Blueberry and Lemon Crumb Bars

 After recently making these bars after a stressful day of school, I noticed I never shared this amazing, one-pan pastry. It's versatile as the fruit can be interchanged with the seasons. For this reason, I usually freeze peaches, blueberries, and raspberries to make this over the cold winter. I have used cut-up cherries and peaches; raspberry and blueberry; peach and blueberry, too!

Follow the recipe and use your food processor for the first part-the crust and PREHEAT your oven to 400 degrees. Use a 13 x 9'' pan or something of similar length and depth. The big thing is to line the pan with parchment or spray/butter it well. There are three components to this one-pan of deliciousness. 

Away we go.

Crust--Process in a food processor. 
combine the dry:
1 1/2c. All-purpose flour
2 Tablespoons Sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2c. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut in 4

Process above using the pulse button leaving it loose and crumby--but then add

The wet stuff  combine then add to dry stuff in the processor: 
1 large egg yolk--just the yolk! 
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon cold water

Once it's all mixed together, press into a 13 x 9" pan. Don't bake it yet!

Filling:

Combine in bowl:
1/2c sugar
2 Tablespoons Flour
2 Cups Berries-fresh or frozen

Pour this evenly on top of the crust.

Last step:

Topping! Mix with fingertips until evenly blended. 

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter--softened--cut into dice sized pieces
1/2 c. packed brown sugar--light preferred
3/4 c. flour

Sprinkle topping on top evenly--don't press down.

Toss in the oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes., or until the topping is light brown. 

Cool completely and enjoy in domino size pieces or larger shapes. Consider using muffin cups to make sharing easier. 

Note:

Just make sure the fruit is similar in size so that no huge slices or whole cherries are smooshed in the cutting-up process. You can add some nuts if you like, but don't go overboard. If you want a nutty treat, try my Mounds Bars for the Masses recipe to offer alongside this one. 

Any questions, make a comment and I will get back to you!

I got excited to share these, but didn't take a picture before cutting them up!  I was just trying to advertise that I was trying to get economical ideas to share what I made. If you know me, it's not always important how it looks, but how it tastes! 

Nutrition and Health

 So recently I decided to go back to school to finish what I started and get a Bachelors Degree at Northern Illinois University. My most recent class is Nutrition and Health and I was tasked to answer the following questions 

1. What is your first memory of eating?  What were your first favorite foods?  Were any foods restricted when you were young?
2. What messages did you get about food when you were young?  (good/bad foods?  This food will make you hyper/strong/etc.)  Where did these messages come from (parents, siblings, school, doctor, etc.)?
3. How and where did you eat as a child?   (in the car, never at restaurants, in front of the TV/computer?)
4. How would you describe your eating now?
5. What influences what and how you eat now?
6. How do you think what you were told and exposed to as a young person has impacted your attitude/mental models* towards food and eating?
7. Are you trying to make any changes in your eating behaviors? How long have you been working on these changes?
8. If applicable, what strengths do you bring to this class (background in biology, work at a grocery store)? 

This was my response: 

Nutrition Identity

         My first memory of eating was trying some smoked fish from my mom. She handed it off to me when I was probably 2. My favorite foods are/were pickles. I would be used as a party favor to my parent’s guests while they were entertaining at our home and making rumaki. They would ask what I wanted to me when I grew up, and I would proudly say, “A pickle!” I guess I wasn’t ever clued in on not being able to be my favorite food. I remember eating Cheerios and my dad’s fancy cooking—he liked to make stock and make meals from scratch. Additionally, my mom’s roasted chicken, ribs and delicious toast! I don’t recall being hungry and the message I received about food, was eat it! Dad made it or mom made it.

            I was not raised on fast foods, and we ate around a table up until we all moved out. We did get Nancy’s deep dish pizza and Chinese food as well. I don’t recall eating out at restaurants, but then, now that I think about it, we would all go to Ponderosa for steaks and the giant salad bar.

