Rainy days and Sundays

I am lucky that I have one of those 9-5 jobs...heck, in this economy, I'm lucky to have a job, full-stop.  Anyway, my work schedule is great...Monday-Friday...and when I go home, work stays at work.

Work is getting freakishly busy, and I have started to help out the designers.  It is challenging work...a good kind of challenging.  But this helping out has led to my doing some weekend work...and that isn't something I'm used to.  As a result, I don't feel like I actually had a weekend, and that day off I was supposed to have this week has been cancelled.  I know that a certain amount of stress is healthy...but work coupled with other commitments I've made is starting to raise the needle in that pressure gauge that, to be honest, is generally higher than it should be...but this too shall pass.  There is a light at the end of the tunnel...8 little letters that keep me hanging on....V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N.

I am approaching my first vacation in 8 years, and have found that I am filled with giddy excitement at the prospect.  It isn't like I'm taking off for some tropical destination...or a whirlwind European trek.  I'm going to Thunder Bay, Ontario...a city that would take me over 17 hours to drive to if I chose to drive instead of fly...but it isn't about where I'm going, really...at this point, it is just about GOING.  One of my closest friends lives there, and that is the main reason for my trip...but I am looking forward to having a change of scenery, a bit of silence...an afternoon nap...curling up with a book...having a few days where I don't have to answer the phone every time it rings, and where I don't have to stare at a computer screen all day.  I desperately need to recharge my batteries...and I'm getting to the point where it's a necessity to do so.

I had a touch of recharging on Sunday. The family was away, so the house was quiet.  It also rained all day, so there was that calm that comes with the rain, as well as that cozy feeling of being inside where it was warm.  That meant it was time for me to make a batch of what I call "Chicken and Dumplings, Sans Dumplings"...for you non-French-speakers, "sans" means "without".  I'm not a huge fan of dumplings, but also, I make the batch to freeze...and I don't think I want frozen dumplings.  What I normally do is make my great-grandmother's tea biscuits (a recipe that you won't find here...it will go with me to the grave).  It is the perfect thing for a cold rainy day...or a cold snowy day...or for a sunny yet cool day....any day, really!

Now, my pre-recipe warnings:

1.  Even though I don't make the dumplings (the main reason for rendering out fat when you brown the thighs and the skin), I still brown the chicken for the sake of building fond on the bottom of the pot.  And as we should all know, fond=flavour.  Don't skip this step thinking it is unimportant.  Also, I tend to put the lid on the pot at this point to minimize oil splatters all over my stove.

2.  Not being a big onion fan (as I've rambled on about before), I grate the onion because I don't want pieces of it floating around...and I used something closer to a small onion.  I add in extra carrots and celery, and cut them a bit bigger than described so that they don't completely cook down to nothing.

3.  The recipe originally calls for 4 tablespoons of oil, and for the thighs to be cooked in 2 batches.  Well, to get to 5 pounds of chicken thighs, I had to cook 20 thighs (they were very small, obviously).  And here is the truth...the fat that renders as you cook each batch is plenty...I only used 2 teaspoons for that first batch, and was fine from there.  Just don't overcrowd the pan...take as many batches as you need.  It is time consuming, but the end justifies the means.

4.  When you nestle the chicken thighs back into the liquid, you will actually trap onions, celery, and carrots under them...which means they will have the tendency to get welded to the bottom of the pot.  This isn't so bad, as it creates a nice flavour...the key is to get it scraped off at the point where you take the chicken out to shred it up.  I just take a plastic lifter with a thin edge, and work it around the bottom of the pot until you can feel that it's all freed.  Just stir it around, and it will all basically dissolve into the liquid, and add great flavour...and will save your muscles from scrubbing the pot at the dish-washing stage!

Chicken and Dumplings, Sans Dumplings

5 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)
4 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 ribs celery , sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 large onion , minced
6 tablespoons flour
4 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves, or about 1/2 teaspoon dried
2 bay leaves

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and remove the browned skin.  Repeat with the rest of the chicken, cooking in batches.  When done, pour oil out of pot, being careful to not dispose to of fond.

Add the butter to the Dutch oven and melt over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 7 minutes.  Stir in the flour.

Stir in the broth, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.  Add milk, thyme, and bay leaves. Nestle the chicken, with any accumulated juices, into the pot. Cover and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked and tender, about 1 hour.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Discard the bay leaves. Allow the sauce to settle for a few minutes, then skim the fat from the surface using a wide spoon. Shred the chicken, discarding the bones, then return it to the stew.

 

Good-bye, Summer.....

This was a summer to beat all summers....hot, humid, very little rain.  I'm generally not a fan of summer...I prefer autumn's moderate temperatures, vivd colours, and clear air.

But before the kitchen starts to revolve around pears, apples, and soups and stews, I thought I'd take one last look at summer, and make a Peach Upside-Down Cake.

Growing up around my saintly grandmother, I learned all kinds of things about peach varieties.  Her absolute favourites were Redhavens because they coloured the preserving syrup nicely.  So, when I went to the grocery store to find 4 peaches for the upside down cake, there were some very unripe "regular" peaches, and some ripe white-flesh peaches...no idea the variety...so I thought I'd give them a whirl.

