Cauliflower Pizza and I'm probably coming back for yet another life...

I'm sure you've all heard about that little old thing where you have to keep being reincarnated until you get it right here on this earth.  Well I hummed along pretty smoothly for most of my years; I mean there was a little slip up here and there.  For the most part the faux pas were negligible and I figured there was that first 40-year free pass clause anyways.  Most of the details are still a blank and I haven't quite even begun to figure out exactly where things went sideways, but trust me friends this one was bad, really bad.  In the big scheme of things I shouldn't be too upset about it, because I have this sneaking suspicion that this isn't my first rodeo here on earth and what is another 90 years or so added to the sentence.

The worst plans are always hatched out of desperation, and desperate we were.  I shouldn't have gently persuaded (conned) my sister into going along with my evilly delicious plan.  It is practically not my fault that she has not yet learned that going along with my ridiculous ideas could spell trouble.  I'm not blaming her though; actually we've both decided that the blame should rest squarely on Hot Dog Dude. (Besides, he makes it way too easy.)

It started off on such a good note; I was all decked out in my vampire slayer outfit, clutching my dagger ready for any rogue vampires whom might cross my path.  Ready, willing, and able to defend innocence against the dark forces.  Seriously, do I look ready for business or what?

            

What happened next was so heinous I can't even tell you here.  Look I do have a reputation in the community to uphold and why in the heck wasn't someone keeping a closer eye on where that tiny little Doc McStuffins was leaving her hard earned candy loot.  I'm too embarrassed I just can't, well maybe I could if I wrote it into a fictional story and changed the names to protect peoples privacy a little, hmm.  

How about we just change the subject and focus on the important things in life, like the very important fact that Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I haven't even begun to explore what I'm making this year.  I'm going to also completely block out the fact that I signed up to run a 5K the morning of Thanksgiving and then will come home and cook for everyone.  Complete mental blockage, it's a gift; so I suppose I shall have to add that one to the gratitude column.

Quite sometime ago I ran across Cauliflower Pizza recipes and they looked quite tasty, a pizza without carbs, can't go wrong there.  It would be perfect, except I love carbs and I'm much too lazy to cook cauliflower and then arrange it into a fancy pizza shape.  So consider this recipe a gift friends.

Cauliflower Pizza (for the lazy)
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper and toss over the cauliflower and tomatoes.  Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment (because we've already established we are lazy and why on earth would we want extra cleanup chores).  Bake in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the grated parmesan and return to the oven for an addition 5-10 minutes, depending on how soft you like your cauliflower.

Serve warm or cold.

Please don't tell me you thought I'd dropped of the face of the earth.  Didn't we already establish earlier, I have plenty of more years left remaining here; so I may as well entertain myself someway and torment the internet in the process.

Enjoy,

Gina

Dark Chocolate Cream Pie - A New Old Classic

Have you ever been unable to find the exact recipe you were looking for?  Well that is what happened to me when I went searching for a Classic Dark Chocolate Cream Pie to add to the Thanksgiving dessert menu.  I saw several that were chocolate, on chocolate, with more chocolate, which is usually never a bad thing in my book.  But I had my mind set on a buttery, flaky crust that would offset an intensely chocolaty filling, complimented with a mountain of fresh whipping cream. Nothing was screaming, "I'm your pie", so I was forced to go make a pie and see if I could get just what I wanted. Sigh!!

Sometimes I feel like the unofficial "Turkey Hotline" and the panicked calls I got this year included a need for pie crust help.  Rather than repeating myself again next year, I figured why not write it all down for you.  That way you don't have to arrive at your in-laws with a store bought pie out of defeat, I promise!

Single Pie Crust

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, diced 1/2" and kept cold

3 tablespoons vegetable shortening

4 tablespoons ice water

I had an older crust recipe but felt it didn't make enough and didn't leave me enough to do edge designs, so I re-vamped it into a larger version, I'd rather have a little leftover than not enough.

In the bowl of a food processor add the flour, salt and sugar, pulse two or three times to combine.

Add butter and shortening and pulse until the butter is in large crumbs.  Add the ice water and pulse until the dough is barely holding together.  Make sure the butter is cold; straight out of the fridge usually works best. Be sure the butter is cut up or it will heat up too much from the blade of the processor.

If you don't have a food processor, use a pastry cutter or two knives.  Basically you need to cut the butter into the flour.  I used a pastry cutter for about 10 years until I bought a food processor, and let's put it this way - I'll never go back.

If you don't want to use shortening, just swap the shortening for an equal amount of butter in the recipe.  I think the shortening makes the crust a little flakier and easier to roll out, but that is just my opinion.

Your crust is ready when it is just starting to clump together.

Place the crumbly crust mixture onto a large piece of plastic wrap and form a flat large circle. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for a couple of hours.  I usually make my crusts the night before, that way they are ready for rolling the next day.  Let the dough sit on the counter for five minutes or so prior to rolling to make rolling easier.

