Pre-made chocolate mix is an affront to humanity. Why anyone would NOT make their own hot cocoa is totally beyond me especially with the laundry list of unpronouncable ingredients that make powdered mixes "consumable" for immeasurable periods of time on bodega shelves the world over.
This is Titi Jess' luuuuv chocolate that she makes especially for her little niece my sweet baby Ava Bean.
Enjoy!
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. cocoa powder
dash salt
Combine dry ingredients and add 1/3 c. hot H2O and 3/4 tsp. of vanilla and bring to a boil and dissolve the dry ingredients, stirrign constantly for 2 minutes.
Add four cups of cold milk and bring to a simmer, don't let it boil. For a thicker cup of chocolate, add some dark chocolate pieces, and for a change, a pinch of cayenne pepper.
This recipe makes 6 cups of hot cocoa.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
I am a Salad, My Sister is a Dish
At lunchtime my father unveiled a stunningly deft analysis of my sister's and my particular personalities based on what we excel at preparing in the kitchen.
I am a salad: no need for recipes or fussy ingredients, can be thrown together from anything lying around with surprisingly good results, can be tossed recklessly,even thoughtlesssly into a bowl, without fuss and with complete spontenaity, ingredients flying this way and that. He also said I may be good at soups- though actually my baby is the one who excels at that, leaving us in a particularly one sided culinary conundrum if my father is right about food and personality.
I would of course add the following list of adjectives to his description: homegrown, fresh, a little crunchy, creative and neccessary for your health.
Jessica, on the other hand, is a dish or perhaps a sauce-measured, precise, complex, multi-stepped, ordered, and sophisticated...I can't argue with this one bit, it's true. Jessy doesn't like making salads, she says that mine always come out tasting so much better when I make them for her and I, in return, have to call her at least twice a week for this recipe or that because she really does have a certain method to her madness that produces excellent results!
This is the coven on the beach on Christmas day. I am the lettuce leaf and she is the layered, accessorized one. Go figure.
I am a salad: no need for recipes or fussy ingredients, can be thrown together from anything lying around with surprisingly good results, can be tossed recklessly,even thoughtlesssly into a bowl, without fuss and with complete spontenaity, ingredients flying this way and that. He also said I may be good at soups- though actually my baby is the one who excels at that, leaving us in a particularly one sided culinary conundrum if my father is right about food and personality.
I would of course add the following list of adjectives to his description: homegrown, fresh, a little crunchy, creative and neccessary for your health.
Jessica, on the other hand, is a dish or perhaps a sauce-measured, precise, complex, multi-stepped, ordered, and sophisticated...I can't argue with this one bit, it's true. Jessy doesn't like making salads, she says that mine always come out tasting so much better when I make them for her and I, in return, have to call her at least twice a week for this recipe or that because she really does have a certain method to her madness that produces excellent results!
This is the coven on the beach on Christmas day. I am the lettuce leaf and she is the layered, accessorized one. Go figure.
Shrimp Boil
I've said it before and I will say it again: one of the finest things about the Gulf Coast is access to cheap, local, delicious, and totally fresh seafood. My Mom works in an heirloom sewing shop (more on her particular talents later)and has a customer who regularly purchases her seafood directly from a local fisherman straight out of Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Sometimes he catches more than he expects and when he does, my Mom's customer will call up the shop and the staff will sop up some of the surplus (the disturbing side to this is the reckless spoiling of certain felines in this household who are accustomed to this abundance and get hand fed shrimp at the table...my parents cats-gorgeous and nuerotic-live truly high on the hog). When that happens, as it did the other day, my Mom will buy 10 pounds of shrimp at $3/lb and have a good 'ol fashioned Southern shrimp boil.
It's fast, easy, simple, and satisfying. Add a couple tablespoons of shrimp boil to a pot of boiling water with potatoes. When approaching desired softness, add corn on the cob and boil for about 5 minutes.
Remove the veggies to a colander(reserving the liquid)and add the unpeeled shrimp until they shine with that customary pinkish hue, no more than two minutes. Whip up some cocktail sauce, throw some newspaper on the table to save your linens from shrimp spooge, and dive in.
