Cream Cheese Pound Cake with Rum Glaze

Cream Cheese Pound Cake with(out) Rum Glaze - made April 4, 2020 from Perfect Cakes by Nick Malgieri

One of the ironies (to me) of the pandemic is I've been baking less while I see all my friends baking more. And not just them, if I go by the shortages of flour, sometimes sugar and often yeast. I've been baking less because I'm not sending out homemade cookies and brownies in military care packages for now (due to expected long shipment times) and instead have been sending out storebought packaged treats like oreos, Biscoff cookies, Speculoos and any other munchies I can find at Trader Joe's when I go grocery shopping.

I can't as easily explain the increased amount of baking everyone else is doing but presumably keto and low carbing have gone out the window and everyone is discovering what I've known for years: baking is comfort and we all need all the comfort we can get these days. More (baking) power to all of you; welcome to the club.

I did, however, finally did bake something a couple of weeks ago. It was mostly because I had an 8-ounce block of cream cheese I bought back in January and its expiration date was coming up. I hate letting any food go to waste, especially these days, so I turned to this recipe from Nick Malgieri that I've been meaning to try out for months.

All I can say is I'm sorry I waited so long. This was delicious. If you like pound cakes, this is a good one to try in terms of both taste and texture. Some pound cakes can be a little heavy (if not beaten enough when you cream butter and sugar together, if you use too much flour, or if you don't bake long enough) or dry (if you use too much flour and/or bake too long). The addition of cream cheese in the batter will mitigate those risks and gives the cake a nice mouthfeel.

The tang of the cream cheese is muted by the sugar. I recommend eating this warm (not hot) for the best texture. As you can see from the pictures, I skipped the glaze as I prefer pound cakes plain. This was so good it doesn't really need a glaze but I've included the recipe for it for anyone who wants to add it.

Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
One 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 large eggs, room temperature

Rum Glaze
3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons white rum
2 tablespoons water

One 12-cup tube or Bundt pan, buttered and floured

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Sift together the flour and baking powder; set aside.
3. Place the butter, cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium speed with the paddle attachment until very light, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Beat in 4 of the eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition.
4. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in one-third of the flour, then another egg, beating until smooth after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Beat in another third of the flour then, after the flour has been absorbed, the last egg. Scrape again and beat in the remaining flour.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. 
6. Bake for 65-75 minutes, or until cake is well risen, cracked on top, golden color and a toothpick inserted in the thickest part emerges clean.
7. Cool the cake in the pan for a few minutes then unmold it onto a rack and turn right side up to finish cooling.
8. Make the glaze: combine the sugar, rum and water in a medium saucepan and heat just until lukewarm. Drizzle over the cake with a spoon or pour glaze over to cover the entire cake.

Instant Pot Chili

Instant Pot Chili - made March 30, 2020 from The Cozy Cook

Now that I have to cook for myself on a regular basis, I'm all about the instant pot life so here's another recipe for using it. Chili is one of the easiest things to make, with an instant pot or without one but since I have one, I used it.

I'm also not very picky about chili as long as it has ground beef and isn't too spicy (I know, chili aficianados just put a hex on me). I also had all the (Penzey's) spices needed on hand and wanted to use them so this was a perfect quick meal to make, especially as we were having late winter weather rolling in at the time (now it's 70 degrees).

The original recipe called for masa harina which I had to google to figure out what that was. It's a traditional flour used to make tortillas, in case you wanted to know. Well, I didn't have any and wasn't about to use my limited grocery shopping excursions to find it so I also googled what can be substituted for it and came up with cornmeal. Which I did have already so that's what I used.

I think the purpose is to thicken up the chili with the masa harina/cornmeal addition. I don't have the most discerning taste buds so I can't tell you that it made that much of a difference except to give a slightly coarse texture to the chili. But it's hard to go wrong with a bowl of chili on a cloudy day so this served its purpose nicely. It makes quite a lot for one person so I ended up portioning it out into single serving containers and putting most into the freezer for future meals. Luckily, chili keeps well.

2 pounds lean ground beef
2 cloves garlic, diced
14.5 ounces diced tomatoes, with juice
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup masa harina (I used cornmeal)
15-ounce can kidney beans
15-ounce can pinto beans

1. Set the Instant Pot to Saute mode. Cook and crumble the ground beef until browned; drain excess grease. Add the garlic and diced tomatoes and cook for an additional minute.
2. Combine chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and cayenne pepper in a small bowl. Add to Instant Pot mixture.
3. In another small bowl, combine masa harina or cornmeal with 1/2 cup water; whisk to combine. Add to Instant Pot mixture. Add kidney beans and pinto beans to Instant Pot, turn off Saute mode, cover and seal instant pot and set to manual for 15 minutes.
4. When it has finished, allow to natural release for 5 minutes then quick release until all steam has escaped. Serve chili hot. Garnish with cheese if desired.

Instant Pot Chicken Tetrazzini

Instant Pot Chicken Tetrazzini - made April 4, 2020, modified from One Happy Housewife

Since I'm not baking as much as I used to, at least for now, and I can't run out and pick up takeout (confining myself at home and trying to only go out for my volunteer food bank shifts and grocery shopping which I try to do on the same days) whenever the urge arises, out of sheer survival, I've been cooking more.

