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We made this lemon-coconut cake (recipe from the NY Times) yesterday, and it turned out great. Wonderful bright lemon flavor, tender crumb -- just really good. :D
( Under here ... )
( Under here ... )
Cheesecake!
Jan. 7th, 2019 04:33 pmSo yesterday we finally got ourselves together enough to make cheesecake! (Disclaimer: we cheated like big old cheating cheaters by using a store-bought crust.) But what matters is, we have cheesecake. This is the way we made it, with the "real recipe" under the cut ...
Easy Cheesecake!
1 deep-dish (9-inch) Keebler graham cracker pie crust
2 cups (two 8-oz. packages) cream cheese, room temperature
2 large eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mix together the room-temperature cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Mix in the eggs and vanilla, again mixing until smooth. To avoid beating too much air into the batter, use a mixer set at low-medium speed. To avoid lumps, make sure the cream cheese is softened, and/or at room temperature.
Set the pie pan onto a foil-covered baking sheet, if desired; this makes it easier to transport in and out of the oven, and also protects the bottom of the crust from any potential scorching. Pour the filling into the crust.
Place the cheesecake in the oven. Bake it for 20 minutes, then add a crust shield; or shield the crust with strips of aluminum foil. Bake for an additional 10 minutes (for a total of about 30 minutes). A thin knife or toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake should come out clean.
Remove the cheesecake from the oven, and set it on a rack to cool. Once the cake is cool, refrigerate it, covered, until you're ready to serve it.
Serve cheesecake in wedges, with fresh fruit if desired. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator for several days; freeze for longer storage.
(Link to the real recipe from King Arthur Flour this is based on.)
Easy Cheesecake!
1 deep-dish (9-inch) Keebler graham cracker pie crust
2 cups (two 8-oz. packages) cream cheese, room temperature
2 large eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mix together the room-temperature cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Mix in the eggs and vanilla, again mixing until smooth. To avoid beating too much air into the batter, use a mixer set at low-medium speed. To avoid lumps, make sure the cream cheese is softened, and/or at room temperature.
Set the pie pan onto a foil-covered baking sheet, if desired; this makes it easier to transport in and out of the oven, and also protects the bottom of the crust from any potential scorching. Pour the filling into the crust.
Place the cheesecake in the oven. Bake it for 20 minutes, then add a crust shield; or shield the crust with strips of aluminum foil. Bake for an additional 10 minutes (for a total of about 30 minutes). A thin knife or toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake should come out clean.
Remove the cheesecake from the oven, and set it on a rack to cool. Once the cake is cool, refrigerate it, covered, until you're ready to serve it.
Serve cheesecake in wedges, with fresh fruit if desired. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator for several days; freeze for longer storage.
(Link to the real recipe from King Arthur Flour this is based on.)
Dreary Saturday
Dec. 8th, 2018 03:47 pmGrey and drizzly and cold. There should be wolves howling on the moor, although I think for us it would be coyotes singing in the marsh. There was some snow west of us, around Wichita Falls, but it's not going to make it here (I think).
Made chocolate-molasses cookies yesterday and they turned out pretty well. Recipe is under the cut, with notes. ( Read more... )
The wreath came for the front door and I put it up -- it's one of those that's got tiny lights woven through it, and it looks really nice when it's lit up.
Made chocolate-molasses cookies yesterday and they turned out pretty well. Recipe is under the cut, with notes. ( Read more... )
The wreath came for the front door and I put it up -- it's one of those that's got tiny lights woven through it, and it looks really nice when it's lit up.
(no subject)
Nov. 19th, 2018 05:19 pmVolunteer holly tree in the backyard was filled with birds today -- robins, cedar waxwings, and mockingbirds -- devouring the bright red berries. There were also juncos, mourning doves, titmice, and Carolina chickadees on the ground and on the feeders. Plus, squirrels. :D
Put together this Cranberry Pie today (although I would really call it a Cranberry Cake). The recipe (with my notes) is under the cut --
( Cranberry Cake ... )
The Social Thing last night was not bad (it was Mister Nightdog's grad school doing an alumni/faculty thing for the holidays), but I am still glad it's done with. :-)
Put together this Cranberry Pie today (although I would really call it a Cranberry Cake). The recipe (with my notes) is under the cut --
( Cranberry Cake ... )
The Social Thing last night was not bad (it was Mister Nightdog's grad school doing an alumni/faculty thing for the holidays), but I am still glad it's done with. :-)
Finally, no rain today, but the trade-off was the sun never came out. But we made honey cake this afternoon, and omg I was so glad we did. It turned out to be DELICIOUS. The recipe as we made it is under the cut, along with a link to the original.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Burning down the house
Aug. 24th, 2018 10:27 pmYes, it was hot again today, but we decided to add to the heat by using up some ripe peaches in a crisp. You guys, it was SO GOOD. :D
The recipe is under the cut. Changes we made are in [brackets]. *g*
( Read more... )
The recipe is under the cut. Changes we made are in [brackets]. *g*
( Read more... )
Put together this peach upside-down cake today! Here is how it looks, straight out of the oven.
