My New Friend: Beef BACON!

About 10 years ago I largely stopped eating pork for various reasons. Of course when you stop eating pork, you stop eating bacon.

You stop eating bacon and you die a little on the inside.

OK, maybe not, but you look for alternatives. So we started eating turkey bacon, turkey ham, turkey sausage, and so on. It was fine and we like those things.

Then my dairy farmer friend told me about beef bacon. Hmmm, beef bacon - really? Why had I not found this over 10 years?! She told me when I had beef bacon I would never turn back to turkey bacon. So I gave it a whirl.

This was the only brand I could find locally but I am on the look out for other brands and better prices. This is a bit pricey compared to pork bacon and turkey bacon. It was $4.79 for 12 oz at our local grocery store.

Fried this up and oh my stars! Look at this goodness?!

It was delicious! Now, I had gave up biscuits and gravy because of how lean turkey bacon and sausage is. I very rarely will fall off my pork abstinence and indulge in biscuits and gravy. Now, this girl can go back to biscuits and gravy guilt free! Hallelujah!

We still largely eat turkey products because of the reasonable price but beef bacon is at least available for those times when you need better bacon in your life.

Whole Wheat Apple Honey Braid

For most baking that I do I use fresh ground wheat from my Wonder Mill, which I love! I use many different kinds of wheat and grains in my baking. This dough used organic soft white wheat berries milled on the pastry setting.

I used several recipes to come up with this final product - replacing sugar with honey and honey granules, replacing all-purpose white flour with fresh milled wheat flour, and so forth.

Whole Wheat Apple Honey Braid

Bread Dough:
1 1/2 cups warm water
1/3 cup olive oil*
1/3 cup honey
1 egg
1 tsp salt
5 heaping cups fresh milled flour **
1 Tbsp yeast

Put all the Bread Dough ingredients in your break maker in the order your manufacturer recommends. (I use a Zojirushi which calls for wet then dry ingredients.) Set the machine to the setting and start. As the dough mixes check on it to be sure you are getting the right dough consistency. (See note ** below.)

* NOTE: The key to good olive oil that doesn't make baked goods taste funny and like olive oil is buying olive oil that is bottled at the source in Italy or Greece. If it has been imported then bottled, then you take a chance on the oil tasting funny or too much like "olive oil". This is because the distributor may bottle the olive oil with other oils to make it cheaper. This sounds funny since you are using olive oil, but trust me on this! I buy my big jug of Kirkland organic olive oil at Costco - be sure to check the label because some are not bottled at the source.

** NOTE: Fresh milled flour is fluffier and airier than the bagged flour in stores. 5 cups is a good starting point but you may need more as you watch the dough develop. If it is to wet and sticky, add an additional 1/4-1/2 cup at a time as it mixes until you get the right dough consistency.

Apple Filling:
3 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
3 Tbsp honey
2 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

While the bread dough is working in the bread machine, in a small casserole dish, toss the Apple Pie Filling ingredients together until all evenly coated. Bake in the oven 15-20 minutes. Apples should still be a little crunchy, not soft. (Be careful not to grab a spoon and eat them all now!)

When the dough is complete, dump out onto a lightly oiled surface. Gently knead a few times. Roll out into 1/4" think rectangle. Move to parchment lined baking sheet. (I learned this after the fact - learn from my mistake!)

Slice edges in 1" wide strips  on both sides to look like a fringe.

Pile cooked apples down center of dough. Be careful not to get all the juices in there or your final product will be soggy and doughy. I sprinkled a little extra granulated honey and cinnamon but that's optional. Pile more apples than what you see below. I was being conservative and in hindsight pile more on there!

Gently fold strips of dough over center of apples criss-crossing so they resemble a braid.

Bake the braid in the 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Glaze:
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 tsp milk or half and half
pinch of fresh grated nutmeg ***

*** NOTE: Fresh grated nutmeg, oh my! I buy whole nutmeg and grate it as I need it. Once you use fresh grated nutmeg you will NEVER buy bottled powdered nutmeg again. Trust me on this!

Brush the glaze on the still hot apple braid. Let it cool about 5 minutes. Slice it up and serve.

Liz Miller Texas Sheet Cake

Another yummy family recipe passed on to me from my mom. It is kind of a cross between cake and brownie to me. Best eaten when warm too!

This picture was so we could share the cake with others so it was divided to 3 small pans instead of one large sheet.

Liz Miller Texas Sheet Cake (modified)

Cake ingredients:

2 c flour

2 c sugar

2 sticks butter

1 c water

4 Tbsp cocoa powder

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 c buttermilk

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In large mixing bowl combine flour and sugar. Set aside. In medium heavy saucepan combine butter, water and cocoa. Heat to boiling. Beat into flour mixture. Add remaining ingredients. Beat well and pour into large greased jelly pan or sheet pan. Bake 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the frosting as you will want to frost the cake while it's hot.

Frosting ingredients:

1 stick butter

4 Tbsp cocoa

6 Tbsp milk

1 lb powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 c chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

In a heavy saucepan bring to boil butter, cocoa, and milk. Remove from heat. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat well with mixer. It will be like a thick glaze, rather than a stiffer icing. 

When cake is removed from oven, frost with warm icing. 

Best eaten warm and gooey!

Mémé's Egg Rolls

For some odd reason I've gotten into the habit of making these egg rolls either on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day. This recipe came from my mom and has always hit the spot. I've looked at other egg roll recipes but haven't the courage to try them so I stick to this standard. 

The only variation in the recipe below is baking the egg roll as opposed to deep frying. I normally deep fry them, but next time (year) I will try baking them instead. 

NOTE: Lots of chopping ahead! I'm old-fashioned and chop it all by hand, but you go ahead and employ your food processor! :)

Mémé's Egg Rolls

1 lb uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breats, finely chopped

2 Tbsp corn starch

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp fresh ginger, grated

4 Tbsp oil (I use coconut oil)

1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, finely chopped

1/2 c bamboo shoots, finely chopped

1/4 c water chestnuts, finely chopped

1 small head cabbage, finely chopped (about 3 c)

1 large carrot, grated

1 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

Drizzle of sesame seed oil

1 package egg roll wrappers

1 egg white

In a small mixing bowl combine chicken, corn starch, ginger and soy sauce. Stir this mixture until chicken is coated. Let stand for 15 minutes.

Heat oil in wok or large heavy skillet. Stir fry mushrooms one minute. Add chicken and continue stir frying until chicken is firm and white. Add remaining ingredients (except wrappers and egg white) and stir fry until cabbage is tender, yet crisp. 

Let cool before filling egg roll wrappers. 

Place a diagonal mound of filling on an egg roll wrapper. Fold the right and left corners over, pull up the bottom corner and roll over. With a little egg white, seal the top corner to the egg roll.

In deep saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil for deep frying. Gently place 4-5 egg rolls in pan depending on size of pan. Fry to golden brown. Carefully remove egg roll onto cooling rack. 

Enjoy with your favorite sweet & sour sauce! (I like a sweet pepper jelly I found at Costco.) 

Makes approximately 20 egg rolls.

As noted above you place the uncooked egg rolls on a baking sheet. Brush with olive oil and bake at 400 degrees. (Per instructions on the egg roll wrapper package.)