Shut the door, I'm dressing!

One of my favorite cookbooks is The Junior League of Pasadena California Heritage Cookbook. I've had it since 1976. My dog, as a puppy, chewed the corner and many of the pages have stains. I love this cookbook. One of my favorite recipes is something they call Mexican White Dressing. Reading the recipe you might also wonder why it's called this, it's puzzled me forever.

This is one of those sweet dressings that goes well with avocado and citrus salads but the following is an old standby of mine. First, the dressing.

Mexican White Dressing
1 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 tablespoon of powdered onion
4 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients in a 1-quart covered jar and allow to stand at room temperature for 24 hours. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving. Shake well just before using. This dressing will keep for 1 week in the refrigerator.

Now, the salad. It couldn't be easier. You can add candied nuts or Gorgonzola, whatever you enjoy. The sweet dressing is a wonderful compliment to the strong cheese.

Napa Cabbage Salad
Chop into bite-sized pieces a medium head of Napa cabbage.
To this add walnuts and crumbled blue cheese and toss with dressing.

Hot Fudge

Sometimes hot fudge sundaes for dinner is just what you need. I mean, really, let's throw caution to the wind and enjoy what we want. Life is stressful enough these days, but I'm an optimist; I feel we are getting better.

When my beloved decided he wasn't hungry for dinner I asked if he had room for dessert. He quickly agreed he had room for a hot fudge sundae. Friday we had friends over for dinner and since I don't bake much in the summer, we had a simple dish of ice cream with peach sauce for dessert. That meant there was ice cream left in the freezer.

A few days ago, in an unusual fit of cleaning, I ran across a recipe for my mom's hot fudge. This was not your usual chocolate syrup this was something divine. I had never made it but had asked mom quite a few years ago how she concocted this delightful pleasure. It is way too easy.

Hot Fudge
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (try some of the La Lechera that Doodles posted about)
powdered cocoa
milk
pinch of salt (optional)

In a small sauce pan heat the condensed milk slowly and whisk in enough cocoa powder to taste. Some people like it more chocolaty than others. As it heats, thin it to the right consistency with milk. You want to be able to pour the syrup. Add a pinch of salt. Heat and stir until it's smooth, no need to come close to a boil.

Pour over your favorite ice cream but pour enough you want a bite of that tasty fudgy syrup with each bite of ice cream.

Not enough butter in your diet? We have the answer

Buttercream Frosting! I was feeling like the blood through my arteries was moving much to fast so I decided to make honest to goodness buttercream frosting. This is a Cook's Country recipe and it's pretty easy though I'm sure very high in cholesterol. This recipe makes enough for a small cake or about 24 cupcakes. I cut it in half for 15 and I still had a bit left. What ever to do with a 1/4 cup of frosting?

Buttercream Frosting
4 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch table salt
1 pound unsalted butter, softened and each stick cut into eights

Combine eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt in bowl of standing mixer, place bowl over pan of simmering water. Whisking gently but constantly, heat mixture until thin and foamy and registers 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer.

Beat egg mixture on medium-high speed with whisk attachment until light, airy, and cooled to room temperature, about five minutes. (I put an ice pack around the outside of the bowl because it was pretty hot in my kitchen.) Reduce speed to medium and add butter, one piece at a time. (After adding half the butter, buttercream may look curdled; it will smooth with additional butter.) Once all butter is added, increase speed to high and beat 1 minute until light, fluffy, and thoroughly combined. (Can be covered and refrigerated up to 5 days.) Do let it warm up and restir to make it fluffy and spreadable again.

I frosted the cupcakes and sprinkled some toasted sugared slice almonds. Just perfect. I kept them refrigerated until a few minutes before serving because that butter sets up solid when cold, just like it does in your arteries.

Reprise of an old favorite: part two, the guacamole

You can hardly call this guacamole since there is so little avocado in it but that's what they call it at Cielito Lindo's. You can call it damn delicioso and put it on anything, well maybe not dessert.

Let's get this finished. I had so many pix for the first installment and my camera decided to be uncooperative for the second so we are gonna proceed photoless.

Take the approximately 3 cups of the Salsa Verde you made from the previous post and add one half a medium sized ripe avocado. Yes, that is correct, one half, 1/2, or medio; however you say it–it's just a tiny bit of the whole sauce.

Liquefy in the blender until smooth and bring to a simmer in a small sauce pan. Simmer for about five minutes. This cooks out the "raw" taste of the avocado. Not a bad taste but somehow different once you cook it.

Now thin with a bit of what's called in the restaurant biz, "profit". That would be water to us folks. This sauce is very thin, like a heavy tomato juice. Adjust the salt and let this cool; refrigerate and serve cold over the taquitos. It is also good on tacos and I love it mixed in with frijoles.

I hope this helps the readers who can't make it to downtown Los Angeles for their taquito fix and maybe spur someone else to try this classic Olvera Street favorite.

