Croissant French Toast

Best French toast ever, period.  Wish I could claim to have invented it, but that honor goes to my mother-in-law Jeanne.  Apparently there was a morning where some old croissants were the only bread around, and the rest is history.  They become tender without losing their structure, they brown beautifully, and of course they're chock full of buttery goodness.

These don't require top-notch croissants -- we've used ones from Costco and Food Lion so far.  You want to halve them through the equator, so you expose a lot of the inside surface.  If they're small, you can cut them not-quite-through, so you get a butterfly shape.  The rest of the recipe is pretty standard.  You just want to dunk them into the custard, let the excess drip off, and then put them in the pan.  If you leave them soaking, (1) you'll need more custard and (2) they may fall apart.

Heat a griddle or 12" skillet over medium.  In a medium bowl, whisk

1. 3 eggs
2. 1 c milk
3. 1 T sugar
4. salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg to taste

Into this mixture, dip

1. croissants, halved

Fry croissants in batches in a few tablespoons of butter until nicely browned on both sides.  Hold in warm oven until ready to serve.  Serve with syrup or cinnamon sugar.

Triple-chocolate crunchy cookies

These were an attempt to replicate a store-bought cookie from my childhood for a local cookie contest.  Although they flopped at the contest, my family loves them.  First I make two very crunchy, chocolate cookies with chocolate chips.  Then I sandwich them around a chocolate ganache filling.  For the grownups, I spice the ganache with cinnamon and cayenne.  I also put a little gelatin in the ganache to firm it up, because there's nothing worse than cookie filling that squoozes out the sides when you bite it.

To get the cookies really crispy-crunchy, I used a lot of tricks from this page:  I used white sugar instead of brown, used high-protein flour, melted the butter, and swapped the whole eggs for whites only.  I also added some extra baking soda (as is sometimes done with crackers).  But I ultimately had to resort to double-baking the cookies, biscotti-style, to get them to stay crisp once filled.

In a medium bowl, sift together:

1. 5.25 oz (1 c + 2 T) King Arthur all-purpose flour
2. 1 oz (1/3 c) cocoa powder
3. 3/4 t baking soda
4. 1/4 t salt

In a standing mixer, combine with the paddle:

1. 5.25 oz (3/4 c) granulated sugar
2. 1 stick (8 T) butter, melted
3. 1 egg white
4. 1 t vanilla extract

Mix in the dry ingredients, just until thoroughly combined, followed by

1. 5.25 oz (1 c) chocolate chips

Chill the dough while the oven preheats to 375 F, about 20-30 minutes.  Line three cookie sheets with parchment.  Portion the dough by generous rounded half tablespoons, to give 36 cookies (12 per sheet).  Smash the balls into disks, so the final cookie sandwiches won't be too thick.  Bake each sheet for 14 minutes, one at a time, and let cookies cool on the sheet.  Turn the oven down to 300 F.  (I leave the oven door cracked for ~10 minutes to speed this up.)  Bake the cookies for another 15 minutes to dry them out and make them really crunchy.  You can also consolidate the cookies down to two sheets at this point, and even bake one on the lower rack and one on the other if you're in a hurry.  When they're done, let them cool completely on the cookie sheets.

In the meantime, in a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup, combine in this order:

1. 1/4 t powdered gelatin (such as Knox)
2. 1/4 t ground cinnamon
3. 1/8 t ground cayenne pepper
4. 1.5 oz heavy cream
5. 6 oz chocolate chips
6. pinch of salt

Microwave on high ~45 seconds, then whisk until smooth.  Let cool on counter until cookies are ready.  Ganache may look slightly oily / broken;  it will be fine, just stir it back together before spreading.  Spread filling on the bottom of one cookie and top with another, to make 18 sandwiches.  Keeps up to a week in a tightly sealed plastic container.

Ethereal buttercream frosting

This is my new favorite frosting, inspired by some cupcakes from an unknown Cary bakery.  There were piled high with frosting, but it was very airy, not too sweet, and not too rich.  Even though there was a lot of it, it was delicious and not at all overwhelming.

This recipe was derived from one by King Arthur Flour, for 7 minute frosting, a.k.a. Italian meringue.  I increased the sugar a little, added cornstarch in hopes of stabilizing the meringue, and beat in some butter.  The recipe seems fairly robust at this point, and much less fussy than the Swiss meringue buttercreams I tried.  Also, with this proportion of sugar to egg white (and the whites starting at room temperature), the whole mix gets up to 155 F (in my kitchen at least), which should be enough to fully cook the egg and alleviate any food safety concerns.  However, if you're cooking for the very young, the very old, pregnant women, or immune-compromised individuals, you might consider pasturized eggs or whites for extra safety.

This frosting works best cold, at refrigerator temperatures.  Fully chilled, it's firm but still quite spreadable / pipeable.  I've kept it that way for a week with no problem.  It probably shouldn't be left at room temperature for more than a few hours, not least because at warmer temperatures the frosting starts to get a bit runny.  (The shortening should help with that somewhat.)  It also tastes a bit too sweet and marshmallowy for my liking when warm;  the amount of sugar is calibrated for serving it cold.

To start, cut the butter into tablespoons and separate the egg whites;  allow both to come to room temperature.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, place

1. 2 egg whites (about 2.5 oz)
2. 1/4 t cream of tartar

Whisk until foamy and increased in volume.  The whites should mound in the bowl, but ideally are not yet holding a soft peak.

