Jan. 2nd 2012

Monday, January 2, 2012

Drinks, Dips and Sanibel

Just as the bad weather hits Ohio, we are off to Sanibel for two weeks in the sun with Joe and Glenda. Even though I said I was not dragging a bunch of supplies with us this time, the car is packed.  We are stopping first to see David and Johnna and JD.  David has a new place to show us and a new favorite restaurant for us to try.  Then on we go to the island.  The dogs have begun to sense trouble ahead, but once this is over we are home for the long winter...which I don't mind at all.  I've traveled so much in the past that home calls me and it is where I am happiest. I am pleased, too, that Nate and Matt will be here with the dogs because the guys need to work and attend classes and the dogs need their attention. I am not boarding the dogs at the vet's again because they were not well taken care of over Christmas.  I believe the doctors will see to it that the boarding policies are changed there, but now I don't trust the situation, so it is home for the dogs from now on.

The condo on the beach will be a fun experience and several people we know may be visiting.  I don't want to entertain too much, but I have some good ideas for dips,  new decks of cards, a puzzle, and the Sequence game.  I have a traveling library for beach reading for everyone.   The camera is charged and I will have pictures for you.
Note: Speaking of thoughtful gestures and trips, Pam, Kathy and Mary Susan put together one of those Shuttterfly picture books, bound and lovely, to say thanks for the Thanksgiving trip to Hilton Head. It is something to keep to remind us of the fun we had. (I am showing two examples of these on line books)  If you have not seen these books that YOU can produce on line with family pictures etc.  look into it, it is fun to do and easy as well. http://www.shutterfly.com

I hope your New Year is fantastic and I'll leave you with some dips in case you have a Super Bowl Party--whatever that is.( LOL) I have never in my life had one, but many people are crazy about  Super Bowl parties and dips are perfect for them, so I hear.

Lima Bean Guacamole:
Cook 10 ounces frozen lima beans in salted water until tender, drain and rinse.  Pulse in a processor with 1 avocado, 1/2 chopped small onion, the juice of 2 limes, 1 serrano chile. 1/2 cup torn cilantro, and salt to taste (pepper too). Fold in 1 chopped tomato.

Garlic-Herb Dip:
3 heads garlic cut crosswise.  Drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil and roast at 400 for 40 minutes.  Squeeze out the pulp, mix with 1 cup mayo, 1 tsp. each lemon zest and juice, chopped sage and parsley to taste, salt and pepper to taste.

Hot Crab Dip:
Mix 3 ounces cream cheese, 1/2 cup mayo, 2 tsps. lemon juice, hot sauce and chopped parsley to taste; fold in 1/2 pound crab meat.  Spread in a baking dish, top with breadcrumbs (I use panko) and bake at 425. until golden, about 15 minutes.

Blue Cheese Dip:
Mix 4 ounces crumbled blue cheese, 1/2 cup each mayo and sour cream, 1/4 cups buttermilk and some minced chives.
To make it Buffalo Dip use the above and add hot sauce to taste, 1/2 cup finely chopped celery, and replace the chives with minced celery leaves.

comfort cakes...a look back

Monday, February 11, 2013

Comfort Cakes ~

Lime coconut syrup cake

Poppy seed cake

Banana butterscotch syrup cake

Seeded nut bread

Upside down cashew and maple loaf

Pear crumble cake

Pumpkin, pineapple and prune cake

To me, the UK equals comfort cakes. We call them snack cakes, they may call them slices, but I will always associate those one layer goodies with my (antiquing) days in England. They may come in loaves, in rounds or squares, but they ooze goodness and comfort even if they are not always that pretty. They are featured in every bakery and in every hamlet that I visited. But the places I remember them most would be at flea markets and antiques shows.  The slices were easy to carry and to eat on the run while the eyes wandered over the market tables in search of the very prize that could be added to a collection or sold for a profit. The bake shops made these cakes too, because they held well. They were good for several days and they only got better as they wait to be bought and consumed. Housewives slapped them together at the last minute for unexpected company or as a sweet ending of a meal.  Children anticipated them as they skipped home from school. And, everyone had their favorites. So this is an ode to comfort cakes...easy to make, satisfying to eat.

