When an unseasonably cold arctic front moves through your town, bringing blizzard warnings from the National Weather Service, of course a frozen drink came to mind. We'd never made it for Thanksgiving, but with the highs outside in the single digits, we figured we'd make the world our refrigerator. Turns out it worked perfectly--- it didn't get above freezing for three days, and we didn't have to look for any room in the freezer at all.
I talked about my memory of this recipe in this entry. Drinking this DELICIOUS punch brought those memories crashing back. And with a Thanksgiving dinner that is a serious contender for the most delicious I've ever had, I've added more meaning to this recipe.
Banana Slush
a recipe from Grandma Gubler
4 cups sugar
6 cups water
1 can orange juice concentrate
juice of 2 lemons (preferably fresh)
1 quart pineapple juice
5 bananas
Sprite, Slice, or any other lemon-lime soda
Combine the water and sugar in a pot, and bring to a boil. While it's cooling, add the can of concentrated orange juice, lemon juice, and pineapple juice. Halve the bananas and put them in a blender; add a couple cups of the juice mixture to the blender and blend until only small chunks remain (about a minute). Pour everything into containers for freezing. Freeze until solid (takes about a day). When serving, scoop out a chunk of the slush into a cup, and cover with soda, like a root beer float.
This recipe is absolutely SIMPLE to make, and tastes delicious. It makes a whole lot, so if you're throwing a party or just have a case of Sprite in your food storage that's about to go bad, you can't go wrong with this. It also lasts in your freezer for a few weeks. Although Thanksgiving dinner was delicious with it, I could see how enjoying it outside in the summer could be nice as well.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Rainbow Jello
It's that time of year again--- where the family gathers to cook for hours and hours, spend 30 minutes stuffing their faces, and groan their way through the remainder of the day. I've always liked Thanksgiving, not just because I can eat beyond capacity and not look like a pig (mob mentality rules here), but because it's the time where I get to try to see if I can make a whole meal come together at the same time.
This year, because there are only seven of us gathering (it's the in-laws' turn for my siblings, which leaves us unmarried ones to keep my parents company), my mom wanted to make a few different dishes. One of her favorites to have is rainbow jello. Now Utah of course is famous for their sometimes bizarre jello dishes, but I promise, this one has no miscellaneous vegetables (though it does one of those other Utah staples-- sour cream). I think you could use light or fat-free sour cream, and sugar free jello, and make this dish 'healthy', but hey--- it's Thanksgiving. Bring on the heavy whipping cream.
Rainbow Jello
a recipe from my mom
various boxes (3 ounce or smaller size) of flavored Jello (I use 7: black cherry, strawberry, orange, lemon, lime, berry blue, and grape)
sour cream -- 1/3 cup for each of flavor of Jello (I got 2 16-oz tubs)
water
whipping cream
powdered sugar to taste
vanilla to taste
The jello takes a LOT of time (but you're not completely busy with it so don't fret about spending 7 hours on a dessert) --- one hour per Jello box. I like to use a 13x9 clear Pyrex casserole dish, because by the time I'm done with the seven layers, it completely fills the dish. I also like to do it in rainbow order, because I tend to be a bit OCD and I like how the colors blend together. This of course is not completely necessary, and you can mix and match as much as you want.
I like to have the following things ready for use: a 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 2- or 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 1/3 cup measuring cup, two spoons, and a spatula. Fill the 1/3 cup with sour cream and set aside. Boil a pan of water (you'll need at least one cup of boiling water for each step). Measure out one cup of the boiling water into the 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Dissolve one packet of Jello in the water, and stir until completely dissolved. (I start with the purple and work backwards so I end up with the red on top.) Try to avoid making bubbles. Measure out 1/2 cup of the Jello liquid into the 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Put the 1/3 cup sour cream into the 1-cup Pyrex cup and mix until all the sour cream is melted. In the other measuring cup with the remaining Jello liquid, add 2 Tbsp. cold water and mix. Scrape all the bubbles out of the Jello-sour cream mixture, and slowly pour into the serving dish. Remove any remaining bubbles from the jello, and cover with saran wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. When you pull it out, make sure the saran wrap doesn't touch the Jello--- it will remove a chunk of it (I know this from experience). Slowly pour the clear Jello liquid over the now set-up layer. I use a spoon, hovering it very close to the first layer, and pour into the spoon, so the force of pouring it doesn't disturb the layer I just made. I've tried all sorts of methods, and this one works best. Cover, and refrigerate 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before the second layer is done, I'll start boiling the water, and mix the second box of Jello up, separate, and mix in the sour cream, which usually puts me at the right time to add the next layer. Alternate sour cream and clear layers until you're done.
It's best to do this dish the night before you serve it, as the more time you allow it to harden after you're done with it, the better it sets up. Right before serving, whip up a bunch of heavy cream with powdered sugar (granulated sugar makes the whipped cream grainy) and vanilla to taste. Cover the jello with the whipped cream, and serve.
This dish has gotten me a whole lot of compliments, and it really does taste good. Your dish will definitely be the life of the potluck, and outshine the other people who dropped into Smiths/Krogers to buy a coffee cake.
This year, because there are only seven of us gathering (it's the in-laws' turn for my siblings, which leaves us unmarried ones to keep my parents company), my mom wanted to make a few different dishes. One of her favorites to have is rainbow jello. Now Utah of course is famous for their sometimes bizarre jello dishes, but I promise, this one has no miscellaneous vegetables (though it does one of those other Utah staples-- sour cream). I think you could use light or fat-free sour cream, and sugar free jello, and make this dish 'healthy', but hey--- it's Thanksgiving. Bring on the heavy whipping cream.
Rainbow Jello
a recipe from my mom
various boxes (3 ounce or smaller size) of flavored Jello (I use 7: black cherry, strawberry, orange, lemon, lime, berry blue, and grape)
sour cream -- 1/3 cup for each of flavor of Jello (I got 2 16-oz tubs)
water
whipping cream
powdered sugar to taste
vanilla to taste
The jello takes a LOT of time (but you're not completely busy with it so don't fret about spending 7 hours on a dessert) --- one hour per Jello box. I like to use a 13x9 clear Pyrex casserole dish, because by the time I'm done with the seven layers, it completely fills the dish. I also like to do it in rainbow order, because I tend to be a bit OCD and I like how the colors blend together. This of course is not completely necessary, and you can mix and match as much as you want.
I like to have the following things ready for use: a 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 2- or 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 1/3 cup measuring cup, two spoons, and a spatula. Fill the 1/3 cup with sour cream and set aside. Boil a pan of water (you'll need at least one cup of boiling water for each step). Measure out one cup of the boiling water into the 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Dissolve one packet of Jello in the water, and stir until completely dissolved. (I start with the purple and work backwards so I end up with the red on top.) Try to avoid making bubbles. Measure out 1/2 cup of the Jello liquid into the 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Put the 1/3 cup sour cream into the 1-cup Pyrex cup and mix until all the sour cream is melted. In the other measuring cup with the remaining Jello liquid, add 2 Tbsp. cold water and mix. Scrape all the bubbles out of the Jello-sour cream mixture, and slowly pour into the serving dish. Remove any remaining bubbles from the jello, and cover with saran wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. When you pull it out, make sure the saran wrap doesn't touch the Jello--- it will remove a chunk of it (I know this from experience). Slowly pour the clear Jello liquid over the now set-up layer. I use a spoon, hovering it very close to the first layer, and pour into the spoon, so the force of pouring it doesn't disturb the layer I just made. I've tried all sorts of methods, and this one works best. Cover, and refrigerate 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before the second layer is done, I'll start boiling the water, and mix the second box of Jello up, separate, and mix in the sour cream, which usually puts me at the right time to add the next layer. Alternate sour cream and clear layers until you're done.
It's best to do this dish the night before you serve it, as the more time you allow it to harden after you're done with it, the better it sets up. Right before serving, whip up a bunch of heavy cream with powdered sugar (granulated sugar makes the whipped cream grainy) and vanilla to taste. Cover the jello with the whipped cream, and serve.
This dish has gotten me a whole lot of compliments, and it really does taste good. Your dish will definitely be the life of the potluck, and outshine the other people who dropped into Smiths/Krogers to buy a coffee cake.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Breakfast Rolls (aka Monkey Bread)
Growing up, we used to have these awesome breakfast rolls every once in a while, especially around Christmas and Thanksgiving time. When I found out how easy they were to make, I immediately ran out and bought a bundt pan (just saying bundt reminds me of My Big Fat Greek Wedding). You have to start these rolls the night before, but they're really easy to finish the next morning.
Breakfast Rolls
a Jones family recipe
18 frozen roll dough (I use Rhodes rolls)
1/2 packet of the small box of cook-and-serve butterscotch pudding (MAKE SURE it's cook-and-serve, NOT instant)
1/2 cup-1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (again, please don't use margarine)
That's the ingredient list. And it's easy to prepare. The night before, put the chopped walnuts in the bottom of the bundt pan, and place the frozen rolls evenly on top of the nuts. Sprinkle the butterscotch pudding on top of the dough. In a saucepan, melt the butter, and add the brown sugar to it, whisking until its completely combined into a syrup. The butter will resist combining, but you need to have a smooth syrup or it'll separate in the bundt pan. After it's in a syrup, pour over the frozen rolls.
Let the dough rise overnight. The next morning, when the rolls are big and puffy, heat the oven to 350, and bake for about 25 minutes, until the rolls are deep golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. When it's removed from the oven, take a serving dish (let's be honest, most of us will use a big plate), and put on top of the bundt pan; flip it immediately over. If it cools in the pan, it'll be hard to get out, so you want to do that right after taking it out of the oven. Enjoy!
Breakfast Rolls
a Jones family recipe
18 frozen roll dough (I use Rhodes rolls)
1/2 packet of the small box of cook-and-serve butterscotch pudding (MAKE SURE it's cook-and-serve, NOT instant)
1/2 cup-1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (again, please don't use margarine)
That's the ingredient list. And it's easy to prepare. The night before, put the chopped walnuts in the bottom of the bundt pan, and place the frozen rolls evenly on top of the nuts. Sprinkle the butterscotch pudding on top of the dough. In a saucepan, melt the butter, and add the brown sugar to it, whisking until its completely combined into a syrup. The butter will resist combining, but you need to have a smooth syrup or it'll separate in the bundt pan. After it's in a syrup, pour over the frozen rolls.
