Birthday Cupcakes

Confession: I don't like cupcakes.  In fact, I don't like cake (except for flourless chocolate).  Its not that I find it disgusting, but I just don't know what people get so wound up about.  And yes, I realize that I am living in the cupcake capital of the world, but come on - I could think of million better sweet things.  Like ice cream - hello!  There is really no better way to describe how I feel about a cupcake than in David Radkoff's Half Empty when he says, "...is there anything more blandly sweet, less evocative of this great city, and more goyish than any other baked good with the possible exception of Eucharist wafers than the cupcake?"  That said, I made a batch last week from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook for  my mom's birthday, and I let her blow out the candle through Google video chat.  I did nibble on the cake part, but could not bare to eat the frosting after realizing how much butter and shortening was involved.  So baked them, frosted them, and packed them up for friend's school.  So obviously I can't judge whether these cupcakes were that great, but my friend did receive a text from his principal that said, "This is the best cupcake I have ever had!"  I will say that I prefer Martha's buttercream frosting over Clinton Street's, because it was easier to spread more smoothly, but all in all I would make this recipe again :)

Homemade Granola

This past week I have been happily munching on my homemade granola from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  I am a bit addicted to it, snacking on it a couple times a day when I get a chance.  I love the crunchy-chewy texture and the pop of dried fruit.  That said, this recipe didn't come without some issues.  The first batch I burned, and it wasn't my fault, I swear.  I have an oven thermometer now, because all the disasters that were happening from the cookbook made me crazy.  I needed one anyway since I left my old one in my old oven in my old apartment.  Anyways, my oven is pretty accurate on the temperature, actually 5 degrees cooler than it claims to be, so I know it is not my fault.  Okay, now that that is off my chest.  Anyways, I made a second batch, which was no big deal because this recipe is a cinch to make, and ended up reducing the baking time to 16 minutes instead of the suggested 20-22.  I think I could have baked it a little longer - like a minute if I wanted it a bit crunchier, but I am really glad I didn't because I love the crunchy-chewy texture.  Next time I am planning to replace the cashews with walnuts, and instead of mixed dried fruit I am going to use just dried apples and prunes.  They were my favorite in the mix.

Huevos Rancheros and Mexican Red Beans

Sigh.  It is hard to begin a post when you are kind of disappointed with the recipe you are about to write about.  I am talking about the Mexican Red Beans from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  There was nothing wrong with the beans, they just weren't much to write home about, and here I am still writing about it.  First off, it pains me to admit, but I think this cookbook needs to be recipe-proofed a bit more.  I have already burned applesauce, granola, and had to bake cupcakes much longer than the suggested time (more on that later), and this recipe didn't specify how much water needed to be added to the beans while cooking.  Anyways, here is the recipe for Mexican Red Beans, which are part of Clinton Street's Huevos Rancheros recipe (see below).

Here are the ingredients for Mexican Red Beans from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, serves 2 1/2 to 3 cups:

-2 cups dried red kidney beans
-1/2 cup chopped Spanish onion
-1 teaspoon chopped garlic
-1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
-1 tablespoon chopped fresh jalapeno pepper
-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-Salt and ground black pepper to taste
-1 bay leaf
-1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
-1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
-1 teaspoon chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
-1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

To begin, soak the beans in 4 cups cold water overnight in the refrigerator.  Drain the beans. *This is where I wonder whether I should have reserved the left over water.

In a large pot, sweat the onion, garlic, bell pepper, and jalapeno in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil with a pinch of salt and pepper.

Once vegetables are softened and onions are translucent, add the bay leaf, oregano, cumin, and chipotle.

Add the beans and water to the pot.  *I guessed and added 4 cups of water, but next time I would add just 3 cups of water.  Bring to a simmer and cook on low for 50 minutes.

Add the cilantro and remaining olive oil and cook for another 10 minutes.  Remove the bay leaf.  Season with salt and pepper and serve.


Now for the Huevos Rancheros!  Overall this recipe is pretty good, but I kind of wish it was saucier, like I could smother it in tomatillo sauce.  I would probably stick to Rick Bayless's recipe over this one.

Ingredients for Huevos Rancheros from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, serves 2:

-1/2 cup Mexican Red Beans
-Two 10-inch flour tortillas
-1/4 cup jalapeno Jack or Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
-1 to 2 medium plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
-1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
-1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
-1 tablespoon canola oil or clarified butter
-4 large eggs
-Pinch of salt and ground black pepper
-1/2 cup Guacamole
-1/4 cup Jalapeno Sour Cream

To begin, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Warm up the beans in a skillet or saucepan over low heat.

