What About Second Breakfast?

Nian Gao!

2012-01-26T16:27:00.000-05:00

Nian gao always conjures up one memory. My mom often made one for Chinese New Year (in fact, its literal translation is "year cake") when I was little. One year I couldn't wait to taste it, and I liked the cake in its molten, not quite set form. I stuck my finger in the cake while it was still cooling and had a taste. Not much later Mom yelled, in Mandarin, "Who stuck their finger in the nian gao?!" See, I was years away from any culinary know-how or common sense, so I didn't know I had left a finger imprint behind as evidence. At least it gave Mom a good laugh.

New York in the 1980s. I'm one of the runts sitting on the wall. I'm not sure which one.

A couple of years ago, I asked Mom for the recipe. Like so many of Mom's recipes, there was no written form or measurements or timing. Which means that if she hasn't made the recipe in a long time, it might not come out right because she doesn't quite remember how it was made. So after telling me "a little of this, and a little of that" over the phone, I tried making her nian gao and ended up with some awful tough thing. This year I turned to Epicurious.

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Windsor Tea Room

2011-12-04T23:02:00.000-05:00

Ever notice how a cup of tea and a scone can slow life down, and make it a calmer and happier place? When life suddenly turns your landlord into a psychotic nut and your life is in boxes, many a cuppa will get you through it. That's right, folks, I've been silent because I've been apartment-hunting and then moving (still in the same area), but I am unpacking my new kitchen and really eager to get into the spirit of Christmas baking.

But I did make the time to explore a new tearoom with friends, and it was fun and delicious. So head on over to our Boston Tea Party blog and read mine and Rebecca's takes on the Windsor Tea Room in Cohasset, and I'll get cookin' soon!

Apple Butter Hand Pies

2011-11-03T21:08:00.000-04:00

I have only one complaint about this recipe, and it's that these mini-pies can't hold any more apple butter. So I spread more on top of a hand pie like it's toast. But spoon more apple butter inside and it just squeezes out the sides when the pastry is folded up. The crust is nice too, made tender and slightly tangy with the addition of cream cheese, and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. It comes out softer than your usual pie crust, almost like a cookie. The pies are also good reheated in the toaster oven the day after.

The apple butter took some time to make, but not much work. I used 6 pounds of Galas from the farmers market. It was my first taste ever of apple butter, and I found it to be somewhere between applesauce and apple pie filling, and nicely spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and clove. You won't use it all up in the pies like the recipe indicates, but that's all right with me: The apple butter is also great on top of pancakes, or as part of a grilled cheese sandwich. I think pear butter has to be next on my list.

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Caramelized Pear Ice Cream

2011-10-20T15:48:00.000-04:00

I've never had pear ice cream, and didn't know it could be this good. The pear is refreshing, but the caramelization gives it a buttery flavor and creaminess, without any butter. For this recipe in The Perfect Scoop, David Lebovitz recommends Comice or Bartlett pears, which he says have a heady, roselike aroma when ripe. I found beautiful and fragrant red Comice pears at the grocery store.

I also made his recipe for Salted Butter Caramel Sauce to drizzle on top, but it's totally unnecessary and kind of redundant. Joe's really been enjoying the caramel as a topping for vanilla ice cream, and the sauce is really easy to make. But the Pear-Caramel Ice Cream is delicious all on its own.

This post was shared with:
Tea Party Tuesday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweet Tooth Friday
Sweets for a Saturday

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Chipotle Chicken and Rice

2011-10-17T14:41:00.000-04:00

This dish has gone through several incarnations, but its origins were in a dish called Pollo Estofado. I liked this chicken and rice dish from my sister's ex, and made some changes for convenience and personal taste. He served rice on the side in addition to potatoes in the dish; I was looking to avoid carb overload so I threw out the potatoes, and decided the green bell peppers should go too. In the end, I browned the chicken with aromatics, then cooked the rice in the same saute pan -- the chicken ends up infusing the rice with its flavor. Frozen peas are stirred in at the end and warmed through, adding a bright green.

But now I have one more revision. Inspired by a similar Martha Stewart recipe I saw online that looked hopelessly fussy, I added chipotles to my dish for added flavor and heat. The two chipotles made the spice level barely warm, so I would use four next time. Point of reference: I'm a spice wimp, so if you like it hot you may want to amp it up with even more chiles.

