Jammie Dodgers

“I’m going to need a SWAT team ready to mobilise, street over maps covering all of Florida, a pot of coffee, twelve Jammie Dodgers and a fez.”

It’s confession time. My name is Elizabeth Kipps, and I’m an Anglophile.

If it’s British, I’m probably into it.

I wish I could spell words like “color” and “favorite” with u’s and get away with it. I would rather call diapers “nappies”. I love Austen and Dickens and Tolkien, Leicestershire accents and Robin Hood and The Beatles. I watch Downton Abbey, Sherlock and almost every period-drama miniseries the BBC turns out. I have eaten Jelly Babies and, while the notion of baby-shaped candy is disturbing, I love them.

I do not wish we drove on the left-side on our end of the pond. But most Englishy things delight me. Perhaps it’s because some British royalty are among my ancestors (which practically makes me a princess. True story.)

This love is what compelled me to make these cookies, er… “biscuits”. Even without that factor, though, how could one not want to make and consume any cookie biscuit that is called a “jammie dodger”? It is pretty much the greatest name ever.

So grab yourself a jammie dodger, a nice cuppa, a friend, and settle down with some Doctor Who reruns. I can’t think of much else I’d rather do.

(Beats fish fingers and custard.)

***

Jammie Dodgers (adapted and “translated” from The Pretty Blog)

1/2 C butter
2 Eggs
1 C sugar
2 1/2 C flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 C jam (I used raspberry)
Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting (optional)

1. Cream the butter and sugar together until light, fluffy and pale.

2.  Add eggs one by one, mixing well after each addition. Sieve in the flour, baking powder and salt and mix well until a dough forms. Leave the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.

3. Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and cut out circles using a round cookie cutter. Cut shapes with a smaller cutter out of the centre of half of the circles. Place them all on a lined baking tray.

4. Bake  for  8-10 minutes.

5. When the cookies are done,  remove the tray  from oven and allow to cool. To assemble, sandwich the whole circles and the cut-out rounds together with jam.

6. Leave out for a while in order to let the jam to set. If desired, dust with confectioner’s sugar.

I might have cheated and made a few with Nutella instead of jam…

Homemade Calzones

Calzones are pointless. They’re just pizza that’s harder to eat. No one likes them. Good day, sir.

Apparently I have reached the point in my life as a food blogger where I will try a recipe simply because I have a good quote to accompany it. I mean, I see or hear a solid quotable, write it down, and instantly think, “I should really make [fill in the blank] because that would be a great intro.”

Was I really, really into the idea of making calzones? No. But I hunted down a recipe and determined that I would because of “Parks and Recreation”. And there are a number of other edibles in my line-up of stuff-to-try for the same reason. Don’t judge me… there are only so many deep and/or clever things people have said and written about cookies and soup (really… I’m close to running out in those departments.)

Leslie Knope was probably right about calzones being pizza that’s harder to eat… they’re also kind of harder to make. But don’t think that means they can’t be plenty tasty. These were.

Homemade Calzones (from The Kitchn)

The Dough:

3/4 cups (6 ounces) of warm water
1/2 teaspoon of active-dry yeast (if using instant yeast, you don’t need to dissolve it during the first step)
2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt

Combine the warm water and yeast, stirring with a fork or whisk. Set aside for a few minutes to allow the yeast to dissolve.

Measure out the flour into a large mixing bowl. Add the salt and use your hand or a whisk to combine.

Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in the water-yeast mixture. Use your fingers or a wooden spoon to combine everything together. When it comes together into a cohesive ball, turn it out onto the counter along with any extra flour in the bowl that hasn’t yet gotten worked in.

Knead the dough until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic to the touch–about five minutes.The dough should still feel moist and slightly tacky. If it’s sticking to your hands and counter-top like, work in more flour one tablespoon at a time until it’s smooth and silky.

The Calzones:

You will need a batch of dough (above, or you can use storebought pizza dough), plenty of cheese (I used mozzarella), olive oil or melted butter, and 2-3 cups of filling. There’s lots of room for creativity when it comes to filling your calzones. I just used what I happened to have at hand (pizza sauce, cheese, pepperoni, fresh spinach, and cottage cheese.) Just use whatever tickles your fancy.

Preheat oven to 450.

Divide the dough into equal pieces. Six pieces make good dinner-sized calzones. Eight pieces make nice smaller calzones for lighter meals and lunches.