In a medium saucepan, while whites are whipping, whisk together and bring to a boil

1. 1 T cornstarch
2. 9 oz sugar (1 1/4 c)
3. 2 oz water (1/4 c)
4. 1/8 t salt

Cover saucepan briefly to wash any sugar crystals from sides.  Try to time it so that syrup boils just as whites reach stiff peaks.  If needed, rest syrup off heat while whites finish;  underbeaten whites will keep the frosting from reaching full volume.  When sugar is completely dissolved and whites are fully whipped, slowly pour syrup down the side of the mixer bowl with mixer running on medium speed.  (Be careful not to splatter hot syrup on yourself!)  Increase speed to high and whip until meringue is thick, fluffy, and shiny.  Reduce speed to medium and continue whisking until cooled, about 10 minutes.  Frosting can be used as-is at this point, or ...

One tablespoon at a time, beat in

1. 1 oz vegetable shortening, such as Crisco (2 T)
2. 3 oz butter (6 T)
3. 1 t vanilla extract

The frosting will be bright white at this point, but it takes gel food color very nicely.  The frosting will deflate somewhat as the fats are added, and may become quite runny, depending on how warm the ingredients are.  (Butter may be substituted for the shortening, but this will exacerbate the runniness.)  No worries, the frosting will firm up when chilled in the refrigerator.  After chilling, use for frosting cakes, cupcakes, or even Oreo cookies!

Filled chocolate truffles

I've heard "truffle" used two ways with chocolate -- either simple balls of ganache covered in cocoa / sugar / chopped nuts, or a formed chocolate shell holding some kind of filling.  The former are pretty straightforward, but the latter are generally the domain of professional chocolate shops.  So of course, that's what we wanted to make for our friends and family this Christmas!  Although it takes time, it's not that hard to produce an attractive -- and tasty -- result!  (Flawless is still for the pros, though.)

Ingredients & Equipment

• Couverture chocolate.  This is high quality chocolate containing extra cocoa butter, and is used for the chocolate shell.  The extra fat (cocoa butter) allows the chocolate to be tempered, producing a hard, shiny coat.  Although I haven't tried it myself, the lore is that trying to use grocery-store chocolate for the shell will give poor results.  (For a ganache filling, though, cheaper stuff seems fine to me.)  The best deal I found was $15 + $10 shipping for 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of Callebaut from Golda's Kitchen on Amazon.  I got about 4 dozen truffles per kilogram, but there's always a little waste at the end, so order at least 2 kg.
• Chocolate molds.  These are simple plastic trays that for molding the truffles.  Lots of different sizes are available.  The stated volumes seem to be for solid chocolates, so you'll get more for filled ones.  I bought three 6 x 1 oz molds from Amazon.  More molds make faster work, but more than about four would be hard to manage at one time.
• Instant-read digital thermometer.  Temperature (within 1 degree F) is critical for getting a good temper on the chocolate.  Don't skip this.
• Marble slab / stone counter / sheet pan.  Ideally, you'd have a smooth, hard stone surface for tempering the chocolate.  But I didn't, so I used the back of a cookie sheet.  It's not ideal, but it's certainly workable.  Make sure it's flat and clean.

Tempering the Chocolate


Tempering chocolate consists of melting it completely and then cooling it in a controlled way.  The even cooling causes the fats to solidify in the uniform structure that produces a smooth, hard, shiny surface when the chocolate sets.

If you didn't buy callets (chips), chop the chocolate.  You'll want at least enough to fill all your molds once.  More won't hurt, you can re-use any leftovers.  Melt them in a double boiler with 140 F water, top vessel not touching the water.  Stir gently but continuously -- getting the chocolate over 140 F will scorch it, but you don't want to whip in any air.  Also watch out for water -- even a small amount of water in the chocolate will ruin it.  Keep stirring until the chocolate gets to 115 - 120 F.  (Temperatures here are for dark chocolate;  they vary somewhat for white or milk chocolate.)

Pour most (~3/4) of the chocolate out on your work surface, set the rest aside, off the heat.  Spread it thin to help it cool, and keep folding it back on itself to mix it.  I used an offset spatula in one hand and a metal bench scraper in the other.  When the chocolate gets cool enough, it will abruptly set up into a thick paste.  Scoop this back into your double boiler and stir until smooth.  If the combined chocolate is now down to 82 - 83 F, you're done.  Otherwise, pour some out and repeat -- you'll need less (maybe half) and it will set up faster (since it started off cooler).

The chocolate is now tempered.  (You can test this by dipping a corner of parchment in the paper, folding it back on itself, and freezing for a minute or two.  When set, it should break with a crisp crack.)  But to work with it, you'll want to re-warm it over the double boiler to 87 - 90 F.  Above ~93 F, the chocolate will start to lose its temper, so keep a thermometer in it while you're doing this.  You'll probably need to re-warm the chocolate before each of the following steps.

Pour the warm chocolate into the prepared molds, filling them completely.  It works best if you stop just shy of the rim -- too full and the truffles will have a little rim around the bottom.  Let the molds sit at room temperature for 4 - 5 minutes (no more), then turn them upside down and give a gentle shake over your work surface.  The molten centers should fall out, leaving chocolate shells in the molds.  Freeze the molds for 5 minutes to fully set the shells.  Scoop the chocolate on the work surface back into your double boiler to reuse.

Fill the shells with whatever you like (see below for suggestions).  Fillings should be cool (no more than 80 F) so they don't melt the shells.  If the filling seems thin, freeze for a another 5 minutes before capping.  (Otherwise, the cap chocolate may sink into it!)  To cap, pour a little more tempered couverture chocolate over the filling.  I find shaking the mold gently after pouring each one helps the cap spread out smoothly.  Work as quickly as you can;  the chocolate will want to set up almost immediately.  Freeze the truffles for 15 minutes to fully set them, then gently turn them out of the molds.  They should come out very easily -- I think the freezing makes them pull away from the mold slightly.

