Single Grrl in the Kitchen

Let them eat 1-2-3-4 cake!

2009-12-15T19:31:00.015-06:00

When I was a child, I often spent the night or even the weekend or a week with my grandmother -- "Celie Mama" for those of you who know my grandmothers from each other. She was not a grandmother who really loved cooking and baking and feeding people up, but we always had fun in the kitchen. One thing we made occasionally was a 1-2-3-4 Cake. I knew quite a bit about basic cake baking at a young age; my mother is a champ cake baker, and I was "helping" as soon as my precocious self could see over the edge of the counter. The 1-2-3-4 cake stuck in my mind, though, because the recipe was so easy: 1 cup of butter, 2 cups of sugar, 3 cups of self-rising flour, and 4 eggs (plus 1 cup of milk). It's a relative of the true, original pound cake (1 pound of butter, 1 pound of sugar ... etc.).

So anyway ... I've always had a soft spot in my heart for 1-2-3-4 cake, but rarely made it on my own. A few years ago, though, I ran across a 1-2-3-4 Cake recipe in the paper. This one came from an Alice Waters cookbook (probably not actually written by Alice Waters, but, whatever). Not being a Southern recipe, it used cake flour and leavening instead of self-rising flour. What really caught my eye, though, was that it used one of my favorite cake tricks -- combining butter cake ingredients with a chiffon cake technique. With this recipe in particular, it transforms a not-quite-pound-cake into a lighter, more tender cake.

The wonder of this recipe is not only its simplicity but its flexibility. It is almost a master class in cakes because it is a dead-basic, classic cake, but there are an endless number of things you can do with it. First, it is in every way a traditional butter cake except for the whipped egg whites folded in at the end. You can vary the dairy product to get a slightly different flavor and texture. You can vary the flavorings and add embellishments like nuts. You can bake in any size/shape pan. You can serve it plain, in all it's vanilla-butter glory, or you can glaze or frost it. It is a recipe that is easy to divide in half; I have even made a quarter recipe.

Today I took small loaves of a personal variation to work today as holiday gifts, and was inspired to make this rare blog post, so great is my love for this recipe. So, without further ado, here it is. First, the recipe and variations that were published in the paper; second, today's variation, plus other variation ideas and notes.

1-2-3-4 Cake
adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters
Makes 2 9-inch round cakes

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened
2 cups sugar
3 cups sifted cake flour*
1/2 tsp salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
4 eggs, separated**
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350F.
Butter and flour 2 9-inch cake pans.***
Sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar; cream together with butter.
Beat in egg yolks, one at a time, then add vanilla.
When well mixed, add the flour mixture and milk alternately, starting and ending with one third of the flour. Mix just until the flour is incorporated.
In another bowl, whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks, but take care not to overbeat. Gently fold one third of the egg whites into the batter. Add the remaining egg whites and fold in; be careful not to over-mix.
Pour batter into the prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes.
Let cake cool in pans 10 minutes. Invert cake onto plate, then immediately invert again on a wire rack. If using a glaze, it may be applied while the cake is warm. Otherwise, allow cake to cool completely before cutting or frosting.

Variations:

Lemon cake: Add 1 Tablespoon finely grated fresh lemon zest and 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice to the batter.
Orange cake: Add 1 Tablespoon finely grated fresh orange zest and 2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice to the batter.

*I have been known to substitute White Lily All-Purpose flour for cake flour -- they have nearly the same (low) protein/gluten content, although cake flour is a little more finely milled. If using White Lily, be SURE to sift.
**If you want a slightly denser cake, closer to a pound cake, do not separate the eggs; add the whole eggs in step 5 and skip step 7.
***You can, of course, use any type pan you like. The full recipe will fit into a full-size (10-inch) tube pan, or two 9x5 loaf pans, or four 8x4 loaf pans, for example. If using different pans, DO NOT adjust the oven temperature. You may, however, have to adjust cooking time; the tube pan may take 50-60 minutes. For more information on pan substitutions, see the excellent Baking911.com reference page: http://www.baking911.com/pantry/substitutes_pansizes.htm

TL's Almond Cake

The first change I made was to substitute buttermilk for the milk. You could also use sour cream or plain yogurt (preferably one without gelatin or other additives). These acidic dairy products not only give a subtle tangy flavor to the end product, but produce a more tender crumb. When you sub these acidic dairy products for regular milk, though, you have to add baking soda to counter the acidity. Otherwise, the leavening power of the other ingredients could be compromised. The rule of thumb is 1/2 tsp baking soda, added with the other dry ingredients, for every cup of buttermilk/sour cream/yogurt.
The second change was to add 1 teaspoon of almond flavoring. In many cases, bakers will omit the vanilla when adding almond or other flavorings, but I like to use both. I could see reducing the vanilla to 1/2 teaspoon, but in this case I used a full teaspoon of each.
To give a visual signal of the flavor of the cake, plus to provide a little embellishment to what was to be an un-iced cake, I added sliced almonds to the top of the batter right before putting the pans in the oven. It's a good idea to press them into the batter just a bit; otherwise, they'll fall off after baking.

