sunny days; or how a dress & ricotta make me think I'm in Italy

hello from a brand-new computer! The past week or two, posts have been coming from a psychedelic green and purple screen. After some poking around in the wiring (thanks Dad!), it was time to say goodbye to the old girl. Still working, but only at an unreadable angle, I've upgraded to a new, cheap, model, and am working out the kinks of a new keyboard, complete with number pad. However, nothing is new around the fashion of my life today.

Summer has again returned (check here for an explanation of Indian Summer & it's terrible, horrible, no-good name), so I've broken out one of my absolute favorite dresses for a final, non-layered summer airing. I searched and searched for this particular one, dreaming of something that made me feel like I belonged along the Amalfi coast. I love a traditional, full-skirted, tightly bodiced dress that wears as well with a cardigan or bare arms as it does high heels or ballet flats.

Some days I'm all about the traditionally pretty silhouette, something straight from Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday (who doesn't want to run around Rome, pretending to not be a princess, and having Gregory Peck buy you gelato?). Plus, I'm a sucker for stripes. There is something magical about the occasional foray into a June Cleaver dress and all the dreams of "ideal" American womanhood it represents, even for the most tried-and-true feminist. Of course, half the time it's paired with brogues and electric blue tights and a studded belt, but we can't be too picky with a versatile, pretty dress.This one fits the bill, and managed to transport me mentally somewhere I'm not. It's all the Rivera in the summer, traipsing through markets and shops, flirting with men on the street, stopping for snacks and three hour lunches.

That brings me directly to homemade ricotta. When you're mentally off across the Atlantic, you want to be eating that way, too. I have no claim to this being my own, though I did tweak the recipe in the most minor of ways...then I added stuff to make a delicious spread. It's pictured here with some crackers and a Provencal flatbread (plus apple tart), but it is delicious on anything.

Homemade Ricotta (shamelessly stolen & re-purposed from Smitten Kitchen; makes half the amount pictured above)
3 cups whole milk
1 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons lemon juice

Heat the milk, cream, and salt in a heavy saucepan to 190 degrees. Use a candy or probe thermometer, making sure that it does not rest on the bottom of the pan. When the dairy has reached 190 degrees, remove from the heat and pour in the lemon juice. Stir gently, then let rest for five minutes. It should separate into clumps. If it does not, add another tablespoon of juice and allow it to rest for another five minutes.
Then, pour into a sieve lined with four or so layers of cheesecloth. It is easiest to do this over the sink, then have a large bowl handy to place the apparatus into. Allow the cheese to drain for an hour or two. (I have a terrible issue of playing with the draining mixture, lifting the cheesecloth, stirring the cheese. This won't ruin it and is fun, but isn't really recommended.) Once the cheese has firmed to your desired thickness, you can simply place in an airtight container and refrigerate until it is entirely consumed & you're liking the bottom of the container to eat the final crumbs.

Lemon-Garlic Ricotta Spread (don't make this, as you'll be required to supply it at all parties you attend or throw from now until your death)
1 batch Homemade Ricotta (really, you'd better make a double batch)
zest of 1 lemon, finely minced
3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
2 teaspoons cracked black pepper
extra salt to taste, if necessary

Mix above ingredients well, adding a splash of milk or wine if the cheese it too thick or crumbly to spread easily. That is all. Do be careful not to consume the whole batch in one sitting...but if you happen to have an outfit and location that make you imagine you're enjoying a late summer afternoon on the Italian coast, have at it.

  
"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

seriousness; or why everyone needs a bit more lightness in their lives (plus Moravian Cake!)

all too often, everyone takes themselves and everything else too seriously. I must be wearing haute coture, or I must have a corner office, or I must hate that person because he or she thinks differently than I. Now, I'm never one to suggest burying one's head in the sand and pretending that the economy doesn't suck or that there aren't people floating around with seriously stupid ideas...but that doesn't mean that we should not take advantage of little things that make us happy.

