The Great Lusternian Cookbook

Orventa

Share your favourite recipes here!

WIP. Reserved. Will be copying over everyone's previous entries once the old forums are available.

Here is the link to the old forums GLC Entries!!

http://www.lusternia.com/node/29494

Sad to say, but I just discovered that with the new site migration, the old 'old forums', version of the first lusternian cookbook (recipes/memories) has been lost. A bit of google fu has this sole page for posterity. http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https://www.lusternia.com/node/29494?page=1

I knew I should have archived those pages to wayback. Sorry guys 

I've reposted what I could salvage.


But, we'll always have this thread.

Enjoy!

Daraius

Here's one for the fall. The spice mix is handy to have around to supplement everything from cider, cocoa, tea, and coffee, to cakes and muffins, to (believe it or not) pork and poultry. 

Candied Nuts 

Difficulty: *

Prep time: 5 min

Cook time: 30 min

1 lb. pecans, hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts, almonds, peanuts, or mix of the above

1 egg white

1 T water

1/2 c granulated sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

1 tsp salt

dash of cayenne pepper or smoked paprika

2 tsp to 1 T spice mix (recipe follows)

Autumn Spice Mix

1/4 c cinnamon

2 T ginger

2 T nutmeg

2 tsp allspice

1 tsp ground cloves

Preparation

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F

Combine sugars, salt, and spices in a medium bowl

In another bowl, whisk egg white and water until frothy and no longer liquidy

Pour nuts into frothy egg white and toss to coat

Pour sugar mixture over nuts and toss to coat

Spread on a large baking sheet in a single layer and bake for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally

Let cool and enjoy

Daraius

Another one for the fall, courtesy of a 1974 Disney cookbook, ever so slightly adjusted.

Maid Marian's Mulled Apple Cider

Difficulty: *

Prep time: 1 minute

Cook time: 30 min

(bonus points for being a Robin Hood-themed recipe)

1 gal apple juice

2 c brown sugar

4-5 cinnamon sticks

2 tsp whole cloves

1/2 tsp salt

Preparation

Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. 

You can leave the cinnamon sticks and cloves in it or strain them out. The cider obviously becomes more potent the longer you leave them in, but I find it can get a little bitter if they steep for too long. I usually just strain it all back into the original bottle once it's cool enough, refrigerate, then just reheat a mug of it whenever the mood strikes.

Kiradawea

This is a cheap, easy recipe that I use to create Cheese cake. It requires minimal work, so it should be doable, even by those who manage to burn salads.

Cracker bottom
150 g oat crackers
75 g butter/margarine

Cream cheese fill
300 g natural cream cheese
3 dl cream
3 dl jelly
100 g powdered sugar

Instructions
Melt the butter, crush the crackers, mix them together and put the mix into the bottom of a form.
Whip the cream, and mix the cream cheese, powdered sugar and liquid jelly into the mix. Continue mixing until the whole thing is smooth.
Pour the mix onto the crackers.
Put the form into the fridge overnight.
By the next morning, the mix should be firm and tasty.

Daraius

That looks like cheesecake blasphemy to me, but I'm going to try it and plan on being pleasantly surprised.

Aldani

Looking for advice, not offering a recipe: what's everyone's favourite thing to do with steak? What about shrimp or prawns?

Kialkarkea

Steak gets slow-grilled for maximum juiciness. Slightly pink in the centre, never charred. Shrimp, depending on the size, gets either tossed into gumbo, or turned into some nice firecracker kabobs.

I've never had the chance to eat prawns, so no advice there. 

Daraius

Hey, why not another fall recipe. This one is from my coworker with some improvisations of my own, but I don't know where she got it, nor what to call it. Also, a lot of my measurements are approximate. I tend to take a cavalier approach to spices when I'm not baking, so feel free to adjust the herbs and spices to your taste.