Sprinkle each tortilla with 2 tablespoons cheese and heat in a skillet or grill (cheese side up) until the cheese starts to melt and the bottom of the tortilla is lightly browned.  The tortilla will start to bubble on the sides.

While the tortilla is warming, combine the chopped tomatoes, sliced onion, and chopped cilantro to make a rustic salsa.

Heat the oil in a 10-inch oven safe skillet over medium-high heat.  Carefully crack 2 eggs (I just did them all 4 together - no problem), making sure there are no shells and the yolks are intact.  Season the eggs with salt and pepper.  Pour the eggs into the pan and fry them until the outsides are crispy and the whites are set.  Place the pan and eggs into the oven in order to cook the eggs on top till the white parts are no longer clear.  Repeat with remaining two eggs (if you did them separately).

To Serve, top each tortilla with 2 eggs.  Add 2 tablespoons of warmed beans, 2 tablespoons of the salsa, 1/4 cup guacamole, and 2 tablespoons Jalapeno Sour Cream.  Serve open-faced.

Click here to check out my first blog post - Chili!

Guacamole & Jalapeno Sour Cream

Last week I made turkey chili and huevos rancheros (recipe to come soon), and with those meals came a lot of condiments.  I thought I would share the guacamole and jalapeno sour cream recipes from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  The guacamole was really fresh and limey.  I would definitely add more jalapeno next time though, because it was not hot at all.  As for the jalapeno sour cream, I didn't try it.  I hate sour cream, and while I was making it, I literally dry heaved.  No joke.  I didn't even take photos because I just wanted to get the thing over with!  I was told it was good though.  The sour cream ends up turning into more of a sauce that goes great on many Mexican dishes.

Ingredients for Guacamole from the Clinton St. Baking Company's Cookbook, make 3 cups:

-4 Hass avocados, soft to the touch, but not mushy

-2 tablespoons lime juice

-3 tablespoons red onion, minced

-3 tablespoons fresh jalapeno (including seeds), minced (I would double that if you want it hotter)

-2 teaspoons salt, preferably kosher

-1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

-1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, loosely packed

To begin, halve the avocados lengthwise and remove the pits.  Scoop out the flesh into a bowl.  Reserve two of the pits for later.  Discard the skins.

Add the lime juice to the avocado.  Use a potato masher or a sturdy whisk to mash the avocado with the juice until the mixture is somewhat chunky, but pureed and pulverized in parts.  Mix in the onion, jalapeno, salt, and pepper with a spoon.

Chop the cilantro leaves and add them to the guacamole.  Adjust the seasoning to taste.  Put the avocado pits back in the guacamole for a rustic look.  It will also keep the avocados from browning (that's cool).  The cookbook also says when storing guacamole, pour 1 tablespoon canola or olive oil on top to prevent discoloration.  Seal the bowl with plastic wrap.


Ingredients for Jalapeno Sour Cream from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, makes 2 1/2 cups:

-3/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, tightly packed

-1/4 cup fresh lime juice

-1 1/2 tablespoons jalapeno (seeds included), minced

-1 clove garlic, finely minced

-2 teaspoons salt

-1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (I used black pepper - sue me)

-2 cups sour cream

With a blender (I used a food processor, but I halved the recipe) on medium speed, blend together cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno, garlic, salt, and pepper, until well combined.  Turn blender off and add sour cream.  Start the blender on low and as the ingredients gradually come together, you can increase the speed.  Adjust the seasoning to taste.

The jalapeno sour cream will keep for one week to ten days in the fridge.

Turkey Chili

Wednesday night, I made another recipe from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  This time it was turkey chili, a perfect winter time dinner.  Being a vegetarian, I decided to make two versions, one with turkey, and one with only beans.  I just halved the recipe to for each version.  This recipe has a lot of chopping and a lot of spices.  My suggestion is to have everything ready before you start cooking.  Dice all of your vegetables and measure out all of your spices.  This makes the process that much easier, because once you start cooking it goes rather quickly.  Overall, I thought the chili was good.  I definitely will take note of all the spices used, because it had great flavor and a nice heat.  I will probably start using these spices, instead of a packet of chili seasoning from now on.  Also, the crushed tomatoes add a nice thickness, instead of tomato sauce.  And finally, adding the canned beans towards the end allowed the beans to have a bit more of a bite.  I will probably cook my chili down a little longer next time and add some corn to the vegetarian version.  I also made the Clinton Street's guacamole, which I will share soon.  Adding it to the top of the bowl, gives it a limey kick.

