Classic Deviled Eggs
6 years ago
Monday, September 10, 2012
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
LJ's Disappearing Potato Soup
It's been a while, and I've made a few notable items, but this is the one I feel like sharing the recipe to right now. It is so delicious, it pretty much leaves me at a loss for words.
I couldn't find a potato soup recipe I liked, so I took it upon myself to make one. I scoured the net and found parts I liked, but the over all idea I didn't always care for. I have tried to make potato soup in the past, and it turned out nicely for one day, and one day only. I am ashamed to say, the simplest of facts escaped my notice at the time: pasturization. Doh. This was some years ago though and I have not buried a pot of potato soup in the Failed Recipe Graveyard out back in quite a while. Mostly because I haven't had the heart to try it again. This month has been so rainy and abismal though, it practically begged for a comforting, creamy, tasty potato soup.
And so, my Disappearing Potato Soup is born! I bestow it onto all readers henceforth, for your indulgement and enjoyment. Don't get fat.
Note on the chicken broth. I really love Pacific broths. They're just so much more flavorful and make all the difference. I don't know what they have in stores near you, but you can get it nearly anywhere there is an organic aisle around here, or at Costco. Use whatever you can though.
5 lbs white or gold potatoes (waxy fleshed, not for baking)
3 medium to large carrots
2 small to medium onions
1 clove minced garlic (or 1 tsp pre-minced)
1 LB thick cut bacon (about 1/8 inch if possible)
1 and 1/2 quarts chicken broth
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
4 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)
1 & 1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
fresh cracked black pepper (& grains of paradise - optional) to taste
garnish of fresh parsley, chives or dill, your choice
Preheat oven to 300, place bacon on sheet tray in one layer. Cook in oven for 1 hour, check every 15 minutes for progress. As bacon gets closer to being done, reduce oven to 250-275 for the last 15 or 20 minutes. Turn all pieces at least once and rotate tray in oven. Bacon should have enough "chew" so that it can be rough chopped without absolutely crumbling apart when cut.
While bacon is cooking, peel and small dice the carrots and onions. Peel and cube your potatoes.
If bacon is not done by this time just go ahead and pour 4 tbs (1/4 cup) of bacon grease into your 6 quart pot and return bacon to oven to finish.
Saute onions and carrots for 3-5 minutes over medium heat, add garlic, saute 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add potatoes and chicken broth to pot. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer for 25 minutes or until all veggies are very tender.
When done reserve about 2 cups of the potato cubes aside. Reserve less if you want a thicker soup.
At this point you want to puree what remains in the pot. Use a blender, stick blender, mixer or even a hand masher if necessary. Work in batches if needed.
Once all smooth, add all the creams, salt and spices mix well, and taste. Adjust as necessary. Add reserved potato cubes.
Add chopped bacon to individual servings. Garnish with herbs if desired.
I couldn't find a potato soup recipe I liked, so I took it upon myself to make one. I scoured the net and found parts I liked, but the over all idea I didn't always care for. I have tried to make potato soup in the past, and it turned out nicely for one day, and one day only. I am ashamed to say, the simplest of facts escaped my notice at the time: pasturization. Doh. This was some years ago though and I have not buried a pot of potato soup in the Failed Recipe Graveyard out back in quite a while. Mostly because I haven't had the heart to try it again. This month has been so rainy and abismal though, it practically begged for a comforting, creamy, tasty potato soup.
And so, my Disappearing Potato Soup is born! I bestow it onto all readers henceforth, for your indulgement and enjoyment. Don't get fat.
Note on the chicken broth. I really love Pacific broths. They're just so much more flavorful and make all the difference. I don't know what they have in stores near you, but you can get it nearly anywhere there is an organic aisle around here, or at Costco. Use whatever you can though.
5 lbs white or gold potatoes (waxy fleshed, not for baking)
3 medium to large carrots
2 small to medium onions
1 clove minced garlic (or 1 tsp pre-minced)
1 LB thick cut bacon (about 1/8 inch if possible)
1 and 1/2 quarts chicken broth
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
4 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)
1 & 1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
fresh cracked black pepper (& grains of paradise - optional) to taste
garnish of fresh parsley, chives or dill, your choice
Preheat oven to 300, place bacon on sheet tray in one layer. Cook in oven for 1 hour, check every 15 minutes for progress. As bacon gets closer to being done, reduce oven to 250-275 for the last 15 or 20 minutes. Turn all pieces at least once and rotate tray in oven. Bacon should have enough "chew" so that it can be rough chopped without absolutely crumbling apart when cut.
While bacon is cooking, peel and small dice the carrots and onions. Peel and cube your potatoes.
If bacon is not done by this time just go ahead and pour 4 tbs (1/4 cup) of bacon grease into your 6 quart pot and return bacon to oven to finish.
Saute onions and carrots for 3-5 minutes over medium heat, add garlic, saute 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add potatoes and chicken broth to pot. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer for 25 minutes or until all veggies are very tender.
When done reserve about 2 cups of the potato cubes aside. Reserve less if you want a thicker soup.
At this point you want to puree what remains in the pot. Use a blender, stick blender, mixer or even a hand masher if necessary. Work in batches if needed.
Once all smooth, add all the creams, salt and spices mix well, and taste. Adjust as necessary. Add reserved potato cubes.
Add chopped bacon to individual servings. Garnish with herbs if desired.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Lemon Curd-a-licious
It just takes a little time, but making your own lemon curd couldn't be more simple. In looking up recipes to follow, I decided in favor of Ina Garten's for ease of preparation and small ingredient list. Alton Brown's had all this egg separating to do, but I hate slimy or sticky things on my hands (and I'm a cook, go figure).
Probably what took longest besides heating was peeling the lemons. I found that in using the veggie peeler, if I peeled away from me with a light touch, kind of wiggling in a saw motion left and right as I went, that it was effective at keeping most of the pith out of the cut and yet allowed me to cut longer and bigger pieces so I wasn't spending forever trying to get it off.
Don't Freak Out. It will curdle when you add the lemon juice to the butter-sugar-egg mixture. It will really make your eyes bug out as you try to stir it to make it stop separating, but there is nothing you can do. Just mix it up a while and then follow the rest of the directions. As it heats up it slowly begins to melt together and become cohesive once more.
Since I did a double batch, it took about 15-20 minutes to heat up to 170 degrees at a slow creep with constant stirring. It's really a fantastic thing to see the sudden thickening of the sauce as it hits near the 170 mark. At that point I turned mine off and just kept stirring until it was under 160. How do I know it was under 160? I was using my trusty digital thermometer, as evidenced by the picture, it is in the pot just behind my scraper handle.
If I was going to do anything scientific for a job in my life, it would have to be some sort of food chemistry. That way, I could eat any mistakes :P
I can now mark this off my list of things to learn how to make and not stare at it with trepidation any longer. Now..to tackle that pate a choux....
1999, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, All rights reserved
Prep Time:20 minInactive Prep Time:--Cook Time:10 minLevel:
EasyServes: 3 cups.
Ingredients
•3 lemons
•1 1/2 cups sugar
•1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
•4 extra-large eggs
•1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
•1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.
Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.
Probably what took longest besides heating was peeling the lemons. I found that in using the veggie peeler, if I peeled away from me with a light touch, kind of wiggling in a saw motion left and right as I went, that it was effective at keeping most of the pith out of the cut and yet allowed me to cut longer and bigger pieces so I wasn't spending forever trying to get it off.
Don't Freak Out. It will curdle when you add the lemon juice to the butter-sugar-egg mixture. It will really make your eyes bug out as you try to stir it to make it stop separating, but there is nothing you can do. Just mix it up a while and then follow the rest of the directions. As it heats up it slowly begins to melt together and become cohesive once more.
Since I did a double batch, it took about 15-20 minutes to heat up to 170 degrees at a slow creep with constant stirring. It's really a fantastic thing to see the sudden thickening of the sauce as it hits near the 170 mark. At that point I turned mine off and just kept stirring until it was under 160. How do I know it was under 160? I was using my trusty digital thermometer, as evidenced by the picture, it is in the pot just behind my scraper handle.
If I was going to do anything scientific for a job in my life, it would have to be some sort of food chemistry. That way, I could eat any mistakes :P
I can now mark this off my list of things to learn how to make and not stare at it with trepidation any longer. Now..to tackle that pate a choux....
The color is so purdy. Right up there with creamed butter, sugar and eggs.
Two quarts of curd from six lemons, 10 large eggs and 3 cups of sugar
Lemon Curd
1999, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, All rights reserved
Prep Time:20 minInactive Prep Time:--Cook Time:10 minLevel:
EasyServes: 3 cups.
Ingredients
•3 lemons
•1 1/2 cups sugar
•1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
•4 extra-large eggs
•1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
•1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.
Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
spice spice baby
I just made the most perfect cake I have ever made in my life I think. It is moist, has a fine crumb, excellent balance of textures, spices and the frosting is fantastic.
