New York Bagels. Courtesy of my dad, Ken.

These are the bagels my dad has been making since we were kids. The recipe came from a very old magazine. When I asked him for it, he found it was barely legible anymore so he typed it out for me. And then he made a batch. And he made a little video to show you how to roll the balls. 

New York Bagels

Makes 12 bagels

2 packages of yeast

4 1/4 to 4 1/2 cups flour

One and a half cups lukewarm water

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon salt

In large mixer bowl combine yeast and 1 3/4 cup flour.

Combine water, sugar and salt.

Add to yeast mixture.

Beat on low speed for 1/2 minute scraping sides of bowl constantly.

Beat three minutes at high-speed.

By hand stir in enough of remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough.

Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead till smooth; 5 to 8 minutes.

Cover; let rest until dough almost doubles in size.

Cut into 12 portions; shape into smooth balls. (see his video)

Punch hole in center with floured finger.

Pull gently to enlarge hole.

Cover and let rise to 20 minutes.

In large kettle* or pan combine 1 gallon water and 1 tablespoon sugar.

Bring to boil; reduce to simmer.

Cook bagels four or five at a time.(Don’t crowd them because they will rise some). Cook for 3 ½ minutes then turn over and cook other side for 3 ½ minutes.

Drain; place on ungreased baking sheet.

Bake at 375 for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown.

Ken's notes on dough:
Make sure that the dough is stiff enough that it doesn't stick to your fingers  when handling it. That is important when making the donut shaped bagels. Mine stuck to the board and fingers as I formed them and when they rose the second time they stuck to the counter and got all misshapen when I tried to pick them up.
My note on Ken's note:
Who cares?! They look and taste delish and homemade misshapen is better than perfect out of a plastic bag any day!


Ken's rolling technique:

*kettle? I assume they don't mean a teakettle. Is anyone else picturing one of those things that hang over a campfire? Let's just go with a large pot. Or a cauldron. 

Luscious Fall Tomato Soup

I made this last night. And tonight. I wanted to test a theory to see if a canned tomato version would be as good as a half fresh/half canned version. Since we ate every last drop of the half and half batch last night I can't do a taste test comparison, but {I can't believe my fresh tomato lovin' self is saying this} canned only is pretty fantastic.

Luscious Fall Tomato Soup

1 large onion

4 cloves garlic

2 T olive oil

1 28 oz can San Marzano tomatoes

10 large basil leaves

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)

Rough chop onions and garlic. Heat olive oil and add onions. Cook over med heat, stirring occasionally, for about 7 minutes. Add garlic and continue to cook for another 3 minutes or till translucent and caramelized. Like this:

To blender add tomatoes, onion mixture and basil. 

If you are using a Vitamix, set on soup mode and cook. When cycle is complete, add cream and salt and pulse a couple times.

If using a regular blender, blend till smooth. Pour into saucepan and add cream and salt. Heat for about 5 minutes or till hot and bubbly.

Enjoy!

Rosemary Garlic Pork {slow cooler style}

I've made Six Sisters Stuff's Parmesan Honey Pork several times and I highly recommend you try it. Super tasty and a family favorite. I love this recipe because the meat actually browns while it's cooking. It was the inspiration for my edited version, also tasty, which goes something like this:

Rosemary Garlic Pork

{slow cooker style}

2-3 pound boneless pork shoulder

Mix together:
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup grated parmesan
2 T. balsamic
2 T. olive oil
5 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray. Put roast in and pour mixture over it. Top with 4 or 5 sprigs of rosemary. Cook about 5-6 hours or until it's done (160 degrees, or when it falls apart).

Remove rosemary and toss.

Whisk together:
2 T. cornstarch
1/4 cup water

Pour juice into small pan, bring to a boil. Whisk in cornstarch mixture and bring to boil for a couple minutes or till thickened.

Enjoy!

P.S. Don't judge my photo - or how much food is on that plate! It was getting late and my people were hungry.

Clam Dip

If there's a special occasion, ball game, kids pick dinner night, you name it... my kids and husband Must.Have.Clamdip. My husband first made this dip from a handwritten recipe card my mom gave me - back when people hand wrote recipes on little cards. He's the maker of the clam dip in our family, so credit where credit's due. Actually, I only get photo and posting credit here. Oh yeah, I totally dig this stuff, too.

