raincoats & recipes

When I originally came across this recipe I was a little worried about the no bake nature of the pumpkin filling. I thought it might too gooey. Instead after the incorporation of the sugar and the graham crackers, the filling was pretty substantial and not at all runny or gooey. Also don’t be fooled by how small the empty baking cups look, one of these things when finished is very filling.

Also, at first glance it might seem like these cups might take a long time to put together, but don’t be scared away. These go really quickly, the whole process probably takes 35 minutes.

White Chocolate Cups with Pumpkin Pie-ish Filling
(Slightly adapted from HealthyFoodforLiving)
makes about 10 mini (2 inch) cups

• 10 oz good-quality chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips
• 10 mini (2 inch) aluminum/tin foil muffin liners
• 2 oz (about 4 Tbsp) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup finely ground cinnamon graham cracker crumbs (a food processor works best here)

Directions:

1. Melt half the white chocolate. I just melted it in the microwave, approximately 3 times at 30 seconds apiece stirring between each. Or, if you feel more ambitious melt it in a double boiler.
2. Using a small spoon, “paint” the melted chocolate all over the insides of 10 mini tin foil muffin liners (the tin foil cups are easier to peel off than the paper cups). The layer of chocolate should be thick enough so that you cannot see through it, but thin enough that the paper cups remain upright and intact.
3. Allow chocolate cups to cool and harden completely by placing on a tray or in Tupperware containers in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. You can also complete this step the night before.
4. In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, pumpkin, pie spice and vanilla extract and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Stir in graham cracker crumbs.
5. Using a mini ice cream scoop or a small spoon, evenly divide the pumpkin mixture between the hardened chocolate cups. Smooth the top to create an even surface.
6. Melt the remaining chocolate.
7. Evenly divide the remaining melted chocolate amongst the filled cups, smoothing the tops and making sure the chocolate reaches all the way to the edges in order to seal the cups.
8. Chill in the refrigerator until set, about 1-2 hours.

So there’s no doubting my commitment to pumpkin. I love mixing pumpkin puree to pretty much anything. This week I attempted two pumpkin breakfast recipes – pumpkin oatmeal and pumpkin pancakes.

First the bad – I tried this Pumpkin Spice Steel Cut Oatmeal. I might have done something wrong, but mine turned out bland and thick enough to spackle my walls with. I definitely want to try it again though, maybe with brown sugar.

And the good – and by good I mean life-changing-ingly good - Martha’s Pumpkin Pancakes. These things are perfection. I don’t understand people who issue blanket statements like “I don’t like pumpkin” and their experience with pumpkin is based in a couple bad Thanksgiving pumpkin pies.

Pumpkin Pancakes

Whisk 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 2 tablespoons sugar; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon each cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt; 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg; and a pinch of ground cloves.

In a separate bowl, stir together 1 cup milk, 6 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and 1 egg.

Fold mixture into dry ingredients.

Melt some butter in a skillet over medium heat; pour in 1/4 cup batter for each pancake.

Cook pancakes about 3 minutes per side; serve with butter and syrup. Makes 8 to 10.

I had a request for something chocolate / peanut butter and I went with these Martha Stewart Chocolate Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies. In the past I have occasionally found Martha’s recipes a bit finnicky, but not these. These turned out perfectly.The cookies were moist and dense, and the filling was very light.

If I were to make these again, I might swap in a more substantial frosting – like a peanut butter cream cheese frosting. This filling is really tasty, and I might return to it for something else – but for this it seemed almost too delicate.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies
(from Martha Stewart)

For the Cookies:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, not Dutch-process
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Filling:

2/3 cup natural, creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

Make cookies: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a small bowl; set aside.

Put butter, shortening, and sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add egg; mix until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in half the flour mixture, then the milk and vanilla. Mix in remaining flour mixture.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies spring back when lightly touched, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks using a spatula; let cool completely.

Make filling: Put peanut butter and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on high speed until smooth. Reduce mixer speed to low. Add confectioners’ sugar; mix until combined. Raise speed to high, and mix until fluffy and smooth, about 3 minutes.

