Pam's Pantry

Greek Caponata

2011-10-16T19:38:00.003-04:00

This is my new favorite veggie dish. It's a bit late in the year, but you might find some fresh veggies at farmer's markets. Easy and delicious, this is a great way to convert non-veggie eaters. I've even added a can of canellini beans to make it a complete meal. You can also pour over pasta instead of serving with toasted bread. It makes quite a bit, but that's okay since it's great warm or at room temperature (i.e., leftovers for lunch the next day!).

Greek Caponata

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with their juice (fire roasted are wonderful)
2 zucchini, cut into 1-inch rounds
2 summer squash, cut into 1-inch rounds
2 tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 large Japanese eggplant, cut into 1-inch rounds (regular eggplant also works, but peel it first, then salt it & let sit for ~15 minutes; rinse & use - removes bitterness)
1 red or yellow onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch wedges
1 potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (can leave peel on)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano

4 to 6 slices toasted sourdough bread, optional for main dish

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Pour the canned tomatoes into a 3 1/2-quart baking dish and spread to cover the bottom. In a large bowl combine the remaining ingredients (not the bread). Toss to coat. Pour the vegetables over the canned tomatoes in an even layer. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the edges of the vegetables are golden, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Serve alone as a side, or over toasted sourdough bread or pasta for a main dish.

Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis

Cinnamon Rolls

2011-09-22T23:03:00.009-04:00

You've probably heard of Ree Drummond (aka The Pioneer Woman); perhaps you've even seen her blog or tv show on Food Network. Well, her recipe for cinnamon rolls captured my attention quite a while back. It makes a lot (if using the full recipe), and they're really delicous. I've added my own spin and think I've come up with a near-perfect cinnamon roll. The frosting/glaze is still a work in progress, but this is pretty close to perfect for me. She says they can be frozen at any point in the process, but I prefer to bake and glaze mine before freezing. When you reheat them, the glaze soaks into the rolls, allowing you to add more frosting before serving. Y.U.M.

Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:
1 quart Whole Milk
1 cup Vegetable or Canola Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast, 0.25 Ounce Packets (15 g total)
8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Separated) All-purpose Flour (Unbleached)
1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Table Salt
Plenty Of Melted Butter (Salted, not Unsalted, ~1 cup)
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Light Brown Sugar
Generous Sprinkling of Cinnamon
_____
FROSTING:
4 cups Powdered Sugar (~1 lb)
1 tsp. instant coffee
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. maple flavoring/extract
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
3 Tbsp. softened or melted butter (salted)
~4 Tablespoons milk
1/8 tsp. table salt

Mix the milk, vegetable oil and sugar in a pan. Scald the mixture (heat until just before the boiling point). Turn off heat and leave to cool 45 minutes to 1 hour. When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but NOT hot (i.e., between 100F-110F on a thermometer), sprinkle in both packages of Active Dry Yeast. Let this sit for a minute. Then add 8 cups of all-purpose flour. Stir mixture together. Cover and let rise for at least an hour.
After rising for at least an hour, add 1 more cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir mixture together. (At this point, you could use the dough immediately; however, I cover & refrigerate the dough at least overnight before using-no more than 2 days, though. Watch to make sure it doesn't overflow - you can punch it down if needed.)
When ready to prepare rolls: Prepare your pans with butter on the bottom & sides (a pastry brush works well.) Set aside.
Sprinkle rolling surface generously with flour. Take half the dough (1/6th if making mini-rolls) and form a rough rectangle. Then roll the dough thin, maintaining a general rectangular shape. Drizzle melted butter over the dough to cover - a pastry brush works well to spread it evenly. Now sprinkle sugar over the butter followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.
Now, starting in the middle, begin rolling the dough in a neat line. After you have a roll started, roll from one end across, keeping the roll fairly tight as you go. Next, pinch the seam of the roll to seal it.
Then begin cutting the rolls approximately ¾ to 1 inch thick and laying them in the buttered pans.
Repeat this process with the other part of the dough. Let the rolls rise for 20 to 30 minutes (or until nearly doubled in size), then bake at 350F degrees until light golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.
For the frosting, mix together all ingredients listed and stir well until smooth. You want it thick but pourable/spreadable. Taste and adjust as needed. Generously drizzle over the warm rolls.

Recipe adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Topside Granola

2011-08-19T08:17:00.004-04:00

I thought I'd found the perfect recipe for granola. That is, until I had the granola from the Topside Inn in Boothbay Harbor, ME. Dark and flavorful, it was perfect on its own or with yogurt. The hosts were gracious enough to share the recipe with me. I tweaked it just a bit, and it really is hard to decide if my 'Best Granola Ever' claim can stand against this recipe.

We'll just call it a tie.

Topside Granola

Preheat the oven to 325F.

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl:
9 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup sunflower kernels
3 cup chopped nuts (1 cup each of pecans, almonds, & walnuts)

In a microwavable* container (i.e., 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup), mix:
1 1/2 cups canola oil (I've also used 1/2 to 3/4 cup applesauce with 1 or 3/4 cup oil to reduce fat)
1 1/2 cups honey
1/2 cup molasses
2 Tbsp. vanilla extract

Cook in microwave* on high until hot but not boiling (5-7 minutes), and then stir.

Pour over dry mixture and stir well, coating all of the dry with wet ingredients. Pour mix into 2 large prepared sheet pans (sprayed lightly with oil) and spread evenly.

Place pans into preheated oven and set timer for 15 minutes. Remove pans from oven and stir well, especially from corners of pan. Repeat 3 more times for a total of 4 baking sessions. Watch carefully after two baking sessions; the last two sessions may need to be shorter to avoid burning. It should be dark & golden brown.

Cool on the pan, using a spatula to stir periodically to avoid big lumps.

Stir in
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cherries (optional-I don't prefer them)

Store in airtight container in the refrigerator, or also can be frozen in heavy zip-lock bags.

From the Topside Inn, Boothbay Harbor, ME

Crack-Cakes

2011-08-15T16:35:00.002-04:00

I'm a sucker for a recipe. I follow them pretty much exactly, especially the first time I make something, so it's odd that I'd come up with something new that worked perfectly the first time. So perfectly (and deliciously addictive) that we dubbed them Crack-Cakes and two dozen cupcakes, um, 'disappeared' from our house within 36 hours. You eat one, and it's pretty good. Soon thereafter, you have to have another one. The maple buttercream frosting is out of this world. My culinary muse certainly earned her wings that day.
Or something like that.
Just make the cupcakes.
(But make them for an event/gathering or your scale will be unhappy with you.)

Crack-Cakes

One box Betty Crocker white cake mix (do not use ingredients listed on box)
1 1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. molasses
2 whole eggs

Mix thoroughly & bake according to package directions for cupcakes.

Maple Buttercream

1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
4 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. maple syrup (not maple flavoring)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Mix thoroughly until smooth. This is better the next day, so I recommend making it in advance. Store in the fridge in an airtight container; bring to room temperature and re-whip before using.

Chicken Curry

2011-06-01T15:36:00.003-04:00

**Updated**
I received this recipe from our Best Man's mom. She grew up in South Africa, and while I don't know exactly where she got this recipe, I think it's got some African tones to it (I'm thinking Moroccan, but what do I know? I've never been there!) It can be served over rice, but don't forget the condiments! I really like it with banana, raisins, & lettuce.

I haven't made it in the slow cooker before, but I think it'd be an excellent dish to try with that method. Also, since it makes quite a bit, it freezes really well. Try it. It's delicious!

Chicken Curry

1 oz margerine (or butter)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp chopped garlic
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
2 Tbsp flour, heaped
2 Tbsp tomato paste, level
1/2 tsp ground ginger, level
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, level
3 cloves
1 bay leaf
2 Tbsp chopped sweet pickle, level
1 tsp worchestershire sauce
Juice 1/2 lemon
2 cups water
2 tsp chicken boullion granules
1 1/4 lbs chicken tenders/breasts, cut into ~1-inch cubes
2 cups diced potato (1/2-inch dice-I leave the skin on)
1 cup water

Add margarine/butter and oil to a large, wide pan or pot. Saute onions until translucent. Add garlic & cook ~30 seconds before adding remaining spices, pickle, worchestershire, lemon, 2 cups water, and boullion. (Can mix together in a bowl before adding to the pan.)

Add chicken & potatoes and bring to a boil. Turn down to low or med-low and simmer until chicken and potatoes are tender. Serve with rice, chopped banana, raisins, tomato, lettuce, and/or coconut.

Note: This is even better the next day!

Recipe courtesy S. Dee

Pineappleade

2011-05-16T10:59:00.004-04:00

I'm a big fan of Lucinda Scala Quinn's new show 'Mad Hungry.' I greatly appreciate that she makes meals at home for her family using unprocessed food. She is the head food editor at Martha Stewart Living, yet her recipes are not pretentious. She also doesn't like wasting food, maximizing ingredients or leftovers. This recipe is a great example. I was skeptical, but since I had a fresh pineapple in the house, I gave it a try. The results were refreshing and delicious. From now on, I will make this with every pineapple I buy. It only makes about a quart, but I would think it freezes well to 'stock up' for the desired quantity. I tweaked the recipe only slightly. My only caveat is that the longer it sits, the stronger the clove flavor becomes.

Pineappleade

4 cups water
Peel of 1 pineapple, washed (scrub it well before cutting up the pineapple)
1/2 cup sugar (for a really ripe pineapple, use ~1/4 to 1/3 cup)
3 whole cloves (orignial recipe calls for 2)
1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, sliced into 2-3 chunks
Ice, for serving

Directions
1.Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat.

2.Place pineapple peel, sugar, cloves, and ginger in a large heatproof pitcher. Pour boiling water into pitcher and stir to combine. Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours; strain. Transfer to refrigerator to chill; serve over ice.

Recipe adapted from LSQ

Banana Bread (Updated)

2011-03-01T14:42:00.000-05:00

I make this bread frequently. And I have yet to hear any negative feedback about it. I've altered the original recipe slightly because I use super-ripe bananas (frozen and thawed) - I didn't need the full amount of sugar. It's the most moist banana bread I've ever had. I recently saw a new ATK recipe for banana bread, but I haven't tried it yet. I'm not sure if I will try it or not since my go-to recipe is so easy and makes 2-3 loaves at a time. Why mess with a good thing?

Mary’s Moist Banana Bread

3/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
7 ripe bananas (I use bananas with lots of brown spots)*
1/2 tsp. salt
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups sour cream (can use low/non-fat - I use lowfat)
2 tsp. vanilla
Pecans (optional)

Cream butter & sugar. Add eggs, pureed bananas, sour cream, and vanilla; mix well. Then add salt, soda, and flour. Add pecans (if using). Mix until combined. Pour into greased and floured loaf pans (2 or 3) and bake at 300F for about 1 hour or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

*Note: The texture is much better if you use bananas that have been frozen. Peel & mash with potato masher & freeze in a zip-top bag.

Busy Day Chocolate Cake

2011-01-31T21:35:00.001-05:00

Holy smokes...has it really been two months since I posted? Well, you're in luck, because I've been doing lots of cooking and baking (over the holidays, don't ya know), and I have new recipes to post! Here's the first one, and it's really quick to make. And, evidently it's really quick to disappear, too, at least in our household. This is as close as I've come to getting a picture of the cake.

Told you it was quick to disappear.

Anyways, this recipe comes from Lucinda Scala Quinn, and I've been quite impressed with her show Mad Hungry. I'm glad to see that she's encouraging families to eat more meals together and get involved in meal preparation. I've tried several of her recipes, and so far, so good. Make this cake and get it in the oven just before you sit down to eat. (She even suggests that you mix everything together in the same pan you bake the cake, but I had problems with sticking.) By the time you're done, the cake will be ready. It's best when served warm. Lucinda suggests topping with buttercream frosting, but I think a dollop of sweetened whipped cream is all it needs.

Busy Day Chocolate Cake

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1-2 tsps. instant coffee granules
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. coarse salt
6 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
1 cup cold water

Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking soda, and coarse salt. Make a well in center of flour mixture and add vegetable oil, pure vanilla extract, white vinegar, and cold water. Whisk until well combined. Pour mixture into an 8-inch square baking pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 30-35 minutes. Serve warm with sweeteed whipped cream or just a fork.

Adapted from Lucinda Scala Quinn

Chocolate Peanut Squares

2010-11-01T14:08:00.003-04:00

If you need a chocolate fix, this is the recipe for you! It's quick and delicious, and it makes plenty to share. I found this recipe quite a while back, and by popular demand, I'm posting the recipe here. Actually, the only change I made to the original recipe is to use minor variations on ingredients. And, I weigh some ingredients rather than using volumetric measurements. Be sure to check out the Joy of Baking website. She has tons of fabulous recipes over there along with great photos of each dish.

Chocolate Peanut Squares

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/3 cup honey (use a mild flavored honey)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Hershey's)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
180 grams marshmallows (can use large or mini - about 3 cups of mini)
1 tsp. vanilla extract (use the real thing, no imitation please!)
80 grams (~3 cups) crisp rice cereal (could use Rice Krispies or even Chex in a pinch)
1 cup lightly salted roasted peanuts

Topping:
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Prepare a 8x8-inch square pan by lining it with foil (making sure it comes up & slightly over two sides) & spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

Place peanut butter, corn syrup, honey, cocoa powder, and brown sugar in a large saucepan (or a dutch oven) over medium heat. Bring this mixture to a boil, stirring often. Reduce heat to low, add the marshmallows, and stir constantly until mixture is melted and smooth.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Add rice cereal and peanuts. Press mixture into prepared pan and allow to set. (If you're in a hurry, put it in the fridge for ~20 minutes.)

When the bottom is cooled, make the topping: Put the chocolate chips into a microwave-proof bowl. Place butter on top of the chips. Microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring after each interval, until chocolate is mostly melted. (This usually takes about 1 minute total microwaving for me.) Spread the topping over the bottom mixture, and refrigerate until the chocolate has set.

To cut into squares, remove from the pan using the foil 'sling' and cut into squares. Serve cold (my preference) or at room temperature. Yield: 24-36 squares, depending on how large you cut your squares

Recipe slightly adapted from Joy of Baking

Darings Bakers - Doughnuts

2010-10-28T22:43:00.006-04:00

I'm posting late, but I did manage to participate in the Daring Bakers' Challenge this month! The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up. Lori chose to challenge DBers to make doughnuts. She used several sources for her recipes including Alton Brown, Nancy Silverton, Kate Neumann and Epicurious.

I used the doughnut base from Chuck (recipe here) (because it looked easier than Alton's) and the glaze from Alton (recipe here). I can't say that I'll be making them again soon since I had some trouble maintaining the temperature of the oil, but it was still fun to do. The weird thing is that now I want funnel cake. Mmmm....

Giveaway Post

2010-10-11T08:23:00.002-04:00

I'm doing a giveaway on my review site...check it out here!

Nutella Ganache (Updated)

2010-10-05T08:35:00.003-04:00

I thought I'd update this recipe since it's the most viewed on my blog. My previous recipe works best with Nutella produced & sold in Europe (at least, what used to be available) that was much thicker than the current Nutella that is available in the US.

Nutella Ganache

1/2 cup Nutella
1/4 to 1/3 cup heavy cream

Cook in heavy-bottomed sauce pan over MEDIUM heat*, stirring constantly until the mixture is completely smooth (~7-10 minutes). Let ganache cool slightly (~5 minutes). Pour over warm Nutella Bundt Cake (or any kind of cake). Let the ganache cool completely before serving.

*Do NOT use HIGH heat; if you rush this, you won't like the results.

Note: If the mixture is too thin to set up as a typical ganache, simply re-warm it and stir in a handful of chocolate chips (preferably semi-sweet) until smooth. Also, I have not tried to whip this frosting, so I do not know if it can be used as a substitute for whipped ganache.

Culinary Conclusions

2010-09-25T14:46:00.000-04:00

I have recently come to some random, yet culinary (i.e., food-related) conclusions in my life:

(1) I am reconciled to the fact that I feel the same way about butter as Julia Child did. And my waistline is reflecting my opinion. Not good.

(2) I don't like cleaning my kitchen. This does not bode well for someone who loves to bake/cook.

(3) I am quite tired of my blog's appearance. I hope to rectify that problem soon with a new layout, etc.

(4) I really like LG products. My new LG fridge = LOVE. Micro/hood combo is great, too.

(5) People who sculpt/decorate character cakes are truly gifted. I, on the other hand, am not blessed with that gift. I'm much better at wedding cakes and the like. Nevertheless, I will probably attempt to make character cakes for my kids' birthdays. Years from now we'll just laugh at the pictures.

(6) Grocery store cashiers who fail to/cannot properly scan and account for multiple coupons are frustrating. I know it might not be their fault, but it irritates me nonetheless...so do prices that are marked incorrectly and revealed only during checkout. (In my experiences, Walmart is particularly bad about this.)

(7) I will probably never buy a pie crust again. They are so easy to make, especially if done in batches using a food processor, and the difference in taste and texture is absolutely remarkable. It makes washing the food processor worth it. Almost.

That's the extent of my conclusions for now. Stay tuned...I'm sure there will be more mind-blowing revelations to come. Until then, check out my reviews over at Pam's Pantry Reviews.

Zucchini Crunch Bars

2010-08-25T10:31:00.004-04:00

It's been way too long since I've posted anything, but vacations and relocating with two boys, a husband, and a dog will excuse the blogging absence, I hope.

This recipe is great for summer when zucchini is abundant, and it's perfect for those prodigious specimens that escape picking until they're the size of a caveman's club. I pieced together several recipes and, with some tweaking, came up with Zucchini Crunch Bars (a spin-off of my Cranberry Crunch Bars). I don't have a picture since I gave most of it away and the piece I ate was one that fell apart, but I'll be making more. I bet once you take a bit you won't be able to tell there's squash in this dessert.

Zucchini Crunch Bars

20 oz. (~ 8 cups) peeled, seeded zucchini, cut into small chunks to look like apples
2/3 cup lemon juice (bottled is fine)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 pinch ground cloves
2 pinches salt

1 Tbsp. ice
2 tsp. cornstarch

Combine zucchini, lemon juice, sugars, and spices in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, until the zucchini becomes translucent but not soft. (A knife should be able to pierce the zucchini, but there should be some resistance.) There should be a good amount of juice in the pan. Remove 3-4 Tbsp. liquid from the pan into a cup or bowl; stir in the cornstarch and ice until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour the mixture back into the pan and cook a bit longer, until the juices become thick. Set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Make the crumb topping/crust:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
1 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Melt the butter in a large bowl; then add the sugar, oats, and flour. Mix well. Sprinkle 2/3 mixture into a prepared 9x13 baking dish. Pour the zucchini mixture over the crumb topping/crust. Sprinkle the rest of the oat mixture over the top of the zucchini. Bake at 375F for 30-35 minutes or until edges are slightly brown and caramelized and the center is bubbling. Cool completely, cut into squares, and serve.

