Flour on the Floor

"Chocoatnut Bars": Chocolate-Coconut-Oat Bar Cookies

2009-11-22T15:23:00.005-06:00

I'm sure you all remember those gooey, chewy, and deliciously sweet Hello Dolly Bars, also referred to as 7-Layer Bars. (Your family may have had their own name for them as well--my husband asks for these bar cookies by the ingredient list, but doesn't know them by any name I am familiar with.) This recipe has a similar flavor, but instead of layering the ingredients, they are simply all mixed together and baked into a dense cookie that could almost--almost--pass as an energy bar (note: I am not making any claims to their nutritional value, though they are hearty and well-balanced). This is another small-batch recipe: Depending on the size of your sweet tooth, this makes between 4 and 6 bars. I still haven't come up with a great name for them--I'm working on it. The recipe I used calls them "Triple Threat Bars." While this might be catchy, I don't like thinking of any food as a threat. They are more like "Survival Bars," or better yet, "Triple Treat Bars." That's more like it. These are amazing to pack in lunches--yours or someone else's--or as a small treat after dinner. They can even pass as breakfast! Give these a try, and feel free to double or triple the recipe to make them for a crowd. Enjoy!

Survival Bars ("Chocoatnut" Bars)

(adapted from Small-Batch Baking)

Equipment: small baking dish (5 x 3 inches or so), foil, cooking spray

1/4 cup plus 2 T old-fashioned rolled oats

3 T all-purpose flour

3 T packed dark brown sugar (light would be fine, though it would not have as deep a molasses flavor)

3 T sweetened flaked coconut (the kind found near the chocolate chips on the baking aisle)

2 T chopped pecans (any nuts would be fine--cashews or macadamia nuts would be great)

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (or a combination of different chips)

1/8 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. salt

1 1/2 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled (melt this first to give it time to cool)

2 tsp. well-beaten egg or egg substitute

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 F. Line the bottom of the pan with foil--enough to extend over the edges by 1-2 inches. Smooth it out into the corners and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Toss the oats, flour, brown sugar, coconut, pecans, chocolate chips, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.

3. Pour the melted butter, beaten egg, and vanilla in a small bowl and beat with a fork or small whisk to blend. Add egg mixture to oats mixture and stir until blended.

4. Spoon batter into prepared baking dish and smooth the top, making sure it is an even layer. Bake until it is set and pulls away from the edges slightly--about 22 minutes.

5. Cool on a wire rack in the pan for 10-20 minutes. Then gently pull the foil out of the pan and allow it to cool completely on the rack. When it is completely cool, cut into bars.

Nutritional Info.: (for 4 bars) 200 calories, 11.5 grams of fat (sat. 5.7), 30.8 g protein

When nothing but chocolate will do... The Ultimate Brownie

2009-11-15T16:56:00.001-06:00

Sometimes you just need chocolate. We've all been there. Maybe you've had a bad day or a rotten week, maybe you're stretched so thin that even a little indulgence seems like complete and unattainable luxury. Perhaps you're in a terrible mood with no explanation. You realize, as Ishmael does in the opening pages of Moby-Dick, that something needs to change: "Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people's hats off..." Whenever he finds himself in such a state, Ishmael goes to sea. I, on the other hand, make brownies. It seems far less dangerous, though every bit as deliberate. And while it instantly gratifies, the effect lasts far longer than one might expect. The more hats I feel like knocking off, the more chocolate I add, until the sea of white chocolate chips somewhat resembles the eponymous white whale of College English fame. These brownies offer a perfect escape from the Ahabs of the world, and despite my numerous literary references, they are so simple and indulgent that you will not feel an ounce of guilt eating half the pan while curled up watching Glee. Remember: all will be well with the world again. As Ishmael said, "The drama's done," and for more comfort, "the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago." Take a moment for yourself. Have a brownie. This too shall pass.

The Ultimate Brownie

(adapted from One Smart Cookie by Julie Van Rosendaal)

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 large egg

2 large egg whites

1 1/2 tsp. instant coffee granules, dissolved in 1 1/2 tsp. water

1 tsp. vanilla (a little more never hurt)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Mix-Ins:

I prefer a few handfuls of white chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and mini chocolate chips (I sprinkle the minis on top of the batter before baking). You could also add any kind of baking chip, toffee chips, nuts, etc. Have fun here--the more you need chocolate, the more kinds you can add. You can even press crushed cookies or candies into the top of the batter before baking.

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9x9 pan liberally with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and add the sugar and cocoa powder. Mix until well-blended--it will resemble wet sand.

3. In a large bowl, whisk egg, egg whites, coffee, and vanilla. Add the chocolate mixture and whisk until well-blended--this may take a minute and some upper-body strength :-)

4. In the empty saucepan (so you don't have to dirty another bowl, though you can if you wish) mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add these to the chocolate mixture and stir until there are a few streaks of flour left. At this point, and in your mix-ins and fold until well-distributed.

5. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth into the corners. Bake at 350 F for 25 minutes, or until the edges just begin to pull away from the sides. (It is better to underbake brownies--these in particular are supposed to be fudgy.)

6. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into squares--16-25, depending on the size you want your brownies.

Basic Nutritional Information, pre-mix-ins (per serving for 16 servings):

Calories: 151

Fat: 4.4 grams

Pancakes

2009-11-09T08:47:00.003-06:00

For your viewing pleasure: I finally conquered the pancake. If my life were a superhero movie, pancakes would be my nemesis. I am perpetually drawn to them, but they always win. They are too floppy, too mushy, too thin, too dense, they don't brown properly or they burn, they are too sweet or too tangy...you get the idea. I'd just about given up on pancakes until--viola!--the perfect recipe. Unfortunately, as life is never so perfect, I cannot remember what that recipe was. So, like a good superhero flick, I will leave you awaiting the sequel, in which you will learn, once and for all, how I conquered the pancake. Until then, enjoy this buttery golden image of contentment and satisfaction. I will complete the picture with a recipe soon. And if you have any pancake adventures you would like to share (and foolproof techniques I should try) send them my way!

Cherry-Oat-Cardamom Muffins

2009-11-08T11:15:00.006-06:00

It has been almost two months since my last blog post. Since that post, I have finished my reading list and successfully completed my oral comprehensive exam. I can honestly say that I don't think I've worked harder for something in my life. It is almost overwhelming to think of the hours of reading, the pages and pages of notes, the brainstorming and mock exams and cups upon cups upon cups of coffee. I should write a sincere note of thanks to Seattle's Best, really. I couldn't have done it without you. In that time, especially the last 1 1/2 months, I have barely cooked or baked a thing. Thank goodness for husbands who can shop, cook, and pour a great glass of wine, but who also know when a margarita is the must-have for the seriously stressful moment. I've made a few standbys--my Spiced Pumpkin Bread, for example, traveled to a birthday celebration, and I polished off a few pans of brownies during football games. But as far as my favorite morning baked goods, nothing. I work best in the morning and did not want to disturb my schedule by breaking for muffins. (Sounds like a great bumper sticker.) But when I woke up this morning not to the sound of a 6 am alarm but instead to the sound of Dan making coffee (then fell back asleep and woke up again an hour later), I knew the time for muffins had returned. I felt a bit creative, and here are the results: lusciously spicy, ever-so-slightly sweet Cherry-Oat Muffins with Cardamom. The smell that fills the house as they bake is almost as pleasing as the muffins themselves. Cardamom, to me, always has that perfect balance of exotic and sophisticated; its strong yet delicate flavor is always a surprise.

I found inspiration for these muffins in my Small-Batch Baking book, but as I didn't have any of the ingredients for the Cranberry Walnut muffins, and figured I'd use the same batter and revise the fillings and spices. I thawed a handful of frozen sweet cherries, then chopped them for better distribution. I added cinnamon to the cardamom-sugar topping for depth of flavor, and to keep the cardamom from overpowering the cherries. And I added quick-cooking oats, rather than walnuts or pecans, because the thin batter (thanks to the cherry juice) looked like it needed more structure, and because I'm not the biggest fan of nuts in baked goods, especially muffins. They always seem texturally out-of-place. I wanted a creamy, sweet, spicy muffin, with crunch from the sugar-topping only--and that is exactly what I got. They were brilliant.

If you like cardamom, give these a try. These are not your typical overly sweet coffee shop muffins, and the melt-in-your-mouth texture and aroma will transport you, for a moment, from your familiar kitchen to a small European cafe, where you sit contentedly sipping your coffee and watching the city go by. Life's simple pleasures, in muffin-form. Enjoy.

Cherry-Oat Cardamom Muffins

(adapted from Small-Batch Baking)

Muffins:

Muffin liners or cooking spray

1/2 cup AP flour

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom (you can use cinnamon but it changes the flavor completely)

yolk of one egg

3 T sugar

2 T milk (1% is fine)

2 T vegetable oil

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup fresh or frozen cherries, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup quick-cooking oats

Topping:

3/4 tsp. sugar

1/8 tsp. each cardamom and cinnamon

Pan: Standard Muffin Pan

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line four muffin cups with liners (or spray four cups, including the top edges surrounding the cups; do not spray more cups, as this will cause them to scorch--only spray what you will use).

2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and cardamom.

3. In a small bowl, whisk sugar, egg yolk, milk, oil, vanilla. Add these wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and fold gently with a spatula until dry ingredients are just moistened. Add cherries and oats, fold until just combined.

4. Dollop batter into cups until 3/4 full. Fill unused cups 1/3 full with water to prevent scorching. Place in oven; bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

5. PLace on wire rack. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then carefully remove muffins (this is easier if you use muffin cups). Let muffins cool 10 minutes more on rack. Serve warm, or cool completely and freeze. Heat individual muffins wrapped in a napkin for 20 seconds in the microwave.

Nutrition Information: Approximately 200 calories and 8 grams of fat. (I got used to recording calories while I studied since I had less time for the gym, just so I wouldn't overeat and become sluggish. There are some excellent recipe calorie calculators out there. Sparkpeople has my favorite, and it helps me keep track of what I'm eating.)

Rhubarb Snack Cake with Pecan Streusel

2009-09-13T17:05:00.005-05:00

I have recently been introduced to the concept of a snack cake. I don't mean Little Debbie snack cakes, although Star Crunch and those delectable chocolate cupcakes with the squiggly line should have a place in every balanced diet. No, I mean a cake one bakes purely for snacking. Not as rich as a coffee cake, nor sugary enough for dessert, but a light, moist, fruit-studded, streusel-topped snack cake. A cake that is both healthy and indulgent. My mouth is watering just thinking of it.

So what makes a good snack cake? Well, it needs to contain a quick burst of sugar to give you some immediate energy, then have something lasting, some protein and fiber, to keep you alert and satisfied so you're not hungry again in an hour or so. This cake absolutely fits the bill. The recipe obviously contains sugar, as does the fruit, in this case either rhubarb or apple. But then you get lasting energy from the protein in the pecans, and the filling sensation from the whole wheat flour. It's really perfection in a slice. I highly recommend you try it. When you hit those afternoon hunger pangs at 3 o'clock and pull out a hearty chunk of homemade cake saved solely for that particular purpose, you'll know what I mean by indulgence. Contrary to most of my recent posts, it doesn't need to be chocolate. It's all about the snack cake.

Rhubarb (or Apple) Snack Cake with Pecan Streusel

(adapted from Cooking Light, May 2008)

Cake:

2-3 cups finely chopped rhubarb (if frozen, thaw) or tart apple, such as Granny Smith

2 T all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar

5 T unsalted butter, softened

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1/4 of a Granny Smith apple, grated with a microplane (omit if using apple instead of rhubarb)

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. ground cinnamon (a little more is fine, especially if using apple instead of rhubarb)

1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg (opt.)

1/2 tsp. salt

Cooking Spray

Streusel:

1/4 cup turbinado sugar (or sugar in the raw)

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 T chilled butter, cubed

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray a 9x9-inch pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Combine rhubarb or apple in a small bowl with 2 T of flour. Toss; set aside. (This step, coating the fruit with flour, is an excellent idea for any baked good in which fruit needs to be evenly distributed, such as blueberry muffins. The flour provides traction so the fruit does not settle on the bottom of the pan.)

3. Place the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer or in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Cream them at medium speed until light and fluffy--it will look like wet sand. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sour cream, grated apple (if using), and vanilla. Beat until well-combined.

4. Whisk flours, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg (if using), and salt in a medium bowl. Gradually add them (in three batches) to the butter mixture; beat on low speed until just combined.

5. Fold in the fruit. Pour into prepared pan.

6. To prepare the streusel: Combine the turbinado sugar with the cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender, two forks, or your fingers. Add the pecans; toss well. Sprinkle over the top of the cake.

7. Bake at 375 F for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (check after 40 minutes). Cool completely on a cooling rack.

Yield: 12 pieces.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

2009-09-10T15:51:00.005-05:00

You probably know these cookies. This is one of those Fourth-of-July-picnic recipes, a true taste of Americana. They have almost as many names and variations as there are families who make them. (Many of those names, such as Cowplop Cookies or worse, don't sound terribly appetizing, though are aesthetically quite accurate.) I remember always wanting to eat the warm batter with a spoon, rather than waiting for it to be dished into cookies and cool. I probably ate half the batch, you know, "just to check." In my defense, though, so did my mother--we're both impatient chocolate lovers. It's amazing there were any cookies left the next day. When I finished my busiest teaching day this week, I came home almost too tired to bake, but really needing the process to relax and reward me after so many hours of having to be "on," so to speak. Suddenly, out of nowhere, these cookies popped into my head. I hadn't made or eaten them in years, but I just knew that the combination of nostalgia and ease of preparation made them the perfect treat for an early start to my weekend.

As you know, I have posted many recipes with healthy eating habits in mind: lower-fat cookies and muffins, small-batch recipes, etc. This is not one of those recipes. Between the peanut butter and the actual butter, these are relatively high in fat and calories. They are also, though, quite rich--you don't need many to get your fix. And they are full of good protein and fiber, thanks to the peanut butter and oats. I attempted a lower fat version a few days later, cutting the amount of butter in half. The Verdict: Not worth it. They're fine, but somewhat crumbly and chalky-feeling. And I am not one to sacrifice flavor and texture for anything. Make the recipe below, and if you're really worried, eat fewer or take an after-dessert stroll. It's all about balance, right?

These are wonderful, simple, and quick--10 minutes plus cooling time (about 30 minutes). No baking required, which also makes them perfect summer cookies, since the oven won't heat up the whole house when it's already 90 degrees outside. For those of you who, like me, live in the South, we have a few more good months of no-bake cookie weather. So give these a try if you need a quick bite of chocolate. Or some seriously decadent oatmeal ;-).

Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

1/4 cup milk

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 tsp. vanilla

In a saucepan over medium heat, add butter, sugar, cocoa, and milk. Whisk until butter is melted and small bubbles appear around the outer edges. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter, oats, and vanilla. Drop on mounded tablespoonfuls on parchment paper, waxed paper, or a Silpat. Allow to cool. Chill to help them stay together, and store in the fridge. That's it--enjoy!

Yields: 16-20 cookies

Mocha Lava Cake

2009-09-05T10:02:00.006-05:00

I have been craving chocolate recently. Perhaps this is my reaction to the onslaught of summer fruit desserts like cobblers, crumbles, pies, and pastries. I do think of chocolate as more of a fall/winter flavor, and since the weather here in Oxford has been uncharacteristically cool and breezy, I imagine my desire for chocolate has kicked in early. This recipe not only satisfies my flavor cravings, but also my attraction to bizarre foods (or bizarre methods for making foods). I was talking to a friend on the phone this morning about using 7-Up and Mountain Dew as leaveners in baked goods, something I tried for a lemon cake and worked beautifully. I also love my blackberry cobbler recipe, how the batter rises from the bottom of the pan to the top while baking--it's like magic every time, even though I know it's a typical cobbler recipe. Small pleasures. This Mocha Lava Cake (note the cute play on words: Java/Lava? Eh?) follows a similar method: A thin batter poured into the bottom of a pan, wet stuff poured on top, then they switch places while baking. It is, in fact, much like Southern chocolate cobblers. And, possibly the best part of this recipe: You can serve this cake right away. No cooling, waiting, pacing, salivating--when it comes out of the oven, it's done. All you need is some ice cream.

But really, the method does seem almost ridiculous. The batter is not only thin in consistency, it is also thin in the pan--it only comes about a half-inch up the sides. Then you sprinkle a sugar-and-cocoa mixture over the batter, then you pour on a cup of coffee. Just pour it on--no stirring. Stick the whole thing in the oven and, 35 minutes later, you have a crisp chocolate "crust" on top of what amounts to mocha pudding. Unbelievable. I had to try this recipe out of sheer curiosity! It is so simple as well. It uses ingredients you most likely always have in your house (if you don't already, you should), and is an excellent last-minute dessert for a chocolate craving or unexpected guests--or both. As you can tell, the method is easy, and it only takes about 15 minutes to put together. You could easily bake this for guests after dinner while they chat and sip their wine--they'll barely miss you! Put the batter together while you brew the after-dinner coffee, then just steal a cup of that coffee for the cake before serving your guests. Simple, simple! You have to try it.

My only note on the recipe: I thought it would be easier to use my stovetop espresso maker to brew the coffee for the cake. It works, but the coffee flavor is quite strong. My husband loved it; I thought it was a little overpowering. I recommend strong coffee, but not espresso, for great balance.

Oh, one more note: Serve it with ice cream. I used Butter Pecan, but a good French Vanilla would be amazing. That buttery flavor really adds something. You could use coffee ice cream, but then I would top it with chocolate chips to bring out the chocolate a little more. Crazy? Perhaps. But it's never good to only go halfway on your cravings. Indulge a little.

Mocha Lava Cake

(adapted from the indomitable Paula Deen)

3/4 cup granulated sugar (for the batter)

1/2 cup granulated sugar (for the topping)

1 cup AP flour

2 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 1-oz. square semisweet baking chocolate (chocolate chips will work in a pinch)

2 T unsalted butter

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 T cocoa powder

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup coffee (liquid)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9x9-inch pan liberally with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Whisk together the 3/4 cup granulated sugar, flour, and baking powder, and pinch of salt. Melt butter and chocolate in a saucepan (or in a microwave). Add chocolate mixture to the flour mixture; mix well. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.

3. Whisk the 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cocoa in a medium bowl. Sprinkle on top of batter.

4. Pour coffee on top of batter and sugar; do not stir. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until top looks moist but no longer too wet. The center will look like there are pools of chocolate syrup. The base will be a chocolate syrup. Cool for 5-10 minutes.

5. Cut into 9 squares. Invert them when serving, so the syrup is on top. Add ice cream.

Definitely serve warm. Enjoy!

Chocolate Toffee Cookies

2009-08-31T20:37:00.004-05:00

There is a battle raging in my home. It's not about how high to keep the thermostat, about putting dirty dishes in the dishwasher instead of on the counter, or why socks really do belong in (rather than on top of, or next to) the hamper. No, this is a battle of epic proportions. Cookies: Cakey or Chewy? Should they be soft and fluffy like muffins, or should they be dense and crisp, stick-to-your-teeth sweet treats? The recipe I am posting today is the latter, and Dan loves them. I'll admit, they are excellent dipped in a glass of cold milk--they don't dissolve or fall apart, and the milk gives them just the right amount of chewy softness. They are essentially dippable brownies, in cookie form.

What causes these textural differences? First, baking times: Overbaking will always cause cookies to be crisper. This is not necessarily a problem--you can use the timer to your advantage. If you want softer cookies, pull them out a minute or two before they are done. Do the opposite if you prefer a crunchier cookie. Granted, the texture also depends on the recipe, but the amount of time it spends in the oven is one of the simplest ways to determine the consistency of any cookie. However, there are ways to tell the texture of the cookie simply by reading the recipe.

For example, the amount of dry ingredients to wet should give you an idea of the density of the cookie. If the recipe has more dry than wet, it will be fluffier. More wet than dry (like this one, which only has two tablespoons of flour!) and it will be denser.

Look also at the technique: Do you cream butter and sugar, then add in dry ingredients? It will be fluffy, as this is the method most cakes use. Is everything beaten with a mixer or by hand? Hand mixing tends to be gentler, yielding a softer cookie, as there is less chance for overmixing. (This is not necessarily true if one of the primary leaveners is egg whites that must have air whipped into them, like chiffon cake. However, since you then fold egg whites into the batter, the hand mixing rule holds somewhat.) Do you chill the batter before shaping the cookies? This will almost always yield a fluffier cookie, as the butter chills and hardens and is less likely to spread and flatten. Again, you can use this to your advantage. If someone in your house, say, your husband, likes flatter cookies, and the recipe calls for you to chill the dough, just skip that step. At least for half the dough; chill your half while his is baking--best of both worlds, the truce version of home baking.

Give these cookies a try, regardless of preference. If you have a sweet tooth at all, these will hit the spot. Because it has toffee chips, it also has that sweet-salty thing going on. This is a small batch recipe, so it only makes 6-8 cookies--feel free to double or triple it if you need more. It takes no time--I whipped these up before dinner, as I was craving chocolate but didn't want a house full of it.

Chocolate Toffee Cookies

(adapted from Small-Batch Baking)

4 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 tsp. (about 2/3 of a tablespoon) unsalted butter

2 T all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. salt

1/4 plus 3 T sugar

1 lg. egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup toffee bits

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips (or chopped up Heath bars, or chocolate-covered toffee bits)

Parchment paper

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

2. Combine chocolate and butter in small microwave-safe bowl. Melt, stirring every 30 seconds (should take 1 minute total). Let cool slightly.

3. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in small bowl.

4. Place sugar and egg in medium mixing bowl. Beat on high with a hand mixer until pale and think, about two minutes. (It will seem blended immediately, but keep going--this is where the texture comes from.)

5. Add chocolate and vanilla; beat well. Reduce speed to low and beat in flour mixture until just incorporated. Fold in toffee bits and chocolate chips. Cover and chill for 20 minutes.

6. Dish out 6-8 cookies using a 1/8 cup measuring cup or disher. Flatten to 3/4" with a spatula sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until tops begin to crack but are still soft to the touch.

7. Slide parchment onto a cooling rack and allow cookies to cool. Serve with a glass of cold milk.

Enjoy!

Chipotle-Peanut Brittle

2009-08-22T17:52:00.004-05:00

I've been enjoying a lazy Saturday afternoon, windows open, uncharacteristic August breeze rustling the papers that I should be cleaning off of my desk, looking through old food magazines while listening to Prairie Home Companion on NPR. Could I be any more content? I suppose I could add a glass of wine, but I also have a whole night to myself to watch chick flicks, drink wine, and eat ice cream. I must pace myself. I'll stick with my iced green tea with honey--a recent successful kitchen experiment.

In one of these magazines, I ran across this recipe for Chipotle Peanut Brittle. I made this a few months ago and it was addictive. I don't know why I never wrote a post about it, but I mean to remedy that right now. If you like the southern classic combo of sweet and salty, with a modern and unusual smoky-spicy twist, you will love these. Take these to any party, cookout, potluck, etc., and I promise you, you will be the most popular person there. Everyone will think you are a genius--even if they say they don't like peanuts, peanut brittle, or chipotle. Put them together, and it's magic. When the baking soda hits the pan and the whole mixture bubbles up like a cauldron--that's when it happens. The magic.

So give these a try--I hope they'll quickly become a kitchen classic for you. You do need a candy thermometer, but these are inexpensive and you can pick one up the baking aisle of the grocery store.

Chipotle Peanut Brittle

(adapted from Cooking Light, May 2009)

Cooking spray

Parchment paper (usually found with the foil in the grocery store, or it might be in the baking section)

1 cup sugar

1 cup light-colored corn syrup

1 T butter

1 (11.5 oz.) container salted, dry-roasted peanuts

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. chipotle chile powder

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; spray well with cooking spray. Set aside anther sheet of equal size, sprayed with cooking spray.

2. Combine sugar, corn syrup, and butter in a medium heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook 18 minutes or until a candy thermometer registers 275 F, stirring frequently. Add peanuts; cook 3 minutes or until the thermometer registers 295 F, stirring constantly.

3. Remove from heat; add baking soda and chile powder. The mixture will bubble up and become opaque.

4. Working quickly, pour the mixture onto the sprayed parchment and cover with the second sheet, sprayed side on the brittle. Using a rolling pin, quickly roll mixture to an even thickness. (After I rolled it, I also smoothed it by hand with an oven mitt on.) Remove top parchment sheet.

5. Cool completely. Break into pieces. Store in an airtight container.

Yields approximately 28 servings (1 oz. each).

Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

2009-07-26T18:56:00.007-05:00

After muffins, brownies are probably my favorite treat. I can find a million different things to do with them. Rocky Road brownies with marshmallows, peanuts, and chocolate drizzle; S'More brownies with graham cracker crumbles; Caramel brownies; Chocolate Cherry brownies; Mochaccino brownies; even the classic Cocoa brownies. My mother would certainly add brownies with pecans to this list as well. Or brownies with almonds, maybe even some coconut. A few years ago, Taste of Home did a whole recipe contest devoted to brownies; just thinking about those 16 recipe cards makes me smile. But I digress.

These brownies are the result of a Sunday afternoon in need of filling, while also remembering my impending trip to the beach. Of course I searched out One Smart Cookie, a book of absolutely amazing low fat cookie recipes. My favorite brownies (that taste just like a Duncan Hines mix) are from a recipe in this book, so I figured I couldn't go wrong. I've been craving peanut butter lately and knew, just knew, that if there was a good peanut butter brownie recipe to be found, it would be here. (I will say, Ina Garten also has a great one on foodnetwork.com, but I only had a few sticks of butter in the fridge--not even close to enough to complete this recipe). These brownies, while not health food per se, are lower in fat than typical brownies and the peanut butter has protein, right? I'll just keep telling myself that. One thing I do love about this recipe is that instead of simply swirling peanut butter through the top, which can work well but creates sticky, sometimes soggy brownies, this recipe combines the peanut butter with some flour and egg white so that it actually puffs up and creates a crust, making the brownies look even richer and they are still stackable, for that "platter of plenty" look. If you love Reese's as much as I do, give these a try!

Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

(adapted from One Smart Cookie)

Brownie Batter:

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 large egg

1 large egg white

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. instant coffee granules, dissolved in 1 tsp. water

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Topping:

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (light peanut butter if you like)

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 large egg white

2 T milk

1/4 tsp. vanilla

1 T flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9x9 inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter and sugar until well-combined. Add egg, egg white, coffee, and vanilla. Whisk well.

3. In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add to the egg mixture, and stir with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until just combined. (The mixture will be very thick.) Spread the batter into the prepared pan. You may need to spray the spatula with cooking spray to spread the thick batter.