Let the dough rise overnight. The next morning, when the rolls are big and puffy, heat the oven to 350, and bake for about 25 minutes, until the rolls are deep golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. When it's removed from the oven, take a serving dish (let's be honest, most of us will use a big plate), and put on top of the bundt pan; flip it immediately over. If it cools in the pan, it'll be hard to get out, so you want to do that right after taking it out of the oven. Enjoy!
Stuffed Zucchini
My dad can be a bit extreme. Where two or three zucchini plants can provide more than enough zucchini for the average family to not only use, but also as super exciting gifts to eager neighbors, my dad insisted that we plant fifteen hills. Keep in mind: a hill had 3 seeds in it. So what the heck do you do with zucchinis from 45 plants? People started getting smart and locking their car doors--- not to keep thieves from stealing their belongings, but to prevent unexpected bags of zucchini from appearing in their vehicles.
Anyone who has grown zucchini can also attest that if you are not fastidious about checking the plants, they can quickly get out of hand. Even with the one zucchini plant I planted this year, a few days of not paying attention landed me with a 30-inch-long vegetable. Fortunately, years of having extreme excess had gifted me with great recipes for zucchini, and my mom's recipe for the giant variety sounded like the perfect solution to using it.
I called my mom to send the recipe to me, and I promptly (and accidentally) sent it to the trash bin. So, after another call, I got the recipe. It's currently roasting in the oven.
Stuffed Zucchini
by my awesome mom (Denise Jones)
1-2 large zucchini
1 small onion
2 stalks celery
dash of olive oil
1 lb hamburger
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
3/4 cup rice
Italian seasoning (I added this just for flavor)
salt and pepper for seasoning
Preheat the oven to 350. Cut the zucchini in half, and scoop out the seeds. Salt and pepper it, and put it on a cookie sheet covered in tin foil in the oven. (It will need to cook for about an hour and a half, so it's good to get it started early.) Chop up the onion and the celery and soften them in the olive oil in a large skillet. When the onions are transparent, add the hamburger and brown. When the hamburger is browned, add the cans of soup, using 1/2 can of water in each can to swirl out the soup from the cans. Season to taste--- I used Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper, but garlic salt or other herbs could be good. Then add the rice (uncooked) and stir. Simmer for 1/2 hour until the rice is tender.
When the rice/meat is done, pull the zucchini out of the oven and pile the mixture in the hollowed out zucchini. Put back in the oven and cook for another 45 minutes or so, until the zucchini is tender. Cover with tin foil, removing for the last 10 minutes to brown. Serve. Just a note: don't feel obligated to eat the skin--- we would just scrape the zucchini off, as the skin tended to be a bit tough.
Remember, those gigantic zucchinis are still good--- and you don't need to make a ton of zucchini bread with it either. It makes a good main dish that is pretty easy to make and is really tasty. And it brings back memories of the hordes of zucchini that we grew.
Anyone who has grown zucchini can also attest that if you are not fastidious about checking the plants, they can quickly get out of hand. Even with the one zucchini plant I planted this year, a few days of not paying attention landed me with a 30-inch-long vegetable. Fortunately, years of having extreme excess had gifted me with great recipes for zucchini, and my mom's recipe for the giant variety sounded like the perfect solution to using it.
I called my mom to send the recipe to me, and I promptly (and accidentally) sent it to the trash bin. So, after another call, I got the recipe. It's currently roasting in the oven.
Stuffed Zucchini
by my awesome mom (Denise Jones)
1-2 large zucchini
1 small onion
2 stalks celery
dash of olive oil
1 lb hamburger
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
3/4 cup rice
Italian seasoning (I added this just for flavor)
salt and pepper for seasoning
Preheat the oven to 350. Cut the zucchini in half, and scoop out the seeds. Salt and pepper it, and put it on a cookie sheet covered in tin foil in the oven. (It will need to cook for about an hour and a half, so it's good to get it started early.) Chop up the onion and the celery and soften them in the olive oil in a large skillet. When the onions are transparent, add the hamburger and brown. When the hamburger is browned, add the cans of soup, using 1/2 can of water in each can to swirl out the soup from the cans. Season to taste--- I used Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper, but garlic salt or other herbs could be good. Then add the rice (uncooked) and stir. Simmer for 1/2 hour until the rice is tender.
When the rice/meat is done, pull the zucchini out of the oven and pile the mixture in the hollowed out zucchini. Put back in the oven and cook for another 45 minutes or so, until the zucchini is tender. Cover with tin foil, removing for the last 10 minutes to brown. Serve. Just a note: don't feel obligated to eat the skin--- we would just scrape the zucchini off, as the skin tended to be a bit tough.
Remember, those gigantic zucchinis are still good--- and you don't need to make a ton of zucchini bread with it either. It makes a good main dish that is pretty easy to make and is really tasty. And it brings back memories of the hordes of zucchini that we grew.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Zucchini soup
I went to my cousin's the other day for dinner, and she had made this really good soup. I asked her if it was hard to make--- she said it was really easy. Apparently she'd gotten it from her mother, who had gotten it from a restaurant somewhere in Southern Utah. I'm not sure who to give the credit to, but I really enjoyed it, and enjoyed making it.
Just a note. When you're making this soup, it calls for you to blend it. Use a blender. You might think that if you just used a mixer for a long time, that it would eventually be somewhat pureed. You'd be quite wrong. You would probably end up with a fairly lumpy soup, with the onions not being blended at all, and with bits of soup splattered all over the kitchen. Of course, this is all conjecture, I'm sure.
Zucchini Soup
from Raelene Hall
2 medium onions
3 Tbsp butter
1 1/2 lbs zucchini, peeled and cubed
3 cups chicken broth (2 cans)
1/2 cup half and half
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
Dice up the onions, then sauté them in the butter until they are transparent. While they're sautéing, peel and dice up the zucchini into cubes. Put the onions, the zucchini, and the broth in a large pot and boil. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes. After it's simmered, put the spices in, and then blend it all in a blender. (See note above.) When it's thoroughly puréed, pour it back into the pot, and add the half and half.
Just a note. When you're making this soup, it calls for you to blend it. Use a blender. You might think that if you just used a mixer for a long time, that it would eventually be somewhat pureed. You'd be quite wrong. You would probably end up with a fairly lumpy soup, with the onions not being blended at all, and with bits of soup splattered all over the kitchen. Of course, this is all conjecture, I'm sure.
Zucchini Soup
from Raelene Hall
2 medium onions
3 Tbsp butter
1 1/2 lbs zucchini, peeled and cubed
3 cups chicken broth (2 cans)
1/2 cup half and half
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
Dice up the onions, then sauté them in the butter until they are transparent. While they're sautéing, peel and dice up the zucchini into cubes. Put the onions, the zucchini, and the broth in a large pot and boil. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes. After it's simmered, put the spices in, and then blend it all in a blender. (See note above.) When it's thoroughly puréed, pour it back into the pot, and add the half and half.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Taco Soup--- a Jones family favorite
I like to multi-task. Right now I'm on my way to a wedding rehearsal barbecue dinner. Now don't panic: I'm not driving. Like I'd blog and drive. And I'm still trying to figure out what exactly we're rehearsing. Especialy when the bride told me she's wearing a baggy shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. And growing up, we used to call that particular type of footwear 'thongs'. After a rather embarrassing encounter, I now call them flip-flops (though my instinct is still to call them thongs). I hate when people change vernacular on me.
Well that was a tangent. This was a recipe my mom made us because it was so darned good and so darned fast. You basically chuck everything in a big pot and heat it up. What could be more attractive about a dish? And it's fairly healthy (at least healthier than, say, a cheeseburger and fries). This is her version:
Taco Soup
a Jones family recipe
1 lb hamburger, ground
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
4 14 ounce cans stewed diced tomatoes
2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can whole kernel corn, not drained
1/2 packet taco seasoning
A couple pinches of Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp salsa
Sour cream
Grated cheddar cheese
Sliced black olives
Tortilla chips
In a big pot, brown the ground beef. Then add the chopped onions and green pepper and cook until the onions start to turn transparent. Then add the tomatoes, beans, corn, and seasonings. Cook it until it simmers. Look! it's ready to eat. When serving, add sour creamcheese, olives, and/or crushed chips, whatever your heart's dearest wish is. Beware: you'll probably want seconds.
I'm almost to my barbecue.
Well that was a tangent. This was a recipe my mom made us because it was so darned good and so darned fast. You basically chuck everything in a big pot and heat it up. What could be more attractive about a dish? And it's fairly healthy (at least healthier than, say, a cheeseburger and fries). This is her version:
Taco Soup
a Jones family recipe
1 lb hamburger, ground
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
4 14 ounce cans stewed diced tomatoes
2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can whole kernel corn, not drained
1/2 packet taco seasoning
A couple pinches of Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp salsa
Sour cream
Grated cheddar cheese
Sliced black olives
Tortilla chips
In a big pot, brown the ground beef. Then add the chopped onions and green pepper and cook until the onions start to turn transparent. Then add the tomatoes, beans, corn, and seasonings. Cook it until it simmers. Look! it's ready to eat. When serving, add sour creamcheese, olives, and/or crushed chips, whatever your heart's dearest wish is. Beware: you'll probably want seconds.
I'm almost to my barbecue.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Fresh Cherry Cake --- a Swiss recipe
For some reason, this year has been a boom for cherries. The last month or so, I've seen the prices for cherries drop to a dollar a pound. ONE dollar. Naturally, the prudent financial person I am, I immediately bought 6 pounds of cherries, ate a bunch, and then decided I needed to do something else with them before they wasted away in the fridge. I found this cake recipe in my Swiss cookbook, and because it called for two pounds of pitted cherries, I thought that'd be a good way to use some of the excess I'd purchased. And this time, I actually ended up using them all before the mold demons killed them.
Just a note: When I was making this cake, some of the things it asked me to do seemed really strange. I wasn't quite sure why it asked me to do them, but I decided, what the heck, and voilà! it ended up pretty dang tasty.
