Uncategorized | one cake two cake

tilapia tacos

August 14, 2010 § 6 Comments

I have sat on this recipe for months now because I’m nervous about it, but it was really tasty and it’s time for me to man up and share it with the world. After all, it’s only food. And what kind of ridiculous person gets anxious about food? Oh right, me.

I put myself out of my comfort zone by assembling a proper dinner without a recipe, and it actually was really good! Yay! The problem being, however, that I was so enthusiastic about throwing it together that I’m now a little fuzzy on the quantities. Also, it is probably highly inauthentic and I’m slightly embarrassed to call it tacos, but it involves tortillas and I couldn’t think of a better name, so there you have it.

It was a great dinner though: tilapia tacos, with a spread of mango salsa and guacamole. I love meals where you can assemble your own plate, probably a relic of my early years where I was a ridiculously picky eater and didn’t want any condiments on anything, thank you very much. But now I’ve seen the error of my ways and like to aim for the perfect combination of toppings. Here’s my attempt to reconstruct the recipes, but this worked out so well for me, I have faith that it will be foolproof for you too.

Tilapia Tacos:

Other delicious things you may want:

Sprinkle fillets with cumin, lime juice, and salt. Heat oil in a nonstick pan over medium high heat (if the fish won’t fit, do this in batches). Sauté fillets on each side until golden, and fish is cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Slice fish, and serve with tortillas, salsa, guacamole, and other toppings.

Mango Salsa:

Combine all ingredients in bowl. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Guacamole:

Mash avocado in a bowl with a fork. Stir in other ingredients and adjust seasonings to taste. Don’t be shy with the salt!

chocolate blueberry clusters

August 8, 2010 § 4 Comments

I’ve been away from this little blog for so long! And although I’m not sure anyone else out there has noticed, I’ve missed it. First I was away in San Antonio, eating gargantuan plates heaped with cheese and sour cream and salsa, and oh my things there are a bit more spicy than I’m used to. Then I was away at my dad’s cottage, in near isolation from the outside world. That was lovely. And once I recovered from the Texas food coma (this took several days) I was ready to bake again! But baking in a cottage environment is no easy task, although of course I unwisely attempted it.

The main problem is that the kitchen isn’t stocked for baking, because I use it one week a year, and even I am not quite crazy enough to buy a set of cake pans and spices for that amount of time (I almost cracked and bought a muffin tin, but restrained myself in time!). Instead I had to look around and make do with what we had, which luckily for me, was incredible, tiny wild blueberries, which were some of the prettiest fruit I’ve seen. They were so fresh and flavourful it seemed like a waste to bake with them – who would appreciate their delicacy once they were mushy inside a muffin? Instead I made the simplest dessert ever: chocolate covered blueberries. They’re ugly but delicious, the chocolate crackles and the blueberries burst and together they’re a perfect combination. They were so popular with the family that my ever-mature father took to calling it ‘blueberry poop’ in the hopes of dissuading the rest of us from eating them. Sadly for him, this brilliant tactic did not work.

Chocolate Blueberry Clusters
If you’re going to be serious about this, you should temper the chocolate, but that would defeat the whole simplicity point and I really couldn’t be bothered. Instead, just store them in the fridge.

Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Melt chocolate very gently in the microwave. Stir in blueberries. With a spoon, scoop out clusters of blueberries onto prepared sheet. Refrigerate until set. Transfer to airtight container and store in refrigerator (unless you tempered the chocolate). Keeps for 2-3 days, but probably no more since the fruit is fresh.

fresh mint ice cream

July 11, 2010 § 12 Comments

I sometimes secretly wish I was one of those Martha Stewart-y types who are just good at life. Not so much because of matching napkin rings and handmade centerpieces, but the useful stuff, like herb gardens. It would be so great to just toss fresh herbs into my meals without spending money on an entire bunch, and then letting the surplus die a horrible death in the refrigerator. Unfortunately, though, I have an alarming inability to keep plants alive. I first discovered this when I bought a houseplant – after that died, I moved on to sturdier specimens, like cactuses. Now I have a dead cactus. I try not to think about what this trait might mean for any future children of mine.

Luckily for me, mint is incredibly tenacious. It’s basically a weed, so I figure if I just stay away from it, it’ll grow. Now it’s overtaken a fair chunk of my backyard, and I have a continuous supply of mint for any of my baking needs. The first thing I’ve used it in is this ice cream, and it was really incredible. It’s very different from storebought mint ice cream – I think it tastes more herbal, both because the mint is fresh, and because it’s spearmint as opposed to the more common peppermint. I folded chocolate in, because I love it, and the crackling bittersweet shards were a great contrast. It’s really a spectacular ice cream and I recommend that you plant some mint just to make it. But if you lack my superior gardening skills, I’m sure the farmer’s market has some that will work just as well.

Fresh Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream – from The Perfect Scoop

In a medium saucepan, gently warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup of the cream, and the salt. Once warm, mix in the mint leaves, cover, and let stand for an hour to infuse the milk.

Strain the mixture through a mesh strainer, pressing firmly on the leaves to extract as much of their flavour as possible. Rewarm the mixture.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the heated milk mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly to prevent the eggs from cooking.

Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a spatula, and scraping up the bottom of the pot. Cook until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spatula – if you run your finger through the coating it should leave a line that doesn’t flow back together. Pour the custard through a strainer into the remaining 1 cup of cream. Stir until cool over an ice bath, then refrigerate until cold (preferably overnight).

Put a storage container in the freezer. Freeze the custard an ice cream maker according to its instructions. While it’s churning, gently melt the chocolate over a double boiler or in the microwave. When the ice cream is ready, quickly layer it in the prepared container, drizzling in the melted chocolate and stirring as you go.

