hello from the land of take-out

Dear Mom,

Well, hello, hello!  Long time no talk!  So I've been MIA from the blog for a few months now, but with good reason.  So, for those readers out there who are unaware, my little profile there on the right-hand side of the page says that I'm an "architectural designer."  The big difference between an architectural designer and an architect is that a person who calls themselves an architect is a person who has received their degree through an accredited architecture program, has taken the ARE (Architectural Registration Exam) and has three years of work experience.  As far as the real world work experience goes, the work is about the same no matter what you call yourself.  Those three years of work experience were easy.  The ARE was not.  The ARE has seven divisions of tests, each with over eighty multiple choice questions plus a design "vignette" (or three design vignettes  depending on the division).  Its all very technical and boring, but guess what?  I JUST FINISHED AND PASSED MY SEVENTH TEST AND I'M FREAKIN' DONE! 

Needless to say, I'm very happy.  So this is what I've been up to the past couple of months, studying.  Since it was the last exam I wanted to be completely focused, I did nothing but eat, breathe and sleep architecture these past few months.  So, any recipes that I would post from these past couple of months would read something like this:

1 cell phone
1 take-out menu
1 credit card

1.  Turn on cell phone.
2.  Dial number on take-out menu.
3.  Order food.
4.  While waiting for food, study flashcards.
5.  Answer door bell.
6.  Eat food, while studying flashcards.

So that's been my life, until that wonderful little email came that said I was done!  I'll be changing that little profile over there soon enough, I just have to wait for the paperwork to go through.  After all of that hardwork I wanted something hardy, cheesy and warming (because it was snowing when I found out).  I had a bizarre surplus of onions in my fridge, so here is what I made.

french onion soup

4 cups thinly sliced red onions
4 cups thinly sliced sweet yellow onions
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. sugar
fresh ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup dry white wine
8 cups less sodium beef broth or stock
8 sprigs fresh thyme
slices of baguette
slices of reduced-fat swiss cheese

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat, add onions.  Saute for 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender.  Add sugar, salt and pepper.  Continue cooking, stirring frequently, for 20 to 30 minutes, until the onions are browned slightly.  Add wine and cook for 1 minute.  Add broth and thyme, bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer for 1 hour (or more).

Ladle soup into heat-proof individual serving bowls.  Top with baguette slice, then top with a slice of cheese.  Broil in the oven on high until the cheese gets browned and bubbly.

mom's big mistake

Dear Kristin,

Yes, it is definitely time to break out the winter-chill-chasing recipes. While I love summertime for all of the grilling we do, the fall and winter stews, pies and baked goods just make me all warm & fuzzy inside. We never had home-made soup when I was a kid - everything we had came out of those little red & white cans. I must admit, that although my mom was not the greatest of cooks, she could heat the heck out of a can of soup! Unlike some moms we know. Let me take you back a few years, to when you were just a tot and I was a harried working mom, just trying to get dinner on the table....

We came home from the day-care, and I was busily preparing one of my famous quick fix dinners of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup (from a can, of course). While I normally just blended the soup concentrate with all water or with half water and half milk, I decided that maybe you needed something a little more fortifying and used all milk instead. When I put the soup in front of you, you just kind of looked at it a bit skeptically, tilted your head, and asked "Mom, is the tomato soup supposed to be orange?"

"Yes, honey" I replied. I explained that using all milk made the soup a different color than what you were used to, but that it would be so much tastier and creamier. (Meanwhile I'm thinking - gheesh! the nerve of this kid, questioning her mom!) You seemed satisfied with this answer, knowing that, as always, Mom is always right, and could never, in her ultimate wisdom, ever serve her precious daughter anything less than a perfectly prepared meal. Imagine my surprise, then, when I heard this tiny voice a few minutes later, asking with just a tint of trepidation, "Mom, is the tomato soup supposed to be cold?" I was busted! even my four-year-old knew that soup is supposed to be hot! In my rush to get dinner on the table, I'd completely forgotten to heat up the soup!! Maybe that was the day you decided to become the culinary queen that you are - no more trusting Mom!

