#Cookbooks

[classiccookbooks]

Ginger Cakes

Source: The New James Beard 1989

The smooth texture of these cookies with a hot overtone of ginger is rather like a ginger shortbread. Use the shortbread technique of pressing the mixture into the pan with your fingers.

Makes about 50 cookies

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 pound (1 cup) unsalted butter

Mix the flour, sugar, ginger, and baking soda thoroughly, then combine with the butter, cut into small pieces, until the mixture is well blended and crumbly. Place a 1/2-inch thickness of the mixture in square 8-inch layer- cake pans, pressing it down in the pan with your fingers. Bake in a 325° oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until lightly browned. While the cake is still warm, cut it into finger-shaped pieces about 1 inch wide. Remove the pieces with a spatula and, when cool, store in covered tins.

[youdoyoucooking]

French Toast, But Stuffed!

How do you feel about Rockville? I love it and will almost order it if it’s available at any restaurant where I eat breakfast. Fun fact: it was originally called Pan Perdu. A French dish that translates to “Lost Bread”. The bread is lost to you because it has gone a little stale. Pain Perdu originated as a clever method to use that stale or day-old bread, soaking it in a mixture of milk and eggs, and then frying it to create a soft, custardy interior with a crispy, golden exterior.

Classic French Toast was one of the early things I learned to make. There are no exotic ingredients and those ingredients are almost always something you have on hand. There is nothing new about my technique, it has stayed the same, but stuffing them is my latest twist. They are not technically “stuffed”, more of a sandwiching process. The “stuffing” can be as easy as jam or a predone pie filling. Almost whatever you want. Are you going to throw a fancy brunch and impress your friends? This should be your entree, they keep warm in the oven, so make a bunch and serve a crowd.

Stuffed French Toast

Makes 4 servings

8 slices of bread. Any kind you want but Challah or Potato Bread is a nice choice. Slightly stale the better.

4 eggs

1 cup of milk. Any kind you choose.

2 tablespoons of sugar.

About 1 cup of the stuffing of your choice. See a list of inspirations below or create your own.

1 tablespoon of butter (more as needed)

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil (more as needed)

Start by spreading your chosen filling between two slices of bread to make a sandwich. About 3-4 tablespoons per “sandwich”. Don’t overfill and don’t bring filling right to the edges. Repeat with the remaining slices.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and milk. This can be done really well with a blender or immersion blender.

Hold together the two slices of bread and dip each "sandwich" into the egg mixture, ensuring both sides are well-coated. Don’t be afraid to soak them a little. If you run out of egg mixture you can make up some more. ¼ cup of milk for every additional egg you think you need.

Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat (swirl pan so they are combined). Cook each sandwich for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and cooked through. The filling should be warm. Don’t be tempted to turn up the heat. A medium heat is slow enough for it to reach the filling of your French toast and still give a lovely brown crisp outside. You want to give everything a chance to cook. The outside would be brown and the inside of the slice of bread would be almost custardy. 

As you are cooking each piece you can replenish the butter and oil in the pan if needed.

Keep in a warm oven (about 200 degrees) until everything is cooked and ready to serve.

Now customize. You can flavor the egg mixture. Take it in whole new directions. Here is some encouragement to get you going.

Flavor the custard

Vanilla, add 2 teaspoons of vanilla to your egg mixture.

Almond Extract, add 1 teaspoon of almond extract to your egg mixture.

Cinnamon, add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to your egg mixture.

Orange Zest, add 1 tablespoon of orange zest to your egg mixture.

Lemon Zest, add 1 tablespoon of lemon zest to your egg mixture.

Do you get it? Any flavor that appeals to you.

Filling inspiration

Pumpkin. Mix 4 ounces of cream cheese, ½ cup of pumpkin puree, and 3 tablespoons of maple syrup together. Use a fork and smash ingredients against the side of a small bowl to make the mixture as smooth as possible (you may have some leftover, no big deal).

