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Date Pyramid Cookies: Delicious Pastry

These filled cookies called Klaicha have a center of chopped dates and a hint of butter and are fairly low in sugar and surprisingly tasty. After just 24 hours since they came out of the oven and cooled off, I think I am addicted. They are shaped a bit like tiny pyramids, you use a dinner fork to press on them on opposite sides to flatten them while creating ridges reminiscent of peanut butter cookies. The dough is made from buckwheat flour, brown rice flour, almond flour and tapioca flour with brown sugar and butter. Spiced a bit with cinnamon, cardamon and anise seeds which give it a subtle middle eastern flavor profile when combined with the date filling. They are Iranian in origin, and I have no idea how to pronounce the traditional name, so I am just calling them date pyramid cookies, no offence Iran! I like that there isn’t a ton of date in each cookie; my sister Margie used to make these tasty date bars but honestly, I always thought they had just way too much date; was an overwhelming flavor in my humble opinion. Date pyramid cookies; just the right amount and a pleasing hint of spice. Date cookie perfection.

I enjoy their slightly crunchy exterior and soft date center. I like that they are fairly low in sugar (the date filling sweetens them up a lot) and that Klaicha are made with whole grain flours for most part. Forming them is a bit of a task. Half way through I returned them to the fridge to harden the dough and stop it from being a sticky mess on my hands. That said, it didn’t take long to do all 25 of them. Definitely a keeper recipe for the flavor, the texture and the relatively low sugar.

KLAICHA DATE PYRAMID COOKIES

Ingredients

1 cup brown rice flour

1 cup almond flour (not meal)

½ cup buckwheat flour

½ cup tapioca flour

¼ rounded tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cardamon

½-1 tsp. anise seeds

1 ½ tsp. xanthan gum

Pinch sea salt

9 Tbsp. room temp (firm) butter cut into 12-15 small pieces

½ cup brown sugar

5-7 Tbsp filtered water

Filling: 1 cup plus 1 Tbsp. chopped dates, 1 ½ Tbsp butter

Directions: Put flours, spices, salt and gum in stand mixer bowl. Cut in butter with either the stand mixer paddle or a handheld butter cutter until butter is in tiny pebbles. Add sugar, blend. Add water as mixer turns slowly; a steady stream.  Use all of it or less; you want it to come together into a slightly crumbly dough. Chill 30-60 minutes. Mix dates and water in sauce pan; cook covered on low for 5-7 minutes until softened and butter blends in; stir frequently. Let cool.

Form cookies: a chunk the size of a large walnut formed into a ball, squash it down with your thumb or index finger; place 1 tsp date mix in that depression and push dough up to form it back into a ball. If you use too much date filling it will be very difficult to get the dough to wrap completely around the filling. Once done with that step, use a dinner fork to press on opposite sides of the ball to leave ridges on those two sides. Place on lightly sprayed baking sheet. I kinda gently scrunch them down so they have a flat bottom. Bake at 325 degrees for 30-32 minutes until light brown. The bottom of the cookies should be browned but not dark. Let them cool on the sheet. They get a bit crunchy by the time the cookies are fully cooled. I store mine in the cookie jar and a few in the freezer for when these run out…gf cookies rarely keep well so I always freeze some. Great with a cup of tea or coffee. I dare you to eat just one.

Chicken Angelique

My family had this special dish that my mom found in a magazine. She always called it Chicken Angelique and I have never seen it in a cookbook. It was small bite sized cubes of chicken breast fried until browned and done inside. You make a lovely French sauce of celery, green onions, garlic, bacon, broth and milk. Serve it on top of fluffy white rice and have a side dish of steamed fresh asparagus and it was a meal for royalty. My mom made it only for company like my grandparents or aunts and uncles. She served it on her and my father’s twenty fifth wedding anniversary when I was a kid. When Mom turned 100 my sister Karen and I made it for her birthday supper and it was a good as I ever remembered it. A small labor of love for our lovely mother and she was thrilled to enjoy it on that momentous occasion. 

