Black Bean Bowl with Poached Egg

Give me a potato, sweet or of the russet variety, and I'm a happy lady. Maybe it's because I'm Irish. Maybe it's because I love brunch food. Or maybe it's both. Regardless of the origin of my lusting, whenever I see a brunch recipe on the internet that manages to incorporate a potato, it's game over for me. If I see it on a weekday, whose morning are filled with oatmeal & drip coffee, I make sure to stash the recipe away for a few days. Sometimes on Pinterest, but usually by refusing the close its browser tab.

But this bad boy black bean bowl? I considered it made the first time I saw it. If you often find yourself short on time in the morning, the bulk of this recipe can me made the night before. Substitute canned beans for dried, even if it does raise the price point a bit. If you're like me and can't make your own poached egg with a perfect dribble, throw on a sunny-side-up egg instead. Don't like runny yolks? I don't judge - I was the same until a few years back. Try a scrambled version and no one will think less of you. In fact, your friends will probably be begging to brunch at your place again and again.

Another praise I can sing for this dish is about its leftover potential. Cook everything down  a little to thicken it up and throw it in a tortilla to call it "burrito lunch." "A" and I used ours the next morning for brunch to make blintzes. To stretch things out a bit more, add some stock and call it soup. It's a flexible dish that will bend to your needs without complaint. All it wants is to make you happy, as do I.

BLACK BEAN BOWL

Adapted from Spouted Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. dried black beans (rinsed and soaked overnight)
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 tsp. chile powder
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced in 1'' cubes
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1-2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• salt to taste
• 4-8 eggs (use 1-2 eggs per person)
• cilantro and hot sauce to finish
• Cheese of your choosing 

Directions:

1. Drain and rinse the beans from soaking. Place them in a large pot and cover with a couple inches of water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the beans are cooked through and just tender (one to one and a half hours depending on freshness of beans), avoid overcooking. They should still have a tooth to them. Remove from heat, add a pinch of salt. Let the beans cool for about ten minutes before draining. Add the cumin, cinnamon, garlic, chile powder, hearty pinch of salt and broth. Bring the mixture to a low simmer.
2. Add the sweet potato to the warm beans, give it a stir and cover the pot. Cook for about 8-10 minutes until the sweet potatoes are cooked through. Stir in the tomato paste and olive oil and taste for salt, you'll likely need another pinch or two, and spices. You could add heat with a pinch of red pepper flakes or chipotle. Cover and keep warm until ready.
3. Bring a large pot of salted water with a splash of vinegar to a low boil. Poach the eggs to desired doneness (deliver the eggs to the water in a ramekin, seems to help them stay together well).  For a medium poach, simmer them 2-3 minutes. If you like the yolk more firm, take them 4-5 minutes. Serve each portion with a hearty scoop of the beans and poached egg on top. Finish with hot sauce, cilantro and cheese if using. 

White Russian Cake

Once upon a time there was a very special food blogger with a very special dad whose birthday was separated from hers by only one day. As the years passed and it became 2013, he was now exactly twice her age.

Growing up, this meant that the young fiery-haired little food blogging girl and her fiery-haired dad were required by the Evil Queen of the Household to share a birthday cake. As luck would have it, the little girl was none too happy with this arrangement as the years passed. She would stomp down her foot, demand a cake and be sent away to the lonely tower to think about what she had done.

Seasons passed, suns went up & down and the little girl was not so little any more. She followed her dreams, moved across the land to a magical place called “Seattle” and had no more shared birthday cakes with her fiery-haired dad. To her surprise, this made the grown up food blogger incredibly sad!

But as luck would have it, the girl fell in love with her prince and his white steed name “UHaul” took them back to Midwestia. Not Michigania, but Wisconsonia. This made the girl squeal with glee as now she would be able to share her birthday cake again with her birthday partner in crime.

She baked and baked and baked (and drank a beer) and baked trying to make the best possible cake for their fateful reunion. Taking inspiration from The Dude himself, she made it a bit boozy to celebrate the reunion. Or because she just likes the White Russian cocktail.

Cake was eaten. Smiles were had. And the little food blogging girl and the fiery-haired dad were celebrating in style together.

-FIN-

Folks. That is a true story. The vegan White Russian (as I make it with almond milk, not cream) is hands down my favorite drink – it tastes like a milkshake! For our birthdays this year, my family, “A” and I all met up in Chicago to celebrate.

The recipe below is for a full-sized cake but I halved it to make my cake a bit more mini. If you’re more in the mood for cupcakes – full-sized or mini – this recipe works perfectly! The Evil Queen of the Household, erm, my wonderful, lovely & perfect mother can attest, she forced my evil Full-Blood Sister to bake a batch for her ladies night gathering. Need proof? See below!

