Blondie brownies for summer

This started with a surprisingly good blizzard at Dairy Queen.  The blizzard for May was a Caramel Blondie Brownie Pecan Blizzard, something like that.  I tried it on a whim and then started telling everyone to go get one.  I went back for another a few weeks later and even though it was still May the blizzard was gone.  I said "What, it is still May!".  The worker was apologetic, but firm, the blizzard was really gone.  They didn't even have the stuff to make it anymore, or so he said.

So I had blondies on my mind.  Cook's Illustrated had a great recipe featured in another blog, so I decided to give it a try.  I figured that the best blondie is chewy, sweet, and chunks of white chocolate.  This recipe fit the bill.  I left out the nuts, but 4oz of toasted pecans or walnuts might be nice.  And these are so easy.  Much faster even than chocolate chip cookies, just spread the dough in a pan and you are done.  These are going to be my summer go to picnic dessert.

Blondie Brownies

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
• 1teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2teaspoon table salt
• 12tablespoons unsalted butter ( 1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled
• 1 1/2cups packed light brown sugar (10 1/2 ounces)
• 2large eggs, lightly beaten
• 4teaspoons vanilla extract
• 6ounces white chocolate chips (1 cup) or chopped bar, or 3 ounces each white chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips
  
  
  
  

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees.   Spray 13x9 pan with cooking spray.
   2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside.
   3. Whisk melted butter and brown sugar together in medium bowl until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Using rubber spatula, fold dry ingredients into egg mixture until just combined; do not overmix. Fold in chocolate and nuts and turn batter into prepared pan, smoothing top with rubber spatula.
   4. Bake until top is shiny, cracked, and light golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes; do not overbake. Cool on wire rack to room temperature. Remove bars from pan by lifting foil overhang and transfer to cutting board. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.

   And lest you think I am only a dessert maker, just a few photos of the rest of that summer (almost) night's meal.

   

   You know how even if you marinade your raw chicken breasts for hours it all just drips off and you can't taste it?  That is how it works for me anyway.  So I learned this tip.  Wait until the chicken breasts are basically done, then dip them in the marinade, grill for another minute or two, and then dip one more time before serving.  I could actually taste the lemon and garlic this time!  Plus, the marinade isn't contaminated, so I used it to flavor the roasted broccoli and orzo with feta and pine nuts.

   
   

   

   
   

   The weekly menu 

   Monday and Tuesday:  Those pork lettuce wraps again, this time I tripled the quick pickled vegetables and there were still no left overs

   Wednesday:  BLT's, this is a blast from the past.  My mom used to make these for us when I was a kid.  The cool mayo, tomato, iceburg lettuce with salty bacon!  Served with lots of fruit.

   Thursday:  Lemon garlic grilled chicken breasts with blondies for dessert

   Friday:  Ritz crusted cod with roasted cumin cauliflower

Coconut cupcakes with coconut cream cheese frosting and white chocolate curls

Coconut oil seems to be the popular thing right now.  Put it in your baked goods or rub it on your legs! Pretty much works for anything.  I didn't really want to smell like a tropical drink, so decided to try it in my baked goods.  I found lots of vegan recipes with coconut oil.  It was used in place of butter or shortening in recipes.  To keep things simple I wanted to use a boxed cake mix and make my own frosting, so I used the coconut oil in both.

I have been meaning to make a coconut cake for months.  First it was going to be my Easter cake with some toasted coconut on top and a few jelly bean "eggs" in the "nest".  But Easter came and went.  The next event was the school picnic, so hoping kids appreciate the subtle flavor of coconut.

My first thought was how to replace the oil in the cake mix and then how to replace the butter in the cream cheese frosting.  Turns out it is pretty easy.  Just 1:1 and you get to choose weather to use it in solid or liquid form.  It melts at 76 degrees, so even depending on the day you might open the jar and find liquid or solid oil.  Today it was solid.  So to replace the vegetable oil I just microwaved it for a few seconds at a time until liquid and then followed the directions on the box.  For the frosting I just whipped it right in.

Coconut cream cheese frosting

1/4 cup unrefined coconut oil at room temperature (solid)
8 ounces of softened cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment beat the coconut oil to smooth it out.  Beat in the cream cheese on low increasing to medium speed until smooth.  Slowly add the powdered sugar.  You may want a little more or less depending on consistency.  Add the vanilla.  Slowly increase speed to high and beat until fluffy.

It seemed to be calling out for some garnish on top.  I nixed the toasted coconut for white chocolate shavings.  I just used a vegetable peeler to make curls of white chocolate from a baking bar.

The week's menu

Sunday:  It is mother's day so I am hoping for a mimosa at brunch and maybe just some baked roll up sandwiches for supper.

