Bread Machine Parker House Rolls. I have never made any secret of the fact that I am yeast bread challenged. For some reason when I make yeast breads the end result has always been hit and miss for me. Sometimes it works, more often than not it doesn't.
I have a confession to make. I adore Reuben Sandwiches. There is not a much tastier sandwich than the classic Reuban, rye bread piled high with plenty of shaved salty corned beef or pastrami, tangy sauerkraut and rich melted cheese. Lets not forget the Thousand Island Dressing.
This delicious soup recipe takes all of those flavors and combines them in one tasty creamy bowl, perfect to enjoy on these first chilly, often rainy, days of spring.
These days can be a bit damp and chilly, the perfect kind of soup weather. And this is one very delicious bowl of soup! I have veer a bit of course from the traditional Rueben soup however, but hear me out.
I did not have any sauerkraut to use today. Instead I used cabbage. I thought it would work well in it's place, with the exception of it not being sour.
I cooked the cabbage until it was meltingly tender, almost buttery, along with some onions and a tiny bit of garlic. It smelled gorgeous. I do so love the smell of cabbage. I know not everyone does, but I do.
I got meltingly tender cabbage, no tang, but the addition of a bit of caraway seed more than made up for that.
I used Pastrami. Corned beef and pastrami are quite different actually even though they may seem quite similar and are often used interchangeably.
Corned beef is usually made using beef brisket. Brisket comes from the lower chest of the animal, whereas pastrami comes from the deckle, which is a lean wider shoulder cut, or the navel, a smaller juicier section below the ribs.
Both are brined before they are cooked. Both are rubbed with and submerged in a solution of salt and spiced, and left to cure for a period of time. This helps to infuse the meat with more moisture and flavor.
Commonly a mixture of salt, sugar, black pepper, cloves, coriander, bay leaves, juniper berries, and dill, as well as the preservatives sodium nitrate or sodium nitrite will be used.
The real difference comes in the coating which is used to cover the surface of pastrami after brining. Corned beef is generally left naked, although it is often simmered with a variety of spices when cooking it.
Pastrami has a spice coating of black pepper, coriander and mustard seeds, fennel seeds and often garlic. This gives it that darker outside color.
They also differ in the manner of cooking.
Corned beef is boiled, whilst Pastrami is smoked, over hardwood. A pan of water is often kept nearby to create steam and keep the meat tender and moist.
So you can see, whilst being very similar in flavor and often used interchangeably, they are also very different.
As I said, today I used Pastrami because that is what I had and I have to say it turned out delicious.
Everything was simmered for a time in chicken broth. The pastrami, the cabbage, garlic, caraway . . .
The creaminess comes not from adding any milk or cream, but by the clever use of a bit of flour for thickening.
I added some gruyere cheese at the end (swiss) and of course a touch of Thousand Island Dressing. What would a Reuben be without Thousand Island Dressing?
I also sprinkled some of the cheese on top of the soup to serve.
I didn't have any rye bread or I would have added some rye bread croutons, which would have added even more to the authenticity of it. Buttery rye bread crunch, just like the sandwich.
If you have some rye bread, do make yourself some crunchy rye croutons. Just butter the bread lightly, cut into shapes and then toast them in a hot oven until golden and crisp. It won't take long, maybe about 10 minutes at about 200*C/400*F will do the trick.
Instead we enjoyed it with some crusty bread on the side, torn into pieces and lightly buttered. Oh my, but I do so adore a crusty loaf when served with soup. Truth be told I adore a crusty loaf any time!
I really hope you will give this rather unconventional version of reuben soup and that you will enjoy it as much as we did. Rich, creamy, delicious and wonderfully hearty! Perfect for a cooler spring day!
Reuben Soup
Yield: 4
prep time: 10 Mincook time: 25 Mintotal time: 35 Min
Hearty and comforting. We loved this.
