Bostinis and the October Daring Baker's Challenge

We have all experienced this in social situations:  The group of cool kids who sit at the better table, get away with more and seem to have generally happier lives. They are a group which always seems unattainable and snobby from the outside but which we all secretly want to be part of anyways.  Well the cool group to me for a little while now has been the Daring Bakers with their secret challenges and fabulous pictures. Unlike the snobby kids from high school they are most welcoming to new members. So this month I got up the nerve to ask to join and low and behold here I am posting about my first challenge.

This month the Daring Bakers tackled the Bostini as set to us by Mary from Alpineberry.  In case you are wondering what a Bostini is, it is a take on a boston cream pie but more like a cake. It is a beautifully rich custard topped with an orange chiffon cake and finished with chocolate glaze.   It was a really fun and truly challenging place for me to start. 

 

I hadn't ever made a chiffon cake before and the only custards I had ever done were for ice creams. That said, my cake didn't go too well. I made it at the cabin where my kitchen is a little light on equipment and baked it in a couple of different containers but none that were ideal. Some were underdone and some overdone and they all seemed to fall a bit after coming out of the oven.  In the end I had to pick and choose what pieces of cake I ended up using in the plated dessert.   

That said the custard and the end result were fantastic. Totally not something I would've ever made on my own too, which is half the fun. I actually ended up eating the leftovers right out of the fridge and fully couldn't stop myself. (You know, that "I will just have one bite" moment?) If you are interested in the recipe check out our Challenger Mary's blog here.

Tags: Daring Bakers, Dessert, Cake

Cannellini Bean Puree

I got in trouble with this recipe. I saw Jamie Oliver do it on his new Jamie at Home show and I thought it would be great food for this time of year. However, cooking beans is not something one should do on a weeknight - at least not if you get home as late as I do.  It has the risk of infuriating your partner, although the result may be worth it.  I really like the idea of dried beans and lentils but I don't end up using them as often as I would like.  I am afraid I couldn't find the recipe after seeing the show so I don't have  a link for it.  However I saw that Sara made it last week as well. I like the idea of serving it with sausage.

Cannellini Bean Puree
(serves 2)

1c dried cannelini beans
1 small tomato, cut in half
1 small potato, skinned and cut in half
1 bay leaf
several garlic cloves
salt and pepper
olive oil

1. Soak the beans overnight.
2. Drain the beans and put them in a pot covered with cold fresh water. Add the tomato, potato, bay leaf and garlic.
3. Simmer, covered for until tender. About 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
4. Drain 3/4 of the liquid reserving some. Remove the potato, tomato and garlic and discard the bay leaf. With a fork mash some of the beans leaving some of them whole.
5. Separately in a small bowl mash the potato, remove the skin from the tomato and discard. remove the skin from the garlic cloves and add to the potatoes and tomato. Mush it up with a fork and add it to the beans.
6. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as appropriate. Server drizzled with some nice olive oil.



Beans, Comfort Food, Side Dish

Book Buying and Quick Sauteed Zucchini

We had some great discussion here yesterday about book prices! Everyone seems to be in agreement that it is cheaper to buy online - even if we are mildly plagued by guilt to our local booksellers. There also seems to be a difference in price based on which country you are in and which site you chose to buy from. Denzylle had a great suggestion for a site I hadn't seen before called http://www.bookdepository.co.uk. I checked it out and the prices are good - and the shipping is free anywhere in the world! If anyone from Canada has bought from here let me know please :).

I can also recommend abebooks. They are a great resource of used books, I have bought several Marcella Hazan and Julia Child books for less then $2 a piece this way. Plus, I used to work there and it really isn't an amazon.

This recipe is a quick and easy way to do zucchini, plus the nice thing is that it serves up really well no matter how you do it. If you make it and then let it sit you can easily reheat it 20 minutes later or serve it at room temperature.