It is called "Gigi's Carrot Cake" and it's by Emeril Lagasse on the Food Network. I'm not much of an Emeril fan, but occasionally he has a recipe or two that I have all the ingredients for and it sounds good, so I make it. One other recent by him was a cornmeal cake I think, but that's another post.
I have made this cake before, but it never turned out quite as nicely as it has now. I don't have a fine shredding blade for my food processor, so in favor of laziness I always use the medium shred blade. This time, however, I took pains to shred 5-6 cups of carrots by hand ( I was going to make two cakes), and it was worth it. The smaller shred gives a better mouth feel and disperses the carrot more evenly throughout the entire cake.
Also, I opted to try out my new "Cake Spice" from The Spice House instead of using just cinnamon in it like Emeril does. Though, I did add an extra 1/2 tsp of cinnamon anyway. Either way you shake it, cinnamon or cake spice, both are delish.
In my mind, I know that the amount of frosting he has listed for this cake is technically enough, but somehow, I just want a smidge more between the layers, so I would recommend making an extra half batch of it to have an ample amount for applying to suit your taste.
His measurements of sugar are spot on, however, not too sweet. I do add a few shakes of salt, probably equal to a pinch. I think I'd add 1/8 tsp if I was making a batch and a half. I feel like it just adds a little somethin' somethin'.
Do NOT forget to toast your pecans! It brings out the buttery sweet nut flavor and really adds "oomph" to the overall taste of the cake. Emeril says to mix the pecans INTO the frosting, but I opted to send them through a little nut grinder and apply them liberally to the outside. In my mind, it made it look nice and rather expensive ($8.99/lb for pecans!), but feel free to experiment however you like.
If you have had trouble in the past like I have, with getting your cake to come out of the round pans, either butter and flour the pan, or for extra insurance, use some parchment, set the pan on it and take a tracing around the bottom and cut them out to make circles to fit inside the pans. Do this for each individual pan or it may not fit properly. Alton Brown had a really handy easy way of doing this, but I can't remember what it was, sadly. I have only 10 inch pans, but 30 minutes still seemed to do fine for me in my propane oven. You may wish to reduce the baking time depending on how your oven cooks.
This is the kind of cake that makes the house smell great and is awesome enough to serve to guests or give as a gift. It's decadent and classic yet homey and comforting. Made to be shared (if there's any left).
Gigi's Carrot Cake
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2002
Prep Time:35 min Inactive Prep Time:10 min Cook Time:35 min
Level: IntermediateServes: 1 cake, 8 to 10 servings.
Ingredients
•3 sticks, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
•2 cups granulated sugar
•2 cups all-purpose flour
•2 teaspoons baking soda
•2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•1 teaspoon salt
•4 large eggs
•1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•3 cups grated carrots
•1 cup chopped toasted pecans
Pecan Cream Cheese Icing:
•8 ounces cream cheese
•1 stick unsalted butter
•1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar
•1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•1 cup chopped toasted pecans
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter 3 (9-inch) cake pans with 1 tablespoon of the butter and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add the sugar, and beat. In a medium bowl or on a piece of parchment, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and mix well.
Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the eggs, beating well after the addition of each. Add the vanilla extract and mix. Add the carrots and beat on medium speed until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Fold in the nuts. Divide between the 3 cake pans and bake until set and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest in the cake pans for 10 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, remove from the pans, and let cool.
For the Frosting: In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, beating constantly. Add the vanilla and pecans.
When the cake is cool, place 1 cake layer on a cake plate or stand. Spread the top with cream cheese frosting and top with a second and third cake layer, spreading the icing between each layer. Spread the icing around the sides of the cake and let harden slightly before serving. To serve, cut into wedges.
It is called "Gigi's Carrot Cake" and it's by Emeril Lagasse on the Food Network. I'm not much of an Emeril fan, but occasionally he has a recipe or two that I have all the ingredients for and it sounds good, so I make it. One other recent by him was a cornmeal cake I think, but that's another post.
I have made this cake before, but it never turned out quite as nicely as it has now. I don't have a fine shredding blade for my food processor, so in favor of laziness I always use the medium shred blade. This time, however, I took pains to shred 5-6 cups of carrots by hand ( I was going to make two cakes), and it was worth it. The smaller shred gives a better mouth feel and disperses the carrot more evenly throughout the entire cake.
Also, I opted to try out my new "Cake Spice" from The Spice House instead of using just cinnamon in it like Emeril does. Though, I did add an extra 1/2 tsp of cinnamon anyway. Either way you shake it, cinnamon or cake spice, both are delish.
In my mind, I know that the amount of frosting he has listed for this cake is technically enough, but somehow, I just want a smidge more between the layers, so I would recommend making an extra half batch of it to have an ample amount for applying to suit your taste.
His measurements of sugar are spot on, however, not too sweet. I do add a few shakes of salt, probably equal to a pinch. I think I'd add 1/8 tsp if I was making a batch and a half. I feel like it just adds a little somethin' somethin'.
Do NOT forget to toast your pecans! It brings out the buttery sweet nut flavor and really adds "oomph" to the overall taste of the cake. Emeril says to mix the pecans INTO the frosting, but I opted to send them through a little nut grinder and apply them liberally to the outside. In my mind, it made it look nice and rather expensive ($8.99/lb for pecans!), but feel free to experiment however you like.
If you have had trouble in the past like I have, with getting your cake to come out of the round pans, either butter and flour the pan, or for extra insurance, use some parchment, set the pan on it and take a tracing around the bottom and cut them out to make circles to fit inside the pans. Do this for each individual pan or it may not fit properly. Alton Brown had a really handy easy way of doing this, but I can't remember what it was, sadly. I have only 10 inch pans, but 30 minutes still seemed to do fine for me in my propane oven. You may wish to reduce the baking time depending on how your oven cooks.
Gigi's Carrot Cake
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2002
Prep Time:35 min Inactive Prep Time:10 min Cook Time:35 min
Level: IntermediateServes: 1 cake, 8 to 10 servings.
Ingredients
•3 sticks, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
•2 cups granulated sugar
•2 cups all-purpose flour
•2 teaspoons baking soda
•2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•1 teaspoon salt
•4 large eggs
•1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•3 cups grated carrots
•1 cup chopped toasted pecans
Pecan Cream Cheese Icing:
•8 ounces cream cheese
•1 stick unsalted butter
•1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar
•1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•1 cup chopped toasted pecans
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter 3 (9-inch) cake pans with 1 tablespoon of the butter and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add the sugar, and beat. In a medium bowl or on a piece of parchment, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and mix well.
Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the eggs, beating well after the addition of each. Add the vanilla extract and mix. Add the carrots and beat on medium speed until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Fold in the nuts. Divide between the 3 cake pans and bake until set and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest in the cake pans for 10 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, remove from the pans, and let cool.
For the Frosting: In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, beating constantly. Add the vanilla and pecans.
When the cake is cool, place 1 cake layer on a cake plate or stand. Spread the top with cream cheese frosting and top with a second and third cake layer, spreading the icing between each layer. Spread the icing around the sides of the cake and let harden slightly before serving. To serve, cut into wedges.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Multi-Faceted Fruits
I was watching an episode of "Chopped" tonight, a show on the Food Network channel (basically: 3 chefs compete to make good food with mystery ingredients in an insanely short amount of time to win 10k.)
For the dessert round tonight, they had several mystery ingredients, one was "Cherimoya", which I was surprised I even spelled correctly when I did a web search on it. It is apparently a creamy fleshed fruit that has tones of banana, strawberry, mango, pineapple and even some others. !!I want to try this fruit!!
Sadly, the season is over with for now and it's pretty pricey if you ask me. From http://www.calimoya.com/ $30 for 3-5 fruits maximum 4lbs, but then on another page it says $42. A little confusing. If I end up really liking the stuff, it might just be cheaper for me to fly out there for a day to get my fill. *..,* 'scuse me, was just drooling a little as I dreamed about it.
picture borrowed for example purposes from the calimoya website
For the dessert round tonight, they had several mystery ingredients, one was "Cherimoya", which I was surprised I even spelled correctly when I did a web search on it. It is apparently a creamy fleshed fruit that has tones of banana, strawberry, mango, pineapple and even some others. !!I want to try this fruit!!
Sadly, the season is over with for now and it's pretty pricey if you ask me. From http://www.calimoya.com/ $30 for 3-5 fruits maximum 4lbs, but then on another page it says $42. A little confusing. If I end up really liking the stuff, it might just be cheaper for me to fly out there for a day to get my fill. *..,* 'scuse me, was just drooling a little as I dreamed about it.
picture borrowed for example purposes from the calimoya website
Friday, September 24, 2010
Random Art Class
I don't have time or energy to take a traditional art class up at the local museum (and pay their outrageous prices) so when I saw this little downloadable game for the Nintendo DSi (handheld game system) for like $8, I was intrigued.
