Fresh Apple Layer Cake

October 12, 2010

A game that I like to play with my Indian Gujarati grandmother is the “How do you say this in Gujarati” game.  It’s quite fun, actually.  I get to learn ridiculous Gujarati words that I would never use in everyday language, while simultaneously hangin’ out with my awesome g-ma.  A win, win.  One day, as we were playing and thinking of the most obscure words, I realized that I had no idea how to say the word “apple” in Gujarati.  How strange.  So I asked my grandmother for the translation.  She looked at me thoughtfully, slowly took a deep breath,  and deliberately said, “ap-ple.”

Oh.


This is when I had the apple epiphany: there is something so quintessentially American about apples.  Apple pie is served at Thanksgiving, the true American holiday.  State fair wouldn’t be complete without caramel apples, and apple bobbing is a real…American past time.  Okay, that may be a stretch.  But apples are ingrained in our American culture.  That’s why I’ve noticed that so many people have a family apple cake recipe that is passed down for generations that is made at just about this time every year.

I, however, do not have a family apple cake recipe for obvious reasons.  But after going apple picking and coming back with over 30 lbs. of apples (eh..oops), I realized that it is time for me to find one.  I wanted to make an apple cake that had an apple punch to it.  I do love cinnamon cakes with a slight addition of apples, but I wanted something to really bring out the apple flavor.  With five sliced apples, this recipe was perfect – amazingly moist and deliciously spiced with a lovely apple flavor.  Try it, love it, take it to your grandmother, and add it to your family recipe collection.

Fresh Apple Layer Cake (adapted from here)

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour a tube or bundt pan.

5 apples, of mixed variety, peeled, cored and sliced
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1.5 tsp. nutmeg

Toss all ingredients together and set aside.

2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup apple cider

Blend all of the ingredients together with an electric mixer until combined.

Sift in:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda

Continue to blend with mixer for 3-4 minutes until the mixture is thick and well combined.

Pour 1/3 of the cake batter into the prepared pan.  Evenly spread 1/2 of the apples onto the cake batter.  Continue with another third layer of cake, the remaining apples, and ending with the cake batter.  Bake in center rack for about 1 hour, 15 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Let cool in pan for 45 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.  Let cool completely.  Serve, sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Posted in cake, fruit, sweet, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »

Fig Galette

September 30, 2010

When you have a sweet tooth that is as big as mine, there are some days when you feel that you have to cut back.  Some days when you feel like you have to lay off the butter, sugar and eggs for a while, and go for something more natural.  So when I saw that figs are well in season and are abundantly being sold in grocery stores and farmers markets, I was more than satisfied to forgo my weekly dessert option and have figs as my post dinner sweet ending.

Sounds like a stellar plan, right?  Well, it was.  Until I found a recipe for a fig galette.  I mean, you really can’t blame me.  Figs dressed in a simple sprinkling of sugar tucked into an all-butter pastry crust coated with apricot jam!  Or…figs.  Just by themselves.  Who are we kidding – there wasn’t much of a choice.  At all.

The guilt did set in a little bit, though, so I decided to use a whole wheat, oil based crust instead of more traditional butter version.  Which surprisingly turned out to be quite flaky and delicious.  And the rest of it is basically just fruit!  ..And sugar and jam.  But who’s counting.

Fig Galette (adapted from Simply Recipes)

This recipe was a tad too sweet for me.  I remedied this by sprinkling a bit of sea salt on top of the entire galette after it baked.  But I included mixing it in to the filling in the directions.

Ingredients (for crust)

  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 tbsp. sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 3 tbsp. milk

Whisk together all of the dry ingredients.  Mix in the wet ingredients until dough forms.  Roll into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least 30 minutes.  Take out and roll into a 12 inch diameter circle and place onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.  Place into freezer while making filling.

Ingredients (for filling)

  • 1 1/2 pints mission figs, tips cut off and discarded, quartered
  • 1 tsp. flaked sea salt
  • 2 tbsp. sugar, divided
  • 2 tbsp. apricot jam (or another jam)

Preheat oven to 375.  Stir together figs, salt and 1 tbsp. of sugar.  Spread the jam onto the chilled pastry, leaving a 2 inch border.  Arrange the fig filling on the crust, directly on to the jam.  Sprinkle with remaining tbsp. of sugar.  Fold over the 2 inch border of dough over filling, pleating as you fold to ensure the filling won’t escape.  Bake for about 45-50 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool for about 20 minutes and serve warm or at room temperature.

