sloppy joe's

sloppy joes- yet again another food i had never had till i came down to north carolina. i'm pretty sure i had heard of it at one time or another, possibly on an old episode of roseanne; i can't say for sure though. i know that i'd never seen them on any menu nor had i even seen anybody eat one so it was completely foreign to me. my first time having a sloppy joe wasn't really anything to rave about either, granted i remember it being good and satisfying at the time but i mean it's ground meat mixed with something out of a can. not terribly difficult to fix or botch i would think, right? some people or quite possibly a lot of people have fond memories of this classic sandwich and that's all cool and great but it just wasn't something i grew up with so ultimately i was indifferent to it. it didn't stir up any old memories or bring me back to my childhood. for me, it was just a quick dinner when you're in a time crunch. throw in some oven roasted fries, a salad and you're set. last monday, that's what we did except for one, minor change - no canned sauce. it was time to put a homemade spin on this staple of americana and spin i did. i spun from work, to the gym and finally to the grocery store to grab the few items that i was missing to re-create my own rendition of this saucy sandwich. what did all this spinning produce? the following....

Sloppy Joe's Sans "the canned stuff"

• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 tbs brown sugar
• 2 tbs Worchestershire sauce
• 1 tbs chili powder
• 2 tbs tomato paste
• 1 16 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/8 tsp salt
• Fresh Cracked Pepper
• Sandwich Bread of choice
  

Pour 1 tsp oil in a medium skillet and heat over a medium flame till the oil starts to shimmer. Add the onion and brown sugar and cook till the sugar has dissolved and the onion has softened. Add the ground chicken and season with chili powder,salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. Once the meat has browned go ahead and add the Worchestershire sauce, tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Allow to simmer till your sauce reaches a medium-thick consistency- about 15 minutes. Heat your bread or buns during the last 5 minutes of cooking.

strawberry day @ the farmer's market + flo baker = strawberry genoise

yup, another cake recipe. no, we're not getting fatter. well, maybe a little bit but not bring out the crane fat. not yet anyways, ask us once we've gotten back from our trip to nyc next month. bring on the junior's cheesecake, grimaldi's( or john's?) pizza, jacques torres chocolate and h&h bagels...maybe not in that order,though... anywho, back to the above pictured cake.
the cake you see above was made this past sunday for a combo mother's day slash birthday celebration. seems like there's been a lot to celebrate here lately, not a bad thing especially since celebrations are an excuse to eat cake. for this cake though, i don't really think you need an excuse.
it's very light and shortcake-y even though that is not what it's called but that is what it reminded me of. it's made up of eggs, heavy cream, and strawberries - sounds like 3 balanced groups to me. i mean come on you got your protein with the eggs, fat with the cream and fiber and folic acid and all the other good stuff strawberries have. fully balanced meal. i say go ahead and feel free to load up your plate with it.
delana was the one responsible for this wonderfully balanced meal. she got up early sunday morning to make it and it was a good thing too because she did run into a few issues. the cake itself is made of up of beaten eggs and sugar and folded in flour. sounds simple enough but it's tricky because the batter can deflate rather easily once you reach the folding in stage, which results in a very thin layer of cake. how do i know? it happened on the first attempt. no big deal though. she didn't let it phase her, and just gave it another go and this time the second time was the charm. fortunate because there was no time for a third try. once cooled, she cut the cake in half rather than in thirds as the original recipe called for and sandwiched some whipped cream and mashed strawberries in between each half. no aluminum foil here, the cake was instead wrapped with the rest of the airy, goodness of the whipped cream and garnished with sliced strawberries. cake sandwich wrapped in whipped cream. go ahead and try some....

French Strawberry Cake
Adapted by Flo Baker for Baking with Julia

Perfect Genoise
-makes enough for one 8 in round cake

Ingredients
2 tbs unsalted butter, melted
1 c sifted cake flour
1/2 c sugar
1/8 tsp salt
4 large eggs, at room temp
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

position a rack in the lower third of the over and preheat to 350 degrees.
grease and flour the bottom and sides of an 8 in round cake pan, fitting it with a round of parchment once the excess flour is tapped out.

pour melted butter into 1 qt bowl, reserve.
return sifted cake flour to the sifter or sieve, and add 1 tbs of the sugar and the salt; sift onto a piece of waxed paper and set aside.

