With fall already here and the Christmas season fast approaching I have been cooking up a storm in my tiny little kitchen. I love to cook and with it being the season of pumpkin and great spices like nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon, I have had a great excuse to do so and, no season would be complete without a few special dishes to top off the already beautiful time of year.
Here are some of my favorites so far recipes:
Pumpkin Bread: (Recipe from www.Simplyrecipes.com)
**this one tastes great right out of the oven with butter.**
1 1/2 cups (210g) flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (1/4 L) pumpkin purée (don't be afraid to be liberal with this)
1/2 cup (1 dL) olive oil
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup (1 dL) chopped walnuts (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Sift together the flour, salt, sugar,
and baking soda. Mix the pumpkin, oil, eggs, 1/4 cup of water, and
spices together, then combine with the dry ingredients, but do not mix
too thoroughly. Stir in the nuts. Pour into a well-buttered 9x5x3 inch
loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes until a straw poked in the very center of
the loaf comes out clean. Turn out of the pan and let cool on a rack.
Makes one loaf.
Cranberry Bread: (Recipe from www.Simplyrecipes.com)
2 cups flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup chopped cranberries
3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
1 Tbsp grated orange peel
1 Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
2 Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
in a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped cranberries and walnuts to coat
with the flour mixture.
3 Mix together orange juice, butter, egg, and orange peel.
Add to flour, cranberry, nut mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until
just blended.
4 Pour into a greased 9x5 or 8x4 loaf pan. Bake at 350°F for
55 to 60 minutes or until done (a toothpick inserted into the center
comes out clean).
5 Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack.
Serves 8.
The last recipe is from a co-worker. She makes the most amazing pulled pork I have ever tasted before. I tried it a few weeks ago and it was amazing.
Pulled Pork:
One boneless pork roast
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white vinegar
One 16 oz bottle ketchup
1 Large onion sliced thinly
salt/pepper
Combine all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 10-12 hours. It will be tender enough to pull apart with a fork. After pulling apart allow to simmer in juice another 20-30 minutes.
Serve with toasted rolls and applesauce!
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