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Cake for Adults

7 Dec

If I say the words “fruit cake” will you immediately stop reading and close the web browser? I sure hope not, because I have to tell you, I have this friend who makes THE. BOMB. FRUIT CAKE…….FOR ADULTS. :)

You may have heard of this friend of mine, her name is Kathy Casey. She is just the sweetest, funniest, warmest person, and girl can COOK (and mix a mean cocktail!)!!!

Every year, Kathy and her crew create the most a.MAZ.ing fruit cakes. I don’t even like fruit cake – but this is just heaven!

Courtesy of Kathy Casey.

Courtesy of Kathy Casey.

The picture from Kathy above just doesn’t do it justice, I swear! Check out her blog post on her “Over 21″ Real Fruit Cake made with Maker’s Mark.

Or, if you are in the mood for a little entertainment, watch this fun video that shows the labor of love involved in getting a batch of these cakes ready for gobbling!

If you now have a serious hankering for something devilish, you can buy it until December 14th or while supplies last. You can purchase them thru Kathy’s website and at her Food Studios (for those that are local) which is open Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00pm.

OR – if fruit cake still sounds too dangerous, Kathy left this great recipe that I’m re-posting below. This would be great for a Christmas morning brunch with a nice cup of espresso and some friends in their snugglies!

Unbelievable Apple Cake with Cider Crème Anglaise and Cranberry Compote

(re-posted from Dishing with Kathy Casey)
Makes 1 cake, serving 8 to 10

2 cups (about 10 ounces) unpeeled, diced Granny Smith apples
2 cups (about 10 ounces) unpeeled, diced red-skinned apples, such as Braeburn, Winesap, or Jonathan
2 cups sugar
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup canola oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup dark raisins
Cider Crème Anglaise (recipe follows)
Cranberry Compote (recipe follows)

Preheat an oven to 325°F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan or a large Bundt pan and set aside.

Combine the apples and sugar in a large bowl. Let sit for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, sift the dry ingredients into a bowl. Stir in the oil, eggs, and Worcestershire. Add this mixture to the apple mixture all at once and mix well. Fold in the walnuts and raisins.

Scrape the cake batter into the prepared pan. Rap the pan on the counter to release any bubbles.

Bake for about 1 1/4 hours, or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean when poked into cake. Cool the cake in the pan, then turn it out onto a cake plate.

To serve: Slice the cake into desired number of servings. Pool a little Cider Crème Anglaise on individual dessert plates, then place a cake slice on top. Spoon a little Cranberry Compote over each cake slice. Pass additional Crème Anglaise and Cranberry Compote at the table.

Cider Crème Anglaise
Makes 2 cups

4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup half-and-half
3 tablespoons apple juice concentrate, undiluted

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until well combined.

In a double boiler or medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water, heat the half-and-half until hot but not simmering. Whisk half of it into the egg mixture to temper the eggs. Add the tempered egg mixture back into the hot half-and-half, stirring constantly with a whisk. Cook slowly until the sauce just begins to thicken and become slightly shiny, about 5 minutes. (Do not overcook or it will turn into scrambled eggs!)

Immediately remove the bowl from over the hot water. Stir in the apple juice concentrate and place the bowl in another bowl of iced water to cool quickly. Stir often during cooling. Refrigerate until needed, up to 3 days.

Cranberry Compote
While cranberries are in season, buy a bag and stick them in the freezer. Then, at any time during the year, you can enjoy the cranberry compote. Try it over vanilla ice cream or plain cheesecake for a scrumptious treat!

Makes 1 heaping cup

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup apple juice

Place all ingredients in a medium-sized, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the cranberries pop and the mixture has a thick compote consistency, 5 to 6 minutes. Let cool completely before serving.

Refrigerate until needed, up to 3 days.

 

Recipe from Dishing with Kathy Casey cookbook.

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A Week of Breakfasts: Just Eat It!

27 Feb
Quick Crepes at Home with Siiri Sampson, Seattle Food Blogger

A quick homemade crepe batter from scratch - the hardest part is letting it sit!

Just a thought here – everyone should start the day with a homemade breakfast. A breakfast made with love. The kind of meal that tastes so much better, because someone made it with care, knowing it would fuel your day, help you focus, and send you off into the world just a little more complete, a little more full, a little more ready to take on the world.