It's called "Art Academy - First Semester" and it's just what it sounds like. It's a step by step of the basics with a little bearded cartoon guy that looks like Grumpy of the seven dwarves and his name is "Leonardo" - of course! He has a black and white puppy dog that pops on screen during loading and lesson introduction times, just like my dogs, so it connected with me on that level immediately.
Since I have never had art lessons except once in first grade and once in 6th grade, this is rather enlightening for me and gives some excellent tips on how to get shadows and shapes to look the way you want them. Below you can see my slowly improving technique with each lesson. The first two are pencil sketches obviously and then it moved into painting skills. I love the fact that the DSi lets you upload it to an SD card so you can save it or show it like this. It's surprisingly accurate for being a touch screen, and a whooole lot cheaper than buying art supplies.
It's called "Art Academy - First Semester" and it's just what it sounds like. It's a step by step of the basics with a little bearded cartoon guy that looks like Grumpy of the seven dwarves and his name is "Leonardo" - of course! He has a black and white puppy dog that pops on screen during loading and lesson introduction times, just like my dogs, so it connected with me on that level immediately.
Since I have never had art lessons except once in first grade and once in 6th grade, this is rather enlightening for me and gives some excellent tips on how to get shadows and shapes to look the way you want them. Below you can see my slowly improving technique with each lesson. The first two are pencil sketches obviously and then it moved into painting skills. I love the fact that the DSi lets you upload it to an SD card so you can save it or show it like this. It's surprisingly accurate for being a touch screen, and a whooole lot cheaper than buying art supplies.
I Really labored over this lime half. :P
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Quote Note
"Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie."
Jim Davis, "Garfield"
Jim Davis, "Garfield"
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Spice 'o my life
I think I am in love.
Who? Who?
NO!
What what?!
When I received my order from The Spice House I have to admit I was downright giddy. They wrap everything so nicely, it was like getting a big present with a bunch of little ones inside. The sensory euphoria that took over while unwrapping each spice was giggle inducing. I'm telling you now, their dried lemon zest smells *just like* lemon cookies with hard sauce - in my mind anyway.
Maybe I sound a little crazy, but I seem to have exceptionally sensitive olfactories and even though it can be a pain when bad smells are afoot, I like to keep them that way for the good ones. The dried ginger, when held next to the cake spice I ordered, smelled just like the best ginger snaps you've ever had in your life.
I can't say enough good about my spicey experience. It was like an aroma therapy session or something. Try it, order some spices, spend some time delicately sniffing the air around them, divvy it up into smaller bottles or something, and don't forget to send me one. ;)
Who? Who?
NO!
What what?!
When I received my order from The Spice House I have to admit I was downright giddy. They wrap everything so nicely, it was like getting a big present with a bunch of little ones inside. The sensory euphoria that took over while unwrapping each spice was giggle inducing. I'm telling you now, their dried lemon zest smells *just like* lemon cookies with hard sauce - in my mind anyway.
Maybe I sound a little crazy, but I seem to have exceptionally sensitive olfactories and even though it can be a pain when bad smells are afoot, I like to keep them that way for the good ones. The dried ginger, when held next to the cake spice I ordered, smelled just like the best ginger snaps you've ever had in your life.
I can't say enough good about my spicey experience. It was like an aroma therapy session or something. Try it, order some spices, spend some time delicately sniffing the air around them, divvy it up into smaller bottles or something, and don't forget to send me one. ;)
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
cupcake madness
I met a friend down in VA last July and we stopped in at a sweet little bake shop wherein we partook of scrumpteous cupcakes that were golden cake with minty frosting. In a word, nummy. I go bonkers for mint stuff, particularly pepperminty stuff, not like the hard candies though, more like Andes Candies and Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream etc. Although, I have either heard of, or have an idea for (can't remember which at this point), white hot chocolate with crushed peppermint candies. I think there is a great possibility I could like that.
I digress. So my friend asked me if I would ever do my own version of those cupcakes, and I really thought I'd like to, but I can never find peppermint extract. Thankfully The Spice House (see link also at right of blog), carries a staggering array of spices, extracts and flavorings. I was able to order some just in time for my friend's baby shower this month.
Try as I might though, I could not replicate the same kind of golden moist crumb and flavor that the cupcake at the bake shop had. I suspect it is somewhat because I use King Arthur Flour which is not bleached or bromated to make the texture extra fine and I won't use things like margarine ever - or even shortening if I can help it. After trying several versions, my family and I having to eat the "mistakes" (aww so sad! ;P ) I found an addictively delicious Chocolate mint chocolate chip cupcake. I found it on a blog called Cast Sugar hosted right here on Blogspot and it is from a book apparently named "How To Eat A Cupcake". Apropos, eh?
And thankfully for you dear reader, I will provide it here with my few changes at the end that made it more to my liking. Enjoy, and thank me with your mouth full later. :D
Ingredients:
1/4 c. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. (2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped, melted
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1/2 c. chocolate milk
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. (6 oz.) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.
In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Beat the melted chocolate into the butter mixture. Add the eggs, peppermint extract, and chocolate milk. Beat until creamy.
In a separate medium-sized bowl combine the flour and baking soda.
Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture and beat until well blended (careful not to over-beat the batter). With a spatula, stir in the chocolate chips.
Fill the cupcake liners 2/3-3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in pan.
Mint Buttercream:
3 c. confectioner's sugar + 3 Tbsp.
1 c. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp. milk
Pinch salt
1 tsp. mint extract
Green food coloring
In a small bowl using an electric mixer on low, beat together sugar, butter, milk, and salt until creamy. Increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. Add mint extract and a few drops of green food coloring, beating until frosting is smooth.
Spread icing on cooled cupcakes with a knife or transfer to a pastry bag and pipe over cupcakes.
***My Changes***
If you use KAF as I do, then you may consider using their special cake flour for this, for a finer texture. I intend to give that a go next time I make them as it has just recently become available in my local store.
Otherwise, my changes are mainly for the frosting. It was, I thought, insanely thick and kind of buttery - but in a bad way. Nobody wants to really feel like they're eating whipped butter on a cupcake, even though that's what it is. So here's how it went for me.
I did not have any regular white milk, so I used some of the chocolate milk I had left. The fact that the milk was chocolate did not do much to either the color or flavor in my opinion, as it was such a small amount added.
I made a double batch of frosting because I made a double batch of cupcakes, so I will relate the measurements to you for that size. This will allow Ample frosting for all of the cupcakes, and it is the kind of cupcake that needs ample frosting. (Have you ever heard of one that doesn't?? Maybe it's more like we need the ample frosting. Either way, just put some more on!)
1 LB of butter = 2 cups/4 sticks
I used 2 sticks salted and 2 were UNsalted.
I added one "shake" of salt from my shaker even though I had some salted butter in it already. Probably equal to a very small pinch?
4 TBS of milk
3 Tsp of peppermint extract (to help cut the butter's intensity and I liked the mint stronger tasting)
1 tsp of vanilla extract - gave it that lil extra somethin' somethin'
Omit green food coloring as I don't like the thought of adding something that might be unnatural to my food on purpose. I know I can't avoid it all, but I avoid what I can.
To make up for the loss of color, I added a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips on top after piping it out of my powdered sugar bag (store packaging = FREE piping bag, always a good thing). They turned out pretty cute inspite of my lack of a steady hand. That just means I need to practice on some more cupcakes. ::wink wink:: Well, maybe in the not too close future anyway.
I digress. So my friend asked me if I would ever do my own version of those cupcakes, and I really thought I'd like to, but I can never find peppermint extract. Thankfully The Spice House (see link also at right of blog), carries a staggering array of spices, extracts and flavorings. I was able to order some just in time for my friend's baby shower this month.
Try as I might though, I could not replicate the same kind of golden moist crumb and flavor that the cupcake at the bake shop had. I suspect it is somewhat because I use King Arthur Flour which is not bleached or bromated to make the texture extra fine and I won't use things like margarine ever - or even shortening if I can help it. After trying several versions, my family and I having to eat the "mistakes" (aww so sad! ;P ) I found an addictively delicious Chocolate mint chocolate chip cupcake. I found it on a blog called Cast Sugar hosted right here on Blogspot and it is from a book apparently named "How To Eat A Cupcake". Apropos, eh?
And thankfully for you dear reader, I will provide it here with my few changes at the end that made it more to my liking. Enjoy, and thank me with your mouth full later. :D
Ingredients:
1/4 c. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. (2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped, melted
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1/2 c. chocolate milk
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. (6 oz.) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.
In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Beat the melted chocolate into the butter mixture. Add the eggs, peppermint extract, and chocolate milk. Beat until creamy.
In a separate medium-sized bowl combine the flour and baking soda.
Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture and beat until well blended (careful not to over-beat the batter). With a spatula, stir in the chocolate chips.
Fill the cupcake liners 2/3-3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in pan.
Mint Buttercream:
3 c. confectioner's sugar + 3 Tbsp.
1 c. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp. milk
Pinch salt
1 tsp. mint extract
Green food coloring
In a small bowl using an electric mixer on low, beat together sugar, butter, milk, and salt until creamy. Increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. Add mint extract and a few drops of green food coloring, beating until frosting is smooth.
