TWD: Sugar Topped Molasses Spice Cookies

Thanks to Pamela of Cookies with Boys for picking this cookie recipe.  I loved it!

Alas, my daughter’s friend did not!

After the friend’s strong reaction, I got out my camera, grabbed my completely unaware husband and said ”Try this cookie!”  He looked at me, looked at the cookie, looked at the camera.  And took a bite.    Good man.   Either he likes my baking, or its the Magnificent Power of the Ta-Ta’s all over again.  (BTW, if you say “Mysterious Power of the Ta-Ta’s” in front of your teen daughter’s friends, she will be embarrassed and not speak to you for most of the night.)

These cookies are delicious  and quite easy to make.  They’re great alone, but would also make a fabulous ice cream sandwich (maybe filled with cinnamon ice cream?

With the holidays coming up, it’s an excellent time to buy “Baking From My Home to Yours” and bake along with us!

TWD: Cherry Fudge Brownie Torte

Pretty, no? 

 Okay, literally, “no!“  as my dessert got a bit smooshed, which somehow made the lovely cherry sauce look rather like smeary ketchup.  (Or catsup, if you prefer.)

I made this torte with low expectations.  I do not like chocolate covered cherries.   Despite my huge sweet tooth, I just can’t stand them.   Blech.  I was willing to try this recipe, but I really did not think I would enjoy a brownie with dried cherries AND cherry preserves; I was wrong.  This was delicious!  The bottom brownie layer was moist and flavorful and the marscapone cheese mousse was to die for.   Soooo good.   Plus the added pureed cherry preserves on top were a nice contrast to the whiteness of a mousse.  A pretty dessert (non-smooshed) that I plan on making again for the upcoming holidays.   (Along with the sweet potato biscuits, the tartest lemon tart and a lot of hashbrown casserole!  I’m going to start counting down the days until Thanksgiving!)

Counting DOWN the days.  Counting UP the pounds, apparently.  Maybe I should add a salad to that list? 

The recipe is available at April’s site, Short + Rose.   And, yes, it does dirty a lot of bowls and have several steps, but none are difficult.  (Note:  I did sub in red wine for the kirsh so I couldn’t flambé it;  I just let the mixture boil for a bit longer to cook out most of the alcohol.)  Plus, you can make the brownie and the mousse a day ahead of time and only have to assemble the dessert the day it is served.  I highly recommend this, even to fellow cherry + chocolate haters.

TWD: Sweet Potato Biscuits

Erin at Prudence Pennywise is living up to her blog name; these biscuits are really inexpensive to make.   They simply contain sweet potato (or pumpkin), flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and butter.     

Living in a town with one of the largest pumpkin canning factories in the U.S. I decided to substitute in canned pumpkin for the sweet potatoes.    (There was also the small matter of having canned pumpkin on hand and NOT having canned sweet potatoes, LOL.)  

One mistake, though, I neglected to consider that sweet potatoes are, um, SWEET, compared to canned pumpkin.  I should have bumped up the amount of sugar in the recipe, from two tablespoons to four.

Compensating for the lack of sweetness I made a compound butter; I combined one stick of softened salted butter, the zest of one orange and three to four tablespoons of honey.  This went very well with the biscuits and I have plenty leftover to make either another batch, or to serve with some type of quick bread or on sweet potatoes.  

Any ideas of what kind of quick bread would be good with orange honey butter?

I managed to get a photo or two, but these aren’t pretty.  In fact, carrying them into my friend’s house, covered in plastic wrap, she thought they were fried chicken.  They are an “interesting” color of orange:

I cut mine in the shape of pumpkins, not that you can tell.  

This would be a great (and easy!) recipe for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.  If you are interested,  the recipe is available at Prudence Pennywise or in “Baking From My Home to Yours.”  

TWD: Allspice Crumb Muffins

Before this recipe, I’d never baked anything that highlighted allspice and was pleasantly surprised by how delicious these muffins were.    I made these a couple of weeks ago, which, while it was nice to be “ahead” didn’t work out so well, since I didn’t get a photo AND I can’t really remember much about baking them-other than that the recipe was easy and the muffins had a great top (Top ‘O the muffin to you!)   For a more substantive post about the muffins (and the recipe) please visit Kayte at Grandma’s Kitchen Table. 

In other news, I started tutoring at the grade school Wednesday afternoon.  The teacher in charge of the volunteers looked at the list and said “Oh, you have HH.  Hmm….he’s a bit…. stubborn.   But I’m sure you’ll be okay.” 

Unfortunately (maybe?) HH was absent yesterday, so I was assigned another child, “Houston,” a short, slightly chunky, tad bit smelly, be-earringed boy in the 7th grade.   The kind of kid that breaks your heart because you can tell immediately that he’s treated as a “have-not” by the other children and probably many adults.

