Happy Birthday, Dear Charlie!

Our favorite four-legged friend turned 8 years old this past week. Officially, it was August 19, but we ended up celebrating for two days, kind of...

On Monday, my mother-in-law invited us to join her for dinner, so she took time to spoil her "granddog" by giving him extra treats during our visit. And on Tuesday, we grilled pork chops (so that Charlie could have little tastes of meat), and then the three of us did one of Charlie's favorite activities; despite the hot, sticky weather, we all took a walk.

This photo is one that I took after our walk. Charlie had just finished drinking some water, but he was still panting from the heat. He looks like he has a big grin on his face. He's always our happy little guy.

We give thanks to the Lord for the blessing of a good dog. My friends and I prayed before I got Charlie nearly eight years ago. We asked the Lord to give me the right dog and that he would be a blessing to my life. I was single back then, and it meant so much to come home to a happy little dog after work. It still means just as much to me now, even though I have the blessing of marriage now. My husband and I will celebrate our fifth anniversary this year, so including our courtship time, he's known Charlie for nearly six years.

Fresh Tomato Soup

Alongside homemade bread, I love a hot, steamy bowl of homemade soup. And this time of the year, with lovely tomatoes from the farmers market to use, I've made this recipe twice. It's a great way to use tomatoes that are still good, but need to be used in short order. And it's really fun for me to be able to use the fresh basil from the planter on my front deck.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
5 medium, very ripe tomatoes, cut into chunks
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 tsp. sugar
1 small can tomato paste
1 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 can chicken broth
1 small pinch baking soda
1 cup whole milk

Saute onions in olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When they are translucent, add tomatoes, garlic, basil, and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes or so. Stir in tomato paste, garlic salt, and pepper. Add chicken broth and simmer for a few minutes. Add pinch of baking soda (this neutralizes some of the acid from the tomatoes). Add milk and simmer to heat for serving.

A new bread cookbook!

I have a new cookbook, and I've been having fun working through the recipes!

Several weeks ago, maybe even months, I used my library's reserve system request a copy of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzber and Zoe Francios. It took a long time to wait for my turn to have that book for two weeks, but it was well worth the wait. So as soon as I had to take it back to the library, I splurged and got it from the bookstore for my own cookbook collection here...It wasn't that I needed a new cookbook, but I'm really enjoying this book!

First, I made a batch of Oatmeal Bread. It was hearty and somewhat sweet, very much a treat, and so easy to make!

Next, I made a batch of Challah, and it was wonderful, too! And the best thing about that recipe is that you can freeze the dough if you want to save it for another time. I love flexibility of these recipes.

Basically, they have you make a large batch of very wet dough. You mix it up in a five-quart container (I use a five-quart plastic ice cream container and lid), and then you chill it until you're ready to bake.

The Oatmeal Bread was baked in a 9x13 bread pan, but the Challah was done free-form on a baking sheet. And just this week, I baked the basic Boule recipe. It's a round-ish sourdough-type loaf, and you bake it on a heated pizza stone. It comes out of the oven deep golden brown and really crusty on the outside.

I thought about including a recipe here, but it's really more the technique than most recipes. If you're interested in bread that really does take five minutes or less to handle (though it does require some rising and baking time), I'd highly recommend getting this book.

Rhubarb Cherry Jam

One more rhubarb post today, and then I'll be caught up with my kitchen adventures for a while...And I should also give credit to the source of these rhubarb recipes. I got them from the "Ritzy Rhubarb Secrets Cookbook: Rhubarb Recipes by the Good Cooks of Litchville, North Dakota and the Surrounding Area."

I bought a copy of this cookbook when the ladies from a Litchville Lutheran church came to speak for my church's women's group. They didn't talk about rhubarb, but the cookbook sale was their way of raising funds for their church when they spoke at other churches. I don't know if this cookbook is even available anymore, but I'm so glad that I bought it years ago.

Anyway, this is a great recipe for freezer jam, sure to please even the most skeptical about eating something made with rhubarb. And it's another great way to use rhubarb without having to bake tons of quick bread, muffins, and pies. We like the baked goods made from rhubarb, too, but it's really nice to have recipes like this that can go into the freezer for future use.

Ingredients:
6 cups rhubarb, chopped finely
4 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. almond flavoring
21-oz. can cherry pie filling
3-oz. pkg. cherry gelatin

Mix rhubarb and sugar, and let stand overnight.