The only time I had ever seen anyone use white peaches was on an episode of Nigella Lawson's Forever Summer show...she poached them in their skins, and the beautiful pinkness dyed the flesh...they were beautiful.  But I had no idea about the flavour.

They were...OK.  They weren't overly peachy in flavour.  They would do in a pinch, but just barely.  It's just like having California strawberries in the middle of winter...they aren't anywhere close to the local berries we get in June, but they're better than not having any at all.  If you decide to make this cake, hold out for full-flavoured peaches if you can still get them, or wait until next year.

Also, be sure that the peaches aren't sliced too thick, as there is a good deal of batter to deal with, and you don't want to overfill the cake pan (mine was pretty full, but luckily, it didn't overflow when baking).

One last thing...when making the caramel mixture, be sure to wait until you have a good flowing liquid...and if you are using a fairly new, really good non-stick pan, spreading the stuff out will be a bit of a nightmare, as it will just float in a massive puddle around the bottom of the pan.  The plus is that it hardens into a very hard candy...very like a Werther's caramel.  I'd also put a shake or 2 of salt in there to make it less flat-tasting.

Peach Upside-Down Cake

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 small fresh peaches, pitted and sliced
2 cups all-purpose flour 
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup whole milk (3.25%) 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a 9-inch-round cake pan. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp water and then add 3/4 cup sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until smooth and deep golden brown, 8 to 11 minutes. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and tilt to coat the bottom. Arrange the peach wedges snugly in the bottom of the pan in a single layer, cutting to fit if needed.

 

Next, combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl, and stir until incorporated.

 

Beat the remaining 7 tablespoons butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour mixture; beat in each addition until just incorporated.

 

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool 30 minutes. Invert onto a plate and let cool completely.  

 

 

Life is not a spectator sport...

That full Jackie Robinson quote is, "Life is not a spectator sport. If you're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life."

I hate being watched...which is perhaps slightly ironic as I spend a good part of my time as a performing musician. However, I'm the kind of musician who believes it is important to be heard, and not necessarily seen.

When I'm in the kitchen, I like to be alone in there...in the whole house, to be honest. I have a very tiny kitchen, so even the smallest culinary adventure creates a huge mess. I find it's better to try new things or make large batches of things to freeze when there is no one home to witness the kitchen massacre...by the time they all get home, the dishes are done (we have no dishwasher...I've been handwashing for decades, it seems), and everything is spic and span again.

This weekend, I was sitting in a blissfully empty house, and decided I was going to try a new recipe...and decided on Chicken Milanese (chicken cutlets that have grated parmesan in the crust). So not only a new recipe, but I'd also never fried anything in a substantial quantity of oil before.

It was ridiculously easy. So easy that if it wasn't so unhealthy, I'd cook that way every day! The end product was delicious, and it cooked so quickly...I was shocked.

Some warnings before I get to the recipe:

1. Add some spices that you like either to the crumbs or flour...I enjoyed the flavour of the chicken, but it didn't taste much of anything else.

2. Feel free to leave out the parmesan cheese...or take some risks and add more than the recipe calls for, as there was no flavour of the cheese at all.

3. Splurge and use panko crumbs...super crispy, and delicious.

Chicken Milanese

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (5 to 6 ounces each), tenderloins removed and reserved for another use

1/2 cup kosher salt or 1/4 cup table salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

4 - 6 slices white bread (about 1 1/4 cups fresh bread crumbs) such as Pepperidge Farm, crusts removed and torn into rough 1 1/2-inch pieces

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Ground black pepper

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3/4 cup vegetable oil

Lemon wedges for serving

Pound chicken breasts to even 1/2-inch thickness. Dissolve salt and sugar in 1 quart cold water in gallon-size zipper-lock plastic bag. Add cutlets and seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible; refrigerate 30 minutes. Line rimmed baking sheet with triple layer of paper towels.

Remove cutlets and lay in single layer on baking sheet; cover with another triple layer of paper towels and press firmly to absorb moisture. Allow cutlets to dry for 10 minutes. Process bread in food processor until evenly fine-textured, 20 to 30 seconds (you should have about 1 1/4 cups fresh bread crumbs). Mix in Parmesan cheese and transfer crumbs to baking dish. Carefully peel paper towels off cutlets, sprinkle cutlets with pepper, and set aside.

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, set large heatproof plate on rack, and heat oven to 200 degrees. Spread flour in baking dish. Beat eggs with 1 tablespoon oil in second baking dish. Spread bread crumbs in third baking dish.

