Two Guys in the Desert

Just a Few Pictures of Our Recent Snowfall

2009-02-13T12:57:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't posted in months, so I thought I'd get back into the swing by posting a few pictures of our substantial (for Tucson area) snowfall which we woke up to the other morning. Believe me, it was quite a surprise. We knew there'd be a chance, but nothing like we ended up getting. Really beautiful to see and fun to be in -- for a few minutes!

Pool Update

2008-10-07T16:16:00.001-07:00

These are a few shots of what's going on out back. So far, so good. No problems.

I Finally Found a Use for My Fish Poacher

2008-10-07T15:47:00.000-07:00

Let just start out saying this is the second time I've made this recipe, and liked it way better the first time through. I think I know why; there are a couple of differences. The first go-around, I tied together two pork loins, cut from a full loin bought at Costco. Also, I used dried sage, not fresh. Okay, so those are the main differences. The wider thickness of the two loins tied together allowed a longer roast, so it didn't dry out. Also, the fresh sage is so incredibly strong that it gave the second roast a soapy taste. Not pleasant! I tell a lie; there's a third difference. The first time, I used thin slices of pancetta, not smoky bacon. With the bacon, the roast was constantly bathed in bacon fat, so it kind of stewed in a pool of juicy fat, which I ended up draining off.

Enough with all that. How do you like my new brining vessel? It worked perfectly, and I'll use it again for pork roasts and cut-up chickens. The fish poacher has sat in its original box, on a shelf in a storage bin in the garage, for the last twelve years. I'm so glad it wasn't donated to the thrift shop. It fits nicely on the fridge shelf too, not too bulky.

Here's the recipe from Epicurious, with my parenthetical changes/comments.

Bacon-Wrapped Maple Pork Loin

For brining pork
8 cups water
1/3 cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup (Grade B or amber)
1/2 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
2 sprigs fresh sage (dried is fine, actually not as strong)
1 large garlic clove, smashed
1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
1 (4- to 4 1/2-lb) boneless pork loin roast, trimmed (I used two tied together)

For roasting pork
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage (used 1 tablespoon dry)
3 tablespoons maple syrup (Grade B or amber)
16 bacon slices (about 1 lb) (Better with pancetta)
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon water

Brine Pork:

Combine all brining ingredients except pork loin in a 3- to 4-quart saucepan and heat over high heat, stirring, until salt is dissolved. Pour brine into a deep 4- to 5-quart pot; cool to room temperature, uncovered, about 2 hours.

Add pork to brine, making sure it is completely covered by brine, and marinate, covered and chilled, 8 to 24 hours.

Roast pork:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Pat pork dry (discard brine) and remove any strings, then transfer to a roasting pan. Stir together garlic, sage, and 1 tablespoon syrup in a small bowl and rub all over pork. Lay bacon slices crosswise over loin, overlapping slightly, and tuck ends of bacon underneath loin.

Roast pork until thermometer registers 140°F, about 1 1/4 hours. Stir together 1 tablespoon syrup and vinegar until combined. Brush vinegar mixture over bacon slices and continue to roast pork until thermometer registers 150°F, about 10 minutes more. Remove from oven and let stand in pan 15 minutes. Transfer roast to a cutting board with a lip, reserving juices in pan, and let roast stand, uncovered, while making sauce.

Skim fat from pan juices and discard, then transfer jus to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Stir together cornstarch and water and whisk into jus. Simmer, stirring, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in remaining tablespoon syrup. Serve pork with sauce.

Help! There's a Hole in Our Backyard!

2008-10-03T16:43:00.000-07:00

Guess What's Happening in the Backyard!

2008-10-02T09:27:00.000-07:00

Follow this Blog!

2008-09-28T11:24:00.000-07:00

I've added a "Followers" widget on the sidebar, so if you want to let us know you're reading our blog, please sign up. Thanks!

Apple Galette

2008-09-28T10:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a recipe from America's Test Kitchen I saw on PBS the other day. I had a large container of Fuji apples from Costco to use up, so this sounded perfect. I used the suggested weight measurements, as this usually is more accurate. There was a significant difference between the volumes and weights. The fraisage process sounded a bit intimidating, but really there's nothing to it. Next time though, I'd be a bit more observant while adding the ice water. I think I went one tablespoon too much, and this made the dough a bit wet, but it rolled out just fine. The result was nice and flaky with not too much sweetness. The Costco and Sam's Club here do not sell heavy whipping cream (!@#%+!!!!), so we used the old-fashioned canned Redi Whip type and that was fine. This is a lot for two people, but it holds up for a few days just fine at room temperature. I think this could be made using more apples, cut a bit thicker, for more apple flavor, but as written it's fine too.

Apple Galette

Serve with vanilla ice cream, lightly sweetened whipped cream, or creme fraiche.

Serves 8 to 10

*Dough*
1 1/2	cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
1/2	cup Wondra flour or Pillsbury Shake and Blend instant flour (2 1/2 ounces)
1/2	teaspoon salt
1/2	teaspoon sugar
12	tablespoons cold unsalted butter , cut into 5/8-inch cubes (1 1/2 sticks)
7-9	tablespoons ice water
*Apple Filling*
1 1/2	pounds apples (3-4 medium or 4-5 small), see note above
2	tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4	cup sugar
2	tablespoons apricot preserves (used peach preserves mixed with blood orange marmalade)
1	tablespoon water

1. CUT IN BUTTER: Combine flours, salt, and sugar in food processor with three 1-second pulses. Scatter butter pieces over flour, pulse to cut butter into flour until butter pieces are size of large pebbles, about 1/2 inch, about six 1-second pulses.

2. ADD WATER: Sprinkle 1 tablespoon water over mixture and pulse once quickly to combine; repeat, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time and pulsing, until dough begins to form small curds that hold together when pinched with fingers (dough should look crumbly and should not form cohesive ball).

3. FORM MOUND: Empty dough onto work surface and gather into rough rectangular mound about 12 inches long and 5 inches wide.

4. FRAISAGE AND CHILL: Starting at farthest end, use heel of hand to smear small amount of dough against counter, pushing firmly down and away from you, to create separate pile of dough (flattened pieces of dough should look shaggy). Continue process until all dough has been worked. Gather dough into rough 12 by 5-inch mound and repeat smearing process. Dough will not have to be smeared as much as first time and should form cohesive ball once entire portion is worked. Form dough into 4-inch square, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until cold and firm but still malleable, 30 minutes to 1 hour.

5. CUT APPLES: About 15 minutes before baking, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Peel, core, and halve apples. Cut apple halves lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick slices.

6. ROLL AND TRIM DOUGH: Place dough on floured 16 by 12-inch piece of parchment paper and dust with more flour. (I rolled out between two pieces of parchment paper the size of the half sheetpan.) Roll dough until it just overhangs all four sides of parchment and is about 1/8 inch thick, dusting top and bottom of dough and rolling pin with flour as needed to keep dough from sticking. Trim dough so edges are even with parchment paper.

7. FORM BORDER: Roll up 1 inch of each edge and pinch firmly to create 1/2-inch-thick border. Transfer dough and parchment to rimmed baking sheet.

8. LAYER APPLES AND BAKE: Starting in one corner, shingle sliced apples to form even row across bottom of dough, overlapping each slice by about one-half. Continue to layer apples in rows, overlapping each row by half. Dot apples with butter and sprinkle evenly with sugar. Bake until bottom of tart is deep golden brown and apples have caramelized, 45 to 60 minutes.

9. GLAZE: While galette is cooking, combine apricot preserves and water in medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium power until mixture begins to bubble, about 1 minute. Pass through fine-mesh strainer to remove any large apricot pieces. Brush baked galette with glaze and cool on wire rack for 15 minutes. Transfer to cutting board. Cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into individual portions; serve.

Fabulous Lemon Bars

2008-09-18T10:58:00.002-07:00

While I'm sitting here and posting, I might as well add this recipe for lemon bars I copied the other from Happy in the Kitchen. I'll keep this really short and sweet.

Recipe: Very easy.
Result: Yummy!
Repeatability: Yes.

Enough said. Here's the recipe. Only change I made is addition of about 1/4 cup finely processed almonds to the shortbread dough.

LEMON BARS
This is a good party recipe as it makes 2 dozen squares or about 48 small triangles
2 cups for the pastry+ 1/4 cup flour- for filling
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup unsalted butter- room temp
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
zest of one lemon
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
For the crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Beat the butter and powdered sugar in an electric mixer until creamy. Add the 2 cups of flour and beat on low till well combined.
Press the mixture evenly into a 9x13 inch baking pan (pyrex works best; silly me, I used metal, should have used glass as suggested) working the dough up about 1/2 inch the sides.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
For the filling:
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, the 1/4 cup flour, the eggs, lemon juice and zest.
Pour over the crust and bake for another 20 minutes until set in the center.
Allow to cool completely. Then put in the fridge - it will be easier to cut when cold.
Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Big Shoutout to Lisa et al. at Mountain View Ranch H.O.A.

2008-09-18T10:58:00.001-07:00

Thanks for your help yesterday, Lisa and Tony. Enjoyed chatting and getting to know you a bit -- finally!

Easy Challah

2008-09-18T10:58:00.000-07:00

I saw this version of challah on The Desert Sun site the other day, and since it's almost time for Jewish New Year, I set out to make a batch. I've made challah before, and it always comes out great, no matter which recipe or the source. One thing I've found is true, though: I always -- ALWAYS -- end up adding a lot more flour than called for. If only 4 cups of flour were added, as written in the recipe, I'd end up with a wet, sloppy, unmanageable blob of dough which never would rise or hold a shape. I didn't keep track, but at least another 1 1/4 cups of flour were needed to make the dough right. The only other change I made was the addition of about 1/4 teaspoon of good vanilla extract. I'd considered using half a vanilla bean's worth of seeds but didn't; possibly too much vanilla would come through. For the initial and second risings, and to provide extra humidity, I boiled some water in the microwave and placed it in the oven with the bowl of dough. When shaped into braids, I placed each on on separate parchment-covered sheet pans. I find with two on one pan, they usually end up touching and merging when baked. These loaves came out perfect: dark golden color, shiny on top from the prebake eggwash, and more like a cake texture than bread. Eddie and I could not resist and had some slices with soft unsalted butter to go alongside leftover and reheated chili-lime chicken wings. (Yummy!!) Tonight, we'll have soft-scrambled eggs and French toast. Cant' wait!

Easy Challah

Start to finish: 4 hours (30 minutes active). Makes 2 loaves

1 teaspoon sugar

1 cup warm water, about 110 F

2 teaspoons active dry yeast (-ounce package)

1/4 cup honey

3 large whole eggs, divided

3 large egg yolks

(1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional)

1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus more for bowl

1 tablespoon salt

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading

1 tablespoon whole milk

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, water and yeast. Mix until the yeast is dissolved. Let sit until foam develops on the surface of the water, about 5 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the honey, 2 of the whole eggs, all 3 egg yolks, and the oil. Add to the yeast mixture.

Add the salt and flour, then use the mixer's dough hook attachment to mix on low until combined, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium and continue mixing until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes.

Lightly coat a large bowl with oil, then transfer the dough into it, turning the dough once to completely coat with oil. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and set in a warm place until the dough doubles in volume, about 1 hour.

Transfer the dough to a dry work surface and punch down lightly to remove air that has gathered inside the dough.

Reshape the dough into a ball and return to the oiled bowl, again turning the dough to coat with oil. Cover the bowl with the towel and set in a warm place until the dough doubles in volume, about 1 hour.

Lightly coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.

Divide the dough in 2. The dough can be shaped into a standard loaf and baked as is. It also can be braided into a more traditional challah design. The number of braids determines the complexity. Three is a good number for beginners.

To do this, divide each piece of dough into three equal parts. Using your hands, roll each portion of dough into strands about 12 inches long and about 1 inch wide. You should have a total of 6 strands.

Gather together 3 strands and pinch them together at one end. Arrange the strands on the counter such that the pinched end is away from you and the strands fan out toward you.

Take the rightmost strand and bring it over the center one, dropping it between the center and left strands. Take the leftmost strand and bring it over the center, dropping it between the center and right strands. Continue this action of crossing the strands over one another until the strands have been fully braided. Be sure to pause occasionally to adjust the already braided portions so that they lay evenly and in a consistent pattern.

At the end of the braid, pinch the ends of the strands together and tuck them under the loaf. To make the second loaf, repeat this process with the remaining 3 strands of dough. Carefully transfer the braided loaves to the prepared baking sheet.

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining egg and the milk. Use a pastry brush to coat the surface of each loaf with the egg mixture. Reserve excess egg mixture in the refrigerator.

Cover the loaves loosely with plastic wrap, then place them in a warm spot to rise until the loaves have doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Heat the oven to 350 F.

Lightly brush the loaves with the remaining egg mixture. Bake until the loaves have risen and are a deep golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer the loaves to a wire rack to cool completely.

Are You Old Enough to Remember Her?

2008-09-08T14:23:00.000-07:00

Are you old enought to remember the comedian Totie Fields? If not, she was a top performer from the 60's and 70's, best remembered for her acts on The Ed Sullivan Show and live shows in Las Vegas. She made irreverent fun of her weight problems and just about everything else. When in Vegas, she could get away with a lot more risque humor that Sullivan would not tolerate. I came across videos of her show at the Sahara after her return from a leg amputation due to complications from a blood clot. Tragically, she died two years later. I had forgotten how funny she was. Here's a clip that really made me bust out laughing late last night.

Incredible Blueberry Pancakes

2008-09-06T14:39:00.000-07:00

THIS

PLUS THIS

EQUALS DELICIOUSNESS!
Last month when I bought a large container of blueberries at Costco, I made Kevin's blueberry blintzes and froze the rest for another day. Well, today was the day. The recipe came from Cream Puffs in Venice; I think the great photo of the pancakes did it for me.

Actually, since the recipe included the name "Mrs. Biederhof," and I'm a huge Mildred Pearce fan (raise the gay red flags here), I just had to give them a try. Actually, the recipe is from the Mildred Pearce restaurant in Toronto.

I had actually mixed together the dry ingredients last month and set them aside. So this morning, all I had to do was combine the buttermilk, eggs and melted butter. After a quick but thorough mixing of the dry and wet, the batter was ready for the griddle. I used a standard ice cream scoop to measure; that way, they'd all be the same size and Eddie and I wouldn't have to fight over who got the biggest portion. After scooping out the batter onto the griddle, I just scattered frozen blueberries on top, waited for that large-bubbly stage that pancakes get, and then turned them over for a few minutes.

I served them with slow-scrambled eggs and a family favorite, although somewhat odd, a slice of cheddar cheese. Don't laugh; the sweet from the berries and maple syrup goes really well with the tang of the cheese.

For reference, here's a link to the recipe.

I thought these were without a doubt the best pancakes I've EVER had! I loved them so much, I made up a triple batch of the dry ingredients and stored them in a big clip-top jar for the future. Also, I weighed it out, did the math, and figured out how much in grams I need for half a batch, as a full batch is too much to eat, although I froze the remaining six for toaster reheating. Notice that I use Grade B syrup for pancakes; it has a lot more maple flavor than the Grade A.

New Favorite Banana Bread

2008-09-04T15:38:00.000-07:00

The other day, I came across this recipe on the Joy of Baking site for Chocolate Banana Bread. I'd packed for the move all of our bags of assorted chocolate chips, hoping they'd make it in a cooler. They did, although slightly fused in blocks, but still usable. This recipe called for white chocolate chips, so I thought what the heck. Sitting in the fridge were perfect-for-banana-bread blackened bananas, and all the other ingredients were in the pantry. Stephanie, the host of Joy of Baking, writes all the well-tested recipes using volume measures as well as weights. I weighed out per her instructions, and I'd do exactly the same next time. This bread came out, like, totally awesome! After testing for doneness (no crumbs on my tester pick), and a brief rest in the pan, I turned it out onto a cooling rack, whereupon Eddie and I kept passing by, touching the sides to see if it had cooled down enough to "test" it out. When we couldn't wait any longer, Eddie made a pot of tea and we devoured nice thick slices. We could not resist the urge to shmear a bit of butter on first. Delicious! Not too sweet, good banana flavor, and just enough chocolate from the cocoa and white chips. The optional sprinkling before baking with raw sugar was a nice touch, giving the top a sugary crunch. Click on the above link for the Joy of Cooking site, but for convenience, here's the recipe. I did not change anything, but made it exactly as written. Why change perfection?
Chocolate Banana Bread:

1/2 cup (55 grams) walnuts or pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped

1 3/4 cups (245 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 cup (30 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3 ripe bananas (approximately 1 pound or 454 grams), mashed well (about 1-1/2 cups)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (85 grams) white chocolate chips

Garnish:

Turbinado or Demerara sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place oven rack to middle position. Butter and flour (or spray with a non stick vegetable/flour spray) the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan. Set aside.

Place the nuts on a baking sheet and bake for about 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Let cool and then chop coarsely.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, lightly fold the wet ingredients (banana mixture) into the dry ingredients until just combined and batter is thick and chunky. Fold in the nuts and chocolate chips. Scrape batter into prepared pan and sprinkle the top of the bread with coarse brown sugar (optional).. Bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 to 65 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 1 - 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf

Ricotta Gnocchi with Sauteed Cherry Tomato Sauce

2008-09-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

I DVR'd Sara Moulton's show last week, the show dealing with weeknight pasta dishes. This ricotta gnocchi gratin was one I just had to try. It can be done in stages, so work ahead is always good. Just assemble, bake and enjoy. Eddie and I each had a decent-sized serving, which was more than enough. This would easily serve six with a side of roasted vegetables, such as asparagus or broccoli. Looking forward to the leftovers tonight! Yeah, no cooking necessary.

