Spring Rolls

While on vacation in Boston, Mom & I watched "Neighborhood Kitchens" on WGBH and saw the episode about Simply Khmer restaurant in Lowell.  Great episode with interesting recipes.  We made the spring rolls (Nam Chow) last week.  Took a long time to find rice paper-- none of our regular grocery stores (Stater Brothers, Gerrard's, Clark's, Trader Joe's) had it.  Finally stopped at the Asian Market on Redlands Boulevard and it was there, tucked behind a couple of big cartons of noodles.

This is a "go-to" recipe.  I'm thinking of all sorts of variations... maybe turkey, cranberries and stuffing leftovers with Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish?

More catching up

Time just seems to fly by without being able to keep up with the blog posts and the cooking.  March was very slow for my FFwD recipes.  I'd already made the cheese bread at Christmas then, with finals and everything else, just didn't get a chance to do the others on time. I still lurk on the site, read the Q & A posts and follow others' postings.  I'm learning so much from everyone and feeling far more confident in the kitchen!

Here are  my updates:

Savory cheese bread (FFwD, March):  I made two kinds in December:  a feta/sun-dried tomato bread and a cheddar/dill bread.  Both were definitely on the dry and crumbly side.  I found, though, that if I cut slices about 1.5 inches thick, then cut those slices again perpendicularly, I'd end up with cracker sized  pieces that were very good toasted and used with dips.

Scallops with caramel-orange sauce (FFwD, March):  Made these last week and Mom raved about them.  I used frozen scallops. The first time the scallops weren't completely thawed so they emitted lots of water when cooking and the scallops didn't brown up prettily like they are in the photos.  The sauce was easy, though not as thick as I expected.  The sauce was very good though-- got as much as I could on the green beans and then sopped up the rest with bread!  The second time (with the leftover sauce), I thawed the scallops completely on paper towels.  They browned up nicely but were much tougher so I think the first batch was better.  The sauce was just as good (after 2 days in the fridge) and just a bit more caramelly.

Quinoa, nut & fruit salad (FFwD, April):  Easy, fast, delicious.  Just bought one at Von's the other day and mine was just as good.  I did find, though, that there wasn't enough zing in the dressing (my dried fruits were golden raisins & orange-flavored cranberries; nuts were pecans and pine nuts).  I added the zest of two oranges to the salad which helped a lot. Unfortunately, the lemon peel was already in the garbage disposal but I think that would have been a good addition.  This will easily become one of my staple side dishes.

Cherry tomato tarte tatin (see here: NY Times Recipe):  I've been wanting to make this since I had it in a restaurant in Colmar a couple of years ago.  I don't know if this is exactly the same recipe but boy was it good (even cold the next day for lunch).  It's much sweeter than expected with the caramelized onions and the tomatoes. I didn't use the puff pastry (I will try it again with the puff) because I remembered a pâte brisé crust so I used this crust recipe instead.  The crust was very, very crumbly and difficult to manage on a tatin;  I think it would be better for a right side up tarte.  The crust also didn't fit over the edges.  Nonetheless, the flavors were delicious:  the bright yet sweet pop of the cherries (Trader Joe's has a nice box of heirloom cherry tomatoes of different colors), the sweet onions, the salty olives and the crunch of the crust.  Yum, yum, yum!

Empanadas.  Again.  Still good!

Lots of Asian greens in the co-op basket yesterday.  Rather than another plain old stir-fry, I'm going to try something different like the chicken salad here.

FFwD recipes postponed for another time:  Beggar's linguine (March), Salted butter break-ups (March), Garlicky crusted broccoli (April).  Will try to do the mustard batons and pepper steak next weekend due to travel.  The eclairs may or may not make it on the docket for now.

Catching Up

It may look like nothing's happening in the kitchen but, au contraire.  It's just that I haven't found time to write it all down.

2.13.11: FFwD: Orange-Almond Tart:  Just out of the oven.  Had a little trouble with the dough.  My food processor holds all the ingredients but I don't think it was powerful or big enough for the job.  Ended up throwing everything in a bowl and resorting to the pastry blender but, since the butter was already incorporated, that didn't do much good.  Plus my egg yolk had hardened up (I made a triple batch of Dorie's Sweet & Spicy nuts to send to my brother for his birthday).  I added a little water but then ended up adding a second egg yolk and yet more water to get the dough to stick.  It might be our weather, though-- pretty dry around here.  The orange slices were very easy to make.  It looks very pretty.  I'll have to add a comment about how it tastes!

