Tuesday, January 24, 2017

PressureCooker Instant Pot Creme Brulee because ... just because

I absolutely love creme brulee, seriously, I order it at every restaurant simply because the rich cool soft texture against that shatteringly crisp caramel top is as close to my idea of culinary heaven you can get to.  THAT being said, I also make a mean creme brulee, today I'm going to show you my two cheater methods.  ONE is that I make the custard in the pressure cooker, no it's not faster but it IS easier and there's no actual cooking or supervision involved, press a button and go do you nails or eat bonbons or whatever else the world thinks we stay at home moms do.  TWO is the best secret method of making the topping to brulee in the whole entire world, I'm about to share the best secret ever.  So, without much more ado, let's get to my creme brulee.


TRACY'S CREME BRULEE IN THE PRESSURE COOKER INSTANT POT AND AN ALTERNATIVE METHOD OF MAKING THE CARAMEL TOPPING


INGREDIENTS

Custard:

4 egg yolks
1/4 scant cup of sugar
2 cups cream or cream/half&half combination
tsp vanilla
pinch of salt

Topping:

3/4 cup sugar
2 TB water

METHOD  FOR CUSTARD

Put 2 cups of water in the pressure cooker and place a trivet in the bottom.
IN a bowl, combine the custard ingredients, mix well and divide between four ramekins.
Cover each loosely with a piece of tin foil, place in cooker,
HIGH PRESSURE for 10 minutes
TURN off cooker when the timer goes off and let pressure come down naturally, about 10 minutes.
Remove ramekins from cooker, leave to cool to room temperature then put in the fridge for at least 3 hours.


METHOD AND VIDEO FOR SUGAR TOPPING

Combine the sugar and water in a microwave safe bowl, cook until a dark caramel color.  Mine took 5 mins, 30 seconds.
Immediately pour the caramel onto a silpat or non stick sheet.
**I'm NOT even going to go on at length about how stinking hot this is and how badly you'll be burned if you're not careful**
Leave to cool completely and harden, put in a blender or food processor and turn it into dust.
THIS is what you'll sprinkle and brulee on the custards, trust me, you're going to love it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaRvi10yDm4&feature=youtu.be



I'll add the final brulee video when I do it later today but I wanted to get the recipes and videos up for the custard and toppings...  yeah, this is going to be good

Here is the whole video



/enjoy




PressureCooker Instantpot Oatmeal for one, just regular ole' oatmeal, not steel cut or overnight, just breakfast, or lunch, or dinner!

I really like oatmeal, I don't care for steel cut oats and their dramatic cooking requirements.  Ok, it's not that dramatic but I don't have it in me to prepare the night before for breakfast.  I buy the cheap "regular" oats, not the quick cooking or instant, it's the "Old Fashioned Oats, cooks in 5 minutes" version.

I wanted to make a single bowl of oatmeal, I didn't want to cook for a crowd or prep ahead or make any for freezing, I just wanted breakfast.  I am going to share with you the single bowl version of oatmeal cookery in the Instant Pot although I do know it works the same in all the electric pressure cookers.

TRACY'S SINGLE SERVING PRESSURE COOKER OATMEAL


INGREDIENTS

2 cups water
1/2 cup oats (oatmeal)
1 cup water
pinch of salt
topping of your choice; it's light brown sugar around these parts that melts in and makes the prerequisite brown sugar puddles that makes oatmeal the king of breakfasts. OR well actually if you pour golden syrup on it, that always fixes anything that ails you so pick what you like!

METHOD 

Put 2 cups of water in the liner of the instant pot and put the trivet in there

Combine the oatmeal, 1 cup of water and pinch of salt in a bowl, any microwave safe bowl, I use my Ikea 365 bowls, the're deep and I just like them.

Put the bowl on the trivet, hit MANUAL PRESSURE and HIGH PRESSURE FOR 10 MINUTES.

Quick release, reach in there with a towel and stir and add your toppings and THERE you go, perfect every.single.time.