White Russian Cake

Ingredients:

• 14.5 oz cake flour (To "make your own" cake flour, do this, it's what I did: http://joythebaker.com/2009/09/how-to-make-cake-flour/)
• 8.75 oz confectioner’s sugar
• 0.5 oz baking powder
• 6.75 oz almond milk
• 6 oz canola oil
• 3.25 oz eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 13 oz egg whites
• 9.5 oz granulated sugar
• 1 cup coffee liqueur (Kahlua)
• 1/2 cup vodka

Directions:

1. Oven 375°F. Prep pan by butter bottom and sides. Place parchment in pan and butter the parchment.
2. Sift dry ingredients (except granulated sugar) into a large bowl. 
3. Mix all ingredients (except the 13 oz of egg whites and granulated sugar) in the large bowl until combined. Whip whites and granulated sugar to medium peaks. Fold into batter gently. 
4. Bake until set, about 20-25 minutes (do the toothpick test – no goop on toothpick… 30 minutes for me).
5. Remove from oven and remove from pan. Let cool on a rack. 
6. You can get 3 layers from one cake, or four layers from two cakes… it all depends on how tall you want your cake and how many layers of cake you want.
7. Mix the coffee liqueur and vodka together.

For the Dude-worthy buttercream frosting:

• 1 cup goat butter, room temperature
• 6-8 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• ⅓ cup coffee liqueur (Kahlua)

1. To make the frosting, place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium high until light and fluffy.
2. Gradually add powdered sugar until incorporated. Mix in coffee liqueur until smooth. Add more if necessary until frosting has reached a good consistency for piping or spreading. Frost the cupcakes as desired and enjoy!

Assembly:

1. Place a base layer, bottom-side-down on your serving plate. Pour a quarter of the booze evenly over the cake layer. 
2. Spread a layer of the frosting over the cake. Set a second layer of cake on the frosted layer. Repeat until the last layer (should be the other base). 
3. Soak the cut side of that layer with the remaining booze and carefully flip that onto the top of the cake. Frost the sides (crumb coat first, then frost) and the top of the cake. 
4. Decorate as desired. Serves 12. Consume immediately or refrigerate for a few days.

Spicy Ginger Pickled Carrots

This is a quick n' dirty blogpost for a quick n' easy recipe. These carrots had bigger dreams and ultimately ended up in some homemade Bahn Mi (100% homemade to toot my own horn). That "recipe" will be coming soon but I already apologize in advance for the quality of the photos. Night isn't always the best time for lighting, as one would assume, but now that we're past daylight savings time, things are on the upswing! Unfortunately, I'm pretty backlogged with recipes that were taken after sundown. 

These picked carrots are less of a "recipe" than the Bahn Mi. It's more of making due with what you have on hand. I don't often keep fancy Mason jars on hand (a girl can dream), but I have mild hoarding tendencies and feel the need to save any decent glass jars. Perfect for bulk spices and leftovers alike, I can't every bring myself to throw them out! So why are these carrots is a former fermented black bean jar you ask? Because I recycle (read: hoard) and because that's what I had on hand.

Back to the food. Basically, just take as many carrots as you can fit in the jar… then make them fit in the jar. Then top with pickling liquid and spices, or what will fit in the jar. Wait. Then… WHAM! Delicious easy, make-your-friends-jealous food!

Spicy Ginger Pickled Carrots

Ingredients:

• Carrots, peeled
• 1 ¼ cups water
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 2 tablespoon sugar
• 2 cloves of garlic, lightly crushed
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 ½ teaspoon powered ginger
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions:

1. Cut the carrots into matchsticks. Bring a medium-sized pot of lightly-salted water to a boil. (Use a non-reactive pot.)
2. When the water boils, drop the carrots in and simmer for one minute. Pour into a colander and rinse under cold water. Drain thoroughly and place in jar.
3. In the same pot, heat the remaining ingredients. Once it begins to boil, reduce the heat and simmer for two minutes.
4. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Once cool, pour liquid over carrots in car and chill. The carrots will be ready in about 3 hours but it's best to wait for at least a day.

Amaretto Almond Biscotti

It's real talk story telling truth time and I have an embarrassing confession to make… I'm not quite what you would call a "sweets" person. Which is weird because one of my all-time favorite activities is baking (one could only assume after perusing around on my blog for even just a minute). Nothing melts away stress or puts a smile on my face faster than being elbow-deep in dough and listening to the whirling of my stand mixer whipping together fat and sugar.

