Culinary Goods

  Jared made this the other night, and it was a nice change from the normal tomato soup we eat. It was a good fall soup and it came from a Washington Post article. It gets a 7.  1 tablespoon neutral oil, such as canola, grapeseed or safflower 1 small-to-medium onion (about 5 ounces), diced 2 cloves garlic, minced or finely grated 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger 2 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth One (15-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes with their juices 1 cup pumpkin puree 1/2 teaspoon table salt or fine sea salt 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons light coconut milk, divided 2 teaspoons honey or maple syrup He used maple syrup Freshly ground black pepper (optional) https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2021/10/07/creamy-tomato-pumpkin-soup-recipe/

  I originally found a recipe for a chocolate cardamom bundt cake in Fine Cooking, but one reviewer said it was dry, so I found this on melskitchencafe.com and just added cardamom. Jared didn't like the addition of the cardamom, but I liked it, so it's just a taste preference. It was nice and moist, and while I did add the ganache topping, the picture without it looked better. This gets a 7. FOR THE PAN:  2 tablespoons butter, melted  2 tablespoons cocoa powder FOR THE CAKE:  1 cup (2 sticks, 8 ounces) butter  1/3 cup (1.25 ounces) natural, unsweetened cocoa powder  1/2 teaspoon salt  1 cup water  1 3/4 cup (8.75 ounces) all-purpose flour  1 1/2 cups (11.5 ounces) granulated sugar I used 1 1/4 C.  1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda  2 large eggs (3.5 ounces)  3/4 cup (6 ounces) sour cream  1 teaspoon vanilla extract  1 to 2 cups (6 to 12 ounces) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips 2 tsp cardamom FOR THE GLAZE:  1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips  2/3 cup he

The bottom crust flakes and the crumb topping means the top crust doesn't looks stupid if you're too lazy to pre-cook the apples like I am. The caramel sauce method I've been using mimics that caramelization I would get in the pan with the butter and sugar when I cooked them in layers.  Ok, I'm finished tweaking apple pie (I know, I always say this). This is my favorite version so far: Dutch Apple Pie, Makes 2 pies 2 pie crusts, uncooked Apple Filling: 5 lbs. apples, I prefer a mix of Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Rome lemon juice from a fresh lemon 2 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 tsp. cloves 1/2 tsp. nutmeg 1/2 tsp. salt generous dash allspice (this was probably between 1/8 and 1/4 tsp) 6 T. flour 3/4 cup caramel sauce (I make mine homemade, check blog for recipe) Pour the lemon juice over the cut apples, combine the flour with the spices in a separate bowl and then dump this on the apples and the caramel and stir until combined. Crumb Topping 150 grams of white flour  50 gr

I didn't get a picture b/c Gavin ate it all before I remembered, but this is from melskitchencafe.com, and it was a fast, easy week night meal. This doesn't taste quite like alfredo, but it's good enough and I would make it again. Next time, I would add 1 tsp. parsley, double the salt, and add fresh garlic at the end.  EASY INSTANT POT PASTA ALFREDO 3   cups   chicken broth (I use low-sodium) 2   cups   milk I only had 1% 2   tablespoons   all-purpose flour 1   cup   heavy cream or whipping cream 1   teaspoon   garlic powder I would add 2 cloves of fresh garlic at the end with the cheese and 1 tsp. dry parsley ½   teaspoon   salt I would definitely double this ⅛   teaspoon   black pepper 16   ounces   ( 454   g )   pasta (see note) We did shells ½ to 1   cup   ( 57   g )   freshly grated Parmesan cheese I think it needs a full cup You spray the instant pot, add the broth,  mix the flour and milk together and dump that in, add the cream, pasta, seasonings, and stir. Then, we

This was good, but I am not convinced it isn't a better idea to go and get your Indian food at a restaurant where they do all this work for you.  Butter Chicken 2   lbs.   chicken thighs,   trimmed of visible fat, cut into 1 1/4-inch pieces 1/2   cup   whole plain yogurt 1   Tbsp   fresh lemon juice 2   Tbsp   garam masala,   recommend homemade blend  HERE , divided 4   tsp   fenugreek leaves,   slightly crushed after measuring, divided (I buy  HERE ) 1   tsp   turmeric 2   tsp   smoked paprika,   divided 2   Tbsp minced   garlic,   divided 2   Tbsp peeled and minced   ginger,   divided Salt   and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 4   Tbsp   butter,   cut into pieces 1 1/2   cups chopped   yellow onion Cayenne pepper,   to taste 1   (14.5 oz) can   diced fire roasted tomatoes 3/4   cup   heavy cream 1/4   cup   low sodium chicken broth,   or a little more to thin if needed 3   Tbsp   Cilantro  (chopped or whole leaves) Butter Chicken Recipe - Cooking Classy

  I really love pepper jelly, and since I had a surplus of jalapeños in my garden, this seemed like a good option. I hate traditional canning with a fiery passion since I just don't have the time or patience for it, so found this freezer pepper jelly recipe instead. This was supposed to make 5 half pints, so I tried to cut down the sugar, but then my recipe only made 4 half-pints, so don't know what happened there. Anyway, I'll play around with the sugar in doing years. It gets a 7 and the recipe came from gritsandgouda.com. 12   large   jalapeno peppers   (enough for 2 cups minced) 1   large   red bell pepper   (enough for 1 cup minced) 3/4   cup   apple cider vinegar 5   cups   granulated sugar I used 4 C. 1   (1.75-ounce)   package powdered Sure-Jell pectin  (not MCP pectin) 3/4   cup   water 2   drops   red or green food coloring (optional) I didn't use this because why would I? https://gritsandgouda.com/how-to-make-red-green-freezer-jalapeno-pepper-jelly/

 I forgot to take a picture of this, but it was a relatively good, easy cheesecake (since it's no-bake). Nothing really beats a baked cheesecake, though, but this is a nice alternative if you're short on time. It gets a 7, and the recipe came from melskitchencafe.com. Crust: 3   cups   ( 280   g )   graham cracker crumbs 2-3   tablespoons   granulated sugar ¾   cup   ( 170   g )   butter, melted Creamy Filling: 1 ½   cups   ( 171   g )   powdered sugar I used 1 1/4 C. 8   ounces   ( 227   g )   cream cheese, softened to room temperature ½   teaspoon   vanilla extract 2   cups   cold heavy whipping cream (see note) 5-6   medium   fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced thinly (see note) https://www.melskitchencafe.com/peaches-and-cream-sensation/

   Scout made these with me, and while they were good, they needed more ginger. I actually chopped up some crystallized ginger and sprinkled it on the chocolate part, which gave it more of that kick I was looking for. So I would recommend either adding fresh ginger or crystallized ginger to the dough if you're a ginger fan like me. As is, they get a 6.5, and the recipe came from crazyforcrust.com 1/2   cup   unsalted butter   softened 1/3   cup   powdered sugar 1   teaspoon   vanilla extract 1 1/4   cups   all-purpose flour 1/4   teaspoon   salt 2   teaspoons   lightly dried ginger 3   ounces   bittersweet chocolate https://www.crazyforcrust.com/chocolate-dipped-ginger-shortbread-cookies/#wprm-recipe-container-42234