Everyone needs a bit more whimsy in their lives. It can be as simple as a cartoon, a silly song we sing along with, baking cookies, a pillow with a bird or woodland creature on it, or even breaking out childhood jewelry as a remembrance of when we had less troubles. I firmly believe that each day ought have a little bit of a movie musical in it and that soliloquies in fake foreign accents are a part of life.

Perhaps it comes from my father having stolen borrowed his funniest material from Mel Brooks and Monty Python and rearranging lyrics from song I never knew, but laughter and joy comes even when you're unhappy. It is something of a glorious morning outside my window, with sun shining and burning away the fog.

I often feel as though I'm living in Brigadoon, waiting for the outside world to steal in and visit me in a whirlwind day when our nightly fog lifts. It's a brilliant gem of a musical, starring Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse and Van Johnson, directed by Vincent Minnelli. Minnelli might be known better today as Judy Garland's husband and Liza Minnelli's father, but budget constraints turned the man's fancy wild. Though he wanted to go to the actual Highlands of Scotland to film, MGM bosses insisted he make use of sound-stages instead. So, the viewer ends up with something that looks nothing like it really happened, with watercolor backdrops and heather carted in to cover humps and valleys made of plywood and dirt. It all adds to the dream-like state, increasing the wonder at a village that appears out of the mist to join the real world just once every century.

This is the sort of day where fancy takes over and suddenly deciding on a spot of afternoon tea and some dense cake seems like the best idea in the world. It is just such a cake, all moist and studded with dried fruit (not a fruitcake, I promise!), fabulous straight out of the oven and still delicious the next day for breakfast that is solid, prosaic, and perfect on a cool, warm, whimsical day as today.

I'm not entirely sure where Dad found the recipe for Moravian Cake. I'm inclined to think it's another Frugal Gourmet Immigrant Ancestors recipe, but I"m not feeling the need to get up and check the index. Suffice to say, one can just imagine Eastern European grandmothers throwing spices and dried fruits together, tossing it into a cast iron skillet, and popping the  whole thing into the oven or on top of the fire.

Easily delicious with just powdered  sugar on top, a little cream cheese icing, or (my favorite) lightly sweetened whipped cream. This also makes a great coffee cake, with the cinnamon and clove picking up on the best caramel and nutty flavors of the dark brew.

Moravian Cake
1 stick butter
1 cup water
1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cup raisins (or raisins & other chopped dried fruits)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
vanilla

2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda

Heat the first grouping of ingredients in a saucepan, adding the second group once the butter is melted. Remove from the heat, adding the final group of ingredients. Ppur into a 9 inch cast iron skillet, greased, and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven. It should take about thirty-five minutes, with a knife or toothpick coming out clean when inserted in the center.
Allow to cool slightly in the skillet, running a serrated knife along the edge. After about  to ten minutes, grasp the skillet by the handle, bang it a couple of times on a sturdy heat-proof surface (like a wooden cutting board, never the stove). Run the knife around the outside again, then place a large plate over the top of the cake within the skillet. Flip the whole thing upside down (use oven mitts on both hands!) and place it back on the counter, with the skillet on top. Wiggle the skillet a few times and gently lift it to see if the cake has dislodged from the bottom. If it hasn't at all, flip everything back over and try again in a few minutes. If it has only dislodged a bit, flip everything back over as well.
If not, allow the cake to fall onto the plate. Usually a bit in the center will stick. just peel it off the skillet with a spatula and replace it on the cake. Next, put a plate on the "bottom" of the cake and flip the cake right side up. No one will ever see the stuck bit, especially once the cake is cut as it can be a little messy at times. Serve with powdered sugar or whipped cream, tea or coffee. See if it doesn't brighten your day!
PS this method works well with skillet cornbread, too.

"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

grey days; or why soup makes everything better

a couple of my closest girlfriends are coming over for dinner tonight. It's actually just about the first "girls' night" we've had as more than two women since one of them got married. I"m really happy for them, and I do rather enjoy her husband's company when we are in a group, but lately I have literally been the fifth wheel. I have four friends, both of them couples, with whom I regularly spend time. We've been trying to do weekly meals at each others' homes and all get along quite well.

