Basics

Corn Cakes

Details: Category: Basics; Hits: 60

Corn Cakes
(Makes @8-10)

1½ cups fine yellow corn meal
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tblsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1¾ cups buttermilk
1 large egg
1 Tbsp olive oil or vegetable oil
1 Tbsp honey

NOTES: I like making savory pancakes by topping the pancakes with shredded cheese and sliced chilies, flip over after a few minutes of cooking on medium heat, serve with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with chives. You could also bake them in a muffin tin adding a wide variety of extras like cheese, ham, crumbled bacon, sausage, fried potatoes, sautéed vegetables, (Your only limited by your imagination), bake at 350 F. for 10 minutes.

Mix the wet ingredients separately and then mix the dry ingredients separately, then combine the two mixes.

In a medium low pan add some vegetable oil until it heats up, pour enough batter to make a round pancake, they can be anywhere from 2 inches across to 4 inches. Fry until you can see the center of the cakes have the tell-tale sunken batter holes, about 2 to 2½ minutes each side depending on the heat and what your pan is made of.

Remove from pan and dab on a paper towel if needed and serve.

Royal Icing

Details: Category: Basics; Hits: 85

Royal Icing
(Makes enough!)

4 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tblsp meringue powder
10 tblsp room temp. water
Gel Food Coloring (optional for colored icing)

NOTES: You can use this royal icing on sugar cookies, gingerbread men, or as the glue for a gingerbread house. Place any leftover icing into zip top freezer bags, squeezing the air from it before storage of up to two months. If you're wondering why add the meringue powder, it helps in the following ways: Stabilization, Improved Texture, Drying Time, Consistency Control, Shine and Finish, Extended Shelf Life, Reduced Risk of Salmonella.

Mix the three ingredients together using an electric whisk, the consistency should be thick enough to drip from the whisk after about 5 seconds. You can adjust the icing's consistency by adding either more confectioners sugar or water.

Sofrito

Details: Category: Basics; Hits: 257

Sofrito
(Makes @43 oz)

5 medium white onions, diced
5 cloves of garlic
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
½ cup olive oil
2 oz tomato paste

NOTES:

Add olive oil to a medium low heated pan, add everything but the tomato paste and saute until soft and carmelized lightly, about 30 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and heat for another 5 minutes.

Croutons

Details: Category: Basics; Hits: 272

Croutons
(Serves 12)

1 baguette, day old bread, (about 2 cups), cut off the crusts
½ tsp granulated garlic (or you can use 1 clove of fresh garlic, minced)
½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
½ tsp onion powder
2 tsp fresh herbs, minced, like thyme, parsley and rosemary
2 tblsp melted unsalted butter or olive oil
1 tblsp parmesan cheese, grated

NOTES: You can use fresh bread, or even sandwich bread or sour dough. I pop these in my mouth as a snack, they're that good! The parmesan cheese should be grated fresh with a micro planer or the smallest grid on your grating device!

Pre-heat oven to 325°F. On a sheet tray

Cut your crustless bread into cubes about ¾ inch in size. Set aside.

Add the olive oil or melted butter to a large bowl, then add the spices, herbs and cheese, mix well, dump in all the bread cubes quickly and mix quickly so the oil/butter does not only get into the the first bread cubes that landed on it! Mix, mix, mix!

On a sheet tray, spread out the saturated bread cubes and place in the oven. check every 5 minutes and flip over the cubes with a spatula. When they are golden turn off the oven and remove to cool in a bowl, about 15-20 minutes. Store in an airtight container on your counter, for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for a month.

Basics

Basics

Corn Cakes

Royal Icing

Sofrito

Croutons

More Articles ...