White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie with Walkers Shortbread Crust

About a month ago, a representative from Walker's Shortbread contacted me to see if I would do a product review. Back when I was working at Starbucks, we sold small packages of shortbread cookies that I loved, and I thought they were Walker's, so I asked her and she said they were! I looked at their website, and saw that the shortbread has no added preservatives or artificial ingredients, it's simply flour, sugar and butter, so I told her I'd be happy to review them! 

She told me to go to the website and let her know what I'd like to try, since I've had the Highlanders, I decided to try the Shortbread Fingers and Chocolate Chip Shortbread. I'm usually a fan of chewy, soft cookies, but I also love biscotti and crisp, buttery cookies. These are probably the best boxed cookies I've ever had. The butter flavor was so strong, they were crisp, but melted in your mouth. I definitely would buy these cookies again! As far as price goes, I've seen them as cheap as $2.49 at Target and up to $4.99 at Publix, so you'll have to shop around. I found 2-packs at World Market for $.99 as well. I am going to be on the lookout for the Almond Shortbread, as that just sounds phenomenal. Thanks to Walker's Shortbread for sending me the cookies, they were delicious tasting, made from real food ingredients, and perfect with a cup of coffee for a real treat! 

Ironically, two days before I was contacted about trying the Shortbread, I tore a recipe out of Rachael Ray Everyday magazine for a White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie that called for Walker's Shortbread for the crust! I used a sleeve of the fingers to make this crust, and the crust was probably the best part of the pie! 

I wasn't overly impressed with this pie, I don't think there was enough white chocolate used, and the pie filling didn't have very much flavor. I didn't like the use of gelatin to thicken and firm the pie, or the double layer. I'll probably attempt this again, but use the bottom layer as the only layer, and double that amount to fill the pie (this is what is photographed above).

 It seemed like a waste of perfectly good shortbread! But I do still like the idea of a White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie, so I'm going to have to try it again in the future.

As a side note, this is probably the best white chocolate I've ever tasted (even better than the stuff my sister brought home from Switzerland!) I love the flecks of vanilla bean in the bar. 

If you'd like to try the recipe as is, it can be found here:

  White Chocolate Banana Cream Pie from Everyday by Rachael Ray

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

I absolutely love walking in the kitchen and seeing a beautiful cake on a crystal pedastel under a dome. It looks so elegant, but also homey at the same time. However, these cakes have a magical way of disappearing quickly in my home, so I don't make them often. Since we had a house of six last week, I thought a coffee cake on the counter would be nice for anyone to eat for breakfast, snack on with a cup of tea, or cut a small slice for dessert. The cake was gone in 2 days!

When I was a barista at Starbucks (best job ever), one of my favorite things to snack on was the reduced fat cinnamon swirl coffee cake. When I stumbled upon this Ina recipe, it brough back memories of that cake. It's simple and clean in flavor, but is so tender with a great crunch. I think next time I make it, I'll double or 1.5x the strudel portion because I would have liked a more defined swirl layer in the middle, but other than that, this was the perfect coffee cake. I did omit the icing just because I didn't think it needed more sugar, and my family prefers icing-less pastries.

Also, I realized I had no tube pan when it was time to make this, so I improvised! I used a spring form pan lined with parchment, then placed a soda water can full of water in the center, wrapped the bottom in parchment and greased it. The center wasn't perfect looking, but it held its shape well!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

adapted from Ina Garden

For the cake:
12 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups sour cream
2 1/2 cups cake flour 
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt


For the streusel:
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup chopped pecans


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan (or a 9" springform pan with soda can in the center...)
Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 4 to 5 minutes, until light.
Add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla and sour cream.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined.
Finish stirring with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.
For the streusel, place the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and butter in a bowl and pinch together with your fingers until it forms a crumble.
Mix in the pecans.
Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread it out with a knife.
Sprinkle with 3/4 cup streusel. Spoon the rest of the batter in the pan, spread it out, and scatter the remaining streusel on top.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
Let cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes.
Carefully transfer the cake, streusel side up, onto a serving plate.

Improvised tube pan

Mashed Cauliflower with Hummus and Feta

I almost didn't think I should blog this recipe because it's hardly a recipe. However, it was one of the most delicious vegetable side dishes I've made in a long time. I know there are those out there who substitute cauliflower mash for mashed potatoes, but it's not the same. Not at all! Cauliflower has it's own amazing flavor, texture, and sometimes I prefer it to mashed potatoes. Yes, it is lower in calories and has a different nutritional profile, but there's nothing wrong with eating potatoes in moderation.

