Another angle

I love how this view, you can really see the sugar coming dow the sides of the cake.

Poached Egg

I thought this poached egg looked so cool. I wish it would have cradled the egg just a bit better, but it broke at the bottom.

What I did:

First I took a mall cup, like a coup cup, and placed a piece of plastic rap inside of it. I sprayed the plastic rap with Pam, sprinkles some salt and pepper on it and then cracked the egg. Then I took a rubber band around the top so no water could touch the egg, and dropped it in boiling water.

Everyone's Pumpkin

Kevin did the eye, my dad did the goofy vampire, I did the carriage, and Karl...I am not quite sure what his was...

Pumpkin Carving

My pumpkin was perfect shape for a carriage. I got a larger pumpkin to carve my older brothers face in for laughs, but opted for this smaller pumpkin because it was too cute. I should have thought about this ahead of time and found a little Cinderella and Prince for inside and perhaps a driver and some horses...and wheels - okay maybe I should have made something else, but I like it.


This is a side view of my pumpkin. I wanted it to look starry and magical.

Pumpkin Cheese Cake

Fresh Roasted Pumpkin Cheese Cake - Ginger Snap, toasted pecan crust, bruleed top (like Creme Brulee) over a spiced bourbon creme anglaise, and a cream cheese whipped cream.

I love pumpkins, they are cute, festive, and taste delicious. I thought that this was a completely original dessert, but it turns out everyone is making it, so I put a new twist on it to make it completely mine. I am questioning whether or not to give this recipe away...

It is thick and luxurious like a cheese cake, yet fluffy and savory like your mom's pumpkin pie.

To me there is a huge difference between using canned pumpkin and a real pie pumpkin you roast yourself.

For my own spin on this I bruleed the top. My first thought was I wanted to make spun sugar with candied pecans. Bruleeing something is much easier.

Second is the whip cream. I add just a little bit of cream cheese to it to make it kind of buttery. It reminds me of an expensive cool whip. Cool whip has a butter feel to it, but not in a good way because you can taste that it is hydrogenated oil.

Last improvement I made for the cheese cake was a bed of bourbon creme anglaise. It does get more decadent than this. It is like having eggnog with your cheesecake.

This might sound kind of ridiculous, but I was thinking about making a huckleberry coulis for the top. The color would be gorgeous and might taste amazing with the bruleed top. I have huckleberries in the freezer, but I was thinking about making individual meringue cups, roasting the huckleberries, and filling the meringue cups with the mixture after they were baked. - perhaps my next blog entry.

Watching This Makes Me Giddy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xB7V8I94mY

See How Good It Was

Here is a picture of beth sneaking some of the cake!

Just a few of the layers for Karls birthday cake. Karls birthday cake was totally awesome, but possibly inappropriate to share online. Send me an email if you want to see the finished project. By the way, this is the best chocolate cake in the world. Recipe as follows:

• 3 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate
  

• 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee (I like it super strong)
  
• 3 cups sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 pound fine-quality bitter sweet chocolate
  
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 300°F. and grease and flour pans. Line bottoms with rounds of wax paper (Do this after greasing pans but before flouring them.

Chop chocolate and place in a bowl and combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand for a couple of minutes and then stir until chocolate is completely melted.

Here comes the annoying part. I usually take out a few different mixing bowls for this. First meausure out sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Then in another bowl have your sifter ready to go. Cup the ingredients into the sifter and sift until all in the second bowl. Take a fork and mix really well. I am a total nazi about sifty everything together really well. So I take the sifted mixture and sift it one more time after i stir it together back into the original bowl. It kind of gets all over, but is worth it.

In a kitchen aid with the whisk attachement beat eggs until thickened slightl and lemon colored - probably a good three minutes. Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, continuously whisking until well combined. Add dry mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well. Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Cool layers completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely.

I usually do this the day or night before I want to assemble the cake, so it is fresh, moist and firm :)

For the frsoting chop chocolate into small pieces. In a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a low boil/simmer over moderately low heat, whisk until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth ( this will make the ganache shine)

Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable. I like to do this part the day of assembly, so I usually make an ice bath for it.

Spread frosting between cake layers and over top and sides. For the cake I made my little brother I doubled this batch completely.

