French Friday with Dorie: Chard-Stuffed Pork Roast

  

IMPRESSIVE STUFFED PORK ROAST--MY FAMILY LOVED IT!

 Today was my fun day with honey...we played in the kitchen.  

HONEY IS ONE OF MY BEST KITCHEN HELPERS--SHE'LL BE TWO IN THREE MONTHS

We made a plan.  Besides the assigned pork roast we decided to create a meal by using up items around the kitchen and then invite Honey’s mom and dad to stay for dinner.  We knew No. 1 Son would be hanging out with us for awhile and Hubby would come, so that would give us enough to have a little fun.

Thanksgiving was a little strange for us this year as we traveled out of state and dined with extended family.  It was fun, but after the meal, visiting, playing games, and eating dessert, we all went our separate ways and we had no leftovers.  Later that evening we were all ready to make a turkey sandwich or have some pie...but we had none.

We had provided some desserts, lovely fruit platters, relishes, dips, etc...but none of the basic feast foods. And when you want a turkey sandwich, more fruit does not cut it.

I’m not complaining, but it was an adjustment for us.  We foodies are used to having lots of leftovers crammed into every fridge, pies lining the countertops, etc...and it was a bit of a let down after the day was all over.

We did enjoy spending time with family and friends, and the dinner was wonderful, but we missed some of our traditions.

STEPHY-WEPHY FINALLY GETS HER FAVORITE MEMORY FOOD--READY FOR THE OVEN

Stephy-Wephy was sad that she did not get to eat her once-a-year green beans with the Campbell’s mushroom soup and the fried onions on top...this is her favorite Thanksgiving food.  I can never understand why this would be a favorite, but it has been since she was a very young child...like her special comfort food.

And other foods that we always have were missing.  So we decided to make our favorites over the holidays and add them to our meals.  As a side for the pork roast, we made Stephy’s favorite Thanksgiving dish...those green beans that she dreams about.  And we made her hubby’s favorite cookies, oatmeal with some kind of chocolate mixed in.

Honey and I had lots of time as we waited for the roast to roast...and we like our meat done...no pink for us.  To fill our time we found lots of veges that needed using, made mashed potatoes and gravy, fresh cranberry relish, etc.

OUR ROAST CAME PRE-CUT...I FIXED IT UP A LITTLE

To prepare for the stuffed roast project, Honey and I went shopping and found no good looking chard.  Wrong season for us.  So we used spinach which was a great choice.  And we decided everyone in town is having roast pork as a holiday meal because we went to 3 stores, the last being Costco, and found only 1 roast remaining at Costco.  So we took it and were grateful to make the find.  Our roast was already cut in half and tied together...deboned....I did not check, maybe it was not the correct cut of meat.  But it was the only one available unless we wanted to keep driving around, but our luck was not great so far, so we were satisfied.

THE STUFFING MIXTURE IS READY FOR THE ROAST

THE STUFFING IS PLACED INSIDE THE PORK ROAST

Our roast was 5 ½ pounds...a little more than double the size required by the recipe.  So we doubled all the stuffing ingredients, used cranberries for the season, and used the other ingredients as written. Except that after I cooked the spinach it looked so dwindled away that I cooked a similar amount again, which after combining all the ingredients I really did not need to do.  But I liked the look of all the stuffing so I decided to cut our large roast into quarters and to stuff each cut.  Everyone liked the look and loved the stuffing and the way the roast was flavored.  Turned out really good.

OUR LARGER ROAST WORKED WELL WITH MORE AREAS STUFFED

STUFFED, TIED TOGETHER AND OVEN-READY

But due to the larger size and because we like our meat non-pink, we had plenty of time to do additional cooking.

FRESH FROM MY BACK YARD

For the cranberry sauce, Honey and I went to the back yard and picked a bag of oranges.  The recent cooler nights have sweetened our citrus fruits and they are now ready to be used.

We placed fresh cranberries and apple and orange chunks into the food processor, pulsed several times to chop and combine these fruits together, added sugar to taste and we had our very wonderful, fresh, chunky cranberry sauce, which was suggested as a garnish for this cranberry-spinach stuffed pork.

FRESH CRANBERRY SAUCE INGREDIENTS READY FOR PROCESSING

DELICIOUS!

Then because we had extra time, we baked  cookies.  I’ve used the same Oatmeal Cookies recipe for the past 30 years...guess that makes it my go-to Oatmeal Cookies recipe.  Always treats me well.  It started out as a Betty Crocker recipe, but I made several changes...like no margarine, only butter, a shorter and hotter baking time, old fashioned oats rather than the quick oats, more brown sugar, more vanilla, etc.  And I combined the ingredients differently than Betty suggested.  This was an old hand-mixed recipe.  And it’s the best oatmeal cookie recipe I”ve ever tried and the only cookie Stephy’s Hubby eats...and he eats them by the dozens.  I change the mix-ins according to desire and season/holiday and for today we added red and green chocolate MM’s.  Honey loved them!

