Little Bird Bake Shop

an excuse to make food (not that I need one).

2012-02-06T19:16:00.000-08:00

The Super Bowl, for me, is really just an excuse to make food. It's not that I need an excuse to make regular, everyday food, but seven-layer dip is not one of my everyday foods. But I'm here to tell you that it's so worth the extra effort to make the guacamole layer from scratch. Trust me on this.

Our SB Sunday started with a pre-game bike ride out to Ocean Beach with our whole crew on a 65-degrees-and-sunny February day (seriously? seriously.). We made a pit stop at Devil's Teeth Baking Company for $1 beignets, which is quickly becoming my favorite bakery in the city. Everything there is delicious, they serve Sightglass coffee, and they have a parklet outside for seating. It's like the San Francisco trifecta.

Our SB menu consisted of a gigantic seven-layer dip that ended up being around ten layers; Edyta's spicy spinach-artichoke dip with sourdough bread; Bobby's bloody mary's, complete with fancy pickled green beans; Mexican pozole soup for the meat-eaters and veggie soup for the non-meat eaters; and salty peanut butter cookies (recipe here). We ate, we drank, and we all agreed that Madonna really rocked it at half-time. Don't you think?

if shrimp and lobster had a love child

2012-01-29T17:52:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of Argentinian red shrimp? Well now you have, and you're welcome. Argentinian red shrimp taste like shrimp and lobster got together, had a love child, and the result was like shrimp, but a little sweet and buttery, like lobster. Shobster? Anyway, it's delicious, and you can find it at your local Trader Joe's if you're lucky enough to have one nearby. Jason rolls his eyes at my obsession - let's call it a love affair - with Trader Joe's, but I'm not ashamed.

Let me back up. A few years ago, our friends Ian and Courtney lived in Springfield for a year. Courtney is one of those natural cooks. Everything she makes is delicious and I always end up asking for the recipe. We have similar food brains, I think, and tend towards the same types of dishes. She shares my love of Ina Garten, for one thing. We cooked a lot together during that year; I miss those dinners.

One of the dishes that Courtney taught me to make was a Greek-style bake of shrimp and potatoes covered with tomatoes, oregano, lemon, and feta. It was one of those enlightening dishes that I came to crave often. It's kind of unexpected. It's nice to have those in your back pocket.

I had sort of forgotten about the dish until recently, but the recipe didn't make it to California. So I made it from memory and I think Courtney would have approved. The dish is hearty, but really fresh and bright from all the lemon. It's a year-round sort of dish, I think. But then again, I'm now living in the land of eternal Spring and Fall {we went for a run on the beach today, in January, not to rub it in or anything}.

Greek shrimp & potatoes
serves four
4 medium sized yukon gold potatoes
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 T olive oil
1 1/2 lemon, juiced
zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the potatoes into 1/4 inch slices and layer into the bottom of a 9x12 inch baking dish. Cover the potatoes with water and bake for 30-40 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Drain the water and re-arrange the potatoes back into a single layer. Set aside.

While the potatoes are baking, combine the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper, oregano and garlic in a small bowl and whisk together to combine. Reserve half of the olive oil mixture and add the other half to the thawed, peeled, shrimp. Mix gently to cover the shrimp with the marinade and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.

Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Pour the remaining half of the olive oil mixture/marinade over the baked potatoes. Add the tomatoes, shrimp, and feta (in that order) evenly. Bake for 15 minutes or until the shrimp are cooked through. Remove the dish from the oven, cool for five minutes and serve.

mother-in-law cookies

2012-01-22T13:56:00.000-08:00

In relationships, each person usually brings something to the table that enhances the life of the other. A few years ago, I discovered one of Jason's contributions to my life: his mom's oatmeal cookies. I've never been particularly excited about oatmeal cookies in the past, and they're still not what I would pick if given the choice between almost any other cookie. But my mother-in-law's oatmeal cookies? Now that, my friends, is a different story. Janie's cookies are the sort that you cannot stop eating once you start, no matter how hard you try. Jason once described them as little bowls of oatmeal, except they're way better than that.

My mother-in-law and I are different in many ways, and cooking is no exception. I love her dearly. Where I am a kale and saffron risotto kind of girl, Janie is a pot roast and cream of mushroom sort of lady. She makes an amazing pot roast, by the way, that is always always accompanied by mashed potatoes, sweet cinnamon-y carrots, and green beans. Every time.

I finally got my hands on the oatmeal cookie recipe recently and we attempted to re-create them. I don't know if it's the California climate or the fact that I just can't bring myself to use Crisco, I'm sorry, but I can't do it - but our first batch of cookies was nowhere near as good as Janie's. However, after we chilled the dough while we gave each other pep talks to try again, the second batch was so close! We ate at least 15 cookies in two days! Even though, as my husband lovingly pointed out, his mom doesn't chill her dough.

mother-in-law cookies (aka oatmeal cookies)
makes about 3 dozen small cookies. it's important not to over-bake these, which was one of our mistakes with the first batch. they are mean to be soft, not crispy. the good amount of salt gives lots of flavor.

1 cup raisins
3/4 cup non-hydrogenated shortening (like Spectrum brand)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 cups quick-cooking oats

Place the raisins in a small bowl, cover them with water to soak, and set aside.

Beat together the shortening and sugars in a large mixing bowl. Add the egg, water, and vanilla. In a separate medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir in the oats. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Drain the raisins and stir into the cookie dough. Chill for at least two hours.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Drop the dough by the tablespoon onto a greased cookie sheet or one lined with a baking mat. Bake for 11 minutes; do not over bake. The cookies should be just lightly golden and they will continue cooking on the pan as they cool.

a lesson in detox

2012-01-15T11:26:00.000-08:00

Last year, I told you about the two week cleanse I did that felt amazing and helped me to understand how my body interacts with certain foods. If you've never done a cleanse, I highly recommend it. I'm a firm believer in the body's ability to heal itself. In order for it to do what it's supposed to do, it's important to take a temporary break from all the foods that can cause harm and irritation. It's like giving your body a vacation at the beach. It will thank you later.

After eating about twice my body weight in food when I was home for ten days in Missouri over Christmas, I was craving a little detox. The program I followed last year is called Clean, and it's a great plan - but it's very regimented and can be tough to pull off, especially if you live with someone who's not so keen on the idea of pureed raw squash "soup" for dinner. What I learned from that experience is you have to make it work for you. And doing a little bit of good for yourself is better than no good at all. I find now that if I can do little mini-cleanses (3-5 days) several times a year, not only can I shed a few pounds if I need to, but I can actually pull it off and do something nice for my insides.

This time around, I picked up a copy of the January edition of Whole Living Magazine focusing on detox. Their plan was really similar to Clean (no dairy, wheat, nightshade plants, alcohol - all the allergen-inducing foods), but it's a bit more realistic. I took advantage of Jason going out of town to do a 5 day mini-cleanse. It was totally do-able and it was the reset I needed after all the holiday excess.

This is the general idea:
- Clean smoothie for breakfast (example: 1/3 cup mango, 1/3 cup pineapple, coconut water) + green or herbal tea
- Kale slaw for lunch
- Spiced butternut squash soup for dinner
- Snacks throughout the day, like dried mango, apples, and avocados.

I discovered some new recipes in the process that I could eat anytime, not just when I'm trying to be super healthy. Who knew raw kale slaw could be so delicious? I sliced it thinly and mixed it with red cabbage and a bunch of other herbs, and doused it in a vinaigrette. I used chopped roasted almonds instead of the seeds.

My favorite new recipe is spiced butternut squash soup. In the winter, I need something warm for dinner, but the fact that it's blended still gives your digestive tract a break while you sleep. It's super easy to make (especially if you own an immersion blender), thick, spicy, and very comforting.

spiced butternut squash soup
adapted from a recipe by Whole Living Magazine; makes about 6 servings
This soup is seriously good, and it has a secret ingredient: apple. You'll need either an immersion blender (much easier option) or a blender to puree all the veggies at the end.

2 T olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 T fresh ginger, grated or minced
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cardamom
pinch of ground cloves
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 tart apple, peeled and chopped
1 whole medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1-inch pieces
3-4 cups of water
salt + pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat; add the onion and garlic and cook until tender (6-8 minutes). Add the fresh ginger and all the spices and cook for about 1 minute. Add all the veggies, water, salt, and pepper. Cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat, let cool for a few minutes, and then carefully use an immersion blender to puree the soup. If you don't have a hand-held blender, a traditional one will do; just blend the soup in batches and return it to the pot.

if it's the beaches

2012-01-08T10:29:00.000-08:00

Although we may make resolutions for the new year, most of us don't keep them. We mean well, but we're creatures of habit and change is hard. I like to think about setting intentions for the year. I guess that's what resolutions really are - intentions. My intentions for this year? Some of them are important and serious, some of them not (growing my hair out - I have serious hair envy from this 2010 pic). The author of a blog I read often, nat the fat rat, said that all she wants is for her life to be beautiful. What an amazingly simple concept. If we all lived with that in mind - to be always looking for ways to create beauty in our lives - our world would probably be a much more peaceful place. I'm going to try to live more beautifully this year.

Luckily, we now live in a place with physical, tangible beauty that I can see everyday when I walk outside. My brother Josh said the other day that we underestimate the impact of the aesthetics of our everyday surroundings. It's something he notices when he goes home to Missouri. I've been listening to a song by the Avett Brothers that always makes me think of what Jason and I did, or what he did for me. It speaks to the bittersweet and brave act of leaving the familiar, seeking out more. He's a pretty wonderful man, that husband of mine.

If it's the beaches
If it's the beaches' sands you want
Then you will have them
If it's the mountains' bending rivers
Then you will have them
If it's the wish to run away
Then I will grant it
Take whatever you think of
While I go gas up the truck
Pack the old love letters up
We will read them when
we forget why we left here

By the way, did you know he's famous now? We recently became the proud owners of a 1962 Corvair Greenbrier that came with stories and pictures of its original owners who, like us, were young and in search of adventure. We feel a kinship with our new-old car. You can read Jason's car blog and the recent mention of our project on the popular car site Bring a Trailer.

two-thousand-twelve, show us whatcha got.