Well, we know how often that doesn’t happen, which makes the mornings you do get a treat like that even more meaningful. This weekend, I pulled out my homemade crepe batter recipe. This is the SAME recipe I’ve been using since 7th Grade Home Ec class. That’s right, I’ve been toting it around all these years, and I realized, it’s the first thing I ever made, and it was as delicious then as it is now. You can also see the stack of Trader Jo’s organic turkey sausages photobombing in the background….they were the perfect addition to a standard like the crepe.

Before I show you the other (slightly fuzzy) breakfast pictures from the past week, here’s my crepe recipe:

Siiri’s Homemade Crepes

  • 3 eggs
  • 1.5Cups Water
  • 1Cup Flour
  • 1Tbsp. Melted butter (for the pan – if you have a nonstick pan, skip the butter!)
  • pinch of salt

Directions

  1. Whisk all ingredients (except that butter) together vigorously for about 2 minutes.
  2. Set aside and let rest in a non-reactive bowl (this means NO METAL) for 30 minutes.
  3. Get your largest frying pan up to medium high heat (I do a tester crepe of course, and find my heat at about a 7 or so is good).
  4. Turn your oven to 200F and once you’ve made about 5 crepes, transfer to a cookie sheet in the oven to keep warm. They won’t dry out, don’t worry!
  5. Each crepe is about 1/3Cup of batter, and I use a big old spoon to pour it in and spread the batter around with the back of the spoon before it sets. Once the edges curl up a bit, it will release itself from the pan. Flip it for about 15-30 seconds, and you’re done!

With that, here’s a few more images I’ve taken recently that I just had to share, even though they’re fuzzy, and not a great example of my food photography skills (or lack thereof I should say)….

Breakfast sandwich from Siiri Sampson, Seattle Food Blogger

A simple toss together sandwich of toasted whole wheat English Muffin, two fried eggs over medium, twice fried pepperoni, and melted cheddar.

This was a quick weekend breakfast LAST weekend before heading out for a day of errands and chores. An old school, stick to your ribs classic – ye olde McMuffin on the homestyle…in other words, I faked an Egg McMuffin sandwich with the junk I had laying around in the fridge. My audience didn’t seem to mind one bit!

Apple Thank You Berry Munch tart, brought to you by Siiri Sampson, Seattle Food Blogger

Another fun concoction of apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, tart crust and topping made from Girl Scout Cookies - Thank You Berry Munch cookies to be exact!

And this beauty was a tasty apple tart with lemon essence and a crunchy cookie crumble topping (perfect with a cup of steaming hot coffee on a frosty winter morning, right?! I had some leftover Girl Scout Cookies called Thank You Berry Munch that have yummy dried berries and other tasty bits in them. I crumbled them in my nut chopper (think “Slap Chop” but fancy, from Pampered Chef…), and added a half Tablespoon of Smart Balance, mixed into a topping and baked the whole thing off at 400F for 30 minutes to a golden brown crisp.

That’s all for now – go enjoy your week, cook with the ones you love, and if you can, make someone’s day better by making, bringing or treating them to breakfast! A great way to say you care!

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I’M A FINALIST!!!! Vote for “Samoa Curry Arancini” in the Girl Scout Cookie Recipe Contest!

17 Feb
IT’S TRUE!!!! I HAVE BEEN CHOSEN AS A TOP 5 FINALIST FOR THE GIRL SCOUT COOKIE RECIPE CONTEST in Western Washington. HOORAY!
Now it’s up to the public (that’s YOU!) to help me win! There’s a few wonderful prizes, but most of all, this will be a huge chance for me to continue with my dream of sharing food creativity and education with the masses! Please go to the Girl Scouts of Western Washington Food Blogger Recipe Contest page and VOTE for my “Samoa Curry Arancini” recipe now until March 1st! (I copied the recipe below for your convenience and to make your mouth water!) :)
Now here’s my original post with the recipe, you should count on buying a box (or 10) of Samoas and making these for a party (like, say, to watch the Oscars?!)
*******
In case you’re busy doing your taxes, watching the Grammys, or living under a rock, allow me to remind you – it’s almost GIRL SCOUT COOKIE TIME!!!!! I know, I know, it’s exciting! :) Before I get to my super exciting recipe and contest news, let me first give you the most important details: cookies go on sale SOON – March 2nd – 18th.
Girl Scout Cookies Samoas

How could you NOT want at least one sleeve of Samoas? If you drink a cup of coffee with them, it counts as breakfast, I promise!

