intellectual relish

Threat Neutralized

2011-04-01T21:55:00.000-04:00

So about a week ago I posted a scary picture of a box My Nemesis. I'm proud to report that the threat has been neutralized.

This is the oldest item I found stuck between two other recipes.

Panettone Bread Pudding - What could be wrong with that?

2011-03-22T18:36:00.001-04:00

Bread Pudding: is there an easier or more economically savvy desert? Its old bread, brought back from the brink with sugar, milk, eggs, butter, spices or any number of ingredients including dried fruit and chocolate chips. There are probably as many recipes for bread pudding as there are cooks. And, on the list of things that couldn’t possibly be bad I made the pudding pictured below using leftover Panettone.

Basic Bread Pudding

4 – 6 cups bread (cubed or torn into small pieces)

2 cups whole milk (240ml)

½ cup unsalted butter (4oz or 113g)

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

2 extra-large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup raisins or other dried fruit – or white or semi-sweet chocolate chips.

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC)

2. Cube or tear bread into small pieces and place in a large mixing bowl. I sometimes do this right into a 3quart casserole to save on dishes.

3. Heat butter and milk over low heat until butter is completely melted and milk begins to scald.

4. Meanwhile, measure and pour granulated sugar over bread and toss to coat.

5. Using the measuring cup from either the milk or the sugar, lightly beat eggs and vanilla together and set aside.

6. When milk and butter is heated through, pour eggs over bread followed by milk mixture.

7. Fold and stir gently until the eggs and milk are fully incorporated.

8. Cover and bake 40 – 60 minutes until browned on edges and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Best served warm.

In the south it’s traditional to top bread pudding with a warm sugary glaze. Approximately: 4 Tbsp milk or water to ¾ cup icing sugar. But, I prefer to eat this served with ice cold heavy cream.

Variations: This recipe is very malleable. In the fall, I like to use 1 ½ cups brown sugar in place of the granulated sugar and using up leftover raisin or pumpkin swirl bread is decadent. I’ve even made dried cherry and white chocolate bread pudding, to serve under vanilla ice cream for a summer treat.

My Nemesis

2011-03-22T18:29:00.000-04:00

This is my arch nemesis: my honey-do list… my grail! It started innocently enough, a clipping here, a recipe there, scribbled notes from a time before I started keeping a cooking journal, the odd label from a can of soup or condensed milk, the occasional recipe card from Williams Sonoma, or thrust at me by a suspicious looking sample lady at the grocery store. We were even friends for a time; I knew its ins and outs, its ups and downs. It provided many a good meal or dessert, but now… now it seems bent on world domination - or at least domestic domination - and bookshelf destruction.

I’ve tried dividing its evil forces, capturing some of its minions in binders, even sent in moles to undermine solidarity. Yet, it continues to gather strength – not to mention weight - while I furiously work to incarcerate all its subordinates and cronies in Living Cookbook – which is not unlike Arkham Asylum.

Mi Krop, Kimchi, and Bengali Fish Stew to Barbecue Ribs and Orange Cream Divinity, untested recipes and indecipherable scribbles they all wait to defeat me. I have learned never to underestimate my enemies, but I will, one by one, convert and defeat them. As for my nemesis; it will always gather new minions and I will struggle to tame its numbers, but it will always challenge me and I will be alive…and well fed.

Because of “The Box” I can never die!

Spice Rack Challenge - March - Cardamom

2011-03-18T22:26:00.001-04:00

For this month’s Spice Rack Challenge, I thought I’d make two staple Indian spice blends that feature the challenge ingredient Cardamom. Just to be different.

Cardamom comes in white, green and black varieties. The green and black are used in Indian cooking, and it’s the green that I’ll be focusing on here. White cardamom is fairly mild, and I find the flavor – to be blunt – reminiscent of soap. Green cardamom is sweet and floral and, to me, slightly nutty but also suggestive of vanilla and nutmeg. Black cardamom is uniquely sweet and smoky and features in a recipe I have for the best home brewed Chai Masala.

So I’ll be making:

Garam Masala – or “Warming Spice Mix” is a blend of aromatic spices usually used to flavor or season Indian dishes, there are many regional variations, some include dried hot peppers some do not. There are probably as many recipes as there are cooks.

Tandoori Masala – known for its color, tandoori masala is a different blend of aromatic spices used in many parts of northern India,

Pakistan

and Afganistan. It tends to be hotter utilizing dried chilies and typically includes red food coloring. This recipe contains neither: these days at home, we try and eliminate anything that is simply there for color (natural or artificial – with the occasional exception of sweets), and I’ve use instead a little mild paprika and prefer to adjust the “heat” in the finished dish to taste with hotter chili powders.

Chai Masala – Will the real Chai Masala please stand up! This is a blend of spices featuring both green and black cardamom steeped in simmering blend of water and milk with black tea. This is a bit of a labor of love, compared to an everyday cup of tea (no good cup of tea is ordinary in my opinion) but it is completely worth it. There are plenty of chai tea concentrates on the market and they serve their purpose well, but nothing compares to the delicate complexity of the real thing.

Spices are traditionally ground in a mortar and pestle, which I do own and often use, however; I have carpal tunnel syndrome in both my hands and frankly find it infinitely easier to use an electric spice grinder. I’m lucky and have a dedicated spice grinder, but a blender or coffee grinder will work.*

*A note on cleaning-up spices: dried turmeric, smoked paprika, and some chili powders are only soluble in oil. If your spice grinder or blender becomes discolored, or if you cannot remove the working parts of your grinder, wipe it with a paper towel and a small amount of flavorless oil, this will remove the coloring, then you can clean it as usual.

Recipes and more pictures after cut:

Equipment for Garam Masala and Tandoori Masala:

- spice grinder/mortar and pestle

- measuring spoon 1 tsp [5ml type]

- small flexible rubber spatula

Ingredients for Garam Masala:

Yields about six tablespoons

16 green cardamom pods [seeds only]

4 bay leaves

2 tsp black peppercorns

4 tsp cumin seeds

4 tsp coriander seeds

4 inch piece of cinnamon stick

2 tsp whole cloves

Method for Garam Masala:

Use the heel of your hand, a wooden spoon, or the bottom of a mortar and pestle to break open the cardamom pods and extract the seeds. This is easier than it sounds, just press downward on each pod until it cracks. Brake cinnamon stick and bay leaves into smaller pieces.

Place everything in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and grind into a homogenous powder.

Remove to an airtight opaque container and use as needed.

Note: You will need to clean out the work bowl of your spice grinder or mortar in between making these spice blends.

Ingredients for Tandoori Masala:

Yields about four tablespoons

Group A:

6 – 8 green cardamom pods [seeds only]

1 tsp black peppercorns

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

6 tsp whole coriander seeds

4 ½ tsp cumin seeds

1 small piece blade mace [sub 1tsp ground]

1 3” piece cinnamon [sub 1 ½ tsp gound]

1 tsp whole cloves

1 tsp dried minced garlic [can substitute ground but move to Group B]

Group B:

1 tsp ground ginger

½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 tsp plain paprika [mildest available for color only]

⅛ - ¼ tsp chili powder for heat [optional I usually leave it out]

Method for Tandoori Masala:

Use the heel of your hand, a wooden spoon, or the bottom of a mortar and pestle, to gently break open the cardamom pods and extract the seeds. Break the cinnamon stick into smaller pieces and place both in the spice grinder with all of the whole spices in group A.

Grind into a homogeneous powder.

Measure ground or powdered spices - group B - into an airtight opaque container, add ground spices from group A and shake to combine, and use as needed.

Equipment for Chai Masala:

- medium sauce pan with 2.5 quart capacity

- one liter capacity liquid measuring cup

- reusable mesh coffee filter or fine tea strainer

- cutting board

- sharp slicing knife

- 2 tablespoon [30ml] tea scoop or metric scale

- measuring spoon with tsp. capacity [5ml]

Ingredients for Chai Masala:

Yields one liter, about four generous cups.

750 ml drinking water

250 ml whole milk

8 black peppercorns

15 green cardamom pods

5 inch cinnamon stick [12 cm]

1 tsp whole cloves [5 ml]

2 star anise pods

2 black cardamom pods

1 blade mace [1 inch – 2.5 cm]

2 tablespoons black tea [10 grams]
1/3 cup granulated sugar - to taste

Method for Chai Masala:

Heat water and milk together with spices, sugar, and fresh ginger, bring to a gentle boil and reduce heat to simmer.

Simmer on low heat for twenty minutes stirring occasionally.

Add tea and simmer for an additional five minutes.

Strain mixture through a fine tea sieve or mesh coffee filter.

The results:

Freshly ground, the Garam Masala has the complexity and scent of garden roses on a hot day: floral but spicy it seems to exude its own warmth that has nothing to do with the actual temperature in the room. Tandoori Masala in contrast his smoky, earthy, sharp, and ever so slightly citrus, just the thing needed to sink flavor deep into chicken and lamb. While I’m sure any Indian grandmother worth her salt would tell you these spice blends really need to be ground just before they are used; and O.K. I’ll bite, they probably are, but I don’t think that is practical in a modern milieu. All spices do degrade when you grind them from their whole form, but this blend will keep for a good six months if properly stored. How long it lasts is up to you!

The real star, however, is the Chai Masala. Sweet, floral, smoky and rich with spices, it’s perfect with dessert or as an afternoon pick-me-up. And, I said it before but it bears repeating, it beats the heck out of any powder or concentrate.

Yes, the glass cozy's were saved from our many trips to Starbucks.

Broccoli Stuffed Baguette

2011-03-16T21:58:00.000-04:00

As much as I adore precision in baking, and I do, it doesn’t fit well into my daily cooking life. What I mean to say is; I like to cook from the hip, swapping some ingredients on the fly or substituting things I don’t have in the house for things I do. In these instances, a good recipe, in my opinion, is a solid – but not inflexible - reference point. I am obsessed with French food and traditional French dishes which often have a set ingredient list, but the measurements themselves are more proportion than strict weights and volumes. It’s a technique that you’re applying in these instances rather than a strict set of must have items.

The sandwich below is easily malleable to almost any leftover, fresh, or frozen vegetable, though I must admit I tend to favor the Brassicaeae family. And, while I’m admitting things, I tend to eat left over vegetables right out of the container long before they can be organized into anything so structured as a sandwich. What I do, if I’m being completely honest, is keep a steady supply of frozen broccoli around, for last minute meals, and for this sandwich.

Recipe after cut:

Broccoli Stuffed Baguette

This sandwich is for two, but I’ve made a whole baguette and cut it into 1 inch slices for an easy party appetizer. This could actually serve four people if augmented with a salad or other lunchtime treat.

