Family Food for Feast and Feria

I've been neglecting my food blog. I visit here often, because I have found it so convenient to print out my recipes, and not have to search around. But I haven't been very creative in the kitchen, so I haven't added to the blog.

But for those that are tired of seeing blueberries on the top venue, this post is for you. ;-)

I have to mention that I've decided blogging is the best thing for me. Why? Because when I write down my plans and/or the events of the feast days, I can remind myself next year what I did. It was nice to see last year's events, and easy for me to remember what cake recipe I actually did make for the lamb.

I'm keeping meals at basic for the Triduum. After seeing Joanna Bogle on Feasts and Seasons, it made me want Hot Cross Buns, which I may buy from the grocery store. I preferred her recipe which had a flour and water cross, but the whole bun had a sugar glaze. The local ones just have icing crosses, which seem less penitential. But Mrs. Bogle said having the buns on Good Friday, even with their spicy sweetness makes that day special. It's a special food only eaten on that day (although she did mention some serve the buns on Easter morning, too).

She also mentioned something about being in the kitchen more during holydays, such as Holy Week than the rest of the year. I've been feeling guilty that I bake only during these times, that it's not a good representation of my life, and I worried I was detracting from the feast. But she said just the opposite -- spending the extra time making these treats for the holy days marks the time and food as special, unique. She said it more eloquently, but it made me feel more confident to continue.

Tonight I'm serving roast beef and mashed potatoes. We'll rushing out to get a good seat for the Mass of the Lord's Supper, but we'll try to do similar to last year.

We're spending Easter Sunday at my mother's. Her meal will be roast beef, mashed potatoes, corn, asparagus, green salad, rolls, and I will bring the Lamb Cake for dessert.

I'm making two cakes, one allergy safe for my son. I can't praise enough the mixes from The Cravings Place. These are the best egg, dairy, and gluten free mixes ever. Trust me, I can't make something this good from scratch. We've now had the brownies and chocolate cake mix. Yummy, even for those who don't have to abstain from certain foods.

Easter Monday, part of the Octave of Easter, when each day is Easter Sunday all over again. I'll be serving up Ham with Spirit Glaze. I love serving ham. It makes me feel frugal, when I can whip up several meals and lunches from one ham. It also is one of my son's favorite meals.

And now to work....

Christ is risen, Alleluia! He is risen, indeed, Alleluia!

My mother hosted our Easter family celebration this year. For the main meal, she decided to have roast beef and ham, and I offered to bring the ham and bake it for her. I think I've mentioned this before, but many glazes on hams have allergens, particularly wheat. Some hams have injected juices, so it's important to read labels before buying ham.

I bought one at Costco. I follow the reheating instructions, 325 degrees at 8 minutes per pound, but I do not use the glaze packet, instead I follow the recipe from the old version of Joy of Cooking for Spirit Glaze for Ham. This is really taste, keeps the ham moist, and is my family's favorite. When serving dinner, the question came "Is this Jenn's ham? Allright!"

Spirit Glaze for Ham

1/2 to 1 cup dry red wine
1/2 to 1 cup bourbon whiskey (I use Maker's Mark)
1/2 to 1 cup brown sugar
6 bruised cloves
2 tablespoons grated orange peel

Heat all ingredients in a small saucepan until sugar is melted. Pour over the ham and baste throughout the cooking cycle, about every 15 minutes.

The best thing about ham is that it can do double or triple duty for meals. So this ham was part of our Easter feast on Sunday, then a repeat meal on Easter Monday at home. On Wednesday we had Red Beans and Rice, one of my favorites.

I had huge success for my lamb cake this Easter, and really I have to give all credit to Elizabeth Foss, since she shared her recipe on the Easter Menu discussion from the 4RealLearning Forums. I have a different cake mold than the Wilton version, but the recipe and directions worked out perfectly. I had no breakage, no floppy cake. The cake itself was firm but moist and tasty. The decorator icing was delicious...a bit on the sweet side, but that's typical for decorator icing. I used the No. 21 tip and made stars to recreate the fluffy lamb's wool. I used jellybeans for the eyes and mouth, dyed coconut green and sprinkled on the top of the base to recreate grass.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for sharing your family's secrets. I'm reproducing the recipe so I can keep it for my records (every year I forget what I did the last time).

