German Plum Cake

Plums are one of the later summer fruits in Ontario. I have already made my favourite jam with yellow plums. I like to use purple plums in a cake. 

This recipe is an adaptation of a German plum cake on epicurious.com.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds large plums (about 5-6)
• 1 1/2cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup sour cream (I used yogurt)

For the Topping:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold 
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 inch x 13 inch x 2 inch baking pan.

Wash the plums, cut them in half, and remove pits. For each plum half, cut in half again or thirds. Set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. 

Cream 6 tablespoons of butter with 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, until well-incorporated. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts. Mix in flour alternating with the sour cream. Mix until just incorporated and smooth. Spoon into baking pan and spread evenly with offset spatula.

Insert the plum slices into the batter in even rows. In a small bowl, mix the topping ingredients together then distribute the topping over the plums. 

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until lightly browned and a cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake. 

Fish and Potato Pie in the style of Jamie Oliver

My sister Sylvia made her delicious version of a Jamie Oliver fish pie for company recently. Jamie Oliver is inspirational and his original recipe for fish pie can be found at www.jamieoliver.com. 

                                         This photo shows Jamie's pie. Looks like he used a cast iron frying pan to bake it.

The following recipe is my variation on the Jamie Oliver theme. I happened to use haddock and shrimp for the fish component, but I say, use whatever you like. 

Ingredients for the top of the pie: 

• about 3-4 cups of mashed potatoes ( I used leftovers)
• 2 chopped scallions
• 2 tablespoons of crumbled feta cheese
• a knob of butter
• salt and pepper to taste 

Ingredients for the pie filling:

• 6 large shrimp cut into bite-sized pieces
• about 3/4 of a pound of wild fresh-caught haddock cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 cup of frozen peas
• 2 tablespoons of finely zested lemon rind
• juice of 1 lemon
• a teaspoon of dried dill
• 8 chopped capers

For the white sauce:

• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 1.5 cups of milk
• salt and pepper to taste 

Methods: 

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. 

Mash together the ingredients for the potato topping until smooth. Set aside.

Make the white sauce component of the filling by melting the butter in a saucepan, then stirring in the flour to make a roux. Gradually whisk in 1.5 cups of milk and cook the sauce until thickened and smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In a large bowl mix together the peas, shrimp and fish, the lemon juice and zest, dill, capers, and as much of the white sauce as needed to bring things together. 

Turn the fish mixture into the bottom of a buttered baking dish or large pie plate, then cover it completely with the potato mixture. Bake in the oven for about an hour until the whole thing is nicely browned. You might need to place it under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the top.

My husband : "That cheesecake thing is a bust". Me : "But the random dude on Instagram said it was a 10/10."

Hmmm. I guess this looks vaguely like a Basque cheesecake. That is, however, where the similarity ends. It also looks vaguely like an ancient leather slipper. 

This is one of those 4-ingredient high-protein marvels that Instagram loves. And it's fine if you want a rather tasteless spongey protein thing to ingest. If you want cheesecake, use cheese.

I really hate wasting food, so I am going to have to curb my enthusiasm for Instagram.

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 and 1/2 cups of plain yogurt
• 5 tablespoons of corn starch
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Methods: 

Mix everything well and place the batter in a lined loaf tin. Bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour.

Drizzle the finished product with honey or maple syrup or smother with jam.

Scottish Oat Cakes

I think I might have to use my oat cakes as a crumble topping. They were not quite right, likely because I decided to use oat flour rather than all-purpose white flour. Delicious though.

This is my sister Sylvia's recipe for oat cakes. I happen to love the texture and taste of anything oaty. 

Ingredients:

• 2-plus cups of old-fashioned oats or regular oatmeal (Syl thinks she might have used 3)
• 1 cup all purpose flour (I used a cup of oat flour instead)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
• 1/4 cup boiling water

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 350 F. 

Mix the dry ingredients together then add the shortening. Pulse the mixture using a few pulses in a food processor. Alternatively, you can cut in the shortening with a pastry cutter. Then add the boiling water and mix until a dough comes together. Let the dough rest for a few minutes. Form into a flat rectangle on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and mark squares, or form into balls and flatten. Try 6 per baking sheet. They spread.

