Witchin’ in the Kitchen at the Bubbling Cauldron

For the cake:
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut (about 6 ounces
a 7-ounce jar macadamia nuts (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 sticks (l cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

For the glaze:
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup amber or dark rum

Preheat oven to 350F, and butter and flour a l0-inch (3-quart) bundt pan.
Make pound cake:
Spread coconut in a shallow baking pan and toast in middle of oven, stirring occasionally and watching carefully to avoid burning, until golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer coconut to a bowl and cool. Spread nuts in pan and toast in middle of oven until pale golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool nuts and chop coarse. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy and beat in cream cheese. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, and beat in vanilla. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into bowl and beat just until combined well. Stir in coconut and chopped nuts. Spread batter evenly in pan and bake in middle of oven 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a rack 5 minutes and invert onto rack.
Make the glaze:
In a small heavy saucepan bring water with sugar to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Stir in rum. Brush hot glaze evenly over outside of warm cake until absorbed. Cool cake completely.

For the buns
450g strong white flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
75g cold butter, cubed
1 (7g) packet fast-rising active dry yeast
30g caster sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
225ml room-temperature milk

For the filling
250g dried apricots
6 green cardamom pods
4 tablespoons apricot jam

For the topping
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons apricot jam

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl.
Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine crumbs.
Stir in the yeast and sugar, then combine the egg and milk and pour the mixture into the flour.
Mix the dough together, pulling it into a ball.
Knead for 3-4 minutes on a lightly floured surface.
Put the dough back in the mixing bowl, cover and leave in a warm place to rise for about an hour, until the dough has doubled.
Meanwhile, put the apricots in a small pan, cover with water, bring to a boil and then turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes.
Drain and chop the apricots into small pieces.
Crack open the cardamom pods and grind the seeds into a powder.
Stir that into the apricots with the jam.
When the dough has risen, pre-heat the oven to 220 C.
Punch the dough down, then roll into a rectangle about 40cm x 25cm.
Spread over the apricot mixture, spreading it as far out as and onto the edges.
Wet the top, long edge with water, then roll the dough from bottom to top into a long roll.
Press the wet edge to seal.
Cut into rolls, then place on a non-stick baking pan and leave in a warm place for 20-30 minutes.
Scatter the brown sugar over and bake for 12-15 minutes until risen and golden.
Melt the apricot jam in a small pan with 1-2 tbsp water.
When it is bubbling brush it over the top of the buns.
Cool slightly and serve.
12 buns

Norwegian “School Bread” has a lovely bright yellow centre reminiscent of the Sun, I like to make this at Yuletide, Oimelc or Spring Equinox

Skolebrød

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm milk
1/3 cup butter, melted
4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1 egg, beaten

Powder Sugar Glaze

1 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk or water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
coconut

Pastry Cream

3 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup milk
1 drop vanilla extract
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add melted butter, 2 cups whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup sugar and cardamom.
Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until shiny and pliable.
Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil.
Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Divide the dough into twenty four equal pieces and form into rounds.
Place the rounds on to lightly greased baking sheets.
Cover the rolls with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C).
Brush risen rolls with beaten egg. Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes until nicely browned with pale sides.
Cool completely on wire racks. Spread glaze across top and then dip in coconut.

To make pastry cream: In a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch until well combined.
Whisk in 2 tablespoons of milk. Place the remaining milk and the vanilla in a medium saucepan.
Bring the milk to a boil and whisk it into the yolk mixture.
Pour the mixture into the saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly.
Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter.
Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap and spread the pastry cream over the plastic to cool it as quickly as possible.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate it until cold.
Place the cooled pastry cream into a pastry bag and fill the buns with cream.

Makes 24 servings

optional fillings, vanilla pudding, french pastry cream

For our Solstice supper tomorrow night I am planning something fairly light as we usually have feasts on this night. For dessert I have selected the following, it will undergo some alterations, subbing brown rice syrup or barley malt syrup for the sugar. I’ll have to adjust the water. Here’s hoping it comes out!

Cranberry Tapioca Pudding

2 tbl quick-cooking tapioca
1 1/2 cup water
2 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 tsp pure orange extract
1/2 cup sugar

Combine tapioca and water in a saucepan; let stand 5 minutes.
Bring to a boil and simmer 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add cranberries and cook until all berries have popped, then remove from heat.
Add orange extract and sugar and mix well.
Allow to cool before putting in refrigerator. Chill thoroughly.

This recipe yields 4 (1/2 cup) servings.

