Making Dessert

You may have noticed that desserts have been missing from all the menus so far.

Time to remedy that situation. Remember when I mentioned in the very first blog (In the Beginning) that my cousins and I had made a disastrous chocolate cake? For a good long period of time, my luck with desserts didn’t improve very much. Especially with cakes. I now know that baking in general and making cakes in particular involves a chemical reaction. It requires just the right interaction between the ingredients in the cake and the oven. If you are working with a bad recipe, even following it exactly, or a faulty oven, you’re doomed. As time went along I could make a pretty good Thanksgiving pie, a perfectly fine baked custard, and decent fudge brownies. Cakes still eluded me. When pushed, I would buy dessert for a dinner party rather than risk disaster.





















Two people have changed my relationship to desserts. Our friends, Francis and Xochitl, moved to the Bay area from Mexico shortly after we moved here from North Carolina. Xochitl suggested that we start a dinner party club, the only requirement being that the host or hostess had to make everything from scratch. I said that I thought that would be interesting but I couldn’t guarantee I would make dessert. Well, I never heard the end of it. Whenever we invited them for dinner, she would pointedly offer to “make the dessert.”

Finally I said to myself, “Enough. I cook a lot of really good food. Why not desserts?” Coaxed into action, I set to work finding reliable recipes and practicing so that the next time they came to dinner I could offer them something home made. I can’t remember the first one I made for them, but let me tell you it was received with a great deal of laughter and enthusiastic praise.















My daughter-in-law Michelle Polzine has also been instrumental in this process. She is the award-winning and magical pastry chef at Range in San Francisco. Prior to my enlightenment, I would ask her to bring the dessert for every family meal figuring that she knew what she was doing and I didn’t so she should provide dessert. At some point I said to myself, “Enough. It’s not fair to ask someone who makes desserts for a living to make them for every family occasion. Give her a break.”

And so the learning process continued. I found more great recipes, including a couple of cakes. I practiced. I fed (and still feed) my favorites to my dessert-loving friend Sam to see how he responds. Over the years I have built up a pretty good repertoire of choices that are delicious, pretty and relatively simple. Best of all, with some confidence, I now serve desserts to Michelle.

Desserts in Three Flavors

Fudge Brownies
I’ve been using this recipe for years and years. The round pan will give you a dessert that looks more like a cake than a cookie.

















½ cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 1-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate, melted*
½ cup flour, sifted
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup walnuts, optional

1. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in eggs.
2. Blend in melted chocolate. Stir in flour and nuts.
3. Grease an 8x8 square or an 8-inch round pan. If you are using the round one, line it with parchment paper for easier brownie removal. Pour the batter into the pan and bake in a 325ºF oven for 30-35 minutes. The round one may take slightly longer.
4. Cool and cut into 16 squares or as for a cake. You can serve with Roasted Strawberries and whipped cream if you like or dust with powdered sugar.

* You can melt the chocolate in a microwave for 4 minutes at 50 percent power.
You dramatically improve the quality of the brownies if you use good chocolate.

Makes 16 squares or 8-10 slices.
Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook

Lemon Pudding Cake
The miracle of this dessert is that the batter separates into a cake layer on top and a lemon sauce layer on the bottom. It’s magic.
















1 cup sugar (divided ¾ cup and ¼ cup)
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup flour
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, melted
Zest of 1 lemon
1/3 cup lemon juice (1-2 lemons)
1½ cups milk
3 eggs, separated

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Butter a 1½-quart baking dish or an 8-inch baking pan.
2. Mix ¾ cup of the sugar, the salt, and the flour together in a bowl. Add the melted butter, lemon juice, lemon peel, and egg yolks, and stir until thoroughly blended. Stir in the milk.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the remaining ¼ cup sugar until they are stiff but remain moist. Fold the beaten whites into the lemon mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
4. Set the baking dish in a larger pan at least 2 inches deep and pour enough hot water into the larger pan to come halfway up the sides of the baking dish. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned.
5. Serve warm or chilled. Blueberries or raspberries, or any other fruit of your choosing, would be great on the side.

6 servings
Adapted from Marian Cunningham’s Lost Recipes

Buttermilk Panna Cotta
A cool and refreshing Italian treat on a summer evening with the wonderful hit of concentrated strawberry flavor from Roasted Strawberries.
















