tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18920029732401452462024-03-05T13:55:27.839+01:00Moomser FoodMoomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-54795005294081075132010-11-14T15:12:00.000+01:002010-11-14T15:12:02.985+01:00Changes to Moomser<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I have decided to rearrange things a little here on Moomser, Moomser Food and Moomser Baby. I’ve decided to group everything under one blog: Moomser (<a href="http://www.moomser.com/"><span style="color: blue;">www.moomser.com</span></a>) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I simply am not organized enough at this point in my life to maintain three separate blogs. I’ll still be writing about the same things, I’ll still be posting recipes and talking about specific child-related concerns, you’ll just find it all under Moomser along with the slightly neurotic ramblings of my sleep deprived brain. And if you’re just interested in recipes or babies you can click up top on Moomser Food and it’ll automatically select only the posts labeled food (recipes and such), or on Moomser Baby for the baby and child stuff. I hope this works for you! Any suggestions are welcome as always.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I will eventually be shutting down the separate moomserfood.blogspot and moomserbaby.blogspot accounts so if you've bookmarked anything you won't find it anymore, but it's all on moomser.com already. (phew! sorry about the confusion!)</span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-39360265514909662202010-11-13T23:19:00.002+01:002010-11-14T14:22:59.949+01:00Just another Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0iHjnRivyiZ7D4L-DdyPlgY_IWDkqvkI44mH0fMZ4rnSQEkVFLlUG2urzHHExEk8TQGBXGdEoPaNZNnSi-Usd6OilskoOrYZlMDOJ7w5lOYaA6iHkUHMnJjZ6LCuTNM9NZVELOxndt5WK/s1600/IMG_2899+copia.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0iHjnRivyiZ7D4L-DdyPlgY_IWDkqvkI44mH0fMZ4rnSQEkVFLlUG2urzHHExEk8TQGBXGdEoPaNZNnSi-Usd6OilskoOrYZlMDOJ7w5lOYaA6iHkUHMnJjZ6LCuTNM9NZVELOxndt5WK/s320/IMG_2899+copia.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I love chocolate chip cookies. Or rather, I love store bought chocolate chip cookies. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Ah, now that all the purists have left my blog with expressions of disgust, let me explain. I’ve made a lot of chocolate chip cookies, but they’re either too crispy, or too soft, or too sweet (that happens a LOT) or, you know, they just make me reach for the Pepperidge Farm. The fact is that there is no such thing as the “perfect chocolate chip cookie”, cause <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">perfect</i> is different for each of us. Anyway, this is a “pretty good chocolate chip cookie recipe”, I’ll probably make it again, it’s not perfect… but it’s good enough.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: IT;">This is what you need</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: IT;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">150 grams (1cup plus 2 tablespoons) flour</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ tsp baking soda</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">115grams (8 tbs – 1 stick) unsalted butter softened or straight from fridge but cut into small pieces </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgNzYBaGHBRYCeJHFrQKg-uoHuXZFQjhm8Fb-xizruiTcjxY0Uf-ABThcvRjm8Ajd0Lr0zRYHjr_wAF44UyIS8f0MwGdMp2KZ-w7n24br0jdFoo9-DfxGVRldClM0e6iHjj-w3crUVTRdp/s1600/IMG_2890.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgNzYBaGHBRYCeJHFrQKg-uoHuXZFQjhm8Fb-xizruiTcjxY0Uf-ABThcvRjm8Ajd0Lr0zRYHjr_wAF44UyIS8f0MwGdMp2KZ-w7n24br0jdFoo9-DfxGVRldClM0e6iHjj-w3crUVTRdp/s320/IMG_2890.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">100grams (½ cup) white sugar </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">120grams (½ cup) brown sugar</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">2 large eggs</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ tsp salt</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">2 tsp vanilla</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1 tsp cinnamon</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chip cookies (or chocolate chunks)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ cups chopped pecans (or walnuts) optional</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: IT;">This is what you do</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: IT;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Preheat oven to 180°C - 350°F and line cookie sheets with parchment paper, or grease them but this may make your cookies a little richer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Whisk</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> together flour and baking soda. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Beat</b> butter and both sugars on medium speed until fluffy (if your butter is cold will take awhile – over 10 minutes). <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Add</b> eggs, vanilla and salt and beat until well combined. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Stir</b> in the flour and baking soda and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">beat</b> on low speed until smooth. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Stir</b> in chocolate chips and nuts by hand (many recipes say with a wooden spoon, but I used a silicone spatula and didn’t notice any difference.) </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblBs8z_8qvGTeNPAPp18X1FJauHad4BC7BlyC9l1Wqn6d9BtPgeJVtIEnow_p9JKFEuATNYc6CyFNto9xBSz9yPse1nGg3qhr-R76FNDkdcxPsLO0tcylQVaxjJhA-9oCPWy5oBqYTaoB/s1600/IMG_2897+copia.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgblBs8z_8qvGTeNPAPp18X1FJauHad4BC7BlyC9l1Wqn6d9BtPgeJVtIEnow_p9JKFEuATNYc6CyFNto9xBSz9yPse1nGg3qhr-R76FNDkdcxPsLO0tcylQVaxjJhA-9oCPWy5oBqYTaoB/s200/IMG_2897+copia.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx3r6AbJg-c6PK8JrmwbzF72zk0YLvVB89P_gBuB4DLjUkvHVB-_ooKFskkK36v5CgKeKDl-r-1Yw9QX6n9jFPJDdIycgUKXTnfpNFIu9LSLPJDve902fyR8zP4lRuM3_0Pwfvdb77Shyq/s1600/IMG_2895.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; height: 133px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; width: 201px;"><img border="0" height="133" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx3r6AbJg-c6PK8JrmwbzF72zk0YLvVB89P_gBuB4DLjUkvHVB-_ooKFskkK36v5CgKeKDl-r-1Yw9QX6n9jFPJDdIycgUKXTnfpNFIu9LSLPJDve902fyR8zP4lRuM3_0Pwfvdb77Shyq/s200/IMG_2895.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Distribute</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> the dough on your cookie sheets leaving quite a bit of space around each dollop so your cookies don’t end up stuck together. You can use a small ice cream scoop or two spoons to make the dough balls. If you use spoons, each ball should be no larger than half a spoon.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Bake </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">180°C</b> – 350°F for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">8 – 10 minutes</b> (depending on your oven and the size of your dough balls) or until the edges start browning slightly. Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet so they firm up and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely or, you know, get out the milk and start eating!</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBibu_HZ8x1riJCXlA5gqAk61BawSeHzPpZivapxKzDguqg_xiQsIzsMi7qfHeLHTPT8-GiqLotbVpgt1TpTzItEyrV4omAqEIeznkfrpcASJUxuQFBfcgyiwrB60UdekhIy1-FmlxBQ0Z/s1600/IMG_2899.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBibu_HZ8x1riJCXlA5gqAk61BawSeHzPpZivapxKzDguqg_xiQsIzsMi7qfHeLHTPT8-GiqLotbVpgt1TpTzItEyrV4omAqEIeznkfrpcASJUxuQFBfcgyiwrB60UdekhIy1-FmlxBQ0Z/s320/IMG_2899.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-86070938693831819432010-11-02T22:50:00.001+01:002010-11-14T14:23:30.129+01:00Easy peasy cream cheese frosting<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I use this a lot, so I figured I'd give it it's own post so I don't just keep repeating myself over and over and boring you into a stupor!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you need</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">150 – 160 grams Philadelphia cream cheese</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">40 – 50 grams butter (softened)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">120 grams (1 packet – 1 cup) confectioner’s sugar</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Depending on what you're frosting you can also add powdered cinnamon or pure vanilla extract, or almond extract. It is also a good base for flavored frostings like chocolate cream cheese frosting.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Beat together cream cheese and butter until well combined and fluffy (smitten kitchen says to soften cream cheese too, but I find that cold cream cheese makes for a thicker frosting – as suggested by the Joy of Cooking) add vanilla if using.