Cakes cakes cakes...

I love to create cakes. I'm no Chef Duff or anything, but I love to play around with different textures and possibilities.

I try to take pictures of my cakes as well.

Now that I'm at home, I have less opportunity (or excuse) to make a crazy cake, so I'm just going to reflect on some previous ones.

If you click on the picture, I have added notes to the Flickr image, if you are so inclined.

I've got the blues, and my garlic does too.

I feel crappy. What's worse, I can't tell you exactly what is wrong, but I know I don't feel good. Mr. H offered me the hope that it is what he had last week ("I felt like crap, and it lasted a week"). Fan-TAS-tic.

In the meantime, the weather is crappy too. It's been raining for days, mixing with snow. The snowman that the Marvelous Miss Thing and I built last week gave up its slow backward limbo and now appears to be lying in the corpse position in our front yard. You can see the bottom snowman, and his stick arms lying directly out from the ball on the ground.

And to add to it, in my need for croutons (Mr. H and I are back in salad-mode), my damn garlic turned blue again.

If you have never seen blue garlic (which I had not prior to two years ago), garlic will sometimes turn blue due to a chemical reaction between the sulfur in garlic and an acid. It supposedly happens more frequently with immature garlic. The garlic is still completely edible, and it does not affect the taste. The blue that I have seen is fairly unnatural looking. Rather smurf-life. (because I am feeling too crappy to take and post my own picture, here is someone else's picture of it)

The first time I had it happen, it was when I was roasting tomatoes. Nothing more disturbing than what appears to be mold growing all over one's precious tomato harvest. It was a huge panic moment. Later, when I was pickling jalepenos, blue garlic struck again.

Today, I have blue-flecked croutons.

Fortunately, with continued heat, the blue color will fade away. Right now my croutons have some blueish-gray specks on them, but soon all will be golden brown.

I just realized that I have been knitting wrong

Bugger. It's not a huge deal, but I have to re-teach myself the physical motions. From what I can tell, my knit stitch is actually a knit into the back loop or I was using the combined knitting technique (but not on the purl stitch).

I looked at the scarf that I have been working on for Mr. H. It's not really noticable, unless you know what you are looking for...

Update: I can now totally notice, but since I was half-way through the scarf before I realized it, Mr. h is just going to have to suck it up.

I also have been looking at Debbie New's book Unexpected Knitting. I am totally in love with what she has done. Once I know how to knit. properly. I am going to start playing around with some of free-style stuff. I think it will suit me better. While the idea of knitting a sweater is intriguing, I don't think I'm disciplined enough...

Pot-sticker soup

There are times when only soup will do. Maybe it is the weather, maybe it is because one imbibed one too many hurricanes at a certain Mardi Gras party the night before, but today both myself and Mr. H needed soup. Needed. Soup. Now

For us, today was a potsticker soup day. Clear broth seasoned with soy sauce and green onions, poured over potstickers and made as spicy as one could take. We fell in love with potstickers and buy them in bulk. They are an essential part of crap dinner. I have made my own potstickers, but they do not hold up well in the freezer, and they really fall apart when in soup, so I generally just stick with the pre-made ones.

Potstickers are little dumplings wrapped in a won-ton like dough that is then steamed and/or fried. When we are eating them as a meal (which we have done on several occasions), we boil them, then pan fry them. Which you can also do for this soup, because it gives them a nice crispy edge, but neither of us was feeling up to that much work.

Potsticker soup

8 cups chicken broth (I would have used my homemade stock, but I had used the rest on french onion soup *sigh*)
4-6 tbls soy sauce (to taste)
1-2 tbls rice wine vinegar (again, to taste - I like mine sour)
1 clove garlic, crushed (A small spoonful of garlic-ginger paste is also lovely)
splash sesame oil
(additional possible soup additions, based on what you have, and your tastes - 1-3 thinly sliced green onions, a couple thinly sliced button mushrooms, a little tofu, a handful of frozen green peas)

Mix together, and let simmer.

Meanwhile, prepare potstickers according to directions and your wishes.

Finally, plate the soup. Place 1 to 2 potstickers in a bowl. Pour broth over potstickers (this is important - you do not want to put the potstickers into your pot of broth - the wrapper will fall apart and lose all its dumpling-ness).

Top with whatever you have in the house - more green onions, bean sprouts, as much hot chili paste as you can handle

The King Cake

Our neighbors (and close friends) in C-bus throw a huge New Year's Eve party every year. Every year has a theme, selected around June. About three years ago, the theme was Mardi Gras. Wendy wanted a King Cake. I didn't know what one way, but I volunteered to make it.

A king cake is not really a cake at all, but rather an enriched bread (meaning sweetened, with eggs and butter), and then you may have a filling in it.

Historically, my understanding is the king cake is only served between the holiday of Epiphany (or 12th Night) and Fat Tuesday. It is shaped in a oval and covered in colored sugar: purple, green and gold. Inside the bread a trinket, traditionally a baby or an almond or bean is inserted. Whoever finds the trinket gets to bring the next king cake or throw the next party.

I'm not going to pretend that I that I'm an expert on the history or culture, because I live in the midwest and we don't really do the whole mardi gras thing.

Since that first one, I average about 6 or 7 each year. Mr. H loves them ("It's like a giant cheese danish!"), and they are a fun and impressive looking. I have tried a variety of fillings, from a plain cinnamon, to praline, and Mr. H's favorite, the cream cheese filling. I have made the cake with white icing and colored sugar, or as shown above with colored icing and colored sugar (I love the brightness of the frosting).

Last night, friends threw a Mardi Gras party in honor of the upcoming Fat Tuesday celebration. I brought a King Cake, and I finally think it was my best baby-hiding job ever. Mr. H couldn't find it after it was decorated. The best thing about being the one to make it is that you never have to worry about getting the baby.

