Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: vindelis
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 06:47 PM

Ever heard of Frumety - or 'Vermity'?

On Portland, it was eaten on Good Friday, certainly when my grandmother was a girl. She would be sent to a local shop with a jug, to be filled with the steaming mixture of boiled wheat, mixed fruit, sugar, spices and milk.

You start with a pound or two of wheat, boiled in a little water until the wheat softens and bursts, then adding milk and sugar to taste, giving a porridge like consistency. From the one occasion that I have seen it made, I think that the fruit and spices are added to taste.

A north country version just has milk, sugar and boiled wheat as ingredients.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: michaelr
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 07:20 PM

McGrath -- "possum" is short for "opossum" (Didelphis virginiana), a tree-dwelling mammal common in North America, with a rat-like prehensile tail. The female carries its young in a pouch. It is active at night and pretends to be dead when trapped (hence the expression "playing possum").

They look like large gray rats.

Cheers,
Michael

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: NicoleC
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 10:11 PM

Rats are far smarter; 'possums are far meaner. The Possum is supposed to be closely related to the "Prarie Fox" of Oz/NZ, which is considered reasonably edible.

Possums are, apparently, edible only to those who have nothing else to eat.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 10:49 PM

HOT DOGS

Ingredients:

1 Pkg hot dogs
1 pkg hot dog buns
1 pot
water
Some mustard and sweet pickle relish

1. Reach into a cupboard and pull out a pot.
2. Alternating right and left feet, walk towards the kitchen sink, holding the pot in either hand.
3. With your free hand, turn on the cold water tap until pot is two-thirds full (or two-thirds empty, depending on your philosophical outlook).
4. Walk towards the stove (see step two for instructions) and put the pot on a burner, and turn on the heat on high. Wait for water to boil. Now you're ready for some food handling.
5. Reach into the refrigerator and pull out a package of hot dogs. Open and dump entire contents, without the plastic wrapping, into the pot of boiling water. Turn heat down to very low, cover, and let boil for five minutes or so, or seven minutes, or whatever.
6. Open the package of buns, put on plates, and put on the counter. Open jars of mustoard and relish, and put a knife in the jar of mustard only.
7. With a fork, lift the hot dogs rom the pot, shake off the water, and pick up the hot again after accidentally dropping it back in the pot. Put the hot dogs in the buns.
8. With the knife, spread mustard on the hot dogs, and with the same knife, put it in the jar of relish and spread some relish on the dogs. Serves 1.

Chanteyranger

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Ely
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 11:00 PM

I think the characters in Thomas Hardy's _Mayor of Casterbridge_ drink "furmity" at a street market in the beginning of the book (his spelling, not mine, since I've never seen it mentioned anywhere but there and above)--it sounds like what vindelis described. Michael Henchard has alcohol (rum or whiskey? I forget) added to his on the sly.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 11:22 PM

Recipe sent to Nicole with typos cleaned-up

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Pied Piper
Date: 15 Apr 03 - 07:41 AM

One of my favourite meals is grilled Smoked Mackerel, Jersey Royal Potatoes, Julienne Carrots, and spring cabbage.

Chop up your carrots into matchstick sized pieces, stick em in a pan, add some of Olive oil, crushed and chopped Garlic, Black pepper, and enough water to cover. Turn the heat up full and let the water boil dry ish ( the oil helps keep the veg from sticking but keep an eye on it). It should take about 10 minutes. If the water boils dry before the Carrots are cooked, just add more. I don't use salt in the veg because Smoked Mackerel is quit salty.
Chop up your Spring Cabbage and do as above ( takes less time, about 5 minutes, so put the pan on later than the Carrots).
Cook the spuds in a pressure cooker for ten minutes.
Grill the Mackerel skin side up for a couple of minutes, don't worry if it curls up, you can squash it flat when you turn it over. Turn it over and cook till done (about 5 minutes total).

Running order
Time Minutes
0    1 Chop the veg
10    2 Start Carrots and spuds
15    3 Start the Cabbage and put the Mackerel under the Grill
20    4 Eat

A great meal in 20 minutes

Enjoy

PP

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: GUEST,Posh Nosh
Date: 15 Apr 03 - 11:36 AM

Prejudiced Haddock.

