Cooking from "Scratch"

Cooking from scratch is sometimes simple, sometimes complicated or requires a mixture of experience and knowing what flavors work best with the dish. The southern, down-home recipes on this blog are designed for the new cook as well as the very experienced. All it takes is a little time in understanding the ingredients and steps.

I offer you recipes that I prepare often or recipes that are family traditions. I will tell you in advance if it is one that requires a bit of thought as I sometimes do not measure exact ingredients. These you can experiment with easily and none of them are complicated. That's the best part of scratch cooking, you can claim the dish as your own.

Note to new cooks: from scratch means you start with basic ingredients where nothing is pre-mixed and you have to measure the quantities.

Of course, there are recipes from others that have proven just too good to not share. Like the Best Breadmachine White Bread. It would be wrong to keep that to myself. Then there are those that are simply links to articles I've written elsewhere but they take you directly to the recipe.

We discuss using fresh vegetables, making your own seasonings, growing your own herbs and how to use them. I hope you stay for a while and enjoy using the recipes and suggestions. Leave a comment or share something. I will post the recipe with full credit to you if you do.

Cashew Pound Cake

Yummy scrumptious Cashew Pound Cake

Most of the time, when there are extra ingredients just sitting around I try to find something to do with them. And, if at all possible, use it in a pound cake or cobbler recipe.

This week I created a Cashew Nut Pound Cake using Fresh and Easy Cashew Nut Butter and Sunland Natural Tahini. I don't know if this is true of all Tahini but Sunland has no trans fat, no cholesterol, is sugar-free and salt-free. The cashew nut butter says not artificial preservatives, flavors or colors, no trans fat, no cholesterol. I mention the product by name because it is important to know exactly what the ingredients are not because I am an agent for that particular company. When I am I say so.

Along with the raw cashews added to the batter the results were outstanding and just what I was looking for. This is the perfect cake to serve with eggnog, coffee or tea. It tastes great toasted for breakfast. What it is not is low in calories and diet-friendly- it is loaded with butter and sugar.

Baking notes: I weigh the dry ingredients most of the time instead of measuring. You can find equivalents by Googling... or use this site: http://convert-to.com/conversion-of-ingredients-from-cooking-recipes

Cakes should be baked in the center of the oven.

• INGREDIENTS:
• 1 pound butter, room temperature
• 20 oz sugar
• 6 large eggs
• 6 oz milk, room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 20 oz plain white flour
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 Tbl Tahini
• 2 Tbl Cashew Nut Butter
• 3 3/4 oz raw cashews, processed to fine or chopped

Heat oven to 350∘
Spray or coat a bundt pan to keep cake from sticking while baking. Set aside.

In the mixer bowl, beat/whip butter until it is fluffy. Add Tahini and Cashew Nut Butter and beat until all are thoroughly blended. Turn off mixer.

On the scale, add the ground nuts to the weighing bowl then add enough flour to make 20 ounces total. Remove from scale and put into a mixing bowl. Add the sugar and nutmeg to the flour mixture and blend well with a whisk.

In a measuring cup, add 6 ounces of milk. If the milk is not room temperature, heat very briefly in a microwave to make it warmer. Add the vanilla flavoring to the milk and stir. Set aside.

Turn the mixer back on. Crack one egg at a time into a cup, small bowl or measuring cup and add one at a time to the butter mixture. When all eggs have been added, make sure they are mixed well into the butter.

With the mixer on low, add 1/3 of the milk; blend; add 1/3 of the flour; blend. Repeat until all is incorporated well and very fluffy.

Add batter to sprayed bundt pan. Mixture should fill most of the cake pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, checking after 60 minutes to test doneness. Cake should be firm in the middle and spring back after touching. Or do the toothpick test… stick a wooden toothpick in the middle and if it comes out clean the cake is done. If dough clings to it continue baking.

OXO Cookies for Kids' Cancer

Win this super, special cookie spatula!

This is one of the most exciting campaigns I've ever been a part of and you can join OXO in supporting the movement to find a cure for pediatric cancer.

But first, enter to win the neat cookie spatula in the photo. Just add a comment about this story. Be sure to leave contact information so we can notify the winner. Winning is based on a name draw so everyone has a fair chance. By the way, the only way to get the spatula is by winning it here or by visiting Bed Bath Beyond, amazon.com or look for locations at the site…www.oxogoodcookies.com to find a local retailer. They are sold out.


"OXO Cookies for Kids' Cancer is a recognized 501(c)3 charity duly incorporated under the laws of the state of New Jersey. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law."

This year OXO is donating up to $100,000 to support Cookies for Kids' Cancer. The organization was founded by two OXO employees and it is committed to finding a cure for pediatric cancer.

