Soft Pretzels

Soft Pretzels


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 Soft Pretzels
On a cold and rainy Saturday we decided to try pretzel making. Soft pretzels are made with a yeast dough and are similar to a good boiled bagel. These offered a nice pillowy interior. Thanks to Alton Brown, our first attempt was a success. Soft pretzels on Happensatthebean.com
Prep Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 12-15 Minutes
Passive Time 1 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 12-15 Minutes
Passive Time 1 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Combine the 1 1/2 cups warm water, the sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Set aside for 5 minutes, or until the mixture foams.
  2. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, 4 to 5 minutes.
  3. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl, then oil it well. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm place for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the dough has doubled in size.
  4. Heat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with oil. Set aside.
  5. Bring the 10 cups water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in a 12-inch straight-sided saute pan or a roasting pan (something wide and shallow is best).
  6. Meanwhile, turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface and divide into 16 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 12-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, and, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place on a half sheet pan. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
  7. One by one, place the pretzels in the boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return them to the sheet pans, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture, and sprinkle with pretzel salt.
  8. Bake until dark golden brown in color, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Lamb shank


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 Lamb shank
Lamb shank offer a wonderfully flavorful, but it can be a bit tough. As a result lamb shanks lend themselves to a low and slow braise. Long cooking at a low temperature is what you need for meat that is falling-off-the-bone tender. Lamb shanks on Happensatthebean.com #happensatthebean
Cook Time 4+ Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Cook Time 4+ Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or wide pot over medium-high heat.
  2. Meanwhile, season the trimmed lamb shanks all over with salt and pepper to taste. Add shanks to the pot and sear on all sides, turning as needed; this will take about 5 minutes for each batch. Transfer to a platter.
  3. Add the parsnips, onions, celery root and carrots to the pot; cook for about 3 minutes, stirring to coat them in the oil flavored by the meat. Return all the lamb shanks to the pot, then add the wine, bay leaves and 1 teaspoon each of kosher salt and black pepper and the water (use more water as needed to make sure the meat is covered). Let the mixture come to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the pot tightly with a sheet of aluminum foil, then place the pot lid on top to seal the pot well. Cook for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until the lamb is almost falling off the bone.
  4. When the meat is done, carefully transfer it and the vegetables to a platter; if serving right away, cover with foil to keep warm. Increase the heat to high and cook the liquid for about 30 minutes, until it has reduced by two-thirds. Spoon the reduced sauce over the meat and vegetables; serve warm.

Standing Rib Roast


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 Standing Rib Roast
This technique is a little backwards, after a cheap age in the fridge, I slowly cook the roast in a 200 F oven. After a brief rest it’s then browned at a very high temperature right before serving it. This will produce a perfectly pink and juicy roast throughout. Standing Rib Roast on Happensatthebean.com #happensatthebean
Prep Time 3-4 Days
Cook Time 2.5-5 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 3-4 Days
Cook Time 2.5-5 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Three or four days before you're going cook, unwrap the roast and let the meat sit on a sheet pan with a rack, season well with kosher salt place uncovered, in the refrigerator.
  2. Remove roast from fridge three hours before plnning to roast it, and let it sit at room temperature.
  3. Preheat oven to 200F, roast between 20-30 minutes pre/pound, until internal temperature of 120F from medium-rare.
  4. This one was 10 pounds. I cooked it 5 hours on the nose.
  5. Remove from oven and rest beef 30 minutes.
  6. Preheat oven to 500F or a charcoal grill. Once oven/grill is screaming hot, sear beef for 8-12 minutes.
  7. Slice and serve.

Chickpea Curry with spinach


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 Chickpea Curry with spinach
A visit to NYC means over eating. I fully indulged: Ham, egg & cheese on a roll, linguine in white clam sauce, veal parmigiana and several bagels and lox with a schmear to name a few. In an effort to get back on a sensible diet i made a faux Indian meatless dish. The fresh grated ginger makes this dish a keeper, chickpea curry with spinach on Happensatthebean.com #happensatthebean
Prep Time 15 Minutes
Cook Time 45 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 15 Minutes
Cook Time 45 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the turmeric , paprika, and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  2. Add the chickpeas, tomatoes with their juices, and coconut milk and stir to combine. Partially cover the pan, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.
  3. Add spinach and stir to combine, and simmer until the spinach will combined, about 5 minutes. Taste and season with additional salt if needed. Serve.

Pancakes

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 Pancakes
Pancakes are a wonderful way to start Christmas Day. Light, fluffy with a little tang from buttermilk is what sets these pancakes apart from others. Pancakes on Happensatthebean.com
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 15 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 15 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Place all the dry ingredients into a large bowl and whisk to combine.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, add buttermilk, butter and vanilla. Add wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until combined(don’t over mix the batter).
  3. Heat griddle(or cast iron pan)over medium-low heat. Add an additional tablespoon of butter to griddle once it stops foaming, spoon or ladle about 1/2 cup of the battle on to hot surface.
  4. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until you see small bubbles on the top side. Flip and cook additional 2-3 minutes until golden brown on both sides. Makes about 8-10 pancakes.
  5. Serve hot, top with butter and real maple syrup.

