Category: Food
I’m Just a Bread Machine and I Won’t Knead for Nobody But You (Maple Buttermilk Bread)

I’m Just a Bread Machine and I Won’t Knead for Nobody But You (Maple Buttermilk Bread)

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The COVID-19 stay at home policy has me pulling out my mixing bowls, pots, and pans.  Cooking and especially baking keeps me busy and helps calm the COVID-19 jitters.  I find myself gravitating towards comfort foods and foods from my childhood.  The first thing that came to mind was bread.  Who doesn’t like the aroma of baking bread?  Is there a more perfect food than fresh warm bread, slathered with butter and a dollop of jam?  Apparently I am not alone.  Who knew that all those pictures of empty shelves at the supermarkets were of the flour aisles.

After scavenging a couple of stores, I found the last two bags of King Arthur Flour on the shelf at Whole Foods (sorry, I was THAT person) and packets of yeast at Raley’s.  I settled in under the #stayhome mandate (totally cool with it) and started my carb bender, I mean bread baking.

I made two loaves of bread, best described as polar opposites.  Both are incredibly easy but for really different reasons.

The first loaf a Buttermilk Maple Loaf comes from Lora Brody’s Bread Machine Cookbook, a book I picked up waaaay back in the day when I bought a bread machine.  The Maple Buttermilk Loaf was my go-to recipe in the book.  Great for toast, sammies, crumbs or croutons.  It has a nice flavor and the texture of classic sandwich bread.  Pretty much the bread you grew up with soft, tender, slightly sweet-yummy. Perfect for Peanut Butter  and Jelly, Fried Baloney Sammies and Tuna Fish with Chips Sandwich, the stuff of childhood. Perfect for these times.

And it couldn’t be easier, that is, as long as you still have that bread machine hiding in a closet or corner of your pantry, or call your mom, she probably has one packed away, probably in your old bedroom.

So drag that puppy out and make yourself some bread.  Literally, dump, push the button, comeback in a few hours, bam, a loaf of freshly baked bread.  Like magic. The kneading, the proofing, the resting, all take place in your bread machine.  All the rage, back in the day.  Did you buy too many berries in your moment of frenzied grocery shopping?  Make this super easy and delicious berry jam to go along with your freshly baked bread!

The second loaf is a No-Knead Bread, more like an artisan bread, almost as easy to make, and totally swoon worthy.  Find the post here.

My machine is an old Panasonic that makes 1.5 pound loaves.  Which means really TALL bread, lol. I may be crusty, but I don’t like the crust from machine made loaves.  I cut my slices into squares and keep the scraps for bread crumbs, croutons and for Sammy, he adores bread.

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Maple Buttermilk Bread

Easy, delicious homemade Maple Buttermilk Bread made in your bread machine! Pefect for sammies!
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword Maple Buttermilk Bread
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 30 minutes

Equipment

  • Bread machine, lol

Ingredients

  • 3 Cups unbleached white flour
  • 4 tablespoons powdered buttermilk
  • 1 teasoon salt
  • 1 Tablespoon butter
  • 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon pure Maple Syrup*
  • 1 Cup water
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Instructions

  • Dump* all the ingredients in the machine except the yeast**, program for Basic Bread. Push the button. Comeback in 3.5 hours. Let bread cool so it is easier to cut.
  • *Refer to your machine directions for order of ingredients.
  • **If your machine has a separate yeast reservoir, place yeast in that.

Stay home, stay well.
Knead A Little Comfort in These Trying Times? (King Arthur Flour No-Knead Bread)

Knead A Little Comfort in These Trying Times? (King Arthur Flour No-Knead Bread)

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Hi everyone! Hope you are all staying sane out there sheltering in place! It is me, Jamie, your favorite blogger. As I am clearly the superior baker in our family, I have decided to grace your feeds with a quick lil’ post about my latest baking passion:

BREAD

Now, I know what you are thinking: “bread is the last thing I should bake if I am stuck at home all day with nothing to do except move my mouse around my work computer every five minutes” WRONG. Sorry, I should not invalidate your feelings, but let me tell you why your feelings are misguided and sad.

The smell of baking bread will 100% make your home much homier.

Picture this: You are in hour 2 of a 3 hour pointless meeting, and Karen is going on and on about whether or not you are considered “business critical” (newsflash, you probably aren’t if Karen can take up 3 hours of your time to talk about nothing). You are sitting at your uncomfortable kitchen table, hunched over because it is NOT ergonomically sound, with the smell of Clorox and lemon encroaching into your six feet of space. Not fun, right? Actually, the exact opposite of fun.

