Flavors 518

My husband went out of town last week, and I decided to make all the things he doesn't really like. I had a whole bunch of eggs from a lady at my great new job who raises these kinds of chickens that produce different colored eggs. Aren't they beautiful? I was browsing at Penzey's at Crossgates where I spotted some spearmint and thought making some mint chocolate chip ice cream was a great idea (both of our sets of parents can't get enough of it, and he's always saying how he doesn't get why people love the flavor so much). I have to say that I really really love Penzey's, and I love that they came to our area. I really want to support them. I love that you can go and stick your nose on into all their spices. I love their cocoa powder for making cakes. I love their green goddess salad dressing base. Their staff is always really friendly, knowledgeable, and often inspirational ("Hey, you like tacos? I will tell you what to try!"). Also, their ...

So its winter in upstate New York. After all the bustle of the holidays and the work it takes to de-Christmasfiy one's house (I still have some wrapping paper spread out on the floor in some far flung corners), its nice to spend some time indoors and reconnect with old friends and long lost acquaintances. On Friday, I threw a Book Exchange Party . Its like a book club with less commitment or a regular party with extra topics of conversation. I thought it turned out great, and it was super interesting to see what people brought. The downside (or upside?) is that we are now the proud owners of everything people were given over the years, King Jesus being the biggest prize. I also spent a lot of time in the kitchen today. I was talking to my mom about how the New York Times dialect qui z knew I was from Detroit, and you just can't deny what you are or where you are from. I made some spanokopita from America's Test Kitchen's book Cooking for Two , which you might not th...

I have just finished reading Homeward Bound: Why Women are Embracing the New Domesticity by Emily Matchar. I thought it was a really interesting book, and during the time I was reading it I would talk about it to anyone who would listen. Basically, it explores trends and attitudes as far back as the 1880s regarding homemaking, and she interviews a lot of individuals currently involved in urban homesteading, attachment parenting, blogging about cupcakes, and selling scarves on Etsy. I definitely find myself very low on the spectrum of DIY compared to most of these people, and I have to say right now that I think reusable toilet paper is gross. A big part of the desire to return to the home as the author lays it out, is that the workplace hasn't really been that great for women, especially mothers. When you're unsatisfied with your job, it is a lot easier to glorify ways of doing things that were left behind decades ago for good reasons. I don't really fanta...

We are crazy for cold soups right now. First off, gazpacho from the French Laundry Cookbook . Oh my goodness. It is about as fabulous as you would expect. So you just combine all the ingredients (tomato - mine were from the Berry Patch , bell pepper, cucumber, red onion, tomato paste, tomato juice, lemon juice, olive oil, cayenne pepper, vinegar, and garlic) in a large bowl. You let the ingredients sit overnight, and something about the lemon juice sitting with the tomatoes overnight makes them taste as if they have been cooked when they haven't been. Then you purée the ingredients and serve.  Then you purée the ingredients and serve. It is amazing and refreshing, and I even had some for breakfast this morning. The recipe said you could also use gazpacho as a sauce or squirt some on your plate next to a salad. Basically, the luxury in Keller's recipes comes a lot from straining and puréeing things really well. There's something about the smooth textures of his r...

It has been a long running joke between Scott and me that we have too much pasta. He ate pasta a lot more as a bachelor, and I have always felt like we had pasta coming out of our ears, pasta falling out of every cabinet, pasta taking over our lives. So I put it all in airtight containers and mason jars, and then he said he didn't know how long to cook all of it because they weren't in their boxes anymore, so now we just have tons of pasta we don't use. He used to love Raffetto's in NYC , and never stopped talking about how he could not find a place to buy fresh pasta in Albany. So partially as a pasta joke, and partially for practically reasons, I bought him a class at Different Drummer's Kitchen for Christmas to learn how to make fresh pasta . Then, we had a coupon to Different Drummer's that we got from having our wedding registry there, and with that we purchased a pasta making machine . Pasta making turns out to be the most fun ever. I used Mario Battali...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia I made the lemon loaf. My husband has just chimed in that "It is not too sweet, the use of real lemon really makes a difference, and it is a perfect snack". I agree. It is good for breakfast, good for a snack, good for inviting your friend over for a spot of tea and a screening of "Murder She Wrote" (hopefully one of the ones that take place in Cabot Cove). It is very versatile, and somewhere between a dessert and a breakfast item. Here is some chatter about the recipe . One issue that I can address is the one of cake flour. I did not find cake flour in my grocery store. So it is a good thing that my kitchen companion Joy the Baker explains in her book how to replicate cake flour when you cannot find any. "Set a fine mesh sifter over a medium bowl and lay a piece of wax paper on the counter. Put 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour into the sifter. Add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch t...

