Mini Banana Cream Pies

 It was -22°C today in Toronto, -30°C with the wind chill.  That sort of temperature does not inspire me to want to go outside.  Ever.  Instead I stayed in and thought about all the warm and tropical places I would rather be. And after I accepted the reality that I’m stuck here for at least 2 more months of winter I decided to spend the day baking.  However, deciding what to bake is never an easy task.  As usual, I spent an absurd amount of time scanning recipes and trying to find something that I felt like making and for which I also had all the ingredients, because as previously discussed, there was no way I was going outside.

Then I saw some bananas sitting on the counter and narrowed my search to banana recipes.  I should really have more banana recipes in my repertoire and should make them more often because The Boy likes “anything with banana”.  I mentioned my boyfriend in my last post, (and how he’s not impressed with my oversized male roommate…) but despite the only recent mention, he’s not new and he’s actually existed on my blog for quite some time, albeit in various disguises.  If you’ve been around Jumbo Empanadas since the early days, you may also know The Boy as a certain Ukrainian Princess who refused to eat pierogies… 

Other than that though, he’s a pretty good eater, likes sweets and will generally try anything I put in front of him, (pierogies being the obvious exception).  As I said, he especially likes anything with banana.  He also likes pudding.  Given those two facts, it seems like banana cream pie should be one of his favourite desserts.  While looking at recipes with bananas, I sent him a quick message asking his opinion of said pie, as I thought it odd he had never requested it.  Turns out he’s never had banana cream pie.  How is that possible?

I shouldn’t be surprised though, this sort of situation happens quite often.  I ask him what he thinks of something, he replies he’s never had it and I then add it to the “list of things to make The Boy”.  Unfortunately, despite the fact that I evidently ending up making banana cream pies, they’re still on The Boy’s list.  He lives in another city and didn’t get to try any of these.  But I figure if I keep making banana desserts like this he’ll have to come visit me more often…

 Banana Cream Pie (from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking From My Home to Yours)

2 cups whole milk
6 large egg yolks
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar, pressed through a sieve
1/3 cup cornstarch, sifted
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into bits
3 ripe but firm bananas, sliced

To make the custard, bring the milk to a boil.  In a separate saucepan, whisk together the eggs, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt until blended and thick.  Whisking without stopping, drizzle in about ¼ of the hot milk.  Continue to whisk while slowly pouring in the remainder of the milk.  Bring the mixture to a boil while whisking and continue to whisk for 2 minutes at a boil.  Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla.  Let cool 5 minutes before whisking in the bits of butter until fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth.  Cover the surface of the custard with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cool.  Remove from the fridge and whisk again before scooping into tart shells, alternating with a layer of sliced banana until you reach the top of the shell.

***I used Dorie’s recipe for the custard only.  For the tart shells I used a 3-2-1 pie dough, fully baked and cooled.  I topped the mini pies with lightly sweetened whipped cream and a banana slice with caramelized cinnamon sugar on top.  There are chocolate curls beside the tarts in the photos, but afterwards I added those on top too.

Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup

I was reminded over the holidays that I had stopped writing my blog.  It happened a few times, but the person who brought it up was usually my Mom.  When she did this, other people would feign interest and ask why I wasn’t writing anymore.  Not that they ever really read my blog in the first place, but apparently people become concerned if you stop doing something.  I haven’t stopped cooking, although my circumstances have changed once again. 

I’m back in the city and working a new job and living in a teeny tiny condo with a random roommate I found on Craigslist.  Part and parcel with condo living is a lack of space, the biggest sacrifice for me being the lack of kitchen space.  Or the lack of a kitchen.  The room that houses the kitchen, (if you can call it that) is also the living room, dining room and my roommate’s office.  It’s just one room, the kitchen being one wall of that room, with no island or counter space to speak of.  I’m not exaggerating when I say I have about one and a half square feet of counter space, if that.  A portion of that counter space is taken up by a toaster and a paper towel holder.  I’d put the toasted somewhere else if there was anywhere to put it.  There are no drawers in my kitchen. 