Ricotta Gnocchi with Sauteed Cherry Tomato Sauce
Makes 4 - 6 servings

Kosher salt
One 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
3 ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, grated (about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly milled black pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 recipe Sautéed Cherry Tomato Sauce (recipe follows) or your favorite bottled sauce
2 ounces Italian Fontina cheese, coarsely grated (about 1/2 cup)

Extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 400° F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Beat the ricotta cheese and eggs together with an electric mixer until well combined. Stir in the flour, half of the Pecorino cheese, the salt, pepper, and nutmeg until just combined. (I made the dough in the morning, covered the bowl with plastic wrap and chilled it until dinnertime. Also, I just mixed it up by hand and it came out great.)

Scoop up a rounded tablespoon of the gnocchi dough, then use a second tablespoon to scoop the mixture off the spoon and into the boiling water. Repeat to make as many gnocchi as will fit in the saucepan without crowding. Simmer for 7 minutes. When they are cooked through, transfer the gnocchi with a slotted spoon to a shallow baking dish. Repeat until all the dough has been cooked. (I used a small ice cream scoop, about 1 1/2 tablespoons each. After cooking, I scooped them out to a sheet tray until I was ready to assemble the dish and bake it off.)

Meanwhile, prepare the Sautéed Cherry Tomato Sauce. (I started the sauce in the morning and finished simmering before dinnertime.) Spoon the sauce over the gnocchi and top with Fontina and remaining Pecorino cheeses (here I gave it a quick drizzling of olive oil) and bake for 10 minutes or until cheese has melted. (Finished it off under the broiler for a nice browned top.)

Sautéed Cherry Tomato Sauce: Combine 1 large onion cut into 8 pieces and 6 garlic cloves in a food processor fitted with the chopping blade; pulse 2 to 3 times until coarsely chopped. Heat 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil oil in a large skillet over high heat until hot. Reduce the heat to medium; add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are softened, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place one pint of cherry tomatoes in the food processor bowl and pulse 3 to 4 times, until coarsely chopped. Transfer to a bowl and repeat twice with 2 more pints cherry tomatoes. Add the chopped cherry tomatoes to the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until they form a sauce, about 10 minutes. (10 minutes is not nearly long enough; I simmered at least 30 minutes to get right consistency.) Add kosher salt and freshly milled black pepper to taste and serve over Ricotta Gnocchi. Top with 1 1/2 ounces Romano cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup) and 2 tablespoons chopped mixed fresh basil and oregano, if desired. Makes about 4 3/4 cups.

Casual Italian Lunch at Roma Imports

2008-08-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

The other day I was perusing the Chow section from the Tucson Weekly site and came across this review of a place called Roma Imports. I'll let the review stand on its own, as I cannot write a better or more complete one. By the time I finished reading it, though, I had decided we'd go for lunch the next day (Saturday). And we did.

Lucky for us there were map directions included in the article, because, being newcomers to Tucson, we'd never have found it. It truly is off the beaten path in a semi-industrial neighborhood. We knew we were close when I saw the Italian flag flying over some nearby trees and buildings.

Eddie had the Ultimate Roma sandwich (capocolla, Genoa salami, Mortadella, tomato, lettuce, red onion, vinaigrette) for $6.50. I had the chicken Parmesan sub (whole grilled chicken breasts and marinara sauce, Parmesan cheese and Provolone melt) for $6.99. Both came on their delicious French baguette bread. We didn't talk much during lunch; we were too busy enjoying the food. Truly, we could have shared a sandwich, and next time we will, but we both devoured the whole thing and loved every bit.

While waiting for the order to come out, we chatted with Lillian, the owner. Born in Calcutta, schooled in Israel and after a brief stint in Scotland where she met her husband, she settled in Tucson and built up this fantastic following for her homemade Italian and Mediterranean foods.
We asked to be put on the e-mail list for the next big banquet she throws, which will be in October. This one is going to be totally different: German foods in honor of Oktoberfest time. Can't wait!

After lunch, we took a moment to look through the deli, which includes coolers and freezers full of prepared foods to take home, such as lots of varieties of raviolis and gnocchi, lasagne, canneloni, sauces and pizza dough, just as examples. We bought a baguette, some sliced pancetta, some hot salami and Spanish chorizo.

Roma Imports was a real find for us and we'll be going back often to sample lots of their other menu items. It's located at 627 S. Vine in Tucson, AZ. Phone is 520.792.3137. Click here for a map and directions.

Closet Cooking's Blueberry Blintzes

2008-08-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a great big thank you to Kevin of Closet Cooking for inspiring me with his recent post on blueberry blintzes. I've made blintzes before, but not for quite some time. So when I saw his recipe, and then saw a beautiful basket of blueberries at Costco the next day, I just had to make a batch. I've got this pan that is perfect for the crepes. It has a gently sloped side and is only about 8 inches across, the perfect size for a blintz. Kevin's recipe yielded 4, but I wanted extra for the freezer, so I doubled the crepes ingredients and left the other proportions as written. A small amount of butter in the hot pan, a scant 1/4 cup of batter and a quick swirl of the wrist is all it took to cover the bottom of the pan perfectly. Left alone for a couple of minutes and they were ready to turn out on the counter. I cut squares of parchment paper, enough for a double batch, and as the crepe was cooked, it was turned out onto the paper to cool, then to stack for later filling and frying. The cottage cheese - cream cheese filling was delicious. Not too sweet. I drained a heaping cup of cottage cheese in a yogurt strainer for about an hour to remove some of the excess moisture. Also not too sweet was the star of the show: the blueberry sauce. Made with a Grade B syrup, it had just enough sweet to balance the tartness of the berries. After filling and frying up eight of the twelve, I placed them on a sheet pan, popped them in the freezer, and when firm, placed them into Zip bags for future reheating in the oven. At dinnertime, I fried up the remaining four blintzes, reheated the sauce, and then Eddie and I just dove into the most delicious light dinner we've had in a while. Halfway through, we just looked at each other with smiles on our faces. This is a definite recipe to be repeated in the future.

Blueberry Blintzes

Ingredients:
1/2 cup flour (1 cup)
1 egg (2 eggs)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons milk (1 ¼ cups)
1/8 teaspoon salt (1/4 t)
1 tablespoon butter (melted) (2 T)

Directions:
1. Mix the flour and egg in a large bowl.
2. Slowly stir in the milk.
3. Add the salt and butter and beat until smooth. (chill for at least 30 minutes)
4. Pour scant 1/4 of the mixture into a lightly oiled pan heated at medium.
5. Tilt the pan and turn so that the mixture evenly coats the entire bottom of the pan.
6. Cook the crepe until golden brown on the bottom, about 2 minutes. (Here I removed the crepes from the pan without cooking the second side.)
7. Flip and cook the other side until golden brown.

cheese filling
blueberry sauce

butter for frying

Directions:
1. Place 1/4 cup of the cheese filling into a crepe an wrap it like a burrito.
2. Melt the butter in a pan.
3. Add the blintzes, seem side down, and cook until golden brown on top and bottom turning once.
4. Serve the blintzes with blueberry sauce on top.

Cheese Filling

Ingredients:
1 cup cottage cheese (drained in yogurt strainer. Look for farmer cheese for drier mixture.)
1 4 ounce package cream cheese (softened)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions:
1. Mix everything.

Blueberry Sauce

Ingredients:
1 cup blueberries
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

Directions
1. Mix the cornstarch into the water.
2. Simmer everything in a sauce pan for 5 minutes.

Perfect Parmesan Popovers

2008-08-15T09:35:00.001-07:00

This recipe was inspired by one I've had in my files for a while. It's a Barefoot Contessa recipe, and I usually trust those. I added about a quarter cup of finely grated Parmesan cheese, but otherwise stuck to her directions. I'm not sure how Ina measured her ingredients, but there's no way this recipe would yield 12 popovers. I got nine, and next time I'd fill the cups even more to get eight larger ones (like the picture above). But that's my only criticism because they were delicious! Can't wait to make another batch. I'm lucky enough to have two six-cup popover pans, but these can be made in muffin tins or custard cups. They can be varied depending on the cheese used or even fresh herbs added. Or even adding some pureed garlic. Ohhh, I can taste that one now.

Popovers
Copyright 2001, Barefoot Contessa Parties!
Yield: 12 popovers (I got 9)

Ina says: There are 3 secrets to great popovers: Make sure the pan is hot before you pour in the batter, fill each section not more than half full, and no peeking while they’re in the oven!

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus softened butter for greasing pans
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups milk, at room temperature
(added about ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Generously grease aluminum popover pans or Pyrex custard cups with softened butter. You’ll need enough pans to make 12 popovers. (Only enough batter for 9) Place the pans in the oven for exactly 2 minutes to preheat. Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, salt, eggs, milk, and melted butter (and cheese) until smooth. The batter will be thin. Fill the popover pans less than half full and bake for exactly 30 minutes. Do not peek.

Salmon Burgers

2008-08-13T22:27:00.000-07:00

I can't take credit for these, but the Trident brand salmon burgers, available at Costco, are fantastic! We bought a bag today and I had them for lunch. They're quickly prepared on the stove. All I did was toast up a croissant, spread a bit of mayo and mustard, and topped it with the salmon. I could have eaten two, but restrained myself. Eddie hates salmon, but took a taste and admitted even he'd eat one. So that's saying a lot. So now I can get a good serving of salmon a couple times a week. Yeah!

Not food related: Here are a few pictures I took the other evening of the incredible sunset out back.

Pluot, Avocado, Tomato & Corn Salsa

2008-08-12T13:41:00.000-07:00

I came across a recipe this morning on a site called Foodbuzz, specifically from a contributor named TiffyC from Tulsa. This was another case of using what I had on hand, modifying the original recipe and making it work. The recipe called for peaches (used four different varieties of pluots), sweet corn (used frozen), cilantro (used regular parsley), cider vinegar (used tarragon) and jalapeño (used pasilla).

This is called a salsa, but I chunked the vegetables and fruit large, so I'd call this a salad, and that's how I served it for lunch, alongside a nice slice of leftover pizza. Yummy!

Just a word of caution: just because the pasilla chile is less potent than the jalapeño does not mean you can rub your eye after working with it. YOU CAN'T!!! Take it from me, it hurts.

Thanks, TiffyC, for the inspiration. This one goes in the repeat file.

Peach and Avocado Salsa with Corn

Adapted from a recipe by TiffyC.

3 medium fresh peaches, diced (used 4 kinds of pluots)
2 medium ripe avocado, diced
1 t lime juice (to taste, more like half a large lime)
2 c. tomato, diced
1/2 c. fresh sweet corn (frozen, more like 1 cup)
1/2 diced onion (red onion and scallions, about 1 cup)
2 t minced fresh cilantro (used regular parsley)
1 T cider vinegar (used tarragon vinegar)
1 t chopped jalapeño pepper (used pasilla chile, one whole diced large)
1 garlic clove, minced (don’t like raw garlic, so I blanched it, then smashed)
1/4 t sea salt
Fresh ground pepper

In a bowl, combine fruit, avocado and lime juice. Add the remaining ingredients. (Here I drizzled in some olive oil.) LIGHTLY toss until combined. Refrigerate for 1 hour. (I let it sit at room temp for an hour; the fuit tastes better when not chilled.)

Vanilla Bean Apple Crisp

2008-08-10T16:54:00.000-07:00

Well before we moved to Tucson, I'd bought two hefty packages of vanilla beans. They're well-wrapped, so they should be okay for a good while, but I wanted to continue using them up. This recipe for vanilla bean apple crisp comes from Epicurious, and I made it a couple of weeks ago. Fabulous flavors going on -- buttery topping to cut through, not too much vanilla flavor but what's there is pronounced, and the apples (and I throw in a chunked pear just to use up what's around). This is not like a nonbaker's apple pie, although if you don't bake this is a great recipe to add to your nonbaking repertoire. It's easy to throw together, and the ingredients are usually on hand. If vanilla beans aren't available, try substituting a teaspoon or so of extract, the real stuff, not the fake. As I only had limes in the house, that's what I used instead of the lemon juice called for in the recipe. I adjusted the baking times upward to get nicely browned edges on the apples before adding the crisp topping. Also, I finished the whole thing with five minutes on convection bake to get a nice evenly browned crust. The first time I made this, we had one caramel-chocolate Drumstick in the freezer, and that broken over the apple crisp was incredible. Tonight, we'll have to settle for plain ol' French vanilla, but it will still be memorable.

Vanilla Bean Apple Crisp
Bon Appétit March 2002

Makes 8 servings.

1/3 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (save pod for vanilla sugar)
2 1/4 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced 1/2-inch thick
(I used Fuji and a peeled pear)
1 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (I only had lime juice on hand)
Pinch of ground nutmeg (Ooops! Forgot it this time, but first time used freshly grated)
1 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place sugar in large bowl. Using small sharp knife, scrape seeds from vanilla bean into sugar. Rub mixture with fingertips to distribute seeds. Add next 4 ingredients; toss well. Transfer to 8-inch square glass baking dish. Place dish on prepared baking sheet. Bake until apples are tender and beginning to turn golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven; stir apples.
Blend flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt in processor. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle crumbs over apples, spreading evenly. Bake crisp until topping is golden brown, about 25 minutes. Cool crisp 10 minutes.

Here are the apples and pear as they went into the oven for the intial browning for 40 minutes or so.

Just before processing the crisp topping ingredients. I waited to do this until the apples came out of the oven so that the butter in the flour would stay cold.

The finished apple crisp, bubbling hot straight out of the oven. Yummmm! Just imagine vanilla ice cream melting over the edges of a bowlful of this.

Great Chinese Buffet, Zero Atmosphere

2008-08-08T16:45:00.000-07:00

If you want a Chinese buffet for lunch with atmosphere, don't go to the New China Buffet on North Wilmot in Tucson. If you want a Chinese buffet with very tasty food for little money, go to the New China Buffet on North Wilmot in Tucson.

We are often in this area of town (it's sort of kitty-corner from Beyond Bread) and have eaten here probably five times now, and since we've only lived here a month, I'd say that's a lot. Lunch for two was just pennies over $15, so the price is very reasonable. Dinner is a few bucks more. Everything is really good, but we seem to really go for the appetizers, especially the small butterflied fried shrimp, the pot stickers, fried chicken and egg rolls. Eddie skips it, but I usually get a small bowl of the hot and sour soup. Entrees include the usually fare such as General Tsao chicken, lemon chicken, broccoli beef, seafood stir fry, to name a few, but the list is quite long. For anyone so inclined, there's a nice salad bar with lots of fresh fruit. If there's any room left, we'll sample the desserts (just to clear the palate).

I suppose this will be one of our regular places, as we know what to expect and how much we'll pay for it. It's definitely not fancy, but the food makes up for lack of decor and atmosphere. The wait staff is efficient, but a bit reserved. A smile goes a long way.

El Sur Mexican Restaurant on E. 22nd Street

2008-08-06T14:42:00.000-07:00

After running our errands this morning in town, we headed over to El Sur Mexican Restaurant for lunch. Mike, the technician from ADT Security who installed our system, recommended the place with lots of enthusiasm. Unfortunately, we arrived five minutes past noon, and the place was totally filled with a waiting list. We only had to sit for 10 minutes before a table opened up (notwithstanding the two guys who jumped the line and helped themselves to a table). Delicious chips and two salsas, hot and mild, were brought to the table promptly, and soon thereafter our orders were taken. Eddie had the special , chicken mole, and I had one of the everday lunch items, the two green corn tamales and ground beef taco. The wait was very short, maybe five minutes or so. A second server came to the table and offered sauteed onions and roasted jalapenos, which I had never seen before.

This was the first time for Eddie and the mole, and he loved it. At my suggestion, he spooned some of the shredded chicken and mole sauce into a grilled flour tortilla and topped it with the onions. He loved that a lot. My green corn tamales were incredible -- savory and sweet at the same time. Delicious. And the taco was good too, perfectly seasoned and just the right amount of lettuce, tomato and cheese. Honestly, mine was just too much food, and I didn't even touch the foil-wrapped flour tortillas.

So with the tip, it came to under $16. What a deal! And now we don't have to worry about dinner, because we'll still be too full from lunch to think about it.

Highly recommeded, and we'll go back lots of times. only not at noon. Good food, good prices and friendly servers. It's located at 5602 E. 22nd Street, just east of Craycroft in Tucson.

One Fantastic Bakery, but Only Two Locations

2008-08-04T22:13:00.000-07:00

Beyond Bread is a local Tucson bakery we found while staying here a few years ago. At the time we were house hunting and just came across it one morning. They're celebrating ten years of business, and I can certainly understand why they're so successful. The bread is fantastic. That's all I can say. When you walk in, there's usually a line of customers waiting to place orders for breads or something from the menu, which includes breakfast items, sandwiches, soup and salads. While waiting, you can sample all the bread and butter you want. I must admit we've joked about getting cups of their delicious coffee and some of the sample breads and calling that a meal. Yes, it's that good. I'm especially fond of the multi-grain bread. We've tried several of the sandwiches, but we really enjoy the curry chicken salad inside whole-wheat pita bread. There's way more than enough for two, so we just split it and we never walk out hungry. There are two locations, one at the Monterey Shopping Center at Wilmot and Speedway and another on Campbell Avenue. Haven't been to Campbell yet, but when in the neighborhood we'll stop by. We only hope they'll open another store down our way in Vail, but that's not too likely. That's okay because it's usually near something we're doing in town anyway.