2.6.11:  Shaker Lemon Pie.  I used the recipe from Tartine.  Smitten Kitchen discusses it here.  The Tartine dough recipe was pretty easy (3 parts flour, 2 parts butter, 1 part water).  I kept everything as cold as possible and the result was a tender, flaky crust.  I was able to cut the lemons super thin on my own without the mandoline.  I used 4 Meyer lemons but was also using the deep dish pie pan.  I let the lemons sit overnight in the sugar.  They were the right balance of sweet, bitter and tangy.

2.5.11:  FFwD Braised Short Ribs:  More on this later.

2.3.11:  Kabocha squash gnocchi.  Used Tiny Urban Kitchen's recipe (http://www.tinyurbankitchen.com/2010/02/kabocha-squash-gnocchi.html) and did the pan-fried version.  It made a ton of gnocchi so there was lots for leftovers.  This was very good!  I had to add extra flour to get the dough the right consistency but it was easy to roll out and to fry.  Need to make sure they are small enough or they won't cook through.  Very light (though next time, I think I'll whip the last egg white like I did for the gnocchi parisien).  We had them with salt & pepper, eating them like French fries!

FFwD: Chicken B'Stilla

My sister, Julie, helped with this one.  Actually, she did almost all of the work on it!  But, as always when we're in the kitchen together, it was fun and the result was terrific.

The B'stilla recipe is pretty easy to follow but it took quite a while from start to finish to complete all of the steps.  Julie said that the hardest/ickiest part about the getting ready for the marinade was taking the skin off the chicken (we'd both suggest buying boneless, skinless meat the next time). Be sure to drain the broth into a metal pan so that you can use your whisk.  It took quite a while for the broth to reduce to 1 cup (about 20 minutes).   She rough chopped the onions and I thought the pieces might be too big for the "pie" but I didn't notice them at all when eating.  About halfway through dinner, Julie realized she'd forgotten to put the saffron in the marinade.  The dish was plenty tasty without it so if you don't want to spend the $$, don't worry about it.  Also, lacking a springform pan, we used a deep dish pie plate and everything turned out fine.  We didn't bother cutting the filo dough for the top-- just tucked it in around the edges and crimped a little.

The Chicken B'Stilla was very good (and even better the next day reheated in the oven).  I didn't have anything to compare it to but Julie has had this dish before in a fancy restaurant.  She liked this recipe better because she didn't have to pick out the raisins. :-)  We served it with some roasted cherry tomatoes and green beans-- using the Tomatoes provençal recipe on p. 394.

Between the three of us, we devoured about half the pie... but we were pretty hungry since it took longer than we'd planned for to get everything done.  I'd say it makes for 6 hearty servings or 8-10 lighter servings with extra sides as a main dish.  I can't imagine going to all the trouble to serve it as a first course.  We also thought it might turn out well in individual triangle servings with the filo dough (as an appetizer or party food).

The best part of it all was sharing time in the kitchen with my sister and showing her all the great recipes in Around my French Table.

French Table Recipes: Carrot Soup & Savory Swiss Chard Pancakes

In my Organic Produce box this week was Swiss chard and some very big carrots (like the size of a baseball, though both orange and yellow).  Mom wasn't particularly thrilled (the OP boxes make her anxious-- all those weird veggies) but I said that I'd check the cookbook (Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table) to find something.

The Carrot Soup was very tasty.  I expected it to be sweeter but it was quite savory.  I used rosemary, sage, thyme and ginger as the spices.  The hardest part was just the mise-en-place:  getting all the carrots peeled and sliced (I used a mandoline), chopping the onions, etc.  After that, it was just a matter of throwing things in the pot.

Swiss Chard pancakes:  Again, another easy recipe where the chopping was the only "hard" part.  The recipe blends onions, shallots, chives, garlic and Swiss chard in a basic pancake recipe.  Greenspan's book calls for 1/4 to 1/2 cup of oil in the pan (to be patted dry with paper towels after cooking).  I found that, as the oil disappeared, the pancakes still browned nicely.  They did have a bit of a heavier fill, though.  These pancakes go well with soup.  I think they'd also be perfect with some cream cheese and smoked salmon (especially half dollar sized as an appetizer or party food).  They have a subtle savory flavor.  Mom broke up her pancakes and put them in the soup and found that the combination was very good.  I liked the green color-- pretty against the golden orange soup!