I love my Kitchen Aid

My Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer at work. This is probably one of my favorite things in the world. This plus my chefs knife and my huge dutch oven! If you like to bake or cook - this is one of the most useful things. Also I like my food processor...I never give it as much credit as it deserves, but I blend, chop, mince, and shred stuff in it daily. This is Alishas cake before the cocoa and before the red food coloring.

Chicken over Spinach

This is super easy, cheap, and my friends and family love it. Preheat oven the 250. I take about three shallots thinly sliced into small circles. I saute them in about 2bls olive oil and 2tbls salted butter. I would do just butter if I clarified it, but that takes to long, and olive oil has a little bit of a higher smoking point. I also add about 2 garlic cloves minced. After the shallots soften, I remove them from the oil so they don't burn.

While the shallots and garlic or cooking though, I salt and pepper both sides of the chicken breasts (about 5-6) and then lightly dredge them in all purpose flour. I immediately put them in the same skillet that the shallots were in. I sear both sides of the chicken breasts until golden brown on both sides (medium high heat) and put into a separate baking dish, cover with foil and place in the oven. Return the shallots and garlic to the pan the chicken was just in. Add a a cup and a half heavy cream to the pan and simmer until reduced to half. Add one and a half cups dry chardonnay to the simmering heavy cream (never cook with a wine you would not drink, the alcohol cooks out and you get all the flavors of the wine). Reduce the wine in half in the mixture as well, so you end up having one- to one and a laf cups of sauce.

Remove chicken from oven and place into the sauce over medium heat. Continue to cook the chicken into the sauce so it soaks up all the yummy flavors. Add a couple tblsp coarsley chop italian flat leaf parsley to give it a fresh taste and look after it is all done cooking.

During the time the chicken is finishing back up in the saute skillet, saute one pound fresh baby spinach with a couple tblsp butter . Once the spinach has wilted place chicken over spinach and then pour the remaining sauce over chicken and spinach.

I need to make this again soon.

Goat Cheese

I love chevre. There is no other cheese like it. It is floral and soft. When I eat it, my first reaction is how pretty it tastes.

I grow fresh herbs in my garden, so I spice the goat cheese up with a good bunch of thyme, chives.

Slice a baguette in one inch slices at an angle. Place them on a cookie sheet and drizzle olive oil over each one to get this nice and golden. They are crispy on the outside, but still moist inside.

Take about 8 oz fresh chevre and mix it with about three ounces cream cheese, just to soften the goat cheese.

Add about 1.5 tblsp thyme leaves
1tsp lemon zest/zest of one lemon

this is easier if you add the cheese, lemon zest and thyme to a food processor and pulse a few times until mixed together and creamy. Put the cheese mixture into a serving bowl.

Take about one ounce of chives and thinly slice to sprinkle all over cheese mixture. Slice about 1/2 cup kalamata olives and also sprinkle over the top.

Spread everything all over the toasted baguettes and eat.

Croquettes

Thank you Guillermo for teaching me!!! You have never really lived until you have had croquettes.

These were chicken croquettes It reminds me of deep fried gravy. Just fabulous. Next time I think I am going to try manchego and jamon.

P.s. Serve with a homemade aoili

Kevin's Tortilla Española

This tortilla is super traditional, simple, the best :) I would also use a waxy potato like - yukon gold! The skins on these potatoes are thin enough to leave on, but you can peel them if you prefer.

6 large waxy potatoes
5-6 large eggs
1-2 onions (i always prefer walla walla sweets)
1tsp salt (you can use more or less salt if you like)
1/4 cup olive oil (this is going to cook, so it's okay to use cheaper olive oil)


If the potato is small then i would just cut rounds off of it about 1/5 of an inch thick. If the potatoes are larger cut them in half length wise and continue to cut half circles off the same width.

This sounds fattening and I've never seen it done this way before, but fry all of the potatoes over medium high heat jut until tender. I would do this in small batches too!

After the potatoes are done frying drain any excess oil by laying the potatoes out on paper towels.

Pour two tbsp olive oil in a pan and turn on medium high heat. when oil heats up slightly, then begin to saute the onions (coarsely chopped) until sweet.

