In Jennie's Kitchen

devil's food cupcakes + rich chocolate frosting

Since I consider honesty one of my strong suits, I must confess I'm eating one of these cupcakes while I write this post. I needed sustenance to get through a late night of playing catch up after the school chancellor declared a snow day. I love my girls, and while I more often than not try to stop and smell the roses, next week is winter break. Needless to say I'm starting the month on a deficit when it comes to available work time.

These cupcakes have super powers. I'm convinced of that, so please don't burst my bubble. I can't help but smile while licking the rich, creamy frosting from my teeth after taking a bite. Yes, I like to lick the smudge of frosting off my fingers too. Oh dear, I can only imagine the spam that last sentence will illicit.

But, back to the cupcakes. I didn't research the origins of naming a cake devil's food, but I'm guessing it has something to do with the irresistible taste. I know a thing or two about both baking and eating this type of cake. In fact, I'm an expert on finding the best in New York City—outside of my own kitchen now that is. I remember telling my girlfriend my weight gain was the equivalent to eating our then four-year old daughters back when I was pregnant with IRP eight years ago, with a raging chocolate cake craving.

These cupcakes are also very accommodating, and stay fresh stored on a cake stand loosely covered with plastic wrap. I happen to be sitting right next to said cake stand, and since will power doesn't rank up there with honesty in strong suits, I'm eating ate one. I keep adding extra push ups and crunches to my workout routine...once I get started again. The current count must be four-digits by now.

Oh, yes the cupcakes. Well, I'm sure you heard about them if you follow me on twitter or are a fan on Facebook. My mission began two weeks ago when the Mr. told me he wanted a ring ding inspired cake for his recent birthday celebration. I made three cakes in four days. Then decided to make another one and these cupcakes a few days ago, after his birthday. Call it good measure. Or maybe it was a premonition of the impending snow day. They made the girls very happy, especially the ones with sprinkles. This glaze topping reminds of the same cupcake they used to make at my favorite neighborhood bakery that closed six years ago *sniff*. They used to sell them for only 30 cents—35 if you wanted them with a creamy center.

how to poach an egg

You know that feeling when you come across something so perfect you just want to tell everyone? Maybe even scream it from a mountain top? I had that moment during lunch yesterday. After a day of going into the city for a meeting, chasing sunshine before and after to snap shots of scones and a chicken and Meyer lemon tagine I'd made the night before (recipes to come soon, I promise), I realized what was causing my faint-like feeling. I was starving. Embarrassing as it is to admit, all I'd eaten was a nibble of some lemon yogurt cranberry scone and a cup of coffee—and it was 1:30pm.

Eggs are always my back up when I need nourishment stat since they're super quick to cook. Ah, but my Ten in 10 promise to start eating healthier creeped into my conscience. Did I really want to smear the cast iron with butter and fry one. Well, of course I did, but I was good. I decided to poach one and have it with multi-grain toast. Problem is I don't do it that often and always mean to teach myself the right technique. Simply Recipes has a good post on the topic and Epicurious has a great how-to-video. I mainly followed the Epicurious directions with the following adaptations:

• I used one of those pump extra virgin olive oils instead of regular cooking spray.
• As soon as the egg started to set, I took a cue from Elise at Simply Recipes and shut the heat off. I then gently placed the ladle at the bottom and let it rest there for 2 or 3 minutes while the yolk set.

I should mention my egg slipped out of the ladle much easier than the one on the Epicurious video—I was a bit worried when I saw how much they had to wiggle it. While Elise says it's best to use vinegar so the egg white congeals, the Epicurious method eliminates the need since the whole egg rests nicely in the ladle. There you have it. The news I couldn't wait to share. And it's just in time for your weekend brunch menu.

 

pizza for project 365

I'm easing into the New Year with some photos of last night's dinner. I've been making pizza for over 15 years, and there's always room to learn a few new tricks. While I live right across the street from the infamous Lucali's, I haven't dined there in about two years. Why pay $24 for a pie when I can come pretty darn close to recreating the results in my own kitchen?

I used this recipe but nixed the food processor and decided to mix the dough, using 2 cups of the flour, in a bowl with a wooden spoon. I kneaded in the remaining flour, and what a wonderful way to relax it proved to be. I know no-knead dough is all the craze right now, but frankly, I loved connecting with my meal in such a primal way.

baking with butter

 

by Jen Schall

Whether I'm ready or not, the holidays are right around the corner, and for me, that means the coming weeks will be filled with baking.

Each year, I do a lot of baking with my mom, aunt, and grandmother.  We make some traditional family recipes, but we also like to give new recipes a try each year, too! Lately, though, I have been trying to learn to bake without using recipes.  I am fairly good at improvising when cooking, but I get into dangerous territory when trying to wing it with a batch of cookies or a pie crust...that is until recently.

A few weeks ago, I picked up a copy of the book Ratio by Michael Ruhlman and it has taught me more about baking than I learned in my 20+ years of following recipes. Basically, baking can be reduced to key ingredients, that when combined in the proper proportions (measured by weight, not volume), yield the standard cookies, cakes, and pastries that we know and love.  By learning the ratios you can learn to bake without cookbooks and recipes, which not only allows you to be creative, it also gives you the ability and knowledge to adapt to what you have on hand or dietary restrictions.

One of the key ingredients in baking ratios (particularly the cookies, cakes, and pies that we all make around the holidays) is butter.  When dealing with butter, in addition to the ratios, you also need to know two basic techniques - creaming and cutting.

