The (not-so)-secret eating habits of the Bookkitten

Last Friday, I wrote about foods that I thought were rawther strange. I cannot tell you how many E-mails and comments I got that basically said, "How dare you mock our favorite foods!"

So, in fairness to you, my darling kittens, I am going to tell you about some eating habits of mine that others think are rawther strange:

1. I eat tuna straight from the can.
I don't bother with the sandwich, celery, or (ugh) mayonnaise any more. I get my can opener, break the seal, and drain the water. Then I get my fork and dig right in. I find plain tuna to be rawther tasty and flavorful. Yummy, yummy, yummy.

It is not easy, however, to eat tuna in the presence of kitties. I like to give them the empty can once I'm done, so they can lick whatever morsels are left in the crevices.

2. Raw tortellini is very tasty.
I am talking about the fresh tortellini here, the one that comes in the plastic packages, in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. It's gotten to the point where I don't even boil the water for it any more; I just dump some into a bowl, eat it one piece at a time, and call it dinner. Sometimes I like to stretch out my snacking by biting the piece in half, chewing it slowly, and savoring each morsel. Then I finish the rest by popping it into my mouth.

3. I like to melt chocolate chips in the microwave, stir in a little natural peanut butter, and call it dessert.
I call it the "Poor Man's Peanut Butter Cup." It may not be good for you, but oh, does it taste good!

4. I like to drink plain hot water.
I don't even put a tea bag or hot cocoa in it; I just like it regular. I first started doing this in college on really cold days. One night there was no hot cocoa or tea in my dorm room, and I was desperate to warm up, so I dumped some water in the hot pot, heated it up, and voila!

5. I have been known to eat raw oatmeal.
Sometimes I'll pour it into the bowl, much like cereal, and sprinkle some brown sugar and cinnamon on top. I don't even pour milk into the bowl. It's really good crunchy! Try it!

And that's just for starters! I won't go further 'cause I don't wanna gross y'all out (that is, if I haven't done so already). Do you, kittens, have any food quirks that you'd like to share with me?

In praise of coffee

Let's talk about coffee and how I am in love with it.

I have not always been a java fan, though. I am, and always will be, a tea person first and foremost. I love tea. So much so that, one Christmas, between my family and friends, I received eleven boxes of tea as gifts. There is nothing more relaxing to me than heating up my kettle, listening for the whistle, and pouring myself a cup of bliss. I sit at my chair, hands curled around the mug of happiness, inhaling the vapor of my Celestial Seasonings and just feeling content--and that's all before the first sip.

I used to drink tea first thing in the morning before I went to work, and would have a mug full of it to drink during my commute. However, as the years have gone by, I have found that this just doesn't cut it for me any more. I needed something stronger. That's when I started buying coffee, and drinking it on a regular basis.

For many years I used Old Bessie, the coffee maker that I had since college. However, Old Bessie wore out, and I had to replace her. That's when Keurig entered my life. For those of you who are fans of the machine (I'm talking to you, Jodi and Missy!), Keurig = LOVE. Now that I've joined Green Mountain Coffee's Cafe Express Program, which automatically ships K-Cups to my door on a monthly basis, I've been able to sample many varieties of java. Here are my favorites:

(First, though, I must say that I'm not being paid to talk about these flavors or Green Mountain Coffee in general.)

Heifer Hope Blend: This is a medium roast coffee. It claims to have a bit of chocolate in it, but I have been unable to taste it. I find it somewhat mild, but it is rawther tasty. As you will soon learn, I really like STRONG coffee. The coffee I like is so strong, I think it's what keeps my hair dark brown.

PBS Blend: This is another good coffee. It's a little stronger than the Heifer Hope Blend. Proceeds from the sale of this coffee support PBS, which is one of the reasons why I purchase it. PBS is one of my favorite channels. Yes, I know by saying that I've aged myself about 20 years, but I don't care.

10% Kona Blend: Full-strength Kona coffee is rawther expensive, so I get this stuff. This is probably my favorite coffee ever. It is soooooo smoooooooth going down. And tasty. This is what I mean when I say that coffee helps maintain my hair color.

So right now I'm savoring my Kona coffee and contemplating my next move for the day. I've already used the hour I gained for sleeping purposes, so maybe I'll contemplate my dinner options.

Or maybe I'll make another cup of coffee.

PBS Blend, anyone?

Cooking with Kitten: Holiday leftovers edition

Well, Kittens, another Christmas has come and gone, and once again, we are faced with the holiday leftovers in our collective refrigerators.