Ingredients
- 1 TBS unsalted butter (Only because the pastrami is salty)
- 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 small head of cabbage, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
- 1/2 tsp caraway seed (or less if you are not fond of it)
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 1/2 TBS plain flour
- 1/2 pound sliced pastrami, rolled up and cut into slivers
- 1 1/4 litre of chicken stock (5 cups)
- 30g thousand island salad dressing (1/4 cup)
- 130g of grated gruyere cheese (1 cup Swiss) divided
- minced chives or parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion and cabbage.
- Cook, stirring frequently, over medium heat until beginning to soften without browning.
- Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add the caraway and the flour and cook for a minute.
- Stir in the chicken stock and corned beef and bring to the boil.
- Reduce to a slow simmer, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes to meld all the flavours and make sure the cabbage is nice and soft.
- Stir in half the cheese along with the salad dressing. Stir to melt the cheese.
- Ladle into hot bowls and garnish with the remaining cheese and minced chives or parsley.
- Serve immediately. Crusty bread or rye bread goes very well with this.
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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A lot of us will be baking a ham in the coming weeks for our Easter celebrations. This means many of us will have leftover ham languishing in our refrigerators in the days afterwards. It can be a bit of a challenge at times to present leftovers in a way that our family will enjoy.
That's when I like to use recipes such as this easy ham and pasta casserole. It really doesn't get much easier or tastier than this one.
This ham casserole recipe is one I found in one of my recent cookbook purchases. Better Homes & Gardens 365 Comfort Foods, inspiring meals for every day of the year.
I love books like this. They are filled to overflowing with delicious, family-friendly meals that are usually quite easy to make. Most of the recipes are not complicated and use simple ingredients.
I have ended up in the land of simple eats here at my Sister's house. Both my father and her partner are very simplistic in what they like to eat and so most days it is very simple fare. Meat and potatoes, and veg or a salad.
Not very adventurous to say the least. My father has always been that way. My mother was never allowed to use much more than salt and pepper in her cooking. Nothing has changed. He still balks at anything at all out of the ordinary.
If he gets even a whiff of Parmesan that is it, he becomes very suspicious of what is on his plate. We do sneak some in here and there, but we need to be very judicious to say the least!
He does take a lady friend out for fish and chips every Wednesday night and so we have declared that on Wednesdays we will get a bit more adventurous because he won't be here. This week we are having tacos, and I hope (fingers crossed) next week we can do a curry!
Sometimes you can feel a bit uninspired when it comes to leftovers. My father absolutely does not like leftovers if he knows he is eating leftovers. Funny that. I, myself, love leftovers. And I love being inventive with them.
I thought we might be fairly safe with this casserole because leftover ham is not like other leftover meats. We all enjoy a ham sandwich now and then and what is a ham sandwich, or sliced ham but already cooked ham! A leftover to be honest, no matter how it is packaged up!
One thing I really liked about this easy casserole was that it involved not much more than simply stirring some things together in a casserole dish. You don't even need to cook the macaroni first. It cooks right in the casserole!
You make a loose sauce using some milk and condensed cream of celery soup. If you cannot get condensed soups, then you may make a cream sauce based on 1 1/2 cups of liquid, 1 1/2 TBS of butter and 1 1/2 TBS of flour.
Because it uses cream of celery soup, I would use half milk and half vegetable broth to make the cream sauce, and perhaps add a pinch of celery salt. Once you have made the sauce, then simply whisk in the remaining milk as per the recipe.
I am fairly confident it will work perfectly and you will still end up with a delicious casserole.
Myself, I have a thing about using canned mushrooms. I cannot stand then. When I think about how we used to add to them to a lot of things in years gone by, I can't believe it. They are so rubbery and bland!
Plus I really wonder about the source of them. I am not that happy about eating food-stuffs that come from China. I cannot help it. I just think to myself, no . . . not going there.
This recipe does call for one can of sliced mushrooms, drained. I used a package of sliced cremini mushrooms in the place of the tinned mushrooms.
I just cooked them in a skillet with a tiny bit of butter first. I also added the onions, ham and peppers to the skillet. We had a ham steak and it seemed a bit watery, so I wanted to cook out some of that and I thought if I was going to be browning the mushrooms then why not add all of it.