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Sift in sugar (and cinnamon, if using) and beat until well mixed, but don’t over beat cause it’ll get runny.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Try and wait for your cake to cool before frosting….</span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-51333902765883647072010-11-02T22:17:00.002+01:002010-11-14T14:23:54.063+01:00Healthy Carrot Cake<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTQsbDBk2kc7PhLD4FURSt36_sC6IFSJ6NE-Pgu5ksGnvlbwCSsshvovJJXMbQGmvJIemiAnguQpZ-xMaj7bkYjF4D6LjsCMOWs_Kr49PpsCFoTPWRFC8-9lYvR2f_qg9OG758g_WlQUP/s1600/IMG_2837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvTQsbDBk2kc7PhLD4FURSt36_sC6IFSJ6NE-Pgu5ksGnvlbwCSsshvovJJXMbQGmvJIemiAnguQpZ-xMaj7bkYjF4D6LjsCMOWs_Kr49PpsCFoTPWRFC8-9lYvR2f_qg9OG758g_WlQUP/s320/IMG_2837.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Sunday the husband wasn’t feeling well so I decided to bake him a carrot cake to cheer him up. This version is loosely adapted from the Joy of Cooking, though I modified it to make it a little healthier and more kid friendly. Luckily for me, my toddler doesn’t like overly sweet cakes so I substituted part of the sugar and part of the oil with applesauce (this also makes it more diet friendly for me!) Carrot cake is so easy to make and so satisfying there’s really no reason not to bake it every week… well, you know, if you’re naturally skinny or have a lot of self-control or can stand to eat it with no icing… I can only get away with it once a month or so but it’s so worth it!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you need</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokE3EDxe3mNdK1TXyjA5wi_X43aJmvsquxFqymckDEBFgyg9XFscamBPUA3dMAoxScDafyo9KdYkDpOC-WNhv6GaLv7NxHW4efMS8_CDp5vdBfRtAN2oShp7YViSdHOzVeiwAGeCu-uP9/s1600/IMG_2807.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="130" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokE3EDxe3mNdK1TXyjA5wi_X43aJmvsquxFqymckDEBFgyg9XFscamBPUA3dMAoxScDafyo9KdYkDpOC-WNhv6GaLv7NxHW4efMS8_CDp5vdBfRtAN2oShp7YViSdHOzVeiwAGeCu-uP9/s200/IMG_2807.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">200 grams (1 ½ cup - 7oz) whole wheat flour (this’ll make it slightly denser than all purpose flour, but it’s still moist thanks to the applesauce)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">100 grams (½ cup – 3.5oz) sugar </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">10 grams (1 ½ tsp – 0.35oz.) baking soda<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">5grams (1 tsp – 0.2oz.) baking powder </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1 tsp ground cinnamon</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ tsp ground cloves; ½ tsp ground nutmeg; ½ tsp ground allspice</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ tsp salt</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ cup vegetable oil</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">3 large eggs</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">200 grams (1 cup – 2oz.) spiced apple sauce</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">200 grams (2 cups – 4oz.) freshly grated carrots</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">55 grams (1 cup - 2oz) finely chopped walnuts or pecans (I used the latter) - optional</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1 handful golden raisins (if they’re the largish kind chop them up a little bit) - optional</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Preheat your oven to 180°C – 350°F</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Mix together all your dry ingredients (follow the list down from flour to salt) in a big bowl.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Add in your wet ingredients (oil, eggs and applesauce) and mix by hand or beat on low speed.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Add in carrots, nuts and raisins and mix by hand.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-rsBnZHwSa9WY73juaPnU45ew5wzlEhWPY03MjGC58EAfV7OTGvNU6leFW27nNkUWC313eFKzcxA1jaPU-vgA0I6Vw7ZrXpr4tMrPuqDtQL0xo4GEXvyyvYznkQXl_x8O7xxHiobAI2j/s1600/IMG_2818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-rsBnZHwSa9WY73juaPnU45ew5wzlEhWPY03MjGC58EAfV7OTGvNU6leFW27nNkUWC313eFKzcxA1jaPU-vgA0I6Vw7ZrXpr4tMrPuqDtQL0xo4GEXvyyvYznkQXl_x8O7xxHiobAI2j/s200/IMG_2818.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAqNjLig12tsyjhso2LTuFyjyrgDR69Ee378VwPE2sAGnYgtWk5-Pf_2KWEvNFjL4X-DX1aVpYArrd3aSVOJ_CcoluVUR9qH7CxWJwIbT1_7a7BFCPdRktGPEeLiZbhNLl23frbQPJwaz/s1600/IMG_2821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpAqNjLig12tsyjhso2LTuFyjyrgDR69Ee378VwPE2sAGnYgtWk5-Pf_2KWEvNFjL4X-DX1aVpYArrd3aSVOJ_CcoluVUR9qH7CxWJwIbT1_7a7BFCPdRktGPEeLiZbhNLl23frbQPJwaz/s200/IMG_2821.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Butter and flour your round spring-form pan, pour in the mixture right away and spread evenly.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Bake 25 – 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes then take out of pan. Frost when completely cooled!</span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-42413423366530982332010-10-28T01:15:00.001+02:002010-11-14T14:24:32.260+01:00Spiced Applesauce Cake<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRO-N_AXWD3n7_hVrptZ8yYZKTdiyIh7S6vcelOdbqujKZenKMksHRus73EQNHcPOuQBKWc04cadpx4t-ZCb0UQe-TSPl7TtQNpwoUtovYTbzzbT6UKJRJC8QW2CpOtm7Z7uV4Wb07vdW7/s1600/Sliced+Cake+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRO-N_AXWD3n7_hVrptZ8yYZKTdiyIh7S6vcelOdbqujKZenKMksHRus73EQNHcPOuQBKWc04cadpx4t-ZCb0UQe-TSPl7TtQNpwoUtovYTbzzbT6UKJRJC8QW2CpOtm7Z7uV4Wb07vdW7/s320/Sliced+Cake+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I got this recipe of the <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Smitten Kitchen</a> website (surprise, surprise) and as usual it came out fantastic, so had to share. Plus I had promised many posts featuring apples and pears, right? You may be relieved to hear that I’m halfway through the three crates of apples and pears I got from my friend (mostly cause I’m cooking and pureeing for the baby like Gerber’s is going out of business) so I’ll hopefully be changing subject matter in the near future. For now, this lovely, easy cake.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; tab-stops: 185.25pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you need</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; tab-stops: 185.25pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">A square non-stick cake pan<strong> </strong>- I used a heart-shaped one cause I was feeling whimsical today!<strong> </strong></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>365 grams</strong> (1 ½ cup – 13oz) <strong>a</strong></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>pplesauce</strong> (I made a mix of spiced apple and pear sauce, will be posting the recipe for this asap on Moomser Baby) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>½ cup crushed pecans</strong> (the original says walnuts, but I had pecans…)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6tmnjEwxhlv_UDeqikRcMOkh1Qhyphenhyphen0076A-wlgjQ2OApR_FMPcHObgSQmaVcdnvlp4j7Tvw9ws3VjgyiLKzbUx-qPnuLj_9e0Ovbf_RU9nKXRWINrY1DXoP6c4cC_Xuz9De_5gyinMQKLh/s1600/All+Ingredients+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="124" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6tmnjEwxhlv_UDeqikRcMOkh1Qhyphenhyphen0076A-wlgjQ2OApR_FMPcHObgSQmaVcdnvlp4j7Tvw9ws3VjgyiLKzbUx-qPnuLj_9e0Ovbf_RU9nKXRWINrY1DXoP6c4cC_Xuz9De_5gyinMQKLh/s200/All+Ingredients+1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>250 grams</strong> (2cups – 8 ¾ oz.) all purpose <strong>flour</strong> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>10 grams</strong> (2tsp) <strong>baking powder</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>3 grams</strong> ( ½ tsp) <strong>baking soda</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>3 grams</strong> ( ½ tsp) <strong>salt</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>2 grams</strong> ( ¾ tsp) <strong>cinnamon</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>1 gram</strong> ( ½ tsp) <strong>ground ginger</strong> (I also added the same amount of ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and allspice)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>115 grams</strong> (1 stick – 4oz) <strong>unsalted butter</strong> – softened</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>215 grams</strong> (1 cup – 7 ¾ oz) light brown <strong>sugar</strong> (as usual I would put less sugar cause it was too sweet for my palate, next time I’ll stick to no more than 180grams)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>5ml</strong> (1 tsp) pure <strong>vanilla extract</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>2 eggs</strong> – room temperature</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>Beat</strong> together <strong>butter</strong> and <strong>sugar</strong> until soft and fluffy (took me at least 10 minutes, but my sugar was quite coarse, keep an eye on it).