Victory is MINE!!

I started making pie crusts at around 1pm. Things were going very smoothly. I prebaked two pies and successfully rolled out the lattice crust and baked it.... this took a couple of hours. I also baked a few flowers to top the Bon Appetit pie. I asked for Scott's assistance to get the lattice crust off of the parchment paper. He did this by using two cookie sheets and rotating them with the crust inside. It unexpectedly broke into a million pieces by coming out the side of our set up. Boo!

I went ahead and rolled out another and started the process again. This time I speed things up by using the freezer, forgetting to etch the leaves, and making the space between the cut outs much larger. The results are below.... victory is sweet! PS. It is now 6:30 when I'm writing this.

Almost Complete Disaster!

I am glad that I have a couple practice sessions ready because the crust and pie came out fine, but putting them together was a challenge.

The starting pictures...

Now the final photo -

That rim is in at least five sections and Scott and I ate the inside to check the new pastry recipe. That was at least great.

:) Onward to tomorrow.

Back to Baking

It has been incredibly long time since I've cooked anything. A visit to the in-laws in North Carolina for Thanksgiving has spurred me into action. I would like to bring a pie, since it will be easy to take in the car and Martha Stewart's photos are irresistible.


The crust looks tricky, but luckily I have two practice sessions. One, this Saturday, we are going to hang out with friends who will be getting married next Saturday. Next is an office potluck. So I am trying Martha Stewart and the pie from Bon Appetit.

Today, I ran to the store to get ingredients. I, of course, still need an item or two, but am stoked to try some new pastry recipes and be in the kitchen tomorrow.

A Dinner to Remember

Today was soooo easy!

I finished the fresh fruit tart, made potato gratin (pg 423), roasted salmon with cranberry-mustard sauce (pg 380), and broccoli with mustard butter (pg 462). The potatoes took a while to cook, but thanks to my food processor, slicing them and shredding the cheese took all of 5 minutes. The potatoes just disappear into the processor in seconds and turn into evenly cut potato slices.

The tart was fun to top and the broccoli and salmon cooked quickly. I don't eat a lot of meat and seafood is just not my thing. Scott described the salmon as good with the lean cuisine cranberry dessert as topping. I didn't think it was bad, but really enjoyed the potatoes and broccoli. The roles I made yesterday were buttery good and I could see the layers after biting into it. :)

Some photos :

Long Waits :)

Yesterday was Sunday and I cooked up a storm!
Pizza Blanca with Goat Cheese and Greens pg 214
Butterhorn Rolls pg 486
Caesar Salad with sourdough croutons pg 142
Fresh Fruit Tart pg 608

As soon as we got in from church I made pizza dough for the white pizza. This dough takes about 6 hours to make. That wasn't because it is complex, just because there are hours of waiting in between. I never know how much flour to add to pizza dough, so this was rather sticky.

Next, I started the dough for the butterhorn rolls. This also takes over five hours and was again easy to whip up, but what does "just begins to pull away from sides of mixing bowl" I have no clue.

After that, I started the crust for the fresh fruit tart. This was difficult because I couldn't get the butter and shortening to becomes "coarse meal". It instead turned into a wet ball with lumps of butter. I guess I didn't make the chunks of butter and shortening small enough.

After much in and out of the fridge and punching down of different doughs, I made sourdough croutons. They were easy and delicious. I snacked on a few while, I made the Ceasar salad dressing. This was the most different dressing I've seen for Caesar. It seems healthier because it has no mayo or eggs.

Now for the rolls, which were so sticky to roll out and seemed to need a trip to the fridge before I could roll up. I think I need to be brave next time and just add more flour.

Same with the pizza dough. I got it to roll out beautifully, but then it wouldn't come off the counter. Next I put it on wax paper, but that slides over the counter as you try to roll it out. Whew!

The pizza was great and the salad was good. My feet were sore, but I really enjoyed the day.

Summer is Sweet

Yesterday I took my last final of the spring semester and have one week off before summer classes begin. I can't wait to burn off some stress by cooking all week. Today we went to only two grocery stores and got my ingredients for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

Up this week are Salmon, Pizza, and lamb. Also a lot of breads will be involved, so I'm planning on having a lot of time in the kitchen.

To get things started today, I made Double Berry Preserves on pg. 497 with Strawberries and raspberries. I used a mini-processor to chop them up and it was on the stove in no time. The smell of the fruit cooking down was excellent and so fresh. I thought I'd made much more than the recipe called for, but after cooking it down, it came out about right. They are cooling in the fridge now. :)

Whew - Fresh Herbed Potatoes

It has been a long time since I've been able to get into the kitchen. What a fool I was when I decided that working and school would not be that bad. Currently, I have four classes including two finance ones that are killing me!

