Thank you Mother

                       Sister Peggy and Blog Author's 6th and 7th Birthday Cakes
                               (We share the same birthday a year apart!)

This blog is dedicated to my amazing mother.  I recently had a wonderful visit with her and we were discussing a project she had begun to tackle; that of organizing the zillion old family photos in many, many photo albums and shoe boxes.  I offered to take the project on and scan important photos to share with my siblings so we can all enjoy them and pass them on through the generations.

                           Sue and Peggy's Shared 7th and 8th Birthday Cake

While going through them, I found the following photos of birthday cakes my mother made for us when were were young and I was quite flabbergasted and in awe of how she was able to tackle such cooking projects in those days.  I must explain that my parents had five children with the oldest one only being five years old when the baby of the family was born.  Imagine having that many children so close in age to feed, bathe, clothe, tend to when hurt or sick, and most importantly of all, love.  She and my father did all of that and more.  I think my siblings would agree, we grew up in a pretty remarkable household. 

Sister Linda's 7th or 8th Birthday Cake

Back to the cakes.  I wanted to share these photos and also a web site called Animal Cut Up Cakes that I found.  This site shows the exact cookbook these designs came from and how to make these very cakes. It was a free advertisement cookbook from Baker's coconut, circa 1959.  These family photos are all taken in the early-mid '60's. As noted in the photos, coconut is a prominent feature on all of them.  Aren't they wonderful?  And wasn't my mother amazing?  Oh, by the way, she still is!!  Thanks Mom for all you did for us to make our birthdays so special.

Brother Frank's 5th Birthday Cake

                                          Brother Mike's 3rd birthday Cake

Homemade Bagels

I have been thinking about making bagels for such a long time.  What was holding me back?  I think it was the intimidation of having to boil these doughnut-shaped rolls in water first.  I have had terrible luck making doughnuts and having them keep their shape.  Well, I'm here to tell you, making bagels is SO MUCH easier.  This recipe is anyway.

I found this recipe on a wonderful website called The Galley Gourmet and the author has a wonderful tutorial of how she made hers if you're interested in step-by-step visual instructions. After reading this blog I was convinced to give them a try.  I will share her recipe with you and encourage you bread makers out there to give these a try.  They are far superior to the too soft versions we find in our supermarkets and the flavor is delicious.  The Husband declared "These are the best bagels I've ever tasted."  High praise indeed!

Homemade Bagels

2 1/4 teaspoons dry active yeast
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups warm water
3 1/2 cups bread flour, plus extra for kneading
1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
Poppy seeds (optional)
Sesame seeds (optional)
Dried onion flakes (optional)

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, sugar, yeast and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the water. Continue to mix until the dough comes together in a mass, about 4-6 minutes. Increase speed to medium-high and knead for another 8-10 minutes until soft and smooth. Put the dough in a bowl sprayed lightly with non-stick baking spray. Cover with a towel and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Gently deflate the dough and let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425º F and bring a large pot of water to a boil; then reduce to a simmer.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Press each piece down to get rid of air bubbles. Form into balls and roll the balls between your palm and the work surface, rotating to form a smooth ball. Coat a finger in flour and press it through each ball to form a ring. Work the rest of your fingers into the hole, stretching the dough and widening the hole to about 1/3 of the bagel’s diameter. Place the bagels baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silpat and cover with a damp towel. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Gently lower the bagels into the water in batches, 2-3 bagels at a time. Boil, uncovered for about 1 minute. Turn them over once and boil for another minute. Using a perforated skimmer, remove the bagels from the pot, letting the water drain, and return to the baking sheet. Sprinkle tops of bagels with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried onion flakes, or leave them plain. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Makes 8 bagels.

Not Ready For Fall

I thought about making a big pot of soup over the weekend but then decided that I'm not ready to give in and start cooking Fall recipes.  I had recently made a shopping trip to the new Trader Joe's in town (it's about time we got one), and I picked up a bag of Meyer lemons for a darn good price. 

I just knew I would be inspired to whip up something with these wonderful lemons if I looked in a recently acquired new cookbook, The Bon Appetit Cookbook.  This cookbook is chock-a-block full of amazing recipes from apples to zucchini, breakfast through dinner, and beyond.  I have a special warm spot in my heart for Bon Appetit as of late, as I was given a little bit of press on their blog site for cooking a recent recipe they published in one of their issues.  It's always been one of my very favorite magazines since I started subscribing in the early '80's.

