SugarBear

Marshmallows

2010-02-07T21:39:00.001-08:00

As promised... my marshmallow recipe:

About 1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup hot water (about 115 degrees)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
½ tsp vanilla

Oil the bottom and sides of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch rectangular metal baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some powdered sugar.

In bowl of a standing electric mixer, or in a large bowl, sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let stand to soften.

In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, hot water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture, without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers 240 degrees. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.

Beat mixture on high speed until white, thick and nearly tripled in volume, about 6 minutes if using standing mixer.

In a mixer beat whites and vanilla until they just hold stiff peaks. Fold whites and vanilla into sugar mixture until just combined.

Pour mixture into baking pan and sift 1/4 cup powdered sugar evenly over top. Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least three hours, and up to 1 day.

Run a knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto large cutting board. Lifting up 1 corner of inverted pan, with fingers loosen marshmallow and let drop onto cutting board.

With a large knife trim edges of marshmallow and cut marshmallows into roughly 1-inch cubes.

If you are serving plain (i.e. for cocoa), sift remaining powdered sugar into a large bowl and add marshmallows in batches, tossing to evenly coat.

If you are going to dip the marshmallows, dust off the powdered sugar before cutting into squares.

Marshmallows keep in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 week

I gott post more...

2010-02-05T15:31:00.000-08:00

...seriously. Okay, I'm making Rum Balls and Marshmallows this weekend. I'll post on it. I swear... in the meantime, look at this:

From Bearly Edible (get it? It's a bear... sexy!) my new favorite food site. I'm totally ADHD when it comes to food websites. But RIGHT NOW, this is my favorite.

The Autonomous Saucier

2010-01-26T08:21:00.000-08:00

I saw this on the Damnit, Let's Eat website. I'm not sure I like this, a lot of sauces are about the look and feel of the sauce. Sure, it will stir the sauce, but how will you know it's ready?

Has anyone tried this? Comments? Opinions?

Last Night's Dinner: Tamale Bundt

2010-01-06T09:23:00.001-08:00

I found this on Happy to Be From Iowa yesterday. Incredibly easy... and incredibly delicious! She calls it a "Tamale Pie", I call it a "Tamale Bundt". I couldn't find any Red Peppers, so I just used green. Also, I didn't put in all the meat--I saved that for tacos for tonight. Recipe from the site is below.

Kudos to MN Mom!

Tamale Bundt

Filling:
2 cups browned Ground Beef
1t. Chili Powder (I used more)
1t. Cumin (again more)
1/4 t. Salt
1 (16 oz.) jar Thick And Chunky Salsa
1/2 each of a Red and Green Bell Pepper, chopped

Cornbread:
1 & 1/2 cups Flour
1 cup Yellow Cornmeal
1/3 cup Sugar
1T. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 & 1/4 cup Milk
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Veg Oil
4 ozs. Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Sour Cream

Preheat oven to 375
Grease a Bundt cake pan
In a skillet, brown the Ground Beef
Add Chili Powder, Cumin and Salt
Stir in Salsa
Cook over med-low heat for 5 minutes
Meanwhile sprinkle Chopped Bell Pepper in the bottom of the bundt pan
In a separate bowl, combine Flour, Cornmeal, Sugar, Baking Powder and Salt
Add Milk, Eggs, and Oil
Stir until moistened
Fold in Cheese
Spread 1/2 of the cornbread batter evenly over the peppers in the pan
Top with meat filling, then remaining batter
Spread evenly
Bake 35-40 min. or until top is lightly browned
Loosen with a spatula
Invert onto a serving plate
Serve with Sour Cream

I didn't have any sour cream on hand... tasted great without. Great winter dinner: fast, easy, warms you up.

Can't Wait

2009-07-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

Julie and Julia opens August 7.

My Cupcake is Staring at Me

2009-06-17T09:36:00.001-07:00

Boy... what a pair, eh?

Most Dangerous Cake Recipe in the World

2009-03-18T11:55:00.000-07:00

Sent to me by a friend... I'll try it and let you know how it turns out...

FIVE MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
1 large microwaveable coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.
Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again.

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts.

The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.