That is, except that I'm not only the only single person left in my group of close friends, but I usually end up hanging out with two couples. No one has made me feel unwelcome, nor is there any bad dynamic, it just occasionally makes me feel a a bit out of place. Well, until we all start talking & I totally forget. Nor do I have my eye on any man at the moment, so there's no finagling triple dates or worrying that he might not get along with my friends' partners. In a long story shortened, I'm happy, they're happy, we all get along, and tonight it's just me and two girlfriends for dinner. and possibly giggling about men.

However, they'll be here in five or six hours and I've got dishes in the sink, a frolicking puppy, and no clue what I feel like making. As has been repeated, it's rather chilly and damp around here. Starting tomorrow, it should be getting warmer again, but for now, there's a chill that seeps into your bones. I'm thinking soup. I've got some fabulous bread (how shocking is it that Wal-Mart of all places makes a solidly good loaf of Italian bread?) and plans for crunchy garlic bread, but what exactly for dinner is sort of floating at the edge of my consciousness.

It will be soup, but I can't decide between a multi-veggie chicken soup or stuffed pepper soup. The former will take a bit more time than the latter, but neither is difficult. I'd rather the latter, but my one friend doesn't actually like Bell peppers (the sacrilege!). So, it really seems that there is no question & hearty chicken soup it is. One word, though, this soup is the reason large cooking vessels and huge cutting boards were invented. If you don't have a cutting board at least the size of a large cookie sheet, you should get one before continuing to cook anything. It makes life ever so much easier.

Hearty Chicken & Vegetables Soup
this soup can serve 2-20 (though I find it runs more to the 4-8 servings size) depending on the size of your pot and amount of ingredients.
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon oil oil
2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite-size pieces
(feel free to use whatever type of chicken suits your fancy,
however, remove the skin before chopping & set to the side)
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 stalk celery, finely minced
1 pepper, diced
5 carrots
3 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder1 cup white or rose wine
4-7 cups of chicken stock
2 medium tomatoes
1 cup green beans (fresh)
3/4 corn (fresh or frozen, already cooked, or 1 can)

It is best to have all of your veggies cleaned and chopped separately before you begin cooking. Dice the onion and pepper (red or green). Peel and slice the carrots. Core and chunk the tomatoes into eighths. Clean the fresh green beans, snapping them into inch-long pieces. Defrost the frozen corn or cut leftover cooked corn off the ear.
To begin, heat the butter and oil in a large cast iron roasting pan or large pot. Add the pieces of skin, allowing them to exude their yummy chicken fat. Once the fat is hot, brown the chicken pieces, sprinkling with salt and ground pepper. Once browned, remove from the skillet, discarding the skin. Add the diced onion, stirring and adding a bit more salt until the union begins to brown. Then add the diced pepper, celery, and garlic. Continue to cook for a few minutes, softening the vegetables. Then add the carrots, cumin, and chili powder. Cook for another few minutes before adding the wine. Allow it to come to a boil, then add the chicken and enough chicken stock to cover the ingredients.
If you have only a little bit of time, add the tomatoes, bring to a boil, then add the green beans and corn and cook for 10-15 minutes. If you have longer, allow the soup to simmer for at least 20-35 minutes before adding the tomatoes and corn. Cook that for another 10 minutes (testing for additional necessary salt, pepper, and/or cumin), then add the green beans. Once the beans are a bright green and no longer fully crunchy (usually about 5 minutes), the soup is ready.

Sometimes I make noodles or add bought egg noodles to this soup, though it is plenty hearty without them. Tonight, I'll be serving it alongside bread stuffed with butter and garlic & tossed in the oven for about 15 minutes. Luckily, there are enough veggies in this soup that it really is a one-bowl meal. Feel free to add or change any of the vegetable options you like, as this recipe changes with the seasons and what's left in the refrigerator.

