Author: ajeanneinthekitchen

Going for the gold. I just love all these gorgeous colors we have this year.

I have finally used up all of the bierock dough I made. The dough itself is just a basic soft dough, that you have already learned is VERY versatile. One Dough Four Different Ways Even my mother-in-law Ollie uses her dough in many different ways. She almost always makes cinnamon rolls and sausage wraps with her dough, as well as her bierocks. I usually do those too, but this time I used it to make some Southwestern chicken and Hatch chili empanadas with it instead, plus all the other ways you saw.

Usually I like to pan-fry my empanadas, but since this is a yeast dough, I baked them instead. Empanadas are made with just about anything you like, from sweet to savory, and I make them in many different ways all the time.

Chicken and Roasted Hatch Chili Filling

1 1/2-2 lbs chicken, diced fine

1 cup corn

1/4 red onion, diced fine

4-5 roasted hatch chilies, diced fine

1 TBSP garlic

2-3 TBSP lime olive oil

1/2 red bell pepper, diced fine

salt & pepper to taste

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp sage

1 tsp oregano

1/2 cup flour, optional

1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped fine

Saute everything except the cilantro and the flour together in a large pot with the lime olive oil (regular olive oil works just fine too) until everything is thoroughly cooked. Add the flour if you like your sauce a little thicker, especially since using it as a filling, and continue to cook for about5 minutes, stirring constantly to incorporate the flour. Add the cilantro and mix together well. Then remove from the heat and set aside until you are ready to use it.

Roll out your dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 inch in thickness. Then cut into circles. I was making these as a main course, so I made bigger circles for bigger pockets. You can make them any size you like.

Once the dough is cut, add the filling to about half the dough, then fold it over and pinch together firmly. I always like to “fork” it by pressing the ends together with the tips of a fork too, to ensure the dough is completely sealed.

Because I was baking these empanadas, I brushed them with an eggwash, then baked them at 350* F for about 30 minutes, or until they were golden brown and the dough was cooked. !Desfuitas!

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

Everywhere I go, the trees are proudly and beautifully displaying their fall colors. It’s hard NOT to capture them with my camera, and when I do, I just have to share them with all of you. I was just telling Larry today that I don’t recall our past Falls being so colorful and beautiful as they are this year.

When I made my bierocks the other day, I only used half the dough. Baking Bierocks I had so much dough left over, I used it in a number of different ways after that. I just kept is well covered and in the refrigerator until I was ready to use it again.

The dough started off as these.

The next time I used the dough I made some clover leaf rolls to serve with dinner.

There was still a ton on dough leftover, so the next reincarnation of the dough turned into Southwestern chicken empanadas. (More on this later.)

I still had a lot of dough leftover, even after this. It just wasn’t going anywhere. After the 4th attempt, all the dough has finally been used. The last life for this batch of dough was a garlic-herb bread roll. I told you this dough was versatile and I wasn’t kidding. 🙂

To make this garlic-herb loaf I rolled out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Then I melted some butter and mixed in about 2 TBSP of garlic and dried herbs that I brushed over the dough.

Once the dough was rolled, I added a little twist to it and placed it in a loaf pan, brushed some more garlic butter on top and baked it at 350* F or 180* C for about 1 hour or until the top was golden and crusty.

For the moment, I am doughless, but I love to bake, and I love breads, so I doubt this is going to be a long-term issue. I see another dough batch in my near future. 🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

As I mentioned yesterday, our trees our so beautiful right now. They are proudly displaying all their colors. I will keep sharing them with your for as long as I can.

Whenever I cook and prepare a meal, I always do my best to balance the meals out. I am old school, and follow the dietary pyramid. There is always a protein source, starches, and lots of veggies. There are many different versions of this dietary pyramid, but this is the one I feel is one of the healthiest and most balanced. Choose whatever one works best for you. I also do my best to pair the veggies and the starches with the protein or the “theme” I am showcasing with each meal.

When I served my Bavarian Goulash, which originally came from Hungary and then worked its way to Germany and other European nations, A Time for Bavarian Goulash, I also searched to find a good German vegetable dish as well. I came up with the green bean and walnut salad. As predicted, it was a good pairing and everyone raved about the meal. Since the goulash is a heavy, hearty plate, I wanted something a little lighter to go with it. Green beans were a perfect choice. I served mine on a bed of lettuce, only because I have a lot of lettuce to get through, and salad weather is quickly coming to a close here in my neck of the woods. I don’t think I would serve it over lettuce next time though. The lettuce distracted things a bit. I also did not have enough green beans. Live and learn though, right?!

