Holiday Fare

Spinach (Broccoli) Enchiladas for Cinco de Mayo!

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 poblano pepper, diced (green pepper will work too)
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 Tablespoon Mae Ploy (Thai sweet chili sauce) -or use your favorite hot sauce
• 10 ounces fresh spinach (frozen, thawed spinach will work as well) (Broccoli tastes great too!)
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 8-10 6-inch flour or corn tortillas
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Heat olive oil in a large pan over a medium flame. Add red pepper, poblano pepper, and onion. Saute until softened, about 7 minutes.

Add the garlic, thyme, oregano, and Mae Ploy and saute for a few minutes more. Add the spinach and cook until wilted.

Break up the cream cheese and add it to the pan. Cook until melted and well combined. Keep filling warm.

Rolling and Filling:

Heat butter and vegetable oil in a frying pan and stir until blended. Dip each tortilla into the mixture for a couple of seconds. Drain on paper towels.

Put a scoop of filling in the center of the tortilla. Shape the filling into a line, then roll tightly into a log. It's now an enchilada. Put each enchilada seam-side down on a platter. Repeat until all tortillas are filled and rolled into enchiladas.

Heating: You can:

Bake them in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

or

Grill them

or

Microwave them on high for 1 1/2 minutes.

Makes 8 - 10 enchiladas

This recipe comes from Bluephies New American Cooking cookbook.

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Twisted Easter Egg Bread Rings

• Nonstick spray coating
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Grated peel of 2 lemons
• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 beaten eggs
• 4 1/2 - 5 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 12 colored raw eggs in shell
• 1 beaten egg
• Powdered sugar frosting (optional)

Spray a large bowl with nonstick spray coating. In a saucepan, combine milk, sugar, butter, salt, and lemon peel and heat until warm (120 to 130 degrees) and butter is almost melted. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add to milk mixture with eggs and 2-2 1/2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour, a little at a time, to form a dough that is easy to handle. Turn out onto lightly floured board and knead until smooth and elastic for about 5 to 8 minutes. Place in prepared bowl; turn dough over to grease top. Cover and let rise in warm place for 45 minutes or until doubled. Punch down and let rise again. Spray two 15 1/2 x 12-inch baking sheets with nonstick spray coating. Turn out onto lightly floured surface and divide dough into 4 equal parts. Form each part into a 16-inch rope. Shape 2 of the ropes on prepared baking sheet into a very loosely twisted ring, leaving space for 6 eggs. Repeat with other rope of dough for the second ring. Insert colored raw eggs into each ring. Cover and let rise about 30 minutes or until doubled. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush rings evenly with beaten egg. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack. Frost with powdered sugar frosting if desired. Makes 2 rings.

Powdered Sugar Frosting

In a small bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar with about 1 Tablespoon milk, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Beat until smooth.

Taken from:

Seasons in a Country Kitchen Cookbook 

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Easter Elegance

This recipe for Rosemary Baked Rack of Lamb  came from The White Gull Inn Centennial Cookbook.

• 3 frenched lamb racks
• 1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
• 1 bunch (6-8) chopped scallions
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons fresh or 1 Tablespoon dried rosemary
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Cut lamb racks into individual rib chops.

Combine bread crumbs, scallions, garlic, salt, pepper, onion powder, rosemary, and oil in a food processor; process until fine.

Spray each lamb chop with cooking spray and coat both sides with bread crumb mixture. Place on prepared sheet and bake 10 minutes. Turn chops over and continue baking 5-10 minutes for medium rare.

Serves 6.

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Roast Lamb in Herb Sauce -A Recipe taken from the Wisconsin Country Gourmet.

• 1 leg of lamb 6-7 pounds
• 4 1/2 cups dry white wine
• 3 small onions, peeled and stuck with cloves
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 12 peppercorns
• 14 juniper berries
• salt
• 2 carrots, scraped and quartered
• 6 parsley sprigs
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 fresh mint sprigs, or 1 1/2 teaspoon dried mint
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 cup salad oil
• 3 Tablespoons finely chopped shallots or finely chopped scallions
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1 1 /2 Tablespoons flour
• 1 1 /2 cup flavored beef stock
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 2 Tablespoons Madeira

Wipe leg of lamb with damp cloth. Place in stainless steel or ceramic or enamel-ware container. Mix wine with onions, garlic, peppercorns, juniper berries, 2 teaspoons salt, carrots, parsley, bay leaves, mint, and thyme. Pour mixture over lamb. Let lamb marinate in refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to hot (450 degrees). Remove lamb from marinade and dry well. Reserve marinade.

Place lamb on rack in roasting pan, rub with oil and sprinkle on additional salt and pepper. Roast lamb for 15 minutes, reduce oven heat to 350 degrees and continue to roast for 15 minutes to the pound - or longer if well done meat is desired. Baste frequently with juices.