I've made quite a few cauliflower purees and mashes, recipes can be seen here and here. As I've said, JJ doesn't like cauliflower, so it has become a treat for me to enjoy when he's not home at dinner. Isn't it odd when you look at cauliflower as a treat? Oh well, I'll be the odd girl, cause I just can't get enough! What I tend to do is just pick up a head, and then see what my inspiration is the night I'm preparing it. So for this one, I had a hummus surplus, and a few random cheeses to choose from. I guess I took it in a Mediterranean direction, but really, I took it in a delicious bowl of comfort and flavor direction.

Mashed Cauliflower with Hummus and Feta

1 head of cauliflower, stemmed and cut into florets

1 cup vegetable stock

Salt and pepper

Pinch of dried oregano

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup plain hummus, plus extra for garnish

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, plus extra for garnish

Place cauliflower in a pot, add stock, salt and pepper.

Cover, bring to a boil, turn to low and simmer for 8-10 minutes.

Pierce with a knife, cauliflower should be tender and most of stock will be evaporated.

Remove from heat, add oregano, red pepper, hummus and feta.

Use a potato masher and mash to desired consistency.

Garnish with an extra dollop of hummus and sprinkle of feta.

Roasted Tomatillo and Sour Cream Enchilada Casserole

It's not very often that I repeat a dinner recipe. I'm constantly on the search for new things, so a dish has to be really good, or a classic that we love, to be made time and time again. I made this dish about a month ago, with a chicken variation and a bean and pepper variation for company. The enchiladas looked gorgeous, rolled well, and tasted great. However, as it often happens when I have company for dinner, I forgot to photograph the food. I made a mental note to photograph the leftovers the next day because I made 2 full trays, but this time JJ and I were so ready to eat the delicious enchiladas that I forgot!
Last weekend when I was at the farmer's market, one of the vendors had enormous baskets of tomatillos, and he talked me into buying them. I figured I'd make this enchilada sauce again, and finally, hopefully get a photo. Well when it came time to roll the tortillas, they were all cracking. To avoid kitchen-rage, I decided to make it into a tortilla lasagna instead. Not exactly a pretty photo, but this enchilada sauce is just too good not to share! It tastes great no matter what you fill the enchiladas with (I've used grilled, tequila-lime chicken, homemade refried pinto beans with roasted red peppers, and roasted garlic smashed pinto beans).

Creamy Roasted Tomatillo Enchilada Sauce

adapted from Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

10 small/medium tomatillos; remove husks and wash; cut into halves or quarters
2 jalapenos, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
Olive oil
Salt
1 cup cilantro
1/2 cup light sour cream

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a baking dish.
Roast at 450 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until tomatillos are tender.
Remove from oven, cool for 5 minutes.
Add roasted veggies (and the water that cooks out), cilantro and sour cream to a blender, puree.
Taste and adjust seasonings.

To assemble, either layer tortillas and fillings with sauce, top with cheese and bake until melted or dip tortillas in sauce, roll around filling, top with extra sauce and cheese, bake.

Again, not pretty, but the sauce is just so good!

Bagels

Since The Bread Baker's Apprentice came out, I've seen countless recipes on blogs featuring absolutely delicious looking breads. I don't make yeasted breads very often because I just don't have the patience and time to follow the directions exactly, measure exactly, wait the specific amount of time to do each step, etc.

When I saw bagels on many blogs, I admired them, but thought it seemed like a lot of work, and I can get some great bagels from the bakery, and I'm happy to support small, local bakeries. But still, something about making a bagel struck me as so exciting.

For the past week, my parents and sister and brother in law have been on vacation at my house. My sister recently told us she's pregnan (yay!!!) and when we talked about what she was able to eat, she told me lots of plain bagels. I knew this was my opportunity to finally make the bagels! So that's just what I did. They were as much work as I thought they'd be, and they came out very close to what you'd buy from a bagel shop.

