pixie’s and rosie’s putting up event •

This event could not have come at a better time for me. I will be the first to admit it: I do better with deadlines. I have been wanting to make my own jam for almost a year (yes, folks, you read that right...almost a YEAR). I had strawberries in the freezer from last June that really needed to be used. You see, my mother is the jam and jelly maker of the family. I remember helping her prepare the fruit; washing, stemming, coring and slicing. But for the life of me, I don’t ever remember watching her process the jam from start to finish. Could it be that she waited until all the gremlins were at school to fill those jars with hot, steaming deliciousness? At any rate, I have been very intimidated by the whole thing. So the Putting up Event came at the right time, giving me that extra little nudge I needed. That and the fact that we finally ran out of all the jam and jelly that my mother had given me on her last visit. My first jam is nothing exotic or different. Just strawberry jam. But I will tell you what my youngest darling said. “Mommy, this is WAY better than the stuff we get at the store, you should sell this!” Good enough for me!

an award and a silly tag •

I am honored! Elle from Elle’s New England Kitchen has awarded me the “Arte y pico” Award. She comments, “It's awarded to blogs for their creativity, design, interesting material, and that also contribute to the blogger community, no matter what language”...that was right off her website. Such an honor, especially coming from Elle, who cooks and bakes up some wonderful creations! I have to pass the award on to 5 blogs. Here are the rules:

1. Pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award with their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribute to the blogger community, no matter what language.

2. Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.

3. Each award-winner, has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.

4. Post the rules.

The 5 blogs I choose:

1. Cooking with Anne

2. A Southern Grace

3. Palachinka

4. The Xocoatl Express

5. Thursday Night Smackdown

A Silly Meme •

Marja from Palachinka has tagged me for this silly meme. Here is how it works, and keep to the foodie theme if you can:

Pick up the nearest book. Open to page 123. Find the fifth sentence. Post the next three sentences. Tag 5 people and acknowledge who tagged you. 

Unfortunately, my cookbook is not nearly as interesting as hers. I am using The All-Purpose Cookbook—Joy of Cooking. I am reminded reading through it why I NEVER use this cookbook. It irritates the living **** out of me. First things first...the reading glasses. Ah! Here we go—the fifth sentence on page 123: Oddly enough, deep-fat frying is still another kind of dry heat cooking. 

I ask you, who cares? I just want something fried and chocolate...NOW!

The next three sentences: Here the heat is not only transferred by the oil or grease used as a cooking medium, but by the moisture in the food itself—some of the steam from the food juices being forced into the fat and then out into the atmosphere. Among dry heat pan-processes, sautéing, page 253, uses the least fat. Pan-broiling and pan-frying are successive steps beyond sautéing and away from the driest heat.

*Yawn* I know you are all sitting on the edge of your chairs waiting for the rest. Sorry to disappoint you. Thank you, Marja, for making me dig out that book...my good friend, Jill, is having a tag sale this weekend. Maybe it is time to pass this one on! I am tagging:

1. Cake Chica from Glass Slipper Cakery

2. Emiline from Visions of Sugarplum

3. Lidian from Kitchen Retro

4. Dharm from Dad-Baker & Chef

5. Francie from Ramblings of a Frantic Home Cook

happy mother’s day & what not to do on 4 hours of sleep •

I wish I had a photograph to show you. The kitchen was too dark, too hot and too cramped. And I was just too teed off, anyway. 

Last night I woke up at 1:00 a.m., and did not fall asleep again until the birds started chirping their sweet little heads off around 5:00 a.m. I woke up to an empty coffeepot, no coffee in the house...zippo. One hour left for me to get ready for work. My sweet husband (my crazed look would have scared anyone out of the house) was sent off to the local coffeehouse for some caffeinated brew. I threw together a bag lunch, grabbed my cup and went off to the shop. After a day of extremely boring work (why, of all days today?!) I headed home to what I refer to as the “Second Shift”. 