I was a bit concerned that the ham would release too much water when it was cooking so there was a method to my madness. It worked out perfectly!
Have you ever noticed how watery ham gets when you freeze it??? Where does it all come from! I never freeze ham for that reason. I prefer to use it up in whatever way I can. This was perfect.
The original recipe called for only half the cheese that I used. I felt it could use more, so I doubled it. (I know, I'm shameless!) I stirred half of it into the casserole and sprinkled the remaining half on top for the last 10 minutes of baking.
You could pop it under a grill for a few minutes if you wanted a golden brown topping, but I didn't bother. We had it with salad and boiled carrots. I think some crusty bread would have gone perfectly.
Dad enjoyed it. Job done.
One Step Ham Casserole
Yield: 4
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 50 Mininactive time: 10 MinTotal time: 1 H & 15 M
This delicious casserole is as simple as stirring together a few ingredients, and then baking. You can use tinned ingredients or you can use my suggestions in the notes for using fresh ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (360ml) milk
- 1 (10.75oz/300g) tin of condensed cream of celery soup
- 2 cups diced cooked ham
- 1 cup (150g) dried elbow macaroni
- 1( 4-oz /115g) tin of sliced mushrooms, drained
- 2 TBS diced red pepper
- 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 cup (235g) grated cheddar cheese, divided (I use strong)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/gas mark 5.
- You will need a 2 liter/2 QT casserole dish. Add the soup to the dish (ungreased) and slowly whisk in the milk. Stir in the ham, macaroni, peppers, mushrooms, and onion, combining well together.
- Cover tightly with a lid or aluminum foil.
- Bake, undisturbed for about 40 minutes, or until the macaroni is tender. Remove from the oven.
- Stir half of the cheese into the macaroni mixture and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
- Return to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes, uncovered. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes before serving. Delicious!
Notes:
I really don't like tinned mushrooms and so I choose to use fresh mushrooms which I sauté in a skillet until browned. I then add the to the casserole as above. I use about 2 cups sliced. If you like you can also brown the ham a little bit along with the peppers and onion at the same time.
I am a huge fan of cabbage. Along with potatoes it is one of my favorite vegetables. I especially love fried cabbage. This recipe for Indian Spiced Cabbage is especially tasty and a recipe I posted several years back.
Good things bear repeating however, and I felt this was worthy of another look.
The original recipe comes from my Big Blue Binder. I believe I copied it from an old community cookbook from Nova Scotia that I took out of the library many years ago. It might have been called Nova Scotia Pot Luck, but I can't be really certain of it.
I don't know who it is accredited to originally, but I can assure you that it is a really delicious way to prepare cabbage.
It uses fairly simple ingredients that most people have in their homes, with the exception of the Garam Masala. I am fairly certain, however, that if you don't have the Garam Masala in your home, you would have at least the ingredients to make your own.
Garam Masala is deliciously aromatic mix of spices used to bring flavor and warmth to many Indian dishes. If you are a person who loves curries, you will be sure to use it up. I have included below the recipe and instructions to make your own. The spices themselves smell heavenly when they are toasting, and it is very simple make.
One thing that I learned living in the UK was that it was not worth buying a ready made Garam Masala. It is much, much better to make your own, and if you have a spice/coffee grinder, it really makes short work of the whole process.
Garam Masala
prep time: 3 minscook time: 3 minstotal time: 6 mins
An Indian Spice mix for use in East Indian cookery.
ingredients:
2 TBS coriander seed
1 TBS cumin seed
2 tsp black peppercorn
1/2 cinnamon stick (or 2 tsp ground cinnamon)
1/2 tsp cardamon seeds (from about 20 cardamom pods)
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp whole cloves
2 dried bay leaves
instructions:
Toasting the seeds is the secret to a well flavoured Garam Masala. Don't
be tempted to skip this step. Toast the whole spices in a dry frying
pan until they are very fragrant and a shade or two darker. Tip into a
spice grinder and grind to a powder. Alternately you can use a pestle
and mortar. (Labour intensive but it works) Store in an airtight
container in a dark place for up to six months.
be tempted to skip this step. Toast the whole spices in a dry frying
pan until they are very fragrant and a shade or two darker. Tip into a
spice grinder and grind to a powder. Alternately you can use a pestle
and mortar. (Labour intensive but it works) Store in an airtight
container in a dark place for up to six months.
