eat make read

a big thank you to the ReadyMade blog for naming eatmakeread food blog pick of the week.

This is exciting. A few months ago my friend Jillian gave me a call to tell me about this idea she had. She wanted to write a book about home remedies because everyone has one and more often than not, there’s a story that goes along with it. I loved the idea and it spurred a million other ideas. Both our husbands, Aaron and Ari put their brains to work with us and we decided instead to create a quarterly magazine called Remedy Quarterly. The magazine will be broader than just home remedies. The pilot issue is coming to a close and we’re excited to have contributions from Will Gilson chef and owner of Garden at the Cellar in Cambridge, MA and Tim Mazurek from Lottie and Doof, as well as some of our best pen-wielding friends. Stories include interviews, family traditions, and rich food memories along with the recipes at their center.

We’ve put up an interest page to get a feel for how you all like this idea and to start getting story ideas for the second edition. If you give your email, mailings will be few and limited to calls for submissions and progress on the website and print production.

I love butter. This is mildy embarrasing to admit, but one of my earliest food memories is sneaking into the fridge and eating a chunk of butter back when I was about 3 years old. It makes me shiver a little now to think about eating a big old hunk of butter, but I think I was onto something way back when. I love the versatility of it. It’s used in so many recipes and can really take something to the next level.

When I saw a recipe in BUST magazine a while back I made a mental note to try it out. Unfortunately my notes up there are a little disorganized, so when I saw a recipe on the Kitchn on my day off, I figured it was time to try it out. It didn’t hurt that I had some cream in the fridge that needed to be used.

Making butter is pretty dang simple. You can keep it super simple and only use cream, but the recipe I followed used cream and sour cream plus a little salt. Apparently the sour cream adds a little tang to it. Initially, you just put the cream and sour cream in a food processor and let it run for a little bit. Once it gathers together and starts to form a ball you can remove it. An added bonus of making your own butter is getting fresh buttermilk. I got about 1/4 cup buttermilk from my 1 cup of cream. The next bit takes the most time, and that’s running it under water until it runs clear. I let water run over it for about 5 minutes or so. Once the water’s clear, press the butter and try to get all the moisture out. This takes a little work and can be tricky if you’re using paper towel, as it tends to stick. But it does the trick. I added a little salt the mixture and tada!

I decided since I don’t make butter everyday I’d get a little fancy and make some flavored butter. I divided the prepared butter in half and added some cinnamon to one half. Yum!

butter!
from the kitchn | makes about 1/2 cup

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon sour cream
1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1
Whir the cream and sour cream in a food processor for 3-5 minutes. (Alternately: shake energetically in a Mason jar for about 15-30 minutes.) After the cream becomes thick and clotted like whipped cream it will suddenly start spattering against the top again as it clumps into yellow butter. Whip until the butter has formed a solid yet grainy mass.
2
Put a small mesh strainer over a bowl and pour everything into it. Refrigerate the liquid; this is buttermilk and it will last for several days.
3
Put the butter in a small bowl and rinse under very cold water until the water runs clear. You want every bit of the buttermilk removed; any left clinging to the butter will cause it to get sour and bad overnight.
4
When the water runs completely clear squeeze the butter inside a clean paper towel or cheesecloth until dry, then turn out into a crock or small bowl.
5
Mash in the salt and cinnamon, if using.

Refrigerate and use within a week.

Last week Aaron celebrated his birthday which gave me an excuse to get friends together and make baked goods. I’m a big fan of cupcakes because they’re so easy to transport, plus there are just so many options. I gathered a few ideas and Aaron picked Brown Sugar Pound Cupcakes with Brown Butter Glaze. Sometimes I think we read each other’s minds, because that’s totally the one I wanted to make.

The batter is pretty easy to make. I didn’t have any buttermilk on hand so I had to use a substitute of whole milk and white vinegar. I was a little worried that the substitution could wreak havoc on the whole shebang, but after a quick batter taste all was good. Whew!

I popped the cupcakes in the oven and about 25 minutes later they came out all lovely and puffed up. I decided to let them cool overnight because I was worried that the glaze would get weird if I left it overnight.

The next morning I whipped up the brown butter glaze in a snap. Trust me, I’m not a fan of changing up my morning routine, but this only took about 15 minutes. I can handle that. I ended up only making half a batch of the glaze because I was a little low on ingredients, but luckily it still made enough to cover most of my cupcakes. After the butter had browned I added it the sugar, vanilla and stirred in the milk until it came to the right consistency. Next I spooned about a tablespoon onto the top of each cupcake so it sat in the middle without quite touching the edges.