We sat down; Houston went to get his snack of chocolate milk and graham crackers, then sat down and said “Want to see something?”   Wishing to establish a rapport, I eagerly responded ”Oh, yes,” expecting to see a trinket from his backpack or a photo of his dog.  

He punched the table.

Not out of anger, just to show me how hard he could punch.

Hmm… is there a polite way to respond “negatron” to ”Want to see something?”

We started his social studies homework; “What countries import oil to Russia?”

Houston: “I’ve changed my fingerprints. (shows me his fingertips)  See, I used a pin and poked it and now I have little scars and my fingerprints are different.  Now I can never get caught.”

M’kay?

“Can you find the are arrows on the map showing what countries import oil to Russia?”

Houston: “It doesn’t hurt to put a pin through your skin.  I did it on my arm and here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and then put a string through all the holes.”

WTF?

“See, this arrow, what country is that?”

Houston:  “I’ve been fishing before.  I caught a fish and put it in the blender and the lid wasn’t on it and fish blood and guts went all over the ceiling of our trailer.”

“Let’s list ten Middle Eastern countries and their capitals.”

Houston:  “And then we had to move out of the trailer and my uncle was sad because he liked the smell of the fish blood.  And my mom was mad that we had to move and she and my uncle wrote bad words on the walls in paint. Like ‘FU.’” 

“Look at how many of the countries end in ’stan.’  I wonder why.  Has your teacher mentioned that?”

Houston:  “I know how to shoot a gun.  My grandpa has guns and we shoot them.   I shot a turkey before.”

“Let’s read about the Nile River and answer these questions.”

Houston:  “I shot it in the foot.  And it ran away like this.” (demonstrates a hobbled strut)

“Is the Aswan High Dam a good thing or a bad thing for Egypt?  List two advantages and two disadvantages of the dam.”

Houston responded:

The damn controls the water.  I can speak Spanish.  It keeps the Nile river from flooding the crops.  My mom had a boyfriend that was Mexican and he had two Mexican kids.   The damn makes it easier for people to cross the river so they can bury their dead.  And they taught me un poco Espanol. If people can’t cross the river then they won’t have life after death.   Mainly swear words though.  The damn can sometimes make the floods worse, though, which kills the crops.  I think the damn is a bad thing and they should remove the damn.

I had been instructed to have him dictate his answers and to write them down for him (due to a disability, he has a hard time holding a pen.)   It wasn’t until AFTER I had written his response that I realized I had misspelled DAM each and every time in the essay.  

I think I may be fired from (volunteer) tutoring!  Which is worse, that I can’t spell, can’t keep the kid focused, or that the word I can’t spell made an unintentional swear word?  (Yes, I did go through and cross out all the “n’s” at the end of the dams.)  (But it won’t be that difficult for the teacher to realize my mistake, and, alas, that I am a dumbass.)  

After tutoring I ran and picked up Reagan and told her how it went.  She said “Did you know he’s Mongolian?”     Confused, (“Like the beef?”)  it seemed unlikely to me that a boy from our little town would be from Eastern Asia.   Then it dawned on me, someone (and sadly, probably an adult, given the obscurity of the term) likely referred to him as a “mongol”  and this dated, derogatory term was misinterpreted by children, including my daugher, that  misunderstood and didn’t know better.

I’d say tutoring went “so-so” and left me feeling a bit sad.   (I definitely root for the underdog and this kid is like the underdog of the underdogs)   But the muffins, the muffins were fab.

TWD: Split Level Pudding

Jennifer and pudding sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!

This pudding was definitely worthy of mi amor.   And it was easy to make, used ingredients that I had (and usually have) around the house, milk (I used 2% rather than whole), egg yolks, chocolate, vanilla, cornstarch, heavy cream (yes, I usually have a carton for ice cream making), and sugar.

I served the pudding in small punch bowl cups and only made four servings;  one for each member of my family. 

My camera shy one didn’t eat his, though.  

 

And he wouldn’t smile nice for his “Match.com” profile pic, either.

(Just joking.)

Attack of the giant pudding cup: 

 

The chocolate ganache at the bottom was rich, thick and chocolate-y.  I used Dove dark chocolate instead of bittersweet, thinking my kids would find that more appealing.   The vanilla part was smooth and had a really nice texture.  Not too thick or too thin.   I served each one with a dollop of freshly whipped cream and, in my husband’s words “this is the best thing ever!”

This is a great, easy, comforting recipe.  I encourage everyone to visit Garret’s blog, “The Flavor of Vanilla,” for the recipe and his review.

TWD: Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart

I love tarts.  My first Dorie recipe after joining the group was the French Pear Tart, which I adored and have made three or four times since then.   (Now that I think about it, I really want to make it AGAIN, SOON.)     Carla of Chocolate Moosey chose this tart recipe.