Posted in fruit, pies and tarts, sweet, Uncategorized | 6 Comments »

Lemon Ginger Yogurt Tart

September 23, 2010

Yogurt.  I love everything about it.  Frozen, fresh, vanilla, plain, fruit on the bottom, soft serve, the kind that looks like ice cream, fat free, full fat, cream top (oh!  the cream top!), it’s all the best in my book.  So when there was a slight grocery shopping communication issue, and we ended up with four full size cartons of yogurt in our fridge, I was not upset.

In fact, I was thrilled.  This not only made it easier to up my daily servings of yogurt to three, but also gave me a chance to play around with incorporating yogurt into my baked goods.  Specifically, a tart.  Not a pie.  Too late for berry pies but too early for apple and pumpkin, September happens to be a pie-less month.  But a tart!  A tart is the best of all dessert worlds and is, by far, the best lead-in to the upcoming pie-heavy season.

I found the perfect recipe, and with some tweaking with the ingredients I had on hand, I had a winner.  A cheesecake-like dessert with the sweet tang of lemon and ginger scented yogurt all wonderfully tucked in a buttery crust.  And because yogurt is available all year-round, it’s great at any time!  Who wouldn’t want that?

Yogurt Tart (adapted from 101 Cookbooks)

This tart is like a cheesecake.  But keep in mind, a very thin cheesecake.  But because of this similar consistency, I would support, in fact, encourage, a graham cracker crust.  Or maybe even crushing up some gingersnaps!  Think about it.

1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup rolled oats
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
6 tbsp. butter
2 tablespoons agave nectar or maple syrup
2 tablespoons natural cane sugar (optional)
1.5 teaspoons orange marmalade

1 cup plain yogurt (I used a combination of low-fat Greek yogurt and whole milk regular yogurt)
1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup
zest of one lemon
1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated on a microplane, juice and all
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Preheat oven to 350F degrees, rack in the middle. In a medium bowl combine the flour, oats, and salt. In a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the agave nectar and sugar. Now add the flour and oat mixture to the butter and stir well. Cook a couple minutes – just until you get a bit of a toasted smell.  Press the mixture into (and up the sides) of the tart pan using your fingers and/or the base of a glass. Freeze until completely cooled – 5 or 10 minutes.

In the meantime, to make the filling, combine the yogurt, agave nectar, lemon zest and ginger juice in a medium mixing bowl. Taste.  Stir in the cornstarch until well incorporated.

Spread the orange marmalade onto the prepared crust.  Fill the tart shell with the yogurt mixture.  Bake for about 35-40 minutes. The filling should be set, and no longer jiggly.  Remove the tart and let cool for ten minutes.  Refrigerate for a couple hours.  Serve topped with chopped crystallized ginger, fresh fruit, or dried fruit.  Or a fruit sauce.  Or a warmed up lemon curd. Which, I suppose is essentially a fruit sauce.  But really, you have many possibilities.

Posted in pies and tarts, sweet, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

Blackberry, Almond, White Chocolate, Lemon Loaf

September 17, 2010

Like in most things, there are certain aspects of baking that I could do without.  Converting a recipe from grams to ounces to cups, for one.  Or sifting the dry ingredients, which always leads to taking out and cleaning one more utensil.  But who really wants a dense, hard to swallow cake?  So I learned to do that one.

But the thing that I’m most lazy about is greasing a pan.  I would rather spend my time hoping and praying that my baked good will come cleanly out of the vessel in which that it was baked, than actually taking the time to butter and flour the pan.  It seems so simple, but I can never convince myself to do this part well.

Why all this insight into my baking bad habits, you may wonder.  Well, this was one bad habit I had to break.  It was reactionary, so please do not think that I just happened to see what was best for my products, and those that ate them.  I’m not that noble.  I wanted to make a quick bread as a gift, and thought that the extra step of greasing AND flouring the pan AND lining the pan with parchment paper AND greasing it again, seemed unnecessary.  So I quickly sprayed the loaf pan with my handy no stick spray and was set.

