CLSNA' LamontCentral Forum

Drac · Senior Member

All things food

Knockdow · Guru

looks yummy.. what is it? and What time is supper?

Luckey · Michigan State Commissioner - CLSNA

Sounds like fun, count me in. Keep an eye on George, he's a known cookie absconder.

Drac · Senior Member

It's the above mentioned beer bread. Recipe is similar to the standard but with one change, one requirement and one equipment change.

Beer Bread
3 cups self-rising flour
1/2 cup sugar (te change, normal is 1/4 cup)
12 ounce bottle of Shiner Bock (the requirement)
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degree F
2. Butter a cake pan (equipment change, original recipe used a loaf pan) and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and beer and mix well. The mixture should be sticky. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 45-55 minutes. At last 3 minutes of baking, remove from oven, brush the top of the loaf with the butter and return to oven.

Note - If you don't keep self-rising flour (like me biggrin

) you ca do like I do and make it. Instead, use 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/2 tablespoons salt and 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder.

Most recipes call for cheap beer but that didn't make sense to me so I started experimenting with different beers. I noticed that the ales and stouts seemed to give the most flavor. My wife and I ended up on deciding on Shiner Bock as the best for our taste. It's a Texas verity for those outside the state.

The change in pan gives more surface area for a crust. When combined with the higher sugar you get a great caramelized crust for a lot of flavor.

So what do you guys have to offer? I have been looking for a good recipe for short bread cookies.

Jim

Wood Badger · Senior Member

The Bread looks delish, it's a good thing that I am viewing this during lunch other wise I'ld be drowling all over my screen here at work.

So for us non-Texans, what would you suggest we use inplace of the Beer, an Ale or a Stout? I may just give your receipe a try. Al though keep in mind that we up here in Wisconsin do enjoy our Beer...so to tell me that I only need 12 oz. not going to happen, for us here 12oz. = a case or two, or three depending on how much the wife is yelling at us while we try our luck at cooking. biggrin

Because I am a scouter I may just have to try this receipe in a Duch Oven!

My wife has a rather simple receipe for shortbread cookies, I'll submit it later on today if I can get to it...or maybe even have her submit it for me wink

-- Edited by Wood Badger on Wednesday 10th of June 2009 12:06:03 PM

Coinneach · Past President - CLSNA

Oh yes, Dutch oven, brings back memories. How bout the good old standby blackberry cobbler.

AYE

Mary Lamb · Secretary Clan Lamont Society of Scotland

Special request from George

Scottish Shortbread
8 oz (200g) Plain Flour
4oz (100g) Butter
2oz (50g) Castor Sugar
Note ..always with shortbread ingredients are half and half again >200>100>50
Method
Sift flour and sugar in a pile on a pastry board.
Soften butter and gradualy knead the flour and sugar mixture with your hand until a firm dough is formed ( a light touch is needed)
Roll out to about half inch thich then cut with biscuit cutter or make into fingers prick all over with a fork. Decorate edges by fluting with finger,
Place on baking tray and bake in a warm oven 150-170C 310-335F Gas 2-3 for 40 minutes till golden brown dredge with caster sugar and leave to firm in tray then transfer to cooling rack.

Caramel shortbread or millionares shortbread

SHORTBREAD AS ABOVE
Caramel filling
1oz (25g) Butter
1/4 pint condensed milk
8oz (200g) caster sugar
8 tablespoons golden syrup

Method
Melt butter in a heavy bottom pan, add milk sugar and syrup. Stir over a low heat until dissolved, then bring to the boil, continue boiling until temp on a sugar thermometer reaches 120 C or until a little of the mix droped into a cup of cold water forms a soft ball between thumb and finger (soft ball stage)
Pour over shortbread when slightly cool pour melted chocolate over caramel leave to set, then cut into squares.
We in Scotland call this chitterin bites.

Here is another chitterin bite George had at the gathering last year.

Macaroon bars

2 Large potatoes cooked and very smothly mashed
9 oz (300g) icing sugar
1 small drop of glycerine
Melted chocolate for coating
Toasted coconut
Using a food mixer add the icing sugar a little at a time add glycerine and mix til it forms a firm dough taste to be sure you have added enough sugar it should not taste of potato, if it does add more icing sugar and a spoon of water.
press into a tray, when set cut into bars and coat with melted chocolate then dip in toasted dessicated coconut.

I'll wager a bet that George didn't know what they were made of when he had them last year!!!
Do enjoy
Mary

Drac · Senior Member

The stronger the flavor of the beer the richer the flavor of the bread. Now I don't like beer (mostly due to the carbonation) so the stouts give to strong of a flavor for me but if you are a Guiness drinker go for it.

Goes with a saying of an old Cajun cook -

"What wine do you serve with a meal? The one you like."

Thanks for the short bread recipes. I'll give them a try maybe this weekend.

I can look up several cobbler recipes. I have a lot of cook books and can find most recipes but (like the cobblers) I haven't cook all of them so it gets hard to tell good from great. If you want I can look up several.

Jim

Knockdow · Guru

Mary Your right I had no idea of the ingrediants... but they were so delious
mmm mmm Good !! oh wait that is the slogan of the Cam*&#$ls

Luckey · Michigan State Commissioner - CLSNA

Holy Cr*p, I just put on 5 pounds reading this thread aww

Wood Badger · Senior Member

Ken,
While I attended Wood Badge I received plenty of Cobbler recipes, ALL GOOD, I wont use that particular slogan, After the training I asked for a Dutch oven for Christmas, and about 2 years I purchased another one. The Wife really enjoyed having it around while we were camping.