            I would describe my eating as focused on making great meals for me and my partner Charley. When we first met, 11 years ago, I asked him what he can make for me for breakfast and dinner. He proudly told me, waffles, as I had a waffle maker he remembers his grandma using when he was growing up, and sloppy joe, from scratch. Needless to say, I am a catch because I can cook and bake almost anything, but I needed to know my partner wouldn’t shy away from the kitchen.

    My current influences of what and how I eat now are really based on my grocery shopping. When the pandemic happened, I was set. I had yeast and bread flour to make bread, and a potato to make gnocchi. It was a rough time deciding what to make every day, but after a while I found myself making a list of foods to make and bake. I even made chili! Which I never had growing up and a pot roast. I actually asked my partners mom for a recipe I could make for Charley and give it to him as a gift for Christmas. So now that is in my wheelhouse.

            Next, I keep cookie dough on hand to cut and bake cookies as we want to eat them, and not a terrible amount of snacks actually. Mostly Craisins, raisins and nuts. I do admit, I have a chocolate box. It has all sorts of varieties of chocolate—chips, cocoa powers, unsweetened chocolate, dark chocolate and bittersweet too.  My overall thought on food is based on the Slow Food Movement (https://www.slowfood.com/). Alice Waters is an Author and chef and was an inspiration I learned about while in Pastry school and my group had to do a presentation on her. I love that I used a perfect apple as an example of what type of cook she is, seasonal and local. Nothing better to me than just steaming vegetable or roasting them with salt to bring out the best flavor without covering it up with butter.  

            In the past few years I have really focused on eating breakfast to get my metabolism going. Mostly fruit and Fage plain yogurt, but lately I have gotten into smoothies with Kale and some yogurt. I believe my strengths I bring to class is that I am a creative foodie. I don’t brag, but I know I can make suggestion when someone says, they don’t know what to make. I love talking about getting creative with friends who love to cook. I have instituted a meatball challenge, where I got to an Italian place and only order a side of meatballs and see what I get. I go home, make some fresh pasta, or just toss some angel hair in a pot and make the affordable dinner. I did this once at the Italian Village—an Chicago institution, and ordered a side of meatballs and got 2! And some bread too all for 4.95.

Since the passing of my dad 3 years ago, I often call my great friend Pete Magliocco to talk food, as he taught me how to make gnocchi when we lived in Macomb. 20 years later he taught me to make Chicken Paprikash. I think it’s important to talk about food, and eat well. I don’t eat just eat, I eat because I have a curiosity about food. Once in culinary school I wrote a paper on my likes and dislikes. My like was pickles, and my dislike was mustard. I said there was nothing good about this condiment and if it was added to anything it would make it taste bad. Flash forward to a party in NYC where all they had to snack on was pretzel rods and a big variety of mustard. I let someone know I didn’t like mustard, and she thought I was crazy! I realize that I only ever had yellow mustard, and this variety of tastes opened up my mind to the variety of mustards out there.

As a baker and cook, my idea is, I will try it. If I don’t like it, I will carefully spit it out and save the calories for something better. Or have someone taste it, and give me feedback. Maybe it was all the time I worked in kitchens, but I really didn’t like to never hear what people thought of what I made for them. So here I am now, a home cook with a blog storing my recipes and ideas of food. Please check it out http://bakergonebye.blogspot.com/ and check out my essay about my tour of the Vienna Beef factory https://bakergonebye.blogspot.com/search?q=vienna

 

 

 

 

Digging into sharing what I am making

While at the CIA, I have to be honest, I got a "D" in Restaurant Desserts. Personally, I am of the opinion, if it looks beautiful, but tastes blah, what's the point of making something pretty? And on the other hand, if it looks blah, but tastes amazing, who really cares, because it will be in your belly. And in this day n age, reviews of desserts and meals are normally accompanied with a picture. 

Sure I see people taking lovely pictures of what they make, but that will be not what you see here.

Sometimes I make something delicious and I gobble it down, while on the other side of, I sometimes end up with something edible. I am thinking of my first attempt at using an Insta-Pot. I made porridge that was edible. It was supposed to be creamy chicken and rice soup, so no pictures exist of this attempt. 