Bludgeon a skein of Scallions, and ramify until obsolete.
Add a Quart of Dandelion and Burdock, and devastate till marooned.
Reluctantly slice 2lbs of sympathised Haddock into swarf, and sizzle until arcane.
Add the Haddock to the mollycoddled onions, and simplify for 20 min's.
Disgorge onto a futon of turgid rice.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Li'l Aussie Bleeder
Date: 15 Apr 03 - 06:12 PM

Great Chicken Recipe:

When I found this recipe I thought it was perfect for those who
just are not sure how to tell when poultry is cooked thoroughly
but not dried out. Give this a try.

Baked Stuffed Chicken
2-3 kg chicken
1 cup melted butter
1 cup stuffing
1 cup uncooked popcorn
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brush chicken well with melted butter, salt and pepper.
Fill cavity with stuffing and popcorn.
Place in baking pan in the oven.
Listen for the popping sounds.



When the chicken's ass blows out of the oven door and flies
across the room,

the chicken is done.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 12:24 AM

Your recipe is a crude joke and humorous as such.

However, the internal temp for a fully cooked chicken is 165 degrees F.

Popcorn doesn't even "sizzle" until 220 plus.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Li'l Aussie Bleeder
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 02:32 AM

To Gargoyle
you must be English!

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Raggytash
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 02:45 AM

Nicole,
Did you receive my pm with the "Whitby Kebab"
Cheers
Raggy

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: NicoleC
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 12:20 PM

I have no PM's today, but I do have a Whitby Kebab in the database already -- either from a past message/email or pulled from the old recipe threads.

It would be most helpful if recipes could be emailed instead of posted. It makes it a lot less time consuming to sort them out.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Peg
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 01:46 PM

I love that Hot Dogs recipe!!!! LOL

I will also PM this one:

Hot, Honeyed Salmon (adapted from an Aphrodisiac cookbook)

Marinade:

1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of one lemon
1/4 cup honey
2 cloves of garlic, minced fine
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or black, or white pepper if desired)
1 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds
dash of salt


Soak 2-3 salmon steaks for at least an hour.
then bake/broil in 375 degree oven until done (usualy 15-20 minutes, depending on size of salmon steaks).
Garnish with orange slice and fresh parsley.
Serve with steamed asparagus in lemon butter, boiled new potatoes with rosemary, and baby spinach salad.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: DADGBE
Date: 16 Apr 03 - 03:16 PM

Hi Nicole,

Check you e-mail. One's on the way.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: maire-aine
Date: 17 Apr 03 - 11:36 AM

Here's my all-time favorite soup:

Hearty Potato-Sauerkraut Soup

8 C chicken or beef broth (I use Swanson's lower sodium)
16 oz. jar of sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted (again, lower sodium)
3 medium potatoes, cut into small cubes
3 medium carrots, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
one big link of smoked Polish sausage, cubed (I use Butterball turkey kielbasa)
1 C chopped cooked ham
2 T vinegar
2 t dried dillweed
½ t pepper
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced (if you like mushrooms)

Put the whole thing in a big pot and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 4-5 hours.

This rice pilaf goes great with chicken and a green vegetable:

Rice Pilaf

A little bit of oil in the frying pan
1 large onion, chopped fine
½ C blanched slivered almonds, more or less
sauté the above together until almonds are lightly browned

to the above, add
1 t anise seed, crushed to release flavor
1 t orange peel, or maybe a little less*
¼ t curry powder
1 C long-grain white rice
sauté this together, for a minute or two

then add
1 14-oz. can of Swanson's lower-sodium chicken broth.
¾ C golden raisins, more or less
bring to a boil for a minute or two

transfer to a casserole dish, cover and bake at 350º for 30 minutes

* Note: this last time I put in some dried (candied) orange peel pieces, with a little less dried orange peel.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Bearheart
Date: 17 Apr 03 - 12:25 PM

Any interest in gluten free recipes? My husband does rice flour crepes, biscuits and pancakes that are great. (He also is a general all round gourmet cook. Does a Persian rice -dried fruit, nuts,rice and ground lamb- adaptable for vegetarians.)

