These biscuits from Julie Wilcke-Pilmer were a prize winner in the Bob’s Red Mill Baking Contest at the Newport Celtic Festival earlier in the month. The picture is kind of hard to make out, but they’re absolutely wonderful! These are not the light and fluffy American-style biscuits, but made in the Celtic tradition and are much closer to cookies. Enjoy!

Empire Biscuits

• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1/2 lb Butter
• 1 Egg
• 1 tsp Vanilla
• 2-1/12 cups Bob’s Red Mill Unbleached White Flour
• 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill White Rice Flour
• 1 pinch Salt
• Jam
• Powdered Sugar Icing
• Maraschino Cherries

Cream butter and sugar well.  Add egg and vanilla and beat mixture. Fold in flour and salt.  Knead dough until mixture forms a smooth ball.  Roll dough out and cut with round cookie cutter to about silver dollar size.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet and put trays in the fridge for 15 minutes.  Bake cookies for 10 minutes at 375°F.  Cookie should not be brown.  After cooled, jam one side of each cookie and put another cookie on top.  Make powdered sugar icing by mixing powdered sugar with enough water to make a nice paste.  Frost the top of each cookie and place 1/4 maraschino cherry in the center.  makes approximately 2 dozen cookies.

Looking for something to do this weekend in Oregon? We recommend a visit to Newport! Newport, Oregon is worth a visit on its own merit, but this weekend boasts the Newport Celtic Festival and Highland Games which means Newport will be brimming over with all sorts of extra fun.

The festival celebrates the traditions of the seven Celtic nations- Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, Isle of Man, Galicia, Brittany, and Ireland. With events for the whole family,the Celtic Festival has live music, traditional dancing, a sand castle contest, Highland games for the kiddos, face painting, a Celtic Canine parade and even some real Heelan Coos (Highland Cattle). Adults will enjoy the bonfire, highland games and a whiskey tasting. The Highland Games include things like the Caber Toss, the Scottish Hammer Throw, and the Stone Throw among others.  There is also a vendor fair full of all sorts of Celtic crafts and wares.

Want to go beyond spectator? There are many events to participate in, including a Bob’s Red Mill Baking Contest. If baking is not up your alley, you can always try the Haggis Eating Contest.

Tickets to the Festival are $12 for adults, $9 for students and seniors, kids 6 and under are free (special deals for multiple days).Buy tickets here.

Caber Toss (photo courtesy of Newport Celtic Festival)

Once again, we’re looking for someone to help represent Bob’s Red Mill at the 19th annual Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship in Scotland this October 6th. Thus was born Spar for the Spurtle, the ultimate oatmeal throw-down. All it takes is a winning oatmeal recipe!

As Bob’s Red Mill founder Bob Moore and 2009 World Porridge Making Champion Matthew Cox explain in this video, the company won the competition and the title of World’s Best Oats in 2009. Now, Bob’s Red Mill is appealing to fans in search of the country’s best original recipe that makes use of the company’s Steel Cut Oats.

If you have what it takes to Spar for the Spurtle, simply make a video detailing your recipe* and submit it via our entry page by July 20th. We’ll fly three finalists to Portland, Oregon to compete in a live cook-off, and the winner will be off to Scotland for an all-expenses-paid adventure representing Bob’s Red Mill at the Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship!

Visit Spar for the Spurtle for more information, vote on videos and enter your own porridge recipe.