Rotisserie Chicken

Layering in the noodles over the chicken

Adding the rest of the ingredients - do not stir

When I do go to Costco (trying to keep it to once a month), I snag a rotisserie chicken. For $5, it's a deal and sometimes, there's nothing better than that first juicy bite. Of course, after the next 10 bites and 3 meals of rotisserie chicken later, I have to admit, I get sick of it. There's only so much rotisserie chicken you can eat in a short amount of time. Yes, I  could strip the chicken from the bones and put it in the freezer but that just means I'll have it waiting for me later when I think I'm still sick of eating it. So I was pleased to find this recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tetrazzini where I could easily use the rest of the rotisserie chicken to add to the noodles.

After cooking - still liquidy

add the cheese and let melt into the sauce

Thank goodness for the instant pot! As you know, I'm a big fan of putting "stuff" in a pot, closing it and letting it do its thing with very little involvement from me. This was no exception. I stripped all the rotisserie chicken off the bones, chopped it in to even-ish-sized pieces then layered in the ingredients.

toss the noodles in the sauce - still soupy while hot

After this finished cooking, at first it seemed too soupy and that I hadn't used enough noodles. But it does thicken up later so don't worry. Just serve up the noodles with a little sauce for the first meal. When I went back later to portion it out and put into single-serving containers, the sauce has thickened up considerably and was almost too thick.

This is a nice, easy and creamy pasta dish to make. The rotisserie chicken gives it some flavor. It's not as rich as an alfredo or carbonara sauce but is still plenty creamy. And tasty.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 pound dry spaghetti noodles
4 cups unsalted chicken stock

Cream sauce
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons Better Than Bouillon (roasted chicken flavor)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk

1 cup mozzarella cheese

1. Turn Instant Pot to saute mode and heat olive oil. Add shredded rotisserie chicken, onion powder, garlic powder and black pepper and stir until hot. Cancel Saute setting.
2. Break dry spaghetti noodles in half and add to the pot, spreading evenly over chicken. Pour chicken stock over noodles; do not stir.
3. Prepare cream sauce: mix flour into heavy cream until fully dissolved. Add Better Than Bouillon, salt and lemon juice; mix until combined. Pour the milk into the cream sauce and whisk until combined. Pour cream sauce into instant pot; do not stir.
4. Seal Instant Pot and, with the pressure valve set to "sealing", set pot to Manual for 9 minutes. Once Instant Pot has completed its cycle, allow to naturally release for 2 minutes then move pressure seal to release.
5. Once Instant Pot is completely depressurized, remove lid and add mozzarella cheese. Stir and toss to coat pasta with sauce. Serve warm.

Soft Brown Sugar Cookies

Soft Brown Sugar Cookies - made March 14, 2020 from Family Fresh Meals

Since I enjoyed the flavor of the Brown Sugar & Cinnamon Cookies so much, I decided to try another brown sugar cookie recipe and to see if I could find one that didn't spread as much but would have the same brown sugar flavor.

This was the last cookie I made in the last Angel Baker care package I sent out with homemade baked goods. It seems like a lifetime ago and I hope the box has gotten there by now but I have my doubts. Mail is still going through to overseas US bases but anecdotal evidence says they're taking much longer to arrive. Guess we'll see if vacuum sealing the cookies works as well as touted.

I hope so as it would be a shame if these spoiled or got too dry before they arrived. Because this was delicious. Almost like a chocolate chip cookie without the chocolate chips but with a softer texture. It literally was a (brown) sugar cookie but with more caramel overtones. If that's your jam, make these cookies.

14 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
2 cups light brown sugar, packed, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1. In a small saucepan, melt 10 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Stir constantly until butter starts to brown. Once it begins to brown, add remaining 4 tablespoons butter and remove from heat. When butter has completely melted, stir in 1 1/2 cups brown sugar and stir until smooth. Whisk in egg, yolk, salt and vanilla. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, flour, baking soda and baking powder.
3. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture, stirring until dough forms.
4. Portion dough into golf-ball-size dough balls. Cover and chill or freeze for several hours or overnight. 
5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Place 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a small bowl. Roll dough balls in sugar until coated and evenly space on baking sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until edges just begin to set and middles no longer look raw. Remove from oven, let rest on baking sheet for several minutes then remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Soft Chocolate Toffee Cookies

Soft Chocolate Toffee Cookies - made dough March 14, 2020, slightly modified from The Monday Box

This was one of two of the last cookies I made for the Angel Baker care packages I sent out before we were asked not to send homemade baked goods while mail delays were impacting transit time. I made them 3 weeks ago but in coronavirus time, it feels more like 37 dog years ago. I got the recipe from The Monday Box which is a blog that focuses on baked goods that would be good for mailing.

Click on the post title link so you can see how hers turned out. Mine flattened more than hers did so they're not as pretty. I also didn't roll the dough balls in the toffee bits and instead folded them directly into the dough itself. They probably would've been prettier if I'd followed The Monday Box's direction but I wanted the toffee bits more "protected" inside the cookie itself rather than being on the outside. Toffee melts when exposed to high heat and when it cools and hardens, sometimes is a little too hard or crunchy.

