The last November post

Now that we're really into late fall here, that is , it is gray and the days are short, we are thinking a lot about new interesting recipes. Liam and I discovered this recipe from Bon Appetit and it was a hit . I have also included a recipe for white sandwich bread.

Roasted Yam and Apple Salad
Combine:
3 pounds of peeled, cubed yams
2T oil
1T sesame oil
1T cumin seeds(I used ground cumin)
1t salt
Roast this at 375 until tender and lightly browned~ 45-60 minutes then cool
Combine with:
3 large Fuji/Gala apples cubed
2 c green grapes
1 c dried cranberries
1/2 c sliced almonds
Include juices from yams scraping the baking sheet.
Add vinaigrette:( and toss)
21/2 T apple cider vinegar
1T curry powder
21/2t honey
3/4t Dijon mustard
1/2 c oil

White Sandwich Bread
1c warm water
1 1/2c buttermilk(you can use milk instead, the buttermilk keeps it moist)
2T yeast
1/4c sugar
1/4c oil
1t salt
5-6 c flour
Dissolve yeast in water, add next 5 ingredients and 2 cups of flour and let proof for 15 minutes. Gradually add enough flour to make soft/firm dough. Knead about 5-10 minutes until smooth. Let rise until double. Punch down, form into 2 loaves(I roll out an oval and roll it up ,tucking the seam side down) and put in 2 8x4 1/2 greased pans , let rise until slightly above pan. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes until golden and hollow sounding when rapped.

Gypsy Soup...this is the name given by the Spokesman Review in the recipe section. I was in the mood to try something new and it was well received. I did make a substitution of carrots and cubed Yukon golds for the yams as I didn't want to go to the store. The flavor combination was very nice and the cinnamon gave no overt flavor but enhanced the other spices.
2 T. olive oil
3 c. Diced onions
1T. garlic chopped
3 c. yam-diced
2 ribs celery chopped
Saute in stock pot 5 minutes
Add:
1 green bell pepper diced
1 T paprika
1 1/2 t tumeric
1 1/2 t basil
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cinnamon
dash cayenne or dried chilies
saute 3 more minutes
Add and simmer until vegetables are tender- 20-30 minutes
1 1/2 c diced tomatoes
2 c. garbanzo beans (2 15 oz cans)
4 c vegetable broth(I actually used left0ver turkey broth)

Flax Meal Cookies

Flax Meal Cookies (gluten free)

Ingredients
1 cup flax meal
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 or 2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F
Mix the ingredients
Line a cookie tray with parchment paper
Drop batter onto lined tray with a #40 disher (makes 1 doz)
Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges begin to brown
Allow to cool before removing from tray

Theory of the Dish
I was trying to find some use for Flax Meal. Most sources say it can substituted for oil 3 to 1. That is not very helpful. Flax meal may be the nutritional equivalent of oil but it is not the culinary equivalent of oil. In thinking of something to compare it to I thought about peanuts and of my simple peanut butter cookies. This was my attempt to substitute flax meal for the peanut butter in that recipe.
With just one egg the batter is very stiff and the cookies need to be flattened. The result is like oatmeal cookies. With two eggs the cookies really spread out and are very thin and chewy, like caramal with nuts.