Operation Garden Beds: Almost complete.

The days are growing longer, there aren't as many dark, depressing clouds hanging over; its like emerging from Gollum's cave. I love the Northwest, but I'm finished with it getting dark at 4pm.

We've been busy fixing up the house and now its time to spend some time outside. Our roommate is a carpenter and built us these amazing cedar gardening beds. We have two built right now for vegetables and herbs and he's working on building two smaller ones for berries. My husband has his heart set on raspberries and marionberries.

So we started by digging out all of the grass where the garden beds were going, since grass is a weed and we don't want it to grow up thru the beds. Also the ground here is very clay rich and we want to make sure there is proper drainage. Our roommate made the beds and we just placed them in the holes. We still have two holes in the backyard, for the berry beds, but it looks like we're digging graves right now. Our neighbors already think we're weirdos, so  what the heck. Here are some pics of our progress.

Beds all finished and ready for planting!

Lumber all cut and ready to be assembled. 

Garden bed No. 1

The backyard before we dug it all up.

Blackberry Lemon Scones

Blackberries grow wild all over my neighborhood, during August and September and I love to pick a ton and freeze them. They are a little too tart for me, for basic eating, but they work great for baking. I've made loads of pies, but this is my first time using them in scones. Loving that its spring time!

Ingredients:

Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into chunks
1 cup frozen blackberries, thawed and rinsed
1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
Zest from half a large lemon
Juice from half a lemon

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Shift together the dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter in the flour mixture, till coarse crumbs appear. Fold in the berries. Create a well in the middle of the batter and pour in the cup of heavy cream. Fold the cream into the batter, till incorporated. Don't over mix.

3. Place the batter on a lightly floured surface and press into a rectangle. Cut the rectangle in half and  then half again, till you have 8 triangles. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet. Lightly brush with the cream. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly golden brown. Let the scones cool on a wire rack.

4. Place the powder sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice in a small bowl. Mix with a spoon till all lumps are gone. Spread over the cooled scones and let harden for about 30 minutes.

Shift the dry ingredients. 

Place the cold butter chunks with the dry ingredients.

Cut the butter with a pastry cutter.

Cut till coarse crumbs appear.

Add the berries.

Fold them into the batter.

Create a well and add the cream. Fold till just incorporated.

Place the batter on a lightly floured surface and form a rectangle.

Cut into 8 triangles.

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Brush with a little bit of cream.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice.

Coat the scones with the glaze.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Strawberry Jam

There is nothing like having something sweet, as a mid afternoon pick-me-up. These cookies will stay moist and delicious, if stored in an air-tight container. I got this recipe from the Weeknights with Giada cookbook.

Makes 10-12 (4-inch) cookies

Ingridents:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, beaten, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup strawberry jam

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or use non-stick pans.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

3. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, peanut butter, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, and all of the brown sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the egg and vanilla, and mix until blended. With the machine running on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.

4. Put the remaining 1/4 granulated sugar into a small bowl. Form the dough into 1/4-cup balls and roll in the sugar. Arrange 5-6 balls of dough, evenly apart, on each baking sheet. Using a round 1/4-teaspoon measure, or the thin end of a wooden spoon, make an indentation in the center of each ball of dough, about 1/2 to 3/4 inch deep. Spoon 1 teaspoon of jam into each depression.

5. Bake the cookies for 11 to 14 minutes, until the dough has spread and the surface of the cookies is cracked. The cookies may seem soft, but don't be tempted to bake longer, they will harden as they cool. Cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes.

Shift together, cocoa, flour, baking soda and salt.

Place in bowl and set aside.

Place butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar in a mixing bowl.

MIx for about 30 seconds.

Add beaten egg.

Add vanilla and mix till combined.

With mixer running on low, slowly add the cocoa-flour mixture.

Mix till incorporated.

Make 10-12 balls of dough and roll in sugar.

Place evenly on cookie sheet and make a small indentation with the back of a measuring spoon.

Fill the indentation with strawberry jam.

Bake for about 11-14 minutes. Let rest for about 5 minutes on baking sheet. Then move to cooling rack. Enjoy!

Popovers - aka the best rolls ever!

I have fond memories of eating these delicious rolls at a restaurant in Minnesota. They are light and eggy and are just down-right amazing! I recently came across a popover pan at a Goodwill and felt inspired to bake up some memories. My husband has never heard of a popover, let alone ate one before and loved them. You can make them as a dinner roll, for breakfast, whenever!

