Fail: Sourdough Cinnamon Cranberry Bread

 Spoiler: This week's sourdough adventure did not turn out well.  

A very tasty brick.

As you may already know, cinnamon has antibacterial properties.  Sourdough needs yeasties and bacteria in order to rise. This is why you so often see cinnamon swirl breads, where the cinnamon is introduced after fermentation and most of the rising has already occurred. Because adding cinnamon at the beginning will retard that bulk fermentation process.  

...but I'm lazy and don't like extra steps, and because my dough often tends to be wet, it doesn't lend well to rolling out and adding a "swirl" layer in, as first discovered when I was trying to make spent grain bread.  So I've generally just been trying to focus on finding recipes where the add-ins can be mixed directly into the dough.  I found this recipe from Lynn's Way of Life on Pinterest which incorporated everything in, so I tried that.  The only modification to the recipe was that I used dried cranberries instead of raisins, because that's what we had in the pantry.

The recipe clearly notes that because the cinnamon is mixed in early, fermentation may take longer than a normal loaf.  But a compounding issue here is that I was off on my timing with my starter.  Saturday is typically my baking day, so Friday night I pull my starter out of the fridge, let it get active overnight, use that fairly active "discard" in a recipe, then feed my starter and put it back in the fridge.  But I forgot to pull my starter out of the fridge on Friday.  So instead, at some point on Saturday (which had a lot of other things going on), I pulled my starter from the fridge, fed it, and then left it out on the counter, optimistically (and erroneously) thinking I would make my dough that evening once it was bubbly.  But by the time it was was ready, I was not. I was busy making gumbo and didn't feel like messing with it.  So I left the starter out on the counter overnight and planned to make my dough the next morning.

Somewhere in there, I'm pretty sure the starter had already reached it's peak. It was still very bubbly when I made my dough the next morning, so I figured all was well. But I think between the starter already being headed back towards hunger, and the cinnamon mix-in on top of that...she just didn't rise. Like, AT ALL.

Folded and in the pan.  I gave it some extra time to "rise" in the fridge overnight...which it did not.

Very dense crumb.

Even though it was super dense, the flavor was still really good, especially toasted and with butter. My husband called it "bagel bread".  So I would be willing to attempt this recipe again with my usual process. I've never used the float test to confirm my starter is ready, but this might be a good time to try that, just to make sure the dough has a fighting chance at rising in spite of the cinnamon.

Sourdough Stories #18: Discard Recipes - Orange Cranberry Quick Bread & Waffles

Mandough has been very healthy & growing rapidly, so I took advantage of the Mother's Day weekend to make a few extra things to gift (and use up extra starter & discard).

We had oranges, orange juice, and dried cranberries in the house, so this recipe for orange cranberry quick bread seemed a perfect way to use up some discard.  I made some modifications to the recipe, so sharing my version below.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup (113g) sourdough discard
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1.5 cup AP flour
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• zest of one small orange or clementine
• Optional glaze: 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 2-3 tsp orange juice (I didn't make this, just because we were running short on time and the bread was still warm when I wrapped it up to take to my mom.)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oil, sugars, and eggs and whisk together until creamy.
3. Add the sourdough discard, nutmeg, orange juice, milk, and whisk until well blended.
4. Add the flour, salt, and baking powder, and fold until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated.
5. Fold in the zest and cranberries, then transfer into a lightly greased loaf pan.
6. Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Transfer out of the loaf pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Then add the glaze if you choose to.

I also made a giant pile of discard waffles using this recipe Rustic Family Recipes--I made no major changes to the recipe so you can just click over to their site.  They crisped up nicely--but word of warning--their recipe denotes a yield of "3-6 waffles".  That assumes that you have a large, normal size or Belgian waffle maker. if you have a cutesy little single waffle iron that makes Eggo-sized waffles, it actually makes about 15 waffles.  Perfect for keeping in the freezer or fridge and popping into the toaster. But again...you're making them one at a time.  So plan to spend about 45-60 minutes on that task.

Cranberry-Pineapple Refrigerator Jam

I can’t seem to commit to full-on canning & preserving.  I like the idea, but really, our pantry is full enough with random jams, jellies & salsas, and a lot of the time, I don’t want to make a full batch of something, using a new recipe, and then find out it sucks.  So I like that Ball offers these little packets of “small batch” pectin so you can make two half-pint, or one full pint jar. 

Cranberries are super-cheap this time of year, so I tend to stock up.  There’s at least two bags in the freezer right now, waiting to be turned into sauce or gooey butter bars, or who knows what.  But I also just made some of this cranberry-pineapple jam and was pretty pleased with the results.  Since I made only one jar, I can put it straight into the fridge and not have to worry about preserving it for shelf-storage.

