eat make read

Sometimes I just want to jazz things up a bit. That’s what I was thinking when I decided to make coconut rice recently. Rice is fine, but when you add something like coconut and perhaps a few other spices it just takes it up a notch of the delicious scale.

I’m not talking about anything fancy. Just a cinnamon stick, some tumeric, salt and a generous portion of coconut milk and you’ve taken ordinary rice to a whole new level.

I have to admit, for the amount of coconut milk I put into this recipe, I thought I was going to taste a tropical paradise. Instead, I found the flavor to be subtly awesome, with hints of coconut and cinnamon coming into play. What I like about this recipe is that it tastes great on it’s own but it also provides a nice stage to present a nice spicy shiskabob or vegetables. Yum!

Coconut Rice
makes 4-6 servings*, based on a recipe from Extending the Table

1 1/2 cups basmati rice
2 1/2 cups coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon tumeric (mostly for coloring)
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick

1
Add all ingredients to a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil.
2
Reduce heat to a simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
3
Remove from heat and let stand, covered, until ready to serve.

*I divided this recipe in half and just cooked it for half the time.

How delicious are waffles? They rate very high on my scale of favorite foods. Growing up, every now and then my mom would treat me and make waffles and smoked sausage for dinner. Quite frankly, it’s hard to beat something like that. These days I tend to make pancakes more often because cleaning the waffle iron is a bit of a drag, but I threw caution to the wind this weekend and not only pulled out the waffle iron, but decided to try a new recipe. I found one for gingerbread waffles that just seemed to good to pass by. I mean come on, that just takes waffles to a whole new level.

After a quick mix of ingredients I heated up the iron and poured the batter in. A few minutes later I had 2 beautiful waffles waiting to be eaten. I crowned them with a dollop of sour cream and a drizzle of maple syrup, then got down to business.

Yes and yes! Gingerbread is one of those things that will always have a special place in my heart, so these really made me happy. The flavor was deep with molasses but the texture was light and fluffy. I wasn’t sure if I’d like the sour cream on top but it was a perfect tangy counterpoint to the sweet syrup and waffle. If you’re looking for a something a little different but still awesomely delicious, I think these might be calling your name.

Gingerbread Waffles
from Martha Stewart | makes 10 (recipe is easily dividable)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream, plus more for serving
3 tablespoons unsulfured molasses
maple syrup or berry jam

1
Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large bowl.
2
Whisk together eggs, butter, milk, sour cream, and molasses in a medium bowl.
3
Add egg mixture to flour mixture, and whisk until smooth.
4
Heat a waffle iron. Spoon 1/3 cup batter into each mold, and cook until golden brown.
5
Serve warm waffles with sour cream and maple syrup or berry jam.

Bloody Mary’s were never quite my thing. But then I moved to Brooklyn where brunch is king and the Bloody Mary is well, Queen. It took me quite a while to actually even try one (suprise, suprise) and I can’t say I loved it. I feel like it’s one of those things that you slowly grow to love and pretty soon it just feels right at home next to your plate of eggs and bacon.

I decided to try my hand at a little bloody mary mixing, with a twist of course. It’s no secret that I love Mexican anything, so I added a few south of the border touches like a mix of cayenne and salt for the rim and tequila instead of vodka. It’s a rich, spicy and delicious cocktail.

I hope you have an excellent weekend! Cheers!

Bloody Maria

1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 oz tomato juice
2 oz tequila
1 oz liquid from Rick’s Pick’s Smokra (or pickle juice)
1 Tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
dash (or more) of hot sauce
ice

1
Mix together the salt and cayenne and pour it on a plate. Run a sliced lime around the rim of the glass and then dip the glass in the salt mixture. Set aside.
2
Place a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker. Add the remaining ingredients and give it a shake for about 10 seconds. Taste and make adjustments according to your tastes.
3
Pour into salt rimmed glass and toast to a good day!

Coleslaw has always grossed me out. I can just picture that creamy, drippy and a bit stinky slaw that remained in the shape of the scoop and was served in school lunchrooms. That is the stuff of nightmares. Until recently, I always assumed that all slaw was like that so if I saw it on the menu, I would immediately look for a substitute. But then I noticed it on the menu at a new restaurant here in Brooklyn and as I read the description it actually sounded *gasp* delicious. I don’t remember the exact concoction, but it definitely wasn’t the usual white creamy stuff, instead it had something like apples, walnuts, cabbage and parmesan

Well, fast forward to last week when I was perusing some blogs and happened upon this recipe for carrot slaw from Food Loves Writing. The pictures looked so lovely and her description just made me want to whip up my first homemade slaw. Confident that I could get past the slaws of nightmares and replace them with happy thoughts, I went for it.

I picked up a few carrots at the market last weekend to have on hand for dinner this week. After peeling them I just tossed them in the food processor and gave them a whirl or two. I realized after I had pressed the button a few times that I forgot to put that special blade in it, so my carrots were little bits instead of pretty little slices. Oh well. Once they were done, just a quick toss of oil and lemon topped off with some fresh parsley and tada. That’s it. Slaw is easy!