EAT!

This can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous.

Why is it the most dangerous cake recipe in the world?

Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!

Peanut Butter Marshmallow Crunch Brownies

2009-03-12T11:01:00.000-07:00

I made a few adjustments to the original recipe found at Eat Me, Delicious. The original recipe called for fewer chocolate chips—I made the mistake of melting all the chips at the beginning, so I’ve now separated them out into two parts in the recipe. As one friend said to me, “More chocolate is always better.”

I also changed the name of the recipe, because some people felt I should warn those that are not into peanut butter that it is in there.

The original recipe also called for 3x3-inch bars—WAY too big for a recipe this rich. Smaller works better. But it’s gooey when it’s cut (like that’s a bad thing), so use a sharp knife. I will probably add parchment paper below in the future so it comes out easier—it will probably cut better, too.

Everyone seems to really enjoy the mixture of textures. Crunchy + gooey + chewy = AWESOME!

Peanut Butter Marshmallow Crunch Brownies

Yield: 48 1.5x1.5-inch bars

Brownie Ingredients:
4 ounces Unsweetened Chocolate
5 oz. (or 2/3 cup or 1 1/4 sticks) Unsalted Butter, divided
1 1/4 cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips
6 oz. (or 1 1/3 cups) All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
4 large Eggs, room temperature
2 cups Sugar
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Topping Ingredients:
1 package (10 1/2 ounces) Mini Marshmallows
1 1/2 cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Smooth Peanut Butter
1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
1 1/2 cups Rice Krispies

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan. (I would recommend using parchment paper below to make it easier to remove (the marshmallows make it very sticky getting it out of the pan).

In a medium saucepan, melt the Chocolate, Butter, and the Semisweet Chocolate Chips on medium heat.

Stir occasionally while melting.

Set aside and cool for 5 minutes.

In a medium bowl, sift the Flour, Baking Powder, and Salt.

Set aside.

In a large bowl, place the Eggs and whisk thoroughly.

Add in the Sugar and Vanilla.

Stir the melted ingredients into the egg mixture, mixing well.

Stir in the dry sifted ingredients and mix well.

Fold in the second batch of Semisweet Chocolate Chips.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and even with a spatula.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the corner of the pan comes out with moist crumbs.

Remove the brownies from the oven, and immediately sprinkle the marshmallows over them.

Return the pan to the oven for 3 more minutes.

While the brownies are baking, place the Chocolate Chips, Peanut Butter, and Butter in a medium saucepan.

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until melted.

Remove from heat, add the Rice Krispies,and mix well.

Allow this to cool for 3 minutes or so.

Spread the mixture evenly over the marshmallow layer.

Refrigerate until chilled before cutting.

Original recipe found at Eat Me, Delicious

It's Outrageous (but not really)

2009-03-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

So, the other day, I'm pluggin' around the internets and I found an interesting blog called Eat Me, Delicious. She's a vegetarian (I know... "EWW!"), but loves to bake (so all is forgiven).

She had a recipe for "Outrageous Oreo Crunch Brownies", which are brownies with chopped Oreo cookies baked in. They looked good and all the reviews were fan-freakin'-tastic, so I had to bake them.

They're good... but I wouldn't call them fan-freakin'-tastic. I would just call them good. Everyone at work likes them, but they like anything that is free. It wasn't a difficult recipe, but my kitchen was a mess afterwards--lots of bowls and pans in use.

All-in-all, I probably won't put this into rotation as something to bake for friends. However, her "Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars" on the other hand, could be something special.

I'll let you know.

For those of you who would like to try the "Outrageous Oreo Crunch Brownies", here's the recipe:

Outrageous Oreo Crunch Brownies

2 sticks (1 cup) Butter
1/2 pound Semisweet Chocolate Chips
3 ounces Unsweetened Chocolate, chopped
3 Eggs
1 1/2 tablespoons Instant Coffee Granules
1 tablespoons Vanilla
1 cup + 2 Tbsp Sugar
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 tablespoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 cups chopped Oreo Cookies (25 cookies)
2 Tbsp Flour

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

Butter and flour a 9"x13" baking pan.

