On Books and To-Read Organizing

I stumbled across these posts on organizing your reading list, and I felt inspired to share my system because figuring out a way that worked for me was a wonderful thing. 

I’m an avid Goodreads user (more on that below) but I’ve never much liked their “To-read” feature, for reasons I don’t really understand. Then I was inspired by this post on Lifehacker, which lead me to Trello. I have a few Trello boards, and I found that the website combined with the App help me keep track of my cultural to-do lists better than anything else I’ve tried (and believe me, I think I had tried them all). For me Trello’s advantage is how quickly I can add something to the list. 

This is my Trello books board - the list on the far left is the “Backlog list” meaning it’s something that I want to read at some point. Same with the “Kindle” list, which are ebooks I have and want to read. Since I get 90% of the books I read from the library, I need a to-read list that helps me keep those organized. The “To-Do” column are the books I have out from the library (with their due dates), and the “Reading” column is the one that I’m currently reading. Once I finish the book, I log a review of it in my Goodreads account and move it to the “Finished” column. (The finished column is starting to get unwieldy, so I may also break it down by year). Then I have the Trello board linked to the Google Calendar, so the book due dates show up on my Google Calendar.

I know some people don’t use Goodreads all the time, but putting a review there, or even marking it as read in Goodreads allows me to do a couple of things: 

I have an IFTTT recipe set up that takes the books from my Goodreads read shelf and puts them in my Google Calendar. (There’s no real advantage to that, I just like seeing them in there cause I think it’s cool).

Once I log the books in Goodreads, I also go through and add them to my Google Tracking sheets. You can export the data from Goodreads, but it can take a while to clean up, and I'd rather just do that work in small increments throughout the year by entering them as I go rather than clean up at the end of the year. Here's a link to a copy of my tracking template, if you want to save a copy then you can enter your books and the pretty charts will self-populate at the bottom of the spreadsheet. 

• 
  

The Google Spreadsheet has other sheets with TV and movies, and the Trello account has other boards with TV and movies too. Then at the end of the year, they are turned into nice infographics that I post on Instagram. 

Happy tracking!

Brian's Green Curry

When Brian and I were in Thailand, we got the most amazing green curry from the restaurant at a hotel in Khanom, a small beach town outside Surat Thani. It was sweet and spicy and it came in this huge bowl, and we would sit looking out at the ocean while eating it. So before Brian left Thailand he took a cooking class, in the hopes of better being able to recreate the amazing curries. This is the curry recipe we use, slightly adapted from his cooking class. Brian and I haven't lived in any major cities, though luckily in towns with great International/Asian markets, so this has also been adapted by what ingredients we are able to get regularly.

Some notes: for the uninitiated fish sauce smells disgusting, but it makes the food taste so, so good. It's worth buying a bottle at the Asian market / international grocery store and using it in your curry.

Many bloggers will try to convince you to make your own curry paste. If you live near a fabulous Thai/Asian or International grocery store, then go for it. Even though Carbondale had an amazing International Grocery store, it didn't regularly get the fresh produce needed to make green curry (the chilies, lemongrass, and Thai ginger). They did have a nice selection of curry pastes though, and I included a recommendation for the brand that we normally use (Maesri). Just try to avoid the Thai Kitchen green curry paste they sell at grocery stores. Same with the coconut milk. Hit up the Thai/Asian market in your town and look for curry paste and coconut milk that's made in Thailand.

The veggies here aren't necessarily the traditional Thai ones. Sometimes the International Grocery store would have Thai eggplants, but sometimes not, so we've made a version that's geared toward veggies we can get year round. So feel free to substitute.

Brian's Green Curry (Adapted from the Baan Thai Cookery School)
Serves Four

3 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 (4oz) can Maesri green curry paste
3 (13.5 oz) cans Chaokoh coconut milk (or similar)
Half a can of baby corn
2 heads of broccoli (de-stemmed and chopped into small florets)
1 small zucchini (sliced thin)
Handful of green beans (trimmed)
1 chicken breast, chopped
3 tablespoons fish sauce (or to taste)
2 teaspoons sugar (or to taste)
2-3 cups cooked white rice

Start preparing the rice - either in a rice cooker or on the the stove. Prepare vegetables and chicken so that everything is in bite size pieces or slices.