INGREDIENTS: (makes one pint)

• One packet of small-batch pectin
• 1 1/3 Cups cranberries
• 1 Cup of crushed pineapple with juice
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 Tablespoon orange juice
• 1/2 Tablespoons orange zest
• 3/4 Cup sugar (to taste—I like my jam to be a little tart)
• One sterilized pint jar (I use Easy Clean)

 

DIRECTIONS:

Pretty easy stuff--combine the cranberries, pineapple, juice, zest, nutmeg, sugar, and pectin in a pot & stir over low heat. Continue stirring  until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to boil.

Then, crush the fruit in the mixture with a potato masher over medium heat on the stove; let the jam boil for approximately 15 minutes; longer if you want a thicker jam.

If you plan on using right away, you don’t have to worry about doing a water bath or freezing. 

Makes a mean PB & J!

Homemade Strawberry Pie

I love the springtime/early summer.  Flowers are blooming, weather is warming up, the sun is shining…ice cream is selling like crazy…

…and of course, the pollen is everywhere, and the grass (and weeds) are growing so fast that we can’t keep up with the mowing…

But on the up side, strawberries are on sale!!!  Ninety-nine cents a pound! 

So I stocked up.  There’s a nice big bag in the freezer for smoothies, and then…well…

Yup.  Fresh strawberry pie.  It’s one of my faves, right up there with cherry pie…apparently I have a thing for red fruit pies.  Though, for this particular pie, I used 2/5 cranberries because I had some to use up.

Moar red fruitz.

INGREDIENTS:

1 pie crust (homemade or store-bought), baked according to the package

egg wash

5 cups strawberries (or 4c strawberries & 1c cranberries), washed & sliced

1/4 cup corn starch

2/3 to 3/4 cups sugar, based on how sweet your strawberries are

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

1 tbsp lemon juice (I also added the juice of half an orange, because cranberry & orange go well together)

whipped cream

 

DIRECTIONS:

Pre-bake the pie crust (be sure to poke plenty of holes in the crust with a fork to keep it from puffing up).  During the last 5-7 minutes of the baking, lightly coat the pie shell with the egg wash to get a golden crust.  Let crust cool completely.

While that’s cooking, in a large pot combine 2 cups of the strawberries (NOTE: if you try the strawberry/cranberry combo, give the berries a quick chop in a food processor or blender), cornstarch, sugar, salt, extracts, and lemon juice over medium heat.  Stir until sugar is dissolved & the glaze has thickened (3-5 minutes; you may have to go a bit longer with cranberries to make sure they’re softened).  Let glaze cool completely.

Once the glaze is cool, fold in the rest of the strawberries and mix gently until the berries are well coated with the glaze; then pour into the pie shell & spread evenly.

Top with the whipped cream and decorate the top with a few extra strawberries.  Let chill for 2 hours to give the filling time to fully set.  Then….DEVOUR!!!!

Makes 8 delectable servings!

NutriFacts:

Calories 242.6

  Total Fat 7.4 g

  Saturated Fat 3.5 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 1.2 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 2.6 g

  Cholesterol 0.0 mg

  Sodium 121.3 mg

  Potassium 162.5 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 43.2 g

  Dietary Fiber 2.2 g

  Sugars 24.6 g

  Protein 1.6 g

Cranberry Pie: cherry pie’s evil (but gorgeous) stepsister.

Thanksgiving is upon us!  This year, we’ll be having a couple family dinners: we meet up with my side of the family this weekend, and then the Hubs’ family on actual Turkey Day.  Huzzah for two sessions of gorging, amirightmyfriends?

If you’re in need of a quick dessert recipe for your holiday feastings, look no further.  This delicious pie is both sweet and tart… like the wicked doppelganger* of the more traditional cheery cherry pie. (*Yes, I’ve been watching to much Vampire Diaries.)

And…I got to practice my crust decorating skills.

In true Louisiana fashion, we have the fleur de lis!  Not bad for hand drawn/cut, eh?  I’m a little proud, if you can’t tell.

Ingredients:

2 pre-made refrigerated pie crusts
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup Splenda
1/3 cup flour
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
12 oz fresh cranberries
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 teaspoons light butter

Directions:

Heat oven to 425F.

In a large saucepan, combine the sugars, flour, cornstarch, salt, and water.  Bring to boil and cook, stirring constantly until thick & smooth.  Add the cranberries, orange juice, and spices.  Cook another 5-10 minutes until the berries pop. Remove from heat, and add the butter.  Stir until melted & combined.

