Blueberry Pinwheels

Yesterday I made a blueberry cobbler that turned out so-so. Oh well. At least the pictures turned out well.

I wish the cobbler had turned out crazy delicious, but it didn’t. This is the second time that I've made this recipe. Last time, it was way too sweet, and there weren't nearly enough blueberries. This time, I more than doubled the amount of blueberries, taking the recipe from 2 to 5 cups. I didn't increase the sugar, and thought that I had probably created the perfect cobbler. But no. It didn’t have the effect I had hoped for. Even at 5 cups, the recipe still doesn't have enough blueberries in it. I'm thinking about trying it again with further modifications, but the trouble is, I don’t know if I can keep on dedicating my limited supply of blueberries to tinkering around with a recipe that might just be hopeless.

I'll get that all figured out eventually. If I end up perfecting this recipe, this is exactly where you'll find it.

Spice it Up

Quite by accident, after living on my own and "cooking" for myself for three years, I bumbled my way into one of the most basic and obvious herbal combinations imaginable: garlic and oregano. It was like magic in my mouth. My taste buds did a little dance, not unlike what cavemen must have done around their primordial fires. After that first discovery there was really no turning back.

The best thing about spices is what they can do for a dish that isn't much of anything without them. An example? Split-pea soup. Here's a variation on Mark Bittman's recipe from How to Cook Everything. The result isn't soupy unless you add a whole lot more water.

Split Peas with Mixed Spices

1.5 c green split peas
4+ c water (or stock of one kind or another)
1/4 t cayenne
1 pinch ground cloves
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1/4 t ground cardamom
1/2 t ground coriander
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t black pepper
salt to taste

1 T minced ginger
1 T minced garlic

Put everything except the ginger and garlic in a large enough pot and bring to a boil. Cover and cook, keeping the water level high enough so that it doesn't burn or stick. This will take the better part of 45 minutes. When the lentils are nearly done add in ginger and garlic. Serve over basmati rice.

Pie and Serendipity

I made apple pie on the fourth of July, which means that we didn't get to actually eat apple pie until the fifth. My recipe is definitely better a day later.



And then, a day after the day after the fourth, I decided it was time to go to Serendipity, an ice creamery not far from our house. I noticed recently that Serendipity will be participating in the Art of Food event coming up this month on the 25th. We'll be out of town then, but we're not out of town now! With the thrill of the possible alive in my mind, I loaded the kids into the car.

Turns out their ice cream is wonderful, homemade, and creative. Star & Dandelion both got sprinkles on their scoops. They had Blow Pop (bubble gum flavored with crushed lollipop in it) and Cookie Monster (a fruity blue ice cream with cookie dough mixed in). Aunt Terra got chocolate peanut butter but passed on the sprinkles. As for me, Ginger caught my eye. Could it be, I thought, could it really be ginger? I asked to try some--I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to a whole scoop. But that one taste was perfect. It had all the complexity of the hot/spicy/sweet root herb that I have come to love in savory dishes. Blended with ice cream, it was nothing short of divine.

I've since learned that a lot of ice cream makers have this flavor. I didn't know, and discovering it for myself was nothing short of serendipity.

A Variation on My Aunt's Apple Pie Recipe:

Filling
3 lbs Granny Smith apples; peeled, cored, sliced
1-1.5 c sugar (depending on tartness of the apples)
1 t cinnamon

Mix all this together. Let it sit for an hour before it goes into the pie crust

Crust
3 c flour
1 t salt
3/4 c canola oil
6 T water

Preheat oven 350˚ F. Mix crust ingredients together until uniformly combined and it forms dough that can be rolled out. Add more flour or water/oil if needed to achieve the right consistency. Divide into two balls and roll out between sheets of wax paper. Transfer the first to the pie pan. (I always bake mine in a rather large round cake pan because I don't own a pie pan, believe it or not). Add the apples & all juices from the cinnamon and sugar. Cover with the second rolled-out half of the crust recipe. Make it pretty if you know how and feel like doing it, though it will taste just as good without embellishment. Place pie onto a cookie sheet and bake ~ 90 minutes (should any juices overflow, the cookie sheet will save you a horrific amount of clean up). If the top begins to brown excessively you can cover it with foil, but I never have had this happen.

Remove from oven, wait a full day, and then . . . at long last . . . enjoy.

Improvisational Cooking With Kids

Our last library trip yielded, among other things, a cooking-with-kids recipe book. The recipes in it are simple, very well illustrated, and generally campy so as to appeal to children. Today we settled on the least campy one.

The kiddos and I set about making the recipe. Star cracked eggs. Dandelion switched the mixer on and off. It was fun. But not nearly as much fun as it was when I decided to change the recipe.