Facing a pantry of very slim pickings for dinner, I managed to find two lonely cans of tuna. I did have some leftover dough in the refrigerator from the last Slug that I had made. Aha! Tuna salad on rolls with broiled cheese on top—dinner for the non-vegetarians, straight cheese rolls for the veggies. After dinner, I faced a new dilemma; I had forgotten to make bread earlier. The little darlings did not have any to make their sandwiches with! Being a mom, and always ready to fly by the seat of my pants, I decided to bake some pb&j muffins. Of course there is no jam, no jelly. Aha! I have a jar of apple butter in my refrigerator! I should have stopped there. But I didn’t. I eyed the soybeans soaking in the corner, ready and waiting to be processed. I’m a mom! I can do four things at once if I have to, right? After all, I could probably make soy milk with my eyes closed by now!

In the space of a half-hour, I was juggling two emergency loads of laundry (we have a band concert tomorrow, mommy!) two batches of soy milk, and a muffin recipe. Meanwhile, the oven had been preheated very nicely, thank you. Crowding the counter with the soy milk machine, two muffins tins, measuring cups, measuring spoons, etc., I diligently carried on. One batch of soy milk down, cooling on the stove. One muffin recipe half done, waiting for the rest of the liquid ingredients. I measured out the oil and poured it in. I measured out the peanut butter, and in it plopped. I began to stir. Hmmm...seems a little...OH  *%$!!!#@!!* You all know what I did—

My beautiful batch of soy milk was now swimming with oil and peanut butter. It was now 9:00 p.m. I am sweating, the muffins still need to be baked, and the soy milk machine is beeping at me. I want to throw everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) in the sink and go to bed. You all know I didn’t. Visions of my mother flashed through my head. She is standing at the kitchen counter, in the middle of August. Steam is rising from the canner on the stove. It is well past midnight, but when produce needs to be processed, it doesn’t wait. She has six children to feed, nothing is wasted.

I scooped out the peanut butter and added it to the correct mixing bowl. The soy milk, alas, could not be saved. I finished up the muffins and put them in to bake. I made the second batch of soy milk and put the okara in the refrigerator. I put the last load in the dryer. 

Happy Mother’s Day to all those mommies out there who never give up!

okara pb&j muffins •

Lunch making is a snap with these peanut butter and jam muffins. My darlings make their own lunches for school, usually. My job as their mother is to nag, nag, NAG them the night before. “Did you make your lunch?” “I WILL, Mom, after this game...it’s almost over”. Mom goes about her business, completely forgetting that the question was even asked until five minutes before bedtime. “Well, looks like you will have to get up early and make it before school”. Yeah, right...like that’s going to happen! They run off to school the next morning, and call you to tell you that they forgot their lunch. You mean the lunch that was never made? Do I let them starve to teach them a lesson, or do I quick make a lunch before I leave for work and drop it off? OH! The Mommy Guilt! I am chock-full of it. I used Concord Grape preserves on this batch, without the optional topping. These muffins will make short work out of making lunch, a great grab-it-and-go muffin for children or Mommies. 

Okara PB&J Muffins •

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Whisk together in a medium mixing bowl:

1 cup wet okara (this is referring to the okara straight from your machine)

1-1/2 cups vanilla yogurt

1 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/4 cup safflower oil

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

Sift together in a large mixing bowl:

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1-1/2 cups unbleached white flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 ground flaxseed meal

1/2 teaspoon salt

Set aside:

3 to 4 tablespoons fruit jam

3 tablespoons chopped peanuts - optional for topping

1 tablespoon sugar - optional for topping

Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. DO NOT OVER MIX. Line your muffin tins with paper liners. Fill the liners 1/3 of the way with batter. Make a small dent in the center of the batter and place 1 teaspoon of fruit jam inside of the dent. Spoon batter on top of jam to equal 2/3 full. Mix the chopped peanuts and sugar together and sprinkle on top if desired. Bake muffins 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown.

UPDATE! Just made a batch with Apple Butter instead of jam/jelly. The eldest darling declared them to be her favorite so far.

what’s in a name? the slug •

As much as I would like to introduce this dinner as something else, I can’t. You know how nicknames come about. The little darlings start bantering and the hubby chimes in. They think they are being terribly clever, and the next thing you know, the lovely dinner you chopped, minced and sautéed over is affectionately called “The Slug”. Just because it was a tad longer than the baking sheet I chose, and I had to slightly curl it into a *gulp* worm shape. Despite the handle that it carries, this dinner a wonderful cheesy conglomeration rolled up in a yeast bread made with okara. Serve it with a crispy, green salad. I promise that it won’t be slimy at all.

