lemon curd

First of all whoever thought of the name lemon curd, wasn't thinking, because lemon curd doesn't sound appealing at all. But apparently it was worse back in the day (late 19th century) because according to Wiki lemon curd was first called lemon cheese. Oh those wacky Brits with their strange alternative names for things.

I have an alternative story for lemon curd in my little Bizarro world.

-wavy flashback time traveling lines-
-wavy flashback time traveling lines-



Here is Evil Chef Mom and all the little sous chef's in late 19th century Britain. It's dirty, cold, and the kids are begging on the streets.

Some rich fellow drops a few lemons in Katie's hands and tells her, "My wife and I cannot eat these, they are too bitter."

Another gentlemen passes by and says, "My kids are spoiled and have eaten so much sugar that their teeth are rotting. Here have this." and hands Drew some sugar.

"My wife and I are too fat, we are going try this new fangled thing they call exercise. Take this butter from me." and Will snatches the butter from the fat wattling man before he can change his mind.

Suddenly in the middle London, a chicken comes clucking by and lays 6 eggs right in front of Nancy! Nancy quickly picks them up, careful not to smash them and places the eggs in her bonnet and the sous chefs go running back to their little soot stained shack.

"Mummy, look at all the goodies we brought back today. Katie has lemons. Drew got some sugar. Some man gave Will butter and would you believe a chicken laid eggs right in front of Nancy?"

"What a strange assortment of ingredients. What do you suggest I make?"

"Can you make that lemon cheese everyone is talking about? It sounds tasty."

"Sure my lovely little moppets. We are hungry and it's cold. I could think of nothing better to eat than lemon cheese, the newest fad to sweep late 19th century Britain."



-wavy flashback time traveling lines-
-wavy flashback time traveling lines-

Do you see how this doesn't work? Lemon cheese, lemon curd. Even lemon spread doesn't do this wonderfully lemony, sweet, tart concoction any favors. All I know is that it's way overpriced in stores and so easy to make. It's almost like you are a sucker if you buy it in a grocery store.



lemon curd:
makes one quart, enough for four 8- ounce mason jars

4-6 lemons
6 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

Grate the zest from two of the lemons and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer, about 2 min. Slowly add the eggs and yolks. Beat for 1 min. Mix in the lemon juice. The mixture will look curdled, but it will smooth out as it cooks.

In a medium, heavy-based saucepan, cook the mixture over low heat until it looks smooth. Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 15 min. It should look like Moses parted a path on the back of a spoon and will read 170°F on a thermometer. Don't let the mixture boil.

Remove the curd from the heat; stir in the lemon zest. Divide the curd evenly between the mason jars or a plastic container. Lay plastic wrap directly on top of the curd's surface and cover with a lid.

Refrigerate for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

If you are feeling up to it use the lemon curd for filling in this cake by Mayberry Magpie's daughter Kate.



Tasting Notes: This recipe is a little different than most curd recipes because you emulsify the ingredients together before cooking. Most of the time you just dump the ingredients into a pot or double broiler and cook away but that sometimes leaves little bits of cooked egg white and lumps. Sorry, but with the name lemon cheese or curd it doesn't need anymore problems like lumps. Emulsifying the ingredients before hand will give the curd a nice smooth texture like pudding.

buttermilk beignets

{In the US, beignets are associated with the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Thank you, Wiki.}

I'm going to come clean about something. It's shocking and some of you might tsk-tsk me but I'm really shameless and not all "foodie"-like some might assume... ready for it?

I didn't hear of beignets until 2004. I didn't try one until 2005. And the first beignet I had was, wait for it... so you can really be appalled... was in DISNEYLAND! Disneyland, as in Aneheim, California, Disneyland.

Oh yes, folks... read it and weep. My first beignet was in Disneyland at the Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen Express. As far away from New Orleans as one could possibly get inside of the continental United States. Sad, probably a little pathetic I'm sure, but the beignets were fresh, hot, and covered in powdered sugar and I was hungry. That's all that really matters. Also you need to know you don't want to mess with me when I am hungry, you will lose a finger.

After having my Disneyland beignets I was a goner. Fried dough covered in powdered sugar served to you in your own little paper bag. I AM SO THERE.



Beignets (pronounced BEN-yayz) are now a Christmas morning tradition in our house. There would be a rebellion and I would be kicked out onto the streets if I announced we were having something else other than beignets and hot chocolate for Christmas breakfast.

buttermilk beignets:dam good sweet by david guas & raquel pelzel

makes about 4 dozen

3/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
4 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 cups bread flour, plus extra for work surface
1/2 baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
peanut oil for frying, i have used vegetable oil and i haven't noticed the difference.
confectioners sugar... A LOT of confectioners sugar... A LOT

Heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium high heat until small bubbles form at the surface. Remove from the heat, add buttermilk and then pour into a stand mixer bowl. Whisk in yeast and sugar. Set aside for 5 minutes. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix on low speed, using a dough hook, until the dry ingredients are moistened, 3 to 4 minutes. Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue mixing until the dough forms a loose ball and is still wet and tacky, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set dough aside in a draft free area for 1 hour.

