Posted on 02/11/2016 4:03:51 PM PST by Jamestown1630
I've always liked canned beets, pickled or plain, and usually in salads; but I've never cooked or eaten fresh beets before. I decided to try a simple roasted beet for my first experiment.
Beets peel better if they're roasted first, so I didn't peel them at the start. Cut off the stem ends, leaving about an inch for a 'handle' (what to do with the greens will be a later project). Also, cut off any long, skinny root, and then wash the beets well - dirt seems to especially collect up near the stem.
Place the cleaned and dried beats in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and kosher salt rubbing both all over the beets, and wrap the beets tightly in aluminum foil. Place the beet packet on a rimmed baking sheet that is also lined with foil - easier cleanup in case the beets 'leak'. Bake in a pre-heated 400-degree oven for one hour, or until a sharp knife pierces them easily.
Let the beets cool, and then remove the skins (do this in a bowl in the sink, to keep pink juice from going all over the place.) You can then slice or quarter, and salt and pepper them; and they are ready for a quick heating at serving time. They have a different, rounder flavor than canned beets, buttery and sweet - just greater 'dimension'.
There's no getting around the fact that beets are a mess to deal with; and I'm not sure I'd do them very often. But I'm not making that decision until I try making a real Borscht (does anyone have a favorite recipe?) and until I try this recipe from McCormick:
http://www.mccormick.com/Gourmet/Recipes/Salads-Sides/Roasted-Balsamic-Beets
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Another recipe I had time to try this past week was Beer Bread. A recipe by Gerald Norman has been going around the Internet for many years, so that's the one I used.
I was surprised at how this came out. I had imagined that it would have a texture like muffins, or any quick bread; but the dough looks like yeast-raised dough as soon as you stir in the beer, and the baked bread has a texture that's sort of a cross between a quick bread and an English Muffin. Even though mine was cooked a little too long, it came out very flavorful with a lovely texture.
The recipe suggests that if you like a softer bread, you should mix the melted butter into the dough, instead of pouring it on top, and I think I would prefer it that way - the outside of the bread basically 'fries' in the melted butter if the butter is poured on top, and this tends to make the outside hard.
I halved the sugar, because I wanted a more savory bread (it seems to me that you could play around with this recipe a lot, with all kinds of savory additions like herbs and cheese); and mine resulted in one that would be great with jam, just butter, or as an appetizer with almost any kind of spread:
http://www.food.com/recipe/beer-bread-73440
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We have become interested in the health benefits of Bone Broth. Last weekend we tried making it for the first time, and now have many containers of rich, gelatinous 'goo' in the freezer, ready for recipes.
I'm going to be experimenting with this and will post about the results, culinary and salutary; but for now, here is a recipe for Cream of Mushroom Soup that I'm going to try this weekend. We found it in the almost encyclopedic book on Bone Broth, 'Nourishing Broth', by Sally Fallon and Kaayla Daniel. (I've seen other FReepers mention Fallon's first book, 'Nourishing Traditions', and am anxious to get a copy of that, as well):
http://www.blogher.com/homemade-cream-mushroom-soup-recipe
-JT
You are correct. Everything I’ve read about bone broth indicates that it should NOT be boiled, but simmered very slowly.
-JT
Um....what is ‘Old Beer’???
- JT :-)
That fat is called schmaltz, a necessary ingredient to fry chicken livers. Mash the chicken livers with the schmaltz used to cook them, incorporate diced hard boiled egg, minced onion, and a bit of mayo; salt and pepper to taste. Spread on a good hard rye bread with sliced onion. Yum!
A neighbor was cleaning out his rented house and gave us the fridge. We had to scrub it out, wash it with lemon juice and leave it in the sun for a couple of days but I have my second fridge. It lives in the basement and it is where I store things like the juice jars. I have one for the liquid from canned fruit as well.
And it is where I store my cleaned bacon fat. Waste was a sin to my mom and grandmother.
Schmaltz is also the ONLY fat that makes the best dumplings, for Chicken-and-Dumpling Soup! We save it and freeze it.