The moment of truth came and I was excited to try them out. Quite frankly they smelled so good I found it hard to believe they wouldn’t taste the same. Yuuuum! The cake was dense and subtly sweet, the brown sugar added a nice richness to the flavor. But the star of the show was definitely the brown butter icing. It was so rich and buttery, but it still had nice sweetness from the sugar. These are definitely grown up cupcakes, they’re probably a little rich for children but they’re perfect to celebrate a loved ones birthday!

Brown Sugar Pound Cupcakes
Makes 29 | from martha

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup buttermilk

Brown Butter Glaze
Makes 1 cup

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 to 4 tablespoons whole milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1
Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2
Cream butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy.
3
Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.
4
Reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with wet ingredients and ending with dry. Scrape sides of bowl. Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.
5
Bake cupcakes until testers inserted into centers come out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool in tins on wire racks. Cupcakes will keep, covered, for up to 3 days, unless otherwise noted.

Glaze
1
Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Carefully pour butter into a bowl, leaving sediment behind.
2
Add sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk to butter, and stir until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add more milk. Use immediately.

I’ve become quite a fan of pancakes in recent years. Plain, cinnamon, blueberry… bring it on, I like them all. The other day I was talking to my friend and co-worker Allison and she mentioned how she’s been on a cornmeal pancake kick. Well that’s one thing I hadn’t thought of. Even more interesting, you can push them to the sweet or savory side (which I just realized you can do with regular pancakes, hmm, the wheels are turning). I decided to go savory with my cornmeal cakes and go a step further by adding parmesan.

Allison is the kind of cook who can whip up something without ever looking at a recipe. I’m not quite there yet, so I kept her suggestions in mind while referencing my Joy of Cooking cookbook. I started with a base of cornmeal with a little salt, then gradually added the other ingredients like milk, butter, eggs and of course the parmesan. The consistency was quite similar to regular old pancakes. I prepared a pan on the stovetop with some melted butter and then poured the batter in the pan to make some magic.

The sweet smell of cornmeal and butter started wafting through the house and we got more excited to try these puppies out. I though salsa would be the perfect accompaniment so I set a little bowl out for dipping. When they were all ready I took a bite and was delighted. They’re very similar to cornbread, but they have more the texture of a pancake, including a slightly crispy crust. They’ve got a nice savory flavor that’s fairly neutral. The salsa was a really great side because the cakes were kind of fluffy and warm while the salsa was cool and spicy. Cornmeal pancakes are definitely going to make their way into my breakfast rotation. I can’t wait to try the sweet version next.

Parmesan Cornmeal Pancakes
makes about 5 5-inch pancakes

1 cup cormeal
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup milk
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 egg
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
butter for cooking
salsa to accompany

1
In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, salt and baking powder.
2
Whisk in the milk and butter until fully combined.
3
Add the egg and whisk.
4
Fold in parmesan cheese.
5
Melt about 1/2 teaspoon butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Once completely melted, pour 1/4 cup batter in skillet and let cook.
6
Check underside to see if it’s golden, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook other side.
7
Serve with a side of spicy salsa. Enjoy!

Sometimes I think I’m in the mood for a good omelet and then I’ll make one and it just doesn’t do it for me. Then I just end up with a whole lot of eggs in front of me and no appetite for them. Because of that, I’m sometimes a little apprehensive to make eggy things, but on a whim this weekend I decided to make a frittata and it made me really happy.

I actually found the recipe in my Nigella Express cookbook and I thought the combination of ginger and coriander sounded interesting with eggs. You know how I love my ginger, so I figured it would be a good way to ensure I’d enjoy my eggs. I tossed some jalepeno in there too just because I like a little spice. This was also the first time I’d cooked my eggs in a cast iron pan. I tossed a little butter and oil in the pan and poured enough eggs to cover the bottom. Then I just let it cook up all nice.

Just a few minutes in the pan and my frittata impressively golden and delicious. I decided sans milk is totally the way to go when making eggs. They just have so much more flavor. And I think the cast iron pan was a good move. The frittata got extra crispy which made it all the more delicious. Obviously a frittata is meant for experimentation, so get a little crazy and try out a bunch of things. I think next time I’m going to add a little cipollini onion. Mmm, I can’t wait.