Reprise of an old favorite: part one, salsa verde

Editors note: Lots of photos on a blog site, not my thing but sometimes you need to show the process so if you have a slower computer, I sincerely apologize, there are many photos with this posting.

We've received a number of questions about the Guacamole Sauce used at a famous taquito stand in Los Angeles. Ok, two is a number, right? I posted about recreating the recipe and came pretty close. If you've been to Cielito Lindo's you know what the big fuss is about. Recently, we've had a few other questions and I thought it time to do a thorough post, with pix, to help everyone out. Since this can be a complicated recipe and would be too long for any sane person to read, I'll serialize it.

First you need to make the Salsa Verde. I rarely make it from scratch because I live near an ethnic Mexican market that makes it fresh but if you can't find this make this recipe or find canned, Herdez Salsa Verde. It works in a pinch. Do stay away from any canned Salsa Verde that has sugar, yuck. Once in a while I find canned tomatillos just packed in brine. This will work too but you have to cook the other veggies so why not do it all.

1 lb of Tomatillos, husked removed
Note: These look like green tomatoes with a papery skin. Peel off the skin and wash the tomatillos thoroughly. They are sticky, very sticky; they should make glue from tomatillos.

3 whole jalapeño peppers
Note: I use Fresno Hots because I grow them in the summer. These are hot mamma jammas and need to be treated, as all hot peppers, with respect. Seriously wear gloves and wash before you touch any skin, yours our someone else's. I also used one of my Anaheim Green chillies, they have such great flavor but you can make it with just jalapeños.

7 or 9 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 medium white onion, quartered (I know the photo shows a brown onion)
1 can of 14.5 oz. chicken broth
a small bunch of cilantro with stems, about a cup roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Cut the tomatillos in quarters. See why? You can't tell from the outside if it's got a bad spot.
Cut the peppers in quarters and if they are really hot remove the seeds.
Cut onions in quarters and peel the garlic.

Everything, including chicken broth goes into a pot. Don't worry if the broth does not cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil and simmer with lid on for about 20 minutes or until everything is soft.
Because you can never be sure how hot your chillies are you can, in a separate pan, boil a few chopped and seeded chillies.

This will smell wonderful. I believe this is what heaven smells like.

I took this snap before I added the cilantro stems but don't bother chopping them everything will go into the blender when cooked. Give it a taste and if it isn't hot enough for you add a few of the extra cooked chillies. If it's too hot, I have no idea, it's never been too hot for us. It needs to have some heat. Adjust the salt.

Here it is finished cooking. Now, didn't that all go together nice? Yes, it did.Let this cool before you process it, please. I have had Salsa Verde colored kitchen walls before. You could use the salsa, to cook pork or chicken or a sauce for enchiladas. It is very versatile.
For our Guacamole recipe whir in a blender until completely liquefied. Strain the salsa through a fine mesh strainer while you push it through with the back of a spoon. I strain it this way because the tomatillo has those pesky little white seeds. You do what you want but the resulting sauce should be quite smooth. You should have somewhere near 3 cups.
You are halfway there. Stay tuned for the second installment of the recipe; making the guacamole. It is totally different from guacamole you eat with your chips in a Mexican restaurant. It is for dipping taquitos and licking the plate after.

Use one quart of the Salsa Verde in my version of Chilaquiles.

Ridiculously short Shortbread Cookie

They do not travel well; you can hardly get them to your mouth in one piece.
Forget about putting them in a cookie jar, you have only crumbs.
Do not dip them in coffee; they disintegrate.
The better the butter, the better. (I love that sentence, read it again)
They must be beaten for 10 minutes; no more, no less and baked immediately.

Ok, that all the bad things about these cookies, here is the one reason you will run right out and make them: These are the lightest cookies you will ever put in your mouth. Do I have to say more?

Shortbread Cookies (this recipe can be cut in half very easily)

1 lb unsalted butter, softened but not too soft.
4 cups flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1 pinch of salt

Beat for 10 minutes with a stand mixer. Pip from a pastry bag with a large tip onto parchment.
Bake 350 for 15-17 minutes. Just brown on the edges. Let cool about a minute on cookie sheet and remove to a rack to cool.

Who needs a recipe?

For Lemonade, well, honestly–I do. If I just throw in sugar, water and lemon juice I'm futzing around adding more juice or sugar, oops, now it's too strong and I need more water so I adhere to a recipe.

Since I have a beautiful lemon tree right outside my door I don't have to buy lemons and usually by this time of the summer we are begging visitors to take bags home. Unfortunately the drought has hit close to home in more ways than one and my lemon tree seems to be suffering a bit. The lemons are smaller and not as plentiful but I did have a few dozen to make up a batches of concentrate to freeze for a later use.

This recipe is so simple I never change it.

