Welcome to Barbara's Kitchen! We thought we could gather (virtually, at least) and see what's cooking! Mom, you are scheduled to add to the blog in March. Until then, pull up a chair and let someone else do the work for once. Tune in each week for a new post. Take a minute to leave a comment. We hope to be able to share good ideas and memories here. And, who knows, maybe Mom will even give us the secret ingredients to such family classics as Blue Stroganoff. Happy Birthday, Mom—we love you!
~ Karen, Dee, Allison, Kirsten, Cheryl, Stephanie, Brenda, Sarah,
Morgan, Michelle & Maria
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Karen & Kirsten serving breakfast in bed
I picked bread and soup—always great during the colder months! Back then (WAY back!), making bread was a necessary art form and Mom taught me the methods. It was fun to pound and make noise while slinging around a huge hunk of dough like you knew what you were doing! The best part was being with Mom. Smelling the baking bread and eating it warm out of the oven with butter and honey were pretty darn good, too, yummmm…. So, here’s my new favorite healthy recipe! You already have Mom’s recipes and know how good they are. This one is basic whole wheat with olive oil and honey. The key is to mill the whole wheat flour just before mixing—it makes it rise beautifully without effort…at least in “flat land Texas”!
Awesome fireplace in home, Isle Royale N.P.
Scott said you could put in 5 foot logs.
It really was at Isle Royale that I remember learning the bread making skills about age 12-13 and eating the fish chowder that I loved. The dessert called Davidson Island Delight (Barbara Eliason cookbook, pg. 41) was born here with a naming contest, AND I think it was on the kitchen counters here that Brandon and Brenda were covered in flour! What a great place. I have one more Isle Royale food memory that cracks me up every time I think of it—to get groceries on the Island, Mom would send a grocery list once a week with the ship captain (no running to the store in an emergency ...hence the need for good substitution skills?!). One week she wrote down "2 dozen tortillas", meaning 2 packages of 12...the captain interpreted it as 2 dozen PACKAGES!! We ate a LOT of tacos that summer!
[note by Scott: What she didn't say was that the grocery store apologized because they only had 21 pkgs.]
Honey Whole Wheat Bread
4 ½ c. warm water
2/3 c. honey
2 T. salt
4 T. yeast
2 t. cider vinegar
½ c. olive oil
12-14 c. whole wheat flour
Proof the yeast by mixing the honey into the warm water, then adding the yeast gently and letting it sit and “bubble” for about 5 min. Add the other ingredients, with flour last, a bit at a time, mixing after each addition until a soft dough ball sticks together. Put it out on the counter with either a very little oil or flour to keep from sticking. Knead about 10 min. until elastic and smooth. Lightly grease top and bottom in a bowl, cover, and let sit in a warm, non-drafty place until it has doubled in size. Punch down, divide into 4 large or 5 small pieces and put into loaf pans. (This last step was where I found a lot of satisfaction in knowing how to pound and “artfully” get out all the bubbles and make a beautiful loaf!) Let the dough rise in the loaf pans until at the top of the pan (20-30 min.), then turn the oven to 350-375 degrees. Bake for 35-40 min. Take out of the oven when done and remove from pans to cooling racks. Eat a slice ASAP!
Home on Davidson Island, Isle Royale N.P.
As for the soup, my favorite of Mom’s was Lake Trout Chowder (see below) with lots of butter…an Isle Royale favorite. Now I tend to make Clam Chowder and an Olive Garden Gnocchi Chicken Soup. They are as follows:
church at home, Isle Royale N.P.
Karen’s Clam Chowder
Saute 1 T. butter with 1 large onion, chopped, and 4 stalks celery, chopped. Add 3-4 new red potatoes, chopped small, with skin washed and left on, 1 (10 oz.) can clam juice and 10 oz. water (may substitute chicken broth). Bring to a boil then turn down heat and simmer 10-15 minutes until veggies are soft. Add 2 (6 ½ oz.) cans minced clams with juice, 10 oz. fat free ½ and ½ (or ½ c. heavy cream) being careful not to boil. Add 1 t. red wine vinegar and fresh ground pepper to taste.
Karen popping corn, Isle Royale N.P.
Olive Garden Gnocchi Chicken Soup
In a medium saucepan bring to boil: 2 c. water and 3 chicken bouillon. Add 2 stalks celery chopped and 1 large carrot shredded. Simmer until soft. Put 2 T. olive oil in large frying pan and add 2 or more minced garlic cloves and sauté. Add 1 lb. chicken cut into small bite-size pieces and sauté. Add 1/3 c. flour (I use whole wheat) and mix well. Add previous liquid and veggies, 1-2 c. fat free ½ and 1/2 (or cream) and 1 c. chopped fresh spinach. Heat until soup thickens then add 1-2 c. gnocchi * (I use the whole wheat/sweet potato kind rather than the regular potato—I also like to cut them in ½ since they can be a mouthful!). Keep soup from boiling while cooking 3-4 min. more until the gnocchi are soft. Serve with fresh ground pepper to taste. (*small potato dumpling found in the noodle section of the grocery store)
Karen & Mom with the twins in Houghton, MI
(plus other kids in back on snow!)
Fish Chowder (from Barbara Eliason cookbook, pg. 38)
Boil fish in salt water to cover. Take fish out to cool. Strain water and add:
1-2 chopped onions
2-3 chopped potatoes
Add more water if necessary and cook until vegetables are done. Bone fish and add to soup. Serve hot over large pats of butter in individual bowls. Add canned milk to chowder after putting it in the bowls or make the chowder with part milk.
contributed by Karen, Barbara's daughter
