Ham Bean Nirvana

Ham Bean Nirvana

Leftover meaty ham bone--if you don't have one, a couple of ham hocks will do, but this is really a classic leftovers recipe

4 cups dried great northern or navy beans (any white bean will do), picked over and washed

2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried thyme
3 cloves garlic, crushed--just smack em hard with a heavy can, throw out the peels and there ya go
4 whole peppercorns
Water to cover the beans at least twice over

I use a slow cooker for this, but you could also use a soup pot; it's really best with a slow cooker. Basically, throw everything in the cooker, put it on high with the lid on and come back 6-8 hours later.

You should have a slightly soupy incredibly good-smelling pot of ham beans waiting.

If you do this on the stovetop you'll have to bring it to a boil, then turn it down to a simmer and watch to make sure you don't boil off the water. Just replenish it if it gets low.

I serve this with steamed greens like kale, chard, collards or a mix thereof and corn bread. Put some of the "pot liquor" from the beans over the greens and corn bread and experience true Ham Bean Nirvana.

Notes
If this doesn't lead you to True Dried Bean Enlightenment, then there is no hope for your taste buds. These are that good, and extremely easy. This recipe makes a great deal, so be prepared to freeze leftovers.

Lynn S.
(11/26/06)

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Ada's Indian Pudding

Ada's Indian Pudding

Here's another contribution to the recipe collection.  My mom wrote this up for the 100th Anniversary Cookbook of the Springfield, Maine Congregational Church Ladies' Circle, but the recipe came from our friend Ada who belonged to the church in West Brooksville, Maine where my dad was the pastor.  There's nothing like a church ladies' cookbook.  ahem.

1 quart milk, scalded in double boiler

Mix in a bowl:
5 tbsp corn meal
1/2 cup molasses
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt

Stir this into the hot milk and cook a few minutes until it thickens.

Add 1/2 cup seedless raisins. Pout into baking dish and bake at 325°F for an hour or so.  Add 1 cup cold milk and cook an hour and a half more. Stir occasionally until the last half hour.

The cookbook also has recipes for Beet Jelly, Clover sugar syrup (like honey, minus the bees), brown bread steamed in cans, and ham smoking brine, if anyone's interested.  And both my aunt's and my uncle's baked bean recipes, because they could never agree on the right way to make 'em.  <g>

The Scullerymaid
(11/26/06)

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Pumpkin Shrimp Risotto

Pumpkin Shrimp Risotto

6 baby pumpkins*
24 unpeeled, large fresh shrimp
1 lb. unpeeled, medium-size fresh shrimp
1-1/2 lb. shiitake mushrooms
1 (2 oz) package fish bouillon cubes
2 quarts boiling water
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
6 shallots, chopped
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 lb. Arborio rice
1 (3 oz) package refrigerated shredded Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tbsp butter or margarine

Buerre Blanc Sauce
Garnishes: fresh dill sprigs, whole shiitake mushrooms

Cook baby pumpkins in 1/2" boiling water in a Dutch oven, covered, 20 minutes or until tender; drain. Cut off and reserve tops. Peel pumpkins, and cut in half. Discard seeds. Mash pulp, and set aside 1-1/4 cups, reserving remainder for another use.

Peel large shrimp, leaving tails on; de-vein, if desired, and set aside. Peel medium shrimp, and devein, if desired; set aside.

Discard mushroom stems; thinly slice caps.

Stir together fish bouillon cubes and 2 quarts boiling water until bouillon dissolves.

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat; add shallots, garlic, and rice, and sauté until shallots are tender.

Add 1 cup hot fish broth; cook, stirring constantly, until liquid is absorbed. Repeat procedure with remaining hot broth, 1 cup at a time. (Cooking time is 35 to 40 minutes.) Add 1 cup mashed pumpkin (reserve remaining 1/4 cup pumpkin for Beurre Blanc Sauce), medium shrimp, sliced mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, and thyme; cook, stirring constantly, 8 to 10 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink.

Melt 1 tbsp. butter in a large skillet; add large shrimp, and sauté 2 to 4 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink.

Spoon pumpkin risotto onto serving plates, and drizzle evenly with Beurre Blanc Sauce. Arrange large shrimp around risotto, and top with reserved pumpkin tops. Garnish, if desired.

*1-1/4 cups canned pumpkin maybe substituted for pulp from 6 baby pumpkins.