Sandy Schmoker of Nebraska gave me this recipe while we attended a pork roast during our 1982 miniature convention.  Not only is it easy, but heads my list of fast, delicious snack cakes.  I always make it in a bunt pan or a loaf tin.

Poppy Seed Slices
1 package yellow cake mix
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup cooking oil
1 package instant banana pudding mix (or any flavor you wish to add to the cake in pudding form)
4 eggs
1/4 cup poppy seeds
Combine cake mix, water, oil, and pudding mix in a bowl. Mix until well blended and stir in the poppy seeds. Spoon into a well greased and floured 10 inch tube pan (or loaf pan). Bake 350 for 45 minutes--depending on your oven, of course.

Double Fudge Slice
You can serve this with any enhancement but floating on creme , a l'anglaise (custard) it is perfection.
1/2 cup butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. milk
Preheat oven to 325.  Melt butter and chocolate and cool slightly.  Gradually mix into eggs. Add remaining ingredients and stir until just mixed. Spread into a buttered 9 inch pie plate and bake for 40 minutes--less if you have a convection oven. Center WILL BE SOFT and moist when taken from oven.  It firms when cooling.  Serve with ice cream, or whipped cream...but loose custard is the best.

For any of the above (pictured) recipes, just email me and I will get it to you.

Linda McFarland gave me this recipe.  We taught together and enjoyed this simple treat on many occasions.

Ritz Cracker Squares
25 Ritz crackers crushed and rolled, to this add: 1 tsp. baking powder to one cup pecan pieces
3 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 pint whipping cream.
Whip egg whites to a stiffness, add sugar and vanilla. Add cracker mixture slowly.
Bake in a greased pan at 350 for around 20- 30 minutes... but watch it, it burns like crazy.  Cool and top with whipped cream and chocolate curls. Refrigerate.

Sheet pan nachos

Now, this makes sense.  Sheet pan nachos rather than the soggy tower.  I Googled the best blogs for 2019 and I had to read the top 20 or so before I ran into this good idea.  Think of it for a party--all spread out and ready to scoop.  I was disappointed in the top blogs and found only Pioneer Woman and Simply Recipes before I was comfortable. There are many Vegan blogs or recipes slipped into other blogs and if people like that and want to eat that way, then fine, but it is not for me.  Life is too short. And, I don't want to read the recipes either, so, I see the word and skip on...to find this!

Italian pasta salad

Beth is working in Cincinnati for a couple of days and she is coming home today.  I want to welcome her with this favorite Italian salad. This is the beginning, then just add pasta:

Feb. 9, 2011 souffle of memory

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Food For Thought

Food For Thought

This morning, as every morning, I have a three-dog paper- reading, coffee- sipping experience. One puppy in my lap, one at my right hip and one with her head on my shoulder as though she is enjoying Cook's Corner with me. We especially like Wednesday mornings because of this experience. Not as much as we once did, when Cook's Corner was whole, but nice just the same. The economy has caused the down sizing of the once prized section of The Columbus Dispatch and now it is wedged in with gossip, crosswords, advice, and horoscopes. It has lost a bit of panache and some of its best food writers.

This morning the recipe for chocolate bourbon butterscotch souffles evoked a memory of the best souffle I have ever tasted. Never having made one in my entire life, it has been on my bucket list since I first flipped a pancake. Chartres Hotel Best Western Le Grand Monarque, France makes the best souffle I have ever tasted. Their food, actually, ranks up there with the best food in France, but then that is just the opinion of a hungry auction attendee from Ohio. Several times a year I went to, and enjoyed, the Galerie de Chartres an auction house for the very best French dolls and toys. I never collected dolls, but I bought and sold and wrote about a certain doll called Bleuette for six or so years. The auction at Chartres was one of my favorite places to go and Le Grand Monarque was one of my favorite places to stay. Each room was decorated differently and well.