Bread the cutlets, one at a time. Dredge cutlet in flour, shaking off excess. Using tongs, dip both sides of cutlet in egg mixture, allowing excess to drip back into baking dish to ensure very thin coating. Dip both sides of cutlet in bread crumbs, pressing crumbs with fingers to form even, cohesive coat. Place breaded cutlets in single layer on wire rack set over baking sheet and allow coating to dry for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 6 tablespoons remaining oil in heavy-bottomed 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking, about 2 minutes. Lay two cutlets gently in skillet; cook until deep golden brown and crisp on first side, gently pressing down on cutlets with wide metal spatula to help ensure even browning, about 2 1/2 minutes. Using tongs, flip cutlets, reduce heat to medium, and continue to cook until meat feels firm when pressed gently and second side is deep golden brown and crisp, 2 1/2 to 3 minutes longer.

Line warmed plate with double layer of paper towels and set cutlets on top; return plate to oven.

Discard oil in skillet and wipe skillet clean using tongs and large wad of paper towels. Repeat step 5 using remaining 6 tablespoons oil and now-clean skillet to cook remaining cutlets; serve along with first batch with lemon wedges.

The right tools for the job...

I have a problem...some would call it serious...most would say that I am in denial about the severity of the problem.  There are no support groups, nor is there a medical treatment...I'm afraid it's incurable.

I am addicted to buying kitchen gadgets...wow...that was hard to say...

It started, very innocently with a garlic press.  I suppose that was really a gateway gadget...it has led me to a potato ricer, fluted pastry wheel, and ramekins...through to electric things like an immersion blender, to large things like a Kitchenaid stand mixer...and my latest purchase...but first, some background...

As I've said before, my grandmother could cook/bake anything...and without fancy shmancy gadgets.  She used to get 2" thick meringue on her lemon meringue pie, and did it with a hand-held rotary egg beater that she'd had since the 1950s...and she wasn't using cream of tartar, either.  When she made pie crust, she used a bowl, and her hands...nothing else.

My paternal grandmother was a bit of a mystery to me.  As she and my dad didn't have a good relationship, I didn't see her very often, despite her only living about 30 minutes away.  I do know that she was a good baker.

She passed away in 1992, and there was a lot of sorting/cleaning out required in her apartment.  Many of the elderly ladies who lived in the same apartment complex came by asking about the food processor that she'd used to make her pastry.  Upon looking around, no such food processor was found...and there was a good reason for that....my dad had already put it in our trunk.

And friends, that food processor stayed in the same place in our basement from February 1992 until about 1 month ago when I used it for the first time.  It was a 4-cup Moulinex that was so old it could have been Noah's....but Noah wouldn't have wanted to use it due to the sheer noise of the thing.  I used it to make pie crust, and it worked pretty well...the blade could have been sharper, and the bowl was nowhere near big enough...so it was time to upgrade.  Being a devotee of Cook's Illustrated, I knew that the former winner of the food processor test was the Kitchenaid KFP750...but it has been discontinued.  So I hit eBay to see what I could find.

Luckily, I found one, and very affordable...and I could actually go and pick it up, so that saved on shipping costs.  When I got there, however, they couldn't find the item I had purchased...so I got an upgrade to the KFPW760...essentially the same machine but with a wider feed tube.

The thing works like a dream...powerful, large capacity (12-cup), and decently quiet.  I don't know how I managed without it...and the idea of using a pastry cutter now seems barbaric.

So, if you're still out there making meringue with an egg-beater, and pastry with your hands, I commend you...you're more patient than I am.

Hello.  My name is Deb...and I'm a kitchen-gadget-aholic.

There's always room for pie...

I have worked for the same boss in one capacity or another for 15 years now, and I can count on one hand the number of times we've fought.  He's the perfect boss, if I'm being honest.  He believes in working hard, playing hard, and not passing up great opportunities.  He is spontaneous (he called us from an airplane once to let us know that he was going on holidays...and he had very covertly signed cheques and prepared everything we would need in his absence without us ever noticing), he is understanding, sensitive to the needs of those he employs, and because he respects us so much, we respect him...and would follow him into battle if ever that was necessary.  In the years I have given him, he has really become more like a brother than a boss.

As I mentioned in a previous post, peach pie is his favourite thing in life.  I even made him a pie in April for his birthday, having to use frozen peaches since they are nowhere near being in season.  Of course, the peaches are now ready here, and so that means it was time to bake the boss a pie.  But first, a bit of background...

A couple of years ago, I took a random Tuesday off to go to the farmer's market in the small town of St. Jacob's, Ontario.  It is full of fresh produce, handmade crafts, and other such fun things.  There is a restaurant near there that is run by some local Mennonites that includes, essentially, an all-you-can-eat pie table.  There are also pies that have been prepared for customers to buy and take home.  I decided that since I'd taken the day off, it would be a nice gesture to take the co-workers a pie to have the following afternoon.  I had my choice between apple, coconut butter-tart, and peach.  On a whim, I chose peach.

The next day, I proudly came into the office carrying the mammoth (12") peach pie...filled to the brim with gorgeous peaches.  The 3 designers were thrilled that I had thought to bring them a little treat, and they looked forward to the afternoon when they could cut into it.  The boss was out at a job-site, and was unsure when he'd be in.  Tired of waiting, they cut into the pie around 11:30am...we took 4 decent-sized slices from the pie, leaving more than half in the plate.