2012-01-01T16:23:00.000-08:00

My New Year's Eve looked a little like this:

[

{that's my brother and I having a dance party in our jammy-jams}

We had ourselves a rip-roarin' New Year's Eve. We ate a delicous brisket-in-red-wine prepared by my seeester-in-law Vanessa, the appetizers I made were pretty tasty, the drinks I made were even tastier, and we wrote down "ten to forty resolutions" at the request of Vanessa, on the back of a postcard, that will be mailed to me later. Unfortunately Jason was still in Springfield so he couldn't be there and we missed him a whole lot. We all had a hard time staying awake till midnight, decided to get our pajamas on to wait for its arrival, and then when midnight struck, I didn't even notice until people started calling me. You see, we're getting older. We get sleepy early and forget things easily. It was a super fun evening.

But to get serious for a minute, 2011 was a thrillingly wonderful, tough, amazing little year. In summary we:
- finished remodeling our house and sold it in three days.
- almost moved to Seattle for Jason to go to grad school but then decided not to.
- went to Ireland for an incredible wedding, and then to Paris, where I fell back in love with my favorite city.
- packed up all our things, quit our jobs, threw caution to the wind, and made all my dreams come true by moving to San Francisco. We arrived officially on July 23.
- by some kind of miracle, I found a kick-ass job and was hired before we even moved.
- met some really wonderful new friends. Just when you think you've made all the close friends you're ever going to make, surprise! you make more friends.
- discovered the TV show 'Damages' and are now officially addicted.

2011, you rocked my world. Moving was really hard (and expensive, lordy!) but so incredibly worth every single penny and all the stress and exhaustion and emotions that we paid to make it happen. 2012, show us whatcha got. If it's even half as exciting and life-changing as 2011, it's going to be a good year.

To celebrate this first day, I plan to sit on my couch watching the second season of Damages and eat Adronico's chocolate chip cookies for dinner.

Happy 2012!

resolutions and a winter cocktail

2011-12-31T17:04:00.000-08:00

Guess what? One of my new year's resolutions has to do with this blog. I have neglected it. I set it aside in favor of this blog, momentarily, and now we've neglected that blog, too. When will this madness stop? Well, it stops today. On this eve of 2012, I am renewing my commitment to this place called Little Bird Bake Shop and will be posting at least once a week. I don't even know if anyone still reads this, but whatever, it shall be done.

As I mentioned, it's New Years Eve. I have never liked going out on NYE (doesn't that abbreviation make it seem so official?) because it never lives up to expectations. It never has for me, anyway. This year, I'm headed to my brothers house for dinner which sounds perfectly lovely to me. You see, when you're almost 30, you lose that desire to do whatever it takes for a wild night out on the town. Zero desire. I'm not saying I never want a wild night out on the town, but just not on NYE.

My contributions to dinner tonight consist of two appetizers, a dessert, and some boozy drinks. For appetizer ideas, I consulted my dear friend Ina Garten. She's not really my friend, but I wish she was. I want to cook with her in her giant, gorgeous kitchen in the Hamptons and pretend like she's my long lost aunt.

After perusing her "How Easy Is That?" cookbook, I decided on roasted figs wrapped in prosciutto (it IS New Year's after all) and herbed ricotta on toasted sourdough bread.

Unfortunately, figs are out of season so we'll have to settle for dried ones. I'll let you know how they turn out. This appetizer couldn't be easier. You wrap figs in prosciutto, drizzle with olive oil, bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes, and you're done. Shazzam! Fancy time.

This herbed ricotta mixture is going on top of toasty slices of sourdough bread in a few hours. It's very fragrant, with dill, chives, green onions, and I added in a little fresh garlic. You can get the recipe here.

For dessert, another friend, Andres, is bringing flourless chocolate cake so I made honey lavender ice cream to serve alongside. Now, this isn't the first time I've written about this ice cream. It's that good. It has also become one of my favorite things to make because people love it so much. Can you blame them?

And finally, because it's New Years, I'm making some fun boozy drinks. I've always been a devoted wine drinker, but lately I've been enjoying this whole artisinal cocktail thing that is happening now. One of my favorite things is St. Germain, which is a lovely french liqueur that tastes of elderflower (think similar to lavender). Go on, add some to a glass of champagne. I'm also making the "before & after cocktail" that I found in the January issue of InStyle Magazine because it sounds all nice and toasty for a December evening.

Happy new year to all and to all a good night!

winter cocktail
adapted from InStyle Magazine, January 2012
2 oz. gin
3/4 oz. sweet vermouth
3/4 oz. Campari (or Aperol, as the original recipe suggests)
1/2 oz. Madeira

Mix together, serve over ice.

still recognizable

2011-10-17T22:24:00.000-07:00

It's strange how so many things have changed in the past year, yet my life is still recognizable. I just sat and looked through all our wedding photos - laughing and maybe getting a little teary-eyed - at how amazing that day was. Is it weird to be so in love with a day?

When I see pictures of other people's weddings now, it makes me feel really emotional about our wedding. I'd marry him all over again if I could. I love love, what can I say?

It's surreal and comforting to be a in a place in my life where I truly have nothing to complain about. I'm doing exactly what I want to be doing. I watch our dog getting older. I think about actual human babies. I bake when I want to and discover that adding salt to cookies is a fool-proof path to delicious. I cherish my friends more now than ever. I watch the sun set over this gorgeous city. I am lucky.

On our day in the city:

my friends came to visit and celebrate a 30th birthday

our dog is terrified of his new food bowl and refuses to eat. sigh.

food fatigue, and a word on bedding.

2011-09-12T22:40:00.000-07:00

image: west elm

image: Madewell

I didn't think it was possible, but something happened today that rarely ever happens. I have food fatigue. Maybe it's because we've been eating non-stop since we moved, or maybe it's because I'm feeling a little pudgy and seriously need to get some exercise around here for crying out loud. But nevertheless, I just made the saddest excuse for a dinner, probably in my history. How does one screw up brown rice? I'm not sure, but I just did. Folks, you can't win 'em all.

You know what I do feel like writing about? Clothes and bedding. I can't blame it on Fall since we don't really have seasons here (I'm just now figuring this out), but I've got the shopping bug in a bad way. Don't you just love chevron? And a good, practical, all-weather jacket? I do. So instead of actually buying things I don't need or can't afford, I put them in my online shopping cart, walk away from my laptop, and hope that the little West Elm and Madewell fairies will deliver them to my doorstep. Thank you, and good night.

day-to-day

2011-08-21T18:41:00.000-07:00

Well hello there! I do apologize for the lack of posting lately. The last two months have been exciting and exhausting, and well, big. City life has taken some adjusting; wearing coats and boots in August just feels wrong after a lifetime of hot Missouri summers, but I'll get over it eventually. I really love it here. The commute to work is strangely enjoyable (most of the time) and it's funny how you start to see the same people over and over again. And although I miss my friends dearly, we've made some new friends who are just delightful.

Needless to say, there hasn't been much time for baking. In fact, the only thing I've made since we became official residents one month ago was my favorite salted chocolate chip cookie recipe, and that was part of my orientation at work. "Rookie cookies", they're called. Each new hire has to do it as a way to be-friend colleagues.

As I write this we're making pho from scratch and our little cozy apartment smells amazing. You can read about all the day-to-day things we've been doing at www.ourdayinthecity.blogspot.com. It's a collaborative blog between Jason and I. We thought our friends and family might like to see what we're up to out here in this foggy city. It's a work in progress. Hop on over and take a look.

that's just what i do

2011-07-06T10:24:00.000-07:00

We have been here for three weeks and it's actually starting to feel normal. We finally found an apartment. We have a place to live! Someone actually wanted our money. It was a 4th of July miracle. Last week though...last week was kinda hard. In the midst of all these major decisions we are making, I felt a little homesick. Oh, wasn't life simpler on Elm Street, with our crazy cheap mortgage and our dog and our friends and.... But then I remember that we are in CALIFORNIA! The land of sunshine, good food, culture, beaches, wine country, and my brother. Ah yes, that's why we uprooted our entire lives to be here!

So, to combat my momentary lapse, I baked. That's just what I do. I made two recipes from my favorite blogger Molly Wizenberg: french-style granola with little chocolate bits and an almost-flourless chocolate cake for my brother's in-laws who were coming over to dinner that night. That's all I needed, and I was back on track.

Molly's French-style granola with chocolate
Adapted from a recipe by Molly Wizenberg of Orangette
Makes about 4 cups
I added extra almonds and a teaspoon of cinnamon to this recipe. You can read Molly's original post here.

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup raw slivered almonds
1/2 cup sweetened coconut
2 T sugar
Good pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
6 T agave syrup or honey
2 T vegetable oil
1/2 cup good quality dark chocolate, chopped

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

In a large bowl, using your hands, combine the oats, almonds, coconut, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.

In a small sauce pan, heat the agave/honey and oil just until they are easy to combine. Stir, then remove from heat and pour over the oat mixture. Mix well to combine so that all the oats are fairly well covered.

Spread evenly on 2 large baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Take the pans out of the oven and stir the granola to help it cook evenly. Bake for 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and cool well. This hardens the granola.

Empty granola into a large bowl or container for storage. Add the chocolate. I like to add it when the granola is still just barely warm because it really melds with the granola. Store in an airtight container for up to 10 days.

I think this recipe would be really nice with a large pinch of finely chopped rosemary. Just so you know.

twenty-nine

2011-07-02T19:04:00.000-07:00

Maybe turning 29 isn't so bad after all, besides that whole lurking 30 thing. After a day of wine tasting in Sonoma County at Porter Creek and Copain, we're off to surprise dinner reservations. Happy birthday to me.

update! the surprise dinner was at SPQR on Fillmore. we had the most amazing burrata crostini with hazelnuts, chili & honey. sooooo good.

makes all the difference

2011-06-21T16:49:00.000-07:00

California, as it turns out, is pretty much the best to place to live, with maybe the exception of Paris. We have been basking in the sun and relative heat; even 80 degrees here feels cool compared to Missouri, where humidity makes everything 20 degrees hotter. And I've become totally re-inspired by the food here. I'm not kidding when I say that it's hard to get bad food in San Francisco. I love that.

With all my free time lately (when I'm not desperately pleading with landlords to allow a 75 pound Boxer in one of their apartments), I actually have time to cook dinner in a relaxed fashion. It's glorious! Also, upon the recommendation of my friend Noah who is now a wine-maker extraordinaire, I'm reading Wine for Dummies because I really want to know more about wine. And because I should know more now that I'm living next to one of the most amazing wine regions on the world.

