Funnel Cake

Funnel cakes are a long standing festival or fair food, which can be easily enjoyed at home with a bit of batter and the use of some hot oil. A simple batter is drizzled into oil, forming an attractive and tasty snack.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
4 eggs
1/3 sugar
3 c milk
5 c flour
½ tsp salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
Oil for frying

Special Equipment Required

Funnel, pastry bag or zip close bag
Thermometer

Directions

Sift or whisk together dry ingredients. In a large bowl beat eggs, add sugar and milk, mixing well. Add dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until smooth.

Choose a method of dispensing the batter- a piping bag, or funnel can be used, if you don’t have either available, a plastic zip-closure bag can be used- fill with batter and trim a bottom corner of the bag to dispense. If using the funnel, you will need use a finger to plug the funnel when not in use, or only add enough batter for one cake at a time. If using the plastic bag use a clothes pin or binder clip to seal the bag when not dispensing batter.

Fill a heavy pan or pot with fairly deep sides with oil to a depth of 1 to 1 ½ inches. Heat the oil to 375º F. Pipe batter into oil, creating a lattice or looped designs. Cook until brown, flipping once. Remove promptly and drain on paper towels.

Tips & Tricks

Topping options include: powdered sugar, brown sugar, honey, fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg, whipped cream or ice cream, chocolate or fudge sauces.

Rather significant quantities of hot oil are involved in this recipe. Do be careful, especially when using oil over open flame

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Candied Apples

The classic, candy-coated apples. As the name suggests, the coating is a candy. Candying requires a sugar syrup to be heated to a specific temperature that allows crystals to form in a specific pattern which gives provides the candy with it's characteristics- fudge, caramel, and hard candies like peanut brittle are all "candy" but each have different crystal structures.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
3 c sugar
1½ c water
1 c light corn syrup
2-3 inch cinnamon stick
3-4 drops red food coloring (optional)

Special Equipment Required

7 or 8 wooden dowels or sticks
wax or parchment paper
paper cupcake liners
candy thermometer

Directions

Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Unfold and flatten 7 to 8 cupcake tin liners and distribute on the baking sheet. Rinse and dry 8 apples and remove their stems. Insert wooden dowels or another appropriate type of stick into the stem end of the apples.

Keep a double boiler or a pot of simmering water at the ready. It will be needed to keep the syrup hot enough to prevent it from hardening while the apples are coated.

Combine all ingredients and stir to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a boil and hold for three minutes, without stirring. Brush down the sides of the pot with a pastry brush to remove any crystals that form. Continue to boil until the syrup reaches 290º F on a candy thermometer, or the soft-crack stage.

Bring water in double boiler or pan to a boil. Remove the cinnamon stick and add food coloring if desired. Set pan with syrup over, but not in, the boiling water. Quickly dip each apple into the syrup, carefully twirl each apple to remove excess coating. Set on cupcake liner and allow to set.

Recipe can be divided in half to prepare 4 apples. Candied apples should be eaten within a day.

Tips & Tricks

Any type of apple can be used so go with any variety you prefer, or try a couple different types and find out which you like best. I do like to use tart apple varieties which balance the sweetness of the candy coating.

Any coating that goes astray is more easily cleaned with hot water, which helps to both melt and dissolve the syrup.

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Caramel Apples

Whole apples, coated with caramel. These have been a common, seasonal treat starting in late summer through autumn and the trick-o-treating that is associated with Halloween.

This recipe is so simple and straight forward there is no excuse not to prepare them from scratch. The most challenging part of this recipe is unwrapping the caramels without sampling to many of them.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 1/2 lbs store bought caramels
2 Tbsp water
7 or 8 apples
1/2 c chopped nuts or other topping (optional)

Special Equipment Required

7 or 8 wooden dowels or sticks
wax or parchment paper
paper cupcake liners

Directions

Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Unfold and flatten 7 to 8 cupcake tin liners and distribute on the baking sheet. Rinse and dry 8 apples and remove their stems. Insert wooden dowels or another appropriate type of stick into the stem end of the apples.