The only upside to all this is that despite the fact that I’m sharing this incredibly tiny excuse for a kitchen, my roommate doesn’t cook.  I will henceforth refer to him as Diesel, (as in Vin Diesel…) as he seems to consume little more than protein shakes and things that can be microwaved.  For example, he popped a frozen pizza in the microwave tonight and announced “Dinner is served in two minutes!”.  I proceeded to joke that that wasn’t real food.  He informed me that it was indeed real food and that he was in fact a balanced eater as he drinks his vegetables in the form of V8, occasionally eats a piece of fruit and has yogurt, which is healthy.  Diesel is the type of guy who lifts very heavy weights at the gym.  I consider him a personal alarm system for the condo.  He’s great really.  As far as random Craigslist finds go, I could have done much, much worse.  And I love that he doesn’t cook because it means more space for me and my kitchen gadgets, I just have to rearrange his jugs of protein powder sometimes…

Speaking of kitchen gadgets, I had to downsize mine when I moved into the condo.  So I don’t have all my fancy baking pans, or my food processor, or more than two mugs, but I’ve got most of the basics.  Granted, my basics are very different from a lot of other people’s basics, like Diesel’s.  Prior to moving in I asked him what sort of kitchen stuff he had so that I would know what to bring and not duplicate anything as there’s no room for that here.  He told me he had all the basics.  I arrived to find exactly ONE pot and ONE pan, four plates, two mugs and a handful of cutlery.  There wasn’t even a cutting board.  Needless to say, I couldn’t live like that and somehow found room amidst the protein powder to stash my kitchenaid mixer and various other essentials.  I quickly ran out of room in the kitchen though and have devoted one of the drawers of my bedroom dresser to kitchen wares.

All of this to say that my cooking adventures have been somewhat subdued, but not completely squashed.  I’ve been baking for the people at work again and on the weekends I tend to cover the kitchen/living room/dining room/den with dishes as I make meals for the upcoming week.  One of the tastiest things I’ve made recently is this Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup from none other than the fabulous Dorie Greenspan.  Having finally acquired her most recent book, Around My French Table, for Christmas, I’ve gotten right into creating from it and this was the first recipe I tried.  I’m never disappointed by Dorie and this soup was no exception.  It was fresh and flavourful and everything you’d expect from something labelled Vietnamese.  And it was wonderfully warming on a cold and dreary winter day.

Disasters Are More Entertaining Than Success

Linzer Sables

The other day at work Chef told me to make a pineapple upside down cake to try to use up a mountain of leftover pineapple. For the record, I don’t like pineapple upside down cake, so the thought of making one on the fly didn’t exactly thrill me. But it was baking, and I like baking, so I sucked it up and got to work. As much as I love baking though, I frequently do something to mess it up. That’s why I like to have a recipe and a plan. Some days, however, even those can’t help me. This was one of those days. I decided that I couldn’t wing a recipe for pineapple upside down cake and therefore sought one out in the binder labeled ‘Standardized Recipes’. It’s a binder that Chef claims has many more recipes in it than it actually does. Many of the recipes in there are also incomplete or have been changed but not noted. I therefore usually approach the binder with optimistic skepticism.

Chocolate Pots de Creme with Green Tea Cookie

On this occasion it seemed as though luck was on my side. I found a recipe for apple pudding cake that I had made before so I was fairly sure that I could sub pineapple for the apples and that it would work out. I’m sure it would have too, if I had put any sugar in the cake. About half way through baking I started to have a vague notion that something was missing. I shrugged it off for a bit as there was nothing I could do, the cake was already in the oven. Then it hit me, there was no sugar. I hoped against all odds that the caramel on the bottom of the cake would somehow transfer throughout so that the cake was salvageable. Not a chance. This was made abundantly clear when I pulled the cake out of the oven, unmolded it and discovered that not only was the cake horribly inedible due to the lack of sugar, it was also horribly underbaked with a largely gooey centre.

Pumpkin Muffins

I contemplated taking a picture of it at the time but decided photographic evidence of my shortcomings was unnecessary. I will however, give you a picture of a whole lemon tart, that may have overflowed but was still delicious, (and therefore not a disaster). Just so you know, the batter that overflowed did not go to waste. It was promptly scooped off the silpat and into my mouth and it made me wonder if I didn’t want to eat the whole tart that way.

Overflowing Whole Lemon Tart

I always seem to have more to say about baking disasters than successes. I guess that’s why I’ve had this picture of Dorie’s Pumpkin Muffins, (pg #13 in BFMHTY) on my computer since fall, as noted by the leaves. They’re fantastic muffins, they just needed an excuse to be seen. Same goes for the Honey Spiced Madeleines. I made those as soon as I saw Dorie post about them at the beginning of December but was slow to share my success. The Linzer Sables, (pg #134) and Chocolate Pots de Crème, (pg #390) which were served with green tea cookies, were made much more recently and seemed like a good way to round out a Dorie recipe filled post.