For dinner, I made rosemary chicken burgers flavored with sun-dried tomatoes and green onions, and topped with caramelized onions and Dijon mayo. It might have been the first time I've ever made a burger, which is silly, because it was so quick and simple. On the side, I tossed together a fresh corn and avocado salad from a recipe in an old issue of Sunset Magazine that was laying around my brother's house. I'm telling you, fresh corn is so worth the extra five minutes it takes to cook it and cut it. Makes all the difference.

After dinner, we went down to the beach to watch the sunset and the surfers. And guess what? Several of them were lady surfers! I think my husband wishes his wife were so adventurous. Unfortunately for him, his wife is terrified of sea creatures and of water sports.

So far, life is pretty good in California.

Rosemary chicken burgers with caramelized onions

Adapted from a recipe in the recent issue of ReadyMade Magazine

Serves 4

1 1lb ground chicken

1/2 c. panko bread crumbs

1/3 c. green onions, thinly sliced

2 T sun-dried tomato pesto, or chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1 tsp finely chopped rosemary

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 egg, lightly beaten

4 hamburger buns

Using clean hands, gently mix together all of the ingredients except the egg. Don't overmix or the burgers will be tough. Lightly mix in the egg. The mixture will be wet, but if it feels too wet, add a few more breadcrumbs. Form 4 patties, pressing your thumb in the middle of each one to form a little well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat your grill to medium and brush the grate with olive oil. Grill, covered, for about 10 minutes or until the centers are no longer pink, turning occasionally. Give the buns a quick toast on the grill before serving.

Top with:

arugula

1 T mayo + 1T dijon mustard, whisked together

Caramelized onions (recipe follows)

A slice of tomato, if your heart desires

Caramelized onions

3 T olive oil

1 whole yellow onion, thinly sliced

Heat olive over over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring often, until they begin to turn a nice caramel color. Reduce the heat and cook for another 10 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Serve on top of burgers.

Fresh corn and avocado salad

Adapted from a recipe in Sunset Magazine

Serves 4

6 ears of corn

2 cups of cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1 large avocado, chopped

1/4 c. fresh basil, chopped

2 T lemon juice

1 T dijon mustard

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook shucked corn for 5 minutes, turning once, just until corn is barely cooked through. Don't overcook. Set corn aside to cool.

Whisk the lemon juice, dijon, olive oil, s&p together in a small bowl to make a vinaigrette. Set aside.

Cut the corn from the cobs with a knife. In a large bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and mix gently to combine.

Welcome home.

2011-06-17T17:32:00.000-07:00

Well, we did it. We arrived in San Francisco on Wednesday evening. We are now the following things:

1. Homeless. We are currently staying with my brother in Pacifica. Bless him and my dear sister-in-law.

2. Jobless. I'm enjoying this fact for now, but check back in a couple of months and I might be going insane. Or at least driving Jason insane for sure.

3. Missing my doggie bubby bamboozle (his nickname, of course). Also, frustrated by the lack of dog-friendly apartments in this town. Jeez, what is their problem? Why do they hate dogs?
4. Really happy we made this decision. Since we got here, we keep saying to each other, "Welcome home!" as if we are trying to convince ourselves that we do, in fact, live here. It's still so surreal, but in a good way. We did the right thing. I almost feel like we didn't have a choice; we had to do it or I would have always wondered 'what if?' and I don't like regrets.

So, for now, we search for the perfect, ridiculously expensive apartment and for gainful employment. If they knew us, the would love us, right? I'm actually ready to get to work. "Sitting" and "relaxing" have never been strengths of mine. (See, I'm already practicing for interviews!)

Love,
The Mitchells
a.k.a. California residents

Joplin needs our help.

2011-05-25T11:56:00.000-07:00

Just 50 minutes from where I live, thousands of people lost everything. There aren't any words to make it better, but what we can do is give of our resources. Convoy of Hope is just one of many organizations collecting donations. Friends who have families in Joplin tell us that the destruction is even worse than news reports are describing. Please do what you can.

i thought you should know

2011-05-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

So, we have some news. And it's pretty big news in the grand scheme of things. It's the kind of news that truly changes the course of life. I mean, this is kind of serious when you really think about it. And no, I'm not pregnant.

Anyway, I thought you should know that we are moving. And when I say moving, I don't mean down the street. We are moving precisely 1,911 miles away from Springfield, Missouri.

But before I tell you where, there was sort of a "Battle of the Cities 2011" that got us to our decision.

First, we considered Seattle. We loved Seattle, a lot. Jason loved the fresh seafood. And I loved the fact that seagulls fly around Downtown. I actually said several times that Seattle is the most under-rated city I've ever visited.

Drinks at Clever Bottle

Then, we spent 24 hours in Portland. Who knew it was just a quick 3 hour drive from Seattle? Anyway, Jason fell in love, hard core, with Portland. I liked it a lot, too. Portland wooed us with their incredible food scene and single origin coffees.

Stewed rhubarb for brunch at the Daily Cafe

Voodoo Donuts

Dinner at Biwa

Seattle and Portland tried very hard to win our love. It was a fierce battle, but there was a third contender, and she drove a real hard bargain. The 1st place gold medal champion of the Battle of the Cities 2011 is....

San Francisco!!!

If you recall, I have had a love affair with that city for quite some time. And now I actually get to live there, with my cute redhead and our goofy dog. It's almost too good to be true, I tell you!

Anyway, I thought you should know. The Mitchells are headed West.

tastes like summer.

2011-04-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

Life has been, well, just a tad overwhelming lately. I am two weeks away from finishing my masters degree, we have been feverishly getting our house ready to sell, and trying to make some major life decisions that are incredibly exciting but enough to hurt my brain. It's enough to drive a girl to drink and what not. As I write this, our basement is probably flooding because it Won't. Stop. Raining. What to do? Make a batch of soothing, coconut lime sorbet, of course. Duh!

I came across this recipe somehow and it caught my eye because it doesn't have dairy, which is something I'm trying to avoid these days. Also, I noticed it because we have a slight obsession in our house with Sharon's coconut sorbet from the grocery store; one pint lasts about 30 minutes or less, usually. Plus, it has only three ingredients. Three!

I decided to substitute limes for lemons because I had them on hand and it seemed more exciting to me. I've gotta get my thrills when I can, right? It turned out really nicely, very zesty and citrusy. Actually, it tastes like summer, which is exactly what I was hoping.

Coconut Lime Sorbet
Makes about one quart

2 12oz cans of light coconut milk, shaken well
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup lime juice & 1 T lime zest

Whisk all three ingredients together in a medium bowl. Chill for a couple of hours, or overnight.

Pour into an ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions. Enjoy while picturing yourself on a nice sunny beach like I did.

P.S. I'll let you in on those major life changes soon...

Yes, please.

2011-04-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

I found this photo from Flour Child while doing my daily Tastespotting perusal. French toast, with spiked cream cheese, and then caramelized. Wowza.

Photo courtesy of Flour Child

kinda weird, but good.

2011-03-21T20:21:00.000-07:00

Has anyone else noticed that it's all "wheat-free" this and "gluten-free" that lately? My prediction: this is a trend that isn't going away anytime soon. You heard it here first, people (not really).

I'm sort of fascinated by learning how foods interact with our bodies. I already know that dairy is not my friend but I've always wondered about wheat. I really do try not to jump on the food fads band wagon, but I have my moments. I am especially easily influenced when someone like my girl crush Gwynnie proposes something crazy. And that crazy thing is called a cleanse.

I just finished two weeks on the Clean program (I was actually supposed to do three weeks, but hell, I'm no Gwyneth Paltrow). I'll spare you too many personal details about why I decided to do it, but I will tell you that I'm glad I did and it was all worth it because I feel better than I've felt in a long time. And the great news is I'm experimenting with some new kinds of baking that are a little easier on the tummy and the stuffy nose. I never thought I would do this, but I made my first foray into gluten free baking this week. And it was kinda weird, but good. Not too bad at all...I mean, they're no butter-and-cream scones, but when you've been eating two shakes a day for two weeks, your standards are a little different.

In all seriousness, I would highly recommend the cleanse to anyone who feels sluggish all the time (like I did) or has some chronic problems that never seem to go away. It will change your whole outlook on eating, I promise.

Chocolate Walnut Scones (gluten and dairy free)
Adapted from the Clean recipe by Jenny Nelson
3/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup dates, pitted, chopped, and smashed into a paste
1 T agave nectar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups gluten free all purpose flour (I used Bob’s Red Mills) +1 T for dusting
Pinch sea salt
2 oz organic dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking sheet with a dab of coconut oil, or use a silicone baking mat.

Heat the coconut oil in a medium bowl until liquid. Add the water, agave, dates, and vanilla and whisk well to combine (there will still be little chunks of dates). Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients.

Add the coconut and date mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir in the chocolate and walnuts. Sprinkle some flour on a cutting board and turn out the batter onto the board. Shape the batter into a large circle; cut the circle in half. Arrange each half into a smaller circle. Cut each circle in half, and then in thirds so that you have six little triangles from each circle, or 12 total.

Spread the scones evenly across a large baking sheet. Bake for 16 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool, enjoy, and congratulate yourself on being so resourceful.

i love my husband.

2011-03-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

He cooks:

He makes one hell of a hipster:

He knows how to fix stuff:

He's all-around dreamy:

I mean, the man can dance:

And he loves our dog:

Sigh. Eat your hearts out, ladies.

a really good meal.

2011-03-14T09:47:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share one of our favorite go-to dishes that I've been making a lot of lately. It's sort of a different take on a stir fry, but without a lot of the traditional Asian flavors you would expect. This one is made with lots of lemon juice, garlic, toasted pecans, walnuts, and pine nuts, and whatever veg you prefer. This weekend, I made it with broccoli, fresh shitake mushrooms, and zucchini. Top it with some fresh chopped green onions or minced shallot, and a little swig of sriracha, and you've got yourself a really good meal. I made mine vegetarian, but I also love this dish with shrimp or grilled chicken.

Veggie Rice Bowl with Lemon & Nuts

Serves 4

1 cup short grain brown rice

2 cups water

3 T olive oil, divided

1 large head of broccoli

1 cup shitake mushrooms, roughly chopped

1 cup zucchini squash, cut into large chunks

1 lemon, juiced

2-4 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup each of walnuts, pecan, and pine nuts, toasted

salt + pepper to taste

green onions, diced

dash of sriracha hot sauce (optional)

Cook the rice and the water in a rice cooker or over the stove until nice and tender.