4. In the same medium bowl you used for the flour (to avoid more dirty dishes), combine peanut butter, brown sugar, egg white, milk, vanilla, and flour. Stir well with a whisk. Dollop in large spoonfuls over the top of the batter, then swirl or drag through both batters with the tip of a knife to create a marbled effect.

5. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes, or until the brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Do not overbake. (If you are using an 8x8 inch pan, it will probably take 40-45 minutes.)

6. Cool completely on pan in wire rack.

Makes 16 brownies. GREAT with a tall glass of milk.

Small-Batch Lemon Squares

2009-07-21T21:39:00.004-05:00

Dan loves lemon squares. I'll just throw that out there. After a few baking episodes that resulted in, "But you know I don't like fluffy cookies," I decided to go with a sure thing. And it worked: I realized that, as much as I love to experiment in the kitchen, to challenge myself with new recipes, sometimes it says even more to make an old favorite for a favorite person.

What I love about this recipe is that it is a small batch recipe, from a great cookbook called Small-Batch Baking, by Debby Maugans Nakos. I highly recommend picking up a copy. The premise of the book is that we don't always need 4 dozen chocolate chip cookies; sometimes we just need one good one. Nakos has worked many baking favorites to bare minimum yields: 2-3 cookies, 3-4 brownies, 2 muffins, etc. She even explains how to make small layer cakes by reusing old cans! My friend Katie told me about this book a few years ago and when I ran across it in a bookstore recently, I snapped it up. I discovered something else--it's a great diet book! No, the recipes are not in any way low-fat, but think about it: when you bake, most of the calories come from grabbing a cookie from the plate as you walk by, whether or not you actually want one. You wouldn't want those sweets to go to waste, right? Well, this way, you get the goods when you want them, but you're not saddled with leftovers that add to your waistline, and you're not tempted to eat when you aren't hungry. If you have a friend with a sweet tooth who is also trying to eat healthier, give this as a gift. She'll look at you like you've lost your mind at first, but explain. She'll thank you a million times over (and you'll probably get some cookies out of the deal!).

The baking times will vary depending on the type of baking dish you are using, as this will affect the thickness of the layers. My dish, a small Le Creuset baking dish measuring 6.5 x 4.5, was wider and shallower than the mini loaf pan (5 x 3) that this recipe recommends. If you don't have a small loaf pan, you can pick up a disposable aluminum one at the grocery store--they have plenty of minis, especially around the holidays when people bake small amounts of favorite treats as gifts. Just remember: the larger the pan, the shorter the baking times.

Small-Batch Lemon Squares
(adapted from Small-Batch Baking, "Lemon Shortbread Squares")

Crust:

Cooking spray or butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 T confectioners' sugar

1 tsp. grated lemon zest

Pinch of salt

2 T chilled unsalted butter, diced

Filling:

1 lg. egg, at room temperature (set it out when you begin)

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 T all-purpose flour

1 T fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. grated lemon zest

Pinch of salt

Topping:

1 tsp.-1 T of confectioners' sugar to sift over top of the cooled bars

Pan:

1 small loaf pan (5 x 3=3 squares, 6 x 4=6 squares)

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 F.

2. Line a small loaf pan with foil: press tight to sides of pan and leave 1-inch flaps hanging over the sides to lift the cooled bars out later for ease of cutting. Spray with cooking spray.

3. Place flour, confectioners' sugar, salt, lemon zest, and butter in a medium bowl; cut butter in with a fork or pastry blender until the mixture resembles small peas. Press the mixture in an even layer in the pan (use the flat bottom of a measuring cup to help) and bake for 15 minutes, or until crust begins to brown. When done, set aside to cool to room temperature.

4. While crust is cooling, make the filling: place all filling ingredients in the same bowl you made the crust in--no need to wipe it out--and whisk until smooth. Pour over cooled crust, and bake at 350 until set, about 15-17 minutes.

5. Cool completely--about 1 1/2 hours. If you are not serving them immediately, chill in fridge.

6. Before serving, sift powdered sugar over the top. Lift out of the pan and cut using a sharp knife.

Note: If you do not cool the crust and instead, pour the filling into a hot crust (as the actual recipe directs you to) the crust will not remain flaky and keep its shortbread texture; instead, it becomes dense. I prefer the shortbread texture, but Dan liked the denser, compact texture. It works either way, but if you want a more traditional bar, cool the crust.

Enjoy!

Banana-Oatmeal-Chocolate Cookies

2009-07-19T14:51:00.005-05:00

As if we all need another chocolate chip cookie recipe... Wait, what am I saying? What is a variation on a classic but another classic waiting to happen?

I've realized something about myself recently: Not only must I always be doing several activities at once (watching a favorite TV show, planning the week's meals and making my shopping list, painting my toenails, and baking a loaf of bread), but I become severely annoyed with those who cannot multitask. Perhaps this is Dan's influence, but I am a huge fan of what Rachael Ray refers to as "pockets of time." Most chores or activities have a bit of wait time--why not knock out a few emails, fold some laundry, load the dishwasher, etc.? People ask me how I find the time to bake bread or make homemade pizza dough; this is how I do it.

While I am not typically a fan of banana and chocolate, for some reason I was drawn to this recipe. This morning (while making my shopping list and watching television, nonetheless) I realized why: It is the ultimate multitasking cookie recipe. It is at once an oatmeal cookie, a chocolate chip cookie, and a slice of banana bread. They wind up looking like fat little oatmeal muffin tops, and due to their resemblance to the breakfast classic, oatmeal with sliced bananas and brown sugar, they are just as appropriate to grab when you are rushing out the door in the morning as a granola bar. Talk about multitasking--I think these may be able to do my taxes as well, who knows? These are from the most recent issue of Cooking Light, and are low in calories and fat and even have some protein and fiber--as much as many granola bars. They're not overly sweet and have a pillowy softness--perfect for a moment of calm in an otherwise busy day.

Give them a try, with your coffee in the morning, alone or with ice cream as dessert, or just as a snack in the middle of the day when you need a break from your multitasking life. Let me know what you think!

Banana-Oatmeal-Chocolate Cookies

(adapted from Cooking Light, July 2009)

1 medium ripe banana, mashed (if frozen, thaw)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 lg. egg

5.6-5.8 oz. all-purpose flour, depending on size of banana and amount of juice it gave off, if frozen and thawed (about 1 1/4 cups)

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I prefer 1/4 cup--or slightly more--of the mini-chips)

Cooking spray or parchment paper

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Combine banana, sugars, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer (at medium speed) until smooth. Add egg; beat until well-incorporated.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients gradually; beat each addition until just incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips with a spatula. (If the dough seems too loose to hold its shape, place it in the fridge for 30 minutes.)

4. Place heaping tablespoonfuls of dough 1 1/2-2 inches apart on the baking sheet; bake for 16-18 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely (although they are great warm, too).

Yield: 2 dozen.

Enjoy!

Cinnamon-Nutmeg Breakfast Cakes

2009-07-12T18:00:00.000-05:00

While these are essentially muffins, there is something much richer and eggier, almost custard-like, about their texture that causes me to label them "cakes" instead. If you are one of those people who is scared of making a cake from anything other than a box, I understand, and believe me, these couldn't be simpler to make. You make them via the muffin method--folding wet ingredients into dry ingredients--so there no need for an electric or stand mixer, no softening butter, just plain and simple stirring and folding. The whole thing can be done by hand, and if it's early in the morning and there are still sleeping people in your household, no fear--it's so quiet it won't wake anyone up. They'll just be left to contend with the coffee grinder!

I've been attracted to this recipe since I found it in a Cottage Living magazine years ago. I subscribed to it because my friend, Sarah, was an intern there, and soon discovered that it had great recipes! And no wonder--Sarah Foster (of Foster's Market in Chapel Hill, North Carolina) is the food editor. These muffins looked so ethereal, with their fairy-dust of cinnamon-sugar on top, and I could practically smell the warm, nutty nutmeg. I've been holding on to this recipe for awhile now, and it seemed like time to give it a try.

It smells lovely, and the cinnamon-sugar is everything I'd hoped it would be--sweet, crunchy, practically dreamy. The next time I make these muffins, I might add a teaspoon of orange zest to the batter. These had the flavor of a lightly spiced brioche, but if you want something a bit brighter in the morning, I think orange would be absolutely perfect. Especially if you make them during the holidays!

Cinnamon-Nutmeg Breakfast Cakes

(adapted from a recipe for Cinnamon Puffs in Cottage Living, November 2005)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg (or ground, if you don't have whole nutmegs, but add a pinch more)

3/4 tsp. salt

2 large eggs, room temperature (sit them out when you begin the recipe)

1 1/4 cups milk

5 T butter, melted and cooled

Optional:

1/2-1 tsp. of vanilla extract

1 tsp. orange zest

Topping:

3 T butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

For the muffins:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. These muffins are very sticky--be sure to use liners, and you may even want to spray these with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt. Add orange zest, if using.

3. In a small bowl, whisk milk, eggs, and melted butter (drizzle is gradually, while whisking; this way, it will not clump up when it hits cool ingredients if it is too warm). Add vanilla, if using.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and fold it gently using a spatula. Fold only until no clumps of flour remain.

5. Fill muffin cups almost full, a little more than 3/4 full. Bake for 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack while you prepare the topping ingredients.

My little muffin army :-)

To top the muffins:

1. Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl.

2. Mix the sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow dish.

3. When the muffins are cool enough to handle (cool for 5-10 minutes), grab one by the base and dip it in the butter, allowing the excess to drip off. Next, hold it over the bowl of cinnamon-sugar and sprinkle the sugar mixture on, allowing excess to drop back into the bowl. Some butter will drip off as well--just break up clumps with your fingers. When you have a good coating on the muffin, place it back on the cooling rack and proceed with the rest of the muffins.

4. Serve warm.

Note: You may be tempted to dip the buttered muffins into the cinnamon-sugar. This is actually what the recipe says to do. Trust me--resist the urge. Yes, it's faster, but the sugar mixture gets all clumpy and the muffin tops look wet and pasty, not dusted with a topping. It's not pretty.

Chocolate-Caramel Candy Things

2009-07-08T06:02:00.000-05:00

I began writing this post over a month ago, and somehow never got around to finishing it. Here's the initial intro.; I'll let you know how that May trip went in a bit:

In the two weeks following my resolution (made in March rather than January, but better late than never) to bake only on the weekends, leaving the weekdays to write, I have actually done quite well in keeping it. During the week I've baked only when dinner required it--a supper strata or potato and greens tart--no desserts or sweet treats for breakfast. Incidentally, this resolution also coincides with my new amped-up workout plan for May's trip to Mexico; I am thus learning to pace myself on the sweets, to let brownies be a pleasant thought rather than an ever-present reality. I am convinced future generations of bikinis will thank me.

Well, the Cancun trip has come and gone and while I did fit into my bikini--I even allowed myself to be photographed in it!--but I am trying to take this physical fitness thing to another level. I've begun running--not long distances, but I'm getting there. I'm working on my Michelle Obama-arms for the months of sleeveless we have here in Mississippi, and I've actually begun to miss the gym or the park on days when I can't make it. Most mornings, though, now that I've begun reading for my comprehensive exams, I need that break, and it's the perfect way to avoid all the sitting that comes with a summer dedicated to reading. I tried downloading the audio version of some of my books so that I could "read" while exercising, but after hearing one too many readers who sounded like they attended the Keanu Reeves Voice Coaching Institute, I decided to let myself have that hour off.

What does all of this have to do with this recipe? Nothing much--except that I just feel like I can eat more now :-) And I still rarely bake during the week--thankfully, this resolution has stuck. I made these bars again a few weekends ago for a picnic in the park--the third Grove concert of the summer, which also happened to be on Father's Day. My parents came and we enjoyed a lovely, breezy evening, listening to blues and gospel music, fanning ourselves in good southern style, and enjoying this excellent mix of chocolate and caramel. My Chocolate-Caramel Candy Things are the crowning glory of my weekend sugar-fests, and the only dessert Dan specifically asks me not to make--because it's the only one that can overcome even his iron-willpower. So I pace myself, but it's a great treat to have in my arsenal. This recipe doubles easily; just use a 9x13 pan or two 8x8 pans.

Chocolate-Caramel Candy Things

(adapted from a recipe for Millionaire's Shortbread on foodnetwork.com)

Shortbread Crust:

8 T (1 stick) of cold butter (7 for the crust, reserve the other 1 T for later)

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Filling:

1 14-oz. cans sweetened condensed milk (fat-free works fine)

1 T butter

Chocolate Layer:

6-oz. milk chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line an 8x8-inch baking pan with parchment paper or foil so that there are 2-inch flaps on each side. (This is a necessary step in order to lift the bars out of the pan and cut them later.) Spray the parchment or foil with cooking spray; set aside.

2. Place the sugar, flour, and salt in food processor; pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter, cold and cut into small cubes; pulse until the mixture resembles small peas.

3. Dump the flour mixture into the pan and press down to form a dense, even layer. Use the bottom of a measuring cup sprayed with cooking spray to help flatten the crust. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the crust gets slightly golden brown around the edges--not too brown. Cool on a rack.

4. To make the filling, add the condensed milk and butter to a shallow saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring pretty much constantly (don't walk away, at least), and continue to boil and stir the mixture until it turns a medium caramel color, about 12-15 minutes. Pour onto the cooled crust and spread quickly with a spatula. It will harden fast. Allow to cool to room temperature.

5. For the chocolate layer, melt the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl in 30 second intervals, stirring between each, until the chocolate is just melted. Pour over the cooled caramel layer and spread quickly. Allow to cool and set in the refrigerator for several hours before cutting and serving.

6. To cut, lift bars from pan using the flaps of parchment or foil and place on a cutting board. (If the bars are really cold, allow them to sit for 10-15 minutes at room temperature before cutting so they don't crack.) Using a sharp knife, cut into 25 bars--5 rows by 5 columns.

I prefer to keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge to get that frozen candy bar-type snack.

Quick Blueberry Jam

2009-07-03T11:00:00.004-05:00

This recipe is, as Paula Deen would say, almost "stupid easy." Three ingredients, boil, stir, cool, serve. You can make a homemade berry jam in less than half an hour. When I needed a quick break from Moby-Dick this morning, and I remembered the two pints of fresh blueberries sitting in my fridge, this seemed like the obvious solution. And since the actual canning process terrifies me, a quick refrigerator jam is really my speed. Plus, I can't go to Big Bad Breakfast every time I crave blueberry jam, right?

Quick Blueberry Jam

(adapted from Local Flavors by Deborah Madison--simply the best farmer's market cookbook ever)

So the process is really quite simple. Rinse two pints of blueberries, regular or wild, fresh or frozen (thawed), and place in a big wide pot. Toss in 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar (taste your blueberries before adding sugar--the sweeter they are, the less sugar you'll need). Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon (or 1 lime). Stir, and bring to a boil. Once it hits a rapid boil, set a timer for 5 minutes and stir occasionally so that the sugar doesn't burn.

After 5 minutes, turn off the heat and spoon a little of the juice onto a plate and put that plate in the fridge for 7-8 minutes or until cool. Run a finger through it to see if it holds together. As long as its not still runny, your jam is done. (If it is runny, then return the pot to a boil for two more minutes and try this process again). Allow the jam to cool in the pot then ladle into Mason jars and place in the fridge. This jam will keep up to one month (if it lasts that long!).

Here are some ways to use this jam:

on toast or a fresh, warm biscuit
on cream cheese with whole wheat bread
on a block of cream cheese with crackers for a quick southern appetizer
as a salsa for fruit quesadillas (spread quesadillas with a mixture of softened cream cheese and grated parmesan; add some berries or peaches; toast on a griddle; spoon this jam--warmed--over top)
warm and use as a topping for ice cream or frozen yogurt
thin with a little maple syrup and warm up to use as a pancake topping

Let me know if you come up with any others, or if you adapt this method for other berries. I'm going blackberry-picking this afternoon, so I'll let you know how the jam turns out with blackberries, or a combination of blackberries and blueberries.

Sunday Morning Strawberry Muffins

2009-06-28T10:52:00.008-05:00

We celebrated Dan's 30th birthday last night with a huge Cuban-themed blowout: Cuban pork roast with a garlicky mojo sauce, creamy red beans and rice, bright lime-and-honey coleslaw, key lime bars (I'll post the recipe for these soon), and pitcher after pitcher of mojitos. Needless to say, we were both a little slow getting up this morning. The sink full of dishes was certainly not a welcome sight either. But there is something about post-party euphoria that still inspires me to make a little something to celebrate a wonderful night spent with friends, to commemorate the morning after the party with something to help us bask in the calm. The carton of nearly overripe strawberries in the back of the fridge led me to these muffins. Since I could not face large bowls of batter and more dishes, I made a small batch in bowls that would fill in the last remaining empty spaces in the dishwasher. Ah, the simple luxury of a strawberry muffin, the scent of tart sweetness and nutmeg, with little splashes of eye-opening red and pink--these really were a welcome treat on a sunny but groggy morning.

Thanks to all of you who came and made Dan's birthday memorable, and for those of you who couldn't make it, know we were thinking of you. Have a wonderful morning.

These muffins will be slightly tart; Dan says they taste like a muffin version of a Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie. If you'd like more sweetness, macerate your strawberries after you chop them (place them in a bowl with a few tablespoons of sugar and let them sit for 15 minutes). Drain them (or the extra juice will prevent the muffins from rising properly) then add them to the batter. Save the juice and stir it into softened butter or cream cheese for a sweet topping!

Strawberry Muffins

(Small Batch: Makes 6 regular muffins, 4 jumbo muffins)

2 T canola oil

1/4 cup milk

1/2 egg (beat the egg well, then pour in half)

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup AP flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

1/2-3/4 cup chopped fresh strawberries

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Line 6 cups of a muffin tin (or 4 of a jumbo) with muffin liners, or spray with cooking spray. (Do not spray more muffin cups than you use, or you will discolor your pan. If you're not sure how many muffins cups your batter will need, spray as you fill).

2. Whisk wet ingredients (oil, milk, egg, vanilla) in a small bowl.

3. Whisk dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices) in a medium bowl.

4. Add chopped strawberries to the flour mixture; toss gently to coat each one. (Coating them in flour before adding the wet ingredients helps them to be evenly distributed and rise with the batter instead of sinking to the bottom of the muffin.)

5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix gently with a spatula just until the flour is incorporated.

6. Fill each muffin tin to the top. Bake at 375 F for 15-17 minutes for regular muffins (or 23-25 minutes for jumbos), or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

7. Cool in pan for a minutes or two, then place on a cooling rack to cool for 10-15 minutes. Serve warm. Some strawberry butter would be fabulous here.

Pour yourself a hot cup of coffee (or cold glass of milk) and enjoy!

Simple Focaccia

2009-06-14T16:20:00.008-05:00

Two words: No kneading. If I don't have your attention, you've either never experienced the gorgeous yeasty scent of a bakery first thing in the morning and wished for that same sense of calm in your own busy home, or you're a bread purist with all the time in the world who can't believe that proper kneading might not be necessary to achieve a perfectly risen, puffed loaf. It's not. There are entire books on the subject, such as Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois (an excellent book), but the recipe I am posting today comes from Nick Malgieri's IACP Award-nominated The Modern Baker. He provides some quick methods for making traditional baked goods, such as croissant dough in the food processor instead of the usual time-consuming fold, roll, chill, repeat 4x method. This one, the focaccia, required no kneading, just a few turns in the bowl with a spatula. (The side benefit: fewer dishes!) I love it as a treat to take to the Grove for a summer concert, as a side to sop up dressing in a great salad, or just dipped in some good olive oil and balsamic vinegar--try raspberry balsamic for a fun change! Or dip in marinara for a corner pizza place treat. The photo above shows it as a side for a simple Greek Salad, a Jamie Oliver recipe. Great summer meal.

So here's the recipe (it also works as pizza dough):

Simple Focaccia (adapted from The Modern Baker)

4 cups AP flour

1 1/2 tsp. salt (a little less is you plan to sprinkle some on top as well)

1 envelope active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp.)

1 2/3 cup warm water

Pinch of sugar

3 T olive oil

Any dried herbs (rosemary, oregano, etc.) you'd like to include in the dough

1. In a mixing bowl or 2-cup measuring cup, combine the water, yeast, and pinch of sugar. Gently whisk in oil, and allow to sit until slightly foamy.

2. Whisk flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add any dried herbs--up to 3 T total.

3. Using a large rubber spatula, make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Pour in the yeast mixture and slowly stir to incorporate, from the middle of the bowl gradually moving outward, incorporating more flour as you go. Once the flour is mostly incorporated, start to fold the dough over on itself: Starting at the side of the bowl, dig down to bottom and flop (gently) half of the dough over. Repeat until no dry streaks of flour remain.

4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise is a warm place until doubled in size, from 1-2 hours. (I prefer to place it inside my gas oven when it's off, or on top of the pilot light--as long as the light's covered in your model--grilled bread is great, but not in the bowl!)

5. When the dough has doubled, prepare a 12x18-inch jelly roll pan: Lightly brush with oil.

6. Scrape dough out of bowl onto pan, being careful not to allow to to double over on itself. Press the dough out so that it fills the pan (lightly oil or cooking spray your hands if necessary). If the dough stretches and then springs back, cover it and let it sit for a few minutes, then try again.

7. Cover the dough with oiled or cooking sprayed plastic wrap and allow to sit and rise for an hour, until doubled in bulk. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425 F.

8. Once the dough has risen, brush with Olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, if your prefer (this step is optional).

9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the focaccia is golden brown (may take less time, depending on your oven). Allow to cool on a rack, then cut or tear and enjoy!

Focaccia is easy to make your own: add olives or chopped cured meat to the dough, top with olives, sliced ripe tomatoes, even grapes and nuts! With a recipe this simple, play around with it! Have fun--it's easy to forget that step in all the measuring, but I'm convinced you can taste an anxious baker in the final result. Pour yourself some wine and relax, knowing that you'll have a refined but simple treat in a matter of hours. (Just save some of the wine for when it's finished!)

Malt Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-06-07T16:47:00.002-05:00

You may notice a pattern in all of my cookie photos: all on a large cooling rack, in front of a window in the late afternoon sunlight. I'd never noticed this, but I do tend to bake cookies late on Sunday afternoons. You know that nostalgic notion of a pie cooling on a window sill? I guess cookies are my pie.

I'm preparing for one of my favorite Oxford events: the Summer Concert Series in the Grove. Dan and I love it. Every Sunday night in June we pack a picnic basket with a light dinner, a bottle of wine, and some dessert, we grab a blanket and the dog, and we head out for an evening in the park with music. It really seems like something out of a movie. Small children wander over and ask to pet our dog--they usually love when he licks them, though they are startled at first--friends meet us, and we all watch the sun set over the outdoor stage. It's quite perfect, really.

Tonight, we're taking a vegetable popover (basically a really thin frittata), some strawberries, a bottle of Pinot Noir, and these cookies: Malt Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies. I am the only person I know in this town who loves chocolate malts, so I'd hoped these cookies would only be for me *wink*. The dough tastes like a really thick old-fashioned malt like you'd find at the ice cream shop, Beaches & Cream, at Disney's Beach Club Resort (that's for y'all, Waldens). However, the malt flavor mellows as they bake and you end up with chewy, salty, chocolatey cookies that are begging to be taken on a picnic or dunked in ice-cold milk late at night. And I cannot even begin to describe what amazing ice cream sandwiches these would make: chocolate ice cream would take these over the top.

Give them a try; they're simple, low in fat and calories, and really rich and satisfying. Even if you're not a malt lover like me, I promise you'll love these cookies.

Malt Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

(adapted from Cooking Light, May 2005)

1 cup packed brown sugar (I used light, but any would work)

6 T malted milk powder (such as Carnation, find it in the hot chocolate section)

5 T butter, room temperature

3 T chocolate syrup

1 T vanilla

1 large egg

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Beat first six ingredients (through the egg) in a large bowl with a standing or handheld mixture until well-blended and fluffy.

3. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl; add in batches to the wet mixture, beating each batch on low speed until just incorporated.

4. Fold in the chocolate chips. At this point, taste the batter--if it is stiff, go ahead and start dishing out the cookies. If it is really soft, stick it in the fridge for 30 minutes. If the butter is too soft, the cookies will spread too much and flatten out instead of puffing up.

5. Place cookies by heaping teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased nonstick baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes, or until puffed. They will not look browned, although the edges might be slightly golden. Let cool on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes, then remove and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Homemade Granola

2009-05-30T08:55:00.003-05:00

It's a beautiful morning here in Mississippi: the sun is shining, the sky is clear, and I woke up to a gorgeous dew on the ground. Not so gorgeous when Mercer came in the house with soaking wet feet, but on a Saturday like this, much is forgivable. I have a long day of work ahead of me. I'm trying to meet a Monday deadline to turn in my Written Comprehensive Exam, the first of my exams that will lead to the dissertation and, finally, the degree. I only have a small amount left to go, but isn't it always toughest to finish a large project when the end is in sight? I keep stalling, making the grocery list or going to get coffee, hoping (subconsciously) that when I get home, the final paragraphs will have written themselves and I can proudly hand it in, for once in my graduate career, on time. Macs are supposed to be awesome, right? Why can't mine finish my exam when I'm not in the room?

Anyway, this exam, along with many other school concerns, is the reason I have been absent for so long. I have not stopped baking, of course, but when I made my pact to bake only on weekends, it never occurred to me that this would leave little time for blogging, especially when all midweek typing was somewhat goal-oriented. (What this goal might be is still up for debate.) I will try in the coming weeks to catch up, but I've also considered simply posting pictures of my last few months in the kitchen and taking requests. See a photo you like? I'll post the recipe. Let me know if this sounds good to you, since as always, I am a bit overwhelmed.

Today, however, I am feeling like anything is possible, which is why I've chosen to post for you my breakfast of champions, my Homemade Granola. It requires little more than the ability to measure (eyeball, really) and toss. Add heat, and you've got yourself a great breakfast dish (or snack) that will make you feel disproportionately proud of yourself (disproportionate to the amount of work you'll put in, I mean). And I especially love that this recipe is infinitely adaptable. Once you learn the method, although it's almost laughable to call it that, as it's really just separating dry, wet, and dried fruit, you can switch out any ingredients you like. I love to add in lots of whole grains like flax, oat bran, etc. to up the nutritional ante. In the past few years, granola's gotten a bad rap for being one of those foods that sounds healthy but isn't. And it's true--most brands in the grocery stores are more fat and corn syrup than health food. But as someone who has committed to baking healthy and eating less white flour, I can tell you that whole grains are expensive! The first time I made bran muffins (last summer), I had to buy boxes of flax seed, oat bran, wheat germ, etc.; twenty dollars later and I wished I'd just gone to the bakery. Don't despair, though--you use them in such small amounts that if you keep them in your fridge or freezer, most will last you a year or more, and you can toss them in various recipes. Even after multiple batches of whole-grain muffins, breads, and this granola, I still have those original boxes, beckoning me from the back of the fridge. I use them whenever possible.