 

  
"Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor

rain & cozy time; or why I snuggle in with a book & cake in the oven

it is raining again. Correction, it hasn't stopped, but sporadically, for a few days. October began, reports of falling snow occurred, and all I want to do is snuggle up with a book whilst cake bakes in the oven. Classic things never fail to inspire me when the weather starts to chill off. Once it's properly cold & winter has fully set in, I'll be all about innovative layering and my new studded mittens, but for now, bring me some professor clothes and a good book and chocolate cake.

My little basement apartment has two temperature settings, really. Cool to cold or warm to boiling are my options. Since it's always a bit easier to regulate temperature by putting on or taking off clothes when it is colder, I set the thermostat to quite chilled this time of year. That leaves plenty of temperature to add a sweater here, put on some tights there, and throw a cake in the oven for some extra heat. Also, who doesn't love chocolate cake.

In my family, my grandfather did a lot of the baking and cooking, leaving my grandma to clean up or allow him to take over if she weren't performing quickly enough. However, there was on recipe that was entirely her purview and not my grandfathers: Miracle Whip Chocolate Cake. It is a tried and true recipe that substitutes all eggs, oil, and liquid with Miracle Whip and water. I have hear much more of its use in the South, but it probably dates to some sort of Miracle Whip recipe promotion in the sixties. In any case, the basic cake is a simple, dense, moist, and delicious chocolate cake.

Over the years, I've substituted and added and tweaked the recipe for my own taste, but my grandfather still prefers the unadorned recipe. He claims he can taste the "foreign" flavors if I change anything. Once I even removed the Miracle Whip altogether and replaced it with vanilla yogurt (you try running out of Miracle Whip when you've promised the girls chocolate cupcakes & they are due at your house in twenty minutes!). That change has been accepted wholesale by my family and friends as making a somewhat more moist and equally deliciious version of our family favorite. Grandpa doesn't even notice.

At this point, whenever I throw a party and ask friends if they've any menu requests their response follows a formula, "I'll eat anything. Everything you make is delicious. Whatever you feel like...wait, you are making those cupcakes right?" As you can see, this cake recipe works wonderfully in cupcake form as well. I've even added chocolate chips to the batter and had an entire law school class clamoring for more. This cake is good iced, with powdered sugar, or just plain. Go get your cake on.

Miracle Whip Chocolate Cake (original recipe)
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
4 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder
pinch salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup Miracle Whip
1 cup cold water
vanilla

Mix the dry ingredients in one smaller bowl, then the Miracle Whip and water in a larger one. Slowly add the dry mix to the wet in three or four portions. Mix well, then pour into a greased & floured 9x13 glass baking dish. Bake for 40 minutes to an hour in a 350 degree oven. Let cool and ice.

Miracle Whip Chocolate Cake 2.0
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
4 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup vanilla or plain yogurt
1 cup cold water
vanilla
1 oz. baking chocolate, melted
2/3 cup of chocolate chips (optional)

Mix dry ingredients in large bowl. Measure the yogurt and water in a glass measuring cup, mixing together with the vanilla. Slowly pour the wet mixture into the dry mix in two or three portions, mixing between additions. Add the melted baking chocolate. Once mixed, add the chips, if desired.
Pour batter into a 9x13 glass baking dish (greased & cocoa powdered) and bake for 40 minutes to an hour in a 350 degree oven. Let cool and ice.
If making cupcakes, pour batter into lined cupcake tins, a small ladleful at a time. Do not fill more than 2/3-3/4 of the way. Bake for 20-35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

All versions of the cake will be done when a knife or toothpick comes out clean, though be watchful for melted chocolate chips. I often use cream cheese icing (as pictured) on the cupcakes, though a simple chocolate powdered sugar icing is preferred by Grandpa.
Also delicious is a cream cheese/Nutella icing, made by combining a can of cream cheese icing with a jar of Nutella. That works wonderfully for a more decadent presentation, like the one directly above, if the cake is baked in a springform pan and removed before icing.

 "Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch." - Garrison Keillor