Glazed Coconut Bread

Glazed Coconut Bread - made February 2, 2013 from Just Get Off Your Butt and Bake

I'm a big fan of coconut and am always looking for recipes that use it.  Bonus that this also uses buttermilk because I had some to use up.  I don't like coconut extract however so I substituted vanilla extract instead.  I like the texture of this bread as it was more cakey than bread-y.  However, the oil taste was a bit too pronounced for me - it wasn't oily but I could taste the flavor of the oil.  I'm not sure if it was the recipe or if the oil I used (the last in a big container from Costco) was beyond the time to be used in baked goods.  I will need to try this later with fresh oil and see if that makes a difference.  Or better yet, adapt it and make with butter.

I listed the glaze from the original recipe below but I just made a simple glaze with confectioners' sugar, just enough whole milk to make it the consistency I wanted and a teaspoon of vanilla extract for flavor.

1 cup oil
2 cups sugar

4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (do not substitute)

2 teaspoons coconut extract (I used vanilla extract)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup coconut

1. Mix together the oil and the sugar.  Add the eggs and beat well.  Mix in the buttermilk and extracts.  Add flour, salt, soda and baking powder, and mix until well blended.  Mix in 1 cup of flaked coconut.  Mix.
2. Grease and prepare 2 small loaf pans.  Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and five minutes.  Cover with foil if bread starts to get too dark.  Cool in pans for 10 minutes, while preparing the glaze.

Glaze

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon coconut extract (or vanilla extract if you don't like coconut extract)

2 tablespoons butter
Coconut for sprinkling, optional

1. Mix all together over medium heat, and boil mixture for about 4 to 5 minutes. Spoon all of it over the bread. Sprinkle coconut on top of glaze before it sets if desired.

Crockpot Chicken Teriyaki

Crockpot Chicken Teriyaki - made February 1, 2013 from abeystyle.com

While I can (and have) followed complicated baking recipes and enjoy taking all the time necessary to bake something, I feel the exact opposite about cooking savory dishes as opposed to desserts.  When I cook, it's got to be something quick (stir fry) or easy (slow cooker) or both.  I tend to do most of my cooking on the weekends so I can stock my freezer with lunches and dinners for the week.  Even if I end up eating a few of the same dishes over and over, it's easier for me than trying to cook every night after work.

I love using my slow cooker because when I work from home on Fridays, I can throw everything in the crock pot while my computer boots up, turn it on and leave it alone for most of the day.  This was a shorter recipe and by lunchtime, it was ready and I could take a quick lunch without any fuss or bother of cooking.  This had very sparse directions from the original link so I fleshed it out a bit.  Using 3 cloves of garlic made the garlic taste pronounced so if you're not a garlic lover, you may want to cut back to 1-2 cloves.

Teriyaki Chicken with Brown Rice

1 pound chicken breasts, cubed or whole
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce or soy sauce (I used soy sauce)
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 minced garlic cloves
2 tablespoons cornstarch + enough water to make a paste

1. Combine chicken broth, teriyaki or soy sauce, brown sugar and garlic in the slow cooker.  
2. Add chicken, cover and cook 5-6 hours on low or until chicken is tender and cooked all the way through.  
3. 30 minutes before it's done, combine 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with enough water to make a thick paste.  Add to chicken mixture and stir to thicken. Serve hot.

Shrimp Spanish Style

Shrimp Spanish Style - made January 29, 2013 from Ancient Omnivore

I took the picture while the dish was still steaming hot, hence the fuzzy

If you ever need a quick 5-minute dish to throw together, it's hard to go wrong with shrimp.  I buy it in bulk from Costco, raw with the tails still on.  I just strip the tails off, wash the shrimp and they're good to go.  Even easier and faster when it's just a quick stir fry.  This is one of those weeknight meals that's ideal to make after a workday when you come home hungry and don't want to spend a lot of time cooking dinner.  This was a bit spicy for my somewhat bland taste buds but still tasty.  If you want to cut back on the spice, omit the red pepper flakes and ease up on the paprika.  Otherwise, it's pretty good as is.

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 teaspoons very fresh garlic, chopped
1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes or more to taste
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons sherry cooking wine
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
a dash or two of freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
lemon wedges for serving (optional)

1. In a medium-sized skillet, preferrably cast iron, warm the olive oil over medium heat. 
2. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes and paprika and saute for 1 minute. Raise the heat to high and add the shrimp. Cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes. 
3. Pour in the sherry wine and saute another 60 seconds. Do NOT overcook. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper, add the parsley, stir, and serve with the pan juices and optional lemon wedges.

