Recipe - Crepes with Sugar and Lemon

Recently, it seems like several of you are going paleo or at least low-gluten. I admire the food-conscious decisions friends are making and resolve to constantly think about and revamp what we do around here to make healthy decisions. Can I just say, however, that while I'm certainly motivated to consume nutrients and whole foods at this point, that slab of chocolate cake has become even more irresistible to this already-subject-to-exclusively-eating-baked-goods gal? Maybe I just feel a little more guilty about it these days ("what am i feeding you?! meh, we'll eat brussel sprouts tomorrow").

In the meantime, this crepe recipe & tips helped to bring some variety to thick slices of bread for sandwich-type things and to add some variety to the boring scrambled eggs in the morning (i scramble them flat and throw them into a crepe with some avocado). Because I was going savory and sweet with the fillings, I left out the small amount of sugar in the batter. I made up a batch with no other changes to the recipe and kept the folded leftovers into a tupperware in the fridge for a few days. And when faced with a sudden sweet craving, a dash of lemon juice and sprinkle of powdered sugar on a reheated crepe seemed to do the trick without having to whip up a huge batch of cupcakes. 

On that note, mmmmmm....cupcakes.....

From America's Test Kitchen Season 12: Crepes and Croissants
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

A crêpe is nothing but a thin pancake cooked quickly on each side and wrapped around a sweet or savory filling, but it has a reputation for being difficult. We wanted an easy method for crêpes that were thin and delicate yet rich and flavorfully browned in spots. Finding the perfect ratio of milk to flour and sugar gave us rich-tasting, lightly sweet pancakes. We were surprised to find that neither the type of flour nor the mixing method seemed to matter, and a plain old 12-inch nonstick skillet worked as well as a specialty crêpe pan. What does matter is heating the pan properly (over low heat for at least 10 minutes), using the right amount of batter (we settled on 1/4 cup), and flipping the crêpe at precisely the right moment, when the edges appear dry, matte, and lacy. 

WATCH THIS RECIPE

These thin French pancakes have a reputation for being temperamental divas demanding pampered batter, a specialized pan, and supremely delicate handling. Oh, really?

Watch the Video

Serves 4

Crêpes will give off steam as they cook, but if at any point the skillet begins to smoke, remove it from the heat immediately and turn down the heat. Stacking the crêpes on a wire rack allows excess steam to escape so they won’t stick together. To allow for practice, the recipe yields 10 crêpes; only eight are needed for the filling.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1cup (5 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1teaspoon sugar, plus 8 teaspoons sugar for sprinkling
• 1/4teaspoon table salt
• 1 1/2cups whole milk
• 3large eggs
• 2tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1lemon, cut into wedges

Fave Pumpkin Snacking Cake Recipe

There used to be a handful of things that used make fall into true autumn to me, but now that we're into our second year of pretending to be New Englanders, these handful of things have grown to very-many-things; now matched by a quintessentially autumn backdrop. I embrace warm slices of toasted pumpkin bread with a piping hot cup of tea or apple cider as I stare out the living room window at fluttering leaves of unreal colors. In fact, this born-in-disneyland's-backyard girl has often wondered if the trees were artificially painted or how strenuous it must have been for the backstage upper valley staff to create such wonderment. Then I snap back to reality and recognize how lucky we are to live here....unfortunately, we just wrapped up our last autumn in new hampshire. SAD FACE.

happy thanksgiving basket for our hosts.

Piles of these Pumpkin Snacking Cakes are spilling out of our kitchen and into others' homes as we wrap up my favorite New England season. I hope to make them for years and be constantly reminded of the couple of "real" autumns I was lucky enough to experience. 

Pumpkin Snacking Cake (aka Pumpkin Bread) Recipe:

-this recipe doubles nicely-

• 
  
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, super soft (not melted)
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 8 ounces (scant 1 cup) canned unsweetened pumpkin puree
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or lightly spray the bottom and sides of a 9-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. I do these in muffin size or mini loaves as well. 

Whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a small bowl.

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the 4 tablespoons softened butter, sugar, and oil at high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl a few times.

Add the pumpkin puree and mix until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until just incorporated. 

At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and water and mix until just combined (overmixing makes the cake/bread tough). Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 60 to 75 minutes. If you're making muffins, try 15-20 minutes. 

Let cool in the pan on a baking rack for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and let cool completely (makes it easier to slice).

For the record, I understand this is the first of December and perhaps well into the New England winter, but I just love autumn so much I can't let it go!

Baked Apples with Savory Stuffing

Made them tonight. They looked exactly like the picture below, but we ate them so fast there was no time for photo-taking. Used a Six-Grain and Pumpkin Seed crusty bread from a Boston bakery and Italian Chicken sausage blitzed in a food processor instead of removing from casing (that seemed too difficult). 

Strongly recommend.

photo from smittenkitchen.

For recipe, click here:

http://www.shutterbean.com/baked-apples-savory-stuffing/

A few new sites I like.

Snail My Email - Send an email, artists will be handwrite and doodle it, then physically mail it to your recipient anywhere in the world. Best part of this month-long (until Aug 15) interactive community art project is that the whole deal is free of charge. They're just trying to recapture the lost art of writing a letter and I'm totally digging it. 

Punchfork - The answer to the overwhelming number of food blogs I follow. Reading 100's of posts only to have nothing coming out of the kitchen is nonsensical. This gorgeous magazine-like layout showcases recipes from cooking sites I already love. Best part? The sortability! Real-time data like tweets and facebook shares measure a popularity score (sort by what people love!); real-time aggregate gathers new recipes as soon as they're published (sort by newest!); you can even search by what's left over in your fridge (continue to sort!).

a.mi.me.gusta showcases things of great interest to me. Music, fashion, grub? Check, check, check.

Make these! (for easter)

Running to a last minute night-before-Easter.

So.late.

But really want to post this in case you're looking for something to make tomorrow.

We were asked to bring a light, fruit-based dessert, but because it's snowing again (insert "omg, really?!" here) and I was not in the mood to run to the store, I started looking for things to make with puff pastry (freezer) and a jar of English lemon curd (pantry). It's fruity enough, right? Thank you, Martha!

 Puff-pastry "eggs" filled with lemon curd.

from martha

They're like mini tarts!

Last week, I brought this peanut butter sucker and I was restricted to something "light" for tonight. Don't worry, I'm supplementing with stewed blueberries (final bit from the summer picking) and a box of Girl Scout cookies (lemon chalet creme).

Happy Easter!

TyFlo to the Rescue!

We're all in agreement that facebook totally rocks, right? I mean, besides Jocelyn*. Email has been relatively innovative, cell phones have taken over the world, and obviously this blog has changed the face of all things communication (duh).  But can we all agree that 2009 was the year that facebook shifted up to spot number uno in terms of keeping in touch with people?  This is a more recent revelation of mine as I flashback to a couple of weeks and remember what was sitting in my facebook inbox.

Uh....YA!!  I'M TOTALLY THERE!

Do you remember the Tyler Florence Pulled Pork Sandwich post from the DAY BEFORE Holly's email to me?  Ya, I was all about TyFlo that week.  That's what we should all call him now, don't you think?  TyFlo?

I had a prearranged get-together with my friend Carrie that evening, but somehow managed to get to Union Square from the Mission in record time as soon as we were done!  Threw the car in a quick + hurried spot and basically sprinted from the garage direct to the chair right next to Holly in the Cellar of Macy's:

I literally ran in as the presentation was already occurring.

Definitely knocked over a few old ladies on my way in.

'Cause I'm cool like that.

Needless to say, we nibbled on many amazing nuggets of happiness:

Deliciously seared halibut resting on a parsnip/fennel puree + black lentils.