In a heatproof medium bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, heat butter, chocolate chips and unsweetened chocolate until melted and smooth.

Allow to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs, coffee, vanilla and sugar.

Blend chocolate mixture into egg mixture; cool to room temperature.

In a medium bowl, sift together the ½ cup flour, baking powder and salt.

Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture.

In a small bowl, stir Oreos and remaining 2 tablespoons flour.

Add Oreo mixture to chocolate mixture.

Pour batter into baking pan and smooth top with a rubber spatula.

Bake 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted 3 inches from center comes out clean;

do not overbake.

Allow to cool. Refrigerate, tightly wrapped, until cold; cut into squares.

Bon Appetit!

The REAL Peridic Table

2009-02-26T11:30:00.000-08:00

To a baker, it's the one that matters. Thanks to Woman's Day (recipes f0r each).

Paul Rudd: Man on Man Kiss

2008-12-17T08:56:00.001-08:00

My love for Paul continues...

Creamy Goodness (Meme)

2008-09-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

I stole this from Southern Expressions, who stole it from the The Greedy Maelstrom:

I know these things are strictly about ego and no one really cares, but I’m bored and I want to post something—either read it or don’t, no worries for me.

1. How do you like your eggs?
I love me some eggs! I usually make scrambled because I’ve either fucked up over easy or fucked up an omelet. However, I do enjoy Eggs Benedict, but that’s mostly about the Hollandaise Sauce. I love it if my eggs have something in them: bacon, cheese, anything that will harden the arteries more.

2. How do you take your coffee/tea?

Coffee: cream and sugar… LOTS of cream. Friends mock me for my love of cream (that bit works on several levels…)
Tea: Hot or Iced I loathe it.

3. Favorite breakfast food:
Cap’n Crunch. Seriously, it’s good. My mom used to make Egg-in-a-Cup for me as a kid. Because I followed her around the house all the time when I was little (she called me “my shadow”). So, she made a soft-boiled egg, cut up toast, and mixed it in a coffee cup. I’d wander around, eating my breakfast following her in her morning chores… I’d say Egg-in-a-Cup, but I don’t ever make it for myself.

4. Peanut butter:
Depends. Mostly creamy (there’s that word again), but sometimes, I like the nuts… (seriously, that was not intentional…) Nuts in my mouth are great (okay, I worked that… still not great, but I’m keeping it. See? I’m making it a challenge for you to complete this.

5. What kind of dressing on your salad?
Good Seasons Italian—homemade. I play with the recipe though: I add some Tabasco, basalmic vinegar, and Hawaiian Honey Mustard—the salt and the sweet, baby. If I’m out, I get The Continental (Italian and Blue Cheese—again, creamy good!)

6. Coke or Pepsi?
I find the whole Cola war thing ridiculous… however, I prefer Coke.

7. You’re feeling lazy. What do you make?
I’m always lazy… if I’m really feeling lazy, I’ll just go out and pick something up at a drive-thru.

8. You’re feeling really lazy. What kind of pizza do you order?
Hawaiian—Canadian Bacon and Pineapple. How the hell is that Hawaiian? The pineapple I get, but the Canadian Bacon? I have a friend that thinks hot pineapple is horrible—but I love cooked pineapple! The tartness goes away and all the sugars come out… (I’m salivating.)

9. You feel like cooking. What do you make?
Casseroles. If I’m cooking, I’m cooking for the week, so it had better be something I can shove in Tupperware™ and take to work.

10. Do any foods bring back good memories?
Egg-in-a-Cup and La Villa raviolis… dear God, they are good.

11. Do any foods bring back bad memories?
Lima beans. My sister’s favorite food. I could never eat them. I remember putting them under my seat cushion at dinner because I didn’t want to eat them.

12. Do any foods remind you of someone?
Hors d’oeuvres –my mom makes the most wonderful Hors d’oeuvres and whenever I have to make some for a party, I think of her (and all the friggin’ work it takes to make them).

13. Is there a food you refuse to eat?
Just about every kind of fish. Exceptions: Shrimp/Prawns, cracked crab. That’s it. I can smother them in cocktail sauce and not worry too much. If it has a fishy smell, I’ll leave the room.

