Spork or Foon?

Healthy Carrot Muffins

So these muffins were a half-win/half-FAIL. Not an EPIC FAIL, mind you. Just half-fail.

They were light. They were fluffy. They were moist. They were filled with chewy dried cranberries, deliciously sweet pineapple, and wonderful bits of carrots. In a moment of pure genius, I replaced some of the yogurt with carrot baby food to enhance the carrot flavor. And THEY WERE ONLY 131 CALORIES EACH!

So what went wrong, you ask?  Well, I'll tell you.

They tasted like nothing. NOTHING. Like light "crumb-air", as Jack described it.

But I will tell you this. This recipe has tons of potential because the texture was absolute perfection. I just have to be a bit more heavy handed on the spices.  If I can get the flavor balance correct, these will be part of my repetoire forever.

Do you hear me, muffins? I'll spice you up, yet!

Healthy Spiced Carrot Muffins adapted from Bloomalicious

Ingredients:

3/4 cup all purpose white flour
3/4 cup all purpose whole wheat flower
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3  teaspoons ground cinnamon
2  teaspoons ground ginger
2  teaspoons superfine sugar
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup plain low or non fat yogurt
1/4 cup carrot baby food
2 tbsp sunflower oil
8 oz canned pineapple chunks in juice drained and whirled in food processor to coarse consistency
9 oz carrots, grated
1/4 cup cranberries
3/8 cup almonds, slivered and whirled for just a pulse or two in food processor

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Oil (or use cooking spray) on muffin pan (12 cup small, 6 cup large) or line with muffin paper liners. 

Combine flours, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and superfine sugar in mixing bowl and stir till blended. 

Whisk egg whites with yogurt and oil  in separate bowl.  Add pineapple chunks, carrots, raisins, and almonds and combine thoroughly but don't over stir.  Add into the flour mixture and combine till just mixed together. 

Divide batter between muffin tin cups.  Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Fried Egg, Sausage, and Cheese Breakfast Pizza

I already wrote this post and it has magically disappeared.  I searched high and low through my posts and it has vanished.  I blame Bob Ross.

I made this for Mother's Day Brunch and it was a huge hit.  It is an extremely versatile breakfast, as you can truly make this your own. Don't like sausage? Use bacon.  Pepper Jack cheese not your thing? Cheddar, Swiss, Gruyere can all round this out.  Don't like scallions? How about a shallot-infused olive oil?  Hate fried eggs?  Scramble those bad boys up, people!

This is the one situation where too many choices are a good thing.  

For my breakfast, I used a Spicy Pepper Jack Cheese and a Chicken Andouille Sausage from Trader Joes and topped one loaf with scrambled eggs (my family hates "icky egg yolk") and fried eggs for Jack and I ("icky egg yolk" lovers).  This is a breakfast that is super easy to whip up and will definitely make this for many brunches in the beginning.

Fried Egg, Sausage, and Cheese Breakfast Pizza - Adapted from Gourmet Magazine

1 loaf ciabatta bread (about 1 pound)

1 cup chopped shallots

8 tablespoons olive oil, divided

8 ounces sliced hot pepper Monterey Jack cheese

1 pound Chicken Andouille Sausage (or whatever type of sausage you prefer)

8 large eggs

Preheat oven to 450°F. Cut bread horizontally in half. Place bread halves, cut side up, on separate baking sheets and bake for 5 minutes, or until the edges just turn a pale golden color.   Remove from oven and set aside.   Reduce heat to 400°F.

Meanwhile, mix shallots and 6 tablespoons oil in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Reserve 2 tablespoons onion oil and spread remaining onion oil over bread. Top with cheese.

Sauté sausages in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through, breaking up with spoon, about 7 minutes. Divide sausage among bread halves. Bake pizzas until cheese melts and bread turns a golden brown and is crisp, about 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in each of 2 large skillets over medium-high heat. Crack 4 eggs into each skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let eggs stand in skillets while pizzas bake.

Arrange 4 eggs atop each pizza. Spoon reserved onion oil over eggs. Cut each pizza between eggs into 4 pieces.

TWD: The Tartest Lemon Tart and Bob Ross's Dirty Lies

Bob Ross is a dirty liar.

