Rice Pilaf I cube of butter 2 cups of long grain white rice Vermicelli that would be about the circumference of a quarter 1/3 cup dried parsley 8 chicken bouillon cubes 4 ½ cups boiling water Boil 4 ½ cups of water. Mix with 8 bouillon cubes and parsley, and teaspoon of salt. Put the butter in an oven safe/stove top safe dish (I use Pirex) that has a cover on the top of the stove on medium high. Melt the butter. Break the vermicelli into 1 inch pieces into the butter. Mix until nicely browned. Pour in the 2 cups of rice. Allow the rice also to brown. Take off of the stove top. Carefully pour the water mixture into the rice mixture. It will sizzle and bubble at first so be careful. Mix with a spoon. Cover and place in oven at 325 for 30 minutes. Take out of oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Mix and eat. You can add sautéed onions and mushrooms after it has cooked if you like. You can also use fresh parsley instead of dried parsley.
Skyr ½ galon skim milk 2 drops rennet (can be bought on the internet) I small container of skyr, for the bacteria starter. It can be purchased at whole foods and Giant Grocery Stores under the name Skyr or Siggi s Skyr. 1. Heat the skim milk up to 86-90 C, and cool slowly for about 2 hours, down to 39 C. Stir a little scalded milk into the starter to make a thin paste and mix into the skim milk with the rennet (if you are using dry rennet, dissolve in a little water before adding). 2. Close the cooking pot and wrap in towels or a thick blanket. The milk should curdle over a period of about 5 hours. If it curdles in less than 4 1/2 hours, the curds will be course, but if it curdles in more than 5 hours, the skyr will be so thick it will be difficult to strain. When the milk is curdled, cut into the curds with a knife. When you can make a cut which will not close immediately, then you can go on to the next stage. 3. Line a sieve or colander with cheesecloth or a fine linen cloth and pour in the skyr. Tie the ends of the cloth together over the top and hang over a bucket or other container so the whey can drip off. If the skyrmaking has been successful, there will be little whey, and it will not float over the curds, but will be visible along the edges of the sieve and in the cuts you made into the surface. You can judge the quality of the skyr from the appearance of the curds when you pour them into the sieve. If the skyr is good, it will crack and fall apart in pieces, but should neither be thin nor lumpy. Do not put a layer thicker than 7-9 cm into the sieve. Keep the sieve in a well ventilated room, with a temperature no higher than 12 and no lower than 0 Celsius. The skyr should be ready to eat in 12-24 hours. 4. The skyr should be firm and look dry when ready. The whey can be used as a drink, to pickle food, or as a replacement for white wine in cooking. Problems you may encounter, and how to solve them: If the whey does not leak off the curds or floats over the curds, or the curds do not shrink from the edges of the sieve, then something is wrong. The milk has not been heated to a high enough temperature or has been cooled too quickly, so that the rennet has not had time to work. The more milk you curdle at a time, the relatively less starter and rennet you need. A large container cools slower than a small one, and the effects of starter and rennet last longer. About the starter: It is best to use skyr for the starter. If the skyr is sour, it should be mixed into the milk while it is still 80-90 C. This will remove the sourness. Don't add the rennet until the milk has cooled to approx. 40 C. When the weather is cold, it is best to mix it in when the milk is a little over 40 C (say, 41 or 42 ). In cold weather, the milk also needs to be covered more tightly while it curdles. This is especially important if you are making a small portion of skyr.
The seven easy steps to perfect homemade yogurt Step 1 Assemble your 'yogurt making' equipment - which is actually far more basic than you'd expect! Yes, you can buy a yogurt maker - and yes, it may make things a little easier. But it's by no means essential - we regularly prepare our own yogurt and have NEVER used one! Here's what you'll need... ½ galon whole milk. I container of yogurt with active cultures. Take the yogurt out of the refrigerator about 15-30 mins before you start, so that it's as near as possible to room temperature when you add it to the milk. A large pot with a lid. A food thermometer (it needs to include temperatures from 110 to 180 deg F - a candy or sugar thermometer is perfect). A large spoon. Please note that the quantities of milk and yogurt shown here are just to illustrate the proportions you'll need. You can double or even treble the quantities if you wish. Step 2 Fill the pot with water, boil for a few minutes, then add the spoon and thermometer. This sterilizes your equipment and ensures a better end result. Step 3 Empty the pot, then pour in the milk. Gently warm it to a temperature of 185 deg F, to kill any 'bad' bacteria it may contain (these can have an adverse effect on the finished product). Watch the pot closely and be careful not to burn the milk! Step 4 Remove the pot from the heat and set aside. You need to cool the milk to between 110 and 115 deg F, because these are the temperatures between which the live bacteria will efficiently ferment the milk. Step 5 Thoroughly stir the yogurt into the milk, then immediately place the lid on the pot. Move the pot at once to a warm place, where you can leave it - undisturbed - for a minimum of six hours.