Equipment:

- half sheet pan

- medium sized mixing bowl

- cutting board and sharp knife

- sharp bread knife

- food-safe string

- flexible rubber spatula

- fine mesh strainer

- measuring cup with 2 cup capacity

- aluminum foil

You’ll need: [approximately]

2 cups frozen broccoli chopped into ½ pieces

¼ cup diced shallot

½ cup cottage cheese

¼ cup good quality mayo (even better if homemade)

2.5 ounces sharp cheddar cheese – or other sharp flavorsome cheese

½ of a baguette or a demi-baguette if available

Salt and pepper to taste

Mise en place:

If using frozen broccoli (vegetables) remove from freezer and set out at room temperature to thaw for one hour before mixing, you can also gently defrost them in the microwave but you don’t want to cook them at all. If using refrigerated (leftover veggies) set out for 30 minutes to come to room temp. If using raw broccoli, you will need to blanch the broccoli in boiling salted water for 2 - 5 minutes.

Remove cottage cheese from the refrigerator and measure a generous ½ cup into a mesh strainer. Place over measuring cup and allow to stand and drain at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Chop broccoli roughly into ½ to ¾ inch pieces, larger pieces tend to become awkward to eat in the finished sandwich.

Grate cheddar cheese.

Slice the baguette in half horizontally, leaving the back edge intact. Use your fingers to scoop out the center of the bread. Tear the bread you have just removed into very small pieces and place it in the mixing bowl.

Have tinfoil, string and scissors on hand.

Preheat oven to 375ºF [190ºC]

Note: Don’t eat all of the bread form the inside of the baguette; you’ll need it for the stuffing (maybe that note is just for me…)

Method:

Place chopped broccoli, shallots, bread, and most of the mayonnaise in the bowl and stir to coat. Note: There should just be enough mayonnaise to act as a binding agent it should not look like a salad. The bread is there to absorb any excess liquid released by the veggies. If needed add the reserved mayonnaise.

Fold in drained cottage cheese, and cheddar cheese. Season mixture with salt and pepper, and then taste, you’re looking for something that is slightly salty but does not over power the broccoli.

Place stuffing in hollowed out area of the baguette leaving a ½ inch [1 cm] boarder around the filling. It will look slightly over stuffed at this stage, but I promise it will all fit.

Carefully close the baguette using the tips of your fingers to tease any escaped filling back into place.

Tie snugly with string in four – or more – places and wrap in aluminum foil. The foil is there to stop the baguette from browning; it will still become crisp but do not skip this stage or the crust on the bread will become unpleasantly hard.

Bake for 30 – 35 minutes.

Remove from oven, carefully unwrap and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing. If you attempt to slice it too soon the filling will slip out all over the cutting board.

Using a sharp bread knife, patiently slice into desired servings. Let the knife do the work of slicing for you; do not apply a lot of downward pressure or the filling will squish out all over your cutting board.

The Results:

The baguette gets wonderfully toasted and crunchy, the filling gooey and savory with the pleasant gentle bitterness of broccoli, salty twang of sharp cheddar, and soft freshness of cottage cheese.

Carrot Cupcakes - St. Patrick's Day Treats Part One

2011-03-12T22:58:00.000-05:00

As I began my write up for these treats, news about the 8.9 earthquake and tsunami in Japan was just breaking, and residents of low lying areas in Hawaii, California and all up and down the West Coast of this country were being asked to evacuate to higher ground. In Wisconsin, Governor Scott Walker has just rammed through damaging conservative legislature aimed at undermining unions, curbing access to birth control, and curtailing women’s rights. In my own state, Governor Rick Schneider and a Republican House have also voted to eliminate collective bargaining for state employees.

So as I was sitting here, feeling a bit sorry for myself, and downhearted about the state of the world. Wondering how I was going to write an upbeat introduction to what is probably one of the happiest desserts in the world when it hit me: this is precisely the time for Cupcakes.

What I love about food, especially during times of crisis, is its very necessity: you have to eat! Eating usually requires an act of cooking, and cooking requires enough attention that it transports you out of your own problems, and forces you to think of others – those you’ll be feeding. It brings people together, and comforts them even if it is only for a very fleeting time. It’s unfortunate that hard times and catastrophic events have to remind us to enjoy life, food and each other; that we need strife and hardship to remind us to relish in anything that brings us joy, maybe to find pleasure in simplicity, and solace in a bit of sugary frosting smeared onto a tiny cake. Times of suffering are a time for food, even when it is not abundant, prepared with care, eaten with appreciation for what we have.

Children, almost universally, love cupcakes even more than any regular piece of cake. What is clear from recent trends is that we haven’t really outgrown them. Cupcakes are, for many of us, a symbol of parochial innocence. Of a time when life really did seem both simple and good; when our parents could solve most anything that went wrong in our world, and when a good nights sleep was not only possible, but did make everything look better in the morning. There is a kind of Zen to them that just makes us feel sated and calmed, even if it’s temporary and a complete delusion; for those few moments there is a kind childlike joy. Maybe it’s just the knowledge that we have received our very own cake – no matter how small – and we get to eat the whole darn thing.

I had originally intended this recipe as one of two treats stirred up for St. Patrick’s Day. I wanted something that though not necessarily Irish, still fit the day thematically. I should also mention I was being kibitzed to make cupcakes. I’m not completely averse to using food colorings, but I didn’t want to simply dye some everyday food green and call it day. I wanted something that was naturally colored or at least that required minimal use of green food coloring. The answer: carrot cupcakes. The colors of Irish flag are green, white, and orange. And, the batter and finished cakes for this recipe are naturally bright orange from the carrots, the frosting thick white with cream cheese, and yes, I used some shamrock jimmies because the truth is, there just aren’t that many green foods you want to eat for dessert.

Now, I know when I say Carrot Cupcakes most people don’t automatically think of Ireland. In fact, Carrot Cake is actually a medieval English invention of necessity - there being little or no sugar, cakes were sweetened with carrots. The confection fell out of fashion quickly after sugar became abundant, but was revived by the advent of rationing in the Second World War when sugar was once again scarce. Some might even be offended that I’m using an English cake to celebrate and Irish holiday but I’m brazen like that. Carrot cake may be English, but it was born of harsh times and scarcity, neither of which are unfamiliar to the Irish, it also makes use of a cold weather hearty root vegetable which isn’t exactly un-Irish either. Moreover, St. Patricks Day really is a celebration of the upcoming rebirth of the earth, of the last days of winter before the promise of spring. Carrots are a long storing winter vegetable, so why not celebrate the coming of a new season with a little splurge.

Recipe and more photos following the cut:

Carrot Cupcakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Equipment:

- metric/imperial scale

- 2 large mixing bowls

- 2 medium mixing bowl

- 1 small mixing bowl

-500 ml capacity liquid measuring cup

- 250 ml capacity liquid measuring cup

- small sauce pan or butter warmer

- large balloon whisk

- large flexible rubber spatula

- medium flexible rubber spatula

- box grater with fine grating grid

- 2 - 12 well standard cupcake/muffin pans

- 24 paper or silicone cupcake liners

- electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment

- large piping bag fitted with a 1M tip

- two wire cooling racks

- wooden toothpicks or metal cake tester

-56mm standard ice cream scoop [2 ¾ inch -6.9cm, 2 oz]

You’ll need:

450g carrots peeled and finely grated [about 1lb]

113g raisins [½ cup]

50ml brandy or rum [3tbsp + 1tsp]

410g granulated sugar [2 cups]

3 extra-large eggs [175ml total volume]

340ml expeller pressed canola oil [1½ cups]

90ml buttermilk, at room temperature [⅓ cup

390g all-purpose flour [3 cups]

6g salt [1 tsp]

7g baking powder [2 tsp]

5g baking soda [1 tsp]

2g ground cinnamon [1 tsp]

2g ground ginger [1 tsp]

0.5g freshly ground nutmeg [1/2 tsp – a pinch]

7.5ml pure vanilla extract [1½ tsp]

227g cream cheese, at room temperature [1 cup – 8oz]

227g unsalted butter, at room temperature [1cup – 8oz]

450g confectioners sugar [about 1lb]

5ml pure vanilla extract [1 tsp]

50g colored sugar or novelty jimmies for decoration [2oz about ¼ cup]

Mise en place:

Take butter and cream cheese out of refrigerator. Weigh both into the work bowl of a stand mixer and set aside to come to room temperature.

Peel and grate carrots using the fine grating grid on a box grater. Weigh grated carrot in medium sized mixing bowl and set aside.

Place raisins and brandy into small sauce pan, heat over low heat until raisins have absorbed all the liquid and become plump, set aside to cool.

Measure canola oil into 500ml capacity measuring cup, and measure buttermilk into 250ml capacity measuring cup. Set both aside.

Weigh sugar and place in one of the large mixing bowls. Set aside.

Weigh icing sugar into second medium sized mixing bowl and set aside until ready to make frosting. Set vanilla and a small measuring spoon near the icing sugar.

Weigh flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, spices, whisk together in second large mixing bowl.

Preheat oven to 325ºF [165ºC]

Method:

Combine eggs and sugar in mixing bowl and whisk vigorously until they begin to blanch – become pale – drizzle in canola oil a little at a time until you form a semi-stable emulsion that is also pale and increased in volume. Add butter milk, and vanilla and whisk until fully incorporated.

Gently fold in grated carrots and raisins, then bringing the dry mixture to the wet mixture; gently fold in the flour, leavening, and spices. The finish batter is quite wet.

Place one approximately level ice cream scoop into each of the prepared paper cups (should be ¾ full or a bit more – see picture).

Bake 25 – 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Test a few of them to be sure.

Cool in pans 5 minutes or until safe to touch, cupcakes will deflate slightly as they cool. Place on a wire rack and allow to cool completely before icing.

Frosting:

Beat the room temperature cream cheese and butter together until fully combined. Scrape down the bowl and paddle.

Working in small installments, incorporate icing sugar on low speed until desired thickness is achieved, add vanilla last to balance texture. Scrape down the bowl between additions. Beat finished frosting on medium/high speed for 1 – 2 full minutes to incorporate a little air.

With the tip in place, fill piping bag with half of the frosting. Frost the cupcakes using a circular motion and top with a sprinkling of novelty jimmies.

The results:

These are sweet without being cloying with a moist but small crumb. There isn’t a hint of vegetable about their taste, the carrots give the whole thing a pleasant orange color and carry the spices well. The raisins don’t taste at all of liquor, but they do have a more intensely raisin flavor. The cream cheese has a bit of bite which nicely keeps the sweet butter flavor from developing into anything over the top. Probably the best compliment I could give these is to say, I have a new favorite cupcake recipe.

A fun tidbit about carrots: For years, and in multiple cultures, carrots have had the folkloric reputation for making people see better at night. There is some scientific evidence that suggests that, while you see as well as you see in the darkness (which for humans isn’t very well) Beta Carotene and Vitamin A do shorten the time it takes your eyes to adjust to the darkness.