Green Bean and Walnut Salad

1 1/2 lbs trimmed green beans

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted

4-5 slices of bacon, cooked and diced

1 TBSP garlic

2 TBSP olive oil

3 TBSP apple cider vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

Cook the green beans in boiling water for about 5 minutes or until they become slightly tender. Then drain and and wash in cold water and set aside.

Toast or roast the walnuts. You can roast them in the oven at 350* F or 180* C for about 7 minutes or until they are golden, or you can toast them in a dry skillet on top of the stove until they turn golden. I prefer the stove top method, but there is no wrong or right way to do this. Again, use whatever way you are comfortable with.

Dice the bacon and cook to your liking.

Once everything is cooked, combine the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, walnuts, bacon and salt and pepper together and mix well. Spoon them over the green beans and serve immediately, while everything is still warm.

This is a quick, easy, colorful and delicious way to make sure you get your veggies. This salad will go with just about anything as well. I promise you’re going to love it, but then anything with bacon will always be a winner.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

Since I love the beautiful colors of fall, I have been taking a lot of pictures of the trees proudly displaying their fall colors. I will be sharing them with you for as long as I have pictures, before the season ends and goes into winter. Winter has its own beauties and charms, as do all the seasons. But fall is my absolute favorite season of them all.

The trees are on fire. I love these big bold reds.

I am still trying to come up with ways of using the big box of tomatoes Janet and Bob gave to me. Fresh Tomatoes Most of them have already been used and deliciously so. One of my creative ways of cooking with them was to make a Bavarian Goulash. It was a cool, crisp night, and it was just perfect for a hearty goulash stew too.

Goulash is a hearty stew that had humble beginnings from the Hungarian hunters. It was a type of a hunter’s stew, made with whatever meat was available. Goulash is a soup of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. Originating in Hungary, goulash is a common meal predominantly eaten in Central Europe but also in other parts of Europe as well. It is one of the national dishes of Hungary and a symbol of the country. Its origin traces back to the 9th century to stews eaten by Hungarian shepherds. As people traveled and migrated all across Europe, different foods and spices were introduced and were thrown into the stew as well. One of those spices was the use of dried and smoked peppers that is famously known as paprika. Paprika is the defining spice used in all Hungarian cooking. Sometimes it is sweet and sometimes it is smoky, and sometimes it is a combination of both.

In the 1830’s, as the popularity of this hunters’ stew was growing among the elites, but it was thought to be to crude for ladies. That soon changed though, and it started replacing sauerkraut at the German tables and was eaten by all.

Goulash is rarely eaten by itself. It is almost always served with noodles or dumplings or mashed or boiled potatoes. I love to serve it over mashed potatoes. I have made it many times before, but it has been awhile. It was time to make it again. Bavarian Goulash I also served it with a German green bean and walnut salad, some rolls (using more of my leftover bierock dough Baking Bierocks) and a hearty red zinfandel on the side. The meal was inspired by some of my German cookbooks and a German husband.

Everything was wunderbar and delicious or alles war lecker.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

How could I resist all these beautiful colors. They were just calling out to me, and better yet, this is what I get to look at everyday. This was taken from my back deck. I just love Fall and better yet.

While we were strolling the streets of Arvada for the Scarecrow Festival The Scarecrow Festival in Downtown Arvada, Julia suggested we tour around through the Flour Mill. This held a special place in Julia’s heart, since her grandfather worked in a flour mill.

The mill was located right on the rail tracks, as most of them were in the days before trucks.

Once we walked inside, it was like walking back in time. We all remembered using a lot of these products. How old does that make us sound now????? YIKES!

Arvada was the first place where gold was found “in them thar hills” of Colorado, back in June of 1850. People started migrating to the west in droves, with visions of gold. The real way to make money was not in the gold mining itself, but was through becoming a local merchant or farming the land and selling to the miners instead.

The land of Arvada was rich and fertile and was perfect for agriculture. Being centrally located between Denver and the mountains it was a perfect location for the farmers because they drew people from both areas.

It was so fun to hear Julia explain how things worked and listening to her fond memories of her grandfather.

Outside the mill, we got to do a little panning for gold ourselves, but all we found was “fool’s gold” or pyrite.

We even hopped onto the tractors and pretended like we knew what we were doing. Julia is the only one who actually grew up on a farm, so she was right at home.

It was fun to step back in time and go back to a more simple life, even if only briefly.

Everything can be fun. You just have to let the fun come in. Enjoy your day nd make the most of it. May all your days have some fun in them. Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.