tested about a quart of this flat and almost all of the rest is in the dehydrator as we speak so Big Guy will be able to enjoy them when he gets here at the end of the month. You wouldn't believe the aroma in here right now ...who the heck needs Chanel when you've got o' de JBug cologne?

Oh, I put a tray of the luscious red berries in the freezer too so I can bag 'em later when they're solid and whip up a Summer Pudding for that man o' mine or maybe a luscious Strawberry Mousse Cake, or how about a Strawberries & Cream Tart or even a frozen cheesecake with this incredible Strawberry Mint Sauce. 

 

Sweet and delicious Strawberries and Cream Tart

 

Easy Summer Pudding full of mixed berries

Rich and moist Strawberry Mousse Cake

   

Frozen Cheesecake with Strawberry Mint Sauce

MMM - now that I think of it I gotta' run. Better head down the hill and hit the Waldport market like I did a little while ago and pick up another flat of the beauties because I'm not quite sure I've got enough! What do you think?

A year ago - Cheater Chicken and Dumplings

Two year's ago - Mango and Spicy Shrimp Salad

 

Entertaining? Go With What You Know!

When you're entertaining new friends and getting used to a totally different kitchen set-up, the best thing to do is to go with what you know. That's what we did last night.

Big Guy's spent the past few days unpacking his garage full of boxes and one of the first cartons he opened contained his trusty Weber charcoal grills (yup there's 2) and the accompanying rotisserie. A trip to Fred Meyer for some gorgeous fresh 5 pound chickens along with his special magic of combining fresh lemons and rosemary from our garden and the entree was under control.

Add a casserole of quick, fruit filled "cheater" stuffingwe've talked about before that makes great use of a loaf of frozen garlic bread along with cooked crumbled sausage, lovely crisp tart apples and a handfull of dried cranberries and you've the makin's of a special dinner. I changed the recipe up a bit by adding a little of the traditional sauteed onions and celery to the mix along with a little splash of white wine just because it seemed like a good idea along with some Jimmy Dean Sage sausage and a few extra cranberries. Hit the link above and it'll take you to the recipe. 

Small steamed veggies including little round white potatoes, perfect tiny carrots, a package of pearl onions and a few frozen peas all lined up pretty like in a casserole dish and covered in a smooth rich herb flavored bechamel sauce all helped fill the dinner plates quite nicely. After all, there's nothing quite like a little sauce on a plate is there?  Once again, we've had this little number before(HERE) but this time I used a smidge of dried Herbs de Provence instead of the fresh dill because I was too lazy to go down the hill to the store (silly me). The fresh dill is really the right way to go! 

A crisp green salad loaded with colorful sliced peppers, chopped onion and tomato wedges completed the menu - well almost.

Rhubarb's in season right now so I couldn't resist whipping up one of our favorite spring time pies - a combination of fresh strawberries and rhubarb along with a 12 ounce package of frozen raspberries makes for an amazing ruby colored taste of heavenly glory.  Next year I'll be making one (or several) from the strawberries and raspberries we've growing on our three quarters of an acre of heavenly coastal bliss; however, the rhubarb better grow in a hurry because try as I might, I couldn't find a plant anywhere on our property. That's gonna' change, for sure!

 

Rhuberry Pie

Pastry for 1 double crust pie

1 - 12 ounce pkg. frozen raspberries

1 cup strawberries, quartered

1-1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 Tablespoons quick cooking tapioca

2 Tablespoons cornstarch

Few grains of salt

Combine above ingredients well and let sit for a minimum of  10 minutes to allow tapioca to soften.

Add & stir gently to combine

2 cups sliced rhubarb

1 teaspoon vanilla

---

1 Tablespoon butter

Line 10 inch pie plate with pastry. Fill with rhuberry filling, dot with butter. Cover with top pastry and decorate as desired. Place in a preheated 450 oven for 8 to 10 minutes, lower heat to 350 and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until filling runs clear and is bubbling over top crust.

Cool for minimum 4 hours before slicing. Serve at room temperature.

Note – be sure to place a jelly roll pan under pie plate to catch any drips. 

A year ago - Crispy Cod

Two year's ago - Pork 'n Apple Sausage Rolls

Three year's ago - Buffalo Salmon

 

Old Fashioned Blueberry Pie

Big Guy took me out for dinner last night after we went to get our taxes done. It's an annual tradition and serious proof that the stewin' is often worse than the doin'. 'Nuf said.

Consequently, yesterday was a "dark day" in JBug's Kitchen so here's the goods on some little blueberry pies I baked the other day. For some reason, fresh blueberries are hitting the market down here and I couldn't resist picking up a couple of pints during our Saturday morning shopping trip. I used one to whip up these little mini pies but if you're not lucky enough to own some mini pie pans like the ones Big Guy gave me for my birthday, you can always double the recipe and make one 9 inch pie instead. 

Simply a small amount of sugar because we kinda' like our pies semi-sweet, along with freshly grated lemon rind and a little juice, a touch of cinnamon and a little flour for thickening means these little beauties were in the oven in a New York minute. A little while later we were chowing down on the simply delicious, no fuss, glorious celebration of all that's beautiful about a blueberry. And that my friends, is the end of today's story.

Old Fashioned Blueberry Pie (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Purity Cookbook) 

4 mini pie pans (4 inches across)

Pastry for a single crust pie

1 pint blueberries

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon rind

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

2-1/2 tablespoons flour

Dash salt

Dash cinnamon

1-1/2 tablespoons butter

Preheat oven to 400. Line pie pans with pastry, reserving small circles for each top crust. Combine blueberries, sugar, lemon rind, juice, flour, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl. Divide between 4 pastry lined pans. Dot with butter and top with pastry circle. Place pans on a large sheet pan to prevent spills in the oven. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes until pastry is browned and filling bubbling. Cool on a wire rack. Serve warm with or without ice cream.  

A year ago - Poblano Jalapeno Chili

Two year's ago - Crispy Snapper and Oven Fries

 

Cranberry Pear Pie

OK so I'm cheating. Big Guy's off in the desert for another few days hunting the elusive peccary (javalina). Consequently I had a rather uninspired but no less delicious ham sandwich for dinner last night. The pie you're looking at was the sweet treat of the week to welcome you know who home on Monday night.

A page from Martha's web site, the pie is simple enough to make. I used treasured cranberries I'd stashed in the freezer from the holidays and beautiful Oregon Royal Riviera pears from Harry and David, courtesy of our friends John and Shirien. The incredibly juicy perfectly ripe pears are gi-normous so it only took 3 to do the trick along with a 12 ounce pacakge of cranberries, a touch of brown sugar mixed with a few tablespoons of cornstarch, some of my homemade bourbon vanilla and chunks of butter sealed the deal. 

Looks good huh? Well believe me it tasted good too. Imagine sweet creamy buttery pears and tart cranberries - what could be better? I mean really!

There's only one problem and since I try to be honest to a fault, I'm here to confess. While it looks great, tasted fabulous and lasted for all of 24 hours, there wasn't enough cornstarch to counteract the juicyness of the pears and crans so it was very, very runny. No matter though. Big Guy called it a "cobbler" and we ate it anyway.

Hit Martha's site here for the recipe but remember if your pears are extremely juicy, adjust the cornstarch upward to 4 or 5 tablespoons and leave your pie in the oven for the full 90 minutes. I didn't, should'a so I'll have to make it again. Oh darn!

Incidentally, I didn't bother with the egg yolk/cream wash or the apricot preserves. I merely brushed the pastry with half and half cream and dusted it with granulated sugar. 

Rhubarb Cream Pie

"This pie needs no top crust, no whipping cream, no meringue on top. It is perfect just by itself." So says, Jackie Eddy, author of Slicing, Hooking and Cooking - a book in my collection that was published way back in 1980.

What was true over 30 years ago (yikes, I'm flippin' old) remains true to this day. My Mother made her rhubarb pies this way too although sometimes she'd put a lattice crust on top. Hey, her pastry was incredible so why not use it. 

Unfortunately the pastry gene wasn't passed along to her youngest daughter. Heaven knows I've made enough of it over the years but lately I can't seem to get it right so this pie makes use of a single dough boy crust (Pillsbury) all tucked up pretty in a new pie dish with a removable bottom my twin sister sent me recently. I love it and it made this pie look extra special, didn't it.

Simply 3 cups of rhubarb right out of the freezer, folded into a butter, sugar, flour, egg custard with a touch of vanilla added because I like the stuff, I upped the flour in the custard to account for the added moisture in the rhubarb so if you're lucky enough to have some of the last of the season's bounty fresh from your garden, be sure to adjust the flour accordingly. The pie hits the oven for about an hour and comes out looking picture perfect with a golden tender crust, creamy sweet/tart filling and a crunchy top. Delicious!

Rhubarb Cream Pie (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Slicing, Hooking & Cooking, Jackie Eddy)

1- 9 inch unbaked pie shell

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 heaping tablespoons all purpose flour (see note)

2 eggs, beaten

Pinch salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups sliced rhubarb

Preheat oven to 400. Combine butter sugar together and cream until light and fluffy. Add flour and mix to incorporate. Whisk in beaten eggs, salt and vanilla. Fold in rhubarb then pile into pie unbaked pie shell. Place pie onto a sheet pan to catch any drips, and bake in preheated oven for 10  minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and continue baking for 45 to 50 minutes or until filling has formed a golden colored top crust. Remove to a wire rack and cool before serving. Refrigerate leftovers. Note – if using frozen rhubarb, increase flour to 3 heaping tablespoons and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.

A year ago - Cedar Plank Steelhead with Potlatch Seasoning

Two year's ago - Tuscan White Bean Salad with Spinach

Melon Salad with Prosciutto and Peach Crumble Pie

The strangest thing happened!  We had a monsoon storm that lasted a good 3 hours last evening with continuous thunder and when I say continuous I mean a rumble that sounded much like a loud and constant sonic boom, lots of lightening, high winds and absolutely not one drop of rain. It's still "stankin'" hot too, like is it in most of the country and with high humidity which means a refreshingly light salad like the one we had for dinner is the perfect meal. 