1 cup fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup sugar
4 cups water
1 lemon sliced

I make a simple syrup from 1 cup of water and the sugar then add the water, lemon slices and juice. I have no idea how long it last because it's usually gone that day.

For the concentrate: combine sugar and lemon juice is a small container; mix until sugar is dissolved. Freeze. Defrost slightly and add the water and sliced lemon.

A tall glass with lots of ice is the fav here and on occasion, a shot of Raspberry Rum. Yum.

Where the egg whites came from

Choux Pastry has always fascinated me. So light, so delicate and filled with all the wonderful things I like. So when I ended up with more Fat Free half and half than I could use in the next week I thought I'd give this recipe a try. It's from a lovely little book entitled, Vanilla. Yum. Though Yum isn't in the title, it should be.

First the Cremé Patissiére.
(I used all fat-free half and half for all the liquid)
2/3 cup milk
2/3 heavy cream
1 vanilla bean
4 egg yolks - room temperature
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons flour

Put milk and cream into a medium, heavy-bottom pan. Use the tip of a small sharp knife to score the vanilla bean lengthwise through the center. Add it to the pan and bring the milk to a boil. Remove from heat and let it infuse for 20 minutes.

Bean together the egg yolks, sugar, and flour until smooth. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk, scrap out the seeds with the tip of a knife, and return the seed to the milk. Pour the milk over the egg mixture, beating well.

Don't discard the bean, rinse and dry it and put it in a container with sugar. In a week you'll have the most delicisoso sugar.

Return the custard to the pan and cook over a gentle heat, stiffing constantly with a wooden spoon, for 4-5 minutes until it is thick and smooth. Turn the custard into a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool before use.

Now for the Choux pastry.
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla ( I love paste vanilla)

Lightly grease a large cookie sheet and sprinkle with water. Sift the flour onto a sheet of waxed paper. Cut the butter into pieces and melt in a medium pan with 2/3 cup water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then remove the pan from the heat.

Tip in the flour and beat until the mixture forms a ball that comes away from the side of the pan. I did this with a wooden spoon. Let cool for 2 minutes then gradually beat in the eggs until mixture is smooth and glossy. Add the vanilla.

Place 12 even-size spoonfuls of the mixture, space well apart, on the prepared cookie sheet and bake in a pre-heated 400 degree over for about 22-25 minutes until they are well risen and golden. Make a slit around the middle of each puff and return them to the oven for 3 more minutes to dry out the centers. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool.

Open each puff and fill with the pastry cream. I placed three banana slices on the bottom, then the cream and finally the top. Dust with confectioners' sugar and store them in a cool place until ready to serve.

They were tasty but my pastry cream was not set as much as I'd wanted so they were a bit difficult to eat, too runny. It was either I didn't cook it long enough or, as I suspect, the fat-free half and half. Next time, the hell with the calories, I'll use regular half and half.

You can be as creative as you want. I've made these with chicken salad for a luncheon buffet and
were very good. Just remember to assemble at the last minute so they puffs stay crispy.

When life gives you egg whites, make meringues

I ended up this morning with four egg whites and I can't throw away four egg whites. Nope can't do it. I've tried, I've even froze them thinking I'd do something at a later date and since I already have frozen egg whites that are from the Clinton administration I figured I better use these. Don't try to understand me, just feel sorry for me.

Even though I've collected a dozen recipes for meringues I'd never made any of them. Oh, I've eaten my fair share. There is a lovely bakery in Westlake that make a coconut meringue cookie that is to die for but I've never tried until this morning when I ended up with four egg whites. How I ended up with four egg whites is another post that I will hopefully finish this weekend but you've seen my track record lately, don't get too excited.

Now, the most important thing about meringues is don't open the oven. Sheesh, what a test of my patience. My sister makes a wonderful roast prime rib that you cook for a while, turn the oven off, and let it rest for a few hours. Holy Cats. She had to tie the oven door shut so I wouldn't, you know, just check on it. So here I am with my cookies tucked neatly into their warm little beds and me on the outside tapping on the glass, Open, Open, Open ...

Here's the recipe I used. Could not be more simple, it's just the damn waiting.

Pecan Meringue cookies

Notes on working with egg whites. Before you start, remove eggs from refrigerator and let them come to room temperature. (A couple of hours will do, or if you are rushed for time, immerse them in warm water for 10 minutes.) Make sure that all bowls, hands, and utensils that might touch the eggs are clean and free from oils.





* 1 cup whole pecans (preferably lightly roasted - 8-10 min at 250°F)
* 3 egg whites
* Pinch salt
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon vinegar

Preheat oven to 300°F.

Place pecans in zipper baggie and beat them with a wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Set aside.