(Cardamom Coffee Cake)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cardamom seeds
3/4 cup milk, heated to lukewarm
1 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 egg

Topping:
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 Tablespoon chopped or thinly sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Grease and lightly flour a 9x9 square cake pan. Shake out any excess flour.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder; set aside. Crush cardamom seeds (use a mortar and pestle or a rolling pin). If using pods, remove the white hull pieces.

Beat egg until fluffy. Blend in sugar and cardamom. Alternate adding lukewarm milk and the flour mixture, blending well. Add melted butter or margarine and beat batter until well blended. Pour batter into 9x9 cake pan.

Mix together the cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle evenly on top of the cake in the pan. Sprinkle chopped or sliced almonds on top, pressing them into the batter very lightly.

Bake at 350°F for 35-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool slightly before cutting.

Tip: this recipe doubles well, making 2 9x9 cakes. Freeze one, then warm it up for later use.

Makes 1 9x9 coffee cake.

Sugar Free Rugelach

1 cup butter
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chopped raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup apricot spreadable fruit

Cream together the butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer. Blend in the vanilla. Mix in the flour. Chill the dough.
To make the Filling: Mix together the chopped raisins, chopped walnuts, and cinnamon. If you have a food processor, place the whole walnuts and raisins into the bowl, sprinkle with the cinnamon, and chop them together by processing in short pulses.
Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Roll out each portion into a 10 - 12 inch circle 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured board or between two sheets of waxed paper.
Spread a light layer of preserves (approximately 2 tablespoons) onto each dough circle. Sprinkle each circle with approximately 1/4 cup of the chopped nut-raisin-cinnamon mixture.
Cut each circle into 16 wedges using a pastry cutter or a pizza cutter. Roll each wedge from base to point. Place point down on a lightly greased or parchment lined baking sheets.
Bake for 15-17 minutes at 375 degrees F (or until golden). Remove to racks to cool.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cooking spray

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flours and next 5 ingredients (flours through ground ginger); stir well with a whisk. Make a well in center of mixture. Combine 1 cup sugar, applesauce, and next 4 ingredients (applesauce through vanilla). Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moist; cover and chill dough at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly coat hands with flour. Shape dough into 24 balls (about 2 tablespoons each; dough will be sticky). Roll balls in 1/4 cup sugar. Place balls 2 inches apart on baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 1 minute on pan. Remove from pan; cool completely on wire racks.

Note: These freeze well. Place cooled cookies in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; store in freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature.

Yield: 2 dozen (serving size: 1 cookie)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 123(18% from fat); FAT 2.5g (sat 0.5g,mono 0.7g,poly 1.2g); PROTEIN 1.5g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 24mg; SODIUM 98mg; FIBER 0.9g; IRON 1.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 24.2g

Cooking Light, MAY 2001

Pannu Kakku

2c. milk
2 eggs
1/2c. flour
1/4c. sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons melted butter

Beat eggs well then add sugar, salt, vanilla, flour, milk and butter.
Mix well and turn out into a greased pan (I use a pie plate and cook it an additional 10 min) (If doubling the recipe a 9inx13in pan works well) Bake in a 400* oven for 40 min or until custard has set and top is golden brown.
Serve warm sprinkled with icing sugar, spread with preserves or drizzled with maple syrup.

1 1 lb loaf unsliced French Bread
1 8-ounce pkg. Cream cheese, cubed
2 1/2 cups milk, light cream
8 eggs
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup maple syrup

Apple Cider Syrup

1/2 cup sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup apple cider or apple juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter

Slice French bread, about 1/2″ thick, make sandwiches with the cream
cheese (use as much or as little as you like) and place in a greased
9x13x2 pan. Blend eggs, milk, butter and maple syrup until well combined.
Pour mixture evenly over bread and cheese sandwiches. Use a spatula to
slightly press layers down to moisten. Cover with plastic wrap and
refrigerate overnight. Bake at 325 degrees for 60-90 minutes or until
center is set and edges is golden brown. Put in cold oven straight from
refrigerator let stand 10 minutes before serving. In a small saucepan,
stir together sugar cornstarch and cinnamon. Then stir in apple cider or
juice and lemon juice. Cook and stir mixture over medium heat until
mixture is thickened and bubbly. Then cook and stir for 2 minutes more.
Remove from heat. Butter tastes best The apple cider tastes better than
apple juice.

