Flexible Caserole Recipe

I love lifehacker.com so much, even more so when they feature recipes or cooking tips. The feature today was on an easy and flexible casserole recipe.

Flexible Casserole Ingredients:

1 cup main ingredient (protein)
1 cup second ingredient (vegetable)
1-2 cups starchy ingredient (pasta, rice, etc)
1 1/2 cups binder (sour cream, milk, canned soup, etc)
1/4 cup "goodie" (cheese, nuts, butter, etc)
seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic, etc)
topping ( french fried onions, breadcrumbs, etc)

You can read the full article and cooking instructions at lifehacker.com and the simple dollar.

Epicurious Top 30 Cake Recipes

So I decided to start a little diet yesterday and this morning my boss sent me an article, Thirty Top Rated Cakes from Epicurious.com. She's the devil. By cake number 2, I was literally salivating. Coconut cake... I pine for you.

But Seriously, how good does that look. I'm thinking about trying a healthier version of a carrot cake for a dinner I'm having this weekend. Substituting whole wheat flour and then applesauce for some of the oil. I'll still do a yummy cream cheese frosting, just with less sugar. I'd love to try to make a coconut cake healthier, but even in theory, it just won't work.

I'll let you know how everything turns out.

Easy Substitutes When Baking

This happens to me all the time, I'm all set to start cooking and realize I've run out of eggs or milk. I've remedies this by keeping powdered milk and vegan egg substitute on hand at all times. Here is an awesome article from tipnut.com that lists substitutes for those things we may run out of.

I've listed a few great tips below, but go here for the full article.

Buttermilk Substitute: You can substitute 1 cup of buttermilk with the following quick recipe–In a one cup measuring cup, add 1 TBS of vinegar or lemon juice, then top up the rest of the measuring cup with milk. Set aside for 5 minutes, stir, then use as buttermilk in the recipe.

Baking Powder Substitute: Try 1/4 tsp baking soda & 1/2 tsp cream of tartar to substitute for 1 tsp baking powder.

Chocolate Squares Substitute: 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa & 1/4 cup melted Crisco (Substitution for 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate squares).

Chocolate Powered Race Car

Seems like a waste of chocolate to me, but I guess it is sustainable... Thanks to Jalopnik.com via Geekologie for information on this edible vehicle.


A Warwick University-based team has unveiled a Formula 3 race car built using sustainable materials. Its body is made of potatoes, the steering wheel is carrots, and the fuel is derived from chocolate. Delicious.

Chick here to read full article

Gizmodo's 53 foods so Disgusting you May Not Want To Eat Again for A Week

If you don't read Gizmodo for the gear articles, you have to peruse it for all the weird stuff. Here are some entries from a recent Photoshop contest they held. Enjoy, at your own risk...

Click here to see all the entries.

S. Pellegrino 50 Best Restaurants 2009

And the winners are:
The 50 best restaurants in the WORLD

The Lazy Gourmet

One of my new favorite sites is http://www.wisebread.com/. You can see why when you read the article:
Seven Simple Solutions For The Lazy Gourmet
There are some fantastic ideas in this article. I love the towel bar idea. I love to have all my utensils out and ready at my fingertips, so this is such a great idea. I used to have a utensil rail from Ikea in my old place, but have yet to put one up in the new one. I guess it's about time. And the canning jars as blenders, AMAZING. I never would have thought of that.

Brown Derby Grapefruit Cake (or 4 hours and a bottle of wine)

I'm really lucky because my boss cooks lunch for me every day, so not only do I get free food, but I get free, AMAZING food. I don't know many people that get lamb stew or pork with cherries, sweet potatoes and Guinness for Lunch.

When I first started working with her, my husband, boyfriend at the time, said "That's awesome that she feeds you, but does she now how much you eat?" Ass. Anyways, she's also a culinary inspiration for me. She's always going through recipes and offering me copies of whatever she deems best. I often pass on the recipes because, although amazing, a lot are quite fattening and there are things I just don't need to be making.

Yesterday, however, I decided to take home a cake recipe, because sometimes you just need to bake a cake. Because the recipe is copied, I'm not sure where she got it from, but there is half an article attached, some cut off by being copied a few times and other parts continued on other pages. I tried to decipher it and one of my favorite parts in the article is:

"One of the most famous (recipes) was the Brown Derby's grapefruit cake. Owner Bob Cobb conceived it when gossip columnist Louella parsons threatened not to return until he put a non- fattening dessert on the menu. He told his cooks, "Put grapefruit on something, because everyone knows it's slimming."