My secret weapon for less mess and easier rolling is to take a large piece of freezer paper and tape it to my table or counter.  Put a little flour down so the crust won't stick, flour your rolling pin and roll the crust to about 1/4" thick.  Roll the crust back up onto the rolling pin and dust off any excess flour with a pastry brush.  Place the crust in a 9.5" glass pie pan that is sprayed with no-stick spray.

Once the crust is in the pan, use your fingers and make sure it is adhered to the bottom and sides, trim any excess crust and start crimping.  About a 1/2" overhang of crust is usually enough to get a good crimp.  Crimping is just placing one bent finger on one hand between two bent fingers on the other hand.

An easy alternative for crimping would be to trim the top of the crust off with a knife and then cut shapes out with a small cookie cutter and place them around the top edge of the pie dish, pressing down slightly. That is what I did for my pumpkin pie this year.  

When you are making a pie that isn't going to be baked, you have to blind bake it first.  

Spray a piece of tin foil with no-stick spray and place it into the crust, pressing it to the bottom and sides. Try not to disturb the rim.  Place pie weights or beans (you don't want to cook with) in the bottom and bake in a 425 degree F oven for 15 minutes.  Remove the crust from the oven and remove the foil and weights and return it to the oven to bake 5-10 minutes longer, until nicely browned.

If you don't want the crust edges overly browned, cover the top of the crust with a piece of foil for the first half of baking and then remove it for the second half.  Set the crust aside and let it cool.

Dark Chocolate Filling

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups whole milk

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon espresso powder

6 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped (I like the 1 pound bars from Trader Joe's)

4 large egg yolks, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons butter, room temperature, cut up

In a medium sauce pan, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, milk, heavy cream, and espresso powder, whisk to combine.  Bring to a boil on medium heat, then add chocolate and whisk for a minute or so until the chocolate starts dissolving.  Add a little bit of the hot liquid to the eggs and then add the eggs into the pot, whisk constantly for about 4 minutes, you will see the mixture thicken before your eyes.

Remove from the heat.  Add the vanilla and butter and whisk until smooth.  You can sieve the mixture if you want, but if you whisk enough you shouldn't have any noticeable egg bits.

Pour into the cooled pie crust.

Immediately place a piece of plastic wrap on the top of the chocolate and cover it to the edges. This will prevent a film from forming.  Place into the fridge for 3 hours to completely cool.

Just prior to serving, make the whipping cream.

2 cups heavy whipping cream (or 1 whole pint)

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In the bowl of a mixer, combine cream, sugar and vanilla, whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Place whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M tip if you want sharp peaks on your design. You can also just spoon the whip cream on top.  What, you don't have the 1M tip, well it's in the Give-away I'm having at the moment, have you entered?  The chocolate pearls on top came from Trader Joe's, and they added a nice little crunch.

Still scared of tackling homemade pies for next year's feast?  If you would like me to show you how to bake them in person and you live in Europe, and can send me an airline ticket, I'm available to leave tomorrow!!!

What you really wanted to know though was - did my niece kick my b*** in the Dance-Off this year.  Let's put it this way, my niece thinks she is all video game master and everything, well look kid - Aunty is tired of you winning and she has her spandex and leg warmers on at the moment practicing her new moves for next year's competition.  That's a visual huh; please don't dare me to put up a photo of me in spandex and leg warmers, please (because I would)!

Enjoy,

Gina

How To Holiday Shop with Ease & Giving Thanks

Don't worry, be Happy!  Just like my smiley pepper.

I have so much to be grateful for this year; I can't believe it was 18 months ago that I started writing this blog, time has flown by.  I could never have imagined I was going to make friends all over the world.  Friends whom I look forward to checking up on, staring aimlessly at their amazing creations, and feeling such sorrow and joy when they do.  I just wanted to let you know how grateful I am for all of you that have entered my life; you have added something to it that I didn't even know was missing.

I'm spending every extra minute this week getting ready for the holiday and I was hoping maybe a peek in at how I get ready, might help you with the crazy overwhelming tasks that come with the holidays.

People (I won't name names, but you know who you are) used to make jokes about the amount of things I like to try and get done.  Getting things done for me has nothing to do with excess time on my hands or being Type A or anything like that.

I like to be organized and make a plan and then write it down.

In order to make sure I don't have to go back over and over again (besides, that is what Hot Dog Dude is for) to the grocery store and get into a fist fight with someone over the last carton of heavy whipping cream. I like to make a list and categorize it by sections in the grocery store.  I'll have it in hand as I stroll up and down the aisles, checking off items as I throw them in the cart.  Maybe you noticed mine is not alphabetical; I like to live a little on the wild side.

A grocery list can be really easy to throw together if you write up a menu beforehand.  Then all you have to do is a quick rundown of the recipes in your mind and fill in the blanks.   Be sure and leave yourself a little wiggle run in your menu for a kitchen failure.  If that seem insurmountable, go for a ratio of half homemade and half pre-made. 

Keep your pantry well stocked with essentials, such as 8 different types of flours and 13 different types of sugars.  Please don't tell me I'm the only one who worries that I might need to make a dish that calls for all 8 of those flours at the same time.  Laugh if you want, but I'll be baking bread and whipping up cookies when that next big one hits, because I have all the items in my panty ready to go.