There are two important rules to obey at this point to guarantee a good yogurt... Keep the pot at a constant temperature of between 110 and 115 deg F. The live bacteria will become inactive at lower or higher temperatures. Don't move the pot at all, or stir the fermenting milk. This slows down the process and you may be disappointed with your results at the end of the waiting time! How to keep the pot at a consistent temperature... Most ovens do not have a low enough heat setting for producing yogurt, so here are a few other methods to try: Sit the pot in an oven warmed by the pilot light alone - our pilot light burns fiercely, so this works well for us! Sit the pot on an electric warming pad (like the ones you use for back pain). You may need to experiment a little with the heat settings! Wrap the pot in a very thick blanket - if this isn't warm enough, sit the wrapped pot in a cooler for extra insulation. Step 6 Put the pot in the airing cupboard/boiler closet. After a minimum of 6 hours, take a look at your yogurt. The longer you leave the yogurt, the thicker it will become (and the more 'tangy' it will taste!). We actually find 7 hours to be the perfect length of time. Now - you may find that the yogurt doesn't look quite the way you were expecting it to! It will probably have a 'layer' of liquid on top of milk curds - and the liquid may even look a little yellow. Don't worry - this is totally normal! Just mix the curds and the liquid together (although it's OK to spoon the liquid off if you prefer!). The yogurt will be thinner in consistency than store-bought yogurts - but that's because they tend to contain additional thickeners and YOUR yogurt is 100% natural! Remember - you can make it a little thicker next time by allowing it to ferment for longer. Step 7 Pour your homemade yogurt into suitable containers with lids, then refrigerate. Refrigeration actually stops the bacteria in the yogurt from creating any more lactic acid - that's why the yogurt doesn't ferment and thicken any further. You can store it for up to a week in the refrigerator. Voila! Your homemade yogurt is ready... wasn't that easy?
Icelandic Flatbread 200 grams rye flour 100 grams whole wheat flour ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 250-300 milliliters boiling water Combine the rye flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder and salt and mix together. Gradually add the boiling water until it is possible to knead a ball of dough which is smooth and void of cracks but doesn t stick to the counter. Knead the dough firmly and then divide it into pieces. Roll out the pieces until they are 2 millimeters thick. Use a plate the size of a hotplate to cut out round cakes. Pierce them with a fork to prevent air bubbles. Heat the hotplate and bake each cake at a high temperature either directly on the plate or in an iron pan with a thick bottom until there are black spots on the side facing down. Then flip the cake and bake it on the other side. As soon as the cakes are removed from the pan or hotplate, dip them quickly into lukewarm water and then stack them underneath a damp tablecloth, otherwise they will dry and harden.
Indian Naan For the dough 250g/9oz plain flour 2 tsp sugar ½ tsp salt ½ tsp baking powder 110-130ml/3½-4½fl oz milk 2 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing For the topping 1 tbsp butter, melted, to serve Preparation method 1. For the dough, sift the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into a bowl. In another bowl, mix together the milk and oil. 2. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and pour in the liquid mixture. Slowly mix together the dough by working from the centre and incorporating the flour from the edges of the 'well', to make a smooth, soft dough. Knead well for 8-10 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too sticky. 3. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with a damp tea-towel and leave in a warm place for 10-15 minutes. Form the dough into five balls. 4. Preheat the grill to medium and place a heavy baking sheet on the upper shelf of the grill to heat. 5. Roll the dough balls out quite thinly, ideally in a teardrop shape, but really this is just aesthetic. Sprinkle over your chosen topping and press into the surface of the dough. Place the naans onto the hot baking sheet and grill for just 1-2 minutes, or until lightly browned. Brush with butter and serve hot.