tapioca cream

this heavenly dessert is worlds away from what you might think of when you hear “tapioca” – that cold congealed lump from the school cafeteria or a jello pudding cup.

no no. tapioca cream is fluffy and light and best served warm late at night.

[disclaimer! none of these pictures will be fabulous because tapioca is white on white on yummy and, not being a professional, i had trouble capturing it.]

tapioca cream is a two-step process, and a roommate or sous-chef comes in handy. but if you want it badly enough, you can certainly manage alone.

follow box instructions for proportions, but briefly, start by heating your tapioca in milk with some sugar and an egg yolk.

this needs to be stirred constantly, which is where the roommate comes in. while it is cooking, you also have to beat an egg white with sugar until soft peaks form.

not quite there yet…

(you can tell by now that making tapioca alone is hard enough, but trying to take pictures at the same time is next to impossible. everything i do, i do it for you.)

when the milk bubbles and the egg is softly peaking, mix the two together quickly, while stirring constantly. the heat of the milk just barely cooks the egg, and the egg in turn makes the milk fluffy and delicious!

it’s sad, really. this picture doesn’t do it the least bit of justice.

therefore i recommend you make tapioca for yourself immediately. if only for research and accuracy purposes… to.. um.. better understand this post. yeah, that’s why…

german dinner

as i’ve mentioned before here, my family (at least parts of it) is german so we have some awesome german recipes up our sleeves. like warm potato salad.

and we really love us some german food, especially when our whole little family gets together for special occasions. like 89th birthdays.

this is called sauerbraten – the best, most tender sweet-sour pot roast you can possibly imagine. and it’s served with knudel, or mashed potato dumplings.

[we actually used alton brown’s recipe and it was breathtaking. the marinade was started three days in advance and traveled to boston in a zip-lock bag with the meat!]

extra sauce on the side, please!

and what goes better with sauerbraten than red cabbage?

yes, those are bacon crumbles on top. go grandma!

and for dessert, a modified schwartz valder kirschtorte, in english commonly known as a black forest cake.

traditionally, chocolate cake with ganache and sour cherries, but modified for healthier eating habits here – vegan chocolate cake, well doused with kirsch (cherry liquor), layered with cherry-filled whipped cream and whipped cream on top with a cocoa dusting.

happy birthday, grampy!

spaghetti carbonara

what i had for thanksgiving dinner:

that’s right – spaghetti carbonara.

it’s a long story that involves a seven hour drive to boston, a thanksgiving meal that was served between 10:30 am and 1:00 pm, and three thai restaurants who all observed the holiday by closing.

suffice it to say, i think a new tradition has been born.

traditionally, carbonara does not include cream like it does in most restaurants today, and actually involves only four ingredients (if you don’t count salt, pepper and the spaghetti):

garlic. bacon. eggs. parmesan. you got a problem with that?

start by setting your pasta water to boil. slice three strips of bacon and crisp them in a frying pan.

towards the end, add two cloves minced garlic and lightly color. (if it gets too brown it gets bitter.)

in a serving dish, beat two eggs very well and flavor with salt and pepper.

grate about half a cup of parm.

when your pasta is done, use tongs to transfer it directly into the eggs. mix thoroughly. the hot pasta will cook the egg. then mix in the bacon, garlic and cheese.

now that’s worth giving thanks for…! (serves two)

[recipe from everybody’s favorite, ruth reichl. if you have any interest in food, or restaurants, or restaurant reviewing, or really clever writing, you should pick up one of her books.]

canning tomatoes

another guest blogger returns! she is most famous for getting married, getting a phd AND making awesome-looking peach upside down cake.

last year, my roommate and i canned 120 pounds of tomatoes over 3 days. this year we were both traveling & working hard, so we had to cram it into one day.  my roommate’s parents always canned tomatoes growing up, so our instructions were given in italian — and italian cooking instructions are vague.  they involve a lot of “you know, when it’s ready” or “you know, when it’s right”.  i’ll provide the italian instructions and our slightly more precise interpretation of them.

we started with 80 pounds of tomatoes from the farmer’s market that were “cosmetically challenged”.  this means they’re perfect for canning and cheaper!  step one: wash all those tomatoes, pick off the stems and sort into gorgeous and blemished.

we canned chopped tomatoes (with the blemished ones) and sauce with the gorgeous ones.  step two for chopped tomatoes: cut out all those blemishes.

step three for chopped tomatoes: seed those tomatoes.  i think seeding appeared on this blog before. [editor’s note: how – and why – to seed a tomato.]

step four for chopped tomatoes: shove as many as you can in a mason jar, smash them up and drain the extra juice.  if you have two much liquid, your jars will float when you try to boil them & that’s no good.