Topped with a delicate sprig of dill.  Mmmmm.

Calamari made with sparkling mineral water in the batter!

These are pictures of the actual dishes he made:
Halibut with lentils
Calamari
Ricotta dumplings with shaved radishes and greens

 

The ULTIMATE part of this entire evening was when the magic of TyFlo came over me and I became bold enough to throw my hand in the air to answer the question, "Is anyone nervous about making anything for the holidays?" 

TyFlo: Yes, to the cute girl in the fingerless gloves, sitting next to her friend in a cute green argyle sweater......((slight embellishment)).....what are you making?

Me: Um...a brisket?

TyFlo:  Oh, cool.  Brisket's are terrific around the holidays, are you making it for a large group?  Are you nervous?

Me: Um...it's for Hanukkah?  For my future in-laws??  Nervous.

---laughter from the crowd---

 TyFlo: Well, let me tell you the biggest secret about making a brisket................blah, blah.

And that's when my brain got all mushy and non-remembering.  Mostly because I was too busy trying to not get caught doing this:

WTH, I should've really been paying more attention.

But I got all confident and cocky about being amidst such a culinary sensation.  I mean, I may or may not have even called him TYFLO to his FACE.  What?  I mean, really, can you blame me for such behavior when I walk up to this image:

  That's Scott, ya'll!

Like of Scott and Holly's wedding circa 2008**!

Our friend, Scott!  How crazy is that??

He was TyFlo's #1 Assistant Man 
(I'm sure there's a more technical term for this position)

Scott did all the prep work to get the crowd the yummy tastings.

Don't worry, I've already invited myself + Jamie over to their place for dinner.

This guy was an integral part of the success of Ty's burgeoning career.

I mean, he took off running when his head chef needed a vegetable peeler!

Running.

Meanwhile, HeadChef brought his little son to entertain the masses.

And to help distract the crown while he took the time to pick a booger.

What?  No one saw that, right?  Good work being cute, son.

I think Scott looks much more professional:

I didn't see him pick his nose once.

Post-demo, Holly and I got our new cookbook graffiti'd (awesome):

ew. holly, do you see the booger on the top of his head?

 

 Just kidding, Smile!

One final shot of my soon-to-be-taking-over-the-Food-Network friend:

Oh, did the ladies love him!

For a more legitimate recall of the night, check out holly's post.  Thanks so much for thinking of me, doll!  Made my week!

*Joc's dislike of most things tech-y is the directest contrast to my inner thoughts and desires, but that's one of my favorite qualities about her. We often sit in bewilderment of each other and laugh and laugh.  She, of this blog and my propensity for all the things from SkyMall magazine.  Me, of her lack of a personal computer and facebook account (no desire).  In fact, she promised to keep basic cable if I didn't make her sign up for facebook.  I felt like that was an adequate compromise and allowed me to uphold my duties of keeping her relevant to normal society.

**One of THREE Holly-weddings in the 15 months.

To have so much time + creativity....sigh!

 Tiny gingerbread houses to perch on the edge of your hot cocoa mug....

I mean, are you kidding me?  They're so stinking cute.

check them out here!

On Hanukkah....pulled pork sandwiches?

The last few years, I have been much better about the holidays.  We had the menorah out early, lit candles on appropriate days, and set out the Christmukkah tree with much enthusiasm.  This year?  Eh.....well....let's just say that this year, the holidays have taken this girl a little bit by surprise.

Perhaps it's because the past 4 years, the Jewish calendar did not bring about Hanukkah so early in the month?  I think that one year it even started the day AFTER Christmas, making it much easier for me to meld the two holidays.  This year, however, the first night went without recognition in our household and, inadvertently, marked the first night I've ever made.....pulled pork sandwiches.

