Author: M.

Corn Flour Tortillas: The Best of Both Worlds

Posted on by M.

Combining the flavor of corn with the pliable texture of flour, these corn flour tortillas bridge the gap!

corn flour tortillas with light brown toasted spots

Corn Flour Tortillas

Yield: 24 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 minutes
Total Time: 22 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/4 c. Cornmeal (Yellow, Stone Ground, whatever you please.)
  • 3/4 c. P.A.N Cornflour/Masa (It is very important that you use this brand. )
  • 1/4 c. Butter, salted/Plant Butter
  • 1 t. Salt
  • 1 1/2 c. Boiling Water (This water needs to be scalding.)
  • 2 c. All Purpose Flour

Instructions

    1. In a mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, cornflour, butter and salt.
    2. Add the boiling water and mix well.
    3. Let set for a minute or so.
    4. Add flour a cup at a time and mix until dough is tacky but not sticky. You may need a little more or less flour depending on your environment's humidity levels.
    5. Portion dough into balls about 2 inches across.
    6. This dough can be refrigerated up to 3 days.
    7. Sprinkle flour generously and flatten the balls on both sides on the flour.
    8. Roll out to desired thickness, mine are usually paper thin.
    9. Preheat iron skillet on medium high.
    10. You want these to cook quickly and barely brown because the longer they take to become opaque and cook through, the tougher and drier they will get.

Notes

    • Cooked quickly on a hot skillet, they are deliciously soft and pliable.
      If not eating immediately, allow tortillas to cool completely, then store in airtight containers or bags. These freeze well for up to a month and can be thawed for breakfast quesadillas in 2 minutes
    • These deliver all the flavor of a corn tortilla with the texture and holding capability of a flour tortilla! I grew up making these and didn't realize how superior the texture and flavor were until we moved back to the U.S. They are my favorite and at this point I refuse to eat store-bought tortillas anymore.

© A Kitchen of Herbs
Category: Dinner

Easy Fudge Globs: Delicious Treats in Minutes

Posted on by M.

Fudge Globs are One of My Favorite Recipes to Make

I’ve also heard these referred to as no-bake cookies. I grew up calling them globs and so shall they always be to me. They are quick, easy and delicious treats in a flash! Besides, they have oatmeal in them, which makes them healthy, right?

At one point I discovered that the recipe just wasn’t turning out like I remembered. It just so happens that when I made these all the time as a kid, I often forgot to set a timer so I usually cooked them much longer than the 2 minutes the recipe called for.

As an adult, I’m much more meticulous and was following the two minute cook time to the letter! Guess what? They needed to be cooked longer! Kid-me had more of a handle on these delicious blobs than adult-me.

fudge glob cookies on a table
Photo by Arts Dianti on Pexels.com

In case you run into the same issue I have, here’s what is happening. I think it is also the reason store-bought globs are too sugary and seem gritty for me. When the ‘fudge’ is not cooked long enough the sugar crystallizes differently.  The excess water prevents the sugar from forming a controlled number of small, fine crystals. Instead, the sucrose molecules form large, coarse crystals on their own. This gives a sugary, almost gritty texture to the globs.

In a Nutshell:

If you UNDER-COOK fudge…If you OVER-COOK fudge…
Too much water remainsToo much water evaporates
Result: Soft, sticky, gooey, and grittyResult: Hard, crumbly, and dry (like hard candy)

I’ve also run into the issue with overcooking the fudge causing the globs to crumble into glob chunks and dust. I still don’t use a candy thermometer, because this is just not the kind of recipe I tend to get that technical about. But I can tell you that the perfect amount of cooking is between 5 & 7 minutes because that’s about the amount of time required to reach the soft-ball stage. That’s the key here, if you want to be technical or if you’ve had issues getting what seems like a very simple recipe to work for you.

I love the science of why things happen and how they work. It means that when I feel silly for not being able to achieve ‘simple’ recipes, I know that there is a missing link somewhere in the chemistry. Once I understand the why, I can fix the how and voila!

Fudge globs on wooden board

Fudge Globs

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Cooling Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1/4 + 2 T. c. cocoa
  • 1/2 c. shortening
  • 1/2 c. milk
  • 1 t. salt
  • 3 c. quick oats
  • 1 1/2 t. vanilla

Instructions

  1. In a saucepan, combine milk, shortening, cocoa, sugar and salt.
  2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
  3. Boil for 5-7 minutes, until thick and glossy.
  4. Remove from heat and add oatmeal and vanilla.
  5. Mix to combine.
  6. Scoop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.
  7. Cool and enjoy!

Notes

  • I have tried making this recipe with rolled oats and the texture is just not the same. Because the oats aren't really cooked through, they are much too tough to chew through for me. I recommend only making these with quick oats.

© A Kitchen of Herbs
Category: Dessert

My Take on No Bake

This is also one of the recipes I’ve managed to make a short video of the process. So if you prefer to watch rather than read, here you go!

