BBQ Season!

My favorite summer meal of childhood is still the same today: barbecued chicken legs, mashed potatoes and steamed Michigan asparagus.  It must be genetic because my kids love it too.  We're all a sticky mess afterwards, but it is fun!

I have a pretty strict "no store-bought condiment' rule in the fridge.  Ketchup, Dijon mustard and mayo are the exceptions but no bottled salad dressings, no dips, no sauces, no marinades.  I think the habit is 1/3 Midwest frugal, 1/3 space-issue in the fridge and 1/3 'I can do better than Kraft'.  Once you've made your own barbecue sauce, you'll never go back to the bottle.   

Have a great 4th of July!

Homemade Barbecue Sauce

1/4 cup ketchup
1 T. brown sugar
2 T. cider vinegar
2 T. Dijon mustard
2 T. canola oil
2 T. honey
2 t. dry mustard
1 t. paprika
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. onion powder
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. cayenne

Mix everything up in a small bowl and use it as you please. If you're planning to brush this on your chicken, reserve a bit out for serving at the table.

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Once in a Blue Moon

Blue Moon ice cream is a Midwest favorite among kids, and has a cult-like following among adults as well.  When I was growing up, the chance to actually pick Blue Moon for my cone came along just about as often as a Blue Moon.  With four kids and lots of dribbly cones to manage, my parents limited us to flavors they actually wanted to lick.  I'm probably the only kid to who truly believed that Butter Pecan, Chocolate Almond, Carmel Cashew and Butter Brickle were better than Superman, Bubble Gum, Black Cherry and Blue Moon.

 Given the very adult flavors of soy ice cream on the shelves, I started seeing the same parenting pattern evolve here as well. "Don't worry kiddo, chocolate and vanilla really are the best flavors...so many possibilities for embellishment..."  Well, today I took matters into my own hands, plucked up some tastebud courage and tasted...really tasted...the Blue Moon ice cream.  The flavor is a bit hard to describe, but it is not fruity like I expected.  It's kinda bland, sweet, with a little almond, nutmeg and faint lemon...and very blue.  This dairy-free and egg-free Blue Moon  recipe is based loosely on one by Laura at the Organizing Junkie. (The post was sent to me by a friend.  I'm not a follower of her blog, in fact, I'm a complete Fly Lady flunk-out from the words 'shiny sink'.)

 I have a Cuisinart ice cream maker which works great.  It's probably worth buying one.  If you use it 5 times, you've spent as much on the equivalent amount in Tofutti pints...but the big blue grins alone would sell me anyway!

Blue Moon Ice Cream for Everyday Use

3 cups plain soy creamer (about 1 1/2 pints)
20 regular marshmallows (about 1/2 bag)
1/3 cup sugar
2 T. oil ( I used avocado, coconut or canola would be fine)
1 teaspoon vanilla
a pinch of nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon lemon oil
Blue food coloring ( I used Wilton gel icing color in sky blue)


1.) Put the marshmallows in a big microwave safe bowl (I have an 8 cup Pyrex that is perfect for this)
2.) Heat for 1 minute, until soft and puffy.
3.) Whisk the soft marshmallows until smooth, then slowly pour in the soy creamer and sugar.
4.) Microwave for another 3-5 minutes, stirring every so often, until the creamer is hot but not boiling.
5.) Stir in the nutmeg, vanilla, lemon oil and enough blue to do the job.
6.) Cool the mixture down in the freezer or refrigerator before pouring into an ice cream maker to freeze. I have a Cuisinart ice cream maker that works pretty well.
7.) Enjoy!

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Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

There is no better way to start summer vacation than with a fresh strawberry rhubarb pie!  I could happily go with straight rhubarb, but the little ones in the house appreciated the sweetness of the strawberries.  This will be my first posting of the basic dairy-free pie crust I use all the time.  The recipe is a piece of American culinary history, as it came straight out of my 1939 copy of Fannie Farmer's Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.  Depression-era cookbooks are an absolute treasure of dairy and egg-free recipes. If crust making seems too daunting, you can use Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crusts...something I do a bit more often than I'd like to admit.

The filling is adapted from epicurious.  If it seems like your berries and rhubarb are particularly juicy, you can add a few more tablespoons of cornstarch or Minute tapioca.  I like tapioca a bit more because too much cornstarch as a thickener starts to taste gloppy and corny. Serve this up with a big scoop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

3 1/2 cups sliced rhubarb, 1/2 inch thick slices ( 1 1/2 pound bunch, untrimmed)
16 ounce package of strawberries, hulled and halved
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt

1.) Make the dough first, then work on the filling while the dough chills in the refrigerator...unless you're thinking, fresh pie is good enough for today, and you're using a Pillsbury crust. Then just start making the filling while the crust warms up on your counter.
2.) Mix all the filling ingredients together and let them sit while you roll out the crust.
3.) Pre-heat oven to 400.
4.) Roll half the dough out and make the pie base. Dump in the filling. Roll out the other half and make the little lattice top and crimp around the edges. I do a "cheaters lattice", where the crust isn't interwoven. The pieces are just lined up at an angle. Dairy-free crust is very soft and breakable and any messing around causes the crust to crumble in your hands. I actually really hate the crust rolling part. I've made zillions of pies and it still gives me heartburn. Brush with water and sprinkle with sugar.
5.) Place the pie on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. The pie will bubble over, so be prepared.
6.) Bake for 20 minutes at 400, then decrease the heat to 350 and bake for another 1 hour and 20 minutes or so. If it starts to brown too quickly (and it will), place some foil over the whole pie loosely. The pie is done when it starts to bubble towards the center. If it is just bubbling at the edges, it is not done in the center, so keep baking.
7.) Cool before eating, it thickens as it cools.

Basic Dairy-Free Double Pie Crust

3 cups flour
1 cup shortening, sliced into chunks and frozen
1 teaspoon salt
1 T. sugar
Ice water (about 6-8 Tablespoons)

1.) I'm lazy, and crust stresses me out. I use a food processor. If you have a pastry cutter and know how to use it, you're probably better at pie making that I, so you can figure out how to adapt.
2.) Dump the flour, salt and sugar in a food processor and give it a few pulses to mix things up.
3.) Dump in half of the sliced shortening. Give it 8 short pulses.
4.) Dump in the rest of the shortening. Give it another 8 pulses.
5.) Spoon in 6 Tablespoons of ice water, give it another 8 pulses. Test the dough by pinching a bit of it together. If it seems really crumbly or dry and looks like it might hassle you while rolling it out, add the other 2 T. of water and give a few more pulses.
6.) Divide into two blobs, wrap in plastic wrap, form into a nice disk and refrigerate until you want to use it or at least an hour.

Some pie crust advice that might help your pastry-induced anxieties: The dough is sticky. Your life will be better if you roll it out between two sheets of plastic wrap. If you try use a lot of flour, the dough will get dry and tough. The dough is crumbly. Just do your best when transferring to the pie pan, pinch the dough to patch up holes. The dough doesn't taste like much (no butter!!). Keep it thin and the fruit flavor will shine through. The dough likes to burn. After the crust has baked a while and is starting to turn golden, set a piece of foil over the whole thing. Don't crimp it or anything. Just a straight piece over top.

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