Other Variation Ideas
I haven't tried any of these, but I think they would be *ahem* a piece of cake.

Coconut Cake: Add a little coconut flavoring and top with sweetened shredded coconut before baking. (You could also mix the coconut into the batter.)
Nut Cake: Top with any sort of chopped nuts before baking. I think chopped pecans would be great. Bonus points: Substitute Vanilla, Butter, & Nut flavoring for the vanilla extract.
Berry Cake: Add fresh berries, either a single variety or a combination, along with a few teaspoons of finely grated lemon zest. (I would toss the berries with a couple of tablespoons of flour before adding to the batter.
Spicy Cake: It might be fun to experiment with adding cardamom or ginger to this cake. Ginger and lime zest, maybe? mmmm

One final note ... BE CAREFUL about adding other fruits. For example, crushed pineapple or mashed banana might be a good add-ins, but they are acidic, and thus would need to be countered with some baking soda.

It's Summer, So It Must Be Zucchini Time

2009-08-23T15:09:00.009-05:00

This frittata is one of those dishes that's more than just the sum of its parts. It's a good way to use a generous amount of zucchini, it's a nice lower-fat vegetarian main dish, and is very tasty. The tomato side is optional but is a nice piquant contrast to the creamy greenness of the frittata, and rounds out the plate well.

The original recipe (from Eating Well) calls for fresh marjoram, but really you could use just about any herb or herb combination. The last time I made it I used a dried Italian herb blend, of course using only 1/3 of the amount of the fresh herb called for. To boost the heartiness of the dish and to provide some starch, I added a bit of cooked potato to the mix. I prefer to use grape, cherry, or plum tomatoes for the side; regular "slicing" tomatoes are too juicy and break down too much in the saute. Finally, since I was cooking for just me, I cut the recipe in half, using a medium well-seasoned iron skillet. If you use the non-stick skillet called for, be sure that it's one that is oven safe.

Zucchini-Ricotta Frittata with Warm Tomato Garnish
adapted from Eating Well

1 1/2 pounds zucchini, coarsely grated
1 1/8 tsp salt, divided
2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
4 large eggs
4 large egg whites
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Monterrey Jack cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh marjoram (or other herbs)
1 cup cooked diced red or white boiling potato (optional)
2/3 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

for the garnish:
2 1/2 cup chopped tomato (preferably grape, cherry, or plum)
1 medium shallot, minced
1 small clove garlic, minced
2 tsp chopped fresh marjoram (or other herbs)
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Toss zucchini with 1 tsp salt in a medium bowl; put in colander to drain for 20-30 minutes. Rinse briefly and squeeze dry.
Whisk eggs with pepper and remaining salt in a large bowl. Stir in cheese, herbs, and cooked potato (if using).
Preheat broiler.
Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil over in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add zucchini and cook, stirring frequently, until water evaporates (5-6 min). Add to egg mixture, stirring to mix well.
Wipe skillet clean and return to medium-high heat. Heat remaining 1 Tbsp oil in the skillet, then add egg mixture and reduce heat to medium-low. Dollop ricotta over the top.
Cook until eggs are set on bottom but the top is still wet (5-7 min). Transfer skillet to broiler and broil until done (3-5 min).

For tomato garnish: Toss all ingredients together. Cook in a skillet for a couple of minutes, until warm and releasing juices.

Pie: Epic Fail

2009-03-28T10:30:00.012-05:00

With the frequency of my blog entries being so shamefully low, it might appear that I'm obsessed about pie, given that this will be the second entry of the last three about pie. I'm not obsessed, but I have had another memorable pie-centered event.

You see, March 14 was Pi Day. Get it? Pi begins with the numbers 3.14, so, 3/14 every year is Pi Day. Congress even made it official this year. So, the natural way to celebrate Pi Day is to eat some pie. Not only are the two words homonyms, but pies have the added advantage of being circular. Ha.

Pi Day was on a Saturday this year, but since I have a new range that needed a workout, I thought I'd make a pie to take to work on Friday. Since I work in IT, I knew that my coworkers would be all over Pi Day and wouldn't look at me with that "you're a nerd, aren't you?" look I've gotten at other jobs.

I decided to make a basic chocolate cream, assuming that that would have the broadest appeal and wouldn't require too much work on a weeknight. (Despite the original intention to give the oven a workout, I wound up with a type of pie that wasn't baked, except for a brief stint for the crumb crust.) Not having a stand-by recipe, I perused my usual sources and narrowed it down to two candidates: A recipe from Gourmet, and one in Ruth Levy Beranbaum's The Pie and Pastry Bible.

For the filling, I chose Ruth's -- the two recipes were very similar, but Ruth's promised to be a little darker chocolate-wise, and called for whole eggs, which appealed to me more than the egg-yolk-only formula from Gourmet. If you are unfamiliar with Ruth's books, she's a food scientist at heart, and the recipes are calculated and tested to the nth degree, so I had no fear of making a recipe of hers to serve to others without a trial run. I did use the chocolate crumb crust from the Gourmet recipe since I wouldn't have time for the dough resting needed for a good pastry crust.

