I just finished tonight’s dinner (literally like five minutes ago), and boy am I happy! It was a very special meal, especially considering it’s just some random Tuesday night. Why so special? Well, my friend and fellow food blogger, Michael (he’s the Chicken Fried Gourmet), came to New Orleans with his wife last weekend. We all had lunch on Saturday, and afterward he surprised me with a nice, chilly slab of marinated pork belly for the road.
The belly was vacuum-sealed. He’d already cooked it, but not before marinating it in some of my peanut butter dulce de leche.
Sound strange? I’ll admit it’s a little unorthodox (peanut butter and pork), but that’s just Mike. He keeps you guessing, and will surprise you over and over again.
It’s never surprising, however, how good the food turns out. He’s actually made this on his blog before (his pic is better than mine).
Mike gave me very simple instructions, “Crisp it up a little in a nice hot pan. Then, drizzle on a little of this.” He handed me a small bottle of his homemade BBQ sauce.
I felt so special, like I had a secret to keep. Honestly, I had to fight the impulse to tuck the foodstuff under my shirt and speed away.It sat in my fridge for a few days, but it was always on my mind. I knew tonight was the night.
I’d never cooked pork belly before, so I was a little intimidated. Plus, I knew Mike could cook this stuff in his sleep, and (of course) he’d be reading this post. It had to be good. It had to do Mike proud.
I melted a little butter into a little olive oil in a pan. When it was nice and hot (just under the smoking point), I added the belly. It seared for about five minutes on one side, and another five on the other side.
I sliced the belly into two inch cubes, and plated it on top of a silky, smooth sweet potato puree. A swirling drizzle of BBQ sauce later, and this dish was ready to ascend into heaven.
It took five minutes for me to finish off the plate. It was so good, in fact, that I ate it all.
Now that I review this entry, I don’t think I did the preparation (all of Mike’s hard work) justice. I may get him to guest post with the details. If you’re feeling jealous, good! This was amazing.
This is a little post to announce a big addition to Blakeville. It may be a little rough around the edges, but Blake Bakes is finally up. It’s a delicious new blog, and I’m proud to add it to the family. We have plenty more blogs in the works, but for now, enjoy Makes and Bakes.
At first glance, you may think you’re looking at just another picture of watermelon slices, but look closely and you’ll see those aren’t watermelons seeds. In fact, that’s not watermelon at all (at least not the way Mother Nature intended it). I’m sorry, but if Ma Nature doesn’t want me fooling with her bounty, then she should make sure it’s sweet. There’s nothing worse than waiting all day for a melon to chill, only to find concealed inside, pithy, grainy meat with no flavor.
I love watermelon, and all its juicy, ruby-red succulence. I have vivid memories of sizzling, hot summer fish fries in the country with my family where at the end of the fried feast, they’d bring out the watermelons. They were huge and ice cold (indeed, they were so cold they’d burn your hands if you held them too long). We always sliced ours first in half, then into quarters lengthwise. When you’d get your portion, it’d take up your whole lap.
I would always eat mine like my dad. With a fork and knife, he’d start at the top, and make one horizontal slice across the entire length of his portion. Then, in quick, vertical chops, he’d create ten or so perfectly geometric, three-dimensional triangles. Next, he’d sprinkle on a little salt, and delicately eat each segment.
Those melons from my childhood always seemed to be incredibly sweet, but since I’ve grown up, they’ve been hit or miss. I do my share of thumping and shaking and smelling, but I haven’t figured it out. How do you pick a sweet watermelon? Maybe you can’t. Maybe that’s just one more thing we can blame on global warming.
Last week, I decided enough was enough. I installed a few of those twisted energy-efficient light bulbs, and considered buying a Prius. I was going to make a difference, so when life gave me flavorless watermelon, I made watermelon sorbet.
I’m not sure if it was in retaliation over the melon, or the global warming thing, but I jerked open my knife drawer and yanked out my ice cream scoop. Five minutes later, the meat from the ‘lemon’ was piled into my blender. After a quick blitz, it was through a strainer and into a large metal bowl.
Me and the Blake Bakers are taking a little trip. For the past several weeks, we’ve been working on a gingerbread house for us all to move into, and now that house is complete. It’s not quite ready for you all to see, yet, but it is ready for the Blake Bakers to move in and get settled.
Pretty soon, it’ll be aprons on, whisks out and posts up! Stay tuned!
Hello, Blake Makers. Wow, it seems like forever since I’ve written that line. I apologize for being away for so long, but rest assured I haven’t been sitting on my hands. I’ve got a lot of ideas for Blake Makes, and I bet you can guess which one’s next (Blake Bakes – which will be launching as its own blog any day now). Add my ideas to the fact that I have a highly demanding day job, and you can see why I wish there were 28 hours in day. Stay tuned for all the good things we’re working on (plus more giveaways), but for now, let’s get back to the food!