In a large wok or frying pan, saute the broccoli over medium-high heat until it starts to lightly brown. Add in the shitake mushrooms, zucchini, garlic, half of the lemon juice, and salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, toast all the nuts either in the oven for 7 minutes at 350 degrees, or in a small pan on the stove over medium heat. Once the nuts are nice and toasty, let them cool and then give them a rough chop.

Once the veggies are cooked through, add in the warm rice and turn the heat to low. Squeeze the remaining lemon juice, one T of olive oil, and more salt and pepper to taste. Add in most of the chopped nuts, saving a handful to sprinkle over the top.

Serve with chopped green onions, more nuts, and a hit of sriracha sauce.

And now for some cute doggie pictures.

My second-in-command man, Mater James The Boxer spent the whole weekend with just me while Jason was in Boston visiting a friend. I love this dog. He has such a serious, thoughtful face like he's really trying very hard to understand everything I say because he really just wants to talk, you know? There is a human inside that dog body, I have no doubt about it.

Dreams do come true.

2011-03-05T16:47:00.000-08:00

There are times in life when you realize how lucky you are. For me, it was last weekend while wandering around on a beautiful beach, stuffing my face with food and sampling wines from all over and meeting famous celebrity chefs. What was this utopia, you ask? The South Beach Wine &Food Festival. And it was heaven, to me. Dreams really do come true.

Thanks to my friend Nicole who works for an advertising agency here in Springfield and had tickets to the event (ever heard of Plugra butter? she's their PR gal) so I got to tag along and pretend like I was all rich and fancy for a weekend. I ate really good food, drank wine and champagne like it was going out of style, and even got a tiny hint of a tan. It was about as much excitement as this Missouri girl could handle.

Ok, get ready for a barrage of photos of me grinning like a 12 year old school girl:

My friend Nicole, the dreams-do-come-true maker

Walking towards the huge tent that was the Bubble Q party (barbecue and champagne)

Teeny tiny Iron Chef Cat Cora

Rick Bayless. Le sigh.

Let Them Eat Cake Party

Ace of Cakes!

Geoff of Ace of Cakes, my fave person on the show.

I was third in line for Giada to sign my cookbook. She was adorable and as sweet as could be.

Shrimp and grits under one of the Grand Tasting tents

Best Thing I Ever Ate on the Beach Party

Claire Robinson of Five Ingredient Fix

The Grand Tasting Village, before the masses of people

The legend himself, Anthony Bourdain. I don't think he was very excited about signing cookbooks.

Did I really get to do that? I also saw cooking demos by Jamie Oliver (!), Bobby Flay, sailor mouth Bethenney Frankel, a slightly belligerent Paula Deen, and Tyler Florence. I can't say that the food they made blew my mind but they were incredibly entertaining. One of the standouts was Claire Robinson's blood orange cake made with only! five! ingredients! If you haven't seen her show, you should really check it out. She's super charming and I love the philosophy behind simple recipes.

So, in conclusion: beach + sun + food + wine + celebrity chefs = HEAVEN.

a vegan valentine's

2011-02-15T17:00:00.000-08:00

So this might sound crazy, but J and I are trying something new: no meat or dairy or anything that comes from the animal kingdom! This is a huge departure for us, especially Jason. While he's very good about trying all the weird things I make for him, one of his favorite meals is hot dogs and macaroni and cheese. And yet somehow, I've convinced him to go vegan for a temporary period? Now that's a real man, ladies and gents. He's a real trouper.

Our friends Ian & Rachel inspired us to try a cholesterol-lowering diet called Engine 2 which is essentially a vegan diet. Someone in our relationship has high cholesterol (hint: it isn't me). Who knew that even chicken and fish have cholesterol?? And that dairy actually leaches calcium from your bones instead of adding to them?? We are now enlightened. Now don't worry - we're not planning to become total, dedicated vegans for the rest of our lives. But we are trying to re-train our bodies to enjoy more whole grains and veggies instead of meat and white bread.

We've made it through almost 4 days now, and I really don't feel like I'm missing out on anything! (Besides Valentine sugar cookies slathered in frosting, but sometimes you gotta make sacrifices.)

Last night, for our little Valentine dinner, I made us a meal with brown rice pasta - something I had never ever cooked with until last night. And the surprising thing: I don't think I would have known the difference if I hadn't opened the package myself. I also loved the fact that after dinner, I didn't have that heaviness that usually comes from eating pasta. Go brown rice! I also made a quick little appetizer from all kinds of yummy things from Trader Joe's. Go Trader Joe's! I do love Trader Joe's. Sigh.

Good-for-You-and-the-Planet Vegetable Pasta
Serves 4-6, depending on how hungry your husband is after having been deprived of meat for 3 whole days.
1 1lb brown rice spaghetti pasta
1 jar of Arrabiata pasta sauce (or any sauce without cream or Parmesan) or make your own!
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup of dry white wine
4 stalks of asparagus, chopped in 2 inch pieces
1 cup of cauliflower, cut in to bite-size pieces
1 cup of baby portabella mushrooms, chopped
1 cup of kale, chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 cup kalamata olives, diced
salt + pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Add the entire package of pasta and cook for about 15 minutes, or until al dente.

In a large saute pan, cook red onions in the white wine until soft. Add the rest of the vegetables and the lemon juice. Cover and cook until veggies are done to your liking. Add more white wine as necessary.

Add the cooked pasta to the veggies and cover with the pasta sauce. Toss until combined and heated through, about 5 minutes. Top with fresh basil and kalamata olives. Congratulate yourself for being so healthy.

pancakes and a snow day.

2011-02-01T08:54:00.000-08:00

I don't know if this is normal, but I am a person who associates food with memories. It's similar to when an old song comes on the radio and immediately takes you back to some other time in your life when things were happy or sad. Pancakes, for example remind me of one person: Gary "Double Ugly Andre" Ellis, my dad's best friend. He earned that nickname from his famous campfire eggs that he made for me and his daughter, Emily, who is my best and oldest friend and someone I love dearly. Em and I learned from a very early age how to set up a tent, steer a canoe, tell ghost stories, not ask what time it was (answer: "it's daylight"). But my fondest memories of the Ellis family were Gary's famous pancakes. Not only were they perfectly cooked and buttered, but the piece de resistance was the fact that Gary made them into intricate shapes. An Eiffel tower for me, a cat for Em. In my young mind, it was something close to magical.

As I write this, the whole Midwest is being covered up with, by some accounts, the worst snow storm in 100 years. While meteorologists are busy scaring the crap out of everyone, I'm cozy at home with my dog and my husband, watching the blizzard outside.

Gary never would tell me his secret pancake recipe, although I have my theories (it's called butter). So instead, I consulted my cooking bible, How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. Whatever you need to make or bake is in this cookbook, which makes it my go-to when I need a recipe for something. Because of the "snowmageddon" going on outside, I didn't have a lot of fancy ingredients on hand. Luckily it didn't matter because these pancakes are incredibly simple and perfect and made with normal stuff. The only thing I ask is that you use real maple syrup if you're going to go to the trouble of making pancakes from scratch. Please do this thing that I ask, ok? Ok.

Basic Pancakes

adapted from a recipe by Mark Bittman

Mr. Bittman writes this about these pancakes: "Americans must have been sadly alienated from the kitchen for pancake mixes to ever have gained a foothold in the market, for these are ridiculously easy to make."

2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons of butter melted and cooled, plus more for cooking
1 cup real maple syrup

Preheat a griddle or skillet over low heat while you make the batter.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside. In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs into the milk and add the melted butter.

Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing just until moist and combined. It's okay if a few small lumps remain. If the batter seems to thick, add more milk. If you're using a non-stick pan, you may not need additional butter for cooking. We have stainless steel cookware so butter is definitely needed. Melt about 1/2 tablespoon of butter in the pan before adding the pancake batter. Turn the heat up to medium-low and add pancake batter to the pan using a 1/3 cup scoop. Resist the urge to flip the pancakes before they are ready. You can tell readiness by bubbles in the batter on the top side, or when the edges start to brown slightly.

Repeat with all the pancake batter. You can keep pancakes warm in a 200 degree oven. Serve hot with real maple syrup and a little pat of butter.

easy as sunday morning

2011-01-08T15:24:00.000-08:00

I love cinnamon rolls. One might even say I'm a cinnamon roll fanatic. Growing up, my mom ruined us by making home-made oatmeal cinnamon rolls with caramel icing for special occasions. They're amazing. Now, she makes them on Saturday mornings in her cafe. If I were a better person, I would make them for Jason on special occasions. Maybe someday. For now, I've come up with a great short-cut recipe for all of us under-achievers.

All you need is some good quality pizza dough, a little brown sugar and cinnamon, and some pecans. I happened to have dough on hand from Trader Joe's. I suppose you could also use puff pastry, which would be nice and decadent.

Easy Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing
Serves 6
1 package of raw pizza dough
1/3 cup brown sugar (or more if you're feeling dangerous)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
cream cheese icing (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Let the pizza dough rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

On a floured surface, roll the pizza dough out in a rectangle shape, about 1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans evenly over dough. Press ingredients lightly into dough with the heel of your hand.

Starting with one long edge, roll dough away from you until you have a fairly tight log. Using a sharp knife, slice the dough into 6 even pieces. Place a few inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for about 15 minutes. Spread icing over each roll.

Cream Cheese Icing:
1/2 package of cream cheese at room temperature
4 T butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1 T milk, or more as needed

With a mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter together in a medium sized bowl. Add the vanilla. Slowly add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add the milk to your desired consistency, being careful not to make the icing too thin. Spread over warm cinnamon rolls.

a new year

2011-01-02T13:59:00.000-08:00

I prefer predictions over resolutions. I predict that Jason and I have a really exciting year ahead of us. And, since food is one of my favorite things to think about, here are my top 5 food predictions for 2011:

1. Boozy pies
In the December/January issue of Ready Made Magazine, I was fascinated by an article about a bakery in Brooklyn, Four and Twenty Blackbirds. Two sisters are taking old-fashioned pie making and turning it into something new by using liqueurs and spirits alongside fresh herbs. Genius, I say.

2. Creative gratins
My contribution to Christmas dinner this year was a rosemary-encrusted potato gratin. Since then, I've been noticing lots of recipes for creative gratins, like Food & Wine's squash gratin with poblanos and cream. I think we'll see lots more layered dishes that don't include a single potato.

3. Whoopie pies and sandwich cookies
Cupcakes are so 2009. All of a sudden, whoopie pies and sandwich cookies are everywhere. Apparently we still want cake and icing, just in a different form. Instead of red velvet cupcakes, try these little guys as a remedy for cupcake fatigue.