Snickerdoodle Cinnamon Bread

Snickerdoodle Cinnamon Bread - made January 25, 2013 from Creations by Kara

I was going to Vanilla King's birthday party a couple of weeks ago and I know he likes snickerdoodles but I wanted to do something a little different this time as I think I've already made him several different kinds of snickerdoodle cookies and even snickerdoodle brownies.  I've made snickerdoodle cupcakes before as well but not snickerdoodle bread so I went with this recipe from Creations by Kara.  I made the bread in mini metal loaf pans but since I was giving the mini loaves away, I baked a small amount of batter in a separate ramekin for my taste test.  I enjoyed this bread - it's really more of a quick bread and the cinnamon sugar topping gives it a little sweet crustiness that complemented the soft, fluffy texture of the bread.

I did make a rookie mistake though in letting the loaves cool a trifle too long in the mini loaf pans.  Subsequently, they were a little difficult to get out cleanly and most of them crumbled around the edges, to the point that I had to cut off the ends and tell my gift recipients I only cut the ends to make the loaves more presentable, not that I nibbled away at them.  Next time I would make these in paper loaf pans that can be given away intact or line the loaf pans with foil for easy lifting and peeling away. Oh and I didn't have cinnamon chips so I omitted those and thought the bread tasted just fine.  But if you're a cinnamon fan, add them in for additional cinnamon flavor and texture.

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 cups cinnamon chips, optional

Topping:
3 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cream butter and sugar till fluffy. 
3. Mix in eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. 
4. Stir together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add to wet ingredients and stir lightly. Add the cinnamon chips, if using, and stir until combined. 
5. Divide  batter into 4 mini loaf pans.  Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over the batter in each of the pans. Bake for 30-38 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 5-10 minutes before removing from pans onto cooling racks.

-Makes 4 mini loaves

New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies - made January 26, 2013 from rollingsin.com

No, I wasn't seeing my friend Todd as the reason for trying out this recipe.  This time it was for my nephew, Stephen, who, like any soon-to-be 13-year-old growing taller and taller by the day, likes chocolate chip cookies.  Something to fuel those growth spurts.  This was a good cookie although I don't know that it really sticks out amongst the vast array of chocolate chip cookie recipes I've tried.  The edges were crispy and the cookie itself was definitely chewy and good.  I would probably need to try several different chocolate chip cookies to decide if this was a standout but since I'm one of those annoying people who eats one cookie and stops, that's not likely to happen.  I do like that the recipe has weight measurements though since that makes for the most accuracy in baking.

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate chunks or chips
Sea salt for sprinkling, optional

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours. I recommend portioning into dough balls before chilling them as the dough will be easier to handle unchilled.
3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.
4. Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day.

Double Chocolate Cookie Bars

Double Chocolate Cookie Bars - made January 27, 2013 from Heidi Bakes

Want some chocolate to go with some chocolate?  Here you go then.  Another quick and easy bar cookie recipe, ideal if you want to use up a package of Oreos and er, sneak in a few while you're preparing this.  Just to make sure the package is okay.

For the cookies you sprinkle on top, you might want to use the mini Oreos.  More will remain whole when you cut the bars and would look prettier.  It's just a matter of preference though.  Personally I like the homey, "messy" look of the cut-up Oreos.

24 chocolate sandwich cookies
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Set aside 6 cookies and grind the rest in a food processor or blender. In a small bowl, stir together the cookie crumbs and butter until well blended. Press into the bottom of a 9 x13 inch pan.
3. Over a double boiler or in the microwave, melt 1 cup of chocolate chips together with the condensed milk and vanilla. Stir frequently until smooth. Spread evenly over the crumb crust. Sprinkle the remaining cup of chocolate chips over the top. Break remaining cookies into pieces by hand and sprinkle over the top.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

M&M Sugar Cookie Bars

M&M Sugar Cookie Bars - made January 26, 2013 from See Aimee Cook

Okay, back to blogging baking recipes!  And just in time for Superbowl Sunday, I have these M&M Sugar Cookie Bars - an easy Superbowl snack to provide a little sweet to go with the chips, nuts and pretzels you might be serving if you're having a Superbowl party.  They're quick and easy to make and if you want to go team patriotic like I did, it only requires a few minutes to pick out the M&M colors of your choice.  Yes, I really did sift through all the M&Ms to pick out just the red and "gold" (yellow).  Gotta root for my team.  The only problem, as you can see, is the M&Ms cracked from the heat in baking.  Interestingly, it was mostly the yellow ones that cracked with the heat.  Whatever dye was in the red might've afforded it a bit more protection.

These would be easy to overbake so watch them carefully.  You don't them to get brown all over, just along the edges and until the middle doesn't look raw.  Then you'll have moist, chewy sugar cookie bars with a sprinkling of chocolate over them. Most importantly, GO NINERS!