Heat vegetable oil in large stockpot over medium heat. Add the curry paste and stir continuously until fragrant. Add chicken and half a can of coconut milk, stir occasionally until the chicken is cooked through. Add remaining coconut milk, and bring to a boil. Add vegetables. Season to taste with fish sauce and sugar. Serve over rice.

Angie's Corn Salad

I got this recipe from the wife of a farmer at the farmer's market. And because I live in a small town, I happened to go to high school with her daughter. She gave this to me last summer while I was buying a ton of corn and tomatoes, but I didn't try it until this summer. It was a few weeks ago, Brian and I were preparing to move but I still bought a dozen ears of corn the week before because we also had an after-funeral gathering to attend. I made this because I knew it would keep in the fridge for a few hours, and I had corn. But I am telling you, make this now before the summer corn goes away. You will not regret it.

I brought a big bowl of this with us to the gathering and I was secretly hoping no one would eat it and I could take it all home. Unfortunately, everyone loved it and there wasn't any for me to take home. I've been traveling for the last two weeks, but this morning I made sure to get a dozen ears or corn, peppers and onions and I'm making it tomorrow night. Hopefully this batch will last longer.



Angie’s Corn Salad

From Angela Jenkins

6 large ears of corn, blanched, cut off the cob
¼ cup green bell pepper, diced
¼ cup red bell pepper, diced
3 scallions, thinly sliced or thinly sliced red onion
¼ cup sugar

Combine in medium sized bowl.

Vinaigrette

⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
⅔ cup salad oil (I used veggie oil)
1 ½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons sugar

Combine dressing ingredients in a jar and shake. Pour contents over corn mixture. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours before serving. Lasts for a week in the fridge. 

Bouchon Bakery Shortbread

There's something that happens every time I sit down and read a Thomas Keller recipe, I sigh. Everything is so precise, so measured, there are instructions on how to do everything. There are normally ingredients and cooking devices that I don't have in my kitchen. Inevitably, for me, it feels a bit overwhelming, a bit too fussy. And then I make whatever recipe I've been eying, and everything turns out perfectly - and I realize why the recipes are written with such care and instruction. 

This shortbread is no exception. I've made other shortbreads before, successfully. But I tend to be an impatient baker, I'm bad at planning out what I want ahead of time. I want to be looking at recipes and eating the fruits of my labor within the hour. Still I followed all the instructions here, including the chilling of the dough and the carefully rolling and measuring of the actual cookies. My boyfriend's response as these perfect squares were coming out of the oven? "These look too perfect - you can't have made them." 

Bouchon Bakery Shortbread

Recipe Adapted from Bouchon Bakery and Scratchin' It

Ingredients
180 g unsalted butter, room temperature
90 g granulated sugar
2 g kosher salt
6 g pure vanilla extract
270 g all-purpose flour
24 g granulated sugar, for dusting


In mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth.

Add sugar and salt, and mix on medium-low until fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Add vanilla, mix on low until incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Add flour in two parts, mixing on low until incorporated before adding the next, 15 to 30 seconds.

Remove from bowl, shape into a 5-inch square, wrap and refrigerate 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325°F. Adjust oven racks to lower and upper third. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone baking mats.

Place dough between two sheets of plastic wrap. Roll out to a 9-inch square. If dough has become soft, refrigerate until firm.

Cut into 1 1/2-inch squares. Dust with granulated sugar. Transfer to lined baking sheets, leaving 3/4-inch space between each shortbread.

Bake 17-19 minutes, rotating sheets, top to bottom and front to back, halfway through, until shortbread is a light golden brown.

Cool on baking sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Project Wedding Cake

When my friend Jennifer moved up her wedding date, and decided she wanted to make her own wedding cake. To say that I was apprehensive might be putting it lightly. I sent her a variety of links to various blogs with wedding cake baking tips and horror stories. Everyone I mentioned the idea to said it was a bad idea without months of practice. I also told her that I wasn't a great cake decorator and I said we needed to do at least one test run. 