So here's your basic method: Mix together dry ingredients (minus fruit) and spices in a large mixing bowl. In a small bowl, whisk wet ingredients. Add wet to dry, toss well (breaking up large pieces) and pour onto a foil-lined, cooking-sprayed baking sheet. Bake, toss, bake, toss, cool, add fruit. Done. Keep it in an airtight container in your fridge for a few weeks and add to yogurt (any flavor), frozen yogurt, even the top of cobblers: You can make a quick cobbler by sauteing fruit, pouring it on top of ice cream, and adding this granola. I've even seen granola bread recipes. Have fun and use your imagination.

A note on yogurt: I prefer vanilla, but I'm always having to buy plain low-fat yogurt for baking, particularly my banana bread. I don't know about you, but in my town, plain yogurt does not come in anything smaller than a 32-ounce container. I always ending throwing some (okay, a lot) away. However, I've recently realized that you can flavor plain yogurt with anything! I prefer to squeeze in some honey and add a 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract (to a 1/2 cup of yogurt). You can also add jams or preserves for fruit-flavored yogurt. You'll never get bored or waste yogurt. It's kind of like making your own vinaigrettes instead of buying big bottles from the store--you can change out the flavors whenever the desire hits you.

Homemade Granola

(adapted from A Real American Breakfast by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison)

Dry:

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup wheat germ

1/4 cup whole-wheat flour

1/4 cup oat bran

1/4 cup milled flax seed

4-5 T brown sugar (any kind)

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

(Feel free to add any other spices you like.)

(You can certainly add chopped nuts as well.)

Wet:

1/4 cup juice (apple, apple cider, OJ, cranberry--it all works)

3 T honey

1 T vanilla extract

2 T vegetable oil (or unsalted butter)

Add-ins:

Dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, currants, blueberries, cherries, dates, mango, apricots--whatever you prefer, just chop any large pieces)

Chocolate chips, hunks, or M&Ms (to make it more like trail mix)

Preheat the oven to 300 F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray liberally with cooking spray. Stir the dry ingredients well in a large bowl. Whisk the wet ingredients. Add wet to dry and toss until well-incorporated, breaking up large pieces. Pour the mixture on the baking sheet and bake for 15 mins., toss, bake another 15 minutes, toss, let cool. You want the granola to be about a shade darker than when you started, but really, let your nose do the work. You want it to smell strong and sweet, but not bitter or burnt. It will not be crunchy when you remove it from the oven--it will dry and harden as it cools. Once it has cooled, add in fruit and store in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Sweet and Salty Pleasures: Peanut Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-03-22T17:32:00.008-05:00

There is something I just love about this picture. I love the way the late-afternoon light from my kitchen window streaks across the cooling cookies. I love the way it harkens back to pie-cooling-on-the-windowsill simpler times, whether or not they actually existed. There's something very Mayberry about both the photo and the luxury of an afternoon of baking, and I think that feeling is exactly what I needed today. Tomorrow--Monday--Spring Break officially ends, and while I've been working during almost the entire break, I've been working at my own pace, on my own research, giving little thought to grading, teaching, or really anything that might distract me from the joy of writing about food, including food itself.

I thought I would wake up every morning during break and bake a wonderful new treat for breakfast--cinnamon rolls one morning, muffins another, doughnuts still another, and perhaps I'd even try my hand at bagels or brioche over the weekend. I did make the cinnamon rolls and we've breakfasted and snacked on them all week long, but in my effort to buckle down and write, I forgot to bake. And perhaps this is my non-Spring Break problem. I often wonder where my time goes during the week, and I think about this as I wake up, bake a breakfast goody, eat, clean up, shower, dress, and finally turn on my computer at noon. Anyone in the real world couldn't hold down a job this way! Not to mention the urge for cookies or brownies that usually hits around 3 pm, when I could be spending a few more hours reading. "But they need time to cool before dinner," the angel on one shoulder tells me. "True, but you have a degree to finish, and catering department events will not earn you a Ph.D.," the other angel (named Dan) replies. "Nor are you learning anything about food history by baking everything Nigella tells you to," he continues. "And ..." "Okay, okay," I interject, "Will you please both be quiet if I resolve to bake only on weekends, to make friends with my freezer so that brownie-satisfaction will be at my fingertips anytime I please, and to not equate practical with theoretical food knowledge?" The angels, for once, are silent. And I guess this is what I resolve to do--be a baking maniac on Saturday and Sunday, stock my freezer (and my friends' freezers) and spend the week, like any normal person who does not own and operate a bakery, working. And this is why you find me, Sunday afternoon, baking cookies and discussing Mayberry. If I can't live there everyday, at least I can spend my weekends inhaling the aroma of freshly-baked anything.

Today I was exploring the two essential elements of true indulgence: sweet and salty flavors. These cookies are perfect when you don't want a peanut butter cookie but you're just not in the mood for a chocolate chip cookie either. I often wonder why we don't use peanuts in more baked goods. Almonds, pecans, walnuts, pine nuts--all are fair game, but poor peanut, the forgotten nut. I love them in brownies, and in these cookies, they are right over the top. And for anyone gearing up for bikini season, they're from Cooking Light, only 2-3 grams of fat a piece, depending on how big you make your cookies. They do spread out a lot, so don't worry that your teaspoon-sized dollops look really small before baking. You're not going to end up with mini-cookies, I promise. And while the recipe doesn't call for it, I think a little sprinkling of sea salt over the tops before they go in the oven would be lovely. I'm my mother's daughter--there's no such thing as too much salt in my mind, especially good coarse salt.

Peanut Chocolate Chip Cookies

(adapted from Cooking Light, March 2007)

1/3 cup coarsely chopped dry-roasted peanuts (the recipe says unsalted--I disagree)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar (I prefer dark, but either, or a mixture, works well)

1/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 large egg, room temperature (just sit in out when you begin baking)

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt (you can substitute kosher salt)

(Cooking spray)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Place nuts on a small baking pan and toast in the oven for 5-8 minutes (until you can smell them); let cool.

3. Spoon flour into a dry measuring cup and level. Combine the flour, baking soda, and baking powder with a whisk. Set aside.

4. With a standing mixer or electric mixer, combine butter and sugars. Mix until well combined, 2-3 minutes. Add vanilla and egg; beat until smooth.

5. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture gradually, in several additions, beating on low speed. Fully incorporate flour, scraping down sides of bowl, before adding more of the flour mixture.

6. Stir in chocolate chips, peanuts, and salt.

7. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls (2 inches apart) on nonstick baking sheet of baking sheet covered with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 9-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

I made my cookies bigger, so the recipe yielded 28 cookies. The magazine says it should yield 38. Oops.

Note: I usually don't like warm cookies. I love these warm. Really, really.

Lemon-Almond Biscotti with White Chocolate

2009-03-18T21:50:00.000-05:00

I've always been intrigued by biscotti--I love the idea of a crunchy cookie that you can dip in a cup of espresso with a sort of nonchalant sophistication that I can only dream of possessing. The reality, however, often disappoints me. Biscotti usually tastes bland or stale, or it is not crunchy enough and winds up tough and chewy. It looks beautiful, swiped with chocolate or studded with dried berries, but all too often it has that superficial "wedding cake" effect: taste never exceeds (or even matches) the levels of anticipation.

This cookie is the first I've found that is truly everything I want from biscotti. It has a marvelous texture: crunchy and light, thanks to the addition of cornmeal (southern Italian recipe, perhaps?). Almonds and lemon are a perfect match for a light morning or after-dinner treat. And white chocolate complements the other flavors, adding just enough sweetness. When dipped in coffee, it becomes perfectly creamy. And that's the best part: These biscotti are meant to be dipped. They hold together and have just the right bite, whereas some other cookies fall apart and get those unappetizing crumbles in your coffee.

If you're going to try biscotti, start here. It's an easy recipe, and the texture is wonderful. They're also incredibly versatile: as appropriate for a Christmas party as for a May bridesmaid's brunch. Three easy steps: Make the dough and shape the logs (don't be afraid to use a ruler to check the size, and make sure both logs are the same size or they won't cook evenly). Bake once (until lightly browned), and cool. Cut, bake again, and cool. Simple, simple.

Pre-chocolate biscotti:

I love this recipe for its simplicity. How many baking recipes use only eight ingredients? I'm sure you could do so many variations: orange zest and pecans, maybe with some cinnamon sugar sprinkle on top, any dried fruit and nut, toasted pine nuts instead of almonds with the lemon zest, or, ooh, maybe some hazelnuts and cocoa nibs. More biscotti posts to follow.

Lemon-Almond Biscotti

(adapted from Everyday Italian)

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cornmeal

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 lg. eggs

1 cup sugar

3 T lemon zest (from about 3 large lemons)

1/2 cup coarsely chopped whole almonds

12 oz. white chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat. This is a very important step, as the dough will be very dry and sticky.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl with a good electric hand mixer) cream the eggs and sugar until they are a pale yellow, about 1 minute for the standing mixer or 2-3 for a hand mixer. Add the lemon zest, then the flour mixture, gradually, in about three batches. If the dough looks crumbly and does not pull together, add 1/4 cup water and the juice from one of the zested lemons. Add only enough liquid to help the dough mostly come together--you can knead in some loose flour as you form the logs. Allow the dough to sit for a few minutes.

4. Wet your hands lightly so they don't stick to the dough. Divide the dough in half and form each into a log on the baking sheet, 9 inches long, 3 inches wide, and about 1 inch high.

5. Bake at 325 F for 35 minutes or until logs have risen slightly and are lightly browned around the edges.

6. After 35 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and allow the logs to cool for 5-10 minutes. Then remove them from the pan carefully and, using a serrated knife, slice into 1/2-3/4 inch slices and place these slices back onto the pan.

7. Bake at 325 F for 25 minutes more.

8. Remove and allow to cool completely.

9. Once they have cooled, heat one bag of white chocolate chips in a double boiler over very low heat. White chocolate burns easily, so stir it frequently, and any steam that gets in the bowl can cause it to seize. (Basically, keep an extra bag on hand just in case--white chocolate is far less forgiving than other types of chocolate.)

10. Once the chocolate has melted, use a narrow spatula and spread it along the tops of the biscotti. Variation: Hold the biscotti in the middle and swipe the top through the white chocolate. This creates a pretty ridge along the top. Place the biscotti back on the baking sheet and allow the chocolate to cool and set.

11. Brew a pot of strong coffee and enjoy--these are amazing dipped in coffee.

Spiced Americano

2009-02-18T07:46:00.004-06:00

I apologize for my temporary absence. I have hit that point in my semester when projects, conferences, and grading are coming on strong, leaving me little time to bake, and even less time to write about it. I have some great posts lined up: "Good Cookies," Lemon Tart with Sour Cream Glaze, Lemon-Almond Biscotti. But to give you an idea of busy my life has been, a few evenings ago I revisited the pleasure of Duncan Hines Triple Decadence Brownie Mix--that was as "from scratch" as I could get. They were brilliant. I've always loved the perfect saltiness of boxed brownies. For these, I'll even eat the edges; they're that good.

But the recipe I'm posting today is simple but rejuvenating, and could save you a few dollars at the coffee shop. This Spiced Americano is sweet, but with a nice heat from cinnamon, allspice, and ginger. And it's easy: make a quick simple syrup, make some espresso, boil some water, mix and serve. You can certainly add whipped cream with a dusting of cinnamon for a nice presentation, but usually I just want a slightly more sophisticated version of my morning caffeine jolt. The syrup even makes enough for a few more drinks--just keep it in a jar in the fridge or make extra to give it as a gift to a friend who has an even busier week than you do.

Spiced Americano

(adapted from Everyday Italian)

For the simple syrup:

1/2 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp. allspice

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring often, and reduce heat to low. Add the spices and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the sugar is completely dissolved. (Keep in mind, the spices will not dissolve and the liquid may look slightly grainy, but it should look mostly clear.) Allow to cool.

For the coffee drink:

1 cup brewed espresso (or very strong brewed coffee)

1 cup boiling water

Spiced Simple Syrup

To a small coffee cup, add 1/4 cup espresso, 1/4 cup boiling water, and 1 T of the simple syrup, and mix well. Add more espresso or water to taste. The simple syrup is very sweet. If you are using a regular to large-sized mug, double all of the amounts, though you may wish to cut back slightly on the simple syrup.

I hope your work goes well and the craziness passes. Meanwhile, though, add some sparkle to your coffee.

Raspberry-Ginger Tart

2009-01-28T09:14:00.000-06:00

Last February, Ellie and I shared a wonderful tart at Bottletree. It was a small raspberry-ginger tartlet, the perfect deep pinky-red for Valentine's Day. This tart, however, did not resemble any Valentine's dessert we'd ever tasted. Instead of being simply sweet, it left behind a strong heat, a gingery punch that stopped you in your tracks. I was left wondering if Bottletree had outdone itself in its metaphorical rendition of "love at first sight/bite." Sure, this post is starting to sound cheesy, but hey, it's almost Valentine's Day--when better to wear red and pink (ironically or not) and to write rhyming love poems about your first love, your only true love, your cat . . . whatever.

Anyway, when her birthday rolled around and she asked for a fruit pie for dessert, I fudged a little and created this tart. We'd talked about the Bottletree tart for the last year and could never decide if the ginger was in the crust, the filling, or both, or if the filling was jam or a homemade conserve, and I still can't remember if there was a little pastry heart in the center. I'm kinda thinking there was, famous as this town can be for irony. But I consulted a few recipes and came up with this dessert. It's not exactly like the tart we had last year: I used a crumb crust made out of gingersnaps instead of short pastry or shortbread, and the punch of ginger was not as strong, though I will say that the day after the birthday party, the leftover tart had quite a kick. Let it sit a day, I learned. I also added some orange to the jam, which Dan loved and I am on the fence about.

Note: To press tart dough or crust into the tart pan, use your hand to lightly press it down, then a flat-bottomed measuring cup to push it into the corners and create an even edge. (See below.)

Raspberry-Ginger Tart

Crust:

6-7 oz. gingersnap cookies (about 3o cookies)

2 T granulated sugar

4 T room temperature butter

Filling:

1 cup of raspberry preserves, seeded or seedless

1/4 tsp. orange zest (opt.)

1 T fresh squeezed orange juice (you can also use lemon juice and no zest)

1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. sugar (to taste)

Topping: (optional)

1/8 cup sliced toasted almonds

To make the crust:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Pulse the gingersnaps and sugar in a food processor until finely ground. If any large pieces remain after pulsing, break them up with your fingers. Otherwise, they will prevent the crust from combining smoothly. Add the room temperature butter and pulse until everything is combined.

Dump the crust mixture into a 9-inch nonstick tart pan with a removable bottom, sprayed lightly with cooking spray. (Place this pan on a baking sheet to make it easier to lift in and out of the oven.) Press it down lightly with your fingers. Once it is distributed over the bottom of the pan, use a flat-bottomed measuring cup to smooth it out and press it into the edges. This way, you won't end up with thick crust in the corners of the pan.

Bake the crust for 12 minutes at 350 F. You should be able to smell the gingersnaps and the crust should be a few shades darker. Allow the crust to cool before pouring in the filling.

To make the filling:

Scrape the jam into a small saucepan over low heat and add the rest of the ingredients: orange zest and juice, fresh and ground ginger. Stir often. Taste the filling when it has heated--if it needs some sweetness, add some granulated sugar (some jams and oranges are more tart than others). Once the filling is steaming but not bubbling, turn the heat off. Continue to stir often as you allow the mixture to cool. Once it has cooled slightly, pour it into the cooled crust. Smooth it out with a rubber spatula until it is even, then place the tart in the refrigerator to chill until set. (Keep the tart on the baking sheet to avoid breaking the tart by accidentally pressing up on the removable bottom before it has chilled.) Sprinkle the top with almonds when it has cooled slightly, if desired. It is better served the next day--the ginger flavor develops more.

Note: I cannot decide on the best method for this dessert. You can also bake the tart in a 375 F oven instead of heating up the jam and then chilling the tart. If you choose this method, still prebake the tart crust (placing the tart pan on a baking sheet for the duration of both baking processes) and let it cool. Meanwhile, mix the jam in a small bowl with the fresh and ground ginger and orange. Spread this in the cooled tart crust and bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow the tart to cool on the baking sheet completely before trying to remove it from the pan. It will also hold together better if you chill it for 8 hours after baking and cooling. Try to remove the bottom of the tart pan by wedging a thin spatula between the tart and the bottom, keeping the tart close to the platter so you can simply slide it off without breaking it.

Fudgy Mocha-Toffee Brownies (Mochaccino Brownies for short)

2009-01-23T21:07:00.004-06:00

I did not receive an espresso machine for my wedding. I'm not entirely sure I even registered for one, though I think I remember that somewhere in the midst of the All-Clad, Henckels, Le Creuset, and KitchenAid talk, Dan and I decided that we could wait on that one. He probably used the line I grew to love during the wedding days: "Where are we gonna put that?" I imagine it was, in the end, a matter of counter space.

I still crave espresso drinks at home, usually in the late afternoon, while I'm sitting comfortably at my desk (the desk that stylishly solved the problem of "where to put" my computer and cookbooks). I bought a small stovetop espresso maker that actually works pretty well, and trust me, I put it to good use. I've mastered the Caramel Macchiato and the Americano, but mochas still elude me. I can never achieve the smooth, deep blend of dark chocolate, milk, and espresso that is my weakness at Port City Java. (I think they call it a Mochaccino.) Anyway, when I think I just can't stand it anymore and I'm ready to drive 12 hours to Wilmington just to get one, I make these brownies. I found the recipe in Cooking Light over a year ago, and they've become quick favorites. Don't be put off by the "light" in the description--one taste of these luscious brownies and you'd swear I was lying even if I showed you the recipe. Dark chocolate, a double shot of espresso, and the salty crunch of toffee on top--these are just as great for breakfast as they are late at night when you want the soothing warmth of coffee without the jolt of caffeine.

A few things to note about these brownies: They are incredibly fudgy and gooey. This is wonderful for eating, not so great for cutting. It is difficult to slice them evenly and cleanly, as the knife tends to drag raggedly through even the coolest of brownies. Wipe off the knife after each cut, and try to drag the knife in a line in one smooth motion, rather than sawing up and down. A sharp knife is also a great option, but be careful not to scrape the bottom of your nonstick pan.

Also, the batter will be thick. Very thick. The first time I made them I was convinced something had gone terribly wrong. The final batter was the texture and thickness of a good exfoliating body scrub or face wash. Remember the St. Ives Apricot Scrub? While it's not the most appetizing analogy, if you've got that texture (but in chocolate) then you're on the right track. You literally have to scoop the batter into the pan and then pat it down with a spatula sprayed with cooking spray, coaxing it into the edges of the pan. It will not go gently, I promise you. It's like stretching pizza dough only to have it shrink back to size when your back is turned. Just be patient--in both cases--the final product is so worth it.

Mochaccino Brownies

(adapted from Cooking Light, September 2007)

Cooking spray

2 T instant coffee granules

1/4 cup hot water

1/4 cup (4 T) unsalted butter

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa (I use a blend of regular and Dutch-Processed)

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1/4 cup toffee chips (not the milk chocolate-covered ones)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Coat the bottom of a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

3. Combine coffee granules with 1/4 cup hot water (really hot tap water is fine). Stir until the granules dissolve. (You can do this right in a measuring cup to save on dirty dishes.)

4. Combine butter (cut into chunks) and chocolate chips in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute or until butter melts; stir until smooth.

5. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine the flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine coffee mixture, butter mixture, vanilla extract, and eggs in a medium bowl, whisking until smooth. Add the coffee mixture to the flour mixture and fold until just combined, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to incorporate all of the flour. The batter will be very thick.

6. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan, pushing it into the corners. Sprinkle with the toffee chips.

7. Bake at 350 F for 22-24 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.

Enjoy this sweet coffee fix!

Booking It, Stephanie-Style

2009-01-12T08:25:00.002-06:00

I enjoy reading Stephanie's Monday "Booking It" posts on her blog, Pointed Meanderings, and often feel compelled to respond to the same questions, but for one reason or another never seem to get around to it. Here are today's questions though--all about favorites--and, as my transition into working on my writing for the morning, here are my answers, many of them (of course) food-related.

1. Do you have a favorite author?

I have many. Had you asked me in college, I would have said Ernest Hemingway. A few years ago, the answer would have been Janet Evanovich for her Stephanie Plum novels. Currently I'd have to say Anne Tyler. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant is phenomenal, and Back When We Were Grown-Ups is amazing. Breathing Lessons, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize, is incredible, though not my favorite book of hers. I'm actually teaching Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant in a comp class this spring; I hope my students like it, as I did when I first read it in college. I also love Sandra Cisneros: The House on Mango Street, Woman Hollering Creek, Caramelo--she's also at the top of my list. And Nigella Lawson, for her food writing--beautiful.

2. Have you read everything he or she has written?

No for all, though I probably come closest to having read everything for Hemingway and Cisneros.

3. Did you like everything?

Yes for all. Woman Hollering Creek is my least favorite Cisneros text, as were, honestly, To Have or Have Not and The Old Man and the Sea. But there are none that I wouldn't read again to see what I think now.

4. How about a least favorite author?

Um, Faulkner. Sorry.

5. An author you wanted to like, but didn't?

Hmm. I'm sure there have been plenty, but I probably never finished the book and just don't remember right now. Maybe Cynthia Shearer (The Celestial Jukebox)?

Banana Bread: Back to Basics

2009-01-10T22:30:00.000-06:00

"In life, there are cooks, and there are bakers." I heard someone say this recently, and I have to say I somewhat agree. My husband certainly would. Baking means measuring, waiting, leaving things alone to let them work on their own. Cooking means tossing, tasting, improvising. This is not to say that baking is less creative than cooking, but it is more, well, measured. My husband is a fabulous cook. He can go to the store and be inspired, then come home and make something wonderful. He created a dish of brussels sprouts and bacon that he makes for me on my birthday; it is truly better than cake. He is a genius with seasoning and anything pig. I can't remember the last time I saw him use a recipe, unless it was one he created and I forced him to write down. He can bake, but he hates it (the whole recipe-measuring thing). I, on the other hand, also love to cook, but I need a recipe to feel safe. But baking is my true passion. I love the serenity of baking, the patience it demands, how it just slows you down, requires you to be careful, thoughtful, but how all of the steps are laid out for you and all you need do is follow them to be successful. Nothing in life ever seems so clear and simple. It's Zen, with sugar.

Banana Bread is one of those dishes that rewards a small amount of patience with a delicious and comforting treat. This is my favorite version. It uses plain yogurt to tenderize and add moisture, and it is perfect made with frozen bananas, which I pretty much collect on a weekly basis as there's always that one banana in each bunch that no one ever eats. Keep in mind that you make quickbreads like banana bread using the same techniques you use for muffins: dry ingredients whisked together in a large bowl, wet ingredients in a medium bowl, add the wet to the dry, and gently fold together with a plastic spatula until just mixed. Do not overmix or whisk--this will make the bread dense and tough. (To fold: Press your spatula through the center of the mixture to the bottom of the bowl and gently scoop and lift the bottom ingredients to the top. Turn the bowl a quarter-turn; repeat. Do this until you do not see any large streaks of flour.)

A note on using frozen bananas: When you're baking, you want everything to be at the same temperature, in this case, room temperature. Give the bananas plenty of time to thaw--a few hours--and do not worry if they turn brown. They will be fine. Also, a lot of moisture will come out as they thaw. Be sure to drain most of this out over the sink before you add the other wet ingredients to the bowl or else the batter will be too thin and wet and the bread will not rise properly.

Banana Bread

(adapted from Baking Illustrated)

2 cups (10 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup pecans (toasted, opt.)

3/4 cup (5 1/4 oz.) sugar

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

3 very ripe large bananas, mashed well

1/4 cup plain yogurt (low-fat is fine)

2 large eggs

6 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled (do this step first to give the butter time to cool)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Melt the butter in a small bowl; allow to cool.

2. Spray a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside. Move an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 350 F. (You can butter and flour the pan if you want, but cooking spray is easier and less messy.)

3. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and pecans in a large bowl (weigh all ingredients is possible); set aside.

4. Mix the mashed bananas, yogurt, eggs, butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl until well-blended.

5. Make a well in the flour mixture and pour in the banana mixture. Gently fold in the banana mixture with a rubber spatula. Fold only you see no more large streaks of flour; be sure to scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl as well. The mixture will look very chunky.

6. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Variations: You can add chocolate chips, any kind of nut, coconut, orange zest, dried fruit, basically anything you want to this batter.

Peppermint Bark

2009-01-08T23:09:00.002-06:00

I apologize for what I'm sure will be a series of late "Christmas-Goodies" posts; life got so hectic pre-holidays with end-of-semester grading and Dan's job application process, packing for several trips over the break and trying to finish up last minute activities--I was just never able to post some of my new favorite treats. I even forgot to take pictures of a few, so I guess I'll just have to make them again!

This peppermint bark was inspired by--what else?--a Williams-Sonoma catalog. Dan was leafing through it one day and brought it to my desk, page folded back to reveal a photo of their signature bark, and said to me, "I want you to try to make this." Anything for the stressed but proud newly-minted Ph.D. in our house; I set to work finding a recipe. It was not hard--plenty of similar recipes exist online. I found a few, but the one that caught my eye used peppermint extract in the white chocolate layer, which not only adds to the overall freshening effect, but also cuts the sweetness of the white chocolate. I prefer a mixture of semi-sweet and milk chocolate for the bottom layer, but do what you like best. And as for chopping the peppermint candies, well, you can crush candy canes in a plastic bag with a rolling pin, but since I happened to have individually wrapped peppermints, I just chopped them with a knife, realizing too late that I had not one but two (!) perfectly good food processors that could have done the job.

This certainly looks like the holidays, but it would be a wonderful after-dinner treat or hostess gift at any dinner party, any time of year. And the possible variations are endless. You could use this same concept and instead of peppermint extract and peppermint candies, sprinkle dried fruits and nuts over the top and mix orange extract in the white chocolate layer. Dried cherries or cranberries and pistachios would be wonderful, or perhaps even dried pineapple and toasted coconut with macadamia nuts. You don't have to layer them either--white or dark chocolate alone would still be delicious. Have fun, and use your imagination! This could be your new signature: The Girl With the Chocolate Bark. (Any Confessions of a Shopaholic fans out there?)