Recipe is under the cut ...
( Read more... )
Recipe is under the cut ...
( Read more... )
Strawberries!
May. 20th, 2018 01:48 pmMister Nightdog made this recipe this morning, and it is DELICIOUS. And easy to put together! :D
( Strawberry Pound Cake under the cut ... )
( Strawberry Pound Cake under the cut ... )
Beautiful day here today, sunny and mild. Refilled one of the feeders with unshelled (roasted) peanuts -- Layla helped by scooping up a peanut that had fallen onto the deck and eating it. :D
Started reading Luis Alberto Urrea's The Hummingbird's Daughter last night and ended up still awake at 2:45 a.m. because "just one more chapter!" Of course, then it took me forever to fall asleep anyway due to mighty mighty hot flashes. GRRRRR.
Thinking about making these mini almond cookie-type things, called Almond Financiers. They don't look to be too hard to put together. I don't have financier molds (lol) so I'd use a mini-muffin pan.
Watched Girls Trip on one of the movie channels (HBO?) the other night. I do not think I am really in the Target Audience, but it did make me laugh out loud for real a couple of times. :D
What else? IDK. Need to run some errands and do some repotting of plants this week. :-)
Started reading Luis Alberto Urrea's The Hummingbird's Daughter last night and ended up still awake at 2:45 a.m. because "just one more chapter!" Of course, then it took me forever to fall asleep anyway due to mighty mighty hot flashes. GRRRRR.
Thinking about making these mini almond cookie-type things, called Almond Financiers. They don't look to be too hard to put together. I don't have financier molds (lol) so I'd use a mini-muffin pan.
Watched Girls Trip on one of the movie channels (HBO?) the other night. I do not think I am really in the Target Audience, but it did make me laugh out loud for real a couple of times. :D
What else? IDK. Need to run some errands and do some repotting of plants this week. :-)
Recipe to try
Jan. 9th, 2018 02:39 pmIt looks like we have all the ingredients for this (Rachel Roddy's pot roast lemon chicken), so I think we're going to try it tonight. We'll only do half; no need to cook the whole thing for just the two of us. Actual recipe under the cut.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
No sun yesterday -- it was quite grim and damp. Today is the exact opposite -- bright sun, and warm enough (almost 60 degrees) that we can have the back door open for a while (which makes Layla very happy). I was in a dour, cranky mood almost all day yesterday, probably because of that lack of sun, but today has been much better.
Mister Nightdog and I made this super-easy Apple Cake yesterday, and omg it is SO GOOD. I'm putting the recipe under a cut (with my annotations) -- ( Read more... )
I finished Matt Ruff's Lovecraft Country last night and really enjoyed it (link goes to the tor.com review). It's horror/fantasy, not really too heavy on either, with an interesting twist -- the protagonists are an African-American family, living in 1954 America, so the enemies they face are not only Lovecraftian-type googly monsters, but home-grown racism. Kudos to Ruff for tackling such a difficult subject. I've read one of Ruff's previous books, The Mirage, but I think Lovecraft Country holds together a bit better as a story.
Also watched The Hours late last night -- one of my favorite melancholy movies ever. I love the women in it so much, and I especially love the way the Philip Glass score ties the whole thing together.
Mister Nightdog and I made this super-easy Apple Cake yesterday, and omg it is SO GOOD. I'm putting the recipe under a cut (with my annotations) -- ( Read more... )
I finished Matt Ruff's Lovecraft Country last night and really enjoyed it (link goes to the tor.com review). It's horror/fantasy, not really too heavy on either, with an interesting twist -- the protagonists are an African-American family, living in 1954 America, so the enemies they face are not only Lovecraftian-type googly monsters, but home-grown racism. Kudos to Ruff for tackling such a difficult subject. I've read one of Ruff's previous books, The Mirage, but I think Lovecraft Country holds together a bit better as a story.