After a failed attempt with a french vanilla cake recipe, we settled on a chocolate cake recipe with a salted caramel swiss meringue buttercream frosting. We baked and frosted the two tiers, and then assembled them at the restaurant with some strawberries and extra caramel sauce. 

Both the cake and the wedding reception were amazing. Hollah, project Wedding Cake!

Salted Caramel Filled Shortbread Bars

I originally saw the recipe for these "Salted Carmel Butter Bars" on Pinterest, and Jennifer requested them for her birthday today. So naturally that means they are everywhere on the web by now. I ended up tweaking the recipe a little, and changing a some things. Since people have asked me for the recipe, I thought I would write those thoughts up in one easy to access post. 

First, these things are dense and rich. One of those square bars up there is more than enough for one sitting. I probably should have cut them smaller to be honest. The original recipe makes a full 9x13 pan of these, which in my opinion - unless you are baking for some kind of event - is way too much. It also means that you use a full pound of butter, which after adding the sugar and flour was almost too overwhelming for my KitchenAid mixer. 

Second, make your own caramel. Trust me on this one. My favorite flavor combination is most definitely salted carmel. Since I started making my own caramel, I've lost the taste for those wrapped store caramels. Plus depending on the state of your pantry, making carmel is cheaper than those wrapped ones. The recipe below will make enough for about two half pint jars of it, so I like to make a batch and keep some on hand for baking emergencies, to spoon over ice cream and into coffee.

Third, I swapped out the original shortbread recipe - butter, granulated sugar. powdered sugar and flour, for a similar sturdy shortbread recipe that I have used in the past. 

Salted Caramel Filled Shortbread Bars

Originally from Pip and Ebby / Shortbread adapted from Real Simple

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt (if using salted butter, leave out the salt)
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp sea salt

(Depending on your mixer, you could also halve this recipe, and make two batches of shortbread).

Heat oven to 325° F. Combine the butter, sugar, and salt in a mixer and beat until light and fluffy. Slowly add the flour and mix until smooth. Divide the dough in half, and press one half into a greased 8-inch square pan. Place the other half of the dough in the refrigerator.

Bake 20-30 minutes or just until the shortbread begins to turn golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes.

Make caramel (see below). Pour caramel over shortbread in pan so it forms an even layer. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Take remaining dough out of the refrigerator, and crumble evenly over the carmel layer.

Bake until the filling is bubbly and the crumbled shortbread topping is firm and lightly golden, about 25-30 minutes.

Salted Carmel Sauce (from Brown Eyed Baker)

(If you haven't made your own caramel before, I would recommend looking at David Lebovitz's 10 Tips for Making Carmel post.)

2 cups granulated sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
1 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
1 tablespoon fleur de sel (or any other flaky sea salt)

Add the sugar in an even layer over the bottom of a heavy saucepan, with a capacity of at least 2 or 3 quarts. Heat the sugar over medium-high heat, whisking it as it begins to melt. You'll see that the sugar will begin to form clumps, but that's okay. Just keep whisking and as it continues to cook, they will melt back down. Stop whisking once all of the sugar has melted, and swirl the pan occasionally while the sugar cooks.

Continue cooking until the sugar has reached a deep amber color. It should look almost a reddish-brown, and have a slight toasted aroma. This is the point where caramel can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of seconds, so keep a close eye. If you are using an instant-read thermometer, cook the sugar until it reaches 350 degrees F.

As soon as the caramel reaches 350 degrees, add the butter all at once. Be careful, as the caramel will bubble up when the butter is added. Whisk the butter into the caramel until it is completely melted.

Remove the pan from the heat and slowly pour the cream into the caramel. Again, be careful because the mixture will once again bubble up ferociously.

Whisk until all of the cream has been incorporated and you have a smooth sauce. Add the fleur de sel and whisk to incorporate.

Set the sauce aside to cool for 10 to 15 minutes and then pour into your favorite glass jar and let cool to room temperature. You can refrigerate the sauce for up to 2 weeks.

Alone in the Kitchen with a Computer : Red Pepper Pitas and Doctor Who

In my Syracuse kitchen. Looking back through my photos, this seems like the best one I have of the kitchen, ironic since it was taken in the reflection of the windows.