Luckily, we're having a couple over this evening - who want us to watch their cat in May - so I was able to bust out my knife and cutting board to make Roasted new potatoes with spring herb pesto. (pg. 429) This was perfect because my herb garden is looking fabulous. I planted one last spring by dropping $100 at an online herb store. It has really grown and filled out. I've also got new basil that is behind, but will soon catch up. I can't wait for tomato basil soup!

The new potatoes are very small and I was glad to find such tiny potatoes. I also found a $2.97 wine which should be good to try. I picked the herbs fresh and processed them in my mini processor. I was surprised that the potatoes are not cooked with the herbs, but they are added later.

So Scalloped Potatoes Take an Hour?

So the day to grill the flank steak finally came! It marinated for two days and ready. I got home late from work (since I waited out the traffic). Scott invited a neighbor over, so I had 45 minutes to cook the side dishes. I was making scalloped potatoes as well as the parsnips, peas and prosciutto. Again, I looked down to discover making that recipe would take too long. We settled for spicy Parmesan potatoes that only involved slicing potatoes into 8th, tossing them with oil and red pepper flakes before sticking them in the oven. (check!) Then I moved on to chopping parsnips into 1/4 inch pieces. This is difficult because a parsnip is shaped like a large, pointy carrot and the pieces don't want to look like eat other. I chopped as quickly as possible while Scott heated up the grill.

For once, I cooked prosciutto without smoking up the house. Good for me! I just usually have the heat to low - no action or too high - too much action. Smoking up the house is a huge pain as the alarms go off and the cats run for cover. We have to stand under the alarms swinging towels and leaving the front door open (cats try to escape). So that was a bonus.

Our neighbor arrived as the steak cooled for cutting. The potatoes finished in the oven and I threw on a healthy portion of grated Parmesan. The steak was rather rare and bled all over the counter and floors from the cutting board. I couldn't help wonder what our neighbor thought as he stood and watched Scott cutting and me wiping blood from the floor. We are sanitary cooks, I promise! Last, I mixed the prosciutto with the parsnips and peas and we headed for the table.

I wasn't expecting much from the flank steak as it looks very stringy and not at all like your filet mignon. It turned out to be great. It was medium rare to medium and had a great beefy flavor with hints of salt and cracked pepper. I was surprised it didn't taste more like the soy sauce in the recipe, but either way, it was excellent. The potatoes were nice and spicy and I actually really enjoyed the parsnip recipe. It had nice color and I counted it as a healthy vegetable for the day. Best of all, the side dishes were easy and rounded out the steak.

Perhaps you are noticing that I didn't finish the recipe. I totally forgot the horseradish sauce! My mind is leaving me. I might still make some for the left overs, but the whole point of picking that recipe was to use horseradish I bought for the potatoes last week. Oh well, we had great eats and a great time hanging out. :)

Arg! Read Recipe First

Yes, Yes, it says at the beginning of the book that it is a good idea to read an entire recipe before beginning to ensure you have all the ingredients and etc.... Well, I guess I forgot because I planned to make Flank Steak with Horseradish sauce on Sunday night with a few sides. Sunday at 6pm I pulled out Bon Appetit - instruction one is "Whisk first 6 ingredients..... Add steak... cover and refrigerate overnight."

Lucky for me, my wonderful husband had a meal planned so we had pork chops that evening. I tried to recover some of my free time and baked Banana-Walnut bread (pg493) because Scott's brother and sister with significant others will be in town this weekend. I love no rise breads. This was easy to whip up and became nice and toasty brown in the oven. My new favorite ingredient is powdered buttermilk. I hate buying a half gallon of buttermilk when all I need is half a cup, so I found it in powered form at the store. You simple add the power and the same amount of water the recipe calls for - so far, I haven't noticed a taste difference and the convenience is worth it. The larger bread pan took a long time to cook and I eventually took out the bread while still a little gooey in the center just so I didn't over bake it. I'm hoping it firmed up while cooling - we'll see.

