Rosemary Cardamom Twisters

New friends and new foods - signs of a successful event. The National Festival of Breads was just that! I keep thinking of the people I met and trying the recipes of the finalists. This finalist drove from northern California with her husband and young son to make a family vacation of the contest. She shared stories of farming almonds, fruits, and dairying in her home area. Quite different from the Kansas wheat fields we toured with the contestants. Amy Meiers' recipe of Rosemary Cardamom Twisters was inspired by a bakery close to her home that she and her mother liked to visit on their walks.
I like the unique flavor of this filling and the new way of twisting the dough to make an attractive roll. I'll try including these techniques in other sweet roll preparations as well as this one. The strong flavor of fresh rosemary can be used in a variety of foods, including vegetables, salads, and meats. The herb rosemary is native to the Mediterranean coast area and translates to "dew of the sea".
Folklore says that rosemary will increase your memory and it was worn by Greek scholars to help them during examinations. A sprig of rosemary was often placed in the hands of the deceased at a funeral as a symbol of remembrance. Brides often wore rosemary at their weddings as a symbol of happiness, loyalty and love. Shakespeare also liked rosemary and mentioned it in many poems and plays.

Rosemary Cardamom Twisters

Ingredients - Dough

3 1/2 cups King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour

1 to 1 1/3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup warm milk (110-115 degrees F)

1 (1/4 oz) package Red Star Active Dry Yeast

1/3 cup warm buttermilk (110-115 degrees F)

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

Ingredients - Filling

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary; 1-2 sprigs

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

2 teaspoons ground cardamon

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

Ingredients - Glaze

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Directions:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle, combine white whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt. 

In medium bowl, combine warm milk and yeast. Wait 5 to 10 minutes for mixture to foam (proof). Add buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla; stir to combine. 

Pour yeast mixture into the flour mixture; mix 2 minutes. Beat in the butter. Switch to dough hook, and if needed, gradually add enough of the remaining all-purpose flour to form a slightly sticky dough. Knead 10 - 12 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise 1 1/2 hours. While dough rises, make the filling. Remove rosemary leaves from the stems and chop leaves until very fine. Combine the filling ingredients and reserve. 

Divide dough into two equal pieces. Roll out one piece into a square, 14" x 14". Spread half of the filling completely over the dough then fold into thirds. 

Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 12 short strips. To shape, work with one piece at a time, keeping the rest covered. Gently stretch each piece of dough while twisting each end 2 to 3 times, then coil the strip together and tuck the end underneath the coil. Place on parchment-lined 18" x 13" baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.

Cover rolls with plastic wrap, and let dough rise until doubled, 30 to 40 minutes. Near the end of the rise, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake 15 to 17 minutes, until golden brown. 

While rolls are baking, combine the glaze ingredients in a small sauce pan, and cook over medium heat, 5 to 7 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened. Remove rolls from oven; immediately brush with glaze and cool on a rack. 

Smokehouse Cranberry Cheese Bread

The eight finalists anxiously watched the bread box to be opened to reveal the winner the last evening of the National Festival of Breads. "And the winner is..." and all erupted in applause. Not only is this recipe a winner, but the contestant, Lisa Keys of Pennsylvania, has a winning personality.
There are good reasons this recipe won! It is tasty, attractive, and easy to make. Since the contest a week ago, I've already made this bread twice. My family is very appreciative, Son-in-law (not knowing that I'd made the bread) ask Daughter "where can we buy some more of this bread?".
The unusual ingredients - maple syrup, tofu, dried cranberries and smoked gouda or Cheddar cheese add just the right sweet-savory flavor. I even found smoked Cheddar cheese in our local grocery store! Red Star Yeast and King Arthur Flour are two of the main sponsors of the National Festival of Breads along with Kansas Wheat Commission.

Smokehouse Cranberry Cheese Bread

2 (1/4 oz) packages Red Star Quick Rise yeast

3 tablespoons warm water (110 - 115 degrees)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 cup (8 pz) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup (4 oz) silken tofu (drain and press extra moisture out)

4 large eggs

 2 cups (6 oz) shredded smoked Gouda or smoked Cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 1/2 - 5 cups King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour, divided

1 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Instructions:

In small bowl, whisk together yeast, water, and maple syrup. Wait 5 - 10 minutes for mixture to foam (proof).

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle, blend together butter and tofu until mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape sides of bowl as needed. 

Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in cheese, salt, pepper, yeast mixture, and 4 cups of flour; blend well. Exchange paddle for dough hook. 

Mix in cranberries and gradually add enough remaining flour until a soft dough forms. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes on low to medium speed. Place dough in greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. 

Deflate dough and divide in half. Shape into 5-inch to 7-inch round loaves, and place into two buttered 9-inch round cake pans. Cover; let dough rise until doubled, 40 - 45 minutes. Near the end of the rise, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Uncover and with a sharp knife or lame, make a 1/4-inch deep "X" slash across the top of each loaf.

Bake 24 - 27 minutes until golden brown, tenting with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the middle of the loaf should register about 200 degrees. Remove from oven, and after a few minutes turn loaves out onto a rack to cool. 

Butter + tofu + eggs + cheese + salt & pepper + yeast
I'm using farm fresh eggs - more yellow in color!

After adding more flour and cranberries,
with the dough hook

Shaped, ready for second rising. 

Slash the dough to allow the top to
expand as it rises in the oven

My first set of loaves, tasty! 