It still doesn't mean I would pick it over a crusty loaf of bread with some goat cheese. Or peanut butter. Or figs. Or really, really, dark chocolate. Or… I've better stop myself now. Just know that the way to win me over is with bread and spicy curry. Not a candy bar.

But if you brought me some biscotti? Game over. I'm done, all yours for the taking. Biscotti is my biggest weakness - it's a crispy crunchy not-really-sweet dessert breakfast item. I love brunch. I love crunch. Put those two together and you got biscotti. My kryptonite. 

As I lean towards indecisiveness, I presented "A" with two options earlier this week: biscotti or cookies. This post kinda hints at what he chose. To keep my ravenous self at bay, I sent him off to work with a good sized Tupperware filled to the brim and told him to share. I hope he's at least getting popular...

If you want to be the coolest chap at the office, I recommend you make some too! Or just give them to me and I'll do your (evil) bidding.

Amaretto Almond Biscotti

Ingredients:

• 2 cups almonds
• 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoon amaretto or 2 tablespoon rum with 1 tsp almond extract
• 1/4 cup cocoa nibs

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spread the almonds in an even layer over a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, or until toasted, carefully stirring once halfway through to prevent burning. Let cool for 10 minutes.
3. In the bowl of your food processor, combine 1/2 cup toasted almonds, 1 tbs sugar and pulse until finely ground. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Pulse three times to mix.
4. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs, vanilla, amaretto and remaining sugar on high until fluffy and thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture. Fold in the whole almonds and cocoa nibs.
5. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
6. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat. Wet your hands with water, divide the dough in half and form into two loaves, about 2″ by 10″ (the dough will be thick and sticky). Smooth the tops to create a flat surface and bake for 40 minutes, until golden.
7. Remove the loaves from the oven. Using a bread knife or a very sharp chefs knife, diagionally slice the loaves into 1/2″ cookies and bake for another 20 minutes, flipping cooking halfway through, until crispy.
8. Cool the cookies completely before stacking or storing. To retain crispness, put the cookies in an airtight container as soon as they are completely cool. Biscotti may be stored airtight for several weeks.

Apricot Maple Cinnamon Rolls

I feel like I could post a picture and present without comment (but I'm a chatterbox so that would be impossible to do). However, I essentially did just that on my Facebook page and boy-oh-boy did the offers start rolling in! I had one friend beg me to come back to Seattle, another started plotting a road trip over to Madison and all the while, "A" is gloating in the glory that is homemade apricot maple cinnamon rolls. Freshly baked on a Sunday morning. All to himself. Even though I did offer up the leftovers, no one seemed willing to make the journey. Oh well, "A's" gain.

While I was ambitious enough to make cinnamon rolls for our weekly Sunday brunch, I was just lazy enough to do the prep work the night before. Make the rolls according the directions but instead of having them do the final rise on the counter, plop them in the fridge overnight for a slow rise. The next morning, bring them to room temperature on the counter before baking.

The thing is, friends, these rolls are shockingly uncomplicated to make. Granted, I do have a KitchenAid stand mixer to do most of the dirty work for me. Even if you don't have a mixer, the dough is so soft and pliable that it would be too difficult to work with by hand.

Apricot Maple Cinnamon Rolls

Adapted from the Joy the Baker Cookbook

Ingredients:

• for the dough:
• 2¼ tsp. (1 pkg) active-dry yeast
• ½ tsp. + ¼ scant cup granulated sugar
• ¼ cup water, lukewarm (~115° F)
• ½ cup almond milk milk, at room temp.
• 2 TBSP. packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2¾ c. all-purpose flour + more for kneading
• ¾ tsp. salt
• 4 oz. (½ cup) goat butter, softened

for the filling:

• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• ½ cup finely chopped walnuts
• ½ cup dried apricots, chopped
• 1 TBSP. ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp. salt
• pinch ground cloves
• 3 TBS. pure maple syrup
• ¼ cup goat butter butter, melted

for the glaze:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• ⅛ cup almond milk

Instructions:

Dough:

1. Combine yeast, ½ tsp. of sugar, and water in the bowl of a mixer. Stir and let sit until foamy, 5-10 minutes.
2. Add remaining sugar, almond milk, brown sugar, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk. Beat until well combined. Using a dough hook, add flour and salt to bowl and mix at medium speed until dough just begins to come together. Turn mixer to medium-high and knead for ~4 minutes.
3. Add the softened butter and continue to knead for ~6 minutes. The dough will be wet and sticky. Knead in another ⅓-½ cup of flour into the dough. Dough should be just slightly tacky and very soft, but it should not stick to your hands.
4. Place in a large, greased boil. Cover with plastic or clean kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1½-2 hours.