What shall we do with those leftovers?

Last month Food Network aired a special on what exactly to do. Sunny Anderson suggested taking your green bean casserole and making little pot pies. Yum. Guy Fieri offered a yummy recipe for turkey hash.

But seriously, Kittens, who wants to do all of that slicing and dicing and rolling out pastry dough after we've spent a day gorging, with a post-dinner hangover the next day?

Ladies and gentlemen, I present you, the easiest post-holiday recipe on earth:

THE CLASSIC LEFTOVER SANDWICH

*Note: In the interest of full disclosure, I need to say that I myself do not eat this sandwich. However, we here at The Bookkitten are equal opportunists who try to cater to all tastes. This recipe will likely appeal to grown men and kids. It's not so much for the ladies.*

But here's the recipe anyway. It's easy.

• You're gonna start out with two slices of bread. Any bread will do, but Wonder Bread, that childhood staple, just seems to fit for this one.
• Next, spread a layer of mashed potatoes on both slices of bread. It's best if the mashed potatoes are at room temperature.
• Spread a layer of stuffing on top of the taters. Again, it's best to have your ingredients at room temperature.
• Put some turkey slices on top of the stuffing. Do this for only one of the slices of bread.
• If you have slices of canned cranberry sauce, use 'em here, on top of the turkey.
• Put the second slice of bread on top of the first one. Nuke it if you want a hot lunch.
• If you nuke the sandwich, feel free to add a layer of gravy to it. If you do this, you're gonna have to eat it with a knife and fork. Otherwise, bon appetit!

If you're not such a big fan of the leftover sandwich, may I suggest:

• Get yerself a bag of salad greens and add some turkey pieces and possibly some bits of the canned cranberry. Top with a lowfat vinagrette.
• Make shepherd's pie.

Just remember, taters and stuffing do not freeze well. At all. I learned this the hard way.

As for me, I'm just going to take my turkey, taters, and stuffing, arrange them on a plate, and stretch the Christmas dinner out for a couple more days. Yummmmmmmmmmm...

Cooking With Kitten: Candy Cane Cookies

These cookies have been a holiday tradition in my family since I was a kid. I'm making them for a potluck supper tonight.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup softened butter or margarine
1 cup 10x confectioners' sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

*NOTE*: If you don't like almond extract, use 2 teaspoons vanilla. Or, and I just thought of this, you could substitute peppermint extract for the almond. After all, these are candy cane cookies.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Thoroughly mix butter, confectioners' sugar, egg and flavorings. Blend in flour and salt. Divide dough in half; blend food coloring into one half.
2. Shape 1 teaspoon of dough from each half into a 4-inch rope. For smooth, even rope, roll them back and forth on lightly floured board (Mama Cat uses wax paper). Place ropes side by side; press together gently and twist. Cut into 2-inch segments; place on an ungreased cookie sheet and curve top to form the candy cane.
3. Bake at 375 degrees for nine minutes or until set and very light brown around the edges. If you wish, mix 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy and 1/2 cup granulated sugar; immediately sprinkle cookies with candy mixture.

NOTES:

1. If you use self-rising flour, omit the salt.
2. You may wish to make a double recipe of dough and color one of the batches. The 1/2 teaspoon of coloring is a gauge; if you want redder cookies, add more coloring. Don't add more than 1 1/2 teaspoons, though, or the dough will become too wet.

I'm going to make another batch soon, and when I do, I'll take pictures and add them to this post.

Clip of the Week: My Town's on Food Network!

O'Rourke's Diner has been a popular, some say legendary, hangout in Middletown since 1931. As you'll see in this clip, it's not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill, greasy spoon diner. Brian O'Rourke's creations will make you drool.

After five years of living in Middletown, I'm sad to say that I haven't been to O'Rourke's yet. Someday, though...and soon!

Cooking With Kitten: Italian Chicken Soup

A couple of months ago, I posted a link to Jane Redmont's wonderful recipe for chicken soup. Today I made myself another batch of it, with a few improvisational additions. I'm going to post the recipe in its entirety right here:

First of all, you will need the largest pot you own. The pot you use to boil spaghetti may not be large enough for this task. Go buy yourself the largest stock pot you can find, and use it exclusively to make soup. You won't regret it.