Press the dough into a flat disk, then use a rolling pin to roll it into an 8″-9″ circle for larger calzones or 6″-7″ for smaller calzones. Roll from the middle of the dough outwards, as you do for pie dough. If the dough starts to shrink back on you, let it rest for five minutes and try again. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.

Spread a generous 1/3 cup of filling in the bottom third of the calzone (slightly less for smaller calzones), leaving a a clear border around the edge.

Fold the top of the dough over the filling and press to seal. If you have enough dough, you can roll that edge up (simply fold it over on itself) to form a more secure seal.

Transfer calzones to a parchment-lined baking sheet. (I just used a well-greased baking sheet.)

Brush calzones with olive oil or butter, if desired. This gives the calzones a nice golden color, but is not necessary. Slice steam vents in the top of the calzones with a sharp knife.

Bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the tray and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the calzones are golden, browned on the edges, and the filling is bubbly. Allow them to cool for a few minutes before eating as they will be super hot.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

“If you can’t change the world with chocolate chip cookies, how can you change the world?”
-Pat Murphy

My history with chocolate chip cookies is longer than that of any other edible morsel I can think of. It has taken me awhile to find a recipe that I can truly rely on. For years I used one that would turn out a different every time I made them. Sometimes they were good. Sometimes they weren’t. Sometimes they would be soft and chewy, others they would spread out and be thin and crunchy.

 I haven’t the faintest idea what I might have been doing to produce such an array of results. I kept going back to it because I knew it to be the formula used to create the best chocolate chip cookie I had ever eaten. But it never seemed to work for me.

One time, when I slid the finished cookies onto cooling racks, all the chips dropped straight out the bottoms of them like little chocolate bombs. My cookies were full of holes. I’d made them to enter in the county fair, and the strangest thing of all is that they actually won a ribbon (red, if I recall correctly.)

Only recently have I moved on to trying different chocolate chip cookie recipes. A few months ago I discovered the one which follows, and it has yet to let me down. My test subjects Members of my family have also given these cookies thumbs up. The recipe has a secret ingredient, which always makes everything more fun (doesn’t it?) Not that it’s really a secret. It’s just unusual. But again, saying it’s secret is just more fun and amusing.
CCCs (Courtesy Apple A Day)

• 3/4 C butter (softened)
• 1 C brown sugar
• 1/4 C granulated sugar
• 1 Egg
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 C AP flour
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Cream together butter and sugars until smooth. Add vanilla and egg, blending well.

Stir in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Add chocolate chips.

Drop tablespoons full of dough onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake 8-10 minutes.

Yummers.

 

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

People love cinnamon. It should be on tables at restaurants along with salt and pepper. Anytime anyone says, “Oh this is so good, what’s in it?” The answer invariably comes back, “Cinnamon.” “Cinnamon.” Again and again.

-

One of my least favorite cooking activities is grating. I just can’t seem to do it without hurting myself. I could count the times I’ve cut myself with an actual knife on a single hand, but give me a grater and a carrot and I’m hopeless.

Another step I’m not a fan of?  The lowering of just about anything into boiling liquid. Despite any number of contortions of fingers, hands and arms, despite my having developed nearly ninja-like reflexes, I never can seem to avoid getting splashed.

If preparing food were all grating and boiling, I’d be the world’s most reluctant cook.

Fortunately, there is more than enough fun stuff to negate the not-so-exciting.

Such as:

The employment of cookie-cutters.
Whisking eggs with a fork.
Whisking anything with a whisk.
Punching bread dough.
Tossing.
Drizzling.
Slathering.

Really. What’s more fun than slathering?

The chance to slather, whisk, and punch dough are among the exciting tasks involved in the following recipe.

Eating the finished product is still probably the best part, though.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread (from Joy The Baker)

Yields one 9x5x3 in. loaf

Dough:

2 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons AP flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup water

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling:

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted until browned

 

In a large mixing bowl whisk together 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.  Set aside.

Whisk together eggs and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt together milk and butter until butter has just melted.  Remove from the heat and add water and vanilla extract.  Let mixture stand for a minute or two, or until the mixture registers 115 to 125 degrees F.

Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula.  Add the eggs and stir the mixture until the eggs are incorporated into the batter.  Add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour and stir with the spatula for about 2 minutes.  The mixture will be sticky.

Place the dough is a large,  greased bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel.  Place in a warm space and allow to rest until doubled in size, about 1 hour.  *The dough can be risen until doubled in size, then refrigerated overnight for use in the morning.  If you’re using this method, just let the dough rest on the counter for 30 minutes before following the roll-out directions below.

