I Remember...

Hello, so this post goes along with yesterday's post about France and Ile Flottantes.  This is a list of 9 items that I remember from my trip to France. 

1. Learning my way about the Metro

2. Tarte Flambee, and Ile Flottantes
3. Seeing the Eiffel Tower and riding all the way to the top
4. Walking down the Champs Elysees
5. Eating Creme Brulee for dessert wherever I went 
6. Going in the Notre Dame
7. Riding down the Seine River in a boat
8. Going to the Louvre 
9. Going into the Versailles Paris

Those are just some of the many things that I remember from my trip to France!

Let's reminisce!

Hello, sorry I have not posted in so long. I have had a really crazy past couple of weeks and have barely had time to breathe! Anyway, let's reminisce. 

So, my grandparents, Nana and Papa, have started an incredible tradition. They bring their grandchildren on a trop when we were 8. Just this afternoon, at 3:30, they got back from Ireland with my cousin Norah. After they got back, my grandfather called to reminisce. As we were reminiscing, it brought me back to Creme Brulees, Tarte Flambees, and Ile Flottantes from my 8-year-old adventures. Anyway, I had made Ile Flottantes at one of my cooking lessons with Macy and now have decided to share it with you. Don't forget to reminisce with your favorite people as you make this!

October: Find-your-uncle-in-the-middle-of-the-night-eating-chocolate-cake-it-is-so-good Chocolate Cake

The first thing I did when I got to my beach house this summer, was to sit down with my new favorite cook book. The cookbook, which my aunt gave me for my birthday, is called "The Baker's Dozen Cookbook". It's an amazing cookbook with tried and true techniques as well as 135 delicious looking recipes.  Well, anyway in this book there are a couple of pages of pictures. I was looking at these pages of pictures and came across a picture of chocolate raspberry cake. This cake looked amazingly delicious and was screaming my name.  So, I decided to make it. 

Once I started looking at the recipe, I realized that it was going to be a big cake, and a lot more work than I expected. There were 4 different parts to the cake, so it was going to take a long time! 

All of my cousins (16...all younger than me!) have been wanting to help me make something this summer. (They all claim that they are chefs, but really they just want to get on the blog.)  Since this was such a big cake, I thought that this was a perfect time to ask my cousin, who had asked me first, to help me and together, we attacked this cake. 

Anyway, making the cake lasted over a span of a couple of days and no I do not mean I stayed awake over a couple of days to make this (I don't think I could have made it because these days I am so tired at the end of the day!).

I used fresh picked raspberries (you know my mom and blueberries!) and I seriously encourage you to do the same. The raspberries tasted fresh and they were ripe and juicy and not about to grow mold on them like some of the ones from supermarkets! The spongy chocolate cake! OMG!!!! It was so good. It was not too dense which was something I was worried about, but at the same time, it was not too light. On a scale of 1-10 of the sponginess I would rate it an 8. Chocolate cream filling...rich, creamy, all the good things about filling. Finally, seriously decadent chocolate ganache which is French for frosting...so not Betty Crocker. These main components made the cake so deliciously TDF (to die for)!! 

Once we started looking at the recipe, we found out that we did not have a spring form cake pan. We tried a bundt pan, but the cake didn't rise as high as it should, so we ended up cutting the cake in half to make a half of a cake. Even though the cake was small, it was delicious, I mean truly TDF! The raspberries really were a great mix with the chocolate. I loved this cake and hope you do too! 

Just 1 thing, make sure you have an abundance of time! 

BTW: I know who it was who ate my cake in the middle of the night! Father of C and godfather of N... or was it you father of hummer-loving son!!!

My finished cake! (before my uncle got to it!)

For this cake, you will need the cake recipe, a genoise recipe, a ganache recipe, and a glaze recipe. All of these recipes are included!