You can learn more about the best sale of the year by visiting the Girl Scouts of Western Washington website here. And because the Girls Scouts are hip and keeping up with the times (I mean, they are the future leaders of America after all…) there is an awesome cookie locator, as well as an app, that tells you exactly where girls are selling cookies in your neighborhood! They won’t be updated until closer to the sale, but are very good to keep handy! (and to learn about the origin of the Girl Scout Cookie, check out the full history!)

This year, as an added bonus, the Girl Scouts turned to food bloggers in Western Washington to see what we’d do when turned loose with boxes of our favorite sweets. That’s right – a contest – with food bloggers – and COOKIES. It’s dangerous kids, and I’m getting serious….seriously excited. The contest is to use the cookies in a recipe of our own making. And you know I love a challenge. Without further ado, I present to you my savory AND sweet appetizer – Samoa Curry Arancini!

Girl Scouts Samoas in Curry Arancini

A little sweet, a little salty, a LOT addictive!

What in the heck is Samoa Curry Arancini you ask? That’s a great question – to which I answer: I made it up. :)

In “old world” Italy, people would take their left over risotto the next day and roll it into balls, then deep fry it into crispy, heavenly balls of fried deliciousness. I decided to take this old Italian recipe to India, to warm it up a bit. The recipe that follows IS EASY – I PROMISE. If it looks complicated, then take a deep breath, it’s smoke and mirrors, and you can use this to your advantage the next time you have company. This is the perfect appetizer to prepare ahead, and fry up at the last minute:

Samoa Curry Arancini

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup White Rice (sticky rice like Niko Niko)
  • 1 Cup Coconut Milk
  • 1 Cup Water
  • 1/2 Tbsp. Yellow Curry Powder
  • 1/2 Tsp. Salt (plus more for dusting the arancini after frying)
  • 1/2 Cup boiled then chopped chicken
  • 1 box Girl Scout Samoa Cookies
  • 1 Cup Greek Yogurt
  • 1 handful fresh basil leaves
  • 1 Tbsp fresh mint leaves + a pinch of salt

Coating

  • 4-6 Samoa cookies, pulsed into crumbs in a food processor
  • 2 Tbsp panko bread crumbs (or regular bread crumbs – plain)

Directions

  1. First get your rice and chicken prepared, this can be done at the same time. Get a small pot of water boiling and add your chicken breast (I use a frozen one). Boil till cooked through (about 15 minutes). While that’s boiling, get another small sauce pan for the rice.
  2. Combine the coconut milk, water, curry powder, 1/2Tsp. salt and rice in sauce pan. Put on medium heat and stir constantly, THE WHOLE TIME, with a spoon, till it boils. Continue stirring constantly for 2 minutes while boiling. After 2 minutes, turn heat off, cover with lid and remove completely from heat. Set a timer for 20 minutes and do NOT remove the lid.
  3. Meanwhile, prep your coating of Samoa crumbs and bread crumbs (I like panko bread crumbs – which are Japanese, but can be bought at any old grocery store). I put this mixture in a bowl and keep it in the freezer till I’m ready to roll the arancini and fry them. This prevents the chocolate from burning in the hot oil.
  4. Take 4-5 Samoas and chop each into 4-6 chunks, set aside. You’ll stuff a chunk of Samoa into the middle of each arancini.
  5. When your rice and chicken are done, stir them together and refrigerate until chilled completely. Once chilled, use a tablespoon to create evenly sized arancini balls (“arancini” means “orange” in Italian). As you create each ball, stuff a Samoa chunk into the middle and then roll in the crumb mixture.
  6. I like to pop the whole batch in the freezer for a few minutes, to chill them down before frying (again to keep the chocolate cold).
  7. To prepare your dipping sauce, just toss the greek yogurt, basil, mint and pinch of salt into the blender. Puree it and stick it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
  8. When guests arrive, get a small sauce pan ready with 1-2 inches of canola oil hot on medium high heat (I set it around 7-8). To test your oil, drop a tiny bit of your rice mixture in and see how long it takes to form a crispy outer crust (this should be no more than 1 minute).
  9. To fry, drop the arancini (up to 3 at a time) into the oil and let fry for 1 minute max – this will create a brown, crispy crust (that’s right, it’s a SAMOA CRUST).
  10. Plate them up with a saucer full of your basil, mint yogurt sauce, and serve hot. When you bite into the arancini, you’ll get the added surprise of a warm, melted center!
Samoa Curry Arancini from Siiri Sampson at A Half Cup