1 stick butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
M&Ms

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Melt the butter in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar.
3. Once it's slightly cooled (about 3 minutes) beat in the egg and vanilla.
4. In a separate bowl combine the flour and baking powder. Stir this into the wet mixture.
5. Pour into a greased 8x8 baking dish (or similar size). Bake for approximately 15 minutes.
6. Pull out of the oven and top with M&Ms, gently pressing them into the dough.
7. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes, or until the top is set and the cookies don't wiggle when you shake the pan. They should still be white with barely golden edges.
8. Cool completely in the pan before slicing. Yields 9 cookie bars.

New Orleans, Day 3 - Walking Tour and Cochon

So the "third" and last day of the official tour was an afternoon walking tour through the French Quarter where Elizabeth Pearce from Day 1 gave us an insulated lunch bag filled with bite-sized foods that we ate at certain points along the way.  I had originally planned to go into detail about these stops and what we ate except....I didn't really take notes and now can't remember half of it.  All I have are pictures because you know I always take pictures of my food. So I'm afraid this won't be the informative narrative of New Orleans and its cultural culinary traditions that the tour was.  Perhaps that's just as well because it's really best experienced for yourselves in person.  Hopefully the last few blog posts have inspired a few of you to put New Orleans on your destination list, especially if you're a foodie.

I do remember our first stop and that was for Gumbo at Antoine's, one of the oldest restaurants in the French Quarter.  The picture doesn't do it justice as the gumbo was quite good.  I might give the slight nod to Poppy's seafood gumbo the day before but regardless, I might have become a gumbo fan just from this trip alone.

Gumbo at Antoine's

A typical scene in the Quarter - Jazz musicians playing on the streets.  The streets were very clean as New Orleans prepares for the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras.

We were really fortunate to have a gorgeous day for our walking tour.

Part of our tour included visiting a private home in the French Quarter.  I took a lot of pictures but I hesitate to post so many pics of someone's home for privacy reasons (even though it was part of the tour) so I'll compromise with one picture.  This is one of the rooms in the back part of the house.  The front and back houses are separated by an enclosed patio which houses patio furniture and lushly growing plants.  The house itself is full of history and portraits of family ancestors and days gone by.

After the walking tour, we were taxi'd over to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum which showcases exactly what it says it does - the origins and representations of food and drinks from the South.  One of the staff gave us demos of several drinks, including Cafe Brulot where you set the alcohol in coffee on fire.  They really like to set things on fire here, lol.  It's an interesting place and if culinary history captures your imagination and interest, it's worth at least a quick visit.

The final stop of the tour included dinner at Cochon - a restaurant that specializes in traditional Southern Cajun cooking.  We sat in tables of 5 and 6 and ordered dishes to share.  Well, at least as much as any of us could eat since I wasn't the only one hitting my caloric limit.  Not that I didn't give it my all....

Appetizer: deep-fried sausage balls (I'm sure they had a more elegant name)

My entree was a fork-tender pot roast with horseradish potatoes.  I had expected the potatoes to be like chunky mashed potatoes but alas, they were more like cold potato salad.  I stuck to the beef.

And my Mac and Cheese side dish which was - wait for it - yummy!

Dessert was based on the waiter's recommendation of pineapple upside down cake with dulce de leche.  The cake was served warm and was nicely complemented by the ice cream and chunks of fresh pineapple.

Anne had the chocolate cake layered with ganache and I think that was toffee.  I was in a food coma by this point and my cognitive brain functions weren't processing much :).

Thus ends the culinary tour of Tasting New Orleans.  It was a fun, albeit brief, trip and I'm so glad I went.  Some of the best vacations are where you didn't get to do everything you wanted so that you have a reason to go back.  I definitely have many reasons to return to NOLA, not the least being I didn't have three stomachs to consume all that delicious food and try all the restaurants my friends swore I had to try.  Definitely next time.

