Monthly Archives: September 2014

Recipe: Easy Corn Tortillas

Here’s an easy way to make your own corn tortillas. Once you’ve tried your own, I doubt you’ll be headed to the store for more. These are easy to make with or without a tortilla press, as detailed in my recipe below and also demonstrated in my YouTube video on how to make them (see link at the bottom of the post). Give them a try! Judi

Corn Tortillas
Makes about 10

1 cup corn flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp warm water
1/2 tsp vegetable oil

1 tsp vegetable oil for skillet

 

In a medium size bowl, combine the corn flour and salt. Add in a mixture of the warm water plus 1/2 tsp oil. With a rubber spatula, stir the mixture to wet the dry ingredients. With hands, combine ingredients well to form a ball about the consistency of play dough. If the mixture is too dry, add more warm water, no more than 1 tablespoon at a time. If the mixture is too moist, add a little more corn flour.

When dough consistency is right, cover the bowl with a damp towel and allow it to rest for 5 minutes.

Pinch off about 2 tablespoons of dough and with hands form a ball. With a tortilla press, line it with plastic wrap and press the dough into a tortilla. Without a tortilla press, place the ball between two sheets of parchment paper or waxed paper. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a round shape, roughly 1/8” thick.

Heat a dry skillet on the stove over medium to medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp vegetable oil to the pan. With a paper towel or napkin, spread the oil all around the bottom of the pan, wiping up excess.

Take the formed tortilla on the wax paper or plastic wrap to the skillet. Turn it upside down to allow the tortilla to fall off the paper or wrap onto the skillet. Allow it to cook until it starts to bubble and moves easily around the skillet. Flip the tortilla over with a spatula. Cook until it starts to brown. Flip the tortilla and allow the first side to finish browning.

Remove the cooked tortilla to a plate and cover it with waxed paper or damp paper towels. Repeat the process until all the dough has been cooked. Serve immediately.

To store tortillas: They may be briefly stored, covered tightly, in the refrigerator. To preserve longer, wrap air-tight and store in the freezer until needed.

http://youtu.be/2C2aLpdFf5s

Recipe: Delicious Lentil Burgers

Lentils seem to be gaining in popularity these days as more people are striving to improve their eating habits. I’ve enjoyed lentils for years in a number of ways and am happy to see that others are catching on to this ultra-healthy legume. The following is a recipe that I came up with forming cooked lentils into a “mock” burger. They are easy to make, hold up well in a sandwich, and are versatile in that they can be used in a variety of dishes. Following the recipe is a link to my YouTube video demonstrating making them. Try them sometime. See serving suggestions below. Enjoy! Judi

Lentil Burgers
Makes 8 Burgers

1 cup dried lentils, rinsed, drained
2-1/2 cups water
1/2 cup diced onion
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs of choice
1-1/2 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp dry celery flakes OR 1/2 stalk celery chopped OR 2 Tbsp chopped fresh celery leaves
4 tsp dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp dried onion powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup cooked brown rice, divided

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Place lentils in a medium saucepan with water, onion, bell pepper, garlic and salt. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, covered, for 20 to 30 minutes until liquid is absorbed and lentils are tender.

In a large blender or food processor, place about 2/3 of the cooked lentils with remaining ingredients, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooked brown rice. Process until ingredients are mostly pureed. Place processed ingredients in a bowl with the remaining 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice and cooked lentil mixture. Stir to combine well. Portion mixture into 1/2 cup increments.

Warm a nonstick skillet over medium heat, then add 1 tablespoon of oil. Place lentil mixture by 1/2 cup increments onto hot skillet. With a spatula, shape as for a burger. Allow to cook until firm and brown on one side, about 15 minutes. Then carefully flip and allow the second side to cook until firm, about another 15 minutes. Serve.

Serving Suggestions:
* These burgers are fabulous served in a sandwich garnished with ketchup, mustard and/or mayo with lettuce, tomatoes and even pickles or hot peppers.

