Turtle Soup

As in soup with turtle meat in it. To which you (unless you know me and know this whole story, in which case you can scroll down to the recipe part) are probably like, "What on earth would possess you to make that?" And then I'm like, "Well, my dad processes snapping turtle meat for a living." And then you're like "That's the weirdest profession ever!" And I'm all like "I know. I think it's awesome." That's about how the conversation usually goes when people ask what my parents do. And I'll be perfectly honest, I loooooove telling people that. Mostly, I'm proud to be from a family that has made its way in the world through creativity and ingenuity. When I was 11 and my dad (pictured left) was slaughtering snapping turtles in the back yard and I wanted to be cool and my friends and their parents would come to pick me up and my dad was covered in blood and guts and that was really NOT cool, I didn't like it so much. But today, having benefited from the success of this endeavor and as an adult who can appreciate any instance of the American dream of independence actually thriving, I think it's super rad. So, when I went home for Thanksgiving I got some turtle meat so I could try and cook it up because I have never really tried and it seemed like something I ought to be able to do.


Turtle meat is a bit of a culinary adventure and so is Cajun soup. (Apparently, a Cajun recipe is the only legitimate way to eat the stuff.) Turtle is a red meat, can be tough and stringy if you don't cook it enough, and truth be told, doesn't smell all that great before it's cooked. However, if you cook it to the point of being tender, it has great texture and an interesting flavor that's hard to describe. I guess it's a little gamey but not too much. Just enough that you know you're eating something unique. Cajun soups are different because they are almost always based on a red roux. Roux, in case you don't know, is basically flour stirred into melted butter over medium heat, which is used to thicken things like cream sauces and gravies. Red roux is cooked, stirring constantly, until it turns an orange-red sort of color. It was neat and the flavor of the stew was more complex because of it. I think I'll try another Cajun soup of some kind in the future. Generally, soups are a light, healthy option. Not so with this recipe, largely because of the roux. It's made from an entire cup of butter and an entire cup of flour. Good thing I'm putting in 35 miles this week! The end result was pretty tasty. I did leave out two ingredients - the hard boiled eggs and the sherry. I may still add the eggs in. The sherry, on the other hand, was supposed to be added after the cooking was done and I only cook with alcohol if it's going to be heated for a while. Soooo, I left it out and may throw a tiny bit of vinegar in to see if that adds the right flavor. Though the soup is creamy and rich and delicious, I feel like it's missing the bite or whatever that is that it gets from the wine. Anyway, below is the recipe I used. I'm including the directions as they were written with notes about what actually happened when I made it. There were some complications, as usual.

Turtle Soup (from LouisianaFoods.com)

Ingredients:
2 Pounds of Turtle Meat (cubed)
2 Sticks Butter (unsalted)
Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Cup Celery (diced)
2 Cups Yellow Onions (diced)
1 1/2 Cups Tomato Puree
1 Quart Beef Stock
6 Hard Boiled Eggs (chopped fine)
3 Bay leaves
1/2 Tsp. Oregano
1/2 Tsp. Thyme
1 Tsp. Course Black Pepper
1 Shot Dry Sherry
3 Tbs. Minced Parsley
Juice of One Lemon

Method:
In heavy saucepan melt butter. When melted add flour and cook until the flour turns the color of a penny. This roux must be stirred at all times so it will not burn.

When roux reaches the desired color add your vegetables and turtle meat and cook until turtle is brown and vegetables are clear. (At this point, I ran into some trouble. My sauce pan was too small so I moved it to another. That pan was, of course, cold, so nothing would brown or cook and all that was happening was my roux was sticking to the bottom and starting to get crispy. So, I just threw in the tomato puree and spices and proceeded to the next step without browning the meat or cooking the vegetables very much. I think this was the right thing to do, but I also think I sacrificed some flavor. Lesson: use a bigger pan.)

Add the tomato puree and cook for about 15 minutes on low fire.

In stock pot simmer beef stock. While boiling add the mixture from your saucepan and stir until soup is mixed and roux is dissolved. Stock should be smooth and have body.

Simmer soup until turtle becomes tender at which time you may add your lemon diced eggs and parsley. (Here, I also varied from the recipe. I simmered the soup on the stove for about 15 minutes while also plugging in my crock pot. I had somewhere to be, so I threw it in there on low and let is simmer while I went to hang out with a friend. When I returned, it had been simmering for about three hours and the turtle meat was nice and tender, so it worked out.)

Each plate should be served with a shot of sherry on the side. (Again, not sure what I'm going to do to replace this step but I'll probably just add some vinegar or maybe even Worcestershire sauce.)

Sweet Potato Pie - 2 Versions

Alright I know I can't really call myself a food blogger with the sporadic nature of my posts. But you know what, I'm trying. Finals ended last Friday and I am slowly turning back into a human being. A human being who wants to write about food on the internet for like five people to read, but whatever cause I'm going to do it anyway! In case you didn't know, I love pie. Pie is awesome. Doesn't matter what kind, just put some mushy sweet filling into a butter-laden crusty shell thing and we are in business. I've made a couple of pies over the last month or so. One was a maple pie, which I want to bake again - more successfully - and write about. But right now, I want to talk about a pie that is near and dear to my heart. One that I have made twice in the last month. I want to talk about sweet potato pie. I've always been partial to what I call paste pies - like pumpkin and sweet potato and even white potato. (Yes, pie made from what amount to mashed potatoes with sugar in them. I'll make one and post about it soon, I promise.) Potato pies are very common in Maryland, where I am from. I don't know if it's a country thing or Pennsylvania Dutch influence or what.

Wherever it comes from, I think sweet potato pie is a gift from God. Most of all, I want to emphasize the ways in which sweet potatoes beat the pants off of pumpkin when it comes to pie. Now, don't get me wrong. I am not talking trash about pumpkins here. This is a pumpkin friendly blog. And sweet potato could never replace pumpkin because pumpkin is special in both flavor and texture. However, sweet potatoes do have some advantages. #1 - they are naturally sweeter than pumpkin and so require less additional sweetener. #2 - they are cheaper and easier to make fresh, rather than out of a can. #3- mashed sweet potatoes are thicker than pumpkin puree, which makes them more versatile when trying to make a vegan pie (less need for eggs). Anyway, we've been eating them a long time in my family. Long enough that I feel comfortable playing with the recipe, which is saying a lot because, in baking, "playing with" a recipe generally means "ruining" it. That is, unless I've made it enough to know what I'm doing. So, I have two variations on sweet potato pie. One I altered the Joy of Cooking recipe (I know, shocker right?) at Thanksgiving this year and the other I mostly followed a recipe from a community cookbook and threw together out of stuff I already had to take to my friends' house for football and pizza Sunday time (one of my most favorite things in the entire world). Enjoy!

Sweet Potato/Pumpkin Pie (variation on The Joy of Cooking)

Make basic pie dough recipe, below.

Preheat oven to 375.

Glaze crust with 1 egg yolk (or milk if you prefer).

Whisk thoroughly in a large bowl 2 large eggs (or equivalent of egg replacer for a vegan pie).