Cubes of seedless watermelon, honeydew and sliced nectarines join paper thin slices of red onion and spicy serrano pepper in a minty, vinagrette made from lemon juice, olive oil and honey. On a bed of arugula and garnished with thin slices of prosciutto and Romano cheese, it's darn near perfect...that's if you remember the romano cheese in the first place. As you'll see from the photo, I didn't. Head on over to myrecipes.com for the recipe and see for yourself.

It was a light and delicious Sunday night dinner although had it not been for the peach pie, we'd have been wondering where the heck dinner was. To be perfectly honest when you're on a "moderation plan" like the one we are, you need to take the whole picture into account when you're planning on having pie for dessert and that's the main reason behind our very light dinner salad. Otherwise I'd have likely put some garlic toast or a gargantuan piece of meat or something on the plate with the salad as a filler.

What a pie - lovely fresh beautiful perfectly ripe peaches, smothered in a creamy custard of tart sour cream and mellow caramel flavored brown sugar, flavored with just the right amount of vanilla and all in a crisp perfectly tender crust. Topped with a cinnamon flavored buttery crumble, each piece is a symphony of summer in all its glory and worth every single solitary calorie. Some things just are, aren't they?  

Creamy Peach Pie with a Crumble Top (from JBug’s Kitchen inspired by Southern Living)

Pastry for a single crust pie

4 large peaches

1/2 cup brown sugar

2-1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup sour cream

Crumble Topping:

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup softened butter

Preheat oven to 400. Line a 9 inch pie pan with pastry and crimp edges. Refrigerate until needed.

Blanch and peel peaches and slice. Set aside. In a large bowl whisk together brown sugar, flour and salt. Add egg, vanilla and sour cream and whisk until smooth. Fold in peaches and pour into prepared crust. Bake in preheated 400 oven for 12 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for additional 30 minutes. Remove from oven and increase heat to 400.

Combine sugar, flour, and cinnamon together then add softened butter. Using a fork, mix until crumbly. Sprinkle over pie, return to oven and bake additional 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate any leftovers.  

A year ago - Hot Turchicken Sandwich 

Two year's ago - Ahi Tuna Tacos

Blueberry Cream Pie

By necessity vacation menus need to be simple for a few reasons:

a)      You’re lazy – as in the less you do, the less you want to do;

b)      There’s usually limited kitchen gear although this year we’re darned lucky because the kitchen in Rose Cottage is VERY well equipped; and

c)       One need not fuss too much because after all the fresh air (and sunshine, as luck would have it), even mouse droppings on a cracker would probably taste OK.

Don’t worry about the last one because it's highly unlikely we’ll ever give that a try. Our dessert last night met the requirements for quick, easy and tasty as this Blueberry Cream Pie calls for a package of cream cheese, a touch of sugar, a little sour cream and some vanilla to form a creamy base. Once whipped up, it gets dumped into a purchased graham cracker crust and refrigerated until the blueberry topping is completed. I suppose you could use a can of blueberry pie filling but since blueberries are a dime a dozen at the moment, I simply mixed a pint of the purple gems with a little sugar, water and cornstarch and topped the slightly tart creamy cheesy filling. Refrigerated for a few hours it came out looking like this.

If you’re into desserts that aren’t really sweet, this will be one I think you’ll enjoy and should you be feeling slightly adventurous, add some lemon juice and rind to the filling or maybe a little melted white chocolate. I’ve done both on other occasions and it doesn’t hurt the end result one little bit!

By the way, look who came knocking on our door the other night and such dears they are, aren't they?

 

Blueberry Cream Pie (adapted from Idaho a la Carte)

Add juice and rind of a half lemon to the blueberry mixture for a little added zing and/or melt 4 ounces of white chocolate, cool and fold into cream cheese mixture if you want something even more decadent.

 

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1 – 9 inch graham cracker crust

1 pint fresh blueberries

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup water, divided

1-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

 

Using an electric mixer and a small bowl, whip together cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla and sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Spread onto bottom of graham crust and refrigerate. In a small pot combine blueberries, sugar, 1/4 cup of water. Heat over medium heat stirring constantly until sugar has dissolved and berries begin to give up their juices – about 5 minutes. Mix together cornstarch and remaining water and add to berry mixture in pot. Bring to a boil stirring constantly until mixture has thickened juices are transparent. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Spoon glaze mixture over cream cheese mixture in pie shell and return to refrigerator. Chill for 2 to 3 hours before cutting. Makes 6 servings. 

 

Welcome To Rose Cottage

As I write this, it is early morning and Big Guy’s off on his first clamming expedition. Max is sleeping on the sofa wrapped in his favorite fleece blanket, Finnigan’s gone back to bed wrapped in the feather duvet and here I sit in the bay window of the dining room looking out over a perfectly beautiful garden and the endless sky filled with cotton batting clouds kissed by the early morning sun. What can I say …surely I’m in heaven. Welcome to Rose Cottage. Are we lucky or what?

Located at Ona Beach about half way between Waldport and Newport, our little home for the month is a miniature palace. In fact, I have to pinch myself ( Big Guy’s already done it for me) because there’s absolutely nothing and I mean nothing that we don’t love about it.  Light filled, warm and truly comfortable with a lovely ocean peek from the living room, it sits high on a bluff in a neighborhood filled with incredibly warm and welcoming people.  It’s cozy, comfortable and most important; the kitchen’s very well equipped and definitely big enough for all of us.

We broke it in last night as we shared our traditional first meal at the beach with fellow blogger Lorraine from Figs and Artichokes. That's her in the pic with Big Guy...go visit her site now ya' hear. It's fabulous!

Now, if you’re a blogger you’ll understand me when I say there’s a sisterhood that develops over time in the food blogging community and I’ve been incredibly fortunate to make some fantastic friendships thanks to this thing I call a hobby.

While Lorraine and I had met only briefly last year in person, we’ve spent the past 365 days getting to know each other so when she arrived for dinner last night bearing a huge beautiful basket of wines, cheese and incredible locally smoked salmon and bacon (stupid me, I forgot to take a pic) it was as if greeting a long lost sista’ from anotha’ motha’ if you know what I mean.  We’re so blessed but enough or I’ll get all gushy.

As for dinner, our  menu included a simple salad of mixed greens, dried cranberries, crunchy almonds, creamy goat’s cheese and a purchased raspberry vinaigrette followed by our traditional first real cookin’ night entrée of 5 Hour Stew. Of course we got talking and I forgot to take a picture of the main course, but here’s the one from last year …oh and the year before too. Served on a bed of creamy horseradish mashed potatoes – it was a perfect way to initiate a new to us stove to fill the air with delicious smells and warm the soul of our little cottage.

Dessert  was simply a plum kuchen made with huge and incredibly tart red plums in one of our favorite sweet treats. We’ve made it here before; however, I had to do some quick thinkin’ and substituted sour cream for the heavy whipping cream the recipe asks for – so here’s last night’s “new” version. As you can see, it was crunchy on the bottom – or would have been if most of it hadn’t stuck to the pan…. But the creamy custard filling and crumbly top were darn near perfect. Along with a scoop of Umpqua’s finest vanilla, it was a tart, not too sweet and every bit satisfying end to a laughter filled evening.

Incidentally – as I mentioned yesterday the only thing missing at this perfect little place is internet service so posting won’t be as regular as it is the other 11 months of the year. Keep checking in though, OK because while you might be able to pry  JBug away from her computer, you sure as heck can’t keep her out of the kitchen.

Easy Five Hour Beef Stew (adapted from Slicing, Hooking & Cooking, Jackie Eddy)

2 to 3 pounds good quality stewing meat (I use chuck)

Flour, black pepper

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 large carrots, sliced

2 cans golden mushroom soup

1 cup red wine, plus more if needed

1 package dried onion soup mix

Cut meat into 1-1/2 inch cubes. Sprinkle liberally with black pepper. Dredge in flour and sauté in large Dutch oven until well browned. Work in batches so pan isn’t crowded and meat browns well. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add onions and garlic to casserole and cook until onions are softened. Scrape browned bits from bottom as onions cook. Add carrots, mushroom soup, red wine and dried onion soup mix. Return meat to pot and stir well to make sure meat is well coated with liquid. Cover pot and cook in 275 oven for 5 to 6 hours. Check pot after 3 hours to make sure there is enough liquid and add more red wine if needed. Serves 4 to 6.

Plum Kuchen

1 cup sugar

1-1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into pieces

6 large red or black plums, cut in half and pit removed

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup half and half

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla                                                                  

Whisk together sugar, all-purpose flour, salt, cinnamon and baking powder until well mixed. Add cubed butter and using a pastry blender or your fingers, rub butter into dry ingredients until crumbly. Reserve 2/3 cup of mixture then press remaining crumbs into the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of a 9 inch pan. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 20 minutes until slightly golden in color.

Remove kuchen from the oven and maintain oven temperature. Place plums cut side down onto par baked crust. Beat together egg, sour cream, half and half and vanilla until well mixed.  Pour custard mixture over top of plus and sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.  Bake for an additional 30 minutes or until custard has set and top is golden brown. Cool to room temperature before serving.

 

Strawberries and Cream Tart

Picture a tender shortbread crust with just the right amount of sweetness as the base to a wonderful fresh strawberry tart with a creamy vanilla tinged custard. Well, here you have it.

I'm pretty sure you all knew I wouldn't live on cereal for long while the Big Guy's away and as I figure it, you must have also known that a sweet treat would be one of the first things on my list to make. There's not much better than this, particularly since our local market is loaded with fresh strawberries at the present time.

