An Award! and, Brown Butter Pecan Cake with Chocolate Ganache.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

I arrived home from a fun weekend in New York to find a nice surprise—I’d been nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award by Laurie from A Taste of Morning! Laurie is a fellow philosopher who writes a beautiful blog from her bed & breakfast in Kansas. In particular, I love her photography of flowers and plants. Thanks for thinking of me, Laurie!

Nominees share 7 things about themselves and then nominate 15 of their favorites blogs for the award in return. Here are my 7 things:

1. I majored in philosophy in college. Ethics is my favorite.
2. I’ve lived in St. Louis, Chicago, Massachusetts, Ireland, and Moscow. I was only in Moscow 2 months, but I love that city so much that I just have to count it!
3. My favorite TV shows are Arrested Development and The Simpsons.
4. I’m a crazy Cubs fan. I’ve been to more than 50 Cubs games in my life and don’t plan on slowing down any time soon!
5. My favorite foods are baklava, quesadillas, grapefruit, Wienerschnitzel, and raspberries.
6. Every time I pass someone walking a Siberian Husky on the street, I have to stop and give that puppy some love!
7. I refused to eat seafood of any kind until 2009. Now I love it.

And here are my 15 nominations, in no particular order, for the Versatile Blogger Award:

1. Hungry Hinny
2. Grown in Texas
3. We Call Him “Yes! Chef!”
4. Fiona Grows Food
5. The Soulsby Farm
6. The Patterned Plate
7. Natalie’s Daily Crave
8. The Sprout Diaries
9. The Budget Cooking Blog
10. With the Grains
11. Natasha’s Kitchen
12. Charles and Kimberly’s Recipes
13. Hungry Foodie Pharmacy
14. Toy Kitchen Chef
15. Czech That Out

To all my nominees, I love your blogs and I’m happy to give you a shout-out for your great work!

…….

And now, the recipe:

Some recipes are born of utility, and this is one of those. Or, more simply said, a few days ago I wanted dessert. The things I had in the house were: pecans, Greek yogurt, and standard baker’s materials. No fruit, just a tiny bit of chocolate, and in general, nothing particularly interesting, and that meant not a lot of options. But I nosed around a few of my favorite cooking blogs and found some inspiration that sent me down the path of cake-making. If you’re a cake maker, and you’ve never tried this method of preparing your wet ingredients, I highly highly recommend it. It’s the same method I used in Drunken Squirrel’s Cake, and I love the way it makes the cake so airy and fluffy, but dense at the same time. And the chocolate ganache…just make this cake already!

INGREDIENTS

Cake:
1 cup pecans
1/2 stick (4 oz.) butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbsp milk
1 cup minus 2 tbsp Greek yogurt
squeeze of lemon
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt

Ganache:
1/3 cup heavy cream
3 oz. unsweetened bakers chocolate
3/4 tbsp butter
3 tbsp powdered sugar, plus more to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large sauce pan, toast your pecans until they’re fragrant and slightly browned. Let them cool, then blitz them in a food processor to the consistency of wet sand.

In a saucepan over medium high heat, melt and brown your butter, stirring occasionally. When little brown bits are bubbling to the surface and the butter itself is brown, remove from heat and set aside to cool (you’ll know it’s done because it will smell amazinggg).

Now, the eggs. Separate the whites and the yolks. Put the yolks in a metal bowl and add the sugar.

Place the bowl over a pot of gently simmering water and whisk like crazy. At first, the yolk and sugar seize together and stick inside your whisk, but keep beating them and they’ll eventually turn into a thick, pale yellow cream.

Remove yolks from heat and gently stir in the ground pecans, yogurt, milk, lemon juice, and cooled brown butter.

Meanwhile, beat the whites until they form stiff peaks.

Take a scoop of the whites and gently stir it into the yolk mixture, to even out the textures a bit. Then fold in the rest of the whites.

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift into the wet ingredients, and gently fold together until combined.

Pour batter into a greased spring-form pan.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top just starts to turn golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow your cake to cool completely before you cover it with the ganache.

Now, the chocolate glaze. Gently heat the cream in a pan over medium heat. Just when it reaches the boiling point, remove from heat and pour over the chocolate and butter.

