Tag: #

Ashure Cereal
Crazy 8 Day: It’s Crack Not A Cookie but It Deserves to be on the List

Crazy 8 Day: It’s Crack Not A Cookie but It Deserves to be on the List

By | | Comments 0 Comment

This year I joined in on Food52’s Holiday Gift Swap. It was simple, all I had to do was  make a donation to their designated charity and promise to send a food-centric gift by Dec. 10th.  A couple of days later, I received my “Secret Santa” swapee’s name and address.  My swappee lives in Colorado, I already had a list of go to items I wanted to send her like Jule’s granola and my cousin’s spiced pecans.

My box of goodies came from Catherine of Salt Lake City.  Like a kid in a candy store, I quickly tore the box open and discovered a treasure trove of gifts, sweet and salty chocolate sprinkles, popcorn seasoning, salad toppings, a too cute kitchen towel and a delicious cereal mix- Ashure Cereal that I started munching on immediately.  Luckily, Cathy included the recipe by Saimin Nosrat in the NY Times. It starts with a base of puffed wheat, nuts, and sesame seeds.  Then spiced with cinnamon, cardamon and mahaleb, (a middle eastern spice from cherry seeds, think bitter almond) and finally toasted in the oven with brown sugar, honey and oil.  It is addictively delicious.

After scarffing down the bag, I knew I had to make my own batch.

This is where the search begins…

I head to my favorite market, International Food Bazaar.  I unwittingly thought that the spices would be the hardest to find. Surprisingly not true.  Most of the ingredients and spices can also be found online.

With Mahaleb in hand, I head to my neighborhood grocery for the puffed wheat cereal…

4 STORES later, I walk out empty-handed and dejected.  Not a bag or box of puffed wheat to be found.  Apparently it is really hard to find puffed cereals without sugar added.  Who would have “thunk” it?

I took to the internet, and found Vitacost, a supplement/health food site where I not only find Puffed Wheat, but Puffed Kamut (an ancient grain), Puffed Corn and Puffed Rice. You can find Puffed Rice by Quaker Oats in the supermarket, a great alternative for a gluten free version. I like Puffed Kamut. I would definitely cut a bit of the cereal and add more nuts and Mahaleb.  Watch carefully when baking as it browns fairly quickly.  I love it over yogurt and fresh fruit or straight out of hand.

So be forewarned, the most difficult ingredient to find will be the cereal.  But it will be well worth it, Ashure Cereal is absolutely delicious.

Here, for you to drool over, my Food 52 holiday swap gift  from Cathy!

Ashure Cereal
Print Pin

Ashure Cereal

Course Snack
Cuisine Middle Eastern
Keyword cereal
Cook Time 15 minutes
30 minutes
Servings 10 servings
Author Adapted from NYT

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup /85 grams neutral-tasting oil such as canola
  • 6 tablespoons /110 grams honey
  • 1⁄2 cup /110 grams dark brown sugar packed
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1⁄2 teaspoon ground mahaleb increase to 3/4 -1
  • 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 10 cups /160 grams puffed wheat sub Puffed Kamut or Rice
  • 3/4 Scant cup /85 grams halved pecans increase to 1 cup
  • 1⁄3 cup /50 grams pumpkin seeds
  • 3 tablespoons /30 grams sesame seeds
  • 1⁄2 cup /85 grams almonds very roughly chopped, or left whole with skin

Instructions

Step 1

  • Adjust oven racks to lower-middle and upper-middle positions. Heat to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside.

Step 2

  • Combine oil, honey and sugar in a medium saucepan, and set over medium-high heat. Whisk well, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.

Step 3

  • In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients, and mix well. Once the honey mixture comes to a boil, carefully pour it over the dry ingredients. Working quickly, use a large silicone spatula to stir, turning the contents of the bowl over until everything is coated evenly with the syrup. Transfer mixture to baking sheets, and use spatula to flatten out cereal into an even layer.

Step 4

  • Place baking sheets on prepared oven racks, and bake for 10 minutes.
  • Carefully remove 1 tray at a time, and use spatula to stir cereal around. Rotate trays 180 degrees, and switch oven positions to ensure even baking. Bake for 4 to 6 minutes longer, until golden brown and well caramelized. Remove from oven, and allow to cool entirely on the trays before breaking cereal into large clusters.

