french fridays WITH Dorie - January 7th - paris mushroom soup

paris mushroom soup from page 72

This ismy first French Fridays recipe review, as I just received the cookbook - around my french table for Christmas. It has been a rather hectic time, so I ended up doing this recipe late. But I did complete and found it very easy to make for the most part.

 I have never removed the germ from garlic before, but did so this time in order to follow the recipe as closely as possible. We usually just mince with a garlic press, and don't worry about the innards. Also cheat slightly with chopping onions (to avoid too many tears) by using a tupperware gadget - Tupperware® Chop ’N Prep™ Chef 

Chop 'N Prep

 

Ready to chop the onions and mince garlic.

All was added with butter and softened, and mushrooms added - allowed to release water and reduced. Did find that on our gas stove had to turn up more than medium to get mushrooms to 'release' - but we are familiar with this due to making the family Ukrainian boiled and then fried mushrooms, served with sour cream for every holiday meal!

Onions, garlic and butter
Note personalized wooden spoon!

Simmering before pulverizing with immersion blender.

While simmering was taking place,  I prepared the mushroom salad in bowls - using herb cutting shears I recently found in Montreal at Arthur Quentin ooh la la! Added spices to mushrooms and prepared to puree.

Chives cut and spices added to mushroom salad.

Salad ready for soup!

Waiting is difficult - good time to pour the wine and ensure it has not 'gone bad' - a full glass should ensure that and make sure soup has simmered sufficiently. This is a step that should not be skipped when cooking 'French' - 'Cooking with wine = wine in the cook!

Waiting....

Simmering ...

Voila!  Soup!

This was all easy to do, did not take very long and most ingredients we regularly have stocked in the kitchen. I did not have any problem pureeing the mushroom mixture - used a heavy duty immersion blender - Braun and was did right in the pot, removed blender and put pot back on burner to ensure was good and hot before serving.

Serve with wine!

Bon Appetit! 

...darleen

Yummiest Best Carrot Cake for everyone - Dairy, Soy, Eggs Free

Yummiest Carrot Cake - the Best!!

 I didn't get the best photo of the final cake - will try to get a better one next time.

I have adjusted the recipe to accommodate No Dairy, No Soy, No Eggs and reduced the Sugar - or at least used good sugar and less of it!  This cake is the lightest, fluffiest Carrot Cake - ever.

The ingredients can be adjusted slightly as needed or for personal desires - as I will note in the recipe.

I have not tested gluten free yet, but have found similar recipe using Almond Flour, however it uses eggs - so I will test it without eggs and my substitutions.

The Icing - I have 2 versions, depending on dietary restrictions.
One uses Cool Whip frozen whip topping that may contain soy, icing sugar and creamed cheese.
Then I did find one at Elanas Pantry - organic and gluten free cooking - which is dairy and soy free.

Cream together the wet ingredients

Add dry ingredients and carrots

Put into pans - I do two layer cake

Ready for the oven

Cooked perfectly - golden!

Ready to be iced

Mix the icing - frozen dessert whipped topping into  cream cheese/ sugar mixture

Lick the batters - or share.

Icing in the middle and I added shredded coconut

DONE  - and ready to cut.

Please  Click On Continue Reading for Recipe

Yummiest Banana Muffins Ever With Sugar On Top - Adapted: No Soy, No Milk, No Eggs

Banana Muffins before eaten in record time

I have used a Banana Muffin recipe for over 20 years, and believe it to be 24 years I was given this recipe.
The secret ingredient being Miracle Whip
 - reason for loving this recipe myself, was due to the super moistness and fact that do not crumb.
YES! When I had 3 toddlers all under 3 years of age, crumbly muffins were enough to cause me to run away from home. Or at least not allow my daughters muffins, until they graduated from high school.
These muffins were the answer, and had the seal of approval from both my daughters and myself.

 Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 35 min  - 12 large muffins

2 -3 Bananas
1 cup Miracle Whip
3/4 cup sugar
 Beat  / mix all together

2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 - 1/2  teaspoon salt






I modified the recipe years ago, in order to use brown sugar - my girls preferred. On a whim, one morning, I sprinkled brown sugar on top of muffins before popping them into oven. Yummy!! And if I ever omitted this step, ever after that - there were pouts, and "where is the sugar on top?", from my daughters. As if I no longer loved them.

These muffins have been a staple in our diet, and special treat I would make for them fresh in mornings - so they could have directly out of oven, before school, and eat the remainder for lunch and after school. 12 never lasted long with 3 girls, and friends that would have to have one as well, and anyone that was within smelling distance.

Now that 'my girls', have grown and left home - the banana muffins are still expected if they ever stay over for a visit, or if they let me know in advance. After all, if no banana muffins - do I not love them anymore?

Yes, these banana muffins are that good.

I have made them for work colleagues at different companies I have worked for, and they are also apparently addictive - once you have one, you cannot stop from having another, until they are all gone.
I added blueberries for blueberry fans, and although I thought they looked hideous they were a hit, yet again. Chocolate chips were added, and although not my favourite (and I am a chocoholic) - others enjoyed very much.

Dilemma
We hit a roadblock however recently due to several family members, including my mother and my eldest daughter discovering food intolerances. Not just to one item, but several with dairy and soy being the most severe. My daughter Rachel, has discovered she cannot tolerate protein whey - which is in almost everything! My mother has severe issues with soy, and also avoids dairy and eggs.
Miracle whip has soy added now in the past few years, and you will find this in many salad dressings, and other prepackaged foods, as well as cake mixes. What to do?

I consulted with a favourite Foodie of mine
- Cat Can Cook, and her Cook Book.
hmmmm .. almost acceptable, with a few modifications or adaptations.

RECIPE - Adapted to avoid dairy, soy and eggs.

4 large bananas, mashed
1/2 cup white sugar -   3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg  - omitted
1/3 cup melted margarine or butter - little less than 1/3 cup canola oil + slop of applesauce
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt - omitted
1 1/2 cups flour - used unbleached all purpose white
1 tsp pure vanilla  - my addition
Cane sugar for sprinkling on top - a must have.

Preheat Oven - 350 degrees F
 - or if using convection oven like I do - 325 degrees F

I put bananas in freezer when they become over-ripe to be on-hand for when I want.
Thus - first thaw bananas in microwave for about 1 or 2 minutes, and snip ends off and squeeze into mixer bowl. They should be almost mush, but may need a bit of mixer magic to puree.
 
I use muffin paper cups, but if preferred you can just spray muffin tin (vegetable spray).
YIELD = 12 muffins - can be easily doubled.

1. Smash/mix the bananas with mixer and add sugar, oil and applesauce.
2. Add vanilla
3. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time  - after fist cup add the baking soda and baking powder
   - this allows for the action of rising to take place with the wet ingredients activates the soda and powder.
4. Add remaining 1/2 cup of flour - the batter will be sloppy.
5. I spray a 1/3 cup measuring cup with vegetable spray, and use to fill the muffin tins about 3/4 full.
6. Sprinkle with brown cane sugar if you wish, and want your children to know you love them!
7. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or when toothpick inserted in middle  comes out dry.

These have been tested by my mother and daughter and no ill effects. In fact were considered perfect.
Next will be to adjust to make gluten- free, but still retain the moistness and wonderful taste.

Try these and let me know what you think.  Do you feel loved?

Enjoy
 ...darleen

ARE YOU MY CUPCAKE?

 Update - the cupcakes that I did make
Well, the cupcake were much more difficult than books, or online directions appeared. Or, and this is quite possible, I need more practice. A lot more practice!