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Shredded Pork in Red Chili

2011-10-12T19:41:00.000-04:00

As much as I complain about the ending of summer, it's always exciting when the time to make cold-weather comfort food arrives. This recipe seemed like the answer to that pork loin stashed in my freezer, and I was intrigued by the idea of a pork chili. In my hurry, I shaved an hour off the cook time and the meat was still fall-apart tender.

I made a few changes. For one, the recipe doesn't say how much hominy to use, so I just left it out. Also, I'm not fond of yuca and didn't have any, so I substituted a sweet potato. I felt the sweet potato absorbed too much salty flavor, and might be inclined to leave it out or cook it separately next time. And as a spice wuss I cut down on the dried chiles and chipotle. The verdict: Joe was crazy about this dish, and I thought it was OK. It was good, but I didn't feel wowed, like something was missing. And not just the tongue-sear from omitting some chiles. I might give it another go, now that we're officially in Dutch oven season.

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Sarabeth's Maple Muffins

2011-10-06T18:38:00.000-04:00

Muffins often don't impress me, but the recipe for these Maple Muffins caught my eye right away. Joe got me Sarabeth's Bakery: From My Home to Yours as one of my Christmas gifts a year ago, and I was drawn to the photo with the golden sides and crackly tops. I also love maple syrup as a flavoring. On first bite, I was surprised because I expected a more assertive maple flavor. But it's more subtle, kind of lightly perfumed with maple, and the walnuts taste a little salty by comparison. Winner.

An additional bonus was how easy the recipe was. Especially compared with the Pains au Chocolat (chocolate croissants) and Pains aux Raisins I made from the book earlier this year! A negative? Pure maple syrup is an expensive ingredient, and the Grade B (it's superior to Grade A) this recipe calls for isn't always sold in supermarkets. My tip is to buy it at Trader Joe's if there's a location near you, since it had the Grade B available and was more affordable.

Also worth mentioning is that I made these in a cupcake pan, and the leftover batter in mini brioche molds. I don't own a muffin pan, and even I have a limit with how much I cram in my kitchen. Sarabeth writes that she's not a fan of paper muffin liners, and I have to agree because the muffins got the most beautiful, golden brown sides without them. If you also opt for a cupcake pan, cut the cooking time short by 5 minutes.

Finally, the recipe also calls for some whole wheat flour. I like King Arthur's White Whole Wheat Flour because it's got all the nutrition of whole wheat, but its taste and consistency are closer to plain white flour. The difference is that it's made from the white wheat berry instead of the red wheat berry, which is used for the more common whole wheat flour in stores.

This post was shared with:
Tea Party Tuesday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweet Tooth Friday
Sweets for a Saturday

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"Austen" Cucumber Tea Sandwiches

2011-09-30T15:03:00.000-04:00

I have not been able to get these sandwiches out of my head! Rebecca from my Austen in Boston book club makes some awesome sandwiches, but these are my favorite, hands down. Rebecca calls them "Austen in Boston" English Cucumber Tea Sandwiches. We enjoyed them at our last picnic, and they are so good with a cup of tea -- with cream and sugar, of course.

This post also appears at Boston Tea Party.

Cucumber sandwiches are simple, but these get some complexity from herbs and good-quality bread. Rebecca uses Ezekiel Bran for Life bread, but my store didn't have any so I went with Nature's Pride Nutty Oat (strangely, the packaging says it has a nutty flavor but no nuts, and it's 100% natural). Even Joe loved the nutty oat, and he isn't always keen on the 12-grain-type breads I bring home. Plus I think ordinary white bread is too bland for something as mild as cucumber.

Using a mandoline gives you uniform slices

The slices are paper-thin

Rebecca also uses organic cream cheese, nothing artificial. I went with neufchatel cheese, which tastes just like cream cheese but has a third less fat. Philadelphia makes one. I went with the English seedless cucumber she recommended -- it has less water and seeds than regular cucumber -- as well as the dill. Rebecca recommends dried chives as an alternative and says they're better than fresh. I used both dill and fresh chives, since I have chives growing in my garden and personally love them fresh.

Slathering cream cheese on half of the bread

Slightly overlap layers of cucumber, then repeat once

These few ingredients make up a sandwich both delicate for tea and snacking, but hearty enough to fill you up, to my surprise. Now, I once made cucumber sandwiches on this blog way back when, but in retrospect I didn't have a great formula. You need the right ratio of cucumber slices to cream cheese to bread, and this recipe has it. I foresee many chilly afternoons with these babies and a hot pot of tea.

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Afternoon Tea at the Boston Public Library

2011-09-24T00:00:00.000-04:00

I had afternoon tea with my Austen in Boston book club at the Boston Public Library at Copley Square. This review also appears at Boston Tea Party.