FFwD: Double Chocolate Mousse Cake

Note to self:  read Q & A before attempting recipe rather than while cake is baking.  Problem:  ooze.  Had I read the Q & A, I would have seen that Dorie took the time to read our posts and advise using the bottom of the springform pan.  Also: it's definitely time to go to the kitchen store and get an 8" springform pan. My cake oozed, burned and was very, very flat (though I was expecting a flattish cake since that's how my French friend, Dominique's chocolate cake always turns out).

Nonetheless, though it's not a "company cake" (it's only fit for family), once I took it out of the pan, it looked pretty good (if one ignores its pancake-like appearance).  We ate it warm since it seemed like a little too much work to wait overnight for a burned cake.

It was delish.

And, since my chocolate bar was a full 16 ounces, I can try 3 more times without buying more ingredients... though that might mess up some of those New Year's resolutions!

Review: Fragile by Lisa Unger

The story centers around two missing girls-- one in the present and one in the past.  The main family-- Maggie, Jones and their son, Ricky-- has their share of secrets and flashpoints that are revealed as the story develops.  Maggie and Jones were teenagers when the first girl, Sarah, disappeared.  Ricky has his own share of teenage angst while still remaining a clear-headed, confident youth; his girlfriend, Char, runs away.  The combination of past and present, the difficult emotional and family lives of the characters and the plot development are excellent.

Unlike a few of the other books I've read recently, Unger does an excellent job of developing each of the characters and controlling the narration when she moves from one point of view to another.  When I found myself feeling kindly towards the mixed-up kid, Marshall, and not so friendly towards his equally messed-up father, Travis (who, unlike Marshall, has a mean streak), it was thanks to the way in which Unger develops each of the characters and gives you the sense of reading into them and understanding their motivations.  Even a somewhat peripheral character, Charlie, whose involvement in the main story line (Char's disappearance) is someone you feel like you know and relate to.

Well-written with a good story.  Definitely a good read.

FFwd: Gnocchi à la Parisienne

The gnocchi are fabulous and fairly easy.

Gnocchi:  I followed the recipe exactly, including whipping the fourth egg white and folding it into the batter.  When I made the first batch, they were too big (about a full teaspoon) so I cut them in half and threw them back in the boiling water to finish cooking.  They were also sloppy around the edges.  For the remainder, I used about 1/2 teaspoon and moved them back and forth between two spoons to try to shape them like a quenelle.  This worked pretty well (though next time I'll try the pastry bag technique described in the Q & A).  There were enough gnocchi to tightly fill the bottom of two pie pans (I froze one).

Bechamel:  I was nervous about this one... and rightfully so.  I must have not done the roux correctly because it looked like very watery oatmeal.  I moved it to a metal pot (My Le Creuset pots don't like metal) and tried to whisk out the lumps to no avail though the sauce was nice and thick.  Finally strained it back into the Le Creuset pot which was awfully heavy to hold up with one hand over the pie plate to pour out the sauce.

I did find that there was too much butter on the top so next time I'll only put about 1/3 as much.

The gnocchi were very light, the sauce was thick and cheesy.  A very satisfying dish.  I'm looking forward to seeing if the frozen ones cook up as well.

For more info on French Fridays with Dorie or to read the hints and see the pictures of other FFwD participants, go here.

Review: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Having just caught up on the third season of "The Tudors," it was hard not to picture Cromwell (or even Henry) as the actors in the TV series.  I both loved and hated the narrative style.  I found myself having to refer back to the cast of characters multiple times since they sometimes appear without warning or description.  The back story on Cromwell makes him more likable than he's normally portrayed yet, at other times, it's hard to understand why he's taking certain actions.  For example, he seems very dedicated to Cardinal Wolsey, yet, when given the opportunity to move forward by negating the relationship, he's all too willing (yet, oddly, without appearing eager) to do so.  He sees Henry eying the elder Seymour daughter so he lends money to the father... but why?  Anticipating future debts owed to him?  The narration, while it reveals so many other parts of Cromwell's psyche, is unclear.  This was both intriguing and annoying.  At times, I was enthralled by the storytelling and, at other times, couldn't wait to finish this book and move on to something else.  It's a hefty tome (nearly 600 pages) and the ending reads more like a random stop before a sequel than something that leads the reader to some important insight or understanding.

