oatmeal pancakes

Oatmeal Pancakes
Adapted from the Inn at Fordhook Farm

If you want to add blueberries here, you can use fresh or frozen. (And if you’re using frozen, there’s no need to thaw them. The hot pan will do that for you.) I don’t like to stir the berries into the batter, because then you wind up with weird purple streaks, so I press them into the individual pancakes as they cook. You can use however many berries you want, but be sure to add them after the pancakes have cooked on their first side for a minute or two, so that the batter has time to start to set. When you flip the pancakes, the heat of the pan will make the berries sizzle and soften nicely.

Also, if you find yourself with any leftover pancakes, as I often do, know that they are delicious. This past Saturday, I had three left over, so I put them in a plastic bag on the kitchen counter, and I ate them cold that night, after going out for a drink, a completely undrinkable drink, with a girlfriend. I love gin, and I love Lillet, and I have nothing against Scotch, but apparently I do not care for the union of gin, Lillet, and Scotch. Cold pancakes saved the day.

2 cups rolled oats
2 cups buttermilk
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. table salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted but not hot
Vegetable oil or spray, for greasing the pan
Maple syrup, for serving

The night before:
Combine the oats and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Stir to mix. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

The morning of:
Take the bowl of buttermilk and oats out of the fridge. Set aside.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Add the eggs and melted butter to the oat mixture, and stir well. Add the flour mixture, and stir to blend. The batter will be very thick.

Warm a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium-high heat, and brush (or spray) with vegetable oil. To make sure it’s hot enough, wet your fingers under the tap and sprinkle a few droplets of water onto the pan. If they sizzle, it’s ready. Scoop the batter, about a scant ¼ cup at a time, onto the pan, taking care not to crowd them. When the underside is nicely browned and the top looks set around the edges, flip the pancakes. Cook until the second side has browned.

Re-grease the skillet, and repeat with more batter. If you find that the pancakes are browning too quickly, dial the heat back to medium.

Serve hot, with maple syrup.

Yield: about 12 pancakes, or 3 to 4 servings

Pisi e Orzo

i used a cup of organic chicken broth and a cup of v8 and water for the broth. need to use up barley in the pantry and peas in the freezer.

straight forward barley and pea soup recipe that will be nice in late spring when fresh peas reach the markets. To serve 6:
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes
Ingredients:

* 12 ounces (300 g) pearled barley
* 2 quarts good vegetable broth
* 6 ounces (150 g) freshly shelled peas
* 2 ounces (50 g) pancetta, either ground or diced
* An onion, minced
* 1 tablespoon minced parsley
* Salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:
Pour the broth into a pot, add the barley, and simmer it gently, covered.

In the meantime sauté the pancetta with the onion and the parsley; as soon as the onion begins to brown add the peas and cook, stirring, until the peas are about half cooked. Stir the pea mixture into the barley, check seasoning, and continue simmering the soup until the barley is done.

Yield: 6 servings barley and pea soup.

Eggs in Purgatory

bon appetit jan 2010

* 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
* 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
* 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
* Coarse kosher salt
* 1 8- to 10-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, drained
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice (preferably fire-roasted)
* 8 ounces red-skinned or white-skinned potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
* 2 tablespoons drained capers
* 8 large eggs
* 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

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Preparation

Heat olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion, chopped thyme, and crushed red pepper; sprinkle lightly with coarse kosher salt and sauté until onion is tender and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add artichokes and minced garlic; stir 1 minute. Stir in diced tomatoes with juice and bring to boil. Reduce heat; cover skillet and simmer 15 minutes to allow flavors to blend.

Meanwhile, cook potatoes in small saucepan of boiling salted water just until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain. Add potatoes and capers to tomato-artichoke sauce; cover and simmer 5 minutes. Season to taste with coarse salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Tomato-artichoke sauce can be made up to 6 hours ahead. Cool slightly, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm sauce before continuing.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Pour tomato-artichoke sauce into 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Using back of spoon, make 8 evenly spaced indentations in sauce for holding eggs. Crack 1 egg into each indentation in sauce (some of eggs may run together slightly in spots). Bake until egg whites and yolks are softly set, 12 to 16 minutes. Carefully remove baking dish from oven; sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese over and serve.

R

Whole Wheat Muffins

Published: February 5, 2010 NYT The Minimalist

1/2 cup melted unsalted butter, more for greasing tins
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Related
The Minimalist: Whole Wheat Muffin, the Remix (February 10, 2010)

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, preferably pastry flour

3/4 to 1 cup sugar, depending on sweetness of fruit

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup mashed or puréed banana, sweet potato, apple, zucchini, cooked or canned pumpkin, or other fruits or vegetables

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup buttermilk.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease two 6-cup muffin tins or fill with liners. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the melted butter, banana, egg and buttermilk. Fold wet mixture into dry mixture and stir until just combined.

2. Fill muffin tins or liners; bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until muffins are puffed and turning golden brown on top. Serve warm if possible.

Yield: 12 muffins.

lemon lentil soup

Recipe: Red Lentil Soup With Lemon

elizabeth made this and recommended it
o

Published: January 9, 2008

Time: 45 minutes

3 tablespoons olive oil, more for drizzling

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Pinch of ground chili powder or cayenne, more to taste

1 quart chicken or vegetable broth

1 cup red lentils

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

Juice of 1/2 lemon, more to taste

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro.

1. In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons oil over high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion and garlic, and sauté until golden, about 4 minutes.

2. Stir in tomato paste, cumin, salt, black pepper and chili powder or cayenne, and sauté for 2 minutes longer.

3. Add broth, 2 cups water, lentils and carrot. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary.

4. Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée half the soup then add it back to pot. Soup should be somewhat chunky.

5. Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro. Serve soup drizzled with good olive oil and dusted lightly with chili powder if desired.

Yield: 4 servings.

caponatina

INGREDIENTS

# 1 medium size eggplant, finely diced
# 1 small onion, diced
# 1 stalk of celery, diced
# 1 small red bell pepper, diced
# 1 8oz can of tomato sauce
# 6 green olives, pitted and chopped
# 6 black olives, pitted and chopped
# 1 Tbls of capers
# 1 Tbls of pine nuts
# 2 Tbls of raisins
# 1/2 cup of olive oil
# 1 Tbls of sugar
# 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
# 1/4 tsp. of salt
# 1/4 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

PREPARATION

# Prepare the eggplant by salting them and letting them stand around a half an hour or more to release the excess water. Rinse and pat dry with a paper towel.
# In a frying pan sauté the eggplant in olive oil until tender.
# Remove the eggplant from the pan and drain on a paper towel and set aside.
# Add the onions, celery and bell pepper to the pan and sauté until tender, about 3 minutes.
# Stir in tomato sauce, olives, capers, pine nuts and raisins and simmer for 15 minutes.
# In a separate saucepan slowly heat the vinegar and sugar until sugar is dissolved.
# Stir the sugar vinegar mixture into the tomato sauce .
# Stir in the eggplant.
# Season with salt and pepper.

Serve warm or cool to room temperature before serving. Serve on toasted bread.