Showing posts with label Fabulous Sides. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fabulous Sides. Show all posts
Brussels Sprouts. You are either from the love them or loathe them camp. I suspect that since you are here right now, looking at this, you might could be from the love them camp!
They are a vegetable that seems to spark strong feelings one way or the other in most people. I don't think I have ever met a person who was smack dab in the middle and could take them or leave them.
I am from the love them camp. I have never met a Brussels Sprout that I didn't enjoy. Well, I just lied. I once spied some canned Brussels Sprouts on a shelf in the grocery store on offer at a very good price. I, in a desire to save us some money, snapped up several cans. Woo hoo! I thought all my Christmas's had come at once.
That is until I opened a can and heated them up for our supper and took a taste. They were the most befouled loathsome tasting things I have ever encountered. If that had been my first ever experience with the Brussels Sprout, I could easily see why a person would never be tempted to try one again!!!
Thankfully it was not my first experience with a sprout. Properly cooked, they have a beautiful bite and a sweet almost nutty, buttery flavor. I find them to be quite delightful.
Crispy tender to the bite.
Another way we love them however, is roasted in the oven. You will not get a crispy tender sprout if you roast them in the oven, but you will get a delicious sprout with caramelized edges that melts in the mouth. My sister always roasts them and they are fabulously tasty!
I got to thinking one day what if you smashed a Brussels sprout and roasted it, kind of like crispy smashed potatoes. The more I thought about it, the more appealing it sounded.
Crispy tender Brussels sprouts, smashed flat with the bottom of a glass and then roasted in the oven until they got all crispy edged and caramelized. It sounded so delicious to me.
I did a search online to see if anyone had ever done it. I thought for sure I had come up with a great new idea. Alas I did not. I found several recipes online for them, which just goes to prove there is nothing new under the sun.
This Smashed Brussels Sprouts recipe I am sharing with you today was adapted from what I thought was the best of them. I found it on a site called Kitchn. Oh boy but they looked some good!!
My mouth was watering just looking at their photograph. I cut the recipe in half to make only 2 to 3 servings, depending on how much you love Brussels Sprouts. I can tell you that I could not resist eating one almost as soon as they came out of the oven.
Yes, they are THAT tasty! Especially to a sprout lover like me!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SMASHED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
Very few ingredients, but very specific ingredients, aside from the sprouts that is.
- 1 pound of medium Brussels sprouts, cleaned and trimmed but left whole
- 1 TBS Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/2 TBS olive oil, plus more for the baking sheet
- 1/2 TBS liquid honey
- fine sea salt
- pinch red pepper Flakes
- 1 1/2 TBS finely grated Parmesan cheese
I confess my sprouts were a bit on the larger side. I am not sure why, but most of the time my local shops only have these gargantuan sized sprouts. I did need to cook them a tiny bit longer and they did not flatten quite as much as I wanted them to, but that didn't affect their taste. At least as far as I was concerned.
Use a good Balsamic Vinegar. It need not be the most expensive, but don't pop for the cheap stuff either. That stuff, dare I say it, is not a patch on the real thing. I usually use a medium quality one. Mine today was Barilla Balsamic Vinegar from Modena.
HOW TO MAKE SMASHED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
It only seems fiddly. Trust me when I say these are really very easy to make. I don't think, however, that it is a vegetable you can make very far ahead of time, at least the roasting bit anyways. Also you need to smash them while the vegetable is still warm.
Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C. Line a baking tray with some aluminum foil. Grease it well with a bit of oil. Have ready another tray lined with paper towels.
Bring a pot of salted water large enough to hold the sprouts to the boil. Add the sprouts and cook until fork tender. This will take 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and then spread out onto the paper towel lined baking sheet to cool for about 5 minutes.
Place the sprouts evenly spaced on the oiled baking tray. Butter the bottom of a small glass or measuring cup and press down on each sprout firmly until it splits open.
Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over top, dividing it between each sprout. Drizzle with the olive oil and the honey, again dividing it equally amongst them Sprinkle to taste with some salt and a few red pepper flakes. Turn them around to coat them well in the seasonings.
Roast in the hot oven until the edges are beginning to brown and crisp, 12 to 15 minutes. Flip the sprouts and sprinkle the cheese on top. For for 10 minutes longer, until the cheese has melted and the sprouts are nice and crispy on the outside. Serve hot.
I thought these were exceptionally good. But then, I really love Brussels Sprouts. They were well cooked, but those crispy edges and caramelized bits more than made up for that.
There was a rich tang from the balsamic vinegar and at the same time a sticky sweetness from the honey. I did use the pepper flakes and they added just a touch of heat. I am not sure that the cheese really added all that much to the mix. It kind of got lost in the other flavors.
All in all, however, I would say that this was a very tasty combination.
Here are some other Brussels Sprouts Recipes in The English Kitchen that you might enjoy!
CREAMY PARMESAN BRUSSELS SPROUTS & BACON - Cooked only until crispy tender, they retain some of that sweet nuttiness that we so enjoy in sprouts. They are finished off with a rich cream sauce, and gratineed with some bacon on top. Delicious!
RAVIOLI WITH SAUSAGE AND BRUSSELS SPROUTS - A delicious all-in-one supper sized generously for one person. Tender pasta with meaty sausage and lightly fried shredded sprouts. This is quick and easy and oh so tasty!
Yield: 2-3
Smashed Brussels Sprouts
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 35 MinTotal time: 50 Min
Crispy edges, caramelized and delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 pound of medium Brussels sprouts, cleaned and trimmed but left whole
- 1 TBS Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/2 TBS olive oil, plus more for the baking sheet
- 1/2 TBS liquid honey
- fine sea salt
- pinch red pepper Flakes
- 1 1/2 TBS finely grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C. Line a baking tray with some aluminum foil. Grease it well with a bit of oil. Have ready another tray lined with paper towels.
- Bring a pot of salted water large enough to hold the sprouts to the boil. Add the sprouts and cook until fork tender. This will take 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and then spread out onto the paper towel lined baking sheet to cool for about 5 minutes.
- Place the sprouts evenly spaced on the oiled baking tray. Butter the bottom of a small glass or measuring cup and press down on each sprout firmly until it splits open.
- Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over top, dividing it between each sprout. Drizzle with the olive oil and the honey, again dividing it equally amongst them Sprinkle to taste with some salt and a few red pepper flakes. Turn them around to coat them well in the seasonings.
- Roast in the hot oven until the edges are beginning to brown and crisp, 12 to 15 minutes. Flip the sprouts and sprinkle the cheese on top. For for 10 minutes longer, until the cheese has melted and the sprouts are nice and crispy on the outside.
- Serve hot.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
Prepare yourself to fall in love with this beautiful Traditional Irish Barmbrack recipe I am sharing with you today. It is a bread which is normally baked in Ireland for Halloween, but I thought there was no better time to bake it in North American than for Saint Patrick's Day, so here it is!
I adapted this recipe from one I found in Coleman Andrew's Book, The Country Cooking of Ireland. I bought my copy used a year or so ago. If you are looking for a good book referencing the cooking of Ireland, you can't get much better than this book.
It can be rather pricey depending on where you get it from and what condition. You need to shop around for it. I paid nowhere near the price that they are asking for it now. Having said that however, it is a really hefty tome to Irish cookery.
I have another recipe for an Irish bread on here, called Irish Tea Brack. The two are similar only in that they both contain copious amounts of dried fruit. One is a yeast bread and one would fall under the auspices of what we consider to be a tea bread.
This is the yeasted version. The other is the tea version and in fact you need to soak the dried fruit used in it overnight in strong tea. Its also very delicious.
Whichever one you choose to make depends on the result you want and what kind of mood you are in. Both are fabulous breads.
The word "brack" comes from the Irish word "breac," meaning speckled. And this bread is liberally speckled with dried sultanas and currants. I do so love a fruity bread and this is one of the best.
