Dog Days of Winter

The food lady is out - must stay vigilant.

I knew if I waited. . .

Enjoy it Larelei - the 8 inches of doom and gloom forecast turned out to be about 3 inches total

Time for breakfast Dad!

Mom;s Scottish Pancakes (known as dropped scones) Syrup on Dad's and Jam on Mom's.

Lorelei Lab says - Round and Yellow is Good!

 Woke to the first real snow of the season. A good day for aebleskiver (Danish Pancakes). I don't make them often but since my husband shoveled our walkways and the elderly neighbors', I wanted to surprise him. This is the first time I've made them with sourdough and they turned out better than I had hoped for. But first, a ride in the doggie elevator out to the back yard for some playtime.

If you can find a cast iron aebleskiver pan, get one.

.

Sourdough Aebleskiver (low sodium and regular instructions provided)
In large bowl blend
1 cup milk, replacing 1 teaspoon of milk with apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and let set at room temperature 5 minutes.
1 cup active sourdough starter (mine today was made with whole wheat pastry flour from Bob's Red Mill)
2 eggs (beaten before adding)
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 stick unsalted butter melted and cooled for a couple of minutes before adding.

In another bowl mix:
180 grams unbleached flour (roughly 1 ½ cups)
3/4 teaspoon reduced sodium Himalayan Pink Salt
1 Tablespoon Hain Sodium Free Baking powder (or 2 tsp regular b.p.)
3/4 teaspoon EnerG Sodium Free Baking Soda Replacement (or ½ tsp regular baking soda) Blend wet and dry ingredients just until mixed, (may be some small lumps).  Heat the Aebleskiver pan until hot (about 10-12 minutes - a drop of water on it should sizzle) and give it a quick spray with non-stick spray (I use an organic Olive Oil one) or brush with a pastry brush with melted butter. Then using a teaspoon, fill the depression to no more than 1/8 inch below the rim.  As soon as the Aebleskivers begin to bubble around the edges, use a wooden skewer, knitting needle, or sharp edge of a knife to flip them over half way, letting the batter slide around to fill in the bottom of the cup. Continue cooking, turning the Aebleskiver again to let the batter fill in the remainder of the sphere and continuing to turn until golden brown all the way around and cooked through.

NOTE: plan on totally murdering two or three before you get it right, have small bucket handy to remove the remains. 

As far as temp, my 80-year-old gas stove has two settings, not warm enough and surface of the sun hot, so I have learned to just adjust between those settings.  For those of you with a modern stove, aim for medium heat, around 325 degrees.  Place in a clean town in a bowl and keep covered to remain warm as you cook the rest.  These freeze well. 

 Serve with powdered sugar, butter, and lingonberries. Or do what my Scandinavian Mom did and put a little piece of apple in the center as it cooks.

Makes about 3 and a half dozen with the pan I have; they freeze really well if placed in a sealed container after cooling completely.

Lorelei Lab says:  Round and yellow is good!

You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch. . .

 When Dad cuts a piece of homemade brownie and doesn't give you one. . . . (make sure you have your sound turned up)

Looking Back

Our wounds, we wear like temporary garments until they are forgotten, 

but our stories, we don them as forever.

The Book of Barkley

Favorite Foodables - Lasagna Buns

The "Porkinator" - Sausage Lasagna in a bun (easily cuts in half or doubles)

Lasagna ingredients (minus pasta) in a bun. This was a HUGE hit with my husband, though people will sort of look at it initially and go. . .

What???

But after they taste it. . .

You will need:

1/3 of a jar of store-bought pasta sauce (roughly 1 and 1/4 cups of sauce))
1/2 of a roll of Jimmy Deans SPICY breakfast sausage (sage flavor would also work)
1 heaping teaspoon chopped garlic (fill that puppy up)
4-5 slices (ahem) of chopped bacon

Mmmm. Bacon. (but you can substitute veggie "meat" easily in this recipe).

Cook meat and drain fat:

Stir into sauce and add:
1/2 tsp oregano
3 dashes of Jane's Krazy Mixed Up Salt (or your favorite mixed salt, I like Jane's as it's low sodium due to the addition of lots of herbs)

Simmer just until it's bubbling.