-JT
Okay, I have made homemade broth a long time ( I also will make shrimp head & she’ll broth & freeze for risotto ; )
My question, should you seek out organic bones for the broth or are regular bones good also? It seems like a cup in the evening would be very nutritious. Do you ever mix bones from chicken & beef or do separate broth? Thanks.
My husband’s Italian family always had a second kitchen, with range/stove and sink; and an extra fridge in the garage.
I covet that; there’s just never enough room in the main fridge!
-JT
A friend of mine had a chest freezer in his basement full of meat, and the breaker on the circuit it was plugged into tripped. By the time he noticed the meat had been spoiled for days. He tried everything to get rid of the smell but nothing worked. I told him to try filling it with charcoal. He did, and opened it up after about a few days and it still smelled so he closed it back up and decided he was just going to have to throw it away. A month later when he finally got around to hauling it away he open it up to dump out the charcoal and there was no smell at all.
Just FYI.....we have two older cats & I read a great report on goat’s milk. We have a wonderful holistic/organic pet store & I bought a pint of Answers raw goat’s milk. A pint was about $5.50. I give her a saucer w/ about 4 tablespoons. It is fermented & has organic honey & cinnamon in it. She loves it & She has minor itching & it seems to have gotten better. It is touted as a super food for both cats & dogs. Has good fats & is supposed to be good for digestion too!
I AM going to make beer bread soon!!!!
Oh, chicken liver pate is so unbelievably good!
That looks very good, and would go great with the Borscht that I’m going to try.
-JT
I have heard that you should use organic bones, but that isn’t a possibility for us. I figure that broth from conventionally raised chicken still has the collagen etc and will benefit our family.
According to Nourishing Broths a cup a day maintains health and when your body is experiencing illness you need much more.
I’ve never mixed bones, but Sally Fallon recommends adding a pig’s foot to chicken or beef broth for added nutrients. Beef bones require more than just boiling-they need to be roasted and a few other steps before boiling so maybe that’s why you don’t mix beef and chicken?
I should get more intense about making broth more often as I have an autoimmune disorder (but recently in remission-yay!!) and I think one of my kids’ gut is out of balance. Small freezer and a big family so I would have to make it every other day to get enough.
Don’t forget the sour cream!(for borscht)
My family loves piroshki!
I like saving my bacon fat by freezing it in an ice cube tray. After freezing I put the cubes in a Ziploc and throw in the freezer, one or 2 works great when fixing hash browns or anything you want bacon grease for. Handy and measured.
Thanks for this; I did a search, and we can buy Answers products locally. Will check them out; but is the raw goat’s milk ‘canned’, or do you have to buy it fresh/refrigerated?
My cats are rescues, and grew up eating only the cheapest dry food in the Shelter. We’ve been trying to acquaint them with better food, but they just don’t seem to want anything to do with it.
-JT
I keep thinking I should find chicken or pig feet-my broth hasn’t gelled lately-stays a liquid in the fridge. Poor quality chicken from Aldi? Too much water?
Last time I made beef broth I considered sucking out the marrow but couldn’t go through with it!
I have saved the chicken fat for cooking-carmelized onions are great cooked in chicken fat. I feel like the broth and cooking fat are pretty much “free” when I use carcasses to make broth. Does my frugal heart good :-). Especially when I buy only olive oil, butter or coconut oil for cooking; none are cheap.
We get chicken feet at the local ethnic store, and have previously added them to soups; didn’t use them on the Bone Broth this weekend.
Maybe you just have to cook it longer, to get it to break down. We just covered all the bones by an inch or two of water. As soon as we strained and cooled, it was like jelly.
-JT
They sell it frozen & it says it is good for 14 days once it is opened. Try mixing better food into the food they like & slowly wean them onto the good food. I work w/ our animal shelter. All of ours are foundling/ rescues. They are the best aren’t they! ; )
I love it!
What do you do with the fruit juice? duh, I know, drink it!
I save my bacon fat too, but use it in making cat food. But I have used the cleaned fat to season cast iron. Works great!
Mine used to be like jelly, I still cook it for 24 hours. Hmm...I’ll have to figure something out. I wonder if a Mexican store would have the chicken feet, no Asian stores around here.
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