Henbogle

1 head cauliflower
3 garlic cloves
2 medium onions, cut in wedges
3 T olive oil
I carrot, grated
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
1 waxy potato, washed and grated
3 c broth or water
½ t crushed dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 cream, or to taste
hefty grind of black pepper
salt to taste

To roast the cauliflower:
Cut cauliflower into same-sized florets. Toss cauliflower, garlic, and onions with 2T oil to coat and roast in middle of 425°F oven until brown and caramelized, stirring frequently during the latter part of the roasting. Can be made in advance and refrigerated until needed.

In a soup pot, sauté the celery, carrot and potato in 1T oil until tender. Add broth, water, roasted cauliflower mixture, and herbs and simmer for 30 minutes, or until cauliflower is very tender. Discard bay leaf and puree in blender (or you could skip this step if you cut the cauliflower smaller). Return soup to pot and stir in cream, salt and pepper to taste. Heat through and serve.

I make it a little differently every time. I rarely have cream on hand, so often use half and half. Evaporated milk will work, too. A little cheddar tastes great melted in and it would probably be gorgeous topped with a big slice of bread and cheese and broiled, French onion soup style.

Tonight’s yummy dinner: Tamale Pie.

I made a bit pot of chili the other day. It is always a bit pot of chili, because how else can you put in all the things that make chili taste great? My typical batch includes onion, garlic, green peppers, red peppers if I have them, chipotle chiles, chili powder, corn, carrots and/or sweet potatoes, black beans, pinto beans, canned tomatoes (DelMonte diced with jalapenos), and a few other secret ingredients. This batch included some ground beef and green peas, and kidney beans instead of pintos.

Anyway, with a big pot of chili, that leaves some great options for morphing it into another dish, in this case, Tamale Pie.

The recipe, (such as it is):

2 c stone ground cornmeal
2 eggs
2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 c oil or melted butter
1 ish cup of yogurt or buttermilk
milk enough to make it the right consistency
1 ish cup shredded cheddar cheese

Leftover chili

Mix dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, oil, and yogurt. Add the dry ingredients, stir together, and add milk as needed.

Grease the sides of a casserole dish. For best result, use a dish with a fairly large surface area (my pictured dish is really too small but that casserole is magic). Spread the leftover chili evenly the casserole dish. Pour 1/2 the batter over the top, sprinkle half the cheese. Pour the remaining batter and spread over the cheese. Bake at 350 until the cornbread is done, test with a toothpick or cake tester. Remove from the oven and spread the remaining cheese over the top. Broil until melted and yummy (2+/- minutes). Serve and enjoy!

This recipe was originally from Southern Living, but I’ve made several alterations.

Buttered Rum Pound Cake
1 c butter, softened
2 ½ c brown sugar
6 eggs, separated
3 c flour
¼ t baking soda
1 c sour cream
1 t vanilla
½ c sugar

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in yolks, 1 at a time, beating until just mixed. Stir in vanilla. Combine flour with baking soda and add alternately with the sour cream.

In a clean bowl beat egg whites until foamy, then gradually add ½ c sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Stir half the whites into batter to lighten, then gently fold in remaining whites.

Pour into greased and floured 10” tube pan. Bake at 325 F for 1 ½ hours. Cool on rack for 10 minutes, and while the cake is cooling make the glaze. After 10 minutes turn cake over onto plate and remove pan. Prick with toothpick or wooden skewer and pour glaze over cake.

Buttered Rum Glaze
6 T butter
3 T rum*
¾ c sugar
3 T water
½ c chopped toasted pecans

Combine butter, rum, sugar and water in a pan. Bring to a boil; boil for 3 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in pecans.

* Light is best although dark works, too.

Bananas Foster Sauce
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
3 T water
1/3 c rum
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 bananas, peeled and sliced

In a large, deep skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in sugar, water, and cinnamon. When mixture begins to bubble, add bananas. Cook until bananas are hot, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the rum, heat for 1 minute, then ignite rum with a long match. When flames go out, serve immediately.