Add the powdered sugar and stir well until all the chocolate has melted and you’re left with a smooth ganache. Taste and add more powdered sugar as necessary to reach desired sweetness.

Pour evenly over the cake.

Place your cake in the fridge to firm up a bit. That’s it!

Fresh Peach Crisp.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

I always really enjoy shopping at farmers’ markets; I’m a sucker for food porn, and it’s hard for me to say no to an open-air market with rows of tables, piled with picture-perfect produce. I always go home with some nice fruits and veggies, but every once in a while the farmers’ market comes through with a big win. This week, it was fresh-picked Michigan peaches. I can definitely say I’ve never had a better peach than these, and I might even go as far as to say that they were some of the best fruit I’ve ever had! Perfect texture, amazing flavor, and a juicy, drip-down-your-chin sweetness that I’m sure makes me look cartoony as I lick my lips and dab at my chin. I ate a few of them in their natural state, but I made sure to save 4 peaches so that I could make this dessert, inspired by seven spoons. And it was totally worth the wait!

INGREDIENTS

2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oats
1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp brown sugar
4 tbsp sugar, divided
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick cold butter, cubed
2/3 cup sour cream
1 overflowing tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp honey
4 fresh Michigan peaches (or regular peaches…obviously), cut into eighths

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Combine flours, oats, brown sugar, 2 tbsp sugar, and salt in a bowl.

Then add cold cubes of butter to the dry ingredients and work butter into the mix, rubbing everything together with your fingers. Place topping in the fridge until you’re ready for the final step.

In another bowl, stir together the remaining 2 tbsp sugar, sour cream, vanilla, and honey.

Now, take a handful of the crumb topping and pat it loosely on the bottom of your pie pan, almost like a crust. Spread the yogurt mixture over it, on top of the crumb crust.

Now lay the peaches in a swirl pattern on top of the yogurt.

Top with the rest of the crumb topping and bake for between 30-35 minutes.

Remove from oven when the topping is golden brown. Let cool before eating. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.

And after you cut out that first slice, pause a moment and admire how this yellow-y orange crisp looks like Ms. Pacman. Wocka wocka wocka.

Toasted Pecan Coleslaw.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

Happy Fourth of July!! And to all friends in Chicago, Boston, and anywhere else that is brutally, disgustingly hot and humid today, I feel your pain. I think I’ve mentioned before that my apartment doesn’t have air conditioning, but as long as I don’t turn the oven on, it’s actually pretty pleasant. Today I volunteered to make coleslaw for a barbecue, and I was excited to riff on a Nigella Lawson recipe that I saw on one of her shows. One thing I wanted to do was oven-roast some pecans to top off the coleslaw, but on a hot hot hot day like today, even I have enough self-control to stay away from the oven. So instead of an elegant “roasted pecan coleslaw,” I made a much more down-to-earth “pan-toasted pecan coleslaw”—and just as important, my apartment is still livably cool. Besides, it’s Independence Day, and I have the right to prepare my pecans any way I want!

INGREDIENTS

1 head white cabbage, shredded
3 carrots, peeled and grated
3 green onions, white and green parts, sliced thin
1 scant cup olive oil mayo
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tsp honey
2 tbsp Greek yogurt
dash of hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups unsalted pecans, rough chop

DIRECTIONS

Combine cabbage, carrot, and green onions in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, stir together mayo, vinegar, honey, yogurt, and hot sauce.

Pour sauce over the cabbage mixture, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Put coleslaw in the fridge until ready to serve.

Heat a large pan over medium flame and add the pecans. As soon as they start to release that beautiful nutty smell, start to watch them carefully, because they’ll burn pretty quickly. When they’ve darkened slightly in color and they smell strong, but not burned, remove them from heat.

Just before you serve, sprinkle the coleslaw with your toasted pecans. Enjoy it on a burger or pulled pork sandwich or eat it with baked beans, then have some apple pie, and watch some fireworks. Happy 4th!

Homemade Pickles.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen3 Comments

When I found myself in possession of some cute miniature pickling cucumbers, I wanted to try making pickles in my humble little apartment kitchen. Canning your own food is an art—-and it’s an art I have not mastered. I’d love to get the proper equipment and learn to home-can, but for now, this method will do the trick. The bright cucumbers and spices make for such a pretty jar in your fridge, and they crunch and taste just like store-bought pickles! This recipe will make a jar of garlicy dill pickles with a bit of spice, and while they won’t last as long as the properly-canned kind, they’ll keep in your fridge for about 3-4 weeks of crunchy pickle goodness.