Honey Spiced Madeleines, (from Dorie Greenspan)

Makes 12 large or more than 36 mini madeleines

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon double-acting baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (or a little less, if you prefer)

Pinch of salt

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup sugar

Grated zest of 1/2 orange

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

6 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and pepper and keep at hand.

Working in a mixer bowl, rub the sugar and orange zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment (you can make this batter easily with a handheld mixer or just a whisk, if you prefer), add the eggs to the bowl and beat until the mixture is light, fluffy and thickened, about 2 minutes; beat in the honey, then the vanilla. Switch to a rubber spatula and very gently fold in the dry ingredients followed by the melted butter. You may use the batter now, but it's better if you can give it a little rest. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the batter and chill for 3 hours or, if you have the time, overnight. (For real convenience, you can spoon the batter into buttered-and-floured madeleine molds, cover, chill, then bake the cookies directly from the fridge. See below for instructions on prepping the pans.)

Getting ready to bake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter 12 full-size madeleine molds (or 36 mini-molds), dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. If you have a nonstick madeleine mold, butter and flour it or give it a light coating of vegetable cooking spray. (If your pan is silicone, you can leave it as is.) Place the pan on a baking sheet.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each one. Bake the large madeleines for 11 to 13 minutes and the minis for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden and the tops spring back when prodded gently. Remove the pan from the oven and release the madeleines from the molds by rapping the edge of the pan against the counter. Gently pry any recalcitrant madeleines from the pan using your fingers or a butter knife. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to just-warm or room temperature.

The Anti-Valentine's Day Post

Valentine’s Day. Bleh. I vote we move it to the end of February so that it’s only celebrated once every 4 years, or better yet, not at all. Clearly, I’m not the biggest fan of V-Day. I don’t even want to get into last year, (I skipped writing about it altogether) but on Valentine’s Day two years ago, I wrote briefly about being Anti-Valentine’s Day and then more in depth about this Chocolate Armagnac Cake. The cake is what’s important and I feel like it deserves another highlight because I absolutely love the combination of chocolate, Armagnac and prunes. Yes, prunes. If you want to be snobby about it you can call them dried plums but that doesn’t change the fact that they’re prunes and that they make this cake awesome.

To appease those who love Valentine’s Day, (and I know there’s a ridiculous number of you out there based on all the red, pink and hearts I’ve been seeing on the blogs for the past week) I decided to work flowers into the plating of my cake. Mine won’t die on you though, they’re all edible. The rose is made out of Chocolate Playdough which I first saw on Cake on the Brain and have wanted to do something fun with ever since. After working with the stuff though I came to two quick realizations. The first is that I never want to have to make 100 of these. The second is that warm hands make a mess of chocolate. I had to repeatedly throw everything in the freezer, (perhaps I should have gotten in there too?) so that it didn’t turn to mush. The dried edible flowers were much easier to deal with. Pop open the jar and sprinkle at will. Instant pretty! If I had been on top of things this past summer, those could have come from my garden. Instead they were a much appreciated gift. I think that actually makes them better.

The recipe for this wonderful cake is from none other than Dorie Greenspan and can be found on page 279 of Baking: From My Home to Yours. And although you could make this cake for a Valentine, I'd opt to take the selfish route and keep it all for yourself. Just look at all that chocolately goodness... Don't bother sharing.

Baking! Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart

I haven’t been baking nearly enough. Besides the fact that sweets have been remarkably absent from this blog, I recently had to be prompted to make cookies because the jar was empty. The cookie jar should never be empty. Ever. But there just doesn’t seem to be enough time to do everything I want to do, read everything I want to read and make everything I want to make. But there should always be time for baking.

It seems as though I’ve been sucked into the cooking world lately. This is obviously a byproduct of working in a restaurant where savoury dominates over sweet. It’s probably also as a result of getting caught up in other people’s enthusiasm. When the people around you truly enjoy what they’re doing it’s hard not to want to get involved and have fun with it too. It seems I’m not the only one with this disposition. A couple of the dishies, (dishwashers) at work will usually come find me when they’re done their work and ask me if there’s anything they can do for me. Depending on what needs to be done I’ll either hand them some more dishes to do, ask them to go downstairs to the walk in fridge to get me some ingredients or point them in the direction of something that needs cleaning. They like me best though when I let them use a knife to do some sort of prep work. They just want to cook too.