Well, the boss arrived around 2:30.  I said, "Hey...I bought a pie while I was away yesterday.  Would you like some?"

"What kind of pie?"

"Peach."

...imagine the look of a child on Christmas morning who wakes up to find that Santa had indeed delivered a pony...

"ARE YOU KIDDING?!  I LOVE PEACH PIE!!!"

...and then proceeded to eat every last morsel over the course of the afternoon (oh, to have his metabolism...he's skinny as a rail).

When I made him a fresh peach pie last summer, he actually took a picture of it with his phone, and he still looks at it when he gets hungry.

So on Monday when he walked in at 8:30am and saw that there was peach pie in the office, he decided that peach pie for breakfast was totally acceptable...his first slice was gone by 9:00...and I loved seeing him that content with life.  I wonder if I'll have to make another before the peaches leave us for another year...

Use any double-crust pastry recipe you like best...I like cutting the top crust portion into strips so I can give it that traditional lattice-top.  Here are instructions from Cook's Illustrated to help with the lattice top:

Weaving and Crimping the Lattice Top

1. To make the lattice, lay out 4 strips of dough. Fold the first and third strips back, then place a long strip of dough slightly to the right of the center as shown.

2. Unfold the first and third strips over the perpendicular strip and fold the second and fourth strips back. Add a second perpendicular strip of dough. Now unfold the second and fourth strips.

3. Repeat this process with two more perpendicular strips (you will have a total of 8 strips of dough, four running in each direction).

4. Trim off the excess lattice ends, fold the rim of the shell up over the lattice strips, and crimp.

For fresh peaches, I use the ratio of 1 cup of fruit: 1/4 cup sugar: 1 tablespoons potato starch...so for a standard 9" pie, I use 4 cups of sliced peaches, 1 cup of sugar, and 4 tablespoons of potato starch.  For a deep-dish 9" or 10" pie (I have completely forgotten what size it is), I use 6 cups of sliced peaches, 1.5 cups of sugar, and 6 tablespoons of potato starch.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Put your rolled out bottom crust in your pie plate.

Stir sliced peaches with sugar and potato starch.  Once combined, pour into crust.

Top with pastry strips as shown above.

Bake for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees (keep an eye on your crust).  Reduce temperature to 350 degrees.  Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until peaches are soft when tested with a knife.  Cover your crust with aluminum foil if needed.

I hate good-byes....

Saying good-bye is an unfortunate part of life...whether it is temporary, long-term, or permanent, it is just something I despise.  Maybe I'm too sentimental...but I'm a jazz singer, so that comes with the territory, I'm afraid.

Our office just lost one of the best employees in history.  He was only with us for about 4 months, but it was an absolute pleasure to work with him.  I mean, he left on the best terms, and left to go back to school to advance his qualifications....but the nicer a person is, and the more positive the reasons for leaving are, the worse the good-bye is...after all, it's easy to say good-bye to someone who is a complete jerk.

This is our third day without the departed employee, and his absence is already deeply-felt....no afternoon coffee call, no chipper "good morning!!" greeting....no one to get the stuff off of the really tall shelf...and that's just my interactions...the designers miss his creativity and efficiency...and the clients miss his attention to detail and charm.

In a conversation we had about 2 weeks before his last day, we were randomly talking about pie.  He mentioned that his very favourite was Banana Cream Pie, and that he hadn't had it for ages.  Of course, that meant that I was going to have a pie ready for him on his last day...I called it "Good-bye Pie"....the verdict was that it was almost good enough to make him stay.  I hope to make it for him in two years...calling it "Welcome Back Pie."

The recipe came from Cook's Country, and called for a Pillsbury pie crust.  I liked the idea of not having to get out the food processor to make my own pastry, or to fuss around with graham wafer crumbs...but I went with a Tenderflake all shortening crust (as opposed to their normal lard crust), it it wasn't bad...it was just serving as the vessel for an honestly glorious filling that was absolutely good enough to just eat in a bowl without even adding sliced bananas.

Word of warning:  if you use salted butter (which I always do...it worked for my grandmother, and all the generations before her, so it works for me), be less generous with the salt quantity...the final result wasn't too salty (remind me to tell you about what is affectionately referred to as "salt pie" in my house), but it was plenty salty enough.

Use all-yellow to lightly spotted, not green-topped or all-brown bananas for this recipe. Peel and slice the bananas just before using to help prevent browning. When straining the half-and-half in step 2, do not press on the bananas or the custard will turn gray as it sits. The pie can be made up to 24 hours in advance.

5 ripe bananas

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 1/2 cups half-and-half

1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

6 large egg yolks

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 Pillsbury Just Unroll! Pie Crust

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

Peel 2 bananas and slice into ½-inch-thick pieces. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add sliced bananas and cook until they begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Add half-and-half, bring to boil, and boil for 30 seconds. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 40 minutes.

 

Whisk granulated sugar, egg yolks, and salt together in large bowl until smooth. Whisk in cornstarch. Strain cooled half-and-half mixture through fine-mesh strainer into yolk mixture—do not press on bananas—and whisk until incorporated; discard cooked bananas.

