Simple Spoonbread

I was really pleased with myself because I had made a plan for dinner. The husband was going to grill pork chops, so I prepped them with a spice rub during the kids' nap time. I'd even sliced zucchini spears to throw on the grill with the meat. I just had to chop the potatoes to pop in the oven at the last minute.

Well, pride cometh before the fall, my friends.

I opened the bag of spuds and...Ewww. My potatoes had eyes on them. And not just one or two that I could dig out with my pairing knife. Lots and lots and lots of eyes. Shudder. Back to the drawing board.

Earlier in the day, I was perusing an edition of Eating Well magazine and stumbled across a recipe for spoonbread. Since I happened to have all the ingredients on hand, I thought I'd give it a whirl.

Man, you guys. This stuff was awesome. Simple Spoonbread reminds me of light, airy cornbread. It has a lovely corn flavor with just a hint of sweetness. The cheese brings richness and ground chipotle adds just a hint of smokey heat. And it's super kid-friendly. Our daughter devoured it.

Now read the recipe and check your pantry for the ingredients. Have them all? Good. Now you know what you're making for dinner tonight.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Simple Spoonbread
Adapted from Eating Well

2 1/2 cups milk (I used 1%), divided
1 teaspoon agave
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon (or more!) ground chipotle powder, depending on your spice tolerance
3/4 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup shredded cheese (I used colby jack. Cheddar would also be lovely.)
3 eggs, preferably at room temperature, separated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 2 quart baking dish and set aside. (An 8" or 9" square dish works well.)

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine 2 cups milk, agave, salt and chipotle powder. Heat until the milk starts to bubble around the edges, then whisk in cornmeal. Cook, stirring, until the cornmeal thickens and starts to pull away from the pan, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in butter and cheese.

Meanwhile beat egg whites with an electric mixer on high speed until they are white and form soft peaks, about 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup milk. Stir a third of the cornmeal mixture into the egg yolks to temper them. Then stir in the remaining cornmeal mixture.

Using a spatula, gently fold a third of the egg whites into the cornmeal mixture. Fold in the remaining egg whites in two additions. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Bake until spoonbread is puffed and golden brown in spots, about 20-25 minutes. Serve warm.

P.S. Want more spoonbread in your life? Check out Andrea's Buttermilk Spoonbread, too! 

Packet Potatoes

It's finally starting to feel like summer here in Illinois: hot and humid. That means the last thing I want to do for dinner is turn on the oven. Thank goodness for my grill.

These potatoes come out tender and mellow with just a little bit of crispness around the edges. The combination of garlic and rosemary is a savory favorite of mine and milk adds sweetness that tastes so good with the onions.

This is an ideal side for a main dish like grilled chicken or London broil. The leftovers hold up well and can be turned into breakfast after a quick toss in a skillet with some chopped red or green bell peppers to freshen them up. Serve alongside some fried or scrambled eggs.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Packet Potatoes
Inspired by Guy Fieri

3 pounds potatoes (Yukon or Russet or Idaho), thinly sliced into rounds
1 small to medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup milk (2% or whole)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dried or fresh rosemary leaves, crushed or chopped

Heat grill to medium.

Mix all ingredients in large bowl.

Take a 20-inch sheet of aluminum foil and fold it in half. Place half of the potato mixture on foil and fold up edges about a 1/2 inch. Repeat for the remaining potatoes.

Top with another piece of foil and crimp around all edges, wrapping bottom foil up.

Place foil packets on heated grill and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

Wearing oven mitts, use a large flat spatula to remove foil packets from grill and place on a cookie sheet. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Remove top piece of foil and serve — straight from the packet or after you transfer potatoes to a serving dish for a nicer presentation.

Sour Dough Coffee Cake

When a friend gave me a bag of Amish Friendship Bread starter earlier this year, I had no choice but to experiment.

To me, that's really what these bags of goo are all about. If you have kids (especially boys!) they will love squeezing and 'burping' the bags of starter as the yeast ferments with the milk, flour and sugar. And you can teach them a little science along the way. In fact, I've caught Sam several times sneaking into the dining room to squeeze the starter bags.

My sour dough starter is still going strong since I received it in March. And I've learned quite a bit, as Erin did when she received some starter a few years back.

If you haven't been gifted a bag, I encourage you to make your own. The recipe is here. When you (and your friends) get tired of using the starter, I'm happy to report that the freezing method does work. I made this coffee cake with a bag of starter slush that I thawed and re-started after it spent about two months in cold storage. Those little yeast molecules picked up fermenting right where they left off.

Once you make the traditional Amish Friendship Bread, it's easy to use starter for other things, including cakes, brownies, cookies, pancakes, biscuits and pie crust. If you need ideas be sure to visit the online bible of friendship bread recipes at the Friendship Bread Kitchen.

I'm not a huge fan of the instant pudding mix and loads of sugar that many starter recipes use. Luckily for me, when Robin T.  delivered my first starter bag, she included pudding-free recipes developed by her co-worker Claudia T. This coffee cake recipe is a spin off. And it is the best coffee cake. Ever. The day after my recipe tinkering I had to give away batches of cake to my neighbors because we could not stop eating it.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Sour Dough Coffee Cake

For the cake batter
2 cups of sour dough starter
1 1/2 cups of flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

For the topping
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg or ginger, or 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (experiment!)
1/2 cup butter at room temperature
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with cooking spray or grease with butter or shortening.

Using a plastic or wooden bowl and spoon, mix together all ingredients for the cake batter. (Do not use metal. It reacts with the yeast in the starter and gives it a funny taste.) Pour mixture into pan and spread out evenly.

Place all topping ingredients in a second bowl. Using two knives or a pastry cutter, incorporate butter into other ingredients until crumbs begin to form. Sprinkle topping generously over cake batter. You might have some left over. (You can freeze the extra topping and use it when you make this coffee cake again — because there will be a next time.)

Place pan in oven and bake for 30 minutes to 40 minutes, until the top is browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let the cake cool. Then cut yourself a piece and indulge. And keep your starter going so that you can make this again.

Here's Max holding one of our starter bags.