THE PLAY BY PLAY PICTURES

Mix the water, oatmeal and salt, stir
    

Be sure its on 'seal' and set manual, high pressure, 10 minutes.  When it BEEPS, turn it off and quick release, oooooh, it looks like oatmeal!
    

Remove from pot, stir and top with whatever makes you happy...
  

There you go, pressure cooker oatmeal for one! in the same bowl, perfect.  I love anything that doesn't include pre planning, prep or sharing! HAHAHA  

OH and yeah, it sure does take longer than just cooking it BUT I can pop it in, walk away and have a coffee, deal with dogs, chickens, start my book, have a bonbon or just do NOTHING while it cooks, this isn't about time, this is about convenience and in the morning, I need all the convenience I can get.


/enjoy



Thursday, January 19, 2017

my NO BAKE cheesecakes, yeah, I do them in jars so that not only do I not have to cook but i can simply reach into the fridge and open a jar of cheesecake, c'mon, is there anything better?


This basic no bake cheesecake recipe can be used as a jumping off point for your own creativity or made as is and enjoyed by all. It's quick, easy and most of all, completely delicious

We are going to make cheesecake today.  There are a handful of ingredients that I'm sure you have in your fridge.  We aren't going to bake it.  We are mixing, dividing, chilling and eating and then, I will be your very best friend.

Trust me here. I haven’t led you astray yet and I am on a mission not to. I could wax poetic about how delicious these ridiculous little tarts are but I could never, and I mean never, do them justice. Check your fridge, be sure you have the ingredients. I’d be shocked if you didn’t, and make them, now!

You will need some sort of vessel to hold these little darlings. My favorite is the 3” springform pan, this will make two.  You can make a quick graham cracker crust for each. I confess, today I cheated and used the 6 mini graham cracker tart pans from the store, $1.49, I didn’t think I could make them cheaper to be honest. Another option is the 8” graham cracker crust. Go with what you like here.

Another option to contain this most delicious filling is to use no crust at all, try diving the mixture between ramekins, your choice on size or number and chilling.  When you serve, that's when your creative juices can flow.  Feel like fruit?  Add some on top.  Granola will allow you and your friends to pretend this is health food.  Try nuts, pecans work beautifully (because I am in Texas and you become morally obligated to only use pecans when you live here, determining addition uses for pecans is also on the entry exam I think). Walnuts are a good alternative and less expensive generally.  Cookie or graham cracker crumbs on top give crunch and the feeling of a crust without having to do any real crust work.

TRACY'S NO BAKE LEMON CHEESECAKE


INGREDIENTS

Cheesecake filling

1/2 cup whipping cream
8 oz cream cheese (room temperature)
1 TB lemon juice
zest from about half a lemon
1/4 cup or less sugar
pinch of salt

Cracker crumb base

2 graham crackers, crushed
1 tbsp room temperature butter (no need to melt)
pinch of salt
1 Tbsp sugar

METHOD 

Combine cracker crumbs and butter and salt and sugar and divide between 4 mason jars as a base or use a whole premade base, it's all your choice here... 

In bowl 1
Whip half a cup of whipping cream to gentle firm peaks (just use a whisk, even *I* can whip half a cup to peaks without fretting or tears)

In bowl 2, BEAT until smooth and creamy, completely smooth and creamy
8 oz room temperature cream cheese

THEN beat in;

1 Tablespoon lemon juice and the zest from about half the lemon
1/4 cup sugar 
pinch of salt


Add Bowl 1 to Bowl 2 gently and mix (fold) them together so that the whipped cream doesn’t completely deflate.  If seeing the word "fold" in a recipe sends you screaming from the room, you aren't feeling chef-y or don't get the whole idea of folding, basically, just stir them gently together until they are just combined.  Spoon into whatever vessel strikes your fancy and put in the fridge to chill/firm up.
     
Grate some lemon zest over it to make it look pretty and then get online and let me know how crazy delicious, smooth, creamy, tart, sweet, crunchy, lemony and wonderful you think this is.  Really, I'll be waiting.