Roasted Yukon potatoes

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 Roasted Yukon potatoes
First steamed then roasted this technique works well with Yukon potatoes. It’s important they are all similar in size to ensure even cooking. This results in a nicely browned, crispy and creamy finish. The parsley, garlic and clarified butter makes this special dinner worthy. Roasted Yukon potatoes on Happensatthebean.com #happensatthebean
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 1 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 1 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Place oven rack in lowest position and preheat to 425F. Cut potatoes in half.
  2. Arrange potatoes, cut side down, on a baking sheet, spcaed out. Pour in 1½–2 cups water (a thin layer).
  3. Cover baking sheet with a foil, crimping sides very tightly to seal well. We need to trap the steam.
  4. Bake potatoes until a fork or knife slides easily through potatoes about 25–30 minutes. Test directly thru foil.
  5. Let potatoes cool about 5 minutes. Crank up oven temperature to 500° Use tongs to lift up foil at a corner, peeling it back to open pour off water.
  6. Remove foil and drizzle oil over potatoes; season generously with salt and pepper. Let potatoes cool and toss well. Arrange cut side down again.
  7. Roast potatoes until tops are golden, bottoms are deeply browned and crisp, about 20–25 minutes.
  8. Let potatoes cool slightly, then use a spatula to unstick them from baking sheet. Optional: Place potatoes in a large bowl, add minced garlic and parsley. Add clarified butter and toss well.
  9. Serve.

No Knead Bread


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 No Knead Bread
No-Knead Bread comes to us from Sullivan Street bakery. It’s fairly simple only four ingredients, the key element is fermentation. Jim Lahey introduced us to this technique. If you have a green egg, don’t be afraid to try this outside.
Prep Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 45 Minutes
Passive Time 18 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 20 Minutes
Cook Time 45 Minutes
Passive Time 18 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the flour and salt, stirring until blended. The dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap place in a warm place.
  2. Preheat oven to 450 F degrees. Add your 4 quart cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic pot(with a lid) to the oven as it's heating and heat it as well until it's at 450F degrees. The dough is ready when the surface is dotted with bubbles.
  3. Remove the pot from the oven and remove the lid from it. If you want to make sure your bread doesn't stick to the pot you can sprinkle some flour or cornmeal on the bottom of the pot or use parchment paper.
  4. Flour your hands really well and also sprinkle a bit of flour over the dough. With your floured hands gently remove the dough from the bowl and roughly shape it into a ball. Take the ball of dough and drop it on the parchment paper place paper in the pot. Cover the pot with the lid and place it back in the oven.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on, after which remove the lid and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.
  6. Remove the bread from the pot, it should fall out easily. Let cool completely before slicing into it and serving.

Boneless leg of lamb


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 Boneless leg of lamb
Here’s an easy recipe for smoked boneless leg of lamb. It’s full of flavour, tender and slightly smokey. Boneless leg of lamb on Happensatthebean.com #happensatthebean
Prep Time 15 Minutes
Cook Time 2.5-4 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 15 Minutes
Cook Time 2.5-4 Hours
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Mix all the herbs, spices, mustard and zest in a small bowl. Slowly add the olive oil constantly whisking until a paste forms. Maybe 30 seconds.
  2. Smear paste over lamb and place in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.
  3. Remove lamb from fridge 1 hour prior to cooking. Bring your smoker or charcoal grill to 225F. If using a grill, cook using indirect heat.
  4. Place on smoker or grill and cook for about 2.5 hours. You want to pull the lamb at 135F(for medium-rare). Pull and lamb rest for at least 30 minutes.
  5. Slice and serve.

Cream Biscuits


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 Cream Biscuits
Certain items I love, biscuits fall into that category. With that being said, there’s nothing worse than a bad biscuit. I have tried countless ss biscuit recipes, this version from “Times-Picayune” is the simplistic and incredibly delicious.
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 10-12 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 10 Minutes
Cook Time 10-12 Minutes
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 450F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
  2. In a medium bowl, add flour, salt and cream. Stir until a sticky ball forms.
  3. On a lightly floured surface knead lightly with floured hands, just until dough comes together.
  4. Using your hands or a rolling pin, pat dough to about 1/2-inch thickness. Cup biscuits with a 2-3-inch round cutter.
  5. Bake on prepared sheet for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Chicken Scarpariello with Sausage and Potatoes


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 Chicken Scarpariello with Sausage and Potatoes
Scarpariello is “shoemaker” in Italian. Shoemaker’s chicken in not an authentic dish, it’s likely an Italian restaurants invention. Regardless of its origins Its delicious and one of my favorite dishes. Balsamic vinegar is also an option. Delete the cherry peppers and their liquid for 1/2 up of balsamic.
Prep Time 30 Minutes
Cook Time 1 1/4 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Prep Time 30 Minutes
Cook Time 1 1/4 Hour
Servings
People
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Cut chicken into 14-16 small pieces. Place on a small sheet pan, salt with 3 tablespoons of kosher salt and place in fridge for 4-8 hours. Remove chicken and bring to room temperature.
  2. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large pot, add the potatoes and some kosher salt, bring to a boil, cook partially covered for 10 minutes. Drain well, cool and cut into 3/4-inch slices. Set aside with the skin on.
  3. Pat chicken dry, pepper both sides and dust with flour. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the Dutch oven large enough to fit the potatoes and stick, sauté chicken until well browned, 5-7 minutes per side, (flip and repeat) Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
  4. pour off half the oil in the Dutch oven. Return to burner over medium heat. Cook the sausage on both sides, until browned. Remove sausage from pan, and set aside.
  5. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, scraping the brown bits off the bottom for a minute or two. Add the garlic, bay leaf, rosemary, chicken and sausage and mix. Add the potatoes, white wine cherry peppers & liquid, chicken broth and lemon juice. Mix well and place in oven with top ajar for 45 minutes.
  6. Let rest for 15 minutes prior to serving.