Spread icing on cooled cupcakes with a knife or transfer to a pastry bag and pipe over cupcakes.
***My Changes***
If you use KAF as I do, then you may consider using their special cake flour for this, for a finer texture. I intend to give that a go next time I make them as it has just recently become available in my local store.
Otherwise, my changes are mainly for the frosting. It was, I thought, insanely thick and kind of buttery - but in a bad way. Nobody wants to really feel like they're eating whipped butter on a cupcake, even though that's what it is. So here's how it went for me.
I did not have any regular white milk, so I used some of the chocolate milk I had left. The fact that the milk was chocolate did not do much to either the color or flavor in my opinion, as it was such a small amount added.
I made a double batch of frosting because I made a double batch of cupcakes, so I will relate the measurements to you for that size. This will allow Ample frosting for all of the cupcakes, and it is the kind of cupcake that needs ample frosting. (Have you ever heard of one that doesn't?? Maybe it's more like we need the ample frosting. Either way, just put some more on!)
1 LB of butter = 2 cups/4 sticks
I used 2 sticks salted and 2 were UNsalted.
I added one "shake" of salt from my shaker even though I had some salted butter in it already. Probably equal to a very small pinch?
4 TBS of milk
3 Tsp of peppermint extract (to help cut the butter's intensity and I liked the mint stronger tasting)
1 tsp of vanilla extract - gave it that lil extra somethin' somethin'
Omit green food coloring as I don't like the thought of adding something that might be unnatural to my food on purpose. I know I can't avoid it all, but I avoid what I can.
To make up for the loss of color, I added a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips on top after piping it out of my powdered sugar bag (store packaging = FREE piping bag, always a good thing). They turned out pretty cute inspite of my lack of a steady hand. That just means I need to practice on some more cupcakes. ::wink wink:: Well, maybe in the not too close future anyway.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Chick-Fil-N
There was a sale at the local meat market this week on drums and thighs so I thought I'd use this as an opportunity for some prime grilling time. I have included a lovely shot of a crock full of the chicken bits which kind of makes up for the last less-than-beautiful picture of the duck.
I have taken to brining all of my chicken/turkey meat before cooking it which makes it infinitely better in a few ways.
I decided I wanted a lemony flavor, so I made up my standard brine of 1/4 cup kosher salt and 1/8 cup sugar to each quart of water used. After that I brought it to a warm heat and added some toasted coriander and peppercorn medley, a bit of dried rosemary, some garlic powder, onion bits and turmeric. I added about a half a cup of lemon juice (from the bottle, it's what I had), lemon zest would've been awesome.
I let the 10 lbs of drums/thighs sit in the cooled brine in the fridge for about 2 and a half to 3 hours. It would've been okay for even 4 hours possibly.
I wanted to add a nice sweet glaze to it as I grilled it, so I found part of a jar of yellow mustard left, Dijon would've nicer, but I didn't have it. So, I added about a quarter cup of white balsamic vinegar to it, along with nearly half a cup of lemon juice, a quarter cup of Bragg's liquid aminos, and roughly a 1/2 cup of honey. For spices I used white pepper, pepper medley (black, green, white, pink), paprika, turmeric, coriander, and garlic powder. I think that was it. I really wish I could remember better when I'm putting things together off the cuff.
Initially I basted the the chicken once and let it sit for about 15ish minutes skin side down running on a slow grill of about 300 degrees. After that I basted again, turned it, basted the cooked side and let some grill marks develop for about 10 minutes, then continued turning and basting off and on for about 20-30 more minutes. I'm not even a thigh gal and I liked it. Chicken Lickin' good.
I have taken to brining all of my chicken/turkey meat before cooking it which makes it infinitely better in a few ways.
- It is an opportunity to flavor the meat with salt, sweetness and spices.
- It keeps the meat moist for all manners of cooking.
- Provides an environment to kill off some bacteria that might've contaminated the meat.
I decided I wanted a lemony flavor, so I made up my standard brine of 1/4 cup kosher salt and 1/8 cup sugar to each quart of water used. After that I brought it to a warm heat and added some toasted coriander and peppercorn medley, a bit of dried rosemary, some garlic powder, onion bits and turmeric. I added about a half a cup of lemon juice (from the bottle, it's what I had), lemon zest would've been awesome.
I let the 10 lbs of drums/thighs sit in the cooled brine in the fridge for about 2 and a half to 3 hours. It would've been okay for even 4 hours possibly.
I wanted to add a nice sweet glaze to it as I grilled it, so I found part of a jar of yellow mustard left, Dijon would've nicer, but I didn't have it. So, I added about a quarter cup of white balsamic vinegar to it, along with nearly half a cup of lemon juice, a quarter cup of Bragg's liquid aminos, and roughly a 1/2 cup of honey. For spices I used white pepper, pepper medley (black, green, white, pink), paprika, turmeric, coriander, and garlic powder. I think that was it. I really wish I could remember better when I'm putting things together off the cuff.
Initially I basted the the chicken once and let it sit for about 15ish minutes skin side down running on a slow grill of about 300 degrees. After that I basted again, turned it, basted the cooked side and let some grill marks develop for about 10 minutes, then continued turning and basting off and on for about 20-30 more minutes. I'm not even a thigh gal and I liked it. Chicken Lickin' good.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Duck Season!
Disclaimer: The following pictures will NOT be pretty. Food is supposed to be attractive, but sometimes, it's just not, even if it still tastes good. You've been warned.
It isn't to say that I don't like duck, I like Donald Duck, Darkwing Duck, Scrooge McDuck, Daisy Duck, and even Daffy Duck (he's hard to like tho). But I don't think I can like duck dinner. Admittedly, this is an Ugly Duck, but it smelled really, really good. I had my first foray into using a smoker the other day, using some hickory and guidance from my brother, we built up a toasty bed of coals and let it do its thing. I just cannot get into the...how to describe it, deepness of the meat, it is rich to be sure, but heavier than I'm used to, since I'm mainly a chicken gal. My male family members loved it. As for me, if I had to go on this one experience, I would never eat duck again. It didn't help that all I could think of while preparing it was the cute little Yellow Duck with the garbled voice from the Tom & Jerry cartoons where he thought Tom was his "Momma". "If my Momma wants a duck dinner, my Momma's gonna Get a duck dinner." Gah!
But as the addage goes, You never know unless you try. And I always say it is good to try new things, or at the very least, as in this case, enlightening if not "good".
It isn't to say that I don't like duck, I like Donald Duck, Darkwing Duck, Scrooge McDuck, Daisy Duck, and even Daffy Duck (he's hard to like tho). But I don't think I can like duck dinner. Admittedly, this is an Ugly Duck, but it smelled really, really good. I had my first foray into using a smoker the other day, using some hickory and guidance from my brother, we built up a toasty bed of coals and let it do its thing. I just cannot get into the...how to describe it, deepness of the meat, it is rich to be sure, but heavier than I'm used to, since I'm mainly a chicken gal. My male family members loved it. As for me, if I had to go on this one experience, I would never eat duck again. It didn't help that all I could think of while preparing it was the cute little Yellow Duck with the garbled voice from the Tom & Jerry cartoons where he thought Tom was his "Momma". "If my Momma wants a duck dinner, my Momma's gonna Get a duck dinner." Gah!
But as the addage goes, You never know unless you try. And I always say it is good to try new things, or at the very least, as in this case, enlightening if not "good".
Saturday, August 28, 2010
things to try
Still on the thought of things to make for this winter I am adding a few savory items to my list as well after seeing an episode where Ina Garten of Food Network fame, makes hollandaise sauce in a very simple fashion using the blender and had it over roasted asparagus tips. It sounds good and I don't even care for asparagus (at least not the way my bro makes it).
So I'm percolating an idea here, I'm thinking traditional eggs Benedict, the whole nine yards. Home made english muffins, hollandaise and poached eggs with a slice o' ham/Canadian Bacon. My initial leaning is to follow Alton Brown's recipe and method for everything except the sauce itself which I would use Ina's method for because it is infinitely easier and less time consuming. Though I do like Alton's idea for holding the sauce in a thermos so it doesn't break if you're running behind on assembling. This is making me hungry. ::smack leeps:: This'll be a very snowy or drizzly winter day project no doubt.
I'd also like to make pate a choux (accent marks are missing on that) basically the dough for cream puffs, eclairs and other delightful French style pastries.
Boston Cream Pie if I can find a good recipe.
Something with Lemon Curd.
Some kind of sweet cheese muffin like one I had years ago at a place called "The Wagon Wheel" in Hereford, MD.
Avocado Pie from Pinch My Salt blog
Coconut Cake
and Gingerbread People
My actual list is longer than that, but those are the ones I want to make the most. If anyone has some good ideas I'm open for suggestions. They can be sweet or savory, challenging or not so much, but they need to be tasty above all.