Quick Sauteed Zucchini
(serves 2)

2T olive oil
1/2 onion, small diced
1 medium zucchini, small dice
lots of freshly ground salt and pepper

In a large skillet heat the olive oil up to medium low and add the onion. Sweat stirring occasionally for 5 minutes then add the zucchini. Add a healthy pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper and stir. Turn the heat up to medium and cook quickly until the water has started to be released from the zucchini. Continue cooking and stirring until tender but still a little crunchy. Should take under 10 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust. Can be served hot or at room temperature.


Tags: Quick Recipe, Zucchini, Vegetable

Marscarpone and Pecan Pesto

Okay, so seriously? Has anyone tried to buy a book in Canada recently? The prices seem even more outrageous then usual. I went to buy Nigella Express yesterday and it was $50 at chapters, that is 17$Cad more then amazon.ca and still almost $10 more then the US prices again. I know we are a smaller market and a certain amount of premium is required but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Hopefully they do manage to come to some compromise.

I think that the quickest of weeknight dinners is a pasta where the sauce takes as long as the pasta takes in the water. So this is my newest creation based on what was in my fridge and what would take very little time. I get in trouble if dinner is on the table after 9 so quick is of the essence what one gets home at 8. This is also my entry for Presto Pasta! Don't forget to check out the roundup for more yummy recipes.


Marscarpone and Pecan Pesto
(serves 4)

4 tablespoons marscarpone cheese
1 clove garlic
3 handfuls parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 handfuls pecans
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Whizz up the garlic clove in a food processor, then add the nuts and parsley and finally the cheese and olive oil.


Tags: Italian Recipe, Nuts, Pasta, Pecan, Comfort Food, Marscarpone

Fennel Risotto with Goat Cheese

I just can't help wanting to make creamy comfort foods this time of year. So when I picked up Jaime's Italy and saw all the neat risotto ideas I was sold. I made this with a few of my girlfriends as part of my birthday celebration and it was great fun. I had lots of company while I stirred and we managed to time dinner perfectly - I still have trouble timing foods around risotto. I am thinking this means I should make it more, you know for practice. The original recipe calls for fennel seeds and ricotta rather then goat cheese but the goat cheese was really good, it got all melty and creamy.

This is one of the first times I have ever cooked with fennel and certainly the first time I have made a fennel focused dish. There are so many vegetables I barely tried until leaving home which fall into this category - yams, brussel sprouts, squash, eggplant, etc. I will definitely do it again, I am thinking maybe a pasta with goat cheese and braised or roasted fennel would be really good? I actually tried to grow fennel this year but it wasn't in a sunny enough location and it didn't make it. However I am determined to try again, far more interesting then celery! In fact I bet you didn't know that florence fennel - the vegetable kind was one of the main ingredients in absinthe!

This is my entry to this week's Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Pille from Nami Nami. I am using fennel as both the herb and the vegetable in this case.

Fennel Risotto with Goat Cheese
(serves 4)

2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium fennel bulbs, sliced with herby tops saved
1 tablespoons butter
1 cup onions, chopped
2 small dried chiles, crumbled
1.5 cups arborio rice
1 glass white wine
1 litre chicken stock, approximately
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup freshly grated parmesan
1 lemon, zest and juice
4 tablespoons soft goat cheese

1. In a large skillet add a few glugs of olive oil over medium heat and saute the garlic until soft then add the fennel and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring regularly over medium low heat until fennel is soft - about 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile start the risotto. Melt 1T of butter in a heavy casserole pot (I like enameled cast iron) over medium low heat. Meanwhile put the stock in another pot over low heat. Add chiles and onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes - don't let it brown. Add the rice and stir it all together allowing the rice to absorb the moisture of the butter. Cook, stirring constantly for about a minute, don't let it stick. Add the wine and continue stirring until absorbed, about 2 minutes. Add stock by the ladle until it has been absorbed stirring constantly. After your second addition of stock has been absorbed add the cooked fennel.

3. Once you risotto is just lightly al dente add the parmesan, remaining butter and lemon zest. Check the seasoning and add the lemon juice, tasting to make sure you don't add too much. Stir in the herby fennel fronds.