Tangy Dijon Sweet Potatoes

Difficulty: ***

Prep time: 20 min

Cook time: 50 min

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled

1 T oil

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp minced garlic

salt to taste

1 medium onion

1/2 c wine (optional, doesn't need to be expensive, can be any color)

1/2 c cider vinegar

2 T dijon mustard

1 tsp thyme

salt and pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Slice peeled sweet potatoes into rounds, drizzle with oil, and toss with herbs and spices. I like to do it all in a gallon ziploc bag and shake the bejesus out of it. Spread evenly on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, flipping halfway through.

While the potatoes are cooking, slice onion into thin rings and heat on medium low heat in a lightly oiled skillet, stirring occasionally until translucent and golden. If using wine, add it now, increase heat a little and allow most of it to cook out and absorb into the onions. Reduce heat, add vinegar, dijon, and herbs and simmer until the potatoes are done.

Add potatoes to onions and heat for a few minutes, stirring to coat the potatoes in the vinegar sauce. Serve and enjoy.

Daraius

Got another one. Just try and stop me. These cookies are soft, moist, and delicious with tea or cider.

Soft Pumpkin Cookies

Difficulty: **

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 16 min

2 1/2 c flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 T autumn spice mix (told you it would come in handy)

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 c brown sugar

1 stick softened unsalted butter

1 c pumpkin puree

1 large egg

1 T vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste if you're super classy)

Autumn Spice Mix (in case you can't scroll up)

1/4 c cinnamon

2 T ginger

2 T nutmeg

2 tsp allspice

1 tsp ground cloves

Ginger Glaze

1 c sifted confectioner's sugar

1 1/2 T milk

1/2 T melted butter

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Whisk together flour, spices, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in one bowl. Combine butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer (stand mixer preferred) until well mixed. Add egg, pumpkin, and vanilla. Mixture will probably look curdled and gross, but don't worry. Add flour little by little, scrape down sides of bowl, and beat on low speed until uniform.

Scoop onto cookie trays (greased, or lined with parchment paper) and bake for about 16 minutes. While they cool, make the glaze by whisking milk, powdered sugar, ginger, vanilla, and melted butter until smooth. Drizzle over the cookies with a pastry bag, or a parchment paper cone, or a ziploc bag with a tiny hole cut in the corner.

Daraius

It'll be winter soon, so here's one more dish for autumn.

Apple Pie Bowls

Difficulty: **

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 10 min

5 large apples, any variety, or even a mix

1/2 c brown sugar

1 T autumn spice mix (see above)

1 T flour

pinch salt

Preparation

Cut off the top half inch of each apple, and scoop out the inside with a small ice cream scoop. Try not to damage the outer skin as you scrape away the innards. Wipe a few drops of lemon juice on the inside of the apple bowl to keep it from getting too brown. Save all but the bits of core. Mix together sugar, spices, and flour and sprinkle over the scooped out apple bits. Cook in a saucepan or skillet on medium low heat until apples are soft. Spoon filling back into apple bowls and enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Daraius

For me, autumn ends with Thanksgiving, so it's on to winter recipes. And so, for Phoebus' sake, here is a magnificent eggnog recipe, courtesy of Alton Brown.

Eggnog

Difficulty: *

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: N/A

4 egg yolks

1/3 c sugar

2 c whole milk

1 c heavy cream

1 tsp nutmeg

pinch ground ginger (optional)

Preparation

Combine egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl. If you have a stand mixer, just let them mix at low speed with the whisk attachment.

Combine cream, milk, and nutmeg in a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until simmering, not quite to a boil. While this is heating, your yolks and sugar should be mixing, or you should be whisking the them yourself.

When milk mixture is simmering, just about to boil, whisk a few tablespoons at a time into the egg yolk mixture (basically just pour a very small amount of the hot milk into the egg yolks while whisking - this is a form of tempering, which gradually raises the temperature of the egg yolks without curdling them). Gradually add more hot milk mixture until everything's combined. Again, this is easiest with a stand mixer but you can do it manually just as well.

Whisk it all together for a while and then chill it. Best served ice cold, in my opinion.

Daraius

Let's just call this thread the Great Daraian Cookbook, shall we? This one is an experiment I performed for the first time tonight and it was a rousing success. It's an adaptation of one of my favorite recipes from Tish Boyle's The Cake Book. It's a real showstopper for your holiday meal.

