Cranberry Sherbet

A wonderful way to enjoy cranberries: a frosty sherbet

This is my entry for the Garden-Cook-Event hosted by Paulchen

 

I found recipes for cranberry sherbet in several vintage cookbooks, and this one consistently gives the best result. Many cookbooks recommend serving this sherbet after the roast turkey at a Thanksgiving course dinner. However, this sherbet is so good that, in my opinion, it is worth enjoying more than once a year.

 

From the original recipe by Mrs. E. H. Williams

In the “Los Angeles Times Cook Book No. 2″ 1905 ?–USA

Ingredients

1 quart (400 g) fresh cranberries

1 lb (454 g) sugar

1 quart (950 g) water

(1 large) lemon juice, strained

Place the cranberries and water in a large pan and bring to the boil, then simmer until the berries are tender, about 10 minutes.

Strain the mixture of cooked berries and water into a clean pot through a fine sieve, pressing well on the fruit to extract all the juice and pulp and discard the solids that remain in the strainer. The resulting mixture will be a rather thin puree.

Add the sugar and the lemon juice and bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar and prevent scorching.

Skim off any froth. Pour the cooked puree in a glass container and let cool.

Cover and refrigerate overnight. Freeze the chilled mixture in an ice cream maker following the instructions that come with your appliance.

 

Note: I recommend straining the cranberry puree instead of using a blender or food processor, otherwise the sherbet texture will be gritty rather than smooth.

 

 

World Bread Day ’07 Roundup

 

 

Zorra has posted here the roundup for World Bread Day ’07.

183 entries and more than 200 recipes–a wonderful collection of breads from bakers from all over the world

Thanks Zorra for this great event!

 

Bread Baking Day #04

I am happy to host Bread Baking Day #04 (a blog event initiated by Zorra)

The theme is “Bread & Spices” .

You can enter any type of bread (yeasted, sourdough, or quick breads, sweet or savory), as long as it contains one (or more) spice(s).

• Bake a bread with spice(s), take pictures (if possible) and blog about it between now and Saturday, December 1, 2007
  

• Please include a link to this announcement and eventually a link to the roundup. The roundup will be posted in a few days after December 1, 2007

• Send an email to xxgcvqu02(at)sneakemail(dot)com

including:

– your name
– your blog’s name and your blog’s URL
– the recipe name and the post’s URL
– your location
-(for non-English blogs) your language and, if possible, an English translation of your entry

 

World Bread Day ’07: Parker House Rolls

Buttery, slightly sweet, crusty on the outside and fluffy inside, small and dainty.

 

Thanks to Zorra for organizing this great event

For World Bread Day I wanted to choose a bread to represent the United States–choosing only one was obviously difficult given its rich and diverse heritage–but since I write from Massachusetts I finally opted for something typical of this area.
Parker House Rolls have a long and colorful history. They were created at the Parker House Hotel here in Boston in the 1870s, and were greatly appreciated by its patrons, which included famous ones such as Offenbach, Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. They have been popular ever since.

From the original recipe by Fannie Merritt Farmer

In “The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book” 1896–USA

Ingredients

2 cups (488 g) milk

3 tbsp (45 g) butter + 1 tbsp (15 g) extra

2 tbsp (25 g) sugar

1 tsp (6 g) salt

1/2 (7 g ) fresh yeast cake

1/4 cup (60 g) warm water

6 cups (750 g) all-purpose flour (or as needed)

Add 3 tbsp (45 g) butter, the sugar and salt to scalded milk and set aside until lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water and set aside.

Add yeast water to lukewarm milk mixture and mix well, then add 3 cups (375 g) flour and set aside, cover, and let rise until light and bubbly. Add more flour to make a soft dough that can be kneaded and rolled (it will require about 2-1/2 to 3 cups of four–312 g -375 g flour). Knead the dough (on low speed) until smooth and supple, then let it rise in a covered greased bowl until doubled.

Preheat the oven to 425°F–220°C

Melt 1 tbsp butter and set aside. Roll the dough to a 1/3-inch thickness and cut in rounds using a small biscuit-cutter dipped in flour (2-3/4-inch –7 cm diameter). Dip the handle of a wooden spoon in flour and with it make a crease through the middle of each round. Brush over one-half of each piece with melted butter, then fold and press edges together. Place rolls on a pan, let rise, and bake for about 15-20 minutes.

Best served warm in a basket lined with a napkin.

Amaretti I (Almond Macaroons)

Delicate almond cookies to serve with coffee or tea

From the original recipe by Pellegrino Artusi

In “La Scienza in Cucina e l’Arte di Mangiar Bene” 1891–Italy

Ingredients

1-1/4 cup (250 g) granulated sugar

1 cup (150 g) blanched almonds, whole

2 small egg whites at room temperature

1/4 tsp (1 ml) pure almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C)

Grind the almonds in a clean coffee grinder with a few tbsp of sugar until fine and powdery and set aside. Beat the egg whites until glossy, adding the remaining sugar little by little and the almond extract. Gently fold the ground almonds into the beaten egg whites, until well incorporated but being careful not to deflate the mixture.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop the almond mixture from a teaspoon, 2 inches apart.

Bake for about 25 minutes. Let the macaroons cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes then gently remove the cookies with a thin metal spatula and let them finish cooling on a rack.