This is what I do:

MY FAVORITE OATMEAL COOKIES--CHEWEY OR CRISPY; WITH OR WITHOUT MIX-INS

Kris’ Oatmeal Cookies

4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Sift above together and put aside

Preheat oven to 375^.  Don’t grease baking sheets; I use silicone mats to make everything easy.

Using a mixer, beat 2 cups room temperature butter until smooth and creamy.

Add 2 cups granulated sugar and 2 cups firmly packed brown sugar, beat again until creamy, scraping down the sides of mixer bowl as needed. 

Keep the mixer runninig on medium, and, one at a time, add 4 large eggs, and mix again.  Now add 1 ½ Tablespoons vanilla and mix again.

Now, add the dry ingredients and mix slowly just until combined.

Then add 3 generous cups old fashioned oats and mix again just until combined.  If the dough is too sticky add up to ½ cup more flour.  Dough should be a little sticky, but easy to handle.  Too soft a dough will spread too much in the oven, and too much added flour will result in dry, hard cookies.  Higher altitudes seem to need a little more flour.

Then add nuts, chocolate chips, coconut, M&M’s, or other kinds of chips as desired...to me, the more the better.  For today, we picked up a bag of Christmas chocolate M&M’s at Costco and used just over ½ the bag.

Smaller cookies...using about 1-2 teaspoons dough, bake in about 7 minutes.  Larger cookies...using about 1/4 cup per cookie will take closer to 10 minutes.  For soft cookies, bake a lesser time, for crispy cookies a little longer.  We like crispy but find that most people like the softer, chewy cookies.

When done, remove cookies from oven and let sit for a minute on the baking pan before transferring to a cooling rack...but remember that the cookies continue to bake while on the hot baking pans...and this will make them more crispy.

I usually bake ½ the dough and refrigerate the remainder.   Using plastic wrap,  I roll ½ the dough into easy to use logs for baking the next day...they are quick to bake and this gives fresh and hot-out-of-the-oven cookies the next day.  And at this time of year, when I seem to need to take a plate of cookies everywhere I go, I can have a couple of pans of freshly baked cookies within just a few minutes.  Carefully wrapped dough keeps in the fridge for a week.  This dough also freezes well.  (If using hands to form a log of dough, wet hands just a little and the sticky dough will not stick to hands.)

 

 

 

 

Honey and I had more time as we waited for the roast to get done and for our hungry family to arrive, so we went out to rake a few leaves.  That’s what we do in AZ in Dec.  We don’t shovel snow, but we do rake leaves.  This was a first for Honey and we had great fun.  She’s a good helper!

 After raking, No. 1 Son appeared and Honey shared a little music with him...and then it was time to load up our plates.

HONEY ENJOYS BEFORE DINNER MUSIC WITH NO.1 SON

THE ROAST HAS BEEN ROASTED--IT IS DECLARED TO BE DELICIOUS!!!

The Stuffed Pork Roast got raving reviews...it is tender and well seasoned and very pretty.  The house smells good and the pork went well with all the other items we found to use in this meal.  I had planned to make a fresh garden salad, but we decided that we had made enough.

MY FIRST PLATE OF FOOD...SEE THE STUFFED PORK ROAST GARNISHED WITH THE FRESH CHUNKY CRANBERRY SAUCE?--This is a half slice

Note: I usually cover my pork roasts while in the oven which keeps the juices in the pan...giving me gravy makings.  This uncovered roast’s juices all evaporated so I had to use packaged broth as an ingredient for my gravy...it was good, but not pork.

Hope you are all enjoying the wonderful month of December.  This pork roast would make a terrific main meat dish for a Christmas or New Year's dinner.  It is beautiful, relatively easy, and complements the season.  Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas or Happy Holiday Season!!!

Baked Sunday Mornings: Baked French Toast

BAKED FRENCH TOAST READY TO EAT

We just returned home from a wonderful Thanksgiving/Nephew’s Wedding week with family and friends.  9 of “my household” were in attendance at our Thanksgiving dinner with 40+.  It was actually fun to put 2000 miles on my car with Stephy-Wephy, Honey, and Penguin as my  traveling companions.  Hubby drove a second vehicle so we all had lots of room for culinary extras and lots of stuff that ensured an exceptional week.

