PORK ROAST..now this is "home cookin'"..one of mom's specialties... pulled and served over steamed veggies...

pork roast ready for 4 hours in the oven @ 300 degrees...results are best when done in a Le Crueset dutch oven...this happens to be mom's lucky orange oval...

0 Playing with Dough

Hostess Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yums gave us a most delicious recipe for this month's Daring Bakers' challenge - pizza dough from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice. There was nothing too difficult except that this pizza dough was wetter and stickier than other pizza dough recipes I've tried. I'm not sure the reasoning behind the high ratio of water to flour, but I'm sure Mr. Reinhart had a good reason. Other than the wet and sticky, I really enjoyed making the pizza dough.

Rosa asked us to use any sauce and any topping (or toppings) for our pizza. But other than that she gave us a lot of freedom to use whatever we liked. Sauces and toppings could be savory or sweet, with dairy or without, meat loving or vegetarian. The crust could be gluten free or not. Hubby and I topped our pizzas with all sorts of good stuff. Mozzarella, tomatoes, sautéed spinach, feta cheese, green olive tapenade, pesto sausage, and even chopped broccoli. The pizzas turned out great. I don't think I will have pizza delivered to my house anymore.



Oh, Rosa also gave us one other thing to do. She asked us to toss in the air at least two of the six pizza dough balls and capture the moment on film. Well, not on film, but in a photograph (mostly digital these days), but ya' know what I mean. At first I was apprehensive about tossing the dough since I'm definitely more of a "smoosh and push" the pizza dough kind of gal, but tossing the dough turned out to be really fun. I'm not sure how pizza pros can toss dough and end up with a nice round crust. One of the two I tossed ended up looking more like Italy than a circle and the second one landed on the kitchen floor when I missed the catch on the way down. My husband said we could invoke the five second rule, but being the germ phobic clean freak that I am, I insisted on throwing out that piece of dough.



This post is dedicated to Sher who passed away suddenly in July and was scheduled to host this month's challenge with Rosa. She will be missed. And don't forget that links to the blogs of other Daring Bakers can be found on our blogroll.

RECIPE SOURCE: “The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering The Art of Extraordinary Bread” by Peter Reinhart. Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, CA. Copyright 2001. ISBN-10: 1-58008-268-8, ISBN-13: 978-158008-268-6.
EQUIPMENT: Stand mixer with paddle and dough hook attachments (optional, see recipe), cooking thermometer, baking sheet, parchment paper, cooking oil, plastic wrap, pizza peel/scraper, pizza stone or pan.

BASIC PIZZA DOUGH
Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter)

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cup (20 1/4 ounces/607.5 g) unbleached high-gluten (about 14%) bread flour (or all purpose flour), chilled
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp instant yeast (do not use rapid-rise yeast)
1/4 cup (2 ounces/60g) olive oil
1 3/4 cup (14 ounces/420g or 420ml) water, ice cold (40° F/4.5° C)
1 Tbsp sugar
Semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting

DAY ONE

Method:
1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).

2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with the help of a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water.

NOTE: If you are using an electric mixer, switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for the same amount of time. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little more flour, so that it clears the sides. If, on the contrary, it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water.
The finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50°-55° F/10°-13° C.

3. Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.

4. With the help of a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas).

NOTE: To avoid the dough from sticking to the scraper, dip the scraper into water between cuts.

5. Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball.

NOTE: If the dough sticks to your hands, then dip your hands into the flour again.

6. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap.

7. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to three days.

NOTE: You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some of the dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil (a few tablespooons only) in a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.

DAY TWO

8. On the day you plan to eat pizza, exactly 2 hours before you make it, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about 1/2 inch/1.3 cm thick and 5 inches/12.7 cm in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.

9. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven as hot as possible (500° F/260° C).

NOTE: If you do not have a baking stone, then use the back of a jelly pan. Do not preheat the pan.

10. Generously sprinkle the back of a jelly pan with semolina/durum flour or cornmeal. Flour your hands (palms, backs and knuckles). Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.

NOTE: Make only one pizza at a time.

During the tossing process, if the dough tends to stick to your hands, lay it down on the floured counter and re-flour your hands, then continue the tossing and shaping. In case you would be having trouble tossing the dough or if the dough never wants to expand and always springs back, let it rest for approximately 5-20 minutes in order for the gluten to relax fully, then try again. You can also resort to using a rolling pin, although it isn’t as effective as the toss method.

