Aprons On

"Also, happy National Peanut Butter Day!..."

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:20:19 -0500

“Also, happy National Peanut Butter Day!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=x7LJVmFl-ts”

Basic Black Bean Soup + Spicy Sweet Potatoes

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:05:00 -0500

“Do you have any picture of real people on your camera?”

Quote my sister, who was skeptical that I take pictures of things that move. She may have a point. Yes, I do have human friends. But the ratio of edible items to people on my current memory card leans towards the things I have cooked. And I don’t bake people.

She asked this as I was snapping shots of black bean soup. This recipe is courtesy of Emiliano’s Cafe, a delightful Latin restaurant in downtown Gainesville. It is too easy for anyone to dismiss. Put everything in a medium saucepan and leave it for a half hour to simmer. That’s it.

I paired the soup with sweet potato crisps and a yogurt-lime sauce. You can dollop the sauce on top of the soup in place of sour cream.

Basic Black Bean Soup:

Ingredients:

2 cans black beans

1/2 onion

1 green pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 cup olive oil

Procedure:

Put it all in a sauce pan on medium heat. Don’t even drain the beans. Just dump it all in.

Stir.

When it starts to bubble, turn the heat down to low. Let it simmer.

Go watch an episode of Mad Men. In a half hour, dinner is served.

Or, you can skip the TV episode and make some sweet potato fries while the soup is simmering.

Spicy Sweet Potatoes

(original recipe)

Ingredients:

4 sweet potatoes

4 tsp cumin

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil

small bowl-full of plain yogurt, preferably Greek

zest and juice of 1 lime

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350.

Slice the sweet potatoes to your favorite thickness. Thinner ones will be crisper, thicker ones softer. I like to keep the skins on but you can always peel them off before slicing, if you so choose.

Mix together the spices.

Toss the sweet potato slices in olive oil. Lay them on a baking pan and sprinkle with half of the spices.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Flip, coat the other sides with the remaining spices and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until golden.

This meal is super-nutritious. The black beans in the soup are a great source of protein and fiber. Sweet potatoes pack beta-carotene, vitamin A and vitamin C. For your body to process the optimal amount of beta-carotene, it’s best to pair with a bit of fat: olive oil is a perfect companion.

The black bean soup is great to make a large batch of and eat as leftovers throughout the week.

Happy cooking - and eating!

French Im-press-ions

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:21:15 -0500

With Ira Glass’s This American Life playing (Episode #424: Kid Politics, to be exact) at the decibel level that some people blast Lil’ Wayne, I opened my Aerobie Aeropress Coffee and Espresso Maker. When I purchased it from Amazon, I assumed it was a french press because it was the first search result when I typed in “french press” on the site. I usually take Amazon’s opinion as the honest truth. The coffee experts roaming the Internet disagree. No, what I bought was “an entrely new way to make coffee” (coffeegeek) using a microfiltration system. Well. The pun was too golden to throw away, but after preparing my double shot of espresso, I side with the coffee connoisseurs.

First off, it helps to have two other kitchen gadget friends in the room with you. For the best-tasting coffee, it is worth the extra two minutes to grind your own beans. This requires a coffee grinder, unless you have biceps of steel and are willing to slave over a mortar and pestle. Device number two is really only necessary because I like to operate in a microwave-less kitchen. My hot water boiler is needed for daily coffees and teas. However, I’m sure zapping a mug of water would be just as effective.

That being said: my little Aerobie performed fantastically. Unlike a french press, which has to steep and then requires a bit of clean-up, the microfiltration system on the Aeropress took a grand total of 30 seconds and was easy to wash. Its seven parts were initially daunting but after preparing one mug of coffee, I threw away all instructions.

Clockwise from left: filters, grounds/water chamber, useless plastic, useless plastic, plunger, scooper, stirrer, filter holder. (Note: not official names)

To prepare a lovely mug of coffee:

1. Fit a filter into the filter holder. Screw on to grounds/water chamber.

2. Grind some fresh coffee and start boiling your water.

3. Take two scoops of fresh coffee ground and dump them in to the grounds/water chamber. Take care not to spill grounds all over the counter, as I am prone to do.

4. When the water is nearly boiling, set the chamber on top of a mug. Pour water to the chamber up to the number 2.

5. Still with the stirrer for 10 seconds.

6. Wet the plunger and push into the chamber, rubber end first, and push down for 20 seconds.

7. You now have two delicious shots of espresso!

To make an Americano, add some more hot water. To make a latte, add some milk.

I’m completely sold. The coffee was smooth, rich and far from bitter. This is certainly the coffee I would serve to a skeptical friend.

