It's all about the recipe. Really, it is. To be a good cook you just need a good recipe. I love trying new recipes and when I find a great one --not a good one, a GREAT one-- I love to share! If you like what you see here, click on "Follow" and become part of my "foodie family". Leave comments, too! Not only do I enjoy your reading your comments immensely, but they also help other visitors make a commitment (or not) to trying a recipe. And feel free to email a link to any recipe you find interesting (or tasty!) by clicking the envelope at the end of each post... to yourself or to anyone who would appreciate getting a few good recipes :) It's all about the recipe. Really, it is!
These are good! Do you remember the depression era recipe for Chocolate Cake, or Wacky Cake as it was sometimes called? I think the base of this cupcake is based on that recipe. There's no egg in the cake and no butter either. The surprise ingredient is white vinegar! It works. Wacky cake is good. It has a good chocolate taste, great color, not overly moist, but definitely not dry either. It's a good cake! This cupcake recipe has two OTHER bonus points. One, filling. All great cupcakes have a filling, right? Two, a no-work, one ingredient frosting! Need I say ANY more?!
Hershey Bar Cupcakes
For the Filling
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 oz. HERSHEY'S Milk Chocolate Bars chopped into 1/4-inch pieces (use any sized bars, get whatever is cheapest at the store. You'll need about 1 cup of chopped Hershey Chocolate for the filling)
For the Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup Hershey's cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons plain white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the Frosting
2 large (4.4 oz.) bars of Hershey Chocolate (again, you can use any size bar...but I found one section of the 4.4 oz bar to be the right amount of frosting for my preference. Each bar has 12 portions, 2 bars frosts 2 dozen cupcakes)
Directions:
1. Prepare the filling. Beat cream cheese, sugar, egg and salt in small bowl until smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped chocolate bar pieces. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake tins with paper liners.
3. Prepare the cupcake batter. With an electric mixer, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt to combine. Add in water, oil, vinegar and vanilla; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Fill each cupcake pan 1/3 of the way with batter. Spoon 1 level tablespoon of the reserved filling into the center of each cupcake. Top with more cake batter until cupcake pans are full. (I had some excess batter, but not excess filling or chocolate...so I also made 6 plain cupcakes.)
4. Bake the cupcakes. 18-20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in cake portion comes out clean. Remove from oven to wire rack.
5. Frost the cupcakes. Top each cupcake with one section of the large sized Hershey bar. Let chocolate melt (5-8 minutes) and then spread with spatula to ice the top of the cupcake. (How easy is that?!)
5. Let cupcakes cool completely. Chocolate will harden (You may need to put cupcakes in RF for an hour or so to finish the hardening process).
Yummy! Wonderful cake, creamy filling, and a hard chocolate frosting. One of the best cupcakes in the I've ever tasted, actually. My poor daughter (the one on Weight Watchers) is usually very good about ignoring the baked goods I often have hanging out on the counter...but she's having a very hard time with these....
The original recipe was found here http://www.hersheys.com/recipes/recipes/detail.asp?id=3290&page=5&per=50
Thought I might like this...and I was right! Loved it. The blueberry taste is not pronounced, but the color they give to the drink is fantastic. Bbbb...b...bbut...the lemonade is pinkish RED, not blue! Surprise! Our delightful 4 year old guest, who was dressed as a doggie AND a superhero (yes, at the same time!) drank 10 cups of this (at least), and she called it Pink Lemonade. I was going to follow her lead, but that would be even MORE confusing...so Blueberry Lemonade it remains!
I found this concoction to be more refreshing than straight up lemonade. It's not as harsh, not as much acidity, I think. Yep, this recipe is a winner, a keeper. Be sure to make a batch for the July 4th picnic. Make several batches as once, in "concentrate" form, so you can serve it up when it is most needed and wanted without any fuss or bother.
This recipe was pulled together from two sources. My original long-relied upon lemonade recipe from "Too busy to Cook" (from the 80s or 90s) and a recipe from Family Fun Magazine attributed to Anne Coleman.
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 1/3 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
grated zest of two lemons
1 sliced lemon
extra handful of blueberries (for garnish, if desired)
Additional water, about 6 cups.
Combine blueberries, sugar and water and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat until blueberries soften and release their color, about 5 minutes. Strain liquid and discard solids. Let cool. Stir in lemon juice,lemon zest, and sliced lemon along with enough water to have liquids measure 2 quarts. Flavor from lemons develops over time. Let mixture sit for a few hours or overnight. Serve over ice with a slice of lemon and a float of 5 or 6 blueberries.
Make your own Blueberry Lemonade Concentrate!
