Candied orange peel, does it still count as fruit?

I was researching vegan panettone recipes the other day, and got the idea of making my own candied orange peel.  Come to find out it's not only an integral part of panettone, it's also to die for when dipped in chocolate - need I say more?



The recipe makes a lot, but it keeps forever



Homemade orange peel - so much better than store-bought!

The recipe I chose was Tiffany's at the Bread Without Butter blog. It turned out to be super easy -- I love two-ingredient recipes :)  It didn't take that long to make either.
 

Candied Orange Peel

Yields approximately 2 cups

4 organic navel oranges, rinsed well (to rid the fruit of wax coating)

2 1/4 c evaporated cane juice or granulated sugar, divided

1 1/2 c water

Candy thermometer

Remove the peel from the oranges and cut it into 1/4" strips.  Save the flesh for other use.

Place the peels in a pot and add just enough water to cover, bring it to a boil, then drain. Repeat the process twice, drain the peels, and set aside.

In a large pot, combine 2 cups of the evaporated cane juice with the water, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  Heat the sugar-water mixture over medium flame until the temperature reaches approximately 230 degrees Fahrenheit ("thread stage").  Add the peels, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 35 to 40 minutes, until the peels are translucent.  Remove from heat and carefully arrange the peels on a wire rack to dry for several hours or overnight.  While still tacky, roll the peels (a handful at a time) in the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, gently shaking off excess crystals.  Return the peels to the wire rack to dry completely.  Enjoy!

So I'm still prepping for the panettone, namely waiting on the sourdough starter to do its thing.  Who knew you needed a starter to make panettone?  Well, I didn't. Even though I should have because I'd been reading all about starters on VeganDad's blog.  Last week I finally made it official and bought the bread making book that inspires Vegan Dad so much, The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread. 

It really is a phenomenal book, filled with recipes (obviously), but also cool anecdotes about the history of bread and its evolution over time. You could totally get lost in it, and the pictures bring me back to my childhood in Italy, and the yeasty smell seeping out of the panetteria in the mountain village where I grew up. 

The only downside to the book is that you can't be in a hurry.  Getting from A to Z with your starter alone takes a week, and only THEN do you get to the main part of the recipes, which also have to rise and rest multiple times to develop flavor and texture. 
I know, I know, once you do get a useable starter, things do go quicker.  If you feed the starter correctly, you'll always have some on hand etc., but I wanted to bake panettone in time for the holidays, and by holidays I mean Christmas, not Easter!

Oh well, I guess I'll just have help myself to a few candied oranges while I wait for the sourdough to erupt out of its measuring cup (God willing!).

Vegan Challah recipe from an unlikely source.

 

Vegan Challah. And yes, I only own one Hanukkah table cloth,
which I use over and over again!

My mother-in-law's Hanukkah present threw me for a loop this year. Like most upper middle East Coast jewish women, she has impeccable taste, high standards, and a superhuman talent for surrounding herself with beautiful and expensive things.  So for the past fifteen years as MHH's slightly eccentric but personable wife, I've enjoyed the pleasure of her generous and tasteful gifts. Mostly hip clothes and custom jewelry. 

This year though, MIL branched out.  The present I opened last night was a book, and not just any book.  It was a cookbook.  What's so weird about that, you ask?  Well, let me answer by saying that the "V" word usually falls under the heading of "don't ask don't tell".  Vegan isn't tabu per se, but it leads to the kind of conversation that goes nowhere and is usually avoided altogether whenever we get together. 

But back to the weird cookbook.  It's called Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France by Joan Nathan.

My first thought on opening the present was "What was MIL thinking?" I mean, I can handle a bit of veganizing here and there when it comes to recipes, but quiche, really? It's got to be just about the hardest thing to veganize -- basically all cheese and eggs, right? Pleeze.

So I came really close to dismissing the book entirely, but luckily decided to give it a chance, if nothing more because the author travels right near where I live in Provence, barging in on Jewish families as she goes from one end of France to the next.  I was really glad I kept an open mind (isn't that always the case?) because I uncovered a really good challah recipe.  Easy to veganize and pretty. 

Rabbi's Wife's Challah

Ingredients

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1 cup of lukewarm water

1 tablespoon sugar

3/4 teaspoon egg replacer

1 1/2 tablespoon water

1/6 cup vegetable oil

3 1/2 to 4 cups of flour 

1/2 teaspoon salt

Method: Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the lukewarm water in the bowl of a countertop mixer equipped with a dough hook. Set aside to rest for ten minutes, until the yeast starts to bubble. Meanwhile, mix the egg replacer and water together until smooth, then add to the yeast mixture along with the oil.  With the mixer on low speed, start adding the flour and salt, one cup at a time. You should obtain a smooth dough that is tacky but not sticky.  Let the dough rise for 45 minutes in an oiled bowl covered with a towel.

 

When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down, then divide into three equal pieces.  Roll each piece into a rope, about 15-18 inches long, then braid.  Bend the braid into a circle and connect both ends, forming a pretty wreath-shaped bread. Place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and paint dough with non-dairy milk. Allow the dough to rise again for 45 minutes, covered, then paint again with non-dairy milk.  Put the challah in the oven and turn temperature to 400 degrees.  Cook for 30 minutes, or until the top is a golden brown and the crust sounds hollow when tapped.  Let cool before slicing. Et voilà!





Vegan Challah - and yes, I only own one Hanukkah table cloth, 
which is why you see it all my holiday photos :)

 

 

   

Vegan Oreo cookies with a Hanukkah twist.




Three fillings: white, peanut butter, and chocolate ganache

 
Well, Hanukkah starts tonight. Feels like we just got the Thanksgiving mess cleared up and here we go again firing up the stove!


To get myself in the mood for more serious cooking in the afternoon (latkes, jelly donuts and onion rings are on the menu), the morning was spent making cookies.  How else does one celebrate a holiday (any holiday) but by whipping up something delicious and decadent?  But what would be both "day before Hanukkah"-worthy AND appeal to the bimbi?   They were still reeling from my last batch of cookies, where we all found out that kids don't like fresh ground cardamone in their cookies... anyway, today Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero came to the rescue with their vegan oreos recipe (found in Vegan Cookies Invade your Cookie Jar).  Come to think of it, the oreos are giving Isa Chandra and Terry a chance to redeem themselves, since the cardamone cookie recipe that bombed with the bimbi last week was also theirs, albeit came from the Wholesome Cookies section of the book - should have known to stay away... :)


Vegan oreos are some of of my faves - I make them often because you just can't mess these up, and also because you can make them in two steps - first the baking, then the sandwitching later.  Best part is that in winter my kitchen is always cold, so I get to skip the part where the dough has to sit in the fridge.



Festive Hanukkah-inspired cookies, just out of the oven



Thanks to my trusted Hanukkah-shaped cookie cutters in hand, all four oven trays were soon loaded with bake-ready cookies, and twelve minutes later, voilà! -   Just remember when making sandwitch cookies of different shapes, that you have to cut out even numbers of each shape, so that when it's time to assemble them, each side will have a match. Happy Hanukkah everyone!