The Blog in 2012 - January

I must have been hit with post-Christmas craziness because I posted EACH day in January! From the first post of Macarons which I baked with my daughter 

to a cozy Pork Ragu with Spinach over Polenta for the last day of January, there are plenty of interesting posts. Because there are so many, January gets its own blog post.

 

Have you ever wanted to make Farls? They are a sort of combination of Soda Bread and Scones and great with tea. How about Milkbar's Compost Cookies? They combine coffee grounds and mix-ins like pretzels and potato chips, but the technique of mixing the ingredients together is just as innovative.

For our colder weather there is fresh Chicken Noodle Soup, as well as one of my favorite beef dishes (wish I could still eat beef!) Beef and Mushroom Potpie with Stout. If you love Parmesan cheese (Wish I could still have cheese!) the Baked Pasta with Chicken and Parmesan will become a favorite of yours.

In 2012 I was working on creating my Family Food cookbook. Two recipes in January alone are part of it. The first is for homely Rice Pudding, which I always loved as a child,

and the second is for Fried Oysters, perfect for these colder months when oysters are at their best. When I was the Friday cook growing up, I dreaded the days when my Dad would come home from work with a couple quarts of fresh, shucked oysters from the fish market. I love eating fried oysters, but preparing them, including draining, dredging each in flour, then egg, then crumbs, then frying them in batches was a whole lot of work. Still, fried is still my favorite way to eat oysters.

Of course there are bread recipes in January, too. Early in the month I used thawed frozen bread dough and fresh herbs and garlic to make Pinwheel Herb Rolls. It's an easy way to have fresh, delicious bread without having to make bread dough. Later in the month I used thawed frozen bread dough to make Cinnamon Rolls with Icing, a sweet version of a pinwheel roll. I also made the Farls (above), a delicious Spelt Sourdough loaf, fast and fabulous Cuban Bread, and sweet Tea Brack loaf. Any of these would be worth your time.

Season food wasn't fogotten. Lemons, especially Meyer lemons, are a delight in January and I made a Cheesecake flavored with Meyer lemon and coconut that showed them off to perfection. 

Winter is also a great time for garlic. Have you ever wanted to make Roasted Garlic? I have an easy way to do it in muffin pans so that you can capture that lovely garlic oil that is a byproduct. The roasted garlic itself can be used in all sorts of ways, including spreading it on baguette slices that have been toasted for a nice appetizer.

Those are the highlights of January recipes, but there are a few more hidden in January 2012...just start here.