Keep a double boiler or a pot of simmering water at the ready. It will be needed to keep the syrup warm enough to prevent it from thickening while the apples are coated.

Heat caramels and water gradually, until they are fully melted and smooth. Bring water in double boiler or pan to a boil. Set pan with caramel over, but not in, the boiling water.

Dip apples, one at a time, removing excess caramel by scraping on the side of the pan. Coated apples can then be dipped in chopped nuts, sprinkles, or any other coating that appeals.

Place each apple on a cupcake liner and allow to set. Refrigeration will set the caramel faster.

Tips & Tricks

Any type of apple can be used so go with any variety you prefer, or try a couple different types and find out which you like best. Personally, I like tart varieties which balance the sweetness of the caramel.

Excess caramel can be poured into a small jar or other airtight container and stored in the refrigerator. To use, soften in the microwave for 10-20 seconds on high.

Any spills of caramel are more easily cleaned with hot water, which helps to both melt and dissolve the caramel.

Kits can be purchased at grocery stories which provide sheets of caramel that can be wrapped around apples. If you are coordinating younger cooks in the kitchen, these kits may be easier and safer if you want a child-friendly preparation, particularly if you feel that hot melted caramel may be too great a temptation for young fingers.

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Baklava

Baklava is a middle eastern dessert, which layers nuts and spices between very light and flaky pastry and combined with a honey and lemon flavored syrup. The recipe is simple and straight forward, but the assembly and use of the fillo dough can be challenging when first encountered.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 c unsalted butter, melted (2 sticks)
1 pkg fillo dough
3 c nuts, chopped (walnuts, pecans, pistachios or almonds)
¼ c sugar
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
1/3 zest of one lemon
2 c sugar
1 c honey
2 Tbsp lemon juice or juice from one lemon
1 Tbsp orange flower water (optional)
2/3 zest of one lemon

Special Equipment Required

Pastry brush

Directions

Follow package directions to defrost and prepare the fillo dough.
Preheat oven to 325ºF.

Combine the chopped nuts, sugar, cinnamon cloves and 1/3 the zest of a lemon in a small bowl.

Butter the bottom and sides of a 13” x 9” baking pan. Trim the fillo so that is slightly larger than the baking dish. Take as single leaf of fillo dough and carefully lay it across the bottom of the pan so it is centered, and gently smooth it into place. Using a pastry brush coat the entire surface of the fillo sheet with butter. Add a second leaf over the first and coat with butter as with the first layer. Build until there are at least 6 layers of fillo dough. Sprinkle ¼ to 1/3 of the nut mixture over the top layer of fillo dough, then lay out 4 more leaves of fillo, buttering between each. Repeat this until all the nut mixture has been used. Add a final 6 leaves over the final last of the nuts, continuing to butter each sheet, including the topmost layer.

Once baked, the layers fillo dough will be very light and flaky, and cannot be cut without entirely breaking into little pieces. Therefore, the baklava must be sliced before it is baked. Often it is cut into triangular or diamond shapes, but any pattern that makes convenient serving sizes will work. With a very sharp knife, using clean, long strokes slice through all the layers, but if you do not cut entirely through the bottommost layer it will not cause a problem. The top layer of dough may try to shift while you cut. Gently use your fingers to hold the dough in place as you slice.

Bake the baklava for 45 minutes to an hour, until the baklava is a golden brown.

About 15 minutes before baking is complete, combine the sugar, honey, lemon juice, lemon peel and orange flower water in a saucepan, heat to dissolve the sugar and then bring to a gentle boil for at least 5 minutes to create the syrup. Pour the syrup directly over the baklava once baking is complete. Pour the syrup gradually, making certain to coat an cover all portions of the baklava. The syrup with bubble up, when poured over the hot pan. If poured too rapidly, this bubbling of the syrup will lift the top layer of fillo from the baklava and allow to float away from it’s place. To prevent this, pour slowly but steadily, traveling across the surface to coat all areas evenly.

Allow the baklava to cool for at least a half hour, and re-cut the pieces, making certain to cut through all layers this time. The baklava may be removed when cool enough to handle and served upon reaching room temperature.