Bekki

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Bearheart
Date: 17 Apr 03 - 12:29 PM

PS Are spouses allowed to submit recipes? If not I have a few prize ones of my own...
Bekki

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Raggytash
Date: 17 Apr 03 - 01:37 PM

Nicole,
If you have the "Whitby Kebab" it is from my good self seeing as it was me what invented it !!

Cheers


Raggytash

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: NicoleC
Date: 17 Apr 03 - 08:18 PM

I'd say spouses and any kind of recipes are fine! I've a recipe for 180 gallons of beer, so I think anything goes :)

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: NicoleC
Date: 21 Apr 03 - 07:30 PM

Refresh and reminder --

10 days left for submissions. If you're procrastinating, stop it! :)

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: MMario
Date: 21 Apr 03 - 07:43 PM

I was going to procrastinate - but I figger it can wait.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Melani
Date: 21 Apr 03 - 10:19 PM

Matzoh Ball Soup

Boil a bunch of chicken for a couple of hours. Refrigerate broth overnight. Separate edible meat from bones, gristle, etc. and save. When broth has cooled overnight and fat has congealed on top, remove fat.

Mix: 2 eggs
2 T oil (or chicken fat)
2 T water (or chicken broth)
Add: 1/2 C matzoh meal
1 tsp. salt

Refrigerate until pretty stiff (you can use the freezer if you're in a hurry).

Bring a potful of water to a full rolling boil. Wet hands. Scoop out a spoonful of batter about the size of a walnut, roll between wet hands, and drop into boiling water. Repeat until all batter is used up. Cover and boil for 35 minutes for chewy, 40 minutes for fluffy.

Heat broth to full rolling boil. Throw in chopped leeks and salt to taste. Turn off heat as soon as you put the leeks in. Also add dill weed to taste.

Throw in cooked matzoh balls. Serve.

The matzoh ball part is my mother-in-law's secret recipe--it's on the side of the Manischewitz box. My mother-in-law knew an easy recipe when she saw it!

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: reggie miles
Date: 21 Apr 03 - 10:51 PM

Folk Stew or Bile Dat Cabbidge Down

Bring an extra large kettle of water to boil. Now, I'm not talking about your average extra large kettle that you'll find laying about your kitchen somewhere. I mean a big, huge, monster size one like a small bath tub sized caldron here. You know, the kind that witches prance around at midnight. Okay, let's back up. Find a witches' coven and beg, borrow, buy, rent, or steal their caldron. Bring help too because if you've got to fight 'em for it remember there's thirteen of them witches per coven. Okay, let's back up again. Get at least thirteen of your biggest, meanest, nastiest, smelliest, hairiest friends to go with you to look for witches coven to get their caldron, or if your friends are all of the whimpy variety, just hire or rent a local biker club. Now, if you don't have a local biker club, er, well, you could start one, but that may take a while, and if you've only got whimpy biker friends that won't do at all, but even if the witches are friendly, those dang caldrons can weigh a ton, so the bikers or who ever you do find to go along with will come in handy just to haul the dern thing back home. Oh yes, you'll probably need a truck too. One of those kind with the hydraulic liftgate would do nicely and maybe a winch with an extendable arm like a tow truck. Now, where were we? Okay let's back up again. Secure a tow truck, a couple dozen gorilla-like friends and three or four kegs of beer, (your choice on the beer). When sufficiently and/or throughly drunk, plastered, smashed, looped, snookered, snockered, _hi_ faced, plowed, three sheets to the wind, over the limit, intoxicated, rummy, sloppy, sot, loaded, out of it, slammed, pickled, hammered, totalled, pissed, wasted, smacked, sloshed, ripped and weenie-dogged have these whimpy biker friends tear an old claw foot tub from the bathroom of any nearby residence (preferably without bathee), with or without claws, it doesn't really matter. Light a fire under it and get some water bilin'. Now, add to this one peck of banjoes, whatever variety is in season at the time, tenor, plectrum, five-string or even banjo-ukes, and salt to taste. Next add three to four ripe sliced accordions. Then mix in one half dozen diced fiddles and players, (Irish or bluegrass varieties work best for this!) and simmer all on low a fire for a very, very, very loooooooong time. When spongy and prune-like or the consistency of overdone biled leather size 8 1/2 EEE army boots, sprinkle in an armful of grated didgeridon'ts, and bring water back up to a brisk bile for an even looooooooooonger time. Then toss in ten to twelve well beaten bagpipers with the bagpipes thrown in and continue bilin'. Take one large chopped cabbage, toss it lightly with your favorite dressing (or do this undressed, again you choice), eat cabbage. This where the recipe gets interesting and takes on the individual character of each particular chef from a given locale. Every region has it's own hometown or cultural favorite ingreedyints. This allows for many variants of this basic recipe. So, have at it and don't be shy, go wild! I myself like to musically saw everything up first before I mix it in. I also like spoons or washtub basses thrown in for a bit more body.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: GUEST,maire-aine, not a home
Date: 23 Apr 03 - 09:40 AM