My sister-in-law watched my house one weekend and the first thing she told me when I returned was, "You label your panty"?  Doesn't everyone, I thought to myself.  I'm still scratching my head over that one.  Do you think my pantry is cause for alarm?  I did discuss it with my therapist and she wasn't overly concerned.

I guess this is just what works for me and keeps me from being stressed over the thought of preparing a huge meal with lots of components for a large crowd.  

That way the joyous time I like to have when company comes over doesn't hinge on having a meal that just about killed me to make.  I want to enjoy that we are all together and that we are all well and that we have smiles on our faces as we talk about what's been going on in our lives and where we hope to go in the future. The food is just icing on the proverbial cake.

Be kind to yourself and enjoy your family and friends this Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Gina

p.s.  If you are making a frozen bird this year and haven't started thawing it yet; quit reading this and run to the freezer and move it to the fridge.

Ginger and Cardamom Cookies - Big, Soft and Chewy

My dad is a huge fan of Ginger Cookies, so I decided I will surprise him with these Ginger and Cardamom Cookies at Thanksgiving.  Plus I needed an excuse to try a few new varieties before the Christmas Cookie rush starts.  I wanted another flavor element in the cookies, so I decided to use cardamom.  Last week a group of us had a good-bye lunch at Wayfare Tavern for Joanna before she flew back to Malaysia, sniff, sniff, and our favorite dessert ended up being a Pear Tart with Cardamom Ice Cream, it's been on my mind ever since.

I hope to recreate the tart for you soon, I'm sure you will fall in love with it too.  I usually stick with the classics for Thanksgiving, with a few new items thrown in; I'm hoping these cookies will be well received.

Ginger and Cardamom Cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, loosely packed

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

2 ounces crystallized ginger, finely chopped

1/2 cup granulated sugar + 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or use silpats.

Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, 1/2 teaspoon cardamom, ground ginger and salt into a large bowl.  Set aside.  I ended up using ground cardamom because that was all I could find out here in the boonies where I live, but if you can find the pods that would be even better; you can then grind them yourself.

In a large bowl add the brown sugar and oil and mix till combined.  Add the eggs and mix till combined. Add the flour mixture and mix until combined.  Add the crystallized ginger and mix until combined.  The mixture will seem a bit dry, but it will hold together nicely.

In a small bowl combine the granulated sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cardamom.  Set aside.

Scoop the dough into large tablespoon sized balls and flatten out the balls a bit with your hands, then roll in the sugar mixture.  Place the cookies on a baking sheet 3-inches apart.  Bake for 13 -15 minutes.  Let cool on the pans.  Don't wait for the cookies to be completely set when you pull them out and they will remain chewier.

I got a little carried away and made really large ones so I only got 12 cookies, but you could probably get a few more if you make them a little smaller.

I have Pumpkin Pie with Fresh Whipped Cream, Pear Tart with Dulce De Leche and Cardamom Ice Cream, Dark Chocolate Cream Pie with Chocolate Pearls and these cookies on the dessert menu; do you think I should add another item?  One more item couldn't hurt, could it?

Enjoy,

Gina

Turkey, Cranberry and Brie Sandwich

Someone get the police on the phone, I need to report 14 missing days from this month.  I guess that's what happens when you are off having so much fun.  I guess it's time for me to correct that bad behavior and launch into full-on Turkey Day prep mode.  I'm not gonna cop to being completely OCD, but I have my moments.  I spent a couple hours in a relaxing meditative state called dusting, so we don't have a repeat of last years' "Turn on the chandelier and see cobwebs all over it incident".

I've been trying out a few new recipes I might want to add to the menu this year, one of them was a Cranberry-Orange Sauce I found over at Liv Life.  I thought why not start off the holiday backwards by showing you a sandwich you could make with the leftovers from the big feast.

Turkey, Cranberry and Brie Sandwich

(1) - 2 1/2 pound turkey breast

Olive oil

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 recipe Cranberry-Orange Sauce (here is the recipe, I did add a little extra sugar though)

Arugula

8 ounces Brie cheese

2 sourdough seeded baguettes - Trader Joe's has some par baked ones that are excellent

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the turkey breast skin side up in a heavy pan and rub with a little bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the turkey reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F. Remove the turkey from the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes or so.

Warning:  This next photo contains graphic nudity!

Remove the skin from the turkey and slice it into 1/2 - inch slices.  See all that juice running out, it's because you didn't over cook it.

Split a baguette and cut it into sandwich sized pieces.  My size is 1/2 a baguette, but I like to live a little bit on the sandwich wild side.

Place a generous amount of the cranberry sauce on the bottom half of the baguette.  Add a layer of turkey, top with a few slices of Brie.  Place the sandwich in the microwave for 40 seconds or so until the Brie starts running and screaming for Merci. Add a bit of arugula and top with the other half of the baguette.

Serves 4.

I'm heading back into the kitchen to work on dessert.  Let me know if there is a recipe that you think has to go on my menu. 

Enjoy,

Gina