Set.  Ooooh boy, was that loaf ever set.  The loaf was so extremely stuck to its pan that I had to knife it out.  And then cut the burned edges.  And then cut it again so it didn’t look like I purposely cut the burnt edges.

But the result, minus the crispy parts in my trash can, was divine.  Almonds and lemon and blackberries, and white chocolate – you may first think that there is way too much going on, but no.  Think again.  It was just perfect.  All blended together in this amazing merriment.  And though it was delicious in its own right, I wish I had the whole loaf.  Including the crust.

Grease the pan.  That’s all I’m sayin.

Blackberry, Almond, White Chocolate, Lemon Loaf (adapted from Bake or Break)

Ingredients

  • 2 & 1/4 sticks (9 ounces) butter
  • 1 & 1/4 cups caster sugar
  • 4 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 & 1/4 cups ground almonds
  • grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 4 ounces blackberries, or any berry (frozen could work too!)
  • 4 ounces white chocolate, roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp. almond extract
  • confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

Method

Preheat oven to 350°.  Butter and flour a loaf pan.  Line the bottom with parchment paper. Butter pan and set aside.

Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, a little at a time, until blended.   Stir in flour, ground almonds, and lemon zest and juice.  Stir in both extracts.

Spoon mixture into prepared pan. Scatter raspberries and white chocolate over the batter. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour & 10 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.

Cool in pan for 30 minutes. Then, cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with confectioner’s sugar.

Posted in breakfast, fruit, sweet, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
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Coconut Cake

September 2, 2010

Coconut cake with coconut extract.  Filled with coconut custard with coconut rum.  Drizzled with coconut syrup with shredded coconut.  All with…chocolate frosting.

My sister’s birthday just passed, and just like every other year, she got to pick the cake she wants me to make for her big day.  There were several years of requesting boxed yellow cake mix with the chocolate frosting in the tub, another year when I went in a different direction and made orange cake with cream cheese frosting (the chocolate lover in her did not appreciate that one), one year with a caramel cake with chocolate frosting that ended up on the floor by mistake, and last year’s chocolate cake with raspberry filling.  This year, she took a chance with coconut.

Despite the lack of coconut in the frosting (though I doused it with coconut on the frosting), this cake was coconut heaven.  It seems that so many coconut cakes are just a white cake with coconut sprinkled on top.  That is certainly not enough coconut flavor for me.  Not only is every part of this cake flavored with coconut, the key is in the custard.  Oh my goodness, the custard.  Make it.  Eat a bowl of it.  You’ll see.  And then make it again and fill the cake with it.  The end result is so light and barely sweet that the coconut flavor shines through.  Beyond delicious.

Coconut Cake (adapted from Bobby Flay)

This cake takes quite a bit of time.  But seriously worth every minute!  Mostly because it tastes better after it sits for a while – gives time for the coconut custard and coconut syrup to seep through the cake for a bit.  I made the cake, filling and the syrup the day before.  And made the frosting did the assembling the day of.

Components

Coconut Syrup

  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Coconut Filling

  • 3/4 cup whole milk
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 tablepoon coconut rum (recommended: Malibu)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 cup very cold heavy cream

Coconut Cake

  • 2 tablespoons softened butter, for pans
  • 2 1/4 cups cake flour, plus more for pans
  • 1 cup coconut milk
  • 6 large egg whites, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons coconut extract
  • 1/2 cup dessicated coconut
  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces, slightly cold

For the Syrup:

Bring water and sugar to a boil. Stir in the coconut, remove from the heat and let sit for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours. Strain the liquid into a clean saucepan, bring to a boil and let cook until the mixture is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

For the Filling:

Combine the milks and vanilla bean and seeds in a medium nonreactive saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat.

Whisk together the yolks, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl. Slowly whisk the warm milk into the egg mixture then return the mixture to the pot over medium heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly, until thickened. Scrape the mixture into a bowl and whisk in the rum and vanilla extract. Let cool to room temperature then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours.

Combine the custard and cream in a bowl and whip until soft peaks form.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the Cake:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2 (9 by 2-inch) round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper.  Butter the parchment paper.