The Grand Marnier (orange liqueur) souffle at Le Grand Monarque tops my scrumptious list. One had to order it before the meal in order for it to be perfect in all of its quivering glory as it was carried to the table with ohhhs and ahaaaas greeting this sweet perfection. I searched the web and there are tons of recipes for Grand Marnier souffles and I bet they can't be that much different from the one I tasted with friends, dealers and collectors in France.

Today I am printing the chocolate bourbon butterscotch souffles which serves eight as shown in this mornings Cook's Corner. This one is different because you can make it a day ahead and pop it in the oven at the last minute, according to instructions which indicate the cold rest helps it hold its fluff and height. Let me know what you think. I am trying it once I get back to sampling sweets , but for now I am content with my memories of the Grand Marnier at Le Grand Monarque.

Chocolate Bourbon Butterscotch Souffles

Butter and sugar to coat the ramekins
6 tablespoons butterscotch sauce from a jar
1/4 cup butter, 1/2 stick
6 ounces semisweet chocolate
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 eggs, separated
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons water
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons bourbon
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Lightly coat the inside of 6 ramekins with butter. Coat them with sugar, tapping out any excess. Place one tablespoon of butterscotch sauce in the bottom of each ramekin.
In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and both chocolates. Zap it on high in 20 second-intervals, stirring between each, until melted and smooth. (Or melt it as you usually do.)
In another large bowl, combine the egg yolks and salt. Use an electric mixer to beat until slightly thickened and pale.
In a small saucepan over medium-high, combine the water and half the sugar and bring to a boil.
Resume beating the egg yolks. With the mixer running, drizzle in the hot sugar mixture. Whip on high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Fold the egg yolks into the chocolate mixture. Stir in the bourbon.
In a clean fresh bowl, whisk the egg whites with the cream of tartar until frothy. Slowly add the remaining sugar while continuing to beat, beating until the whites hold a stiff peak. Gently fold into the chocolate and yolk mixture. Spoon into the ramekins, smoothing the tops and wiping the rims. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
When ready to bake the souffles, heat the oven to 350 and bake them for 15 to 17 minutes, or until risen and puffy with a soft-firm top and a set center. Serve immediately. Good luck.

This is an on line recipe.
Grand Marnier® liqueur gives this classy dessert dish a fabulous orange flavor. Plan on serving this right away. The souffle will fall if held long.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Ingredients:
1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons or 1/2 stick) butter, melted and cooled
1/4 cup flour
1-1/3 cups milk
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
6 egg yolks (reserve whites)
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons Grand Marnier® orange liqueur
6 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8-cup souffle dish with butter. Set aside.

Whisk together butter, flour, milk, and salt in a small saucepan. Heat over low heat, stirring constantly, until smooth and thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.

Beat yolks with sugar, vanilla, and Grand Marnier® until smooth and slightly thickened. While constantly whisking, slowly blend in 1/4 cup of the milk mixture until blended. Continue whisking and blend in the remainder of the milk mixture in a slow, steady stream until combined.

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Fold into the egg yolk mixture. Pour into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes until puffed and golden. Serve immediately. (Souffle will fall if held long.)

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Feb. 4th 2014 (old post)

I do a good amount of this...

                              


                                                                   A peek into my day...

 I came home to the most amazingly clean and organized house!  Thanks to Beth, Mike, and a woman named Levitt. Even the dogs sparkled.  It was a lovely gift and one I really appreciate.  After a month in the sun and a trip home without incident, it is always an adjustment to get back into the thick of the action. During the trip I did a lot of cooking and today, four days later, I am considering turning on the stove if I recall how to do this.  The knobs are so clean, the counter so pristine, the floors so shiny, disturbing things so perfect makes me hesitate, procrastinate, and abdicate.

One thing about the trip before I (perhaps) start to cook.  The motels between Columbus and Florida have suddenly gotten cheaper.  On the way down we paid $53. for a nice room at a Best Western.  We have always paid over $100. On the way back we paid $48. for a night in a Hampton Inn.  Granted what ever was blowing through the air system in that one caused me great anguish with cold like symptoms... that is until I got home, shed what I was wearing, took a shower, washed my hair and suddenly I was cured.  What is it with these heating and air systems--don't they know how to change a filter?  Anyway, once we got to northern Florida we stayed a couple of days to visit family. We were in another Best Western (where we had stayed five times before) and the room price went up to nearly $90. for the same type accommodations.  We asked the( snippy) desk clerk why the price difference and her reply was, "after all, this IS Florida". Really? Gainsville?  That's the way it goes and if one travels, one pays.

