Monday, May 19, 2008

Gingersnap Cookies


These cookies are crisp at the edges, chewy in the middle. A roll through some demerara gives them sparkle and crunch. I stashed a large chocolate chip at the center of some cookies as a surprise!

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups cups granulated sugar, plus 1/2 cup more for coating
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup molasses
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Heat oven to 375° F. Cream the butter and 1 3/4 cups sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high speed. Lower to medium and add the eggs, molasses, vinegar, and vanilla. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and pepper. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Beat until incorporated. Fold in the crystallized ginger. Divide the dough into 3 equal portions (it will be sticky). Place each portion on a sheet of plastic wrap and form into a 12-inch log, 2 inches in diameter. Wrap and chill for 1 hour. Slice each log into disks, 1/2 inch thick. Dredge in the remaining sugar. Place on a parchment- or foil-lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake until crinkly around the edges, about 14 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

Yield: Makes 6 dozenCALORIES 73 (18% from fat); FAT 1g (sat 1g); PROTEIN 1mg; CHOLESTEROL 9mg; CALCIUM 8mg; SODIUM 72mg; FIBER 0g; CARBOHYDRATE 14g; IRON 1mg

Real Simple, MAY 2005
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Lemon Strawberry Layer Cake


Lemon Strawberry Layer Cake

Scrumptious! This cake is a modified version of 'Nathan's Lemon Cake' from Cooking Light. The original was supposed to make 16 servings, so I halved it and made the cake in 6'' ramekins. 4 of us managed to polish off the supposed 8 servings in about 10 minutes! The frosting is tangy and rich, matching perfectly with the lemony moist cake. I doubt that 16 servings would have posed much of a challenge--next time I'm making full-size.

Ingredients

object2="> Cake:
object2="> Cooking spray
object2=">2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
object2=">2 cups all-purpose flour (about 9 ounces)
object2=">1 teaspoon baking powder
object2=">1/2 teaspoon baking soda
object2=">1/2 teaspoon salt
object2=">1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
object2=">1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
object2=">3 large eggs
object2=">1 cup nonfat buttermilk
object2=">2 tablespoons finely grated lemon rind
object2=">2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare cake, coat 2 (8-inch) round cake pans with cooking spray; line bottoms of pans with wax paper. Coat wax paper with cooking spray. Dust pans with 2 tablespoons flour, and set aside.

3. Lightly spoon 2 cups flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

4. Place granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and nonfat buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat in 2 tablespoons lemon rind and 2 tablespoons lemon juice.

5. Pour batter into prepared pans; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. Bake at 350° for 32 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack; remove wax paper from cake layers.

6. To prepare icing, combine powdered sugar and the remaining ingredients (except lemon rind strips) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk until smooth. Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread half of icing on top of cake. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining half of icing over top of cake. Garnish with lemon rind strips, if desired. Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.

Yield

16 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 317(27% from fat); FAT 9.5g (sat 5.6g,mono 2.6g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 3.6g; CHOLESTEROL 56mg; CALCIUM 52mg; SODIUM 165mg; FIBER 0.6g; IRON 1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 55.7g

Nathan Coulon , Cooking Light, MAY 2008
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Pawts dee kreem

What's better together than chocolate and cream? Amy and I, of course!

Tonight we got together to make the NYT's recipe for Pots de Creme. PDC, which is pronunced: poh duh KREHM, is a creamy, custardy French dessert. Each portion is baked in an individual little ramekin. Basically anything and everything rich and creamy gets melted together and then baked in a water bath. This recipe calls for dark delicious bittersweet chocolate. I like my chocolate like I like my guys - dark and rich.

HA. Just kidding!! ... not.

We made the pots tonight and now they have to get their beauty rest in the refrigerator overnight before we can taste them tomorrow. I'm betting they'll be awesome!

Extra-Bittersweet Chocolate Pots de Crème

Time: 55 minutes, plus chilling

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
4 egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Crème fraîche or whipped cream, for serving.

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a heavy saucepan, bring cream and milk to a boil. Remove from heat; whisk in chopped chocolate until smooth.





2. In a large bowl, whisk together the yolks, sugar and salt. Whisking constantly, slowly pour hot chocolate into yolks. Strain through a very fine mesh sieve into a large measuring cup or bowl.



3. Divide mixture among 2- to 4-ounce espresso cups or small ramekins. Set filled cups in a large roasting pan that has been positioned on center rack of oven. Add hot tap water to pan, halfway up sides of cups. Cover pan with foil; use a fork to prick holes in foil.


4. Bake until edges are lightly set (lifting foil to check) but center is still jiggly — it will set as it cools — 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer cups to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving with crème fraîche or whipped cream.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Triple Bean Salad


Beans, beans, the musical fruit...

This extremely easy recipe is from a issue of Better Homes and Garden. The recipe requires just a few ingredients and needs some marinating time. Apparently the author of this recipe won $200 or something for it. It's good...but not $$$ good! This cool and light salad makes a good side dish to summer's grilled meat entrees.

Ingredients:
2 cups frozen sween soybeans (edamame) [I used lima beans]
1 15-oz. can kidney beans
1 15-oz. can garbanzo beans
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp. finely shredded lime peel
1/4 cup lime juice

Direction:
Rinse and drain the canned beans. Combine with beans, edamame, onion and cilantro.
Whisk together oil, lime peel, lime juice and 1/2 tsp. salt. Pour over bean mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Stir will before serving.

Makes 10 servings.
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Pastels


Ooooooooooo. A brand new box of pastels with 64 colors.


Bodhi pie in pastels.
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Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Recipe to try!

Tsai sisters are back from foraging Taiwan for tasty treats. Pics to come soon. Not sure if Blogger can handle massive amount of food photos we have though...

In the meantime, here's a recipe that sounds very promising. I'm marking it as a recipe to try soon!

Dot's Blondies with Chocolate Chips

Start to finish: 7 minutes preparation, plus approximately 20 to 25 minutes baking time and 20 minutes cooling time

2 sticks unsalted butter (plus more for greasing the pan)
1 pound (2 cups firmly packed) light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour (see Cook's note)
2 large eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans, optional

Cook's note: To get the proper texture, do not use an electric mixer. You do not need to sift the flour, but spoon the flour into the measuring cup so as not to pack it down too much. Use the spoon handle to brush away extra flour and thereby "level" the top of the measuring cup.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9-inch-by-12-inch baking pan well with butter. Set the pan aside.

Melt the 2 sticks of butter in a 2-quart microwave-safe bowl covered with a paper towel. Remove the bowl from the microwave, and add the brown sugar. Stir well. Add the baking powder, salt and vanilla extract, stirring until completely incorporated. Stir in the flour, again stirring until it is well mixed. The batter will be very stiff.

Crack the eggs into a small bowl, and beat them well with a fork or whisk. Add the eggs to the batter and stir with a spoon until they are completely incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips (and the nuts, if using).

Spread the batter in the greased pan. The batter will be stiff and sticky. You may have to spread it to the edges of the pan with the back of a spoon, but don't worry too much about getting it exactly even, as the batter will spread as it bakes.

Bake until the top begins to get golden brown and the blondies just begin to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 20 to 25 minutes. (Baking time will vary depending on your oven and the type of pan.) Do not overbake! Cool for at least 20 minutes, and cut into small squares. Store in an airtight container or cover well with plastic wrap. These bars freeze very well and improve in flavor after the first day.

Makes 2 dozen

Approximate values per blondie: 216 calories (41 percent from fat), 10 g fat (6 g saturated), 38 mg cholesterol, 2 g protein, 31 g carbohydrates, 1 g dietary fiber, 59 mg sodium