Yes, I'm getting all fancy in my terminology, here. Baguettes, indeed.
After my milk had truly gone sour, as opposed to Patrick simply announcing it would be "rotten tomorrow", I used it in a variety of wonderful ways. One of those was this bread. It has a sour overtone reminiscent of sourdough bread, but without the waiting for the starter. That's a plus in my book. And while the dough was very stiff, and the crust very dark, the bread was absurdly soft. It was so soft, in fact, that I couldn't cut it while it was hot, because the knife crushed it. But here we are, two batches later, and it gets entirely consumed every time!
SOUR MILK BREAD
1-1/2 cups sour milk, heated to about 110F
6 tsp yeast
4 cups flour
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt4 tsp gluten
Add the yeast to the milk, add the remainder of the ingredients, and mix according to your bread machine's directions, or using my directions to the right. After the dough has been thoroughly mixed, let it rise 15 to 20 minutes, punch it down, and form 2 long or 3 short baguettes. Let it rise again until doubled in size, bake at 375F for 17 to 18 minutes, and let the loaves cool for a while before you cut them.
This bread also makes an excellent sandwich or toast!
Still to come: Red Devils Food Cake. Great stuff. But, tomorrow's Thorsday! You'll have to wait till Friday for cake.
Yes, it does sound disgusting, doesn't it? Since he was about 5 and learned to read, Patrick has been announcing that everything is "rotten" 2 or 3 days before its expiration date. It drives me up a wall. So, on the 7th (last Tuesday), he announced that 3 cartons of milk were rotten and he was throwing them out, because the little boys are too afraid of me to do so. I ordered him to cease and desist immediately, and took the milk to the regular refrigerator (as opposde to the bar sized "milk locker" under the pass through on which I place dinner every night). The next day, I made Candy Cane Ice Cream with this "rotten" milk. 
It's gone. Somehow, no one noticed that the ice cream was rotten. Maybe it was because no one can resist pretty pink food?
By Saturday, the milk was going sour. Perfect! I left it on the counter for a little while, and made a Cinnabun Coffee Cake with sour milk instead of fresh. 
It was wonderful - better than the original. My little guy spent the whole weekend grazing at it. And for that little weasel to keep coming back for something is a virtually unknown phenomenom!
One thing they all really enjoyed was my newest creation, Sour Milk Waffles. Of course, I didn't tell them these were made with the "rotten" milk, or no one would have tried them.
SOUR MILK WAFFLES
3 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp salt
5 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
3 eggs
2-1/4 cups sour milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Beat all ingredients together, and bake in a waffle iron. This batter can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days. (Sorry, but I couldn't get a picture before the little guys just dug into their waffles.)
I'm thinking bread and cake are next on the horizon for my "rotten" milk. What a week!
It was cold here last night. Not Alberta cold, but we don't generally see 15 degrees until January, and I'm seriously annoyed by this. So, I decided last night to make one of my "stir fry under the broiler" dinners to make the kitchen feel warmer. You can do this in a skillet, of course, but with the quantity of food I cook around here, a skillet is a stupid cooking tool.
GINGER BEEF STRIPS WITH VEGGIES
3 pounds steak, cut into strips
1 onion, minced1-1/2 pounds frozen broccoli florets
1 can bamboo shoots
fresh or canned mushrooms
1 tsp garlic powder2 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp sea salt
fresh ground pepper
2 cups beef broth
1/2 cup cold water whisked with 3 tbsp cornstarchArrange the steak in a single layer in the broiler pan, and sprinkle with half of the spices. Sprinkle half the minced onion around it, and cook under the broiler for about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, in a glass bowl, microwave the broccoli for 3 to 4 minutes to cook. Turn the steak, sprinkle with the remaining spices, and broil another 3 minutes. Arrange the broccoli, bamboo shoots and mushrooms over the steak, pour the water/cornstarch mix and beef broth over it, and broil another 2 to 3 minutes, until the sauce thickens and the veggies are hot. Serve over rice - I prepared a long grain and wild rice mix with 2 tbsp tomato paste, chopped parsley, 1/2 minced onion and 1/2 tsp sea salt.
There was a little bit of steak left over, and I hid it in the back of the fridge. This afternoon, I chopped the beef into small bits, I put it between slices of buttermilk bread with cheese and tomato slices, and grilled it in the George Foreman. We had those with pickles for lunch, and they were good. Tomorrow I'll probably wish I had more, but this was wonderful on a 19 degree afternoon with the wind howling outside my windows.
No need to get excited here. This is not named for the holiday, but for the color.
I was looking for a way to dress up a monotone, nutritious but visibly boring dinner. This is the result.
