The original recipe advised using plain whole-milk yogurt and baking the cake in a metal loaf pan. Since I prefer Greek style yogurt and had some on hand, I used that instead. I also didn’t have a metal loaf pan of the requisite size, so I used Pyrex. Both of these changes resulted in a need to cook the cake about 10 minutes longer, which gave it a little more crisp on the crust than I would like. So, next time – I will go get regular plain yogurt and use a metal loaf pan.

The one customization that I made that really worked was the glaze that goes on top after the cake is baked. I used apricot preserves, thinned with a small amount of orange liqueur. Killer.

We loved this for breakfast with a cuppa joe. We felt less guilty knowing it wasn’t full of butter fat.  Let us know how yours turns out!

Ingredients

For the glaze
1 tsp Cointreau or other orange flavored liqueur
¼ cup apricot preserves

For the cake
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp grated lemon peel
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
½ tsp kosher salt
2 tsp baking powder – if yours is more than 6 months old, throw it out and buy new
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

Procedure
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ inch metal baking pan with butter flavored cooking spray. If you don’t have the correct size metal baking pan, use one of the tin foil throw-away kind you can buy in the grocery store.

Put the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl and whisk together. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then add yogurt, sugar, lemon peel, and vanilla. Whisk these ingredients until smooth. Add the flour mixture a little at a time while stirring. Finally, stir in the oil until the mixture is consistent. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake on a cookie sheet for 50 minutes. Test with a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is done. If not, back in the oven for 5 minutes at a time until its cooked.

While the pound cake is cooling, make the glaze. In a small saucepan combine the orange liqueur with the apricot preserves and warm over medium heat while stirring. When the glaze is warm, remove the cake from the pan and brush the glaze over the top. Allow the glaze to cool before serving.

Your Daily Bread

Isaiah 55:⁶ Seek the LORD while He may be found;
call to Him while He is near.
⁷ Let the wicked one abandon his way
and the sinful one his thoughts;
let him return to the LORD,
so He may have compassion on him,
and to our God, for He will freely forgive.
⁸ “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not My ways.”
            This is the LORD’s declaration.
⁹ “For as heaven is higher than earth,^,
so My ways are higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts.
¹⁰ For just as rain and snow fall from heaven
and do not return there
without saturating the earth
and making it germinate and sprout,
and providing seed to sow
and food to eat^,
11 so My word that comes from My mouth
will not return to Me empty,
but it will accomplish what I please
and will prosper in what I send it to do.”

The good news is that this dish uses ingredients that are generally easy to find, although the optional curry leaves may not be readily available if you don’t have an Indian grocery in your town.  Make basmati rice with cardamom pods in the cooking water to flavor it, and some mint raita on the side (recipe included below) for a complete Indian dining experience.  I highly recommend using an enameled cast iron dutch oven to cook this dish.  The heavy pan heats evenly and always delivers tender meat when the dish is finished.  All of the dry spices are available from Penzey’s spices, also highly recommended.  If your spices are more than 6 moths old, throw them away and get fresh ones.  Indian food is all about the incredible combination of spice flavors, and fresh ingredients are essential.  If you don’t have a spice grinder – go get one already!  (or you can use a mortar and pestle)

Ingredients

1 large onion cut in chunks
5 garlic cloves
2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut in chunks
¼ cup canola oil
2 bay leaves
1 2 to 3 inch cinnamon stick
10 curry leaves (optional)
2 tsp cumin seed
2 tsp fennel seed
¼ tsp fenugreek powder
¾ cup crushed tomatoes
1 tsp turmeric
2 ½ pounds leg of lamb, cut in 1 inch pieces
2 tsp curry powder (we use Penzey’s Maharajah)
¼ tsp cayenne
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper (we use Penzey’s Tellicherry ground in a spice grinder)
1 cup commercial canned tomato sauce
1 cup water
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

Process the onion, garlic and ginger to a paste in a food processor.  Heat the oil in the dutch oven and add bay leaves, cinnamon stick, and curry leaves.  Cook over medium high heat until the cinnamon stick starts to unfold.  Add the cumin, fennel, and fenugreek and cook briefly.  Add the ingredients from the food processor and cook for a couple of minutes.  Add the crushed tomatoes and turmeric and cook a few more minutes.  Turn up the heat to high and add the lamb.  Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Reduce the heat to medium and add curry powder, cayenne, and black pepper.  Stir, and add the tomato sauce and water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Taste for salt and adjust seasoning to taste.