Peppermint Bark (like Williams-Sonoma's)

12 oz. chocolate chips (I used 10 oz. semi-sweet and 2 oz. milk chocolate)

14 oz. white chocolate chips

1/2 tsp. peppermint extract

1/2 cup chopped peppermint candies (use a sharp knife or a food processor)

1. Line a 13 x 9-inch pan with foil, leaving some hanging over the sides. Smooth it out on sides and bottom. Spray with cooking spray.

2. Melt semi-sweet chocolate chips in a double boiler or microwave until almost melted. Pour into prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Chill for 30 minutes or until set.

3. Melt white chocolate chips in a double boiler; whisk and scrape bottom of bowl periodically. When the chips are mostly melted, stir in the peppermint extract. Take off the double boiler and allow to cool for several minutes, stirring a bit, before pouring onto the chilled chocolate layer.

4. Working quickly, pour onto the chilled chocolate layer, smoothing with a spatula. Pour the chopped peppermint candies evenly over the top and chill a few hours until set.

5. To cut, either allow to come closer to room temperature and slice with a knife, or, to make it look more rustic, cut it straight out of the refrigerator using a knife tip as a chisel and just sort of break it apart into uneven pieces. I prefer this effect.

Something Incredible

2009-01-08T13:03:00.003-06:00

One of my favorite lines from The Incredibles occurs when Mr. Incredible, exhausted from another long day of being asked to trick people out of their well-deserved money at an insurance company, returns home to see a neighbor child sitting on his Big Wheel at the end of the driveway. In a tired voice, Mr. Incredible asks him, "What are you waiting for?" The child replies, candidly, innocently, "I don't know, something amazing I guess." Aren't we all? I love that he asks not what the child is looking at, the obvious question, almost a cliche in our somewhat cynical and paranoid society: "What're you looking at?" No, he asks him what he is waiting for. Why sit and wait for events out of your control to amaze you? Why have faith that you will be amazed? I don't have an answer for that. But I know that child wanted to be amazed and knew that something out there could make it happen. So he waited, hoping, as we all do, that it might happen today.

Another day, sitting at the end of the driveway, waiting for something to amaze him. And in the end, it did: The fake superhero's cape becomes trapped in the plane as the mutating super-baby changes form, causes the plane to explode, and the family drops slowly to safety thanks to stretchy Elasti-Girl. Not my dream, but perhaps it is yours. It was that step that allowed superheroes to once again be a part of society, to promote optimism and humanity instead of cynicism and greed. That's more like it. What recipe inspired this musing? None in particular. I was thinking about doughnuts and this is what I came up with. You can make the connections. I'll go make some doughnuts.

Simple Orange Rolls

2009-01-06T22:30:00.007-06:00

I love a good cinnamon roll in the morning, but they tend to make me want to curl up on the couch with a cup of coffee, a good book, and a blanket, rather than waking me up and preparing me for a long busy day. These orange rolls are an excellent middle ground: still warm, gooey, and sweet, but not so reminiscent of the weekend that they are inappropriate (and even somewhat depressing) on a Monday. What makes these rolls even more weekday-appropriate is their simplicity: a tube of french bread dough, a block of cream cheese, an orange, some sugar, and you're done. Start them before you get in the shower and they'll be ready when you're done--and your house will smell bright and amazing, the best way to start your day.

Here's the recipe, adapted from the December 2008 issue of Southern Living:

Simple Orange Rolls

You'll need 1 orange, a roll of Pillsbury Crusty French Loaf (in a tube next to the biscuits on the refrigerated aisle), a package of block-style cream cheese, butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, and powdered sugar.

Set a 4-oz. block of cream cheese (half of a regular 8-0z. package) in a bowl on the counter to soften. You can absolutely use a low-fat cream cheese--I did and the rolls were great. Preheat the oven to 375 F. (You can set the cream cheese on top of the stove to speed up the softening process.) Spray an 8 or 9-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. When the cream cheese is done softening, add 1 1/2 teaspoons of orange zest (about one medium to large orange) and 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar, and beat with a hand mixer until smooth and uniform in color. Unroll the tube of bread dough on a floured surface and spread with the cream cheese mixture, leaving a 1/4-inch border around the edges. Sprinkle this with 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Roll the dough, beginning with the long edge. Try to make the roll tight, but not so tight the filling squeezes out. Also, try to keep the width of the roll even. Once you have finished rolling, place the roll seam side down and cut it in half. Cut each of those halves in half, and each of those into three pieces, to make a total of twelve. To cut, saw the sharp knife back and forth; don't just push straight down. Don't worry if the dough smashes down as you cut it--work quickly and reshape the rolls if necessary once they're in the pan. Keep in mind that they will rise and expand as they cook. Place the rolls in the pan, brush the tops with one tablespoon of melted butter, and bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned on top. When the rolls are done, whisk together 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of orange juice (from the orange you zested earlier). Drizzle this over the hot rolls and serve immediately.

This recipe is so simple, but it uses several techniques that are very important to baking. Here are a few.

Zesting: When you zest the orange, be sure to take off only the zest, none of the bitter white pith. What remains should still be a pale orange, not white. Think about those orange wedges or citrus rings your mother used to put on your plate with breakfast (or at least my mother did). Only the thinnest outer layer is really orange--that's what you want. Remember when you accidentally bit into the tougher white part of the wedge when you were trying to get that last bit of sweet orange flesh? That's what you don't want. (Check out the orange ring in the photo at the top of this post--that orange has been zested already. See how it's still a pale orange? You shouldn't see white when you zest.) You can use a Microplane (my favorite tool), a hand grater (just use the finest holes; you don't want wide strips of orange), or even that strange-looking little zester that came with your bar tools set--you know, the one with the four tiny little holes at the end? That's meant to take off thin strips of citrus zest; just be sure to chop them before you put them in the cream cheese mixture. Though you may love citrus, remember that you only need 1 1/2 teaspoons of orange zest (about one medium orange). As Sabrina tells Linus in the remake of the Hepburn classic, "More isn't always better Linus; sometimes it's just more." In this case, more orange zest just makes the rolls too bright, almost bitter, even if you were careful not to grate into the white pith. And finally, if a recipe calls for both the zest and juice of a fruit, zest it first--the grater needs the firmness of the uncut fruit to zest easily. You can save the fruit if the recipe calls only for zest--just wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge. The skin may turn kind of dingy, but the fruit will be fine for awhile.

Softening: Temperature is very important when baking. Cakes and cupcakes usually call for softened butter. This means that the butter (or cream cheese, in this case) should give gentle resistance when you press a fingertip into it--it should yield to the pressure, but your finger should not slip right through the stick. The time it takes for butter or cream cheese to soften depends on the temperature of your room. Or you can try my method: Place the butter on a plate and stick it in an oven that is turned off for about an hour. Or, in a pinch, place the plate in the microwave for about 10 seconds. Remember, you do not want the butter to melt--it should still hold its shape. Properly softened butter will take in plenty of air when you cream it with sugar, and this intake of air is part of what helps cakes to rise and be light and fluffy. The softening in this orange roll recipe is only to help the cream cheese mixture be more spreadable, but it is the same technique you will need when making plenty of other desserts. (Keep in mind also that butter in pastry--pie crusts, for example--must be cold in order to create air pockets when it melts in the oven; this is how pastry becomes flaky. Softened butter in this application would make the pastry chewy, not flaky.)

Measuring dry ingredients: Brown sugar measurements are almost always "packed," meaning you pack the sugar in as you go and it will probably hold its shape when you dump it into the bowl, like making towers of a sand castle in buckets. Granulated sugar is measured by scooping and shaking or leveling off the excess with a knife. Flour is not meant to be packed or scooped. It is best to weigh it using a kitchen scale, but if you don't have a scale or the recipe you're using doesn't give weight measurements, then either spoon the flour lightly into the cup and level it with a knife or scoop the flour out and drop it back into the container several times to lighten it, then scoop and level. You want the flour to be fluffy, not packed. Too much flour will make a recipe dry and dense.

"Crackled" Snickerdoodles

2008-12-11T09:33:00.005-06:00

Decadence. Pure decadence. While in these tough economic times "decadent" should perhaps not be the slogan for the holidays, what if we were able to combine it with resourcefulness to approach something special enough for the holidays but "green-inspired" all the same? I give you these cookies. While they may not look decadent on the surface, haven't we learned to look a bit deeper?
There. Yes. That's decadence. Only during the holidays might I muse over the utter gluttony of stuffing one cookie with, yes, another cookie, and then turn these musings into reality. But only during these particular holidays might this action seem not like gluttony at all, but instead like traditional resourcefulness, like the frugality on which much of our nation's food culture is based. The Midnight Crackles I made last week produced 52 cookies--52!--and while they were wonderful, there are only two people in my household, and we've had colds and thus have not had a lot of company. That amounts to 26 cookies (and a stick of butter) per person. Of course, I froze some to take to North Carolina, as my mother-in-law and sister-in-law requested, but even then, 52 cookies! Many failed cakes-turned-trifles have taught me the pleasure (or perhaps, the habit) of turning one baked good into another, which got the wheels turning. I then remembered a recipe in a recent Bon Appetit (September 2008) for Brownie-Chunk Cookies, which used chilled brownie pieces instead of chocolate chips in a basic butter cookie recipe. Well, I thought, since my Midnight Crackles were flavored with cinnamon, why not use them in another holiday favorite of mine: Snickerdoodles. I love the crunch of the cinnamon-sugar when you bite into them, the characteristic lightness of the dough, and even, like the Midnight Crackles, the invitingly cracked tops, giving you just a hint of what's inside. They remind me of that present under the tree that the dog chewed the corner of--thanks to her, if you look closely enough, you can almost guess what's beneath the shiny wrapping.

Because they were both frozen and dense to begin with, the Crackles cut beautifully with a sharp knife. I just chopped them into small squares and tossed the crumbs so the Snickerdoodles would maintain their traditional look without being dotted with dark crumbs. I chilled the squares while I prepared the batter. I knew I needed to look for a Snickerdoodle recipe that was not too light so it would stand up to the Crackles. I found just the one in the September 2007 issue of Cooking Light: Puffy (not flat) cookies with a dark smattering of cinnamon-sugar on top. And since many of the reviewers said that it wasn't "that light," I didn't feel too bad adding a non-light cookie to the mix. Suffice it to say, though, I won't be winning any Cooking Light recipe contests with this one. Once the dough was finished, I folded in the chilled Crackle pieces using my hands after the rubber spatula failed and then I chilled the dough for about 30 minutes. This step was key, otherwise the butter would have been too soft and the Snickerdoodles would have flattened out in the oven, leaving mini chocolate boulders on their dusty surface instead of cleverly hiding them beneath their mounded surface. I wanted the necessary amount of holiday deception; that perfect hiding place for gifts, rather than stuffing them under the bed where anyone can find them.
I considered, for a second, not rolling the cookies in cinnamon-sugar; I was afraid it would be overkill. Absolutely not--this is what makes them festive. I love the crunch of the sugary crust, like the top of an oversized bakery muffin.
Because the Crackles were already baked, they did not melt like chocolate chips would and thus created some odd cookies shapes. Which one does not belong? (Here's the Holiday Baking version of good old "Where's Waldo?")
Thank goodness for friends, or my house would be covered with plates of cookies. Merry Christmas!

"Crackled" Snickerdoodles

(adapted from Cooking Light, September 2007, and from Bon Appetit, November 2006 and September 2008)

8-10 baked Midnight Crackles, chilled or frozen (see previous blog post)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 lg. egg

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

Cinnamon-Sugar:

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1. Cut Midnight Crackles into 1/4-inch squares with a sharp knife. Discard crumbs (use a sifter or your fingers) and chill the pieces.

2. Combine 1/2 cup sugar, brown sugar, and butter in the bowl of a standing mixer or in a large bowl with a hand mixer; cream until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla; beat until creamy and well-blended.

3. Combine flour, baking powder, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, and salt; whisk. Add flour mixture to butter mixture gradually; beat until just combined. Fold in the Midnight Crackle pieces, and you may need to use your hands, as the dough will be stiff. Try not to overwork it or get it too soft. You can always redistribute the pieces while you are rolling the cookies into balls later.

4. Chill for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 F.

5. Combine the 1/3 cup sugar and 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon in a shallow bowl with a whisk. Shape the chilled dough into 30 balls (each about the width of a quarter or slightly larger) and roll them in the cinnamon-sugar. Place them 2 inches apart on a nonstick baking sheet sprayed lightly with cooking spray.

6. Bake for 8-9 minutes or until tops just crack. Cool on sheets for 1-2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

7. Enjoy!

In order to just make the Snickerdoodles, simply leave out the Midnight Crackles. No other steps need be changed. You could even bake half the dough then add in some Crackles and bake the other half. Or you could use any other dense cookie in place of the Crackles--use your imagination!

Banana-Butterscotch Muffins

2008-12-08T19:55:00.006-06:00

In The Joy of Muffins, Genevieve Farrow and Diane Dreher include a chapter called "Between-Meal Muffins," which consists of a miscellany of muffin recipes that are too sweet or spicy or savory to be breakfast muffins or dessert muffins, muffins that have the complexity to be enjoyed alone, when the tastebuds are fully awake and are not distracted by other flavors. These are the muffins I prefer. While blueberries certainly have their place in my summer morning repertoire, I usually prefer a subtle mixture of orange zest and cinnamon sugar, or pine nuts and lemon. These are to be savored on their own, resting crumbly on a napkin next to your computer or, better yet, a good novel and a warm blanket. Some muffins transcend even this "between-meal" status and achieve something, if not greater, then altogether different. These Banana-Butterscotch Muffins heartily resist categorization. They are too sweet for morning, though the banana is reminiscent of a good smoothie, making them too much like breakfast for dessert. "Well, serve them for brunch, then," you might say--depending on your menu, this could be a good choice. If you are serving wintery Christmas-morning foods such as spiced sausage and potatoes, these muffins would be an excellent addition. But if you are planning a lemony, citrusy bridesmaids brunch, well, try blueberry. I tend to crave them late at night, with a steaming cup of tea--the strength of the butterscotch is a perfect stand-in for a hot toddy or other cold weather nightcap. Let others fight shopping crowds; I'd rather be reminded of the holidays with the sultry whisper of butterscotch.

I made this recipe into 36 mini muffins, though I am told it easily makes 12 regular-sized muffins. If you make minis, I recommend chopping your butterscotch chips into roughly smaller pieces or, if you are so lucky, finding mini butterscotch chips to round out the theme. You could also certainly use chocolate chips, of course, but that would be an entirely different experience.

Banana-Butterscotch Muffins

(adapted from Nigella Express)

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (though I imagine these could stand up to whole wheat or white whole wheat flour)

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

pinch salt

2-3 very ripe bananas, mashed (slightly over a cup)

1 cup butterscotch chips

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F and either spray a muffin pan (or two minis) well with cooking spray or line with paper liners. The butterscotch chips do not melt like chocolate--instead, they tend to caramelize and stick to the pan.

2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and soda, and salt in a large bowl with a whisk.

3. Pour the oil into a medium bowl. Beat in the eggs, then add the mashed bananas. (Be sure to mash them before mixing them in with the eggs and oil to avoid overbeating the eggs.)

4. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently fold them in. Stir only until all of the dry ingredients are moistened. When there are a few streaks of flour left, add the butterscotch chips and continue folding to distribute them.

5. Using an ice cream scoop or disher, place the batter in the pans, filling each cup about 3/4 full. Bake regular muffins for 20 minutes and minis for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. Cool in pan 5-10 minutes and serve warm.

I have yet to try this, but I imagine these would be excellent with a sweet whiskey glaze. Hmm--what visions of sugar plums might this induce?

Midnight Crackles

2008-12-01T16:02:00.005-06:00

I was always one of those weird kids who twisted her Oreos apart, scraped out the white filling, and ate the chocolate cookies. I never understood the kids who acted like the chocolate cookies were just a vehicle for the filling; it always seemed gritty and overly sweet. Don't even get me started on Double Stuf Oreos. I only ate the filling when the cookie had been soaked in cold milk long enough that the components blurred together into melty goodness. I have spent much of my adult life searching for a cookie recipe that was a softer version--like an Oreo dipped in milk--of the outside of the Oreos.

I've found something better: Dorie Greenspan's Midnight Crackles. I had marked them in an old issue of Bon Appetit magazine (November 2006) but somehow, had never gotten around to baking them. I found them again when I was recently creating an index of magazine recipes; they seemed like the perfect after-Thanksgiving sweet. Small, chocolatey (I needed a bit of a break from pumpkin) and spicy--the perfect transition into the Christmas season. And the larger-than-life magazine photo made them look perfectly seductive, cracked and crisp on the outside, soft and sweet on the inside--like those Oreos of old. And the best part: they did not require creaming butter and sugar, a process that always seems to result in too-soft cookies, at least in my oven. Instead, the butter is melted with the chocolate and brown sugar in a saucepan--the stove does the work for you. Just chill the completed dough, roll pieces into balls, press them onto a cookie sheet, and bake. While they hold up well for about a week, they are best warm right out of the oven, with, of course, the requisite glass of cold milk.

Press them lightly to flatten, and bake on either a Silpat or a nonstick sheet sprayed with cooking spray (or a parchment-lined baking sheet).

I love how these cookies look like truffles before you bake them. It is like watching one glorious treat morph into another, like magic.

Midnight Crackles

(adapted from Bon Appetit, November 2006)

10 T unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces to help it melt

1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar (the molasses in dark sugar will be too strong)

10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used 8 oz. bittersweet and 2 oz. semisweet--because that's what I had)

2 1/2 cups AP flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa (not Dutch process--again, too strong)

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon (heaping is fine)

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

(At this point, spices such as ginger, allspice, and coriander can be added or substituted--you could even add some cayenne for a bit of heat.)

2 large eggs, room temperature (since you'll be adding them to a warm mixture)

1. Melt the butter, brown sugar, and chocolate (not the cocoa powder) in a saucepan over low heat, whisking frequently. When the mixture is smooth, pour it into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large bowl to use with a hand mixer.

2. Sift the dry ingredients together.

3. Add the eggs, one at a time, to the butter-chocolate mixture, and beat until well incorporated.

4. Gradually add the dry ingredients and mix until they are all incorporated and the dough has pulled away from the sides of the mixing bowl to form a ball.

5. Cut the dough in half, flatten each slightly onto a piece of plastic wrap, wrap tightly, and chill for at least an hour and up to three days. If you chill it for longer than one hour, leave it on the counter for 15-30 minutes before you plan to work with it. The cookies will not only be easier to work with but they will crack--as the title suggests--perfectly if they are not too cold.

6. Place the oven racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 350 F. Prepare your baking sheets.

7. Working with about 1 T of dough at a time, squeeze and roll it into a ball between your palms, place on the baking sheet 1 inch apart, and press down lightly with your fingertips (like you are making crisscross marks on peanut butter cookies with a fork).

8. Place a cookie sheet on each oven shelf and bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheets between shelves and front to back halfway through. Bake just until the tops are slightly firm--if you lightly tap it, it should not sink, but it should feel very delicate.

9. Cool on sheets for 2 minutes, then transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Allow sheets to cool completely before using them to bake another batch.

Makes about 50 cookies. They will keep up to a week and can be frozen, wrapped airtight, for 2 months.

Giving Thanks

2008-11-29T17:43:00.002-06:00

I realize this post title (with some variation, of course) is quite common around this time of year--in fact, I'm slightly late posting on this topic as my friends' blogs indicate--but I am so thankful for the best week I can remember. I just woke up from my recovery nap and I am smiling for reasons quite apparent. Dan and I prepared our first Thanksgiving dinner for all of our parents at our house in Oxford. It was a resounding success. The food all turned out well, but even better, everyone got along brilliantly. I am so grateful for this--that I could happily tell others that my in-laws were coming for Thanksgiving. I love them all dearly and this was the best holiday I could have imagined.

It was made even better by the fact that this year my birthday fell on Thanksgiving. I was born on Thanksgiving and always love celebrating my birthday on a holiday of thanks. This year, my husband, knowing that I would be cooking a full holiday feast on the actual day, gave me a birthday week. I am so thankful to have married someone who not only loves to cook but loves to challenge himself in the kitchen. Now that he has turned in his dissertation, he has decided to teach himself the art of French cooking. Not having a butcher in town has been difficult, but he began Monday with Steak au Poivre and my birthday favorite, Brussels Sprouts with Shallots and Bacon. I must be the only person I know who looks more forward to brussels sprouts than cake on her birthday. But when Dan makes them, they are magnificent and incredibly luxurious.

Tuesday night he took me out for my other favorite meal: Mexican food and a pitcher of beer. Ever since my college days in Texas, there is nothing more comforting or festive than enchiladas smothered in red sauce, cheese, lettuce, and sour cream, a basket of hot chips, and a dish of queso with traces of salsa running through it. And of course, a cold mug of Dos Equis XX. Thank you, Dan, for knowing that this meal out would make me happier than any expensive dinner--though that was to come.

Thank you to our mothers for volunteering for dish duty, especially since the first few years of wedding china means nothing can go in the dishwasher (no matter what the back of the plate says). Thank you to Dad for bringing the hit of the party--a two-and-a-half pound bag of peanuts. Football and peanut shells can always bring a family together. Thank you to Deak for football tickets for "guy time" and to Donna and Mom for a wonderful girls shopping day, even on Black Friday. Thank you to everyone for understanding that the noise at 208 on the evening of the Egg Bowl was worth it when you tasted the Shrimp and Crabmeat Wontons, the wedge salads, and the Lobster Mac and Cheese. And thanks to Dan for making me try new things, getting me out of my familiar ruts, and as a result, I am even thankful for my new favorite wine, the Goats Do Roam Pinotage. And for the extra dessert from our harried but lovely waiter.

Thank you all for a wonderful holiday, for making it the best it could be (and the best it could taste). From Dan's grilled turkey to Donna's smoky gravy to Mom's bread dressing, it was such a success; thank you for the stories I'll be able to tell for years.

Pain au Chocolat

2008-11-24T13:31:00.005-06:00

With the promise of a long, lazy Sunday afternoon ahead of me, I decided that today would be the day. Today, I would make my own croissant dough. Today I would make Pain au Chocolat. I pulled out Rose Levy Beranbaum's Pie and Pastry Bible that Dan had given me for Christmas last year and found not only her recipe for croissant dough but a beautiful photograph of her Pains au Chocolat--deep golden brown and flaky, you could see all of the layers of pastry and the chocolate peeking out from the ends. If I could even get close to that, I thought, I would count the day a success.

As we often must do with an undertaking such as this, I told a friend what I was planning to do and offered her some if the pastry turned out well--this committed me to actually going through with it. I learned very quickly that this dough is not at all difficult; it gets its reputation, as so many baked goods do, from the amount of time and patience required, not from any needed degree of skill. It saddens me that as a society we've chosen the phrase "it's too hard" to denote anything time-consuming, anything from which we cannot obtain instant gratification but must instead take pleasure in the process. I'm not saying that I will make my own croissants every weekend--it did take about 10-12 hours, start to finish, but that first bite was heaven. Crusty, flaky, tender, warm, sweet and salty--imagine a French bakery and a crowd of tourists smiling to the strains of Edith Piaf's sultry "La Vie en Rose" and you've got the feeling just about right. Comforting and familiar, if not entirely authentic.

I'm not going to type out the recipe, as I did not use only one and I think talking through the process, as Beranbaum does in her books, is the most approachable way to begin. In case you're wondering, I also used The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking Book, as it contained diagrams of the rolling and folding process and I am somewhat spacially deficient.

So first you make a dough using about 10 ounces of flour--you can use entirely all-purpose flour, a mix of all-purpose and bread flour, all-purpose and whole wheat flour, or all-purpose and whole-wheat pastry flour. Warm up 3/4 cup of milk, place a couple tablespoons with a packet of active dry yeast and a 1/2 tsp. of sugar in a small bowl and allow it to sit for 20 minutes to get bubbly and foamy. Meanwhile, in a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, fluff up the flour, 1 tsp. salt, and 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar. Switch to the dough hook and add the yeast mixture and slowly pour in the rest of the milk. Let them mix for about 4-5 minutes--the dough should be smooth and silky and should not stick to the bowl. It may look like there won't be enough liquid to soak up all the flour--there will be. Resist the urge to add more milk. In the time it took me to go the fridge and pour more milk in my measuring cup, the dough hook had worked all of the flour into the mixture and I ended up pouring the milk right back into the carton. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turn it to coat, and let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes. Using a spatula, fold it over on itself, recover, and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours and at most overnight.

Meanwhile, knead 2 sticks of butter--cold but softened--with 1 tablespoon of flour (it's easiest to do this with the butter and flour in a ziplock bag) and form it into a 5-inch square. Chill for 30 minutes. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into an 8 or 9-inch square and place the butter square diagonally in the center. Fold the flaps of dough to cover and moisten the edges with water if they need help sticking. Chill for 30 minutes.
Next, roll the dough into a long rectangle, three times as long as wide (20 x 7, 18 x 6), the shortest part facing you. Fold it like a business letter--bottom third up, top third down. Make sure the edges are even--moisten to seal if necessary. This is one turn. Cover in plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes.
Complete three more turns, rolling, folding, and chilling. After the last turn, chill the dough for a couple of hours. After letting it rest at room temperature for a few minutes, roll it into a long rectangle as before, but a little longer and wider. Cut it in half lengthwise so you have two very long strips. Cut each of those in half, and then each of those halves into thirds. You should have 12 rectangles. Place 1/2 ounce of good chocolate at the end of each rectangle and roll it so the chocolate is covered and the edges of dough overlap--moisten to seal. Place the roll seam-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving a few inches between each. Cover in plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray and let rise for 2 hours. Before baking, brush the tops with an egg wash. You can refrigerate the rolls at this point and bake in the morning, or for up to two days. You can also freeze them, unbaked, for a few months, but be sure to use more yeast in the beginning as freezing tends to kill some of the yeast.

To bake, preheat the oven to 400 F. Five minutes before baking, place a glass dish filled with an inch of hot water in the oven. Bake the pains for 20-22 minutes or until golden brown on top. Remove and allow to cool for at least ten minutes before eating. You can reheat them later for 5 minutes in a 300 F oven, or you can freeze them and reheat for 8 minutes.

I find they fit best if you place them diagonally on the baking sheets.

How pretty is that?
I baked one batch immediately and refrigerated one to bake in the morning. I think the batch that got a night's rest in the fridge actually tasted better. While they did not rise as much, the layers separated better and they were more tender. This may have been my imagination, as a cup of coffee and a lazy morning make everything better, but don't be afraid to put off baking these. They work anytime. And as I said, they're not hard--lots of repetition and my palms are a but sore from rolling the dough, but it's an accomplished sort of pain. The kind that builds callouses and character.
Enjoy!