Make the sugar-blueberry-water syrup. Strain. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Freeze. When needed just add 1 sliced lemon and enough water to made 2 quarts of drink, stir briskly to dissolve the concentrate. YUM. How impressive would that be to pull out on a Tuesday night?!
Want a REALLY good ice cream sundae? Ice-cream, fresh fruit, whipped cream, chocolate shavings, maybe a few sliced almonds...in a Cookie Cup! The Cookie Cup transforms a familiar, really good dessert a to a special, really GREAT dessert. People swoon. People moan. People linger.
This recipe has been in my files since I was a newlywed in 1981. I have only a photocopy of a page from a cookbook, no notations. I am pretty sure the photocopy is from a Sunset cookbook from the 1980s, but I am not certain.
Use any nuts you want, but I have specified my favorite combination. Other than that, I have made no changes to the original recipe.
Cookie Cups
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (Light or dark brown sugar was not specified. I've used both, and prefer the dark)
1/2 cup light corn syrup
7 Tablespoons flour
1 cup finely chopped nuts (I use half pecans and half sliced almonds--both chopped finely)
2 teaspoons vanilla
Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add in brown sugar and corn syrup and bring mixture to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly. When liquid boils, remove from heat and stir in flour and nuts until well blended. Stir in vanilla.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a cookie pan with Pam for baking (or any other method you prefer). Make 2 cookies on one cookie sheet. For each cookie, pace 2 Tablespoons of batter in a puddle on the cookie sheet.
Batter before baking, above. After baking, below. See how it spreads? Only bake two cookies on one sheet!
Cookies will spread A LOT. (you can bake 2 sheets at one time, if you move the sheets around after 5-6 minutes). Bake in 325 degree oven for 10-12 minutes, or until cookies are lacy and have a rich golden brown color. Remove from oven and let cookie cool on the tray for a minute or two (but not much longer).
Turn a glass or very small bowl, with a flat, 2-inch diameter bottom, upside down onto counter. When the cookie edges are firm, but the cookie is still somewhat stretchy, with a wide metal spatula, transfer cookie from sheet to OVER the upside down glass on the counter. With your fingers, quickly press the cookie into the shape of the glass. The cookie will harden almost immediately. Leave the cookie there to cool a minute or two (while you get the next batch in the oven).
One cookie cooling over an upside down glass, one cookie completely cooled and removed from glass and standing straight and firm.
Remove cookie cup from glass. Cookie cups can be stored in "rigid" (I use tin) container for up to a week, or frozen for longer storage....but they are delicate, so be careful.
Just before serving, place ice-cream, fresh fruit, whipped cream...whatever your hear desires...into the cookie cups and serve. You'll see joy in your guests eyes.
Thanks for visiting my kitchen today. Stop by again for some homemade ice creams, sherbets, and sorbets to put in the ice cream cups!
This soup is delicious, hearty, and very, very easy to pull together. It's a staple around here. Everyone likes it. You could leave out the chicken, I often do now (I seem to want to eat less meat as I get older), but don't skip the leek or the fennel seeds because, working together they crank this soup up from good to GREAT.
Chicken Tortellini Soup
1 T. olive oil
1 leek, sliced (white and pale green parts only)
1 small onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 T. dried basil
2 tsp. fennel seeds
6 c. chicken stock (homemade is best)
2 medium zucchini, sliced
2 medium carrots, sliced
1 (9-oz.) pkg. cheese tortellini
1/2 bunch spinach, coarsely chopped (no stems)
1 1/2 c. diced cooked chicken or turkey
Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper, to taste
grated parmesan cheese
Heat oil in heavy skillet. Add in leek, onion, garlic, basil, and fennel seeds and cook until onion is tender, about 10 minutes. Pour chicken stock into pot, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add zucchini and carrot, cover and simmer for 5 more minutes. Increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil. Stir tortellini into boiling soup cook until tender, uncovered, about 5 minutes. Stir in spinach and cooked turkey, heat through. Season to taste with Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.
I looooove coconut so I HAD to make these. Had to. I am glad I did, too. This recipe is a keeper! I have coconut loving friends that are going to want to me to make these. I'll offer to bring them to their parties. I could offer to bring a trio of Rice Krispie treats...these, salted brown butter, and peanut butter. I could get a lot more invitations to a lot more parties!
I found this recipe here http://cravingchronicles.com/2010/05/25/toasted-coconut-rice-krispie-treats/ but had to change it up a bit.
