{scissor variations}

whipping up a pizza in 18 hours

Disclaimer: This is NOT a food blog! NEW craft projects are on the horizon. i've been tackling a major craft room makeover/do-over/switcheroo . 'til then we still gotta eat. and for me cooking is creative. so it all fits in here somewhere.

 

i am a fan of Jim Lahey's no knead bread and now his pizza dough has captured my attention.

last month's Bon Appetit magazine had a feature article on his pizza dough-so of course i had to try it.

this was my 3rd time making up a batch of the dough-and every time i have been pleased at how it has turned out.

and 'yes' the dough has an 18 hour 'waiting' period. and then a smidge more time added onto that.

i think the end result is totally worth the wait.

 

we've been freezing the pizzas and have found that they do freeze well. the recipe makes 6--- 10" pizzas, which is a lot for our small household, so freezing works for us.

 

pie shaping has never been my strength. luckily this does not affect the taste.

 

i suggest you tackle this with another person in the kitchen if you are baking all 6 pies in one 'session'. it can be challenging prepping, getting one pizza in the oven, taking a pizza out, waiting 5 minutes in between baking each pie so the oven can heat up again and maneuvering around 6 pizzas that have just come out of a 500 degree oven----no matter the size of your kitchen a second pair of hands is extremely helpful in this case. and given that each pie only bakes for 5-7 minutes this happens fairly quickly--so sign up a sous chef to help!

 

flax seeds + chocolatizing

 

Do not discount the seduction of FLAXSEED! These cookies are delicious. Not too sweet, with a lovely nutty flavor. Perfect with tea.

 

Oatmeal Flax Cookies

adapted from Bonnie Stern (this recipe is not in any of her cookbooks, but appeared in one of our national newspapers about 10 years ago)

Makes approx. 50 cookies

Allow 2 hours freezing time for the dough

 

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup ground flax

2 tsp baking soda

2 cups rolled oats

1 1/2 cups flax seeds, whole or lightly crushed

 

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Cream butter and white and brown sugars in a large bowl with electric mixer until light. Beat in eggs one at a time. Then add vanilla.

In another bowl, combine flour with ground flax and baking soda. Stir well. Add to batter. (This is a thick soft dough and my KitchenAid sometimes labors when mixing this part.)

Stir in rolled oats and flax seed (see above regarding the mixer...). At this point I sometimes dump the dough into a very large bowl and mix in the loose flour mixture that usually sits in the bottom of the mixing bowl with a large wooden spoon or by hand. It is a lot of dough, but it is not stiff.

Shape cookies into 2 logs approximately 2" x 12" and wrap tightly in parchment paper. Freeze for at least 2 hours.

Slice logs into 1/4" rounds and arrange on cookie sheets in a single layer. Bake for 10-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on racks.

I usually can fit about 20 cookies per baking sheet. They do spread a bit while baking, so their sides will touch if putting this many on your baking sheet.

 

My Notes

A coffee grinder can easily grind the flax seeds, but you can also find pre-ground flaxseed at the grocery store. I store mine in the refrigerator.

When I make the cookie logs for freezing I just flatten the logs off on all sides--the dough is soft at this stage and I find it easier to handle and to make the "sides" of the logs flat.

This recipe makes A LOT of cookies -luckily they freeze well.

Keep the cookie logs on hand in your freezer and just slice and bake a few as needed.

 

.....and if you are so inclined

i have been baking these cookies for at least 10 years and today was the first time i decided to 'chocolatize' a dozen. i did not hear any complaints.

 

I own all of Bonnie Stern's cookbooks -- she creates wonderful recipes that are FULL of flavor. She has written several Heart Smart cookbooks and they are some of the best cookbooks I own. The best. And I own a lot of cookbooks.

Bonnie Stern's website.

my, oh, pie

 

so i made this pie. 

 

 

if you look closely at this next photo you can see the flecks of vanilla bean in the filling.

 

i had some extra pie scraps and i placed a TBSP of homemade blackberry basil jam in the center, rolled it up and baked these mini turn-overs when i was baking the coconut laden pie crust. SO GOOD! i would definitely just make the crust to whip up these little turn overs.

 

it takes a while to create this pie from start to finish--although the pastry cream cooks up super fast, it needs some time to cool to room temperature as well as chilling time in the refrigerator. the pie dough, once mixed needs to chill. you need to blind bake the crust and allow it to cool.

 

i did not get out my pastry piping bag and get fancy.

i did not put the shaved toasted coconut on top (this time).

(our patience had already run the gamut by this time)

we just wanted to dig our forks into the pie.

and that we did.

no regrets.

 

 

 

elevating the rice krispie square

 

 

 
 
 

(sorry, just no way to make this step look good...)

 
 

Chop up 7-8 Mars bars.

Place the chopped bars in a large heavy bottom saucepan with 1/8 cup butter. Melt together slowly over low heat. 

There will still be visible lumps of caramel when everything else is melted--this is okay.

Remove from heat and add 6 cups of rice krispie cereal.

Stir to coat.

Spread warm mixture in a 9 x 13 inch buttered baking pan.

Melt 1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips in a microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Then melt for another 30 seconds. Remove from microwave and keep stirring until all of the chocolate has melted.