The main branch of the Boston Public Library at Copley Square sure sounds like the perfect place for afternoon tea: historical architecture, a courtyard complete with fountain, murals by John Singer Sargent, scores of books for Austen lovers like us. In general, it did not disappoint.

The atmosphere was more casual and relaxing than the local hotels that serve tea. You don't have to dress up much, or sit up very straight. There is no maître d' or harpist. The room is beautifully and classically decorated. But on a Friday afternoon few of the tables were occupied so most of them were not set, leaving the room feeling slightly empty.

The polka dot china was cute, but the plain white teapots, sugar holder, and creamer were a disappointment. The food was good, and the caterer is new-ish. At $22.50 plus tax and tip (the 18% gratuity is included in the check), it's more affordable than tea at most hotels, though it seemed like less food. But after more cups of tea, I felt positively full.

The watercress sandwich with lemon aioli was surprisingly and pleasantly fragrant. The caper on the smoked salmon was a nice touch, the apricot chicken salad sandwich was all right, and the cucumber and herb cream cheese was traditional but always a favorite. The crumbled bacon and tomato sandwich was an unusual addition to tea, but so good.

The blackberry and peach tart had the perfect balance of sweet and tart in a crisp pastry shell. The raspberry and lemon cream tart was simple but delicious. I'd been wondering, "What the heck is a chocolate sinclair?" It turned out to be an ultra-rich and dense chocolate cake, and the small size was just right for the intensity of the chocolate.

The currant scones were served with Devonshire clotted cream and four fruit marmalade. The only problem with them? I wanted more.

I had the Ceylon tea and was happy with it. Kirk's peach and ginger tea smelled good. Erica and Karen seemed to like their teas, but I forgot to ask for their verdicts.

In my personal ranking of Boston-area tea venues, this one is around the top. The food at the library wins over Hallowed Herbs in Quincy and the Four Seasons, is about the same as the Langham, and almost as good as the Taj. The ambiance is better than the Four Seasons, Hallowed Herbs, and Langham, but not the Taj (if going by the room alone). But for a more relaxed and unfussy feel (and Kirk was a fan of this), the library wins over the Taj. The service was good. The company is always excellent. ;) My verdict: Visit it!

I'm tacking on the additional thoughts of Kirk:
Wonderful review, Shirley! I agree! My tea (it was a black tea) was more peach than ginger in taste, which was fine by me (lol, I'm more peach than ginger, err more of a fan of Marianne (ok Maryanne is the common spelling, but as this is a Jane Austen bookclub..,) than Ginger). Yes, what a wonderful nose the tea had! Maybe that was the ginger. I thought I had the best seat in the room. To my right eye, the corridor and courtyard.To my left, the delightful company. :) Speaking of the corridor, it was amusing when two women stopped in the corridor to check out what we were eating and waved at us! That certainly added to the relaxed feeling I had (try that at the Taj). I don't normally like to be observed eating, but it was perfectly fine there. I was impressed that the manager was willing to do a Tea only option for one member of our party who wasn't sure about eating. I certainly enjoyed the food...did have a slight "reaction" to the cucumber (lol, Rebecca's was much better last
Sunday!). I agree about the bacon and tomato. Loved the salmon and caper as well. I would be delighted to go back in a couple months!

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Nuo Mi Fan, or Chinese Sticky Rice

2011-09-12T10:00:00.000-04:00

Nuo Mi Fan, or Chinese Sticky Rice, is a Chinese household staple. This is another recipe from Mom, who calls it Luo Mi Fan, but the pronunciation must differ by region because I can't find an "official" one in my searches. I like mine extra sticky. I recently discovered that lots of Chinese-Americans will use Nuo Mi Fan in place of a bread stuffing in their turkeys for Thanksgiving. Mom always used Stovetop, and I've made my own bread stuffing from scratch for years.

Grandpa in the 1940s; Grandma, Dad, and my aunt

However, she said Grandpa, whom I called Ah-gong, used it to stuff his turkeys as well. Grandpa was a native of Hainan, China, who immigrated to Singapore. There he worked as a cook on ships, though we inherited no recipes from him. He was on a ship during a Japanese invasion of Singapore (in the 1940s, I believe), and borders were closed and he ended up in New York City, parted from his family. Only decades later did he locate my Grandma and Dad, and they rejoined him in New York after Dad married Mom. But apparently during that time Grandpa engaged in practices like stuffing turkeys with sticky rice and developing a taste for Irish corned beef, which the Hainanese of Brooklyn called "salty beef."