Created using The Recipes Generator
This dish is also very easy to make. It is easy, spicy and chock full of delicious flavors. The hardest and most labor intensive part is the shredding of the cabbage. I always like to do this by hand. If you have a good sharp knife it won't take very long.
I like to use white cabbage for this recipe rather than any other kind. It lends itself beautifully to the long cook time and I really love the melting, almost buttery texture of it when it has finished cooking.
You can use whatever cabbage you prefer, however I cannot speak for the end result. I have only ever used the bullet hard white cabbage for this.
White cabbage is one of the most common ones in the shops and readily available everywhere. Its just ordinary every day cabbage.
It makes a great Indian side dish when you are cooking an Indian meal. You can make it ahead of time and just heat it up at the last minute.
Leftovers are lovely stirred through cooked rice and reheated. (Just saying.) And I am not going to tell you how I know this, but . . . it makes a darned delicious egg roll filler. Indian egg rolls. Very delicious!
You can also turn this into a heartier dish by adding cubed potato and peas to it.
It also goes very well with soft fluffy Naan breads or Chapati.
Interestingly enough, I have found it to also be a very popular dish at a covered dish or pot luck supper. Everyone seems to love it, and I always come home with an empty dish.
I am not sure how authentically Indian it is. I am no expert at that. It is probably not very, but that doesn't really matter as it is fabulously tasty!
One thing I will miss about the UK are the fabulous curries that were available. I guess I will just have to get better at making my own at home. Of course I will have to wait until I am in my own place because I don't think my father will be touching curry with a ten foot pole!
Its a shame really because he doesn't know what he is missing. I adore curries of any kind, so long as they are not overly hot and spicy. I was never quite able to get into a Masala or a Vindaloo! I don't like food that bites back really.
Anyways, this is nicely spiced, not too hot and incredibly delicious. If you are used to eating Southern style fried cabbage with bacon, maybe its time you stretched things a bit and tried something new! I think you may come to love this just as much!
Yield: 4 - 6
Indian Spiced Cabbage
prep time: 10 minscook time: 2 hourtotal time: 2 hours and 10 mins
A deliciously spiced side dish with East Indian flavours. I could eat a whole bowlful of this and nothing else.
ingredients:
1 medium head green cabbage, shredded finely
1/3 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp mild chili powder
2 tsp garam masala (store bought or make your own, preferable)
2 tsp black pepper
sunflower oil
instructions:
In a large pot,heat oil to cover the bottom (1/4
inch deep) until it begins to shimmer. Add the cumin seeds and cook for
about 30 seconds until it begins to pop and smell fragrant. Add the
remaining spices, seasonings and the cabbage, tossing to coat the
cabbage in the spice/oil mixture. Cover and cook gently, over very low
heat, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the cabbage is meltingly tender. Serve
hot.
inch deep) until it begins to shimmer. Add the cumin seeds and cook for
about 30 seconds until it begins to pop and smell fragrant. Add the
remaining spices, seasonings and the cabbage, tossing to coat the
cabbage in the spice/oil mixture. Cover and cook gently, over very low
heat, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the cabbage is meltingly tender. Serve
hot.
Created using The Recipes Generator
This is so very good you just may want to double the recipe. I often do and I can tell you its always always been gobbled up. No leftovers per se.
I hope you will try it and enjoy it as much as we do! Bon Appetit!
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.
Its been many years since I have had to stock a kitchen again from scratch, and I have never had to do it with just one person in mind, so I thought it would be fun to share my ideas for a well stocked kitchen with you this morning.