back to sauce-making…  step two for sauce: boil the tomatoes until “the skin is pinchable”.  oh italian…
we took that to mean just as the tomato skins were splitting.

step three for sauce: put the tomatoes onto cheesecloth stretched over a bowl and attack them with a fork.

allow the tomatoes to drain for a long time.  you must let most of the water drain.  this was a “you know, when they’re ready” step that caused lots of discussion.  we still don’t have precise instructions for it.

side note: save all that juice that drains!  it’s delicious tomato broth for soups and risotto.

step four for sauce: run those tomatoes through a food mill.  food mills are handy for pureeing soups, making sauce (tomato & apple) and probably other things which i haven’t tried yet.

the beauty is, it mashes the tomatoes into sauce & takes the skins off for you!

step five for each: add salt to the sauce or chopped tomatoes.  the italian translated as “use a lot.  handfuls.  until it tastes right.” of course, the handful unit depends on how much sauce you’re adding it to.  we went with one handful per a few cups of sauce.  put a few basil leaves in a mason jar and fill it up with sauce or chopped tomatoes.

step six: process those jars!  we boiled them for 25 minutes to cook the sauce and seal the jar.  there are a few canning steps i haven’t entirely described, so you should find a ‘canning expert’ to consult before embarking on this adventure.

as you figure this out, you develop an assembly line of sorts and “tom sawyer” your friends into helping you.  promising them dinner with tomato sauce and wine helps.  finally, the haul from 80 pounds of tomatoes:

hopefully enough to get us through until tomato season next year.

le grande thanksgiving

thanksgiving came early at our house this year, with braised and broiled turkey wings, horseradish smashed potatoes, haricots vertes, roasted grapes (instead of cranberry sauce) and of course gravy.

icf will be taking the rest of the week off. in the meantime, have a happy turkey day and enjoy an annual family tradition of mine…

Le Grande Thanksgiving
By Art Buchwald

This confidential column was leaked to me by a high government official in the Plymouth colony on the condition that I not reveal his name.

One of our most important holidays is Thanksgiving Day, known in France as le Jour de Merci Donnant .

Le Jour de Merci Donnant was first started by a group of Pilgrims (Pelerins) who fled from l’Angleterre before the McCarran Act to found a colony in the New World ( le Nouveau Monde ) where they could shoot Indians (les Peaux-Rouges) and eat turkey (dinde) to their hearts’ content.

They landed at a place called Plymouth (now a famous voiture Americaine) in a wooden sailing ship called the Mayflower (or Fleur de Mai) in 1620. But while the Pelerins were killing the dindes, the Peaux-Rouges were killing the Pelerins, and there were several hard winters ahead for both of them. The only way the Peaux-Rouges helped the Pelerins was when they taught them to grow corn (mais). The reason they did this was because they liked corn with their Pelerins.

In 1623, after another harsh year, the Pelerins’ crops were so good that they decided to have a celebration and give thanks because more mais was raised by the Pelerins than Pelerins were killed by Peaux-Rouges.

Every year on the Jour de Merci Donnant, parents tell their children an amusing story about the first celebration.

It concerns a brave capitaine named Miles Standish (known in France as Kilometres Deboutish) and a young, shy lieutenant named Jean Alden. Both of them were in love with a flower of Plymouth called Priscilla Mullens (no translation). The vieux capitaine said to the jeune lieutenant :

“Go to the damsel Priscilla (allez tres vite chez Priscilla), the loveliest maiden of Plymouth (la plus jolie demoiselle de Plymouth). Say that a blunt old captain, a man not of words but of action (un vieux Fanfan la Tulipe), offers his hand and his heart, the hand and heart of a soldier. Not in these words, you know, but this, in short, is my meaning.

“I am a maker of war (je suis un fabricant de la guerre) and not a maker of phrases. You, bred as a scholar (vous, qui tes pain comme un etudiant), can say it in elegant language, such as you read in your books of the pleadings and wooings of lovers, such as you think best adapted to win the heart of the maiden.”

Although Jean was fit to be tied (convenable tres emballe), friendship prevailed over love and he went to his duty. But instead of using elegant language, he blurted out his mission. Priscilla was muted with amazement and sorrow (rendue muette par l’etonnement et las tristesse).

At length she exclaimed, interrupting the ominous silence: “If the great captain of Plymouth is so very eager to wed me, why does he not come himself and take the trouble to woo me?” (Ou est-il, le vieux Kilometres? Pourquoi ne vient-il pas aupres de moi pour tenter sa chance?)