We decorated them with edible glitter dust.  We brushed the truffles with a little water to make it stick -- water doesn't seem to hurt them once they're solid.  We also tried colored icing on a later batch, which worked OK, but didn't look quite as good.

Whisky Ganache Filling

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine

1. 8 oz chocolate chips
2. 4 oz (1/2 c) heavy cream

Microwave about 30 seconds, until chocolate is soft.  Stir gently until smooth.  Stir in

1. 2 oz (4 T) Scotch whiskey

Let sit to cool to 80 F or less.

Any sort of liquor can be substituted:  kirsch, Chambord, creme de menthe, triple sec, etc. are all good.  We even considered tequila with candied lime peel and sea salt, but never got around to it.

Cabernet Reduction Filling

This is basically a wine jelly, a filling we invented for my father-in-law.  It's derived from this recipe.  In a small bowl, place

1. 1 packet (0.25 oz) unflavored gelatin, such as Knox
2. 3 T red wine

The wine will hydrate the gelatin.  I found it best to pour the wine over top of it.  In a medium saucepan, combine

1. 1 bottle (750 ml) red wine (3 T reserved above)
2. 6 T sugar

Boil the mix until reduced to 3/4 c (6 fl oz).  Pour it into a Pyrex measuring cup to make sure;  this needs to be pretty accurate, within about a quarter ounce.  Stir in the hydrated gelatin until melted.  This filling will probably still be liquid when you fill the truffles, it takes hours or days to set, but it does eventually set.

Dulce de Leche Filling

This is a wonderful, easy caramel sauce that I love.  Simply submerse an unopened 14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk into a saucepan of water, and simmer for 90 minutes.  Do not, under any circumstances, allow the pan to run dry, or you may get an exploding can of hot caramel.  If you keep it at a simmer and keep the pan covered you should have no problem.  The label will probably fall off, but the canned caramel can be stored in the pantry for months.  Just pop the top and fill the chocolate shells when you're finally ready.  Do two or three cans at once so you'll have extra for pound cake, cheesecake, ice cream, etc.

Bacon caramels with smoked salt

The holidays always make me want to bake.  And for some reason, they particularly make me want to try something new or more elaborate than I've done before.  So this year, I've been making a lot of candy for Christmas.  Even as a kid, I was at least as partial to caramel flavors as to chocolate.  I also have my mother's love of salt, so salted caramel is a near-perfect candy already.

Which brings me to bacon caramel.  This variation was inspired by my brother-in-law Tommy, who is (tragically!) allergic to chocolate, and who generally prefers meat to candy.  When I tell people about this flavor combo, I usually get raised eyebrows at a minimum.  I, too, was skeptical.  But then the folks who dip their bacon in the leftover pancake syrup start to reconsider.  And after testing on a dozen friends and co-workers, there's been a unanimous thumbs up.

I wish I could claim to have thought of it first, but a quick Google proves I didn't.  Still, I think my version packs in more bacon deliciousness than any of the other contenders!  What follows is a basic recipe for caramels from the Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook, followed by the bacon version and two other sweet variations.

Basic Caramels

If using a candy thermometer, put it in a pot of boiling water to see how far off 212 F it is.  Match the depth of the water to the expected depth of the caramel mixture.  If you're inclined to skip this step, don't use a thermometer at all -- it will likely do you more harm than good.

In a large, deep pot, combine

1. 2 sticks (1 c) butter
2. 2 c (14 oz) granulated sugar
3. 2 c (16 oz) light corn syrup
4. 1 c heavy whipping cream

Stainless steel is preferable because it makes it easier to judge the color of the caramel, but anything will work.  Use a big pot, much bigger than you think you need;  this stuff expands a lot.  Cook over medium to around 224 F, stirring occasionally.  Adjust the target temperature based on how far off your thermometer is.  If it read e.g. 206 in the boiling water (6 degrees off), you'll want to target 224 - 6 = 218 F.  While it's bubbling, cover it with a lid for a few minutes -- the steam should wash down in stray sugar crystals stuck to the sides.  (With so much corn syrup, I don't think there's much danger of crystallization, but it can't hurt.)  Now stir in

1. 1 c heavy whipping cream

I'm not sure why recipes have you add the cream in two additions.  I'd guess only the final temperature matters, but I keep doing it this way out of superstition.  Now the precise part:  cook to exactly 246 - 248 F (again adjusted for your thermometer).  The mixture will take on that signature caramel color and a thick, stringy texture when stirred (reminiscent of a starter sponge for yeast dough).  A degree more or less at this stage makes a noticeable difference in the texture of the candy:  too low, and the caramel will ooze;  too high, and the caramel will be brittle.  I like to reduce the heat to low at this point so the caramel cooks a little more slowly, and I have more wiggle room.

About 5 degrees before done, start dropping spoonfuls of caramel into a little bowl of ice water.  Squeeze it flat with your fingers to help it chill.  When it's room temperature, pull it out and chew to check the texture.  When it's done, the super thin and spindly edges will probably crack (because they got colder) and the body of it will have a pleasantly firm chew.  It doesn't hurt to pull the pot off the heat while you're checking, so it doesn't get away from you.

Finally, stir in

1. 2 t vanilla extract

and any other last-minute additions.  Pour into a well-greased 9 x 13 baking pan.  I like to line mine with foil first (nonstick, if you've got it) to make things easier.  Sprinkle with

1. Fleur de sel or other coarse salt

if you like.  Let cool to room temperature, then cut into squares.