Sloppy Joes for a crowd

3 pounds of lean ground beef
3 onions, coarsely chopped
salt
pepper

Fry together in a non-stick skillet until meat browns.


1 bottle of chili sauce
½ cup catsup
¼ cup brown sugar
1 can of tomato paste
2 Tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon (or more) dry mustard, to taste
¼ teaspoon (or less) chili powder, to taste
1 C beef broth (I use Swanson's low-sodium)*

Combine the above. Put the meat and the sauce into a dutch oven and bake for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. You can refrigerate the cooked sloppy joes overnight and re-heat them just before the party, either in the oven (1 hour on low heat) or in a microwave. Serve on hamburger rolls.

* This is a 14-oz. can, so save the rest. If it gets too thick as it cooks down, add more broth, but not too much because you don't want it runny.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Bearheart
Date: 23 Apr 03 - 11:40 AM

The fun of this recipe is that we never fix it the same way twice. Each cook will probably develop a favorite combination, but it's so simple that you can play with it endlessly and yet it never takes much time to make. Use the seasonings and other ingredients that strike your fancy. This recipe is probably best for cooks who are a bit adventuresome.

Persian Rice

2 cups cooked rice your choice(basmati or jasmine best, brown ones also work); a traditional way to fix it is to fry it with a little saffron. (A cheaper and more available option is turmeric, which also tweaks the flavor in a different direction.) In this case don't cook the rice quite as soft.

Use any of the following that suit your taste, to make up 1 cup:
Raisins
Currants
Dried or fresh figs
Dates
Dried appricots
Pecans
Walnuts
Almonds
Pistachios
Pine Nuts

For meat eaters, Ground Lamb is traditional (if using it, use 1/2 cup meat to 1/2 cup fruit/nuts) ; spiced with garlic, whole coriander,rosemary, thyme,cumin,fenugreek and/or dill, or with cinnamon, cloves, ginger-- we like the candied. Ginger and some of the sweet spices combine well with the herby herbs. Again it's fun to experiment. Some of these are less traditional than others, but they work. You can use ground turkey or other ground meat but it will really not taste the same. Usually combining a few herbs and spices works better --less confusing to the taste buds. I like to use about a 1/2 teasoon of the less pungent herbs and 1/4 teaspoon of the strong ones like cloves. But we like strong flavors--I would probably put 3 cloves of garlic in this for instance. Sorry not to be more exact, but we both cook from the "pinch of this, handful of that" method.

Cook the rice. Heat the fruits and nuts through in a mixture of honey, butter or olive oil, and water (total liquid 1/2-3/4 cup). Don't over cook, but the fruit should be plump. Spices can be added to the mixture at this time, or if you are going to use the meat you can brown the meat with the herbs and add the spices of your choice and then the fruit and nuts. Saute all briefly together before folding into the rice. Put into a baking dish and bake in the oven till the top is lightly browned. (We cook on a wood stove so I am guessing a 400 oven for 15 minutes would do it-- correct me if I'm wrong.)