And while we’re chatting over coffee, NPR posted this delightful little story about the drink.

Happy caffination!

Out of Africa

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 22:50:40 -0500

Sadly, Meryl Streep and Robert Redford are not in the kitchen with me today. But that’s okay, because I have plenty of other life events to be excited about.

1. A new camera

2. A new camera with a special “food” setting. They know our generation well. All we really want to see is pictures of what our friends ate for lunch.

3. A new recipe that combines two of my favorite staple foods: sweet potatoes and peanut butter

Sweet potatoes can be a very simple meal. Throw one in the oven, bake it till piping hot, top it with some cinnamon, walnuts and raisins and (cue the fairy dust) you have an instant meal. However, this recipe is a little more involved. Don’t balk. It only takes about a half hour.

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped
2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
2 1/4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
2 14.5 ounce cans chopped tomatoes
2 14.5 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 pound green beans, cut in 1 inch pieces (fresh or frozen)
1 ½ cups vegetable broth
¼ cup natural peanut butter

Personally, I added everything that was noted as “optional.” I didn’t peel the sweet potatoes because I have no problem eating the skin and rather like the difference in texture it provides. However, it’s as you like it. I also added the vegetable broth on a need basis. I started with ½ cup, then splashed a bit in as I saw fit. I probably only added 1 cup total and achieved a nice thick consistency.

If you were wondering, 2 teaspoons of ginger is about 2 knuckles-worth. If you are looking at a piece of fresh ginger, you’ll understand. A teaspoon of garlic is about 2 cloves. 2 ¼ pounds of sweet potatoes is about 3 large tubers.

Pre-chop

Post-chop

Procedure:

Place 1/3 cup water, onion, jalapenos, ginger and garlic in a large pot.

Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.

Add cumin, cinnamon, salt, red pepper and coriander. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Add sweet potatoes, tomatoes, chickpeas, green beans, vegetable broth and peanut butter.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

Original recipe from fatfreevegan.com

"When writing is going well, it’s hard, and for most of us, most of the time it’s not going all that..."

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:38:59 -0400

“When writing is going well, it’s hard, and for most of us, most of the time it’s not going all that well. When students ask, “When did you know you might be a writer? How did you know?,” one of the things I tell them is that they may be designed for that life if a) they need to do it in order to feel good about themselves, even though b) doing it almost never makes them feel good about themselves.”

- Jim Shepard (via t3chn0b4bbl3)

Monday: Jim Shepard

(via nprfreshair)

The Return: Oss-ome Oatmeal Cookies

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 00:34:04 -0400

No, I really do know how to spell. The “oss” in the title is in reference to ossification, the process that forms and strengthens bones. Oatmeal is an excellent source of fiber, which is a key player in bone health. After eating these delicious cookies, your bones will be feeling oss-ome.

My hiatus from this spot does not mean I have been on a break from my relationship with the apron. I have been baking and cooking just as prolifically, only it has been for mi familia at home. In fact, my parents have joked that they will keep me hostage in the fall so I can keep being the resident chef here. Sorry mom and dad. Gainesville is going to win that battle. So what have I won their favors with? To tease your palate: a peanutty pad thai, some presto pesto potatoes and peas (and I wasn’t even thinking about alliterations when I was cooking it, I swear), and a meal of tantalizing tempeh.

These cookies still follow my dorm room logic: the ingredients aren’t exotic and the process doesn’t require a kumquat splicer/slicer/dicer. I’m taking a page out of 101cookbooks again, but (again) the directions are my own words.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, cut into little cubes
2 tablespoons honey
couple hearty shakes of lemon zest

1 tablespoon boiling (or just really hot) water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

I use local honey and would highly recommend you do the same. For the sake of the cake (or any other baked good), it has more flavor. Also, it can reduce environmental allergies because the bees deposit local pollen into the honey. Introducing the allergen to your body in small doses works in the same way that a vaccine does. So local honey packs a double punch: better taste and better health!

This is what you get if you buy oats from Costco: potential for many cookies.

Now, on to the

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 325

1. Mix together all of the dry ingredients.

2. Using either a double boiler (recommended) or microwave melt the butter with honey and lemon zest.

3. Whisk the baking powder and boiling water together. It fizzles quite nicely. Enjoy imagining how much more fun it would be with red food dye and a clay mountain for it to erupt out of…then add it to your butter/honey/zest mixture. Mix it around some.

4. Pour the butter/honey/zest/recently added baking soda/water mixture in with the dry ingredients. Stir it around until well combined.

