Eggs Benedict

Kelani has been asking to have this for breakfast since eating it at The Epicurean in Steamboat Springs. Ours is the Turkish version as we did not make crab cakes nor did we have English muffins. We did enjoy though.

We took rye bread, spread it with dijon mustard, put on a couple of slices of a beef salami (no bacon here), then some slices of sweet onion, on top we put a mixture of hard cheese (like parmesan) and a sheep or goat feta. We then heated it up in the oven.

I poached the eggs (I need to work on that), placed on on top of the bread combo and added the Hollandaise sauce.

 Sauce Hollandaise- from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck

  

So that the egg yolks will thicken into a smooth cream, they must be heated slowly and gradually. Overcooking scrambles them. You may beat them over hot water or over low heat; it makes no difference as long as the process is slow and gentle.

For 1 to 1 ½ cups hollandaise- serving 4 – 6 people

• 6 to 8 ounces of butter ( to 1 cup or 1 ½ to 2 sticks)
• A small saucepan 

Cut the butter into pieces and melt it in the saucepan over moderate heat. Then set it aside.

• A 4 to 6 cup, medium weight, enameled or stainless steel saucepan
• A wire whisk
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Big pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon cold butter
• 1 tablespoon cold butter (one for the beginning one for the end)
• Salt and white pepper

Beat the egg yolks for about 1 minute in the saucepan, or until they become thick and sticky.
Add the water, lemon juice, and salt, and beat for half a minute or more.
Add the tablespoon of cold butter, but do not beat it in. Then place the saucepan over very low heat or barely simmering water and stir the egg yolks with a wire whisk until they slowly thicken into a smooth cream. This will take 1 to 2 minutes. If they seem to be thickening too quickly, or even suggest a lumpy quality, immediately plunge the bottom of the pan in cold water, beating the yolks to cool them. Then continue beating over heat. The egg yolks have thickened enough when you can begin to see the bottom of the pan between strokes, and the mixture forms a light cream on the wires of the whisk.

 Immediately remove from heat and beat in the cold butter, which will cool the egg yolks and stop their cooking.

 Then beating the egg yolks with a wire whisk, pour on the melted butter by droplets or quarter-teaspoonfuls until the sauce begins to thicken into a very heavy cream. Then pour the butter a little more rapidly. Omit the milky residue at the bottom of the butter pan.

 Season the sauce to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Mango Salsa- in memory of "family"

The vegetable market is absolutely fantastic at the moment. Peaches are on the way out, okra is starting to make an appearance. The tomatoes are beautiful- I think they are summer tomatoes, they have beautiful tomatoes here year round, it is just the shape and slight change in the taste.
So on Saturday, I went a little overboard at the market. We had gone the week before but due to the end of Ramadan/Ramajan it was closed. I am safe in the candy store- but the vegetable market- watch out! We had a Turkish speaking friend this trip, for the first time so I got to learn a little more (more quickly), so now know where to get the dried fruits (without sulfur) and nuts, and a good place for a snack. And the place I always go for spinache- he told my friend that I was his big sister (that made me feel old).

Marinated eggplant is posted. I will have to test the others tomorrow as I did not have all the ingredients for the recipe and improvised.
So I am posting the Mango Salsa, which I got from my friend Ann S.C. in Peru. I have been thinking about her wonderful family and the fun dinners we had, and just learned that her father passed very recently. So here is something which is wonderful for family/friend gatherings. You can use it as a dip, or throw it in the lasagna.

Mango Salsa

3 cups of mango (or pineapple) chopped small
1 cup white onion chooped small
1 cup red bell pepper
¼ cup aji Amarillo- minced
¼ cup rocoto pepper- minced, that would be a spicy bell pepper, sub something spicy
1/3 cup cilantro- minced
2 cloves of garlic- minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger- minced
1/3 cup lemon/lime juice
1 tablespoon cumin powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate.
From Ann St. Clair

Peach Orange Marmalade- for Mom

For Mom from Ilga
Ilga’s Peach Orange Marmalade
Mom asked for one of my grandma’s recipes (I have her recipe box). I think I found it.




12 peaches
4 oranges
1 cup water
2 cups sour apples diced
Sugar

Peal and slice peaches. Cut the peel of 2 oranges into shreds. Squeeze the juice from all 4 oranges.

Cook the peaches, apples and orange shreds with the water until tender.

Add juice and measure. Use cup for cup of sugar. Cook until thick.

If my grandmother had written this for me instead of herself, she would have added some more details (like "this takes patience Terie" plus a little more). Cook until thick is a little ambiguous for me, I know what thick is for custard, but for marmalade I only know what is in the grocery store...

I had to add 8 cups of sugar to my mixture, which created a full pot that eventually boiled over. I then took the solids and put them through the food processor, then re-added them to the liquid and cooked it until it was "thick" (but not as thick as custard).

Now I need to get canning jars..

Pavlova

the perfect summer time dessert- light melt in your mouth meringue with fresh fruit and lemon (or lime or passion fruit) curd.

The Pavlova
5 egg whites
2 pinches salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup sugar with 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed in
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice (I use a little more).

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F or 150 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Beat the egg whites with the salt until they begin to form soft peaks. Gradually add the 1 cup of sugar (about a tablespoon at a time) beat until stiff peaks are formed. Fold in the remaining sugar cornstarch mixture and the lemon juice.

Put the mixture on the parchment paper in a circle. Bake in the oven for 1 hour. Turn off the oven and let the meringue sit in the oven for another hour.

"Lemon" Curd
I prefer to use passion fruit (lilikoi or maracuya) but cannot always find it. This time I used limes as I find them a bit stronger than lemons.

5 egg yolks and one egg
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup "lemon" juice
1/4 cup butter
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Slowly heat them on the stovetop until the mixture thickens. Place in bowl and cover with plastic and refridgerate.

Note: I forgot the butter when I made this over the weekend, and it still was great.
Putting it all together

1 cup heavy whipping cream
mixture of various fruits- strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas, kiwi- you may want to mix in a little orange juice to keep them fresh

Whip up the cream and combine with the curd. Carefully spread the curd mixture over the top of the cooled Pavlova. Top with your fruits. Enjoy!

Garlic Ranch

From Cooking From the Heart with Sam Choy

3 cloves garlic- I use more and the fresh garlic is the best
1/2 cup minced onion (put in micro for 30 secs if friends can't eat raw onions)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar (I mix rice vinegar and balsamic when I don't have red wine vinegar)
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp dry mustard (I use wet dijon)
1 Tbsp fresh oregano, minced
1 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

Mix all ingredients until well mixed and chill.

Good for salad dressing or dip for vegtables.

Apologies

My hard drive was corrupt and replaced. However, when they replaced it they did not include all the "stuff" that was on the original. Thus, I have no word processing program. I am trying to post, but am much slower without my MS word.

Freezing Fruit

The International Counselor wanted to know about freezing fruit. I have not thought about it, but here it goes.

I usually buy more fruit than we can eat, as it all looks so good. For peaches and strawberries I usually freeze the excess. For raspberries, apricots, and cherries I make preserves to put on toast in the morning (or inside a quesadilla).

I clean and cut up the fruit before it is too ripe. I put the fruit in plastic bags designed for freezing- that keeps the freezer burn out. When I am ready to use the fruit, I take it out of the freezer and place the bag in a bowl or on paper towels (there will be condensation). The fruit is also good in smoothies- you can pack your little bags for smoothies too.

Luckily for me, my freezer consists of two drawers, so it is much easier to store things. For the freezer that things get thrown into, you may want a rectangular Tupperware container to keep your bags of fruit in so that they do not wander away.