One important thing of note is that Nuo Mi Fan usually includes dried mushrooms that are rehydrated. But I hate mushrooms in any form. So when Mom taught me this recipe earlier this summer, she omitted them. That led Dad to ask, "Where are the mushrooms?" For me the main attraction instead is the Chinese sausage, called la chang or lap cheong. It's got a different flavor and texture from Western-style sausages, so don't substitute. Some brands are better than others (I had an awful one once), but Mom got these straight from the butcher for me. You can freeze them.

Regular long-grain rice won't work in this recipe. You have to get glutinous rice, also known as sweet rice. The grains are shorter and rounder and the result stickier, kind of like risotto.

Nuo Mi Fan is traditionally plated as a dome

Dried shrimp are common in Chinese cooking, but the unfamiliarity can put some people off. Give it a try, but if it's a deal breaker or you can't find any, omit them.

And on a side note, it's mooncake time! The Mid-Autumn Festival starts on Sept. 12 this year, so I bought my mooncakes, or yuebing. I've noticed some beautiful snowskin mooncakes in various colors on the blogosphere lately. View a bunch here.

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Gluten Freedom: Kiss Me, (Chocolate) Cake!

2011-09-09T00:10:00.017-04:00

I'd like to welcome WASB's newest contributor, Shannon, who will write Gluten FREEDOM! on Fridays.
Without further ado...

Hello, and Welcome to the first edition of Gluten FREEDOM!, a new feature on the fabulous "What About..." blog ^_^

Why gluten free? Well, to begin with, 1 out of every 133 people have a gluten allergy or Celiac disease (or so my box of Potato Buds tells me). An even more truly disturbing statistic is that 1 in every two gluten free product tastes like... well, lets just say they aren't very good. If you have ever eaten these so called 'baked goods' then you know what I'm talking about: chalky or gritty texture, dry, crumbly body, and often it tastes nothing like the yumminess we're craving.

Well, I aim to change that. I say: take command of our culinary destinies! Rise up, my afflicted brethren and say "NO!" Say "I'll Pass, Thank you Very Much!", to heathen dishes and lackluster confections! With my spatula held high, I vow to lead the way and share with you my secrets for gluten free baking and cooking so delicious that your friends will never suspect a thing!

To that end, let us begin with this decadent chocolate cake. Rich, fudgey and moist, it tastes exactly like a traditional cake made with flour. I made this for my Mom's birthday and even my Dad, who is normally very leery of gluten free foods, DEVOURED it! It's just that good, I promise. It's based off of a cake from a Hershey's cookbook that my mother used to make years ago, however since that book is lost the recipe has been adapted from memory.

First up, the ingredients:

3 cups of TIGHTLY PACKED dark brown sugar

2 sticks of softened sweet (unsalted) butter

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 eggs (lightly beaten)

2 3/4 cups of a good, finely milled gluten free flour mix

( I prefer either "Gluten Free Pantry" or "Better Batter"'s blends, but you can always try something else or even make your own blend. Just make sure the flours you use are the finest texture you can possibly get -- this is crucial to the end texture of the cake.)

3/4 cup Dutch Processed Cocoa

1 tablespoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cup sour cream (use the full fat kind - no one ever said this was gunna be dietetic guys)

1 cup boiling water

Okay now here's the part where I confess that I am an incredibly lazy baker. If there is a way for me to do less steps, I will take it. Fortunately, this turns out to be a blessing for gluten free baking, because if there is one thing you want to avoid it's over mixing. I think it has to do with the xanthan gum- that stuff can get reaaaaally gross.

Anyway, here's what you do. First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Take all the dry ingredients and put them in a bowl (sugar remember, counts as a wet ingredient in baking). If your cocoa looks like this:

Don't stress it. And sure, you COULD sift it, but why? It just adds another step! Go ahead, save time ad just dump it all an a bowl and whisk away until your mixture is mostly combined. The big clumps will break up and a few small ones are not the end of the world.

In a separate large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar as if you were making cookies. (After getting the butter in the bowl, use the papers from the butter to grease your cake pans - standard 9 inches work fine and deep walled ones are ideal. After buttering the pans, toss some cocoa in them and move the pans in a circular motion while tapping away at the sides and bottom of the pan to evenly distribute the cocoa. This will ensure a clean release after baking.) Add the vanilla and then add your already beaten eggs. To this mixture, add about half of the dry mixture (or a third if it seems easier for you). Mix until it's just coming together and then add some of the sour cream. Again, mix until just together and then add more of the dry. Keep alternating until all of the mix and sour cream are just combined into the batter. DO NOT OVER MIX!