This cake isn't slimming, just so you know. It's a lot lighter than a few cakes I've made, but it still has sugar, flour, oil and egg yolks, so I don't want anyone thinking this is healthy.


Oh, and did I mention this cake is fabulous. It's also a fabulous nightmare. I will post some tips at the end for fleshing or pithing a grapefruit, because that can be a lot of trouble. That is actually why I titled the post 4 hours and a bottle of wine. It took me 4 hours to make this cake and the pithing took close to an hour and drove me to drink. And I never do cakes like this; that require more than one bowl, lots of whipping, and lots of trouble. It was worth it though because it is a beautiful cake. I think next time I may do a whipped cream topping because the cream cheese is a tad too rich for this feathery light cake.

Brown Derby Grapefruit Cake

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c sifted cake flour ( I used regular flour and it worked just fine)
1 1/2 c sugar
1 T baking powder
1 t salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
5 eggs yolks
8 egg whites
2 t vanilla
3 tablespoons grapefruit juice
2 t grated grapefruit rind
1/4 t cream of tartar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325º F. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into mixing bowl. Make a well in center of dry ingredients.
Add oil, egg yolks, grapefruit juice, and rind. Beat until smooth.
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar separately, until whites are stiff but not dry.
Gradually fold egg whites into the cake batter, folding gently with a rubber spatula until just blended. Do not stir the mixture.
Pour into 2 greased and floured 10-inch cake pans. Bake at 325º degrees for 45 to 55 minutes, or until cake springs back when lightly touched with a finger. Invert pan on cake rack until cool. Run spatula around edge of cake. Carefully remove from pan.

Grapefruit Cream Cheese Frosting

3 eight oz pkgs cream cheese
2 t grapefruit juice
1 1/2 t grated grapefruit rind
1 cup powdered sugar (sifted)
2 grapefruits peeled with pith and membrane removed
*crush 6 sections for frosting and reserve the rest for topping

Let cream cheese soften at room temperature. Beat cheese until fluffy.
Add grapefruit juice and rind.
Gradually blend in sugar. Beat until well blended.
Add crushed grapefruit and blend into frosting.
Frost Bottom layer of cake
Frost top and sides
Garnish with remaining grapefruit sections

I had major problems pithing the grapefruit, it all fell apart. I was able to salvage some so don't make the mistake I did on pithing the grapefruit. Here are instructions on doing it correctly

How to flesh a grapefruit

The original recipe actually used canned grapefruit slices, which I will definitely use in the future. Try this, you'll like it

How to Dry Herbs In the Microwave

It's actually really easy and all you need is paper towel and a plastic baggie or air tight container. Last week when I was cleaning my oven I found some bay leaves I had dried in my lower oven a few months ago and totally forgot about. I wouldn't have forgotten them had I used the microwave. And now they're useless, damn it! Oh and using the microwave for 3 minutes uses much less power than having your oven going for 4 hours.

Here's the full article via tipnut.com:
How to Dry Herbs With a Microwave

The Ratio of Ingredients

Check out this chart! It's a recipe breakdown of basic ingredients such as eggs, flour, water, sugar and how much you need of each to get the recipe outcome you desire. It's from Michael Ruhlman's new book, Ratio:The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking. How awesome is that? I like the bare basic approach to it. Knowing the fundamentals allows for experimentation. You can read an interview with Ruhlman by Lifehacker.com here.

365 Reasons to Party

So it blows my mind that every day is "National Insert Food Day." Here is a list:
Food Holidays
Not only are there daily food holidays, but food months too. For instance, today is national empanada day and it's grilled cheese month.

Snacking Chef Grilled Cheese - also, the snacking chef proposes that May be Led Zeppelin Month, I'm in.

I just found out January 23rd was national pie day, and I'm pissed I missed it. At least I have national cake day to look forward to on November 26th. And my birthday falls on national Kahlua day and national strawberry day, too bad I didn't celebrate this last birthday with either.

But whatever day it is, there is a food to enjoy. Here is another link for other reasons to party, besides food.
365 Reasons to Party

Easter Eggs

Tell me those aren't some of the coolest dyed eggs you've ever seen. My husband just sent me this link and I had to pass it on. I want to talk more about dying eggs and I will try to in the upcoming week, but I think I've had one too many beers...And, Revenge of the Nerds is on so here's the link to read about it for yourself:

Barefoot Kitchen Witch

Frosting Recipes

So here's some more from tipnut.com. I am so in love with them lately. All these frostings are made with condensed milk, something we should always have in our cupboards. As soon as I saw the peanut butter frosting I knew I had to post this. I can't wait to try it.