While the stew is cooking, grind 1 tsp cumin seed, ½ tsp fennel seed, and one dried red chile in a spice grinder.  I grow my own cayenne peppers and dry them  for use in recipes such as this, but you can buy dried Arbol peppers from Penzey’s which are at the same heat level as cayenne peppers.  Indian groceries always have dried red chiles as well.  Heat 2 tsp canola oil in a small sauté pan and cook the ground spices over medium heat for a couple of minutes.  Stir this mixture into the stew with the chopped cilantro just before serving.  If you like your Indian food fiery, you can increase the number of red chiles by one or two.  The recipe as written here will give you a nice warm curry taste without hurting those who can’t tolerate really hot food.  But if you don’t have some heat in an Indian curry there is no point in making it!

To cool off your mouth, serve Mint Raita on the side:

2 ¼ cups plain greek yogurt (we use Cabot)
¼ cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
½ of a cucumber, seeds removed and chopped finely (leave the skin on)
½ tsp toasted ground cumin (toast the seeds in a dry skillet, then cool and grind )
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp salt

Your Daily Bread

 John 1: ²⁹ The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Here is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sinof the world! ³⁰ This is the One I told you about: ‘After me comes a man who has surpassed me, because He existed before me.’ ³¹ I didn’t know Him, but I came baptizing with water so He might be revealedto Israel.”

 ³² And John testified, “I watched the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He rested on Him. ³³ I didn’t know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The One you see the Spirit descending and resting on—He is the One who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴ I have seen and testified that He is the Son of God!”

 ³⁵ Again the next day, John was standing with two of his disciples. ³⁶ When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look! The Lamb of God!”

This recipe originally came from my favorite test kitchen and source of all things delicious: Cook’s Country.  It’s a “premium” recipe, which means you have to be a paid subscriber to their quarterly magazine in order to access it on their website, but as far as I can determine, I’m free to talk about it here as long as I’m not using the repost for commercial gain.  If you’re a cooking enthusiast, I highly recommend you subscribe to the magazine, scour the website, and DVR the PBS tv show!

This makes a great weeknight dinner, and it’s a change of pace from run-of-the-mill pasta dishes. Its quick, and it cooks in one pan! I know it’s not heart-healthy, but once in a while you can allow yourself a treat! This dish uses the bulk Italian sausage that you made yourself if you used our recipe under Mad Scientist.

Ingredients
balsamic vinegar
4 or 5 fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1 large head of broccoli, cut into florets
½ cup heavy cream
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp minced garlic
½ lb ziti rigati
1 sweet red pepper, coarsely chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 lb bulk Italian sausage

Procedure

If you don’t have bulk Italian sausage, use links and remove the casings. Brown the meat and remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings in the pan. Set aside in a bowl.

Cook onion and pepper in the sausage drippings until they are soft. Add the ziti and sauté until the pasta is just getting a touch of color. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper, stir, then add the wine, chicken broth, and cream. Bring to a boil and add the reserved sausage. Cover and simmer for about half the recommended cooking time for the pasta. Add the broccoli and continue cooking covered until the pasta is al dente.

Remove the pan from the heat, and add the Parmesan, basil, and 2 Tbsp. of the balsamic vinegar. Adjust seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Buon Appetito!

Your Daily Bread

Acts 10: ¹ There was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment. ² He was a devout man and feared God along with his whole household. He did many charitable deeds for the Jewish people and always prayed to God. ³ About three in the afternoon he distinctly saw in a vision an angel of God who came in and said to him, “Cornelius!”

 ⁴ Looking intently at him, he became afraid and said, “What is it, lord?”

   The angel told him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have come up as a memorial offering before God. ⁵ Now send men to Joppa and call for Simon, who is also named Peter. ⁶ He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.”

 ⁷ When the angel who spoke to him had gone, he called two of his household slaves and a devout soldier, who was one of those who attended him. ⁸ After explaining everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.