Again, shrimp is one of those things I don't usually care too much for, like crab, but my palate seems only to reject the stuff when it's of the shipped across vast oceans variety. When I am here, I love it!
Friday, December 26, 2008
I Love Milk....
but only in a frothy, spiced milk punch with a shot of 151 and creme de cacao straight up with milk and half and half and a dusting of fresh nutmeg on top, seved in a chilled martini glass, preferably.
This is one of only three ways I will drink this most hideous and vile dairy product in its liquid form, the others being hot chocolate and cafe con leche.
My Dad got me started on this drink this morning as a prelude to my coffee and I have to say it's a good thing he didn't make me any more because I definitely would have spent the day in the hammock on the beach sleeping.
For two cocktails:
put ice in a beaker and throw on top 2 shots 151, and a pony shot of creme de cacao
add 4 shots of half and half and shake vigorously.
Garnish with fresh nutmeg or dark chocolate shavings and don't operate any heavy machinery.
Mallorcas
The tastiest and most delectable little confection you can imagine-not too sweet, oh so soft and just lovely with a little cafe con leche. I remember calling this pan dulce when I was a kid visiting PR but found out on my last visit back that they are actually pan de Mallorca-the most delectable of which can be found at La Bombonera- a 50's style throw back diner in Old San Juan where my great grandmother and her mother worked when it was definitely NOT famous at all and where they make honest, simple foods that most people could make for themselves but have forgotten and so are more rarified nowadays.
My great grandmother apparently was a tasty little confection herself, tramping in and out where her mother worked (I assume as a waitress), totally barefoot, whose affections were secured by a 50 some odd year old man who would become my great grand father and who had made a fortune in I think, construction. He bought her some shoes, probably maintained her impoverished family (why else would a family allow their child to marry a man so old?), and sired six or so children by her, one of which was my beautiful grandmother, Rosa. They later married properly when his first wife either died or moved on and were together until his death at age 101. My father told me that his grandfather's secret to longevity was 2 asprin and two beers every day. Does that mean that 3 or 4 beers will get me to 125? Hmmmm, that is something to ponder. (:
Anyway, here is the recipe:
3 eggs well beaten
Add to this 1/2 c. sugar and mix well
In a Cuisinart place 3 c. of flour and 1/2 tsp. salt and blend til incorporated
Warm 1/2 c. milk
Warm 1/4 c. water til it's warm enough to stick your finger in comfortably, around 105 degrees or so, I think. Dissolve in this 1 tsp. of sugar and then add a packet of yeast and let it sit a bit.
Meanwhile, take half a stick of butter and get it soft either by having had left it out or by nuking it a bit
Throw milk, yeast, butter into Cuisinart and blend until well incorporated.
Take it out and knead it a bit, grease lightly a big mixing bowl and put your dough in, nicely formed into a mound.
Cover with plastic wrap or a warm towel and put in a warm spot to rise for an hour
Upon rolling out the dough on a floured work space about a quarter inch thick (it should have a soft yellow hue)you can lightly lightly brush some butter onto the surface. Then roll it up and it will look like this:
Then cut the log of dough into 12 sections and place them on a cookie sheet, greased with butter. It will look like this:
And, after having risen again for a spell while we were fishing on the pier, like this:
We had more luck with the mallorcas than with the fish:
Okay, for the final touch, bake the mallorcas at 325 degrees for about twenty minutes. They should not be brown or really even golden, when the edges start to tinge, take them out.
Then simply place a cup of confectioner's sugar in a sieve and dust the little guys til your heart's content. Let them set a while to cool and then enjoy warm. These little babies actually freeze really well, too so you can make a bunch and have them ready when and if someone drops in for tea.
Here's the final product:
My great grandmother apparently was a tasty little confection herself, tramping in and out where her mother worked (I assume as a waitress), totally barefoot, whose affections were secured by a 50 some odd year old man who would become my great grand father and who had made a fortune in I think, construction. He bought her some shoes, probably maintained her impoverished family (why else would a family allow their child to marry a man so old?), and sired six or so children by her, one of which was my beautiful grandmother, Rosa. They later married properly when his first wife either died or moved on and were together until his death at age 101. My father told me that his grandfather's secret to longevity was 2 asprin and two beers every day. Does that mean that 3 or 4 beers will get me to 125? Hmmmm, that is something to ponder. (:
Anyway, here is the recipe:
3 eggs well beaten
Add to this 1/2 c. sugar and mix well
In a Cuisinart place 3 c. of flour and 1/2 tsp. salt and blend til incorporated
Warm 1/2 c. milk
Warm 1/4 c. water til it's warm enough to stick your finger in comfortably, around 105 degrees or so, I think. Dissolve in this 1 tsp. of sugar and then add a packet of yeast and let it sit a bit.