Pam's Pantry Reviews

2010-06-24T21:26:00.004-04:00

It's been a while since I've been able to post any recipes; we're getting ready to move/start a new job soon, so life is a bit hectic. (Okay, it's a bit hectic with an infant and toddler anyway, but it's even more hectic when the toddler unpacks boxes that you're packing...) Meanwhile, I wanted to share a new site with you: Pam's Pantry Reviews (http://pamspantryreviews.blogspot.com) I'm prepping quite a few products to share, so be sure to check them out!

Poppy Seed Dressing

2010-05-22T09:44:00.002-04:00

With all the fresh lettuces and veggies available now, it's definitely salad time! I don't buy salad dressing any more; I just make my own. It's (a) cheaper, (b) tastes better, (c) easier because I have the ingredients on hand, and (d) I can make as much/little as I need. This recipe is one of my favorites from a hometown cookbook. While the recipe yields a quart, you can certainly scale it down without any problems. It's a little on the sweet side, so feel free to cut down on the sugar, too. I find it gets better the longer it sits, so make some now and enjoy it in a day or two, or perhaps in a month or two. It keeps beautifully in the fridge.

Poppy Seed Dressing

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. salt
2/3 cup white vinegar
2 cups canola oil
2 Tbsp. onion, grated
3 Tbsp. poppy seeds

Yield: 1 quart

Mix (whisk together) all but oil & seeds. Add oil slowly (while whisking). Add seeds & beat well. Chill. Keeps for several weeks.

Recipe Courtesy: Triangle VFD Ladies Auxiliary Cookbook, p. 10

Daring Bakers - Tian

2010-03-27T18:33:00.000-04:00

The 2010 March Daring Baker’s challenge was hosted by Jennifer of Chocolate Shavings. She chose Orange Tian as the challenge for this month, a dessert based on a recipe from Alain Ducasse’s Cooking School in Paris.

I don't know what came over me, but I just couldn't do citrus. I didn't even do a dessert. I made something savory instead, which is totally unlike me. So, I guess I was truly a "Daring Baker" this month: Golden Beet Tian with Balsamic Gastrique. My husband wasn't a fan, but he doesn't like beets. I thought it was tasty, but I don't think I'll make this particular dish again. The flavors were good, but I'll do another combination without the Pate Sablee. (While the gastrique tasted really good, it didn't photograph well-->)

My Golden Beet Tian consisted of 4 layers: Pate Sablee, Goat Cheese Mixture, Beets, and a Balsamic Gastrique

For the Pate Sablee:
 2 egg yolks, room temperature 
6 Tbsp + 1 tsp. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup + 3 Tbsp. butter, ice cold & cubed (use unsalted if making a dessert; I used salted)
1/3 tsp. salt (I used 1/2 tsp.)
1 1/2 cups + 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder

Put the flour, baking powder, ice cold cubed butter and salt in a food processor fitted with a steel blade.
In a separate bowl, add the eggs yolks, vanilla extract and sugar and beat with a whisk until the mixture is pale. Pour the egg mixture in the food processor.
Process until the dough just comes together. If you find that the dough is still a little too crumbly to come together, add a couple drops of water and process again to form a homogenous ball of dough. Form into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Preheat your oven to 350F.
Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface until you obtain a ¼ inch thick circle.
Using a large cookie cutter (mine was almost 4"), cut out circles of dough and place on a parchment (or silicone) lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes or until the circles of dough are just golden.

For the Goat Cheese Mixture (rough estimates...I didn't measure):
2 oz. goat cheese
1 oz mascarpone cheese
1 Tbsp. heavy cream

Mix thoroughly, adding more cream or milk if needed to thin to spreading consistency.

For the Beets:
Bunch of Golden Beets, tops cut off & beets washed, lightly oiled & generously seasoned with salt & pepper.

Roast beets in 400F oven until tender. Peel & slice thinly, ~1/8 inch.

For the Balsamic Gastrique:
Equal parts balsamic vinegar & granulated sugar. I used 1/4 cup each.

Combine in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low. Simmer until reduced and thickened to desired consistency.

To Assemble the Tian:

Have the layer ingredients prepared and ready to use.
Arrange the beets at the bottom of each cookie cutter. Make sure the slices all touch either and that there are no gaps. Make sure they fit snuggly and look pretty as they will end up being the top. Arrange them as you would sliced apples when making an apple tart.
Next, top with a couple spoonfuls of the goat cheese mixture, gently spreading it so that it fills the cookie cutter in an even layer.
Carefully place a circle of Pate Sablee over each ring. Gently press on the circle of dough to make sure the dessert is compact.
(Note: If the dough does not fit, use a microplane grater to gently 'file' down the edges until you have the correct size.)

Using a small knife, gently go around the edges of the cookie cutter to make sure it will be easy to unmold. Gently place your serving plate on top of an unmolded tian (on top of the circle of dough) and turn the plate over. Gently remove the cookie cutter. Drizzle with the Balsamic Gastrique and serve immediately.

Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli

2010-03-05T09:23:00.006-05:00

So the menu for dinner was Italian, and I needed a veggie side. I remembered that I had some pre-cut broccoli florets in the fridge, and I also remembered I'd seen Ina Garten roast broccoli. After a quick recipe search (with some adaptations, of course), the broccoli was in the oven, and we were treated to a delicious new side dish. I was really pleased with this dish, and friends with whom we shared the meal also raved about it. That's why I'm sharing it here - it's definitely a keeper.

Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli

2 to 2.5 pounds broccoli (or ~24 oz. florets)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced (or 1-2 tsp. minced garlic)
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
~1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (~1 large lemon)
~2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (~1/2 large lemon)
Parmesan or Romano cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks. Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 4 cups of florets. Place the broccoli florets in a large bowl and toss with a few tablespoons of olive oil, garlic, and salt & pepper to taste. Pour broccoli mixture onto a sheet pan large enough to hold it in a single layer. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.

Remove the broccoli from the oven and immediately toss with the lemon zest and lemon juice*. Use a vegetable peeler and shave the Parmesan or Romano cheese over the broccoli. Serve hot.

*If desired, you can also add nuts to this recipe. Add 2-3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts or slivered/sliced almonds when you add the lemon zest & juice just before serving.

Adapted from Ina Garten

Daring Bakers - Tiramisu

2010-02-27T22:14:00.024-05:00

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession. (And, I'm actually posting on time...it's a miracle.)

It's hard for me to believe that the tiramisu as we know it today, was born in the 1970s. Somehow, I thought it had been around at least 100 years. I guess people had more important things to do 100 years ago than stand around a kitchen all day long to make this labor intensive, yet luciously decadent "pick-me-up" dessert.

Yes, I said labor intensive. Especially if you do the 'real' thing and don't take shortcuts. The challenge was to make your own savoiardi (ladyfingers) and marscapone cheese. The tiramisu also involved making your own zabaglione and pastry cream. Since we'd already made ladyfingers once, and I knew where I could buy some ready-made, I used those instead. [Sorry, I have two small children and a life....something had to give.]

I did make the marscapone, and I'm glad to have the recipe since I often can't find it in the grocery store. I used ultra-pasturized heavy cream (not recommended) mixed with some whole milk; it was a bit loose, but it seemed to work okay. The zabaglione was really tasty, but since it was so lemony, I omitted the lemon from the pastry cream.

My overall opinion: the 'parts' all tasted really good on their own - as a whole, the flavor was quite good, but the tiramisu was the lightest I've ever eaten. In fact, I think it was too light. I'm glad I didn't add the lemon zest to the pastry cream; it would have been too overwhelming. It may have been that the marscapone was too loose, but it the finished product just wasn't firmed-up enough for my taste. After all, with all those eggs & cream, I was expecting something more filling. I dusted the top with dutch-process cocoa powder, and if I make this again, I think I'll dust the top of each ladyfinger layer with it since it worked well with the coffee. However, I'll definitely be altering the rest of the recipe before I make it again.

Ok folks, this is a long one (my changes in italics):

TIRAMISU

(Recipe source: Carminantonio's Tiramisu from The Washington Post, July 11 2007 )
This recipe makes 6 servings (I doubled everything for a 9x13 dish)

Ingredients:
For the zabaglione:
2 large egg yolks
3 Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup Marsala wine (or port or coffee)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

For the vanilla pastry cream:
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest (I omitted)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup whole milk

For the whipped cream:
1 cup chilled heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

To assemble the tiramisu:
2 cups brewed espresso, warmed
1 tsp rum extract (optional) (I omitted)
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (I used 4 packs)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (I used dutch-process)

Method:

For the zabaglione:
Heat water in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.
In a large mixing bowl (or stainless steel mixing bowl), mix together the egg yolks, sugar, the Marsala (or espresso/coffee), vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.
Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/ pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard. It may bubble a bit as it reaches that consistency.
Let cool to room temperature and transfer the zabaglione to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the pastry cream:
Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest (optional) and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. To this add the egg yolk and half the milk. Whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don’t worry. You can push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.)
Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the whipped cream:
Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.

To assemble the tiramisu:
Have ready a rectangular serving dish (about 8" by 8" should do; double ingredients for a 9x13) or one of your choice.
Mix together the warm espresso, rum extract (optional) and sugar in a shallow dish, whisking to mix well. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth. This will make it easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set this cream mixture aside.

Now to start assembling the tiramisu.
Workings quickly, dip 12 of the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered.
Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.
Repeat to create 2 more layers, using 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.
To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder using a fine-mesh strainer or decorate as you please. Cut into individual portions and serve.

Butternut Squash Soup

2010-02-09T08:40:00.001-05:00

Butternut squash is such a versatile veggie, good for roasting, pureeing, and, of course, being made into a velvety soup. America's Test Kitchen developed this recipe, and it's definitely a winner in my book. The flavor and texture are just right - not too sweet, not too squash-y. And it's a beautiful shade of orange (and I'm not just saying that because I live in TN)! This soup is perfect for a cold, wet, and/or windy day, and it's worth the little bit of effort it takes to make it. It's a delicious way to use up any squash you may have stashed in your pantry.

Butternut Squash Soup

4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2-3 Tbsp. grated onion (use 1 large shallot if you've got it)
3 pounds butternut squash (~1 large), cut in half lengthwise, then each half cut in half widthwise; seeds and fibers scraped out and reserved
6 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
pinch grated nutmeg (optional)

Melt butter in a large, heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium-low heat until foaming. Add the shallot/onion and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the seeds and fibers from the squash and cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter turns a saffron color, about 4 minutes.

Add the water and 1 teaspoon salt to the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, place squash cut-side down in a steamer basket and lower into the pot. Cover and steam squash until completely tender, about 30 minutes. Take the pot off the heat and transfer the squash to a rimmed baking sheet to cool. When cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh from the skin into a bowl. (Discard the skin.)

Strain the steaming liquid through a mesh strainer into another bowl (or large measuring cup). You should have 2.5-3 cups liquid. Discard the fibers & seeds.

Puree the squash in batches in a blender, pulsing on low and adding enough reserved liquid to obtain a smooth consistency. Transfer the puree back into the stockpot and stir in the remaining liquid (until desired consistency is reached), cream, and brown sugar. Warm the soup over medium-low heat until hot (do not boil). Stir in nutmeg (if using) and adjust the seasonings. Serve immediately.

Adapted from Cooking at Home with America's Test Kitchen (2006)

Pork Tinga with Potatoes & Fresh Cheese

2010-02-03T08:03:00.001-05:00

I'm a big fan of cooking shows on PBS. Our local station airs quite a variety, and just recently I've discovered Rick Bayless' Mexico - One Plate at a Time. I love Mexican food, so of course I was intrigued. Rick shows the origins of the food he makes (shot on-site in Mexico), then returns to his home in Chicago to recreate the dishes. Since this one was made in the slow cooker and didn't have any 'exotic' ingredients (i.e., I actually had all the ingredients already), I had to try it. I'd never even heard of tinga before, but this recipe yields melt-in-your-mouth pork and potatoes covered in a deeply flavored tomato sauce that is excellent with corn tortillas. It's the 'least effort for the most flavor' dish I've ever made. It may not photograph very well, but it is simply delicioso.

Pork Tinga with Potatoes & Fresh Cheese

1 Tablespoon canola or olive oil
1 pound lean, boneless pork shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
4 ounces chorizo sausage, removed from its casing (optional - I left this out)
4 to 5 medium (about 3/4 pound total) red-skinned potatoes, chopped into ~3/4-inch cubes
1 large white or yellow onion, sliced 1/4–inch thick
1 garlic clove, minced
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, in juice (preferably fire-roasted)
2 to 3 canned chipotle chiles, en adobo, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon chipotle canning sauce
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
Salt
For serving:
About 1/2 cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco or other fresh cheese like salted pressed farmers cheese
Sour cream
1 ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin and diced (optional)
Warm corn tortillas (wrap ~10 corn tortillas in a heavily damp paper towel and microwave for 1 minute, then place in tortilla warmer or wrap in a clean kitchen towel)

Directions:

Heat the oil in a stovetop-rated slow cooker* liner over medium-high heat. (If your slow cooker liner isn’t made from a material that can be used on a stovetop, use a very large (12-inch) non-stick skillet.) Once the oil is very hot, add the pork and chorizo (if using) in an single layer and cook, stirring until the meat has browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat and if you’re using a skillet, transfer the meat and its juices into the slow cooker. Add the potatoes.

In a large bowl, combine the onions, garlic, tomatoes, chipotles, adobo sauce, Worcestershire, oregano and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Pour mixture into the slow cooker and stir to mix thoroughly. Cook for 6 hours at the highest temperature.
After six hours, gently stir the tinga. If the sauce seems too thick, stir in a little water. Taste, and season with salt if you think the dish needs it.

*For stove-top cooking, brown the meat in a large, heavy-bottomed pot (i.e., Dutch oven). Add remaining ingredients to the pot as directed for slow-cooker. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then lower the heat. Simmer for ~2 to 2 1/2 hours.

Scoop into a large bowl. Serve with warm tortillas and queso fresco, sour cream, & avocado (if using) on the side.

Recipe adapted from Rick Bayless' Mexico - One Plate at a Time, Season 7

Daring Bakers - Nanaimo Bars

2010-01-31T22:19:00.014-05:00

The January 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca.

This month's challenge was my first one in quite a while, and, well...I cheated, not to mention that I'm posting late. I didn't get a chance to make the graham wafers (and couldn't have done the gluten-free version anyway since I couldn't find the flours I needed in one store and wasn't going to haul a toddler & infant all over town to find what I needed). So, I used pre-made graham wafers in the Nanaimo Bars. I did, however, gain a better understanding of how much of a pain-in-the-rear cooking and baking are for those who must adhere to a gluten-free diet. (And also how expensive it is...non-wheat flours are pricy!) I do want to make the graham wafers (using whole wheat pastry flour) since I cannot find a brand in the store that doesn't have high fructose corn syrup as an ingredient. I'll post it here when I do make them, but meanwhile, on to the Nanaimo Bars.

My ~~guinea pigs~~ guests, loved these. They are very rich due to all the butter. I thought they were good, but they weren't outstanding. The bottom layer was my favorite part. I'm glad I toasted the coconut and almonds, but I think the ratios should have been reversed. In fact, if I had doubled the amounts for the bottom layer (except the coconut) and just left it at that, I think I would have liked them much better. My husband wasn't a huge fan either, so the plan is to re-work the recipe and make it minty (and without the coconut, of course). Here's the recipe as I made it.

Nanaimo Bars

For Bottom Layer 
1/2 cup unsalted Butter 
1/4 cup granulated Sugar 
5 Tablespoons unsweetened Cocoa 
1 large egg, beaten 
1 1/4 cups Graham Wafer Crumbs (about 8 pre-made whole crackers) 
1/2 cup almonds, finely chopped (I used slivered & toasted them) 
1 cup coconut, shredded (I used sweetened & toasted it)

For Middle Layer 
1/2 cup unsalted butter 
2 Tablespoons and 2 teaspoons heavy cream 
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Custard Powder (Such as Bird’s. Vanilla pudding mix may be substituted - I used SF French Vanilla) 
2 cups icing/confectioner's sugar

For Top Layer 
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate 
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions

1. For bottom Layer: Melt unsalted butter, sugar and cocoa in top of a double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, nuts and coconut. Press firmly into an ungreased 8 by 8 inch pan. 
2. For Middle Layer: Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light in colour. Spread over bottom layer. (Chill thoroughly.)
3. For Top Layer: Melt chocolate and unsalted butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, spread over middle layer and chill.

Two-Toned Fudge

2010-01-22T10:42:00.002-05:00

I know the holidays are over. Resolutions have been made. And broken. Or some perhaps kept thus far. But you really should try this fudge.

It's a classic combo of chocolate and peanut butter, so you know it's going to be delicious. I also really liked the texture of the fudge; the chocolate part melts in your mouth while the peanut butter layer has a bit more 'chew' to it. You could call this Reese's PB Cup Fudge I suppose. If you're a fudge lover, nota bene - this is addictive. Just make it for a gathering, and you'll be good to go.

Two Toned Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

1 cup peanut butter chips
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (I used semisweet)
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 7 ounce jar marshmallow cream
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Line an 8" X 8" pan with foil.

In 2 separate heat-safe medium bowls, place 1 cup peanut butter chips in one and chocolate chips in the other.

In a heavy 3 quart sauce pan, combine sugar, marshmallow creme, evaporated milk and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil and stir 5 minutes. Remove from heat and quickly stir in vanilla.

Working safely, but quickly, stir one-half of the hot mixture into peanut butter chips and the other half into the chocolate chips. Stir the peanut butter mixture until fully melted and quickly pour into prepared pan.

Stir the chocolate chips mixture until fully melted and carefully spread over top of peanut butter layer.

Let sit at room temperature until completely cool. Cut into small squares.

Recipe from Culinary in the Desert

Best Granola Ever

2010-01-11T11:54:00.016-05:00

I did not grow up being a fan of granola. Nor do I particularly like the stuff you can buy in the store. But this. Oh, this granola is wonderful. It's not too sweet, has just the right amount of crunch/chew, and it's great on its own, with milk or yogurt, or as a topping for just about anything. I adapted the original recipe a bit, and for our family, it's just perfect. Feel free to change up the fruit or nuts to whatever suits your taste.