While the dough rises, whisk together the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg for the filling.  Set aside.  Melt the butter until browned.  Set aside.  Grease and flour a 9x5x3-inch  loaf pan.  Set that aside too.

Deflate the risen dough and knead about 2 tablespoons of flour into the dough.  Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 5 minutes.  On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out.  The dough should be 12-inches tall and about 20-inches long.  If you can’t get the dough to 20-inches long… that’s okay.  Just roll it as large as the dough will go.  Use a pastry brush to spread melted butter across all of the dough.  Sprinkle with all of the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Slather it, yo.

Slice the dough vertically, into six equal-sized strips.  Stack the strips on top of one another and slice the stack into six equal slices once again.  You’ll have six stacks of six squares.  Layer the dough squares in the loaf pan like a flip-book.  Place a kitchen towel over the loaf pan and allow in a warm place for 30 to 45 minutes or until almost doubled in size. (Note: Joy The Baker has step-by-step photos of this process, which may be helpful.)

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.  Place loaf in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is very golden brown.  The top may be lightly browned, but the center may still be raw.  A nice, dark, golden brown will ensure that the center is cooked as well.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 to 30 minutes.   Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the bread and invert onto  a clean board.  Place a cake stand or cake plate on top of the  upside down loaf, and carefully invert so it’s right side up.

YUM!

Spring Soup

Spring by Gerard Manley Hopkins

Nothing is so beautiful as spring--
  When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush;
  Thrush's eggs look little low heavens, and thrush
Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring

The ear, it strikes like lightning to hear him sing;
  The glassy peartree leaves and blooms, they brush
  The descending blue; the blue is all in a rush
With richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.

What is all this juice and all this joy?
  A strain of the earth's sweet being in the beginning
In Eden garden.-- Have, get before it cloy,

  Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour with sinning,
Innocent maid and Mayday in girl and boy,
  Most, O maid's child, thy choice and worthy the winning.

I have good news and bad news.

The good news is, I have another great recipe to share with you. The bad news is, it is really not photogenic.

Not that any of the photography here is that great… but I had more trouble trying to get a decent snapshot of this Spring Soup than I usually do. And I tried on two separate occasions.

So… I hope you’ll enjoy looking at the lovely plum and apple blossoms and just take my word for it that this is a wonderful and tasty soup.

Spring Soup (Adapted from Treat & Trick)

4 C vegetables (I used fresh squash, carrots, corn, etc.,)
Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 C chicken stock
2 medium potatoes, mashed
1 C milk
1/2 tsp dill
Salt & pepper, to taste

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add garlic and sautee. Toss in your veggies, cooking and stirring for around 2 minutes. Pour stock over everything and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender.

Add the mashed potato and milk to the pot. Bring to a slow boil. Stir in dill and season with salt and pepper.

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Suprise Cookies

“Man cannot live on bread alone; he must have peanut butter.”  -James A. Garfield

Memorization isn’t my strong suit. When I’m making a recipe, even if it’s one I’ve done over and over, I have to look at the amounts and ingredients almost every time. For whatever reason, my brain doesn’t care for storing them. I’m guessing it’s too jam packed with useless trivia and random memories of experiences I would forget if I could. I often wish my cranium was more like a computer, and that I could delete all the information I don’t need anymore.

Alas, this is not the case. I still need dozens of recipe cards, and my brain refuses to relinquish names of people I met once over a decade ago and haven’t seen or heard of since.

There is one recipe that even I am capable of memorizing. I’ve been using this awesome 3-ingredient peanut butter cookie formula for years. A cuppa sugar, a cuppa peanut butter and one egg. A gnat could remember that. And if gnats have brains, I’m guessin’ they’re pretty tiny.

I was feeling spirited last week and decided to add a new twist to the classic peanut butter cookies… a suprise Nutella center!

Because the only thing better than chocolate and peanut butter is… OH WAIT, that’s right.  Nothing.

I’m proud of this, because I made it up myself. I also made up the name. Impressive, no?

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies
-1 C Peanut Butter
-1 C Sugar (plus a little extra for rolling)
-1 Egg
For the Middle:
-1/3 C Nutella
-1 T powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine the PB, sugar, and egg. Mix well. Scrape the sides of the bowl in the case of any stray peanut butter globs or eggy drips trying to escape.

In a separate, smaller bowl, mix up the nutella and powdered sugar.

Take a spoonful of the peanut butter dough and shape into a somewhat flattened circle with your fingers. Add a tiny blob of the Nutella mixture and shape the dough into the ball around it. It should look like a normal peanut butter cookie dough ball at this point. Roll in sugar and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork.