put the eggs and remaining sugar into the bowl of a heavy duty mixer (or work with a hand-held mixer). holding the whisk attachment in your hand, beat the mixture to blend the ingredients. with the bowl and whisk attachment in place, whip the mixture on medium speed until it is airy, pale and tripled in volume like softly whipped cream, 4 to 5 minutes ( for us, it took about 12 minutes) you'll know that the eggs are properly whipped when the whisk is lifted and the mixture falls back into the bowl in a ribbon that rests on the surface for about 10 seconds. if the ribbon doesn't hold up for this long, continue to whip for a few more minutes. pour in the vanilla extracts towards the last moments of whipping.
detach the bowl from the mixer. sprinkle about one third of the sifted cake flour over the batter. fold in the flour with a rubber spatula, stopping once it is incorporated. fold in the rest of the flour in 2 more additions.
gently spoon about 1 cup of the batter into the bowl with the melted butter and fold in the butter with the rubber spatula. at this point, the batter is at its most fragile so fold gingerly. fold the mixture into the batter in the mixer bowl.

Pour into prepared pan, smoothing the top with a rubber spatula working from the center outward and creating a slightly raised ridge around the sides. bake for 25-27 mins, or until top springs back. transfer to a cooling rack and allow to rest for 5-10 mins.

Preparing the berries:

2 pints ripe, fresh strawberries hulled and sliced
1/4 to 1/3 c sugar ( depending on the sweetness of the fruit - we only had to use a 1/4 cup)

toss sliced berries with sugar in a large bowl and leave them uncovered, at room temp for at least 2 hrs.coarsely mash the berries using a fork and toss once more; let them stand for another hr. this can be done a day ahead just be sure to refrigerate once your frustrations have been released and the berries are mashed.

The Cream

1.25 c cold heavy cream
2 tbs sour cream
2 tbs sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract


Using the whisk attachment on your mixer, whip all the above ingredients until the mixture forms soft peaks. You've reached proper consistency once the tracks made my the whisk close slowly and almost disappear.( Keep an eye on this because faster than you can say curdled,, you'll end up with curdled cream. Not good.)Cover and refrigerate until it's time to frost the cake. Before using, whisk by hand to bring the mixture together again.


Finishing the cake
(props to you if you're still with me...)


Using a serrated knife, cut the cake horizontally into 3 layers ( we went with 2). Place the bottom layer cut side up onto a cardboard round or the removable bottom of a tart pan ( or whatever surface you choose). Using a slotted spoon, lift about 1/2 of the berries (if you're just doing 2 layers go ahead and add all your berries) from the bowl so that most of the liquid drains off and spread over the cake. Top off with a thin layer of the whipped cream. Place the next cake layer and spread another layer of berries and whipped cream. Center the top layer over the filling. Proceed to frost the tops and sides of the cake with the remaining whipped cream using a flexible metal icing spatula. Garnish with berries that have been sliced in half from blossom to stem, cut side down. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving

belated birthday cake

wow, i didn't realize how long it has been since i last posted on here. i knew i'd been somewhat neglectful of keeping things current but i didn't realize i'd gone a whole two weeks without posting anything. that's pretty bad, this week i pledge to get back on track though.
the week that i last posted also happened to be the week of delana's birthday, it was actually the day after my last post- the 22nd. since it fell right smack at the beginning of the week, we each took the day off from work and just spent the time together. real low key, and relaxed. however, we were going to be celebrating it full on with her family on saturday, which brings me to the recipe i'm about to share with you. if you've ever been to tastespotting.com, you've seen this recipe before. it seems immensely popular and i think it was either part of the daring baker's challenge or tuesdays with dorie, quite possibly both. i can't remember now. what am i talking about? i am talking about ms. greenspan's recipe for the perfect party cake and i believe the recipe originated with nick malgieri. pretty sure, not totally sure but it doesn't matter. this cake is gooodd. really good. finish it off in one sitting if your pants can stretch that far good. don't believe me? go find one of the million other bloggers who have made this cake and ask them because you'll find we pretty much all concur. you need to make this cake. it doesn't have to be made just for a party, cut the recipe down and just make it into some type of loaf/ muffin/ cupcake thing if you want and omit the buttercream. whatever excuse you can find to make it, just go with it. you won't be sorry.
will say this though: i have 2 complaints about this cake. nothing major, just minor details that were probably my fault but if you're a crappy baker like me you might have the same issues. first thing is they didn't really rise high enough to make four layers, i got 3 by the skin of my teeth and a really steady hand with the serrated knife. second- i had a hell of a time trying to get the sides iced. it would just come off whenever i would try to like turn it and make it all pretty and smooth. again, this is probably just me because i don't ever make cakes, and i'm far from a cake decorator but it's just a potential heads up i guess.
i did also make my own tweaks:

• i substituted the raspberry preserves with blueberry preserves that i made using frozen blueberries and a quarter cup of turbinado sugar cooked together till the mixture reaches a thick, syrupy consistency.
• i garnished the cake using sliced lemons instead of the berries.
  