Bagels

from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhardt

For the sponge:
1 teaspoon (.11 ounce) instant yeast
4 cups (18 ounces) unbleached high-gluten or bread flour
2 ½ cups (20 ounces) water, at room temperature

For the dough:
½ teaspoon (.055 ounces) instant yeast
3 ¾ cups (17 ounces) unbleached high-gluten or bread flour
2 ¾ teaspoons (.7 ounce) salt
2 teaspoons (.33 ounce) malt powder


To finish:
1 tablespoon baking soda
cornmeal or semolina flour for dusting
sesame seeds


1. To make the sponge, stir the yeast into the flour in a 4-quart mixing bowl. Add the water, whisking or stirring only until it forms a smooth, sticky batter (like pancake batter). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly. It should swell to nearly double in size and collapse when the bowl is tapped on the countertop.

2. To make the dough, in the same mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer), add the additional yeast to the sponge and stir. Then add 3 cups of the flour and all of the salt and malt. Stir (or mix on low speed with the dough hook) until the ingredients form a ball, slowly working in the remaining ¾ cup flour to stiffen the dough.

3. Transfer the dough to the counter and knead for at least 10 minutes (or for 6 minutes by machine). The dough should be firm, stiffer than French bread dough, but still pliable and smooth. There should be no raw flour – all the ingredients should be hydrated. The dough should pass the windowpane test and register 77 to 81 degrees F. If the dough seems dry and rips, add a few drops of water and continue kneading. If the dough seems tacky or sticky, add more flour to achiever the stiffness required. The kneaded dough should feels satiny and pliable but not be tacky.

4. Immediately divide the dough into 4 ½ ounce pieces for standard bagels, or smaller if desired. Form the pieces into rolls.

5. Cover the rolls with a damp towel and allow them to rest for approximately 20 minutes.

6. Line two sheet pans with baking parchment and mist lightly with spray oil. Proceed with shaping the bagels by pushing a hole through the center and stretching out the hole to 2 ½ inches in diameter.

7. Place each of the shaped pieces 2 inches apart on the pan. Mist the bagels very lightly with the spray oil and slip each pan into a food-grade plastic bag, or cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the pans sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

8. Check to see if the bagels are ready to be retarded in the refrigerator by using the “float test”. Fill a small bowl with cool or room-temperature water. The bagels are ready to be retarded when they float within 10 seconds of being dropped into the water. Take one bagel and test it. If it floats, immediately return the tester bagel to the pan, pat it dry, cover the pan, and place it in the refrigerator overnight (it can stay in the refrigerator for up to 2 days). If the bagel does not float, return it to the pan and continue to proof the dough at room temperature, checking back every 10 to 20 minutes or so until a tester floats. The time needed to accomplish the float will vary, depending on the ambient temperature and the stiffness of the dough.

9. The following day (or when you are ready to bake the bagels), preheat the oven to 500° F with the two racks set in the middle of the oven. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and add the baking soda. Have a slotted spoon or skimmer nearby.

10. Remove the bagels from the refrigerator and gently drop them into the water, boiling only as many comfortably fit (they should float within 10 seconds). After 2 minutes flip them over and boil another minute. While the bagels are boiling, sprinkle the same parchment-line sheet pans with cornmeal or semolina flour.

11. When all the bagels have been boiled, place the pans on the 2 middle shelves in the oven. Bake for approximately 15 minutes, then rotate the pans, switching shelves and giving the pans a 180-degree rotation.

12. Remove the pans from the oven and let the bagels cool on a rack for 15 minutes or longer before serving.

Asiago Spinach Cakes

Last week, I hosted another Bite Club event for the Folio Weekly Bite Club. It was at The Fish Co., a restaurant and fish market in Jax Beaches. All of the food was phenominal, but there was one thing we had that stood out in my mind, a spinach cake served with sea bass. The cake was not meant to be the star of the dish, but everyone at the event loved it, and commented on it.

I asked Bill, the owner, what was in it, and he told me Asiago and Dijon (I had suspected horseradish, it did have a spicy kick, but it was Dijon). The fish was served with a key lime butter, which melted and pooled around the crisp cake, and added more delicious flavor. You can read about the entire meal and see photos of each course here.