It has a tendency to turn in to one large doughball. If you’re not sure if the butter is evenly spread out (and don’t mind getting your fingers covered in dough so that you HAVE TO lick them) go ahead and mix it around with your fingers. You can never be too sure. Do a deep detailed investigation. Coat your fingers in uncooked cookie. No eggs no cry.

5. You can bake these a variety of ways. As cookies, make sure they have enough room to spread out. Drop them as balls taller than wide, if possible. They also work really well as minimuffins.

Take your pick. I like the minimuffin technique, personally. These babies take about 8-10 minutes to cook. Their larger cousins take a bit longer: 10-12 minutes.

Savory Spinach Stack: Lasagna With Vegetables

Wed, 06 Apr 2011 01:33:00 -0400

As college students, we are known to subsist on a varied diet of Ramen noodles, spaghetti, rice noodles and fettuccini. Fair enough. I have no bones to pick with pasta. I am not opposed to carbohydrates as a food group – in fact I am a strong proponent of having energy throughout my day. However, eating a diet of only brown foods is an easy pit of quicksand to step in to. Oatmeal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, pasta for dinner and maybe some cookies for a snack don’t add up to a nutritionally varied day. In order to get all the vitamins and minerals you need, fruits and vegetables are a much. Want to see how you stack up? Check out the Center for Disease Control’s Analyze My Plate interactive activity: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/activities/analyze_my_plate.html.

If you’re still feeling okay about your eating habits, read Barbra Kingslover’s Animal Vegetable Miracle. In this autobiographical novel, the author relocates her family to a farm for the year. For 12 months, they only ate food from the farm or products grown close by. Throughout the book, there are facts and statistics about the energy wasted shipping oranges from California to Florida (where citrus is a main crop), the appalling pesticides used on many leafy greens and the conditions that egg chickens are kept in. Reading Animal Vegetable Miracle was a powerful impetus for me to eat more locally. At the end of every chapter, there is a wholesome recipe.

The original recipe for Spinach Lasagna is as follows:

SPINACH LASAGNA

1 lb. whole grain lasagna noodles

Prepare according to package directions

4 cups chopped spinach

Steam for 2-3 minutes, let excess water drain

16 oz. tomato sauce

2 cups fresh ricotta

2 cups mozzarella

Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce on the bottom of a large casserole. Cover surface with a layer of noodles, 1⁄2 of the ricotta, 1⁄2 of the spinach, 1/3 of the remaining sauce and 1/3 of the mozzarella. Lay down another layer of noodles, the rest of the ricotta, the rest of the spinach, 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the mozzarella. Spread a final layer of noodles, the remainder of the sauce and mozzarella, bake uncovered at 350 for 40 minutes.

Personally, I would add some diced peppers and baby bella mushrooms to the spinach. If you’re a fan of garlic, mix two tasty fresh-pressed cloves into the sauce. Enjoy the variety of colors!

Plateful of Protein: Peanutty Black Bean Tofu

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 23:58:00 -0400

As a vegetarian, getting an ample amount of protein is a daily concern. Most of my protein comes from a mix of soy products, nuts and beans. This dish combines these three sources of amino acid building blocks into a delicious Thai-style dinner. If you are a carnivore and are quick to label vegetarian meals as less than substantial, this one will shift your mindset.

The recipe, titled Peanutty Black Bean Tofu, is paraphrased by yours truly from a nifty cookbook called I Like Food, Food Tastes Good (a statement everyone can agree with) that my friend bought for me in San Francisco. It is a compilation of some of my favorite bands’ favorite recipes. This one is from Matt Simon, the drummer for Voxtrot. They are an alternative pop-rock band from Austin, TX. For the full experience, I recommend playing their tracks The Start of Something and New Love while cooking.

New Love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY8Hy9o3rLs

The Start of Something: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtWhB1JgZGc

Ingredients:

1 lb extra-firm tofu

½ cup vegetable oil

2 cups short-grain rice

1 15-oz can of black beans

¼ yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 jalapeno (if you like it spicy)

1 tsp. thyme

3 TBSP peanut butter (I use the Publix brand that’s straight ground peanut with no added sugar or salt)

½ cup rice vinegar

1 TBSP soy sauce

½ cup honey

black pepper to taste

3 handfuls baby spinach

sesame seeds

To Prepare:

1. Boil 3 ½ cups of water. Instead of watching the pot and jinxing the boiling, drain the tofu and it into chunks. Make sure they’re big enough not to break up when you move on to the frying step.

2. Heat the oil in a skillet. Stick one piece of onion in the oil. When it starts sizzling, you know the oil is hot enough- then add the tofu.

3. When the water is boiling, add the rice, reduce to a simmer and cover.

4. Drain about a quarter of the liquid from the black beans, the pour the remaining contents of the can into a small pot. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno (if you so choose) and thyme. Cook on a low heat.

