I've been pretty routine in my eating this summer. Sticking to a few standards has made grocery shopping really easy but it hasn't made for a lot of variety. (Ask CH: "Uh, I can offer you a salad with, uh, shrimp and tomato and avocado, or, uh, a sandwich with cheese and tomato and avocado. Oh! Or berries and yogurt!")
So I decided to commemorate the honorary end of summer with making a meal that not only required creative shopping, but also required cooking two foods I've never cooked before. And, uh, it was totally worth it.
I started with this recipe for Corn, Bacon and Clam Stew. Out of the usual necessity, I replaced the bacon with turkey bacon. And since I failed to check whether I had bourbon, I had to find a replacement for the bourbon, too. (I know: I was also shocked. I didn't even think to check, but, after digging through every cabinet in my kitchen, I remembered that the last time I was in the wine store I thought, 'Oh, I need bourbon,' and then managed to forget to buy any. I plan on remedying this as soon as the blue laws will let me.) For half of the recipe, I substituted some old Pumpkin Ale and, for half, I substituted Vermouth. I think the Vermouth was actually more successful, although both were fine.
I've never cooked turkey bacon or clams before and I was surprised at how easy the clams were to cook. (Turkey bacon is another story. It took forever and made a huge mess.) The other big surprise was how much the basil added to the stew. Honestly, I tend to think that basil is superfluous in most recipes and I expected to think the same of this. (Read those ingredients and tell me that you think the basil sounds like it fits.) But it really added brightness to the stew so I was completely won over.
Of course, being me, I doubled the recipe since it looked like it would be a pain to make. So I've got plenty of leftovers to see how well this reheats. Depending on how much I enjoy it through the week, I may try to make it again before all the summer corn is gone. I think it's plausible that it could be made without the turkey bacon, or at least with a lot less, and I feel pretty confident that I could substitute shrimp or white fish for the clams. If I actually end up doing so, I'll let you know how it goes.
I have had a couple of dinner parties this summer. And one common theme in the foods that I have offered has been these amazing chocolate cookies.
The first time, I made them to look like this:
(Those are ice cream sandwiches, one with vanilla and the other with homemade strawberry sorbet. I thought these were really good, even better after they'd been in the freezer for a day.)
And the second time, I did just what Deb told me to do and made these:
Pretty much all critics agree that these are delicious chocolate cookies. They're very sweet, and they spread a lot in the baking process, but in all they are the star of this show. As for the oreo filling, I and most people agree that it tastes pretty much like the original "white stuff" though at least 
one taste tester agreed with Deb's assessment that, when combined with the cookie, the overall package was too sweet. Deb says, lower the sugar if you're using the cookie to make oreos. I'm not sure that's the route I'd take, but I am not afraid of a sugary cookie. Moral of the story, less sugar or no, this is a great versatile chocolate wafer cookie that is easy to make and sure to please.
I'd bought some rhubarb at the beginning of the month but didn't have time to make anything out of it. Ms. CAM kindly cut it up and put it in my freezer, awaiting a three-day weekend (and didn't even mention that most hostesses don't ask their guests to prep and freeze food for later consumption). In between then and today, Smitten posted rustic rhubarb tarts. So, thanks to both CAM and Smitten, I've enjoyed two today and am trying to stop myself from enjoying my third. Not that I've ever been picky about my rhubarb, but this recipe is definitely a winner.
I followed the by-hand directions, because I also dragged Ms. CAM around central Connecticut trying to track down a pastry blender (for the rhubarb pie that she never got to eat). Apparently, multiple Williams-Sonoma stores haven't been able to order pastry blenders quickly enough to meet demand. I managed to snag the last one at Macy's, though, and it was worth it. No more cutting in butter with two knives for me!
I modified the recipe a little because I didn't have corn flour and didn't feel like tracking it down just for 1 cup. And I did have about 3/4 c. graham flour and thought that its sweetness would work well with the rhubarb. I replaced all of the corn meal with graham flour and the corn flour with 3/4 c. regular flour and 1/4 c. graham flour. The crust may have turned out heavier, but I've got no complaints.