Place one crust in a pie plate.  Then add the filling.

Roll your other crust (the top) onto a sheet of wax paper or a flexible cutting mat so that you can cut your vents—whether you choose to be artistic or purely practical is entirely up to you, though I of course recommend the former.

(For this, I just made small cuts with a knife close together---the lines aren’t actually connected, lest the whole pattern fall out while cooking.)

Place the top crust onto the pie, and then pinch the edges.

If you have one, add a pie crust protector to the edge of the pan to prevent the lip of the crust from over baking & getting too brown. 

(If you don’t have one, I highly recommend adding it to your Christmas list for Santa this year.)

Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the crust protector and bake another 10 minutes until the crust is a lovely brown.

Allow to cool fully before serving, so the filling can fully congeal.

Buttery, flaky crust, fresh fruit filling, deliciously sweet & tart with a homey tinge of orange & holiday spices.

Life gets no better, my friends!

 

NutriFacts:

Calories 233.3

  Total Fat 8.8 g

  Saturated Fat 2.8 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 1.3 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 4.1 g

  Cholesterol 0.0 mg

  Sodium 230.6 mg

  Potassium 67.7 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 38.1 g

  Dietary Fiber 2.0 g

  Sugars 24.2 g

  Protein 1.3 g

Cranberry Pineapple Gooey Butter Cake

 

Had a craving for something sweet the other night (I say that like it’s a rare occurrence…really, when am I NOT willing to pound down some sweets?)… particularly, some St. Louis style cherry gooey butter cake.  However, we had neither cherries nor powdered sugar in the house…both of which are pretty big ingredients in said confection.

So, I improvised.  And it was DELICIOUS.

A gooey butter cake is pretty simple in essence… oh sure, some recipes call for making it from scratch, but that’s just unnecessary.  Unless you feel like it, of course…but I rarely do.  This recipe involves three different sections.

Bottom layer:

1 box yellow cake mix

2 eggs

1/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup butter, melted

Middle layer:

4oz fat free cream cheese or Neufchatel

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

Top layer:

1 cup cranberries

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup fresh chopped pineapple

Directions:

Since it takes the longest, you’ll want to make the top layer first.  This is loosely based off the cranberry sauce recipe I posted back around Thanksgiving.  In a medium saucepan, combine the ingredients and cook over medium-high heat until the cranberries pop.  Let cool a bit while you’re working on the other layers.

Preheat the oven to 350. Then mix together all the ingredients for your bottom layer.  It will be somewhat thick.  Spread into a greased & floured glass 9x13 pan.  (it will likely also be sticky, so lightly spritz your spatula with cooking spray---it will help you spread the dough more easily/evenly.

Next: whip together the ingredients for the middle layer, & drizzle over the top of the dough.

Then: drizzle the cranberry-pineapple topping across the top, and then use a knife to create a swirled pattern in the top.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the edges are brown. 

Let cool for a bit before serving.

(Um…you’ve got a bit of drool on your chin there.)

NutriFacts (makes 16 servings):

Calories 252.8

  Total Fat 7.4 g

  Saturated Fat 3.6 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.6 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 2.7 g

  Cholesterol 47.8 mg

  Sodium 240.0 mg

  Potassium 90.6 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 43.9 g

  Dietary Fiber 0.9 g

  Sugars 15.3 g

  Protein 3.6 g

Shared on The Sweet Spot and 33 Shades of Green

Cranberry Jalapeno Dip–Perfect for Holidays!

Happy Boxing Day, or, as we usually call it, Recovery & Cleanup Day.  I have spent about 90% of my time today on the couch.  It. Feels. Fantastic. :D

But for the past two days, we hosted Christmas festivities for our family here at the FeauxHouse.  Lots of preparations and cleaning and cooking---ohh the cooking.  Ham, my mom’s chicken & noodles, spiced walnuts & almonds:

…relish trays (that got lost in the back of the fridge, so I’ve been snacking on them today), and a few good helpers to make the rest of the dinner go smoothly:

(for the record, because of an unfortunate incident I’ll refer to as the “FeauxPantry Potato Famine of 2011”, we had to do half instant, half freshly boiled potatoes for our mashed potatoes, but they turned out delicious, as always, because we are Professional Kitchen Improv-ers here.)

 

And to mix things up a bit, of course a new recipe was in order!  I was supposed to make pepper poppers for a work potluck earlier in the week, but had to miss the potluck due to a family funeral.  So I still had all the makings on hand.  I stumbled across this recipe and HAD to try it.