Toasted Coconut Rice Krispie Treats
3 tablespoons butter
10 ounces mini marshmallows
1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1 teaspoon coconut extract
5 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1/2 cup toasted shredded coconut*
* To toast coconut, spread shredded coconut in an even layer on a cookie sheet and bake at 300F, stirring every few minutes, for 10-15 minutes or until coconut is golden brown. Don’t walk away from the oven! The coconut will brown very quickly, so keep an eye on it. Set aside to cool.
Prepare an 8 or 9 inch square dish by either buttering or spraying with cooking spray.
In a large saucepan, melt butter. Add marshmallows and heat over medium-low heat, stirring until melted. Stir in shredded coconut and coconut extract. Remove from heat. Add Rice Krispies and stir until thoroughly coated. Spread Rice Krispie mixture into prepared pan. With the back of a buttered spatula or using a sheet of waxed paper, press mixture firmly into an even layer. If desired melt chocolate chips and drizzle over the tops of the treats. Spread slightly, if desired. Sprinkle toasted coconut and press lightly to adhere to the chocolate and the top of the treats. (In the picture above the coconut was put down first, then the chocolate. Not a good idea. The chocolate fell off...) Cool at room temperature until chocolate hardens. Once cool, cut into squares and enjoy!
The strawberry cake was a success! YAY! Abby took the cake back to college for the birthday boy, but left some cupcakes here for us to enjoy (and photograph). The cake is bright pink, made from scratch-with with real strawberries! The cake packs a good strawberry taste. Taste! Not the boxed cake mix perfumed aroma that is supposed to stand in for taste. Yummy!
I think the frosting needs work. We used a basic cream cheese frosting...and I think it is a bit too much for the cake. A plain buttercream would be better, but I think a whipped cream frosting or a milk chocolate frosting would be best...or maybe we should have tried the posted frosting, too. DUH!
I am hoping Abby will send a picture of her cake. She's going to decorate it with chocolate covered strawberries with a white chocolate drizzle. It should look spectacular. This boy had better now propose. He'd be the third. In a year. Until then though, here's a picture of the cupcake she left for me!
I found the recipe here...http://www.mangiodasola.com/2010/04/strawberry-cake.html but had to change it a bit. I have included the strawberry frosting recipe from the site...perhaps we should have made that, too.
Let cakes rest in pans for 5 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Re-invert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1- 1½ hours.
For Strawberry Puree
2 cups fresh strawberries,sliced and stems removed
1/4 sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
Mmmm...must have been the thought of Cinco de Mayo... but I've finally found a great green sauce for enchiladas. Not spicy (although it would be easy to up the heat) but tasty and tangy, which it should be, having being made with 2 lbs of fresh tomatillos. I liked the flavor of the chicken poached in cilantro and mint, but I think that delicate flavor got lost when the sauce, cheese, and tortillas were added. So you might just want to make your own enchilada filling, and use this sauce. Delicioso
Don't assemble the enchiladas until 10 minutes before you want to eat (but the the sauce, the chicken, and the filling can be made a day or more in advance). I made the mistake once of assembling the enchiladas in the morning and refrigerating until ready to cook. The sauce soaked into the tortillas and by the time I had removed the casserole dish from the oven I knew that I had one horribly dry dish on my hands. So dry, that all the sour cream in the carton couldn't help...
Green Sauce (Salsa Verde)
2 lbs tomatillos (about 15), husks removed and washed
2-3 Serrano chilies or 1 Jalapeno (I'm a wimp, I used 1 Anaheim)
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 small while onion, chopped
3 Tablespoons olive oil (divided use)
1 1/2 tsp. salt (more or less to taste)
1 cup chicken broth (saved from poaching the chicken)
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Char the tomatillo and chilies. Do this over an open flame on your stovetop, on the grill, in the frying pan, or in a hot oven. I grill over the gas burner on my stove. You are looking for the tomatillos to soften slightly and have a few charred spots. Remove tomatillos to a large bowl or platter to cool. Put the charred chili in a brown bag to cool. When cool, remove all the charred skin. Add 1 Tablespoon olive oil to a frying pan. When hot add onion and saute onion until soft, add the garlic, and saute about 2 more minutes. Put the tomatillos, peeled chili, onion and garlic in a blender and process until smooth. Heat remaining 2 Tablespoons olive oil in the frying pan. Add in sauce from blender and cook for about a minute. Stir in salt (to taste), chicken broth, cumin, and cilantro. Simmer for about 4 minutes and set aside.