4. Mad Men era cocktail parties
AMC's Mad Men has made a huge impact on pop culture. Whether you watch the show or not, you've probably heard of it. A new fascination with the late 50s/early 60s is causing a cocktail revival. Make an old-fashioned, whip up some deviled eggs, invite your friends over, and party Mad Men style.

5. Home-made beer
It's as local as local gets: brewing your own beer at home. Even my little brother is doing it. We've already seen a lot of artisinal beer companies popping up in the past few years, and the natural progression is to home-crafted. I think beer is having a moment.

On New Year's Eve, we celebrated at a beautiful cabin in the woods with some of my oldest, dearest friends. I made little lemon ricotta cookies as a remedy for too much rich holiday food. We ate, we drank, we laughed, a lot. It was perfect.

Lemon Ricotta Cookies
a recipe by Giada Delaurentis

Cookie batter:
2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups of granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 15-oz container whole milk ricotta cheese
Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment, or use my new favorite thing, a Silpat baking mat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time. Mix until fully combined. Add the ricotta, lemon zest and juice. Stir in the dry ingredients.

Using a medium ice cream scoop, spoon rounds of cookie dough about an inch apart onto the baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until cookies are set (not jiggly). Remove from oven and let cool for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon zest and juice in a small bowl. When cookies are mostly cool, spread a thin layer of glaze on each cookie. Enjoy.

Happy 2011!

winning hearts and minds cake

2010-12-23T15:50:00.000-08:00

Christmas is almost here, which means I get to see my brothers and sister and their spouses, all together at the same time. Since we are scattered across the country now, this is a big deal and very important to me. My dad is unlucky enough to have a birthday three days before Christmas. My friend Brandi is in the same boat - her birthday is today. I have no idea what it feels like to share your birthday with "the baby Jesus", as my dad always says. My birthday is in July, thank goodness.

I made dinner for my dad for his birthday, and for dessert, I made an almost flourless chocolate cake served alongside vanilla bean ice cream. The recipe came from Molly Wizenberg's memoir, "A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes From my Kitchen Table", which if you haven't read, you should go immediately to the bookstore and buy yourself a copy. She writes the blog Orangette that I discovered several years ago and to which I am totally addicted. Her book is beautifully-written and honest, as is her blog. The last recipe in the book is for a chocolate cake that she calls the "winning hearts and minds cake" because that's exactly what it does. It is by far the best chocolate cake recipe I've ever laid my hands on. It's the perfect recipe to make up for having a birthday at Christmas.

Winning Hearts and Minds Cake
from Molly Wizenberg

7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup + 2 T sugar
5 large eggs
1 T all-purpose flour
whipped cream or vanilla bean ice cream

Preheat the oven 375 degrees and butter a 10 inch spring-form pan.

Put the chocolate and butter in a large glass bowl and microwave in 30 second increments until mixture is fully melted. Stir to combine well. Add the sugar and set the bowl aside to cool for 5 minutes.

Add the eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next egg. A whisk is the easiest way to do this. Add the flour and stir well. The batter should be thick and shiny.

Scrape the batter into the pan and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the center is set.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

happy holidays.

2010-12-05T14:27:00.000-08:00

a little kitchen gnome

2010-11-11T15:11:00.000-08:00

Much to my pleasant surprise, I'm on a bit of a making-neat-things kick right now. Pumpkin chocolate chip bread, curtains for my mom's new kitchen, a whole roasted chicken, an invitation - I'm not sure what has gotten in to me, but it feels like I'm just now coming down from the baking burnout I experienced this time last year while I was trying to run a small baking business and working full time and getting my masters degree. I think I was momentarily insane. It feels nice to want to make things again.

I have a confession to make. Before last week, I had never roasted a chicken. Six years of being a vegetarian has lasting effects, at least for me. I eat meat, but I don't love to think about the fact that I eat meat. When roasting a whole chicken, there's no way around it: it once was a living, breathing animal, and now, I'm about to eat it. Gross. But once you get past that, it turns out to be the easiest, most fun way to make dinner. It takes all of 15 minutes to prepare everything, and then you throw it in the oven and (more or less) forget about it for an hour, and dinner is done. It's almost like having a little kitchen gnome or something.

The exciting thing is that you can use whatever vegetables you want. I went the traditional route with carrots and wax potatoes, but you could also use fennel, artichokes, sweet potatoes...whatever root-related thing you can think of. My holiday wish is that you will all go out and roast a chicken. Do it.

Roasted Chicken with Lemony Root Vegetables and Herbs
Adapted from recipes by Jessica Seinfeld and Ina Garten
Serves 2-4

1 medium sized whole chicken, giblets removed
1 lemon, halved
3-4 garlic cloves, peeled
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary and sage, or whatever herbs you love
5-8 wax potatoes, diced
5-6 whole carrots, peeled and chopped
olive oil
salt & pepper
1 beer can
2-4 T butter

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Prepare the vegetables by tossing them in salt, pepper, some minced rosemary, and olive oil. Spread over
a medium-sized roasting pan.

On a clean surface, sprinkle the chicken with salt & pepper and a good drizzle of olive oil on both the front and back sides. Stuff the lemon, garlic & herbs in the chicken's open cavity. Open the beer can, pour half of it out, and stuff it inside the chicken so that the chicken is sitting upright on top of the beer can (this helps keep it really moist while it bakes). Set the chicken to rest on top of the vegetables in the roasting pan.

Bake the chicken and veggies for an hour, stirring the veggies occasionally and smearing some butter on the skin of chicken at 20 minute intervals.

The chicken is ready when the skin is golden brown or when a meat thermometer reads 175 degrees. Let the meat rest for about 15 minutes. Take the lemon out of the chicken (carefully) and squeeze it over the vegetables.

Enjoy your feast and congratulate yourself on a job well done.

together on a plate

2010-10-13T19:38:00.000-07:00

I recently discovered the Instagram app and I love it. It's part photography, part social media, all in one fell swoop. Here are some things that have been making me happy lately, with the help of Instagram:

cinnamon roll from Amycakes with caramel and pecans

jason's newest love, the '74 mini

what was left of our dinner tonight: betsy's mushroom risotto with fried spinach and pork chops.

Sometimes, you just need things, and those things come in the form of creamy risotto and pork meat together on a plate. I found a great food site, TasteSpotting, which was listed in my girl Gwyneth's (you know the one) newsletter of great food blogs. It aggregates photos and recipes from lots of different sites in a very nice presentation. I searched for risotto recipes because I finally had a free night with enough time to actually make risotto, and I found this recipe.I followed their method, but changed it up by using some of the liquid from reconstituted shitake mushrooms like our friend Betsy does with her risotto, and chopping up the mushrooms to add to the rice. It was perfect. Instead of lamb, I decided on pork chops. The spinach gets cooked in the juices from the pork and makes a delicious in-between layer of greens.

So sometimes, if you're lucky, your wife will come home on a night that she doesn't have class or work and will fix you a scratch meal that takes awhile. Because taking awhile tastes better, usually.

just like that

2010-10-04T18:14:00.000-07:00

Almost overnight, fall is here. The changing seasons might be my most favorite thing about where I live. Suddenly we are sleeping with the windows open, buying pumpkins, whirling big batches of pesto to use up the last of the basil, switching out wardrobes, and making an apple pie with brown butter and a cheddar crust from this recipe I found on food52. Just like that, life feels cozy again.

a little bit more fancy

2010-09-16T10:08:00.000-07:00

I first tasted and fell in love with honey lavender ice cream at the Bi-Rite Creamery in San Francisco last fall. It was about as perfect as ice cream gets, incredibly creamy with the most amazing texture. The flavors were just right and I remember thinking I'd never eaten anything quite like it. And that someday, I would try to make it.

I sort of forgot about honey lavender ice cream until (I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but there's no turning back now) one night, by myself and with a glass (or two) of wine, I was watching the movie with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin called "It's Complicated". I actually loved this movie. There, I said it. I really loved it, in fact, because it reminded me so much of my parents. My parents never got back together the way they almost did in the movie, but I guess it just reminded me of my family. My family is one of a kind. My family is crazy and loud and dysfunctional, but so lovable you can't help but just go with it and hug it out. They are like my limbs - I never feel quite right without them.

Meryl Streep's family wasn't quite so crazy and loud, but they were definitely dysfunctional and they had a mom (Meryl) who just so happened to be an amazing cook (like my mom) and would make honey lavender ice cream when she couldn't sleep. I love that idea, because making ice cream is a soothing process in itself, so I could see where she was coming from. I'm with you, Meryl. Anyway, watching the movie gave me an insatiable urge to make the ice cream. After I finished laughing and crying into my wine glass, that is. (god, I KNOW! It's ridiculous. But seriously, you should watch it.)

I've made the ice cream exactly twice now, and both times my friends have sung its praises. I have to admit, I wasn't sure if the flavor would be for everyone, but I was totally wrong. It's a hit. My friend Laine says it tastes like Cinnamon Toast Crunch, only a little bit more fancy. I kinda like the sound of that.

Honey Lavender Ice Cream
adapted from a recipe in Gourmet Magazine

I found this recipe from an old issue of Gourmet and decided to fiddle with the quantities of cream and half-and-half because I like my ice cream a little less rich. I used dried lavender flowers from the bulk section of a local health food store, Mama Jean's. Buy extra because you'll want to make this recipe again, I promise.

You'll need an ice cream maker. I use a Cuisinart and it works great. You might also want a candy thermometer, but you can do without if you don't have one.

1 cup of heavy whipping cream
2 cups of half-and-half
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons of dried edible lavender flowers
2 large eggs
1/8 teaspoon of salt

Using a two-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream, half-and-half, honey and lavender just to a boil, stirring occasionally; right after it reaches a boil, remove from heat. Put the lid on it and steep for 30 minutes. Take a break.

Strain the cream through a fine wire mesh strainer, into a bowl, and discard the lavender.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the two eggs and salt. Return the cream mixture to the pan on the stove and heat until hot (this doesn't take very long - don't boil!). Very slowly pour a cup of the hot cream into the egg mixture while whisking the eggs quickly. Pour the egg mixture into the cream and cook over low heat for about 5 minutes, or until a candy thermometer reads 170 degrees or until the cream coats the back of a spoon. Again, don't cook too long here! Trust me, I did it the first time, and the second batch had a much better texture.

Pour the custard again through the mesh strainer into a clean bowl and cool completely. You can either put it in the fridge overnight (covered in plastic wrap) or placed in a bowl filled with ice (if you need it to cool faster).