This past week I've been reading "Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant: Confessions of Cooking for One and Dining Alone." Aside from making me hungry, it's also been making me think about eating and cooking for people. So I thought I would write up my own confession of cooking for one and dining alone.

After college I moved to New York City for a year. I was working an office job and living in the Bronx with two roommates I knew from college. I had graduated from college without much of an idea of how to feed myself, and this was not a conducive situation in which to learn. There was at least one disastrous attempt to make Eggplant Parmesan (one of my favorites), but most nights by the time I finally made it home I was too tired to attempt cooking, or I had stayed in Midtown and eaten there with friends. I survived mostly on bagels, cereal, yogurt and hamburgers at a variety of Midtown diners. At the time it seemed mostly easier and cheaper than attempting my own meals.

But after a year in a job I hated, I left New York City for the colder pastures of Syracuse. I had a room in an apartment I shared with four other graduate students, less money, and way more time. Cheap, plentiful meals could not be found on every block, if I wanted them I was going to need to make them myself. Luckily, during this time I made a friend who knew way more about cooking than I did, and she liked to cook for people. With someone to bounce ideas off of, and to experiment with, I started a trek into the world of cooking. There was a lot to learn, and because the winters in Syracuse are long and dark and deep, there seemed plenty of time to learn it. Over the two years we were in Syracuse at the same time, Kelly and I made more meals and baked goods than I can remember. One time we spent a beautiful fall Saturday picking apples, then made four pies and gave those away. I made my first jam with strawberries we picked from a u-pick farm in the kitchen of house where she was renting a room for the summer. Even after Kelly left Syracuse, I remained working to finish my thesis and applying to Phd programs.

After finishing my degree at Syracuse, I moved back to Southern Illinois - the place I grew up, and the place my parents still live - to get my doctorate. For a time I lived with my parents, and I took over the cooking. Now our meals also include my boyfriend and one of my brothers, also back at home. The family lets me cook whatever strikes my fancy, and eats it without complaint. I can try larger recipes that I wouldn't have attempted when just cooking for myself. More than that, I love sitting down with everyone at a table full of food. When I lived in Syracuse, I would often spend Sunday out somewhere reading and writing, go grocery shopping around 7, and then cook dinner around 8 or 9. Whatever, I made - often pasta, soup or chili of some kind - would last the week. After eating, I would portion it out into tupperware containers for the week ahead. Though I would sometimes sit down at our small cafe style table, mostly I would just eat standing up in the kitchen. I'm a much more adventurous cook now, in part because of experience, and in part because there are more people around to help me eat the things that I make. Since one pot of food won't last a week, I'm forced to make more meals and move outside my comfort zones. Now, I go to farmer's market on Saturday mornings and buy fruits and veggies for the week. I try to cook seasonally and mostly vegetarian, and I end up stopping by the grocery store on my way home a few nights a week. And in the apartment my boyfriend and I share, we've even thrown some dinner parties, something I never really did in New York because of the table and the roommates. And so, to paraphrase William Carlos Williams, this is just to say I really like not just cooking for myself all the time. All the meals, even the ones that are rushed and thrown together, or that don't really turn out, are better for having a table of people to share them with.

But this is also to say that while reading"Alone in the Kitchen," I began to get nostalgic for my kitchen in Syracuse. There was something joyous in eating whatever I felt like eating, in whatever form that took - one night I happily made four popovers and ate them still warm with honeyed brown butter. Another favorite was a plate of "egg in a hole,"with ketchup; I remember explaining to one friend that the egg and bread were made more magical after being fried together than alone. Mostly, I think I would be quite content to eat pesto and hot dogs in the summer, and warm soups and grilled cheese through the winter. And I have many such fond memories of cooking and eating simply for myself. But there is a specific fusion of food and time and place - watching Doctor Who and eating Red Pepper Pitas with Feta Cheese. I'm not even sure what inspired me to start watching Doctor Who, aside from Tumblr, probably, but there I was. And of course, it wasn't long til I was head over heels in love with this British show about a time traveling man and his blue box. I must have eaten a lot of meals while watching the first four seasons, but in my memory it's always these Red Pepper Pitas and the episode "Bad Wolf." I would buy a package of pitas, slice up a red pepper and onion, arrange the veggies on the pita with the cheese, and drizzle it with olive oil, salt and pepper. Into the over they would go for 8 minutes. (Only 8 minutes! Both cheap and fast!) There was a corner of the counter right next to the oven, where I would often set up my laptop, so I could watch television while preparing and eating food. And while it's a solitary sort of joy, I wouldn't trade away the memories of watching Doctor Who and eating the Red Pepper Pitas right out of the oven while standing in that drafty kitchen.

