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Archive for the ‘Eats’ Category

Pineapple-rum-banana ice cream: Experiment No. 2

Posted in Eats, tagged , , , , , , on June 21, 2011| 2 Comments »

I figured out what you can’t add to banana puree ice cream: 1 ounce of cachaca and most of a 4-ounce cup of pineapple chunks.

A friend suggested adding rum and pineapple to the ice cream, and it seemed like such a great idea that I immediately refrigerated the pineapple and inspected the rum supply, which was running unexpectedly low. I grabbed the bottle of cachaca instead, since it’s very similar to rum.

The combination completely ruined the texture of the final product, but I’m the only person in the house who enjoyed a refreshing bowl of banana-pineapple daiquiri for dinner.

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Strawberries + white chocolate = new summer cookies

Posted in CSA, Eats, Photographs, tagged , , , , , , , on June 18, 2011| 1 Comment »

Even after making jam, I had at least a quart of strawberries left yesterday. Enter Facebook, where one of my friends had recently posted a recipe for White Chocolate and Strawberry Cookies. They were reported to be pink and delicious, and while I’m no great fan of pink food, I am quite fond of all things delicious.

The dough turned out a bit thinner than most cookie dough I’ve worked with — I think it’s difficult to add strawberries to some foods without watering them down. Thus, the cookies spread out a bit during baking more than I would have liked, but they were still delicious.

They have more of a cake-like texture than your average cookie, and the white chocolate chips almost make them cloyingly sweet, but not quite. I’m tempted to make them without the chips, but I don’t think the strawberry flavor will shine on its own.

I used the shorter baking temperature for softer cookies.

White Chocolate Chip and Strawberry Cookies

1 1/2 cups strawberries, cleaned
1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Clean, trim, and slice berries.
  3. Crush strawberries with a potato masher. (You should end up with 3/4 cup of crushed strawberries.) Leave some larger chunks if desired; set berries aside.
  4. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars.
  5. Beat in one egg at a time.
  6. In a separate bowl whisk flour, salt and baking powder.
  7. Add dry mixture to creamed mixture, about 1/2 a cup at a time.
  8. When well mixed, slowly add berries, about 1/4 cup at a time, while mixing at the same time, ensuring berries are spread well throughout.
  9. Add the white chocolate chips and stir to combine evenly throughout batter.
  10. Drop batter in tablespoons about 1-inch apart on a greased baking sheet.
  11. Bake at 350 degrees for 11 to 12 minutes for soft cookies, or up to a maximum of about 14-15 minutes for crunchier cookies, watching the edges to ensure they are lightly browned.
  12. Cool on wire racks.

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As Pictured Below: Pump up the jam

Posted in As Pictured Below, CSA, Eats, Photographs, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 17, 2011| 1 Comment »

The first CSA delivery of the season contained a ridiculously large basket of strawberries, so I needed a quick way to use a lot of them.

I remember jam-making and jelly-making as a hot, time-consuming process, but I also remember my grandmother switching to the easier “freezer jam” method at some point, so I don’t feel like that much of a cheater for using it.

I’ll find out whether it worked in approximately 17 hours.

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Coffee-banana ice cream: Experiment No. 1

Posted in Eats, tagged , , , , , , on June 16, 2011| 1 Comment »

I finally had time for my first experimental batch of the easy-to-make frozen banana ice cream that’s gone viral. I added about a tablespoon of cold coffee (I had refrigerated the dregs from the coffee pot) before I whirled the frozen banana slices around in the food processor. It was absolutely delicious.

I used the food processor attachment that came with my immersion blender this time. It’s got a very small bowl, so it hasn’t been very useful in the past, but it was just the right size for this job. Especially given that the husband doesn’t want any part of this dessert.

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That frozen banana ice cream thing? It works.

Posted in Eats, tagged , , , , , , , on June 5, 2011| 3 Comments »

I was slightly skeptical that a frozen pureed banana would emerge from the food processor and actually resemble ice cream, but I couldn’t ignore the numerous posts that have been making the Internet rounds. When a friend posted this one on my Facebook page a couple of weeks ago, I knew I had to run my own experiment.

It totally worked. After whirling frozen banana slices for about one minute in the food processor, I took off the lid to reveal a clumpy-looking concoction that really did have the consistency of ice cream when I tasted it.

Totally worth it, especially given my revulsion for bananas that have slightly exceeded their perfect level of ripeness.

Now I’m contemplating additions, like a hint of cinnamon and maybe a spoonful or two of walnuts. And chocolate. Definitely something chocolate.

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Dinner failure

Posted in Eats, tagged , , , , on June 2, 2011| 1 Comment »

I’m having dinner coordination problems. I’m in class four days a week, from 5 to 7 p.m. I don’t want to eat at 4, but 7:30 is too late — as the husband has made unmistakably clear.

Tonight, he ate a grilled cheese sandwich at around 5:30, and I ate a bowl of Rice Krispies at 7:45.

The semester’s not off to a good start, obviously. At least it’s a short one.

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As Pictured Below: Perfection on a stick

Posted in As Pictured Below, Eats, tagged , , , , , , , on May 27, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Six-week-old craving for a hand-dipped ice cream bar from Costco: satisfied.

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Survival of the craftiest

Posted in Eats, Home, tagged , , , , , , on May 12, 2011| 2 Comments »

When you know you’re not going to have electricity for five days or so, you get creative with the freezer triage process.

We’ve got an ice chest that can be powered via vehicle battery through the cigarette lighter; as long as we run the husband’s truck for about 40 minutes twice a day to recharge the battery, we can be assured of a cold ice chest.

Unfortunately, space was limited in said ice chest, meaning only the best, most essential items could be rescued from the fridge and freezing unit in the days after Alabama’s late April tornado outbreak.

Knowing that it wouldn’t fit in the ice chest, we grilled a frozen pizza instead of letting it thaw. Burnt bottom aside, it was delicious. We also grilled a couple of Trader Joe’s chicken burritos; again, they were blackened in a few spots, but their interiors were warm and delicious.

We pan-seared a couple of pieces of tuna from the freezing unit, and I stir-fried a small bag of shrimp. We ate like kings, really, until the four-day safety window ran out. Luckily, the day after we busted out the PBJ sandwiches in earnest, the power came back on.

Losses included a couple of small stuffed flounders, which we couldn’t figure out how to grill without burning, and two Nestle Drumsticks (we ate two that were half-melted out of sugary desperation). Also lost were several freezer bags filled with blanched greens; admittedly, no one was sorry to see them go.

Overall, we discovered we’re pretty good at camp-style cooking, although we’re not camping people. And don’t think that five days of electricity-free living is luring us in.

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Somebody throw an Easter party, STAT

Posted in Eats, tagged , , , , , on April 18, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Some people would call these Carrot Cake Balls, not Carrot Cake Truffles. These people are also desperately trying to come up with a reason to make a batch.

Once again, Serious Eats completely undermines my low-sugar eating plan.

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