Irish Brown Bread.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen1 Comment

Historically, Irish cuisine doesn’t get much respect in the culinary world; traditional Irish dishes can be simple and even unsophisticated – I say so lovingly :) . But there are a few exceptions to this rule, and homemade brown bread is one of them. This recipe comes from lifelong brown bread baker Auntie Mary, aunt and neighbor to our family in Dublin. I’ve adapted the recipe from metric to standard, but other than that, it’s the same easy recipe Auntie Mary has been using forever–a real taste of the best of the emerald isle!

DRY INGREDIENTS
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 tbsp oat bran
2 tbsp wheat germ
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sesame seeds, plus a palmful more, divided

WET INGREDIENTS
1 egg
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Combine dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients. Using a fork, stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients.

Pour the batter into a greased circular cake pan or deep rectangular bread pan. Make an X across the top of the batter and sprinkle with the remaining palmful of sesame seeds.

Bake about 50 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the middle of the bread comes out clean. Enjoy with ham and cheese, with soup, or buttered with tea.

Braised Cabbage with Pork.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen1 Comment

This recipe for тушёная капуста, or braised cabbage, is one I’ve made again and again for years. I first tried it when I was making cabbage filling for a batch of pirozhki, and it was so good that I ate about half the bowl before I had a chance to use it as stuffing! Healthy, yummy, and substantial, this cabbage and meat dish is a fabulous one-pot dinner with huge flavor.

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INGREDIENTS
3/4 pound of pork (or chicken), cubed
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and grated
3/4 cup sour cream, divided
1 medium head of cabbage, shredded
2 tsp salt
1 cup canned crushed tomato
1 tbsp brown sugar
3/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp Mrs. Dash
2 bay leaves
olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Heat oil in a large pot and brown the pork until cooked through. Remove from pot and place in a large bowl with the shredded cabbage.

 In the same pot where you browned the pork, saute carrot and onion until softened.
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Remove from heat and mix in 2 tbsp sour cream. Then add this to the bow with the cabbage.

Heat a bit more olive oil in the pot and transfer in the cabbage mixture, along with the crushed tomato, the rest of the sour cream, and the salt, brown sugar, pepper, cumin, Mrs. Dash, and bay leaves.

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Stir well and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Cook on medium heat, stirring regularly, until the cabbage is softened–about 30 minutes.

Remove the bay leaves and enjoy piping hot! Приятного аппетита!

Minestrone

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

I love any recipe with a mirepoix, and minestrone soup is no exception. A tasty Italian classic with a simple country elegance, minestrone is as easy as it is beautiful. It’s a fairly basic vegetable soup in a tomato broth,  but packs a vegetable punch and is a healthy way to warm up on a chilly day!


INGREDIENTS
1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped (leaves included)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large potato, cubed
1 bunch Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves chopped
14 oz canned crushed tomato
5 cups vegetable broth
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
olive oil
herbs de Provence
salt
pepper

DIRECTIONS

In a large pot, heat oil on medium and add onion, carrot, celery, and garlic.

When onion is soft, stir in potato. Top mixture with chard and herbs de Provence and cover. Allow the chard to cook until beginning to soften.

Then add tomato and broth and stir. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

In a food processor, puree beans with 1/4 cup water until smooth. Stir bean puree and Parmesan cheese into soup and season with salt and pepper. Cook 10-15 minutes more.

Remove from heat and serve with bread or over pasta.

The Egg.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchenLeave a comment

We can all make toast and pb&j. The first real dish I learned to cook was scrambled eggs. I was about seven years old and I had seen it done a thousand times: crack the eggs into a bowl, add a splash of milk, scramble. Pour into a hot pan, add all the cheese your heart desires, stir. It’s not hard, but success in scrambled eggs gives a young cook confidence. If she can cook eggs, maybe she can  bake a loaf of bread, and if the bread turns out, maybe she’ll roast a chicken.

I love expanding my cooking horizons, and I try a new recipe about once a week. Foreign cuisines, unknown ingredients, new techniques–I’m here to try it all, and make some delicious food along the way.

So to answer the age old question, as only a cook could: the egg came first.