Tomorrow Night's Demo

Hello Everyone,

Doug will be making a fava bean spread (with foccaccia), as bean spreads are a staple food throughout Eastern Europe and the fertile crescent (covering Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq.) I hope everyone will be able to make it tomorrow night at 6:30 to talk about An Edible History of Humanity.

~ Brianne


   

Books for December, January, and February

December: An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage

January: A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle

February: Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

Mignonette

Mignonette


Shallot, minced                                    1 Tbsp
Parsley, minced                                   1 tsp
Green onion, minced                           1 tsp
Your favorite light vinegar                    ½ cup

1 Mix together all ingredients.

2 Use approx ½ tsp of mignonette per oyster.

Icing Filled Chocolate Wafer Cookies


For the Chocolate Wafers:

1 ¼ cups AP Flour
½ cup Cocoa powder
1 tsp Baking soda
¼ tsp Baking powder
¼ tsp Salt
1 cup Sugar
5 oz Butter, room temperature
1 ea Egg

For the Filling:

2 oz Butter, room temperature
¼ cup Vegetable shortening
2 cups Powdered sugar
2 tsp. Vanilla extract

1- To make the wafers, mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar together in the bowl of a mixer.

2- Add the butter and mix on low until incorporated.

3- Add the egg and mix until it forms a dough ball.

4- On a lightly floured board, roll out the dough to a 1/4” thickness.

5- Cut out wafer cookies using a 1 ¾” round cookie cutter.

6- Bake the cookies on a greased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

7- Allow the cookies to cool completely before filling.



1- To make the filling, put the butter and shortening in the bowl of a mixer, and mix at low speed.

2- Add the powdered sugar to the butter mixture in three stages.

3- Add the vanilla to the mix, and then turn mixer to medium and whip to desired consistency.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Hot Fudge Sauce


Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips ¾ cup
½ and ½ ½ cup and 2 Tbsp
Unsalted butter 1 stick
Sugar ½ cup
Salt 1 pinch

1 Melt all ingredients together in a double boiler, stirring occasionally.

2 Serve immediately or refrigerate and gently reheat as needed.

Habanero Jelly

Habanero Jelly


Red Bell Peppers, stemmed, seeded, chopped                            2ea.
Orange Bell Peppers, stemmed, seeded, chopped                       1ea.
Habanero chili, stemmed, seeded, chopped                                 1 ea.
Sugar (divided)                                                                           3 ¼ cups
White vinegar                                                                             ½ cup
Cider vinegar                                                                              ½ cup
Salt                                                                                             ½ tsp
Butter                                                                                         1 Tbsp
Pectin                                                                                         1.75 oz



1 In a medium sauce pot, combine all of the peppers, 3 cups of the sugar, both vinegars, the salt, and the butter.

2 Bring this pepper mixture to a simmer over medium heat and cook for 8 minutes.

3 Combine the sugar and the remaining ¼ cup of pectin in a small bowl and set aside.

4 When the chopped peppers have softened, take the mixture off of the heat.

5 Using an immersion (stick) blender, puree the mixture to the desired smoothness.

6 Place the mixture back on the heat and return to a simmer.

7 Using a whisk, mix the pectin mixture into the pepper mixture and stir vigorously.

8 When the mixture thickens (approx 2-3 minutes), pour the hot jelly into sterilized canning jars and process using the hot water bath method.

Fried Polenta

Fried Polenta


Olive oil (Divided) 1Tbsp and 2 tsp
Small yellow onion, small diced 1 ea.
Garlic cloves, minced 3 ea.
Vegetable broth (or water) 4 ½ cups
Polenta 1 cup
Parsley, chopped 2 Tbsp
Butter (divided) 2 Tbsp

1 In a medium sized pot, heat 2 tsp of the olive oil.

2 Sautee the onions in the oil until translucent.

3 Add the garlic to the pot and cook for 2 more minutes.

4 Add the vegetable broth and bring to a simmer.

5 Slowly whisk the polenta into the broth to avoid lumps.

6 Cook for 5-6 minutes until polenta granules are tender, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.

7 Turn off the heat and stir the parsley and butter into the cooked polenta.

8 Spread the polenta ½” to ¾” thick across a parchment lined pan, sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Cool for 2-3 hours, or over-night.

9 unmold polenta and cut into desired size and shapes.

10 In a large sautee pan or skillet, fry the pieces of polenta in the remaining Tbsp of butter and Tbsp of oil.