Rhubarb

Isn't that the weirdest word? Rhubarb. What is with that H in there?















Dictionary.com says:
Rhubarb
1. any of several plants belonging to the genus Rheum, of the buckwheat family, as R. officinale, having a medicinal rhizome, and R. rhabarbarum, having edible leafstalks.
2. the rhizome of any medicinal species of this plant, forming a combined cathartic and astringent.
3. the edible, fleshy leafstalks of R. rhabarbarum, used in making pies, preserves, etc.
4. Slang. a quarrel or squabble.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME rubarb, reubarb <>9x13 inch pan, so it 's perfect for a crowd. And it can be served warm from the oven or at room temperature."
Ingredients: 3/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 cups chopped rhubarb
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon butter, diced
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons white sugar
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9 inch square baking dish.
2. In a saucepan, mix 3/4 cup sugar and cornstarch. Stir in the rhubarb and water. Bring to a boil. Don't over cook the rhubarb! Cook and stir until slightly thickened. Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Dot with butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon.
3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
4. In a small bowl, mix the milk and egg. Add all at once to dry ingredients, stirring just to moisten. Drop by teaspoonfuls on top of the rhubarb mixture. Sprinkle with sugar.
5. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until crisp and lightly browned.
















And speaking of old plants, I think I am going to get some horseradish and plant it in our garden. I can't believe I haven't planted it before! When we first moved here about 20 years ago, we had rhubarb and my husband planted asparagus but I never thought to put in any horseradish. I think a small amount of it is good for you!










We will go over to Jung's and get some to plant today. I also want an Autumn Clematis. Our friend Donna had a plant on her mailbox at her old house and it was gorgeous when it bloomed and just covered the mailbox and post!




















Talk to you later,
Lynda

All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind.
- Aristotle

Warm Weather and Picnics

Doesn't this make you want to go out and sit under a tree and have a picnic? I love to go out to the Horicon Marsh, early in the season and enjoy the bird songs and the new warmth. A nice, cold fried chicken and some lemonade or beer and scones makes a lovely snack.
Lately I have made these scones:

Basic Recipe
3 cups King Arthur Pie & Pastry Blend or King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup sour cream or yogurt (low-fat is fine)
3/4 cup water
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the first six ingredients, then cut in the butter, using a pastry blender, fork, your fingers or a mixer. Add any additions you might like, stirring to combine. Stir in the sour cream or yogurt, then enough water to make the dough cohesive. Pat or roll the dough into two 3/4-inch-thick circles, or a 3/4-inch-thick square. Cut each circle into six pie-shaped wedges; or cut the square into 1 1/2- to 2-inch squares or circles. Place the scones on lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheets (the circles should be left intact, with the wedges separated just a bit), and bake them in a preheated 425°F oven for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they're a light, golden brown. Yield: 12 to 24 scones, depending on what size you cut them.

Then eat them with soft butter and strawberry jam.

Also in keeping with the feeling of spring, I have planted sweet peas and nasturtiums on Good Friday and also planted a few pots of caladium-














Talk to you later-Jeopardy is starting!
Lynda

Jasmine Rice

HOW TO COOK JASMINE RICE
(absorption method)















Jasmine rice comes from Thailand, mostly. There is very little not to like about this snow-white, delicious, long grain rice. Jasmine rice is also quick-cooking, but that should not be a selling point!

Rice is the most important food crop in the world. It is a source of calories and protein and is very easy to digest, not to mention that rice goes with everything. Having said all this might prompt the thought: that if hundreds of millions eat rice daily, cooking it must be a fairly straightforward process. It is not; there is more going on than meets the eye.
In the first place, selecting a pan to cook the rice in provides some nuance. The pan needs to be wider than it is high, and have a well-fitting lid. The reason is that absorption method rice cooking yields poor results when too great a depth of rice and water are used. Since rice is cooked by steam rising from the water in the bottom of the pot, too much rice will act as a dam against the steam. The result is firm, bullet-like grains on top and something like rice pudding on the bottom of the pan.

The next step is to wash the rice. Why wash the rice? A better question is: why not wash the rice? Asian cooks wash rice as a matter of course, pouring off starch, talc and other grit from the milling process. On the other hand, American rice package directions say not to wash the rice. The reason is that American rice has been "enriched," which means that vitamins have been put back into the rice to replace the ones that were lost during milling.
Jasmine rice should be washed.
Measure the rice and put it into the cooking vessel. Run some cold water into it and swirl it around with two fingers. Pour off the cloudy water. Repeat four or five times, until the water is getting clear.