Best Granola Ever

1/2 cup honey (if you are using a honey that has crystallized, just melt it for a few seconds)
1/3 cup canola oil
6 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 1/4 cups chopped nuts of your choice ( I use equal parts walnuts & slivered almonds)
1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
1/4 cup dried apricots, chopped (~6 apricots)
1/4 cup prunes chopped (~8 prunes)
1/4 cup golden raisins

Preheat oven to 350° and line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment or a silpat

Combine the honey, oil, water and vanilla, set aside.
Toss together all of the dry ingredients except the dried fruits.

Add the honey mixture and toss/stir until the oats are well covered.

Spread the granola over two rimmed baking sheets in a thin, even layer.

Total baking time will be 25-30 minutes. After 10 minutes toss the granola with a spoon or spatula and rotate the trays from top to bottom so they both bake evenly. Check again after another 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on it as it starts to turn brown so it doesn’t over bake. It will be a deep golden brown when it is done.

Allow the granola to cool on cooling rack and then put in a large bowl and add the dried fruit.

Recipe adapted from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day

Sweet Potato Coffee Cake

2009-12-30T08:23:00.000-05:00

I found this particular recipe over at Baking Bites. When I bake sweet potatoes, I always have some leftover. Now I have a perfect use for them in this coffee cake. I really like the combination of spices in the streusel; the cardamom is a really nice touch but it doesn't overpower the rest of the cake. I'm sure you could also make this with canned pumpkin puree and have great results, too. In fact, I only had 1/2 cup sweet potato, so I used pumpkin as well. I also added some more dried cranberries since they're a nice surprise when you take a bite.

Sweet Potato Coffee Cake with Dried Cranberries

Streusel
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp ground ginger
1/3 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp vanilla

Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pureed sweet potatoes (cooked, unseasoned; fresh or canned)
or 1/2 cup sweet potatoes & 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
or 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease a 9-in square pan. (Double the recipe for a 9x13 pan)

In a medium bowl, mix together all topping ingredients on low speed - or stir very well by hand - until moist, sandy crumbs are formed. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter until light. Beat the eggs, adding them one at a time until mixture is smooth, then blend in the vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Mix in the pureed sweet potatoes (and/or pumpkin, if using).
Gradually stir flour mixture into the sweet potato mixture, stirring only until everything is incorporated and no streaks of flour remain visible. Stir in dried cranberries and scrape batter into prepared pan.
Top batter with streusel mixture, generously sprinkling it into as even a layer as possible.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool before serving.

Recipe adapted from Baking Bites

Yuletide Toffee Bars

2009-12-23T08:23:00.003-05:00

I suppose these toffee bars are intended to be similar to a Heath Bar or Skor, but I personally don't see the resemblance. However, I do think they're wonderful to munch and simple to make. I used toasted, chopped almonds in mine, but use whatever nuts you prefer. The folks at King Arthur Flour ended up with 96 pieces from this recipe; I ended up with more like 24. Whatever the size, you'll probably want to eat another one. :)

Yuletide Toffee Bars

4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
~1 cup chopped almonds, toasted

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Lightly grease a 15 x 10-inch pan.

Combine the oats, sugar, butter, corn syrup, vanilla and salt and mix well. Press the mixture into the pan, using your lightly greased hands to help the process along.

Bake the squares for 12 to 15 minutes, or until they're a light golden brown. Remove them from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.

In a medium saucepan set over very low heat, melt the chocolate and shortening together, stirring constantly until smooth. Spread the mixture evenly over the oat base and sprinkle on the chopped nuts. Cover very loosely and chill the squares in the refrigerator until the chocolate is firm. Remove from the refrigerator and cut into squares.*

*Note: The KAF folks state, "The easiest way to do this is to use a chef's knife to cut the bars into long strips while they're still in the pan and then transfer each long strip to a cutting board to cut into bite-sized pieces. Yield: 96 small pieces (but feel free to cut them into whatever size works best for you)."

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour

Peanut Brittle

2009-12-20T20:21:00.017-05:00

'Tis the season for baking and candy-making. I usually do lots of cookie and cake baking around the holidays, but I decided to go the candy route this year. I'd never made Peanut Brittle before, but it turned out to be a lot more simple than I thought! (No candy thermometer required!) This recipe actually comes from my Sunday School teacher when I was ~5 years old, so I'm pretty sure it's tried and true. The original recipe is below; my comments are in italics. Just be sure you (1) are giving it as a gift or (2) have a good hiding place for this because it's highly addictive. Now excuse me while I go hide the rest of this batch from my husband.

Peanut Brittle

2 cups sugar
1 cup white syrup (light corn syrup)
3 cups raw peanuts
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda (baking soda)

Grease two baking pans or line with a silicone baking mat.

Slowly heat sugar with syrup until melted over medium-low heat in a heavy-bottomed, large pot. Bring to a boil and add peanuts. Cook until golden brown, stirring constantly. (This will probably take ~15-20 minutes). Add salt and soda; stir (be careful - it will foam up!), then pour on greased pans while forming. You want a single layer of peanuts if possible, so use your stirring utensil to spread out the mixture into an even layer. Let it cool completely and break into pieces.

Cranberry Crunch Bars (Updated)

2009-12-06T08:04:00.001-05:00

I first posted this recipe back in 2006, and I thought it would be good to do a quick update since I continue to make this easy and delicious treat. This is one of absolute favorite desserts. The original recipe only made an 8x8 pan, so this version is for a 9x13 pan (and more is always better)! I buy bags of whole cranberries when they're available and toss them into the freezer so I can make this any time of the year. Oh, and if you have any left over, wrap them in plastic wrap and stash in the freezer; they'll last a couple months and make great snacks.

Cranberry Crunch Bars

Filling:
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch (heaping)
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
12 oz. fresh or frozen cranberries, rinsed & picked over
3/4 cup raisins

Combine sugar, cornstarch, water, vanilla, cranberries, and raisins in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 5-7 minutes, until the cranberrries have popped and the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Crumb Topping:
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Mix oats, brown sugar, flour, and melted butter until combined. Sprinkle 2/3 of the crumbs in bottom of a greased 9x13-inch pan. Spread cranberry filling over the crumbs, and top with the remaining crumbs. Bake at 375F for 30-35 minutes or until edges are slightly brown and caramelized and the center is bubbling. Cool completely, cut into squares, and serve.

Pumpkin Chess Bars

2009-11-24T09:05:00.000-05:00

If you want an alternative to the traditional Pumpkin Pie for Thanksgiving, this recipe is for you. It's a variation on the Chess Bars I've posted earlier. The taste is similar to Pumpkin Pie, but the texture is a bit firmer, and the crust is thicker, too. Paula Deen makes many variations on these "Gooey Bars," but I haven't tried the others yet. I adjusted the amount of nutmeg, but everything else is pretty much the same. They're really a pleasant change for the holidays.

Pumpkin Chess Bars

Crust:
1 box yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) butter, melted

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) butter, melted
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 to 3/4 tsp. nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 baking pan.

To make the filling: In a the same bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the center is mostly set.

If desired, serve with whipped cream.

Recipe adapted from Paula Deen

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

2009-11-06T09:40:00.000-05:00

Within the last few years, I've discovered that I love cranberries. I've always liked cranberry sauce, but I've been trying more and more recipes that include the tart little fruit. This one happens to be one of my favorites, and since cranberries freeze so well, it can be enjoyed any time of the year. You may think that you can get away with using a boxed cake mix and just making the topping, but please don't yield to that temptation. The results are FAR from spectacular. Go ahead, make it from scratch. Just this once. Please? You'll be glad you did.

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

Topping:

5 Tbsp. (1/3 cup) unsalted butter
2/3 cup light brown sugar
8 ounces (2 1/4 cups) fresh cranberries

Cake Batter:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350 F and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter (or spray) a 9-inch round cake pan. (I used a 9" square pan, and it worked just fine.)

Topping: Place the butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan and stir over medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Continue cooking for a few more minutes until the sugar starts to caramelize. Then remove from heat, and pour into your prepared cake pan. Sprinkle evenly with the cranberries. (Note: If you use frozen cranberries the cake will take a little longer to bake than if you are using fresh cranberries.)

Cake Batter: In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour mixture (in three additions), alternately with the milk (in two additions), ending with the dry ingredients.

In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites with the cream of tartar just until the whites hold a firm peak. With a large spatula gently fold the beaten egg whites into the cake batter in two additions. Pour the batter into the cake pan, smoothing the top.

Bake in preheated oven for 25-35 minutes, or until the top of the cake has browned and starts to pull away from the sides of the pan. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 15 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan and then invert the cake onto your serving plate.

If desired, serve with softly whipped cream.

Recipe courtesy Joy of Baking

Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

2009-10-24T09:51:00.003-04:00

I'm not sure what could be more easy than these 'muffins'. I say 'muffins' because I thought they were more like cupcakes. Either way, they're really delicious, and a good way to sneak a veggie into an unsuspecting family member. The 'muffins' are extremely moist and tender and take no time at all to make. Perfect with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, especially when they're still warm and the chocolate chips are all gooey...mmmm. Plus, they're not too bad for you (I think it's a Weight Watcher's recipe) at around 115 calories each (~2 points). Excuse me while I go make some more. I think I'll try this method with a spice cake mix, too, perhaps with butterscotch chips...

Chocolate (Pumpkin) Muffins

1 box devils food cake mix
1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin
2 egg whites
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Mix together all ingredients. Spoon batter into lined muffin pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Makes ~24 muffins.

Recipe from Real Mom Kitchen

Turkey & Stuffing Meatloaf with Cider Gravy

2009-10-20T14:06:00.005-04:00

Before Thanksgiving arrives and you eat so much turkey that you never want to see it again, give this recipe a try. I know, I know...it's another Rachael Ray recipe. But this one is my favorite recipe I've made from her vast collection. I made it several times last year, and even my husband liked it (and he doesn't like meatloaf!). It's a nice twist on a comfort food dish that's perfect for Fall. This recipe makes quite a bit, so I shape it into 2 smaller loaves instead of one gigantic loaf. After all, leftovers are great, too! Oh, and don't forget the gravy - it's what 'makes' the meatloaf.

Turkey & Stuffing Meatloaf (Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray)

2 McIntosh or Gala apples, peeled and cut into small dice
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 pounds ground all-white-meat turkey or a mix of dark and white meat
3-4 ribs of celery, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. poultry seasoning
1 large egg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups stuffing mix
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Pre-heat the oven to 400F.

In a large bowl, add the apples and lemon juice and toss together. Add the turkey, celery, onion, poultry seasoning, egg, salt and freshly ground black pepper.

In a medium size bowl, add the stock and the stuffing. Toss around, letting the stuffing soak up the liquid, then add it to the bowl with the turkey. Mix everything together well, then turn it out onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and shape it into 2 loaves. Coat with EVOO (I used a spray), transfer to the oven and roast until brown and cooked through, about an hour.

Cider Gravy (Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray)

4 Tbsp. butter
4 Tbsp. flour
2 cups apple cider
2 cups chicken stock
Salt and ground black pepper

In a skillet over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour, cook 1 minute then whisk in the cider and stock. Let thicken, season with salt and pepper, then serve.

Fudge Icing (or Candy)

2009-10-16T20:59:00.003-04:00

Some families have recipes that are the highlight of every get-together. Often they've been passed down from generation to generation, and sometimes there are some tricks that are lost along the way that contribute to specific results. This is one of those recipes. I know my great-grandmother used to make this icing, and she was so good at it, she could pour it over (& between) a two-layer yellow cake. My dad has championed mastering of the recipe, but results have been varied - depending on the weather, etc. I've made it several times, with fairly consistent results, and I'm happy to post the recipe that we use on a 9x13 yellow sheet cake. It make take some practice, but this icing is totally worth it. Actually, it's worth it whether you put it on a cake or not. :) *Note, the texture is the key. If it cracks when you cut into it, you've probably got it right (though it will be messy); you can always score it before slicing for cleaner edges.

Fudge Icing (or Candy)

2 cups granulated sugar
3 Tbsp. Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder (heaping)
1/2 cup milk
1 4-oz. stick margarine (I use BlueBonnet)
2 tsp. vanilla
dash salt
2 Tbsp. karo Syrup (light or dark) (I use light)

Mix the cocoa and sugar together first in a 3-quart saucepan, then add the milk and mix thoroughly. Chop up the margarine into small lumps and add to the sugar-cocoa mixture. Cook over medium heat until the margarine melts and the mixture begins to boil and bubble.

Once it boils, wait for 3 minutes then start to test in cold water. When a few drops forms a firm ball in the bowl of cold water it is done. (Usually 8-10 minutes of boiling is enough.) [I've found that cooking it, using a candy thermometer, until it reaches 170 F yields good results.] Set the pan off the heat. (Original directions say to put the pan in a pan of water until the bottom of the pan thickens, but I skip this step). Pour over the cake quickly or pour into a greased dish to harden. Let cool completely before cutting/serving.

He's Here!

2009-10-15T16:07:00.003-04:00

Actually, he's been here for almost two weeks. And we're loving having a new member in our family. :)

I've got several new recipes to post, some of which are from last fall. But, they're good ones! Be sure to check back in coming weeks for fall yumminess.

Meanwhile, I'm going to go kiss those cute little fingers.

Apple Dumplings

2009-10-04T16:12:00.002-04:00

It's apple season! And, if you're looking for a quick, easy, and tasty dessert, this is for you! I saw the recipe on the Pioneer Woman's blog and tried it while I had family in for the week. I wouldn't be surprised if Paula Deen had something to do with the recipe development due to the copious amounts of butter and sugar. I decided to scale it down a bit, so here's my modified version. It's still not low-cal, but it's more pleasing to my palette.

Apple Dumplings

2 Granny Smith apples
2 cans crescent rolls
2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoons vanilla
cinnamon
1 small can Mountain Dew

Peel and core apples. Cut apples into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan. Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

Recipe adapted from Ree Drummond

Spinach & Fruit Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

2009-09-21T11:00:00.001-04:00

I wanted to share one more summery recipe before Fall began. It's a refreshing spinach salad, and the balsamic vinaigrette is really delicious paired with the fruit and almonds. I've made it several times this summer. Even though fresh strawberries aren't available year-round, this vinaigrette would be great at any time.

Spinach & Fruit Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

~10 oz. fresh spinach (baby spinach probably works better here)
~ 1 quart fresh strawberries, hulled & sliced (I use my egg slicer for this)
1 large can mandarin oranges, drained
~1 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. dried tarragon
1/8 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
dash dry mustard

Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl. Combine dressing ingredients in a jar; shake until well blended. When ready to serve, drizzle dressing over the salad and toss lightly.

Recipe adapted from Southern Food at About.com

Mango-Strawberry Sorbet Torte

2009-09-18T13:07:00.000-04:00

Before it gets too cool outside, I wanted to share this recipe. It is a great summertime dessert. And, it's simple. I'm sure any flavored sorbet would do, but the strawberry & mango made a great tropical combination. The original directions included lime juice in the whipped cream 'frosting', but I opted to just zest part of a lime over the top before serving instead. I'm glad I did because the lime would have been too overpowering. There's a picture with the original recipe (see link below); my version disappeared before I could get a snapshot. So, give this one a try. You can even make it up to 3 weeks ahead of time and keep it in the freezer until needed.

Mango-Strawberry Sorbet Torte

Cake
1 box white cake mix
Water, vegetable oil and egg whites called for on cake mix box
1 pint (2 cups) mango sorbet, softened
1 pint (2 cups) strawberry sorbet, softened

Frosting
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Garnish, if desired, with lime zest and/or fresh strawberries

1. Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Spray bottom only of 15x10x1-inch pan with baking spray with flour. Line with waxed paper; spray waxed paper.
2. In large bowl, make cake mix as directed on box, using water, oil and egg whites. Pour into pan. Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan to cooling rack; remove waxed paper. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
3. Cut cake crosswise into 3 equal sections. On long serving platter, place 1 section, rounded side down. Spread mango sorbet evenly over top. Place another cake section onto the sorbet; press down. Spread with strawberry sorbet. Top with remaining cake section; press down. Cover lightly; freeze about 2 hours or until firm.
4. In large bowl, beat frosting ingredients with electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Frost sides and top of torte. Freeze about 1 hour or until firm. Just before serving, garnish top with lime zest and strawberries.

To serve, let stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Cut torte in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise 7 times to make a total of 16 slices.

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker

Blueberry Scones

2009-09-14T08:57:00.003-04:00

This recipe hails from America's Test Kitchen, and it's so simple you should go immediately make some to stash in the freezer and pull out any time to bake for breakfast or brunch. They are really delicious and don't need any condiments to accompany them as normal scones do - like lemon curd, clotted cream, or jam. (However, any of these would be great with them; they're just not necessary.)

I adjusted the amount of fruit used because the dough is too yummy to be crowded out by all those berries. These would work well with any berry, but if using strawberries, be prepared for a slightly longer baking time since they have more moisture in them. If you don't have any lemons to zest, it's okay - they're still really good. Oh, and I cut them into 16 triangles instead of 8 for better portion size.

Blueberry Scones

16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), frozen whole (will only use 10 Tbsp)
~ 1 cup fresh blueberries, picked over (can use frozen, but do not thaw!)
1/2 cup whole milk (2% works just fine)
1/2 cup sour cream (low fat also works, just not fat-free)
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces), plus additional for work surface
1/2 cup sugar (3 1/2 ounces), plus 1 tablespoon for sprinkling
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Score and remove half of wrapper from each stick of frozen butter. Grate unwrapped ends on large holes of box grater (you should grate total of 8 tablespoons). Place grated butter in freezer until needed. Melt 2 tablespoons of remaining ungrated butter and set aside. Save remaining 6 tablespoons butter for another use. Place blueberries in freezer until needed.

2. Whisk together milk and sour cream in medium bowl; refrigerate until needed. Whisk flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest in medium bowl. Add frozen butter to flour mixture and toss with fingers until thoroughly coated.

3. Add milk mixture to flour mixture; fold with spatula until just combined. With rubber spatula, transfer dough to liberally floured work surface. Dust surface of dough with flour; with floured hands, knead dough 6 to 8 times, until it just holds together in ragged ball, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking.

4. Roll dough into approximate 12-inch square. Fold dough into thirds like a business letter, using bench scraper or metal spatula to release dough if it sticks to countertop. Lift short ends of dough and fold into thirds again to form approximate 4-inch square. Transfer dough to plate lightly dusted with flour and chill in freezer 5 minutes.