But easy isn’t everything, it has to be good too. Luckily the recipe didn’t let me down, in fact it had me going back for more. The carrots flavor is brightened by the addition of lemon juice and olive oil and the parsley adds a nice flavor to round it out. I actually like the tiny bits better than the slices because I find carrots oddly hard to chew and this makes it easier to enjoy. It’s simple, delicious and healthy all of which make me happy.

Carrot Slaw
from Food Loves Writing via  Joël Robuchon’s The Complete Robuchon

1 pound medium carrots, peeled
1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (or tarragon or a combination)
Salt to taste
Buttery crackers, small biscuits or hot, crusty baguettes, for serving.

1
Grate carrots into matchstick pieces using a food processor, a mandolin or a sharp knife. Transfer to a bowl.
2
Whisk lemon juice and oils together, pour over carrots, and toss.
3
Add parsley and toss. Add salt to taste. Serve with crackers, biscuits or bread.

Ummm, yeah. My thumb is quickly turning from a proud green to an embarrased brown. What looked like a tray full of hopeful little sprouts two weeks ago is looking a little less impressive now. Turns out my brilliant idea to create a “greenhouse atmosphere” by putting the plants on the radiator wasn’t the smartest one I’ve had. Luckily I realized my mistake soon enough to save a few and it looks like I’ve still got a few peppers and a few tomatoes with hopes that some of the others will make a comeback. Live and learn (and then go to the greenmarket).

Sometimes (ok, way too often) I daydream about food and new things to make. I’m not quite sure how I got to this particular daydream, but it’s stuck with me and last weekend I finally gathered all the ingredients to make it a reality. Fresh mushrooms from the market, a bit of spinach, some homemade onion and garlic jam we received as a gift from a friend and a box of puff pastry. Oh, and a little rosemary to press into the crust. It just sounds right, right?

It’s a great little tart to whip up for brunch. I’m in love with rosemary (it’s true), so anytime I can find a way to sneak it into a recipe I do. After I unwrapped the dough I just pressed a bit of finely chopped rosemary it into it. I was lucky and had some super delicious onion and garlic jam on hand, but if you don’t have any, you could just caramelize an onion. Once you’ve spread the onion over the dough, sprinkle some sauteed mushrooms and spinach over top and pop it in the oven. Then just wait for a dreamy aroma to start floating throughout your house.

After about 25 minutes in the oven the tart had puffed up a bit and got crispier. I cut each tart into quarters and placed a slice on each plate . I was really hoping it would be delicious and it was. In fact, it was better than I thought it was going to be. The onions are the underlying flavor, but the mushrooms and spinach add an extra umph and texture that really work. And you just can’t go wrong with puff pastry. Now I have to get back to daydreaming…

mushroom, onion & spinach tart
makes two good sized tarts

2 cups spinach
1/2 lb mushrooms (about 3-4 cups), destemmed and sliced
onion jam or 1 onion, finely sliced
1 package puff pastry
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped

I am a lover of scones. I would pick a scone over a muffin any day. There’s just something about their buttery heft that makes my taste buds do a little dance. I’ve made them before and they’ve turned out pretty good (although sometimes they end up looking like a puddle of a scone). But I’m always on the lookout for something better and let me tell you, I have found the best scone recipe known to man. This is no joke my friends.

But let’s back up for a second. All this scone madness started because I found some blood oranges on sale at the store and I just needed to make something with them. I like to start the weekend out with something tasty, so I came up with the idea of scones with candied orange peel and dried cherries. Sounds delicious, right? Well candying orange peel is a little time consuming and in hindsight, may have been a little ambitious. That’s not to say it wasn’t fun or tasty, because it was both, but for morning baking, it may be a bit much for some people.

Once I’d candied the orange peels, I let them cool for a bit and got started on the dough. I found this recipe over on Smitten Kitchen, but it’s originally from America’s Test Kitchen… that’s like double satisfaction guaranteed. And as an added bonus, it’s super easy to make. The key, I believe, is butter temperature. Keep it cold. I actually pre-cut my butter and then put it in the freezer while I mixed the other ingredients together. Once the dough was mixed together, I kneaded it for a minute or so and then pressed it into a square baking sheet to give it shape and then flipped it onto the counter. I like my scones triangular, so I cut it into four squares and then cut a diagonal line in each square to create 8 scones. Then into the oven they went.

My stomach was growling and luckily in only a mere 15 minutes the scones had baked to a flaky golden hue. Oh the restraint I showed waiting for those puppies to cool. Well, the time came to try them out and as you may have guessed, they are the most excellent scones ever! They are the perfect combination of a moist, buttery biscuit with hints of orange goodness and then of course you’ll bite into a cherry every now and then. Really, I just can’t say enough about how perfect they are. So behold, the best scone recipe that you will ever need.