He was a man who painted pretty pictures with sprawling mountains, lush green plains, and "happy clouds".

Heh.

"Happy Clouds" my a**.

There is no such thing as a happy cloud.  There are bitter clouds.  Angry clouds.  Clouds that have kidnapped my sun.  They have taken the sun hostage along the eastern seaboard.  The sun has not come out for days. Weeks even. Months, it feels like.  

In elementary school, we used to sing a song that went a little something like this:

Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Won't you please shine down on me?

Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Won't you please shine down on

Please shine down on

Please shine down on me.

I have been singing this song as I do my own little "Sun Dance".  It is miserable.  Depressing.  Frustrating. 

Gloomy.

Don't be fooled.  It may be sunny today, but the next 10 days are predicted to be nothing but rain clouds. RAIN CLOUDS.

The only thing to compliment the bitterness that I feel is Dorie's Tartest Lemon Tart, chosen by Babette of Babette Feasts  (click for recipe).  This is the type of tart that makes you pucker your lips and contort your face into all different manners.  But this tart lemon tart actually has done something amazing for me.

It has brought a little sunlight into my life.  It was as if Dorie and  knew that around April/May, the rogue clouds would steal my sun and terrorize my life, so they invented/chose this tart to pick up my spirits a bit.  Tart. Sweet. Delicious. 

Seriously. Amazingly delicious.  I know the recipe called for the entire lemon to be pureed into the mixture, but I read too many complaints of a bitter flavor due to the pith, and the only lemons I could find were standard lemons with thick piths.  Therefore, I peeled off the zest, and added that, along with the entire lemons after I removed the pith.  And WOW. This was AMAZING.  Sweet. Tart (but not too much so).  A creamy, lemon curd filling nuzzled a crisp, sweet crust.  Jack actually has forbidden me from taking this tart to share with my coworkers.

In addition to this, I have decided to take Dorie's Floating Islands and fill them with a delicious lemon curd from leftover filling.  These Floating Islands are a metaphor for the evil clouds swallowing my sun. However, in my scenario, I am able to take a delicious bite out of these clouds and let the sun free from its shackles.  

This is my weapon against evil, evil clouds.  Bob Ross, may you rest in peace, but I know you're in on this.  You've tried to change the psyche of people interested in painting everywhere by trying to convince us that clouds are our friends.  They are not.  But this tart is.  My new best friend. 

You can have your clouds, Mr. Ross. I'll slice myself a piece of this tart and dream of the day that the sun comes to shine down on me.  In the meantime, check out TWD for more of this glorious cloud-fighter. 

UPDATE:  As I read through the TWD posts, I have noticed that most of these tarts had a filling that was supposed to bubble while cooking, then have a beautiful golden top and a sugary crust and that there were supposed to be almonds in the crust.  None of this happened for me - the clouds have won yet again. 

CONSPIRACY!

Rosemary Roasted Cashews

I love Ina Garten. 

There, I said it. 

There are several gems on the network.  Giada.  Duff and the gang from Ace of Cakes. Tyler Florence.

And Ina Garten.

Everything about her show is soothing.  Her home (is it in the Hamptons? I like to imagine that it is).  Her trips to the markets where she seems to be surrounded by gorgeous strawberries no matter what the season.  Her bright and airy kitchen.  Her loving husband Jeffrey.

After a 30 minute episode, I feel as if I had just spent 2 hours in a day spa, pampered by women with soothing voices and soothed by mellifluous sounds of ocean waves and new age music as I sipped on cucumber and lime infused water and noshed on gourmet nuts.

Rosemary Roasted Cashew gourmet nuts.

These are phenomenal. Spicy and sweet, with the flavor accented by my favorite herb - an earthy rosemary.  There is not much to say about these nuts other than the fact that I think they are a must-make from here on out. They take all of 10 minutes to put together and are absolutely addicting.  I made them as part of a large basket of food I made for my mother for Mother's Day, and she could not stop eating them. They were a huge hit.  I had to stop myself from stealing them from her.

Rosemary Roasted Cashews (Adapted from Ina Garten)

1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 teaspoon cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the nuts on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until they are warmed through. Meanwhile, combine the rosemary, pepper, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Toss the warm nuts with the rosemary mixture until the nuts are completely coated. Serve warm.