1 pound white fish
1 cup rice
1 tsp salt2 cups water
1 pound fresh or frozen spinach
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp cornstarch
4 tbsp butter
Start the rice with the water and 1 tsp salt. About 5 minutes before the rice is done, add half the spinach and half the tomatoes; stir in 2 tbsp of the butter when it's done. Meanwhile, melt 2 tbsp butter in a skillet, and cook the fish over medium heat with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. When the fish is finished, remove it to a plate and cover with the pan's lid. Add the cream to the skillet, whisk the milk with the cornstarch, and whisk into the skillet. Cook until it starts to thicken, then add half the spinach and half the tomatoes. Add the fish back to the pan and heat briefly. Serve immediately, topping with grated parmesan if desired.
It snowed Saturday, although we did only get about 2" of snow, and it's been cloudy most of the time since. But around 8 this morning, we did get a peek of sunshine.
It was gone by 10, and more snow is forecast for tomorrow, but I can look at my picture of sunshine and hope for the best, now can't I?
Some things are guaranteed in my little corner of the world. For example, every Sunday night I will cook part of a boneless turkey breast. Sunday through Thursday, a large chunk of meat (3 to 6 pounds, depending upon that day's population), a starch, two veggies (one of which must be green), bread and dessert will leave my kitchen and head for the table. Friday and Saturday night are supposed to be my nights off. Honestly, it was part of our marraige vows that I didn't have to cook on weekends. Now, that hasn't held true consistently since 1993, and not at all in this decade, but I still consider those my "nights off", and will only grudgingly cook pasta or stew or something similar.
So, Saturday night, in the midst of the snow irritating me, I decided I wanted Sloppy Joes. I have never cooked these since the day we were married. Ryan recognized them, having seen them in school lunches that other children ate before we took up homeschooling, but Patrick was dubious. Nonetheless, everyone declared these wonderful.
First, for the rolls...
KAISER ROLLS (Sort of?)
1-1/2 cups water
6 tsp yeast
4 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
4 tsp gluten2 tbsp vegetable oil
Sprinkle the yeast on the water, and add the other ingredients according to my earlier posted directions, OR just mix it up in your bread machine and shut it off after the first kneading. Let the dough rise 15 minutes, then dump it on a liberally floured surface (but not a granite countertop - it's too cold for bread dough). Form into 8 circles, squished down pretty hard, on a greased baking tray. Let them rise until doubled in size, then bake at 375F for 18 to 20 minutes, until the desired degree of brown is reached on the outside surface. Dust the flour off the tops and they're ready for Sloppy Joes or any other magnificent sandwich
SLOPPY JOES
2 pounds ground beef
2 minced onions
1 tsp salt
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp chili powder
4 chopped tomatoes2 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup quick cooking oats
Brown up the ground beef with the onions until cooked through, and drain. Add the spices and stir well, then stir in the tomatoes and paste. Let it simmer about 5 minutes, to let the tomatoes soften, then stir in the oats to thicken the sauce. Cook a couple of minutes longer, and serve on big, soft rolls with plenty of napkins.
Patrick explained that it's a good thing he had seen chili dogs while at college, and the first time he saw one, he asked the guy why someone had barfed on his hot dog. His reaction to this might have been the same had he not had these experiences. I guess the fact that he had never seen a chili dog prior to college also tells you something about my cooking style.
And, for the record, I ate my Sloppy Joe open faced, with a fork and knife, and saved half of my roll for Thor. He was grateful to eat something other than Bites & Bones.
So many of you laughed at Thor's picture from Dan's birthday that I thought I'd show you the whole goofy act.
He has to roll over against a wall, or else he's just too heavy to stay on his back.
And here's the supervisor I left in the kitchen while the girls were cooking the potatoes. He dares not stay in the kitchen when I'm there. The kids say it's something about "Mommy's Mean!"
Happy Thorsday, everyone!
When my oldest son was home for Thanksgiving, he brought me a gift from his girlfriend: a cookbook from her college. I've never met the girl, although she's been invited to come home with him several times, including Thanksgiving. I believe she's a little afraid of my vast horde of people. Now she promises she'll come up with my son during spring break; we'll see how that goes.
Anyway, with the cookbook, my son gave me this card:
I must not be the only one who ever said anything like this, although, being perfectly honest, my line is usually, "Shut up and eat, or eat and shut up. But either way, clean that plate." But this is close enough.
On another note, does anyone know anything about salt substitutes? My dearly beloved was recently diagnosed with high blood pressure - get yours checked! They don't tell you that high blood pressure is the second most common cause for kidney failure! He's eaten my cooking happily for years with the tiny amount of salt I use in the pans, but he just doesn't like meat or eggs without salt. Any suggestions? He's one of those disgusting people who can "forget" to eat one day, and lose 5 pounds. So I have to make him eat. Any salt substitute recommendations would be much appreciated!
My back yard has looked like this since Sunday. I am thankful that the temperature has remained above 34F, so the precipitation doesn't turn solid and white.
I am amazed, too, that the elm trees still hold their leaves!
(The pictures were taken out my kitchen window, because it was too wet and cold to go outside.)
