~ Homemade Bread ~

Ingredients

2 and 3/4 teaspoons of yeast
517 ml lukewarm water
Lard (amount the size of an egg)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
Enough bread flour to make a soft dough (496 g -720 g)

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Directions

1.  In a small bowl, dissolved the yeast in 110 ml warm water. 
2. Set aside for about 5 min 
3. In large bowl, combine the lard, sugar, salt and the remaining water. 
4. Add the yeast mixture and stir to combine. 
5. Add the flour, 60 g at a time, mixing until the dough is elastic and doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl 
6. Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and let the dough rise until double in size, about 1 ½ hours in a warm, draft free place.
7.  Punch the dough down and form it into two loaves with your hands. 
8.  Place each half into a greased 5x9 in loaf pan. (So making 2 loaves of bread) 
9. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise again until the dough is level with the loaf pan, about an hour. 
10.  Preheat oven to 163 C Bake bread for about 45 min. 
11.  The bread will sound hollow when tapped. 
12.  After removing bread from the oven, brush with butter or margarine for a softer crust. 
13. Remove the bread from the pans and cool on a wire rack. 
14.  After completely cool, it can be stored in a sealed bag and frozen for up to 6 months. 
15. If bread is stored in a sealed plastic bag at room temperature, it should be consumed within 4 days.

This recipe was submitted by one of the FCR Forum Moderaters @MacKenzieTwin

Homemade Bread

Ingredients

2 and 3/4 teaspoons of yeast
2 ½ cups lukewarm water
Lard (amount the size of an egg)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
Enough bread flour to make a soft dough (4-6 cups)

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Directions

1.  In a small bowl, dissolved the yeast in ½ cup warm water. 
2. Set aside for about 5 min 
3. In large bowl, combine the lard, sugar, salt and the remaining 2 cups of water. 
4. Add the yeast mixture and stir to combine. 
5. Add the flour, ½ cup at a time, mixing until the dough is elastic and doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl 
6. Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and let the dough rise until double in size, about 1 ½ hours in a warm, draft free place.
7.  Punch the dough down and form it into two loaves with your hands. 
8.  Place each half into a greased 5x9 in loaf pan. (So making 2 loaves of bread) 
9. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise again until the dough is level with the loaf pan, about an hour. 
10.  Preheat oven to 325 F Bake bread for about 45 min. 
11.  The bread will sound hollow when tapped. 
12.  After removing bread from the oven, brush with butter or margarine for a softer crust. 
13. Remove the bread from the pans and cool on a wire rack. 
14.  After completely cool, it can be stored in a sealed bag and frozen for up to 6 months. 
15. If bread is stored in a sealed plastic bag at room temperature, it should be consumed within 4 days.

This recipe was submitted by one of the FCR Forum Moderaters @MacKenzieTwin

~ Macaroni and Cheese ~

Paul's  Note: I use twice as much cheese as recommended and bake it until the top is slightly burned (yummy!). I normally triple the recipe since it makes wonderful leftovers. 

Ingredients 

225 g  Mueller's Elbow Macaroni
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
715 ml milk
2 tablespoons butter
454 g shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

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Directions

1. Preheat oven to 191° F 
2. Cook pasta 6 minutes. 
3. Drain. 
4. Combine cornstarch, salt & pepper in medium saucepan. Stir in milk until smooth. 
5. Add butter, stirring constantly. 
6. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. 
7. Boil 1 minute. 
8. Remove from heat. 
9. Stir in 325 g cheese until melted. 
10. Add cooked pasta. 
11. Pour into greased 2-quart casserole. 
12. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. 
13.  Bake uncovered 25 minutes, or until lightly browned. 