Next I made the ravioli (pg 191) with goat cheese and arugula. I used wonton wrappers I'd had in the freezer forever and thawed in the fridge. I quickly minced the shallots and they sauteed much quicker than I expected (I did halve the recipe). You add arugula to wilt, then took this off the cooktop to mix with parmesan and goat cheese (my two favorites). The wrappers made making the ravioli easy and I'm finishing up the recipe today. That means I need to make a tomato-pancetta butter before lunch... better reread over the recipe. :)

As a side note, my little herb garden is doing very well this spring. Just about a week ago I planted basil, parsley and cilantro. My hardier plants from last year returned so I have rosemary, marjoram, three types of thyme, oregano, sage, tarragon, chives, and lavendar. :)

Margaritas - Always Nice!

I just got home from attending and testifying in a court case for a friend. She is sueing over some very disasterous bridesmaid dresses. Just for the record, she kicked court booty.

Anyway, when I got together with the now married lady and girlfriends this past Saturday and made the homemade margaritas. It took quite a few lemons and limes because the ones I got at the store were not super ripe. I ended up only having enough juice to make half the recipe, so bought some fake mix to continue the party. This was one of the few times in my life that I really wanted one of those antique juicers. The simple syrup was easy to make and the margaritas tasted nice and fresh with the real fruit juice. I do need some more practice with the blender, but all and all, a lot of fun.

:)

Boiled Cornmeal?

Well, I spent part of the morning making black bean and espresso chili with creamy polenta with leeks. The chili was simple because all the chopping involved was for the onions, everything else was assembled. It did take over an hour with cooking time, but luckily contained no butter. :) PS. I still haven't found instant espresso, instant coffee had to do.

Polenta is another story. I quickly chopped up the leeks to include with the corn meal. I never knew polenta was simply corn meal - I thought it was made from a special grain. The recipe was tricky here - it said to stir until it thickened, but to add water if it got too thick. Well, I guessed and it came out ok (it is always a guess with my cooktop). I am used to cornbread cooked in a cast iron skillet, so I'm not sure I will ever love polenta. Perhaps if I stir in honey and butter instead of leeks? :)

Mmm... Butt-ah

Yesterday wwas one of the best meals I've cooked in a long time. I made:
Rib-eye steaks with bearnaise butter
Horseradish mashed potatoes (and butter) with carmelized onions
and Roasted butternut squash with brown butter and nutmet

It started off as a great day because I didn't have to go into work. I had time to do the million things I always have to do when not busy (work on my home company, answer emails, workout, clean...) but Scott volunteered to go to the grocery store with me and didn't complain when I suggested Publix - expensive but one can usually buy everything needed in one, yes, one trip.

We did find everything we needed and a few yummy extras.

Dinner didn't take the three hours I expected. I used my $9.95 madonline from Target (instead of a $75 from William Sonoma) on the 2.5 pounds of onions that needed to be "thinly sliced". The madonline did great and I had a huge mound of fluffly transparent onions ready to saute. The butternut squash is not in season because instead of one 2-lb one, I had three tiny ones to cut up. Still, it didn't take long and soon things were boiling, sauteing, and roasting in my oven/stove top combo.

The best part was cooking the steaks. The smell of meat with pepper and salt is heaven and luckily the recipe callled for olive oil at this point. I got to try the touch test for doneness instead of having to cut them open.

As I said, dinner was great, exept for the bernaise butter on the steaks. The description says it "mingles with the meat's pan juices to create extravagant flavor" - we thought it made our steaks taste like salty butter and got in the way of the great meat. So we shoved it off to the side. The butternut squash had carmelized nicely and I could have eaten it for desssert it was so sweet. The potatoes were wonderful and I even liked the onions on top - I always question balsamic vinegar.

All in all very satisfying.

Sweet and Blue

Whew! It has been awhile since I've been able to get in the kitchen, but finals week is over for now and I actually got to come home after work today.

After a long walk on a beautiful day I made buttermilk pancakes with blueberry compote. I'd never had compote before, but I had read about it in books by Jane Austin and the like. I consider myself a pancake aficionado, and these were great!

You mix a little flour with baking soda / powder and stir in sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs. I halved the recipe and there was a creamy, light batter enough for three. My only problem was my skillet. It is small and non-stick, but my pancakes would get too dark before they were firm enough to flip. This made for pancakes that would not make the cover of Bon Appetitt. The bottom would be finished, but the top would still be so gooey that flipping them meant slinging them into weird patterns - sadly I had to throw some away.

The compote was very easy and made a much lighter topping than maple syrup. I used frozen blueberries and they took a while to get to simmer - I just kept cranking up the heat (ah for the day of a gas stove). The compote was nice and sweet without being too sweet (and I totally counted it as a fruit for the day).

I whipped up a few eggs for Scott since pancakes aren't too filling. He's already requested I make popcorn later. :) I love cooking!!