Filling:

1. While dough is rising, combine sugar, walnuts, apricots, cinnamon, salt and cloves in a medium bowl. Stir in the maple syrup and set aside.

Dough (again):

1. When dough has doubled in bulk, tip it out of the bowl onto a heavily floured work surface. Gently knead the dough until it is no longer sticky, adding ~3 Tbs of flour as needed for ~2 minutes. At this point, the dough is soft, silky, supple, and totally sexy. Let rest on counter for 5 minutes.
2. Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into roughly a 10"x20" rectangle. Position dough so that the long sides are parallel to you (you'll be rolling from the long side). Brush about half of the melted butter over the top of the dough, enough to coat it well.
3. Dump all of the filling onto the buttered dough and spread evenly, leaving a 1" border at one of the short edges of the dough so the roll can be properly sealed. Lightly press the filling into the dough.
4. Roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Pinch all along the edge to seal. Place dough, seam side down, on a cutting board. Cut into equal slices.
5. Arrange slices, cut side up, in a greased pan (I used a large pie pan). Each roll will have a bit of space on all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rest in a warm place for 1 ½-2 hours, until they've puffed up nice and big and are touching. (NOTE: is you would like to refrigerate overnight, place the covered unbaked rolls into the fridge at this point. Bring to room temperature before baking.) Place oven rack in upper ⅓ of oven and preheat oven to 375° F during last 15 minutes of rise time.
6. Slide into preheated oven and bake for ~30 minutes, until golden and bubbling. Rub some goat butter on the rolls just after you've pulled them from the oven.

Glaze:

1. While the rolls are cooling slightly, whisk together the powdered sugar and almond milk until smooth. Drizzle over warm rolls.
2. Share with friends. Make people happy. Smile.

Baked Polenta

I'm appreciating the silence. Almost a month ago, when I was first laid off, silence was a terrifying thing. Most days were spent trying to pass the time, waiting for "A" to come home, waiting to go to sleep. That first week was so empty and silent that I tried to fill it with everything.

Podcasts were playing, music was droning on and the TV was a magic pill of time wasting. Not knowing how long unemployment is going to last, I've been slowing learning to appreciate it. Instead of sleeping in, I wake up at the same time as "A" (well… I at least try and roll out of bed to eat breakfast with him) and take in the morning. Sipping my coffee in silence with a magazine. Or a book. Sometimes it's even just a good blog post I never had time to read. Most importantly, I've been cutting out the noise and it's helped with my stress.

During the day, I tried not to watch any TV (on my computer or otherwise) and save the rock-out sessions for later in the day. I don't know why this works, but it does, and I'm not the one to fight it. It hasn't been the easiest month, but I've found a way to make it somewhat better.

Yet the best unexpected benefit to all my free time is how much it's forced me into cooking creatively. When I was unemployed back in Seattle, I lived alone and only had myself to feed. This led to many a nights of canned soup and popcorn. I didn't judge myself! But now that I am a proper "kept woman," I have "A" bottomless pit stomach to feed. I never thought I'd say this, but that challenge is fun.

To cut back on costs, we've been grocery shopping less, buying more from the discount bins at the coop and relying more on seasonal/whole foods. We already did that before, but now we're doing it even more. I still run over to the coop for a bulk ingredient or two, but I mostly make do with what's already in the kitchen. Each night, it's something new and exciting. There are usually always leftovers which means "A" can have a nutritious lunch at work the next day. And I get more material for my blog (albeit, still with improper lighting… damn you winter!).

What's a girl to do with the dregs of a pantry and fridge but a mini-family to feed? Polenta. Comforting, warm and easy to whip up when I lose track of time.

Baked Polenta
Adapted from Spoon Fork Bacon

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 lb chicken sausage, casings removed
• 1 red bell paper, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced thyme
• polenta:
• 4 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
• 3 tablespoons unsalted goat butter
• 4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons grated pecorino romano
• salt and pepper to taste

Garnish:

• crumbled goat cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Pour 1/2 tablespoon oil into a cast iron skillet and brown sausage, over medium-high heat. Pour sausage into a mixing bowl and set aside. Drain excess oil from pan.
3. Pour remaining oil into the skillet and add bell pepper, onion, garlic and thyme and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, or until vegetables have softened. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Pour vegetable mixture over sausage and fold together. Set aside.
5. Pour water into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Generously season water with salt and pepper. Whisk cornmeal into water and reduce heat to medium. Continuously stir the polenta for about 5 minutes. Add butter, goat cheese and pecorino romano and stir until fully incorporated. Adjust seasonings.
6. Lightly grease the skillet used to sauté the sausage and vegetables. Pour half the polenta into the skillet and spread into an even layer. Pour all but 1/2 cup of the sausage/mushroom mixture, in an even layer, over the polenta and top with remaining polenta (creating almost a layered casserole). Sprinkle the top with the remaining sausage/vegetable mixture and crumbled goat cheese and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Serve.