Next, you will need a chicken. Not just any chicken, though! You want one that's preferably free-range, organic, fed an all-grain and grass vegetarian diet--in other words, the healthiest chicken you can find, sans additives, hormones, and all that other yucky stuff. I used a Nature's Promise chicken from Stop & Shop.

Take the chicken, wash it out, and trim some, but not all, of the fat from it. You need a little bit of fat for this soup for flavoring and texture. However, if your chicken is like mine, and has saggy skin, get rid of the sags. Rinse it, and wash out the inner cavity.

When you wash out the inner cavity, you're going to find the neck, the heart, and the liver. Save these and use them in your soup. They add lots of flavor. Some people like to saute the liver and eat it separately. I am not one of those people. Remember to discard the neck, heart, and liver when your soup is done, though; you don't want to consume them.

Once your chicken has had a nice bath, put it in your pot, along with the neck, heart, and liver, and fill it up. Make sure the entire chicken is covered with water. Fill up your pot until the water is about two or three inches from the top. Place it on the stove.

Now's the time to slice them veggies. You can adjust the number of veggies you use, depending on how chunky or liquidy you like your soup:

• 3-4 peeled carrots, sliced into rounds
• 3-4 stalks of celery, thinly sliced
• 2-3 onions, peeled and chopped

Place your veggies in your soup. Now it's time for the seasonings. Use whatever you've got on hand. For this recipe, I used:

• 2-3 bay leaves
• dried basil
• dried oregano
• fresh thyme (leftover from another recipe I cooked last week)
• hot sauce
• a little salt
• lots of fresh ground black pepper

Adjust your seasonings to taste. I personally like a lot of flavoring in my soups. I was generous with the basil and oregano (which is what makes this soup Italian), a little less generous with the thyme, generous with the hot sauce (but not too generous; you don't want your soup biting back at you, but you just want a little kick), and miserly with the salt. I did use a lot of pepper, though, but not too much.

Now that you've added your seasonings and veggies, it's time to turn the heat up to high. You want to bring your soup up to a boil and let it boil for 30-60 minutes. Check your chicken after 30 minutes; if you can cut it with a knife and fork, and none of the meat is pink, it's ready to go. When the meat falls off the bones, it's definitely ready. But don't take your chicken out yet, Kittens, oh no! This is when you add the last ingredient: a can of diced, crushed, or stewed tomatoes. You can add fresh tomatoes, too, and crush them directly into the soup. If you use the canned tomatoes, use everything in the can; no draining is necessary. Make sure you add the tomatoes last, about a minute or two before you take out the chicken, so they don't get too mushy.

When the chicken is ready, take it out of the soup and put it on a plate. Turn your burner to warm; you don't want the soup to cool completely if you're going to serve it right away. When the chicken cools, start shredding it with your bare hands and put the pieces back into the soup. Your hands are going to get wet and greasy as you do this, so keep a towel or some paper towels by your side to dry off your hands.

Once you've shredded the chicken, it's now time to ladle some of that marvelous soup into a bowl! Yummy!

You can adjust the flavorings in this soup in so many ways. You can add some dried pasta in right before the cooking is done. You can add some diced potatoes about midway through cooking. You can add some beans and cayenne pepper to make some lovely tortilla soup. I got the idea for the crushed tomatoes from a post on Patti LuPone's website (which is now included on my links of note).

When you're done with the soup, cover the pot and put it in the refrigerator. Let it sit there overnight. The next day, take the soup out of the fridge and skim the top layer of fat off of it. Remember, you want some fat in the soup, but not too much. Ladle the soup into containers and freeze it; it freezes beautifully. (You may still have to skim some fat off of the soup before you heat up the individual containers, though).

Finally, if you have saved the bones, but 'em back into the empty soup pot, and make yourself some stock. Cover the bones with water (no need to add extra veggies or seasonings), and boil for about an hour. Let it cool, then ladle into containers. You can use the stock as a base for other soups, as well as sauces, mashed potatoes, and other recipes. I use it to boil rice.

Now here's a question for you, Kittens: How would you play up chicken soup? What kind of flavorings would you use in order to, as Emeril would say, "Kick it up a notch?"

Cooking With Kitten: Gateau de Minuit

As promised, here is the recipe for the cake I baked for brunch yesterday.

The real title of this recipe is "Brown Sugar Pound Cake." However, it got its new name since I baked it at midnight two nights ago. It sounds much more interesting than its original name.

This recipe originally came from the cookbook Moosewood Celebrates, one of the latest volumes from the Moosewood Collective (and you know how much I lurve them). It's a neat little cookbook filled with menus and recipe ideas for holidays all throughout the year.