ALL INGREDIENTS EXCEPT BREAD AND TOPPINGS MIXED TOGETHER AND READY TO SOAK THE BREAD

My mom, 84, is a great cook, but her methods and tools have not changed over the past 64 years.  She has a masters degree in foods science and  education...back in the day when having a homemaking major was a good choice for a woman who used her skills to raise her family and keep her home.  My mom sews, quilts, gardens, and she teaches.  In fact, after all us kids entered school, she was our high school foods teacher back in the 60's when that was a required class for every girl.  She loves to cook, bake, and to teach.  But...she continues to use the same mixer she had when I was a youngster at home, and I recognize her old knives and egg beater and pastry blender, etc from days long gone.  Actually amazing.  Most of the tools I use often in my kitchen need replacing regularly.  (Stephy-Wephy probably feels that the pocket size, poor quality camera I use is about how I feel about the knife my mom was using...needs an update, but right now I have no time to learn a new thing, and just like my mom is comfortable using her almost non-functional knives I am comfortable with my little point and shoot...on one "normal" setting.)

And being a teacher of foods, my mom added cooking projects to our jobs lists every week...Along with my list of Saturday's chores, I usually made a dessert on Saturday for Sunday dinner.  But I always had my own methods and would not listen to my mom...drove her nuts.  (Always have had a rebellious side...still don't like to listen to my mom...I guess these things never change.)  She read through recipes before beginning and then measured every ingredient perfectly, and she rarely deviated from a printed recipe.  I threw in this and that and instead of leveling off the dry measuring cups for a correct amount, I dipped and shook my cups of flour until they looked right.  I'm sure that my baking could have been much better, but we all ate my creations every week and I remember the family enjoying what I made.

THE MIXTURE IS SOAKING INTO THE BREAD FOR AN EXTENDED TIME BEFORE BAKING

After our Thanksgiving dinner had been enjoyed, my Mom boiled all the turkey bones and uneaten parts and made a wonderful broth that was used for our Sunday dinner turkey soup.  I watched as she cleaned and chopped vegetables for her soup.  With her arthritic hands she carefully and slowly cut up the long, hard carrots with her ancient knife, one chunk at a time.  It took her all day to cut up the vegetables she wanted for her soup.  I badly wanted to take over her chopping job, just to help, and get it done quickly.  (I travel with my own, sharp and varied knives, food processor, etc.)  But my mom was happy doing this work and her hands need to move and to create, and I need to be patient.   I thought of how we, at out house, prepare ingredients in just a few quick minutes using our better and more modern tools, and how we are always in a hurry to get everything done.

JUST OUT OF THE OVEN

I tell her about my cooking/blogging groups and she thinks they are wonderful.  She is amazed by the beautiful foods and photos,  and by the awareness people now have concerning different types of ingredients and how they work together to create better tasting and looking dishes.  She loved browsing through my blog and had so many questions...she continues to love foods.  I think if she were 20 years younger she would love to be in my groups.  Mom is, however. an avid  reader and even though her cooking does not keep up in all areas, her knowledge does.  I can tell her about the recipes I try and she seems to know all about them...even the foreign language labels.

And my dad likes to visit with me while I cook.  My parents have a 2nd beautiful kitchen downstairs in their home and everyone calls it Kris' bakery...I  travel up (near Salt Lake City)  to help with weddings, anniversaries, and other extended family parties and I produce mass quantities of foods using all my "stuff."  (I'm sure you would all laugh at me to see all the tools and ingredients that travel with me...part of why Hubby drives his truck....poor Hubby.  Now it's not my mom who gets frustrated by my cooking but it is Hubby, although after a grumble or two, he knows by now I will win, and he gets happy and enjoys all that we do.  Having food around ensures that all my big family comes to see me in  "my" kitchen and they love being my tasters...sometimes they hang out all day.  One of the first things I do when I hit town, is head to Costco for more ingredients so that "my" kitchen will have goodies to make sandwiches and pots of pasta or soup so that everyone can fill their hungry tummies and want to hang around.  Part of my fun.)  My old dad asks me what everything costs and where purchases can be made, likes to see how things are used and I can see him wishing he could replace all my mom's tools for newer and better ones, but my parents are old and will use what they have.

Sometimes I wonder how our eating preferences will change over the next 20 years with all the creative cooks and chefs and bakers.  Will I still love all my cookbooks?  Who would have ever guessed that now, some bakers add bacon to brownies?  We all share knowledge and ideas readily with the media and with all the wonderful food and photo blogs.  I have hundreds of cookbooks that I love to read.  Every month I get a new cookbook or new cooking idea magazines and I try new recipes.   And blogs such as this expand my abilities and thinking.   And from these cooking adventures I find new favorites and better ways of doing things.  My mom has cookbooks that she used when I was a child.  I’ve given her a few new ones over the years, but her recipes really don’t change.  Her food is good, even great, but it is standard fare for the most part.  (And, my cookbooks have beautiful photos...hers do not or just a very few.)

