by jphilo | Feb 10, 2022 | Recipes
My husband is spending the weekend at our son and daughter’s-in-law farm. I was invited too, but am staying home in hopes of shaking the cough that is the last vestige of a virus that likes me much more than I like it.
The guys will watch the Super Bowl on Sunday, so I’m sending a batch of shortbread for them to enjoy. This is our son’s favorite cookie, and I can’t believe the recipe hasn’t been featured here before. (I’m also sending crumb top apple pie for my daughter-in-law.) Both recipes are from the Betty Crocker Cookbook that was a wedding present in 1977. Shortbread been a cookie staple at our house for over 40 years.
With only 3 ingredients, it’s easy to make. It tastes best after a few days stored in an airtight container at room temperature…if it lasts that long.
Super Bowl Shortbread
1 1/2 cups softened butter (preferably made with butter made from Snippy’s cream)
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups all purpose flour
Heat oven to 350°. Cream butter and sugar. Work in the flour. If the dough is crumbly, mix in 1 to 1 tablespoons softened butter.
Roll dough 1/3 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Use a small water glass to cut into rounds. Place 1/2 inch apart on a hot, ungreased baking stone. Bake for about 20 minutes or until set. Remove from stone to cool.
by jphilo | Jan 26, 2022 | Recipes, See Jane Run!
Ham and potato soup has been a favorite of ours for decades. When we lived in South Dakota, I made it with fresh milk that an old farmer sold for fifty cents a gallon.* We skimmed almost a quart of cream off every gallon and added some of that to the soup, too. My love of potato soup continues too this day, but making a dairy-free version to rival what I was used to before being diagnosed with a dairy allergy has been a struggle.
Until now.
With the addition of our Instant Pot and my daughter’s knack for using cashews to make foods creamy, the ham and potato soup I served our family last night was a winner. We were so hungry before supper, I forgot to photograph the full pot. As you can see, there wasn’t much left! Also, I prepared the ham hocks in the Instant Pot the day before, a process which yielded the broth used in the soup.
Ham and Potato Soup in the Instant Pot
2 cups cooked, cubed ham or the meat picked off two cooked ham hocks
6 cups ham, chicken, or vegetable broth
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed in 1/2-1 inch cubes
2 tablespoons Earth Balance butter substitute
1 large carrot, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/8 cup raw cashews
1 quart shelf stable coconut or oat milk
Soak the cashews in hot water for a few minutes. Put them in the blender with 1/2 cup of the coconut or oat milk and blend until smooth.
Using the saute setting on the Instant Pot, melt the butter substitute. Add the carrot, onion, and garlic. Saute until onions are transparent. Add the potatoes, ham, and broth to the pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (If using ham broth, you won’t need more salt.)
Secure the lid on the Instant Pot. Be sure the venting button is set to seal. Using the pressure cooking function, set the timer for 10 minutes. When the Pot beeps to signal the end of the 10 minutes, turn venting button from seal to vent to quick release the pressure.
When the pressure has been released, take off the lid. Turn on the keep warm function and add the blended cashews and the rest of the coconut or oat milk. Serve when the soup reaches your preferred temperature.
*The complete story of the farmer and his amazing milk cow, Snippy, made its way into See Jane Run! and the other books in my cozy mystery series. They are available on Amazon.
by jphilo | Jan 21, 2022 | Recipes
Cooking ham hocks in the Instant Pot is amazingly simple. I discovered that fact after deciding to use *ham hocks from the freezer in Instant Pot ham and potato soup. That soup was also amazing simple, delicious and believe it or not, dairy free. The recipe can be found at this link.
Ham Hocks in the Instant Pot
2 ham hocks (Ask the butcher to cut each hock into 2-3 pieces to make it easier to pick off the meat.)
6 cups water
Put the ham hocks and the water into the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and be sure the venting button is set to seal. Using the pressure cooking function, set the timer for 40 minutes. Push start.
When the pot beeps to signal the end of the forty minutes, let the pot natural release the pressure for 20 minutes. Then move the venting button to vent so the remaining pressure releases.