Don't blink, or someone will grab up that crispy, crunchy, melty ball of perfection before you do!

As the arancini fry to a golden crisp, that Samoa chunk you stuffed into the center is liquefying into a caramely, chocolatey, coconutty surprise. The warm flavors of coconut, curry and salty chicken are wonderfully balanced by the sweetness of chocolate and mint, and refreshing basil and yogurt.  Better make a big, BIG batch, because after the first bite, you’ll want to hoard the whole batch to yourself – and so will your guests! Enjoy, and if you have any questions about the recipe, just leave me a comment!

It is such a treat to participate in a wonderful contest that will benefit the Girl Scouts of Western Washington by raising awareness not only of their fundraising activities, but also by keeping the community aware of all the great work they promote in local communities. To find out more, please visit
http://www.facebook.com/GirlScoutsWW
 and
https://twitter.com/#!/GirlScoutsWW
 and the Twitter hash #GSCookieRecipe. DON’T FORGET TO VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!
https://girlscouts.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_5vfxi5D0DTx0KKE

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Holiday Snacking – Healthy and Cheap

29 Nov

Not that the following pictures have anything to do with smart holiday snacking, except that the nephew pictured, Riley, is big on snacking (as any 3yr old should be), and this was taken at Thanksgiving just last week. You’ll see he’s enjoying the first snack on the list – a crisp apple – thanks to his Nonna (my mom).

Riley, his apple and his Nonna (bad camera phone pictures, sorry!)

Riley and his mommy, my older sister, Kate.

 

Funny Faces

Seriously, could we BE more related?!

Riley with his Chewie (that's me)

EW, GROSS!

Now that you’ve indulged in massive amounts of cuteness, here’s a great short list put together recently by REAL SIMPLE, that I got in my email. They’ve rounded up the perfect snacks to take on the go this time of year. Great for those days you have to do holiday shopping after work, or a Saturday morning you find yourself running errands all over town.  Rather than stopping somewhere to stuff your face full of greasy, fatty burgers (which I’ll admit, sound amazingly good, and I’ve had a few in as many months recently), pack these budget-friendly items suggested by Madonna Behen to keep your energy up when you’re away from the roost.

  • Apples. Though tasty, peaches, pears, and oranges can be messy to eat, and bananas get mushy. Apples can withstand a lot more abuse.
  • Protein-rich raw, unsalted nuts, such as almonds, sunflower seeds, and walnuts. Tote these for their sheer indestructibility and relative indifference to air exposure.
  • Dried fruit. To keep the sugars in fruits like raisins from crystallizing, empty a few handfuls into resealable bags. (Toss the less airtight boxes.) For items like mangoes and apples, seek out those with no added sugar, to keep calories down and crunchiness at bay.
  • Vacuum-sealed tuna packets or tuna-salad kits (complete with mayo and crackers). Like Lunchables, but for grown-ups.
  • Celery sticks, baby carrots, olives, cherry tomatoes. These veggies can withstand a fair amount of jostling and time away from the refrigerator.
  • Packets of plain instant oatmeal. Empty one into a travel mug before a flight, ask an attendant for boiling water, and you have a quick breakfast with no cup necessary.
  • Drinkable yogurt or single-serving containers of applesauce. Punch a straw through the foil and it’s a spillproof, no-utensil healthy snack.
  • Dried ginger. A sweet snack that can also help keep motion sickness at bay.