I did try the easy chocolate wings, and the Hello Cupcake fancier wings, but ended up doing most with the pretzels - these were very easy. And they sorta look like butterflies :)

Katelynn's Birthday Cupcake - hers was Hello Cupcake wings

I will persevere however, and learn how to make these darn cupcakes and many more that I wish to try. 

...darleen

Weekend Birthday Party -- eek .. running out of time

Need to make cupcakes

Either  .. these:

My Wooden Spoon

OR 


Maybe These ...

Cupcake Creations

OR ....
 

Annie's Eats

OR MAYBE  ....

Heavenly Delight Cakes

Update to follow ... and recipe updates.
Have a Great Saturday!! ...

...darleen

Anything can be cooked on BBQ - start with RIBS

BBQ Anything..

Yes .. I have proved that anything can be cooked on the BBQ. This was not tested by myself, as a test or study - but due to fact that oven was out of commission for 6 months. Why 6 months? Because we had a the kitchen renovated, that was to take a week, and well .. so far it has been 4 years, 3 months and 2 days (not that I am counting). The oven was reconnected after 6 months, in time to cook Christmas dinner.

I would like to feature BBQ ribs to start, since they are one of the most logical foods to cook on a BBQ.

RECIPE & DIRECTIONS TO FOLLOW ... stay tuned..

Breakfast Egg Poof

FIND SOMETHING TO EAT!

I have changed the name of  my Cooking Blog, as the original name of Kitchen TNT, just did not bond with me- AND ... this is what I am usually doing or saying to others. Find Something To Eat!!

If you have others in your household, such as spouse or teenagers you will often find them staring into an open refrigerator, and then cupboards. Finally they proclaim, "There is nothing to eat in this house!". They then proceed to flop onto the couch and further state, "I'm bored."  Since there is no food to be found and nothing to do, happiness is hopeless. AND - it is of course your fault.

  If only ... it were possible to rig the fridge to create a blasting response

 BUT....

Of course there is always something to eat in the house (except for extreme circumstances). There may not be anything prepared, or anything that appeals to their investigation. And that is what I would like to show you how I deal with,  and also still holler back "Find Something To Eat!"

Also, I hope you will follow along as I demonstrate that a recipe is just a guideline, and how you can modify ingredients and become creative according to what is in your cupboards, fridge, freezer, gardens - with the odd run to neighbour or corner store.

As this blog evolves, I will be adding features and look forward to getting to know you.

Featured Recipe:  Breakfast Egg Poof

Click on READ MORE to go to next page

Meyer Lemon Curd Pie w/an Espresso Ganache

 I MUST MAKE THIS !

                                  White  On Rice

Pi Day (3.14)- Meyer Lemon Curd Pie w/an Espresso Ganache

Recipe #2 Review - Lemon Meringue Tart

Lemon Meringue Tart

Recipe was made exactly according to Dede Wilson's unforgettable desserts.

My first Tribulation came in deciding which pie pan to use. It calls for a 10-inch loose-bottomed fluted tart pan. Well how difficult can that be to find? Apparently much more than I presumed at 9 PM on a Sunday evening, since the flan pan I thought I had is in hiding. I really did not want to use a flan pan or quiche pan that was missing in renovation haven, as really wanted to follow the recipe directions for the sugar tart crust to ensure best results. So I went off to Walmart to get a proper loose-bottom fluted tart pan - sexy!! I could not find at Walmart, or Sobey's (local 24 hour grocery store).. so had to delay making of pie until I had all ingredients and correct equipment. Not a problem, or so I thought, I would pickup at same time I was getting the citrus zestor at David's Gourmet on Monday.

I did find the Microplane Zestor that I had longingly touched on last visit to David's Gourmet and now I own! I love it.

 

BUT .. no loose-bottomed tart pan. No problem, I will pickup at Zehrs, as they have kitchen appliance section and also cooking and baking supplies - ahh and appears my glass lemon juicer is also in hiding or was confiscated by children? ... again No Problem.. will just get another at Zehrs.