5. Transfer dough to floured work surface and roll into approximate 12-inch square again. Sprinkle blueberries evenly over surface of dough, then press down so they are slightly embedded in dough. Using bench scraper or thin metal spatula, loosen dough from work surface. Roll dough, pressing to form tight log. Lay seam-side down and press log into 12 by 4-inch rectangle. Using sharp, floured knife, cut rectangle crosswise into 4 equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally to form 2 triangles (and then cut each triangle in half to make 16 triangles) and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheet.

6. Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon sugar. Bake until tops and bottoms are golden brown, 18 to 25 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool 10 minutes before serving.

It is important to work the dough as little as possible—work quickly and knead and fold the dough only the number of times called for. The butter should be frozen solid before grating. In hot or humid environments, chill the flour mixture and workbowls before use. While the recipe calls for 2 whole sticks of butter, only 10 tablespoons are actually used (see step 1). If fresh berries are unavailable, an equal amount of frozen berries (do not defrost) can be substituted. An equal amount of raspberries, blackberries, or strawberries can be used in place of the blueberries. Cut larger berries into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces before incorporating. Refrigerate or freeze leftover scones, wrapped in foil, in an airtight container. To serve, remove foil and place scones on a baking sheet in a 375-degree oven. Heat until warmed through and recrisped, 8 to 10 minutes if refrigerated, 16 to 20 minutes if frozen. See final step for information on making the scone dough in advance.

To Make Ahead:
After placing the scones on the baking sheet, either refrigerate them overnight or freeze. When ready to bake, for refrigerated scones, heat oven to 425 degrees and follow directions in step 6. For frozen scones, heat oven to 375 degrees, follow directions in step 6, and extend cooking time to 25 to 30 minutes.

Recipe adapted from America's Test Kitchen

Samoas Bars

2009-09-08T16:07:00.000-04:00

These bars have been bookmarked in my del.icio.us account for quite a while. I finally decided to make them last weekend to take to Sunday School. I didn't get a chance to ask what others thought of them, but I thought they were pretty tasty (and I don't even like coconut!). I ended up making a mess when I tried to dip the bottom of these in the melted chocolate, so I used my small offset spatula to spread it on the bottom instead. Next time I make these, I'll omit this step and just do a heavy drizzle on top - I thought the chocolate overpowered everything else when it was on top & bottom. Just use about half the chocolate called for in the recipe.

Oh, and toasting the coconut took a lot longer than 20 minutes for me, but I keep my coconut in the freezer. Thaw it first and it shouldn't take nearly as long to get golden.

Homemade Samoas Bars

Cookie Base:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust.
Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk

10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.
Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.
When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).
Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.
Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes 30 bar cookies.

Recipe adapted from Baking Bites

Soft Pretzels

2009-09-03T13:16:00.001-04:00

Once I saw these on Smitten Kitchen, I immediately started craving the soft, warm goodness that is soft pretzels. I finally got around to making them, and I was very pleased with the results. Eating one of these while it's still warm was amazing. I used kosher salt and oversalted them a bit, but I didn't mind because I like my pretzels salty. They aren't the prettiest things in the world (I'll have to work on that), but oh my were they tasty. And easy. Just a bit time consuming. But very worth it.

Soft Pretzels

2 cups warm water (100°F to 110°F)
1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons canola or other neutral oil
1/4 cup baking soda
1 large egg
Coarse or pretzel salt

Vegetable-oil cooking spray

1. Pour warm water and 1 tablespoon sugar into bowl of electric mixer fitted with a dough hook and stir to combine. Sprinkle with yeast, and let sit 10 minutes; yeast should be foamy.

2. Add 1 cup flour to yeast, and mix on low until combined. Add salt and 4 cups more flour, and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat on medium-low until dough pulls away from sides of bowl, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add another 1/2 cup flour, and knead on low 1 minute more. If dough is still wet and sticky, add 1/2 cup more flour (this will depend on weather conditions); knead until combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a lightly floured board, and knead about ten times, or until smooth.

3. Pour oil into a large bowl; swirl to coat sides. Transfer dough to bowl, turning dough to completely cover all sides. Cover with a kitchen towel, and leave in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.

4. Heat oven to 450°F. Lightly spray two baking sheets with cooking spray (parchment paper, ungreased, also works). Set aside. Punch down dough to remove bubbles. Transfer to a lightly floured board. Knead once or twice, divide into 16 pieces (about 2 1/2 ounces each) or 32 if making miniature pretzels, and wrap in plastic.

5. Roll one piece of dough at a time into an 18-inch-long strip. [I find the pretzels much easier to roll on an unfloured board, oddly enough, but see what works for you.] Twist into pretzel shape; transfer to prepared baking sheet. Cover with a kitchen towel. Continue to form pretzels; eight will fit on each sheet (you may need a third sheet if making miniatures). Let pretzels rest until they rise slightly, about 15 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, fill large, shallow pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Add baking soda (and step back, it foams up quickly) and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Reduce to a simmer; transfer three to four pretzels to water. Poach 1 minute on each side. Use slotted spoon to transfer pretzels to baking sheet. Continue until all pretzels are poached.

7. Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush pretzels with egg glaze. Sprinkle with salt. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on wire rack, or eat warm. Pretzels are best when eaten the same day, but will keep at room temperature, uncovered, for two days. Do not store in covered container or they will become soggy.

Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

Daring Bakers - Dobos Torte

2009-08-27T17:08:00.007-04:00

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful
of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos
Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite
Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

This multi-layer sponge cake, filled with dark chocolate buttercream & topped with thin wedges of caramel, was rather time consuming to put together. Actually, assembly went pretty quickly; getting everything ready took longer than I'd planned. However, the result was a decadent dessert. I probably won't be making it again, at least not without some shortcuts. I liked the delicate sponge cake layers, but I could definitely do without the caramel on top. The citrus just didn't do it for me. In place of the buttercream, I think Nutella would be a fine (& much speedier- and perhaps healthier?) substitute. :)

So, on to the recipe(s) and assembly instructions. (By the way, I weighed out my ingredients instead of using volumetric measurements. My caramel still ended up being somewhat soft, but it was a really humid day.)

Sponge cake layers

6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups (162g) confectioner's sugar, divided
1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (112g) sifted cake flour
pinch of salt

Directions for the sponge layers: (can be made in advance & stored b/w parchment in sealed container in the fridge overnight)

Position the racks in the top and center thirds of the oven and heat to 400F (200C). Trace six 9" circles (using a cake pan as a template) onto parchment paper, and turn them over so the ink is underneath. Lightly spray the pan with cooking spray and gently press on a parchment template.
Beat the egg yolks, 2/3 cup (81g) of the confectioner's sugar, and the vanilla in a medium bowl with a mixer on high speed until the mixture is thick, pale yellow, and forms a thick ribbon when the beaters are lifted a few inches above the batter, about 3 minutes.
In another bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 2/3 cup (81g) of confectioner's sugar until the whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, stir about 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remainder, leaving a few wisps of white visible. Combine the flour and salt. Sift half the flour over the eggs, and fold in; repeat with the remaining flour. Using a small offset spatula, spread about 3/4 cup of the batter in an even layer, filling in the traced circle on one baking sheet. Bake on the top rack for 5 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed gently in the center and the edges are lightly browned. While this cake bakes, repeat the process on the other baking sheet, placing it on the center rack. When the first cake is done, move the second cake to the top rack. Invert the first cake onto a flat surface and carefully peel off the paper. Slide the cake layer back onto the paper and let stand until cool. Rinse the baking sheet under cold running water to cool, and dry it before lining with another parchment. Continue with the remaining papers and batter to make a total of six layers. (I made 7, but I accidentally burned one, so it worked in the end.) Completely cool the layers. You can trim the layers into even circles, but I skipped this step.

Chocolate Buttercream

4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (200g) caster (ultrafine or superfine white) sugar
4oz (110g) Baker's chocolate, finely chopped
2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons (250g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

Directions for the chocolate buttercream: (can also be made in advance and stored in fridge until needed)

Prepare a double-boiler: quarter-fill a large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and thickened, about five minutes. Fit bowl over the boiling water in the saucepan (water should not touch bowl) and lower the heat to a brisk simmer. Cook the egg mixture, whisking constantly, for 2-3 minutes until you see it starting to thicken a bit. Whisk in the finely chopped chocolate and cook, stirring, for a further 2-3 minutes. Scrape the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and leave to cool to room temperature. It should be quite thick and sticky in consistency. When cool, beat in the soft butter, a small piece at a time, using an electric hand mixer. You should end up with a thick, velvety chocolate buttercream. Chill while you make the caramel topping.

Caramel topping

1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultrafine white) sugar
12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
Optional: 1 tablespoon neutral oil (I used canola)

Directions for the caramel topping:

Choose the best-looking cake layer for the caramel top. Cut the cake into 12 equal wedges and form back into a circle.
Line a jellyroll pan with parchment paper and butter the paper. Place the reserved cake layer on the paper. Lightly oil a thin, sharp knife and an offset metal spatula. Stir the sugar, water, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel. Immediately pour all of the hot caramel over the cake layer. (You will likely have some leftover.) Using the offset spatula, quickly spread the caramel evenly to the edge of the cake layer. Let cool until beginning to set, about 30 seconds. Using the tip of the hot oiled knife (keep re-oiling between cutting), cut through the caramel to separate the layer into wedges. Cool completely.

Assembling the Torte

1.Divide the buttercream into six equal parts.
2.Place a dab of chocolate buttercream on the middle of a cardboard round and top with one cake layer. Spread the layer with one part of the chocolate icing. Repeat with 4 more cake layers. Spread the remaining icing on the sides of the cake.
3.Optional: press the finely chopped hazelnuts onto the sides of the cake.
4.Propping a hazelnut under each wedge so that it sits at an angle, arrange the wedges on top of the cake in a spoke pattern. Refrigerate the cake under a cake dome until the icing is set, about 2 hours. The cake cuts more cleanly when cold, but let slices come to room temperature for the best possible flavor.

Italian Dressing

2009-08-20T13:38:00.003-04:00

A while back, I found myself in need of some Italian dressing, but I didn't have any in the house. So, I searched for a version I could make myself. What a great find - I don't think I'll ever buy Italian dressing again! I keep the dry mix with my other spices and just mix up whatever I need. It's so much better than anything I could buy, and I have all the ingredients on hand anyway. Yum. This one is highly recommended. :)

Italian Dressing (Dry Mix)

1 Tbsp. garlic salt
1 Tbsp. onion powder
1 Tbsp. white sugar
2 Tbsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried basil
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1/4 tsp. celery salt
1 Tbsp. salt

In a small bowl, mix together the garlic salt, onion powder, sugar, oregano, pepper, thyme, basil, parsley, celery salt and regular salt. Store in a tightly sealed container.

To prepare dressing, whisk together 1/4 cup white vinegar, 2/3 cup canola or olive oil (or a combination), 2 Tbsp. water, 2 Tbsp. of the dry mix, and 2 Tbsp. grated parmasean cheese.

Recipe adapted from AllRecipes

Ooey Gooey Brownies

2009-07-31T12:39:00.001-04:00

This isn't really a recipe so much as it is a technique that I recently learned. It's super quick and yields ooey, gooey brownies, hence the name. They could also be called Rocky Road Brownies, I guess, but since I omitted the nuts, I'll just stick with Ooey, Gooey Brownies. :)

Ooey Gooey Brownies
(printable recipe)

1 box brownie mix (any kind will do, with or without nuts)
mini marshmallows (probably ~ 1/2 a bag)
~1/2 cup chocolate chips
~1 tsp. shortening

Bake brownies according to package directions. When almost done, sprinkle over a generous layer of mini marshmallows and put back in the oven. Remove when marshmallows are puffed and just beginning to turn brown. Cool for at least 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in 20 second intervals. When just starting to melt, add the shortening and stir until thoroughly mixed. When completely melted, drizzle over the marshmallow-covered brownies. Cool completely. Cut into squares, and serve, preferrably with some ice cold milk.

Daring Bakers - Mallows & Milan Cookies

2009-07-27T11:29:00.000-04:00

The July Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network. The rules stated that we could do one or both cookies, so I chose the easy route and only did one: Milan Cookies. (And I halved the recipe, too, since I had leftover cake in the house, too.) :)

I wasn't a big fan of these, perhaps because I was lazy and didn't make my own filling but instead spread on some Nutella. The cookies themselves were good and crunchy, but I preferred them plain. Oh, and I ended up with small, medium, and large cookies since the piping instructions were a bit vague. I ended up piping a heaping/mounded stripe of dough ~ 1/2 inch wide x 2 inches long, leaving plenty of space between. That ended up being much closer to the size of the Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies I've seen before.

Results: Glad I tried them, but probably won't be making them again.

Milan Cookies
Original recipe courtesy Gale Gand, from Food Network website. This is the recipe I used.

6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
3 egg whites (large eggs)
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. lemon extract
3/4 cup all purpose flour
Cookie filling - Nutella

1. In a mixer with paddle attachment cream the butter and the sugar.
2. Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
3. Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
4. With a small (1/4-inch) plain tip, pipe .5-inch x 2-inch sections of batter onto a silpat-lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.
6. Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie and press the flat side of a second cookie on top.
7. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

Coconut Cake

2009-07-08T14:41:00.000-04:00

I've never been too terribly fond of coconut. However, most everyone else in my family loves it. So, I finally gave in and got my grandmother's recipe for the Coconut Cake she makes every year (at least for Christmas, in addition to other holidays/family gatherings). Below is her recipe as I received it, aloing with two options for frostings. Traditionally, it's made with the 7-minute frosting. I always go the store-bought coconut route since I don't have the time or patience to grate my own coconut. She usually uses frozen shredded coconut, but I opted for the flakes purely for aesthetics.

Coconut Cake

Duncan Hines White Cake Mix
1 coconut, grated, or 2 pks. frozen coconut, thawed
Water from coconut (or 1 C. water if using frozen)
1/4 cup sugar
Coconut flavoring
Seven Minute Frosting (recipe follows)

Prepare cake mix according to package directions.
Boil water and sugar a few minutes to dissolve sugar.
Remove from heat and if using water, add a few drops of flavoring. Cool.

7-Minute Frosting (this makes enough to frost 3 layers)

3 unbeaten egg whites
2 cups sugar
dash of salt
8 Tbsp. water
3 tsp. white corn syrup [ahem, that's 1 TBSP!]
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine all EXCEPT vanilla in top of double boiler. Place over boiling water in bottom half of pan. Beat constantly with mixer while cooking. Cook about 7 minutes or until it will stand in stiff peaks. Remove from heat and beat in vanilla.

Place one layer on cake plate and punch holes in it with a tooth pick. Spoon some of the coconut syrup over layer to soak in. Spread on some of the frosting. Sprinkle coconut on layer. Repeat for other layers. Frost sides and top with frosting and coconut.

Another good, quick frosting for coconut Sheet Cake

Coconut Sour Cream Frosting

2 cups sugar
1 – 16 oz. carton sour cream
1 1/2 cups whipped topping
1 pkg. frozen coconut

Mix all together and spread on cake. NOTE: must be kept refrigerated.

Pam's Pantry: A Review

2009-07-02T16:11:00.001-04:00

No, I'm not reviewing my blog. There actually is another Pam's Pantry (http://www.pamspantry.net) that sells a variety of mixes that are "the best darn gourmet dip mixes in the country!" Pam's Pantry is a small business that began in Michigan a few years ago, and quite a while back Pam sent me some samples to review. I am deeply sorry that it has taken me so long to write about her products.

So, on to what she sent to me: Spinach Surprise, Sweet & Sassy Salsa, Bac'n & Tomato, Cheesy Garlic, and Strawberries 'N Cream.

By far, my favorite mix that she sent was the Sweet & Sassy Salsa. It was so good, I don't think this even lasted a day in my house. I'll definitely be ordering several packets of it. (And, by the way, her prices are very reasonable. Each packet is $3.50, 3 for $10, or $3 each when you order 4 or more.)

The Spinach Surprise was good, too, but it made a lot. Since I didn't have a party to take it to, it took us a while to eat it. But, it made a great veggie dip. I used fat-free sour cream and low-fat mayo, and it turned out a nice consistency.

The Cheesy Garlic tasted similar to a spread I've made using Cheese Whiz, cream cheese, garlic powder, & cayenne pepper. Great on toast or crackers.

The Bac'n & Tomato dip was not one I enjoyed. It contains imitation bacon bits (which I don't like), and the flavor of the bacon bits was too strong...tasted too 'fake' for me. However, my in-laws seemed to like it, so I left the rest with them.

The Strawberries 'N Cream was okay on bagels, as Pam suggests. I don't think I'd use it as a pie filling as recommended. The flavor was a bit too artificial for me. Again, it makes a lot (2-3 cups).

Overall, I liked the products, and I'll definitely order some salsa mix from her. Pam's suggestions for serving as well as yields for each packet are helpful in determining how to use them. I'm sure if you poured the mix in a bowl and mixed up everything, it would be quite easy to adjust the amount you make to your needs.

So Pam's Pantry, again, I am VERY sorry for taking so long to review your products, but I greatly appreciate you giving me the opportunity to try something new!

Daring Bakers - Bakewell Tart/Pudding

2009-06-27T08:38:00.001-04:00

This month's Daring Bakers' Challenge was a new one for me since I'd never heard of it before. The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.

The individual elements were pretty easy, and if you make the crust ahead of time, it's quick to assemble. (Note: I had to change the amound of liquid in the crust from 1-2 Tbsp to 6.5 Tbsp cold water to form the dough.) The tart/pudding has three main elements, and I chose to use some black currant preserves I had in the pantry instead of making my own jam. It worked so well with the almond flavor that we devoured half of it the evening I baked it. It's good at room temp, but it's delicious when it's warm. I didn't put anything else on it (like whipped cream, creme fraiche, or even powdered sugar), and I really didn't think it needed anything else. The tart is sweet enough for dessert, but it wasn't overly sweet and had a pleasing combination of textures. I'll definitely be making this one again....perhaps with a chocolate ganache instead of jam...

Bakewell Tart/Pudding (makes one 9" tart)

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry (recipe follows)
bench flour (all purpose)
1 cup jam/curd (I used black currant preserves), warmed for spreadability
Frangipane (recipe follows)
handful blanched, flaked almonds

To Assemble the Tart: Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it's overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 1/4" thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer it to the tart pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tart. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for ~30 minutes. (Be sure to watch it; mine got brown rather fast, so I turned down the oven to 375F. Gently shake it and make sure the center is set before removing from the oven.) Five minutes before the tart is done, the top will be poofy and brownish. Remove from oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the heat for the last five minutes of baking.