The crust is a simple combination of flour, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla that's pressed into the bottom of a tart pan and baked until a light golden color. Topped with a couple of cups of sliced strawberries, the whole thing's covered in a creamy custard made from tart vanilla flavored yogurt, sugar and eggs. Poured over the berries, it becomes the base that holds the whole thing together. Sprinkled with some of the same shortbread crumbs, it comes out of the oven begging to be eaten, but wait for a while till it cools a bit first. It'll seem like an eternity, but believe me it'll serve much better when it's barely warm or refrigerate it and serve it iced cold. It's pretty darn delicious that way too.

Give this tart a try and I'm almost one hundred percent positive you won't be sorry you did. Try the same recipe using other fresh berries as they come in season like blackberries, blueberries or even cherries, or how about making it with fresh peaches or apricots too. Consider using some of the rhubarb from your garden, if you're so lucky to have it - what I'm trying to say in such a round about way is that it's fabulous with almost any fruit you can think of and then some! 

You can thank me later. I'm kinda' busy chowing down on a slice right now with my morning coffee. 

Strawberries and Cream Tart (an original from JBug’s Kitchen)

This is an old fashioned recipe from my Mother’s repertoire except that she used heavy cream rather than yogurt and rhubarb instead of strawberries. In fact, it’s how she most often made a double crust rhubarb pie, so I just kicked it up a notch by making a shortbread crust and changing a few ingredients. I think she would have loved the result.

Crust:

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup cold butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour, sugar and salt together in a medium sized bowl. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in vanilla. Reserving 1 cup, press the rest of the crumbs into onto the bottom and sides of a tart pan with a removable bottom. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is barely golden in color. Cool on wire rack.

Filling:

2 eggs

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup vanilla yogurt

2 tablespoons milk or half and half

1 teaspoon vanilla

16 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced

In a small bowl, beat together eggs and sugar. Whisk in yogurt, milk and vanilla. Arrange berries evenly onto bottom of cooled crust. Pour custard over top and sprinkle with reserved shortbread crumbs. Bake in 350 oven for 30 to 35 minutes until custard is set and crumbs are golden. Cool to room temperature before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers.

A year ago - Oregon Trail Barbecued Lamb 

Two year's ago - Whoopie Pies

Orange Push-Up Creamsicle Pie

When I come across a recipe that intrigues me, I put it on a "really must try that" list filed in the steel trap commonly known as my brain. Now that same steel trap can forget a lot of things, like making or keeping appointments, or people's names, or birthdays but it never forgets a recipe or where that particular recipe resides, whether it be in a cookbook, magazine or on-line. Imagine being so lucky as to have such a selective photographic memory? 

We were all thanking our lucky stars that I didn't forget about making this pie because Tuesday night a taste of it had our guests' eyeballs rolling back in their heads. A dead ringer for orange push-ups, or the orange creamsicles we enjoyed as kids in the land of my birth, the flavors are bound to make your taste buds wake up and say "howdy...where the heck have you been all my life!"

It is so simple to make and so incredibly rewarding, I just can't tell you - but I will, if I must. Merely made from combining cream cheese, instant vanilla pudding, orange geletin, non-fat dry milk, fresh orange juice, and a touch of Cool Whip, the fabulous filling is loaded into a purchased shortbread crust and hits the fridge for a good chill. That's it, that's all people. Now aren't you upset that you didn't think of it yourself? I sure am.

Sliced and topped with another dollop of fake cream, it is absolutely blissful - calorically challenged, but blissful; however, if you can't abide the thought of so many calories ending up on your plate, for heaven's sake use low fat cream cheese and sugarless pudding and geletin mixes. I didn't but I could have and when I make this beauty again, surely to goodness I'll have a fully operating kitchen so I can make the crust from scratch. 

I'm also considering making it into mini version and hiding them in the freezer instead of the refrigerator. I bet they'd be awesome too, although it's kind of hard to improve on perfection. 

Orange Push-Up Creamsicle Pie from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from The Best of the Best from Iowa Cookbook)

2 – 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened (full fat or fat free)

1 – 4 serving package vanilla instant pudding mix (sugar free is fine)

1 – 4 serving package orange gelatin (sugar free is fine)

2/3 cup non-fat dry milk powder

1 cup unsweetened orange juice

1 small carton Cool Whip (divided)

1 prepared shortbread pie crust

Place softened cream cheese in bowl of food processor and pulse until soft and fluffy. Add vanilla instant pudding, orange gelatin, milk powder and orange juice and process until well mixed, scraping down sides of processor as necessary. Add 1/3 cup cool whip and pulse just until mixed.  Scrape mixture into prepared pie crust and refrigerate covered for a minimum 2 hours. Slice and serve garnished with Cool Whip.  Makes 6 to 8 servings.

A year ago - Linguini with Sundried Tomatoes and Clams 

Two year's ago - Sweet and Spicy Country Style Ribs and Beans

Onion and Bacon Tart

The consensus of last night's kitchen antics - "Totally different and absolutely delicious". We all know there's a ton of different ways to put onion and bacon to good use be it in a pasta, risotto, quiche, pizza or even just a lowly sandwich but this particular effort just made a direct trip to the top of our list.

A cross between yorkshire pudding, a Dutch baby pancake and toad in the hole it's made from ingredients most of us have on hand on a regular basis - eggs, milk and flour. Top that with 2 kitchen staples (at least in JBug's Kitchen) crispy bacon and golden caramelized onions and you've got the makings of a perfect dish. 

I guess I don't have to describe the flavor because we're all familiar with the dulcet notes of bacon and onion, but the crust is not to be believed. It plays a crunchy, tender and puffy light as air like supporting role to the simple filling and there's not an ounce of cheese to be found in the whole darn thing either.

As we wolfed it down along with a fresh green salad, I couldn't help but think it would make a fabulous appetizer all cut up into little wedges, or as a luncheon dish along with a glass of dry white wine. A sincere thanks to Saveur.com - we'll be having this again soon!

By the way, the only change I made to their recipe is that I baked the crispy crunchy flavorful wonder in a large 12 inch cast iron skillet rather than an 9 x 11 inch casserole which made for a super crunchy crust in a lot less time.  I kid you not - you absolutely have to try this!

Onion and Bacon Tart (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Saveur)

6 ounces bacon, diced

1/4 cup unsalted butter

2 medium onions, thinly sliced

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons dry mustard

1-1/4 cups whole milk

3 eggs

In a large heavy 12 inch skillet, fry bacon until fat is rendered and bacon is crisp. Remove bacon to drain. Reserve bacon fat in a small dish. Return pan to medium heat and add butter. When melted add onions. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Sauté onions until golden brown and lightly caramelized. Remove from pan and set aside.

Preheat oven to 425. Return reserved bacon fat to skillet and place skillet into oven to heat for 10 minutes. Meanwhile whisk together flour, mustard and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. In separate bowl whisk milk and eggs together, then add liquid to dry ingredients. Whisk until smooth then allow to rest for a minimum of 10 minutes. Pour into hot skillet. Sprinkle with reserved bacon and onion and bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. 

Other dishes you might enjoy!

Toad in the Hole                                 Dutch Baby Pancake

  

 Date and Gorgonzola Pinwheels

Greek Style Broccoli Cheese Pie with Patio Chicken

Yesterday was National Pie day and while most people would think to celebrate with a sweet and delicious dessert, I thought I'd be different and serve a savory version. This broccoli cheese pie isn't anything like the usual quiche variety that most of us are used to. It has all the appearance and flavors of a giant Greek spanikopeta without the spinach!

It's made from broccoli, steamed and chopped up along with sauteed onion, lots of lovely feta cheese, fresh parsley, dill and garlic of course and it's all wrapped up in a nice little crispy phyllo blanket. It's the kind of thing I personally love to eat - hot or cold; however, I'll admit I made a slight slip up yesterday and added  lemon zest and juice just because I've got a ton of them around right now. A lighter hand would have been better, as the lemon commandeered the party, so you'll notice in the recipe below I've left it out entirely. It didn't make it inedible - just different. It would be perfect on its own with a tossed salad for lunch or dinner, but as you know we don't do meatless much around here and that's where the chicken comes in.

Don't ask me why it's called "Patio" chicken because I have no clue but this one's from Celebrated Seasons, one of my collection of Junior League Cookbooks and it's really very good. I used skinless boneless chicken thighs, covered them in a spiced up crumb crust and baked them in a 400 oven for 15 minutes, after which they're slathered in mayonnaise and returned to the oven to finish cooking. 

They're very tender, moist and really flavorful - in fact, it would be fabulous picnic food, well wrapped and in a cooler of course. It'll also make an awesome chicken sandwich with sliced tomatoes and maybe a slice or two of crisp bacon -- but we digress. That'll have to be a whole different story.

Greek Style Broccoli Cheese Pie (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Celebrated Seasons, A Junior League Cookbook)

10 to 12 sheets phyllo pastry

1 small onion finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

20 ounces broccoli florets, steamed until tender, drained and chopped

3 eggs, beaten

8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (I used one with Mediterranean Herbs)

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1/2 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 350. Heat oil in a small skillet and sauté onion until transparent. Add garlic and cook an additional minute until garlic is fragrant. Move to a large bowl to cool slightly. Add broccoli, eggs, feta, parsley, dill, salt and pepper. Mix well to combine.

Arrange 6 to 8 sheets of phyllo pastry on a board, staggering layers and brushing lightly with butter between each layer. Place into a 9 inch spring form pan, allowing the sides to overlap the edges of the pan. Pour filling into the pan and fold overlapped edges toward center of pan to partially cover filling. Arrange 4 sheets of phyllo together on a board, brushing lightly with butter in between. Using a sharp knife, cut a circle to fit the top of your spring form pan. Place circle of phyllo sheets on top of filling. Using a sharp knife, score the top sheets into 8 wedges. Brush top with remaining butter.

