Apricot Oat Bran Muffins

"Sunshine" muffins with a sweet crunchy top with a hint of orange citrus.  These moist, delicious muffins are filled with apricots.  You would never know the batter is made up of whole wheat pastry flour and oat bran.

Ingredients:

Dry ingredients, whisked together

1 1/2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup of oat bran
1 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, preferably freshly grated


2 eggs, room temperature
4 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter, cooled
1/2 cup of milk, room temperature
5.3 oz container of Dannon Vanilla yogurt
  (approx. 6 big tbsp.)
3/4 cup of light brown sugar

1 cup of dried apricots, chopped fine

1/4 cup of raw sugar
1 teaspoon of orange zest

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.  If using convection bake, drop heat to 350.

Whisk together all dry ingredients, 1 1/2 cups or whole wheat pastry flour, 3/4 cup of oat bran, 1 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of grated nutmeg, in a medium bowl.  Set aside.

Melt 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, and let cool.  In a large bowl add two eggs, melted butter, 1/2 cup of milk, 6 big tablespoons of vanilla yogurt and 3/4 cup of light brown sugar.  Set aside.

Add 1 cup of dried apricots to a food processor.  Pulse until finely chopped. If not available, just dice apricots with a chef's knife.

Add 1/4 cup of raw sugar with 1 teaspoon of grated orange zest in a food processor.  Whirl for thirty seconds.  Set aside for topping.  

Prepare muffin tin with paper liners and/or cooking spray.

Whisk together all wet ingredients till blended.  Next, add dry ingredients to wet ingredients.  Mix well, just until blended.  Don't over mix.  Add diced apricots.  With a 1/3 dry measure, scoop batter into prepared muffin tin.  Top each muffin with raw orange sugar topping.

Bake at 375 for approximately 20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

All ingredients ready to assemble.

Rind of an orange, zested.

Raw sugar and orange zest whirled together for the topping.

Blueberry Crumble

Blueberry Crumble

Deciding upon which crumble recipe to use on July 4th.   Hmmm. . .😕. bored, with the oats, flour combination.  I wanted something, that screamed "summer".  Scanning some of my favorite foodie blogs I landed upon Pioneer Woman.  It turned up a wonderful recipe by Lisa Fain, that really intrigued me.  She came up with a crumble using cornmeal.  Citrus and cornmeal, now that sounds wonderful!  Below, is my adapted version of Lisa Fain's recipe.  I hope you will find this recipe a go to for your summer celebrations.

For the crumble:

3/4 cup of all purpose flour
1/2 cup of cornmeal
1 stick of softened butter, unsalted
1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar

2 tsp. of vanilla
1 Tbsp. of lemon juice
1 tsp. of grated lemon zest
3/4 tsp. of kosher salt


For the filling:

4 cups of blueberries
1/3 cup  + 2 Tbsp. of granulated sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp of cornstarch
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 tsp of grated lemon zest
2 tbsp of lemon juice
pinch of salt

Pre-heat oven to 350.  Grease a 8-9 inch oven safe skillet or Pyrex.

Mix filling ingredients together.  Pour into your prepared dish.

For the crumble.  Measure out the ingredients.  Cream together the softened butter and sugar. Add the lemon juice, zest and vanilla.  Next, add the flour, cornmeal and salt.  Mix together until blended.

Bring dough together. Place on a floured surface and knead a few times, to create a cohesive mass.

Break off pieces of dough, and scatter over blueberry filling.  Bake for 35-40 min. till bubbly.

Filling Ingredients

Crumble Ingredients.

Cream the butter and sugar together till smooth.  Next, add the zest, lemon juice and vanilla.  Finally, add the dry ingredients, flour, cornmeal and salt.  Mix together until blended.

Knead just a few times to form a cohesive mass on a floured surface.  

  

Now, ready to break off into pieces.

Break off little pieces of dough, and scatter them evenly over the filling.

In the oven at 350 for 35-40 minutes, till bubbly.

Beautiful. . . nice and bubbly around the edges with a slight browning on top.

Let cool. . .and enjoy with good vanilla ice cream!

Shrimp Roll

Biting into a fresh shrimp roll is a true feeling that summer has arrived!  Summer cooking, should be about ease and simplicity.  It's a time, when we kick back and use our local ingredients that are so bountiful this time of year.  Pair this shrimp roll with fresh local corn and a glass of crisp white wine.

Ingredients: (for 2 servings; double for 4)

1 lb of good quality fresh shrimp, preferably with shell-on

Potato buns, hot dog style, toasted

2 Red Leaf lettuce leaves or similar lettuce, well cleaned.

Favorite Mayonnaise,  2-3 Tbsp.

Yellow Mustard, a few squirts.

Sweet Pickles, 2 Tbsp., minced

Capers, 1 Tbsp, rinsed & chopped

Shallot, minced

Fresh Herbs, such as Tarragon, Dill, Chives and/or Thyme (use what's available)

Lemon Juice, two teaspoons

Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Fill a large dutch oven pot with water.  Salt water heavily, if your shrimp aren't salted already.  Check your packaging.  Once water is at a boil, place shrimp in.  Turn water down to low, and cook for two minutes, or until done.  Once finished submerge in ice water for five minutes to stop cooking.  Strain, remove the shell if necessary.  Chop into small pieces.