The Slug • 

The Dough

1-3/4 cups warm water

1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast (2-1/4 teaspoons)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup warm wet okara (this is referring to the okara straight from your machine)

4 cups white unbleached flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

In a large mixing bowl sprinkle yeast over warm water. Let it sit and dissolve for about 5 minutes. Stir and add the oil, salt, okara, and 2 cups of white flour. Beat well until gluten forms; the mixture will become stringy. Gradually add the rest of the flour until it forms a soft but firm dough. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let rise until double (about 1 hour). While the dough rises, prepare the filling. This recipe makes enough dough for 3 thin-crust pizzas, or 1 thin crust pizza and 1 Slug.

The Filling

1 cup dehydrated tomatoes 

Place dehydrated tomatoes in a bowl and cover them with warm water.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup sweet yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups white button mushrooms, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups mozzarella cheese

2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

 In a large skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Sauté the  bell pepper, onion, and mushrooms until mushrooms are reduced and slightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Drain the tomatoes and add to the skillet, sauté briefly. Add salt. 

Oil a baking sheet with olive oil. Dividing dough into thirds, use two-thirds for your Slug. Using your fingers, press the dough flat onto the baking sheet. Spread your filling evenly across the dough. Sprinkle dough with mozzarella cheese, the herbs and the spices. Starting at long side of your dough, roll up and tuck in the ends, seam side down. Curve the roll slightly to form your Slug. Let rise in a warm area until double, approximately 45 minutes to an hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the Slug for 35 to 45 minutes.

rendezvous at midnight brownies •

Maybe it was the weather; the thunderstorms that rocked the house at 3:00 a.m. and woke me up. Maybe it was the fact that it was still raining this morning, and that the temperature outside was warmer than inside our home. Or that I had to take a darling to the doctor...again. Maybe it was the $400.00 bill down at Joe’s Auto Repair waiting for me. For whatever reason I needed something chocolate...and fast! I initially thought I would bake a batch of peanut butter brownies. As I pulled out the ingredients, however, the chill of the house really started to get me down. I changed my mind midstream, dreaming of warmer spices and heat. So I came up with this recipe—dark, seductive, and subtly spicy. Just like a rendzvous at midnight.

Rendezvous at Midnight Brownies •

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

In a microwaveable bowl melt together:

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup (3 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips

8 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons Hershey’s® Cocoa Special Dark

Microwave on high for one minute, stir and set aside to finish melting. After this mixture cools down a bit, mix in 1 cup wet okara* (this is referring to the okara straight from your machine), 2 teaspoons vanilla, 2 teaspoons chipolte pepper in adobo sauce (smooshed well with a fork). Is that a cooking term, “smooshed”?

In a large mixing bowl sift together:

1 cup white unbleached flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Sweetened whipped cream and chili powder for garnish (optional)

Add the chocolate mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing well. Spread into a foil lined (grease the foil) 8" x 8" square baking pan. Bake for approximately 35 - 40 minutes. Do not overbake! Cool completely before removing the foil and cutting into small squares. Split brownies in half and spread a layer of whipped cream in-between layers. Place a dollop of whipped cream on top and sprinkle with chili powder.  

*Note: You can substitute 2 large eggs, beaten, for the wet okara.

a taste of yellow / a memory of dad •

The phone call finally came. The one I had tried to prepare for and was never prepared for. The one that I dreaded and yet, somehow, did not; he had suffered so much already. “It’s time” my sister said. My father’s second bout with T cell Lymphoma had turned the corner, he was failing rapidly. We had been making the six hour trip religiously for months on the weekends. Packing up the car, the kids, the dog. Arriving late on a Friday night and doing the best we could over Saturday and Sunday to help my mother. My loving and patient husband never complaining, doing the yard work and other maintenance that my father couldn’t manage anymore. Somehow my father’s son and two of my sisters were suspiciously absent, even though he lived not five minutes from my parent’s home, and the sisters lived in town. One of my sisters, who lived states away, whose children were grown and on their own, had taken a leave of absence from her job. She had been there already for two months. Did I mention she was an angel on earth? Another sister, 3 and a half hours away, did what she could with a little one and husband to take care of.