After pouring off the last of the washing water, add 1 1/2 cups of of cold water for every cup of rice. Add a smidge of salt here if desired; if you don't salt it here, you probably will at table in some way. Bring the rice and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Give it one stir during this process just in case any grains glue themselves to the bottom of the pan. Turn the heat down very low, cover the pan, and set a timer for exactly 15 minutes. Have a clean towel or a couple sheets of thick paper towel ready. When the timer goes off, remove the covered pan from the heat. At the same moment put the towel or towels between the pan and its lid. Set the timer for 5 more minutes.

During that 5 minutes, the toweling will stop condensation of the steam on the lid of the pan, making for plump and non-gummy rice grains. After 5 minutes, remove the lid and fluff the rice with the back of a large soup spoon.
I think this method of fluffing does less damage than using a fork or a cook's fork.

Jasmine rice can also be cooked by the open kettle method, but that's another article.

Posted by our chef Joe Lagodney

A Turkey Sandwich

What is worse, a slice of breast meat from a dried out roast turkey, or a slice from a rubberized and chemically addled pre-cooked turkey breast? Have the secrets of cooking a turkey breast fit for a sandwich been utterly forgotten? It 's starting to look like it.

The old hotel cooks knew to steam the turkeys using old time screw-down-the-doors pressure steamers. One hour at 5 lb. pressure would do a large tom turkey perfectly.The breast meat would slice perfectly, whether for turkey dinners or for club sandwiches and the like.

Whole turkey breasts are small enough to be steamed on the stove top using a 7 or 8 quart stewpot. Put the turkey and 2 inches of water in the bottom, bring it to a boil, but not a mad boil, cover the pot with a heavy lid. It should take about an hour to cook the turkey breast to 165 degrees at its thickest point. Check it with a stemmed temperature probe if you have one.

If you want to cook a whole turkey, a Nesco or other brand of so-called turkey roaster is the ticket. Put 2 inches of water in the bottom, turn the thermostat to 250 degrees, put the turkey in when the water starts to boil, cover and cook to desired doneness. This method sacrifices the skin to flabbiness, but the meat can be perfect. A larger Nesco can handle a whole tom turkey or a couple of full turkey breasts. Remember, this is easy.

From the pen of our chef, Joe Lagodney

Madison's Hottest Restaurant

We went to Madison for an overnight to celebrate Brian's birthday. We stayed at the Hilton just off the Square and had the nicest corner room facing Monona Terrace and Lake Monona. At night with Monona Terrace lit up it was beautiful. During the day the lake and Monona Bay were covered with ice fisherman! How cool! After soaking in the hot tub and swimming all afternoon, we went to Madison's new big thing, Samba for dinner. This place is on Gilman Street. Samba Brazilian Grill is housed in the historic Woman’s Club Building on Gilman Street. It was constructed by the Woman’s Club of Madison in 1907 and is a Local Historic Landmark. The current restoration project restored the building exterior while constructing a high-end restaurant in the upper levels with an espresso bar and lounge in the lower level. This place is certainly for carnivores but it also has a fantastic salad bar featuring fresh green salads, roasted vegetables, spanish cheeses, a variety of olives, breads, olive oils, chimichurri and many more condiments and more and more. I especially enjoyed the Chopped Chicken Salad with Roasted Fennel & Onion, Apples and Curry Dressing. The cheese was wonderful as well and they had these roasted little onions with balsamic vinegar that were little taste delights!


THEN THE MEATS!
Whole beef tenderloin-rubbed with garlic, sea salt and black pepper
Beef tenderloin-wrapped in bacon and grilled to perfection
Whole beef ribeye-slow roasted with sea salt and black pepper and garlic
Beef top sirloin-Samba specialty, marinated with garlic and red wine
Beef Flank Steak-marinated in balsamic, honey, chiles
Beef Skirt-marinated in balsamic, honey, chiles
Beef short ribs-grilled and served on the bone
Chicken breasts-wrapped in bacon and grilled to perfection
Chicken drums-with chile and herb rub (epazote, sage)
Jerk Pork-Too hot for me!
Pork Tenderloin-in chile and honey brine
Pork loin with parmesan
Argentenean, Chorizo and linguica sausages-an assortment of sausages
Pork Ribs-braised and fired pork ribs with paprika, brown sugar and rum
Leg of Lamb-with stone ground mustard, sherry vinegar, sea salt and black pepper Rack of Lamb-with fresh rosemary and chile
Duck drums
Duck Breasts-wrapped in Serrano Ham
The guys were suitably impressed and so was I!
I certainly hope to get to eat there again!