I present Roasted Chicken with Green (Herbed) Salt from Two Fat Ladies Obsessions.
I think every cook wants a recipe for roasted chicken that they can pull out of their back pocket at a moment’s notice. Chicken is something almost everybody likes, and when it’s good, it’s like comfy PJs for your soul.
I’ve made Gourmet’s Perfectly Roasted Chicken, and it turns out nicely, but they recommend turning the chicken every 30 minutes for nearly two hours basting with every turn. Not with this bird. Nope, with this chick there’s no turning, no butter, nothing. Actually, it’s as easy as P-R-P.
Step 1: Place
Get ready for this one, because it’s a very tricky and complicated step. Remove the chicken from its grocery store wrapping, and PLACE it in a roasting pan (Preheat your oven to 400).
Step 2: Rub (And Stuff)
To make the rub, toss into a food processor
- 4 heaping tbsp. of coarsely chopped rosemary
- 4 heaping tbsp. of coarsely chopped thyme leaves
- 2 heaping tbsp. of fresh marjoram leaves (we used 1 tbsp. dried)
- 12 cloves of garlic
1 lb. fine sea salt (we used pink Himalayan salt).
Blitz to pulverize, then dump the green salt into the largest bowl you have. You’ll want a big bowl because you need the moisture from the herbs to evaporate letting the salt dry out. Let it stand for a good 24 hours – just long enough for the whole house to get nice and yummy-smelling. Store in an air-tight jar in the fridge.
Rub the bird (inside and out) with 2 tbsp. of the salt mixture. Stuff her with 3 large (bashed) garlic cloves, 3 husky sprigs of fresh rosemary and 2 dainty sprigs of fresh thyme. DO NOT USE ANY BUTTER, OIL OR FAT.
Step 3: Place (Again)
Place the salty chicken (already in the roasting pan) in the oven, and roast at 400 for an hour-and-a-half. Don’t open the door, just let it hang.
We’ve made this three times recently, and every time it’s perfectly cooked, perfectly seasoned.
I know you already know this, but let the chicken rest after you remove it from the oven. Resting for 15 minutes is good; resting for 25 is better. While you’re waiting, I’m sure you could get away with picking off a few crispy, salty specs. The best (and most inconspicuous) place to snatch a little appetizer is from around the cavity opening – along with the “Pope’s Nose.”
Be lazy like us and toss a few peeled and chopped carrots, onions and sweet potatoes into the roasting pan, and let them cook right along with the chicken. When the chicken’s done, so is everything else (BONUS: it’ll all be coated in greasy chicken essence). Our vegetarian friends just don’t know what they’re missing.
It’s good to be back. I’ve missed you guys. bk
Dorothy Tong is a self-proclaimed Dessert Obsessee, who has a passion for anything sweet. She is a living miracle, as she rarely eats anything nutritious or resembling real food, and basically lives off sweets. She is going into her fourth year at UCLA, and has her own baking show on UCLA’s Daily Bruin Television. She is not embarrassed to admit that her favorite dessert is Brownie Goo, which is basically a box of half baked Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate brownie mix, topped with a large serving of vanilla bean ice-cream.
Summer time is almost here! Summer is full of yummy goodies. Fresh strawberries, juicy fruit terrines, ice cold lemonade… and ice-cream! My favorite thing about Summer is that it is THE perfect excuse to eat ice-cream as often as possible. I’ve never met an ice-cream flavor that I didn’t like, but one of my favorite ice-cream flavors is definitely Neapolitan. It has three flavors all combined into one ice-cream! How ingenious!
So to celebrate the upcoming warm weather and ice-cream fests, I made Neapolitan Cupcakes! These cupcakes are a combination of two different flavored cake batters, and another flavored frosting in the flavors of Neapolitan ice-cream – vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.
I made my cupcakes with vanilla cake batter and chocolate cake batter, and a strawberry flavored frosting. You can make them with any combination you prefer – chocolate and strawberry cake batter with vanilla frosting, or strawberry and vanilla cake batter with chocolate frosting…
To make the cupcakes, you can basically use any vanilla or chocolate cake recipes you like. I used the Vanilla Cupcake recipe from the Magnolia Bakery for the vanilla batter, and my favorite vegan chocolate cake recipe for the chocolate batter.
(Blake Bakes) The Reuben sandwich is a thing of pure beauty; rye bread, beautiful corn beef, glorious melted cheese and thousand island dressing. I know, no sauerkraut is practically sacrilegious but I can’t stomach the stuff. It’s all thrown together and preferably pressed on a panini maker.