Either way, this had good flavor, especially when you use a high-quality cocoa. They spread more than I wanted but the chocolate flavor was still good. Rich and dark chocolate, balanced by the sweetness of the toffee bits.

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
14 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 3/4 cups dark brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten together
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 8-ounce package Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
2. Combine melted butter, brown sugar and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Add egg and stir until combined.
3. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in mini chocolate chips and Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits. Portion into golf-ball-size dough balls and flatten slightly into thick discs. Cover and chill or freeze for several hours or overnight.
4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Evenly space chilled dough balls and bake for 12 minutes or until edges are set and middles no longer look raw. 
5. Remove from oven and let rest on baking sheets for several minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Instant Pot Spaghetti

Instant Pot Spaghetti - made March 10, 2020 from Emily Chef

I have been seeing recipes for Instant Pot Spaghetti on pinterest for awhile and as I hunkered down at home, it seemed like a good idea to make some meals ahead of time so I wouldn't have to worry about what to make for lunch or dinner, especially as "I don't feel like cooking" can't be as easily solved by going out to eat like I used to do.

Most of the recipes for instant pot spaghetti seems like it cheats though, as the sauce was often supposed to be jarred spaghetti sauce. That didn't seem like "real cooking" and more like "put everything in one pot and come up with spaghetti". But, I don't have the cooking chops to buck the majority of recipes. It seemed like the point of instant pot spaghetti was more than you could do everything in the instant pot rather than coming up with an authentic spaghetti dish made from scratch.

I have no cooking high road to take here so I went with it. And was pleasantly surprised that it actually worked. You brown the ground beef on saute mode first, then add the jarred sauce and spices, dry spaghetti noodles broken in half then water to cover. Don't stir but just cover and seal then set it to cook. This is probably the first thing I've made in the instant pot where I added water but the finished product wasn't watery. It tastes the same as non-instant pot spaghetti but you only have to deal with one pot and it's pretty easy to make. Definitely adding this to the cooking roster.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups water, divided
1 24-ounce jar marinara or other tomato-based spaghetti sauce
8 ounces dry spaghetti noodles
grated Parmesan, for serving

1. Turn Instant Pot to Saute setting. When hot, add olive oil and ground beef. Stir, breaking up ground beef into smaller pieces and add salt, onion powder and garlic powder. 
2. When ground beef is no longer pink, turn off the saute function and add 1/2 cup water then the sauce. Stir to combine.
3. Break noodles in half and spread them over the ground beef. Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups water to the empty spaghetti sauce jar, twist the lid on and shake gently the rinse any residual sauce. Pour the water over the pasta. Do not stir.
4. Seal the instant pot and set to high for 8 minutes cook time with the pot in the seal position. When the instant pot turns off, quick release the pressure by moving the valve to open. Once all the pressure has released, remove lid, stir spaghetti to mix completely. Serve hot, garnished with Parmesan cheese.

Instant Pot Filipino Chicken Adobo

Instant Pot Filipino Chicken Adobo - made March 11, 2020 from Dinner Then Dessert

Do you want to know my favorite shopping day? It isn't Black Friday or the day after Christmas. It's the day I get my annual rebate check from using my Costco Visa card. No joke. I love Costco anyway but "free" shopping at Costco? The best.

This year I'm more grateful to it than ever because, in hindsight, the timing of my getting my rebate check emailed to me at the end of February meant I went to Costco the next day and did my usual annual rebate check shopping. That also meant this was days before panic buying and hoarding so there were not only shelves that were stocked but I was able to buy "real food". And since this was Costco, it was real food in Costco-sizes that meant I was inadvertently stocked up before it became a newsworthy thing to be.

Case in point, I bought a Costco-pack of chicken thighs. It was cheap and there were 8 "air-chilled" packs of chicken thighs bundled together. I used the first two packs to make this very easy Chicken Adobo in my Instant Pot.

This is literally one of the easiest things you can make. Marinate the chicken for a few hours or the day before you plan to eat it, dump everything in the instant pot, let it cook then broil the chicken in the oven to brown the outside while the sauce bubbles on saute mode to thicken.

You don't want to reduce the sauce too much as it's good when poured over rice. It's meant to be a thin sauce.

While this wasn't as good as my mom's adobo (nothing ever is), it was still pretty tasty. It also has the advantage of not only being easy to make but it requires relatively few ingredients. So if you're hunkered down at home (and I hope you are), give this a try for an easy, quick meal.

6 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin-on
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup white vinegar
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
4 bay leaves

1. Add all the ingredients together in a large bowl and marinate, covered, for 4 hours or more.
2. Add marinated chicken and sauce to instant pot and set the pressure to high for 15 minutes. When it turns off, quick release the steam.
3. Remove the chicken from the instant pot and place in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil at 450 degrees F until browned and crisp. 
4. Put instant pot setting on saute and reduce sauce to half. Pour sauce over browned chicken, remove bay leaves and serve warm with rice.