Bake for about 12 minutes. Cool completely. 

My sister said this recipe made 16 large round biscuits. 

You can see from the photo above that I baked mine in a cookie sheet (8 x 12 inch). They were too thick so I needed to bake them longer and they were too tender so tended to fall apart. Just ignore me and follow my sister's recipe. 

Making it edible. The concept of kale massage.

Kale is one tough vegetable. It is basically off-limits for those with missing or crumbling teeth. Sauteeing the kale definitely acts to soften it, but then it's really cooked. If you want to eat raw kale and not choke on it, there is a way. It's called massage, and like a regular back massage, it involves oil, hands and rubbing. 

Cut the kale into small bite-sized pieces after washing and drying it. Place in a serving bowl and add a couple of tablespoons of oil and a dash of coarse salt, then using clean hands start rubbing. After a minute or two, you will notice the structure of the kale has broken down and it has darkened in colour. Add whatever fresh veggies you want to make a salad. Dress with lemon juice or vinegar, and more salt and oil as needed. 

I was introduced to massaged kale by a friend who combined kale and mango to make a salad. I highly recommend it.

Kale and Cannellini Beans... Eat your veggies!

 

This was good. I simply sauteed a minced clove of garlic and a few flakes of dried chilli pepper in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, then added about a cup of rinsed cannellini beans and some black kale cut into bite-sized pieces and continued sauteeing briefly. Covered the pan with a lid for a minute or so, added a bit of salt, and the deed was done.

P.S. Cannellini beans are more commonly known as white kidney beans. They come in cans or jars.

Raw black kale is so sturdy and so ominously dark, it's gotta be chock full of iron.  

Chicken with Peaches and Almonds..... very retro

This is a dish that my sister Sylvia has been making for years/decades, having received the original recipe from her mother-in-law. It was designed to feed a crowd (in the seventies) on special occasions. 

Ingredients:

• 4 large boneless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized chunks 
• 1/2 cup flour divided
• 1&1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1 large can sliced peaches drained, reserving the peach juice
• water added to the reserved peach juice to make 1&1/2 cups of liquid
• 1 can beef broth concentrate ( I assume this refers to something like a can of Campbell's bouillon)
• 3 tbsp ketchup
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese

Methods:

Mix 1/4 cup of the flour with the paprika, salt and pepper in a large freezer bag. Toss the chicken pieces in the flour mixture and fry in butter on a medium heat until lightly browned. Remove the chicken and place it in a large casserole dish. 

Slightly brown the almonds in the frying pan, then stir in the remaining 1/4 cup of flour. Add the peach juice/water mixture and the beef broth to the pan, stirring constantly. Then add the ketchup and cook the mixture until it has thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the sour cream, then pour the entire mixture over the chicken. Cover the dish with foil and bake at 350 degrees for one hour. 

Remove the dish from the oven and uncover. Arrange the peach slices over the chicken and generously sprinkle the whole thing with the parmesan cheese. Return to the oven uncovered to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with egg noodles or rice. 

Zucchini and Ricotta Galette from Smitten Kitchen

I'm not a huge fan of zucchini but when you pair it with cheese and pastry, my interest increases dramatically. I made a bit of a pared-down rustic version of a Smitten Kitchen recipe. I used my own pie crust which I make as per the recipe on the box of lard or Crisco that I happen to have on hand. 

This can be served hot, warm, cold, or at room temperature. That pretty much covers all eventualities.

Ingredients:

• one smallish zucchini, sliced as thinly as you can make it
• a tablespoon of olive oil with a clove of minced garlic mixed in
• 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup of shredded mozarella
• salt and papper to taste
• 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 teaspoon of water
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced basil leaves to finish. I didn't have any.

Methods:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. (Smitten Kitchen says 400 degrees, but whatever works).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Or better yet, do what I did and roll the dough into a round on the parchment paper prior to putting it on the baking sheet. Whatever way you want to do it, you need a 12 inch round of pastry on a baking sheet, with or without parchment paper. 