Assemble cookies: Spread 1 scant tablespoon filling on the bottom of 1 cookie. Sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling. Cookies can be refrigerated in single layers in airtight containers up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.

So while I was at the grocery store I called my mother to confer on the amount of cheese I would need to buy to make these cookies. And the conversation went something like this:

Me: Ok, so I’ll buy this 1/4 pound block of gouda, and that should be enough.
Mom: Yeah, so what are you making?
Me: Apple, Gouda, Oatmeal and Raisin cookies.
Mom: What? Oh, that sounds disgusting.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from these cookies. I liked the sound of them when I saw the recipe, but then again the recipe didn’t call for one tablespoon of butter. Highly suspicious.  In the end, I think calling them cookies is a bit of a misnomer. I liked the taste, but they seem heartier than cookies, almost biscuit like. As one person put it, I could see serving these with a bowl of soup.

These cookies also have the benefit of being extremely easy to put together. One bowl and a liquid measuring cup is all that making the batter will take you. Although grating apples with cheese grader is sort of an arduous process.

Apple Gouda Oatmeal and Raisin Cookies
makes 24 cookies
Recipe from The Kitchn

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla OR 1 tablespoon dark rum
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup golden raisins (I used regular raisins because they were cheaper)
1 medium-sized apple (about 10 ounces)
4 ounces Gouda cheese, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Whisk the olive oil and egg together in a glass measuring cup until completely combined. Whisk in the vanilla or rum. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and oats. Stir in the raisins.

Peel and core the apple. Use the coarse side of a grater to grate it directly into the flour. (You should have 1 1/2 to 2 cups of shredded apple.) Stir in the apple and the chopped Gouda.

Add the liquids from the measuring cup and stir just until everything is moistened. The dough will be loose and clumpy. Drop in large spoonfuls on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 17 minutes, or until the cookies are golden. They will be very soft still. Let them cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to cooling racks to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

October is officially under way and that means I can start breaking out the solid pack pumpkin. I can take or leave pumpkin pie, but a soft moist pumpkin cake topped with cream cheese icing might be the death of me. Paula Dean calls these pumpkin bars, but they taste more like cake to me. Still I sliced them in to brownie sized portions.

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
(from Paula Dean)
4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
15-ounce can pumpkin
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing:
8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy.

3. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth.

5. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10-inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

A trip to the farmer’s market had me buying a whole bushel of tomatoes for a couple of bucks. I’m planning on canning most of them to use throughout the winter, but I decided to make some soup with the rest of them. The grilled cheese sandwiches involved muenster and thick slices of country white bread.  Amazing. The perfect meal for inviting friends over to share on a Sunday evening.

Tomato Soup
(Slightly Adapted from Former Chef)

2 cups chopped carrots
2 cups chopped celery
3 cups diced onions
6 cloves garlic, minced
12 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups water or chicken stock
2 Tbsp kosher salt
2 tsp. sugar

1. Rough chop all the vegetables. It doesn’t matter what they look like because the soup will be blended later, but make sure the carrots, onions and celery are all about the same size so they cook at the same rate.

2. In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add in the carrots, celery and onions and cook until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook another 5 minutes, but don’t let the vegetables brown. Add in the tomatoes and water or chicken stock. Allow to simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down and the carrots are soft.

3. Puree the soup (I used an immersion blender – a regular blender would do as well) add the salt and sugar to taste.

[This is the point in the original recipe in which they strained the soup to remove the tomato skins, but tomato skins especially blended ones, don't kill people, and I hate straining so I just left them in, the soup was then was a tad chunkier, but not noticeably]

I had a mess of blueberries still sitting in the fridge, and so I decided the other night was the perfect time to mix them with some butter and flour into blueberry crumb bars. There isn’t much else to say but that they were perfection. And also stupid easy to make. Aside from the butter cutting – which is high on my list of annoying baking tasks. If I actually got myself a pastry cutter would I hate my life less? Or is it only a marginal improvement?

