HONEY CHIPOLTE PECANS

These nuts are simply wonderful. Sweet and spicy. They will be a welcome addition to any holiday buffet. This recipe was developed especially for Honeycooks by Bob, a friend of the monastery and a retired caterer.


1.c Original creamed honey

¼ c sugar

1 tsp ground chipolte chiles (or powder)

2 c pecan halves

course kosher salt


• In a heavy frying pan, bring honey sugar & chipolte to a boil (med-high), stirring until sugar dissolves.

• Add pecan – stir to coat (6 min)

• pour out on foil lines pans and separate with a fork.

• sprinkle with course salt

• cool and break apart.


Store in air tight container at room temperature.

Mello Miso Dressing

This dressing is very easy to prepare and can be used as a salad dressing as well as a sauce or dip for vegetables. Great for Miso lovers.

1/4 cup olive oil (can substiture canola oil)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup Mellow White Miso
1 1/2 TBS brown rice vinegar or lemon juice
2 level TBS Original Creamed Honey
1 TBS green onion or shallot

Blend together in a blender until dressing is smooth

Honey Glaze for Beets

This is a modification of a recipe found on the packaging of a pack of butter from Organic Valley. We use Monastery Creamed Honey instead of maple syrup and our own home grown herbs. Although the original recipe uses this glaze only for beets, I think it would be a nice glaze on winter squashes as well.

Mix together in a large skillet:

2 TBS balsamic vinegar
2 heaping TBS Orange flavored Creamed Honey
2 TBS Salted Butter
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp chopped marjoram
1 tsp chopped thyme
(You can use dried herbs as well - modify amount to taste)

Heat on medium
Add 3 lbs cooked, peeled, and cubed beets. Cook until heated through. Season with salt and pepper.

Applesauce

Now that it's Autumn, it's time to start cooking again at the monastery. Sr Veronique always produces wonderful preserves and applesauce. A great way to use Cinnamon Creamed Honey is as a topping on hot tart applesauce. Just put a dollop of honey on top and let it melt into the applesauce. Delicious!

Cottage Cheese Bread

Sr. Kay, friend, guest, and frequent contributor to Honeycooks, gave us this recipe. She in turn received it from Rev. Glenda Hope, Presbyterian minister and founder of San Francisco Network Ministries which serves the people of the Tenderloin District providing affordable housing, vocational training, and a safe house for women as well as HIV/AIDS pastoral care. You can find out more about Rev. Glenda’s ministries at http://www.sfnetworkministries.org

Cottage Cheese Bread

In a large bowl beat together until fluffy:
2 TBS canola oil
2 TBS sugar.
(1 Tablespoon orange creamed honey is a nice addition to this mixture)
Beat in:
2 eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
½ cup raisins
Set aside.

In another bowl mix together:
2 cups unbleached flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon caraway seeds

Add the flour mixture to the egg/oil/etc mixture alternately with ½ cup milk.

Turn into sprayed 8 inch pan and bake for in a 375º for 10 minutes, then reduce heat and bake at 350º for another 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn out to cool on racks after sitting for 10 minutes.

Slice and serve with butter and Monastery Creamed Honey

Tofu Meat Loaf

Tofu meat loaf is a favorite with our guests. It is another of Sr Annette's culinary specialties. A great vegetarian recipe that satisfies a hungry crowd.

Preheat oven to 350º F

Mix together:
1 ½ lbs tofu, mashed
1/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
½ cup parsley, chopped
½ tsp black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped fine
¼ tsp garlic powder
1 cup whole grain bread crumbs, rolled oats, or corn flakes, crushed

Mix all ingredients together. Put ¼ cup oil in a loaf pan, then press the mixture into the pan. Bake for about 1 hour. Let cook 10-15 minutes before trying to remove from pan. Garnish with ketchup and parsley. Also good sliced and fried for sandwiches the next day.

Makes one loaf that serves 6-8.