The recipe I most frequently use is based on Emeril's recipe, although any enriched bread dough works just fine.

King Cake with cream cheese filling

First, the dough

2 packages dry active yeast
1/2 cup sugar
1 stick butter, melted
3 eggs plus 2 yolks
1 cup warm milk 4 to 5 cups regular flour
2 teaspoons salt
A dash of grated nutmeg

Combine the yeast, sugar, and milk. Let proof for 15 to 30 minutes. Add butter, and egg yolks in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, and mix until combined. In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, and nutmeg. Add this mixture an batches to the yeast mixture.

Mix on low speed until it lightly comes together, then increase the speed to medium and beat until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl, forms a ball, and climbs slightly up the dough hook. Dough will be smooth but loose - it's not as firm as some other doughs, and it may be just a bit sticky. Coat the dough with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl and turn it to oil all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, set in a warm, draft-free place, and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Next, make the filling

16 oz cream cheese (two packs, although I usually use about 1 and half pack), softened
1 cup powdered sugar
Splash vanilla extract
Splash almond extract

Mix well.

Now, fill the dough...

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Roll the dough out to about 30 inches long and 6 inches in diameter. Spread the cream cheese filling across the center of the dough. Bring the two long edges together and seal all sides completely. Using your hands shape the dough into a long cylinder and place on a greased baking sheet, seam side down. Shape the dough into a ring. You can put an empty can covered in aluminum foil and well greased the center of the ring to keep the definition and shape of the cake.

Let the dough rise again - about 45 minutes, until doubled.

Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes. It will be golden brown. Let cool.

Once cooled, you can frost the cake. I like to use a powdered sugar glaze that has been flavored with a little rum and cream.

Beef Turkey

It's not really beef turkey, but that is what the Marvelous Miss Thing calls it.

I love jerky, even though I'm not a big meat eater in general. I remember the first time I tried jerky. I was working in a family-run whole grain bread bakery. The bakers would come in at 2 am to start making the bread. By the time I got to the store after school, all the bread had been baked, and the bakers long gone. The store had this huge oven with shelves that rotated like a ferris wheel to bake the bread evenly. It was amazing, but it never really shut off (kind of like Lizzie, who always stays a little warm).

One of the bakers was also a hunter. When he had a successful season, he would make venison jerky on the off-day when they didn't bake. He would slide the pans into the oven, and it was my job to keep an eye on it while they dried. The whole back of the bakery would be filled with the smell of drying meat. It was fantastic.

I had never had jerky before, let alone venison (you want me to eat bambi?), so I was quite hesitant when he offered me that first slice. The first taste however, was so delicious - gamey, peppery, meaty. I was hooked. I used to sneak extra pieces out from the trays.

Since then, I have tried a lot of jerkies. The ones in the store are only good in moments of dried meat desperation. I have also tried several specialty outlets in the area. After eyeing the signs for Beef Jerky Unlimited we finally stopped for the first time last year (c'mon - a whole store of jerky? it sounded a little sketchy at first). They have a large selection of excellent jerky, including turkey and other game meats (although too expensive for my budget at the time). Also, Mom Wilson Sausage Mart on Rt 23 around Marion had good jerky. It's in the middle of no where, but a fun place to stop.

However, this past summer I purchased a dehydrator, in the hopes of making my own jerky. It isn't one of the fanciest machines, but it does have a top seated fan, and adjustable heat settings. With 5 trays, I can't make a full batch of jerky in one sitting, but I can easily make two batches in a day.

There are many theories about how to make jerky. First, there is the cut of meat. I have tried brisket (too tough) and flank steak (a little too fatty, and more expensive) before settling on our preferred round steak. London broil is also supposed to be a nice cut. Then, there is slicing technique - with or against the grain (or heaven forbid, ground and re-formed)? I choose mostly with the grain - I like the long strips, but still able to tear the stuff apart. Next, the seasoning. I use a marinade, however our friends, also jerky aficionadoes, use a dip method - the dip the meat in seasoning right before drying it.

So in your quest for jerky, you may have to explore some of these options.

I currently make two kinds of jerky - one that the Husband prefers, and one that I prefer. The Husband's preferred flavoring is Alton Brown's recipe (although not dried on the furnace filters). Alton's recipe is a classic jerky, but I also like a more asian flavor that really compliments the meat. This asian jerky is a little sweeter, with ginger and garlic.

Asian Beef Jerky

ingredients
1 tsp 5 spice powder
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper (or to taste)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons black vinegar (or balsamic or rice wine)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tbls garlic-chili paste
1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
One 1-2 pound steak

directions

Partially freeze meat. After removing from freezer, slice meat very thin (1/4 inch) with the grain.

In a medium saucepan, combine the soy sauce with the honey, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and salt and cook over low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugars. Stir in the 5 spice, crushed red pepper, garlic, ginger and sesame oil. Transfer to a medium bowl and let cool.

Pour marinade over beef (I use a big plastic bag for all of this). Marinade 6 hours to overnight. Dry meat either in food dehydrator according to directions, or in an oven on the lowest heat setting possible until dry but still pliable (somewhere between 2 and 12 hours, depending on how thick you cut the meat).

I still have jerky fantasies about the elusive venison jerky. I have tried to convince the Husband to go out and shoot me some deer, but up to this point, he has declined, citing some sort of misunderstood moral adversion to killing. I told him that I didn't care, I want venison jerky dammit. We have agreed to disagree, and I am currently still trying to find someone to barter for some venison meat.

i have two emails now...

in which the greeting reads...

Dear Dr. E


It makes me do a double-take every time. Can't believe they are talking to ME.