Before we left for the month at the beach, Glenda and Joe had a family card party to see us all off the next day. Kathy, their daughter, made a delicious easy dish with a rotisserie chicken.  It was miniature sliders.  The left overs have many uses: on a homemade pizza, on a salad, over a pasta dish, to name but a few. We made it twice in Florida and it will become a must at parties from now on.  It is one of the two dishes that was new to me, the other one from Beth can be viewed on the previous post about Florida with the family pictures.

Buffalo Chicken Sliders

1/4 c butter

1/4 c honey

1/2 c hot sauce

1 Rotisserie Chicken shredded
...
12 slider buns

Bleu cheese dressing.

In small pan combine butter, honey and hot sauce and cook over medium heat until butter and honey is dissolved.

Remove chicken skin and shred the meat. Toss chicken in sauce to coat evenly. Drizzle bleu cheese dressing on sandwich.

It's that easy.

Winter meal

This is a very satisfying winter dish: green beans, potatoes, corn, a little rice, green onions, and boars head ham slivers simmered to softness in homemade chicken stock. (Ooops, is that a piece of bacon floating in there?  How did that get in there? lol) I am a morning cook.  For some reason I can't get past cooking around 10:00 or earlier. It's like a time clock.  After that, not so much.

It is supposed to warm up today.  We will see about that.  Yesterday when it was so cold Madeleine came to visit ALL DAY.  We were in our element.  Mike and I had such a good time with her.  We played hide-and-seek upstairs where there are so many delicious places to hide. It's like Narnia. She found the bed remotes and sent them cascading up and down until something else caught her eye--frankly, I never realized how high those sleep number beds can go.  I guess that is for breakfast in bed which I have never had in my adult life. I'd rather not, as a matter of fact, because I like to be on foot and healthy.

I would love to make this again...today.  but I may be too lazy. I really enjoy this toasty from The English Kitchen.  I've made them several times and once for Thanksgiving and they disappeared faster than the turkey.

Doris Lechler shared a post.

November 18, 2017 · 

A satisfying winter meal

Soup day at the Lechlers

We have two bigs soups going here in zero weather in Ohio.  (David says it is 33 degrees in Florida where he is, so that is winter at its darndest.) The first offering is cheesy potato soup with ham and tilapia.  This will get the guys going because several cars are bucking about starting today.  Andy and Mike have been in this cold working on jump starting and moving cars...or trying to. The sun is out, but don't let that fool you, it is frosty.

The second soup is chili which will result in several forms--tacos, chili, pasta to name but a few.  I spice up my chili with Bob Evans zesty sausage made into tiny meatballs inside the pot of chili which has regular stuff.  Everyone has their own version of chili, so I won't bore you with mine.

Andy is in for a treat today cheesy potato soup with ham and tilapia.

older post from May 2010

May 2010 Since I mentioned David Lebovitz in yesterday's post I found him again today in an old 2010 post.

I receive a glut of Paris books from Amazon. I haven't been back in five years and went so often I could not think of going again or even reading anything about the city of lights. The books came at a good time. It is so nice to sit out in the sun reading about the many places where I lived and worked and ate.' The Sweet Life in Paris' b y David Lebovitz is about his delicious adventures in the world's most glorious and perplexing city. He manages some interesting recipes along with his humorous adventures. I haven't tried any of them. I am bouncing from one scrumptious book to another. I like 'Patisseries of Paris' by Jamie Cahill too. It is a small manageable book with nice colored pictures and details of each shop and the way to get there. It is very easy to understand the directions and the writing and descriptions are cozy and readable. Unfortunately, she did not include any recipes which, I know, are difficult to get from the French. Their bakers have to be schooled for a long time and one cannot simply get a store front and open a patisserie...there is paper work, there is schooling, there is a trail of details which make many would- be owners and bakers simply throw in the towels. The shops in Paris are thought to be extensions of people's homes, and, upon entering, the person running the shop intends for you to behave as though you are a guest. They want salutations and respect to be shown before orders are grunted out. Both books give vivid instruction to Americans about how to behave in that rule-ridden, over taxed city.