Last week, fueled by some Proustian nostalgia, I made these Red Pepper Pitas for my parents and my boyfriend - just two, cut in half, as sort of an appetizer. (Because I wasn't just cooking for myself, I also made another pizza with pesto and cheese). Both were delicious, but the Pitas were just how I remembered them, hot and salty and bread-y and crispy.

Red Pepper Pitas with Feta and Red Onion (makes 2 single-serve pitzas)Adapted ever-so-slightly from NotEatingOutinNY

2 pocketless pitas
about 1/2 of a medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced (I mostly use yellow onions, because I keep them on hand)
about 3/4 cup feta, crumbled (I've never measured, I just sprinkle till the pita looks full)
2 tsp olive oil
Kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Begin Episode of Doctor Who. Place pitas on a baking sheet and arrange peppers, onions, and feta on both. Drizzle each with 1 tsp of olive oil. Sprinkle with pepper and a touch of salt. Bake for about 8 minutes. Remove pitas from oven and let cool a moment before serving (or not).

Cherry Tomato, Corn and Zucchini Pie

Adapted (just barely - because I didn't have time to make the pie crust and let it chill) from Smitten Kitchen. 

The trouble with cooking on short notice on a school night is there is never an extra hour to make and chill pie dough. I read through the comments on the Smitten Kitchen post, but no one had discussed successfully switching out store-bought pie dough (apparently the commenters are better at planning ahead!). I was afraid the store-bought pie dough would be too small to fold galette style, so I swapped it out for a pie pan. 

I prepared the filling as she suggests, and then spooned it into the dough laced pan, and covered with Parmesan. Then into the 400 degree over for 30 to 40 minutes, and it was lovely. There was some liquid, which I was able to pour out before we sliced into the pie. Aside from the need for an insanely hot oven, this is like the savory taste of summer in pie form. Worth it. 

Game Time Pretzels

We got invited to a Superbowl party this morning, and I needed something I could put together with stuff I had on hand. I've also been dying for a chance to try these Miniature Soft Pretzels. Since I can't make pretzels as a main course for family dinner, they always seemed like slightly too much work for even a weekend dinner. But a Superbowl party with plenty of other food? Perfect. 

It look a little bit to get a hang of the twisting and folding of the pretzels, but aside from that they came together really quickly with ingredients that I had on hand. And then my Mom reminded me of this awesome football taco tray we had in the basement, which was the perfect size for the pretzels! Let's play ball!

Oh My God Rolls in an Hour

So reading the food blogs I kept seeing recipes for rolls, and I wanted to eat all of them. But since I spend the weekends doing school work out of the house, I don't have hours at home to make them. Normally, the only kind of homemade bread I am able to make with a meal is a quick beer bread or biscuits. Enter the recipe I found for these rolls, which had them listed as taking a little over an hour. Amazing. These are life changing. That I could take these big warm yeasty rolls out of the oven in an hour from start to finish? It's all i want all the time, I'll have to fight the urge to just make these for dinner and just eat them. 

Oh My God Rolls in an Hour
from Mommy's Kitchen


3/4 cup milk

4 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup hot water

4 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

4 - 4 1/2 cups flour, divided

1 heaping tablespoon instant yeast

Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Butter a 9x13 pan and set aside. Put butter and milk in a microwave safe container. Microwave mixture until milk warms and butter melts (about 1 minute). Add milk/butter mixture, hot water (it can be straight from the tap, just make sure the water is plenty hot), sugar, salt and 2 cups of the flour to stand mixer bowl fitted with a dough hook. Mix everything together for 1 minute.