Pound cakes got their name because, traditionally, they required a pound of each ingredient: a pound of butter, a pound of sugar, a pound of flour, etc. While this particular recipe doesn't require a pound of each ingredient, it does use higher amounts than what you may be used to for a modern pound cake.

So here's the recipe (taken from pages 374-375 of Moosewood Celebrates):

CAKE:

• 2 cups butter, at room temperature (that's 4 sticks)
• 3 cups firmly packed brown sugar
• 6 eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 4 cups unbleached white pastry flour
• 1/2 cup milk or heavy cream

GLAZE:

• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk or water

CINNAMON SUGAR TOPPING:

• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch bundt pan and dust it with flour.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar until light. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until fluffy. In a separate bowl, stir together the baking powder and flour. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the milk. Beat until well blended, another minute or two.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 75 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. The cake should be golden brown, firm, and pulling slightly away from the pan.

While the cake bakes, prepare the glaze and topping. In a small bowl, mix all of the glaze ingredients together until smooth. In a cup, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg for the topping and set aside.

When the cake is done, cool upright on a rack for 10 minutes and then invert onto a serving plate, leaving the baking pan in place for another 10 minutes before removing it. Then apply the glaze and topping while the cake is still warm. Using a pastry brush, quickly coat the surface of the cake with the glaze and immediately sprinkle the topping on the moist glaze. Carefully tip the cake a bit while sprinkling, so that sugar will adhere to the sides as well as the top.

It's very, very delicious!

Un Petit Dejeuner Francais

I'm glad I've been able to stretch my Thanksgiving break out for a few days, not only because it's my favorite holiday, but because I've had such a blast this year with everything I've done.

Thanksgiving Eve, I spent a wonderful night with my French Meetup group, and today, spent brunch with them. It was a very nice late morning/early afternoon of conversation, food, and petanque. What is petanque, you ask? It's the French version of bocce. I ended up playing on a team for several rounds. I'm pretty good at it, but if I get too cocky, then I start having problems.

I made a brown sugar pound cake to bring to the brunch. Only two slices went. I really wasn't surprised; we all ate lightly, given that it was right after Thanksgiving and we're still burning off turkey calories. I started mixing around 11:15 last night, and finally put it in the oven around midnight. My friend called it the "gateau de minuit." I think that's what I'll call this cake from now on. I'll post the recipe tomorrow, if I get the chance.

Meanwhile, I need to finish cleaning the condo. I'm putting the Christmas tree up tomorrow, and I need to be organized!

Thanksgiving Dinner Reprise

Every year, we stretch Thanksgiving out to two full days. In addition to the Thursday turkey fest, we all have another fancy dinner together the following night. In years past, my mother made her world-famous, prize-winning lasagna, served Italian bread, and offered us the remains of the pumpkin and apple pies from the night before.

Last year, however, my godsister and her husband started a new tradition: post-Thanksgiving feast at their house. My godsister's husband cooks, along with my other godsister, and the rest of us clean up.

It's a pretty fair arrangement, considering the yumminess that we get.

Here's this year's menu:

• filet mignon, cooked to absolute tender perfection: nice and pink, and we didn't have to use steak knives (talk about slicing like butter!)
• shrimp scampi, broiled with a mixture of butter, garlic, vermouth, and other yummy goodness
• red roasted potatoes, roasted with rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and olive oil
• cauliflower roasted with salt, pepper, and olive oil
• rice pilaf with carrots, pecans, and craisins
• asparagus roasted with salt, pepper, and olive oil, with a shallot dressing poured on top of it
• bittersweet flourless chocolate cake
• vanilla panna cotta
• cannoli, which Papa Cat picked up from the South End of Hartford
• coffee
• and lots and lots of wine

The food was delicious, but the company was better! After we had sufficient time to digest, we all played Rockband for an hour. Even our parents. It was truly a site to see.

I got home an hour ago, and am baking a brown sugar pound cake for a brunch I'm going to tomorrow. I just checked it, and it looks as if it's about to flow over the pan. This could be a potential cooking disaster. Keep your fingers crossed!

Wow...three days of food over this Thanksgiving! Yikes! I'm doubling my workouts!

Thanksgiving 2008

Twas a good celebration chez mes parents. There were many traditions that we kept: the wine, the bloody Marys, the abundance of food, the fire pit, and football. However, there was one new tradition: the 30-somethings were falling asleep.