Prizes

Based on the video submissions, three finalists will be chosen to receive the ultimate trip for Bob’s Red Mill fans. The finalist prize package includes:

• Roundtrip airfare to Portland, Oregon
• Three-nights’ accommodations at a downtown Portland hotel
• A tour of Bob’s Red Mill led by company founder Bob Moore
• A gift basket filled with Bob’s Red Mill products and merchandise
• $100 Bob’s Red Mill Gift Card
• A spot in the live cook-off for a chance at the Grand Prize
• $100 for cook-off supplies

The winner of the live cook-off will receive the Grand Prize, which includes the following:

• Round-trip airfare for two to Scotland to represent the Bob’s Red Mill team at the 19th annual Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship in October 2012
• Two nights’ accommodations in Edinburg, three nights’ accommodations in Carrbridge (for two)
• Rail transportation between Edinburgh and Carrbridge (for two)
• $2500 cash

*Recipe Requirements:

• The recipe must be completed in less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
• Soaking and toasting the oats is allowed, but they cannot be cooked prior to beginning the 30 minute time limit.
• The recipe must use steel cut oats, not rolled oats.
• Recipes must be cooked in their entirety on the stove top, using no more than two burners.

Shrimp and Grits, a classic dish of the American South.

For years, we’ve been told by our customers in the South that our grits are not “real” grits. The only “real” grits are white grits according to Southerners. Sure, they still like our yellow corn grits, but they’re just not the same. We’re happy to announce that we now offer White Corn Grits, which we’ve dubbed “Southern-Style” to let you know that these grits are the real deal.

Like our yellow grits, these white corn grits are milled from top-quality California corn and have a rich corn flavor. Most grits at the store have the bran and germ removed to allow them to cook more quickly. The process we use to grind these grits allows us to retain most of the healthy bran and germ without compromising the inherent fluffiness and stickiness of true grits.  That’s why, when you eat our grits, you’ll see little brown flecks (the corn germ) mixed throughout. Even though we’ve left these nutritious bits in, our grits still cook up in five minutes and are as creamy and delicious as any you’ve ever tasted. You can even use our white corn grits to make the Italian dish polenta.

Corn grits are wonderful any time of day. For breakfast, try adding shredded cheese and topping with an egg. Fried Corn Grits is a favorite dish at our Whole Grain Store where they are cooked and left to sit overnight in the fridge, then sliced and fried (recipe on package) and topped with *gasp* maple syrup. Trust me, they are wonderful. Use them to make the traditional Shrimp and Grits or top with marinara or gravy for a hearty dinner dish.  They’re so versatile, we find it hard to ever tire of them.

These White Corn Grits will be available in your local stores in the coming months. We’ve had a bit of a hiccup on our website, so this product is not yet available to purchase there. We don’t have a gluten free version of these white grits yet, but we do still make our gluten free yellow corn grits.

Giveaway

To help make up for the website hiccup, we’re giving away a package to five lucky readers! How to enter? Simply leave us a comment here on this blog post that tells us what you would make with these Southern-Style White Corn Grits. We’ll select five winners randomly from all who comment by 11:59 pm on Monday, May 14th.

We’ve really been on a, ahem, roll around here lately and let me just say that we’re not done yet! We’ve got one more new item to tell you about later in the week and, yep, you guessed it, we’re going to give some away, too!

If you’ve never been able to try our extra thick rolled oats before, now is your chance. These oats are rolled extra thick, making them heartier and chewier than our old fashioned rolled oats and light years away from quick and instant rolled oats. Extra thick rolled oats are a truly old-fashioned oatmeal. As Bob would say, “This is what oatmeal should taste like.” Our conventional extra thick rolled oats have long been a customer favorite in our line, which is why we’re so excited to be able to offer them to our gluten free customers, as well.

As with our other gluten free oats, these are grown on dedicated farms that plant only ‘pedigreed’ seed stock in oats-only fields. Each delivery is sampled using the R5 ELISA Gluten Assay to ensure the absence of gluten and packaged in our gluten free facility. Please be aware, however, that a small percentage of people cannot tolerate even the purest of oats. If you are unsure whether oats are suitable for your diet, please check first with your health advisor before eating them. Read more about oat (or avenin) sensitivity here.

These oats will be available in stores near you in the coming months, but if you absolutely cannot wait (and you don’t win), they’re on sale on our website at 25% off through the month of May.

Giveaway

We’d like to giveaway a package of our new Gluten Free Extra Thick Rolled Oats to three lucky winners. To enter? Simply leave us a comment here on this blog post and tell us one gluten free product you that wish we would make. We’ll pick three winners randomly from all who enter by 11:59 pm on 5/9/12 (that’s end of day tomorrow).