Taco Beef Nuggets with Tejano Dipping Sauce

Sometimes you find recipes and food ideas in unlikely places. Last week while at the National Festival of Breads, the contestant I was assisting shared some contest tips with me. Like many of the contestants, she was a contest pro, having entered many recipe contests. One of her favorite ones was the National Beef Cookoff which has since been discontinued. But she did share a couple of her winning beef recipes with me.
This meat ball sort of recipe uses ground beef which we seem to have a freezer full of this summer. The Mexican flavor is tasty and one we like and these meatballs are very moist and tasty.

Taco Beef Nuggets with Tejano Dipping Sauce         

Ingredients:

1 pound (I used 2 pounds) ground round

2 tablespoons taco seasoning (again, I doubled this to 4 tablespoons, a full package)

1 can (4 oz) chopped mild green chilies, drained (I used the 4 oz can for 2# beef)

1 egg white

1 tablespoon water

2 cups crushed nacho cheese-flavored tortilla chips

Sauce:

6 tablespoons prepared thick taco sauce

3 tablespoons honey

Directions:

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Combine ground beef, taco seasoning, and green chilies in a large bowl, mixing lightly but thoroughly. Divide beef mixture into 16 portions; shape each portion around a cheese cube, completely covering the cheese. My 2# of ground beef yielded 26 meatballs, I made mine a little larger than 1 oz each portions.

Beat egg white with water in shallow dish until blended. Place chips in second shallow dish. Dip each meatball into egg white mixture, then into chips to coat completely. Press each meatball with palm into a flattened nugget shape. generously coating both sides of nugget with chips. For my increased amount of meatballs, I also used more egg white/water wash and tortilla chips. 

Spray a large baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place nuggets in baking pan; spray tops of nuggets generously with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes, or until meat registers 160  degrees F on an instant-read thermometer; meat should not be pink and juice should run clear. 

Meanwhile, combine sauce ingredients in small microwave-safe dish. Microwave on high for 30 seconds or until warm. Serve nuggets with sauce. 

Thank you to Patrice Hurd of Minnesota for the recipe and credit to the National Beef Cook-Off (http://www.beefcookoff.org/wr.asp) 

Meat mixture is ready to become a meatball
with a cheese center

Formed and ready to bake.
You can see the green chilies in the meatballs.

26 meat balls made enough to share with daughter and son-in-law
and to freeze for later.

Baked and tasty!

Fruit Crisp for a Crowd or a Couple

Or maybe for a couple of couples, or a couple for a couple of days... This Fruit Crisp will become the 'go-to' recipe for a quick dessert for our Community LinC group meal and for my family dinners. Using canned pie filling it goes together well and the filling is already thickened so the consistency is just right.

Fruit Crisp (for a 8-inch by 10-inch pan)

2 cans pie filling (apple, peach and cherry are all good)

1 1/2 cups quick oats

1 1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon (or other flavoring according to 

    the pie filling flavor - ex: almond for cherry)

Grease pan, and put both cans of pie filling in.

Melt butter and mix with remaining ingredients. 

Spread over top of fruit pie filling. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. 

See, isn't that easy? For a smaller family size dessert, use a 8-inch x 8-inch pan and 1 can of pie filling and half the other ingredients (3/4 cup each of quick oats, flour, brown sugar, butter, and 1/8 tsp of baking powder and baking soda, 1/2 tsp flavoring). 

Photos are of the smaller amounts - with 1 can pie filling.

Dry ingredients + melted butter

Mix together

Spread over top of fruit filling

Bake and serve!

Key Lime Tart - A Refreshing Taste

Summer tastes are tart, sweet, and refreshing. This Key Lime Tart is just that. With key lime juice, coconut crust, and whipped cream topping you can almost imagine you're in the tropics on a warm summer day. A little high in calories, but cut the pieces small and enjoy. Since I got a tart pan a couple of years ago, I've been on the lookout for recipes to use it with. You could also do this in a large pie plate if you don't have a tart pan.
Key limes are a tropical fruit similar to lemons. They are native to Southeast Asia and with Crusaders and other early travelers, made their way to the West Indies where Columbus found them. These are the type of limes that are used in most of the world. We in the U.S. often confuse them with the larger limes we find in the grocery stores that are a hybrid developed in the early 20th century. Key limes are smaller, yellower in color, and more sour. They were grown commercially in southern Florida and Florida keys before the groves were destroyed by a hurricane in 1926. They are now grown in some backyard gardens and commercial production is making a slight comeback.
Key limes are primarily know for their flavor in Key Lime Pie but the fresh juice is also a tasty flavoring for fish, meats, and in marinates.  Key Lime Pie recipes include sweetened condensed milk, which the pie was invented to use soon after condensed milk was developed as a luxury food.

Key Lime Tart in Coconut Crust

Coconut Crust                                            

Crust ready to bake

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

3/4 cup shredded coconut

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling       

Filling 

4 large egg yolks

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup Key Lime juice

1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whipped Cream      

Topped with whipped cream

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Garnish: Toasted coconut and/or lime

   zest (optional) 

To make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine graham cracker crumbs, coconut, sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir in melted butter and vanilla. Press into bottom and sides of a 9-inch tart pan. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Cool

To make Filling: Lightly whisk egg  yolks in a mixing bowl. Whisk in sugar, Key Lime juice, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Pour into cooled crust and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature. Chill pid several hours or overnight. 

To make the Whipped Cream: Place cream in a mixing bowl and beat with electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add sugar and vanilla, and continue to beat until stiff. Spread or pipe over pie. Garnish with toasted coconut and/or slivers of lime zest.

Ummm, good!

Makes one 9-inch tart

from Bonnie Aeschliman, Cooking with Bonnie: Farm to France