Also watched The Hours late last night -- one of my favorite melancholy movies ever. I love the women in it so much, and I especially love the way the Philip Glass score ties the whole thing together.
Sunday Baking
Sep. 17th, 2017 05:33 pmPut together this recipe for Pumpkin Spice Cake today (from the Washington Post). Followed the instructions except for sifting the flour and spices together -- just took it out of the oven and it smells delicious. :D
We must have an opossum in residence close by -- Layla treed a youngster both last night and this morning in the backyard, scaring the bejeebers out of the little guy both times.
Currently reading Jay McInerney's The Good Life, sequel to Brightness Falls and the middle book in his "New York trilogy" (I've noticed some people calling it his "Yuppie trilogy," heh). It's a good read, but omg these characters do not talk like normal people talk. Before this I read Neil Gaiman's American Gods. I had read it once, years and years ago, but I heard Gaiman had restored something like 12K words to a new edition. It was interesting to see how the book did or did not follow the first season of the TV show, and how a few scenes had been transferred to TV virtually unchanged. I enjoyed it a lot -- two thumbs up, would recommend.
We must have an opossum in residence close by -- Layla treed a youngster both last night and this morning in the backyard, scaring the bejeebers out of the little guy both times.
Currently reading Jay McInerney's The Good Life, sequel to Brightness Falls and the middle book in his "New York trilogy" (I've noticed some people calling it his "Yuppie trilogy," heh). It's a good read, but omg these characters do not talk like normal people talk. Before this I read Neil Gaiman's American Gods. I had read it once, years and years ago, but I heard Gaiman had restored something like 12K words to a new edition. It was interesting to see how the book did or did not follow the first season of the TV show, and how a few scenes had been transferred to TV virtually unchanged. I enjoyed it a lot -- two thumbs up, would recommend.
Super Yummy Apple Recipe
Apr. 16th, 2017 04:32 pmToday is the second time I have made this recipe, and it is so good. It's sort of like the consistency of crème brûlée, layered with thinly-sliced apples. Very easy to put together, not much sugar. This time we added a teaspoon of apple pie spice and a couple of tablespoons of golden rum, and subbed almond extract for vanilla. The whole recipe is under the cut ...
( Dorie Greenspan's Custardy Apple Squares )
( Dorie Greenspan's Custardy Apple Squares )
Beautiful weather here today -- bright sun, cool temps. Squirrels are chasing each other around the backyard, but Layla is taking a nap so she doesn't see them. On our walk last night we saw a house with a very large, fully-lit Christmas tree in the front window. :-/
I have been reading The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters (by Laura Thompson) and am really enjoying it. Absolutely fascinating, but I would warn potential readers that the first sixty pages or so are ... arumpled mess slog. A lot of information, really fast, with an assumption that the reader already knows about the Mitfords' parentage and ancestry. But keep going, and the book is very rewarding in terms of presenting a time and place and social history that is truly interesting. Last night I read the chapter in which Unity Mitford (one of the sisters) wrote her fan letter to JULIUS STREICHER. Oh my god. I was so angry for a while at this sad, stupid girl who's been dead for sixty-eight years. (There's more of the letter in the book than is quoted in Wikipedia and jfc it is just terrible.) I mean, I knew Unity had a thing for the Nazis, just as her sister Diana had a thing for British Fascists. I didn't realize it was that ... overt, I guess.
SO ANYWAY. Anyway. I made Crustless Cranberry Pie on Friday and it is so good (I know, it's not a very attractive name). I left out the walnuts and used an 8x8 square pan. Eh, that seems to be all for now.
I have been reading The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters (by Laura Thompson) and am really enjoying it. Absolutely fascinating, but I would warn potential readers that the first sixty pages or so are ... a
SO ANYWAY. Anyway. I made Crustless Cranberry Pie on Friday and it is so good (I know, it's not a very attractive name). I left out the walnuts and used an 8x8 square pan. Eh, that seems to be all for now.
Easter Dog
Mar. 27th, 2016 03:43 pmThree pics of Layla that I took this afternoon are under the cut.