Meanwhile, take half a stick of butter and get it soft either by having had left it out or by nuking it a bit
Throw milk, yeast, butter into Cuisinart and blend until well incorporated.
Take it out and knead it a bit, grease lightly a big mixing bowl and put your dough in, nicely formed into a mound.
Cover with plastic wrap or a warm towel and put in a warm spot to rise for an hour
Upon rolling out the dough on a floured work space about a quarter inch thick (it should have a soft yellow hue)you can lightly lightly brush some butter onto the surface. Then roll it up and it will look like this:
Then cut the log of dough into 12 sections and place them on a cookie sheet, greased with butter. It will look like this:
And, after having risen again for a spell while we were fishing on the pier, like this:
We had more luck with the mallorcas than with the fish:
Okay, for the final touch, bake the mallorcas at 325 degrees for about twenty minutes. They should not be brown or really even golden, when the edges start to tinge, take them out.
Then simply place a cup of confectioner's sugar in a sieve and dust the little guys til your heart's content. Let them set a while to cool and then enjoy warm. These little babies actually freeze really well, too so you can make a bunch and have them ready when and if someone drops in for tea.
Here's the final product:
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas Cookies
These are the best cookies, ever. EVER! I double dog dare you to say they aren't! And no garbage shortening! Yippee!
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
Mix butter, powdered sugar, egg, vanilla and almond extracts. Blend in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Cover. Chill 2-3 hours.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Divide dough in half. Roll each half 3/16 inch thick on lightly floured surface. Cut into shapes and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown on edge.
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
Mix butter, powdered sugar, egg, vanilla and almond extracts. Blend in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Cover. Chill 2-3 hours.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Divide dough in half. Roll each half 3/16 inch thick on lightly floured surface. Cut into shapes and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown on edge.
Christmas, again!
Well I finally made it back to Pensacola and the white wine and sumptuous little crab cakes (actually, they weren't so little)that awaited us when we walked in the door made the whole oddyssey that began in Boston in the early morning and ended over 12 hours later, instantly worthwhile.
My Mom and Dad get amazingly fresh and local seafood from Bayou La Batre; these little beauties were no different. You know I don't think I have ever had crab cakes the way they were meant to be had. Most of the time a crab cake is little more than an afterthought; sort of like something you do with leftover crab so that it's not wasted and thoroughly camouflaged by breadcrumbs and such. These were the complete opposite-I had a hard time finding anything but gorgeous lump crab meat-which interestingly enough, I historically don't like-but I suppose that's because I have an innate palatal prejudice against most foods out of season or shipped across vast distances to be on my plate.
It's really nice as usual to see my parents and spending time with my little Ava is just so so precious. But it definitely caught me off guard how wrong it feels to be here without the other half of my family, even though they have never been here before. It's really a strange feeling and one that is, I hope, in the future, a nonexistant one.
Merry Christmas! As my gift to the internet, the best recipe for the most amazing crabcakes EVER!!!!
1 lbs lump crab meat
2 eggs
2 slices fresh white bread cubed
1 tbl mayonnaise
1 tbl dijon mustard
1 tbl worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
1 tbl fresh chopped parsley
panko breadcrumbs
In a bowl, beat the eggs well and add all mayo, must, worcest, parsley, salt and pepper. Add crab and with hands or a wooden spoon, mix; when well incorporated, add bread gently. Let sit in the fridge for one hour.
Form patties and roll them in panko breadcrumbs then fry on medium high heat in butter adn olive oil, about three minutes on each side.
Serve immediately with fresh lemon or lime wedges. Or let it sit in oven at 200 degrees to serve (a bit) later.
Voila!