So I'm percolating an idea here, I'm thinking traditional eggs Benedict, the whole nine yards. Home made english muffins, hollandaise and poached eggs with a slice o' ham/Canadian Bacon. My initial leaning is to follow Alton Brown's recipe and method for everything except the sauce itself which I would use Ina's method for because it is infinitely easier and less time consuming. Though I do like Alton's idea for holding the sauce in a thermos so it doesn't break if you're running behind on assembling. This is making me hungry. ::smack leeps:: This'll be a very snowy or drizzly winter day project no doubt.
I'd also like to make pate a choux (accent marks are missing on that) basically the dough for cream puffs, eclairs and other delightful French style pastries.
Boston Cream Pie if I can find a good recipe.
Something with Lemon Curd.
Some kind of sweet cheese muffin like one I had years ago at a place called "The Wagon Wheel" in Hereford, MD.
Avocado Pie from Pinch My Salt blog
Coconut Cake
and Gingerbread People
My actual list is longer than that, but those are the ones I want to make the most. If anyone has some good ideas I'm open for suggestions. They can be sweet or savory, challenging or not so much, but they need to be tasty above all.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Cookie Cravings
I don't know about you but I'm ready for some cool fall weather and days filled with the nummy smells of goodies baking in the oven. So when a 70ish degree day finally came by as a break in the blistering summer, I seized upon it with gusto. I've already begun making a list for this winter of desserts that I have never made before, some more challenging than others, some just sound sooo tasty. The first one I decided to do is the "$250 Dollar Cookie". Simple enough, but it was a HUGE batch making 112 cookies. I had to transfer the batter to one of those large tapered steel kitchen bowls that are like 1 and 1/2 feet across the top and use that with my stand mixer very carefully. Here is the picture of the Urband Legend and recipe which was printed in a newspaper some years back among other places.
My only changes were that I had a few extra nuts, like 1/4 cup and added them along with an extra tsp of vanilla. I only had unsalted butter, so in addition to the 1 tsp of table salt, I added 1 tsp of Kosher Salt to make up for it. I liked it, as it added a nice salty nip here and there along with the chocolate morsels. I used walnuts as my nut choice, but I don't feel they stood up very well to the oatyness. I can't decide what nut would and I will have to think about that a bit, any suggestions are welcome. I found that the cookies were better the next day as well, and freeze nicely.
I managed to get exactly 112 cookies as the recipe suggested, by using a 1 & 3/8ths inch disher/ice cream scoop. They didn't spread a lot on me, so I managed to cram 16 onto my air bake cookie sheets and they just barely touched here and there, which was good because they took 15 minutes per sheet in my LP fired oven. They are a crisp texture, best had with a nice cup of milk but don't let not having milk stop you. Enjoy the tasty picture.
My only changes were that I had a few extra nuts, like 1/4 cup and added them along with an extra tsp of vanilla. I only had unsalted butter, so in addition to the 1 tsp of table salt, I added 1 tsp of Kosher Salt to make up for it. I liked it, as it added a nice salty nip here and there along with the chocolate morsels. I used walnuts as my nut choice, but I don't feel they stood up very well to the oatyness. I can't decide what nut would and I will have to think about that a bit, any suggestions are welcome. I found that the cookies were better the next day as well, and freeze nicely.
I managed to get exactly 112 cookies as the recipe suggested, by using a 1 & 3/8ths inch disher/ice cream scoop. They didn't spread a lot on me, so I managed to cram 16 onto my air bake cookie sheets and they just barely touched here and there, which was good because they took 15 minutes per sheet in my LP fired oven. They are a crisp texture, best had with a nice cup of milk but don't let not having milk stop you. Enjoy the tasty picture.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Faux Pas Surprise
*UPDATE and new pics through out: Yes you can indeed go straight from hot pasty sludge (picture number three) straight through to making the sauce without spreading and cooling it first.*
I'm sure we've all done it. I've done it lots of times. It can occasionally be salvaged, but most of the time you just lay them to rest in a little hole in a corner of the yard somewhere. Oh..you don't? That must be only me then.
What am I speaking of you ask? Why, kitchen flubs and faux pas of course - mistakes! Mine usually spring from forgetting an ingredient, or thinking I could remember a technique I hadn't seen or done in a while or just messing up from cooking when too tired. This particular time, I didn't have a lot of ingredients and substituting took a lot more measuring than I expected which distracted me from remembering basic dessert chemistry. And I was tired and it was late. Whammy all the way around.
My failed fudge - rather than going to the recipe-whoopsie-graveyard out back (this is where stuff like curdled cream soups and things go) managed to gain redemption in the form of fudge SAUCE. And what an awesome sauce it is..er was (I think there's like a tablespoon left). I think I will actually repeat this flub and make it a bonafide recipe instead. The results were outstanding and tasty and I will share them here with you dear readers.
It all started with needing to rid myself of old canned ingredients before the expiration date, the majority of which was sweetened condensed milk. So here's your ingredient list.
1 Can sweetened condensed milk 14oz
8 1oz pieces Bakers UNsweetened Chocolate (aka Baking Chocolate)
12 TBS Hershey's Cocoa Powder (equal to 3/4 cup)
4 TBS oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
12 TBS granulated sugar (also equal to 3/4 cup)
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract (use the real stuff!)
1/4 to 1/2 Cup approx, water
1/4 Cup approx whole milk
Place the chocolate, cocoa, oil, and sugar into a heat safe bowl and on top of a sauce pan with some water in it to devise a makeshift double boiler, or use your own if you have one. Don't burn yourselves.
Bring water to a nice steamy simmer and let the residual heat melt everything slowly together. Give it an impatient stir occasionally like I did. Once the chocolate and everything is all gritty and pasty and you're feeling disgusted that it took so long (especially if you used a Pyrex glass bowl instead of metal) it will look like this:
I assume if you just go straight to making sauce out of it, that it will work fine, but I don't really know because I left mine in the fridge over night. I will try to make it straight through in the future though. (*See update at top of post*)
Whatever you decide, you should put the firm failed fudge (say that three times fast) back into the double boiler, heat on simmer, let it start to get warmish at the edges, looking like it could melt back into a gritty paste if you gave it some time, then add your WATER a little at a time and begin stirring. You may not need to use all of the water to get it where you need it. I must admit I didn't measure at the time.
The sugar crystals should disappear and it should be glossy and puddingy but a little thicker than pudding, which is when you put your WHOLE milk in and give it another stir. My friends, you have just made the most fabulous chocolate fudge sauce you will ever put your spoon, fingers, or lips to.
You should have a consistency that will mostly dribble off of a spoon onto a scoop of vanilla ice cream but requires you to stick the spoon in your mouth to get the rest. If you don't, then add a touch more milk or water, probably a TSP at a time so you don't over do it. If you go with the milk, it will result in a richer end product. When chilled it has a fairly "Nutella" like look, but a touch firmer. I bet it would be awesome as a spread come to think of it.
When you want to reheat it, just do it passively in a warm bowl or something. I was toasting pecans in an iron skillet and when done, I just sat a bowl in the still warm (not hot! you'll break your bowl!) skillet and let the natural heat of the iron warm the bowl and sauce. I am kinda dangerous and turned the flame on lowest for about 1 minute or less to bump up the speed a little. I can't recommend you do stuff like that because you could forget and shatter your bowl and ruin your fudge sauce. Umm.. and put out an eye maybe.
I'm sure we've all done it. I've done it lots of times. It can occasionally be salvaged, but most of the time you just lay them to rest in a little hole in a corner of the yard somewhere. Oh..you don't? That must be only me then.
What am I speaking of you ask? Why, kitchen flubs and faux pas of course - mistakes! Mine usually spring from forgetting an ingredient, or thinking I could remember a technique I hadn't seen or done in a while or just messing up from cooking when too tired. This particular time, I didn't have a lot of ingredients and substituting took a lot more measuring than I expected which distracted me from remembering basic dessert chemistry. And I was tired and it was late. Whammy all the way around.
My failed fudge - rather than going to the recipe-whoopsie-graveyard out back (this is where stuff like curdled cream soups and things go) managed to gain redemption in the form of fudge SAUCE. And what an awesome sauce it is..er was (I think there's like a tablespoon left). I think I will actually repeat this flub and make it a bonafide recipe instead. The results were outstanding and tasty and I will share them here with you dear readers.
It all started with needing to rid myself of old canned ingredients before the expiration date, the majority of which was sweetened condensed milk. So here's your ingredient list.
1 Can sweetened condensed milk 14oz
8 1oz pieces Bakers UNsweetened Chocolate (aka Baking Chocolate)
12 TBS Hershey's Cocoa Powder (equal to 3/4 cup)
4 TBS oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
12 TBS granulated sugar (also equal to 3/4 cup)
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract (use the real stuff!)
1/4 to 1/2 Cup approx, water
1/4 Cup approx whole milk
Place the chocolate, cocoa, oil, and sugar into a heat safe bowl and on top of a sauce pan with some water in it to devise a makeshift double boiler, or use your own if you have one. Don't burn yourselves.