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">While that’s beating, <strong>measure</strong> out your dry ingredients. And butter your cake dish.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Then <strong>add eggs</strong> to wet ingredients one at a time and beat well in between. <strong>Add applesauce</strong>.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLTM2oOJYOlQCAJoE5EArWXphLTDnDuHtMzqAnNVKdt-5RDL8xaiVRDsTgfFJ7QrRUeXJ8mxYmIyr-5vbPPs6x0iGt8dR73wnEDqr-KTRTTd1Z6Pea-HbPDm8oGOp96GpIcQ-hbbsJMEdU/s1600/Dry+ingredients.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLTM2oOJYOlQCAJoE5EArWXphLTDnDuHtMzqAnNVKdt-5RDL8xaiVRDsTgfFJ7QrRUeXJ8mxYmIyr-5vbPPs6x0iGt8dR73wnEDqr-KTRTTd1Z6Pea-HbPDm8oGOp96GpIcQ-hbbsJMEdU/s200/Dry+ingredients.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4L9K_19ggrgD0hT3NTRDpKIRR3HqUK4Ds43uVr9xwiZj906sf_y5WwFe364YlruO3V8ZP-qrPz_8lLpwn2DFCfrCvvntk6Eq5AfQmbFZ7_v_qcX3NboYESd5eB_Dacq7IJJuHt1yy5Hcw/s1600/Batter+mixing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4L9K_19ggrgD0hT3NTRDpKIRR3HqUK4Ds43uVr9xwiZj906sf_y5WwFe364YlruO3V8ZP-qrPz_8lLpwn2DFCfrCvvntk6Eq5AfQmbFZ7_v_qcX3NboYESd5eB_Dacq7IJJuHt1yy5Hcw/s200/Batter+mixing.JPG" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Put your mixer on low and <strong>add in the dry ingredients </strong>and nuts and mix until just combined.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>Bake</strong> for <strong>30 to 40 minutes</strong> until tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean – it took me 30 minutes, so check on your cake often!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuD4heYrEbgIdXaDs4Pu7iJBqBRS3inixpkeRohFgQVBehhDcEU7HS5nTl7awtxXH6RINBfuXRVqNV6G1cubOGCjba6wLdxF85wRGy3IUEMTTBrpdyDuIdU2vxU9jB_gwYCdilYDuhN7WC/s1600/Batter+in+pan+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuD4heYrEbgIdXaDs4Pu7iJBqBRS3inixpkeRohFgQVBehhDcEU7HS5nTl7awtxXH6RINBfuXRVqNV6G1cubOGCjba6wLdxF85wRGy3IUEMTTBrpdyDuIdU2vxU9jB_gwYCdilYDuhN7WC/s200/Batter+in+pan+1.JPG" width="200" /></a></div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_8P1f86kxgcc7jWTL_Zy0PxCWaD8zN6_6BUfBBUqY_MRcfoUwDP0qrTSC2zfOQUhboFZ0i1vTiae9lYwxYd2UnX0bxpsu4Eeo_89BuFZMQnZzCA4tYuxBVBfvvD3-2Yvv2nbCJX-DCgo/s1600/Cake+in+oven+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_8P1f86kxgcc7jWTL_Zy0PxCWaD8zN6_6BUfBBUqY_MRcfoUwDP0qrTSC2zfOQUhboFZ0i1vTiae9lYwxYd2UnX0bxpsu4Eeo_89BuFZMQnZzCA4tYuxBVBfvvD3-2Yvv2nbCJX-DCgo/s200/Cake+in+oven+1.JPG" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Let it cool for 15 – 20 minutes and take out of your pan to let it cool completely. You’ll notice that my cake is cracked… I took it out too soon, so be patient!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkryVbafNQ9aaNh-bIlwCdQWQ9D8ameWck6TgLW8n0ul_0kO2h48IoC5iWrGFO-sD5W_jzcNPtHpGCAaPz2flNg-BM8BmGnTn1mYn6ZdXjj-5ZWqI-ML57oFURordQhSoJ7WyRnrLPEZg/s1600/Plain+Cake+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkryVbafNQ9aaNh-bIlwCdQWQ9D8ameWck6TgLW8n0ul_0kO2h48IoC5iWrGFO-sD5W_jzcNPtHpGCAaPz2flNg-BM8BmGnTn1mYn6ZdXjj-5ZWqI-ML57oFURordQhSoJ7WyRnrLPEZg/s320/Plain+Cake+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">You can serve this with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cream cheese frosting</b>:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you need</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">150 – 160 grams Philadelphia cream cheese</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">40 – 50 grams butter (softened)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">120 grams (1 packet – 1 cup) confectioner’s sugar</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 tsp pure vanilla extract</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1 tsp cinnamon</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do</span></u></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>Beat</strong> together <strong>cream cheese</strong> and <strong>butter</strong> until well combined and fluffy (smitten kitchen says to soften cream cheese too, but I find that cold cream cheese makes for a thicker frosting – as suggested by the Joy of Cooking) <strong>add</strong> vanilla.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><strong>Sift</strong> in <strong>sugar</strong> and <strong>cinnamon</strong> and beat until well mixed, but don’t over beat cause it’ll get runny.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Try and wait for your cake to cool before frosting, I obviously didn't….</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizxM6vS8xF2ZB5P0NUIr1XXl0YN1Dx_ZE8DP-3wcCPOS7eQkWr5TJZStcmyV5syIk7V6Y9oT0LBTta51zbPS4MkIT6gNaDSSa0SYPhqY6Sezs7Gy4a8nv8ByTbtYSWn9ocuRCkqzGF_FiY/s1600/Iced+Cake+front+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizxM6vS8xF2ZB5P0NUIr1XXl0YN1Dx_ZE8DP-3wcCPOS7eQkWr5TJZStcmyV5syIk7V6Y9oT0LBTta51zbPS4MkIT6gNaDSSa0SYPhqY6Sezs7Gy4a8nv8ByTbtYSWn9ocuRCkqzGF_FiY/s320/Iced+Cake+front+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhyphenhyphenim2Wsi3Wih0nExslXUqdyKWg69eleYkNQs-azPxrm3WKrMvpQNkMsBxMIKDNBbW9L-nqjBIL3NuHRSqwplmrY1ZK-TtSrfc67tIfm0jBA6T5F-bdeoczFtdSBjqLV7v6p6KIKD_Bo4/s1600/Iced+Caje+lf+side+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhyphenhyphenim2Wsi3Wih0nExslXUqdyKWg69eleYkNQs-azPxrm3WKrMvpQNkMsBxMIKDNBbW9L-nqjBIL3NuHRSqwplmrY1ZK-TtSrfc67tIfm0jBA6T5F-bdeoczFtdSBjqLV7v6p6KIKD_Bo4/s320/Iced+Caje+lf+side+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-77414671470138049172010-10-22T23:56:00.002+02:002010-11-14T14:25:00.899+01:00Salone del Gusto 2010<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The <a href="http://www.salonedelgusto.com/">Salone del Gusto</a> is upon us once again. Every two years <a href="http://slowfood.com/">Slow Food</a> organizes the massive trade fair that is the International Salone del Gusto in Turin, and as one of the main sponsors we participate with a passion. I mentioned in “Why Moomser Food” that I have never worked in the food service industry, but I have worked in the food production industry, namely a mineral water company, so I will occasionally post on these types of events. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Unfortunately, after a full day at the fair I’m completely beat, so will reserve all commentary on how it’s going for tomorrow (I hope) but for now I just wanted to share our little midnight snack with you…</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">One of the great things about participating in these large trade shows is that we get to interact with other food producers from around the globe, and by interact I really mean try out all their goodies, and obviously in the wonderful spirit of bartering that prevails at these events, we get to go home with some yummy things. So after a tiring day on our feet, our mouths constantly in motion (mostly talking to clients and such, but also eating, of course), the husband and I got home and decided to have a light dinner of German whole wheat bread, fresh Greek feta cheese and the most fragrant Sicilian extra virgin olive oil I have ever had the pleasure of trying.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrMe1XhDWSrAfqRr63tGM_dfwI2DVc-QrKl-vgQ2GveGkt7v-SjdOgJbJEUnhII007Mxv_lQoSuw8nYa5yEaMfJeDSGrdMFFU7gSmDbenjMSjK4x7wS_PNONBSo62HLfvWbklxoe8TUDKf/s1600/Degustazione+post+salone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrMe1XhDWSrAfqRr63tGM_dfwI2DVc-QrKl-vgQ2GveGkt7v-SjdOgJbJEUnhII007Mxv_lQoSuw8nYa5yEaMfJeDSGrdMFFU7gSmDbenjMSjK4x7wS_PNONBSo62HLfvWbklxoe8TUDKf/s320/Degustazione+post+salone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">German bread? But you’re Italian, you might object, but the truth is that the Germans make the lightest, tastiest, most delicate whole wheat bread I have ever had, and Italian bread, though phenomenal when baked with regular flour, simply doesn’t measure up in this, dare I say healthier, variety. The Sicilian olive oil was divine, totally different from the Liguria oil we are used to eating, I can barely describe it, it is so fragrant, slightly spicy on the tongue, it is very smooth but not thick, when you taste it you realize you could probably dress a salad with just this oil, and nothing else. And the Feta? Well, we just really love it and it’s lovely with a little oil, so what more could we want for a midnight snack?