Place spring form pan onto a baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake in 350 oven for 50 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes. Remove sides from pan and slide pie onto serving plate. Cut into wedges.

Patio Chicken (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Celebrated Seasons, A Junior League Cookbook)

2 pounds chicken – I used skinless boneless thighs

1 cup dry Italian breadcrumbs

1-1/2 teaspoons onion salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon summer savory

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 cup mayonnaise

Preheat oven to 400. Spray a sheet pan with cooking spray and set aside. Combine breadcrumbs, onion salt, pepper, garlic powder, summer savory and curry powder in zip top bag. Rinse chicken pieces and pat dry with paper towel, leaving a little moisture on them. Add pieces one at a time to the bag of spiced crumbs and shake to coat. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and brush with mayonnaise, sprinkling any remaining crumbs on top. Lower oven heat to 350 and continue to bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until tender. Serve hot or cold.

A year ago - Gnocchi with Romesco and Italian Sausage   Two year's ago - Steak and Guinness Pie

Ham and Swiss Quiche uh Pie

What ended up being our dinner last night wasn't exactly on the menu. You see I had planned to make a big pot of soup so the boys and I went all over our side of town yesterday looking for one simple item - yellow split peas. They had to be yellow because you can't make my favorite French Canadian soup (Habitant) without yellow peas and I couldn't use green ones because then the soup wouldn't be "Habitant" plus the Big Guy won't eat it because he can't abide green peas.

As it turned out I couldn't find the darn things in the 5 stores we hit so I had to go to Plan B. A large chunk of ham, a dearth of eggs and a hunk of emmantal cheese ended up filling this giant quiche pan with rich, creamy goodness. I daresay we've had Ham and Cheese Quiche here before because after all we're about "everyday" food and there's been well over 1,000 every day's in this blog's lifetime but there hasn't been a quiche quite like this one.

You see, my smaller ceramic pan cracked right in half a while ago and what I'm left with is a giant Bodum dish that I bought to make a rather large berry pie when we were entertaining a group of very hungry students. Said students have long since moved on but the two of us are here with a foot wide pan which takes some ingenuity to fill. I love it though!

Anyway, it was no problem because this particular recipe will do the trick nicely and the combination of eggs, half and half and yogurt yields a filling that is incredibly light and fluffy. Of course the trick to making any quiche that way, other than having the right proportion of ingredients for the custard, is to partially cook the crust before adding the filling then adding the scrummy stuff like onion, ham and cheese in the right order and dicing the cheese instead of grating it, so as it cooks and melts it's surrounded by soft creamy custard instead of forming a layer of melted goo with custard on top. (Is that one heck of a run-on sentence or what?)

So there's your lesson for the day and I'm sure you're left wondering what on earth two people are going to do with all that leftover quiche. Well, first - you'd be amazed how much two people can eat when something's as good as this is, plus it is fabulous cold right out of the refrigerator or newked briefly till warm to make a super lunch. It also freezes rather well but we won't have to worry about that in this house because I have the Big Guy convinced it's not a quiche. Since real men don't eat quiche and he happened to enjoy two pieces last night then it has to be a pie. Female logic rules again!

A Giant Ham and Swiss Quiche an original from JBug’s Kitchen

 Pastry for a 12 inch single crust pie

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon butter

1-1/2 cups ham cut into quarter inch cubes

1/2 pound Emmantal cheese cut into quarter inch cubes

6 eggs

1-1/2 cups half and half

1 cup plain yogurt

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 425. Arrange pastry in a large 12 inch ceramic pie dish, flute edges and prick all over bottom of pie shell with a fork. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until lightly golden brown. Remove to a wire rack and cool. Reduce oven temperature to 375.

Melt butter in a sauté pan and cook onion until softened and slightly golden. Cool. Whisk together eggs, half and half, yogurt, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and Dijon mustard until well combined.

Arrange ham cubes in bottom of cooled crust. Top with cooled sautéed onion and cheese cubes, spreading out evenly. Pour custard over top and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remove to a wire rack and dust with freshly grated nutmeg. Allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

A year ago - Marinated Grilled Hanger Steak  Two year's ago - Balsamic Glazed Sirloin

 

Leftover Prime Rib Roast

We'll be starting a series of what to do's with the rest of our humongous prime rib roast over the next couple of days; however, if you can think of anything better than a beef pot pie, please let me know. Personally I think it'll be a tough one to top.

Last night's version is one first posted way back in 2009 and I've been waiting for the perfect opportunity to showcase its powerful flavors again. Other than potatoes, carrots and one solitary monster sized parsnip, this one's a real winner with the addition of some maple smoked bacon. Mushrooms cooked in the bacon drippings until all golden and lovely become the cornerstone of a deep rich gravy courtesy of a can of Campbell's French Onion Soup and some sherry. Finished with a touch of sour cream believe you me if I could sell that gravy by the bottle, I'd make enough money to buy myself an island in the Pacific Northwest. Don't laugh ...the Caribbean can't hold a candle to it as far as I'm concerned.

Topped with what's become my new favorite pastry made from butter and shortening, the pie's about as class A as you can get. Needless to say it was HOT too when it came out of the oven, and since my Big Guy's not the most patient eater you've ever seen ... meaning he shovels it all it at the speed of light - he dumped that pretty pie upside down on his plate so it would cool off quicker and he could get the job done more efficiently. The mess he created darn near broke my heart, but hey I guess after it leaves the kitchen it's no longer my concern anyway. Is it? Next time I'll add some green peas to the mix. That ought to slow him down a bunch.

Incidentally, we've other plans for that leftover prime rib roast like sandwiches, or a big pot of beef and barley soup, or absolutely the best chili you'll ever, ever eat, or more of those lovely little cornish pasties like we've made before so stay tuned.  We promise there will be more!

Beef Pot Pie with Sherry Gravy

Pastry:

2 -1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons powdered sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3.5 ounces butter, cut into cubes

4 ounces shortening

1 egg beaten with 6 tablespoons cold water

Whisk together dry ingredients to mix well. Cut in cold butter and shortening until mixture has a uniform crumb about the size of small peas. Using a fork toss in the egg/water mixture and combine until must moistened. Form into a disc and chill thoroughly.

Pot Pie

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 onion minced

2 cloves garlic minced

2 carrots, quarter inch dice

1 potato, quarter inch dice

1 large parsnip, quarter inch dice

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup water

Sprinkle of salt

1 cup frozen peas (optional)

1/4 cup parsley, minced

3 cups cooked beef, cubed (I used left over prime rib, but steak or beef purchased from deli with do)

1 slice bacon, minced

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup mushrooms, quartered

2 tablespoons flour

1 can Campbell’s French Onion Soup

1/3 cup water

1 tablespoon catsup

1/3 cup dry sherry

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/3 cup sour cream

Sauté onion in olive oil until transparent. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add diced carrots, potato, parsnip, thyme, salt and pepper and sauté for 1 minute. Add 1/4 cup water, cover pan and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, until vegetables are just tender.  Remove from pan and place into 4 individual ramekins. Sprinkle each ramekin with 1/4 cup of frozen peas and 1 tablespoon of parsley. Divide cubed beef evenly between 4 ramekins.

Cook bacon in sauté pan until fat renders and bacon is almost crisp. Add butter to pan, then add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms are browned. Add flour and stir to combine well. Cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Add onion soup, water, catsup and stir to combine. Cook stirring until gravy thickens. Cook for 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and add Worcestershire sauce, pepper, sherry and sour cream and stir well to combine.  Divide evenly among ramekins.

Roll out pastry to 1/8 inch thickness and cover ramekins. Decorate as desired. Brush with beaten egg yolk. Cook in 400 oven for 35 to 40 minutes until pastry is golden and filling is bubbly.   

Shredded Apple Pie

Remember a while ago I said I'd never try another apple pie recipe because I'd found the perfect one. Well, that was for a double crust pie, loaded with fruit and a lattice top. There's another one too with pears and apples and a cinnamon caramel that's over the top, but if you're looking for a quick, every day make your loved ones happy kind of pie, here's another keeper. I whipped it up to go with our Ribs and Beans dinner the other night before the Big Guy left town.

A single crust pie, it consists of three tart Granny Smith's, peeled and grated into a custardy buttery sugary filling kissed with cinnamon and lots of lovely vanilla. It bakes until its all puffy and golden and comes out of the oven looking like this!

Cooled to room temperature it's lovely and unless you live in a house with a purist that likes his pie sans the a la' mode, it would be fabulous with a scoop of vanilla or some homemade cinnamon ice cream resting on top. Bonus - unlike some pastry creations, this version is really the bomb right from the refrigerator too because the pastry gets extra crisp and the filling is all soft and gooey and buttery and wonderful.

How do I know this? I just this second finished a piece along with a cup of coffee. Not bad for 6:00 am on a Sunday morning. So much for singing...hurray, hurray the diet starts today!

Shredded Apple Pie (Adapted from Taste of the Territory)

Pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 cup butter, softened

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs

2 cups shredded tart apples (I used 3 medium Granny Smiths)

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 9 inch pie plate with pastry and flute the edges. In a large bowl, combine together sugar, flour, butter, vanilla, and cinnamon until well mixed. Beat in eggs and mix well. Add shredded apples and combine well. Pour into pastry lined pie plate and smooth the top. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until pastry is browned and filling is puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack and serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers.

Other variations of apple pie:

 Cinnamon Caramel      Grandma's Apple    Crumble Pie

Turkey and Stuffing Handpies aka Cornish Pasties

We have the Brits to thank for last night's dinner but before we get to the meat of this post I need to clear something up; that's as in Cornish "pasty" and it's pronounced like "nasty" people. It absolutely nowhere near resembles the falsies used to accent what God didn't give all the A cups, if you know what I mean, and neither is it nasty in any way, shape or form.