I found just the recipe for my "I'm not giving up on Summer" lemon dessert.  I share with you this Meyer Lemon Mousse.  It didn't call for Meyer lemons but since that is all I had, that is what I used. Meyer lemons have a much more distinct orange taste and are far less tart then our common garden variety lemons.  They made for a delightful change and a delicious dessert. I also  modified the recipe a bit as it called for toasted coconut layered between the mousse which I opted not to do. Enjoy!

Meyer Lemon Mousse

2 teaspoons water
1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
6 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 cups chilled whipping cream

Place 2 teaspoons water in small bowl; sprinkle gelatin over. Let stand 10 minutes. Whisk sugar, lemon juice, yolks and lemon peel in heavy medium saucepan to blend. Add butter; stir constantly over medium heat until mixture thickens and just begins to bubble at edges, about 9 minutes. Remove from heat. Add gelatin mixture; stir to dissolve. Transfer lemon curd to medium bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface. Chill until cold. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.)

Beat cream in medium bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold 1 cup cream into curd.

Spoon into serving dishes and let chill for at least one hour. Serves six.

Deep Dish Pizza

I have attempted to make homemade pizza a few times at home and I had just about given up.  I never have been able to achieve the perfect pizza parlor results I have been looking for.  Even after investing in a pizza stone and a pizza peel, I still ended up with flabby thin crust pizza and a broken pizza stone.  Don't believe the manufacturers instructions about it being okay to put in the oven at 450 degrees. 

Recently I stumbled across this recipe for deep dish pizza on a blog called SparkPeople and this pizza sounded like and turned out to be a real winner.  We haven't traditionally been deep dish pizza fans at our house, but one taste of this fantastic pie and we are now converts. 

The recipe below calls for pepperoni but I opted for a Pizza Margherita (tomato and fresh basil) and sausage and olive for my first attempts. It is hard to say which I liked better. They were both fantastic.  This dough for the crust is so wonderful and pliable.  Unlike thin pizza dough that has to be coaxed into what I always hope to be a circular shape, this is easily pushed into the cake pan and up the sides.  It bakes into this extremely favorful (thanks olive oil), very light, and richly browned crust.  I highly recommend this recipe for anyone interested in making pizza from scratch at home.

Deep Dish Pizza

Dough

1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup skim milk plus 2 additional tablespoons, warmed to 110 degrees
2 teaspoons sugar
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling out dough
1 package instant yeast
1/2 teaspoon table salt

Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic , minced
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp dried Italian herbs
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper
Toppings

1 (3.5-ounce) package sliced pepperoni
1 1/3 cups tomato sauce (see related recipe, "Basic Pizza Sauce")
3 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Instructions for Basic Pizza sauce

Cook oil and garlic in medium saucepan over low heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, herbs and peppers, increase heat to medium, and cook until slightly thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Instructions for dough

1. To make the dough: Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 200 degrees. When oven reaches 200 degrees, turn it off. Lightly grease large bowl with cooking spray. Coat each of two 9-inch cake pans with 3 tablespoons oil.

2. Mix milk, sugar, and remaining 2 tablespoons oil in measuring cup. Mix flour, yeast, and salt in standing mixer fitted with dough hook. Turn machine to low and slowly add milk mixture. After dough comes together, increase speed to medium-low and mix until dough is shiny and smooth, about 5 minutes. Turn dough onto lightly floured counter, gently shape into ball, and place in greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in warm oven until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

3. To shape and top the dough: Transfer dough to lightly floured counter, divide in half, and lightly roll each half into ball. Working with 1 dough ball at a time, roll and shape dough into 9 1/2-inch round and press into oiled pan. Cover with plastic wrap and set in warm spot (not in oven) until puffy and slightly risen, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees.

4. While dough rises, put half of pepperoni in single layer on microwave-safe plate lined with 2 paper towels. Cover with 2 more paper towels and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Discard towels and set pepperoni aside; repeat with new paper towels and remaining pepperoni.

5. Remove plastic wrap from dough. Ladle 2/3 cup sauce on each round, leaving 1/2-inch border around edges. Sprinkle each with 1 1/2 cups cheese and top with pepperoni. Bake until cheese is melted and pepperoni is browning around edges, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven; let pizzas rest in pans for 1 minute. Using spatula, transfer pizzas to cutting board and cut each into 8 (or four, as was our case) wedges. Serve.

Thanks for Lunch Jodi

Today I would like thank Jodi for our wonderful weekend lunch.  I have never met Jodi. She is a work friend of The Husband's.  She is also an amazing canner and has shared with The Husband and myself some lovely food she has preserved.  This includes Albacore Tuna from our local waters on the Pacific coast, delicious dill pickles, and peaches extraordinaire! 