A couple weeks ago one of the young dishes came and asked me if there was anything he could do to help. I knew there was a large box of herbs that needed to be chopped so I told him he could start on that. His response was an enthusiastic “OK!” followed by a blank stare. I then asked him if he had ever chopped herbs before and determined that he had not. So I set him up with a cutting board and a knife and showed him what he needed to do to avoid chopping off a finger and let him get to work. I went back to what I was doing but kept an eye on him. A short while later he popped his head up and exclaimed, “Look! I’m cooking!” It was so genuine, I couldn’t help but smile.

All of this is to say that I’ve been caught up with cooking and doing a lot more of it than baking, (although in my case, actual cooking, not just chopping herbs) but it’s time to switch it up a bit and a Dorie Greenspan recipe is always a great place to start. The surprising bit is that I’ve made this recipe for Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart before and it’s a rare thing for me to make the same tart twice. However, consistency is also important and therefore repetition is becoming a necessity which is not necessarily a bad thing. Repeating this recipe has allowed me to improve on the final presentation and give the plate a little colour with pomegranates. Ironically, the last time I made it I stated that there was nothing I could do to improve upon it. What a difference a year can make.

Dorie makes this tart with roasted, salted peanuts although I opted for toasted almonds with an extra pinch of salt as that’s what I had in the cupboard. The whipped cream I made is Kahlua infused and only lightly sweetened. And finally, the plate is garnished with pomegranate jelly and fresh pomegranate seeds because I love their sweet tartness and jewel-like tones. I added one other thing to this tart although it was completely accidental. As I stirred the chocolate and warm cream together to make the ganache, I noticed that not all of my chocolate was melting and there appeared to be little bits swimming about. Closer inspection, (and tasting) would reveal that I had used a chocolate bar with cocoa nibs in it so my final ganache wasn’t perfectly smooth but it did have a bonus flavour and texture that I quite liked.

I had thought that I would link to the recipe through the Tuesdays with Dorie group but they’ve shockingly not made this one yet so I’ll just refer you to page 355 in Baking from My Home to Yours, which you should all own by now anyways. Dorie says this tart is best the day it’s made, but I assure you that if there are leftovers they’re just as good the following day with a cup of tea or coffee for an afternoon snack.

New York City

When a friend phones you up with no warning and says you have 30 minutes to pack for a roadtrip to New York City the only appropriate thing to do is to start throwing clothes into a suitcase. This is what happened to me last Monday and shortly thereafter I was on my way to NYC for the first time. What happened next?

An Open Letter to the city of New York:

Dear New York,

Thanks for the Gershwin Hotel, a somewhat reasonably priced hostel in Manhattan. Located in the shadow of the Empire State building and a short walk away from Times Square, it served as home base.

Thanks for providing us with an awesome roommate who treated us to dosas at her favourite Indian restaurant a couple blocks away from the hostel. For another awesome roommate who was a Kiwi and came out and partied with us. And for giving us the strength not to kill the group of young Aussies who were particularly loud, way too early in the morning.

Thanks for a subway system that runs 24 hours, works on a swipe card system and will take you wherever you want to go. Take note Toronto, take note.

Thanks for Magnolia Bakery and their ridiculous cupcakes. I don’t even like cupcakes and yet somehow I was compelled to go there, get cupcakes, eat cupcakes, bring cupcakes back to the hostel and then eat more cupcakes for breakfast. There was a line up, I was not the only one doing this.

Thanks for great entertainment every night but especially for hosting the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble at Joe’s Pub. These guys are an amazing 8 piece brass ensemble, plus drummer who play jazz arrangements with a hip hop flair. Definitely check them out.

Thanks for letting Thomas Keller expand his empire into New York with Bouchon Bakery, (and I suppose Per Se as well but my bank account refused to let me dine there as it has to prepare itself for The French Laundry…). And thanks for being home to many Daniel Boulud restaurants, but Bar Boulud and Café Boulud in particular, (more on those in the next post).

Thanks for being enormous and for and making me walk from morning to night to see everything which helped to counteract the damage done by eating cupcakes for breakfast followed by lunch and dinner at your many wonderful restaurants.

Thanks for being home to Dorie Greenspan, (even though she wasn’t there while I was) and for having an enormous M&Ms store to support her M&M habit, (which I might soon adopt, have you tried the premium Mocha M&Ms???).

Thanks for Danielle and Dave of Habeas Brulee who were nice enough to take me into their home, greet me with a freshly made beef heart burger and let me watch their creative madness for an evening. Thanks also to Danielle for telling me I needed to visit Kalustyans, a magical place filled with fine foods and hard to find spices, which happened to be right down the street from my hostel.

Thanks for your diverse neighbourhoods, bustling streets, bright lights, big things and a week of fun. My only complaint? The depletion of my bank account at such an alarming rate! On my next visit I would appreciate retaining some of my meager assets. Or, at the very least, point me in the direction of a wealthy New Yorker who wants to take me in. It’s the least you could do after the nice things I’ve written about you.

Much love <3

Brilynn

The Kids Are Alright

My friend Pete is a News Editor for The Homer Index, a newspaper serving the Homer and Litchfield areas of Michigan. (If this sounds familiar, I’ve previously mentioned Pete in this post about roasting chicken). Every week I have the pleasure of opening my inbox to find a copy of Pete’s most recent Word on the Street column. This week Pete wrote about Ryan Michaels, an award-winning journalist who does movie reviews for Heritage Newspapers, Inc. What’s the big deal about an award-winning journalist? This one happens to be 11 years old and he received an honourable mention in the Michigan Press Association’s 2008 Better Newspaper Contest in the category of Local Columnist for a weekly paper with a circulation under 4,000. My friend Pete did not. Of course his initial reaction was to be depressed, and really, who could blame him? Being beat by an 11 year is almost as bad as that time he was beat by a 15 year old girl in a foot race…

But I digress… I could feel Pete’s pain because earlier in the day I had listened to a CBC radio interview with Luke Hayes-Alexander, (you can listen to the podcast in the archives under Eating and Dining Locally). Who? That would be 17 year old Executive Chef Luke Hayes-Alexander who plans the menu and cooks using locally sourced ingredients at his restaurant Luke’s! in Kingston, Ontario. He’s only 17 and he's a phenomenally good chef. What's more is that he's articulate and humble about that whole thing too. He became obsessed with food at age 11 and took off from there. And what am I doing with my life? Certainly not running things like Luke.

After initially hearing the interview I had the same reaction as Pete, depression. But after thinking about it for a while I came to another conclusion; that this might actually be a good sign. Maybe the kids are alright after all. Given all the horror stories told on the news involving the youth of today it’s kinda nice to hear that they’re not all bad. An optimist could even go so far as to hope that these youngsters are starting to become the rule as opposed to the exception. I can’t say that I’m not jealous of their success, but I’m happy they’re having it nonetheless. Pete also eventually admits that although he may have lost out on the award, he’s fallen to a worthy foe. Yes, the kids are alright. You should check out Pete’s website to read more of his articles which are always entertaining, informative and written with a sense of humour that I just can’t get enough of, (case in point: this article about Pete’s ongoing fight with Canada which began a few years ago when he, an American, voted in a Canadian Federal Election).

But back to the food… In honour of the little ones, I’m going against my ‘Go Big or Go Home’ slogan and posting a series of mini pies. They’re all made with Dorie’s Good for Almost Everything Pie Dough and were created to use up leftover dough or ingredients from other projects. None of them have recipes to go with them, other than the star pie which is actually Dorie’s Thanksgiving Twofer Pie, (pumpkin and pecan in one). I made a large version of that for Canadian Thanksgiving, which was this past weekend. The trio of pies are apple with maple caramel inside because I had leftover maple caramel and decided pie was the place for it to go. And the other pie is actually more of a pear crisp set on a pie shell, with sugar dusted pie dough scraps as garnish. I called it Pear Pie for One and was inspired to make it after watching Flight of the Conchords one night and hearing Bret sing about making a Lasagna for One. So there you have it, mini pies to salute the kids. I know I can’t beat them, I can only keep doing what I do and hope that the young ones will continue to flourish and subsequently support me when I get old. Or better yet, maybe I should consider becoming a cougar so I can snag one of those go-getters for myself… Hello Life Sponsor!