Blueberry Picking: A Lesson In Life

In my family, we have a tradition of going blueberry picking every summer. As soon as the fresh blueberries start arriving in the store, I start dreaming about fresh blueberries.  This summer, after a few weeks of extreme heat, and then extreme rain and then a cold spell, we finally had our day to go picking in late July.  Lucky for us, we got a fair amount of blueberries. I picked almost 5 pounds, despite the challenging picking conditions.  Last year, we picked pounds and pounds of blueberries.  They were practically falling off the bush into our pails.  Sadly, this year, because of the weather late spring and early summer with extreme heat offset by extreme cold, the conditions for picking were not as good.  There were lots of blueberries... but not all were ripe and many were small.  In short, we had to pick around to find the best berries...you know, the fat, plump, juicy, really blue blueberries.  Blueberry picking is a longstanding family tradition.  My grandfather used to pick as a little boy.  My mother picked them as a little girl.  And, the tradition continues with me.  

At some point my mom decided that the only time she would buy blueberries was when we picked them ourselves.  I guess that it was her way of teaching us that food doesn't grow in super markets.   Kids these days think that food comes from supermarkets. The only thing my mom grows are the geraniums that die days after we buy them from the store, despite our best efforts to grow them. We really do try to grow them, but we sometimes forget to water them and when we do realize that we have not watered them for 1 week, we then compensate by over watering them. Lets just say we are no gardeners.  However, blueberry picking is something we can do.  

A few years ago, she decided to teach us the value of a blueberry and told us we had to pick enough blueberries to last us the whole year. (She would freeze them for us.) That year, we picked only enough blueberries to last us to November. It was crushing to realize that we would have to wait until June for more fresh native blueberries.  The following year we headed back to the field with a new purpose.  After each picking, my mom stores them in freezer bags with our names, saying, "you eat what you pick"  Last year, we picked enough blueberries to last us until the following June! 

We adore the blueberries that we pick. They are sacred in my family.  Not only are they delicious fresh fruit, but they are also great in desserts. Some desserts that we enjoy with the blueberries are blueberry cobbler, blueberry muffins, blueberry smoothies, blueberry pancakes, blueberry pie, and the best of all, blueberries on warm oatmeal on a cold winter day.  For  me, blueberry picking is a symbol of summer. Sometimes the blueberries get me through the cold, long New England winter...dreaming of summer. 

Fresh blueberries are the best!

When All Else Fails, I Revert To Food...

O.K. let me explain. So, the reason I have not posted recently is because June has been a crazy month. First, I had this ongoing project for social studies that my class had been working on since March! The project was on a national park, and my park was American Samoa National Park located in of course, American Samoa.  Then, I got out of school really late due to all the snow days that I had. Lastly, my summer has been really hectic and crazy! So much for my effort to "post more this summer".  

Back to the school project... At first I had no interest in learning about this park...and then I started uncovering tons of interesting facts!  The park is located 2,600 miles from Hawaii and 4,800 miles from the closest US mainland. There are only about 4,000 visitors per year at my park which is nothing compared to the more than 9 million at the most visited park, the Great Smokey Mountains.  Don't worry if you have never heard of the park before, neither had I! You should worry even less if you haven't been there, afterall, flights only go from Hawaii two times a week.  I also found out about this very cool coral reef and crown of thorn starfish...more on that later!
 
Fortunately, this school project presented me with a chance to create something other than a written report.  I was just about out of ideas ( it was afterall already the end of June!) on what creative art project I could do and my mother was insisting she would not be spending loads of money at Michaels with only 3 days to go in my elementary career.  What could I do? ... Hmmmm, food anyone?

First, I wanted to do something with blue jello because almost 38 percent of this park is underwater. Then I realized that the jello would melt in between 8:50 and 1:30 (the time my school started at and the time that the projects were being presented at).

Then it hit me, why not bake a cake and do something creative with it. So, on June 19, I baked the cake. Then I made frosting, food colored it 2 different colors, food colored coconut, and frosted ice cream cones.  The green frosting was my grass, with the coconut on top of it, the ice cream cones were frosted green, like trees. The almond flour (left over from my rum cake) was the sand on the beach. Then the blue frosting was my ocean along with blue sprinkles. Then I got modeling clay and made a crown-of-thorn starfish with a coral reef. The coral reef had a stomach on it because that is how the starfish eat the coral. These starfish are killing the coral reefs so I thought that it was important to display one. 

So, do you wonder how the project ended?  Well, most importantly, the cake turned out to be a big hit!  I also learned that it's possible to do a great art project in 1 afternoon with 3 days left in the school year without spending loads of money at Michaels. Well...finally, I learned...


WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS, I REVERT TO FOOD!!!!

This is a picture of my project

May: The Month Of Cooking

Hello everybody! Have you heard of the blog Orangette? Well, the creator of Orangette (also named Molly) has published a book (she is working on her second). For my birthday, my parents got me the book. While I was reading the book, I came across  a recipe called Tarte Tatin.

Tarte Tatin is another French recipe (I know!) . I think I am becoming obsessed with French food. I mean it makes perfect sense. I have gone to France, I speak French, and I go to school where some of my day is spent speaking in French. I think I am just destined to love French food.

Do you know the history of Tarte Tatin? While according to Wikipedia, it was first made by the sisters, Stéphanie and Caroline Tatin at a hotel in France called Hotel Tatin. There are conflicting stories about how this recipe originated but either way... it did. Both stories say that the recipe was created by accident. The stories also say that it was not originally called Tarte Tintin. Only after the sisters death was it named that. Wikipedia also states that you can make this with other fruits, such as pears, or peaches. Tarte Tintin can be also made with vegetables such as onions. 

I really had wanted to make this recipe since I got the book. It was the first recipe on my list to make.  It sounded really good. I was a little bit nervous at first as I had never worked with puff pastry before.  I decided that April vacation would be the perfect time to attempt this as I have more time to cook. This year we spent the week at my cousins' house.  I decided I would make it there. But, as the week went on, more and more apples were eaten.  Friday, I realized I would have to wait, not an apple was left!  I decided to make this the day I got back home, with freshly purchased apples!

Here's something to know... puff pastry, you can buy it or make your own.  I didn't go through the hassle of making my own. I just bought store-bought. My brand was Pepperedige Farm. This brand was very good and it comes with two sheets. So, the next time I make this I have some puff pastry waiting in my freezer for me, so I just need to thaw it. Yippe! If you do buy your puff pastry, you should make sure to thaw according to package directions. 

This post is called the month of cooking because I have less homework, therefore more time to cook and blog. I have this because I have two weeks of state standerized testing. Teachers are supposed to not pass out homework for the week. So, I can cook instead of having to do homework!!!!!!!  It will truly be a month of "after the bell cooking"!

I made this over vacation, for a dinner over at my grandmother's house. Everybody loved it. Here is the recipe.

Last Week In Dinners! Edition #1

O.K., so last week was a crazy week, back to reality after a nice, relaxing vacation. This week was crazy, with sports practices. On Monday, I had soccer and my brother had baseball. We were going to have an arugula steakhouse salad but we ended up just having pasta. The arugula steakhouse salad was from Parade Magazine. Since pasta is nothing special, the recipe is not included. 

Tuesday, I had a good recipe called Baked Panko Shrimp With Oregano And Garlic with Steamed Rice And Peas. On Tuesday, we only were supposed to have one sports practice (!) but because of the rain was canceled. But, because my Mom had 4 tutors, it was still a little crazy. The recipe was from a site called The Six O'Clock Scramble. You have to be a member in order to go on the site though. This is a good website for weeknight dinners as it gives you 5 recipes, and  a shopping list. We do not use all of the recipes every week. This week, we had for dinner 2 of this recipes (the other was on Wednesday). My aunt suggested this recipe, for us and she says that her kids love this. I agree with her, as this recipe is easy and delicious at the same time! The recipe is at the bottom of the post.


Wednesday, we had another Six O'Clock Scramble recipe. This was called Beef And Broccoli Terriaki. My family had had it a while back and we loved it. So, we decided to have it again this week. This time was better than last time because the beef was not too hard to bite.  We had two practices and my mom was tutoring 4 kids so, it was a really crazy day. I made the terriaki before I went to my practice, then when I came home I ate it. The recipe was super good and I am definitely going to share it with you.

Thursday we had 1 sports practice and we had a really good really yummy soup from Dinner A Love Story. It was called Chicken Soup With Orzo.  I was going to make homemade broth but I did not end up doing it. The soup was delicious. When I get home from school, it is usually around 3:30. This recipe takes 1 hr, 30 mins. So, if I started it when I get home I could finish it around 5:00, which is in between my hours of dinner which are 5:00-6:30. This is also a good recipe to make in advance, and is easy to freeze. One suggestion I would make is freeze the soup in single-serving batches and then defrost them as needed. That way you do not have to defrost the whole batch of soup, if you just want to have a little soup for lunch. Recipe is to follow.