Chicken Liposuction

Cheese and butter are the keywords of the day. This afternoon started with the warm goat cheese salad. It was excellent, except for the enormous chunks of cheese. I love goat cheese, but this recipe had 11 ounces divided between four people, so about 3 oz each. This log was divided into eight pieces which are thick. You coat them with bread crumbs (fresh!) and fry in a skillet. They are great, but next time, I think I'll use less cheese and slice them a lot thinner. The fried, crunchy part is awesome, bu is so filling! The salad also has lots of walnuts and is coated in walnut oil - which is great, but fatty, so an excellent salad, but can almost be a meatless meal.

This afternoon contained a funny debate. I'm trying to stuff a chicken with herb, lemon butter. It says to loosen the skin by the breast with your hand. Neither Scott nor I could tell which side was the breast. The breast on this particular chicken was pretty flat in comparison to its back. So I totally stuffed the wrong side. Then once I turned it over and saw the temperature pop out thingy I realized my mistake. The skin was hard to get up without piercing it. I used a chop stick to stick under the skin and make some space. I felt like those liposuction doctors on TV who are jabbing some poor person's stomach or legs with a big skewer.

In the meantime, I whipped up the potatoes with parsnips - that was an easy recipe. I made it even easier because I didn't take the time to peel the potatoes. Right now I'm waiting to start the green beans. I'm hoping for a nice dinner with wine and a chicken that is not raw or dry. :)

Sticky buns!

Whew! Baking leads to a whole new level of stress. When cooking, you can say "that looks about like two tablespoons of olive oil", but when baking, you have to know if the water is 120 or 115 degrees or you'll kill your yeast. I started baking maple-pecan sticky buns this morning around 10:30. I made a couple batches of yeast just to make sure things went well. The recipe was easy to follow, but it did take a while. I use a trick of keeping the rising dough in a semi-warm oven to make sure it rises in this freezing cold house. I did manage to exploded butter in the microwave about 1:30 and finished the buns just before 3pm. They came out looking beautiful and were definitely sticky - I brushed my teeth twice after eating to make sure I got it all off. They were much flatter and wider than other sticky buns I've seen, but would impress any weekend guest you might have over.

Cooking today reminds me why it is a good thing I am not a parent. I've fought the "stay off the counters" war too long with my two cats. They are bad boys and live to do what we don't want them to do. Today they ran me down and I couldn't fight any longer (much like the brats who scream in the store long enough to harass their poor mothers into buying whatever it is they want). I've posted a photo of Riker in the cabinet. I was busy mixing things, and checking temperatures, when I turned around to discover him where I store my glass bowls. Next is one of the two of them jumping down after dad made a noise to get them out of the kitchen.

Scott declared the buns better than cinnebon which made me think that the next time I made them, I will probably whip up some simple icing to pour on top for those who like it. The lemon zest added a nice touch. I don't normally like citrus in my desserts, but it was subtle enough to add a nice hint of flavor to the sweet buns.

On to roast chicken, I think I might prep the ingredients for tomorrow tonight, just so there will be less chopping to do tomorrow. Right now, it is time for a nap. :)

Trader Joe's and Other Errands

With the new job and my mid-semester projects coming due, it has been an exhausting week. Scott and I were practically out of food, so I planned my recipes and headed to the newest grocery store in our area. Trader Joe's is a mere 8.5 miles away and promises organic and healthy food at a low price. I don't care too much whether organic food or not, but I was hoping for cheap cheeses and low priced wine. I was schocked to see how small the store was, but I did find practically all that I needed. I guess it is mostly for single people or couples who like to eat healthy, but don't necessarily like to cook. They store sold tempting food like multigrain pancake mix next to maple, blueberry syrup and chocolate almond torts.

This weekend I am going to make Lemon -Herb Roasted Chicken, green beans with roasted onions, mashed potatoes with parsnips & parsley root, warm goat cheese salad, and maple-pecan sticy buns. Trader Joe's had it all except for walnut oil, parsley root, and a roasting chicken large enough (TR's were very skinny). So off to another store which had the chicken but no parsley root (what is that anyway) and no walnut oil. I saw two labels of two different brands where the oil should have been but no suck luck.

Overall, I enjoyed the store (I did end up buying wine for $2.49) and can't wait for some sticky buns tomorrow morning.

Salad and School Work

Well today was a grind of papers, case studies, and presentations. Brighter moments were when I made the Asparagus with Balsamic-Shallot Butter Sauce and an Arugula, Fennel, and Orange salad. Both were quick and easy, though I'm so out of the habit of eating salads, I find that I am not used to eating them anymore. The flavors were good and the salad was healthy, but I'm out of practice eating leafy greens. :)I could only have a little.