Pound Cake:

1 1/2 cups butter
1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese
2 3/4 cups sugar
6 eggs
3 cups cake flour
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Have all ingredients at room temperature.
Beat butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat eggs, one at a time. Sift flour and add to batter. Add vanilla; mix well.
Place batter into a greased and floured pan; follow Wilton baking instructions.

I didn't need to double the recipe. The leftover batter was enough to fill one 10 inch layer to use as the base for the lamb. Next year I might double to make a layer cake. The pan cooked much more quickly than the lamb, so watch that carefully.

I didn't ice right away. From my decorating class I had the recommendation to wrap up the cake in many layers of plastic wrap and then freeze the cake. I do believe I was supposed to "crumb" the cake, which was to put a thin layer of frosting all over the cake before freezing, but I skipped that part. The freezing would make the cake firm for decorating and keep it moist.

Hazelnut Frosting

1/2 cup Shortening
1/2 cup Butter
5 cups Confectioner's Sugar
4 Tbsp. Frangelico (or more to get the right consistency)

Cream butter and shortening with mixer for 3 minutes on high speed. Add Frangelico. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. Mix on high speed for 5 minutes.

I did double this recipe and had only a little leftover. I LOVED the Frangelico addition. I think next time I might add a pinch of salt to cut the sweetness, but I'll have to think that one over.

I used decorator bags, which turned out to be hard for me to squeeze. Next year I'm going to try to use a Decorator, perhaps like the one from Pampered Chef, which will not require as much thumb movement.

I ran into some friends (a married couple) one Friday this Lent and we started discussing what kinds of meatless meals we served in the family. Usually a Friday meant tunafish, either tuna salad or tunafish casserole (with rice, not noodles). The husband is Italian, and his family grew up with beans and rice for Friday meals...but not the Louisiana Red Beans and Rice that I love to make, but an Italian version. I pestered for a recipe of sorts and made it this Good Friday.

Italian Rice and Beans

Marinara sauce (I followed Giada's without the carrots
Cannellini Beans (canned is an option)
Rice

First you make the marinara sauce, let it simmer, then add cannellini or any other beans. If using canned, make sure you drain and rinse the beans well. Add some water or stock and let it simmer up to an hour. Season to taste as you go along. Don't let it become too thick, add some liquid periodically.

Cook the rice separately (I use short grain), until it is about done, or al dente. Add the rice to the bean and tomato mixture. The rice will absorb the sauce so add near the end, close to serving.

This was so tasty. My only change would be to use dried beans instead of canned...or find another brand. The beans were a bit mealy, and I like them to be a bit firmer. But I know dried would require some extra steps and time.

On my other blog I've talked about planning the Holy Thursday meal. Should I or should I not have a Seder meal? I know it's a week later, but I thought I would share our menu.

I decided to not do an official Seder, but just incorporate elements that would remind us of Jesus' Last Supper, and the reading and Gospel from the Mass of the Lord's Supper.

Holy Thursday Dinner Menu:
Lamb Chops with Artichoke Hearts (Reminder of the Passover Lamb, and Christ the Paschal Lamb)
Mashed Potatoes (allergy free)
Spinach (reminder of the bitter herbs)
Applesauce (reminder of the Charoses, the bricks and mortar in Egypt)
Bread (reminder of the Unleavened Bread and the Eucharist)
Grapes (reminder of the wine and Blood of Christ)
Dessert (Because it's a festive day in the eyes of the Church)

As a family of three, with a messy 3 year old, we rarely eat in our dining room. But I set the table with a white tablecloth, our china and silver, even for our son. I made a resolution to make sure I do this more often with just us, because my son asked "Are people coming over for dinner?" when he saw the table.

Since dh and I don't really have a taste for lamb and we're a small family, I only made a few lamb chops (frozen from Trader Joe's). The recipe I used was Lamb Chops with Artichoke Hearts, without the olives and tomatoes. It was quite easy and tasty, although it didn't cover up the lamb aftertaste.

Since we were leaving for the Mass that evening, we didn't have wine. We read from the book of Exodus 12:1-20 is read —the story of the first Passover before the meal. We also washed feet, reading John 13:1-17. We also talked about the events that happened with Christ that night, using some picture books to tell the story.

