Red Shoes & Irish Soda Bread

 

"There are only two types of women that wear red shoes, and YOU my dear are no Spanish dancer". 

That little gem came out of the mouth of my friend's 86 year old mother, delivered in the thickest Irish brogue you could imagine.

We had been out shopping and she had purchased a pair of red shoes.   Upon showing off her new purchase, that was her mother's response.  Did I mention that said friend was in her 50's?!
I was still in my 20's at the time and thought it was one of the funniest things I had ever heard, the fact that it was delivered with perfect comic timing from an 86 year old woman made it even better.

That happened over 15 years ago and it still cracks me up when I think about it.  To this day, I have never met another person (of ANY age) that was as much of a firecracker as that lovely Irish lass.   

This is her recipe, it is a touch sweeter than most soda breads I've had and a little cakier.  It goes brilliantly with a strong cuppa tea. 

There are many variations of soda bread out there.  Most traditionally, it is not sweet and does not have raisins in it.  I like this version, so it's what I make and quite honestly, that is an integral part of cooking and baking as far as I'm concerned.  If you are making something you like, you are more likely to cook and bake and isn't that the point here?

Yes, there are times when you want to make something as close to "the real deal" as possible and sometimes that matters a little less.  If you tend to like less sweet, in theory you should be able to reduce the amount of sugar to 1/2 cup without any major disasters.  I haven't done this, so I can't be held responsible for the results! 
If you don't care for raisins you can omit them or stick with all currants.  I will never admit to this in public, but perhaps you could swap out the raisins for a different dried fruit. 

This bread is great the first day, a little less on the second and by by the third day: make toast.   It makes a rather large loaf, so you could split the dough in half, reduce the baking time and just freeze the other one...  OR if, like me, you tend to make enough to feed half the neighborhood,  make someones day and share your golden, studded beauty with a few friends.


Irish Soda Bread

4 c. AP flour, plus extra for board
4 tsp. baking powder
1 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. caraway seeds (optional)
1/2 c. golden raisins
1/2 c. brown raisins
1/2 c. currants
1/2 c. butter
2 large eggs, beaten
1 c. whole milk


Preheat oven to 350.



Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. 

If using caraway seeds, add to flour mixture.



In a separate bowl, combine raisins and currants. 

Toss with a few tablespoons of flour mixture to coat. 

Set aside.

 

Using a pastry blender, fork, or food processor cut in butter until pebble sized pieces remain.  Add milk and eggs, mix to combine (I don't recommend food processor here).   Fold in raisins and currants, then turn out onto well-floured board.  Dough will be sticky, using floured hands, mold into a round or oblong loaf.  This is a quick bread and is not meant to be kneaded, take care not to overwork the dough.

 



Place on baking pan lined with parchment paper or in cast iron pan (preferable) in center of oven.

 

Bake for 1 hour, remove from oven and place on cooling rack. 
Brush top with butter while hot.

(because I lack patience, I sliced mine while it was still warm... It is better to wait until it has cooled completely before you cut into it)

 

 



(Old Mother) Hubbard Squash

The past two weeks have been a weather nightmare here and we are all in need of a little comfort.  For me, that usually comes in the form of something warm from the oven.   This particular time, the oven also served as  heat for my apartment.  I had purchased a perfect little Hubbard squash and since I had lost my heat it seemed an opportune time to do something with it.

If you have never had Hubbard squash before, you are in for a treat. The flesh is slightly drier than acorn or butternut and it is a bit earthier in flavor. The bluish-gray color and deep orange flesh is beautiful and makes for a striking contrast.

Any kind of roasted squash is, for me, the perfect fall food and if you are the type that likes to change up for your holiday menu this would be a great addition to the meal.  As I have professed before on this very blog, I am NOT the type to change my menu, but adding to it is absolutely permissible. 

So while we are all getting back on track here in NYC and for my friends just getting back into their homes,  we should offer a bit of comfort to those who need it.  Whether it be as simple as a hug, a warm bed or a hot meal and perhaps it may come in the form of a little Hubbard squash.

Stuffed Hubbard Squash

• 1 Hubbard Squash, halved and cleaned
• 1 cup wild & long grain rice blend
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 onion, small dice
• 2 handfuls baby kale
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cut off a small piece from the outside of the squash so you will have a flat surface to prevent it from rolling over once you stuff it with the filling.   Lightly oil inside of squash and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place squash on lightly oiled sheet pan, cut side down (inside), and roast in oven for 30 - 40 minutes.
While squash is in oven, make the filling...

Heat olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat, add onion and cook until translucent.  Add kale and saute for 2 minutes then add rice and stir to coat.  Let rice toast for a few minutes, add golden raisins, give it a quick stir and add chicken stock, salt & pepper, stir again and cover.

Let the filling simmer for about 20 minutes or until rice is cooked then remove from heat.
Remove squash from oven and carefully turn over. Turn oven down to 325 degrees. Fill each half, dot each with a little butter and put back in the oven for another 20 minutes.

Share the other half with a friend.


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Linguini & Roast Chicken

Do you ever have those moments when a completely random thought pops into your head out of the blue for no apparent reason at all?   This happens to me so frequently, that I'm starting to wonder if this is normal...  Well, that is how this recipe ended up here.  

I used to make this for dinner once or twice a month about 10 years ago, then because I had it so often I got sick of it and haven't made it since.  As soon as I tasted it again I realized WHY I ate it so often.  It's really, really good. 

It is about as uncomplicated as you can get, but the flavors are amazing.  The pan juices from the chicken are the sauce for the pasta with a few little goodies thrown in.   Let's talk about the sauce for a minute... 
I know some of you are going to groan that I would suggest tossing pasta in a little bit of chicken fat, but fat is FLAVOR. 

I'm not suggesting you dive into a block of lard with a knife and fork.  The amount of fat is roughly a few tablespoons and unless you've had a triple bypass already, it won't kill you, so live a little...  have a salad for lunch & all will right with the world.

I would normally give you a free pass to use a store-bought roasted chicken, but not this time.   It's the juices from the roasting pan that make this dish.  The deep, roasted flavor that you can not get from anything other than roasting your own chicken.   If you try to use a store-bought chicken anyway, I'll know... 
so don't even think about it


Linguini with Roasted Chicken & Pine Nuts
-recipe adapted from Claudia Roden

• 3 1/2 - 4 pound chicken
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1 pound linguini
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 sprigs rosemary, leaves removed & chopped
• 4 sprigs thyme
• 4 cloves garlic
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 3 stalks celery, cut in half

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Lay the celery in the roasting pan & set the chicken on top of it.  Rub chicken with the oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper.  Place the garlic & the sprigs of thyme around the chicken and roast for 1 hour or until juices run clear.   Let chicken rest 10 - 15 minutes before cutting.

While the chicken is resting, boil the pasta.  Remove 1 cup of boiling pasta water to soak golden raisins.  Let the raisins soak for a few minutes while you get on with the sauce. 

Pour the juice from the roasting pan into a small saucepan.  Add the rosemary, pine nuts and drained golden raisins.  Let the sauce simmer for 5 - 10 minutes.   While the sauce is simmering, pull the meat (and the lovely crispy skin!) from the chicken and set aside.

Drain pasta, toss with chicken and sauce in a large bowl.