As I said, in Ireland, it is normally baked around Halloween and trinkets/tokens are inserted and baked into the bread for some lucky person to find. These trinkets could be things such as rings (predicting an impending marriage), a button or thimble (bachelor or spinsterhood), or a coin (impending wealth.)
A holy medal or a cross could suggest that you might become a priest or a nun. A small stick portended an argument of some sort. A piece of cloth foretold want in the year to come.
These would normally be wrapped in wax paper to help protect the tokens from being accidentally ingested. I did not include any tokens in my bread, but I can see where it would really add a lot of fun to the eating of it if you were in a crowd and be quite a conversation starter!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE A TRADITIONAL IRISH BARMBRACK
Simple everyday baking ingredients. All of which are pretty much self-explanatory. The cherries are optional.
- two (1/4 oz/7g) packets of active dry yeast
- 6 TBS sugar
- 2 cups (480ml) warm water
- 2 TBS cold butter, cut into bits
- 4 1/2 cups (450g) plain flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (150g) sultana raisins
- 1 cup (150g) dried currants
- 1/2 cup (40g) mixed candied peel, finely chopped (lemon and orange)
- about 4 glace cherries, finely chopped (optional)
HOW TO MAKE TRADITIONAL IRISH BARMBRACK
This is a bit labor intensive with the kneading, etc. but I promise you it is more than worth any effort taken! Do make sure to read through the instructions several times before beginning.
Put the yeast and 1 TBS of the sugar into a medium sized bowl. Add the two cups of warm water gradually. Set aside for about 10 minutes until the mixture becomes quite frothy.
While you are waiting, measure the flour into a large bowl. Drop in the butter and rub it into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs.
Stir in 4 TBS sugar, the ginger, nutmeg, salt, sultanas, currants, candied peel and chopped cherries (if using.) Make a well in the center of the mixture.
Pour the yeast mixture into the well and stir it into the flour mixture, using a spiral motion from the middle out towards the sides, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead, dusting with more flour as need be, for about 5 minutes. You should have a dough that is elastic and slightly sticky.
Pop the dough into a large greased bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place to rise for about an hour until the dough has doubled in size.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface again and knead gently for a minute or two. Shape into a round and drop into a deep cake tin that you have buttered and lined with greaseproof paper. (Mine was a 7-inch deep round tin.)
Cover with a clean towel and set aside in a warm place for about half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C/gas mark 7.
Pop the bread into the oven and bake for 14 minutes. Tent with foil and then reduce the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Bake for 40 minutes longer, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Dissolve the remaining 1 TBS of sugar in 1 TBS hot water and brush this mixture over top of the loaf. Return to the oven for 5 to 7 minutes.
Lift out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
This bread is really lovely sliced thinly, spread with soft butter and served with a hot cuppa. It would expecially be nice served with afternoon tea.
Oh heck, it is nice served anytime! A truly humble bread with an anything but humble taste!
BOXTY (IRISH POTATO CAKES) -Boxty, or Irish Potato Cakes are a very traditional Irish type of bread. Also known as farls, this is a very traditional recipe for potato cakes which uses only a few ingredients. Potatoes, salt, butter and flour.
TRADITIONAL IRISH SODA BREAD -This is a simple classic bread in many Irish households. Perfect for mopping up gravies and stews and for serving alongside of hearty broths and soups!
It is also pretty wonderful served warm, buttered, and spread with jam or honey, meant to be washed down with copious cups of hot tea!
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
Yield: 1 loaf
Traditional Irish Barmbrack
Prep time: 1 H & 40 MCook time: 1 H & 5 MTotal time: 2 H & 45 M
Speckled Bread, this yeast bread is speckled with plenty of raisins and currants. Traditionally it would be baked for Halloween with tokens baked into it. I am posting this for Saint Patrick's Day. Its delicious served sliced, buttered and served with a hot drink.