This old wives’ tale was exploited during the Second World War, by the British government. The story goes like this; British citizens were encouraged to eat carrots because, in truth, they were one of the few foods the country had in abundance. They were planted in every Victory Garden plot and according to a regular campaign, “Were nutritious, and helped you see in the blackouts.” The RAF itself fed so many carrots to its pilots that some reported their skin discoloring to a kind of jaundiced orange, but at the same time, the RAF who was building mythology around such heroes as “Cat Eye Cunningham” was using the carrot myth to distract the enemy forces from what was really going on. In fact, what had at that time changed the course of the war was not RAF pilots’ ability to see in the dark during night raids, but their use of a newly invented radar technology. The rouse worked because Germans, having similar folklore in their culture, did not go looking for new technology.

And, in the interest of keeping things honest. You also get this:

Toll House Tome

2011-03-08T15:52:00.000-05:00

When it comes to chocolate chip cookies, I’m an unabashed classicist! I want the recipe right off the back of the package of Nestle Toll House chips, and I’ll eat them as soon as I’m no longer in danger of burning my fingers - thank you very much. There are days, however, when I want something that is “just a little bit more” than tradition, that’s when I turn to the recipe below.

Apple pie may be the historical symbol of home and hearth, but chocolate chip cookies are truly iconic. I’m not suggesting we rewrite all those songs or knock Geoffrey Chaucer (the English poet who printed the first apple pie recipe) off his perch, only that something even more common has supplanted the metaphor of wholesome goodness in our modern lives.

Bear with me: Apple Pie is after all an English invention. Americans may have piled the apples higher than ever before, or made pies the size of swimming pools, but we didn’t invent it. And that’s fine. We can throw as much tea in the harbour as we want, it won’t change the fact that a significant portion of us, and our culture, is descended from English settlers, who brought with them the practice of cooking meat and sometimes fruit wrapped in dough to protect it from the heat of a fire. On the other hand, Ruth Graves Wakefield, an American woman educated in nutrition and diet, invented Tollhouse Cookies in 1924 while cooking at the Toll House Inn, which she owned with her husband.

History lessons aside, let’s be honest, whose mother makes apple pie on a regular basis? Even foodies like myself might make a pie twice a year when apples are plentiful and in season, but I suspect most people buy all their pies from either the bakery, the grocery store, or the frozen food aisles. Chocolate Chip cookies are, in contrast, ubiquitous. Not only are they easy to make from scratch – children can do it with little adult intervention and even small children can “help” – but you can find a warm, out of the oven cookie at every shopping mall across America (and though I understand they are now out of vogue, you can even get them in convenience stores and gas stations). These morsels of childhood can be made with the simplest of equipment, a bowl and a wooden spoon, and for those completely unwilling to stir eggs, butter, sugar and flour together, you can purchase premade individually portioned dough in the refrigerated section of most grocery stores ready to “break and bake.” Even I have to admit that the premade dough available today is not the rubbery pallid ‘dough in the tube’ of the nineteen seventies. There are many commercial varieties available that contain no additives or preservatives and are made with real butter, eggs, sugar, flour etc. You can even find vegan Carob Chip cookie dough in larger health food stores. Surely, our love of these cookies far outstrips a score of Johnny Appleseed experiments baked into a pie.

So, with the abundance of ready made dough why should you make your own? Because nothing, nothing, beats a cookie made by your own hands, with the exact texture and flavour you like, fresh out of your own oven. Nothing. Chocolate Chip Cookies can be easily made on a lazy Sunday or hectic Tuesday; and whether you like them dense, chewy, or crispy, loaded with nuts, raisins, coconut and chocolate or austere with only a handful of chips; you can have them anyway you want them, any time you want them.

Isn’t that the best symbol of freedom?

Now that I’ve done my best to stir (pun intended) your sense of patriotism on a cold March day, here is my recipe for Over the Top Toll House Cookies. I use all the mod-cons in this method but it can also be made with a bowl and a wooden spoon. I use a mixture of butter and high quality vegetable shortening for texture and stability. There are some great expeller-pressed preservative free shortenings on the market now, you’ll find them in the refrigerator section of the grocery store: I buy the Earth Balance brand from Whole Foods Market.

Recipe and more pictures following the cut:

Over The Top Tollhouse Cookies

Makes 20 large cookies

Equipment:

- metric/imperial scale

- stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment

- flexible rubber spatula

- 500ml capacity liquid measuring cup

- 2 medium sized mixing bowls

- 1 small mixing bowl

- cutting board

- sharp knife

- butter or table knife

- 3 half sheet pans

- parchment paper

- wire cooling racks of bakers rack

- 5ml capacity teaspoon or measuring spoons

- #20 ice cream scoop [2 ¾ inch – 6.9cm bowl]

You’ll need:

300g all-purpose flour [about 2 ¼ cup]

10g all-purpose flour – for dredging [about 1 tbsp]

6g baking soda [about 1 tsp]

5g fine grade sea salt [1 tsp]

140g granulated sugar [about ¾ cup]

145g light brown sugar [about ¾ cup]

113g unsalted butter at room temperature [about ½ cup]

113g vegetable shortening at room temperature [about ½ cup]

2 extra-large eggs [about 100ml total volume]

7.5 ml pure vanilla extract [about 1 ½ tsp]

170g mini chocolate chips [about 1 cup]

170g butterscotch chips [about 1 cup]*

125g chopped walnuts [about 1 cup]

*I used Guitard brand chips.

Mise en place:

Two hours prior to mixing, weigh butter and shortening into the work bowl of the stand mixer, cover and let stand to come to room temperature.

Weigh 300g all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda into a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together to combine and set aside.

Weigh sugar into small mixing bowl and set aside.

Roughly chop walnuts, weigh into second medium mixing bowl. Using the tare function, follow with mini chocolate chips, butter scotch chips, and 10g all-purpose flour. Toss to coat and set aside.

Place vanilla and measuring spoon near stand mixer.

Line half sheet pans with parchment and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375ºF [190ºC] and adjust oven rack to the centre position.

Method:

Cream butter, shortening, and sugar together on medium speed until mixture blanches and doubles in volume [pale and fluffy] about 3 minutes

Add vanilla and mix to combine, and scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add flour in two instalments, scraping down the bowl in between additions. Use a flexible rubber spatula to make sure all the flour is incorporated. There is sometimes some flour left at the bottom of the bowl.

Remove bowl from stand mixer, pour in chocolate and nut mixture and fold in by hand.

Scoop/portion dough onto baking trays with ice cream scoop leaving about 1 ½ inch space around each portion. You will have two trays of seven cookies and one of six. **

Bake one tray at a time for 16 – 18 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on the pan.

** I am admittedly particular about having the cookies be all the same size because I like to pack and give these away, however; using two spoons to drop the cookies onto the sheet pan is just as valid. There is a certain aesthetic value to cookies that look homemade.

Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

The results:

This really is a nearly infallible recipe so long as the dough remains the same and I don’t exceed the total weight of the added ingredients I can manipulate it easily. This batch in particular, because of the butterscotch chips, was very sweet, maybe even a little over the top in vanilla flavour, but still delicious. To say more than “Yum!” would be to oversell it. I would never apologize for using shortening in these cookies because it’s the combination of the two fats that makes them both chewy and crispy.

Garlic Confit

2011-03-04T22:45:00.000-05:00

When I just hear the words garlic confit my mouth starts to water, my tongue sits up and begs like an over excited Terrier, and my eye lids droop in a ‘come hither’ kind of gaze.

Confit is a general term for any food that has been slowly cooked immersed a liquid –usually fat – for the purposes of flavoring and preserving it. The most widely known dish of this ilk, Duck Confit, is the obscenely unctuous combination of Duck braised in Duck fat, then cooled, left under refrigeration to marry for a day or two - or even up to a week - and then reheated. It is French – who else? – but other cultures have similar dishes in which pork is simmered or slow cooked in pork fat, and then reheated to caramelize the meat.

In this confit, the cooking liquid is olive oil, but this is no place for the expensive extra-virgin type, anything labeled 100% Olive oil or just Olive oil will do the job very nicely. I’m partial to a second pressing, golden colored, olive oil by Fillippo Berio http://www.filippoberio.com/Products/OliveOil.asp for both its price and mild flavor. The garlic should be fresh, the bulb should be compact and firm, and have no evidence of sprouting.

This method is really two recipes in one: you get garlic confit which is sweet, mild and earthy, and you get a delicious, mellow garlic-infused olive oil. Both are surprisingly versatile. The confit can be used to liven up a simple bag of steamed veggies; or as a condiment to stir into soups and sauces; or as a straight-up puree that can be smeared on toasted baguette for the easiest and quickest appetizer you could imagine. The garlic infused olive oil adds instant panache to weeknight meals without having to slice or mince anything. It can also be drizzled on vegetables, bruschetta and croutons, or over pasta for an instant sauce, or anywhere you need a last minute spike of flavor. As a salad dressing, mixed with tarragon vinegar, it is literally unforgettably good. And finally, when you’re really up against the wall, and have to get something delicious on the table twenty minutes ago, it can add instant sweet earthy flavor to a sautéed chicken breast, or fish fillet.

It is also “falling off a log” easy to make.

Recipe follows cut:

Garlic Confit

Original recipe from Thomas Keller ~ ad hoc at home, I’ve tweaked it very slightly.

Equipment:

- 2.5 quart capacity sauce pan

- cast iron diffuser or heavy cast iron skillet

- cutting board

- sharp knife

- 8oz capacity clean glass jar

- kettle for boiling water

- slotted spoon

- non-reactive funnel

- funnel shaped coffee filter or paper towel

- indelible marker for labeling

You’ll need:

500 ml/19.9 fluid ounce small bottle of olive oil [about 2 cups]

1 cup [slightly heaped] garlic cloves, peeled and tipped

Mise en place:

Place diffuser over burner and cold sauce pan on top of diffuser. Pour contents of a small bottle of olive oil into the sauce pan.

Boil kettle and scald inside of storage jar with hot water, swirl, and then discard water. Place hot jar on countertop with lid resting over the opening but not tightened.

Peel garlic and carefully remove the base of each clove where it attached to the bulb.

Method:

Place garlic in cold oil and gently heat over low heat.

Cook, stirring every few minutes, from the time you first see small bubbles appear on the cloves of garlic. Bubbles should rise through the oil but not break its surface. Adjust heat ass need to maintain this condition during cooking.

After 40 minutes, garlic should appear slightly more translucent. Remove cloves with a slotted spoon and place in sterilized jar. Cover with warm olive oil.

Using a funnel and coffee filter carefully filter and also return the remaining oil to its original container. Use an indelible marker to write the date on the original label, label the lid of the jar as well.

Confit should be stored in the refrigerator for one week before use, but shouldn’t be kept for longer than 30 days. The garlic oil can be stored at room temperature, and can be used immediately, it should also be used within a thirty day period – this will not be an issue.

The results:

At the risk of sounding like an over excited television host, this is one recipe that generates two delicious results, that in turn are versatile as ingredients and all on their own. It’s is true you can just buy garlic oil on most grocery store shelves these days but it is usually somewhat expensive. Beyond the price, I find most of them harsh and unexciting. They cannot compare to the home made version which is smooth, round, complex and full of the same warm base flavors found in good quality butter. Rather than smacking you in the face with garlic and then leaving a bland oily aftertaste, this blooms in the mouth and lingers sweet on the tongue.