Naturally, my hubris got me.

The end result, while tasting fine, was not something I'd be proud to present. You see, both recipes call for mixing cornstarch with the egg/egg yolk at the beginning; milk is added later. This runs counter to every recipe and rule of thumb I know about cornstarch, which states you should always dissolve it in cold liquid before adding to the other ingredients. I trusted that Ruth (and Gourmet) new what they were doing, and that the cornstarch would dissolve and mix in well with the eggs.

It didn't.

Now, I freely admit that this could be as much user error as anything else; perhaps I didn't use a sufficient whisking technique. The fact remains, though, that the egg was just too viscous to readily absorb the cornstarch. I soldiered on, hoping the rest of the process, including the straining called for at the end, would redeem the mixture. To make a long story short, it didn't. The end result was the right consistency, and tasted good; it had a grainy texture rather than the dead-smooth texture you expect in a cream pie, though.

So, I did not take it to work -- it just wasn't up to my standards. I did enjoy a slice Friday night, just for testing purposes, mind you.

I will make another of these pies another day ... the difference is that I will be sure to mix the cornstarch with a little of the milk before mixing with the eggs!

Hot Drinks for Cold Nights

2009-01-13T19:05:00.016-06:00

Now that winter is really here and making itself a true pest, it's time to ramp up your repertoire of hot beverages. Besides the usual coffee and tea (my favorites are Earl Grey and Lady Grey), don't forget hot chocolate.

If you want to make a real treat rather than just something sweet, do yourself a favor and dump the little packets. Make some hot chocolate from scratch -- it's easy and so much better than the mix. There are a million recipes, but I like this one from the Hershey's Dutch Processed Cocoa container.

Hot and Creamy Cocoa

2 servings

3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp cocoa
1/4 cup water
1 3/4 milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Combine sugar and cocoa in saucepan; stir in water. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils; stir in milk and heat. DO NOT BOIL after milk is added. Remove from heat; add vanilla.

Of course this is just a base for all sorts of variations. Give it some Mexican flair by adding cinnamon, or a grown-up kick with Kahlua or some other complementary liqueur. But now for something completely different ...

Here's an unusual treat that I found on MyRecipes.com recently. The combination of white chocolate and ginger is inspired in a hot drink -- the spice of the ginger intensifies the warmth of the drink and gives it a depth beyond the sweet smoothness of the chocolate. This is a Cooking Light recipe so it does use skim milk; of course you could use whole or any other type of milk. Also, I have used a good-quality, fresh powdered ginger in place of the fresh in a pinch, but fresh really is wonderful.

Hot White Chocolate with Ginger

Cooking Light, Dec 2002
8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

2/3 cup chopped peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
8 cups fat-free milk
1 cup chopped premium white baking chocolate (about 4 ounces)

Combine first 3 ingredients in a large saucepan; cook over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is golden (about 5 minutes), stirring frequently. Remove from heat; cool slightly.

Add milk and chocolate, stirring with a whisk. Heat over medium-low heat to 180° or until bubbles form around edge of pan, stirring frequently (do not boil). Strain mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids.

Baby don't you cry, gonna make a pie

2009-01-04T19:56:00.015-06:00

If you've seen the film Waitress, you know that the title of this post is also the first two lines of a song the eponymous waitress sings as she ... makes the pies that she loves to make. Pie IS a glorious, fabulous thing, sometimes shunted aside in favor of its showier cousin Cake. A good pie is heaven-sent, though, and should never be taken for granted. I think we've gotten used to the excuse for pie we're often presented with: Frozen, commercially-prepared products that may satisfy a sweet tooth but which fail to live up to the wonder that is good pie.

I could spend an entire post on the home-made vs. store-bought crust issue; let's just say I've availed myself of both. When time and circumstances permit, though, home-made is definitely the way to go. Don't let Fear of Piecrust stand in your way, though -- if using that frozen pastry crust or packaged crumb crust gets you into the kitchen to make a pie, then by golly go right ahead. I won't look askance.

For the holidays recently I made four different pies (plus a cake). Thanksgiving was a mincemeat pie, because that is my mother's favorite for that holiday. The filling was packaged but the double crust was made from scratch. The other Thanksgiving pie was a two-layer pumpkin: A cheesecake-like layer topped by a fairly traditional pumpkin layer. The crust for that pie was also from scratch, using the same recipe as for the mincemeat. I'm told the mincemeat was good -- I didn't have any -- but I did love the pumpkin pie.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie - King Arthur Flour

The pie crust itself is a bit of a story. I didn't make the crust recipe that was part of the pumpkin pie recipe; instead, I made Rose Levy Beranbaum's recipe from The Pie and Pastry Bible. The recipe, while not more difficult than others, has more steps and takes more time. Still, I think the results are worth it and it's my standard recipe. I plan on making some others for the sake of comparison (for example, Cook's Illustrated's version that uses vodka instead of vinegar). The techniques and science behind Beranbaum's is sound, though, and no matter what recipe I use in the future I'll carry what I've learned from her with me.

