This is from Food and Wine. I think it would be better if the peppers were roasted and peeled because I didn’t like all the little skin bits in it. And it wasn’t really spicy because you take the chili out, I might add some red pepper flakes next time.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
1 cup small, crustless, stale white bread cubes (from a 2-ounce piece of bread)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 red bell peppers, cut into thin strips
2 tablespoons water
1 large garlic clove, smashed
1 small dried red chile
Salt
Toasted pita wedges, for serving
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. In a small bowl, mix the lemon juice and vinegar. Add the bread cubes and toss to coat; let the bread soak up the liquid.
- Meanwhile, spread the walnuts in a pie plate and bake until lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the bell peppers, water, garlic and chile and season with salt. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are tender, about 10 minutes. Uncover and cook over high heat, shaking the skillet, until all the liquid has evaporated, about 1 minute; discard the dried chile.
- Transfer the peppers to a food processor and let cool until warm. Add the soaked bread and pulse to a thick, coarse paste. Add the walnuts; pulse just until coarsely ground. Scrape the dip into a bowl and season with salt. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and serve.
Posted by Angela under Appetizers, Dips
This is a recipe from Gourmet. I made them for our co-op holiday party and they came out really well, but I suspect the preparation for those of you with electric mixers would be much faster.
Ingredients:
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
* 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
* 2 tablespoons mild honey
* 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
* 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300°F.
Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, and rosemary in a bowl.
Mix together butter, honey, and confectioners sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at low speed, then add flour mixture and mix until dough resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Gather dough into a ball and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Knead dough until it just comes together, about 8 times. Halve dough and form each half into a 5-inch disk.
Roll out 1 disk (keep remaining dough at room temperature) between 2 sheets of parchment into a 9-inch round (trim as necessary). Remove top sheet of parchment and transfer dough on bottom sheet of parchment to a baking sheet. Score dough into 8 wedges by pricking dotted lines with a fork, then mark edges decoratively. Arrange rosemary sprigs (if using) decoratively on top of dough, pressing lightly to help adhere, and sprinkle dough with 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar.
Bake shortbread in middle of oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Slide shortbread on parchment to a rack and cool 5 minutes. Transfer with a metal spatula to a cutting board and cut along score marks with a large heavy knife.
Make another shortbread with remaining dough.
Posted by Angela under Cookies, Dessert
A recipe from epicurious. We made this stuffing for Christmas 2010 and it was a hit but we all agreed the bread should be cut a lot smaller.
1 1/2 cups hot water
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps sliced
1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 cups chopped leeks (white and pale green parts only)
6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups dry white wine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 1/2 8-ounce French-bread baguettes, halved lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1 large egg, beaten to blend
Combine 1 1/2 cups hot water and dried porcini in small bowl. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 30 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer mushrooms to work surface; chop finely. Pour mushroom soaking liquid into small bowl, leaving any sediment behind, and reserve.
Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add shiitake and button mushrooms; sauté 10 minutes. Add leeks and garlic; sauté 5 minutes. Add wine, thyme, and porcini mushrooms. Cook until almost all wine evaporates, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover mushroom mixture and porcini soaking liquid separately and chill. Reheat mushroom mixture to lukewarm before continuing.) Transfer mixture to very large bowl.
Mix bread into mushroom mixture. Season with salt and pepper; mix in egg.
To bake stuffing in turkey:
Loosely fill main cavity and neck cavity of turkey with stuffing. Add enough mushroom soaking liquid to remaining stuffing to moisten slightly (1/4 cup to 3/4 cup, depending on amount of remaining stuffing). Generously butter baking dish. Spoon remaining stuffing into prepared dish. Cover dish with buttered foil, buttered side down. Bake stuffing in dish — alongside turkey or while turkey is resting — until heated through, about 25 minutes. Uncover stuffing in dish. Bake until top of stuffing is slightly crisp and golden, about 15 minutes longer.
To bake stuffing in dish:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Add enough reserved mushroom soaking liquid to stuffing to moisten (3/4 cup to 1 1/4 cups). Transfer stuffing to prepared dish. Bake uncovered until heated through, about 40 minutes.
Posted by Angela under Breads & rolls, Christmas foods, Dinner, Side Dishes