Unlike many people, I wasn’t introduced to this beautiful sandwich until my twenties. My future mother-in-law asked me if I minded having them for dinner one night, and was in horror when I said I had no idea what this ‘Reuben’ she spoke of was. So began my love affair with the Reuben.
I came across a mention of Reuben calzones awhile back, and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head. Today was the day I finally decided to get down to business and toss the recipe together.
I went to the store and purchased all the ingredients necessary to make them. I cheated this time and used fresh dough from the Publix bakery. I won’t do this again as the dough was tough and would not roll out properly, it ended up giving me very thick breading and a smaller calzone. I normally use the Peter Reinhart dough recipe.
What you need for the filling:
- 1/2 pound sliced corned beef
- 1/4 pound provolone cheese
- Thousand island dressing
- Pizza dough
Preheat oven to 450 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Cut dough into 2 even pieces, 4 if you want smaller calzones. Roll out into a circle to about 1/4 inch thickness.
Spread about 2 teaspoons of thousand island dressing in the center of the dough. Place a piece of provolone cheese on top of the mixture and top with 3 to 4 slices of corned beef. Finish off the pile with another slice of provolone cheese. Fold dough over the filling and pinch the edges shut, making sure nothing can leak out. Follow the same instructions for the remaining dough.
Place on baking sheet and slice 2 to 3 holes in the top of the dough so that steam may release.
Place the calzones in the oven for 15 minutes. You should have some provolone cheese left over, remove the calzones from the oven and top each calzone with half a slice of provolone. Return to the oven for 5 to 10 more minutes; keep an eye out for the dough to turn a nice golden brown color.
Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes then slice in half.
I found that I needed more dressing as some leaked out during baking so I poured some into the open cavity that formed when I cut the calzone in half.
Lexi is just dipping her foot into the culinary world and has a passion for baking. A few dozen failed experiments later and here she is finally making food that people love. She is based in Tampa, alongside her loving fiance and spends her non-baking free time supporting him in his music career. She also loves videogames, movies and reading. You can read about the current events in her life at Lexib0t.com.
Carmella Lanni-Giardina, is the female half of The Food Duo, a blog started in March 2008 with her husband, Carlo. While growing up in New York City, her South Carolinian mother was the baker of her family with her specialties involving traditional Low Country and Southern desserts with fruit and/or nuts. Now, that her mom has retired from work and baking, Carmella has stepped up to become the baker for her now larger family, often experimenting and making treats for everyone to enjoy – many being sugar-free variations.
I have to admit that when I first saw Paula Deen on TV a few years ago, she annoyed the heck out of me. She was hosting a Food Network BBQ challenge, and Carlo and I couldn’t believe how country she was with what I had deemed a maniacal laugh. I couldn’t even watch the whole show.
Then, one day a few months later, I decided to give her another chance by watching her cooking show. She was awesome, even reminding me of my aunt, Gertrude, with her sassy humour. Watching her put dishes together was like watching my grandma, aunts and mom (all of who are from the Charleston, SC area, while Paula’s from Savannah, GA) cook in the kitchen. Maybe it was the Southern gentle approach and charmful gentileness. I don’t know, but I quickly became a fan.
With it being the Memorial Day weekend and our plans going bust, my mom suggested we have a bit of an indoor barbecue the next couple days. I wanted to make a few desserts, and some a cobbler came to mind. I was going to go for a blackberry one, but peach sounded more appropriate. I actually hadn’t had peach cobbler since my mom made one a few years back.
So back to Paula. I found her recipe on the Food Network site, and just had to try it. I was sure it would be good, but this was another recipe where I got to test it against mom’s (She’s one helluva baker).
As usual, variations were done so we all could enjoy it. I used 2 cups of fresh white peaches, and 2 cups of fresh yellow peaches. I replaced the sugar with Splenda Baking Blend.
I also made self-rising flour (see recipe after cobbler), since I only had unbleached all-purpose flour. I also incorporated cinnamon into the peach mixture, and sprinkles some on top before placing the cobbler in the oven.
While it was baking, I must say our home smelled DEEEEEEEEEEEEE-VINE. Yes, it’s THAT good that I had to go the Deee-Lite route with the description. Carlo and I couldn’t wait to cut, well spoon, into it. When we did, it tasted even better than its smelled. After our few bites, Carlo called my mom who was over in about 5 minutes to try not one, but TWO pieces. Then, someone mentioned ice cream, and we ran out to get some vanilla “no sugar added” ice cream.
Carrie began baking cookies on her own at the tender age of ten. Her passion for baking has only grown from there. She is a newly wed quickly approaching her first anniversary and has recently started her own photography business. Although Carrie loves baking both savory and sweet, sweet treats are definitely her specialty.
Visit Carrie’s blog.
