Panko Cauliflower Bits

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  • 1 head cauliflower cut into bite sizes
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • 2 large eggs beaten

Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a sheet tray with parchment paper or aluminum foil.Wash cauliflower and pat dry. Cut into pieces.Add panko to a small bowl.Add flour, salt, and pepper to another small bowl and stir together.Add 2 eggs to another small bowl and beat.You now have 3 bowls with the flour, the egg mixture, and the panko.Use the stem of cauliflower to hold, dip the floret first in the flour, then into the egg and finally into the panko.Place on a sheet tray so that they’re not touching.Repeat process with all the cauliflower.Bake at 450 degrees 30 minutes.

Stuffing

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  • 1 (16-ounce) loaf sourdough bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 (16-ounce) package breakfast sausage
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 sweet onion, diced
  • 2 celery ribs, diced
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 1/2 cups chicken stock

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 baking dish or coat with nonstick spray. Spread bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place into oven and bake until crisp and golden, about 10-13 minutes; set aside. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and cook until browned, about 5-8 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks. Drain excess fat; transfer sausage to a paper towel-lined plate. Melt butter in the skillet. Add garlic, onion and celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Stir in parsley, sage, thyme and rosemary until fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in bread and sausage; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in chicken stock until absorbed and well combined. let stand 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until liquid is absorbed.* Spread bread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Place into oven and bake until top is browned, about 30-35 minutes.

Roasted Beet Relish

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  • 3 cups cubed, peeled beets (~2 large or 3 small beets)
  • 2 tsp. avocado oil
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1-2 tsp. maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp. lime zest
  • 1-2 tbsp. lime juice

Heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Add peeled, cubed beets to a medium mixing bowl along with avocado oil, salt, and cumin.

Roast beets for 35-40 minutes, or until fork tender and slightly golden brown / caramelized, tossing once at the 20-minute mark to ensure even baking. The longer they bake, the more tender and caramelized they become, but be careful not to overcook / burn, or they can become crispy and tough.

Once roasted, add back to the mixing bowl from earlier and season with maple syrup, lime zest, and lime juice, and mix. Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lime juice for acidity, lime zest for citrus flavor, cumin for smokiness, salt to taste, or maple syrup for sweetness.

Spiced Rye Ginger Cookies

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  • 2 cups medium rye flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons ginger
  • 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon =cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.
  2. Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Set aside.
  4. In a large mixing bowl, using either a hand whisk, an electric mixer, or a stand mixer, whisk the sugar and oil until combined.
  5. Add the egg and whisk until smooth.
  6. Stir in the molasses.
  7. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and stir until well combined.
  8. Use a spoon (or a tablespoon cookie scoop) to portion 1 1/4″ balls of dough.
  9. Roll the dough balls in granulated or sparkling sugar to coat before placing onto the prepared baking sheets. Leave 2″ between them on all sides; they’ll spread as they bake.
  10. Bake the cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, until they’re puffed and their edges are set.
  11. Remove the cookies from the oven, and cool completely right on the pan.  
  12. Store cookies, well wrapped, at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.

Gin

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  • 750ml good quality vodka
  • • 2 tbsp juniper berries (more if you like juniper-forward gin)
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • 2 cardamom pods
  • 2 peppercorns
  • half a cinnamon stick
  • a small piece of dried orange peel (no pith)
  • a small piece of dried lemon peel (no pith)

1 Sterilise a clean mason jar or glass bottle with boiling water

2 Add your botanicals to the jar, minus any fresh peel

3 Top up with vodka, then leave to infuse in a cool dark place for 24 hours

4 Taste the infusion – it should have taken on some lovely juniper ginnyness already. Add your fresh peel, along with and extra botanicals whose flavour you want to boost.

5 Leave for up to another 24 hours, giving the bottle a gentle shake at least once. Beware of leaving it too long and over-infusing the mixture – think of it a bit like brewing tea.

6 Taste again and if you’re happy, then filter out all the botanicals using a sieve. If there’s still some sediment left, use some muslin or a coffee filter to strain again.

7 Leave the liquid to sit for a couple of days and then filter out any remaining sediment – and put through a water filter jug if you want to make it even clearer (but as we said, don’t worry too much about the colour).

8 Bottle your gin

Bacon

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  • pork belly, skin on
  • 1/4 cup kosher salt
  • 2 tsp. pink curing salt
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tbsp. red pepper flakes
  • 2 tbsp. smoked sweet paprika
  • 1 tsp. cumin seeds

Rinse pork belly and pat dry. Mix all other ingredients, and put in bag with pork belly. Put in fridge for 7-10 days.

Remove from fridge, rinse and pat dry. Refrigerate on a rack in the fridge for 24 hours.

Cook in 200 oven until it reaches 150. Slice.

Pickled Jalapenos

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  • 1 cup white vinegar
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 2 tbsp. sugar
  • 1 tbsp. salt
  • 7-8 jalapeno peppers

Combine the vinegar, water, garlic, sugar and salt in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Add jalapenos slices, stir, and remove from heat.

