5296 makes everything better Recipes

any liquid can be reduced just by heating it - but why would you want to do that, answer comes back to two of our old friends, flavor and consistency (texture)., by reducing any flavored liquid you intensify its flavor and at the same time thicken it. you can continue this process until what you have left is a syrup if it contains sugar, or a sauce if it does not., this is 1 of the most important tools in the kitchen , believe it or not, because a great sauce can rescue an indifferent meal., literally any liquid can be reduced ., a few uses, wine is frequently used in cooking , both as a marinade and as an addition to sauces for meat., there are some problems with it though, 1 of which is that you need a really good wine and quite a lot of it to produce a reasonable sauce for, say, six people., on the other hand , if you use pure grape juice and reduce it to a syrup, that syrup, added to any sauce (or gravy if you prefer) will lift it into the realms of gourmet ., more , you don tsp have to make your reduction on the night you prepare your meal. you can reduce a liter of grape juice at any time to the consistency and flavor you want; then just store it in the fridge., you can do the same thing with any fruit juice - prune is sensational - and store it until needed. just about all of them will do things for ice cream, pies or tarts that will have your guests demanding the recipe, pork with apple sauce use a carton of fresh apple juice from the supermarket and reduce it. and if you want a real sensation add in a glass of apple brandy during the reduction process., are you getting an idea of how simple this is, take any carton of fresh stock straight of the shelf and reduce it. you will transform it into something even the manufacturer won tsp recognize. but beware, you need to start out with good quality in the first place, because when you reduce a liquid you intensify all the flavors, and not just the good ones., if it s salty to start with, for example, it will be salty beyond belief by the time you ve reduced it even by half. so if you are going to use a supermarket stock, make sure it s an extremely good 1., believe me when i tell you that stock cubes should not be used for reduction sauces., thickeners, because you will be tasting as you go (won tsp you ), you may find that you get the flavor you want before the desired consistency is reached., a couple of hints right now for your sauces., sweet ones can be thickened successfully without loss of color by adding in liquid glucose early on in the reduction process. surprisingly, this will add little in the way of sweetness and produces a beautiful velvety sauce when whisked., if you get it wrong and add too much, no problem. stir in a little extra water to thin it., reduction pans, reductions need to happen rapidly in serving to preserve flavors. and the greater the surface area of the liquid the faster the water will evaporate., however you may want to whisk something into the sauce while its cooking - such as butter or olive oil for example - and for that i find a small wok is best; 1 with a handle., a wok is less likely to reduce so fast that the sauce is burnt while your back is turned. but try both methods and see which you prefer. you may even end up using something totally different., no magic to this. whatever works for you, that s what you should use, in this and everything else to do with cooking., just bear in mind that what you re after is speed and ease of use. as well as a great tasting result, of course. :>), keeping, if they should dry out , simply add a little water and heat through., sauces containing meat juices of any kind must be frozen if you re going to keep them, and should be brought to boiling point before being used again. there is no need to thaw them out to do this, in fact it s better not to. simply drop the frozen cubes into a saucepan, melt them over a gentle heat, and then bring swiftly to the boil., why do you do this to avoid food poisoning, that s why. you are making sure that any bugs introduced into the sauce during the preparation process are killed off., worry , this will not be because of anything you have done wrong (i hope!), but because bacteria are part of our everyday lives and they exist in every kitchen, however clean., in fact your food , and especially your meat, is crawling with wildlife that you will never see. don tsp worry about them. careful handling and simple precautions will ensure that these miniature monsters can never multiply enough to harm either you or your guests.

make and maintain your own sourdough starter, need a volume of at least 1 and 1/3 cups., there are several ingredient combinations for making wild, yeast sourdough, is to grate a raw potato. then add enough water to cover, enough flour to make a thin batter of about a cup and a, third in volume ., method is to use water that you ve boiled potatoes, in instead of the grated potato and water combination., you can also use flour , sugar and water. use 1 cup of, flour , a tbsp of sugar and enough water to make a, pancake consistency batter ., yet another is to simply mix together equal amounts of water, flour (whole wheat is best for this)., anything that provides food for the yeast and a good growing, environment will work. yeast needs sugar or carbohydrates, which it converts to sugar), and clear liquid., make your choice based on what you have handy and just because, what you d like to try. don tsp worry about whether or, not 1 set of ingredients will work better than another, because the chances are that they will all be equally, efficient in attracting wild (sour) yeast. there is no exact, recipe because there are so many other variables in each house, that will invite or dissuade wild yeasts from entering the, mixture. if at first you don tsp succeed, try, try again . the, most important thing is the method ., when you have decided on the ingredients you want , put them in, a glass container that will hold at least three times the, volume of the ingredients. mix lightly with a wooden or, plastic spoon as some metals will react to it. the working of, starter will mix itself ., leave the mixture undisturbed and loosely covered with a cloth, perforated plastic (to allow gases to escape) at warm room, temperature until it begins to froth or work and expand., this is a sign that wild yeasts have made themselves at home, what you re after. the new starter will rise up in, then fall again. when it has , it s ready for, use. (note: it will smell sour !), when you use it , always leave some in the container and add, flour and water back to equal what you ve taken out. most, recipes call for a cup of starter, so replace it with a half, flour and a half-cup of water and set it in a warm, place to work again ., you will probably see a liquid covering the top at 1 time or, this is called hooch , and it s exactly what it, sounds like , but don tsp drink it! actually, it s harmless, so, stir it back into the starter if the starter is thick, or if, either way ., keep sourdough in the refrigerator unless you use it at least, every third day. if you use it that often , you can leave it on, counter or any place where it s safe. if you can tsp, refrigerate it , you can keep it fresh by throwing out a cup of, it every second or third day and then replenish with flour and, water. wait until it works again before counting days ., a properly cared for starter can live indefinitely, but if you, leave it out without using it for too long, the yeast can, literally suffocate in its own waste products. if the starter, looks off color (grayish is normal) or turns pink, toss it and, start fresh ., what can you make with sourdough besides the traditional, bread , you can make biscuits, pancakes, pretzels, bagels, muffins , cornbread and even cookies! once you re comfortable, using it , you can experiment with your favorite yeast or, baking powder recipes. simply put , you substitute sourdough