New Orleans, Day 3 - Stanleys and Santa's Quarter

Okay, we're finally on Day 3 and you can stop thinking, "OMG, she's still eating and it's still Tuesday."  Wednesday morning we had free time to ourselves as we didn't have to meet up with our tour group and guide until 1 pm that afternoon.  In anticipation of another eating-fest though, despite having spent an hour on the treadmill the night before, I broke out my 2nd set of workout clothes and went back to the gym.  Another hour on the treadmill later and drenched in sweat, I was cautiously optimistic I could eat again without rolling down the street,

As part of our tour package, we were given a $25 gift certificate to Stanleys, a place known for its brunch in the French Quarter.  Wednesday morning was pretty much the only time I had left to go to Stanleys as we were supposed to have a group dinner that night at Cochon, one of New Orleans' award-winning restaurants.  One of the ladies on the tour, Anne, and her husband Craig had gone to Stanleys earlier and Anne showed me a picture of the Bananas Foster French Toast she had ordered. (As an aside, I found a kindred spirit in Anne since we both liked taking pictures of our food, lol.)   Considering I almost drooled on her phone when I saw the picture, that clinched what I ordered when I got to Stanleys.  I love French toast, I love bananas, I love caramel and really, that scoop of vanilla ice cream on top just sends it into the stratosphere.  It was well worth all that running on the treadmill.  I don't think this would be hard to make either - you can caramelize bananas with butter and brown sugar, make the French toast separately, and tie it all together with the vanilla ice cream.  Although I would probably omit the nuts or use toasted pecans instead of walnuts.

After brunch, there was plenty of time before I had to meet up with the rest of the group for our afternoon activities so I wandered aimlessly around the French Quarter, ending up on Decatur Street again, passing Cafe du Monde (alas, no room for a second round of beignets), exploring the French Market, then, as I was innocently walking down the street, I discovered Santa's Quarter, a shop devoted entirely to Christmas.  Christmas, did you say?  Ornaments? Food ornaments?

I will leave it to your imagination how long I spent in that store and what I bought but yes, I bought.  Considering I put up 2 full-size food trees nearly every Christmas, it's almost astonishing there are still food ornaments I don't have but it's true.  I did my best though to rectify that in this store.  The lady behind the cash register did a wonderful job wrapping each glass ornament in tissue paper then bubble wrap (you should never wrap ornaments with glitter directly in bubble wrap as the glitter will rub off because of the bubble wrap - use tissue first) before boxing them up.  I'm glad she did since these had to make it on the plane ride home with me the next day.  If anyone loves Christmas stuff, make sure you stop at Santa's Quarter on Decatur St, between the French Market and the original Cafe du Monde if you're ever in New Orleans.  Their business card says it's owned by a husband and wife team so I love it even more that it's a small business I can support.  I was also gratified to find an ornament of King Cake and even one of beignets and coffee.

New Orleans, Day 2 - Beignets at Cafe du Monde

Day 2 in New Orleans didn't end with that 4-course meal for lunch.  After we had eaten, we were each gifted with Poppy's book, Crescent City Farmers Market Cookbook, that she had personalized and signed for each of us.  If Poppy's recipes that she made at the New Orleans Cooking Experience are representative of the rest of the recipes in her cookbook, I'd recommend getting your own copy.  Seriously, the dishes she made us were yummy (there's that word again - can't use it often enough).  And she made everything look so easy to make.

We had the rest of the afternoon to ourselves and were back at the hotel by 3:30 pm or so.  After that kind of eating, I honestly couldn't picture eating dinner that night.  Instead I walked around the French Quarter for a little exploring and went down to Decatur Street.  Although hunger was the last thing I was feeling, I did have a mission and that was to check off the top item on my foodie bucket list: eat beignets at Cafe du Monde.  I probably didn't need to eat anymore deep-fried foods (or anything else) that day but in reviewing the itinerary for the rest of the trip, I knew this was my only chance.  I hadn't come all the way to New Orleans NOT to go to Cafe du Monde so away I went.  Part of our tour package included a voucher for an order of beignets and a drink (coffee, cafe au lait or hot chocolate).

There are a string of Cafe du Mondes in New Orleans due to their popularity.  I, however, went to the original one - no little offshoots for me.  Fortunately I went during an off-peak time, having already been forewarned by my "local, not native" New Orleans friend Jen not to go in the morning or during after-work hours.  It's very informal at Cafe du Monde.  You walk into the open-air seating area, take a table and one of the waitstaff comes to take your order.  In the meantime, for atmosphere, a musician or two is serenading the crowd with some jazz numbers.  You can't get much more New Orleans than that.

The beignets arrived under an avalanche of powdered sugar.  Not just a light sprinkling which is what I prefer but a veritable blanket worthy of winter in the Alps.  I pretty much had to tap them several times on the plate to get the excess sugar off.  Nice and hot, they were fresh and tasty.  I only wish I'd actually been hungry as I think I would've enjoyed them more.  They were good but let's face it, I was pretty stuffed already.  But still, they were beignets and I was at Cafe du Monde.  Life was good.

I walked around some more after that until it got dark then went back to the hotel.  Dinner was nowhere on my agenda (seriously, I couldn't eat anymore) so instead I hit the hotel gym and the treadmill for an hour to get some equilibrium back.  Tomorrow was another eating day after all.