Friday, we had take-out from a pizza place.

Saturday, we had take-out from a Chinese food place.

April Showers Bring...

Have you ever read Robert McCloskey's One Morning in Maine? My favorite line of the book is the last line of the book when the two girls, Sal and Jane scream "CLAM CHOWDER FOR LUNCH!" 

Well, instead of Clam Chowder, for me in my best Sal and Jane voice I am screaming FRENCH TOAST FOR DESSERT! 

Who wouldn't love French Toast for dessert? This recipe is easy to make but best for a small crowd as you have to get up in between dinner and dessert to make it. I know right, it is hard to believe that I am giving you a recipe for French Toast. Or even better yet, a recipe for French Toast for dessert. This is a special one though. Read on to find out more about it.  

This is called Pain Perdu and it is a traditional french nursery dessert. Just like the Creme Brulee, this is a french dish. I mean hey, look at the name. The exact translation is lost toast. But I don't think this french toast recipe will ever be lost in my house.  

Have you ever had french toast with almonds? While, this is what this is. With a topping of strawberries, and confectioners sugar. Although the original recipe calls for you to make the "pain perdu" in a skillet pan, I cooked some of mine in a skillet and then switched to a griddle and it worked so much better than a skillet. So, I am telling you definitely use the griddle. It is so much better. 

One reason the griddle is much better is you have to clean out the skillet each time and the skillet gets very hot. You also have to wait like 30 minutes for it to become cool enough, so you can carry it over to the sink . But with the griddle you don't have to wipe down the surface, so you can just keep making them. 


While making this, I noticed a couple of things.

1.) When you soak larger pieces for 4 minutes, they can get very soft. I suggest cutting them in half. It is easier to lift up with a spatula, and is also easier with transporting it to the skillet/griddle. 

2.) Bigger pieces get burnt more easily, again cut them in half. 

3.) 4 minutes can be a lot for pieces to soak, you can soak them for less if need be. 

March: A Month Of Holidays

So... I don't know about you but, March is a long month of birthdays, holidays, and "Spring" (even though the temperatures don't feel like it). You know the old saying  "March goes in like a lion and out like a lamb"? I don't think that is true now a days in New England. The temperatures don't really get going until middle of May. But anyways there are lots of holidays so it is a good trade off. 

One holiday that my whole family celebrates is St. Patrick's Day. We all get together at my Nana and Papa's house. It has sort of become a family tradition. One food that we enjoy every year is the Irish Bread that my Nana makes. In fact, my great-grandmother also made this very same Irish Bread. She came over from Ireland on a boat so this was a traditional recipe for us. She also used a great sifter with a nice, fine, sift. She used this sifter for about 80 years. My Nana has used it for about 40 years. The brand of the sifter is Bromwell. These sifters are still avalible today and you can find them at this website. 

Depending upon who we make this recipe for we use currents and caraway seeds although they are optional. These are traditional Irish ingredients and they taste delicious. 

This is a picture of the sifter that my Nana has from my great-grandmother 

This is the recipe in my Nana's recipe book. 

In case you can not see the writing in the  picture, here is the recipe: 

Winter Soup

So, did you have a big "Nor'easter"? Well, I did. When I look at the big pile of snow in front of my house or better yet the sheet of ice on my sidewalk, it just plain old makes me shiver! I decided to do something about this. At my 4th cooking lesson, I made Spiced Squash, Pear, and Fennel Soup. This soup was extraordinary. It was so good that it and the lentil soup are my favorite soups. You know, the Lentil soup that I begged you to try.  Yes, now I am making you try this! This is this good. I let my aunt try some of this soup, and she said "Wow! The flavors are so complex!" I am sure you are saying "What does that mean?" But after you taste the squash and pear flavors, the last flavor in your mouth is a citrus flavor thanks to the orange peel (!) in this soup. In fact, this soup is so good that I am eating it while I am posting. That never happens. One thing I did in advance was while the squash was roasting, I cut all the vegetables (and trust me, there are a lot!). After, I just had to put the vegetables in in the soup. One way I ate this soup was with crusty bread. It was really good and I used the bread like a spoon, scooping up the soup with the bread. Make sure, you roast the squash before cooking it because it boosts the vegetable's flavor. It also makes it easier to peel. 