Some Shots out the Back

2008-07-24T17:06:00.000-07:00

I took these shots yesterday evening. We looked out the back and saw a small herd of CATTLE in our backyard. I don't remember seeing anything about CATTLE in backyards in the homeowners covenant documents. They were so cute, especially the mama nursing her baby.

The Daily Show

2008-07-22T16:37:00.000-07:00

Here's a sample of what we've been seeing outside almost every day since moving in on the 11th. Awesome!

We're Moving!

2008-07-05T12:48:00.001-07:00

That's right, we're moving next week to Vail, AZ, a suburb of Tucson. So we're totally stressed out, trying to get everything ready for Wednesday. May I say this? A disorderly and messy house really sucks! We've reduced the kitchen to a skeletal minimum of dishes and cookware: 3 bowls, 3 cups, 3 mugs and lots of paper plates and plastic flatware. For cooking we're down to a Farberware electric skillet, a waffle iron with reversible plates, the Weber grill and the oven. Hey, we get by remarkably well, and there's not much to clean up afterwards.
Here's a photo of our new home in Vail. Sort of out in the country, about a 20-minute drive into central Tucson. A whole different lifestyle with lots of elbow room. Fantastic mountain views too. Can't wait for it all to be over next week.

We'll keep posting on our adventure.

A Basic Focaccia, and a Lot of It

2008-05-29T11:58:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I pulled out an older cookbook on the shelf (Five Brothers, A Year of Tuscan Cooking by Piero Selvaggio) and came across this basic focaccia recipe and decided to give it a try. It's not an all-day affair; it can be made in a few hours. It came out really well -- nice and golden, tasting of olive oil and coarse salt. It paired well with the pork chops I made as an entree. I've made focaccia lots of times before, but I think this one is my favorite. It made A LOT of bread; I think I'll have to freeze some or let it stale and make a panzanella with it this weekend. Not in the directions, but I preheated the oven with a pizza stone on the lowest rack setting for a good 30 minutes before putting the pan in to bake. I think this gave a nice bottom crust; golden and not too crisp. I think this recipe is very versatile and can be modified in lots of ways. Freshly chopped rosemary and garlic? A bit of saffron added to the warm water? Some warm curry spices added to taste like naan bread? How about adding a tablespoon or so of pesto to the dough? Anywhooo... here's the recipe, with my comments and changes noted.)

Basic Focaccia

5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (plus more if needed)

2 teaspoons table salt

2 cups warm water (105° – 115° F)

1 package active dry yeast (I used instant, 2 ¼ teaspoons)

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

additional oil for drizzling

coarse salt for sprinkling

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt; set aside. In another bowl, combine warm water with yeast; stir. Let stand until yeast has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Whisk in olive oil. Add yeast mixture to flour. Using an electric mixer, mix on low speed about 2 minutes or until well combined. Remove dough from bowl; place on lightly floured surface and knead until a smooth ball of dough forms. (I completed the mixing with the machine and had to add about an extra cup of flour; it must be the weather here. Note: a wetter dough is better than a dryer one.) Place dough in oiled bowl; cover and let rise 1 to 1 ½ hours or until doubled. Generously oil a 17 x 13 inch baking sheet. Place dough in pan; press and stretch dough evenly with oiled fingers to fill pan. (It was a bit tight, so I covered it 10 minutes and gave it a rest; when I came back it spread out perfectly to fill the pan.) Pierce dough with a fork at 1 inch intervals; drizzle lightly with olive oil. Cover dough with a kitchen towel and let rise about 45 minutes or until doubled. Sprinkle with coarse salt.

Preheat oven to 450° F.

Bake about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Place on a rack to cool. Serve as is or top with herbs and other flavorings.

Easiest, Tastiest Cinnamon Bread -- Ever!

2008-05-27T14:31:00.000-07:00

I know, Iknow. You see that kind of recipe title a lot, the best, whatever, "ever!" but this really is incredibly delicious and easy to put together. I came across a blog called Closet Cooking yesterday. Kevin had made this cinnamon bread a couple weeks ago, and since I am trying to use up a lot of pantry items around here, I gave it a try. Replacing the buttermilk was a cup of sour milk (ewwwhh) plus a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. After a brief time it was ready to use. If you make this, try to give the eggs a warm-up in a bowl of lukewarm water. One comment on the batter brown-sugar-cinnamon layering: I wish there were a bit more batter. Trying to spread wet batter over a layer of dry sugar-cinnamon is a challenge, but I used my mini offset spatula and spread it out to the sides as evenly as possible. The end result? Delicious! Second day was even better. No kidding. Very moist with intense cinnamon flavor. No butter needed, but it wouldn't hurt. Can't wait to finish this loaf so I can make another. Here's Kevin's recipe, with noted modifications. After removing from the oven I let it cool in the pan 20 minutes, then covered it with a small sheet pan, inverted it out of the pan, then turned it back over onto a rack to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap until the next day, if you can wait that long.

Thank you, Kevin, for the great recipe.

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter (room temperature)(unsalted)
1 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 cup buttermilk (used sour milk and 1 tblspn lemon juice)
1 cup (light ) brown sugar
2 heaping tablespoons ground cinnamon

Directions:
1. Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
2. Cream the butter and sugar in another bowl.
3. Beat in the eggs, salt, vanilla and lemon zest.
4. Mix 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
5. Mix 1/2 of the buttermilk into the wet ingredients.
6. Mix 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
7. Mix the remaining buttermilk into the wet ingredients.
8. Mix 1/3 the remaining dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
9. Mix the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
10. Pour 1/3 of the batter into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan.
11. Pour 1/3 of the cinnamon mixture on top.
12. Pour 1/3 of the batter on top.
13. Pour 1/3 of the cinnamon mixture on top.
14. Pour the remaining batter on top.
15. Pour the remaining cinnamon mixture on top.
16. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until a toothpick pushed into the center comes out clean, about an hour.

Early Morning Video of Moon Setting over Mountains

2008-05-21T11:23:00.001-07:00

The wind kept us up all night, so we got up and watched TV until about 5:30, at which time the moon was setting over Mt. San Jacinto. So I took this little video to capture the moment. I just wish I knew how to use the video features better!

Last night's pot roast was delish, and tonight I'll shred the leftover meat, mix it with the yummy, tomato-y sauce and serve it over soft Mexican rolls. Can't wait!

Italian Pot Roast

2008-05-20T13:15:00.000-07:00

This is an easy pot roast to throw together, and it always comes out great. I've made this several times before, but now that it's so hot, I decided to do some of the prep steps outside on the Weber's side burner. That way, there's not smoke or odors left wafting through the house. Here's what I did.

I took a beautiful chuck roast (half price from Fresh & Easy!), seasoned it well with kosher salt and cracked pepper, a bit of granulated garlic; browned it really well in a bit of olive oil. That goes into the crock. Not mentioned in the original recipe from Everyday Food is a quick deglazing and reduction using a dry red wine. I like to do this because it adds another layer of flavor to the sauce. Added to that is an onion, cut into eighth wedges; canned tomatoes and juice, baby potatoes, fresh rosemary from the garden and some halved garlic cloves. That's it. Eddie set up a table outside with a utility extension cord, and that's where it cooked, on HIGH setting, for six hours.

Ideally, in the past I've separated the meat and vegies from the sauce and then used a fat separator to remove the excess grease. Sauce, meat and veg can be stored separately in the fridge overnight. Then put it all back in the crock, heat it up in the oven on a low heat and it comes out meltingly tender and so savory. We may just have this tonight right away and hopefully there'll be leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

Here's the recipe, with my as-made notes added.

Italian Pot Roast
Serves 8 | Prep time: 15 minutes | Total time: 6 hours 15 minute

ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 can whole tomatoes in purée (28 ounces)
1 ¼ pounds small white potatoes (scrubbed)
1 large onion (cut into 8 wedges)
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried and crumbled)
3 pounds beef chuck roast (trimmed and halved crosswise)
red wine
6 garlic cloves, halved
coarse salt, granulated garlic and ground pepper

1. With a sharp paring knife, cut 4 slits in beef roast; stuff slits with half the garlic. (I used some granulated garlic with the salt and pepper and just threw the garlic on top and around the meat in the crock.) Generously season beef with 1 ½ teaspoons salt, some granulated garlic and 1 teaspoon pepper. In a large skillet, heat oil over high heat, swirling to coat bottom of pan. Cook beef until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. (This is where I deglazed with half a cup or so of red wine, scraped up the fond, and reduced it by 75% and then poured it over the meat.)

2. In a 5-quart slow cooker, combine beef, onion, potatoes, tomatoes (with purée), rosemary, and remaining garlic. Cover; cook on high setting until meat is fork-tender, about 6 houors (do not uncover while cooking).

3. Transfer meat to a cutting board; thinly slice, and discard any gristle. Skim fat from top of sauce. To serve, divide beef and vegetables among bowls; generously spoon sauce over.

Summer's Here!

2008-05-17T12:45:00.001-07:00

A Perfect Birthday Cake for Eddie

2008-05-14T13:51:00.000-07:00

I recently came across a blog called Culinography, which featured Dorie Greenspan's "Perfect Party Cake," which I recreated for Eddie's birthday on Monday. I like cakes that can be made in stages, ahead of time, and this one fit the bill. The two cake layers were made, cooled and wrapped on Sunday; the creamy, white and lemony buttercream was made Monday in the afternoon. After briefly chilling the frosting in the fridge (it's starting to heat up here in the desert), the cakes were halved, then the layers spread with briefly warmed-up seedless raspberry preserves and buttercream, and the top and outside got the remaining frosting, which I smoothed with a warmed mini offset spatula. I took Culinography's suggestion and topped it off with raspberries. We had a big slice after dinner at Roy's of Hawaii in Rancho Mirage. I know it's gone corporate in recent years, but I love that place. The food is always superior, and the service is tops.

So here's Dorie's recipe as it appeared in Culinography. I'll be making this one again. I can see adding different flavors to the cake batter and buttercream. How 'bout Framboise in the cake with a chocolate buttercream? Hmmm? Sound good?

Dorie’s Perfect Party Cake

Cake:
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
4 large egg whites (I used extra-large eggs)
1 1/2 cups sugar (I used "vanilla" sugar)
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract

Buttercream:
1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites (I used extra-large eggs)
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Finishing:
2/3 cup seedless raspberry preserves warmed gently until spreadable

Making the cake:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl. Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant.

Add the butter and working with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light. Beat in the extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated. Add the rest of the milk and eggs beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients. Finally, give the batter a good 2- minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated.

Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch - a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unfold them and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature, right side up (I wrapped the cooled cake layers in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature overnight. They can be frozen up to two months).

Making the Buttercream:
Put the sugar and egg whites in a mixer bowl or another large heatproof bowl, fit the bowl over a plan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like shiny marshmallow cream. (I have some carpal tunnel problems, so this was quite a chore. Next time I'll use a hand mixer!)

Remove the bowl from the heat. Working with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the meringue on medium speed until it is cool, about 5 minutes.

Switch to the paddle attachment if you have one, and add the butter a stick at a time, beating until smooth. Once all the butter is in, beat in the buttercream on medium-high speed until it is thick and very smooth, 6-10 minutes. During this time the buttercream may curdle or separate - just keep beating and it will come together again. On medium speed, gradually beat in the lemon juice, waiting until each addition is absorbed before adding more, and then the vanilla.
You should have a shiny smooth, velvety, pristine white buttercream. Press a piece of plastic against the surface of the buttercream and set aside briefly. (I thought it needed a brief chilling to firm up a bit, as it was warm in our kitchen that day.)

Assembling the Cake:
Using a sharp, serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, slice each layer horizontally in half. (The trick is to never let the knife go more than about a third of the way into the cake. Once there, keep turning the cake and sawing, and you'll come to the beginning point without making a wavy cut.)

Put one layer cut side up on a cardboard cake round or a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper. Spread it with one third of the preserves. Cover the jam evenly with about one quarter of the buttercream. Top with another layer, spread with preserves and buttercream and then do the same with a third layer (you’ll have used all the jam and have buttercream leftover). Place the last layer cut side down on top of the cake and use the remaining buttercream to frost the sides and top. (I used a regular offset spatula to spread and smooth out the buttercream, with the aid of a turning cake stand. Once smoothed out, I switched to a mini offset spatula, heated it in some hot water, dried it, and got a nice professional finish.)

Butternut Squash–Fontina Lasagna

2008-04-02T23:03:00.000-07:00

Have you ever listened to KCRW's Good Food radio program on Saturday mornings? Along with The Splendid Table, this is the other show I will not miss each week. Luckily, they're both available in podcast on iTunes, so I can listen to them whenever.

Here's a link to the video for the lasagna. Evan Kleiman, the show's excellent host, so much loved this recipe that I had to try it, especially since it's getting hot outside and soon will be too warm to fire up the oven.

Here's the recipe. I pretty much followed it as written, except the store didn't have Fontina, so I subb'd sliced Mozzarella, and it came out sooooooooo yummmmy! Eddie and I pigged out and had two servings, but if we only had one, this easily would serve 10. Round this out with a light salad or roasted asparagus and you have a complete meal. All we had was the lasagna, and we were very happy.

As suggested, I doulbed the béchamel, but didn't need all of it. I salted and peppered the cooked and mashed squash, but next time I would leave out the salt. There's enough salt in the sauce and cheeses.

One comment: Next time I'll use regular lasagna noodles and precook them to the al dente stage. I think the no-boil sheets come out a bit papery; the regular ones are more "noodley," if you know what I mean.

This one for sure will go in the repeat file. Great for company because it can be assembled well ahead and then thrown in the oven when your guests arrive.

Butternut Squash–Fontina Lasagna

(from KCRW's Good Food)

1 medium sized butternut squash
2 lb Italian Fontina, cut into slices
Grated Parmesan
No-boil lasagna noodles
4 cups béchamel sauce (see recipe below)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Place on lined baking sheet, cut side down. Bake until soft, approximately 45 minutes at 375°-400°.

When the squash is very soft, remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh from the skin and place in bowl.

Run the lasagna rectangles under cold water then make a layer of them in a baking dish. Dot the cooked squash on top of the pasta layers. Drizzle a healthy amount of béchamel over all. Add a sparse dotted layer of fontina, then sprinkle grated parmesan. Continue layering in the same fashion until you have two to three layers of squash, fontina, béchamel and parmesan. End with a layer of pasta, béchamel and parmesan. For more detailed directions Watch the Video.

Bake covered at 375° until hot through. Remove foil and let top layer color until golden brown.

Béchamel Sauce
Makes 2 cups
Double recipe for the lasagna

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups hot milk
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the flour and stir to form a smooth paste. (Those angled wooden spatulas are great for this because you can really scrape the bottom of the pan and prevent burning.) Heat the milk in a separate saucepan or the mcrowave.. When it is hot but not boiling pour it into the roux ( the butter-flour mixture), stirring constantly with a whisk. Make sure you get into all the edges of the pan to coax all the roux into the milk. Cook over low heat until the sauce thickens and the flour taste is gone. Add salt and pepper to taste.

My Nomination for the Next Food Network Show

2008-03-13T14:26:00.000-07:00

I found a video from Bitchin' Kitchen today on the Men in Aprons site. Check it out. Very funny, and not a bad cooking show either. I think this would be a nice complement to the Food Network lineup.

Here's a sample from Valentine's Day.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

2008-02-22T16:33:00.000-08:00

Today started out one of those rare desert mornings; it was raining. A lot! I actually got to turn off the auto sprinklers and give the water table a break for 24 hours. It stayed mostly cloudy all day and sprinkled a few times in the p.m. Rainy days give me the urge to bake something yummy for dessert (also get the urge on nice sunny days. What's up with that?) so after scanning my list of recipes to try, I settled on David Lebovitz's Black Bottom Cupcakes. All the ingredients were on hand, except the mini chocolate chips, so I just gave the regular ones a quick chop. David suggests either regular or lower-fat cream cheese, and I used the regular. There was extra filling after dolloping the cupcake batter, so Eddie and I started eating the rest until I realized we were eating something with raw eggs. What a killjoy! Anywho, the batter was really easy to throw together. Not even butter to soften ahead of time. It's actually kind of thin, as its main liquid is water and regular oil. As these came out of the oven and cooled, the center collapses a bit and the filling peeks out nicely. Not too sweet, but perfect with ice-cold milk.

Black-Bottom Cupcakes
Makes 12.
Adapted slightly from "The Great Book of Chocolate," by David Lebovitz.

Filling:

• 1 (8-oz.) pkg. cream cheese (regular or Neufchatel), softened

• 1/3c. granulated sugar

• 1 egg

• 1/3c. semisweet chocolate mini-chips

Cupcakes:

• 11/2c. flour

• 1 c. firmly packed light brown sugar

• 5 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

• 1 tsp. baking soda

• 1/4tsp. salt

• 1 c. water

• 1/3c. unflavored vegetable oil

• 1 tbsp. white or cider vinegar

• 1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 12-cup muffin tin or line it with paper cupcake cups.

Prepare the filling: In the small bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, granulated sugar and egg, beating until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the chocolate mini-chips; set aside.

Prepare the cupcake batter: In a large bowl, sift together the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl combine the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and stir in the liquid mixture, stirring only until smooth. (Avoid stirring further.)

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups-- about1/4cup each. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the filling mixture into the center of each. The tins will be quite full.

Bake 23 to 25 minutes, until the tops are slightly golden brown and the cupcakes feel springy when gently pressed.

Cool completely before removing paper liners. The centers sink as the cupcakes cool.