FFwD: Mushroom Soup

As many of the other FFwD bloggers  have posted, this is an ugly soup.  It tastes great but the color (kind of a dirty grayish brown) is not at all appetizing.  I found that the mise-en-place (i.e. all the mushroom and onion slicing) took a long time but once the ingredients were prepared the soup, like most of the other recipes I've tried so far, was easy to make.  I didn't have parsley so I used sage instead (along with rosemary and thyme).  After everyone's comments about puréeing the soup, I decided to stick with the immersion blender.  I did get a bit of soup spattered on the stove and teapot, but it was easy enough to clean up and the soup was thick and creamy.  Though it looked like the little bits of mushroom might make it gritty, that wasn't the case.  I tried to hide the ugly color by swirling in about a tablespoon of sour cream (in a spiral pattern) and sprinkling some sliced mushrooms in half.  I also served it in low light. :-)  It was really, really, really good (and I don't usually like mushroom soup)!  There is a heartiness to it that is filling.  The spices really enhanced the flavor of the mushrooms giving it an earthiness that was appealing.  Just don't look at it too closely in bright lights...

FFwD (overdue): Boeuf en daube & Speculoos

These were made in December but somehow all the getting back to work stuff made it difficult to post!

Boeuf en daube:  Excellent recipe!  It does make a lot of servings, though, so if there aren't a lot of you (and you don't want to eat it for 5 days in a row like we did!), I'd cut the recipe in half.  Substitutions I made:  only had 1/2 red onion, whiskey instead of cognac, Merlot instead of Syrah or other fruity red wine, sage instead of parsley.  The most difficult part of this recipe for me was trimming the meat.  Also, I hadn't really counted on how much there would be so I had to move everything from the dutch oven (where I'd sauteed) to a big roasting pan.  The combination of the parsnips (instead of potatoes) and the hint of the whiskey flavor made this just enough different from Mom's pot roast to feel like something new.  May try again next time in a slow cooker!  And when Dorie says "fork tender," that's just what it was-- moist, tender, tasty!

Speculoos:  This was a very, very messy recipe and I'm still not sure why.  I had stuff all over the kitchen (mostly flour) by the time I was done.  The dough is very difficult to work with.  I'd already read the hints from others and thought I was prepared but the dough stuck to everything (including my Silpat).  I finally gave up trying to make flat circles to stick in the fridge and rolled the dough up (like a Sushi roll) instead.  I had doubled the recipe so I made four 9-12 inch logs wrapped in wax  paper to stick in the fridge.  After an hour cooling off, I was able to take the logs out of the fridge (one by one).  I sliced them with a very sharp knife and put them on the cookie tray for baking.  I tried slicing with different thicknesses and found that I much preferred the very thin slices.    The dough does spread quite a bit (about doubles in size on the tray) so you need to leave room between the circles of dough.  The thin slices came out crispy like Anna's Ginger Thin cookies.  With the thicker slices, I was expecting, I think, something more like a shortbread but the dough will cook up very hard (makes it good for dunking but wasn't what I wanted).  Sandwiching them with Nutella was excellent and really gave a different flavor profile.  I was convinced I'd never try these again but my mom *loved* them and they disappeared quickly.  Next time, I'll slice them all as thin as I can (and maybe pat them out a little thinner while the dough is cold and easy to handle).  I think that some creative shaping of the dough log may also make it possible to have scalloped edges.

Review: As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto

As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto edited by Joan Reardon collects select letters between Julia and Avis from the beginning of their penpal friendship to the early 1960s when Julia moves to Cambridge (where Avis lived).

The first letters are far more interesting than the latter ones because they remind us of how much has changed.  The invention of such things as dishwashers, tin foil, garbage disposals and frozen food are little gems of information in the early letters.  The discussions of the political situation are not always particularly insightful since they depend on a background of knowledge contemporary to the letters.  The chapter introductions by the editor can be useful, though a bit confusing at times since she tells you what Avis and Julia will be discussing in the letters you are about to read.  For the political info, that's useful-- as well as for some of the background needed to understand what happens outside of the letters but there are some "spoilers" where Reardon tells of other things that (slightly) ruin the fun of finding out on your own through the letters.  Not as intriguing as "My Life in France" but still a good read.