Cooking two pots.

Ingredients for Turkey Chili from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, serves 8 to 10:

-1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-1  medium Spanish onion, diced
-2 medium carrots, diced
-3 stalks celery, diced
-1 medium red bell pepper, diced
-3 cloves garlic, minced
-1 pound ground turkey (replace with two 15-ounce can of beans of your choice for vegetarian version)
-1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
-1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
-1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
-1/2 tablespoon cumin
-1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
-2 bay leaves
-2 shakes Tabasco sauce
-1 tablespoon tomato paste
-1/2 tablespoon chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
-3 cups crushed tomatoes
-2 cups chicken stock (replace with vegetable stock for vegetarian version)
-2 cups (15-ounce can) cooked kidney beans in liquid
-1 1/4 tablespoons salt
-1/4 tablespoon ground black pepper

Optional garnishes:
-Guacamole
-Shredded cheddar cheese
-Jalapeno sour cream
-Tortilla chips


Okay, get to chopping all the vegetables, this takes a bit of time.  Then, in a large stockpot over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil and cook the vegetables and garlic in the oil until tender.  Don't be afraid to caramelize the vegetables a little bit.

Add the ground turkey to the mixture, breaking up the ground meat with a spoon until the turkey is cooked and colors slightly.  Add the herbs and spices, Tabasco, and tomato paste to the mixture and stir until combined.

Roughly chop the peppers from the adobo sauce and mix into the crushed tomatoes, then add both to the pot.  Pour in the chicken stock, bring to a boil, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the kidney beans and their liquid to the stew and cook for 5 minutes or until the beans are warmed through (this is where I added all my beans for vegetarian version).  You can continue cooking if you want a thicker consistency.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove bay leaves and serve warm with your choice of garnishes.

Veggie version.

Clinton St. Baking Company's Banana And Walnut Pancakes

On Wednesday night, I had breakfast for dinner.  I decided to try Neil's Pancakes with bananas and walnuts from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  It was a recipe that I was excited about since my mom has had their blueberry pancakes at Clinton Street and really liked them.  I am buttermilk pancake kind of girl, so I was anxious to see how these compared to Martha Stewart recipe I frequently use.  A major innovation in Neil's recipe was the whipped egg whites, which made the fluffiest pancakes ever.  Below is the recipe, along with Clinton Street's famous maple butter.

Ingredients for Neil's Pancakes with Bananas and Walnuts from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, makes eighteen to twenty 4-inch pancakes:

-4 cups all-purpose flour
-1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
-3/4 cup granulated sugar
-1 teaspoon salt
-6 large eggs, separated
-3 cups whole milk
-3/4  cup (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, plus more for the griddle
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 1/2 cups sliced bananas
-1 cup walnuts, chopped
-Cinnamon sugar for dusting
-Maple butter (recipe below)

Begin by sifting all dry ingredients in a large bowl (flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar).

And separate your eggs (reserve whites in a medium bowl and place yolks in another bowl).

In another bowl combine yolks, milk, melted butter, and vanilla until combined.  When I placed my melted butter into the cold milk, it congealed.  I ended up reheating the butter.  Has this happened to anyone else?  Whisk the egg mixture into the dry mixture, until it is a combined slightly lumpy batter.

Now whip the egg whites until the reach medium peaks.  Neil says peaks are medium when you put your finger in and they drip over a bit and stand up.

Gently mix half the whipped whites into the batter with a large rubber spatula.  Then gently fold the remaining half into the batter.  This batter should slightly lumpy and have large parts of egg whites not fully incorporated (like icecaps in a foamy ocean).

Heat a griddle - either an electric griddle, stovetop griddle, or big flat pan to 350-375 degrees F.  I used a cast iron skillet on medium-low.  Grease the hot griddle with a teaspoon of butter, or just enough so the pancake doesn't stick.  I added too much butter for my first pancake.  Drop about 1/4 of a cup of batter on the griddle and cook to set.  I watch for dry edges and bubbles forming in the center, about 3 minutes.  Add about 1 teaspoon of walnuts, and 3 slices of banana before turning the pancakes and then flip.  When pancake is golden brown on both sides, remove from skillet.  I place my pancakes on a baking sheet in the oven, on the lowest temperature just to keep them warm while I finish the rest.