Notes: The raw chicken cuts into cubes better if it is partially frozen. I had frozen it for 5 days and I cut it up before it thawed fully.  Do use the entire scallion minus the roots of course! It adds a nice hint of scallion to the sauce. My sister put enough of the green leaves that her sauce was pale green; quite lovely actually. That one slice of bacon is very important; adds a special bit of flavor. Do not use anything less than 2 percent milk in the sauce. I prefer whole milk which is what my mom used. We had a milk cow, and she used a mechanical separator machine that gave a stream of milk and a lesser stream of thick cream. Use tender celery and real butter for the best flavor. I used rice flour, but you can use all-purpose flour if you don’t need to be gluten free.  Enjoy!

This is the only picture I took of it, the one of it in the pan was slightly out of focus; I was just too busy cooking and wasn’t thinking much about sharing pictures.
I did take a picture of the rice! Lovely fluffy basmati rice.

Mom’s Chicken Angelique,  serves 4-5

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts

½ tsp. salt and 3 Tbsp. rice flour (pepper is optional)

1 Tbsp and 1 tsp. butter

1-2 Tbsp. mild olive oil or canola oil

Sauce:

1 slice cold bacon; mince it up

1 smaller rib celery chopped finely

4 green onions chopped finely

1 small clove garlic minced

1 Tbsp. mild olive oil

2 chicken bouillon cubes dissolved in 1 cup boiling hot water

1 small bay leaf

1/8 tsp. thyme, skimp it a bit

2 Tbsp rice flour or slightly less all purpose flour

1 cup plus 3 Tbsp. whole milk

1 medium egg yolk (I used the smallest egg out of a dozen large ones) Stirred up a bit

8 oz fresh small mushrooms; slice them medium thin after cutting of the bottom of the stem

1 tbsp butter and 1 tsp. oil

Make the sauce first. Using a large sauce pan; heat it; add oil, bacon, celery, green onions; cook 2-3 minutes; add the garlic and cook another minute. Light brown; not dark brown. Add the hot bullion, the bay leaf and the thyme. Simmer it covered for 15 minutes. (while the sauce simmers, slice the raw mushrooms and cook them in a tablespoon of butter and a dash of cooking oil. Turn off when they look done. Back to the sauce: you can then blend it in a blender until smooth but we never bother with that step. Mix a tablespoon of flour with half a cup of the milk and add to the sauce; heat on medium stirring constantly until it starts to thicken. Put the rest of the flour in with another half cup of milk; add to sauce and cook a few moments. Add a half cup of the sauce into the cup with the stirred-up egg yolk to warm it up and then dump it all back into the sauce pan. Stir well as you add the rest of the milk. It should be like slightly thick gravy. Add the sautéed mushrooms to it. Turn to the lowest setting to keep it warm while you make the chicken.

The chicken should be skinless; cut it up into 1-inch cubes. Roll in flour that you salted a bit. Heat a large saucepan, add the oil and butter. I did my chicken in 3 batches. There should be a bit of space between the cubes. Turn them 1-2 times to brown the sides. I used a dinner fork to do that. I put the done ones into a bowl, and you will probably need to add another tablespoon of oil for each batch.  When they are all browned you are ready to bring It together with the sauce. You should have made some white rice to serve with them. And a vegetable like asparagus, peas or whatever you enjoy. Pour the hot cooked cubes into the sauce and serve it on a bed of hot rice. Some people sprinkle some paprika or fresh parsley on top, but I don’t really bother with that. Enjoy!

Great Lower Sugar Yogurt Choices

Yogurt, that’s what I like for lunch most weekdays, with a small sandwich and a tangerine. I watch these infomercials about how bad yogurt is for you due to excessive sugar. So, I try to stick to lower sugar varieties. I also buy plain organic Greek or whole yogurt to which I add homemade jam/marmalade for a change of pace and as an excellent way to use my jams. Aldi’s whole milk Greek yogurt is particularly delightful. But I have to confess a weakness for Friendly Farms Zero fat strawberry Greek yogurt in the 5.3-ounce cup. I originally though it would be weird with zero fat and avoided it for like a year but when I finally snagged some, I discovered that it tastes rich and smooth. The FF strawberry flavor isn’t overwhelming, but it isn’t weak either.  It’s super creamy and almost fluffy on my tongue. I never get tired of it. I will say the seasonal Cranberry flavor low-fat Greek yogurt is also excellent. I often get a blueberry or raspberry too. Yummers!

