Monday, April 16, 2012

Pickled Peeps

I was experimenting with Bobby Flay's Pickle Recipe when some leftover lurking Easter Peeps hopped up into the bowl, thus solving the problem of what to do with leftover Peeps.

Bobby Flay's Dill Pickle Recipe

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
3/4 teaspoon dill seeds
2 cups hot water
2 pounds kirby cucumbers, sliced 1/4 inch thick
3/4 cup coarsely chopped dill (3/4 cup was too much, next time will try 1/2)
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
In a large, heatproof measuring cup, combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard seeds, coriander seeds and dill seeds with the hot water and stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Let the brine cool.
In a large bowl, toss the cucumbers with the dill and garlic. Pour the brine over the cucumbers and turn to coat. Place a small plate over the cucumbers to keep them submerged, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the pickles overnight, stirring once or twice. Serve cold.
MAKE AHEAD The dill pickles can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Baking Bread

Because my husband ate 2 loafs of Wonder Bread a week and he wouldn't switch to whole wheat... because the whole wheat bread was costing me $5.88 a week for 2 loaves and $4.88 a week for 2 loaves of white bread, I decided to make bread. A friend told me of the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day method by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. I bought that book and followed the method with great success, and learned many things. 3 things that didn't work for me: making bread 3 times a week, using up fridge space with a huge bowl full of dough and the last batch did not rise.