make ahead cookie mix, white sugar, butter, vanilla extract, egg, chopped walnuts, any flavor fruit jam, egg white

make ahead cookie mix, brown sugar, shortening, peanut butter, vanilla extract, egg

make ahead cookie mix, brown sugar, butter, vanilla extract, egg, semisweet chocolate chips, chopped walnuts

make ahead cookie mix, brown sugar, white sugar, butter, vanilla extract, chopped walnuts, egg, sugar for decoration

betty crocker supermoist german chocolate cake mix, water , as called for on package. make as directed on box, vegetable oil , as called for on package. make as directed on box, egg , as called for on package. make as directed on box, sweetened condensed milk, fudge sauce, oreo cookies

butter recipe yellow cake mix, milk , use instead of water to make cake, butter, softened, almond extract , add to milk, eggs, granny smith apple, peeled and chopped, raisins or 1/2 cup c or 1/2 cup dried cherries, chocolate chips or 1/2 cup butterscotch chips or 1/2 cup white (not chocolate mint, either 1 kind of chip or mixed), chopped nuts , anything but peanuts.

unsalted butter, softened, turbinado sugar, vanilla, salt (heaping), eggs, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, white chocolate chunks (chips will do, but chunks are better for texture and taste), macadamia nuts (chopped coarsely ), macadamia nuts (whole )

ground mild italian sausage, russet potatoes, thinly sliced or peeled and diced, crushed red pepper flakes, olive oil, white onion, chopped, garlic cloves, minced, real bacon pieces, water, divided, better than bouillon chicken base, fresh kale, stemmed and torn, heavy cream, salt and pepper, shredded pecorino romano cheese (optional) or parmesan cheese (optional)

quick cooking oats (you will need about 1/2 cup total per serving, so the amount will depend on how many servings you want to make up--1/2 cup for 1 serving, or about 6 cups for 12...and anywhere in between), kosher or sea salt(about 1/2tsp per serving, so, again, adjust as needed), dry milk (about 1tsp per serving, adjust as above), various flavoring additions ie brown or white sugar, cinnamon, mini chocolate chips, dried fruits like blends, berries, apples, bananas(though these don tsp rehyrdate as well), i suggest starting with about 1tsp sugar per serving, 1/2t cinnamon, and about 3t of any of the dried fruits or chocolate chips, but, again, once you try it, just adjust to your preference. also, if you want to make 1 of the and cream type recipes, like peaches and cream, etc, just add another 1/2t dry milk to your ingredients

brussels sprout, fresh, washed, and sliced in half, olive oil, butter, garlic cloves, minced, white onion, minced, balsamic vinegar, bacon, cooked and crumbled, sliced almonds, toasted, salt, pepper

make better boxed cake mixes , stir the following ingredients, into a dry cake mix ., flour, sugar, baking powder, prepare as directed on cake mix package but also add, water, egg, vegetable oil, bake as package directs .

make ahead creole-stuffed potatoes, chopped onion, chopped green pepper, butter or margarine, chopped tomatoes, potatoes, baked, milk, salt and pepper to taste, butter or margarine, paprika to taste, saute onions and green pepper in 2 tsp. butter or margarine in skillet. add tomatoes; simmer for 2 minutes. cut potatoes in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp; reserve shells. mash pulp with milk, salt and pepper. fold in tomato mixture; spoon into shells on baking sheet. dot with butter; sprinkle with paprika. chill, covered, for several hours if desired., make ahead to this point., bake in preheated 400* f. oven for 20 minutes.

stew meat, diced, onion, diced, stalks celery, chopped, celery leaves, garlic cloves, minced, red wine, beef broth (i use low sodium or make my own), water (i start with 6 and add as needed), head of cabbage, chopped, diced tomatoes (do not drain), carrots, sliced, zucchini, diced, frozen green beans, frozen corn, frozen peas, fresh mushrooms, sliced, potatoes, peeled and diced into 2-3 inch cubes, baby spinach, v 8 vegetable juice (i use low sodium or sometimes spicy hot for a kick), black pepper, salt (or to taste), dried parsley, dried basil, dried oregano, dried thyme

if you re reading this , please join the tailgate time! group, menu, hot dogs, potato salad (we use the 1 i have posted here, with homemade dressing), potato chips with onion dip (i just use lipton s onion soup recipe, but make whatever kind you like), ramen noodle salad (i will post my version at a future date), beer (in cans, but a keg is better, if the sports location allows it)

pizza dough, your favorite recipe, your favorite pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni (the bigger ones work better), canadian bacon, crumbled cooked bacon, ground sausage, garlic flakes or 1 garlic clove

frozen tater tots, condensed cream of mushroom soup, condensed cream of chicken soup, green beans , any kind. fresh is better of course, onion, chopped, garlic cloves, minced, seasoning salt, ground beef, cheddar cheese, grated, milk