Sauteed Apples. Peel 2 apples and cut them into thin pieces and then cut those pieces into ½ wide inch strips. Sautee in butter with a little sugar (2 tablespoons) and a sprinkle of cinnamon (½ teaspoon) until the apples are tender. Let cool a bit before using.

Cream Cheese. Use whipped cream cheese, they now come in many flavors that might work well too. If you use traditional cream cheese you can soften it for 5-10 minutes in the microwave to make it more spreadable. 

Cream Cheese and any jam. Just use whipped cream cheese and any jam that rings your bells.

Maple Bacon. Use Maple Butter or Maples Cream. Combined with as much cooked crumbled bacon as appeals to you.

Peanut Butter and Bananas. A smear of peanut butter and thinly sliced bananas.

Nutella. One of the easiest choices. A spread of Nutella in between each slice.

Pears and Brie. Combine thin slices of ripe pears and small slices of Brie cheese in between the bread.

Marmalade and Ricotta. Use full-fat ricotta and any marmalade you like

Dried Cranberry and Goat Cheese. Mash the cranberries and goat cheese together before using.

All these fillings will lead you to something fabulous. Below are some additional fun ideas, take it further. 

Nut Topping (sprinkle these on top to go the extra mile)

1 stick of butter (8 tbsp)

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp light corn syrup

2 tbsp bourbon (or rum or skip)

1 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds)

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, corn syrup, and bourbon and whisk them in until smooth. Bring the mixture to a slight simmer. When the praline (the nuts) starts to bubble, add the pecans and stir them for 60 seconds. Spread out on a piece of foil or parchment until cool. Sprinkle on French toast before serving. Any leftovers can be eaten on ice cream.

Brulee French Toast (opportunity to use that kitchen torch)

Here’s another opportunity to use that kitchen torch that someone gave you that one time. Maybe you have one, maybe you don’t. If you do, embrace it. Once your French toast is all prepared and arranged artfully on its serving platter, sprinkle generously with demerara sugar. Run your torch over the top of the sugar until it starts to melt and looks dark brown. This is caramelizing the sugar and the amount (darkness) is up to you.

Dulce de Leche (doesn't have to be maple syrup)

Are you over your maple syrup phase? Not feeling like honey? Want something fancy to impress guests? Try some dulce de leche drizzled on top.

This French toast is a “you” thing. Embrace it.

[huariqueje]

Margaret’s cookbooks - Deirdre Bean , 2023.

British, b. 1960 -

Oil on linen , 60 x 40 cm.

[vintagehomecollection]

This kitchen spot envelops the aura of another time and place. In it are the commercial products of yesteryear, tastefully preserved and arranged on antique shelving.

Beyond The Kitchen: A Dreamer’s Guide, 1985

[kingsbridgelibraryteens]

Looking for a book that’s good enough to eat?

Check out Bake Me a Cat by Kim-Joy!

[u-mspcoll]

In 1866, Malinda Russell published "A Domestic Cook Book" in Paw Paw, Michigan. As the oldest known cookbook by an African American woman, this slim volume is a landmark in American culinary history.

Join us on Thursday 27 February at the Downtown Branch of the Ann Arbor District Library (AADL) for a reception and panel discussion celebrating a new edition released by the University of Michigan Press. The reception will begin at 5.15p, with the conversation to follow at 5.45p. The panel will be livestreamed on the AADL site.

We hope you can join us!

[thedannyphantomcookbook]

I want to write a Danny Phantom cookbook so bad since so much food is mentioned throughout the series. I compiled a list of everything mentioned and a few extra things anyway what do y’all think

[witchyautumns]

🍂 eleriel mornie 🎃

Tomorrow my cousin and her family are visiting, so I just went full autumn, despite the scorching hot temperature, and came up with two new recipes. A small pumpkin pie and a weird strudel/apple pie combination. Tomorrow I'll see if they're good enough to be added to my personal recipe journal.

The book in the background is part of my ever growing collection of illustrated cookbooks. This one specifically is all about recipes from the northern area of the Verona region, where a part of my family is from. I took inspiration from its carrot pie recipe to make my pumpkin one.