Fresh Cherry Cake
from Culinary Art and Traditions of Switzerland
500 grams white bread rolls (I used Wal-mart brand hamburger buns, and 11 1/2 buns was exactly enough)
200 ml milk (my pyrex measuring cup has milliliters, but if you don't have one (which you should!) use a little more than 3/4 cup milk
120 g butter, softened -- 1 full stick. Remember, margarine is nasty. Use real butter for cooking.
200 g sugar (1 cup sugar)
7 egg yolks (keep the egg whites, you'll need them later)
100 g almonds and hazelnuts (whole) -- this equates to about 2/3 cup of nuts. I used a full cup of nuts because, well, I like nuts.
pinch of cinnamon
7 egg whites stiffly whipped
10 g baking powder (2 1/2 tsp)
900 g black cherries, stoned --- I used 2 lb 8 oz of unstoned fruit, and ended up with about 100 grams too many (which I used anyway). I'd say about 2 1/4 lbs of cherries should give you about 2 lbs of stoned cherries.
20 g flour (about 3 Tbsp)
100 g sponge crumbs (I used those little sponge cakes they sell for individual strawberry shortcake servings---I used 4 of them.)
First you soak the bread rolls in the milk for at least 2 hours. I tore up the bread into big chunks, and kinda stirred it around every half hour or so. (This is one of the bizarre things I wondered about, but trust me, it all works out.)
Next I stoned the cherries. I learned the hard way that you should not use a shirt you particularly care for while stoning them unless you really enjoy red flecks all over your best clothes. Also, do not keep works of art in the general vicinity--- the cherry juice splatters. Look under my Cherry Clafouti recipe for directions on stoning cherries --- it's really rather easy once you get the hang of it.
At this time I also crumbled up the sponge cake and decided to toast it so it wouldn't be soggy, it'd be more crumbly. I popped it in the oven at 250 for about 10 minutes. Make sure you watch them, you don't want burned crumbs in your cake, I'm sure it wouldn't enhance the flavor. You'll want to make sure to change the temperature of the oven to 350, in preparation for the baking.
Next, I creamed the butter and sugar, and added the egg yolks, one at a time. When I was separating the whites from the yolks, I just set aside the whites for a little bit, and let the whites warm up to room temperature. Apparently when you whip the whites at room temperature they stiffen better. After creaming the yolks with the sugar and butter, I dumped in the nuts and mixed those in (with the beater). I then mixed the dry ingredients together, and beat those into the batter.
Now came the weird part. I put the big pile of soggy bread into the mixing bowl. I sat there and wondered, how do I mix this in? Just put the mixer right in the middle, and start on slow, but mix it all together until the dough is this kind of thickish pasty stuff. The soggy bread will mix in completely and you won't have weird chunks. After that, the recipe splits. If you are making an actual cake, save about half of the sponge crumbs, if you're just making muffins, dump all the sponge crumbs in and mix them all together. Next, *stir* the pitted cherries into the mix (don't use the beaters anymore, you want to keep these whole).
The dough is going to be pretty thick, but that's what the egg whites are for -- to lighten them up. Whip the room temperature egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the dough. I couldn't get them to fold very well, it ended up being a mix between folding and stirring, but the egg whites made the batter a lot more fluid once I got it all stirred/folded in. Now you're ready to bake.
If you're doing muffins (it'll make around 24-28), just put the batter until it's slightly over the top of the muffin pan. The batter really doesn't rise a whole lot, so if you only fill it halfway full, you'll get these tiny muffins. Bake that at 350 for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. You could use the paper, but I got this really nice muffin tray that is silicon, and I love it, because they just pop out. Let them cool, and enjoy!
If you're making the cake, I'd use an 8-10 inch springform pan, make sure the bottom and sides are fairly well greased. I used butter. Then put the sponge crumbs you saved in the bottom of the pan as a sort of base crust for the cake. pour the batter in to a depth of about 1 1/2 - 2 inches (not super thick or it'll take 3 days to cook), and pop it in the 350 degree oven. The book said it would take 30 minutes to cook, but mine took over an hour--- I just kept checking it with a toothpick until the batter was cooked. Let the cake cool, and then run a knife or what not around the edges, so it doesn't stick (it can stick sometimes). When I made the cake version, I ended up using a little more than half of the batter for the cake; that's when I discovered that the muffins ended up being a bit easier to make and handle. So in theory, you could do both.
These ended up being pretty dang good. The cherries tasted super good, against the delicious baked almonds and hazelnuts--- all in all it tastes like a good European type cake. I think they make really good muffins, and I'd make this recipe again.
Just a note: When I was making this cake, some of the things it asked me to do seemed really strange. I wasn't quite sure why it asked me to do them, but I decided, what the heck, and voilà! it ended up pretty dang tasty.
Fresh Cherry Cake
from Culinary Art and Traditions of Switzerland
500 grams white bread rolls (I used Wal-mart brand hamburger buns, and 11 1/2 buns was exactly enough)
200 ml milk (my pyrex measuring cup has milliliters, but if you don't have one (which you should!) use a little more than 3/4 cup milk
120 g butter, softened -- 1 full stick. Remember, margarine is nasty. Use real butter for cooking.
200 g sugar (1 cup sugar)
7 egg yolks (keep the egg whites, you'll need them later)
100 g almonds and hazelnuts (whole) -- this equates to about 2/3 cup of nuts. I used a full cup of nuts because, well, I like nuts.
pinch of cinnamon
7 egg whites stiffly whipped
10 g baking powder (2 1/2 tsp)
900 g black cherries, stoned --- I used 2 lb 8 oz of unstoned fruit, and ended up with about 100 grams too many (which I used anyway). I'd say about 2 1/4 lbs of cherries should give you about 2 lbs of stoned cherries.
20 g flour (about 3 Tbsp)
100 g sponge crumbs (I used those little sponge cakes they sell for individual strawberry shortcake servings---I used 4 of them.)
First you soak the bread rolls in the milk for at least 2 hours. I tore up the bread into big chunks, and kinda stirred it around every half hour or so. (This is one of the bizarre things I wondered about, but trust me, it all works out.)
Next I stoned the cherries. I learned the hard way that you should not use a shirt you particularly care for while stoning them unless you really enjoy red flecks all over your best clothes. Also, do not keep works of art in the general vicinity--- the cherry juice splatters. Look under my Cherry Clafouti recipe for directions on stoning cherries --- it's really rather easy once you get the hang of it.
At this time I also crumbled up the sponge cake and decided to toast it so it wouldn't be soggy, it'd be more crumbly. I popped it in the oven at 250 for about 10 minutes. Make sure you watch them, you don't want burned crumbs in your cake, I'm sure it wouldn't enhance the flavor. You'll want to make sure to change the temperature of the oven to 350, in preparation for the baking.
Next, I creamed the butter and sugar, and added the egg yolks, one at a time. When I was separating the whites from the yolks, I just set aside the whites for a little bit, and let the whites warm up to room temperature. Apparently when you whip the whites at room temperature they stiffen better. After creaming the yolks with the sugar and butter, I dumped in the nuts and mixed those in (with the beater). I then mixed the dry ingredients together, and beat those into the batter.
Now came the weird part. I put the big pile of soggy bread into the mixing bowl. I sat there and wondered, how do I mix this in? Just put the mixer right in the middle, and start on slow, but mix it all together until the dough is this kind of thickish pasty stuff. The soggy bread will mix in completely and you won't have weird chunks. After that, the recipe splits. If you are making an actual cake, save about half of the sponge crumbs, if you're just making muffins, dump all the sponge crumbs in and mix them all together. Next, *stir* the pitted cherries into the mix (don't use the beaters anymore, you want to keep these whole).
The dough is going to be pretty thick, but that's what the egg whites are for -- to lighten them up. Whip the room temperature egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the dough. I couldn't get them to fold very well, it ended up being a mix between folding and stirring, but the egg whites made the batter a lot more fluid once I got it all stirred/folded in. Now you're ready to bake.
If you're doing muffins (it'll make around 24-28), just put the batter until it's slightly over the top of the muffin pan. The batter really doesn't rise a whole lot, so if you only fill it halfway full, you'll get these tiny muffins. Bake that at 350 for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. You could use the paper, but I got this really nice muffin tray that is silicon, and I love it, because they just pop out. Let them cool, and enjoy!
If you're making the cake, I'd use an 8-10 inch springform pan, make sure the bottom and sides are fairly well greased. I used butter. Then put the sponge crumbs you saved in the bottom of the pan as a sort of base crust for the cake. pour the batter in to a depth of about 1 1/2 - 2 inches (not super thick or it'll take 3 days to cook), and pop it in the 350 degree oven. The book said it would take 30 minutes to cook, but mine took over an hour--- I just kept checking it with a toothpick until the batter was cooked. Let the cake cool, and then run a knife or what not around the edges, so it doesn't stick (it can stick sometimes). When I made the cake version, I ended up using a little more than half of the batter for the cake; that's when I discovered that the muffins ended up being a bit easier to make and handle. So in theory, you could do both.
These ended up being pretty dang good. The cherries tasted super good, against the delicious baked almonds and hazelnuts--- all in all it tastes like a good European type cake. I think they make really good muffins, and I'd make this recipe again.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Ceviche de tilapia --- a Venezuelan delicacy
I learned a great lesson tonight. When chopping up really spicy peppers, you might think you've washed your hands good enough, but you'd probably be very wrong. Oh, when you rub your eyes, you'll find out VERY quickly. The burn eventually goes away--- give it a couple of hours. Also, watch what you eat after chopping them up. Cherries that you think would taste really fresh end up burning your tongue. Super special.
Painful burning aside, this tilapia dish is super DELICIOUS and really quite healthy --- no processed foods, it's all vegetables and fish. Be aware that it's not a spur-of-the-moment dish. It takes a good 24 hours to complete, but is WELL worth the wait. And it's SUPER easy to throw together. The 24 hours is required because the lime juice needs the time to fully cook the fish. The fish comes out quite tasty, and really tones down the sourness of the limes, making a good delicious mix of sweet from the tomatoes, avocado-ish, and tart from the limes.