[Blueberry Crumb recipe from Smitten Kitchen]

Yesterday dawned windy and sunny but with a chill in the air. After the heat wave for most of the previous week, it felt like fall had finally arrived with the first days of September. I went to the farmer’s market in the morning and bought a couple of things that I thought I would use – apples, peaches, red peppers and some big tomatoes. I had no specific plans, but later on I knew exactly what I wanted to make for dinner – soup.

After a little Googling, I found this recipe, which happened to use most of the things I had bought earlier. It seemed like a match made in heaven. I wasn’t sure exactly how it would turn out, especially since I made some changes to the recipe. In the end, it was exactly what I wanted. Mine had a thick-ish consistency, almost like home made tomato sauce. But it was sweet and smokey and hearty and it was perfect for eating a big bowlful out on the porch with Liz.

Roasted Apple, Red Pepper and Tomato Soup
Adapted from here

The original recipe called for a blender, I adapted it a little and opted for using my immersion blender. As such the original recipe called for much less chopping of the veggies, since I was immersion blending I cut them up smaller but still big enough for successful roasting.

1 large-ish apple, cored and roughly chopped (I used a Granny Smith apple, but any other tart apple, or cooking apple would work as well)
2 red bell peppers, roughly chopped
1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 largish tomatoes, roughly chopped (around 4 cups)
1 14.5 oz can of Veggie Broth*
1 tablespoon of sugar
Salt and Black Pepper – to taste
1/4 cup Heavy Cream (optional)

1. Pre-heat the over to 400°F. Place the apples, red peppers, onion and garlic on a baking tray, sprinkle with olive oil, a pinch of salt and some black pepper and place in the oven for about 15 minutes. Turn them once, take them out once they’ve roasted up nice and evenly.

2. Transfer roasted veggies to a large stock-pot. Add the veggie broth and tomatoes. Bring to boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat, put the lid on and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth or slightly chunky. (Mine still had a few way-ward tomato and apple chunks). Add salt, pepper and sugar to taste. Stir in heavy cream, if using.

* If you find yourself short any kind of stock – veggie or otherwise – as I did the second time I made this, I can also report that 1 cup of water works as a substitute in a pinch.

I had forgotten about how good these quesadillas are until the other night, when I needed something to make for dinner. They are a perfect dinner for the end of the summer when both zucchini and corn are cheap and plentiful. They are also really quick, easy and very delicious.

The original recipe makes two medium sized quesadillas, which is great and all, but it’s a lot one person. Half of a large quesadilla can make a solid meal for one person with some leftovers. So here’s a rough halving of the recipe from Ezra Pound Cake.

Adapted from “Everyday Food” & Ezra Pound Cake

Serves 1-2 depending on hunger.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 smallish zucchini, halved lengthwise and roughly chopped
1 cup fresh corn kernels (or the kernels from 1 ear of corn – frozen corn works too)
Dash of chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
2 flour tortillas (12-inch)
1 cup grated Pepper Jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add onion and 1 teaspoon salt, cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, cook 1 minute more.

2. Add zucchini and frozen corn kernels, cook, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is soft and corn is tender, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in cilantro, if using.

3. Brush one side of all tortillas with remaining 1 tablespoon oil; lay 2 tortillas, oiled side down, on a baking sheet. Place half of the filling on each, and sprinkle with half the cheese. Place remaining 2 tortillas on top, oiled side up; press down gently with spatula to seal.

4. Bake until cheese has melted and tortillas are golden brown, turning once, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven; let cool slightly. To serve, slice each quesadilla into wedges.

I took advantage of the end of the summer bounty at the regional market to make some of these Perfect Blueberry muffins (from Smitten Kitchen).

Like Deb says, these muffins are pretty much damn near perfect. I used sour cream in mine, which I had my doubts about but worked wonderfully. Mine got a little slime-y after day two in the ziploc bag, but still perfectly edible. I found these really refreshing after eating so many cloyingly sweet excuses for blueberry muffins from the Starbucks / Dunkin’ Donuts of the world.