Chocolate Cashew Butter

2011-03-03T15:41:00.000-05:00

When I saw that Deb at smittenkitchen had created chocolate peanut spread (peanutella) I instantly became jealous. Why hadn’t I thought of that? I thought I was in charge of all things both good and evil at the same time. This challenge could not go unanswered.

OK, maybe it was only a challenge in my head…

My own story starts back in December. It’s been a tradition in our house to bake way too much during the holiday season, with the intent of giving it all away. By “way too much” I’m referring to approximately 30 varieties of cookies, bars, and treats. This year, because we’re tightening our economic belts just like every one else, we only made fifteen. What a sacrifice! We give these to friends, work colleagues, the staff at our local Williams-Sonoma, and the folks at Starbucks who know us by name and make our drinks perfectly every time. Some of the people reciprocate, most do not, and that’s fine. We do it because we like doing it. One of my partner’s work colleagues, who is not a baker and who happens to be Chinese, usually reciprocates by giving us rare food items from her trips back home, or sometimes a treat right from the produce section of the grocery store. This year, for instance, we receive a 5lb bag of Satsuma oranges and a 3lb bag of Cashews…I know!

So there I was, with an extra-large bag of Cashews to use up and no idea how to make that happen. I’m sure my partner could gobble them down in a couple gut busting sessions but that wouldn’t be healthy for him - or our supply of Pepsid AC. Cashews are not my favorite treat to eat out hand, but I do like to cook with them, and I have a couple Indian dishes that specifically ask for them. But I couldn’t eat Cashew Chicken twice a week for the next six months, could I? Then I found my answer. It was simple, and it was brilliant. And I do not use the “b-word” lightly!

Thank you, smitten kitchen.

Having spent $9 on a tub of Justin’s chocolate-hazelnut butter at Whole Foods, I know how much a top-quality nut butter can cost. The real brilliance of this idea is that it’s economical; yes, you can buy cheaper peanut butter, for example, but I had been buying both nut butter and roasted nuts on a regular basis for years. If, I thought, I only bought nuts, and MADE nut butter when I needed it, I’d already be financially ahead of the game. I realized that the number of diverse uses for a bag of peanuts is great and the number of uses for tub of peanut butter, even if you’re imaginative, is significantly smaller. In the long run, I’m saving money and I have a flexible ingredient rather than another plastic jar on my shelf. Plus, I get the satisfaction of knowing exactly what’s in the smear on my toast, and, let’s be frank here, the “smug factor” of knowing I made it myself.

The original recipe is available at the link above. Here I’ve standardized it to metric weights and also tweaked it a little to my tastes, but her recipe really didn’t need any perfecting.

Recipe and more pictures follow the cut:

Chocolate Cashew Butter

Equipment:

- food processor fitted with blade attachment

- 18 – 12 “half” sheet pan

- flexible silicone or rubber spatula

- metric/imperial scale

- 250 ml [1 cup] capacity measuring cup with a spout

- clean .5 liter capacity [2 cup] glass jar with a lid that seals

- electric or conventional kettle

- small bowl for weighing

You’ll need:

300 g roasted and salted cashews [about 2 cups] you can use raw or roasted and unsalted

95 g Dutch process cocoa [about ¼ cup + ⅛ cup]

45g black alkalized cocoa [about ⅛ cup]

210 g super fine sugar [about 1 cup]*

60 ml canola or peanut oil [about ¼ cup]

60 ml honey [about ¼ cup]

Salt, if needed to taste

* If you cannot purchase super-fine sugar, place the same measurement of granulated sugar in a min-chop food processor or blender and blend on high speed until desired texture is achieved. Also, American confectioner’s sugar contains varying degrees of cornstarch, sometimes potato starch, as an anti-caking agent. If you choose to substitute confectioners sugar for super fine sugar you run the risk of making a dough rather than a nut butter, which is what occurred the first time I attempted this recipe.

Mise en place:

Weigh and measure all ingredients accept the honey. Place cashews on baking tray, whisk super fine sugar and cocoa together and sift if needed. Measure canola oil and place beside the food processor. Preheat oven to 400ºF [200ºC]

Blanche the glass storage jar with boiling water and set aside.

Method:

Roast cashews on tray for 5 – 7 minutes. Remove and place directly into food processor

Grind nuts for until a paste forms. About 5 minutes.

Add sugar and cocoa and continue processing, scraping down the sides if needed.

Drizzle in oil to adjust texture if needed.

Measure honey into same measuring cup that held the canola oil. The cooking oil will help the honey slide out of the cup.

Pulse processor a few times to incorporate honey, taste and adjust seasoning.

Transfer nut butter to storage jar and clamp on the lid.

Store in the refrigerator up to 30 days - “Make it last that long, I dare you.”

The results:

I love this chocolate paste on warm buttered toast. Cold right of the fridge it does appear grainy, but it quickly regains it’s luscious glossy appearance. I must admit however, that most mornings I impatiently take it directly out of the fridge, dollop it onto warm toast, give it a few seconds to warm up and smear it in. By the time I’m sitting down with my morning tea, it has become shiny and tongue-stickingly smooth.

I cannot extol the virtues of this method/recipe enough. I have something delicious that, as opposed to its commercial analogue contains only ingredients a first grader can pronounce. Does it have exactly the same texture as Nutella or other conventional manufactured nut butters? No. But then, some commercial nut butters have ingredient lists that are twelve items long, three of which are emulsifiers and three more of which are preservatives. What I want is something delicious and nutritious, that I can eat and enjoy without worry.

Split Pea Soup

2011-02-27T11:55:00.000-05:00

Split. Pea. Soup.

These three words combined can conjure images of Linda Blair in The Exorcist; of childhood trauma, forced to sit at the table until you ate something that really didn’t look like anything you *ever* wanted to eat; or, if less common, of warmth and comfort. Traditional split pea soup is, at best, a homely soup, but it is also filling and extremely economical. It can also be sophisticated and – I’d like to think – elegant.

Before anyone gets the disparaging idea that I’m obsessed with pureed soups, let me state proudly: I am. When I was finally old enough to attend my first truly ‘grown up’ dinner party, the host began the meal with a pureed apple and parsnip soup, and I must admit that, in my mind at least, it solidified – indelibly - this style of soup as outlandishly chic, even urbane. However - and perhaps in my own defense - there is something about the smooth rich texture of this soup that is at once reminiscent of baby food [our earliest feasts] and yet is also very complex, and dare I say it, grown up.

I also have to compliment the folks at Carlson – Arbogast Farm in Howard, MI for the consistent high quality of their dried beans and legumes. DO buy your dried peas from a local vendor if you can, or from a bulk food store with good turn over. Some grocery store dried peas can be almost desiccated by the time you purchase them, and some never really rehydrate. The quality of the dried peas really does make this, or any other, soup.

Recipe follows the cut:

Split Pea Soup

Serves 6 – 8, or just 2 with lots of leftovers

Equipment:

- large 7.5 quart [7 liter] capacity soup or stock pot

- metric/imperial scale

- small bowl for measuring

- medium sized mixing bowl for diced veg.

- sharp knife

- cutting board

- vegetable peeler

- heat proof spatula

- large heat proof bowl

- 8 to 12 cup capacity food processor

- metal mesh hand sieve or chinois

- parchment

- sharp scissors

- slotted spoon

- small ramekin or pinch bowl

- long wooden or metal skewer

You’ll need:

500 g dried split peas [about 2 ⅓ cups]

2 L chicken stock – home made or low sodium* [about 2quarts or 8 cups]

136 g bacon, diced [about 4 ounces or ¼ lb]

260 g onion, diced [about 1 ½ cups]

70 g celery, diced [about ½ cup]

100 g carrot, peeled and diced [about ½ cup]

30 ml olive oil [about 2 tbsp]

salt and pepper to taste

80 ml crème fraiche or sour cream** – for garnish

* You could also use vegetable stock, and omit the bacon if you’re a vegetarian.

** If using sour cream you may need to thin it with cream or milk

Mise en place:

Place bacon in the freezer for 30 minutes before beginning, this will help you dice the meat into ½ inch [1 cm] lardons.

Cut a disc of parchment paper approximately fitted into your cooking vessel. Cut a small whole in the center of the parchment as a vent.

Dice onions in approximately ½ inch [1 cm] pieces, weigh the diced onions and place in a medium sized mixing bowl, follow with the celery and onions.

Remove bacon from freezer and dice.

Method:

Heat soup or stock pot over low heat, add olive oil and then bacon.

Cover bacon with parchment lid, this will allow the bacon to slowly render without sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 25 – 30 minutes, lifting the parchment lid every five minutes or so to gently stir the bacon.

When bacon if fully rendered remove from pan with a slotted metal spoon and set aside in a ramekin or pinch bowl.

Raise heat to medium/low and add onions, celery, carrots and a pinch of salt. Replace parchment lid and gently sweat the aromatic vegetables for 25 – 30 minutes, lifting parchment every few minutes and stirring to prevent browning. ***

Add split peas, stir, and follow immediately with chicken stock reserving about 1 cup of the liquid for later.

Cook the soup, simmering on medium/low heat for 1 full hour to 1 ½ hours, or until peas are soft enough to mash between your fingers.

Remove pot from heat and allow it to cool slightly. Ladle soup into the work bowl of a food processor in batches, process and pass through a mesh strainer into a large heat proof bowl. When finished make sure cooking vessel is cleared of all large pieces. Wipe it out with a paper towel or clean rag.

Return pureed and strained soup to the pot and reheat over low heat.

Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and adjust texture if needed with reserved stock.

Serve hot garnished with crème fraiche or sour cream: place 6 small dollops around the circumference of the bowl and use a long wooden skewer to marbleize by dragging it through the dollops to cream a pleasing pattern.

***Using a parchment lid helps to prevent browning of aromatics and really allows the cook the freedom to do other things while the veggies cook. Other open-pan methods require more vigilance.

The results:

The finished soup has a dense and creamy texture that fills your whole mouth with flavor: the sweetness of the carrots, onions, and celery, the salty broth laced with a hint of smoky bacon, and the earthy, meaty “presence” of the mashed peas. The rendered bacon fat gives everything a kind of unctuous texture. The whole thing might become tiring, but the fresh tartness of the crème fraiche garnish wakes your mouth up for the next bite. Delicious!

Cold-Oven Pound Cake

2011-02-23T12:08:00.000-05:00

The story goes something like this: about 100 years ago, in England, the makers of gas ovens were having a hard time selling their new invention. It seemed people were afraid the fumes from the gas would seep into their food and make them sick, and given how inefficient the “new” gas ovens were compared to the modern standard, and the fact that they used coal gas - which didn’t burn clean - their fears weren’t completely unfounded. Many detected an aftertaste in the food cooked in a gas oven, but it’s doubtful anyone was made sick by the fumes being trapped in their food. Fumes trapped in their kitchen maybe, but fumes in the food, no. But it has to be said that coal gas, for its time, was a much cleaner energy source than the direct burning of coal or wood – the standard of the day – but it was all horrific when compared to today’s clean burning fuels.