WITH SOME OF OUR FAVORITE TOPPINGS ADDED

And that brings me to today’s “Baked French Toast.”  I’ve often thought about baking my French toast using this baked method, but I keep to my standard stove top methods.  The only thing hard about this recipe is that I have to THINK in advance...the night before if I want to use it as my breakfast.  And cooking this recipe forced me to do some advance thinking which, at times,  is a novel venture for me.  I’m happy I did it, however, because now that I planned ahead for this recipe assignment, I can plan more easily to do it again.

And I suppose, this is a difference between me and my mom.  Even though it can be easier and maybe more tasty, she keeps to her usual methods.

Watching my daughters in the kitchen is a pleasure mostly because their creations are much prettier than mine...more detail and fancy garnishes.  I produce in large quantities for my large family and parties, etc...but they are more careful and do more fancy decorating. All fun!

For today’s French Toast I used a chiabatta loaf that was still warm from the oven at the bakery.  After baking the thick slices in the creamy egg mixture, I poured strawberry sauce on the warm toast and then drizzled melted dark chocolate over the top, added fresh raspberries and chopped sugared nuts, and finished with a bam of powdered sugar.

Penguin was still with me...spent the entire week with me as her parents went to a different part of the country...and she was my taste tester.  This dish was declared, “Good!” by one whose opinion matters lots to me.  We baked an extra pan for Penguin to take home...her parents picked her up late; we were sure they would be tired from their cross-country trip.

The only thing I would do differently next time would be to bake it for a 5 minute shorter time.  I got side tracked playing with Penguin and the toast got a little too toasty.  But no problem...just a little more chewy for this already chewy bread.  And I do like a good chewy bread with a crunchy exterior crust....but I'll remember for next time.

MY PIECE TO TASTE

To serve this French toast was simple.  No additional syrups or jams were needed.  Penguin did request whipped cream.  I tried a piece the next day and it was delightful as an afternoon snack...like a yummy dessert.

I have renewed appreciation for learning new things and will be excited to see what you all have done with this recipe.  Hope you all had a very Happy Thanksgiving; we all certainly did!!!

French Friday with Dorie: Matafan (Fluffy Mashed Potato Pancakes)

MATAFAN ARE INDEED FLUFFY MASHED POTATO PANCAKES

I don't know anyone who does not love potatoes.  We often make hash browns or crispy home fried potatoes as part of our breakfast.  We also love a variety of pancakes, so why not potato pancakes?  Tasty potatoes can be either savory or sweet as their flavor is not strongly pronounced, but blends well with many other foods.  Recently I fried spudnuts that I covered in cinnamon sugar and they were fought over!  The ingredient list is not too far different.  Common to the spudnuts and the matafan are potatoes, flour, eggs, salt, fried in a fat...

We get into the pancake business at our house a couple of times a year where we flip over 800 pancakes in two hours.  Two weeks from now our church group will have its annual outdoor Christmas breakfast.  It's usually about 65^ by 9 am and the crisp morning air is invigorating.  The menu never changes, but the creative methods make it better every year.  We do omelets with the eater's choice of veges, cheeses, meats; ham and bacon; hot chocolate with lots of mix-ins/toppings; fresh fruit salad, and Kris' variety of pancakes.  Hubby and I help to organize the event and take on the pancakes which is a fun job as everyone comes to fill their plates and talk to us, and we always have a couple of fun helpers.  Last year for Christmas a friend who likes to help purchased, as a gift for me, a large, contractor size, drywall mud mixer...looks like a jack hammer with a large whirring blade...to mix my batter.  I have 10 gallon buckets and this machine can mix this quantity of batter in 1 minute.  It is a show!  

I make:  Pumpkin, banana, fresh blueberry, and plain buttermilk pancakes every year.  I offer 6 or 8 flavors of syrups, and about 20 fun toppings.  We bring in large grills,  and, according to the hungry bodies out in the fresh air, we make the best pancakes ever.  The only drawback is the day of prep and a day of cleanup, but it is worth all those good pancakes.

This year, I will consider adding potato MATAFAN pancakes to my menu!  This will be a fun new experience.

MY FLUFFY BATTER IS READY TO FRY

The recipe is simple and includes common pantry items.  My internet research suggested adding bacon fat or small pieces of bacon, or ham, buttermilk instead of milk, a little fresh rosemary, onion, peppers, cheeses or jams, spinach, etc.  It is recommended by those who often make these to fry them in butter on a cast iron griddle or pan.  They can be sweet or savory and the usual syrups will go well with these pancakes.