I include myself in that tally. Between my mother's appetizers and the two glasses of wine I consumed, I grabbed my mother's afghan, put up the recliner, and took a long nap. I don't know how long I slept, but I woke up around 4, right when the turkey came out of the oven.

We 30-somethings all went home around 9:15. Two of us have to work tomorrow. Fortunately, I don't! Yay!

Tomorrow, once I get my camera out of my purse, I'll write a post about another one of our family tradition's: my godmother's very scary cranberry mold. I tried some this year, for the very first time, and it wasn't too bad.

More about that tomorrow, though...I'm falling back into food coma!

Thanksgiving According to Bob Edwards

Ah, Bob Edwards, how I miss you so. Morning Edition from NPR News is just not the same without you. Yes, I know it's been several years since your unfortunate departure, but I miss listening to your soothing baritone during my morning drive.

I especially miss your Fantasy Thanksgiving segments each year. Do you still do these on your satellite radio show? I am not one of the fortunate ones to receive XM-Sirius or whatever it is called. I loved how you invited all of those wonderful chefs to your door: Paul Prudhomme and his turducken, Julia Child (rest her soul) and her mashed potatoes, Wolfgang Puck and his smoked salmon appetizers, among others.

And how I especially miss Susan Stamberg crashing the whole affair with some of her mother in law's cranberry relish. (The recipe of which you can find here).

I enjoy listening to Steve Inskeep and Renee Montaigne, but they don't have your cheeky humor, your snarkiness, your dulcet baritone announcing, "This is Morning Edition from NPR News."

NPR was a fool to fire you, Bob.

In the meantime, I shall comfort myself by listening to the Morning Edition archives. I just listened to your Fantasy Thanksgiving from 2001, and now will proceed to 2002.

Maybe this time I'll finally have the guts to try some of that cranberry relish.

Thanksgiving

This is going to be a great week.

First of all, I only have to work 2 1/2 days. Don't get me wrong, I love my job, but any break from work is always welcome! (That's why they call it work, Kittens!)

And this Thursday, I celebrate my all-time favorite holiday.

Thanksgiving.

I'm very grateful that I get to look forward to Thanksgiving. I'm aware that there are many people who look upon the celebration with dread. I have a few friends who absolutely dread Thanksgiving because they have to spend time with their families.

But I am different.

You see, I really like spending time with my family.

We celebrate Thanksgiving with my godparents and their kids, husbands, and significant others. There are usually 10-12 of us around the table any given year. We all get along fabulously, which makes the holiday that much more fun.

We start arriving at the family homestead (that is, my parents' house) around noon. Dad greets each of us with a bloody Mary. (I have mine sans vodka. I never liked vodka. Long story, will tell you about it another time). I'm usually the first to arrive, and the others start to trickle in as I'm gnawing on my celery stick.

Once everyone has arrived, bloody Marys consumed, Mama Cat starts with the appetizers, and Papa Cat cracks open the first bottle of wine. We drink beaucoup wine and eat beaucoup, too. Mama Cat makes pigs in a blanket, with a little Gulden's at the side for dipping, pizza rolls, with a little tomato sauce at the side for dipping, crab cakes, crudites, cheese and crackers, brie en croute, and giardinera. Mama Cat makes the crab cakes, the pizza rolls, and the pigs in a blanket. If she could make the rest by hand, she would.

Once we've gorged ourselves on appetizers, we kick back and watch TV. We watch anything that is on TV--football, the dog show on NBC, or our recent fave, the Food Network. More wine is consumed during this period as we catch up on the year.

(Now Kittens, I know what you're thinking, and I'm going to say this now: we do NOT get drunk on Thanksgiving day.)

While we sit in front of the boob tube, Mama Cat is in the kitchen, basting the turkey and making all of the side dishes. She absolutely lives for Thanksgiving, and loves to prepare everything from scratch. She refuses any outside help; she declines all offers to make side dishes, except for my friend's green bean casserole. This green bean casserole is made from scratch: organic green beans, fresh portabella mushroom slices, hand-chopped and fried onions, and fresh heavy cream. Mama Cat would banish us forever from the Thanksgiving table if we dared to bring anything that came out of a can or a box.

After several hours of laziness and wine drinking, we drag ourselves to the table. Papa Cat, by this time, has carved the turkey and has said grace. We load up with all of the trimmings: mashed potatoes, yams, green bean casserole, my godmother's very scary cranberry mold (long story about that one, too), salad, dinner rolls, and mixed veggies (the one item that comes out of a bag). Oh yeah, and we drink more wine here, too.