One of the selling points that turned their hard luck around - and the reasoning behind this recipe - was that gas stoves were time saving devices. You could even start various recipes in a cold oven and not waste any fuel – expensive no matter the source - on preheating. Selling kitchen devices that save both time and money is clearly nothing new, but given that most coal and wood ovens of the day could take hours to reach a stable baking temperature, with repeated stoking and adding coal or wood, it’s not hard to imagine how much time and effort was actually saved by simply turning a knob.

In many ways, this is the cake that sold an oven, but there are many contemporary things to like about this cake. It has a nice dense crumb and a thick crust, it cooks slightly faster than a conventional pound cake – about 80 as opposed to 90 minutes, and it rises at little higher than a lot of hot oven methods because the baking powder really has time to do its job before the batter sets.

If you’re a fan of Cook’s Country Test Kitchen on PBS you’ll have seen this recipe demonstrated, and I must admit it really IS their recipe. I’ve standardized it using metric and tweaked the method, but don’t feel confident calling it my own. While there are other recipes that are more authentic to the available equipment of a century ago, I prefer the slightly poetic metaphor of using all the mod-cons at my disposal. As much as I enjoy doing things by hand, and I really do, there is also something peaceful about watching the elliptical motion of my Kitchen Aid mixer between, somewhat lazily, adding ingredients.

Recipe follows the cut:

Cold-Oven Pound Cake

Equipment:

- metric/imperial scale

- electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment

- medium sized mixing bowl

- small mixing bowl

- 250 ml capacity [1 cup] liquid measuring cup

- 500 ml capacity [2 cup] liquid measuring cup

- 16 cup capacity [10.5” [26.5cm] diameter top x 4” [10 cm high] Bundt pan

- parchment paper

- flexible rubber spatula

- silicone brush

- small offset spatula

You’ll need:

360 g cake flour [about 3 cups]

2 g baking powder [about ½ tsp]

6 g fine grade sea salt [about 1 tsp]

240 ml whole milk [about 1 cup]

10 ml pure vanilla extract [about 2 tsp]

285 g unsalted butter, at room temperature [about 2 ½ sticks or 1 ¼ cups] + more for pan

500 g granulated sugar [about 2 ½ cups]

6 extra-large eggs, at room temperature [340 ml total volume]

Mise en place:

Remove eggs from refrigerator, if applicable, and leave out to come to room temperature at least two hours before your begin. It is also easiest to weight the butter cold then allow it to come to room temperature.

Butter then line the bottom and sides of the Bundt or tube pan, then butter and flour the parchment.

Measure/weigh all ingredients: weight sugar directly into work bowl of stand mixer, and the butter into a small mixing bowl; sift cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium sized mixing bowl; measure milk and then top with vanilla.

Break eggs into two cup liquid measuring cup with a spout. If using an eggs substitute you’ll need 340 ml total volume.

Method:

Combine sugar and butter in the work bowl of the stand mixer and beat on medium/high speed until it blanches; [gets light and fluffy] about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, and beat on medium/high speed until fully incorporated; about 30 seconds each time. Scrape down the bowl once during this process.

Add flour mixture alternating with milk mixture in three installments. Scrape down bowl after each installment.

Spoon or pour batter into prepared pan, shake to distribute evenly, and smooth top with an offset spatula.

Place in oven and turn oven on to 325ºF. [165ºC]

Bake until golden on top and a tooth pick inserted comes out clean. About 65 – 80 min.

Cool in pan 15 minutes then invert onto cooling rack to cool completely. About 2 hrs.

The results:

Most pound cakes really do need a topping to be palatable, but this really is good enough to eat on its own. It also freezes beautifully which makes for a great back up desert for nights when you’re down to the wire; for a late night treat; or for those occasions when guests drop by without notice. Yes, people actually still do that.

ad hoc brownies

2011-02-23T11:51:00.000-05:00

Brownies are a favorite of mine. I’ve tried many recipes from dry and airy, to cake like frosted with chocolate icing, to dense and stuffed with walnuts. I’m not sure I want to meet the person who doesn’t like them, though I’m sure that individual exists. When it comes to brownies there are three recipes that, once baked, seem to chant “resistance is futile.”

Ina Garten’s Outrageous Brownies come immediately to mind, and I love to both make and give away these decadent treats but I only dare make them once a year. There is room in life for everything but moderation is key to avoiding the “tutt – tutt” of a cardiologist.

The second is a recipe that, in our house at least, is known as Texas Brownies. Steeped in cocoa and strong coffee flavors, this recipe is usually a summer time staple. I’m not sure if the recipe itself actually originated in Texas but it’s a recipe that goes together quickly using standard pantry ingredients, heated and mixed together quickly. The short – 20 minutes for an 12”x18” pan – baking time and hot icing poured on top of the still hot brownies all culminate to mean a short time in the kitchen on a hot day. Watch for the recipe in a future post.

The third, and relatively recent addition to my brownie repertoire, is Thomas Keller’s “ad hoc brownies” from the “ad hoc at home” cook book. Though the method is slightly different from any I’m used to, what I like about this recipe is it uses shelf-stable, pantry friendly ingredients, and though I suspect it would make Mr. Keller frown if he knew I use chocolate chips rather than fuss with chopping – or storing – high quality chocolate, I don’t think the recipe suffers for it.

Recipe and photo after the cut:

ad hoc brownies

This really is Thomas Keller’s recipe and method; I’ve just parsed it up differently, standardized it to metric measurements, and added my own notes as I went. Makes 12 - 1.5” x 4.5” [3.8 x 11cm] servings.

Equipment:

- metric/imperial scale

- 9” [22cm] square metal baking dish*

- fine mesh hand sieve

- medium sized mixing bowl

- stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment

- small sauce pan or butter melter

- small heat proof bowl

- sharp knife

- flexible cutting mat

- parchment

- 250 ml [1 cup] capacity liquid measuring cup

- small offset spatula or palette knife

- flexible silicone – or rubber - spatula

* The original recipe calls for a silicone mold which I don’t own. A parchment lined metal pan is a great alternative

You’ll need:

90 grams all purpose flour [about ¾ cup] + more for pan

90 grams unsweetened alkalized cocoa powder “Dutch process cocoa” [about 1 cup]

6 grams fine grade sea salt [about 1 tsp]

340 grams granulated sugar [about 1 ¾ cups]

340 grams butter – divided in half [about 1½ cups] + more for pan

3 extra-large eggs [60 ml total volume]**

170 grams semisweet chocolate chopped into small pieces*** [about 1 ½ cups]

2.5 ml vanilla paste or pure vanilla extract

** If you choose to use an egg substitute you will require 60 ml total volume

*** I used chocolate chips, because that’s what I had and I think they are more shelf-stable.

Mise en place:

Take eggs out of the refrigerator approximately 2 hours before you begin to allow them to come to room temperature.

Butter the bottom and sides of baking pan and line them with a parchment sling, then butter and flour the parchment as well as any interior surface that will come in contact with the batter.

Weigh out all ingredients: In medium sized mixing bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder and salt together and set aside. Divide butter between a small heat proof bowl and the sauce pan. Weigh sugar directly into the work bowl of stand mixer. Crack eggs into a measuring cup, this allows you to check the eggs over for any shells or spots you might not want in your batter.

Chop chocolate, if using and set aside.

Method:

Preheat oven to 350ºF [180ºC]

Melt half of the butter in sauce pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Pour melted butter over cold butter in bowl, using a flexible spatula to make sure you’ve gotten all the butter out of the sauce pan, and then – carefully – stir together to melt remaining butter. The end result should appear creamy with small bits of un-melted butter suspended in the cream.

Place eggs with sugar in the stand mixer and beat together on medium/high speed until blanched – light and fluffy – about 3 minutes.

Add vanilla and blend until incorporated.

Working in three installments, on low speed, stir in one third of the flour followed by one third of the butter etc. Scrape down the bowl with a flexible spatula between installments.

Add chopped chocolate (or chocolate chips) and stir to combine.

Spoon or pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly with an offset spatula or palette knife.

Bake 40 – 45 minutes until tooth pick comes out holding a few moist crumbs. If toothpick comes out wet, retest to make sure you haven’t pierced a bit of melted chocolate.

Cool in the pan until brownie is just slightly warmer than room temperature. Slide an offset spatula or palette knife between the brownie and any exposed area of the pan, then lift out of pan using parchment.

Cut brownies into 12 even rectangles and serve.

The results:

Not heavy, but dense, these brownies are just right. They have an almost creamy crumb and deep chocolate flavor. One truly is enough, but it doesn’t take long before your hovering around the plate looking for more.

Note: There wasn’t time to take more than one picture before these brownies were gobbled up. So I’m leaving you with the original image from ad hoc at home.

Brine Preserved Lemons

2011-02-20T19:24:00.000-05:00

Preserved lemons are a Moroccan staple. They are easy and fairly inexpensive to make, but can be expensive to buy. I’ve tried both the salt packed and brined methods and found the brined method to be far superior in stability for my kitchen environment and available storage spaces.

The method below works on many thick skinned citrus fruits. Meyer or Eureka lemons work as well as Cara Cara and Valencia oranges. I wouldn’t recommend Navel oranges as they have a tendency to be bitter.

I also hope to try blood oranges – before they are out of season.

Equipment:

- liter capacity hermetic jar

- sharp knife

- 2 quart capacity sauce pan

- measuring cups for liquid and solid measures

- kettle for boiling water

- small pinch bowl or ramekin

- canning funnel

You’ll need:

4 blemish free large lemons (or 6 small)

1 whole 3” cinnamon stick

3 whole cloves – Zanzibar variety

1 whole star anise

6 whole green cardamom pods

½ tsp whole black peppercorns

3 cups filtered water + more for kettle

¾ cup coarse grade sea salt

Mise en place:

Wash the lemons well to remove food grade wax and any other contaminates.

Flash sterilize the jar: boil water in a kettle or pot, pour a small amount into clean hermetic jar, swirl, and then discard water.

Measure water and salt and combine in sauce pan on stove.

Collect all spices and place in a small pinch bowl or ramekin.

Slice lemons in six wedges lengthwise from bud end to stem end.

Method:

Being careful not to touch the sides of the jar, loosely pack lemons into sterilized jar, leaving ¾ to 1 inch of head room.

Arrange spices around the sides of the jar – this is more aesthetic than anything else.

Heat brine in saucepan over medium/low heat until salt is fully dissolved.

If you have a canning funnel; place it in the mouth of the jar and pour the hot brine over lemons. Brine should be ½ inch above the level of the fruit. Seal the jar and place in a cool dark place for 4 – 6 weeks.

