If I knew you were coming, I'd have baked a cake

From the Recipe Box

In an attempt to blog more regularly (even when there's not a whole lot going on), I'm going to try to post a recipe every week. If you'd like to share a recipe that you like making this time of year, leave it in the comments!

For Valentine's Day (although, let's be honest, I don't really need an excuse to make something delicious and chocolate-y). I made hazelnut brown butter cake with ganache. Since it's not my recipe and I'm not really sure of internet protocol, when it comes to re-posting someone else's, I'll just tell you to use the link above for the recipe and add a few of my pointers/findings below.

yay, another terrible photo!

First, and most importantly, this may be my new favorite recipe. It is amazingly delicious and really not at all difficult. I followed her directions pretty exactly and everything went quite smoothly (I'd advise not even looking at the link she posts to more involved instructions at the bottom of the page, unless you're looking for a more involved/precise process, that may also be more authentically French, which very well might be your bag. . .).

Next, I love hazelnuts, but skinning them makes me crazy. I've never been successful with any of the suggested methods (toasting in the oven, then steaming in a towel or scrubbing with a brush). My current method is just to toast them in a cast iron pan over medium heat (be sure to move them around, so that they don't burn), then rub the skins off. A lot of the skins will remain and it has not been, in my experience a big deal.

I wasn't really sure about browning butter. It sounds simple enough, but having only inadvertently done so on the way to burning it on a number of occasions, I found this description helpful.

Lastly, and perhaps most surprising to me, I would not top it with the ganache again. The cake is delicious (really, I mean super, super delicious) and the ganache is delicious, but I don't think they're the right combination. The subtlety of the cake (particularly the brown butter) is covered up by the chocolate. Next time, and there will certainly be a next time, I think I will try whipped cream or perhaps a little drizzle of salted caramel sauce.

What's new, pussycat?

Ok, finally something instead of recipes. Despite my lack of news on the blog, we have been working on things around here. While most of my time is taken up with baby-related activity and house maintenance these days, Tres has been hard at work on things outside.

baby-related activities are pretty sweet

As you may recall from a year or so ago, we've had a few incidents of neighborhood dogs coming to visit, one resulting in tragedy. The next-door neighbor built a fence which, when closed has pretty much solved the problem with their dogs, but there are others around and we want to feel more comfortable letting our chickens roam around. There is also a hope that, down the line, we'll be adding to our animal family and will want them to be contained as well. To those ends, Tres replaced the dilapidated fencing around our property and put up a gate in front of the driveway. It has special significance, as it is the gate from his childhood farm (lovingly rehabilitated by his uncle and cousin - thank you!).

The weather here has been steadily warming (as in most of the country, it seems, we have had a very mild winter in general this year) and our minds, especially Tres's, have been turning to this year's garden. A few weeks ago, our neighbor brought over his tractor and he and Tres cleared everything out and spread a layer of manure. Now we have a beautiful blank slate, ready for this year's first planting in (probably) just a few weeks.

oh, the possibilities

A couple of weeks ago, we made our first major inside improvement: we built a bookshelf and moved our books up into the house! This may not sound like much, but it felt like a major accomplishment for us. Almost all of our books have been in boxes since we moved here in June 2010 and many have been boxed  up since we moved into our house in Seattle in August 2008. 

unpacking and organizing

It sounds cheesy, but it really did feel a bit like reuniting with old friends. Books really are such an important part of our lives; I hadn't realized how much I'd missed them, until we had access to them all and could see them on a daily basis again - I may have bitten off a bit more than I can chew with the resultant pile on my nightstand. . . While we still have a long way to go in making our house feel comfortable and home-y (and organized - ha!), this was a very satisfying first step.

and filled

Tres likes books

You say potato

From the Recipe Box

In an attempt to blog more regularly (even when there's not a whole lot going on), I'm going to try to post a recipe every week. If you'd like to share a recipe that you like making this time of year, leave it in the comments!