So then we finish the meal, and the children clear the table and wash the dishes. This is an annual Thanksgiving tradition. I usually wash; I hate drying dishes, but if I have to do it, I do. While the children wash, the mothers take out their knitting and compare their latest projects, while the fathers go down to the garage and smoke cigars.

Once we've digested the main meal, after about an hour or so, we return to the dining room for coffee and our choice of one of Mama Cat's two homemade pies: apple or pumpkin. Her apple pie is so popular that she now has to make two of them; she only makes one pumpkin. She sends each slice around the table with a dollop of Cool Whip (though I may have to change tradition this year: do you even know what's in Cool Whip?!!? I think I'll buy two cans of Reddi Whip, and that will be my contribution to dinner).

After the dessert dishes have been washed, we retire to Papa Cat's chiminea outside, where we build a huge fire. We sit around and hang out by the flames, keeping warm and talking some more. This may just be my favorite part of the day.

Before we all leave, Mama Cat sends each of the children home with a grocery bag full of leftovers, as well as two loaves of her world-famous, prize-winning pumpkin bread.

OK, the pumpkin bread is neither world-famous nor prize-winning, but it's still pretty damn tasty!

And then we all go home, but that's not the end of the proceedings...you see, Kittens, in my family, the day after Thanksgiving, we all go over to my godparents' daughter's house for Thanksgiving dinner, part deux. We don't have any leftovers, but we do have a completely different, yet totally wonderful, decadent menu. Last year we had flourless chocolate cake for dessert that day. Flourless chocolate cake!

Thanksgiving...the holiday that's so nice, I celebrate it twice!

Cooking With Kitten: Peanut Butter Cookies

Last night I made about five dozen peanut butter cookies for charity. Needless to say, I was happy to bake cookies and use my Kitchen Aid!

Here is the recipe I used, courtesy of Mama Cat's cookbook (thanks, Mom!)

PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

Cream together:
1 cup softened butter
1 cup smooth peanut butter

Cream the above ingredients till they are very well blended, then beat in:

1 cup white sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Once the sugars are well blended, stir in:

2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour

Arrange by teaspoonfuls on a cookie sheet. Press flat with a floured spoon or mark with a floured fork. I use the fork; I make a little criss-cross design with it. That's how my mama did it!

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes until firm. Cool on wire rack or wax paper.

Variation: add chocolate chips and do not flatten.

(You can add peanut butter chips if you want, too).

Cooking With Kitten: Chocolate Chip Cookies

As promised from a while ago, here's the recipe for my mother's chocolate chip cookies:

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:
2 sticks of softened butter
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 12 oz. bag chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

2. Cream butter and sugars together until light. Add eggs, vanilla, and blend.

3. Slowly add flour mixture, 1/3 at a time. Blend. Fold in chocolate chips by hand.

4. Drop by teaspoonful on ungreased cookie sheet.

5. Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes. Check after 15 minutes; if the edges are browning, cookies are done. Remove from oven, allow to cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute, remove to cooling rack or a sheet of wax paper.

NOTE: These cookies don't spread on the cookie sheet like other chocolate chip cookies do. They also aren't as brown as the others, because of the low brown sugar content. They're still tasty, though!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Time!

Why have I been so domestic this weekend? First I made the chicken soup, then I made some fish for dinner tonight. Tilapia with a honey mustard sauce. Yum!

Earlier today, I picked a whole bunch of apples to make applesauce.

I got home, and cleaned my living room like the dickens, and washed a whole bunch of dishes.

How do I reward myself for all the hard work?

I made a batch of my mom's chocolate chip cookies.

I whipped up the dough in my Kitchen Aid, but did NOT want to have to bake cookies all night. That, and a whole batch o' cookies would be toooo tempting, especially since I've lost a bit of weight recently. So I took an idea that I got from Ellie Krieger of the Food Network, and wrapped the extra dough in wax paper logs to freeze. I was tres proud of myself!

I baked only four cookies, but only ate two of them. Even better moment for me!

Recipe to come...I've got laundry to do!

I've Gots to Have My Honeycrisps!

It's a beautiful, beautiful autumn day here in Connecticut. A perfect day for picking apples and pumpkins. I got this great idea yesterday as I made chicken soup.

It turns out, everyone else in Connecticut had the same idea.

