Update:

12 Mar

I just realized this morning (I’m smart like that) that I haven’t updated this blog or baked anything in almost a week. Oh sure, I have lots of things I could post, but I seem to be a at a loss of witty things to say.

And if you believe that, I’ll give you a buck. Naw, make it two. I’m feeling generous today.

Seriously, I still need to post about my snowboarding adventure (which was insane!), along with getting my behind in gear and back into the kitchen. I apologize for my absence in visiting everyone, things have been moving at the speed of light here, and I’ve been out enjoying my life instead of sitting behind a computer wishing I was.

So it’s all good, no worries at all and I’ll be back as soon as I can.

Double Chocolate Cookies

7 Mar

Today’s the day.

dun dun dun…….

There was a last minute change of plans yesterday, so my big adventure in snowboarding is scheduled to take place today.

I still can’t decide if I’m excited…….or scared.

I think I’ll go with the latter.

I’m very pleased that the weather is cooperating, though, we had a big storm last night (complete with hail!), with more rain on the way today – so there should be lots of fresh snow up on the mountain.

Yay!

I don’t have time to stay and chat, but I couldn’t post an update without a recipe of sorts, so here’s one for a phenomenal chocolate cookie that I made a few weeks ago.

Mmmm, mmmm – almost like a brownie, these cookies are soft, chewy and super chocolatey. I highly recommend you make them as soon as possible.

Double Chocolate Cookies - adapted from the NY Times

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons instant coffee powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
6 ounces chocolate chips

Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a medium-size bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter, sugars, instant coffee and vanilla together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in melted chocolate. Stir in flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time, blending well after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips.

Line four large baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop dough onto lined baking sheets, using a #30 cookie scoop or by rounded tablespoon.

Cover and refrigerate until very firm, one to four hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bake 7 to 9 minutes, or until barely brown on the bottom. Do not overbake. Cookies will seem very soft, but will firm as they cool. Cool cookies on racks.

Store covered in an airtight container, and freeze for longer storage.

Yield:  about 4 dozen

Chocolate Meringue Cake

6 Mar

Wow – what an exciting and different week I’ve had. I can’t believe it’s finally Saturday morning – and I’m set to go snowboarding for the first time in my life today. I’m excited – and scared out of my mind.

I mean, I’m not the athletic type, although I can certainly hold my own for lots of things sports-wise, but me and ski-lifts don’t have a great history together.

Let’s put it this way – when I told the kids that I was going to do this, they both burst out laughing simultaneously.

I think that’s a clear sign, don’t you?

I’ll post an update (and possibly incriminating photos) later, but before I get into the cake I made (now there’s a visual for you), I have got to tell a cute and funny story from a day in the life of Alexander.

This past week, the school started the DARE program – which I’m sure all of you know as the Drug Abuse Resistance Education. The lead officer came into Alexander’s classroom, and spent about 3 hours with the kids – in which he introduced himself, gave a general outline of the program, and spent a bit of time speaking with the students about themselves and their families.

Well…… this officer must have been Andre the Giant’s double, because Alexander was absolutely terrified of him.

And that’s not like him – authority figures don’t scare him (I know, that’s probably not good), but perhaps it was the combined package of a uniform, gun, and deep booming voice that really affected him.

The officer asked each child about their family, what they do for fun, what their parents do for a living – and when it came time for Alexander to speak, he froze.

He couldn’t remember anything - and finally squeaked out that his mother fixes computers for a living.

Say what?

Does this look like a computer?

I laughed until my face hurt, but Alexander was so embarrassed I let him off the hook without a second thought. I had to explain again that I’m a bookkeeper, not a computer technician. His response? “Well, I knew you did something with computers and this guy was HUGE and I panicked and I couldn’t remember and besides this guy was HUGE and he really scared me and he was HUGE and I didn’t know what else to say.”

I’ve got to find out who this guy is – to keep in my back pocket for the next time Alexander gets into trouble.

Hmmm – that’s a really good idea.