And while I certainly feel guilty for my blatant slap in the Jewish face,  it was DELICIOUS + celebratory in our own way, and I'm hoping to combat the bad with the kindness of sharing the yummy + really easy recipe with ya'll.  We're totally making this again...and again...and again.

Oven Roasted Pulled Pork Sandwich.

 Topped with COLD + COLORFUL cole slaw and a side of COLD + unadorned cucumber chips.

Oven Roasted Pulled Pork by Tyler Florence

Dry Rub:

• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 3 tablespoons coarse salt

Other ingredients:

• 1 (5 to 7 pound) pork roast, preferably shoulder or Boston butt
• 12 buns (I used Orowheat Sandwich Thins)
• 1 recipe Spicy Slaw, recipe follows (highly recommend this recipe!)
• Pickle spears (switched out for thin slices of COLD cucumber)

Directions:

Mix the paprika, garlic power, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt together in a small bowl. Rub the spice blend all over the pork and marinate for as long as you have time for, as little as 1 hour or up to overnight, covered, in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.  Put the pork in a roasting pan and bake for about 6 hours. Basically, roast the pork until it's falling apart and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 170 degrees F. Remove the pork roast from the oven and transfer to a large platter. Allow the meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While still warm, take 2 forks and "pull" the meat to form shreds. Using 2 forks, shred the pork by steadying the meat with 1 fork and pulling it away with the other. Put the shredded pork in a bowl. Pour 1/2 of the sauce (recipe below...I made it, but then decided to use a bottle of bbq sauce instead) on the shredded pork and mix well to coat.

To serve, spoon the pulled pork mixture onto the bottom 1/2 of the hamburger bun, and top with the spicy slaw. Serve with pickle spears and the remaining sauce on the side.  Fyi, on the telly, Tyler Florence served his sandwich with a side of kettle chips.

Cider Vinegar Barbecue Sauce

• 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
• 1 cup yellow or brown mustard
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

To make the barbecue sauce: combine the vinegar, mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, garlic, salt, cayenne, and black pepper in a saucepan over medium heat. Simmer gently, stirring, for 10 minutes until the sugar dissolves.

Flavorful Cole Slaw

• 1 head green cabbage, shredded (I did one bag each of shredded green and red cabbage)
  
• 2 carrots, grated (increased to 3 carrots)
  
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 red chile, sliced  (forgot to pick it up, so didn't include)
  
• 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Creole mustard (what's a Creole mustard?  used dijon)
  
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Pinch sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed (omg, SO glad I remembered to get some of this.  YUM)
  
• Several dashes hot sauce (went with Tapatio...was the only hot sauce we had besides Sriracha)
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the cabbage, carrot, red onion, green onions, and chile in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar; stirring to incorporate. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss gently to mix. Season the cole slaw with celery seed, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Chill for 2 hours in refrigerator before serving.

Perfect Food Thursday!

With my meat-loving fiance out of town and my veggie-loving friend hanging out for the weekend, there's plenty of opportunity to enjoy a mess of great meat-free dishes for a few days. This one was a super easy and relatively hands-free one to pop in the oven for a quick and easy lunch!

A tray of firm brussel sprouts, drizzled in extravirginoliveoil.

Course sea salt and freshly ground pepper coat the exterior of these little gems.

I used to totally HATE the bsprout because it was one of those things you're "supposed to" hate as a kid.  That and forced naptime and cleaning my room.  As a young tyke, I seemingly understood that sleeping during the day was a luxury...I secretly loved naptime.  As for cleaning my room, it gave me  pleasure to organize and archive the items in my room, finding new ways to hide those notes we passed around in the classroom instead of paying attention to the subject at hand.  But for all intents and purposes, I HATED brussel sprouts, forced naptime, and cleaning my room.

It works both ways.  I LOVED things you were "supposed to" as a kid as well...ie, saturday morning cartoons.

I digress.

Look at the yummy granules of salt waiting to be roasted in.