4. Serve hot with crumbled goat cheese on top.

Tags: Italian Recipe, Fennel, Risotto, Rice, Comfort Food, Vegetable

Comfort Food and New Books

I had a very good birthday this year where I received loads of fun presents. One of which was a gift certificate to our local cookbook store. (Yes I know, a store just about cooking.) I had a really fun hour in there trying to decide which of the many books on my wishlist to buy. In the end I settled on Madhur Jaffrey's Quick and Easy Indian Cooking and Jamie Oliver's Jamie's Italy.


So far so good. Last night I made a big pot of Labdhara Gosht / Smothered Pork and some Turmeric Rice from Madhur Jaffrey's book. Of course I did modify the recipe a teeny bit, I added the mushrooms and spinach to get some vegetables in there, oh and the original recipe called for a skinned tomato, screw that action.

The thing I really like is that once you have prepped everything you are pretty much done. Saute some garlic then throw it all in. Easy. The only thing I am not sure about is her use of pressure cookers - that is what makes a lot of the recipes quick is the user pf pressure cookers. I haven't ever used one before - does anyone have an opinion? If you do use a pressure cooker pork would take about 15 minutes according to her directions.

Labdhara Gosht / Smothered Pork (Serves 4)

1 lb boneless pork shoulder, in 1" cubes (or beef or lamb)
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 inches piece of ginger, finely minced
1 medium tomato, skinned and finely chopped
1 dozen white or brown mushrooms, in a large dice
½ cup cilantro, finely chopped
2 hot fresh green chiles, cut into fine rings
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons garam masala, (store bought)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ cup yoghurt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
¾ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 blocks of frozen spinach
freshly ground black pepper

Put all the ingredients except for the oil, garlic, spinach and black pepper in a bowl and mix.
Put the oil in a large dutch oven and put over medium high heat. When the oil is hot put in the garlic and stir until it turns a medium golden brown. Now add the seasoned meat and give it a few stirs. Add 1/2C water and stir. Turn the heat to medium and cover. Cook for at least an hour, checking it every 20 minutes and stirring to avoid burning. 5 minutes before serving microwave the spinach according to the package directions and stir into the pot. If it gets to dry add water.
Once the meat is tender if the sauce needs thickening remove the lid to allow it to thicken. Add freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Tags: Curry, Indian Food, Comfort Food, Stew, Pork

Sausage Rigatoni in a Tomato Cream Sauce

After the other evenings risotto I have been enjoying my Italian roots. I was craving more comforting steaming bowls, but this time I made a pasta. I opened the Classic Italian Cookbook and flipped through it looking for something I hadn't made before and came up with a blend of a sausage and cream and tomato and cream sauce. It turned out just how I pictured it, the only difference I would change would be to add some fresh parsley but mine has all gone to seed.

Unfortunately I think all these high carb, butter and cream based dishes need to stop. Although J really enjoyed it I got in trouble as he ate so much he was worried he "might explode". It is time to start investigating lighter but comforting dishes like roast vegetable soups and leans meats. I wonder how long this reform will last...

For more yummy pasta dishes check out the Presto Pasta roundup this week at Once Upon A Feast.

Sausage Rigatoni in a Tomato Cream Sauce
(serves 2)

1 tablespoon butter
1 small carrot, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
1 large can of whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon butter
4-6 italian sausages, casings removed
½ cup cream
3 cups cooked rigatoni

Add 1T butter, celery, carrot, salt and sugar into a sauce pan. Separate the tomatoes from its juices. Add the tomatoes and crush them with your fingers as you do it. Bring to a light simmer and cook for an hour stirring occasionally. Add juice if it starts to dry out.
In a separate skillet melt remaining butter and brown sausage until cooked. Add tomato mixture and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add cream and cook for another minute. Taste and correct for seasoning. Toss with cooked rigatoni and serve immediately.

Tags: Pasta, Italian Food, Comfort Food, Sausage

Zucchini and Lemon Risotto

My most favorite thing to eat, the thing that I will always choose if I see it on a menu, is risotto. Unfortunately my passion for eating risotto sometimes leads to the consumption of bland and badly cooked restaurant meals. I think that the proper way to have risotto is in the comfort of your own home when you feel like taking your time with dinner. When I made this I had a glass of wine beside the stove and my book open on the counter so it wasn't a chore at all.