Strain marinade and place in saucepan. Cook over high heat until reduced to almost half. Cook flour in butter whisking continuously about one minute; add shallots or scallions and continue to cook until they soften and start to turn golden. Add the reduced marinade slowly and then the flavored beef stock and Madeira; bring to a boil and then reduce heat, simmering 10 minutes. Add parsley and season with additional salt and pepper if necessary. Serve hot with lamb.

This is a full-flavored lamb dish with a lovely sauce - do not overcook meat, maintain a nice pink color inside.

Serves 12.

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St. Patrick's Day Corned Beef Brisket, Cabbage, and Potatoes

Corned beef brisket is so easy to prepare and so popular with my family I'm surprised I don't prepare it more often. This recipe came to me years ago by way of an old friend who had more children than time. She and I agree that cheap corned beef is mostly fat, and the few extra dollars for lean, delicious brisket is money well spent. And when you get the meat home, still make the effort to trim off the strip of fat on the brisket's top. Otherwise, the sweet-mustard glaze will flavor the fat, not the meat.

Corned Beef

Purchase about 1/2 of a mild cure, corned beef brisket (most packaged corned beef is roughly a half of a full brisket and therefore just a few pounds)

Put the brisket in a BIG pot and cover with cold water. Bring the water to a full boil, then dump all the water out, rinse the beef, and do the same thing all over again.

Except, the second time, to the water and beef add:

• 4 garlic cloves (I crush them)
• 1/2 stalk celery
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 or 5 peppercorns
• 4 or 5 whole cloves
• 1 or 2 whole all spice
• pinch of red pepper
• pinch of black pepper
• dash of dried parsley flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon marjoram
• 1 teaspoon basil
• (1 teaspoon of any other dried seasoning you like, optional)

Bring the beef and spices to a hard boil, then turn down the heat to low and simmer about 3 hours - slow and easy.

When the meat is tender, remove it from the pot and put it in a roasting pan. Stir together:

• 1 Tablespoon yellow mustard (liquid, not powdered)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar

Spread this mustard glaze over the brisket and bake uncovered for 1/2 hour at 350 degrees.

To make the potatoes and cabbage, add the following to the corned beef water still in the large pot on the stove:

• potatoes, cut-up
• cabbage, quartered, or (coarsely cut if you're in a hurry)
• carrots, mini ones, or large ones cut up
• 1 or 2 onions, sliced

Boil these until tender. (The length of cooking time depends a lot on how small you cut up the veggies. The potatoes take longest, so either cut them small or add them first.) They'll pick up the flavors of the beef and the spices and be far tastier than plain ol' boiled vegetables. Enjoy.

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Christmas Kringle

Though I lack personal experience creating kringle, I would be remiss if I did not offer curious cooks instructions on how to make an authentic Danish kringle.  So I turn to Madison, Wisconsin's Marge Snyder and Suzanne Breckenridge, who are professional chefs, cookbook authors, and cooking instructors in their food-consulting business, Food Matters.  Here is their recipe for Almond Kringle, taken from their book the Wisconsin Country Gourmet.   

Almond Kringle - A wonderfully rich Danish pastry that you'll want to make year around.

• 1 envelope (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• 1/3 cup warm milk
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 3/4 cup whipping cream
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, chilled
• 1 recipe Almond Filling
• 1/4 cup pearl sugar, or coarsely crushed sugar cubes
• 1 egg white, slightly beaten
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds

In a small bowl, combine the yeast, milk, 1 Tablespoon sugar, egg yolks, and cream; let stand ten minutes.  In a large bowl blend flour, 1/4 sup sugar, and salt.  With a pastry blender cut in butter until pieces are the size of kidney beans.  Add yeast mixture slowly, folding in only until dry ingredients are moistened.  Turn dough out onto a slightly floured board, dust with flour and knead 4 or 5 times.  Place in clean bowl, cover and refrigerate 12 to 24 hours. (This will not rise.)

Prepare Almond Filling and set aside:

• 1 package (8 ounces) almond paste
• 3/4 cup chopped almonds
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Break almond paste into pieces.  With a mixer, combine all ingredients.

Pound the dough with a rolling pin until smooth and 3/4-inch thick.  Roll dough into a 15x30-inch rectangle and spread filling to within 1 inch of edges.  Roll up tightly, in a jelly roll fashion.  Sprinkle work surface with pearl sugar, roll dough in sugar, brush surface with egg white and roll in sugar a second time.

Lay rolled dough on a greased baking sheet.  Shape it into a large pretzel by curving like a 'U', then looping each end around the opposite side about 5 inches from the ends.  Tuck ends under.  Again brush with egg white, and sprinkle with almonds.  Cover and let rise in a warm place for 40 minutes.  Bake in a preheated oven, 375 degrees, for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.