The Queen of Tarts

Hector's Cake (Chocolate Cake with Vanilla - Rum Buttercream)

 

Several years ago I had a surprise birthday party for my husband, and I needed to have the perfect birthday cake. I found a moist chocolate cake recipe that had a rich creamy chocolate icing - it stood up perfectly to that warm August afternoon. Since that day, this has been my "go-to" recipe when I needed to impress. From time to time I change the recipe and make it more my own depending on my mood or the situation. 

We recently had friends over who got married several month ago. I turned to this cake to celebrate their marriage (it did not hurt that we had a 10 year old bottle of Dom Perignon as well...). I played with the recipe a bit to make it healthier, but let's be real - it is chocolate cake. When I eat chocolate cake I want sweet, dense, richness in ever single bite. So while the amount of white flour is significantly reduced here, and I swapped out whole milk for 1%, you will not miss a thing. This cake is sure to please your toughest critics. I doubled the recipe and made a drop-dead vanilla-rum buttercream filling for the layers. Really, I should have just served the cake for dinner with a few forks. I am still not sure why we even bothered with the main course...

Preheat your over to 350 Degrees. Grease 2 9-inch round cake pans (or 4 if you double the recipe), and set them aside.

• 1 2/3 cups organic cane sugar
• 1-3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 cup Cocoa powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup 1% milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, and then in the eggs, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Mix together. Once mixed, slowly add in the water. The mixture will be very thin - don't worry about it. It will all work out! Once everything is pulled together, divide the mixture between the cake pans, and gently tap the bottom of the pans on the counter to remove any air bubbles. Bake for about 29-33 minutes (until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean and the cake starts to pull away from the edges of the pan). Allow the cake to cool in the pan on racks for roughly 10 minutes, then invert the pans and let the cakes cool completely before frosting and assembling.

Frosting (for the outside) - again, this can be easily doubled...

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2/3 cup Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency.
Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Now for the middle of the cake - the layers - I made a vanilla-rum buttercream. I tend to be the worst kind of baker when it comes to things that I am comfortable with, which means that I do not really measure. However this means that there is a lot more room for innovation, invention, and fun as far as I am concerned. Here is what I did, more or less, and play around to make it your own...

Vanilla-Rum (for the layers)

2 cups vegetable shortening (I like the Organic Kind - Spectrum)
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup dark rum (don't be cheap, use the good stuff!)
3 tbsp milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Put the shortening in a mixing bowl, and gradually add in the confectionary sugar until it is all incorporated. Add in the rum, milk, and vanilla. The frosting should be thick, but not too thick that you cannot spread it on the cake. If it is too thin, add more sugar. Once it is all mixed, allow to cool in the fridge for about a 30 minutes.

Place the first layer down on your cake stand, and then top it off with some of the vanilla-rum buttercream.

Place the second layer on top. If you have more than 2 layers, continue to fill and stack the cakes until all layers are done - do not put the vanilla-rum buttercream on the top layer.

Frost the cake with a thin- VERY THIN- layer of the chocolate frosting. This is a messy layer often called dirty icing. Let this layer sit and harder (best is to chill the cake in the fridge for an hour or two). Once the icing is hardened, place the final layer of icing on the cake and try to make it look pretty. Who cares if it is a mess anyway, it will still taste good!

Getting Cultured

I have eaten yogurt for as long as I can remember - all kinds of yogurt.  When I was little, I would scrap the bottom of the plastic containers to ensure that every bit of the Dutch Apple did not go to waste.  My mother's favorite yogurt was Coffee.  It was a simple, rich flavor that had the deep undertones of coffee and the tartness of the yogurt that one comes to expect.  For an extra special treat, we would all walk down to Thayer Street in Providence and go to a little restaurant called Penguins, which served up the most amazing frozen yogurt I have ever had.  If you have tried Pinkberry, that would be the closest think to what Penguins served - but Penguins really served the real thing.  This was real, unadulterated frozen yogurt.  Topping included honey, shredded coconut, and granola.  None of this Captain Crunch stuff.

There are many different kinds of yogurt out there, and I find that it always tastes better someplace else.  Let me explain.  When I travel, which I do quite often, yogurt is a very recognizable food that is found in almost every culture.  It is different from what we have in the United States, and I often find it better.  In the markets in London, entire rows in the Dairy Section have yogurt varieties.  The same is true in France.  The options are truly endless.  I also found this to be the case in Canada.  (Visiting grocery stores in foreign countries is one of my favorite things to do - I think that you can learn more about a place by its food and what is found in the local markets than the local museums...) 

