Gateau Basque for Our Lady of Lourdes!

Gateau Basque ala Hilltop Farm! 

I mentioned in my earlier post that we'd be making Gateau Basque for dessert.  Because it is just IMPOSSIBLE for me to follow directions, here's the recipe as I made it for the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes:

Gateau Basque 

8 servings; pan size: 9" springform

Ingredients:
2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
8 oz butter, softened (2 sticks)
3 eggs
1-1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup jam (I used Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry for the Blessed Mother!)
1 egg yolk for brushing the top
cinnamon-sugar (optional)

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Butter the spring-form pan (my pans are NOT non-stick and I highly recommend using these Kaiser ones!) and then set aside.

In a bowl, mix the flours, sugar and baking powder together.  Add eggs and butter, stirring until well-combined.

Take half the dough and spread it in the pan, lifting it up the sides about 1/2" or so.  Pour the jam into the center of the cake, spreading it evenly out to the sides (but leave about an inch or so border so the jam doesn't leak out).

Sprinkle a bit of flour on your work surface and roll the second half of the dough out into a circle that is the same size as the pan.  Place this on top of the jam/dough and ensure the jam is completely sealed within.

Mix the egg yolk with a few drops of water and "paint" the top crust with this mixture.  Optional: sprinkle cinnamon-sugar on top for an added bit of sweet!

Place in the preheated over for about 25 minutes or until the cake is golden and done.  Wait 10 mins and then run a knife round the edge of the pan.  Pop off the spring-form and voila! 

Enjoy!

 

Feast Day: Our Lady of Lourdes

Our family is very tied-into the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes:  my husband and I met while we were teaching at Our Lady of Lourdes School .... we were married at Our Lady of Lourdes Church ... two of our children were baptized at Our Lady of Lourdes Church ... we've been very blessed to go to Lourdes as a family, twice -- once in 2000 and again in 2001.  My maternal great-grandfather came from the Basque village of  Oloron-Ste.Marie, about 20 miles west of Lourdes in the Pyrennes.

We have many connections.

This apparition of Our Lady to St. Bernadette in a grotto in the south of France 18 times in the 1850s is one of the most visited shrines in the world.  Catholics, Christians, Jews ... even pagans go to Lourdes to pray and become whole in mind, body and spirit.  Some are cured ... some are eased in their illness ... some are left with the crippling diseases which have brought them to this spot.  But all leave with a sense of peace and love and care that only the Blessed Mother and her Son can bring.

It is an amazing place like none other on earth ... a place of prayer ... a place of peace ... a place of love.  The candlelight prayer service everynight is amazing: singing and crying and praying in different languages, warmed by the glow of the thousands and thousands of candles that fill the area in front of the Cathedral.  There is a constant flow of penitents into and out of the Confessional Building, where the Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered all day every day in just about every language.  The Blessed Sacrament is available for adoration as is Holy Mass throughout the day.  The sick ... wheeled in on stretchers or wheel chairs, some even carried ... are all there for a special healing service in the afternoon, every afternoon. 

What a haven of peace and Divine love in the midst of our 21st Century.

Today, we'll read stories from The Wonders of Lourdes: 150 Miraculous Stories of the Power of Prayer ... we'll watch Bernadette and Song of Bernadette (we started last night by watching Loretta Young in Road to Lourdes).  We'll eat Tuna Lorenzo (tuna salad on homemade English muffins, broiled) and Gateau Basque (I'll post our version later) ... and of course, we'll pray for all those who are sick, suffering or dying as well as praying in thanksgiving for God's Love which allowed St. Bernadette to see Mary and God's Charity which continues the miraculous cures into the 21st century.

 

What happens when you have a sister home for Christmas break ...

after her first semester of culinary arts study?

Chef Boy-ar-dee, of course!

Finally .... SNOW!

Last night about 5:30 p.m. ... a little dark but you get the idea!