For today I tried:  Dorie's recipe plus minced onion, red pepper, salsa cheese and a dash of cayenne pepper.  The recipe as written looked a little bland and I was not in the mood for all the sweet syrups today that would have added to the tastes...so I went with a savory version.  I also added a little olive oil to the frying butter as my pan was hot and would have burned the butter without oil.


I was surprised at how quickly these pancakes cooked.  Since the "batter" was already warm and mostly pre-cooked, the pancakes, on a hot cast iron griddle fried in less than a minute total.  I like the look that the cast iron pan gives...extra browned which also adds good flavor.

FRYING MATAFAN ON A CAST IRON PAN CREATES LOVELY BROWNED PANCAKES

And I will confess that I cheated.  I don't usually peel my potatoes, which means that I can't easily use a ricer, so I mashed them quickly with a hand masher.  My kids have grown up with unpeeled potatoes and they think that mashed potatoes without peelings taste like instant potatoes...they actually request that I keep the peels. And that way my mix-ins blended into the batter just fine.  And I cheated with the potato cooking method...just microwaved them...I lacked enough time to do oven baking.  And...with this faster cooking method, I can add this potato pancake to my party pancake menu without a lot of fuss.

IT IS DELICIOUS!  Good enough to serve as an option to my hundreds of hungry friends in a couple of weeks.

Hope you all have a wonderful December, the most foodie time of the year.

Kris' Fresh Pumpkin Cake for Cakelets

Fresh Pumpkin Cakelets

I made treats for my Sunday school class...and several wanted the recipe so I'll post it for their use.

Kris’Fresh Pumpkin Cake—use in “cakelets”

16 oz freshly baked and pureed pumpkin

    (Or 1 16 oz can pumpkin—not pumpkin pie mixture)

½ C Sugar

4 eggs

½ canola oil

Beat oil and sugar together, add eggs, add oil, add pumpkin and beat till smooth.

2 C flour

1 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

2 t cinnamon

1 t ginger

½ t salt

sift these dry items together and then add to pumpkin mixture...mix only until combined.

Pour batter into and bake in a lined and greased 15" X 10" X 1" baking pan.  (I use a silicone non stick baking mat) at 350^ for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

Cool for 5 minutes and invert onto wire rack if you want to cut the cake into shapes.  I did not invert, but kept cake in pan.  I used a round cutter and got 80 cakelets from one cake.  I frosted them with a dob of buttercream-cream cheese frosting...I added homemade caramel to the frosting for extra flavor and a seasonal taste.  Top with garnish of choice.  I also sprinkled a little cinnamon on top.  I used regular size cupcake papers...the mini size is too small for my cutouts.

Mix-ins can be added to cake batter before baking such as: chocolate chips, craisons, nuts, white chips, etc.  But most of these mix-ins make small shapes hard to cut out...dividing the cake into a layer cake...or just using as a sheet cake would be good with mix-ins.

This cake is pretty if left to cool for 5 min, inverted on a wire rack to finish cooling, cut into thirds and made into a rectangle shape layer cake with a buttercream frosting made wtih maple syrup, caramel, or you flavoring choice and generously added between each layer and on top.  Also works well for other shapes using the deep, at least 1" cookie cutters...try pumpkin shape, etc.

I doubled the recipe, which all fits in my mixer bowl, and got 160 cakelets, enough for my class and for my family.

Enjoy.

THESE CAKE CUTOUTS ARE QUICKER AND EASIER THAN CUPCAKES....MADE 160 IN LESS THAN 1 HOUR...PLUS TIME TO BAKE THE PUMPKIN

Baked Sunday Mornings: Boston Cream Pie Cake

TONIGHT, BUDDY, No 1 SON'S 6 MONTH OLD "BABY" IS READY FOR DINNER--SHE IS BETTER LOOKING THAN MY BOSTON CREAM PIE CAKE---SO, SHE CAN HEAD MY POST

I'M DISAPPOINTED IN THIS PIE/CAKE

It is 1:40 am Sunday morning; soon time to post.  I just finished baking and tasting the Baked Boston Cream Pie Cake.  Before baking this cake I  baked 100 mini pumpkin cakes and topped them with caramel cream cheese frosting and a Thanksgiving garnish for my adult Sunday school class...in just a few hours.  Hubby was watching the exciting ASU vs U of A football game and then caught up on current event news...I think he was waiting for his tastes especially when he saw the chocolate parts of the Boston cake coming together.
                            

Our office building, exactly 2 miles from our home,  is located in the Heritage District of Downtown Gilbert.  We rebuilt an old building that is  on Gilbert Road and across the road from a large empty lot where our annual Gilbert Days is happening. 