Grilled Octopus with Lemon Garlic Olive Oil and Fried Capers

What you see here is not how I started off my evening. 

This is how I started off my evening.

BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH

Tell me that does not look like a creature from the movie Alien.  Or as my friend put it: "That looks like an alien autopsy."

I was convinced that this thing was going to come back alive and strangle me to death with its tentacles.

BLAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Ok, I will grow up now.

I did keep running around my apartment screaming like a little girl and throwing up in my mouth a little as I unraveled each long, gangly tentacle. I had no idea what or how I was going to work with this animal.  All of my amazing friends on Twitter gave me suggestions on how to cook the octopus or get that smoky flavor that I love so much in octopus dishes that I order in restaurants.

I closed my eyes and said a little prayer before I lopped off each tentacle, one by one (by one, by one, by one...)

BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHH

I swear, I'll stop soon.

After some research, I decided to cook the tentacles in simmering water for 45 minutes and then toss it on the grill and cross my fingers that I would be able to get a delicious grilled flavor on an indoor grill. I got some amazing suggestions from my Twitter buddies - indoor smokers, smoked rock salt from New Zealand, liquid smoke, Lapsang Souchong Tea - but unfortunately, I did not have the time to go to the store.  So I just tossed it on the grill and hoped for the best.

As a side note, if you are a big into cooking or food and your are not on Twitter, you are missing out! The community of food lovers is amazing - and if you are ever stumped or need advice on a recipe or a method, ask friends on Twitter and you will have more answers than you know what to do with!  It really is an amazing community.

Back to the grilled octopus.  I just have one word to describe the final results:

HOLLLLLLLLLAAAAAA!!!! 

This worked perfectly! The octopus was meaty and tender with a delicious charred flavor.  The suckers were even slightly crispy - absolute heaven.  Tossed in a flavorful sauce of lemon, garlic and olive oil and paired with succulent tomatoes and crispy, briny capers, the flavors of this dish are dynamic and pop right off of the plate. 

I will say that this dish does serve 2, but it depends on who you are asking.  What you see in the top picture is the whole dish.  The octopus is quite meaty and filling, so I was fine with eating half of that dish for my main. Jack, on the other hand, wanted to eat the entire thing. 

This is a dish I will absolutely make over and over again for two reasons:  1.  It is delicious.  2.  Because it is so fun to run around my apartment swinging tentacles and screaming BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Grilled Octopus

 

Serves 2

(1) 5 lb. Octopus (ask your fishmonger to remove the eyes, ink sac, and beak)

Lemon and Garlic Oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

Juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Fried Capers

2 tablespoons capers, drained

1 tablespoon flour

Olive Oil for Frying

1 vine-ripened tomato, diced large

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

To Prepare:

Boil enough water in a large Dutch Oven to cover tentacles. Cut off and discard head of octopus.  Place tentacles in boiling water, lower heat to medium low, and simmer for 45 minutes or until tender.  Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the lemon and garlic olive oil.  Combine freshly squeezed lemon juice, olive oil, and minced garlic in a blender or whisk vigorously until the sauce has thickened (about 30 seconds).  Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a small frying pan over high heat. Toss capers with flour.  When heat is very hot (about 350 F, add capers and fry until golden brown, about 4 minutes.  Drain on a paper towel and set aside. 

Brush an indoor or outdoor (I used indoor) grill with olive oil and heat over high heat.  Place octopus on grill and grill for 7 minutes on each side.  

Remove octopus from grill and toss in a bowl with tomatoes and lemon and garlic olive oil.  Place in a bowl and top with parsley and capers. Serve warm.

Orecchiette Carbonara

In my next installment of "Who needs to spend $88.95 on a pasta maker when you can make it by hand just like an Italian great-nonna?", I present to you "Homemade Orecchiette in a Carbonara Sauce".

This is one of those dishes that makes you shout "Holla!!!!"  It is the only carbonara recipe I have found that is not heavy.  Instead, it is light, yet deliciously creamy. I added shiitake mushrooms and green peas to the recipe which already included leeks and smoky bacon.  If you are not making the orecchiette from scratch, this dish takes all of 10 minutes to prepare.

TEN. MINUTES.

HOLLA!