While the onions are having a go on the stove top, whisk all of the eggs together, then add the potatoes and the drained onions (obviously after being cooked).

in a 9 inch saute skillet add 1tblsp olive oil over medium heat. Make sure it isn't too hot or it will burn the oil and the tortilla (which I have done).

Heat until the sides looked cooked and the bottom is golden. This way it will lift up easily. Take a large dinner plate and cover the top of the pan with it. Holding the plate in one hand the the pan in the other make the flip.

Add one tsp- to one tblsp olive oil in the pan and slide the tortilla off the plate and back into the pan still over medium heat. Cook for about four more minutes. To make sure the tortilla doesn't become too dry let it sit in the pan off the heat for a couple more minutes.

I like my tortilla sliced in to about an inch wide and 3 inches long. This way it sits perfectly on a slice of baguette. Enjoy :)
p.s. this can be a complete meal with a few slices of manchego cheese!

Poached Pears

I think these pears are just beautiful and delicious and super easy. Everyone poaches pears differently, but I think it would be impossible for them not to turn out. The chocolate sauce is simple, 2tblsp butter, 4tblsp heavy cream, tblsp corn syrup, 1 & 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate, and a pinch or two of cayenne pepper depending on how spicy you like it.

The fisrt cake

I never posted this cake, i think i tried to upload it once, it didn't work out and I forgot. But this is the carrot cake I made with cream cheese frosting. Like I said before, I hand made all of the plumerias out of fondant, gum paste, and petal dust, they are completely edible, but if you have ever tried dried out gum paste or fondant, it isn't very good. Previous posts show the flowers close up before they went on the cake, and other flowers I painted and experimented with.

Last But Never the Least

Blueberry pie eventually ala mode.
This was the first pie I ever made. I think that The crust turned out beautifully, although I wish the leaves in the center would have browned a little bit more. The filling was awesome. 4 cups of blueberries, 1/2 cup sugar, 2tbsp corn starch, 2tbls fresh lemon juice, zest of one lemon. The only thing I wish I would have done was baked crust before adding the pie filling. The bottom didn't taste completely done.

Table Setting: Super Simple

I love simple tables and decorated tables. Depends on the occasion and what you are eating. Last night I made an all american turkey dinner and pie. I love this table clothe. It is pretty, simple, and works for that Southern United States feel.

Italian fritters!

Homemade doughnuts! Super easy.

5tsp. active yeast
+1 cup warm water

let the yeast foam up - about five or six minutes

take 2 1/2 cups flour
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar (depending on how sweet you like them)
pinch of salt
zest of one lemon

mix dry ingredients together first into a little hill on a board.punch down middle of the mound and make a well with yeast and water and fork everything together.

after all the ingredients are mixed together energetically kneed for about ten minutes. You should be able to grab a small piece and stretch it until you can see light coming through it like a window but without breaking.

let it rise in an oiled bowl for about two hours (cover with plastic wrap)
punch it down and divide into eighteen pieces. roll them into little balls and then flatten them on a floured cookie sheet pan. THey should be about 1/2 inch thick. Let them rise for about 30-40 minutes depending on how warm it is inside (if it is cold it will take longer)

heat five cups of olive oil - or whatever you have to 350 degrees. Cook three at at time for about three minutes. 1 1/2 minutes on each side. let them cool for a few minutes and then dust with powdered sugar.

Super good served with espresso!

ALISHA'S BDAY CAKE

So the trick to a red velvet cake is the cocoa powder. I have seen some recipes that don't call for it, but just a couple of tablespoons goes a long ways and gives plenty of flavor. Also when I made this cake the batter looked magenta not dark red, fortunately when it baked it turned out like it was supposed to. Four layers is best. If you have a cake leveler cook two 9inch rounds and slice both in half to have a four layered cake. The cream cheese frosting is sooo easy and delicious, but make sure to use all of it! It looks like a lot, but use it all.

You will need
1lb cream cheese
1/3 cup butter
4tsp vanilla extract
4cups powder sugar

beat cream and butter until smooth, then add the extract (about) 2 minutes
slowly I stress slowly - sift powder sugar into mixture while the mixer is still on until all the powder sugar is evenly mixed in.