11. When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter - for a 6 ounce/180g piece of dough), place it on the back of the jelly pan, making sure there is enough semolina/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.

12. Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice.

NOTE: Remember that the best pizzas are topped not too generously. No more than 3 or 4 toppings (including sauce and cheese) are sufficient.

13. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for about 5-8 minutes.

NOTE: After 2 minutes baking, take a peek. For an even baking, rotate the pizza 180°.

If the top gets done before the bottom, you will need to move the stone or jelly pane to a lower shelf before the next round. On the contrary, if the bottom crisps before the cheese caramelizes, then you will need to raise the stone or jelly.

14. Take the pizza out of the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate. In order to allow the cheese to set a little, wait 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.

0 basa (swai) pan seared with toasted almonds

sunday night dinner....pan seared BASA aka SWAI...with sauteed/toasted almonds and fresh cilantro

...this fish is excelent...very clean, light, white fish. i'd say a cross between orange roughy and talapia. easy to cook, easy to thaw (i believe it's from Vietnam, so usually frozen)

my quick & easy method is...spray olive oil in a non stick pan...high heat...slightly spray filet with butter spray....sear the pretty side first, when you see it is a nice golden brown, flip fish, cover and turn off heat...should be done in just a couple mins.

0 Spicy Sugar High Friday

One of my favorite bloggers Anita of Dessert First is hosting this month's Sugar High Friday event. Sugar High Friday was created by The Domestic Goddess Jennifer to celebrate all things sweet. Anita chose "Spices" as the theme for this round since it's the perfect time for the cozy warmth that spices provide as the autumn chill surrounds us.

I've wanted to post about this all-in-one holiday cake for months, but I held off until now since the flavors would've seemed out of place at any time of year except fall and winter. I personally love pumpkin and use it for baking all year round, but some people think it should only be used in the autumn. Like the time I made pumpkin bread in April and I brought it to the office to share. When I offered some pumpkin bread to a visiting consultant she turned her nose up and said "No thanks. It's not fall yet." Well, poo to you lady, that just means more pumpkin for the rest of us in the "off season".



Now this cake is filled with all the delicious foods we love during the holidays (hence the name all-in-one). I call it Thanksgiving cake and jokingly tell people there's turkey and gravy in there too. But, seriously, it has pumpkin, apples, fresh cranberries, pecans, and maple syrup. Oh yeah, and spices too. Lots of them - cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. Hmmm, the house smells so good when this is baking in the oven.

The cake really does taste like the holidays. The pumpkin is subtle enough to let the spices shine through and it also adds a lovely golden hue to the cake. The soft apple nuggets are studded throughout and adds a touch of moisture to the cake. The pecans add a toasty crunch and the cranberries are deliciously tart. The maple syrup icing is the crowning glory which makes this a perfect cake for this time (or, in my opinion, anytime) of the year.



All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake
(Dorie Greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours)
(makes one 9- to 10-inch Bundt cake)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves (optional)
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoon/5 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups canned unsweetened pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
1 large apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped
1 cup fresh cranberries, halved or coarsely chopped
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
Optional: Maple syrup icing (see recipe below)

To make the cake:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350F. Butter a 9- to 10-inch (about 12-cup) Bundt pan. Do not place the pan on a baking sheet - you want the oven's heat to come up through the Bundt pan's open core.

Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves (if using) and salt in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside dry ingredients.

Working with a stand mixer (using a paddle attachment, if you have one), beat the butter and both sugars together at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat for 1 minute after each addition; beat in the vanilla.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the pumpkin and apples - don't be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Still on low speed, add the dry ingredients, mixing only until the flour is just barely incorporated. Working with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in the cranberries and pecans.

Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with the spatula. Slide the pan into the oven and bake 60 to 70 minutes at 350F, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding. Cool to room temperature on the rack. Drizzle with maple syrup icing (if using) or simply dust the top lightly with confectioners' sugar.



Maple syrup icing:
Sift 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar into a bowl. Stir in 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup. Add more maple syrup little by little, until you have an icing that runs nicely off the tip of a spoon - you might need another 1/2 tablespoon to get the right consistency. Put the cooled on a sheet of parchment or waxed paper and drizzle the icing over the cake. Let the icing set for a few minutes before serving.