Two Funny Videos from You Tube

2008-02-01T17:28:00.000-08:00

Flatiron Steak with Potato Gratin

2008-01-29T11:50:00.000-08:00

Made this the other night, and I must say the potatoes were the shining star of the meal. As good as they were that night, they were even better reheated the second night after having had a chance to cool and firm up a bit. The addition of the soft goat cheese to the dish was outstanding. I can't say enough good things other than to say it will be a regular addition to our menus, especially for company. A great make-ahead dish, either early in the day or the day before.

The steak also was very nice. I've been reading lately from several reliable sources how very early salting of the meat produces a more flavorful and tender end result. It's true; salting early does not result in salty meat, but rather the most delicious and tender flavor. Don't forget to give the meat a good room-temperature standing period before cooking; the meat will be more evenly cooked with no cold spots or overcooked edges.

All that was needed to round out this meal was the easy wine sauce and a side of steamed asparagus.

I saw this made on the Everyday Food show on the local PBS station, and it was conveniently available for downloading.

Steak with Wine Sauce and Potato Gratin

Serves 4 | Prep Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 60 minutes

Butter, for baking dish

1½ cups heavy cream

5 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled

1 garlic clove, minced; plus cut clove for rubbing dish

Coarse salt and ground pepper

1½ pounds baking potatoes, (about 3)

4 flatiron or top blade steaks, (6 to 8 ounces each and 1 inch thick)

1 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons capers, drained

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub dish with cut clove of garlic. Butter an 8-inch square (2-quart) baking dish; set aside. In a large saucepan, combine cream, goat cheese, and garlic; season with salt and pepper.

2. Peel potatoes and slice crosswise 1/8 inch thick; add to cream mixture as you work. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer; cook until potatoes are crisp-tender, 12 to 15 minutes.

3. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish; using a spatula, press potatoes into cream to cover. Place dish on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until golden and potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

4. Fifteen minutes before potatoes are finished baking, heat a large skillet over medium-high. Season steaks on both sides with salt and pepper; cook, 6 to 7 minutes per side for medium-rare (if browning too quickly, reduce heat when cooking second side). Transfer to a plate, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and set aside. Keep skillet with any browned bits for wine sauce.

5. Make wine sauce: Add wine to skillet; boil over medium-high heat until syrupy, 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in mustard. (For a smoother sauce, pour mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, discard any browned bits, and return liquid to skillet.) Stir in capers and any juices from resting steaks; season with salt and pepper. Serve steaks with wine sauce and potato gratin.

How to Salvage Two Bags of Aging Dates

2007-10-19T22:24:00.000-07:00

This photo of a noisy neighbor's date tree reminded me of something I'd been meaning to make for a while.

I'm embarrassed to say this, but there were two bags of dates on the pantry shelf that I'd see out of the corner of my eye every time I passed by for the last year. Yes, the last year! So yesterday I pulled out some books from the shelf, looked in my files, and Googled the net for a recipe to use them up. Way back in the 90's I bought a series of soft-cover books put out by the California Culinary Academy, each one on a certain subject -- French, Italian, Meats, Breads -- not knowing at that time I'd actually go there in the near future for the full sixteen-month course. This very simple recipe for Food Processor Date Bars comes from the book Cookies. As the dates were a bit questionable in the texture department, I snipped them in halves and gave them a 15-minute soaking in very hot water, then drained them and proceeded with the recipe. These were a sure hit and I'll make them again. Not too sweet, even with the light coating of confectioners' sugar. They reminded me of a date bar square my mother used to make years ago. This recipe was made in an 8 x 8 square pan and yielded 16 servings. The original claims 24 squares, but I think that would be too "sensible" a size.
Food Processor Date Bars

from California Culinary Academy's Cookies

2 cups pitted dates
1 cup pecans
½ cup, each, flour and sugar
½ t baking powder
¼ cup firm butter, diced
1 egg
2 yolks
1 ½ t vanilla extract
confectioners’ sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350; grease, flour 8” square pan.

2. Process dates, pecans, flour, sugar, baking powder, butter. Process using on-off pulses until dates and nuts are finely chopped.

3. Beat egg, yolks, vanilla to blend. Add mixture through feed tube with motor running all at once. Process until ingredients are well coated with egg mixture. Spread evenly in pan.

4. Bake until top is golden brown, 25 – 30 minutes. Let cool in pan on wire rack about 10 minutes. Cut into squares. Remove from pan, turn lightly in confectioners’ sugar to coat each bar on all sides.

Makes about 16 bars.

Joe's Quinoa Salad with side of Cold Avocado Soup

2007-10-19T09:33:00.000-07:00

I've recently been using quinoa as a side dish and saw Joe's entry from a while back and decided to give it a try last night as our main course. Yummy! Quinoa is a totally delicious grain, packed with protein and other goodies. I used what was on hand, and sub'd a red delicious apple for the Granny Smith. Also, I added some sauteed sliced mushrooms. I had homemade chicken stock and used that instead of veggie stock. After dinner, Eddie and I were picking at the bottom of the pot, trying to get some of the tasty bits stuck to the bottom. By the way, I always make quinoa in the rice cooker. It's just too easy not to. Even sauteeing the aromatics works fine in the cooker. Halfway through I add the quinoa and give it a coating in the oil and toast it a few moments before adding the broth.

Thank you, Joe, for another great entry!

Hearty Quinoa with Sautéed Apples and Almonds
1 cup dry quinoa, well rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
3/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup finely diced carrot
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cups vegetable broth (I used chicken broth)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups finely diced Granny Smith apple (used red delicious)
3 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted (used raw pistachios)
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
(I added some sliced and lightly sauteed mushrooms)

In a medium saucepan, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high. Stir in onion, carrot and garlic - sauté until the onion is tender and the carrots begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Pour in the broth, quinoa, salt and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork - cover to keep warm.

In a large skillet, heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high heat. Add apples and mushrooms; sauté until the apple and mushrooms begin to brown, about 7 minutes. Add apple, almonds, and pepper to quinoa mixture and gently toss to combine.

Should be 4 servings, but hey, we're normal adults, so it's just over 2 servings.

Served it with a mug of cold avocado soup. It's a no-brainer to throw together. No cooking. All that's needed is a blender. Didn't bother this time with the sour cream and fried tortilla strips.

Chilled Avocado Soup With Lime and Jalapeno
(Preparation 15 minutes)
3 limes
3 ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
1 garlic clove, chopped
Handful of parsley
1/2 – 1 small jalapeno pepper, with seeds, chopped
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt, plus additional to taste
1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
--------------------
Optional toppings:
1 large (8 inches) flour tortilla, cut into 2-by-1/4-inch strips
Sour cream, for garnish
Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
Squeeze the juice from 21/2 of the limes. Cut the remaining half lime into 4 wedges for the garnish.

In a blender combine 3 cups of ice water (a mixture of ice and water) with the lime juice, avocados, garlic, jalapeno and salt. Blend until smooth. Chill the soup until ready to serve.

Heat the oil in a large skillet or saute pan over a medium flame. Add the tortilla strips and fry until they are crunchy and golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain the strips on paper towels and sprinkle them with salt.
Spoon the soup into bowls. Place a dollop of sour cream in the center of each bowl, then top with tortilla strips. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Serve with lime wedges on the side.
Makes 4 servings.

Separated At Birth?

2007-09-25T22:59:00.000-07:00

Ann Coulter

Dr. Gillian McKeith from "You Are What You Eat"

Just Goofing Around in Las Vegas

2007-09-21T16:33:00.000-07:00

We got in the mail today a disc of photos from Eddie's Scottish friend, Liz, taken in the spring. Here are a few.

At The Venetian

At the Fashion Show Center

At Red Rocks Canyon

Fremont Street Experience

Main Street Station Buffet

World's Largest Souvenir Store, The Strip @ Sahara

Orange Jubilee

2007-09-15T10:59:00.000-07:00

Came across a really cool site the other day, Hillbilly Housewife, and she's got a lot of great recipes by categories, including this one for an Orange Julius copycat. I made this with the optional egg, and it added a lot of body and creaminess. I'm sipping on my first glassful as I type this, and I'll save the rest for an afternoon pick-me-up. I wonder how this would be with frozen tangerine concentrate or other citrus flavors? Hmmmm! Gotta try that soon.

Thanks, Maggie, for the great recipe!

Orange Jubilee

3/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
2 cups milk
1 medium egg (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
12 ice cubes
a strong blender

In a blender container, combine the orange juice concentrate, milk, egg (if you are using it), vanilla and sugar. Put the lid on the blender and whirl it at top speed for about 30 seconds. While the blender is running, drop in the ice cubes one at a time. Continue whirling until the ice is well chopped.

Rosh Hashannah Honey Cake

2007-09-14T09:00:00.000-07:00

I've had this recipe in my "to try" list for about a year, and since it's now Jewish New Year time again, I gave it a try yesterday. This is an easy recipe to throw together, especially if you get all the ingredients and bowls out so you can just go down the line and get it done quickly. The 9 x 13 pan size is large, so I gave a nice chunk to friends. This recipe came from the Chicago Jewish Times Online site. Honey cake is great, so don't shy away if you're not Jewish. Try it; you'll like it!
Classic Honey Cake

3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon instant coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
1/4 cup oil
1 cup honey
Zest of one orange
2 tablespoons any whiskey
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and baking soda and set aside. Mix the instant coffee with the water and blend in the oil, honey, orange zest and whiskey. In a large bowl, beat eggs until frothy; gradually add sugar and beat until light. Add to the honey mixture. Combine flour mixture alternately with honey mixture, starting and ending with the flour. Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into an oiled and waxed paper- lined 13- x 9- x 2-inch baking pan (Pam’d the pan; lined bottom w parchment paper) . Bake for about 50 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick. If toothpick comes out clean and dry cake is done. If moist, keep baking until toothpick comes out clean. ***Turn cake upside down onto a wire rack. Cool. Peel off waxed paper and wrap in aluminum foil to keep fresh. Serves 8 to 10.

*** Cooled in pan on a rack about 30 minutes until cake was just warm. Flipped out of pan onto cooling rack, left paper on, then flipped rightside up on another rack to finish cooling.

Roasted Corn Chowder from Karina, the Gluten Free Goddess

2007-09-13T13:23:00.000-07:00

Love that freezer. I pulled out some bags of deli-prepped veggies left over from a cocktail party we threw in May and made a fantastic batch of vegetarian stock. It was full of whole tomatoes, carrots, celery, red bell peppers and garlic, for starters. In addition, there was a bag of grilled veggies, such as eggplant and zucchini, which imparted a nice smokiness to the stock.

I came across Karina's recipe for this chowder and decided to give it a try. (Do check out her site; she's an awesome food stylist and photographer) The only modifications I made were: I used about 1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder to tame the heat a bit; used a bag of Trader Joe's frozen fire-roasted corn; and served the chowder with chunky bits of avocado.

I had intended on freezing the remainder after the first night, but it was just too good and I finished the last bit for lunch today. It makes a very large batch, probably about 8 to 10 servings. Alongside were squares of freshly made cornbread, which was so nice and moist that no spread or toppings were needed.
Roasted Corn Chowder
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon curry powder or paste, mild or hot
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder, or to taste
5 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1 medium sweet onion, diced
3 ears of fresh corn, roasted, kernels removed
1 large sweet potato, peeled, diced
1 large gold potato, peeled, diced
1 14-oz can fire roasted tomatoes, diced
2-3 tomatillos, chopped
4 plum tomatoes, seeded, chopped
4 oz. chopped roasted green chiles (mild or hot)
1 quart vegetable broth
1 14-oz can coconut milk
1 14-oz. can pinto beans or chick peas
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
Pinch of organic brown sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
Fresh lime juice from 1 to 2 limes

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat and stir in the cumin, curry and chipotle; cook for one minute to infuse the oil with spice. Add the chopped garlic and onion. Stir and cook for five minutes.

Add the roasted corn, sweet potato, canned tomatoes, tomatillo, fresh tomatoes, green chiles and stir for a minute. Add in the broth. Cover and bring to a high simmer. Lower the heat and simmer gently, covered, until the potatoes are tender, about twenty minutes or so.

Add the coconut milk and beans. Stir and season with sea salt and ground pepper; and add a pinch of brown sugar, to taste. Heat through gently; do not boil.

Just before serving, add the chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice. Stir. Taste test. Adjust seasoning. The lime juice brightens the taste and accents the spice.

Garnish with a lime wedge and pass out the spoons. Slurp!

Serves 6-8.

Bless Her Heart!

2007-09-04T21:39:00.000-07:00

Parents of Miss Teen South Carolina

Heck Bars

2007-09-03T11:57:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I checked out of the library a copy of Hidden Kitchens: Stories, Recipes and More from NPR's The Kitchen Sisters. Not your usual cookbook. In fact, I wouldn't call it a cookbook at all, but a collection of stories about people who cook, with some recipes thrown in. Great reading; typical NPR quality stuff. Anywhooo... this recipe popped out at me right at the beginning of the book. Except for the semi-sweet chocolate chips (I had on hand bittersweet so I used those instead), I had everything on hand. Very easy and quick to throw together. No mixer necessary. For these you'll need a 12 x 8 1/2 x 1 pan, which is actually called a quarter sheet pan. If you have bulk sheets of parchment, just quarter one and it will fit perfectly in the bottom of the pan. They come out kind of like a brownie and are perfect with a very cold glass of milk. Yummy!

Heck Bars

Ingredients
8 oz. unsalted butter
4-¾ oz. Unsweetened chocolate
4 extra large eggs
2 1/8 cups granulated sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
1 1/8 cup all purpose flour
1 ½ cup walnuts (optional)(I used unchopped walnut halves)
8 oz. semisweet chocolate chips (I had on hand bittersweet)

Directions: Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Gently melt chocolate and butter in double boiler. When chocolate is totally melted, set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt. Use a spatula or wooden spoon and mix just until blended. Fold melted chocolate butter into egg mixture.
Toss together flour, walnuts and 8 oz. of chocolate chips. Fold into chocolate-egg mixture. Note: Do not over mix; fold only enough to incorporate dry ingredients, or bar will be too tough and too cake-like.
Line a 12-inch x 8 ½-inch x 1-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Pour batter into pan; consistency should be like a thick chocolate sauce (batter does not rise much, so it is OK if batter rims the pan).
Place pan in center of oven and bake 40-50 minutes. Thirty minutes into baking, check surface; a thin crust should form. It is done when it's very moist inside, with a thin, crispy, sugary surface (like a thin crust of ice forming on a pool of water). To achieve a fudge-like consistency, you must under bake.

Speedy Cooking Tips from Five Top Experts

2007-08-13T14:02:00.000-07:00

Take a look at this interesting article from Food & Wine's September 2004 issue. Also, there are 10 yummy looking recipes to consider.

As an aside: Happy Camping! to Janet over at Janet is Hungry. She'll be camping for the next week or so.

Podcasts I'm Listening To Right Now

2007-08-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

The Splendid Table

Coast to Coast AM

Coverville

The Daily Purge

Grammar Girl's Quick & Dirty Tips for Better Writing

How Much Do We Love

KCRW's Good Food

KPBS's A Way with Words

Lady Raptastic Podcast

Lucky Bitch Radio

Car Talk

NPR Fresh Air

Old Time Rock 'n' Roll

This American Life

The Diane Rehm Show

WGBH Classical Performance

Dinner for a Recovering Friend

2007-08-07T09:39:00.000-07:00

Our friend Michael got quite the surprise last week. He went into Eisenhower Hospital for a routine operation and came out a week later with a triple bypass. So when he was up to it, we had him and his partner Tom over for dinner on Saturday to give them a night out. I hope everything was okay for his new heart-healthy diet.

The starter recipe I got off of the KARE 11 website the other day while looking for videos of the bridge collapse. It's from a restaurant called Cue in Minneapolis. Very refreshing and lots of flavors going on all at the same time.

Green Gazpacho with Lime Sour Cream

For the gazpacho:
1 c. honeydew melon, peeled and seeded
1 T. jalapeño peppers, gilled and seeded (I used ungrilled)
¼ c. green bell peppers, gilled and seeded (I used ungrilled)
¼ c. green onions, chopped
½ c. English cucumbers, chopped skin on
1 c. tomatillos, husked and chopped
1 c. sweet onions, peeled and diced ¼" (I used shallots)
2 T. Banyuls vinegar or other red wine vinegar (I used sherry vinegar)
2 T. fresh Italian parsley, chopped
1 t. fine sea salt
½ t. white pepper, freshly ground

For the sour cream:
1 c. sour cream (I used low fat)
2 T. lime juice, freshly squeezed
1 t. sea salt
½ t. Tellicherry black pepper, freshly ground
(I thought it was a bit thick for drizzling so I added a bit of water to thin it down.)

Preparation:

For the gazpacho:
Purée the fruits and vegetables with the remaining ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth. Transfer to a labeled container with a tight fitting lid, and refrigerate immediately. (Thin with some water if too thick)

For the sour cream:
Mix all of the ingredients thoroughly in a stainless steel mixing bowl until well blended.

For the plate:
Ladle six ounces of gazpacho into a chilled serving bowl. Garnish with sour cream and some freshly chopped chives. (the store didn't have chives, so I used thinly sliced green part of scallion)
- - - - - - -
For the salad I made a refreshing salad of watermelon, shallots, feta and olives. Recipe adapted from a recipe in Food & Wine.