If you have a well stocked kitchen and pantry, it is much easier to create meals at the last minute or at least with a minimum of planning involved. Once stocked, your weekly grocery shop will be more about replenishing what you have used, as well as adding special ingredients you might need for the meals you have planned for the coming days.
Every item in your kitchen/pantry should have:
1. A long shelf life.
2. Great versatility. You should be able to turn to them for a wide variety of recipes.
3. Be "season"-less. You should be able to use these items, regardless of what time of year it is.
This is my plan for having a well stocked kitchen with all the tools and ingredients needed to help make cooking and preparing food for yourself or a family easy and enjoyable.
*Handy Tip - If you keep a pad and pencil in your kitchen, you can jot down a pantry item each time you run out of it. This will make your trips to the grocery store much better planned!
Essential Tools and Equipment
Buy the best that you can afford of these things and they will more than pay for themselves in their longevity.
A good set of pots and pans containing at the very least a good sized skillet, several saucepans and a Dutch oven sized pan. You may not always be cooking for just yourself and it only makes sense to have normal sized pots and pans. In addition you may want to stock a few extra smaller ones for when you are all on your own. An 8-inch skillet is the ideal size for just one person.
Roasting tins (One medium and one large)
Casserole dishes (small, medium and large)
Cutting Boards. I like to have several good plastic cutting boards and one good wooden cutting board. I don't like to mix boards, preferring instead to use separate boards for fruits and vegetables and for raw meats and poultry. The wooden board is good to have for cutting loaves and breads. You may also want to have a cutting board that is dedicated to carving cooked meats and poultry. This one should have a narrow recessed area all around the perimeter to catch any juices. All of your boards, with the exception of the bread board, should have rubber edges or feet to help to keep the boards in place when using.
A good set of knives. You will need a good set of knives to help with the preparation of your food. I recommend a good chef's knife, a paring knife, a boning knife, a serrated knife and a good pair of kitchen scissors are musts. You don't need to buy the most expensive knives, but do buy the best that you can afford to buy. A good knife sharpener is also a must.
A good can opener.
A good vegetable peeler.
A good box grater with a variety of hole sizes. I also like to have a small holed micro plane grater which is great for grating small amounts of citrus zests and fresh nutmeg, as well as Parmesan cheese.
An assortment of good cooking utensils such as tongs, a slotted spoon, a large spoon, several egg/pancake turners (wide and narrow), a ladle, etc. I like to get silicone coated ones which can help add to the longevity of your pans by preventing unnecessary scratches, etc.
An assortment of measuring cups and spoons. (Both glass and metal)
Several wooden spoons.
A good rolling pin. I have a beechwood pin which I was able to bring over from the UK. A good rolling pill will last many life times.
Several small whisks are very helpful when making single serving salad dressings or just for whisking together a few eggs.
Fine meshed sieves in a few sizes
A medium to large sized colander
A blender (either a stick or a full sized)
Mixing bowls. I like to have these in a variety of sizes, usually three. Small, medium and large. I prefer glass as they are easier to get squeaky clean, which is especially important when you are talking about whisking egg whites, etc.
Baking tins. You will want a variety of good quality baking tins. I have chosen to purchase two round 8-inch baking tins, one round 9-inch tin, one each square 8 and 9-inch tins, one 9 by 13 inch baking tin. A Jelly roll tin (half sheet pan, rimmed), one full sheet pan, rimmed and one quarter sheer pan. Two six cup muffin tins. (That way you are equipped to bake six or 12 muffins depending on your need.) Eventually I will purchase myself a mini muffin tin. Perfect for making small tarts and cakes. Also nice to have is a medium sized non-stick Bundt tin. Also two pie plates (9-inch) and two loaf tins. ( 9X4)
A good digital instant read thermometer. Essential when you may not be used to cooking individual pieces of chicken or fish, or even when you are cooking for larger groups. A good thermometer takes the guess-work out of cooking.
A digital scale. You will find a digital scale invaluable for weighing out proteins, vegetables and pastas to ensure you have the right portions necessary for the recipes you are cooking.
Several kitchen timers. Ideal for reminding you when you have something cooking in the oven. I like to have at least two.