Submitted by @Bluestocking of the FCR Forum

~ Gerry's Gallery Christmas Party Cocktails ~

Blood Orange Hot Toddy*
Ingredients

60 milliliters bourbon whiskey (or whiskey) 
2 tablespoons blood orange juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 cups hot water 355 milliliters
orange slices
star anise ingredients



Pomegranate Champagne Cocktail

Ingredients

475 ml chilled pomegranate juice
360 ml limeade
1 (750-ml) bottle well-chilled Champagne

Preparation

1. Combine juices in a large pitcher. 
2. Slowly add Champagne and stir. 

Sticky Toffee Pudding Eggnog **
(requires 48 hours to make) 

Ingredients

950 ml of Heavy Cream
284 ml of Sticky Toffee Pudding
6 Eggs, separated
50 g of  caster Sugar
150 ml of Cognac
150 ml of Dark Rum
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt

 Method

1.  In a container with a tight-fitting lid, pour the cream over the sticky toffee pudding 
2. Cover and refrigerate for 2 days 
3. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with sugar 
4. Stir in the Cognac and rum 
5. Strain in the infused cream through a fine sieve, pressing on the solids 
6. In a medium bowl, whip 700 ml of infused cream until stiff 
7. Fold the egg-yolk mixture 
8. In the large bowl, beat the egg whites with salt on a high speed to stiff peaks 
9. Fold the beaten egg whites into the whipped cream 
10. Refrigerate the eggnog until chilled (2 hours) 
11. And serve glass mugs when ready! 

Mistletoe ***

Ingredients  

1 part fine Cherry infused Vodka  

Splash of tonic water 

Rosemary-infused ice 

Cherry

Directions 

1. Fill a Collins glass with rosemary-infused ice. 
2. Pour all ingredients into glass and garnish with a cherry.

*http://karalydon.com/recipes/blood-orange-hot-toddy/

** From https://www.drinkstuff.com/blog/christmas-concoction-sticky-toffee-pudding-eggnog/

***http://www.cosmopolitan.com/food-cocktails/g2586/christmas-cocktails/?slide=2

Gerry's Gallery Christmas Party Cocktails

Blood Orange Hot Toddy*

Ingredients

2 ounces bourbon whiskey (or whiskey) 
2 tablespoons blood orange juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 cups hot water 
orange slices
star anise ingredients



Pomegranate Champagne Cocktail

Ingredients

2 cups chilled pomegranate juice
1 1/2 cups limeade
1 (750-ml) bottle well-chilled Champagne

Preparation

1. Combine juices in a large pitcher. 
2. Slowly add Champagne. 

Sticky Toffee Pudding Eggnog **
(requires 48 hours to make)

Ingredients

1 Quart of Heavy Cream
284 ml of Sticky Toffee Pudding
6 Eggs, separated
1/2 Cup of Sugar
1/2 Cup (plus 2 tbsp.) of Cognac
1/2 Cup (plus 2 tbsp.) of Dark Rum
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt

 Method

1.  In a container with a tight-fitting lid, pour the cream over the sticky toffee pudding 
2. Cover and refrigerate for 2 days 
3. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with sugar 
4. Stir in the Cognac and rum 
5. Strain in the infused cream through a fine sieve, pressing on the solids 
6. In a medium bowl, whip 3 cups of infused cream until stiff 
7. Fold the egg-yolk mixture 
8. In the large bowl, beat the egg whites with salt on a high speed to stiff peaks 
9. Fold the beaten egg whites into the whipped cream 
10. Refrigerate the eggnog until chilled (2 hours) 
11. And serve glass mugs when ready! 

Mistletoe ***

Ingredients  

1 part fine Cherry infused Vodka  

Splash of tonic water 

Rosemary-infused ice 

Cherry

Directions 

1. Fill a Collins glass with rosemary-infused ice. 
2. Pour all ingredients into glass and garnish with a cherry.

*http://karalydon.com/recipes/blood-orange-hot-toddy/

** From https://www.drinkstuff.com/blog/christmas-concoction-sticky-toffee-pudding-eggnog/

***http://www.cosmopolitan.com/food-cocktails/g2586/christmas-cocktails/?slide=2

Jasper's Plum Jam

"A wild plum." Jasper said with his mouth full. "Jam should be good come fall."  ~ Freeman's Field

Ingredients

About 3 pounds plums

3 cups of  granulated sugar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

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Directions 

1. Rinse plums and remove pits. Finely chop or force plums through a food chopper.

2. Place plums in a heavy-bottomed, 4-quart pot, stir in sugar and lemon juice and let stand for 15 minutes.

3. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat—about 10 minutes–mashing the fruit with a potato masher. Stir occasionally to make sure the fruit does not stick to the bottom. Bubbles will rise to the top of the mix. You will see chunks of fruit in the mixture. Skim foam off top and lift and discard skins with a fork if desired. Cook on until the showing mixture thickens and clings to a spoon, falling off in clumps, another 10 minutes or so.