Several years ago, my aunt invited me to southern Italy, where we drank prosecco, sipped limoncello, and licked gelato.  She planned an amazing trip, and part of her planning included a visit to an organic buffalo farm.  The farm was in Paestum, which is known for its Greek Temples.  However, since 1988 Tenuta Vannulo has been producing mozzarella and it is Italy's only organic buffalo farm.  This is not your typical farm... it happened to be the cleanest farm I ever stepped foot on.  There was no "farm" smell.  The grounds, in typical Italian style, were stunning, pristine, and inviting.  Even more inviting were the flavors of the mozzarella, which we were able to taste the second it was made, the gelato, and the yogurt - all from buffalo milk.  Buffalo milk has a higher fat content that cow's milk (almost double), so it yields a creamier richer product.  And did I mention the yogurt???

 

More recently, Hector and I traveled to Morocco, and one morning while in Tangiers we received little glass jars with white plastic lids on top.  Each jar held about 6 ounces of creamy yogurt.  There were six of us traveling together, and one person in our group opened up the jar, peered in, and put the lid right back on. "I am not eating this."  I was stunned.  "Why not?" I asked. "I am sure that I will get sick."  I had already spooned some honey into mine and was more than half-way through.  It was the second time I had tasted fresh yogurt.  Her rudeness made me forget my manners and I reached across our little table which overlooked some open markets that had fresh loaves of bread drying on top... I took her yogurt and it straight away.

Since then I have not tasted anything as good, but I have tried to recreate the flavor since we recently received a yogurt maker as a wedding present.  It is worth it - it really and truly is.  While sitting in Italy or Morocco might be a little more romantic than Boston, I am still able to get cultured in this city after all.

Vegan for Three Weeks

It really did not seem that bad when @wired2theworld brought it up… I mean vegan and gluten free for 21 days – 3 wks based off of the Quantum Wellness Diet.  Why would I do this?  Why not.  Oh, and I should tell you there is also no sugar, alcohol, or caffeine allowed either.  I have taken vacations for three weeks, so it was kind of like a little 3-week vacation from my normal routine.  Except that it was not a real getaway to some place warm and tropical with a white sand beach and crystal blue waters.  I thought that it would be easy as my daily routine normally consists of almond or soy milk in my coffee which is  decaf.  Normally, I do not eat a lot of sugar, but instead surrender to my sweet tooth with agave nectar swirled on top of plain yogurt, oatmeal, or flax cereal and pieces of extra dark chocolate late at night.  YUM, I am sure that you are now jumping up and down at the thought of flax cereal, but it is good, really (or at least that is what I keep telling myself).

You see, I enjoy eating well.  I like the process of purchasing my ingredients and coming up with an entire creation from start to finish.  So when I really thought about the 3 weeks of vegan/gluten free/no alcohol I had a few questions for myself… What would I do with my vanilla flavored protein powder?  There is milk in there.  Oh, and I do like to have an occasional glass of red wine.  I suppose that I would have to just stare longingly at the bottles as the dark ruby red color shined back at me and whispered into my ear just how good it was for my heart and that perhaps, just perhaps, I was actually doing my body a disservice by not sipping a glass of Duoro, Baltos, or Cabernet every other night with Hector.  Then there are those moments, when you get home from work and you just want to grab whatever is most convenient.  Often, that tends to be a piece of bread or a cracker or something.  It is about relearning what to grab and thinking about the choices that are really and truly what I want.

But 3 weeks?  I could do 3 weeks.  So here I am rounding out week number 2 and it really has not been that hard.  Perhaps the hardest part is explaining to friends (when they invited us over for brunch) the situation…

Them: So do you want to come over for brunch?

Me: Sure, can we bring anything? [CODE FOR ME TRYING TO GET AROUND THE SITUATION]

Them: How about some wine? [DAMN! I AM STUCK NOW…]

Me: OK, but I am doing this vegan thing for a few weeks just so you know…

Them: OK, will you eat eggs?

Me: Ummm, no, but Hector loves eggs! But I will be fine.

Them: No problem, we have tons of friends who are vegan!