Frosting Recipes

Garden Trellis For Small Spaces

My back yard is a good size but I have a small garden area and just today I was struggling with the issue of what vegetables to plant to make the most of the space I have. I happened upon this little tip at tipnut.com. If you lack horizontal space go vertical with a vegetable trellis! Such a great idea, I'm totally gonna get started on it this weekend.

Substitutions

So I have a specific idea about what I want for dinner and I don't have ginger...not even dry (which I'll have to pick up.) So I found a great blog, Raw Test Kitchen, that has a list of substitutions for all kinds of stuff. Thanks dude!!!


1 whole vanilla bean = 2-3 teaspoons of vanilla extract

1 stick cinnamon = 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice = 1/3 teaspoon each (equal parts) ground cinnamon, ground cloves and ground nutmeg


1 tablespoon fresh basil leaves = 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves

2 tablespoons chopped fresh celery = 1 tablespoon dehydrated celery flakes


1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice = 1-3/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon, blended with 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves or ground allspice and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves = 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 medium clove garlic = 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1 medium clove garlic and 1 teaspoon salt = 1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger = 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 tablespoon fresh herb leaves, chopped = 1 teaspoon dried herb leaves
(leafy green herbs, such as basil, cilantro, dill, oregano, parsley, tarragon, thyme)

1 medium onion, chopped = 1 teaspoon onion powder

1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves = 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1 teaspoon dried marjoram leaves = 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1 tablespoon fresh parsley = 1 teaspoon dried parsley leaves

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper = 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper

Basil substitute with Oregano or thyme

Chervil substitute with Tarragon or parsley

Chive substitute with Green onion; onion; or leek

Cilantro substitute with Parsley

Italian Seasoning substitute with a blend of any of these: basil, oregano, rosemary, and ground red pepper

Marjoram substitute with Basil; thyme; or savory

Mint substitute with Basil; marjoram; or rosemary

Oregano substitute with Thyme or basil

Parsley substitute with Chervil or cilantro

Poultry Seasoning substitute with Sage plus a blend of any of these: thyme, marjoram, savory, black pepper, and rosemary

Rosemary substitute with Thyme; tarragon; or savory

Sage substitute with Poultry seasoning; savory; marjoram; or rosemary

Savory substitute with Thyme; marjoram; or sage

Tarragon substitute with Chervil; dash fennel seed; or dash aniseed

Thyme substitute with Basil; marjoram; oregano; or savory

Allspice substitute with Cinnamon; cassia; dash of nutmeg or mace; or dash of cloves

Aniseed substitute with Fennel seed or a few drops anise extract

Cardamom substitute with Ginger

Cinnamon substitute with Nutmeg or allspice (use only 1/4 of the amount)

Cloves substitute with Allspice; cinnamon; or nutmeg

Cumin substitute with Chili powder

Ginger substitute with Allspice; cinnamon; mace; or nutmeg

Mace substitute with Allspice; cinnamon; ginger; or nutmeg

Nutmeg substitute with Cinnamon; ginger; or mace

Saffron substitute with Dash turmeric (for color)

DIY PIZZA

This recipe is from mainstreet.com and it seems easy enough. Only 5 minutes kneading and 10 minutes rising isn't so bad.
DIY Pizza

Kitchen Lab

Here's a fun article from popsci.com with a gallery of kitchen tools and appliances from some of the world's top chefs. This is way more fun than a food processor.

Stop Letting Your Food Go To Waste

First off, people need to eat the food they buy, since, roughly 25% gets thrown away. You can read the article here. Also, half of US food ready for harvest never gets eaten.

Here's another tip form our friends over at lifehacker

Switch to a two weeks grocery cycle to waste less food

Cook two or three meals' worth of each recipe at the beginning of the two-week period, and immediately freeze the extra portions for the second week. Freeze any meat that you won't be eating within the next 48 hours.

Use up fresh fruits and vegetables first, and then supplement them with just-as-healthy frozen (foods) as you get into the second week. Check expiration dates on dairy products before you buy them; in most cases you can find products that will remain fresh for two weeks or longer. The idea is to always USE UP what you buy before you shop again.

Infused Olive Oil

Infused olive oil recipe

Thanks to www.lifehacker.com for this tip

MMMMM....Grains

I wanted to focus on doing recipe make overs this month to try to make amazing dishes a bit more healthy. One of the easiest ways to make over a recipe is to change up the grain. For instance, I made eggplant parmesan last night. But instead of dredging the eggplant slices in flour or breadcrumbs I used amaranth. There are a lot of great grains to use that are much higher in fiber or protein so you should definitely give some a try.

Great Grains