 

Transfer mixture to clean medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened to consistency of warm pudding (180 degrees), 4 to 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat; whisk in remaining 3 tablespoons butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Transfer pastry cream to bowl, press greased parchment paper directly against surface, and let cool for about 1 hour.

 

Meanwhile, roll pie dough into 12-inch round on lightly floured counter. Transfer to 9-inch pie plate, fold edge of dough under itself so edge of fold is flush with outer rim of plate, and flute edges. Refrigerate for 40 minutes, then freeze for 20 minutes. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees.

 

Line chilled pie shell with 12-inch square of aluminum foil, folding foil over edges of dough. Fill with pie weights and bake for 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights, rotate plate, and continue baking until crust is golden brown, 7 to 11 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

 

Peel and slice remaining 3 bananas ¼ inch thick and toss with orange juice. Whisk pastry cream briefly, then spread half over bottom of pie shell. Arrange sliced bananas on pastry cream. Top with remaining pastry cream.

 

Using stand mixer fitted with whisk, whip cream, confectioners’ sugar, and remaining ½ teaspoon vanilla on medium-low speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Increase speed to high and whip until stiff peaks form, 1 to 3 minutes. Spread whipped cream evenly over top of pie.

 

Refrigerate until set, at least 5 hours and up to 24 hours. Serve.

 

 

The fundamental things apply as time goes by...

I love looking backwards.  I know that it does us no good spending our lives looking at the past, but the past holds so much knowledge.  Lessons to learn from...foundational things...like how to treat people, and how to just generally be good and decent in the world.

I had a blind date on Saturday...something I've never tried before.  Now, I don't want to paint all men with the same brush, and the male friends I have all cringed when I debriefed them on the date...but come on guys!  Get with the program!!

Now, I come from a family with a long tradition of farming, so lessons I have learned about what gentlemanly behaviour is, and how a lady should be treated might be a bit far from what is considered normal in modern society...which I think it part of society's downfall, to be honest.  For example, I was raised to understand that it isn't OK for a date to arrive at your house, and simply honk the car horn...a good man will come to the door to pick you up, and will speak to whatever family members might be there at the time.

My date on Saturday was guilty of breaking rule #2 on the list of gentlemanly behaviour...a gentleman never makes a lady wait...ever.  The offender was almost 25 minutes late.  I had my hand on my purse in preparation to leave the restaurant when he finally arrived (with no decent excuse for being so late, and seriously under-dressed for the venue).  I'm afraid that these things coupled with some other discrepancies in his information had my inner dialog reminding me that it would better to be single than to settle...

I know that there is some confusion about what women want, or how they expect to be treated.  I know that we're generally all thought to be raving feminists who want to open our own doors, pay our own way at all times, and shave our legs IF we see fit.  Well, let me take this opportunity to tell you a bit about how we (the vast majority of us who are good human beings who are well-balanced) want to be treated:

1.  We are affectionate types who want to be treated like we're special, appreciated, and important in your lives...just like we treat you.

2.  We like when you open doors for us.  We don't think that by doing so, you are commenting on our weakness...'cause I don't know any women who can't manage to open a door.  And by the same token, we don't mind opening doors for you either...we see it as just doing something nice for the person we're with, whether that be a date, a friend, or a family member.  We consider it a sign of character...showing that you were raised to be courteous to people.

3.  We like when you buy us dinner or a movie ticket...and we like doing the same for you.  Again, it is just a matter of treating someone nicely...it's nice when you treat us to something, and it's nice to treat you to things as well because it shows our mutual affection for each other.

4.  Yes, we want equality...the right to vote, to be paid the same wage for the same work.  That battle was fought to give women the chance to follow their aspirations to be more than housewives, if that's what they wanted.  Women want to be seen as intelligent, strong, and clever, and not as lesser beings.  And for the record, there is NOTHING easy about being a housewife/stay-at-home-mom...not if the job is being done right...so it is certainly not something that should be belittled.  When we talk about equality, we mean that we want to be treated as your equal, and not as your property...which should be a no-brainer.

5.  We are communicators...it's how we gauge situations to know whether things are good, or if there are issues.  Men consider that to be just women being complicated, and women see it as us using common sense...which is probably how we get into so much trouble when we try to talk to one another.  Don't freak out when we try to talk to you...try talking to us...

When I got home, "Casablanca" was on TV.  It's one of those iconic movies that I've been meaning to watch for ages, and just haven't gotten around to.  Given the mood I was in, I thought I might as well go for it.  Also given my thinking about the olden days, I made popcorn...not that insipid microwave stuff full of odd chemicals...this was just pot on the stove with nothing but some oil, popping corn, real butter and salt kind of popcorn like I used to have when I was a kid (I used to sit on the kitchen counter while my mom made it...a memory I had completely forgotten about)...it was so delicious...I might never go back to microwave popcorn again...I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship...

The grass is always greener...

