Easter (aka i’ve been slacking. annnnnd… i’m back)

There’s something I really love about easter. When my brother and I were little, Easter was one of the more fun-filled holidays- less of a big to-do than Christmas or Thanksgiving, more kids at the family get-together, and almost as much (if not more) candy than Halloween. Don’t get me wrong, I can be pretty sentimental at times and will never ever lose my love for Christmas, but Easter was just a different kind of fun. Every year my mom would make an indoor easter egg hunt for my brother and me. The hunt was structured around a series of rhyming clues about egg locations. There was one clue to start, and the next clue was hidden with the eggs. It told us where to go next, and so on. This sounds very cute and all, but what you must know is that family quirks can not be stifled and ours were no exception. I wish I had saved the clues my mom wrote out. There was always at least one or two involving “the throne”, as it was known in our family (I really hope I don’t need to explain that to anyone) and eggs (plastic ones!) were frequently hidden at the bottom of piles of laundry, in people’s shoes, and in the dishwasher. The best part for me was that I am older than my brother and there were at least one or two Easters where I knew how to read and he didn’t. Now, I’m not especially proud of this, but I guess I have to admit it since it is documented on video. On those particular Easters, I found great delight in reading the clues to myself silently, and then running off to find the eggs and leaving my poor brother helpless, stomping his foot and yelling at the foot of the stairs. This may not sound very nice of me, but anyone who has a little brother should understand. The opportunities to stick it to a younger sibling didn’t come around all the time, but when they did, you had to take advantage! That’s just the way it was. And don’t worry, he did his fair share of torturing me too. I’m pretty sure it evened out.

So, as you might guess, the days of the rhyming Easter egg hunt are long gone. I did have a nice, relaxed breakfast with my mom though.  I guess you could say we celebrated by making a frittata (above) and supreming about a million grapefruits to have on the side (my idea of luxury).

These days, much of the time leading up to Easter is spent baking and just spending time with the family, which is just fine with me. Every year the scene plays out in a similar way. Since I am the family’s designated baker, I never fail to spend at least three or four hours pouring through cookbooks looking for the the most decadent, most fantastic, most daring dessert candidates. I usually end up with at least five or six potentials, at which point my mom begins to sigh, worried that I will go way overboard and end up begging her to help me wash bowls at two in the morning (let’s just say it hasn’t not happened once or twice before).  

 

To make a long story short, this year I narrowed it down to three recipes within a pretty reasonable amount of time.  I ended up making: an the fudgiest chocolate cake (drenched in ganache), grapefruit cupcakes (sugar-free, for my godfather who is diabetic), and a super top-secret recipe which I will post about at the end of the month!  The chocolate cake is based on this one from Deb at Smitten Kitchen, although I ran out of butter just before getting to the mousse layer and decided to go with ganache instead.  Besides, there was already enough butter at Easter!

The cake was absolutely delicious but so, so, rich.  We couldn’t finish it, which was no problem at all for me, because the leftovers are in my fridge right now acting a lot like the best fudge I’ve ever eaten.  Mmmmm.

Fudgiest Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Deb at Smitten Kitchen

Makes at least 10 servings (one 9 inch round, or one 8×8 in square and 12 mini cupcakes, as I did)

Cake
8 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup all purpose flour

Ganache
6 tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons heavy cream

For the cake: Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter an 8×8 square pan; dust with sugar. Prepare one 12-well mini-muffin tray.  Melt chocolate and butter in heavy large saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Cool to lukewarm. Whisk in sugar. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time, blending well after each addition. Mix in vanilla and salt, then flour. Pour batter into pan. Bake until cake just rises in center (tester inserted into center will not come out clean), about 35 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack.  I would recommend keeping this one at room temperature as long as you can, just to keep it a little bit softer.

For the ganache: Melt the chocolate chips and the cream in a double boiler over gently simmering water.  Pour over the cooled cake.  Let drip langourously over the edges… ooh!

 The cupcakes, also borrowed from Smitten Kitchen, were so cute and really good for the kids as well as my godfather.  The recipe is below.

Grapefruit Yogurt Cake
Adapated from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa and from Deb at Smitten Kitchen

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar (I used splenda and it worked fine)
3 extra-large eggs
3 teaspoons grated grapefruit zest (approximately one large grapefruit)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

For the glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar  (I used splenda here too and it seemed OK)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.  ( I just made 12 mini-cupcakes and one mini loaf).