5. If the tofu has been cooking for about 10 minutes, take this time to flip it around. After its sufficiently stirred and browning on uncooked sides, grab a mixing bowl and stir together the peanut butter, rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey and black pepper until smooth.

6. Once the tofu is nice and toasty brown, drain any excess oil from the skillet. Pour the beans (which should have been cooking for about 20 minutes at this point) over the tofu. Reduce the heat to low.

7. Add the peanut sauce bit by bit. Mix everything around as you go.

8. Put the spinach on top and cover the skillet. Check on your rice and make sure it’s cooked. If it’s done, remove the rice from heat.

9. When the spinach is wilted, your dinner is ready! Start with a bed of rice and top with the tofu/bean concoction. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Vivacious Volunteering: A Day at the Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition

Mon, 04 Apr 2011 23:39:00 -0400

One of my favorite aspects of college life is the infectious spontaneity that penetrates many decisions. It was this type of decision-making that landed a friend and me at the First Annual Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition in Ocala, Fla. last Sunday. (I.C.E.D. stands for Impressive and Creative Edible Designs).

While perusing my weekly e-mail from the UF Center for Leadership and Service, I noticed that volunteers were needed at this competition. A day spent surrounded by elaborate pastry creations that included free samples was an opportunity that I could not pass down. After a few e-mails coordinating t-shirt sizes, rides and schedules, we were ready to go.

Upon our arrival at the Ocala Holiday Inn, we received our shirts and assignments. We watched competitors use the glass elevator to cautiously transport their creations down to the ground floor. Others employed husbands or children or both to carry reinforced cardboard boxes across the atrium.

Each cake was more ornate than the last. I was convinced that most of them could not possibly be edible- and was proven right. Most cakes shown in competitions, I learned, are not actually desserts. They are lightweight cardboard and dowel structures covered by the frosting and fondant. This way, the “cake” is lighter to carry and can be worked on over an extended period of time.

The theme of the competition was Romantic Wedding Dresses, so a photo of the wedding gown that provided the inspiration accompanied the cakes on display. The dresses ranged from traditional white lace numbers to brightly colored Indian saris.

The vernacular of cake decorating was a foreign language for me. Words such as gumpaste (a substance similar to fondant but more durable), edible printing (photos printed on to the icing sheets) and hospital (for injured pastries, not people) were thrown around conversationally. I overheard snippets of conversations about fondant fairy workshops and the difficulty of creating a perfectly smooth base layer of frosting as if these were the types of conversations everyone has on a daily basis.

The highlight of the day, naturally, was the free food. Local bakeries provided samples of cupcakes, chocolate berries and cakes. I am now inspired to recreate a certain orange-flavored mini cupcake with raspberry jam hidden in the center.

However, around 2 p.m., my senses were inundated with sugar. I was feeling a high from all the sweet in the air. The cake room was emitting a continuous wave of fructose-infused oxygen. By the time we left Ocala at 5 p.m., I had definitely had my cake and eaten it too. I took away a satisfied stomach and a head full of fresh ideas for the next time I have endless hours to decorate baked goods.

Melanie Judge and Lisa Menz put this competition together. From my understanding, it exceeded their expectations in size and success. There will be a second annual Florida I.C.E.D. Cake Competition next spring with a Masquerade Ball theme.

Cardiac Conscious Chocolate Cake

Sun, 03 Apr 2011 11:28:00 -0400

In anticipation for Valentine’s Day a few months ago, I purchased a heart shaped springform pan from Amazon.com. The plan was to bake the Red Velvet Cheesecake (the recipe is a few posts down if this sparks your interest) in it. However, my plan was foiled when my next-day shipping order turned into a three-week shipping job. Until today, the pan sat sadly on the shelf, waiting for an appropriate time to make its debut. Eventually, I decided that opportune moments don’t really exist. A random Sunday afternoon was a fantastic time to take the pan out of its packaging and make a chocolate cake.

This cake shaped isn’t like a heart arbitrarily. By using maple syrup and coconut oil, you will avoid some of the most damaging sugars and fats found in your standard decadent desserts. Your cardiac arteries will thank you later.

This recipe is also pulled more or less from www.101cookbooks.com. I’ve made a few adjustments of my own. If you’re feeling confident, feel free to take your own liberties and jazz the cake up as you like it.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup barely melted unsalted butter (or coconut oil)

1 cup real maple syrup, room temperature

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup coconut milk, room temperature

8 ounces good-quality bittersweet chocolate, shaved or finely chopped

To prepare:

Prep work: Recruit a baking assistant.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Mist your pan with non-stick spray, whether it’s shaped like a heart or not. A standard 8x8 will work best. Just keep baking times in mind when adjusting the shape and size. The thinner the layer of batter, the less time it will take to cook.

2. Mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

3. In a separate (smaller) bowl, whisk together the melted butter and maple syrup until it looks like caramel. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. Add the coconut milk and stir.

Try to get out as many of the butter clump as possible.

4. Pour the maple syrup mixture over the flour mixture. Mix together until just barely combined. Don’t over-stir!

5. Add the chocolate shavings and stir until everything comes together and is no longer dusty looking. Again, don’t over-stir. This is vital for having the optimal texture at the end.

6. Fill your heart (or pan) with chocolately batter.

7. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes. Personally, I like my cakes moist. If you have the same cake prerogative, pull the cake out when the middle is ever so slightly undercooked. During the toothpick test, the toothpick won’t come out completely clean.

8. Cool absolutely completely before frosting with the recipe below.

Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

2 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate

1/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 cup Cool Whip

To prepare:

1. Melt the chocolate in a bowl placed over a pan of boiling water. If this seems like a disaster waiting to happen, the microwave will work just fine. Heat for 30 seconds, stir, then heat for another 30 seconds. Repeat until the chocolate is melted.

2. In a medium bowl beat the butter until smooth and fluffy. Beat in the maple syrup. Add the melted chocolate.

3. Stir until silky smooth – all those flecks of butter should be combined.

4. Pour the chocolate mixture over the Cool Whip. Fold the chocolate into the cream. Keep on folding until the frosting is more or less the same shade of brown throughout.

5. Frost! If you were impatient, your frosting will melt. So go organize your pencil collection or solve some Physics problems. Your cake will cool in no time.

6. Options for serving:

a. WholeHeartedly: give the entire cake to a loved one.

b. Half of My Heart: slice in half. Think of it as a very ephemeral friendship necklace that tastes a lot better.

c. Heartbroken: use ample jagged lines. Serve with a dollop of bitterness.

d. Love is a Battlefield: stick strawberries in the frosting until just submerged as instant land mines. Make appropriate exploding sounds when someone comes across the TNT.

Simple, Sumptuous Salads

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 11:14:39 -0400

If you can’t take the heat, you should get out of the kitchen-and Florida. As the temperatures in Gainesville climb into the 80s around lunchtime, I am less and less inclined to eat any warm food. Crisp, refreshing salads are the perfect solution. I am not a huge fan of most salad dressing, so I opt for a mélange of toppings to add some kick to the lettuce. Use the freshest vegetables possible: not bagged, not pre-sliced and most certainly never frozen. Buy the whole vegetable and take the time to wash and slice it.

The best aspect of preparing salad is that the ratios are completely up to you. Add what you like, subtract what you don’t. There’s no measuring involved in this recipe.

Here are some of my favorite flavor combinations:

Spinach Citrus:

Bed of: baby spinach leaves

Topped with: sunflower seeds, orange, grapefruit and strawberry slices

This salad is extremely light and refreshing. It’s perfect to pack up in your cooler for a day at the beach. I like to squeeze the oranges a little as I’m preparing this salad, so the juice acts like a light dressing.

Mediterranean:

Bed of: Romaine lettuce

Topped with: hummus, red peppers, cucumbers, black beans, feta cheese and a splash of olive oil

If you’re feeling deprived of protein, look no farther. The hummus, beans and cheese are all loaded with amino acid building blocks to fill you up. Be sure to scoop up your extra toppings with a pita chip or two.

Tex-Mex:

Bed of: Romaine lettuce

Topped with: green peppers, cucumbers, salsa, jalapeños, Mexican blend cheese, (or your own blend of Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Queso Quesidilla and Asadero cheeses) avocado slices and a dollop of sour cream

Essentially, it’s your burrito turned out on to a plate. If this meal doesn’t feel filling enough, add some black beans. Serve with tortilla chips.

Walk in the Garden:

Bed of: Romaine lettuce, baby spinach leaves, any other variety of leafy green that tickles your fancy

Topped with: the vegetable drawer in your fridge: carrots, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, celery, oil, vinegar and a pinch of salt

If you need to clean out your fridge, this salad will get one section empty. Most fruits can also be added pretty easily to this flavor cacophony. A tart Granny Smith apple pairs nicely with the vinegar.

Beastless Burgers

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 00:40:42 -0400

Growing up in a vegetarian household, I didn’t exactly understand that hamburgers are made from meat. At the vulnerable age of seven, I ordered a hamburger in a restaurant, fully expecting a veggie burger. When the burger showed up, unfamiliar and full of beef, I was confused. Where was my tofu patty? My parents explained the true nature of the hamburger. In response, I burst in to tears and refused to eat it, or so the story goes.