Bacon Caramels (original)

Before starting, thoroughly cook

1. 1/2 lb bacon, chopped

Stir often and lower the heat as it approaches done, to avoid burning.  Continue cooking until all fat is rendered and all bacon is very crisp.  Transfer bacon to paper towel-lined plate.  Chop bacon finely.  Pour hot bacon grease through a coffee filter set in a strainer, into a heatproof measuring cup.  (This is to remove any bits that might burn or spoil later.)  Use bacon grease to replace an equal amount of butter in the basic recipe (about 1/4 cup, half a stick).  Fold bacon in at the end, with the vanilla.  I like to use

1. applewood-smoked sea salt

from the Spice & Tea Exchange to top the caramels and really up that smokey bacon flavor.

Pecan Praline Caramels (original)

Replace 1 c of granulated sugar with 1 c brown sugar, and fold in 8 oz chopped toasted pecans with the vanilla.  Top with salt.

Ginger Fleur-de-sel Caramels (original)

Before starting, place ~2 oz peeled, thin-sliced ginger in a saucepan with the cream, and bring to a gentle simmer.  Turn off the heat and leave the ginger to steep for at least 15 minutes.  This imparts a subtle ginger note to the caramels without being too obvious.

Hot sauce

I've been on a hot sauce kick lately, ever since I had the homemade stuff at Dame's Chicken and Waffles.  His is still better than mine, but he won't give up the recipe, so I'm stuck inventing my own.  This is the best I've come up with so far -- not bad if I say so myself.  And it's a great use for all the dried peppers I made the last two summers and didn't know what to do with.

Cut the top quarter off of

1. 1 head garlic (whole)

Drizzle with olive oil, and roast for about 1 hour at 300 F.  (I did this in the toaster oven and it worked fine.)  Remove from oven and let cool.  This is a lot of garlic, but roasting makes it mellow and sweet.  It helps lend body to the sauce too.

Meanwhile, stem and seed

1. 10 medium cayenne peppers, dried

Best method I've found is to break off the stem end and the tip, then root around in the middle with a toothpick.  Might be good to wear gloves while you're doing this.  You'll invariably miss a few seeds, but try to get most of them.  They don't blend up all that well, and the add a lot of extra (unwanted) heat.  Add

1. 1 cup water

Bring to a slow boil, uncovered, and reduce until only 1-2 T of liquid remain.  (Peppers should be fully rehydrated.)  Remove from heat, let cool.  Seeding the peppers makes me sneeze, and the fumes when boiling can be pretty assertive.  Oh, and wash the pot thoroughly after -- apparently I didn't the first time, and the next dish (chocolate sauce!) had a real kick to it...

Transfer garlic and peppers (with liquid) to the food processor.  Add

1. 1 c cider vinegar
2. 2 oz. roasted red peppers (from a jar)
3. 1 t salt
4. 1 t sugar

Process until smooth.  Strain through a coarse-mesh strainer into a Mason jar.  Refrigerate for a few days to allow flavors to blend.

If you're like Dame, serve it with waffles and fried chicken.  Or blend with mayo for a spicy cole slaw dressing.  Or whatever else you like to do with hot sauce...

Ginger ale -- REAL ginger ale

Ever since I tasted Reeds, I've had a thing for ginger ale.  If all you've ever had is Schweppes or Canada Dry, you're in for a treat.  Real ginger ale is sweet and sour and piquantly spicy all at the same time.  It's anything but the bland, pedestrian soda you sipped as a kid when you were sick (although the ginger in the real stuff may still be good for an upset stomach).

When we lived in Seattle, there was a coffee shop in Freemont that sold homemade ginger ale in unmarked brown glass bottles.  It was good stuff, but I don't know of an equivalent in Durham.  Besides, ever since I got into making wine, I've wanted to try making my own soft drinks.  As it turns out, making soda is far easier than making wine, and you get to enjoy the results a lot faster.

Yes, soda originally involved fermentation with yeast, back in the days before we made machines to force carbon dioxide into liquids under high pressure.  The process is essentially the same as making beer or wine, except the bottle is kept closed to capture the carbon dioxide generated by the yeast, and the fermentation is stopped early, before any significant amount of alcohol is produced.

There are a few tools and ingredients that you need, so I'll get those out of the way first.  Only two or three are truly unusual, so it's really not hard to get started!

• Wine yeast.  People generally recommend Red Star Premier Cuvee, as it ferments fast and clean.  I also tried Lalvin EC1118, but got less carbonation.  The little packets are about $1 each, so it's dead cheap if you have a homebrew store nearby.  If you do mail order, everybody charges $10 in shipping, although American Brewmaster in Raleigh was slightly cheaper.  It is possible to use regular baking yeast to make soda, but it adds some distinctive flavors that, while not terrible, are sort of distracting.  Having tried both, I'd highly recommend springing for the wine yeast.  Store it sealed in plastic in the freezer for up to a year.  Each packet holds enough to make several gallons.
• Food-grade citric acid.  Citric acid is what gives lemons and limes their zing, and what makes many soft drinks pleasantly tart.  You could use real lemon or lime juice, but I think you'd need a cup or two to get the same effect -- kind of a pain.  Many other recipes include cream of tartar (a.k.a. tartaric acid) instead, for "mouth feel", but I can't see that it contributes anything useful -- I think citric acid works much better.  You can get an 8 oz bag of citric acid from the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company for $5 and it will last you a lifetime.  Besides, you need to order...
• High thread count cheese cloth.  The "cheese cloth" you find in the grocery store is too open to actually catch much of anything;  the real stuff has a much tighter weave.  Get the 90 thread count Butter Muslin from New England Cheesemaking at the same time you get the citric acid.  A couple layers of this will catch most of the ginger residue when you strain your soda.
• Coffee filters (optional).  Straining the ginger ale through coffee filters removes the fine particles that otherwise make the final product hazy instead of clear.  The cheese cloth is still necessary to first remove 99% of the big chunks that would otherwise clog your coffee filters in an instant.
  
