spinach, pumpkin, and sausage pizza

We tried a new pizza.  It was very tasty but I came to realize that I cannot eat on my pizza.  The rest of my family can though so they can still eat this.  It helped that we had more pumpkin in the yard so I roasted one specifically for this pizza.

spinach, pumpkin, and sausage pizza

1/2 batch pizza dough

1/2 bunch spinach

1/4 pound italian sausage, cooked

1 cup roasted pumpkin

1 cup grated parmesan.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  Roll out the pizza dough on a pizza stone that has been floured or parchament paper.  Smear the pumpkin across it.  Sprinkle the italian sausage across it.  Sprinkle the spinach and cheese across.

Bake for 17 minutes or until the edges are brown.

We are off to the land and Thanksgiving with family.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

steel cut oats

My Beloved went to make oatmeal last week.  I got told the recipe is not here so I am rectifying that error.

I actually like steel cut oats the best.  They cook in a 1 to 4 ratio.  1 oat to 4 water or milk.  I have two favorite ways to make them.

steel cut oats in a thermos

1/2 cup oats

2 cups boiling water

1 pint thermos

Put the oats in the thermos.  Cover with water.  Seal the thermos.  Take out in the morning and reheat.

Now lets be honest, I really never measure the water, I just fill the thermos.  You will need to play with how much water works best for you.  You can make your oats very runny or very thick by just the amount of water you use.

steel cut oats in a pan

1 cup steel cut oats

4 cups water

Start this the night before.  In a deep pan with a lid, put the oats and water.  Bring to a boil.  Turn off the burner and cover.  Let sit overnight.  Reheat in the morning until they are hot enough for you.  If you wish, you can reheat in a cast iron skillet with some butter and you can have bits of crispies.

This is the really exciting part of today.

This Small Mister turned one today.

He is well loved and full of joy.  Happy Birthday!

chocolate pear crisp

The chocolate pear pie I made a month or two ago reminded us how much we liked chocolate and pears.  A couple years ago I made a chocolate ginger pear crisp that was quite good.  But, I like simple.  Which is one of the reasons I make crisps.  And I have learned a lot about gluten free baking the last two years.  I put together a simpler chocolate pear crisp recently that was also quite good in a very different way.  I mixed in chocolate chips to the crisp batter.  Add vanilla ice cream.  It makes me smile.  It lasted less then two hours!

chocolate pear crisp

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1/2 cup almond meal

1/2 cup sorghum flour

1/2 cup millet flour

1/2 cup arrowroot flour

1/2 - 1 cup chocolate chips

2 - 4 very ripe pears, cored, skinned, and sliced into small chunks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cream the butter and sugar together.  Mix in the cinnamon, ginger, and flours.  Mix in the chocolate chips.

Put the pears in the bottom of an 8x8 inch pan.  Top with the crumb mixture.  Bake for 45 minutes.

Different but the same.  Very tasty warm with ice cream.  And I must admit, lovely for breakfast or an afternoon snack.  Yes, truly.

pineapple and duck salad

While we were camping, I really wanted to try the fig and duck salad I wrote about earlier but there were no figs at the store we went to.  But there was pineapple, so I decided to try that with the duck.  I knew that sweet went well and figured it could not hurt to try.  And this way, I could also get something sweet without upsetting my stomach.  

This is a salad I would do again.  Pan fried pineapple with sliced duck breast, simple greens and a blush vinaigrette.  Quiet lovely.  And simple!

Pineapple and duck salad

Note:  This is enough for two.

1 duck breast, skinned

about 2 tablespoons of the duck skin, cubed

about 1 cup of cubed pineapple

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper

romaine lettuce

blush vinaigrette

Put what you think of as a serving of romaine lettuce on a plate.  

In a skillet, put the olive oil.  Warm over a medium heat.  Add the cubed duck skin.  Cook until brown.  Add the pineapple.  Pan fry until there are brown bits.  Add the duck breast.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook about 5 minutes.  Turn.  Salt and pepper if you wish.  Cook for another 5 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat.  Slice the duck breast.  Put about half the pineapple on the lettuce and have the sliced duck.  Drizzle with the vinaigrette.

It is really that simple.  And tasty!

craqueline

While reading the cookbook Flour by Joanne Chang, I came across this recipe for craqueline which sounded very interesting.  My family probably likes the orange rolls I make better then the cinnamon rolls I make.  The thought of an intense orange with a brioche dough was intrigueing.

I did change the recipe a bit.  Of course I used sourdough.  I used a different brioche dough and I used whole wheat flour in the brioche.  I think these pastries are more addictive then my orange rolls!

craqueline

1/2 batch brioche dough

1 batch candied orange, coarsely chopped

1 egg

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup sliced almonds.

Take the brioche dough out of the refrigerator or freezer.  If frozen, defrost.

Roll the dough out to a rectangle 20 inches long by 3 inches wide.  Spread half of it with the coarsely chopped candied orange.  Fold the dough over.

Cut the long piece of dough into 10 pieces.  Place on a silpat or parchament covered baking sheet.  Cover and let rise until puffy, about two hours.

In a small bowl, mix the egg, sugar, and almonds.  Make sure it is well blended.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Drop spoonfulls of the almond mixture on each roll.  Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until golden.

These really are addictive.  I have brioche dough in the freezer.  It may be time to make more.