Comfort foods

[JackFavell]

That looks so good, and I love almonds. I made toffee last year. Very similar, but I melted the choc later, after the toffee had set, and I didn't use almonds on top. This recipe looks much easier! One problem I had was getting the toffee thin enough. I had areas where it was just a bit too thick. Still tasted great, but it was harder to bite.

[knitwit45]

Since we're all (pretty much) housebound with the crummy weather, what are you guys doing for comfort foods? besides chocolate, of course......

[JackFavell]

We're having home made potato chips, nachos with artichoke and spinach hummus, fruit salad, chocolate covered strawberries, tiny finger sandwiches with roasted chicken and apple slices, and peapods and cherry tomatoes piped full of savory cream cheese fillings. I love making appetizers!

[knitwit45]

Um, I lost the directions to your house....please send ASAP!!!!!!!!!!

[JackFavell]

Second star to the right, then straight on till morning.

Ha! You'll have to negotiate the lake in front of my door - bring a canoe....

I am also going to try making kale chips - I watched someone on food network make them last week. I think you just spray coat them with a little oil and put them in the oven. That's how I make my potato chips. If you like crispy chips rather than more limber potatoes, use parchment paper and only spray the tops. And don't forget to salt them before they go in the oven.

[moirafinnie]

Oh, your chips sound good, JF. Maybe I'll try those with the sweet potatoes we have. Knitty, who is that guy in the overalls? It looks a bit like a very tan Jimmy Stewart??

[JackFavell]

Sweet potatoes are delicious too, I like to cut them very very thin so they come out a little crispier than the regular potato chips which burn quickly if they are too thin. If you want to try a little heaven in a bag, try UTZ Natural Kettle chips - there's a variety with blue potatoes, sweet potatoes and regular potatoes that are to die for. Not very good for you though!

[knitwit45]

oh yum. Have you ever had sweet potato fries? YUM

Moira, my 'guy' is Our Ben Johnson. Found the photo on the BJ thread, Paula posted some screencaps, and I just melted away when I saw him leaning against that wall......

[moirafinnie]

Now I see that it is him! Thank you for identifying him.

Re: Sweet Potatoes.
I usually cut them up in quarters and sprinkle garlic and cajun seasoning on them. Toss them in a little olive oil and bake on a sheet pan for about 20 or 30 minutes. They are actually a meal in themselves, loaded with anti-oxidents and particularly Vitamin A and potassium. I haven't fried them, though I have had them in chip form before, but fried foods and I ceased being friends a long time ago. I try to avoid them

[knitwit45]

I had the fries at a restaurant. I've had raw slices (actually slivers) served on a relish/dipping veggie tray. Really good!

[JackFavell]

I should start using more sweet potatoes in my cooking, I tend to use a lot of squash instead. In fact, I found a recipe for spinach salad yesterday, wth butternut squash cubes and cranberries, with toasted almonds sprinkled over the top - I'm going to try it this week.

I reserved part of the whipped cream cheese and instead of doing just savory fillings, I made a little cheesecake filling for the strawberries. I mixed in some lowfat yogurt and confectioners sugar (as little as I could get away with) and vanilla. Then I piped that into some of the strawberries... and crumbled graham crackers over the top. Next time, I'm going to try adding some fresh squeezed orange or clementine juice to the filling.

I'm gonna need to eat salads forever now.

Does anyone watch the new chef on Food Network? her name is Aarti. I am totally in love with her! She's beautiful with a great warm personality, has a great English accent, wears cool clothes, and has a kitchen I would DIE for....really bright, with gorgeous flowered wallpaper and red-pink lower cabinets. plus I like her recipes- they are interesting, but the ingredients are still ones can find.

Check out the little bench with the hot pink silk pillows!

[JackFavell]

Kale chips are good!

They cook fast - like maybe four minutes at 350-375 degrees? I'm not quite sure how long it took, but I put the sweet potatoes in the oven at the same time as the thin boneless pork chops, and set the timer for 17 minutes. I sprayed the cookie sheet, washed and ripped the kale into little pieces about one inch big, putting them on the sheet as I went. I then sprayed over the top of the kale and salted it lightly. I really filled the sheet, and I'm glad I did because they are very light and you will want to make a lot. I stuck it in the oven and they came out great!It might be best to watch them, because they seem like they would burn easily. They are fantastic with the pork and the sweet potatoes as an accent - first a kale chip, then a sweet potato chip for sweetness. They really bring out the best in each other, and everything came out of the oven at the same time which hardly ever happens for me.

Andrew said they tasted like an illegal substance. How he knew that I don't know...

[klondike]

SKIRLIE !

Ingredients -

4 oz fat or 4 tablespoons of butter
(traditionally a good flavoured dripping or beef suet would have been used)
2 onions, finely chopped
1 3/4 cups steel-cut (pinhead) oatmeal which may be lightly toasted (NOT rolled oats!)
Salt & pepper to season

Preparation -

Melt the fat or heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion and cook until soft and golden. Add the oatmeal and mix in well. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently until the oatmeal is cooked and crisp. Season well with pepper.
As a Yankee variation: opt for "skirlie-patchy" - while preparing skirlie as above, simmer a 1/4 cup pearled barley in a cup of chicken broth in a large skillet; when the barley is soft & swollen, and the broth mostly absorbed, stir all into the warm, finished skirlie, and season.

[JackFavell]

Klonny, you can cook, too? I'm bringing you home to meet the parents.

[klondike]

Klonny, you can cook, too? I'm bringing you home to meet the parents.

Uh-oh, paradox rising here: if I could cook, I probably wouldn't've needed marrying!

I'm much more skilled at eating; the extent of my kitchen expertise is anything quick & brainless, involving meat, eggs or beans, that can be het in cast iron, and doesn't require an oven or a clock.
(You know, like what a musher whips together on the trail!)