• Four 1L bottles or two 2L bottles.  Get plastic seltzer bottles (1L) or soda bottles (2L), ones that are designed to hold carbonated liquids under pressure.  I prefer the 1L bottles because there's less soda left over to go flat.  (However, bottles will re-pressurize to some extent as they sit in the fridge.)  If you try to use regular spring water bottles, they'll leak or deform or pop.  Plastic is also safer than glass (e.g. beer bottles), because you can feel how much pressure there is by squeezing, instead of taking you best guess and praying nothing explodes.
• Two large pots.  Each should hold a gallon of liquid comfortably.
• A sieve or strainer.  It's much easier if you can suspend this above one of the pots.  The mesh doesn't matter;  you'll line it with coffee filters and/or cheese cloth.
• A funnel and ladle.  For filling the bottles -- trying to pour from the big pot doesn't work so well  :)
• A food processor.  A blender might work in a pinch.  If you have a juicer, I hear this is great for ginger, but I haven't tried it personally.
• An instand-read thermometer.  For measuring the water temperature.  If you don't have one, 100 F feels like warm (but not hot) bathwater.  It's better to be a little under than a little over, because overly hot water will kill the yeast.
• A digital kitchen scale.  You can get by without it, but it makes all your cooking so much easier.  Spend $25 and pick one up from Amazon.  Get one that does at least 5 lbs. in 1/8 oz increments or finer.  You won't regret it.

Now, on to the recipe!  Because you're trying to grow microorganisms in sugar water on your countertop, cleanliness is worth paying attention to, so that you grow the right microorganisms.  But since it's only out for a few days before it goes in the fridge, you don't have to be crazy about, and you certainly don't have to sterilize everything.  A nice wash with soapy water will be just fine.

(3 oz peeled ginger)

In the food processor, combine

1. 3 oz peeled ginger root, or to taste
2. 18 oz granulated sugar (2 1/2 c)

Run the food processor for several minutes, until you have a uniform, light golden paste.  Processing the ginger with the sugar ensures that it gets chopped much finer than it would by itself.  Three ounces of ginger makes a pleasantly zippy ginger ale.  If you like more of a kick, try 6 oz.  I like it that way, though most of my friends don't.  I've tried all the way up to 12 oz, but it just burns your mouth and is no fun to drink.  Also, some recipes recommend using brown sugar, but I find this muddies the taste.

In a large pot over medium heat, bring to 100 F

1. 4 L water

Use your soda bottles to easily measure out 4 L of water.  Remove from heat, scrape in the ginger paste, then add

1. 3/4 t citric acid
2. 1 T vanilla extract (optional)

This is a good time to taste the mix, and adjust anything that wants adjusting.  Don't put your germy spoon back in the pot!  Let it sit for 10 or 15 minutes to make sure all the flavor gets extracted.

Set the collander over the clean pot, and line it with overlapping coffee filters.  Place several layers of fine cheese cloth over the filters.  Strain the mixture into the clean pot.  Sprinkle over top

1. 1/4 t Red Star Premier Cuvee yeast

Let sit for at least 15 minutes, and up to an hour.  Stir well, and use the funnel when ladling ginger ale into bottles.  Leave a little air space at the top.  Squeeze bottle gently to bring liquid all the way to the top, and cap tightly.

Your soda will ferment (and therefore carbonate) over the next 2 - 3 days.  It will probably take at least 24 hours before you see any activity.  The first signs are bubbles collecting on the sides of the bottle near the top.  Then the air space will re-appear at the top, and the sides will straighten. Shortly after, the bottle will start to become rigid, like an unopened bottle of soda from the store.  To some extent, the longer the fermentation continues, the more carbonated the drink will become.  Of course, as the pressure increases, so does the chance of an explosion!  I wait 24 hours (no more, no less) after the bottles first becomes rigid, and then move them to the refrigerator.  The low temperature effectively halts the fermentation, although if the bottles warm up again, fermentation will resume.  The total time from preparation to refrigerator is about 48 to 72 hours.  (For the nervous among you, don't stop early either, or your soda won't have much in the way of fizz!)

If you used the coffee filters, your ginger ale should end up mostly clear, although there will always be some ginger + dead yeast sediment in the bottom of the bottle.  If you skipped the coffee filters, it will be cloudier (but still delicious).  Try to pour gently, and you can leave most of the sediment in the bottom of the bottle.  Grab yourself a glass of ice, and enjoy!

According to my measurements, the ginger ale starts with enough sugar to generate 5% alcohol by volume, if it were fermented completely dry.  In practice, very little of the sugar is actually converted to alcohol.  Following the recipe above, there's so little alcohol I can't measure it when I transfer the bottles to the fridge.  I'd say it's less than a quarter of one percent.  There's probably more alcohol in a mouthful of beer or wine than in a whole bottle of my ginger ale, but still, use your best judgement.

The possible variations are almost endless.  All sorts of citrus flavorings would be welcome additions, and I've actually contemplated building a ginger ale on top of lemonade or limeade.  (You'd have to reduce the amount of added sugar, and probably eliminate the citric acid.)  One recipe I saw included spices like black pepper and cayenne.  And my mom suggested a vanilla ice cream - ginger ale float, which made me consider adding vanilla to the mix (though I'm not sure how, since I don't think the flavor extracts into water very efficiently).  Finally, you could double the sugar and start the fermentation with the bottles unsealed.  When you reached 5% alcohol, you could seal them up and end up with alcoholic ginger ale, which sounds fun.  (This would generate more sediment though;  I'm not sure how to deal with that.  You could do the primary fermentation in a separate vessel before bottling, but that's a good bit of extra work.)

I started this recipe from several excellent sources on the web (Jerry Halstead, Mark Sexauer, Jeffrey Morgenthaler), and refined it with a couple of rounds of experimentation.  I hope you enjoy it!  And I'd love to hear of any great variations you come up with.