(LOOK at these colors!  Does this not scream “Merry Christmas”???)

 

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh cranberries

3 green onions, chopped (or a tablespoon of dried chives)

1/8 cup fresh chopped cilantro

1 small jalapeno, seeded & finely chopped

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 tsp cumin

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/8 tsp salt

1 – 8oz package of low-fat Neufchatel (essentially light cream cheese)

crackers for serving

 

Directions:

Using a food processor, chop the cranberries.

(You could feasibly do this by hand, but the processor makes this recipe a snap.  I was done in less than 10 minutes.)

 

Add the green onions, cilantro, jalapeno, sugar, cumin, lemon juice and salt and pulse until the ingredients are well combined and very finely chopped. Then wrap your processor bowl in saran wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours (or overnight) so the flavors can develop and the cranberries lose just a bit of their tartness.  (This also gives the jalapeno a chance to mellow out as well.)

(I can’t get over how gorgeous this is.  I LOVE those colors!)

Now, a quick note: If you are going to be serving this to people who aren’t keen on spicy foods, no worries—by the time everything had had a chance to rest and we served it, there was hardly any heat left from the jalapenoes, just a nice hint of flavor.  However, if you’re serving this for friends who don’t mind some spice in their food, don’t hesitate to double the amount of jalapeno.  The cream cheese will balance out the capsaicin in the pepper.

 

About an hour before you’re ready to serve, whip your cream cheese so it gets smooth & a little fluffier.  Then spoon the cream cheese into a bowl (I used two bowls, because I’d be serving it for two different dinners) & then spoon the cranberry mixture on top.

We had 7 people eating the first night & pretty well finished it off, and 6 adults the second night & they ate about half.  So that should give you an idea on servings.

 

Anyway…you can serve as is, and leave that gorgeous red on top, or you can mix it up a bit so the guests are sure to get enough cream cheese with their cranberry.  (That’s what we did.)

 

Really loved this, and WILL make it again.  The flavor combination seemed unusual at first but it really worked well.  The sweet from the sugar, tart from the cranberry, a little heat from jalapeno, hint of smoke from the cumin, and of course the cilantro…then you add a buttery cracker and it’s just heaven.

So, happy holidays everyone!  Hope you get a little rest & relaxation in before the New Year!

Shared on 33 Shades of Green's Tasty Tuesday

Recipe: Cran-Apple Crisp!

 

So, after making the cranberry orange sauce for Thanksgiving, I had some extra fresh cranberries laying around to use up.  Apple crisp is one of my favorite desserts—a recipe handed down from my mom.  So…why not a cranberry apple crisp?  Two delicious harvest time fruits, and a crisp is just such a fabulous dessert…and relatively healthy as desserts go.  The only fats come from the butter in the crumble topping, and if you’re concerned about calories from the sugar, you can opt for Splenda baking blend, which is half regular sugar, and half Splenda.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cranberries, washed 
  
• 3 cups sliced, peeled apples
  
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar (or Splenda baking blend)
  
• Juice from 1/2 lemon (or about 1 tbsp)
  
• 1 tbsp orange juice
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
  
• 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
  
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg 
  
• 1 cup quick cooking oats
  
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (wheat flour, if you have it)
  
• 5 tablespoons butter, softened in the microwave for 15 seconds

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325.  Combine the cranberries, apples, sugar, and citrus juices in a 8x8 pan & toss well.

(LOVE those colors!)

Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a bowl until they come together:

Then sprinkle the crumbly topping evenly over the fruit, covering the top.  Place in overn & bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the crust is well browned & the fruit is bubbly.

Dig in while still warm.

Makes 12 servings.

Nutrifacts:

Calories 167.0

  Total Fat 2.8 g

  Saturated Fat 0.8 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.8 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 1.0 g

  Cholesterol 0.0 mg

  Sodium 40.2 mg

  Potassium 90.6 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 39.5 g

  Dietary Fiber 2.9 g

  Sugars 28.5 g

Protein 1.6 g

Linked on 33 Shades of Green's Tasty Tuesday and The Sweet Spot.

More Thanksgiving Goodness: Cranberry Orange Sauce

You’re thinking: Cranberries have nothing to do with Louisiana.

You’re mostly right…the only real correlation is that cranberries are grown in bogs, which is kind of similar to a rice field…or a swamp…in that there’s a lot of water, and you have to wear waders to go into one.

(See?  Basically the same…right?)

Okay, so no…not really.  But: here’s the connection for me.  Until I moved to Louisiana, I had never eaten cranberry sauce.