Mix the cheese together along with 1 teaspoon of the garlic oil, and some salt and pepper to taste. Spread the cheese mixture over the pastry leaving a 2-inch border. Place the sliced zucchini in a decorative concentric circular pattern on top of the cheese and brush with some of the garlic oil. Then fold the border of pastry over the edges of the zucchini cheese mixture. Brush the crust with the egg yolk glaze. Bake until golden brown, thirty to forty to fifty minutes. It depends on your oven. 

Honey Spice Loaf by Canadian Celebrity Chef Anna Olson

So, obviously, I'm now on a spice cake kick. And again, this recipe comes from my sister Penelope, although celebrity chef Anna Olson is the original source of the recipe. I think the honey in this recipe gives a nice flavour to both the cake and the icing. A friend is coming for tea this afternoon. We'll see how she likes it.

 No sugar or eggs involved, but lots of spices.
Ingredients:

• 1 cup (150 g) whole wheat flour

• 1 cup (150 g) all-purpose flour

• 2 ½ tsp (7.5 g) baking powder

• ½ tsp (2.5 g) baking soda

• ½ tsp (2.5 g) salt

• ½ tsp (1.5 g) ground cinnamon

• ½ tsp (1.5 g) ground anise seed (I did not have this so used ground cardamom)

• ½ tsp (1.5 g) ground black pepper

• ¼ tsp (1 g) ground nutmeg

• ¼ tsp (1 g) ground cloves

• 1 ½ cups (375 mL) 2% milk

• 1 cup (300 g) honey

• Finely grated zest of 1 orange

• ¼ cup (60 g) unsalted butter, melted

Honey Glaze:
1 Tbsp honey, 1 Tbsp butter, 1 cup  (130 g) icing sugar, sifted

Methods:
Preheat your oven to 350 ºF and grease a 9-x-5-inch loaf tin.
Measure the whole wheat flour into a large mixing bowl and then sift in the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and all of the spices. Add the milk, honey and orange zest and whisk until smooth, then whisk in the melted butter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about an hour, until a skewer inserted into the centre of the loaf comes out clean. Let the loaf cool in its tin for 30 minutes and then turn it out to cool completely on a rack.

For the honey glaze, stir the melted butter and honey together and then stir in the icing sugar, adding water if needed to achieve a glaze consistency. I used more butter and more icing sugar to make more of an icing than a glaze, because that's the way I like it.

Summer Squash Spice Cake from The Victory Garden Cookbook

My sister Penelope is seen holding the very pretty, moist, and delicious birthday cake she made for my husband this summer.  The recipe was taken from the Victory Garden Cookbook authored by Marian Morash, 1982 edition. Edible flowers were used for decoration. Very whimsical. Tres fey.

Ingredients for the cake:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon  
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups grated summer squash

Ingredients for the Icing:

• 1/2 cup of melted butter
• 3.5 cups of sifted icing sugar
• a couple of tablespoons of oat milk (or any orther kind of milk)
• teaspoon vanilla extract

Methods:

Sift together the dry ingredients. Beat the eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla together.

Beat in the dry ingredients. Stir in the grated squash. Pour into a greased  8 x 8 inch pan. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.

When the cake is cooled, mix together the ingredients for the icing and spread evenly over the surface of the cake.

Notes from Penelope: I used medium brown sugar, grapeseed oil, and peeled and seeded a yellow zucchini before grating it. I used parchment paper to line the pan.

Plum Jam...those with diabetes should avert their eyes

Plum jam is significantly easier to make than strawberry jam, and for my money, it's tastier. It's basically plums, pectin, and absolutely massive amounts of sugar.

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of diced plums (pits removed but do not peel them). I used yellow plums.
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 57 gram box of CERTO (the pectin)
• 8 flippin' cups of granulated sugar

Methods:

Wash the plums and cut out the pits. Then roughly chop the plums.  They basically dissolve during the cooking process so this can really be a rough chop. Place them in a large pot. Add the box of CERTO and 1/2 cup of water and bring the mixture to a boil, simmer 5 minutes. Add the sugar and bring to a rolling boil for one minute. Remove from the heat and stir for 5 minutes to avoid all the fruit floating to the top of your jars. Pour into warm sterilized jars up to 1/4 inch from the rim. Cover with sterilized lids and rims and wait for the pop that indicates a vacuum seal. Bob's your uncle.