One brick of cream cheese and some cinnamon/sugar were the only add-ins we needed. The cheese chunks that they are so merrily sugar-coating are twelfths of a regular brick of cream cheese (because the recipe make 12 cupcakes). Here are the girls, obviously delighted to coat chunks of cream cheese in cinnamon 'n sugar. They were excellent kitchen helpers.

I took the coated lumps of cream cheese and plopped them on top of the batter, already in each (well greased because who knew we were out of cupcake papers?) cupcake well. Then I took all the left over cinnamon and sugar and parceled it out over each mess of sugar-coated cheese 'n batter. This is how they looked like when they went into the oven.

And this is how they looked about 20 minutes later.



The girls were very pleased . . . with themselves and the cupcakes.

Cheesy Hands and Feet

Although the results have always been mixed, I am forever trying to cook with my children. I'm quite sure they are as ambivalent about these bouts of quality time as I am. They'd rather be in front of the television, I'm sure. Never the less, I keep a watchful eye for recipes that the kids might actually want to make, so when Nigella Lawson, author of How to Be a Domestic Goddess, promised (on NPR, of course) that kids (generally) would love making Cheesy Feet, I decided it was time to drag my kids (specifically) into the kitchen once more.

The kids were great kitchen helpers, and thanks to a crazy-easy recipe the Cheesy feet (and hands!) came out much as anticipated. The result is something like a slightly cake-like goldfish cracker.

Look! Disgusting? Cute?

Here's how you can make your own (modified from the original at NPR):

4 oz. Cheddar cheese, grated
1.5 T butter
1/3 c flour
1/4 t baking powder

Put all of the ingredients into a food processor and blitz until the dough comes together (it eventually will become quite like play dough). When it does, form into a fat disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes. When the dough has chilled long enough, preheat the oven to 400˚ F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. While oven heats, roll out the dough between sheets of wax paper to roughly 1/8-inch in thickness, and cut out hands and feet with cookie cutters. Re-roll the dough to continue cutting out hands and feet until it is all used up. Put cut-outs onto lined baking sheet and cook in the oven for 10 minutes. Give them a few minutes to cool, then serve.

Too Many to Count

It's been a really nice, really full day. It started with guacamole, homemade by me, because I felt like having it for breakfast. Here's how I did it:

1 ripe avacado, seeded and mashed
1 t. lemon juice, though lime's better if you've got it
1 T hot salsa
2 T fresh cilantro, cut up into tiny bits.

Blend it all together and serve with chips--package and send some with your husband who doesn't hold with early-morning guacamole.

Next up; a trip to the Botanical Garden. The purpose for this particular visit was to find a suitably "spring"-like present for the girls' cousin. We did, and we also wandered around and took a lot of pictures while we were there. Here's one:

So much was blooming. In the Climatron we saw, among other things, limes budding on a lime tree and a (pink!) pineapple growing like nobody's business. The roses were spectacular. Star happily wandered the hedge maze in the Victorian garden while Dandelion refused to be photographed. They both adored the tiny frogs swimming merrily in the pool where the Angel Musicians danced overhead.

Our plan was to go from the Garden to the Airport, where Aunt Terra would catch a flight to NC for the weekend. We had a few extra minutes, so we ducked into Sweet Art for cupcakes.

I'd been curious about this little shop for ages. The proprietors are a couple. She bakes, he paints. Sweet. Art. Lovely. The cupcakes were good and the art was lyrical. Their savory menu looked marvelous, so I'll have to go back some time when I'm thinking "meal" and not "child-appropriate snack".

The rest of the day didn't photograph quite so well. We dashed to the airport and then dashed back to the house where I threw together a sack lunch for Star to take to her school picnic. I took the kids to their schools for the last time--summer break is setting in. Got home and worked a bit on the back-yard fire pit. Tried to cleaned the gutters but realized I really am too chicken to clean the ones on the back of the house (where there's no porch to catch me if I fall). Went shopping and bought blackout fabric for curtains in the girls' room, a birthday present for a party Dandelion's going to tomorrow, and a swim cover up for me. Picked the kids up (from school and the bus stop) for the last time--it's officially summer break. Took them to the pool. Dandelion went down the slide! Came home. Made dinner. Got the kids to bed.

And that brings us to me, sitting here typing this. Hopefully, in the next few days, I'll sink into a rhythm for the summer. Maybe, even though the kids will be with me all day every day, I'll finish some of the things that I'm in the middle of (too many to count, actually) and when I do I'll share pictures of it with you.

