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Tips & Tricks – An Ongoing Compilation

Cooking Techniques

  • To get a close-to-vacuum seal on food in a zip lock bag for marinating or freezing, place the bag with the seal open in a bowl of water. The pressure from the water will push the air out of the bag and you can seal it.

Shortcuts

  • If you don’t typically go through a whole loaf of bread before it gets stale, try keeping the loaf in the freezer. Sandwiches made with frozen bread stand up better to spreading on toppings and will thaw by lunch. – Cook’s Illustrated magazine, Number 157

Uncategorized

  • Apple Sauce – To enhance the flavor of homemade apple sauce, boil the reserved apple peels and cores in 1 cup of water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until boiling. Reduce to medium heat, cover, and cook, until mixture is deep in color and cores have broken down, about 15 minutes. – Cook’s Illustrated magazine, Number 154

Featured

A little about us….

The one post where we actually won’t cut straight to the point.

Hey there! Welcome to Kitchen and Workshop. This blog was dreamed up after trying some slightly exaggerated humongous number of recipes found on Pinterest and quickly getting tired of scrolling through 13 paragraphs of personal stories before getting to the actual recipe (bless the jump to recipe feature).

So while the rest of the posts you will find on this site will keep it straight to the point, allow me one post to introduce ourselves.

We’re the Tumeys (well soon to be – just a couple of months away from our big day)! He’s Evan, I’m Jannah, and we are enjoying life in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Most of our time in the house is spent in the kitchen and we are always trying to find new recipes to try. Evan also enjoys wine-making, cider-making, and working in his workshop. We try to eat pretty healthy but don’t worry, cheat meals and sweet-tooth cravings will still be a big part of our recipe list.

Evan Salsa (2024)

An Evan once-in-a-lifetime original. Made about 14 cups.

Ingredients:

  • Tomatoes, 10 large
  • Garlic, 6 cloves
  • Onions, 2 cups
  • Jalapenos, 3 large
  • Cilantro, 1 bunch
  • Tupperware Southwest Seasoning, 3 Tbsp
  • Chipotle hot sauce, 30 dashes
  • Tomato paste – 1/4 cup

Instructions:

  1. Broil the tomatoes, garlic, onions, and jalapenos in the oven for 10 minutes.
  2. Add all ingredients to food processor and blitz until desired consistency.
  3. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Tips & Tricks:

  • Tupperware Southwest Seasoning (made 1/2 batch for this recipe)
    • 2 1/2 Tbsp paprika
    • 1/2 cup cumin
    • 1 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
    • 2 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
    • 2 1/2 Tbsp dried cilantro
    • 1/3 cup onion powder
    • 2 1/2 Tbsp sugar
    • 4 Tbsp salt

Goetta

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb beef
  • 1 lb spicy pork
  • 8 cups water
  • 2 1/2 cups steel-cut (Pinhead) oats (NOT instant or quick)
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 1 to 4 bay leaves
  • 3 tsp salt
  • Pinch of pepper

Instructions:

  1. Using a large (8 qt or larger) pot, bring water to a boil. Add salt, pepper, and oats.
  2. Cook for 2 hours, stirring often (remember to scrape the bottom of the pot). Keep lid on while cooking over low heat. Watch for boil-overs.
  3. Add meat, onion, and bay leaves over low heat. Mix well.
  4. Let cook for 1 hour, stirring often.
  5. Pour into bread pans. When cool, place in fridge or package for freezer.
  6. When ready to use, slice a loaf of goetta and put it into a greased pan. Fry until crispy on both sides.

Tips & Tricks:

  • Throughout the cooking process, make sure to get the mixture off the bottom of the pan, or else it can scorch.

Hard Candies

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup light corn syrup
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1 dram flavoring
  • Food coloring, optional
  • Candy thermometer

Instructions:

  1. Mix sugar, corn syrup, and water in a saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved then STOP stirring.
  2. As the mixture is heating, prepare a cooling bed which could be either:
    • sheet pan with a thick layer of powdered sugar or nonstick spray or
    • silicone molds with non-stick spray (we used gummy bear trays)
  3. Once the mixture has reached 260 degrees F, add food coloring if using and continue to heat until 300 degrees. Once at 300 degrees, remove from heat.
  4. Add flavoring and stir to mix once the mixture cools to 255 degrees.
  5. Pour the mixture into the prepared cooling bed and let it harden. If you want to have certain sizes/shapes later, score as it cools to make lines that will help direct cracking.

Marinara Sauce

Makes approximately 12 quarts of sauce. Took approximately 15 hours to complete.

Ingredients:

  • 50 lbs (1 bushel) of Roma tomatoes ($42 in 2024)
  • 2 cups EVOO
  • ~14 small or 8 large yellow onions
  • 14 cloves garlic
  • 1 bunch celery
  • ~10-14 carrots
  • 1 jar dried basil
  • 1 jar dried oregano
  • Salt & Pepper
  • Lemon Juice for canning

Instructions:

  1. Prep the tomatoes
    • Wash & Core
    • Peel skins either through the blanching method or the roasting method
    • Let sit 1 hour to release water content
    • Took approximately 2 hrs
  2. Making the sauce
    • Using a food processor for speed, chop onions, carrots, and celery. Keep onions separate from other veggies.
    • Heat 1 cup EVOO in large pot (used my 16 qt pressure canner pot). Saute onions and garlic until translucent (approximately 10 minutes), stirring frequently.
    • Add remaining 1 cup EVOO, carrots, celery, salt & pepper. Cook until softened (~10 minutes).
    • Add tomatoes and simmer until thickened (~1 hr).
    • Season with salt, pepper, basil, and oregano.
    • Continue to simmer until thickened to your preferred consistency.
  3. Canning:
    • Prepare jars
    • Add lemon juice to bottom of jars, (2 Tbsp per Quart, 1 Tbsp per pint)
    • Process at 11 pounds of pressure for 25 minutes (quarts) or 20 minutes (pints).
    • Natural release.