Tips & Tricks

Phillo or fillo dough is a wheat dough that is rolled into very, very thin leaves. Butter is used between each leaf of dough, creating crisp flaky layers upon baking. Philo dough can be temperamental at the best of times. If the dough is improperly stored and goes through multiple freeze thaw cycles ice crystals can form which, when they melt will cause the leaves of dough to stick together, making portions or multiple layers of the dough unusable. This dough also dries quickly, so must be worked with quickly. Package directions often suggest keeping the dough covered with plastic wrap, with a lightly dampened towel over the plastic wrap.

The use of the honey in this recipe will thicken the syrup considerably when it cools. If you find it difficult remove the pieces of baklava from the pan once it cools, warm it in a low oven (250ºF.) for ten minutes, which will soften the syrup enough to make the pieces easily removed.

The type or combination of nuts used can greatly effect the flavor and to some extent the texture of baklava. Try using different nuts and altering the quantities and types of spices once your are comfortable with the recipe. Fillings other than nuts can also be used. I've at least once seen a raspberry baklava, so don't avoid experimentation. Any filling used should be dry, as excess moisture will turn the fillo dough into a soggy mess. That said, the use of butter does lock out, or at least slow down the absorption of moisture, so just use care in selecting potential fillings.

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Corned Beef

Corned Beef is very tasty, but it is often enjoyed only around St. Patrick's Day. This recipe allows you to corn your own beef brisket at home. The result is a superior product, without use of the preservatives found in commercially prepared corned beef briskets. The recipe is simple and straightforward, but does require significant preparation time.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 5-6 pound beef brisket or top round
1/3 c brown sugar (upwards of ½ c.)
1 c coarse sea salt (1½ c.)
2 Tbsp chopped shallots or onion, garlic also an option
1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper (coarse grind)
1 Tbsp crushed juniper berries
1½ tsp allspice (crushed)
1½ tsp cloves (crushed)
2 bay leaves, crushed
½ tsp thyme
½ tsp rosemary (crushed or chopped)
2c Guinness or other Stout (14oz. bottle or can)

Directions

Rub brown sugar into all surfaces of the beef. Place in a ceramic, glass, plastic or other non-metallic/non-reactive bowl and cover securely. Refrigerate for 24 hours. Drain any juices.

Combine salt, shallot or onion, juniper berries and all other herbs and spices in a small bowl. Rub the salt mixture into all surfaces of the beef. Place any excess salt mixture in the bottom of the bowl or spread over the top of beef. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 days (up to 7 days), turning each day and rubbing more of the salt mixture into the beef.

To cook, scrape salt mixture from beef, and place in a heavy stockpot (do not use an aluminum pot) and fill with water to just cover the beef. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a very low simmer and cover, cooking for 4 to 5 hours. Check water level periodically and fill to cover. In the final hour cooking add the stout. Cool the beef in the cooking liquid.

For use in corned beef hash, cut into ¾” to 1” cubes. For traditional corned beef, press the beef between two heavy plates, weight the top plate with something heavy and refrigerate overnight. Slice very thin and serve cold.

Once cooked, cubes of corned beef can be stored in a freezer for 3 to 4 months.

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Guacamole

The basic recipe for guacamole as featured on Speaking of Beer, Show #31.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2-3 avocados
2-4 cloves Garlic, minced
½ onion, chopped
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice, or juice from ½ a lime
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/3 hot pepper of your choice, very finely chopped- optional
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

This is very much a free form recipe and quantities can be adjusted to fit your palette. If you like garlic- add more, don’t like onion- add less or don’t include it.

Prepare and chop all ingredients, leaving the avocado for last.
For the avocado, I prefer mine in good-sized cubes, with perhaps a third of the avocado mashed and the remainder left whole. If your taste runs toward a smoother guacamole, mash most, or all the avocado.