The finished tart will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm, with crème fraîche, whipped cream or custard sauce if you wish.

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry

8 oz all purpose flour
1 oz sugar (I used vanilla sugar)
1/2 tsp. salt
4 oz unsalted butter, cold or frozen
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp. almond extract
Cold water (start with 1-2 Tbsp, and add more as needed to form the dough - I used 6.5 Tbsp)

Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.

Lightly beat the egg yolks with the almond extract and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough. Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Frangipane

4.5 oz unsalted butter, softened
4.5 oz confectioner's sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. almond extract
4.5 oz ground almonds
1 oz all purpose flour

Cream butter and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is pale yellow in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may appear to curdle - just keep mixing. After all three are in, pour in the almond extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow color.

Sloppy Joes

2009-06-22T10:32:00.000-04:00

I'm beginning to think I really do like Rachael Ray after all.
.
.
.
Nah.

But I did try another of her recipes with some success: Sloppy Joes. I'm not a fan of Manwich at all, so I thought I'd give this recipe a try. I made this back in the winter, and after making it a few times since, I decided this is probably my new go-to sloppy joe recipe since it's quick, easy, and I probably have most ingredients on hand anyway. The hotdogs are certainly optional, but my son likes them and they're easy to pick up with little fingers. :) I use ground turkey because I can buy it in 1 lb. frozen packages for a reasonable price. Make a double batch & keep some around for later; it freezes really well.

Sloppy Joes

1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 pounds lean ground sirloin or ground turkey
1 packages beef or pork hot dogs, sliced 1/2-inch thick (optional)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon steak seasoning (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick)
1 Tablespoon chili powder
3 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomato sauce
~8 soft burger rolls

Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add meat and crumble as it browns. Add the onions to the pan and cook to soften. Add chopped hot dogs after 3 to 4 minutes then cook 3 to 4 minutes more. In a bowl mix the spices, sugar, Worcestershire and tomato sauce. Pour sauce over the meat and simmer about 10 minutes to combine flavors. Spoon onto buns and serve.

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Pasteles de Guyaba (Guava Pastries)

2009-06-17T15:23:00.000-04:00

It's difficult to describe guava to someone who's never had it, especially guava paste. I saw this odd-shaped can in the grocery store and immediately returned home to look up what exactly I could do with guava paste. I settled on making some Pasteles de Guyaba (Guava Pastries), but instead of using a dough similar to pate sucre (pie crust), I decided to go with puff pastry. These couldn't be simpler. The filling was a little tart, but they were good nonetheless. I thought it paired well with the powdered sugar, but you could probably drizzle some honey over the filling before sealing the pastries to make it a little sweeter.

Pasteles de Guyaba (Guava Pastries)

Guava Paste
1 package puff pastry
powdered sugar, for serving

Cut each sheet of prepared thawed puff pastry into 9 squares.
Place ~1 Tbsp. guava paste in the center of each square. Use a bit of water along the edges to help 'glue' the pastries together, and fold over the guava paste to form triangles. Use a fork to press the edges together. Place on a baking sheet (lined with a Silpat or parchment paper) and then into a 400F oven for about 10-12 minutes, until the pastry puffs and becomes golden, brown, and delicious. Let cool for ~5 minutes (or you will burn your mouth!) and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Adapted from Alex Garcia

Grilled Pineapple Spears with Lime and Honey

2009-06-10T18:48:00.000-04:00

I found a really good deal on fresh pineapple (Aldi rocks - $.99 for a pineapple!), so I bought two. After a quick browse for some ideas on the FoodNetwork website, I settled on (groan) another Rachael Ray recipe. The only change I made was to squeeze half the lime over the spears.

I was really surprised how much I liked this dessert; the lime and honey really enhanced the pineapple. Simple, quick, and delicious...what more could you want in a summertime dessert? Note: this would also be great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt.

Grilled Pineapple Spears with Lime and Honey

1 large ripe pineapple
1 lime
Vegetable oil or cooking spray, to coat grill
Honey, for drizzling

Preheat grill or grill pan.

Cut ends off the pineapple. Stand it upright and cut off the skin in strips. Quarter the pineapple lengthwise and cut out the core. Cut each quarter into 3 spears. Zest the lime and reserve. Cut the zested lime in half and squeeze the juice over the spears. Brush the grill pan or outdoor grill with vegetable oil or spray lightly with cooking spray. Grill pineapple until evenly marked all over, 5 minutes. Garnish spears with lime zest and drizzled honey.

Open-Faced Calzone & Simple Marinara

2009-06-06T15:32:00.000-04:00

Here's another Rachael Ray recipe that I tried a while back. It was really quite easy and tasty, but the best part was the marinara sauce. I couldn't find any ciabatta or focaccia, so I used a wide Italian loaf of bread and it worked just fine (I scooped out some of the bread inside so it wouldn't be so thick). Makes a nice quick week-night meal that will feed at least 4.

Open-Faced Calzone

1 box chopped spinach, 10 ounces
1 loaf ciabatta bread (or focaccia)
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
2 cups ricotta cheese (1 15 oz. container will work)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley, a handful
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano or Reggiano cheese, a generous handful
1 can artichokes, drained and sliced
Salt and pepper
2 cups shredded mozzarella or Italian cheese blend
Simple Marinara Dipping Sauce, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 400F.
Defrost spinach 6 minutes on high and wring the spinach dry in a kitchen towel.

Crust bread in oven for 5 or 6 minutes. Remove and split bread in half from end to end as if it were a large sandwich roll.

Turn broiler on. If your broiler is too small to place ciabatta breads under it, you can melt the cheese in oven as well, see below, it simply browns faster under broiler.

Drizzle hot bread with extra-virgin olive oil. Mix ricotta, garlic, parsley and grated cheese. Spread the mixture evenly over the bread halves then dot with the defrosted chopped spinach. Evenly distribute the sliced artichokes, season the breads with salt and pepper and top with an even layer mozzarella cheese. Melt and brown the cheese under the broiler 3 minutes, 1 rack down from the top of the oven. If you are using the oven rather than broiler, the cheese will take 6 or 7 minutes to brown. Cut into bread into wedges and serve. If desired, serve with Dipping Sauce.

Simple Marinara Dipping Sauce

1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 Tablespoon anchovy paste, optional (I did NOT use this)
1 Tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 (15-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper

Heat a small pot over medium heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, pepper flakes and anchovy paste (if using). Cook 2 minutes. Add parsley, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Stir sauce, bring to a bubble and simmer 5 minutes over low heat then place in small bowl and serve.

Yield: 2 cups

Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray

Lemon Cake

2009-06-03T08:11:00.000-04:00

This is an adaption of an adaption, from my friend Brandy at Just Another Foodie. This is the best lemon cake I think I've ever eaten; it's certainly not subtle - it's a rich, moist cake with a great lemon (but not sour) flavor. It's such a refreshing dessert that's perfect for summer.

I made a few changes to the recipe, but the one Brandy posted is below. I don't buy extra-large eggs, so I used 4 large eggs instead. Also, I didn't have buttermilk on hand, so I used 3/4 Tbsp. vinegar in 3/4 cup whole milk, which worked like a charm.

Lemon Cake
Adapted from ”Barefoot Contessa Parties!” by Ina Garten, and smittenkitchen.com

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups sugar
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup grated lemon zest (6 to 8 large lemons)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup plus 3 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8 1/2-by-4 1/4-by-2 1/2-inch loaf pans or one bundt pan, and line the bottoms with parchment paper (no parchment paper if you’re using a bundt pan).
2. Cream butter and 2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Mixing at medium speed, add eggs, one at a time, and lemon zest.
3. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, buttermilk and vanilla. Add flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to butter and sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Divide batter evenly between loaf pans or one bundt pan, smooth tops, and bake for ~45 minutes, until a cake tester (or toothpick) comes out clean.
4. Combine 1/2 cup sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juice in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat until sugar dissolves.
5. When cakes are done, carefully Invert them onto a rack set over a tray, and spoon lemon syrup over cakes. Let cakes cool completely.
6. For glaze, combine confectioners’ sugar and remaining 3 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with a whisk until smooth. Pour over top of cakes, and allow glaze to drizzle down the sides.

Daring Bakers - Strudel

2009-05-29T08:59:00.013-04:00

I'm a bit late posting, but better late than never, I guess.
The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life
sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the
recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of
Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

This recipe was really pretty easy to make, but I highly recommend not starting at 8 pm. :) The end results would probably have been better had I baked the strudel immediately instead of refrigerating overnight and baking the next morning. After seeing some other Daring Bakers' posts, my strudel certainly doesn't look like theirs. The layers of apples and dough are visible, but only the outside was crispy. The inner layers melded together (but without feeling mushy) - I did leave out the rum and substituted a bit of water, and I didn't include nuts, either. The flavor was good, but I don't think I'll be making it frequently. I did see an idea for making homemade 'toaster strudel' with the dough; I think that's worth trying since the it's so easy to make. :)

Apple Strudel

2 tablespoons (30 ml) golden rum (or water)
3 tablespoons (45 ml) raisins
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 g) sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick / 115 g) unsalted butter, melted, divided
1 1/2 cups (350 ml) fresh bread crumbs
strudel dough (recipe below)
1/2 cup (120 ml, about 60 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
2 pounds (900 g) tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼ inch-thick slices
(use apples that hold their shape during baking)

1. Mix the rum/water and raisins in a bowl. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the
breadcrumbs and cook whilst stirring until golden and toasted. This will take about 3 minutes. Let it cool completely.
3. Put the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a large baking sheet with baking paper (parchment paper). Make the strudel
dough as described below. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter over the dough using your hands (I used a silicone pastry brush & it didn't tear the dough). Sprinkle the buttered dough with the bread crumbs. Spread the walnuts about 3 inches (8 cm) from the short edge of the dough in a 6-inch-(15cm)-wide strip. Mix the apples with the raisins (including the liquid), and the cinnamon sugar. Spread the mixture over the walnuts.
4. Fold the short end of the dough onto the filling. Lift the tablecloth at the short end of the dough so that the strudel rolls onto itself. Transfer the strudel to the prepared baking sheet by lifting it. Curve it into a horseshoe to fit. Tuck the ends under the strudel. Brush the top with the remaining melted butter.
5. Bake the strudel for about 30 minutes or until it is deep golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Use a serrated knife and serve either warm or at room temperature. It is best on the day it is baked.

Strudel Dough

1 1/3 cups (200 g) unbleached flour (all purpose)
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 Tablespoons (105 ml) water, plus more if needed
2 Tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil (I used canola), plus additional for coating the dough
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

1. Combine the flour and salt in a stand-mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the water, oil and vinegar in a measuring cup. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour with the mixer on low speed. You will get a soft dough. Make sure it is not too dry, add a little more water if necessary. Change to the dough hook. Let the dough knead on medium until you get a soft dough ball with a somewhat rough surface.
2. Take the dough out of the mixer and continue kneading by hand on an unfloured
work surface. Knead for about 2 minutes. Pick up the dough and throw it down hard
onto your working surface occasionally. Shape the dough into a ball and transfer it to a plate. Oil the top of the dough ball lightly. Cover the ball tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand for 30-90 minutes (longer is better).
3. It would be best if you have a work area that you can walk around on all sides like a 36 inch (90 cm) round table or a work surface of 23 x 38 inches (60 x 100 cm). Cover your working area with table cloth, dust it with flour and rub it into the fabric. Put your dough ball in the middle and roll it out as much as you can.
Gently stretch the dough (I couldn't pick up the edge of the dough without it stretching too much too quickly.)
4. The dough will become too large to hold. Put it on your work surface. Leave the
thicker edge of the dough to hang over the edge of the table. Place your hands
underneath the dough and stretch and pull the dough thinner using the backs of your hands. Stretch and pull the dough until it's about 2 feet (60 cm) and 3 feet (90
cm) long (or as close as you can get it to that), it will be tissue-thin by this time. The dough is now ready to be filled.

Still Here

2009-05-22T10:11:00.006-04:00

Again, it's been too long since I've posted. Haven't been doing too much new baking recently; just relying on tried and true recipes, so there hasn't been much to post. I've even missed the last two Daring Bakers' Challenges. :( Plus, I haven't felt much like cooking/baking anyway because of this:

That's right, #2 is on the way, due in October. We're going to wait and be surprised - we're not finding out if it's a boy or girl until he/she arrives! ;)

Hopefully I'll be back to posting soon. Just wanted to give a quick update.

Brunch!

2009-04-17T11:34:00.001-04:00

Thanks to Stephanie at Dispensing Happiness, I received Gale Gand's newest cookbook to review for a Cookbook Spotlight. Brunch! features 100 recipes for beverages, eggs, sweets, baked goods, and savory dishes and sides as well as menu suggestions and condiments. Just quickly flipping through the pages, I knew I'd have a difficult time deciding what to make; the pictures are so appetizing! After much perusing, I finally settled on three recipes to try, which we had for dinner instead of brunch. It was still fantastic. In fact, the author mentions that she does the same thing with her family, too. She also encourages playing with the recipes and trying "your own variations." So, here we go.

I started with the Raspberry Lemonade recipe (p. 29). However, I had strawberries on hand, so I made Strawberry Lemonade instead. Delicious! Not too sweet, not too sour. I didn't have fresh lemons, but I thawed some I had in the freezer and they worked perfectly. And, if there's any left, the lemonade is even better the next day. :)

Next was a brunch basic - the Fritatta (p. 48). I've always finished fritattas in the oven, but this one was all stove-top. She provides 5 variations for fillings in the book, but you can always just do what you like! I thawed some frozen spinach and red pepper strips and added them into the eggs and cheese. It turned out so tender and delicious! The only change I'd make is to add more cheese, because one can never have too much cheese, right? We managed to devour the whole thing, so I don't know if her serving suggestion of "4 to 6" is accurate. Maybe we were just hungry!

Last was the sweet side of brunch: Hand-Formed Pear and Almond Tartlets (p. 120). Oh. My. Goodness. These were really good and so SIMPLE to make! I used D'Anjou pears, which were quite flavorful. I didn't have any almond paste or filling, so I ground some whole almonds and used that instead. I really liked the crunch they added to the bottom of the tartlets. Next time, I think I'll use sliced or slivered almonds for even more texture. The almond flavor was really mild, and I only used half of the cinnamon-sugar indicated in the recipe; any more cinnamon would have totally overwhelmed the dish. I had to spritz some water on top of the tartlets to get all the cinnamon-sugar to melt too, so less is more in this case. I really liked the addition of the sour cream because it gave just enough contrast for my tastebuds. Yum.

Overall, the book is great, and I plan to make many more recipes from it, even if it's not specifically for brunch. :) Thanks Gale Gand (and Stephanie)! Be sure to look for the round-up of everyone who tried out recipes from the book on the 20th!

Sticky Popcorn

2009-04-07T13:45:00.003-04:00

I can't believe I've waited to long to post this recipe. I make this popcorn frequently, and it's so addictive, it's always a hit and disappears quickly. It's really easy to make, but you HAVE to use a cast iron skillet (or another really heavy-bottomed pan). The recipe was given to me by my mother-in-law, but it is my husband's uncle's recipe originally. I made a slight change in the amount of popcorn I use. Well, you probably don't care about that anyway. Just make the popcorn. So easy. So good.

So, here it is:

Sticky Popcorn

Pop enough popcorn to make ~4 quarts of popcorn (about 1 cup of kernels). (This works best with air-popped popcorn, but any non-salted and non-buttered popcorn will work.)

Dump into heavy cast iron skillet:

1 1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup butter
1 1/2 Tbsp. vinegar

DO NOT STIR

Cook over MEDIUM heat until an amber color appears in the middle of the skillet. This will take several minutes, but don't wander too far. Keep an eye on it.

DO NOT STIR

When the amber color becomes the size of your fist, pour over popcorn and stir thoroughly to combine. Make sure you have a really big bowl for this as you don't want to touch the popcorn and get hot sugar on your hands. (Trust me on that one, ok?)
I spread mine out on rimmed sheet pans to cool and break into smaller pieces. After it cools completely, store in airtight container. If desired, melt some chocolate chips and drizzle over cooled popcorn and let cool completely before storing.

Daring Bakers: Chocolate Valentino & Ice Cream

2009-02-28T09:43:00.006-05:00

It's time for another Daring Baker's Challenge! The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef. We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

I followed the recipe for the flourless chocolate cake to the letter, but mine ended up like a molten chocolate lava cake. I used a combo of Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate & Ghiradelli Baking Chocolate. Also, instead of vanilla ice cream, I made Cinnamon Ice Cream, adapted from a Paula Deen recipe (good, but VERY rich...a couple spoons full was enough for me. However, my husband really liked the combination, so it's all good.) :) On to the recipes:

Chocolate Valentino
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter. {link of folding demonstration}
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C
9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.
Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

Cinnamon Ice Cream
1 quart half-and-half
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 pint heavy whipping cream
2 (14-ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
Up to 2 quarts milk, as needed

In a 2-quart saucepan, combine half-and-half and cinnamon sticks. Cook 20 minutes over low heat (do not boil). Remove from heat. Remove cinnamon sticks, stir in ground cinnamon, and chill for 4 hours.

With an electric mixer at high speed, beat whipping cream until soft peaks form. Add condensed milk and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Add chilled half-and-half.

Pour mixture into canister of a 4 to 6-quart ice cream freezer. (Or, if your ice cream freezer is smaller, just do it in batches - I had to do 2 batches, but I didn't use any of the milk.) Add milk, if needed, to fill canister to the freezer line. Freeze according to manufacturer's directions.

Yield: 4 to 6 quarts (for me, it was more like 2.5 quarts)

Broccoli Salad

2009-02-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

I've always loved broccoli. I could eat a huge bowl of steamed broccoli by myself when I was a kid. Mmmm. Mushy. Crisp. Steamed. Raw. In a casserole. It didn't really matter. So, I was really excited when I first had this salad with a couple from a church we belonged to before we moved. Not only did she prepare the dish, she also gave me the cookbook from which it came (church cookbook)! Yay! I've been making it ever since. And, since my husband doesn't really like raw broccoli, this one's all for me. :) I did, however, reduce the amount of dressing by half since I thought it got a bit gloppy after a while. But, if you want more dressing, feel free to double the amounts. I also add the stalks of the broccoli, chopped fairly fine, because (1) I don't like to be wasteful, and (2) I like the taste. Enjoy!