Ceviche de Tilapia
a Friderici family recipe
10 tilapia filets (approximately 4-5" in length)
15 limes (yes, you need this many, and it's not going to taste like fish swimming in limeade)
2 large garlic cloves, finely diced (I just squish mine through a garlic press, easier)
1 small yellow onion, diced
4 Tbsp cilantro, finely diced
2 large serrano peppers, finely diced (this ingredient was the source of my pain for the evening)
1/4 cup orange juice
5 large tomatoes, diced
3 large avocados, diced
salt to taste
Make sure to clean and dry the fish thoroughly. I like the tilapia filets from costco, though this time I just got some frozen ones and thawed them in the sink. After drying the fish, you chop up into 1/2 inch cubes. Mine ended up being more like 1/4 inch cubes, but that's because I get overzealous and kept chopping them just a tad smaller. I also wanted more bite-sized pieces, and wanted to make sure the lime juice cooked the fish all the way through before I served it.
After I chopped up the fish and put it in a bowl (make sure it's a GLASS or PLASTIC bowl--- the lime juice may corrode a metal bowl), I used a lime press (definitely worth the 5 bucks) and squeezed the limes (yes, 15 limes) into the bowl. Add the garlic, yellow onion, cilantro, serrano peppers (make sure to dice them finely--- I'm not a fan of a gigantic piece of hot pepper myself) and the orange juice. Cover with plastic, and put it in the fridge overnight.
Right before you serve it the next day, add the tomatoes and avocados. Add salt to taste. It can be served with chips like a dip or a salsa, or served up in bowls. Everyone will be amazed that you produced a great tasting dish, and you can secretly smile at how easy it was.
Painful burning aside, this tilapia dish is super DELICIOUS and really quite healthy --- no processed foods, it's all vegetables and fish. Be aware that it's not a spur-of-the-moment dish. It takes a good 24 hours to complete, but is WELL worth the wait. And it's SUPER easy to throw together. The 24 hours is required because the lime juice needs the time to fully cook the fish. The fish comes out quite tasty, and really tones down the sourness of the limes, making a good delicious mix of sweet from the tomatoes, avocado-ish, and tart from the limes.
Ceviche de Tilapia
a Friderici family recipe
10 tilapia filets (approximately 4-5" in length)
15 limes (yes, you need this many, and it's not going to taste like fish swimming in limeade)
2 large garlic cloves, finely diced (I just squish mine through a garlic press, easier)
1 small yellow onion, diced
4 Tbsp cilantro, finely diced
2 large serrano peppers, finely diced (this ingredient was the source of my pain for the evening)
1/4 cup orange juice
5 large tomatoes, diced
3 large avocados, diced
salt to taste
Make sure to clean and dry the fish thoroughly. I like the tilapia filets from costco, though this time I just got some frozen ones and thawed them in the sink. After drying the fish, you chop up into 1/2 inch cubes. Mine ended up being more like 1/4 inch cubes, but that's because I get overzealous and kept chopping them just a tad smaller. I also wanted more bite-sized pieces, and wanted to make sure the lime juice cooked the fish all the way through before I served it.
After I chopped up the fish and put it in a bowl (make sure it's a GLASS or PLASTIC bowl--- the lime juice may corrode a metal bowl), I used a lime press (definitely worth the 5 bucks) and squeezed the limes (yes, 15 limes) into the bowl. Add the garlic, yellow onion, cilantro, serrano peppers (make sure to dice them finely--- I'm not a fan of a gigantic piece of hot pepper myself) and the orange juice. Cover with plastic, and put it in the fridge overnight.
Right before you serve it the next day, add the tomatoes and avocados. Add salt to taste. It can be served with chips like a dip or a salsa, or served up in bowls. Everyone will be amazed that you produced a great tasting dish, and you can secretly smile at how easy it was.
Alton Brown's brussels sprouts delicious-style
About a year ago, I had a roommate named Jesse. He and I would watch the Food Network sometimes. One of our favorite shows was called Good Eats, hosted by Alton Brown. Alton is a bit of a nerd (probably why I feel an affinity to him), but really knows his stuff, and makes the foods he talks about really interesting. I'd recommend watching --- it's kinda fun to see how cheesy goofy he can be.
One week, Alton did a show on brussels sprouts. I don't know that Jesse had ever had them before, but the first time I had sprouts was when I was living in Belgium. Kinda funny that I had to basically go to Brussels to find brussels sprouts. I liked the slightly bitter flavor they give, and enjoyed them in the many ways they cooked them. However, after Jesse made this recipe, and I tried it, I much preferred them this style. Jesse didn't find them that great, but I thought the flavors Alton had combined really brought out the good flavor brussels sprouts provide. I'd recommend at least trying them out if you are a decent vegetable eater. If you're picky about anything leafy that you put in your mouth, you might want to just go to McDonald's and get some Chicken McNuggets or something.
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Cheese
Alton Brown, Food Network
6 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 small onion, julienned (this just means long strips)
1 tsp salt
1 small Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
1 lb cooked brussels sprouts (see below for how to do those)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp whole-grain Dijon mustard
1 oz blue cheese, crumbled
pinch freshly ground nutmeg
Just a note: when I make this again, I'm going to have all my ingredients cut right before I make the dish. I thought I could chop them while I was cooking it, and it turned into a big rush to try and make everything work out right. It'd just be easier to have everything ready to go before you start making the dish.
Cook the bacon in a 10-inch sauté pan with straight sides until it's crispy and brown. Remove the bacon and most of the grease, leaving about 1 Tbsp of the fat in the pan. Turn the heat to low, and put the onions, cooking them until they're almost translucent (about 3-4 minutes). Add the salt and the apple, and cook for another minute or so. Then add the cooked brussels sprouts, heavy cream, and mustard, and I basically simmered it for a minute or two, until everything was heated through. Remove from heat, and stir in the nutmeg, bacon, and blue cheese --- serve right away.
in cooking the brussels sprouts, I prefer to steam them. I got a small stainless steel steamer that just slips into any size pan and fans out or in to fit the pan. I think I paid 4 bucks for it. It really helps when you're cooking vegetables--- I rarely boil vegetables anymore, I prefer steaming them. Anyway, I tried Alton's method for cooking these, and I ran out of water and started charring the bottom of the pan, so next time I'll steam them. I would clean and prepare the sprouts the same way though. His method:
1 lb brussels sprouts, rinsed
1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
Cut off the stems and remove any yellow outer leaves. Cut each brussels sprout in half from top to bottom. Place the brussels sprouts, water, and salt in a 3-4 quart saucier and cover. Place over high heat and cook for 5 minutes or until tender.
I thoroughly enjoyed this dish--- combines some really good flavors for a unique taste. I think it would go really well with grilled steak or chicken as a good tasting vegetable side.
One week, Alton did a show on brussels sprouts. I don't know that Jesse had ever had them before, but the first time I had sprouts was when I was living in Belgium. Kinda funny that I had to basically go to Brussels to find brussels sprouts. I liked the slightly bitter flavor they give, and enjoyed them in the many ways they cooked them. However, after Jesse made this recipe, and I tried it, I much preferred them this style. Jesse didn't find them that great, but I thought the flavors Alton had combined really brought out the good flavor brussels sprouts provide. I'd recommend at least trying them out if you are a decent vegetable eater. If you're picky about anything leafy that you put in your mouth, you might want to just go to McDonald's and get some Chicken McNuggets or something.
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Cheese
Alton Brown, Food Network
6 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 small onion, julienned (this just means long strips)
1 tsp salt
1 small Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
1 lb cooked brussels sprouts (see below for how to do those)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp whole-grain Dijon mustard
1 oz blue cheese, crumbled
pinch freshly ground nutmeg
Just a note: when I make this again, I'm going to have all my ingredients cut right before I make the dish. I thought I could chop them while I was cooking it, and it turned into a big rush to try and make everything work out right. It'd just be easier to have everything ready to go before you start making the dish.
Cook the bacon in a 10-inch sauté pan with straight sides until it's crispy and brown. Remove the bacon and most of the grease, leaving about 1 Tbsp of the fat in the pan. Turn the heat to low, and put the onions, cooking them until they're almost translucent (about 3-4 minutes). Add the salt and the apple, and cook for another minute or so. Then add the cooked brussels sprouts, heavy cream, and mustard, and I basically simmered it for a minute or two, until everything was heated through. Remove from heat, and stir in the nutmeg, bacon, and blue cheese --- serve right away.
in cooking the brussels sprouts, I prefer to steam them. I got a small stainless steel steamer that just slips into any size pan and fans out or in to fit the pan. I think I paid 4 bucks for it. It really helps when you're cooking vegetables--- I rarely boil vegetables anymore, I prefer steaming them. Anyway, I tried Alton's method for cooking these, and I ran out of water and started charring the bottom of the pan, so next time I'll steam them. I would clean and prepare the sprouts the same way though. His method:
1 lb brussels sprouts, rinsed
1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
Cut off the stems and remove any yellow outer leaves. Cut each brussels sprout in half from top to bottom. Place the brussels sprouts, water, and salt in a 3-4 quart saucier and cover. Place over high heat and cook for 5 minutes or until tender.
I thoroughly enjoyed this dish--- combines some really good flavors for a unique taste. I think it would go really well with grilled steak or chicken as a good tasting vegetable side.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Grandma Gubler's lemon chicken
I just spent an awesome evening talking with my Grandma Gubler, and watching the rain fall in the desert heat. She's 89 years old, and has led a life that frankly amazes me. She raised 11 children, was a registered nurse, and still managed to create what was my childhood fantasy land in her orchard. The orchard is gone now, but she still lives in the 3-story house that my mom grew up in. We just sat and talked on the swing under the back porch, listening to the wind and the rain as they gently came and went. It brought back one of my favorite memories.
I was visiting Grandma, alone, and I must have been eight. There was a terrible storm that blew in that day. We had gone to some fast food restaurant, I forget which, and midway through the power went out. We then went to the store, and I thought it was so weird how some of the lights were on, and some were off. (Coming from a small town, with no backup electrical plan, I thought it was SO strange how the store was powered by two separate power boxes. I had bizarre ideas for the world back then.) We went back to grandma's house, and we sat on her front porch, watching this massive rainstorm blow through the valley, with lightning and thunder everywhere, eating her homemade banana slush.