Place avocado in a bowl and mash to the degree desired. Add the lime juice and olive oil next, and mix gently. They will slow the oxidation process that turns the avocado brown. Next add garlic, onion and tomato. For the hot peppers, jalapeño and/or serrano peppers work well. To remove some of heat while retaining the flavor, cut the pepper into strips, and holding the pepper flat to your cutting surface trim the inner membrane of the pepper out. If you like the extra heat, leave it in place. Add the hot pepper by halves, mixing gently and tasting the result before adding more. It’s easy to add extra pepper, but nearly impossible remove when overdone. Finally, add salt and pepper to taste. The flavors will meld and combine if the guacamole is allowed to set for a while. I should be covered with plastic wrap, such that the entire surface is touching the plastic and as few air bubbles are present as possible, this will reduce browning. It may be stored overnight under refrigeration, when wrapped as above. Any browning can be removed by carefully scrapping with a spoon.

Tips & Tricks

Make certain to wash your hand thoroughly after working with hot peppers. The oils often do not come off with a single washing. Denatured alcohol or rubbing alcohol will removed hot pepper oils very effectively.

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Pasta Puntanesca

Pasta Puntanesca is an easy, classic Italian dish. The Puntanesca sauce can also be used on anything from chicken to vegetables to fish.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2-4 cups Cooked Pasta (bow-ties, angel hair, etc.)
Appx. 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
1-4 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 14-oz can Chopped tomatoes
1 handful kalamata olives, pitted
1 tbsp. Capers
1-3 Anchovy filets, diced
1 Lemon, juiced
pinch Dried chilli flakes to taste
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Directions

Start by heating the olive oil in a non-reactive skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic when the oil starts to shimmer and cook until it softens (30 seconds to 2 minutes); do not burn or it will be bitter.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the tomatoes, including the juice. Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the juice is reduced by 1/3 to 1/2.

While the tomatoes are cooking, take the olives and pit them by lightly smashing them with the side of a knife or bottom of a pot and squirting the pits out.

When the tomatoes are done, add the olives, capers, lemon juice, anchovies and chili flakes and heat through. Taste and adjust salt, pepper and chili flakes as needed; the olives, capers and anchovies are salty so taste before adjusting.

Add cooked and drained pasta to the pan and toss to heat.

Serve with freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, if desired.

Tips & Tricks

Due to the acidity of the tomatoes and lemon juice, cast iron cookware should not be used in this dish.

Pitting the olives, while not strictly necessary, is recommended by four out of five Dentists!

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New York Style Cheesecake

The New York Style Cheesecake that has made multiple appearances on Wingin' It.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2 c finely crushed graham crackers
½ c butter, melted
2½ pounds or 5- 8 oz, packages of regular cream cheese, softened
1¾ c sugar
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1½ tsp vanilla
5 eggs
2 egg yolks
1/3 c whipping cream
1 tsp lemon peel, finely grated

Special Equipment Required

One 9x3 inch spring form pan

Directions

Combine melted butter with graham cracker crumbs and mix until well combined. Pour crumb mixture into pan, press the crumbs into the pan starting in the center and working the crumbs up the sides of pan until ¼” from top edge of pan. Set aside. Preheat oven to 325º.

Mix sugar and flour until combined. Add vanilla and sugar mixture to cream cheese and mix until smooth and fluffy then add eggs and egg yolks until just combined. Stir in whipping cream and lemon peel and pour batter into pan.

Place pan in center of oven on a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. Bake for 1½ hours, or until center of cake is nearly set when shook. Begin to check for doneness after roughly an hour and fifteen minutes. Remove from oven and allow for 15 minutes. Loosen sides of cake from pan using a thin bladed knife. Allow cake to cool for 30 minutes more and release sides from bottom of pan. Cool for roughly 2 additional hours before chilling in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours.

Serves 12 to 16.

Tips & Tricks

After crushing or grinding graham crackers, sift through sieve to remove large crumbs.

Cream cheese can be softened in the microwave. Microwave for 3 minutes on medium power (5) remove and stir, microwave for 2 more minutes, stir and check consistency. As microwaves vary, additional time may be required. To break up any lumps, press cream cheese through a sieve.

A mixer may be used, but care is required in mixing, as too much air added to the batter will cause the cake to fall while baking.

If you lack the lemon peel a drop or two of lemon extract can be used.