Gilbert Days always includes rodeos, a parade, a carnival, the farmer’s market, crafts, foods, and fun.  The news announcer for the parade sits directly across the road from our building where we and our friends have front row seats.  This morning we enjoyed all the school bands and dancers and beauty queens who perform their best for local TV.  The carnival with all the lights and screaming girls on wild rides is right outside our front windows.  And all the junk food one would expect at a carnival or state fair are right there too.    Yum if you like belly aches as it ist really junky food.

This year’s parade included some firsts.  Featured were the first garbage trucks I’ve ever seen in our parade...all washed and smelling good.  And Santa came this year...isn’t it kinda early?  High school football teams were throwing their balls and dancing down the street as part of the parade.  We had the air force jets which are a usual, but also had three restored flying-overhead airplanes...yellow...that looked like something  Wilber Wright would have flown and spewing clouds of smoke out their tails.  They were flown by the Army who also included vintage tanks and trucks in the parade.

We all enjoyed the Dancing Grandmas...have them every year...they have great dancer legs enhanced by their shimmering panty hose and mini skirts.  My friend sitting next to me wants to join them in the future but her husband says he’ll divorce her if she does...but she’s a dancer and is serious.  We had Sheriff Joe Arpio who is an Arizona hero to many and hated by others...he makes national news often and once asked Hubby to be one of his deputies.  I’m glad Hubby did not go that route...Sheriff Joe does dangerous work.

There were lots of high school bands; some of them were really good.  And because we are Gilbert, AZ, there were lots of horses and cowboys and girls, and rodeo queens, and horse poop and poop scoopers.

It is 60^ out right now, and was about 80^ earlier.  This week should linger between 70 and 80 depending on the storm systems up North.  This morning I saw some colored leaves on a few trees as I drove down the road...guess Fall is arriving early this year...usually comes mid-December.  The reds and yellows are beautiful...I guess it’s our change of seasons.

I had been ambitious and made the pie/cake recipe a few days ago, cupcake size, and I was disappointed not in the taste, but in the sinking middles.  I decided this recipe was not meant for cupcakes, which I had planned to cut in half, fill with pastry creams, and top with the ganache with fruit on top as part of my dessert table for my baby shower for a friend.  But...with the sinking middles, I filled the dips with  freshly whipped cream and added strawberries on top.  They were tasty and pretty but I knew I would need to re-do this recipe.

So tonight I did.  I got out my 8" cake pans, made the recipe as written, and one cake fell badly in the middle. UGGGG!  I noticed when portioning out the batter to each pan that the 2nd pan, getting the batter from the bottom half of the bowl, had more of the butter mixture which seemed to sink to the bottom after being folded in as the final addition to the batter.  I had noticed the same thing happened to my cupcakes.  One pan actually turned out OK, but the second pan, the pan getting batter from the bottom half of the bowl, had the sinking cupcakes.  The butter seems to separate after being folded in and even though I don’t let the batter rest and I portion it out quickly, I find buttery batter at the bowl bottom.  I don't think I should have to beat the batter into the mixture...I did fold it in well...at least I thought I did.

I had been skeptical of the sponge cake part of the recipe from the first time I read it.  My typical sponge cake recipes...my favorites are from my grandma who lived on a farm and had lots of eggs to use and often made sponge cakes, and the other I like is from William-Sonoma, both have me whip the yolk mixture and then the whites separately to fairly stiff peaks...and then fold the whites into the yolk mixture and it works perfectly every time.  But this recipe without separated eggs and with the butter/milk added at the end does not work well for me.

THE BOTTOM LAYER IS ABOUT THE RIGHT SIZE AFTER PEELING OFF THE BUTTERY BOTTOM PART...THE REMAINDER LOOKED LIKE GOOD SPONGE CAKE

I watched a how-to video of a similar Boston Cream Pie on a Joy of Cooking video.  That cake was made how I make my sponge cakes, with the separated eggs whipped and then folded into each other.  They also have the milk/butter mixture which is also added at the end, but the consistency using the separated eggs is different and the cake bakes differently.

When I dumped my cakes out of the pans there was a layer on the bottom of the most sunken cake (the butter seemed to sink worse to the cake bottom) that actually separated from the rest of the cake...a more buttery layer which I removed and threw away...so I did not cut that layer in ½.  The remaining layer, the one that got the batter from the top portion of the bowl, baked better so I cut that one in half.

But I was disappointed and just threw the rest of this cake together, just to get it done.