</span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-90960764228838641852010-10-17T23:58:00.003+02:002010-11-14T14:25:21.155+01:00Mrs. C's Apple Cake<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZk-awGcfUJsx6NG6mKrSVDQ3i4lE2YSGV-yTtiOJ06iy6LtE-oJPIWVeiNml-Y3ozsbCU3l5a1x7GtYMJSrCjCOip8SfXEhRWhd6x__gIARnyRc4FPJ3H9qPVAXvPdzfcYDUsgNs6ojv/s1600/Apple+Cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZk-awGcfUJsx6NG6mKrSVDQ3i4lE2YSGV-yTtiOJ06iy6LtE-oJPIWVeiNml-Y3ozsbCU3l5a1x7GtYMJSrCjCOip8SfXEhRWhd6x__gIARnyRc4FPJ3H9qPVAXvPdzfcYDUsgNs6ojv/s320/Apple+Cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Even though it doesn't look like much this is an easy peasy basic apple cake, and it’s oh, so satisfying! It’s soft and sweet and fruity. It’s great for breakfast or for dessert or for a midnight snack, it’s a simple comfort food that you’ll end up going back to over and over again. </span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you need:</span></u></b></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBokS2FWxSrZD5kns99b5m_v_-vtl1ms9l1T2shTtvXotGD6Pg-Cjhyphenhyphenqzzl_wb9xREy9bTdZW_1woZMxvGfJWlygELa_EbO5Te20sfoWZVDqKJGyQ9gwRsSN-TrSh2oEgl-EFv45vAXlW6/s1600/Ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBokS2FWxSrZD5kns99b5m_v_-vtl1ms9l1T2shTtvXotGD6Pg-Cjhyphenhyphenqzzl_wb9xREy9bTdZW_1woZMxvGfJWlygELa_EbO5Te20sfoWZVDqKJGyQ9gwRsSN-TrSh2oEgl-EFv45vAXlW6/s320/Ingredients.jpg" width="320" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">4 large apples – whatever kind you think cooks well</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">100gr. (¾ cup) all-purpose flour – I used whole flour, cause I’m trying to cut down on processed foods but honestly in this cake, white flour tastes better, the whole flour left it a little dry.</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">100gr. (¾ cup) sugar – I used brown sugar (which worked out fine) and as usual I used a bit less than called for, about 70gr. The apples I had were a little tart, so it wasn’t as sweet as other times I had made it, so I would suggest you adjust the sugar depending on the sweetness of the apples you have (if you so wish, cause the original recipe is pretty yummy as is). + 1 tbs. to sprinkle at the end.</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">100gr. (3.5oz.) butter</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">3 eggs</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I used a 22cm (8.5inch) round spring-form pan, but you can use a pie dish as well.</span> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">16gr. baking powder</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1tbs. cinnamon and a dash of allspice (I added these to the original recipe, cause I can’t resist cinnamon with apples) </span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do:</span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Preheat oven at 180°C (350°F) </span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcgR3wKkygTy7LD1Bz11b107Qk9NxesoJPm2WnL9IM223dUutng6fLtiYk4-WDwdnRlBIe1jU_IOE-lPLnrpvIbscEw66bJtHIfblRwP8sqHPiEhJpPtzUIbBtkZnyWG5JRg5F6Dl29px/s1600/Wet+ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcgR3wKkygTy7LD1Bz11b107Qk9NxesoJPm2WnL9IM223dUutng6fLtiYk4-WDwdnRlBIe1jU_IOE-lPLnrpvIbscEw66bJtHIfblRwP8sqHPiEhJpPtzUIbBtkZnyWG5JRg5F6Dl29px/s200/Wet+ingredients.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmpmw-jw1KoXHP_S4s0zywM1vSYa7qVcf5dyW6P6lH0pmkHLdTd5XnFvdoK8pe63qstcVsNq-nOnY2oFPjnne7qFbsvjVkfh571l4X0rAGqq_IC9GY67E9xmyzGe84NkP5faCxirsVZPTe/s1600/Dry+ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmpmw-jw1KoXHP_S4s0zywM1vSYa7qVcf5dyW6P6lH0pmkHLdTd5XnFvdoK8pe63qstcVsNq-nOnY2oFPjnne7qFbsvjVkfh571l4X0rAGqq_IC9GY67E9xmyzGe84NkP5faCxirsVZPTe/s200/Dry+ingredients.jpg" width="200" /></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Peel</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">slice</b> apples. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Melt</b> butter (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bain marie</i> or in the microwave). <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Separate</b> yolks and beat whites till stiff. <span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><strong>Mix</strong></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> the sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice and butter. </span>Wait a few minutes for the mixture to have cooled completely (the butter was probably warm when you added it) then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">add</b> yolks. Mix well scraping sides of bowl completely. Gently <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">fold</b> in whites. </span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMuVjCZI8I9C7G0wUsS-hPdzuURAUxhpzSEXhx_lANemNpG6karuXG-8KZkI-K1QVo8nEmhztK1CgzmnnFn1mff03d2aLpjgYtcYZ-nMPmGox54lrUpHmNz-CaakOAscma5za7cUaCE3Tu/s1600/Folding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMuVjCZI8I9C7G0wUsS-hPdzuURAUxhpzSEXhx_lANemNpG6karuXG-8KZkI-K1QVo8nEmhztK1CgzmnnFn1mff03d2aLpjgYtcYZ-nMPmGox54lrUpHmNz-CaakOAscma5za7cUaCE3Tu/s200/Folding.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JTAuEIeOqf14KomHRfUnzAGdaGHVmTszNLkxKvscgKEOzvce8etTSf0ht-Ww1HKnRSBS7Eyjuj_YMHFLZodSX6iYUSiB7yAzLDmWk6My-J6nBJxI1gy7aK6GIUTLgiLtWhb33xHvSTJR/s1600/Egg+whites.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JTAuEIeOqf14KomHRfUnzAGdaGHVmTszNLkxKvscgKEOzvce8etTSf0ht-Ww1HKnRSBS7Eyjuj_YMHFLZodSX6iYUSiB7yAzLDmWk6My-J6nBJxI1gy7aK6GIUTLgiLtWhb33xHvSTJR/s200/Egg+whites.jpg" width="200" /></a> <span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Grease and flour your baking pan. And <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pour</b> in your batter. Then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">add</b> the apples pressing them down into the batter, you will probably be able to get two layers in. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sprinkle</b> the top with a tbs. of sugar.</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZTvVJHsaJQfcN_KwO5jCx654jKUZnN8chfs_wsuS-lzH1DOLGIhVjQT6uOz3OhRrI7H37qHdAzJpp0kxwmWYvNbpU9RuHLSJqMiBmgSx_ZNdQpj4nJ1zrTt3PgPr_58fosLt8n29wWKIj/s1600/raw+with+sugar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZTvVJHsaJQfcN_KwO5jCx654jKUZnN8chfs_wsuS-lzH1DOLGIhVjQT6uOz3OhRrI7H37qHdAzJpp0kxwmWYvNbpU9RuHLSJqMiBmgSx_ZNdQpj4nJ1zrTt3PgPr_58fosLt8n29wWKIj/s200/raw+with+sugar.jpg" width="200" /></a> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAJEGc-T7_XHdANObr9icQXb6vD5er0Kzgh6z2i5v_7FDgtCyCNq6nOssXZvRZnxA2TOtdC3Mfdwy-kNXc-HnkUIJiPgvCODPp9Ej21BMPEQlIYsW9Nw8eQgfdRAGQciSNi0Q1LeP51YX/s1600/Cake+raw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAJEGc-T7_XHdANObr9icQXb6vD5er0Kzgh6z2i5v_7FDgtCyCNq6nOssXZvRZnxA2TOtdC3Mfdwy-kNXc-HnkUIJiPgvCODPp9Ej21BMPEQlIYsW9Nw8eQgfdRAGQciSNi0Q1LeP51YX/s200/Cake+raw.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Bake for 30 – 40 minutes.</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">(p.s. I told you it was easy!!)</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-29084027775346807872010-10-14T22:11:00.003+02:002010-11-14T14:25:47.016+01:00Leek, Potato and Salmon Quiche<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoqcQf_RfE5LjwmO2qNrq2hvMMKabZiPQrB5ondl5dyyJh_4RFhIA9BV37yT3tDul0BTZgW9oRhet4Hzwql0oAHlVC6bh5D38yBwQoZVYzi7TwW0lN3zFVRY55kiBSGzUuT30Enuu3L1e-/s1600/Salmon+and+Leek+Quiche+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoqcQf_RfE5LjwmO2qNrq2hvMMKabZiPQrB5ondl5dyyJh_4RFhIA9BV37yT3tDul0BTZgW9oRhet4Hzwql0oAHlVC6bh5D38yBwQoZVYzi7TwW0lN3zFVRY55kiBSGzUuT30Enuu3L1e-/s320/Salmon+and+Leek+Quiche+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am a BIG fan of quiches, and casseroles (possibly cause I grew up in the south), but mostly quiches. I love quiches cause you can make them ahead, they’re great as leftovers, they require minimal intervention and they help me get rid of stuff that’s been hanging around in the fridge too long. So the other day I happen upon a package of smoked salmon that was expiring that very day and well, with the husband’s immune system the way it is I can’t really risk feeding him food that is on its way to possibly being a bit wonky, and smoked salmon isn’t exactly cheap here so… into a quiche it went. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you need:</span></span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Puff pastry sheet</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> – in Italy I use the ready-made, refrigerated not frozen, Buitoni pasta sfoglia rotonda. It’s a round sheet of puff pastry approximately 25cm (10in.) in diameter. Use whatever you like, frozen is fine too (defrost it!) or you can make this in the form of a casserole, foregoing the puff pastry and just using a casserole dish.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Smoked salmon</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> – I’m very sorry, but I forgot to check how much is in a package, but it’s not an insane amount – will correct this as soon as I go back to supermarket!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">2 </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">medium-sized <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">leeks</b> – with most of the green part cut off.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">3</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> medium- sized <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">potatoes </b>- peeled</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL3vGuiTr_Y0gtCamiJxrc8rQS8PaoSkhgoIWx5JbkB_oCG1HtJIUtsJBj_wsgXA3WTw-3E4chG_N_fz08bEKUSmHpa12R9f-pbYdM-1WTr8YdAsUWBhA962cu-zZa67DSmAsxip4OB2bf/s1600/Salmon+cut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL3vGuiTr_Y0gtCamiJxrc8rQS8PaoSkhgoIWx5JbkB_oCG1HtJIUtsJBj_wsgXA3WTw-3E4chG_N_fz08bEKUSmHpa12R9f-pbYdM-1WTr8YdAsUWBhA962cu-zZa67DSmAsxip4OB2bf/s200/Salmon+cut.