When all the pressure has been released, remove the lid. Using a slotted spoon remove the hocks. Put them in a pan to cool. When sufficiently cooled pick off the meat and discard the bones.
Use the meat and the liquid in the pot as ingredients for ham and potato soup, ham and bean soup, or other ham-based soups.
*Those of you who are eagerly awaiting the release of See Jane Run! on June 7, 2022 should know that cooking ham hocks in the Instant Pot is a totally Jane kind of thing to do. Except that Instant Pots weren’t around in 1977 when the story takes place. But if they had been, she’da been using one.
by jphilo | Sep 16, 2015 | Recipes
In the interest of full disclosure, readers should know that the grandma referred to in the title of this post is not and has never been my grandma. However, she is the grandmother of seven of my cousins (our mothers are sisters) on their dad’s side of the family. She was a lovely woman and a wonderful cook.
In the interest of fuller disclosure, readers should also know that this pie crust recipe has appeared on this website before. Without pictures. Because making pie crust is floury business and by the time my hands are clean and the camera comes to mind, the pie is usually in the oven already.
Until this week, when I kept the camera at hand for this new and improved version of the only pie crust recipe I can make, complete with pictures, illustrating almost every step along the way.
Grandma Conrad’s Never Fail Pie Crust
6 cups flour 2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder 1 – 1 1/2 cups lard
1 egg 2 tablespoons vinegar
In a 1 cup measuring cup, beat egg with a fork. Add vinegar and enough water to make one cup. Set aside. (Using the Tupperware measuring cup you won at a party over 30 years ago is optional.)
Sift together flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. (The large Tupperware mixing bowl you received as a wedding gift in 1977 works well for this.)
Cut in lard until mixture is crumbly but not clumpy.
Pour liquid mixture into flour mixture and stir with a fork until it forms a large ball, enough for 6-7 pie crusts.
Cover the dough and let it sit for 10 minutes. Roll out all the crusts. (The gi-normous rolling pin your mother-in-law bought for you in Hawaii is a good choice for this step.)
When they’re rolled out, place a piece of waxed paper on the crust and carefully roll the paper and crust into a tube. Put the crusts in a 2 gallon zipper bag and freeze. Then, thaw the rolls and use them when you’re ready to bake.
by jphilo | Jun 10, 2015 | Church Newsletter Columns, Recipes
June isn’t usually considered soup weather. But I’d been wanting to try this recipe for Red Thai Soup with Ginger Meatballs ever since a friend posed it on Facebook. The ingredient list included fresh parsley, basil, and cilantro, all of which are ready for harvesting in my herb garden. So we had soup one night, and it was good.
The meatball prep took some time, but the soup went together quickly. Since the recipe makes enough meatballs for 4 batches of soup, several bags of frozen meatballs are ready for quick soup suppers when the weather turns cool again. Both the Man of Steel and I found the soup delicious and filling.
Red Thai Soup with Ginger Meatballs
Ginger Meatball Ingredients:
1 pounds ground beef
1 pound ground pork
2 cups baby bella mushrooms, minced
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 egg
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoonground black pepper
Heat oven to 425 F. Mix all the ingredients by hand in a large bowl. Form into 1-inch balls. (Makes 35–40) Place at least an inch apart on broiler pan. prepared cookie sheets. Cook for 12-15 minutes. Divide into 3–4 quart freezer bags and freeze.
RED THAI MEATBALL SOUP
2-4 tablespoons coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cups Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1-2 cups stir-fry vegetables•
4 cups chicken or turkey broth
9-12 juicy meatballs
2 tablespoons red Thai curry paste
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 can coconut cream
Chopped cilantro or basil leaves
Sauté onions, potatoes and mushrooms in coconut oil over medium heat until onion becomes translucent. Add stir-fry vegetables* and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, meatballs, curry paste, salt and white pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add coconut cream, cook on medium-low until hot enough to serve. Stir in cilantro or basil right before serving.
*I used sweet red pepper and broccoli. The broccoli was a bit overpowering.