Now, picture this: you just popped a loaf into the oven, and the smell of baking bread is slowly permeating through the house. You hang up on Karen because life is too short to listen to people droning on and on (sry Karen).  You improvise by using a couple of boxes to set up your very own standing desk on your kitchen table (hey, I am an engineer). While  standing there, admiring your ergonomic handiwork…

What’s that? Beep, beep, beep. Aha, your timer is going off—your bread is READY.  You pull it out, mouth-watering from the delicious, tantalizing smell.  After a few minutes, you cut into that steaming loaf, trying not to burn your fingers (Auugh, I couldn’t wait!). Smear on a slab of butter, plop a dollop of jam on it and you are in heaven. Nothing can stop you now. You are invincible, winning WFH. All your sad coworkers are at their desks having a miserable time, and here you are, a queen, eating literal carbo gold. 

In all seriousness, baking bread is definitely a vibe right now, especially with the Coronavirus pandemic.  Ask my Mom, she’s still scavenging for flour. While I was intimidated to try my hand at baking bread, it is actually pretty simple and very relaxing. Stressed about taking too much time away from work? Bread has an average of about 4 ingredients in it, and 99% of the time to make bread is for proofing and baking it. Stressed in general? Some breads can require 10-15 minutes of kneading time, which really just entails you pounding the shit out of it on a counter. Get your angst OUT.

Concerned about being buried in bread? One of the best parts about bread is that it is freezer friendly. If you can’t eat an entire loaf in two days like me, you can slice that bad boy up and freeze it in a Ziploc bag (or a reusable environmentally friendly product that I can’t get right now because I’m sheltering in place) and eat it anytime you want.

I threw together one of my favorite recipes, No-knead Crusty White Bread, from King Arthur Flour. The recipe calls for 7 ½ cups of flour, but I halved it to make just one loaf. The recipe also calls for regular flour, but I used bread flour (higher protein content). Whole foods and HEB were out of flour, so I improvised. My mom is probably cringing while reading this (she hates when I substitute. I normally would not do this, but you gotta do what you gotta do). I extended the proofing time a bit longer to compensate. 

This bread is SO easy. It took me 10 minutes to put it together initially, and I proofed it for 3 hours at room temp, then 3 hours in the refrigerator. I used a dutch oven to bake it, and I baked it for the full amount of time.  I removed the lid for the last 5 minutes just to give the top a bit more color. The CRUNCH that you get from baking it in a dutch oven kicks this bread into the top 10% of breads to bake.  I made a pot of Senate Bean Soup to go along, but this bread was the star of the meal.

Easy, versatile, delicious—the perfect recipe to make in times like these.

Hope everyone is staying safe—and sane!  Happy baking 😊

Here is the link to the recipe I used, so so tasty..not the recipe, the bread, lol.

No-Knead Bread from King Arthur Flour
I Tried To Buy Some Flour, They Said No, No, No (Not Your Mama’s Rice Krispy Treats)

I Tried To Buy Some Flour, They Said No, No, No (Not Your Mama’s Rice Krispy Treats)

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Day 2 of Shelter in Place.  I receive a text from a friend that the supermarkets are a little calmer than yesterday.  That’s my cue to head to the market to pick up a few items.  Nope, not gonna go crazy, just need a few staples like flour, yeast, butter, and milk.  Since we will be “cocooning” I wanted to do some baking.  Sounds like a plan, right?

Apparently, everyone else wants to too.

Not a bag of flour of any kind on any shelf in the 3 grocery stores I tried.  Wow.  I’m dumbfounded.  I couldn’t find yeast either.  I feel like we are in pioneer living mode.  All good, time to improvise.

So I grab the next best thing, a bag of marshmallows.  I have Rice Krispies at home, just got more butter, and maybe I’ll make them happy Rice Krispies with some sprinkles.  A little bit of fun and cheeriness to offset our Coronavirus blues.

I know what you are thinking…oh please, a recipe for Rice Krispy Treats?

Not just Rice Krispy Treats.  Nope, not the “look on the side of the cereal box recipe” but Smitten Kitchen’s version which a friend from Tennessee renamed “Damn good, Double Buttah R-aah-ce Krispy Treats”.

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen. In the 3jamigos archives find it here.

Like the Big Fig Newton….here’s the hard part BROWN BUTTER  This added step elevates Snap, Crackle and Pop’s version to a whole new level.  That…and oh, twice the amount of butter.  Just trying to be transparent folks.

Melt butter over medium heat, keep an eye on it.  The butter will foam and as it gets hotter the milk particles will brown.  Keep a close eye so it doesn’t burn and stir constantly.