Steel cut oats have long been a favorite cereal at Bob’s Red Mill. Over the years, we’ve found that some people are daunted by the longer cooking time. Really, it’s not surprising. Steel cut oats take between 10- 20 minutes on the stove top and are near-impossible to cook in the microwave.  We have all sorts of tips and tricks to help you enjoy a hot bowl of steel cut oats in a hurry- everything from a slow cooker to a thermos. Still, the process is too complicated for some and not worth the energy for others. That’s why we’re happy to say that we now offer a quick-cooking variety.

These organic quick-cooking steel cut oats (also available as conventional) cook in 5 to 7 minutes on the stove top and are perfect for the thermos method*. Quick steel cut oats are made with the same high-quality oats that we use for our regular steel cut oats, but they are processed slightly differently to allow them to cook more quickly. These oats are cut on a specialized rotary granulator mill into slightly flatter pieces than our regular steel cut oats. They still taste wonderfully different than rolled oats, but they are a bit different than our regular steel cut oats. Their faster cooking time, makes them a great ingredient for baking and cooking. Try this wonderful recipe for Steel Cut Oat Fries with Cherry Dipping Sauce to see for yourself.

These two items will be on store shelves within a few months, but you can order them on our website if you simply cannot wait.

*Bob’s Famous Thermos Method: No joke, this is how Bob makes his steel cut oats when he’s in a hurry. Place 1 cup quick cooking steel cut oats and 3 boiling water in an airtight thermos at night. In the morning, you will have cooked steel cut oats. With these new quick cooking steel cut oats, we’re pretty sure you could do this when you first rise in the morning and have them ready by the time you get to work.

Steel Cut Oat Fries with Cherry Dipping Sauce

Yield 5 -7 servings

Steel Cut Oat Fries

• 1-1/2 cups Milk
• 1/2 cup Water or Stock
• 1 Tbsp Butter
• 1 cup Quick Cooking Steel Cut Oats
• Sea Salt to taste
• Ground Black Pepper to taste
• 4 oz Chevre or other soft goat cheese
• 1 to 1-1/2 cups Olive Oil
• Oat Flour as needed

Line a 4 ½  x 6 ½ -inch metal baking pan with plastic wrap and set aside.

Bring milk, water and butter to a boil in a large heavy saucepan.  Gradually whisk in Quick Cooking Steel Cut Oats.  Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until oats are very thick and start to pull away from the sides, about 8 minutes.  Remove from heat, stir in cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Immediately transfer the oats to the prepared baking pan, spreading evenly so height is consistent throughout.  Refrigerate until cool and firm, about 1 hour.  To store overnight, cover when cooled and keep refrigerated.

Turn oats out onto a cutting board and cut into ¾ x 3-inch rectangles.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to very low, about 200°F.  Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Place flour in a plate or pie pan.  Lightly coat the oat fries in flour, shaking off excess.

Working in batches so as not to crowd the pan, fry oat fries until golden-brown on all sides, about 5 minutes.  Add more oil, if necessary, but make sure the oil has warmed to medium-high heat before continuing frying.  Transfer fries to paper towels with a slotted spoon and let drain.  Place fries on a clean baking sheet and keep warm in the low oven while frying remaining batches.

Serve with Cherry Dipping Sauce.

Cherry Dipping Sauce

• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp Shallots, minced
• 2 Tbsp + additional to taste Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 cup Chicken or Vegetable Stock
• 2 Tbsp Evaporated Cane Juice
• 1/2 cup Dried Cherries, chopped
• Sea Salt to taste
• Ground Black Pepper to taste

Heat oil in a medium skillet oven medium heat.  Add shallots and sauté until translucent.

Add balsamic vinegar and stir well for about 1 minute, making sure to scrape up any pieces stuck to the pan.