So for the past two weeks my meals have consisted of (not all in one sitting mind you) oatmeal, fruit, flax seeds, several goes at gluten free bread, veggies in every which way, soups, beans, tofu, nuts, and I would be remiss if I left out dark chocolate...

Suddenly the situation is no longer a problem.  So I guess what I am doing is really like a mini vacation.  When I am traveling, I do not eat the same way that I do when I am at home, and truth be told, I rather enjoy it.  What do I miss?  A few ounces of grated parmesan on top of grilled vegetables and an occasional glass of wine.  A piece of rye bread under the broiler with melted jarlesberg and dried chili peppers on top.  However, I do think that it is always a good idea to break from routine and try something different from time to time, and this is exactly what I am doing.  I do not think that I will stay in this zone forever.  There is my wedding to think about, and I know that nothing will keep me from that cake that has eggs, sugar, flour, etc.  And a champagne toast will be in order.  So events will occur and I will partake.  However, what has occurred is a different level of awareness regarding the food that I eat.  Thank you Kristina!

White Bean and Leek Soup

  

Soup is one of those meals that comforts, heals, and relaxes you all at the same time.  In the summer it can be refreshing and cooling.  In the winter a single bowl can warm you up and take the harshest winter chill away.  Of all the people I know, it is my mother who makes the single best soups.  The day I came home from the hospital after my open heart surgery, she made chicken soup.  You might think, yes Lily, everyone's mother makes chicken soup.  But I do not normally like chicken soup.  I only like white meat, it has to be cleaned to perfection, and I am easily turned off by things in my soup that I do not think should be there (however, other people simply call me crazy).  This chicken soup was made with boneless breasts that she grilled with rosemary and olive oil and the broth was a light clear broth that had sweet onions, celery, and carrots.  Very few ingredients, and full of flavor.  The soup was so good that I actually told her I thought that I could return to work the following week (mind you this was hours about returning from the hospital and only 3 days after my surgery).  She looked at me, told me that my body was still full of an insane amount of drugs, and to continue eating my soup.  And for once, I listened to my mother.  My mother is an amazing cook.  

A year or so later, feeling considerably better, I found myself eating soup again in my mother's kitchen. This time it was a white bean and leek soup.  I kept asking her for the ingredients over and over again, because I did not believe her the first time.  The soup was rich and creamy, full of flavor, and unlike the chicken soup, this version happened to be vegetarian.  I was convinced that she added cream or butter, but no.  The flavors were enhanced by the freshness of the quality ingredients, and of course the fact that my mother had put the meal together...  Unfortunately, I still think that her version of trumps my recreation, but I felt satisfaction knowing that I came somewhat close to her level of greatness.  Enjoy!

White Bean and Leek Soup - serves 6

30 oz cooked white beans (or 2 cans of white beans - I used cannellini)

1 leek stalk

2 tbsp Olive Oil

2 tsp Sea Salt

2 C. Vegetable Broth

Rinse and slice the leeks.

 

Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottomed pan and add the leeks and the salt.  Cook the leeks for about 15 minutes until they begin to brown.  

Once the leeks are cooked, at the leeks, the white beans, and the vegetable broth to a blender and put on high until all of the ingredients are mixed into a smooth puree. Pour the mixture into a large saucepan to warm.  Serve immediately.  For added flavor top with fresh grated  pepper, a side of whole wheat bread, and chopped scallions on top.

Holiday Cheer

For the past five years Hector and I have held a holiday party.  It started with a simple little idea - why don't we just have a few friends over?  And from then, the parties have become quite an event.  Each year there is a core group of friends who come and are able to compare one party to the next, and then we find new friends who we bring into our close circle.  It is an amazing evening and one that takes weeks of preparation.  It starts with the invitations, the menu, and then I begin to work my magic.  I turn into the Sugar Plum Fairy and see what delights I can create to dazzle our friends.  I think that this year, despite not feeling 100% and the party falling on the 3rd anniversary of my open-heart surgery, was our best yet.

Dozens of frosted sugar cookies set the holiday tone. 

Salted caramel chocolates were one of the high points.

Molasses cookies covered in dark chocolate added some spice.

Sugar Cookies with toblerone layered in the middle added a nice surprise.

Macaroons layered with various fillings including chocolate amaretto ganache, rum coconut buttercream, and salted caramel were the hit of the party.