 ⁹ The next day, as they were traveling and nearing the city, Peter went up to pray on the housetop about noon. ¹⁰ Then he became hungry and wanted to eat, but while they were preparing something, he went into a visionary state. ¹¹ He saw heaven opened and an object that resembled a large sheet coming down, being lowered by its four corners to the earth. ¹² In it were all the four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth, and the birds of the sky. ¹³Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat!”

 ¹⁴ “No, Lord!” Peter said. “For I have never eaten anything common and ritually unclean!”

 ¹⁵ Again, a second time, a voice said to him, “What God has made clean, you must not call common.” ¹⁶ This happened three times, and then the object was taken up into heaven.

This recipe makes a very large pot of soup.  Make it when you’re feeding a crowd, want lots of leftovers, or intend to freeze in portions for the next cold day.  It will last in your fridge for about 3 days before it starts to look cloudy and the rice is too mushy.  I made this much because my neighbors had just returned home from a 3-week ordeal in Memphis involving a car accident, leg surgery that included plates, pins, and screws, and way too much hospital food.  Taking in their mail every day just didn’t seem like a big enough gesture to welcome them back to their home.  Chicken soup was totally the ticket!  It was easy to just pick up a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket and shred it, having removed the skin.  I collect the chicken carcasses and freeze them, too.  There’s some great homemade stock just waiting to happen!  For the rice component, I used a beautiful blend I’d picked up at Whole Foods.  Since I got it from the bulk bins, I don’t remember the name.  For this recipe, I recommend using a rice that will cook in under 30 minutes, which leaves out some brown and wild varieties.  If you do prefer to use those, simply cook the rice separately and add it with the last batch of ingredients. I’d love to hear from you in the comments if you make the soup.

Ingredients
4-5 medium carrots, sliced into coins
5 stalks celery, sliced thin
1 large onion chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
3 large shallots, finely chopped
1 rotisserie chicken (I like lemon pepper flavor), skinned and shredded
1 TBS fennel seeds, crushed (just to release flavor — don’t powder them)
1 tsp dried basil
8 cups chicken broth or stock
4 cups water
1 bundle fresh thyme (about 8 3-4 inch sprigs, tied with butcher’s twine or with another sprig)
1 cup uncooked rice (I prefer basmati)
1 can cannelini beans, with canning liquid
1 6-oz jar sliced mushrooms, drained (I use Green Giant)
10-oz bag of fresh baby spinach (or chopped fresh kale)
salt, pepper

Instructions
In a large stock pot, saute the carrots, celery, pepper, onion, garlic, and shallots in 3 TBS olive oil until tender and fragrant, about 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the shredded chicken, fennel seeds, basil, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper and continue to cook 2 more minutes.  Add the chicken stock, water, thyme bundle, and rice. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the beans, mushrooms, and spinach (or kale) and simmer 5-10 more minutes.  If you used low sodium chicken stock, you’ll need significantly more salt at this point.  I prefer to keep my soups low-sodium and let the other seasonings do the heavy lifting. This is the point where you’ll want to taste and adjust. Remove the thyme bundle before serving.

This soup is fairly hearty, and thickens further in your refrigerator overnight. The flavors also marry nicely if you can resist eating it until the next day. It’ll look almost like a stew and you may think you don’t have enough broth, but don’t add more.  It heats to the right consistency. Thyme and fennel notes should be noticeable but not overbearing. For a real twist, consider squeezing a wedge of lemon into your bowl.

Your Daily Bread

John 10:²² Then the Festival of Dedication took place in Jerusalem, and it was winter. ²³ Jesus was walking in the temple complex in Solomon’s Colonnade. ²⁴ Then the Jews surrounded Him and asked, “How long are You going to keep us in suspense? If You are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”  ²⁵ “I did tell you and you don’t believe,” Jesus answered them. “The works that I do in My Father’s name testify about Me. ²⁶ But you don’t believe because you are not My sheep. ²⁷ My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they will never perish—ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. ³⁰ The Father and I are one.”

Although the cherry pie filling peeks through and the bars are finished with a confectioner’s sugar glaze, they are easy to cut, serve, and eat as finger food without creating messy fingers (difficult to manage at a pot luck where everyone is standing and balancing a paper plate). The dough is a light shortbread-like consistency, so the eating experience is more reminiscent of a cookie than a cake. I cut my 9×12 pan into 32 small bars, which made perfect bites.  Most importantly, the flavor is just amazing.  The almond extract in the glaze is a must, in my opinion.