Add the yeast. Slowly incorporate the rest of the flour 1 cup at a time as the mixer runs. There's enough flour when the dough scrapes the side of the bowl clean. Mix on medium speed for 5 minutes.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let sit for 5 minutes.

Spray the counter, or cutting board with cooking spray. After the 5 minute rise, lay the dough on top of it. Flatten the dough out into a rough rectangle (no need to get out the rolling pin or knead it, just shape it with your hands). Take a sharp knife, spray it with cooking spray and cut your dough into 12 roughly equal squares. Gently round the squares into balls, and put them into the buttered 9x13 pan.

Bake the rolls at 170 for 20 minutes, or until they have risen slightly above the rim of the pan. Leave the pan in the oven, turn the heat up to 350 degrees, and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown and impossible to resist. Serve warm.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Happy Birthday to Me! 

Of course, when you find yourself to be the typical baker in your group of friends / family your own Birthday cake can be a bit tricky. In my case, I'm used to having other people tell me what they want. Val wanted something that was low-carb, and Liz didn't want anything chocolate, and you catch my drift. So first, I had to decide what I wanted. Then I had to find some recipes. My mom offered to make the cake, as long as I provided the recipes. I decided that I wanted something with a salted caramel frosting, but I didn't like any of the recipes I found. 

I ended up having her halve the recipe on this Chocolate cake recipe, and double the recipe on a traditional buttercream frosting. All the Salted Caramel Buttercream recipes I found just listed proportions for making the caramel sauce straight away, and I had already made the caramel sauce. She ended up adding a pint jar of salted caramel that I had made earlier in the weekend. It was delicious. It was fairly salty the first night, and after that it just got saltier. I was fine with this, but I recognize that not everyone shares my undying love of sea salt. Mmmm, salty and sweet, my favorite. 

First Food of Fall - Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta

The last couple of weeks at the farmer's market I've been resisting the squash. There's a long winter full of squashy things ahead of me, and best to get a last few dishes out of the tomatoes and eggplants and zucchini. I finally gave up the fight this week. It's been feeling like fall finally, and so there was only one thing left to do: Butternut Squash Pasta.

I first made this with Kelly in Syracuse, and it's been a favorite of mine ever since then. Roasting the squash, onions and bacon all together gives it this flavor that's indescribably good. Nothing ever goes wrong when caramelized onions are involved. And the squash gets all soft and slightly roasted. Plus once the squash is peeled the whole thing comes together really quickly. If you are opposed to bacon for some reason, it could easily be left out. Though I think you would seriously be missing out.


Roasted Butternut Squash with Pasta
(from Kelly at Nerd in the Kitchen)

1 medium to large butternut squash, peeled and seeded
1 medium onion, diced
4 strips of bacon, diced

Olive oil, salt, and pepper
1 lb. of pasta (rigatoni / penne / farfalle)
1.5 cups of the pasta water
1 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese grated

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

2. Cube the squash into pieces no larger than 1″. Distribute the squash, onion, and bacon on a baking sheet. Lightly coat with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Put in the oven for 25 minutes, turning the squash about halfway through.

3. While the squash is cooking, boil the pasta. When the pasta is done, drain it, but reserve about 1.5 cups of the pasta water. Pour the pasta back into the now-empty pot.

4. When the squash is tender and the onions have caramelized, pour the baking sheet contents into the pot with the pasta. Add the Parmesan cheese and 1 cup of the pasta water. Mix until the cheese is melted and the squash is combined. Add water is needed.

Summer is late, my heart.

"Summer is late, my heart.

Words plucked out of the air

some forty years ago

when I was wild with love

and torn almost in two

scatter like leaves this night

of whistling wind and rain.

It is my heart that’s late,

it is my song that’s flown.

Outdoors all afternoon

under a gunmetal sky

staking my garden down,

I kneeled to the crickets trilling

underfoot as if about

to burst from their crusty shells;

and like a child again

marveled to hear so clear

and brave a music pour

from such a small machine.

What makes the engine go?

Desire, desire, desire.

The longing for the dance

stirs in the buried life.

One season only,

and it’s done.