Yes, I would say that Holiday Party #5 was a great success - so much so that before the last guest left I was already planning our next event.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Rosemary Goat Cheese Lamb Chops

Truth be told, I am not much of a meat eater.  Following my open heart surgery, I moved away from meat, and filled my diet with legumes, tofu, fish, and the like.  However, the same does not hold for the King of Hearts, my better half, Hector.  So during one miserable "fall-like" night this past July, I thought that I should break out of my norm and find a tasty recipe for him.  I settled on lamb chops.  I figured that they would be relatively easy to make, I knew he loved lamb, and I would challenge myself as I had never made lamb before.  I searched through several recipes and came across one from Whole Foods, which I adapted.  Hector loved it, and he knows what he is talking about when it comes to food!  The rosemary goat cheese sauce is fantastic, and could accompany so much more than lamb.  In fact, I was happy just eating it off the spoon.  Now that we are settling into fall, I might have to make this recipe again as it is comforting and filling, but not too heavy.  Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 teaspoon salt
4 lean lamb chops, each about 1-inch thick (I asked the butcher to cut them for me so they were smaller - similar to lollipops)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons finely chopped rosemary
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 sprigs of rosemary
3 ounces goat cheese

Preheat oven to broil.

Place an oven-proof skillet on the stove on high heat and add the salt. When you flick a little drop of water in the skillet and it sizzles it's ready for the chops. Sear the chops on the first side until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes, then flip the chops, sprinkle them with pepper and sear the other side for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle chopped rosemary all over chops.

Transfer skillet to oven and broil for about 3 minutes per side, or longer, if desired. Remove chops from the skillet and keep warm in a covered casserole dish. Return skillet to stovetop and heat over medium high heat. (Be careful not to touch the handle of the skillet since it will still be very hot!)

Add wine to deglaze the skillet, scraping the browned bits off of the bottom. Add broth and 1 sprig rosemary and simmer at a low boil and add the goat cheese.  Allow to cook for about 6-10 minutes. Remove and discard rosemary sprig.

Place the chops on a plate and drizzle sauce over the top. Top with remaining rosemary sprig and serve immediately.  I served mine with rosemary roaster potatoes.

And then...

there was lunch (or dinner, or a snack!).

Garbanzo Beans - 1 C
Matchstick Zucchini - 2 C
Quinoa- 1/2 C
Raisins - 1/2 C
Roasted Garlic - 5 cloves
Crumbled Feta - 1/2 C

Toss and serve... add some olive oil if desired and salt and pepper, cumin for a lovely Moroccan-inspired taste.

Domestic Saturday Morning Pancakes

"Well aren't you acting all domesticated this morning..." Hector said to me after I offered to make him pancakes for breakfast.  It was not the first time I made pancakes, and certainly not the last.  But it is certainly not something that I do every week.  But for some reason I wanted to make pancakes yesterday - probably due to the fact that did not wake up until shortly after 9am... most mornings I am up between 5-6:30, but yesterday, I slept in late.  Very, very late.  Perhaps that is what inspired me to make the pancakes.  I have made chocolate chip pancakes before, plain pancakes, but for some reason pancakes with thin, fresh slices of banana seemed like the right thing to make.  The Joy of Cooking recipe is one of the best I have found, and I go to it time and again.  It allows for variation and substitution.  The recipe as is makes for the perfect pancake:  light, fluffy, and satisfying.  Feel free to add, take away, and have fun with this classic that will make your weekends seem a little bit longer...

Adapted from 1997 Joy of Cooking
1 C all purpose flour
1/2 C whole wheat pastry flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 C milk
3 tbsp melted butter
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp banana
1 medium banana thinly sliced

Whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Add in the eggs, milk, and butter.  Stir until all the ingredients are mixed together, do not worry if you have some lumps, you do not want the batter over mixed.  Add in the banana.

Heat a non-stick pan or skillet.  I use cooking spray, but you can use butter as well. (Some pans do not need any kind of spray etc.)  Use about 1/3 C for each pancake and pour onto the skillet/pan.  Cook until bubbles rise top of the pancake and begin to pop open.  Flip the pancakes and cook in the other side for several minutes until they are golden brown.  You can keep the pancakes warm underneath a kitchen towel, or in the oven at 200F.  NOTE: pancakes freeze well!  Once the pancakes are cooled, put uneaten ones (as if you will really have this problem...) into a freezer bag. 

