Spicy Orange Snapper

I'm calling this recipe 'Orange Snapper' because chicken is a very rare and expensive treat in these parts and we've decided that Red Snapper is the TRUE chicken-of-the-sea.  It's really a Chinese inspired orange sauce, and I've made this recipe with both snapper and beef, but chicken is the most likely choice.  I also don't have ready access to dream-vegetables like green onions and red-peppers, but imagine you could throw in just about anything.... I used cashews, ginger, onions and carrots.

Here we go...

Spicy Orange Snapper

To start, brown about 1/2 cup chopped cashews in a little butter, and set aside.  Use the same pan to sauté all your desired veggies in a few tbsp. of oil, and set aside with the cashews.

To bread snapper/chicken:
- 1 lb. meat
-1 egg
-1 tbsp milk
-1 cup four
-2 tsp salt

Cut meat into small cubes
Prepare bowl of egg and milk
Prepare bag with flour and salt.
Coat meat in egg mixture, and add piece by piece to the flour mixture - tossing occasionally to coat.
Stir-fry in about 1/3 cup oil until crunchy and golden.

For Orange sauce:
-3 tbsp. soy sauce
-3 tbsp. water
-8 tbsp. sugar
-5 tbsp. white vinegar
-The grated zest and juice of one orange
-Add some heat to taste (we like to use fresh poblanos, but you could also use dried, crushed red.)
-2 tsp. cornstarch.

Stir together all ingredients.  Pass the juice from the orange through a sieve before adding to the sauce.  Stir well.

Add cashews, veggies, and chicken back to the pan.  Reheat, and drizzle the sauce in its entirety over the whole lot.  Heat through until the sauce thickens, and serve over sticky white-rice.

I sometimes have the shameful urge to make a batch of this sauce to DRINK.  It's that good. Pin It Now!

Maple Pumpkin Butter.

I actually made up several batches of this Maple Pumpkin Butter last Autumn when we were in the glory of the coolness and colors and warm belly that is Fall.  I don't know why I didn't post the recipe then... but I have been ACHING for some now (especially since my panini maker arrived with our shipping container, and a cream-cheese, pumpkin butter, sliced ham panini would send me straight to heaven right now.)  I had to drag up the pics off our hard drive, but even seeing them made me happy.  I promise it really bakes itself, and the hardest part is cutting into the rind of the pumpkin.  That said, you might as well kill two delicious birds with one stone, and use a portion of the pumpkin for some Pumpkin Soup... just scroll down, be happy, and warm your bellies for the sake of an Upstate girl who loves fall, but hardly ever sees it.

Maple Pumpkin Butter

1 1/2 lbs. Fresh, peeled, sliced pumpkin (boil until soft and drain.)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup apple cider
3/4 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp ginger

Blend all ingredients together in a blender, then place in a glass 13x9 inch dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours - stirring every 15 minutes.  The moisture will bake away, leaving a thick, delicious butter behind.  Shed a tear for me over the sheer beauty.

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Grace's magic.

Grace's magic* 

(aka. Bagels)

*My mother-in-law used to have a cook.  Grace.  Sweetest Kikuyu woman with a magic hand for all things dough.  She dictated this recipe to me one day about 4 years ago.  I tried it three weeks ago, and now bake them every other day....

1 tbsp. sugar

2 tbsp. yeast

2 cups very warm water

-Put sugar and yeast in a bowl and stir in the 2 cups warm water.  Allow to do it's thing for about 10 minutes while you move on.

3 tbsp. sugar

1 tbsp. salt

5 cups flour

Glaze (for later): 

1 egg

A little milk

(and sesame seeds, if you so desire, which I do.)

Simple, right?  Mix sugar, salt and flour, then dump in your fluffy yeast mixture.

You HAVE to have good yeast.  If it doesn't look foamy and full, ditch it and try again.  Too cool water won't activate the yeast, and too hot will kill it.

Kneed the dough for about 10 minutes until it is smooth and silky, adding flour constantly.  Pinch it in half to make sure the dough is dry and not sticky.

Divide the dough into 12 equal portions, and roll into balls.

Put all 12 rounds onto a greased cookie sheet, and cover lightly with a tea towel.  Set in a warm place to rise for about 40 minutes.

Uncover and it's time to pinch holes!  Just grab each round between your thumb and forefinger and pinch - then insert your thumb to widen and smooth out the center.

Cover with that towel again and leave them to rise a bit longer (about 20 min) while you heat up a nice big pot of water to boiling.  Preheat the oven, while you're at it, to about 400 degrees.

Gingerly place three bagels at a go into the water to boil for three minutes (1 1/2 min per side).  Remove with a slotted spoon and return to the cookie sheet to cool.  When they're cool enough to handle, dip both sides in the egg/milk glaze, then one side in the toasted sesame seeds, if you so desire (which I do.)

The rest is easy.  Slide the tray into the oven and watch the magic.  In about 40 minutes you should have a dozen GORGEOUS bagels.  With any luck they should be delicious too.  I always flip the bagels at the 40 min. mark and pop them in for an extra five min. to brown the underside too.

Okay, now I'm hungry.

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