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Weak in the Knees!

11/22/2013

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Upon regaining consciousness, we unanimously agreed...BEST COOKIE EVER!

First things first - I owe Giada de Laurentiis an apology for calling her cooking "antiseptic Italian" in the previous blog post.  This recipe came from her cooking show and it is OUTSTANDING!  She began the segment by claiming anytime she makes these for a party, the guests devour them - I believe her!  

My ears perked-up when Giada mentioned using orange zest (I adore citrus!) and I was curious about the cornmeal. The cornmeal gives the cookie a fantastic crunchy texture which perfectly compliments the luxuriously smooth orange creme filling.

Anything more I could say will fall short of how scrumptious these beauties are.

So, without further adieu....Presenting the greatest cookie recipe ever....

THE ITALIAN CHOCOLATE SANDWICH COOKIE !!!       

http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/italian-chocolate-sandwich-cookie.html

A couple of suggestions that aren't included in the recipe:

 - Roll out dough between plastic wrap. 
 - Roll out dough in small amounts at a time.
 - Dough MUST remain cold to work with effectively.
 - Slide a fork under cut-out cookie to lift from dough.
 - Don't be tempted to use a larger cookie cutter than 1 3/4". 
 - I used a Sil-Pat on top of air-bake baking sheet.  
 - Recipe calls for baking time to be 15 minutes.  I pulled cookies out at 12 minutes.  Just keep an eye on this.
 - Fill cookies when they are cool.  
 - The "Filling" recipe portion is not enough to accommodate the whole cookie recipe.  I baked half the dough and almost used all the filling.  

They do require a little effort, but they're worth it!  


           
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Back to Blogging

9/19/2013

4 Comments

 
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Our sweet Becca "Bunny" was a mere fourteen years old the last time I posted to the Hooah Hill Blog Page.  It's hard to believe, but she just turned seventeen this week and per her request, I made her a gluten-free cake.  It came out so good I thought, "Gee, this would be great for the blog!"   Life's hardships have settled down a bit, so maybe it's time to start blogging again.   

Bun doesn't suffer from ciliac disease, but she tries to make very healthy food choices with her diet.  She claims her body feels better choosing gluten-free foods whenever possible.  

This request haunted me as the clock ticked closer to the big day.  Part of our family tradition is to embrace any and all celebratory days by preparing the best meal humanly possible!  So a gluten-free "cake" posed a definite challenge.  I found a possible candidate from the site mygluten-freekitchen.com for a "Flourless Chocolate Cake"(Original recipe from Martha Stewart).  Oh sure! A flourless cake - sounded like a contradiction of terms to me! Between us...I had a box of Betty Crocker Brownies on hand in the event of mission failure. 

This recipe may fall under the classification of "Cake", but I would definitely say its closest relative is the "Brownie". Once it has cooled to room temperature, it eats like decadent chocolate mousse.  A very appealing light and creamy texture.  Once refrigerated, it takes on more of a dense fudge brownie identity.  I prefer it as the mousse, but the family seems to equally enjoy the fudge brownie experience with a dollop of vanilla ice cream.

I have no five-star or four-fork food judging system...my verdict is either free-for-life or off-with-your-head. 
Translation: I will either make it again or I will not.   

I will make this "Flourless Chocolate Cake" again!   

 
Flourless Chocolate Cake {Gluten-free}
 
Recipe from: Michelle @ MyGluten-freeKitchen.com; original recipe from Martha Stewart
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 8

Ingredients
  • 6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for pan
  • 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used chocolate chips)
  • 6 large eggs, separated
  • ½ cup sugar
  • Sweetened vanilla whipped cream, for serving

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 275°. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9″ springform pan. Set aside.
  2. Place butter and chocolate in a large, microwaveable bowl and microwave in 30-second increments, stirring after each 30 seconds, until completely melted. Let cool slightly. Whisk in egg yolks.
  3. In medium or large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, and continue beating until glossy stiff peaks form. Whisk ¼ of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture; then gently fold in remaining egg whites.
  4. Pour batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan and is set in the center, 45-50 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack; remove sides of pan. Serve at room temperature with sweetened vanilla whipped cream.

Notes
Dairy-free adjustment: Use a dairy-free, buttery flavored substitute like Earth Balance sticks in this recipe.  