Bring water to a nice steamy simmer and let the residual heat melt everything slowly together. Give it an impatient stir occasionally like I did. Once the chocolate and everything is all gritty and pasty and you're feeling disgusted that it took so long (especially if you used a Pyrex glass bowl instead of metal) it will look like this:
Now open your can of SWEET MILK and scrape it all into the bowl. Just before this point you'll want a sheet pan or something nearby, already buttered so the stuff will release when you get ready to take it out. You can turn off your burner now. Mix the sweet milk into the chocolate pasty stuff and watch it tighten up fast. When it's nearly mixed entirely, don't forget to put in your 2 TSP VANILLA EXTRACT. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl so everything is combined. It will look like this:
Use a pot holder whilst you move the now tight and still gritty chocolate "fudge" to the sheet pan. Smooth it out flat - don't worry about getting it perfect. Throw that into the freezer for a while until it sets up - probably ten minutes or stick it in the fridge for closer to 20, just so it's all stiff and nothing pasty anymore. At this point you can nibble on a cold corner of the failed fudge and wishfully sigh about how it would've made such nice fudge if you'd remembered to melt the sugar first. Or you can wrap it up in some plastic wrap and leave it in the fridge over night while you consider your future options.
I assume if you just go straight to making sauce out of it, that it will work fine, but I don't really know because I left mine in the fridge over night. I will try to make it straight through in the future though. (*See update at top of post*)
Whatever you decide, you should put the firm failed fudge (say that three times fast) back into the double boiler, heat on simmer, let it start to get warmish at the edges, looking like it could melt back into a gritty paste if you gave it some time, then add your WATER a little at a time and begin stirring. You may not need to use all of the water to get it where you need it. I must admit I didn't measure at the time.
The sugar crystals should disappear and it should be glossy and puddingy but a little thicker than pudding, which is when you put your WHOLE milk in and give it another stir. My friends, you have just made the most fabulous chocolate fudge sauce you will ever put your spoon, fingers, or lips to.
You should have a consistency that will mostly dribble off of a spoon onto a scoop of vanilla ice cream but requires you to stick the spoon in your mouth to get the rest. If you don't, then add a touch more milk or water, probably a TSP at a time so you don't over do it. If you go with the milk, it will result in a richer end product. When chilled it has a fairly "Nutella" like look, but a touch firmer. I bet it would be awesome as a spread come to think of it.
When you want to reheat it, just do it passively in a warm bowl or something. I was toasting pecans in an iron skillet and when done, I just sat a bowl in the still warm (not hot! you'll break your bowl!) skillet and let the natural heat of the iron warm the bowl and sauce. I am kinda dangerous and turned the flame on lowest for about 1 minute or less to bump up the speed a little. I can't recommend you do stuff like that because you could forget and shatter your bowl and ruin your fudge sauce. Umm.. and put out an eye maybe.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Life is a bowlful of berries
It is strawberry season around here. Actually, it's getting a little far into it and my first year patch is starting to taper off some. I managed to have the forethought to snap a pic of some the little delectables from the first batch though, and a good thing too. They were big and beautiful and oh so abundant. I call them "little red drools" (instead of "jewels") because that's what you start to do when you're picking them. I put mine in a large collander as I crawl along the rows, searching them out like I'd lost my house or car keys. (Yes, with that much focus!)
The heady scent of the berries builds in the receptacle as the collection progresses, making it seem more full than it actually is. Sometimes, when my back starts to hurt, I just look down into the collander, smile at it, and dip my face into the aroma, taking a big deep sniff. "Ahhhhh...", and then I can go on to the next row. I confess. It has taken me some years to appreciate the deliciousness of strawberries. I always had a textural issue with the seeds. Maybe I should soon revisit things like raspberries and blackberries and such to see if I can taste beyond the seeds so I can finally enjoy them for their flavor.
Delish, no?
P.S. The bowl is a recent purchase from a nice little gallery called Moon Dog Pottery in Welsh Run, PA. I like it very much for berries and salads. Also, for a most excellent shortcake recipe, see the link at the top right for "Simply Recipes" blog and search strawberry shortcake in her search bar. It is GOOD. Though I am just as fine with having the berries on my buttermilk biscuits too.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Weird weather means more soothing soup
This weather has been spasmodic to say the least. One day it's hot and muggy, the next it's cold and windy. I can't stand it! And neither can my garden plants apparently, as 4 of my tomato plants up and croaked on me last week. I figure they were weaklings and don't want them anyway.
Anyway. As the title says, weird weather means more soothing soups and have I got the soothing soup for you. Matzo Ball Soup. A traditional Jewish soup, I was introduced to it about 15 years ago by the daughter (or was it the niece?) of a couple of friends. It has been a tasty ongoing experience ever since. Last year I learned how to spiffy up my soup with a most excellent lesson from my friend Carolynn. I have been completely happy doing it her way ever since and always could be completely happy if it was the only way I ever knew. However, I made one major alteration to her design by making my own chicken stock to cook everything in. Mercy Me and I DO declare, it is something I will Never Not do again.
I have always felt that making stocks and broths eluded me greatly and felt a little bad that a culinary basic was supposedly beyond my grasp. Who knew all I needed to do was look up a really good recipe?? I saw Ina Garten from the Food Network making her chicken stock and was intrigued to try it. My only beef with her chicken stock is that she uses whole chickens, cooks them to death, then tosses them, meat and all. Wasteful! Apparently a number of other people agree with me on this point as shown via the message comments left on her recipe on the FN site. So, this is what I do/did:
I made mine in a 12qt pot which was too small but it worked out anyway and I only used about 7 or 8lbs of chicken. I used all thighs and drum sticks plus the giblets, spine and carcass of one spatchcocked chicken (use my dictionary.com link for that word). I first brined them all in a solution of 1/8 cup table salt (or 1/4 cup kosher salt) plus 2tbs sugar per quart of water for a couple hours (I feel 4 hours would be better in the future). Then I threw everything in the pot that her recipe calls for except for cutting her salt in at least half because I brined the meat. Cooked it for around an hour at a very gentle simmer, almost not noticable because of the smaller pot most likely. Removed all the chicken parts and removed whatever meat came off easily, threw all the skin, bones and bits back in the pot and cooked it more until it had reduced a good deal and looked a nice deep golden color.
After cooling I strained out the solids, mushing them a bit in a colander to get all the liquid out. Cooled it some more and chilled it over night until the fat had set up good on the top. What ever you do, DO NOT throw this fat away! Perish the thought! Cook with it! I put mine in an ice cube tray, two tablespoons to a cube, covered with plastic wrap and froze it for future use. It just so happens that matzo balls require two Tbs of oil per package, ... I wonder what is slick like oil but a much tastier alternative? HMMMM. ::wink wink::
So that's the basic jist of it. I can't give away everything, you should experiment yourself! Meanwhile, enjoy this delectable picture of the finished product. Num num.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Presto Pesto
Herbs are amazing. They are flavorful, colorful, aromatic, medicinal, hardy and a myriad other things. Along with spices, they are likely what some would consider the most essential thing to tasty cuisine and life would be quite dull without them.
My personal amazement of herbs stems (no pun intended) from today's dinner experience. I planted a goodly amount of basil and flat leaf parsley last year and suffice it to say.. you can only have basil with tomatos or in a tomato sauce so many times before you're either really tired of it or not feeling so well. So I began experimenting with pestos, a fresh and herbaceous alternative to other heavier style sauces, and good on more than pasta to boot.
ANYway, back to the point. I get home today, it's 7 o'clock and Everyone is HUNGRY. What to do?! Waste money on mediocre fare and feel bloated and guilty for several reasons afterwards? Not a chance, I'm way to practical for that, tired or not. I take a quick mental stock of things that are edible both inside and outside of the house at this point, as I was just in the garden the other day.
Parsley. It did not escape my notice that some of last year's parsley managed to hang on through this year's intense snow storms and is coming back strongly, if somewhat weathered in texture.
Cheese. I splurged on some nice chunks of semi-expensive but very tasty cheese a week or two ago. Parmesan, Romano, Asiago. Mmm. A little goes a long way on the good stuff and it actually gets melty unlike the saw dust in the green lidded containers (I know you know what brand I'm talking about).
Walnuts. I keep these on hand all the time in the freezer because I use them in my favorite bread regularly as well as desserts.
Chives. One amazing little chive plant soldiered its way thru the winter in a planter up closer to the house along with some lavender plants and bits of thyme and mint. It had quite a number of long, lovely succulent looking.. whaddayacallem, chive stems? I'll have to look that up later. These lend an enjoyable oniony flavor without all the flesh and intensity and trouble of cooking an actual onion. So, snip snip, off they went with me to the kitchen.
Before I knew it, I had all the makings of a tasty pesto in my possession and to town I went, rinsing, snipping, chopping and grating. It took me all of 30-45 minutes which is really very fast for the way I cook. So fast, in fact, that when I announced from the kitchen that it was "Dinner time!", the reply that came was, "That was fast." A rare statement indeed.