The ice cream is wonderful freshly churned but still very soft, especially if you drizzle in the warm chocolate. It will firm up nicely in the freezer, but I recommend taking it out 5 minutes before you want to eat it to let it soften up again.

classic pesto

July 7, 2010 § 8 Comments

I’m starting to suspect that aioli (garlic mayonnaise, for the uninitiated) makes everything taste better. When I go out to eat, if I see a dish that comes with aioli, I’ll pretty much order it no matter what it is. Fries with aioli? Yes please! Frog legs with aioli? Ehh…. I might do that too. Given this minor obsession, it was only natural then that I would try to make it in my own kitchen. You see, then I could eat aioli with every meal, possibly excluding my breakfast cereal.

Well, it turns out that making aioli is hard. Three attempts later, I’ve wasted two lemons, countless egg yolks, and more olive oil than I care to think about. My poor food processor nearly burnt out during my neurotically slow drizzling of olive oil, which somehow must not have been neurotic enough. I still haven’t given up – if anything I’m now obstinately determined to conquer aioli – but I figured I’d comfort myself with something a little less finicky before the whole endeavour got too depressing.

So, basil’s answer to aioli: homemade pesto. And a tasty one it is, plus it doesn’t come with the raw egg concerns – always a bonus, although I figure I’ve probably already developed an immunity through my massive cookie dough intake. Pesto is lovely in its own right, straightforward to make, and super versatile: I like it best on pasta, grilled vegetables, and sandwiches. I don’t think it could quite entice me to order frog legs, but I can’t rule it out.

Classic Pesto
A tip I learned from my dad: I find that a little block of pesto is just the right amount for a single serving, so I freeze pesto in ice cube trays, then pop them out once they’re hard and transfer to a freezer bag. Then it’s easy to grab as many cubes as you need, microwave on low, and whisk in a little more oil if needed.

In a small dry skillet, toast pine nuts over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden, about 5 minutes.

If you don’t want to use raw garlic, toast the unpeeled cloves in the same skillet until slightly darkened, about 7 minutes. (I prefer to use the raw garlic.) Peel and mince the garlic cloves.

Combine basil, garlic, nuts, and oil in a food processor and process until well blended, scraping down sides if needed. Add more oil to thin to desired consistency. If freezing, do so before adding cheese – if not, stir cheese into pesto. Taste for seasoning, you will probably need to add a pinch of salt.

vanilla bean cheesecake

July 4, 2010 § 23 Comments

I decided to make vanilla bean ice cream the other day, and asked my roommate to pick up a vanilla bean at the store while he was out. The ice cream was incredible – the flavour of real vanilla makes a huge difference – and I vowed to only use vanilla beans from then on. But then he mentioned that the bean cost ten dollars. For one bean. Seriously! I should think before I vow.

The problem is, now that I’ve gone bean, I can’t go back. If vanilla is the primary flavour in your recipe, using beans makes a world of difference to the taste, plus all the little seeds are so pretty! Luckily, I remembered that you can buy anything on the internet, and after a little hunting discovered that prices drop to a dollar a bean if you order online. Not cheap, but affordable. A few days later, an package arrived at my doorstep, and the smell was so strong that when I picked it up I instantly knew my vanilla had arrived. I wonder what the Fedex guy thought – this smell must have filled his entire truck.

Vanilla beans are really versatile, and given that most recipes only call for the seeds of a single bean (save the pod for vanilla sugar!), it’s a worthy investment for me. This cheesecake, though, calls for THREE vanilla beans. So unless you are a gazillionaire who enjoys throwing their weight around at the supermarket (and if you are, you may want to find a better hobby), I recommend that you only make this if you have purchased the aforementioned Supercheap Internet Vanilla Beans. If you do, your reward will be an incredibly creamy, dreamy cheesecake, that isn’t just plain but also isn’t overwhelmed by over-the-top flavours – just scented with the incredible aroma of vanilla, enhancing the cream cheese tanginess. Pile on a vanilla bean sour cream topping, and true decadence has arrived. Thank you internet!

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake – adapted from the Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking
Note: To get the best texture, it’s important that your cream cheese and eggs are at room temperature, and to beat as little as possible to prevent whipping air into the mixture.

Crust:

Filling:

Topping:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor, combine the crumbs, butter, sugar, nutmeg, and nuts. Pulse until mixed thoroughly. Press the mixture into the prepared pan and 1.5 inches up the sides (it helps to use a flat bottomed, straight-sided cup to press in the crumbs). Bake the crust until it darkens a bit, 10-12 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese on low speed until creamy. Add sugar and beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating gently after each addition. Split vanilla beans lengthwise and scrape seeds into the cream cheese mixture. Add vanilla extract and lemon juice, and mix until smooth and creamy.

Put the pan with the crust on the baking sheet. Pour the batter into the crust – you may have a bit too much filling, depending on the size of your pan, so don’t necessarily put it all in (you can bake the extra in a ramekin, or as I did, just eat it with a spoon). Cover the cake pan with a lid. Bake the cheesecake until the centre jiggles slightly when centre is shaken, 50-70 minutes. If it looks soupy, keep baking a few more minutes.

For topping: in a small bowl, combine sour cream and sugar. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and add to the bowl, stirring well.

When cheesecake is baked, remove from oven and pour sour cream topping over. Gently spread the topping over the cake. Return the pan to the oven for 5 more minutes.

Transfer the cake to a wire rack and let cool for 1-2 hours. Cover and refrigerate overnight.