Watermelon Salad with Feta
SERVES: 4

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon harissa or other hot sauce (I used harissa)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 pounds seedless watermelon, rind removed, fruit sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced (I used shallot)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup pitted Moroccan or other oil-cured black olives, coarsely chopped
2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1/2 cup)

1. In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil with the lemon juice and harissa and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the watermelon slices on a platter and sprinkle with the onion, parsley, olives and feta. Drizzle the dressing on top and serve.
- - - - - - -
Next up was a recipe that came in a weekly newsletter from The Splendid Table for using the season's best tomatoes in a amazingly simple recipe. It just so happens the grape tomatoes from Costco this year are sugary sweet; so they were perfect for part of the sauce. Allow the maximum time for the tomatoes to give up as much juice as possible. In addition to rubbing the bowl with garlic, I pressed a clove into the tomatoes as well. Start with only half the sea salt; 1 teaspoon seemed to be excessive. You can always add more later.
Mellowed Fresh Tomatoes for Pasta
Copyright 2007 Lynne Rossetto Kasper
Serves 6 to 8 as a first course, 4 to 6 as a main dish
1 clove garlic, split
3 pounds richly flavored tomatoes (if possible, one-third cherry type, one-third mellow-tasting, and one-third low-acid), unpeeled, unseeded, cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 generous pinches hot red pepper flakes
1/3 cup good tasting extra-virgin olive oil (I used Goya brand Spanish)
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 pound spaghetti, or linguine (Barilla brand)
6 quarts boiling salted water
1/8 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper, or to taste
3 tight-packed tablespoons fresh basil leaves, torn
1 cup fresh-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)

1. Vigorously rub a pasta serving bowl with the garlic and discard the clove. Add the tomatoes, red pepper, oil, and the salt. Gently combine. Let stand at room temperature from 30 minutes to 3 hours.
2. When ready to eat, cook the pasta in fiercely boiling salted water, stirring often, until tender yet firm to the bite. Drain in a colander and turn it into the pasta bowl. Quickly add the black pepper and basil, and toss everything together. Taste the pasta for seasoning and serve. If you like, pass cheese at the table

Here's a tip from Lynee:

• "I discovered a trick for making pasta with raw tomato sauces taste lustier. Slightly undercook the pasta. Drain it. Spoon the juices that raw sauces always throw off into the empty pasta pot. Set it over medium-low heat, add the pasta and toss until the juices are absorbed, then add the pasta to the sauce. Pasta and raw tomato sauce are served at room temperature, never chilled."
- - - - - - -
I thought some protein was needed to bump up the pasta, so I made a batch of breaded chicken breasts. So moist and tasty. I strayed from the recipe by browing both sides and finishing them off in a 325 oven for about 25 minutes, until the internal temperature reached about 165. The recipe is adapted from Cook's Illustrated online.

Crisp Breaded Chicken Cutlets

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 to 8 ounces each), tenderloins removed
1/2 cup kosher salt or 1/4 cup table salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
5 - 8 slices high-quality white bread such as Pepperidge Farm, crusts removed and torn into rough 1 1/2-inch pieces
Ground black pepper
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3/4 cup vegetable oil
lemon wedges for serving

1. Pound chicken breasts to even 1/2-inch thickness. Dissolve salt and sugar in 1 quart cold water in gallon-size zipper-lock plastic bag. Add cutlets and seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible; refrigerate 30 minutes. Line rimmed baking sheet with triple layer of paper towels.
2. Remove cutlets and lay in single layer on baking sheet; cover with another triple layer of paper towels and press firmly to absorb moisture. Allow cutlets to dry for 10 minutes. Process bread in food processor until evenly fine-textured, 20 to 30 seconds (you should have about 1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs). Transfer crumbs to baking dish. Carefully peel paper towels off cutlets, sprinkle cutlets with pepper, and set aside.
3. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, set large heatproof plate on rack, and heat oven to 200 degrees. Spread flour in baking dish. Beat eggs with 1 tablespoon oil in second baking dish. Spread bread crumbs in third baking dish.
4. As shown in illustrations below, bread the cutlets, one at a time. Dredge cutlet in flour, shaking off excess. Using tongs, dip both sides of cutlet in egg mixture, allowing excess to drip back into baking dish to ensure very thin coating. Dip both sides of cutlet in bread crumbs, pressing crumbs with fingers to form even, cohesive coat. Place breaded cutlets in single layer on wire rack set over baking sheet and allow coating to dry for about 5 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, heat 6 tablespoons remaining oil in heavy-bottomed 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking, about 2 minutes. Lay two cutlets gently in skillet; cook until deep golden brown and crisp on first side, gently pressing down on cutlets with wide metal spatula to help ensure even browning, about 2 1/2 minutes. Using tongs, flip cutlets, reduce heat to medium, and continue to cook until meat feels firm when pressed gently and second side is deep golden brown and crisp, 2 1/2 to 3 minutes longer. Line warmed plate with double layer of paper towels and set cutlets on top; return plate to oven.
6. Discard oil in skillet and wipe skillet clean using tongs and large wad of paper towels. Repeat step 5 using remaining 6 tablespoons oil and now-clean skillet to cook remaining cutlets; serve along with first batch with lemon wedges.
- - - - - - -
For dessert I made very low-fat milkshakes using nonfat vanilla yogurt, 1% milk and reduced-fat Oreos. Yummy! Turned them slightly mocha with some instant espresso powder.

Sign Our "Slide" Guestbook

2007-07-23T23:32:00.000-07:00

My Favorite Tomato Soup Recipe

2007-07-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

Tomatoes were on sale last week, and so I made up a batch of my favorite tomato soup. Good thing because we had last-minute guests for dinner, so the timing was perfect. It's very easy to make, and you can control your seasonings to taste, such as the herbs and hot pepper flakes.

For dessert I had already planned rice pudding. The day before I made up a batch of jasmine rice in the rice cooker, and then it dried out in the fridge for a day. Then it's a snap to throw it together and bake it off a couple of hours before it's eaten. That way, it has a chance to cool but still be warm enough to enjoy with a drizzling of heavy cream. Fresh fruit would also be good. Leftovers, reheated, are a delicious and filling breakfast.

Harry’s Tomato Soup

Olive oil & butter
Shallots
1 stalk celery, halved
salt, pepper

Sweat above, covered; then add to the above

pepper flakes
thyme
smoked paprika
1 – 2 T tomato paste
2 T brown sugar
2 T flour

Stir in well; then add to the above

About 5 lb tomatoes, either Roma or on-the-vine, coarsely chopped

Lower heat; simmer, covered, until tomatoes give up their juice and reduce a bit. Then add to the above

2 – 2 ½ cups water

Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer; simmer, covered, 30 minutes; then process and strain or run through food mill. Then bring to a boil and reduce and then add to the above

Cream, about ½ cup

Retaste for salt and pepper.

This recipe came from the Sterns website called Roadfood.com. They do a segment each week on The Splendid Table show on NPR. It's very conveniently available on podcast, free, through iTunes.

Rice Pudding

4 cups cooked rice
1-1/2 cups sugar
4 cups whole milk
1 cup raisins
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash of salt
Heavy cream

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well.
3. Pour into a casserole and bake 1-1/2 hours until the top is browned.
4. Serve warm, topped with a fine dust of nutmeg if desired. Drizzle with
cream.

Hairyspray -- Best Movie Ever???? Well, One of the Best!!!

2007-07-20T15:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, so we went to the very first show today of the Hairspray premiere day. It was very good. Well, hell, it was effing incredible!! Go see it lots of times.

Enough? Alright already.

Poor-Man's Osso Buco alla Milanese

2007-07-10T11:06:00.000-07:00

The other day we drove down valley to Indio to shop at a new Latino market called Cardenas. Wow! Fantastic produce and meats. And the bakery is just like the ones in Mexico where you go through with a tray and tongs and pick out a variety of things. We'll definitely go back soon. Most memorable were the cheese-jalapeno rolls (ate them on the way home) and the Telera rolls. Way better than the ones we get from Ralph's.

MILAN-STYLE BRAISED VEAL SHANKS

Kitchen twine
6 center-cut veal shanks (each about 2 inches thick)(I only used 4 beef shanks)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
2 cups finely chopped onions
3/4 cup finely chopped carrot
3 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
(the onions, carrots, garlic I whizzed in the processor for quicker softening, and less chopping)
All purpose flour
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup dry white wine
2 1/2 cups canned diced tomatoes in juice (I drained the juice really well; then reduced to a thicker consistency so the sauce wouldn't be so watery.)
4 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 3 x 1/2-inch lemon peel strips (yellow part only)
3 cups (or more) canned beef broth (I used closer to 4 cups.)
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

Tie kitchen twine around circumference of each veal shank so that veal will hold shape while cooking. (Securing the twine was kind of tricky/slippery; so I just left it off and they came out fine. When finished, the meat separated from the bone anyway because it was so tender.) Set a heavy large pot over medium heat (pot should be big enough to accommodate meat arranged in single layer). Add 1/4 cup butter to pot and melt. Add onions, carrot and 2 1/2 teaspoons garlic and sauté until vegetables are tender but not brown, about 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
Sprinkle shanks with salt and pepper. Coat veal with flour, shaking off excess. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add beef to skillet and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer veal to pot with vegetables. Discard fat in skillet.
Add 1 cup white wine to skillet and boil until liquid is reduced to 1/4 cup, scraping up browned bits, about 3 minutes. Pour over veal and vegetables. Add canned tomatoes with juices, 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped basil and lemon peel strips to pot. Add enough beef broth to cover veal. Bring mixture to boil. Cover pot tightly with aluminum foil, then lid. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until veal is very tender, about 1 1/2 hours. (I brought it to a boil; then transferred to 325 convection oven for about 2 1/2 hours.) (Can be prepared 3 days ahead. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium-low heat before continuing.)
Transfer veal to platter; cover to keep warm. Boil sauce until slightly thickened and reduced to 4 cups, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. (I didn't bother reducing, because it was nice and chunky and not to thin as it was.)

(The following for gremolata was in the recipe, but I forgot to mix it up and it turned out fine.)

Mix grated lemon peel, remaining 1 teaspoon garlic and 2 tablespoons parsley in small bowl. Pour sauce over veal. Sprinkle with lemon peel mixture.

Serves 6 (or 4 if making only 4 shanks)

Notes on the recipe:

Definitely a keeper. Next time, though, I'll sweat the vegetables as suggested, but instead of the messy browning step, I'll season the meat, place on a sheet pan in a hot oven, and roast them about 30 minutes until nicely browned; then deglaze the sheet pan with the wine. Lots less cleanup. To help thicken the sauce, I'll sprinkle the vegetables with flour and mix in well.

I started this in the afternoon, with the vegetables and browning steps; then deglazed. Cooled it all, stored it covered in the fridge until the next day and picked up with the rest of the recipe.

Served it up with sour cream garlic mashed potatoes.

Tonight we'll strip the meat from the remaining 2 large shanks and mix it with the sauce, top Telera rolls from Cardenas market in Indio, and mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!

New Music

2007-06-28T12:30:00.000-07:00

Pink Martini "Hey Eugene!"

Cooper Boone "Dance in the Wind"

Paris Combo "Live"

AB's Swiss Steak for Dinner

2007-06-22T19:44:00.001-07:00

I was in Von's today -- actually there to pick up a gift card for a friend's 90th birthday party tomorrow -- and meandered down the produce aisles and grabbed some fresh fruit. Cherries, peaches, grapes. Got some U Bet chocolate syrup to try making my first egg creams; can't wait for that. The syrup, seltzer and milk are all chilling for later. Then I got the idea to try Alton Brown's Swiss steak for dinner and grabbed a nice top round steak. I know he recommends a bottom round, but this works fine too. We had picked up at TJ Maxx one of those meat tenderizers he used on his show, and I wanted to try it out. So here's how I made it.

Alton Brown's Swiss Steak

2 lb. top round, cut into serving-size pieces
salt and pepper
flour
vegetable oil

Season the meat with the salt and pepper; don't skimp on the salt. Dredge in flour, tapping off the excess. Tenderize with your device of choice. Dredge again in flour, tap off excess. Heat 1/4 cup oil in pan; when oil shimmers, brown a few pieces of meat about 3 or 4 minutes on each side. Do not crowd. Remove when browned to plate. Repeat with remaining pieces.

2 onions, peeled, halved, sliced
1 green bell pepper, seeded, sliced (AB's recipe called for celer; we didn't have any.)
3 garlic cloves, minced

Add onions and bell pepper to pan. Saute a few minutes. Add the garlic.

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Add paste to the pan with the vegetables. Stir to coat. Add the garlic.

Add to the pan:

1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
28 oz. can chopped tomatoes (AB's recipe called for 14 1/2 oz can.)
1 1/2 cups beef broth (used water and a boullion cube)

Bring to a boil. Add the meat and accumulated juices back to the pan. Push the meat in so it's nestled in the sauce. Cover; transfer to preheated 325 oven. Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until meat is fork tender.

It's been in the oven over an hour, and the house smells fantastic. Can't wait to try it with nice steamed rice and some mixed vegetables on the side.

Some Cool Places We Visited While in the Twin Cities

2007-06-21T17:39:00.000-07:00

Mill City Museum

St. Paul Locks & Dam No. 1

The Guthrie Theater

Western Wisconsin

The Lexington Restaurant in St. Paul

Best Meal in a Long Time -- and We Only Had to Travel to Minneapolis To Get It!

2007-06-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

112 Eatery in Minneapolis

Here's a link to a fantastic restaurant in downtown Minneapolis. One of the best meals we've had in years.

Grey Goose martinis
rioja, marqués de céceres, spain 2004
blue prawns w/ rooster mayo
lamb scottadito w/ goats milk yogurt
sea scallops w/ oyster mushrooms
stringozzi w/ lamb sugo
nori encrusted sirloin w/ ponzu
cauliflower fritters
tres leches cake

A very relaxed atmosphere with efficient and friendly wait staff. Definitely looking forward to a repeat visit.

Newest TV Addiction

2007-05-06T18:13:00.000-07:00

This is our newest TV addiction. It's like watching a train wreck; you know it's going to happen, but cannot turn away.

Chicken legs with kumquats, prunes and green olives

2007-05-06T12:46:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday my brother and sister-in-law left their Tucson winter nesting spot and stopped by Palm Springs for a visit. They sold out everything in Chicago a couple years ago, bought a motor coach, hitched the Honda SUV to the back, loaded up the golden retrievers and hit the road. They rented a spot at a nice RV park in Cathedral City and just drove over for visits. The dogs loved it here, nice green lawn to do their business on, not desert sand. They were good fun and company.

While here we took Dan and Carol to the Coahella Valley Nature Preserve, an area of natural palm groves which sits atop the San Andreas fault line. Water bubbles up at that exact spot; the docent told us the seeping water from the mountains filters down, and when it hits the fault, and cannot go anywhere else, it bubbles up through cracks. Aside from the palms, there are nice hiking trails with signs explaining the surrounding plants and animals.

Friday we all took a ride up the Palm Springs Aerial Tram. Even though it was fiercely windy in town, the ride up was surprisingly calm. Very strong gusts kept us close to the building at the top, but we all enjoyed the ride. Totally breathtaking. The rotating cars ascend two and a half miles to an altitude of 8,516 feet. Eddie and I bought summer season passes for a very reasonable price of $50 each, and just two more trips up and the tickets will be paid for. We look forward to lots of time up there this summer to escape the daily heat of the desert.

That morning, before leaving, I started to prep dinner, a recipe I saw last week in the LA Times food section. I actually had kumquats in a tree on the side of the house, so I wanted to try this recipe. I browned the chicken thighs in the morning, covered and chilled them, and also did all the slicing of the vegetables and fruit. When we got back from the tram, the rest was easy to throw together.

We started dinner with sliced Campari tomatoes, sliced fresh mozarella, fresh basil from the yard, drizzled with good olive oil, seasoned only with kosher salt and pepper. Jasmine rice was a perfect starch to soak up the yummy, but limited, sauce. For dessert, I broiled sliced golden pineapple, sprinkled with brown sugar, then topped with vanilla ice cream and a swirling of reduced berry-wine puree from the freezer.

All in all, a definite keeper to be repeated again many times in the future. A good substitute for kumquats would be lemon rind, sour orange, or Meyer lemon.

Chicken legs with kumquats, prunes and green olives

Total time: About 2 hours, 15 minutes

Servings: 6 to 8

Note: Adapted from "The Santa Monica Farmers Market Cookbook." "This dish was inspired by Moroccan braises with preserved lemons and an old favorite 'Silver Palate' recipe," writes Saltsman. Serve with couscous or rice. Harissa, Moroccan hot sauce, can be purchased at Middle Eastern markets and gourmet stores such as Nicole's in Pasadena, Monsieur Marcel in Los Angeles and Surfas in Culver City.

1/2 pound prunes, or 6 ounces pitted prunes (used pitted, whole)
1/2 pound kumquats (last of the crop from the yard)
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 1/2 pounds whole chicken legs (drumstick and thigh) (used all thighs)
Kosher or sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, chopped (used shallots)
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped (used 2)
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup mild green olives, pitted (used Lindsay ripe green pitted canned olives)
About 1/2 cup chicken stock
Harissa (optional)

1. If using prunes with pits, bring one cup of water to a boil and pour the boiling water over the prunes to soften, about 15 minutes; drain and use a scissors to pit them. Quarter the prunes. (Left whole)

2. Quarter the kumquats lengthwise, remove the seed and center pith, and if you feel energetic, cut the quarters in half again lengthwise. Set the prunes and kumquats aside.

3. In a wide pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding, add the chicken, season generously with salt and pepper, and brown, turning as needed, until golden on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate. (Browned in the A.M., cooled, covered and put in fridge until dinner time.)

4. Pour off all but 1 to 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pot, reduce the heat to medium-low, and add the onion. Stir well, scraping the pan bottom to loosen the brown bits, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent and soft, 5 to 7 minutes.

5. Add the garlic, stir and cook for 1 minute more. Add the wine, raise the heat to medium, and cook, stirring to deglaze the pot, until the liquid is reduced by slightly more than half, about 3 minutes.