Now, I've made these little leftover filled wonders before only in a pork version that we absolutely loved but I have to tell you the turkey kind's even better, if it's possible to beat anything pork that is. Filled with chopped raw carrots and parsnip along with leftover turkey, gravy and stuffing all in a nice neat little flaky pastry package, there's no way it should be called a "leftover".

Plated with two kinds of cranberry sauce and some coleslaw it was a meal made in heaven. So, why two kinds of cranberry sauce you ask? Well, in truth, I'm adding these to the blog so I'll know where to find them next time I'm making cranberry sauce because either one's a real keeper and I don't see myself making any other kind in the future. If you know me at all, you'll know I don't settle for making the same thing twice very often so you've gotta' imagine just how perfectly sublime the sauces are, although the pictures do them no justice.

Chunky Apple Cranberry Sauce courtesy of Country Home Magazine has cranberries and apples cooked in apple cider, sweetened with a touch of sugar and real maple syrup and spiced with a whole cinnamon stick. Finished with a touch of vanilla, it takes all of 10 minutes to whip up and is worth every second of time. It makes darn near a quart of wonderful tart but sweet, perfectly spiced sauce to jazz up any kind of poultry but I have to say it would be fabulous with pork too.

Raspberry Habanero Cranberry Sauce is a take on the Raspberry Cranberry Sauce in this month's Cooking Light Magazine. Remember about a year ago the BIg Guy whipped up some Raspberry Habanero Jelly - well, I added some to a mildly sweetened version of the recipe on the Ocean Spray package and added a cup of frozen raspberries just for good measure. The result is a supremely delicious kinda sweet, kinda' tart, raspberry flavored cranberry studded ruby colored sauce with the kick of a mule. Holy cow is it good! I can't wait to try it on a Turkey and Brie Panini which may or may not be on our list for tonight's dinner. Just sayin'.

Turkey n Stuffin’ Hand Pies aka Cornish Pasties (inspired by Emeril Lagasse, Food Network)

Pastry:

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3.5 ounces cold butter cut into cubes

4 ounces cold vegetable shortening cut into pieces

1 egg yolk beaten with 6 tablespoons ice cold water

 In a large bowl combine flour, sugar and salt. Using a pastry blender cut in butter and shortening until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Using a fork mix in egg yolk/water mixture just until mixture holds together. Remove to a board and knead slightly until mixture holds together. Flatten to a disc, wrap well in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Filling:

1-1/2 cups diced leftover roast turkey

1/2 cup diced peeled raw carrots (quarter inch dice)

1/2 cup diced peeled raw parsnips (quarter inch dice)

1/2 cup leftover turkey gravy

1 cup leftover cold stuffing

Mix roast turkey, carrots, parsnip and turkey gravy together in a small bowl. Set aside.

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

To make pasties, roll cold pastry out on a well-floured surface until about a quarter inch thick. Using a plate as a guide cut pastry into 6 or 7 inch circles. Brush edges of pastry with egg yolk/water mixture. Place approximately a half cup of filling onto middle of pastry. Add a spoonful of stuffing on top of filling, and then fold pastry up to meet at the top of the stuffing and crimp edges together well. Re-roll remaining dough pieces as required to make 6 pasties. Place on a parchment lined sheet pan and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 400. Brush pasties with egg yolk/water mixture and cut slits in top so steam can escape. Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce oven heat to 350 and bake for additional 25 to 30 minutes until pasties are golden brown and cooked through. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving. Makes 6 large pasties.

Chunky apple Cranberry Sauce (adapted from Country Home Magazine)

1 cup apple cider

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/3 real maple syrup

3 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4 inch dice

1 12 ounce package fresh or frozen cranberries

1 stick cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Combine apple juice, sugar and maple syrup in medium sized saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Add apples, cranberries and cinnamon stick. Cook, stirring occasionally until cranberries have popped and apples are tender – about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Cool to room temperature. Remove cinnamon stick. Store in glass container in refrigerator. Makes 3-3/4 cups.

Raspberry Habanero Cranberry Sauce (a creation from JBug’s Kitchen)

12 ounce bag of fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup water

1 cup frozen raspberries

1 cup Raspberry Habanero Jelly

Place sugar and water into a large saucepan and heat over medium high stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and cook until cranberries start to pop – about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in frozen raspberries and cook another 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in raspberry habanero jelly, stirring until jelly has dissolved. Cool to room temperature then place in a glass jar and refrigerate.

Potato Crust Chicken and Green Chile Quiche

OK so here's the deal. That fabulous roasted chicken from night before last has left us with some great munchin' alternatives. I mean not even WE can't finish an entire 5 pounder in one sitting, and I know you're surprised to hear that.

I did a little research looking for new ideas on what to make and have come up with a couple, one being a great suggestion from my friend Lea that I'll be putting to use PDQ after I do a little grocery shopping. As it happens I had all the necessary ingredients available for this new fangled chicken pie so it made the top of the list.

Thawed hash browns are dried off and pressed into a pie plate then coated with butter and baked. The resulting crisp potato crust is topped with chicken, roasted Hatch green chiles, shredded sharp cheddar and dried onion flakes then topped with the usual egg and milk combination. Forty minutes later we were chowing down on this fabulous creation and enjoying every morsel. It is every bit as delicious as a traditional quiche with a pastry crust - maybe even more so.

Who would have ever thought one could make a pie crust out of shredded hash brown potatoes, but the Big Guy kept saying over and over - "boy is this good". He's right (but don't tell him, OK?). It is good and a perfect solution too for anyone with a wheat or gluten intolerance too. Just thought I'd give that a mention since last weekend we were entertaining a couple that can't eat wheat, dairy or refined sugar.

Potato Crust Chicken and Green Chile Quiche (adapted from Taste of Home)

4 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed

3 tablespoons melted butter

1 cup shredded leftover roast chicken

1/2 cup chopped roasted green chiles

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

Coarse ground black pepper

1 tablespoon dried onion flakes

Salsa to garnish

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a pie plate with cooking spray. Using paper towels blot moisture from thawed hash browns and place into pie pan. Using a flat bottomed cup or large spoon, press hash browns up sides and onto bottom of dish to form a crust. Brush well with melted butter. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and lower temperature to 350. Spread shredded chicken, green chiles and cheddar on top of crust. Beat eggs, milk, salt, pepper and onion flakes together until well combined. Pour onto other toppings in crust and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool for 5 minutes before cutting. Garnish with salsa. Serves 6. Download Potato Crust Chicken and Green Chile Quiche

A year ago - Clam, Corn and Basil Cakes

Salm 'n' Clam Chowder and Shaker Lemon Pie

We work on real time here so what you see is what we actually had for dinner last night. That leaves little if any room for error so when I scope out a recipe to make, I have to trust my instincts and experience that it will be a good one. Unfortunately, every once in a while the old instinct fails, at least that's what my opinion is of last night's chowder. The other member of our little family thought it was quite good, but I found it rather fishy if you know what I mean.

It's got good bones though - no pun intended. Bacon, chopped onions, celery and garlic make up some of the flavor base along with sweet potatoes which I thought would go very well with the clams and salmon in a broth made creamy with the addition of creamed corn along with the usual half and half. Sounds alright doesn't it?

If you enjoy a strong fishy flavor in your chowder, then this would be the one for you but personally I think there's several other great chowders on this blog that you may want to give a go before you make this one.

Fortunately dessert made up for any foibles of the main course. First introduced to this exceptional pie by Tom at Tall Clover Farm, we've made it several times in the past because our Meyer Lemon has been prolific to say the least. I had put aside some of the pie base in the freezer (lemon slices macerated in sugar) and this is the last of it. Boo hoo, because last winter's exceptional cold snap really took our citrus crop out of the picture for this year and we'll be lucky if we get a dozen total out of our 4 trees (lemon, grapefruit, tangerine and lime).

As you can see, this version of lemon pie is a double crusted wonder filled with the tart marmalade like flavor of whole meyer lemons with just enough sugar to take the edge off. It has serious lemon flavor so if you're a fan, then this is the one for you. It is without question, one of our favorites. 

Salm ‘n’ Clam Chowder (Adapted from Food Network Canada)

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 slices bacon, finely chopped

1 medium onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1-1/2 cups peeled, cubed sweet potato

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1-1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth

2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning

1 – 14 ounce can creamed corn

1-1/2 cups chopped uncooked clams plus juice or 2 cans baby clams, undrained

8 ounces boneless skinless salmon fillet, cut into chunks (I used Coho)

1-1/2 cups half and half

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large soup pot over medium heat. Add oil and bacon. When bacon starts to crisp, add onions, celery and garlic. Cook until vegetables are softened – about 5 minutes. Add sweet potato and thyme and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth and Old Bay seasoning, bring to a simmer and cover pot. Cook for 10 minutes or until potato is cooked. Stir in creamed corn. Whisk together half and half with flour until smooth. Add to soup along with salmon and clams. Cook, stirring often until fish is done and soup thickens – about 5 minutes. Garnish with parsley. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as required. Makes 8 servings. Download Salm 'n' Clam Chowder

Shaker Lemon Pie (Adapted from Saveur)

Note – start the preparation of this pie 24 hours in advance because the lemons have to macerate in sugar for at least that long.

Pastry:

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 ounces cold butter cut into pieces

4 ounces cold vegetable shortening cut into pieces

6 tablespoons ice cold water or more as needed

Place flour, sugar and salt into a medium sized bowl and whisk together to combine. Using a pastry blender cut in butter and shortening until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Using a fork, mix in water a tablespoon at a time, tossing liquid into flour mixture just until mixture holds together. Remove dough to a board and knead slightly just until it holds together. Divide in two and flatten to discs. Wrap well in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours, or overnight.