Next, chop or mince celery, shallot, pickles, capers and herbs.  Add this to the shrimp.

Now, add your mayonnaise, lemon juice, and a few squirts of yellow mustard.  Gently, fold all of the ingredients together to bind.  Add a little salt and pepper.  Taste to see if it any additional seasoning is needed.  Toast potato buns, top with a red leaf lettuce leaf.  Scoop salad onto buns, and dive in!

Serving Suggestion:

Fresh Corn on the cob with melted butter, chives, lime juice and Romano cheese

Fresh Seasonal Fruit such as Watermelon, Cherries

Seasoned Sliced Tomatoes

Turkey Stuffed Cabbage

Good, old-fashioned comfort food, made healthy.  Ground Turkey and rice make up the base of the stuffing, wrapped up in steamed cabbage leaf ladled with a Sweet and Sour Tomato Sauce courtesy of the infamous Barefoot Contessa.  


Ingredients for Eight People

For the Sauce:
from Barefoot Contessa At Home 

3 Tbsp of good Olive Oil
2-3 chopped onions
2 28  oz cans of good quality Tomatoes, whole or crushed
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup of golden raisins
1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper
optional add-ins:  cinnamon 1 tsp., 4-5 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of allspice, ground

For the filling, I have adapted Ina Garten's recipe

2 lbs of Ground Turkey, browned in 1-2 Tbsp. of oil
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup of plain dried breadcrumbs
3/4 cup white rice, dry
1 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 teaspoon of garlic powder/granules
3 Tablespoons of light brown sugar
1 cup of golden raisins
1 cup of sweet & sour sauce from above

1-2 heads of Green Cabbage, depending on size

Directions:

Start the sauce by sautéing the chopped onions over medium high heat in olive oil, stirring occasionally, till translucent.  This should take you 8 minutes.  If you're tomatoes are whole, crush them before adding them to the onions.  Once tomatoes are added, add all additional items listed for the sauce.  The optional add-ins are completely up to the cook.  Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cover for 20-30 min.

Place a large pot of water on the stove to boil, for the cabbage.  Then place a medium pot of water with 8-10 cups of water to boil, for the rice.  Add a tablespoon of kosher salt.  When the rice water comes to a boil, add rice and boil like pasta for 14 min.  Then drain and set aside to let cool.

Core the inside of the cabbage with a paring knife.  You can use your fingers to help pull the core out.     When the water comes to a boil, drop the cabbage in the pot, covered for five minutes dropping the heat slightly.  Then place on cookie sheet, to cool.  Repeat with the second head if using.

Assemble the filling together in a large bowl.  Place all of the filling ingredients together, and mix well with a rubber spatula, adding a cup of sauce.

To assemble the rolls.  Pull one of the steamed leaves off, and place it on a cutting board.  Put about a 1/3 cup of filling toward the bottom of the inside of the leaf.  Bend the sides of the leaf in and roll away from you, creating a little parcel.

Add a cup and a half of sauce in the bottom of a large pyrex or ceramic roaster.  Line up rolls side by side.  Ladle about two cups of the sauce over the top of rolls.

Bake at 350 for 30 min.  Tent with foil during the last 15 min. of baking.

Chicken Bolognese

Chicken Bolognese

Nothing. . .  is more comforting than a bowl of pasta.  Anytime of year, this bolognese can bring a smile to anyone's face.  Ground Chicken is simmered with tomatoes, chicken stock, vegetables, white wine, laced with herbs, braised with milk creating an irresistible sauce.  The finale of pasta, simmers al dente in the sauce with a smidgen of good butter, freshly ground Parmesan and/or Pecorino Romano and topped off with fresh basil.

Ingredients

1 pound of ground chicken, preferably organic 

1/2 of large Vidalia onion, diced

2 medium carrots, diced

2 celery, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1-28 oz can/box of tomatoes, crushed or crush by hand
1 cup of good quality low salt chicken stock

1/2 cup of white wine

1/2 cup of evaporated milk

1/2 cup total of Parmesan and/or Romano

2 tbsp of tomato paste

2 tbsp of olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

thyme branches and/or bay leaves, and/or cheese rind
unsalted butter and/or fresh basil to finish

Prepare ingredients.  Warm-up saute pan with 2 tbsp of olive oil.

Saute over medium heat for five minutes. 

Turn up the heat slightly, and brown ground chicken. 

When brown, add two minced cloves of garlic, two tbsp of tomato paste, salt & pepper.

Deglaze with a half cup of white wine, keeping heat at medium high.

When wine is left at just a few tablespoons add your crushed tomatoes, chicken stock, bay leaves, thyme, cheese rind (optional) and bring to a boil.

Once at a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and add 1/2 cup of evaporated milk.  Let gently cook at a simmer for 45 minutes.  Season with salt & pepper.

To achieve the finished dish:

1. Cook the pasta a minute or two shy of al dente in well-salted water, saving some of the seasoned pasta water.
2. Warm a generous helping of sauce in a saute pan, adding some of the pasta water, marry the two.
3. Add the pasta with a little salt, pepper and a little unsalted butter.
4. Sprinkle some grated cheese over the pasta, stir, and bring to a gentle boil.
5. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve with an extra sprinkling of cheese.
6. Garnish with fresh cut basil.
7. Shown above with glazed green beans.