When it came time to construct my version of the spinach cake, I decided to use frozen chopped spinach because it has a sturdier texture than cooking down and wilting spinach leaves. I also decided to finely cube the asiago so there would be nice pockets of the cheese. I used panko bread crumbs for extra crunch and texture, and rather than slather it with key lime butter, I squeezed a lemon on top to keep it healthy. I cooked the cakes in a dry, nonstick skillet to avoid fat, but they can be cooked with a bit of butter or EVOO for an even richer flavor and crust. These cakes were absolutely delicious, almost like a quiche, but with so much spinach flavor. And the dijon adds such great spice and flavor. Thanks, Fish Co., for the inspiration!

Asiago Spinach Cakes

2 boxes frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained well

1 egg, beaten

4 oz. asiago cheese, finely diced

1 yellow onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 cup panko bread crumbs, separated

1/2 tsp. each salt and fresh ground black pepper

Nonstick cooking spray, EVOO or Butter

Lemon wedges

Add egg, mustard, oregano, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl, whisk to combine.

Add spinach, cheese, onion and garlic, fold into egg mixture.

Add 1/4-1/2 cup breadcrumbs to reach consistency where cakes stick together, but aren't overly dry.

Form into 8 cakes, dredge in remaining panko

Heat a nonstick skillet (I used a griddle) over medium heat, grease or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Dredge cakes in remaining panko, press to coat.

Place cakes on griddle, cover and cook for 5 minutes, flip gently and cook for another 5 minutes, until toasted, and cheese begins to ooze out.

Serve imediately with wedges of lemon.

Lemon Cumin Quinoa with Avocado, Raisins, and Apricots

Well, if you haven't seen a quinoa recipe lately, you must be living under a rock. In recent months/years, quinoa's popularity has grown because of its superfood status. It's a personal favorite of mine because it is kind of a protein/carb combo, and I'm always looking for meat-free protein options.

For the first two years of my cooking blog, I selected a country, researched it, and blogged many popular and traditional dishes and ingredients (see the links on the right side of my blog for countries completed). When I chose Bolivia one week, I read about the history of quinoa. Here's what I wrote in my blog 2 years ago, "For this week's country challenge, I decided to go back to South America. What struck me most were the number of recipes using Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), a grain native from the Andes. The Incas spread the use of Quinoa all over South America. Quinoa is naturally bitter, and must be rinsed many times. It declined in popularity in the nineteenth centry due to widespread belief that it was killing pigs owned by peasants. They stopped growing it, and it almost disappeared. Recently, I have seen quinoa appear in many cooking magazines and shows because of it's health benefits. The dishes I have chosen for Bolivia all use quinoa in one form or another, showing it's versatility."

So when I saw this recipe on Erin's Food Files, I immediately starred it and put it on the menu. I knew my husband would love it because of the avocado and raisins, and I love dried apricots and cumin. The recipe was intriguing, many big flavors and seeminly random ingredients, but they paired so well and this dish was delicious.

Lemon Cumin Quinoa with Avocado, Raisins and Apricots

via Erin's Food Files  adapted from Fine Cooking

3 tbsp. raisins

3 tbsp. dried apricots, thinly sliced
1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
Kosher salt
1 large lemon
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. sweet paprika
1 medium firm-ripe avocado pitted, peeled, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 medium scallions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
3 tbsp. toasted sliced almonds
Freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, soak the raisins and apricots in hot water for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
In a 2-quart saucepan, bring 2 cups water, the quinoa, and 1/2 tsp. salt to a boil over high heat.
Cover, reduce the heat to medium low, and simmer until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is translucent and tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
Fluff the quinoa with a fork and turn it out onto a baking sheet to cool to room temperature.
Finnely grate the zest from the lemon and then squeeze 1 tbsp. juice. in a small bowl, whisk the lemon zest and juice with the olive oil, coriander, cumin, paprika, and 1/4 tsp. salt.
In a large bowl, toss the vinaigrette with the quinoa, raisins, apricots, avocado, scallions, and almonds.
Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Minted Orzo and Zucchini Salad

I often have readers, friends and family ask me how I keep coming up with recipes to blog about, or where I find many of the recipes I make. I honestly am constantly on the look-out for delicious recipes that fit my style. Some of my favorite resources are magazines like Eating Well, Clean Eating, Real Simple, Cooking Light, and Vegetarian Times. I also like to search other blogs, many of which I have linked to on here. I also take cookbooks out of the library every now and then, especially when I am cooking ethnically. Lastly, there are a few websites I like to browse, like Whole Foods, Williams-Sonoma, and Foodtv.