Look at those nice brown bits that are just flavor bombs!  So delicious!

I added happy sprinkles but sadly, they melted.  My advice is to wait until you pour the mixture into the pan to shape and cool, then go crazy scattering sprinkles on top.

BRAG ALERT!

Upside to shelter at home…Hubby just made me a cookie box to transport goodies to friends and family functions after we get through this!  So excited, box has a sliding lid and dividers for different kinds of cookies. Hmmm,not my birthday but I’ll take it.

Stay safe, stay healthy!
Donut Loaf Around, Make This Soon!

Donut Loaf Around, Make This Soon!

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I visited my town library recently and requested the cookbook Midwest Made by Shauna Sever. This is a feeble attempt to be more discriminating before buying another cookbook.  The librarian cheerfully responded with, “we can order that from Amazon for you! The book will be sent directly to you and you can then keep the book for any length of time. When you are good and ready, return it to the library.

You’re joking, right?  Nope.

Two days later, I found a brand spanking new copy of Midwest Made sitting on my front doorstep.  I broke open that puppy and started scanning the book for recipes I wanted to try.

I started with her Jammy Winter Fruit and Brown Butter Bars (will post soon).  The cookie dough, studded with walnuts and oatmeal, serves as both the base and topping.  It’s a keeper.  But the filling, an apple and pear jam, didn’t stand out.  I would try a berry jam or use tart apples next time to bump up the flavor.  

On the other hand, the Donut Loaf was a straight winner!  Initially, the 2 teaspoons of nutmeg threw me for a loop, not my favorite spice. But multiple positive reviews convinced me to take the donut challenge.  I’m glad I did.  Think giant powdered sugar donut but sliced from a loaf.  The inside of the loaf is moist, tender with a nice crumb with just a bit of density like a cake donut.  The outside makes me feel like a kid again, a flurry of powdered sugar with every bite.

The recipe is pretty much a classic loaf bread cake.  Cream butter and sugar.  Add just a quarter cup of the flour mixture, beat and then add eggs one at a time. I’m not sure why she adds a small amount of the dry ingredients before the eggs, maybe it prevents the batter from curdling after adding the eggs.  Just a guess.  Add the dry ingredients by alternating with the buttermilk.  The process results in a fine crumb, tender cake-delicious.  I used freshly grated nutmeg for the cake as recommended.  It wasn’t overpowering but surprisingly subtle.

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Donut Loaf from Midwest Made

Powdered sugar donut of your childhood back as an easy to make Donut Loaf
Course Cake, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword Donut Loaf, Loaf bread
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour

Ingredients

  • Nonstick cooking spray for pan
  • 2 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg
  • 14 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 large eggs at room temperature
  • 1 cup well-shaken buttermilk at room temperature
  • To finish:
  • 1 cup powdered sugar sifted, plus more as needed
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted

Instructions

  • Position a rack to the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 325°F. Spray a 9x5-inch light-colored metal loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and line it with 2 perpendicular strips of parchment paper — 1 cut skinnier to fit lengthwise across the bottom and up the 2 short sides, 1 to fit crosswise and up the 2 longer sides. Cut the strips long enough to have a few inches of overhang on all sides.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg.
  • In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until creamy. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in 1/4 cup of the flour mixture. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time. Reduce the mixer speed to low, and stir in the remaining flour mixture and buttermilk in 5 alternating additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Finish folding the batter by hand to make sure everything is incorporated — the batter will be very thick.
  • Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until the loaf is golden with a couple of cracks on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 60 to 75 minutes. Let cool in the pan set over a wire rack for 15 minutes. Use the parchment paper to lift the loaf from the pan. Let rest for another 30 minutes.
  • When the loaf is cool and firm enough to handle, but still slightly warm, sift the powdered sugar all over a large rimmed baking sheet (keep the sieve handy). Peel the parchment from the cake. Gently turn the loaf over in 1 hand, using part of your forearm to support it. Using a pastry brush, brush the bottom of the cake with some of the melted butter. Carefully set the loaf, right-side up, in the powdered sugar. From there, brush the long sides with the butter, turning the cake from side to side to coat in sugar, then brush and coat the short sides. Lastly, brush the top with the butter, grab a handful or two of sugar from the tray, deposit into the sieve, and sift sugar generously over the top of the loaf. Roll the entire loaf in sugar once more so that it resembles a giant powdered sugar donut. Carefully transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing and serving, touching up the loaf with a quick sifting of sugar as needed.