Perfect Party Cake
Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients for the cake:

• 2.25 c Cake flour
  
• 1 tbs Baking powder
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1.25 c Whole milk or buttermilk
• 4 Large Egg whites
• 1 1/2 Cups Castor sugar
• 2 Tsps Grated lemon zest
• 1 Stick (8 tablespoons or 4 ounces) Unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 Tsp Pure lemon extract

Ingredients for the buttercream:

• 1 Cup sugar
• 4 Large Egg whites
• 3 Sticks (12 ounces) Unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 Cup Fresh lemon juice (from 2 large lemons)
• 1 Tsp Pure vanilla extract

Ingredients for the finishing:

• 2/3 Cup Seedless raspberry preserves stirred vigorously or warmed gently until spreadable in consistency
• About 1 1/2 Cups Sweetened shredded coconut (or roasted, sliced/slivered almonds)

Getting ready:

• Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350° F
• Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment or wax paper.
• Put the pans on a baking sheet.
  

Method for the cake:

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl.
3. Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant.
4. Add the butter and working with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light.
5. Beat in the extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed.
6. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated.
7. Add the rest of the milk and eggs beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients.
8. Finally, give the batter a good 2- minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated.
9. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.
10. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch – a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean.
11. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unfold them and peel off the paper liners.
12. Invert and cool to room temperature, right side up.

Frosting

1. Put the sugar and egg whites in a mixer bowl or another large heatproof bowl, fit the bowl over a plan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, about 3 minutes.
2. The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like shiny marshmallow cream.
3. Remove the bowl from the heat.
4. Working with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the meringue on medium speed until it is cool, about 5 minutes.
5. Switch to the paddle attachment if you have one, and add the butter a stick at a time, beating until smooth.
6. Once all the butter is in, beat in the buttercream on medium-high speed until it is thick and very smooth, 6-10 minutes (during this time the buttercream may curdle or separate – just keep beating and it will come together again).
7. On medium speed, gradually beat in the lemon juice, waiting until each addition is absorbed before adding more, and then the vanilla.
8. You should have a shiny smooth, velvety, pristine white buttercream. Press a piece of plastic against the surface of the buttercream and set aside briefly.

Assembly:

1. Using a sharp serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, slice each layer horizontally in half.
2. Put one layer cut side up on a cardboard cake round or a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper.
3. Spread it with one third of the preserves.
4. Cover the jam evenly with about one quarter of the buttercream.
5. Top with another layer, spread with preserves and buttercream and then do the same with a third layer (you’ll have used all the jam and have buttercream leftover).
6. Place the last layer cut side down on top of the cake and use the remaining buttercream to frost the sides and top.
7. Press the coconut (or sliced almonds) into the frosting, patting it gently all over the sides and top.

sticky rice and flat cookies

after a week filled with days that started at 3 am and ended at around 7pm, i was excited about the arrival of the weekend. i thought it would mean time for me to play around in the kitchen, have a chance to take some food shots of whatever i decided to fix since during the week the main goal was just to get the food on the table but it didn't quite work out that way. my mojo just wasn't with me, i'm not sure where it went but i know it wasn't in the kitchen.i should have known something was up when i started my sunday morning on the hunt for some dried chilies and some cajeta dulce de leche and the one place that i find that has both things throws me a curve ball: the dulce de leche had expired. had it been expired just a few days, it would've been fine but no. this thing had expired almost 6 months ago. e as i browsed the shelves to see what else they had i came across something else i'd been looking for: saf instant yeast. this little box won the expiration race on the dulce de leche: this yeast had expired in october of 2003. definitely not a store i'll be going back to.
unfortunately i don't have any exciting recipes to share but here are some shots of what was supposed to be yellow rice with some peppers and onions, pretty much your basic chicken and rice style dish minus the chicken. after 3 nights in a row of chicken, it was time to find protein from another source. light red kidney beans would be the choice source on this occasion. in terms of taste, i got that much right but the texture just wasn't what i was looking for..
the other shots are of anzac cookies made from a recipe i found in cooking light. again, taste wise they were great but some of them spread out way too thin and just not up to par for me. i'll be sure to update once i figured out what i did wrong and how to fix it.
on the bright side, tomorrow is delana's birthday so i know i'll be in the kitchen but i'm not sure what the menu will consists of. it'll be up to her of course. i'll be sure to take notes and pictures and come back with an actual update and recipe.