Now it’s time to talk about cake. Since I’ve had absolutely no time for baking this week (and yes, I’m getting withdrawal pains), I found this cake photo in the archives – and although I had mixed feelings about posting it, this is my blog and I can post the good along with the bad.

I actually made this cake last Christmas – it was the December cover recipe for Bon Appetit. It looked like a faster version of Death By Chocolate, so of course I had to make it.

Well, the good news is that the cake and meringue were excellent. The bad news is the frosting was terrible. It was awful – of course, if you look at the ingredient list, that will probably tip you off – butter, corn syrup, heavy cream – my god, my arteries are getting scared just thinking about it again.

But the real proof of just how bad it was occurred when I gave a slice to the kids, and the plates were returned to me with the frosting intact. They simply ate their way around it – which I found quite amusing.

If you are so inclined, you can get the recipe here.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to gather my warm things for snowboarding.

Wish me luck!

Healthy Carrot Cake

3 Mar

Every now and then, I surprise myself. I mean, my brain is usually on an extended hiatus, but sometimes I’ll get an idea for something that really works in my favor.

Case in point?

I’ve been making my chocolate chip zucchini bread for several years now – and although I absolutely love it, one day, faced with a large bag of carrots, I got to thinking……..

What if I use carrots instead of zucchini, and (gasp!) leave out the chocolate?

Presenting~

Oh yes, this was just right – lighter than traditional carrot cake, without nuts, raisins or any other offending ingredients that might cause my kids to run from the room. It doesn’t taste carrot-y, it tastes like a lightly spiced cake/bread hybrid.

Sabrina just loved it, and wished our friend Andrew was here to have a slice (or two) with her and I. But he’s not – although we do have another element here to consider – his wife, Roberta – she is an excellent cook, so perhaps she could see her way clear to make this for him. He’s worth it, right?

Talk about handing out some good old fashioned guilt.

One more thing – although the recipe doesn’t show it, I did cover the cake with a light coat of vanilla frosting. You can use any frosting you like, of course, but I was out of cream cheese so this was the best I could do.

Healthy Carrot Cake

2 eggs
1 c. sugar
½ c. oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ cups finely shredded carrots
1 ½ c. flour (I use 1 cup all purpose, and ½ cup white whole wheat)
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¾ tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; set aside. In another bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and oil. Stir in the carrots, then add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.

Bake in a well-greased loaf pan for about one hour.

6 Hour Chili

26 Feb

I’m supposed to be packing for our short adventure to L.A. tomorrow, but I’d rather write about this chili instead.

Is that strange?

Not if you know me.

We aren’t leaving until early afternoon, so I can power-pack first thing in the morning – and we aren’t going to rush, because the weather forecast is rain, rain, and more rain. We are allowing extra time for the drive – my mom’s birthday party isn’t until 7 o’clock tomorrow night, and I can watch rain fall here just as easily as I can watch it from a hotel room.

All this talk of rain is making me wish for a big bowl of chili……. with cornbread……..mmmm, cornbread…….

* ahem *

I’ve been making this chili for several years now, but decided to really shake things up this time around and do something totally different. The original recipe called for beef broth – but I channeled my inner “Dinner-Impossible” creativity and used a bottle of beer instead. I figured, since it works so well in my brisket recipe, why not here?

And as luck would have it, it worked perfectly! (Phew! That could have been a big disaster if it didn’t!)

Just so you know, you cannot taste the beer in the finished product – it harmonizes with the spices to create a rich, hearty chili that is superior to anything in a can – plus, there is very little hands-on work involved.You can add beans if you like – sometimes I do, and sometimes I throw caution to the wind and leave them out. Depends upon how daring I feel that day.

I like to walk on the wild side.

6 Hour Chili – adapted from Williams Sonoma

2 ½  lb. ground beef
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 – 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes with juices – (I puree it so the kids don’t see chunks of tomatoes)
4 tbs. chili powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tbs. cornmeal
1 – 12 oz bottle beer

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, brown the beef, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a slow cooker.