So onward. Sharing pictures of foods I've made. While not all fancy, or pretty, my partner, Charley is my biggest fan. I cook for 2. Forget the recipe for a pot roast for 6-8. I never made one before I met him, but one year I asked his mom for some recipes she would make for him, and this became my gift. NO pictures of Pot Roast. And another deal is I make him whatever cake he wants as a present for his birthday. Here I am sampling the German Chocolate Cake filling. 

I am a cook and a baker, so my recipes will be both ways to finding us with a full belly. 

Fresh pasta and brownies, sure. Repairing a leaky shower faucet, nope. 

Which Came First-A brief Essay

 

Which Came First…

The Apple or the Seed?

By

Margaret Rickman

Which came first-the chicken or the egg? This eternal evolutionary question brings to light what I believe to be a more important question…Which came first—the apple or the seed?

The seed, known to be a source of life for the many beautiful trees it produces, also providing an endless source of nourishing food. The small size of the apple sees and its seemingly simple shape amazingly produces the beautiful fruit that has for ages inspired many creative people.

For the apple to be ignored would be impossible; what with its abundant supply and variety of colors, it cannot be missed. The apple can now be found in decadent desserts, artistic paintings, fairy tales, folklore and rumors of its ability to keep the doctor away. From Eve, Sir Isaac Newton, Snow White and Johnny Appleseed, to kitchens all around the world, apples have inspired a plethora of truly scrumptious creations and uncanny ideas. One can only stop and think of the sentiment, “You are the apple of my eye,” to understand the beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the apple is a beautiful thing to behold.

Now, we return to the original question: Which came first, the apple or the seed? And which came first essentially poses the question: which is best? While some might say that the seed is more important because it instills life in breathtaking apple trees, I think the apple itself is more valuable for the wonderful inspiration that comes just from the mere sight of it. The wonder of the seed, and more importantly the inspiration of the apple it produces, will forever symbolize life, beauty and delicious creativity.

 

 

Recipe Box Mystery

This is what I realize--I'm noting what I am eating on my calendar lately. Which really means I need to get a project going involving food. So today I will start to share a bit of a odd treasure I found at an
Estate sale in 2019, here in Chicago.

I have not had time since starting a job as a Recruiter in April 2019, it's only recently, thanks to the pandemic, I was laid off just shy of my 1 year anniversary that I got to dive into what I paid $3 for. Please know, I got a second recipe box too, but I haven't gotten into this, yet.

First I sorted out the handwritten or typed recipes by ingredients. I left the clipped recipes grouped together, as I figured, I use recipes from magazines too.  What encouraged me to press on, was a clipping for Mock Apple Pie. I went to the internet and shared this and some pictures of what I sorted out. Several Taco Dips & Salads, plus Traditional Salads including Ambrosia, Delicious and a Summer Salad. I got news right away that this Mock Apple Pie was from the depression. .



Back to sorting the rest in this box..I narrowed it down to Cakes, Cheesecakes, Chocolate-including a hand types $100.00 Chocolate Cake, Cookies & Bars, Jell-O Molds, Sides and Stuffing, Dinner.

I left the magazine, newspaper and boxed clippings in its own file.  I am not sure how much I need to dive into Duncan Hines, Eagle brand, Perfect Pinch, Nordic Ware, Pillsbury, Jell-O, Hormel Chili, and Nestle too. But then this all started with a curious clipping of Mock Apple Pie--No apples needed.

 

Turns out its owner is hard to figure out, as maybe it's Cookie Bartoszewski or Ann Krueger but these pieces of mail had the address of where this estate sale was at..so the mystery continues!

I will share pics later, but for now, I need to start some Focaccia bread. I am committing to this as I will need to make bread at some point because I have yeast. And I decided on making homemade pasta too! What can I say, I love to make things when sorting through recipes. @bobsredmill for the bench scraper which so important to have when making bread or pasta!

 

Freezer full of food? Let’s all cook it up before we maybe buy a house

Hey there anybody with an Insta-pot (as I call the Instant Pot) Or into getting creative with what’s in my freezer before moving. 

Not all meat will be made in instant pot. I will not bake in the Instant pot 

Resolution this year is to use all the meat in the freezer using this thing.

And maybe this list will help me create a pop up supper club or start a business cooking and having people over.