It never fails...when I am sitting at work, I'd rather be at home in the kitchen.  When I'm elbow-deep in pastry in the kitchen, I'd rather be sitting on the deck with a nice cold beverage.  Maybe I have ADD, or something....maybe nothing holds my attention long enough, so I'd like to be in several places at once.  I am a multi-tasker to the extreme...I don't like to be limited to one activity at a time, because I always think that I could be doing something else that might be more fun or productive...so I inevitably end up doing bits of everything at once.

I have spent way too much time in the kitchen this week...way more than I normally do (but to be fair, my normal amount is shockingly low).  I think the good thing about devoting time to being in the kitchen is that it benefits many people.  I mean, I enjoy sitting down with a good book, but that doesn't bring anything to anyone else.  I have gotten to the point that if I sit down to watch a movie, I find something else to do at the same time because I feel guilty that I'm sitting still.  Baking is a truly mutually beneficial act.

For me, baking is the best of all worlds.  After a long stressful day looking at numbers, whisking egg whites is blissful.  After answering phones to the point of vocal exhaustion, chopping up chocolate is a dream.  There is the excitement of waiting for the finished product....there is the scent that fills the house...and I like that waiting period.  I love the anticipation of what is to come (I love Advent, the time travelling to get to wherever I'm going, waiting for something great to come in the courier, etc.).

I think that's why I like making cakes.  They don't take so much time that I lose my focus mid-way through (like every time I make a pie...I've pretty much had enough by the time it comes to rolling out the top layer of pastry), but they still deliver in the stress-reducing, heavenly-scent wafting, and treat-yumminess categories.

If you've been following the plot here, you know that I had a slew of blueberries in the house.  I couldn't possibly bear making another pie that I wouldn't even be able to enjoy the fruits of my labour for, so I decided to give the humble blueberry another chance, and get them into a cake of some kind...and there were many choices.  In the end, I decided on a blueberry buckle...yet another recipe from the good people over at Cook's Illustrated.

A few words of "warning":

This uses 4 cups of blueberries...sounds like a lot?  You betcha.  Now, if you absolutely love blueberries, go for the whole 4 cups.  As I am not 100% sold on them, I should have used a tiny bit less than called for because this cake was LOADED with blueberries...like, there was only enough cake to hold the berries together...and it was superb, but in future, I will try this with less berries to see how it turns out.

Also, my pictures all came out blurry, so I have included the photo from the Cook's Illustrated site!

Streusel

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch table salt

4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cut into 8 pieces, softened but still cool

Cake

1.5 cups all-purpose flour

1.5 teaspoons baking powder

10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/4 stick), softened but still cool

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon table salt

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature

4 cups fresh blueberries, picked over

 

For the streusel:
1. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, and salt on low speed until well combined and no large brown sugar lumps remain, about 45 seconds. Add butter and mix on low until mixture resembles wet sand and no large butter pieces remain, about 2 1/2 minutes. Transfer streusel to small bowl and set aside.

For the cake:
2. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9-inch round cake pan with 2-inch sides with nonstick cooking spray, line bottom with parchment or waxed paper round, and spray round; dust pan with flour and knock out excess.

3. Whisk flour and baking powder in small bowl to combine; set aside. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, cream butter, sugar, salt, and lemon zest at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes; using rubber spatula, scrape down bowl. Beat in vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds. With mixer running at medium speed, add eggs one at a time; beat until partially incorporated, then scrape down bowl and continue to beat until fully incorporated (mixture will appear broken). With mixer running on low speed, gradually add flour mixture; beat until flour is almost fully incorporated, about 20 seconds. Disengage bowl from mixer; stir batter with rubber spatula, scraping bottom and sides of bowl, until no flour pockets remain and batter is homogenous; batter will be very heavy and thick. Using rubber spatula, gently fold in blueberries until evenly distributed.

4. Transfer batter to prepared pan; with rubber spatula, using a pushing motion, spread batter evenly to pan edges and smooth surface. Squeeze handful of streusel in hand to form large cohesive clump; break up clump with fingers and sprinkle streusel evenly over batter. Repeat with remaining streusel. Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool on wire rack 15 to 20 minutes (cake will fall slightly as it cools).

5. Run paring knife around sides of cake to loosen. Place upside-down plate (do not use plate or platter on which you plan to serve the cake) on top of cake pan; invert cake to remove from pan, lift off cake pan, then peel off and discard parchment. Re-invert cake onto serving platter. Cool until just warm or to room temperature, at least 1 hour. Cut into wedges and serve.

The things we do for family

My brother and I are opposites in almost every way imaginable...tastes in music, political affiliations, socialization, movies, TV shows, books...on and on they go.  It is no surprise then, that we have different tastes in food.  I won't say that I HATE blueberries because "hate" is a strong word...I've just never really come around to them at all.

 

I was out on the weekend, and found myself at a local market.  It's the kind of market that is set up to lure in the tourists from Toronto who come up here on weekends...overpriced produce, and "baked goods" that actually come from M&M Meat Shops (I can say for sure that they had date squares, Tiger Brownies, and Macaroon Madness Bars)...they cleverly cut the rectangles into 8x8 squares (as if baked that way), and cut the trimmings into individually wrapped single servings...sorry folks, you're not fooling me!