Whisk in thoroughly:
1 C Pumpkin puree and 1 C mashed sweet potatoes. (To prepare the potatoes, peel and either boil or steam them and then beat with an electric beater or mash with a potato masher.)
1 C Greek Yogurt (you can use sour cream or a dairy free yogurt here).
1/2 C Milk or heavy cream (or soy milk, you get the idea)
1/2 C sugar
1/3 C brown sugar
1 t. ground cinnamon
1 t ground ginger
1/2 t nutmeg
1/4 t cloves or allspice
1/2 t salt

Warm the pie crust in the oven until it's hot to the touch. Pour room temperature pie filling into the crust and bake until firm, about 35-45 minutes. Cool before serving. As is usually the case with pie, it's best at room temperature or slightly warm and almost always better the next day.

Basic Pie Dough
This is the pie dough that I use for almost everything. It's easy to vary by adding nuts, increasing the butter/shortening ratio, or making more wet for a different flavor. The main thing with pie crust is to not let it get too hot and not handle it too much.

Ingredients
2 1/2 C AP Flour
1 1/4 t salt
3/4 C chilled shortening
3 T Butter
6 T ice water

Method
Whisk flour and salt together.

Cut in half of the shortening with a pastry blender, two knives, or your fingers until it's a course meal (like cornmeal).

Cut in the rest of the shortening and the butter until they make pea-size crumbs.

Stir in the ice water with a fork until all the ingredients are wet and start to pull away from the bowl.

Form into a ball, split in to two disks, wrap in plastic and chill for 10 minutes.

Roll out of the disks on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin to desired shape and size. Fit into pie plate, pushing it into the bottom and trimming off any excess.


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Version 2

This recipe is a variation on one from a community cook book called The Chesapeake Collection, put together by a women's club back home. It is one of those beloved collections where people send in contributions so it reflects the true flavor of the place it's from. I love the Eastern Shore of Maryland and I really love the food that comes from it, so I am partial to this variation of sweet potato pie. I added the white potato because it's what I had on hand and I think it adds some complexity of flavor. Also the spice mixture is my own.

Eastern Shore Potato Pie in a Graham Cracker Crust

Ingredients
2 cups prepared potatoes (2 medium sweet and one medium white potato)
1/2 C sugar
2 eggs
1 T flour
1 C milk
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t ginger
1/4 t ground black pepper
1/4 t nutmeg
1/4 t salt

Method
Preheat oven to 400.
Beat eggs and add the sugar, then the potato, salt, and spices. After that, add the flour, and lastly add the milk gradually. Pour into a baked graham cracker crust that has been allowed to cool. Bake 5 minutes at 400 and reduce the temperature to 350. Bake until the custard is set, about 35 minutes.

Graham Cracker Crust(from Joy of Cooking)

1.5 C finely ground graham crackers
1/4 - 1/2 C sugar, depending on sweetness of cookies (mine probably could've done without the sugar or just a couple tablespoons.)
6 T melted butter
1 t ground cinnamon

Mix crumbs, sugar,and cinnamon in a bowl or directly in the pie plate. Pour melted butter and mix until all the dry ingredients are wet. Press into the pie plate and up the sides to make a crust. One way to get it flat and even is the press a smaller plate inside of the pie plate. Bake on 400 for just about 10 5-10 minutes, just to set it but be careful not to bake it too much because it will burn when you bake it with the actual pie. Allow to cool some before you pour in the pie filling. No biggie if it's warm, just so it doesn't cook the pie filling when it gets poured in.


PS - A word to the wise. I do not recommend blogging about baking while actually baking. I just scorched a dozen chocolate chip cookies that are part of my holiday baking extravaganza. It's ok, there are about 3 dozen that I didn't burn. :)

Love God, love people.

Ok, so I edited the crap out of this post about 6 months after I posted it. I can do that because this is my blog. Ahh, power! I mostly did it for me, because what this post originally said felt so out of step with the truth that it gave me the willies. Silly, I know. But that's my thing right now, get rid of what isn't true. In any case, the part below is what I am leaving because it is true. I do so love to love the people in my life through food.
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I had the opportunity last week to love others by helping take care of my friends who had just had a baby. Down here, we do something called a food train when people have babies. It's basically just a schedule of volunteers who bring a meal a day to the new family so they have one less thing to worry about. I organized one and brought food to my friends, not because there's anything particularly great about me, but because I feel like part of the world when I help take care of my people. And, I got to be the first friend to see the baby, so um yeah that was awesome. He's adorable and I just want to say one more time in case anyone has forgotten, I WANT ONE!!!! I mean, not right now, but sometime. Anyway, the most appropriate thing I could think of to make a new mama and papa with all the nutrients and whatnot they needed in a simple package was beef stew. Hearty, with plenty of iron and protein and a good amount of liquid for hydration purposes. I paired it with a good baguette and some mashed sweet potatoes. It was love, pure and simple, in a bowl and I know it warmed their hearts. What more can I ask for (besides a baby)? Recipe is below. As is often the case, it just the Joy of Cooking recipe with a couple of my own tweaks thrown in. Enjoy!


Beef Stew

Ingredients:
1 lb. stew beef
1 lb. potatoes
2-3 carrots
1 stalk celery
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
2-3 bay leaves
Herbs (I like thyme and sage)
Salt and pepper
4 C stock (chicken, beef, or vegetable will work)
1 can peas
1 - 2 T Olive Oil
1 T vinegar

Directions:
1. Season the beef with salt and pepper while you warm about one tablespoon of oil in a large stew pot. Brown the meat on all sides. I leave it in pretty big chunks so that it can cook to tenderness without fear of it getting tough. Once the meat is browned, remove it with a slotted spoon. If juices have collected, drain off all but a couple tablespoons.

2. Chop onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Do not dice or mince, since they need to withstand the simmering that is involved in making soup. Add more oil to the pan and saute until the onions start to soften and become translucent. Add stock, herbs, and bayleaf. Add meat back in and if more water is needed to sufficiently cover the meat and veggies, add some. Raise to a boil, then lower heat, cover and simmer.

3. Simmer for about an hour, until the meat is fork tender. Chop and add the potatoes at about half an hour or twenty minutes. If you boil them the whole time, they will fall apart my personal preference is that they are soft but still holding together.

4. As a finishing touch, I like to add a can of peas and about a tablespoon of vinegar (I used balsamic this time but I think red wine vinegar or even apple cider vinegar are better for this particular soup.) Just dump both of those in about 5-10 minutes before you pull it off of the heat. Salt and pepper to taste and then serve it up!

Just some notes about tweaking this recipe:
- A veggie version could be made with some of those Morning Star steak strips, you just wouldn't cook it for as long.
- If you want a stewier version, use less liquid and/or let the potatoes cook long enough to fall apart so they thicken it.
- Other nice variations are to use spices like cinnamon and cumin or garam masala and substitute sweet potatoes and other roots, like parsnips for a Morrocan sort of take on it.
- Adding tomato paste in the begining, with the veggies right before the stock goes in adds a more tangy flavor.

Guest Blog! Blessed Beans recipe from my awesome friend Kelly!