I like to prepare at least one nice lunch on the weekends as The Husband and I never get to have lunch together during the week.  On this particular day I decided to make a lunch using all of these wonderful products sent to our home by Jodi.  The menu consisted of tuna sandwiches, pickle garnishes, and peaches for dessert. 

The tuna was fantastic. A nice solid block of light tuna that was flaky and full of rich tuna flavor.  The pickles had just the right amount of tartness, garlic flavor, and bite to them.  And the peaches.....oh where do I start.  I am a huge fan of peaches but unfortunately most commercially canned peaches are mushy and have a distinct tinny taste to them.  The moment I opened the jar I knew these were something special.  They tasted as if they were straight from the orchard, bursting with fresh peachy flavor and they had an almost floral aroma to them. Delicious!

So again, thanks Jodi for lunch and I hope we can meet someday so I can thank you in person.

Perfect Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs

My brother-in-law Steve came through again, recommending this winning recipe he had previously tested. This recipe originates from Bon Appetit magazine and it is from the June 2011 issue.  It is in the quick and easy section and it was just that.

This was a fast no-fuss way to prepare a succulent chicken dish.  I had the entire meal on the table within 30 minutes, from start to finish.  I served this along side some rice with roasted almonds and fresh green beans and tomatoes from our garden.  A couple of helpful hints:  take the chicken out of the refrigerator 1/2 hour to 1 hour prior to cooking to ensure your chicken is cooked through, and I feel it is imperative you use a cast iron skillet to get optimal browning of the chicken skin.  Enjoy!

Perfect Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs

6 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
fresh thyme or rosemary sprigs, for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Season chicken liberally with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat until hot but not smoking.

Nestle chicken in skillet, skin side down, and cook 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high and continue cooking skin side down, moving chicken around to ensure even heat. Cook skin-down until fat renders and skin is golden brown, about 12 minutes.

Transfer skillet to oven and cook 10-13 minutes more. Flip chicken so the skin side is facing up and cook until the skin is crisp and the internal temperature registers at least 165 degrees, about 5 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a plate and allow to rest 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh herbs, if using.

Overnight Buttermilk Waffles

I have found the perfect waffle recipe. I'm serious. These are the best. They come together in a matter of mere minutes the night before cooking them. They then sit in the refrigerator overnight and the little yeasties work their magic and in the morning, Viola! Magnificent waffles. 

I must warn you.  Be sure and use a nice big bowl when you make these as the batter expands dramatically.  I nearly had a batter disaster in my fridge in the morning.  The batter was up to the very edge of the bowl.  These are best eaten immediately after they come off the waffle iron in order to keep the wonderful crispness intact.  If serving for a brunch or breakfast for a crowd, it might be best to borrow a couple of waffle irons and have a few going at once. 

I served mine with extraordinary Irish butter and Canadian pure maple syrup. Heaven!!

Overnight Buttermilk Waffles

2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast (.25-oz)
1/2 cup warm water (approx 100-110F)
2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 tbsp sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp baking soda

In a large bowl, stir together yeast and warm water. Allow to stand for 5 minutes. Whisk in buttermilk, melted butter, sugar and eggs until well combined. Stir in flour and salt until batter is smooth.

Cover bowl with a piece of plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (for 8-12 hours).

In the morning, remove waffle batter from the refrigerator. Stir in baking soda, and mix vigorously until well incorporated. Allow to stand for 5 minutes.

Preheat your waffle maker as directed by the manufacturer.

Dollop waffle batter onto hot, lightly greased waffle iron (as directed by the manufacturer) and allow to cook until golden brown.

Serve immediately, with butter and maple syrup.  Serves 4-6

Heirloom Tomato Soup

I just have to make recipes right now to use up the bounty of tomatoes coming from our garden.  With many, many days of 85-95 degree weather in the middle of September, the tomatoes have decided to ripen all at once.  The picture below is one Sunday morning's harvest.  As there are just The Gardener and The Cook  in our home, I look for recipes that will freeze for the future and this fits the bill.

This recipe comes from Lynne Rossetto Kasper's wonderful site for her radio show on PBS called The Splendid Table.  If any of you foodies out there haven't discovered her weekly hour long radio show devoted to all things good in food and wine, you must tune in.  Of course
it's available to download via podcast so there is no excuse not to listen.  It is informative, inspirational for cooks, and often amusing. 