Finally picked up the Winter Issue of Interweave Knits and there are a couple of nice patterns in it.
Ropes and Picots Cardigan
Laura Grutzeck






















Fresco Herringbone Hat,
Pam Allen






















I also found a magazine called A Needle Pulling Thread That looks very nice. It had two very nice sock patterns in it as well as quilting, cross stitch, beading , embroidery and rug hooking! This is the second issue of this quarterly magazine I have seen and it is nice!

Talk to you soon with pictures of my own work for a change!
Lynda

Cold Weather Food

We have had a sort of warm spell! Temperatures in the teens and not much snow have been welcome the past week or so. And if you read this somewhere in the South you may find it hard to believe, this is a warm spell around here lately!
But this is not to continue! We expect that the temperature will not get above 5 degrees Fahrenheit with Wind chill readings 13 below to 23 below zero tomorrow. I just stay in when it is that bad...it is terribly hard on the animals! The wild birds just cover the bird feeders and I have to refill them twice a day sometimes. If I don't get out there and pick up chicken eggs quickly, they just freeze!
Well, all this is leading up to something...I suppose you knew that! I stay warm with a couple of things-yes Grand Marnier in my coffee is one of them. (Big Grin)
But I also like to make a pot of homemade macaroni and cheese to warm me up as well. I have used a recipe of John Thorne's for many years and think it is the best macaroni and cheese known to man!
Here is John's recipe:
John Thorne's Macaroni & Cheese Serving
Size : 6
1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons unsalted butter -- cut into bits
1 Dash Tabasco sauce
1 can evaporated milk -- (12 ounce)
1 pound sharp cheddar cheese -- grated
2 large eggs -- beaten
1 teaspoon dry mustard -- dissolved in 1 tsp water
2 teaspoons Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 350. Boil the macaroni until just barely done in salted water. Drain and toss with the butter in a large, ovenproof mixing bowl. Mix the Tabasco into the evaporated milk. Reserving about 1/3 cup, stir the milk into the macaroni, then add 3/4 of the cheese, the eggs and the mustard. When well combined, season to taste with salt and pepper and set the bowl in the oven. Every five minutes, remove it briefly to stir in some of the reserved cheese, adding more evaporated milk as necessary to keep the mixture moist and smooth. When all the cheese has been incorporated and the mixture is nicely hot and creamy (which should take 20 minutes all told), serve at once with a plate of toasted common crackers to crumble over.




















This macaroni and cheese is so good, so rich that it isn't like any other food of that name you have ever eaten! Try it, you won't be sorry!
Another way to deal with this awful weather is a pair of really warm mittens. I stopped out at Susan's on Wednesday on my way home from the Dr. in Middleton. The yarn rep Joan was there and started talking about Shokay Yak yarn. To quote Shokay's publicity:
Shokay yarn is created from down that is hand-combed from yaks, high in the Himalayan regions of Western China. The yarn is a beautiful fiber, perfect for many knitting and crochet projects due to its resilience, warmth and softness.
100% Pure Yak Down
100 grams/164 yards, 6ply
4 sts per inch/US 9 needle

Well this is a gorgeous yarn, and Joan was saying that is is waterproof as well. So I decided to knit a pair of mittens with this luxury yarn! Really a great idea in this awful weather...warm, dry hands are essential, even for a short trip out side!



















Just finishing the thumbs...I will have a picture of the mittens tomorrow!
Talk to you later,
Lynda

Perhaps I am a bear, or some hibernating animal underneath,
for the instinct to be half asleep all winter is so strong in me.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh

A Day At The Fair

We went to our local county fair today!
My son and his friend went earlier and my husband and I met them there for lunch.
It was a perfect day for it-there was a nice breeze and the temps were in the high 70's.
Saw Cindy and Jody, my nephew Jon and my BIL Charlie.

My son Brian on the left and his friend Nate.

Nothing like fried Fair Food!

Standing in line at the Dodge County Food building for a root beer float.

Then we went and looked at the arts and crafts.

This is a terrible picture of Bee's Blue Ribbon Sweater in the upper left behind Barbie!

Another friend won best in show for her lace entrelac shawl that was folded up to about ten inches square! All that work and no one could see it.

For a short break in the eating we went to see the small animals and the sheep and goats.

I will post more about the fair.....I think I could use a nap!