Filling:

2 large lemons (I used Meyer lemons)

1-1/2 cups sugar (if using another type of lemon increase sugar to 2 cups)

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

1/4 cup butter, melted

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

 2 tablespoons Heavy Cream & Sugar for garnish

Wash lemons well using soap, rinse and dry. Grate lemon zest into a bowl, and then slice whole lemons very thin. Remove seeds and discard. Add lemon slices and any accumulated juice to sugar and salt in a medium sized bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 24 hours.

To make pie preheat oven to 425. Roll one disc of pastry out and place in bottom of 9 inch pie pan. Place in freezer to chill briefly while you make the pie filling. In a large bowl, mix together melted butter and flour. Add eggs and whisk until all ingredients are incorporated and smooth. Stir in macerated lemon/sugar mixture. Fill pie. Roll second disc of pastry out and top filled pie. Fold edges under and crimp. Decorate top as desired, then brush with heavy cream and dust with sugar. Bake pie for 25 minutes or until golden brown, then reduce heat to 350 and bake another 30 minutes. Cool and serve at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers. Download Shaker Lemon Pie

A year ago - Bacon and Tomato Risotto

Salmon Pot Pie

In my opinion pot pie is the epitome of down home comfort food. Although it can be a humble sort that makes use of those darn blankety blank leftovers, it can also morph into an elegant dish worthy of the fanciest of dinners. Take this salmon pot pie for example.

This particular version starts with duxelles which is just a fancy term for minced mushrooms sauteed in butter along with garlic, salt and pepper. Layered on the bottom of a couple of ramekins, the sauteed mushrooms are covered by a rich, flavorful sauce constructed from golden brown onions, white wine, vegetable stock and cream and jazzed up with chopped fresh parsley and dill. Topped with blanched asparagus and chunked up salmon (I used a leftover plank cooked fillet), it gets a puff pastry lid before it hits the oven.

Using the mushrooms and the cream sauce, the pie can really be made from any kind of seafood you wish - shrimp, scallops, cod whatever and if you're not into seafood chicken would work wonderfully well too. You could also change out the dill in the sauce and use fresh tarragon instead and as for the pastry top - keep it simple and use mashed potatoes if you'd rather. Personally I'm a tad partial to pastry in any form, but use your imagination and add whatever turns your crank. You'll be amazed and so will your dinner partner. Mine sure was!

Salmon Pot Pie (inspired by High Plains, Cinda Chavich)

1/4 cup butter, divided

1 cup minced mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

1 medium onion, minced

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup vegetable stock

1/2 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

8 ounces pre-cooked salmon

8 asparagus spears, cut into 1-1/2 inch pieces and blanched

A sheet of puff pastry, thawed per package directions

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a sauté pan over medium heat and add minced mushrooms and garlic. Cook, stirring until mushrooms are tender and dry – about 10 minutes. Remove to 2 ramekins that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Spread evenly on the bottom and set aside. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to the pan and add onion. Cook until onion is golden brown and tender. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute, then slowly whisk in wine, vegetable stock and whipping cream. Season with salt and pepper and cook until sauce is thickened – about 3 or 4 minutes. Stir in chopped parsley and dill. Pour sauce on top of mushrooms in ramekins. Top with asparagus and salmon chunks. Preheat oven to 400. Place ramekins on a sheet pan and top with puff pastry. Decorate as you wish, then cut slits in top of pastry to allow steam to escape. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until top is golden brown and pies bubble. Serves 2. (Note, may use uncooked salmon – just cut into one inch cubes, and make sure all bones and skin has been removed. Cook for 30 minutes).

A year ago - Stacked Pizza and Fried Ravioli

Cinnamon Caramel Apple Pear Pie

There are pies and then there are capital "P" pies. Suffice to say, this beauty belongs to the capital variety.

I'm not sure if you remember, but some time ago I made an apple pie and swore I'd never use another recipe as long as I lived.I followed the recipe of that previous pie and upped it a notch or 10.

Old fashioned in the extreme, this version's loaded with 3 kinds of apples including Granny Smith, Golden Delicious and Rome Beauty as well as a couple of Bosc pears. Topped with a buttery cinnamon caramel kissed with some of that fabulous Meukow Cognac we discovered while we were on vacation, it is without question, the most incredibly sublime work of pastry art ever to depart our oven. Using a variety of apples means some remain crisp while others cook to a creamy consistency; the sugary crust is crisp and delicious and the cinnamon caramel well let's just say it's really good...GOOD being the understatement of the century.

Oh in case you're wondering, this wasn't what we had for dinner last night but it is for certain our sweet treat for the week.  Last night we were guests of some members of the Mountain Oyster Club here in Tucson for a soiree of epic proportions so JBug's Kitchen was dark last night.

Cinnamon Caramel Apple Pear Pie (Adapted from allrecipes.com)

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 water

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Dash salt

1 tablespoon Meukow Cognac

Melt butter in a small pot over medium low heat. Add flour and cook, stirring to form a paste. Quickly mix cinnamon together with sugars and add to pot along with water and salt. Bring to a boil whisking constantly, then lower heat and simmer for 2 to 3 more minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cognac.  

 Your favorite recipe for a double crust pie

 3 Granny Smith apples

2 Golden Delicious apples

1 Rome Beauty Apple

2 Bosc Pears

Preheat oven to 425. Peel, core and thinly slice apples and pears. Line pie pan with bottom crust and top with apples and pears, mounding them up in the center. Top with lattice crust and crimp edges. Gently pour sugar/butter mixture over the crust, pouring very slowly so it doesn’t run off. Bake for 15 minutes, then lower heat to 350 and bake for 55 minutes or until apples are tender. Cool to room temperature before cutting.

A year ago - Blackberry Pie Bars

Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie

Step aside for the accolades because this is the kind of thing that makes your significant other and your dinner guests think you walk on water. Never mind because they'll think you really fussed too. Well, I'm going to let you in on a big secret, so hunker down with your morning coffee and give a listen.

I first told you all about this Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie way back in May of 2009 and at that time I followed the recipe religiously. A pecan crust topped with a layer of vanilla ice cream followed by tart and creamy scratch made lemon curd; topped with another layer of ice cream and some gorgeous fluffy meringue - the whole thing holds beautifully in the freezer until it hits a hot oven for its golden cap. It's impressive, incredibly delicious and palate cooling too - a perfect summer dessert.

It seemed like just the ticket for dessert on Saturday night when we had Stan and Donna over for dinner; however, our favorite local market wanted the ghastly sum of $12.99 a pound for pecans which would have made the darn pie about the most expensive thing since a krugerrand. I'm nothing if not resourceful.

Here's the re-write on the recipe and if you're in shock and awe that I'd admit to such shortcuts then you don't know me very well! Right from the get go I promised I'd be totally honest with all of you and heck, I even bragged to our guests that I'd spent a grand total of 15 minutes whipping it up, excluding freezer time!

You'd best put this one on your Labor Day Weekend menu because believe me, your popularity is going to soar. I mean really - try to imagine being loved for more than your pretty face and sparkling personality!

Tastes Like You Fussed Frozen Lemon Meringue Pie (inspired by Bon Appetit, April 2007)

1 prepared shortbread or graham cracker pie crust (I used Keebler)

1.5 quarts good quality vanilla ice cream (I used Breyers)

1 – 10.5 ounce jar prepared Lemon Curd (I used Trader Joe’s)

4 egg whites, room temperature

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

6 tablespoons white sugar

Soften ice cream slightly to make it easy to spread. Place half the container in the bottom of the pie crust and spread evenly. Top with entire jar of lemon curd, spreading to the edges of the crust. Return ice cream to freezer. Freeze pie for 1 hour. Remove pie from freezer and top with the rest of the carton of ice cream, piling it up to a dome in the center. Return pie to the freezer for a minimum 2 hours.

Using electric mixer and very clean bowl and beaters, beat egg whites until frothy. Beat in cream of tartar, then with mixer running, slowly add sugar about a half tablespoon at a time. Beat until meringue is very stiff. Pile onto frozen ice cream pie, making sure to spread to the crust and seal the edges. May be returned to the freezer at this point and frozen. Just before serving, using a kitchen torch, toast meringue until golden brown, or place pie in a preheated 500 F oven until meringue is golden brown. Cut pie into wedges and serve immediately. Return any remaining pie to the freezer. May be made a day or two in advance  Download Taste Like You Fussed Frozen Lemon Meringue Pie

A year ago - Mango Chutney

Legal Sea Foods' Spicy Crabcakes and a Peach Pie

Five years ago the Big Guy made a trip to Boston and as per his habit, brought back the Legal Sea Foods Cookbook to add to our collection. Last night's dinner of spicy crab cakes on a crunchy salad's adapted from the book and it made for a perfect hot summer night celebration. It was even more perfect after a piece of warm from the oven peach pie.

The great thing about making crab cakes for dinner is they really do need some time to mellow in the refrigerator before hitting the fry pan or oven. It means you can get your dinner darn near totally prepped in advance and sit back and relax with an iced tea until it's time to eat.

These particular crab cakes are the Balitmore version and include worcestershire sauce and Old Bay seasoning along with mayo, mustard, and hot pepper sauce. While the recipe calls for crushed saltines, I used panko instead along with an egg to bind them all together and fried them rather than putting them in the oven. Along with tartar sauce, they made for a quick tasty and light dinner which was great because we needed to keep room for the pie.

An old fashioned peach pie, this one's nothing unusual with brown sugar, cornstarch for thickening, lemon juice for a touch of the tart, along with little cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla just because. I was going to add some raspberries just because I love a peach and raspberry pie but we'll save that for later because I'm pretty darn positive that once we get through this pie, we'll be wanting another one.

Course we also WANT to be skinny which means no pie, and heck while we're at it we WANT to win the lottery too. We all know there's a snowball's chance in hell of either thing happening. After all, this is JBug's Kitchen so I gotta' cook and as for the lottery, you have to buy the darn tickets first. Oh well!