Add stock and increase heat to medium-high.  Add evaporated cane juice and dried cherries, stir well and let simmer until thick, about 10 minutes.

Let cool slightly and serve with Steel Cut Oat Fries.

Giveaway

We’d like to share a few packages of these great Organic Quick Cooking Steel Cut Oats with you. We’re giving away a package of these new oats to three lucky winners! How to enter? Simply leave us a comment here on this blog post that tells us what you would make with quick cooking steel cut oats- could be plain oatmeal or some fancy oatmeal concoction! We’ll select three winners randomly from all who comment by 11:59 pm on Monday, May 7th.

Ever since Duchess Kate Middleton was reported to have slimmed down for her wedding dress using the Dukan Diet*, oat bran has seen a huge surge in popularity. Whether or not you believe in the Dukan Diet, oat bran is an incredibly healthy addition to your diet. For starters, oat bran is high in dietary fiber. The soluble fiber helps soak up bad (LDL) cholesterol from the blood stream, while the insoluble fiber helps move that cholesterol and other waste out of your body. Oat bran also packs a pretty good protein punch with 5 grams of protein in a 1/3 cup serving size. Between the fiber and protein, this cereal is a fantastic way to fuel your day. Oat bran can also be used in smoothies and baked goods such as muffins, quick breads, cookies and more.

Since our introduction of certified gluten free oats in 2007, we’ve been getting request after request for gluten free oat bran. For the last two years, folks here at Bob’s Red Mill have been working to bring you the high-quality oat bran you’ve come to expect from us and ensure it is grown and tested to be gluten free. Well, folks, they finally did it! We’re pleased as punch to be able to offer the health benefits of oat bran to our gluten free customers!

Our new gluten free oat bran is made from the same oats that we use to make our gluten free rolled and steel cut oats. These oats are grown on dedicated farms that plant only ‘pedigreed’ seed stock in oats-only fields. Each delivery is sampled using the R5 ELISA Gluten Assay to ensure the absence of gluten and packaged in our gluten free facility. Please be aware, however, that a small percentage of people cannot tolerate even the purest of oats. If you are unsure whether oats are suitable for your diet, please check first with your health advisor before eating them. Read more about oat (or avenin) sensitivity here.

This product will start appearing in your local stores in the next few months. If you simply cannot wait, we’ve got this product on sale through the month of May at 25% off on our website. Check it out here.

Giveaway

We’d like to giveaway a package of our new Gluten Free Oat Bran to three lucky winners. To enter? Simply leave us a comment here on this blog post and tell us what you would make with gluten free oat bran. We’ll pick three winners randomly from all who enter by 11:59 pm on 5/3/12 (that’s Thursday). 

*If you are interested in the Dukan Diet, please know that they have approved our oat bran as a good substitute for the special oat bran called for in the book.

This beautiful book by Emmanuel Hadjiandreou is the perfect book for a bread baking novice, but will still hold up well for a more experienced bread baker. Each of the 60 plus recipes has easy to navigate step-by-step instructions and accompanying photography. I love that in a cookbook. It helps immensely to see what the recipe should look like at each step and have an illustration for the techniques that seem foreign. See those pretty designs on the cover? Yep, this book will show you how to make those and many more for absolutely gorgeous (and tasty) homemade bread. With recipes for yeasted breads, soudoughs, pastries and even wheat-free and gluten free breads, How to Make Bread really delivers for every kind of baker. This book is available for $27.95 on their website if you just can’t wait to get your hands on it.

Our friends at Ryland, Peters & Small were kind enough to give us a copy to share with one lucky reader and we’ll kick in 5 lbs of our Organic Whole Wheat Flour and a package of our Active Dry Yeast to make this bread book something you can begin baking with immediately. Ryland, Peters & Small is a book publisher dedicated to capturing, “in words and pictures, those elements of life that give the greatest pleasure: sharing the perfect meal with friends, baking a batch of cookies with your children on a lazy Saturday and a home that makes you happy every time you open the front door.”