Basic Flaky Pie Crust - Rose Levy Beranbaum
(NOTE: I use about half the amount of vinegar called for in the recipe, and sometimes omit the baking powder, esp. if I want the crust to hold a decorative shape.)

I made the second two pies for Christmas dinner. I was in the mood for some old-school, diner-type pies, and I thought these fit the bill. The first, a coconut cream, used Beranbaum's crust again. While my parents and I like coconut and are especially appreciative of a good coconut cream pie, my siblings are strongly anti-coconut. So, I knew that pie was going to have a limited audience. The second pie was destined to have broader appeal because it was chocolate -- a real old-fashioned French Silk pie.

French Silk has gone out of style -- indeed, it can be hard to find a recipe for it -- because it calls for raw eggs. We now have pasteurized raw eggs available, though. I have heard of people using Egg Beaters or the like as well, but I haven't tried that myself. A French Silk pie is beyond decadent, though, without being heavy like the leaden, almost bombastic death-by-chocolate sort of desserts that are so popular. Creamy and, well, silky, a French Silk is everything a pie should be.

Instead of a pastry crust, I used a crumb crust made with the Nabisco "Famous Chocolate Wafers." I also grated dark chocolate over the whipped cream rather than making the chocolate curls.

French Silk Chocolate Pie - Pioneer Woman blog

Coconut Cream Pie - Bon Appetit

It's still ice cream weather

2008-08-31T17:22:00.009-05:00

Last night I went out to dinner with some girlfriends for a birthday celebration, then we retreated to a member's house for make-your-own ice cream sundaes and a cupcake tasting. It was a very foodie day! I'll write another day about the restaurant and the cupcakes; today I wanted to post the recipes for the sauces I made for the sundaes.

The first is hot fudge -- a recipe that mother has made as far back as I can remember. I modify it a bit by adding more chocolate. The second, a butterscotch sauce, is a recipe that's new to me; I wasn't absolutely thrilled with the final result, but it was fine and my fellow sundae-makers seemed to enjoy it. Today I discovered that I misread the recipe and did not use nearly as much cream as the recipe called for. I'm sure it'll be better next time when I actually follow the recipe. :P

Ferrell Hot Fudge

1 can sweetened condensed milk (preferably NOT low-fat)*
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, broken into several pieces
1/3 cup water
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 to 2 Tbsp butter, cut into small pieces

Add water to the bottom portion of a double boiler and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium. Combine condensed milk, chocolate, water, and salt in the top portion of a double boiler. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted. Continue to stir until all ingredients are thoroughly blended and the sauce is smooth and of a completely uniform color. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and butter. Stir until butter is completely incorporated. Serve hot or warm over ice cream.

* Sweetened condensed milk is an area where the brand matters to me -- I always use Borden's Eagle Brand.

NOTES: If sauce is too thick, stir in additional water, a Tbsp at a time. Sauce can be refrigerated, covered, for several days. May be reheated in the double-boiler or the microwave -- heat gradually using medium heat and stirring frequently to avoid scorching.

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Butterscotch Sauce

Everyday Food

1 cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar

3 tablespoons light corn syrup

In a small saucepan, combine cream, butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup. Bring to a boil over high heat; cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved, 2 to 3 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Sauce can also be made up to 1 week ahead; cover and refrigerate in an airtight container.

TL's NOTES: This is a very thin sauce when hot. It is really best at room temperature. If you refrigerate it, bring to room temp before using.

What's Up in the Kitchen

2008-08-26T20:33:00.004-05:00

Other than writing about my adventure at the Viking cooking school, I haven't written about food or cooking lately, obviously. I wasn't cooking very much the last few weeks, partially due to being busy with other things, and partially due to being glued to the TV for the Olympics. One of the things I've been busy with is finally -- finally! -- making some decor decisions and getting started on some house-fixing. The other is that I had a landscaping company come look at the disaster of a yard I have and talk about long-term plans for improvements.

The property has basically suffered from benign neglect for a number of years and needs some serious work to look "nice." That's going to be a multi-year project with a list of to-do items as long as both my arms. To start with, though, I wanted someone to come in and do some serious cut-back of some jungle-like growth of vines and brush along 3 of the 4 sides of the property, as well as trimming some trees, cleaning vines off the garage and house, etc. etc. The landscaper -- Eric Cook, Greenway of Nashville -- was nice and his crew did a good job. It put a serious dent in my pocketbook, but things look a lot more controlled. Eric had also suggested adding something attractive in addition to clearing stuff away, specifically some small holly and spirea on either side of the front steps. I had planned to eventually plant some things in those areas, so I told him to go ahead. It does look nice and spiffs up the front a bit. If I could find my camera (it's SOMEWHERE in the study, just exactly where is undetermined) I would post a picture. When the camera is located one day when I remember to look for it, I'll do so.

P.S. I remembered another factoid from the knife class ... brown and pink shrimp are always wild-caught. White and tiger shrimp can be either wild-caught or farmed. So there is your Culinary Fact of the Day.

Addenda!

2008-08-25T17:22:00.002-05:00

Here are a few additional things I remembered today from yesterday's class.

