Kitsnacks: Blackberry Jam

I’ve been going out and getting nettle-stung in search of the wild blackberries that are growing in our garden. (Nettles offend me mightily. Plants do not try to kill you in the land of my people, at least, nothing but Devil’s Club, and Devil’s Club looks like it wants to kill you from forty feet away.) Anyway, I’m apparently too easily taunted by blackberries and when I see them I feel obliged to get them immediately instead of preparing myself sufficiently against the nettles, so it’s this kind of adversarial…

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Kitsnacks: Lemon Curd

You would think I would know by now not to post “I made this” food stuff without also posting the recipe. :) Someone asked, so here’s my recipe: Lemon Curd 2 egg yolks 2 whole eggs 3 oz (6 tbs) butter, room temperature 1 to 1.5 cups sugar the juice of 3 lemons (1/2 to 3/4ths cups lemon juice, depending on the size of the lemons; adjust sugar accordingly) Cream butter & sugar until fluffy. Add eggs & egg yolks & mix again. Slowly add lemon juice. The mixture will…

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Kitsnacks: Easy Tikka Masala

I have semi-invented an easy tikka masala recipe, which is what happens when I have a recipe I’ve made before but discover I’m missing many of the actually-called-for ingredients. This one ends up having what I trust most people have in their pantries, which is why it’s ideal. :) Easy Tikka Masala 1-2 oz butter or vegetable oil 1 tbsp garlic powder 2 tsp ground cumin 2 tsp paprika 1/2-1 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp salt pepper to taste 1 can chopped tomatoes 1 can chickpeas 1 fresh tomato, rough…

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Kitsnacks: Russian Tea Cakes

RUSSIAN TEA CAKES (traditional Kenai Russian ladies’ recipe) 1 c softened (not melted) butter 1/2 c sifted powdered sugar 1 tsp vanilla 2 1/2 c flour 1/4 tsp salt 3/4 c finely chopped walnuts Allow the butter to soften to room temperature–do not melt. Sift the powdered sugar & measure. Stir them together using a spoon–do not use a mixer. Stir in the vanilla. Sift and measure the flour, then re-sift with the salt. Stir in the chopped walnuts. Stir the flour mix into the butter mix. The resulting dough…

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Recipes: Pecan Pie

We’re doing American Thanksgiving today and although it’s not on my list of usual suspects, I thought I’d try making a pecan pie. Except I have real issues with most pecan pie, which is generally Far Too Sweet (and I have a massive sweet tooth, so if I’m complaining about something being too sweet it’s weird) and doesn’t taste much of pecans. So I went and found a no-corn-syrup recipe, but then I lacked some of the ingredients and anyway, I kind of ended up inventing a pecan pie recipe…

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