Sometimes my husband does this more as a meat loaf, with a bit of egg to hold it together, adding the fruit to the rice,and forming the meat into a loaf and putting it on the bed of rice, then baking it.The meat juices keep the rice moist, but adding a bit of butter and water to it if it gets dry while baking works well. Consult a standard meatloaf recipe for cooking time.

Bekki

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Beccy
Date: 23 Apr 03 - 12:34 PM

I submitted Japanese Salmon over Linguine, Asian Cucumber Marinated Salad, Homemade Ginger Ale, and Beer Butt Chicken...
The first three items make up my all-time favorite meal.

Beccy

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: CRANKY YANKEE
Date: 24 Apr 03 - 07:02 AM

Very simple salad, with the same ingredients that you use for your oil and vinegar dressing.
The difference is when and how you add and mix ingredients.

It tastes entirely different than if you mix everything in one step.

This one yas three layers of taste. You can taste fresh, "undressed" vegetables, vegetables with spices, vegetables with spices and Olive oil, and finally, the four stage salad. All these different tastes are there, but, you can taste one on top of the others, distinct and clear.
Learned this from Grandma Sophie Puzelli of Brooklyn New york, previously from Catanzaro, Calabria, Itlia.


Mixing should be done in a "coverable" bowl that you can cover, pick up and shake without the cover coming off.

I just use lettuce and sliced cucumber, but you can put whatever vegetables you want into it.

Mix and wash all the vegetables togethr, then drain thoroughly.

"Smash" one clove of fresh garlic by putting it on the cutting board and whacking it with a knife or cleaver. Then mince it into very small pieces. If this is too much trouble, use store bought minced garlic. about the same volume as a single clove.
Put the garlic, salt and some oregano to suit your taste. NO OTHER SPICES. NO PARSELEY, PEPPER, OR ANYTHING ELSE.

Cover the vegetables nd spices tightly, pick up the bowl and shakle like hell, and/or mix thoroughly.

third step, AFTER THE SPICES AND VEGETABLES ARE COMPLETELY MIXED.

Uncover and add Extra Virgin Olive oil, whatever amount you are used to using. COVER AGAIN,.PICK IT UP AND SHAKE LIKE HELL AND/OR MIX THOROUGHLY SO THAT THE OLIVE OIL COMPLETELY COVERS ALL THE FRESH VEGETABLES. This seals what you've already mixed and prevents the vinegar from changing the vegetables, as vinegar ususally does. Now you've got fresh vegetables, with spices, covered with olive oil.

NOW ADD THE VINEGAR. COVER IT. , PICK IT UP AND SHAKE LIKE HELL, AND/OR MIX THOROUGHLY. Now taste it.

IOsn't this a whole lot better than just mixing everythiong together.?

Sure it is. You have also locked all the vitamins and minerals into the vegetables. The vinegar can't mess up the veggies. (mostly)

I use red wine vinegar, but you can use balsamic if you prefer it.

Measure the vinegar as you add it. I measure two "capfulls" of vinegar, taste it and then go from there. Don't use too much vinegar. Don't make the salad "vinegar sour" Tell your guests or family ,"This is the way it is, if you want it different, go into the kitchen and get whatever poof and sludge you want and slop it, in whatever amounts you desire, on top of this beautiful salad that you intend to kill dead"

If you don't like it as much as your usual dresing, Don't bother. (of cours) In fcct forget I mentioned it and, go way. I'm not even in the mudcat cookbook. - Barbarian!!!.

Jody Gibson

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: gnu
Date: 24 Apr 03 - 07:38 AM

I may have posted this on another thread, but...

Fast & feeds a bunch. 1 pan of burger. 2 cups frozen mixed veggies. 19 ounce tin of (I use Primo) beef & barley ready to serve soup. 19 ounce tin of tomatoes (I chop them up a bit). Tin of Campbell's vegetable soup. Water to cover. Boil six minutes.