Blood Orange & Cherry Cream Scones
adapted via smitten kitchen via America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook

2 cups (10 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour, preferably a low-protein brand such as Gold Medal or Pillsbury
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup dried cherries
2 Tablespoons candied orange peel, chopped*, **
1 cup heavy cream

1
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees.
2
Place flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in large bowl or work bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Whisk together or pulse six times.
3
If making by hand, use two knives, a pastry blender or your fingertips and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. Stir in dried cherries.
If using food processor,remove cover and distribute butter evenly over dry ingredients. Cover and pulse 12 times, each pulse lasting 1 second. Add dried cherries and pulse one more time. Transfer dough to large bowl.
4
Stir in heavy cream with a rubber spatula or fork until dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.
5
Transfer dough and all dry, floury bits to countertop and knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Form scones by pressing the dough into an 8-inch cake pan, then turning the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, cutting the dough into 8 wedges with either a knife or bench scraper.
6
Place rounds or wedges on ungreased baking sheet and bake until scone tops are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

*Ok, so about the candied orange peels. They are good, but if you’d rather skip that, I think you could just use the same amount of orange zest. I haven’t tried this, but i feel confident that it will provide you with a similar orange flavor, you just won’t have the little chunks in the scone.

Candied Orange Peel
adapted from epicurious

2 Blood oranges
1 cup sugar, divided
3/4 cup water

1
Using vegetable peeler, remove orange part of peel from orange in long strips.
2
Stir 3/4 cup sugar and 3/4 cup water in heavy small saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. Add orange peel; simmer 15 minutes.
3
Place remaining 1/4 cup sugar in small bowl. Using slotted spoon, remove peel from syrup and transfer to sugar. Toss to coat. Cool, tossing occasionally. Cover bowl and let stand at room temperature overnight. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep covered.)

I’ve made my fair share of roast chickens, and to tell you the truth, I didn’t think my recipe could get any better. The chicken always comes out super flavorful, the skin golden and crispy and the addition of potatoes secures it’s place as a family favorite. But then I saw this recipe for Garlic and Thyme Roasted Chicken with Crispy Croutons. The recipe is rather similar to what I usually make, but then genius comes into play and bread is placed under the chicken to collect the juicy drippings. That just sounded too good not to try, so I got to work.

I picked up a baguette at a local shop, but any type of slightly stale sturdy white bread should work, like country bread or ciabatta. I sliced it up into 1/4 inch thick slices and placed it in the bottom of the pan. Next I stuffed my chicken with a whole lot of garlic, a lemon, some thyme and a bay leaf. I carefully placed the chicken over the slices of bread and that’s it! Into the oven it goes.

An hour and a half later the chicken was ready and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one of those pieces of bread. As usual, the chicken was a crispy and golden and was incredibly flavorful and moist. The bread was awesome. Some pieces were a little extra crispy, some were evenly crispy and some were still a little moist, but they were all delicious. While they’re not the healthiest addition to a wholesome meal, they add a nice texture to meal and will make you happy.

Garlic and Thyme Roasted Chicken With Crispy Drippings Croutons
from the New York Times

Country bread, ciabatta or other sturdy bread, preferably stale, sliced at least 1/2-inch thick
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, more as needed
2 teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, more as needed
1 4- to 5-pound chicken, patted dry
1 garlic head, sliced in half horizontally, through the cloves*
1 bay leaf
1/2 lemon
1/2 bunch thyme sprigs.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
1
Arrange oven rack so that it is in center of oven. Lay bread slices in a thick, heavy-duty metal roasting pan in one layer. (Try not to use a thin or dark colored pan, which may cause bread to burn: see note.) Drizzle liberally with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2
Rub 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper inside cavity of chicken. Stuff cavity with garlic, bay leaf, lemon and thyme.
3
Rub outside of chicken with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle all over with remaining salt and pepper. Place it breast side up on bread.
4
Roast chicken until it is deeply browned and juices run clear when thigh is pricked with a knife, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before carving. Serve chicken with bread from pan.

* I cut mine the wrong way in the picture. Cut them the other way.

One of my favorite writers and bloggers, Orangette, is having a booksigning tonight and tomorrow night for her just released book, A Homemade Life. The signings are at Idlewild Books (a great bookstore!) at 7:00pm. Hopefully my book arrives in time to get it signed… Thanks for reminding me Jane!

Images from Orangette

I always look forward to Wednesday because that’s when the Dining section in the New York Times comes out. They didn’t disappoint this week with two stories about some of my favorite things.

The lead story is all about whoopie pies, which are oh so delicious. They feature a few bakers including one just down the street in Park Slope, but if you’re in the area you must try the pumpkin and cream cheese whoopie pies at One Girl Cookies. So good! The second story I liked features one of my favorite fruits, blood oranges. They are just so, so delicious. The recipe is for a quick cake that uses olive oil instead of butter. Intriguing, right?

Photos from New York Times