Turnips and Onions

I had turnips for the first time this winter, thanks to Papa Spuds.  They kept showing up on the list, and I figured, if this is what grows in the winter in NC, I should learn to cook it.  As far as I can tell, people generally treat them like potatoes and mash them.  But they're less starchy and much more watery (so they cook down), and they have a distinctive, slightly sharp flavor.  It reminds me a little of horseradish, for some reason -- I think this dish would be amazing with a nice steak for that reason.

They look a bit homely, but trust me, this is good stuff for a cold winter night.

In salted water to cover, boil

1. 1 1/2 lbs. turnips, peeled and cubed (about 3 medium)

until tender, about 15 minutes.  Drain and return to the warm burner to dry slightly, then mash with a hand masher and mix with

1. 1/4 c cream

Place mashed turnips in a greased casserole dish.

While the turnips boil, put a large stainless steel skillet over medium heat.  (Nonstick won't work because the onions don't caramelize as well or develop as much fond, and cast iron won't work because you can't see the difference between caramelized and burnt against the dark surface.  Stainless it is.)  Add

1. 1 T butter
2. 1 T olive oil
3. 2 medium yellow onions, sliced
4. 1 t sugar
5. salt to taste

Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are soft and browned, and a thick layer of brown fond has collected on the bottom of the pan.  If the fond begins to turn very dark and look or smell burnt, reduce the heat!  To the hot skillet, add

1. 1/4 c water
2. 1 T balsamic vinegar

With a wooden spoon, stir rapidly, scraping the bottom of the pan clean.  All the fond should dissolve and coat the onions.  (Bonus:  cleanup will be easy.)  Continue to cook over medium-low heat until the excess water evaporates and the onions are coated a rich brown sauce.  (If you take it too far and bits begin to stick to the bottom again, add more water and repeat the cycle.)  Layer the onions over the turnips in the casserole.

Bake in a moderate oven until heated through and bubbling, about 15 minutes.  350 F will work fine, but so will most other temperatures, and the time isn't too critical.  This is a good way to hold the turnips until the rest of the meal comes together.  Both the turnips and the onions really cook down a surprising amount, so this only makes 3-4 servings.  I'm sure it could easily be doubled, though.

Creamed Spinach

The last year, I've really been into kale. It all started with this recipe on Orangette. And this time of year, Papa Spuds has great kale available every week.

Unfortunately, pregnant women get random cravings and aversions, and kale is currently on Katy's naughty list. So we ordered spinach instead, which would be fine -- but this was not your tender, sweet, salad-ready baby spinach. This was rugged, leathery, muddy spinach that had been fighting off the cold weather tooth and nail.  Mature spinach, to put it delicately.  I was worried it was going to be inedible, actually.

Creaming saves the day.  There's no magic chemistry to creaming spinach (or corn, which also loves to be creamed).  But it sure is delicious.  This is a fairly high fat version, which doesn't hurt the deliciousness of course, but you could eliminate the butter and replace the cream with milk and it would still be fine.  The cornstarch gives body to the sauce, which is particularly important for the low-fat version.
In a medium pot, cook until wilted, stirring contantly

1. 1 large bunch spinach with stems, washed, dried, and coarsely chopped (about 8 oz.)
2. 1 T butter
3. salt to taste

I think you can skip this step and immediately add the next ingredients, but this is the way I actually tried it last night.  If you're omitting the butter, definitely skip ahead -- don't try wilting the spinach in a dry pot.  Whisk together

1. 1/2 c half-and-half
2. 1 1/2 t cornstarch
3. fresh ground black pepper
4. few grates fresh nutmeg
5. 1/4 t smoked paprika

It's important to blend the cornstarch into the cold cream before heating, so that it doesn't clump.  Stir into the spinach and simmer over low heat, covered, until the spinach is tender and the sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes.  You could replace the paprika with a little cayenne, or some Tabasco, or a touch of chipotle puree -- anything spicy.  But it really needs that little touch to wake it up.  The same basic recipe also works for corn, although I'd drop the spices and stick to salt and pepper.

As a footnote, cornstarch is a really useful thickener.  Like flour, the starch molecules unwind and thicken the liquid they're suspended in when heated to near boiling.  But unlike flour, which generally has to be cooked in a roux to get rid of the raw taste, cornstarch doesn't taste like much of anything.  It's also quite efficient as a thickener -- you need about 1 T cornstarch per cup, as opposed to 2 T of flour.

Basic beans -- Lentil Chili

My first exposure to lentils was in a sunny plaza somewhere in Spain;  Toledo, I think.  I hadn't been eating all that well lately -- Spanish food has some spectacular highs, but then sometimes you get a bowl of tiny fish, fried whole, and you don't really feel like bones and scales for lunch.  So I was hungry, but this lentil stew was still fantastic -- deep and rich and savory and comforting, even if you (like me) had never had lentils before.  Although the details have faded by now, I keep trying to recreate that stew.  I think I'm passably close now.

This recipe started life as a meatless "chili" in Bon Appetit, and the first time I made it, the lentils never totally softened up -- they were still a little crunchy.  It turns out that beans of all types are sensitive to pH -- in acidic conditions they stay firm, in basic conditions they go soft.  So if you're cooking dry beans, you want to hold off on adding any acidic ingredients (like the tomatoes in this recipe) until the beans are already soft, or you may be waiting a very, very long time.  (Or eating crunchy beans.  Yuck.)  For insurance, you can also add a tiny pinch of baking soda (like 1/16 t, or less) to ensure the water is not acidic.  (Don't add much, or you'll likely get an off, soapy taste from the soda.  Also yuck.)

