Solsticelebration 2014

I can't believe it's already the Summer Solstice! Sheesh...time sure flies, especially at this time of year. But solstice time is celebration time at Woven Meadows Farm in Saranac. There was another amazing gathering and potluck today, and LOTS of good eats--beyond the main stage pig roast.

Because pork requires an awesome slaw to go with it, I made a batch of that fabulous Alabama Hot Slaw that I love so much, figuring that the only kind of cole slaw there would be the mayonnaise-y kind. I was wrong. Someone brought a fermented slaw that looked exactly like mine. UGH! This happened to me last year, too, when I took a lovely volcano rice and quinoa salad with sugar snap peas, and there were half a dozen other grainy salads in the same vein. *sigh*

Continuing my Southern theme, I made a cake that I was quite certain that no one else would bring, a Hummingbird Cake. It's a traditional layer cake with bananas, crushed pineapple, and spices. Some believe that it's called a Hummingbird Cake because it's so sweet with all the fruit and sugar, but apparently, the inventor of the cake liked to decorate the cake with pecans sliced width-wise, making them look like little hummingbirds in flight. Of course, for an informal, outdoor party, I just baked the batter in a half sheet pan for about 30 minutes, cooled it, plopped the icing on top, sprinkled it with some toasted pecans, and called it good. Easy-peasy! And it was well-received by the partygoers. I just had one corner piece to take home to my invalid roommate.

Hummingbird Cake
(Source: Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook, January 1999 via My Recipes)

Cake:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 large eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, divided
2 cups chopped bananas

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; add eggs and oil, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. (Do not beat.) Stir in vanilla, pineapple, one cup pecans, and bananas.

Pour batter into three greased and floured 9-inch round cakepans. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened

1 (16-ounce) package powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Beat cream cheese and butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla.

Spread cream cheese frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake; sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup chopped pecans on top. Store in refrigerator.

Recreating My Wegman's Faves at Home

While I was at the PBGV National last month, one of our best dog trainers and competitors celebrated one of her dogs earning a MACH 3 (a very advanced agility title). They had a specially-decorated cake--for us humans, not the dogs. Initially, I declined a piece, because I'm not really a cake person. But her husband (who bought the cake) insisted I try it, that it was amazing....blah, blah, blah. It looked like a regular old grocery store cake to me. Boy, was I wrong! It was DELICIOUS! It had a dark chocolate bottom layer, fresh raspberries in the middle, a lovely, moist vanilla cake layer, and then a fairly thin coating of this creamy, whipped frosting (not nauseatingly thick and grainy like most commercial frostings). I asked the hubby where he got this wonderful cake, and I should have known, it was Wegman's, the world's best grocery store.

When I stopped at Wegman's on the way home to New York, I was tempted to buy a lemon raspberry cake that they were selling, but I was afraid that it wouldn't survive the long drive home in a hot car. I did buy  many other wonderful things, though. I especially love Wegman's salad and deli bars with all the prepared dishes. My favorite is their gigante bean salad. I bought a container of that to eat right away, but I also bought a big bag of dried gigante beans to try to replicate the salad at home.

And today was the perfect opportunity, as my friend, June, had a little end-of-the-school-year barbecue and potluck at her house. It turned out to be quite the gourmet event, too! A new couple, Ray and Ben, made a splash with a lovely Israeli couscous salad with fresh veggies and mint. My friends, The Cones, made a yummy pimento cheese spread, and a stunning shrimp cocktail platter. (Jarrod told me that his secret was cooking the shrimp with pickling spice. Yum!) And my friend, Patti, brought a comforting bundt cake that was a recipe of her mom's.

As for my contributions to the affair, I went with the Wegman's theme, and I brought both a gigante bean salad that I could easily live on and a cake that was in the style and flavor of the one that we enjoyed so much at the dog agility trial. It had both a vanilla layer and a chocolate layer with fresh raspberries as well as raspberry coulis in the middle, and a soft, whipped vanilla bean frosting. It was humble-looking (like all my cakes are--decorating is NOT in my wheelhouse), but it held together as it was sliced (that was my main worry), and I think the taste and texture were excellent. It was certainly an experiment worth repeating. Next time, I might try an oil-based vanilla cake to make it less dense, especially when refrigerated.

Gigante Bean Salad

(Source: adapted from Tamara Duker's blog)

Cook half a pound of gigante beans (soak overnight, then boil until tender). Roast one small red pepper and one small green pepper over open flame (your gas burner will do just fine). Peel their skins off and slice peppers into super-thin strips. (I used red and yellow roasted peppers from a jar.) Mix cooked beans with 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, two tablespoons olive oil, one tablespoon fresh chopped parsley (I used chives), 1/2 cup (or more, to taste) of roasted pepper strips, one or two minced garlic cloves, and salt to taste. I added a teaspoon of paprika. Let salad marinate in fridge for several hours so flavors can blend. Serve at room temperature.

White on White Buttermilk Cake

(Source: BakeSpace)

Note: I made half of this recipe in one cake pan.

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/3 cups sugar
3 large egg whites
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

To make the cake: Place one baking rack one-third from the bottom of the oven and the second two-thirds from the bottom. Preheat the oven to 350-f degrees. Line three 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper rounds, grease with butter, and dust with flour (or spray with flour added).

Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl on medium speed about two minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg whites and vanilla and beat on medium speed for about one minute. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. Add about one-third of the flour mixture to the batter and beat on medium speed until incorporated. Add about half of the buttermilk and beat on medium speed until incorporated. Continue adding dry and wet ingredients alternately, scraping the bowl down and beating until incorporated after each addition. End with the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick and glossy.

Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans. Stagger the cake layers on the oven racks so that no layer is directly over another. Set two layers on one rack and the third on the other. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cakes comes out clean and tops are flat and browned. Monitor the layers carefully for doneness; each one me be done at a different time.

Set the cake pans on racks to cool for ten minutes. Invert the cakes onto the racks and cool completely before frosting. At this point the cakes can be tightly wrapped in a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of aluminum foil and frozen up to three weeks.

Beatty's Chocolate Cake (aka Hershey's Black Magic Cake)

(Source: Ina Garten, via Food Network)

Note: I made half of this recipe and baked it in one pan.

Butter, for greasing the pans
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups good cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch x 2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

Place one layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

In between the layers, I spread on a couple of tablespoons of raspberry coulis that I had in the freezer and a generous cup of fresh raspberries. Then I frosted the whole cake with a sour cream vanilla bean icing.

Sour Cream Vanilla Bean Frosting

(Source: adapted from All Recipes)

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
5-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

In a medium bowl, mix together the butter, sour cream, vanilla, lemon juice and salt. Stir in confectioners' sugar, and beat with an electric mixer until smooth.

AL Fresco Book Club with NYC Theme

My friend, Janice, is in Pennsylvania with her husband who is working there until July 1st. She has always been such an AMAZING friend to me, that I thought I'd surprise her by planting a vegetable garden for her in her absence. It was a lovely idea, but OY, I feel 100 years old after being the Gardening Warrior yesterday! In the span of less than four hours, I turned over about 30 feet of planting beds, then proceeded to plant 4 (green and yellow) zucchini, 4 eggplants (purple and pink), 4 Lacinato (black) kales, 2 Mexican Sour Gherkin Cukes, 9 different kinds of heirloom peppers, 10 different types of heirloom tomatoes, 6 basils (sweet and bush), 3 Mammoth Dills, rosemary, Italian parsley, and--for the win--9 marigolds for aesthetics and pest control. WHEW! Plus, it took two trips to Walmart late that night to find suitable hoses, and I had to water everything in at almost 11pm by the flashlight app on my iPhone. I'm surprised the neighbors didn't call the cops! Anyway, behold the (eventual) fruits of my labors...

After my planting marathon (but before the watering debacle), I took a break and joined some lovely ladies for an al fresco book club meeting. The book was a contemporary thriller called Reconstructing Amelia, the theme was NYC, and we had yummy things like Reuben egg rolls, mini hot dogs with beer cheese sauce, and a pizza with sour cream, lox, and red onion. For dessert, there were ginormous chocolate chip cookies warm from the oven (a la Levain Bakery--my contribution), a lime cheesecake, and mini macarons in apple pie, Manhattan, and Cosmo flavors (from Delish downtown). Great weather, great food, great cocktails (Manhattans and Mojitos), and great discussion!

Spatchcocked chicken? You watch your language!

One of my favorite t.v. chefs used to be Aida Mollenkamp. I don't know if she's even on t.v. anymore, but I still follow her online. Recently, she posted an amazing recipe for a spatchcocked roasted chicken with lime, chile, and cilantro. As you know, I'm all about spatchcocking (or so you may have heard--tee hee), but I never thought that only five ingredients would yield something so incredibly flavorful. It should be noted that I used pickled jalapenos instead of serranos (as it's what I had on hand), and added a teaspoon each of ground cumin and dark chili powder to the marinade. So that takes it to seven ingredients, but c'est la vie! 

I served this wonderfully tender, juicy, and zesty chicken with a simple salad of (steamed, peeled and chunked and cooled) potatoes, corn (steamed and cut from the cob), pickled green beans, a can of dark red kidney beans (drained), and a few small chopped tomatoes all tossed with a little bottled vinaigrette. This meal is definitely going into my regular repertoire!

Note: If the chicken comes out of the oven not quite dark and crispy enough to suit you, flip on the broiler for a few minutes right at the end of cooking time.

Roasted Cilantro Chile Lime Spatchcocked Chicken
(Source: adapted from Aida Mollenkamp)

1 (4 to 5 pound) chicken
1 or 2 medium serrano chiles seeded and minced
5 medium garlic cloves grated or minced
2 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated lime zest, divided
scant teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for drizzling
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon dark chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin

Heat oven to 400°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Remove necks and any innards from the cavities and discard. To spatchcock, use a sharp pair of sharp poultry shears or kitchen scissors to cut along the backbone; remove and discard. Score along the breastbone then flip chicken, placing it breast-side up, and pressing down to flatten until it is lying completely flat.

Combine half of the lime zest with remaining ingredients in a small bowl and mix until evenly combined. Season and adjust flavor as desired. Massage the mixture into both sides of the bird.  Set aside while oven heats up, at least 20 minutes.

Drizzle a little of the marinade into a large cast iron pan, roasting pan, or baking dish and rotate to coat the bottom. Lay chicken breast-side down, scrape/pour the remainder of the marinade over the chicken, then roast until breast is golden brown and opaque, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven, carefully flip, then continue to roast, basting every few minutes, until thigh juices run clear and an instant read thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 165°F, about 15 to 20 minutes more (about 45 to 50 minutes total). 

Set chicken aside and rest 5 to 10 minutes before carving. Serve garnished with remaining lime zest, cilantro, and with pan juices spooned over the top.

This is a dangerous post. Deliciously dangerous.

People, I have gone to a very dark, dangerous place this time...a place that no diabetics, those on cholesterol/blood pressure meds, or anyone with any genuine concern for his or health should go. But here it is: I have created a Doughnut Plant-Voodoo Doughnut hybrid that may not surpass my beloved Doughnut Plant doughnuts, but they are six hours closer to home and also a thousand times better than Dunkin' Donuts, the only game in this town. 

I found the recipe online via Cooking Channel's "Follow That Food." And I read a bunch of user comments, but now I cannot find where I saw those. But the one recurring comment I remember was that the recipe was incorrect, as it called for way too much flour, so I omitted one cup (and next time, I might take it down another 1/2 cup).  Another tip I gleaned from somewhere on the internet was to fry in vegetable shortening  instead of vegetable oil, as it's easier to regulate the temperature. Other than that, I followed the recipe pretty faithfully, and these doughnuts turned out AWESOME! Of course, I made them all the more decadently sinful by adding a maple glaze and bacon pieces. OH YES I DID! I can't wait until the local strawberries come into season, as that's my next move. I'd also like to do a sunflower seed version, as that's one of my favorite Doughnut Plant flavors. The possibilities are endless!

A note: This recipe made about 16 large (though not as large as Doughnut Plant) doughnuts. If you don't want to fry them all up at once, you can keep half of the dough in the refrigerator for up to a week proceeding with batch #2. (Any longer than that, and too much yeast will die off, and you won't get a good rise. Plus, they will taste rather boozy from the yeast converting to alcohol.)

Yeast-Raised Doughnuts

(Source: Doughnut Plant's Mark Israel, via Follow That Food)

1 cup milk
1/4 cup water, lukewarm
1 package dry active yeast
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 cup sugar
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, at room temperature
1 egg, well beaten
1 teaspoon salt 

Vegetable oil, for frying (I prefer to use vegetable shortening)
Special equipment: a doughnut cutter

Basic Confectioners' Sugar Glaze:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons water

To make doughnuts: Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium-heat. When the milk reaches a simmer pour it into a mixing bowl and allow it to cool. Meanwhile, measure 1/4 cup of lukewarm water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast into the water then let the mixture stand until the yeast dissolves, about 7 minutes. Stir the yeast mixture into the milk along with one tablespoon of the sugar. Mix in 1 1/2 cups of the flour (by hand or with an electric mixer) then cover the dough starter with a clean towel and set it aside to rise and rest in a warm place for one hour.

When the dough has relaxed, cream the butter with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Beat the butter mixture into the dough a little at a time. Mix in the egg and salt then mix in the remaining three cups flour. Work the dough until it is smooth then place it in a well-greased bowl. Cover again with a clean towel and set aside in a warm place until doubled in bulk, at least one hour.

Turn the dough out onto floured board and roll it out about 1/2-inch thick. Using a floured doughnut cutter, cut out the doughnuts. Transfer the doughnuts to a clean floured board or baking sheet. Cover once again with a clean towel, and set aside to rise until doubled.

Heat about four inches of oil in a deep pot over medium-high heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees F. Working in batches of two or three, fry the doughnuts until they float. Once they bob to the surface of the oil, carefully flip them over. Continue cooking, turning as necessary, until the doughnuts are uniformly golden-brown. Transfer the cooked doughnuts to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. While the doughnuts are still warm, dip one side of each into the glaze then set aside to cool until the glaze firms. Serve warm or at room temperature.

To make the glaze: Combine the confectioners' sugar with two tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Mix well then add a little more water, if necessary, to make a smooth, creamy glaze. Cover the glaze directly with plastic wrap and reserve. You can alter the basic glaze recipe by substituting fruit juice or liqueur for some or all of the water. (To make maple bacon doughnuts: I added two tablespoons of Grade B maple syrup and about a teaspoon of vanilla bean paste to make the maple glaze. After dipping the doughnuts in the glaze twice, I sprinkled on bits of real, double-smoked bacon.)

Spring into spring rolls!

I am so susceptible to suggestion when it comes to cooking. If I see something prepared on t.v. that looks good, I sprint to the kitchen immediately to try to recreate it. So when my friend, Mike, made spring rolls and posted a pic to Facebook recently, I had no choice but to make spring rolls of my own. And since it seems like spring has FINALLY come after the world's longest winter, what better thing to make as an homage to the season than spring rolls?

I used Alton Brown's recipe, and I followed it pretty closely, except that I mixed all of the filling ingredients together like a noodle salad of sorts, and then filled the wrappers. Spring rolls may seems intimidating, but they aren't that hard to make. However, I have two pieces of advice to help your learn from my mistakes. First, DON'T overfill the wrappers (as pictured below) or they will explode and make a big old mess--albeit a tasty one--when you try to eat them. Also, don't place the finished rolls on unlined plate or tray as you're making them. As they sit there, they will glue themselves to the surface, and you'll have a devil of a time picking them up without them splitting and, once again, exploding. That's where the lettuce leaves come it. Lay them out on your plate or tray and set a roll inside each leaf as you go, then roll up and devour!

Thai Shrimp Spring Rolls
(Source: Alton Brown via Food Network)

5 ounces thin rice stick noodles
2 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
1 pound unpeeled large shrimp
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon sambal chili paste
2 teaspoons sugar
1 large cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and cut into matchsticks
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
3/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3/4 cup fresh mint, chopped (I omitted the mint, as I don't dig it)
12 (8 1/2-inch) round rice paper wrappers
12 leaves Bibb, Boston, or other soft lettuce

Soy Ginger Dipping Sauce:
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons finely grated ginger
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Soak the rice sticks in enough hot water to cover by 1 inch for 15 minutes.

Bring 1/2 gallon of water to a boil in a large pot set over high heat. Add one tablespoon soy sauce. Add the shrimp and cook until just firm, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the cooked shrimp to a cutting board and cool for three minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel, devein, and coarsely chop. Set aside.

Return the water-soy sauce to a boil. Drain the rice stick noodles and add to the hot soy-water. Cook until tender, approximately three minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the lime juice, remaining one tablespoon soy sauce, chili paste, and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl.

Drain the noodles in a colander. Add the noodles to the lime juice mixture, toss, and set aside while preparing the vegetables.

Toss the cucumber, carrot, cilantro, and mint (if using) together in a small bowl. Transfer any unabsorbed liquid from the noodles to the cucumber mixture and toss to combine.

Cut the noodles into small 1 to 2-inch pieces with kitchen shears.

Fill a pie dish with warm water. Dip one rice paper wrapper into the water for 10 seconds, then transfer to a cutting board until the wrapper is pliable and slightly tacky, approximately one minute.

Place 1/4 cup of the vegetable mixture on the bottom 1/3 of the wrapper nearest to you. Spoon two tablespoons chopped shrimp on top of the vegetables. Top with 1/4 cup noodles. Bring the bottom edge of the wrap tightly over the filling, and then fold in the two sides. Finish rolling from bottom to top until the entire wrapper is rolled. Be careful not to tear the rice paper. Place on a parchment-lined half sheet pan and cover with a damp tea towel. Repeat with the remaining wrappers until the filling is gone. Wrap each roll in a lettuce leaf and serve with Soy Ginger Dipping Sauce.

Soy Ginger Dipping Sauce:
Add all of the ingredients to a lidded jar and shake well to combine. Serve as a dipping sauce for spring rolls.

Whoever came up with this should be sainted!

On my way back from the PBGV National in Harrisburg, PA a couple of weeks ago, of course, I HAD to stop at Wegman's, the world's best grocery store. I acquired many wonderful things, like I do. But I discovered something truly revolutionary in the frozen foods section. 

If you have the good fortune in life to live near a Wegman's, RUN, do not walk, to that most magical grocery store and buy yourself a big bag of...wait for it...mac and cheese ravioli. Then make a blush sauce with a pint of homemade spicy tomato sauce and a cup of farm-fresh cream and prepare yourself for gastronomical nirvana. #yourewelcome

"Tuna in your mac salad? That's CRAZY TALK!"

I have a young colleague at work named Jarrod who teaches psychology and is an all-around delightful human being!  He is an enthusiastic and dedicated instructor, and his students adore him, but he also has many other interesting qualities. First of all, he and his lovely and brilliant wife, Christina, have FIVE--count 'em, FIVE--kids, and he's an awesome dad. Also, he seems to be able to build or repair anything--a brilliant handyman. And as I have recently learned, he has worked in a professional kitchen and as a caterer, and has MAD skills in the kitchen!

After graduation last night, a bunch of us stopped off for a drink at a local bistro, and as we sat on the patio in the drizzling rain (apparently, we're too dumb to come out of the rain), Jarrod and I began comparing notes about macaroni salad. Interestingly, we hold similar views of what makes a mac salad great--like shells are preferable to elbows, and especially, the inclusion of tuna. But he has other fervent but idiosyncratic beliefs, such as you need to find the right balance of mayo to Miracle Whip for the dressing, and that the "secret" ingredient that makes all the difference is a pinch of...wait for it...Lawry's Season Salt. Um, okay. And my belief is that his recipe (based on his mom's) needs some olives, a little ground celery, and maybe a hit of sriracha...because everything does.

Thus, I give you our delicious hybrid, and since I teach speech and Jarrod teaches psych, I shall call it, "Crazy Talk" Mac Salad--as is, "You put TUNA in your macaroni salad? That's just CRAZY TALK!"

"Crazy Talk" Mac Salad

1 lb. small shells or rings, cooked, drained and cooled
4 hard-cooked eggs, cooled, peeled and chopped
1 can chunk tuna, drained
1/4 cup finely-minced onion (or a few green onions or a bunch of chives)
1/2 cup chopped olives (I used green salad olives)
1/2 teaspoon ground celery
1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Miracle Whip
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
squirt of sriracha, optional

Instructions? I think you know what to do.

Maple Brine Tastes Mighty Fine

I sometimes buy those pre-marinated pork tenderloins for weeknight convenience. But sometimes they can be kind of salty and/or have weird flavors. So this time around, I bought a plain tenderloin, and sought out some sort of fabulous brine and/or marinade to make it yummy.

A quick search of the interwebs yielded a maple brine that sounded wonderful. And indeed, it yielded meat that was juicy and flavorful, but not too salty. I liked the result so much, that I well may use it again in the future for not only tenderloins, but pork chops, too. I brined the tenderloin during the day while I was at work, roasted it when I got home, and served it with a nice garlic and ginger chutney. DELISH!

Maple-Brined Pork Loin
(Source: All Recipes)

1 quart cold water
1/4 cup salt
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (2 1/2 pound) boneless pork loin roast
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1. Mix water, salt, 1/3 cup maple syrup, garlic, ginger, rosemary, black pepper, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. Place pork loin in brine mixture and refrigerate for 8 to 10 hours.
2. Remove pork from brine, pat dry, and season all sides with salt and black pepper.
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
4. Heat vegetable oil in an oven-proof skillet over high heat. Cook pork, turning to brown each side, about 10 minutes total.
5. Transfer skillet to the oven and roast until pork is browned, about 40 minutes.
6. Mix 2 tablespoons maple syrup and Dijon mustard together in a small bowl.
7. Remove pork roast from the oven and spread maple syrup mixture on all sides. Cook for an additional 15 minutes, until the pork is no longer pink in the center. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).

Dairy Deliciousness

Things are getting so CRAY-CRAY at this point in the semester, that lots of lower-priority tasks have fallen by the wayside. One of those things is dealing with my milk share. I only get a gallon every two weeks, but my whole back fridge is FULL of milk right now!

So I am constantly searching for new ways to use A LOT of milk in recipes. For tonight's pasta dish, I started by making a batch of fresh ricotta, then I fashioned a hearty casserole that was chock full of dairy goodness--more than is even legal in most states (excluding Wisconsin, of course)!

Dairyful Pasta Bake

2 tablespoons bacon fat

1 lb. Italian sausage

1 large onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon Italian herb blend

pinch of red pepper flakes, to taste

2 cups Lacinato kale, stems removed and chopped

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup flour

up to 6 cups whole milk

1 tablespoon chicken soup base

grating of fresh nutmeg
1 cup Parmesan, freshly shredded, divided

1 lb. penne rigate, cooked to al dente and drained

2 cups fresh ricotta

Heat the bacon fat in a large Dutch oven and saute the sausage and onion together until the meat is no longer pink. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two. Stir in the black pepper, Italian herbs, and red pepper flakes. Add the kale and white wine, and cook for a few minutes until kale is wilted and wine is reduced. Sprinkle the flour over everything and stream in a quart of the milk. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens. (Add another cup or two of milk if necessary.) Stir in the soup base and nutmeg. Remove from heat and add about half of the Parmesan cheese.

Gently combine the sauce and the pasta along with the ricotta. Pour into a sprayed 9x13 dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes until bubbly and starting to turn golden on top. Garnish with extra Parmesan when serving.

Cronut? We don't need no stinkin' Cronut!

I just got home from a whirlwind trip to the Big City. I went down Friday after school, spent the day doing theatre on Saturday, did one last loop to some of my favorite eateries on Sunday, and then hit the road for home. WHEW! But I had a terrific time, even though my roomie and BFF was sick and had to stay home (boo hiss). Enjoy a few tasty pics, won't you?

On my way through the capitol region on Friday, a friend suggested that I make a short detour to Dinosaur BBQ in Troy for dinner. So glad I did! (I can't believe that I've never been before!) This is a solo sampler plate of appetizers: Drunken shrimp, fried green tomato, hoisin chicken wing, Cajun deviled egg.

(The fried green tomato and that one wing were the best things I ate there, hands down!)

Combo platter: Mac and cheese, BBQ beans, cornbread, housemade hot link and chow chow, ribs, and brisket with housemade pickled jalapeños. (Yes, I took half of this with me to my hotel in Secaucus!) 

The main reason for my trip: To see my beloved Neil Patrick Harris in one of my all-time favorite shows, Hedwig and the Angry Inch! FABULOUS!!

The line at the stage door (spilling out into the street) to see NPH. (My fearless friend, Jaymie, is in the red pants. Soon enough, she would use her diminutive size and stealthiness to sneak to the front of the pack for an autograph!

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The man himself, NPH!!!!!!!!!!!! (And that's Jaymie's hand shoving a playbill in his face for him to sign. GO, JAYMIE!!)

And in an act of extreme generosity and friendship, Jaymie gave the signed playbill to me!! I LOVE HER SO MUCH!!

As if the autographed playbill weren't enough, Jaymie and her wife, Audrey, took me to dinner at this place in Chinatown that had the most AMAZING Peking Duck (as the name of the restaurant might lead one to believe).

Apparently, the render the fat from the duck for 48 hours so that it's not the least bit greasy, but so tender and moist. And a chef carves the bird table-side for your viewing (and smelling) pleasure!

I can't even convey how good this was! The Peking Duck was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. The way you were supposed to eat it was to roll up a few pieces in a "pancake" (a flour tortilla, really) with some scallion and/or cucumber and their spicy plum sauce. YUM, YUM, YUM!!

My second theatrical experience of the day was to take in Sleep No More, which was this strange, dream-like immersive play that was loosely based on MacBeth. It's located in an old warehouse in Chelsea made into a "hotel" with many rooms and many characters that appear and interact with onlookers from time to time. All of the spectators must wear one of these Venetian-type masks and must not speak, but you may wander from room to room and floor to floor at your own pace and see what interesting things unfold along your journey. VERY, VERY COOL! I'd love to go back and do it again....if I could afford it, that is. :-(

The next day was Easter Sunday, so I thought I'd take a chance that the Cronut line at Dominique Ansel's bakery wouldn't be that bad. Sure enough, I only waited about 45 minutes, and it was a beautiful spring day and quite pleasant to be outside after a loooonnnnggg winter up north. I even found street parking nearby! WOOT!!

Signs inside the shop. (Tee hee.)

Annnnnnddd, here they are! TA-DAH!! The flavor of the month was passion fruit, and they were definitely DELICIOUS! But here's the conclusion I came to: It was fun to do the Cronut thing just to say I'd done it. But for my money (and time), the DKA (their version of kouign amann) was even better, and you don't even have to wait in line to buy one of those! If I did it again, I'd bypass the Cronut line altogether and go right inside and buy as many DKA's as my pocketbook and cholesterol levels would allow.

For my last stop in the City before heading home, I went by another one of my favorite places, Sullivan Street Bakery, for the beloved potato pizza and other baked delicacies. But right next store now is CO, a full-fledged pizza joint that is Jim Lahey's newest project. I ordered the Flambee with bechamel, mozzarella, caramelized onions, and crispy, smoky lardons. A-MAHZING! If this man isn't making the best pizza in the country, I don't know who is!