1½ cups half and half or whole milk
½ cup sugar
Grated zest of 2 lemons or 1 lemon and 1 orange
2 cinnamon sticks
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
3 tablespoons cold water
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup buttermilk
Fresh strawberries or Roasted Strawberries
Fresh mint for garnish

1. Warm the half and half, sugar, zest, and cinnamon sticks in a non-reactive saucepan. Once the mixture begins to steam, remove it from the heat, cover, and let steep for 30 to 60 minutes.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let it soften for 5 minutes.
3. Rewarm the infused half and half, then pour it through a strainer over the softened gelatin, stirring to dissolve it completely. Press the zest to release as much of the liquid as possible. Add the salt. Let the mixture cool.
4. Stir in the buttermilk. (If the mixture is steaming hot when you add the buttermilk, the mixture can separate. If it does, whisk it vigorously until it is smooth.)
5. Lightly grease 5 or 6 4-ounce ramekins with unflavored oil. (If you use smaller ramekins, you’ll make more desserts.) Divide the panna cotta mixture evenly among the prepared ramekins and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
6. To serve, run a sharp knife around the inside edge of each ramekin to release the panna cotta. Invert each one on a serving plate. Spoon the strawberries (roasted or fresh) around it. Add a sprig of fresh mint if you like.

5-6 servings in 4-ounce ramekins
Adapted from David Lebovitz’s Ripe for Dessert
He serves his with a blueberry sauce.

Oven-Roasted Strawberries
 Roasting concentrates the luscious strawberry flavor. You won’t believe it.

Strawberries
Sugar

1. Remove the stems and place the strawberries on a sided cookie sheet covered with parchment paper or silicone mat.
2. Sprinkle lightly with sugar (about 1 tablespoon per basket).
3. Roast in a 300°F oven for about 1 to 1½ hours. Turn them over about half way through roasting. You can use Convection Roast if your oven does that. The roasting time will be shorter.
4. The strawberries are done when they have shrunk to about half their original size and are soft without being burned.
5. Store with any collected juices in the refrigerator in a covered container.

Serve with Fudge Brownies, anything chocolate, panna cotta, or shortcakes.

Adapted from Michelle Polzine’s suggestions in San Francisco Magazine, June 2007

Cooking for One

Okay...this post includes a recipe, but that isn't really what I want to talk about. It's more of a side note.

Adam and I went to a barbeque at a friend's yesterday and I decided, in trying to break away from that Taco Dip rut, I would try something new - Potato Salad. I had seen a pretty tasty looking one on Pioneer Woman last week so I thought I would adapt that one. The particular recipe involved ricing the potatoes rather than using chunks. This seemed odd to me so I just chopped up the potatoes*. I also decided to add some apples and corn, and lemon to lighten up the flavour a tad, but not too much so as to take away from the base recipe and that fact that this WAS supposed to be potato salad, after all.

So I made this salad. And it was good - but not great. It definitely wasn't the best thing I've ever made. But, and this is the lesson here - there were so many things about it that were great, and it turned out that those things were the additions that I was hesitant to add too much of in the first place.

First off, the apples. This may sound disgusting, but when I was younger my mom would serve apple chunks slathered in mayo as a "salad". My dad loved it, and to be honest I did too. And though I may no longer eat this "salad" I thought it was perfectly acceptable to add apples to this one, and it was delicious!

And...the corn. Oh God the CORN. Just as a bit of background information, corn in general is one of my favourite foods. I love it in pretty much any form - out of the can, frozen, fresh corn on the cob. I'll add it to pretty much anything - salads, quesadillas, turkey sandwiches, or eat it mixed with mashed potatoes. It's even good on pizza, or omelettes. Anyway, I digress. Even with my lifelong love of corn, I've never, for some reason, cut corn off the. cob for other uses before. Maybe the frozen and canned versions were just too convenient, or cutting corn off the cob seemed too difficult. Either way, I had a couple of fresh corn cobs lying around so I figured I would try it (I won't lie - this was motivating. The directions in here are very helpful as well, so if you're going to try this at home follow these instructions!). And it's actually sad how happy it made me. The corn tasted SO MUCH BETTER than the other stuff. And cutting corn off the cob was so much easier than I expected, even possibly FUN (okay, I realized I sound like the world's biggest dork now, but whatever).