A Story for Every Flavour

You know how much I love ice cream, right? So it should be of no surprise that I don't care what the weather is like outside, I'm going to keep on making ice cream. If you're one of those people who only eats ice cream when it's hot outside, I have this to say: It's always hot somewhere so if you're in the Northern hemisphere and preparing for cold weather, I can recommend lovely Australia as the place to go for sunshine and eternal enjoyment of ice cream. So without further ado here are a sampling of a few of the ice creams I've recently made. You can find all of these recipes in David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop. A book every ice cream enthusiast should own.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Ice Cream: The first time I had chocolate peanut butter ice cream was to impress a boy. It was his favourite flavour but I had never had it before and ordered it just to show him I had good taste. He also introduced me to cherry flavoured candy canes and although I like them both to this day, the boy is long gone. Lobovitz’s Chocolate-Peanut Butter Ice Cream wasn’t quite the same as the first cone I had but it’s awfully good when sandwiched between cookies.

Rich Vanilla Frozen Yogurt: This one is made by first straining regular yogurt, (or using Greek yogurt if you have access to it) until it’s thick and the results are phenomenal. I was hooked on this for a while and made batch after batch. That’s saying a lot for the girl who doesn’t like to make anything twice. It’s the perfect base for any add in of your choice but I liked it best with fresh fruit on top. I even ate it for breakfast with fruit and granola. What? It’s yogurt, it’s practically health food.

Fresh Mint Ice Cream with Fudge Ripple: I am a big fan of chocolate mint combos, especially if they come in the form of Girl Guide cookies. I was a Girl Guide for exactly one year and it may have been just so that I could eat a ridiculous amount of thin mint cookies. I haven’t laid my hands on a box of those in ages but I know if I did they would disappear in seconds. This Fresh Min Ice Cream was good on its own, but better with the Fudge Ripple.

Peach Ice Cream with Blueberry Sauce: I’ve struggled with peach ice cream this year. I’ve made it a few times and a few different ways and I’ve been somewhat disappointed each time. I don’t think the ice cream recipes have been the problem, I think it’s the quality of the peaches. Good peaches have been hard to find this year, they haven’t been sweet enough and consequently my ice creams have suffered. Coating the ice cream with blueberry sauce definitely helped make it better though.

Guinness-Milk Chocolate Ice Cream: I wanted to love this ice cream, I really did. I adored the intro story that David told, (he essentially described it as boy-bait) and I wanted to make it right away. Sadly I didn’t love the results, but once again, this is not the fault of the recipe. I decided that I don’t actually like Guinness and therefore didn’t like the ice cream. I kept eating it though because when you first take a bite all you taste is chocolate but the aftertaste is definitively Guinness. The Guinness makes the ice cream incredibly creamy though and I’m certain that this ice cream would win over many people but sadly I was not one of them.

Olive Oil Ice Cream with Lemon: Most people wrinkled their noses at me when I told them I made olive oil ice cream, and if your nose is currently wrinkled, unwrinkle it! The ice cream doesn’t taste overwhelmingly of olive oil, it’s just unbelievably creamy. I used a fruity olive oil from New Zealand and took David’s suggestion of infusing the olive oil with lemon zest. I’d be interested in trying it with orange and lime zest as well. I sneak citrus zest into a lot of things, I love the flavour it lends and zest is a fun word to say.

Fresh Ginger Ice Cream: I like ginger. I like it pickled with sushi, ground in desserts, grated in stir fries, candied and dipped in chocolate. I like it lots of ways. I like it in ice cream and especially when served over a Dorie Apple-Cranberry Crisp. Perfect for fall. Perfect for anytime.

Aztec “Hot” Chocolate Ice Cream: This one was definitely spicy. I like it that way though. It’s a confusing sort of ice cream as the temperature of the ice cream is obviously cold but after swallowing it your mouth is curiously on fire. I tried to dress up the ice cream by torching a marshmallow on top but stupid me forgot that ice cream + fire = ice cream soup. Only the top layer turned to liquid, it was still solid underneath and I love toasted marshmallows so I guess it was worth it. That reminds me, I want to make a toasted marshmallow ice cream…

I’ve also made David’s Super Lemon Ice Cream but the pictures are still in my camera and I have plans to make his Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream next. Stories for another day.

Baking and Lists

Dorie has been writing a 3 part series for Bon Appetit teaching us all how to be better bakers. In the first installment, (October’s issue) Dorie gave us a recipe for a savoury quick bread that includes one of my favourite ingredients, bacon. The loaf, (pictured here with a beautiful dahlia from the garden) is great on its own as it also includes cheddar, dried pears, walnuts and sage, but I like it toasted with a little honey on top.