Finally, CAREFULLY measure out one cup of boiling water. If you're mixing by hand, add the water slowly in two installments. If you're using a stand or hand mixer, just add it nice and easy on low. You want minimal air bubbles here. Gently pour the mixture into your prepared pans, using a spatula laid across the top if the pans to help eyeball even distribution and to make sure you don't overfill the pans.

Carefully put your pans in the oven and bake for around 45-55 minutes, but DO NOT OVER BAKE! If you know your oven tends to bake things more quickly, than start checking for doneness at 35 minutes. Use the standard toothpick or skewer method (insert into the center of cake and remove from oven when you see no uncooked batter left on the tester but ideally when the cake is still moist enough to leave crumbs on the probe of your choice.)

Ah... the smell alone will drive lesser mind wild! Cool on a wire rack for about ten minutes, then upend out of their pans to cool the rest of the way. They should slide right out, but if not take a skinny spatula and gently run it along the edge where cake meets pan.

If your cake has baked up too high and has formed a "lip", wait until it is completely cooled and remove the extra with a sharp, serrated knife. Eat this bit as your reward for a job well done :)

Now, you can frost this cake any way you want to with any kind of frosting - even one from a can if you must, but for the love of all things yummy why would you frost it with anything other than chocolate?? And frosting can be really easy to make! Here's a very simple butter frosting recipe:

Take two sticks of softened butter and beat until fluffy. Add one box of confectioners sugar. Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Add as much dutch processed cocoa as you want until you reach your desired level of chocolatey-ness. If you really want to add some serious chocolate taste, go ahead and melt yourself a square of bakers chocolate and add that to the frosting (be careful not to add it when it's still too hot!) You might want to double this recipe if you like a lot of frosting on your cake.

Decorate your cake or leave it plain. A simple Hershey's kiss on the top is a charming touch. Serve any way you like, or just eat it with your bare hands! Either way, I hope you and your loved ones will enjoy this recipe as the first of many that will give us "Celiacies" and gluten free eaters back our Yumm!

Banana Cream Pie

2011-09-07T14:53:00.000-04:00

I have yet to meet someone who does not like banana cream pie. Slices of banana are stirred into a pastry cream, spooned into a pie crust, and topped with lightly sweetened whipped cream ... what's not to like? And this mini-pie is adorable.

If only its bigger brother were so successful. When I cut into the big one, the filling was not quite soupy, but not as firm as it should have been. I initially thought the recipe was at fault and was going to direct readers to this earlier recipe, but the fault lay with me. In the rush of Labor Day, I refrigerated the big one for only half the recommended time, thinking the filling had set enough, and tended to other things. But later at home when I cut into the mini-pie, which had been refrigerated all day, the consistency was perfect. So don't follow my example, but follow the recipe!

This post was linked to:
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweet Tooth Friday
Tea Party Tuesday
Sweets for a Saturday

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Giving New Meaning to "Baby Food"

2011-09-04T21:30:00.000-04:00

It looks like this recipe from my sister goes something like, put a carrot, two onions, some soy sauce, sazon, and Audrey in a pot.

Chocolate Gelato, and Hold the Extras

2011-09-02T15:11:00.000-04:00

I'm mostly an ice cream purist -- hold the nuts, chocolate chips, candy, and other bits. Pure chocolate is my undisputed favorite, though maple ice cream is also up there. With only four ingredients, this gelato has a deep and intense chocolate flavor. That's owed in large part to the high quality of cocoa I used, Guittard. I had my doubts because the unfrozen gelato tasted an awful lot like pudding, but once it was frozen and set up it was like rich chocolate ice cream. Is it my favorite recipe? No, that distinction still belongs to Ben & Jerry's, but this is still excellent and easier.

Like most gelato recipes, this one uses milk and not cream. That's a plus in the health department, but it usually means a dessert that's icier and not satisfyingly rich, like the strawberry gelato I tried a couple months ago. That wasn't a problem here. Try this one when your next chocolate craving hits.

This post is linked to:
Sweets for a Saturday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Sweet Tooth Friday
Tea Party Tuesday

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Chicken Stir-Fry with Snow Peas

2011-08-30T23:05:00.004-04:00

"How did you make that chicken??" Joe insisted on knowing. He couldn't stop talking about how tender and juicy and perfectly cooked it was. I had just thrown some ingredients in the fridge together as a stir-fry, and he loved it. "Is it dark-meat chicken? Thighs?" No. "Then what did you do to it?"