My appreciation for the veggie didn't come about until last year when a work friend pried open my jaw and shoved a pan-fried sprout down my throat.  First of all, omg it was HOT!  Once I got over the 2nd degree tongue burns I was able to cherish it's naturally mustardy spiciness, the tender individuals leaves melting apart all over my mouth.  Mmmmm....sold.

Some of you may remember last winter when bags upon bags of those things went through this household.  I have since discovered COSTCO SELLS BRUSSEL SPROUTS.  Yes!  So when Dev was going through the fridge today and saw a HUGE bag of bsprouts she said, "Hey, let's roast these for lunch."

Ain't she so smart?

20min @425degrees.

Perfectly delicious in every way.

Roasted Chicken - Zuni Cafe Style (recipe)

Jamie says I'm just making it up, but I swear I heard somewhere that every girl marrying a Jewish guy is supposed to know how to make a chicken. Is that crazy? Challah and latkes are next on my list, but I swear it was specifically a chicken that the soon-to-be-married are supposed to know how to cook.

Crazy or not, I decided to tackle a bird.  It helped that there was one taking up much valued real estate in our freezer from a raffle we won at the yurty-yurt wedding a few weeks ago.  It didn't take too long of a search to find a seemingly easy and scientifically intriguing recipe.  The very strict preparation schedule and the HIGH-HIGH-HIGH temperature requirement seemed to guarantee a golden-brown, crispy skin with incredibly not-dry meat underneath. 

DONE.

Tender sprigs of rosemary are tucked under the skin.

Oh my gosh, great news.  It works!  There isn't a sliver of resemblance to that dry, sawdusty roasted chicken of yore.  Jamie even tried a piece of the skin (shock!) because it looks so tasty to him.  We're BIG fans of this recipe and I'm an even bigger fan of all the stuff you get to do with a whole chicken after the first night:

Day2: Used leftover chicken breast + dark meat.  Mixed with some leftover pesto, a splash of vinegar, and a handful of parsley.  Piled it on top of crispy romaine lettuce and chomped away.

Day 3: Other leftover meat bits are used to supplement Hudson's meals, taking care to remove all those easily splintered bones.  We struggle to get him to eat regularly, but this chicken seems to do the trick.

Day 4: Took remaining carcass (gross word!) out of freezer and simmered it in cold water with chunks of celery, carrots, and onion.  Seasoned with whole peppercorns, celery salt, and a chunk of parmesiano reggiano.  Poured cooled broth into baggies to lay flat in the freezer in preparation for the inevitable H1N1 attack.

 Mmmmmm....

Zuni Cafe’s Roasted Chicken
Adapted from the cookbook from the Zuni Cafe, San Francisco

Serves 2 to 4

• One small chicken, 2 3/4 to 3 1/2-pounds  (get a small one or multiple small ones for bigger crowd) 
• 4 tender sprigs fresh thyme, marjoram, rosemary or sage, about 1/2 inch long 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 3/4 to 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• A little water

Season the chicken: [1 to 3 days before serving; give a 3 1/4 to 3 1/2-pound chicken at least 2 days]Remove and discard the lump of fat inside the chicken. Rinse the chicken and pat very dry inside and out. Be thorough — a wet chicken will spend too much time steaming before it begins to turn golden brown.  I had a moment of revelation during this process about goldening (yes, I made up a word...again) meats.  DRY!

Approaching from the edge of the cavity, slide a finger under the skin of each of the breasts, making 2 little pockets. Now use the tip of your finger to gently loosen a pocket of skin on the outside of the thickest section of each thigh. Using your finger, shove an herb sprig into each of the 4 pockets.  Definitely do not know my chicken body parts and kinda "winged" this step.

Season the chicken liberally all over with salt and pepper. Season the thick sections a little more heavily than the skinny ankles and wings. Sprinkle a little of the salt just inside the cavity, on the backbone, but don’t otherwise worry about seasoning the inside. Twist and tuck the wing tips behind the shoulders. Cover loosely and refrigerate.