Dorie’s second baking article appears in the November issue of Bon Appetit and as I read it I found myself nodding along in agreement. Dorie mentions unearthling a scrap of paper that says “Exercise more; take a drawing class; learn Spanish; tackle War and Peace.”

Although War and Peace has never quite made it onto on of my many to-do lists, exercise is always there and take a drawing class and learn Spanish have also made appearances. Last year I actually took the drawing class although I can’t say I’ve drawn a single thing since it ended. I also made a half-assed attempt at learning Spanish by downloading conversational Spanish lessons to my iPod and listening to them repeatedly. I eventually got bored of those and didn’t learn Spanish, unless you count being able to greet someone and give directions on how to take the bus to the supermarket.

One of my never ending lists is a “Stuff to Post” list where I have a wealth of my cooking and baking exploits. Today I’m able to remove part of the Dorie section as I share with you Pecan Brown Sugar Shortbread, Bill’s Big Carrot Cake, Alsatian Apple Tart, Cream Scones, (with raspberries) Cornmeal Shortbread Cookies, (with lemon zest) and Fresh Ginger Chocolate Gingerbread, (with lime cream cheese icing) all from Baking From My Home to Yours. Anything listed in brackets was my own additional to the already superb recipes. I enjoy an opportunity to add cream cheese icing to anything and it pairs wonderfully with chocolate gingerbread cake.

Sometimes the things that make my non cooking related lists are pretty unattainable, like ‘acquire a life sponsor’. Other times I write down simple things like ‘do laundry’ just so that I can have the satisfaction of crossing it off the list. I’m currently accepting suggestions for things to add to my list, I’m feeling the urge to try something new, so send your ideas my way. I’d also be happy to hear some of the things on your lists and if they ever actually get done.

Bacon Cheddar Quick Bread with Dried Pears, (from Dorie Greenspan via the October, 2008 issue of Bon Appetit)

5 bacon slices, chopped

1 cup coarsely grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese plus 1/2 cup 1/4-inch cubes extra-sharp cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces total)

1 cup finely chopped moist dried pears (about 3 1/2 ounces)

1/3 cup walnuts, toasted, chopped

1 tablespoon minced fresh sage

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 large eggs

1/3 cup whole milk

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Generously butter 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch metal loaf pan. Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain.

Combine bacon, all cheese, dried pears, walnuts, and sage in medium bowl. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper in large bowl to blend. Whisk eggs, milk, and olive oil in another medium bowl to blend. Pour egg mixture over flour mixture and stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Add bacon-cheese mixture and stir until incorporated (dough will be very sticky). Transfer dough to prepared loaf pan; spread evenly.

Bake bread until golden on top and slender knife inserted into center of bread comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool bread in pan 5 minutes, then turn out onto rack and cool completely. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap in plastic, then foil, and store at room temperature.

Black Forest Cake

“I wanted to buy a candle holder, but the store didn't have one. So I got a cake.” That’s a Mitch Hedberg quote and he makes me laugh. He’s also a good source of inspiration for blog posts because he has a lot of one liners about food. This post is kinda like that Mitch quote. I wanted to write a blog post, but my brain didn’t have one. So I posted a cake. I actually made this cake in July for Mom’s birthday. As always, it had to be a black forest cake but I refused to make it the ordinary way and instead roasted the cherries for the filling in balsamic vinegar for a bit of a change. That was an excellent substitution. It was around that time that I first made balsamic roasted strawberry ice cream and fell in love with it so it was only natural that I gave cherries the same treatment. I’ve been meaning to do the same thing with peaches and I think it might happen yet. Possibly in ice cream form… Definitely in ice cream form.

There’s no specific recipe for this cake, it was cobbled together from a few different sources. The cake is the chocolate cake recipe from the cover of Dorie’s book. The filling is my own. And the frosting is simply a kirsch scented, lightly sweetened whipped cream. I wish I had more occasions to make layer cakes. I also wish that Mitch Hedberg wasn’t dead so he could come up with more great lines like “My friend was walking down the street and he said, "I hear music." As if there is any other way of taking it in. I tried to taste it, but it did not work.”

Words Left Unsaid

When I sit at my computer and my fingers wont type no matter how long I stare at the screen, this is the result. Words left unsaid and posts hidden away in the depths of an overcrowded hard drive. Is it just my blog or a metaphor for life in general? I tend to leave a lot unsaid. Not because I’m not thinking about it though, I’m a daydreamer. Perhaps daydreamer isn’t the right word as I feel like it has optimistic undertones and optimistic is not a word used to describe me. (If at this point you would like to tell me, as many others have, that a sunny outlook improves everything, I urge you not to waste your time as I’m more leopard than chameleon and these spots aren’t changing).