This is only out around Thanksgiving to New Years; delish for sure.

Another choice is Oikos blended Greek yogurt cups; 100 calories and the fruit puree is the third ingredient. 10 grams sugar. I generally buy it on sale; might get down to a buck. The strawberry is tasty.

Looking at the FF ingredients, the first one is nonfat yogurt, then cane sugar, then cream and then fruit. I happen to also enjoy Chobani less sugar Greek yogurt. Reading that label, I was shocked to find the third ingredient is water, then fruit puree. It has 10 less calories than Friendly Farm’s Greek yogurt. Both have five active yogurt cultures. The fat content is very close; 3% or 2.5%.  FF has 13 grams of sugar while the lower sugar Chobani has 9 grams. I guess I should mention that all these yogurts are gluten free. Some yogurts come with add ins in a little plastic container fastened to the top; often they are full of gluten; read those labels very closely.

The best yogurt cup out there, in my humble opinion…

I get the FF yogurt at Aldi’s. It usually is 59 cents. If the Chobani is on sale I might get it for a buck or $1.10. Double the cost. But only when it is on sale. FF is always a bargain.  Both taste great. But that price point is hard to ignore. Occasionally I surrender to buying a couple strawberry mango Dannon or a mango Chobani, but the rest of those sugar filled yogurts, at their inflated prices, do not entice me. Next time you are in Aldi’s pick up a few of the Greek yogurt cups; all the flavors are tasty; love the key lime as well as the toasted coconut one. I am not a big fan of their regular yogurt, but the Greek is head and shoulders cheaper and just as tasty as my beloved Chobani mango yogurt.  If you have jam; get a big container of plain yogurt and jam it up; very tasty, healthy and satisfying to eat homemade jam in yogurt. I feel virtuous as I am not adding any sugar; just my jam I made last year. Sure, yogurt may not be as healthy as we once thought but if you make good choices and go with lower sugar it is healthish and delish! Enjoy!

Christmas Stollen, 2.0….Even Better!

Gluten-Free Holiday Stollen Yield: two 10″ loaves

The classic Christmas stollen bread is made with yeast. Shush, don’t tell your gluten eating friends that this quicker, easier gluten-free version, made with baking powder as the rising agent, is even tastier in my humble opinion. Filled with dried fruit and toasted almonds and covered with a layer of melted butter and powdered sugar, this is more like pastry and is delicious with a cup of coffee or tea. Great choice for when company is coming as it isn’t that much work or time needed to create this masterpiece. Everyone will think you slaved all day to bake it. No need to tell them how easy it is! Its origins are Germanic but it isn’t heavy or dry; flaky and tender, pastry perfection. If you are searching for the perfect gluten free holiday treat; look no further. I cannot say enough good things about this treat. It is loved by all, and that second loaf makes a wonderful gift. I am looking forward to enjoying stollen this afternoon; in the oven baking right now!

I first made it 3 years ago, lost the recipe; had to get it again from the King Arthur Flour’s web site customer service center as they had removed it from their recipe rotation. They said it needed some tweaking. I disagree, it is just delectable although shaping it can be rather messy. It is far easier made without yeast which adds steps and can be finicky. I frankly don’t miss the yeast like I once thought I would. This dough is very tender and flavorful, I have been known to eat leftover tidbits raw it is that tasty. My family adores this pastry treat and will do nefarious things to get more stollen at Christmastime.

Notes: You could use orange rind instead of lemon rind and the dried fruit selection is entirely up to your tastes or your pantry. If you dislike the raisins substitute more dried fruit. One more good thing; it doesn’t require aging like a fruit cake. As soon as it cools you can cut a fat piece and enjoy a slice of heaven on earth!