Dressing:
1/2 cup mayo
1 Tbsp. vinegar
1/8 cup sugar (or Splenda)
few splashes of millk to thin it out

Salad:

1 bunch of broccoli, florets trimmed & stalks peeled & chopped
1/2 to 3/4 cup raisins
~2 Tbsp. finely minced red onion
1/2 cup roasted sunflower seeds (optional, but recommended)

In a large bowl, mix the dressing ingredients, adding as much milk as you need to get the a sauce-like (not mayo-like) consistency and set aside. Prepare the broccoli and onion, then add the salad ingredients to the sauce. Toss to evenly coat. Refrigerate until serving. This gets better the longer it sits; I recommend at least overnight.

Stuffed Berries

2009-02-07T09:06:00.000-05:00

I recently bought some very delicious strawberries and was surprised at how good they were at this time of year. It reminded me of a dessert I made late last summer but never posted. So, here is my version of the Deen Brother's Stuffed Strawberries. I thought they were really good, but they were a bit of a pain to stuff with just an "x" cut into them. Next time I'll probably just use a star icing tip to hollow out the berry before stuffing...might make things easier.

Stuffed Berries

2 quarts whole medium/large strawberries
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 to 1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract (or almond)
1/4 cup toasted coconut

Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each strawberry so the berries stand upright. Place berries, cut side down, on a serving platter. Carefully cut the berries into 4 wedges, cutting almost to, but not through, the bottoms with a criss-cross cut. Fan wedges just slightly, taking care not to break them. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until combined but still stiff. Using a teaspoon or pastry bag with decorative tip, fill the strawberries with the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle chopped pecans on top of the stuffed strawberries. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Adapted from The Deen Brothers

Daring Bakers Challenge - Tuiles

2009-01-30T12:22:00.005-05:00

Well, this is one day late, but better late than never. This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux. Our challenge was to use one of the sweet or savory batters given, shape it (with a stencil or after baking), and pair it with something light (as we're all trying to recover from the holiday food!).

I decided to go the savory route since I usually opt for the sweet. So, I followed this recipe:

Savory tuile/cornet recipe
From Thomas Keller "the French Laundry Cookbook"

1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons (65 grams/2.1/4 ounces) all purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
(slightly less than) 1 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (114 grams/4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened but still cool to the touch
2 large egg whites, cold
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds (I just used toasted since that's what I had)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk the softened butter until it is completely smooth and mayonnaise-like in texture. Using a stiff spatula or spoon, beat the egg whites into the dry ingredients until completely incorporated and smooth. Whisk in the softened butter by thirds, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary and whisking until the batter is creamy and without any lumps.

Place a Silpat on the counter (it is easier to work on the Silpat before it is put on the sheet pan). If using a stencil, place it one corner of the sheet and, holding the stencil flat against the Silpat, scoop some of the batter onto the back of an offset spatula and spread it in an even layer over the stencil. Then run the spatula over the entire stencil to remove any excess batter. Or, free-hand some squares and rectangle (like I did) using an offset spatula. After baking the first batch, you will be able to judge the correct thickness. You may need a little more or less batter to adjust the thickness. Leave about 1 1/2 inches between the tuiles. Sprinkle each tuile with a pinch of sesame seeds.

Place the Silpat on a heavy baking sheet and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the batter is set and you see it rippling from the heat. The tuiles may have browned in some areas, but they will not be evenly browned at this point.

Open the oven door and place the baking sheet on the door. This will help keep the tuiles warm as you roll them and prevent them from becoming too stiff to roll. I tried to drape mine over some spice bottles to make small bowls, but they were too set when they came out of the oven. So, I draped them over a rolling pin instead.

The tuiles that baked a bit longer and were more brown were much more flavorful but very delicate. I ended up topping mine with a fresh spinach leaf and some tuna salad (tuna, light mayo, sweet relish, prepared mustard, salt, pepper). Yummy! I thought these were pretty easy to make, but I probably won't be making them again soon since they're a bit time consuming.

Chicken Manicotti with Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce

2008-12-15T11:19:00.001-05:00

My sister sent this recipe to me because she thought it was really good. After preparing it for my family, I totally agree. I made some modifications, but it turned out to be a really tasty and colorful dish. Although stuffing the manicotti always gives me problems, it was well worth it. The stuffed pasta can certainly be made ahead of time, wrapped invidually in wax or parchment paper or placed in a foil-lined baking dish and frozen until needed; then, unwrap, cover with red pepper sauce, and cook as directed (may need a bit more cooking time, though).

Also, lasagna noodles can also be used. Just cook to al dente and cool in water until able to handle. Cut each noodle in half and spoon mixture into it before rolling and placing seam-side down in a baking dish.

Chicken Manicotti with Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce

1 (8-ounce) package cannelloni or manicotti shells (or 1 box lasagna noodles)
4 cups finely chopped cooked chicken
2 (8-ounce) containers chive-and-onion cream cheese
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1 cup (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs (or 1/2 cup regular breadcrumbs + 1 tsp. Italian seasoning)
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce (recipe below)
chopped fresh basil or parsley for garnish

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain & set aside.

Stir together chicken and next 6 ingredients.

Cut pasta shells lengthwise and spoon about 1/2 cup chicken mixture into each shell, gently pressing cut sides together. Place, cut sides down, in lightly greased baking dishes (makes more than will fill a 9x13 dish). Pour Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce evenly over shells.

Bake, covered, at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Garnish, if desired.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce

2 (7-ounce) jars roasted red bell peppers, drained
1 (16-ounce) jar creamy Alfredo sauce
3 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese

Process all ingredients in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides.

Recipe adapted from Southern Living

Daring Bakers Challenge - Caramel Cake with Caramelized Butter Frosting

2008-11-29T08:42:00.003-05:00

This month's Daring Bakers Challenge was a signature cake from Shuna Fish Lydon of Eggbeater. The hosts for this month's DB Challenge were Dolores of Culinary Curiosity, Alex of Blondie and Brownie, and Jenny of Foray into Food. We had to make the cake and camelized butter frosting. Making flavored caramels from Alice Medrich's recipe were optional, so I chose the option of NOT making them...too much going on this month.

Evidently, the cake is supposed to be delicate, light, and subtly flavored. Mine wasn't. It was very dense (and VERY sweet) with a straightforward taste of caramel. I don't think I did something right. Pitiful looking cake, right?

After reviewing Shuna's FAQ, I think I poured in the caramel syrup too quickly (all at once) when making the cake. The batter looked broken, and I don't think I ever achieved an emulsification again. Don't get me wrong, the cake had a wonderful flavor. The caramelized butter frosting was good, too, although I didn't really have enough to use for decorating. Together, however, I think mine would have sent someone into a diabetic coma...way too sweet!!! I think I'll definitely be baking the cake again (especially since I have some caramel syrup left over), but I will probably use a different frosting. Likewise, I may try the frosting again, but most likely it will be on a different cake.

Oh, and since the cake was so dense (and short), I decided to torte the layer into two. Bad idea. Don't do it. Just don't. But do try the recipe for yourself and see what you think!

Caramel Cake with Caramelized Butter Frosting

10 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/4 Cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 Cup Caramel Syrup (see recipe below)
2 large eggs, at room temperature
splash vanilla extract
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup milk, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter one tall (2 – 2.5 inch deep) 9-inch cake pan. [Yeah, use a tall pan. Lining a shorter one with parchment worked, but not too well.]

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth. Add sugar and salt & cream until light and fluffy. Slowly pour room temperature caramel syrup into bowl. Scrape down bowl and increase speed. Add eggs/vanilla extract a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down bowl again, beat mixture until light and uniform.

Sift flour and baking powder.

Turn mixer to lowest speed, and add one third of the dry ingredients. When incorporated, add half of the milk, a little at a time. Add another third of the dry ingredients, then the other half of the milk and finish with the dry ingredients. {This is called the dry, wet, dry, wet, dry method in cake making. It is often employed when there is a high proportion of liquid in the batter.}

Take off mixer and by hand, use a spatula to do a few last folds, making sure batter is uniform. Turn batter into prepared cake pan.

Place cake pan on cookie sheet or 1/2 sheet pan. Set first timer for 30 minutes, rotate pan and set timer for another 15-20 minutes. Your own oven will set the pace. Bake until sides pull away from the pan and skewer inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool cake completely before icing it.

Caramel Syrup

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup water (for "stopping" the caramelization process)

In a small stainless steel saucepan, with tall sides, mix water and sugar until mixture feels like wet sand. Brush down any stray sugar crystals with wet pastry brush. Turn on heat to highest flame. Cook until smoking slightly: dark amber.

When color is achieved, very carefully pour in one cup of water. Caramel will jump and sputter about! ***Note: It is very dangerous, so have long sleeves on and be prepared to step back.*** Whisk over medium heat until it has reduced slightly and feels sticky between two fingers. {Obviously wait for it to cool on a spoon before touching it.}

Note: For safety reasons, have ready a bowl of ice water to plunge your hands into if any caramel should land on your skin.

Caramelized Butter Frosting

12 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 pound confectioner’s sugar, sifted
4-6 tablespoons heavy cream (I used 3 Tbsp)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2-4 tablespoons caramel syrup(I used 3 Tbsp)
Kosher or sea salt to taste (just a pinch was enough)

Cook butter until brown. Pour through a fine meshed sieve into mixer bowl to cool completely.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, add confectioner's sugar a little at a time. When mixture looks too chunky to take any more, add a bit of cream and or caramel syrup. Repeat until mixture looks smooth and all confectioner's sugar has been incorporated. Add salt to taste.

Caramel Cake with Caramelized Butter Frosting recipe courtesy of Shuna Fish Lydon, as published on Bay Area Bites.

Pico de Gallo

2008-11-24T08:42:00.001-05:00

Since we seem to have a Mexican theme going on, I thought I should include my Pico de Gallo recipe. We used salsa until I figured out how easy it was to make this. Now, we very rarely buy salsa (though I keep some on hand for Tortilla Soup now). And, this pico is not dependent on the time of year since I use canned tomatoes. (Of course, fresh are better in the summer.) This makes quite a lot (~3-4 cups, I think) since we really like it and it keeps a few days in the fridge. Just use fresh limes if you can; you can use bottled lime juice, but it won't be as good. (The fresh limes make much more of a difference than using fresh tomatoes.)

Pam's Pico de Gallo

2 15 oz cans petite diced tomatoes, well drained!
~1/2 medium sweet or yellow onion, minced very fine (~1/2 cup or so)
3/4 to 1 whole bunch of cilantro, leaves chopped, stems discarded
juice of 2 limes (~6 Tbsp.)

Put the drained tomatoes into a bowl and mix in the onion. Add more if you think it needs it. Stir in the cilantro. Add more if needed. Then, add the lime juice, making sure there's enough to coat everything really well. Stir, stir, stir. There should be some lime juice standing in the bottom of the bowl; if not, add more. Store in the fridge until ready to use. This should be made at least a couple hours ahead of time, preferably the day before. It gets better as it sits.

Al Pastor

2008-11-17T10:43:00.001-05:00

Mexican is so easy to get 'wrong'. Take, for example, about 95% of Mexican restaurants in the U.S. - you can't tell what you're eating because it's slathered in red sauce and cheese. The best Mexican I've ever had (not having lived close to Mexico and having somewhat limited exposure) was at Taco Roc. Story goes that the guy who started Taco Roc couldn't find any Mexican restaurants he liked either, so he started his own restaurant. I'm glad he did. Inexpensive, flavorful, and friendly. (Their agua fresca is awesome!) My favorite is their Al Pastor, a spicy marinated pork with chilies and pineapple. In fact, I liked it so much, I went in search of a recipe so I could recreate it at home. Unfortunately, like many good recipes, there are as many versions as cooks. So, here is my version that I came up with after reviewing quite a few recipes online. Taco Roc makes theirs with ancho chiles, but when I tried them, the Al Pastor didn't have much flavor. So, I'll stick to guajillo chilies.

Oh, you can use this stuff in/on anything: burritos, tacos, nachos, pizza...pretty much anything you can think of. Yum.

Al Pastor

~4 lb bone-in pork roast
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 small can pineapple chunks, drained - reserve juice ( or 4 rings)
13 dried guajillo chiles, soaked, seeded, stemmed

In a crock pot, cook the pork roast in a few cups of water overnight (or during the day). Remove the roast from the crock pot, and when cool enough to handle, shred the meat.*

In a blender or food processor, pulse the garlic, cumin, oregano, oil, pineapple juice, and peppers until mostly smooth. You can also add the pineapple if you don't want bigger chunks in with the meat. Add the chunks of pineapple and the sauce to the shredded cooked pork and simmer about 20 minutes. Let it sit overnight and reheat in a skillet.

*I've also read that you can cube/dice the pork and then cook it in the crock pot with the sauce. However, I think shredding the meat first allows for more even coating and consistent flavor.

Streusel-Topped Pear Pie

2008-11-09T18:57:00.000-05:00

I am not a pie maker. I mostly do cakes, breads, and cookies. I think this is probably the third pie I've made since I've been married (wow, that's more than 7 years already!). My husband just isn't a big fan of pie - as in, he usually eats the filling and leaves the crust. However, I knew I had to add this pie recipe to my repertoire because he literally stuck his fork in the pie and declared, "This is the best pie I've ever had."

I used pears that were just barely ripe/still really firm and it worked beautifully. It wasn't mushy like fruit pies are typically; it had a bit of a bite to it that was great with the mild sweetness and spices. I adapted the recipe from The Good Home Cookbook, and it was the first time I've ever used tapioca. It allowed the mellow flavor of the pears to come through without any muddling with the rest of the ingredients. (Sorry...I don't know how to say it any more clearly than that.) I'll definitely be using more tapioca in the future. And so should you...in this pie. You'll be glad you did.

Streusel-Topped Pear Pie

7 medium pears, peeled, cored, sliced
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 Tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground mace
Pre-made dough for 1 9-inch pie crust (cold)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened

Combine the pears with the sugar, lemon juice, tapioca, cinnamon, and mace in a large bowl. Let sit for 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 425F (rack in lower third of oven). Roll out pie dough to 1/8 inch and fit into a 9-inch pie pan leaving a 1-inch overhang. Fold & flute the edges. (Do not dock the bottom.) Spoon filling into pie crust.

Stir together the flour & brown sugar. Use a fork to mash together with the butter until crumbly. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the pie and bake for about an hour*, until the topping is golden. If the top gets too brown before the rest of the pie is done, cover with alumnimum foil and continue to bake. Serve warm or at room temp.

*Note: The original recipe instructed you to bake the pie without the streusel topping for 10 minutes at 425F. Then reduce the oven temp to 350F and bake for an additional 35-40 minutes after adding the streusel tipping. I didn't do this because evidently I can't read directions. I suppose it was a happy accident. :)

Adapted from The Good Home Cookbook

Tortilla Soup

2008-11-03T20:37:00.000-05:00

I love Mexican food. LOVE it. And this recipe is so easy and tasty, it would be silly not to try it. Sam Zien enlightened me with this recipe on Discovery Health's show Just Cook This, and since I actually had a jar of salsa in the fridge, I had to try it. It was surprisingly good, super-easy to make, filling, and not-too-bad-for-you. I'll definitely be making this again (and again, and again...).

Tortilla Soup

16 ounces red salsa (medium hot, or whatever level of heat you prefer)
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken (ahem, rotisserie chicken!)
2 flour tortillas
1 one avocado, small dice
chopped cilantro, for garnish

Heat salsa in a sauce pan on the stove. Once it starts to bubble, add the broth and chicken and simmer until chicken is heated through, about 5 minutes.

While it's heating, cook tortillas on both sides in a hot oven or in a non-stick pan until they are crispy. Then, slice into thin strips.

Serve the soup in bowls and top with avocado, tortilla strips, and chopped cilantro.

Recipe courtesy Sam Zien

Daring Bakers Challenge - Pizza!

2008-10-29T11:05:00.000-04:00

The Daring Bakers Challenge this month was pizza. I've made pizza in the past using Alton Brown's recipe, but that was at least a year ago, so I was excited to try another recipe. This one was taken from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart and yielded 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches in diameter). I froze 2 to use later, but we had fun experimenting with the others. The dough turned out as promised...to be a thin, crispy yet chewy crust. And, it was super easy since I used my stand mixer to do the kneading work for me. I did not, however, get into the tossing of the dough. (I'm not coordinated enough for that!) So, I used Alton's pinch & turn method, which worked well for me. There's only one problem: my husband has declared that he can't go out for pizza any more since these were so good.

We did savory and sweet variations:

Sauteed Mushrooms, Wilted Spinach, & Goat Cheese Crumbles
Same as above, but with a spicy marinara sauce
Dessert: Pear Slices & Feta Crumbles with a Local Honey (would have been better with blue cheese but we didn't have any)

We'll definitely be making pizza at home again since it's so easy. I think I'll try substituting part of the bread flour with whole wheat flour next time. Mmmm.

Basic Pizza Dough

4 1/2 cups unbleached bread
1 3/4 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp Instant yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
1 3/4 cups ice cold water (~40 degrees F)
1 Tbsp sugar
Cornmeal for dusting

DAY ONE: Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer (or a big bowl). Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 5-7 minutes - until the ingredients are distributed. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little more flour, so that it clears the sides. If, on the contrary, it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water. The finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky.

Line a sheet pan with a silpat, then flour a work surface or counter. Turn out the dough on the counter and cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas). Sprinkle some flour over the dough, then with floured hands, gently round each piece into a ball. Transfer the dough balls to the lined sheet pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Cover the pan in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (or up to 3 days).

NOTE: You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some of the dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil(a few tablespooons only) in a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.

DAY TWO: Exactly 2 hours before you want to make the pizzas, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and gently press the dough into disks about 1/2 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.

At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven as hot as possible (~500F). Note: If you don't have a pizza stone, use the back of a sheet pan, but don't preheat it. Sprinkle cornmeal onto a flexible cutting mat. With floured hands, gently pinch the edge of the dough as you turn it; gravity will help you stretch out the dough. If the dough springs back instead of expanding, let it rest for ~5-10 minutes in order for the gluten to relax & try again. When the dough is the desired shape/thickness, place it on the cornmeal-coated cutting mat, making sure there is enough cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick. Brush the dough with olive oil and lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice, slide it onto the pizza stone, and bake for about 10 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and delicious.

BBM!

2008-10-24T15:38:00.000-04:00

Well, it's a rainy day here...not good for much of anything other than making soup and curling up on the sofa with a cup of coffee and a good book. However, I did manage to mail my BBM package today. And, I received my BBM package, too! Great timing!