A good heavy electric hand whisk, and or stand mixer.
A pastry blender and a potato masher.
A small microwave oven. Ideal for heating things up and making smaller sauces.
Plastic storage containers in a variety of sizes. Great for storing your opened packages of flour, sugar, salt, etc. You will also want some cheaper ones for use in storing leftover cooked foods.
Food storage bags. I prefer zip lock bags. Great for freezing individual portions of meats and poultry, or keeping fresh cheeses, etc. fresh.
Ice cube trays
Dish towels, dish cloths, dish brushes, pot holders and hot pads.
Nice to have but not necessary
Toaster
Kettle
Toaster oven
Food processor
Stand mixer
Citrus juicer
Salad spinner
In the Pantry
Spices and Herbs
These things are expensive. If you are able to buy smaller amounts in a bulk bin type of a store, this is best as then you won't have waste. By buying what you need and paying for smaller amounts you won't be left with jars of partially used spices in your cupboard. It also makes sense to do this when you are buying specialty spices that you may only be using irregularly.
For cooking
Sea salt (fine and flaked)
Black pepper, ground and whole peppercorns
Parsley flakes
Dried Basil
Dried Oregano
Ground Cumin
Garlic and Onion Powders
Paprika (smoked and sweet)
Chili powder
Chili flakes
any favorites that you know you will use frequently
For baking
Ground cinnamon
whole nutmegs
cloves (ground and whole)
dried powdered ginger
ground cardamom
Dry Goods
All purpose flour
Baking powder
Baking soda
Cocoa powder
Granulated sugar
Light or dark brown sugar
Icing sugar
Oatmeal
Chocolate (chips and darker chocolate for baking)
An assortment of canned beans (only what you think you will use)
Dry pasta (at the very least elbow macaroni and spaghetti)
Dried beans and lentils
Rice
Cooking oil (Canola, light olive)
Extra virgin olive oil (for salads)
Vinegar (a good balsamic, white and red wine, cider)
Good canned tuna
Coconut milk
Several tinned soups
Good canned tomatoes (whole and chopped, in juice)
Tomato paste
Olives (green and black)
Beef, chicken and vegetable broths (canned, tetra bricks or powdered)
Smooth peanut butter
Honey
Maple Syrup
onions
potatoes and or sweet potatoes
garlic
The Refrigerator
Only buy fresh produce that you need and think you are going to be able use within the week. Before you go shopping, take stock of what you already have and dispose of anything that is no longer any good.
Eggs
Cheese
Butter
Yeast
Lard
Plain yogurt
Cream (heavy and sour)
Milk (2% and buttermilk)
A good mayonnaise
A good Dijon mustard (also a grainy if possible)
Pickles (both sweet and sour cornichons)
Jams or jellies as desired (I always have strawberry jam and orange marmalade)
Lemons, limes, oranges (I always have lemons and buy the others as needed)
Apples
Fresh lettuce
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Celery
Spring onions
Fresh herbs as needed
In the Freezer
I like to buy larger packs and then freeze individual pieces so that I can pull them out and defrost as needed and cook. Only freeze in larger quantities if you know you are going to be cooking for more. It is important to label your freezer bags with the date and contents. I also double bag to insure freshness.
Meats, etc.
Chicken ( breasts and thighs, boneless, skinless)
Fish ( I like cod, haddock and salmon)
Ground beef (I buy grass fed organic lean)
Pork chops (I like bone in)
Beef Steak ( both a stewing and a frying)
Stew beef or lamb
Miscellaneous
Bread Crumbs (regular and panko)
Nuts (usually walnuts and pecans)
Coconut (flaked and desiccated)
Frozen fruit
Frozen vegetables
A variety of frozen juices (apple and orange)
Pastry (all butter puff and regular short crust)
a few individual sized ready meals for just in case
Use it up, don't throw it out
It can be really hard to use up ingredients when you are only cooking for yourself. What do you do with the half a can of corn you didn't use or the half can of beans? Here are some ideas and tips for safely storing some of these ingredients.