Dear reader, I am thrilled to present a guest blog today. My friend Kelly (who writes a great blog about life and cycles and living soulfully aware, etc.) agreed to write a piece at Halloween/final harvest time about this meaningful and tasty ritual of making slow-cooked beans. Aside from being an amazing friend who I could not have survived this crazy year without, she is an excellent writer. One who can convey the meaning of personal experience and make it accessible to others to be comforted and inspired by. So, I hope that you will enjoy her Blessed Beans recipe and find in it a blueprint for something you can make your own. I know what I'm making for dinner on Sunday! Happy Halloween, one and all!

Love, Kelly.

The Blessing of the Beans

Today’s American customs for Halloween might include parties, dress-up and lots of sweets, but traditionally this was a feast both in celebration of the final bounty of the agricultural harvest, and in order to honor the dead. Christians continue this celebration the day immediately following Halloween, All Souls Day. In Mexico it is revered as Los Dias De Los Muertes. In many cultures and beliefs there remain reminders that the best way to fully embrace the bounty of life is to include with reverence the cycle of death.

I’m excited, because Halloween falls on a Saturday this year and for me, following the old earth path, I mark this as the end, and therefore the beginning, of my year. It is a time to take stock of my blessings and changes and growth and loss, and to anticipate and set intentions for my year to come. In addition, the full moon is Monday, this is the last of the Harvest Moons, and for me applying esoteric, or personal inner meaning, to outer symbols, well it all-in-all creates a weekend full of the ordinary extraordinary. Or in other words, one of those times imbued with the sacred everyday miracles I so love about life.

Rituals are so important—they connect us to ourselves, and when we choose to share them with one another they connect us to out in to the world, as well. And life is nothing if not infused by us with meaning. I have for a long time marked this special part of the year by making a pot of homemade beans and I am so thankful to Kelly for giving me the opportunity to share this most intimate ritual of mine. She, like myself, has undergone intensely powerfull changes this past year, yet another reason to mark with reverence and passing this time of our lives. I always use black beans, because Halloween is celebrated at night and also because we are entering the season of dark. Also they are my favorite tasting. But use whatever kind you like! Way back a decade or so ago when I first started this tradition I chose beans in general simply because to make them from scratch requires such a lengthy process that it seemed one I could give myself entirely to in a mindful way, and basically to me beans easily symbolized seeds. And this is the time of my year that I am sowing my seeds deep down under in hopes and anticipation of what later will come to grow.

This is one of my oldest and most sacred rituals—one which I have been quietly keeping for long, long time. I soak and bless the beans at various times through out my year prompted by many different reasons, and always I end up connected back in a deeper way to my self. Some years I am more in to it than others, some years I approach the whole thing with such reverence for Life, for just getting to be a part of the Big Mystery, that it’s nothing short of pure merriment and cheer on the inside. Other times it is reserved, like last year, haunted almost. No matter what it is a means of marking a passing, and sharing that marking, engaging with my loved ones in the clean simple power of a ritual of the every day. It infuses my step with belief and love, it sparkles me whole and engages me more fully as a presence in my own sweet world.

This year is one of those Big Mystery reverence years.

To make a pot of Blessed Beans:

-Gather some of the following, according to your personal preference and taste. I do not use all of these ingredients all the time, these are a sample of the variety I use according to my mood (amount given is based on large pot)

*a hearty carcass if you eat meat, like a mostly picked ham or chicken bone. Or broth, if you prefer. Meat stock and/or broth is not at all necessary, tho

*bay leaves

*onion to taste (I like the flavor of one small onion)

*garlic to taste (I prefer two cloves)

*sea salt

*tomatillos (I only use these, and peppers, tomatoes, cilantro and lime when in a mexi-mood but if that is case I use two small tomatillos, two small tomatoes and a pepper each: red and green—usually poblano)

*tomatoes

*cayenne pepper

*vinegar

*peppers: green, red, poblano, jalapeno

*cilantro

*lime

*parsley

*celery

*celery salt

*cocoa

*maple syrup

*cinnamon

*cumin

*turmeric

*thyme

*cheese of your liking

*rice if you want an accompaniment

-For me, the reverence begins immediately. Take some time to quiet yourself and get centered on the task at hand. Give yourself the gift of being fully present and awake, allowing and mindful of the consciousness of life coursing through you. Beans must soak to loosen up and allow for their robust flavor to expand through the release of starch. I usually give enough time to soak my beans over night. As I am preparing them for the soak, I ground myself in the experience of what I am doing: reviewing my year that is coming to an end, the bounty that gave way to these new seeds which I now prepare. I take care to clean and soak the beans with this approach in mind. I do and say and feel what moves me naturally. At times I have sat in long blessing over the soak water, infusing it with reiki and prayers for the people I know I will feed. At times I beam with gratitude over awareness of the fullness of my life, and I fill the water with this thankfulness. At times I have asked the water be like the tears that I cry, meant to cleanse out the old to make way for the new. (If this is your state of mind this year, may you move forward with the axiom we all eventually learn: certainly, the soul would know no rainbow if the eye knew no tears…) Whatever your state when you find your silence and begin this ritual of the everyday, may you go with it, whatever the It within may be….

1. Measure out the appropriate amount of dry beans. A bag is like 89 cents at the grocery store. I am not good at measuring things because I most naturally cook by instinct, smell, and sound (which is why I don’t bake!) but if you’re making an individual amount or single serving, fill a cereal bowl with about as much cereal as you’d eat. Add this same amount for each person you wish to serve. Remember beans are tricky, they grow and almost double in portion from dry to cooked.

2. Cover your bowl of beans so that they are completely submerged in water with about two inches of water on top, too. They will likely soak the water up pretty quick, if so, cover in water again. I soak for a minimum of four hours, but as I said, prefer over night. I have soaked beans for a full 24 hours before and had no problems. If the water becomes bubbly and foamy, this is the starch releasing. The starchy water can be dumped and the beans rinsed using a colander—some people claim this lessens the likelihood of your beans causing gas! If you do dump and rinse, recover with water again until they have soaked for several hours.

3. When done with the soak, drain and rinse your beans thoroughly.

4. Add enough fresh water to a large pot so that your beans will be covered by at least four inches of water. If you are using meat stock it should be well covered by at least four inches as well. If you are using broth go 50/50: half water, half broth. Turn to high. Do not add salt.

5. Bring water to boil. Add beans. Allow water to return to boil. When the water and beans just start a rolling boil, turn to medium. I love the flavor that one to four bay leaves add, depending on the amount of beans you’re cooking. At medium heat when they just reach a simmer I add these leaves, adding too my first intention. (also—purely for flavor purposes, and something that I will do now on because of the symbol that this woman and her home have become for me—at this point I add half to a capful of vinegar, too—which Teena recommended last year at this time in order to make the flavors “pop”. This is an especially helpful tip for lentils/lentil soup.)