Reader's Year in Review

Per Shelfari (which is about as accurate as it gets), I've read 77 books this year.  Here are my Top 10:

10. The Sookie Stackhouse Series by Charlaine Harris:  Much less graphic (in all senses) than the TV series, this is a campy, funny mystery series reminiscent of the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.  Fun, fast reads.

9. Nine Lives by William Dalrymple:  NPR did a profile on this book that sounded interesting-- the story of nine different religious sects in India.  A fascinating profile of (an)other culture(s).

8. The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson.  Although this is a bit of a cliffhanger (something I'm generally opposed to), I enjoyed this second book in the series very much.

7. Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson:  A delightful tale of an elderly man in love.  Quirky, touching, satisfying read.

6. The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly:  I'd gone through a streak of so-so books when I picked this one up.  It reminded me of how well Connelly writes-- he crafts the story with skill.  In mysteries, the plots can all be reminiscent of each other but a good writer, like Connelly, elevates the narrative through descriptions and character development.

5. The Caliph's House and The Arabian Nights by Tahir Shah:  The very funny description of Shah's renovation of his house in the first book is an intriguing view into Moroccan life as Shah battles the workers' fears of djinns while appreciating their fine craftsmanship. In the second, Shah's search for his grandfather is a blend of fairy tales and travelers' tales that is an interesting and compelling read.

4. The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall: Maybe because I wasn't expecting it, I was surprised by how good Udall's book is.  In fact, I'll be on the watch for anything else by him.  Golden Richard's life as a polygamist is funny, outrageous, sweet and very, very ordinary.  The Shelfari description reads: "Beautifully written, keenly observed, and ultimately redemptive, The Lonely Polygamist is an unforgettable story of an American family—with its inevitable dysfunctionality, heartbreak, and comedy—pushed to its outer limits."  I agree.

3. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein:  after last year's favorite, the Story of Edgar Sawtelle, I didn't expect to find another story with dogs so soon that I'd be willing to read.  This is a tender, sweet tale told from the dog's perspective.  Enzo, the dog, is quite funny and very insightful.  For dog lovers, this book will confirm what you already know about your companion's ability to read into your heart and know the truth.

2. The Help by Kathryn Stockton:  An extraordinarily well-written novel that shows life in the south and race relations in a way that speaks to the contemporary reader. I was surprised to discover how young the writer is since the novel appears at times to be a remembrance of things past.  Stockton is able to convey the feelings of the characters and the moeurs of the times in a light-handed (but not flippant) way that helps the reader to understand how things were different then such that small steps by today's standards were huge leaps in the past.  Sensitively written, the novel is a beautifully written portrait of a difficult time.  I hope the movie will do it justice.

1. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.  See review from earlier this month.

The biggest disappointments:

• South of Broad by Pat Conroy
• Cleaving by Julie Powell
• The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood

Two of my favorite authors (Conroy and Atwood) and a new author from whom I was expecting more (Powell wrote Julie & Julia, based on her blog of the same name).  I couldn't finish any of them.  Conroy's story feels like a "been there, done that" but not in a good way (because I love his other novels and would be very happy re-reading them).  For Atwood, I gave up after about 50 pages.  Dull.  Powell's book was just painful.  The story of her indiscretions juxtaposed by stories of meat getting hacked up... well, it was all kind of icky.  I didn't want to know more.

Pumpkin Biscuits

Yum!  Per the reviews, I prepared for the sticky dough by putting the flour in a super large bowl.  After mixing in the wet ingredients, I kneaded in the bowl then turned the dough out onto a Silpat and arranged in a rectangle that I cut into 12 parts.  I then baked my square biscuits.  Tomorrow, I'll be whipping up some scrambled eggs to assemble some biscuit breakfast sandwiches to wrap in tinfoil, freeze, then throw in the oven for a tasty breakfast.

FFwD: Getting to Know You Meme

Name:  Terri; Pseudonym "Aubepine" comes from the Proust novel, Remembrance of Things Past that I studied for my dissertation where one path (Guermantes) led towards society & sophistication and the other path, bordered by the hawthorn blossoms ("aubepines") led to the country & simpler pleasures.

Hometown:  My dad was in the Air Force so I grew up all over.

Current town:  Redlands, California (since 1995).  