Pour enough peanut oil into a large pot to fill to a depth of 3 inches and slowly bring to a temperature of 375 degrees over medium heat (this takes about 20 minutes). Line a cookie sheet with paper towels and set aside.

Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough out on it. Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour, gently press to flatten, fold the dough in half, and gently tuck the ends under to create a rough shaped round. Dust again with flour and roll the dough out into a 1/2 inch to 1/3 inch circle. Let the dough rest for a minute before using a knife to cut the dough into 1 1/2 inch squares.

Gently stretch a beignet lengthwise and carefully drop into the oil. Add a few beignets (don't overcrowd them then they will become a beignyuck) and fry until puffed and golden brown, turning them often with a slotted spoon, for about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet to drain while you cook the rest. Serve while still warm, buried under a mound of confectioner's sugar.

>You can make the dough the night before. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray it with nonstick cooking spray. After cutting the dough, place beignets on the parchment paper and place another greased piece of parchment paper, spray side down, on top. Wrap the entire baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Beignets can be fried straight from the refrigerator.



Tasting Notes: Actually I really didn't want to talk about the beignets tasted. I wanted to talk to you about the Dam Good Sweet cookbook. It's a little treasure box of goodies. [172 pages including introduction, recipes, sources, and index] I don't normally recommend cookbooks but I have every recipe marked to bake or cook in the future. Sooooo, if you are looking to spend some of that Christmas money or if the gift cards you might of received yesterday morning are burning a whole in your pocket, you might, just might want to take a look at this book.



lots of confectioners sugar!!! i mean lots... don't skimp.

creamy cheddar grits

Rich and I had a Christmas - hey, thanks for helping us move! - come take a look at our new house - let's get together and drink copious amounts of alcohol - get together at our house.

It was a long time coming.

About once a year, Rich and I throw a party and they have become so well known at his work that people are always asking when we are having another. Rookies or people who have just transferred to his team, hear about these parties and then they ask Rich if we will be having another party soon.

So we have a reputation to uphold. I mean oodles, gobs, an abundance of drinking is done, with some dancing, cards, dominoes... and lots of funny work stories are told which I can not repeat here are also thrown into the mix.

A good time is had by all. I'm not sure how much fun they have the next morning but I know I'm good because I have something to absorb all the alcohol. It's my secret weapon.

Grits. Cheesy Grits.



creamy cheddar grits*: barefoot contessa back to basics cookbook

2 teaspoons salt
1 cup quick-cooking grits
1 1/4 cups half-and-half
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
4 stalks green onions, chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
grated cheddar and chopped green onions

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the salt, then slowly add the grits in a thin steady stream. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until grits thicken, 5-7 minutes.

Add the half and half and butter to the grits and stir. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and cook, stirring occasionally for 45 minutes, until very smooth and creamy. Off the heat, stir in the cheddar cheese, green onions, and pepper. Season to taste and serve hot.

*put grits in a ramekin and put a handful of cheddar cheese on top of the grits. place the ramekin under a hot broiler until the cheddar cheese is bubbly. then top with more green onions.

snapshots of san francisco 12.19.09

...



went here to get cha siu baau (steamed pork buns) $1 per bun and so good. it's the oldest chinese bakery in the united states.


...



2nd floor view from this store. no, i didn't get a christmas present from here. but i wouldn't mind this... or this... i mean i did lose my wedding ring, i think that eventually it needs to replaced. right?

rich, are you reading this?

(he is and he's laughing because i only own a watch, i wouldn't know what to do with fancy jewelery. i'm scared of jewelery like how other people are scared of spiders)



sorry i have been silent for awhile. life has been a little hectic lately... in a pleasant way. christmas shopping, baking, getting ready for a house warming/open house christmas party. i know there are other bloggers that seem to find a happy balance and can blog and manage their daily life all with a smile, proper grammar, and correct spelling. i also imagine some of these women doing it all in heels... i, for the life of me, can not fathom how they do it. after tomorrow life should settle down for awhile (fingers crossed) and regular posting should resume.

hope you a nice weekend.

homemade vanilla extract

Did you get the memo?

The one that says it's December? It mentions something about the holidays... but I can't recall exactly what it said but I do remember reading something about it. I mean it's kind of hard to miss with everyone putting up lights and the stores decked out in their holiday finest.

BUT



My tree in the front yard hasn't gotten the memo. Here it is in all it's shiny flaming red glory. There is even green leaves still on it. I can imagine all the other naked trees on the block whispering behind it's back...

Showoff.
What is she thinking?
Doesn't she know, no leaves after Thanksgiving?

Me: I wish that damn tree would drop her leaves already. I'm sick of raking!



So now that we've all gotten the memo, it's the holidays... yada, yada, yada.

Let's bake!