For Chicken
1 small chicken, cut into 3 parts (or all thighs, or all breasts, or combo...about 2 lbs meat total)
8 cups water
1/2 yellow onion, coarsely chopped (skin still on)
6 garlic cloves
2 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt, divided use
8 springs cilantro
3 large sprigs fresh mint
1/2 tsp. black pepper
salt, to taste
Place chicken in pan with water, yellow onion, garlic, 2 tsp. salt, cilantro, and mint. Poach chicken until done, 20-45 minutes depending on cuts of chicken and thickness of meat. Let chicken cool in broth. Remove chicken from broth and shred. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken bones back into broth and simmer for an additional 30-60 minutes to make a richer broth. Strain 1 cup of broth from pan and add to the green sauce above.
For the enchiladas
shredded chicken from above
2 cups monterey jack cheese (or mexican blend cheese), divided use
1 can sliced black olives, optional
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup salsa verde
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup vegetable oil
12 corn tortillas
Queso Fresco, crumbled (or additional shredded cheese)
Sour cream or Mexican Crema
1/2 red onion, finely chopped, optional
Combine shredded chicken, 1 cup shredded cheese, optional olives and onion along with 1/2 cup salsa verde. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Just before it's time to eat...
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat vegetable oil over high heat. Lightly fry tortilla in oil for about 5 seconds on each side or until soft. Drain on a paper towel. Repeat until all 12 tortillas are cooked. Dip tortilla into salsa verde, add in a scant 1/4 cup of chicken mixture, and roll. Place into baking dish, seam side down. Repeat until all tortillas and chicken are used. Pour remaining sauce over enchiladas in pan. Top with remaining 1 cup shredded cheese. Bake for 10 minutes. Finish off in a hot broiler for 2-3 minutes if you want nicely browned cheese. Garnish enchiladas with crumbled Queso Fresco and sour cream or Mexican Crema. Servir y disfrutar.
Ooops. Almost forgot to tell you where I found this recipe. In the San Jose Mercury News last month (don't have the date on the clipping) and it's attributed to Agustin Gayton.
My daughter Abby insisted I post these. She said they are delicious. She's a wonderful girl, but unfortunately suffering from dormfooditis. Nevertheless, these scones are good, and they do look pretty. They'd be good with a mother's day cup of tea, don't you think?
Scones are not supposed to be sweet, and not supposed to resemble a muffin, and these don't. They have the right texture for a true Englsih scone. Next time though, I will put a bit more sugar in them, and a bit less nutmeg. (I love nutmeg, so I was a bit overgenerous, and the scones ended up with a bit of an unappetizing yellow tinge.)
Here's where I found this recipe...Adapted from Joy the Baker, originally from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan http://homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com/2010/04/strawberry-oatmeal-scones.html
Strawberry Oatmeal Scones
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup sugar (next time I might use 1/2 cup)
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 T unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper.
Whisk together the egg and buttermilk and set aside. Combine the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Add the cold butter pieces and cut in with a pastry blender or your hands, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add in the chopped strawberries. Pour in the buttermilk mixture and stir with a fork until the mixture comes together in one hairy ball (be careful not to squish too many strawberries). Place the dough on an ungreased baking sheet and pat into a disk about the size of a dinner plate and 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut the dough, like a pie or a pizza, into about 8 or 12 wedges. Pull wedges apart, so there is about 1 inch between each slice.
At this point scones can be refrigerated to bake later, or frozen to be baked much later. Place in preheated 400 degree oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown (25 minutes if frozen--do not defrost before baking). Transfer to a wire rack to cool about 10 minutes before serving.
In the last few weeks, I have deemed only one new recipe worthy of posting, this one: Brown Sugar Ice Cream. My daughter Abby brought home a quart of Haagan-Daz's Brown Sugar ice-cream a few months ago. So when I ran across this recipe at http://dishingupdelights.blogspot.com/2010/04/brown-sugar-ice-cream.html it wasn't a completely foreign concept. Just for the record, this homemade version is wayyyy better than the Haagan-Daz version. The Haagan-Daz version has an odd texture and a more of a molasses flavor than a brown sugar flavor. This homemade version is simple, rich, smooth, creamy...
I served this last night with a Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp. The flavor combo was not quite right. I kept thinking this ice cream will be perfect with something...but what IS it? I was driving myself CRAZY...finally, almost 24 hours later, it has come to me. I was on the right track with the oatmeal crisp topping, but brown sugar ice cream needs...apples! MMmmm...can you imagine a warm apple crisp with oatmeal topping and a bit of Brown Sugar ice-cream on the side? Or, how about Apple pie with Brown Sugar Ice Cream? I know all you nut lovers are going to want to sprinkle a few toasted, glazed, or spiced walnuts or pecans over that!