How to Enter:

We had a few hiccups during our last few giveaways, so I’m going to try and explain myself a little better for this one. We are going to use this handy app (handy for us) to count and tally everyone’s entries. There is a great 45 second tutorial for how to use this app here. It’s pretty simple, enter using your Facebook login or an email address and password. You absolutely must leave a comment to be counted. I do double check, so don’t think clicking on “I did this” and not commenting will win you a prize. Do be sure to leave your comment and click on “I did this” or you won’t be entered. There is an additional entry option for “liking” Ryland, Peters & Small on Facebook. If you already “like” them from our last contest, just go ahead and tell me that in the comments and you can click “I did this.” If you’re not on Facebook, don’t sweat it. Most of my winners do end up being those who complete the mandatory entry- it’s all done by random selection, but I’m just telling you what I see.

Mandatory Entry: In the comments section, tell us why you want to win this book. That’s it- pretty simple.

Still got a question? Leave it in the comments and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

UPDATE: The link to Ryland, Peters and Small’s Facebook page is broken in the Rafflecopter App. Please use this one: https://www.facebook.com/RylandPetersandSmall

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Long before Bob Moore announced that Bob’s Red Mill was to become an employee-owned company, people were clamoring to know more about the man behind the mill. Since that momentous announcement in 2010, the clamor has grown to a roar and the inquiries just keep flooding the phone lines. Who is Bob Moore? Is he even real? What led him to start grinding whole grain flours on stone mills? Why does he make flour with stone mills?

As our customers, you know that Bob is very much a real person, but you may not know all the details of how he got his start in milling and what led to Bob’s Red Mill becoming a leading manufacturer of stone ground, whole grain flours, cereals and baking mixes. This is why we are thrilled to announce the release of Bob’s biography: People Before Profit: The Inspiring Story of the Founder of Bob’s Red Mill. This inspiring biography details how Bob overcame challenge after challenge to build our company and become the world’s foremost provider of whole grain foods for every meal of the day.

Bob spent countless hours over the last two years working with author Ken Koopman telling his story from his modest beginnings to where he stands today. Bob says, “I am truly humbled by the release of this book. I am amazed to think that there are people who would be interested in reading my life story, and the fact that this book exists is a true testament to everyone who has helped to make Bob’s Red Mill what it is today.”

To celebrate the launch of Bob’s biography, we’re pleased to give away 3 signed copies of this book. You can have it signed generally, or have it made out to someone special. As a big reader, I can truly say this book is worthwhile. Don’t want to wait? You can pick up a copy for the special introductory price of $17.95 on our website.

{Giveaway}

We had a few hiccups during our last few giveaways, so I’m going to try and explain myself a little better for this one. We are going to use this handy app (handy for us) to count and tally everyone’s entries. There is a great 45 second tutorial for how to use this app here. It’s pretty simple, enter using your Facebook login or an email address and password. You absolutely must leave a comment to be counted. I do double check, so don’t think clicking on “I did this” and not commenting will win you a prize. Do be sure to leave your comment and click on “I did this” or you won’t be entered.

Mandatory Entry:
Fact: Bob’s favorite cereal is our Scottish Oatmeal. What is your favorite Bob’s Red Mill cereal? Tell us in the comments to be entered (then be sure to click “I did this” in the app below).

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Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us at Bob’s Red Mill. We couldn’t spread our love of whole grains without you. We can’t send each of you a frilly valentine to show our love, but we hope you’ll enjoy this beautiful recipe and giveaway from us and our friends at Ryland, Peters & Small. We thought this would be just the thing to make for your gluten free sweetheart tonight.

Ryland, Peters & Small is a book publisher dedicated to capturing, “in words and pictures, those elements of life that give the greatest pleasure: sharing the perfect meal with friends, baking a batch of cookies with your children on a lazy Saturday and a home that makes you happy every time you open the front door.”  They reached out to us with two new books from their line and we thought they were a perfect fit for you. We have one book this week and we’ll offer up another of their fine books next week.