Makes 12 popovers

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, plus more for buttering the pan
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups milk, at room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Generously butter the pans. You'll need enough pans to make 12 popovers. Place the pans in the oven for 2 minutes to preheat.

3. In a bowl, whisk together the melted butter, flour, salt, eggs and milk. The batter will be thin. Fill the preheated pans half-way with the batter.

4. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm immediately.

Butter the popover pans generously. Popover pans are deeper then your standard muffin tin. You will need these types of pans or else your popovers won't bake correctly.

Add the flour, salt, milk, eggs and melted butter to a bowl.

Whisk together.

Preheat the pans for two minutes in heated oven,

Add the batter. Only fill half way.

They turned out super light and fluffy. So easy to make!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!! Corned Beef

Hope you're all wearing green today, because everyone is Irish on March 17! I love this holiday. Being almost 100% Irish, I've always enjoyed going about my day and seeing everyone wearing green and being cheerful. My Dutch husband also loves this day for another reason: corned beef. I usually make it a few times around this day and he never gets tired of it. Corned beef is super easy and you can easily make it in a crockpot as well.

Ingredients:

2-3 pound corned beef brisket
1 spice packet (usually comes with the corned beef package)
salt and pepper
2 cups water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove brisket from package and dry with paper towels.

2. Place the brisket in a dutch oven, fat side up. Add the water, till the brisket is surrounded by 1 inch of water. Sprinkle the spice packet all over brisket. Add some fresh cracked pepper and a pinch of salt. Be very lite on the salt, since the brisket is already cured and has salt in it.

3. Cover the dutch oven and place in the preheated oven. Roast for about 2 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven, remove the lid and turn up the oven to 375 degrees. Place back in the oven for 10 minutes more.

4. Remove from oven and let rest for about 20 minutes. Slice and enjoy!

Place in pot, fat side up.

Add water, spices, salt and pepper and through in the oven.

Boil some cabbage while the brisket is resting.

Slice and enjoy!

Guinness Ice Cream

In gearing up for St Patrick's Day, I decided to make an adult dessert, with one of Ireland's most famous beverages. 

Ingredients:

4 large egg yolks at room temp

3/4 cup sugar

3 tbsp milk powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 cup milk

2 cups heavy cream

8 ounces Guinness Stout

1. In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar. Beat for about 2 minutes till the egg yolks are pale and fluffy. 
2. Add the milk powder, vanilla and salt and mix till they are thoroughly combined. 
3. In a medium saucepan, scald the milk by bringing it a boil. Remove the pan from the heat. With whisk in hand, pour a little hot milk into the egg mixture and whisk well. Continue to pour in a little milk at a time until you have achieved a smooth consistency. 
4. Measure the cream and have it ready.
5. Pour the custard back into the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a spoon. Cook until the custard has thickened, about 3 minutes and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and immediately add the cream. Stir to combine, then using a fine mesh strainer, strain the custard into another clean bowl. Straining removes any lumps that may have accrued in heating the custard. Add 8 ounces of the Guinness Beer and mix throughly.
6. Cover the custard and place in the refrigerator and let cool overnight. The custard must be cold for the next step.
7. Put the ice cream maker in the freezer, if yours requires it. 
8. The next day, pour the mixture into the ice cream maker. Time varies with all ice cream makers, but should take about 30 minutes. You want the ice cream to freeze until its thick enough to stand a spoon up in. 
9. As soon as your ice cream is finished, immediately place it in a container with a lid and place it in the freezer. I prefer to use the Tolovo container, it minimizes the potential for freezer burn and it fits great in the freezer. Freeze for at least 6 hours or overnight, so that it can set probably. 
10. Scoop in your favorite bowl and top with whip cream or by itself. Enjoy!

So delicious!

Mix the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl. 

Place the milk on the stove and start heating.

Mix the yolks and sugar together thoroughly. 

Next add the milk powder, salt and vanilla.

Slowly add the heated milk to the custard.

Mix, mix!

Place the custard back on the stove and heat for another few minutes, till it thickens.

Remove from heat and whisk in the cream.

Add 8 ounces of the stout and whisk.

Strain into another bowl and place in the refrigerator. Chill till completely cold.

Pour the ice cream into the chilled ice cream maker.

Run the machine till the ice cream thickens, like soft serve, about 30 minutes.

Place in a container and freeze overnight, till the ice cream sets.

Serve and enjoy!