Whisk together the coconut milk, egg whites, vanilla extract and coconut extract in a medium bowl.

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With mixer running at low speed, add the butter, one piece at a time and continue beating until mixture resembles moist crumbs. Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed until the mixture is pale and fluffy, about 1 1/2 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add remaining 1/2 cup of the milk mixture, increase speed to medium and beat 30 seconds more. Scrape sides of bowl and mix for 20 seconds longer.  Mix in the dessicated coconut.  Divide the batter evenly between the cakes pan and smooth the tops using a rubber spatula.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 22 to 24 minutes. Cool in the pan on baking rack for 10 minutes. Run a small knife around the side of the pan and invert cakes onto the baking rack, removing parchment paper, and let cool completely, about 45 minutes.

Chocolate Frosting (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

1 pound fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 stick unsalted butter

Finely chop chocolate. In a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan bring 1 cup of cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.  Add rest of the cream.  Using an electric mixer, whip until frosting-like consistency is achieved.

To Assemble:

Using a long serrated knife, slice each cake horizontally into 2 layers. Reserve 1 of the flat bottom layers for the top of the cake. Place another layer on a cardboard round cut side up and brush with some of the coconut simple syrup. Spoon 1/3 of the coconut filling onto the cake and using a small offset metal spatula, spread it into an even layer, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge of the cake. Repeat with 2 more layers. Brush the cut side of the reserved cake layer with the remaining syrup. Place the layer cut side down on top of the cake.

Frost the sides and top of the cake with the chocolate frosting.

Posted in cake, chocolate, sweet, Uncategorized | 7 Comments »

White Chocolate Cheesecake

August 24, 2010

Every home cook remembers the first recipe that they have ever made.  It is often inspired by their families, or gardens, or if you’re lucky like me…Mrs. Fields.  Um, let me explain.

The first thing that I ever baked by myself was a white chocolate cheesecake.  Divine.  And impressive for a 10 year old.  Why Mrs. Fields, though?  The famous cookie lady?  You see, there was no popular Food Network at that time, and cooking shows were not the first show of choice when my family was picking out something to watch.  But I was always intrigued by her  Saturday early morning show, Great American Desserts, and that day, I just got to the television before anyone else.

In the interest of full disclosure, it was not really the desserts that interested me.  Everyone had walked by Mrs. Fields’ cookies at the malls, but I a) never knew that a “Mrs. Fields” actually existed, and b) thought that if there was actually a Mrs. Fields baking cookies, she would be an old, fat, lovable, grandma-looking woman.  I was so intrigued by this young, attractive woman being so passionate about baking.  It was always so fascinating to me that she was the Mrs. Fields.

For whatever reason, on that particular day, I felt motivated and chose to write down whatever she did.  Then promptly announced to my family that I would be baking a white chocolate cheesecake that day.  It was not the most beautiful baking event.  I did not have a springform pan, nor did I know what one was.  I also mixed the topping into the cheesecake batter because, quite frankly, I did not know any better.  I also added a handful of stray white chocolate chips on top, because I thought that it would look pretty (it didn’t).  But boy.  What a cheesecake.  It was the best thing ever.

This cheesecake became a Thanksgiving tradition in my family for years to come.  Until I became more adventurous and confident in the kitchen.  It lost its place on the menu for a pumpkin cheesecake one year, to a sweet potato gingersnap pie the next.  There was also the year that I thought that we all needed to be on diets and I decided to make all of the pies with half of the sugar.  We really missed the cheesecake that year.

But just last week, my cousin reminded me of this cheesecake and asked me to make it for him.  I no longer had the recipe, but after some internet searching and digging, I found the exact one.  Having made so many other yummy dessert recipes over the past several years, I did not think that I would be that impressed with this old recipe.  But it was just as delicious as I remembered it, and I think that it may find itself on the Thanksgiving table once again.

Just so you know, my cousin appreciated the long lost cheesecake as well.  And ate half of it in one sitting.  ..Not recommended.

White Chocolate Cheesecake – directly from Mrs. Fields

Crust

1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

5 tbsp unsalted butter – melted

To make the crust, combine the graham cracker crumbs and butter, and process in a food processor until combined. Wrap the outside of a 9-inch springform pan in aluminum foil. Press the crust into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Chill the crust.