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ cup Feta cheese</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> - crumbled </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Ricotta 250 gr</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> (8.8oz) </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Grated parmesan cheese</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> (optional)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 eggs</span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Salt</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, pepper and ground nutmeg (optional)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I used a 22cm (8.5inch) round spring-form pan, but you can use a pie dish as well.</span></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you do:</span></span></u></b><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Finely <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cut </b>the<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> leeks</b> cross-wise and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">sauté</b> in a pan with a little oil till just softened and set aside.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Cut </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">your<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> salmon</b> in mid to small sized pieces</span></span> <br />
<a name='more'></a>Peel and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cut </b>the<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> potatoes</b> cross-wise and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">boil</b> till slightly undercooked (they need to still be quite firm cause they will finish cooking in the oven). </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9OrMZBFhh7f14qU5BzJp7iTklN1y6WnY2UGw9N5DSThAyAPf9SDsAFxUZZrPm-EI8kzopFg0_QEYBYgZFlXtR7mFEaMhlecV6wa_wriinJSVXpE59O1U3JHPGNXT1i3sErvVJB2FPAAUw/s1600/Leeks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9OrMZBFhh7f14qU5BzJp7iTklN1y6WnY2UGw9N5DSThAyAPf9SDsAFxUZZrPm-EI8kzopFg0_QEYBYgZFlXtR7mFEaMhlecV6wa_wriinJSVXpE59O1U3JHPGNXT1i3sErvVJB2FPAAUw/s200/Leeks.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj231B9pI32fFMEZStx9ABxaTLzGhl2LJ584oc_eqyoWDrkf6OUuV0AlaL50pGiPCIk63OzlvP8VBbxvFJqtjBjYf1U9TzmqgL7AabPXZjOgN3wd33sHQyFcczijUZhQ80gMu31f6VdtMR-/s1600/Potatoes+boiling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj231B9pI32fFMEZStx9ABxaTLzGhl2LJ584oc_eqyoWDrkf6OUuV0AlaL50pGiPCIk63OzlvP8VBbxvFJqtjBjYf1U9TzmqgL7AabPXZjOgN3wd33sHQyFcczijUZhQ80gMu31f6VdtMR-/s200/Potatoes+boiling.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Mix</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">ricotta</b> and two <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">eggs</b> in a bowl (you’ll be putting all the other ingredients together here so a large bowl) add salt and pepper to taste and a pinch of ground nutmeg if the fancy takes you.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Add the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">salmon</b> and when the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">potatoes</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">leeks</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>have cooled a bit, add those too.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Crumble in some <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">feta</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cheese</b> and mix, mix, mix with a fork, spoon or spatula, trying not to break the potatoes up too much</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Unroll</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> your <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">puff</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pastry</b> in your pan (with parchment paper underneath), fill it with the mixture and crimp the edges like you would an open pie. Then sprinkle with parmesan cheese.</span></span></div><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you’re making this in the form of a casserole and not a quiche, add about 2 tbs of water and cover with aluminum foil.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuGQQ1TMC34vOMXBXM9A2L95Enwnymxx6QYY9sw6DymFiCVuvEHmojp5l4YPe5sr1Ie2ovoLeWoGE4EqL8jKo_Zj20hHmIc2OGoPoEB_m87pkZYZEG7QgNnoNWb4V2fIte3-Kyc7dPUup0/s1600/mixing+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuGQQ1TMC34vOMXBXM9A2L95Enwnymxx6QYY9sw6DymFiCVuvEHmojp5l4YPe5sr1Ie2ovoLeWoGE4EqL8jKo_Zj20hHmIc2OGoPoEB_m87pkZYZEG7QgNnoNWb4V2fIte3-Kyc7dPUup0/s200/mixing+2.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FkwlATXiN_RCZorlc6xTFT_JFJTjv-WOj4Mc3SpYt1hwOzhlzmY6ENpQGJOvXBg6Y61axXzu8Mdf0HIxxIClTpx6vwY6j492Ewlj6nVwMxH_QZmQrImbhBG-n3Aztbyk_z68nLESTaOW/s1600/Salmon+and+Leek+Quiche+raw+with+cheese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FkwlATXiN_RCZorlc6xTFT_JFJTjv-WOj4Mc3SpYt1hwOzhlzmY6ENpQGJOvXBg6Y61axXzu8Mdf0HIxxIClTpx6vwY6j492Ewlj6nVwMxH_QZmQrImbhBG-n3Aztbyk_z68nLESTaOW/s200/Salmon+and+Leek+Quiche+raw+with+cheese.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Stick in oven for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">30 – 40 minutes</b> (or until the puff pastry is thoroughly cooked and golden and the filling is cooked through and firm) at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">180°</b>C (350°F – 360°F) – as mentioned my oven is ventilated so cooks faster than an unventilated. If you’re making a casserole cook covered for 15min then uncover and cook 15 – 20 min more or until it looks firm and golden on top (depending on your oven, you may have to broil / grill the last few minutes to get that golden look).</span></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Let cool for five minutes, take it out of your pan, and serve.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It goes very well with a salad as it is a full meal in and of itself!</span></span></div></div></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-17110487656095621322010-10-12T12:15:00.002+02:002010-11-14T14:26:08.405+01:00Apple Strudel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4yEx83qeyWGQAsGcC4CKKyafr7aLuLEd_AbgnxrVwVFsuoOo9aKYb_hy6QGJcBGGwmBL2wQzadHhC3fDbSdnPzDfPhjrFcBalRsWmLXHHnP-GsZkWCrsAX8OsWvxCH_-j2Cj9b85T4Y9/s1600/Apple+Strudel+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4yEx83qeyWGQAsGcC4CKKyafr7aLuLEd_AbgnxrVwVFsuoOo9aKYb_hy6QGJcBGGwmBL2wQzadHhC3fDbSdnPzDfPhjrFcBalRsWmLXHHnP-GsZkWCrsAX8OsWvxCH_-j2Cj9b85T4Y9/s320/Apple+Strudel+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I got a whole lot of apples from a friend who has apple trees and doesn’t know what to do with all the damn apples that all come in at the same time (lucky me!) so… you’ll be seeing apples heavily featured in the next few posts (pears too, got lots of pears as well). I do, of course, cook and purée most of these totally organic, free fruits that I occasionally get (one of the pleasures of living in the country!) for the Girl and Boy but there’s only so many fruit jars you can stick in your fridge, freezer and cupboard before you start looking insane, so the excess fruit gets eaten by the adults. Not a bad compromise.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you need:</span></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVI1BGPGbgdraV2NNFB1kecfSc_uQIabGuuBOi1Zci4BLk2hpk0aDapLppbizS1BhbYk1XpPCrOWCdT4OdaX9EDX_QAcfC8whzsrcg4z8BeiqliPY7daa8HfKgmeV9vUO4aV6OzRqVNSz/s1600/Apples.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVI1BGPGbgdraV2NNFB1kecfSc_uQIabGuuBOi1Zci4BLk2hpk0aDapLppbizS1BhbYk1XpPCrOWCdT4OdaX9EDX_QAcfC8whzsrcg4z8BeiqliPY7daa8HfKgmeV9vUO4aV6OzRqVNSz/s200/Apples.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">4 large apples</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> whatever you think cooks well, mine came from a friends’ apple tree and neither of us know what they are called (and am too lazy right now to do an internet search, sorry…)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Puff pastry sheet</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> – in Italy I use the ready-made, refrigerated not frozen, Buitoni pasta sfoglia rotonda. It’s a round sheet of puff pastry approximately 25cm (10in.) in diameter. Use whatever you like, frozen is fine too (defrost it!) you can even make it yourself, but I can’t help you there yet… maybe in a few years! </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">½ cup brown sugar</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> – the recipe I followed called for 1 cup sugar, which is what I used, WAY, WAY too sweet!