 

Anyway, as I was meandering through the market, I came upon a 4 litre basket of blueberries.  I knew they were overpriced, but I immediately thought of him, and how he'd probably love a pie...even a pie baked by his sister who has never used blueberries in ANYTHING before.

 

I used a recipe from Cook's Illustrated...a recipe that is pretty unconventional as it calls for cooking some of the berries first (to evaporate some of the water within), and to use a grated Granny Smith apple as a thickener...and vodka in the pie crust (ESSENTIAL...do not omit).

 

The family was skeptical...as they always are with recipes from Cook's Illustrated, America's Test Kitchen, or Cook's Country...no matter how many fantastic recipes I've used.  Let me make this perfectly clear...this pie was a huge success...so much so, I had to make more last night to freeze so they can enjoy them in the winter.  I encourage you to do the same!

Pie Dough

2 1/2cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface

1 teaspoon table salt

2 tablespoons sugar

12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), cut into 1/4-inch slices

1/2 cup vegetable shortening, cold, cut into 4 pieces

1/4 cup vodka, cold

1/4 cup cold water

Blueberry Filling

6 cups fresh blueberries

1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and grated on large holes of box grater

2 teaspoons grated zest and 2 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca, ground [I used potato starch] 

pinch table salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon water [I skipped this egg wash]

Instructions

For The Pie Dough:
1. Process 1 1/2 cups flour, salt, and sugar in food processor until combined, about two 1-second pulses. Add butter and shortening and process until homogeneous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 15 seconds; dough will resemble cottage cheese curds and there should be no uncoated flour. Scrape bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining cup flour and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into medium bowl.

2. Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and sticks together. Divide dough into 2 even balls and flatten each into 4-inch disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days.

3. Remove 1 disk of dough from refrigerator and roll out on generously floured (up to 1/4 cup) work surface to 12-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll into pie plate, leaving at least 1-inch overhang on each side. Working around circumference, ease dough into plate by gently lifting edge of dough with one hand while pressing into plate bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs plate in place; refrigerate while preparing filling until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.

For The Filling:
4. Adjust oven rack to lowest position [I don't do this...I always cook on the middle-lower middle rack position], place rimmed baking sheet on oven rack, and heat oven to 400 degrees. Place 3 cups berries in medium saucepan and set over medium heat. Using potato masher, mash berries several times to release juices. Continue to cook, stirring frequently and mashing occasionally, until about half of berries have broken down and mixture is thickened and reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 8 minutes. Let cool slightly.

5. Place grated apple in clean kitchen towel and wring dry. Transfer apple to large bowl. Add cooked berries, remaining 3 cups uncooked berries, lemon zest, juice, sugar, tapioca, and salt; toss to combine. Transfer mixture to dough-lined pie plate and scatter butter pieces over filling.

6. Roll out second disk of dough on generously floured (up to 1/4 cup) work surface to 11-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Using 1 1/4-inch round biscuit cutter, cut round from center of dough. Cut another 6 rounds from dough, 1 1/2 inches from edge of center hole and equally spaced around center hole. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll over pie, leaving at least 1/2-inch overhang on each side.

7. Using kitchen shears, trim bottom layer of overhanging dough, leaving 1/2-inch overhang. Fold dough under itself so that edge of fold is flush with outer rim of pie plate. Flute edges using thumb and forefinger or press with tines of fork to seal. Brush top and edges of pie with egg mixture. If dough is very soft, chill in freezer for 10 minutes.

8. Place pie on heated baking sheet and bake 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue to bake until juices bubble and crust is deep golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes longer. Transfer pie to wire rack; cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. Cut into wedges and serve. [I cooked Sunday's pie for about 35 minutes at 400, then an unknown time at 350 degrees...it was bubbling over, so I wasn't really focusing on the time.  The ones I cooked last night were perfectly done after cooking at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, and at 350 for 15 minutes...but our oven tends to run hot.  To check for doneness, use a butter knife and gently insert into one of the vents.  If the berries feel soft, you're good to go].

They say it's your birthday...we're gonna have a good time...

I love to bake for my coworkers.  They are open to trying pretty much anything, and just appreciate having that afternoon indulgence, I think.  It's also nice to bake for them because it means that I can try out all kinds of recipes without having to have a constant stream of baked goods in my house!

While I have no problem with store-bought cakes for birthdays, I decided that this year, I would give my coworkers the chance to have whatever they wanted for their birthday treats.  They could go with the traditional birthday cake, or opt for pie/cheesecake/cookies/brownies/homemade ice cream...whatever their little hearts desired (not that they have little hearts...quite the opposite).

We have a strange situation here, in that there are only 5 of us (including the boss), and our birthdays are April 4, May 22, June 7, June 21, and July 29...so not a huge amount of time between them.