Before we bake we need vanilla extract and lots of it. And vanilla extract, if you haven't noticed can be a little pricey. Well, a lot pricey depending on where and who you buy it from. I'm here to fix that and if you have foodie friends you can make this as a gift. It really is the gift that keeps on giving.

What you will need:

vanilla beans, about 4 per bottle
vanilla extract, I know...I know but it's going to be the base.
alcohol: rum, bourbon, or vodka... just make sure it's not flavored.
a bottle with a cap, cork, or seal or if you are making this for yourself a half full bottle of alcohol will do.



Split the beans in half leaving about an inch on the end connected.

{Above is just a picture. I was making something else using vanilla. Don't look at the vanilla behind the curtain.}



Stick the vanilla pods in the bottle.



Then add some vanilla extract to the bottle, about four ounces. A little more a little less, it's okay. Matter of fact you don't even need to add extract if you don't want too. I just do it to help it along.



[give it a few days and the extract will darken considerably]

Then add your alcohol of choice to top off the bottle.

Let it sit for a good month or two and there you go, homemade vanilla extract. Add more beans and alcohol periodically to top off the vanilla. The longer this sits the better. Give it a good shake once and awhile.

(When I say add more beans, I mean use spent pods that you have use for other vanilla recipes... like ice cream or vanilla sugar. Just rinse before placing in the bottle.)

Seriously how hard was that? That's right, it wasn't. A tiny bit of effort and money and you have a gift or your own extract, either way it's cheaper than always going to the store and buying it.



Wrapped up in a tea towel and a piece of pretty ribbon. Don't tell me you wouldn't want this as a gift.

chocolate peanut butter thumbprint cookies

if i could rule the world not much would change.



think of me as sort of like the english monarchy. really kind of useless but there as a figurehead/standard/upholding of our morals & greatness of our country type of deal. i also have a bridge in brooklyn i want to sell you...

i would be kind and benevolent. but i would issue some sort of decrees...

1. if you drive slow stick to the right lanes! the left lanes are for the fast cars. stay out of the way.

2. don't spit or hock loogies. it's nasty.

3. if you are famous please hire a NO person. a person who is on your payroll to tell you no.

for example:

no tiger, bad kitty.
no! you can not wear that to the oscars.
no! you can not go on another coke binge.
no! you can not drink and drive.

4. if you are famous and particularly if you are an athlete. in your off season please take some public speaking courses. ummm, uhhh, and you know what i'm sayin' are not answers to questions that reporters ask you. there is nothing wrong with sounding semi-intelligent.

5. there should be freshly baked cookies in the kitchen at all times.

the world would be a happier place.



chocolate peanut butter thumbprint cookies: sunset magazine dec. 2009

10 ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup peanut butter ***nutella would be great instead of peanut butter***

Put chocolates and butter in a medium metal bowl and set bowl over a pan filled with 1 in. of simmering water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until melted, then remove from heat and let cool slightly. Whisk in eggs and sugar, mixing until combined. Then whisk in flour, baking powder, and salt. Chill dough, covered, until firm, about 2 hours.

Let dough sit at room temperature 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350° and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop 1 tbsp. portions of dough, rolling each into a ball, and put onto sheets 1 in. apart. Press your thumb into center of each cookie ball, making a small well. Fill a resealable plastic bag with about 1/2 cup peanut butter.

With scissors, snip off 1 corner of bag; squeeze about 1/2 tsp. peanut butter from bag into each well. Bake as directed. Makes 40.

Bake cookies until they no longer look wet on top, about 8 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets.



so... if you ruled the world, what would you decree?

triple ginger cookies

This morning it snowed.

It doesn't really mean much to you but around here, it's a huge deal. It doesn't stick but you can see these big fat snow flakes lazily drift down until they hit the ground and quickly disappear.

You have to trust your eyes.



The house smells of ginger. Smells of butter, sugar, and warmth. Christmas. It's the elusive smell that even the best candles cannot capture.

It's a lovely smell.

When you read this recipe it is going to seem like a lot of ginger. An overwhelming amount, even. Trust me. These cookies are soft, spicy, sweet.

Perfect.



triple ginger cookies: adapted from bon appetit dec. 2009

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup minced crystallized ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg, room temperature
1/4 cup light mild flavored molasses
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated fresh peeled ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, crystallized ginger, baking soda, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until creamy and light, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in brown sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg, molasses, fresh ginger, ground ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat to blend. Add flour mixture in 2 additions, beating on low speed just to blend between additions. Chill for 30 minutes.

Place 1/3 cup sugar in small bowl. Measure 1 tablespoon dough. Roll into ball between palms of hands, then roll in sugar in bowl to coat; place on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining cookie dough, spacing cookies 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart.

Bake cookies until surfaces crack and cookies are firm around edges but still slightly soft in center, *about 15 minutes. Cool completely on sheets on rack.

*it took my cookies 7 minutes to bake. so i would advise keeping an eye on them while baking. also, these cookies spread an awful lot. so make sure to space appropriately if you decide to make them a little larger.

about this month's header.