Oeufs en Cocotte & Dave's Butter-Wheat Bread

Notice the steam rising from the hot bread. Mmmmm.

Oeufs en Cocotte is a French dish. It can be cooked with mushrooms, ham, smoked fish, veggies, just about anything you like with eggs. Sauces in the bottom of the ramekins are good too. Marinara sauce, Alfredo sauce, Salsa, etc. This recipe is very basic with butter and cheese in the bottom and cream on top. Get creative! And be sure to serve these with Dave's Butter-Wheat Bread (recipe below). This is Dave's own recipe, and it is my favorite bread lately, so rich and hearty and wonderful!

Oeufs en Cocotte
2 eggs per serving
1 Tbsp shredded cheese per serving (any cheese you like)
1 small pat of butter per serving
1 Tbsp half & half, cream, or milk per serving
Salt & Pepper to taste
Herbs & Spices to taste (I used a mixture of rosemary and oregano)

Place pat of butter in the bottom of each ramekin. Top with 1 T cheese. Drop two eggs carefully over cheese. Spoon 1 T cream/milk over eggs. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, herbs and spices. Bake in a 350ºF oven for about 30 minutes or until cooked with soft yokes (to taste). Serve with Dave's Butter-Wheat Bread.





Dave's Butter-Wheat Bread
2 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1/2 cup lukewarm milk
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/2 cup orange juice
5 T melted butter
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup dry milk
3/4 cup mashed potato flakes
15 oz whole wheat flour

Put all of the ingredients in a large mixer bowl. Mix using the paddle (rather than the dough hook). Dave suggests beating it for 10 minutes on medium. Dough is sticky. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place until double. Shape and place in greased 9"x 5" loaf pan. Allow to rise about 60 - 70 minutes until it crowns the pan by about 3/4". Bake at 350ºF for about 45 minutes or until done.

Lebanese-Inspired Spicy Lamb Pizza

I had lamb in the fridge, and wanted to do an Easter dish this week. I ended up craving Lebanese food, and used that craving to inspire a Lebanese lamb pizza instead. I don't know why it is, but I seem determined to create unique and/or bizarre pizzas. Probably because I think everything tastes better on top of bread. Where I live, it's difficult to find ground lamb, although ground buffalo is everywhere. So I use a meat grinder and grind my own lamb from a lamb roast.


Lebanese-Inspired Spicy Lamb Pizza
Pizza dough, your choice or use one from my blog such as this
1 pound lamb roast, chipped or ground
1 potato, sliced thin with skin on
oil (canola is good)
1 small onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
1 poblano pepper, seeded and diced
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 tsp allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
salt & pepper to taste
handful of cilantro, chopped
Several Tbsp organic tomato paste
1/3 cup goat cheese

Boil potato slices until tender, set aside. In a frying pan, cook onion and peppers in oil with pine nuts until tender. Add ground lamb and seasoning, cook until brown. Sprinkle cilantro and potatoes into lamb. Roll out dough and pre-cook the dough on a pizza stone in a pre-heated 525ºF oven for 5 minutes. Remove dough, spread with tomato paste. Top with lamb mixture. Sprinkle with goat cheese. Return to the oven for 7 minutes or until dough is browned and done.

Healthy, Low-Fat Creamy Veggie Soup

So easy, so yummy. This is a good template for quick, after-work soup on a cool evening.

1. Place 3 cups finely chopped veggies (I used onion, carrots, celery & broccoli) in a medium sauce pan
2. Cover with veggie or chicken broth and cook until barely tender
3. Add 2 cups milk and salt and pepper, tarragon, rosemary or other seasonings to taste.
4. Heat through then sprinkle 1 cup of potato flakes in the soup to thicken it.

"Unbroken" Veggie Frittata

3 Tbsp Rosemary-infused oil
1 bell pepper, seeded & chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 large eggs
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup (your favorite brick cheese), shredded
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium-large skillet, saute the pepper, onion, zucchini, mushrooms and garlic in the rosemary oil until tender. Break the eggs carefully to form a top layer over the veggies. Cover and cook until the egg whites look white. Cut through the eggs with a spatula, allowing the yokes to run. Top with tomatoes and cheeses and cover, cooking just until cheese melts. (Add salt and pepper as you go along, to taste). Cut into wedges and serve. Makes 4 breakfast servings under 300 calories each.

Dave's Brioche in a Pan

Brioche dough is buttery and flaky and is a good base for a fabulous variety of rolls and desserts. Dave is mastering all kinds of artisan breads, and this dough is one that he has been working with. Dave suggests using a scale to make bread rather than volume measurements. It's more accurate that way.

Brioche Dough
Adapted from Baking Artisan Bread by Ciril Hitz

3/4 cup milk (185 g)
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk (reserve the egg white)
1/4 lemon zest
3 cups + 2 Tbsp Bread flour (440 g)
1/4 cup granulated sugar (45 g)
3 3/4 tsp instant yeast (12 g)
1 tsp salt (7 g)
12 Tbsp unsalted butter, cold (165 g)

Put milk, egg, and zest in mixer bowl. I a separate bowl combine flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Add dry ingredients to mixer bowl and mix with dough hook for 4 minutes. If dough is too dry, add the reserved egg white. While dough is mixing, hammer the butter with a rolling pin until it is like child's play dough. Increase mixing speed and add butter in 4 stages, each after the butter is thoroughly incorporated. Continue to mix for an additional 10 - 20 minutes until you can stretch dough extremely thin without it breaking. (sometimes called a gluten window).

Shape dough into a round, wrap with plastic and place in freezer for at least 6 hours (or up to 3 weeks). Remove dough the night before baking and place in refrigerator for 12 hours. Remove from fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

For Brioche in a pan, divide into 10 pieces and place in two rows in a greased 9 x 5 inch bread pan. Brush with egg wash and bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes.

See my other blog for a variation (hazelnut rolls).

Peanut, Yam, Bean and Chicken African Soup

This lightly-sweet curried soup is inspired by an African storyteller I listened to recently who talked about the ingredients of an African soup. I wish I could tell you the name of the storyteller, but I can't.

Peanut, Yam, Bean and Chicken African Soup
1 tbsp oil
5 cloves garlic
1 large yam, peeled and chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 bell pepper, cored and chopped
1 red onion, peeled and diced
1 quart chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can black-eyed peas
1/2 cup peanut butter (natural, such as Adam's brand)
3 Chicken breasts, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
1 small bunch greens (such as spinach or Swiss chard)
1/2 bunch cilantro
Juice from one lime
2 tsp brown sugar (optional)
1/3 cup Thai Curry Sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, cook minced garlic in oil until tender. Add the potatoes, pepper and onion and cover with just enough chicken broth to cook them. Simmer until tender. Add the rest of the broth, tomatoes, beans and remaining ingredients. Heat through and allow the greens and cilantro to wilt and flavors to combine. Serve hot.

Year-End Awards

I didn't cook or bake as much as I wanted to this year, but here are some of my favorites. The images are linked to the recipes.

BEST TASTING:






MOST HEALTHY:

MOST FUN TO MAKE: