Moroccan Beef Stew

I made this stew this week after seeing the recipe in the Murfreesboro Daily News Journal. It was very easy and delicious. I substitued canned, petite diced tomatoes for the fresh ones. The first night we ate it over rice (couscous would be good also). The secondd night we ate the leftovers like a stew or soup, but by itself. The cilantro, cashew and sour cream are nice garnishes but not necessary for a great stew. Murfreesboro Daily News Journal 03/25/2015, Page B001

MOROCCAN BEEF STEW  2 tablespoons olive oil  1 pound lean beef, cut into 1-inch pieces  4 cloves garlic, minced  1 medium onion, chopped  4 tomatoes, chopped  1 teaspoon cumin  1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon ginger 1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon cinnamon 1 ⁄ 2teaspoon coriander 1 ⁄ 4 tsp cardamom  3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1 ⁄2-inch pieces1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed  1 ⁄ 4cup raisins  3 to 4 cups beef stock  1 ⁄ 4cup cashews, toasted  3 scallions, sliced thin  1 ⁄ 2cup cilantro, leaves only (reserving some for garnish) Salt and pepper, to taste Sour cream, optional Place olive oil in a large heavy saucepan and heat over medium-high heat.  Add beef and sautuntil brown no all sides, about 4 minutes.  Add garlic, onion, tomato and spices.  Sautfor another 2 minutes.  Add carrots, garbanzo beans, raisins, beef stock and cashews.  Continue to cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.  Add in the scallions and cilantro.  Taste and season with salt and pepper, as desired.  Serve over Basmati rice and top with sour cream, ifdesired. Enjoy!

Margaret's Sour Cream Pound Cake

Jerry's mother, Margaret, used to make this cake regularly. His dad, George loved it and it was usually available for sampling any time we went to their home. It is a very nice texture and flavor. The cake has lots of structure and body, and a yummy brown crust on top. The beaten egg whites are the leavening agent and make it slightly different from other pound cakes. It is excellent served alone, with fruit, chocolate sauce or ice cream. It is lovely on a pedestal cake plate for a party or shower. 

You can add lemon zest, or lavender flowers ground up  or almond flavoring to change the taste. But our family likes it just like it is, sweet and buttery.

Margaret Trousdale's Sour Cream Pound Cake

3 cups sugar
2 sticks (1 cup) butter softened
6 eggs, separated, whites beaten to soft peaks
3 cups flour, sifted
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 pint (1 cup) sour cream

1. Cream butter and sugar together until thoroughly mixed and fluffy.

2. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating after each egg on medium speed mixer.

3. Combine flour and soda. Add mixture alternately with sour cream to egg mixture.

4. Beat egg whites to stif peaks and then fold gently into the cake batter.

5. Pour batter into greased and floured tube or bundt pan.

6. Bake at 325 degrees for about 1 1/2 hours or until browned on top and cake tester comes out clean.

Lamb Stew in the Crockpot

4or 5 neck joints of lamb

1-2Tbsp coconut oil

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into one inch cubes

1onion, chopped

1-2cups baby carrots

5 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 cup red wine or brandy

1/2 cup water

2 Tbsp. tomato paste

1/2 tsp. thyme

2 tsp. dried rosemary

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper or to taste

Salt, Black Pepper to taste

1. Brown lamb in coconut oil then transfer them to the bottom of your crockpot set on high.

2. Cook onions, potatoes and carrots in the same pan until onions are translucent. 

3. Add garlic and cook until onions begin to have a slightly golden color. Add the thyme, cayeene pepper and rosemary.

4. Transfer all the vegatables to the crockpot.

5. Add the wine or brandy and water to the pan and deglaze it. Stir loose all the brown flecks left from the meat and veggies and bring to a boil.

6. Add the tomato paste and stir. Pour all the liquid into the crockpot.

7. Cook on high for 4 hours, until potatoes are done.

Serve with crusty french bread and a salad.

Or could be served with rice or couscous.

Pumpkin Stew

Today I brought in the pumpkins that i have used this fall on my front porch for decorations. There were 2 small ones and 3 medium ones. There are many things you can make from pumpkin- pies, cakes, breads, soups. These all take pureed pumpkin. When we were living in Sierra Leone they make a savory stew out of chunks of pumpkin, and it is delicious. I dont make it often because you can not buy raw pumpkin chunks except in the fall, and then you have to peel and cut your own. 

To prepare the pumpkins, i cut them into 4-5 inch sections, scoped out the pulp and seeds with a spoon, then peeled them. For the stew i set aside about 3 cups of 1 inch diced cubes. 

The rest of the pumpkin I cubed and boiled in a big pot until tender. Drain all the water off and let cool. Process in a blender or food processor until very creamy. I then poured the puree into a big skillet and cooked off alot of the water. This will make it easier to use after frozen and defrosted. If it is still watery after you remove it from the freezer, drain with cheese cloth or paper towels. Use like canned pumpkin.

