Changes all around

My lady-of-leisure break is coming to an end in a few days...WAH!

Truthfully, I'm a little relieved. I've enjoyed sleeping in (if you can call a few days here and there of sleeping till 8 am "sleeping in"), but I've decided that without 1) a vacation lined up, 2) friends in like situations or 3) work-at-home jobs (or kids), this whole staying home thing is kind of for the birds. Remind me in six months to kick myself for saying that.

Anyway, last week it was a bit of a stretch to occupy myself, but this week I've actually been super busy because....we bought a house! Yep, fun times. But also the beginning of a thousand-and-one things to do. I've been extremely diligent because I know my time to do this at will is limited, so I was very happy we were able to do the inspection today. I was even MORE happy my dad took time from his busy schedule to come with me (totally unexpected). Hubs is away for work, so the company and advice was much appreciated.

(I had to laugh- to myself- when my dad started to answer questions I directed to the inspector...awww Dad. I don't think he'd like the inspector butting in if someone asked surgical questions, right? Anyway, it was cute.)

So I forsee a lot of home-decorating posts in the future and I'm welcoming any advice or links to pictures you may have! In a completely unrelated note, I gave that chicken fried rice recipe a second shot and MAN, what a difference a few key ingredients can make. I'm going to leave that as a parting gift - enjoy! (Sorry I don't have any pictures, but it does look lovely with all of the chopped scallions).

Healthy Chicken Fried Rice - in honor of Grace
1 small onion, thinly sliced and halved
1 zucchini
1/4 medium yellow pepper
1 can sliced water chestnuts
4 oz. frozen peas
1 lg. carrot, jullienned
2 c basmati rice, pre-cooked and chilled
4 oz. boneless, skinless chicken, sliced on the grain (totally appropriate to use Publix's lemon-pepper rotisserie chicken....just sayin')
1 egg
soy sauce (I like reduced sodium)
ground ginger, approx. 1 tsp.
sesame oil
chopped garlic
3-4 scallions, washed and white and green parts chopped

(In case you haven't noticed by now, I eyeball measure ingredients)

In a wok, heat approx. 1 tbl. sesame oil over medium-low heat with garlic and onion. Add julienned carrots, yellow pepper and ground ginger. Cook until slightly tender, approx. 5 minutes. Add zucchini, cook for a minute longer, then add peas and chicken.

Meanwhile, in a separate nonstick pan, scramble the egg and set aside.

Raise heat to medium high, add 1 more tbl. sesame oil and the chilled rice (the chilled part is verrrrrrry important!). Stir quickly, add a few shakes of soy sauce and cook until heated throughout. Combine the scrambled egg to the mixture, add more soy sauce if desired, and apportion to serving plates. Garnish with chopped scallions.

Chicken fried rice: epic fail

I hit a bump in the culinary road tonight. I tried to recreate my mother-in-law's chicken fried rice, which is pretty much my idea of Chinese food heaven: fluffy rice married with crispy vegetables and only a smidge of chicken, topped with plenty of chopped scallions, and - most importantly - not greasy AT ALL. I've never been much of a Chinese food fan because everything is so oily and the MSG makes me thirsty like an untreated diabetic, but MIL's rice is scrumptious. Too bad mine came out nothing like it.

I'm pretty sure my minimal forethought and lack of ingredients are to blame. I had fresh zucchini, onion and yellow and red peppers on hand, but no scallions or soy sauce. The end result was ok in my opinion - certainly not what I'd call slop or throw away, but strangely, Hubs loved it and promptly ate three bowls. The major lesson I took away? Scramble the egg separately and add to the rice mixture at the end. Trust me. I'm going to ask MIL for her recipe and give it another shot soon.

Pumpkin Madness cont'd

For some odd reason, I got the urge to make pumpkin bread at 8 pm last night. Really, I could have tackled any number of higher-priority things but when the mood strikes, go for it, right? (This is generally my motto in all areas of life.) This baby is from the Joy of Cooking - a mammoth tome given to me by my mom's friend as a bridal shower gift. Seriously, it's more than 1,000 pages.

PUMPKIN BREAD
*My modifications: I doubled the recipe with no problem, and used 4.5 tablespoons of butter and 4 tablespoons of sugar-free applesauce. (If you make one loaf and want to halve the butter, I'd do 2.5 tbl. butter and 2 tbl. applesauce.) I also added chopped walnuts and golden raisins.

One 9 x 5-inch loaf

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.
Whisk together:
1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1⁄2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1⁄2 teaspoon grated or ground nutmeg
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cloves

Combine in a small bowl:
1⁄3 cup water or milk
1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla

Beat in a large bowl until fluffy:
6 tablespoons (3⁄4 stick) butter, softened, or 1⁄3 cup vegetable shortening
1 1⁄3 cups sugar or 1 cup sugar plus 1⁄ 3 cup packed brown sugar
Beat in one at a time: 2 large eggs

Add and beat on low speed just until blended: 1 cup cooked or canned pumpkin puree

Add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the milk mixture, beating on low speed or stirring with a rubber spatula until smooth and scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.

