I've been bombarded with a bevvy of beets recently. Thanks to a bountiful beet season here in Austin, Johnson's Backyard Garden has been shoveling these little beauties into my CSA box. Not that I mind. I like beets as much as the next guy, but after a while... I'm running short on ideas for how to cook them.
Lucky for me I ran into this gloriously inspirational video. More art than recipe, Tiger in a Jar presents a very romantic illustration of prep work in this short, lovely film. How could I not make some beet cake after watching it?
You can find a more detailed recipe and instructions on Tiger in a Jar's blog. I followed it more or less to the letter, with the exception of pan size and bake time. Instead of baking a whole cake, I opted to enlist the help of my adorable miniature bundt pan. These itty bitty cakes baked in a very short time, perhaps 10 - 15 minutes? (Sorry, I forgot to keep a stopwatch going.) Just bake them you start to smell them, then test them for doneness with a tootpick. If it goes in and comes out clean, they are done!
I think that these little cakes would have been even better with some mini chocolate chips inside. Curse me for not thinking of it beforehand. If I make these again, you can be sure that I'll be adding an extra punch of chocolate. I sprinkled these with powdered sugar, but a chocolate glaze would have been quite nice as well. I can also imagine this cake recipe would be delightful with whipped cream and fresh berries. Since it only has a hint of chocolate, it would be very versatile.
I can give up a lot of things. Meat? That one is easy. After all, I was raised as a vegetarian. Junk food? Child's play. I almost never eat anything that comes from a box. Alcohol? Begrudgingly, I can be coerced to avoid even my favorite craft beers. But ice cream? That's a tough one. I really love ice cream. Earlier this year, when I decided to go on a month long cleanse, I was ready to get creative in order to satisfy my ice cream desires.
Inspired by a recent post on The Kitchn, I set to work creating a series of mostly natural, all vegan ice creams. In truth, these are much more like sorbets than ice creams. Though coconut cream does have a good amount of fat, it doesn't impart much fatty flavor, so these "ice creams" are far more icy than they are creamy.
I've been following Michelle Lanter of Dadadreams on Flickr for years. Her super weird, fantasy collages are right up my alley, blending bizzare combinations of vintage imagery. Each collage tells a story, many of which are food related. You can see why I'm a little obsessed.
After a long weekend of food related madness it was nice to settle into a lazy Tuesday night with a simple dinner. I had some broccoli left from my last CSA box, and I think I rescued it with this recipe just in time. I tossed it with some whole wheat orzo and feta spinach chicken sausage in a quick sauce of onion, garlic, tomato, and basil. After that I sprinkled some feta on top, and thoroughly enjoyed eating the hell out of it.
As I sat out on my deck enjoying the breezy sunshine I was finally able to relax. Viva normalcy.
By the way, this recipe is very customizable. Swap out the broccoli for almost any veggie you have on hand, and switch the sausage for another variety or just replace it with something else. For instance, white beans would do very nicely.
This soup was so good, that I wanted to just take an oversized straw to the whole pot. Seriously. It's crazy. The deep, savory flavors of roasted carrot and sweet onions blended with creamy cashew is unbelievable. I'm not even sure what to garnish it with for a photo. I suppose I might toast up some croutons and plop a green or two into the mix, but really, this soup speaks for itself. No solids needed. Just lay down on the floor and have a friend pour it all over you.
I have a whole lot to be thanful for this week. I'm still recovering from an incredible weekend packed with tantilizing victories, humbling defeats, new friends, and opportunities. It was a wild ride, but as highly as I value excitement, it was nice to dial things back a little. Tuesday I got up, went to work, cooked dinner, and behaved like a totally normal human being for 24 hours. What strange bliss!
While visiting the grocery store to purchase groceries that I was actually going to get to eat (a nice change), I picked up a darling little oregano plant and gave it a new home on the deck. What is it about little green plants that makes me so happy? This one in particular reminds me of a happy coming event, the arrival of my youngest sister, Cait, and her adorable boyfriend, James in Austin. They are moving here at the end of the Summer, and I can hardly wait.
This little blog and my online cooking adventures at ChefHangout.com have been picking up a lot of steam lately, which I am awfully thankful for. Someone at Saturday's Supermarket Showdown actually recognized my name from the paper! How cool is that?