Seriously, it's good and only takes twenty minutes if you boil the frozen veggies concurrently with frying the burger. However, it tastes better if you boil all the ingredients together or leave it in the fridge overninght.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: NicoleC
Date: 24 Apr 03 - 05:46 PM

7 days left! Email those submissions in!

Artwork and other goodies are particularly needed.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: MMario
Date: 29 Apr 03 - 01:54 PM

not my recipe. but gotta post this:

Guinness Ice Cream with Dark Chocolate-Honey Sauce
Ingredients
Makes 1 quart


12 ounces Guinness stout
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
6 egg yolks
Dark Chocolate-Honey Sauce (recipe follows)


Preparation
Simmer the Guinness in a large saucepan until reduced by three-fourths,
about 8 minutes.
Combine the cream, milk, and sugar in a medium, heavy saucepan. Scrape the
seeds from the vanilla bean into the pan and add the vanilla bean halves.
Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat.
Beat the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Whisk 1 cup of the hot cream into the
egg yolks. Gradually add the egg mixture in a slow, steady stream, to the
hot cream. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the
mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and reaches 170 degrees
F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and
strain through a fine mesh strainer into a clean container. Cover with
plastic wrap, pressing down against the surface to keep a skin from forming.
Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Remove from refrigerator and add the Guinness reduction, whisking until well
blended. Pour into the bowl of an ice cream machine and freeze according to
the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and
freeze until ready to serve.


Dark Chocolate-Honey Sauce
Ingredients
Makes 3 1/2 cups


2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup honey
20 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 teaspoons vanilla extract


Preparation
Scald the cream and honey in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from
the heat.
Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Add the hot cream, let sit for 2
minutes, then whisk until smooth. Whisk in the vanilla. Let stand until cool
but still pourable. Serve over the Guinness ice cream.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Cookbook Submissions Needed!
From: Bearheart
Date: 04 May 03 - 09:17 AM

Hoping this is not too late! My husband Crow's gluten free riceflour
recipes for pancakes, crepes, cookies and biscuits (drop and rolled).

CROW'S RICE FLOUR GOODIES

Can't eat those lovely gluten flour products? Tired of substitutes with really weird textures? (I mean, rice flour can make pancakes as gritty as sand and cookies as dry as the desert.) Here are several gluten free, rice flour recipes for pancakes, crepes (yum!), biscuits and cookies.

PANCAKES
In blender make smooth: one egg, one ripe banana, one cup of milk (dairy, soy, rice, nut), two teaspoons of arrowroot powder.

In a bowl mix 2/3ds cup of fine rice flour (white is less gritty) and 2 teaspoons of non-aluminum baking powder.

Add the liquid to the dry, stirring gently with a spoon. You want a smooth, not lumpy but not beaten batter about the texture of thin custard. Thinner makes lighter pancakes, thicker makes heavier, thicker, dryer pancakes. I like them lighter myself.

Cook as you usually do any other pancake.

And add blueberries, etc. Yum, Yum.


CREPES        
In a blender make smooth: 2 eggs, 1 ripe banana, 1 cup of milk (dairy, soy, rice, nut), 3 teaspoons of arrowroot powder. Up to a tablespoon of your favourite vegetable oil - even melted butter - may be added but it does not seem to add much besides calories to the product. The same goes for using cream instead of milk.

Slowly add white rice flour to the batter in the blender. It will take up to one cup of flour to produce a batter the consistency of heavy cream. Thinner won't stick together, thicker won't cook well.

Pour just enough batter to coat the bottom of a well-oiled, pre-heated pan the size you want your crepes to be. Tilt and roll the pan so the batter evenly coats it and spreads out to fill the bottom of the pan. I use two 8 inch well seasoned cast iron pans for a nice production line. A scant 1/4 cup of batter does this size just about right.

Cook until bubbles form and set firmly, flip and brown the other side.



DROP BISCUITS
In blender make smooth: one egg, one ripe banana, 3/4 cup of milk (dairy, soy, rice, nut).