Prepare your oven and pan: [Day of, total time is 45 minutes to 1 hour]

Preheat the oven to 475°F. Choose a shallow flameproof roasting pan or dish barely larger than the chicken, or use a 10-inch skillet with an all-metal handle (I just used our largest pot).

Preheat the pan over medium heat. Wipe the chicken dry and set it breast side up in the pan. It should sizzle.  I definitely got confused about which side was the breast...stop laughing...and again, kinda made it up as I went.

Roast the chicken: Place the chicken in the pan in the center of the oven and listen and watch for it to start browning within 20 minutes. If it doesn’t, raise the temperature progressively until it does. The skin should blister, but if the chicken begins to char, or the fat is smoking, reduce temperature by 25 degrees. After about 30 minutes, turn the bird over — drying the bird and preheating the pan should keep the skin from sticking. Roast for another 10 to 20 minutes, depending on size, then flip back over to recrisp the breast skin, another 5 to 10 minutes.

Rest the chicken: Remove the chicken from the oven and turn off the heat. Lift the chicken from the roasting pan and set on a plate. Carefully pour the clear fat from the roasting pan, leaving the lean drippings behind. Add about a tablespoon of water to the hot pan and swirl it and use them in something else (stuffing, pasta dish, veggies, etc).  You can let the chicken rest while you finish your side dishes. The meat will become more tender and uniformly succulent as it cools. 

It was a hit with every member of the fam.

Easy as....

If only we weren't going out of town this weekend....sigh....
MAKE THESE PIES NOW AND TELL ME ABOUT THEM!!

Pancake-Paloozaa Weekend Extravaganza.

Researching and combining recipes.
Beating some egg whites to fold into the batter, per holly+scott's advice.
Warm Maple Cream, inspired by Clinton Street Bakery.
Melt some butter in a small sauce pan.
Add maple syrup, heat, drizzle half&half.
HOLY DELICIOUS.
Jamie dropped sliced ripe bananas which caramelized beautifully.
They were fluffy and delish!!
Once we drizzled the maple cream, there was no pausing for more pictures.
SUCCESS!

Modified two online recipes to create:

Ingredients

1 cup sifted all-purpose, pastry, or cake flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 egg yolks
3/4 cups half&half, more or less
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 egg whites
1/2 tablespoon sugar

1. Sift the dry ingredients together.
2. In another bowl, mix the yolks, most of the milk, and the melted butter together until smooth.
3. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the mixed wet ingredients all at once. Stir until just combined. (Over-mixing will make for a tough pancake.)
4. Beat the egg whites until light and fluffy and soft peaks appear as for meringue. Add the sugar toward the end of the beating. Fold the egg whites gently into the batter with a spatula. Add milk as necessary to get the right consistency.
5. Cook as you would other pancakes.

Gave me the confidence to try these Dutch Baby Pancakes the very next morning. We don't have a cast iron pan, but this pot seemed to do the trick. I added in a couple of extra eggs which led to an issue of too much batter for the size of the pan. Hmmm...left a thicker eggy bottom...we gobbled it up just fine. Highest carb weekend!! I'd like to think that we're just set up for a successful week with these sorts of meals under our belts.

So, what's your fave weekend breakfast recipes? I need more inspiration.

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes - Bust.

Bobby Flay's Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Always looking for another way to use Trader Joe's Lemon Curd.

Mix the dry ingredients together.

Stir wet ingredients into dry.

Make pancakes!

Drizzle with melted lemon curd + fresh berries.

Yum??

Nope.  Not yum.  At all.  Edible, but not yum!  What went wrong?  I'm sort of confused.  I read and reread the recipe, but it wasn't light nor fluffy like the ones @ Norma's I had a couple of weeks ago in Palm Springs.  And gosh darn it, I'm not ready to give up.  Any suggestions?? Help.