Notes

Nutmeg: Freshly grated makes a difference.
Everybody Have Jjigae Tonight (Kimchi Jjiggae-Korean Kimchi Tofu Soup)

Everybody Have Jjigae Tonight (Kimchi Jjiggae-Korean Kimchi Tofu Soup)

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Y’all know I love soup, right?  I have about a dozen recipes for different soups on 3jamigos and now I am adding one more, Kimchi Jjigae or Kimchi Tofu Soup.  It is easy to make, super delicious and something a little different.  It’s a hearty soup with lots of yummy stuff. Along with kimchi, the soup has beef, or pork, tofu, mushrooms, onions, cabbage, basically, anything your little heart desires.  Jamie and I collaborated on this recipe (she made it, I ate it).  It is a mash-up of various recipes we found online.  If you like Korean food and would like to try making it at home, there are some really good blogs and Instagrammers you can check out, Korean Bapsang, and My Korean Kitchen.  Instagrammer @Christy_l_kitchen’s video for kimchi tofu soup served as ground zero for Jamie’s delicious soup.

First, let’s run through the ingredients for Kimchi Jjigae.  If you live in the Bay Area, it will be easy to find the ingredients for this tasty pot.  Actually, any major metropolitan area probably has an Asian market and there are online sources. (Or call me, happy to take anyone Asian food shopping)  Once you have assembled the ingredients, putting the soup together is a SNAP.

Let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start…

Kimchi, or fermented cabbage, is essential to the soup.  It is the cornerstone of the soup providing umami, texture, and spice. Asian stores and larger supermarkets often carry Kimchi in their cold boxes.  My favorite brands are Ocinet and Im Soon Ja.  Use the one you like.

Tofu-made from soybean comes in various densities from super soft to extra firm.  Normally, SoonDubu Jjigae uses a very soft “silken” tofu. PERFECTLY acceptable to use firmer tofu if you like.  Tofu in tubes by Pulmone is a great choice. Kithcn has a nice primer on tofu that helps sort out the different varieties.

For protein, we used pork belly but again you can substitute beef or seafood such as shrimp or clams. Mushrooms are amazing and if you pull out the protein, the perfect vegetarian version.  Jamie added King Mushrooms (pictured) and Enoki Mushrooms (teeny tiny mushrooms), very tasty.

Gochugaru, Korean red pepper adds sweet, spicy, fruity, smoky-irreplaceable, look for it at Korean markets or online.  I like to use Gochujang (spicy sweet chili paste) along with the powder.

The soup can be made with water but if you want depth of flavor, use stock.  Traditionally an anchovy stock is used but we improvised by using a Japanese Shiro Dashi (fish-based stock) concentrate which I love.  In a pinch use chicken broth or a mushroom broth.  The recipe calls for 1 cup of liquid, I LOVE soup so I usually increase the amount of liquid 1.5-2 cups.  If you do too, taste for seasoning, you may want to increase the chili powder.

There you have it, all the ingredients for a pot of yumminess.

The hard part is over!  It’s downhill from here.  Saute’ your onions and pork, add kimchi and seasonings, stock, shrooms, and then the tofu. Top with green onions, Badda bing Badda boom, done.  Just a couple of minutes of work and dinner is served!  Koreans have a special little pot to cook Tofu Soup in, it retains heat, when you bring it to the table the soup is still bubbling furiously. Drop a raw egg in and let it cook in the piping hot broth.  We don’t have a special pot so we dropped the egg on top before taking the saucepan off the stove.

Variations on a Jjigae theme.  Did I mention we threw in mandu for good measure?  Because who doesn’t love dumplings!  To increase the veggie content without adding more kimchi, add sliced fresh cabbage or more mushrooms.

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Korean Tofu Soup Kimchi Jjigae

Korean comfort food, Soondubu Jjigae or Tofu Soup. Tofu, pork, beef or seafood and Kimchi are the building blocks for this delicious, easy to make soup.
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine Asian
Keyword kimchij jigae, tofu soup
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

Sauteed 3-4 min until pork loses its pink color

  • 1/4 yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced pork belly or beef can sub seafood, shrimp or clams.
  • 2 scallions, chopped, separate white and green parts divide white and green parts, finely chopped, add white part to yellow onion mix saute', reserve green part for garnish

Add to onions & pork, saute' 1-2min

  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1/2-3/4 cup thinly sliced kimchi
  • 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil use a little more if using more gochugaru
  • 1/2-1 T soy sauce
  • 1 T Gochujang (chili paste)

Add & Bring to a Boil

  • 1 cup anchovy broth can use water, dashi or chicken broth
  • 1-2 T red chili pepper flakes gochugaru add more for a spicier stew
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons juice from kimchi