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, grapefruit zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the grapefruit-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and grapefruit juice and pour over the cake.

I’m a daring baker!

Yes, yes, yes, it’s true, after a year or so of shameless spying, I have become a daring baker.  I can’t wait to make the first (secret- shhhhhhhhhhhhhh) recipe.  No peeking till March 30, sorry!  And don’t ask me either, I’m sworn to complete secrecy.   That’s all for now…

Geez I guess it’s been a while…

So, don’t ask me why, but the other day I got a craving for turkey burgers. Now, let me give you a little bit of background. I don’t do regular (beef) burgers any more, and honestly, I never thought turkey burgers were worthy of much praise. They always seemed to be bland, strange-colored, poor-substitute versions of regular burgers. Certainly not something I would order at a restaurant, let alone crave. Well, a couple of years ago, some friends and I went to visit our friend Steve’s parents out in central Pennsylvania. We got to his parents’ house, and his mom had prepared dinner for us. She presented us with a plate of just-grilled turkey burgers. I remember thinking, “Great.. I’ll just eat half of this to be polite”, but upon first bite I realized that I had been so, so, mistaken. These turkey burgers were delicious! In fact, I liked them better than any beef burger I had ever had. I hounded Steve’s mom for the recipe, and although she was very gracious and offered to email it to me, I foolishly never followed through. Now it’s been about two years, and I think it would be a little strange to call up Steve’s mom, who I have not seen since then, and ask her for her turkey burger recipe. Don’t you? Besides, I am a bit of a rogue in the kitchen and can not resist a chance to experiment, even if I really have no idea what I’m doing, and I’ll tell you this: I am a bit less than experienced with meat.

Annnnyyyway… So I had this craving for turkey burgers. It would NOT go away. I tried to lure M into making them with me (I need a companion around when I cook with meat, I’m a little intimidated!) on Friday night, but it just did not happen. We were too hungry and just went to chinatown for a quick malaysian meal which, in retrospect, was not a bad idea at all. So Saturday rolled around and I still wanted those damn turkey burgers! Well, to make a long story short, we made them. I guess that’s that. They were awesome! Of course, M and I are both wannabe gourmandes and can not stop at one dish, so we had to make a full lunch banquet (yes, just for the two of us, I know).

As you can see from the “menu” above, we had:

-Pan-roasted asparagus with lemon and parmesan

-Turkey burgers

-M’s potato salad (without mayonnaise.. yes!)

and… as if that wasn’t enough already

-Nigella Lawson’s Chocolate Ginger Bread (although admittedly, we were pretty full and only ate a few bites)

Well, let me tell you, this was all very good! It was also pretty impressive. M is into Iron Chef and gave us only an hour to make all of this, starting the moment we walked in the door. I have a very small kitchen and a mini oven, so this was quite the challenge. I’m proud to say, we did it! And I am known to be a notoriously slow cooker. Not bad!

I would like to post recipes for this stuff, but we made it up and don’t really remember the proportions. If you’d like the recipe for Nigella’s Chocolate Ginger Bread (yes, you would like this recipe), it’s in her book, Feast. Enjoy!

Red Velvet Cupcakes, and one step closer to the perfect chocolate chip cookie…

This week I had a bunch of orders for Cakes for a Cure. I made three Melt-in-your-mouth Chocolate Cakes (thanks Clotilde!), 8 batches of cookies (chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin), and one order of Red Velvet Cupcakes, which I was pretty excited about! The cupcakes ended up coming out delicious, and so so cute. The cookies, I’m proud to say, are very very close to what I consider to be absolute perfection in chocolate chip cookies. I like a thicker cookie, generously studded with chips, crisp and a little knobbly on the outside, but soft and ooey gooey in the middle. I want that one middle bite that almost tastes like cookie dough. And of course, there must be lingering but delicate hints of butter and vanilla. Ooooh.

So up until now, my main issues have been texture and height. There is a time and a place for a thin crispy cookie; I will admit that I have had a few thin, crispy chocolate cookies that were, admittedly, delicious, but those were exceptions. I like a cookie that I can really sink my teeth into. So, you’ll understand how disappointed I’ve been each time I put a batch of perfect-tasting chocolate chip cookie dough into the oven only to find, nine minutes later, a pan of dry, greasy, melted-looking chocolate chip pancakes. I don’t know why it took me so long to do some research on cookie chemistry, but I am infinitely glad that I finally did.