Lynda

Another GREAt Dinner-Shrimp and Basmati

Here is another post from my dear chef:

We recently received a gift of thawed, peeled and deveined shrimp. Rather than plan a campaign around the shrimp. I looked for what I could throw together for hungry family members. We lucked out because we had ingredients that that would work with shrimp!
Actually, this dish has only 4 ingredients, counting the shrimp. Here it is:

SHRIMP AND BASMATI RICE WITH GARLIC SAUSAGE

Ingredients:
1 lb. 26 – 30 uncooked shrimp, peeled, deveined, and thawed.
3 garlic sausage links (bratwurst or kielbasa would be fine)
1 c. basmati rice
2 Tbs. tom yum soup base (used in Thai food and relatively available)



Procedure: Soak the rice in 2 cups of cold water for 30 minutes, but don’t wash it. Pour off the top water so that there’s about 1 ½ c. of water left. Cook the rice.
Meanwhile, heat a skillet; spray it with vegetable oil spray or pour a few drops of vegetable oil into it. Fry the garlic sausage, browning nicely: 20 -25 minutes. When the sausage is done, slice it into coins and set aside.
Bring 2 c. of water to a simmer in a sauce pan. Add 2 Tbs of tom yum paste. Stir until completely dissolved. Now poach the shrimp in the tom yum broth; it takes less than 2 minutes. Now add everything together and serve immediately.

Ok, this is Lynda again. This was a delicious dinner and done in really no time at all. Absolutely luscious!

I also finished knitting a snowman that I then felted and now I am making a wardrobe of hats for him. Here is a picture without his face. I am always so bad at faces. Oh and also the pattern calls for making his "twig" arms with wire and tiny, black beads but I wonder why. Why wouldn't you just use little twigs??

I didn't make this one, it is just to show the beaded arms:

Talk later, OK?
Lynda

Man is the only animal that laughs and has a state legislature.
Samuel Butler (1835 - 1902)

Pasta Lasagna

Some of my readers know that my husband is a professional chef and teacher. He teaches inmates to cook at a state institution for certification. They can then get better jobs when they leave the institution. Also, he is a Great Chef! I know I am prejudiced but there it is...

I have been trying to talk him into writing up a recipe or two for us here on the blog and finally we have a keeper! He made this for dinner last night and I asked him to write it up today and he did!!













Dosen't this look super???
Here is the recipe:

PASTA LASAGNA ( sic )



Experience the thrill of troweling lofty layers of meat sauce into your lasagna. The secret ingredient is ditalini, a pasta with a shape that complements that of lasagna.

Ingredients:

12 lasagna noodles ( 3 more than you need, just in case)
8 oz. ditalini
1 lb. part skim ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1 t. dried leaf basil
2 T. finely chopped fresh parsley
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 ½ lean ground beef
1 – 28 oz. can tomato puree
2 T. sugar
2 oz. finely diced onion
1 T. leaf oregano
1 – 14 oz. can of tomato sauce
12 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese


You will need a 13 x 9 x 2 standard pan

Mix together until smooth : 1 lb. ricotta cheese, 1 egg, 2 T. fresh parsley , 1 t. salt, 1 t. dry basil leaf, and ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese.

Bring to a boil: a large kettle with about 6 quarts of salted water. Cook 12 lasagna noodles according to package directions, Cool immediately using cold water.


Also bring to a boil ; another kettle with about 4 quarts of salted water. Cook the ditalini for 20 minutes ( it really takes this long ). Cool immediately.

In a large mixing bowl combine the can of tomato puree, 2 T. sugar, 2 T. leaf oregano, crushed in your hand and about 1 ½ cups of water.

In a dry preheated heavy skillet , break up 1 ½ lb. of lean ground chuck or ground round. Throw in about 2 oz. of finely diced onions. Season with 1 ½ t. salt, a generous grinding of black pepper, and 1 t. of granulated garlic. Keep the heat at medium until the ground beef is done through and the onions are translucent. Drain off any grease.

Mix the tomato sauce with the meat and the ditalini. Taste for salt and pepper.

Now it is time to layer the lasagna. Begin with 4 oz of tomato sauce in the bottom of the pan. Top that with 3 lasagna noodles. Then spread a nice thick layer of the meat- tomato sauce- ditalini combination. Top that with 3 more noodles; spread them with 4 oz. of tomato sauce, then spread all the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with 3 more noodles. Put on another thick layer of the meat sauce. Top that with the remaining tomato sauce and 12 oz of mozzarella cheese.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for at least 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until it bubbles enthusiastically. Don’`t cut the lasagna for at least 30 minutes ( or maybe 45 minutes).


Check it out....
Lynda

Living should be perpetual and universal benediction.
- Why Lazurus Laughed by Wei Wu Wei...