Oh, and if you want a delicious but simple breakfast to suprise someone this Valentine’s day? This is it.

frittata
from Nigella Express

2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 japapeno chili, diced
1/2 Tablespoon butter
drop of oil

other suggestions:
onion (like cipollini)
cheese
spinach
sausage

1
Beat the eggs and add the coriander, ginger and chili.
2
Heat butter and oil in a cast iron skillet, swirling to cover the entire bottom of pan.
3
Once the butter is melted, pour the egg mixture into the pan, swirling to cover the bottom of pan.
4
Let it cook for a few minutes. Once the top is almost all the way cooked, but still a little goey, use your spatula to see if the under side is golden.
5
Slip the frittata out of the pan and fold it over. Salt to taste and serve.

As soon as I saw Mark Bittman’s article in the New York Times last week I knew that cracker-making was in my future. I took a few minutes to watch the video and quickly determined that I wanted to try to create my own version of Carr’s Rosemary crackers, which I think are a little piece of heaven.

I used his recipe as a guide, but created my own little formula using olive oil, rosemary and parmesan as the main flavor elements. He really wasn’t kidding when he said these were easy, especially if you have a food processor. The only hiccup I had was when it came to rolling out the dough. When I went to pick up the flattened dough it didn’t quite come up in one piece. Luckily I’m not a stickler for straight lines and didn’t really care whether they were squares or abstract shapes. I just laid the dough in a single layer and sprinkled some Maldon salt over top and let them bake for about 10 minutes.

Oh sweet goodness! These are my new favorite crackers, hands down. The dough is slightly flaky and when they hit your tongue they practically melt. The rosemary and olive oil are a match made in heaven and only get better with the addition of salt. I can’t wait to make these again and again and perhaps try a sweet cinnamon sugar version.

rosemary crackers
based on Mark Bittman’s recipe

1 cup all-purpose flour, more as needed
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 Tablespoons finely grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup cream or half-and-half, more as needed
1 Tablespoon water*

preheat oven to 400°

1
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly dust with flour.
2
Put flour, salt, rosemary, cheese and olive oil in bowl of a food processor. Pulse until flour and olive oil create little crumbs.
3
Add Add about 1/4 cup cream or half-and-half and let machine run for a bit. If the dough is still a little dry after pouring in the cream add a little water.
4
Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface until 1/2-inch thick or even thinner, adding flour as needed.
5
Transfer sheet of dough to prepared baking sheet (drape it over rolling pin to make it easier). Score lightly with a sharp knife, pizza cutter or a pastry wheel if you want to break crackers into squares or rectangles later on. Sprinkle with salt or other topping if you like.
6
Bake until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Cool on a rack; serve warm or at room temperature or store in a tin for a few days.

Both Aaron and I are big fans of cinnamon, so I thought it would be nice to start off the day with a nice slice of cinnamon bread. I mean, is there anything better than the sweet smell of cinnamon wafting through the house on a Saturday morning? I had a vision of a certain bread in mind when I started this recipe. I wanted it to be heavy and dotted with little cinnamon bursts in each slice. What I ended up with was not quite either of those things, yet it still turned out satisfyingly tasty.

I guess the main thing that makes this bread a little different is that it’s not actually a bread. It doesn’t contain any yeast, so it doesn’t require any rising times. It’s texture is a little cake-like, similar to something like banana bread. But that’s kind of what makes it great for a morning treat, you don’t have to deal with the fussiness of dealing with rising times.

The batter consists of the usual suspects, flour, sugar, eggs and a few other things, but I wanted to get a really rich cinnamon flavor with this bread. I created a cinnamon and butter concoction that I carefully folded into the batter in hopes that it would create little pockets of cinnamon in my loaf. After everything had been incorporated, I poured the batter into a buttered loaf pan and popped it in the oven.

It didn’t take long before that sweet smell started making it’s way throughout the apartment, leaving behind it a trail of rumbling tummies. After a long 45 minutes, I pulled the pan out of the oven to see a lovely amber colored loaf of cinnamon bread. I let it cool for a little bit and then took a knife to it. The slices revealed that my cinnamon pocket theory partially worked, although they weren’t quite as dense as I’d hoped they would be. But when I took my first bite I was happy to find that the bread itself was perfectly cinnamony and while the little pockets were great, they weren’t as important as I initially thought they would be. The bread was slightly crumbly, but moist and well balanced. It wasn’t too sweet but not boring either. I like it when things turn out different but delicious!

cinnamon bread
adapted from this recipe | makes 1 loaf

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup natural sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 Tablespoons butter, chilled & cut into small pieces
1 Tablespoon cinnamon

preheat oven to 350°

1
grease a 9×5 loaf pan and set aside.

2
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon and salt.
3
In a separate medium bowl, combine buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla. Beat well.
4
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
5
In yet another small bowl, work butter and cinnamon into pea-sized pieces.
6
Gently fold cinnamon butter into the batter.
7
Pour into prepared loaf pan.
8
Bake for 45 minutes. Insert toothpick, if it comes out clean, it’s done, if not, put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes.
9
Let cool, then eat up!