There is some disagreement as to the provenance of this next recipe. Tres thinks he made it up last winter, but I think it might have been me. Regardless, both of us completely forgot all about it until this week, when I had a sudden visceral memory of its deliciousness and made it the next night. It's not complicated and, as you will see by my ingredient descriptions, certainly not a precise recipe. For our dinner, I would estimate I used about a pound and a half each potatoes and beets, two large pickle spears, and 4 slices of bacon (ours is made by Tres's cousin and, I would say, a bit smaller than store bought), which made enough for dinner and lunch for us both the next day.

Someday I'll either get better at taking photos

or get a better camera, but until then, you'll

just have to take my word that it tastes better

than it looks

Potato Beet Salad

potatoes

beets (I like an equal amount of each, but you can mix to your preference)

pickles, chopped

bacon, crumbled and fat reserved

olive oil (if needed)

cider vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

sour cream

Peel the potatoes and beets (if some are really big, cut them so that everything is about uniform in size) and boil them until soft, about half an hour. Check earlier, to be sure they aren't overcooked - the potatoes will likely cook faster than the beets, so be sure to check them both as they're cooking (a soft potato is no biggie, but a super crunchy beat is not so delicious). Drain and chop into bite-sized pieces (they will be hot, so you might let them cool a few minutes first). Mix potatoes, beets, chopped pickle, and bacon in a large bowl. Drizzle with bacon fat until all is lightly coated (if there's not enough - add a little oil). Sprinkle on cider vinegar, salt, and pepper to taste. Top with a dollop of sour cream (I like to mix everything together at this point, but that's really up to you).

This recipe could easily be tweaked any number of ways. I've made it without bacon and it's quite delicious too. Fresh dill is also an excellent addition, as are shredded carrots. Maybe a little garlic? Caramelized onion? There are lots of possibilities. If you feel like you need a little more for your dinner, consider accompanying it with bread and or hard boiled eggs, or have it as a side dish with something more substantial.

And now, gratuitous baby photo time:

check out that drool!

Stuck a feather in his hat

From the Recipe Box

In an attempt to blog more regularly (even when there's not a whole lot going on), I'm going to try to post a recipe every week. If you'd like to share a recipe that you like making this time of year, leave it in the comments!

Tres's dad sent us this recipe (published in The Oregonian) when we were living in Barbados, after I'd gone on and on one day about how much I'd enjoyed the mac and cheese at another Portland restaurant. This turned out to be even better and, with a few tweaks of our own, has become one of our favorites.

Not the most appetizing photo, I'll admit
(I meant to get one before we ate it, but. . .)

Macaroni and Cheese (adapted from Noble Rot's recipe)
1 pound dry rigatoni (so technically, I guess this is rigatoni and cheese)
4 cups milk (the more fat, the more delicious - I've made it with skim, but it's better with 2%/whole)
1 bay leaf
3 allspice berries
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I never measure this - I just sprinkle it in until it looks like enough)
1 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons mustard (I like stone ground)
2 cups grated sharp cheddar
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for topping
3 garlic cloves, minced/crushed (I like it super garlicky; if you want to tone it down, add fewer or cut it out altogether)


Preheat oven to 400. Cook noodles until they are still quite firm (I find about 8 minutes works for rigatoni - just subtract a 2-3 minutes from your usual cooking time and test them) and set aside. In a medium pot, bring the milk, bay leaf, allspice, pepper flakes, and salt to a boil (keep an eye on this and stir regularly - it's easy to burn). While the milk mixture is heating, melt butter in frying pan over medium heat. Add flour and stir until pale golden. Whisk the roux (that's what you made in the last step) into the milk and cook until thickened, about 15 minutes (stir this often, or it will burn). Remove pot from heat and extract allspice and bay leaf (careful, it's hot!). Stir in mustard and cheeses. Put half of the noodles into an 8x8 dish (I've made this in all sorts of dishes, so this is just a suggestion - it will not fit in anything smaller, though) and sprinkle with half of garlic. Top with remaining noodles and garlic, then pour sauce over the top. Grate Parmesan over the top until the entire dish is covered in a thin layer. Bake 30 - 45 minutes, until the top is golden and bubbling.