My Mom and Dad get amazingly fresh and local seafood from Bayou La Batre; these little beauties were no different. You know I don't think I have ever had crab cakes the way they were meant to be had. Most of the time a crab cake is little more than an afterthought; sort of like something you do with leftover crab so that it's not wasted and thoroughly camouflaged by breadcrumbs and such. These were the complete opposite-I had a hard time finding anything but gorgeous lump crab meat-which interestingly enough, I historically don't like-but I suppose that's because I have an innate palatal prejudice against most foods out of season or shipped across vast distances to be on my plate.
It's really nice as usual to see my parents and spending time with my little Ava is just so so precious. But it definitely caught me off guard how wrong it feels to be here without the other half of my family, even though they have never been here before. It's really a strange feeling and one that is, I hope, in the future, a nonexistant one.
Merry Christmas! As my gift to the internet, the best recipe for the most amazing crabcakes EVER!!!!
1 lbs lump crab meat
2 eggs
2 slices fresh white bread cubed
1 tbl mayonnaise
1 tbl dijon mustard
1 tbl worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
1 tbl fresh chopped parsley
panko breadcrumbs
In a bowl, beat the eggs well and add all mayo, must, worcest, parsley, salt and pepper. Add crab and with hands or a wooden spoon, mix; when well incorporated, add bread gently. Let sit in the fridge for one hour.
Form patties and roll them in panko breadcrumbs then fry on medium high heat in butter adn olive oil, about three minutes on each side.
Serve immediately with fresh lemon or lime wedges. Or let it sit in oven at 200 degrees to serve (a bit) later.
Voila!
Monday, December 22, 2008
Empanada Dough
Yeah, I took this straight from epicurious because I noticed that all the pre-made disks in the store have partially hydrogynated oil or shortening in them, so I decided to see what I could do with this. I usually suck at dough making, but we'll give it a shot. You can also use puff pastry dough, though I am not sure what's in that either. We'll see how these turn out.
Empanada Dough
2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large egg
1/3 cup ice water
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
Sift flour with salt into a large bowl and blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.
Beat together egg, water, and vinegar in a small bowl with a fork. Add to flour mixture, stirring with fork until just incorporated. (Mixture will look shaggy.)
Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and gather together, then knead gently with heel of your hand once or twice, just enough to bring dough together. Form dough into a flat rectangle and chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.
Post script: I didn't know how to best cut the disk shapes out of this dough so I emptied a can of Cafe Bustelo and used that as a mold, it worked perfectly. And this recipe seems to make about 15 wrappers, over hald of which I put in the freezer for later.
The results of this crust were excellent, though not at all like what you get when you make them with store bought. I just found out that my parents bought me Cocina Criolla for Christmas so I will try a recipe from there and see how it comes out.
Empanada Dough
2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large egg
1/3 cup ice water
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
Sift flour with salt into a large bowl and blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.
Beat together egg, water, and vinegar in a small bowl with a fork. Add to flour mixture, stirring with fork until just incorporated. (Mixture will look shaggy.)
Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and gather together, then knead gently with heel of your hand once or twice, just enough to bring dough together. Form dough into a flat rectangle and chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.
Post script: I didn't know how to best cut the disk shapes out of this dough so I emptied a can of Cafe Bustelo and used that as a mold, it worked perfectly. And this recipe seems to make about 15 wrappers, over hald of which I put in the freezer for later.
The results of this crust were excellent, though not at all like what you get when you make them with store bought. I just found out that my parents bought me Cocina Criolla for Christmas so I will try a recipe from there and see how it comes out.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Ode to The Haymarket
What you are looking at is:
9 pounds of Roma tomatoes
6 pounds of onions
12 yellow and green peppers
1 pound jalapenos
10 bulbs of garlic
block of brie, goat cheese and gorgonzola
3 pounds baby red potatoes
2 fennel bulbs
2 bunches asparagas
2 bunches cilantro
and one big mamma swordfish steak
For which we paid 32 bucks. Yup, 32.
Being unemployed in Boston was never so gourmet!
They were also selling boxes of mango for 6 bucks, boxes of pineaples for 8. When I get a blender, I will start doing fruit, too so I can have smoothies for breakfast instead of bagels, which I am certain are directly responsible for the alarming fact that my pants don't fit.....ugh.
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