Allow the experience to draw you in and move you: I love when the water boils, I love the elemental richness, the fierceness of what happens when we add fire to something. This is life to me, never-ending. I love to stand over and bless my beans, bless my life, my seeds and the seeds of all of those whom I love. As the beans sit and the process of slow-cooking unfolds, I add various spices and flavors at intermittent times through out the simmering process, sure to infuse each spice with a blessing, or with thanks, for what I have grown or lost, or intend to manifest…It is a slow and soothing process during which I recount over the waters and fire and matter and air and Mystery the whole of my bounty, and from that awareness find clarity to add to the intentions for the year to come, the seeds which my soul is signaling it means to grow.

6. After about 30 minutes to an hour (depending, seriously, on if you have electric or gas burners—I find certain gas burners cook way quicker) I add my onions and any other vegetable I may be using (see # 10 for variation.) Fifteen more on medium, then I turn my beans to low and put a lid on. (If you have the time, let your beans slow cook on low. If you don’t, cooking them on medium the whole time will easily do.)

7. Keep an eye on the water amount, if it is getting low boil a couple of cups in a teapot and add the boiling water to your pot. If you choose to do your beans over medium you may need to add hot water more than once.

8. Now’s the fun time. Remaining mindful of this ritual and working to be in a present, sacred mindset, I begin to add my intentions, gratitudes, hopes, dreams, prayers. I like to add cayenne for fire and passion (I am specific about where I’d like the focus to go), maple syrup (half a cap-full!) or a sprinkle of cinnamon for the sweet things in life (too much sweetness ruins the taste to me tho so watch out, I like just a hint around the edges), a touch of cocoa (this really adds to a robust, almost smoky flavor if in excess) for richness. This year’s beans will include turmeric, cumin and celery salt because I’ve come to love and crave these combos of flavors, and these spices usually are when I add intentions towards reverence, mystery, awe, enchantment, etc. As I add these spices one at a time, I also just go with whatever moves me: often I am bursting at some point with love or happiness or thankfulness or anticipation or nervousness about certain people or circumstances, hopes or ambitions—I frame these in a thankful, aware manner happy to add to my harvest feast.

9. As water begins to decrease, check your flavor. Add spices to taste. Remove meat stock (the bone anyway) after about two hours.

10. It is good to remember that beans prepared from the dry state tend to require more spices than average, and as the beans soften and release flavor and starch, the water will thicken. This is especially true for beans of the red or black variety, as well as pintos or green lentils. Not enough spice will come out bland, so just keep tasting to see if you like what it is you’re cooking up!

10. Garlic should be added in the last hour to maintain flavor. This may be the case, according to preference, with onions and other veggies, as well. Slow cooked gives a deeper oniony flavor to me. Last hour onions are more crisp and light, same goes for the rest of the veggies and this can be an especially nice compliment when garnished with fresh, raw diced veggies like a homemade pico de gallo.

11. Salt should be added to taste in the last hour as well.

12. This year I am not in the mood for veggies or meat but likely will add onion, and maybe tomatillos which add a vinegary flavor to me. In all, beans should simmer on low until tender and melty, usually a good three to four hours. I like mine with enough liquid left to sort of solidify the mix but not enough to make it soupy. Don’t be afraid of adding water if they are not the desired softness and don’t be afraid of experimenting with flavors. When this year’s batch is fully cooked I’m looking forward to topping with fresh cut cilantro and green onions, and shredded jack or sharp cheese, and serving over rice. Also, beans always taste better to me after a night in the fridge, too…

May your harvest be plenty and your blessings and gratitude overflow! Blessings in the year to come and Happy Halloween!

Vegan Brownies

So, this recipe isn't necessarily the fanciest or best executed thing I've ever baked but it feels significant in context. Tuesday was incredible. I am still walking around in complete awe of what happens when I surrender to that tiny piece of truth that lives in the center of my heart. Which is my sappy way of saying that I got a 1200 on the GRE AND got a new job doing meaningful work all in the same day! And what that means is that I may actually get to start grad school next semester. After so much hemming and hawing and sacrificing my dreams to things that don't matter, it's nice to feel things flowing along. But, anyway. This is a FOOD blog so I will talk about food now.

All day, mixed in with the nervous adrenaline high, I had this inspiration to make some vegan brownies with all kinds of crap in them. Initially I was thinking of chocolate and dried cherries plus some coconut and almonds. In the end, I decided to forgo the cherries because they're expensive and what if it doesn't turn out and I just spent a crap-load of money on cherries and made them into something that doesn't even taste good? And honestly, I didn't follow any particular recipe for this. I just substituted vegan stuff for the non-vegan parts of the Joy of Cooking brownie recipe and then added my own flavors and fixin's. In the future, it may be worthwhile to actually follow a vegan brownie recipe since I don't really know what I'm doing. And I think I'd use the pre-mixed egg replacer instead of just arrowroot powder. But, whatever. They came out gooey (as brownies ought to be) and I got to eat them with my vegan friend while we watched the NBA season opener - Cavs vs Celtics woo hoo! Also, and this may be obvious, the mix-ins are variable and optional. I really like to put nuts in my brownies because of the texture. I also really like the way that coconut works with gooey chocolate. But you can put whatever you want in there.

Gooey Vegan Brownies with Almonds and Coconut

Preheat your oven to 350.

Ingredients:
1 C all purpose flour
2 C Sugar
3/4 C Cocoa Powder
1/2 C vegetable or canola oil
1/2 C Water
2 T Arrowroot Powder
1 t cinnamon
1 t ground ginger
1/2 t salt
1 C Chocolate Chunks or chips
1 C coconut flakes
1 C toasted almond slivers

Method:
1. Whisk together the oil and cocoa powder until smoothe.
2. Add the arrowroot powder and sugar and whisk again until fully incorporated.
3. Add flour, cinnamon, and ginger and mix just until incorporated.
4. Add water and mix. The amount of water may be adjusted to make the batter the way you like it. A more viscous mixture=gooier brownies and a more watery mixture will turn out a more cakey brownie.
5. Now, add all of the chocolate chunks, almonds, and coconut and fold them in. Try not to mix it too much but make sure they're evenly distributed.
6. Bake on 350 for about 25-30 minutes. Just until the top is set and kind of crusted over. Let cool about 10 minutes before cutting and serving. They're actually even better the next day when they've cooled completely.

Enjoy!

Fish Tacos, oh yeah.

I know I haven't posted in forever and lots of good stuff hasn't made it on here - like the Red and Green Tomato tart with gluten-free crust that I made with the last of the green 'maters from my garden. Or the Pumpkin Pie Bars I made recently - so dope. But you know, I'm busy and this is the best I can do. However, you can bet that what I do actually take the time to post on here is worth your while and that certainly applies to this fish taco recipe. Oh. My. Word. As Jaques Lacan (French linguisic theorist) would say, words are inadequate to describe how good these tacos are.