Brownie Latte Cheesecake Squares

Difficulty: **

Prep time: 20 min

Cook time: 50 min

Brownie Layer

2 oz bittersweet (70% cacao or higher) chocolate, coarsely chopped

2 oz unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons

2 tsp instant espresso powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

1/2 c granulated sugar

1 egg

1/4 c all-purpose flour

Preparation

Line a nine-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil and spray it with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Gently melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler (or just a metal bowl set over simmering water). Remove it from the heat when no lumps of chocolate or butter remain and stir in the espresso powder, vanilla, and salt. Whisk in the sugar, then the egg, then the flour, mixing until combined between each addition.

Scrape the batter into your prepared pan and bake for about 20 minutes until the brownie is cooked. It will feel firm and cakey to the touch. Let it cool while you make the cheesecake layer, but leave the oven on.

Cheesecake Layer

8 oz cream cheese (softened)

1/2 c granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp instant espresso powder dissolved in 1 tsp hot water

1 T kahlua or coffee liquor (optional)

pinch of salt

3 T sour cream

1 tsp cornstarch

1 egg

Preparation

Beat the cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment at medium-high speed until it's soft and smooth. Lower the speed and add the sugar gradually, and mix for a few minutes until the mixture is light and airy. Add the vanilla, espresso, coffee liquor, salt, sour cream, egg, and cornstarch and mix until blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Scrape the batter over the brownie and tilt the pan to coat it evenly. Tap and jiggle the pan firmly but carefully to encourage any air bubbles to escape the cheesecake layer.

Bake for about 30 minutes until the cheesecake layer is golden and set. It will wobble a bit if you tap the pan, but it shouldn't stick too much to your finger when you gently touch the surface. Let it cool to room temperature before starting on the chocolate layer.

Chocolate Layer

5 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Preparation

Gently melt the chocolate in the double boiler, then pour immediately over the cheesecake. Tilt the pan to give it an even coating, then let it sit at room temperature for an hour or so to harden. Refrigerate the whole shebang for at least two hours. 

Once it's chilled, the foil will allow you to remove the entire square from the pan and transfer it to a cutting board. Depending on your generosity and knife skills, you can cut it into 16-25 pieces. I recommend a hot, thin, sharp serrated bread knife and a gentle sawing motion the cut through the chocolate without breaking it. Wipe the knife clean after each cut, and try not to touch the chocolate with your fingers, lest you leave unsightly prints.

These can be served cold or at room temperature (I prefer cold cheesecake, myself), but should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.

Daraius

Here's a sauce. No measurements!

Tangy Barbecue Sauce

Difficulty: *

Prep time: 1 min

Cook time: 10 min 

(from highest to lowest quantity)

ketchup

mustard

cider vinegar

molasses

KimKim (or Sriracha)

smoked paprika

black pepper

garlic salt

Preparation

Combine all ingredients in pretty much any reasonable quantity in a small saucepan. For instance, you'll use somewhere in the half cup / cup range for the first three, tablespoons for the next two, teaspoons for the remainder. Really, I just squirt, pour, and sprinkle everything in the pot and simmer it 'til it tastes good. It's extremely easy to adjust to taste. Heat on medium to medium-low until it thickens.

Great on fries, burgers, chicken, or anything else you'd put barbecue sauce on.

Xeria

(End of the month broke+starving) onion butter pasta

1 onion (large)

butter to taste. (about one stick?)

Water or milk (1-2 tablespoons full. Not too much, you'll want it to evaporate away is it cooks)

Oil

1)Chop onions, heat oil in pan. Boil water for pasta

2)Add onions to pan, salt pasta water and cook pasta

3)Caramelize onions in skillet by sweating them for 30 minutes or so. Until they'll all brown and translucent. (Taste test 'em)

4)Add butter+milk. Simmer for a minute or less. Until reduced down.

5)Drain pasta and toss in pan until evenly coated with sauce.

Eat.

Talan

I have about a pound and a half of beef tenderloin. Any fun ideas? Looking for something more exciting than "fillet, wrap it in bacon, and grill," not that this isn't good.