Okay, now for the good part- you can be a good cookie and help in the effort. It's easy!

• Join OXO' Cookie Community at oxogoodcookies.com
• Visit cookiesforkiedscancer.org to send fresh, made to order cookies
• Host a bake sale! Register yours at cookiesforkidscancer.org

To learn more, visit oxogoodcookies.com or "like" the organization at facebook.com/OXO.

My Cooking Wishlist

Cuisinart Smart Stick Hand Blender - 200W

It's early I know but with all the cooking to be done beginning very shortly I've begun my wishlist! What I need most urgently is a hand blender, an immersion tool that will help with salad dressings, sauces and a number of other things.

One of my favorite things to do is boil garlic cloves in the water with pasta or potatoes. After draining off the water, I remove them and blend with olive oil and seasoning. If I am making a sauce adding them to the liquid is a simple process that gives delicious results.

A simple and healthy salad dressing to use the same ingredients that are in your salad (minus the lettuce or spinach). Plum tomatoes, red onions, chives, celery and carrots blended with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and other dried or fresh herbs is heart healthy, diet friendly and delicious.

Jamaican Rice and Peas

This is a really tasty version of Jamaican Rice and Peas, and it is authentic. There are many variations of the traditional dish but they differ only slightly. Your kitchen will smell wonderful when it is cooking and for a while afterward. You will love it!

HELPFUL NOTE: 
Do not use dried pigeon peas. It takes special handling and a long, long cooking to get them soft enough. Do what native Jamaicans do and use canned beans, i.e. large or medium kidney beans or plain red beans. 

Do not be afraid to use a whole Habanero pepper. It makes the dish just spicey enough for a great flavor.

Cans of coconut milk usually contain 13.5 ounces. You need 32 ounces for the dish.

Test for salt as this recipe uses a minimum amount.

INGREDIENTS:
4 cups Coconut Milk (be sure it is coconut milk and not coconut juice)
3 cloves of crushed, minced or sliced garlic
1 pound of red beans (use canned beans)
1 stick of butter
1 fat stalk of green onion
1 sprig of thyme or powdered thyme to taste
1 whole scotch bonnet pepper (or use Habanero)
1 teaspoon of salt
4 Pimento berries (whole allspice)
500 grams of uncooked white rice (little over 2 cups U.S., just use 2 1/8 cups dry measure)

Wash and drain rice. Heat the coconut milk and garlic in a large pot. Bring to a boil (be careful it might boil over so keep an eye on it) and then add the beans. Add the stick of butter, salt, green onion, thyme, scotch bonnet (Habanero) and allspice berries. Add the drained rice, stir, cover and let steam for about 30 minutes.

Serve with Jerk Chicken and Red Stripe Beer

Chef Joseph Kalynuik's Jamaican Jerk Sauce

View of Jimmy's Buffet where Chef Joseph and his staff prepares the best

This is an authentic recipe for Jamaican Jerk Sauce. Chef Joseph is the head Sous Chef at Breezes Superfun Resort in Runaway Bay, Jamaica. He and his young staff produce some of the greatest dishes and meals outside of Louisiana!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup ground allspice berries
1/2+ cup packed brown sugar
6 to 8 garlic cloves
4 to 6 Scotch Bonnet peppers (Habaneros)

1 tablespoon ground thyme or 2 tablespoons thyme leaves
2 bunches green onions
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 tablespoons soy sauce to moisten

Instructions
Put everything in a food processor and blend until smooth. You may use allspice berries, if available, but use enough to give the equivalent of 1/2 cup ground. (Allspice berries and scotch bonnets are key ingredients.)

Rub the meat (chicken, pork or beef) with the seasoning. If using a pork shoulder, score the fat and rub seasoning in. With chicken, be sure to rub under skin and in cavities. Can also be used with fish but use a firm-fleshed like grouper.

Marinate overnight. Grill over a low fire until done. Charcoal is best but not essential. Meat will be smoked "pinkish" when done, and the skin will be nice and dark. Chop meat into pieces and serve traditionally with hard-dough bread and Jamaican Red Stripe Beer.

To make Dripping Sauce:
Reserve drippings from cooked product and add fresh chicken stock. Thicken with equal parts butter and flour; cook to make a blonde roux. Whisk into the heated liquid, strain. Saute minced carrot, jerk seasoning, garlic, scallions, assorted sweet peppers in vegetable oil. Flame with Overproof Rum (151 proof) and add Red Stripe beer. Salt and pepper to taste and serve with chicken, or pork. Can also be used on fish.

The Pig Roast

What got into me? I decided that before I landscaped my backyard, I would roast a whole pig by burying it in the ground! Regardless of all my worries, it came out fantastic, succulent and delicious. This was a group effort. If you get about 12 of your friends together, it will cost about $20 per person, for 130 lb pig at Lizze's http://www.manta.com/c/mm288z5/lizze-custom-processing in Chino.