Cakes for a Cure!

Just wanted to put up a quick post about the fundraiser I’m doing, “Cakes for a Cure!” I’ll be baking like crazy and all the proceeds are going to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Here’s the whole story: I’m training for a marathon with Team in Training (although my training is currently on hold because of a hurt ankle…) and Cakes for a Cure! is my chosen fundraiser. So, order a cake, or some cookies, or anything! My website is www.whystopathope.com, and there’s much more information there. Also, please feel free to donate to the LLS through my website, if for some crazy reason you aren’t interested in delicious baked goods

studying with soba

Well, all of today was devoted to studying. I think I’m in an altered mindset. All I can think about are molecules and reaction rates! My social skills are on hold, my sarcasm detector is temporarily out of order, and, well, I’m just in a bit of a haze. I guess my stomach is still working though, because as I was wading through problem sets and section quizzes I suddenly became very hungry. So… what could I make in 15 minutes or less that would be warm and cozy on this very cold and very un-cozy night?? Soba!

This is hardly a recipe. I mean, I really don’t think I could call it that. I just cooked some soba noodles in broth and then added a bit of soy sauce and just a touch of sesame oil. I also threw in some spinach just to get those veggies in. And because I love spinach. In everything. I’ve never made this before, but I have to say… it’s so easy and satisfying, I’ll definitely be making it again.

Test Batch!

mmmm… more later

oatmeal for breakfast.. or lunch, or dinner?

Well, I’ll just go ahead and say it. I love oatmeal. Looooove. I’m eating it right now. Really. There is something about oatmeal that is so satisfying. It’s hearty, warm, savory (or a little bit sweet, if you like that), and there are so so many ways to enjoy it. Right now I’m having mine with apples, cinnamon, and a little bit of tofutti better than cream cheese. It’s kind of like an oatmealy apple pie an a bowl.

So is it dorky to have oatmeal cravings? Maybe so, but I just can’t deny that, yes, my little heart starts to flutter at just the thought of it. I think this may have something to do with my grandpa. He is actually the original oatmeal aficionado. When I was younger, my grandparents would babysit my brother and me, and they would always give us oatmeal for breakfast. My grandpa always made it the same way: kind of on the gluey side, raisins and milk. To this day that is still my favorite way to have it. As a matter of fact, I was over at my grandparents’ house just the other day and I was kind of hungry… My grandpa made me, well, you guessed it, oatmeal. Amazing.

a retrospective…

Well, I have to get some more light for my kitchen. There isn’t any natural light and it’s really hard to get a nice picture, so I’ll have to figure something out. For now, here are some older pictures that I thought I’d share.

Above: Brillo feet

Above: Baking with Xiao Ge- the best Santas ever!

Kale for the beans and greens soup

Beans and yams for the soup

Beans and Greens

Beans and Greens Soup:

This was basically my attempt to avoid the inevitable rotting of all my beautiful and potentially delicious vegetables. I love soups and stews like this. When you start cooking, you’re never quite sure what you might end up with, but you tweak, and you tweak, and with any luck, you’re left with a delicious soup that you’ve never had before. If you ask me, that is really the ideal way to cook.

As for next time, I would leave out the speckled beans and use chickpeas or cannelini beans instead, I think I like them better, but it’s completely up to you.

So, here’s what went in:

1T extra virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 or 4 carrots, chunked

3 stalks of celery, chopped

5 cloves of garlic

2 garnet yams, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 1/2 bunches of green kale, chopped

2 or 3 cubes of vegan bullion

1 bunch of chard, chopped

about 1 1/2 cups of these speckled beans (I can’t remember what they’re called!), boiled to soften

Generous salt and pepper

Warm the olive oil for a minute or so over medium-low heat and then drop in the onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Let them saute and soften for a few minutes. Season with salt and pepper (be conservative, you can always add more later)!

Add the yams and beans, followed by the vegan bullion cubes. Add water to cover, then put a lid on your pot, turn the heat down low and leave it all to chill for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes and beans are tender (I personally like my potatoes a little disintegrate-y).

Come back and add the greens, maybe a little bit more salt and pepper (to taste) and then cover once more and let the greens steam. This should only take a couple of minutes.

That’s it! It really is that simple. Make sure the seasoning is to your liking, and then go to town on this delicious, healthy soup.