Today I went to the food swap with the From Scratch Club . It was extra fun because author Alana Chernila was there and spoke about her book The Homemade Pantry . She spoke about the connection between politics and food, and it was very interesting. My friend Jessica came along with her fabulous lip balm made from Lloyd Spear Honey , so that made it even more fun. I made hot sauce from an Emeril's recipe I found online . It was green though, like the green jalapenos I used. I bought the jars and labels at Brooklyn Kitchen when I went down to see Joy the Baker . Check it out: I brought the chips for sampling. People apparently thought it was super spicy, including Albany Jane who totally turned me down for that reason. Check out what I got this time! Garlic croutons, which was the item I wanted the most during the sampling period - totally delicious! Beef jerky ( here is the beef jerky maker's blog ). I also got a beautiful lavender body powder that you can use...

I'm quickly developing a huge girl-crush on Joy the Baker , and I think if you make her recipes you will too. From her new cookbook , I made her cinnamon rolls with buttermilk icing for my husband's birthday weekend. All I can say is wow. I could tell these were going to be amazing from very early on in the recipe. The dough was very similar in technique and ingredients to the Dorie Greenspan white loaves recipe . Check them out: And then layer after layer of flaky goodness: Then there were presents, including a cookbook he was browsing at our friend's house last weekend . Let it be known these cinnamon rolls are very, very special.

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie , using the book Baking with Julia I made rugelach. You can find the recipe here and here . You can read many comments from other bakers talking about their rugelach here . Check out some pictures of mine, and I'll tell you what I thought about them! Since my husband is allergic to nuts I just completed left those out of the recipe. Also, as far as the spread in the middle I had some prunes, but I underestimated the measurement of them and ended up using two cups of dates and one cup of the prunes. This sort of date/prune butter concoction is great. It would be great to eat on toast, or to take in cans to a food swap . After spreading on the date/prune mixture, and sprinkling on a brown sugar, white sugar, and cinnamon mixture on the dough I made and rolled out, I included some cranberries and cherries. The tip on page 10 on the book to steam dried fruits under simmering water worked out great. I have never thought of that before, but it real...

I'm no good at waiting for gifts, and Scott's present would have been a lot more expensive to arrive on Valentine's Day. What is funny is that I talked about heart shaped whoopie pies in this post and that seemed to have given a hint. Before I get into all that, let me just say I love this blog, and check out her Valentine's jello mold . Here are some ideas from some museums that are and are not that great . And here are some other artsy, and pretty good ideas (suggesting  macarons and Macallan shows a good current understanding of the tastes of different genders, or at least in this couple). Without further ado, when I woke up this morning I was making coffee and Scott pretended to have to go get the recycling bin to put magazines in (he did say he was going to clean up the living room this weekend). He came back with a huge box. What could that be I wondered? They were featured in the New York Times . Martha Stewart said "These are the best who...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan , I made the white loaves recipe. You can check out the recipe here . I enjoyed this recipe and was able to use some of my dough agitation techniques I learned from my King Arthur Flour pizza making class . Dealing with the sticky dough made me appreciate the bench scraper we had at the class ( like this one ), and I headed out to Different Drummer's Kitchen afterwards to pick up one for future bread making projects. I love my Roll'pat for projects like this, as it helps to keep the counter clean, and it is really quick and easy to rinse off afterward. First I gathered up the dough by mixing together warm water and yeast and then adding flour, sugar, and salt. You beat in some butter, and then put it in a bowl to rise. After an hour (ah - breadlove!): Then take that out and divide it in two on the counter. Then we are patting them out, rolling them up, and sealing the seam...