0 Nuts About Coconut

My brother Rich asked me to make him a coconut cake after seeing Bobby Flay "throwdown" with Robert Carter from the Peninsula Grill. Apparently coconut cake is one of Rich's favorite cakes, a fact I never knew despite having lived under the same roof for a quarter of a century. Rich looked into ordering a cake from the Peninsula Grill, but the cake costs $100 and overnight shipping from South Carolina to San Francisco would be $116 for a whopping total of $216! He said I could make him any coconut cake I wanted and he didn't care when I got around to making it for him. He said anytime is a great time for coconut cake.

Both Bobby's and Robert's recipes are available on the internet, but I ended up making my own version for Rich. Some commentors who tried Bobby Flay's recipe questioned the accuracy of the recipe on the website and Robert's recipe seemed a bit excessive using 2.5 pounds of butter, 4 pounds of sugar, and 44 ounces (1.3 liters) of heavy cream. I'm not saying that my cake or Bobby's is any less indulgent, but Robert's is super duper over the top indulgent. I guess that's why he calls his cake the "ultimate".

So I used Bobby's recipe as a starting point. His coconut custard recipe sounded like it would result in a delicious coconut pastry cream. I also liked that the custard would be used in the cream filling as well as the frosting. For the cake itself I decided to revisit Dorie Greenspan's perfect party cake which I had tried for a Daring Bakers' challenge a few months ago. I substituted some of the buttermilk in the cake recipe with some canned unsweetened coconut milk to infuse some coconut flavor into the cake. I used Chaokoh brand since it's fairly inexpensive (about $1 for a 13.5 ounce can.) and it's widely available in my local markets. One 13.5 ounce can was enough to make the custard and the cake. For the frosting I went with a cream cheese frosting that was flavored with some of the coconut custard. A simple syrup made by steeping flaked coconut and a garnish of toasted unsweetened coconut flakes completed the list of components.

I'm not very good at assembling layer cakes, a fact that I am determined to change. I hope that with some practice I will eventually improve. Overall, for a first attempt, I think my coconut cake turned out pretty well visually and I was quite happy with the taste. I liked how all the individual components came together in the final product. This was definitely a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. The cake just screamed coconut with every bite which is exactly what I wanted to achieve. My brother absolutely loved the cake. My mother, who unbeknownst to me until now is also a coconut aficionado, loved it too. Apparently I didn't know my family at all. :) But I do know that this cake will be making an appearance at many more family gatherings.



Coconut Cake
(makes one 9-inch cake)

Toasted Coconut:
2 cups flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

Coconut Simple Syrup:
1 1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened flaked coconut

Coconut Custard:
3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
4 large egg yolks
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons coconut rum (Malibu brand works well)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Coconut Filling:
3/4 cup coconut custard (see recipe), cold
3/4 cup very cold heavy cream

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
4 ounces (1 stick / 8 tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temp
1/2 cup coconut custard (see recipe), cold
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 to 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

Coconut Cake:
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup buttermilk
4 large egg whites
4 ounces (1 stick / 8 tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

To toast the coconut:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Spread the coconut evenly onto a baking sheet and toast until lightly golden brown, stirring once, about 8 minutes. Turn off the oven and let the coconut sit in the oven until very dry and crunchy, about 10 minutes longer. Let coconut cool before using to decorate the frosted cake.

To make the simple syrup:

Bring water and sugar to a boil. Stir in the coconut, remove from the heat and let sit for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours. Strain the liquid into a clean saucepan, bring to a boil and let cook until the mixture is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

To make the custard:

Combine the whole milk, coconut milk and vanilla bean and seeds in a medium nonreactive saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat.

Whisk together the yolks, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl. Remove vanilla bean from warm milk. Slowly whisk the warm milk into the egg mixture then return the mixture to the pot over medium heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly, until thickened. Scrape the mixture into a clean bowl and whisk in the rum and vanilla extract. In order to avoid a skin forming on the custard, cover with plastic wrap pressed directly onto the surface of the custard. Refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours.

To make the filling:

Whip heavy cream until soft peaks form. Stir in about 1/3 of the whipped cream into the chilled custard to loosen and lighten the custard. Add the remaining whipped cream to the custard and gently fold in the whipped cream.