Monday:  Gorditas with lettuce and guacamole

Tuesday:  Panini of the week!  Prosciutto and mozzarella with arugula

Wednesday:  Gorgonzola pasta with wilted spinach and tomato

Thursday:  Grilled lemon chicken with broccoli and orzo

Friday:  Salmon and roasted vegetables

Gorgonzola gnocchi with sugar snap peas

This is an easy weeknight meal with sophistication.  It is similar to my favorite dish at Kate's on State; Balsamic Gorgonzola Gnocchi anyone?  I had some left over homemade gnocchi in the freezer, but the store bought kind would be fine too.  Then all you have to know how to do is boil water.  Although if you would like to impress your family say that you blanched and shocked.  To top it all off my husband pronounced it one of his favorite top ten meals!

First start by getting two pots of water boiling.  One will be for the sugar snap peas and the other for the gnocchi.  Generously salt both pots.  As that is heating up put the gorgonzola sauce together.

Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

adapted from Cook's Illustrated

3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup dry white wine
4oz gorgonzola
salt and pepper
optional splash of balsamic or tsp of dijon mustard

Bring cream and wine to a simmer in a skillet.  Whisk in gorgonzola and anything additional you want to add.  Continue to whisk for 1-2 minutes.

The other important part of the recipe is getting the sugar snap peas right.  No one likes soggy peas.  They have to be cooked, but crisp and bright.  Perfect spring food.  The way to make this happen is blanch and shock.

Blanched sugar snap peas

Prepare a pot of salted boiling water.
Prepare an ice bath; large bowl filled with cold water and ice cubes.
Add the peas to salted boiling water.  Allow to cook for 1-2 minutes.
Immediately stop the cooking process by dropping them in the ice bath.
Rinse and serve.

Cook the gnocchi for 2-3 minutes or until they float.  Put it all together.  I served it with some garlic toasts made from Fayze's rolls.  Combining two of my favorite La Crosse restaurants.

The weekly menu

Sunday:  Cook out with pork and beans and fruit
Monday:  Cuban sandwiches on the panini press with pineapple
Tuesday:  Steak fajitas with guacamole and corn
Wednesday:  Gorgonzola gnocchi with sugar snap peas
Thursday:  Grilled chicken Caesar salad

Really good pizza at home

Is it possible?  Pizza crust at home that tastes like the kind at Il Ritrovo in Sheboygan or Cafe Porta Alba in Madison?  Well, not exactly like that, but in my defense my husband won't let me build a wood fired oven that gets up to 800 degrees in our kitchen.  But if you really want that slightly chewy, thin, bendy crust you can make a fair substitute without a day trip.

A foodie friend suggested a book called Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.  Now I figured that I do probably have five minutes a day.  Maybe cut out five minutes of Pinterest or Facebook time, but I could do it.  It calls for making a sticky dough ahead of time.  Then all you have to do is cut off a piece from the fridge and fashion it into whatever you want.  Pizza?  Boule?  Pastry?  A bit more complex than that, but basically the idea.

I will let you buy the book for details if interested, but here is a similar recipe from my favorite website that never fails.  Thank you Cook's Illustrated.  The only thing that I bought that is pretty essential is a pizza stone.  I got mine for $12 on sale at Macy's so it really isn't that big of an investment!

Neapolitan pizza crust with classic margherita toppings

INGREDIENTS

• Dough

• 1 1/4teaspoons instant yeast
• 1cup water (8 ounces), room temperature
• 1 3/4cups unbleached all-purpose flour (8 3/4 ounces), plus extra for dusting work surface and peel
• 1cup cake flour (4 ounces)
• 1 1/2teaspoons table salt
• 2teaspoons sugar

• Topping

• 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2teaspoon sugar
• 1small clove garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press (optional)
• 1/4cup chopped fresh basil
• Table salt
• 8ounces fresh mozzarella cheese (see note above), cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. FOR THE CRUST: Adjust oven rack to lowest position, set pizza stone on oven rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. In liquid measuring cup, whisk yeast into water to dissolve. In food processor fitted with metal blade, process flours, salt, and sugar until combined, about 5 seconds. With machine running, slowly add liquid through feed tube; continue to process until dough forms satiny, sticky ball that clears sides of workbowl, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. (If after 1 minute dough is sticky and clings to blade, add 1 to 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour and continue processing. If dough appears dry and crumbly, add 1 to 2 tablespoons water and process until dough forms ball.) Divide dough in half and shape into smooth, tight balls (see photo 1, below). Place on floured counter or baking sheet, spacing them at least 3 inches apart; cover loosely with plastic wrap coated with nonstick cooking spray and let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
   2. FOR THE TOPPING: In clean bowl of food processor, process tomatoes until crushed, two or three 1-second pulses. Transfer tomatoes to fine-mesh strainer set over bowl and let drain at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to release liquids. Just before shaping pizza rounds, combine drained tomatoes, sugar, garlic (if using), 1 tablespoon basil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in bowl.