I don't have the recipe for the banana slush, but when I get it, I'm going to post it. In the meantime, I'll post one of my favorite recipes that she has given me. I don't know where she got it, but I got it from her, so...
Lemon Chicken
from Ella Gubler
3-4 chicken breasts, cubed (I usually cube it into about 3/4" cubes)
1/4 cup butter (please don't cook with margarine. It's not the 80s anymore.)
1 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp terragon (very important, I bought terragon just for this dish and have never regretted it)
1/2 tsp salt
1 cube chicken bouillon (I use the Knorr powered bouillon, and just add it by taste)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (fresh is by FAR the best)
Cube the chicken, and cut off the excess fat. Preheat the pan, and melt the butter in it. cook the chicken in the butter until it's done. I like to fry it a bit after it's cooked in the butter, just to brown the chicken a bit. I then mix the flour, terragon, and salt in a small ramekin until that's blended, then I sprinkle it over the chicken. I coat the chicken with it, and cook it for just a minute, to brown the flour and get a good crust on the chicken cubes. Then add 3/4 cup water to the bouillon and dissolve it to make a chicken broth (I just pour the water in the chicken pan, and then sprinkle the powdered bouillon on until it tastes good), and add the juice. Cook it a few minutes, until you get a really nice gravy going. I love serving it with my really good rice recipe (to follow soon)--- makes a delicious dinner, easy to make, and takes very little time.
Grandma gave me this dish when I asked her for a simple, good meal I could impress a date with. It's never failed. Now I can toss the receipt from Target that I wrote the recipe on.
I was visiting Grandma, alone, and I must have been eight. There was a terrible storm that blew in that day. We had gone to some fast food restaurant, I forget which, and midway through the power went out. We then went to the store, and I thought it was so weird how some of the lights were on, and some were off. (Coming from a small town, with no backup electrical plan, I thought it was SO strange how the store was powered by two separate power boxes. I had bizarre ideas for the world back then.) We went back to grandma's house, and we sat on her front porch, watching this massive rainstorm blow through the valley, with lightning and thunder everywhere, eating her homemade banana slush.
I don't have the recipe for the banana slush, but when I get it, I'm going to post it. In the meantime, I'll post one of my favorite recipes that she has given me. I don't know where she got it, but I got it from her, so...
Lemon Chicken
from Ella Gubler
3-4 chicken breasts, cubed (I usually cube it into about 3/4" cubes)
1/4 cup butter (please don't cook with margarine. It's not the 80s anymore.)
1 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp terragon (very important, I bought terragon just for this dish and have never regretted it)
1/2 tsp salt
1 cube chicken bouillon (I use the Knorr powered bouillon, and just add it by taste)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (fresh is by FAR the best)
Cube the chicken, and cut off the excess fat. Preheat the pan, and melt the butter in it. cook the chicken in the butter until it's done. I like to fry it a bit after it's cooked in the butter, just to brown the chicken a bit. I then mix the flour, terragon, and salt in a small ramekin until that's blended, then I sprinkle it over the chicken. I coat the chicken with it, and cook it for just a minute, to brown the flour and get a good crust on the chicken cubes. Then add 3/4 cup water to the bouillon and dissolve it to make a chicken broth (I just pour the water in the chicken pan, and then sprinkle the powdered bouillon on until it tastes good), and add the juice. Cook it a few minutes, until you get a really nice gravy going. I love serving it with my really good rice recipe (to follow soon)--- makes a delicious dinner, easy to make, and takes very little time.
Grandma gave me this dish when I asked her for a simple, good meal I could impress a date with. It's never failed. Now I can toss the receipt from Target that I wrote the recipe on.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Julia's Boeuf Bourguignon
Today I had a kitchen fire.
I've never had one before. It was somewhat exciting. Actually, it was more annoying than exciting, because no matter how much I blew on it, to put out the fire, it kept popping up. I guess it didn't help I poured a bunch of butter/oil down into the burner well--- aparently oil ignites fairly easily. Only after I realized the burner was on HI did I figure that turning that off would help as well. I'm just glad I didn't overreact and spray fire retardant all over my meal. That does a lot to dampen the flavors of anything you make.
Michelle is coming over tonight, and I thought I'd make my pièce de résistance--- Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon. The day after I'd gotten Julia's cookbook for Christmas (and watched the movie), I just HAD to try it. The fanciest beef dish I'd had before that was our weekly dinner, Boeuf de Sunday Roast, which after 15 years had gotten a trifle old. Boeuf Bourguignon sounded, well, better. And BOY was it ever.
WARNING: This dish should not be done as a spur-of-the-moment sort of thing. It takes a good 2 hours to prepare--- even with help--- and it'll be done about 4 hours after you start. You'll also need some kitchen supplies. Most important is a good pot that you can use both on the kitchen top and in the oven. The first time I made it, I used a Dutch oven, which worked pretty well (except the clean-up was hard). Knowing it would be a dish I'd make more often, I invested in a really nice porcelain Dutch oven (about $60 bucks at Wal-mart). It was pricy, but I LOVE my new Boeuf pan. It works *perfectly*.
On with the recipe. It's involved, so follow it pretty closely.
BOEUF BOURGUIGNON
by Julia Childs, Mastering the Art of French Cooking
ingredients:
6 oz bacon lardons (see below)
1 Tb olive oil
3 lbs lean stewing beef cut into 2 inch cubes
1 sliced carrot
1 sliced onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tb flour
3 cups of a full-bodied wine -- see next paragraph for types
2-3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
1 Tb tomato paste
2 cloves mashed garlic
1/2 tsp thyme
crumbled bay leaf
Julia Child recommends the following wine: "a full-bodied, young young red wine, such as Beauolais, Côtes du Rhone, Bordeaux-St-Émilion, or Burgundy. I used one I found at the local wine store-- a 2007 Côtes du Rhone-Villages wine by Louis Bernard, costing me about 11 bucks. I think a wine in any of the classes above in the $10 range should be ok. I wouldn't go with the cheapest, but that's just me.
Pre-heat the oven to 425°. First you need 6 oz "lardons" which are like 1/4" x 1/4" by 1 1/2" pieces of bacon. I got the thickest cut bacon slices I could find, and just sliced the bacon into 1/4 inch strips. You *MUST* gently boil them for 10 minutes--- I found out later that American bacon is smoked, while French bacon is not, and if you don't boil the bacon pieces, your bourguignon will be compromised by the overwhelming taste of smoked bacon.
While the bacon was boiling, I dried off the pieces of stewing meat. I just got the meat at the grocery store, and tried to find the best and biggest pieces of meat. Try to avoid the small ones--- you will understand later on in the cooking process. The bigger the better. I just used paper towel to dry them off. Again, this is an important step--- if they're not dry, they will not brown, and you won't get the crispy sides that just add a lot of dimension to the final dish. After the meat was dried, the bacon was ready to cook.
The olive oil goes into the big dutch oven, on the stove, and I cooked the bacon in it, just barely browning it, not crisping it. I took it out, and then came the worst part of the whole process: browning the meat. It pretty much splattered grease all over everywhere--- but trust me, it's worth it. I definitely used more oil than Julia stated in her recipe, but I wonder if it's because the meat soaks up some of it, or more likely it splattered all over the stove. In any case, I got the meat browned, and cut up the carrot and onion, and got them browned too. Then I dumped the meat and bacon back in. I mixed the dry ingredients together (flour, salt, pepper), and tossed the meat in it. Itmade a nice paste looking coating on the meat. I then put the whole pot in the oven for 4 minutes on the middle rack (to brown the flour --- helps get a nice crust on the meat). I took it out, tossed again, and then put it in the oven again for 4 minutes (browning it again). IMMEDIATELY turn the oven down to 325°.
Then came the fun part. You get to pour 3 cups of the wine in the pot (make sure to measure, you'll want the rest for the onions), then poured in enough beef stock in to barely cover the meat (I flattened out the meat too, so I wouldn't get too much gravy to have to reduce). Then throw everything else in (I used fresh thyme--- I think it tastes better, and it's cheap to get if you have some growing in your garden) and simmer it. Once it's simmering, it goes in the oven for 2 1/2 hours on the bottom rack --- I just removed the top rack and put it on the very bottom rack. Once it's in, it just simmers until it's done.
While it was simmering, I made the brown-braised white onions and the fresh mushrooms sautéed in butter. Those go in right before you serve it and make this dish really shine. Those recipes will follow on this blog.
After the meat is simmered and is really tender (a fork should pierce it easily), I removed the dish, and poured the meat into a colander and strained the sauce into a pan. I heated the sauce and reduced it just a bit until it was fairly thick --- enough to coat a spoon lightly. There was a bit of oil on the top, but I just skimmed it off. I put the meat back in the pot, put the onions and mushrooms on top of the meat, and then poured the sauce over the meat and vegetables. After bringing it to a simmer again, I simmered it for a couple of minutes, letting the flavors mix a final time. And now it's ready to serve.
I'd better go try to get the burnt smell out of the house. She'll be here in an hour.
I've never had one before. It was somewhat exciting. Actually, it was more annoying than exciting, because no matter how much I blew on it, to put out the fire, it kept popping up. I guess it didn't help I poured a bunch of butter/oil down into the burner well--- aparently oil ignites fairly easily. Only after I realized the burner was on HI did I figure that turning that off would help as well. I'm just glad I didn't overreact and spray fire retardant all over my meal. That does a lot to dampen the flavors of anything you make.
Michelle is coming over tonight, and I thought I'd make my pièce de résistance--- Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon. The day after I'd gotten Julia's cookbook for Christmas (and watched the movie), I just HAD to try it. The fanciest beef dish I'd had before that was our weekly dinner, Boeuf de Sunday Roast, which after 15 years had gotten a trifle old. Boeuf Bourguignon sounded, well, better. And BOY was it ever.