The recipe below calls for whipping cream and whole milk. I've started going one step down on the dairy with all my ice cream recipes. For this recipe I used half-and-half and whole milk. Use anything you want: whipping cream, half-and-half, whole milk, 2% milk. The less fat in the milk or cream, the less creamy and rich the ice-cream. Next time I will use all whole milk or whole milk and 2%...or maybe all 2%...and I'll make an apple-oatmeal crisp...or maybe a peach-oatmeal crisp..
Now for those leftover egg whites...Pavlova! I'll post the recipe soon. I've promised a friend of mine I would for about 6 weeks now...
Enjoy!
Brown Sugar Ice Cream
Makes 1 quart
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream (see note above)
1 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup (packed) dark brown sugar, divided
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 large egg yolks
Combine heavy whipping cream, whole milk, (or your choice of milk/cream products) and 1/2 cup brown sugar in heavy large saucepan. Bring cream mixture to simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
Meanwhile, whisk yolks and remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar in large bowl of an electric mixer until very thick, about 2 minutes.
Gradually whisk hot cream mixture into yolk mixture. Return mixture to saucepan. Stir over medium heat until custard thickens and thermometer inserted into custard registers 180°F, about 6 minutes (do not boil). Strain custard (if needed) into large bowl set over another bowl of ice and water. Cool custard completely, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Cover and chill overnight (I was only able to chill for about 3 hours).
Process custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer ice cream to container. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours and up to 1 day.
I think he's closing his eyes! Do you think he knows how good it's going to be?
In the US, a "good" dinner is a main dish, maybe a veggie, a starch and a green salad. In England, the norm for a "good" dinner is a main dish, mash and three veggies. I'm English. Three veggies, please! I love my veggies. Love them, love them, love them. I never met a veggie I didn't like. Roasting veggies is surprisingly easy and brings out the sweetness in the veggies. Ever roast a cauliflower? No? You're missing out! Here's the recipe (from Epicurious.com)
Roasted Cauliflower
8 cups cauliflower florets (you'll need one huge head of cauliflower or two smaller heads)
3 T. olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put the small florets into a large (gallon) sized Ziploc bag or large bowl. Mix the olive oil and salt together then pour over the cauliflower. Shake the bag, or stir the bowl, to cover the cauliflower evenly with the oil and salt. Spread cauliflower onto a large baking sheet (the metal kind with 1/2 inch or 1 inch sides). Place sheet into hot oven. Shake pan after 15 minutes to rotate florets. Continue to roast for another 10 or 15 minutes or until cauliflower is tender and sports nice golden brown spots.
Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today! Will you be roasting some cauliflower soon. What other veggies do you like to roast?
YAY! Halibut season! You have to try this recipe. I love this recipe. The lemon peel and the panko are the magic ingredients--along with some good quality halibut (which can often be found at Costco), of course. If I were collecting my favorite recipes, this would definitely be one of my top ten. I found this recipe on epicurious.com in 2008. See that fillet in front? I just ate it. Don't you wish you were me?!
Pan-Fried Halibut
2 lbs. halibut (1 1/2 inches thick) fillets, not steaks
1 1/2 cups (3 1/2 oz.) panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
grated peel of one lemon (about 2 tsp.)
2 tsp. Kosher salt
pepper, to taste
1 T. finely chopped parsley
3 egg whites
1/4 cup buttermilk
3 T. olive oil
Cut fish into single serving pieces. Combine panko, lemon peel, salt, pepper and parsley in a shallow dipping bowl. In another shallow dipping bowl combine egg whites and buttermilk. Dip fish into egg white mixture and then into panko mixture. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. When oil is hot add panko covered fish. Cook fish until panko is golden and fish is opaque in center, 3-5 minutes (depending on thickness of fish) on each side. Remove to serving plate.
This will probably be the last of my citrus posts for awhile. So let's use up the rest of those oranges, lemons and limes so we can move on. Before we close this chapter though, here's a recipe for a citrusy pound cake...with a pepper kick. Not a big kick, more of a love tap, really! The citrus isn't overwhelming either, just another love tap! The pepper kick develops over time. I tasted this cake on day 1, no pepper. Day 2, ohhhh, there's the pepper!
Triple Citrus Pepper Pound Cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1 T. lemon zest
1 T. lime zest
1 T. orange zest
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
Preheat the oven to 325 F. and prepare a 9X5 loaf pan. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, black pepper and salt. With an electric mixer, cream the butter with the citrus zests until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and beat an additional 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium low speed, pour the egg mixture into the bowl, and mix until blended. On low speed mix the flour mixture in, adding it in 4 additions. After the last addition, mix on medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 60-75 minutes, until a toothpick inserts into the center comes out with only a few crumbs attached and the sides of the cake are pulling away from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, and then invert the cake onto a cooling rack. Cool completely before slicing and serving. The pepper flavor develops over time. Wait 24 hours!