While the sauce heats up, in a bowl mix:
1 cup grated mozzarella
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan

Set aside about 1/2 cup of that mixture

To remaining shredded cheese add:
1 cup of ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon of egg (white and yolk mixed up and measured out, save rest for breakfast)
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
a pinch of cayenne
Mix well.

Get 4-6 bratwurst rolls or other larger sized sturdy sandwich rolls and scoop out the middle third (save that for meatloaf later), leaving enough at the bottom so that it holds together, like a sub-shaped bread bowl.

Place a big spoonful of meat sauce inside, top with a couple spoonful's of the cheese mixture, leaving a little open space for the sauce to bubble up through. Place in a cooking pan or tray that you've lightly sprayed with non-stick spray.

Cook in preheated 350 F. oven, covered lightly with foil for 20 minutes.

Remove foil, sprinkle with cheese you set aside and bake another 4-6 minutes until cheese on top melts.

Smiles for the Coming New Year

Hoping all of you had a wonderful Holiday season and hoping you will all have a great New Year.

In Hot Water

 Lorelei loves playing in the snow, but she loves the hot water bottle on her arthritic hip for her nap afterward.  A few dollars well spent, it makes her really comfy after playtime.

That's the Problem with Thanksgiving

There's never enough stuffing.

Nuts!

That look you get when you sneak into the kitchen to eat the leftover Halloween candy you squirreled away only to find out your spouse ate it already.

Waffle Hunt

The waffle detection device in the house has just gone off.

 Is it the steam rising - or the smell of  dried wild blueberries in the sourdough  batter.?

 

Elderberry Gummies - Tasty Immune Support We All Enjoy

Every winter I get some elderberry gummies as elderberry is a natural way to boost the immune system. But they were getting EXPENSIVE.  I knew I could make my own, and I did with the help of the free tutorials from Farmhouse Teas (a homesteading family in Central Oregon).  I have been a customer for a long time, starting my kombucha making with their tutorials, and enjoying all the many teas they offer (my favorites are the High Desert Hibiscus Herbal Tea and the Herbal Sugar Makers Not Coffee(R) which I have on days I want the depth and richness of coffee without the acid and the caffeine.)

• Farmhouse Teas

I got everything I need to make my first batch,  gummy molds, a dropper, cheesecloth for straining, and some very high quality grass fed gelatin (their instructions also include instructions for making this vegan with Agar Agar powder.)  There we SO easy to make, just mix some of the the elderberry mix with water, bring to a boil, let it simmer to reduce to about a cup, cool slightly, whisk in honey and gelatin, warm it for a few minutes on low to dissolve the gelatin and place in the silicon molds.  After 30 minutes in the fridge the bears just pop right out.

No corn syrup, no white sugar, no chemical ingredients, no dyes.  Healthy immune and anti-inflammatory goodness from elderberry.  Most elderberry syrups in very small amounts are not toxic to dogs and elderberry tinctures are reported to have anti-viral property so I personally give my dog a single gummy as a treat, but always CHECK WITH YOUR VET FIRST for ANY DIY nutritional supplement or treat.  

Elderberry Gummies

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cups of Water

8 Tablespoons Farmhouse Teas Dry Elderberry Syrup Mix (that's 1/2 cup)

1/3 cup Grass-fed Beef Gelatin (or Agar Agar Powder)

1/2 cup Raw Honey

Add the water and dry Elderberry Syrup Mix to a small pot on the stove. Bring water and

mix to a boil. Once the mix is boiling, turn the heat down to a light simmer and simmer the dry mix until the liquid is reduced in half. (on low this was 30 minutes for me). Strain the dry mix through cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer into a clean container and let cool to room temperature. Check the syrup temperature with your thermometer and make sure that it is no warmer than 120 degrees Fahrenheit.  Add the raw honey and whisk to combine. Add the Grass-fed Beef Gelatin or Agar powder and whisk in evenly.

Place the pan back on the stove and heat on low just until the gelatin dissolved and then turn the heat off and remove from the stove. Remember not to get it too hot and keep the heat down away from boiling. It should only take a minute or so on low heat.

Using large droppers place the herbal elderberry syrup gelatin mix into your molds of choice. (I used 3 of them total, the first two pictured here.)

Place the molds in the refrigerator and let them chill for about 30 minutes or until firm. Remove the gummies from the molds and keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 7-14 days

My batch made about 7 dozen mini bears.

Happy Halloween!

 

Have a safe and fun day my friends, whatever you brew up.