When Boiling add the following and boil for 3-4 minutes

  • 2-3 shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced or enoki mushrooms, 1 small pkg
  • 1 cup veggies of choice, squash, Mu, Dumplings optional but recommended

Then add in concentric circle to top of soup

  • 10 ounces soondubu, divided into 4-5 slices extra soft/silken tofu, 1/2 carton of tofu
  • pinch black pepper, dash of salt
  • 1 large raw egg, add to center optional

Garnish

  • sesame seeds, the reserved green onions splash of sesame oil

Instructions

  • Heat 1 tsp oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add diced onion, scallions (white part) and pork or . Stir-fry until the meat is almost cooked, 3 - 4 minutes.
  • Add the kimchi, chili paste, garlic, soy sauce and sesame oil to pot. Stir to combine and saute for 1-2 minutes.
  • Pour in broth, juice from the kimchi and pepper flakes. Bring it to a boil, add mushrooms and continue to boil for 3 - 4 minutes.
  • Add the soft tofu in big chunks. Stir in salt to taste (I rarely add salt), start with 1/4 teaspoon, and black pepper.
  • Cook for 4 -5 minutes. Add chopped scallions just before removing the pot from the heat.
  • If desired, crack an egg into the soup to serve while it’s still boiling hot.
  • Serve with rice.

Notes

Shiro dashi concentrate is seasoned, reduce salt and/or soy sauce if used.
Is it A Cake Or A Ginormous Muffin! (Blueberry Muffin Cake)

Is it A Cake Or A Ginormous Muffin! (Blueberry Muffin Cake)

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A friend mentioned she was making her daughter’s favorite cake, A Blueberry Muffin Cake for her birthday that day. She asked “I think I found the recipe on 3Jamigos, didn’t I?”

I had to tell her there wasn’t a Blueberry Muffin Cake on my site.  I try to tempt her with the Blueberry Boy Bait Cake or  Ottolenghi’s Blueberry Lemon Almond Cake on 3jamigos but to no avail, her response was “Too bad, it’s really easy and super tasty, I’ll have to look for it”.

Challenge accepted

Ok, she didn’t challenge me, but my curiosity was peaked so I googled Blueberry Muffin Cake.  1.01 seconds later, an array of recipes popped up on my feed.  A quick perusal landed me on a Blueberry Muffin Cake by Fine Cooking.  It not only looked yummy but seemed pretty darn easy to make too.  I saved the recipe thinking I would try it one of these days. Well, what should appear in my feed that very day?  A message from my favorite strawberry purveyors, P and K Farms, “no strawberries yet but we have blueberries this weekend!”  No brainer, making Blueberry Muffin Cake after a trip to the Farmer’s Market.

Essentially it is a muffin batter, easily whipped up in one bowl and baked in a springform pan.  The recipe starts with melted butter, no creaming butter and sugar together which makes this incredibly easy.  The cake is not too sweet, tender with a nice crumb and peppered with blueberries.  Perfect for a weekend breakfast or brunch or for an afternoon tea or coffee break.

The cake calls for a generous 2 cups of blueberries.  Which makes this cake a very berry delight.   I added lemon zest for a bit of zing.  Almond extract would also work well as an added dimension of flavor.  Things to remember, don’t over mix your batter once you start combining the dry and wet ingredients. You can substitute other fruit like raspberries, strawberries, diced peaches, or nectarines.  Really, you could knock this cake out in minutes, its that easy.  So what are you waiting for?  Go make this cake.

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Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Keyword Blueberry Muffin Cake
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • 4 oz. 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly; more for the pan
  • 9 oz. 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 lb. 2 cups fresh blueberries
  • Confectioners’ sugar for dusting (optional)

Instructions

  • Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round springform pan.
  • Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add lemon zest to dry ingredients, stir to combine. In a small bowl, whisk the butter, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Using a silicone spatula, stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Gently fold in the berries.
  • Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly. Tap the pan on the counter once or twice to break any air bubbles.
  • Bake until golden-brown and a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes (if the top gets too brown, tent with aluminum foil).
  • Cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes. Run a paring knife around the edge of the cake and remove the side of the pan.
  • Transfer the cake to a serving plate and serve warm or at room temperature with confectioners’ sugar sifted over the top.