glazed buttermilk and apple cake

ok, so i know last week i promised to come back with a whole new post about granola. unfortunately delana has yet to share her recipe with me but she did say i could write a about the glazed buttermilk and apple cake she made last week along with the granola. she made the cake last tuesday while i was at work and she had the day off. this is one of those cakes that will fill your house, or in my case apartment, with all sorts of great smells. it's really a great cake considering that the recipe was pulled out of one our cooking light books. not only is it light, it's moist and not overly sweet even with the powdered sugar glaze. i will say though it is a little on the thin side but i think that makes it even better just because it allows you the option of either having it for a light breakfast treat with your morning cup of coffee or just for dessert topped off with a scoop of ice cream which is the route i took. in addition to all that, it keeps really well too. we didn't get rid of the last slice till saturday and even then it probably could've lasted a few more days kept under wraps. like i told delana, it is gggooooddd or was.

Buttermilk Apple Cake- taken from Cooking Light

Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced peeled Granny Smith apple
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
• Cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons sliced almonds

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon low-fat buttermilk
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare the cake, combine the first 4 ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook 5 minutes or until syrupy, stirring frequently; cool.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Combine granulated sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well-blended; add egg and extracts, beating well. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.

Spoon the batter into an 8-inch round cake pan coated with cooking spray. Arrange apple mixture over cake. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon buttermilk, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Drizzle glaze over cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

spongy proclaims

if you're not happy it's friday, maybe spongebob can change that...

i've got an awesome granola recipe to share, i'm just short the actual recipe. confused? it's ok. the recipe is tucked away in delana's baking brain right now. i'll be sure to pick at that lock and liberate it so as to share it with all you hungry, granola fans. p.s. sorry for the lack of updates, just been swamped at work. the weekend though will allow for more food musings and creations, maybe even (hopefully) a trip to the farmer's market. excited? you should be. i know i am.

bon appetit's rhubarb and raspberry jam

once again, it was another washed out weekend here in greensboro and once again, it was another early morning rise for delana and i. it really should be a crime to have to wake up at 3:45 in the morning on a sunday morning. sunday's are meant to sleep in right? i think so. i also think this message needs to be passed on to starbucks....wishful thinking. it's fun but that's all it is, is wishful. so what to do when life gives you rainy days and early mornings? complain? i just did that. so yes you can do that and you can also make jam. jam is what i did yesterday and boy did it turn out gooood.

my inspiration came out of Bon Appetit's March 2008 issue (pg.121?not sure but it sounds right.) i've been wanting to try it since the magazine made its way through my mail slot but have not been able to since the grocery stores around me didn't seem to realize that it was rhubarb season up until this past weekend. so behind the times. the first supermarket i came across that carried these elusive, red stalks had them at a whopping $6 a pound. my cash flow was not as great as my desire to make this jam. i continued on through the produce section, grabbing the stuff i actually needed. once done, delana and i made a stop at the Fresh Market to pick up some almonds since this location carries them in bulk at a much fairer price than the vacuum sealed packs found at our first stop. this second stop satisfied much more than our need for almonds, it also provided us with rhubarb for a $3 a pound. six dollars vs. three dollars? the latter makes for a much happier checking account balance. this along with the half jar of raspberry preserves i had in the fridge, some sugar and water and i was on way to rhubarb and raspberry jam minus the roly polys. i did make profiteroles from gourmet's march issue but i'll post about those later. i guess i too am a little behind on my recipe trials but better late than never. if you too are waiting to try this recipe out don't wait too long because it's definitely something that you're going to want ot have waiting for you in your 'fridge. i had some this morning spread over some toast with a side of oatmeal. delicious.

Bon Appetit's Rhubarb and Raspberry Jam
March 2008 issue

1/2 pound fresh rhubarb, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices (about 2 cups)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup raspberry jam



Combine rhubarb, sugar, and 1 tablespoon water in medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Cover; cook until rhubarb softens to thick pulp, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Mix in jam; cool. do ahead Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover; chill.