Of course, the little bits of success I am enjoying are due to the hard work of not only myself, but my fiercly supportive friends and family. If it weren't for them, I couldn't have pulled off all that I did this past weekend. It takes a lot of work to create original, experimental recipes, then feed hundreds of people with them. On top of that there are countless hours of photography, writing, editing, social networking and promoting that go into the daily grind. All that on top of a full time job and an aspiring small business can make me a challenge to be friends with. Thankfully, I have very special friends.
Special THANK YOU shout outs to: Scott Bobleo, Sarah Kam, Heather Anne, and Melissa G for helping me get through the past 2 weeks. And thanks to Lauren, Ginny, Mark, Barry, and Catherine (and family) for coming out to the Taco Experiment!
Last year I entered my first cooking competition, The Austin Pork Experiment. I had a blast, and I learned a lot, but when it came time to award prizes I walked away empty handed. One year later, I came back for another shot at victory. I dreamed of taking home the grand prize, but I knew that my competition would be steep. People in this town love to cook, and they aren't afraid to mix things up. So, I decided to focus on what I do best, and that is making ice cream.
The star of my entry was a very unique ice cream made with sweet roasted tomatillos, and tangy buttermilk. To transform it into a taco, I slathered it in avocado frosting, and sandwiched it in between two corn tortillas. I topped each cute, scalloped sandwich with candied jalapenos, and hoped for the best. My biggest struggle was in the shell. I tried everything from cookies to chips to tortillas, but nothing seemed to work. I have theories on corn flavored pizelles or macarons, but time escaped me in the end and I went with the best option I had.
It was the ice cream itself, I think, that won the heart of The Food Experiment, and bestowed upon me the honorable title of "most experimented". I placed! I won prizes! It might not have been the grand prize, but when my name was called I was in seventh heaven, and apparently behaved like the grade-A jackass that I am upon acceptance of my prize. Look at this.
I mean really. Something must be wrong with me. Who acts like this?
Anyway, the ice cream was BOSS, and I was asked repeatedly whether or not I was selling it. The answer is both yes and no. I have decided, after about two years of consideration, to open my own small time, artisan ice cream business, but it will still be a while before it is all legal and operating. In the mean time, I am more than happy to spread the love through classes and recipes. I can even make you some ice cream in exchange for bartered services or donations. Drop me an email and we'll talk. By the way, if you think this ice cream is good, this is just the beginning. I can make something awesome out of just about anything. Seasonal, special diet, bring it on. I am an ice cream ninja.
Without further ado, I give you the recipe I promised so very many people at The Austin Taco Experiment. This is an Ohio style ice cream, based on a strawberry ice cream recipe by Jeni Britton. I hoped that tomatillo and strawberry shared a similar enough sweet and sour vibe for this to work, and it totally did. Thanks to Jeni's genius, super emulsifying base, tomatillo ice cream was a success.
Ingredients
1 pound tomatillos, rinsed and cut into halves and quarters
1/4 cup sugar
1 lime
2 cups whole milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 ounces cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt (I used fleur de sal)
1 1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup buttermilk
2/3 cup sugar
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Toss the tomatillos with 1/4 cup sugar and the juice of 1 lime. Transfer to baking dish and roast until the tomatillos are tender, about 20 minutes. Allow them to cool a little, then puree them in a blender or food processor. Reserve 1/2 cup for the recipe, and store the rest for another use. (You can make an awesome jelly or syrup from them.)
Mix the cornstarch with 1/2 cup of milk, making sure it dissolves completely. Put the rest of the milk, along with the heavy cream and the sugar in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 8 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in the starch/milk mixture. Return the pan to the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
In a heat proof mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and salt. Slowly mix the hot milk/sugar mixture into the cheese, making sure that it all mixes evenly. Next, stir in the buttermilk and the tomatillo puree. Cool as quickly as possible, using an ice bath if you can, then transfer to the fridge. Chill the mixture for at least two hours, then churn according to your ice cream machine's directions.
By the way, to find out more about the folks who took home the big prizes that day, (all of which were stupendous) check out the following articles from around the web.