Notes

Use raspberries, blackberries or cut diced strawberries instead.  Stone fruits would work.  Omit lemon zest, add 1/2 teaspoon almond extract.
Hit Me With Your Bo Ssam, Fire Away (Momofuku’s Bo Ssam Slow Roasted Pork)

Hit Me With Your Bo Ssam, Fire Away (Momofuku’s Bo Ssam Slow Roasted Pork)

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Need a dish to feed a big crowd?  A dish that is easy to make and requires little attention?  I have just the dish!

Bo Ssam

Whaat?  The best description I can give you is Korean Pulled Pork.

I have been meaning to try David Chang’s (Da Momofuku Man) recipe for Bo Ssam.  His Momofuku Cookbook is hands down one of my favorites. I actually like curling up in a chair and reading his cookbook.  Great narrative and I can relate to his use of “colorful” vernacular in the book.  When I had my kids I FORCED myself to limit the expletives that normally flowed through my lips.  I did a pretty darn good job until they were all ensconced in high school (or was it middle school?).  Then the flood gates reopened.  Am I proud of this? No, but for me, a verbal flurry of choice words is very cathartic.  I like to think of them as adjectives with emphasis NOT directed verbs.

Back to Bossam.  Actually, traditional Bossam is pork belly boiled not roasted.  The Momofuku twist?  Slow roasting the pork.  Start with a nice FATTY Pork Butt roast (aka Boston butt or shoulder).  Make a rub of Kosher salt and sugar and rub this all over the roast. Discard any excess rub.  Let the roast sit for 6-24 hours in the fridge. Use coarse Kosher Salt Coarse made by Diamond.  Don’t use regular table salt or sea salt, it will be way too salty.  Morton’s also has a Kosher salt but it is actually saltier than Diamond.

Remove the pork from the brine, put it in a pan and roast for oh…SIX HOURS.  I know a long time, but that’s what gives you tender, melt in your mouth bites of pork that you eat with all the trimmings-kimchi, rice, Momofuku’s ginger scallion sauce or ssamjang, and raw oysters (optional) wrapped in lettuce.  A brown sugar, salt and vinegar paste is painted on the roast and broiled for a caramelized, crispy, crust.  Yum.  Its a fun and incredibly delicious.  Perfect to share with family and friends.

I tweaked the Ginger Scallion Sauce a bit.  I actually heated the oil before adding it to the sliced scallions and minced ginger and rounded the soy sauce to 2 teaspoons.  I took the lazy way out and used commercial Ssamjang Sauce and added some sesame oil and seeds.  Ssamjang is made with of doenjang, gochujang, sesame oil, onion, garlic, green onions, and optionally brown sugar.  Packs a flavor punch and is perfect with grilled foods.

Set everything on the table, condiments, veggies and that big beautiful pork butt.  Let everyone make their own wraps.  Take a piece of lettuce add a bite of rice, a dollop of sauce (ginger-scallion or ssamjang or both), a bit of kimchi and of course a nice little chunk of the meltingly tender, pork.

Serve with banchan on the side-cucumbers, potatoes, seaweed, whichever ones you prefer even a nice simple green salad would be wonderful.

Enjoy.

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MOMOFUKU BO SSAM

Delicious slow-roasted pork served with traditional Korean sides, kimchi, ssamjang, rice, and wrapped in lettuce leaves
Course Main Course
Cuisine Fusion, Korean
Keyword Bo Ssam, Slow Roasted Pork
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 7 hours

Ingredients

Pork Roast

  • 8 to 10 pounds 1 piece pork butt, ideally bone-in with some fat ok lots of fat
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup coarse Kosher salt preferably Diamond

Topping

  • 1 Tbsp coarse kosher salt
  • 7 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Sides:

  • 1 dozen raw oysters shucked optional
  • 1 cup Napa Cabbage Kimchi plus 1 cup puréed
  • 1 cup Ginger Scallion Sauce see link in post
  • Ssämjang
  • Cooked Short-Grain Rice Count on a bowl of cooked rice per person
  • 3 to 4 heads Bibb lettuce leaves separated, well washed, and spun dry
  • Maldon or other high-quality coarse sea salt