My package was from July Bug in New York. She sent all sorts of goodies:

Let's see....where do I begin? How about that HUGE cookie on the left. I am SO excited about this cookie, it's not even funny. It's a Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie from the Levain Bakery in NYC. I've been admiring these cookies ever since I first saw them. Yes, they're HUGE! As in 6-ounces huge! (Yes, I'm a dork, but I wanted to show the size of this thing! Oh, and please ignore the brightness of my hand...I don't see the sun much.)

True, I'm not a big fan of chocolate, but I did eat part of this cookie. It's got a nice blend of flavors, and the walnuts (halves!) are delicious. Moist on the inside, crunchy on the outside. Yum.

Ok, enough about the cookie. On to the rest of the goodies. Behind the cookie is a festive halloween cup since July Bug loves the holiday. Continuing to the right, we have White Chocolate Peanut Butter Spread from Peanut Butter & Co, where she & her boyfriend had their first date. Next is Nutella, which will be great in my Nutella Bundt Cake or sandwiched between two chocolate wafer cookies for Christmas gifts. On top of the Nutella is the Lemony Snicket's book Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid which she says is hilarious. The colorful card is July Bug's handwritten note explaining everything in the package. The image on the card is a double exposure of 5th Ave in Manhattan and 5th Ave in Brooklyn. The two computer printouts are a description of Levain Bakery and the secret to the perfect chocolate chip cookie (a 24-36 hour "hydration time" to allow the flour and other dry goods to absorb moisture and bake more evenly). Lastly, since she knew I like white chocolate, July Bug also included a Ghiradelli White Chocolate Baking Bar. Yum. This will be awesome for shaving down over desserts.

So, many thanks to July Bug for the awesome goodies. You definitely brightened my rainy day!

Apple Date Crunch Bars

2008-10-21T15:02:00.000-04:00

My grandmother sent a large amount of apples from her orchard to us, and I decided to adapt one of my go-to recipes for the fall fruit instead of making a traditional apple pie or apple cake. So, I tweaked my Cranberry Crunch Bars recipe and came up with Apple Date Crunch Bars! They're quite reminiscent of apple pie but don't require a fork and can be eaten for breakfast since they contain oatmeal! :) These disappeared too quickly for me to get any pictures.

Also, I'm not sure what kind of apples I used, but a Red Delicious or Macintosh would probably work well. Or, you could use a mixture of sweet and tart apples and adjust the sugar to taste.

Apple Date Crunch Bars

Filling:
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
3/4 cup water
3/4 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 to 3 cups sliced apples (don't have to peel)
3/4 cup chopped pitted dates
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
pinch of ground cloves

Combine the sugar, cornstarch, water, vanilla, apples, and dates in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 3-5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in spices. Let cool slightly.

Crumb Topping:

1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, melted

Mix oats, brown sugar, flour, and melted butter until combined. Sprinkle ~half of the crumbs into the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan. Spread apple filling over the crumbs and top with remaining crumbs. Bake at 350F for ~45 minutes or until the edges are slightly brown and caramelized.

Daring Bakers Challenge - Lavash!

2008-09-30T15:47:00.000-04:00

It's only my second DB Challenge, and I've already fallen behind! I should've posted on Saturday, but I was on vacation and, alas, had planned to make the Lavash when we returned. I forgot the post date was on the 27th! C'est la vie. I did manage to come up with something before October began!

So, the challenge was to make Lavash Crackers and create a dip to accompany them. Another catch? Make them vegan or gluten-free. I don't think my crackers, which turned out more like pita chips since I didn't roll the dough out very thinly, are either, but they're pretty tasty. The Red Pepper Hummus wasn't the greatest, but the Lavash would be great with the Black Bean Hummus I made earlier. Here's what I did:

Lavash Crackers

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached bread flour
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. instant yeast
1 Tbsp sugar (which, to my surprise, may not be vegan!)
1 Tbsp. canola oil (which also may not be vegan!)
~3/4 cup water, room temperature
seasme seeds and kosher salt for toppings

Stir together everything but the water in the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook, then slowly add the water and mix until it forms a ball. You may only need 1/2 cup water...I had to use more. Knead for about 10 minutes, until smooth, satiny, and not tacky. Place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow it to rise for 90 minutes or until doubled in size.

Turn out the dough onto a silpat and roll out to the desired thickness. If you want crisp crackers, divide the dough and use 2 pans. Using a pizza cutter, score the dough to form the cracker shapes. Spritz with olive oil and sprinkle on sesame seeds and kosher salt. *Note: Gently press in the toppings! I didn't do this and most fell off when I broke the crackers apart! Bake at 350F for about 25 minutes. Cool and break apart.

Red Pepper Hummus

1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
2 whole roasted red peppers
1/4 cup tahini
juice of 1/2 a lemon
~1/4 cup parsley
1/4 tsp kosher salt
~3 Tbsp. olive oil

Whirr everything together in food processor until smooth.

Black Bean Hummus

2008-09-01T11:57:00.000-04:00

I was looking for a hummus recipe when I came across this one on Food Network's site. I love black beans, so I thought I'd give this a try. I accidentally left out the lime juice and didn't use nearly 3 cups of olive oil; while processing, I added just enough to make it spreadable. And I didn't have enough chili powder, so I just used what I had.

I try not to watch Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives (aka Triple D) on Food Network because it always makes me hungry, which is not a good thing late in the evenings. So, I probably missed when this recipe was showcased. However, it's going in my stash of appetizers because it's really good. And different. And addictive. And not too bad for you if you eat it with veggies. And you should go make some right now.

Black Bean Hummus

1 (1-pound) can garbanzo beans
1 (1-pound) can black beans
Pinch ground cumin
About 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
About 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chili powder
Pinch ground coriander
Pinch ground cinnamon
About 3/4 teaspoon tahini
Olive oil - about 1-2 cups, however much you want to use

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Add the ingredients to a food processor and process in batches. Blend until smooth. Serve with pita chips, tortilla chips, or veggies.

Adapted from Greg Auten (co-owner of The Penguin diner)

Daring Bakers Challenge - Eclairs!

2008-08-31T12:00:00.000-04:00

Well, I finally gave in and signed up to be one of The Daring Bakers. Now I have an excuse to bake! (Like I really need one...at least the challenges are just that - recipes that I wouldn't normally bake. Goodbye comfort zone!)

My first challenge was, I must admit, a little disappointing because of the amount of chocolate in the recipe(s). However, I was signed up to bring the snack for Sunday School, so I had a willing panel of tasters. I think I adhered to the spirit of the challenge...following the base recipe (pâte à choux) and taking some culinary liberties where allowed (had to keep a chocolate element).

Overall, I think they turned out well, at least for my first foray into making pate a choux. The tasters' feedback was quite positive, so they must not have been too bad. :) I was going to make another batch, but alas, home improvements have taken up more of my time than baking in the last few weeks. But I have lots of ideas for future pastries, so stay tuned!

Éclairs

Pierre Herme's Cream Puff Dough (pâte à choux)
Chocolate Sauce
Chocolate Glaze
Pastry Cream

Pierre Hermé’s Cream Puff Dough
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé (makes 20-24 Éclairs)

1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup water
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
5 large eggs, at room temperature

In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil. Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan; it’s supposed to. You need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough will be very soft and smooth.

Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your handmixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough. After you have added the first egg, the dough will separate; but, don't worry! As you keep working the dough, it will come back together again. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon. The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for piping éclairs (or cream puffs, which would also be yummy). (Note: Shape the dough immediately. It can be frozen up to a month once piped and then baked as needed.)

For the Pastry Cream, I admit, I cheated. I added some vanilla bean seeds to some instant vanilla pudding and then mixed it with about 1/2 a tub of whipped topping. Not too bad, actually. However, next time I'll add a touch of vanilla extract instead.

Pastry Cream
a la Pam

1 package vanilla instant pudding
2 cups cold milk
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
~4 oz. whipped topping

Stir together the milk and vanilla. Add the pudding mix to the milk and allow the pudding to set up in the fridge for about 20 minutes. Then, gently fold in the whipped topping. Chill for at least an hour; overnight is better. Pipe onto/into éclairs as desired. (I didn't cut mine in half as directed since I had a filling tip for my pastry bag.)

The Chocolate Sauce was supposed to be part of the glaze for the tops of the eclairs, but I improvised (it was early Sunday morning, after all) and used it to make a kind of super-chocolate ganache with chocolate chips. I had also forgotten to get heavy cream at the grocery store, so I had to modify (read: butcher) Pierre Hermé's recipe to get the sauce done.

Chocolate Sauce
adapted from Pierre Hermé

1 cup half and half
1/2 cup whole milk
2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup sugar

Place all ingredients into a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and continue stirring until the sauce thickens (i.e., when it coats the back of the spoon...it may take a while to get thick).

Chocolate Glaze
also a la Pam

1/2 cup Chocolate Sauce
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat both ingredients slowly in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir until chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Spread on the tops of the eclairs with an offset spatula. If made ahead of time, simply reheat in a double boiler until spreadable.

Assembling the Éclairs

Slice the éclairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper. (Or, just fill them with a filling tip on a pastry bag like I did.)

The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 F). Spread the glaze over the tops of the éclairs using an offset icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the bottoms with the pastry cream by piping or spooning the pastry cream into the bottoms of the éclairs. Make sure you fill the bottoms
with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream and wriggle gently to settle them.

The éclairs are best served as soon as they have been filled.

Red Velvet Cake

2008-08-14T10:02:00.000-04:00

I guess since I've made Red Velvet Truffles, I should share my recipe for Red Velvet Cake. I love this cake; it's probably my favorite cake, especially with the cream cheese frosting, and it's really easy to make. Mmmmm.

Red Velvet Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp. red food coloring
1 Tbsp. white vinegar

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups confectioner's sugar

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter & flour two 9-inch round cake pans. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Beat the butter & sugar & vanilla in large bowl until creamy (at medium speed). Add eggs one at a time until just blended after each addition. Gradually add the dry ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk, food coloring, & vinegar. Pour half the batter in each pan. Bake for 23-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool cakes in the pan for 10 minutes and then turn out onto racks. Cool completely before frosting.

Beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until smooth. Graudally add sifted confectioner's sugar and beat until fluffy. Frost cakes as desired.

Recipe from Cakes! 1,001 Classic Recipes from Around the World

Red Velvet Truffles

2008-08-05T14:35:00.000-04:00

These Red Velvet Truffles are so simple to make! True, they're a bit laborious (any kind of truffle is, right?), but they're definitely worth it. Plus, the recipe yielded quite a few truffles. Originally titled "Red Velvet Cake Balls" on Bakerella's blog, I just can't bring myself to call them that. It just sounds...well... too blunt. Mine certainly aren't fancy, but they're really tasty and not as sweet as you'd expect. I made the mistake of putting mine into the fridge to firm up and taking their picture too soon - hence the condensation you can see on the chocolate ones. Of course, I preferred the ones dipped in the white chocolate, but that's okay. My husband said he'd take care of the rest of the chocolate ones. :)

Red Velvet Truffles

1 box red velvet cake mix (bake in a 9x13 cake pan)
1 16 oz. can cream cheese frosting
1 package chocolate bark (regular or white chocolate)

1. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.
2. Mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. I found it easier to fold and mash it together instead of stirring alone. Either way, it's messy.
3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls or use a mini ice-cream scoop like I did and lay on cookie sheet.
4. Chill for several hours in the fridge or put into the freezer for about an hour.
5. Melt chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave.
6. Using a toothpick, dip the balls in chocolate, tap off extra, and lay on wax paper until firm.

Marinated Lamb Chops

2008-07-07T11:34:00.000-04:00

I made these grilled marinated lamp chops for my husband's birthday dinner this year, and they were really delicious. I started out with thick-cut lamb chops (~1-inch), and the flavor was really great after a 2-hour soak in the marinade. We'll definitely be making these again!

Marinated Lamb Chops

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lemon, zested (about 1/2 teaspoon)
1 lemon, juiced (about 2 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano leaves, or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 (6 to 8-ounce) lamb loin chops (thick-cut is better), trimmed of all visible fat (to avoid flare-ups on the grill)

In a small bowl stir together the first 7 ingredients. Put the lamb chops in a sealable plastic bag and pour the marinade over them. Move the chops around in the bag so the marinade coats them well. Marinate for at least 1 hour; I marinated them for 2 hours.
Grill or broil the chops for 5 to 7 minutes per side for medium rare.

Recipe adapted from Ellie Krieger

Onion Lotus

2008-07-01T10:25:00.000-04:00

This isn't a recipe so much as it is a technique. I know the photo looks like it came from the original Better Homes & Garden New Cook Book, but I first saw it on Robin Miller's Quick Fix Meals on FoodNetwork, though I think she chopped them up and used them in another dish. These are really great and can be used in various dishes or served as a side dish. Variations are endless; this could be done with any type of onion (shallots, cipollini, red, etc) and can be roasted with any flavors (i.e., balsamic vinegar, any number of herbs, spices, etc).

Onion Lotus

onions (however many and whatever kind you want)
olive oil
salt
pepper
other seasonings/flavors (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Peel the onion, leaving the root end intact. Carefully cut the onion vertically (from pole to pole) into 6 sections, being sure to leave the root end intact.* Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for ~45-60 minutes or until the onions have 'bloomed' and are soft. Serve as a side or refrigerate for up to a week and use in other dishes.

*Note: You may need to trim the root end a bit so the onion will sit/stand straight on the pan and not roll around. Just be sure that you leave enough so the sections won't separate.

Almond-Orange-Apricot Crescent Rolls

2008-06-26T14:27:00.000-04:00

I usually take Rachel Ray's recipe with a grain of salt, so to speak, because her taste is not the same as mine. However, I've tried two of her recipes recently that have been really good and will go in my collection. I usually can't stand refrigerator rolled breads (i.e., biscuits, crescents, etc), but these were awesome. I probably let mine sit out on the counter too long before cooking, but they were really delicious. They're easy and don't require lots of ingredients, so give 'em a try. They're great for brunch; I served it with a Mushroom, Onion, and Cheese Fritatta.

Almond-Orange-Apricot Crescent Rolls

1 package store bought crescent roll dough (recommended: Pilsbury brand)
1/4 cup apricot preserves or all fruit spread (I used Apricot-Peach Jam)
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1 egg
Splash of water
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/4 cup sliced almonds, 2-ounce sack from baking aisle

Preheat oven to package directions and roll out dough on a nonstick cookie sheet. Cut and separate dough into perforated triangles. Combine the apricot jam or fruit spread and the orange marmalade in a small bowl. Place bowl in microwave and cook on HIGH 15 seconds to loosen the preserves. Beat egg with water to thin it out a little for an egg wash. Use the back of a teaspoon to spread a thin layer of apricot-orange jam across each piece of dough. Roll crescents up, brush with a little egg wash and coat with sesame seeds and almonds. Bake to package directions until deep golden in color. Serve warm.

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Banana Maple Tart Tatin

2008-06-21T15:41:00.000-04:00

The first is actually a dessert, since that's generally what I'm drawn to in terms of recipe searches, but it's so simple, fast, and tasty I had to include it. And, it's almost sugarless (except the sugar in the puff pastry and the natural sugar in the maple syrup). If you don't have a vanilla bean, you could probably add 1/2 to 1 tsp real vanilla (no imitation stuff here) instead. Enjoy!

Banana Maple Tart Tatin

1 sheet (about 7 ounces) frozen puff pastry
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 vanilla bean, split
2 to 3 bananas, thickly sliced (1/2 to 3/4 inch)

On a floured surface, roll the pastry out a bit to even out the any folds and make it a touch thinner. Cut a 10-inch circle of dough from it, prick it, and keep it chilled.

Preheat oven to 425F.

Place a heavy 9 or 10-inch metal cake pan (I used a cast iron skillet) on the stove on a large burner and turn the heat onto medium. Add the butter and warm to melt it. Meanwhile, scrape the seeds out of the vanilla bean. Add the maple syrup and vanilla bean & seeds and bring to a boil stirring a bit. Remove the vanilla bean. Take the pan off the heat and place the banana slices in the pan decoratively in concentric circles to cover the whole bottom of the pan. Place the pastry over the bananas to cover them, tucking the pastry down along the inside of the pan. Later, during baking, the pastry will shrink to fit the pan.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. Let cool in the pan 30 minutes then warm the bottom of the pan on the stove for a minute and turn the tart out onto a serving platter.

Recipe courtesy Gale Gand

Recipe Rut

2008-06-21T15:20:00.001-04:00

I've been in a rut in terms of cooking recently, so I finally decided to go through my plethora of cookbooks for meal ideas. That, in combination with some recipes I've seen on FoodNetwork in the last few weeks, have inspired me to try some new things. I'm so glad I did (as is my husband!)! So, I actually have some recipes to post that I've added to my repertoire. Yay!

Also coming...recipe photos and an updated searchable menu for this blog! (I know...it's about time...) :)

Blogging By Mail: Long Overdue Post

2008-04-10T15:02:00.000-04:00

Wow, time does fly, doesn't it? It seems like yesterday that I received my BBM package, but then, we left for vacation, returned, got busy again, and I have neglected to post until now about the goodies that Meghan from A Craving for Perfection sent to me. So, my apologies, Meghan...without further adieu, here's the good stuff!

From left to right, clockwise: decorative Asian take-out boxes, smoked salmon, mint chocolates from the Seattle Space needle, Trader Joe's Harvest Blend mix (including Israeli couscous, chickpeas, and lots of other yummy things), a Coast Guard chocolate bar (in front of the mints & couscous mix), cookie cutters (butterfly & flower), recipe cards, a letter detailing all of the goodies, US Coast Guard magnet, blue Japanese Bento box with chopsticks and cloth cover, a pink heart-shaped onigiri maker (used to shape rice), and cupcake/muffin liners in the middle.

I had already begun to play this CD that Meghan sent and forgot to put it in the picture with everything else. I love the songs she chose...most are food-related and just plain fun to listen to. I'm thoroughly enjoying it.

So, to sum up evertyhing, I loved the BBM package! Chocolates...devoured; couscous mix - haven't tried yet but very excited to be able to try some Israeli couscous; salmon will be enjoyed by my husband as I don't like fish (though I will try a small piece); will be using the cupcake liners soon; cookie cutters are perfect since I collect metal cookie cutters; take-out boxes should make great cookie-delivery-devices,; and the bento box and onigiri maker are awesome...I have seen them online, but now I have one to use for my son (when he gets a little bit bigger). Oh, and the magnet is on my fridge. :)

Thank you Meghan! Sorry it took me so long to post, but everything was great!