Repeat with remaining dough/Nutella. Bake for 10 minutes, or until set and golden brown.

Yummers.

 

 

 

Cheddar Dill Popovers

“Yurski burski popovers kaboofed.” -The Swedish Chef

I think pretty much everyone can agree that people these days have developed an unhealthy obsession with convenience. Nothing can be fast enough or easy enough for us.
I’m as guilty as the next person of falling prey to this way of thinking, but I also have a bit of a rebel streak in me. Which is why I often find myself doing things like making homemade egg-roll wrappers.
What I love more than anything are recipes that cause the lazy American and the rebel within me to unite. Super-easy, super-delicious home made things… the best of both worlds.
I found a doozy this week.
Popovers.
And on top of being super-easy, super-delicious, and home-made, they are also super adaptable (my other favorite thing.) This is the sort of recipe that could take over the world. In a good way. The original was for Rosemary Popovers. I decided to try making mine with dill (fast working its way up the ladder of herbs I’m not afraid of) and shredded cheddar cheese.
And they were fabulous. I definitely succumbed to the temptation to eat more than a reasonable amount of them. Chances are, you will too.

Cheddar Dill Popovers (Adapted from The Bite House)

• 1 1/2 C white flour
• 1 1/2 C milk
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 tsp dill
• Shredded cheddar cheese for sprinkling (about 1/2 cup)

Preheat oven to 450°.

Grease and flour a muffin tin.

Whisk together eggs and milk. Add flour, salt, and dill. Whisk gently until smooth.

Pour batter into muffin molds, filling them about 3/4 of the way. Sprinkle with the shredded cheddar.

Bake for 20 minutes at 450°, then turn the oven down to 350° and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. (Note: I shaved at least 5 minutes off both those baking times. Just use your best judgment.)

See the steam? Mmm….

Nanaimo Bars

“I’d consider going home, making a nice tray of Nanaimo bars, lying in bed and watching TV — that’s what I like doing.” -A Mighty Wind

Canada has given the world a lot of great things. Hockey. Alex Trebek. Anne of Green Gables. Ryan Dempster. The Murdoch Mysteries.  These are the things that come to the forefront in my mind.

This week I discovered another noteworthy entrant to add to the list: the Nanaimo bar.

Nanaimo bars (pronounced nuh-NIE-mo… isn’t that just fun to say?)are a renowned British Columbia confection of mysterious origin. Now, if you’re anything like me, the key words “Canadian”, “mysterious”, and “confection” are all you needed to hear to be intrigued. If you are not like me, and mystery-shrouded deserts of the great North do not instantly arrest your full curiosity, I will add that these are some seriously delish bar cookies.

Crunchy, chocolatey, creamy, vanilla-ey, sweet, heavenly, and addicting are all applicable adjectives. YUMMY is the number one word that comes to mind, but even that isn’t quite strong enough for my taste.

Please don’t be put off by my sketchy-looking photos. The chocolate top layer decided to go all funky on me. It is not supposed to look like this:

The funky chocolate didn’t compromise the overall deliciousness of the bars, which is what really counts.

Nanaimos are a bit of trouble to prepare (not difficult, just time consuming) but they’re worth it.

The all-important recipe, found at The Curvy Carrot:

Nanaimo Bars

Base:

1/2 cup  unsalted butter, room temperature

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups crushed (use your food processor) Digestive Biscuits or graham cracker crumbs

1 cup unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped ( I used pecans.)

Middle Layer:

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons vanilla custard powder or instant vanilla pudding powder

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups powdered sugar

Top Layer:

4 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

 

1. Prepare a 9 x 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray, making sure to spray all the corners.

2.  For the base: In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter.

3. Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the sugar and cocoa powder.

4. In a small separate bowl, lightly whisk the egg.

5. Very slowly, add the beaten egg to the warm butter mixture, whisking constantly.

6. Return the saucepan to medium-low heat, and whisk constantly (about 2 minutes) until the mixture thickens.

7.  Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the vanilla, digestive biscuits (or graham crackers), coconut and walnuts, mixing thoroughly.

8. Using your hands or a buttered rubber spatula, gently press the mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking dish and chill until firm.  ***You can place it in the freezer for about 15 minutes or refrigerate for about an hour or so.

9. For the middle layer: In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using an electric hand mixer), beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

10.  Slowly add the whipping cream, custard powder (or pudding mix), vanilla, and powdered sugar on low speed until well combined. **If the mixture is too thick, add a few more drops of cream.  If it’s too thin, add a little more powdered sugar.

