Veggie Tart

When my CSA first started the ground had barely defrosted and the pickings were slim but I was ok with that. I live alone. How many veggies does one girl need? Well summer is fading fast and I've been inundated with zucchini, tomatoes, and interestingly enough, potatoes! Last night I racked my brains on how to use them up or at least preserve them. Generally preserving food to me means cooking them up somehow and freezing them in tiny portions for the future. I sliced up some potatoes and made a low fat gratin by basically layering them with onion and spices then pouring a can of evaporated skim milk over it all before baking. Chopped up zukes went into a dutch oven with tomatoes and some indian spices to be cooked down into a kind of all purpose sauce which works great over pasta, meats, fish, etc. All this was great but I felt it was a pity not to show case the produce themselves somehow. Flipping though various possible recipes I came up with the idea of a veggie tart with a potato crust. It helped use up my surplus and was so simple as to allow the veggies themselves to shine. And while it tastes great, next time I would hide the basil layer as they turned a rather unattractive brown post cooking.

Veggie Tart

(Please note these amounts are approximate as a lot depends on the size of your veggies. Just keep slicing until you have enough to cover. A mandoline or food processor greatly helps with all the slicing here.)

5 small potatoes sliced paper thin
1 onion thinly sliced
4 zucchini sliced into 1/4 inch rounds (my zukes are ~6 inches long each)
4 tomatoes sliced 1/4 inch thick and gently squeezed to get rid of some seeds/liquid
1/2 cup basil chiffonade
1 cup shredded cheese of your choice (make sure its one that melts well)

Set oven to 400F. Spray a half sheet pan with canola oil. Cover the pan in a double layer of potato slices overlapping slightly so they form a giant crust. Salt lightly between layers. Bake for 20 minutes. Spray top of crust with more canola oil. Bake for another 20 minutes until golden. Lower temp to 375F. Layer as follows: cheese, onion, basil, zucchini, tomato. Salt and pepper top generously. Bake for 40 minutes or until you see the tomato starting to shrink/dry a bit. Remove and let cool 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Healthy treats?

Quite frankly if there's anything that's going to kill me in this life time it will be sugar. I can easily give up fats, salts, etc but my carbs/sugars are my friends. I'm fairly sure it accounts for the entire donut currently around my middle so when I make myself treats these days, I try to go for an at least slightly healthy spin. This loaf certainly covers all the bases. Its chock full of veggies. I've replaced most of the fats in the original recipe with apple sauce. I've also subbed out almond flour for some of the regular. Not only does this make for a lighter airier loaf but a healthier one as well. Best of all, its still extremely delicious and my parents accused me of making such a rich loaf when my dad has heart disease! They were a little suspicious of lies when I informed them of how nutritious it really is.

Zucchini Carrot Cake

3 eggs (I used cholesterol free egg replacer)
1 cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 tblsp oil
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup shredded carrot
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups AP flour
1 cup almond flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder

Nuke zucchini 3 minutes on high. Place into clean towel use towel to squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Set aside to cool. Beat eggs and sugar into pale and creamy. Add  apple sauce, oil, zucchini, carrot, and vanilla. Mix well. In another bowl mix flours, salt, spices, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to wet mixture and mix well. Pour into to prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350F for 45-60 minutes.

Breakfast Decadence

I'm generally not much of one for breakfast or even brunch. A giant cup of coffee will do me most mornings with maybe a cup of yogurt and fruit on the exceptionally hungry mornings. On the weekends, staying in and indulging would generally mean a smoothie but today I was recovering from my jet lag. For me, jet lag rarely means tiredness. There's a bit of that but mostly I lose my bearings. Can't tell when to eat or when to sleep. I like having the chance to slowly ease back into my regular schedule by allowing my body a day or two to do as it likes which can involve 4AM bedtimes and noon breakfasts. There was a lobster sale so I bought a few and set aside the meat for a nosh when hungry. I've also been dying to make something with my new little mini Staub cocottes. I decided on a baked eggs and it was amazing. Decadent, filling, and just what I needed. You can easily multiply the recipe as needed. What I have below makes one generous serving (I was hungry).

Please excuse my picture as it was taken with my crummy camera phone. My regular camera has been "borrowed" by family members.

Lobster Eggs en Cocotte

1 stalk of scallion (green part only) finely minced
1/4 cup lobster rough diced
2 eggs
2 tblsp cream
1 tblsp garlic butter (I make mine by mixing equal amount of mashed roasted garlic and butter)

Butter the cocotte with the garlic butter. Add in the lobster and scallion. Toss the two together. Top with the 2 eggs then the cream. Bake at 350F for 10 - 13 minutes until eggs are just set. EAT!