To make the frosting:

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese, butter, coconut custard, vanilla extract on low speed. Add 2 1/2 cups of the confectioners' sugar and mix until just smooth (don't whip). You may or may not need the remaining 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar depending on how stiff or sweet you want your frosting.

To make the cake:

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment circles and butter parchment.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Whisk together the coconut milk, buttermilk and egg whites in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer, at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light.

Beat in the vanilla extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, and then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated. Add the rest of the milk and eggs beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients.

Finally, give the batter a good 2 minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch – a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean.

Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unfold them and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature, right side up.

The cooled cake layers can be wrapped airtight and stored at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to two months.

To assemble:

Using a long serrated knife, slice each cake horizontally into 2 layers. Reserve 1 of the flat bottom layers for the top of the cake. Place another layer on a cardboard round cut side up and brush with some of the coconut simple syrup. Spoon 1/3 of the coconut filling onto the cake and using a small offset metal spatula, spread it into an even layer, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge of the cake. Repeat with 2 more layers. Brush the cut side of the reserved cake layer with the remaining syrup. Place the layer cut side down on top of the cake.

Frost the sides and top of the cake with the frosting. Pat the toasted coconut onto the sides of the cake and sprinkle the remaining coconut on the top of the cake.

PUMPKIN-OATMEAL PROTEIN PANCAKES...just add fresh berries and SF maple syrup...

cooling...

75 cal. 11 pro. 5 carb. 0 fat

PROTEIN BREAKFAST SQUARES
pumpkin, oatmeal, cranberry, walnut and protein powder....
obviously, i made this one up....

clean, healthy, YUMMMM....

ORANGE ROUGHY...vera cruz/puttanesca style..ish

i was so bummed...i lost light, the sun went down just as dinner was ready and i missed that yummy sunset glow...

BUT..this turned out great..i made it up as i was prepapring it..sauted french cut onion, sliced garlic and diced peppers in trace olive oil. then added the italian style stewed plum tomatoes...on low 'till heated through, then added the quartered kalamatas and capers...that was it..spicy hot facter was left to each his own...

as for the orange roughy...i kinda cheated and used a quick olive oil spray on the pan and a spritz of butter spray on the fish with some garlic salt...put on high heat as to sear a bit, then flip, cover the pan and turn OFF the heat...that was it...easy to serve...

fresh ALBACORE...

simply grilled with olive oil, sesame oil, a splash of soy and fresh S & P...

GRILLED TIGER SHRIMP...w/rosemary skewer

i was amazed at the flavor with the shell left on during grilling. i can't quit discribe it, but it was a PLUS ! i think they definitely need to be split for the BBQ flavor to infuse the meat, and makes for easey peeling...

0 Tombstone Cupcakes

I can’t believe I'm doing another cupcake post, but I had to share these with you. Once again, it's nothing fancy, just a devil's food cupcake with basic chocolate frosting. Throw in some dirt (crushed chocolate wafers), tombstones (shortbread) and cute little ghosts (marshmallows) and you have a delightful treat not only for the kids but the adults too. I know it's a little kitschy, but that's part of the fun of Halloween.

Devil's Food Cupcakes
(makes 12 cupcakes)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder (don't use Dutch-processed cocoa)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup unflavored oil (canola, grapeseed, etc.)
1 tbsp white or apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter 12 wells of a standard muffin pan or line the wells with paper liners.

Sift flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a large mixing bowl.

In another bowl, mix together the water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Add wet to dry ingredients and mix until just combined and batter is smooth. Be careful not to overmix.

Divide batter evenly among the wells of your muffin pan. Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes or until the cupcakes feel springy when gently pressed. Cool in pan for 5 minutes then gently remove cupcakes from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack before frosting the cupcakes.

Chocolate Frosting
(makes about 1.5 cups frosting which is enough to frost 12 cupcakes)

2 ounces (4 tbsp / half stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (either natural or Dutch-processed is fine)
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2-3 tbsp milk or water
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter and cocoa powder until mixture is soft and well combined. Add the confectioners' sugar, 2 tbsp milk and vanilla. Beat until fluffy. Add the last tablespoon of milk if frosting is too stiff.



