Russian Peas and Carrots

8 oz carrots, in 2 inch long julienned strips
1 1/2 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons sugar
water to barely cover the carrots
a pinch of salt

6 oz frozen peas in a microwavable dish
some water in the dish, not to cover

1 tbl flour
salt and pepper to taste

Put the carrots into a frying pan with a lid.
Add the next 4 ingredients and cover and cook on medium heat until the carrots are just au dent.
Meanwhile, put the peas in the microwave and heat about 2 minutes.
Strain the liquid off the carrots into a small saucepan.
Strain the liquid from the peas into a small dish to reserve and put the peas in with the carrots.
Heat the carrot liquid and stir in the flour, adding enough of the peas liquid to make a nice sauce.
Pour the sauce over the vegies, and keep warm until time to serve. Covering the pan will probably suffice.

I went to get a picture of this, from the left-overs, but I was too late. A daughter had put all the leftovers together in a dish, and the peas and carrots were at the bottom. I'll have to get a picture later.

Sweet Peppery Carrots

As a child my mother always served carrots that she called pennies. They were cut like fat pennies, maybe 1/3 in in thickness. Then my mother cooked them to a soft stage. I ate them, but I didn't like them. They were carrots at their worst in my opinion. I've never for any reason cut a carrot to look like a penny, and for years I only served carrots raw or in soup.

But then one year I got the idea to cook julienned carrots and saute them in butter, brown sugar and pepper. It was a big hit with the family, and has been part of our thanksgiving tradition ever since. This recipe is not about certain quantities, but about the end result.

carrots, peeled and cut into about 2 - 3 inch julienned strips
salt
butter
brown sugar
coarse pepper

After the carrots are cut up I steam them with a steamer device or you can cook them in a small amount of lightly salted water in a saute pan. This is not about boiling the carrots, but about just enough cooking to get them to the au dent stage. Keep a close watch on the carrots. They do not want to come to the soft stage. If they're a little too au dent that's okay, because they will be cooked a bit more later. As soon as the carrots are cooked, run cold water over them to stop the cooking.

If I'm making these for Thanksgiving I do it the day before, get the carrots cooked and then put them in a bowl a cover them and put them in the refrigerator.  But refrigerating or not, it is important to get the carrots well drained, as you don't want to add water to the butter and sugar mix, it will be too thin to stick to the carrots.

When shortly before time to serve this dish, put a nice big nob of butter in a saute pan, add also a punch of coarse pepper and a bunch of brown sugar. This is all about how peppery and how sweet you want the carrots. Get it all melted and then toss in the carrots. At this point you can adjust things as you like. It's kind of like making candied sweet potatoes. You just play it by ear. Cook until the carrots are a nice degree of warmth to serve for dinner.

Almond Carrot Cake

I love almonds, but I've not been so fond of carrot cake.  This is because it's heavy and rich.  I especially dislike cream cheese frosting.  But this cake is quite different.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour a pan of your choice.  I put mine into two small bundt pans.  Since it was such a good fit, I would say that you can also use one large bundt pan, or tube pan, or maybe a loaf pan.

1/2 pound of carrots - this is two or three, or 225 grams, there's no exact science here, peeled and cut into chunks

50 grams of blanched almonds, about 1/2 cup

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup softened butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extact

2 cups flour - 9 ounces

1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Put the carrots and the almonds into the food processor and process until nice and fine.

You can also throw in some dried cherries or raisins if you like.

In a mixing bowl cream the sugar, butter, and eggs.  Add the extracts.

Mix in the carrots and almonds.

Combine the dry ingredients and mix in.

Put the mixture into the desired conveyances and cook until done.  In the small bundt pans this should be about 35 minutes.  And in a large bundt I would guess about 45 minutes.  Make sure that the cake springs back when gently prodded.  

Let cool for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool.

Fruity Nutty Carrot Cake

10 ounces of flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoon baking soda

2/3 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 cup light olive oil

4 eggs

1/2 cup golden raisins, soaked in 3 tablespoons of sherry

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened

3 cups shredded carrots

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Grease and flour a 10 inch flat tube pan, see picture.

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

In a large bowl, using a wooden spoon, mix the sugar and the oil.

Stir in the eggs, one at a time.

Stir in the dry ingredients.

Stir in the raisins and sherry.

Stir in the pecans and coconut.

Lastly, add the carrots.

Spoon into the pan, and bake for 65 minutes.

Let cool for about 10 minutes, then loosen the ring, and carefully turn the cake out onto a proper sized cake plate.

If you like, you can serve this with a cream cheese frosting on the side.

Let people who are eating the cake cut a piece and then they can spread on the icing like jam on a piece of bread.

Brandy Cream Cheese Icing

8 ounces cream cheese, full fat
3 tablespoons softened butter
12 ounces icing sugar
1 + tablespoon brandy

Put into a not too big bowl, and beat with a hand mixer until smooth.
If you want it thicker, add more icing sugar

Carrot Cake

My mother loves carrot cake. So for occasions which call for a cake for my mother in some way, then I make one. I don’t tend to make the same one over and over, and this one might be the latest one I made. The irony here is that I don’t particularly care for carrot cake, and in particular I don’t like cream cheese frosting.



10 oz all purpose flour (about 2 1/3 cups)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla


1 cup vegetable oil

11 oz peeled and finely grated carrots
One 8-ounce can crushed pineapple, well drained

1 1/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup raisins, plumped in brandy

Grease, paper, flour and grease two nine inch cake pans.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat the eggs and sugar until light.
Add the oil.
Combine the dry ingredients and add.
Fold in the carrots, pineapple, nuts and raisins.
Spoon into the pans, even out and bake about 45 minutes.
Cake should spring back when poked if done.
Let cool ten minutes and then turn out on to cooling rack.
If desired you may spoon the brandy from the raisins over the cakes.
When completely cooled, ice the cake.

Cream Cheese Icing:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened - do not use low fat or no fat cream cheese, it won't work

4 tablespoons butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups icing sugar

Beat on high in small bowl of electric mixer.
can be doubled if you want lots of icing

I think this cake would be better covered with whipped cream or a good butter cream. But I know that lots and lots of people like cream cheese icing. Also, I like to spoon a cake syrup over the layers. The syrup I usually do is 1 part water, 1 part sugar, and 1 part rum or brandy or whiskey. Just put it into the microwave a bit to melt the sugar.