SEE THE GOOD PART, THE PUDDING, OOZING OUT BETWEEN THE LAYERS?--I KEEP MOVING THIS CAKE TO A DIFFERENT SPOT IN THE KITCHEN HOPING IT WILL LOOK BETTER...BUT, NO

The pastry creams were good and ganache is always good.  I put the cake all together and without letting it set up a little...well, it was almost 1 am at this point...I cut the cake and Hubby and I tried a piece.  Hubby announced that it was good, and I announced that it was ugly and not what I was after....I announced this part to myself...I’ll let Hubby think it is good.

I put the cake in the fridge where if can set up and be ready for Sunday dinner.  I’m sure some of my family will come and enjoy my mess and I’m hoping I have a few of my pumpkin cakes left over because I will be proud of those.

Oh well, kitchen fun does produce failures on occasion.  But I am determined to make this recipe again, but using my sponge cake instead of Baked’s, and I’ll let you all know how that turns out.

I’m interested to see how this worked out for my Baked friends.  Hope you all had much better luck with your pie/cakes.

THE PIECE HUBBY AND I SHARED BEFORE I SENT HIM TO BED...I DID NOT WAIT TO LET THE LAYERS SET UP, BUT IT WAS GOOEY AND GOOD

MY BABY SHOWER DESSERT TABLE

I made Caramel-Apple-Pecan-Date Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Chocolate Cheesecake, Baby Feet Sugar Cookies, Sugar and Spice Nuts, Caramel Popcorn, etc mix, pumpkin cakelets, and my Frolicking Night Owl daughter made chocolate cupcakes.....and do you see the failed sponge cake cupcakes with the strawberries and cream to hide them?  I cut that part out of the pic and here it is......

HERE THEY ARE

HAVE A GREAT THANKSGIVING!  AND STAY WARM.

French Friday with Dorie: Spiced Squash, Fennel, and Pear Soup

USED BUTTERNUT SQUASH FOR THIS FLAVORFUL SOUP

Catching up on Spiced Squash, Fennel, and Pear Soup

It’s been a crazy month and getting crazier.  I suppose that it will be Run-Run-Run until the end of January.

The economy in AZ is horrible, as I suppose it is in much of the country and even the world, but for the past couple of years the Phoenix area has ranked in the bottom...pretty consistently ranked the 2nd worst state in the nation for unemployment, home foreclosures, rising medical care, etc.  And right now our public schools are ranked in the bottom 5.  We all struggle to keep going, but thankful we are still hanging on.  But another year like this one and we are finished.  Not complaining, just the facts.

But some indicators show that we are on the mend in some areas.  The Mexican economy, in the better areas, is now stronger than Arizona, so many of the illegals are going home leaving more jobs for us.  Even though home prices  continue to decline, people are once again moving to AZ because they can find good deals, and businesses are coming in due to a great employer market.

But it means we must work harder and longer to survive.  We are in the commercial real estate appraisal business and that market is dead right now, so we do what we can, but it is hard.

We have a house down the street that we purchased as an investment about 10 years ago when the market was great.  We used it as a place for our older children to live while in college and  in early marriage years, and now we rent it out.  But our last tenants trashed the house...$30,000+ in damages, so I’ve been working hard to get repairs done and get it rent-ready.  So many have lost their homes in this bad economy that I have many requests from families who want to live in the house, so my goal is to have it ready by the end of the month.

And, I dropped by camera last week...no longer works, but I found an old point-and-shoot down at the office that I’m trying to figure out...just need a couple of photos for my posts.

This week our main business computer got a bad virus which split into 8 more viruses, so business was shut down for a few days while restoring files, etc.  Thank goodness for No. 1 Son who can fix these problems and who was willing to stay up for a couple of days/niights with no sleep, working non-stop to get the computer up and running.  The back up system was also affected meaning that the past 2 years of work would have been lost.  Our computer guy wanted to restore the hard drive, meaning wiping it clean and starting over...losing all our files which we are required by law to keep for 7-10 years.  Not good.

I know this all sounds like a downer...and I’ll add that our roof leaks as of the last rain and that fix estimate is $25,000...but I want to remember some of these things because these things cause me to feel so much gratitude, and this is a giving thanks time of year.

I’m thankful that we are healthy and have lots of energy to work hard.  I’m thankful that we still have our home and a wonderful big family who continues to fill it up almost every day even though only Hubby and I live here.  I’m thankful for great friends and neighbors.  I’m thankful for my Frolicking Night Owl daughter who homeschools her children...and her oldest, Penguin, at the age of 8 is finishing 5th grade, and is the top student in her cyber-school program...so it does not matter to these treasured children that the AZ schools are so bad.   

I’m thankful that next week 10-12 of us will travel to Great Grandma and Grandpa’s home for Thanksgiving ...they live near Salt Lake City, are in their mid-80's, and we expect to spend the holiday with about 40 extended family members.   And my North-Eastern Idaho university daughter and family will be with us. 