A little back story: I recently watched an episode of Throw Down with Bobby Flay that was a match-up against this guy in San Diego who is awesome at making fish tacos. I learned about how traditional fish tacos are usually paired with some version of Mexican slaw - which is cabbage-based but not swimming in mayo like American slaw is. There is usually some sort of salsa and the fish are usually fried. On the show, Bobby Flay grilled his fish (I think he went with ahi tuna) and the dude (who won) used fried catfish. So, I drove home from Maryland last Sunday with a cooler full of fish. Wild Copper River salmon, swordfish, two rock fish (striped bass to the rest of the world) filets, some ahi, and some flounder. (Oh and some Gold Selecta Shrimp which will get boiled with pickling spice and shared with someone special and lucky because there isn't much.) When I got home at 11:30, I sat on the couch to decompress by (what else?) watching the Food Network and that episode was on again. I knew immediately that I needed to use some of my lovely bounty to try my hand at fish tacos. After some recipe searching, I went with the rock fish. Recipe is below. I used some store-bought salsa that I really like, called Herdez, but the salsa is one way you can change the recipe easily and home-made salsa is really easy to make. I was thinking a fruit salsa and avocado or guac would be good variations for the future. And the slaw? Holy crap. I stood in my kitchen and ate a ton of the slaw by itself because it is flippin' delicious. And don't be intimidated by the idea of frying fish at home. It's super easy - though it will most definitely make your kitchen smell like fried if you don't have an exhaust fan. Enjoy!

Rock Fish Tacos with Mexican Slaw

2 tablespoons masa harina
¼ teaspoon pure chile powder
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
4 4-ounce skinned and boned rockfish fillets (or any firm white fish)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil, for frying
6 ounces thinly sliced green cabbage
4 ounces thinly sliced red cabbage (actually, I bought one of the bags of shredded red and green cabbage with carrot in it too and used about 3/4 of the bag, shameless)
2 ounces thinly sliced red onion (or to taste - remember it's raw so if you don't like raw onion, go light)
¼ cup minced cilantro
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (I used one lime)
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


Mix together the masa harina, chile powder, and garlic powder in a large, shallow dish. Season the fillets generously with salt and pepper. Dip into the masa harina mixture to coat and shake off any excess. Add enough canola oil to a large, heavy nonstick frying pan to come to a depth of 1/8 inch. Heat over medium heat until a pinch of the masa harina mixture sizzles immediately when added. Add the fillets skinned side up and fry without disturbing for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Using a spatula, turn the fillets and fry another 1 to 2 minutes, or until cooked through and golden brown.

Meanwhile, toss together the green cabbage, red cabbage, onion, cilantro, lime juice, and olive oil in a large bowl and season to taste with salt. Remove the fillets to a paper towel-lined plate and drain for about a minute. Arrange the fillets on individual plates, divide the slaw among them, drizzle with the salsa, and serve immediately.

I like soft corn tortillas for this but you can use flour tortillas or chrunchy taco shells if you prefer. It's all the yums, as far as I'm concerned.

Original recipe from Hungry Cravings.

Kissing summer good bye - with Basil Jelly!

It's true, the thing I talked about a few weeks ago. About summer ending and my food world shifting along with it. It's happening and I feel more ready for it than I'd thought I would. This summer has been a big one for me. Lots of life changes and becoming myself kind of stuff. The garden I planted, though its production was not exactly great, held a lot of meaning. When I planted it, back at the end of April, I think I kind of knew what was about to go down. It felt like I was staking my claim to the life I wanted, which was to stay put and make a home for myself even if this guy I thought I might have married wanted none of it. And look! I got to stay and appreciate the small harvest I did get from that garden and make a home that I love (except for the ants!). My next plan is to plant a fall garden. By that I mean I'm going to plant as many kale starts and seeds as I can fit into the bed and make a cold frame over it because I eat enough kale in one week to feed a small village for a month. It's. So. Yummy! But, to get ready for the new, you gotta uproot the old. So I pulled up almost all of my summer plants (two more to go, a Roma tomato and a banana pepper that have probably given their last fruits by now). I picked a ton of green tomatoes, so stay tuned for a green tomato pie.

The other thing I did was harvest the rest of my basil. I am sad to report that I should have only harvested on plant because I wasn't able to use it all and threw out about two cups of basil leaves after they turned black in my fridge :(. However, I used most of it. And no, I did not make pesto. I have an affliction of some sort that makes my pesto come out wrong every single time. Instead, I made basil jelly. Herbal jellies are generally quite delicious - one of my faves being lavender jelly. Earlier in the summer, I made a batch from my basil, which was growing prodigiously, and disbursed it among friends to get their opinions. The response was overwhelmingly positive, so I decided to make another big batch and now have more basil jelly in my cupboard than I could eat in a lifetime. Guess what everyone's getting for Christmas... botulism! Ha ha, just kidding. I boiled the crap out of everything. Really, though, I am planning to do homemade food-related gifts (including a top secret project that I won't post about until I've actually started it) for lots of people this year and this is one of the things I plan to give. It's really a great little treat. Like any other jelly, it goes well on plain 'ol toast with butter. Not sure about PBJs but I would certainly say ABJs (almond butter and jellies). The other great way to use it is in savory applications so you get that sweet/salty combo which I'm a big fan of. Think lunch meat sanwiches and crackers with cream cheese. That kinda thing. I am also wondering about thumbprint cookies with basil jelly. The recipe is below. And truly, making jelly is a snap so don't be intimidated. Enjoy!

Basil Jelly

Ingredients
2 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaf
1.5 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups water
6 1/2 cups sugar
2 (3 ounce) envelopes Certo liquid pectin

Directions

1. Place the basil leaves, lemon juice and vinegar in an 8-10 quart sauce pot. Let the basil, lemon juice and vinegar stand while you are measuring the water and sugar.

2. Add the water and heat almost to a boil, stirring to blend, then add sugar all at once. Stir to dissolve sugar. Bring to a hard boil.

3. Add both pouches of Certo, stir to mix and return to a hard boil. Boil for 1 minute or until jelly point is reached. (What that means is if you dip some liquid up with a spoon and then tip it back in, the last droplet sort of gel as they drip off).

4. Remove from heat. Remove basil leaves with a slotted spoon. Pour immediately into hot sterilized 1/2 pint jars. Seal and process for 10 minutes in boiling water bath.

This makes quite a bit of jelly. If you use the little bitty jars like I did, I reccomend getting two flats.

Baltimore Peach Cake

Too long!! It has been way to long since I posted. It's not that I haven't been cooking and baking my fool head off either, cause I have. What happened is this, on August 17, school started and now my life is on military schedule. Minus the bed that you can bounce a quarter off of because I really don't even have time to make my bed. Maybe I should start doing that, you know like to make my life feel more ordered and calm? Well, anyway. I have made lots of stuff and about 80% of it has had peaches in it. That is because, besides the fact that fresh peaches are made out of angel sweat or something and eating them just makes life better, I purchased a hugenormous basket of them at the farmers' market a couple of weeks ago. I wish I'd taken a picture of it because it was completely ridiculous. Probably about 8 pounds for $15, and delicious, mmm mmm. Perfectly ripe. The only problem with a single woman who lives alone buying 8 pounds of perfectly ripe peaches is that they start to edge past perfectly ripe into the realm of rotten fruit faster than she can eat them. Soooo, this resulted in many a dish, sweet and savory alike, being made with them. My peach concoctions included: peach cobbler, peach salsa (yummmm), peach pancakes (only so-so to be honest), and finally used the last of them in a black bean peach soup last night. Since I haven't gotten to taste it yet, I cannot tell you how it turned out.