Banana Bread (Brandt Loaf-style)

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 cup butter (softened)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3 bananas, mashed
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
  3. Add remaining ingredients and mix until just incorporated.
  4. Pour into greased loaf pan.
  5. Bake for 50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Spicy Dilly Beans / Pickles

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs Green Beans and/or Pickling Cucumbers
    • *Makes 5 packed pint jars, adjust rest of recipe as needed
  • 2.5 cups White Vinegar
  • 2.5 cups Water
  • 4 Tbsp Pickling Salt
  • 1 tsp/pint jar Crushed Red Pepper
  • 1 clove/pint jar Minced Garlic or Crushed Garlic Cloves
  • 1/2 tsp/pint jar Dill Seed
  • 1/2 tsp/pint jar Dill Weed
  • Regular Mouth Canning Jars

Instructions:

  1. Prepare boiling water bath and sanitize pint jars. Prepare lids according to manufacturer directions.
  2. Wash & trim beans or slice cucumbers.
  3. Combine vinegar, water, and pickling salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
  4. Pack the beans/cucumbers into jars leaving 1/2 inch for headspace. Add garlic, dill, and red chile flakes to each jar.
  5. Pour hot brine over the beans, leaving 1/2 inch for headspace. After jars are full, use wood chopsticks or tap jars on countertop to work out air bubbles. Check headspace again and add more brine if necessary. If you skip this step, some of your beans/pickles may not be submerged in the brining liquid after you complete the canning process.
  6. Wipe the rims, apply lids, and rings, and process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Let beans/pickles sit for at least one week before eating.

Blueberry Lemon Dutch Baby

This recipe was originally featured on Alexandra’s Kitchen.

Ingredients:

Blueberry Lemon Dutch Baby
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 Tbsp sugar
  • 4 Tbsp butter, divided
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 cup blueberries

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
  2. Melt 2 Tbsp butter in microwave-safe bowl. Add eggs, milk, flour, vanilla, salt, sugar, and lemon zest and blend until smooth.
  3. Melt remaining 2 tsp butter in castiron skillet over medium-high heat. Add blueberries and immediately add batter. Transfer to oven for 15 minutes, until puffed up in center (will drop after removing from oven).
  4. Top with syrup & powdered sugar.

Black Bean Burgers

This recipe was originally featured on Sally’s Baking Recipes.

Ingredients:

Black Bean Burger
  • (2) 14-oz cans black beans, drained, rinsed & patted dry
  • 1 Tbsp EVOO
  • 1 bell pepper (finely chopped)
  • 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp minced garlic
  • 1.5 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs
  • 1/2 cup feta cheese
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 Tbsp ketchup or mayo
  • Salt & pepper
  • Burger toppings & buns

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Spread beans evenly onto a lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes until slightly dried out.
  2. Meanwhile, saute olive oil, chopped pepper, onion, and garlic over medium heat until peppers and onions are soft (about 5 minutes). Gently blot some of the moisture out. Place in a food processor with the remaining ingredients (cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, bread crumbs, feta, eggs, Worcestershire, ketchup/mayo, salt, & pepper). Pulse everything together, then add the black beans, leaving some larger chunks of beans.
  3. Form into patties-about 1/3 cup of mixture in each.
  4. To bake: place patties on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake at 375°F for 10 minutes on each side. To grill: place patties on a greased aluminum foil and grill for 8 minutes on each side. Serve with your favorite toppings.

Christmas Cutout Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

Christmas Cutout Sugar Cookeis
  • 1 cup butter, softened, roughly cut into tablespoon-sized pieces.
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (plus more for rolling out cookies)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • 2 1/2 cups AP flour (300 g)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cream of tartar
  • Granulated sugar (optional)
  • Parchment Paper

Instructions:

  1. Cream together sugar and butter until whipped, fluffy, and lighter in color (3-5 minutes on medium speed). Don’t rush creaming the sugar and butter. Add egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Mix well. If making a double batch, add eggs one at a time.
  2. Blend in flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar in segments to avoid the puff out of the mixer bowl.
  3. Cover and chill for 2-3 hours.
  4. Divide dough in half. Roll each half 1/4 in thick on lightly powdered sugar-dusted surface. Cut into desired shapes. Sprinkle with granulated sugar (optional). Use powdered sugar instead of flour to help keep the cookies soft and not too dry.
    • Working in sheet pan batches at a time, chill shaped cookies in the fridge (20 minutes min), or freezer (15 minutes min) before baking. This will help them keep from spreading and losing their shape in the oven. They should be cold to the touch and have stiffened before going in the oven.
    • Cookies should not be placed closer than 2 inches on all sides from another cookie or the edge of the baking sheet to avoid them expanding and pushing into each other. This will require more batches and a longer overall baking time but you’ll keep more distinct shapes in the long run.
  5. Heat oven to 375° and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  6. Place on baking sheets and bake 7-8 minutes until light brown on edges.
  7. Leave on baking sheets for 3 minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely. This will help avoid the cookies breaking while they are hot and more fragile. Support the cookies during any transfers between baking sheets or cooking racks with a thin spatula to avoid breaking.

Tips & Tricks

  • You will want to double the recipe if you want enough cookies for a decorating party.
  • Work quickly with the dough to keep it cool while you roll it out and cut it into shapes.
  • I recommend rolling pin spacer rings for consistent dough thickness.
  • Make cookies ahead of time and place them in a safe container in the freezer until it’s time to frost.
  • Preferred frosting: cream cheese.
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