Banana Nut Pancakes

2008-03-09T16:40:00.000-04:00

Wow...I didn't realize it had been so long since I last posted. Time flies when you have a little one. :)

So, in an attempt to have a quick, hearty, and yummy meal, here's what I've come up with. Simple, scrumptious, and speedy. (Not to mention only one skillet to clean!) Yum.

Banana Nut Pancakes

2 cup Bisquick
2 eggs
1 cup milk
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans, but walnuts would also be good)
Olive oil (or butter) for frying
Maple syrup for serving

Toast nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant.

While the nuts are toasting, mix the Bisquick, eggs, and milk. Add mashed bananas. Add toasted nuts.

Add some olive oil (or butter) to the skillet (still over medium heat) and pour batter into ~4-inch circles (or whatever size you happen to like). Cook until golden, brown, and delicious on both sides, and enjoy with real maple syrup.

Italian Dressing Mix

2008-02-13T11:08:00.000-05:00

I wanted some Italian Dressing for a marinated salad, but I realized that I didn't have any on hand. So, I found out how to make my own, and it's much better than what I used to buy. :)

Italian Dressing Mix

1 Tbsp garlic salt
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 Tbsp white sugar
2 Tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried basil
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp celery salt
1 Tbsp salt

In a small bowl, mix together the above ingredients. Store in a tightly sealed container.

To make the Dressing:

2 Tbsp dry mix
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 Tbsp water
2/3 cup canola or olive oil (or a combination)
Grated parmasean, ~ 2 Tbsp, or to taste

To prepare dressing, whisk the dry mix with vinegar and water. Let sit for 5 minutes. Then, whisk in oil. Add some grated parmasean and serve.

From AllRecipes

Orzo with Roasted Garlic, Red Peppers, & Spinach

2008-01-11T15:06:00.001-05:00

I know it's not a clever title, but it was delicious! In fact, there weren't any leftovers at all. I got the idea from a side dish we had at Macaroni Grill, but I think mine was better. (Hey, my husband said it was "restaurant quality.") :) This recipe should feed 4, but if you're really hungry (like we were), it will only be enough for 2. Of course, it can easily be doubled as well.

1/2 box orzo pasta, cooked & drained
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. roasted garlic, minced or smashed into a paste consistency
2 to 3 Tbsp. roasted red peppers,julienned
1 cup spinach, large chiffonade

In a saute pan, warm the olive oil and roasted garlic on low heat for a couple of minutes. Then, turn the heat up to medium/medium-low and add the roasted red peppers. Stir to combine. Add the drained orzo and stir to coat pasta. Just before serving, add the spinach, stir to combine, and serve.

Roast Chicken Rub

2008-01-04T09:04:00.001-05:00

**Updated**
I've been roasting a lot of food recently...potatoes, green beans, carrots, onions, chicken, etc., etc. It's tasty and incredibly easy. I tried a rub last night on some roasted chicken, and it was fantastic. The original recipe is for a make-at-home rotisserie chicken, but I just had leg quarters, and it worked great. I also used smoked paprika instead of sweet paprika, but either would be fine. I lifted the skin and put the rub on the meat as well as on top of the skin before drizzling with olive oil to roast. Delicious!

*Update: You'll notice there's no salt in this rub. The original called for 2 tsp. salt, but it was far too salty after I made it again. So, salt the chicken as a separate step; otherwise, it will be way too salty.*

Roast Chicken Rub

1 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. ground thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Sprinkle on chicken skin and between skin and meat (or on skinless chicken). Drizzle olive oil over skin and roast at 400F for about 30 minutes or until done.

Original 'Rotisserie-Style Chicken' recipe from "In the Kitchen with Mary & Martha: Cookin' Up Christmas"

Cake!

2007-12-20T12:46:00.000-05:00

I haven't been posting much because I've been busy making another wedding cake (and a groom's cake!). Here's what I've been up to. (No, I didn't do the flowers...the florist took care of that...I just did the cakes.)

Pomegranate Vinaigrette

2007-12-07T19:08:00.000-05:00

I don't eat as many salads as I'd like (or should). And, normally, I don't make my own dressings. However, I happened to have some pomegranate molasses, and this recipe from Bobby Flay looked too good to pass up. I was right. This is delicious on a spinach salad, especially if you add some chopped apples and toasted walnuts as suggested with the accompanying salad recipe. Very refreshing and tasty. I only made a slight modification to the amount of pomegranate molasses.

Pomegranate Vinaigrette

1/3 cup pomegranate molasses
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk together the pomegranate molasses, vinegar, mustard, honey and salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until emulsified.

Recipe courtesy Bobby Flay

Chickpea Curry

2007-12-03T19:23:00.001-05:00

This tasty dish could have come from your local Indian restaurant, but it's so simple and quick to make at home, either on the stovetop or in a crock pot/slow cooker. Since I cooked this on the stove, I smashed some of the chickpeas (probably 1/4 to 1/2 of them) to make the curry a bit thicker and less chunky. I served this over rice. Mmm...yum.

Chickpea Curry

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger, grated
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. coriander, crushed
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. salt
15 oz. can chickpeas
15 oz. can diced tomatoes
1/2 tsp. garam masala

Saute oil, onions, ginger, and garlic for 5 minutes. Place onion mixture & remaining ingredients except garam masala into crockpot and cook for 6-9 hours on low. Add garam masala before serving.

Saute oil, onions, ginger, and garlic for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except garam masala and simmer covered for 30 minutes. Add garam masala before serving.

Recipe courtesy Simple Vegetarian Recipes

Cranberry Swirl Coffee Cake

2007-12-02T18:43:00.000-05:00

I love cranberries! My freezer is stocked full of them. However, this recipe is great using canned whole berry cranberry sauce (though I'm sure it would be even better using homemade cranberry sauce). It's quick to put together, and the results are fabulous. It was perfect to serve for brunch on Thanksgiving Day. Just make sure to cool the cake before you try to glaze it. (Trust me; it works better that way.)

1/4 pound margarine (I used BlueBonnet)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pint (1 cup) sour cream
1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
7 or 8 ounce can whole cranberry sauce
1/2 cup chopped nuts, lightly toasted (I used pecans)
Glaze:
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
1 tablespoon warm water

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grease 6 or 9 inch tube pan. Cream margarine and sugar with electric mixer. Add unbeaten eggs one at a time, beating after each addition on medium speed.
Mix dry ingredients and add alternating with sour cream.

Add flavoring. Put a layer of batter on bottom then swirl some cranberry sauce over batter and sprinkle with a few nuts. Add batter, more cranberry sauce, then the remaining batter and remaining cranberry sauce. Swirl the cranberry sauce into the batter with spatula or spoon. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake for 55 minutes or until cake tests done with toothpick. Cool in pan for 5 minutes then turn out on rack to cool, or to serve. If desires, drizzle with glaze.

Glaze: Mix sugar, water and flavoring and drizzle over cooled or cold coffee cake.

Recipe courtesy Carroll Pellegrinelli on About.com

Brined Turkey

2007-11-29T10:52:00.000-05:00

This year is the first year I've cooked a turkey for Thanksgiving, and I decided to brine the turkey. Boy, am I glad I did! The turkey was so flavorful and juicy. My husband said it was probably the best turkey he'd ever had! Even my mother-in-law, who only likes dark meat, thought the white meat was really juicy. So, even if you never use this brining recipe, it's here so I have a record of what I did so I can repeat it next year. :)

2 gallons cold water
1 cup kosher salt
1 cup brown sugar
3 dried bay leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh sage
1 Tbsp. dried lemon peel
1 Tbsp. dried orange peel

Heat ~1 quart of the water, salt, sugar, and bay leaves to and stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Use the remaining water to cool the mixture down. Place a washed turkey in the brine, making sure the cavity fills with the liquid. Put in the sprigs of thyme and sage. Put the dried citrus peel in a cotton bag or a pouch made of cheesecloth. Cover the turkey/brine and place in the refrigerator. Let sit for 8 hours, or overnight, up to 24 hours before cooking.

To cook: Remove the turkey from the brine, making sure the herbs stay with the brine instead of the turkey. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels. Put an onion, peeled & quartered, carrots and celery (use larger chunks) in the cavity along with some fresh sprigs of thyme and sage. Truss. Roast at 400F for an hour, covered with foil. Turn the heat down to 350 and cook for another 1.5 hours. Check the internal temp with a meat thermometer; it should read around 165. Take the turkey out and let it carry-over cook while covered in foil until it's done (about another hour). The outside won't be too pretty, but the meat is oh-so-tasty. *drool* :) I think next time, I'll roast it uncovered at first, then tent it with foil so the skin won't burn.

Butternut Squash Apple Cranberry Bake

2007-11-27T10:31:00.000-05:00

For a yummy fall side dish, this certainly fits the bill. In fact, I served it for Thanksgiving dinner this year. I found this recipe on Elise's Simply Recipes, but I've made a couple of minor changes to make it more delectable for my palate.

Butternut Squash Apple Cranberry Bake

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 large tart cooking apples cut into 1/2-inch thick slices (no need to peel)
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries (i.e., Craisins), soaked in water or apple juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup (half a stick) butter
1 Tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350F.

Slice and peel squash and apples. Put squash cubes in ungreased 9x13-inch baking dish. Place apples on top and then cranberries. Mix the flour, salt, sugar, and nutmeg and sprinkle on top. Dot with butter. Bake 50-60 minutes.

Corn Bread

2007-11-21T08:36:00.000-05:00

I don't think there's anything I like better in the summer than homemade Corn Bread with butter and home-grown tomatoes. (My mouth is watering as I type!) However, for the Thanksgiving holiday, Corn Bread also makes a great stuffing/dressing to accompany the turkey. No matter when you eat it or how you make it, it's always yummy. This particular recipe is from my mother-in-law, with slight adaptations. I like a sweeter Corn Bread, but feel free to decrease the sugar to your own taste.

Corn Bread

1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal (not self-rising!)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
8 heaping tsp. sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 425F. Mix dry ingredients in one bowl. In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry and mix just until combined. Let mixture sit for ~5 minutes while you preheat a cast iron skillet. Once the skillet is hot, add ~1 Tbsp. oil (enough to cover the bottom of the skillet with a thin layer). Pour the mixture into the skillet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden, brown, and delicious.

Lone Oak Cookies (aka Cake Mix Cookies)

2007-11-04T17:20:00.000-05:00

The organization with which we volunteer, Remote Area Medical (RAM), completed an expedition at Lone Oak Community Center this weekend. During most RAM expeditions, locals provide food for the volunteers, and the food at Lone Oak is always excellent. Several ladies from the community made homemade desserts for the weekend, and they were gracious enough to share two recipes with me. The first is Lone Oak Cookies (aka Cake Mix Cookies). I ate more than my share of these cookies over the last two days, and thanks to Joel (& Martha), I can make my own. :) The recipe, as given to me by Joel, is below. They're super easy and very tasty. Try orange cake mix...it's delicious!

Lone Oak Cookies

1 box cake mix
1/3 cup oil (she used corn oil)
2 eggs (she used large)
Canned/prepared icing - (she used vanilla)

Mix - this makes a very stiff dough. Make balls (smaller than a walnut). Bake 12 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool. Ice with canned icing between 2 cookies.

Greek Shrimp & Couscous

2007-10-29T13:35:00.000-04:00

I've never been to Greece, so I'm not sure of the authenticity of this dish. However, I know it's tasty, easy, and quick to make from pantry & freezer staples, which is a good thing since I don't have a whole lot of time to cook these days. :) Enjoy!

Greek Shrimp & Couscous

1 (10-ounce) package couscous
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound frozen shrimp, thawed, peeled and de-veined
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green pepper and onion, drained
1/2 cup Greek black olives, pitted and chopped
1 tablespoon dried mint leaves
1 teaspoon garlic and herb seasoning (i.e., Ms. Dash brand)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a medium saucepan, cook couscous according to package directions. (Or, for more flavor, use broth instead of water.)

In a separate pan/skillet, add olive oil and shrimp. Add tomatoes, olives, mint, garlic and herb seasoning, and oregano. Simmer for about 3 to 5 minutes to cook shrimp and heat through. Season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Pour over couscous and serve.

Recipe courtesy Robin Miller/Food Network

While I was out...

2007-10-23T08:29:00.000-04:00

I had this little fellow in September.

He arrived almost 2 weeks early, but he's perfectly fine. I had some complications during/after the birth, so I was out of commission for a few weeks, but I'll hopefully be back to posting soon. The only things I've made recently have been an Apple Cake and Banana Bread anyway, so you haven't missed much. :)

P.S. - Sorry for just a picture of an ear...at the moment I really don't want to post pictures of my child for the whole world to see. Might be the hormones...or maybe just orneryness. :) I might post pics here one day, but for now I'm keeping photos just for family.

Lemon Blueberry Trifle

2007-08-18T10:55:00.000-04:00

My sister sent this recipe to me, and it's a great summertime dessert...nice and light but oh-so-delicious. Of course, it's better with homemade pound cake, but store-bought will work just fine. I omitted the white chocolate, but I'm sure it would be a tasty addition. And, if you don't have any lemon pudding on hand, you can do what I did and use vanilla pudding with some lemon extract. Worked like a charm.

Lemon Blueberry Trifle

1 1/2 c. milk
2 tbsp. lemon juice (the juice of one lemon)
16 oz. pound cake, cubed
8 oz. whipped topping
1 pint blueberries
8 oz. sour cream
2 4 serving pkgs. instant lemon pudding
1 lemon for garnish
1 oz. grated white chocolate (1 square), optional

Sprinkle lemon juice over cubed pound cake and set aside. Add sour cream and pudding to milk. Fold in 6 oz. of the whipped topping, reserving the rest for garnish. Stir until mixture starts to thicken. In trifle dish, layer as follows: Pound cake, blueberries, white chocolate, pudding mixture, until all is used. For top of trifle, pipe 10 rosettes of whipped topping around edge and top each rosette with a blueberry. Slice the lemon into thin slices and cut in half. Place the lemon slices between the rosettes. Any leftover white chocolate goes in the middle of the rosette circle on top of the trifle. Chill for 20 minutes to set and serve.

More pics - non-food related

2007-08-17T09:50:00.000-04:00

For those who are interested, here are the latest u/s pics. I'm at 34 weeks, so it won't be long now...

Blogging By Mail!

2007-08-16T22:04:00.000-04:00

I'm delinquent in posting about my Blogging By Mail package I received from Danielle of Habeas Brulee. She included several of her favorite ingredients as well some homemade goodies for me:

Let's see...we'll start from the bottom left. The small bag contains several vanilla beans, which I plan to use in either some creme brulee or creme caramel (in honor of Danielle's blog, Habeas Brulee). The larger zip-top bag contains homemade Hazelnut Amaretti Cookies. Yum! They're delicious and crunchy! (and I love hazelnuts!)

On top of the cookies are some new-to-me ingredients: Birdseye Chili Peppers and Urfa-Biber (Smoky Turkish Pepper). The aroma of each is intruiging, and I can't wait to try them! (I'm open to suggestions, too, if you're fond of these ingredients or have a recipe I should try; I don't have any idea yet as to how I'm going to use them.)

Continuing on, we have some Herbal Masala Chai, Mustard Oil, and Pomegranate Molasses. I could sit and sniff the bag of chai for hours...it smells absolutely wonderful! I'm looking forward to making some chai soon, but since it's been over 100 degrees here, it will have to be an iced chai. I hate to admit it, but I have no idea what to use the Mustard Oil for. I've never seen it before, so again, if you have suggestions, I'm open to them! The pomegranate molasses will definitely be incorporated into some of my recipes. I've been wanting to try some for quite a while, and now I finally can!

So, to Danielle, sorry for the delay in posting about the package. I'm excited to try some new things, and Thank You, Thank You for everything!

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

2007-07-18T12:58:00.000-04:00

I'm currently reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver, with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver. It's been quite an eye opener for me regarding the "food chain" (or, I guess it would be the food supply chain), especially in the U.S. I'm not sure how much it would apply to other countries, but ultimately the challenges (and problems) of feeding the world's population affect every country on the planet.

While I'm not finished reading the book, I would recommend it to you without hesitation. Her perspective, not to be discounted since she lives in a small, southern U.S. town, is refreshing and really made me think about the food I buy and eat in a different light.

Oh, and her daughter, Camille, contributes recipes and menus throughout the book. They are also available on the companion website (http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com) for downloading. Be sure to check out both the book and the website.

Apple Turnovers

2007-07-14T22:30:00.000-04:00

I've purchased and baked the some-assembly-required turnovers available from the grocery store, and while they're tasty (they come in apple and cherry), they are a bit more 'processed' than I'd prefer. (Plus, I don't know exactly what's in them!) So, we now have an easy way to make tasty apple turnovers in our household that uses prepared puff pastry and homemade filling. I must give credit to my husband for perfecting the filling recipe. :) The filling can be made ahead of time (and I assume the turnovers can be assembled ahead of time, too, though I haven't tried it), so they're quick, easy, and tasty. Oh, and you can make the turnovers whatever size you'd like! They're great for breakfast or brunch with a good cup of coffee.

Apple Turnovers

1 sheet of Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry (1/2 package), thawed

Filling:
1 large Granny Smith Apple, grated (peeling not necessary)
1 Tbsp. sugar (or to taste)
1 tsp. ground cinnamon (or to taste)
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg (or to taste)

Preheat oven to 400F degrees. Mix filling ingredients and set aside. Cut the sheet of puff pastry into 6 squares (or 4 if you want bigger turnovers). Place the filling in the center of the square, fold into a triangle, and seal the edges with a fork. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown. Cool slightly. Dust with powedered sugar and serve.

Food Find

2007-06-29T09:58:00.000-04:00

I haven't been doing much experimenting lately with new recipes (mainly because I'm still unpacking our house), but I have visited a few foodie-type stores in the area to see what's available. One such store is the European Market, a small shop that stocks hundreds of items imported from various countries in Europe, from meats to noodles, juices to chocolates, etc. I had read about Lingonberries on Anne's blog, so when I saw a jar of Lingonberry Jam (imported from Sweden), I had to try some. I am so glad I did! It's delicious! The jam has a delicious taste similar to cranberries, but the sweet-tart balance is absolutely perfect for my tastebuds. If you have a local market that carries products from Europe, see if they carry Lingonberry Jam. Or, do a search online for some. Amazon.com carries it. You'll be glad you did.