WARNING: This dish should not be done as a spur-of-the-moment sort of thing. It takes a good 2 hours to prepare--- even with help--- and it'll be done about 4 hours after you start. You'll also need some kitchen supplies. Most important is a good pot that you can use both on the kitchen top and in the oven. The first time I made it, I used a Dutch oven, which worked pretty well (except the clean-up was hard). Knowing it would be a dish I'd make more often, I invested in a really nice porcelain Dutch oven (about $60 bucks at Wal-mart). It was pricy, but I LOVE my new Boeuf pan. It works *perfectly*.
On with the recipe. It's involved, so follow it pretty closely.
BOEUF BOURGUIGNON
by Julia Childs, Mastering the Art of French Cooking
ingredients:
6 oz bacon lardons (see below)
1 Tb olive oil
3 lbs lean stewing beef cut into 2 inch cubes
1 sliced carrot
1 sliced onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tb flour
3 cups of a full-bodied wine -- see next paragraph for types
2-3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
1 Tb tomato paste
2 cloves mashed garlic
1/2 tsp thyme
crumbled bay leaf
Julia Child recommends the following wine: "a full-bodied, young young red wine, such as Beauolais, Côtes du Rhone, Bordeaux-St-Émilion, or Burgundy. I used one I found at the local wine store-- a 2007 Côtes du Rhone-Villages wine by Louis Bernard, costing me about 11 bucks. I think a wine in any of the classes above in the $10 range should be ok. I wouldn't go with the cheapest, but that's just me.
Pre-heat the oven to 425°. First you need 6 oz "lardons" which are like 1/4" x 1/4" by 1 1/2" pieces of bacon. I got the thickest cut bacon slices I could find, and just sliced the bacon into 1/4 inch strips. You *MUST* gently boil them for 10 minutes--- I found out later that American bacon is smoked, while French bacon is not, and if you don't boil the bacon pieces, your bourguignon will be compromised by the overwhelming taste of smoked bacon.
While the bacon was boiling, I dried off the pieces of stewing meat. I just got the meat at the grocery store, and tried to find the best and biggest pieces of meat. Try to avoid the small ones--- you will understand later on in the cooking process. The bigger the better. I just used paper towel to dry them off. Again, this is an important step--- if they're not dry, they will not brown, and you won't get the crispy sides that just add a lot of dimension to the final dish. After the meat was dried, the bacon was ready to cook.
The olive oil goes into the big dutch oven, on the stove, and I cooked the bacon in it, just barely browning it, not crisping it. I took it out, and then came the worst part of the whole process: browning the meat. It pretty much splattered grease all over everywhere--- but trust me, it's worth it. I definitely used more oil than Julia stated in her recipe, but I wonder if it's because the meat soaks up some of it, or more likely it splattered all over the stove. In any case, I got the meat browned, and cut up the carrot and onion, and got them browned too. Then I dumped the meat and bacon back in. I mixed the dry ingredients together (flour, salt, pepper), and tossed the meat in it. Itmade a nice paste looking coating on the meat. I then put the whole pot in the oven for 4 minutes on the middle rack (to brown the flour --- helps get a nice crust on the meat). I took it out, tossed again, and then put it in the oven again for 4 minutes (browning it again). IMMEDIATELY turn the oven down to 325°.
Then came the fun part. You get to pour 3 cups of the wine in the pot (make sure to measure, you'll want the rest for the onions), then poured in enough beef stock in to barely cover the meat (I flattened out the meat too, so I wouldn't get too much gravy to have to reduce). Then throw everything else in (I used fresh thyme--- I think it tastes better, and it's cheap to get if you have some growing in your garden) and simmer it. Once it's simmering, it goes in the oven for 2 1/2 hours on the bottom rack --- I just removed the top rack and put it on the very bottom rack. Once it's in, it just simmers until it's done.
While it was simmering, I made the brown-braised white onions and the fresh mushrooms sautéed in butter. Those go in right before you serve it and make this dish really shine. Those recipes will follow on this blog.
After the meat is simmered and is really tender (a fork should pierce it easily), I removed the dish, and poured the meat into a colander and strained the sauce into a pan. I heated the sauce and reduced it just a bit until it was fairly thick --- enough to coat a spoon lightly. There was a bit of oil on the top, but I just skimmed it off. I put the meat back in the pot, put the onions and mushrooms on top of the meat, and then poured the sauce over the meat and vegetables. After bringing it to a simmer again, I simmered it for a couple of minutes, letting the flavors mix a final time. And now it's ready to serve.
I'd better go try to get the burnt smell out of the house. She'll be here in an hour.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Swiss carrot cake
Years ago, when I was a new student at BYU, I really wanted to learn German and move to Switzerland. My ancestors on both sides are Swiss, and I had been enamored with the country since I could remember. I joined a Swiss-American organization, and saw that they had this English version of a cookbook featuring authentic Swiss recipes. I jumped on that immediately. The book arrived--- a very nicely published and illustrated volume. There was one problem: all the measurements were in METRIC. Like I knew what 300 grams of something translated into "real" American measurements would be. I was so disappointed. The cookbook sat unused.
Fast forward a few years. My good friend from Switzerland, Regina, had come to visit me for a few weeks in the states, and we had decided to do an ethnic Swiss dessert selection. I whipped out the scale that I had purchased since college, and Regina went to work. The result? Pure deliciousness. So I decided that when the time arose, I would make it again.
I invited my cousin Michelle and her brood to dinner tomorrow night, and decided to make this carrot cake for dessert. As I didn't want to cook ALL day tomorrow, I made it tonight. The recipe book maintains that the cake is better the next day because the carrots keep the cake moist. I don't know about that, but I do know it's really yummy.
I've attempted to provide *rough* estimates to the American equivalents of the measurements of this recipe. NOTE: I am not responsible for any cooking mishap that results in the use of these equivalents, because I MUCH prefer to measure the ingredients out as outlined in the book. Any serious cook should have a digital scale in the house, with the ability to measure in both ounces and grams.
Carrot Cake, Aargau recipe
from Culinary Art and Traditions of Switzerland
5 eggs, separated (this is the same in both metric and American)
300 grams sugar (this is between 1 1/3 and 1 1/2 cups of sugar)
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 2 lemons, grated
300 grams ground almonds (about 1 2/3 cup *AFTER* they are ground)
300 grams finely grated carrots (between 1 1/3 and 1 1/2 cups *after* they are grated --- I ended up using 4 average sized store-bought carrots)
75 grams corn flour (I'm assuming this is corn meal, and it was right between 1/3 and 1/2 cup in my pyrex cup measure)
a pinch of cinnamon
a pinch of ground cloves
10 grams baking powder (approx. 1 Tbsp)
a pinch of salt
apricot jam (for glazing)
50 ml kirsch --- this measurement will be on your pyrex cup measure as well
fondant icing (I didn't use this)
marzipan carrots (I didn't use this either, but they are really good with it-- Regina spent a couple of hours and made some really awesome looking marzipan carrots with marzipan, red/yellow food coloring, and green food coloring. At this point, the available effort in my body was too low to begin that task. I'd recommend if you are taking this dish to a fancy party, or if you really like marzipan.)
THANKFULLY I have a food processor (another must in my kitchen gadget repertoire). I did the almonds first because they wouldn't get as wet as the carrots, so I'd only have to wash the thing once. I just weighed out the 300 grams of almonds (again, LOVE the digital scale) and dumped them in the processor with the knife blade attachment. I turned it on. Don't be alarmed at the sound, the almonds will calm down and be quieter when they are more finely ground. I kept going until it began to coagulate. I don't recommend grinding it that much--- it just started to make a paste which was a bit harder to work with. I'd just grind them down to very fine particles but it's not going to be a true powder.
I then grated the carrots with the cheese grater attachment first, then put them in with the knife blade attachment. They came out perfect --- very small pieces but still pieces, it wasn't a soupy mess. I weighed out 300 grams and set it aside. I then separated the eggs, putting the whites in my mixer (another kitchen appliance I completely LOVE) and set aside for later.
The egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest are all to be beaten together until it's all the same pale yellow color. I used my AWESOME zester I got for about 10 bucks (I will never use another zester again, it works like velvet). I then dumped the ground almonds and carrots in the mix, and blended those together. I read somewhere that you're supposed to mix all dry ingredients together, so I mixed the corn meal, cinnamon, cloves, baking powder, and salt in a bowl before adding it to the batter. It makes sense to me--- before I started doing that, I'd just dump each dry ingredient in and then beat it. Besides saving a buttload of time, it also means you're not going to get a big mouthful of unmixed cinnamon. or cloves. or worse yet, baking powder. It's just a good idea, I recommend it. Then I beat in the kirsch. I flipped the switch on my mixer, and in a few minutes (with NO effort on my part), I had some really lovely looking egg white foam, which I folded in the batter. It was ready to go into the oven.
The pan I used for this dish is an 8 inch round springform pan. I would recommend this, as it makes it easiest to remove it from the pan, for presentation. The cake really is not supposed to be served from a cake pan --- I suppose you could do it, but it seems SO anti-Swiss to do such a thing to a really beautiful dessert. These aren't terribly expensive, and if you have a friend who bought a few once and then never used them (or got them for wedding gifts), you might luck out like I did and get them for free.
The book claims that baking it at 350 for an hour will produce the cake. Mine was done in 40 minutes. I'd probably just check it with a toothpick and if it comes out clean, it's done. Popped mine out--- and make sure to use a knife to loosen the edges before you remove it from the springform pan, or part of it might cling to it. Just a note--- I can't figure out why mine collapsed in the middle. I'm kinda bummed about it, but it still tastes great. Don't go into a depression spiral because of it--- things aren't supposed to work *all* the time, unless you are Emeril or something. If that is you, you probably should stop reading this blog, and start cooking at high end restaurants and/or start your own TV show.
I just used homemade apricot jam (heated) to glaze the cake (which is a fancy way to say I frosted it with the stuff). I didn't use the fondant--- I wasn't sure what that was supposed to be but I'm guessing from the picture it's not the nasty stuff they put on wedding cakes. I basically just served it as is.
The cake is DELICIOUS. Moist, almondy, the flavors just really pop out. Children don't seem to enjoy it because it's not your typical Betty Crocker cake mix texture--- this one is a bit more dense, but tastes... I dunno... more real. Now that I can operate in metric, I will be making this cake when I want to impress my guests with how international I can be.