These are the vegetables after I chopped them all while my squash was roasting

So...here is the recipe that I am insisting that you try. Please, just try the soup. I am sure that it will become one of your favorite soups too!

Friday Night Pizza

Friday night, I made the best pizza that you will ever taste at my 3rd cooking lesson. So, you know that a pizza is really made well when there is a nice, crunchy taste. When the pizza came out of the oven, the crust was a golden brown and looked very crunchy. I knew that it was going to be the best "Friday night pizza" (a family tradition) that I was ever going to taste. And well... it was. It was even better than the reputable pizzeria down the street called Tino's. And that is hard to do, because Tino's has awesome pizza. After the crispy dough comes the toppings. The dough made enough for two pizzas. One pizza had tomato sauce, cheese, mushroom, and green pepper.  The other had fresh mozzarella, basil, and tomatoes. This one was the winner for me. This is one of the best pizza doughs ever, so I am sure that the crust helped to make me fall in love with that pizza. 

I was sleeping over at my aunt's house and made her dinner. My cousin Matty was turning two and I helped her get ready for his party. We make the cupcakes together. Then I watched my cousin so my aunt could get some things done. She and my uncle loved the pizza. There were 2 slices left and the pizzas were fairly large. So, I consider that a big win.

On Friday nights in the summer, my Nana cooks "Make your own pizza" on the grill and we have a movie night. Usually we buy the dough (Check out the big shop). My uncle Carter usually also helps make the pizzas. He was a pizza maker at a reputable pizza dealership too.  But, this homemade dough was so good that I have found myself the job of making pizza for 20 people on Friday nights in the summer. And guess what?  I don't even care! Yes, I know you may consider me crazy, but the dough is so easy to make, it won't take too long. My cooking teacher (Check out her blog) adapted the recipe so instead of having to knead the dough (which takes forever) you put it in the stand-mixer and it does all the work.  As I said earlier on, one round of dough makes two pizzas. I will make about 8-10 pizzas every Friday night in the summer. It is going to be super easy. 

This recipe is from My Berlin Kitchen by Luisa Weiss  So here is the pizza dough recipe.

Another Traditional French Recipe: Aioli

Have you ever heard of Chez Panisse...or better yet read Fanny at Chez Panisse by Alice Walters? Well, dear reader, it is a story about a girl named Fanny (she is real!) and her mother owns the restaurant Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California.  I SO want to go there. Why isn't my mother like Fanny's mother?  Why don't I get to run back and forth between a restaurant and an open air-market everyday?  Well, the answer is...school. I know lame excuse right? But it's true. I still have my summers free though (Thank goodness!) Instead of a restaurant and open-air market, I have my beach house (with my 16 cousins all living there for the whole summer!) and the supermarket. Not as French as a restaurant and open-air market, but still will do.

Speaking of supermarkets and summer, I am gearing up for my annual job that my cousin and I take on each year. Each week we do the difficult job of grocery shopping for the week for the 16 cousins and aunts and uncles. We buy a ton of food and we are at the store for hours! We spend hundreds of dollars each week.  Yes!  Food is very expensive these days.

Each week, my aunt and my mother make a list of things we will need at the grocery store.  They rotate turns taking us to the store.  We also alternate the side of the store we start on.
For example: week 1, we start on the dairy side (her favorite), and week 2 we start on the fruit and veggies side (my favorite).  At the check out, we have our own procession line.   (We get that much food and fill the carts to the brim!) My aunt passes the food to my cousin, Joanie and she passes it to me. My aunt also helps me line up the groceries in order. I put it on the conveyor-belt. My aunt also helps me line up the groceries in order. Then, we push the 2 and sometimes even 3 carts out to the car.  The best part: we get a treat after doing all that hard work!  And, upon arriving home, we get to watch all our cousins scurry back and forth unloading the food.

So, that brings me to my next topic. What will I use the mayonnaise for?  Well, dear reader, I have it all planned out. In the summer when many good vegetables such as peppers, tomatoes, and beans are ripe, I will prepare a big platter of all the summer's best vegetables and in the middle, put the nice creamy mayonnaise.