Put egg whites into a stand mixer bowl. Add salt. Start the mixer speed on low, gradually increasing the speed until soft peaks start to become visible and the egg white bubbles are very small and uniform, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Increase the speed to medium-high, and slowly add the sugar to the egg whites. Continue to whip the eggs and sugar for a few minutes. Then add the vinegar to the bowl. Increase speed to high and whip the egg whites until they fluff up and become glossy, and stiff peaks form when the whisk is lifted, 4-5 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the pecan pieces. Drop by teaspoons onto a cookie sheets that have been lined with parchment paper or Silpat. (I piped them from the same plastic bag the nuts were in after cutting off a corner)

Put the cookies sheet in the 300°F oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Leave them in the oven overnight. In the morning they should be ready - crisp on the outside, light and airy on the inside. If they are a little marshmallowy or chewy on the inside in the morning, just let them dry out for a few more hours. Makes 12-24 cookies, depending on the size.

Editors note: I did finally get the photos posted. It's not easy taking a snap of something white in something glass. Should be a photo assignment somewhere. The cookies are wonderful. Not too sweet and light and airy.

Bite the cookie

Sometimes I become obsessed with food and make and remake recipes until I like them. Cookies are on the Hit Parade right now so bear with me, folks.

I adore cookies, all types, flavors, and sizes. If I'm thumbing through a magazine cookie photos will make me stop, asses the recipe, and tear it out for later. I've piles of snippets stuck in the back of my cook book. Someday I'll organize them, ha!

Let me sing the praises of the cookie. Easily stored in a variety of containers, put in a slice of bread alongside cookies you want to stay soft, you don't need a fancy jar though I enjoy my crock. You don't need a plate or a fork or any fussy presentation; hands work great. It's portable, you can walk by the cookie jar, on your way to the gym, and snag one or three. They are a favorite of all ages, cultures, and cooks. I bet your family has its favorite and it's time you made them some right now.

Here is my latest Vanilla Pecan Refrigerator Cookies. I can't say where I got this recipe but I do enjoy having a log of refrigerator cookies in the freezer. I can bake the entire recipe or maybe just a dozen for my beloved and me. He likes them, too. Though shortbread cookies are my all-time favorite these little gems are easy, quick and delicious. I've been going for more of a crispy cookie lately and, since there is only white sugar, they fill that order. I used butter but if you use shortening they might be a bit crispier; I'll try that next time.

Vanilla Pecan Refrigerator Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter or shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla (yes, this is correct)
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans (nice if you toast them)

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each. Add the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl. Use a spoon to stir in the flour mixture into the sugar mixture. Add the pecans, mixing well. Shape into three rolls about 2 inches in diameter and wrap in was paper. refrigerate at least two hours or up to three days. You can also freeze.

Bake in 375 oven. Cut the dough into 1/4 inch slices 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake about 10 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on wire rack and store in airtight container. Makes about 6 dozen.

Editor's note: My husband usually can take or leave cookies, I know, why would I marry someone like that? With these he can't keep out of the cookie crock. It has quite a heavy lid so I can always tell when he's in there. I asked what he liked about them and he couldn't put his finger on the reason. Finally, who needs a reason to eat a cookie!

Let us know your family favorite cookie.

Plain but perfect

There are as many sugar cookie recipes as there are families. For roll out cookies I'd made the same recipe over and over until I found Sylvie's on Soul Fusion Kitchen. Perfect for cookie cutters but growing up I remember a plain sugar cookie with the tops dusted with sugar. As luck would have it I found a recipe to satisfy that old memory.

While celebrating Christmas at Mary's, my step-mother, I found some cookies she'd baked but didn't have out. She said they were a little stale. They were exactly what I was looking for, well not the stale part, but I asked her to send the recipe and now I make these regularly. I only make a half recipe because my darling and I would sit down and eat them all and four to five dozen is way too many.

They are dusted cinnamon and sugar and are made with butter and oil and couldn't be easier to throw together. I hope you enjoy them.

Sugar Cookies
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 cup margarine (I used unsalted butter)
1 cup cooking oil

Cream together – beat until fluffy.

Beat in 2 eggs

4 cups plus 4 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tarter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. In a small bowl, combine some sugar and cinnamon. Using the bottom of a drinking glass, spread with margarine, dip it into the sugar and cinnamon mixture, and press on top of each cookie. Cook for about 10-15 minutes.

Cast Iron Apple Pie

Since I'm planning to participate in a Outdoor Dutch Oven demo when we go camping the end of the month I though I'd better try out this new recipe before I did. I saw this recipe on America’s Test Kitchen (www.americastestkitchen.com) on public television's Beg Week and thought I could convert it to iron. I followed the recipe as stated and the product was, ok. I hate, just ok so when I do this again I'll make some adjustments. There are also adjustments to using an Outdoor Dutch Oven.

The sauce had little flavor and was not thick enough. They use cornstarch and I'm not a fan of that to thicken pies so I'd use flour next time. Also, you need to adjust the thickening agent for the different apples. Some, more juicy that others, will take more flour. Now cinnamon is not to everyone's taste but an 1/8 of a teaspoon, who could even taste that. I'll add more. I've made my suggestions in red for the changes to the recipe and green for the adaptation to cast iron.