Step 5

  • Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Happy holidays and happy baking!
Soup with Silken Tofu & Chicken Dumplings (A Thai-rrific, Easy Soup)

Soup with Silken Tofu & Chicken Dumplings (A Thai-rrific, Easy Soup)

By | | Comments 0 Comment

This month’s Food52 Cooking Club selection is Simple Thai Food by Leela Punyaratabandhu, a book I have had sitting on my shelf for quite awhile. The only recipe I have tried from the book is the Shrimp Pad Thai which was pretty darn tasty.  But thanks to Food52 I am discovering it is a gem of a book.  Each month the club features a different cookbook. A variety of old and new cookbooks, of which shockingly (lol), I own quite a few. Yes, confessions of a cookbook junkie.

Food52ers post photos and comments on recipes they try from the month’s selection.  It’s a great way to find out which recipes are winners and which may need a bit of tweaking.  It has definitely pushed me to actually try more recipes from the gazillions of cookbooks I have sitting on my shelf.  Raindrops on roses and a cookbook treasure trove, Dumplings that are meatballs for soup simmering on the stove..these are a few of my favorite things…..lalala.

Yep, singing led to this delicious soup from Simple Thai Food, Clear Soup with Silken Tofu and Chicken Dumplings

It is quick, easy and DELICIOUS with just a teeny weeny caveat…hope you like cilantro!

Break It Down

The soup comes together in a snap.  I used a commercial chicken stock to start with but you could use homemade stock.  The chicken dumplings, really meatballs, start with ground chicken to which just a few ingredients are added, cilantro, fish sauce, garlic, pepper and an egg white for texture.  Dump it in your food processor and blend until mixture is sticky and smooth.  These dumplings are light with a fine grain texture not as chunky as meatballs, think city versus country rustic.

The stock is seasoned with onions and soy sauce and brought to a gentle boil.  I used a small ice cream scoop to shape and drop my dumplings into the broth to cook.  Add cubed soft tofu once it is heated through, literally a few minutes later, you have a delicious, flavor-packed bowl of soup.  Finish with a garnish of cilantro and green onions.

This would be perfect as a light lunch or as a starter for dinner.  The following day I took some liberties and added shredded Napa Cabbage and carrots and poured it over udon noodles for a satisfying, tasty noodle soup.  Yumminess in a bowl.

Soup with Silken tofu and Chicken dumplings

Print Pin

These are a Few of My Favorite Things (Soup with Tofu and Chicken Dumplings)

Ingredients

  • 2 medium cloves garlic peeled
  • 2 tablespoons cilantro stems or 2 cilantro roots chopped
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1/2 pound ground chicken dark or a mix of dark and light chicken, should not be too lean
  • 2 teaspoons fish sauce such as 3 Crabs brand
  • 4 1/2 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium store bought chicken broth
  • 2 teaspoons fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon thin soy sauce
  • 1 pound silken tofu packed in water drained and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 2 green onions cut into 1-inch pieces separate the white from the green parts
  • 1/4 cup cilantro leaves for garnish

Instructions

  • 1.In a mortar or a small chopper, make a fine paste out of the garlic, cilantro stems/roots,
  • 2.Place the ground chicken into a mixing bowl and add prepared paste. Add 2 teaspoons of fish sauce. Mix until homogenous; set aside. You can use 1 teaspoon soy sauce in place of 1 of fish sauce if you desire.
  • 3.In a large saucepan combine broth with soy sauce, 2 teaspoons fish sauce and white parts of green onions. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a gentle boil. Scoop chicken mixture into 1-inch balls and gently drop into simmering stock. Repeat until all the chicken mixture is gone. Cook until dumplings float to the surface about 1-2 minutes.
  • 4. Gently add the tofu cubes to the broth; return to a simmer, then add the remaining green onions and remove from heat immediately. Adjust the seasoning as necessary with more fish sauce or soy sauce.
  • 5. Ladle soup into a serving bowl. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Some freshly-ground white pepper on top is optional, but recommended.
  • 6. Is this blasphemous? I don't know, but it is delicious, add a handful shredded Napa cabbage and carrots to broth, simmer additional 2-3 minutes until vegetables are soft. Top udon or ramen noodles with broth, dumplings and vegetables. Garnish with cilantro and green onions. You can use a firmer tofu instead if serving with noodles. Hmmm...
Happy New Year! Bouchon’s Gougeres

Happy New Year! Bouchon’s Gougeres

By | | Comments 1 comment

Happy Gougere!