Many years later, I’m still not keen on your standard hamburger. However, I’m also not keen on zapping frozen patties either. Instead of bawling into a box of Boca Burgers, I set out to make my own veggie burgers.

The recipe that I followed is from www.101cookbooks.com, which is an invaluable website for any vegetarian chef. The recipe in its original form is here:

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/tofu-burgers-recipe.html

My version (with few adaptations) looks like this:

16 oz extra-firm tofu, drained and patted dry, then sliced

2 large eggs

1/2 cup fine dried breadcrumbs

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne

1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

extras: whatever buns and condiments you like.

Side note 1: If you don’t have premade breadcrumbs, they’re pretty simple to make. Just take some older bread, throw it in the toaster, then crumble it into pieces. In this case, it doesn’t matter how fine the pieces are because they’re going to be blended anyways.

Side note 2: we substituted peanut butter for the original cashews, which made the batter much moister.

Place all the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor, blender, or bowl. We put ours in a bowl and used a stick blender. If you are a true college student and have none of the above tools, vigorous stirring and smooshing with a spoon should do the job.

Pulse until the mixture comes together and is free of most chunks, stopping to scrape extras back in to their place. If you feel like your patties are too wet, just add more breadcrumbs.

Pour the olive oil into a skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil it hot, make your patties (make sure to press together firmly!) and drop them into the pan.

Cook until you see the sides start turning a light brown, about ten minutes. Flip and cook for another six or so. You want both sides to be a delectable brown color.

This recipe should make about eight tofu burgers

We kept our toppings classic: hamburger buns, ketchup, lettuce and mustard. However, after the first round I am eager to make them again with some variations. If you’re feeling adventurous, try one of these spin-offs:

-Asian burger-

Add to the patties: water chestnuts, bok choy (Chinese cabbage) and bamboo shoots

Top with: mung bean sprouts, ginger slices and chili sauce

-Garden patch burger-

Add to the patties: lots more vegetables, especially thinly sliced squash and zucchini, whole mushroom pieces, carrot slivers or broccoli florets

Top with: cheese, pickles, sprouts, tomato slices and onions

Fanciful FlowerCakes

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 09:13:00 -0500

This semester, my public speaking class has taught me more than how to project my voice or persuade an audience. I have learned much more valuable skills. During the last round of demonstration speeches, our class was walked through the step-by-step process of how to make Chrysanthemum Cupcakes. And if one person speaking about dessert wasn’t enough, another speech was about how to make rainbow cake. We then had two more people demonstrate cupcake making. Needless to say, I was well on my way to developing diabetes after that period of public speaking.

This weekend, one of my friends from public speaking class decided to combine two of the ideas to make Gator-themed flower cupcakes. We spent an enjoyable Thursday night frosting orange and blue cupcakes with marshmallow petals. If you want to take the easy route, you can always buy cupcake mix and canned frosting. However, the following is one of my all-time favorite from-scratch cupcake recipes, from the blog chez pim (http://chezpim.com/)

Part 1:

Ingredients:

2/3 cup (120g) crèmes fraîche (or yogurt will do in a pinch)

2 large eggs

2 large yolks

2t vanilla extract (or 1 vanilla bean if you want to be indulgent)

2 cups (225g) all purpose flour

1 cup (225g) sugar

1t baking powder

1t baking soda

1.5 sticks (12T, 170g) butter at room temp.

To prepare:

Preheat the oven to 350F.

In a medium bowl, stir the crèmes fraîche, eggs, yolks, and vanilla extract together until well blended.

In your mixer bowl, mix all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder) together. Using your paddle attachment beat the soft butter into the dry ingredients. Add the crèmes fraîche/eggs mixture and beat until well incorporated.

Here’s the twist: decide how many different colors you want. We did two (orange and blue, of course) but there is no limit! For cupcakes, I would recommend a maximum of four just so the colors don’t bleed too much in to each other. Now, separate the batter in to as many bowls as colors you want. Add food dye. Mix well

Your bowls should look like tasty edible pots of paint. Start with a single color and divide it evenly across the tin. Take your second color and dollop it in to the tins.

Bake in the preheated oven for 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before continuing.

For the frosting

10T (140g) butter, room temp

10T (140g) cream cheese, room temp

1/3 cup (75g) powdered sugar

1T lemon juice

To make the frosting, beat butter, cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar and lemon juice together until well incorporated. If you work with butter and cream cheese at room temperature they will be easier to blend.

Step 2 :

After you have frosted the cupcakes, get together everything you’ll need to decorate.