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">1cup raisins</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> (ideally, golden raisins, but I had sun-maid so that’s why mine are so dark)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1tbs cinnamon - 1tsp vanilla extract - <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>1 lemon - 1 egg yolk</span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The husband would have like some pine nuts, or almond slivers too, but there was nary a one to be found in our house so can't tell you how that would have done, but I think it would have done quite well...</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This is what you do:</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Peel</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">core</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pit</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">slice</b> 3 apples, then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">grate</b> the 4<sup>th</sup> apple. If you’re going to peel and cut the apples and then get distracted, like I tend to do, I suggest you stick them in a bowl of water with a little lemon juice as you go so they don’t get all dark and ugly, though it is just an aesthetic concern as the darkness and ugliness of your apples in no way affects the final product. </span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Buuuuut, don’t put the grated apple in the water, just drizzle it with some lemon juice, it’ll still get dark, but it gives it a nice tangy note.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you’re using nice plump golden raisins, you’re good to go, but if your raisins are a little dry and sad looking (like they’ve been sitting in your cupboard, ignored, for years) soak them in a some water for a few minutes and they’ll plump right up, I like me a plump raisin.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Drain</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> your cut apples (NOT the grated apple!) and your raisins and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">mix</b> in a bowl with sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and any lemon juice you’ve got left (just a few drops are fine)</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSRJH003qdOkMKMmcPy2i1Jog7kDOOp0B7dIuAf2upLQxoRdMYs4IdYaa2uAQLjo5SKOZGT0X8GxQDNgOiAI_tC_ibJDWH218P-KEYXKX75zRcLmr2zeTD0-2NJ4qbOOOmyUPbpegGJQr/s1600/Apple+Strudel+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSRJH003qdOkMKMmcPy2i1Jog7kDOOp0B7dIuAf2upLQxoRdMYs4IdYaa2uAQLjo5SKOZGT0X8GxQDNgOiAI_tC_ibJDWH218P-KEYXKX75zRcLmr2zeTD0-2NJ4qbOOOmyUPbpegGJQr/s200/Apple+Strudel+3.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW3TaeVxBkylXYEhld_0gCowM6fKrrXsL60IJZa4PwnDFeO6ywVXFN38qPQzJKePVv3bcl2eUQv48O92b0HrjYDI9gMhzfsHfAVyDaXjDGirV8hUnUGSgQaU4PWveD8zvk89Xd9WcArhej/s1600/Apple+Strudel+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW3TaeVxBkylXYEhld_0gCowM6fKrrXsL60IJZa4PwnDFeO6ywVXFN38qPQzJKePVv3bcl2eUQv48O92b0HrjYDI9gMhzfsHfAVyDaXjDGirV8hUnUGSgQaU4PWveD8zvk89Xd9WcArhej/s200/Apple+Strudel+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">spread</b> your puff pastry on a sheet of parchment paper on a shallow baking pan, I prefer metal ones to glass or ceramic because I feel that they heat better on the bottom and the puff pastry cooks more evenly.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">NOW get your grated apple (finally) and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">spread</b> it down the center of your pastry, and then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">arrange</b> the rest of your apple concoction on top. If you’re using a round pastry you want to make a rectangle with your filling down the center, so you’ve got two larger semicircles on the sides and smaller ones on the ends.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Delicately <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">close</b> the pastry on top of the filling and wet the top edge with your fingertips so that it sticks to the bottom flap. And then close the two ends. </span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">7.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Paint</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> on your egg yolk, I actually forgot to, it doesn’t change the taste at all but it’s just not as pretty. Finally, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cut</b> steam vents on top.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">8.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Stick in oven for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">30 - 35 minutes</b>*</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6CkMTOfcWWjV31dg-Lv5cJdDuDuCmvhI4QRT0yHRoCFl9VK0Dh94pvYidntEJBhmvUoPlRBFHSx8NXAUtah_mmR9gP96D9q6x0b5mdeg6wMGlfMxY3JehhCa_qnuSdBQKVswi4zX-XhMf/s1600/Apple+Strudel+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6CkMTOfcWWjV31dg-Lv5cJdDuDuCmvhI4QRT0yHRoCFl9VK0Dh94pvYidntEJBhmvUoPlRBFHSx8NXAUtah_mmR9gP96D9q6x0b5mdeg6wMGlfMxY3JehhCa_qnuSdBQKVswi4zX-XhMf/s320/Apple+Strudel+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*About cooking times: When I’m baking I tend to always set my timer a few minutes earlier than the cooking time indicated (in this case, I set it at 25 minutes) so that I can check on whatever I’m baking, as I’ve learned that you can always <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">keep</i> baking something, but you can’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unbake</i> once you’ve burned it… imagine that… in this case I baked it for the full 35 minutes.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*I have a ventilated or convection oven, so it tends to cook faster than unventilated ovens. Just so you know.</span></span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-79563961515768787072010-10-10T23:22:00.004+02:002010-11-14T14:26:32.439+01:00New York Cheesecake with Cherry topping<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8sdnOEkEbWVYv0YuKZtmpNubN5v8xBIFx2GUWQOilqhZ1aeWERVVqtjU8werrPgSJ5qrkqavfh1NV6sxIbz0FDvGnt5tyqFYW_fr_nXvgJ2PGHrx8tKUn4woe7S9EByFDApBJU3FMH03/s1600/Cheesecake1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8sdnOEkEbWVYv0YuKZtmpNubN5v8xBIFx2GUWQOilqhZ1aeWERVVqtjU8werrPgSJ5qrkqavfh1NV6sxIbz0FDvGnt5tyqFYW_fr_nXvgJ2PGHrx8tKUn4woe7S9EByFDApBJU3FMH03/s320/Cheesecake1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’m not a very good baker, and I’m not a big cake person, but I do have my favorites, and cheesecake is right at the top of the list. Unfortunately (or fortunately for my waistline), you can’t readily find New York Cheesecake in Italy, possibly in Rome or Milan, but I’ve never had the pleasure of eating it here. There are lots of cakes with cheese… but nothing that satisfied my palate. I haven’t managed to make it back to the US for two years, that’s the absolute longest I’ve been away, but what with the pregnancy, having the baby and the husband’s illness, we just haven’t made it out, so for my 35<sup>th</sup> birthday I decided to overcome my fear of the oven and bake myself one, or give myself a nervous breakdown trying.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The results were surprisingly good for a newbie, a little undercooked, just a little too big for my household, but overall I was satisfied and, most importantly, I satisfied my cheesecake craving for a good long while! </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Following is the recipe I used, for the original click on over to Deb's <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/04/new-york-cheesecake/">New York Cheesecake</a> </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">or check it out in the Joy of Cooking, though credit for the Cherry topping goes fully to Deb at <a href="http://smittenkitchen.com/">Smitten Kitchen</a> (one of my all time favorite food blogs).</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></u></b> <br />