Ingredients
- two (1/4 oz/7g) packets of active dry yeast
- 6 TBS sugar
- 2 cups (480ml) warm water
- 2 TBS cold butter, cut into bits
- 4 1/2 cups (450g) plain flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (150g) sultana raisins
- 1 cup (150g) dried currants
- 1/2 cup (40g) mixed candied peel, finely chopped
- about 4 glace cherries, finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Put the yeast and 1 TBS of the sugar into a medium sized bowl. Add the two cups of warm water gradually. Set aside for about 10 minutes until the mixture becomes quite frothy.
- While you are waiting, measure the flour into a large bowl. Drop in the butter and rub it into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs.
- Stir in 4 TBS sugar, the ginger, nutmeg, salt, sultanas, currants, candied peel and chopped cherries (if using.) Make a well in the center of the mixture.
- Pour the yeast mixture into the well and stir it into the flour mixture, using a spiral motion from the middle out towards the sides, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead, dusting with more flour as need be, for about 5 minutes. You should have a dough that is elastic and slightly sticky.
- Pop the dough into a large greased bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place to rise for about an hour until the dough has doubled in size.
- Turn out onto a lightly floured surface again and knead gently for a minute or two. Shape into a round and drop into a deep cake tin that you have buttered and lined with greaseproof paper. (Mine was a 7-inch deep round tin.)
- Cover with a clean towel and set aside in a warm place for about half an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C/gas mark 7.
- Pop the bread into the oven and bake for 14 minutes. Tent with foil and then reduce the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Bake for 40 minutes longer, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Dissolve the remaining 1 TBS of sugar in 1 TBS hot water and brush this mixture over top of the loaf. Return to the oven for 5 to 7 minutes.
- Lift out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
Oh, that Nutmeg sure makes me smile. He is always trying to get in on the act. While I was taking photos of this bread I had a curtain pulled around the chair next to my stand where I had the bread set up. This was him, pulling the curtain aside so he could have a peek at what was going on. He's so funny!
In the meantime Cinnamon was perched on the other side of me watching him make a fool of himself. Oh what would I do without these two lovely companions of mine. Brother and sister, I have had them since they were 8 weeks old. They are now 20 months old.
I always go to church on Sunday mornings. I am a Latter Day Saint and belong to the Church of Jesus Christ. Going to church on Sunday's is really important to me. Its how I recharge my battery for the rest of the week. I do not know where I would be now were it not for my faith. It has carried me through these difficult past couple of years.
My faith, and being able to come on here and share my recipes with you each day. These two things have kept me going. The church gives me a purpose for living, and this blog and all that I get to share with you gives life to my purpose, if that makes sense.
I wanted to say thank you all so much for your wonderful feedback yesterday. It really means the world to me to know that I am doing something good here and that I am appreciated. I plan on responding to each of your comments in turn, but it may take me a few days. I just want you to know that I have read and appreciate each and every one of them. You made me cry gentle tears of joy.
Don't worry, it was a very good thing as Martha would say.
I don't always have a chance to cook something new on Sundays to share on Monday morning. Between going to church and then to my sister's for Sunday supper, my day usually pretty much gets away from me.
If I have really been on the ball I will cook two things on Saturday and then write everything up that day ready to go live on Sunday and Monday mornings.
This weekend I didn't do that, but I did have a few minutes this afternoon (Sunday) to bake a few muffins to share with you because after all the loving you shared with me, I really wanted to share a bit of loving back!
The photographs are not that great because it was a bit later in the day when I took them, but I just know you are going to love these Lemon & Poppyseed Sour Cream Muffins that I baked. At least I hope that you will.
It is a small batch so makes only six muffins.
They are not really anything special to look at actually. When I took them out of the oven I thought they were rather plain, but I did crack one open and eat it shortly after and I have to say they are incredibly delicious with a beautiful tender crumb, loads of lemon flavor and a lovely bit of poppyseed crunch!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE LEMON & POPPYSEED SOUR CREAM MUFFINS
Other than the lemon, there is nothing out of the ordinary here, and if you are like me, you always have lemons in your kitchen!
