Hurricane (Cupcake) Baking

Well, Hurricane Irene turned out to be more of a 'prolonged rain shower,' at least round these parts, but it didn't stop me from having a party last night! Now, normally I make cupcakes with my special Jell-O pudding frosting (just take any package of instant pudding and whip it with cream. My personal favorite is pistachio flavor) but I was itching to try a frosting recipe I saw on the Pioneer Woman titled 'Best Frosting Ever' or something to that effect.

Most frosting recipes tend to be too sweet for my taste, that's why I like the Jell-O pudding frosting because it's the perfect combo of creamy and tasty but not too sweet. But this one sounded like a good alternative. It has flour in it! You basically make a roux with the flour and milk then add butter, sugar, and vanilla. You can check out the whole recipe here. The directions tell you to really whip the ingredients together and I can't emphasize that enough. Even if you think you're done, mix it for a few more seconds. The frosting should be kind of stiff, like this:

I would also recommend using the best quality butter you can. There aren't too many ingredients in this recipe, so the better the quality of everything, the better the frosting. I used some sticks that had been frozen and while the frosting was still good, I could definitely tell.


Now for the cupcakes...

I read somewhere that this was the frosting originally used with Red Velvet cake before cream cheese frosting became the go-to. I loooove me some cream cheese frosting, but it can definitely be on the rich side. This is a nice alternative. I used Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix because they tend to make the best boxed cakes. Quite frankly, Red Velvet is kind of a pain to make from scratch because of the mass quantities of red food coloring involved and the taste difference between homemade and boxed is negligible (at least in my opinion.)

Then, frost and enjoy! I recommend displaying them on the counter for easy access:

Easy Roasted Tomatoes

Oh, hey blog. Sorry I've been neglecting you. My cousin (and dedicated P&P reader) Katie got married this weekend, so I've been a tad busy. But I'm happy to report that, along with a new cousin-in-law, I now have a personal pie maker. Man, I just love weddings.

Before the weekend, I had a problem. James' mother kept giving us giant heirloom tomatoes from the garden and I was running out of things to do with them (shocking, I know.) I needed something fast and easy that could work with overripe tomatoes. Enter: slow roasted tomatoes. I found a bunch of recipes for smaller plum and cherry tomatoes but gave it a go with these ones with some adjustments. Basically, you should just bake them for as long as possible. Given the current outside temps, leaving your oven on for three hours can seem like a cruel joke, I know, but if you can sweat it out the results are delicious.


I did these for about 2 hours at 300 degrees, but I would have left them in longer if I had the time. Everyone seems to have their own thoughts about time/degrees, so really it depends on how much time you have and how big the tomatoes are. What I like about this recipe is that you can tailor it to your own tastes very easily and there are loads of different combos. I sprinkled these with salt, pepper, sugar, evoo, fresh basil, and feta but you could try garlic, goat cheese, mozzerella, herbs de Provance--anything really. The sugar helps the tomatoes caramelize a bit and if you do use cheese, make sure to wait until the last fifteen minutes or so.

They can be eaten on their own, as a side, mixed with pasta, served on top of fish, etc.

Next time: I break in the personal pie maker!

Bittman's Blueberry Cobbler, Sullyfied

mmm warm blueberry cobbler cooling on a windowsill...put it in my mouth

Last week I was doing some research for The Book--specifically the history of the cobbler--and, funnily enough, I began jonesing for some. I bought a pint of blueberries at the Bristol farmers market and found a recipe via Mark Bittman. Apparently his friend got it years ago during a stay at a Southern boarding house and is an old family recipe, or something like that. Now, if there was anything I learned during my research it was that old Southern cobbler recipes will equal deliciousness. I especially liked this one because I wasn't required to roll out any dough. As I've mentioned before, James doesn't have a rolling pin and despite all the progress I've made turning the bachelor kitchen into the co-ed kitchen, we still lack some key tools. This recipe also includes the use of a food processor to combine the dough but I just used a hand mixer, since we also don't have one of those either. You're essentially making wet cookie dough, so a food processor isn't absolutely necessary.

Here's Bittman's original recipe. I didn't have enough blueberries so I just halved everything. I also added a 1/4 tsp of lemon essence, which was quite nice. I'd probably try adding a 1/2 tsp next time though.

4 to 6 cups blueberries or other fruit, washed and well dried, peeled and sliced as necessary
1 cup sugar, or to taste
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits, plus some for the pan
1 /2 cup all-purpose flour
1 /2 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt
1 egg
1 /2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Toss the fruit with half the sugar and spread it in a lightly greased 8-inch square or 9-inch round baking pan.

2. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a food processor and pulse once or twice. Add the butter and process for 10 seconds, until the mixture is well blended. By hand, beat in the egg and vanilla.

The dough should look something like this:

3. Drop this mixture onto the fruit by tablespoon-fuls; do not spread it out. Bake until golden yellow and just starting to brown, 35 to 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

Lazy Sunday: The Half Door Brunch

Today I tried to check out the famers' market at Comstock Ferre & Co in Old Wethersfield, but this morning's rain put a kibosh on the whole thing. Boo. No fresh fruits and veggies for me. James and I decided to head towards Farmington and look for a place to eat instead. Along the way I reminded him that The Half Door, an Irish gastro-pub in Hartford's West End, was still serving brunch. Now normally James is pretty indecisive when it comes to food (which makes his association with me all the more puzzling) but as soon as I mentioned The Half Door he was set on it, and with good reason.

Ah, just give me a nice cuppa and room to work on my novel

The Half Door started doing brunch on Saturdays and Sundays about four years ago. I know this because back when I was writing for Metromix.com one of my first articles was about 'Hangover Havens' and The Half Door made an appearance. There's nothing like returning to the scene of the crime the next day, especially when the breakfast is awesome.

The menu takes its' cues from traditional Irish fare, such as the aptly named 'Big Arse Breakfast' or Eggs Benedict served on a bed of corned beef hash. By the time we got there lunch was also being offered, which pleased James even more since he's a sandwich man. True to form, he ordered the corned beef Reuben while I got the Dr. Seuss-inspired Green Eggs and Ham sandwich. I don't know where they get their bread from, but it is amazing. Totally makes the sandwich. I mean, the rest of it was good too but the bread, whether it's homemade or bought fresh from the bakery, takes this to the next level.

My AMAZING sandwich

James' almost AMAZING Reuben

Aside from the food, The Half Door is fun because it's just so darn charming. The atmosphere is very relaxed and has a nice neighborhood feel. Wooden booths line the walls and an impressive selection of draught and bottled beers are offered. James went with a classic Guinness while I went with my ubiquitous hot tea.


We also realized that we missed the first week of the Taste of Hartford, which runs until the 14th. I'd highly recommend checking out the great menus offered by some of the area's best restaurants. And a three course meal for $20.11 is a great reason to go.

Summer Fun: Boston Ramblings and Homemade Ice Cream

Recently I had a whirlwind weekend in Boston that involved Redbones bbq, a little too much PBR, a night game at Fenway and a helmet full of soft serve.

But before that I made 'no machine' chocolate ice cream courtesy of America's Test Kitchen.

I suppose I've always liked the idea of owning an ice cream machine, but in reality it seems like one of those things best left to the professionals--like making sushi or playing the accordion. So when I read over the recipe I was intrigued by the promise of homemade ice cream with only ten minutes of work. This is achieved by the use of condensed milk and a nod to Italian semifreddo desserts:

America's Test Kitchen Chocolate Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart

If you plan to store the ice cream for more than a few days, place plastic wrap directly on its surface before freezing.

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon instant coffee or espresso powder
• 1 tablespoon hot water
• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
• 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch salt
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, cold

Instructions

• 1. MELT CHOCOLATE BASE Combine coffee (or espresso) powder and hot water in small bowl. Let stand until coffee dissolves, about 5 minutes. Microwave chocolate, sweetened condensed milk, and coffee mixture in bowl, stirring every 10 seconds, until chocolate is melted, about 1 minute. Stir in vanilla and salt. Let cool.

• 2. MIX AND FREEZE With electric mixer on medium-high speed, whip cream to soft peaks, about 2 minutes. Whisk one-third of whipped cream into chocolate mixture. Fold remaining whipped cream into chocolate mixture until incorporated. Freeze in airtight container until firm, at least 6 hours or up to 2 weeks. Serve.

Tips and Tricks:

*I used German-imported dark chocolate from Aldi which I would recommend because it is good quality and cheap.

*I also added a few grinds of sea salt in a bid to make it like the Salted Fudge ice cream I had in Portland last month (hint: It didn't). I guess what I liked best about this recipe was that it provides a good base to work from and seems pretty conducive to add-ons.

*I don't think I'd add the espresso next time just because the flavor was quite strong. I've been told it helps to 'bring out the chocolate flavor' but all it seemed to do was make it taste like coffee. But hey, if that's what you're in to go for it.

*I would also try it with unsweetened condensed milk since it was a little sweeter than I'd like.

All in all though it was a fun recipe to make and resulted in some pretty tasty and surprisingly rich ice cream, though not as good as Red Sox helmet soft serve. Just kidding.