INGREDIENTS

6 pickling cucumbers, cut into whatever shape you want (I cut them into spears)
3/4 cups distilled white vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 cup cold water
pinch of ground coriander
pinch of turmeric
1/4 tsp dried dill
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS

In a stainless steel or teflon pot over medium heat, whisk together vinegar, salt, and sugar until dissolved. Pour into a bowl and whisk in cold water. Refrigerate the brine until chilled.

Fill a clean jar (I used an old salsa jar and they fit perfectly) with cucumbers. Sprinkle the flavorings around the jar and then pour in the brine.

Refrigerate at least 24 hours before you dig in. Try your pickles on a Chicago dog or with a buffalo chicken grilled cheese!

Warm Lentil Salad with Goat Cheese and Roasted Beets.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen3 Comments

The end of a bag of lentils sitting in my pantry, a great little beet stand at the farmers market, and a passionate and undying love of goat cheese contributed to my creation of this lentil salad. Goat cheese and lentils are fine and dandy, but I’m definitely not a beet lover. I do enjoy them from time to time, but I’m picky about how they’re prepared. Luckily, goat cheese is a beet’s best friend. Throw these two buddies over a well-dressed lentil salad and you’ve got yourself a dish that will make non-members of the beet chorus change their tune! Oh, and I forgot to mention, there’s bacon, too. Just in case you needed more convincing.

INGREDIENTS

3 small beets, scrubbed clean
1/2 cup olive oil, plus more for the beets
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme, plus 3 sprigs
squeeze of honey
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 cup French lentils
bay leaf
3 sprigs parsley
4 cups chicken stock
4 strips bacon
2 shallots, minced
goat cheese

DIRECTIONS

First, get the beets a-roastin’.  Preheat oven to 375 F. Rub the beets with a bit of olive oil and wrap them in foil. Set them on a pan and roast for about 45 minutes, until fork tender.

When the beets have cooled enough to touch, slice them.

Next, the dressing. Whisk together 1/2 cup olive oil, vinegar, mustard, 1 tsp chopped thyme, honey, and salt and pepper. Let it sit a while so the flavors can marry.

To prepare the lentils, bring stock, bay leaf, and sprigs of thyme and parsley to a boil.

Stir in lentils, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes.

In a large frying pan, cook bacon until browned to your liking and remove from pan. Don’t drain off the grease.

Turn off the heat and add shallots to pan with hot bacon grease. Cook for 1 minute, until they just start to brown.

Drain lentils and remove bay leaf, parsley, and thyme, and add lentils to warm pan with the shallot. Stir in most of the dressing and then taste, and add more dressing if you need it. Garnish with bacon bits, crumbled goat cheese, and sliced beets. Dig in!

Herbed White Bean Dip.

Published on by KellyInTheKitchen2 Comments

I made chili with the first can of accidentally-purchased white beans; now, what to do with the second can? I considered making another batch of that heavenly chili, but a brave chef would branch out and try something new. And I really do try to be a brave chef, after all. So I took the advice of my cousin Caitie and my reader Laurie and made a bean dip. This herby, spicy dip is a great substitute for hummus (ironically, that’s what I meant to make when I picked up these cans of beans in the first place!), but spread a hefty scoop on a sandwich and you’ll go nuts! A totally guilt-free dip or spread–what more could I ask for from an ingredient I bought by accident?!

INGREDIENTS

2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
1/8 tsp fresh lemon balm, minced
1/4 tsp fresh parsley, minced
1/4 tsp cumin
generous pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste (you’re gonna need more salt that you think, so go easy and add more as needed)
1 can great northern beans or other white beans, drained
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed

DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients in a food processor: first the gorgeous garlic, herbs, and spices.

Then the beans and olive oil.

Blitz everything until you reach desired consistency. Add more olive oil as needed. Then add more cayenne pepper because you didn’t add enough the first time.

Garnish with parsley and serve with warm pita bread, tortilla chips, spread on a sandwich, or my favorite, with orange and purple carrot sticks.