Well, I've come a long way since then. I rarely open a can of soup, unless it's an ingredient in something else like a casserole. And I must say that this recipe for potato soup came out wonderfully. I can't really call it baked potato soup, because unlike most similar recipes, the potatoes aren't baked - just allowed to simmer until they're tender. The beer & cheddar cheese add a nice tang, and the topping of bacon, cheddar & sour cream? Divine.















loaded potato soup

4 Tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 large ribs celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 c. flour
salt and pepper
3 c. chicken stock (more if necessary)
1 c. whole milk
1 (12 oz.) bottle of beer
4 large russet potatoes, peeled & chopped
2 c. grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Dash of hot sauce (optional)
1/2 to 1 lb. bacon, cooked crisp
sour cream for topping
chives for topping

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, carrot, celery & onions. Cook until the veggies begin to soften. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies & continue to cook, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes more, or until flour is toasted. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2. Gradually whisk in the stock, and then the milk and the beer. Add the potatoes and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and continue to simmer until the potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes).

3. Remove the pan from the heat. Remove about 1 to 2 cups of potato chunks and reserve. Using an immersion blender, puree the rest of the soup until smooth. Return the soup to the stove, and turn heat to low. Add the reserved potatoes and a handful of bacon pieces.

4. Add one cup of  the cheddar cheese, a handful at a time, stirring and cooking until smooth after each handful. Add Worcestershire, hot sauce, and salt and pepper to taste.

4. Place soup in bowls and top with remaining cheddar, sour cream, bacon and chives.

cool nights, warm bellies

Dear Mom,

As much as truly loath the end of summer, I do have a soft spot in my heart for fall.  Well, maybe not my heart, more like my stomach.  Gone are the days where it is simply too hot to contemplate eating anything but things cooked on the grill, its time to fire up that oven!  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about eating burgers, hot dogs and steaks, but after a while you're ready to dig in to a nice hearty stew or pasta.  There is nothing better than slowly braising a pot of yummy meat and vegetables for half a day and then serving it over hot egg noodles, and fall is the perfect time to do this.

coq au vin

6 oz. bacon, chopped
1 5-7 lb whole chicken, cut into serving pieces
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper
1 bag frozen pearl onions
8 oz. button mushrooms, quartered
1-1/2 bottles red wine, preferably pinot noir
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1 medium onion, quartered
2 stalks celery, quartered
2 carrots, quartered
3 cloves garlic, crushed
6-8 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken stock or broth

Egg noodles or mashed potatoes for serving

Heat a large french oven (coquette) over medium-high heat.  Cook bacon until crispy, remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.  Meanwhile, put chicken pieces in zip-top plastic bag with flour, season with salt and pepper.  Seal bag and shake, completely coating the chicken. 

Preheat oven to 325.  Leave bacon fat in french oven on heat, add additional oil if needed.  Brown chicken in hot oil on both sides.  Remove from french oven to plate and set aside.  Add additional oil if needed and brown (separately) pearl onions and then mushrooms.  Remove pearl onions and mushrooms from french oven and put in refrigerator.

While the french oven is still over the heat pour in about 1 cup of red wine, scrape brown bits up from the bottom.  Add remaining wine, chicken broth and tomato paste, stirring until paste is mostly dissolved.  Add chicken, onion, celery, carrots, garlic, thyme and bay leaf.  Make sure that chicken is covered with the liquid (if not add more wine or broth).  Cover and put in the oven.  Cook for 2 - 2.5 hours or until the chicken is tender. 

When the chicken is done, remove it to a heat-proof container and keep warm.  Strain the sauce through a collander and return to the stovetop over medium-high heat.  Reduce by 1/3, about 30 minuties (if sauce is still not thick go ahead and whisk in a little roux).  When the sauce is thick add the mushrooms, onions and chicken back to the pot.  When everything is hot your ready to serve, I recommend egg noodles or mashed potatoes.

more cake!

Dear Kristin,

I'm back! As you know from our telephone conversations, we recently bought/sold our house, and have been so busy moving out & in that I've not had any time to cook, let alone sit down & write about it! Somehow, no matter how much we clean in the new house, we keep on finding more areas that need attention. Your poor dad has not had much rest at all since he retired in February! As a matter of fact, I've kept him so busy that he's lost 15 pounds since we started this whole thing.

