Recipes Included On This Page FareShare Fun Fact: Herbs & Spices (Rosemary) Fig, Mascarpone and Pesto Torte Freezes Well Plum Bread Use Your Browser's "Back" Button to Return to This Recipe List
Back to Recipe List	* Exported from MasterCook * FareShare Fun Fact: Herbs & Spices (Rosemary) Recipe By : Serving Size : Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Volume 11-10 Oct 2008 Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- (See Below) Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Rosemary, a shrubby member of the same family as mint (Labiatae) that comes to us from the Mediterranean, has become one of our more important culinary herbs because of its distinctive aroma and flavour. It is also an attractive plant in the garden but unless you live in an area where the winters are very mild you will have to either get new plants each spring or grow them in containers and try to bring them through the winter indoors, which I have done on occasion. In Canada, probably the only areas where rosemary can be reliably wintered outdoors is in locations right at the coast in British Columbia. Rosemary is said to attract bees and repel moths and carrot fly. There are several varieties ranging from rather large and shrubby (Art had a nice hedge of rosemary when he lived on the coast) to plants with a definite trailing habit. I've seen pictures of some rosemary that was clipped as for topiary and others that were pruned and trained in various styles as bonsai. For culinary purposes both the flowers and leaves are used. If your rosemary plant develops woody stems they can be used as flavour-imparting skewers for grilling meats and vegetables. The flowers can be used fresh in salads, crystallized for a garnish or pounded with some sugar then mixed with some cream for addition to a fruit puree. The leaves can be used in many ways: mince and add fresh to salads; add whole to soups and stews; add the tender leafy stems to rice during steaming. It seems to go particularly well with lamb and poultry. Rosemary retains its flavour amazingly well when dried so you can easily cut and store a good supply of stems at the end of the season. You can also strip the leaves from the stems and freeze them with water in ice cube trays then store the cubes in bags in the freezer. Rosemary can be grown from seed but this can be slow so it is usually easier to buy a few plants from your local greenhouse when you buy your bedding plants. It can also be propagated from cuttings taken in the spring, by layering and sometimes root division. If you live in the above- mentioned mild climate you can increase your collection quite nicely by the cuttings method. Rosemary prefers full sun but will tolerate partial shade and should be protected from cold winds. It does well in poor to average soil although apparently the flavour is enhanced when grown in a limey soil so some people add potash. Rosemary requires a soil that is well-drained but the area around the roots must never be allowed to dry out. Rosemary experts have also informed me that it resents disturbance to its roots so if you plan to bring it indoors during the winter make sure you transplant it at an early stage into a container that is large enough to last for some time. Contributed to the FareShare Gazette by Hallie; October 20, 2008 www.fareshare.net - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Back to Recipe List * Exported from MasterCook * Fig, Mascarpone and Pesto Torte Recipe By : Gourmet Serving Size : 16 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Volume 11-10 Oct 2008 Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- Crust 1 cup Wheat Thins® crackers -- finely ground 1/2 cup pine nuts -- toasted, cooled and finely ground 1 tablespoon butter -- melted and cooled Filling 1 1/4 pounds cream cheese 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese 3 large eggs 1 1/4 cups pesto 2 pounds figs -- firm-ripe (about 16) 1/2 cup fig preserves 1 1/2 tablespoons white wine vinegar Baguette slices Make crust: Preheat oven to 325F and butter a 10-inch springform pan. In a small bowl with a fork, stir together crust ingredients, add salt and pepper to taste. Press mixture into bottom of pan and bake in middle of oven 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Make filling: In a bowl of food processor, mix together cheeses, eggs, salt and pepper to taste, until smooth. Assemble torte: Pour half of the filling into crust. Drop dollops of pesto over filling and spread carefully to form an even topping. (Some filling may show through). Top pesto layer with fig slices (1/4-inch-thick slices), overlapping them slightly; pour remaining filling over fig slices, spreading evenly. Bake torte in middle of oven 1 hour and 10 minutes or until top is golden brown and filling is set. Cool torte in pan on a rack. Chill torte, covered loosely, at least three hours and up to 2 days. In a small saucepan, stir together the preserves and vinegar and bring to a simmer. Remove from pan and cool. Stir in salt to taste. Slice figs in 1/4-inch-thick slices. Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan and remove side. Spread torte with preserves mixture, leaving a 1/3 inch border; top decoratively with remaining fig slices. Transfer torte to a serving plate. Serve torte at room temperature to spread on baguette slices. Serves 16 to 32 as an hors d'oeuvre. Contributed to the FareShare Gazette by Jennie in response to a request; 11 October 2008. www.fareshare.net - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 296 Calories; 21g Fat (62.0% calories from fat); 7g Protein; 22g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 85mg Cholesterol; 246mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fruit; 3 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates. Back to Recipe List * Exported from MasterCook * Freezes Well Plum Bread Recipe By : nnreq from net Serving Size : Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Volume 11-10 Oct 2008 Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 2 cups diced plums -- or nectarines 3 cups flour 1 cup butter 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 4 eggs 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 cup vanilla yogurt Note you can use nectarines or peaches also. A mix of these can taste good too, depending on the fruit. Cream butter sugar and vanilla together until fluffy then add eggs one at a time, beat well after each addition. Sift together flour, salt, cream of tartar and baking soda. Add about 1/3 of the yogurt to the butter mixture then 1/3 of the flour mixture, alternating until all is added. Grease and flour two bread pans then fill 1/2 full with batter, then add 1/4 of the fruit to each pan, then the remaining batter and top with the remaining fruit. Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 50-55 minutes. Cool in the pan for about 15 minutes and turn onto a platter. Makes two loaves Servings depends on how you slice. Loaves will freeze very well. Contributed to the FareShare Gazette by PJ in response to a request; 5 October 2008. www.fareshare.net - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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