Pumpkin Stew

2-3 cups diced raw pumpkin

3 Tbsp. oil

2 pounds cut up stew or faitja beef

1 large onion, chopped

1/2 small can tomato paste

3 boullion cubes

1/2 tsp. hot red pepper (optional)

Water

Salt, black pepper to taste

Rice

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet, add the pumpkin cubes and cook on medium high to slightly brown the pumpkin. Remove them from the pan and set aside. (I usually salt and pepper each item as I cook them, then when they are all put back together, taste and adjust the saltiness to taste. Do not over salt, because the boullion adds salt also.)

2.Add the beef cubes to the skillet and cook untill browned, but not crispy. Remove and set aside. 

3.Next, brown the onions slightly. Return the beef and pumpkins to the pan. 

Add enough water to almost cover the meat and pumpkins. 

4.Add the tomato paste and boullion cubes. Stir and let come to a boil. Add hot pepper powder to taste. Cook until the meat and the pumpkin are tender. If too watery, cook some of the water out.

5. Serve over rice.

Aunt Ann's Pickled Figs

 I thought I had shared this lovely recipe before, but it looks like I have not. When Jerry's Aunt Ann Edwards passed, my mother in law ended up with her recipe box. going through it, I found this recipe to pickle figs. i just happened to have figs everywhere and was searching for something to do with them. I had tried making fig wine- it was awful and went down the drain! I made fig jam, but my jam eater, Jerry, did not care for it. So I tried a batch of pickles. They are really easy to make and very good. They are similar to a pickled peach and are very tasty and festive at the holidays. They go very well with ham and roasted pork or chicken.

Aunt Ann's Pickled Figs

3 quarts figs, ripe but firm (stem can be off or on)

Boiling water

Syrup:

1 cup water

6 cups sugar

1 cup white vinegar

1 tablespoon whole allspice

1 tablespoon whole cloves

2 sticks of cinnamon (4 inches each)

1. Cover the whole figs with enough boiling water to cover them. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Drain and discard water.

2. Put all the ingredients for the syrup together in a sauce pan big enough to hold it and the figs. Ann's recipe says to put all the spices in a cheese cloth bag in the syrup, but I just let them float loose and divide them among the jars when canning.

3. Bring the syrup and the figs to a boil and boil for 10 minutes. Cover and let them sit in the pan and the syrup until the next day.

4. About the same time of day for 2 more days, bring the figs and syrup to a boil for 10 minutes. That makes 3 consecutive days to boil them.

5. On the third day, after boiling them, place the figs into sterile canning jars. Fill the jars with syrup, leaving 1/2 inch head room. Clean rims of jars. Place lids and rings on, hand tighten.

6. Process jars in a water bath that covers them, at least an inch above the tops. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes covered. Turn heat off, remove lid and wait 5 minutes. Remove from water bath and cool. Lids should pop if sealed. 

I usually get about 5-7 jelly jars per recipe.

Glazed Figs with Feta

The fig tree that my husband, Jerry, transplanted from our previous house to our present house is finally having a good crop this year. It is the third summer after transplanting it. Jerry has watered, feed and watched closely over his baby trees. Now it is paying off. 

So now, what to do with the figs? In previous years I have made Emeril Lagasse's fig chutney which is great with curry or other rice dishes. We also love Aunt Ann's pickled figs made by an old recipe I found in Jerry 's Aunt Ann Edward's recipes. They are delicious with ham or pork roast, especially at the holidays. Both of these recipes are on previous blogs. Today I did a quick fig treat to go with our dinner- Glazed Figs with Feta or Goat Cheese. I used feta (pictured below), it is cheaper and I had it on hand.

You can do this in no time, and use them for an appetizer, side dish or dessert. Give it a try if God is blessing your fig tree with abundant fruit.

Glazed Figs with Feta or Goat Cheese

Ripe but firm figs, stems removed and sliced in half

Honey, enough for a small dot on each fig

Feta cheese or goat cheese, a small piece for the top of each fig

Cooking Spray, such as Pam

1. Lightly spray a cookie sheet.

2. Place fig halves about an inch apart on the cookie sheet, sliced side up.

3. Spray surface of figs very slightly with cooking spray.

4. Put a drop of honey on the cut side of each fig. I spread it round a little with my finger to cover the top of each piece.

5. Broil on high until figs begin to bubble. Watch them very closely so as not to burn them. This will only take 5-7 minutes.

6. Remove cookie sheet from the oven and put a small piece of feta or goat cheese on top of each fig. 

7. Return figs to the oven and broil about 3-5 minutes longer to just soften the cheese. Watch them closely. If you use goat cheese, it will be creamer and melt quicker. But feta is cheaper and tastes great, also.

Summer Confetti Salad

As the summer is waning, Jerry and I have been trying to eat healthier and shed some of our "fluffiness". Jerry is way ahead of me and looking good. As I am looking for healthier recipes, I came across the one below on Epicurious.com. I love this app and daily recipe emails. You can save any recipe to your own recipe box for later reference.

This recipe is delicious, fresh tasting and keeps for a few days. Enjoy!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Summery-Confetti-Salad-51183680?mbid=ipap