Add the garlic, yellow onion, tomatoes with juices, chili powder, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, cornmeal and beer to the slow cooker and stir to blend. Cover and cook for 6 hours on high.

Ladle the chili into warmed bowls and garnish with sour cream, red onion, cheese and/or cilantro.

Shrimp with Cannellini Beans and Spinach

25 Feb

Last week, while browsing the aisles of Costco, I came across a package of jumbo shrimp that immediately sparked my memory bank to this recipe – which I had set aside the day before.

Cosmic coincidence? I wish – it was merely a matter of finding something to make for dinner that didn’t require using the ovens, because they were still dysfunctional at that time.

And yes, I really meant to say dysfunctional – because there is no such word as “unfunctional” (even auto-correct says so), and non-operational is just so……. industrial sounding.

I have got to give up the cold medicine. My vocabulary is starting to make my head spin.

Shrimp with Cannellini Beans and Spinach - adapted from Food and Wine

2 tbs. olive oil
1/2 pound baby spinach (7 cups)
1 lb. large shrimp, shelled and deveined
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small shallot, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Spread the spinach on a large platter. In a large skillet, heat 2 tbs. olive oil. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and cook it over moderately high heat until just white throughout, about 4 minutes. Add the beans, season with salt and pepper and toss until heated through, about 1 minute. Scrape the shrimp and beans onto the bed of spinach.
In the same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the shallot and cook over moderately low heat until softened, about 1 minute. Add the mustard to the skillet and whisk in the red wine vinegar, then whisk in the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Season the dressing with salt and pepper, pour it over the salad and serve.

Multi-grain Rolls

24 Feb

In my continuing efforts to “healthify” certain family members who shall remain nameless **cough  David cough **,  I made a batch of these rolls last week – before my oven kicked it.

Some people ** David **  just don’t want to give up their beloved rye and white bread – but dang it, I’m trying.

Although, to his credit, he did try the Honey Wheat Cookies (see previous post), and those were made with whole wheat flour AND wheat bran.

And he lived to tell about it.

His mother would never believe me if I told her.

Which is why I would never tell her.

Some things are better left unsaid, right?

The recipe for these rolls was published last November in Bon Appetit. They are absolutely delicious and simple to make – which shouldn’t surprise anyone who bakes bread from Peter Reinhart – his directions are easy to follow and practically foolproof.  I actually followed the recipe exactly – but be forewarned – these rolls are packing some serious heft. To me, they practically scream for a dollop of butter, but I suppose that does negate the health factor a bit, doesn’t it?

Multigrain Rolls - adapted from Peter Reinhart via epicurious.com

3 cups (or more) white whole wheat flour
1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup wheat bran
2 1/2 tbs. golden brown sugar
2 tsp. quick-rising dry yeast
1 tsp coarse kosher salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tbs. vegetable oil
1 tbs. honey

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1 large egg, beaten to blend with 2 tablespoons water (for glaze)

Combine 3 cups flour and next 6 ingredients in bowl of heavy-duty stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Warm 1 cup water and buttermilk in small saucepan over low heat just until instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 95°F. Add buttermilk mixture, oil, and honey to flour mixture; mix on low speed until dough forms coarse ball, about 2 minutes. Let dough rest in bowl 5 minutes (dough will be sticky). Replace paddle attachment on mixer with dough hook. Mix on medium speed until dough is smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky but not sticky, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls as needed, about 4 minutes.
Lightly oil large bowl. Shape dough into ball; place in bowl, turning to coat with oil. Cover with plastic; chill overnight (dough will rise slowly; do not punch down).
Let dough rise, covered, in draft-free area at room temperature 1 1/2 to 2 hours before shaping (dough may not double). Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Transfer dough to floured surface; divide into 18 equal pieces. Roll each piece into smooth ball. Place on prepared baking sheets, spacing apart. Spray dough balls with nonstick spray. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in warm draft-free area until puffed (rolls may not double in volume), about 1 hour.

Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 400°F. Brush rolls with egg glaze. Bake 10 minutes. Reverse sheets and continue to bake until rolls are lightly browned and firm to touch, 10 to 12 minutes longer. Cool rolls completely on rack. DO AHEAD: Wrap in foil, then enclose in resealable plastic bags and freeze up to 2 weeks. Thaw at room temperature. If desired, rewarm rolls wrapped in foil in 350°F oven about 10 minutes.

Chocolate Bread

20 Feb

Day 3 – no oven: anxiety is starting to set in………  need to bake……….  soon……..

To begin this post, I need to tell you, verbatim, the sentence that emerged from Alexander’s mouth when I showed him what I made a few days ago.

But first, you have to picture the look on his face – stock still, open-mouthed, wide-eyed – and then………

“Only you would make chocolate bread, Mom.”

And then….

“Wow! This is delicious!”


I didn’t have the heart to tell him that I wasn’t the first person to make this, but I was pretty happy to have impressed him so much.

I can’t take the credit here – this recipe came from my not-used-enough Artisan Bread in 5 baking book. I’ve wanted to make Chocolate Bread for so long, and I finally just buckled down and made the dough a few nights ago. It is a bit more time consuming to prepare, but like the rest of the recipes in the book, once the dough is made, you simply chill it overnight, then use the dough as needed.

I made a half recipe, which yielded about 12 rolls. I could have made them smaller, I suppose, but after a 12 mile bike ride, I had my eye on the prize. And it did not disappoint. It’s hard to identify whether this qualifies as bread, or cake – but let me tell you, next time, I’m going the extra mile (literally – ha ha ha!) and I’ll place a dollop of peanut butter inside the roll.

Oh yes, that will do just fine.

For the recipe, as well as step-by-step instructions, click here.

Snickerdoodle Blossoms

19 Feb

Although I plan on spending the better part of today sulking over the demise of my ovens (see previous post), I have decided now is the time to test-drive that new Kitchenaid countertop oven. I mean, I’ve used it, but haven’t really used it yet.

You know what I mean?

In order for it to be properly broken it, I need to actually bake something in it, not just make toast in it.

However, given my history of burning out kitchen appliances, it might not have that long to live.

If you hear a loud explosion, or see a nuclear-type mushroom cloud in the sky, there’s a very good chance it’s coming from my house.

Don’t be alarmed – I’m on very good terms with the local fire department.

I found these cookies on April’s site last year, and while I made them several months ago, I never got around to posting them.

The kids absolutely loved them – but really, any time you combine cookies and candy, you are guaranteed to be voted Most Popular Mom on The Block.

Snickerdoodle Blossoms - adapted from Abby Sweets

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed, brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup sugar
1 tbs. ground cinnamon

48 milk chocolate kisses, unwrapped

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar and butter in large mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed until creamy. Add egg, vanilla and salt; continue beating until well mixed. In a small bowl, sift together flours and baking soda. Reduce mixer speed to low; and add flour mixture. Beat until well mixed.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls. If dough is too soft, refrigerate for 1/2 hour. Combine 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbs. cinnamon in a small bowl. Roll dough balls into cinnamon sugar mixture.

Place balls in mini muffin tins. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately press 1 chocolate kiss in center of each cookie and sprinkle remaining cinnamon sugar mixture over them while they are still warm. Remove from pans; cool completely on a wire rack.

Yield – 4 dozen

The End of An Era

18 Feb

Let us observe a moment of silence for the passing of  the hardest working appliance in my kitchen:

In what can only be perceived as a cruel blow to someone who bakes as much as I do, my oven kicked it this morning. 8 years, hundreds of cakes, cookies, pies, brownies – and occasionally dinner – my oven decided enough was enough.

Thankfully, I have my little Kitchenaid Countertop oven that I won from Katrina’s giveaway a few months ago, otherwise I’d really be up a creek.

Posting may be a bit sporadic ~ but fear not, I will be back.

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