Great, all-natural snacks like fruits, nuts and protein-packed tuna will prevent the 3pm splurge at the drive-thru, while keeping your daily calorie count in check, not to mention your wallet! Thanks to the REAL SIMPLE crew for keeping us on track this holiday season!

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…And I Thought I Liked Coffee?!? Fonte Does it RIGHT!

20 Jul

Being a Seattle native, I probably take the coffee (and it’s inherently perceived greatness) for granted.  I’ve been around a billion coffee shops basically my whole life. It’s a part of every day for me, and I really just like everything about coffee – the way it warms you (or cools you over ice on a hot day), the way it wakes you up, and the way it just makes you feel good, like an old friend.

Here is Seattle, there are really three camps of coffee: low brow fast food or quick serve coffee you get on the go, major chain mass market shops that focus on consistency and broad availability, and then the specialty shops.  Each have their place in my life, and I’m not the kind of person (or food fiend) that snubs my nose up at any one genre of coffee.  I am, however, the kind of person that will spit the steaming hot mouthful of crap water back into the cup, or on the ground, if it tastes like a dog took a bath in a tub full of wet cardboard.  Just because it’s coffee, doesn’t mean I’m going to drink it.

(click through to read the rest of my amazing revelation about specialty coffee!)

Continue reading →

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I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Snoqualmie Creamery – This Saturday!

22 Jun

FREE ICE CREAM & MUSIC

Did that get your attention? I hope so, because this weekend you can drive to Maltby, just 30-40 minutes North of Seattle and insert your face into a truckload of free ice cream, hot dogs and more with the Snoqualmie Ice Creamery.

 

Snoqualmie Ice Cream Announces First Annual Ice Cream-O-Rama
June 25th, 11:00am – 4:00pm
FREE ICE CREAM – LIVE MUSIC – ICE CREAMERY TOURS

Here’s the skinny (which I won’t be after I eat all the ice cream), they are NOT paying me to say this, in fact, I’m getting nothing whatsoever. I have loved this company for the past 5 years, after I first discovered their honey lavender (now French Lavender) in a little stand behind a cheese counter and next to a Chinese tchotke stand in the Pike Place market. It. CHANGED. MY. LIFE. True story.

Continue reading →

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Warm New Potato Salad with Grainy Mustard

2 Jun

The amazing CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) that I get my home delivery organic produce from, New Roots Organics, always lists some great recipes to help eat up all the yummy fruits and veggies they bring their clients.

This week the recipe is “Warm New Potato Salad with Grainy Mustard”, and you can guess we’re getting a batch of new potatoes in our bin this week?!

source: NewRootsOrganics.com

I’m excited to give this recipe a try! Head over to New Roots Organics website to see all the other recipes they have up (and no, I’m not getting paid, or anything for free from them, I’m just excited, darn it!!!!) (click through for the recipe, and don’t forget you can always sub out for any other potato or root veggie in a pinch!)

Continue reading →

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Food Frame Friday: Shnoo for you.

27 May

There’s an AWESOME fro yo joint in Renton (near Seattle) and I know they have other locations (at least one I think in the Bellevue area?).  Who cares, what matters is this:

 

Mixed Berry NONFAT fro yo with white chocolate chips and brownie chunks? YES

 

 

 

 

Well, hello there, precious coconut flavored mochi bits!

 

 

 

Mango fro yo, fresh mango chunks and baby mochi bites. I DIE!

 

Cheese Rules!!! As it happens…

25 May

I’m at this rad cheese event and you get to see my live notes about cheese and same, wine and spirits pairings.

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Truffles, Caviar and Gourmet Salts – Wholesale Food Porn

23 Feb

I don’t know how I didn’t know about this place before, but thanks to the ladies at Dollar Store Crafts I just found out about Marky’s.  Their tagline is “Caviar, Smoked Salmon, Foie Gras, Truffles”.  Yes, yes, yes and yes.

Buy French Summer Black Truffles Whole 7 oz. The best gourmet food on sale online.

French Summer Black Truffles from Marky's

If you like salt, and by “like” I mean you (like me) have a salt lick next to your bed, and dream about your cupboard being stocked full of a rainbow presentation of worldly salts, then this place is for you. 

Continue reading →

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