Ingredients:

1 bag mini marshmallows

½ the number orange candy slices as cupcakes you are making (so if you’re making 12 cupcakes, you need 6 orange slices)

Edible sparkles

Tools:

Scissors you don’t mind getting sticky

To Prepare:

Take the marshmallows and cut them on a diagonal.

Cut the orange candy slices in half

Dip the sticky middle part of the marshmallows you’ve just exposed in sugar

Stick the marshmallow on the outer edge of the cupcake, sparkles facing up. Continue sticking sparkled marshmallows on the cupcake until you have three concentric circles.

Stick the half or an orange in to the middle.

Voila! You have beautiful flower cupcakes!

This YouTube video may do a better job explaining than I can: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_jDlSp4lAo

Eggs-quisite: A Farm-Fresh Scramble

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 00:10:00 -0500

I went to the Union Street Farmers Market for the first time today and had all five of my senses pleasantly bombarded. The vivid colors of strawberries that haven’t been sitting on freezer trucks and Publix shelves. The earthy odor of heads of lettuce yanked out of the ground just hours ago. The man with an unidentifiable accent encouraging me to try African ginger beer. (I did. It was the first ginger soda I’ve had that actually tasted crisply like ginger root.) I couldn’t help but run my fingers over the smooth shallots.

By far, the best part of the Farmer’s Market is the sampling. All of the vendors are eager for you to try their produce, probably because they know that once you taste fresh vegetables, the grocery store shelf will never be up to par. Today, I sampled oranges, eggplant spread, a variety of spinach leaves and yogurt.

I purchased three zucchinis and two squashes ($3) and two yogurts ($1). These prices are probably either comparable (or better) than your chain grocery story. The flavor of the produce is also exponentially more robust.

However, the benefits are not only personal. By buying from local growers, you are supporting their farms and the local economy as a whole. You are also giving your financial support to sound agricultural practices. Your food was not transported cross-country; therefore it did not pollute the environment with unnecessary fuel emissions.

I could go on for days singing the praises of local farmers markets. If you want to experience it for yourself, head down to Bo Diddley Plaza (111 E. University Ave.) between 4 and 7 p.m. any Wednesday, rain or shine. In addition to local farmers, there are also vendors selling breads, baked goods, local honey, jewelry, candles and herbs.

So, with my fresh zucchini and squash I made myself one of my favorite dinners: breakfast. This vegetable-egg scramble is not very exact, but that’s the beauty of it. Throw in whatever vegetables you’re in the mood for and enjoy.

Ingredients:

enough oil to just cover the bottom of the skillet

¼ yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

handful or two of broccoli

1 squash, sliced or diced*

½ zucchini, sliced or diced*

2 eggs

shake of oregano

double shake of basil

tiny pinch of salt

To prepare:

Heat the oil in a skillet. Drop in one tiny piece of onion. If it sizzles, the oil is heated.

Add the onions and garlic. Sautee for about 2 minutes, or until translucent.

Add the broccoli. Cook for about 2 minutes, then add the remaining veggies.

While the veggies are cooking, beat the eggs in a bowl. Add the spices.

Once the veggies are starting to brown, pour the egg mixture in to the skillet.

Let everything cook and set before you start scrambling. You should be able to run the spatula around the outside of the pan without any runny egg residue sticking to it. Then scramble away!

Once the eggs are cooked, remove from heat and eat promptly. No one likes cold eggs.

*Since my produce was from the Farmer’s Market, it was smaller than what you would probably find in a grocery store. Feel free to adjust the amount to be proportional to your desired egg/vegetable ratio.

Romantic Red Velvet Cheesecake

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:45:00 -0500

Red Velvet Cheesecake

Over winter break, a good friend of mine came across a Red Velvet Cheesecake recipe. While baking it for her Christmas party, we agreed that it would be the perfect Valentine’s Day treat, boyfriend or not. So, when Feb. 13 rolled around, we were in the kitchen with eight 8-ounce boxes of cream cheese, ready to make two red velvet cheesecakes. However, when 2:00 a.m. was flashing on the oven clock, our energy was drained, to say the least. We had started the process around 10:30 p.m. Cheesecake is a labor-intensive dessert. In this case, it was a labor of love. If you’re not emotionally driven, cheesecake may not be for you. I recommend waiting for times of extreme stress, frustration, or passion. The end results will be well worth the effort.

Before you delve into the world cheesecake creation, keep these ideas in mind:

1. You will need a spring form pan. This way, you can easily remove it from the pan once you are ready to serve your creation.

2. Leave yourself about 3 hours for the entire process. Baking alone takes an hour and a half. Cooling is an additional two hours.