14. What was your favorite food as a child?
Egg-in-a-Cup and La Villa raviolis.

15. Is there a food that you hated as a child but now like?
Cauliflower and cooked carrots. Hated both of them as a kid, but now they’re great.

16. Is there a food that you liked as a child but now hate?
Do I look like I hate food? Well, besides fish—fish is healthy, and I don’t do healthy.

17. Favorite fruit and vegetable:
Avocado… is that a fruit or a vegetable? I love bananas (hey…!), tomatoes and peppers. I want to eat oranges and buy them often, but forget about them. However, every time I eat one I think, “This is great! I should eat more of these!” I can ONLY eat apples while walking around… don’t know why. Don’t really care…

18. Favorite junk food?
All. Of. It. The trashier, the better. Cheese in a can on Ritz Crackers—that’s some good eating. My Hors d’oeuvre making mother would kill me if she knew… Plus, any kind of Fast Food is fine with me. I used to LOVE Jack-in-the-Box before the salmonella scare a few years ago—their burgers were really juicy. Now they are cooked to death… but I still eat ‘em.

19. Favorite between meal snack?
There’s a between meals? I just graze all day long…

20. Do you have any weird food habits?
Raisins in cookies. I find that cheating. I think I’m about to get a delicious chocolate chip and someone snuck in a f’ing raisin? Ah, hell no!

I also tend to eat way too fast. I think it’s because I was the youngest and least able to defend my food from my mom, who waited to eat dinner with my dad. “You’re not eating your peas!” and her fork would descend upon my plate. But if I just gobbled it all up, she couldn’t get at it.

21. You’re on a diet. What food(s) do you fill up on?
Water, mostly. I try not to fill when I’m really working on it.

22. You’re off your diet. Now what would you like?
Everything. Mexican pretty much rules. If I’m on a diet and someone mentions El Burro—diet is officially over. Sorry, not going to “be good”, I’m gonna feast!

23. How spicy do you order Indian/Thai?
Not too spicy. Not a huge Thai fan. I have friends that used to always drag me to some Thai place—I love the peanut sauce, but that’s about it.

24. Can I get you a drink?
Yes… and be quick about it. Girl Drink Drunk, here. I love a Cosmo (I make Chris-mos) and a Vanilla White Russian is pretty amazing…

25. Red or White wine?
Red. I prefer a Merlot, but I’ll drink a Pinot Noir. Certain Zinfandels are amazing—the Seven Deadly Zins is SO amazing… I’m salivating, again.

26. Favorite dessert?
As a pastry chef (well, a culinary school graduate with an emphasis on baking and pastry) I should say something really amazing… but a bowl of ice cream with Hershey’s syrup will do nicely. Simple tastes for a simple mind…

27. The perfect nightcap?
Bailey’s Irish Cream. Again with the cream…

Lemon, Lime, and Orange (cello)

2008-08-14T15:28:00.000-07:00

For the past few years I've been making Limoncello in the summer for gifts in the winter. It's an amazing drink--kept in the freezer it makes a great apertif as well as a lovely sauce for vanilla ice cream. My mom mixes it with marscapone for a great topping for a fruit dessert.

This year, because the price of lemons is so freakin' out of control, I've added Calcello (lime) and Arancioncello (orange) to the mix. Right now the Limoncello is ready for bottling, the sugar is added to the Arancioncello to seep for another week and the Calcello is ready for the sugar mixture. It's a production line.

I'll start with more lemons once I bottle the Limoncello--this time I will use lemons from my parents' yard--they're big lemons, but they have a lot of imperfections. They make good Limoncello, but are difficult to work with... but they're free, so it's worth it.

Here are the pictures of the process so far:

Three stages:
Lime zest and Everclear seeping for two weeks
Orange zest, Everclear and sugar mixture seeping for two more weeks
Lemon zest, Everclear and sugar mixture awaiting straining and bottling

Lime zest and Everclear awaiting the sugar mixture...

