Everyday Foccacia

 1 ¼-oz. envelope active dry yeast (about 2¼ tsp.) (7g)

2 1/2c luke warm water

2 tsp. honey

5 cups (625 g) all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. Morton kosher salt

6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for hands

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Flaky sea salt

Mix yeast, honey (or sugar), and warm water in a small bowl. Let sit until frothy (about 5 mins).

Add the flour and salt to a large bowl. Add the to the liquid mixture to the flour mix and stir until combined into a shaggy dough.

Pour 4TBS olive oil into a large container (you'll need room for dough to double in size). Pour the dough into the bowl and flip over so the oil coats the dough. Cover loosely with a lid or plastic wrap. Place in the fridge to rise over night (8-24hrs) or place on the counter for 4 hours (or until doubled).

When the dough has risen (it will be loose and sticky), use a fork to turn the dough by placing the fork under a section of the dough and folding that section from bottom over onto the top. Turn the bowl a 1/4 turn after each fold until the dough forms a loose ball shape.

Butter a 9x13 dish (if you want thicker pieces) or a baking sheet (for thinner pieces) with about 2TBS butter. Pour an additional 1TBS of olive oil to the bottom of the pan.

Pour the dough into the pan and rise again for 1 1/2 hours (or until doubled) in a warm spot. Remember to start preheating to your oven to 450-degrees about 20-30mins before you plan to bake your bread.

Once doubled, stretch the dough to fill the pan (if you are using a baking sheet, it will be thin, stretch as far or as little as you want), then poke/dimple the dough until it is covered. Pour an additional 1TBS olive oil over the top, then sprinkle with flaky salt (but I always just use coarse Kosher salt).

Bake for 20-30mins until golden-brown. (I use an instant read thermometer to check if the center is 190-degrees).

Optional: top with garlic/seasoned butter

Turkey Gravy

Based on Bon Appétit Good Gravy 

• 3 lb. turkey and/or chicken wings, flats and drumettes separated

• 4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• 2 heads of garlic, cut in half crosswise

• 1 onion, unpeeled, halved

• 1 4" piece ginger, thickly sliced

• 4 oz. white mushrooms, torn into large pieces

• 2 tsp. black peppercorns, lightly crushed

• 6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

• 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature

• 1/4 cup water
• 3Tbs apple juice
• 1.5 tsp tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon soy sauce

• Handful of parsley or parsley stems

• 6 cups turkey stock or low-sodium chicken broth, warmed

• 2 tsp. red wine vinegar

• 1 tsp. MSG

• Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper (optional)

Preheat oven to 450°. Toss wings in a large cast-iron skillet with 2 Tbsp. oil until coated. Roast, tossing halfway through, until golden brown and starting to crisp, 25–35 minutes.

Remove wings from oven and add garlic, shallots, ginger, mushrooms, peppercorns,
and remaining 2 Tbsp. oil to pan; toss to coat. Return to oven and roast, tossing
halfway through, until wings are deeply browned and crisp and vegetables
are browned, 30–40 minutes more.

Meanwhile, make a buerre manié by mashing together flour and butter in a small bowl with your fingers/fork until homogenous. Set aside.

Remove skillet from oven and set on stovetop over medium-high heat. Combine 1/2 cup water, 1/3 cup apple juice, 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, and 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce and use in place of 1/2 c sherry (because I never have that) and cook, stirring and scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, until sherry is almost completely reduced, about 2 minutes.

Scrape wings and aromatics into a medium pot and add parsley and stock. Bring to a low simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer gently, skimming fat from surface occasionally and turning wings so both sides get a chance to be submerged, until liquid is flavorful, mahogany in color, and reduced by about one-third, 30–40 minutes.

Fish out wings; discard. Pour mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring glass; discard solids. Rinse out pot and pour turkey mixture back in. Bring to a simmer over medium. Whisking constantly, add reserved beurre manié and whisk until completely incorporated. Simmer, whisking often and skimming any foam from surface, until gravy is thick enough to coat a spoon, 6–8 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in vinegar and MSG. Taste gravy and season with salt and pepper if desired.
Do Ahead: Gravy (without vinegar and MSG) can be made 5 days ahead. Let cool, then cover and chill. Reheat over medium until simmering, then add vinegar and MSG.
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Remove wings from oven and add garlic, shallots, ginger, mushrooms, peppercorns, and remaining 2 Tbsp. oil to pan; toss to coat. Return to oven and roast, tossing halfway through, until wings are deeply browned and crisp and vegetables are browned, 30–40 minutes more.