Spicy Crab Cakes (adapted from Legal Sea Foods Cookbook by Roger Berkowitz and Jane Doerfer)

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Few drops hot pepper sauce

Dash Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1 large egg beaten

1/2 cup finely crushed saltines (or panko)

1 pound fresh crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage

In a medium bowl combine mayonnaise, dry mustard, Dijon, hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire, Old Bay and egg and beat well. Add crumbs and mix to combine. Fold in crab. Form crab 6 large cakes and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for minimum 1 hour. Bake for 20 minutes at 400 or fry in a nonstick pan with 2 tablespoons of oil and 2 tablespoons of butter. Serve immediately. Serves 4. Download Spicy Crab Cakes

Old Fashioned Peach Pie (adapted from Purity Cookbook)

7 large peaches, skin removed

Juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pastry for a double crust pie

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Granulated sugar

 

Preheat oven to 400. Cut peaches into wedges and place into a large bowl. Add lemon juice and vanilla and toss to coat. In a small bowl combine brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Pour over peaches and toss to combine. Line a 9 inch pie plate with pastry. Add prepared peaches, top with butter and finish with top crust. Seal edges well and flute. Brush crust with heavy cream and sprinkle with sugar.  Place on a rack over a large baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, then lower heat to 350 and bake for addition 45 minutes or until juices run clear. Cool before slicing. Download Old Fashioned Peach Pie

A year ago - Asian Pork Salad

 

Bacon and Onion Pie

My very old and well used 9 inch quiche pan finally cracked in two the other day and so I'm left with a giant Bodum beauty that not only makes a wonderful gratin, but when you need a pie for a crowd it's the pan to use.  It does take some finagling to come up with the right quantities to fill the darn thing up. I was up to the challenge last night and made a giant sized bacon, onion and cheese pie for dinner.

OK, so by another name this is really a Quiche Lorraine but I can't say the "quiche" word in this house without the Big Guy getting shivers. He did however eat two pieces of the "pie" and he's got more in his lunch box today. Funny isn't it? What a curfuffle for nothing.

Filled with some of our homemade bacon pieces, golden brown sauteed onions and gouda cheese, last night's pie also made good use of some egg whites I had on hand from making ice cream. Speaking of cream, I was a little short on the stuff but I added yogurt instead and honestly it didn't seem to make a difference as far as taste or texture. The end result was still light, creamy and fluffy all at the same time and with a salad, great dinner fodder on a hot June night. 

Quiche Lorraine (a JBug’s Kitchen original)

1 – 12 inch pie shell

1-1/2 cups crisp bacon pieces

1 large onion, finely chopped and sautéed until soft and golden brown

1-1/2 cups Gouda cheese cubes (1/4 inch cubes)

4 eggs

4 egg whites

1-1/2 cups half and half

1 cup plain yogurt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Prick bottom of pie shell and bake for 8 to 10 minutes until lightly golden. Remove and cool on a wire rack. Reduce oven heat to 375.  Sprinkle bacon pieces on bottom of cooled crust followed by sautéed onion and cheese cubes. In a large bowl, beat together eggs and egg whites. Add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined. Pour over bacon, onion and cheese. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until knife inserted into center comes out clean.  Makes 8 to 10 servings.

A year ago - Vietnamese Pork and Shrimp Meatballs

 

Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie

Oh my, oh my this is quite the pie. Who says you have to have birthday cake when you can have a birthday pie! Now this Birthday Boy doesn't look the least bit unhappy does he.

This pie's made particularly special with a layer of bittersweet chocolate ganache next to the chocolate wafer crust. Before you say the obvious, yes I took the easy route and bought a ready made crust; however, it's just as easy to whip one up if you can find the chocolate wafers that is. I know I could have made it using oreo cookies but then I'd have to eat the rest of the package and all that yummy cream filling and this seemed much more calorically responsible.Good excuse isn't it when I was really just too darn lazy. Ha.

As for the rest of the pie - loads of bananas next to the rich chocolatey ganache topped with the the most perfect vanilla pastry cream all crowned with rum flavored whipped cream - well neither one of us could find a single thing to complain about.

You try it and tell me if you can come up with anything, OK?

Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie (adapted from Bon Appetit)

1 ready made chocolate wafer crust or your favorite recipe

Pastry Cream:

1-1/2 cups half and half

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Bring half and half to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Do not boil. Meanwhile whisk together sugar and flour, then add eggs. Beat well to combine. Whisk in hot half and half gradually to temper the eggs, the return everything to the pot. Continue cooking whisking constantly until mixture thickens and large “blurp” bubbles come to the surface. Let it “blurp” bubbles for 1 minute but be sure not to scorch it. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Remove to a bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto surface of pastry cream. Chill until cold (about 2 hours).

Ganache:

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons whipping cream

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

4 ounces bittersweet or semi sweet chocolate, chopped

1 teaspoon vanilla

Heat cream and butter over medium heat until butter is melted and cream is hot. Do not boil. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Pour ganache onto chocolate wafer crust and chill until firm (about 30 minutes). * Note – do not increase the amount of chocolate because otherwise the ganache will be too hard to cut and pie must be served cold.

To finish pie:

4 large ripe bananas

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons powdered icing sugar

1 tablespoon light rum

Slice bananas and place over chocolate ganache. Whisk pastry cream until smooth and spread cream evenly over bananas. Refrigerate until pastry cream is set – about 3 hours. Mix cream, powdered sugar and rum together then whip until cream is stiff. Pile or pipe cream on top of pie. Garnish pie with sliced bananas or grated chocolate. Download Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie

A Butter Tart You Say

Butter tarts are the epitome of Canadian cooking and while many old time Canadian foods can often be traced to an old world birth like maybe a French, English or even Scottish influence, according to CBC Canada the butter tart is "one of the of the few genuine Canadian recipes that exists".

One of the earliest written recipes for butter tarts comes from Northern Ontario in 1915 and while regionally there's some differences in what's in one, they all have three things in common - butter, sugar and eggs.

Normally made in individual pastry shells, I decided to make the ultimate of all butter tarts with a shortbread crust in a nine inch tart pan - just because I'm lazy and it is a lot easier. This particular version also includes maple syrup, walnuts and raisins, though the raisins will make some people from my homecountry weep in despair. Other additions include coconut or pecans instead of walnuts although I've been known to make them with hazelnuts on occasion too. By the way, there's a dash of vinegar in this one to cut the sweetness somewhat but no worries; if you've a sweet tooth, this recipe is guaranteed to satisfy it - no problem.

To give you a lesson from the book of Canadian etiquette - there are a few things that come under the "do not discuss" chapter so here's a head's up:

1. Religion (very personal);
2. Politics (even more personal);
3. Raisins, currents, nuts, all or none in your butter tarts.

So just remember, if you're ever invited into a Canadian's home for dinner don't ask your hostess how she voted or you'll likely hear in no uncertain terms that "it's none of your business". Of course, failing that because after all we Canadians are so blinkin' polite, you can be sure you'll never be invited back again.

Speaking of voting, did you know the Canadian Parliament was dissolved on Saturday, March 26 and there's been a general election called for May 2nd. That's May 2nd of THIS YEAR (2011) meaning the entire campaign is just over a month long. Now isn't that enough to make you crazy?

Big Butter Tart  (A JBug’s Kitchen original)

Pastry:

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Dash salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour sugar and salt in medium sized bowl. Add butter and vanilla and cut butter in with a pastry blender until crumbly. Press on sides and bottom of tart pan with removable bottom. Place on a rack on a sheetpan. Bake for 18 minutes.

Filling:

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons butter, melted

2 eggs

1 teaspoon white vinegar

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup raisins which have been plumped in hot water and well drained

1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts

Combine brown sugar, flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add melted butter, eggs, vinegar, maple syrup, vanilla and whisk to combine well. Add raisins and walnuts. Pour onto shell and bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until top is golden and center has a slight jiggle. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes before loosening sides and removing sides of pan. Serve warm or cold with or without whipped cream or ice cream. Download Big Butter Tart

 

Pear and Apple Crumble Pie

Looking for something sweet to make your Valentine today that isn't all about chocolate? Well here's just the ticket - a lovely old fashioned pear and apple pie.

Loaded with pears along with a single red and lovely Rome Beauty Apple, the pie reaches a higher level with the addition of sour cream and egg that forms a lovely creamy rich custard surrounding the fruit. Kissed with a touch of vanilla (Eau de vie would be wonderful too) the pie's topped with a crispy crunchy cinnamon flavored crumble. It is a glorious thing! 

Pear & Apple Crumble Pie (adapted from allrecipes.com)

Pastry for single crust pie

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup sour cream

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla (or Eau de Vie brandy)

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 pears, peeled, cored and sliced

1 Red Rome apple, peeled, cored and sliced

Topping:

3 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Line 9 inch pie plate with pastry and crimp as desired. Combine sugar, sour cream, flour, egg, vanilla and salt in a small bowl. Place one third of mixture on top of pastry and spread evenly. Top with pears, then spread another third of custard mixture on top of pears. Add layer of apples and finish with final third of custard. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile combine flour, sugar and cinnamon. Cut butter into dry ingredients to form a fine crumb. Remove pie from oven after 15 minutes and sprinkle crumble mixture evenly over top. Return to oven and bake addition 40 to 50 minutes or until pie is firm and pastry is golden. Allow to cool before cutting.

As you know, we're all about "real time" here in JBug's Kitchen, so unfortunately I can't share our Valentine's Day feast with you until tomorrow; however, if you're stuck wondering what on earth to cook for your special someone and you've waited too long to make reservations, then here's a few ideas that are sure hits. Happy day everyone! Make it great, OK?

