HOW DO YOU MANAGE?

Baking with root veggies

Being out in the garden at this time of the year is special. There is a fresh crispness to the air, colored leaves float down from the trees and crickets keep us company with their singing.

Bringing in the last of the garden is both happy and sad. All summer long we have had satisfaction of seeing the work of our hands produce lush green plants, colorful flowers and tasty food. It is sad many of the plants have lived their time and are drying up.

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Another year and another cycle of gardening has come around. From ordering seeds from the catalogue on a cold winter’s night, to stirring the dirt to put in the little seeds, to watching with anticipation as it grows, to eating the first radish and bite of lettuce, to the time-consuming task of picking peas and beans, to pickling, to corn on the cob, to bringing in the pumpkins before they freeze, to where we are now, digging up the root vegetables.

When the last is in and the garden is worked flat and bare, then comes a sign of relief, along with a tear in the eye.

Root vegetable deserts

At this time of year we enjoy freshly dug carrots, parsnips, turnips, beets and potatoes. Their aroma fills our kitchens. What would Thanksgiving dinner and all the fowl suppers be like without them?

Even if best eaten as a vegetable, root crops can also be key ingredients in baked goods.

Carrot Cookies

I often make these tasty and nutritious drop cookies.

1Ú2 cup margarine 125 mL

1 cup brown sugar 250 mL

2 eggs 2

1 cup grated carrots 250 mL

1 cup raisins 250 mL

3Ú4 cup all-purpose 175 mL

flour

3Ú4 cup whole wheat 175 mL

flour

2 tsp. baking powder 10 mL

1Ú4 t.p. baking soda 1 mL

1 tsp. salt 5 mL

1 tsp. cinnamon 5 mL

1 tsp. nutmeg 5 mL

1Ú2 cup quick-cooking 125 mL

rolled oats

Cream margarine with brown sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well. Stir in carrots and raisins. Gradually add dry ingredients, mixing well. Drop mixture from tablespoon onto greased baking sheet. Bake in a 350 F (180 C) oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Yield: three dozen cookies.

Red Beet Cake

A pioneer recipe handed down to my sister Myrna.

13Ú4 cups flour 425 mL

11Ú2 cups white sugar 375 mL

11Ú2 tsp. baking soda 7 mL

6 tbsp. cocoa 90 mL

1 tbsp. vanilla 15 mL

1 cup cooking oil 250 mL

4 eggs 4

11Ú2 cups grated 375 mL

cooked beets

Mix together flour, sugar, soda and cocoa. Add oil and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add beets quickly at the last. Put in a greased 9×13 inch (22×33 cm) cake pan. Bake at 350 F (180 C) for 40 minutes or until done.

A moist and tasty cake!

Parsnip Muffins

2 cups flour 500 mL

1 cup white sugar 250 mL

2 tsp. baking soda 10 mL

4 eggs 4

1 tsp. lemon rind, 5 ml

(optional)

2 tsp. lemon juice 10 mL

1 cup oil 250 mL

4 cups grated, raw 1 L

parsnips

Combine flour, sugar and soda. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs, lemon rind, lemon juice and oil. Beat until well mixed. Stir in grated parsnips. Spoon the batter into greased or paper-lined muffin cups.

Bake at 350 F (180 C) until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean, approximately 20 minutes. Yield: two dozen medium muffins.

Parsnip Cake

The flavors of the cake and cream cheese icing go well together, making it a sweet cake and unlike the muffins.

Mix the ingredients as in the parsnip muffin recipe. Bake in a greased 9×13 inch (22×33 cm) cake pan at 350 F (180 C) for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool, then top with the following icing:

Cream Cheese Icing:

1Ú4 cup softened butter 50 mL

or margarine

4 oz. cream cheese 125 g

21Ú2 cup icing sugar 625 mL

1 tsp. vanilla 5 mL

Mix all ingredients together until smooth. Spread on cake.