Black-eyed Pea Salad/alsa

One of the blogs I read is called Life at Quail Hollow. The site features, among other things, distinctly Southern recipes. Recently one of the recipes caught my eye, a recipe for Black-eyed Pea Salad. Any leftovers, the recipe claimed, could be served like Salsa. Since all my past experience with Black-eyed peas resulted in dishes served hot with spices distinctly Indian, I was happy to try a new direction.

If you want to see the original recipe, here it is. In the original, the first ingredient is a gallon-size can of Black-eyed peas and the recipe serves 40+. I always improvise a bit when I cook. What you'll find here is a derivation from the Quail Hollow salad, but the result is still yummy and works well whether as a salad or (take Matthew's word for it) as a salsa.



Black-eyed Pea Salad/alsa

1 lb dry black-eyed peas

Soak overnight if you can, but pre-soaked or not, put them in a pot, cover with water and boil until they are soft. When they're done drain and rinse well, toss them with the following things (which you can prepare while the peas cook):

1 11oz. can vacuum packed corn kernels
2 14oz. cans petite diced tomatoes
4 ribs celery, chopped
2 c. chopped red onion
1 t garlic powder
1 4oz. can diced green chiles
2 T lemon juice

In a small bowl, wisk together the following ingredients:
1/4 c. white vinegar
1 t ground mustard
1/4 c. canola oil
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper

Pour this over the pea/vegetable/chile mixture, toss well. Chill 8-12 hours to allow flavors to bloom. I don't know how many servings this makes, but it filled a big stew pot at my house. 12? 15 maybe?

Vegetable-Tofu Stir Fry

Let's get something straight. I'm not a cook, at least, not much of one. But holly cow, look what I made today!

And it tasted good.

Here's how:

Take a big pack (19 oz.) of tofu, drain and cut into 1/2-3/4 inch cubes. Toss these in soy sauce (1/4 c.) and fish sauce (2T) and 1t brown sugar. Let it sit while you prepare the vegetables. Grab a fistful of carrots (five, maybe?), peel, cut into 3 inch lengths and julienne. Do the same for four ribs of celery. Pull half a pound of Green Beans (preferably the long, skinny ones) out of the freezer.

In the biggest frying pan you own (not a wok), heat 2T oil until it begins to smoke. While oil heats up, drain the excess fluid off the tofu into a small bowl to use later in this recipe. When the oil is ready add the tofu, stir occasionally, attempt to brown the cubes on all sides. After about 4 minutes put the tofu on a plate, where it will wait until later.

Put the frying pan back on the heat, add 1T oil and let it get nice and hot. When smoke rises from it, add carrots. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring here and there. While it is cooking, dump a big spoonful of minced garlic into the bowl of reserved soy/fish sauce. Add Celery to the pan, cook 2 more minutes (intermittent stirring). While it is cooking, grate about 1 cubic inch of fresh ginger into the soy/fish/garlic sauce. Add the green beans and cook 2 more minutes (yes, stir). Return the cooked tofu to the pan, pour in the soy/fish/garlic/ginger sauce, stir it all around cooking long enough to reheat the tofu.

Serve it up quick over rice.

Cauliflower: otherwise known as Lunch

This is what I made for lunch today. Dandelion said it was delicious, and she ate as much as you see in the picture there. There was no bribing involved. None at all.


Here's how (adapted from Cooks Illustrated, Jan '07):

Preheat oven to 475 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Cut the green stuff off a head of cauliflower leaving the stem intact (I cut off too much, so beware). Cut through the stem to section the cauliflower into eight wedges, arrange on the baking sheet. In a small bowl, mix a pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper and 2T oil. Drizzle this over the cauliflower sections. Rub the oil in with your fingers, then turn each wedge over and rub that side too. Cover the whole baking sheet snugly with more foil. Bake covered like this for 10 minutes. Then remove foil and bake 10 more minutes. Remove from oven, flip each wedge, bake for 10 more minutes and it's done! Allow to cool (5-10 mintues?), and enjoy.

I'm NOT kidding (even if it is 1 April)

This what I served my family for dinner last night.


Those are Zucchini boats stuffed with tomato, onion, & potato, topped with Parmesan.

Star and Dandelion refused point blank to eat them. So I went back to the kitchen. 15 minutes later I plopped one chunk of these down in front of them.


You can have it, I said, after you eat the zucchini.

And you know what, they did eat the zucchini. Fudge, the original miracle worker.

recipe approximations:

Zucchini Boats
Heat the oven to 400, put a large cookie sheet in there to preheat. Cut three or four zucchini lengthwise after cutting off the end. Scoop out the insides with a melon-baller or spoon. You can use this for another recipe, so stash it for later. season the zucchini with salt and pepper and a bit of oil. Also peel and cut up three potatoes (1/2 inch cubes). Put these in a bowl, pour a bit of oil on the (1 t?) and some oregano and garlic powder and toss with spoons to coat. When the oven is hot put the zucchini on the heated cookie sheet skin up, dump the potatoes around them. 10 minutes later, take the zucchini out. and another 10 minutes later take the potatoes out.