Paul's Birthday Cheesecake

 

• Crust
• 12 whole graham cracker, blended into crumbs
• 5 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

• 2 Tbs sugar
• pinch of salt

• Filling
• 2lbs full fat cream cheese
• 2 c sugar
• 3 Tbs flour
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ c full fat sour cream
• 6 eggs

• 
  
• Equipment
• Stand mixer
• 10" springform pan
• Roaster pan, large enough to hold the 10" pan (I use a large disposable roaster pan)
• Tin foil

• 
  
• 
  
• Preheat the oven to 350-degrees. 
• Move an oven rack to lower-middle of the oven.
• Wrap the springform in foil as best possible to prevent water from entering the cheesecake while it cooks in the water bath. A little water will likely seep in, but after it cools, it will just fine.
• Butter the inside of a 10" springform pan. 
• Heat several cups of water in a saucepan. (You will need several cups of boiling water before you put the cake in the oven for a water bath.)

• Crust:
•  Mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugar, and salt in the springform pan, with your hands, until it feels like wet sand and hold together when pressed. Press the mixture evenly across the bottom of the pan and slightly up the sides.
• Bake for 10-minutes, until it smells toasty. Set aside.

• Filling:
•  Whip the cream cheese in a stand mixer, on med-high speed, until smooth (you can bring the cream cheese to room temp to make it easier, but just whipping it for a few minutes does just fine). 
• Add the sugar, flour, and salt and whip until combined. Scrape bottom and sides.
• Add vanilla, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sour cream. Mix on low-med speed until combined. Scrape bottom and sides.
• Mix on low, adding one egg at a time, mixing until each egg is combined before adding the next.  It might begin looking lumpy, but it will combine as you continue stirring. Scrape bottom and sides, making sure all the ingredients are mixed. 
• The batter should look thick and creamy. If you have small cream cheese lumps at this point, don't worry. They will blend when cooked. 
• Mix by hand a few times, scraping the sides and bottom.

• 
  
• Baking:
•  Pour the filling into the pan. Place the springform pan in the roaster, and gently pour the boiling water into the roaster, until the water is about 1" up the outside of the springform pan. 
• Bake for about 90 minutes, until the internal temp is 165-degrees. Turn off the oven and open the door. Let the cake cool for about 1 hour. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to cool. 

• 
  
• Helpful links:
• How to Make the Perfect Cheesecake from The Kitchn
• America's Test Kitchen Foolproof NY Cheesecake

• 
  

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Egg Rolls

 Egg Rolls

Asian, Dinner

Description:

Taught by Siebert family to Karie Ludwig

Ingredients:

wonton skins

Filling Ingredients:

Carrots, shredded

Green onion, chopped

Vermicelli noodles (soften by pouring boiling water over the top)

cabbage, chopped

bean sprouts

garlic

soy sauce

sugar

salt

pepper

sesame oil

egg

ground chicken

Directions:

Mix filling ingredients together. Put a couple tablespoons of filling in wonton skins, roll up, and seal with water. Fry slowly on each side

Source: Karie Ludwig

Blue Ribbon Banana Bread

This is the banana bread from the Hawaiian cookbook that mom had.

• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Cup Butter or margarine, melted
• 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
• 2 Cups Flour
• 2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• Pinch Cinnamon
• 2 Cups Bananas, sliced and firmly packed
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
• 2 Cups Walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two loaf bans. Beat eggs, oil, butter, and sugar for 2 minutes. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Add bananas and vanilla and mix until bananas are mashed. Add nuts. Pour into prepared pans and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. remove from pans immediately and cool on a wire rack.

**For mango bread, substitute 2 cups drained mangos for the bananas and add 2 teaspoons cinnamon.

Big Overnight Sandwich

Recipe from Tastes from the Country: Ashby Family Cookbook

This is such a easy, super-filling, crowd-pleaser. I love that I can make it the night before and the leftovers keep super well. I'm always shocked at how it isn't mushy or soggy like you would imagine. 

Pickle Chicken Strips

Adapted from https://theskinnyishdish.com/skillet-pickle-chicken/

• Dill pickle juice + enough water to cover the chicken
• 5 chicken breast cut into strips
• 10 tbsp white flour
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp kosher salt divided
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 3 TBS vegetable oil divided

Brine the chicken in pickle juice and water for 8-10 hours.

Mix flour and spices (with only 1 tsp of salt) in a bowl and set aside.

Place chicken in a bag with 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp veggie oil. Rub the oil and salt into the chicken. Add the flour mixture to the bag and toss until coated.

Heat about 2 tsp of veggie oil at a time (this will take a few rounds, since you need to give the chicken space to cook) in a med. heat cast iron pan, and cook chicken for about 4 mins per side or until cooked through. Rest the chicken for a few minutes before serving.