Instructions

  • Place the pork in a roasting pan or baking dish. It should fit snugly. Combine 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of the salt in a bowl and mix them well. Rub the mixture all over the meat. Cover it with plastic wrap then refrigerate it at least 6 hours or overnight. discard an excess sugar salt mix.
  • Heat the oven to 300 F. Cover the roasting pan with cooking foil. Wrap it around at least twice covering all the gaps. Remove the pork from the fridge and discard any juice. Leave the rub on the pork.
  • Place the pork in a roasting pan (fatty side up), set in the oven and cook it for about 6 hours. (This can vary depending on the size of the pork. See note below) Once cooked, the pork should be very easy to pull apart with tongs and forks. Remove the pork from the oven.
  • Combine the remaining salt, brown sugar and vinegar in a small bowl. Mix well. Gently rub the mixture all over the cooked pork (mainly the top of the pork). Use the back of a spoon to rub paste on pork since the roast will be pretty hot.
  • Turn the oven to 500 F. Place the pork in the oven and cook it until a dark caramel crust develops on the meat. It takes 5 to 10 mins. Serve hot, with the accompaniments.
  • When you first pull off the pork, it’s very moist and tender, but it dries out fairly fast (like within 20 mins)! So serve immediately and eat up. It still tastes good though!
  • For an easy ssam sauce, buy the ssamjang tub instead of making it from scratch. Add a couple of drops of sesame oil and a sprinkle of sesame seeds to the ssamjang if you like.

Notes

If you’re using a smaller piece of pork, reduce the rub ingredients (e.g. sugar, salt) and the cooking time. As a guideline it takes about 4 hours to 4.5 hours to roast 2 kg / 4.4 pounds bone-in pork shoulder.

 

 

 
Consolation Biscuits (Crazy Easy Buttermilk Biscuits)

Consolation Biscuits (Crazy Easy Buttermilk Biscuits)

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.For those of you that could use a big helping of comfort right now (Talking to you Niner Faithful).  Here is my newest biscuit recipe find.

It’s hard to cook when your crying.  Luckily this recipe is extremely easy and doable, even through tears.  You are minutes away from consoling your sports-fan soul with a batch of warm biscuits, slathered with butter and your favorite jam.

What makes these so simple?  A nifty trick that comes from Cook’s Illustrated by way of Serious Eats and the blog, The Cafe Sucre Farine’.

Melted butter.  Yep, biscuits made with melted butter.

The trick is to melt the butter and then pour it into ice-cold buttermilk.  The butter solidifies into little globules mimicking the pieces of butter you get when you cut butter into the flour as in the traditional way of making biscuits.  How easy is that?

Pour the buttermilk mixture into the flour, stir together, voila’ ready to make biscuits!

Gather dough and pat into a square.  It will not be a wet sticky dough.  If it seems wet, add flour, a tablespoon at a time. Knead the dough a couple of times, roll or pat the dough into a square.

Cut the biscuit dough into squares.  This avoids the scraps and rerolling the remaining dough for round cutouts.  If you REALLY like round biscuits, just re-roll the scraps and cut again.

Bake these bad boys and brush with melted butter when they come out of the oven. You will be rewarded with buttery, flaky, tender, biscuits.  Everything you want in a biscuit that will help mend your broken NINER heart.

So, make these biscuits, tonight, tomorrow morning, or the day of the Chief’s victory parade.  That’s what comfort food is for.

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Crazy Easy Biscuits

Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Keyword buttermilk biscuits
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 18 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 cups 10 ounces unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon sugar you can reduce the amount of sugar to 1 teaspoon
  • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt or table salt
  • 1 cup cold buttermilk chill in freezer for 10 minutes
  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly (about 5 minutes), plus 2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing biscuits

Instructions

  • Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450°F.
  • Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt in large bowl.
  • Combine cold buttermilk and 8 tablespoons melted butter in a medium bowl, stirring until butter forms small clumps.
  • Add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until just incorporated and batter pulls away from sides of the bowl. The dough will be stiff, not wet. If it is wet, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.
  • At this point, you can make drop biscuits or you can roll the dough and make cut out biscuits.
  • I like cut-out biscuits. Gather dough and place on a floured surface. Knead the dough a couple of times and roll or pat dough into a square approximately 1 inch thick. Cut into squares, you should have about 8 biscuits. For a flakier biscuit. Gather dough and roll dough into a square and then fold the dough over in thirds, you will have a rectangle now then roll dough into a 1-inch thick square.
  • Bake 10-18 minutes until tops are a nice golden brown. Start checking at 10 minutes.
  • Brush biscuit tops with remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter. Transfer to wire rack and let cool 5 minutes before serving.
  • Get out your favorite jam and EAT as MANY biscuits as you want. I know I will.
Kentucky Butter Cake (AVERYbody Should Have a Go To Cake)

Kentucky Butter Cake (AVERYbody Should Have a Go To Cake)

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I hosted a postcard session a couple of weeks ago and as an enticement, I provided “snacks” for it.  Snacks in my book aren’t just a bag of chips and a bowl of dip, nope.  I mean to ask people to write and decorate a gazillion postcards, ya gotta have mouthwatering, lip-smacking, delicious food.  Am I right?