 
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Grandma's Zucchini Cake

7/5/2011

3 Comments

 
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Any recipe title that starts with "Grandma" always gets my attention.  Having so many zucchini around, I am using it in everything.  I especially love zucchini bread and when I saw this recipe for cake (with cream cheese frosting, no less!) I couldn't resist trying it!  Boy is my family glad I did!  It's delicious and moist.  I followed the recipe only omitting the lemon zest and raisins (because I didn't have any on hand) and I used walnuts. Be sure not to overbake. I also was a little more liberal with the frosting. This is a recipe that I will keep in my recipe box. 
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/grandmas_zucchini_cake/

3 Comments

Braised Cucumbers

7/3/2011

1 Comment

 
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Had a few cuc's hanging around and we were all looking for a snack.  After watching Julie and Julia the other day, I keep reminding myself that I need to try Braised Cucumber's.   Well...easy and yummy!  We all liked them very much.  A little Smart Balance, kosher salt and a touch of lemon juice, and oh yeah, cucumbers!  I cut the seeds out and cubed the cuc's.  I will definitely be doing this again and again!  Try it!  

1 Comment

Dining In

6/28/2011

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Most people look forward to eating out, however that is not the case with us.  We love dining in, especially this time of year with the garden kickin' it into full gear.  Picked our first peppers, and what better to go with them are some onions and sausage.  Made some "Cosi" rolls for sandwiches.  Ok, a Cosi roll really doesn't exist, but that's what we call them.  Why, you ask.  Well, when we lived in Queen's NY, I would take the girls into Manhattan for dance class a few times a week.  There were these chain sandwich shops, called "Cosi" we would eat at alot.  Similar to Atlanta or Panera Bread.  But with one HUGE difference.  They would bake the bread for the sandwiches in each shop.  When the employees weren't making you your sandwich, they were throwing bread in the oven.  Of course, how could I not quiz these people about what they were doing!   They made these flat loaves of bread.  Not flatbread, but flat loaves.  The bread was incredible and made for a wonderful sandwich.  It was like the size of a normal slice of sandwich bread, but tasted like a grinder roll.  Very cool.  Use  your normal sandwich bread recipe that you like, (this was a 2 lb. recipe) form like you are making bagettes, place on a cornmealed baking sheet, and squish the doe flat.  I brush with an egg wash (careful not to let any drip or it will stick) sprinkle with kosher salt and poppy seeds.  (The salt on top of the bread is fantastic!)     Give it a shot.  Don't depair, give it a few tries, it's worth it!    

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"Cosi" Bread
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You get the idea! Yum!
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Changing Bread Tactics

2/23/2011

1 Comment

 
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Oatmeal Pumpkin Bread
I got this recipe from a neat website I have been visiting lately, Chickens in the Road.  Well actually,  it's a combination of a recipe and new baking technique.  It is a no-knead bread and instead of using a standard loaf pan or making rolls, I used a straight-sided casserole dish (with the lid on!)  The loaf came out very artisan bakery-like!  If you are interested in giving it a try, check out our website's Cooking Page. 

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Chicken Soup From the Soul

1/16/2011

1 Comment

 
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My beautiful Mom!
Since we have been "processing" roosters lately, I have taken the opportunity to freeze as much chicken broth as possible.  My mother was an awesome cook and understood the importance of using "homemade" broth.  She always had a quart or two in the freezer.  For whatever reason, I always felt intimidated about attempting to make "my own" broth.  As an adult, I reluctantly continued to buy it from the store, always choosing the organic, free-range, but it never, ever measured up to Mom's broth.   You are no doubt asking, "Why didn't you just have your Mom show you?"   Well, I was younger and never had an overwhelming desire to know how.  Plus, I was one of those naive people who never thought my Mother would never be there to do it for me!  Of course, I have grown up ALOT in the past 10 years...my dear Mom had a stroke and is unable to help me.  But she did teach me how to be an independent thinker and get things done!  So here I am, not just brilliantly making chicken broth, even my Mom would be proud of, but I raised and butchered the chickens too!  I must admit, I get a huge swell of pride every time I open my freezer and see all those bags of "liquid gold"!  

I was at the grain store the other day, chatting with the sweet, lady who owns it, about food, and she mentioned that she has never made homemade chicken soup before.  I was stunned, because there are some people you just assume know everything about everything.  I assumed she was one of them!  I thought, if she doesn't know, maybe I should pass on to eveyone else who is missing out, like I was, what is truly a VERY easy thing to do! (As my Mom always said to me!)  So if you are interested, click on the Cooking Page and discover the world of Awesome Chicken Broth & Soup! 

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