Note: I vent the jar a couple of times during the first week or two of the process to relieve any air pressure that might build up from the fermenting process.

Roasted Asparagus Bisque

2011-02-20T19:15:00.000-05:00

Leftovers are pesky things. How do you make something you’ve eaten once seem new and exciting? One of the answers I frequently turn to is soup.

This soup, which by rights should be called Leftover Roasted Asparagus Soup, was conceived by my partner. I was admittedly skeptical, not being a fan of asparagus cooked any other way than roasted, but I decided to try it anyway.

Eureka! I got a soup that was so tasty that, frankly, I think I’m going to start roasting larger bunches of asparagus just so I can remake this soup. And, best of all, it’s dead easy.

Roasted Asparagus Bisque

Serves two generously but could be split into four smaller portions.

Equipment:

- 3.5 quart capacity sauce pan

- food processor or blender

- fine mesh metal strainer

- flexible rubber spatula

- parchment paper

- cutting board

- sharp knife

- scissors – for the parchment paper

- side towel

- ladel

- 1 quart capacity measuring cup

You’ll need:

1 small onion – diced [any storage onion will do]

1 rib celery – diced

2 tbsp garlic olive oil – or any olive oil with 1 clove minced or grated garlic

1/3 bunch leftover roasted Asparagus chopped [about 1 cup]

2 - 2½ cups chicken or vegetable stock + more to adjust texture

1 – 2 tbsp heavy cream

salt and pepper to taste

Mise en place:

Peel and dice onion, then slice and dice celery [roughly ½ inch pieces]

Roughly chop 1 cup roasted asparagus and set aside

Measure 3 cups chicken stock and set aside, and also measure out heavy cream

Using sharp scissors cut a piece of parchment into a disk just sized to fit into your sauce pan. Cut a vent in the center of the parchment disk.

Method:

Place garlic infused olive oil in sauce pan on stove top and heat over medium/low until shimmering and aromatic.

Add onions and celery and stir to coat.

Add a pinch of salt and place parchment lid on top of aromatic vegetables and allow them to sweat for 15 – 20 minutes. Lift parchment every few minutes or so and give the vegetables a stir, then replace the lid.

Tip: The parchment lid keeps a small amount of moisture in the pot near the onion and celery, and keeps them from burning. It really allows the cook to multi-task and do other things, whereas, sweating methods that use an open pan often require a little more vigilance to prevent browning.

When onions have softened and become translucent, add asparagus to the pan and toss or stir. Replace parchment lid and cook for 2 minutes, just long enough to heat through.

Remove parchment and add 2 – 2 ½ cups stock to the pan. Bring to a boil quickly, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes to allow flavors to combine.

Take pan from heat and pour contents into the work bowl of a food processor. Scrape out the pan leaving no large bits behind as you’ll be reusing the pan. Remove the feed tube if your machine has one and place a tea towel or side towel over the opening – this will allow the steam to vent but protect you from splattering hot liquid. If using a blender remove the center vent and cover with side towel. Process the soup for 2 – 3 minutes until *very* smooth.

Pass puree through a fine mesh strainer (back into the original pan) to remove any veggie fibers or larger bits the food processor did not break down. Return the pan to the stove and gently heat through over low heat.

Season mixture to taste with salt and pepper, add cream, and/or stock if needed and serve in warmed bowls.

Recommended pairing:

I toasted slices of French bread under the broiler, and then I crumbled some blue cheese [Maytag] on top and placed it under the broiler just long enough to melt the cheese. The fruity, musky twang of the cheese was a great compliment to the rich vegetal sweetness of the soup.

Be My Valentine?

2011-02-20T18:53:00.000-05:00

This year’s Valentine’s Day dinner was: Poussin, glazed with mustard, tarragon, and cream; potatoes crusted with semolina flour, and roasted in duck fat; asparagus roasted in garlic oil; and a flourless chocolate cake, whipped cream, and raspberry coulis. YUM!

Everything from the cake to the asparagus was baked in a 425ºF [220ºC] oven. The methods and recipes follow the cut:

I made the cake first, but in the interest of showing off the whole meal I’ve posted the recipe last.

I took the Poussins, which are commonly (and incorrectly) sold as Cornish Game Hens here in the US, out of the fridge about an hour before cooking so they could come to room temperature as I finished the cake. Now may be a good time for a little etymology lesson. A true Cornish Game Hen is a specific breed of a small game bird that has been crossed with a chicken. The market ready hen is an adult of this species. In the US, however, most Cornish Game Hens are in fact small young chickens. In France, these are called Poussins - the same word used for baby chicks. These small, immature birds are marketed here as “Cornish Game Hens” because 1) the USDA only requires that the chicken be less that 2 lbs and be ready to cook to earn the name and 2) Americans just aren’t likely to line up to eat ‘baby chicken’.

The Yukon Gold potatoes were scrubbed, cut into 1 inch cubes, and parboiled in salted water for ten minutes before the birds were placed in the oven. I drained the potatoes and placed them back in the pan. Then I tossed them in salt, pepper, and about ¼ cup of semolina flour and set them aside.

Once the cake was out of the oven and cooling, I dressed the birds with garlic-infused olive oil, and seasoned with salt and pepper. Then I trussed them with a bit of string, and then placed them on a wire rack over a half sheet-pan and let them ‘cure’ at room temperature for 15 more minutes before I roasted them on the lower rack of the oven for 35 minutes - until the juices ran clear and the breast meat registered 160ºF [72º].

About half way through the roasting time for the Poussins, I put about ½ cup cold duck fat onto a half sheet-pan and placed it on the upper rack [about 1/3 down] in the oven. Five to ten minutes later, I carefully tossed the potatoes into the duck fat and roasted them for 25 minutes.

WARNING: Duck fat can tend to splatter at high temperatures and it can become very smoky if spilled on the sides or bottom of the oven. You might want to have a fan handy or open a window even if it’s cold outside. But, boy, are the results worth it!

Meanwhile, I cleaned and asparagus, placed it on a half sheet pan and drizzled them with garlic-infused olive oil and seasoned them with salt. Then I put these aside until it was time to place them in the oven.

When the Poussins were done, I removed them from the oven. It was, by now, about half way through the cooking time for the potatoes, which I turned with a spatula and then moved to the lower rack of the oven.

I let the birds rest, tented in aluminum foil, for about twenty minutes in total. Meanwhile, I assembled approximately 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, the same of dried tarragon and about 1/3 cup of heavy cream in a small stainless steel bowl. My oven has a vent that opens under one of the smaller back burners, and I used only the residual heat to gently warm the glaze, stirring it occasionally. Unorthodox, yes, but it got the job done. If I were using a saucepan to warm the glaze, I might consider a diffuser and the lowest setting I could manage with the range top.

During the last five to seven minutes of cooking time for the potatoes, I put the asparagus on the upper rack of the oven: still at 425ºF. [220ºC] Meanwhile, I moved my rested Poussins to the serving plate and spooned the mustard tarragon glaze over the birds.

When the potatoes were browned to my satisfaction I plated them, followed by the asparagus. Then I called my sweetie to dinner!

Chocolate Decadence with Raspberry Coulis and Whipped Cream

This cake really is best made the day you’re planning to serve it, but that really is splitting hairs. The texture may change but all that chocolate is still ‘nom-elicious!’

Equipment:

- metric/imperial digital scale

- stand mixer with whisk attachment

- large heat proof bowl

- medium sized mixing bowl

- small mixing bowl

- fine mesh strainer

- small ramekin or pinch bowl

- medium sauce pan – 3.5 quart capacity

- balloon whisk

- heat proof spatula

- sharp paring knife

- serrated bread knife

- flexible cutting mat

- 9 x 3 spring form pan or 9 x 2 round cake pan

- parchment paper

- pastry brush

- toothpicks

- food processor

- food safe plastic squeeze bottle

- two deserts spoons

- sharp 8inch [20cm] knife

- cake server

- serving platter and desert plates

You’ll need:

500 grams semisweet chocolate – chopped [about 1 lb]

150 grams unsalted butter cut into small pieces [about 10 tbsp]

4 extra-large eggs - at room temperature [220 ml]

14 grams granulated sugar [about 1 tbsp – 15ml type]

10 grams all purpose flour [about 1 tbsp – 15 ml type]*

315 grams frozen raspberries [about 10oz]

125 grams granulated sugar [about ½ cup]

60 ml raspberry vodka or Framboise [raspberry liqueur]

125 ml heavy whipping cream [about ½ cup]

28 grams granulated sugar [about 2 tbsp – 15 ml type]

Note: *If you are gluten intolerant you can easily substitute rice flour or potato flour for the all purpose flour without having to adjust the measurements.

Mise en place:

Remove eggs from refrigerator and place on counter and allow to come to room temperature.

Weight out all ingredients; dice cold butter and place in heat proof bowl with chopped chocolate; weigh granulated sugar into work bowl of stand mixer; and weigh flour into a small ramekin of pinch bowl. Fill the sauce pan with 1 to 2 inches water [2.5 – 5cm] and place on the stove with the heat proof bowl on top.

Butter the cake tin, line with parchment then butter and flour the parchment.

Place frozen raspberries in the work bowl of food processor with the granulated sugar for the coulis. Allow berries to thaw and macerate.

Leave heavy cream in the refrigerator until needed.

Preheat oven to 425ºF [220º]

Method:

Bring water in the sauce pan to a gentle simmer. Stir chocolate and butter together until completely melted and combined. Set aside.

Break eggs in the work bowl of the stand mixer and beat on medium/high speed using the whisk attachment, until the eggs blanch (become pale) and triple in volume. About 5 – 7 minutes. Add flour and beat for an additional minute to combine

Remove bowl from stand mixer and using a rubber spatula fold 1/3 of the beaten eggs into the chocolate. Follow with the remaining egg mixture, folding gently until fully combined.

Pour into prepared pan and shake/rotate pan to evenly distribute batter.

Bake for exactly 15 minutes.

Note: If using a spring form pan you may wish to place the cake tin on a half sheet-pan in which case you will want to add 3 minutes to the baking time to compensate for the extra pan.

Cool completely in pan until cake reaches room temperature before removing from the pan. If you are using a standard cake tin you will want to invert the cake onto a plate lined with waxed paper or parchment, remove the parchment from the bottom of the cake and then re-invert onto a serving platter.

Puree thawed – but still cold – raspberries and sugar together for about 1 – 2 minutes. Pulse the machine a couple times to make sure to dislodge any large pieces. Add raspberry infused vodka or raspberry liqueur and puree again for 30 second.

Strain mixture through a fine mesh hand sieve to remove seeds. Use the back of a spatula to help the straining process along when needed. Discard seeds and pour sauce in the squeeze bottle.

When ready to serve whip the heavy cream in small mixing bowl with whisk until soft peaks form, add sugar and continue whisking until stiff peaks form. You can use a stand mixer or electric hand mixer for this, but it really only takes a couple of minutes (2:30 to be exact) to do it by hand. Besides, being able to whip cream by hand tends to impress your guests.