Yield: 6 servings

Maggie
(11/26/06)

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Utterly Deadly Southern Pecan Pie

Utterly Deadly Southern Pecan Pie

OK Here's my contribution (and thanks for the help in wanting to know how big a half recipie will be.)

4 eggs
1-1/4 cups clear syrup
1-1/2 cups broken pecans
1 cup sugar
4 tbsp. butter
1 tsp vanilla

Boil sugar and syrup together for three minutes. Beat the eggs well (with mixer) then pour in slowly the hot syrup, (while beating), add the butter, vanilla, and pecan meats. Pour into a raw pie shell and bake 350°F for 45 minutes or until set.

Jeanne
(11/25/06)

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Kimchi de Provence

Kimchi de Provence

1 head Chinese (Nappa) Cabbage--you can use European cabbage but it's just not the same
4 tbsp Kosher salt--PLEASE use Kosher!
1 tbsp Herbes de Provence
1 bunch green onions, chopped, greens and whites
As many cloves of garlic as you can stand, peeled and chopped well--I use at least six

1 glass gallon jar with lid

Chop the cabbage very roughly--I just cut it right across the cabbage every inch or so. Discard the core.

In a big bowl, toss the cabbage, garlic and green onion with the salt and herbes de provence.

Pack into the glass jar. Take the end of your rolling pin (assuming you use a big thick dowel like I do) and lightly pound the contents in the jar. Your goal is not to pulverize but to get the cabbage juice flowing. Screw the lid on and leave on your counter at room temperature for 48-72 hours or so.

Refrigerate after opening. Delicious!

Notes
This is a "white" kimchi, without red pepper. It's not hot at all, but it has the benefits of fermented cabbage, which are numerous, and garlic.

To make more traditional kimchi, take the above recipe, add a nob of ginger peeled and chopped fine, leave out the herbes de provence, and add at least a tablespoon of red pepper flakes. You can add any vegetables you'd like to this, but I suggest staying away from broccoli, except maybe the stems.

Kimchi is very versatile, you can add or leave out garlic, ginger and/or red pepper and many different
flavorings. I do suggest for health reasons you have nappa cabbage as your base and add or subtract other things to it for different tastes.

It will last in your fridge for several weeks, and in fact will "ripen" and improve in flavor as it sits.

Lynn S.
(11/25/06)

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Brownie Cake Non-Recipe

Brownie Cake Non-Recipe
1 box of triple fudge brownie mix (the ghiardelli kind) mixed with a box of regular dark chocolate cake mix.

Add in a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Make it in layer pans, bake at 350°F until done, layer it with easy chocolate mousse (large container of cool whip whipped with cream cheese and chocolate instant pudding mix) and top with chocolate frosting and then decorated with cool whip rosettes and chocolate curls.

Diabetic death, as my family calls it.

You could buy a bag of the hard sugar icing candies. Get some of bluejeans or spongebob and cut off his head so that it's just the pants. There, he has chocolate and pants.

Miya
(11/09/06)

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Boca Negra (a chocolate cake... sort of)

Boca Negra (a chocolate cake... sort of)

Here's the chocolate cake recipe from Christy's gathering. Really easy -- but use good chocolate, please. You deserve the best! A variation on a recipe by Lora Brody

12 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (Ghiradelli chips work well)
1-1/3 cups sugar
1/2 cup bourbon (rum will do in a pinch)
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into 10 chunks
5 large eggs
1 tbsp + 1 tsp flour

Preheat oven to 350° F. Butter a 9" round cake pan, line bottom with waxed paper or parchment and butter that, then place in a shallow roasting pan.

Food processor directions:
Put chocolate in work bowl. Give it a whirl. Bring sugar and bourbon to a full boil and pour into the work bowl, process until completely blended. With the machine still running, add the butter, chunk by chunk, then the eggs, one at a time, then the flour. Mix another 15 seconds, then pour into pan.

Or...

By hand:
Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl, set aside. Mix 1 cup sugar with bourbon and bring to a full boil. Pour hot syrup over chocolate and stir till smooth. Piece by piece, add in butter chunks, making sure each is melted before you add the next. Put eggs and remaining sugar in a separate bowl and whisk until the eggs are slightly thickened. Add eggs to chocolate mix, whisking until well blended. Whisk in the flour. Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing top.

Add hot water to the roasting pan to come about an inch up the side of the cake pan. Bake for exactly 30 minutes. Top will have a thin, dry crust. Dry off pan, cover cake with plastic wrap, flip pan to remove cake, remove wax paper from the bottom, and flip right side up on serving plate. Remove plastic wrap.