I had fun drawing out the suspense. I had just taken chicken breasts, cut them up, and marinated them for a few minutes in soy sauce, cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, and a bit of baking soda. A later conversation with my mother revealed that restaurants use the baking soda to tenderize beef, not chicken; egg white is used for chicken. Whatever, Mom, it works. No, you won't taste the baking soda, and I wouldn't be worried about consuming it -- it's in baked goods all the time. Worth noting: I like this brand of oyster sauce because it has no MSG.

Kind of worth noting: I have childhood memories of my mom seating me in front of piles of snow peas and having me peel off that tendril at the top and down the side. It annoyed me as a kid, especially since I hated vegetables until college, but I smile to think of it now.

My other guess as to why the chicken turned out so well is that I always try not to overcook meat. I think people get so afraid of undercooking meat that they dry it out and toughen it, and I cooked the chicken just until it was done.

Throw in some garlic and slightly crunchy snow peas, and you've got a delicious and healthy dinner. And a Joe who won't stop eating the chicken when you try to photograph a blog post.
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I Got the Versatile Blogger Award

2011-08-27T14:53:00.002-04:00

I'm flattered that Brandi, Leslie, and Amanda of Three Fabulous Mommies thought of this blog when passing on “The Versatile Blogger” award. Thanks to the three of you for following What About Second Breakfast? Be sure to check out Three Fabulous Mommies, and the other great blogs below.

The rules after accepting the Versatile Blogger Award are:
1. Thank the person who gave the award and link back to them in your post.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass this award along to 15 recently discovered blogs. (I got lazy and did 10)

Seven facts about Shirley:
1. I speak on the conversational, not fluent, level of Mandarin, and know only a few phrases of my grandparents' dialect, from Hainan, China.
2. I LOVE cats. I'm not a hoarder, but I had 2 and recently lost 1 so I'm sad. :(
3. I like using spreadsheets.
4. I enjoy fantasy novels (did my blog's title clue you in?) and Victorian and Regency lit. Jane Austen, Lord of the Rings, and A Song of Ice and Fire (the Game of Thrones series) rank at top.
5. I never learned to swim, but that didn't stop me from hopping on a jet-ski once!
6. People assume I have hoity-toity food tastes, but fast food is a guilty pleasure for me. Don't even think about touching my fries. Seriously.
7. My mom didn't know she was having twins until the doctor said another one (me!) was coming.

10 Versatile Bloggers (in no particular order):

1. Adora's Box
2. Tracy's Culinary Adventures
3. Anecdotes and Apple Cores
4. IndianSimmer
5. Just One Cookbook
6. All Day I Dream About Food
7. The Culinary Chronicles
8. The Sweet Swiper
9. Cats and Casseroles
10. A Pinch of Sweet

Lattice-top Peach Pie

2011-08-25T12:14:00.003-04:00

The nights are already starting to get chilly in Boston, and I'm going to miss having in-season watermelon, cherries, and peaches. While I look forward to the warming food and holidays of autumn, I'm always sad to leave the barbeques, beach trips, and fresh fruits of summer behind. Peach pie is a constant rival with apple for favorite pie in my book, and I wanted to try a new recipe this summer. This is a Lattice-top Peach Pie with a cream cheese crust.

The top crust in the recipe isn't a lattice, but when I flipped to the photos in the middle of the book I saw the same recipe with a lattice and thought, why not? I'll describe the few adjustments to make when using a lattice in the recipe section after the jump.

The other thing I'll miss? Picking strawberries off my porch. The sweetness and subtlety of flavors just can't compare with grocery store strawberries.

Unfortunately, I only pick about 5 a week and they're barely bigger than grapes. Where are my pints? If you have strawberry-growing tips, please share! The information tab on this plant even promised huge berries.

Truth be told, although the cream cheese crust came out perfect, I'd prefer a flaky all-butter crust to pair with peaches. But I can attest to this same cream cheese crust being perfect for Apple Pie and Banana Cream Pie. And I'd give the filling a hit of cinnamon next time, as I usually do. But I can't complain, because it's still a pretty damn good pie.

If you've never done a lattice top, it's honestly one of the easiest parts. Not lyin'. Rolling out the dough and trying to prevent rips and tears can rile me up, but weaving those strips in and out takes only a minute.