Cranberry-Apple Crumble

2008-11-21T21:39:00.005-06:00

Because it is early in the season, I was allowed to make dessert to eat during the Carolina game. Yes, "allowed." The language certainly sounds patriarchal, and my use of it perhaps suggests that I am not as liberated a woman as I may claim to be. Believe me when I say that this is absolutely not the case. In this context, the person doing the "allowing" is me. Despite my love of baking and Friday night desserts, I would happily give that up for a Carolina win. And eating on the couch during a conference game is akin to streaking across the Dean Dome every time Hansbrough prepares to shoot a free throw: Distracting and potentially disastrous for the outcome of the game. Which is why it is wonderful that tonight is not a conference game.

You have to understand, my husband is a devoted UNC basketball fan. His rules for games used to fascinate me, then they frustrated me, and now, well, they frighten me because they are beginning to make sense. I learned that you must drink the same drink for the entire game--a new beer is fine, but you cannot switch from Sam Adams to Coors, for example, and I've seen the resulting changes in the players' performances. I realized that taking a bite of a Zapp's Cajun Crawdaddy chip ensured a hit free throw; if I slacked in my snacking, the team suffered. Dan's still convinced that Carolina won a 2005 playoff game because he retrieved a Hershey's kiss wrapper I'd thrown away mid-game from the trash and placed it, dirty and crumpled, back on the coffee table where it had been for the entire first half. And then they won the National Championship. So yes, I was allowed to make dessert last night because it was early in the season and it was not a conference game. But do not expect many more Friday Night Dessert posts until April.

I chose to make a Cranberry-Apple Crumble. I'd made it before using sweetened dried cranberries, but as I still had a few bags of fresh cranberries I'd frozen left over from last season, I decided to see if fresh could be used in this recipe. I learned that not only can you use them, but I would absolutely recommend it--it was wonderful, festive, tart, and the feeling of those bright red cranberries popping in your mouth is incomparable. The dried version has nothing on this one. What I especially love about this recipe is that it can be made ahead--even the apples. Just squeeze some lemon juice over them and place them in the fridge and it will hold for hours, giving the cranberries time to thaw and the sugar time to macerate the mixture. And the crumble topping can be made even weeks in advance and frozen, and can even be baked from frozen. What a great thing to have on hand--just make a batch or two and you're always ready for a baked apple or pear or a crumble like this one. In other words, this recipe can serve one to eight, depending on your needs. I can't think of a better idea at the end of a long day than cutting up an apple, tossing it with cranberries, sugar, and lemon juice in an oven-safe bowl, tossing a handful of the crumble on top, and baking for 30 minutes. Your very own bowl of bubbly sweet-tart goodness--what a luxury. Try this, even if you're on your own. I doubt there's anything a bowl of warm dessert and a few hours of Colin Firth (just a suggestion) can't fix.

Cranberry-Apple Crumble

(adapted from Cooking Light, November 2007)

Filling:

1/4 cup (or a couple of handfuls) of fresh or frozen cranberries (dried cranberries are also good)

1 T fresh lemon juice

4 apples, peeled and chopped into chunks (at least two should be sweet--Braeburns or Galas--to offset the tartness of the cranberries; I like 3 Braeburns and 1 Granny Smith)

1/8 cup sugar

Topping:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour (oat flour is also lovely if you want to make this even healthier)

6 T brown sugar

6 T old-fashioned rolled oats

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg (freshly ground is best)

3 T chilled butter, cut into small pieces

Serve with light vanilla ice cream (I like Hagen-Daaz light vanilla bean ice cream).

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. The prepare the filling, toss all ingredients into a large bowl. Cover and place in fridge if not baking right away. Or coat an 11 x 7 baking dish with cooking spray and place mixture in dish.

3. To prepare topping, combine flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg in a bowl with a whisk. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle butter mixture over apple mixture and bake at 350 F for 35 minutes or until crust is browned and filling is bubbly.

4. Serve with vanilla ice cream. The great part about using fresh cranberries is that they begin to burst and create a thick sauce at the bottom of the crumble. Use a spoon and drizzle some of this over the ice cream--don't let it go to waste!--and your dish will really look fancy.

This should serve 8, but if you want to indulge in more, go right ahead. Enjoy the holidays!

Fighting the Spice Cake

2008-11-14T10:11:00.002-06:00

The title says it all. I have, for several weeks now, been fighting with a new spice cake recipe. On the surface, everything seems fine: no instructions are left out, as was the case with the Spanish Omelette we made for dinner last night (if what makes it Spanish, according the the recipe blurb, are the potatoes and onions, why leave the potatoes in the ingredient list but out of the directions? Nigella, I love you, but oops). All of the ingredients appear to be in correct proportion. The method suggested for mixing the batter--beating rather than folding--seems appropriate for a cake, even a loaf cake. So why, after several attempts, does my cake continue to fall to a depth of at least an inch right down the center of the loaf??? The sides and bottom are certainly done after 50 minutes at 350 F, and would burn if I left it in longer. I'm afraid to raise the oven temperature to 375 F in hopes that the middle would rise faster for fear that the other parts of the cake really would burn. I've adjusted ingredients, consulted a Science of Baking book, all to no avail. The middle will not rise.

Why all the fuss you might ask? Why not just abandon the recipe for one of the thousands of other spice cake recipes in the world? It's the best damn spice cake ever . . . flavor-wise. It has just the right proportion of ginger to allspice, cinnamon, and nutmeg, it has a dark, dusky flavor from the addition of a few tablespoons of cocoa powder, and the crumb is light--not too dry or moist--and relatively consistent (except, of course, for the fallen cake ceiling). It is an amazing cake, both for a light dessert or toasted with cream cheese for breakfast. I am determined, this holiday season, to perfect the spice cake. Whatever it takes--a change in the pan, ingredients, even the addition of a few pounds to my friends' waistlines (yes, I will ask this sacrifice of you)--I will prevail.

Tomorrow . . . the bundt version. Stay tuned.

Cinnamon Apple Scones

2008-11-10T19:16:00.000-06:00

This picture does not do these scones justice. Look at them in relation to the large blue coffee mug. They are huge. I mean it--they are bigger-than-my-hand bites of buttery goodness. And butter they have--three sticks to be exact. If you're still reading, you understand butter the same way I do: as something to be revered, not to be avoided. Butter is also a privilege not to be abused. So many old recipes, especially old Southern recipes, use obscene amounts of butter to saute vegetables and enrich sauces, to make icings (frostings?) and various other baked goods. It's not always necessary. Sometimes, as we've been learning as a nation in the last few decades, a good olive oil is best for both the vegetables and our hearts. Sometimes a lemon-and-powdered sugar glaze is just as good as a frosting, and less-saturated-fat vegetable oil can produce fluffy cakes and muffins. Sometimes we can improve upon past generations' butter intake. And it makes it all the better when it's front and center in pie crusts, pastries, and yes, these scones. Use good butter and you will bask in simple luxury.

Dan's friends were visiting us a few weekends ago for a 30th birthday reunion. His friend's wife had arranged the entire trip as a surprise for her husband, and we did our best to introduce them to Oxford, Mississippi. We took them to Taylor Grocery, the Grove, and the Auburn game (we won!). We'd planned on a Halloween outing to the Square, but, as we were all close to entering a new decade in our lives, we fell asleep. (I just hope that my Sarah Palin costume will not be as relevant next year.) Which leads me to my next point. He's a lawyer; she's a doctor. He works days at a firm in North Carolina; she works nights as an ER resident. It seemed like we all needed a little home-baked comfort food, and she had brought me The Foster's Market Cookbook as a hostess gift. Enter these scones. I had all of the ingredients in my pantry and they turned out to be the perfect grab-and-go food that still filled the house with that nostalgic aroma of warm baked apples, spicy cinnamon, and, of course, creamy, luscious butter.

The recipe uses a pastry/biscuit method, cutting cold butter into flour and moistening with milk or water. It's remarkably easy to do by hand, with knives, or with a pastry cutter that you can pick up at the supermarket for under ten dollars. Leave the butter in irregularly-sized chunks--this is one thing a food processor does not do well. In the oven, the cold butter bursts and melts, leaving air pockets that make the dough, like a pie crust, nice and flaky and moist. The buttermilk tenderizes the scones, keeping them so soft. And you can really taste the butter, which is why I suggest using a good one. Check out the cheese counter at your grocery store--they often keep some specialty butters like Plugra and Kerrygold (which would be excellent in this recipe) there.

These only take a little over an hour to make, but if you want to prepare them ahead of time, freeze the wedges before baking. Then you can bake from frozen. Or you can refrigerate the unbaked scones up to 2 hours, covered with plastic wrap. Any longer and they get tough and do not rise properly.

Enjoy!
This is a great hands-on activity. It's a soft dough and because you have to work quickly to keep the ingredients cold, you don't feel like you are rushing without purpose.

I would actually put six wedges on each baking sheet, rather than the nine I have here. Give them room to spread out a bit. The soft, warm, buttery inside with the crunch from the sugar on top is pure heaven.

Cinnamon Apple Scones

(adapted from The Foster's Market Cookbook)

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 T ground cinnamon

3/4 lb. (3 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

2 cups peeled and chopped Granny Smith apples (1 large)

1 1/4 cups plus 2 T buttermilk (or 1 1/4 cup milk mixed with heaping T of white vinegar--let sit 5 mins.)

Egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 2 T milk

Cinnamon sugar (1/2 cup sugar with 2 T cinnamon)

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F.

2. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets and set aside (if they are good nonstick sheets, you may not need to grease them).

3. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.

4. Add the butter and cut it in--using a pastry cutter or two knives moving in a crisscross motion--until the mixture resembles course meal. (Or use your fingers if they are cold, or a food processor if you have a large one, but be sure not to get the butter too small. Transfer it to a large bowl to finish the dough.) Add the apples and lightly mix.

5. Add 1 1/4 cups buttermilk and mix until just combined and the dough begins to stick together. Add any remaining buttermilk one tablespoon at a time if the dough is too dry.

6. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide in half, and pat each half into two six-inch rounds about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut each round in half, then cut each half into 3 wedges. Be sure to work as quickly as possible to keep the ingredients cold; otherwise, the scones will spread too much on the oven and will not hold their shape.

7. Place the wedges on the baking sheets and brush with egg wash. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

8. Bake 30-35 mins., until golden brown and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

If you have leftovers, store in an airtight container up to two days and reheat before eating.

Dark-Chocolate Dipped Anise Biscotti

2008-11-07T16:15:00.004-06:00

Today, I saw the first Christmas decorations of the year, in the most unlikely of places: the windows of an open-air sports bar on the Square. No matter. That first Christmas display always means the same thing: time to start holiday baking! I'm trying this year to expand my winter spice repertoire beyond the usual cinnamon and nutmeg to include spices with more complexity and heat, such as mace and cardamom. For these biscotti, I chose anise seed. I didn't even have it in my pantry. (Yes, this is my idea of an adventure--buying a new spice.) It had such a strong scent that I did reconsider these biscotti, but something about this recipe had a hold on me. I faintly remembered that scent from cookies at my parents' parties when I was young. I love the idea of a simple dessert or on-the-go breakfast with coffee, and I wanted to try something unusual yet strangely familiar. I also wanted to try biscotti again. The last time I made them, I didn't bake them long enough and they had an odd texture--tough and chewy in the middle, though with a great flavor due to oats and honey. I wanted a second chance.

Thankfully, they turned out beautifully. Crispy and spicy, with a slight sweetness on the top from the chocolate. The anise is both warming and refreshing, a perfect after-dinner treat. They take a little while to bake--devote an afternoon to the project--but they are minimalist perfection. They'll add sophistication to your palate and your vocabulary--just remember that "biscotti" is plural; if you offer someone one cookie, it is a "biscotto."

Since you don't temper the chocolate, it does turn a bit gray. No one will mind if you don't. If you do, dip them the same day you serve them (you can bake them up to a week ahead). You can even bake and freeze them for up to one month--thaw, then dip in chocolate. This is an excellent option for those more organized than I. These are also light--under 100 calories each, and only about 2 grams of fat. How many Christmas goodies can you say this about?

Dark-Chocolate Dipped Anise Biscotti

(adapted from Cooking Light, November 2007)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. anise seed

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup sugar

2 T softened butter

2 large eggs

3 oz. premium dark chocolate (chips or coarsely chopped)

1. Preheat over to 350 F.

2. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Whisk flour, anise seed, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

3. Place sugar and softened butter in the bowl of a standing mixer or large bowl. Beat at medium speed until blended, about 2 mins. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture, beating until just blended. You will need to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times to incorporate all of the flour.

4. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly 7-8 times. Shape the dough into a 12-inch long log. Place log on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or cooking spray, pat into 1-inch thickness. Bake at 350 F for 40 mins. Remove roll from baking sheet and cool on wire rack for 10 mins.

5. Reduce over temperature to 300 F.

6. Cut roll crosswise into 20 (or so) 1/2-inch thick slices. Lay slices flat on baking sheet; bake for 10 mins. Flip slices; bake for another 10 mins. Cool cookies completely on a wire rack. At this point, you can refrigerate or freeze the cookies to dip later.

7. Heat chocolate over a double boiler until melted. Using a small spatula (1-inch across), hold each cookie over the double boiler and spread with chocolate, allowing excess to drip back into bowl. Be generous, but try not to let it drip down the sides of the cookies. Place cookies, chocolate sides up, on a baking sheet to cool. Let stand 1 hour or until set.

Yield: approximately 20 biscotti

Chocolate-Dipped Honey-Apricot Nougat

2008-10-31T08:43:00.005-05:00

When I was young, my mother and I decided to try to make candy. To be more exact, we decided to pull taffy. I was reading the Little House on the Prairie books at the time and Laura and her mother made molasses taffy, so I thought that would be a great Saturday activity. I'll admit, I probably should have made sure I liked molasses before I ended up with cookie tins full of the stuff, but as I've learned from my time in the kitchen, it's not really about the final product. When you screw up, no one cares. It's about the process--the satisfaction of trying something new, taking a risk and spending time with your loved ones. (At least this is what I'll be telling my in-laws when I make my first-ever Thanksgiving dinner this year.)

My most recent risk-taking endeavor was making this candy. I pulled out my trusty candy thermometer and prepared to caramelize some sugar. I then whipped egg whites, mixed everything, added dried fruit, and realized, slowly, that this process was nothing to be afraid of. Yes, there are lots of steps and yes, it's a bit time-consuming up front, but it's also quite simple. Follow the instructions and you'll be rewarded with a unique hostess gift or holiday treat. It's great way to make yourself slow down, to allow yourself a few moments of peace at an otherwise hectic time. Write a few cards while the sugar's caramelizing, or wrap a few gifts while the mixture is chilling. When you're finished, when every last piece of candy has been dipped in chocolate, make yourself a cup of tea, grab a good book and your homemade treats, curl up in a corner armchair, and think about what you've done. And smile.
Bring the sugar, water, and honey mixture to a boil with a candy thermometer. This is how it should look after a few minutes.
When the thermometer reaches 300 F, this is how it will look: light amber in color.
Slowly pour the caramel into the whipped egg whites and beat on high until the mixture thickens. It might look slightly chunky--that's okay. It won't stay that way. And rest assured, this cleans up easily. Let the bowl and whisk sit in soapy water for a few minutes and the mess--as cliche as it sounds--just melts away.
Chill for at least four hours, or overnight.
Assemble your ingredients and materials for the dipping stage. If you don't have a silpat, use parchment paper.
Chill in the fridge, then wrap in squares of parchment for a beautiful and nostalgic presentation.

Chocolate-Dipped Honey-Apricot Nougat

(adapted from Giada at Home, recipes on foodnetwork.com)

Cooking spray

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup water

1/8-1/4 cup honey (or leave it out--it is strong)

2 eggs whites, at room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup chopped dried apricots

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Equipment needed: a candy thermometer (you can make this recipe without one, but it's much easier to know the temperature this way)

1. In a 2 qt. saucepan over low heat, combine the sugar, honey (if using), and water. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring mixture to a simmer until the syrup is a medium amber color and registers 300 F-315 F, about 15-20 minutes.

2. In the meantime, spray a 9 x 5-in. loaf pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment or waxed paper, allowing at least a 2-inch overhang on each side. Lightly spray the paper with cooking spray.

3. About 5 minutes before the syrup is ready, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks (2-4 minutes).

4. With the mixer running on low speed, slowly pour the finished syrup into the egg whites. Increase speed and beat until the mixture is very thick, 6-7 minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract and add half of the chopped apricots.

5. Using a spatula sprayed with cooking spray, scrape the mixture into a prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the rest of the apricots on top. Fold the overhanging pieces of parchment over the surface of the mixture and press to flatten evenly. Refrigerate at least four hours.

6. Melt chocolate over a double boiler.

7. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper or a silpat. Remove the nougat from the loaf pan and discard the parchment. Using a knife sprayed with cooking spray, cut the nougat into thirds lengthwise, and each third into 10 pieces, making 30 pieces total.

8. Dip one end of each piece of nougat into the melted chocolate and place on the prepared baking sheet. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

9. For presentation, wrap each cooled piece in a 5 x 5-inch piece of parchment.

Variations: dried cranberries, cherries, or maybe roll the chocolate ends in crushed pistachios or pecans.

Grilled Pizza: Smoked Mozzarella, Peppadews, and Assorted Olive Bar Curiousities

2008-10-28T20:05:00.002-05:00

I still can't believe that I have not yet posted my recipe for homemade pizza dough. Like muffins, pizza is a staple baked good in my house--we make it every few weeks and I always make my own dough. It is the simplest bread dough--really, if you haven't worked with yeast dough before, start here--and the elasticity of it, as with the steamed pork buns of a few posts ago, is amazing. I remember a Top Chef night last spring when our potluck theme was pizza; every guest was greeted with me barking, "Feel my dough!" They were then required to give a Buddha's belly-esque rub to my little balls of dough before pouring themselves the then-needed glass of wine. But I think they understood when they ran their hands over the floured dough that it was something to behold. Not my dough specifically but the smoothness and strength and care of dough itself. We played with stretching it and shaping it, trying to gently shake it off the pizza peel without covering the bottom of the oven in cornmeal, and I do believe there's something to be said about getting all of your friends in the kitchen for a process like this. There were at least ten of us, but it didn't seem crowded. We were just drinking wine and tossing dough. Two of life's simple pleasures, shared with friends. There's something very right about that.

Tonight the pizza was just Dan's and mine, but we had another meal-induced revelation: In some forms, on some days, Dan will eat olives. Olives and mushrooms were almost the deal-breaker in my marriage, but after this pizza creation, we'll only have to look out for the common ones: money, kids, etc. While considering potential toppings, I began longingly checking out the olive bar at the grocery store. I figured I'd just buy a few olives, you know, for my half. It couldn't hurt, right? I filled a plastic container with peppadews (small red spicy-sweet peppers, perfect for an antipasto platter), which Dan does like, and some small green and black olives that, I learned later, were not pitted. But boy, were they good. I looked up from the olive bar to see the cheese counter, beckoning me with its silky Havarti and tangy feta. But I looked a bit deeper, as we must often do, and found the smoked mozzarella. I'd never tried it before, but something told me that this would be perfect for our grilled pizzas. After grabbing some regular mozzarella and turkey pepperoni, I headed home to make the dough.

Dan lit the grill--medium heat, coals even throughout (if you want to know more, I'll have him post the method on his blog)--and we got the dough ready. I made a garlic oil--heat sliced garlic, red pepper flakes, dried basil, thyme, and oregano, in a skillet until garlic is toasted but not burned--and chopped the olives and peppadews, and sliced the cheese. We placed everything on a tray so it would be ready when needed since the grilling goes fast. We placed the pizzas on the grill, brushed them with the garlic oil, then let them go for a few minutes. Then Dan moved them to the top rack, put on the toppings, and closed the lid. In order to brown the cheese, we did finish them off in the broiler, but you could do this entire process in a 450 or 500 degree oven. Just put all the toppings on and slide it in on a baking sheet or pizza stone.

So the recipes ended up being garlic oil on both, a sprinkling of salt and pepper, then peppadews, olives, and smoked mozzarella on one, and shredded pizza cheese blend and pepperoni on the other. Surprisingly, I think I may have to fight Dan for the olive pizza leftovers--it tasted like a muffaletta. We both agreed that if The Blind Pig, one of our favorite bars in Oxford, served pizza, this would be it. It was salty and briny and the smoked cheese was the perfect complement. Too harsh on its own, it mellowed when in melted and was absolutely perfect. I will be making this again, and I hope you do as well.

Homemade Pizza Dough
(adapted from Baking Illustrated)

Makes 3 pizzas.

1/2 cup warm water
1 envelope rapid-rise yeast
1 1/4 cups room temperature water
2 T extra virgin oplive oil
4 cups (22 oz.) bread flour or all-purpose flour (if you're grilling the pizza, go for AP flour--it has more structure)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
You can also add a squirt of honey if you like.

1. Gently mix the 1/2 cup warm water and yeast in a 2-cup mixing cup; let stand for five minutes until it gets slightly foamy.
2. Mix dry ingredients in the bowl of a standing mixer.
3. Add the room temperature water and olive oil to the yeast mixture; pour slowly into mixer with teh dry ingredients while the paddle in on low.
4. When a cohesive mass forms, switch to the dough hook and knead until smooth and elastic, probably five minutes. If the dough sticks to the bottom of the bowl, add flour by tablespoons until it doesn't stick or sticks less.
5. When you're done kneading, transfer the dough to a large oiled bowl and make sure it's covered in oil (so it won't stick) and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Set in a warm place to rise until doubled in sixe, probably 1 1/2 hours. (I like to put mine next to, or even on top of, the oven.)
6. When it has risen, roll it out onto a well-floured surface (don't punch it down no matter how cathartic that might seem) and knead it lightly into a ball. Divide into three even pieces and shape each of those into a ball.
7. Cover the two dough balls you're not using with a cloth so they won't dry out, and press one into a sort of circle. You can use your knuckles to stretch the dough. Don't be too gentle--it's an elastic dough so it probably won't tear, and if it does, piece it back together and keep pressing and stretching it. When it's the shape you want, brush it with oil, put on your toppings (cheese last so the toppings won't burn) and put it in a preheated 450 F oven for 8-12 minutes, depending on your oven. Let cool for a minute then slice and serve!

Stephanie's Book Questions

2008-10-28T12:01:00.003-05:00

On her blog, Pointed Meanderings, Stephanie posted a list of questions from the blog, Booking Through Thursday. Here are my answers--let's see how many of them are food-related.

The last book I bought: The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell (for Dan). The last book I bought for myself? Hmm. Maybe The Tuscan Year by Elizabeth Romer?

A book I have read more than once: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, by Barbara Kingsolver. I've also taught it in writing classes twice.

A book that changed the way I see life: Same as above--Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Kingsolver has a knack for that kind of thing.

How do I choose a book? By reviews, usually, though the cover draws me to it. I really have trouble buying anything, especially cookbooks, without reading amazon and critics' reviews.

Fiction or nonfiction? Umm, recipes? Food writing?

What's more important in a novel? Beautiful writing or a gripping plot? Gripping plot--sorry, know that's a horribly non-doctoral student thing to say, but what is a story without a plot?

Most loved/memorable character: Elizabeth Bennett in Pride and Prejudice. And, by extension, Mr. Darcy. And Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. And Mark Darcy. Basically anything that fits 7 degrees of Pride and Prejudice.

Books on my nightstand: Julie and Julia, and The Sonnet Lover.

The last book I read: And finished--Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, when I was at the beach in August. I absolutely loved it and I really want to read it again. And just before that I read Anne Tyler's Back When We Were Grownups, which is in my top five favorites.

Have you ever given up on a book halfway in? Not intentionally--I usually just stop fifty pages or so from the end. I have problems with closure.

So all, I guess the lesson here is that I do have a life outside of food--for two weeks in the summer on vacation. Better than nothing, right?

Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

2008-10-27T22:00:00.003-05:00

Along with working through the various baking books on my shelves, I am also trying out magazine recipes, like the Carrot Cake and the Chocolate-Cherry brownies. This one comes from an issue of Everyday Food that I bought in 2006. I only have one issue of this magazine, which means one thing: I must have bought it in an airport. I am convinced it is my inalienable right to buy at least three magazines whenever I fly anywhere--no matter how short the flight. If I fly around the holidays, all the better--November and December are hands-down the best months for food magazines. Dan and I figured out that I must have bought this one when we flew to Waco, Texas, for a Baylor Homecoming reunion. How much fun that was--sleeping bags on the floor of the condo I lived in my senior year of college, the condo my friend owned but which, since it was not being rented at the time, had no working power or water. If you think it's bad having 8 people sharing one bathroom, imagine 8 people and no bathroom--it was a weekend to remember. But of course, like all college reunions, it was the best--like no time had passed.

So I bought this magazine, but I never used it until last week when I was cleaning. A friend had asked me to bring a dessert to a potluck, and somewhere in the recesses of my mind I remembered him saying he liked pumpkin pie. This seemed like a natural choice, and it gave me a chance to use the big food processor I bought to make pie crust but never use since it turns out I make pie crust better by hand. Call me frugal.

This turned out to be such an easy cheesecake--no water bath or foil-wrapped springform pan--and yet it was so beautiful and pleasurable to make. Something about the marbling just makes me feel so competent and skilled, even though it's just dragging a butter knife through batter. It's like getting compliments from your rich cousins on the sweater you bought at Target--a satisfying feeling of tricking the world.

First, crush up chocolate graham crackers or wafers in the food processor (you get to use it twice in this recipe!) then drizzle in some melted butter. Press the crust into the pan and try to use the sides and heel of your hand to make it level, especially against the sides. I'm hyper aware of this. I'll never forget my first-ever homemade cheesecake. The edges of the crust were so thick you could barely bite through them. God bless him, Louis was so kind about it.

While the crust is baking, make the filling. You don't need to even soften the cream cheese--just be sure to scrape down the sides of the processor if you don't. Once everything's in, the filling should look like this.
Once you've melted the chocolate and mixed in some of the pumpkin mixture, you pour the rest of the pumpkin onto the slightly cooled crust, then dollop on the chocolate. Then you play--sweep a butter knife up and down the pan, then side to side, until it looks perfect to you. Don't overdo it or it will get all mixed and the marbling will be ill-defined. Not that this is the worst thing in the world, but it will detract from your sense of smug satisfaction.

Looks like stationery.
To cut the bars--once they have cooled and are completely chilled in the fridge--fill a glass with warm water and get a large knife and a clean dishtowel or paper towel. Lift the parchment out of the pan and place it on a cutting board. Dip the knife in the water, cut lengthwise in as few strokes as possible, and wipe off the knife. Dip it in the water again, and repeat this process until all of the bars are cut.
Arrange them on a plate, admire, and enjoy.

Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

(adapted from Everyday Food, November 2006)

For the crust:

1 sleeve chocolate graham crackers (8 full crackers)

2 T sugar

4 T unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line bottom and sides of an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil, leaving an overhang on all sides. Spritz with cooking spray and set aside.

2. In a food processor, blend crackers with sugar until finely ground. Add butter and pulse until moistened.

3. Pour crumb mixture into prepared pan and press gently into the bottom, working the crumbs into an even thickness. Bake until fragrant and slightly firm, 12-15 minutes. Set aside to cool.

4. Wipe out food processor to use for filling.

For the filling:

2 packages (8-oz. each) cream cheese (not fat free)

1 cup sugar

1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin puree

2 large eggs

3 T all purpose flour

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp. salt

3 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped

1. Place the cream cheese in food processor; blend until smooth (it helps to let is soften at room temp. a bit first). Add sugar, pumpkin puree, eggs, flour, spice, and salt. Process until combined, scraping down the sides with a spatula if necessary. Set aside.

2. Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each, until melted. (It took me three rounds. The residual heat will help melt a few small pieces if it's not totally smooth). Add 1/2-3/4 cup pumpkin mixture; stir to combine.

3. Pour remaining pumpkin mixture into prepared pan (with cooled crust). Drop dollops of chocolate mixture onto pumpkin mixture. Swirl using a butter knife (a spatula is too thick and the marbling will not be as pretty). Bake at 350 until cheesecake is set but jiggles slightly in the middle, 40-45 minutes.

4. Cool in pan. Cover, chill until firm, at least 2 hours (and up to 2 days). Using overhang, transfer cake to work surface. With a knife dipped in warm water, cut into 20 squares. Serve, or cover and chill up to 2 days.

Beignets, In Honor of Katie

2008-10-21T14:00:00.007-05:00

One of my best friends is coming to visit me this weekend. I am, quite frankly, ecstatic. She's one of the best cooks and bakers I know, and in honor of her, I'm posting the recipe for beignets we made the last time she was here. I will admit, I have never been to New Orleans and, though I hear that the beignets at Cafe du Monde are rectangular (not, well, globular) these are pretty amazing--melt-in-your-mouth, sweet and crispy, buttery, and so southern. I do recommend two gadgets for this project: a mini-disher and an oil/candy thermometer. Like any terrible southern cook, I'm afraid of frying. I have recently become much more confident, thanks to my digital candy thermometer I received for my birthday courtesy of my wonderful father-in-law. It has guided me through many a perilous frying endeavor. Well, the candy thermometer and Katie. My next attempt at frying post-beignets led Dan to tell people that his birthday dinner "involved hot oil and disappointment." Nice.

But if you watch the thermometer and the beignets and remove them when they are just beginning to brown, you will have a stellar breakfast. Add a light dusting of powdered sugar and some hot coffee with chicory and you can "laissez le bons temps rouler."

New Orleans Beignets

(adapted from The Glory of Southern Cooking by James Villas)

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 T baking powder

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 cup milk (the recipe calls for whole, but I used 1% and it was fine)

1 cup water

1 lg. egg, beaten

1 bottle vegetable oil, for frying (peanut oil would overpower the light taste of the beignets)

1/2 cup powdered sugar (for dusting)

Sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt into a large bowl. In a small bowl, combine the milk, water, and egg and whisk until well blended. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until the batter is well blended and very smooth.

In a deep, heavy skillet, heat 2 inches of oil over medium heat until it reaches 325 F (this is where that thermometer really comes in handy). Drop the batter using a disher, wiping off excess batter so it won't drip, into the fat, 6-10 at a time depending on the width of your pan. Fry until golden brown, 6-7 minutes, ad drain on paper towels. Do not stack them until they've cooled. Once they've cooled slightly, put the powdered sugar into a fine sieve and sprinkle over the beignets. I don't remember how many this recipe makes, but the book says it should make six servings, and there were four of us eating them. We did have some leftovers, so maybe four per person?

My Favorite Cake

2008-10-19T14:00:00.004-05:00

In my very first post to this blog (titled "Welcome") I gave the recipe for "My Mother-In-Law's Madeira Cake," by Nigella Lawson. At the time I had no pictures of the cake, but I promised to post them as soon as I could. I made this, my favorite cake, again this weekend, and just barely remembered to photograph it before I devoured it. With only a few ingredients, this proves that life's best pleasures are the simple ones. It tastes of butter and lemon, a perfect balance of sweet, salty, and creamy. The top, covered in turbinado sugar (a new addition of mine since I first posted the recipe) has a lovely crunch. This is one of those loaves that is perfect for breakfast, dessert, or any time you need it. It is indulgent, but not in the guilty sense we often assign to cakes or cookies. It just allows you to indulge in yourself, in your senses, for a few moments before returning to your day with a smile.

On Blogging 2

2008-10-19T11:39:00.003-05:00

I realized that my last post could have been slightly offensive, or at least slightly vague. What I meant is that what I love about blogs is the way people write about how they worked through a complex topic. I love to read about their lives as long as it doesn't read as a daily play-by-play. I love to watch as you think through the sensory details of a food, or work through the complex relationship you have to people or places or music. I love when you include lists that I can add to or questions that make me think. Basically, I love anything that acknowledges an audience, one that includes me as well as many others. I often thought of blogging the way my youth minister used to talk about prayer: Talking into the air and wondering if anyone's listening. I guess I like to know someone's listening. And I like to know you want me to listen.

Jam and Nut Tea Muffins

2008-10-18T14:14:00.007-05:00

I think it's funny that I haven't published a post about muffins on my blog yet (at least I don't think I have). Muffins are, by far, my favorite baked good. When I'm bored, I think about muffins. When I can't think of anything to do on a Saturday morning, I bake muffins. My freezer is usually full of muffins for a microwave-and-go breakfast any morning of the week. I've even been known to bake a batch of mini-muffins for conferences or long car trips to ensure sweet goodness wherever I go. So yes, it's odd that I have yet to post anything about this centerpiece of my existence. But here it goes--the first of many.

When I want muffins, the first place I turn is this little cookbook that looks like it comes from one of those "publish your own family cookbook"-type places. The Joy of Muffins is paperback, spiral-bound, black-and-white print with no pictures except of the clip art typical of community cookbooks. And it's amazing--hundreds of muffin recipes arranged by breakfast, afternoon, dessert, main-course, etc. And they're my taste--in other words, not too sweet. Some of them, like a Colonial Pumpkin Muffin I made, were almost more suited for a dinner roll than a breakfast muffin. Which I thought was awesome! I first heard about this cookbook in a Nigella Lawson cookbook. The one day, while browsing in Barnes & Noble in Wilmington, there it was. On a high shelf, almost out of site amongst other tall, glossy, colorful baking books, it perched unassumingly, waiting. I use it all the time, but even more often, I just flip through it to put me in a good mood. Mmm, muffins.

These muffins are a bit of a departure from the recipe I was using, which was for Swedish Strawberry Muffins. I did not happen to have any Scandinavian Strawberry Preserves, or any strawberry preserves for that matter. But berries are berries when it comes to muffins. I had some cherry preserves left over from the Chocolate-Cherry Brownies (the recipe is posted on this blog) and some raspberry and blackberry preserves. The recipe also called for sliced almonds, but I had pecans, which I have decided are the most versatile nut on the planet. I used them instead of pine nuts in a pesto this week, and it was rich and amazing. I am actually out of pecans now, and I do feel like a little something is missing from my life. But these are the jelly-doughnuts of muffins. You fill each muffin cup halfway full then dollop a little jam in the middle, then fill it up. It gets all warm and gooey and when you break it open, it's a (very hot) beautiful thing.

These muffins also use oat bran, and if you're like me and get confused by all the whole grains in the grocery store (bran v. bran cereal v. oats v. oat bran v. wheat bran and so on) here's what I use. I found it at Wal-Mart, I think, so it's readily available, and I also use it in The Best Ever Bran Muffins. Another post.

Jam and Nut Tea Muffins

(adapted from The Joy of Muffins, "Swedish Strawberry Muffins")

1 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup oat bran

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

4 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup preserves, any flavor (raspberry, strawberry, and cherry are excellent)

1/4 cup nuts (chopped pecans or sliced almonds)

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Spray a muffin tin well with cooking spray.

2. Mix together the dry ingredients (flour, oat bran, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar) in w large bowl with a whisk.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk the wet ingredients (beat the eggs and add the buttermilk and butter).

4. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet--stir just enough to moisten.

5. Fill greased muffin tins one-half full. Add a heaping teaspoon of preserves to the center of each, then cover with batter. Sprinkle nuts on top of each muffin, and bake at 400 F for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

6. Allow muffins to cool in pan for 5 minutes, then carefully take them out and place them on a cooling rack. Serve warm.

Makes 12 muffins.

On Blogging

2008-10-17T18:32:00.003-05:00

I just attended a workshop (faculty development) session on incorporating blogging into the freshman composition classroom. I plan to teach a "Food in Literature" themed comp course in the spring and had been toying for months with the idea of requiring my students to write themed blogs, if not on food, then on a hobby or a passion. (Basically, anything that's not political if possible. While Barbara Kingsolver can write "Life in a Red State" as a tongue-in-cheek reference to growing tomatoes in the South, I'm not sure I want to introduce the topic of politics and food. Yet.) But I began wondering, as a result of this workshop, about the act of food blogging in the first place. A friend of mine refers to blogging as being a practice "like someone asking you to sit through their vacation pictures." To some extent, she's right. I'm not particularly interested in someone's online journal (unless, perhaps, you're someone I know and rarely see), and quite frankly, I'm not interested in their political opinions. In this heated election season especially, I do all I can to listen to what the candidates say, to read the information I choose online, and ignore the rest. I am put out enough by Sarah Palin's ridiculous "rhetoric" (and that's if winking and midwestern colloquialisms count as rhetoric); I don't want to read what everyone else thinks of it. I don't want to know if you think she's smarter than she seems. We said this about Jessica Simpson, too--think she's qualified for a national political office? I don't want to know if you think she's a moron, or even if you take the more moderate position of "I just don't think she's qualified for this office yet." It's fine for you to feel this way, and it's fine for you to blog about it. That's just not why I'm interested in blogging.

I teach my students about writing with purpose, with a strong sense of audience. That's what blogging is for me. I write about what I love--the food I love. But I don't want it to be just about me. I don't want to catalog everything I put in my mouth. It's actually kind of creepy to think that there could be someone out there who wants to know what I ate for dinner each night. But I write when I want to share something about a food I love. The failed attempts don't make it in to the blog, and not because I don't want to be honest. Trust me, I've had to throw away plenty of moldy bread, saved only because I didn't want to admit it was really that bad. I burn the last batch of almost every cookie recipe I make--I just forget they're in the oven. I recently had a series of mediocre baking attempts before I realized I needed new baking powder. I've killed yeast with too-hot water and accidentally used rancid whole wheat flour. I don't include these because I want to share some recommendations on recipes--recommendations I won't know until the loaf or cookie or cake turns out right. I know what I did wrong, I know how I fixed it, and I want to show you. Maybe be able to include a beautiful photograph while I'm at it. I mean, who doesn't find a loaf of challah soothing?

I love reading food blogs because I love to read about food. I love to read about what people like myself love about food. I don't want to know about their daily lives, unless those details enhance the recipe or their thinking about an item. Maybe I prefer abstract thought to concrete detail; I don't know. Maybe I'm just too damn academic and detached from real life. But I still wonder, why do we blog? Especially about such an intimate act as eating? What is it we want to share? To feel?

Char Siu Bao (Steamed Pork Buns)

2008-10-16T16:25:00.009-05:00

I am entering a new world of breadmaking: Steamed bread. I love baking loaves of bread, smelling the cozy, yeasty aroma for the hour or so that it bakes, then enjoying that warm aura that seems to surround the loaf as it cools. What I'm about to do, however, is a bit different. I'm not baking this loaf--well, actually, non-loaf. I'm making steamed pork buns--a sort of Chinese stuffed bread. You make the bread dough as usual, kneading, letting it rise, etc., but then you fill each little dumpling with a pork mixture, seal it into a ball, and steam it in a bamboo steamer! This recipe has intrigued me since I first saw it in Cooking Light. Dan says he doesn't like five-spice powder. That's what seasons the pork tenderloin. Hmm. I'll make some green beans on the side. He likes those.

Here we go.

Well, the one-pound (or so) pork tenderloin's been rubbed with the five-spice powder (1/2-3/4 tsp.) and a pinch of salt, and I can't believe I forgot how luscious it smells! It's been cold and rainy all day, and this is another one of those spicy-sweet smells that just fills the house in minutes with its incense-like soulfulness. I am completely at peace with myself, my day, and my wine--a necessary component of any end-of-the-week recipe. 30 minutes in a 400 F oven just doesn't seem long enough--I don't want to take it out for fear the smell will disappear.

What is it that five-spice powder reminds me of? I'd never heard of it until a few years ago when Rachael Ray, under whose expertly fun direction I learned that I loved to cook, got on her five-spice powder kick. The star anise, which just sounds festive, reminds me of a potent licorice, and though I don't even like licorice, I love this spice. In its whole form, it looks like one of the old-fashioned Christmas tree ornaments we used to hang on the Christmas tree and the Hanging of the Greens service on a cool Sunday night, usually rainy like this one, a month before Christmas. Yet there's something almost meaty about this spice blend, a heartiness all its own, that does not come from the pork its rubbed on. I'm reminded of the inviting scents of pine or cedar, a woodsy smell mixed with mulled wine and fire pits.

Now the pork is resting and I've just finished the dough. This has to be one of the easiest, most elastic doughs I've ever worked with. One package active dry yeast, one cup warm water, three tablespoons of sugar (this seems like a lot--I'm excited to find out what these buns will taste like) and the mixture got all foamy after ten minutes or so. Then I added 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus a little bread flour when I ran out of AP), three tablespoons of canola oil, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Stir, knead (I needed--no pun intended--a little extra flour) and shape into a ball and let rise in a warm place for an hour. The dough felt incredibly smooth and soft--kind of like a good pizza dough, but even more tender and light. I think that's one of my favorite things about bread-baking: the feel of the dough in your hands, and the knowledge that you created this strong living thing. I'm not trying to make a dough-as-child metaphor, though I could continue this easily by talking about the dough rising independently of you, and though you try as hard as you can to control it, all you can do is check on it often and admire its imperfect perfection. But enough of that. Time to make the filling.

Cut the pork into thin slices, then slice those into thin matchsticks. Place the pork slices in a bowl along with 1 cup of sliced green onions, three tablespoons of hoisin sauce (nectar from the gods, I'm telling you) two tablespoons of rice vinegar, one tablespoon of soy sauce (low-sodium is good), one and a half teaspoons of honey, one teaspoon of peeled grated fresh ginger, one teaspoon of peeled grated (or minced) fresh garlic, and a pinch or two of salt. Mix all of these together, cover, and refrigerate. (Leftovers will be great on rice--just heat in the microwave.)

I was right--that is the coolest dough ever, and somewhat sweet. It is so elastic, which makes sense considering it is meant to be stretched over a chunky filling without breaking. But making the buns is so simple!. Spray the counter with a light coat of cooking spray--I think flour will make the dough too tough--and knead in 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder. Pat the dough into a circle and cut it (like a pizza) into 10 equal pieces. Cover the pieces you're not using with a damp dish towel so they don't dry out. Roll each piece of dough into a 5-inch circle with a rolling pin. Put 1/4 cup of filling into each. Gather the edges up and, holding the ball of dough and filling with your left hand, and twist the top with your right (or opposite if you're a leftie), patting and squeezing until it's sealed. Place on the bamboo steamer, seal-side down, and finish the rest--five per level of a two-level bamboo steamer. This is so much fun. I got Dan in the kitchen to try one, and you can't help but laugh--I don't even know why!--something about the fluffy dough and the twisting and the cute little dumpling/bun...this would be a great meal to make with kids. Also, if you want to make these ahead of time--up to two months ahead--place them, at this point, on a baking sheet instead of the steamer, freeze them, them put them in a ziploc. You can steam them straight from frozen whenever you need them. I'm totally doing this for a Top Chef night this fall.

Now I'm just waiting. Waiting. Checked on them--one broke open. Oh well. Waiting.

Done. 15-18 minutes of steaming, 10 minutes to cool, and they're done.

Wow. The bottom layer stayed intact better and puffed more than the top. Note: Next time don't roll the dough too thin and try to cut the pieces more evenly. And careful getting them out--a metal spatula works well since they stick a little (only a little). But oh wow. So good. You could really make these with any filling--and I'm totally going to try them all!

If you want the recipe without my comments, here it is: Steamed Pork Buns

A Fun Exercise

2008-10-14T15:58:00.002-05:00

I'm just finishing up what has probably been the most successful set of office hours in my teaching career--I was busy with great student meetings almost the full time, and my inimitable office mate kept me busy the rest--and I was browsing a few food blogs and ran across this: "12 Hours in ..." I'm not sure who began it, but it's a great exercise. Think of your hometown/favorite town (may not be one and the same for all of us) and ask yourself: If I only had 12 hours left in this city before being banished forever (harsh thought), what would I do? Or, more specifically for these blogs, where would I eat? Here are a couple responses, and the reader comments that follow are also great. I may even use this exercise with my 101 students to help teach reviews.

http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2008/09/12_hours_in_new.html

http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2008/09/twelve_hours_in_paris.php

The Amateur Gourmet is a new blog for me, but I love Chocolate and Zucchini. A young woman living in Paris named Clotilde writes it. Off-Square has several of her cookbooks and she's written for Bon Appetit. And her blog also has a French version--a great way to keep up my waning fluency!

Carrot Sheet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

2008-10-13T10:00:00.004-05:00

So my first question is this: Is frosting a Southern term? I always referred to this blessed part of dessert as "icing" growing up in Ohio--you know, the same place we referred to Coke as "pop" and used other midwestern-isms that make Southerners giggle at our lack of sophistication. I think the only time I used the word "frosting" was when I was talking about the tops of supermarket sheet cakes or 80s trends in hair coloring. Hmm. Things to ponder.

Anyway, I've learned that my pseudo-European husband who only eats sweets in the afternoon will eat dessert after dinner if he gets to choose. So I told him yesterday that I would be making a cake that evening and asked his preference. Surprisingly, he replied quickly and enthusiastically, "Carrot Cake!" I immediately panicked (just a little). I love to bake, but I have two fears in the kitchen: double boilers and layer cakes. Double boilers are just plain annoying--stir well and stuff won't burn in a pot. But layer cakes are finnickier than divinity in August! The layers are never even, they break, and I HATE trying to ice a cake when you get crumbs all in the icing--eww. Don't get me wrong--I'd love to be an amazing Southern baker who can make 18-layer caramel cakes without batting an eye. But there's a reason I like "rustic" desserts. Hard to mess up, and I find them much more aesthetically pleasing than fussier ones. Probably the same reason I like cottages and distressed furniture. But to return to my point, I was thrilled when Dan added, "But I don't want a tall layer cake--just a sheet cake. I think we'll be more likely to finish it." Hell yeah!

I knew exactly which recipe I wanted to use. In May 2005 (probably one of the only things I can remember from three years ago) Cooking Light ran an article about low-fat cakes. They look amazing, and when I checked out their carrot cake recipe, it didn't even call for egg substitute. I am against this product when baking. Instead, it used 2 eggs and 2 egg whites instead of 4 eggs, low-fat buttermilk, the best tenderizer ever, and the carrots themselves added plenty of moisture. It got sweetness and depth from a mix of granulated and dark brown sugar and a good amount of cinnamon. And the icing--oh boy, was it good. Fat free cream cheese, vanilla, and some butter, plus a billowing mess of powdered sugar--lovely. I topped it with some turbinado sugar and it really looked like the magazine photo and was every bit as good as any fussy layered cake. Strangely enough, despite this layer-cake diatribe, I have fond memories of carrot layer-cake. The first layer cake I ever made from scratch was a carrot cake with cream cheese icing, for Dan's father's birthday. It was the first weekend I'd ever "met the parents." I call it a success.

The cake bakes up beautifully on its own. Do be sure to line the bottom of the dish with parchment and cooking spray since you have to flip the cake out to ice it.

Icing it is easy. Since fat-free cream cheese is softer than regular, you do need to chill the icing for 30 minutes before putting it on the cake, then keep the cake in the fridge. Chill it without covering it for 30 mins.--the icing will harden a little, and then it won't stick to the plastic wrap when you do cover it. Yum.

Carrot Sheet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

(adapted from Cooking Light, May 2005)

Cake:

9 T unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, room temp. if possible

2 large egg whites, room temp. if possible

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. ground cinnamon (you could also add a pinch of allspice or cloves)

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

2 cups finely shredded carrot (if you shred it yourself, squeeze out the juice using a couple paper towels)

Frosting:

1/2 cup (4 oz.) fat-free cream cheese, cold

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/8 tsp. salt

2 3/4 cup powdered sugar, divided

1 T turbinado sugar (or orange sprinkles)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Coat a 9 x 13 in. pan with cooking spray, line the bottom with parchment or waxed paper, then coat with cooking spray again. Set aside.

3. Place 9 T butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in large bowl or bowl of standing mixer. Beat with a mixer at medium speed for about 5 mins. or until the mixture is light and fluffy and you can't hear the sugar scraping on the sides of the bowl. Add eggs and whites, one at a time, until each is well blended. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in 2 tsp. vanilla.

4. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups and level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour. Mix well after each addition. Stir in carrot.

5. Spoon batter into prepared pan and level. Tap pan once or twice on counter to get out air bubbles. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes (if using a metal pan) or for 25 mins. at 325 F and 10 mins. at 350F (if using a glass pan). Insert a wooden toothpick in center to check for doneness. (You could probably bake the glass pan for 20-25 mins. at 350, but I haven't tried it yet.)

6. Cool in pan on rack for 10 mins., then carefully turn out onto rack. Gently peel off paper and let cool completely.

7. To make the frosting, place the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl or the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat at medium speed until smooth. Gradually add 2 cups sifted powdered sugar, beating at low speed until smooth (do not overbeat). Stir in the remaining 3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar. Cover and chill for 30 mins. Spread frosting over the top of the cake. Garnish with sugar or sprinkles and refrigerate until ready to eat. Cover loosely after 30 mins. to prevent icing from sticking to the plastic wrap. Store in fridge to keep icing from running.

Yields: 16 pieces

This is low-fat, as I mentioned. Only 10 grams of fat per slice, including frosting. Not bad!

Whole-Wheat Pumpkin Bread

2008-10-06T20:43:00.005-05:00

It's now officially Fall. That means chili, mocha, cloves, tea, and of course, pumpkin. I have had two cans of pumpkin in my pantry that I never got to use last season, so I decided to put one to good use in a new pumpkin bread recipe last night. It uses all whole wheat flour, which gives it a beautiful dark earthy color--not at all like the food-coloring orange of most pumpkin-flavored baked goods I see in stores--and the streaks of dark chocolate just add to the rustic effect.

This is one of the spiciest fall quick breads I've tried. It uses as much ground cloves as it does ground cinnamon (1/2 tsp. each) and the smell just sneaks up on you while it's baking. It's almost like gingerbread the way you start feeling warmer and cozier before you realize that you notice the spicy-sweet smell. Once again, another reason I love having a desk next to the kitchen. This is a great afternoon bread, I'd venture to say better with tea around 3 or 4 o'clock than with coffee for breakfast. And believe it or not, it's healthy. Check after the recipe for some nutrition info., but honestly, you can tell (in a good way) just by biting into it that you're putting good calories into your body. Pumpkin, whole wheat, dark chocolate, pecans--talk about fiber, protein, and vitamins!

I think my baking powder is at the end of its shelf life, otherwise this bread might have risen higher. Time to try a new one--aluminum-free Rumsford, instead of Clabber Girl. We'll see if there's a difference in taste or effectiveness. Edna Lewis suggests this one in The Taste of Country Cooking, though, so I'm inclined to listen.

I finally have something in my cake dome. Yup, it's definitely Fall.

Whole-Wheat Pumpkin Bread

(adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking)

2 cups (8 oz.) whole wheat flour (white or traditional)

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temp.

1 cup (7 1/2 oz.) packed light or dark brown sugar

1/4 cup (1 3/4 oz.) granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup (9 1/2 oz.) canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

3/4 cup chopped nuts

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (or raisins or dried cranberries)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 x 5-in. loaf pan.

In a medium bow, whisk together the flour, soda, powder, salt, and spices.

Cream the butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl (I prefer the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla and pumpkin. Fold in the dry ingredients with a spoon, mixing until just moistened. Add the nuts and chocolate chips, and fold in only until evenly distributed.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 55 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in a pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then run a butter knife around the edge to loosen the loaf. Turn the bread out of the pan and place it on the rack to cool completely before slicing or storing.

Makes about 16 slices.

And in case you're wondering, each slice has 15 grams of whole grains (a little over a fourth of your daily needs) and 3 grams of fiber. My friends told me to stop telling them this before the recipe--I thought it was cool, but they said it made it less appetizing. Fiber counts aren't sexy? Really?

What Is Southern?

2008-10-06T09:00:00.009-05:00

A friend gave me an issue of Gourmet magazine last summer. It was their Southern food issue, which meant, of course, a lot of cocktails, a lot of riffs on classic Southern dishes, and a lot of John T. I'd recently read an article in the Oxford American about Gourmet's historical relationship with Southern food, describing how it has, through the years, almost exoticized our down-home cuisine. Well, be that as it may--I don't read Gourmet enough to know--what I found in this particular issue was this gem: an essay written by Edna Lewis entitled "What Is Southern?" Now, as any scholar of the South (sort of, sometimes) I am skeptical of this type of essay. Will it be a long list of moonlight and magnolia-laden cliches? Will I feel like an outsider unless I happen to have my 14-inch waist laced tightly into a corset and hoop skirt while reading?

No. Edna Lewis, in her understated way, makes the simple seductive in this essay that links food, farming, literature, and memoir. I assign it in my composition classes to discuss cliches, reviews, memoir, etc.--it is perfect for so many lessons, and they usually love it, because they can relate to it. I ask them to read it, then spend ten minutes composing their own "Southern is" essay modeling her prose. I had to laugh this past week, however--when I told my students what their reading assignment was, one looked at me with the same skeptical look I reserved for such essay titles and said "It's called 'What Is Southern?' Is it going to make fun of us?" I assured them it would not, and what's more, it would praise their--our--region in new ways.

Read this essay if you get a free moment today (just click on the title to this post to be linked to it) and let me now what you think. I'll be using it in class tomorrow and I'd love some fresh takes on it. (I linked the full version, but if it seems short, scroll down to the right corner to see which page you're on--I still haven't fully figured out this computer!) Enjoy!

My Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

2008-10-02T17:42:00.004-05:00

I love a chewy chocolate chip cookie. The cookies I'm about to describe are just the best. I started making them when I was in college, and eventually gained a following: My friends made me call them whenever I baked up a batch--usually triple the recipe I'm about to give--and they'd put in their orders. Eric wanted them underdone in the centers, so I took his batch out of the oven after 7 minutes. Matt preferred his a bit crispier on the outside, so that tray stayed in 9 minutes. Bree usually ate the dough with me--roomie privilege. I really don't know where the recipe came from. Honestly, I think it's an adaptation from the back of the Nestle or Tollhouse chocolate chip bag. And it is so good.

Not only are these great as chocolate chip cookies, this can be a basic dough for any cookies you want to make. When I want oatmeal cookies, I leave out the chocolate chips and add a handful of oats and some dried cherries and cinnamon, maybe a pinch of cloves or allspice. Sometimes I add shredded coconut with the chocolate chips, and maybe some macadamia nuts. I'll bet hazelnuts would be fantastic, too. Play with it--this is just a starter recipe. Make it your own! (I won't tell.)

Sarah's Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

(adapted from something, sometime)

3/4 cup butter-flavored Crisco (Yes, it uses Crisco. Get over it.)

1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar (light or dark)

2 T milk

1 T vanilla extract

1 egg

1 3/4 cup AP flour

1 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cup chocolate chips (I like a blend of semi-sweet and milk, and sometimes white, chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Cream Crisco, brown sugar, milk, vanilla in lg. bowl. Mix until creamy. Stir in egg until well-incorporated. Combine flour, salt, and baking soda in a separate bowl. Add to creamed mixture gradually. Stir in chips. (The dough will be really soft.) Spoon or use a disher (mini ice cream scoop) to place globs of dough on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges brown. Cool 5 minutes on tray, then gently move to a cooling rack.

This recipe should make about 30 cookies.

Variation on a Classic

2008-10-01T08:48:00.002-05:00

My dad makes the best subs. It's just a fact. His subs were always an event growing up--he'd start the dressing 24 hours in advance, then he'd dig out the insides of the bread, dress the sandwich, add all the wonderful deli meats and cheeses, place the long loaf back into its bakery bag, seal it loosely, then place a heavy cutting board and several large cans of tomatoes on top to smoosh it and let all those flavors marinate for a few hours. Then came the glorious moment when he'd ask us what size sandwich we wanted, we'd show him with our hands spaced far apart, "This much!", and he'd cut it and heat it and it would become perfectly melty ... it was sandwich perfection. When I left for college I craved his subs, so much so that I asked for the "recipe" and made them for a friend's Superbowl party my senior year. I have never had so many guys ask me for a recipe--I must have copied it six times by the end of the game. I don't even remember who was playing, but I remember the boos when the last sandwich ran out.

Naturally, when Dan asked for "football food" this past Sunday, Dad's subs immediately came to mind. But it was 3 o'clock already--no time for eventful marinating and anticipation. So, as daughters tend to do, I came up with a variation on Daddy's Sub, which we would always eat with Ballreich's Potato Chips and French Onion Dip. Call it Sarah's Sub, the Walden Wonder, whatever you like--it was good. So here, play by play, is that Sunday Night Football Food.

Sarah's Sub and Sweet Potato Fries

(adapted from "The Best Sandwich in the World")

Place a couple teaspoons each of dried basil, oregano, and thyme in a jar. Add some crushed red pepper flakes. Mince a few coves of garlic or crush them in a garlic press--add them. Then add about 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil. Shake; set aside. (This can marinate overnight if you like.)

Split a loaf of French bread lengthwise so you end up with two long halves. Cut some score marks down the center of each, maybe 1/2-in. deep, and dig out the centers. (Save them for later--they'll be fun to snack on or you can make croutons or breadcrumbs.) Brush both sides with the dressing (above) and start layering on the goods. Medium layers--not too heavy or light--will be perfect.

On the bottom half, place the lettuce. Any kind works--we used organic greens because they were left over from a salad. Then add sliced tomatoes. Follow with thinly sliced onion rings--red onion is best since it's sweeter, but yellow onions are fine. Now add some sliced jarred sweet cherry peppers (you can find them near the olives in the grocery store. This was my special addition, mostly because Dan loves them, and they were perfect on the sandwich). Next, add a layer of provolone cheese. Cut each large round slice in half and layer diagonally--just one single layer, since you'll add more later. Then add a layer of hard salami, sliced thin. Then a thicker layer of ham (not honey roasted) and then another layer of cheese. Top with the top half of bread, press down, and replace the long sandwich carefully back into the bakery bag. Before you seal it with a twist tie, place a heavy cutting board (some things never change) and some heavy cans or books on top of that. Then seal the bag. Leave it sitting there for at least an hour, then slice, heat in the microwave or oven, and enjoy.

For the fries, preheat the oven to 450 F. Cut 4 small (or 2 large) sweet potatoes into fry-size sticks. Toss with 1 T of olive oil. Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Dump the potatoes onto the sheet, try to get them into a single layer, and sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, and (though it sounds weird) a tsp. of pumpkin pie spice. Roast for 20 mins., toss, roast for another 20 mins., toss, etc.--they should take 45 mins. to an hour, depending on how thin you've cut them and how crispy you want them. We have these all the time in the fall and winter--the pumpkin pie spice says "fall" to me, but in small amounts is not at all sweet or overpowering on the fries. If you want to be less healthy, mix some softened butter with cinnamon and sugar for dipping the fries, but that's gong a bit far here, I think.

This sandwich serves 4 (big portions) or 6 (smaller portions). It will also save in the fridge for several days, so make the whole thing and eat it for lunch for the week! It is great left over.

My Own Space

2008-09-29T21:12:00.008-05:00

Some musings on space:

For months I have looked longingly at magazine photos of women's home offices in Better Homes and Gardens, the magazine my grandmother subscribed me to after I got married. I love it--it gives great decorating ideas and (no surprise here) gardening ideas, but it did also make me crave my own space. The women profiled in the magazine, photographed in front of their uber-organized and personality-laden desks, looked so together, so happy. Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly happy, but I did often feel backed into a corner when it came to work--and not even my corner! My husband had his home office. I could certainly use it of course, but it just seemed so mannish with its dark paint and mahogany bookshelves, his desk usually well-organized and surrounded with books for his dissertation--it just didn't feel like my space, you know? And it is located in the back of the house, the perfect man-cave, so far from the action. My house is an open floor plan, and I love that (sorry, Betty Friedan) but it does make it hard to carve out a work space for myself. I ended up working on the couch (TV temptation), at the dining table or at the counter, but my stuff was always in the way, making me feel like I was in the way. I couldn't leave my work out or I'd risk getting dinner on it, and it just generally made the house look cluttered, something neither of us liked. I just felt like my work and I were always in transition, always in the wrong space.

Until now. Dan got the itch to build something--always a good thing--and planned on building a bookshelf for my cookbook collection, which had begun spilling onto the kitchen floor. I mentioned how much I wanted a desk between the living room and the kitchen, where the bookshelf was to go, and the next thing I knew, he'd drawn up plans and we were at Home Depot shopping for wood and paint. After a busy weekend and some sore muscles and sunburns, I had my desk. We moved it inside tonight, put the books on the shelves, and I am in heaven. Isn't it amazing that a shelf, a tall white shelf, makes me feel so much more professional, like my work really has a purpose? Maybe Betty Friedan was right, in a way--an open floor plan makes women feel that they have no space of their own, as the whole house is their "job" and they have no privacy. Well, my space is still in the middle of that, but I've always dreamed of a desk just off the kitchen, so I can sit down to work for 30 minutes while something's in the oven or a sauce simmers, but am still within earshot of the timer, and can still smell the wonderful smells coming from dinner or freshly baked bread. I'm where I want to be, yet I have a delineated area to call my own--not the table, the counter, or the couch, but my beautiful desk. And to make it even better, now I look up from my computer and there are the colorful spines of my favorite cookbooks--Nigella, Jamie, Rose, Edna, Giada--they're all there, getting me through my work. Now I really feel like someone who does food studies. I mean, I'm ready to edit a new food and literature journal! I have space! All mine!

Dan, wow. You're really amazing.

Dark Chocolate-Cherry Brownies

2008-09-28T10:22:00.005-05:00

In an article on "Cravings" in the September issue of Cooking Light, I found a recipe for these brownies. They sounded too good to be true--how could a low fat brownie possibly satisfy any craving? I have been disappointed with low-cal baking in the past: My Blueberry Coffee Cake got soggy, other cookies were too dense, and I've become convinced that egg substitute cannot be used in baking. At least not in my baking. And for heaven's sake, don't try to use regular eggs when the recipe calls for substitute--that's worse than using the substitute in the first place! So I always have my eye out for Cooking Light baking recipes that use normal ingredients. This one is unbelievable.

I don't usually like fruit and chocolate together, although I have become a chocolate-dipped strawberry convert. But fruit pizzas drizzled with chocolate or even trail mixes with dried fruit and M&Ms don't tempt me. But something about this recipe intrigued me. It used cherry preserves rather than actual cherries, so there was no weird texture combination, a big problem for me. The photo in the magazine suggested that these would be the dense, chewy, fudgy brownies that I loved. And they are sprinkled with powdered sugar. After seeing a picture of Nigella Lawson's brownies dusted with powdered sugar and gold powder sparkling in birthday candlelight, and then last December's Cooking Light cover photo, displaying chocolate cupcakes enjoying a powdered sugar snowfall, I am easily seduced by this chocolate-powdered sugar pair.

I worried also that the cherry flavor would seem strange with no noticeable fruit source in the brownie itself. I even considered adding some dried cherries, though this would seem to directly contradict my dislike for that textural combination. I recognized this at the time--I just worry too much.

Finally, I made the brownies following the recipe exactly. And they were perfect. The cherry flavor was a lovely muted sweet-sourness--it added depth and really brought out the dark chocolate. It even kept the brownies from being too sweet. And the powdered sugar, added right before serving (or it will soak in--these are super moist brownies) is, almost literally, the icing on the cake.

Dark Chocolate-Cherry Brownies

(adapted from Cooking Light, September 2008)

Yields 16 brownies.

Cooking spray

3/4 cup (3.4 oz.) AP flour

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1/3 cup cherry preserves

1/3 cup water

5 T butter

1 lg. egg, lightly beaten

1 lg. egg white

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Powdered sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Spray a 9-in. square baking pan with cooking spray. (If it is not a really good non-stick pan, line it with parchment paper, then spray.)

3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk.

4. Combine cherry preserves, water, and butter in a small saucepan; bring to a boil.

5. Add preserves mixture to flour mixture; stir well.

6. Add the egg and egg white; stir until smooth.

7. Stir in semi-sweet chocolate chips.

8. Scrape into prepared pan. Bake at 350 F for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.

9. Cool in pan on wire rack. Right before serving, dust lightly with powdered sugar.

Debates, Exams, and Food for Change

2008-09-26T08:44:00.004-05:00

Today is the first presidential debate. (We think--c'mon, McCain, commit already.) The campus has been turned upside down for weeks, but today we hope to see the fruits of our labor--or for those of us who have not truly labored, then the fruits of our annoyance. My street has been closed for a week, parking has been crazy (thankfully only at certain times of day) and students have been, well, somewhat distracted. I will say, though, that I've heard more conversations about undecided undergrads since McCain pulled his, "Hey, let's postpone the debate--because the American people will feel better about their finances if we don't talk to them!" Really, it seems as though that small amount of irritation at their Republican candidate has given Obama the small opening he needed to get them to listen to his message. Oh, please, I hope I'm right.

As far as the actual debate, though, I have not been terribly excited--we don't get to see it, and I was afraid the campus would be overrun with journalists without given anything back to the students. But like any true southerners, our Mississippi debate planners knew what we needed--FOOD. I am so excited about lunch today. Vendors from all over the South will be setting up booths in the Grove to demonstrate what we are all about.

I'm both excited and frustrated by this. I'm excited for my tastebuds, for the chance to try all of these foods without a ton of traveling on a grad student budget. I'm excited to show off the South through one of its best assets--its cooking. But I'm academically frustrated. How is it that everyone, I mean everyone, knows the power of food to represent identity and place, but so many people, scholars and non-scholars, do not realize that it has a serious place in the academy. Sure, the Southern Foodways Alliance is here at UM working to preserve southern food traditions through oral histories and such, but what about food in literature, or food writing as literature? We are in an era of Cultural Studies, were this type of scholarship should be appreciated, but even some of the best scholars still see it as an offshoot of gender studies (there are SO many things wrong with this, it makes my brain hurt) or, as Katie puts it, "scholarship lite." Like food is so obvious that we shouldn't even bother studying it. But that's just the point! People for years thought gender studies was too obvious to study--obviously, men were superior, right? It was in their nature! Thank you feminism, but where's the movement to legitimate my field? Food Network's certainly not helping, dumbing down every show so that any megamarket shopper who buys packaged seasoning mixes and cookie dough can consider him or herself a chef. The network that used to challenge us with experienced and imaginative chefs now, like so many other American institutions, caters to the lowest common denominator. I'm not trying to belittle those women (not to be sexist, but most home cooks are women, let's face it) who want to make their family or themselves a home-cooked meal but have no time to make fresh bread or desserts. I completely understand, and I am thrilled that they can put in some time, get some help from the store, and appreciate the act of being in the kitchen. But please, Food Network, why does EVERY show cater to this person? Why is Giada one of the few who is still imaginative? Thank you for adding Jamie Oliver and Alex Guarnaschelli to the lineup--but why so early on weekend mornings? How any people are watching, versus the number who watch Sandra Lee in the afternoons and later weekend mornings?

You, Food Network, are really doing nothing to help me out. People think that this is all there is to food. Yes, foodie-ism is almost becoming a movement in itself, but is there a way to not dumb it down but also not be elistist? To teach the real importance of food, the joy of food, without being holier-than thou and making people appreciate it less because they feel like they can't understand it? I often feel this way when teaching--how can I convey the complex, sophisticated, incredible ways you can use language without scaring and overwhelming my students and actually causing them to do the opposite of what I want--to get them to love language?

Well, I'll enjoy the food in the Grove today. I'll take some pictures and post them tomorrow. And I'll try to turn off the scholar in me, for a little while at least. But why can the academy not recognize that what seems the most obvious is often the most revolutionary?

The Best Tomato Salad EVER

2008-09-23T20:47:00.002-05:00

When I was visiting my parents in Kentucky this weekend, they sent me home with three treasures, two of which are important for this post. (The other is Chocolate-Peanut Butter Crunch Candy, which--trust me--deserves a post of its very own.) They gave me a box full of fresh tomatoes, grown in friends' gardens, that they just couldn't eat. I'm reminded of Kingsolver's chapter, "Life in a Red State," about living in the South during August--tomato season. My students, by the way, are reading this chapter for November 4, Election Day--how great is that? Anyway, so we have a box of tomatoes sitting on our kitchen table and it really is like the chest of toys at the dentist's office when you were little--you knew that if you were good through the cleaning, if you swished and spit in that tiny whirlpool sink, you'd have a bright new plastic toy to take home with you. I make it through the morning, and I know I get a sweet tomato sandwich for lunch--the best use of Hellman's mayonnaise, hands down. I make it through the afternoon, and I get a tomato salad for dinner. Which leads me to the second treasure: Sally Schneider's A New Way to Cook.

I've been eyeing this cookbook for several visits to my parents' house, and this time, my dad let me take it with me. Dan asked me the other day why I liked it so much. It's hard to explain. It's a beginner's cookbook that looks sophisticated without being fussy or difficult. It illustrates healthy ways to cook without being a diet cookbook--there's not a calorie count in sight. The dishes it describes are basically bistro fare at home--they are rustic dishes that allow the integrity of the fresh ingredients to take center stage. It reminds me of Kingsolver and Madison, without the dogma (though I use this term in its best possible sense). Even the autumnal color palette and the thick paper add to the satisfaction of thumbing through this book. It is minimalistic in every sense, and calms me just to hold it--is that silly? It's just peaceful, and makes anything seem possible. So when facing a box of beautiful fresh tomatoes in fear that I would not do them justice, I knew this was the best place to turn--and Sally did not disappoint.

Here's her recipe (though you hardly need one) for "The Best Tomato Salad." Really. That's the recipe title. Normally I'd find that pretentious or overly confident. Not here. She makes me trust her completely. If she says it's the best, it's the best. And it is.

Cut up a few tomatoes--thick slices, wedges, halves, whatever suits you and the tomato. Arrange them on a plate. No more than 20 minutes before serving, sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Right before you serve them, sprinkle with any fresh herbs you like--basil, cilantro, parsley, anything green and delicate. I will admit, though, that a little dried basil and oregano, which I used tonight, work fine, too. Drizzle with fruity extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and if you like, shave a few slices of parmesan over the top. And enjoy that the best part of summer comes at the end.

Thanks to Kingsolver, tomatoes and southern politics will be forever connected. Makes election years a little more bearable, I suppose.

(I hope you enjoy the picture--I ate the salad to fast to photograph it, so I gave you a picture of me typing. Very meta.)

Traditions

2008-09-20T17:53:00.007-05:00

So it's tradition that the bride and groom eat the top layer of their wedding cake on their first anniversary. It's for good luck, I think. I'm not sure of the origin of this one, but I do know that Dan and I felt somewhat guilty when we realized that our wedding cake was in the freezer in Wilmington for our May 19 anniversary, while we would still be in Oxford until August. (If we've had worse luck, we haven't noticed.) Another tradition I never understood: The need for the groom to smear the first bite of wedding cake on the bride's face while she is decked out in very expensive silk. And I can assure you that whoever developed this tradition never expected the wedding cake to be chocolate. (I think this means I'm a tramp, but oh well. That cake was damn good.) So imagine my sheer joy when, a few months late, Dan and I celebrated our anniversary by eating our thawed wedding cake layer, recreating that wonderful chocolatey moment on our wedding day.

Blueberry Almond Cookies

2008-09-01T21:18:00.004-05:00

So I'm still on my blueberry kick. It's lasted months now! I guess that's better than last year's doughnut kick, but I don't know what I'll do when my farmer's market blueberries that I froze run out! I'm one recipe away--and frozen ones in the grocery store are astronomical. Maybe I'll really have to eat seasonally--practice what I preach. Or think about preaching. Does chatting about Barbara Kingsolver and Deborah Madison with people who already agree with me over wine count as preaching?

I've made these cookies several times now. They are unusual--the reason for my initial attraction--and more like muffins or cakes than cookies. The texture reminds me of those soft, iced cookies you get in the plastic packages at Wal-Mart--you know the ones, and you know you love them, too--and the taste is remarkably complex, and not cloyingly sweet. Blueberries, toasted almonds, lemon zest--tart, fresh, warm cookies that are at the same time the essence of summer and a transition into fall.

They are also difficult to screw up. As long as you remember to let that butter get soft and cream it until it is really light and fluffy and you can no longer hear the scrape of sugar on the sides of the mixing bowl, you should be fine. The first time I made these, I realized I had no lemons--I'll tell you, lime zest makes them even more summery. So as Ellie wrote in her fig tart blog post, sometimes recipes change. Sometimes you change them. (Or, had I really wanted those lemons, sometimes you make a Wal-Mart run in the middle of a recipe.) Also, do be sure to let the batter sit in the fridge for at least half-an-hour while the oven preheats--this way, they stay fluffy instead of flattening out because the butter in the batter is too soft.

Remember that despite the fact that this recipe ends up looking like blueberry muffin tops, it uses the creaming, rather than the muffin, method of mixing. Rather than gently folding the wet ingredients into the dry, you quickly and thoroughly beat the dry into the wet using a hand or standing mixer.

But baking methods aside, these are fabulous, if not a bit surprising, cookies.

Almond Blueberry Cookies

(adapted from Everyday Italian)

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, at room temp. (really soft)

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1/4 to 1/3 cup milk

1/2 tsp. almond extract

2 tsp. lemon zest (about 1 lemon)

1/2-1 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 cup chopped almonds, toasted

1 cup frozen blueberries, mostly thawed

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In another medium bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, cream together the butter and sugar (use a hand mixer if you're not using a standing mixer). Add egg and beat to incorporate. Add milk, almond extract, and lemon zest and juice. Beat until all ingredients are well incorporated.

3. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet. Fold in the almonds, then gently fold in the blueberries. If using a mixer, use it through dry ingredients, then fold in the almonds and blueberries with a spatula--gently, so you don't turn the batter purple.

4. Chill dough in the fridge for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

5. Using two small spoons or a disher, scoop batter onto cookie sheets. (Use either good nonstick baking sheets or a silpat or parchment paper.) Bake until just golden brown around the edges, about 15 minutes.

6. Cool cookies on a wire rack. When serving, try not to stack them--they will stick together. Not that this is a bad thing, just not a pretty one.

Addendum

2008-08-11T16:52:00.002-05:00

I've decided to expand the scope of my blog just a bit. I'll keep including plenty of recipes, but sometimes I just want to write about food when I haven't had time to bake--in fact, that's usually when I most want to talk food. I've been reading some great food lit. during the last week at the beach, I've eaten at some wonderful restaurants here in Wilmington, and I have had some amazing drinks--most made up by my wonderful husband, the amateur mixologist. I want to share this with y'all, and I haven't really given myself room to do that with my current baking blog. So from now on, you'll find posts about drinks, savory recipes, and of course, my favorite baked goods. You'll also find stuff about books I've been reading that deal with food topics--some food lit., some regular books that have a lot to say about food practices (see Ellie's post on food books--she cites Katie Rawson's Faulkner paper, which is awesome! Just like Katie.). I hope you like the new format! Let me know!

Here's a great drink recipe--no picture, since it looks just like a glass of water (and thus the basis of its appeal):

The Blueberry Muffin (so named by the Mormon Mama herself)

Fill a glass with ice and add:
1 part blueberry vodka (Stoli is great)
2 parts water
A few squeezes of lemon juice (and some sweet and sour mix--I've seen some bartenders do this, though I don't at home)

Let it sit for five minutes after stirring--if you drink it right away it won't taste balanced. Be patient. It's that good.

Back on the Mac (and a Peach-Nectarine Galette)

2008-07-26T20:43:00.008-05:00

So I guess we've learned that the way to get me to write blog posts regularly is to give me a MacBook (Hear that, Dan?). Well, I've been trying to cook a lot since we're about to go on vacation and I won't get my kitchen therapy for two whole weeks! I think this is what I miss most on vacation--the opportunity to cook or bake if I want to. Tonight I made a Peach Nectarine Galette: so much fun, and an easy (and healthier) alternative to pie, since it only has one crust.

You can find this recipe (with variations) in the July 2008 issue of Southern Living. They call it a tart--the French name is a galette, which I think just sounds better.

Peach-Nectarine Galette:

Parchment Paper, Cooking Spray
3/4 lb. peaches (not white fleshed), peeled and thinly sliced
3/4 lb. nectarines, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup peach preserves
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. allspice (opt.)
1/4 tsp. cinnamon (opt.)
1/2 (15 oz.) pkg. refrigerated pie crusts (1 crust)
1 T AP flour
1 lg. egg
1 T sugar

Vanilla Ice Cream (optional, but so good!)

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3. Stir together sliced fruit, sugar, preserves, vanilla, and spices. Set aside for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Unroll prepared piecrust on prepared baking sheet; roll into a 12-inch circle.

5. Drain fruit mixture over a bowl, reserving the liquid (this will become a sauce later). Toss fruit in the flour.

6. Mound fruit in the center of the crust, leaving a 2-3 inch border. Fold piecrust over the fruit, pressing to seal the folds. Leave an opening about 5 inches wide in the center.

7. Stir together 1 egg and 1 T of water. Brush over the edge of the piecrust. Sprinkle with the sugar. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the center is bubbling. Remove from the oven and carefully transfer the galette on the parchment to a cooling rack. Cool for 20 minutes.

8. When ready to serve, bring the reserved liquid to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow to boil, stirring often, for 1-2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Slice the galette and serve with ice cream. Drizzle with the sauce.

Variations: You can also use plums, cherries, blackberries, apricots, apples--any fruit you like that's in season in this galette. Just use 1 1/2 lbs. of fruit and the corresponding preserves. Also, adjust the spices based on what tastes good with the fruit, and adjust the amt. of sugar depending on the sweetness and ripeness of the fruit. Any of these galettes are great sprinkled with toasted nuts--pecans for the peach galette, almonds for the apricot or apple galette, maybe even pine nuts for the plum or blackberry galette. Have fun experimenting!

Food Lit. and MacBooks

2008-07-25T16:06:00.004-05:00

I apologize for writing two posts in a row without recipes. I promise to post my new favorites, Almond Blueberry Cookies and Mexican Chocolate Bundt Cake, very soon. But right now, I am sitting at my parents' house, sans recipes, but with a gorgeous brand-new MacBook Pro that I just have to play with. I wish I could say it was mine, but unfortunately, no. My my father is being quite generous and trusting, and this keyboard feels like silk, so I apologize if this post is long. I can barely tear myself away.

I've been thinking a lot about food literature recently. I just finished teaching a writing class using Kingsolver's newest and Anthony Bourdain's Nasty Bits as primary texts. (We were supposed to read Anne Tyler's Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, but we had some bookstore trouble. As in they never ordered it.) My students overall really seemed to like it, though since we were using it to discuss writing, we had to talk more about structure and less about content than I would have liked. They were incredibly useful texts for a writing class--I think I may use them again for 101 this fall. But what else is out there? Most bookstores don't have food lit. sections (yet) but so many books exist that can be categorized like this: Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun is probably the most famous, but Ferenc Mate and Elizabeth Romer have written other novels/travelogues that are well-reviewed, as have many others. You could really do a great study of place-based writing if we looked at how often food lit. and travel lit. are conflated.

The thing is, while I want to read them all, I also want to make sure there is some distance between pleasure reading and school reading. But should there be? I pick a subject to study because I enjoy it. I love to read about food, but I don't ever want to dislike reading about food, which makes me want to limit my exposure to food lit.

And then of course, we also get into the "But is it good literature?" question that I hate but still feel compelled to ask. "For its genre, is it good?" is my usual solution. I mean, no, it may not be Moby Dick (which has so much about food, it's unbelievable!) but no one's asking for the mythical Great American Novel here--especially if it's set in Tuscany, where my recent obsession often finds me. And that very same "great" novel would not be good in a different genre, either. Don't let ridiculous "good v. bad lit." evaluations stop you from reading something you may enjoy. And I suppose I shouldn't let the fear that I might get tired of a genre stop me from reading it, either. It's always evolving and growing, and I'd rather enjoy myself right now instead of measuring out that enjoyment coffee spoons (reference, anyone?).

So my reading list for the summer will be the books I listed above--anything about vineyards, pasta, or torta della nonna. Maybe I'll move on to NOLA food lit. soon. Thanks for working this out with me.