You can make marmalade for breakfast. Yes you can! It's amazing! I have made orange, lemon and lime marmalade with this recipe. It's so QUICK! I am so impressed. I have had better marmalades, but they weren't made in 15 minutes from the citrus in my backyard. This recipe is a winner.
Notes from original recipe:
Do not double the recipe, the microwave will not like it and you will end up with a giant mess.
Use a high-sided microwaveable container (I used an 8 cup Pyrex measuring cup) to microwave the marmalade
After you get the basic technique down, play a bit...add a touch of booze or spice!
Microwave Marmalade
Thinly sliced zest (with no white stuff) from 1 lb of citrus
3/4 lb citrus (all peel, white rind and seeds removed)--tangerines, lemons, limes, oranges or combination
1 1/4 cup white sugar
1-tablespoon rum (optional) (I used Cointreau)
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
Peel and seed fruit, removing and discarding all the whit pith, and white stringy bits from the outside and down the center of the fruit. Weigh the peeled fruit and removed zest, you'll need 3/4 lb. of pulp and zest. Place zest, pulp and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Puree, making sure all the peel and section skins are reduced to a pulp. Pour pureed mixture into a high-sided microwaveable bowl, adding optional alcohol and nutmeg. Cover tightly with plastic wrap pierced a few times to vent. Microwave on high for 5 minutes. Stir; remove platic wrap and return to microwave for 7 minutes. Remove, stir and check thickness. At this point, depending on the juiciness of your fruit (oranges mainly), return mixture to the microwave for another 2-3 minutes. Marmalade will thicken as it cools. Makes 2 cups. Keep in refrigerator for up to three weeks. Can be frozen for longer storage.
It's cold and raining here in California. Surprisingly cold. Soup weather cold. But it's Tuesday at 6PM. I'm in the grocery store, hungry, and wanting soup for dinner. Do I grab a can? Noooo...those cans do NOT contain "soup"! The contents of those cans have a soup LOOK and when warmed they have soup TEXTURE, but they really don't have any taste. Look and texture can fool some people to think the can contents have taste, but they don't. Oh dear, I got on my processed food rampage, didn't I? So sorry. To make a long story short...this soup is one of my favorites. Once you have all the ingredients it can be on the table in less than 20 minutes, and it tastes d-i-v-i-n-e. Don't be scared of the ingredients, trust me and try it! My 15 month old grandson slurped up his bowl and then whined until he got to have some of mine. This is one soup where the broth is probably more yummy than the shrimp! Can you imagine? BTW, don't use Jumbo Shrimp, they are too big for one bite and don't fit on the spoons. You can make this with all shrimp, or half shrimp and fish, or use scallops or half scallops and half shrimp or half fish...it's all good.
Coconut-Lime Shrimp Bisque
1 T. olive oil
5 chopped shallots (about 3/4 cup)
1 T. minced fresh ginger
1 tsp. ground turmeric
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
8 oz. bottle Clam Juice (In a pinch, can sub chicken broth, or a can of clams with the juice)
14.5 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
13.5 oz can unsweetened coconut milk (the low fat version has no taste)
grated zest of one lime
1 1/2 - 2 lbs med/large raw (shelled) shrimp, firm white fish (cut into pieces about 1 1/2 inches square, or scallops (or any combination of the three)
3 T. freshly squeezed lime juice (from one large lime)
2 green onions, sliced
salt and pepper, to taste
Heat oil and saute shallots until tender, about 3 minutes. Add in ginger, turmeric, and cumin and saute for an additional minute. Stir in clam juice, diced tomatoes, coconut milk, lime zest, and shrimp, fish and/or scallops. Simmer until seafood is cooked, about 7 minutes. Stir in lime juice, green onions and salt and pepper, to taste. Serve. See how fast this is to make? You can do it! Makes 4 -6 servings.
Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today. It's always so good to have you here!
I looooooove marmalade. Hated it as a kid. Love it as a grown up. My mom put a very expensive jar of marmalade in my stocking at Christmas (aren't Moms great?!). I used some of that to make my first marmalade cake. It was a disaster, collapsing all over the plate when removed from the pan, but the crumbs were so delectable that I decided to give it another go and fix the recipe. My second try at this cake was good, very orangey. Then I thought perhaps I had made the wrong guess about the recipe the first time, and decided to try it again. It was not better than my second try, and the second recipe used less process food and therefor had less chemicals in the cake. The second cake, my variation, was the winner and the one I am posting.