When buying an onion, always sniff it. If an uncut onion actually smells of onion, don't buy it -- that means that the onion has been bruised or otherwise damaged.
The name of the dice created by cross-cutting the julienne is brunoise. Whew!

Gettin' Some Mad Knife Skilz

2008-08-24T20:12:00.013-05:00

This morning I took a drive down to The Factory in Franklin to attend a cooking class at the Viking Store. Viking is the company that makes the huge "professional grade" refrigerators, stoves, and the like as well as cookware and gadgets. All but some of the gadgets are out of my budget range, but it's always fun to look around and daydream about that lottery win and the enormous white-tile kitchen that new fortune would buy.

The Nashville / Franklin store is one of a handful around the country that offers cooking classes, and is by far the most successful program in the whole company. The type and style of classes vary considerably. A few years ago I was part of a small group that did a demo-style class where the instructor/chef did most of the work and we could jump in and help as desired. That was fun, but I've been wanting to take a hands-on class for a long time. I finally bit the bullet and signed up for a couple, and today's was the first. Called Basic Knife Skills, 10 of us spent 2 1/2 hours learning about using a chef's knife the right way while preparing our lunch -- chicken & shrimp fajitas with a variety of vegetables and from-scratch salsa. We made julienne (1/8 inch strips), batonettes (1/4 inch strips), and then dice of the same, which had French names I can't remember. :P (Also, I think I remember from previous readings that there is a cut called baton, which I think is 1/2 inch.) We also did mince of garlic and cilantro.

I'm pretty good with a knife and know a few things, but here are two really fundamental things I didn't know:

I've been holding the knife incorrectly, both for the basic chop and the two-handed mince
There's an "Italian" way to slice and a "French" way -- I've been using the French way

I've seen a number of techniques done on TV but never tried them, and today I did:

Sharpening a knife on a stone.
"Breaking down" a bell pepper using the rolling technique, which was a LOT easier than you might think, and WAY cool.
Boning a chicken breast.
Holding down the vegetable with the fingers curled under. When I tried it before I always found it awkward. In class I made a more determined effort to try it, and found a little success. One tip I picked up that helped a little was to anchor the tip of the thumb at the back of object being sliced. So ... Practice will make perfect, I hope.
Peeling a tomato by dropping it into boiling water (after scoring a light cross in the top and the bottom), then dunking in an ice bath. The skin just slipped right off.

One of the best parts of these classes is that you always pick up tips and information not necessarily related to the topic of the class.

3 drops of bleach in a couple of quarts of water is enough to sanitize non-porous surfaces -- i.e., your knife. I've always used a ton more.
Stock is made from bones only. Broth is made with bones and flesh. Skin, fat, and organs should never be used when making either.
Also: When making chicken stock/broth, add vegetables only for the last hour of cooking, and don't saute them first. For beef stock, the vegetables can be sauteed/roasted first since it's a heartier concoction.

When everything was cut, chopped, sliced, mixed, and cooked (where appropriate), we sat down at a long table in the kitchen and ate the fruits of our labors, along with a small pour of wine for those who wished. It was good -- I won't say that the recipes were anything out of the ordinary, but it was tasty and fun to see those wee nearly-perfect cubes of vegetables in the salsa.

When I signed up for this class, I also enrolled in a class on tapas that will be in late September. I found out, though, that there is also a "Knife Skills 2" class that will be in early September. I signed up for that as well, using the 10% discount I had available for taking today's class. So watch out ... I'll be dangerous!

Oh Brother, Part 2

2008-08-09T17:27:00.002-05:00

My other brother Dale and his business partner opened a restaurant a few months ago. Their specialty barbecue wings have already won an award, and have garnered a mention in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution .If you're in the Atlanta area, head on down to The Square in Newnan and check out The Gridiron Grill. The name sounds like a sports bar, and it IS UGA red-and-black inside, but the food is definitely a step above your typical sports bar fare. The chef has a background in Lousiana cooking, so the focus is Cajun/Creole, but with New South, Old South, and plain ol' American casual food. (I had a regular hamburger and it was just what a burger should be.) Tasty, reasonable, and the square is a picturesque setting, inviting a pre- or post-meal stroll. Check out the menu, get a coupon, and learn more at http://www.thegridirongrill.biz. They also have a MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/thegridirongrill.

Oh Brother, Part 1

2008-07-31T19:47:00.005-05:00

A few years ago my brother Paul and I made a dinner for a crowd. We picked a Louisiana theme -- the food was very tasty and the meal went over well. He'd lost the recipes and asked for them today, so I thought I'd post them here.

The first is a really good way to use some of that summer corn.

Cajun Corn Maque Choux
Adapted from Southern Living, DECEMBER 2001

1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen, thawed)
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup chopped green onion tops
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Sauté onion and bell pepper in hot oil in a large skillet over medium heat 8 minutes or until tender. Add corn and tomato; cook, stirring often, 15 minutes. Stir in green onions, salt, and pepper; cook 5 minutes.

Makes 6 servings

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This recipe makes a LOT -- 12 servings. Obviously, you could scale the recipe down if you're not feeding a mob. This dish uses the tasty Holy Trinity of Louisiana cooking: Onion, celery, and green bell pepper. The addition of a healthy amount of parsley is pretty standard, too, not to mention the roux.