[pick-an-item-poll]

[samwisethewitch]

👀 would you ever publish a cookbook by chance?

I would absolutely publish a cookbook! Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies and I love collecting new cookbooks to try recipes from.

I'm actually currently writing a cookbook based on my spouse's homebrew Dungeons & Dragons setting. Basically, any time our characters are in a new part of the world I ask them a bunch of questions about 1.) the ecology, bioregion, and native plant and animal species (they have canon answers to this because my baby is on some Tolkien level worldbuilding) and 2.) the culture(s) present in the area and their food traditions. Then, I create recipes based on those answers so I can serve food at sessions that mirrors what our characters are eating in the game. The cookbook draft is on a shared Google Drive for all our players, so everyone has access to the recipes.

I'd absolutely be down to share some of those recipes here, but I worry they won't be as cool to people who haven't been playing an ongoing campaign in this fictional world for 5+ years.

In the meantime, if you want more recipes for food that tastes like what I post on here, here are some of the cookbooks I use most often:

An Unexpected Cookbook: The Unofficial Book of Hobbit Cookery by Chris-Rachael Oseland (my favorite cookbook ever, everything I've made from it is delicious)

The Redwall Cookbook by Brian Jacques (100% vegetarian! And has more simple, kid-friendly recipes I can make with my nephews)

The Southern Foodways Alliance Community Cookbook edited by Sara Roahen and John T. Edge (THE BEST collection of regional cuisine from the Southeastern USA. If you aren't from here, your tastes may vary, but I can testify that the recipes are authentic and delicious. The brisket recipe I make for my Christian and Jewish family at our Easter/Passover/Spring Equinox gathering is from this book and is approved by my beef farmer in-laws.)

Chez Helene Cookbook: A collection of New Orleans family recipes by Ellen Chenevert Herry (Picked this up on my most recent trip to NOLA and I like to whip it out whenever I miss the city. I adjust the recipes based on cooking tips from my friends in Louisiana.)

Happy cooking!

[m00nb04rd5]

Tonio Trussardi from Jjba Part 4!

Tonio Trussardi (JJBA Part 4)

[stone-cold-groove]

Hawaiian Host and Hostess Book. Eileen O’Brien - 1964.

[microgeneration]

How to Design and Remodel Kitchens (1982)

[classiccookbooks]

Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic 

Source: The New James Beard 1989

A Provençal recipe I taught for years in my classes-and which never failed to astonish the students. They couldn't believe we would use forty garlic cloves, but the slow braising softens the garlic to a lovely buttery consistency and delicate flavor, like the garlic purée on page 534.

Makes 8 servings 

2/3 cups oil

8 chicken drumsticks and thighs (or use 16 drumsticks or 16 thighs)

4 ribs celery, cut in long strips

2 medium-size onions, chopped

6 sprigs parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

(or 1 teaspoon dried)

1/2 cup dry vermouth

2 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Grated nutmeg

40 cloves garlic, unpeeled

Put the oil in a shallow dish, add the chicken pieces, and turn them to coat all sides evenly with the oil. Cover the bottom of a heavy 6-quart casserole with a mixture of the celery and onion, add the parsley and tarragon, and lay the chicken pieces on top. Pour the vermouth over them, sprinkle with the salt, pepper, and a dash or two of nutmeg, and tuck the garlic cloves around and between the chicken pieces. Cover the top of the casserole tightly with aluminum foil and then the lid (this creates an airtight seal removing the cover. so the steam does not escape). Bake in a 375° oven for 1 1/2 hours, without removing the lid. 

Serve the chicken, pan juices, and whole garlic cloves with thin slices of heated French bread or hot toast. The garlic should be squeezed from the root end of its papery husk onto the bread or toast, spread like butter, and eaten with the chicken.

[thegikitiki]

What's for Dinner?

Cookin' with Dr. Pepper, Cook Book Covers, 1965 & 1977