Also, I made a Baltimore Peach Cake last week and it definitely stole the show in terms of how best to use up a whole big basket of peaches. If I could make that whole basket into a million of these cakes, I would. I'd never even heard of it before but found it when searching for a peach cake recipe to make into cupcakes. Some things I've read recently make me think this cake may fall into the category of baked goods that are referred to as "buckles." That's because the cake batter is covered in fruit and then rises up through it when it bakes, causing the fruit topping to buckle, get it? Anyway, I've been imagining what it would taste like to make this cake with other fruit, especially apples and pears in anticipation of fall. The cinnamon/sugar mixture that you sprinkle on the cake before putting on the fruit gets kind of crunchy and crystalized so you get that crusty outside, moist inside phenomenon that I love so much. I ate quite a bit of it myself and shared it with my co-workers who loved it (though I'm not sure they'd ever tell me if they didn't like it). Recipe is below. I plan to try and post at least once a week and want to focus more on savory dishes than sweets. The hope was that last night's turkey meatloaf would be good enough to post but, honestly, it was only ok. Tasty, but nothing to blog about.



Baltimore Peach Cake

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon Butter, softened
2 1/2 cups Flour
1 1/2 cup Milk
1 cup Sugar
3 teaspoons Baking Powder

2 tablespoons Butter, melted
3/4 cup Sugar, MIXED WITH
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
5 large Peaches, peeled/sliced
Directions:Preheat oven to 350º. With electric mixer, blend first five ingredients. Spread in greased and floured 15x10" jelly roll pan, or 13x9" plus one 8" cake pan (or 2 8'' cakes pans like I did, or whatever pan you want for whatever thickness of cake you want. My cake layer was only about 3/4 in thick).

Sprinkle half of cinnamon/sugar mixture lightly over dough base. Arrange peach slices by rows on top of base. Sprinkle with remainder of cinnamon/sugar mixture and drizzle melted butter over all.

Bake for 25-30 minutes (For thicker dough, omit 8" cake pan -- use 13x9" pan only).

Chocolate Farina and a new ice cream flavor at The Hop.

I don't have anything too exciting to post, but wanted to at least keep rolling on this thing. There are two notable food experiences from last weekend that I can share. One, I had the cockamamie idea to put cocoa powder in my cream of wheat. I guess it's because of all the leftover cocoa from the whoopie pie extravaganza. If you're from the south, you may not have the connection some of us do to cream of wheat - also known as farina. To me, that stuff is pure comfort. It tastes like childhood and being taken care of by my parents. When I was a kid, I liked it when the lumps formed and I got chewy chunks of cream of wheat stuck together. Yes, I was a weird kid, why do you ask? Anyway, in the south, they eat grits. Despite my hometown being below the Mason Dixon, we have a bunch of northern influence in our food. Grits stop being common at the Virginia line. Though I've come to love grits (and nearly everything else about the South, including cute boys with southern accents) they don't have the same effect as cream of wheat. If you've had it, and like it, you know what I mean. It can't be described. I started eating the stuff for my pre-long run meal because it has even less fiber than instant oatmeal, a good thing when you're about to go run for 3-4 hours. So, I had this idea to add cocoa powder and I was correct to do that. I have invented a way to eat desert for breakfast or any time of day that you need some love because it's like eating a hug! Seriously. Just add about a tablespoon to the regular recipe. I follow what's on the box and do the butter and sugar to taste (aka a whole damn bunch because butter and sugar are awesome). Just so you know, if you're celiac or otherwise wheat intolerant, they make a rice version. I haven't tried rice farina but I'm thinking about it just to see what it's like. If it measures up, I'll probably switch, just cause I seem to do better if I limit my gluten. By no means am I celiac or anything even close, I just notice I'm less sluggish with less wheat flour in my diet.

My other food adventure happened on Saturday night. I went out to dinner with some friends (can I just tell you how grateful I am to have friends who like to go out to eat - like for every meal plus snack and desert and coffee? it's rad) and then we went to this ice cream place called The Hop, which makes amazing ice cream and smells like I hope heaven will, which is like sugar pretty much. When we walked in the girl was like "Hey we have a new flavor. It's called Elvis." So I asked her if it was peanut butter and banana, since that was Elvis' favorite sandwich. And she said it was but that there was a secret ingredient and got my friend to try and guess. Turns out it was bacon! So I had to try some and oh my, now I understand why everyone on the planet is putting bacon in their cupcakes and frosting and toffee and covering it in chocolate because Sweet Debbie, it was f-ing amazing! It was a completely smooth ice cream, no banana, peanut butter or bacon chunks. Incredibly creamy with a perfect balance of all three flavors. The bacon is subtle and serves to bring out the best in the banana and peanut butter. Holy crap. If I can't have sex, I'll take Elvis. Thank you The Hop, I will be back for a pint later this week.

Oh squash, bounty of summer, how I will miss thee.

Isn't it just like me to be enjoying something and immediately jump ahead, into the future, and start missing it before it's even gone. This morning I was eating my particularly yummy breakfast in the quiet semi-darkness of my living room, enjoying it immensely. It featured shredded squash. Yes, that's right, shredded squash again! It's my new favorite food trick, as I mentioned in the last post, and I discovered two new ways to use it. I will describe both of them in a minute. But first, what struck me this morning is that it really is coming to a close, this magical summer that I have loved so much. I noticed that Tastespotting is starting to feature more recipes with apples and heartier ingredients. The air is cooler and I can just feel that turning, sliding down into autumn. My last remaining squash plant is starting to do this thing where the squash get rotten before they're big enough to harvest and my tomatoes are FINALLY turning red. It dawned on me how much I will miss summer squash. Yeah, I know you can get it year-round but it's not the same when it wasn't grown in my backyard. It's not the same when it's not summer. So, even though there is still squash around and will be for a while, I started thinking of what I will replace it with in the fall and winter months. Pretty much any root - carrots, beets, parsnips - could be used similarly but nothing is going to melt in the pan quite like squash. What I had to admit to myself is that it's all part of the deal, here on earth. Letting go of what has been, however beautiful it may be, in order to receive the bounty of what's to come. Nothing can really replace what's been loved and lost but I'll stand at my stove and come up with something new and love it just as well. Yes, I did just get all touchy-feely about some squash. And you probably know I'm talking about more than just vegetables here. Like my friend Kelly says, "metaphor is my first language." There's usually another meaning under there somewhere. Not sure how well that's gonna work as man bait, but that's me. Take or leave it, right?! Anyway, on with the instructional portion of our program.

This morning I made eggs (1 whole, 1 white) scrambled with sauteed onion, fresh basil, and shredded squash. It was super easy. Just saute the onion and basil a bit, then add the squash. Let it all soften as much as you want. Add salt and pepper. Then add the eggs, lightly beaten, and mix it all thoroughly. Cook until the eggs are set to your liking.