6. Return the chicken to the pot and add the prunes, kumquats, olives, and a little salt and pepper. Stir, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Adjust seasoning as necessary. Add one-fourth cup of the stock, and simmer covered until the chicken is very tender, about 1 hour, basting occasionally with the sauce and adding stock, if needed, to keep the chicken half-submerged in the sauce. The dish may be made a day ahead and reheated. Serve with couscous or rice. To serve with harissa, remove a little of the sauce from the chicken and stir in harissa to taste; drizzle over plated dish.

Each serving: 368 calories; 28 grams protein; 21 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams fiber; 18 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 93 mg. cholesterol; 318 mg. sodium.

(Next time double the liquids so there’s more yummy sauce. Served with jasmine rice made with part stock, part water, salt, splash of xvoo.)

Yes, There's an Upside to a Partially Defrosted Freezer!

2007-04-26T11:47:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted for a week or so because we took a little trip to Laughlin, NV. Friends had received 2 free comps and invited us for a night, and we had received 2 free nights too and added them on. So we had four very nice days at the Colorado River, just as the big Laughlin River Run event was getting started. This is one of, if not the largest biker events in the West. All the hotels had tents set up in their front parking lots for vendors and food stands. Neeless to say, there were some very interesting (i.e., scary!) looking characters in town, and I think we got out just before all the madness was to start.

We did manage to take a little side trip to Oatman, an old mining ghost town on Historic Route 66. The wild burros come into town every day, wait for the tourists to feed them purchased carrots, and then head back to the hills at night. They're just too cute. I found this picture on Wikipedia.

So what does all this have to do with a defrosted freezer? Well..... when we got home, Eddie did some ironing and put the cooled-down iron on top of the freezer, but the cord was hanging over the front and when we went into the freezer, the cord kept the door open a bit, and this morning the temperature alarm started beeping and then we knew we had a problem on our hands. So we started taking food out and putting the still frozen things in ice chests with blue ice blocks and threw out old and damaged goods.

So here's the good part: we weeded out some old stuff and found some great things in the back where items tend to get lost and forgotten. I'm thawing out for dinner two containers of pozole from last year. I'm looking forward to that. Also, there was a package of turkey necks, so I started a stock with onions, carrots and celery. As I came across more stuff, in the pot they went. So now in addition to the turkey, there are chicken breasts on the bone, cooked chicken breasts, two bags of corn cobs, a container of chicken broth, and the usual stock herbs and spices like bay leaf, peppercorns, thyme. I threw in a head of garlic cloves too. So this should be a very complex and interesting stock. So I'll post again regarding how I ended up using the stock and some of the other goodies we came across.

Simple but Oh So Good Steak Sandwich

2007-04-20T15:04:00.000-07:00

Last night neither one of us were terribly hungry, so we ended up defrosting a couple of Costco beef tenderloin steaks and a Wal-Mart (Yes, this is the very best there is!) French baguette. I like to get the steaks out well before cooking so they're at room temperature and also I like to season them well ahead also. Kosher salt and black pepper on each side. Half an hour is okay, but an hour is even better. A filming of olive oil in a nonstick pan, heated over medium high heat, and in they go. About 4 minutes each side. I test using the push-on-the-meat-with-tongs method. Medium rare is good for us. Then a nice rest of at least 10 minutes. While they're resting, the defrosted baguette goes into the oven to heat up and crisp up the crust a bit. Split it lenthwise, a bit of softened butter, a bit of freshly ground pepper, the thinly sliced steak. Heaven! For myself, I added a slathering of herbed fig & honey tapenade/spread, made by La Terra Fina, purchased at Costco. It's so tasty with the meat. On the label it suggests using it with: sandwiches, fine cheeses, toast, grilled meats, grilled fish, salads, chips and crackers, flat breads and pita. I hope they still carry it when this jar is empty. If not it might be fun to try a batch on my own. The ingredients are: balck mission figs, figs, onions, honey, roasted red peppers, rice wine vinegar, herbs de Provence, cornstarch, chives, sea salt. Nothing too hard to find.

Breakfast for Dinner Night

2007-04-17T17:33:00.000-07:00

I've had a hankering for a breakfast-for-dinner night for a while and decided to try a multi-grain waffle recipe I'd seen on the Eating Well site. I had on hand all the ingredients, except I used the suggested substitution of corn meal for wheat germ. The oatmeal soaks for a while in the buttermilk, and I think this made for a nice smooth batter. Also on hand, and in need of cooking, was the remainder of a package of Niman Ranch bacon from Trader Joe's. As our oven is caput (new one being installed tomorrow!! Keep your fingers crossed all goes well), it was a perfect time to use our tabletop convection oven. It worked out great; the bacon came out crisp without the wrinkling usually produced by pan-frying. Also, this was our first opportunity to make scrambled eggs in our new set of Circulon cookware from Costco. I was holding my breath because, to me, if the pans don't perform well on something as simple as eggs, then they have to go back. No disappointment here; no sticking, even heating, easy cleanup. Extra bonus: the extra waffles made for a delicious breakfast -- spread with peanut butter and sprinkled with chopped pecans. Yummy!

Multi-Grain Waffles
Makes 8 servings, 2 waffles each
2 C buttermilk
½ C old-fashioned rolled oats
2/3 C whole-wheat flour
2/3 C all-purpose flour
¼ C toasted wheat germ or cornmeal
1 ½ Tsp.s baking powder
½ Tsp. baking soda
¼ Tsp. salt
1 Tsp. ground cinnamon
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
¼ C packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp. canola oil
2 Tsp.s vanilla extract

1. Mix buttermilk and oats in a medium bowl; let stand for 15 minutes.

2. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, wheat germ (or cornmeal), baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.

3. Stir eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla into the oat mixture. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; mix with a rubber spatula just until moistened.

4. Coat a waffle iron with cooking spray and preheat. Spoon in enough batter to cover three-fourths of the surface (about 2/3 cup for an 8-by-8-inch waffle iron). Cook until waffles are crisp and golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter. (our waffle iron is larger, so I think I used about a full cup of batter for each waffle.)

Opera in the Park

2007-04-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon was the yearly Opera in the Park, presented by the Palm Springs Opera Guild. Fantastic event! The cool and threatening weather held out, with only a few raindrops. The young singers were outstanding as was the orchestra. Can't wait for next year's event.

What We're Listeing to Now on iTunes

2007-04-15T09:30:00.000-07:00

If you like old Motown type of music, you've got to give a listen to Amy Winehouse, a very talented 23-year-old from the U.K.

This is a clip from YouTube and is also from her award-winning album "Back to Black."

Just found out she's appearing April 27 at the Coachella festival here near Palm Springs.

Gratin of Macaroni

2007-04-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

I came across this recipe the other day -- don't ask me where -- from a January 2006 British publication called The Observer. The article was a "best of" list comprising winners in various categories whom were nominated by other food professionals. This was the winning recipe in the easy supper category. It calls for creme fraiche, but if that's not available, sour cream would work just fine. For a dish with so few ingredients, this was a total winner. Very easy to throw together, but I did make it ahead of time and threw it in the oven just before dinner. I'd wait next time and assemble it and bake it right away. Do not skip rubbing the garlic clove around the inside of the gratin dish; this adds a nice background subtle note. This was a side dish to leftover baked chicken and sliced campari tomatoes from Costco, but it would be fine alone or with a vegetable or salad on the side.

I've put U.S. measures inside parentheses.

Gratin of Macaroni
(adapted from The Observer of January 2006)

Serves 4

salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g large macaroni (7 oz.)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
200ml crème fraîche or double cream
60g fresh Gruyère cheese (2 oz.)
(I added about 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan)
10g butter (approx ½ oz.)

Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5 (375 °). In a large casserole, bring two litres of water to the boil with 20g of salt. Add the pasta and cook for eight minutes. Drain by lifting it out of the water and immediately coat it in olive oil. Meanwhile, take an ovenproof dish broad enough to fit in two layers of the pasta; if it is too small, the pasta will be too deep and only a small portion of it will be gratinated. Rub the inside of the dish with the clove of garlic, cut in half. This will coat the dish with a wonderful sweet aroma.

In a bowl, mix the pasta with the cream and cheese. Season with salt and pepper and pour into the ovenproof dish. Dot the surface with the butter and put into the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes. You should have a wonderful golden gratin. For a little more colour on the top, pop the gratin under the grill (broiler).

Lunch at the Indian Canyons Golf Club

2007-04-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

About a week ago our neighbor Ray asked us to join him and another neighbor, Ron, for lunch at the newly refurbished Indian Canyon Golf Course club house. He'd been about 3 times in the previous week and was really enthusiastic about it. Eddie's friend from Scotland Liz and her cousin will be staying with us in May, and Ray thought we'd like to give it a trial run before they got here to see if we want to take them there. Well, he was very right. No disappointments here. The room was pleasant. The help was efficient and friendly. The food was good and reasonably priced. Did I mention THE VIEW??!!! My goodness, it's breathtaking. Ray took some picts and e-mailed them that day. We'll definitely be going back soon. Indoor seating, though, as it's getting to that hot time of year and the club faces south. So there's no way you can sit outside and eat.

Red Curry Chicken with Bok Choy and Sweet Coconut Rice

2007-04-11T13:03:00.000-07:00

This recipe came from Food Network's Quick Fix Meals show with Robin Miller. I needed an easy crockpot meal, as our kitchen appliances are in a state of replacement at the moment, actually until the 16th of April. I will definitely make this again, probably for company, as it's so easy to make. No added fat, and it can be cooled, stored, reheated on high the next day and served when needed. The rice is incredibly tasty, and I wish there had been more juice at the bottom of the pot to have with the rice.

Sesame Red Curry Chicken with
Bok Choy and Sweet Coconut Rice

Serves 4

4 cups chopped bok choy
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breast halves, 4 (4-ounce) halves
Salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup sake (rice wine)(used Mirin sweet sake)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon red curry paste
1/4 cup flaked coconut (used sweetened flaked)
2 cups quick cooking jasmine rice (used regular jasmine)
2 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro leaves, for garnish (did not use)

Arrange bok choy and red pepper in bottom of slow cooker. Season 4 chicken breast halves all over with salt and black pepper and place on top of bok choy.
In a small bowl, whisk together broth, sake, sesame oil, ginger, and curry paste. Pour mixture over chicken. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or HIGH for 3 to 4 hours. (I opted for the 3 hour time.)
In a small skillet toast flaked coconut on low heat until lightly toasted, about 5 to 8 minutes. To a medium saucepan, add rice and coconut milk and set pan over medium-high heat, bring to a simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir in toasted coconut. (I made rice in the rice cooker; turned out to cool after steam stopped coming out of cover's vent.)
Spoon rice onto a serving platter. Top with chicken, bok choy, bell peppers and sauce from slow cooker. Garnish with cilantro.

Blue Coyote: Another Restaurant for the No-Return List

2007-03-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

The Blue Coyote restaurant has gone way, way downhill over the past few years. We'd not been there in about five years. We and the neighbors decided to give it a try; we were all very much disappointed. The food was not authentic, the drinks were weak, to the point of having no alcohol, and the prices were high for what was served. We will not be returning. I must say, though, the service was pleasant and efficient.

Black Bean Soup with Ham

2007-03-23T00:06:00.000-07:00

I came across this recipe recently from Everybody Loves Sandwiches and it was just cool enough outside that it appealed. Not to mention that all the ingredients were in the pantry and/or the freezer. I had a pack of frozen ham slices from last Easter, so that was perfect. I used Trader Joe's frozen corn which is exceptionally sweet. We had on hand a tub of fire-roasted salsa from Costco, which is nice and spicy, so much so that no extra hot sauce was needed at the end. No sour cream around, but there was a tub of Crema Mexicana, which made it even more authentic. Also we had a baggie full of finely grated dry Mexican cheese, and a tablespoon or so at service time really added a lot.

Accompanying the soup were mini corn muffins, which I had made for a dinner a while ago and froze the leftovers for future.

I wished I had had an ice-cold Mexican beer to wash it all down. Gotta get some to have on hand for those three or four times a year I actually want a beer.

This soup is a keeper, definitely, and I'll be making this again. Note: This soup improves over the course of a few days. Plan on making it at least one day, even up to three days, ahead of time.

Black Bean Soup with Ham
(from Everybody Likes Sandwiches)

2 cans black beans, drained
1 t olive oil
1 onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1/4 t chipotle powder
4 slices of thinly sliced ham
1 large tub (500 ml) of your favorite fresh salsa
4-5 c chicken stock
1/2 c frozen corn
hot sauce
juice of 1 lime
1 avocado, sliced
sour cream (optional)
1. Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large pot. Add in onion and garlic and sautee for a few minutes until translucent. Add in red pepper, ham and chipotle powder and stir until combined. Add beans, salsa and cover with chicken stock. Cover pot and cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.

2. Turn down the heat to a low simmer. Use a potato masher and mash up the beans until the soup thickens. Add in corn, hot sauce and the lime juice and give everything a good stir. Simmer for a few additional minutes until everything is heated through. Serve in bowls with slices of avocado and a dollop of sour cream.

Great Food Blog Search Feature

2007-03-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

Today while going through some of the blogs I check out frequently, I noticed over at Kalyn's Kitchen that she had give a link to Elise's Food Blog Search page. I gave it a try, and it's really fantastic.

For instance, I put in "slow cooker" and got back dozens of hits from fellow bloggers for slow cooker recipes. Another one I did was "pork chops" (we just got a large Costco pack of bone-in chops and wanted to get some inspiration), and again pages and pages of blogged recipes came up.

This site will save a lot of time searching though entries that are of no interest for tonight's meal. Give it a try.

Road Trip, Anyone? Gotta Get One of These!

2007-03-11T00:14:00.000-08:00

Delicious Healthy Soup

2007-02-28T13:25:00.000-08:00

We had a quarter bag of snap peas, a full bag of the small French green beans and a box of spinach in the freezer, along with some really fine homemade chicken stock. So I came up with this soup recipe, and it turned out really well. I'm sure the main ingredients can be fooled with, depending on what's available in the fridge, freezer and pantry. A nice garnish is thinly sliced lemon from the backyard crop; perhaps a small swirl of thinned sour cream or Mexican crema; or a snipping of fresh chive and/or dill. I'm going to add this one to my keeper list. Also, this is probably equally good served cold on a hot day to start an outdoor lunch or casual dinner.

PLUS
PLUS
EQUALS

PUREE OF SNAP PEA, GREEN BEAN & SPINACH SOUP

SAUTÉ 1 CHOPPED ONION AND 2 SLICED GARLIC CLOVES IN OLIVE OIL. SEASON WITH SALT AND PEPPER.

ADD TO THE ABOVE 1 10-OZ. THAWED, SQUEEZED-DRY PACK OF FROZEN SPINACH.

ADD TO THE ABOVE ABOUT 2 CUPS, APPROX., WHOLE SNAP PEAS.

ADD TO THE ABOVE ABOUT 3 CUPS SMALL GREEN BEANS.

ADD TO THE ABOVE 1 SMALL PEELED POTATO OR A COUPLE PEELED FINGERLINGS.

ADD TO THE ABOVE 2 CUPS WATER AND ABOUT 3 OR SO CUPS CHICKEN STOCK OR BROTH, ½ TEASPOON DILL WEED, ½ TEASPOON DRY TARRAGON.

SEASON AGAIN WITH SALT AND PEPPER. BRING TO A BOIL, RETURN TO A SIMMER. SIMMER 15 MINUTES.

PUREÉ IN BATCHES IN BLENDER. STRAIN IF DESIRED. CORRECT SEASONING WITH SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE.

Some of Our Favorite Palm Springs Images

2007-02-17T15:15:00.000-08:00

Much Colder Weather, and Some Grammar

2007-01-11T22:47:00.000-08:00

Our desert weather has turned decidedly wintery, seasonal; and I just won't have it. Today our high was only 65, and I know that makes me sound like a weenie, but for us that's really cool.

Extended Forecast 7-day Forecast
Friday 54°F | 34°F
Saturday 54°F | 32°F
Sunday 58°F | 36°F
Monday 62°F | 39°F
Tuesday 65°F | 41°F
Wednesday 67°F | 43°F

I don't really care how cold it gets as long as it doesn't snow at the Grapevine on I-5 Sunday on our way up to San Francisco.

May I point out a mistake that I'm seeing almost every day on many, many blogs? I do this as an ex-court reporter, and it's a major pet peeve. Okay. Here goes. Don't hate me, please.

The misuse of the words "to" and "too" is rampant, so I want to put out a few definitions from Dictionary.com to perhaps clarify.

"To" is a preposition, and definitions and examples of its use are at this site.

"Too" is an adverb, and definitions and examples of its use are at this site.

Okay, I'll shut up about it now and will try never to mention it again.

Any suggestions for cheap eats while in San Francisco? Only get up there once a year and haven't really kept up with the restaurant scene.

An Interesting Take on the Food Network

2007-01-10T16:52:00.001-08:00

Take a look at what Rosie at Bitchin' in the Kitchen with Rosie has to say about the Food Network. Very interesting, and I think many of us are coming around to the very same conclusions.

Fantastic Podcast Find!

2007-01-09T12:55:00.000-08:00

The Daily Purge is a new podcast I came across this morning, and it's just too good not to pass along to everyone else. No iPod necessary; it can be streamed live on your computer. Check it out. Some great storytelling and music. And I love the hilarious lyrics to the intro music. I think most of the music is original by J. Michael and Rob.

Also, things are changing for the better when I see an IKEA commercial like this one. Check it out.

We're off to San Francisco next week for four nights. Hope the weather doesn't suck, as it can often be in January.