While the zucchini and potatoes bake, heat a little oil in a skillet. While it is heating, chop a medium onion as finely as you dare. Cook it in the hot oil until softened and glassy looking--about 5 mintues. While that is cooking, chop up a few tomatoes or open up a can of petit diced ones. Add the tomato to the softened onion. Season with basil, salt, whatever suits your taste.

Add the roasted potato to this mix, check again for seasoning and adjust if you need to. Fill the zucchini boats. top with a few pinches of parmesan and microwave for a minute to melt the cheese. Served 4 at my house (two adults and two kids).


Fudge
Search through the house until you find 16 oz. of semi-sweet or bitter chocolate. Start some water boiling on the stove in a sauce pan or the bottom of a double boiler. If it isn't already in small pieces, break/chop chocolate up. In a heat-proof bowl or the top half of a double boiler, toss with 1/2 t. baking soda and a bit of salt. Heat until melted, and then mix with a can of sweetened condensed milk. When thoroughly combined add in nuts or marshmallows if desired. pour into an 8x8 pan lined with foil and refrigerate to set. Cut into 1.5 inch chunks to serve.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is how Dandelion helps to make cookies:


Of course, you could buy cookies, but Frugalein can't imagine why you would want to do that. When she makes them herself:
1. she saves money
2. she can be totally sure about what is in them
3. and what isn't
4. they taste better
5. because they are better
6. and it doesn't hurt that they were made fresh five minutes ago.

She'd recommend that you make these:


Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 sticks of butter (1 cup) softened
1 c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
2 c. flour
1 12oz. bag chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 F. Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, stir together salt, soda, & flour. Slowly blend this into the wet ingredients. When combined, add chocolate chips stirring until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter. Drop golf-ball sized globs onto an insulated baking sheet (I didn't grease it), and bake for about 10 minutes for a chewy cookie, 12 for a crispy one. Yield 36 pretty-big cookies.

Even better with Peanut Butter

That's what Matthew says . . . about this recipe that is a work in progress. I'll let you know if I make any changes. This is MY recipe. I invented it . . . and love it even if it does taste better with peanut butter.

Lemon Cardamom Cookies

half a lemon zested and juiced
3 beaten eggs
1 c sugar
half c splenda
1 c shortening
2 c flour
half t salt
half t baking soda
1 t cardamom

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a small bowl beat eggs and lemon zest and juice. Set aside. In a different bowl, use a mixer to cream the sugar, splenda, and shortening. Beat in the egg/lemon and continue with mixer on high speed until it is ridiculously fluffy. In a third bowl (phew!) sift together the remaining ingredients; flour, salt, baking soda, and cardamom. gently mix into the shortening/egg mixture until completely combined. Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet. Leave about 2" between spoonfuls (dough will spread). Bake about ten minutes for a soft cookie; longer if you want a crisper cookie. Yield 3 dozen.

Blondie Brownie

Yummy. Butterscotch Brownies and Cream Cheese Brownies from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

Butterscotch Brownies

8 T unsalted butter, softened, plus a little for greasing the pan
1 c brown sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla extract or 1/2 t almond extract
pinch salt
1 c all purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8" pan.
2. Melt the butter over low heat. Using an electric mixer, beat in the sugar until very smooth, then beat in the egg and vanilla, occasionally scraping the sides of the bowl.
3. Add salt and then mix in flour. Pour into prepared pan and bake aprox. 20 minutes (err on the side of underbaking). Cool on a rack before cutting.

Salt Dough

Matthew is teaching the girls about ancient Rome. To reinforce the principles of the lesson, he made a batch of salt dough so the kids could form and paint their own artifacts.


In the time it took to upload this picture they've transitioned to the next learning station; probably a home video of a trip we took, but which one? Has he chosen our video of Trier (Romans in Germany) or our video of the baths in downtown Beirut (Romans in Lebanon) or is he showing them the video of actually going to Rome? So many choices . . . .

Here's the Salt Dough Recipe:

4+ cups flour
1 cup salt
1.5 cups water

mix mix mix until it is has the right consistency (like playdough). form it however you want, and then you have choices. You can let it dry out (takes a day at least), bake it on a low temperature, or (what Matthew just did) nuke it. If all this sounds vague, well, it is. But winging it has worked well with this recipe in the past.