Lyman's was incredibly crowded today. So crowded they needed at least three or four cops to direct traffic around the Apple Barrel and the Corn Maze. (Photos coming soon of last week's trip to the Corn Maze, I promise!)

I knew that it was late in the season for apple picking, but I didn't count on many of the trees being picked clean. Well, there were plenty of apples near the tops of the trees, but I am only five feet tall, and that's not a good thing.

I managed to pick decent amounts of mitsu crispin and golden delicious apples for applesauce, but one particular variety eluded me, and I had to go to the Apple Barrel to purchase it.

The honeycrisp.

What is a honeycrisp apple, you ask? It's only the most delicious variety of apple ever created, EVER!!! According to the Lyman's website, honeycrisps are "honey-sweet and amazingly crisp! Developed in 1991." They are also "an excellent eating apple; good for sauce, baking, and pies. Excellent eating fresh out of hand; super-crisp."

Lyman's honeycrisp trees are still fairly new; in fact, they're still growing against stakes.

I knew that the pick your own honeycrisp wouldn't be available, but I saw a ten-pound bag when I was at the Apple Barrel last week, so I took my chances, weaved my way through the hundreds (yes, hundreds) of vehicles parked around the Apple Barrel, and went inside.

They were sold out of honeycrisps.

I wanted to cry.

One woman in line at the pick your own, however, said she saw honeycrisps at Stop and Shop for $2.49 a pound. Pricey, yes, but since honeycrisps are still a newish variety, there aren't that many trees in this part of the country just yet.

So once again, I took my chances and drove to Stop and Shop in Middletown to find this apple. I beelined towards the produce section. No honeycrisps in the totes! So I went to the bag your own area, and saw:

HONEY CRISP APPLES: $2.49/POUND

I dove right in and bought almost seven pounds. I didn't care how expensive it was!!! I was feeling like that little gremlin in the old commercials for Honey Comb cereal, only instead of saying, "I've gots to have my Honey Comb!" I was shrieking, "I've gots to have my honeycrisps!"

Words cannot describe the succulent, sweet, amazing flavor of a honeycrisp. It's very sweet, sugary, and the texture is ever so crisp and firm.

If you can find them in your area, get them before they're gone! They have a short growing season. You won't regret it!

Cooking with Kitten: Applesauce

Tomorrow I am bound and determined to make it over to Lyman Orchards to picks me some apples! And what do I do with such an abundant supply of apples, kittens? Why, I make applesauce!

Here's how I do it. The photos are from an earlier applesauce-making adventure this summer:

The first things you'll need, of course, are some apples. For my previous batch, I used ginger golds, which are pictured above.

Then you'll need this little tool:

I honestly don't know what the official name for this gadget is. I call it "the apple corer slicer thing." Here's how it works:

You place it over the center of the apple...

...and press down. You're left with the core standing straight up, and the slices spiraling around the side, kinda like the bloomin' onion appetizer you can get at some chain restaurants.

Put the core in your compost heap, if you've got one, or throw it away. Save the slices. Note that I didn't peel the apple first. It's not necessary in my version.

Now as you core your apples, put them in your largest pot. Once you've cored and sliced all of your apples, add water to the pot--but only enough to cover the bottom of the pot. You won't need much water, since the juices in the apples will provide you enough liquid during the cooking process.

Turn your stove to low. You want to cook your apples very slowly so they don't burn. You'll hear the water at the bottom of the pot bubble up soon enough.

Here's what the apples look like once they start to cook down:

The apples will start to look as if they're starting to sink. Note how the color of the skins is a lighter green.

Now while the apples are cooking, you're gonna need two other tools: a foley food mill, and the largest bowl you own. Set the two up like this:

I set mine up next to the stove, which makes it easier. That way you can spoon the apples directly from the pot and into your foley food mill.

Where can you find a foley food mill, you ask? My mother gave me mine for Christmas one year, and I have no idea where she found it. Here are some I just found on Amazon. You really don't need to spend a ton of money on this gadget; my mother paid next to nothing for hers and it's lasted over 35 years.

Meanwhile, check on your apples...

...when they get good and soft, but not soft enough that they collapse under the weight of a metal spoon, it's time to add your spices. I use cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and ground cloves in my applesauce. Be generous with the cinnamon, but use no more than a tablespoon or two each of the cloves and allspice. As for the nutmeg, make sure it's freshly grated. It just tastes better, and there's no better scent making applesauce than that of freshly grated nutmeg. Be generous with the nutmeg, too, but not as generous as the cinnamon, and a little more so than the cloves and allspice.