I found the original recipe on Folgers.com it was called Orange Cake. http://www.folgers.com/enjoy-coffee/dessert-recipes.aspx#orange_cake. I tried it because I had that very expensive marmalade, but the recipe was a problem from the beginning. It didn't seem like there was enough butter to "cream" the butter and sugar until "light and fluffy". I followed the recipe anyway. The second problem was the recipe called for a box of instant vanilla pudding, which I didn't notice at first and didn't specify what size box of instant pudding. So in the middle of mixing the first cake, I went to the store for a box of instant vanilla pudding. My store only carried the large size box, so I though, OK, instant pudding only comes in the large box, so I bought and used that. You know the end. Disaster. But a tasty disaster. So I decided to adjust the recipe and find a real food substitute for the pudding. A search of the Internet told me that was probably not a good idea because the recipe probably relied on the chemical thickening agents and such. Arrrghhhhh! I ended up adjusting the recipe anyway, adding some cornstarch and a more reasonable amount of butter. Success! I was going to post that recipe...until I found a small box of instant pudding at another grocery store. Arghhhhhhhh!! So I made the cake the third time, with my adjustments to the butter and the small box of pudding...no better than my second version. So here is the second version, no box of instant pudding required.
A few notes...the quality of the marmalade does affect the taste. By the third cake I was out of the expensive stuff and used a cheapie store brand. When you make this cake--and please make this cake, it's yummy--use the best quality marmalade you can get your hands on,
You'll thank me for this one--but I guess you should thank Folgers, too, who inspired this Marmalade Cake journey and this post.
Marmalade Cake
For Cake
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup butter, at room temperature
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. orange extract
1/3 cup orange juice concentrate, at room temperature
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup Sweet Orange Marmalade
For Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
2 T. orange juice concentrate, at room temperature
2 T. Sweet Orange Marmalade
3 tsp. orange zest (usually from one orange)
1 tsp. vanilla
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Prepare a 12-cup Bundt pan. Mix dry ingredients together and set aside (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt). Using an electric mixer, beat butter for one minute and then add in sugar and beat for 3 or 4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. After all eggs have been added, beat mixture for an additional minute, then beat in orange and vanilla extracts and the orange juice concentrate. Beat in 1/3 of flour mixture, then 1/2 of the buttermilk, then 1/3 of the flour mixture, 1/2 of the buttermilk, and then the last 1/3 of the flour mixture. Do not overbeat. Fold in marmalade. Pour batter into a prepared bundt pan. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 45 - 50 minutes or until cake is done. Meanwhile, mix up glaze. Beat all ingredients together until well combined. When cake is done, remove from oven and cool in pan on a rack for 3-5 minutes. Remove cake to a rack and brush on 1/3 of glaze mixture, letting it soak into cake. After 10 minutes, brush on another 1/3 of glaze. After 10 more minutes brush on remaining glaze. Let cake cool completely on rack before serving. Serve at room temperature. I have had no problems keeping this cake under a glass dome on the kitchen counter for 3 -4 days.
MMmm...I think this is now one of my top five favorite cakes. What's your favorite cake?
Now that I have everyone making the easy microwave Lemon Curd, it's time to put it to good use! I am not a huge fan of Martha, but sometimes she shows up in the right place at the right time with the right recipe, like she did this morning. I made Martha Stewart's Lemon Cupcakes from her book "Cupcakes" (page 121). Abby took 18 to college with her. I took 6 to a quilt group. And there are still 12 here. (Hint number one, make half the recipe!) I think the squirt of lemon in the middle of the cupcake was a lot of fun. Loved the frosting, too. The cupcake was a bit dense, but a nice foil for the soft lemony center and sweet creamy top. I'll make these again next time I have a batch of lemon curd on hand.
Lemon Curd Cupcakes
3 1/2 cups flour
2 T lemon zest (or a bit more,if you like a really lemony cupcake)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups butter, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
7 eggs, at room temperature
3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice (Martha only used 2)
1 tsp. vanilla
approx. 1 cup lemon curd
powdered sugar or buttercream frosting (recipe below)
toasted coconut, optional
yellow decorating sugar (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 36 - 42 cupcake tins with paper liners (Martha stated she made 42 cupcakes out of this batter, I was only able to make 36 ...). In a medium bowl whisk together flour, lemon zest, baking powder and salt and set aside. With an electric mixer beat softened butter for two minutes. Add in sugar and beat for 3 minutes more. Beat in cream cheese. Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in lemon juice an vanilla. Add in flour mixture, beating until just combined. Bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 28 to 30 minutes. Cool cupcakes in tins on a rack. When completely cool, fill and frost.