Last night I needed to make a quick dinner between my 6-mile run and meeting up with a friend. After a run, I need at least little bit of simple carbs to recharge my glycogen but I don't like to load up on that stuff. I do, however, like to feel sufficiently full. I realized that adding shredded squash to my spaghetti would bulk it up with fiber and vitamins instead of just flour. I try to keep a bag of spaghetti noodles and a jar of sauce around. They usually last me at least two weeks if not more. All I did was sautee onion, garlic, and chopped fresh basil (from my garden!) then added the shredded squash (also from my garden!) and let it soften a bit. Then, I just dumped some sauce in, salt and peppered to taste and added it to my little pile of noodles. I shook just a little bit of parm on top and holy crap, flavor city. And it barely took any time to make. I suppose its one pitfall is the lack of protein. I'm not too concerned about that but it would be very easy to add a can of white beans or some chicken if you had left-over laying around, or Italian sausage and it would be even more filling and well-rounded.

That's it! I'm thinking I need to come up with a departing line, like when Paula Deen says she's sending you "love and best dishes from our kitchen to yours." Much as I've come to love the South, I am no Paula Deen so I don't think I could really get away with something as sweet as that. Ideas are welcome, including sarcastic ones!

Simple, Delicious, and Vegan!

After two posts about sugary treats (which are awesome, don't get me wrong) I'm going to do a quick post about some healthy, yummy fare I cooked up last night. Like I said in my very first post, I want to include some of the simple stuff I make most nights of the week as well as represent some tasty vegan options. Between the ages of 16 and 19, I was vegetarian and this also happened to be when I learned to cook. So, a lot of what I cook is veg by default. I have honed my meat cooking skills a bit over the last couple of years but it's still sort of my automatic to make stuff with veggies and beans and the like. Last night, I needed to cook for a friend who is vegan and I was so grateful to have the ability to make flavorful meals without animal products because, like I've mentioned ad nauseum since starting this blog, cooking for the people I love is A-number one important to me.

I did a quick mental inventory of what I had in my fridge and my pantry and came up with squash from my garden, homemade canned salsa I'd dug out of the pantry, and burrito shells. The only beans I had were dried black beans, not an option since you really gotta plan ahead to use those babies, so I decided to stop by the grocery and grab some pintos in a can and onion, since I'd used the last of that at some point last week. I've become quite fond of shredding vegetables to cook them. It's a great way to make them meltingly tender and if you slice an onion really thin and saute them together with olive oil, salt, pepper and whatever spices seem appropriate, it becomes this perfect amalgamation of flavor. In my mind, there are two distinct ways to do burritos (and other westernized forms of latin food). There's the version where all the ingredients have these nice crisp boundaries that keep the integrity of their own flavor while also pairing well with other ingredients. My fave of this variety is black beans, lightly spiced, with pineapple, pico de gallo, roasted sweet potatoes, and either blanched kale or lettuce. (I highly recommend this if you need fiber in your diet. Just don't eat it the night before a long run ;) Last night, though, we needed the other version where everything's a bit mushy and all the ingredients meld together so you have a little pocket of belly-warming goodness. Below is the recipe for what I came up with. It really came together nicely and I'm stoked that there are a tiny bit of leftovers that I'll be eating with tortilla chips for lunch today.

Shredded Squash and Pinto Bean Burritos

Ingredients:
2 medium size yellow squash
1 small or half of a large red onion
1 80z (I think, whatever the normal size is) Pinto Beans
2 cloves garlic
2 T Olive Oil
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. chili powder
lettuce (whatever variety floats your boat)
salsa
whatever other fixins you're into for burritos

Method:

1. Heat 1 T of olive oil in a skillet. Slice your onion very thin and shred the squash with a grater. Once the oilve oil is warm, throw in the onion and sautee it until it starts to turn transluscent. Then, add the squash and stir to coat with the oil. You may need to add a little more oil.

2. Once the squash has been cooking for a minute or so, stir in 1/2 t. of cumin and a heaping 1/2 t. of chili powder. Also, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine the spices well. Remember to stir it occasionally for even cooking and to prevent sticking.

3. Drain the pinto beans and put them in a sauce pan with about a tablespoon, maybe a little less, of olive oil. Throw in two small or one large clove of minced or crushed garlic, 1/2 t. cumin and another heaping 1/2 t. of chili powder as well as salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine. The trick is to spice the beans and squash equally and not too strongly since they'll all end up together in the end. We also want to avoid one of them being bland, since that leads to this stratification of flavor and flavorlessness in the end product. Let the beans cook until heated through. Mush them just a little with a spoon or fork, not totally to a paste but just break about a quarter of them open.

4. Heat your tortillas in whatever way you fancy. I like the oven on 200. Assemble burritos with beans, squash mixture, salsa, lettuce, and whatever else you want. I added a little greek yogurt to mine (a fat free, low call, de-freakin'-lish substitute for sour cream) and it went really well with the flavor and texture.

Yummmmm!

Whoopie Pies!

I am begining to suspect that the demons of technology are trying to hold a sister back when it comes to this food blog thing. First, my camera broke a few weeks ago making it impossible to take pics of my lovely creations. And then on Friday (irony of ironies, right after I got home with my new external hard drive for backing things up) my sweet little Mac-y-poo went to sleep and would not wake up. So, she's in the shop. But you know what, I'm food blogging come hell or high water! It's most important that I blog about this weekend's events because I had a Whoopie Party! Are you like "What the heck's a whoopie party?" That's cool, I'll tell you. It's a party with good people, good conversation, the grill going, and this yummy confection called the Whoopie Pie. See image (which I took with the camera on my Blackberry) below:

Imagine chocolate cake, baked in little blobs so they're kind of like cookies, with vanilla cream frosting sandwiched between them. It's like an Oreo cookie cake, or something. I also made a version of the filling with a couple tablespoons of Nutella (hazelnut chocolate spread, nectar of the Gods) replacing some of the butter and they were A-mazing.

So the reason that this party was important really has nothing to do with Whoopie Pies. I could have made anything and the effect probably would've been the same. What is important is that it was the first large gathering I've had since I became single and got a house all to myself. It's something I knew I wanted to do almost immediately, something that's been in my heart for a long time, really, that I just couldn't do under my previous circumstances. Truly, it's got everything in the world to do with the purpose of this blog and the importance of food and cooking in my life. I wanted to open my home to my friends - some old, some I've only just met - give them a place to have a nice time and some good food to gather around. And it worked! We were successful. With the help of my awesome friend Lori, I was actually ready when people started showing up. Everyone loved the Whoopie Pies and I had enough to share with friends who couldn't come to the party and with my co-workers. I used a recipe from Epicurious.com (which I seem to have left off of the links list, I'll add it shortly). Also, it had been my intention to make a gluten-free vegan version for two friends with dietary restrictions but poor time management made that impossible. I will be sure to update this post with that recipe after I make them (it just feels wrong not to make them, you know?). So here's the recipe I used, with added commentary:

Classic Whoopie Pie Recipe (from Epicurious.com)

Ingredients:
For cakes:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg

For filling:

• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups confectioners sugar
• 2 cups marshmallow cream such as Marshmallow Fluff
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:

Make cakes:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a bowl until combined. Stir together buttermilk and vanilla in a small bowl.