<a name='more'></a>What you need:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-dZLoFHRTsPyV1gaNlpU0x2BkCfmvMAM3d7BzO3GtNcc5GONKaB2C0ws2nnyFTzyt46-WooDgH_tsK_yoSISL-LxL4oEc-YL_DfaKvIkuhmAC0YjEOlLxf9WXQ0Xi7sR_hrXCHwM7Xpz_/s1600/work+station.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-dZLoFHRTsPyV1gaNlpU0x2BkCfmvMAM3d7BzO3GtNcc5GONKaB2C0ws2nnyFTzyt46-WooDgH_tsK_yoSISL-LxL4oEc-YL_DfaKvIkuhmAC0YjEOlLxf9WXQ0Xi7sR_hrXCHwM7Xpz_/s200/work+station.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">An oven and a round spring-form baking pan – I used a 24cm (9.5inch) pan, but next time I’ll go for slightly smaller (adjusting the ingredients!)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">For the crumb crust</span></u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">: </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">230gr</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> (8oz.) <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">graham crackers</b> (I had some that my Mom brought over from the new world, but you can also use digestives) finely ground.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">115gr</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> (4oz.) <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">unsalted butter</b> – though I’m partial to salted butter if you’re using digestives you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">really</i> want it to be unsalted.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">50gr </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">(½ cup)<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> sugar</b> – this was made the crust a little too sweet for my taste, so next time I will definitely reduce it! Bear in mind also that in many countries in Europe (Italy for one) white sugar comes from beets, whereas in most of the Americas it comes from sugar cane. Sugar from beets is sweeter.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">¼ tsp salt</span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-d-MYpblEtrG7-Pgf-0Z3J19ggOr62VZ6fzrDElgWqcvt68Sg9F8-ZDfVlvtEMbaH1VgS2H24-Ir5Rmm7uxW9yEpTZHcka_g6OKKbFTdTnXObRPVqTIv7JMOTe16GHGAWxvR7rMfwGgzE/s1600/me+and+helper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-d-MYpblEtrG7-Pgf-0Z3J19ggOr62VZ6fzrDElgWqcvt68Sg9F8-ZDfVlvtEMbaH1VgS2H24-Ir5Rmm7uxW9yEpTZHcka_g6OKKbFTdTnXObRPVqTIv7JMOTe16GHGAWxvR7rMfwGgzE/s1600/me+and+helper.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my little helper</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you do: </span></span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Butter your spring-form pan (I also like to lightly flour it). Melt your butter any way you like, I use the microwave, but you can <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bain marie</i> it too. Mix all your ingredients together and press into the bottom and up the sides of your pan. And here is my first note for the inexperienced cook (i.e. me), you must try to press it evenly, especially at the corner, and don’t make the bottom too thin… I ended up with a thick edge and a thin bottom… also, make sure you go all the way up to the top of your pan!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Either do this right after making the filling and fill it right away or stick it in the fridge or freezer (I never have enough room in my freezer) so it sets while you make your filling. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For the filling:</span></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.1kg (40oz) cream cheese – yes, you read right, it’s a TALL cheesecake. Let it soften.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">330gr (1¾ cup) sugar</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3tbs all-purpose flour (I used whole flour cause I didn’t have white flour and it worked out fine)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1tsp finely grated lemon zest and 1tsp orange zest (I used a bit more of both cause I like my zest!)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5 eggs + 2 egg yolks</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">½ cup heavy cream (for Italians that’s unsweetened whipping cream NOT cooking cream)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">½ tsp vanilla extract.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">And lots and lots of patience.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you do: </span></span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguDuK6dHfqQYGcwsU-hhnjDvFTRLMyotl-283GqVtkDAolm6I7_ik_1eJiK5AbUssHFWOw5ym7fcGAwlFwSupQdyu6Z2zJm_vaexRQQvhp6dPRQ8rco2u_p35vN2hyrN8NkQ4Lx_drEq6c/s1600/mix+ingredients.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguDuK6dHfqQYGcwsU-hhnjDvFTRLMyotl-283GqVtkDAolm6I7_ik_1eJiK5AbUssHFWOw5ym7fcGAwlFwSupQdyu6Z2zJm_vaexRQQvhp6dPRQ8rco2u_p35vN2hyrN8NkQ4Lx_drEq6c/s200/mix+ingredients.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Preheat oven to 550°F or 290°C – my oven does not go up this high, so I heated it to 240°C and make sure that the pan you’re using can withstand these high temperatures – Teflon, can’t for example. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLrUj2_az8BQSpMkwbqqodZ26ebehs5YtMVJXjxJaNSvD7yQzAhyphenhyphen4WXmgvfqemikjCRReaXvIqZ0BiVq_Ny2Et59dmf_XxKuJycgWCgVofE6ST6ZAi3A1T_zKR-cL8d_T2VJNIAyCUSeU/s1600/pouring+filling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLrUj2_az8BQSpMkwbqqodZ26ebehs5YtMVJXjxJaNSvD7yQzAhyphenhyphen4WXmgvfqemikjCRReaXvIqZ0BiVq_Ny2Et59dmf_XxKuJycgWCgVofE6ST6ZAi3A1T_zKR-cL8d_T2VJNIAyCUSeU/s200/pouring+filling.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Beat</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> together <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cheese</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">sugar</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">flour</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">zests</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">vanilla</b> in an electric mixer until smooth, make sure you scrape the sides often so that it mixes evenly.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">add</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">eggs</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">yolks</b> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one at a time </i>and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">scrape the bowl</b> after each one, this is very important lest you get stripey filling. And last of all add the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cream</b>.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Fill your pan (put it in a shallow baking pan to catch drips, writes Deb, but I didn’t need to, I guess it depends on your spring-form and how steady your hand is transferring it to the oven as it’s going to be pretty full!) and put in center of oven for 12 minutes or until it puffs.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSfgOgYKiwwjBPh-JNpQXH0MqfE1bJ_cN6qS8fiXEFbkXZkA-6WwG-IqTjiiiYgQkp2NJumro7zLEZfJRUR9Qb6uSTpA1xBTFisYi6ny6-HmiRm0rehRNNU-MwgRjOATdg2UaL3nRkm1Dc/s1600/cake+in+oven.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSfgOgYKiwwjBPh-JNpQXH0MqfE1bJ_cN6qS8fiXEFbkXZkA-6WwG-IqTjiiiYgQkp2NJumro7zLEZfJRUR9Qb6uSTpA1xBTFisYi6ny6-HmiRm0rehRNNU-MwgRjOATdg2UaL3nRkm1Dc/s200/cake+in+oven.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is where things got tricky…. My oven, though the temperature was way lower than suggested (240°C rather than 290°C) top browned the cake really quickly so I had to lower it even more (to 200°C) and also ended up having to fashion an aluminum wrap cover with a hole in the middle because the sides were browning – and THEY’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO! So mine never puffed, and I kept it at this temperature for 15 minutes, which should probably have been closer to 20.</span></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Turn down temperature to 100°C (or 200°F) and cook for about another hour. It should be mostly firm with a slightly wobbly center.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Turn off your oven, but do not take the cake out, LET IT COOL IN THE OVEN, keeping it partially open. When oven cools, take it out, run a knife around the top edge, but then let it sit some more, so it cools completely.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Take of the side, but leave it on the bottom of your springform. The Joy of Cooking has a method for taking it out of the pan completely, but frankly it’s complicated and I started to do it and almost mushed the whole thing so….</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hyphenhyphenbNP2LkNVCJWHDHxrEbRvNINY69yE80lvT7QVmGYVaxJEwH_f31ybivtSLdjxjKeTMjCZw80CtCLSR5y4PWZWuDkR74KtJ6EpYn2aHt2FH-hUsFx7SscovjG8ZZwG0kWpLcHoQYRFmS/s1600/cherries+in+a+pot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hyphenhyphenbNP2LkNVCJWHDHxrEbRvNINY69yE80lvT7QVmGYVaxJEwH_f31ybivtSLdjxjKeTMjCZw80CtCLSR5y4PWZWuDkR74KtJ6EpYn2aHt2FH-hUsFx7SscovjG8ZZwG0kWpLcHoQYRFmS/s200/cherries+in+a+pot.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For the Cherry topping:</span></span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What you need:</span></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">300gr pitted cherries (whatever kind you like) – I used frozen - 2tb lemon juice - ¼ cup sugar ( I went with less) - 1 tablespoon cornstarch (maizena) - ½ cup water</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is what you do:</span></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Put all ingredients in a sauce pan and boil for 2 – 3 minutes (I let it go on for almost ten cause I like it a little thicker). Cool completely before spooning onto cake (try to keep the sides of your cake dry!)</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVTMk9Cy7qyacyDW6rcBtr5NoJzDvFFVIw67JbhUByVW_6nNQbxCmYtvSvTQN2SzgoCvy7ZiEaDKUyZe5yoY-0HFzkRnGxhvlQUH5rkNj2X2qwg-Jhi51yVJqVHJF1hxA2s8Td9mMqdTJe/s1600/cake+with+topping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVTMk9Cy7qyacyDW6rcBtr5NoJzDvFFVIw67JbhUByVW_6nNQbxCmYtvSvTQN2SzgoCvy7ZiEaDKUyZe5yoY-0HFzkRnGxhvlQUH5rkNj2X2qwg-Jhi51yVJqVHJF1hxA2s8Td9mMqdTJe/s320/cake+with+topping.