This was just a simple meal, but it was wonderful in preparing our son for the Mass that evening. He recognized the white vestments, like our tablecloth, heard the bells and triumphant singing, watched as Father washed the men's feet, followed Father as he took the Blessed Sacrament to the Altar of Repose.

Was my son well-behaved thoughout? No. It was a struggle through the whole night, wanting to talk, play and wiggle. He was loud, and we had to take him out several times. Dh and I weren't able to enter very deeply into the Mass. But it still was a beautiful Mass, and a wonderful experience for ds.

I'm a week late, but I thought I would share our Ash Wednesday meatless fare. In our family we are meatless on Fridays and Ash Wednesday. I'm striving to add one more day of meatless meals during Lent (and perhaps throughout the year), aiming for a legume meal. Usually we do some kind of fish.

I need to get over my fear of beans. It can be easy to create a delicious meal without eggs, dairy or wheat. Vegan recipes have all sorts of ideas. I do worry of too much fume producing meals, but once a week is not "too much."

This Ash Wednesday I found a recipe in Celebrating the Faith: Lent and Easter in the Christian Kitchen by Laurie Navar Gill and Teresa Zepeda. Mrs. Gill's reasoning behind this dish: "This is a tasty dish, but in my opinion, canned black beans with their purplish liquid are fitting for this day of sackcloth and ashes." She even slips a tiny teaspoon of ashes from the burned palms after it is all cooked. It doesn't change the taste, but another Lenten reminder.

I highly recommend this cookbook, especially if you've got food allergies and can't seem to find inspiring meatless meals that don't incorporate cheese. But the cookbook has more than abstinent menuse. There are also other Lenten ideas, bread recipes, Holy Week and Easter Season recipes.

We found this meal tasty, and even better the next day, and I only made a few changes. The spices and veggies reminded me of tacos, so I served this with taco shells and brown rice. It serves 8, so next time I'll cut down the portions for my family!

Black Beans and Rice

3 cans black beans
1 green pepper, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
4 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup picante sauce
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
a few dashes Tabasco sauce
Cooked brown rice

In a family size skillet, heat olive oil and then saute carrots for 3 minutes. Add peppers, onions, garlic, celery, picante sauce, water, and spices, mix together and cover. Cook for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse beans, add to skillet, cook 5 more minutes. Serve over rice and/or in taco shells.

The party is over. Dh's birthday on Saturday, and yesterday hosting my family's Epiphany party, with 14 adults and 12 children under the age of 9, I'm a bit exhausted. But I thought I would mention our baking highlights:



My husbands enjoys football, and is a big Penn State and Pittsburgh Steeler fan. I decided to splurge and purchase this Stadium Bundt Pan. He loves cake, and has fond memories of his mother's fancy decorated birthday cakes, so I thought he might enjoy this.

He really did. I used the Kahlua Cake recipe. It makes 9 cups of batter, but in the future I'll only put 8 cups in the cake, as I had an overflowing lava of a mess and quite a smell in my house. But the cake was still good. I sprinkled the powder sugar and it looked like a stadium at a snow game. We're very wishful for snow around here.

Yesterday was Epiphany and our family celebration. The day before I made our King Cake. This recipe makes two rings, and I did a few changes, as I was short of energy and time. I had to let the bread dough rise several times, because I just didn't have free time to roll it out.



And rolling this dough out takes time. I have never been able to reach the dimensions of 15 x 30 inches, so I don't. I think I did about 22-25 inches long. I doubled the amount of the filling. The first ring, I mixed the melted butter with the sugar combo, accidentally omitted the granulated sugar. I spread the filling all over the dough (didn't divide into strips) and then rolled it like a cinnamon roll. My ring wasn't perfect, but it's oh, so tasty!



The other ring I made another batch of filling without mixing the butter and this time including the granulated sugar. I melted the butter, brushed it on the dough, and cut it in half, into two strips. I think put the filling, closed the edges and "braided" the two. It was easier than three, as I could keep the strips closed and not lose as much filling. I still struggle with the edges, so that the ring closes, but I was so pressed for time. I did the egg wash and colored sugar.

