calling any one from missouri

[shawluvsbirds]

oooooh, lemon meringue!

We didn’t have one of those for Christmas... we had an apple pie, a cheese cake and a chocolate mousse pie... and all kinds of other goodies...

I got you a giant pink unicorn for Christmas... but you have to share with a 4 year old, lol

View attachment 1987714

Thanks bud. I hope she enjoys her half!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

My last Black Penedesenca hen quite laying this summer. I don't know if she will start back up next Summer or not. I hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a fabulous New Year!

Not summer, next month. 2 of my older hens have already resumed laying.
I have 11 older hens and I expect most if not all to be laying by February.
I have about 15 pullets between 3 and 3.5 months old and I'll be setting eggs this week and maybe every couple weeks from here on out.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Did you know that those blue berries are edible? That was what an outdoorsman that I worked with last year told me.
He did not share that you could make gin from them! But that might have been because we were teaching a bunch of middle school kids and that's not something the school district would like us to teach them!

I used to listen to Lynne Rossetto Kasper, host of The Splendid Table on NPR. People would call in with weird ingredients and ask advice on how to prepare them. She came up with a couple recipes for juniper berries.

 

[SueT]

Look what I found
Juniper berry spiced Chocolate Hazelnut cookies
Juniper Berry spiced Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies - these slice and bake chocolate hazelnut cookies are easy to make, and have a unique bittersweet, chocolatey, nutty, floral flavor profile with a crunchy edge and soft, fudgy center!

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp whole juniper berries
• 225 g / 8 oz unsalted softened butter
• 200 g / 7 oz brown sugar
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 200 g / 7 oz AP flour
• 75 g / 2.6oz Dutch cocoa powder OR Natural cocoa powder I used valrhona, which is a darker natural cocoa powder
• 170 g / 6 oz of hazelnuts toasted and skinned
• 225 g / 8 oz milk chocolate roughly chopped into chunks
• 1 - 2 cups of raw sugar to roll the cookies in

Instructions:

• Place the juniper berries in a dry pan. Heat to dry roast the berries for a few minutes and to toast them. (You will start to smell the juniper berries and find that they look toasted when they are done).
• Remove from heat and let them cool down. Place the cooled juniper berries in a spice grinder (or use a mortar and pestle) and grind them to a powder. Juniper berry powder will be slightly wet and sticky. Set aside until needed.
• Add the butter, sugar, salt, vanilla and juniper berry spice to a large bowl OR your mixer bowl. With a hand mixer or stand mixer (with a paddle mix), mix until the butter and sugar are well mixed and creamy - do not beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
• Add the sifted flour and sifted cocoa powder. Fold them in by hand, OR use the mixer/hand mixer, to incorporate the flour and cocoa powder.
• Add the hazelnuts and milk chocolate chunks and mix them in until they are spread throughout the dough. Divide the dough in half.
• Form a 2 - 2 ½ inch wide cookie dough log with each of the dough portions. Wrap each log in plastic wrap (knotting the ends tightly).
• Refrigerate for about 1 - 2 hours until the cookie dough is firm. The dough can be refrigerated overnight as well.

When ready to bake

• Line two half sheet pans / cookie sheet pans with parchment paper. Sprinkle the raw sugar on a flat plate.
• Unwrap one of the cookie dough logs and roll the log in the raw sugar. Using a sharp knife, cut off the tapered end of the cookie dough log. Then cut 1cm thick slices. Please note that because of the nuts and chocolate chips, you may not get clean slices, so reshape the cookies into rounds when they don’t cut cleanly. Roll the edges in the raw sugar again if you need to. Place the cookies on the lined baking sheet. Each log should make about 12 cookies (not including the ends).
• Cover the lined baking sheet with plastic wrap / parchment paper / or a another baking tray and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minute before baking. This chilling is important to allow the cookies to keep their shape while baking.
• While the cookies are chilling, preheat oven to 325°F. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. The cookies will be soft when you take them out of the oven, and since they are dark brown, it would be hard to tell if they are done. But they will firm up as they cool. Once the cookies have cooled down, remove them from the baking tray and place them on a wire rack.
• Repeat with the second cookie log and the second baking sheet.The cookies will be crunchy on the outside, but soft and fudgy in the middle.
• Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Tips & Tricks
NOTE 1 - you CAN leave out the juniper berries, if you prefer. These chocolate hazelnut cookies taste AMAZING even without that extra flavor profile.

Or if you like, you can substitute juniper berries with one of the following too.

1 tsp ground cinnamon (Cinnamon Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies)

2 tsp instant coffee dissolved in 2 tsp water (Mocha Hazelnut Cookies)

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (Chili Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies)

1 tsp peppermint extract + roasted almonds (Mint Chocolate Almond Cookies)

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I wish I had that recipe yesterday. One would have to bake a lot of cookies to use up all the berries on one tree.

 

[SueT]

Since it's such a lovely day (70°) I just now walked out, crossed the stream, and picked some of the berries. I'm heating up leftovers, and will bake the cookies at the same time. I have shelled hazelnuts I brought back from Oregon last month.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Our all time record warm Christmas day was 71F and it still stands. It only got to 69 today.

 

[jthornton]

It is said that they learn their names, (so yours may have learned how to count too)...and it's also said that they have names for us too.

For sure Monique knows her name, I can call her and she come flying/running at full speed to see what I have for her.

JT

 

[jthornton]

Did you know that those blue berries are edible?

The birds know it, I have a few Juniper trees on my place and from time to time I get a swarm of small birds in them.

JT

 

[jthornton]

Since it's such a lovely day (70°)

66°F here and I was painting the kitchen wall in a T shirt on Christmas!

Kitchen is on the left... only 13 walls left to paint. Well 2 need the siding replaced too.


JT