Grillades and Grits
From GumboPages.com

Grillades (gree-YAHDS) and grits, like salt and pepper or bread and butter, are an assumed pair in New Orleans. It sounds like dinner, and sometimes it is, but brunch is the most popular menu spot for the Creole dish.

4 1/2 pounds round steak (we used petite sirloin, pounded)
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
Vegetable oil
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3 bay leaves
2 cups water
Cooked Grits

Cut meat into serving-size pieces; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour 1/2 cup oil into a Dutch oven. Fry steak in batches in hot oil over medium-high heat until browned (about 2 minutes on each side.) Remove to platter, and repeat until all meat is browned.

Measure pan drippings; add enough oil to drippings to measure 2/3 cup, and return to Dutch oven. Add flour; cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, 10 minutes or until roux is caramel colored.

Stir in onion and next 5 ingredients; cook until tender. Stir in tomatoes, next 3 ingredients, and 1 cup of water, stirring well.

Return meat to Dutch oven. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard bay leaves. Serve with Cooked Grits.

Yield: Makes 12 servings

Weekend Food Exploits

2008-07-27T19:12:00.008-05:00

Lately I've gotten back into the routine of going to the grocery store every weekend. Stocked pantry/fridge = meal flexibility and a lot fewer restaurant meals. Late spring through early fall I also stop by one of the produce stands run by Howell's Farm. They specialize in tomatoes, but also grow a nice variety of squashes and eggplants, peppers, and corn. Yesterday's trip was a little different -- I started my day with a visit to the Nashville Farmer's Market.

The FM has traditionally been a disappointment; few farmers and lots and lots of resellers. The interior market has had some interesting shops and restaurants, but that's somewhat in flux now. Half the facility is taken up with a flea market that is 99% knock-offs and mass-produced cheap, gaudy junk. There's an effort underway to renovate and reposition, including trying to get more actual farmers selling more actual local product. The effort has been surprisingly controversial ... but more about that another day.

I went to the FM hoping to score some decent peaches, and was also interested in seeing what the general selection was like these days. One seller had some peaches from KY, which counts as local. None that I inspected were really ripe; I've got four on my counter and hope they'll be worth eating. I also picked up a loaf of whole wheat bread from what I think was a Mennonite couple who had a table of baked goods. Made a Bradley tomato sandwich with it for lunch -- it was good, soft bread for all of it being whole wheat. I saw a huge variety of squashes and peppers, including cute pint baskets of cherry-tomato sized, mixed-variety heirloom peppers. I was hoping for fresh onions or garlic, fresh herbs, maybe some strawberries, and ... exotica. I was disappointed, but did go to Howell's stand there and pick up some things I usually get from them -- zucchini, eggplant (small white and Japanese), Bradley tomatoes (low-acid and thin skin), cherry tomatoes mentioned in yesterday's post (which I discovered today are called Black Cherry), plum tomatoes, Peaches-and-Cream corn, some pickling cucumbers, and some red potatoes. A goodly haul.

Sundays have become a cook-for-the-week-and-the-freezer day, and today was no exception. I used the pickling cucumbers to make a quart of refrigerator bread-and-butter pickles, using kind of a hybrid of several recipes. I'll write about them in a couple of weeks, after the first tasting. With the eggplants, plum tomatoes, zucchini, and previously-purchased purple bell pepper and Vidalia onion, I made Cooking Light's Gardener's Ratatouille. I've been making this every summer since the recipe was first published in 2002. The unconventional colors of some of the vegetables (purple pepper, white eggplant) made it even more colorful than usual. Delicious, too!

I was going to link to the recipe, but it's no longer available on the Cooking Light web site, so ... here it is. (Note: It's also in the Cooking Light 2002 Annual recipe book.)

Gardener's Ratatouille
Cooking Light, Aug 2002
Robin Taylor Swatt

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 cups chopped plum tomatoes -- (about 1 pound)
2 cups chopped eggplant -- peeled (TL note: I've never peeled them)
1 1/2 cups chopped zucchini
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 clove garlic -- minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add tomato, eggplant, zucchini, bell pepper, and garlic. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in oregano, and remaining ingredients; cook, uncovered, 5 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: approx 3/4 cup).

Pasta Salad for Supper

2008-07-26T18:40:00.006-05:00

A few months ago a pasta salad presented on PBS's Everyday Food caught my eye. It used a pasta shape I really like (cavatappi) and two of my favorite things -- goat cheese and asparagus. What made this dish unusual was that the dressing was made just of the goat cheese and some of the hot pasta cooking water. The hot water turned the crumbly cheese into a creamy sauce. I have made the salad as written a couple of times, once for a potluck. But I knew that, more importantly, I'd be storing that goat cheese technique in my back pocket for future use. (See the full recipe here: Creamy Goat Cheese Pasta with Roasted Asparagus).