For my first submission as a Blake Baker, I decided to use a recipe all my own. Maybe show off my cookie baking skills a bit? This cookie is just divine, even better than I thought it would be. Watch out though! They are rich!
Ingredients:
- 1C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 C granulated sugar (I use organic/F-T)*
- 1/2 C light brown sugar
- 1 Tbs pure vanilla extract (I use organic/F-T)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 scant tsp salt (I use fine sea salt)
- 2 1/2 C all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur organic)
- 1 C white chocolate chips
- 1 C unsweetened coconut flakes (I use organic)
1/2 C dried cranberries, a.k.a. craisins (I use organic)
Getting Ready: Preheat oven to 350°F, and line a cookie sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
The Recipe:
- Using a stand or a hand mixer, mix the butter and eggs together. The mixture will be chunky. That’s fine. Add both the sugars and mix until ingredients are combined.
- Add the baking soda, vanilla, and salt. Mix at a medium speed.
- Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time mixing just until combined after each 1/2 cup. (This means you will add flour then mix 5 times.) This helps ensure that the flour is mixed in and also prevents it from flying all over the place as you mix, since you are only adding a bit at a time. The dough will be very thick at this point.
- Mix in coconut flakes. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chips (by hand or on very low speed).
Drop by spoonful onto lined cookie sheet.
Bake at 350° F for 12-14 minutes, until the cookies begin show a light golden brown color. Cool on a rack then transfer to an air tight container to store. Enjoy by the handful with your beverage of choice!
Tip: Cookies will stay moist longer if stored with a piece of bread.
*On Using Organic/Fair-Trade Sugar: The sugar I buy has rather large granules and is brownish in color. If I am going to bake with it, I run it through my blender first. This creates a smaller granule and a fluffier cookie. (After running it through the blender, it will turn white and resemble the granulated sugar many of us are used to.)
Holly is the proud Mama of two sweet boys (almost 5 years old and one 7 months) who both enjoy hanging out in the kitchen and sneaking naps and tastes of what is being made. She has been baking and cooking since she was seven years old and has always enjoyed feeding others. Holly’s favorite shows to watch with the boys include Ratatoullie and Good Eats – both requests from her oldest kiddo. (More after post)
Tarte Noire. Even the name of this simple chocolate tart evokes a sense of wonder and mystery. Simple, everyday ingredients of flour, sugar, salt, butter, and egg yolk combine into a buttery, sweet crust that is the absolute perfect foil for the filling made of only chocolate, cream, and more butter.
The whole experience of making this kept reminding me of old black and white movies – like something you would serve at a wrap party in old Hollywood, maybe for Casablanca. This dessert is so simple to make using everyday kitchen staples (at least in my kitchen anyway there must always be chocolate). Here though the ingredients elevate each other to something that is nothing short of cosmic perfection. This tart is exactly that.
As soon as I got my copy of Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours I read through all the recipes, but I just kept coming back to this one. It sounded like the most perfect and sublime combination of the buttery crust and the smooth, creamy center. Dorie herself describes this as “one of the most sophisticated tarts in a Parisian pastry chef’s repertoire, it is also the simplest – and the darkest, sleekest and chicest too.” For obvious reasons I was intrigued – but I kept putting off making it until I had chocolate that I thought would be “worthy” of a recipe with such a reputation.
For my debut as a Blake Baker here on Blake Makes I knew that I had to make this dessert to share with everyone because it reminded me of Blake’s hometown of New Orleans. I haven’t made it to New Orleans yet, but this tart reminds me exactly of what New Orleans has always meant to me. Special, mysterious, intriguing and decadent. The planets and stars all aligned and I was lucky enough to win some of the Amano Chocolate, made here in Utah and hand-crafted with care and passion, from none other than Blake. Obviously, I’m not one to argue with fate since all signs were whispering to me to make this (and eat it for breakfast – oh, alright, and lunch too).
Dorie suggests that when making this tart, which is the “exemplar of understated elegance” that you must use only the very finest chocolate that you enjoy “eating out of hand” since what you will taste is the flavors of the chocolate itself. The Amano Chocolate showed beautifully in the Tarte Noire, though not as dark as perhaps some other chocolates would have shown, but the flavors were incredible and the chocolate was rich and pure with a beautiful reddish-brown color.
Here’s the recipe. Don’t wait as long too make this as I did, but get yourself some really good chocolate. As Dorie suggests in the recipe “purists” will not want to serve this with anything on it or distracting from the flavor. I am a purist so I followed her guidance and let me tell you, this just doesn’t even need anything else but a fork – and perhaps some privacy while you savor your slice (oh, fine, the whole thing then – but, seriously, try to pace yourself).
So, here’s looking at you, kid. Read More