I’ve already made, Porridge, Megs Moist meat something. Both were made chicken. I’ve got another # of chicken breasts.

Other items In freezer: (this is all 4 me) Email or comment @ me if you have an idea.

Bulk breakfast sausage from a farm

Tilapias

Pot roast meat

Rack o lamb

Prosciutto 

Pancetta

Barese sausage from Bari

Beef stew meat and a random big piece of meat

Prime burgers from Ney’s

Bacon cheddar brats

Ham off the bone 🍖 thick slices

Garlic scape pesto 

Pasta sheets 

Ice cream

Tots

Sweet potato fries 

Meat ravioli from Fiories

Cookie cutter cookies dough- I think Radiø Bethlehem’s Rx

Pie crumble 

Berries-rasp. Strawberry, blueberries 

Nuts: whole, hazelnut, pecans cashews pistachios 

Bagels from nyBNB

Totitons pizza rolls

Mango

Peaches

1/4 amazing raspberry pie from Garwood 

Ok. 

I’m seriously thinking this is the way I will be able to make some $. I have the ability to make almost anything. raspberry coffee cake, apple crumble-just the crumbles, cookies dough, banana bread.

And tonight I made Beef Bourguignon..aka Burgundy Beef aka Julia Child style with the instapot! 

I got a couple recipe suggestions and settled on making Beef Bourguignon. I used the pearl onions which vanished in the cooking time. I pressed the Stew/meat option and let it go for 30 min after I sautéd 4 rough chopped slices of  Nueskes bacon, then left the grease in the pot and browned the meat which was in almost 2” chunks The stew meat was already cut in the freezer and the mystery cut of meat went in as well, to make a filling 1 1/2 # dinner. the instant pot warned me it was Hot! But I pressed on and made it to the part to add 1 tb flour and salt and pepper, then the  liquids and vegetables and set it to Stew/meat for 30 min. Followed 10 min of natural release and I then released the steam!
I did look at a few recipes as I wanted carrots and a cooking style of  stove then oven technique that this traditional recipe calls for, and my CIA background wouldn’t just let me ignore just bc it’s an Instant Pot.
 What I ended up using:
2 whole carrots cut in 1/2 coins,, 10 pearl onions, 1/2 large white onion, 2-3 cloves of minced garlic,  1Tbsp flour, 1 1/2 cups of Cabernet Sauvignon  (given to me by the owner of 2 wonderful dogs I walk) 1 cup beef broth made with Better than bouillon, 1/2 tsp Better than boullion beef base, 1 Tb tomato paste, 1 bay leaf, approx 1/2 tsp thyme(pulled from my drying winter garden) 1 Tbsp. house dried parsley(before and after cookin-2 T total)
In a cheat move: I used a sauté pan to make the following and added it just before I served this with some mashed potatoes.

1/2 # crimini mushrooms Quarter and 1 Tbsp butter and 1 minced garlic cove 

Tastiest and easiest Whole Wheat Pita

So, skip the mixer and just use a big bowl to start this dough. Once you can get it into a lump, push it outta the bowl and knead it. Give it love! It'll taste better!

Combine the following:
1tsp. Sugar,
1, 1/4oz pack active dry yeast
1 1/4 lukewarm h2O

Let rest for 10min after you give it a little stir.

Get out your wooden spoon! Or just flick on your mixer..but its a small amount of dough, so your hook might not catch.

Slowly add: 2c. Whole wheat flour
Then add:
1tbsp. Olive oil
2tsp. Salt

Add approximately 1 1/4-1/2 c all purpose flour
This is when the ball will start taking shape...
Then turn into floured surface and knead this dough is like taffy.
Set in lightly oiled bowl covered with a towel and let rise for 1 1/2-2 hrs until doubled.

Invert a pan in a 500 degree oven.

Punch dough down and turn back onto lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 8 pieces(or 4 for giant pita!) shape into balls. Cover and let rest for 20 min.

Roll out with rolling pin or old wine bottle into 7-inch circles.

Slap onto inverted pan and bake until lightly puffed with a bit if browning in the edges.
Wrap with a towel to keep warm.