Multigrain Crackers

Here is a recipe for homemade crackers I found in the book The New England Table by Lora Brody. They are so easy to make and absolutely fabulous with a thick soup or chowder. I've altered the recipe slightly to suit my taste, but be creative!

Multiseed Cracker Bread

1 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. unbleached flour
1/2 c. rye flour
1/2 c. cornmeal
2 tsp. salt
1 c. water
2 tbs. olive oil

2/3 c. mixed seeds (I use about 2 tbs. each of sesame, poppy, and flaxseed)
1/4 c. mixed dried herbs (I use 1 tbs. each oregano, basil, rosemary, and thyme)
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

Preheat oven to 450 dgrees. Mix the flours, salt, water, and oil together. Knead gently until mixture holds together well. Divide dough into 8 or 12 pieces. Combine seeds, herbs, pepper, and Kosher salt. Working with one ball of dough at a time, scatter some of the seed mixture onto a clean work surface. Press dough onto seed mixture and sprinkle a little more onto the dough. Roll out as thinly as possible, adding more seeds as needed.


Place rolled dough onto lightly greased baking sheets. (I use my pizza stones which work very well, too.)Bake for 4-5 minutes on one side, and then flip the cracker over, baking for another 2-3 minutes.


If the crackers don't seem crispy enough, I move them to the oven rack to lightly brown them. When the crackers are done, remove them and let them cool on a cookie rack. Serve whole, standing them upright in a basket for maximum oohs and aahs.

Comfort Food for Cold Nights

Mom, this is for you. Sorry it's been so long in getting it to you.

New England Clam Chowder

2 or 3 6-1/2 cans chopped clams
2-3 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 c. chopped onion
4-5 medium potatoes, unpeeled and cut in bite-size pieces
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. milk
1 c. light cream or evaporated milk
4 tbs. flour
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Drain clams; reserve liquid. Cook bacon until crisp in large saucepan; remove from pot. Gently cook onion in bacon drippings until translucent. Add potatoes. Add reserved clam liquid and enough water to cover potatoes. Cook until potatoes are tender. Stir in clams, and 2 c. milk. To remaining 1/2 c. milk, add flour and stir until smooth. Add to pot; stir until thickened. Add cream or evaporated milk and heat through. Garnish with parsley. Serves 6.


Clam Chowder and Multigrain Crackers

'Tis the Season for Cranberries

Here is a great recipe for those who may want a twist to the standard cranberry relish ( which we all love here, by the way). I love to serve this with roasted pork loin, and it does very well with turkey, too. Serve warm over baked brie wrapped in phyllo dough and garnished with slivered almonds. Simply delicious. A wedge of brie never lasts long.



Cranberry Chutney

1 c. whole fresh/frozen cranberries
1/3 c. vinegar
2 tbs. water
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger or ½ tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cloves
2/3 c. sugar
1 peeled, chopped apple

Cook cranberries in vinegar and water until skins pop. Add spices and sugar, and bring to boiling. Cook for 20 min.until slightly thickened. Chutney thickens as it cools. I have added raisins in the past, but have received so many protests from the kids that I must leave the offending fruits out just to keep the peace.

This year I had a terrible time finding fresh cranberries. Instead I used 1 can of whole cranberry sauce per recipe and adjusted the sugar to taste. I found no noticeable difference, although I was unable to do side-by-side comparisons. It is much less expensive to use the canned cranberry sauce, and is perfect when serving this chutney in the off season.

Enjoy!

Jemima Puddleduck Lives!

A quick update on our wounded duck. After a quiet night, Papa found Jemima waddling around the kitchen quacking loudly. Her injury seemed to hamper her but slightly, and so to her great joy, he returned her to the rest of the flock. They in turn began honking and quacking at the top of their voices creating quite a din. In thanks for the tender care, Jemima left us a beautiful white egg in her grass nest.

Our concern over the fox's return has made us overly cautious perhaps, but keeping the flock in the cow's old pen may make winter quartering easier for us. Joe doesn't seem too concerned about the fox - he thinks that Will's heroic effort in rescuing Jemima has made old Mr. Tod think twice about returning. But I have noticed an almost erie absence of a very large flock of turkeys that used to daily roam the back property line. Coincidence? Only time will tell.

Will and Edmund have taken it upon themselves to "walk the ducks and geese" everday for exercise. They have great fun leading the geese and ducks to the small pond for a swim. After today's heavy rain the streams are swollen to overflowing, and the birds - and boys - had a blast. Both boys were soaked to the skin, and had to deposit their sodden, muddy clothes on the porch and run nearly naked (Mom, don't look!) to the shower.