Since these are bars, I bought this commercial baking pan that has square corners rather than using a glass baking dish with rounded corners. This way, there are no odd-shaped corner bars.  I found metal works best for this recipe and suggest you use an aluminum pan without a non-stick coating.

I suspect you’ll have the same difficulty limiting yourself to just one as I did!  Let me know in the comments how yours turned out.

For the Bars
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened (I used unsalted)
1/2 cup shortening (I used Crisco butter flavor shortening)
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 20-oz can cherry pie filling (I used Comstock Lite)

For the Glaze
1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
1/4 tsp almond extract (I used slightly more, but definitely go easy here)
3-4 TBS milk

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat together butter and shortening with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Add the sugar, baking powder, and salt and beat until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl, then add in the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined. Reduce speed to medium-low and add the flour half a cup at a time until well combined.  If your mixing bowl is too small, you can stir in any remaining flour with a wooden spoon.

Set aside about 1 3/4 cups of the dough and press the rest into the bottom of an ungreased 9×12″ baking pan. Bake for 12 minutes. Spread the cherry pie filling over the crust evenly.  Make sure at least a little syrup covers every bit of crust, but don’t worry that there won’t be a whole cherry in every bite. The flavor is most important and we’re not going for a gooey bar. Drop the remaining dough in roughly tablespoon-sized mounds on top of the filling, leaving some gaps between the mounds.

Bake about 30 minutes more until the top is light brown. Cool the bars in the pan set on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. While cooling, mix together the confectioner’s sugar, almond extract, and just enough milk to make a thick (but smooth) drizzling consistency.  Pour over the bars.  Cool 10 minutes more, then score the top into the size bars you desire with a serrated knife. Don’t cut all the way through. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Carefully cut bars along the scored lines. If necessary, run your knife around the edges of the pan to loosen. I served these right in the pan as shown in the photo, but you can arrange them on a dish if you like. Leftovers can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Note: You may substitute any flavor pie filling and use vanilla extract in the glaze instead of almond.

Your Daily Bread

Exodus ²² Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. ²³ When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. ²⁴ And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” ²⁵ And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log,and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, ²⁶ saying,“If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”

Scratching your heads?  I did too, at first.  But, trust me, these are so very delicious, you will want to sit right down and eat the whole bowl.  I first heard about crispy kale while watching Rachael Ray coach Lou Diamond Phillips on her Celebrity Cook-Off reality show. It caught my ear because I’ve only recently discovered the wonderfulness of kale and have incorporated it into my diet almost daily.  It is a key ingredient in my morning super-nutritious juice and it goes into almost every soup I make these days.  With all the liquid and leaves going into my system during the week, I often feel I’ve just gotta have a crunch of something in the middle of the afternoon.  Since I’m trying to keep the carbs to a minimum (and mostly whole grain to boot), the idea of a crispy kale snack intrigued me.  Ms. Ray mentioned it was “so easy” to make, and that sealed the deal for me; I went googling to find recipes.  I found that some people make it more complicated than it needs to be.  I tried the simplest version (and the most popular) and my first batch was almost perfect.  It’ll take you about half an hour to whip this up.  I’m telling you right now: Make a double batch! If you have kids, these will disappear from the bowl in a flash!

Ingredients

1 bunch fresh kale
Olive oil
Kosher salt

Instructions

Thoroughly wash and dry the kale in cool water. It is important to dry the kale completely so it crisps rather than steams.  Remove the stems easily by circling your thumb and forefinger around the base and pulling the stem through.  Tear the leaves into pieces about 1 1/2 – 2 inches wide.

Put the leaves in a large bowl and drizzle with about 1/4 cup of olive oil (just enough to lightly coat the leaves) and sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon of Kosher salt (use just a little more if you have a large bunch of kale, but you don’t want these to be over salted).  Gently massage the oil into the leaves so that each leaf is completely coated.

Spread the coated leaves in a single layer on a baking sheet – preferably one without a non-stick coating.  Don’t let the leaves overlap at all.  You may need 2 baking sheets.  Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 20 minutes until the leaves are about half their size and the edges are just beginning to brown. When you remove them from the oven, they should be extremely delicate. Carefully scoop them up with a plastic spatula and drop them into a clean bowl or basket lined with a paper towel.