Not alot of snow, but enough to keep dh home today ... to get the kids done with their work early so they can go out and play in it ... and enough for me to think about sittin' and knittin' all afternoon with a cuppa and a movie on the screen .... oh and the mandatory "snow baking" (olive oil chocolate chip cookies and fresh white sandwich bread) to ensure that the house is warm and tummies are full! 

A perfect day at the Lake!  Hope wherever you are, you're staying warm and cozy with loved ones around!

You can see how much snow by the "icing" on the bird bath



Max ... not sure if he likes this stuff!



Snow baking -- to keep the house warm (and tummies full)

 

Feast Day: St. Andrew, Apostle

Today is the feast of St. Andrew the Apostle, brother of St. Peter.  St. Andrew was crucified on an x-shaped cross when trying to evangelize the Greeks -- he lived for two days on that cross, continuing his preaching!

Tonight, we'll make St. Andrew Scones (with x's on the top, of course) from the recipe at Catholic Cuisine (altho I'll probably change them slightly and will post our version tonight).

 

Advent 2010: Stir-up Sunday

One of the great things about doing a unit study is the fun things we get to make and eat!  We always make fruitcake for Christmas (soaked in bourbon ... does it get any better than that?).  But this year, because of our Dickensian Christmas unit, I decided to hunt for a more traditional British Christmas Cake.  I found a lovely one online that steeps in sherry (altho you could use brandy (which makes me ill) or whiskey (which I didn't have)) for a few weeks and when ready to serve is covered in a layer of marzipan (YUM!) and than a fondant casing (we'll see about that!).

Anyway, the tradition is that the First Sunday in Advent is "stir up Sunday" ... meaning that if you started it steeping on the first Sunday by Christmas it would be nice and ripe! 

So here ya go:

 

Make sure that when stirring clockwise that you make a wish for Christmas!

Here's the recipe I used, with slight changes to the original from Delia Smith ...

Traditional Christmas Cake (makes one 8” round or 4 small loaf pans)


10oz. box dried currants
1 cup raisins
1 cup golden raisins
4 oz. container of diced candied orange peel, candied citron, AND candied lemon
1/2 cup cream sherry (+ more for “feeding” over the next few weeks)
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
grated zest 1 orange

The night before you want to bake the cake, combine the raisins, currants and candied fruit and pour the sherry over all. Stir well and leave at least 6 hours ….

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.

Cream the butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy, then add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition. Add the flour, the spices and beat until just combined. Finally, fold in the fruit, the pecans and the zest with a wooden spoon.

For 8” round: Line with parchment paper (I cut out a circle for the bottom by tracing, then cut a strip to wrap around the edges) and pour in the batter. Pat down, making batter as flat as possible. Place another circle of parchment paper with a hole cut in the middle making sure circle is about an inch larger all round; secure paper to pan with yarn.

For small loaves: spray well with Pam. Using a cup measure, scoop 2 cups of batter per loaf (this will fill the pan). Pat down and make sure it’s in there solid. Cut parchment paper to fit top (with about an inch all round to fold down). Cut a diamond in the center of each piece of paper. Fold around filled loaf pans and secure with cotton yarn.

Bake in the oven for 2 hours (loaves) or 4 -4.5 hours (round), or until a skewer poked in the middle comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan, then poke with skewers and pour some sherry over the top. Soak cheesecloth in more sherry, and wrap the cake thoroughly. Store in an airtight container for a week or two, “feeding” every few days with more sherry. The character of the cake will change with aging, making it more and more confection like the longer it ages.

Here's a link to the marzipan recipe and the fondant icing that we'll probably use: 

http://savour-fare.com/2009/12/22/fruitcake-part-ii-making-it-pretty/

Prayers for a holy, healthy and happy Advent 2010!  And have a happy Stir-Up Sunday!