You see, my father wanted to die at home. Among his trees, his birds, and his garden and plants. He wanted to see his Japanese Maple change colors in the Fall. He wanted to smell his peonies. He wanted to be able to sit on his rocking chair on the screen porch and enjoy the paradise that he had made. And a paradise it was! Oh, to many people it wouldn’t seem so— after all, there was no beach, no lake or mansion. Instead there were fruit trees and a huge organic garden, bursting with vegetables. Flowers bloomed everywhere; roses, lilacs, annuals and perennials. Butterflies flitted among the plants and the rabbits had fun teasing the dog. He was a graphic artist by profession, but a farmer at heart. My father was at peace sitting on that porch.

When my sister answered the door, she handed me the baby monitor. “You’re on night watch” was all she said, heading straight for bed. We fell into our routines easily, taking care of my father. It was a privilege. My sister and mother gave the job of feeding him to me, because for some unknown reason, I could get him to eat. I made his Cream of Wheat® just thin enough for him to swallow. I made sure he drank water all day long. I would blow on one teaspoon of coffee at a time, because he still wanted it with his breakfast. I would get right in front of his face (the morphine and cancer making him unresponsive for moments at a time). “Open your mouth, Dad”. “Dad, open your mouth.” “Dad, open”. Until one day he replied, “You’re beginning to bug me...” Even in his drugged induced state he kept his sense of humor. There at the end, and it seems so ridiculous now, I did not want to stop feeding him. The cancer was killing him, and he wasn’t hungry anymore, but I could not, would not let him starve! Because to me, after being raised by a gardener and artist who taught me what real fruit and vegetables tasted like, and a mother that was an amazing cook, food meant comfort. Food meant LOVE.

Within two weeks of arriving at my parent’s home, my father passed away. He waited until the house was quiet. If you knew my extended family at all, you would realize what a feat that was. For the two weeks I was there full-time, my father still had many visitors (relatives and friends). He had endured a rough night before he died. My siblings and I were at a constant vigil at his side, thinking he would die in the night. The next day, he was calm, breathing softly, and some of my sisters left to do some much needed errands. I could not leave. The invitation was presented, but I just couldn’t go. Something (someone?) compelled me to stay, even though it looked like my father was going to stay around awhile. I settled in a chair in the kitchen to knit, listening to his even breathing in the other room. My mother was with me, reading the paper. Getting up to find a measuring tape for my knitting project, I wandered over to his bedside, and leaning over, I whispered in his ear “I love you, Daddy”. I went upstairs, grabbed the tape and stepped back through his room. He took two breaths and was gone. 

At his wake, in his memory, we served his homemade wine, made from the grapes he grew in his yard.

My father died in November four years ago. Sometimes it seems like only yesterday, sometimes it seems like it has been forever. How fitting that my father loved lemon, as I bake my Lemon Sweethearts for A Taste of Yellow (over at Barbara’s blog: Winos and Foodies ) and LiveStrongDay. Dad, I know you would have preferred a lemon meringue pie, but I make meringue about as well as you made yeast bread (until you got your bread-maker). If you were alive today, I would serve you a big plate of Sweethearts with a cup of strong black coffee. You would compliment me on my frugal use of okara, cooking and baking with it instead of throwing it away, questioning why I make soy milk anyhow, and bewildered that two of your granddaughters are now vegetarians. We would sit on the porch and watch the birds and laugh at the silly dog chasing the rabbits. Since you are not here, I will take my Sweethearts to my good friend Elaine, a breast cancer survivor for over ten years. We will sit and sip our coffee, share the cookies and reminisce over the loved ones that we have lost...I miss you, Dad.

Lemon Sweetheart Cookies •

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

8 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup granulated white sugar

2 tablespoons lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup wet okara (this is referring to the okara straight from your machine) or mashed soft tofu

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups unbleached white flour

1 cup dried tart cherries

1 cup chopped white chocolate (or white chocolate chips)

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese well. Add sugar and beat until fluffy, about three minutes. Add lemon zest, salt, lemon juice and okara and mix well. Mix in baking powder and flour. Stir in cherries and chocolate by hand. Drop by teaspoonfuls on parchment lined baking sheets. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until light golden brown around edges. Let cool slightly before moving to wire racks to cool completely. Makes approximately 5 dozen cookies.