So anyway...I think that what I'm trying to say, is that sometimes it's okay to adapt a recipe to the point that it's a brand new dish. In this case, the next time I make this, it won't really be a "potato salad" as it will have quite a bit more of the apples and corn. I'm not really sure what it will be, per se. But that's okay. It will be delicious because there are delicious things in it, and it will be something totally new. And maybe no one else will want to eat it because I've overloaded on my favourite things and no one else's, but that's okay too - all the more for me.

*Although I've never made potato salad using riced/mashed potatoes before, I can see the appeal of it. This salad in particular seemed a bit bland, and I think largely because the potato chunks themselves had no flavour. I'm not sure if this could be improved by adding more salt to the water while the potatoes are boiling, but I do think that this is partly the reason for the ricing. The small pieces of potato you have, the more room there is to impart seasonings and flavour, and for the dressing to seep into every crevice. Regardless, I do like some chunks so I'll probably try ricing half the potatoes and using chunks for the other half next time.


Potato Salad
3 medium russet potatoes, washed, peeled and cubed
2 small macintosh apples, washed, peeled and cubed
3 stalks green onion
3 eggs
1 cob corn
1 lemon
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tsbp yellow mustard
fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste

1. Hard boil eggs - put eggs in a small pot of water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover and let sit for 12 minutes. Remove eggs and chill in ice water bath until cool.

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil - add potatoes and corn.

3. After 3 minutes, remove corn and chill in ice water bath to stop the cooking. Once corn is cool, hull corn off the cob using a sharp knife. Use the dull edge of the knife to rub off the rest of the corn nubs as well. You can use Ree's step-by-step instructions from this recipe here.

4. While potatoes are cooking, cut up green onion and apples and chop up dill.

5. Peel and roughly chop hard boiled eggs

6. Mix mayo and mustard together

7. Once potatoes are fork-tender, drain and add to a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, green onion, apples, corn and dill. Add in mayo-mustard mixture and squeeze in juice of half a lemon. Add salt and pepper and mix to combine. Season to taste as needed.

Cuts Of Beef

sgde572kvz

Home Cooking

When I first moved away from home, I didn't make or eat a lot of Korean food. I'd been eating it all my life, I still went back to my parents' place every couple of weeks so I didn't really feel the need to make it myself. However, the older I get the more I feel that changing. I still visit my parents quite often, but I find myself craving more and more of those home cooked meals from when I was a kid. I guess I've come to appreciate Korean cuisine a lot more (I was quite a picky eater as a child, so there were a lot of foods that I wouldn't eat) and now these dishes don't all fit into one weekend of meals. Either way, I've been trying to cook more of this myself at home and the best teacher for this is obviously my mom.

The problem with Korean food is that, unlike North American (or any other) cuisine, I can't just search for recipes online that seem to fit what I'm looking for. I need it to taste like what MOM made, so for that I need to go to the source. And since my mom (and I think this is the case with a lot of moms, or grandmothers that have been cooking for a long time) doesn't exactly write her recipes down, it's all about learning the techniques involved, or just how to eyeball the right amount of ingredients. For this reason I've started with the simplest recipes that a fairly small number of ingredients, to lessen the chance of messing up.

Hobak Jeon, or Korean Zucchini Pancakes, is one of the many popular street foods in Korea. There are only 5 ingredients involved and it's all about judging how much water to use - you want it to be fairly runny, not like a regular pancake batter at all (I'll admit - I DID try making these myself once previously using an online recipe. The pancakes were way too thick and puffy from not enough water in the batter) They don't taste anything like a North American pancake either - savoury and crispy, these are a tasty snack that is usually enjoyed with soy sauce.


Hobak Jeon (Korean Zucchini Pancakes)
1 zucchini
1 egg
1 cup flour
2 cups water
1 tsp salt
oil

1. Slice up zucchini into thin discs (the thinner the better!) and then slice the discs into thin strips. I admit, this takes awhile. You could probably use some sort of machine for this that I don't own.

2. Make the batter - Dump flour, salt and the egg into a medium sized bowl. Add 1 cup of water and stir. Continue adding water until you get a runny batter - how runny, it's hard to say. I can't think of a good comparison - like syrup? Or something like that. Add the zucchini and mix in.