For the camping trip, I'll pre-make the pie dough and slice the apples and sprinkle with lemon juice to keep them from getting brown.

Skillet Apple Pie
from the Episode: Easy Apple Desserts

If your skillet is not heatproof, precook the apples and stir in the cider mixture as instructed, then transfer the apples to a 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Roll out the dough to a 13- by 9-inch rectangle and bake it as instructed. If you do not have apple cider, reduced apple juice may be used as a substitute—simmer 1 cup apple juice in a small saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 10 minutes). Serve the pie warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Use a combination of sweet, crisp apples such as Golden Delicious and firm, tart apples such as Cortland or Empire.

Serves 6 to 8

Crust
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (5 ounces), plus more for dusting work surface
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening , chilled
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter , cut into 1/4-inch pieces
3–4 tablespoons ice water

Filling
1/2 cup apple cider (see note)
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
2 teaspoons cornstarch (I'll use 4 tablespoons flour)
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I'll use 1-2 teaspoons)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (I'll use 3 tablespoons)
(I'll use 3 tablespoons brown sugar)
2 1/2 pounds sweet apples and tart apples (about 5 medium), peeled, cored, halved, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges

1 egg white , lightly beaten
2 teaspoons sugar

Use a 12 inch deep outdoor dutch oven. Pre-heat with 25 coals underneath, lid on, until pan is hot.

1. FOR THE CRUST: Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in food processor until combined. Add shortening and process until mixture has texture of coarse sand, about ten 1-second pulses. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture and process until mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse crumbs, with butter bits no larger than small peas, about ten 1-second pulses. Transfer mixture to medium bowl.

2. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons ice water over mixture. With blade of rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix. Press down on dough with broad side of spatula until dough sticks together, adding up to 1 tablespoon more ice water if dough does not come together. Turn dough out onto sheet of plastic wrap and flatten into 4-inch disk. Wrap dough and refrigerate 30 minutes, or up to 2 days, before rolling out. (If dough is refrigerated longer than 1 hour, let stand at room temperature until malleable.)

3. FOR THE FILLING: Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (between 7 and 9 inches from heating element) and heat oven to 500 degrees. Whisk cider, syrup, lemon juice, cornstarch, and cinnamon (if using) together in medium bowl until smooth. Heat butter in 12-inch heatproof skillet over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add apples and cook, stirring 2 or 3 times until apples begin to caramelize, about 5 minutes. (Do not fully cook apples.) Remove pan from heat, add cider mixture, and gently stir until apples are well coated. Set aside to cool slightly.

For DO: Add butter, then apples to the preheated DO. Stir and cook until apples begin to caramelize. Remove DO from coals add cider mixture stirring to coat the apples. Dust in more flour, if needed.
4. TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: Roll out dough on lightly floured work surface, or between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap, to 11-inch circle. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll over apple filling. Brush dough with egg white and sprinkle with sugar. With sharp knife, gently cut dough into 6 pieces by making 1 vertical cut followed by 2 evenly spaced horizontal cuts (perpendicular to first cut). Bake until apples are tender and crust is a deep golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes; serve.

For DO: After you cut the pie dough, place 4 coals on the bottom and remaining on the lid. Most of the heat should be towards the outside with a few in the center. You can see I had not enough on the rim. Turn lid every five minutes 1/4 turn and bake until crust is golden brown. I needed 25 minutes. Resist opening the lid until 20 minutes have passed.

This will be quite hot but it needs to be dished up since the DO hold onto that heat for a long time. I spooned it into bowls.

If you are camping and prep this before hand it is a great dessert. I might even try this in my regular home oven.

Cast iron biscuits: so tender

The weather is starting to warm up and it's outdoor dutch-oven time, again. The last trip to the beach I brought and bought my cast iron collection to practice for our Tear Drop camp out in March. I've been perfecting a recipe for the potluck, Chili Verde but I tried a new one for biscuits. Who doesn't like the smell of freshly baked biscuits while camping?

Because our weather did not allow me to set up outside I modified my biscuits to the indoor kitchen. Instead of the outdoor dutch-oven I used my ancient iron skillet. This was passed down from my Grandmother, Emily to my Mom, Lorna and then to me. I use it to cook fried chicken, among other things, and it is seasoned to perfection.

My recipe for biscuits is easy:

2 cups AP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt, not kosher
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup shortening, cold cut into pieces
1 cup buttermilk
1 or 2 tablespoons canola oil

You will need a ten inch iron skillet, hopefully seasoned. If not you can make this in a glass dish.
Preheat oven and iron skillet, 400 degrees.

Mix dry ingredients then cut in the shortening until it resembles course sand. I use a pastry blender but you can also rub it between your fingers.