I had SEEN cranberry sauce, or what passes for it, anyway…I mean, how is this even remotely appetizing?

(Yes, Mom, please pass me some of that red-colored tin can, thanks.)

MAYBE I’d have eaten it sooner if the first time I’d seen jellied cranberry sauce, it was presented like THIS:

 

(oooh….ahhhh…)

Because any kid can look at that & say “Hey!  Red Jello with fruit!  MMmm!” (quickly followed by “can someone get the grass off of it?”)

But no, at our Midwestern family dinners, we had that sad blob of red tin can, that when sliced, looked far too much like pickled beets for me to even consider snagging one. 

And my parents didn’t eat them either…I’m actually not sure WHO in our family DID eat them, I just know it showed up on the table every year out of some sad tradition. (My cousin & I had our own tradition—we demanded that a bowl of Spaghetti O’s be among the holiday feastings every Thanksgiving & Christmas.  Even though we’re now in our 30s, it’s still part of our family tradition if we’re both going to be there, for ol’ times sake….which is why we also have matching Spaghetti O’s ornaments on our tree that I made back in 2009):

(Not the greatest photo…sorry.  I could’ve sworn I had a closeup. But you get the idea.)

I’ll be honest… until I moved to Louisiana, my concept of cooking/trying new foods was pretty limited.  Yes, I watched Food Network incessantly, yes, I worked at a pizza place where I was free to experiment with different flavor combinations (Pineapple & Italian sausage FTW!), but my version of “exotic” food was a Chinese buffet.  Not even a good Chinese buffet…we’re talking about being happy because I could get my pepper steak with lo mein noodles rather than fried rice, and because they always seemed to have fried potatoes on the bar.

But then I moved to New Orleans, and got a job at Martin’s Wine Cellar in the gourmet foods department.  That sounds fancy, but it mainly means I sliced a lot of meat & cheese.  Granted, yes, I can slice prosciutto paper-thin (assuming I had a well sharpened meat slicer in my house…which I don’t) and I occasionally word-vomit around party cheese plates (“Oh!  You got the Humboldt Fog!  I love this cheese.  SO good with Sundried Tomato Wheat Thins.  How much does it sell for now?  It was $17.99/lb when I was at MWC…”) 

However, the job had its perks.  I did gain about 10 pounds trying all of our delicious products over the year that I worked there (hey—can’t properly sell it if you haven’t tried it—and admit it, if you had access to free dark chocolate-covered almonds that usually sell for $12.99/lb, you’d be occasionally noshing too), and thanks to some great local coworkers who had grown up in New Orleans, I began to branch out.  First pate? Right there in MWC (Les Trois Petite Cochons Mediterranean Pate, which sadly, isn’t part of their lineup anymore…sad, because it was GOOD, and didn’t actually have any liver in it.)  First caviar?  Good ol’ MWC.  First cheese that didn’t come from a cow?  MWC.   First time eating sushi?  New Orleans’ own Rock-n-Sake.  First time eating Pho?  Pho Bang on Vets.  First non-buffet Chinese?  5 Happiness on Carrollton (mmmm…shrimp toast—and ”shrimp toast” is something I wouldn’t have tried on my own without outside coercion).  First Indian food?  Masala Indian Kitchen in Lafayette.  Mediterranean food?  Lebanon’s Cafe in NOLA.  I could go on, but I’m already drooling on myself.

So—cranberry sauce.  I had it for the first time Thanksgiving of 2005 at a friends house.  It was fresh, homemade by my friends’ mom.  It looked like cherry pie filling, and I timidly tried a spoonful.  Slightly sweet, deliciously tart, beautifully ruby in color.  There couldn’t have been a better first cranberry.

STOP RAMBLING & GET TO THE RECIPE!!!!

OKAY.  This year, in the spirit of trying new things, I made my own cranberry sauce for the first time.  Used fresh Wisconsin cranberries (which were on sale for 99 cents a bag at Aldi’s) and a recipe from a friend. It couldn’t have been simpler.

Ingredients:

2 cups orange juice
1 ½ cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg
4 cups fresh cranberries
1 orange, zested

(Seriously… isn’t that just the most gorgeous color?)

Directions:

Combine juice, nutmeg, and sugar in a medium pot over medium-low heat.  Cook until sugar dissolves, stirring.

Add cranberries, cover, and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. 

Then cook without stirring until cranberries pop—watch the pot or it might try to boil over.  Remove from heat and mix in orange zest. Pour into a serving dish and chill at least 4 hours. 

I nom’ed on it with some of our TurkeyDay leftovers.

Shared on: 33 Shades of Green