The Gluten-Free Baker by Hannah Miles is one part cookbook and one part piece of art. Each recipe is accompanied by beautiful photography by William Reavell and is truly fit to be framed. The recipes range from decadent desserts such as the one listed below to more savory fare like Rosemary, Olive & Tomato Focaccia and Onion Seed Bagels. It’s a small book, with about 60 gluten free and wheat free recipes, but each is clearly written with care and more than a bit of culinary experience behind it. There are even a few recipes that recreate the magic of puff pastry, something that eludes many gluten free bakers. We hope you’ll enjoy this book as much as we do. We only have one copy to giveaway; if you aren’t the lucky winner and you’d like to lay your hands on a copy, the book is available for purchase on the Ryland, Peters & Small website for $24.95.

Photograph by William Reavell

Caramelized Lemon Cake

Tangy lemon slices, drenched in a lemon caramel, nestled on top of a delicate lemon sponge, make this cake a must for all citrus lovers. Delicious served warm with custard sauce or cold with whipped cream.

• 1-1⁄2 sticks Butter, softened
• 3⁄4 cup plus 2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
• 3 large Eggs
• heaping 3⁄4 cup Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Flour plus 2 tsp Baking Powder and 1⁄4 tsp Xanthan Gum
• 3⁄4 cup ground Almonds
• 3 Tbsp Sour Cream
• Custard Sauce or Whipped Cream, to serve

For the caramelized lemons

• 1 cup Granulated Sugar
• freshly squeezed juice of 1 Lemon
• 4 Lemons
• a 10-in cast iron tarte tatin pan or a similar heavy, flameproof pan, greased

Serves 8–10

Preheat the oven to 180˚C (350˚F) Gas 4.

To make the caramelized lemons, put the sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan and heat until the sugar melts and turns golden brown. Do not stir whilst cooking but gently shake the pan from time to time to prevent the sugar from burning. Watch closely once the sugar has melted as it will caramelize quickly. Pour into the bottom of the pan. Grate the zest from 3 of the lemons and reserve for the cake batter. Cut the top and bottom from all 5 lemons and stand them upright on a chopping board. Using a sharp knife slice away the peel and pith in vertical slices and repeat until the lemons are peeled. Cut each lemon into 6 slices and remove any pips using a sharp knife. Arrange the lemon slices in the caramel in the pan in a circular pattern – taking care as the caramel will be hot. Set aside.

Put the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk together until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs and whisk again until the batter is light and airy. Sift in the flour and baking powder and add the ground almonds, sour cream and reserved lemon zest. Fold together until everything is incorporated. Spoon the batter into the pan with the lemon slices. Bake in the preheated oven for 30–40 minutes, until the cake springs back to the touch and a knife inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes then put a serving plate on top of the pan and, holding the pan with a kitchen towel (so you do not burn yourself) invert the cake onto the plate. Serve warm or cold with custard sauce or whipped cream.

This cake will keep for up to 2 days if stored in an airtight container.

{Giveaway}

We had a few hiccups during our last giveaway, so I’m going to try and explain myself a little better for this one. We are going to use this handy app (handy for us) to count and tally everyone’s entries. There is a great 45 second tutorial for how to use this app here. It’s pretty simple, enter using your Facebook login or an email address and password. You absolutely must leave a comment to be counted. I do double check, so don’t think clicking on “I did this” and not commenting will win you a prize. Do be sure to leave your comment and click on “I did this” or you won’t be entered. There is an additional entry option for “liking” Ryland, Peters & Small on Facebook. If you’re not on Facebook, don’t sweat it. Most of my winners do end up being those who complete the mandatory entry- it’s all done by random selection, but I’m just telling you what I see.

In addition to this fabulous book, we’ll be kicking in a package of our Gluten Free All Purpose Flour so you can start baking right away!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Ryland, Peters & Small’s website and tell us what other book (or books) really intrigue you. Who knows? Maybe that will be our next giveaway prize? Then, check “I did this” in the app below.

Still got a question? Leave it in the comments and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

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