Creaming butter is often one of the first steps in a recipe, and it refers to beating butter with sugar until it is light and fluffy.  Creaming butter and sugar together whips lots of tiny air bubbles into the butter, and is typically used in cakes and cookies.  It is essential that the butter is softened (at room temperature) but not melted.  To cream butter, simply add sugar to the softened butter, and beat with a hand mixer or the beater blade of a stand mixer.

Once you are familiar with creaming butter, you can apply it to the cookie ratio - one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts flour. By substituting some almond flour (or almond meal) for part of the flour and adding some almond extract, I was able to whip up these delicious almond shortbread cookies.  Dipped in dark chocolate, they are perfect with a cup of coffee for an afternoon snack!

Almond Shortbread Cookies

• 2 ounces sugar
• 4 ounces softened butter (1 stick)
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces all purpose flour
• 2 ounces almond flour
• Dark chocolate (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 ° F. Cream together the butter and the sugar, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the almond extract and the salt, beating to incorporate.  Gradually beat in the flours until the mixture forms a dough.  Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it is about 1/4 - 1/2 of an inch thick.  Use a cookie cutter to cut diamond shapes out of the dough, placing them on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden.  Cool on wire racks, and dip in melted chocolate, if desired.

Cutting butter is the second technique that is essential for holiday baking.  Cutting butter refers to incorporating butter into flour (as opposed to sugar, when creaming) to create a crumb-like mixture, with small beads or pieces of butter left intact.  The bits of butter are the key to flaky pie crusts and biscuits. Instead of softening the butter first, butter should be cold (even frozen) when it is cut into the flour.  A pastry blender works well for cutting butter, but it can also be done by using your fingertips to gently press the butter and flour together.

One of the most common applications of cutting butter is in pastry crusts.  A basic pie crust can be made by using a ratio of three parts flour, two parts butter, and one part water.  Adding a bit of sugar will yield a beautiful crust for a sweet pie, and a pinch of salt is all that is needed for savory tarts or quiches.  I used this particular recipe to make a broccoli and cheese quiche.  The recipe yields enough dough to fill one 9-inch tart pan.  It can easily be doubled to make enough for a two-crust pie.

Basic Pie Crust

• 6 ounces all purpose flour
• 4 ounces cold butter (1 stick)
• 2 ounces cold water
• Pinch salt

Measure the flour into a mixing bowl.  Add a pinch of salt.  Cut the butter into chunks and add to the flour.  Using a pastry blender or your finger tips, quickly cut the butter into the flour, forming a crumb-like texture with small bits of butter left intact.  Gradually add the water, mixing with your fingers just until the dough comes together.  Form the dough into a disk, cover, and refrigerate until ready to roll out. The cooking time will depend on the ingredients that are added.  To pre-bake or "blind bake" the crust (for quiches or custards), bake for 15 minutes at 375 ° F, weighted down with parchment paper and pie weights or beans.  Remove the weights and bake for an additional 10 - 15 minutes, until golden.

Seared to Perfection

Jen from My Kitchen Addiction joins us again today with a great technique lesson on searing beef—perfect for all the fall stews and roasts we'll be cooking.

As the weather turns cooler and the days get shorter, I start to crave the hearty, comforting dishes that my mom made when I was young. I remember sitting by the window in the evening waiting for my dad to get home from work, smelling beef stew simmering away on the stove.

Quick & Easy Homemade Vegetable Stock + A Video Recipe

I've been enjoying the Flip video camera I got at Blogher Food '09—thanks to Bertolli for the new gadget and a nice night in Napa. So, I've had this thing-a-ma-jig (is this even how you'd spell that?) sitting on my counter, and decided to start putting it to good use. Rather than the polished, wonderfully packaged pizza and blueberry muffin videos the Mr. creates for me, I wanted a more guerilla-style for this venture. Why not bring you into my kitchen in the heat of the moment? I'll admit, I did touch up my lip gloss, but that's as Hollywood as it gets. Luckily, the kids were at the park when I started and by time I had to shoot the end, they were actually behaving for the 30 seconds I needed peace and quiet. So watch and see how easy it is to make homemade vegetable stock. You'll be hard pressed to buy the canned stuff when you're done.

On the Chopping Block: Onions and Shallots

I'm still feeling jet lagged from my whirlwind trip to San Francisco for Blogher Food. It was great to meet so many twitter friends. This week I'm introducing a new contributor at In Jennie's Kitchen.  It is all my pleasure to announce that Jen Schall, from My Kitchen Addiction, has come on board as an intern. Remember that quickfire challenge on Top Chef testing technique skills? Well, Jen's how-to on chopping onions will have you on your way to winning immunity.

And one more thing before I go. Want to win $10,000 towards getting more fresh-grown fruits and vegetables in your local school? Hidden Valley Ranch is giving you just that opportunity with their Love Your Veggies program, and twitter folks have an extra special chance to win too. Get the details here. And now, let's talk onions with Jen Schall.

Creamy Homemade Ricotta

I first tasted homemade ricotta about 10 years ago. It was quite revelatory. Creamy, almost buttery, bits of cheese, full of flavor that melt in your mouth. Nothing at all like the watery stuff I grew up eating off supermarket shelves. I hadn't given much thought to making it myself until just recently—like last Thursday. Truth be told, I can't remember if I'm coming or going these days, so I couldn't tell you what brought on the urge exactly. I just remember waking up thinking I want to make ricotta. This is here Google comes in real handy. Imagine how much quicker we would've evolved if cavemen could've googled "how to make fire"?

Anywho, a quick search showed a few variations in ingredients, but the basic chemical reaction (curdling the milk) required two things: milk and an acid. Some recipes called for lemon, others white vinegar. The one that struck me was Heidi Swanson's over at 101 Cookbooks. Her's called for buttermilk, and it was really genius. Buttermilk naturally contains lactic acid.