J made a grilled salmon with asian influences so I chose the flavours of this risotto to work with that and it was a nice combination. If you haven't made risotto before please don't use this recipe as a how-to, there are lots of good guides on risotto out there and I tend to use an amalgamation of skills learned but I can definitely recommend Marcella Hazan's methods.

Check out more zucchini recipes in the archives like Zucchini with Coriander, Creamy Zucchini and Basil Penne, Fusilli with Zucchini, Mint and Cream and Zuchine Gratine.

Zucchini and Lemon Risotto (serves 2-4)

4T butter
1 small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2t red pepper flakes, or 1 dried red chile crushed
1 medium zucchini, grated
1 small lemon, zested and juiced
1C arborio rice
1/2C white wine
~1L chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1/2 Parmesan, grated
1T fresh parsley, minced
salt and pepper

Melt 1T of butter in a heavy casserole pot over medium low heat. Meanwhile put the stock in a pan over low heat. Add garlic, pepper flakes (or chile) and onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes - don't let it brown. Add zucchini, lemon zest, a few grinds of fresh pepper and 1/2t salt. This will draw the water out of the zucchini. Turn the heat up to medium and cook until the water comes out of the zucchini and evaporates again, stirring regularly.

Move zucchini to the sides of pan and add another tablespoon of butter, allow it to melt and start sizzling. Add the rice and stir it all together allowing the rice to absorb the moisture of the butter and vegetables. Cook, stirring constantly for about a minute, don't let it stick. Add the wine and continue stirring until absorbed, about 2 minutes. Add stock by the ladle until it has been absorbed stirring constantly. After your first addition of stock has been absorbed add 1T of lemon juice with the next round of stock.

When the rice is almost done but just slightly al dente take the heat off the bottom of the pot and stir in remaining butter, cheese and parsley. Taste for seasoning. Add another tablespoon of lemon juice and stir into the risotto.

Tags: Rice, Risotto, Italian Food, Vegetarian, Comfort Food, Zucchini

Hash Browns or Breakfast Potatoes

This isn't brain science. This is hangover food. And let me tell you it really works. Make a big bowl of this, throw in some bacon if you have it, some chopped fresh tomato and top with a poached or fried egg. In fact if you have bacon fat use some of it to fry the potatoes in.


Hash Browns or Breakfast Potatoes (serves 1)

2T butter (or bacon fat if you have it)
2T finely chopped onion
1 medium boiling potato, par boiled
1/2t salt
freshly ground pepper
finely chopped fresh parsley (optional)

You can season it in lots of ways, if you are hungover you may want to be lazy and use a grill spice otherwise try a combination like the following:
a pinch each of: dried basil, dried oregano, paprika, dehydrated garlic,

Saute the onion in the butter over medium low heat until translucent. Add the potatoes, salt and pepper and seasoning. Turn the heat up to medium and shake the pan to distribute. Now fry for 4-5 minutes without shaking until you gt a crisp crust on one side and nice and brown. Shake the pan to redistribute and repeat until they are crusty brown on all sides. Taste for seasoning and adjust. Toss in the parsley and serve.



Tags: Potatoes Hangover, Breakfast, Comfort Food

How to ParBoil Potatoes

I needed to figure this out for potato slices on pizza and hash browns and it was so easy I thought I would post about it so I could link to the instructions later.

To par boil a potato make sure you choose a boiling potato.

Cover with room temperature water and bring to a light boil. Boil 10-15 minutes (about 15 for a large potato). Take off the heat and immerse in cool water. Let cool before you handle them.

Obviously recipes differ but this timing was correct for making hash browns (cubes) and for pizza (thin slices).