Also, I just want to say THANK YOU to my wonderful sisters, Sarah and Heather, who helped me cut tortillas, assemble sandwiches, and keep my cool throughout a very long, very fun weekend. You two are great! And pretty! And nice! Thanks!!
This past weekend I spent Saturday locked in a head-to-head battle for culinary glory with one of NYC's top competitive chefs, Mr. Theo Peck of The Food Experiments. And guess what? I tied him. Not too shabby, I must say. If you are going to tie with someone, than Theo would be the guy. He's creative, quick on his feet, and loads of fun to smack talk with.
We had a great time dishing out our tastiest Brooklyn Beer themed recipes at my local Central Market. In fact, I have a whole slideshow of photos here to prove it. The guys from Brooklyn Brewery documented the whole thing, click-click-clicking away, capturing the feirce competive nature of the day. I met a lot of friendly people, many of which really enjoyed my recipe, Brooklyn Blackberry Flan, and I promised to share the recipe with them here on my blog. So, here it is!
Brooklyn Blackberry Flan is made with Brooklyn Lager in the custard and the caramel. The bitterness of the beer tastes really wonderful against the tart, sweet nip of the fresh blackberry sauce. I used biscuit cutters to cut out individual portions, then topped them with fresh berries. This presentation is really easy, but looks awfully impressive, making it a great way to end a dinner party, or steal all the thunder at a potluck dessert table.
Because this flan includes beer, it would be a great dessert for Saint Patrick's Day. If you've never made flan, it's easier than you think. The slow cooking process makes it very hard to mess up. The scariest part is probably making the caramel, but not to worry, I'll explain it all in the directions.
Caramel Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup Brooklyn Lager
Custard Ingredients
1 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cups evaporated milk
1 cup Brooklyn Lager
1 pinch salt
3 large eggs
2 egg yolks
7 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Blackberry Sauce
12 ounces fresh blackberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/4 cup water
the zest of 1 lime
Directions
Combine 1/3 cup Brooklyn Lager and 1 cup sugar in a saucepan. Start cooking on low, and keep it there until the sugar dissolves. After that, switch to high heat, and use a silicone spatula or wire whisk to keep the syrup moving. Stir continually, but not too quicklty until the syrup becomes a caramel color (five - ten minutes). While the sugar cooks it will foam up like crazy, so make sure to use a large saucepan, not a small one. After the beer foams, it will eventually seize up a little and become harder to stir. Tht means that you are getting close to the end. Soon after it thickens it will suddenly start to thin and change in color. This is a long process, so just keep stirring and hang in there. It will become caramel eventually, I promise.
Quickly transfer the caramel to a pyrex/heatproof pie pan. Move the container around so that the caramel coats the inside of the dish entirely. This can be a little dangerous, so you might want to use oven mitts to keep your hands safe.
Now it's time to make the custard! Put the beer in a sauce pan, and boil over high heat until it has reduced by about 50%. Combine the reduced beer with the cream, evaporated milk, and salt. In a second bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Whisk the egg and sugar mixture together, then pour it through a fine mesh strainer. Slowly whisk the milk mixture into the egg mixture. Once combined, pour the custard mixtue into the caramel coated dish.
Place the dish into a deep pan, and fill the pan with water until it reaches halfway up the dish. It may be easier to do this all while the pans are on the oven rack, but that's up to you. Just be very careful while moving the pan, as you don't want to get any water into the flan.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 - 60 minutes, until it has just set. Remove the pan from the oven, VERY CAREFULLY and allow it to cool. When the pan and water cool enough to be handled, remove the flan from the water and onto the countertop. When it reaches room temperature transfer it to the fridge. Chill in the refridgerator for at least two hours before serving.
Now make the sauce. Combine 1/4 cup of water, 12 ounces of blackberries, 1/3 cup of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of lime juice in a small saucepan. Cover, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer, and remove lid. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes, then mash the berries with a potato masher, or the back of a spoon. Add zest, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Push the mixture through a fine, mesh strainer, and cool. Chill until serving.
When you are ready to serve the flan, slip a knife around the edges to separate it from the dish. Turn the dish upside down, and shake gently to remove it. Drizzle the blackberry sauce over the flan when it's time to serve. A little whipped cream is nice too.