Jean said that Kilometres Deboutish was very busy and didn’t have time for those things. He staggered on, telling what a wonderful husband Kilometres would make. Finally Priscilla arched her eyebrows and said in a tremulous voice, “Why don’t you speak for yourself, Jean?” (Chacun a son gout.)

And so, on the fourth Thursday in November, American families sit down at a large table brimming with tasty dishes and, for the only time during the year, eat better than the French do.

No one can deny that le Jour de Merci Donnant is a grande fete and no matter how well fed American families are, they never forget to give thanks to Kilometres Deboutish, who made this great day possible.

pumpkin whoopie pies

i am so pleased to have this guest blogger back. you might recognize her from such hits as mississippi mud cake. anyway, i have this theory that cupcakes are so yesterday (so yesterday) and whoopie pies are the cupcakes of tomorrow. or they are a great thanksgiving dessert for those disinclined to pie.

there are many things i agree with ms. akp about, including the resurgence of the whoopie pie a.k.a the new cupcake. we are both convinced that the popularity of the cupcake shop will soon be joined by the whoopie pie shop and frankly i simply cannot wait.

as someone who has always been a sucker for anything fall flavored: pumpkin, squash, apple cinnamon…yum, i couldn’t wait to try my hand at pumpkin whoopie pies. i first made them for an office party, where they were a big hit, adapting a rachael ray recipe i found online. so i decided to make them again for a halloween party.

i began by making the pumpkin cake part of the pies, using vanilla, sugar, flour, eggs, butter, baking soda and baking powder. the key to the pumpkin part is using canned pumpkin and not pumpkin pie mix. after i put them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, i let them bake for 12 minutes.

while the delicious pumpkin aroma filled my kitchen, i got started on the simple cream cheese frosting. the frosting is simply butter, cream cheese, butter and vanilla whipped together.

i pulled my pumpkin cakes from the oven and let them cool before matching up the correct sized pies and icing them. if you do not wait for the pies to cool, the icing melts. in a pinch, you can ice the pies while still hot and stick them in the freezer!

the result is a delicious fall treat, fluffy pumpkin mixed with a sweet cream cheese frosting. they were once again, a big hit!

[editor’s note: the original rachael ray recipe.]

caprese pasta

i’m not trying to sound like i invented the wheel here, because there is nothing more traditional that the combination of tomatoes, mozzarella, garlic and a green (lettuce, basil, etc). that said, there may also be nothing more delicious. as common as it is, i never get tired of it.

for this more fall-ish version of the summer classic, i roasted cherry tomatoes with garlic and olive oil, and wilted a bunch of arugula with it. (you could easily use baby spinach instead.)

crazy how much the arugula cooks down, huh!? so make sure you start out with much more than you think is necessary.

while the arugula is doing it’s thing, boil your pasta – i used whole wheat linguini

and cube up a generous amount of fresh mozzarella. add it to your serving bowl.

when the pasta is done and drained, quickly pour it over the cheese and mix with tongs to get some melty action going on.

then add your vegetables and mix well. if i had had any fresh basil, i would have torn some over the top, but the dish was certainly not ruined without it.

the tastes of summer in a cool-weather comfort food!

“bread machine”

as you know, i love challenges, crazy recipes and trying new things in the kitchen. so when i saw this on the box of our (early) christmas present:

(long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away…)

i, of course, had to give the “bread baking function” a try immediately.

did i mention the present was a rice cooker?

…how intriguing…

(also, please note here that i have never used a bread machine. my mother would die. she makes bread the old fashioned way. i promise to show you someday.)

so really more as a lark than anything else, one rainy sunday afternoon i decided to give it a whirl. uncharacteristically, i started by reading the instructions. i thought i should stick to them fairly closely because i didn’t want the newest member of our kitchen family to explode or anything.

first, you scald your milk. this means get it to bubble, but not quite boil.

(it’s not there yet…) then add honey (we’re making “honey wheat” apparently), vegetable oil and salt.

since i obviously can’t stick to a recipe TOO closely, i didn’t think it would hurt to use molasses instead. of course, this will mean a darker, slightly bitter bread. okay by me. (also, i had no honey…)

you let this cool to lukewarm, and add half a packet of yeast. if you add the yeasties when it’s too hot you will scald and kill them. much like yogurt.

when they are dissolved, start adding your flour one cup at a time.

i didn’t think two cups would be enough, but… maybe i should trust the recipe.

it was. turn this sticky ball of dough out on a floured surface, and with floured hands, kneed for 10 minutes. that’s a long time. really a workout.

do you know how to knead dough? start by pushing the ball with the heel of your palm.

(both palms, of course, but someone had to take the picture, right?!)

then turn the dough 90 degrees

be careful to not in any way pull or tear the fibers you are creating in the dough!

fold it over

and repeat from the beginning

for 10 minutes. it’s harder than it looks!