Canned Items
Beans and vegetables - drain well and pat dry with paper kitchen toweling. Transfer to small freezer containers, or zip lock baggies. (double bag) Lay flat to freeze
Coconut milk - Opened coconut milk will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator, but for longer storage you will want to freeze it. Whisk together until it is well blended and then pour into ice cube trays. Pop into the freezer to freeze. Once frozen, pop out and into freezer containers or zip lock baggies.
Chipotle Chiles in Adobo and Tomato Paste - Line a baking sheet with baking parchment or wax paper. Spoon the chiles and sauce into TBS sized dollops on the baking sheet and then freeze until solid. Pop off and into freezer containers or zip lock baggies. You can do the same with tomato paste. Alternately, if you have purchased it in a can, open the end of the can and push the paste out into a zip lock baggie. Cut off only as much as you need from the frozen log.
Other Items
Avocado - Did you know you can freeze avocado? It freezes perfectly and works well in salads, sandwiches, mashed, or guacamole once thawed.
Halves -Just cut them in half lengthwise, place them on a tray, and sprinkle each half with lemon juice. Freeze until solid and then pack into airtight bags or containers.
Cubed - Cube and do as above.
Mashed - Mash with a bit of lemon juice, pack into a zip lock baggie, removing as much air as possible, freeze flat.
Bread - If you are only one person, the smartest thing to do with your bread is to store it in the freezer, rightly wrapped in aluminum foil and sealed in a zip lock baggie. Hearty crusty bread freezes much better than standard sandwich bread. Make sure it is sliced before freezing and then wrap and store in smaller amounts, wrapped as above. Usually 3 to 4 slices per pack.
Berries - When you bring them home, wash your fresh berries in a bowl containing 3 cups of water and 1 cup of distilled white vinegar. Rinse well under cold running water. Line a salad spinner with 3 layers of paper towel and spin them out for about 15 seconds or until completely dry. Store in a loosely covered container, lined with paper towels in the front of your refrigerator.
Bacon - Coil up individually (Helps prevent sticking) and freeze on a plate. Once frozen, transfer to a zip lock baggie.
Cheese - Remove your opened cheeses from the plastic wrap. Wrap in parchment paper and then in aluminum foil, label and then store in the refrigerator. The paper allows the cheese to breathe and the foil protects it from absorbing other flavors from the fridge, and helps to keep it from drying out.
If you have feta cheese and it didn't come in a brine, pop it into a small zip-lock bag or container and pour in just enough oil to cover it. You can keep it this way in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks. Cheese can also be frozen, wrapped tightly in plastic cling film and then placed into a zip lock baggie. It will keep for up to two months. You can defrost it overnight in the refrigerator when you want to use it, or at room temperature for 2 1/2 hours.
Salad Greens - Store intact heads of lettuce or washed and dried leaves wrapped in moist paper towels in partially open zip lock bags in the refrigerator crisper drawer.
Fresh Herbs - Gently rinse and dry your herbs as soon as you bring them home from the store. Pat dry with paper towels or spin in a salad spinner to dry. Wrap in damp paper towel and place in a partially opened zip lock baggie in your refrigerator crisper drawer. It is important to note that you CANNOT do this with fresh basil. Do not rinse it, simply wrap in clean DRY paper towel, place in a partially opened zip lock baggie and store in the crisper drawer.
Onions - To store chopped, sliced or halved onions, store in a zip lock baggie in the refrigerator, rinsing before using. For delicate leeks, chives and spring onions, place the ends in a glass of water, cover loosely with a zip lock baggie and store in the refrigerator.
These things may seem like a no-brainer to some people, but I am sure there are many people out there who don't know where to begin. When you are setting up a kitchen for the first time, it can be overwhelming as to where to start. I really hope that this information, hints and tips will be valuable to each of you. A well stocked/kitted out kitchen allows you to have more options in your cooking journey and to be able to create a simple meal from scratch at the drop of a hat.
If you stock your kitchen with these items you are sure to never feel like "there is nothing to eat" ever again.
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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