Carrot Cake

If ever there were a cake that could be considered healthy, it‘s carrot cake.  The more jam packed full of carrots it is, the better for you. The addition of pineapple makes this cake tasty and moist, coconut adds even more texture and raisins are a sweet compliment to the flavor and a nice alternative to nuts. And of course, what’s carrot cake without cream cheese icing! 

As promised, I am posting a recipe, so if you would like to try the carrot cake, you can find the recipe at: http://mandyborelli.wordpress.com/

Back on the blogging wagon...

April has all but come and gone, and I have been off the map, but returning to find a few new followers is just the motivation that I needed to get going again… so a big thanks to all of you who follow.

I am toying with the idea of sharing some recipes, maybe one a week, because I would really like to share more than just food and pictures with you – I want us to share this food experience. Stay tuned for this…I am still cooking it up.

Banana bread

When overripe bananas overflow the fruit bowl, it’s time to make banana bread.

While the texture and taste of fresh overripe bananas are preferable for banana bread, it’s perfectly fine to freeze bananas and thaw them for baking at a later time.

It’s possible to make any recipe healthier by maximizing the use of more nutritious ingredients and holding back those that are less beneficial, and this recipe holds true to that philosophy: It’s heavy on the mashed banana, and a little lighter on the butter.

I also use a few ‘secret’ ingredients, simple things that give this banana bread a unique taste:

1. A good strong dose of black coffee

2. Ground cloves

3. Callebaut semi-sweet chocolate.

The cloves add a spicy contrast that wake up the taste buds; it reminds me of the chili & chocolate combination. And frankly, everything’s better with coffee or Calllebaut chocolate. 

Muffin of the day

For years, I’ve been working at mastering “the muffin”, and until recently, it’s been a fruitless endeavor. Instead of light, airy, well-rounded muffins with heaping tops, time after time, I pulled dense, flat "pucks" out of the oven.

Finally, this week, there is cause for celebration in my kitchen; I have baked muffin worth writing home about.  And even better, the recipe is versatile: using the same ingredients to make the base, it can be adapted in more ways than I would dare to imagine. Yesterday’s creation was a fig-ginger-pumpkin variety, and today I used the leftover pumpkin combined with zucchini. I was so impressed with the crystallized ginger that tomorrow I am going to try it with carrots and apple.

I have had to adjust the amount of baking powder, and I now use pastry flour exclusively instead of all-purpose. And lastly, the most important thing I have learned is that unsalted butter trumps oil in muffin recipes.

Tasting my way to the perfect cookie

I’ve tasted a lot of cookies and I’ve got to say, most of them have been pretty mediocre. I have great expectations of a cookie; I admit it, and so I have taken matters into my own hands in the pursuit of the perfect cookie. So far, the best of my repertoire are the double chocolate, peanut butter chocolate chunk, and most recently, white chocolate macadamia nut.

The perfect cookie, in my opinion, is a bit crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Attaining this is truly a science, and requires the right combination of ingredients, especially sugars, butter & flour. Needless to say, practice makes perfect and there have been many not-so-perfect cookies baked in my kitchen along the way. Fortunately, I am tireless when it comes to taste testing, and I also have good help.

Roasted vegetable lasagna

This is one of my favorites. This is a vegetarian dish is a crowd pleaser among non-vegetarians as well.


The main ingredient is roasted vegetables. I roast things like eggplant, peppers and zucchini and garlic. Wondering what the green stuff is? I didn’t want to lose the spinach for its taste and nutrients, but I don’t care for the texture of the stringy, wet leaves in lasagna. So here’s a little secret: I puree the spinach with cottage cheese. Not only does this effectively disguise the texture of the spinach, it gives the cottage cheese a much nicer, smoother texture, similar to that of a ricotta cheese. I use Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, as well. The Mozzarella is a good melting cheese and the Parmesan provides a strong, sharp flavor.

Lasagna takes some work, but it goes a long way: It’s a great way to feed a group, and it’s a meal that can be prepared before guests arrive, so that you are free to socialize instead of sweating over the stove while your company waits. It also freezes well: It can be frozen prior to baking, then baked at a later date; alternatively, it can be baked, frozen, then reheated.

Rustic Baguettes

 

This is sort of an aside. Baguettes are not going to appear in the cookbook. But there's something special about baking bread, and this was the first time that I've made baguettes in my kitchen. I finally got myself a nice perforated pan that bakes five loaves...
I was seduced by a good deal on a pan on the internet: I measured my oven and knew I was cutting it close in size. Sure enough, when the pan arrived, I discovered it was about a half inch too wide to fit in my oven.  In spite it obviously being too big, I made several desperate attempts to jam my new pan into the oven. When that didn't work, I slid it in on an angle. The situation was looking pretty grim. Luckily, my hubby came to my rescue and had the pan chopped, welded and alas, shortened! And it worked like a hot-damn, too.
I like the rustic look added by dusting with flour before baking, but I wish my cuts were nicer. Scoring with the lame is something that takes practice, I have learned. I took the baguettes out of the oven after the required baking time, and forgot to let them sit in the oven with the door open; they could've been crispier... next time they will be!