Here's a recipe, for good measure:

6 frozen whole strawberries
1/2 small container low-fat strawberry yogurt
1/2 banana
splash OJ

Put all ingredients in a blender and puree. Drink your smoothie along with a piece of Sweet Vanilla Challah, toasted.

Return of a Revolution

2008-07-21T09:16:00.003-05:00

Hi all. I know it's been a long time since I've posted--teaching and learning really takes a lot out of you! But now that class is slowing down--I'm entering the home stretch now--I want to tell y'all about a cookbook that is really changing the way I think about food, shopping, and reading.

With the critical acclaim of food (subject) writers such as Alice Waters (The Art of Simple Food), Barbara Kingsolver (Prodigal Summer; Animal, Vegetable, Miracle), and Michael Pollan (The Botany of Desire; The Omnivore's Dilemma), Deborah Madison's 2002 cookbook, Local Flavors, has come to the forefront of a global "local food" movement promoted by groups such as Slow Food International. Subtitled "Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets," it is as much a travel narrative and seasonal memoir as it is a cookbook. Scattered among the recipes are short interludes describing what to expect at a farmer's market during a particular season, with a special emphasis on those unusual vegetables (or parts of vegetables) one rarely sees at the supermarket, such as pea shoots or green garlic. Each recipe is introduced by Madison's personal recommendations on ingredients, variations based on availability, or recollections of recipe development. Even the photography is as often of the foods on the market tables as of the finished dishes themselves, emphasizing the process of production over the expected final product. In short, Madison's book asks us to reconsider how we relate to our food by asking us to reevaluate how we view production, from recipe to plate. Like the writers who praise this book, Madison urges us to revise our worldviews by giving us a cooking text that is so much more than a collection of recipes. As she details her travels through America's farmers' markets, Madison illustrates the life of America's food culture, what we all have in common as well as the individuality of the way each locale experiences growing seasons and food traditions. She interprets farmers' markets--from the people to the signs to the food itself--for her eager readers, ready to change the world through dinner.

If you want to see this book in action, check out Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, another amazing, life-changing (but enjoyable!) read. Kingsolver and her family use Madison's book as a guide to their year of eating locally. When was the last time you thought about what foods were in season? We know what foods we tend to eat in particular seasons--peaches and watermelon in the summer, root vegetables in late fall and winter--but why do we link those foods with these seasons? Because somewhere in the recesses of our minds, we know how to eat seasonally. We need to trust ourselves, trust our food, and rebuild that relationship we've lost through years of "convenience."

Madison's book (paperback edition) costs about $26.00, and is worth every penny. Find a farmer's market near you--I bet there is one--and get out there and explore! Buy what looks beautiful, smells enticing, or seems just plain bizarre! I promise Madison will have an idea of what to do with it!

Let me know what you find!

Cardamom-Scented (Sandwich) Bread

2008-05-20T11:08:00.006-05:00

I'll admit that I was initially attracted to this bread because I have three containers of cardamom in my pantry: ground, seeds, and pods. I don't use enough cardamom in a year to use these up, but I do love it. I was also getting a little tired of the White Mountain Bread that I make each week for sandwiches (it's plain and simple--and my husband loves it). I wanted to try something new, so I figured, why not try something that would help me use some of those underutilized pantry elements?

First, though, I had to halve this recipe (what you see below is the halved version). The written recipe made 4 loaves--not only do I not have that many loaf pans, but there are two people in my house (and a very small freezer)--making the full recipe was not an option. Then I found my little ziploc of cardamom pods, seeded them, and crushed the seeds in the beautiful mortar and pestle I bought at Anthropologie (a wedding gift to myself--leave it to me to buy kitchen equipment during my bachelorette party). Even though I didn't need to add them to the batter for awhile, I just kept walking by the kitchen and lifting the bowl to smell them--trust me, the ground stuff ain't got nothin on freshly crushed cardamom. I couldn't believe how little the recipe used, but from a disastrous chai-spiced apple pie experience a few years ago, I knew better than to add more. Like nutmeg, cardamom is best used in small amounts. I also did not add the egg glaze before baking--we were running out of eggs--but I think that the next time I make this I will, as it will finish the bread and indicate that it is something special, not your ordinary sandwich loaf.

As far as this loaf's merits as sandwich bread--the jury's still out. My husband eats it happily (I think, or else he's learned not to complain) but I honestly have not found sandwich fillings that the cardamom doesn't compete with. It looks like sandwich bread, but I wonder if I were to shape this into a free-form loaf and glaze it if that might not suit it better--to be treated as a special occasion bread like challah (which, incidentally, actually makes good sandwich bread, if my previous post and many restaurants in Atlanta, where I first got on my challah kick, are any indication).

Give it a try--it smells amazing, and I bet as buttered toast with morning tea or as an elegant French toast with a spiced syrup, this would be heavenly. But for a turkey sandwich, I'd stick with plain and simple.

Cardamom-Scented Bread

(adapted from Beth Hensperger's Bread Bible)

Makes two 9 X 5-inch loaves.

2 cups boiling water

1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk powder

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)

1 tablespoon (1 package) active dry yeast

pinch of sugar

5 cardamom pods

6 cups unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour (or a mixture)

For glaze: (this recipe is not halved since it's tough to use half an egg)

1 large egg yolk or 1 large egg, at room temperature

1 tablespoon milk or cream

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

In the workbowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large mixing bowl and a whisk), combine the boiling water, dried milk, butter, salt, and sugar. Stir until the butter melts, then let to mixture cool to lukewarm, about half an hour.

Pour the warm water into a small bowl. sprinkle the yeast across the top and add a pinch of sugar. Stir to dissolve and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.

Remove the seeds from the cardamom pods and crush with a mortar and pestle or place them under a piece of waxed or parchment paper and crush with a rolling pin. Set aside.

Add 2 cups of the flour, the cardamom seeds, and the yeast mixture to the milk and butter mixture in the large bowl. Beat hard until smooth and creamy, about 2 or 3 minutes. (If you are not using a stand mixer, switch from a whisk to a wooden spoon as the dough gets stiff.) Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until a soft, shaggy dough forms and just clears the sides of the bowl.

Switch to the dough hook or turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth but not dry, about 5 to 8 minutes. If it is sticking you may add more flour, but only 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent the bread from drying out.

Place the dough in a deep, well-greased container, turn once to coat, and allow it to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.

Grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans and set aside. Gently deflate the dough and divide it with a knife or bench scraper into 2 equal portions. Shape them into rectangular loaves and place them in the pans. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise until they are about 1 inch over the edge of the pans, about an hour.

20 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. With a serrated knife, make 1/4-inch (decorative) incisions in the tops of the loaves. Brush them with the egg glaze. Place them in the center of the oven and bake for about 40 minutes or until they are browned and sound hollow when tapped wih our finger. Transfer the loaves immediately to a cooling rack and allow to cool before slicing.

Sweet Vanilla Challah

2008-05-13T22:11:00.009-05:00

Comfort. It can describe so many things. A favorite old blanket. Your husband's college sweatshirt. Your mom's chicken soup--even if it came out of a red and white can. I was talking with some friends at lunch today--we tried a new Lebanese restaurant in town--and we noticed that, regardless of origin, there is something about comfort food that registers as just that--"comfort." I didn't know what Lebanese food was before today, but I knew, biting into a slice of dough-topped casserole stuffed with ground meat lightly seasoned with tomato and cinnamon, that this was comfort. Add some hummus and warm, soft pita, and the rain and thunder that had been threatening since I woke up slowly faded away.

It can be anything, comfort. If post-10 am cappucinos got you through that difficult finals week your senior year of college, no matter how gauche it might seem in Italy, you'll continue to drink cappucinos at any time of day, whenever you need the assurance that you can indeed make it through. Yet I think it is no accident that most coffee shops also sell freshly baked bread, muffins, cookies, or cakes. Some people refer to that fifth taste (beyond the salty, sweet, sour, and bitter that your tastebuds register) as umami, which translates loosely as "delicious essence." It is found in breads, its fragrance taken in through the nose and translated into a complex and hearty flavor. Coffee shops, then, have a perfect balance of bitter and sweet scents, complicated and clarified by the earthy presence of umami. Perhaps this is also why I prefer to bake bread in the morning--I can have my warm cup of coffee next to me as I stir, knead, and bake. As Nigella Lawson says, "We're all trying to achieve balance in life, and it's easier to come by in the kitchen than anywhere else."What are your kitchen comforts? What practices make your time spent cooking and baking not only pleasurable, but necessary? Coffee while baking, wine while cooking would have to be mine. And time of day: baking in the morning or late at night, cooking mid-afternoon and evening. (Well, I can bake any time of day, but those are my favorites.)

This weekend, after I turned in the last of my seminar papers for my entire grad school career, after struggling with a computer and jump drive that insisted on erasing six hard-fought pages of one, after too little sleep and too much thought, I could finally sit still. I could wake up free on Saturday morning, knowing I would never feel that same kind of deadline again--the deadline of an assignment that, while certainly and important and worthwhile, was not directly related to the research I wanted to do. Now I can devote myself entirely to food and cookbook study, and I decided to begin by studying a new kind of bread for me: an egg bread.

I chose to fill the house that Saturday with the smell of sweet, salty, bready vanilla. My husband, not usually a fan of baked goods, could not stop commenting on how good it smelled. (I think he even went outside a few times just so he could come back in and the smell would be newly potent again.) When the gorgeous, shiny, egg-washed loaves came out of the oven and sat in their coiled splendor on the cooling racks, we both repeatedly walked by and casually set our hands on top of the loaves, willing them to cool down as quickly as possible. When we finally cut into one it was everything its smell had promised: delicate and hearty, the moist rich yellow of a butter cake but somehow less sweet and more tempting. We immediately set a few pieces to dry out for french toast the following morning and debated how to use the rest. It worked as sandwich bread for grilled chicken, dessert, morning toast. We still have another loaf that is, unfortunately, going stale, but no worries: it will be reborn in a trifle, a pudding, or perhaps a creation that has yet to be imagined. If anything can inspire, this can.

Sweet Vanilla Challah
(adapted from Beth Hensperger's Bread Bible)

Makes two turban-shaped loaves.

1 tablespoon (1 package) active dry yeast
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon salt
6 1/2-7 cups unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour (I prefer a mixture)
1 3/4 cups hot water (120 degrees)
4 large eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze: (this will make just enough to glaze both loaves)
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. sugar

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl and a whisk) combine the yeast, sugar, salt, and 2 cups of the flour. Add the hot water, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Beat hard until smooth, about 3 mins., scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add the remaining flour, a 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough becomes very stiff. (If mixing by hand, switch to a wooden spoon when you can no longer whisk and stop stirring, well, when it's too stiff to stir.)

Switch to the dough hook and knead for 3-4 mins. until the dough is smooth, springy, and springs back when pressed. It should show a layer of blisters under the skin. You can then transfer it to a lightly floured surface and knead a few times by hand, or transfer it directly to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap to let it rise. (If kneading by hand, allow 4-5 minutes and look for the same indicators as above.)

Place dough in a well-oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2-2 hours.

Grease or spray (or parchment line) two baking sheets or springform pans (that can fit in the oven at the same time, preferably on the same shelf). Spray the counter with nonstick spray (or lightly flour it, but I find the nonstick spray method helps the dough not to dry out). Gently deflate the dough by turning it onto the counter. Divide it into two equal portions with a knife or dough scraper. (Mark off 30 inches long on the counter with tape using a ruler if you don't trust your ability to eyeball it. You'll get more used to it with practice.) Roll each portion of dough into a smooth rope about 30 inches long, with one end a few inches wider than the other. (I found it easier to stretch the dough on one end, then roll to smooth it out, as stretching helped one end to stay wide.) Anchor the wider end on your surface and wind the rest around it, forming a turban shape. Pinch the end and tuck it under. Place the coils, swirl pattern up, on baking sheets. let rise until almost doubled, about 40 mins. (The eggs in the dough will help it continue to rise in the oven.)

Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make the glaze by whisking the glaze ingredients together in a small bowl. Gently brush the surfaces of the loaves generously with the glaze, but do be sure not to overdo it--the glaze will make just enough for the two loaves. Place the baking pans on the center rack of the oven and bake for 40-45 mins., until they turn a deep golden brown and sound hollow when tapped with a finger. Carefully lift them off baking sheets and place on a cooling rack. Cool completely before serving.

These make excellent toast, French toast, bread pudding, or snacks by themselves or with a little butter. They are slightly sweet, though the sweetness is mostly in the aroma rather than the taste. We used them to make grilled chicken sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, and a bit of mayo and dijon mustard and they were fantastic.

Cuban Bread

2008-05-11T09:18:00.006-05:00

My husband is a genius with pig. Anything pig--ribs, shoulder, you name it, he can make it delicious. He recently made barbecue (check out his blog, From the Forecastle to the Masthead, for more about this process) and after having a few friends over to enjoy barbecue sandwiches, we had some pulled pork left over--the best part. Since he is also obsessed with all things Cuban--probably resulting from a Hemingway fascination we share--we decided to make Cubanos. If you haven't tried them before, you must: long slices of bread with a thin, flaky crust, layered with mustard, pickles, ham, pulled pork, and swiss cheese, pressed until golden and crispy--they are truly amazing. I decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to try baking a new type of bread: Cuban Bread. But I couldn't find a recipe in any of my baking books so I turned to the Internet--what did we ever do in the kitchen without it? I guess I am straying a bit from the point of my blog, which was to work through the baking books already on my shelves, but whatever. Comment about this if you like, but try to bread first.

I found a recipe by Betsy Oppenneer, author of The Bread Bible (not to be confused with Beth Hensperger's Bread Bible, which is probably my favorite bread resource, though both are very good). I decided this was acceptable, since I've been wanting her books although I don't own them yet. Turns out that Cuban bread really isn't all that different from other loaf breads, like French or Italian, but that instead of preheating the oven before putting the loaves in to make a thicker, cruncy crust, Cuban bread goes in the oven before preheating so the loaf cooks differently, resulting in a thinner, flakier, crispier crust. This is one of the fastest breads to bake--I finished it in a few hours while doing laundry. It's also a fat-free bread, which means that it tastes good but goes stale quickly. She said it would be good only for a day, but we found that it was still sandwich-soft for three days, and after that, oh, what excellent bread pudding. But that's another post.

Here are the components of our Cubanos, from pork to bread.

Seriously, is anything more beautiful?

This is the loaf just before it went in the oven--gorgeous and pillowy.

Rustic. Homemade. Simple. Delicious.

Cuban Bread

You proof this one (like the Dark and Dangerous Cinnamon Buns) in the oven above a pan of boiling water. This helps the bread rise prior to the actual baking, and keeps it moist in the oven, important again since there is no fat.

1 scant tablespoon or 1 package active dry yeast

2 cups warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)

1 teaspoon salt

4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, soften the yeast in the water. (Just so this in the bowl of the standing mixer if you're using one.)

Add the salt and 3 cups of the flour. Beat vigorously with the paddle attachment (or a dough whisk or wooden spoon).

Gradually add more of the remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough forms a mass and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl. Switch to the dough hook (or turn the dough out onto a floured work surface). Knead, adding more flour, a little at a time as necessary, about 6 to 10 minutes (depending on method and vigor), or until you have a smooth, elastic dough and blisters begin to develop on the surface.

Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl (if you want to keep it fat-free, use cooking spray). Turn to coat the entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface and knead it into a ball. Put the dough on a well-greased baking sheet and flatten it slightly so that is about 3 inches high. Make 3 slits in the top of the loaf, about 1/4 inch deep and 2 inches apart.

Pour 1 cup of boiling water into a shallow pan and put the pan on the lower shelf of an unheated oven. put the dough on the shelf above, wait 10 minutes, then turn the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the bead for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 200 degrees.

Immediately remove from the baking sheet and cool on a rack. Allow it to cool completely before slicing.

Molten Chocolate Babycakes

2008-05-03T22:17:00.007-05:00

If you've wondered about the photograph of chocolate cake to the right of the screen, this is the recipe. It comes by way of Nigella Lawson (to whom it came by way of James McNair) and I admit, I did not make it. My husband made me these cakes for my birthday--my first birthday after we were married this past summer. I will also tell you this: he hates to bake. As meticulous as he is in his daily life, the measuring and counting baking demands frustrate him, since (I've decided) the kitchen is where he can exercise creativity with almost complete liberty. No dissertation formatting, no MLA v. Chicago debates, no worries about academic tone. I meanwhile am constantly fascinated at the ability to transform ingredients that do not taste good on their own into something that is beautiful and sensually pleasing. I enjoy even the most labor-intensive process as long as the final product smells and tastes wonderful. (I only feel frustrated when my work is pleasing only to the eye--there are few things more disappointing than biting into a beautiful piece of cake and finding that the taste does not meet the visual standards.)

I am also convinced that home baking just tastes better. Dan and I could have gone out for dinner that night, but instead he did something he hated with love. These cakes were perfect--restaurant perfect--but I doubt I will ever enjoy anything more. With every bite I saw his determined face as he measured flour and beat eggs--just enough, but not too much. I remembered the planning, the questioning, every attempt to make my birthday special.

Eat this on your best china, a paper plate, or even lick it off your fingers. You've never felt more loved or more special--even if you simply made it for yourself. It's worth it. You're worth it.

Molten Chocolate Babycakes

I especially love that you can make these ahead of time, keep them covered in the fridge, and bake them as you need to. What a treat! (This recipe is also easily halved.)

Scant 1/4 cup soft unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
12 ounces best bittersweet chocolate (I like Ghirardelli)
1/2 cup sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature, beaten with a pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

6 individual 6-ounce custard cups or ramekins, buttered well
Baking parchment paper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and place a baking sheet in the oven (unless you are preparing these ahead of time).

Lay 3 of the custard cups or ramekins on a doubled sheet of parchment paper. Trace around them and cut out the discs--you should have 6. Press them in the bases of the well-buttered cups.

Melt the chocolate and let it cool slightly. Cream the butter and sugar, then slowly beat in the eggs and salt, then the vanilla. Add the flour and when everything is incorporated, stir in the cooled chocolate. Blend until smooth.

Divide the batter among the 6 cups, place them on the warmed baking sheet from the oven, and place it back in the oven for 10-12 minutes. (If you are baking these from the refrigerator, add another 2 minutes of baking time.) When you take them out of the oven, tip them our of the cups onto small plates or shallow bowls. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Serves 6.

Dark and Dangerous Cinnamon Buns

2008-04-24T17:00:00.006-05:00

There is nothing like the smell of cinnamon rolls. It warms me up and makes me feel nostalgic--for what, I wonder?--whether I catch the scent when I'm at a bakery, at Bottletree with my girlfriends, or even walking past the Cinnabon stand in the airport. At the same time, I think about that commercial that shows a woman walking down the street with two huge cinnamon buns attached to her, well, buns. Sure, they're fattening, I get it, you want to sell us some processed preservative-laden "health" food with the shelf life of a McDonald's hamburger (like the picture of Dorian Gray, they never seem to age). Do you ever wonder why it is that the most commercially viable emotional response to food we have as a nation is guilt? We buy synthetic foods because they are marketed as "guilt-free." We trust the packaging more than our own instincts--if we have any food instincts left after decades of corporate brainwashing in the name of "convenience." But really, do we trust our food? Do we know what's in it, where those ingredients came from, what it took to convert those elements into the final food item we are about to consume? I venture that most of us probably don't. How can we trust something we don't understand?

Cinnamon rolls evoke the warmth and pleasures of home, of a simpler past. I'd guess they do this for everyone, whether or not you lived in a home where baking bread was common (I didn't). Despite this pleasure, we have learned to be guilty because they contain fat. We've learned to be wary of what smells good or tastes good. Aren't we the nation that, several years ago, declared that bread was evil? That we should replace it with bacon? Don't get me wrong--bacon is perhaps second only to sliced bread (ironic, eh?) in its importance to American culinary culture. But we're looking for simplicity in all the wrong places. Why cut one thing and replace it with another? Here's a simple idea: Eat real food, food with identifiable ingredients, and eat everything in moderation. No rules or point systems or guilt. Just learn to enjoy your food--everything you put into your mouth. If you start feeling guilty--we have been trained, after all--stop it. I mean it--focus on the smell, flavor, and texture of what you're eating. Think about how you would describe them to someone you love. You'll forget to feel guilty. Then make a habit of this forgetfulness.

Well, I wasn't looking for a healthy cinnamon roll recipe. My husband and I were in the midst of our no-white-flour Lent, and I couldn't shake my desire for cinnamon rolls. I checked out my new favorite baking book, King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking, and found the answer: Dark and Dangerous Cinnamon Buns. They are made from 100% whole wheat flour, they are delicious, they freeze well, and the only danger is that there may be more demand than you anticipated!

A few tips: Weigh everything! Get a digital kitchen scale and weigh everything. It really makes a difference for every recipe in this book. If I ever forget to mention this in the future, weigh everything! Also, this dough can be left overnight in the fridge for its second rise. Just let it come to room temperature and proof it. (Place a 9x13 inch pan filled with boiling water on bottom rack and the rolls on the middle rack. Leave for 30 mins., then remove rolls from oven and preheat to 350 degrees. The water can remain in the oven during the baking process.)

Dark and Dangerous Cinnamon Buns

Dough:

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (7 ounces) lukewarm water

1/4 cup (2 ounces) fresh squeezed orange juice

5 tablespoons (3 ounces) honey

1 large egg, yolk and white separated (reserve the white)

4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into chunks

3 1/2 cups (14 ounces) traditional whole wheat flour (or white whole wheat)

1/2 cup (1.75 ouncees) old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup (1.25 ounces) dry potato flakes

1/4 cup (1 ounce) nonfat dry milk powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons instant yeast

Filling:

1 cup (7.5 ounces) packed dark brown sugar

1 large egg white

2 tablespoons cinnamon

Scant 1/8 teaspoon salt

Icing:

2 cups (8 ounces) confectioners' sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Pinch of salt

2-4 tablespoons milk

To make the dough:

In a large mixing bowl, weigh and mix together water, orange juice, honey, egg yolk, butter, flours, oats, potato flakes, dry milk, salt and yeast just until the ingredients are thoroughly combined. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment on medium-low speed for 5-8 minutes. Cover the dough and let rest for 45 minutes so the flour can absorb the liquid and the yeast can get a head start--do not skip this step. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until you have a medium-soft and smooth dough. If using a stand mixer, use the dough hook on low speed for about 13-15 minutes. Place in a large lightly greased bowl and cover - let rise in a warm place until it is very puffy, though it probably will not double in size - about 2 hours.

To make the filling:

In a medium bowl, stir together brown sugar, egg white, cinnamon and salt until completely combined.

To assemble the rolls:

Gently turn out the dough onto a lightly greased surface. Roll the dough out until it is a 12 x 16" rectangle. Use wet fingers to spread the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a 1" margin along one of the long edges. (You may want to keep a bowl of lukewarm water next to you for dipping your fingers--the filling is very sticky. Try to get it as even as possible.) Roll the dough into a log (not too tight to allow for rising), starting with the long end that has the filling all the way to the edge, turning it so the seam will be flat against the surface. Use a serrated knife and gently cut the dough into 16 1" pieces. Evenly space the buns into a 9x13 inch baking dish coated lightly with cooking spray. They probably won't touch--that's fine. (At this point you can cover with plastic wrap and place them in the fridge to rise overnight, letting them come to room temperature before proofing--see tips prior to recipe--and baking. If you don't want to let them sit for an overnight rise, then use the following directions.)

Either follow the tips for proofing or preheat the oven to 350 degrees. (Placing rolls in off-oven with boiling water is not necessary, but it helps them rise and stay moist, so I suggest it.) Cover and let rise for 1 to 1 1/4 hours - they will not double in size, but should rise by about half as large as they started out. Place in the oven and bake until they are a deep golden brown on top, about 24-28 minutes. Remove the pan and set on a wire rack for about 3 minutes. Carefully turn the rolls out onto a wire rack and then flip them back again (so the tops are up) onto another wire cooling rack.

To make the icing:

In a large mixing bowl, mix together confectioners' sugar, vanilla, butter, salt and 2 tablespoons milk. Add in additional milk, if necessary, to achieve a creamy spreadable icing. Spread the icing over the baked rolls. The warmer the rolls are when you spread the icing, the thinner the glaze will be. It's totally up to you.

Makes 16 buns.

Welcome.

2008-03-18T23:28:00.002-05:00

In her Preface to How to Be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking, Nigella Lawson writes, "Sometimes ... we don't want to feel like a postmodern, postfeminist, overstretched woman but, rather, a domestic goddess, trailing nutmeggy fumes of baking pie in our langorous wake." (What I wouldn't give for a langorous wake.) Allow me to add a few more "posts-" that inhabit my daily life. Postsouthern. Posthuman. I study literature, and theoretical realities are my bread and butter--in class. I even study food, but there's nothing like actually making it to remind me that life's not a theory or a post. I am mesmerized by the slow, pillowy rise of a loaf of bread dough. I watch with wintery awe the snowy sifting of powdered sugar or flour or midnight-hued cocoa. I love that the smell of lemon can evoke so many memories and emotions and seems perfectly at home in any season or at any holiday. So I hope you'll stop in now and again as I work through the bread and pastry cookbooks on my shelves that I've been waiting to have time to use. I don't have time. Who ever does? So why not now--instead of waiting for an era of post-baking.

My favorite cake, the one that I bake time and time again without fail, is the cake Nigella Lawson calls "My Mother-In-Law's Madeira Cake." It is soft and dense and lemony, and just thinking about it makes me smile. And it's rustic-looking, baked in a loaf pan with an elegant crisp top and inviting scent. It looks like real food, not a contrived gimmick, and it is luscious. I'll add a picture as soon as I find one. I've made it so many times; I can't remember if it's ever lasted long enough to make it to film.

So here it is, simply:

My Mother-In-Law's Madeira Cake (adapted from Nigella Lawson's How To Be a Domestic Goddess). And no, I didn't leave anything out--there's no madeira in this madeira cake.

1 cup softened unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
grated zest and juice of one large lemon
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups cake flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt

Preheat the oven to 350.

Butter a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan, or line with parchment paper.

Cream the softened butter and 3/4 cup sugar, and add the lemon zest. Add the room-temperature eggs, one at a time, with a tablespoon of the flour for each. Then gently mix in the rest of the flour and, finally, the lemon juice. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with sugar right before putting it into the oven, and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Remove to a wire cooling rack, and let cool in pan before turning out.

Makes 8-10 slices.

Variations: You can certainly add more lemon, even some poppyseeds or caraway seeds. Nigella even suggests adding some chopped dried fruit, such as strawberries or cherries. I've never tried. The unadulterated cake is enough for me, though I can see how a strawberry sauce could also be excellent.