No Knead Foccacia and Garlic "Butter"

Foccacia is one of my favorite breads. You top it with all sorts of flavorful things and its soft open crumb is perfect for soaking up sauces, spreads, and oils. This is my first attempt as making it and it turned out a lot thinner than I'd like. I suspect my half sheet pan size jelly roll pan is much bigger than the one the recipe was meant to be used it. Commonly the bread is a good inch or two tall. However, the crust was wonderfully thin and crisp while what middle there was, was soft and wonderful. As a bonus I thought I'd offer my tips on easy peasy garlic "butter." There's no real butter. Its just garlic roasted so soft it mashes easily into the oil its roasted in. Makes for an addictive topping and dragon breath if you're a true garlic lover like me.

No Knead Foccacia (recipe from Bread Wise)

2 1/2 cups cool water
3 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
3 tablespoons olive oil + enough for pan
spices (use what you like)

Stir together the flour, yeast, sugar, and table salt. Add the water and stir together. The dough will be very gooey. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 2 hours. Spritz jelly roll pan with oil. Scrape/pour dough into pan. Spread out as evenly as possible over the bottom of the pan. For me, there was barely enough for a super paper thin layer but no worries, it will rise! Drizzle olive oil on top of dough. Sprinkle top with your choice of spices. I used some parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and rosemary. Cover and let rise for another hour. 30 minutes before its done, preheat over to 400F. Bake for 30-45 minutes until golden on top. Let cool 10 minutes, cut into squares and top with garlic butter (recipe found below).

Garlic "Butter"

whole heads of garlic
olive oil
salt

Measure out a piece of aluminum foil 2.5 times as large as the bottom of your crock pot. Cut the tops off the heads of garlic so that the cloves are exposed. Place on foil and drizzle with enough oil so that it pools slightly at the bottom. Salt generously. Fold up foil into a sealed packet. Place in crock pot on low for 4-6 hours until the cloves are super soft. They mush up at the slightest poke. Let cool. pour off oil into a container. Squeeze cloves out into the same container. Using a fork mush it into the oil into its all incorporated into a smooth spread. Enjoy!

Seared Scallops

One of my favorite things to eat is scallop. Good ones cooked just right have a darkly seared crust and barely done center. They are sweet, tender, and not at all fishy. This isn't so much a recipe as a head up. You ever wonder why you try and try with all the proper pans and heating but your scallops never sear up as beautifully as the restaurant? I'm here to let you in on the big secret. Many ingredients of course benefit from getting the best of the best than us normal peons will never find at the local supermarket unless you're willing to pay through the nose at a fancy one like Whole Foods but with proper technique and spices you can create a fair approximation with something a bit more affordable and commonly found. Scallops are the exception. You need to buy DRY scallops. The average store sells scallops soaked in water to make them look more plump and beautiful. It also adds weight so while you think you're paying less you're actually just paying for water. Every bring home those giant scallops only to find that they shrink down considerably in a little pool of liquid when attempting to cook? That's the wet ones and the liquid they release is what they were soaked in. Its also what prevents a good sear regardless of your skill. Dry scallops, on the other hand, have never been soaked so they tend to cost twice as much but what you see is what you get. They will stay as giant as when you originally bought them and will not release any liquid when cooking. This makes for a great sear.

Seared Scallops with Tobiko

6 dry scallops
1 bag baby spinach
2 clove garlic minced
1/2 cup vegetable stock
tobiko
Kewpie mayo

Briefly rinse scallops clean and dry with a paper towel. Salt and pepper to taste. Heat a heavy 10 inch skillet over medium heat until screaming hot. Add in a bit of grapeseed oil and butter (about half/half of each) so that the bottom of the pan is coated. Gently place in the scallops so they are evenly spaced apart. Do not over crowd the pan. If you can't fit in all the scallops without them touching do it in two batches. Wait 2-3 free minutes then jiggle the first scallop you placed in with a pair of tongs. Once its seared properly it should release easily from the pan. If its still sticking, you're going to need another minute. Flip and repeat. Remove scallops into a plate. Pour in the veggie stock and garlic. Let it come to a boil, scraping up the fond as you do so. Add spinach. Cook until spinach has wilted but is still a bright green. Remove spinach onto serving platter. Place scallops on top. Continue cooking stock until you've got only about 1/8 cup left. Pour over the scallops. Top each scallop with a little dab of mayo then a little pile of tobiko.