Here’s the most important thing to remember:  Keep your portion set aside before you call anyone else to the table! The papery crispiness is so satisfying and the salt seems to just make that automatic hand-to-mouth reflex kick in. We have the best-fed dog on the planet who was also very pleased that we were willing to share.  You can leave the bowl on the counter or the table all afternoon and they won’t get stale or soggy.  That is, if they last longer than 5 minutes.  I’d like to tell you how to store the leftovers, but I have no idea! Mine disappeared.

In truth, my first batch was a bit over salted, but they were still such a treat we just drank some more water with them.  That happened because I decided to sprinkle additional salt over the leaves before baking.  Since I couldn’t see the salt when I spread them on the baking sheet, I thought I hadn’t added enough.  Go lightly with the oil, too.  Remember these will be about half their size after baking and you don’t want them to be greasy.

If you try this, I would love to know what you thought of them!  Please leave a comment!

Your Daily Bread

²³ The desire of the righteous ends only in good;
   the expectation of the wicked in wrath.
²⁴ One gives freely, yet grows all the richer;
   another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.
²⁵ Whoever brings blessing will be enriched,
   and one who waters will himself be watered.
²⁶ The people curse him who holds back grain,
   but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.
²⁷ Whoever diligently seeks good seeks favor,
   but evil comes to him who searches for it.
²⁸ Whoever trusts in his riches will fall,
   but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
²⁹ Whoever troubles his own household will inherit the wind,
   and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.
³⁰ The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
   and whoever captures souls is wise.

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Sure, lots of people have a potato soup or potato-leek soup recipe.  But, I’d never had baked potato soup until I saw it on the Panera menu last winter.  There’s a difference, people.  A big difference.  When we had a significant number of baking potatoes left over from Christmas’ family dinner, I looked online for a recipe and found several.  From a number of them, I created this one.  It was ridiculously good and only got better over the next 2 days in the refrigerator.  If you’re a fan of twice-baked potatoes, this soup tastes like a liquid version of that!  The addition of a little red pepper sauce makes this soup unique and especially wonderful.  This recipe makes a large potful.  You can halve it if you’re not feeding a crowd or don’t want leftovers.

Ingredients

6 reduced sodium bacon strips, diced
1 large sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 Tbs flour
2 tsp salt
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
6 cups chicken broth (we use Swanson fat free, 33% less sodium)
6-8 large baked potatoes, cubed (leave the skin on half of them, peel the other half)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup low fat milk (1% or 2% – not skim)
1 tsp hot pepper sauce (Crystal Louisiana hot sauce is ideal.  Tabasco is too hot)
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions

In a large saucepan (6 quarts or larger), cook the bacon until crisp.  Drain and set aside.  Remove all but 2 Tbs of the drippings from the pot.  Saute the onions and garlic on medium high heat until tender.  Stir in the flour, alt, basil & pepper.  Mix well.  Gradually add the chicken broth.  Bring to a boil for 2 minutes, then add the potatoes, cream, and hot pepper sauce.  Heat through, but do not boil.  Crumble the bacon and stir it in.  Serve topped with shredded cheddar and fresh  minced parsley (optional).

Your Daily Bread

Proverbs 16:²⁰ Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers,
and blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD.

²¹ The wise in heart are called discerning,
and gracious words promote instruction.

²² Prudence is a fountain of life to the prudent,
but folly brings punishment to fools.

²³ The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent,
and their lips promote instruction.

²⁴ Gracious words are a honeycomb,
sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

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If you have never attempted to make your own pork sausage, you will certainly enjoy the higher quality product you can make yourself. Commercial producers grind up various cuts of pork, and add those mysterious chemical ingredients that are hard to pronounce. They generally don’t use freshly ground spices either, which makes a big difference. Even if you don’t have a kitchen stand mixer with a meat grinder/sausage stuffing attachment, you can still make this recipe using ground pork from your local supermarket and your food processor to grind the pork fat. Form it into patties for grilling, or use it in bulk in pasta recipes. I often find recipes that call for removing the casings from Italian sausages – using the meat in place of ground beef. No need to mess with making links if you don’t want to go to the trouble.