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1892002973240145246.post-41552810933003314412010-10-10T17:42:00.003+02:002010-11-14T14:26:58.307+01:00Pasta alla Checca<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Husband always knows when I decide that summer is just around the corner because for starters I start painting my toes and wearing sandals, but mainly because we start eating Pasta alla Checca at least three times a week. It is literally my favorite pasta in the world, it’s easy to make, it’s fast, and if the ingredients are good quality then the dish is to die for. There are many variants of this pasta, all of which are good, I’m going to share my favorite, and then you can take it from there and create your perfect version of Pasta alla Checca, because it’s one of those summer comfort foods that has to fit like your favorite pair of Manolo’s, the ones that you can walk for miles in they’re so comfortable, and yet you still look amazing.</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmb1KxFOZ2TSddwjeA9bamSmuqYmqnCtRCDCGRPmpjmSRyRCK-wOq92rQV4H-_qRdUJRMNzS6QBEhhDqlEpEJl6aGRIClL0hXPaTC-Kx-FSRp7BrcRsXzqvGg0Xy2BhONdTvwlFWi2_LR/s1600/pasta+alla+checca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmb1KxFOZ2TSddwjeA9bamSmuqYmqnCtRCDCGRPmpjmSRyRCK-wOq92rQV4H-_qRdUJRMNzS6QBEhhDqlEpEJl6aGRIClL0hXPaTC-Kx-FSRp7BrcRsXzqvGg0Xy2BhONdTvwlFWi2_LR/s320/pasta+alla+checca.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">What you need</span></u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">:</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pasta</b> of course. I’m partial to De Cecco, which is a high quality Italian brand that you can find pretty easily in most big cities worldwide, but your favorite brand will work perfectly too! You need “short” pasta for this dish, so no spaghetti or other long pastas. I like to use fusilli (corkscrew shaped pasta), but my Mom prefers farfalle (bow shaped pasta), if you experiment a little you’ll find the perfect pasta shape for you, the one that absorbs the right amount of sauce, and that allows you to spear all the main ingredients so you can make the “perfect mouthful”.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Tomatoes</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, which is why I only make it in the summer, with those lovely straight from the plant tomatoes in my vegetable garden.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Fresh Mozzarella</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, ideally buffalo mozzarella, but regular mozzarella is fine too as long as it’s fresh. I realize this is trickier for people outside of Italy cause it’s hard to find and expensive when you do, but it really, really needs to be fresh. So do NOT, under any circumstances, substitute with other types of mozzarella (mozzarella cheese sticks are totally NOT ok) I really can’t stress this enough. If you can’t find fresh mozzarella you’re going to have to go without cheese in the dish (it’s still very, very good) and if you really can’t give up the cheese entirely then substitute with something completely different, like Feta cheese. (If my Mom actually read my blog she would have keeled over from a heart attack after that suggestion.)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Basil</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">, just a few fresh leaves, if you can, it makes the dish positively heavenly.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Salt</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">oil</b>.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span> <br />
<a name='more'></a>And then you have a whole slew of options, just a few would be:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>anchovy paste, oregano, parmesan cheese and garlic.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></u><br />
This is what you do:</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Put a large pan full of water to boil with about a tablespoon of salt every 1.5 to 2 litres – or if you’re like me and don’t feel like actually measuring anything dump in a handful of salt and then taste the water, if you can taste the salt, but it doesn’t feel like you got a mouthful of water from the Dead Sea then you’re good to go, otherwise keep adding salt (little by little!).</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cut up the tomatoes – you want them to be just a little smaller than the pasta so that when you put them in your mouth there’s a balance between pasta and tomato where neither overwhelms the other. And put them directly in your serving dish. Oh, and the ratio of tomato (piece) to pasta is 1 – 1,5. So you want there to be more pasta than tomato in the finished product, but not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a lot</i> more.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dress the tomatoes with some salt and oil and I like to put in a slightly squished whole, clean clove of garlic, I like the aroma but it can’t be overwhelming. My Mom on the other hand, hates garlic in her Checca but she adds about a spoonful of anchovy paste to the tomatoes, oil and salt. Try them both or mix ‘em up and let me know what you prefer!</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8P3mc6dl5PQpVEn5Gu0P5g2lf-wtpv3PCQ80Jo3wq6AByHQeUh7t6hHHnP4eXYFu8pdeBAZ9ucJILjGEgIlnbthqwzFeyLpTMkbWnAe2ccCOtLdjwBxS8o_ul4A7QsUGWz5gs6DDOIEV/s1600/tomatoes,+basil,+garlic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8P3mc6dl5PQpVEn5Gu0P5g2lf-wtpv3PCQ80Jo3wq6AByHQeUh7t6hHHnP4eXYFu8pdeBAZ9ucJILjGEgIlnbthqwzFeyLpTMkbWnAe2ccCOtLdjwBxS8o_ul4A7QsUGWz5gs6DDOIEV/s320/tomatoes,+basil,+garlic.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">At this point your water should be boiling and you should have the amount of salt sorted out so dump in the pasta. (Dieticians say 80grams/person is the correct amount of pasta as a main course, if you’re American this’ll look like maybe an appetizer, so I suggest you go with at least 100gr per person, or more realistically 120gr – it’s worth it. But don’t get too greedy and go over 150gr/person, or, you know, you won’t have room for <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>dessert!)</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">While your pasta cooks (and, for the love of all that is holy, check the cooking time on the package you’ve GOT TO drain it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">al dente</i>.) cut up the mozzarella (same rule as per the tomatoes), and coarsely chop some basil leaves (or leave them whole, whatever).</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hold the mozzarella, don’t mix it with the tomatoes yet! But do go ahead and put the basil leaves with the tomatoes (if you don’t have fresh basil, use dried oregano, not dried or frozen basil!)</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">7.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Drain the pasta – all together now – AL DENTE and dump it over the tomatoes and mix.</span></span></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-Q0fEgYf3M0lDfQzs_2l_W1jXKmYebyTZBBhDO9gd91DTZi-oa6h4fPblCLfU1_PFsQrvjr1O46Vy0xCuPvQnju8EXic6FGdTYcsKKy0CrEGDdFCp2bvH5gjkpyUzj6C80Nrqfd3DRwX/s1600/037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-Q0fEgYf3M0lDfQzs_2l_W1jXKmYebyTZBBhDO9gd91DTZi-oa6h4fPblCLfU1_PFsQrvjr1O46Vy0xCuPvQnju8EXic6FGdTYcsKKy0CrEGDdFCp2bvH5gjkpyUzj6C80Nrqfd3DRwX/s320/037.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">this photo adds absolutely nothing to the description, but I thought the steam effect on the camera was kinda cool</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">8.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">NOW put in the mozzarella and mix some more. Why? Because if you put the mozzarella and cover it with boiling hot pasta your mozzarella will get stringy or hardened whereas if you wait just one beat it’ll get warm from the hot pasta but it’ll stay intact in all its chewy goodness.</span></span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">9.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Fish out the clove of garlic lest your husband accidently bite into it and then goes on to complain about it for three hours.</span></span></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs2NF-mRS9KMghd9XdtMZArdT0SO0lt_ijKYKCC77Mic9uUT26VjE7Vw5T2ribrEiptJLIycfFtX_nd92-03M-GZ8bpZyIYo5u7GSsthb1nakjd5aPkq6cUgBLrkFtm3xBoy1A-eCY1BBJ/s1600/pasta+alla+checca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs2NF-mRS9KMghd9XdtMZArdT0SO0lt_ijKYKCC77Mic9uUT26VjE7Vw5T2ribrEiptJLIycfFtX_nd92-03M-GZ8bpZyIYo5u7GSsthb1nakjd5aPkq6cUgBLrkFtm3xBoy1A-eCY1BBJ/s320/pasta+alla+checca.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Voilà, Pasta alla Checca</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">10.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sometimes I like it with parmesan cheese on top, sometimes I just want to taste tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. Whatever works for you!</span></span></div>Moomserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00384287809217965233noreply@blogger.com0