- 3 TBS (43g) butter melted, or light olive oil
- 1/3 cup (63g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg white
- 1/2 cup (60g) dairy sour cream
- the juice of one lemon (2 TBS)
- the freshly grated zest of one lemon
- 1 TBS (10g)poppy seeds
- 3/4 cup +2 TBS (124g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
I used light olive oil in my muffins today. Butter is really good, but I was in a bit of a hurry and so oil was a lot quicker to use.
I used full fat sour cream. I am sure yogurt would work as well. You just need something really acidic to work with the baking soda, and to be honest sour cream or yogurt always make for a really tender muffin.
You really only need one medium lemon for this. It will yield enough fresh zest and juice for this recipe. You can save the yolk from the egg in the refrigerator and use it when you are making your breakfast eggs. I have heard that you can freeze them, but I have never done so.
HOW TO MAKE LEMON & POPPYSEED SOUR CREAM MUFFINS
These are really quick and easy to make. You can even put them together the night before, popping them into the pan and into the refrigerator, ready to pop into the oven the next morning. Just cover them lightly with a sheet of plastic cling film.
Preheat the oven to 375*F/ 190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a six cup muffin tin really well or line with papers.
Whisk the flour, soda, salt and baking powder together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Rub the lemon zest into the sugar until quite fragrant. Stir in the butter, poppy seeds, and the lemon juice. Fold in the sour cream. Add the dry ingredients and mix in just until evenly damped. Do not overmix.
Divide the mixture evenly between the muffin cups. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. A toothpick in the center should come out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, tip out and serve warm if desired.
That rubbing the lemon zest into the sugar is a trick I learned from Dorie Greenspan. Its a simple thing but it really helps to enhance the flavor of lemon into your baked goods. The coarseness of the sugar helps to release the natural lemon oils making your bake even more lemony!
These muffins might look pretty plain, but I can tell you, they are fabulously delicious. Proof positive that it is the simple things in life that really do bring us the most pleasure!
If you have any leftovers you can freeze them tightly wrapped for up to three months. Simply reheat in the microwave for about 20 seconds (frozen). They will be perfect!
Some other muffin recipes you might really enjoy are:
SPECIAL K BREAKFAST MUFFINS - These are a real favorite of mine. I love Special K cereal, but I don't always get it all eaten as quickly as I should. These muffins are a great way of using cereal that is not quite at its optimum. The recipe makes six delicious medium sized muffins.
FOUR PERFECT BLUEBERRY MUFFINS - When I say perfect, I mean truly perfect. With a lovely tender crumb . . . delicately flavored with fragrant lemon zest . . . and studded with plenty of fat blueberries. There is a bit of a demerara sugar crunch on top to add even further delight.
ULTIMATE BUTTERMILK BRAN MUFFINS - When I go so far as to call something the ultimate you better believe that these are really something special! Super moist and delicious with a beautiful well-rounded bakery style muffin top!
Yield: 6
Lemon & Poppyseed Sour Cream Muffins (small batch)
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min
Delicate, light and tender. Everyone's favorite. Enjoy with a hot cuppa!
Ingredients
- 3 TBS (43g) butter melted, or light olive oil
- 1/3 cup (63g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg white
- 1/2 cup (60g) dairy sour cream
- the juice of one lemon (2 TBS)
- the freshly grated zest of one lemon
- 1 TBS (10g)poppy seeds
- 3/4 cup +2 TBS (124g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375*F/ 190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a six cup muffin tin really well or line with papers.
- Whisk the flour, soda, salt and baking powder together in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Rub the lemon zest into the sugar until quite fragrant. Stir in the butter, poppy seeds, and the lemon juice. Fold in the sour cream. Add the dry ingredients and mix in just until evenly damped. Do not overmix.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the muffin cups.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. A toothpick in the center should come out clean.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, tip out and serve warm if desired.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
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