Birthday #1 was the boss...and it was a challenge...the treat of choice was peach pie.  Now, it just so happens that peach pie is his favourite thing in life.  In fact, when I brought in a peach pie last year at the peak of peach season, he took a picture of it with his phone, and looks at it all year round.  It also just so happens that in Canada, you have a better chance of finding a leprechaun than peaches in April.  But how could I tell him that he couldn't have what he had asked for?  In the end, I used frozen peaches, and manipulated them until they were as similar to fresh peaches as could be expected...and not a bad result.

#2 was to be the first of 2 back-to-back birthdays for the office's peanut butter and chocolate addicts.  The first was a peanut butter and chocolate pie, and the second was a peanut butter cup cheesecake...complete with mini cups chopped into the batter, and glazed with melted down peanut butter cups...both were fantastically rich, and kept in the fridge, provided several days of sugar highs!

#4 was my own birthday, so the coworkers got me a store-bought marble cake from my favourite grocery store bakery.  It was perfect for an unseasonably warm day...downright scorcher, to tell the truth!

#5 was unpredictable.  I had anticipated something really intense and difficult.  I was surprised and thrilled when the verdict came in that it was to be a classic pineapple upside-down cake!  I hadn't tasted one in years, and had never made one at all.

The recipe has been in our family for over 30 years...it was from an old Family Circle magazine from 1984.  It calls for the eggs to be separated, whites beaten, and added in stages, but we've never made it that way.  Also, it calls for 1 hour of baking time.  I cooked this cake for about 40 minutes, and I think that was a touch too long.

Also, I know that the tradition is to bit the rings on whole, and put cherries in the centres....but with a 9x9 pan, you can really only fit 5 rings on...but cutting as I did, I was able to use almost 7...and it was much easier to cut smaller slices for those who wanted to start small.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Topping

1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 can pineapple slices

Cake

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Topping

Melt butter and brown sugar in small saucepan.  Cook until bubbly, then pour into 9x9 pan.

Arrange pineapple slices decoratively on top of sugar mixture.

Cake

Cream butter and sugar together.  Add eggs and milk with vanilla, mixing gently after each addition.

Add dry ingredients, and stir until combined.  Do not over beat.

Pour batter on top of pineapple slices, and even out in pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes.  Cake is done when few moist crumbs stick to toothpick when tested.

Remove from oven and cool in pan for only 10-15 minutes.  Invert pan on to flat serving surface, and flip over.

Unmold cake from pan.  Serve either slightly warm, or cold.

Risotto: The food that takes so long to prepare, you're no longer hungry enough to eat it once it's ready

I have a very strong belief in taking time to do things.  Maybe it's my Irish heritage coming through (they have a saying, "When God made time, He made plenty of it").  When I have a decision to make about something, I think it to death...obsess about it until I get to the point where I know I'm making the best possible decision.  Don't get me wrong, I don't fault that method...the poorest decisions I've made in my life were ones that were made too quickly.

I think food is the same way.  Sure, throw some meat on the grill, it'll be ready in under 10 minutes, and it'll be delicious.  As I sit here though, I am thinking about things that are just stop-you-in-your-tracks delicious...and they are all things that take a long time to cook, and often require a lot of attention...like risotto.

Ironically, the decision to make risotto for dinner a couple of nights ago was a quick decision...I did not give adequate thought to the time it would take me to go to the store after work for the necessary ingredients, and then get home to cook it in time for a 5:45 dinner bell.

I know that there are all kinds of recipes for risotto that are cooked without constantly stirring, and without adding the broth in stages.  I've even seen a couple that advise cooking in the oven, of all places.  I haven't tried any of these...for the same reason that I've never tried cooking chicken in the microwave to save time...if something is worth doing, it's worth doing well.

The risotto took me about 30 minutes to make, as I needed to sauté mushrooms first...and I'm a firm believer in REALLY cooking mushrooms...sure, you're left with very few, almost chewy pieces, but the concentrated flavour is fantastic.  I stood at the stove and stirred, and stirred, AND STIRRED to the point where I was losing my will to live, let alone my will to eat dinner.

As predicted, it was great risotto...not as great the night after when I had to reheat it as leftovers, to be honest...but I have a plan for the leftovers the next time I make it!

Mushroom Risotto

2 tbsp. each shitake, Portobello, and field mushrooms

2 tbsp. leeks
1 small onion
2 tbsp. oil
1 tsp. garlic
1 cup Arborio rice
1-4 cups chicken stock, room temperature**
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
 
Sauté leeks, mushrooms, onion, and garlic in the oil.  Add the rice and continue to cook for another minute or 2, making sure that the rice does not brown.

Slowly add the stock, about 1/2 cup at a time.  Add more stock when the rice has absorbed the moisture in the pan, adding only a little at a time.  When the rice is cooked and firm, but not mushy, finish by adding parmesan cheese and heavy cream.  Season to taste.

**I know that the cardinal rule of risotto is to have the stock hot, but the chef who gave me the recipe insisted that less stock would be needed if it was room temperature.  I would also recommend using a low-sodium stock, as a regular chicken broth will become too salty as it concentrates.