11. Spread the middle layer over the chilled base layer and refrigerate until firm (about 20 minutes or so).

12. For the top layer: In a heatproof bowl over simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and butter until smooth, stirring occasionally.

13. Evenly pour and spread the chocolate layer over the middle layer and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

14. Once set and firm, cut the bars into squares. YUM!

 

Individual serving size!

Simple Strawberry Cake

“It’ll be spring soon. And the orchards will be in blossom. And the birds will be nesting in the hazel thicket. And they’ll be sowing the summer barley in the lower fields… and eating the first of the strawberries with cream. Do you remember the taste of strawberries?”

 

I tend to associate strawberries with the summertime. Not unlike picnics, lightning bugs, or parades. Or running barefoot through cool grass, or blow-up kiddie pools, or the hum of distant lawn-mowers. Strawberries are the crowning glory of any idyllic summer.

But when you offer me a giant carton of strawberries in the late winter/early spring, I want you to know that I am not going to turn them down. I mean, is there ever really a bad time for eating strawberries?

A clue: no.

Now, I could eat strawberries by themselves all the live-long day. Don’t doubt that. But this week my kitchen ended up with more strawberries than the five members of my family could reasonably consume in this manner. I know, I know…. Life is rough sometimes. We persevere.

I was forced to use a large quantity of said strawberries in the creation of a desert for Sunday dinner. I decided on this cake. In general, I don’t really care for cake, but this was fairly tasty and very simple.

I took some pictures pre-cutting, but my camera apparently ate them. And my camera can’t speak, but if it could, I think it would tell you that they were delicious.

Simple Strawberry Cake (recipe found here)

1/4 cup canola or plain vegetable oil
1 cup AP flour
1 1/2 full teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon white vinegar or white wine vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
2 to 3 cups strawberries, cut into quarters

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the egg, milk, vinegar and oil in a big bowl.
Add the sugar and vanilla. Mix well.
Add the flour and baking powder, and mix well with a whisk till smooth.
Pour the batter into a greased round baking dish (I used a large glass pie plate).
Now mix one tablespoon sugar with the quartered strawberries. Arrange the strawberries on the top of the batter, pushing each piece of strawberry in a bit.
Bake at 350 for 60 minutes or till the cake is golden brown and a fork inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

 

Brunswick Stew

“There was an Old Man of Peru,
Who watched his wife making a stew;
But once by mistake,
in a stove she did bake,
That unfortunate Man of Peru.”
-Edward Lear

In November of 2003, I made a visit of several days to Colonial Williamsburg with my aunt, uncle, and two cousins. We learned many things while there. For instance, that it is possible to have the hiccups scared out of you. Also that laughing uncontrollably whilst sitting atop a large cannon really is not safe.
Perhaps these are not the sorts of things that one should be learning in such a history-rich place, but I feel they are some pretty important life lessons.
One evening’s occupation when we were in town was an 18th century dining experience. Among the dishes served was a tasty Brunswick stew. Before last week, that was the last time I’d had Brunswick stew.
It is a Southern thing, I believe, and the different regions guard their unique Brunswick stew recipes and traditions with utmost seriousness. I can recall my grandmother making a pot or two on occasion when I was younger, but other than that and Williamsburg my own experiences with this dish were nonexistant. Until, that is, I decided to try my hand at it the other evening.
I didn’t use an exact recipe, but pieced together this and that from a handful of recipes that I found online. It turned out pretty good, too. I’m always proud when things I make without a recipe turn out. And it’s always fun to have a dish you can play around with, adding random stuff to the pot and whatnot.Huzzah for Brunswick stew!

Brunswick Stew (My Very Own)

About 4-5 C cooked, shredded chicken
1  or  2 cans (14.5oz) chicken broth
2 cans diced tomatoes (do not drain)
Water
3/4 C ketchup
1/2 C barbecue sauce
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 large carrot, chopped
4 medium/smallish potatoes (or 1 or 2 large), diced
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 can creamed-style corn
1 can lima/butter beans

In a large pot, combine broth and tomatoes (with their juices). Add the ketchup, barbecue sauce, worcestershire and 1 or 2 cups of water, stirring well. Stir in chicken. Cook over low heat for about an hour.
Add chopped carrots and potatoes to the stew and bring to a boil. After a minute or two, reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
Stir in the corn, limas, and garlic. Let the stew cook for about another half an hour  or hour on low heat.