Fold in: 1⁄2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
1⁄3 cup raisins or chopped dates

Pour into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cool in the pan on a rack for 5 to 10 minutes before unmolding to cool completely on the rack.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Whew! If I thought I was behind in other areas of my life, keeping up with this blog takes the cake. Anyway, onward and upward.

I really can't believe it's October - the END of October actually. I don't know if it's the election, all of the depressing news about the economy or the phenomenon described to me by those wiser who say time starts to fly as you get older - but the past few months really passed quickly.

A couple of weeks ago, hubs and I went to our alma mater homecoming game, where we sweated profusely but had a great time cheering on the Bulls.

Last weekend, Zachy and friends dressed up in their Halloween finest and went to the annual pet costume contest in the Park. (Pics to come.) It was a great time, as usual. Dogs amuse me to no end.







Luckily, this week brought the first cold front, so I broke out my new boot(ies) and put my flatiron away. Yahoo! And Halloween is this weekend. I know Halloween is a love-or-loathe holiday for many, but I happen to love it. This year, I'm breaking out the full gore and going as a vampire. For once, Hubs can take part in the revelry, so he's going as a pirate. No lame-o couple costume for us!

I've also been cooking up a storm lately, probably because I get jazzed every year by the proliferation of pumpkin-flavored things. I came home with 10 cans of packed pumpkin the other day (yes, Hubs thinks I'm insane). So on that note, I'll leave you with a little somethin-somethin I whipped up for dinner the other night. Hubs gave it an A+.

Butternut Squash Risotto Recipe
(from Simply Recipes)
Ingredients
6-8 cups chicken broth (use vegetable broth for vegetarian option)
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided into 4 Tbsp and 1 Tbsp
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cups butternut squash, peeled, and finely diced
2 cups arborio rice (can substitute medium grained white rice, but arborio is preferred)
1 cup dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp chopped chives or garlic chives
Salt

Method
1 Heat broth in medium sized saucepan and keep warm over low heat. Melt 4 Tbsp of butter in a large saucepan; add onion and butternut squash. Cook over medium heat until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.

2 Add rice to onion and squash. Cook 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine. Cook, stirring constantly until wine has been absorbed by the rice or evaporated. Add a few ladles of broth, just enough to barely cover rice. Cook over medium heat until broth has been absorbed. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding a little bit of broth at a time, cooking and stirring until it is absorbed, until the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 15 to 20 minutes.

3 During the last minutes of cooking, add remaining tablespoon of butter, 1/3 cup Parmesan, and chives. At this point the rice should have a creamy consistency. Add salt to taste. Serve with remaining grated Parmesan.

Serves 4 to 6.

The curse is broken

It's been a while since my last post but who's counting? I suspect not many. (That's my own fault - why broadcast my slackerdom to the world?) Anyway, I've been on auto-pilot for the past couple of weeks, but something happened yesterday to light a little fire under my....rear. I swear it turned Indian summer in the span of a couple of days. Anyone else living in the same vicinity as me would say I'm nuts, since it's still hotter than, well, Florida in August. But it's something about the light that's different - it's a little more orange-y- that's got me excited for fall.

I got home today to a lovely birthday surprise from LP - an Ina Garten cookbook. As I'm sure I've mentioned, I'm no domestic diva, but LP and I were talking a few weeks ago about Ina and her badass brioche and whatnot, and how she manages to make everything look so effortless. (Bitch.) LP told me that every now and then on the weekends, she gets the urge to cook up a storm and pretend she's Ina. I'm sure her hubs, who is no doubt the recipient LP's kitchen whirlwinds, doesn't mind. So while that is definitely on my to-do, I decided to tackle another recipe today.

Now, baking and me are like oil and water. And not in the way that produces a fluffy coconut cake. I'm the type of baker who forgets to put sugar in her Christmas cookies. Ok, I'm not "the type" - I actually did that a couple of years ago.

So it was with a bit of trepidation that I attempted the recipe in this month's Food and Wine's "Last Bite" feature. The olive oil thyme cake with fresh figs looked gorgeous, and the recipe seemed simple enough. I was sure it was a trap, but I decided to give it the old college try. And......maybe I should be knocking on wood, but I think the cursed baking days are over! I modified the recipe a little, since I didn't have fresh thyme. (And I'm not even sure I like thyme.) But I did have fresh rosemary, so I made Olive Oil and Rosemary cake with fresh figs instead.