Maybe instead of a daydreamer I’m a thinker, an analyzer, an over-analyzer. I’m constantly rethinking past situations and envisioning future situations. Some are real and some fictional, some potential and others completely improbable. I’m convinced that if you listened carefully, in the quiet of nighttime, you could hear the whirring of my brain like a hamster wheel that’s constantly spinning. And the effort to keep that wheel going is tiring, even if like the wheel, I’m simply turning in circles and not going anywhere. That’s the frustrating part, lack of accomplishment or resolution. Thoughts left unspoken. And sometimes I need to write just to free up some space in my cluttered mind. Most often that kind of writing never makes it anywhere near a “post” or “send” button. Then there are days like today where I’ve decided that I’m not going to bed until I get something posted and this is the result. Despite my ramblings, this is still a food blog and I’ll at least deliver on that aspect even if I took a rather roundabout way of getting to the food.

If you think I’ve whipped up all these goodies recently, you would be mistaken… The butterfly sugar cookies were made way back in March. In fact, I even commented on a post of Ivonne’s when she made butterfly cookies, telling her I had made similar cookies a month earlier and still had yet to post about them. It’s months later and still no cookies, how did that happen? I would have forgotten all about them, (not because they’re forgettable but because I’m forgetful) but in my need to declutter I sometimes make lists and one of these lists is called “Stuff Left to Post”. I found the butterfly sugar cookies, (which are actually called Grandma’s All Occasion Sugar Cookies) on that list along with seven other Dorie Greenspan recipes that were completed sometime in the past six months.

It was at that point that I realized it’s been way too long since my last Dorie post. Hopefully though, with the creation of Tuesdays with Dorie, you’ve been seeing her wonderful recipes all over the blogosphere. I would love to join this group of intrepid bakers but I know I can’t actually commit to making a particular recipe in time to post along with the group every Tuesday, (but I do enjoy reading their posts). That being said, I haven’t stopped baking from Baking From My Home to Yours, (aka the baking bible) I just haven’t been quick to post my progress.

A few notes on the recipes…

Cornmeal and Fruit Loaf: It was moist and soft and best cut into thick slices, (as Dorie suggests doing) and was another opportunity for me to use cornmeal in my baking which I had never done before Dorie suggested it, (but which I quite enjoy).

Real Butterscotch Pudding: I never grew up on boxed pudding so I don’t pine for it the way some people do. That being said, maybe this makes me more appreciative of a pudding done right and made from scratch. And as I’m never one to shy away from alcohol in desserts, this Real Butterscotch Pudding was right up my alley. I also opted to top the pudding with cacao nibs.

Grandma’s All Occasion Sugar Cookies: As you can see, they roll out easily to whatever shape you decide to make them. My only complaint about them was my decision to ice them. I don’t have the patience for icing little cookies, especially not two dozen of them. Ugh.

Snickery Squares: These were a big hit and really, how could they not be? They’ve got the chocolate, caramel and peanuts of a Snickers bar but are on a shortbread base and made with a love like no Snickers bar has ever received.

Drunken Fruit Rice Pudding: This is one of the Playing Around options for the Arborio Rice Pudding and like I mentioned above, I like desserts with alcohol, but especially ones where the alcohol is combined with fruit.

Toasted Almond Scones: I once believed I wasn’t a fan of scones, but after making Dorie’s Apple Cheddar Scones I realized that it wasn’t all scones that I didn’t like, but just poorly made ones. The Apple Cheddar Scones were delicious and set me on a scone making rampage that included these Toasted Almond Scones as well as some Dried Strawberry and Lime Scones, (that I have yet to post about and may never get around to).

Orange Cup Custard: This is another Playing Around option, this time for the Lemon Cup Custards. I used to think I didn’t really like custard either, but I think it’s just the name I don’t like, kind of like curd. Perhaps these should be renamed Delicious Cups and then everyone would want to make them.

Chocolate Pots De Crème: Do I really need to add any notes to this? It’s chocolate in a cup and that’s got to be good, especially if topped with whipped cream and additional chocolate shavings.

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Dorie Greenspan + Baking + Scones + Pudding + Custard + Cookies