Daraius

Yo dudes. I've perfected baklava. Purists will balk at my avoidance of pistachios or walnuts, but I defy you to find fault with the taste. Baklava isn't difficult, but it's super tedious. Phyllo has to be cool, but not frozen, when you work with it. I've never had trouble with it drying out, but you do have to work quickly.

Baklava

Difficulty: ***

Prep time: 30 min

Cook time: 50-60 min

12 oz blanched hazelnuts, chopped and toasted

6 oz blanched almonds, slivered and toasted

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp nutmeg

approx 30 sheets of phyllo dough

12 oz butter (3 sticks), melted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine chopped nuts, graham crumbs, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and set aside. 

Brush a 9 x 13 inch baking dish (I prefer glass) with melted butter. Layer about 10 sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each one with butter. You don't want to drench it, but it should be moist enough for the next phyllo sheet to stick to it. Once you've laid down 10 sheets, sprinkle about a third of the nut mixture all over the entire surface.

Lay down another four sheets of phyllo, brushing each with butter, then sprinkle another third of the nut mixture. Repeat once more with another four sheets of phyllo and the remaining nuts. You should have ten to twelve sheets of phyllo left to layer on top, brushing each with melted butter.

Cut it up! The classic way is to make diagonal cuts, then vertical cuts, resulting in diamond-shaped pieces. However you cut it, you want to do it before baking.

Bake for 55-60 minutes, until golden. While it's baking, make the syrup!

Syrup

1 1/2 cups sugar

8 oz orange blossom honey

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup orange juice

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 15 minutes so it thickens a little, then let cool slightly. Pour it over the hot baklava as after it comes out of the oven. It'll sizzle and pop and billow beautiful nutty, orangey aromas. Savor it, then let it sit overnight as the syrup soaks in.

Talan

Since Apple-Plum-Cranberry-Ginger is a bit of a mouthful (a delicious, delicious mouthful), I'm calling this the Autumn without Allspice Pie. As much as I love everything pumpkin-clove-allspice in the fall, it's nice to have other things too.

Pie Crust:

Blend with fork/potato masher/pastry blender until crumbly:

• 3 1/2 unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2/3 vegetable shortening
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt

Stir in:

• 2 teaspoons white vinegar

Stir in:

• cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough sticks together. About 4 tablespoons.

Turn out and kneed for only a few turns. Split into 2 lumps, roughly in half with one a little larger and one a little smaller. Larger is for the bottom layer, smaller is for the top. Pat the lumps into 2 discs, wrap in wax paper/foil/saran, and refrigerate for about 2 hours. If you are making this immediately, toss them in the freezer, just don't forget about them.

Filling:

Peel the apples, pit the plums (leaving skins on). Quarter and then do 1/4" thick slices. Toss in the cranberries.

• 4 medium apples
• 3 medium plums
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries

Stir in:

• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ceylon cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons flour

Set aside

Pie:

Roll out the larger disc and fit it in your pie plate, leaving edges to hang over the side, and pricking the bottom. Add the filling.

Cut up into tiny bits or grate (frozen):

• 2 tablespoons of butter.

Sprinkle/dot them across the filling. When it cooks, they will melt and trickle down. Roll out the top layer of dough and drape over the top, pressing down lightly on the filling. Pinch the two halves of the crust together, crimp around the edge and trim and discard the excess dough.

Whisk:

• 1 egg white

And lightly brush across the top layer. Then lightly dust with:

• white sugar

Cut 1" slits across the top of the pie. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes, or until the top crust is beautifully golden and the filling is bubbling out a bit. Cool for an hour before serving.

Nom.

Shaddus

This is a horribly unorganised recipe:

In the morning or early afternoon, take 4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, whole. Put them in a crock pot on low, dump in two jars of your favorite salsa and 3-4 packets of chicken taco seasoning. Cover, and leave it alone for the day. Check back to turn the breasts over after about four hours or so, and keep making sure the meat is covered. 

When the meat is done, shred with a pair of forks. Serve in flour tortillas with cheese, lettuce, sour cream as desired. Serves quite a few people.

