Posts Tagged ‘Bed and Breakfast’
July 5th, 2010 by pattiebell
THIS COOKIE RECIPE CAME TOGETHER AS I WAS TRYING TO FIND WAYS TO INCORPORATE MESQUITE FLOUR INTO SOME OF MY BAKING.
SIFT TOGETHER: 1 C FLOUR, ½ C MESQUITE FLOUR, ¾ C UNSWEETENED COCOA POWDER, ¼ t SALT, ½ t CAYENNE POWDER, 2 t CINNAMON, ¼ t CLOVES
CREAM TOGETHER UNTIL LIGHT AND FLUFFY (3 MIN. IN ELECTRIC MIXER): 1 C SUGAR, ¾ C BUTTER
MIX IN: 1 LARGE EGG, 1 ½ t VANILLA
ADD FLOUR MIXTURE. MIX UNTIL JUST COMBINED. TURN OUT DOUGH ONTO PARCHMENT PAPER AND ROLL INTO LOG 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER. ROLL LOG IN THE PARCHMENT PAPER. REFRIGERATE AT LEAST 1 HOUR OR OVERNIGHT.
PREHEAT OVEN TO 350. REOMVE LOG FROM PARCHMENT. LET SOFTEN ABOUT 5 MIN. ROLL LOG IN RAW OR SANDING SUGAR, PRESSING DOWN TO ADHERE TO DOUGH. TRANSFER LOG TO CUTTING BOARD. SLICE INTO ¼ INCH ROUNDSNN. PLACE 1 INCH APART ON PARCHMENT LINED COOKIE SHEETS.
BAKE 12 MINUTES AT 350, UNTIL SET AND RICH BROWN. COOL COMPLETELY ON WIRE RACKS. MAKES ABOUT 4 DOZEN.
NOTES: IF YOU DO NOT HAVE MESQUITE FLOUR YOU CAN USE ALL REGULAR FLOUR. TRY USING OTHER KINDS OF CHILE, LIKE CHIPOTLE, WHICH HAS A NICE SMOKY FLAVOR, OR MILDER CHILE COLORADOS.
Tags: AZ, B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Bed and Breakfast, Cookies, Inn, Recipes, Tucson, Tucson AZ, Tucson Inn, Tucson Treasures
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July 5th, 2010 by pattiebell
These simple crunchy cookies are packed with flavor and super easy to prepare! I felt they could handle the addition of whole wheat flour, but you can use all white flour if you wish.
3/4 C white flour, 3/4 C whole wheat flour, 1 C sugar, 1 t baking soda, ½ t salt, 1 t ground ginger, ½ t ground cloves
½ C melted butter, 1 large egg, ¼ C molasses
¾ C oats
¼ C sugar for rolling
Heat oven to 375. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
Sift first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Add next 3 wet ingredients. Mix well. Add oats and stir to incorporate.
Scoop dough into balls using 1 oz. scoop. Roll balls in sugar and place 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Cool on racks. Makes about 18 cookies.
Tags: AZ, B & B, B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Bed and Breakfast, Cookies, Inn, Recipes, Tucson, Tucson AZ, Tucson Inn, Tucson Treasures
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June 19th, 2010 by pattiebell
Tags: AZ, B & B, B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Bed and Breakfast, Inn, Tucson, Tucson AZ, Tucson Inn, Wildflowers, Wildlife
Posted in Wildflowers, Wildlife | Comments Off
May 28th, 2010 by pattiebell
- Yucca in the Moonlight
- Close-up of Yucca blossoms
Tags: B & B, B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Bed and Breakfast, Inn, Tucson, Tucson AZ, Tucson Inn, Wildflowers
Posted in Uncategorized, Wildflowers | Comments Off
May 18th, 2010 by pattiebell
After tasting these great cookies in Taos, NM, where they are the official 
state cookie, I set out to find a recipe and prepare them for my guests here at the Ranch House. Traditionally they are made with lard, but I found a good approach using butter instead. This recipe is a redux of a few I considered, combining the best elements: plenty of anise seed, orange zest, layering the dough a bit, and dusting with cinnamon sugar.
Pulse in food processor until mixed: 2 C. flour, 3/4 C. sugar, 1/2 t. baking powder, 1/8 t. salt, and 1 T. ground anise seed. Add 12 T. cold butter cut into bits and pulse until mixture resembles course meal. Add 1 large egg, 1 t. vanilla, 2 T. ice water, the zest of 1 orange and pulse until ball starts to form. Remove to floured surface and knead a few times. Roll dough out with rolling pin, folding over and lightly re-rolling a few times. Form into disc, wrap in film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Roll out on floured surface to 1/4 in. thickness and cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Place 2 inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheets, sprinkle tops of cookies with 1/2 t. cinnamon mixed with 2 T. sugar and place in freezer for 15 minutes. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes until set, slightly colored on edges but not brown. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.
I love that New Mexico has a State Cookie. That is a state with it’s priorities straight!
Tags: AZ, B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Bed and Breakfast, Cookies, Recipes, Tucson, Tucson Inn
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May 11th, 2010 by pattiebell
Datura Bloom
Datura are herbaceous, leafy annuals and short-lived perennials which can reach up to 2 meters in height. The leaves are alternate, with a lobed or toothed margin. The flowers are erect or spreading, trumpet-shaped, and colors vary from white to yellow, pink, and pale purple. The fruit is a spiny capsule, splitting open when ripe to release the numerous seeds. The seeds disperse freely over pastures, fields and even wasteland locations.
Datura belongs to the classic “witches’ weeds,” along with deadly nightshade. Most parts of the plants contain toxic hallucinogens, and Datura has a long history of use for causing delirious states and death. It was well known as an essential ingredient of love potions and witches’ brews.
Common names include Thorn Apple, Pricklyburr, Jimson Weed, Moonflower, Hell’s Bells, Devil’s Weed, Devil’s Cucumber, and Devil’s Trumpet. Nathaniel Hawthorne refers to one type in The Scarlet Letter as Apple-Peru.
They are a very common sight in Southern Arizona, and this one cropped up right beside El Rancho Merlita’s fire pit.
Tags: AZ, B & B, Bed and Breakfast, datura, Tucson, Wildflowers
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May 11th, 2010 by pattiebell
Visit form the Javelina
Javelina are peccaries – medium-sized animals, with a strong superficial resemblance to pigs. Their preferred food consists of roots, grass, seeds, and fruit. When they visit El Rancho Merlita they are particularly attracted to our quail seed block. They can wreak quite a bit of havoc in the hummingbird bed I planted earlier in the spring. This particular morning our guests had almost as much fun watching their innkeeper try to scare them out of said bed as they did seeing the javelina themselves. These 2 were part of a group of 4 who passed through during the breakfast hour.
Tags: AZ, B & B, Bed and Breakfast, Javelina, Tucson
Posted in Wildlife | Comments Off
THIS COOKIE RECIPE CAME TOGETHER AS I WAS TRYING TO FIND WAYS TO INCORPORATE MESQUITE FLOUR INTO SOME OF MY BAKING.