Pour in buttermilk and gently mix with a fork and dump out on floured surface. Gently knead with floured hands and then fold over a few times and pat it to about an inch thick.

With a floured cutter, I use a wine glass, cut out as many biscuits as you can, then gather the remaining dough together; gently and repeat. Did I say gently enough times?

Remove your hot skillet from the oven and add oil tilting until it covers. Place each biscuit in the skillet. I just touch the top in the oil and roll the biscuit over to get a bit of the hot oil on top. Be careful the pan is hot and it should sizzle. You want to crowd them in so they all touch, I get eight in my 10 inch pan.

Bake for about 18-20 minutes until tops are slightly golden.

I should tell you to enjoy but I can't imagine anyone not enjoying hot biscuits and honey butter.

If you want to do these while camping use a ten inch camping dutch oven. I put eleven coals on top and only five underneath. Remember to preheat that DO smoking hot before putting in the oil and the dough. Turn every five minutes. Cooking time should be the same.

Birthday cake

More from the Princess' birthday cake. I was chastised by Laura Rebecca to post more photos and a recipe. Thanks for the prod, Laura. Check out her blog she seems to be a proficient baker.

This recipe is from America's Test Kitchen and I did not change the recipe a bit. Mine came out more dense than I thought but still quite tender. I do believe the key is everything needs to be room temperature.

The first time I made this cake, every cake has an audition in my kitchen, I did not frost it but used the odd vanilla filling I post about last week. Auditioned cakes get shared with my neighbor and she really liked it. She doesn't realize it but she's my food tester. Well, maybe now she does since she does read the blog.

To frost this cake I used a product called "Frosting Pride" I get it at Smart and Final and it tastes like a whipped cream frosting. Very easy and quite tasty you can add color and I've added softened cream cheese before. As you can see, decorating is not my strong suit.

I doubled this recipe for a half-sheet pan

2 1/2	cups cake flour , plus extra for dusting pans
1 1/4	teaspoons baking powder
1/4	teaspoon baking soda
3/4	teaspoon table salt
1 3/4	cups sugar (12 1/4 ounces)
10	tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly
1	cup buttermilk , room temperature
3	tablespoons vegetable oil
2	teaspoons vanilla extract
6	large egg yolks , room temperature
3	large egg whites , room temperature

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9-inch-wide by 2-inch-high round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper. Grease paper rounds, dust pans with flour, and knock out excess. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 1 1/2 cups sugar together in large bowl. In 4-cup liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and yolks.

2. In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites at medium-high speed until foamy, about 30 seconds. With machine running, gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar; continue to beat until stiff peaks just form, 30 to 60 seconds (whites should hold peak but mixture should appear moist). Transfer to bowl and set aside.

3. Add flour mixture to now-empty mixing bowl fitted with whisk attachment. With mixer running at low speed, gradually pour in butter mixture and mix until almost incorporated (a few streaks of dry flour will remain), about 15 seconds. Stop mixer and scrape whisk and sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium-low speed and beat until smooth and fully incorporated, 10 to 15 seconds.

4. Using rubber spatula, stir 1/3 of whites into batter to lighten, then add remaining whites and gently fold into batter until no white streaks remain. Divide batter evenly between prepared cake pans. Lightly tap pans against counter 2 or 3 times to dislodge any large air bubbles.

5. Bake until cake layers begin to pull away from sides of pans and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on wire rack for 10 minutes. Loosen cakes from sides of pans with small knife, then invert onto greased wire rack and peel off parchment. Invert cakes again and cool completely on rack, about 1 1/2 hours.

A creamy cake filling

Having no pictures because my camera is wonky should not be an excuse for not posting but, regrettably it has been. I'm posting this recipe because I found it odd. While searching for the perfect cake for a first birthday I ran across this filling. In the final cake I ended up not using it but thought it would be an interesting post, anyway. I guess it's because I like odd things.

What I found odd was, you make a cream sauce then add butter and shortening, sugar, and a bit of vanilla. I was sure it wouldn't be any good so I tried it and was pleasantly surprised. It is light and not too sweet and would hold up to adding a bit of fruit or jam. I wonder why I'd not heard of this one before. The first time I made it I used non-fat milk, all I had on hand, but when I made it again with half-and-half I didn't notice much difference.

This is a Paula Deen recipe.

5 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a lidded container shake the flour and milk until mixed. In saucepan, cook and whisk until thick. It's a cream sauce and you don't want lumps so whisk the hell out of it. Cool.

In bowl, combine sugar, salt, shortening, butter and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer until fluffy, then add the cooled milk mixture and beat again, until fluffy.

Ever start dinner with dessert?

No, me either but here I'm going to start my Labor Day BBQ meal post with my dessert, peach cobbler. I found this fresh peaches and a yummy tender topping made with buttermilk cobbler on Food Network.