( Read more... )
OTHERWISE. One of the Early Girl tomatoes is turning red, and we have three or four baby peppers on the Santa Fe Grande plants. Also we had a Great Visitation of Birds yesterday -- cedar waxwings (a wrath of waxwings?), bright red cardinals, wrens, and sparrows.
Oh, and we made this granola recipe today and omg it smells SO GOOD. We cut the recipe in half (we DO NOT NEED nine cups of granola) and substituted chopped pecans for the pistachios. It only took about 30 minutes to bake in our oven. Really looking forward to trying it tomorrow morning. :D
ETA that we couldn't wait and tried a bit of the granola by itself, and OMG IT IS DELICIOUS. :D
( Read more... )
OTHERWISE. One of the Early Girl tomatoes is turning red, and we have three or four baby peppers on the Santa Fe Grande plants. Also we had a Great Visitation of Birds yesterday -- cedar waxwings (a wrath of waxwings?), bright red cardinals, wrens, and sparrows.
Oh, and we made this granola recipe today and omg it smells SO GOOD. We cut the recipe in half (we DO NOT NEED nine cups of granola) and substituted chopped pecans for the pistachios. It only took about 30 minutes to bake in our oven. Really looking forward to trying it tomorrow morning. :D
ETA that we couldn't wait and tried a bit of the granola by itself, and OMG IT IS DELICIOUS. :D
Recipe Recommendation
Nov. 8th, 2014 01:15 pmIt's the Chicken and Chickpea Tagine from the NY Times (I've c/p'd it below with the proportions that I used). I made it for dinner last night and OH MY GOD YOU GUYS SO DELICIOUS. :D
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Recipe to try later
Sep. 20th, 2014 04:35 pmFrom the Guardian.
Roast chicken with plums, prunes and potatoes
Lovely with lots of crusty white bread to mop up the juices. Serves three to six, depending on how hungry you are.
670g Charlotte potatoes, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks*
20g thyme sprigs
7cm piece ginger, peeled and grated
18 dried prunes, pitted
2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
75ml soy sauce
3 tbsp muscovado sugar**
7 whole star anise
6 chicken legs (thigh and drumstick attached), skin lightly scored
6 large plums, pitted and quartered
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes, until almost done. Drain, refresh under cold water and shake dry, then transfer to a bowl and add all the remaining ingredients apart from the plums. Mix with your hands, massaging the sauce into the chicken, then cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least four hours, though preferably overnight.
Heat the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. In a high-sided baking tray, spread out the chicken pieces skin side up, and add all the marinade, vegetables, prunes and herbs. Cover tightly with tin foil and roast for 30 minutes. Remove, discard the foil and stir in the plums, basting the chicken as you do so; roast for a further 40-45 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced to about 200ml. Leave to rest and cool for five minutes before serving.
* I had to Google. These are smaller yellow-fleshed potatoes. I'm probably going to substitute a Yukon Gold.
** Also had to Google, and came across an interesting discussion on Chef Talk. Basically if you don't want to search out muscovado sugar you can sub Mexican piloncillo or turbinado sugar (the stuff labeled "sugar in the raw" at the store).
And this is the recipe I'm making right now: Brown Butter Raspberry Tart. :D
Roast chicken with plums, prunes and potatoes
Lovely with lots of crusty white bread to mop up the juices. Serves three to six, depending on how hungry you are.
670g Charlotte potatoes, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks*
20g thyme sprigs
7cm piece ginger, peeled and grated
18 dried prunes, pitted
2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
75ml soy sauce
3 tbsp muscovado sugar**
7 whole star anise
6 chicken legs (thigh and drumstick attached), skin lightly scored
6 large plums, pitted and quartered
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, add the potatoes and cook for 10 minutes, until almost done. Drain, refresh under cold water and shake dry, then transfer to a bowl and add all the remaining ingredients apart from the plums. Mix with your hands, massaging the sauce into the chicken, then cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least four hours, though preferably overnight.
Heat the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. In a high-sided baking tray, spread out the chicken pieces skin side up, and add all the marinade, vegetables, prunes and herbs. Cover tightly with tin foil and roast for 30 minutes. Remove, discard the foil and stir in the plums, basting the chicken as you do so; roast for a further 40-45 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced to about 200ml. Leave to rest and cool for five minutes before serving.
* I had to Google. These are smaller yellow-fleshed potatoes. I'm probably going to substitute a Yukon Gold.