So let the battered old willow

thrash against the windowpanes

and the house timbers creak.

Darling, do you remember

the man you married? Touch me,

remind me who I am."

- Stanley Kunitz, Touch Me

Bread and Butter Refrigerator Pickles

In all of my trips to the Carbondale Farmer's Market I've been intrigued by the tiny baby cucumbers. I finally went ahead and bought a couple of them last weekend for my first foray into pickling. I wanted to stick with refrigerator pickles, because I still haven't found my metal strainer for the hot water bath canning. Whoops.

I was about to start cutting up the cucumbers when my mother requested Bread and Butter pickles instead of Dill. So to please my mother I made a trip to the grocery store for a few other spices.

Bread and Butter Pickles 
from Brown Eyed Baker

 Yield: About 4 cups of pickles

 5½ cups (about 1½ pounds) thinly sliced pickling cucumbers*
1½ tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup thinly sliced sweet onion
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup white vinegar
½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup light brown sugar
1½ teaspoons mustard seeds
½ teaspoon celery seeds
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric

 1. Combine cucumbers and salt in a large, shallow bowl; cover and chill 1½ hours. Move cucumbers into a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Drain well, and return cucumbers to bowl. Add onion to the bowl and toss with the cucumbers.

 2. Combine the granulated sugar, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds and ground turmeric in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Pour the hot vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture; let stand at room temperature 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.

 * I had significantly less cucumbers than this. Rather than attempting to adjust the rest of the liquid ratio, I just made the full liquid mixture and ended up with more liquid than pickles. Still tasted awesome.

Roasted Red Pepper, Onion, Bacon and Cheese Tart

Last week, I made this amazing Onion, Cheese and Bacon Tart. Tonight we had some red peppers going bad in the fridge and some extra bacon. So the stage was set for a reprise. Sadly, by the time I got back to the house I realized that I had used the last pre-made pie crust, and I file making pie crust on a weeknight on the list of kitchen tasks not worth the effort.

So I went ahead a used a spare puff pastry shell I had in the freezer. Delicious. Highly recommend.

But what really makes this recipe amazing is the bacon, and then cooking the onion and red pepper in the bacon grease with some sugar. Amazing things happen to onions sauteed in bacon grease. Try it. For me it's a struggle not to sit down and eat the onions, peppers and bacon hot out of the oil.

Roasted Red Pepper, Onion, Bacon and Cheese Tart
Adapted from Epicurious

3 thick-cut bacon slices, chopped
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 red peppers, seeded and chopped
Pinch of sugar
1 cup half and half or heavy cream or some combination of both
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Generous pinch of salt
Generous pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 cup (packed) coarsely grated cheddar cheese
1 pie crust or puff pastry

(If using pie crust, either home made or store-bought, roll out dough, and arrange in tart or pie plate. Poke holes in the the crust and par-bake for 10 minutes @ 400 degrees. If using puff pastry, thaw, arrange in tart or pie plate and poke holes in the crust. No need to par-bake.)

Sauté bacon in medium skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 4 minutes. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain.

Add onion and pinch of sugar to drippings in skillet. After a few minutes add the red pepper and sauté until onion is deep golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Whisk cream, egg, egg yolk, pepper, salt, and nutmeg in small bowl to blend.

Spread onion over bottom of baked crust; sprinkle bacon over, then cheese. Pour cream mixture over.

Bake until tart is puffed and filling is set, about 25 minutes. Cool tart on rack 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Raspberry Cupcakes

Raspberry cupcakes with buttercream frosting. It's just a simple vanilla cupcake with some raspberries mixed into the batter, and a raspberry on top of the frosting. 

Summer Soup and Cheese

I was showing some of my food photos to one of my Professors. I came across this photo of tomato soup and grilled cheese from last fall. Instantly I knew I wanted something similar for dinner tonight. It's cooled off around here from the weekend but it's still a little hot to be slow roasting tomato soup.

Also since I'm moving, I'm trying to get rid of food not obtain more. Answer: a simple gazpacho with fresh tomatoes canned last fall. I canned the tomatoes whole in their juices (with a bit of lemon juice) added a few other things. Blend. Chill. And Bob's your Uncle.