I used all yellow heirloom tomotoes and I opted not to serve this soup with the heavy cream called for.  I wanted to savor the wonderful, pure taste of tomatoes and basil in soup form.  Very delicious!

Heirloom Tomato Soup

Extra virgin olive oil
3 medium onions, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 large cloves garlic, minced
Pinch hot red pepper flakes
1 generous tablespoon tomato paste
2-1/2 to 3 cups chicken broth (homemade preferred, but low sodium canned works, too)
A big handful fresh basil leaves, torn
15 medium or 10 large delicious ripe tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped (do capture their juices for the soup)
1 cup whipping cream for serving

Generously film the bottom of a 12-quart pot with olive oil. Set over medium high heat. When warm, add onions and about 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions start to color.

Stir in the garlic, red pepper, and tomato paste. Cook 1 minute. Add broth, basil, and tomatoes. Bring to a lively simmer, cover the pot, and cook 15 to 20 minutes, or until tomatoes are softened and soup tastes fresh, but mellow. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Once soup has cooled, puree two-thirds in a blender or food processor. Rewarm or serve close to room temperature. The all-important finish is stirring a generous tablespoon of cream into each bowl.  This soup freezes well without the cream.  Serves 6-8.

Tomato Caprese, Part Three

Each year I have had this little blog of mine, I have done a recipe at the end of the summer involving a take on the Italian classic Tomato Caprese.  Year one with my sorrowful lack of knowledge about how to use my camera gave you this example.  In year two I learned how to use the vivid colors feature and the zoom lens and created this plate of goodness.

This year I must carry on the tradition but I added a twist and made a wonderful hot pasta dish with all of the components of a Tomato Caprese salad.  I must confess that not all of the tomatoes this year were from our garden but  the yellow and red ones were, as was the basil.  A most delightful and very quick to put together supper.  Here is how it's made as best as my memory serves me as I had no recipe.

Tomato Caprese Pasta

12 oz. dried pasta (choice of shape is optional)
1 container of small mozzarella balls, cut in half
1/4 cup good olive oil
2 cloves of garlic sliced finely
3-4 medium tomatoes, cut into small pieces
10-12 basil leaves, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Put pot of salted water on to boil for the pasta.  Gently heat up the olive oil in a saute pan.  Add the garlic and watch carefully so it doesn't burn.  As soon as it starts to color, add the tomatoes and turn the heat down to low.  Cook the pasta.  When done, drain and put in large bowl.  Toss in the tomatoes, garlic, and oil along with the cheese and basil leaves.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve along with some Italian bread.  Enjoy.  Makes 4 servings.

Shrimp and Grits

Southern cooking.  Not something I'm very familiar with. I've done the pan fried chicken with so-so results and that about covers it until I tried this recipe for Shrimp and Grits.  Spectacular!  Normally served in the South as a breakfast meal, I made this for dinner and it was very satisfying.  For an added boost of protein, a fried egg could be the topper.

We have a local company in Oregon called Bob's Red Mill and they make a huge array of grains and one of their wonderful products is various sizes of cornmeal.  For this recipe I used fine ground and the end results were the most fantastic, smooth and creamy grits.  Think of grits as Cream of Wheat only with a corn flavor and amazingly rich and delicious because of the cheese, butter, and cream.  Topped with the spicy shrimp and sausage bits; a perfect compliment to the grits.  This recipe will definitely be on the cooking rotation.

Shrimp and Grits

Grits
1 cup yellow grits (not instant)
1 cup grated sharp white cheddar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 jalapeño, seeded, diced
1/4 cup heavy cream
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

Shrimp
1/2 cup 1/3" cubes andouille sausage
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (optional)
3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, divided
16 large shrimp (about 1 pound), peeled, deveined
1/4 cup (or more) beer
1/4 cup low-salt chicken stock
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

Preparation

Grits

Bring 3 cups water to a simmer in a large saucepan. Gradually whisk in grits. Turn heat to low; gently simmer until grits begin to thicken. Continue cooking, stirring often and adding water by 1/4 cupfuls if too thick, until tender, about 1 hour. Stir in cheese, butter, and jalapeño, then cream. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Shrimp

Meanwhile, heat a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add sausage; sauté until fat begins to render, about 5 minutes (if sausage is very lean, add 1 tablespoon oil to skillet). Add garlic and 1 tablespoon butter; stir until butter melts. Add shrimp. When garlic begins to brown, add beer and chicken stock. Simmer until shrimp is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Remove skillet from heat; set aside.
Divide grits among bowls, forming a well in center. Spoon shrimp mixture into center of grits. Sprinkle tarragon over.