Put the cooled custard into an ice cream maker; once the ice cream is finished, transfer to an air-tight container to harden for at least an hour.

an ode to summer

2010-08-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

Late August is the time of year in Missouri when everyone is exhausted from the heat, lawns are turning a lovely brown (dead) color, and all you want to do is sit inside in the air conditioning. As much as I feel ready for fall, I know I will miss summer soon enough because I am a warm weather girl. Winter is not my friend ( the season, that is - I actually do have a friend named Winter, and she's great).

One of the things I love most about summer is the abundance of peaches, corn and tomatoes that are almost not worth eating the rest of the year. I don't want to give up my peaches. Marionville is a small town near by, known for white squirrels and more importantly, peaches. They are so good. I got to the farmer's market on Saturday a little later than usual, 11:30, and I couldn't believe that almost everything was sold out - including my beloved Marionville peaches. All they had left was a handful of yellow peaches and some white ones, just enough to make a crisp for a couple of friends coming over later.

As an ode to summer, I made the crisp from a recipe by Ina Garten who never leads me astray when it comes to desserts. I was tempted to replace the orange for lemon zest, but I resisted the urge, and I'm glad. The orange is really nice and a bit unexpected. Serve it with vanilla bean ice cream if you want to get really fancy.

peach and raspberry crisp
adapted from a recipe by Ina Garten

I love this recipe because it's oh-so-simple to make and you get the unexpected hit of orange and raspberry in a traditional peach crisp. The crumble on top reminds me of an oatmeal cookie, which is never a bad thing. I used half yellow and half white peaches because that's what I could find, but you could use either or both.

8-10 large peaches, peeled and sliced
1/2 quart raspberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
zest of one orange
1 cup + 3 tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup oats
12 tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and diced
good pinch of salt
vanilla bean ice cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, gently combine the sliced peaches with the raspberries. Add 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 3 tbsp of flour, and the orange zest to the fruit. Fold together until the fruit is well coated. Scoop fruit mixture into an oval or rectangular baking dish (roughly 9x13 in size).

Using a mixer, combine the butter with the remaining sugars, 1 cup of flour, oats, and salt. Mix until crumbly, then scatter the mixture evenly across the top of the fruit.

Bake the crisp for an hour, or until the top is nice and brown (and crispy, just like the name). Cool for about 20 minutes and serve with vanilla bean ice cream.

home grown

2010-08-18T08:03:00.000-07:00

A little home grown goodness for a Wednesday that feels like it should be a Friday (to me, anyway). These pretty little cherry tomatoes were not home grown by me, although we do have a garden that is getting roached by the Missouri heat as we speak. These came from a fantastic new shop on the corner of Pickwick and Cherry, right by Tea Bar & Bites, called Homegrown Foods. It's like a farmer's market that is open every day. Between that and the highly anticipated Bistro Market downtown, Springfield is all of a sudden getting hip.

they have arrived.

2010-08-06T08:59:00.000-07:00

I've been like a kid on Christmas since Tuesday, which was the day we got to see our highly anticipated wedding photos, courtesy of Adie Gately with Twin Town Studios. Jason and I sat at the Coffee Ethic and looked at every single one. There were 1,000 photos all together. I couldn't believe it. Looking at the pictures was like reliving the entire day. It was just as perfect as I remember it.

All the little details we planned for the wedding, and all the time it took to make them happen, were totally worth it in the end. When we were deciding how we wanted our wedding to be, we knew we wanted it to be memorable. We wanted our guests to eat great food, drink good wine, and dance. We made almost everything ourselves, from the cloth napkins to the succulent centerpieces.

The food, provided by my mom's restaurant, was Moroccan-themed and included:
Moroccan chicken
Roasted tomatoes with a harissa rub
Spring salad of fresh greens, strawberries, feta and a basil vinaigrette
Roasted baby new potatoes with herbs

For dessert, I knew I couldn't commit to just one thing. I do appreciate wedding cakes, but I wanted to serve all of our favorites. In addition to a small wedding cake, my mom's staff made coconut cream cupcakes and lemon bars, and I made my favorite brownie recipe. For Jason's groom's cake, his mom made four apple pies. All of this disappeared within a matter of minutes. Imagine that.

Our wedding was so "us" and I'm really happy about that.

best kept secret

2010-07-29T07:23:00.000-07:00

When I picked up the Travel section of the New York Times several months ago, featuring a serene picture of a vineyard in Portugal, I never dreamed we would actually go there. We knew we wanted to go to Portugal, but I assumed the beautiful bed and breakfast over-looking the Douro Valley would be way too expensive for our post-big-wedding budget. But that's what's great about honeymoons. You do crazy things. So I looked it up anyway online. When Jason looked over my shoulder and said, "Can we go there?", I had no choice. I booked it immediately.

But here's the secret: it wasn't expensive. After spending two nights at Quinta do Vallado, just outside of Regua in the Douro Valley (Portugal's Napa Valley), we looked at each other and knew that this place was about to explode. It's just too luxurious, too beautiful, too perfect...and too affordable. It was almost too good to be true. I mean, we had very decent bottles of wine delivered to us pool-side for about six euros. Six. Euros. Incredible. It was the kind of place where you feel like you could stay forever.

The other thing I don't want to tell you, but I'm going to anyway: the food in the Duoro Valley is the best I've ever had. At Castas e Pratos, I had a turnip bisque that I'm still thinking about. The next night, driving along the beautiful highway that curves around the valley, we found Restaurant D.O.C. sitting on stilts right over the river.

This was the first of two very memorable birthday dinners (I'm kind of spoiled). Is it wrong that all I wanted for my birthday was amazing food? I don't think so. The whole experience at D.O.C. was darn near perfect.

I think the best thing about the Douro Valley is also the thing that makes me kind of sad: it's so undiscovered compared to Napa or Tuscany or Provence. I know it won't stay that way for long so I'm thankful we got a little piece of it when we did. Portugal stole our hearts, big time. We will definitely be back.

like a gallway girl

2010-07-16T09:23:00.000-07:00

We had so many wonderful experiences on our trip to Europe that it's hard to pick the ones to share. The West coast of Ireland? Incredibly beautiful and the nicest people you will find anywhere on the planet. Barcelona? Buzzing and full of life and more to see and do than we could have possibly made time for in four days. San Sebastian (in the North of Spain, Basque country) was my second favorite, tied with Lisbon, which is the most chic, cosmopolitan city in Europe. Now I love Paris more than I can explain, but I'm here to tell you there is something very special about Lisbon. You'll just have to go there to experience it for yourself. And then there was the Douro Valley of Portugal, which is one of the Best Kept Secrets of Europe. Trust me on this one.

I thought I'd start with Ireland, since we started there first and because it was just too beautiful. And because they love Americans, which is always a nice bonus. And because they sang to me about Gallway girls: "her hair was black and her eyes were blue", just like me. I found my people!

We spent the majority of our time in the Spanish Point area, which includes the breath-taking Cliffs of Moher and the Aran Islands. Along with my two brothers, sister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, husband (!), mom, and mom's friend, we spent four days staying in a little cottage, driving around the coast, riding bikes on the Aran Islands, cooking great food, and spending much-needed time together.

Since we cooked at the house for almost every meal, I don't have any great food stories. To be honest, the food in Ireland is quite expensive. I also happen to have a culinary genius for a sister-in-law, who spoils us rotten every time I see her. Her lemon olive chicken stewed in white wine? To die for.

I did, however, come across this lovely little scone made by the wife of a nice Irish man selling coffee at one of the piers as we were waiting to board our ferry to the island of Inishmore. Did I want butter and jam, he asked? Um, yes please. That's what a Gallway girl would do, I bet.

Back in action.

2010-07-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the long hiatus. Life is just very time-consuming sometimes! A lot has happened in five weeks. We got married, went back to work for a bit, flew on a plane to Ireland and then to Spain and Portugal, and now it's back to real life. As wonderful and hard-to-believe as the past five weeks have been, it's nice to be "back". I have two amazing birthday dinners, a gazillion pictures, a vineyard, and one incredible custard tart to share with you very soon. I promise.

p.s. The photo is courtesy of Adie Gately and Twin Town Studios. We heart her.

It's really going to happen.

2010-06-01T12:39:00.000-07:00

This week is finally here. I'm actually getting married. It's really going to happen. I'm so excited and nervous I can hardly sit in my chair. There's so much I want to show you, but you'll just have to wait. For now, take a look at these little guys. Jason made boxes for our centerpieces out of old barn wood. They turned out better than I could have ever imagined. The old paint really compliments the colors in the plants. It's like he's a designer or something!

There is lots more to come. We had some belated engagement photos taken by our adorable photographer, Adie Gately of Twin Town Studios on Saturday in the backyard with Mater. My brothers and my sister will be here soon. I'm so excited to see them, my heart hurts. And then on Friday, I will marry my best friend in the whole wide world. I'm just not sure it gets any better than this.

to my mama

2010-05-12T09:24:00.000-07:00

My mom was the person who taught me to bake, so it was only absolutely necessary that I whip up something good for Mother's Day. My mom is a really great lady. From her, I get my strong opinions, love of home, a little bit of sass, and dark hair. I'm sure there's lots more (our voices sound exactly the same, for example) but you get the idea. I'm a lot like my mom. And I think that's a good thing.

She opened a restaurant when I was a senior in college (6 years ago!) and at first, it was just her and I running the place. That was how I learned to bake - my mom always let me have creative freedom to experiment and come up with new recipes. The trailmix cookie was born that way, actually. She built the business from the ground up, the right way - slowly over time - and it's certainly something to be proud of today.

So anyway, I made this for my mama to celebrate her day:

The recipe came from Giada De Laurentiis. I love the way Giada uses ricotta in baking. You should really try her ricotta lemon cookies. They are sooooo good. This recipe is very good as well. Serve it with some sugared strawberries and whipped cream. Enjoy, and toast to your mom.

Ricotta Orange Pound Cake
adapted from the recipe by Giada De Laurentiis

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 sticks butter at room temperature (plus more to grease the pan)
1 1/2 cups whole milk or part skim ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 orange, zested
2 T triple sec liqueur
1/2 tsp almond extract
powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a bunt or loaf pan.

Using a mixer, beat together the butter, ricotta and sugar on medium speed until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time. Add the vanilla, orange zest, and liqueur. Mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter and ricotta mixture and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let rest for about 10 minutes, and then turn the cake on to a plate or cake stand. After the cake has cooled, dust with powdered sugar. Serve with strawberries (or your berry of choice) and fresh whipped cream.