Let sit for 8 minutes then use tongs to remove the jalapenos from pot to a jar; cover with the liquid to fill the jar.

Peameal Bacon

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  • 1 Pork Loin About 4 lbs
  • 12 Cups Cold Water Divided
  • 1 Cup Maple Syrup
  • ½ Cup Pickling Salt
  • 2 Tsp Prague #1 Cure
  • 2 Tbsp Mustard Seeds
  • 2 tsp Black Peppercorns
  • 4 Garlic cloves Pressed
  • 3 Whole Cloves
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1 Lemon Sliced Into Wedges
  1. Cut pork loin into 2 approximately equal sized chunks (crosswise, NOT lengthwise!). Trim most of the visible fat, if you’d like. Set aside (in fridge).
  2. Measure 4 cups of of water into a large pot, add remaining ingredients (aside from rest of water!). Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add remaining water, stir to combine. Allow to cool to room temperature.
  3. Place one chunk of pork loin in each of 2 gallon sized freezer bags. I like to manually divide the lemon wedges and bay leaves equally between the two bags before pouring half of the brine into each bag. Push out most of the air, seal the bags, and put them in the fridge – I put both bags into a 9 x 12 cake pan, just in case of leakage, etc.
  4. Allow the pork to brine for 5 whole days, turning once daily to ensure the pork loins are completely submerged.
  5. After 5 days, discard brine, and rinse pork loins with cold water. Use paper towels to pat dry.
  6. Pour a generous amount of yellow cornmeal onto a plate large enough to accommodate the chunk of pork loin.
  7. Roll loin in the cornmeal, pressing to form a uniform crust.
  8. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, chill for at least an hour before slicing and frying-grilling.

Homemade Gravy

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  • 1/4 cup (2 ounces or 4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup broth or stock, any flavor
  • 1 tablespoon whole milk

In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter. Once hot, add the onion and a big pinch of salt and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. If you want chicken gravy as dark as the photos, continue cooking the onion until caramelized.Stir in the flour and and salt and cook for 1 minute.Slowly whisk in the broth/stock and cook until thickened, about 3-5 minutes.Remove from the heat and whisk in the milk. Serve while hot.

Pullman Sandwich Bread

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This recipe will make one 13 x 4 x 4 loaf or two 7 x 4 x 4 loaves.

  • ▢ 1 ½ cup (360 ml) Warm milk (110 F)
  • ▢ 4 tbsp butter room temperature
  • ▢ 1 Egg large
  • ▢ 2 ¼ tsp (7 g) instant dry yeast
  • ▢ 1 tbsp (1 tbsp) sugar
  • ▢ 1 ½ tsp Salt
  • ▢ 4 cups (500 g) all-purpose flour
  • ▢ ½ cup (60 g) all-purpose flour for kneading

Prepare Yeast

  • Ensure milk is warm, not hot (about 110 F).
  • Add the yeast, sugar, and egg.
  • Stir and set aside to foam for 5 mins.

Prepare Dough

  • Add flour in a mixer bowl.
  • Mix in the salt and yeast mixture.
  • Knead on medium speed for about a minutes scraping the sides of the bowl.
  • Once all the flour is incorporated.
  • Knead the dough for three minutes until smooth.
  • The dough will be soft and sticky.
  • Next, add the soft room temperature butter.
  • knead again for 2 minutes until smooth and elastic but still soft.
  • Note – If using a stand mixer, you may need to add the reserved flour for kneading to prevent the dough from sticking to the bowl. If kneading by hand, use the reserved flour as required for kneading to prevent the dough sticking to the work surface

Prove Dough (1st rise)

  • Remove the dough from the mixer bowl onto a lightly floured surface.
  • Form into a smooth ball.
  • Place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
  • Leave to rise in a warm place for about an hour until doubled in volume.

Shape the Loaf

  • When the dough is double in volume invert on to a lightly floured surface.
  • Divide into two – to make two loaves.
  • Start to roll like a jelly roll.
  • Fold from top to the center then again once more towards the end.
  • Pinch the seams together.
  • Place into a buttered Pullman loaf pan seam side down.

Prove Loaf (2nd rise)

  • Cover loaf pan with plastic wrap.
  • Let rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes until almost 2 inches from the top rim of the loaf pan.
  • Once you see your dough is almost halfway up the sides – preheat the oven to 190 C / 380 F for at least 10 minutes.

Bake Loaf

  • Cover the loaf pan with its lid.
  • Place the loaf pan on the center rack in the hot oven.
  • Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes.
  • The bread is done – when you tap the bottom of your loaf and you will hear a hollow sound.
  • Partially open the lid and let cool for 10 minutes – before you remove and let cool completely.
  • Always let bread rest for at least an hour before you cut – this is the hardest part!!
  • Enjoy!