Beat together butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a handheld, then add egg, beating until combined well. Reduce speed to low and alternately mix in flour mixture and buttermilk in batches, beginning and ending with flour, scraping down side of bowl occasionally, and mixing until smooth.

Spoon 1/4-cup mounds of batter about 2 inches apart onto 2 buttered large baking sheets. Bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until tops are puffed and cakes spring back when touched, 11 to 13 minutes. Transfer with a metal spatula to a rack to cool completely*.

*Seriously, let them cool completely. If they're too warm, the filling gets all melty and the sandwiches don't stick together. In fact, stick 'em in the fridge after they're filled to keep this from happening.

Make filling:
Beat together butter, confectioners sugar, marshmallow, and vanilla in a bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. To make Kelly's Nutella version, replace about 2 tablespoons of the butter with 2 tablespoons of Nutella. Holy freakin' hazelnuts, it's so so good.

Assemble pies:
Spread a rounded tablespoon filling on flat sides of half of cakes and top with remaining cakes.

Cooks' notes:

• Cakes can be made 3 days ahead and kept, layered between sheets of wax paper, in an airtight container at room temperature.
  

• Filling can be made 4 hours ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.

Whoopie!!!!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's such an overwhelming decision, figuring out what to blog about first. And the past week has been so full of fun food adventures, it's hard to know where to start. But, I've made my choice and I'm going with something really classic that we can all relate to - Chocolate Chip Cookies. It's going to sound kind of all over the place but I kept thinking about this scene from the movie Stranger Than Fiction. (Which if you haven't seen it yet you MUST because it's one of my favorite love stories of all time. It's Will Farrell as stuffy tax man audits wild non-tax-paying baker Maggie Gyllenhaall and though it's unlikely they fall in love and he brings her "flours" sorry I just spoiled it but holy crap I melted into a little puddle when that part happened.) Anyway, here is the (grainy)clip so you don't have to read my blah blah blah recap of a movie:



So anyway, chocolate chip cookies, like the lady said, are pretty much the cure-all to any hardship. Think I'm being hyperbolic? Ok well come on over next time your day sucks and we'll see what I can do. My point is, unless you're like poor Howard Crick, you've probably had some form of dough with chocolate chips in it pulled out of the oven by your mama - or grandma or someone - and after the chocolate chips were cool enough to not remove the skin from the roof of your mouth you got to stick that thing in a glass of milk and eat it and yummmmmm. So now, to steal directly from Proust, when you have a real life adult crappy day, you can totally get that feeling back - I promise! - just by baking some chocolate chip cookies and eating them with a glass of milk (or soy milk or rice milk for our vegan and non-dairy friends out there). So the other day I was feeling just fine but I wanted some chocolate chip cookies and also needed some for my 16 mile run. (I like to fuel with chocolate chip cookies instead of Gu, though I'm starting to think I'll have to switch soon for these long distances.) ANYWAY (man I know how to get off track) I made some chocolate chip cookies.

Now, I used to make the recipe on the semi-sweet Ghiridelli chocolate chips bag but my ex-boyfriend always complained that his mom's were better and I have to say that I thought the recipe was a bit too sweet. So I tried the Joy of Cooking recipe and, for my taste, they were too buttery. How is that possible you ask? I mean, I would eat butter with a spoon if it was socially acceptable - and wouldn't make me morbidly obese - but when it comes to a chocolate chip cookie, I like something with substance. Which leads me to the true inspiration for this post. When I say too buttery, what I mean is that the butter to flour ratio was so high that they ended up being those types of chocolate chip cookies that are very thin and flat and melt in your mouth (cause they're made out of butter!). I took those ones to a gathering and people ate them up and went on about how good they were. So we all, I would say, have our own idea of what makes a good chocolate chip cookie. To me, a good chocolate chip cookie is thick but not too crunchy - about 1/4 inch, maybe even thicker, so that I have something to dunk in milk (I'm a big fan of dunking pretty much everything) and something really solid to crunch between my teeth. For this particular batch, I ended up adding flour to the last dozen or so cookies and they came out much more to my liking. The recipe I'm posting is the approximate variation I did on the Joy recipe. Also, a note about walnuts. I tend to think that they take a chocolate chip cookie from good to great. They also open the door for other really fun stuff - like the creation of Cowboy Cookies which I got from Martha Stewart last fall and include oats, coconut, and pecans in addition to chocolate chips. Yummmmm. Sooooo, I'm going to post my recipe below but would love to hear what other people think the perfect chocolate chip cookie means and whether they think they've found the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe In the World yet. I, for one, have not and am now officially on a mission. Enjoy (and thanks for listening to me ramble, that will get shorter I swear).

Kelly's Variation on JoC Chocolate Chip Cookies
Preheat the oven to 375. Grease or line 2 cookie sheets.

Whisk together:
1 3/4 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda

Beat in a large bowl until well-blended:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

Add and beat until well combined:
1 large egg
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Stir in the flour mixture until well-blended and smooth. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips and 1 cup chopped walnuts(optional).

Drop the dough by heaping teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until the cookies are just slightly colored on top and the edges are brown, about 8 - 10 minutes. Let stand briefly, then remove to a rack to cool.

Makes about 36 cookies.

Kelly's got a food blog! Yay!

Hello and thanks for following the breadcrumbs to my humble food blog! I'm not sure how this thing will turn out but I am hoping to put my food obsession to good use by sharing recipes and ideas with my readers to spread my favorites to other foodies and maybe even help reform some non-cooking folks. The name of my blog is somewhat facetious, though to be perfectly honest I am planning to marry someone and make babies at some point in the next few years here and I hope that said man likes food because I don't want to marry someone who won't let me cook a bunch of really great food for him. If I were willing to do online dating (which I'm not!) my profile would say that picky eaters (as well as pansies and men with beards) need not apply. What does this have to do with food? Nothing. I'll shut up about my taste in men now.

What I am trying to say is that I believe food is integral to the foundation of society. We use it as fuel and as a reason to gather. How we think about food and what we actually put in our bodies has a profound impact on our quality of life. Cooking is one of the ways that I take care of myself and the people I love. So, it follows that my vision of the future includes cooking for my family. Ultimately, being in the kitchen brings me great joy and I know that doing what I love is the best bait of all for anything good I hope to attract.

For a little while there won't be any pictures because, in an unfortunate turn of events, my camera broke a few weeks ago :(. I know, what's a food blog without awesome pictures of food to salivate over? My plan is to share my every day sort of cooking (to prove how easy, delicious, and inexpensive it is to cook for yourself) as well as the new and sometimes more complex recipes that I try. I also want to make sure I include some vegan/vegetarian options because, despite my love affair with meat, I do eat a lot of veg food and have a dear vegan friend who I really enjoy cooking with. (Plus, have you ever heard of that book Skinny Bitch? They aren't lying. Eating like that does go a long way in the weight management department.) Also, there are some really great food blogs out there, so I'll make sure I get a list of those links going . My first real post with an actual recipe is coming right up. Enjoy!