3. Don’t plan on baking and serving it on the same day. It takes eight hours to refrigerate; I find that it is best to just leave it in the fridge overnight.

4. Don’t overbeat the batter. Otherwise, you will end up with unwanted air pockets.

I took this recipe from Southern Living, Thanks, Rhonda Y. Coker from Columbia, South Carolina! You make a delicious cheesecake. This one is creamy and moist as cheesecake should be, with the chocolate undertones of red velvet cake. Sandwiched between a base of chocolate graham cracker crumbs and a thick layer of cream cheese frosting, you will be sure to please your friends or loved ones.

So, without further ado: Red Velvet Cheesecake

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup whole buttermilk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar

2 (1-ounce) bottles red food coloring

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cheesecakecake:

Stick the graham cracker crumbs in a plastic ziplock baggie. Pound them. Smash them up. Here’s where you get to let our your anger. You want them to be just shy of a powder consistency.

Stir together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Press the mixture into bottom of a 9-inch spring form pan.

Beat 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar at medium-low speed with an electric mixer for a minute. Add eggs and next 6 ingredients, mixing on low speed just until fully combined. Emphasis on the “just”: you don’t wait to overbeat and end up with air pockets. This will detract from the thick delicious cheesecake texture that you want at the end.

Pour the batter into prepared crust.

Bake at 325° for 10 minutes, then turn down the heat to 300°. Bake for an hour and 15 minutes at 300° (or until the center is firm). Run a knife along outer edge of the cheesecake. Turn oven off.

Now it’s time to be patient or find other things to do. Let the cheesecake stand in oven 30 minutes. Then, remove cheesecake from oven and let it cool some more: this time in pan on a wire rack 30 minutes.

Finally, the final waiting step: cover and chill 8 hours.

For the frosting:

Beat 1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla. Continue beating until smooth.

Warning: the powdered sugar will fly. Everywhere. If you have the patience (there is a common theme in this recipe) add the powdered sugar extra slowly and then you will avoid looking like you just walked out of a sucrose snow flurry.

Spread evenly over top of cheesecake. Decorate with a message if you feel inspired to.

Place on the serving dish and remove sides of spring form pan. Enjoy!

Blissful Banana Muffins

Sun, 06 Feb 2011 23:47:15 -0500

I have a personal aversion to brown bananas. As soon as those nasty spots blemish their yellow skin, they are inedible in my book. If you’re one of those people who think that bananas are at their sweet best when they’re brown, you may never enjoy banana baked goods. I don’t have this problem. Spotty bananas instantly go to my baking pile.

Since I overbought bananas this week, I now have two festering fruits with barely any yellow skin showing. Solution: banana muffins. However, my overabundance of bananas is compensated by my lack of eggs. Solution #2: make those vegan banana muffins.

The word vegan is pretty loaded. It can conjure groans, hipseter associations, or empathy from dairy-less comrades. Officially, Mirriam-Webster defines vegan as “a strict vegetarian who consumes no animal food or dairy products; also : one who abstains from using animal products (as leather)”

There are also rumors that vegans have superpowers. Just ask Scott Pilgrim:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7qDBCDMSo8&feature=related

For my vegan banana muffins, I followed a mélange of recipes. My go-to banana bread recipe is from the Moosewood Cookbook, a recipe book compiled from the Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, NY. I found two more on a vegan baking forum (view the original recipes here http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=11441.0 and here http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/banana-oat-muffins/Detail.aspx)

So what are you waiting for? Put your apron on.

Banana Oat Muffins

Dry Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 cup oats (old fashioned)

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Wet Ingredients:

2 medium bananas

1/4 cup black coffee (cooled)

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup almond milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to your standard 350 degrees. Grease your muffin tin (or other oven-proof container) with nonstick spray. If you’re baking for vegan friends and not just out of lack of ingredients, make sure it’s not a butter-based spray.

Mix together the dry ingredients.

In another bowl, mash the bananas until smooth. Mix together the bananas and coffee. Add the remaining wet ingredients. Stir until the oil is completely mixed in. It will be a nice sandy color. You can play with the coffee/milk ratio, depending how you like the flavor

Optional step: fun additions. If you’d like, toss in dried cranberries, walnuts, slivered almonds, nutmeg, raisins, chocolate chips (carob if you want to keep it vegan), shredded coconut. Go crazy! Any flavor you can pair with bananas can be stirred in after the wet and dry ingredients have been combined.

Scoop the batter in to the greased muffin tin.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, depending on how temperamental your oven is.

Yields 24 standard size muffins. Enjoy, knowing that no animals were harmed in your baking production.