Cool Slide Show Program

2006-12-20T14:11:00.000-08:00

I found a link to Slide from Adam's The Amateur Gourmet site and gave it a try. It's easy to set up an account and figure out how to make a slide show.

Here are some of the female artists on my new iPod that Eddie got me for my birthday.

Aside from holding a mind-boggling number of music tracks and photos, I can store hundreds of podcasts and listen to them anytime, anywhere. Right now, I'm listening to a lot of the Feast of Fools podcast, which comes out of Chicago. Not for the prudish, but at times it's outrageous and other times it's very informative and deep. The Ru Paul phone call from a recent episode was unbelievable.

Also of interest to all foodies should be the podcast of KCRW's Good Food hosted by the talented chef and restrauteur Evan Kleiman. I especially enjoy the weekly report from the Santa Monica farmers' market which always focuses on what's seasonal and in the markets right now. Also, recently made available for podcast is The Splendid Table hosted by Lynne Rosetto Casper.

Even if you don't download the programs for an iPod, take some time to listen to them online, either streaming or live. They're well worth it; I promise.

Potato Latkes & Applesauce

2006-12-19T14:54:00.000-08:00

Well, it's that time of year again when I give into making latkes, in spite of the incredible mess frying them creates. After years of trying different methods, a few years back I came across a recipe in Sunset magazine, and it turned out to be the best I've found. It's a breeze to get together; grating the potatoes and onions and transferring both for 30 minutes to an ice-cold water bath, which tames the onions and extracts some of the potato starch. After draining, the mixture is squeezed dry in batches in a clean tea towel. Eggs, salt and potato starch are added, at which time it's ready to fry up in 1/3 cup portions. That's the messy and smelly part, and why I only like to do it once a year. When they're nice and browned and lacy looking, they're removed to paper towels to drain a while. They're absolutely delicious and addictive when served with Elise's adapted applesauce, a drizzle of Mexican crema or sour cream and chopped chives or thinly sliced scallion greens.

Here are the adapted recipes from Sunset and Simply Recipes.

Potato Pancakes

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 45 minutes, plus 30 minutes to soak potatoes
MAKES: 4 to 6 servings

1 onion (8 oz.), peeled and halved, or 1/4 cup sliced green onions
2 large eggs, beaten to blend
3 tablespoons potato starch or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
About 2 cups vegetable oil

1. Using a hand grater or food processor, shred potatoes, working over a large bowl of cold water or frequently transferring shredded potatoes to water. Shred onion and add to bowl (if using green onion, reserve). Let stand for 30 minutes.

2. Drain potato mixture; wipe bowl clean. Follow steps 1 and 2 at right to dry potatoes; return them to bowl.

3. Add eggs, potato starch, salt, and pepper (and green onions, if using) to bowl and mix well.

4. Pour 1/2 inch oil into a 10- to 12-inch frying pan (with sides at least 2 in. tall) over medium-high heat. When surface of oil ripples slightly, shape potato mixture into cakes, following step 3 at right. Gently slide each from spatula into hot oil, 3 to 4 pancakes per batch (do not crowd pan). Cook until edges of pancakes are crisp and well browned and undersides are golden brown (lift with spatula to check), about 3 minutes. Turn and cook until remaining sides are golden brown, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer to paper towels to drain briefly, then keep warm in a 200° oven while you cook remaining pancakes. Serve hot.

Applesauce
(adapted from Simply Recipes)

4 medium Fuji apples, peeled, cored, chopped
2 pears, peeled, cored, chopped
juice of lemon
lemon peel strips
½ t or so of cinnamon
¼ t or so of nutmeg
¼ cup each white and brown sugar
1 cup water
good pinch salt
good splash of Calvdos

Combine all the ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Simmer until most of the liquid is evaporated, stirring occasionally. I used an immersion blender and gave it a quick zap, but left it a bit chunky.

Yummy!

Cashew Caramel Cracker Bars: Cookie or Candy?

2006-12-15T00:27:00.000-08:00

Have you ever seen a recipe and you just had to try it because it sounded too good to pass up, and also because you're just too curious to see how it turns out? Well, this is one of those recipes. I saw it on Leite's Culinaria some time ago and tucked it away for future use. This seemed like a perfect cookie for the holidays, so I grabbed a box of saltines from the store, and everything else was already in the pantry. If you make these, be really careful when cooking the butter and brown sugar and then adding the condensed milk. It's, like, volcano hot, especially when it comes out of the oven. When it's all put together, it says to place it in the freezer for 30 minutes, but the pan is just too hot. It will defrost everything nearby. So I chilled it in the garage fridge for a while first, and then put it in the freezer. The foil came right off as directed, and cutting them along the crackers' edges was easy after letting them sit for 5 minutes or so. Yum Yum Yum!!! I'm not sure I want to share these with friends; they're just too good. I have a request from Eddie to try a batch using white chocolate, so we'll see how that goes.

Cashew Caramel Cracker Bars

1 1/4 cups butter, melted, divided
35 Nabisco Premium Saltine crackers
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
One 14 ounces can sweetened condensed milk
One 12-ounce package semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup toasted unsalted cashews, chopped medium coarse

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). To make the cookies easy to remove, line a 10-by-15-inch jelly roll pan with a sheet of foil, shiny side up, leaving a few inches hanging over the longer edges. Drizzle 1/4 cup melted butter onto the foil-lined pan, and brush to cover the bottom of the pan. Line the pan with the crackers (don't worry if there are small gaps).

2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining 1 cup butter and the brown sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes, until the mixture forms a thick syrup (248°F/120°C) on a candy thermometer). Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the condensed milk until blended. Pour the mixture over the crackers, making sure all the crackers are covered.

3. Bake for 10 minutes. The top will be bubbly and brown. Remove from the oven, scatter the chocolate chips over the topping, and allow them to melt for 5 minutes. Using the back of a spoon or an offset spatula, spread the chocolate over the surface and sprinkle with the nuts. Using your fingers or the back of a spoon, press the nuts into the chocolate. Freeze until the chocolate sets, about 30 minutes. (as made: pan is too hot to put into the freezer right away, so I put it in the garage fridge for 30 minutes, then into the freezer)

4. Remove from the freezer and invert the pan onto a clean surface (don't worry if you lose some nuts from the surface; they'll be great for topping an ice cream sundae or for adding to cookie dough). Carefully peel back the foil to reveal the soda-cracker underside of the cookies. Using a sharp knife, cut the cookies along the cracker outlines. This is easier to do when the cookies have begun to thaw slightly. Invert and cut the squares into quarters for bite-size pieces or thirds for finger-size pieces.

Recipe © 2005 by Sara Perry. All rights reserved.
© 1999–2006 Leite's Culinaria, Inc

Southwestern Pumpkin Soup

2006-12-14T16:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, I admit this was ridiculously easy. But everyone at dinner wanted the recipe, so I consider this a huge keeper and will make it again and again. This was ready, from start to finish, in about 30 minutes. No vegetable chopping, no pureeing.
It even uses canned pureed pumpkin, which I almost always have on hand. The blend of chile powders gives the soup a nice earthiness with a bit of heat too. I had a jar of Mexican crema in the fridge; so before added the grated Cheddar cheese as called form the the recipe, I drizzled over the soup a healthy spoonful of the crema. I'm not too big on cilantro, so instead of chopped, I just garnished with a couple of leaves which gave just a slight hint of the herb without overwhelming the soup's flavors.

I got this one from a three-and-a-half-fork-rated Epicurious recipe, but here's the recipe with my changes noted. Try to make it a day ahead because the ingredients taste to "raw" until they've had a chance to get to know each other a while.

The recipe yields 4 servings, but I doubled it for 8 and it was just fine.

SOUTHWESTERN PUMPKIN SOUP
3 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
1 cup whipping cream (used ½ & ½ )
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mixture)
3 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (or chipotle chili powder) (used ½ New Mexico powder and
½ chipotle)
1/2teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
(Mexican crema or sour cream, optional)
3/4 cup (packed) grated (white) sharp cheddar cheese
Chopped fresh cilantro (garnished with leaves only)

Bring chicken stock and whipping cream to boil in heavy medium pot. Whisk in canned pumpkin, brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, coriander and nutmeg. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until soup thickens slightly and flavors blend, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Soup can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Cool. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium-low heat, whisking occasionally.) Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle with optional crema. Garnish each serving with cheddar cheese and cilantro and serve.

Makes 4 (first-course) servings.
Bon Appétit
October 2000
R.S.V.P.
The Watermark. Cleveland, OH

A Keeper of a Beef Stew Recipe & Rosemary Popovers

2006-12-13T16:49:00.000-08:00
Saw a segment the other morning on the CBS Early Show on easy holiday entertaining, and a couple of the recipes were for beef stew in the electric pressure cooker and rosemary popovers. Torie Richie is one of my favorite TV chefs; a real no-fuss kind of cook, easy recipes that don't require a degree, although she and I did go to the same culinary academy in San Francisco, although in different classes.

Here are her recipes, with my changes noted. This was extremely easy with a high flavor payback for the effort. The popovers also were easy; no resting period as called for in most recipes. Just mix it up, fill the buttered popover cups and bake, starting from a cold oven. Very much worth the little effort.

(CBS) 20-MINUTE BEEF STEW

3 lb. boneless stewing beef, cut into 1-inch cubes (started w/ chuck roast, trimmed it and cut into large chunks.)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 Tbs. olive oil **
1 1/2 cups red wine (used leftover two-buck Chuck)
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 lb. new potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 1/2 cups beef stock
3 fresh thyme sprigs
bay leaves
pinch red pepper flakes

**browned diced slab of pancetta in a bit of xvoo. Removed dice and proceeded with recipe.

In a large bowl, toss the beef with the flour, salt and pepper to coat evenly. Set an electric pressure cooker to "brown" according to the manufacturer's instructions and warm the olive oil. Add half the beef and brown on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with the remaining beef and transfer to the bowl.

Add the beef, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, potatoes, tomato paste, stock and thyme and stir to combine. Add the wine to the pressure cooker and bring to a simmer, stirring to scrape up the browned bits. (*** see notes below for change in procedure)

Cover and cook on "high" for 30 minutes according to the manufacturer's instructions. Release the pressure according to the manufacturer's instructions. If the liquid is too thin, transfer the beef and vegetables to a serving bowl, set the pressure cooker to "brown" and cook until the liquid is reduced to the desired consistency. Pour the liquid over the beef and vegetables and serve immediately.
(thickened with a butter - Wondra mixture, aka beurre manie, and added it in bits to the hot liquid and simmered until thickened the way I wanted)

*** Added veggies back to pot. Spread with tomato paste and cooked a minute. Sprinkled w/ leftover seasoned flour and cooked another minute. Then added the wine and BTAB, and proceeded with recipe.

Serves 6. Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

ROSEMARY POPOVERS

2 eggs
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 Tbs. very finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 Tbs. very finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Butter a popover pan or the wells of a 12-well muffin pan. In a bowl, lightly whisk together the eggs and salt. Stir in the milk and butter. In another bowl, stir together the flour, rosemary and parsley. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, whisking until just blended. Do not overbeat. Fill each cup about half full and place the pan in a cold oven. Set the oven temperature to 425ºF and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 375ºF and bake until the popovers are golden, 10 to 15 minutes more. They should be crisp on the outside. Quickly pierce each popover with the tip of a small knife to release the steam. Return to the oven for 2 minutes for further crisping, then remove and serve immediately.

Makes 12 popovers. (actually, as made this only made 6 standard-size popovers)

New Favorite Brownie Recipe

2006-10-22T12:38:00.000-07:00
Yesterday I downloaded a brownie recipe from a link on a Food & Wine newsletter. It sounded so good, I decided to make them right away. Wow! Were they ever good! The brownie was on the dense side, and the glaze was not too thick, nice and glossy, and not too sweet, having been made with bittersweet chocolate. This is a total winner and will be made many times in the future. The only thing I'd do different from the as-written recipe is to melt the chocolate-butter mixture in the beginning and the glaze ingredients over a double boiler, just to ensure that it doesn't burn over direct heat. Other than that, this is a straight forward brownie mixture, very little rise in the dough as there is no leavener such as baking powder or baking soda. After cooling in the pan, the warm glaze is poured over top, allowed to sit at room temperature for half an hour and then chilled another half an hour. We were watching the clock so we could have one right away. We were not disappointed: not too sweet, a nice dense texture and perfect with a cold glass of milk. These would probably not be pleasing if you're of the cakey brownie school, but otherwise totally yummy. They can sit, covered, at room temperature for up to a week, but come on, do you think they'll last that long? I don't think so.

Here's the recipe, adapted from Food & Wine May 2005.

MEL'S GLAZED BROWNIES

INGREDIENTS

BROWNIES:
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

GLAZE:
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS
1. Make the brownies: Preheat the oven to 350° and butter an 8-inch square baking pan. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter and unsweetened chocolate and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until melted. Transfer to a medium bowl and let cool for 5 minutes. Using a whisk, beat in the sugar, vanilla and salt. Add the eggs and whisk until smooth. Add the flour and cocoa and whisk until smooth.
2. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Transfer the brownies to a wire rack and let cool completely.
3. Make the glaze: In a small saucepan, combine the bittersweet chocolate, butter, corn syrup and salt and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, just until the chocolate is melted. Pour the warm glaze over the brownies and let cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, until set. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
4. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and carefully transfer the entire brownie to a cutting board. Cut the brownie into 16 squares and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The brownies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

The Cove of Palm Springs

2006-10-12T14:47:00.000-07:00

Today we stopped in at The Cove at Palm Springs to take a look at the eight models.

Here's a video link to The Cove at Palm Springs .

Both Eddie and I were totally blown away by the thoughtful design of these homes. Definitely made for adults without kids. There really are no bad views from any of the models either. These are courtyard homes, meaning there is almost no yard to take care of, and there are interior private courtyards where most all outdoor entertaining takes place. Most plans have room for a small private pool and/or spa.

Evidently, the original plan for the development was to have a golf course, but interested parties did not like the hefty HOA to keep it up, so that was scrapped, which left all of the golf course land as open public areas, never to be developed. Again, the views from the homes are awesome!

OK Go on Treadmills video

2006-10-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

Costco: What's Up With That!!??

2006-10-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

So there's this new recall on Salinas Valley lettuce, specifically Foxy brand lettuce. And what do we see this morning in the produce room at Costco? You got it, cases and cases of Foxy brand iceberg lettuce. Enough said.

Picked up a pack of portabellas and roasted them using this method from a recent Sunset issue. This works great, and I'm not a big portabella fan, but I love them this way. I've made them once before and both times laid them on top of some peeled garlic cloves which helped infuse them nicely. We skipped the parsley salad and had the mushrooms sliced thinly on slices of buttered La Brea Bakery Rustique bread, the only thing needed being salt and pepper. Here's the recipe as written:

Slow-Roasted Portabellas on Parsley Salad

The balsamic vinegar brings a lot to this dish, so use a good-quality one, if possible. The small investment is worth it--a few drops go a long way. Prep and Cook Time: 45 minutes.

4 portabella mushrooms, stems removed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons good-quality balsamic vinegar
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt
Parmesan curls (use a vegetable peeler)

1. Preheat oven to 250°. Brush mushrooms with 1 tsp. olive oil and put, top side down, on a baking sheet. Bake until shrunken slightly, about 30 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, toss parsley leaves with 1 tsp. oil and 1/2 tsp. vinegar. Add coarse salt to taste.
3. To serve, divide salad among four plates. Slice portabellas and arrange on salad. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and add parmesan curls on the side.
Note: Nutritional analysis is per serving; Cholesterol data not available.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Pork Braised in Guajillo Chile Sauce (Puerco en Chile Guajillo)

2006-10-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

I'm not really sure from which site I downloaded this recipe, but when I saw it I knew it was one I wanted to try. So the other day while at Costco, Eddie spotted a large 7-lb. package of pork shoulder strips. I thought of this recipe; he thought sausage rolls. So we split the pack 3 : 4. He pulled out the Kitchenaid meat grinder and and ground up his three pounds, added that to lots and lots of chopped onions, salt and pepper, spread it out onto puff pastry and baked it up to a golden brown. Slicing them right out of the oven works best and then we got to sample them. Yummy Yummy!

The next day I started Daisy's pork braise by trimming away excess fat and cutting the strips into about two-inch chuncks. Into the pot with water to cover and salt, brought it to a boil and simmered for about an hour. I could have finished the dish then, but I was out of some ingredients, so I cooled it, stored it in the fridge for a couple of days and finished it off Sunday morning after a quick run through the grocery store. I could not find guajillos, so I substituted half pasillas and half New Mexican.

So, okay, the timer just went off and I took a quickie break to check the stew. The meat is falling apart tender, the sauce is a beautiful burnished red color, and the taste is fantastic -- the flavor is definitely New Mexican but it's not very hot. It needed some salt, so that finishes it. I'll let it sit until dinner tonight and serve it with some brown rice, black beans and crumbled cotija cheese over everything. If we're feeling cocky, maybe we'll scoop it all up into a whole-wheat flour tortilla. Not this time becauase we don't have any on hand, but next time I'll be sure to have a good Mexican beer on hand.

Daisy Cooks! is one of my favorite PBS shows, and I may have to make a trip to the library to give her book a try before deciding to actually buy it.

Makes 8 servings

4 pounds boneless pork shoulder or butt, cut into 2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons fine sea or kosher salt
1 bay leaf
10 guajillo chilies
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and cut in half through the middle
3 fresh plum tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise through the core
¼ cup canola oil or lard
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Pantry Notes: Guajillo chiles are the dried version of fresh mirasol chiles. They are long, tapered, and wrinkled, with a reddish-brown color. They are fairly spicy and available in specialty stores or by mail/internet. (See Sources.) Toasting the chilies brings out their flavor and blackening the onions and tomatoes brings out their natural sweetness. A little work up front that pays off big time down the line.