I decided I would vary this recipe slightly because I don’t like peanuts.   I don’t hate them, I just prefer other nuts.  (huhuh, I said “nuts”)   I decided to use pecans (hazelnuts were too expensive) and toasted them in my toaster oven.   Burnt the first batch.  Burnt the second batch.   Darn.   I decided to change my method and toasted them in the skillet I would later use to make the caramel.   I also sprinkled the pecans with a little sea salt.

I used part of the pecans in the tart crust, which I made Saturday night while my daughter was at her homecoming dance.   

Gratuitous homecoming picture.

Sunday I made the caramel and the ganache.   The caramel was easy, melted sugar, a bit of corn syrup, butter and heavy cream.   The ganache was even easier, just chopped chocolate, heavy cream and butter.  Assembly was also a breeze.   I made the tart to take to my book club and it was refrigerated longer than the thirty minute max specified in the recipe, yet it was still delicious and not soggy.   I also sent the leftovers to work with my husband the next day and they were still fine.

I must say I preferred this tart served with whipped cream.  It really speaks to the richness of the ganache that whipped heavy cream actually seems to lighten it up!  I could easily see making this for dessert after a holiday meal.   Or for a pms-y random Tuesday night when I’m craving CHOCOLATE and the little four aisle grocery store down the block doesn’t carry “New York Super Fudge Chunk.”    

Don’t forget, the recipe can be found at Chocolate Moosey, or in the book, “Baking From My Home to Yours” by Dorie Greenspan.      

  

Homecoming 2009

I’ve decided that homecoming is a lot like Christmas.  Lots of money, tons of prep and then it’s over way too fast!   This was my first homecoming experience as a mother (rather than as a teenager) because my son didn’t attend last year (or this year.) 

Reagan, however, was determined to go.   She was asked by a boy from her school, a junior (she’s only a freshman), who, in an effort to impress her, told her an anecdote about throwing a flaming gopher at a passing car.    Fearing he would make a vest out of her skin, she said “No, thanks,” and asked a boy, Ryan, that is her ”facebook friend” and attends a different school.

We shopped for a dress, shoes, jewelry.  She got her nails done and her hair curled.   Being concerned about skin cancer ”mean,” I wouldn’t let her tan.    

Finally it was the day of homecoming.   That morning I met friends for breakfast.  Karma and Jim were in town for their twenty year high school reunion. 

It was great to see them.  Plus, Karma solved a mystery for me.

 

LADIES UNDERWEAR!

 

 

But, back to homecoming.  While I visited with Karma and Jim, Rea got her hair done.  Then we headed home, she did her make-up, put on her dress and heels and we ran over to our neighbor’s house to take photos.

(Meanwhile her brother was still in his pajamas, playing video games.)

Then we headed to the riverfront to meet her date, Ryan, and his mother.   He put on Reagan’s corsage:     And then she attempted to pin on his boutenniere: 

Rea looked at the pin, looked at the flower, looked at the pin, looked at the flower,  then turned to me and said,
“What the hell?”   So ladylike.  I was so proud.    

 

 

They seemed a little awkward posing for pictures.   Ryan’s mom said “put your arm around her!”  But this was as close as they got:  

Then we headed back to Princeville and took MORE photos at Rea’s friend’s Ethan’s house.  

 Pretty Girls!

After many, many photos, they headed out to dinner at a local Japanese steakhouse.  (The kind where they cook at your table.)   Taylor and I also went out to eat enchiladas at his favorite restaurant.        Honestly, he’s not that glum!  He just doesn’t like being photographed.

It was too dark to get any good pictures at the dance.  But the kids had fun.  Most of the girls took off their heels and they did all kinds of crazy theme dances, like the cha cha slide and the macarena.     Once the dance was done, Rea and her date went to a bonfire til around 1:00, then we had to drive Ryan home.   A 45 minute drive in extremely foggy conditions.

What not to say to your daughter and her date on the ride home:  “Are you guys getting hot back there?”            

During the late-night drive Reagan fell asleep with her head on Ryan’s shoulder.    When he arrived home, he said goodbye but she didn’t walk him to the door.  No good night kiss!  (The whole “teenage boys want to have sex with teenage girls, and vice-versa, it’s a natural thing, but not something you are at all ready for at fourteen” discussion may have been unwarranted.)   I’m not sure if she was relieved or disappointed about the lack of kissing.  Nevertheless, she had a great time and it was a lovely first date.

TWD: Cottage Cheese Pufflets

Or, as they are called in my house of cottage-cheese-haters ”jam-filled non-puffies.”

I’ve wanted to make this recipe for a long time and actually bought cottage cheese to make it once, got busy, and threw away the cottage cheese a month or so later when it had expired, I hadn’t made the recipe, and no one had eaten it.  I’m thankful that Jacque of Daisy Lane Cakes picked it as her TWD recipe and brought it back to my attention.  I love recipes that picque curiosity, that make me wonder “What would the texture, taste, etc.. be like?”  