Making homemade orecchiette is turning out to be second nature.  The more I make homemade pasta, the more I live in delusions of grandeur, where I close my eyes and transport myself to a small flat in Rome, standing over my counter, covered in flour, with my windows opened wide as  listen to the sounds of the streets below.  I spent some time there one summer as I learned to teach English to foreign learners and ever since, I dream about one day returning to the city that I love so much.

But for now, dishes like this are the next best thing.

I wonder how to say "Holla!" in Italian...

Click here for the homemade orecchiette recipe.  

Orecchiette Carbonara adapted from Bon Appetit

4 slice applewood bacon, diced

2 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise then cut crosswise into 1/3" slices

10 ounces orecchiette

2 large eggs at room temperature

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving

1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley

1 cup sliced shiitake or cremini mushrooms

1/2 cup freshly shelled green peas

1 tablespoon olive oil

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet if necessary. Add mushrooms and saute over medium heat about 3 minutes.  Add green peas and saute for 2 more minutes.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and add leeks and sauté over  about 6 minutes. Set aside.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid.

Whisk eggs and 1/2 cup Parmesan in medium bowl to blend; gradually whisk in 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid. Add pasta to leeks and mushroom mixture in skillet and stir to heat. Remove skillet from heat. Pour egg mixture over pasta and stir until sauce is just creamy and eggs are no longer raw, about 2 minutes. (Return skillet to very low heat if egg mixture is runny; do not overcook or eggs will curdle.) Add some of remaining 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid to pasta if needed to moisten. Stir in bacon and parsley. Serve pasta, passing additional cheese separately.

TWD: Tiramisushi

Yes, you read that right.  I have combined two of my favorite things: tiramisu and sushi.  

Since I didn't think it would be a good idea to combine yellowfin tuna with rum soaked cake and mascarpone cheese, I took my inspiration from Pastry Girl at Dessert First who took inspiration from Elizabeth Faulkner's Demolition Desserts.  Then I finally took some more inspiration from Megan of My Baking Adventure's pick (click for recipe) of Dorie Greenspan's Tiramisu cake.

It's like an orgy of inspiration.

The original recipe calls for a chocolate roulade cake, but I used Dorie's kick a** yellow cake recipe.  Instead of rolling the cake, I just used a shot glass can to make smaller rolls and used the open end of a pastry tip to remove the inner hole of the cake. I then piped the mascarpone mixture into the middle, rolled it in some cocoa powder and had me some dessert sushi.

To set the mood even more, I cut up a biscotti in the shape of chopsticks (I didn't make my own biscotti, I just bought a Caramel Macchiato Biscotti from Starbucks and it did the trick but made me feel like a slacker for cutting corners) and then made a chocolate "soy" sauce - basically a chocolate mixture that included heavy cream that I brought to a boil and poured over chopped bittersweet chocolate.  I then added some of the espresso syrup and a tablespoon of rum to round it out.

 I'd love to try the variation on the Dessert First website. This was pretty good, though.  Only Dorie could have a perfect, fluffy light yellow cake recipe and turn it into something fun and fantastic.

I made this for Jack as part of his celebration dinner for FINISHING HIS MBA PROGRAM!!!! and he was quite a happy boy.  

Inspiration orgies, fluffy yellow cakes, and sushi without the tuna all made for quite the fun time at my apartment last night. I wish you all could have been here. In the words of Mr. Rogers: "Won't you be my neighbor?"  

Check out all of my neighbors over at TWD!

Life Changing Baked Rice

I write this post this evening on the wings of a momentous occasion (poetic, right?).

My boyfriend and sous chef, Jack, has just finished his MBA program!!!!

Two years ago, Jack and I moved from 68th and Madison in New York City to Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia, right outside of Washington, DC so Jack could begin his studies as an MBA student with a concentration in Finance at George Washington University.  Needless to say, it was a huge change for us.  Although Washington, DC and New York City are somewhat similar, they are worlds apart.  Where New York City is the city that never sleeps, Washington, DC sometimes takes a nap to slow it down a bit.  There were times where homesickness hit me like a baseball bat and I would cry my eyes out, longing to move back to NY, missing friends and family and dying for a good slice of pizza or a good bagel.  On the other hand, I would return to NY and wonder why no one would smile at me on the street or be happy to help me when I asked for help in a store.  It was confusing, but through it all, Jack was a rock.  Unflappable as always, he was constantly studying and working hard, pushing himself to make the most of his education and be at the top of his class, but also tried his best to make the best of these two years for us socially.  He made every effort to find all of the wonderful things that DC has to offer, from fantastic restaurants, to hip coffee houses, to great jazz spots, to hidden neighborhoods ripe with culture, and opened my eyes to how fantastic this city really is. 