A Visit to the Monastery

In January my husband came home from the supermarket with a surprise jar of lemon flavored Monastery Creamed Honey that he had spied on the shelf. A delicate hint of lemon in the honey gives it a twist of subtle perfection that makes morning toast and tea pure pleasure! I have raved about its delights to all who would listen.
My husband, a quiet observer to my great joy of spreading honey on my toast or using it to add a gentle touch of lemon to my tea, clearly understood my deep appreciation for this wonderful creation and suggested we take a trip to the Redwoods Monastery some time to pick up the honey directly from the nuns.
Once that jar was finished, and not wanting to wait for a trip, I went to New Seasons (a Portland, Oregon grocery chain that tries to buy local products and contributes a percentage of profits to community causes) to see if they had or might be willing to sell this wonderful product in our city. The store called me back to explain that they had looked into buying the honey but suggested I go online and buy it directly from the Monastery.
What to do? My husband and I decided to get in our Honda and head south to Whitethorn, California where the Redwoods Monastery is nestled among ancient Redwood trees and surrounded by a peace that only nature seems able to impart in today’s fast-paced World. The location of this quiet and remote spot is breathtaking and the serenity of the monastery and the surrounding environment touches every cell of one’s being! I also think it touches the honey in a special way too!
I purchased a case of the lemon honey, two jars of the orange and one of the ginger honeys. We have had the honey less than a week and already one jar of the orange is halfway gone!
If I could only organize my words so that others could fully understand how fabulously wonderful this honey tastes, the Cistercian Nuns would not be able to keep up with the volume of daily orders! The nuns’ honey can be creatively used in multiple ways from making homemade granola to adding a dollop of its sweetness in a soup or stir-fry or to injecting depth to cooking and baking. I encourage everyone to enjoy this honey for it beautiful simplicity and divine properties!
Jill M.

Spiced Chai Tea with Creamed Honey

This delicious drink is the creation of Sr Kay, a faithful monastery guest.

Chai Tea

It's important to get the right Spiced Chai tea bag. It can be either black or green, spiced but without additional flavoring. Recommended brands Peet's or Stash tea.

Brew tea bag with 8 oz of boiling water in a tall mug
Add 1/2 cup hot mild
Stir in 1-2 teaspoons Monastery Creamed Honey - Orange honey shines!

For a non caffeine afternoon or evening energizer use Trader Joe's Rubey Red Chai. This is made with rooibas, a South African herb tea.

Monastery Granola

Here is the much requested recipe for Monastery Granola. It is a staple breakfast food at Redwoods Abbey. Serve with milk or yogurt and add a dollop of creamed honey or a spoonful of preserves for a little sweetness.


In a large oven proof bowl:

1 cup wheat bran
1 cup brewers’ yeast
1 cup sesame seed
1 1/2 cups sunflower seeds
1 cup coconut
1 cup ground flax seed
4 cups of oats (a little more or less to taste)
1 cup oil over the top & mix thoroughly

Dry in a warm degrees oven until
You begin to smell it.

Let cool then mix in dried fruit:
raisins
apples
apricots etc.

This recipes makes about 1 gallon.

Miso Dressing

This dressing is a specialty of Sr Victoria and a favorite of guests and the sisters.

1 cup mellow miso (white miso)
1 cup water or less if thicker consistency is desired
1 cup oil
Juice from 1 lemon
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup or less Original Creamed Honey or brown rice syrup
1 shallot chopped. You can substitute green onion

Combine ingredients in a blender and blend on medium for about 30 seconds until smooth.

Recipe from Holy Orders

Here are some recipe ideas from Jeanne of Holy Orders. Holy Orders offers a unique selection of monastery products from monasteries all over the world. Visit Holy Orders website at www.holyorders.biz.

• At our Holy Orders Christmas Open House we served barbecued sliced polish sausage with a dip using equal parts of your original Monastery Creamed Honey and Divinely Original Monastery Mustard from Queen of Angels Monastery in Oregon – deliciously divine!

• And of course I always love a dollop of monastery creamed honey on a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. It’s very similar to a butterscotch sauce in texture but healthier and quite heavenly.

• Another good one is cream cheese mixed with monastery honey spread on a bagel – absolute bliss!