I’m thankful that Stephy-Wephy lets me have her precious Honey every Wednesday and together we have turned this day into our cooking/baking day.  I’m thankful that all my citrus will begin to ripen this month; I love that Hubby makes fresh squeezed OJ every morning for 6-7 months of every year.  I’m thankful for the AZ heat!  I’m addicted.

And my list goes on and on and on.

And right now, as I type up this post, I’m thankful for the fun food experiences I’ve had over the past year plus with the FFwD group.  I look forward to reading your posts, to learning new things from you, and for enjoying your cyber friendships, which are real to me.   I feel badly and feel like I’m missing out whenever I skip a week...and this month has been my worst yet. I think that I’ve only missed 2 projects before this November...and I’ll most likely miss next week too.

But Honey and I did enjoy making the Squash Soup.  We went shopping and found all the needed ingredients, made the recipe as written except for adding a couple of sweet potatoes.  We found  ripe-enough oranges out in the back yard...the first we’ve used of the new crop which will become sweeter and more juicy as the nights get colder.  (The new favorite food on Honey’s list is Pumpkin Seeds...so she was excited we put those on our soup.)

And for munching while the soup cooked, we decided to make “green’ salsa to use up fridge items...gotta get ready to leave town for a week...and Honey loves Mexican foods.

Our salsa is delicious and fresh...here’s what we did.

ONE OF OUR FAVORITE SALSAS

Tomatillos...enough to make a quart of puree
1 large onion
1-2 jalapenos
juice from 2 limes
1/4 C agave as a sweetener (can use honey or sugar)
1-2 T salt—to taste

We put all the above in a blender and after making our puree we  added  12 thinly sliced scallions...wanted a bit of chunky texture.

YUM!

And it is great!  We don’t cook our tomatillos, as recommended in many recipes.

This salsa would also be great added to black beans, as a topping spooned over roasting chicken or pork or enchiladas, added to rice, etc....or added to ranch dressing to use with a salad.

Most likely, I’ll not have computer access over the next week, but I’ll “see” you all at the beginning of December.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU ALL!!!

Baked Sunday Mornings: Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins

LOOK AT THAT MELTED CHEESE--HOT OUT OF THE OVEN

JUST OUT OF THE OVEN

I LOVE good, moist muffins, in all their wonderful varieties, and I really LOVE pumpkin...especially during October and November.  I usually choose versions of both muffins and pumpkin that are on the sweet side and I love lots of good flavor.  Even though the Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins have brown sugar, it is not pronounced, making this variety a nice change for me...I immediately ate 4 right out of the oven, before they had a chance to cool even slightly.

THESE PUMPKIN CHEDDAR MUFFINS ARE GOOD ENOUGH FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER

HOT AND DELICIOUS WITH CHOCOLATE CHIPS AND TRADITIONAL PUMPKIN SPICES

Just to compare, and because I had made fresh pumpkin puree (and because I expect company to help eat them) which gave me about 4 cups of pumpkin for today’s baking, I decided to double the recipe and to also make a double batch of my usual pumpkin with chocolate chips muffins...LOVE pumpkin and chocolate together; it’s happiness.

There was nothing unusual about the pumpkin cheddar recipe except for a pretty before-baking garnish of grated cheese, which browned nicely and is an appealing touch.

I baked my muffins...and I got 18 per batch...for 18 minutes and they were perfect with nicely browned bottoms and a perfectly browned top.

MY USUAL VARIETY

Next time, I’ll use pepper jack cheese for a more spicy flavor; my taste buds in my brain tell me it would be really good in this recipe.

My Usual Moist Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
1 C Flour
2 t Baking Powder
2 t Cinnamon
½ t Nutmeg
½ t Ginger
½ t Salt

Sift above together.

In a mixer bowl, whisk together:
½ C sugar
1 C pumpkin
4 T Butter, room temperature
½ C Evaporated Milk
1 Egg
1 ½ t Vanilla

Remove bowl from mixer, add dry ingredients and fold together just until combined.

Makes 12 muffins.  Bake 400^ for 18-20 minutes in the middle of oven.  For no mess, use cupcake papers.

(For a different variety, use golden raisins instead of chocolate chips)

MY MUFFIN--COULDN'T WAIT FOR IT TO COOL, BUT LOVE THAT GOOEY MELTED CHOCOLATE

Hope you are all keeping warm!  Phoenix went from 110 a month ago to 60 today...I think I may need to go into hibernation...I'm not ready for this!  But it does actually really feel like November.

I had planned to add pumpkin seeds to the top of my Pumpkin Cheddar Muffin, however, someone cute ate them all...but these are good enough to bake again, so next time I'll add them.