**as made: could not find this time guajillos; so used 5 pasillas, 5 New Mexico chiles

1. Put the pork in a heavy Dutch oven large enough to it comfortably. Pour in enough cold water to cover the meat by 2 inches. Add 2 tablespoons salt, drop in the bay leaf and bring the liquid to a boil. Boll, skimming the foam from the surface as necessary, for one hour.
(as made: cooled, transferred to fridge and finished 2 days later.)
2. Meanwhile, pull or cut the stems off the guajillo chilies. Tap out the seeds. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add half the chilies and toast them, turning with tongs until they start to change color and crisp up a bit, about 4 minutes. Heat them gently so they don’t burn. Lift them out into a bowl and repeat with the remaining chilies. Pour enough boiling water over the toasted chilies to cover them. Soak until completely softened, about 20 minutes. (top with small saucer to hold under the liquid) Drain well.
3. While the chilies are soaking, wipe out the skillet with paper towels. Put the onion and tomatoes cut sides down in the skillet. Cook, turning the vegetables as often as necessary, until the tomatoes are blackened on all sides and the onions are blackened on both flat sides. (quickly blackened tops under the broiler)
4. After the pork has been cooking 1 hour, ladle off 2 cups of the cooking liquid and pour it into a blender jar. Add the onions and puree until smooth. Add the chilies and tomatoes and blend until smooth. Ladle off another 2 cups of the cooking liquid and set aside. Drain the pork, discard the remaining liquid, and wipe out the pot.
5. Set the pot over medium-low heat and add the oil or lard. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, 3 to 4 minutes. Pour the chili sauce into the pot slowly. As it comes to a boil it will thicken. Stir well, especially in the corners, to prevent the sauce from sticking and scorching as it thickens.
6. Return the pork to a simmer, cover the pot and cook until tender, about 1 hour. While the pork is cooking, there should be enough sauce to keep it moistened. If not, add reserved pork cooking liquid as needed. Serve hot.

Hello again

2006-10-04T12:37:00.000-07:00

I saw this photo of the dinosaurs out in Cabazon and just had to post it. Before moving to the desert, I always knew we were getting very close to Palm Springs when we spotted them. Nowadays, they're not quite so visible from the I-10 freeway with all the development going on out that way.

Well, I apologize for such a long break between entries. We took a little trip to Las Vegas, so between that and just being lazy about making an entry, there's this big time gap. We have actually eaten and cooked, so don't think we're starving here by any means. We went WAY off our diet while in Las Vegas, but with the coupon book we got from the hotel, it was just too dirt cheap to eat anywhere but at their buffet. It turned out to be one of the best we've tried, and I had no negative comments to offer. The best strawberry shortcake I've ever had.

We tried the nearly new South Coast Resort and Casino located at the far south strip area, about 5 miles or so from the heart of town. No biggie, though, because we hardly ever do the stip anymore. Four nights, $59 per night; a real deal! With the coupons and all for two-fer meals and free drinks, we didn't spend that much. We did, however, eat too much. That said, we plan on going back for Christmas, especially with the 25% off coupon we got upon checkout. For such a reasonably priced room it was a knockout: very luxurious bed, sitting area and -- drum roll -- 42-inch plasma TV. We could barely tear ourselves away from that to go do other things. The midnight breakfast specials at the coffee shop are insanely cheap: e.g., $2.95 for a 6-oz. NY strip steak, two eggs, hashbrowns and toast. Who can say no to that?

We're getting back into cooking again, and this morning I threw together what turned out to be something like a minestrone, not that it started out that way. Just this and that sitting around. Saffron oil, onion, garlic, canned tomatoes, hand crushed, homemade chicken stock, small pasta, frozen roasted corn, garbanzo beans, butter beans, green beans, a couple scoops of sun-dried tapendade. Yummy!

A Perfect Late Summer Evening

2006-09-23T13:25:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know it's still around 100 degrees during the day, but it's actually getting to be bearable after the sun goes over the other side of San Jacinto Mountain. It's also getting to be near that time of year when I crave heartier dishes that seem to pair well with the season's fruits. So we bought a pork loin roast at Costco and I decided to brine it and roast it on the Weber rotisserie. This is a combination of a few recipes I've had sitting around, and here's how I did it:

Brined Spit-Roasted Pork Loin with Orange Marmalade

Brine Mixture

1 quart apple juice
5 quarts water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup kosher salt
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, toasted
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
3 large springs fresh thyme
4 bay leaves, crushed

4 pound pork loin roast, tied

Combine brine ingredients in a large pot. Submerge pork loin; refrigerate for 4 hours. Remove, but do not rinse. Pat dry and allow to come to room temperature.

Set roast on rotisserie rod securely. Season well with freshly ground black pepper. Rotisserie roast with cover closed. Heat should be around 325 - 350 degrees. Start glazing about halfway through cook time. Remove and allow to rest when internal temperature reaches about 150 degrees. Total cook time is approxiamte, but estimate about 1 1/2 hours, at least.

Meanwhile, make the glaze.

Saute 3/4 cup sliced shallots in olive oil until they start to caramelize. Season with salt and pepper. Add 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary. After a few minutes, add 1/2 cup orange marmalade. Combine well and remove from heat.
I served this with a homemade savory applesauce, potatoes dauphinoise, and ended the meal with roasted pears with brown sugar and vanilla ice cream (Everyday Italian recipe).

All of this on the patio with good friends, cooling temperatures and lots of good wine made for a really nice evening.

Happy 5767

2006-09-22T23:09:00.000-07:00

Brined Rotisserie Chicken

2006-09-19T15:47:00.000-07:00
Last week while at Costco, our eyes were bigger than what we could actually accomplish in a week's time; consequently, we ended up buying WAY too much meat: one five-pound boneless pork loin, a package of two pork tenderloins, package of three whole chickens, package of two large chuck roasts. Pheww, I don't think I've fogotten anything. Later this week, I'll type out the recipes for what I did with one of the chickens, the pork loin and one of the chuck steaks. The tenderloins are vac-packed, so I don't feel under the gun to get them cooked right away.

But the remaining two chickens were staring at me every time I opened up the large fridge out in the garage, and time was awasting. I've brined lots of whole chickens before, and this is the brine I like best. A single recipe would be 1/4 of all the ingredients, which is the way it was originally was written, but even doulbing the ingredients is not enough to cover the birds, so I quadrupled it and that was perfect. Here's the brine and the amounts I used. One-fourth would be fine for cut up parts, and brine time should be reduced to about an hour or so.

BRINE

1 quart apple juice
3 quarts water
1 cup kosher salt
8 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped (save bean for your sugar jar)

Brined for 3 hours, then rotisseried.

There were some fresh herbs sitting around, so I made a mixture of parsley, thyme and rosemary from the yard and added lots of coarsely ground black pepper. To bind it, I added EVOO and spread it all over the birds, inside and out. After trussing the legs, I set up both chickens on one rotisserie rod; I just happen to have an extra sets of forks, so doing two is no problem. I set the Weber on M-O-M (medium-off-medium) and let it come up to temperature. I felt this was a bit too hot, about 370 degrees, so I lowered it to medium low on the front and back burner and left the middle one off. The birds reached a perfect 160 degrees after about an hour and fifteen minutes. After letting them rest a while, they were perfect and fantastically juicy.

Nothing better, and we have dinner for two nights. The carcasses I'll save and use to make a rich dark chicken stock for soup or risotto. How frugal is that?

Pandora

2006-09-18T22:59:00.000-07:00
Thank you, David Lebovitz, for mentioning Pandora in your latest blog entry. I did not even know it existed until tonight. My newest obsession!

Sweatin' to the Curry

2006-09-15T09:29:00.000-07:00
Not too long ago, while checking out some new sites, I came across the Global Gourmet site. The archives hold a lot of cookbook reviews, with a few recipes thrown in for you to try. If you like trying global cuisine, and dishes you don't normally make, check out this site.

This recipe for Red Curry Beef with Potatoes comes from The Simpler the Better; Sensational One-Dish Meals by Leslie Revsin with Rick Rodgers. If nothing else, the cover photo of risotto with shrimp is enough to at least check the book out.

This was truly a one-pot dinner, although not quick cooking; known to be a tough cut of meat, chuck needs a good amount of time braising to become meltingly tender. I opted to throw in with the browning onions a sliced-up green bell pepper and a couple of sliced garlic cloves. The finished dish was quite spicy and had a moderate amount of heat, although very manageable when served with a dollop of sour cream or, as I had on hand, yogurt cheese (drained and thickened low-fat yogurt).

This makes four good-size servings and could probably be made and frozen for a desperation dinner down the road. I'm not sure: how do dishes made with coconut milk freeze? Having been on a low-carb kick the past couple of months, making a dish with potatoes was a real treat, and I didn't feel guilty as each serving had probably less than one red potato in it. A glass of New Zealand Marlborough district saugignon blanc paired well with the dish. The stew had lime and citrus flavor, and the wine had distinct grapefruit overtones. A better match, I feel, would have been a dry riesling.

The heat and spiciness in the recipe come from the three tablespoons of red curry paste. Once again, Palm Springs proves itself to be a culinary backwater town; I had to go to three supermarkets to find curry paste. The recipe called for three, but next time I think I'll tone it down by starting with only two and go from there. In this case the advice we've all heard rings true: you can always add more, but once in there, you can't take it out. One other thing: I used fish sauce, which I had in the cupboard, because it gives the dish that authentic Thai flavor.

Here's a copy of the recipe from The Global Gourment.

Red Curry Beef with Potatoes
4 servings

Here's another recipe that uses red curry paste, one of my favorite ingredients. In fact, it is probably the most famous use for red curry paste—a luxuriously spiced beef stew with chunks of potatoes.

2 large onions
1-1/2 pounds red-skinned potatoes, peeled
2 limes
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 pounds beef chuck, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 tablespoons red curry paste
Two 13-1/2-ounce cans coconut milk (do not shake cans)
3 tablespoons soy sauce or fish sauce

Prep

Cut onions into 1/2-inch-thick half-moons. Cut potatoes into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Grate zest from limes. Juice limes; you should have 2 to 3 tablespoons.

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in Dutch oven or flameproof covered casserole over medium-high heat. In batches without crowding, add beef and cook, turning occasionally, until beef is browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer beef to plate.

2. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in pot. Add onions and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions soften, about 5 minutes. Add curry paste and 2 tablespoons thick coconut "cream" (the thick liquid that has risen to the top of the canned coconut milk). Mix well and cook for 30 seconds. Return beef and any juices on plate to pot. Whisk coconut milk in cans to combine milk and remaining "cream" and pour into pot, along with soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 50 minutes.

3. Add potatoes to pot and cover. Cook until both beef and potatoes are tender, about 35 minutes. Add lime zest and juice. Serve hot.

Simple tip

Don't confuse coconut milk with cream of coconut (such as Coco Lopez). The former is unsweetened, while the latter is used only for making piña coladas and some desserts. However, the thick, rich paste that rises to the top of canned coconut milk during storage is similarly called "coconut cream." The question is what to buy? The answer is coconut milk.

Variation

Add 1 green bell pepper (seeds and ribs discarded, pepper cut into 2-inch long strips about 1/2 inch wide) and 2 finely chopped garlic cloves to the pot with the onion.

Spanish Baked Chicken

2006-09-13T16:30:00.000-07:00
I recently posted a few recipes I'd be making in the near future, and Elise's Spanish Baked Chicken was first on the list. After cutting up a whole chicken, I let it marinate a day in the raisin, olive and vinaigrette mixture.

Last night I added a handful of extra garlic cloves, some white wine, a sprinkling of brown sugar, and popped the dish into the oven for about an hour, just until the skin was nicely browned and the sauce was slightly reduced and fragrant.

On the side I made pan-steamed broccoli. Separate the broccoli into florets. Heat over medium-high heat a film of olive oil. When shimmering, briefly saute a sliced garlic clove and then add the florets and stir fry a minute or so until starting to brown. Toss in a quarter cup or so of water, cover and let it steam until it's bright green and crisp tender. Finish with a pat of butter, salt and pepper.

Here's the recipe, slightly adapted. Thank you, Elise. This is a winner.

Spanish Baked Chicken

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Dash of pepper
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup sliced pitted green olives
3 pounds chicken parts
handful of extra garlic cloves, peeled
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup dry white wine

1 In a medium bowl combine the olive oil, vinegar, oregano, salt, garlic powder, pepper, bay leaves, raisins and olives. Prick the skin of the chicken with fork tines and add to the marinade, coating well. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

2 Preheat oven to 350°F. Place chicken in a 12x8x2-inch baking dish. Combine wine with the marinade and pour over chicken. Sprinkle chicken with brown sugar. Scatter the handful of garlic. Bake uncovered at 350°F, basting occasionally, until chicken is tender, about 50 minutes. Remove bay leaves.

Serves 4

Dangerous Candidate

2006-09-12T12:49:00.000-07:00

I don't live in Florida, and I don't usually get political, especially on my food-oriented blog, but this woman is just unbelievable. Can we say ignorant and bigoted?

Floridians? Wake up!

Enough said.

Favourite Kitchen Gadget Round-Up Now Available

2006-09-10T10:34:00.000-07:00
The Favourite Kitchen Gadget Round-Up over at Posie's Place is now available.

Favorite Kitchen Gadget

2006-09-06T23:46:00.000-07:00

Posie's Place is hosting a Favourite Kitchen Gadget event. I've managed over the years to curb my gadget mania (the drawers won't hold any more stuff) because I have everything I could possibly use or need. That said, it is truly difficult to chose a favorite item, but one thing I could not do without is my bench scraper, which I've had for at least 20 years. Besides this metal scraper, I have about six more, all of which are white flexible plastic, and these too are indispensible.

This is what Wikipedia has to say:

A bench scraper is a tool used by bakers to manipulate dough and to clean surfaces on which dough has been worked. It is generally a small sheet of stainless steel (approximately 3"x5" or 8 cm x 13 cm) with a handle of wood or plastic along one of the long sides. A baker uses this tool to help pick up, turn, and portion dough. When finished, the bench scraper can be used to scrape up the little bits of dough that have dried onto the kneading surface during the forming process. This tool is alternatively refferd to as a "dough cutter," "dough knife," "pastry cutter," and "pastry knife."

In addition to its intended use with dough, it's an excellent picker-upper. This is its main use in our kitchen, moving a good amount of chopped meat or vegetables from the chopping block to the stovetop. I have to admit occasionally a morsel will fall to the floor, and when the dogs were alive, they'd get a well-deserved treat. Since then, though, I've noticed a lot more crumbs, etc., on the floor, which needs cleaning a lot more often.

Also on the list would have to be at the dozen or so different sizes of heat-resistant spatulas, mostly coming from Cost Plus. I tend to use these nowadays even more than wooden spoons; they're great for stirring around the "corners" of a saucepan or scrambling eggs.

In the past few years, I've renewed a relationship with the good old blender. Smoothies, pureed soups, pureeing simmered chiles for Mexican sauces, and cold soups for our desert hot weather are all good uses.

Thinking for a moment on some of the other most often used gizmos in our kitchen, I'd say the garlic press, toast tongs and lemon and lime presses are all used a lot.

I can't wait to see what everyone else submits as their favorites.

favourite kitchen gadgets

Podcasting: KCRW's Good Food

2006-09-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

It seems like every Saturday when I'm out doing errands, and KCRW's Good Food is on, I reach my destination before the show's over. And I just hate that! It's such a good show. Now I've discovered Good Food can be downloaded as a Podcast from iTunes for free. Not owning an iPod, I just listen to it on the computer. What a find; so interesting and informative. Check it out, along with all the food-related podcast programs available from iTunes. I swore I'd never get an iPod, but now.... ?

The Onion, New News Source

2006-09-02T23:00:00.000-07:00
Bush Urges Nation To Be Quiet For A Minute While He Tries To Think

Check out this important article from The Onion. Articles from the site can be sent to your blog or saved for podcast later. There are some funny articles, so check it out.

Also, check out some of the podcast-able cooking talk shows accessible from iTunes.

A Few Things I Intend to Make Sometime Soon

2006-09-01T16:31:00.000-07:00
I've copied and saved for future cooking sessions a couple of really great recipes from the blog Simply Recipes. The first is Jalapeno Pepper Jelly. Elise used a base of whole chopped apples and jalapenos to yield juice to which sugar is added. The pectin from the whole apples is enough to jel the mixture, so commercial pectin is not needed.

I've been a fan of hot pepper jellies for years and use it on a variety of foods. If you can find it, it's especially tasty on top of a neutral cracker topped with a horseradish-type cheese. I prefer it instead of cranberry sauce on my turkey sandwich. And for breakfast on buttered toast, fantastic.

Okay. Moving on to another of Elise's entries. Summer Pea Soup is just what I like to make when it's hot and all you need is a quick cook and the blender. I can definitely see this one being made for company.

Finally, there is Spanish Baked Chicken. I love Spanish cuisine, and this has many of the ingredients I look for. It looks like a simple dish to prep, and the payoff has to be out of this world. My mouth is dripping just thinking about this one.

Thank you, Elise!

Funny Videos: Flight 405

2006-08-31T21:57:00.000-07:00
Okay, I admit it. I've become slightly obsessed with home video sites, such as You Tube and Veoh. As an example of a really well-made clip, here's Flight 405. The special effects are professional and there's a nice punch at the end, so stick with it because it's worth it.