I thought about renaming this meatcloud. This meatloaf rocked my world. I should preface this by saying that meatloaf has never been at the top of my favorite’s list. In fact, until I made homemade ketchup a while ago, meatloaf hadn’t even crossed my mind in quite some time. But after making the ketchup, I just felt like meatloaf would be it’s best place to shine. I did a little research and decided that my best bet would be a Frankenstein of recipes, a little from Martha, a little from the Meat Club Cookbook, and a little from my taste buds.

An all around must-do was using fresh breadcrumbs and soaking them in a milk and egg mixture just before combining the ingredients. I found another hot tip on Martha that suggested shredding the onion using a large cheese grater. Apparently this is suppose to help the onions kind of disintegrate into the mixture.

After I had unwrapped, grated and chopped all my ingredients, I put them all in a bowl and got my hands dirty. I tried to be as gentle as possible so as not to overwork the meat. Once everything was mixed well, I let it sit in the fridge overnight to allow all the flavors to meld.

The following evening I pulled the meat out of the fridge and created a freeform loaf. I thought the free form would help create more crusty bits. I popped it all in the oven and crossed my fingers.  It wasn’t long before the sweet aroma of oniony goodness started wafting through the apartment. After my timer rang, I could hardly wait to take a bite. I have to admit, this meatloaf wouldn’t win any beauty pageants, but man on man, it would certainly be voted Miss Congenitality. It was so, so nice, maybe even a little angelic. It was so tender, it really almost melted in your mouth. I know it’s kind of weird to think about meat melting, but that’s the best way I can explain it. And the flavor, my goodness. I think the homemade ketchup was a key element because it brought nice subtle flavors that combined with the other ingredients to create a luscious loaf. With each bite another word of praise came out of my mouth until my plate was empty. So I got up and served myself another slice. Don’t delay, this stuff is delicious.

meatloaf/meatcloud

1 1/2 lb ground sirloin
1/2 lb ground pork
2 slices fresh white bread
1 cup milk
1 egg
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 large white onion, grated
1/2 cup homemade ketchup
2 T hot sauce
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon pepper

Preheat oven to 350°

1
Line a baking pan with foil or parchment paper.
2
Toss the bread in a food processor until it’s evenly cut into crumbs.
3
Beat the egg and milk together in a small bowl and add the breadcrumbs. Let sit for 15 minutes.
4
Toss all the ingredients in a large bowl and combine until just mixed.
5
Carefully remove the meat mixture from the bowl and create a loaf shape in the baking pan.
6
Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes.
7
Prepare your self for awesomeness and eat up!

A while ago I was walking down Smith St. in Brooklyn and noticed a new shop called the Nutbox. The store is loaded with, you guessed it, nuts, but also all sorts of dried goods, like fruit, spices and even candy. I was a little apprehensive about it at first because I’m a big fan of Sahadi’s, but after poking around a bit, I think there’s room for both. Even if you don’t live in Brooklyn, you can be tempted by their goodies on here.

One of the things I just couldn’t resist was a bag of coconut flakes. They were just so dang pretty and knew I could find something to do with. Then, as fate would have it, I was listening to the Splendid Table and Lynne Rossetto Kasper was rattling off all sorts of things to do with coconut. One of her suggestions was to mix chili pepper, salt, sugar and coconut flakes and then bake them. I thought it sounded pretty genius, and tasty of course. So when I got home I pulled out my bag of coconut and spices. Kasper didn’t give an exact recipe, so I just kind of rolled with it and created my own little recipe.

The whole shebang was ready in just 10 minutes, from pulling the ingredients out of the pantry to pulling the coconut out of the oven. I absolutely love the result! The coconut gets nice and golden, but it’s the first thing you taste, giving a nice cool crunch. Then the salt and spice hits your tongue and it’s just the perfect contrast. And let me tell you, these little puppies are addictive! They’re a great midday snack when you just need a little pick-me-up. I’m already thinking about new ways to use them, like maybe as a topping on a piece of toast with a little ricotta on it. Yummmm, I can’t wait to try it out. But until then, I’ll keep snacking on the crispy goodness just as it is.

spicy coconut flakes
makes 2 cups

2 cups coconut flakes (preferably thick cut, like these)
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 Tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350°

1
In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients and toss until coconut is completely covered.
2
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spread coconut in an even layer.
3
Bake for 3-5 minutes, until golden.
4
Eat up!