Adding the butter
Butter is now integrated into dough using pastry cutter

Dough

2 1/4 cups King Arthur basic blend Gluten-Free Flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt*

3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) cold butter

3/4 cup ricotta cheese, part-skim milk type, let warm a bit to get it close to room temp. Can use whole milk ricotta if that is what you have.

2 large eggs, room temp

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Grated rind of 1 small lemon; or 1/4 teaspoon lemon oil, or 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup of your favorite dried fruits, chopped to 1/2″ pieces Yes, dried, not fresh. (I do apricots, cherries, currents, raisins or peaches/pears)

1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted and cooled

—————

*Reduce the salt to 1/4 teaspoon if you use salted butter.

dried fruit and citrus zest

Topping

the dried fruit is mixed in!

Adding the toasted almonds
Adding the wet mixture into the dry dough
formed stollen ready to bake
baked and powdered
More powdered sugar sprinkled on using a sieve

4 tablespoons butter, melted

2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 325°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line it with

parchment.

2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum in a mixing bowl.

3. Cut the cold butter into small chunks, then blend it into the flour mixture to form uneven crumbs.

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the cheese, eggs, vanilla, and flavors.

5. Toss the fruit and almonds with the flour mixture until evenly distributed. Then combine the wet and dry ingredients, mixing until most of the flour is

moistened.

6. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and knead it two or three times, until it holds together. Divide it in half.

7. Pat each piece of dough into an 8″ x 7″ oval about 1/2″ thick.

8. Fold each piece of dough roughly in half, leaving the edge of the top half about 1/2″ short of the edge of the bottom half. Should you fold the long way, or the short way? The long way will give you a longer, narrower stollen, with shorter slices; folding the short way will give you a wider, fatter stollen, with longer slices.  I do the long way, your choice.

9. Use the edge of your hand to press the dough to seal about 1″ in back of the open edge; this will make the traditional stollen shape. It’s also the familiar Parker House roll shape, if you’ve ever made them. The dough will probably crack; that’s OK, just smooth it out as best you can.

10. Carefully place the shaped stollen on the prepared baking sheet.

11. Bake the stollen until they’re very lightly browned around the edges and on top, about 40 minutes. A cake tester inserted into the center should come out clean.

12. Remove the stollen from the oven, and transfer them to a rack. Brush them each with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle heavily with confectioners’ sugar.

13. Allow the stollen to cool, then brush with butter again, and sprinkle with sugar again. Wrap in plastic wrap until ready to serve; serve within a week. If desired, sprinkle with additional sugar just before serving.

14. Yield: two 1-pound stollen loaves. I like to freeze one for another occasion if I am not gifting it right away. Enjoy!

Homemade Chili Rellenos and Super Easy Mexican Rice Made in an IP

Chili Rellenos and Mexican Rice

Chilly nights make me long for spicy food and I turn to Mexican dishes as well as Indian curries. They can warm your tummy and brighten up a dull day with vibrant flavors. Curries and Mexican food can be hot as in super spicy; depends on the pepper type and quantity added. I love zingy food but, my idea of spicy is probably on the mild side compared to many folks. Of course, you can always up the spicy ingredients, the jalapeno pepper in this comes to mind. Or cut back if you want it milder.

One of my favorites that I don’t get to eat these days are chiles rellenos. Spicy peppers stuffed with cheese, battered and fried. I bought a few poblano peppers at the farmer’s market for this purpose. I had Mexican cheese in the fridge. The rest of the ingredients were on hand. I do say that next time I will try it with Monterrey Jack cheese; in many of the recipes I previewed in my search for a suitable one that was the cheese of choice. I think it would have a bit more flavor and more melty quality so I do suggest you use that. I made 4 peppers; the recipe I altered was for 6, next time I will do six for sure. I did find the poblanos to be on the hot side for me. Thinking Anaheim for next time. I’m always tweaking recipes to make them more perfect, for me anyway!