I also added meat to the recipe -- in Spain, "vegetarian" is generally interpreted as "with less ham".  The Toledo stew probably featured (hard, cured, Spanish-style) chorizo, but Italian sausage or ground beef or even bacon would add a welcome richness.  The ascetics and vegetarians among you may leave it out, of course.

In a medium-large pot, brown

1. 1/2 lb Spanish-style chorizo (or other sausage)

If you omit the meat, you'll need 2 t olive oil instead.  Now add

1. 1/2 c chopped onion

and saute until slightly softened.  Stir in

1. 2 cloves garlic, minced
2. 1 T mild ground red chile, such as New Mexico, or more to taste
3. 1 T ground cumin
4. 1 t dried oregano

You can find bags of ground chile powders for cheap in the Mexican foods section of most markets.  I've found the heat can vary considerably from batch to batch, so start slowly and add more if you need it.  I've substituted California chiles when I can't find New Mexico, but they're generally hotter.  If your pepper is very mild or you like things very hot, you may want to add some cayenne pepper as well, say 1/8 t to start.  Now stir in

1. 4 c water, plus more as needed
2. 1/4 c red wine (optional)
3. 1 c dried brown lentils, rinsed
4. small pinch (< 1/16 t) baking soda

Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.  Stir in

1. 1/3 c tomato paste (that's most of a 6 oz can)

Continue to simmer uncovered until chili is thickened and lentils are tender, about 15 minutes.  Add water as needed if it gets too thick.  Before serving, stir in

1. 1/3 c sliced green onions

Top with additional green onions and sour cream (if desired) for garnish.  Serves 4 for dinner (3 if you omit the meat).

The x-ray structure of ginger

Or maybe not. But it's crystalized, at least, and that's as close as I've gotten to structural biology lately. Crystallized (a.k.a. candied) ginger is yummy stuff, but my local Harris Teeter informs me that they only carry it during the holidays. Hmpf. So now I make my own, and it's not too hard, and even the by-products are useful. I love food like that, where nothing is wasted.

I went down this road because of Molly Wizenberg's book, where she describes banana bread with chocolate chips and crystallized ginger. She has another version of the recipe on her blog, but it's not the same as the book. But really, you can use any banana bread: just add in 3/4 c of chocolate chips (Ghirardelli 60%, if you have them) and 1/3 c crystallized ginger.

This recipe is the average, approximately, of what I turned up in a Google search. All the recipes were wildly different. So whatever you do, it will probably turn out just fine.

Start with

1. 1 pound ginger, peeled and sliced thin

How thin is a matter of debate: too thin and they become insubstantial wisps after cooking, too thick and you get a rude jolt of ginger. I think 1/8" is about right (i.e., stack 8 slices and they should measure 1 inch). A vegetable peeler is good for peeling the ginger. Place the ginger in a medium-large saucepan with

1. water to barely cover

Simmer for 20 or 30 minutes. You can also steam the ginger and maybe retain a little more flavor, if you prefer.

Pour off almost all of the ginger water, leaving about 1/2 c behind. (You can save it if you want, mix it with the syrup, and pour over ice for a ginger-beer-like beverage, minus the bubbles.) Add

1. a large quantity of sugar

until you have a saturated sugar solution, more or less. You'll be boiling off excess water, so it doesn't matter too much -- it just takes longer if you skimp on the sugar. I think it's about 2 cups of sugar per 1/2 cup of water in the pot. Simmer until the ginger is translucent and the syrup forms tall, sticky mounds of small bubbles that cover the ginger and threaten to climb out of the pot. (Don't skimp on pot size, either.) You want to stop before the sugar takes on any caramel color at all.

Remove the ginger from the pot with a fork or slotted spoon and place it on a Silpat. (If you don't have one, get one; but in the meantime I'd try a greased cookie sheet.) Try to leave as much syrup behind as you can. Let the ginger dry for 8 - 16 hours, then toss with generous additional sugar while still slightly sticky and chop to desired size. Add more sugar as necessary to keep ginger pieces separated. Store in a plastic container at room temperature.

I'd save the ginger syrup if I were you. It could be good on vanilla ice cream, or drizzled over the aforementioned banana bread. I'm also thinking it would be good with pancakes topped with banana slices. Or perhaps with berries and whipped cream? Or go savory and make a gingery sweet and sour sauce for stir-fry. So many possibilities. Let me know what works out for you!

Cucumber bean salad

This is a really cheap salad that I made out of desperation with things that were left over in the fridge. Surprisingly, it turned out to be quite tasty! The inspiration was flavors from salsa.

Whisk together

1. 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
2. 3 T cider vinegar
3. 1 T tomato paste
4. 1 t chipotle-in-adobo puree

Pour over

1. 2 large cucumbers, diced
2. 1 (15 oz) can of white beans, rinsed and drained
3. 1/4 c minced white onion
4. 1/4 c chopped cilantro

Add salt and pepper to taste. Should feed at least 4 as a side.

Pasta with smoked salmon and rosemary cream

This was a yummy dinner that came about almost by accident. We had some salmon that Neil from our parents' group had caught and smoked, and some fresh rosemary from the garden outside Liz and Bob's new house. The salmon wasn't the sort of barely cooked stuff you find sometimes; it was fully cooked, kind of a delicious salmon jerky. To top the whole thing off, we had some smoked salt from Market Spice down at Pike Place -- the crunch and extra smoke was a really nice touch.

Amounts are approximate because I'm guessing after the fact. Cook

1. 8oz dried pasta, such as penne

in boiling salted water until almost done. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, combine

1. 2 c heavy cream
2. 3/4 c shredded Parmesean
3. 1 sprig fresh rosemary
4. 6 oz smoked salmon, chopped

Cook just until cheese is incorporated and mixture is slightly thickened. Add drained pasta and cook until pasta is tender and coated in sauce. Serve garnished with

1. Salish smoked sea salt (from Market Spice)
   

Turkey gravy

We hosted Thanksgiving for the first time this year, so it was my first time cooking a turkey. I followed the salted turkey recipe from last year's Cooks Illustrated, and it came out well. I think icing down the breast meat really did help everything finish at the same time.