[a note on baking in acrylics. as part of my kick-ass halloween costume – and possibly because of some secret fantasy – yes, those are acrylic nails. while i was a little concerned about how kneading would go, this is actually a great lesson for beginning bakers: you should really not ever be using your fingertips when you knead. therefore, proceed in your fake nails. in case you were worried.]

once the dough is kneaded, you put it in the rice cooker and set to “bake.”

40 minutes later, a nice little  buzzer goes off to tell you it’s done rising. doubled in size – perfect.

take the dough out, punch it down and… here, again, the rebel in me came out. instead of a single loaf, i’m going for rolls, so i cut the dough into four pieces

and put them back in the rice cooker. (i was hoping they’d sort of fuse while baking, but break apart like rolls at the end.)

40 minutes later and the buzzer sounds again… it’s almost done.

flip the loaf over – be careful it’s HOT – and let it brown the other side for the last 10 minutes.

check it out!

delicious bread in a rice cooker. what will they think of next?

so my tear-apart-rolls idea didn’t really work, but no one seemed to mind!

[MH: thank you so much for the fabulous early christmas addition to our kitchen!]

ultimate stuffed shells

you know that show tyler’s ultimate where tyler florence adds a ton of butter to everyday foods to make them taste better? well this is icf’s ultimate stuffed shells. except without the butter.

start with a lot of garlic – 4 cloves – because there are going to be lots of strong flavors, so you need each to shine through. heat it in olive oil over medium heat in a good-sized pot.

then i added coarsely chopped button mushrooms (remember never to wash mushrooms! wipe dirt off them with a damp cloth) – coarsely chopped because they will cook down and you still want them to have some substance – and onion.

and coarsely chopped black kale (from the box, bien sur).

i sauteed all this until the mushrooms were soft and the kale turned bright in color (this is when you know kale is done if you don’t want your kale overcooked).

i let this mixture cool while i started my pasta water and made sure my shells were mostly unbroken.

(using one of my fave techniques, i tossed the green beans i was going to serve on the side in with the pasta for the last 3 or so minutes.)

do remember to NOT cook your pasta all the way! it will finish cooking in the oven and you don’t want your shells to just dissolve away.

while the pasta was cooking, i mixed about half a carton of ricotta cheese into the vegetable mixture. season to taste with salt and pepper.

when the shells (and green beans) were done and (barely) cool enough to handle, i filled each with a spoonful of ricotta mixture and arranged them in a baking dish. (before starting to stuff i recommend preheating your oven to 375 degrees.)

once the shells were stuffed, i topped them with at least a cup of jarred tomato sauce (by all means, use homemade if you have it!)

thinly sliced fresh mozzarella (because i had some around and it wasn’t going to last another day)

and some seasoned bread crumbs (panko would work great here if you have it) mixed with grated parmesan cheese. this was designed to create a nice crispy crust.

don’t feel like you have to have all the fillings or cheeses i used. the point of this is to be creative with what you have around.

bake until the sauce bubbles, the cheese melts and/or the top gets brown and crispy. i didn’t do this (because i didn’t have any) but i recommend covering the dish with tin foil for the first 30 minutes or so, and then taking it off to brown the top.

how good does this look?

fyi, i timed the process so i could let you know how long it took in total – just over one hour from start to tummy. i did lose a little time, though – trying to limit my dirty dishes, after cooking the mushrooms and kale, i washed the pot and boiled my pasta water in it. if i had done the pasta at the same time as the veggies in two pots, it would have saved me about 20 minutes.

chocolate hummus

yeah, you heard me right. chocolate hummus.

if you’re hesitant, i can tell you that in a completely scientific sample of six people (my mom’s coworkers), no one could guess that there were chickpeas involved.

start by making a paste of 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 cup of cocoa.

i used “hershey’s special dark” cocoa – like “hershey’s special dark” chocolate bars – which is dutch processed and even available at the soviet safeway. (using a “dutch processed” cocoa actually might make a difference. several tasters in my mother’s group – whose sample was made with regular cocoa – mentioned a “harsh raw cocoa flavor,” which wasn’t present in my version.)

(note! this is NOT tasty yet! do NOT stick your finger in it! consider yourself warned!)

into the mini chopper goes a can of chickpeas/garbanzo beans (drained),

1/2 a cup sugar (right about now the chickpeas are going “WHAT THE…!?”),

the chocolate paste, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

blend together, with the aid of one to three tablespoons of warm water, as necessary. you can make it as smooth or as coarse as you’d like.

spread on toast, sweet-ish crackers or cinnamon-sugar pita chips.

i topped it with toasted coconut for a late night dessert/snack!