Well .. I could not find the loose-bottomed tart pan at Zehrs, or even a non-loose-bottomed tart pan for that matter. Nothing even close to a tart pan was to be found. Also I could not find a simple juicer device. However I did find this very cool, electric juicer that was only $9.99, so decided it was worth trying.

It is actually very amazing and I believe one of the best kitchen gadget purchases I have ever made. It is no-name made in China special. It stores in drawer neatly and even has a groove for cord to be hidden for neater storage. I have used it also for fresh orange juice from imported Florida oranges and voila - wonderful.

BUT .. still no loose-bottomed tart pan. Time to google and find local store carrying them, rather than spending anymore time searching store to store. Suddenly it appears there is a shortage of kitchen specialty stores in Kitchener- Waterloo, but I did find that Gizmos is still at Conestoga Mall in Waterloo, and website does not indicate any loose-bottomed tart pans, but I had high hopes that they will. The next day  I go to the mall on my lunch break and well there is some sort of celebration due to new addition opening, that I have to avoid and make my way to Gizmos with the least fuss as possible.

AND .. YES they have the loose-bottomed tart pan in a variety of sizes, including the cutest small individual pans, that I managed to resist - well for now. If you have never been to Gizmos it is a paradise to be explored, and you will definitely find something that you just must have. Gizmos has 2 Waterloo locations.

Ok - so all ingredients purchased and equipment! I have promised to deliver lemon meringue tart on Friday to office for tasting purposes by the best tasting team - my work colleagues. 

The making of the pie or tart,  was an enjoyable experience except for the meringue which I believe was due to the plastic bowl I used with my Braun mixer. BUT .. this lemon meringue tart is the BEST lemon meringue that you will ever experience. The tartness is perfect. The filling is basically a very large-batch version of  lemon cream or lemon curd. Dede insists that a candy thermometer be used as the temperature achieved is essential to success. Hmm .. well I did have problem with this, as my newly purchased candy thermometer was not registering correctly. This is when I start to get flustered and sweat. I really do not like to have failures once I get all ingredients mixed and now on final stretch of the promised pie. Upon inspection we discovered (my husband K and I) that packing material was still in the end of the thermometer. However, Dede does mention that the correct temperature of 180F will be when "the cream  thickens and form a soft shape when dropped from a spoon" - which was consistent with where I was at. My arm was starting to go numb due to length of time I was whisking - so I was very relieved that I had reached the desired temperature. The meringue was simple enough to make, however I either did not achieve the required temperature of 160F due to still being thermometer challenged, or due to the plastic bowl used to whip the meringue, as it was slightly too soft - BUT tasted magnificent!

Assembly:

Sugar Crust ... was easy and cooked perfectly and was removed from THE loose-bottomed tart pan easily and placed on silver serving tray. Lemon filling inserted and awaiting meringue topping.

 

Meringue in bowl.

Meringue  - after being toasted under broiler as I was too wimpy to try the propane torch without K to supervise.  The one issue with broiling is that it heats the entire tart, rather than just stabilizing and toasting the meringue - so next time I will torch it!!

 PERFECT LEMON MERINGUE TART 

RESULTS: Taste 5 Stars!!

Ease of  Making: Medium

Skills Required: Other than proper equipment and careful attention to lemon cream preparation a Beginner should be able to manage.

I will definitely be making this again and trying to perfect the meringue.

p.s.  Kenwood has a new mixer that has a heating feature that I believe would be perfect for creating the lemon cream  - see the links for more information.

http://www.ohgizmo.com/2009/10/22/kenwoods-cooking-chef-mixer-takes-the-stove-out-of-the-equation/

http://www.kenwoodworld.com/en/CookingChef/Home/

... darleen

Blogging Again - December

I have been too busy cooking, baking and working to BLOG!! Ok .. I really need to get this figured out, as plan was to cook or bake and then BLOG about the experience.

That will be my New Year's resolution - I promise.