The cake is best served warmed with a bit of butter on the sliced piece. Yummy!


Last, but of course not least, was my first attempt at this Allergy Free King Cake. Don't be aghast, but I used Crisco and store-bought icing, added Jelly-Bellys and Sour Lifesavers for decoration. My flour changes were 1/2 cup barley flour, 3/4 cup oat flour, 1/4 cup potato starch, 1/4 tapioca starch, 1/4 cup corn starch and a small amount of soy lecithin and xanthum gum. The taste is delicious, although my version was a bit dry and crumbly. I would remove about a 1/4 cup of flour combination or maybe add a bit more shortening.

My son mainly enjoyed the candies and frosting, but enjoyed nonetheless and was thrilled to have his own cake.

I attempted substituting allergy safe ingredients for our speculaas cookies. I only made a half batch. The resulting dough was tasty, but the cookie didn't hold their shape when baking. The results looked like lace cookies, spread out and with holes.

So you can learn from my mistakes, here are the ingredients:

1 cup Spectrum shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 Tofutti sour cream
1/4 tsp. soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup corn starch

I omitted the nuts. The dough was very close to consistency and taste of the original.

But he had fun rolling and cutting....

and tasting!

So success with taste and fun, but failure at baking. Two out of three isn't that bad!

I haven't forgotten about my cooking blog, it's just that we do so much traveling in the fall that I don't have much creativity in the kitchen. Now that Advent has begun, I have begun to pull out the recipes for our family traditions.

I realized how little I've been baking when I mixed the dough for the speculaas cookies last night, preparing for our St. Nicholas Cookie Baking Party tonight. I really love the taste of those cookies. I only bake them once a year, and every year I think I'll be tired of them...and I'm not. We substitute all butter for the lard, so it's 2 cups of butter. Rich, tasty and once a year indulgence!

I have to admit that baking is now a bittersweet time for me. So much joy and memories come from baking certain recipes...and I am saddened to think that some things I may never be able to share with my son. I pray that he will outgrow the food allergies, but he might not. And I think of how many people never will lose their allergies. I don't like placing importance in food, but family time and traditions are usually around meals and dessert.

I am attempting an allergy free version of this speculaas, and will post with the results later.

Subtitled: Birthday Cake Trial, Take 3.

It's nice to have a few feast days before my son's birthday, so I can have an excuse to bake some trial cakes. Oh, I know, I can bake any time that I want. But I like extra motivation. I enjoy having a Purpose to bake.

So I tried again today. My son has made it clear that chocolate is not what he desires, so a yellow or vanilla cake is on the testing block today.

So far, so good. We'll ice it and serve tonight and get my dh's verdict. In trying to find a comparable birthday cake recipe both dh and I feel a frustration that no cookbooks really give a good description on what the final product of the cake will be. There really should be a rating system, on the scale of 1-10, 10 being best, of what the cake compares to non-substitute type cake. I don't want to get my hopes up in seeing a title for "Yellow Cake" and realize that with all the substitutes I am going to have a flat, brown, dry, crumbly, or gooey cake...or worse, inedible. Don't tell me that cooking with legume flour is yummy -- to me, I can taste it, and I don't like it. I learned my lesson the hard way. But I digress.

For the feast of the Triumph of the Cross, I am making a cross cake. I baked the cake in my new Pampered Chef stoneware 9x13 pan. That helps to prevent the sticking and gives even baking...a plus for all the downsides of no egg, dairy or wheat. Then cut the cake in half lengthwise. Cut the other half into two pieces. In a tray or covered cookie sheet place the large half of the cake in the center. Place the smaller pieces one either side of the whole long piece to form the cross shape.

Ice and decorate. And eat.

UPDATE: Verdict -- not good. I undercooked the cake and the oat flour was overpowering. So instead of a dry cake, we had a moist overly sweet cake. But the presentation was nice. I had to trim more pieces to make the cross bar smaller and the middle beam longer, but all the imperfections were covered by the icing.

Does anyone have a yellow or vanilla cake recipe I can try? No eggs, wheat or dairy? Please?

Tomorrow I would like to try to make a heart cake. I don't have special cake pans, so I'm going to do another cut-up version. Here is one version using just round cake pans and this one uses square and round cake pans.