Clam Dip

Beat (with mixer or by hand) together:

8 oz. softened cream cheese

1 Tbs. reserved clam juice

1 tsp. garlic salt

a little paprika

Stir in:

8 oz. sour cream

1 can drained clams 

Chill. Serve with Wavy Lays or Ruffles.

Stand back and watch it disappear...

Goat Cheese + Bacon Pops

These are my new favorite app. Make them tiny. Pop them in your mouth. Repeat. Don't forget to share.

The original recipe is on theKitchn blog under Bacon Pops.

I'm sure that version is just fine, but you know me... can't leave well enough alone.

I used fresh rosemary as my herb of choice and used a little less than called for. I also added some finely chopped and browned shallots to the mixture. Make sure the bacon is super crispy - the nice little crunch is rather unexpected for some odd reason. I served them on a tiny wedge of pear because we ate all our apples. Actually my husband used them to make a big pot of applesauce. He does that a lot.

Yet another reason to never be caught without a log of goat cheese in your fridge.

Gingerbread Houses

 'tis the season!

I learned how to make these sweet little houses when my kids were in preschool (RCP - woot!!) and I've managed to room-mom my way into making them a part of almost every school Christmas Party my kids have had since then.  I almost panicked when I couldn't find "The Icing" recipe.  I know it will show up and I will put my tattered RCP original back where it belongs - in my actual recipe file ("what's that?" you ask?) instead of some special place I was sure to never forget.  Fortunately, I've emailed this to so many people over the years I found it in my sent folder from, oh a couple of years ago.  

I double it to make about 25 houses, then make a single batch for the kids to decorate with.  You can find meringue powder in the Wilton section of Michaels or Hobby Lobby.

Gingerbread Icing
3 Tbs. meringue powder
1 lb. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
3 1/2 oz. warm water.

Mix dry ingredients.  Add water and beat 7-10 min.
(I don’t think a single batch needs much more than 7 min or it will get too stiff – just check it and stop when you like the way it feels)

You can make it the night before, just put a damp paper towel over the top of it to  keep it from getting crusty.

I've seriously made 100's of these over the years.  Don't be scared.  If I can do it you can do it!  May our kids never outgrow the love of sprinkles & icing & gumdrops.

Merry Christmas!

Lemon Glazed Persimmon Bars

I have been making these Gourmet 2004 Persimmon Bars (no recipe tweaking) for about 5 years, which is  how long I've known about persimmons.  Years ago, my husband played a trick on me with an under ripe persimmon.  Just mean, I tell you.

There's nothing wrong with the original (as long as you leave out the dates - haha) and it's one of my kids favorite fall treats.  They stare longingly at the first crop of firm persimmons for days, willing them to soften faster.  Anyway... I can't resist the urge to mess with a recipe that has white flour and white sugar in it.  I messed with this recipe and my son just said to me, "mom these are the best ones ever".  Boom.

Truth be told, I was out of eggs.  Since I was going to be sneaking in chia I figured I might as well go all out.  My slightly healthier version goes something like this:

BARS

3 very ripe/soft Hachiya persimmons (1 1/4 lb total)
1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1 tsp salt
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or your favorite combo)

1 egg substitute:  1 Tbs ground chia seeds (or ground flax) mixed with 3 Tbs water - let it sit till it's eggy texture
1/2 c brown sugar + 1/4 c honey
1/2 c coconut oil

Heat oven to 350.  Butter and flour 15x10 shallow pan.

Cut persimmons and force through sieve.  Put 1 cup puree into a small bowl and stir in lemon juice and baking soda.  Let sit for a few minutes.  It will jell.  So cool.

Combine flour/salt/spices in small bowl.
Whisk fake egg goo, sugar, honey and oil together.  Fold in about 1/3 flour mixture, then half persimmon jell, alternating/mixing, ending with flour.

Add nuts and dried fruit if you like.

Spread batter in pan and bake for about 20 minutes.

GLAZE
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice (I reduced down a half cup to make it more lemony)
1 cup powdered sugar
Stir till smooth.

Cool bars, glaze, and cut into 32 squares.