What?!  Too cheesy?

I had writer’s block when I sat down to compose this post.  Staring at my screen, fingers poised on the keyboard, sipping a glass of wine and munching on these cheese puffs I had just pulled out of the oven, I was drawing a blank. Then my cell phone rang, “Happy New Year!”  blurted a voice at the other end. Ta-da! Blogger’s block gone.

Continuing with my exploration of the Bouchon Bakery book I ooh-ed and aah-ed my way through the chapter on pate a choux (aka cream puff pastry).  Dreamy cream puffs with a crackle finish, Chocolate Eclairs, Paris Brest-all looked exquisite. I wanted something simpler plus I had a wedge of Comte cheese in the fridge so I chose his recipe for the humble Gougere.  Cheese, finely shredded, is added to choux pastry to create a savory, airy, small bite, perfect with wine or champagne.  My next happy hour nibbler board will definitely include these little gems.

The recipe is straightforward. Be sure to have all your ingredients out and prepped before you begin. Water and butter are heated to which flour is added and stirred until it forms a ball that pulls away from the sides of the pot. Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl, blend briefly to release heat and moisture and add eggs a couple of tablespoons at a time. NOTE: TK uses weights for measurements in this book.  Very helpful to have a scale.

The batter will look like this after adding eggs and blending.

I cheated. I didn’t have the silicon round pan so I used my non-stick donut hole pan instead (yay, I used it for something!) It worked well though they needed to sit a couple of minutes before I could remove them easily.  I also didn’t have a pastry bag handy so I used a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and snipped off a corner.  Piping directly onto parchment or a Silpat probably works just as well.

Next time I make these I may change up the type of cheese (gruyere cheddar), add chili pepper instead of black pepper and add chopped chives or green onions, yum!  The batter freezes well so you can keep a supply of shaped ones in the freezer for impromptu get-togethers.

Stretching the boundaries, I’ve decided to make this Cookie #10 on my 12 days of holiday cookies list. They’re small and bite-size just like a cookie.  I’m tackling Bouchon’s Cream Puffs one of these days!

Bouchon’s Gougeres

 

Print Pin

Happy New Year! Bouchon’s Gougeres

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup + 1 1/2 tbsp water
  • 2.2 ounces unsalted butter 4.5 Tablespoons
  • 1/2 + 1/8 tsp kosher salt
  • 0.3 grams freshly ground pepper
  • 1/2 cup + 2 1/2 tsbp all purpose flour
  • 150 grams eggs approximately 2 eggs-crack eggs into a bowl, blend eggs and weigh out amount
  • scant 1 cup aged shredded gruyere cheese
  • options: Add chopped green onions or chives to batter 2 T, sprinkle tops with additional shredded cheese

Instructions

  • Combine the water, butter, salt, pepper in a medium saucepan, place over medium heat and stir until butter is melted. Once the butter has melted, increase heat to medium-high and then bring to a simmer, then remove pan from the heat, with a wooden spoon, stir in all the flour.
  • Continue to stir for 1 1/2 minutes until the mixture has a paste-like consistency, then place over medium-high heat and stir rapidly for 1 minute, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan and the bottom of the pan is clean. The dough should be glossy and smooth but not dry.
  • Immediately transfer the dough to a mixer bowl and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to release some of the moisture. Slowly begin to add the eggs, 50 grams at a time, beating until each addition is completely absorbed before adding the next one. Continue adding the eggs, mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl pulled with the paddle but immediately grabs back on again.
  • Increase speed to medium for 15 seconds to ensure that all the eggs are incorporated. Stop the mixer. When the dough is lifted, it should form a bird's peak- it should hold it's shape and turn down on itself but not break off. Add the cheese and pulse to incorporate (I used my mixer and blended the cheese in quickly)
  • Put batter into pastry bag. Pipe into molds (I didn't have molds, I used my donut hole pan) Or pipe little free form balls, slightly less than 1 inch in diameter onto a baking sheet, spread about 1 1/2 inches apart. When finished piping, I used my finger dipped in water, to push down and get rid of the little tip that is left on top of each one from the piping.
  • Freeze the gougeres for about four hours until firm.
  • If you want to bake some right away. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.
  • If you are baking from frozen: Preheat oven to 375F. Line baking sheet with frozen gougeres, leaving about 1 inch between them. Spray lightly with water. Place in the oven, immediately lower temperature to 350F and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm.