SHF #28: Sugar Art - Painted Sugar Cookies
I have a few friends I thought deserved some cookies about now, but until recently, I hadn’t decided what kind to make. Then I saw that this month’s Sugar High Friday theme is “Sugar Art,” and I took it as a sign that it was time to try Nancy Baggett’s edible tempera paint recipe and make some personalized cookies.
I didn’t want to post the personalized cookies for SHF, so I made some more generic ones, too. Here are some Chanukah cookies:
And some non-denominational cookies:
The verdict: The cookies are tasty and the art project was fun, but it would have been more fun with a kid, and I’ll probably wait until I have one before doing it again. (The cookies look like a kid made them, anyway.)
Here’s the recipe (adapted from Nancy Baggett’s All-American Cookie Book):
Continue reading SHF #28: Sugar Art - Painted Sugar Cookies »
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Ginger Snaps
My friend and former roommate Ayelet is an avid baker and makes many delicious desserts, but my favorite by far are her ginger snaps. She baked them often when we lived together, and the whole suite would fill with the warm frangrance of ginger. I could barely wait for them to cool.
I often use Ayelet’s recipes now, but the ginger snaps have never come out quite right. Usually, the dough is too crumbly and the cookies are dry. The results were somewhat better when I monitored the temperature of the eggs and the shortening (which Ayelet never did), but they were still inferior to hers. Finally, I decided to switch to a new recipe. The one I use now comes from Lisa Yockelson of the Boston Globe (March 1, 2006). The flavors are the same, but I find the dough more workable. (Yockelson recommends preparing the dough five hours in advance to allow it time to firm up in the refrigirator, but I have not had trouble rolling the cookies while the dough is soft.) The cookies always come out well, and they are a big hit at Thanksgiving dinner.
Here is the recipe, slightly edited:
Dough
3 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter or margarine, softened*
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
6 tablespoons molasses (Yockelson recommends light molasses. I use dark.)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves in a large bowl.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed for 3 minutes. Gradually add the sugar, beating all the while.
Add the whole egg and egg yolk. Beat only until incorporated. Blend in the molasses and vanilla.
On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, beating just until the dry ingredients are incorporated.
If the dough is too soft to roll, place it in a covered dish and refrigirate several hours or up to 2 days.
Sugar Coating
1/2 cup granulated sugar**
dash ginger
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a wide bowl, combine the sugar and ginger.
Take heaping tablespoons of dough into your palms and roll them into balls, then in the sugar mixture until lightly coated. Set them on the baking sheets, arranging them 3 inches apart.
Bake 8-10 minutes for soft cookies, or 12-13 minutes for crisp cookies. The cookies will rise slightly, then settle. The tops will be cracked. Let them stand on the sheets for 2 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer to wire racks. Store in an airtight container.
*If you use salted butter or margarine, omit the 1/2 teaspoon salt. (I used Earth Balance last time, and it was fine.)
** The original recipe called for 2 cups of sugar, but that was much more than necessary.
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Berry Meringue Torte
The upcoming edition of Sugar High Friday will take place at A Veggie Venture (of all places). The theme is “surprise inside.” I can’t guarantee that all the recipes will be kosher, but dessert recipes are usually at least very easily adaptable. If you have any applicable recipes, submit them by September 22nd (Erev Rosh Hashanah — easy to remember). Either way, be sure to tune in the following week and indulge your sweet tooth!
My submission is a fluffy, cream-covered torte:
Here’s the “surprise” inside:
Of course, it won’t be a surprise if you tell your guests that it’s called “berry meringue torte.” There’s also no surprise as far as taste is concerned. If you like meringue, berries, and whipped cream, this dessert is for you.
Here’s the recipe:
3 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup + 3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups berries (any combination)
2 cups whipped cream* (or a nondairy substitute, if necessary)
Preheat oven to 275 degrees Farenheit. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt with an electric mixer on high speed until foamy. Gradually add 3/4 cup sugar while continuing to beat. When egg whites form soft peaks, add vanilla. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.
Spoon the egg white mixture onto the cookie sheet in a circle, flattening out the center and building up the sides. Bake 1 1/2 hours. Turn off oven and leave in with door closed 1 additional hour. Remove from oven.
Combine berries and 3 tablespoons sugar. Place berries in hollow of meringue. Use a rubber spatula to spread whipped cream over the top. Refrigirate up to 24 hours.
*From one cup heavy cream and 2 tablespoons sugar
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Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 4)
(Here are parts 1, 2, and 3)
Meatless Supper #7: Pasta With Chunky Tomato Sauce
DH started making his own pasta sauce when he lived in downtown Montreal, where hekhshered sauce isn’t readily available (or wasn’t five years ago). You can use any kind of pasta, of course, but I think rotinni is best for catching all the chunks. We usually eat this with cheddar or jack cheese, since good kosher parmesean is difficult to come by. (It’s an unconventional combination, but a good one.)
Serves about 4 (8 according to the nutrition labels)
1 1-lb box pasta, plus water, oil, and salt, for cooking
1 28-0z can crushed tomatoes in tomato puree*
4-5 mushrooms, chopped
2-3 scallions, sliced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
italian seasoning (basil, oregano, thyme, etc.), to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons dry wine (preferably red), or 1 tablespoon vodka
1 teaspoon sugar
hot sauce, to taste
a few leaves of fresh basil, shredded (entirely optional)
shredded or grated cheese, to serve
Fill a large stock pot with water and set over a high flame.
Combine remaining ingredients (except cheese) in 1-quart saucepan and mix well. Bring to a light boil over medium heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered.
When the water reaches a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook according to package directions. When the pasta is ready, the sauce is ready, too. Top each plate of pasta with cheese and then with sauce. (The hot sauce will melt the cheese nicely.)
*Different brands of crushed tomato have different consistencies, and this can have a major impact on the consistency of the sauce. We’ve found Contadina to be too liquidy and Shaw’s brand too chunky. Red Pack is our current favorite.
Meatless Supper #8: Mengedarrah With Brown Rice and Moroccan Seasoning
Mungedarrah (or mujadarrah) is a pan-Middle Eastern dish of lentils and rice. Two years ago, I wrote about its connection to the Nine Days and provided a recipe. This is a whole grain version with a more interesing seasoning combination. I like to serve it as a side dish when we have vegetarian guests for a meat meal, but it is also a satisfying meal in itself and a good choice for the se`udah mafseket before Tisha B’Av, which traditionally consists of no more than one cooked dish. (The simpler salt-and-pepper version may be more appropriate for that occasion, though.)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion (about 2 cups), chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2 teaspoons salt (to taste)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 cup long-grain brown rice
1 cup brown or green lentils
4 3/4 cups water
yogurt to serve (optional)
Heat oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and seasoning and sautee until onions are fairly soft, 10-15 minutes. Add rice and cook about 1 minute, stirring.
Add the lentils and water. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until all the water is absorbed, about 40-45 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure that it isn’t sticking. (If it is, add a bit more water.) Serve with yogurt, if desired.
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Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 3)
(Here are parts 1 and 2)
Meatless Supper #5: Hot and Sour Tofu Stir-Fry
This is another very flexible recipe. The vegetables listed below are only one option. In my opinion, stir-frys are only slightly better with oil, so feel free to omit the grease.
serves about 3
1 cup (dry) brown rice, plus water, oil, and salt for cooking
peanut or canola oil (optional)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2-3 scallions, thinly sliced (whites and greens)
1 Italian eggplant,* diced (peeling is optional)
1 lb extra-firm tofu, cubed
1 small head broccoli in small florettes
1/2 lb snow peas
1 6-0z can water chestnuts
1 14-oz can baby corn
1-inch piece ginger, minced (optional)
1/2 cup lightly salted cashews (optional)
Hot and Sour Sauce
1/2 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
1/2 cup dry white wine, parve broth, or a combination
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
hot sauce to taste
Cook the rice. (Brown rice takes about 45 minutes to cook, which is about 20 minutes longer than this stir-fry takes, including cutting the vegetables. Eat your salad in the meantime :))
Prepare the vegetables and set aside. Prepare the sauce: Combine a small amount of soy sauce with the corn starch (if using) and mix well to remove lumps. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Heat a few tablespoons of oil or 1/4 cup sauce in a 9-inch skillet over a medium flame. Add the garlic, scallions, and eggplant and stir-fry until the garlic begins to brown (if using oil) and the scallions and eggplant soften. Add tofu, remaining vegetables, ginger, and nuts and stir fry for about 1 minute. Add remaining sauce, bring to a light boil, and simmer until the broccoli and snow peas are just tender. Serve over rice.
*Some cooks salt and drain eggplant before cooking in order to remove any bitter juices and prevent it from getting soggy. We do not salt our eggplant and have not encountered a bitter one since we began using the small Italian variety and choosing eggplant with smooth, glossy skin. However, the eggplant in this recipe does become quite soft.
Note: I’ve found that it takes a generous quantity of hot sauce to season this much stir-fry. It is a good idea to taste the sauce to make sure that it is as hot as you’d like it.
Meatless Supper #6: Tempeh and Vegetables in Peanut-Yogurt Sauce Continue reading Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 3) »
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Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 2)
(Part 1 is here.)
Here are a couple of very flexible, quick and easy fish recipes. The timing is for thin fish, such as sole or trout, served fairly rare. Add a few minutes for thicker fish, such as salmon or cod, or if you prefer it well done.
Meatless Supper #3: Broiled Fish Fillets in Lemon-Butter Sauce
This is a very simple but tasty recipe that works with almost any kind of fish. Serve with rice pilaf, couscous, or steamed vegetables.
serves 2-4
butter or cooking spray (for the pan)
1 lb fish fillets
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
dried tarragon (or other herb or spice of your choice)
juice of 1 lemon
a little bit of water
Preheat broiler. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan or coat with nonstick spray.
Wash fish and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Place in pan. (Very delicate fish, such as trout, is generally cooked with the skin attached. Lay the fillets in the pan skin side down.)
Cut butter into thin slices and distribute over fish. Spoon lemon juice onto fish and sprinkle with tarragon. Add water, so that the combination of water and juice rises about 1/4 inch up the side of the pan.
Broil 8-10 minutes or until fish is cooked through, turning thicker fillets once. (To test for doneness, slice through the thickest part of the thickest fillet and make sure that it is the same color all the way through.) Serve immediately, with sauce from the pan spooned over each serving.
Meatless Supper #4: Fish Fillets in Spicy Tomato Sauce
This recipe works best with thin, mild-flavored fish, such as sole, tilapia, or bass. It has no added oil, so it’s great for people who are watching their weight. Serve with rice or couscous.
serves 2-4
1 24-oz can diced tomatoes in tomato puree
1/4 cup dry red or white wine (preferable, but not strictly necessary)
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
hot sauce to taste
dried parsley, tarragon, and/or other spices, to taste
1 lb fish fillets
salt and pepper to taste
Combine the tomatoes, wine, garlic, hot sauce, and spices in a 9-inch skillet and mix well. Cook over medium-low heat until the sauce begins to bubble.
Meanwhile, wash the fish and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Add to the sauce and simmer 8-10 minutes, or until cooked through (see above). Serve immediately.
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Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 1)
DH and I rarely eat meat on weeknights, so the nine days are pretty effortless for us. I thought that I’d share some of my favorite dinners for the benefit of carnivores looking for new ideas. Each of these recipes takes under an hour to prepare, with less than 30 minutes of hands-on time.
But first things first: We usually begin dinner with a tossed salad with balsamic vinaigrette. This dressing is made in a blender or food processor, so it remains homogenized for about a week. It is very thick and flavorful, so you don’t have to use much.
Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup good balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
freshly ground black pepper to taste
italian seasoning (basil, oregano, parsley, thyme, etc.) to taste
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until well blended. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. If dressing separates, seal and shake the container. If oil congeals, whisk briskly or microwave for 10 seconds.
For Passover: Omit mustard. (This version will not homogenize well, so there is little advantage to preparing it in a blender or food processor. Simply combine the ingredients in an airtight container and shake well before each use.)
Continue reading Eight Meatless Weeknight Suppers (Part 1) »
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Frozen Grasshopper Pie
I tried this recipe for dessert this past Shabbat, and it was a real crowd pleaser. I halved the recipe and made my own crust from Oreo crumbs. The only problem was that I forgot to grease the pan, so it stuck like mad.
A few notes for anyone who might like to try the recipe:
1. A 5 1/2 ounce box of Oreos is just enough for a 9-inch crust.
2. The best way to make cookie crumbs is to lay the cookies between two pieces of wax paper and crush them with a rolling pin. Keep rolling until they form fine, even crumbs.
3. Reese creme de menthe has an OU. Roland’s cream of coconut also has an OU. Goya cream of coconut does not have a hekhsher on the package, but is kosher according to the cRc as long as it is labeled “product of Dominican Republic.”
4. There are a number of brands of sweetened condensed milk bearing a hekhsher. You do not have to use Eagle Brand.
I’ve gained a little bit of weight recently, so I’m going to try to lay off the rich desserts for a while. Expect some lighter alternatives in upcoming posts.
UPDATE: I actually got this recipe wrong, for a very silly reason: I used cream of coconut, which, as DeisCane points out, is quite different from creme de cacau. The pie came out well anyway. I guess you can’t go too far wrong with Oreo cookies and heavy cream.
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The Ultimate Brownies (Really!)
If Chanit can blog about food under these circumstances, I guess I can, too. And there’s good news from Elfland: I think I finally found my brownie recipe.
I’ve tried quite a few recipes for brownies, and, with one notable exception, none of them were bad. Still, they didn’t live up to my idea of what great brownies should taste like. The closest were “Fudge Brownies Supreme,” from Nancy Baggett’s All-American Cookie Book, but they were too sweet for my taste. This modified version of Baggett’s recipe yields rich, lucious, intensely chocolately brownies that satisfy like nothing else.
Enjoy:
1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons butter or margarine or 1/2 cup canola oil
5 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
3 eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan or coat with nonstick spray.
In a large, microwave safe bowl, microwave the butter and chocolate until the butter is completely melted (about 2 minutes). Remove from microwave and stir to finish melting the chocolate and blend the two ingredients. (Alternatively, melt in a saucepan over low heat). Let cool to warm.
In a small bowl, thoroughly stir toegether the flour, cocoa powder, and salt; set aside. Stir the sugar and brown sugar into the chocolate-butter mixture until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, stirring after each addition. Add vanilla and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is well blended and smooth. Stir in the flour mixture until evenly incorporated. Turn out the batter into the baking pan, spreading to the edges.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out moist but clean. (It’s okay if the bottom 1/4 inch is still a bit fudgy.) Cool on a wire rack. Cut into squares, wiping the knife clean between cuts.
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month.
Cross-posted to Apikorsus.
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Utterly Fabulous Blintzes
I know that I have a tendency toward hyperbole when it comes to food, but these really are the best blintzes I’ve ever had. (My apologies to Mother and Mother-in-Law, whose excellent recipes served as a starting point.) The blintz skins are from a French crepe recipe, which yields a more tender, creamy pancake than traditional blintz batter.
We use an 8-inch crepe pan, which makes fairly large blintzes. For a larger number of smaller blintzes, use a 6-inch or 5-inch pan. If you are inexperienced at making crepes, you may wish to make a bit of extra batter to allow for mistakes.
Continue reading Utterly Fabulous Blintzes »
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