Spanish Night @ Kevin's

This paella was beautiful! If you know me, you know that i say paella all as one. I have a friend from Spain who pronounces it paih eh ja. The safron in this was just beautiful. The color, smell and taste.

I found the bomba rice from this little wine shop in Moscow, it worked perfectly. There is also chicken, fresh lima beans, peas, green beans, etc...OMG so much flavor! The trick to cooking this is the pan though. There is a special paella pan. Most people cook it over an open fire, but since everyone these days lives in an apartment, we opted for the bbq.

Fondant Flowers take 2

These are the flowers I ended up using for the whole cake. I cut out five circles out of the rolled fondant using a biscuit cutter. I used my fingers to make them more oval shaped, which in return gave them a great texture. For the yellow and orange in the middle I used edible petal dust. I also added stamen in the middle, and I know plumeria doesn't have stamen, but I liked the way it looked.

Making fondant flowers

So this was my first attempt at making fondant flowers. I started with Gum Paste (which I liked using more than fondant, because it is more sturdy) and then switched to fondant because I ran out of gum paste because I was practicing making other flowers. The first flower I made was a rose, but I don't think i have a picture of it. The other flowers I was trying to make plumerias or hawaiian looking flowers.

Fruit Salad

For some reason people love eating things out of an edible shell. Not that you would ever want to eat the outside of a watermelon or a pineapple, but you could if you wanted to.

For this salad I cut a watermelon in half length wise. Well more like 1/3 of it off the top length wise. the rest of the watermelon I just carved out and put into an extra bowl.

Second I took a whole pineapple, and started at the top cutting all the way from one side of the top to the other leaving about a 1/2 inch of the pineapple top still attached to the rest of it. I then circled down leaving about a 1/2 of one whole side down the pineapple and layed it in the watermelon.

I cut a tooth pick in half and underneath the pineapple I pierced it with the toothpick to the watermelon so that it would hold upright.

I then began to fill it with fruit! Use whatever you want. This one I used cantaloupe, watermelon, pineapple, kiwi, blueberries, purple grapes, doughnut peaches, apricots, and oranges.

I peeled an orange and kiwi whole and saved a whole round slice to toothpick to top and on the other side a piece of cantaloupe and watermelon that still have the rind and made some what of a flag to also toothpick to the top. This gives it a fresh feeling, like the fruit was just sliced...which it was.

Enjoy! This is great for parties at home or to take. And be creative with it. I have seen baskets, carved out shapes like hearts etc...even with the sliced fruit in the bowl!

Spinaci insalata

Yep, spinaci insalata! In other words Spinach Salad. There is this restaurant in Moscow, Idaho where I went to school and they made a salad really similar to this that I loved. It is light, refreshing, and colorful. Super simple to make and delicious.

For the Salad
8- 10 oz baby spinach
1/3 cup sliced strawberries
2oz fresh goat chevre
1/6 cup semi crushed pecans

For the Vinaigrette
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
2tlbs stone ground mustard
2tlbs honey
salt and pepper to taste

Whisk the dressing really well! It will make it nice and frothy. I like to drizzle the dressing on top really lightly. It doesn't take a lot since there is so much flavor in every thing else!

My first cake

I decided I wanted to make a cake, basically just to see if i could do it. I had an urge to do something creative with my hands. $100.oo later on supplies this is what I got.

I first started by making the flowers. Each flower I made by hand out of fondant. I added yellow and orange petal dust to the center of the fondant plumerias. I spent a little over 3 days on the flowers. I could only make about six at a time, and they take a while to dry completely. Once they are dry, they are really brittle.

Second step was obviously the cake. I made the cake the night before I rolled out the fondant to cover the cakes so they were nice and cooled down. I must have used eight cups of shredded carrots by the end. Pecans, raisins, and Homemade Cream cheese frosting!

Once the cakes were evenly iced I Covered the cakes with the rolled out fondant. This was the second hardest part. Rolling fondant and placing it over a cake without it buckling is probably one of the hardest things i have ever done!

Overall this was a great experience!

Welcome to "People Eat With Their Eyes First"

Me: "Hi Everyone, my name is Kerstin.
Everyone : "Hi Kerstin"
Me: "And I am a foodaholic."