* These are also excellent served with mashed potatoes and vegetables, just like you would a standard meatball or ground beef patty.

* A brown gravy would also be a wonderful topping for these burgers.

* Sauteed onions and bell peppers would be another excellent accompaniment

http://youtu.be/M-IJNqsDb7Q

Recipe: Homemade Hamburger Buns

As most of you know, I used to own and operate my own bakery. I learned a lot during those years. But if nothing else, I became an expert in the fine art of making yeast breads from scratch. It was my mainstay. I made breads of all kinds and even concocted breads for people on request that they couldn’t find elsewhere. It was fun and delicious!

I’ll be creating a series of videos for my YouTube channel coupled with write-ups on my blog instructing how to make the assorted breads I made in my bakery. I elected to start with hamburger buns simply because I needed them for my husband’s lunches! So, here’s one recipe I used in the bakery. The recipe is followed by a link to my YouTube video where I demonstrated how to make the buns. Happy baking! Judi

Homemade Hamburger Buns
Makes 11 each 3-1/2 oz buns

1/2 cup water
3/4 cup milk
1.5 oz (3 Tbsp) butter
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 lb, 5.25 oz (about 5 cups) bread flour
1/2 oz (2 packets) RapidRise yeast
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp salt

In a stand mixer bowl [or large bowl], combine the bread flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Stir to combine; set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the water, milk and butter to 120 degrees F. Pour the warmed liquid and eggs into the dry mixture. Stir to moisten the flour mixture. Place in stand mixer, attach a dough hook, and mix on low to medium-low speed for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. [NOTE: If you don’t have a stand mixer or prefer to knead dough by hand, simply knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until it is smooth and elastic, yet still slightly sticky. Be careful not to work in much flour.] Remove dough hook, spray dough with nonstick spray, cover with plastic wrap, waxed paper or a damp towel, and allow dough to rest for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare your oven for proofing the buns. Turn on the light bulb (DO NOT turn on the oven). Bring a medium saucepan of water to boil and place it in the oven on the bottom rack that was moved to the lowest position. The upper rack should be in the middle of the oven.

After the dough has rested, portion the dough into 3-1/2 oz parts, or section the dough into 11 equal parts. On a lightly (and I mean LIGHTLY) floured board, gently form the dough parts into round patties and place them on a baking sheet that was greased or lined with parchment paper. [NOTE: The bottom of the buns will brown better on a greased baking sheet.] Place sheet on rack in the middle of the oven until buns have doubled in size, about 20 minutes. Remove baking sheet and saucepan from the oven.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake buns for 10 to 15 minutes until golden. Remove baking sheet from oven and place it on a rack to cool. Brush tops with melted butter, if desired. (This makes them look, taste, and smell fabulous!) When buns are completely cooled, slice them horizontally and enjoy!

Storage tip: If you don’t plan to eat the buns within a day or two, wrap them in plastic wrap and place them in heavy-duty freezer bags. Store them in the freezer until ready to use. To thaw, simply remove them from the freezer, unwrap them and lightly cover them with a clean towel. After they thaw, they may be stored air-tight until needed.

Easily Cut Bell Peppers (no waste, little mess)

Food to me is sacred. After all, we can’t live without it, right? Also, grocery prices have slowly gone up to the point that food runs are getting almost out of sight. It’s downright expensive. So with that, I can’t stand to waste anything! Nothing!! If I can find a use for some morsel of food, I try to save it if I possibly can.

I love to eat a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. Bell peppers are on my “regular” list of groceries to buy. However, they’re pretty expensive considering how much you get out of one little pepper. So, it’s best not to waste any of it, if at all possible.

I found a way to easily cut bell peppers with NO waste and very little, if any mess from the seeds going all over the place. I demonstrated how to cut them in a YouTube video recently. It’s short and to the point. Anyone can cut a pepper this way and there TRULY is no waste of any edible part of the pepper. Give it a try when you can and let me know your comments!

Happy eating!
Judi