That day the weather was a chilly 55 degrees (remember we are talking California), so I made Sam Kass’ slow-roasted pork.  Just salt and pepper the meat, slide it into the oven and fuggedaboutit.  When it is done, shred and serve.  So darn easy and yummy.  I put out corn tortillas, guac, onions and salsa for taco “fixins” to go along.  For those who didn’t want tacos, I made  CRAZY GOOD OOEY-GOOEY Mac and Cheese.  So hard to pick which way to have my pork and eat it too.

No Dessert?

I didn’t have time to make dessert (I know, blasphemous) but luckily my friend’s daughter called while we were hard at work and volunteered to make dessert for us.  Yippee!  So sweet of Avery!  She arrived with a luscious Kentucky Butter Cake that was moist, buttery, sweet…downright delicious.  Oohs and aahs prevailed from all, including my kids who added: “this is the best cake ever”.  I immediately asked for the recipe.

Impatience got the better of me so I googled Kentucky Butter Cake and quite a few recipes popped up on my feed. I picked a recipe (using the scientific eenie-meanie-miney-moe method) from the blog, Cookies and Cups, and added a couple of tweaks from the blog Spicy Southern Kitchen.

I baked it, I glazed it, I cut it, I served it…to a resounding chorus of…

It’s OK, but Avery’s was much better

Repeated, ad nauseam …

I no longer like Avery.  Actually I no longer like my family, Avery is okay.

Just kidding. I got on the horn and called S (her mom), where’s the recipe?!  Her reply was, “I sent it to you days ago”. Oops, my bad…there it was buried in my inbox.

I noticed Avery’s baked at 325, mine at 350, used sour cream instead of buttermilk, and had WAY more of that delicious butter sugar glaze.

The version I used was like the “cooking light” version.  If you didn’t just have a bite of the original, it was perfectly acceptable.  If you put them side by side, fuggedaboutit.  Hands down Avery’s version comes out on top.

Cooking Light

I have included directions for Avery’s version and my “cooking light” version (for transparency’s sake).  A couple of tweaks could bring mine closer to Avery’s.  But then, you might as well just make Avery’s version. Your family and friends will be eating out of your hand.

Instead of that cup of low-fat buttermilk, use sour cream.  Yep, the start to a richer, moister cake.

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs, then alternate flour with liquid (start and end with dry ingredients).  You’ll end up with a fluffy but substantial batter.

Bake the cake at 350 and you will get a nice brown crust, at 325 the cake will be lighter in color.  I would definitely bake the cake for less time if you use 350 degrees. Take the cake out and let it cool for 10 minutes.  Remove the cake from the pan to prevent sticking and then put it back in the pan for its luxurious bath of butter sugar syrup.  It will be easier to remove later, trust me, no actually, trust AVERY.

Use a skewer or skinny chopstick to poke holes ALL OVER the cake. Pour the sugar-butter glaze over the cake,  don’t be afraid, it will absorb all of it easily.  Let the cake sit a spell, remove from the pan and dig in!

This is a pic of my “cooking light version” which had considerably less glaze and cooked at a higher temp.  With Avery’s (yeah, that cake-baking brat again) you could see the glaze that had soaked into the cake, dreamy and delicious.

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Kentucky Butter Cake

Rich, moist, buttery, everything delicious in a bundt cake
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Bundt cake, Kentucky Butter Cake
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

CAKE

  • 1 cup butter cubed at room temperature
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup sour cream or 1 cup buttermilk

BUTTER GLAZE

  • 1/2 cup butter deb version (which really isn't enough syrup) 1/3 cup
  • 1 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup water 2 Tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla 2 teaspoons

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F/165°C (Deb's version 350, start checking cake at 45 minutes)
  • Grease a 10″ bundt pan with butter or shortening very liberally. Dust the pan with flour and set aside.
  • Cream butter and sugar with mixer until light about 2 minutes
  • Add eggs one at a time and mix well after each addition
  • Add vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and mix to combine about 1 minute
  • Add flour and sour cream or buttermilk, alternating. Start with flour and finish with flour
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for ~65 minutes until a toothpick entered into the center comes out clean.
  • When the cake is done make the glaze. Combine all ingredients into a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir continuously until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved. Do not bring to a boil.
  • Remove cake from pan and then put it back in pan to glaze cake. This helps keep the cake from sticking after glaze.
  • Poke holes all over the warm cake using a knife or skewer or skinny chopstick and pour the glaze evenly on the cake while still in the pan.
  • Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan and then invert the cake onto a serving plate.
  • Make this cake a day in advance, so the syrup has time to infuse the cake.