Inspired last night by Cory, I spooned the gazpacho into a wide mouth mason jar. I often make drinks for myself at night in mason jars, and the jar just made it easier to dip my grilled cheese in the soup. Excellent.

Summer Gazpacho
adapted from Food and Wine

6 ripe tomatoes, cut into chunks
1/2 large cucumber—peeled, halved, seeded and cut into chunks
1 green bell pepper, cut into chunks
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1 cup water
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Salt
Hot sauce, for serving

n a blender or food processor, combine the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, garlic, water, oil and vinegar and process until coarsely pureed. Season with salt and refrigerate until chilled. Serve with hot sauce.

The Triumvirate of Defense Treats

Last Friday I had my Master's thesis defense. Something I've been working towards for the better part of two years now. Normally at defenses, the person defending brings in some coffee and a few snacks. Normally this entails a fruit / bagel spread. But the more I thought about it, the less appealing that sounded. Especially since there's so much delicious fruit in season, and I've been traveling so much this summer I haven't gotten to bake with it.



Ultimately I decided on a triumvirate of treats. Blueberry Crumb bars, Strawberry-Rhubarb bars, and the Raspberry Buttermilk cake. All of these were things I had made before, and I knew them all to be sturdy, straightforward, reliable recipes. On Saturday I went to the Farmer's market and picked up the strawberries and blueberries. Both of which kept beautifully in Mason Jars in my refrigerator. Then Thursday afternoon I came home and baked up a storm.



On Friday, both the treats and the defense presentation went over really well. I'm now officially a graduate.

home made kit kat bars of glory

I still have a couple of Thailand posts up my sleeve, but I realized today that I promised this post to Sarah and then it completely slipped my mind.

When I first read the recipe for these "Homemade Kit Kat Bars" I was skeptical. They looked tasty, and certainly contained enough good looking ingredients like butter, chocolate, and peanut butter. And the recipe comes from Paula Deen, butter extraordinaire. But the base was constructed of Club crackers, which seemed dubious. I'm glad I went ahead and gave these a shot. The sum of the parts make for something unholy. The addition of a dash of butterscotch chips is truly an inspired choice. Calling them "Homemade Kit Kat Bars" is a misnomer because they don't really taste like the store bought Kit Kat bars. These lack the crunch and are about 200% richer. Also, they age really well. Like a fine wine or cheese, these just seem to get better after a day or two in the tupperware as the flavors continue to meld. Not kidding. It makes a 9x13 pan, but slice these puppies into tiny squares, you'll thank me later.

These are also incredibly easy to put together. The most annoying part is crushing the graham crackers into crumbs. The original recipe said it took about "45 minutes" of active time. Yeah, maybe if you take a 30 minute nap in the middle of making them. If you have the ingredients lined up, this will come together very quickly. Perfect for any summer picnics!

Kit Kat Bars of Glory
75 Club crackers (roughly 2 and a 1/2 sleeves of a standard box of crackers)
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Line 9- by 13-inch rectangular baking pan with one layer of Club crackers (you may need to break some to fit).

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add graham cracker crumbs, dark brown sugar, milk, and granulated sugar. Bring to boil. Boil for five minutes, stirring constantly. Remove pan from heat. Pour half of butter mixture over crackers in pan. Smooth surface with spatula.

Arrange another layer of Club crackers over butter mixture. Pour remaining butter mixture over surface. Smooth surface with spatula. Arrange a third layer of crackers over top.

Combine peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips in small saucepan. Melt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over crackers.

Cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate two hours. Cut into 2-inch bars. (I cut them much much smaller - see picture - closer to tiny squares) Bars will keep for two weeks, stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

on impossible things

“Some things are so impossible, so fantastic, that when they happen, you are not at all surprised. Their sheer impossibility has made you imagine them too many times in your head, and when you find yourself on that longed-for moonlit path, it seems unreal but still, somehow, familiar. You dreamed it, of course; you know it like memory.”

from The Confessions of Max Tivoli by Andrew Sean Greer

It's been a big (almost) year. Lots of things happening. Most of which seemed impossible and turned out to be easy. Their sheer impossibility stunningly easy.