   

   
   
   3. TO SHAPE AND COOK THE PIZZAS: When dough balls have doubled in size, dust dough liberally with flour and transfer balls to well-floured work surface. Press one ball into 8-inch disk (photo 2). Using flattened palms, gently stretch disk into 12-inch circle, working along outer edge and giving disk quarter turns (photos 3 and 4). Lightly flour pizza peel; lift edges of dough round to brush off any excess flour, then transfer dough to peel. Spread thin layer of tomato topping (about 1/2 cup) over dough with rubber spatula, leaving 1/2-inch border around edge. Slide onto stone and bake until crust begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Remove pizza from oven with peel, close oven door, and top pizza with half of cheese chunks, spaced evenly apart. Return pizza to stone and continue cooking until cheese is just melted, 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to cutting board; sprinkle with half of remaining basil, 1 teaspoon olive oil, and pinch salt. Slice and serve immediately. Repeat step 3 to shape, top, and bake second pizza.

   
   

   I had left over dough, so the next night I made focaccia with caprese toppings.

   

   
   

   

   
   

   The week's menu

   Saturday:  Homemade pizza.  I prepped the dough in the morning.  Used three pounds for pizza that night and saved a pound for Sunday.

   Sunday:  Focaccia with caprese toppings.  This was so good!  I may have even loved it more than the pizza!

   Monday:  Hit the easy button!  A box from the store!  Really the only one I ever buy.  Gorditas.  I have mine as a salad.

   Tuesday:  Chicken, broccoli, noodle dish with creamy sauce.  I prepped enough chicken and broccoli for Wednesday too.

   Wednesday:  Chicken and broccoli with hoisin sauce and rice.

   Thursday:  Breakfast for supper with breakfast sausage and potato hash.

Homemade potato gnocchi with balsamic brisket

 This week I decided to do the impossible; try to recreate a dish we had at L'etoile last week.  It was gnocchi, but not like the the vacuum packed variety at the grocery store.  These were so light and delicate, actually like little pillows.  They were nestled in some tender meat and rich sauce.  So not having ever made gnocchi before or even really having any idea how they were made I decided to give it a try.

Turns out gnocchi are not named after the cat on Curious George.  It is the other way around.  They are little italian dumplings made of potato and flour.  I used a sort of beginners gnocchi recipe that included an egg to help keep them light, but the  recipe is that simple.

Potato Gnocchi from Cooks Illustrated

INGREDIENTS

• Gnocchi

• 2pounds russet potatoes
• 1large egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4cup plus 1 tablespoon (4 ounces) all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter
• 1teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. FOR THE GNOCCHI: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Poke each potato 8 times with paring knife over entire surface. Microwave potatoes until slightly softened at ends, about 10 minutes, flipping potatoes halfway through cooking. Transfer potatoes directly to oven rack and bake until skewer glides easily through flesh and potatoes yield to gentle pressure, 18 to 20 minutes.
   
   

   

   
   
   2. Holding each potato with potholder or kitchen towel, peel with paring knife. Process potatoes through ricer or food mill onto rimmed baking sheet. Gently spread potatoes into even layer and let cool for 5 minutes.
   

   

   
   
   3. Transfer 3 cups (16 ounces) warm potatoes to bowl. Using fork, gently stir in egg until just combined. Sprinkle flour and 1 teaspoon salt over potato mixture. Using fork, gently combine until no pockets of dry flour remain. Press mixture into rough ball, transfer to lightly floured counter, and gently knead until smooth but slightly sticky, about 1 minute, lightly dusting counter with flour as needed to prevent sticking.
   
   

   

   
   
   4. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and dust liberally with flour. Cut dough into 8 pieces. Lightly dust counter with flour. Gently roll piece of dough into ½-inch-thick rope, dusting with flour to prevent sticking. Cut rope into ¾-inch lengths. Holding fork with tines facing down in 1 hand, press each dough piece cut side down against tines with thumb of other hand to create indentation. Roll dough down tines to form ridges on sides. If dough sticks, dust thumb or fork with flour. Transfer formed gnocchi to sheets and repeat with remaining dough.
   
   

   

   
   
   5. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add remaining 1 tablespoon salt. Using parchment paper as sling, gently lower gnocchi from 1 sheet into water and cook until firm and just cooked through, about 90 seconds (gnocchi should float to surface after about 1 minute). Using slotted spoon, transfer cooked gnocchi to skillet with sauce. Repeat with remaining gnocchi. Gently toss gnocchi with sauce and serve.
   
   

   

   
   

   
   

   When paired with slow cooker brisket I had a pseudo L'etoile dish.  For the brisket I just browned it and then added lots of umami- savory ingredients; tomato paste, red wine,       anchovy paste, balsamic- just about everything I could think of to made a rich broth.  In the end it was a decent copycat.  The gnocchi were so much better than the store bought variety and they turned out to not be all that complicated or time consuming.  It was a fun food adventure for a cold Sunday.
   
