Another About Me and Flan!

I have edited info about me and fell in love with this piece:

Two parts passion. One part hope. Yet one can so easily find her pantry lacking. Hope settled in somewhere in the back and its expiration date quickly settled in and set up residence for the week. Passion, left to dry on the counter, floundered about looking for another recipe that could use its room temperature state. And one can easily be left questioning what to do. Explore. Measure out the bit of passion still fresh. Scrape at the top of hope and burrow for the flesh still ripe. Assemble its simplicity and enjoy the show of the smells floating around the kitchen space, wafting from the cracks in the oven door.

Wait ... the flan! One can condensed milk, one can evaporated milk, a lite spring shower of vanilla extract. Place on stove top. Beat five eggs and stir into milk mixture. Allow to heat, not bubble, until mixture is warm to the touch. Meanwhile (or before, I tend to do this before) place 3/4 cup of brown sugar and 1/4 cup of liquid (water, orange juice, apple juice, rum, etc.) into a saucepan, bring to a boil, lower temperature, and allow to simmer until the mixture is dark brown and syrupy. Pour into individual ramekins or a pie plate (I prefer the pie plate), and allow to set/cool. Check on your milk mixture. And then smack yourself upside the head for forgetting to preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Another slap for forgetting a 1/2 cup of sugar in the milk mixture (I forgot the first time, it was fantastic, I didn't forget this last time, it was a little too sweet). Add any variation you wish to the milk mixture. Yesterday I added slightly over 1/4 cup of strongly brewed coffee. Um. Now what? Oh, strain the milk mixture (when ready) into the pie plate or ramekins. Set into a bain marie, put into oven, and let cook for 45 minutes.

Run your knife around the edge to loosen. When cool invert onto plate. Note this is messy and will result in caramel dripping everywhere. No fear. Just dip your finger into the mess and enjoy a bit of dessert before dessert. Happy baking!

Happy Birthday, David!

There you go. The cake says it all, doesn't it? Happy Birthday, David! If you take a close look you might notice that the squiggly lines are a little squiggly in more places than they should be. If you took a closer look at my hands that afternoon you would have noticed a slight shaking. A bit of a ledge I had to talk myself down ... that the cake was going to taste great. That the icing was perfect and wouldn't pool into one lemon mess. And that I would, for goodness sake, actually spell his name or even "Happy" correctly. All worked out well. If the picture doesn't tell you that, let me say the round of applause I received at the birthday party would.

Thirsting for some additional information about the cake? It was lemon. Very lemon. I took a standard yellow cake recipe for two 9-inch cakes, added the zest of two lemons, and, poof, like magic, a cake. Well, more like magic, maybe a little praying, a dance or two to the gods of leavening, and an offering to the mistress of taste, and, poof!, a cake. The two cakes were then split in half with each layer receiving a healthy sprinkle of lemon syrup (equal parts lemon juice and sugar, brought to a boil, and cooled) and lemon curd. The citrus tower was then topped with a quick lemon icing (confectioner's sugar, a little milk, some butter, vanilla extract, and more lemon curd). I later thinned the icing, added some food coloring, and set about wishing David the happiest birthday I could wish him.

In a way I felt like I was also wishing it to myself. I can never give a baked gift without feeling as if I am stealing some of it in return. The smiles I see, the licked spoons, the clean plates, are all like little blue boxes wrapped with sparkly pink bows.

Happy right back at ya!

Rainy Day Farmer's Market

The idea seemed so comforting at the time--the rain was light, on and off, one block heavy, the other a sprinkle. Why not walk the 34 blocks to the Farmer's Market? Perhaps because by block 16 the shoes were soaked, the pants were drinking water like a neglected houseplant (a marigold perhaps), and my umbrella was leaking. Yes, leaking. But I had failed to pick up anything by the market near closer to my apartment and after a few days of cakes, sweets, and lots of bread in each meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert), I wanted a collection of veggies that would help to make me feel clean and nourished and light. Tomorrow will be a heaving day of work and the gym and now laundry (darn rain!) and so there would be no time for any visit to the market. Today was my only option. So I walked. And then I perused. And this is what is now mine to work with this week:


The possible menu:

Carrots--to be chopped and used with some remaining hummus for snacks during the workweek. These will also be chopped and added with the potatoes, onions, and the yellow squash (looks sort of putrid in the photo) to stew a little as a side dish for some chicken I plan to bake.

Potatoes--see above. ;-)

Yellow Squash--in addition to the veggie mash I'll also slice a bit of it to add to some salad greens in my crisper drawer and to also add to lunch sandwiches (gouda, salami, squash, onions, yummy!).

Onions--Various and multiple uses. The veggie mash. The lunch sandwich. In breakfast omelets. And, if I'm really adventurous, a focaccia that will incorporate some goat cheese already in the fridge and ...

Tomato--A little slice into a salad or a lunch sandwich. Half of it sliced into the possible focaccia ... if I'm feeling adventurous.