Fast forward a few years. My good friend from Switzerland, Regina, had come to visit me for a few weeks in the states, and we had decided to do an ethnic Swiss dessert selection. I whipped out the scale that I had purchased since college, and Regina went to work. The result? Pure deliciousness. So I decided that when the time arose, I would make it again.
I invited my cousin Michelle and her brood to dinner tomorrow night, and decided to make this carrot cake for dessert. As I didn't want to cook ALL day tomorrow, I made it tonight. The recipe book maintains that the cake is better the next day because the carrots keep the cake moist. I don't know about that, but I do know it's really yummy.
I've attempted to provide *rough* estimates to the American equivalents of the measurements of this recipe. NOTE: I am not responsible for any cooking mishap that results in the use of these equivalents, because I MUCH prefer to measure the ingredients out as outlined in the book. Any serious cook should have a digital scale in the house, with the ability to measure in both ounces and grams.
Carrot Cake, Aargau recipe
from Culinary Art and Traditions of Switzerland
5 eggs, separated (this is the same in both metric and American)
300 grams sugar (this is between 1 1/3 and 1 1/2 cups of sugar)
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 2 lemons, grated
300 grams ground almonds (about 1 2/3 cup *AFTER* they are ground)
300 grams finely grated carrots (between 1 1/3 and 1 1/2 cups *after* they are grated --- I ended up using 4 average sized store-bought carrots)
75 grams corn flour (I'm assuming this is corn meal, and it was right between 1/3 and 1/2 cup in my pyrex cup measure)
a pinch of cinnamon
a pinch of ground cloves
10 grams baking powder (approx. 1 Tbsp)
a pinch of salt
apricot jam (for glazing)
50 ml kirsch --- this measurement will be on your pyrex cup measure as well
fondant icing (I didn't use this)
marzipan carrots (I didn't use this either, but they are really good with it-- Regina spent a couple of hours and made some really awesome looking marzipan carrots with marzipan, red/yellow food coloring, and green food coloring. At this point, the available effort in my body was too low to begin that task. I'd recommend if you are taking this dish to a fancy party, or if you really like marzipan.)
THANKFULLY I have a food processor (another must in my kitchen gadget repertoire). I did the almonds first because they wouldn't get as wet as the carrots, so I'd only have to wash the thing once. I just weighed out the 300 grams of almonds (again, LOVE the digital scale) and dumped them in the processor with the knife blade attachment. I turned it on. Don't be alarmed at the sound, the almonds will calm down and be quieter when they are more finely ground. I kept going until it began to coagulate. I don't recommend grinding it that much--- it just started to make a paste which was a bit harder to work with. I'd just grind them down to very fine particles but it's not going to be a true powder.
I then grated the carrots with the cheese grater attachment first, then put them in with the knife blade attachment. They came out perfect --- very small pieces but still pieces, it wasn't a soupy mess. I weighed out 300 grams and set it aside. I then separated the eggs, putting the whites in my mixer (another kitchen appliance I completely LOVE) and set aside for later.
The egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest are all to be beaten together until it's all the same pale yellow color. I used my AWESOME zester I got for about 10 bucks (I will never use another zester again, it works like velvet). I then dumped the ground almonds and carrots in the mix, and blended those together. I read somewhere that you're supposed to mix all dry ingredients together, so I mixed the corn meal, cinnamon, cloves, baking powder, and salt in a bowl before adding it to the batter. It makes sense to me--- before I started doing that, I'd just dump each dry ingredient in and then beat it. Besides saving a buttload of time, it also means you're not going to get a big mouthful of unmixed cinnamon. or cloves. or worse yet, baking powder. It's just a good idea, I recommend it. Then I beat in the kirsch. I flipped the switch on my mixer, and in a few minutes (with NO effort on my part), I had some really lovely looking egg white foam, which I folded in the batter. It was ready to go into the oven.
The pan I used for this dish is an 8 inch round springform pan. I would recommend this, as it makes it easiest to remove it from the pan, for presentation. The cake really is not supposed to be served from a cake pan --- I suppose you could do it, but it seems SO anti-Swiss to do such a thing to a really beautiful dessert. These aren't terribly expensive, and if you have a friend who bought a few once and then never used them (or got them for wedding gifts), you might luck out like I did and get them for free.
The book claims that baking it at 350 for an hour will produce the cake. Mine was done in 40 minutes. I'd probably just check it with a toothpick and if it comes out clean, it's done. Popped mine out--- and make sure to use a knife to loosen the edges before you remove it from the springform pan, or part of it might cling to it. Just a note--- I can't figure out why mine collapsed in the middle. I'm kinda bummed about it, but it still tastes great. Don't go into a depression spiral because of it--- things aren't supposed to work *all* the time, unless you are Emeril or something. If that is you, you probably should stop reading this blog, and start cooking at high end restaurants and/or start your own TV show.
I just used homemade apricot jam (heated) to glaze the cake (which is a fancy way to say I frosted it with the stuff). I didn't use the fondant--- I wasn't sure what that was supposed to be but I'm guessing from the picture it's not the nasty stuff they put on wedding cakes. I basically just served it as is.
The cake is DELICIOUS. Moist, almondy, the flavors just really pop out. Children don't seem to enjoy it because it's not your typical Betty Crocker cake mix texture--- this one is a bit more dense, but tastes... I dunno... more real. Now that I can operate in metric, I will be making this cake when I want to impress my guests with how international I can be.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Black Beans -- pressure cooker style
This recipe is FREAKING GOOD.
I first tasted them when I lived in Draper. The moment the first spoonful touched my lips, my life was forever altered. I later got the recipe from a cooking class I attended in Park City. (FYI, those cooking classes are FANTASTIC, and are held at Park City at No Place Like Home (1685 Bonanza Drive.) Since then, it's been a FAVORITE of mine. A few people have asked for this recipe, so here it is for your enjoyment. You will need a pressure cooker, because I don't know how to make it otherwise... or else you can figure out how to cook it for the few days normal beans take.
Frijoles Negros --- a Friderici family recipe
1 16 oz black beans (not pre-cooked)
1 16 oz package smoked bacon, cooked and diced
1/2 large yellow onion, diced
1/4 green pepper, diced
3 large garlic cloves, finely diced
2.5 oz pepperoni (approx. 35 slices), finely diced
5 Tbsp bacon grease
2 1/2 tablespoons powdered chicken bouillon, or to taste (I like to use the Knorr Caldo con sabor de Pollo one. Tastes fantastic.)
8 cups water (can substitute 8 cups chicken stock for the bouillon and water)
1 lime
1/8 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 large tomatoes, pureed
couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce
3 dried chile de arbol peppers
Pick through the beans and wash thoroughly. THIS IS IMPORTANT. No matter how clean your beans look, I have always found a rock in them. It's cheaper to just do this step instead of replacing someone's crown. In a large pressure cooker, cook the bacon, and drain it on paper towels. Reserve 5 tablespoons of bacon grease in the pressure cooker. While the bacon is cooking, I will use a food processor and mince the pepperoni pretty finely (not into a mash --- you want some sort of texture) and chop up the onions and green pepper. For the garlic, I just use one of those garlic presses -- just so much easier than trying to chop the crap out of it. By the time that's done, the bacon is usually done. I'll just dump most of the grease out, leaving enough to cook the stuff I've chopped, and put all that in on medium heat. After letting the bacon drain for a bit, I throw that in the food processor and mince it up about the size of bacon bits. After that mix is pretty much cooked, I'll dump the bacno back in, and add about 6 cups of the water to get it more soupy (so I don't burn anything). I'll add the beans in as well, and puree the tomatoes in the food processor after the bacon's out (why dirty anything else), and just put the rest of the ingredients in. I'll bring it all to a boil, then gently place the chile de arbol peppers on top of everything (so I don't have to go hunting for it after they're cooked --- you take them out when it's done; they're just for added flavoring). When it's cooking, I'll put the pressure cooker lid on, and cook for between 1 1/4 hours to 1 1/2 hours. REMEMBER when the pressure cooker has fully pressurized, to turn the heat DOWN to low. Once I forgot this... and ended up with Charred Bean Mush. I don't recommend trying that recipe. The beans are done when they're soft, so if they are crunchy, turn them back on and re-pressurize the cooker.
I LOVE serving them soup-style, with some homemade pico de gallo salsa and some sour cream. This is one of my top favorites, and I make this about once a month.
I first tasted them when I lived in Draper. The moment the first spoonful touched my lips, my life was forever altered. I later got the recipe from a cooking class I attended in Park City. (FYI, those cooking classes are FANTASTIC, and are held at Park City at No Place Like Home (1685 Bonanza Drive.) Since then, it's been a FAVORITE of mine. A few people have asked for this recipe, so here it is for your enjoyment. You will need a pressure cooker, because I don't know how to make it otherwise... or else you can figure out how to cook it for the few days normal beans take.
Frijoles Negros --- a Friderici family recipe
1 16 oz black beans (not pre-cooked)
1 16 oz package smoked bacon, cooked and diced
1/2 large yellow onion, diced
1/4 green pepper, diced
3 large garlic cloves, finely diced
2.5 oz pepperoni (approx. 35 slices), finely diced
5 Tbsp bacon grease
2 1/2 tablespoons powdered chicken bouillon, or to taste (I like to use the Knorr Caldo con sabor de Pollo one. Tastes fantastic.)