 

Month of Thanks Day 7: Thanks be to God for Old-fashioned Sunday Night Dinner

Tonight, I am so thankful for a wonderful Family Sunday ... poor dh had to go up to the high school for open house, but the kiddoes and I spent the afternoon watching old movies (on Netflix, no less) ... a bit of football ... and making a full, old-style Sunday dinner ... baked ham and homemade applesauce, green beans almondine, buttered pasta ... the piece de resistance:  orange marmalade jam roll with bittersweet chocolate.

Dh declared it the best dinner I'm ever made!

Here's the recipe for the jam roll, and old standby in my baking repertoire that I haven't made in years!


Orange Marmalade Jam Roll smothered in Chocolate!
Ingredients:
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Powdered sugar (for generously dusting towel)
• 2/3 cup high quality orange marmalade
• 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 2 tbls butter
• 2 tbls powdered sugar
• 2 tbls boiling water (or hot strong coffee if want a stronger chocolate taste)

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°. Line jelly roll pan, 15 1/2 × 101/2 × 1 inch, with cooking parchment paper.

Beat eggs in bowl with electric mixer on high speed about 5 minutes or until very thick and lemon colored. Gradually beat in granulated sugar. Beat in water and vanilla on low speed. Gradually add flour, baking powder and salt, beating just until batter is smooth. Pour into pan, spreading to corners.

Place marmalade in bowl and place above oven to slowly warm marmalade while cake is baking.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately loosen cake from edges of pan and turn upside down onto towel generously sprinkled with powdered sugar. Carefully remove paper. Trim off stiff edges of cake if necessary. While hot, carefully roll cake and towel from narrow end.

Cool on wire rack 10 minutes. Unroll cake and remove towel. Beat marmalade slightly with fork to soften; spread evenly over cake. Roll up cake and place on serving platter.

Make chocolate glaze:  in microwavable cup, place chocolate chips and butter. Heat cup in microwave for 30-60sec.  Remove and stir till chips are melted.  Add powdered sugar and boiling water/coffee.  Stir till smooth .... drizzle over roll.

Enjoy!
 

Recipe: Rick's Take on Tollhouse

Rick's bithday celebration isn't quite over since we all have today off for Columbus Day and we're going Pumpkin Picking at Miller Farms with a great group of friends.  One of the specialties of the weekend was "Rick's Take on Tollhouse" cookies; this is the traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe, edited to Rick's preferences, and BOY are they delicious (and a bit better for you than the traditional).

Rick's Take on Tollhouse (makes about 2 doz large cookies)

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1-3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• /2 tsp baking soda
• 2 cups (12 oz) semi-sweet choc chips
• 1 cup walnuts

Cream together butter/oil, sugars, eggs, vanilla. Sift and stir in flours and soda. Mix till thoroughly combined. Add chips and nuts, distributing evenly.

Drop rounded tablespoonfuls on lightly greased cookie sheet. Chill while warming the oven to 375.  Bake about 8-10 minutes till golden brown and slightly soft. Cool slightly before removing from sheet.  ENJOY! [BTW, did you know if you place a home-baked chocolate chip cookie on a plate and re-heat for about 10-15 sec, it takes just like fresh-baked? ]

Feast Day: Our Lady of Sorrows

Today is the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows ... when we take time to stand at the foot of the cross with the Blessed Mother and thank her for her YES to God ... a yes that saved the world.  The seven sorrows of Mary include:

1. the prophecy of Simeon the flight into Egypt
2. the loss of the Child Jesus in the Jerusalem
3. the meeting of Our Lord on the way to Calvary
4. the standing at the foot of the Cross
5. the taking down of Our Lord from the Cross
6. the burial of Our Lord

Evelyn Vitz at Continual Feast has a wonderful Bittersweet Chocolate Cake (gluten free, yet!) recipe for this day, which we're going to try (I'll keep you posted!).  We'll also be doing a little activity today to help us remember the Seven Sorrows: a neat project from That Resource Site

This feast celebrates and shows that Mary was steadfast ... never forgetting her faith in God's love and mercy ... even through these horrific times.