3. Heat up your skillet or frying pan to medium heat with a good glug of canola oil. (My mom really emphasized that you should make sure you have enough oil to cover the pancake once you flip it as well) You don't want the heat to be too high or the pancakes will burn before cooking through the zucchini.

4. Using a ladle, pour in some batter. Make sure it's not too thick (the runniness will help with this). Cook for a couple of minutes, then flip over and continue cooking until both sides are browned and crispy. Cut into wedges and eat with soy sauce.

Smart fans are Cubs fans.

I'm a Chicagoan through-and-through: I'm a Cubs fan. If you've never witnessed Wrigley Field, what a shame. A few years ago, I spent a perfect early-April Saturday afternoon on a rooftop bordering the famous brick walls of Wrigley Field's outfield. Specifically, it was the "Ivy League" rooftop -- definitely worth checking out for those of you blessed enough to be living in the beloved Windy City. Or if you're me, you make special trips to the Chi for a game (and a weekend with your family). Anyways, on our rooftop we had unlimited food, beverage...and beer. T-r-o-u-b-l-e.

Picture (left-to-right): Kristen, myself, Michael, and Dave. Having a blast on the rooftop. "Go Cubs Go! Go Cubs Go! Hey Chicago, whaddya say? The Cubs are gunna win today..."

So in this economic recession, MLB home stands such as those of the Minnesota Twins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, and Texas Rangers have opted to boast "stuff-your-face-tickets" in specific sections of the ballpark. With the recent state of the economy, baseball sales are down and this all-you-can-eat incentive is being used to lure in baseball fans [1]. Or should I say food fans?

With the Twins suffering a 6% drop-off in ticket sales this season, they've allotted 600 seats in a few section distant from the diamond. This clientele has priorities other than baseball and their seating reflects that. While alcoholic beverages are not included in the ticket price, all-you-can-eat nachos, hot dogs, popcorn, pretzels, soda, and water are available to stuff-your-face ticket holders [1].

This story covered by USA Today quotes several note-worthy patrons [1]:

"We're just here to pig out."
"As long as there's food involved, that's all that matters" coming from the gentleman with the goal of eating 20 hot dogs.

"I've got some veggies here!" in reference to his jalapenos topping the nachos

Baseball: America's laziest sport supported by America's gluttonous patrons. Obviously.

Attendees feel they are "sticking it to the system" by purchasing this stuff-your-face-ticket for a mere $12 more than the general admission price, which are regularly priced at $22 a seat [1]. Of course my Cubbies would never stoop so low with such offers. Packing that sanctuary has never been an issue. And though ticket sales may be down a smidgen, the sales of Old Style are sure to stay up. For the record, I recommend the Old Style Light.

Today, we're opting to stay out of the 103 degree heat and instead watch the Cubs v. Cardinals - a classic rivalry between husband and I. Some 94% fat-free Orville Redenbacher popcorn will mostly likely be involved, but I'll leave the nachos, hot dogs, and jumbo pretzels to those "sticking it to the system". Or more like sticking it to themselves. Gross.

[1]. Campbell, Dave. All-you-can-eat Seats: Baseball Fans Pig Out. USA Today.

Texas Style

This is the second in a series about the best barbecue states. Today we will be looking at the great state of Texas and all it's glorious barbecue history. What makes Texas barbecue so special? Well Texans have developed an affinity for taking the less desireable cuts of meat and turning them into masterpieces. The meat of choice for a good texas barbecue is the venerable brisket. Brisket is a cut of meat from the lower chest of the cow. You could probably take this cut of meat to a bar fight and come out the winner every time. This is one tough hombre. How do Texans take this piece of meat that a pitbull would have a hard time chewing up and turn it into something so tender and delicious? They start with a dry rub that is rubbed into the brisket. This rub consist of spices such as salt,pepper,dry mustard,paprika,brown sugar,onion powder and garlic powder among others. The meat is then cooked at a temperarure between 200 and 250 degrees for at least 10 hours. During the cooking process a vinegar based sauce is "mopped" onto the meat. This is done to add juices to the meat but also to add the crust on the outside of the brisket. Nothing that will burn is in the mopping sauce. It is mostly vinegar and dry mustard with some other spices. Once this meat has been through the cooking process it turns from one of the toughest cuts of meat known to man into one of the juiciest, most tender and delicious cuts of meat found anywhere. If you have never tried Texas Style Barbecue Brisket I urge you to mosey on down to the Lone Star State and give it a try.