(I know you're thinking this sounds like a Carraba's side dish, but trust me. It's good.)

Olive Oil Rosemary cake with Fresh Figs
(adapted from Food and Wine, Sept. 2008)

Cake
1 c plus 1.5 tbl cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
3 large egg yolks
1/4 c plus 1 tbl. extra virgin olive oil (I don't care how long it is to spell out, you can shoot me before I start saying EVOO.)
1/2 c water
1.5 tsp rosemary, chopped fine
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla etract
1 c plus 2 tbl. sugar
5 large egg whites

Figs
1 lb. fresh figs, quartered (wash them gently)
1/4 c sugar
1 tbl. olive oil
1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper (I used slightly less)
pinch of salt
1/2 c creme fraiche

Heat oven to 375. Line a 9x9 pan with parchment paper, spray lightly with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour and baking soda.
In a large bowl, mix the egg yolks with the olive oil, water, rosemary, salt and vanilla, and 3/4 c plus 1 tbl of the sugar. With a handheld mixer, beath the egg yolk mixture until frothy (about 3 mins). Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until incorporated.

In a clean bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites at medium-high speed until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 c plus 1 tbl of sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff and glossy, about 4 mins. Scoop a cup of the egg white miture into the batter and mix completely. Fold the remaining egg white mixture gently, until there are no more streaks.

Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake for approx. 35 mins. The sides will pull away from the pan and the top should be golden. Set on rack and let cool completely, about an hour.

While the cake is baking, prepare the figs:
In a medium bowl, toss the figs, olive oil, sugar, pepper and salt. Let stand at room temp for about an hour, so the figs can release their juices.

Cut the cake into 12 rectangles and transfer to plates. Spoon the figs/juice mixture over each slice, and top with a dollop of creme fraiche.

Favorite things

Friends and food, of course!

I spent a very lovely Sunday afternoon with friends Kiki and CaesarsMom, and CM's new baby. Let's call him Fussypants, cause that's what he is these days. Poor guy seems to have ongoing GI distress, and we all know what that can be like...

Anyway, FP is super cute and I was happy to spend time with him. Every now and then I get a baby twinge but, like indigestion, it usually fades within the hour. Right now it's perfect being Auntie Poppies. I had a great old time holding FP and giving him a bottle, which he chugged happily. It's amazing how instantly one can be gratified by being fed. (I should know.)

It was also nice catching up with my pals. Sometimes I get a little wistful when I think about how everyone is a "grown up" now, with mortgages, spouses, kids and careers. That's why it's great to realize you're never too mature (at least, in my crowd) to look up stupid youtube videos and spend the afternoon laughing your ass off.

My other noteable activity for the weekend was channeling my inner Martha. Those who know me in real life know why this is amusing...I'm the anti-Martha! But I do like to experiment with ingredients in the kitchen (I guess that would be cooking; I look at it more as playtime). My culinary creations included Berry Cobbler Rip-off and Kitchen Sink Shrimp in Mustard Sauce.

Yes, I made up those names. They're pretty self-explanatory, no?

Here are the recipes, while I figure out how to create links in this damn blog. Mangia!


Berry Cobbler Rip-off
4 c fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 c blackberries, rinsed
(Why be so formal...you can really add whatever berries you want.)
1 c flour
1 c brown sugar instant oatmeal
2-3 tbl unsalted butter

Dump the berries in a glass pie pan.
Mix the flour and oatmeal together, then work the butter in with your (clean) fingers until crumbly. Pour evenly over the berries. Add more butter if you like it and are not trying to lose weight at the moment. Bake at 350 for approx. 40 mins, or until brown n' bubbly. Serve with vanilla ice cream or fro yo.


Kitchen Sink Shrimp with Mustard Sauce
This is my adaptation of a very chic recipe from a Williams Sonoma cookbook (Skate with Mustard Sauce). While definitely a poor relation to its sophisticated cousin, it's very tasty.

3 small-med red potatoes, boiled and then diced
1 oz. proscuitto, chopped (can use pancetta or bacon, too)
3 c fresh spinach
2-3 summer squash, chopped
dijon mustard
olive oil
chopped garlic
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails off, if you're like me)

Saute 1-2 tbl. garlic (I am heavy handed with it) in olive oil in a large pan. Add potatoes and prosciutto, cook for about 5 minutes. Add squash, cook for another 3 minutes or so.

Mix 3 tbl. mustard with a few tablespoons of water, just so it's thinner but not runny. Pour on ingredients and mix - you can add a tbl of unsalted butter if so inclined (or just add a bit more olive oil).

Add the shrimp and cook for only about 1 minute, then add spinach (may have to add in batches). Reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for a couple of minutes. Make sure everything has been covered by the mustard sauce. Add salt to taste and crushed pepper, if you want. Serve over basmati rice.