   

   

   
   

   
   

   The week's menu

   Sunday and Monday:  Gnocchi with balsamic brisket.  Roasted garlic broccoli on Sunday and green beans on Monday.

   Tuesday:  Chicken quesadilla with guacamole and black beans

   Wednesday:  That extra chicken will turn into stir fry with rice and veggies.  I might try another quick pickled vegetable combination.

   Thursday:  I just got a book about making your own bread.  If the time and energy permit, I might try the homemade neapolitan crust and make a margherita pizza.

Slow cooker pork lettuce wraps with quick pickled vegetables

I don't even know if I can call this a recipe.  It is the easiest slow cooker meal ever.  I was inspired by a beautiful picture in my Williams Sonoma catalog.  You know how they show these photos that totally entice you to buy an overpriced piece of kitchen equipment that you will probably use one time.  I admit I did buy a waffle cone maker and haven't yet made a waffle cone, but do plan to...someday.  I bought it so I could make a homemade Choco Taco, summer blog to come on that someday too.

I just bought a 4 pound bone in pork shoulder and put it in the slow cooker with a bottle of Hoisin Garlic sauce from Soy Vay.  For prep work that was it.  I let it cook for 10 hours on low.  This creates an awesome rich smell in the house.  Then to serve I cut up a head of boston lettuce for the wraps.  The girls thought this was suspect but it was really light and refreshing with the rich meat.  And to accompany it I made a quick pickle of carrots, cucumber, jalapeno, and a little fresh ginger.  This was actually my husband's favorite part of the meal.  It is crunchy, sweet, and salty.  And it seems a lot more labor intensive that it really is.

Quick Pickled Vegetables

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 t salt

1 piece fresh peeled ginger

Julienned carrot, cucumber (seeded and peeled), jalapeno

Combine vinegar, sugar, and salt.  Whisk until dissolved.  Add vegetables and let sit in the refrigerator for a hour or more.

The weekly menu

Sunday and Monday:  Pork lettuce wraps
Tuesday:  Chicken pesto panini with arugula and mozzarella.  I just bought a big loaf of ciabatta and made one huge sandwich then cut it up.
Wednesday:  I used the left over chicken for tacos
Thursday:  Flank steak salad with red potatoes
Friday:  Sea perch with avocado cream sauce and Hmong Egg Rolls from the Hmong Center, can't wait!

Buttermilk drop biscuits and breakfast hash

I was looking for a new iteration of breakfast for supper and came up with a hash.  I even did some research.  Wikipedia says it isn't just for leftovers anymore.  Restaurants have sophisticated versions and there is an all hash cookbook out there somewhere.  But the definition of the hash is still easy- just diced meat, potato, and spices.  Wikipedia goes on to say that it is often served with biscuits.

Hash itself is not pretty, a bunch of stuff mixed together with eggs over the top or scrambled right into the dish.  Very hard to have a beautiful picture of a hash.  So for blogs sake I thought of trying a biscuit recipe along side it.  These biscuits were so easy, the whole meal came together in less than 30 minutes.  So to have hot flaky biscuits and hash in less than 30 minutes especially for a inexperienced biscuit maker is pretty good.

Buttermilk Drop Biscuits with Cheddar

MAKES 12 BISCUITS

To refresh day-old biscuits, heat them in a 300-degree oven for 10 minutes.

INGREDIENTS

• 2cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 3ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (3/4 cup)
• 2teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2teaspoon baking soda
• 1teaspoon sugar
• 3/4teaspoon salt
• 1cup buttermilk, chilled
• 8tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, cheddar, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt together in large bowl. Stir buttermilk and melted butter together in 2-cup liquid measuring cup until butter forms clumps.

   

   
   

   2. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture and stir with rubber spatula until just incorporated. Using greased ¼-cup dry measuring cup, drop level scoops of batter 1 1/2 inches apart on prepared sheet. Bake until tops are golden brown 12 to 14 minutes.  Rotate pan half way through.

   

   
   

   

   
   

   3. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter and brush on biscuit tops. Transfer biscuits to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

   

As for the hash, there is no one right way to proceed.  I did dice the potatoes and soften in the microwave before browning, this just moves the whole dish along a little faster.  From there on it is whatever you have in the fridge.  I added diced green pepper and ham.  Then the finishing touch may be fried eggs on top or, as I did, just poured in scrambled eggs and cooked it all up together.  An easy one pan meal with minimal clean up!

The week in preview

Wednesday:  Breakfast hash and biscuits with fruit

Thursday:  Cobb salad with turkey, avocado, hard boiled eggs, blue cheese

Friday:  Taco night with guacamole

Saturday:  Homemade pizza and salad