Source: The Saskatoon Shopper, Spring 1989 Cookbook.

Potato Pound Cake (Loaf)

This pound cake is best after one or two days.

1 cup soft butter 250 mL

or margarine

1 cup white sugar 250 mL

1 tsp. grated lemon 5 mL

rind

1 tsp. lemon juice 5 mL

4 eggs 4

1Ú2 cup finely mashed 125 mL

potatoes

1 tsp. nutmeg 5 mL

1Ú2 tsp. baking powder 2 mL

13Ú4 cups all-purpose 425 mL

flour

Grease and flour (or line with wax paper) a 9x5x3 inch (23x13x8 cm) loaf pan.

Beat butter or margarine and sugar for four minutes. Mix in juice and rind. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating one minute after each egg. Beat until smooth, five minutes. Add potatoes, mix well. Mix together dry ingredients and add gradually. Bake at 325 F (160 C) for 1 to 11Ú4 hours. Beating is important for success in this recipe.

Source: The Blue Book of Canadian Cuisine, compiled by Eunice Taylor and published by Centax Canada.

No doubt there are recipes for baking with turnips, however, I could not find one in my collection.

Fruit marmalade

Dear TEAM: I would like a fruit marmalade recipe, without Certo or pectin, using oranges, apples, peaches, etc. – J.M., Hilda, Alta.

Dear J.M.: This recipe uses peaches and oranges, two of the fruits you mentioned. To create your own marmalade, other fruits could be substituted. Include at least one citrus fruit in the combination.

Peach/orange marmalade

Wash but do not peel five peaches and one orange. Remove pits and seeds and chop and/or slice, by hand or in a food processor. Measure into a large saucepan and add one cup (250 mL) sugar for each one cup (250 mL) of fruit pulp. Boil gently, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens and reaches the gel stage, about 20 minutes. For color, stir in five chopped maraschino cherries during the last five minutes. For additional flavor, one tsp. (two mL) of almond flavoring may be added just before bottling.

Ladle into sterilized jars to within 1Ú4 inch (0.5 cm) of top rim. Wipe jars, removing any stickiness. Centre snap lid on jars; apply screw bands just until fingertip tight. Place jars in a canner of hot water. Cover canner; return to a boil; process five minutes at altitudes up to 1,000 ft. (305 m). Remove jars and cool 24 hours.

At higher elevations water boils at a lower temperature so processing time in a boiling water canner must be extended.

Choosing the fruit

Traditionally marmalades were made from citrus fruit, oranges, lemons, grapefruit, limes and tangerines. Today we find many different kinds of fruit used in marmalades, often in combination with citrus fruit.

Citrus fruits are naturally high in pectin, especially the rind, and will set the marmalade without using commercial pectin.

Therefore when choosing fruits for your marmalade, consider the pectin content. Include at least one citrus fruit or other high pectin fruit. If using only low pectin fruits you will need to use a commercial pectin and to follow a recipe exactly.

When a gel will form

Sheet or spoon test: Dip a cool metal spoon into the cooking fruit. Immediately lift the spoon so the mixture runs off the side.

At first the drops will be light and syrupy. When the mixture “sheets” from the spoon (the drops become very thick and two drops run together before dropping off), it will form a gel on cooling.

High-pectin Low-pectin

fruits: fruits:

apples apricots

cherries blueberries

crabapples elderberries

gooseberries nectarines

grapefruit peaches

grapes pears

kiwifruit pineapple

lemons raspberries

limes rhubarb

oranges strawberries

quinces figs

red and

black currants

plums (some kinds)

Source: Put A Lid On It, by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard, published by Macmillan Canada.

Freezer test: Place a plate in the freezer ahead of time. Put a spoonful of hot fruit mixture on the chilled plate.

Immediately return to the freezer and wait two minutes. If the mixture is insufficiently cooked, it will form a gel that moves slowly as the plate is tilted.