Meanwhile prepare your Maple Butter, which is 1 cup real maple syrup (Clinton Street uses Grade B), and 2 sticks (16 tablespoons unsalted butter) cut into cubes.  I forgot to cut mine into cubes - whoops.  Heat maple syrup over medium heat.  Add the cold butter to the warm syrup, whisking in a few cubes at a time until the sauce is smooth and all the butter is incorporated.  Turn off the flame and keep sauce in a warm place.  Never boil the syrup.  It will keep for at least two months in the refrigerator.

Once all of your cakes are done, and your maple butter is ready, garnish with cinnamon sugar, bananas, walnuts, and maple butter.  Confession - I don't like butter that much, so I didn't use the maple butter.  The bananas in the pancakes get nice and caramelized and sweeter, so I don't really miss the added richness.

Last year I made a couple of Rick Bayless's salsas.  Click here to read.

Potato Pancakes

This past Friday night, I decided I was going to make potato pancakes and caramelized apple sauce from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook.  At 10:30 I had a burned pot of apple sauce (which I tried to convince myself otherwise that is was not burnt) and some delicious potato pancakes.  The recipe says "serves 4," but for a potato-lover it really serves 2.  I have no self-control when it comes to fried potatoes.  NONE.  Overall, I thought the potato pancake recipe was great, but there are few tweaks here in there thought I thought could make it more successful (which I included in the recipe).

Ingredients for Potato Pancakes from the Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook, serves 4 (2 to 3 pancakes per person):

-4 Idaho potatoes
-Juice of half a lemon
-2 large eggs
-1/2 cup finely minced or grated onion (about half a medium onion
-1 1/2 teaspoons salt
-1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (sorry I only have black)
-4 tablespoons all-purpose flour (you can substitute matzo meal)
-1/4 to 1/2 cup canola oil

To begin, peel the potatoes and place them in a cold bowl of water.

In a large bowl, squeeze in half the juice of a lemon.  Then in the same bowl, using a box grater, grate potatoes using the medium or largest holes (I used the largest).  Mix the lemon juice and potatoes by hand to prevent browning.

Okay, get another medium bowl - here comes the messy part.  Using your hands squeeze the liquid from the potatoes into the new bowl, and reserve the liquid.  I think this would work fine if I was Neil from Clinton Street, but I am Weakling Sam, so next time I am going to place my potatoes in a clean dish towel (NOT terry cloth) and gently twist my potatoes so all the liquid comes out.  I do this whenever I make Martha Stewart's potato pancake.  Click here to see what I am talking about.  You can also place your potatoes in a salad spinner and spin off the liquid - an Alton Brown trick.  Its not to say that I didn't squeeze out liquid, but by the time I started frying my pancakes, I noticed a lot of liquid started to seep out from the mixture.  I just didn't squeeze out enough, and I think these other methods could prevent that.

In a clean bowl, mix the potatoes, eggs, onion, salt, pepper, and flour, until all combined.  Discard the top layer of your reserved potato liquid and you will find potato sludge - er I mean starch at the bottom.  It is actually pretty cool because the starch is pretty thick and solid, it almost felt like fresh coconut.  Add this to the potato mixture and mix with your hands or spoon.  The starch is what actually makes your pancakes crisp.

In a large saute pan, heat oil to just below boiling point (this is just below medium high on my stove).  Form four 2-inch pancakes and saute them four at a time.  You can flatten the pancakes with your spatula if you want them thinner.  Mine were about 1/2 inch to start and were flattened a bit in the pan.  Once a pancake is golden and is partially cooked in the middle, the pancake  is ready to be turned.  When flipping the pancake, tilt the pan away from you so no oil splatters on you.  Lower the heat to prevent burning and cook the other side until golden brown, another 3 to 4 minutes.  Remove the pancakes from the oil and place on a paper towel-lined plate.

Serve pancakes warm or at room temperature.  If you want to reheat the pancakes, place them on a baking sheet and warm them in the oven at 350 degrees F for up to ten minutes until they recrisp, but be careful - they dry out easily.

Below is my apple sauce disaster, but more on that later.  I am going to try it again this weekend :)