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A birthday month usually means some good things are to be found In My Kitchen. This year, however, my loved ones all went a bit off-piste and bought me some great presents that had nothing to do with the kitchen. Mr Grumpy knows that it is really not in his best interests if there is nothing kitchen related amongst my gifts though, so he found me a new pepper grinder to replace the dodgy one I have been swearing at for months. My sleek new mill has five different grades for grinding, and cuts though the peppercorns effortlessly. No swearing, yet.
Mr Grumpy also gave me this authentic comal, or tortilla pan, so I can make my own tortillas, quesadillas and pupusas. The pan is made of uncoated cast iron which I have seasoned well to get it ready for use. I wanted a dedicated pan for my tortillas as it is possible to wreck stainless steel or non stick fry pans with the sustained dry heat that is required to cook the tortillas properly.
I indulged in some retail therapy this month to help me cope with the idea of being another year older. I have been seeing more and more recipes for oven baked doughnuts on Pinterest. I thought it was time to find out what all the fuss is about, so I bought a couple of doughnut pans to try them for myself. Now all I need is a small window of time to actually see if they work. I purchased a large bamboo rolling pin at the same time which will come in handy for rolling larger sheets of pastry and bread dough.
This month only saw one small batch of preserving. I wanted to put the Weck jars I was given for Christmas to good use, so I made a small batch of roasted corn tomato salsa. Not having used these jars before, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I muddled on through, piecing together methods from different preserving systems, and must have done something right because only one seal failed in the whole batch.
Only one new cookbook this month (mostly because the rest are still in the mail – Shhhhh!). I love Marisa McClellan’s first book, Food In Jars. Her new book, Preserving by the Pint, mirrors my new approach to preserving. I typically make large batches of jams and pickles which don’t end up being eaten, so I have decided to concentrate on smaller batches this year. I am looking forward to delving into this book as the seasons pass.
There is not much happening In My Kitchen at the moment, but drop by Celia’s at Fig Jam & Lime Cordial to glimpse into other kitchens around the world.
It seems every cook in Australia is busy preserving. What snazzy jars! I only ever use those reclaimed and recycled. I must look out for those preserving books to get some new ideas
I love to preserve, but for a lot of the produce I use one of the a vacuum preserving systems (Fowlers, Mason, Weck) and recycled jars are not suitable for this. I bit the bullet a few years ago and bought myself a heap of good glass jars, and I recycle these for my jams and chutneys though.
G’day Tania! Love your tortilla pan and preserving and canning is something I yearn to learn more of!
Thanks for your kitchen view this month too!
Cheers! Joanne
Thanks for visiting Joanne. Preserving is a great way to enjoy fruits and vegetables all year round. If you want to give it a go, I recommend you start with jams and chutneys, and work up to canning.
Good idea about preserving smaller batches. Hate to see things go to waste especially when you’ve spent time and effort making it.
The thing about smaller batches is that I get to try a few different recipes as well. And I am trying to be more resourceful in how I use my preserves. Only time will tell if I am successful on this one 🙂
Ooh, those pans hold promise – I *think* I saw a recipe for baked doughnuts using them on Lorraine’s blog a while back. And a comal! How cool! We use a chapatti pan, but it works well, although I don’t think it’s quite as flat and heavy as yours. And you are the queen of preserving! xx
I now have a whole book on doughnuts ( It was the one in the mail 🙂 ) so I am ready to cook up a storm now. I never thought to use a chapatti pan. Great idea. The comal came from Fireworks Food which I found thanks to you. Thank you for that.
Well you got the right book for you’re Weck jars. So frustrating when you don’t have proper instructions for something. I’ve got those same tins on my wish list. Afterall, how bad can baked doughnuts be?….Thanks for the tour.
That roasted corn tomato salsa looks fantastic I could see myself going through that batch very quickly! I made gluten free oven baked donuts that worked out OK – hubbie didn’t even know they were gluten free til he read the post about them!! Reckon your new pans will be brilliant and so worth treating yourself.
I only made a small batch of the salsa to see how it worked. Now I need to make more 🙂 I baked some GF doughnuts that were fantastic. They disappeared very quickly. Will check yours out as I have been asked to make more.