This salad comes from the Whole Foods website. I was looking for a one-pot-dinner-salad type meal, which is my current meal of choice (if you haven't noticed...) This was the first one that popped up, and lucky me, my herb garden has taken off, and mint is abundant!

I ate this salad warm/room temperature, but Whole Foods suggests serving it chilled. I think it would be delicious either way! I also didn't have Kalamata Olives, so I substituted generic green Spanish olives.

Minted Orzo and Zucchini Salad

from WholeFoods.com

1 cup dried orzo
2 large zucchini, thickly sliced
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped mint
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
6 ounces feta cheese, cut into cubes
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
Ground black pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Add orzo and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.
Drain well, rinse in cold water and drain again.
Meanwhile, arrange a rack about 6 inches from the heating element and preheat broiler.
Brush zucchini with 1 tablespoon oil and arrange on a baking sheet.
Broil, flipping halfway through, until tender and deep golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes.
Set aside to let cool and then roughly chop and transfer to a large bowl.
Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil, orzo, lemon juice, mint, garlic, feta, olives, tomatoes and black pepper and gently toss to combine.
Cover and chill for several hours until flavors blend.

Mediterranean Cous Cous

When it comes to a quick, easy side dish, cous cous really can't be beat. It only takes about 5 minutes to cook, can be flavored a million ways, and doesn't leave you slaving over the stove!

You can purchase boxes of cous cous with little seasoning packets, but it's so much cheapier, healthier, and more versatile to buy a big container of plain cous cous. For dinner I had prepared baked falafel, so I took my cous cous in the Mediteranean direction. I simply sauteed some vegetables, added stock and cous cous, and then finished it with fresh herbs and feta cheese. It was so incredably flavorful, but quick and easy to make!

Mediterranean Cous Cous

1 tbsp EVOO

1/4 cup red onion, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced

Salt and pepper

1 1/4 c. vegetable stock

3/4 c. cous cous

1 tsp. fresh oregano, minced

1 tsp. fresh mint, minced

1/4 c. feta cheese, crumbled

5 green olives, sliced

Heat EVOO in a small soup pot over medium heat.

Add onion, garlic and red bell pepper.

Season with salt and pepper.

Saute' for 5 minutes, until softened.

Add stock to vegetables, turn heat to high, bring to a boil.

Pour in cous cous, stir, cover and turn heat off.

Rest for 5 minutes.

Remove lid, fluff cous cous with a fork, toss in herbs, cheese and olives.

Sarah's Delicious Chana Masala

When my sister Becky visited a few weeks ago, she mentioned her former roomate makes the best Chana Masala. I've had it in restaurants before, and it's definitely my go-to item on the menu when nothing else catches my eye. So I decided to ask Becks for her recipe and give it a try. When it comes to Indian or other Asian dishes, I like to have a recipe or at least ingredient guidelines because I'm not 100% sure of myself to make something up on my own. However, as I eat and cook more Indian food, I'm able to discern the spice profiles and combinations.

After recieving Becky's email with the recipe, I found out Sarah cooks just like me, taste and add, taste and adjust. This was the reply she gave me "garlic+onions+oil+curry+red pepper+turmeric+cumin+chickpeas+water+more of same spices+paprika+more of same spices = sarah's delicious chana masala. Serve over rice. She eyeballs everything."

So I could leave you with that recipe... or I could give you my approximate measurements. I'll give you my approximations, but honestly, I'd advise you to do it Sarah's way, and make it your own!

Sarah's Delicious Chana Masala

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 yellow onion, diced (after eating this, I wish I had used a mince rather than a dice)

2 tbsp. EVOO

1 tbsp. curry powder (I use Penzey's Maharajah)

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

2 tsp. turmeric

2 tsp. cumin

2 15 oz. cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 tsp. smoked paprika

1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes

1-2 cups water

Heat a soup pot over medium, add EVOO, garlic and onions.

Saute' for 5 minutes, or until edges begin to brown.

Add curry powder, cayenne, turmeric, cumin, paprika and tomatoes.

Bring to a simmer, use a potato masher and gently crush tomatoes (be careful, they spit when you smush them!)

Add chickpeas and 1 c. water, stir well and simmer for 30 minutes.

Taste, adjust seasonings, add more water if simmering longer, if not serve over rice (I had cous cous on hand, so I used that instead)

Serve with chopped cilantro.