I made the dough on Saturday, and I must say, I love dough that can be prepared in the food processor.   It’s amazing how smooth and silky the whirred up cottage cheese (with a good dose of butter) became;  I added the dry ingredients, pulsed briefly, then wrapped the mixture in plastic wrap and refrigerated it until last night.  

After grocery shopping, dinner and taking my daughter for a haircut and eyebrow waxing (I’m too wimpy have mine done!), I pulled the dough out of the fridge.  It rolled out easily on a silpat mat coated in flour.  

Unfortunately, it didn’t come off so easily!  After cutting the shapes, I really should have re-chilled the dough, but I was in a hurry, it was after 9:00 and I still had studying to do.  So I scraped them up with a flat spatula, filled them with strawberry preserves and popped them in the oven.   Not pretty.   And they didn’t puff. 

But they did taste good and the texture, despite not puffing, was soft and silky.  I’m having a weird food memory, deja vu-esque feeling about these but I can’t quite put my finger on it.  They just seem “familiar.”    Any ideas of a (likely midwestern) baked good that would be similar?   It’s really driving me crazy.

I still have half the dough in the fridge and, if I have time tonight, I plan on experimenting with some different fillings; a mixture of cinnamon and toasted pecans would likely be really good.  I also plan on reading TWD posts and seeing what worked well for others.    

(Oh, and I do have  photos of these, but left my camera at home.  I’ll upload those later, assuming any turned out. )

Two Truths and a Lie

1.  I’ve been making the TWD recipes but not posting (most of them, anyway!) due to being extremely busy.  Like busy enough that I’m already sacrificing sleep.

2.  I stole a “Lost Dog” sign from my local post office bulletin board.

3.  I’ve never seen ‘Top Gun.”

Okay, I lied.  Those are ALL truths.   

(I’ll be back soon, with a more substantive post.   I’m travelling today and tomorrow for work, so won’t be making this week’s TWD recipe, at least not on time.)

TWD #33: Applesauce Spice Bars

I made some variations to this recipe, chosen by Something Sweet by Karen, partly due to necessity, mostly due to an urge to experiment.  

I like to try new things and figured this was an ideal recipe to play around with, since the ingredients aren’t expensive and I wasn’t making it for an event.   Plus, I’m always telling my kids, “don’t knock it, til you try it,” whether “trying it” means eating sushi, or joining the golf team.  (Rea is one of two girls!)   I did start to second guess this wisdom the other day when Rea told me the following:

R:  “Oh, I know why L. and J. broke up.”  (L and J are 15 years old) 

J:  “Why?”       

R:  “I can’t say, you’ll give me a look.”  

J:  “Oh, you have to tell me now.  I won’t give you a look!”

R:  “Well, L. gave D. head, so J. broke up with her.”  (D. is another 15 year old) 

J:   (mouth a-gape)

R:  “You are giving me a look!   I told you so!”

J:  (still gaping)

R:   “I know what you are thinking!   No, I haven’t  And NO, I WON’T!   GROSSSSSSSSSSS!”

(Funny enough, that wasn’t what I was thinking, I was still in shock about the sexual activities of two kids slightly older than Rea,  I hadn’t even gotten to the point of worrying about her.)       

So am I a hyprocrite to be thankful that my fourteen-year-old daughter isn’t so willing to try new things, afterall?    I’m also thankful that she feels close enough to me to discuss something so potentially embarrassing.  (Warning to any parents of younger ones,  the “birds and bees” discussion is a piece of, uhh, cake compared to discussing fellatio, pornography, etc…)

Enough of the anecdotes and back to the real reason we are all here.  Cake.   I made this cake last night, subbing in a cup of granulated sugar with two tablespoons of molasses due to a lack of brown sugar in my cupboard.

I also decided to follow Holly’s excellent suggestion on the Dorie P&Q forum.   She browned the butter.  I love the nutty, rich taste of browned butter and thought it would be great in this recipe.  It definitely was.   (Of course, now I want to make the recipe as written to compare the two.)  

Furthermore, I had a partial bag of Hershey’s cinnamon chips wallowing in my cupboard, so I decided to add about a 1/2 cup of those to the batter and to top the glaze with more pecans (there were already toasted pecans in the batter)  that I toasted in a little browned butter and sprinkled with sea salt.

While I loved my variations, I’m also sure that the recipe as written is wonderful, perfect for the upcoming apple season.   If you are interested in this quick and easy recipe, please buy the book, or visit Karen’s site.

Okay, it doesn’t look so appealing. I slightly under-baked mine AND covered it before it was completely cool (I was tired after an evening of back-to-school clothes shopping) so it got a little mushy from the condensation.   Next time I would bake it the longer time (28 minutes, rather than 23) and let it cool completely before covering.