I confess I have always had a great interest in fringe religious groups such as The Shakers, The Quakers, The Amish, The Hutterites, The Doukhobors, The United Brethren, etc. I am not sure why. It's not their beliefs that draw my interest so much as it is their lifestyle and their food. Especially their food. Simple, hearty and natural for the most part, homegrown, etc.
This was especially true of the Shakers. They grew all of their own produce, grains, meats, etc. They ate plain and they ate hearty. It was said that they also ate very quickly, with meals being consumed from start to finish in less than fifteen minutes! There was nobody lingering over the table afterwards.
They loved to have people drop by for meals. I am not sure if they accepted payment for this or not. I read an account of someone who lived with them for a little time, and he made mention of being served hot biscuits and butter for every meal, with meat, potatoes and the vegetables of the season. As well there was coffee and milk and something for dessert. All homemade from Shaker produced goods.
Nothing complicated. Good simple, hearty meals. It sounds mighty tasty to me.
- 2 cups (250g) plain all-purpose flour, unsifted
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 cup (120g) grated strong cheddar cheese
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 large egg, beaten with a fork
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 2 TBS melted butter
HOW TO MAKE SHAKER CHEESE BREAD
Like most quick breads it is a matter of combining dry and wet ingredients. This does have the added step of having to let it sit for 20 minutes prior to baking. Do take that into consideration when making this bread.
Butter an 8-inch bread pan well. Set aside.
Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together into a bowl. Whisk in the cheese and the onion.
Whisk together the egg, milk and melted butter.
Add all at once to the dry ingredients and stir together to blend. It will be a thick dough. Do not beat or overmix. (If you think it is too stiff you can add a bit more milk.)
Spread into the prepared pan and leave to sit for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. (regular oven not fan)
Bake for 1 hour. It is done when it is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Tip out of the pan onto a wire rack to cool. This can be served warm or at room temperature, cut into slices and buttered. It also freezes well.
This was really, really good. I had my doubts after I had mixed it all up. It seemed to be a really thick batter. I did add a bit of extra milk to loosen it up a bit.
.JPG "Cheddar Cornbread Muffins")
Shaker Cheese Bread
This has a beautiful flavor and texture. It is delicious served with soups, salads, stews, etc. A sturdy bread it cuts beautifully. Bear in mind when timing that it needs to sit for 20 minutes prior to baking.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) plain all-purpose flour, unsifted
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 cup (120g) grated strong cheddar cheese
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 large egg, beaten with a fork
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 2 TBS melted butter
Instructions
- Butter an 8-inch bread pan well. Set aside.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together into a bowl. Whisk in the cheese and the onion.
- Whisk together the egg, milk and melted butter.
- Add all at once to the dry ingredients and stir together to blend. It will be a thick dough. Do not beat or overmix. (If you think it is too stiff you can add a bit more milk.)
- Spread into the prepared pan and leave to sit for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. (regular oven not fan)
- Bake for 1 hour. It is done when it is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Tip out of the pan onto a wire rack to cool. This can be served warm or at room temperature, cut into slices and buttered. It also freezes well.
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
- 2 slices good quality rye bread
- 1 TBS softened butter
- 2 TBS Thousand Island Dressing
- 2 slices of Swiss cheese
- 1/4 pound (4 ounces/115g) thinly sliced deli corned beef or pastrami
- a large handful sauerkraut, squeezed dry and warmed up
HOT HAM & CHEESE SANDWICH WITH BACON & CARAMELIZED ONIONS- Fresh poppyseed Kaiser rolls brushed with a honey mustard butter and filled with plenty of deli ham, Swiss cheese, caramelized onions and crispy bacon! Amounts are for one sandwich but are easily multiplied to make as many as you have guests! These really are very easy to make. Probably the most time-consuming part is the caramelizing of the onions. If you are not keen you can always leave them out, but I highly recommend you do make them as they really add to the deliciousness of this tasty sandwich!
The Classic Reuben Sandwich
This is a delicious classic that always goes down a real treat. To make more than one sandwich, simply multiply the ingredients accordingly!
Ingredients
- 2 slices good quality rye bread
- 1 TBS softened butter
- 2 TBS Thousand Island Dressing
- 2 slices of Swiss cheese
- 1/4 pound (4 ounces/115g) thinly sliced deli corned beef or pastrami
- a large handful sauerkraut, squeezed dry and warmed up
Instructions
- Butter the outer sides of each slice of bread with half of the softened butter.
- Place one slice, buttered side down in a non-stick skillet large enough to hold it. Spread with 1 TBS of the Thousand Island Dressing.
- Top with one slice of the cheese, the corned beef, the sauerkraut and the other slice of cheese.
- Spread the unbuttered side of the other slice of bread with the remaining Thousand Island Dressing and place on top of the sandwich, buttered side up.
- Cook over medium heat until golden brown on the bottom, flip over carefully and brown on the other side, and all of the cheese has melted, and everything is heated through. Take care not to be in too much of a hurry or have the skillet too hot or your sandwich may burn. (About 3 minutes per side.)
- Cut on the diagonal to serve.
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
I had a son who used to live on things like mini pizzas. My youngest son. I used to worry that he would get sick from malnutrition. He was incredibly fussy. He would go through stages.
One state was what I called the "white" stage. He would only eat white bread and white rice. Sometimes with corn niblets. Hot dogs. Frozen pizza pockets.
He would eat toast occasionally, but it had to be just the perfect color. It could not be too dark or too light. I don't know why we catered to him so much. Probably because he was the youngest of five. We all fussed over him.
My oldest son would eat anything. He still enjoys eating pretty much anything. He has a very adventurous palate. My oldest daughter did not like potatoes (except if they were deep fried) or fish. My second oldest daughter didn't like soups or stews. My middle son would eat just about anything and was especially fond of cheese. My youngest son . . . if you looked up fussy in the dictionary you would see his photograph I am sure.
.jpg "Air Fryer Frozen Pizza")
HOW TO COOK FROZEN MINI PIZZA IN THE AIR FRYER
It's such a simple thing. I wish I had thought of this before. It would have saved me from eating a lot of burnt and over cooked frozen pizzas!
Preheat your air fryer to 360*F/185*C with the basket(s) in the air fryer for 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove the basket(s) and place the pizzas, frozen, in the basket(s). In my air fryer you can cook more than one at a time. Just make sure that you do not allow the pizzas to touch and that you don't overcrowd the air fryer.
Air fry for 4 to 7 minutes (rotating them from top to bottom and bottom to top halfway through the cook time if you have an air fryer like mine.) The edges should be crisp and the cheese melted and any toppings should be bubbling. If not return to the air fryer for another minute or so.
Remove from the air fryer using a spatula or tongs and allow to cool for a few minutes before cutting and serving.
Air Fryer Frozen Pizza
Mini pizzas cooked in the air fryer are quick and easy to make and they always come out perfect! It's all in the timing! You may need to work in batches depending on how many you are doing.
Ingredients
- frozen mini pizzas (mine were 4 inches across)
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 360*F/185*C with the basket(s) in the air fryer for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Remove the basket(s) and place the pizzas, frozen, in the basket(s). In my air fryer you can cook more than one at a time. Just make sure that you do not allow the pizzas to touch and that you don't overcrowd the air fryer.
- Air fry for 4 to 7 minutes (rotating them from top to bottom and bottom to top halfway through the cook time if you have an air fryer like mine.) The edges should be crisp and the cheese melted and any toppings should be bubbling. If not return to the air fryer for another minute or so.
- Remove from the air fryer using a spatula or tongs and allow to cool for a few minutes before cutting and serving.
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
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