I Love To Sit Outside On A Crisp Autumn Morning
I love shopping at autumn farm markets and am currently planning the Thanksgiving meal. I love shopping for local and seasonal produce. God Bless local farmers!
I like to bake all year long, but baking season is officially here!
Tiny New York Kitchen Wishes You A Very Happy Halloween!
Pumpkins range in size from small, creamy white specimens to giant orange globes. Ever so useful as autumnal décor, pumpkins are a versatile and vital source of healthy nutrition.
This festive fall fruit offers a rich source of vitamin C and potassium, both of which may be effective at lowering the risk of heart disease, as well as normalizing blood pressure. The brilliant orange hue of many pumpkin varieties is the result of an abundance of beta-carotene, an antioxidant that transforms into vitamin A in the body. This vitamin may have an effect on boosting the efficiency of immune systems, as well as helping to repair free radical damage to cells.
Pumpkin adds a fabulous, smooth, silky texture and unique flavor to risotto, soup, muffins, cakes, breads, stews, chili, pasta, shakes and so much more. Fresh pumpkin is delightfully delicious and contains an added bonus; pumpkin seeds! Also known as pepitas, roasted pumpkin seeds are lightly crunchy, little gems that are a potent source of zinc, which may be helpful in promoting prostate health.
Pumpkin seeds also offer a significant amount of magnesium, phosphorous, copper, iron, manganese, and omega-3 fatty acids, which may help relieve symptoms of high cholesterol, depression, high blood pressure, and arthritis.
“Work With What You Got!”
© Victoria Hart Glavin Tiny New York Kitchen © 2017 All Rights Reserved
On fall evenings I often like to sit by the fire and sip a nice glass of wine or a sweet & tart cocktail.
I like to eat seasonal fruits and vegetables. Brussels sprouts are a hearty winter vegetable and are sweetest and most tender after a hard frost. They are a good source of fiber, antioxidants, and vitamin C. Look for young, small green sprouts that have tightly formed buds. Avoid any yellowing, which means that the sprouts will be bitter, sulfurous, and tough. Use fresh sprouts within a few days after purchasing. Sprouts sold on the stalk tend to keep longer. Brussels sprouts can be boiled, braised, or steamed. Cut an X at the base of each sprout to allow for a more even cooking. Add a bit of butter, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, onions, or herbs of your choice. Brussels sprouts also make a nice addition to stir fry, noodles, and other dishes. As always, be creative and “work with what you got!”
“Work With What You Got!”
© Victoria Hart Glavin Tiny New York Kitchen © 2017 All Rights Reserved
Steaming eggs is the secret to hard-boiled eggs that are consistently perfect.
Don’t place an egg in boiling water. That lowers the temperature of the water and makes it hard to nail down a precise cooking time.
Do steam in a steamer basket. The eggs don’t touch the water, which means they don’t lower the water temperature, so you get consistently perfect results.
Bring 1 inch water to rolling boil in medium-size saucepan over a high heat. Place eggs in steamer basket. Transfer basket to saucepan. Cover, reduce heat to a medium-low and cook eggs for 13 minutes. When eggs are almost finished cooking, combine 2 cups ice cubes and 2 cups cold water in medium-size bowl. Use tongs or spoon to transfer eggs to ice bath. Let sit for 15 minutes. Peel before using.
“Work With What You Got!”
© Victoria Hart Glavin Tiny New York Kitchen © 2017 All Rights Reserved
We’re coming to the end of the last wave of beautiful warm weather. It’s a perfect time to take advantage of wonderful days and delicious late summer crops. Farmers’ markets are bursting with baskets of delectable produce that can be preserved in many ways. If you have plenty of peppers they can be roasted in the oven or grilled to get that fabulous smokiness to both sweet and hot varieties. Whichever method of heat you choose, continually turn peppers until they are blackened on all sides. Place the charred peppers into a paper bag and let them steam for at least thirty minutes. When cooked, remove the skins with a gentle rubbing motion, slice the peppers into strips, remove the ribs and seeds, and place the strips in small freezer containers. To each container add several peeled garlic cloves, fresh basil, oregano, and thyme. Cover with olive oil. Cover containers and let the peppers infuse on your countertop for a day. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or place in the freezer to use over the winter months. Use the smoky, sweet strips to enliven a winter antipasto, add rich flavor to sandwiches or crostini or a vibrant soup that will remind you of summer.
“Work With What You Got!”
© Victoria Hart Glavin Tiny New York Kitchen © 2017 All Rights Reserved
Whether you’re baking summer pies or getting ready for holiday baking it’s important to have some key information about pie dough.
Blind Baking
Blind baking is prebaking a crust before you add an unbaked or especially wet filling. To ensure that your crust turns out crisp while blind baking, you can either dock it or use pie weights.
Docking
Docking is pricking the dough all over with the tines of a fork. The tiny holes allow steam to escape, so that the crust doesn’t puff up. After rolling out your dough and pressing it into the pan, gently prick it, leaving an inch or two between each mark. Be sure to check your crust several times throughout its bake time. If you notice it puffing up in any way, simply prick the puffy spots a few times and keep baking.
Pie Weights
Pie weights are tiny ceramic or metal balls or a thin metal chain that prevent the bottom of your crust from forming air pockets and bubbling up while baking. While docking is less fussy than using pie weights, I prefer pie weights because of the additional support they give the crust. Line your unbaked crust with parchment paper or aluminum foil before adding the weights to keep them from baking into the dough. I prefer parchment paper because its permeable structure allows the crust to breathe and brown more evenly. If you don’t own pie weights, dried beans work just as well.
Blind Bake Ahead
You can blind bake a crust up to three days ahead of time. Allow the crust to cool completely in the pan, wrap with plastic wrap, and store at room temperature until you are ready to fill and serve.
Happy Pie Baking!
“Work With What You Got!”
© Victoria Hart Glavin Tiny New York Kitchen © 2017 All Rights Reserved