Two for Tuesday

More and more I love Twitter.  I really do.  Finding a group of like minded people with whom you can share ideas, thoughts, and brainstorm about all things related to food and cooking rocks.  I have found a whole new world (not to quote a Disney Song or anything) but seriously, it is great!  So it makes it pretty fun to focus on a few fab bloggers every few weeks on Tuesdays.  This week it is Jennifer Perillo and Zoe Francais - both avid in the Twittersphere!  So let's get to it!

I am pairing Jennie up with Zoe... for some reason, these two work together for me.  They are coming up with new recipes almost hourly, and manage to balance this with a full family life.

Jennifer...I want to hang out in Jennie's kitchen.  I think that her butter would spread beautifully on top of a stack of her buttermilk pancakes.  I might end the meal with some cinnamon rolls, and then wait around checking out her herbs and help her decide what meal we should all have next.  While sorting out that major decision, I would insist on drinking down a pitcher of her sangria.  In fact, I might even ask for a pitcher all for myself and place a straw in pitcher.  You should also go into Jennie's kitchen, although, I must warn you, you might have some problems getting yourself out!  It is so refreshing to see someone show how to properly cook plantains (one of my favorite things ever!)  She also writes for the Cuisinart Stand Mixer Blog.  Recipes fill the pages.  Is there anything Jennifer doesn't cover in her many blogs???

Zoe...You have got to check out the images on her site - you will really want to pick up your phone and think about dialing Zoe.  I mean she might be able to ship her cakes and pastries to you, it can never hurt to ask, right???? Gorgeous and divine is how they look.  She went as far as to bake TWO birthday cake for her son's birthday this year.  Zoe also has a cook book on baking artisan bread in five minutes... seriously?  I mean I have baked artisan bread, but it took a few days!  If you live in Minnesota, check out one of Zoe's classes - you can learn some of her fabulous baking secrets.  Zoe's most recent post is Coffee Ice Cream with Rosemary Shortbread... is it summer yet? Well, for this recipe it really does not matter what time of year it is because it just looks so fabulous, you would probably be willing to eat it in the dead of winter in the middle of a blizzard!

So do not waste anymore time... Go and visit Zoe and Jennifer (after clicking through this site of course!).

Two for Tuesday #5

Helen and Bea both live on the East Coast and spend a great deal of their time in their kitchens.  They slave over their stove tops and every so often step back, pull out the camera, and make sure that whatever it is they are cooking up comes out picture perfect.  The pictures might have macaroons stacked one on top of the next in a pretty flower cup or a perfect picnic on a New England beach.  Whatever images they happen to post, you will find yourself wondering: 1. how could food possibly look that beautiful, and 2. perhaps you could extend and invitation to Helen and Bea and they will come over and teach you their secrets. (However, make sure the invitation is hand written, from the looks of things, I think that they would appreciate it...)

And they have a lot more in common than their picture-perfect food.  They are both ex-pats from France who have Irish American husbands.  I thought that these two would be perfect to pair up in this week's Two for Tuesday! So here we go...

Helen (Tartelette)...What do you think about Cardamom and Saffron Ice Cream or Strawberry Charlottes?  How about Mango and Vanilla Bean Buttermilk Panna Cottas or Algerian Almond Tarts... Yes, I know. They all sound delicious, and as if they came from the pages of the greats:  Julia Child, Maida Heatter, you know.  The list goes on.  Well, this is just as wonderful.  Helen, is a French ex-pat living in the States where she is both baking and photography to no end.  The more she does it, the happier we will all be!  Not only is she talented in the kitchen and the dark room, but Helen also has a PhD in History.  This woman is SMART.  She knows what to write about and how to draw her readers in.  Check out her site Tartelette and you will see exactly what I am talking about!

Bea  (La Tartine Gourmand)...Her blog was hijacked yesterday (lovingly) by her husband to wish her happy birthday.  Anyone who has a husband who goes to such measures to convey such a message... Well, I have to write about it!  From savory Herb and Red Peppercorn Goat Cheese to Pears Poached in Red Wine to Hachis Parmentier (which is gluten free...) Bea really covers all bases on her site.  Added bonus - she lives in Boston!  Maybe I will be able to track her down through her pics... oh wait, that is kind of paparazzi-ish.  Forget it.  I will just look from afar and admire her images and posts, and just be content that I am in the same city with such talent!

Check out these blogs - they will not disappoint!

Passez une bonne journee!  A bientot!