Decorate the plates with raspberry sauce, or if you’re feeling greedy, simply make a large puddle on the plate. Cut cake into thin slices - it will be just set by now - and move to the serving plate with an offset spatula or cake server. Using two desert spoons, shape whipped cream into a cannelle shapes (a thick, oval canoe shape) and place on top of cake. You can garnish with more whipped cream or fresh raspberries and, of course, mint if you wish.

The results:

In my book, you can’t go wrong with the twang of mustard, the sweetness of cream and the unmistakable herbal/anise flavor of tarragon. I’ve used this combination on any cut of chicken from legs, to thighs, to boneless skinless breasts and never been disappointed.

The tiny Poussins are a bit messy, but they make me feel like I’ve sat down to a Tudor banquet, and there is something sensual about pulling them apart and eating with your fingers. The semolina crusted potatoes have a nutty sweetness to them, they are definitively crunchy, and the duck fat adds a luxurious mouth feel and flavor. In season or not, pencil thin roasted asparagus is always a hit.

And finally, as deserts go, any recipe that begins with a pound of high quality semisweet chocolate makes me want to skip the meal and eat all the cake. The texture of the cooled cake is part pudding, part confection, and the tart freshness of the Raspberry Coulis is a perfect counterpoint. If my pants could expand infinitely, I’d eat this meal again and again.

Learning curve:

As you can see I’m not that artistically inclined when it comes to plating deserts but I’m working on it.

Sunshine Scones ~ February Spice Rack Challenge

2011-02-18T23:13:00.000-05:00

The base for these scones came from a recipe my mother has often made. We determined, during the phone call I made while these were baking, that the original recipe, called “Fruited Scones” came from an old magazine of the Woman’s Day/Redbook variety.

I’ve had dried grated orange and lemon zest languishing on my spice shelf for a while now, and decided to try to use it – slightly re-hydrated – in place of any candied peel. The light salmon pink blush comes from blood orange juice which I used because, well, I had three or four blood oranges that were on the brink of extinction.

Recipe after cut:

Equipment:

- 13 x 9 inch [33 x 23cm] baking pan

- parchment paper

- large mixing bowl

- wooden spoon

- flexible spatula

- pastry cutter

- metric/imperial scale

- two pinch bowls

- metric measuring cup

- bench scraper

- microplane grater

- clean hands

You’ll need:

400 grams all purpose flour [about 3cups] + extra for dusting equipment and hands

100 grams granulated sugar [about ½ cup]

113 grams cold unsalted butter – diced [about ½ cup]

240 milliliters fresh squeezed blood orange juice [about 1 cup]*

15 grams aluminum free baking powder [about 4 tsp]**

8 grams dried grated orange zest – plus more for decorating [about 1 tbsp]

3 grams cream of tartar***[about 1 tsp]

3 grams fine grade sea salt [about 1/2 tsp]

2 large eggs – divided

fresh grated orange zest of two oranges

turbinato or pearl sugar for decorating

Notes:

* You can use store bought orange juice if needed to reach the full volume required. You’ll need about four oranges in total.

** You really can taste the difference in this recipe.

*** To stabilize the acidity of the orange juice and help create lift.

**** I use a pastry cutter to incorporate cold butter because, being male, I have large unusually warm hands. You can use your fingers or a fork if you do not have the required tool.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF [200º] and loosely line an ungreased 13 x 9 baking pan with a parchment sling.

2. Grate fresh zest of blood oranges with a microplane grater, being careful not to take away any of the white pith. Set aside in pinch bowl.

3. Squeeze juice from about four oranges and measure to required volume. Weigh out dried orange zest and place in orange juice to rehydrate for about 15 minutes while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

4. Weigh out all dried ingredients into a large bowl beginning with the flour, and using the tare function on the scale after each addition. Stir to combine and set aside.

5. Weigh and dice cold butter.

6. Cut cold butter into the flour mixture, until it resembles oatmeal. ****

7. Mix freshly grated orange zest into dry mixture until evenly distributed.

8. Break one egg and lightly beat it in a small bowl.

9. Make a well in the center of the mixing bowl with your wooden spoon and pour the orange juice into the well. Add egg and mix with spoon until a sticky batter forms.

10. Spoon batter into prepared pan and working with floured fingers, press into one even layer.

11. Using a floured bench scraper, cut dough into eight rectangles, then cut those rectangles diagonally into triangles using a pressing motion and dipping the tool into fresh flour after each cut.

12. Use second egg and a splash of water to brush and egg was over the top of the scones. Decorate with more dried orange peel and turbinato sugar or pearl sugar.

13. Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown and risen.

14. Cool scones in pan for 15 minutes then break apart along cut lines and serve warm with vanilla cream, clotted cream, berries, jam or just plain salted butter.

The results:

The scones have a very complex orange flavor that I don’t think could be achieved without using the three different sources of flavor. The dried citrus gives them an earthy contrast to the brightness of fresh orange zest, they have a pleasant bitterness in the finish and the blood orange juice adds a hint of berry to the profile. The recipe produced a moist, quick bread-like crumb that’s unlike many classic dense scone recipes. Here I served with a bit of whipped cream and blueberry compote.

Not Your Everyday Scone!

2011-01-25T22:24:00.000-05:00

Scones have been a part of my life for a very long time. From my great grandmother’s recipe for Scotch Scones to Goat Cheese, Chive, and Cranberry Scones, the diversity seems infinite. Some recipes are dense and bread-like, others light and flaky - more biscuit than confection. I have my own working theory that the Scone actually morphed into the biscuit soon after the Mayflower arrived in Plymouth, but I haven’t a shred of proof to back that up. I can say that their similarities outweigh their differences.

American biscuits are a quick bread, sweetened or not, made from flour, fat, and buttermilk or cream. Scones – of Anglo/Scottish origin – are a quick bread, sweetened or not, made of flour, fat, and buttermilk or cream. Both can be eaten out of hand, hot or cold, or spit and topped with any number of ingredients from clotted cream to sausage gravy. Both trigger nostalgia and both have the potential to be polarizing: no one makes Scones – or biscuits – like your grandma did!

Anyway you slice them, or not; smother them, or not; there is a scone recipe for you.
Cheddar Dill Scone Recipe following page-break.

Cheddar Dill Scones – Eat just one, I dare you!

Modified from: Barefoot Contessa Cookbook – Ina strikes again.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 25 – 50 minutes

Inactive time: 25 – 50 minutes

Ready in: 1 hour and 30 minutes

Yield: 12 – 14 scones

Rating: (1 -5) 2 easy

Can be made one day ahead, and then reheated for 10 minutes in 200ºF [95ºC] oven. These also freeze beautifully and can be reheated, directly from freezer, in a 200ºF [95ºC] oven for 25 minutes; they can also be sliced and toasted once thawed.

You’ll need:

4 cups plus 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour [divided]

2 Tablespoons aluminum-free baking powder

1 ½ teaspoons fine grade sea salt

12 ounces [283g] cold unsalted butter [2 sticks or 1 ½ cups]

4 extra-large eggs

1 cup cold heavy cream

8 ounces sharp white cheddar

1 cup minced fresh dill

1 egg + 1 Tablespoon water [beaten together for egg wash]

Mise en place:

Preheat oven to 400ºF [200ºC]

Line to half sheet pans [18 x 12 inch or 45 x 30cm] with parchment paper.

Measure and prepare all ingredients placing all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt in the work bowl of a stand mixer. Dice cold butter into ⅜ inch to ½ inch [1 cm] cubes and return to the fridge until needed. Measure cold heavy cream into a 2 cup capacity measuring cup and add four eggs, lightly beat these ingredients together with a fork or very small whisk. Return to the refrigerator until needed. Mince dill and place in a medium sized mix bowl, grate cheddar and place in same bowl. Toss with 1 Tablespoon flour to coat.

TIP: If you’re having a hard time grating any kind of hard or semi-hard cheese, place it in the freezer for twenty minutes then try again.

NOTE: I measure the flour by scooping flour into the measuring cup with a large spoon and then leveling it off with the handle of the spoon. This prevents “packing” of the flour which will affect the final texture.

Method:

1. Place butter on top of flour and mix, using the paddle attachment, on low speed until butter is in small pieces approximately the size of a dried peas or lentils.

2. Add liquid to the butter and flour mixture. Mix on low speed until just combined.

3. Add cheese and dill to the bowl and pulse the mixer (turn it on and off) until just incorporated.

4. Using a bowl scraper, scrape down the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl once to make sure all ingredients are incorporated. You should still be able to see pieces of cold butter in the sticky dough.

5. Turn out onto a floured work surface and pat into a rough rectangle. Gently roll with a floured rolling pin to make everything an even ¾ inch [2 cm] thickness.

6. Cut out scones with a floured 3 ½ inch [9 cm] biscuit cutter, or, cut into 4 inch [10 cm] squares and then cut diagonally to make a triangle. You may re-roll scraps once or twice if necessary.

7. Place on two sheet pans lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops of one pan with egg and sprinkle with flaked sea salt or fleur de sel if desired. Bake 20 – 25 minutes, until outside is browned and appears crusty. You can bake both trays, rotating front to back and top to bottom in the middle of the baking period but I find I get the best results baking each tray separately.

8. Cool on tray for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely, or, for as long as you can stand to wait.

The results:

The scones are very light and flaky, and intensely flavorful. Yes; they contain ¾ of a pound of butter, heavy cream, four eggs, and ½ a pound of cheddar cheese. They are very rich. Have one: enjoy it! Share the rest with family and friends, or freeze the rest for later. Or, take these to work and be showered with accolades!

Personally, I like to eat these warm, topped with fresh butter (you know, to cut down the richness.) And try them under a poached egg or two for a breakfast treat. All kidding aside, these scones would fall under the splurge or treat category of the food pyramid. I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone who is on a low-fat restrictive diet for health reasons.

Method notes:

These can be made by hand, using a large mixing bowl. I use a heavy ceramic mixing bowl whenever I’m making pastry or biscuits by hand. I place the bowl in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before I begin and I also chill the flour, baking powder, and salt in the bowl. I have large, comparatively warm, hands (I’m a guy) so I use a pastry cutter to cut the cold butter into the flour, and I generally touch the dough as little as possible. Mix the liquids in with a wooden spoon, or a thick spatula with a heavy wooden handle. I find metal spoons and light spatulas tend to transfer heat from your hands to the dough.

Chocolate No-Bake Cookies

2011-01-24T15:47:00.000-05:00

The recipe that follows will look familiar to anyone who has taken seventh grade home economics. I do realize Chocolate No-Bake cookies are an easy confection that many thirteen year old girls can master; however, this simple concoction has confounded, and frankly, vexed me for years. I usually end up with something that either resembles bricks [hard crystallized nuggets] or mortar [a mound of oats surrounded by a puddle of extremely sticky goo.] Handcrafted building materials they may be, but good eats, they are not.