Let's revisit the pie of last evening - I'm much more in practice of eating sugar. Our friends did join us at home for dessert and the coffee whipped cream was excellent. I actually liked it much better than plain whipped cream. I brought the remaining pie to our church group this morning and luckily, they cleaned up the rest.

Tomorrow I go to work then to class so I'll likely be gone from 7:30am-10:30pm. Boo for that, so no cooking in the near future. I have tests on Wednesday, so I can't use Tuesday as a cooking evening. Hopefully, will be able to plan lots for this weekend.

Mocha Pecan Pie in the Sky

This morning started early with errands for ingredients and one to the post office. I made it to the post office by 9:10 am only to find the line out the door and two people working. After that was over I tried my local Grand Mercado. Grand Mercado has great produce for dirt cheap prices. It also has lots of exotic ingredients, but anything "American" - butter, dairy, cereal - is too expensive to be practical. Since, I mostly needed produce for a salad and vegetable side I'm making Sunday (tomorrow) and just a few pie like ingredients - I thought I'd give it a try. I ended up having to go to another grocery store because Grand Mercado does not in fact carry trans fat free Crisco or espresso powder (what was I thinking?). Another stop will be necessary tonight as I need to hit up a liquor store for coffee liquer.

The pie recipe is easy, but since luck was already against me today, I accidentally plopped in too much shortening into the food processor while making the pie dough. I was lucky enough to realize this before I mixed the ingredients, but had to pick out the little cubes of shortening and guess at removing half. Whatever I did worked because it was the easiest crust I've ever rolled out - which I did twice due to it sticking to the counter -parchment paper next time!

Pecan pies are easy since the filling is just mixed. While pre-baking the crust and waiting for it to cool, I've been running upstairs to do homework. A presentation, case, and proofreading a group paper. Scott, my hubby, and I are going to dinner with friends tonight at a steak place. I'm hoping they'll want to come back here to try some pie.... we'll see. We do need to stop at the liquor store on the way and neither grocery store sold coffee liquor - hopefully, the first one we see will have it. :)

The pie has just come out of the oven and looks fab. I don't know if it helped, but I made a crust protector out of foil (square sheet with a hole in the middle). The crust is deep brown, but not burned - I can hear the insides still sizzling.

Imitation is the sincerest form of Flattery

I am a copy cat, but I don't care. I have loved to cook since snowed in one winter in high school. The foreign exchange student living with us and I cooked breads and desserts until there weren't any ingredients in the house. I didn't cook much until I got married - too expensive and I'm not a fan of leftovers - but now I can say it is my true hobby.

I read the Julie/Julia Project last summer as well as Julie's blog. She has a clever way of writing and more determination than I think I have. I've owned Mastering for quite a while, but am not drawn to the food. I recently bought the Bon Appétit cookbook and found that all the foods sound so appealing.

My goal is to become a true hostess vs. true chef or whatever. Having friends/family to your home and having them feel comfortable as well as giving them a wonderful experience is a different goal than just knowing how to cook. I cook but am a bit slow with all the prep and struggle to juggle menus so over three or four courses everything comes out at the right time and temp. But this isn't to say I'm a poor cook. I've done well so far, but am ready to shoot for the moon. By cooking through the Bon Appétit cookbook, I hope to expand my cooking knowledge so my hobby and my parties never get dull and are always exciting.

The Details: Bon Appétit has over 1200 recipes (Wow, I'm already overwhelmed):
Breakfast and Brunch: 55
Appetizers/First Courses: 62
Soups, Stews, & Chilies: 67
Salads:52
Sandwiches & Burgers:36
Pastas & Pizzas: 60
Rice, Grains, and Beans: 33
Meatless Mains:25
Meats: 95
Chicken, Turkey, & other Poultry: 71
Fish and Shellfish: 63
Potatoes: 30
Vegetables: 76
Breads, Jams, and Condiments: 49
Cakes: 68
Pies and Tarts: 56
Custards and Puddings: 37
Fruit Desserts: 31
Frozen Desserts: 47
Cookies, Brownies, Candy: 66
Drinks (Woo-Hoo!!): 48

OK, just to make it clear. I'm not trying to do this in a year, but hopefully within a reasonable amount of time.
Someone is coming to look at our town home today (for sale by owner). We just put our place on the market, but we don't expect to sell so soon in this slow market. We'll see.