This recipe took me three tries to make it even remotely edible, so don't be discouraged if it doesn't work out the first time. The main difficulty that you could run into is they mayonnaise frequently breaks.  What does this mean?  It happens when you whisk the oil and egg and they separate and won't stay together.  Check out Luisa Weiss blog, she has a link for saving the aioli (mayonnaise). So, if it does break, try this tip. It helped me a little to save my broken mayonnaise. And then I broke it again! So, then I started back up with a fresh batch and finally, this one worked.  Here is the recipe.  

Which Camp Are You In?

Ugggg... that's how I feel about Tarte Flambee. Also known as Flammkuchen. For those of you who don't know what it is, Alsatian Flatbread with Bacon and Creme Fraiche  is how "My Berlin Kitchen"  best describes it. It is from a region in France and Germany named Alsace. Alsace borders Germany and has a lot of the same culture as Germany. I have gone to France and visited Strasbourg, a city which is in the heart of Alsace. Strasbourg has amazing history, amazing culture, amazing food (except for some of us and the tarte flambee), and have you seen their houses!!!!! Alsace is overall AMAZING!!! When I went to Strasbourg, I had my first taste of tarte flambee. As a second grader it may have been a little extreme to try it. I did not like it one little bit. As I was flipping through Luisa Weiss food memoir (check out her blog) "My Berlin Kitchen" I found a recipe for it. Knowing that my mom loves it (if by chance I thought it was gross, AGAIN!) I decided to try it again. So on Saturday, January 19th, I finally got myself together and made it. While, my mother loved it, I on the other hand did not. It did not take that long, only about 1 hour (shorter than most things that I have made + posted about).  So, without further ado, here it is. Luisa Weiss's "My Berlin Kitchen"...

Tips:
1. The key is to get the dough as thin as possible
2. When you are rolling out the dough, get it as thin as possible without breaking, then put it as quickly as you can on the baking sheet
3. If you can find Speck, than by all means use it, but if you can't regular bacon will work too

You Might Think You're In France Creme Brulee...Plus What To Do With The Egg Whites After!

At my second cooking lesson, I made Creme Brulee and Coconut Macaroons. The creme brulee was super easy. The process for the macaroons was easy too but a poor coconut brand made it tricky.  Also the dough was really dry so we had to add much more egg than called for. 

I go to a school where students can chose to study in French.  So, since the first grade, I have been learning in French.  I have even been to France.  I think all of this learning business has made me LOVE French food and all things French.  I mean I seriously LOVE French food, especially Creme Brulee. Really people, come on, how many three year olds order Creme Brulee and do not have a single clue what it is.  Ever since that first Creme Brulee, I have been in LOVE with them!  My obsession took a new turn when I went to France.  I made it my business to sample Creme Brulee at every restaurant that we went to.  I sampled Creme Brulee across the whole countryside of France, from Paris to Strasbourg and back.  I sampled it at big restaurants, small restaurants... for lunch, and for dinner.  Every day it was continuously Creme Brulee. And if that wasn't enough to make you think "Wow, she is crazy!",  I was only in the second grade!  Because of my love for this delicious dessert, I thought that it was time to learn how to cook it.  Most recipes are a little more complicated, but this one can be made in about 15 minutes...and it's really good!  Caramelizing the top adds the "WOW" factor. Below is a link to a video of Ina making it.  You can view it at http://www.foodnetwork.com/barefoot-contessas-creme-brulee/video/index.html

The surprise bonus: Coconut Macaroons!  One of the added bonuses of taking cooking lessons is that I get to learn new tips and tricks. I have a question for you.  What do you do with the extra yolks/whites after you make something? If you are like me you probably just throw them away.  Thanks to my cooking teacher, Macy, I now have two new things. One, a go to cookie recipe, and two, what to do when a recipe calls for egg yolks and not egg whites (now, I just have to find a recipe that uses egg yolks). These treats were really a hit with my family, as I started with twenty four, and by the end of the day was down to seven. They are very easy and I could be making them for a party in my future. If you make these cookies right, they will not spread like chocolate chip or sugar cookies would. They will stay in a ball and have little cracks in them. I have one advisory for you, don't use Trader Joe's brand of coconut; their coconut was too dry. Regular supermarket brand kind, would be better. 