Please God, may I always remain steadfast in my faith, no matter the trials and tribulations!  Holy Mother, pray for me and mine that we may always walk the path of sorrows that lead to the path of True Joy!

Feast Day: Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross

Today we celebrate the Triumph of the Cross ... the victory of Good over evil ... the conquering of death, once and for all.

String Bean even got up early to whip up a coffee-cake from her Molly's Cooking Studio (which is a great, do it yourself cookbook for this 10 year old!).  Yes, she really does love her family (the clock on the microwave is showing 6:32 a.m.)!

Happy Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross!

 

Happy belated birthday ...

...to Mary, Mother of God!  Yesterday was the Feast of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary ... a celebration in the Catholic Church and a Marian feast day.  We had a wonderful day ... morning Mass, van re-check (I HATE getting my car hit as it takes FOREVER for things to be right), library run, grocery run and home for school-work, read-aloud, and playing time.

Lest you think I forgot the Blessed Mother in all this fun and frolicking, I didn't ... instead I whipped up a tasty treat that will be used often for Marian feasts (and there are many and since my name is "Mary", I claim 'em all). 

I call this treat "Cool Mint Pie" ... 

Ingredients:

• 1 chocolate cookie crust (I used an Oreo one but you could certainly make your own; make a graham cracker crust recipe, just substitute chocolate wafers or oreo cookies)
• 1 bottle of Smucker's Magic Shell (Chocolate Fudge)
• 1 16-oz container Cool Whip, thawed
• 1 cup Breyer's Chocolate Chip ice cream, softened
• 3 cup Breyer's Fat-free Vanilla ice cream (which is amazingly healthy AND tasty!), softened
• blue food coloring -- about 5 drops or more, depending on how blue you'd like it
• pure mint extract -- 1 tsp

Prep chocolate-cookie crust by spreading the Magic Shell (I used about half the bottle) on bottom and up sides of crust.  Place in freezer while mixing up the other ingredients.

Place whipped topping, ice creams, mint extract in a bowl and mix together completely. Add blue food coloring, a drop at a time, until the mixture is  a cool-blue shade (think toothpaste). 

Whip all together completely and pour into chilled crust.  Squirt remaining Magic Shell across top of pie -- I used just about the whole bottle on this, but you can certainly use less if you're not as into chocolate as we are!

Chill pie for at least 4 hours, or till solid.  Remove from freezer about 5 (if a WARM day like we had) or 10 minutes before serving and serve up slices. 

It is SOOOO good .... guess what I'm having for lunch today?

So Happy Birthday, Blessed Mother and please pray for us all!

 

 

American History: Martha Dandridge Custis Washington

Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (1731-1802), lovingly nicknamed "Lady Washington" by George's troops, was a major force during the American Revolution.  This petite (only five-foot-even), Virginia-born lady brought cheer to her husband's troops FOUR(!) times during the Revolutionary War:

• Winter of 1775 -- Cambridge, Massachusetts
• Spring of 1776 -- New York
• Spring of 1777 -- Morristown, New Jersey (where she spent the time nursing George Washington back to health)
• Winter of 1778 -- Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

She would travel days (up to two weeks) to winter-camp with the American Army ... spending the 3-6 months darning socks, knitting new ones, mending clothes, and bringing light and joy to the dispirited boys.  Because of her presence, other officers' wives came to camp ... and she had them knitting and mending and darning right alongside her.

Martha Washington had her share of grief and sadness -- her first husband died when she was just 26; all of her children predeceased her as well as some of her grandchildren; George Washington, sacrificing for our fledgling country, was gone from Mount Vernon seven years with the Army and then just as he was home to retire, they asked him to become President.  Martha went right along with him.