Filling:

18 ounces white chocolate

1/4 cup heavy cream

1-1/2 pound cream cheese – softened

1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup sour cream

4 large eggs

1tbsp vanilla extract

To prepare the filling, melt the white chocolate with the cream over hot, not simmering, water. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Beat in the white chocolate cream. Pour into the prepared pan.

Preheat the oven to 275F. Set a shallow baking pan filled with hot water on the bottom rack of the oven.

Set the cheesecake on the centre rack and bake for 1 hour. Reduce the heat to 250F and bake for 1 hour longer. Without opening the oven, turn off the heat but leave the cake in the over for 1 hour. Cool the cheesecake on a rack for 30 minutes.

White Chocolate Ganache:

8 ounces white chocolate – finely chopped

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tbsp unsalted butter

Meanwhile, make the ganache. Place the white chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the cream and butter to a simmer. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let stand, covered for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let the ganache col to room temperature.

Pour the ganache over the cheesecake and spread it smooth. Cover the cheesecake and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

To unmold, wrap a hot wet towel around the pan, then remove the sides of the springform.

Posted in cake, sweet, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »
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Baked Rice Balls

August 11, 2010

I apologize for the delay with this post.  I know I promised you a recipe with the leftover sushi rice, and you are probably thinking that your sushi rice is over a week old now.  But the truth is, I didn’t post because I wasn’t inspired by the name of this recipe.  I mean, “baked rice balls”.  That’s what is going to motivate you run into your kitchen and start pulling things out of your fridge?  That name was going to make you believe that if you make these, you are going to have delicious goodness coming from your oven?  And to top it all off, this is the only picture I have from the prep.  Appetizing.

I wasn’t convinced, and don’t really think that you should be either.

But believe this.  These little goblets of starchy, seasoned rice, with a surprise bite of smoked cheese inside are the best, most delightful, certainly the most delicious savory snack that has come out of my kitchen since…well, ever.  You should be walking, no running to your kitchen right now to get these started.  They’re that good.  And if this doesn’t convince you, well, then, the name will have to do.  Your choice.

Baked Rice Balls (adapted from Giada De Laurentis)

The original recipe was to use up leftover risotto.  Feel free to use that as the rice base, omitting all of the seasoning.  And play around with the cheeses – smoked cheese just happens to be one of my favorites.  Also, the original recipe was for frying.  I don’t do that – mostly because I don’t know how.  So I’ve adapted the recipe for the oven.  Like all things that are supposed to be fried and are baked instead, I’m assuming that these do not have as much crunch as their fried original.  But, my gosh, they are tasty.  So give this method a whirl.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Italian-style seasoned bread crumbs
  • 2  cups cooked and cooled sushi rice or short-grain rice
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • sprinkling of red pepper flakes – to taste
  • 1/2 cup Italian-style seasoned bread crumbs
  • 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
  • 2 eggs, at room temperature, beaten
  • 4 ounces smoked mozzarella, at room temperature, cut into 10 1/2-inch) cubes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 420.

Breading: Put the bread crumbs in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Filling: In a medium bowl, combine the sushi rice, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper, bread crumbs, Parmesan, and eggs. With damp hands, using about 2 tablespoons of the risotto mixture, form the mixture into 1 3/4-inch diameter balls. Make a hole in the center of each ball and insert a cube of smoked mozzarella. Cover up the hole to completely enclose the cheese. Roll the balls in the breading to coat.

Line a baking pan with olive oil.  Put the prepared balls in the baking sheet, making sure that they are all fully covered with the oil.  Bake for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown, making sure to turn the balls mid way through the baking.

Posted in savory, Uncategorized | 8 Comments »
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Sushi. It’s what’s for dinner?

August 2, 2010

There are certain foods that I just will not attempt making.  It’s not really about the ambition or time commitment – it’s just mostly me getting the, “If I can get this at the store perfectly made, then why bother making it at home?” kind of feeling.  ..Hm, okay.  I guess it’s all about the ambition and time commitment.  Or lack thereof.