Well, we can't let dad waste away any further. So, I made one of my stand-by desserts last weekend - let's just say that it only took the two of us 3 days to finish an entire 13x9 cake.This cake is one of our all-time favorites. I've been making it for years, and there are a few reasons why:
1. Both kids and grown-ups like it.
2. I usually have everything the recipe calls for right in my kitchen. (Honestly, a kitchen without peanut butter is no kitchen at all.)
3. You can snack while you bake - first, you get to lick your fingers, spatula and measuring cup after doling out the peanut butter. Next, you get to taste-test the streusel topping (Do this before you add the eggs, please!) Sugar, peanut butter & butter crumblies? This is banned in four states. Finally, you must make sure that the chocolate or peanut butter chips you are using are still edible, and the only way to do this is to taste a small handful.. (Not that they have ever gone bad in my kitchen!)
4. When the cake comes out of the oven, all you need to do is pour a big cold glass of milk & enjoy!

peanut butter picnic cake
(adapted from Farm Journal's Complete Home Baking Book c. 1979)

2 1/4 c. flour
2 c. light brown sugar
1 c. smooth peanut butter
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs
Chocolate and/or Peanut Butter Chips

Combine flour, brown sugar, peanut butter & butter in mixing bowl. Beat with electric mixer at low speed until mixture resembles coarse crumbs (this is the streusel topping). Remove 1 c. crumbs & set aside.

Add baking powder, baking soda, milk, vanilla and eggs to remaining crumb mixture. Beat 3 minutes at medium speed. Pour into greased 13x9x2 inch pan. Sprinkle with reserved crumbs and chocolate &/or peanut butter chips.

Bake at 350 F. for 40 minutes or until cake tester or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Pour a nice tall glass of milk & enjoy!

there will be cake...

Dear Mom,

I can't remember who's quote this was, nor really how exactly it went, but it was some stand-up comedian who said something along the lines of "cake is so good, that if the DMV says they're going to 'have cake,' you know you'll want to renew your license."  Back in the days when I worked in a busy office I remember those wonderful days when someone had a birthday and there was going to be cake.  And I think no one can forget those days in elementary school when it was Jimmy So-and-So's birthday and his Mom baked cake.  In my days the cool kid's Moms made "Funfetti" cake...  That wonderful boxed white cake with the colored sprinkles both in the batter and on top of the frosting, typically it was in sheet form.  Oh those were the days!  I'm pretty sure that Funfetti cake is still available at most grocery stores, but like many things as we grow older certain foods like McDonald's cheeseburgers, Chuck-e-Cheese's pizza and Funfetti cake start to loose their magic. 

Those boxed cakes I suppose are a bit of a cheaters method of baking cake, but sometimes when you're in a hurry the box can be quite helpful.  And of course, who isn't in a hurry to eat cake?  Also, as we grow older we begin to discover the many forms cake can take on...  Not only in sheet form, but stacked high, square, round, crazy characters, Al Roker, cup-sized and bundt.  Bundt is quite pretty and easy considering you don't have to worry about frosting or decorating, just a simple dusting of powdered sugar and you're good to go.  So I've got a great bundt recipe that is kind of a cheaters cake, I use a box mix, but I add some other ingredients.  To stick with my Italian theme that I talked about in my last post, this cake is made with Limoncello.  If you're not familiar with this lovely drink, it's a Southern Italian lemon liquer.  I fell in love with it while waiting tables at an Italian restaurant.  We used to serve it over lemon sorbet, which is also an amazing use of the liquer.

limoncello bundt cake

1 box lemon cake mix
1 16oz container light sour cream
2 eggs
1 small package lemon pudding mix
1/4 cup veggie or canola oil
1/2 cup limoncello
cooking spray/flour (for prepping bundt pan)
powder sugar (for garnish)

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray the bundt pan with cooking spray and dust with flour.  Mix all ingredients and add to the bundt pan.  Tap the pan several times on the counter.  Bake for 45-60 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then invert onto a platter.  Dust with powder sugar.