How to decorate…

Baked and cooled cupcakes
Chocolate frosting
Chocolate wafers cookies or chocolate graham crackers, finely crushed
Tombstone shortbread cookies*
Miniature marshmallow ghosts**

Frost your cooled cupcakes. Place your crushed chocolate wafers in a shallow bowl and dip the cupcake (frosting size down) into the crushed wafers. This is your "dirt".

Now insert your tombstone shortbread. To prevent crushing or tearing the cupcake, I usually make a slit in the cupcake using the tip of a paring knife before inserting the shortbread. Add your ghosts.

* Use any shortbread or rolled cookie recipe you like. I used a vanilla shortbread cookie recipe and an espresso shortbread recipe. I rolled out the dough and cut out tombstone shapes with a knife. I used melted chocolate chips to write on the tombstones.

** Each ghost requires 2 mini marshmallows. One for the head and one for the body. To make the head, roll the top between your thumb and forefinger to make a slight point. Then slice of a tiny sliver from the bottom to expose the sticky inside and then "glue" the head to the body. To make the eyes, you can use chocolate sprinkles/jimmies or you can using a toothpick dipped in melted chocolate to draw the eyes.

~*~



The cupcake batter recipe I used for my tombstone cupcakes is based on this black bottom cupcake recipe. I've make countless batches of these black bottom cupcakes over the last 20 years. They are quick and easy to make and always a big hit.

Black Bottom Cupcakes
(makes 15 cupcakes)

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter 15 wells of a standard muffin pan or line the wells with paper liners.

Make your cream cheese filling:
In a bowl, mix together one 8-ounce package cream cheese (softened), 1 egg, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Stir in 1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips. Set aside filling while you make your cupcake batter (same recipe as the one used for the tombstone cupcakes above).

Make the cupcake batter. Divide cupcake batter evenly among the wells of your muffin pan. (I would suggest that each well be no more than half full with cupcake batter. If you still have some cupcake batter left, then line and fill more wells of your muffin pan.) Spoon a few tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of each cupcake, dividing the filling evenly. Your wells might be almost full but that's just fine.

Bake at 350F for about 20-25 minutes or until the cupcakes feel springy when gently pressed. Cool in pan for 5 minutes then gently remove cupcakes from pan and let cool on a wire rack.


Sometimes I don’t mix the mini chocolate chips into the cream cheese filling. I just sprinkle the chocolate chips over the filling before baking.

OPAH.....

simple kabobs...

0 I'm Not Trendy

I've been seeing a lot of chatter lately about the cupcake trend coming to an end. But in my humble opinion, cupcakes, in general, have been around for decades and will still be around for many decades to come. Whether or not all those boutique cupcake shops and cupcakeries will still be around is another story. Some say that the new trend is fro-yo. But didn't frozen yogurt already have its time? Remember the 1980s when fat was out and all things low fat (like Snackwells) were in? I guess like fashion trends go through cycles, so do food trends. But as long as children like frosting and adults like small cakes that they don’t have to share, cupcakes will always be available from my kitchen. The cupcakes I make may not be trendy or chic, but they always taste great (and they don’t cost $3.00 each).

These strawberry cupcakes turned out better than I hoped. Don’t get me wrong, I usually have high hopes when I bake anything, but these were surprisingly good and exceeded my expectations. My only complaint was that I hoped the cupcake itself would've turned out more red or even pink and less earth toned. I really didn't want to add red food coloring or strawberry Jell-O powder just to add color. So I guess natural it is. Other than the color, it was a good cupcake recipe. I really liked the texture, crumb and flavor of the cupcake. But how can it not be good when there's sour cream, oil and butter in the batter?


au naturale

Now, the strawberry frosting is really where all the excitement lives. My co-workers absolutely loved the frosting. I love how pink the frosting was just from the addition of strawberries and some jam. And how pretty are the little flecks of strawberry throughout the frosting? Even though it tasted really good (kinda like strawberry ice cream), the frosting was too sweet for me. But I admit that I find most American-style (butter and confectioners' sugar, no eggs) buttercream frostings too sweet.



Ponchatoula Strawberry Cupcakes
(Makes 24 cupcakes)
(Adapted from Serious Eats who adapted the recipe from Screen Doors and Sweet Tea by Martha Hall Foose)

2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup sour cream, at room temp
1/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (4 ounces/1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temp
1 cup mashed fresh or frozen strawberries, (if the strawberries are cold or frozen, mash and let sit until it comes to room temp)
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
Strawberry Frosting (see recipe below)

Make the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour the wells of your muffin tins or line with cupcake liners.