So, this afternoon I was contemplating supper, and remembered that I had some goat cheese in the refrigerator I needed to use. The problem was that had gotten really strong, and as much as I like goat cheese, eating this stuff straight wasn't going to be all that pleasant. I was trying to think of a way to dilute it, when it hit me to make a salad similar to the Everyday Food recipe, but just add some mayonnaise to smooth out the flavor. I didn't have asparagus on hand, but did have broccoli. No chives, but yes green onions. So ... I cooked some Barilla Plus Pasta Elbow Macaroni.

Side note: Barilla Plus is my pasta of choice these days because I'm trying to eat whole grain whenever possible, and as much as I love brown rice, whole wheat bread, etc. I just. Don't. Care. For. 100%. Whole. Wheat. Pasta. (That doesn't make me a bad person, does it? Didn't think so.) Barilla Plus is a nice intermediary pasta with the advantage of a little protein boost. It doesn't come in cavatappi (at least in my store) but the elbows also have little ridges like cavatappi and do have a little twist to them.

Anyway, back to the pasta salad. During the last few minutes of cooking the pasta, I added a good fistful of broccoli florets. Drained and rinsed the pasta/broccoli, reserving a little of the water. Put the goat cheese in a bowl, added the hot water and stirred until smooth. Small plop of mayo (reduced-fat, of course), squeeze of lemon juice, sliced scallion. Added the pasta and broccoli along with just a little slivered leftover grilled chicken, along with some quartered Cherokee-purple-type cherry tomatoes fresh from the farmer's market this morning.

I was very pleased with the end result, and will definitely be doing this again.

Cook for your family -- or else!

2008-07-24T20:58:00.007-05:00

You may not know about one of the best video satirists out there right now. She's not on The Daily Show or SNL, but is a contributer to a web site called Current. She's Sarah Haskins, and she produces a series of short video essays under the banner Target Women. She takes on advertising and marketing aimed at women, and is insightful, articlate, and hilarious. The most recent essay looks at the amazingly persistent idea that a woman's first duty is to prepare food for the family, and thanks to the dreck put out by the fast- and processed-food industries, she can bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan, as they say. Thankfully, like Sarah, I'm single and free to cook ... or not ... without the risking the censure of society and the enmity of family members. Enjoy!

To see more of Sarah's videos, visit http://current.com/topics/88794117_sarah_haskins.

A "Grate" Way to Use Summer Vegetables

2008-07-17T18:32:00.007-05:00

Mark Bittman, the NY Times columnist and cookbook author, has been doing a blog for a few months. I generally enjoy his columns and recipes, although he sometimes displays a foodie-elite attitude that gets on my nerves. (For example, one blog post focused on his trying to find good uses for microwaves, an appliance he previously disdained. At least he was tryin'.) One recipe he posted in the blog (cleverly named Bitten) has been a repeater in my house the last few weeks. It can be made with just about any gratable vegetable, but I've just used zucchini so far. I can see lots of potential for riffs and variations with herbs, seasonings, toppings, and vegetable mixtures. As you can see from the ingredient list, these don't burst with strong flavor, but simple flavors are OK sometimes. I really like the fact that they are mostly a vegetable dish rather than a batter-heavy true fritter. A larger serving is hearty enough to serve as a main course with several additional sides. You could also use them as a base under something like a piece of grilled fish or chicken. I LOVE to top mine with a little dollop of reduced-fat sour cream or whole milk yogurt. A squeeze of lemon is lovely too.

Italian-Style Vegetable Pancakes

Mark Bittman, New York Times

Yield 4 servings

About 2 pounds zucchini, eggplant or turnips, peeled if necessary
1/2 onion, peeled and grated
2 eggs, lightly beaten (I use 4 egg whites)
1/4 cup flour or plain bread crumbs, more as needed (I tend to use more)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 to 4 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil (I use cooking spray in a non-stick skillet)

Grate vegetables by hand or with grating disk of a food processor. In a bowl, mix together all ingredients except the butter or oil. The mixture should be fairly loose but not liquid; add a little more flour or bread crumbs if necessary.

Put the butter or oil in a large skillet and turn heat to medium-high. When the oil is hot, put large spoonfuls of batter in the pan. Cook, turning once, until nicely browned on both sides, 10 to 15 minutes total. Serve hot or at room temperature.

The full blog post is here: Italian-Style Vegetable Pancakes

After a long hiatus

2008-07-14T18:26:00.005-05:00

Yes, I created one of a billion cobweb sites by launching this thing, then quickly failing to update it. :P It was unintentional, I promise. Now I've come full circle and am going to try to restart this enterprise.

Today I made an interesting recipe from another Blog, Enlightened Cooking. Camilla is professional, a multiple contest winner, cooking instructor, etc. Her food always looks very tasty and is healthy and light as the blog name implies. I've been enjoying her writing for several months but this is the first recipe of hers I've made.

I can't say I ever crave tofu, but as I mentioned previously I'm trying be more "flexitarian." So, I've been looking for tofu recipes where the tofu isn't the dominating element. Even though this recipe has very few ingredients, the glaze is the star. Mahogany Glazed Tofu is a very quick dinner that has some strong, interesting flavors going on. Because I was just cooking for me, I only made one serving rather than the full four. I made one major change in that I added cubed baby eggplant with the tofu, and then used enough glaze for 2 servings. I will definitely make this again!