Tags: Potato, How To

Acorn Squash Soup with Toasted Seeds

Ah, it is Sunday morning and the WHB anniversary deadline is looming in a manner of minutes. I made this soup and started this post days ago for the event but I haven't had time to finish it yet! Since it is such a special edition of the event and we were to focus on a vegetable and a herb I chose a vegetable I hadn't ever cooked with before and made a soup. I used rosemary to accent the flavour of the squash but it was all very experimental. In the end I liked the soup, I really liked the toasted seeds from the squash and I liked the flavour with rosemary. It isn't nearly as smooth as a soup made with butternut squash but it's texture is quite nice and warming in these misty days. Don't forget to go and checkout the roundup at Kalyn's Kitchen and congratulate Kalyn on 2 years of hosting!


Acorn Squash Soup with Toasted Seeds
(serves 2)

1 medium acorn squash
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon rosemary, roughly crumbled, or chopped if fresh
freshly ground black pepper
½ medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2-4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Peel the squash. Remove the pulp and seeds and reserve. Chop squash into a 1cm dice approximately. Toss with 2 1/2T of olive oil, 1t salt, freshly ground pepper and the rosemary and put in a large casserole or on a baking sheet.
3. Bake squash for about an hour or until tender, turning occasionally. Meanwhile separate the seeds from the pulp, rinse them and dry them with paper towels. Toss with 1/2T of olive oil and a generous amount of salt.
4. When squash is ready remove from oven and increase temperature to 400F. In a large heavy bottom dutch oven or soup pot add remaining 1T olive oil over medium low heat sweat onions for 3-5 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and sweat, stirring for another minute. Add squash and cook for 2 minutes. Add stock and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes. Taste for seasoning.
5. Wipe out casserole and add the seeds. Cook for 5-8 minutes, watching carefully, giving them a stir every 2 minutes or so. You want them slightly brown and toasted.
6. Put 3/4 of the squash through a blender (or use a hand blender). Gently mush remaining with the back of a soup. You want there to still be some texture.

Serve soup with crusty bread, garnished with seeds.

Tags: Soup, Comfort Food, Squash

Chocolate Chip Cookies - ala Anna Olsen

I have been severely, severely neglecting FoodTV Canada's Cooking Club. I participated in the very first one, Buffalo Chicken Salad, but since nada. Since I have gotten back from China I have been feeling very in need of doing cooking, baking and general comfort food, so when I saw the chocolate cookie recipe I was in! I even had everything needed in the house. I followed the recipe exactly except for using plain old chocolate chips since I didn't have anything better.

I really liked this recipe, I am not convinced it is better then my current go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe but it is a little different - lighter I think. the cookies don't look exactly like the picture on FoodTV's website as they sunk a bit after cooling but I am not sure how to prevent that. I haven't ever made any of Anna Olsen's recipes before because they sound a little too complicated for me as I am a totally novice baker. This recipe did convince me that I can try more of her recipes though. The original recipe is here. I have re-posted it with my (minor) changes below.

Chocolate Chip Cookies ala Anna Olsen
(yield: 24 cookies)

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
8 ounces chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Cream together butter and sugars. Stir in egg and vanilla.
Combine dry ingredients then stir in flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Stir in chocolate.
Line a baking sheet with parchment and drop onto it by tablespoons. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown around the edges.


Tags: Cookies, Baking, Anna Olsen

Back from Travelling

I have returned safe and sound. Although I am suffering from minor jetlag, a bit of a tummy bug and a minor desire not to work I have returned to my regular life.

I don't have time at the moment for a full report but here is the quick version of Shanghai. In my experience it is the only place to eat Snake, Turtle and Abalone, drink Snake's blood and have your boss treat you to a foot massage. I wasn't a huge fan of the snake blood but snake itself was fantastic. Also in general the food was really good and it was not all quite so scary. It was also much more natural then I expected - less msg and additives if any. The city itself was always awake and buzzing. There was a really good energy and feeling of safety. Though holey god was it hot!

I also got the opportunity to try the hairy crab delicacy. I thought it was good but maybe not as good as the hype. I still think Dungeness is the way to go.

Tags: Shanghai, Chinese Food, Travel, Dumplings, Shanghainese Food, China