I also procured a few random rainbow swiss chard leaves. I sure wish these had been more plentiful. Wilted in a touch of butter in an iron skillet with a lid on top made them a lovely counter point to the salty flavors in the pesto.
So here's how it came together:
About 1 cup unchopped Italian flat leaf parsley, stemless.
Approx 1 cup toasted walnuts (mine came diced already) toast in a skillet, stirring often on medium heat until fragrant, remove from heat immediately
Pinch of kosher salt or to taste (remember you will be adding the salty pasta water and cheese later)
Pepper to taste
Enough olive oil to make the parsley and walnuts mix smoothly in the food processor, I used maybe up to 1/2 a cup.
Grind all this up in the food processor adding oil as you go.
Approx 1/2 cup or so of a nice cheese (parmesan is traditional) as mentioned above. (I'm not sure which was which, I forgot to label them) I used the small hole side of the grater to grate it, but not a microplane.
Around 7 or 8 chives that were roughly 6-8 inches long and about half the size of a chopstick in diameter, roughly chopped into 1/4 inch lengths or so. Add these to your noodles once you've put the pesto and cheese in, then mix it all together.
Whatever amount of pasta you want and whatever shape. I used thin spaghetti. I always get Barilla Plus brand, it's more satisfying and doesn't taste nasty like whole wheat. Don't forget to salt your pasta water. I've been told the water should taste like salty ocean water, but I know there's more accurate measurments out there somewhere. I usually just guess. Reserve 1/2 to 3/4 cup of your cooked pasta water. It is somewhat starchy and salty and will be useful to make your pesto and cheese into a natural sauce once you've added it all to the noodles. Start by adding it only a bit at a time until it gets kind of creamy looking. This works best if the water is still nicely hot too.
Plate and top with another sprinkle of cheeeeeeeese and enjoy.
I wish I had taken a picture. It was very pretty, but hunger wins out over creativity sometimes. I'm sure I'll be making it again though, so I'll try to snap one then.
My personal amazement of herbs stems (no pun intended) from today's dinner experience. I planted a goodly amount of basil and flat leaf parsley last year and suffice it to say.. you can only have basil with tomatos or in a tomato sauce so many times before you're either really tired of it or not feeling so well. So I began experimenting with pestos, a fresh and herbaceous alternative to other heavier style sauces, and good on more than pasta to boot.
ANYway, back to the point. I get home today, it's 7 o'clock and Everyone is HUNGRY. What to do?! Waste money on mediocre fare and feel bloated and guilty for several reasons afterwards? Not a chance, I'm way to practical for that, tired or not. I take a quick mental stock of things that are edible both inside and outside of the house at this point, as I was just in the garden the other day.
Parsley. It did not escape my notice that some of last year's parsley managed to hang on through this year's intense snow storms and is coming back strongly, if somewhat weathered in texture.
Cheese. I splurged on some nice chunks of semi-expensive but very tasty cheese a week or two ago. Parmesan, Romano, Asiago. Mmm. A little goes a long way on the good stuff and it actually gets melty unlike the saw dust in the green lidded containers (I know you know what brand I'm talking about).
Walnuts. I keep these on hand all the time in the freezer because I use them in my favorite bread regularly as well as desserts.
Chives. One amazing little chive plant soldiered its way thru the winter in a planter up closer to the house along with some lavender plants and bits of thyme and mint. It had quite a number of long, lovely succulent looking.. whaddayacallem, chive stems? I'll have to look that up later. These lend an enjoyable oniony flavor without all the flesh and intensity and trouble of cooking an actual onion. So, snip snip, off they went with me to the kitchen.
Before I knew it, I had all the makings of a tasty pesto in my possession and to town I went, rinsing, snipping, chopping and grating. It took me all of 30-45 minutes which is really very fast for the way I cook. So fast, in fact, that when I announced from the kitchen that it was "Dinner time!", the reply that came was, "That was fast." A rare statement indeed.
I also procured a few random rainbow swiss chard leaves. I sure wish these had been more plentiful. Wilted in a touch of butter in an iron skillet with a lid on top made them a lovely counter point to the salty flavors in the pesto.
So here's how it came together:
About 1 cup unchopped Italian flat leaf parsley, stemless.
Approx 1 cup toasted walnuts (mine came diced already) toast in a skillet, stirring often on medium heat until fragrant, remove from heat immediately
Pinch of kosher salt or to taste (remember you will be adding the salty pasta water and cheese later)
Pepper to taste
Enough olive oil to make the parsley and walnuts mix smoothly in the food processor, I used maybe up to 1/2 a cup.
Grind all this up in the food processor adding oil as you go.
Approx 1/2 cup or so of a nice cheese (parmesan is traditional) as mentioned above. (I'm not sure which was which, I forgot to label them) I used the small hole side of the grater to grate it, but not a microplane.
Around 7 or 8 chives that were roughly 6-8 inches long and about half the size of a chopstick in diameter, roughly chopped into 1/4 inch lengths or so. Add these to your noodles once you've put the pesto and cheese in, then mix it all together.
Whatever amount of pasta you want and whatever shape. I used thin spaghetti. I always get Barilla Plus brand, it's more satisfying and doesn't taste nasty like whole wheat. Don't forget to salt your pasta water. I've been told the water should taste like salty ocean water, but I know there's more accurate measurments out there somewhere. I usually just guess. Reserve 1/2 to 3/4 cup of your cooked pasta water. It is somewhat starchy and salty and will be useful to make your pesto and cheese into a natural sauce once you've added it all to the noodles. Start by adding it only a bit at a time until it gets kind of creamy looking. This works best if the water is still nicely hot too.
Plate and top with another sprinkle of cheeeeeeeese and enjoy.
I wish I had taken a picture. It was very pretty, but hunger wins out over creativity sometimes. I'm sure I'll be making it again though, so I'll try to snap one then.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Cute Puppy Interlude
The time has come for some cute puppy pics! I've gathered quite a memory card full and am going to dish up the most adorable ones I can find for your (and my) viewing pleasure.
BEHOLD: CUTE PUPPIES!
BEHOLD: CUTE PUPPIES!
I have always gotten a kick out of seeing dogs sleep with their tongues sticking out for some reason. It's just too funny and cute. This was taken back on 2/6/10 and is the boy, Peace, at rest in his sister's crate. Don't forget you can click on the pictures for full size images.
This was taken 2/23/10 and is the girl, Harmony, sleeping "cheek to cheek" with Peace in her crate. The other night we heard this loud sucking sound and were looking around for it and I noticed she was fervently nursing/swallowing in her sleep. She is by far the better adjusted dog
in many ways.
She often looks at us as if to say, "Yes, I am that smart, so do as I say and all will be fine."
Taken 3/16/10
"Whazzat?" *sniiiiiff* This is one of the rare times I have been able to get him with his eyes open during a flash. I was actually trying to get a pic of him snuggled in his bed, but he was
too nosey. Taken 3/6/10
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Porky Pig P-p-p-pulled Apart
The other day I was desperate for something interesting to make out of a hunk of pork roast that had finally thawed in the fridge so I went to some of these new food blogs I keep finding and started browsing. I found an awesome recipe for Pulled Pork on Simply Recipes, but I didn't have all the ingredients. No sweat! I'll improvise! And so I did.
It has turned out quite deliciously if I do say so myself. I was lacking the pickled jalapeno and the chipotle chile powder and the tomato paste (which is weird 'cause I usually have some on hand). So in place of all of those, I threw in about a half bottle of the Chipotle style Tabasco sauce, some extra ketchup, some regular ol chile powder and a couple cans of green chilies for good measure in addition to whatever else the recipe said.
I marinated over night, because that's always a good idea. I thought I was going to cook it in the Crock Pot instead of how she (the blogger lady) says to, but I got impatient and decided to go the 2 hour route like it recommends. I don't know if my cut of pork was just worse than hers or what, but two hours did NOT do the trick. I cooked it until I could pull it with a fork, which I did, but some of it seemed so flavorless and kind of tough that I put it right back in the sauce without reducing it at all. I cooked it probably another couple hours, then turned off the heat and left the lid on so it would kind of steep.
Now that did it. However, I didn't have the benefit of time to reduce the sauce by the time I got to it, so I strained out the pork and added just a bit of corn starch to barely thicken the sauce so it would stay with the pork better on the sandwich and give it some body. So we feasted on pulled pork atop soft kaiser rolls with spears of cold, crunchy good kosher dills and home made coleslaw and don't forget the chips. I think I would like to slow smoke/grill the pork next time and then soak it in the sauce after pulling it. But that's way more involved.
There's really not a lot of hands on time for this sort of thing if you don't mind ocassionally turning the meat as it cooks between doing other things. Probably the hardest part is pulling it with the forks or whatever utensils you choose to use. My hands get crampy sometimes. My brother said that's why they don't have little Spongebob-type teenagers in the back of these serious BBQ joints pulling the pork apart, but the guy looks like Popeye or Bluto instead, complete with bulging forearm "muskles". I couldn't help but laugh at that.