I spent most of my time, which was considerable, in antique shops, at flea markets and antique shows, and, buying from carefully formed contacts that waited for my return with a bevy of merchandise to please my American customers. So the book 'Markets of Paris' By Dixon and Ruthanne Long should be interesting to me. We'll see.

Looking back

May 15, 2010 Since I mentioned an old post about David Lebovitz yesterday, I thought I would add an old post now and then in case you did not want to back-track yourselves.

I receive a glut of Paris books from Amazon. I haven't been back in five years and went so often I could not think of going again or even reading anything about the city of lights. The books came at a good time. It is so nice to sit out in the sun reading about the many places where I lived and worked and ate.' The Sweet Life in Paris' by David Lebovitz is about his delicious adventures in the world's most glorious and perplexing city. He manages some interesting recipes along with his humorous adventures. I haven't tried any of them. I am bouncing from one scrumptious book to another. I like 'Patisseries of Paris' by Jamie Cahill too. It is a small manageable book with nice colored pictures and details of each shop and the way to get there. It is very easy to understand the directions and the writing and descriptions are cozy and readable. Unfortunately, she did not include any recipes which, I know, are difficult to get from the French. Their bakers have to be schooled for a long time and one cannot simply get a store front and open a patisserie...there is paper work, there is schooling, there is a trail of details which make many would- be owners and bakers simply throw in the towels. The shops in Paris are thought to be extensions of people's homes, and, upon entering, the person running the shop intends for you to behave as though you are a guest. They want salutations and respect to be shown before orders are grunted out. Both books give vivid instruction to Americans about how to behave in that rule-ridden, over taxed city.

I spent most of my time, which was considerable, in antique shops, at flea markets and antique shows, and, buying from carefully formed contacts that waited for my return with a bevy of merchandise to please my American customers. So the book 'Markets of Paris' By Dixon and Ruthanne Long should be interesting to me. We'll see.

Blogs

I had forgotten David Lebovitz for almost a year!  Until today when his name popped up and I visited Paris flea markets (from home) again with him and his blog. He is American but lives in Paris and writes cookbooks such as The Great Book of Chocolate, Ready for Dessert, My Paris Kitchen, and The Sweet Life in Paris. If you are going antiquing in Paris you might want to read his blog feature of Paris Flea Markets.  I visited many of those listed, but since the dynamics of buying and selling antiques has radically changed, there were a few that I missed in his listing.  There were, however, several that he missed although they may no longer exist.  It is strange how one can obsess about a blog for years and then forget about it or become bored with it and then give it a rest. It was the same with The English Kitchen blog.  After her book came out with everything in it...what was the point of following the blog?  I have been following Carlsbadcravings all last year, but am slowing on that one as well.  People come and go on my blog too and after over 800 posts, it may be time to hang it up.  I have to say though, don't miss the earlier posts.  I had a lot to say then but may have said it all in these 800 postings.  I tired of Ina Garten and Martha Stewart.  I don't like it when they cook with other people and have too much fun to stomach. Martha is now only on public television and she usually cooks alone and it is quiet and calming.  She is a good teacher and her results are picture perfect. Ina just has too much fun giggling and praising her cooking guests as though she does not know how to do whatever they are preparing.  She has fed thousands and there is not much that she does not know about cooking, so she should just get on with it and calm down. I like Lydia, the Italian who owns several restaurants and has, too, a wonderful large shop in New York.  I want to visit that store that features hundreds of kinds of pasta as well as all types of kitchen and cooking utensils and ingredients. Well, I ramble...give David Lebovitz's blog a look and see if you like his writing. Catch Lydia on Saturdays on public television.  That's where I am going now.  I don't like missing her half an hour show.