Arancioncello

Double batch of Limoncello

Just lime zest and Everclear
With the zest settled... needs a shaking every day

Bagged
They need to sit in a cool, dark space

I know this isn't really baking, but it's good stuff... and there is sugar involved (since the blog is titled "SugarBear" I think it applies"

I’m Not Bad, I’m Just Baked That Way

2008-07-24T14:42:00.000-07:00

If you want to check out some truly hideous cakes (and the occasional cool one) , head on over to Cake Wrecks. There are some insanely awful cakes that some heinous bakers actually charged money for. Awful, awful stuff… but you will laugh. Oh, you will laugh… because you’re not responsible for such a mess.

Wedding Cake

2008-07-01T15:34:00.001-07:00

So, a buddy of mine asked me to make his wedding cake. Foolishly, I said "yes." After several days of work and lots (and lots and LOTS) of stress, the cake was delivered. I was hoping it would be beautiful... it's passable.

Instead of charging them for it (and risking their wrath) I decided to give them the cake as a gift. A "passable" gift. What a good guy I am...

Below are the results.

Slightly different from the first pic

Mmmm... Cobbler!

2008-03-28T15:28:00.000-07:00

So last week, I was making marshmallows for Easter, and I used these crappy eggs that would not whip. I kept trying with new eggs (after thoroughly cleaning and drying both the bowl and whisk) to no avail. Finally, I grabbed some old eggs and they whipped up fine. But, by that point, the marshmallow had set to the point I couldn't fold in the whipped egg whites.

I threw out the lot and pouted.

I didn't feel like starting over... more aptly, going to the store, buying more freakin' eggs, coming home and starting over. So, I looked around and saw some blueberries that I'd bought.

Faster than you can say "anti-oxidants" I'd baked my first blueberry cobbler. I'd made a lot of interesting stuff in culinary school, but no cobblers.

Behold, my cobbler! Feel free to drool (it was delicious!)

“Take a Bite Out of This, Bitch”

2008-03-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

Ooh, Yeah!

I'm In Love...

2008-01-11T10:24:00.001-08:00

...with macaroons!

Not those lumps of coconut (which, I must admit, I enjoy--especially when dipped in chocolate), but the French pastry version that are light and delicious.

A friend brought back an assortment from Laduree in Paris and the taste is amazing. The chocolate is SO chocolatey--the Pistacchio is sublime... all the flavors are amazing.

I went to their website to see if I could order some for friends*, but they do not do online sales--well, I couldn't find anything that said they sold them online... the site is ALL in French! What's up with that? It's like my site being all in English... it's um, well...

Anywho... seeing that I couldn't buy the damn things, I thought I'd do a search and maybe (just maybe) I could find a recipe I could play with and create something similar. Two clicks later, I found a site that pretty much gives complete instructions on the rather simple recipe.

I'll work on this after I get back from my vacation and see if I can create something worthy.

Bon Apetit!

*friends = me

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T10:12:00.001-08:00

...and a happy New Year!

Gingerbread Inn

2007-12-12T22:59:00.000-08:00

Quick post... I was a guest chef at The Gingerbread Inn--a fundraising event held every year at The Lark Creek Inn in Larkspur, CA. One of the guest chefs was the incredible Elizabeth Falkner of Citizen Cake in SF (and Food Network--note the FN competitor logo on her arm). I got my picture taken with her... she was awesome!

Martha Kostyra

2007-11-17T21:27:00.000-08:00

September 16th, 1914 - November 16th, 2007

Martha Stewart’s mom passed away on Friday. Lord knows, I love me some Martha—her mom was a real kick. At 93, she was still driving and still vibrant. How wonderful is that? That’s the way I want to go: a long, happy, healthy life and then—way past my 80’s—slip off into the night.

God Speed, Big Martha!

I Baked Cookies This Weekend

2007-11-12T14:07:00.000-08:00

Total cheat: tub of pre-made dough that I bought for some school charity... I was a pig and ate a bunch of raw dough. Fuck, it was good.

Yeah, I know... this post sucks. I'm just trying to put something up. I'll start posting pics (when I get off my fat ass and start taking them).

Just sitting on this for now...

2007-11-08T21:24:00.000-08:00

I'm f'ing around with this name. Not sure what I'm going to do with it. I have some ideas...

...check back later.