Pasta with Scallops & Shrimp             Salmon Wellington       

   

Biba's Bolognese with Risotto            Antipasti Platter

     

For Your Valentine

Do you know why Valentine's Day is synonymous with roses and chocolate? Uh, I don't know about roses but I do know the Aztec's believed chocolate "was a source of spiritual wisdom, incredible energy and elevated sexual power". I guess that takes care of that doesn't it!

If you're looking to increase your vitality or that of your significant other, you might want to take a few of these ideas into consideration for the special day of love coming up on Monday.
For instance try this Chocolate Raspberry Cream Pie. The big guy much prefers pie over cake and this one is rich, creamy, definitely chocolaty and was a big hit as his birthday dessert last year.

Of course, if cake's your thing, do what I did in December and pipe the cream filling over a thin layer of chocolate cake in individual foil cups. The flavor's almost the same and they're rather easy to eat all toadied up in their own little package. They were pretty darn popular at our Christmas party too.

If you aren't interested in either cake or pie, the filling's just lovely on its own in a large bowl. I mean what's more romantic than a mousse with two spoons?

 

Chocolate Raspberry Cream Pie (from JBug’s Kitchen)

Chocolate Crumb Crust: Preheat oven to 350

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

2 Tablespoons powdered sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

 Mix together ingredients until well combined. Press into a 9” pie plate. Bake in 350 oven for 8 minutes. Cool completely.

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon butter

Melt chocolate chips and butter in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well, then coat bottom of cooled crust with an even layer of chocolate. Cool in refrigerator to harden.

Chocolate Cream Filling:

1-1/2 cups whole milk

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 Tablespoons corn starch

1 egg

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup whipping cream, whipped

1-1/2 cups fresh raspberries

In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup milk until hot. In medium sized bowl whisk together sugar, cocoa powder and corn starch. Slowly add 1/2 cup cold milk. Whisk until well combined. Whisk in egg. Gradually pour hot milk into mixture, whisking well to combine. Transfer contents of bowl back into saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking often for about 10 minutes or until thickened to a pudding consistency. Remove from heat, stir in chocolate chips and vanilla. Transfer to a bowl and place plastic wrap directly on top of pudding to keep it from forming a skin. Refrigerate until cool.

Beat cream until it reaches stiff peaks. Fold gently into cool pudding mixture.  Arrange raspberries on top of chocolate covered graham crust. Spoon filling on top. Refrigerate until set (at least 2 hours or up to 1 day in advance).

Chocolate Ganache

6 ounces dark chocolate, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon sugar

Place chocolate into a small bowl. Heat cream, butter and sugar in microwave until boiling. Pour over chocolate in a bowl, cover immediately with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes. Remove cover, and stir well to make sure chocolate is evenly melted. Set aside to cool in refrigerator until almost hardened.  When almost hardened, beat with an electric mixer until light, fluffy and smooth (about 3 minutes). Spoon into piping bag and decorate top of pie as you wish. Download Chocolate Raspberry Cream Pie

 

 

 

Grandma's Apple Pie with Cinnamon Ice Cream

Yesterday was a day of repeats with Croque Madame sandwiches for lunch and Pork Chile Verde for dinner. The big guy's hunting partner was here for an overnighter and just left to head up to the wild blue yonder to set up their huntin' camp. John loves my cooking and I'm always looking for something that will knock his socks off. I found it in this version of an apple pie.

Simply loaded with Granny Smith apples in a pastry crust and covered with a lattice top, the pie's dribbled with a hot butter, sugar, water and vanilla syrup before it goes into the oven. I for one wondered how it could possibly turn out when we bakers are always so careful about making certain our pastry stays super cold before it hits the oven. Well the proof is in the picture, isn't it?

This is an honest purist's apple pie that is all about the fabulous tart flavor of the apples without a speck of cinnamon in sight. It's just sweet enough with a wonderful hint of vanilla and the pastry has crunch, particularly the lattice top where the heat of the oven has set the sugary glaze on top. It is absolutely the best and ONLY apple pie I will ever make again...at least that's what I promised the big guy, when he suggested I "quit fooling around" by trying other recipes. Whether I can stick to it or not is another story.

Never having made an apple pie without cinnamon I thought I'd better come up with some ice cream to take care of it in case we really missed the flavor. Adapted from a Paula Deen recipe, this one has ...gasp...uncooked eggs along with evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and half and half with a good bit of cinnamon and vanilla of course to take care of the flavors. It's rich without being overly sweet, especially since I cut back on the sugar. While the flavors are everything one could want in ice cream dressing an apple pie, personally I found the texture to be not as creamy as a custard based version made with whipping cream and I doubt that I'll make it again...but the pie, oh man that pie!

Of course the calories weren't there either in the ice cream (or not as many since I used low fat versions of the milk) which isn't such a bad thing, but isn't that about as ridiculous as ordering a triple bacon cheeseburger and fries with a diet soda. I mean who's fooling who, right?

Grandma’s Apple Pie (Adapted from allrecipes.com)

Your favorite pastry recipe for a double crust pie

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

Dash salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

6 extra large Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored and sliced

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add flour and combine to form a paste. Add water, sugars, and salt. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, then lower heat and let simmer slowly. Add vanilla.

Preheat oven to 425. Line pie pan with bottom crust. Mound sliced apples in pastry and top with lattice crust and crimp edges. Gently add the sugar/butter liquid over the crust, pouring very slowly so it doesn’t run off. Bake for 15 minutes at 425 then lower heat to 350 and bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until apples are tender. Cool to room temperature before cutting.

Cinnamon Ice Cream (Adapted from Paula Deen)

2 eggs

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 – 12 ounce can evaporated milk

1/2 of 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup half and half

Using an electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar until light lemon color. Add cinnamon and beat very well to combine. Add evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Stir in half and half. Cover and refrigerate for several hours to blend flavors.  Freeze as per your Ice Cream machine’s instructions. Remove from ice cream machine and freeze in air tight container for minimum 2 hours. Makes about 1-1/2 quarts.  (Note, if you're worried about using uncooked eggs use a pasteurized liquid eggs instead).

My oh my oh my - Cajun Shrimp & Peanut Butter Pie

Cotton isn't the old great thing to come from the south. A good feed of cajun shrimp and peanut butter pie will have you wondering what else you're missing. We took a little trip yesterday through our crowded refrigerator and this is what we came up with.

I posted these Cajun Shrimp before but it was a hot day in Tucson and turning on the oven was not an option, so I cooked them in a cast iron pan on top of the stove. This time they were done in the oven and I've got to admit there's no comparison in flavor. Oven wins hands down. I know I've repeated a few things during this month at the beach that we've had before, but this is one dish you'll be happy to have in your recipe box and use often. It is that good. Thanks to Southern Living and myrecipes.com for bringing it into our lives. To make it easier, here's the recipe. Download Cajun Shrimp

Now, as for the peanut butter pie, I've been making this little gem for years and years. It was a particular favorite of the big guy's staff during the old days in Grants Pass. It is extremely rich and creamy and a small piece goes a very long way, and for those of you who love Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, you may just have found their equal. I used a ready made chocolate crust, but oreo cookie crumbs or chocolate wafers and a food processor would make short work of creating one from scratch.Download Peanut Butter Pie I garnished the pie with chopped peanut butter cups and a drizzle of Hershey's Chocolate Sauce.

Well I've gotta run. There's a big pan of cinnamon buns in the oven and the aroma is driving us insane. Happy Friday, y'all! 

Clam Chowder, New England of Course

First post and I feel the need to apologize for the quality of the pictures. We're learning as we go and since GMan is the resident photographer, because I can't take a pic without moving the camera, we are experimenting with lighting. I promise we'll get better.

 

We had our neighbors over for dinner and a game of Mexican Train (Dominoes), thus the huge pot of chowder. The story behind the chowder - This family gets out of Dodge and heads to the Oregon coast for a month in the summer. It wasn't always that way, but after the first 3 years of the unending heat, I put my foot down and said Max and I would be escaping the furnace and GMan was welcome to join us if he could. Then I dropped the bomb that we'd be gone for a month. He quickly decided to join us.

The Oregon coast has alot of wonderful things to offer, including incredible clams called "cockles". The daily limit of 20, yields between 1-1/2 & 2 pounds of meat.  Needless to say, we ate more than our fill of clam chowder, clam's casino, linguini with clam sauce...clams,clams,clams. The remaining ones were put on dry ice and brought home to the desert. We're almost out of last year's haul - time to go back ya'think?

This chowder recipe is based on a recipe from the Silver Palate New Basics Cookbook. I make my chowder with bacon. Lots of bacon. I've also found that making a blonde roux adds a tremendous amount of flavor. Its an extra step that doesn't take alot of time but really pays off in the end. To a chowder purist, they'd think I was from the wrong planet, but the addition of Old Bay, as well as some hot sauce, can really make a difference too.

Download Recipe for Clam Chowder

Yippee, dessert! This Lemon Tart is a combination of two recipes, the crust from Ina Garten and the curd is an internet recipe I found. The curd's made from Meyer lemons that we grow in our side yard. Its really the first year the lemon tree has given us a significant amount of fruit (its a 3 year old tree). Meyer lemons are a lot sweeter than regular lemons and certainly different in color and shape. That's a meyer lemon on the left side in the wooden box with regular lemons on the right. Meyers are worth looking for if you've the opportunity to try them. They also make incredible Limoncello but we'll go there at another time.

 

Download Meyer Lemon Tart  I apologize for not removing the tart from the pan before taking the picture. Honestly, I just didn't think about it. The crust was great but the lemon curd only fair. Next time I'll add less sugar and more rind - maybe even mix the rind of regular lemons in with it. The flavor was very subtle and I'd like a little more kick. Be sure to put the curd through a fine screen strainer before putting it into the tart pan. I find this step necessary when making an egg based filling without using a double boiler.