Was hoping to post my wife's Grandmother's recipe for shortbread but she has this German tradition thing about sharing handed down things.

Wood Badger · Senior Member

Mary,
Your Recipe look great, I too must try them.
thanks for the post

Kilted Carver · Senior Member

Very cool idea!! I hope more get posted.

Drac · Senior Member

How about these?

Scones

2 cups white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 large egg

1/2 cup slim milk

1 clove garlic, minced

1) Preheat oven to 350 F.

2) Combine flour, baking powder and honey in a bowl.Add oil, egg, milk and garlic, then stir until mixed thoroughly.

3) Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead.

4) Roll out to 1/2-inch thick, cut into 2-inch squares and place on a greased baking sheet.

5) Bake for 15 minutes, allow to cool on a rack then serve.Store in an airtight container.

If your wondering why it looks funny these are dog treats! Something for those little (or big) friends around who always seem to get left out when the oven is turned on.

Jim

-- Edited by Drac on Thursday 11th of June 2009 12:06:13 PM

-- Edited by Drac on Thursday 11th of June 2009 12:06:35 PM

Luckey · Michigan State Commissioner - CLSNA

Drac,
Made the beer bread tonight using Guiness and it was FANTASTIC! Thanks again.

EoinDubh · Senior Member

Something a bit more substantial.

For a cold evening with lots of people or make ahead for the week.

Lamb Stew

Ingredients:

2 lbs Organic stewing lamb
1 gal Burgundy wine (boxed, bottled or casked)
1 bunch fresh Tarragon
1 bunch fresh Basil
1 bunch fresh Oregano
6 large carrots or 1 package of baby carrots
1 large Turnip
1 large Rutabaga
1 large Parsnip
3 medium to large yellow or sweet onions
6 med red potatoes
1 package sliced mushrooms or 1/2 to 1 lb fresh mushrooms of your choice
Olive oil
Crushed black pepper

Instructions:

1. Trim fat from lamb and cut into 1" cubes.
2. Brown the lamb, sprinkled with cracked black pepper, in enough olive oil to keep it from sticking to the pan.
3. Place the lamb in a 30 qt stockpot. I use one with a lift out colander so that when the stew is finished the stock can easily be reclaimed for other uses.
4. Pour into the stockpot 1 gallon of Burgundy less 1 glass.
5. Chop the herbs finely with your Mezzaluna and add to the pot.
6. Wash and trim tops of the carrots and cut them into 1" lengths or, if using bagged baby carrots just open the bag and pout them into the pot.
7. Wash and peel the turnip, rutabaga and parsnip and slice into 1" pieces and add to the pot.
8. Peel and quarter the onions and add to the pot.
9. Wash and remove sprouts from red potatoes and cut into 1" cubes and add to the pot.
10. Add water to cover the vegetables.
11. Cook on a medium heat at a slow boil until done. (About 3 to 4 hours)
12. Stir occasionally while sipping the glass of burgundy.

Serve with fresh baked Beer Bread.

-- Edited by EoinDubh on Saturday 13th of June 2009 09:01:35 AM

EoinDubh · Senior Member

And here is a recipe I concocted from Scottish folklore:

The Salmon of Knowledge

Ingredients:
2 jiggers Laphroaig Single malt
1/3 pound unsalted dry-roasted hazelnuts
brown sugar to taste
5 pound salmon fillet(s), with or without skin

Instructions:

Rinse and pat dry the salmon fillet. Place in a baking dish sprayed with a canola oil spray.

Grind the hazelnuts and brown sugar in a small electric grinder until they become finely ground.

Put the ground hazelnuts in a bowl and add enough Laphroaig to make it a spreadable paste.

Spread the paste over the salmon taking care to cover it completely.

Add two shots of scotch to the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until the salmon is done.

EoinDubh · Senior Member

And to wash it all down:

Auld Reekie Smoked Scotch Ale

Ingredients (for 6 gallons)

Grains/Extracts Hops Yeast
9 lb pale dry malt extract
2 oz Kent Goldings
WYeast 1728 (Scottish Ale)
3 lb dark dry malt extract
1¼ lb Gambrinus honey malt
1 lb Hugh Baird peated malt
3 oz roasted barley

Procedure:

Mini-mash specialty grains in barely enough water to cover -- raised temp to 170°, held for 1/2 hr, sparged, added extract and water to 2 gal, boiled 1½ hr (added hops during last half-hour). Strained into primary, added water to 6 gal.

Fermented at ~52°-54°. First taste (at rack to secondary) wasn't very smoky, but as the sweetness went down, the smoke went up.

Prime with dextrose at bottling.

Knockdow · Guru

EoinDubh wrote:

And here is a recipe I concocted from Scottish folklore:

The Salmon of Knowledge

Ingredients:
2 jiggers Laphroaig Single malt

Does it work with with a less peaty whisky, also do you have a dram or two whislt baking?

EoinDubh · Senior Member

I imagine that it would work OK with a less peaty Scotch but for me, the Laphroaig complements the salmon nicely. And yes, a dram or 2 while baking the fish is required.

Drac · Senior Member

Very nice additions.

Jim