Get instructions from http://bbq.about.com/od/barbecuehelp/a/aa061006a.htm. 
I also thank S. Terry for responding to all the questions he answered by email. A big thing he clarified for me was that you do not have to line the walls of the pit with anything, just the bottom where the pig and coals will sit. It took exactly 100 standard sized bricks to do that.

ABOUT PHOTOS: First, I was so involved in the process that taking pictures was not even an option. Second, the most interesting photo options have no business on a cooking blog like this one, lol. But this pic from apexhogroast.com is what you get...

The process:
Day 1-3: One very hardworking son (Brit)  spent 7 hours over three days digging a 4X3 pit in the hardest clay soil known to anyone. After 3 feet, he had to use a pick axe. Since we always used the area for gardening, that was really a surprise!

Day 4: Have your best friend, Bernice, drive you and another good friend, Veronica, to Chino to get the pig. All the pigs are live and you have to choose one. Prepare for a lot of squealing. Yikes. I just sort of pointed to one and Veronica and I ran away as quickly as possible.

It took about an hour and a half to process so we took off and had breakfast at a restaurant a ways down the road. I had Indio (cactus) tacos, freshly made potato chips, beans, rice and a fresh melon cooler. Yum! But while we were waiting, I got a call from Brit saying that the wood had burned to ashes! No way, that wasn't supposed to happen. The instructions said it would take most of the day for it to burn to coals which is why we started it that morning.

Back at the farm, we thought we would not get involved in any more of the processing if I just took my sales slip into the office, thinking they would go get my pig and load it into the car. No... I had to go onto the floor, the part where they are skinning and vacuuming out the entrails. Okay, we did what we had to do.

(I requested all edible parts. I love fresh liver, it is unlike any you get at your local market. Besides that there are the chitterlings, tripe and the head. My uncle made hog head cheese out of it the same day. It was delicious! The rest was frozen, waiting for Silvia to make Menudo.)

Back at home, Floyd, my son and Harry were waiting, thankfully. It was so tough handling 130 pound pig simply because there were no parts to grab onto. We got it into a cooler and washed it. Let me say this, out of the cooler my driveway immediately turned into a pig farm environment and it was quite a job keeping the meat clean and away from soil and flies. But persistence paid off.

Brit restarted the fire from 77 pounds of coal.

Floyd, Veronica, Bernice and Harry left. The guys said they'd be back by 4 PM and we would get the pig into the ground. Well, that didn't happen. So Brit and I laid out tons of clean plastic, then the chicken wire (you need that to hold the cooked pig together), soaking wet burlap, layers and layers of foil, then the pig. We used Lawry's seasoning salt and then I stuffed the cavity with tons of garlic cloves and more seasoning salt. Then wrapped it up tightly.

Day 4 (5 PM): This is where I was no longer any help. The pig was heavy. Brit had to use a dolly to get it to the pit and then all we could do was give it a heave and let it roll onto the coals. The wire made it easier to hook and adjust.

We shoveled the dirt to bury it and stuck pipes into it to measure the heat and we were finished for about 12 hours.

Day 5 (9 AM): Brit checks the temperature and says it felt cool to him. So another 80 pounds of coals were added to the top.

Day 5 (2 PM): Brit, Floyd and Harry uncover the pig and it is so hot they have to let it rest for an hour so they can handle it. We determined that the extra coals hadn't been necessary at all.

4 PM: Harry comes to the back door and yells, "I'm sorry, it's no good". I start to feel terrible, I am imagining all our work is for nothing! Then I see he is chomping down on a piece and he has one for me. OMG, it was so good! I couldn't even get mad at him for his joke. Our neighbors, who were really interested in the whole process, came over when we are unwrapping it. We share and marvel at how wonderful it tasted.

After unwrapping, I took a tray to freeze and the rest was put on the grill, not so much for the flavor but to keep it warm, safe and clean. Where else would you store 130 pounds of pork on a hot day. So that was it. It was worth every second. I love my friends so much!

THE MENU
 

The pig
Rice and almond salad (Veronica)
Baked beans (Cynthia)

Greens (Floyd)
Squash (Floyd)
Marieta Cookie cream dessert (Silvia)
Potato Chip/Pecan Crumble (Me)
Vanilla Ice Cream (Don)
Sweet potato Pie (Me)
Margaritas (Wendy)
Three coolers of Heinekin, Tecate and Budlight (Don, Floyd, Joe)
Don's Red table wine (Don)
An assortment of condiments that included Harry's mom's canned slaw, Slap your Mama Cajun seasoning and an assortment of mustards and barbecue sauces

Harry