The next day, boil rhubarb mixture for 10 minutes. Put pie filling in blender and puree. Add pie filling to rhubarb and bring to boil again. Remove from heat, add gelatin, and stir until dissolved. Add almond flavoring and prepare for freezer storage.

Rhubarb Slush

I don't have a photo of this recipe, but we've made it twice already this summer because it is so refreshing and such a good way to use a lot of rhubarb...Those of us who grow rhubarb know that it is a really good producer. And for us, we just don't need a lot of baked goods all of the time. So a recipe like this, which can wait in the freezer until needed, is perfect. We also served it recently for guests and shared the recipe with them.

Ingredients:
8 cups rhubarb, cut up
3 cups sugar
1 (3-oz.) box strawberry gelatin
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 small envelope unsweetened drink mix (like Kool-Aid)
2 quarts 7-up (actually, we buy cans and use only what we need each time we enjoy this slush)

Cook rhubarb in 2 quarts water until tender. Strain and discard the pulp that's left of the rhubarb, but keep the juice from the pot. To the juice, add sugar, gelatin, and lemon juice. Bring mixture to a boil to dissolve crystals. Add strawberry drink mix and water to make 1 gallon of liquid. Freeze until ready to use.

When you're ready to use the slush, take it from the freezer 15 minutes before serving. Then, using a stiff metal spoon, scrape enough slush to fill your glasses three-quarter full. Fill the glasses with slush with 7-Up, and enjoy!

(Note: Next time I make this, I'm going to try another flavor, like orange or grape, or lemon or lime.)

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

I tried a new rhubarb pie recipe this year, and I think we've found our family favorite now. Normally, my husband isn't as much of a rhubarb eater as I am, but he really enjoyed this pie.


Ingredients:
Pastry for 2-crust, 9-inch pie
3 cups rhubarb, chopped
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. corn starch
1 cup strawberries, sliced

Mix rhubarb, sugar, and corn starch until rhubarb is well coated. Stir in strawberries. Place in unbaked pie shell; cover with top crust. Sprinkle a little sugar over top.

Bake in 400-degree oven for 1 hour or until crust is brown and rhubarb is tender.

Blueberry Banana Muffins

We had guests stay over recently, and I was really thankful to find a muffin recipe that wouldn't require a trip to the grocery store.

As usual, I made a few changes. I cut the amount of sour cream in half and used "light" instead of regular sour cream. But you'd never know it by the result. They were really good!

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 eggs
2 cups mashed bananas
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 tsp. soda
4 cups flour
2 cups blueberries
1 cup chopped walnuts

Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs, sour cream, and bananas alternately with the dry ingredients. Fold in blueberries and nuts.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean. (Makes 2 dozen muffins.)

Almost No-Knead Bread

I've been baking quite of bit of bread lately, and this is one of the loaves we've really enjoyed.

It's so easy, it really does deserve the name "Almost No-Knead Bread" and, as usual, I've altered the recipe just a bit for our personal family taste, and I simplified the method just a bit, too.

The original came from Cooks Illustrated, and I think that recipe was a take-off on another that I read online on the New York Times website some time ago.

While the original recipe calls for just all-purpose white flour, I've been using 1 cup whole wheat flour and 2 cups of bread flour, for a more whole-grainy taste and a chewier crumb. And then I've found that with the time that I allow for raising the bread, I don't need to use the rapid-rise yeast that the original recipe requires. I use ordinary regular-rise yeast with great results. (Note: You don't have to use nearly as much yeast as most bread recipes require because of the long time that you give for the initial rise.)

Ingredients:

2 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. yeast
1-1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. water (room temperature)
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. mild-flavored lager
1 Tbsp. white vinegar

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the wet ingredients and stir until a shaggy ball forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for around 18 hours. (Note: I don't worry about being specific with this time. I just mix it up after work one night and bake it sometime the next day.)

Spray a sheet of parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray and lay it into a covered 2-quart Pyrex casserole dish. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and let sit for another 2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees, and then turn it down to 425 when you open the oven door to put your Pyrex dish inside. Be sure to remove the plastic wrap and then place the casserole dish cover on top of the dish, forming a little steam oven for your bread as it bakes. After 30 minutes, remove the Pyrex lid and let the bread back for another 30 minutes, or until the internal temperature reads 210 degrees Fahrenheit.

Remove the finished loaf from the dish by carefully picking up the parchment paper under it, and let the loaf cool on a wire rack. Cool a bit before you cut into it for the nicest looking slices. Your bread should be deep golden brown with a really nice crusty crust and a chewy interior.