Meet "Joe Vest" food Dummy extraordinaire

Today we, the American Red Cross ERV (Emergency Response Vehicle) driving and feeding team got together for a bite to eat and get to know the "new people" party. Thanks to everyone who helped make our cookout today a success. Our special food handling guest brought a light hearted Halloween twist to our party... Meet "Joe Vest" 

We, as a response team, are always practicing to be prepared in the event of of a disaster whether it be a house fire, tornado or hurricane..... Etc.  And the ERV 1205 stands ready to serve her town and nation as needed. When you see her going down the road know the people inside truly care.

We volunteers look to each other for ideas and support and we look to you, our public, for donations. If you are interested in volunteering some of your time, you can find us or your local chapter at www.redcross.org.

"French Fridays with Dorie" - Cannelés

We are doing a little french baking today in honor of a wonderful chef and her new cookbook coming out this week. Even though, we have not yet met Dorie Greenspan in person, I love her creativity and yummy goodness that comes from her kitchen through her books and the wisdom she shares with our group.

I chose to make the Cannelés, these are new for us here at the pantry. They turned out very classy and yummy... Since we don't cook with rum, My little twist on these sweet treats is I replaced the dark rum with some new coconut balsamic that I just acquired. Yummy....... 

Happy Birthday Dorie!

"Tuesday's with Dorie" - Puff Pastry Pizzettes

Now for the savory side of our puff pastry dough challenge...

I love the how this batch of dough turned out. We decided to make ours more into a savory little appetizers by adding mozzerella cheese, cartelized onions, green peppers and cherry tomatoe slices.

Very tasty, you can now find these yummy morsels on our catering menu. :)

Oatmeal Bread - From theTrapp Family Lodge

Yield: Makes 2 loaves
 
ingredients

1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 3/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 1/2 cups hot water
two 1/4-ounce packages (5 teaspoons) active dry yeast
5 to 6 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten lightly, for brushing dough

preparation

In a large bowl combine butter, sugar, and 1 1/2 cups oats. Stir in hot water and let mixture stand until lukewarm. Sprinkle yeast over mixture and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in 5 cups flour and salt, stirring until mixture forms a dough, and turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead dough 10 minutes, adding as much of remaining cup of flour as necessary to form a smooth and elastic dough, and let rest, covered with an inverted bowl, 15 minutes.

Lightly oil 2 loaf pans, 9 by 5 by 3 inches. Form dough into 2 loaves and transfer to pans. Brush surface of dough with egg and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup oats. Let dough rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Bake bread in middle of oven 35-45

"French Friday's with Dorie" - Roasted Jerusalem Artichokes with Garlic”

My guys don't really care much for Jerusalem Artichokes, we have tried them many different ways because I enjoy them. Also they are very hard to get in different parts of the country. I looked at Dorie's recipe and knew that I had to add a few more veggies to mine that my family would also eat, so here is my take on the recipe...

• 1 small sweet potatoes
• 2 large Jerusalem Artichokes
• 2 peeled parsnips, sliced
• 1/2 small cauliflower
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 6-8 small button mushrooms
• 1/2 medium onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 2 garlic cloves 
•  1/8 cup olive oil
•  1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup chicken broth

 

Directions

• Peel and cube sweet potato and Jerusalem Artichokes. Add cauliflower, parsnips, mushrooms. Coated with olive oil and place in 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with parsley, salt and pepper. For moister vegetables you can add 1/4 cup of chicken broth. Pour broth over all. Top with onions and garlic. Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until vegetables reach desired tenderness. Yield: 8 servings.

Also if you would like more information about these yummy little tubers visit our Wordless Wednesday Challenge post entitled Jerusalem Artichokes

 Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (3/4 cup) equals 136 calories, Total Fat 7.3, Carbohydrate, 17.6, Sodium 31.4, Fiber 3.6g, Protein 1.9, Sugar 3.8.

Wordless Wednesday .... "Jerusalem Artichokes"

This week our "French Friday's with Dorie" will be cooking with a root vegetable that many us many not

know what it is called or be familiar with, so I thought it would make a great Wordless Wednesday Challenge. Please make your guess in the comments and the first one to response correctly gets a prize from the pantry.


What is it?........................ Jerusalem Artichoke or sometimes known as Sunchokes.

Where does it grow?......... native to eastern North America, and found from eastern Canada and Maine west to North Dakota, and south to northern Florida and Texas. Jerusalem artichokes were first cultivated by the Native Americans long before the arrival of the Europeans

How do you prepare it?... Even though there are a wide variety of ways to prepare them, the Jerusalem artichoke was titled 'best soup vegetable' in the 2002 Nice Festival for the Heritage of the French Cuisine.

What does it taste like?..... I find that they taste like a cross between a turnip and a water chestnut.

Have you ever tried it?......Yes, Many times... I love cooking with them when I can find them.


What recipe would you suggest using this mystery Ingredient?.....

Parmesan Crusted Jerusalem Artichoke

Ingredients:

2 pound Jerusalem artichoke, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt to taste

Preparation:

On medium, Heat the oil and butter together in a frying pan just until the butter is melted, add the Jerusalem artichoke and fry, stirring occasionally until the Jerusalem artichoke starts to brown (like fried  potatoes), about 20 minutes.
Lower the heat and add the parmesan while stirring.  Cook for one minute, remove add salt, and serve.

"Tuesday's with Dorie" - Sunny-Side Up Apricot Pastries

Today, it was all about the PUFF... the puff, the pastry puff, no Trouble! :)

        Our "Tueday's with Dorie" baking group challenges this month is all about the sweet and savory side of Puff Pastry Doughs. I have not made my own puff dough for a very long time and it was fun to give it another try. Our first challenge is to make Sunny-Side Up Apricot Pastries (we used peaches), my guys are not apricot fans.

One thing I learned a long time ago was that the butter you are working into the dough has to stay cold, so following the hints that both Julia and Dorie gives us are very important. Also, I feel like I get a better flake pattern when I let my dough warm up a little bit between cutting the shape and baking them.

You can check out other fans and fun recipes at  "Tuesday's with Dori".