8 cups water (can substitute 8 cups chicken stock for the bouillon and water)
1 lime
1/8 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 large tomatoes, pureed
couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce
3 dried chile de arbol peppers
Pick through the beans and wash thoroughly. THIS IS IMPORTANT. No matter how clean your beans look, I have always found a rock in them. It's cheaper to just do this step instead of replacing someone's crown. In a large pressure cooker, cook the bacon, and drain it on paper towels. Reserve 5 tablespoons of bacon grease in the pressure cooker. While the bacon is cooking, I will use a food processor and mince the pepperoni pretty finely (not into a mash --- you want some sort of texture) and chop up the onions and green pepper. For the garlic, I just use one of those garlic presses -- just so much easier than trying to chop the crap out of it. By the time that's done, the bacon is usually done. I'll just dump most of the grease out, leaving enough to cook the stuff I've chopped, and put all that in on medium heat. After letting the bacon drain for a bit, I throw that in the food processor and mince it up about the size of bacon bits. After that mix is pretty much cooked, I'll dump the bacno back in, and add about 6 cups of the water to get it more soupy (so I don't burn anything). I'll add the beans in as well, and puree the tomatoes in the food processor after the bacon's out (why dirty anything else), and just put the rest of the ingredients in. I'll bring it all to a boil, then gently place the chile de arbol peppers on top of everything (so I don't have to go hunting for it after they're cooked --- you take them out when it's done; they're just for added flavoring). When it's cooking, I'll put the pressure cooker lid on, and cook for between 1 1/4 hours to 1 1/2 hours. REMEMBER when the pressure cooker has fully pressurized, to turn the heat DOWN to low. Once I forgot this... and ended up with Charred Bean Mush. I don't recommend trying that recipe. The beans are done when they're soft, so if they are crunchy, turn them back on and re-pressurize the cooker.
I LOVE serving them soup-style, with some homemade pico de gallo salsa and some sour cream. This is one of my top favorites, and I make this about once a month.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Clafouti --- Julia Child style
I got a Julia Child recipe book for Christmas. Ok I got THE Julia Child recipe book for Christmas. I immediately set out to try out the hallmark dish of the book (and the movie --- pretty good flick I must add) --- boeuf bourgignonne, and have made it several times since. I also tried the Bavarian Cream... which is well worth the effort. And I'm sure I'll talk about those in later posts when I make them again.
I was leafing through the cookbook the other day with my friend Jamon and we of course had turned to the dessert section (I'm rather partial to sugar). I also had a hunkering for cherries. Jamon had told me he'd had a clafouti and didn't really care for it much... but then again, he told me that about Boeuf Bourgignon, and he'd done a 180 on it after I'd cooked him some. So, after a few weeks of thinking... and thinking... and thinking... about it, I decided to make it. After all, Julia claims that it is a super simple dish. Sometimes the simplest ones are the tastiest.
Clafouti [Cherry Flan]
from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking
3 cups pitted black cherries
1 1/4 cups milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tb vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup flour
Basically you are supposed to blend all the ingredients (except the cherries) in a blender, pour a bit of batter in the bottom of a 7-8 cup pan (I used an 8x8" square pyrex dish), get that a bit cooked, pour the cherries in, shake 1/3 cup granulated sugar over the cherries, and pour the rest of the batter over it. You're then supposed to bake it at 350 for about an hour.
Well, her variation sounded interesting... Clafouti à la Liqueur... in which you soak the cherries in 1/4 cup kirsch (a cherry liqueur) and the 1/3 cup sugar for an hour, then put the rest in, but omitting 1/4 cup of the milk and the 1/3 cup sugar you're supposed to shake on top. (See here for a champion blogger's discussion on kirsch.) I decided to try it.
Pitting the cherries was kinda fun. I didn't feel like spending $10 on a cherry pitter (I'd just bought the kirsch), and after googling some other people's experiences, I just opted to use some scissors to pop them out. I poked a hole in the bottom of the cherry, then pushed the pit out from the top after removing the stem. It actually went really quickly, and though I was sad to see those cherries with holes torn in them, I figured my teeth would thank me for removing the pits. I stirred the kirsch and the sugar together, then poured it over the cherries. I also read somewhere on google (sorry citation police, I have no idea where) that soaking the pits in the kirsch mixture would add a sort of almond undertone to the dessert. I figured, what the heck.
While I soaked it, I made some dinner, relaxed, and started this blog.
I dusted off the blender and whipped up the batter. It's a bit on the runny side. I coated the bottom bit and put it in the oven to create the cake bottom (I guess that's what I am supposed to be doing with it) while I extracted the pits from the cherry mix. I think next time I'll either omit the pits, or put them in cheesecloth so they can't wander back up inside the cherries. I thought the batter bit would be done, but it wasn't, so I waited a bit longer. I might have made it too thick, but after maybe 7 minutes it came out pretty firm. I put the cherry syrup mixture on, then poured the rest of the batter, and popped it in the oven.
An hour later... and the clafouti is out of the oven. Don't be alarmed when it falls after you take it out--- Julia assured me that it's supposed to be that way.
VERDICT: *really* good. The cherries still are firm and have that really good crunch to them, and the custard really complements the dish. It's very best eaten right out of the oven. And it was really easy to make... just pit the cherries, and blend the rest of the ingredients together. I might try it without the kirsch, to see if there is a big difference in it, but it tastes REALLY good. I'll be making this again.
I was leafing through the cookbook the other day with my friend Jamon and we of course had turned to the dessert section (I'm rather partial to sugar). I also had a hunkering for cherries. Jamon had told me he'd had a clafouti and didn't really care for it much... but then again, he told me that about Boeuf Bourgignon, and he'd done a 180 on it after I'd cooked him some. So, after a few weeks of thinking... and thinking... and thinking... about it, I decided to make it. After all, Julia claims that it is a super simple dish. Sometimes the simplest ones are the tastiest.
Clafouti [Cherry Flan]
from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking
3 cups pitted black cherries
1 1/4 cups milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tb vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup flour
Basically you are supposed to blend all the ingredients (except the cherries) in a blender, pour a bit of batter in the bottom of a 7-8 cup pan (I used an 8x8" square pyrex dish), get that a bit cooked, pour the cherries in, shake 1/3 cup granulated sugar over the cherries, and pour the rest of the batter over it. You're then supposed to bake it at 350 for about an hour.
Well, her variation sounded interesting... Clafouti à la Liqueur... in which you soak the cherries in 1/4 cup kirsch (a cherry liqueur) and the 1/3 cup sugar for an hour, then put the rest in, but omitting 1/4 cup of the milk and the 1/3 cup sugar you're supposed to shake on top. (See here for a champion blogger's discussion on kirsch.) I decided to try it.
Pitting the cherries was kinda fun. I didn't feel like spending $10 on a cherry pitter (I'd just bought the kirsch), and after googling some other people's experiences, I just opted to use some scissors to pop them out. I poked a hole in the bottom of the cherry, then pushed the pit out from the top after removing the stem. It actually went really quickly, and though I was sad to see those cherries with holes torn in them, I figured my teeth would thank me for removing the pits. I stirred the kirsch and the sugar together, then poured it over the cherries. I also read somewhere on google (sorry citation police, I have no idea where) that soaking the pits in the kirsch mixture would add a sort of almond undertone to the dessert. I figured, what the heck.
While I soaked it, I made some dinner, relaxed, and started this blog.
I dusted off the blender and whipped up the batter. It's a bit on the runny side. I coated the bottom bit and put it in the oven to create the cake bottom (I guess that's what I am supposed to be doing with it) while I extracted the pits from the cherry mix. I think next time I'll either omit the pits, or put them in cheesecloth so they can't wander back up inside the cherries. I thought the batter bit would be done, but it wasn't, so I waited a bit longer. I might have made it too thick, but after maybe 7 minutes it came out pretty firm. I put the cherry syrup mixture on, then poured the rest of the batter, and popped it in the oven.
An hour later... and the clafouti is out of the oven. Don't be alarmed when it falls after you take it out--- Julia assured me that it's supposed to be that way.
VERDICT: *really* good. The cherries still are firm and have that really good crunch to them, and the custard really complements the dish. It's very best eaten right out of the oven. And it was really easy to make... just pit the cherries, and blend the rest of the ingredients together. I might try it without the kirsch, to see if there is a big difference in it, but it tastes REALLY good. I'll be making this again.
Hello everyone (emphasis on the "one")
I am not a chef.
I just want to get that out now. I've never gone to cooking school (though that sounds fun), I've actually never even taken a cooking class. Ok that's a lie, once right after high school I enrolled in some college classes for the summer, and ended up taking a cooking class with my friend (now cousin-in-law) Ryan. I didn't even get college credit, so maybe it didn't count after all. I just know I like to cook. Growing up, I'd try to spice up our typical American fare with international recipes. I don't know why I was fascinated with them--- I think it's because my dad's idea of summer vacation was usually to go to the nearest swimming pool the second town down the road. I dreamed of traveling the world, and the kitchen was the only way I could express that desire.
After graduation, my cooking desires came in spurts. It was hard to cook for just myself... I mean it tasted good, but who wants 6 meals in a row of the same thing? And so I dabbled. And picked up some really good recipes along the way, from friends from all over the world. I guess part of me is still wanting to taste what people eat all over the globe.
My friend Serena apparently keeps a cooking blog, and that inspired me to start doing the same. That and a few people I know have asked me for some of the recipes I make. So I thought I'd put them here. I will give credit wherever I can, otherwise, for example if I make something my mom used to make, I guess I'll credit her. Please don't sue her, she was just trying to feed the six of us for heck's sakes.
That's about all the introduction I need, I guess. Shall we start cooking?
I just want to get that out now. I've never gone to cooking school (though that sounds fun), I've actually never even taken a cooking class. Ok that's a lie, once right after high school I enrolled in some college classes for the summer, and ended up taking a cooking class with my friend (now cousin-in-law) Ryan. I didn't even get college credit, so maybe it didn't count after all. I just know I like to cook. Growing up, I'd try to spice up our typical American fare with international recipes. I don't know why I was fascinated with them--- I think it's because my dad's idea of summer vacation was usually to go to the nearest swimming pool the second town down the road. I dreamed of traveling the world, and the kitchen was the only way I could express that desire.
After graduation, my cooking desires came in spurts. It was hard to cook for just myself... I mean it tasted good, but who wants 6 meals in a row of the same thing? And so I dabbled. And picked up some really good recipes along the way, from friends from all over the world. I guess part of me is still wanting to taste what people eat all over the globe.
My friend Serena apparently keeps a cooking blog, and that inspired me to start doing the same. That and a few people I know have asked me for some of the recipes I make. So I thought I'd put them here. I will give credit wherever I can, otherwise, for example if I make something my mom used to make, I guess I'll credit her. Please don't sue her, she was just trying to feed the six of us for heck's sakes.
That's about all the introduction I need, I guess. Shall we start cooking?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)