Cooking With Christie

Cooking With Christie: Something Savory

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This Week’s Recipe: Slow-Cooker Spinach Artichoke Dip

When I invited some friends over for a board game night, I needed to make sure I had plenty of food on hand—enter this slow-cooker artichoke dip recipe, which, if I’m honest, I only used as a guide.

Instead of adding frozen spinach, I used fresh spinach which I blitz down to the size of glitter (or just a hair bigger — I hate stringing spinach). Next, I used frozen artichoke hearts I thawed in the microwave and used the food processor to quickly chop them into smaller chunks (though nowhere near as small as the spinach). And by swapping these two ingredients, I didn’t need to worry about excess water or oil in the finished dip.

Next, I used twice as much mozzarella and parm (because I like cheese). Then, I diced up some celery, fresh parsley, and doubled the amount of black pepper to help build flavor because I can’t have garlic or onion. I also used a teaspoon and a half of gochugaru rather than regular red pepper flakes, as I like their flavor better. I also cut the amount of salt (because I used extra cheese) to 1/4 tsp and used celery salt rather than table — again, to add some flavor.

Our guests polished it off in less than 45 minutes.

Agatha Christie: Honestly, I can’t see any of Christie’s detectives embracing a crockpot — except perhaps Inspector Japp, who might use one to cook up a stew while he’s on shift investigating a murder.

Cooking With Christie: A Classic

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This Week’s Recipe: Spiced Pumpkin Bread

In an effort to improve my quick bread repertoire, I decided to make this recipe after running across it in a magazine. Now, unlike the magazine, I used a fancy loaf tin, not only because it was fall themed but because it was the only one I owned that was close to the size specified in the instructions.

And it turned out tasty! (Which I’m sure was the aim of the test kitchen, magazine, and its editors.)

Agatha Christie: I could see Poirot nibbling on a pie with a coffee at a client’s home whilst Captain Hastings chowed down next to him.

Cooking With Christie: Fun Flecks of Color

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This Week’s Recipe: Rainbow Sprinkle Sugar Cookies

Some girls dream of diamonds, others wish for furs. Me? I asked for six pounds of rainbow sprinkles (that we found in a huge milk carton style container on a shelf at a restaurant supply store). And you know what? It was a blast trying to put a dent in them with this twist on a sugar cookie.

Okay, so if you compare the image on the website to my above picture, you’ll spot a key difference. The thing is, when making these cookies, I was really, really tired and I missed one key word printed after 3/4c of sprinkles.

Divided.

So, instead of adding 1/4c of sprinkles to the batter then rolling the dough balls in the remaining flecks of color, I added the whole shebang to my dough. They turned out just fine but perhaps a touch muted by comparison.

Nobody’s perfect.

The upside? By adding all the sprinkles to the batter, the cookies took less time to make.

Agatha Christie: While I can’t see Poirot or Ms. Lemon partaking in these, I think Tommy & Tuppence would. And if someone used holiday themed sprinkles, Miss Marple might also partake!

Cooking With Christie: The Obvious Use of Blueberries

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This Week’s Recipe: Blueberry Hand Pies

I love a handpie. Even better? Recently, I learned how to make pie dough via a food processor, which utterly changed and simultaneously upped my pie game! Turns out, I wasn’t adding enough water and my hands were entirely too warm to work with such a temperature-sensitive mixture, hence, why the food processor was such a game changer.

So when I found this recipe for blueberry hand pies, I was excited to try it! Even better? They turned out beautifully the very first time.

The reason my pies are circular rather than square is on account of my kitchen’s lack of a pastry wheel and a reluctance to cut my silicone baking mat to ribbons made me avoid using a knife or a pizza cutter. Then I recalled purchasing, forever and a day ago, a pastry cutter (think cookie cutter but bigger) the approximate size called for in the recipe.

(And because I’m me, I also added a pinch of cinnamon to the filling.)

Agatha Christie: I can see Captain Hasting sinking his teeth happily into one of these pies on a summer’s day during a picnic he arranged with one lady or another!

Cooking With Christie: More Blueberries

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This Week’s Recipe: Protein Pancake Bites

In a quest to use up a whole mess of blueberries whilst on the lookout for new breakfast/snack ideas, I came across this intriguing recipe. Opting, obviously, for the blueberry version, I set to work.

And they turned out….okay. They were perfectly edible, but flavor wise? I found them a touch boring.

Not willing to let this pancake bite idea go and more than willing to futz with a recipe, I made a second batch. Only this time, I added the zest of one lemon, a teaspoon of vanilla, and a teaspoon of cinnamon to the base batter…Which bumped up the flavor nicely.

Agatha Christie: I can totally see Miss Marple messing around with a recipe until it’s exactly how she wants it, too! Though I’m not sure she’d ever make pancake bites.

Cooking With Christie: What to do With five pounds of Blueberries

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This Week’s Recipe: Blueberry Sprinkle Cookies

Inspiration: A couple of months back, my husband bought me an overflowing flat of blueberries.

Okay, fine, no problem.

As it turns out, there are only so many raw berries I can eat in a day. So, I poked around the interwebs for ideas of how to transform them via my oven and found this cookie recipe.

My kitchen rarely produces a cookie this shade of blue-purple without food dye being involved!

Word to the Wise: When cooling the bowl/pan you are working with during the jam stage of the bake, put a tea towel beneath it. Otherwise, if the mixture drips (or you happen to knock it over), it will dye your floor, countertop, and person purple.

(Ask me how I know.)

My Other Piece of Advice: These cookies are very soft and cakey. However, if you enjoy a bit more texture in your cookie, dip the scoop of dough into a bowl full of sprinkles, as well as, rolling them in sugar.

Agatha Christie: I can see Tuppence doing something similar to use up an entire flat, bushel, or barrel of an ingredient.

My 52 Weeks With Christie: A.Miner©2024

Cooking With Christie: A Bowl Full of Cherries

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This Week’s Recipe: Candied Cherries

Okay, so I love baking with candied cherries. However, the tubs you find at the supermarket have a ton of sulfites in them. Manufacturers use this element as a preservative to keep the fruit brightly colored for months on shop shelves, which is all well and good unless one owns an allergy to sulfites, which renders them off limits. So, unsurprisingly, I decided to try my luck!

Now, I will tell you making candied cherries is a seriously sticky, but easy process.

It starts with making maraschino cherries, which basically entails making a simple syrup with a few extras, pouring the mixture over some cherries, and letting them steep for a week or so. 

When the syrup surrounding the cherries turns a lovely pink color, you add more sugar to a pan, some of the syrup and cherries — then boil/simmer the crap out of them, and you’re done! (There’s a bit more to it, but you get the idea. Recipe Here.)

And let me tell you, the candied cherries have such a better flavor than the store-bought version! 

Agatha Christie: I can see Miss Marple making these when/if someone with a cherry tree brings her kilos and kilos of cherries — and she needs to find something to do with them besides using them in pie, tarts, and cakes.

My 52 Weeks With Christie: A.Miner©2024