I also was ill with flu most of October and into November. Mostly it has passed, but still some dregs seem to linger.

Back to baking and what and how I have been doing.

The Chocolate Pie - I made 4 times with great success. I will update tomorrow, regarding the differences of each session, and how using different chocolate variations changed the outcome or not.

Other Culinary Quests that I attempted were

1. Lemon  Meringue Tart from Dede Wilson's unforgettable desserts
2. Lemon Pudding
3. Chocolate Snowball Cake - renamed Exploding Chocolate Snowball Cake
4. Carrot Cake .. hmm made that twice
5. Best Banana Muffins in the Galaxy
6. Chocolate Cake with Mocha Buttercream Icing
7. Darleen's Very Cheesy Lasagna
8. Garlic Toast with Cheese
9. Stuffed Peppers
10. Potato Soup

And was the mixture of spaghetti with home made spaghetti sauce, chicken slow cooked with onion and grilled mushroom soup sandwiches.

As with all experiences I am not sure you would want to see the video, as it seems that working in a kitchen under renovation has added complications. Some cause blood to be spurted!!

Other calamities have been due to equipment trials and tribulations - such as the food processor I purchased from kijiji for $8.00. It lasted exactly 30 seconds and shredded one carrot! Then it froze and motor was unable to be resuscitated. That was after the Braun chopper also had a seized motor when being forced to chop chocolate. So I am back to chopping, pureing and shredding mostly by hand.

I am trialing - testing - a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer, lent to me by my daughter. She is a professional cook, so before I determine which is the best mixer I would like to test if possible. So far I am mostly impressed, but there  are some oddities that are possibly my own peculiarities or maybe it is not the correct mixer for me! It feels backwards is the biggest complaint, and also the bowl is awkward and too small? I still prefer my 35 year old Braun Mixer (with blender, shredder and meat grinder attachments) - except for fact that switch is touchy, and only has plastic bowls. Advantage to it however is that it is not backwards - bowl is on left hand side, not right hand side. Possibly after 35 years of using it on left side is reason I find the Kitchenaid backwards. I am considering looking more closely at the Professional version with bowl lifter.

Anyway ... I will get right to my recipe reviews and modifications I made, and outcome as well as my tribulations throughout. Next will be of course Christmas baking!!

....darleen

Recipe Review #1 - espresso black-bottomed pie

espresso black-bottomed pie
in a chocolate chip cookie crust

Culinary Quests Review

In unforgettable desserts by Dede Wilson, the recipe that grabbed my attention was the cover photo: clementine-chocolate-almond torte with chocolate lace, candied zest, and caramelized fruit.  It was what I desired to make 1st in my Culinary Quest  adventure through the pages of this delightful cookbook.

However, upon reviewing the recipe, I felt I did not have the time to provide the deserved attention. After all it was not only Thanksgiving weekend, BUT in Kitchener, Ontario - the start of Oktoberfest!! I am an avid participant of Oktoberfest and due to fact that attending just for a few hours, always seems to get me home at 2 am, I decided I should choose a recipe that could be done in less time.

In choosing espresso black-bottomed pie in a chocolate chip cookie crust, I decided that I had most of the ingredients except for the specialty chocolate called for - bittersweet chocolate, such as Valrhona Caraibe, and instant espresso powder. How difficult could that be to find? Piece of cake - or pie, right? Well reality was harsh, as a simple quick trip to the few specialty stores in Kitchener found me lost and wondering why it was so difficult to find.

My first choice of stores to search was David's Gourmet  - which I had never ventured into before, but always wanted to explore. It is an amazing experience and also slightly overwhelming. I promptly found my way to the 'chocolate' section and did find  Valrhona chocolate hiding in a lower shelf and only 2 packages - eureka! But wait, it was not the correct Valrhona - Guanaja 70%, andJivara milk chocolate 40% - I took it anyway, as Caraibe was no where in sight! I did find Michel Cluizel (David's is one of the few vendor's in Canada) - Concepcion 66% Dark chocolate, and upon checking unforgettable desserts that I was carrying with me, verified it could also be used for this recipe.  I purchased all 3 packages - for about a total of $30.00 and total weight of 9.5 oz. I could not find the instant espresso powder, and was not sure where I would look next.