This was served after a killer meal of smoked pork, broccoli salad, baked beans, and a few great appetizers. All will appear on future posts but lets get at that peach cobbler, shall we?

Peach Cobbler
It says it serves 6-8 but I doubled it and served 8; maybe we're pigs.

Cobbler filling:
4 cups peeled and sliced fresh peaches
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon flour

Cobbler crust:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon brown sugar, for topping.

Preheat over 425 degrees.

Butter a 1 1/2 quart shallow baking dish. Place the sliced peaches in the dish and sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and flour. Mix gently and spread evenly again. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile combine all dry ingredients for cobbler crust in a bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or you fingers, to make the texture like course crumbs. Add buttermilk and stir to form a soft dough.

Remove fruit from oven and drop rounded spoons full of dough on top. Sprinkle with last tablespoon of brown sugar and return to oven. Bake until fruit is bubbly and crust topping is golden brown, about 20 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

Cooking the peaches for ten minutes before putting on the topping made it so very light and I think kept it from being "doughy" underneath. It was a little bit of heaven floating down to my kitchen.

Last picture? Only one piece left.

Vegetarians: no monkeys were harmed in the making of this dish

When I'm in a fix for something sweet to make, in a short amount of time, I'll go to my standard, Monkey Bread. It serves as well as a dessert as it does a breakfast treat. I've never had to take any leftovers home. It's so simple it amazes me when people rave about it. Must be the brown sugar and cinnamon, gets them every time. Since there are few ingredients needed I always keep them on hand for that last minute surprise potluck. The refrigerator biscuits last forever. It's scary but I try not to think about it.

Please, no one turn up their noses at the canned biscuits used in this tasty treat. I've made it from scratch and to be honest, I like the texture of the Pillsbury biscuits better. Some recipes call for dipping each piece of dough in butter then rolling in sugar. Takes too much time and, again, not much different in the final product.

Monkey Bread
4 cans Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits, ten in the can. I buy 4 wrapped together in their "value pack"
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon (sometimes I throw in a bit of fresh nutmeg, too)
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 stick unsalted butter (do not use margarine)

Grease the sides of a tube/bundt pan.
Mix white sugar and cinnamon together and put in a bag.

Open cans one at a time and cut each biscuit into four pieces. Put all of the one can's cut biscuits into the bag with the cinnamon sugar and shake to coat the pieces.

Start layering the biscuits into the prepared pan. If you desire, you can add chopped nuts or raisins with each layer. Do each can then set aside as you make the syrup.

Melt the butter and brown sugar in a small pan. Bring to a boil and cook for about two minutes stirring continuously. Pour over biscuits in prepared pan.

Bake in 350 oven for about 30-40 minutes until they biscuits are golden and puffed. Don't over bake. Let cool for about 10/15 minutes or so; if not, all the monkeys fall out. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and turn upside down on a plate.

Serve warm or cold. Use a fork to separate a piece, cutting can be difficult unless it's cold.

I'd like to show a photo but every time I make this I'm rushing out the door.

If you are not drooling …

When Doodle's won the recipe contest in the September issue of Cook's Country I, of course, picked up the magazine. I do enjoy this magazine because they have no ads only good recipes and a few hints and product reviews. I was not disappointed with this issue and tried a number of recipes for a dinner this weekend.

Often, when going to a potluck or planning an informal dinner get-together, I want a simple dessert that's portable. There is nothing more difficult than trying to get a fancy dessert on the road. I'd rather be a roadie for a rock band than have to transport something with whipped cream. This unbelievably light lemon sheet cake answered both those requests, and did I mention, it was easy and delicious.

I did not change this recipe one bit but my cake texture was not as dense as the picture in the magazine. Mine turned out very fluffy with lots of crumbs. I might have beat mine longer but it didn't seem to affect the flavor. The sugar and zest combo on the top was great. The topping gave a bit of crunch to the, other wise, tender cake.

Lemon Buttermilk Sheet Cake
serves 16

Cake:
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup buttermilk, room temp
3 tablespoons grated zest and 1/4 cup juice from 3 large lemons
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 sticks of softened unsalted butter
3 large eggs plus 1 yolk, room temp

Glaze:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons buttermilk

For the cake: heat oven 325 degrees. Grease and flour 13x9 baking pan. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Combine buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla.

With electric mixer on medium speed, beat granulated sugar and lemon zest until moist and fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer 1/4 cup sugar mixture to small bowl, cover, and reserve. Add butter to remaining sugar mixture and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs and yolk, one at a time, until incorporated. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with 2 additions of buttermilk mixture, and mix until smooth, about 30 seconds.

Scrape batter into pan and smooth top. Bake until cake is golden brown and tooth pick inserted into center comes out clean, 25-35 minutes. Transfer cake pan to wire rack and let cool 10 minutes.