Joining the Cake Pop Craze

So my dear buddy T got me a cake pop pan from Nordic Ware. I've made brownie pops before but have refrained from the cake pops because in general the recipes call from crushing up a regular pan of cake and mixing it with enough frosting to hold all the crumbs together and shape. This has never appealed to me because I've never really been a fan of frosting. Eating a giant ball of it really made me balk even though I have long admired the many adorable cake pops being created and shown off around the web. This is my first try to make little cutie ones so please be kind to me. This recipe does require the special cake pop pan:

Cake pop bouquet anybody?

Adorable little face?

Cake Pop

Cake (recipe from the pan wrapper with minor modifications):
3/4 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cups butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp cocoa
2 eggs
3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt

Pop:
12 lollipop sticks
12 oz colored candy coating
assorted sprinkles
candied rose petals
food safe pens

Dump chocolate chips and butter into mixing bowl (mine is plastic but if yours is metals you might want to do this in a separate bowl first) and melt in 30 second bursts in the microwave stirring between each burst until smooth. Once melted, add sugar and cocoa. Mix until blended. Add eggs one at a time mixing between each. Add flour and salt and stir until smoothly blended.

Heat over to 325F. Spray pan with oil. Powder lightly with flour or cocoa powder. Spoon in batter until you get a slightly rounded top over the edge of each well. You will end up with some extra batter. I just baked this along side in a little pan as my personal treat :) Place top of pan on and secure with keys. Bake for 15-18 minutes until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Cool for 10 minutes in pan. Take top off pan and poke lollipop stick into the middle of each round so it goes about 3/4 of the way to the bottom but not all the way through. Stick the whole pan into the freezer. While its chilling melt the candy coating in 30 second bursts in the microwave and stir between each burst until its nice and smooth. Take pan out of freezer. Gently release each pop from the pan and dip into coating so it goes up the stick beyond the cake ball about half inch, shake excess off gently, and place on silpat or parchment paper to cool. By the time you get to the end, the first one should be set. Decorate as you like with petals and sprinkles using the melted candy coating to adhere as needed. A toothpick is your best applicator tool. Re-melt coating as needed. Use pens to draw on faces.

Chocolate Turtle Bread!

That's right. I've finally gathered enough confidence with bread to create my first character based bread. Not only that, in one fell swoop I think I've finally perfected a chocolate bread I love. Its got a deep cocoa flavor, the perfect balance of sweetness with savory so its not dessert you're eating but real bread, a fluffy interior, and a decently crisp thick crust without too heavy. If you haven't already guessed by now, my bread is a turtle shape! It seemed well within my limited artistic abilities while still being a shape near and dear to my heart as the proud owner of two (no you can NOT eat them!) turtles.

Turtle Face

Turtle Butt

Chocolate Turtle Bread

2 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (you can use all bread flour but I try to be a wee bit healthy here)
4 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp instant yeast
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk + a little extra for wash
120 g tangzhong
3 tsp softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (bit more if you want it sweeter but not over 3/4 cup)

Whisk together the flours, sugar, salt, yeast, and cocoa powder. Make a little well in the middle. Add the egg, milk, and tangzhong into the middle of the well. Mix on low speed with dough hook for about 15 minutes to get a well incorporated dough. Add butter. Mix on medium speed with hook for another 20 minutes. You should now have a tacky ball of dough. Shape into a round and put into a lightly oiled bowl. Allow to rise for 60-90 minutes.

Spread a parchment paper onto a half sheet pan. You will build the turtle on this paper.

Set aside one 2 inch ball of dough, four 1 inch balls, and one 3/4 inch ball. Take the remaining dough and roll it out as thinly as possible. Spread the chocolate chips out on the dough and press quickly and lightly on top of them to adhere into the dough. Fold top of the dough down to about the middle, fold up the bottom of the dough to meet that middle, fold in the left and right sides to meet in the middle too so you should have a roughly rectangular packet now. Flip the packet over so the seams are down and roll it out into a long rectangular strip. Roll the strip back up into a big fat roll. Pull and tucks the sides of the roll under until you get a nice dome-y ball. Put this ball on your pan. Roll the 2 inch ball of dough into a smooth ball and tuck under the front end of the dome. This is the turtle head. Shape the 3/4 inch ball into a thick triangle and tuck under the opposite end of the dome so the point stick out. This is your tail. Roll the other 4 pieces of dough into fat tubby sausages and tuck 2 on each side under the dome for legs. Get a nice sharp knife make two little cuts into the end of each sausage to form 3 toes per foot. Press but do not cut through the tail dough to form a little X on it. Slice a smile into the head. Slice a round circle then cross hatch the middle of the circle into the dome to form the shell. Cover and let rise for another hour.

Press two mini chocolate chips into the head into they are deeply sunken in for the eyes. Apply milk over the top of the dough with a pastry brush as the wash. Bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes. Let cool completely before biting a foot off.