Upon reviewing my directory of baking supply stores for Kitchener Waterloo, my next stop was Ayres Baking Supplies in Waterloo. Again I had never ventured into this store, and found it to be a pre-packaged bulk baking supply store. There were several very interesting items, but no chocolate other than Lindt and Bakers chocolate. I did purchase a bag of all purpose flour and inadvertently grabbed the bleached rather than unbleached - the brand is unknown due to being a bulk store. 

I did ask the girl at the till where she thought I might find the instant espresso powder, and she suggested just using some strong brewed coffee - or maybe Vincenzo's she thought might carry it.

Off I went to Vincenzo's, in Kitchener - oh remember I mentioned that this weekend was the start of Oktoberfest in Kitchener? This brings into Kitchener, Waterloo and area an additional million people for the festivities, and each has 5 cars I am sure!! And they were all driving in the direction that I needed to go, to find my baking supplies. The additional cars on the road, made my 'quick jaunt to get baking supplies' turn into a 3 hour traffic fight.

BUT!! At Vincenzo's I did find the coveted Valrhona Caraibe, and plenty of it on the wondeful shelves, right beside the impossible to find instant espresso powder - even the suggested brand: Medaglia D'oro. Excellent!! Vincenzo's is a delightful store that wonderful food aromas entice you to linger, even though the current store is packed to overflowing and barely room for the many customers. They are moving into a new location, and many of the local residents are eagerly awaiting the opening.

This is the finished product. It looks good, and tasted even better. Since we took this to our Thanksgiving dinner in Chatham ( 2 hour road trip), I did the whipped topping once we arrived, rather than transport  with the whipped topping.

The crust before baking - it was easy to make, and finger press into the pie plate.

NOTE 1:

 I cannot obtain King Arthur  flour, as it is not carried in Canada - or at least I have not found a vendor as of yet. I used my regular flour which is Compliments All Purpose Flour (bleached). I ran out of time searching for the chocolate, and decided to use my regular flour and test the recipe. The result was that the crust batter was too crumbly and would not form into a ball - so I added chilled water by drops until I could manage it into a ball.

NOTE 2:

  I did make a second pie for another Thanksgiving event the same weekend, after the first was a success, and I adjusted the amount of flour to 3/4 cupe from 1 cup resulting in gathering into a ball, and was easier to spread into the pie plate.

The filling cooked up very easily, and again I used probably a different pot that actually called for - as I have a favorite cooking pot that is larger than usual, but I prefer. It smelled amazing!! The second pie I used a different pot - medium heavy-bottomed saucepan (actually more expensive than my favorite standby) and I found it cooked faster and I had to quickly remove it from the heat as it almost curdled. I use a gas cook-top, and at the same time I was making the filling, my husband decided he needed to make a fried egg on the burner adjacent - so the situation may have been due to a bit of confusion or just my lack of experience with the specific pot.

THE FIRST SLICE!!

It cut easily and was picture perfect. The taste was also perfect. Very smooth and the chocolate flavor heavenly.

The second pie made I did use the Michel Cluizel - Concepcion 66% Dark chocolate, and it was slightly not as bittersweet chocolate flavor, but also exceptional.

TIPS: From my Trials and Tribulations

1. Flour - different flour does produce different results.
   
   
2. When cooking fillings with milk watch the heat!
   
   
3. Using plastic mixing bowls for beating whipping cream just does not work
   - use   glass or metal.
   
   
   
   

RATING: MAGNIFICIENT!
Moderately easy to make 
Explosive Heavenly Taste experience

 

...darleen