Shaddus

Bumping and necroing this thread because I think we need more recipes.

Daraius

Except it stays at the bottom of the pile! What's the deal here? Is it just me?

Shaddus

I don't know, maybe we can get an admin to pin it?

Daraius

Hey @Zvoltz / @Isune / @Yomoigu I'll post recipes for tikka masala and carnitas if you fix whatever's keeping this thread at the bottom of the forums. 

Yomoigu

Done. Now make with the yum-yums.

Haezon

Sorry in advance because this recipe will make you fat just by reading it, heh. Not mine.

Chocolate Cheesecake.

Ingredients

For the base

100g/4oz plain chocolate digestive biscuits, crushed

50g/2oz butter, melted

For the cheesecake

150g/5oz plain chocolate, broken into pieces

700g/1½lb full-fat soft cheese

225g/8oz caster sugar

½ tsp vanilla esence

2 size 2 eggs

Preparation method

Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas 3. Lightly grease a 20cm/8in loose-bottomed 

cake tin or spring release tin.

Mix together the ingredients for the base and press into the prepared tin.

For the cheesecake filling, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water. 

Cool slightly.

Measure the cheese into a large bowl and beat until soft. Add the sugar and beat again until well mixed. Beat in the vanilla essence and then the eggs, one at a time. 

Spoon half the cheese mixture on to the biscuit crust, separating the spoonfuls. Add the melted chocolate to the remaining cheesecake mixture and stir well to mix. 

Spoon this mixture in between the cheesecake mixture already in the tin. Swirl the top to give a marbled effect.

Bake the cheesecake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the cheesecake becomes puffy around the edges but it still very soft in the centre. Turn off the oven but leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool.

Chill well and then loosen the cheesecake from the sides of the tin using a small palette knife. Serve well chilled.

Isluna

Sopapilla Cheesecake

 

Ingredients

• 2 cans Pillsbury crescent rolls
• 2 (8oz) packages cream cheese (softened)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ¼ cup butter (melted)
• Cinnamon & sugar (1 tablespoon cinnamon to 4 tablespoons sugar)

1. Unroll and spread 1 can crescent rolls on bottom of un-greased 9×13 pan. Press all the seams together.
2. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Spread mixture over crescent rolls.
3. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. I found that rolling it out on a piece of parchment paper and then flipping it over onto the cream cheese mixture worked well.
4. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

I found it online so you would have the visual. It's a favorite make for times when we are allowed to bring food from home and share it with others at the facility I work at. Awesome with a raspberry sauce as well. This is from the Bakerlady.

Rialorm

http://www.ruled.me/keto-french-toast-muffins/

Sharing a link to credit the original author. Made these over the weekend, two of them keep me full until noon where as I normally crave a snack after just two hours at work. You may want to experiment a bit with the peanut butter, or even make your own, the brand I used is a bit overpowering. 

Shaddus

Isluna's recipe picture looks so good

Daraius

Oh, my friend makes something like that. Her family calls it Williamsburg Bread for reasons no one knows. If the picture doesn't entice you to make it, maybe my endorsement will: it's real scrumtious y'all.

Portius

Alright guys, making a request. For reasons that would take too long and make too little sense to explain, I have about 20 pounds of lentils that I need to do something with. My current living arrangement means that my cooking tools are limited to a couple pots and a frying pan, and I'd like to spend as little money on not-lentils as possible. What lentilly goodness do you suggest?

Allyrianne

What spices do you have to work with? Do you have rice?

My typical lentil strategy is saute some onions, garlic, turmeric, cumin, and whatever other spices appeal (plus occasional leafy greens) while cooking a ton of lentils in a pot with water, and maybe some cut up potatoes, then add the stuff from the frying pan to the pot. Stick it in the fridge and eat with rice for a week.

Parua

If you dont mind veggie food, these are some great resources for lentils

http://www.theppk.com/2011/05/ancho-lentil-tacos/

http://www.theppk.com/2013/11/stuffed-thanksgiving-burger/

http://www.theppk.com/2010/10/red-lentil-dahl/

I also love to just google ingredients I have, and let the search engine turn up recipes for me.