Now wait a few minutes after adding your spices, so the apples start to absorb them. Then give your pot the spoon test:

See how soft the apples are? See how the spoon just sank to the bottom? You're ready for the foley food mill now!

Here's what the apples look like right after you've spooned them directly from the pot and placed them in the foley food mill:

Now you're gonna need a lot of elbow grease! Start turning! The sauce will start to trickle down from the bottom of the food mill.

Here's what the apples look like in the middle of the process. Notice that there's a LOT of sauce in there! Once in a while, you're gonna need to clean the skins out from the bottom of the food mill to prevent clogging. Either throw them away, or use 'em in your compost heap.

And now, here's what the finished product looks like:

Homemade applesauce has been a tradition in my family since I was a kid. My mama passed on this tradition to me. I refused, as a kid, to eat commercial applesauce, 'cause it tasted yucky. I still refuse to eat commercial applesauce for that reason.

You can use your applesauce in many ways. It's wonderful, of course, while it's still warm, and it's especially good with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a bit of real whipped cream. (NEVER the artificial Cool Whip processed stuff! Yucky!)

It's excellent when you mix it with a little granola and yogurt to make a parfait. And it's especially good with breakfast! Mix it in with a bit of hot oatmeal. Or, here's my favorite breakfast: Heat up a bowl of Grape Nuts with a little vanilla soymilk. When you take it out of the microwave, stir in some applesauce. It is TO DIE FOR!

Finally, if your four-legged housemates don't like applesauce, know that you can freeze this. It freezes beautifully.

Now tell me, is there any other way to spend a spectacular fall day than to celebrate the bounty of its harvest?

The Quest for Chicken

And not just any chicken, might I add. I'm looking to buy an organic whole chicken. Or, as Jane Redmont just wrote in a recent post, "chicken with whole, sustainably raised, died-while-listening-to-Mozart-and-watching-PBS, in the prime of life, happy, hormone-free, fed with healthy stuff, chickens."

You see, Jane just posted what sounds like a wonderful recipe for chicken soup and stock. I have never made homemade chicken soup before, and since I have Columbus Day off, I figure that the weekend will give me the perfect opportunity to make some wonderful soup.

So yesterday I started calling around to find out where I could buy such a special chicken as the one that Auntie Jane described. I called two local health food stores; they carried "sustainably raised, died-while-listening-to-Mozart-and-watching-PBS, in the prime of life, happy, hormone-free, fed with healthy stuff" chicken breasts. No, no, I explained, I want the whole chicken.

So today I asked a colleague who is also a serious foodie. I told her I really didn't want to drive the half hour to Whole Foods for "sustainably raised, died-while-listening-to-Mozart-and-watching-PBS" chicken. I wanted the whole damn chicken! She suggested I try the Nature's Promise line at Stop and Shop.

So that will be my next stop, although I really would prefer a smaller, local store. That way I can really trust the quality of my goods. Keep your fingers crossed!

The Pumpkin Pie Looks Awesome!

I know I said I'd post the recipe tonight, but I'm postponing it for tomorrow because I have some great pics to show you of the first pie I ever made!

Here's the crust right after I rolled it and pressed it into the pan. I am so damn proud of this crust! This was the part of making the pie that made me the most nervous.

Here's the pie right after I poured the filling into the crust.

Here's the pie immediately after the oven timer went off and I pulled out the rack...

...and here's the finished product, all cooled off, ready to be wrapped and refrigerated.

My friend will receive this gift with a nice can of Reddi Whip.

Hmmm...this looks good enough to make me want pumpkin pie for breakfast...

The Pumpkin Pie Is In The Oven...

...and I must say, it looked pretty damn good.

The crust was a lot easier to make than I had anticipated. The key was to leave the dough just a little sticky before you rolled it. That way, when you roll it, it's not too difficult to do. The dough will also pick up the flour you sprinkle on the surface, which will make it easier to roll (it loses its stickiness), and then press into the pie pan.

One of the perks about being the only cook in my house is that I get to lick the bowl when I'm done. The filling's quite tasty. The Moosewood Cookbook recipe calls for ground ginger, and I think that's what made the difference.

I took pictures of both the crust and the pie before it went into the oven, and I'll take pictures of it when it comes out in about an hour.

I won't completely know, however, if it's a success until my friend tries it. I won't find that out till tomorrow!