Recipe | Adventures in Thyme

Date Bars

October 9, 2014 by Dan 1 Comment

Date bars

If you ever crave a crumbly and gooey dessert, this Date Bar recipe is for you. It would be excellent paired with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, and since the glaze can do double duty on the ice cream too – it’s a win win! Let’s get cooking…

Filling

3 cups chopped dates (you can find these prepackaged in the baking aisle)
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup water

Combine the dates, sugar and water in a small sauce pan. Cook over low to medium low heat, stirring frequently, until it starts to thicken and is bubbly (20-25 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool.

Dough/Crumbly bits

2 cups flour
3 cups quick cooking oats
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup vegetable oil

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Grease one 9×13 or two 9×9 baking pans. (The 9×13 makes thicker bars.)

Combine the dry ingredients, mix well. Add the oil and stir to combine. This will make a very crumbly dough.

Press 2/3 of the dough into the baking pan(s). Spread the cooled filling evenly over the top. Place the remaining dough on top of the filling and pat it down evenly.

Place on the middle rack in the oven and bake 30 to 35 minutes (25-30 for 9×9).

Remove from oven and let cool. Cut unto 2 x 2 inch bars.

Glaze

1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place ingredients in a sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring periodically. (Don’t let it stick to the bottom or burn.) Bring to a boil and boil, whisking constantly, for 3 or 4 minutes. It will thicken a bit. Let cool to warm and drizzle over the top of your date bars. Serve yourself a delectable sized portion and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Tartys In Applis

October 1, 2014 by Dan Leave a Comment

Tartys In Applis

This week we’re going to tiptoe through time to days of yore for a yummy “Tartys In Applis”.

For To Make Tartys In Applis. Tak gode Applys and gode Spycis and Figys and reysons and Perys and wan they are wel ybrayed colourd wyth Safroun wel and do yt in a cofyn and do yt forth to bake wel. Source – Form od Cury, English 14^th century. (Try http://medieval cookery.com or google search for sites with assorted redactions. This is a modification of the one on Medieval Cookery)

How’d you do? Get it? No worries, back to the future we go…

5 cups chopped apples
1 cup chopped figs
½ cup raisins
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cloves
2 crusts for a 9 inch pie
1 beaten egg (to brush crust)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Peel, core and dice the apples. I used a mix of sweet and tart apples. Chop figs too. Combine the apples, figs and raisins. Add the sugar and spices mixing well.

Lay out your pie crusts on a parchment paper covered baking sheet. Put half the mixture on each pie crust, leaving an inch to an inch and a half clear around the circumference. Spread the filling so it is level. Fold the edges of the crust up and over the edge of the filling. Add apple slices to make a decorative pattern if you wish.

Brush the crust with beaten egg. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or cold.

Changes from the original; I left out the pears, as I have lots of apples on my tree. I also left out the saffron as it isn’t going to do much to color this without more liquid.

Fried-Apple Pie

September 17, 2014 by Dan 1 Comment

Fried-Apple Pie

Fall is in the air and apples are proving gravity does exist and falling in great abundance so catch a few and make a delicious apple pie!

Ingredients:

6 medium to large, tart baking Apples
Butter
3 Eggs
1/2 cup Sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons Molasses
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
handful Raisins
1 to 2 tablespoons Raw Sugar
Pie crusts for a 9 inch pie

Instructions:

Peel and slice the apples. Fry the apple slices in a skillet with a pat or two of butter. I fried them about 2 apples worth at a time. You will need 4 cups of fried apples per pie. When done, set aside and let the apples cool until they are warm, not hot.

While the apples cool, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and begin to assemble the rest of the filling.

Beat two eggs. Add the sugar and molasses and stir until well combined. Add the cinnamon and nutmeg stirring to incorporate. Now add the raisins and stir. Add the fried apples. Toss to coat with the egg and sugar mixture.

Using a 9 inch pie pan place one pie crust in the bottom of the pan. Add your apple mixture. Add a top crust (if solid, slit to allow steam to escape.) Beat your remaining egg and brush the crust with the egg. Sprinkle with raw sugar.

Place the pie on the middle rack in the oven and bake 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown.

Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Now you can say you DO follow your Mom’s advice and eat an apple a day, okay there’s some sugar involved, and a wee bit of spice, but still – it’s fruit!

Taco Casserole

September 10, 2014 by Dan Leave a Comment

Taco Casserole

Today we offer you a dish that can be thrown together with little fuss and can easily feed unexpected guests that drop by around meal time. Enjoy!

2 lbs ground Bison (ground beef or ground turkey will work just fine)
1 bag Tortilla Chips (family size, not the individual bags)
1 8oz can Tomato Sauce
1 16oz can Refried Beans
Taco Seasoning (use your own or our recipe here)
Grated Cheddar Cheese
Fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 or 2 fresh Tomatoes, diced

Brown your ground meat. Once it is browned, drain off the fat. Add your favorite taco seasoning (no water) and the 8 oz. can of tomato sauce. Stir and bring to a simmer. Let cook a few minutes and then remove from heat.

Pre-heat your oven to 350 F.

Take a 9×13 baking dish and spread the 16 oz. can of refried beans evenly in the bottom. Take two large handfuls of tortilla chips, break them up and incorporate into the meat in your skillet. Take this mixture and spread evening over the top of the refried beans. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until heated through. Remove from the oven and top with tortilla chips. Liberally sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese over the top of the tortilla chips. Place under your broiler for a few minutes until the tortilla chips begin to toast and the cheese melts. Remove from the over. Top with diced tomato and freshly chopped cilantro. (You could also add avocado, sour cream or your other favorite taco toppings.)

Serve hot. Enjoy.

Fig and Nectarine Tart

September 3, 2014 by Dan Leave a Comment

Fig and Nectarine Tart

This week we have a simple dessert that takes advantage of late summer’s bounty – nectarines and figs. It’s a simple tart that is not only delightful to look at but super yummy too!

1 large Nectarine
2 or 3 ripe Figs
6 ounces Chevre (if you want sweeter, use cream cheese) at room temperature
Pie Dough (homemade or from the grocery store)
1 Egg
Honey

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Peel and slice the nectarine into thin slices (for 4 tarts you will need about 20 slices). Cut the figs into wedges (for 4 tarts you will need about 20 wedges).

Beat the egg until well blended.

Roll your pie dough into 6 inch circles. Onto a parchment covered baking sheet lay the circles of dough. Spread 1.5 ounces of chevre onto each circle, leaving about 1 inch of clean dough around the edges. Lay out your nectarine slices and fig wedges on the cheese. Now, carefully fold the clean edge up and over the fruit and cheese (see photo above). Use a pastry brush and brush all of the exposed pie dough with the egg.

Place your baking sheet in the oven and back for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool until they are warm. Drizzle with honey and serve immediately.