So guess what?! Zagat has teamed up with ChefHangout.com and is gearing up to publish a live web show airing some of our cooking classes. Awesome, right?
It gets even better. They have decided to kick off the series with a SXSW episode, and guess who is cooking? Me!! Holy moly!! I'll be sharing the kitchen with another great chef, Haylee Otto, as we showcase four amazingly Austin recipes.
The show will broadcast live on Monday, March 12 at 3pm (CST). I've provided a list of ingredients, prep directions, and cooking instructions on my blog for anyone who wants to cook along with us. We'll be making chicken tacos with smoky tomatillo and avocado salsa, Texas caviar, and pickled jalapenos. You'll feel like you are right here with us in Texas!
This recipe finished up my CSA box, and just in the knick of time. My next delivery is on Wednesday, and I almost didn't make it! It looks like I'm in for another week of leafy greens, which is just fine by me, especially considering how yummy this turned out.
I used quinoa macaroni to make this, a healthier alternative to classic pasta. While it did have a slightly grittier texture than regular noodles, all in all, I was pretty impressed with quinoa macaroni. It has a very mild flavor, and a nice firm bite. Definitely an improvement over the brown rice or whole wheat pastas I have tried. I'll be turning to quinoa pasta again.
One funny thing about the quinoa macaroni is that it almost tripled in size. Considering the hefty portion of protein packed into it, I opted for about 1/2 a pound to serve four people, which turned out to be plenty. We even had enough for leftovers.
Ingredients
1 pound macaroni, or 8 oz. quinoa macaroni
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
4 cloves garlic
2 cups milk
1 sweet onion
8 ounces spinach
2 lbs, campari tomatoes, seeded and halved
1 cup shredded mont jack cheese
2 ounces cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
salt & pepper
Directions
Set the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the tomatoes in half, and push out the seeds. Place them on a lined baking sheet, skin side up, and coat them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Put the baking sheet into the oven on the top rack, and roast for 10 - 15 minutes, just long enough for the skins to brown a little and the "meat" to soften.
Boil and drain the macaroni according to package directions. Rinse the macaroni with cold water to stop it from cooking, then toss it with a little olive oil and salt & pepper. That will help keep the macaroni from sticking together while you are preparing the rest of the dish.
In a large sauce pan, combine the butter, and half of the garlic. Set the heat to medium, and stir the butter and garlic until the butter melts completey. Raise the heat just a little bit, then add the flour. Whisk together. Keep whisking the butter and four. As the roux cooks, the butter will foam, and the garlic will sweat. Cook the roux, while whisking continuously for about 5 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking to avoid any lumps. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Add the cream cheese, and let it melt completey. Slowly add the shredded cheese, stirring as you drop it in, letting it melt. When the cheese has totally melted, add the paprika and the parsley. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper, then taste it to see if it needs some more. The key to cheese sauces is salt. If it tastes bland to you, try adding a little more salt. Taste, and add, then taste again. Adding the salt little by little will help you get the flavor just right.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, and the remaining garlic to the pan. Cook until the onions clear. Raise the heat to medium-high or high, then add about 1/3 of the spinach. Use a pair of tongs to toss the spinach in the pan. When it wilts, add another 1/3 of the spinach, and repeat until all the spinach is cooked.
You can serve the pasta with the toppings and sauce over it, or you can mix all of the ingredients together in a big pot. It will taste great either way, so the choice is up to you. I find that the dish looks prettier when the sauce is draped over the noodles, and the spinach and tomatoes are plopped on top. However, mixing it all together has a much more hearty, classic mac n' cheese feel to it, so without considering looks, I prefer it that way.
Hello. I'm Mary Helen
Comfort food, healthy cooking, and ethnic cuisines are my obsessions. As a cook, writer, and culinary instructor these worlds collide in my kitchen on a daily basis.
This blog is a place for me to share my favorite original recipes and tiny snippets of my everyday life. Feel free to sift through my archives, try out my recipes, and oggle my pics.
Have a question about anything? Drop me a line at MaryMakesDinner (dot) blog (at) gmail (dot) com.