One last tip: For peeling those soft peach skins, this serrated peeler is amazing. I found mine at Sur la Table. I've heard of cutting an X into the bottom of a peach, blanching it in a pot of water, and then plunging it into ice water. Skip the production and just get a serrated peeler. Happy baking!

This post is linked to:
* Sweet Treats Party
* Sweets for a Saturday
* Sweet Tooth Friday
* Tea Party Tuesday
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Making Biscuits for Baby: Peach Shortcakes

2011-08-04T18:14:00.004-04:00

These fluffy, buttery shortcakes are filled with peaches and cream with a dash of cinnamon, perfect for the summer. I had planned and looked forward to doing a recipe like this earlier, eagerly anticipating peach season. But a couple of weeks ago our cat, Baby, was struck with a sudden illness and we lost him very shortly after. His suffering was heartbreaking. After losing him, I barely slept and had no appetite whatsoever, both of which could not be more unlike myself. I cried. A lot.

Baby was the cat who thought he was a person, and had a big personality by turns loving, inquisitive, even bossy. My furry BFF. I missed falling asleep and waking with him, having him insist on sharing my seat at the table, greeting me when I came home, petting his soft fur, looking into his sweet face. His little brother, Shnooky, has been a comfort to us. (Disclaimer: I didn't name them, but their names are very fitting.)

Like many cats, Baby would use his claws to knead beds and blankets. My friend Bill once told me, "Do you know what they call cats doing that in the South? Making biscuits." And when I finally regained some appetite for food and life, I knew I wanted to make this recipe. So this post is for you, buddy, and nine years of beautiful friendship. I will always miss you more than I can say.

This biscuit recipe is super-easy, and it advises you to handle the dough as little as possible for the softest biscuits. But that's not my style. Instead of just scooping the dough onto baking sheets, I rolled out the dough and cut out biscuits with a scalloped cutter. Much prettier. At top, the unbaked rounds, and above, golden puffed-up goodness.

While they're still warm, split them open and top the bottom half with sweetened whipped cream and peaches and some ground cinnamon. You might even want to enjoy it in the outdoors.

This post was linked up with Sweets for a Saturday.

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Blackberry Ice Cream

2011-07-06T11:30:00.001-04:00

My friend Jacob recently wrote on my Facebook wall: "Less fruit, more chocolate." He isn't so fond of fruit, and has a particular hate of apples. I know -- I don't understand him, and I don't think I want to. Sorry, Jacob, but it's summer! Crops are ripening, farmers markets are bustling, and all that fruit looks and smells good.

I'm not even big on berry ice creams. Pure chocolate is my favorite, or vanilla flavored with chocolate. But this one was wonderfully creamy, and had that great blackberry taste without the pucker you can get from eating the fruit plain. It even won over Joe, who prefers coffee or peanut butter cup ice creams. Maybe you could drizzle some fudge sauce on top, Jacob?

This post was submitted to Sweets for a Saturday.

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Vanilla Bean-Pineapple Tart

2011-06-30T12:22:00.002-04:00

The smells of pineapple, vanilla, and rum flooding my house when I baked this tart made me think of umbrella drinks and tropical vacations. These ingredients are topped off by a beautiful, intricate lattice crust. It may look complicated, but the only difficult part of this recipe was keeping the dough cold during the summer heat. It kept getting melty and sticking to my board and tearing, and it took a few return trips to the fridge and a bunch of patience I was running out of.

But the smell of pineapple and rum instantly restored my mood. And in the end the crust looked great and it's always fun to weave a lattice. The filling tasted like the top of an upside-down pineapple cake (or the bottom, if you haven't up-ended it yet).

Half your dough is used for the tart bottom, but the other half is cut into strips for your lattice top. The lattice is woven on parchment paper (or waxed paper, in this case), frozen until ready to use, and then carefully slid on top of the tart.

Fresh pineapple is simmered with rum, sugars, and vanilla bean. The cooked and cooled chunks are added to the tart shell. This tart is in the very sweet category, so next time I would personally halve the sugars. If you enjoy sugar rush, follow the recipe.

The taste of rum is faint in the final product, if that's a concern of yours. I'm not sure if this is because I used whatever rum was in the house instead of the dark rum that was called for, or if the alcohol simply cooked off.

The tart is then chilled with the lattice, which is brushed with egg wash before going in the oven.

And since I made this recipe in a square pan, having no rectangular tart pan, there was some filling and dough left over for a mini. Isn't it cute?

This post was submitted to Sweets for a Saturday.