Go make this...  you're going to be delighted


My pictures got corrupted so I'll just have to make more and take more pics so they are to follow!


/enjoy





Tuesday, January 17, 2017

PressureCooker InstantPot Bangers (sausages) and Onion gravy to be smothered over your favorite mashed potatoes


I love bangers and mash.  I love sausages in a thick, rich, onion gravy.  I love it smothering mashed potatoes.  Yeah there's not much that makes me happier, culinarily speaking of course.

Sausages are cheap, potatoes are cheap, frozen peas and fresh onions, super cheap. 

I am suffering miserably with allergies in the Air Plague of Austin, Texas, 2017, half the population can't breathe or speak without coughing up a lung.  I am living in that musty area between and am suffering with both.  I want warm, squishy, food and don't want to watch an oven or DO much.

Hello Mr. PressureCooker, let's play

TRACY'S PRESSURE COOKER INSTANT POT BANGERS AND MASH 

(WITHOUT THE MASH, MAKE YOUR OWN FAVORITE MASHED POTATOES) 

WITH ONION GRAVY


INGREDIENTS

Sausages, you favorite.  I am using Italian, medium, 5, cut in half
olive oil
2 large onions
salt
pepper
thyme
sage
water/broth/combo, 10 oz
worcestershire sauce
THICKENING
2 tb cornstarch
1/4 cup water


METHOD AND PLAY BY PLAYS

Turn on the pot, saute setting, fry the sausages around
Add onion, spices, fry around a bit
Add liquid
LOCK AND LOAD high pressure 18 minutes
OPEN when timer is done, if you want thicker sauce; combine 2 TB cornstarch and 1/4 cup water in a glass, add to boiling liquid, a little at a time, until desired thickness.
Turn off pot, cover, leave till dinner.

THE PICS AND STUFF

Turn the pot on to SAUTE and add a little olive oil.
Remember this:  HOT PAN, COLD OIL, FOOD WON'T STICK.
Remember that always and you will never have food stick.  So, preheat the oil then drop your sausauges in, I cut mine in half, don't if you don't want to.  I used 5 Italian Sausages, medium.
    

OH look how they're looking, when they're sort of brown, add pepper then add cut onion and shush them around a bit, pepper the onions and cook them for a minute or so.  ALWAYS cut your onion for this pole to  pole, that way they will not go stringy.    Cut the top and bottom off the onion (north and south pole)  Cut through the middle of the onion (the equator) then slice the onion with the knife going north to south into pieces as thick as you'd like.
    

Add salt, thyme, sage, stir around and then add a little worcestershire sauce.
    

Add 10 oz liquid, water, broth, combo... I have a little bisto added and a secret ingredient that if I told you, my family would never eat it again so just leave it... add water/broth or your favorite liquid combo.  LOCK AND LOAD, manual for 18 minutes
    

When the times goes, turn the cooker off and wait 10 minutes then release the pressure.  The reason?  when the timer went off, the dog started having an issue outside so I needed to go deal with it so, I turned the pot off and went outside to help him for about 10 minutes.  You can quick release if you want, this is cooking, not brain surgery :) 

OPEN the pot, oh man this smells good and the sauce is so sausage-y, much more than if you fry these on the stovetop or even bake them.  Wow.  ANYWAY

Turn the pot to SAUTE and bring back to a quick boil.  I want my gravy thicker so I mixed a TB of cornstarch with about 1/4 cup water and added it, a little bit at a time, stirring and waiting till it comes back to the boil each time, until it was the thickness I want.
    

Stirr, sample, stir, sample.  OH it's rich and thick, man I love this. I think it needed more pepper
    

OK, done.  I put the lid back on, pushed it back, turned it off... it'll stay warm in there for hours.  Dinner is in about 2 hours for me so I'll make some mashed potatoes and serve it up.  I'll add the purely for beauty shots in a couple hours.  FOR NOW, grab some sausages, onion and the instantpot and let's get everyone eating this delicious, cheap, easy, rib sticking, tummy warming and absolutely fabulous meal.



/enjoy

OK, here's the beauty shots