Chocolate Cherry Cookies

1 1/4 cups butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 TBS vanilla
3 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 (6-oz) jars maraschino cherries, drained and halved
1 (6-oz) package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350*F.
In large bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy; add eggs and vanilla.
Mix well. Combine dry ingredients; stir into butter mixture.
Dough will be stiff! Shape into 1-inch balls.
Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
Press cherry half into center of each cookie.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Cool.

In heavy saucepan, over medium heat, melt chips with condensed milk;
cook until mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Frost each cookie, covering cherry.
Store loosely covered at room temperature.

Makes 10 dozen cookies.

Eggnog Thumbprints

Tender, walnut-encrusted, nutmeg-infused butter cookies
are delicious vessels for a creamy, rum-flavored filling.
Pipe in the filling just before serving.

Prep: 40 min Cook: 10 min per batch

3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Nutmeg
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 slightly beaten egg whites
1 cup finely chopped walnuts

Rum Filling:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sifted confectioner’s sugar
1/4 teaspoon McCormick® Imitation Rum Extract
1 to 2 teaspoons milk

McCormick® Ground Nutmeg

1. Lightly grease a cookie sheet; set aside.

2. In a large bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on
medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and nutmeg.
Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
Beat in egg yolks and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much
flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir
in any remaining flour.

3. If necessary, cover and chill in refrigerator about 1
hour or until dough is easy to handle.

4. Place the egg whites and chopped walnuts in separate
small bowls. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in
egg whites, then in walnuts to coat. Place balls about 1 inch
apart on prepared cookie sheet. Make an indent with your thumb
in the center of each ball.

5. Bake in a 375°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges
are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.

6. Rum Filling: In a small bowl beat butter until softened.
Add confectioner’s sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in rum
extract. Beat in enough milk to make spreading consistency.
Pipe or spoon about 1/2 teaspoon Rum Filling into the center
of each cooled cookie. Sprinkle with additional nutmeg.

Makes 40 cookies

SOURCE: McCormick

4 cups cooked, mashed rutabaga
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon fresh chopped dill weed or 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
dash paprika
4 eggs, separated

Combine mashed rutabaga, butter,dill, salt, pepper, and paprika.
Blend in egg yolks. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; fold into the rutabaga mixture.
Lightly pile into a greased 1 1/2-quart casserole.
Bake in a preheated 375° oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until set and top is golden brown.
Serves 4 to 6.

1 pound dungeness crab; squeeze-dried
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1 pinch salt; to taste
1 pinch black pepper; to taste
1/4 cup celery; minced
1/4 onion; minced
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 eggs
1/2 lemon; juice only
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
1 dash Tabasco sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate; undiluted
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon chutney

Blend the crab meat in a food processor at medium speed. Mix in the bread crumbs, salt and pepper, celery, onion, 1 teaspoon of curry, eggs, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco. Divide the mixture into 12 portions and cook in a skillet on medium heat.

To make the sauce, saute the garlic lightly in the olive oil, taking care not to burn the garlic. Add the curry powder and blend in a food processor until smooth. Stir in the mayonnaise, sour cream, orange juice concentrate, sugar, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of curry, and chutney and spoon over the crab cakes before serving.

Yield: 12 servings

3 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup firmly-packed brown sugar
1/3 cup currants or small — seedless raisins
1/4 cup water
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 tablespoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
2 packages refrigerated crescent rolls
1 4 inch round brie
1 egg — beaten

Wash and pick over cranberries. Combine first 4 ingredients AND all the spices in a saucepan. Cook until cranberries pop, then cool completely. Open each can of crescent rolls. Divide each rectangle into 2 sections (each section will have 4 triangles) - press perforations together. Place one section on top of another section - YOU NOW HAVE TWO PIGGY-BACKED SECTIONS. Roll each section of two with a rolling pin into about 6″-squares.

Place each square in a small (about 8″) torte tin. Cut the Brie in half. Remove the crust. Plop on a generous amount of chutney. Pull the pastry up and gather at the top (so it looks like a pretty little bag that has been tied at the neck, kinda…sorta). Brush each one with egg. Bake in preheated 350oven for about 20 minutes, or until bubbly and pastry is browned.

Now - if you want to do without making the chutney, you just prepare the crescent rolls as described, put in a nice chunk of decrusted Brie by itself, and proceed.

1/2 pound bacon
1/2 cup chopped spring onions and tops
1/4 cup mayonnaise
24 slices party pumpernickel toast

Fry bacon until very crisp. Strain and crumble.
Combine bacon, onions and mayonnaise; blend.
Spread on toast and place in a 350F oven to heat through.
Serve immediately.