The Creme Brulee recipe was from Barefoot in Paris by Ina Garten. She has loads of cookbooks and I all of the recipes I trust and love. The macaroons were from Cook's Illustrated which is a cooking magazine. You can also look it up online but you have to be a subscriber to view it.  Both of the recipes are to follow.

A Warm Cure

A couple days ago,  I made lentil soup. I made up a HUGE  batch. I decided to give some to my aunt who has been sick for 10 days. This soup freezes well so, she can have it all winter. The recipe below is doubled because I found that there was not enough in the original recipe. If you have tupperware, this is the time to use it. If, you don't than any plastic bag will do (make sure that they are the "freezer" kind not the "sandwich" or "snack"). So, there is no reason not to make extra.  This recipe does not call for a ham hock, so you do not need to cook up some ham to make this. This only takes up to 45 minutes so, you can make up a batch really fast. I adapted this recipe from Dinner:A Love Story by Jenny Rosenstrach. She also has her own blog and it is http://www.dinneralovestory.com/. All of the recipes are super easy and do not take that much time. This recipe calls for beluga lentils but french lentils will also do ( I could only find french lentils at the store and t worked just find). Also there is only 3 vegetables in this recipe so there is not a lot of chopping involved.  This recipe called for anchovies and I do not like any thing fish related, so I omitted them. The recipe also did not say to "soup-wand" but, I like my soups "soup-wanded", so I did "soup-wand" it. If you do have a "soup-wand", I recommend that you use it. A "soup-wand" is also known as an immersion blender.  It really blends the soup all together, rather than tasting the individual ingredients. The recipe is to follow. Another add-in that might taste good with this is crumbled sausage.  

Tasty with Tea!

For Christmas, my aunt (and godmother) gave me this fabulous new cookbook. All week long (while the rest of my family was skiing and I was sick) I was deciding on what to make.  So the other day, my first day back to school, I new I had waited long enough.  I ran in the door after school and I started to make the Rum Cake.

First you make Simple Syrup, then the actual cake.  Finally, ( you can omit this part if you would like) you make Rum Icing.  I am not a huge fan of rum, I cut down on it from the beginning, but soon realized I needed to cut down on it more.  Don't be afraid to cut down on the rum if you are not a fan of it.  Simple Syrup is basically equal parts sugar, and water, simmered just to dissolve the sugar.  For the rum cake, if you have a traditional cast-iron Bundt pan, this is the time to use it. Those older pans, as well as newer pans marked "Original Bundt" or "Anniversary Bundt" with a 15-cup capacity, are what this recipe is made for.  However, if you only have a smaller Bundt pan, it will work; just leave a 1/2-inch space at the top of the pan when filling it with batter, and bake the cake for slightly less time (if you like, you can bake the excess batter in a muffin pan, checking for doneness after 30 minutes or so).  You'll need a 15-cup (10 1/2-inch) Bundt pan.  Also, baking in a convection oven gives the cake a better crumb (but a standard oven yields fantastic results as well).  I used a standard oven and it came out just fine.  Don't omit the sugar from the pan, it adds a nice sugary flavor.  One of the many problems I encountered while making this cake was the icing was very rubbery.  Another was it took forever.  I started this cake at 3:30 (right after school) and finished it at 7:45pm.  I was exhausted!

I found the recipe in Bouchon Bakery by Thomas Keller (another of my favorite books). Overall this was a long, sweet treat.The recipe is to follow.

An Apple Surprise

Today, I made a apple tart at my very first cooking lesson with Macy. She has her own blog and it is http://macybakes.blogspot.com/. We first made the dough, then the filling. Finally, the glaze. This tart is about the pure, clear taste of apples, sugar, and a little bit of butter. There are no spices to muddle the flavors; here the apples truly shine. I found the recipe in "My Berlin Kitchen" by Luisa Weiss. She also has her own blog. It is http://www.thewednesdaychef.com/. 3 tablespoons of sugar may look like a lot (as you can see from the picture below) but it comes out fabulous!  Overall, this was DELICIOUS!!!!!! The recipe is to follow.