It has turned out quite deliciously if I do say so myself. I was lacking the pickled jalapeno and the chipotle chile powder and the tomato paste (which is weird 'cause I usually have some on hand). So in place of all of those, I threw in about a half bottle of the Chipotle style Tabasco sauce, some extra ketchup, some regular ol chile powder and a couple cans of green chilies for good measure in addition to whatever else the recipe said.
I marinated over night, because that's always a good idea. I thought I was going to cook it in the Crock Pot instead of how she (the blogger lady) says to, but I got impatient and decided to go the 2 hour route like it recommends. I don't know if my cut of pork was just worse than hers or what, but two hours did NOT do the trick. I cooked it until I could pull it with a fork, which I did, but some of it seemed so flavorless and kind of tough that I put it right back in the sauce without reducing it at all. I cooked it probably another couple hours, then turned off the heat and left the lid on so it would kind of steep.
Now that did it. However, I didn't have the benefit of time to reduce the sauce by the time I got to it, so I strained out the pork and added just a bit of corn starch to barely thicken the sauce so it would stay with the pork better on the sandwich and give it some body. So we feasted on pulled pork atop soft kaiser rolls with spears of cold, crunchy good kosher dills and home made coleslaw and don't forget the chips. I think I would like to slow smoke/grill the pork next time and then soak it in the sauce after pulling it. But that's way more involved.
There's really not a lot of hands on time for this sort of thing if you don't mind ocassionally turning the meat as it cooks between doing other things. Probably the hardest part is pulling it with the forks or whatever utensils you choose to use. My hands get crampy sometimes. My brother said that's why they don't have little Spongebob-type teenagers in the back of these serious BBQ joints pulling the pork apart, but the guy looks like Popeye or Bluto instead, complete with bulging forearm "muskles". I couldn't help but laugh at that.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Okie Dokey Tapiockey
More than just okie dokey, I think I have found the most superb recipe for tapioca pudding. Up until I found this, I didn't much care for tapioca pudding. In fact, I would say I had quite a disdain for it due to a run in with a bad batch from "Swiss Miss" where the bits didn't get cooked right and were grainy and crunchy. I thought it was vanilla at first, boy what a let down.
Fast forward/Rewind to a couple years ago. My family and I are on a small summer trip which takes us through the (misnomer alert) Pennsylvania Dutch country. Before I was born, they had been to, and enjoyed stopping at the Shartlesburg Hotel. However, by the time we got there with me alive, we discovered that it had closed a couple summers earlier. No worries though, we were informed that something similar was just down the road, Haag's Hotel. Oookay.
Well, it was alright. The best thing I remember was their roast chicken and gravy. It HAD to be from scratch, and if it wasn't, color me impressed with whatever company it came from. But anyway, this is where Mom gets me to try some of their tapioca pudding. I remember thinking that it had potential likability..if it were just made better. I got the feeling that it was Not from scratch, and no wonder, the stuff takes at least an hour for one batch not counting over night soaking of the pearls.
After that, I decided we needed to know what really good tapioca was like and using my family as willing guinea piggies, I set forth on the quest. It has been two years in the making and I had all but given up because of the shoddy results of many recipes instructions. It just so happend that I was browsing my favorite section (desserts) on a new food blog I found not long ago - ("Simply Recipes" see the link to it on my sidebar. ) and there happend to be a recipe with a way of making it that I had not attempted yet. It is, I would say extremely easy, at least in a comparative manner. Others may not require you to stand there and stir nearly as much, but considering you actually get an outstanding product at the end that you "MMM" and "Ohh" about, it's worth it.
Before I describe any alterations I have made, know that it is for a double batch of the pearls because there is no way we'd have any left over for the next day if I didn't. And, I only have access to pearls that require an over night soak. I do not reduce the milk for cooking as suggested by the recipe when soaking pearls over night. I felt it made it too stiff.
The only changes that I have made are to increase the salt by maybe 1/8 to 1/4tsp more. I don't know, it just felt like it needed a touch more, so it's up to you if you want to try it.
I double or even triple the amount of vanilla I use. I would love to try a vanilla bean in it, perhaps steeping it in the milk a little bit before putting in the pearls. (After removing the paste from within the bean first of course).
I have been making this with 4 cups milk (from 2% up to whole) and 2 cups Half n' Half. I imagine using just whole milk would be fine but I was being decadent.
I have made this with small pearl as called for and large pearl. The only differences would be a longer soak time in water for large pearl and also longer cooking time. I recommend taking a really slow creep up to the first boiling stage so that the pearls get a chance to get semi-translucent first and then boiling slowly for probably 10 minutes instead of 5. During this time you can never leave the pot and I recommend using a heat proof scraper of some sort, stirring almost constantly, (but gently) to keep anything from sticking to the bottom/sides. I can go for either size pearls texturally speaking, but the small pearl is less time consuming and there feels like there is more of them in the mixture to go around which is nice too. Large pearls are like chewing on nice little gummy bears kind of. All personal preference of course.
The Fam has decided that they prefer the pudding more custardy and would probably be happy if I didn't whip the egg whites before adding. I like it a touch lighter though, but not As light as the egg whites make it. So, I don't bother to fold them in too gently when adding. It keeps it light but puddingy all at the same time. It'll settle even more by the next day. IF you have any left. Oh yeah, and I do add a touch of cream of tartar for the egg white stability, but I guess I should try leaving that out since I'm so rough on them anyway. We'll see how that goes.
If you have a spare half hour to an hour and really love good tapioca, I seriously recommend giving this recipe a try. If you don't have that spare time....you're missing out. :(
Fast forward/Rewind to a couple years ago. My family and I are on a small summer trip which takes us through the (misnomer alert) Pennsylvania Dutch country. Before I was born, they had been to, and enjoyed stopping at the Shartlesburg Hotel. However, by the time we got there with me alive, we discovered that it had closed a couple summers earlier. No worries though, we were informed that something similar was just down the road, Haag's Hotel. Oookay.
Well, it was alright. The best thing I remember was their roast chicken and gravy. It HAD to be from scratch, and if it wasn't, color me impressed with whatever company it came from. But anyway, this is where Mom gets me to try some of their tapioca pudding. I remember thinking that it had potential likability..if it were just made better. I got the feeling that it was Not from scratch, and no wonder, the stuff takes at least an hour for one batch not counting over night soaking of the pearls.
After that, I decided we needed to know what really good tapioca was like and using my family as willing guinea piggies, I set forth on the quest. It has been two years in the making and I had all but given up because of the shoddy results of many recipes instructions. It just so happend that I was browsing my favorite section (desserts) on a new food blog I found not long ago - ("Simply Recipes" see the link to it on my sidebar. ) and there happend to be a recipe with a way of making it that I had not attempted yet. It is, I would say extremely easy, at least in a comparative manner. Others may not require you to stand there and stir nearly as much, but considering you actually get an outstanding product at the end that you "MMM" and "Ohh" about, it's worth it.
Before I describe any alterations I have made, know that it is for a double batch of the pearls because there is no way we'd have any left over for the next day if I didn't. And, I only have access to pearls that require an over night soak. I do not reduce the milk for cooking as suggested by the recipe when soaking pearls over night. I felt it made it too stiff.
The only changes that I have made are to increase the salt by maybe 1/8 to 1/4tsp more. I don't know, it just felt like it needed a touch more, so it's up to you if you want to try it.
I double or even triple the amount of vanilla I use. I would love to try a vanilla bean in it, perhaps steeping it in the milk a little bit before putting in the pearls. (After removing the paste from within the bean first of course).
I have been making this with 4 cups milk (from 2% up to whole) and 2 cups Half n' Half. I imagine using just whole milk would be fine but I was being decadent.
I have made this with small pearl as called for and large pearl. The only differences would be a longer soak time in water for large pearl and also longer cooking time. I recommend taking a really slow creep up to the first boiling stage so that the pearls get a chance to get semi-translucent first and then boiling slowly for probably 10 minutes instead of 5. During this time you can never leave the pot and I recommend using a heat proof scraper of some sort, stirring almost constantly, (but gently) to keep anything from sticking to the bottom/sides. I can go for either size pearls texturally speaking, but the small pearl is less time consuming and there feels like there is more of them in the mixture to go around which is nice too. Large pearls are like chewing on nice little gummy bears kind of. All personal preference of course.
The Fam has decided that they prefer the pudding more custardy and would probably be happy if I didn't whip the egg whites before adding. I like it a touch lighter though, but not As light as the egg whites make it. So, I don't bother to fold them in too gently when adding. It keeps it light but puddingy all at the same time. It'll settle even more by the next day. IF you have any left. Oh yeah, and I do add a touch of cream of tartar for the egg white stability, but I guess I should try leaving that out since I'm so rough on them anyway. We'll see how that goes.
If you have a spare half hour to an hour and really love good tapioca, I seriously recommend giving this recipe a try. If you don't have that spare time....you're missing out. :(
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