But, really, let’s put this into perspective.  Would you really want to make puff pastry at home?  Sure, you may think about it, but the supermarket-freezer-kind is quite tasty.  Or croissants?  C’mon.  Let’s leave that to the French.  But here’s the most controversial one.  Sushi.

I know that a lot of you out there make sushi at home – and even prefer doing that than getting store-bought.  But I’ve always been a skeptic.  Maybe it is the seaweed.  Or the rolling.  Or the rolling of the seaweed.  Regardless, despite my objections, we attempted sushi for dinner the other night.

We made the rolls without a sushi mat, which resulted in some frustrating moments, during which I eyed the box of cereal for dinner.  But as soon as we were able to fit all of our desired fillings in the roll, making sushi wasn’t that bad.  It was quite tasty.  It’s certainly a quick meal for one, and not even that ambitious!  Now, onto the croissants!

Sushi, My Style.  Which may not be the best style.  But give it a try, eh? (makes 2 rolls)

Ingredients

1 cup dry sushi rice

2 tbsp. rice vinegar

2 sheets nori

Assorted veggies (I used sliced cucumbers, bell pepper, avocado, shitakes, and baked tofu)

Soy sauce

Wasabi (optional)

Pickled Ginger (optional)

Method:

1. Prepare rice as indicated on the package.  When ready, mix with 2 tbsp. of rice vinegar.

2. Spread half of the rice on to one sheet of nori.  Pat down until an even layer is formed to the ends of the sheet.

3. One one end of the sheet, length-wise, layer veggies.

4. Start rolling the nori, encompassing all of the fillings in one, tight roll.

5. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Whatever will you do with all that leftover sushi rice?  Check back for the next post!

Posted in savory, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
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Community Food Enterprise

July 29, 2010

When I started this blog, I expressed an interest in not only starting a bakery one day, but to have it connected to a social cause – I just do not know the best way to do this.  To find my path, I explained that I need this blog to be interactive – I share some information about food-related social enterprises to get an idea on how these two concepts are already related, and you add your own ideas to the mix.  As promised, I would like to feature food related social enterprises that I get inspiration from.  I thought that for my first feature, I should select a social enterprise that does work all around the world.

The Community Food Enterprise promotes locally owned food businesses as they believe that “locally owned food businesses can help more people access healthy, sustainably grown food and strengthen local economies by fostering income, jobs, and resources within the community.”  To raise awareness, Community Food Enterprise selects 24 different food related social enterprises from all over the world, and then develops a report to demonstrate how these organizations can provide tools for economic development and anti-poverty.  You can find more information at http://www.communityfoodenterprise.org.

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Grilled Peaches

July 15, 2010

I really like baking.  Obviously.  Sauteing, roasting, frying – they’re all things that I consider part of my, you know, cooking repertoire.  But grilling?  I have left that to the meat eaters and fire lovers in the past.  Sure, I’ll pull out my ol’ George Foreman once in a while to weave a new flavor into my Boca burger, but, let’s be honest, I’m not into the real deal.  That is, of course until, I saw this delicious sounding recipe for grilled peaches.

What was I to do?  A grilled dessert.  A grilled not-so-bad-for-you dessert.  A grilled dessert that would have been a perfect addition to our ongoing 4th of July festivities…where we already had a grill!  I had to try it.

With the help of some fire savvy friends, we were able to successfully grill peaches with sugar on top (delightful burnt caramel flavors ensued), accompanied by a lovely Greek yogurt maple topping, with some crushed biscotti on top.  Heaven on a grill, one might say.

Grilled Peaches (adapted from Ina Garten)

Ingredients

4 ripe peaches, cut in 1/2 and pitted

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup Greek 2% yogurt

1/4 cup Grade A maple syrup

4 biscotti cookies, crumbled

Method

Dip all of the peaches, cut side down into the sugar, until they are thoroughly coated on the cut side.

Heat a grill with a single layer of charcoal. When the coals are hot, brush the grill with a little oil to make sure the peaches don’t stick. Place the peaches, cut side down, on the grill and cook for a few minutes, until they’re slightly charred.

Mix together the yogurt and maple syrup.  Adjust syrup to taste.

Serve peaches with maple yogurt and sprinkle with crumbled biscotti.

Photography Credit: Patrick Tregenza and Hannah Mellman

Posted in fruit, sweet, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

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