A Visit From Mr. Tod

Our busy morning was interrupted today by a visit from our local fox. The boys heard the geese making a ruckus out back near the blackberry bushes. Will ran to the back window just in time to see a large, red fox snatch one of our ducks and take off for the woods. With adrenaline pumping, he jumped out the back kitchen door - a good 6-foot drop - landed on his feet, and began sprinting after the thief. The rest of us exited the house by various exits and letting up a great hue and cry, chased that old fox until he let go of his prey. The frightened duck hobbled toward us, and we were glad to see that the only wound appeared to be on her right leg. Joey said that the duck had been flapping her wings furiously, and this may have prevented the fox from getting a good hold on her.

We brought her in, and while Edmund and Will rounded up the rest of the birds (all of whom had scattered in a dozen different directions in their fright), and prepared a box for the injured duck, Joey helped me clean the bloody wound and apply some antibiotic ointment. The duck is now resting as comfortably as possible in a box in the kitchen. She is eating and drinking and making sure that the curious cats know their place. But, I watch her with a pessimistic eye.

Our many attempts at nursing helpless, wounded animals seems to end in more sadness than joy. Two hens succumbed this past summer to various injuries - one from a dog attack, another, we think, from the angry rooster. All I can tell the boys is that we tried to make their last hours as comfortable as possible, and like good masters buried them with the dignity they deserve as God's simple creatures. It is never easy.

We have had encounters with foxes in the past. When we first moved here, our chickens ran free for lack of fence. We began noticing trails of feathers and missing birds about a month into our residency. For three days in a row, one hen was culled from the flock - one even at 2 o'clock in the afternoon right outside our door. I began to fear for the kids, and wouldn't let them outside without Laddie .

One afternoon I looked out the kitchen window and saw a fox attacking our rooster. With a shout, I let Laddie out the door and he chased the culprit away. The rooster however was badly injured, suffering deep wounds to his neck which later infected. He died two days later. He must have put up a valiant fight - I have witnessed the protective nature of a rooster many times. We speedily erected a fence around the coop. The next day the fox came again, this time to find the hens safe and secure behind chicken wire. Perplexed, he lay down in the back field and stared for at least a half an hour at those hens. One can only imagine what was going through his small and devious mind. If I had Beatrix Potter's wonderful imagination, perhaps I would write a story...

Not By Bread Alone - 2

Pain de Campagne

Week two of making French bread. I've now made the French bread from a starter 5 times,and each time the result has been different but delicious. The guys highly approve of every loaf so far despite that fact that some loaves seem heavier than others. All have a crackly crust and chewy inside - great with a soup or peanut butter.

Today I decided to use the French poolish I made last week in the French farm bread. This recipe also called for yogurt, so after making a batch yesterday and eating some with Kashi for breakfast, I used one cup in the dough. The photo above is the result. I think I will serve it with a cheesy garden chowder for dinner.

Not By Bread Alone

Now that the cooler weather is here, I've been putting my bread maker to use again. The encroaching darkness warns us of the coming winter and the soul cries out for comfort food. What can be more comforting than a piping hot soup or stew with bread fresh from the oven - or bread machine. I found myself pretty limited by the manual that came with the machine, and so I reached for a book that Joe's aunt had given me years ago. I had never attempted any of the recipes except one that I mixed by hand, and to tell you the truth, I wasn't impressed. But, I was feeling a little more than adventurous and decided to take another look.

As I thumbed through the pages I came across this sentence under the heading Pain au Levain ..."This simple bread is as basic as life and breath." Hmm, I thought this could be promising. More tantalizing words jumped off the page...divine, mouth-watering, chewy, crisp crust. But it was these words that made me stop and really take notice:

"Don't blame us if after you've made this bread 5 or 6 times the people who eat at your table burst into tears. Beauty does that to some of us. We can't help it."

I stopped. Here was a sentiment close to my heart. For food is love, is it not? I looked over the recipe, but found that it required at least 5 hours of time - too short for dinner, but tomorrow...

Instead I found a recipe for NO Pain Ordinaire that could be done that afternoon. The authors described it as "instant satisfaction from your bread machine." The result was a delicious crusty bread, aromatic, and chewy on the inside. All the guys said "Yum" and the loaf was gone. I am printing it below for your edification.

For one 1-1/2 pound loaf

1-1/8 c. water
1-1/2 tbs. soft butter
1 tsp. salt
1-1/2 tbs. sugar
3 c. bread flour
2 tsp. bread machine yeast

Combine ingredients in bread machine in order given.
Process on the basic bread setting.

-from

Rustic European Breads from Your Bread Machine

If you don't have bread flour, you can make your own using 1 tbs. vital wheat gluten to 1 c. all purpose flour. I use regular yeast with no problem. More on bread tomorrow. Enjoy.