For the glaze: Whisk confectioners' sugar, lemon juice, and buttermilk until smooth. Gently spread glaze over warm cake and sprinkle evenly with reserved sugar mixture. Cool completely, two hours. Serve.

Once a hobby, now an obsession

When will she ever stop?

Some people's hobbies can be annoying, you know collecting soda bottles or famous people's hair but mine, Outdoor Dutch Oven Cooking, is more than a hobby, it's turned into an obsession. Every time I fix a meal I try to figure out how long it would take to prepare outside? How can I convert that recipe. I must get help but until then here is my latest, Twenty-four hour sourdough bread.

Good ol' reliable Alton Brown actually had an episode on Outdoor Dutch Oven cooking. I'll not put in the recipe, it's called Knead Not Sourdough and can be found on Food TV's site. What I will talk about it the method. You mix flour, salt, a tiny 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, and water and let it set 20 hours, covered, on your counter. Then you do that normal punch down, turn around, and let rise another two hours thing to the dough. What could be easier, other than going to the bakery.


While the second rise is almost done it's outside to heat up the iron. Then toss your formed loaf into a pretty hot dutch oven to bake for 45 minutes. I'm all about the coals so I had what he suggested which I thought was way too many for the bottom. We are still in the experimental part of my obsession so I loaded on the coals.

After 30 minutes you could smell the bread, a good sign but I feared too early. The lid got lifted at 35 minutes and I gasped, yes literally, because it look so beautiful. This is food porn, folks. The temperature was in the range suggested so I hoisted it from the fire. Letting it cool for a few moments I then got some hand protection to remove the loaf. Now here's where it gets funny. It was somehow welded to the bottom of the pan. Would not budge. After I finally grunted and groaned and freed it from the iron it was pretty burnt on the bottom and the bread, though not a total loss, was still a bit doughy in the center. Alton never turned his loaf over, now that I think of it.

I now know I should have gone with my instincts and had less coals on the bottom and that would have slowed down the baking. It was also a bit saltier than I thought it needed to be so I'd cut the salt in half. Someone more experienced at bread baking might have sliced the top a few places before baking. I have no idea what that does but it always looks good.

Other than that it would be great to cook up a loaf of bread while camping. Imagine that lovely smell drifting through the campground. Hmmmm. Just bring me some butter.

Step aside Iron Man; Cast Iron Woman is here

My darling companion is known for many attributes--some more outstanding than others--but he is famous for his sweet tooth. He surprised his sister-outlaw, doodles with his keen detection of a full candy dish.

There's a whole long list of reasons why I want him to stay healthy and happy so I've been tinkering with a baked apple dessert. What I came up with wasn't even a dessert, it was breakfast but I'd serve this anytime; an apple pancake.

First of all you'll need an iron skillet or a pan you can use on the top of the stove and in the oven. It calls for bread flour but you can use all purpose. The high protein bread flour helps the pancake to rise.

Baked Apple Pancake

2 tart cooking apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs, beaten and room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup bread flour
1/2 cup milk, room temperature ( I used non-fat)
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 tablespoons butter

Preheat oven to 425° F. Place oven rack on the middle rack of your oven.

In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon; set aside. In a large bowl, combine eggs, salt, flour, milk, and vanilla extract; beat until batter is smooth (the batter will be thin, but very smooth and creamy); set aside.

In a large heavy oven-proof frying pan or a cast-iron skillet over medium heat, melt butter, tilting pan to cover sides. Add apples and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture. Stir and let cook for 5 to 7 minutes to slightly cook the apple slices; remove from heat.

Pour prepared batter over apples into pan. Place pan in preheated oven and bake approximately 20 minutes or until puffed above sides of the pan and lightly browned (it may puff irregularly in the center); remove from oven.

Remove pancake from the baking pan by flipping upside down onto a serving platter (apples and cinnamon will be on top). Once out of the oven, the pancake will begin to deflate. To serve, cut into serving-size wedges and transfer to individual serving plates. Makes 2 to 4 servings.

If you use egg-beaters and non-fat milk this is getting in the range of a healthy breakfast treat. It's the caramelized apples that make this so tasty.

Another healthy aspect of cast iron cookware is it leaches small amounts of iron into the food. There's a lot of discussion to whether anemics can benefit from this but a little boost of iron couldn't hurt most of us. Those with excess iron issues (for example, people with hemochromatosis) may suffer negative effects.

Here's a breakdown of the calories/fat. I got three servings out of this recipe but the count even less if you'd cut in into four servings. We were sort of pigs that morning.

• With non-fat milk, egg beaters and butter= 396 calories/19.6 fat grams per serving.
  
• With non-fat milk, regular eggs and butter= 440 calories/24.5 fat grams per serving.

The butter is what adds the heavy fat grams and though you could cook the apples in something other than real butter I wouldn't even try. Sometimes ya gotta just go with it.