indigo

Yes polenta the lentils are cooked. I use canned lentils and beans,
rinsing them thoroughly to remove as much salt as possible but you
could use your own cooked lentils and beans, it's just that using canned
is much easier and faster. My son loves this loaf, except I don't put
in the cheese...he does not like cheese.

Baldur

I have never seen canned lentils here in RI, unless they are in a soup.
Dried is the only version available to us, but they do cook rather quickly.

polenta

Lentils cook kind of quickly indeed. I soak them for some time (minutes or hours) and then with 45 minutes, it's enough. Don't you think so chef Baldur? Especially if the lentils are peeled. They are very tender. I'm planning to use fresh lentils and not canned (don't know if there are here) and not use beans. I'm sure my husband and son will love it. My son is vegetarian.

maddyjean08

I've never had lentils before, but I've heard they're disgusting! What are they, grains, veggies?

Dragon

They in the same family as peas and beans. You won't know if they're disgusting until you give them a try. I've had them in soup and they weren't bad at all.

Robindcr8l

Post 4811 from Baldur: It's time for 'Cooking with Baldur'

On this morning's episode let's bake some cookies.

BALDUR'S TRADITIONAL GINGERBREAD

In a mixer combine:
3/4 cup of soft butter
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups granulated white sugar
1/2 cup molasses
beat until well combined
add:
2 eggs
beat again until the eggs are incorporated.

In a large bowl combine:
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cloves
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 reaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until a smooth dough is formed. There should be no unincorporated ingredient.
Wrap the dough and refrigerate it for at least an hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Farenheit
Working with 1/4 of the dough at a time, roll it out rather thin on a lightly floured work surface.
Cut the dough into decorative shapes and place each cookie on a nonstick or lightly greased baking sheet, placing them about an inch apart.
Bake for 5 minutes for smallish cookies, a bit longer for larger ones.
If you wish to hang these cookies as decorations take a drinking straw and use it to puch a small hole in the top of each cookie as soon as they come out of the oven. They will be soft for only a few moments.
Allow them to cool on the tray for a few moments and then using a spatula transfer them to wire racks to cool completely.
These get very hard when they cool.

Makes a lot

Robindcr8l

This recipe also works well for building gingerbread houses.
Make a cardboard template for each piece, trace the shapes on the dough and cut them out.

As the dough bakes it spreads a little bit, so as soon as the pieces come out of the oven, place the template over the baked cookies and with a sharp knife trim the pieces back to the required shape.

Baldur

polenta, 45 minutes is plenty of time to cook lentils, I actually don't even bother to pre-soak them.

maddyjean08

Hmmm, are lentils dry??

polenta

I'll take that intoi consideration Baldur. I'm always afraid they're raw.

Baldur

lentils are sold dry, like beans.

polenta if you taste one and it is tender, then it is certainly cooked long enough

maddyjean08

Oh, lentils are supposed to be hard?

Hey, you guys eat lentils with a fork or spoon? You know, the best way to catch them is with a toothbrush, they stick right on the bristils.

Dragon

Cranberry Pistachio Bark

1 lb good quality white chocolate (500g)
1 cup dried cranberries (250mL)
1 cup shelled pistachios (250mL)

Melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler. Let cool to room temp. Roast pistachios at 350F for 5-7 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Stir cranberries and pistachios into melted chocolate. Pour onto foil-lined 10x15” edged cookie sheet. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, then break into pieces.

Baldur

Now that sounds marvelous.

sheftali52

I second that opinion, Baldur.

polenta

POTATO CHIPS (not French fries)

Cut the potatoes so thin that they are transparent. Put them in ice. Heat oil in a skillet or frying pan. When it's hot, take out the potatoes from the ice and DRY them (there shouldn't be any water on them please). Fry them.

The crispiness comes from the difference in temperature. Put them on a drying kitchen paper when you take them out and put salt on them.

Since you cut or slice them so thin, begin by only one or two potatoes.

Robindcr8l

I made the world's easiest peach cobbler the other night and it was quite good. All you do is spread 2 cans of peaches, juice and all, in the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan. Then cover the peaches with a box of the dry yellow cake mix. Then take a stick of butter, slice thin and place over the top of the cake mix. Bake the whole thing at 350 for 45 minutes. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

It's fast, easy, and everyone really enjoyed it!

Baldur

I remember having that somewhere, a friend made something similar a few years back, it was quite good.
It was even good cold and Baldur normally likes his peach cobbler served warm.

polenta

Robin, seems very easy. I'll give it a try some day.

holidays

I not peach cobbler.