The perfect blondie.

2010-03-12T13:37:00.000-08:00

I mentioned awhile back that I've been on the hunt for the perfect blondie recipe. Well ladies and gents, I do believe I've found it. Where I found this perfect recipe forces me to admit something that might make me seem a little, um, nerdy. I got the recipe because I subscribe to Gwyneth Paltrow's newsletter, GOOP. So what if I'm a huge Gwyneth fan and secretly want to be her? No big deal.

I actually really love her newsletter. She sends out fairly useful tidbits about food, fashion, wellness, etc. In one of her food newsletters, oh about a year ago, were recipes for a bake sale. I took note of the blondie recipe but never got around to making them. Last weekend we decided to take advantage of the decently warm weather and cook out. I've got spring fever bad, and I thought making blondies would help. I was right.

Gwyneth's recipe called for peanut butter chips and marshmallows, but I'm not crazy about marshmallows so I left them out. I happened to have butterscotch chips instead, so I used those, and added some chocolate chips and macadamia nuts to round it out. I really love the combination, but you could substitute all kinds of things if you prefer.

Gwyneth's Blondies

I cut her recipe in half because I didn't want a gazillion of them. But the recipe doubles for a 12"x18" cookie sheet with a 1" rim. There is coconut in here for texture, so try it even if you don't like coconut.

2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temp

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups of unbleached, all purpose flour

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup shredded coconut

3/4 cup butterscotch chips

3/4 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9x12 inch pan.

Cream the butter and sugars together in a mixer. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, just until combined. Mix in the chips and nuts. Spread into the prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

We're almost there.

2010-03-04T07:02:00.000-08:00

Today I bring you a little preview of what I've been working on for the wedding, with the help of some wonderful friends. I won't lie: we found this gorgeous wedding and decided to steal a lot of ideas, including the yellow and gray color palette. I love it.

We are sewing napkins for all (estimated) 175 of our guests. That's right, sewing them. With a sewing machine. I'M actually learning to sew! It's so much fun, who knew? The fabric is Amy Butler. She has such amazing prints.

This is a sample poof - one of about 150 we have to make to hang from the ceiling with huge round lanterns, in what my friend Nat calls "a makeshift chandelier". Nat, by the way, is a creative genius and is my unofficial wedding planner. She was the one that said, "Yes we CAN make cloth napkins for everyone!", even though I was terrified of the idea. But with the help of Nat, Jamie, Debby, Emily, Winter and Jess, we're almost there. This whole wedding thing is coming along quite nicely, really. I can't wait.

Novel concept.

2010-02-19T12:51:00.000-08:00

A lot has happened over the past few months. One of my best friends had a baby, her first. We suffered a major loss in my Jason's family. I went on a work trip to Peru. We are knee-deep in wedding planning, decision-making, and list-checking. It's been a whirlwind now that I think about it.

And while the loss part of it has overshadowed a lot of the good, I can definitely say I have re-prioritized some things. I am a person that loves to be busy busy busy, all the time. I usually have several projects, a couple of books, a stack of recipes, going at any one time. Some call it adult ADD, but I like to think of it as productive. Anyway, I came to the conclusion over the past few months that I actually don't like being so busy; that what I really want to do is sit with the people I love and just talk, or read a magazine on my couch. I'm trying to re-learn the art of doing nothing. That was actually my new year's resolution this year: to do less.

So, I made the decision to put my baking business on hold for now. Admitting that I can't do it all is very hard for me. I'm a people pleaser. I like to say 'yes', not 'no'. But I'm getting better at it. Slowly. The thing that was meant to be fun was becoming...a job. And that was never the point. It has actually been a huge relief, I have to say. With the exception of some work I'm doing with The Coffee Ethic, I'm only baking for fun now. Which is really fun! Novel concept.

What does "baking for fun" entail? Lemon yogurt cake that is so moist it you'll have to try hard to convince yourself it's good for you. I'm also on a quest for the perfect blondie. I'll have to get back to you on that one.

I'm also doing a lot of eating of other people's baked goods, like these amazing cinnamon rolls with a thick, buttery caramel icing that my mother makes:

Happy February.

I heart San Francisco

2009-11-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

Fall is the best time to visit Northern California. The weather is amazing and the sun is shining, which isn't necessarily a given in San Francisco. Visiting my brother and sister-in-law is always wonderful, and always hard to leave. This time, Jason and I spent a long weekend and did all our favorite things:

honey-lavender ice cream at bi-rite market

picnic in dolores park

big brother josh

breakfast at blue bottle

On Saturday, we took a little day trip to Sonoma and Matanzas vineyard, which was beautiful and full of lavender fields. Amazing wine, lovely scenery...we loved it so much, we joined the wine club on a whim. We're so spontaneous.

And then this happened:

I said yes.

So now my boyfriend/roommate/best friend will become my husband. I still can't believe it. Life is so good. And so is California.

Erin & Brian

2009-11-13T12:38:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday, our friends Erin and Brian got married at Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Jasper, Arkansas. The property was so amazingly beautiful, I couldn't believe I'd never heard of it before. You drive up and up and up on curvy roads, and then finally you come to the top of the hill and look out over this:

The got married outside (a risky move for November, but the weather was perfect). They met while walking their dogs at a park, so the wedding had lots of reminders of their pups, including mentioning them in their vows. It was pretty cute. I was the lucky lady who got to make all the cupcakes for the wedding. It was a really special day.

The happy couple: Mr. & Mrs. Dail

Me and my trusty baking assistant.

Congratulations, Erin and Brian, and your little dogs too.

happiness is a french tart.

2009-10-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

Something really exciting happened about two weeks ago. There's an item on my menu of baked goodies that almost no one ever orders. Finally, someone did. Maybe people are scared of them? I don't know. All I know is, I was like a kid in a candy store getting to stretch my baking muscles a bit and whip up some French-style mini tarts. The whole process - from making the pastry dough, to pressing it in to each individual tart pan, to whisking each filling...it all made me very happy.

The order was for my three different fillings: lemon, vanilla bean pastry cream with berries, and pecan-chocolate. I used the same crust for all three from my cookbook, The Modern Baker. All of them turned out really nicely (Well, ok, that's not entirely true; the only hiccup was that I had to re-make my vanilla bean pastry cream. The first recipe I used was B-A-D.)

The whole experience took me back to my days living in France, when the highlight of my week was going to the bakery on the corner and buying a tarte au citron. I completely fell in love with the French way of making pastries, and while I'm certainly no expert, I have such a respect for the method. There was this one boulangerie in particular in Nancy, where I lived, that had the best lemon tarts in the city. I would make a trip across town on foot just for one of those tarts.

It's the little things in life, I guess. For me, happiness is a french-style mini tart. Period.

Vanilla bean pastry cream (adapted from a recipe by Ina Garten)
6 extra large egg yolks (at room temperature)
3/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
2 cups milk
1 vanilla bean, the insides scraped out
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 Tbsp heavy cream

Using a mixer, beat the egg yolks and sugar on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is lightened in color. On low speed, beat in the cornstarch.

Scrape the vanilla bean into the milk and bring the milk to a simmer in a large saucepan.

With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the milk into the egg mixture (temper it by pouring only a little bit at first, and then pour in the rest of the milk). Pour the entire mixture back into the saucepan.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Bring to a boil and cook on low heat for about 3 more minutes. Mixture should be smooth.

Remove from heat. Mix in butter, vanilla extract and cream. Strain into a bowl using a wire mesh strainer. Place plastic wrap directly on the custard surface and refrigerate until cold.

a new favorite

2009-08-27T09:17:00.000-07:00

I've been really bad about keeping up with this blog lately. Sorry about that. I went on a much-needed vacation to Mexico where I got to be lazy for four whole days. It was wonderful.

But I have been doing some baking in the mean time, believe it or not, and I think I've come up with a new favorite. Anyone who knows me realizes quickly that chocolate is my second boyfriend. But the thing I love even more than chocolate is chocolate + mint. Heaven.

It's sort of a weird coincidence that the city where I live, Springfield, Missouri, also happens to be home to one of the only artisinal chocolate makers in the whole country. Askinosie Chocolate was started by Shawn Askinosie, a defense attorney turned chocolatier, who makes amazing things from cocoa beans. Shawn is also the only chocolate maker who manufactures cocoa powder from the bean. It's pretty spectacular to see it all in action at his shop on Commercial Street.

Recently, Shawn was nice enough to provide me with some samples for baking, and I quickly fell in love with his product. Particularly the cocoa powder - it's hard to explain, but it's just so delicate.

In experimenting with the cocoa powder, I took my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe and added mint to the batter. I also topped it with mint cream cheese frosting, just for good measure. They turned out really well; just the right amount of mint, and I think the creamy frosting really makes it. Jason eats at least two of them in one setting.

The weather is turning, all of sudden, to fall. I think I'm ready for it.

chocolate mint cupcakes with mint cream cheese frosting

[adapted from a recipe by the Barefoot Contessa]

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp good vanilla extract

1 tsp pure peppermint extract

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup sour cream

2 T brewed coffee

1 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup Askinosie cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees or 300 degrees for convection. Cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy with a mixer. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee. Set aside. In another medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Alternately add the buttermilk mixture and the dry ingredients to the butter mixter, starting with the buttermilk and ending with the flour. Mix just until combined, and then use a spatula to make sure everything is well incorporated.

mint cream cheese frosting

1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature

8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature

4-6 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp good vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp pure peppermint extract.

Once the cupcakes have cooled completely, top with mint cream cheese frosting. Finish it off with a sprig of fresh mint.

417 Bride

2009-07-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

Little Bird cupcakes in the Summer issue of 417 Bride.

birthday cakes

2009-07-13T13:01:00.000-07:00

I have to be honest; I haven't been doing a lot of baking lately. I don't know if it's the summer heat or if I've just needed a break. Life has been so busy that I seem to have set it aside, with the exception of a few orders here and there. But the good news is that I had a birthday, and it involved two cakes, two key lime pies, and one blackberry cobbler. I think I'm still recovering.

Growing up, my mom was one of those mothers that set the standard so high for our birthdays that now, our expectations can't possibly be met, year after year. For my siblings and I, our birthdays were all-out, queen-for-a-day, no-holds-barred celebrations. The day normally started with my dad putting on the Beatles birthday song (you know the one) and playing it so loud that it woke us up, after which we proceeded to dance around the house in honor of whoever's birthday it was that day.