For the gravy, on the other hand, I didn't have a recipe exactly. The day before, I had seen Alton Brown making one with red wine on TV, and I had the trusty Ultimate Southern Living -- but neither was quite what I (thought I) wanted. Funny enough, the gravy got more compliments than anything else I made. So I'm recording it here for next year!

In a medium saucepan, simmer for 45 minutes:

1. half an onion, chopped
2. handful of carrot pieces
3. celery seed (would've used celery if I'd had it)
4. 2 bay leaves
5. large spring fresh thyme
6. small bunch fresh parsley
7. salt and pepper
8. turkey neck
9. turkey gizzard and heart (no liver) (pictures for identifying the pieces)
   
10. water to cover

Strain, chill, skim. Yields ~3 cups stock.

While turkey is resting, pour off all drippings from the roasting pan (don't scrape). Place over burners, add ~1 cup stock, and scrape until all browned bits are dissolved and pan is clean.

In a medium saucepan, make a roux with

1. 4 T butter (half a stick)
2. 1/4 c flour

Pour in pan juices through a fine-mesh sieve and whisk to combine. Whisk in additional broth as needed to reach desired consistency, keeping in mind that full thickening won't happen until the gravy comes to a simmer.

Thai glazed carrots

Carrots? Yes, carrots. I like them in things -- stir fries, pilaf, couscous. And they're fine for snacking, with dip or hummus. But on their own, cooked, I always thought of them as bland and mushy, not far removed from baby food. Even the carrots in ginger ale recipe was a little bland.

These carrots are much nicer: a little tangy, a little sweet (not too much), even a little spicy. And since Katy and I are really trying to watch our food budget, it doesn't hurt that they're 75 cents a pound and used things I had in the refrigerator anyway. (They got created in a what-have-we-got-in-the-fridge moment one night.) They dirty up only one pan and one spoon, which is a big plus in my book. Plus, any vegetable that brightly colored has to be good for you, right?

I used some lemongrass paste from a tube that I had left from some other recipe, when the grocery store didn't have fresh. But I think real lemongrass would be good here too. Ginger would also be nice and would probably be a perfectly respectable substitute.

The Key limes were also a bargain at ~$3 for a whole bag. Although the Key lime cupcakes looked and tasted like playdough, the rest of the limes kept nicely in the refrigerator and made themselves appreciated at several meals later in the week.

This technique is from The Best 30-Minute Recipe, but the flavors are mine. The amounts below are guesses, because I wasn't measuring when I made this :)

Thai glazed carrots

In a large skillet over medium heat, combine

1. 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into coins on the bias (about 4 large carrots)
2. 1/3 cup water
3. 1 T sugar
4. 1/2 t salt
5. 1 t hot Asian chili or chili-garlic sauce
6. 2 t lemongrass (paste or fresh), or fresh ginger

Cover and steam until carrots are just tender when poked with the tip of a sharp knife. Remove lid and stir in

1. 1 T butter
2. 2 T sugar

Increase heat and cook, stirring, until carrots are tender (but not mushy) and glaze is thickened and lightly caramelized. Remove from heat and toss with

1. juice of 2 Key limes, or 1/2 - 1 regular lime

Goes nicely with a variety of things, even if the rest of the meal isn't Asian.

Two pizza recipes

I recently created two successful pizza recipes and thought I would record them here. They're both built on my Refrigerator Flatbread dough, stretched out thin and baked on a pizza stone at 450 F for 10 minutes. (I tried using 1/3 part higher-protein flour and some dough relaxer, but the standard recipe is fine.) I put the dough on parchment to make it easier to slide into the oven. The high heat and stone are important for getting a nice crisp crust and nicely browned cheese.

I find that freshly shredded part-skim mozzarella works best; the whole-milk stuff gets awfully greasy. I use Polly-O because that's what the store carries. The secret is to go light with both cheese and sauce: too much of either makes the pizza heavy. Use less than you think you need, and it will come out just right.

Pork BBQ Pizza

Top the dough with a thin film of sweet tomato-based barbeque sauce, such as KC Masterpiece. Add diced red onions, fresh herbs if you have them (parsley, cilantro, or chives would all be nice), and some shredded pork barbeque. Top lightly with grated mozzarella and bake as above.

White Pizza

Brush dough with extra virgin olive oil. Use the really good stuff; this can make or break the whole thing. Sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Sprinkle with mozzarella and grated Parmesan and bake as above.

Cole slaws

Mmm, cole slaw. Both the recipes here make enough for 1 lb. of shredded cabbage, which I usually buy pre-cut as a package of tri-color slaw from the grocery store. Gudda's recipe is creamy and savory; not really my favorite, but recorded for here for posterity. I suspect it's pretty typical Pennsylvania Dutch. The other is my creation, modeled after the NC slaws I associate with church pig-pickin's and carry-out fried chicken. It should sit in the fridge for at least 24 hours, so the sugar can draw some water out of the cabbage -- otherwise the dressing is too heavy and too sweet.

Gudda's Cole Slaw

1. 1/2 c mayonnaise
2. 2 T cider vinegar
3. 1 T grated onion
4. 1/2 t celery seed
5. 1 t sugar
6. 1/2 t salt
7. 1/8 t pepper

My Sweet White Slaw

1. 1/2 c mayonnaise
2. 1/4 c sugar
3. 2 T white wine
4. 2 T white wine vinegar
5. salt, pepper, celery seed