Basically, home sausage making involves procuring a cut of meat suitable for the purpose and grinding it in a meat grinder. Additional fat is typically added, along with spices. If you speak to the meat manager of your local supermarket, they’ll tell you that they throw away all the fat trimmed off of pork roasts. Ask them to set a few pounds aside for you, and freeze it for use as needed. A good meat manager won’t charge you for that.  You can procure hog casing from your local meat market or butcher (not supermarket) which is what you want to stuff your meat mixture into for sausage links.  If you haven’t made sausages before, there are many how-to videos on YouTube and elsewhere online. It really is not difficult.

As I experimented with sausage making, I discovered that despite the addition of fat to the recipe the sausages sometimes cook up a little dry instead of juicy and tender. After some research, I found that adding phosphate fixes that problem. This is a food grade additive that is available from the Ames Company (http://www.theingredientstore.com). Its inexpensive and makes a real difference in the final result. It helps the meat retain moisture during cooking.

Ingredients:

Hog Casings
1/4 tsp coriander seed, ground fresh
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp food grade phosphate additive mixed with ½ cup of water (we use Amesphos)
1 tsp fennel seed, ground fresh
2 tsp granulated garlic (we use Penzey’s)
2 tsp freshly ground tellicherry black pepper (Penzey’s India Special Extra Bold is highly recommended)
¾ Tbsp granulated sugar
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 ½ lb pork fat
1 tsp white peppercorns, freshly ground
2 tsp fennel seed, whole
4 lb boneless pork shoulder roast

Procedure:

Cut the pork shoulder and the pork fat trimmings into 1 ½ inch cubes. Spread the meat out on a sheet pan and pop it in the freezer for an hour or so. You want the meat to be almost frozen solid. Put your meat grinding equipment and bowl in the freezer as well. Everything needs to be kept very cold.

Grind the meat and pork fat, and return the ground meat to the freezer for a short time while you prepare the spices. If you do have a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to mix the ground meat and spices on slow speed until thoroughly mixed. Otherwise, manual mixing will just take a little longer. Its important to mix the spices with the meat as completely as possible. You’re done. Now, wasn’t that easy?

If you are not making links, you can divide the bulk sausage into 1 lb packages and freeze any amounts that you don’t plan to use in the next day or so. If you are making links, rinse out the hog casing with warm running water and stuff the meat mixture into the casing.  Twist into links and hang the sausage up to dry for 2 to 4 hours. Refrigerate for short term use, and cut off and freeze links that won’t be consumed within a couple of days. Here are some pictures of the process in our kitchen, but this is where it’s most helpful to watch a few videos before trying it for the first time yourself.

These are really good on the grill, and work very well in the usual array of pasta recipes. Impress your dinner guests!

Your Daily Bread

Luke 15:¹¹ Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. ¹² The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

¹³ “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶ He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

¹⁷ “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ ²⁰ So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

²¹ “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²² “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³ Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. ²⁴ For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

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I picked up a great cookie cookbook in World Market last December called “1 Dough 100 Cookies.” Even though I was coping with a broken hand and a cast that month,  I managed to get my holiday baking accomplished with the help of my sweet friend Jill.  Together, we made four cookie recipes in a single day, the “Apricot & Pecan” cookies from this cookbook among them.  I also like to peruse the imported and unusual food options at TJ Maxx around Christmastime, both to fill out my pantry and to stuff gift bags.  This year, I found some wonderful crystallized ginger from China.  I had another recipe that called for it, so I picked it up, but then I got the brilliant idea that a little crystallized ginger would make a pretty awesome cookie recipe even better.  Turns out my instincts were spot on!

The grated orange rind and minced dried apricot make this cookie delightfully bright in flavor and the shortbread texture makes it irresistible.  As soon as I had my cast removed, the first thing I did was make this recipe again.  I gave half the batch to Jill for a gathering at her home, sent a dozen to my pastor who had seen the picture I posted on Facebook and expressed his interest in tasting them, and…well…the rest pretty much went into my tummy.  I made a double batch both times, but unless you’re planning to share, I’m going to recommend against that for the sake of your waistline!  Let me know how your batch comes out in the comments!