String Bean did a presentation for her co-op class on Martha's role in the American Revolution.  In her research for this project, she found this quote (which String Bean made into bookmarks for her class):

String Bean also found a cookbook, Martha Washington's Booke of Cookery and Booke of Sweetmeats (edited by Karen Hess), and made Martha's Sugar Cakes (a shortbread-like cookie that is really delicious):

Sugar Cakes –
Take 2 pound of flower, & one pound of sugar, & ye youlks of 2 eggs, & a spoonfull of sack, & a spoonfull of rosewater, & make it up into a paste with melted butter. & roule it out pritty thin, & cut them with a beer glass, & put them on plates & set them in an oueun meanly hot ye stone downe.

Our translation (for half a batch of cookies):
2 cups unbleached flour, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 tbls vanilla or other flavoring, 3/4 cup melted butter, 1 egg, 1 tbsp milk. Mix together, chill for about an hour, then roll out thin; cut into circles (using a glass or biscuit cutter). Place on cookie sheet and place in a 375 oven till golden brown (about 10-15 minutes).

String Bean had such fun with this project, dressing like Martha chatting with the troops (her class) and knitting away on a pair of "socks for the boys".

Here are some of the books she used for researching this project:

• Martha Washington: First Lady of Liberty by Helen Bryan
• Martha Washington (On My Own Biography) by Candice F. Ransom
• First Ladies: A Profile of America's First Ladies from Michelle Obama to Martha Washington by Stacie VanderPol
• Martha Washington: An American Life by Patricia Brady (I read this one for background and since I'd gotten interested especially with the references toMartha knitting for the troops.  It is an EXCELLENT adult biography of our First Lady)

 

Recipe: English Muffins ... the good, the bad and the not-so ugly!

I love to bake bread and yeast-filled products.  I'm getting pretty good at it and we've only bought one or two loaves of "bunny bread" from the grocery since Christmas.  The kids are learning to like "mom's bread" even if it isn't as soft and fluffy (and full of junk) as the store-bought kind -- it is MUCH cheaper than the $3+ per loaf I was paying ... so, they suffer a bit.

 

With summer rapidly approaching, I will run into a snag with my bread baking.  My dh, who spent much of his formative years in the bayous of Louisiana will NOT let me turn on the oven once the temps go above 70 -- it is a hard and fast rule around here. 

 

So, I'm looking for bread recipes that I can cook on the grill, stove-top or elsewhere (and I don't want  a bread machine ... have gone that route before and it's not fun, stress-reducing or fool-proof!).

 

Last night I made salmon cakes with homemade english muffins ... and the muffins were excellent.  I think I have found a great recipe ... and method of making the little blighters which makes them both edible and delicious!

 

Here's the recipe with my changes and notes: 
English Muffins (based on a mix of different recipes from online and cookbooks)

• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tbls active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 3 tbls butter
• 3 tbls milled flaxseed
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 4-5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a micro-safe bowl, warm the milk, sugar and butter until warm. Stir till all is melted. Let cool until lukewarm. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, combine the milk, yeast mixture, shortening and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Add salt and 2 cups of flour, or enough to make a soft dough; use the least amount of flour possible to make it not stick, but you want a soft, light dough. Knead. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise about an hour or 1-1/2 hours.
3. Punch down. Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut rounds with biscuit cutter, drinking glass, or empty tuna can. You can also form the dough into balls and flatten – just be gentle. The muffins should be about 1/2-inch thick before rising. Sprinkle waxed paper with cornmeal and set the rounds on this to rise – you must do the cornmeal step else the muffins stick badly to the wax paper. Dust tops of muffins with cornmeal also. Cover and let rise 1/2 hour.
4. Heat non-stick griddle (if using electric, keep heat around 225-250). Cook muffins on griddle about 10 minutes on each side. Continue to flip over every 5 minutes or so until muffins are a lovely browned color (or if you are in a hurry, preheat oven to 250-275 and place muffins on rack for 10min or so). Allow to cool and place in plastic bags for storage. To use, split by perforating with fork tines all around the muffin, and toast (or eat untoasted, just not as good).

 

This recipe made about 16-18 slightly smaller-than-storebought muffins.  I fork-split the left-overs and froze them in a ziploc bag ... this morning the muffins were amazing (see the picture above)!