Gravlaks with Sweet Mustard Sauce

Almost FOUR (four?! four. FOUR?) years since I first started my blog, and this is my 200th post. In someways, I consider this to be a huge solo-dance-party-worthy experience, but on the other side of the fence, it's a bit low. Just glance over to my side bar - the number of recipes per year has been slowing decreasing (67, 72, 41,18…) but I consider to be myself to be a better cook.

Now when I approach my kitchen, it's a little more Iron Chef and a lot less exact. There will never be a day in which I stop referencing cookbooks or other food blogs, but now I'm much more comfortable approaching a spread of ingredients with only myself as inspiration. Ingredients are more ingrained and I know how nicely they play with their food friends. Tasting starts before I even start chopping the first onion. But how does this translate over to a food blog?

For me, it doesn't. I take that back, it only kind of does, but it means less posts with more trust. Now when I post something, it's a recipe I have probably tried once or twice. The first time was to inhale and analyze the food without pressure of photography. Second is perfecting. Third is for the blog. Or in the case of this recipe, sometimes I rework a classic and put it on up.

Back when Andy and I were back in Seattle, we made use of the first few catches of a salmon run but curing King Salmon with Aquavit. In my opinion, there is no better way to experience Pacific salmon then cured and on a slice of hearty rye bread. Cut to six months later, and while we are away from my beloved Pacific ocean, it's just as easy to find fresh and sustainable salmon on the Third Coast in Wisconsin. 

The basics of curing are simple and similar to my last recipe, but this time we cut out the Auqavit and upped the amount of sugar and salt. As far as meat goes, I recommend approaching the fish monger of your local food coop and having him select, cut and remove the bones of the best possible cut of fish.

Gravlaks with Sweet Mustard Sauce

From the Kitchen of Light 

Ingredients:

• Two 3-point salmon fillets, skin on, any pinbones removed
• ⅓ cup salt
• ⅔ cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons fine chopped fresh dill
• 1 teaspoon dill seeds
• Sweet Mustard Sauce (recipe below)

Directions:

1. Rinse fillets in cold water and pat them dry with paper towels. Combine the salt and sugar, and rub the flesh side down in a deep dish just big enough to hold the fillets (we used a large glass roasting pan).
2. Scatter the pepper, fresh dil, and dill seeds over it. Place the other fillet skin-side-up on top. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and place a heavy weight (such as a cast iron skillet like we did) on top of the fish.
3. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 days, turning the fish every 12 hours and basting it with the brine that accumulates in the dish.
4. Once cured, gently wipe the cure off the top of the fillets. Use a long, narrow, flexible, sharp knife to remove the skin from each fillet. With the salmon skin side down, grab the tail end, pinching it with your thumb and fingers. If the skin is slippery, use a paper towel to grip it. Use the knife to slice between the skin and flesh. Keep the knife at an angle, pointed down towards the skin, and use a rocking motion to slice under the length of the fillet and remove the skin.
5. Once the skin is removed, flip the fillet over and trim off any pieces of skin still left on the fish. After the skin is removed from both fillets, store them in the fridge, well wrapped, where they will keep for at least a week.
6. To serve, slice the salmon as thinly as possible by using a sharp knife to shave off pieces, cutting towards the tail end. Wrap any unused salmon and return it to the fridge. Traditionally, gravlax is served with mustard-dill sauce and rye bread. It’s also delicious just sneakily eaten plain, too! Just don't tell Andy I do that….

Sweet Mustard Sauce

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons sweet grainy mustard, or to taste
• 2 to 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon sugar, or to taste
• 1 to 2 tablespoons vinegar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill

Directions:

1. Combine the sweet mustard and 2 tablespoons of the Dijon mustard in a medium bowl. Add the sugar and 1 tablespoon of the vinegar. Gradually add the oil, whisking constantly. 
2. Adjust the flavors as necessary. 
3. The sauce should be neither overly sweet nor overly acidic. Add a little water if the sauce gets too thick. Stir in the chopped dill. It will keep, refrigerated, for 2 to 3 weeks.