How you pay the bills:  Online

How many in your household?  2:  my mom moved in with me after my father passed away in 2005

What is your favorite comfort food?  Cookies.

Favorite dessert to whip up at midnight?  I'm more likely to nosh on whatever's in the fridge or cupboard than to make something, but that might change after a few more months cooking with Dorie!

The best restaurant you have ever been to? (and what did you have?)  I've been lucky enough to have visited many extraordinary restaurants.  For my farewell from Paris, my French family took me to an amazing restaurant in the Parc Montsouris where I had an hachis parmentier made with foie gras and truffles.  Another amazing meal was at Elizabeth on 37th in Savannah, Georgia where I had a pecan crusted trout.  In Carmel, California, I love Casanova Restaurant.  I've had several fabulous meals there.  Again in Paris, the Atelier Maître Albert has the most amazing cantaloupe soup-- perfect for a hot day.  There are more restaurants but what made each special was sharing it with friends.

Worst habit or vice?  Inability to form habits... especially the ones that are good for you.

If you were a biscuit, which would you be? A scone.

What is your mother’s best dish?  Meatloaf.  It was a special dish when we were growing up; I still get excited when it's meatloaf on the menu.

What is your motto?  Live, laugh, work and travel.

Which kitchen gadget do you use the most?  A steak knife.  As a long-time student, I didn't have the money for extras like vegetable peelers so I used knives from a free bank-offered 6 pack of knives.  Now that I have the gadgets, I often forget to use them!

The soundtrack to your life is?  Changes all the time.

Any last words?  I've enjoyed my first month with FFwD.  It's fun seeing the innovations others have made to the recipes-- they inspire me.  I appreciate the straightforward recipes from Dorie-- they make me feel more competent in the kitchen.  I'm having fun exploring the recipes-- they remind me of my other home (Paris) and they're fun to share with friends here in the U.S.

Review: The Bronte Project

Jennifer Vandever's The Brontë Project: A Novel of Passion, Desire and Good PR" is in the same vein as the Cookbook Collector  -- a somewhat formulaic grad-school romance with characters that are sit-com typecasts of real people.  On the other hand, the main character, Sarah, is better developed and the novel isn't as long so it's a quick read when you feel like a bit of fluff.  Not as entertaining as, say, Bridget Jone's Diary, this book has moments here and there that make you chuckle or think.

Review: Cookbook Collector

Allegra Goodman's book, The Cookbook Collector, is somewhat deceptive... except for a few paragraphs about Suzanne, you'll wonder what the title has to do with the story.  Actually, even after having completed the book, you may still be wondering.   I'd read several good reviews of the book but the book didn't live up to my expectations.  Frankly, I just never cared about any of the characters so I was invested in what happened to them.  There are clearly themes of desire that motivate the plot-- more desire of riches or religious epiphanies or ecological victories-- but without a strong sense of who the people are on emotional terms, the story left me feeling like it was more about the intellectual framework than anything else.

French Fridays with Dorie: Leek & Potato Soup

Very easy soup to make.  I followed the recipe exactly (for a change).  It does need generous salting, though I let my guests decide on the last salting on their own.  I was surprised, though, that the soup was relatively thin.  Though this might be preferable for the chilled version, I think the hot soup would be better thicker.  I'll make this again, following some of the other FFwD ideas such as adding ham, cheese or other add-ins on the second day to give a bit more variety.

As for Marie-Hélène's apple cake, it's great with the coconut rum!  In fact, I'd like to do it again with a little bit of toasted coconut on top.  It might even be good with a bit of pineapple, too.  I'm making it again for Christmas!  I found it interesting to look at the photos of the other FFwD cakes (in November):  many people cut the apples into cubes.  I cut the apples into thin slices about an inch long, using the photo on page 431 as my reference.  Once I find the cord to download my photos, I'll have to try and get a photo:  it has a completely different look!  (BTW being able to see photos of others' results is very reassuring!)

Finally, a note on the Sweet & Spicy nuts.  I sent my brother a bowl of them and he called to thank me-- the kids had to grab it away from him to try it themselves!  Thanks, Dorie!

Empanadas

I've been wanting to try to make empanadas for a while now.  My grandmother used to make pasties (pronounced with a long "a" like cat and, no, they're not the little buttons with tassles worn by pole dancers).  On a trip to Cornwall, England, I learned that pasties are actually a Cornish dish made for the miners: basically a pie crust filled with chopped meat, turnips, potatoes and onions (see here).  Empanadas are the same idea but from Argentina.