The Previous Week's Kitchen Adventures

2008-01-28T20:19:00.001-06:00

I've been been waiting for this blog to get "crawled" so my Amazon list and other widget-type things show up on the page, and ... well, I'm still waiting. So, despite my feeling the site's incomplete, I'll post a bit more.

This week I did some exploring of my latest cookbook purchase, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, by Mark Bittman. Bittman writes a weekly cooking column in The New York Times. As the title -- The Minimalist -- implies, he focuses on dishes that are easy for the home cook to prepare. They are not dumbed-down, Sandra-Lee-esque, bland middle-American fare, but full of flavor, quality ingredients, and sometimes a bit of ethnic adventure. He's written numerous cookbooks and even has a PBS show or two under his belt.

So anyway ... HTCEV made it onto my shelves for several reasons. I'm not a vegetarian, and never will be, but I enjoy vegetarian meals and never feel meat is obligatory. I enjoy a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, grains, etc., but wanted to prepare more of them at home. I'm trying to cook more in general, and I definitely need to regain control of healthy eating habits that had slipped precariously in the last year or so. A new cookbook would help get me jazzed about all of this, and HTCEV was selected because it wasn't just a collection of recipes, but like most of Bittman's writing, went to lengths to explain, present the logic or tradition behind something, provide variations to encourage your own explorations, etc. This book is also much-discussed and praised by cooks whose opinions I trust. (More on that on another day.)

I've made two things so far. (For me to make two new, real, actual recipes in a week is pretty remarkable -- day to day I'm a throw-something-together-that-sounds-good kind of cook.) The first was Whole Wheat Couscous with Cauliflower and Almonds. In this dish, shallot and finely chopped cauliflower are sauteed, then combined with the couscous, stock, and a hefty amount of smoked paprika to simmer. At the last minute parsley and chopped almonds are added, then grated Manchego cheese is used to top the dish. Because I'm counting calories, it's not something I'll make as written a lot, but I was glad I made it. A serving is well over 400 calories, and if you make it as a main dish, the amount of food isn't huge. I did reduce the almonds and the oil called for, and was judicious with the cheese. It's too tasty to not make again, so next time I might reduce the couscous and increase the cauliflower. You could also omit the cheese to make it a more reasonable side dish. I also think I will increase the amount of liquid to give it a little more smoothness. I made my first mail-order purchase from the famous Penzey's to get the smoked paprika for this. This was the "stretch" for me for this recipe, and it was worth it. It gave the dish a beautiful color, and the aroma was mouth-watering.

The second item I made was fresh cheese. I'd read about this several times before, and had seen Michael Chiarello do it on his old PBS show Casual Cooking. I'd wanted to do it for a long time, just never did. Having a very simple recipe in a book I wanted to make use of talked me into it. Basically, you heat milk until it starts to bubble (providing you are at sea level), then add buttermilk and continue to heat. The mixture will break into curds & whey (shades of Little Miss Muffet), and you scoop up the curds, strain through cheesecloth, and squeeze the moisture out to make a ball or disk. I used 2% milk and lowfat buttermilk, and did add some salt. Honestly I will probably add more salt next time -- I like salty cheese. The flavor is very mild, but delicious for all that. I had some for dinner with home-toasted whole wheat tortilla wedges and a salad. There are other methods for easy fresh cheese -- Chiarello mixes the milk & buttermilk at the start. Some use milk and either lemon juice or vinegar. Etc. So, I can see that this will be an area for experimentation for me. Then, watch out -- I will be mailordering special cheese cultures, and a press, and .... Well, let's just see if I make another batch of fresh cheese first, hmm?

One small step for blogdom

2008-01-19T20:06:00.000-06:00

In the spirit of, "Well, everybody else seems to be doing it, why not me?" here's my first stab at a blog. At this point the main focus is going to be on food and cooking (hence the title) but meandering is definitely a possibility. A lot of food blogs I've visited have lovely, high-quality pictures of dishes the authors prepared, and I'm not there yet. So for now, text will have to do. :D

To start, I'll launch right in and talk about today's menu. Last weekend I'd made some black bean soup, portioned into individual servings for the freezer. This morning I decided to have some for supper, but didn't want just "soup." I had pureed it and cooked it down to a pretty thick consistency, like thin refried beans, and thought it would be good over something. I made a pot of polenta, using fat-free half-and-half for part of the water, then poured it into a small loaf pan and put it in the refrigerator to chill. At dinner time I sliced off several slabs of the polenta, gave them a dusting of flour, and pan-fried until golden on both sides. I plated the polenta, then the warmed black bean soup was poured over. Topped with thinly sliced scallions and a dollop of sour cream made a hearty, warm, comforting entree. The side was a tomato-onion ragout, picked up on a rerun of Everyday Food today. Tomato-Onion Ragout (with Flounder).

I was pleased with the outcome, but next time I'd use polenta that was made with just water, and chilled for a longer period. It was cold but still a little soft. The ragout was excellent and I'll definitely be making that again as well!