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Cheese Beer Soup

This is a potato-based soup that was a combination of a recipe from a newspaper article and the flavors I remembers from a now-defunct restaurant. The dish can feed 6 to 8 as a soup course or 4 to 6 as a main course.

Black pepper croutons are a good accompaniment.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
3-5 lbs. Potatoes (red skinner, russet, or Yukon gold), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes.
1 tbsp. Olive oil
1 Large white or yellow onion, chopped
4 Cloves garlic, chopped
12-20 oz. Beer
32-64 oz. Low-sodium chicken broth or stock
16 oz. Very sharp cheddar cheese, shredded fine
1 tbsp. Dry mustard
2 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 tsp. White pepper
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce
Salt and white pepper to taste.

Directions

  • Heat the olive oil in in a large pot over medium heat until it shimmers.
  • Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sweat them until soft, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until soft and fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Add the potatoes and lightly sweat them in the onion and garlic mixture for about 5 minutes.
  • Add enough chicken stock to cover the potatoes and bring to a boil.
  • Add the beer and reduce heat slightly, maintaining a boil. Cook potatoes until they fall apart when poked with a fork. Set aside to cool.
  • In a small bowl, mix the dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce, white pepper and tabasco sauce until smooth.
  • Puree the potatoes in a blender or food processor in batches until very smooth. Set aside in a large bowl for return to the pot once blending is complete.
  • Stir the dry mustard mixture to the blended potatoes and reheat over low heat.
  • Add the cheese a hand-full at a time, stirring continuously. Allow the cheese to melt completely before adding another handful.
  • Taste the soup every other hand-full or so, adding more cheese, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce or tabasco as needed.

Tips & Tricks

This recipe encourages tinkering. For example, depending on the sharpness of the cheese more or less than the recipe calls for could be added. A spicer soup could use more tabasco, less spicy could omit it all together. Typically, it is best to fiddle more with the dry mustard mixture before adding more cheese. Standard yellow mustard can also be used to boost the flavor of some milder cheeses. The type of beer will also greatly effect the flavor, with lighter beers adding a very subtle flavor.

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Pumpkin chocolate chip nut bread

This quick bread blends chocolate and nuts with the flavor of pumpkin for a tasty treat! It has made multiple apperances on Wingin' It.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/3 c milk (or water)
1/2 tsp vanilla
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/3 c sugar, or 1 c. sugar and 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 c pumpkin puree
½ c chopped walnuts or pecans
½ c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350ºF and butter a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan

Whisk together dry ingredients and in a separate bowl combine the milk and vanilla. In a large bowl, beat the butter until creamy. Gradually add the sugar to the butter while beating at high speed. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then add pumpkin puree and mix in on low speed until just blended.

Next, add the flour in 3 parts, alternating with the milk mixture in 2 parts. Beat on low speed, or use a spatula or wooden spoon, scrapping the sides of the bowl until the batter is smooth. Add 1/2 c. each of chopped walnuts (or pecans) and semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Scrape into the bread pan and spread evenly. Bake for about 60 minutes, and check for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf, which will remain clean upon removal when fully cooked.

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Food Geeking Feed List

The power of Drupal's categorization engine was a big reason for choosing it to run Food Geeking. Here's the breakdown of all of the various feeds and sub-feeds available.

Feeds

  • The Front-Page Feed contains all stories and content published to the front page of the site, including all of the shows. At various times, recipes, cooking-related articles, and other miscellany might appear.

    • The Podcast Feed gives you the Podcasts, just the Podcasts and nothing but the Podcasts. Recipes or other content, front-page or not, will not show up.
  • The Recipes Feed will give you all of the culinary goodness that we publish.

More feeds will probably appear here in the near future.

Mike's Wingin' It Breakfast

This is the extra-special breakfast Mike prefers before starting Wingin' It.

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 Car
2.49 U.S. Dollars
1 jar Salsa

Special Equipment Required

A Toyota hybrid vehicle is preferred, but not necessary.

Directions

  • Get in car
  • Drive to Fillibertos
  • Order Sausage Burrito
  • Return home
  • Add salsa from refrigerator

Tips & Tricks

Breakfast is served quicker if you drive faster!

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