This slightly grown-up version was made in honor of my partner’s birthday. They are, in fact, the only thing he asked for. So naturally, even though this usually ends in cursing and tears, I sallied forth.

Determined to succeed, this time, I put my usual fastidiousness aside. The problem, I decided was, I was trying too hard. The tools my mother-in-law has for this process are: a plain stainless steel pot and, an old wooden spoon. I added to this an analog candy thermometer, which might be a little new fangled for the traditionalist among you but it is the only reliable way I have found to make any kind of candy. I also applied a certain amount of laissez-faire when it came time to measure out the ingredients.

The instructions that came with the original recipe read as follows:

Mix sugar, cocoa, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and boil 3 – 4 minutes. Test for soft-ball. Stir in oats and vanilla. Scoop with teaspoons onto waxed paper.

I still insist there is some magic or voodoo step missing from these instructions but I’m assured there is not. If you have “the touch” as my mother-in-law does, you will think these the easiest confection imaginable. If you don’t, like me, your palms will spontaneously begin to sweat at the mention of these cookies.

Chocolate No-Bake Cookies

You’ll need:

2 cups granulated sugar

½ cup unsalted butter

¼ cup Black or very dark cocoa

¼ cup Dutch process cocoa

½ cup milk (whole milk preferred)

3 cups (quick cooking) rolled oats

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Combine sugar, milk, butter and cocoa in medium/large (approx. 3.5 quart capacity) sauce pan.

2. Bring mixture to a boil over medium/high heat and reduce to medium heat. Cook until soft-ball stage is reached – or 235 - 240F on a candy thermometer – stirring frequently.

3. Quickly stir in oats followed by vanilla.

4. Working quickly, scoop cookies onto parchment with two serving or desert spoons. Use one to scoop and the second to free the mixture from the first.

5. Allow cookies to cool until set. The finished cookies have a crystalline, fudge like, consistency.

6. Store up to a week in an air tight container.

Note: It really is easiest to clean the pot and all utensils immediately. The Cookie mixture becomes very sticky as it cools. A clean wooden spoon, superstition or not, is essential to achieving the correct final texture, this is not the time to whip out your latest stainless steal and silicon acquisition. And please, do not fuss with anything so exacting as sifting the cocoa powder: that way madness lies. I simply broke up any big lumps with a fork and carried on.

Learning curve: I assume the original recipe was made using Nestle or Hershey’s cocoa powder, but, being a food freak, I don’t have that kind of cocoa in the house. I used instead, ¼ cup King Arthur’s Black cocoa, and ¼ Pernigotti [Dutch-process] cocoa. Black cocoa is full of the dark, bitter, almost coffee like flavors we usually associate with dark chocolate, but is also somewhat ‘empty’, or lacking any middle flavor or light notes. I prefer to blend it with other cocoas, using it more for color than flavor. The Pernigotti is an Italian cocoa with a deep brick color, great flavor and no hint of bitterness. I tend to reserve it for finishing truffles and dusting on finished desserts, but being the only cocoa in the house at the time, I used it. The end result was a very dark, very rich, cookie that disappeared quickly.

Spice Rack Challenge: January

2011-01-20T23:38:00.000-05:00

Rosemary Tea Bread

This quick bread emphasizes the more resinous herbal flavors of rosemary. The bread itself is only mildly sweet, and the raisins add an earthy tartness that goes well with black teas. Here I’ve sliced the bread and spooned in a thick layer of satusuma jam but I imagine lemon curd would also be an excellent addition.

You’ll need:

85 g [½ cup] raisins or sultanas

240 ml [1 cup] whole milk

4g [1 tbsp] finely chopped fresh rosemary

2 extra large eggs

57g [¼ cup] unsalted butter – melted and cooled slightly

145g [¾ cup] granulated sugar

270g [2 cups] all purpose flour

½ tsp fine grade sea salt

1 ½ tsp aluminum free baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF - 180ºC

2. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 inch (23 cm) cake tin and line with parchment paper.

3. Place flour, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl.

4. Combine raisins, milk, and rosemary in a small saucepan and scald milk over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.

5. Beat eggs and sugar together until mixture blanches and gains volume; it will become light and fluffy

6. Whisk in cooled butter.

7. Sift flour mixture over egg, butter, and sugar mixture. Stir together with a spatula. Mixture will be stiff.

8. Pour milk and rosemary mixture over batter and stir until a smooth batter forms.

9. Transfer batter to prepared cake tin, and shake gently to level.

10. Bake on center rack for 40 – 45 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.

11. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove parchment paper sides and turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.

12. Slice and serve with your choice of jam or other filling.

Careful, it goes quick...

Check out more Spice Rack Challenge entrees at: Mother's Kitchen - Spice Rack Challenge

Blog Archive: January CanJam Entry 2010

2011-01-06T11:49:00.000-05:00

Tea Infused Hibiscus Flower and Blood Orange Marmalade

I probably wouldn’t know how delicious hibiscus Tea was if it weren’t for the folks at Pilar’s Tamales who set up shop rain, shine, snow, or sleet, in Ann Arbor’s (open air) Farmer’s market. The tea and candied then dried flowers have a tart berry flavor, reminiscent of cranberries that I thought would pair well with blood oranges.

To begin you’ll need about 2 lbs (about six) of blood oranges. Skin color, I’m told, is not a marker for ripeness but I’ve still found those with the most ruby blush on their skin to be the richest, dark red, and flavorful inside; this may be purely psychological but I don’t care. You’ll also need about 4 ounces (by weight) of candied/dried hibiscus flowers. I found these at our local Co-Op but I’ve also seen them at Trader Joes.

Makes enough to fill four half-liter Weck jars, or 6 half pint jars, or 4 12oz. jars:

You will also need:

2 Tablespoons hibiscus tea (may also be called sorrel or flor de Jamaica)

6 cups granulated sugar

4 – 5 cups water

Prep:

You begin, as the English do, with tea. Place 2 Tbsp. hibiscus tea in a heat proof bowl or measuring cup, add about four cups boiling water and set aside to steep for at least one hour.

Meanwhile, peel and supreme the oranges into a 7 quart pot or kettle (you’ll be cooking the marmalade in this later) and set aside. Be sure to squeeze as much juice from the remaining membranes as you can. Remove the pith of orange peels with the back of a knife or a grapefruit spoon and then, julienne the peel to about 1/8 inches thick or less. This step took me about an hour and half, but I’m quite happy dithering - chopping and slicing - in the kitchen. It IS worth the time.

Place peel in a medium sized sauce pan (about 3quarts) and cover with an inch of cold water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and boil for ten minutes. Drain into a hand sieve, return peel to the pot, and cover again with cold water. Bring to a boil, cook for an additional ten minutes, then drain and add to the orange segments and juice in the kettle.

While the peel is boiling on the stove, slice the hibiscus flowers in a similar sized julienne. It’s not a perfect julienne but as long as the bits are similar in size to the orange peel it will be fine.

Pour tea through a hand sieve lined with cheese cloth or paper towel; discard leaves and measure out a generous four cups of liquid. If you do not have enough, add water to match the volume. Place dried hibiscus flowers into the same pot you just used for boil the peel, and add the tea. Bring this to a gentle simmer for ten minutes to rehydrate the flowers separately from the orange segment and peel mixture. You can also use a heat proof bowl and the microwave if you wish, but why dirty another bowl.

Pour hot tea and flower mixture over the orange segments and peel in your cooking vessel. Bring this mixture to a simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes.

At this point I covered the pot and left everything to marry for about an hour, (I had to make and eat lunch) some marmalade recipes would have you set it aside for twelve hours at this stage and certainly if you need to make this recipe in two distinct sessions, now is a good time to stop, clean up, and go about your business. Now would also be a good time to get your hot water bath heated and sterilize your jars, etc.

With everything in place for the home stretch, measure out 6 cups of the peel/flower/orange mixture, and return to the pot with 6 cups of granulated sugar. If you do not have enough liquid to equal the required volume just add water. If you have more than six cups of liquid you can also add sugar at a 1 to 1 ratio.

Bring marmalade to a boil over medium high heat stirring constantly. Cook until it reaches a jelling stage. (The mixture falls from a clean spoon in sheets, or sets in seconds on a cold plate.) Let mixture stand off the heat for three minutes to redistribute peel and flower pieces. Ladle into sterile jars leaving ¼ headspace, and process in the hot water canner for 10 minutes.

The results: Though more chucky then some folks might like, the finished marmalade is nicely balanced without so much as a hint of bitterness, and dark ruby red in color. The profile is most definitely orange (citrus) with fresh berry and flower notes.

Learning Curve: I might hold back some of the peel, maybe up to twenty five percent less, just to satisfy everyone, but I really do like the ‘meatiness’ of this marmalade. The biggest stressor was the photography. I just couldn’t seem to get a decent picture of the finished jam in the jar like I wanted because the Weck Jars reflect everything and pick up flash points and the color is just too dark to come through on screen.

Welcome !

2011-01-05T13:20:00.000-05:00

My kitchen will never win a design award. Certainly, it doesn’t look – what a minimalist would call – organized, but I assure you it is. Everything I use on a regular basis is hung from bars underneath the cupboards; is collected in small bins on the sides of the cupboards; or is distributed between two (one gallon) pickle crocks. I rarely, if ever, need to go rooting through drawers to find something I need, which is good because the manufacturer of the cabinets in my kitchen felt two drawers with interior dimensions of 10x23x3 was plenty of storage for anyone. I won’t even mention the two drawers on either side of the stove that measure 4x23x3 as I’m not exactly sure what they are for.

Being as I am a modern day surf, (I rent) rather than a land owner, there doesn’t seem any point in complaining, too much, about it. The most important thing about my kitchen is that I can make great food in it, and lots of it. That is not to unduly talk myself up, or to try to garner some kind of brownie points (pun intended.) Rather, what I mean to say is, you don’t have to have a ‘great’ kitchen to make ‘great’ food!

There are two groups of people who rarely are caught complaining about the size of their kitchen. The first is professional chefs, who, despite the size of the kitchen, actually work in very small spaces, side by side with other chefs. The second is grandmothers. Let’s be honest, most adults today have a grandmother, or even great-grandmother, who was a child or young adult in the 1930’s or 1940’s. The depression and war-time rationing along with the small size of the home kitchen in post-war era homes served these ladies well. I’ll write much, much, more about these gals later, but for now I’ll just say they were grateful to have a “modern” kitchen, and necessity being the mother of invention, they did what needed to be done to feed their families.

In point of fact, I praise small kitchens precisely because they force you to work efficiently – there are fewer steps between the stove, the sink and the fridge - and cleanly – there is just no space in which to make a big mess. And yes, there are tacky mini-lights hanging in my small-kitchen almost year round. They are cheap, if a bit camp, and cheerful. I have always had a childlike fascination with tiny twinkling lights, and I admit, without shame, that they make me a happier cook.

Oh, and the real reason your grandma was such a good cook? She cooked every day!