The Mexican rice was to be from scratch and I wanted to go a bit more healthy; I used par cooked brown rice; cooked it 7 min in my IP. I think 6 minutes would be enough. If you use regular brown rice you will need to cook it much longer; more like 25 minutes so I suggest the par-boiled rice for quicker cooking.

I started the peppers; charred them in my broiler for about 5-6 minutes on opposite sides and then covered and let stand 10 minutes while I got the rice going. Once it was in the IP and the lid on I went back to the chile rellenos recipe and they both were done around the same time. Success!

Chili Rellenos

Pepper Ingredients:

6 big mildly hot peppers; choose Anaheim or Poblano

3 eggs, separated

6 sticks of Monterey Jack cheese; ½ inch dimeter and the length so they fit inside the pepper.

¼ cup white rice flour mixed with ¼ tsp. sea salt; on a plate

Canola oil to put 1/4-1/2 inch deep in medium fry or sauce pan. 1-2 cups

Sauce ingredients;

1 Tbsp mild olive oil

2-3 Tbsp. minced onion

¼ tsp. cumin

4 ounces tomato sauce (half an 8 ounce can; the rest gets used in the Mexican rice)

Directions: turn on oven to broiler. Place the whole peppers on a piece of aluminum foil on a small sheet. Broil 5-6 minutes until charred; take out and turn over with tongs or fingers. Do other side 5-6 minutes. Do stay near by to yank out before they get over done. Cover with foil and let stand 10 minutes. Then peel off skin of peppers, don’t worry if you can’t get all of it. Then cut a slice in one side and remove all the seeds. Then stuff the pepper with a fat stick of cheese. Fasten with 1-2 toothpicks to keep cheese in. Place on plate until you are ready to finish the dish.

Mexican Rice

Ingredients:

3-4 Tbsp. mild olive oil

1 ¼ cup par boiled brown rice (do not rinse)

¼ cup chopped onion

½-1 jalapeno pepper minced, no seeds unless you want it hotter

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 ½ cup water mixed with one veggie bouillon cube

4 ounces tomato sauce *the other half of the 8 oz can

1 carrot diced

½ cup frozen peas

Directions: turn IP onto sauté. Add oil, let warm a moment and add brown rice, stir with oil; let brown for 2 minutes. Add the onion and cook 2-3 minutes. Add minced pepper and garlic. Stir and cook 2-3 minutes. Add broth you created with water and bouillon cube, the tomato sauce and the chopped carrot. Stir up and put the lid on. Cook under pressure 6-7 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes. Release pressure, open, add peas, put lid back on (no need to lock) and let stand 2-3 minutes. Open, fluff gently with fork so peas are getting a bit blended in without breaking the rice grains. Serve and enjoy! This would be perfect with almost anything Mexican like tacos or enchiladas.

Continuation of peppers: while the rice cooks in the IP: fry those pepper babies up!

Use a small electric mixer to whip whites in a medium mixing bowl until they are stiff and then add egg yolks one at a time and blend briefly to make an even mixture. Heat the oil on your stove until hot but not smoking. I used an 8 inch fry pan that would hold 2-3 peppers at a time. Then roll the stuffed peppers one at a time in flour mixture. Next, dip them in the egg fluff coating and gently lay one in the hot oil. I tried to get as thick a coat as possible and cover the entire pepper. Get a second one ready and put it in there too. Turn them over gently once the bottom is a nice medium brown. I used a long big metal spoon with holes in it, tongs might help. As they get done remove them to a oven safe plate lined with paper towels. Add a third once you take the first pepper out. And so on; Put the plate in the oven warmed to 200 degrees while the rest fry. Meanwhile I put the sauce oil and onion in a small pan and let them cook 2-3 minutes. I added the cumin and stirred it. Cooked 30 seconds, added tomato sauce and cooked on low for 4-7 minutes.

Serve by placing some sauce on the plate and top with the fried peppers; 2 per person. Add Mexican rice to the dinner plate. I had a salad too afterwards to settle my fiery tummy, LOL! Those poblanos were a bit hot for me! Still delish…Ole!