Jack always remained calm, collected, and most importantly, optimistic.  When the entire world collapsed into financial freefall and we watched our chances of getting jobs easily upon our return to New York diminish rapidly, Jack just adjusted his strategy and thought out the best and most effective way of preparing ourselves for any scenario - job or no job - that awaits us in August.

Needless to say, I could not be more proud of him.  He has completed his MBA program with an expected 3.8 GPA - no easy feat.  He has grown tremendously in the past two years.  And I have never seen him happier than when he pressed the "Send" button and submitted his final final exam of his two-year journey.  

So on this special occasion, I share with you this recipe for Life Changing Basmati Rice.  Like Jack's life will no doubt be different from here on out, so will yours after trying this recipe. 

When I made this rice, my head nearly exploded.  It took a total of 20 minutes and was the best - THE BEST - rice I have ever tasted. I could not believe that I made this rice.  We all know how difficult it is to make rice on the stove perfectly.  I know that in my case, my rice is either overcooked or undercooked.  Well this was fluffy. Amazing. Delicious.  ADDICTIVE.  I dreamt of this rice for two days - no joke.  You simply cook the rice with olive oil for a few minutes, add some water, and then pop it into the oven for 13 minutes.  What you get is the most perfect, fluffy, and tender rice that you have ever tasted.  The results are better than any rice cooker can ever give you. When Jack saw my excitement, he said: "This recipe must be life changing."  

I jumped.  "That is exactly what it is called!" 

So in honor of Jack, I give you life changing basmati rice.  I could think of nothing more perfect to commemorate this occasion - a rice that will change your life and probably the only food we will be able to afford to eat if we are both unemployed in August.  

Check out The Wednesday Chef for the recipe that will change your life - no MBA required.

Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew

I don't know if there is any way to take a photo of this and make it look good.  Perhaps that is why there was not a photo of this accompanying the recipe in May's Bon Appetit.  

Regardless, this recipe struck me right away. I LURVE cauliflower.  It is the ultimate health food for me. High in Vitamin C, Vitamin K, B5, Folate, B6, dietary fiber, protein, phosphorus, niacin, riboflavin, and more! I don't even know what half of those things are good for but I do know they are good for me! And it is low in calories and, most importantly, filling!  Therefore, when I am making a conscious effort to eat healthy, I am not starving and don't want to rip someone's (most likely, my own) head off.

Cauliflower is paired with earthy chickpeas, seasoned with curry powder and simmered in diced tomatoes, lite coconut milk.  Well, the recipe calls for regular coconut milk, but why ruin a good thing with 80,000 calories and 60 grams of fat?.  There is supposed to be cilantro in this recipe as well, but I think cilantro is the devil, so I omitted it. I kept it in the recipe, though, just in case you make like it.

I can't tell you how many times I have made this dish since the day I first tried this.  It may be one of my favorite go-to dishes now, and the best part is, it is so easy to make! It is about 10 minutes of active time. 

Healthy and quick and delicious? Filled with tons of vitamins that I know nothing about but I do know they are good for me? I'm in! 

Curried Cauliflower and chickpea stew - adapted from may 2009 bon appetit

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 1/2 cups chopped onions

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons curry powder

6 cups small cauliflower florets (from 1 medium head)

2 15 1/2-ounce cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained

2 10-ounce cans diced tomatoes with green chiles

1 14-ounce can lite coconut milk

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

PREPARATION

• Heat oil in large skillet over high heat. Add onions and sauté until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add curry powder and stir 20 seconds. Add cauliflower and garbanzo beans; stir 1 minute. diced tomatoes with chiles, then coconut milk; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and boil gently until cauliflower is tender and liquid thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 16 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in cilantro; serve.