** Also had to Google, and came across an interesting discussion on Chef Talk. Basically if you don't want to search out muscovado sugar you can sub Mexican piloncillo or turbinado sugar (the stuff labeled "sugar in the raw" at the store).
And this is the recipe I'm making right now: Brown Butter Raspberry Tart. :D
Friday Night
Aug. 1st, 2014 11:36 pmMayonnaise
1 egg yolk
Dash of salt
Dash of pepper
1 tsp mustard (Dijon or Düsseldorf)
1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice (we used lemon juice)
1 cup peanut, vegetable, or olive oil (we used canola oil)
Place the yolk in a mixing bowl and add salt and pepper to taste, mustard, and vinegar (or lemon juice). Beat vigorously with a wire whisk or an electric mixer.
Start adding the oil gradually, beating continuously with the whisk or electric mixer. Continue beating and adding oil until all the oil is used. If the mayo is not to be used immediately, beat in a tablespoon of water. This will help stabilize the mayo and slow its turning when stored in the fridge.
~ from The New York Times: More 60-Minute Gourmet, by Pierre Franey, with my notes
We made this the other night to use with chicken salad, and it was delicious. And it's not hard to make! It's easy to separate an egg -- you're allowed to use your fingers if you want (wash your hands, before and after). And whisking is easy -- just keep the whisk moving. Or use a handheld electric mixer! Or a standing mixer! If you want more lemon, you are totally allowed to add a little more! Keep drizzling the oil in while you're mixing, and you're good to go. Drizzle, mix. Drizzle, mix. Don't be afraid if the mayo doesn't look like much when you start -- it will thicken up and assume a pale gold color. It won't look like Hellmann's or Miracle Whip -- IT WILL BE BETTER. Use this bad boy on sandwiches, in tuna salad, in chicken salad, on chicken with bread crumbs (or panko! EVEN BETTER) for oven-fried chicken. Use it wherever you'd use store-bought mayo!
:D
Also! Three obligatory warnings about using uncooked eggs, one from the Incredible Egg Organization (i.e., the Egg Council), one from the CDC, and one from ABC Australia.
1 egg yolk
Dash of salt
Dash of pepper
1 tsp mustard (Dijon or Düsseldorf)
1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice (we used lemon juice)
1 cup peanut, vegetable, or olive oil (we used canola oil)
Place the yolk in a mixing bowl and add salt and pepper to taste, mustard, and vinegar (or lemon juice). Beat vigorously with a wire whisk or an electric mixer.
Start adding the oil gradually, beating continuously with the whisk or electric mixer. Continue beating and adding oil until all the oil is used. If the mayo is not to be used immediately, beat in a tablespoon of water. This will help stabilize the mayo and slow its turning when stored in the fridge.
~ from The New York Times: More 60-Minute Gourmet, by Pierre Franey, with my notes
We made this the other night to use with chicken salad, and it was delicious. And it's not hard to make! It's easy to separate an egg -- you're allowed to use your fingers if you want (wash your hands, before and after). And whisking is easy -- just keep the whisk moving. Or use a handheld electric mixer! Or a standing mixer! If you want more lemon, you are totally allowed to add a little more! Keep drizzling the oil in while you're mixing, and you're good to go. Drizzle, mix. Drizzle, mix. Don't be afraid if the mayo doesn't look like much when you start -- it will thicken up and assume a pale gold color. It won't look like Hellmann's or Miracle Whip -- IT WILL BE BETTER. Use this bad boy on sandwiches, in tuna salad, in chicken salad, on chicken with bread crumbs (or panko! EVEN BETTER) for oven-fried chicken. Use it wherever you'd use store-bought mayo!
:D
Also! Three obligatory warnings about using uncooked eggs, one from the Incredible Egg Organization (i.e., the Egg Council), one from the CDC, and one from ABC Australia.
Sunny and a little warmer today, although weather guys are still saying there's a possibility of wintry stuff next week. In the meantime, this is on the schedule today. Which requires me to buy a package of cream cheese, so ... I think I'll go do that. :D
Cloudy and much cooler, got some much-needed rain this morning as the cold front came through. Trying out a new recipe -- this Apple Pound Cake (recipe is on page 3), made with roasted apples. Although we're using a mix of apples and pears. And more cinnamon than cardamom, because Mister Nightdog likes cinnamon more than cardamom. Anyway. It's in the oven and smells delicious. *g*
