recipes and a little glazing (pots not food)

Here are a couple of the recipes from the last post...

I don't have a clue where this apple brownie recipe came from, but it's been in my recipe box for years. It's really easy and quick to throw together and I like that it makes a 9 x 9 pan... if it's only the two of us we don't need a big dessert recipe.

5 tblsp. butter or margerine (I use butter)
1 cup of sugar - I cut back on the sugar slightly
1 egg
1 1/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups peeled and chopped apples
1 cup raisins & nuts (optional) I don't care for raisins or most nuts in baked things so I leave them out
1/3 tsp. baking powder (1/3 tsp. is odd, I take a guess on this measurement)
1/3 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (I always sprinkle more on top before it goes in the oven)

Cream butter, sugar, and egg. Mix in remaining ingredients. Spread in a greased  9 x 9 pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 -35 min.
Good warm or cold!


Hummus

I have been making hummus using a combination of two recipes. One is from Charan Sachar who writes the blog Creative With Clay and this recipe for real hummus that I found online.
To one can of drained chick peas I add a little more than 2 tbsp. tahini, 1-2 cloves of chopped garlic (depending on size), the juice of almost a whole lemon, a few grinds of himilayan salt & fresh ground pepper, and coarsely ground cumin seeds. I add reserved liquid from the chick peas until it's the consistency that I want. We tend to like it more on the dry side. I don't measure the olive oil either. Once it's all pureed to the desired consistency, I put it in a bowl and stir in some chopped sundried tomatoes in oil. I add some of the oil from the tomatoes to the mix as well. I have added a little sour cream as Charan suggested (didn't have any plain yogurt) and I am not sure I noticed much difference.

Barbecue

I know very little about how Jeff smokes a pork shoulder! He has a smoker with a firebox and I know he uses a mix of Cowboy chunk charcoal and oak from our wood pile. He says the key to a good smokey flavor is to not let it flare up. It seems like it takes about 12 hours to get the job done.

on the pottery front...

A potter in town has some space in his salt kiln and needs some help firing. Which meant Jeff's big pot needed to get glazed.

Not a great picture, there was too much sun... Jeff poured Albany slip into the pot using a big watering can. That way he could direct the glaze under the rim. Once that was done I cradled the pot in my arms as he turned it and poured the glaze into the large red bucket. Next we quickly dipped the rim into the slip that is in the trash can lid, resting on the gray bucket. Both of us watching to see that entire rim on all sides was covered with slip.

We did a fairly decent job. The edge needed only a little clean up. I can't wait to see this fired, although I will miss it keeping me company on the porch.