Place lemon curd in a ziplock bag. Squeeze curd to the corner of the bag, and cut off about 1/8th inch of the plastic corner to make a "filling bag". With a knife, cut a small cylinder from the middle of each cupcake. Remove and discard the excess cake. Fill the hole in the cupcake with lemon curd from the ziplock bag. Sprinkle with powdered sugar or frost with buttercream frosting.
Buttercream Frosting
1 cup butter
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
With an electric mixer beat butter for two minutes. Add in powdered sugar and beat for another three minutes. Raise speed to high and beat for another two minutes or so. Beat in vanilla.
Spread frosting on desired number of cupcakes. Sprinkle with toasted coconut or colored sugar if desired.
My favorite is the one with the buttercream frosting and toasted coconut. What's yours?
Lemon Curd: (n) a wonderful treat cursed with an unfortunate name. Don't be put off. Lemon Curd is not curdled and there are no curds (nor whey). So why the unfortunate name? I just don't know. Never mind, though, Lemon Curd is lovely; it's sort of a lemon jam. There's nothing better at the end of the day (or the beginning of the day, or the middle of the day for that matter) than a slice of hot toast with lemon curd, a cup of hot tea on the side, with feet up and something nice on the telly. Oh, yes there is, two slices of hot toast with lemon curd! I picked 6 large lemons off of my neighbors tree this afternoon and whipped this up in the microwave. Enjoy Lemon Curd on your toast all week. Next weekend put some Lemon Curd in the middle of a layer cake, cupcakes, or cookies AND, I will post a recipe for a Pavlova with lemon curd and blueberries to finish off your batch. Leftover lemon curd will keep in the refrigerator for approximately three weeks.
I was reminded of this microwave recipe when I visited a few food blogs recently; 2 Stews and La Table de Nana.
Microwave Lemon Curd
1 cup sugar
3 whole eggs
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 6 or 7 large lemons)
zest of 3 lemons (I used a microplane)
1/2 cup butter, melted
In a microwave safe bowl whisk together sugar and eggs until smooth. Sir in lemon juice, lemon zest, and melted butter. Microwave for one minute, stir, microwave for another minute, stir. Do this until the lemon curd is think enough to coat the back of a spoon. This will take 5 - 7 minutes. At this point can pour into small sterile jars to give as gifts, or cool, then cover and refrigerate for your family to use. Store for up to three weeks in the refrigerator.
Thanks for visiting! Enjoy your Lemon Loveliness with your feet up, a cup of tea, and a good book.
It's the start of citrus season here in sunny California. Let's all celebrate with a homey, yummy Lemon Bundt Cake! I picked three lemons off my neighbor's tree (which I have spent 20 years training to grow over my fence) to make this cake. The cake is barely even yellow but it tastes quite lemony and has a softly dense texture. Look at the short list of ingredients. All good stuff! This is the sort of cake that has your family thinking, "Dang, no one makes cakes like Mom (or Dad)". I found this recipe in the book, "Under the Tuscan Sun" by Frances Mayes, so I have probably been making this cake since 1998 or 1999-with no end it sight-this is one of my favorite Bundt cakes.
Lemon Bundt Cake
For Cake
2 cups sugar
1 cup softened butter
3 eggs
3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup buttermilk (or milk, or cream, sour soured milk or cream)
3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice (don't use that stuff from the plastic lemon!)
4 tsp grated lemon zest (I use a microplane)
For Frosting
1/4 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 T. lemon juice
grated zest of one lemon (optional)
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Prepare a 12-cup Bundt pan for baking. (Pam for Baking is great, so is using the wrappers from the butter cubes and then adding a small sprinkle of flour). Cream butter and sugar, beating until light and creamy, about 5 minutes total. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then add 1/2 of the buttermilk, then 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 of the buttermilk, then 1/3 of the flour, beating after each addition. Add lemon juice and the grated zest to the cake batter, stir just to combine. Pour mixture into a prepared Bundt pan. Bake in preheated 300 degree oven for 50 - 70 minutes (original recipe said 50 minutes, but I always have to bake mine for 60-70 minutes). Remove cake from oven and let cool on a rack for a few minutes. Then invert cake and let cool completely on rack. When cake has cooled combine softened butter, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and optional zest. Casually glop the frosting on top of the cake, spreading to allow glaze to drip attractively down the sides. If desired, garnish cake top with curls of lemon rind.
Invite some friends over. Have a nice little chat. This cake is meant for casual sharing. Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today. I'll put the kettle on in preparation for our next chat.
Posts