Delicious Homemade Spaghetti with Extra Veggies

Posted on by M.

I grew up eating homemade spaghetti, as I’m sure most of you did.

Of course, everything we ate was from scratch, because in the jungle back then, we didn’t have access to things like sauce in a jar.

cooked homemade spaghetti pasta with sliced tomatoes and green leafy

Over the years, the recipe has morphed a good deal, but this is my current version. It works well for us, is simple, tasty and very versatile.

One of my favorite adjustments to my spaghetti sauce is the addition of about 3 times the vegetables. It’s amazing to my how much heartier and tastier it became because I started using piles of peppers and onions.

It is also quite a bit cheaper, since meat is almost unnecessary and I use 1/2 the amount I used to. (Thank you, inflation, for helping me see the light.)

spaghetti

Spaghetti

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 Red Bell Peppers
  • 1 Yellow/Orange Bell Pepper
  • 1 Green Bell Pepper
  • 1 Large Onion
  • 6 Garlic Cloves or 3 T. Minced or 3 T. Garlic Powder
  • 1 lb. Any Ground Meat
  • 1 T. Olive Oil
  • 4 Sprigs Fresh Thyme or 2 T. Dried Thyme
  • 6 Sprigs Fresh Oregano or 2 T. Dried Oregano
  • 1 T. Garlic Salt or Salt
  • 1 t. Black Pepper
  • 1 T. Smoked Paprika or Paprika
  • 2 T. Italian Seasoning
  • 1/4 c. Worcestershire Sauce
  • 2 T. Beef Broth Base or 2 Bouillon Cubes
  • 1 T. Montreal Steak Seasoning
  • 3 Bay Leaves
  • 1 Large Jar Spaghetti Sauce
  • 1/2 Large Jar Water
  • 1 Large Can Crushed/Diced/Stewed Tomatoes
  • 1/2 Large Can Water
  • 1 Large Stockpot Water
  • 1 T. Olive Oil
  • 1 t. Salt
  • 1 Package Spaghetti Pasta

Instructions

  1. Chop peppers and onions. We like to keep our sauce very chunky, so I cut them into about 1″ pieces, but you can chop yours as fine as you like.
  2. Peel and dice garlic (if using fresh).
  3. Heat olive oil in large skillet on medium high.
  4. Add ground beef/meat and cook until mostly browned.
  5. If you need to drain the meat, this is your moment. I don’t, but I know some people prefer to.
  6. Stir in garlic, onions and peppers and cook about 1 minute, just to get a little bit of flavor going.
  7. If you are using fresh herbs, remove the stems before adding leaves to the mixture.
  8. Add all herbs, spices, seasonings and bay leaves, mixing well.
  9. Pour in all tomatoes and sauces, including filling the jars/cans with water. This rinses out the remaining sauce and also adds necessary liquid to the spaghetti sauce.
  10. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 1 hour. Longer is better, but an hour will do the trick.
  11. Pasta:
  12. Bring large stockpot of water, 1 T. oil and 1 t. salt to a boil over high heat.
  13. This is for flavor and to keep pasta from sticking together.
  14. Add 1 package of spaghetti noodles (I like using whole wheat thin spaghetti).
  15. Cover with lid and turn off heat.
  16. Set timer for 11 minutes.
  17. Pasta should be perfectly al dente when the timer goes off. Adjust time to suit your taste.
  18. Immediately drain pasta. If you are afraid it will be overcooked, you can also run cold water over it right away to stop the cooking process.
  19. Serve with sauce and freshly grated parmesan cheese!

Notes

    • This sauce has great flavor and actually uses less meat than my previous recipes because the amount of onions and peppers add so much substance.
    • I make this batch and freeze half of it for another meal. It works great!

© A Kitchen of Herbs
Category: Dinner

Master Muffins: Berry Edition

Posted on by M.

Preheat oven to 400* F.

Combine:

1 1/3 c. All Purpose Flour

1/2 c. + 2 T. Granulated Sugar

1 T. Baking Powder

3/4 t. Salt

Whisk together and add to flour mixture:

2 Large Eggs

3/4 c. Milk

2 t. Vanilla Extract

Zest of 1 Lemon

Melt and add:

1/2 c. Butter

Mix in:

1 Small Container Berries

Fill paper lined or greased muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake 10-12 minutes on middle rack or until toothpick is clean.

Caprese Salad

Posted on by M.

I always come back to this simple caprese salad recipe in the Summer!

Fresh caprese salad with sliced tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and basil with balsamic reduction

Caprese Salad

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

    1. Slice and arrange tomatoes and mozzarella or cut into 1" cubes.
    2. Garnish with olive oil, salt, fresh basil and balsamic reduction.
    • For the balsamic reduction, boil balsamic vinegar gently over medium-low heat until thickened.
© A Kitchen of Herbs
Category: Lunch