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Chocolate Cream Pie

2011-06-22T17:26:00.005-04:00

This Chocolate Cream Pie has the best of all worlds: a chocolate graham cracker crumb crust is filled with a rich chocolate pudding, and topped off with a vanilla whipped cream and chocolate curls. While this crust was easy to make, I wouldn't fault anyone for buying those premade crusts in the heat of summer to make a no-bake version. And for the gluten-free among us, simply swap in gluten-free chocolate wafers to enjoy this dessert.

The crust is nicely sandy and a bit crunchy, the pudding is one of the best I've ever had, and who doesn't like whipped cream? You can simply spread on the cream, or pipe it in pretty stars like I did here for a fancier look. I used Callebaut chocolate for the pudding once, and Ghirardelli another time. You might be tempted to add more sugar if you taste the pudding when it's done and still hot, but keep in mind that puddings always taste sweeter after they chill. But I decreased the confectioners' sugar in the whipped cream to a quarter-cup because I didn't feel it needed a half-cup. And I was very, very pleased with all the results.

I've submitted this to Lisa's Sweets for a Saturday.

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Crispy Fried Chicken

2011-06-21T13:58:00.000-04:00

You may recall my first post on Fried Chicken ages ago (three years!!), and it was a good recipe. But I recently saw another on TV that intrigued me: the usual chicken coating of flour was blended with cornmeal and double-dredged to intensify the crunch factor, and would still be crispy later in the day if you wanted to take it to a picnic.

I skipped most of the brining instructions, and simplified it to an hour's soak of cold water with some salt. Still came out very juicy. I can vouch for the extra crunchy/crispy factor, but I don't know about hours later; we ate them right away, and the next day out of the fridge they were no longer crunchy but crisped up again in the toaster oven. I think I've got a new favorite recipe, or maybe just for the next three years.

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Roasted Corn Salad

2011-06-20T19:46:00.002-04:00

I could have attacked this whole dish with a spoon, it was that good. Fresh corn and some poblano get slightly smoky under the broiler, and then mingle with the fresh flavors of tomato, scallion, and basil. My friend Dorothy asked for the recipe, and I said, "What recipe? I threw it together." But it was easy enough that I roughly remembered everything.

Fans of cilantro can substitute that herb for the basil. Feel free to use more poblano if you like it spicy, or substitute a hotter pepper. I meant to use lime, but after sampling a little salad with some juice I felt the lime overpowered the other flavors. Throw in other vegetables that you like, and make it your own -- just keep tasting and re-seasoning. For my personal tastes, it was the perfect summer salad.

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Bittman's Bulgogi (Korean Barbeque)

2011-06-15T20:14:00.001-04:00

One of my fondest childhood memories is my parents taking us to eat Korean barbeque. We'd make the trek from Brooklyn to Flushing, in Queens. I would arrive home with my jacket smelling like the grilled beef, and it was Carnivore Nirvana. When I moved to the Boston area, my sister would eagerly make the treks with me to Koreana in Cambridge. The waitresses would bring us nearly a dozen side dishes, and we would cook the meat on the tabletop grills. The beef would be flavorful and juicy, but just slightly crisp and charred at the edges.

When I saw Mark Bittman's Backyard Bulgogi article, I got excited. Sure, he's not Korean, but the man can cook, can't he? I liked how simple the recipe was, but it sure didn't look like the time my summer term college suitemate from South Korea made bulgogi (I remember a lot more soy sauce, and sliced white onions). The verdict: It didn't taste quite like bulgogi, but it was still pretty damn good. You really can't go wrong with marinating beef in a paste of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, and scallions. The only real change I made was to broil the beef, since the last time I used my gas grill it caught on fire -- no, not the way it's supposed to. But the broiler did the trick, and it was close to Carnivore Nirvana.

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Lychee Sorbet

2011-06-06T11:24:00.000-04:00

I may not have been crazy about my last few frozen dessert recipes, but I love this one! It seems like lychee has become a trendy flavor over the past few years. I've been eating lychees since childhood, but I've never had Lychee Sorbet. It has all the wonderful flavor of the fruit in a slushy kind of texture.

The recipe calls for canned lychees and makes use of the syrup they're packed in. The fresh fruit (in back) has a rough, thick skin you peel away with your fingers, and the juicy, white fruit has a pit inside. I once offered a very similar fruit, the longan, to some friends in college, who found the texture too weird and said it was like an eyeball. Which is funny, because the Mandarin long yan directly translates as "dragon's eye"; (the Mandarin for lychee is li zhi).

The sorbet is a cinch to whip up. I'll be cooling off again with it on some hot summer days.

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