Serve warm or room temp. Good with whipped cream. Chilled, it's too much like fudge (g).

Refrigerate if you're keeping it more than a day. It needs no frosting or other gilding of the lily, though I have served it with freshly whipped cream and raspberries on the side, if you feel the need.

Debbie
(11/10/06)

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Chocolate Kahlua Pecan Pie (from Dierbergs)

Chocolate Kahlua Pecan Pie (from Dierbergs)

Not cake, but just about as sinful as some of the other recipes - very tasty indeed ;oP

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

3/4 cup light corn syrup
2 tbsp Kahlua or other coffee liqueur
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter
1-1/2 cups pecan pieces
2 (1 oz each) squares unsweetened chocolate
1 - 9" unbaked pie crust
3 eggs

In small saucepan, bring corn syrup, brown sugar and butter to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in chocolate until melted; cool slightly.

In medium bowl, whisk eggs with Kahlua and vanilla. Slowly whisk in chocolate mixture. Stir in pecans. Pour into crust.

Bake on bottom rack in preheated 350ºF oven for 35–40 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Serve with Kahlua whipped cream. Store in refrigerator.Makes 10 servings.

Kahlua Whipped Cream:
In small chilled bowl, beat together 1 cup whipping cream, 3 tbsp powdered sugar and 1 tbsp Kahlua until soft peaks form.

Joy in MO
(11/10/06)

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Tunnel of Fudge Cake

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I give you the Tunnel of Fudge Cake.

THERE'S FAT EVERYWHERE. TRANSFATS IN THE ICING MIX when I make it. There are a couple other versions on allrecipes.com that make up an icing sludge with butter and sugar and cocoa. However, for your purposes, use the mix. And BE sure to add the nuts. Extra fat/calories...

Ice it with ganache: equal parts good chocolate and cream in a double boiler. Drizzle with white chocolate for 'looks' and even more calories.

But in order for your own kharma to be pure, do this with the glee of giving something really wonderful and special, not for revenge. Make it gorgeous and then chill it. OHMYGAWD.
Enjoy; ZW

1-3/4 cups butter, softened
1-1/2 cups white sugar
6 eggs
2 (7.25 oz) packages chocolate fudge frosting mix
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups chopped walnuts
2 tbsp boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350° F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10" Bundt pan. Measure 3/4 cup of the frosting mix for the chocolate glaze. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the remaining frosting mix and flour, mixing just until incorporated. Fold in the nuts.
3. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes. The top of the cake will form a brownie like crust before it is done. Allow to cool for 60 minutes in the pan, then cool completely on a wire rack before glazing.
4. To make the chocolate glaze: Mix together reserved 3/4 cup frosting mix and 2 tablespoons boiling water, stirring until smooth. Thin with additional boiling water if necessary to reach desired consistency. Spoon glaze over the cooled cake.

(11/10/06)

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Bugger the Cholesterol Chocolate Cake Recipe

Bugger the Cholesterol Chocolate Cake Recipe

It's a killer...

3 rounded tbsp really good cocoa powder
7 oz caster sugar
7 oz butter
3 large eggs
7 oz sr flour*
1 rounded tsp baking powder
1 handful flaked almonds
7 fl oz double cream

Topping:
4 oz butter
4 oz dark chocolate (lindt 85% cocoa is good)
4 oz icing sugar
3 tbsp milk

(*No clue as to what "sr flour" is. Sorry)


Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas 4.

Line 2" x 8" cake tins or grease and flour to line.

Mix cocoa powder with 4 tablespoons of boiling water until smooth paste.

In separate bowl, beat sugar and butter until fluffy, add the cocoa mixture, eggs, flour and baking powder. Mix well and fold in the almonds. Divide between 2 tins and bake for around 25 minutes.

Melt the chocolate topping ingredients in a bowl over some lightly simmering water. Stir until blended well and allow to cool.

Whip the double cream to soft peaks adding a little sugar to taste.

Place 1st layer of cooled cake onto cooling rack, with grease-proof paper under the rack.

Spread the cream over, then sprinkle with sliced strawberries if desired. Sandwich the 2nd sponge on top and lightly press down. Run a knife around the edge to smooth off the cream.

Pour topping over top layer of cake allowing to drizzle down and coat the sides.

Allow to firm up before tucking in.

Angela
(11/09/06)

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