Back in the good ole days when life was simple and I lived with EW, I gave her a cookbook from Moosewood Cafe for her birthday. And, as good roommates do, she thanked me in the form of baked goods and wholesome meals. Many times. Maybe I have a selective memory for cookies and other sweet things, but I do not remember anything from that cookbook as delicious these biscotti. So, recently when I was craving sweet treats to pack in my lunch that are not completely filled with butter, I asked her for the recipe. They delivered big time. They are crunchy and sweet, but not too sweet. And since the recipe is low on butter, I didn't feel (completely) guilty when I had one every day for lunch.
Adapted from: Moosewood, via EW
Ingredients:
½ cup dried cherries
1 cup water
¼ cup butter, room temperature
¾ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp almond extact
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp baking powder
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
In a small saucepan, heat the cherries and water just to boiling, and then remove from heat and set aside. In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and well-combined.
Blend in the eggs and almond and vanilla extracts. Fold in the chocolate chips. Drain the cherries, place them on a paper towel to absorb any extra moisture, and then stir them into the egg mixture.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder. With a rubber spatula, fold in the wet ingredients until the dough is uniform and holds together when pressed lightly with floured hands.
Use the spatula and your floured hands to scoop the dough onto the oiled baking sheet. Form the dough into a 12-inch by 3 inch diameter log shape; then press down on the log, flattening it to a thickness of about an inch. The length and width should be about 14 in x 4 in.
Bake on top rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes, until dough is firm and just slightly brown.
Remove from the oven and transfer the log to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, slice crosswise in ¾ in pieces. Lay each biscotti cut side up on the baking sheet. Bake for about 5 minutes on each side, using tongs to flip them. Cool completely on a rack and then store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Other notes:
EW says to add almonds. I would have but I didn't have any. I also forgot the chocolate chips, so I just added more cherries instead. Also, I think I probably undercooked these on the first round.
SK had a post recently about a new way she discovered to prepare kale: drizzled with olive oil and salt and baked. I admit, this makes some freaking delicious kale chips. If you've never had kale, or haven't liked it in the past, try it that way.
However, kale is equally as delicious (and undoubtedly better for you) when consumed raw and in salad form. I'm not saying this is the healthiest salad you'll ever eat, but it is damn good. And there are lots of nutrients! Win/win people. I'm also going to apologize for the lack of pictures. I am just so happy to make and eat this salad, I forget to take pictures, and then I remember while I'm spooning the last bits into my mouth for lunch at work, and think to myself: "Oh well, guess I'll have to make it again next week." You see the problem.
Key facts about preparing kale for salads:
1) After rinsing, strip the leafy part from the stalk and discard the stalk. You can either do this with a knife, or just rip it off with your fingers.
2) Marinating is key.I like to think of this as the vegetarian version of marinating salmon in such a way that cooks it (only without that pesky risk of food poisoning!) It doesn't take long though, so don't worry if you're hungry when preparing your kale salad. You can eat it as soon as you're ready.
3) Even if you neglect your kale for a while and it gets a little wilty, it'll still be awesome in salad form.
4) There are a ton of varieties of kale. I've been favoring the curly kale with purple stalk variety, but I think this would work with any type.
What follows are three different recipes that incorporate kale.
My favorite professor in law school frequently cautioned that things always take longer than you think they will. Such was the case with these brownies, which I planned to bring to a dinner party last Friday night. The problem was, the dinner party started at 7, and I couldn’t be bothered to read the recipe in advance. If I had, I would have known you are supposed to cool them completely before you put the chocolate on top. As it was, I was going to be late, and I had to take these brownies from the oven to my car pretty much immediately. Cooling time was not an option. So when I got to the party, they were a little bit soupy, but after an hour in the fridge, they turned out pretty good. And over the week (as I ate them in inappropriate quantities from my fridge) they tasted even better because the chocolate layer had an opportunity to properly harden.
A couple of warnings about these things:
(1) They are addicting. I came home with 2/3 of the pan from the dinner party (it was a small gathering with lots of desserts), and despite my roommate's help, I managed to consume far far far too many of these.
(2) They do not taste like peanut butter cups. I was sort of expecting something more along that line, but alas I guess we'll have to rely on Nigella's recipe for that. (Is it on this blog??)
(3) Deb says she used organic PB when she made these. I used full fat skippy. I found the PB taste to be somewhat understated. Next time, I'd make them with natural PB and a quarter teaspoon of salt or so.