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
scant 3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
grated rind of 1 orange
1/4 cup plumped dried apricots, minced
3 Tbs finely minced crystallized ginger
scant 1 cup finely chopped pecans
salt

Instructions

In a large bowl, sift together the flour and a pinch of salt.

Two great ways to prepare the pecans is to either put halves or pieces in a Ziplock freezer bag and pound them with a meat tenderizer’s flat side or pulse them carefully in a food processor until they are fine but take care not to turn them into meal.  You do want these very fine.  If they’re too large, they won’t stick to the dough well when you roll it in them.

In a separate mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.  Beat in the egg yoke and vanilla extract.  Slowly add the flour mixture on low speed.  Add the orange rind and apricot and mix on low until thoroughly combined.

Form the dough into a log about 2 inches in diameter and press the ends to flatten as much as possible.  Spread the pecans in a shallow pan or dish and roll the dough in the nuts until well coated.  Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

Arrange your oven racks on the top and bottom positions.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with baking parchment.

Unwrap the dough and cut into 1/4-inch slices or slightly thicker with a sharp knife.  If your slices are flat on the bottom, you can reshape them but avoid handling them excessively.  Put the slices on the prepared cookie sheets about 1/2 inch apart on all sides.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, switching the sheets half way through baking.  Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 10 minutes before carefully transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Store in an air-tight container for up to 10 days…if they last that long!

Your Daily Bread

Mark 1:¹ The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, ² as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:

“I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way”—
³ “a voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’”

⁴ And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵ The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. ⁶ John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷ And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. ⁸ I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

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Try this while its still winter. Its easy and satisfying, and when you cook slowly in the oven the flavors intensify while the meat gets nice and tender.

I’ve been disappointed many times with results from the ubiquitous slow cooker, particularly when trying to make a good stew. So I resorted to the old-fashioned method of braising in a dutch oven. Braising is essentially cooking slowly in the oven in a heavy lidded, cast iron pot which holds its temperature well and cooks very evenly. Slow cooking in the oven is actually faster than using slow cookers on your counter top, since the slow cookers usually run at about 185 to 250 degrees and take a long time to get up to speed. Putting boiling food into a pre-heated 300 degree oven starts off much warmer and takes less time to get results.

I have also been frustrated by the variable quality of stew beef from the supermarket. You really don’t know what you’re getting when you buy a package of beef for stewing, and often these are just pieces trimmed off various cuts of meat which may or may not be suitable for a good stew. If you spend the few extra minutes it takes to buy a good pot roast and cut it up, you will be much happier with the result. Buy any pot roast cut from the chuck.

Ingredients:

3 lb pot roast, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
fresh parsley
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
1 cup frozen cut green beans (we used french style this time, but the heartier cut is better for stew)
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 large carrots, sliced into ¼ inch rounds
1 cup dry red wine (we recommend Beaujolais – you don’t want the wine to be overpowering and this a fairly mellow variety)
1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups beef broth
dried thyme
bay leaves
flour
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spread the meat out on paper towels, and pat it dry with another layer of paper towels. Sprinkle the meat with a generous amount of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in your dutch oven until it is quite hot but not smoking. Brown the meat in batches over medium high heat, so that the meat isn’t crowded in the pot and can be turned easily as it is cooked. Put the browned meat aside in a bowl as it is cooked. Add an additional Tbsp of oil for the second batch of meat, but no more oil if you need 3 batches to finish browning.

Reduce the heat to medium, add another Tbsp of oil to the pan and add the onions. Cook until they are soft, then add the garlic and cook for another minute or so. Add 3 Tbsp of flour and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the wine, stir briefly, then add the broth while stirring constantly to fully dissolve the flour. Add 2 bay leaves and 1 tsp dried thyme. Bring just to boiling and add the reserved meat. Stir until the mixture starts to simmer, remove from the heat, and cover with the lid. Cook in the center of the oven for 1 hour.

Add the potatoes and carrots after the first hour of cooking, and continue cooking covered in the oven for an additional hour. Remove from the oven, add the green beans, replace the cover and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Mince enough parsley to equal ¼ cup while the dish is standing, then add the parsley just before serving. Taste for salt and adjust as needed. Remove the bay leaves and serve.

Your Daily Bread

Genesis 25: 19 This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac. Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean. 21 Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD.
23 The LORD said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.”
24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. 27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob. 29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.) 31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” 33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.