DRY RUB:

2 tbsp. seasoned salt
1 tbsp. cracked black peppercorns
1 tbsp. cracked white peppercorns (I substitute ground white pepper)
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
1 tbsp. paprika
1 tbsp. dry mustard
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. distilled white vinegar

MOP SAUCE:

5 slices bacon, minced
1 c. minced onions
1 1/2 c. beef broth
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/2 lemon, quartered
2 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

North Carolina Style

Today we begin a new series dedicated to finding which state has the best barbecue. I like all types of barbecue so I will be totally subjective.

The first state we will explore is North Carolina. Residents of the Tarheel state will certainly tell you that to find the worlds best barbecue you simply come to North Carolina and the barbecue will find you.

North Carolina BBQ is all about the pork and sauce. First a select pig is picked out and prepared for cooking. Once ready this pig is going to cook slowly at a temperature around 250 degrees for anywhere between 14 and 18 hours. This slow cooking allows the pork to age without drying out the meat. Seldom will you see sauce applied to North Carolina BBQ while cooking unless its a vinegar base to aid in keeping the meat moist. Once done the pork will be "pulled" into bite size chunks and eventually chopped even finer. If you see someone in North Carolina slicing the pork it's time to walk away because they obviously don't know a thing about North Carolina barbecue.

Once the meat has been pulled and chopped it's time to add the sauce. Here is where North Carolina barbecue differs from others. Rather than your traditionally red tomato based BBQ sauce Carolina style sauce is vinegar based and boy is it good! Just enough sauce will be added to the meat to awaken they taste buds. To much sauce and and the vinegar kills the wonderful flavor of the meat. The next step is to put this wonderful concoction in between two buns and add a little cole slaw and enjoy some of the finest BBQ the world has to offer.

If you're planning a trip to North Carolina be sure to follow the Barbecue Trail. You won't go wrong stopping at one of these joints. So stop in and try one or better yet try them all

North Carolina BBQ Sauce

INGREDIENTS
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco™), or to taste
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

..DIRECTIONS
1.Combine the white vinegar, cider vinegar, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper in a jar or bottle with a tight-fitting lid. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 days before using so that the flavors will blend. Shake occasionally, and store for up to 2 months in the refrigerator.

sehina - hina makhluk

dalam sebuah ceramah. yg agak lucu. tp benar.

seekor anjing kurap, yang kurus kering dan comot, busuk, dan kotor.
melihat bayangnya sendiri ke dlm air. dan merasa rendah diri. hina...
" ya Allah. hinanya aku. sudahlah seekor anjing, kurap, kurus, comot."
anjing itu pon berlalu dgn kekecewaan & terjumpa sekumpulan babi.
ketika itu, anjing itu berasa sungguh terkejut dan bersyukur.
"ya Allah, ada lagi makhluk yg buruk dan hina dr aku."
matanya tak berkelip melihat bertapa hodoh, buruk, dan kotornya babi itu.
anjing tersebut berlalu dgn rasa gembira.

seekor babi terdengar bisikan anjing kurap tersebut dan melihat dirinya.
dia terus melihat kawan - kawan di sekelilingnya dan berasa sedih dan hina.
"buruknya aku. kotor pula tu. hidung pendek, leher pendek, hinanya aku"
babi itu berlalu meninggalkan kumpulan kawan - kawannya kerana kecewa.
ketika berjalan 'seekor diri', babi berasa malu dan terus melarikan diri.
akibat letih, ia berehat di bawah sebuah tmpt yg disangkakan rumah.
dgn kuasa Allah, babi tersebut berada di bawah sebuah surau.

selepas selesai solat berjemaah, babi tersebut terdengar ceramah agama.
ustaz tersebut berkata "sehina - hina makhluk Allah adalah manusia yg
tidak bgn pagi utk menunaikan solat subuh. iaitu lebih hina dr babi"
babi pon mendengar dgn rasa lega dan berkata...
"syukur, ada lagi makhluk yg hina dr aku di bumi ini"

maka... bangunlah weyh solat subuh~!
bangun aqilah bangun~! jgn tdow blk kalau da bgn~! wahahah XD