4. In the meantime, scald half-pint jars in a large pot with a fitted rack. Soak lids in a pan of hot water to soften the rubber seal. Lift jars out of hot water one at a time, draining water.

5. Ladle hot jam into hot jars using a wide-mouth funnel or transfer the jam to a heat-proof pitcher and pout into jars. Leave ½ inch headspace. Slide nonmetallic spatula between jam and jar to release trapped air bubbles.

6. Wipe rims and threads of jar with a clean, damp cloth. Remove lid from hot water and place on jar. Screw each band down evenly and firmly until resistance is met. Place jars rack and lower into boiling-water canner until they are covered by about 1 inch of water.

7. Put lid on canner. Bring water to a boil. Process ½ pints 10 minutes at a gentle but steady boil. (Start keeping time after water comes to rolling boil.)

8. Turn off heat and remove canner lid. Let canner cool 5 minutes then remove jars and set them upright on a dry towel or rack. Do not retighten bands. Let jars cool 12 to 24 hours.

9. After jars have cooled, check lids for a good vacuum seal: pressing the center of each lid. If center is pulled down and does not flex remove the band. If the lid does not flex and cannot lift it off, the seal is set. Wipe lid and jar with a clean, damp cloth. Label each jar. Store jam in a cool, dry, dark place. 


 Recipe contributed by FCR Forum member Dizzy who found it on harvettotable.com

~ Jasper's Plum Jam ~

"A wild plum." Jasper said with his mouth full. "Jam should be good come fall."  ~ Freeman's Field

Ingredients

About 3 pounds plums

3 cups of  caster granulated sugar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

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Directions 

1. Rinse plums and remove pits. Finely chop or force plums through a food chopper.

2. Place plums in a heavy-bottomed, 4-quart pot, stir in sugar and lemon juice and let stand for 15 minutes.

3. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat—about 10 minutes–mashing the fruit with a potato masher. Stir occasionally to make sure the fruit does not stick to the bottom. Bubbles will rise to the top of the mix. You will see chunks of fruit in the mixture. Skim foam off top and lift and discard skins with a fork if desired. Cook on until the showing mixture thickens and clings to a spoon, falling off in clumps, another 10 minutes or so.

4. In the meantime, scald half-pint jars in a large pot with a fitted rack. Soak lids in a pan of hot water to soften the rubber seal. Lift jars out of hot water one at a time, draining water.

5. Ladle hot jam into hot jars using a wide-mouth funnel or transfer the jam to a heat-proof pitcher and pout into jars. Leave ½ inch headspace. Slide nonmetallic spatula between jam and jar to release trapped air bubbles.

6. Wipe rims and threads of jar with a clean, damp cloth. Remove lid from hot water and place on jar. Screw each band down evenly and firmly until resistance is met. Place jars rack and lower into boiling-water canner until they are covered by about 1 inch of water.

7. Put lid on canner. Bring water to a boil. Process ½ pints 10 minutes at a gentle but steady boil. (Start keeping time after water comes to rolling boil.)

8. Turn off heat and remove canner lid. Let canner cool 5 minutes then remove jars and set them upright on a dry towel or rack. Do not retighten bands. Let jars cool 12 to 24 hours.

9. After jars have cooled, check lids for a good vacuum seal: pressing the center of each lid. If center is pulled down and does not flex remove the band. If the lid does not flex and cannot lift it off, the seal is set. Wipe lid and jar with a clean, damp cloth. Label each jar. Store jam in a cool, dry, dark place. 


 Recipe contributed by FCR Forum member Dizzy who found it on harvettotable.com