2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside dry ingredients.

3. In another bowl, combine the sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract. Set aside.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add the sour cream mixture. Beat for 1 minute at medium speed.

5. On low speed add the flour mixture. Mix until just flour is just incorporated. Mix in the mashed strawberries and orange zest. Spoon into your prepared muffin tins, filling each well approximately two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or when cupcakes spring back when touched lightly in the center. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove the cupcakes from the pan and cool on racks. Let cool completely before frosting.

Strawberry Frosting
(Makes enough to lightly frost 24 cupcakes. You can double the recipe if you want more frosting)

1/3 cup chopped fresh or frozen strawberries
1 tablespoon strawberry jam
1 teaspoon fresh lemon or orange juice
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cups (6 ounces/1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 to 2.5 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted (the amount needed will depend on how thick you like your frosting)

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the chopped strawberries, jam, and lemon/orange juice. Cook and stir for 5 minutes, or until the jam is melted and the strawberries are soft. Press any big pieces with the back of a spoon to mash. Let cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter at medium speed until creamy. On low speed, slowly add about 1 3/4 cup the confectioners’ sugar and mix until combined. Add the strawberry mixture and mix on low speed until blended. Add as much of the remaining 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar until you achieve the desired thickness.

When the cupcakes are completely cool, spread with the frosting.

~*~


I made some cupcakes for my nephew to take to kindergarten for his birthday. He wanted "Cars" themed cupcakes. I made some vanilla cupcakes and frosted them with your basic butter and confectioners' sugar vanilla buttercream frosting. I did not stay dye free for the frosting. I originally wanted to do a red frosting since the main character in the movie is a red car and the "Cars" cupcake paper liners were mostly blue, but my nephew is going through an anti-red food phase right now. So blue was my next choice. I wanted dark blue frosting but as I was mixing the buttercream I realized that I would have to add more food coloring than I wanted to use. So I made the executive decision to keep it a lighter blue. My nephew was so adorable. He called to thank me for making him cupcakes to take to school. It just made my heart melt.


The nice man working at the supermarket bakery counter gave me the plastic container.No more smooshed frosting when transporting cupcakes to school.

grilled FRESH SWORDFISH...

just plain and simple...good olive oil (always important), kosher salt, fresh ground pepper..

done...

0 Mini Fig Cakes

No summer is complete unless I make my summer fruit torte at least once. This year my summer torte came a bit late. So I guess it's really more of an autumn fruit torte. But it just goes to show the versatility of this recipe. Black Mission figs were looking good at the farmers' market so we bought more than we could eat. I had a handful of figs that were a bit wrinkly and were just past their prime for eating fresh but still perfectly good.

I decided to play around with the torte recipe and I ended up with these miniature fig cakes. They are not quite muffins and not quite cupcakes either, but they were quite good. I was hoping that the fig would be more visible in the end product, but they ended up sinking to the middle of the little cakes. Oh well. The nuttiness of the ground hazelnuts made for a nice complement to the sweet figs.



Miniature Fig Cakes
(makes 12)

4 oz (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temp.
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup ground hazelnuts
1 tbsp baking powder
pinch of salt
6 figs, halved
1 tbsp granulated sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat oven 350 F. Line 12 (4-ounce capacity) wells of a standard muffin pan with paper liners or butter and flour each of the wells.

In a bowl, whisk the flour, ground hazelnuts, baking powder and salt to combine. Set aside.

Cream the butter and both sugars until light. Mix in vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Add dry ingredients and mix until the dry ingredients are just incorporated. Batter will be a bit stiff.

Divide the batter evenly among the 12 prepared wells. Place 1 halved fig atop the batter in each well. Sprinkle with sugar if using.

Bake mini cakes until golden brown or until a tester comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes.

Note: I actually used 9 figs total. I placed 1 halved fig and 1 quartered fig in each cake.

BBQ salmon with steamed bok choy...personally, i think salmon is best when removed from the fire just before you think it's done...it's so moist that it melts in your mouth...and if you have left-over you can still warm it without having over cooked seconds...