In a bowl mix 1 cup of fine white rice flour, 2 teaspoons of arrowroot powder and one teaspoon of non-aluminum baking powder.

Add liquid to dry and stir gently until thoroughly mixed but don't beat it up. Add a bit more milk or rice flour to assure that the texture is quite thick and the biscuits stand up on the cookie sheet when dropped from a spoon.

Drop in heaping tablespoons (more or less depending on how big you like your biscuits) onto cookie sheet. They don't spread out much and should keep their shape. Bake in very hot oven until nicely browned. This will probably take about 10 minutes with one turn of the pan, if needed, to assure even browning.


ROLLED BISCUITS
Using the same exact recipe but making the batter just dry enough to handle (with oiled or floured hands) you can lift the lump of batter from the bowl and hand flatten - or roll - it to the desired thickness, cut with biscuit cutter or glass, and bake as above.

No, neither one of these biscuits are exactly flaky but they are not too bad, they look and smell like biscuits and hot out of the oven with real butter and honey they will pass, especially if you have not had biscuits recently.


FLAKY BISCUITS?
I don't think so. So far, no reasonable proportion of bananas or starch or oil or butter gives enough gluten-like texture to allow the layering and rising quality which made my grandmother's flaky lard, butter, wheat flour biscuits worth waking up for. Cutting butter into rice flour with a pastry blender or hand rubbing it looks great but it just does not make flakes when it is baked.


CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Hand cream until smoothly mixed, one egg, 1/2 cup of real butter (I like Amish roll butter) and 1/2 cup of brown sugar (try sucanat or other natural dried cane juice for a flavor and nutritional boost).

In a bowl mix 1 cup of fine white rice flour , 2 teaspoons of arrowroot starch, one teaspoon of non-aluminum baking powder and a pinch of salt (ok, ok, but it does make the cookies sweeter).

Blend 1/2 banana and 1/2 cup of milk (dairy, soy, rice, nut) until smooth. Add to dry mix and stir with spoon until completely combined and smooth, but don't beat it.

Add 3/4 cup of chocolate chips, stir in.

Slowly add butter/egg/sugar mix. Adjust with flour or milk to a texture thick enough to stand up on the cookie sheet when dropped from spoon.

Drop by heaping tablespoons onto cookie sheet. Space well, they melt and spread and look just like the real chocolate chip cookies they are.
Bake in hot oven about 10 minutes until nicely browned, turning pan once if needed for even browning.


PECAN SANDIES
Butter and sugar, as they melt and blend, are the secret texture and flavor behind many cookies. You can use butter and sugar in this recipe, doing it just like the chocolate chip one above, or you can try it with honey and your favourite cooking oil, as below.

In blender make smooth: one egg, one ripe banana, one half cup of milk (dairy, soy, rice, nut), 1/2 cup of honey, 1/2 cup of oil and two teaspoons of arrowroot powder.

In a bowl mix 1 cup of fine white rice flour, 3/4 cup of pecan pieces, 1 teaspoon of non-aluminum baking powder and a large pinch of salt since there is no salty butter here (ok, ok, but it does make the cookies sweeter).

Slowly pour wet into dry and mix together with a spoon aiming for smooth, not lumpy and not beaten. This batter may be fairly thin so thicken it by slowly adding more flour if needed.   You can make it thick enough for drop cookies or a bit thinner if you don't want them to stand up.

Drop by heaping tablespoons onto cookie sheet. These keep their shape and don't melt down very much. Thinner batter allows thinner cookies, or you can flatten them with the back of the spoon to the desired thickness.
Bake in hot oven about 10 minutes until nicely browned, turning pan once if needed for even browning.


BANANAS have a lot to do with the smooth, not too gritty texture of these items. The flavor is not too intense, even at first, and you do get used to it. The STARCH helps hold them together and also improves texture. Arrowroot works well and is easily tolerated by most diet types. I strongly recommend it for any cooking starch use, especially if you are avoiding corn. None of my crepe or pancake recipes use added oil, salt or sugar. These ingredients are not very health for many of us and, in my opinion, really don't add to the final results. Try the recipes with and without and see for yourself.