Spread over warm squares and allow chocolate to set before slicing.

enjoy!

 

[you can make a half recipe by using 4-5 Mars bars and just a TBSP of butter and 3 cups rice krispies)

 

i saw it on the internets [a fine cookie]

 

 

these are a wonderful chocolate chip cookie.

nice + chewy.

or they can be crisp if you cook them a wee bit longer.

if you're of that school of thought.

i won't hold it against you.

 

+ bonus! they have whole wheat flour!

how fine is that?

 

recipe for wholewheat chocolate chip cookies found here

 

[these are our favorite easy-to-make chocolate chip cookies-----i make these with dark chocolate or milk chocolate pieces. i use the smallest size metal ice cream scoop to shape and since the cookies do not spread very much during baking you can fit approximately 20 on a baking sheet]

 

summery pasta salad

 

 

a quick pasta salad for basil lovers

 

Cook your favorite dried cheese tortellini pasta until al dente--I use half of a super large package or a couple of small packages (approximately 500g dried). Drain and set aside.

 

 While pasta is cooking prepare the vinaigrette:

 

3 TBSP olive oil

2 TBSP balsamic vinegar

2 TBSP grainy mustard (or Dijon-i use grainy)

1 tsp honey

2 TBSP red wine vinegar

2 TBSP lemon juice

2 tsp minced garlic (i use 2 cloves)

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil (Thai basil is wonderful)

 

Whisk all ingredients together except basil. Then add basil and whisk again.

Pour vinaigrette over slightly warm cheese tortellini pasta, toss to coat.

Add a few of your favorite fresh veggie add-ins--I use red onion + chopped red or yellow pepper.

Add some freshly grated pepper + freshly grated parmesan cheese, if desired.

You can refrigerate the salad for several hours to allow the flavors to mingle. Best served at room temperature.

 

n  n  n  n  n 

 

of course there is a lot of room for improvisation...

i prefer a smaller tortellini as i find sometimes a larger size starts to "fall apart" when it has sat in the vinaigrette for more than a day.

If you love lemon-- before you squeeze your lemon juice for the vinaigrette, grate the zest and toss it in with your pasta when you add the other vegetables. It adds a nice fresh zingy flavor.

 

I also tend to be heavy handed with the basil--adding 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped basil to the vinaigrette. This will make your vinaigrette somewhat "thick" when you're whisking it.

 

 

how to make rectangular baking cups

 

 

 
 
 
 

1.    find a small container or dish that has a solid rectangular bottom or end

2.    take your round cupcake liner + place on top. try and center it for best results.

3.    push the liner down over the rectangle shape + using your finger follow around the edges to lightly crease it + then smooth it downward loosely molding it around the shape of the object--but not so much that you remove the fluted indentations.

 [of course you can make square or oval shapes as well using other objects]

taking a few seconds to do this makes it so much easier than trying to squish a square or rectangle shaped baked good into a round baking liner

 

 if you are making up a special "snack" box for a wedding these work great for creating sections for all of the little bits and pieces---crackers, nuts, chocolates.

 

 
 

 

n

 

early morning, white chocolate + the perfect light

 

 
 
 

{lee bailey's molasses cookies}  &  {white chocolate, pecan + lemon cookies}

 

Molasses Cookies

{adapted from Lee Bailey's Country Desserts}

3/4 cup sugar (+ additional for coating)

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 large egg

1/4 cup molasses

2 cups sifted all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

~~~~~

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the sugar + butter until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and then add the molasses. Combine the flour with the other dry ingredients and sift again. Add to dough and mix well.

Form dough into 1" balls and roll in additional sugar. Place 2" apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until set. Repeat with remaining dough.

 

{my notes----}

i don't alway sift the flour and the cookies turn out fine.

freshly ground pepper mixed in with the rolling sugar adds an additional peppery note that i love

if time permits i will use a metal 'melon ball' size scoop to measure out the cookie dough before hand rolling into balls--although they may look small, they will spread to an approximately 2"- 3" size when baked

makes 3-4 dozen...you know how that turns out when a recipe says that....

these are great cookies for mailing!

 

annual-eat-cake-for-breakfast-day

 

 
 
 

...in our house, anyway.

 

{chocolate carrot cake w/ cream cheese icing + bittersweet chocolate glaze}

 

 

frosting to cake ratio

 

 

my city, most likely, like your city is home to a gourmet cupcake bakery or two.

 

in our house we are of the opinion that the bakery puts too much frosting on their cupcakes.  

are the bakery cupcakes still fabulous?   but of course.

would i pass one over?   no.

 

if i eat one of these "gourmet" cupcakes at dinner time i feel like i have a hangover the next day. full on grogginess.

i think a cupcake should leave one feeling euphoric at best.

or

maybe at my age cupcake hangovers are where its at.....

 

 

 

so, i made a cherished chocolate cake recipe yesterday. whipped up a batch of my Mom's no recipe, 'feel' the proportions as you go frosting.

 

 + got down to the business of swirling frosting

 

 

the frosting mound should not be the size of the cupcake upon which it rests, unless of course you are 10 years old

 

frosting to cake ratio

its serious business folks.