I found two recipes that looked good (here and here) but wanted to work with what I had in the kitchen.  First I made the cream cheese dough recipe.  I wanted to try something that was different from Grandma's dough so that it wouldn't taste like a weird pastie;  I'm glad I did.  I doubled the recipe from the Dinner with Julie website:  beat 1 brick of cream cheese, 2/3 cup of butter, and 4 eggs with the mixer until thoroughly combined.  Add 2 cups of flour (1/2 cup at a time) using a rubber spatula and/or your well floured hands. This dough is super soft (be sure to refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes before rolling out) but it has a great texture when baked.  In fact, while baking, the butter comes out and it sizzles and browns as if it was frying a little in the oven!

I had frozen a couple of chicken sausages from Trader Joe's:  chicken basil pesto and chicken with sun-dried tomatoes.  I was able to peel the skin off the pesto sausage but not the other.  Instead I chopped them up very fine.  I sautéed half a yellow onion in about 2 tablespoons of butter.  Then I added the 4 finely chopped sausages (which already had some spices in them) and about 1/2 cup of diced green olives with pimentos.  I scraped all of the brown bits off of the bottom of the pan.  Sprinkle on about 2 teaspoons of paprika.  Set aside (or in the fridge) to cool.  It doesn't look like enough filling, but I had just the perfect amount to fill up all the dough circles.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Roll out the chilled dough.  I used a glass from the cupboard to cut into circles.  If there are two of you, it makes things easier since if the dough sits at room temperature too long it becomes difficult to work with (you can stick it in the fridge if there isn't a helper in the kitchen).  Put about 2 teaspoons in the middle the dough circle.  Pull the far side of the dough up and over the filling.  If the dough breaks, just smush it together with your fingers.  The dough is so soft you don't need to do much but pinch it together.  Use a fork to crimp the edges.  Place empanadas on a cookie sheet.  I greased one sheet and used a Silpat on the other.  Given the butter in the dough, greasing may not be necessary.  Cook for 12-18 minutes, depending on your oven.  They should be a pretty golden yellow color.  I ended up with about 30 empanadas (I had 3" circles of dough).

Eat while hot or even cold.  I put them in a covered plastic bowl in the fridge... then snuck one out later in the evening.  Yum!  These would be great picnic treats.  Julie's website suggests that you could also freeze the empanadas before cooking them-- a perfect suggestion if you are having a party and want to do all your prep ahead of time.

This dough is spectacular and I think other variations would be possible-- sweet and savory.  Next August, when peaches are ripe, I might try slicing in ripe peaches as the filling.  Or finely diced apples seasoned with cinnamon and sugar.  And, I really need to experiment with some chocolate chips and marshmallows (though this has me wondering if I could somehow convert the dough to use brown sugar and make it more graham cracker like)!

French Fridays with Dorie: Sweet & Spicy Cocktail Nuts

Actually, I made these nuts last week... but I'm posting today (it's Friday) so I think that counts, right?  Very easy recipe.  I bought roasted & lightly salted cashews and almonds from Trader Joe's.  Since they were already salted, I didn't add salt to the recipe, though I think when I make batch #2 this weekend (with some pecans this time as well as the others), I might add about 1/8 or 1/4 teaspoon.  Will also add just a bit more cayenne pepper.  I was worried that it would be too much of a kick but it just wasn't enough.

I made the double batch last time and there was enough egg white left to do more nuts so will use 3 bags of nuts this time.  I don't have the patience to wipe off each nut.  I did my best while putting them on the tray then also rubbed off the extra after they cooled.  They looked very pretty in clear plastic bags with ribbons to give away as gifts... if we hadn't eaten so many of them ourselves!

It didn't really feel like cooking... it was very, very easy.  But also very very tasty.  They sell a sweet & salty pecan mix at Trader Joe's for $4.39 for 6 oz.  This is better and with lots more nuts!

Tonight I have some friends coming over for a light supper so I'm going to try the soup.  I also made last month's Marie-Hélène's apple cake ... with coconut rum because I didn't check to make sure I have dark rum and with a bundt springform pan because I don't have a plain one.  It looks pretty (I cooked it for about 45 minutes); I'll let you know how it tastes next time!