But the best part, for me anyway, was getting to choose my birthday dessert. I normally went for one of my two favorites: key lime pie or peanut butter pie. The latter might sound really gross, but I assure you it is not. Try one before you judge.

This year, my mom didn't disappoint, as usual. She made a pineapple coconut cake with cream cheese frosting, and then topped with shaved coconut-white chocolate. Amazing. I think I was caught at around midnight on my birthday, fork in hand, eating my cake off the cake stand with the refrigerator door open. But I'm not ashamed.

That same day, some of my dearest friends got together at Grad School to celebrate with me. To my wonderful surprise, my friend Nat had made two key lime pies for everyone to share! I was so touched - not only because I love key lime pie, but Nat doesn't bake very often (she claims to hate cooking but she's actually pretty good at it) so I felt very special. It was delicious. I wish I had taken a picture of it.

But it's not over yet! THEN, my mom and I flew to Chicago to be with my sister for our birthdays - my mom's birthday was a week before mine - and my sister had arranged for a beautiful, meticulously decorated cake to be made for us by the bakery where she works, Alliance. Hazelnut cake with raspberry and chocolate mousse layers. I still can't get over that cake.

And to top it all off, there was a blackberry cobbler waiting for me at work upon my return, made by the daughter of one of my co-workers. it was so good, I can't even try to describe it. Let's just way it was still warm from the oven and leave it at that.

What's going to happen some day when no one gives a crap about my birthday? I'm sure I'll be devastated or something. Who wouldn't, after all this love and attention?

Oh, and I also got this for my birthday:

The man and the bike - the best a girl could ask for.

Sum-summa-summertime.

2009-06-05T07:35:00.000-07:00

This post isn't really about baking, but that's ok. Some times I do think about other things besides sugar and butter. Weird, I know.

Back in April, Jason and I decided that we would create a garden. And that it would be awesome, and full of tomatoes and basil. Neither of us had ever gardened, much less vegetable gardened, but we were fairly confident that we could figure it out. I bought a copy of The Square Foot Gardener and off we went.

Fast forward to now, and things are going quite swimmingly. Jason went a little crazy with his homemade "topsy-turvy" tomato thingys. We now have 13 tomato plants. For 2 people. I make fun of him now, but who'll be laughing when we have a huge bounty of beautiful tomatoes later this summer? Not me. I'm excited to eat from our own garden and to use home-grown herbs in some baking recipes.

I'd like to introduce you to Mater, our 3 year old Boxer. Mater James is his full name, actually. Or MJ, as we like to call him. Can you tell that we love this dog a little more than is probably normal or healthy? Anytime you wish, he would be happy to sit on your lap or give you a hug. He can be found most days in our yard doing this:

So, that is what we've been working on, before the stifling Missouri heat sets in. Some day soon, our friends will be getting the call to come over and eat big juicy tomatoes while sipping on a mojito with fresh mint from the little pot on our porch. You can thank us later.

parties and plane tickets

2009-05-18T13:09:00.000-07:00

A lot has been happening over the past few weeks, including but not limited to a pretty cupcake party, an exciting opportunity, and plane tickets. Add that to my actual full-time day job at Drury and I'm still recuperating. You know you've worked hard when all you can do is lay on the couch and watch bad reality television on a Saturday night.

Let's start with the pretty cupcake party. Sharon Taylor of Sharon Taylor Designs had the idea to host a cupcake and champagne party to promote our businesses. Sharon is a very talented interior designer/event planner/creative genius. One other interesting thing about Sharon is that she has all these sisters who are equally creative in their own ways, and they all live in the same neighborhood in Springfield. I think that's really great. I would also like to add that the Arnold sisters have the most adorable names for their children: Goldie, Birdie, Sylvia, Eleanor...there are lots more that have escaped me, but you get the idea.

Anyway, my main job for the party was to make cupcakes. Sharon's main job was to decorate the courtyard of Tea Bar & Bites (thank you Mom!) as she would for a fancy bridal shower or dinner party. Sharon's sister Lizzie designed some cute invitations, which we sent to friends and family. On a beautiful sunny Saturday, this happened:

A good number of people came and it was really nice. I'm still trying to figure out how to get my hands on one of the beautiful chandeliers that Sharon hung up for the party.

The same week I got a phone call from 417 Magazine; specifically from their Bride editors. They wanted to know if I would be interested in making a wedding cake for their upcoming bridal issue. I told them that while wedding cakes aren't really my thing, I would be happy to make some cupcakes. They liked that idea; cupcakes are becoming trendy for weddings and I also told them they could eat the leftovers. I think the issue comes out in June or July, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything looks good.

One other exciting thing that happened last week: Jason and I booked plane tickets for a fall trip to San Francisco! My older brother, Josh, moved out there some five years ago for art school and never came back (I mean, can you blame him?), so of course I have to visit at least once a year. I can't wait to see Josh and his lovely wife, Vanessa, and do all those wonderful California things that we do when we're there, like drinking coffee at Blue Bottle and maybe(!) taking a road trip to Mendocino. October can't come soon enough.

ooh la la

2009-04-24T09:09:00.001-07:00

Now what I really want to tell you about is the dinner that Jason and I went to last Friday night. Once a month, Tea Bar & Bites puts on a prix-fixe "theme" dinner with food from different countries or cultures. I've attended their theme dinners ranging from Peruvian to Irish and I'm never disappointed.

For April, the dinner was Parisian-themed, so of course I was excited. I really love French food, but it's hard to pin point exactly why. I think it's the simplicity of it. The French make a meal of meat and potatoes into something gourmet. But more than that, it's that they truly appreciate the experience of food. When I lived there, I attended dinners that lasted for five hours. Seriously. I would be exhausted after those dinners, trying to follow the conversations and pretend like I knew what everyone was talking about. But I loved it, too, because it was totally un-American.

Our dinner last Friday consisted of five or so delicious, well-thought-out courses, starting with a goat cheese crostata with asparagus and roasted red pepper; there was a mushroom soup with homemade pastry, celery and fennel salad, followed by a really really good salmon with potatoes and some braised red cabbage. But the coup de grace, as they say, was the dessert. Take chocolate cinnamon mousse sandwiched between two chocolate discs and topped with a chocolate covered cherry, and you have this:

Chef John Ruff, you're my hero.

happy earth day

2009-04-24T09:01:00.000-07:00

To celebrate Earth Week, why not eat a lemon basil cupcake?

Now go recycle something.

in-your-face

2009-04-14T06:44:00.001-07:00

I've been on sort of a citrus kick lately. I think it's my way of rebelling against winter, which thankfully, is over. I have a serious weakness for anything lemon or lime, and in particular, my mom's lemon bars. They're the best I've ever had, hands down. But you have to be serious about liking lemon. They're not those sissy lemon bars that mostly taste like sugar and butter with a hint of lemon. These are in-your-face lemon bars. And that's how I like them.

In keeping with my citrus kick, I decided to try creating an orange cupcake. This was Jason's idea, actually. I wanted it to taste like a creamsicle, or something like an Orange Julius (remember those?). I have a good basic vanilla cupcake recipe, so I did a little experimenting with fresh orange zest and juice, and topped them with an orange cream-cheese buttercream. I think they turned out pretty well. I sat in Tea Bar one day for lunch and watched six of them disappear in a matter of about 15 minutes. That's a good sign, right?

Then last weekend, I was flipping through my Baked cookbook. Baked is a funky little bakery with locations in Brooklyn and Charleston, and they make modern versions of old favorites, like seven-layer bars and malted blondies. I also like they way they use the color orange in their decor. Anyway, they happen to have a lemonlime bar recipe. I was intrigued. And a little shocked when I read the quantity of eggs needed: 13. Seriously?

Oh, they were being serious, alright. Instead of making them into bars, I used a springform pan to create more of a lemon tart. The recipe is a little time consuming, but I promise you won't be disappointed. The crust is an interesting graham cracker and coconut mixture. I served a little fresh whipped cream alongside, which helped cut the acidity a little bit.

The end result was like summer in your mouth; bright, creamy, refreshing. And that makes me very happy. Go buy a copy of Baked's cookbook right now.

Fresh Orange Cupcakes

Adapted from a recipe in "The Modern Baker" by Nick Malgieri

1 1/2 sticks of butter at room temperature

1 cup of sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp pure orange extract

zest and juice of 1/2 large orange

1 3/4 cup unbleached, all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, or 300 degrees if you are using a convection oven.

Cream butter and sugar together and beat on medium speed. Add eggs, one at a time, making sure to scrape bowl in between each addition. Add extracts and orange zest/juice. Beat until well combined, about 3-4 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients. Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Scrape bowl, then add the buttermilk. Once combined, add the remaining dry ingredients. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is well mixed.

Turn mixer speed up to medium-high, and beat for 3 minutes. It should look smooth and fluffy.

Scoop batter into a standard cupcake pan with liners. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until tops are lightly golden. Top with orange buttercream (recipe follows).

Orange Buttercream

2 sticks of butter

4 oz. cream cheese

zest and juice of 1/2 orange

1 tsp vanilla

5 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

Cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add orange zest/juice and vanilla and beat until combined. Turn mixer to low, and in one-cup increments, add the powdered sugar. Alternate with the milk to keep the icing smooth. Spread on cooled cupcakes.

Hello there.

2009-03-31T16:15:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how to start this...so I'll just start by saying hello. My name is Meagan and I have a little baking business, Little Bird Bake Shop. I bake out of my mom's kitchen at Tea Bar & Bites Cafe. If you haven't been there for lunch, or for a lovely summer dinner on the patio, you really should. My mom has been kind enough to let me sell boxes of cupcakes out of her shop, as a start. Without her, Little Bird Bake Shop probably wouldn't exist at all.

I've been thinking about starting a blog for awhile, but to be honest, I think it's kind of weird. I love reading other people's blogs, but I've never been one to want to announce my thoughts and inner-most feelings to the rest of the world. I have a strong aversion to being the center of attention. You should see me speak in front of a crowd. It's frightening.

But I feel the need, for some reason, to chronicle the process of the bake shop and whatever it may become. It's such an infant thing right now, and I have no idea what will come of it, but I hope that it's something.

And even more than that, I'm starting this blog because I really love food. I love the way it makes people happy, the way it brings people together. What's better than creating a meal for the people you love, sharing a bottle of wine, and telling stories long into the evening? I can't think of anything, really.

Bye for now.