Caramel Glazed Pear Cake, Idea Alley on Oct. 25
J. Bar recommends preparing the glaze before baking the cake.
Caramel Glazed Pear Cake
4 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled and diced, (about 3 cups)
2 cups PLUS 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, divided use
3 eggs
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Caramel glaze (recipe follows)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube or Bundt pan.
Toss together the diced pears and 1 tablespoon sugar; set aside for 5 minutes. Beat eggs, 2 cups sugar, and oil at medium speed on electric mixer until blended. Combine the flour, salt, and baking soda, and add to egg mixture, beating at low speed until well blended. Fold in pears, chopped pecans and vanilla. Bake for 1 hour, or until wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove from pan. Drizzle caramel glaze over warm cake.
Makes 1 tube cake:
Caramel Glaze
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup evaporated milk
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan, over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Cook stirring for 2 minutes 30 seconds more, or until sugar has dissolved. Cool. Pour over warm cake.
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Sweet Potato Cornbread, Front Burner Oct. 18
Sweet Potato Cornbread
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 3 medium), scrubbed but not peeled 9 tablespoons butter, divided use 1/2 cup whole milk 4 eggs 1 1/2 cups cornmeal 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 3/4 teaspoons fine salt (reduce to 1 1/2 teaspoons if using salted butter) 4 green onions, trimmed and finely chopped white and green parts, optional
Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Prick potatoes all over with the tines of a fork. Microwave on 100% power, flipping sweet potatoes every 5 minutes, until the potatoes are very soft and the surfaces are slightly wet, 10 to 15 minutes total.
Immediately cut them in half to release the steam and let cool.
Meanwhile, melt 8 tablespoons of the butter.
When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh into a bowl and mash until smooth, you should have about 1 3/4 cups; discard the skins. (I actually save them for dog treats. My dogs love them.) Whisk in the milk, melted butter and eggs, whisking until smooth.
In a separate large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Using a flexible spatula, fold the potato mixture and green onions (if using) into the cornmeal mixture; mixing just until no white streaks remain.
Place the remaining tablespoon of butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet set over medium heat. (Or place the butter in a 9-inch cake pan and place the pan in the oven until the butter melts.) Once melted, swirl the butter to coat. Scrape the batter into the hot skillet or pan and spread it in an even layer. Transfer skillet to the oven and bake until cornbread is golden and a tester inserted near the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.
Let cool in skillet set on a wire rack before serving.
Makes 8 to 10 servings.
Recipe adapted from "The Savory Baker: 150 Creative Recipes, From Classic to Modern" from America's Test Kitchen
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Beef/Chicken, Beans, Rice Skillet, Front Burner, Jan. 18 (beef) and Dec. 6 (chicken)
Cheesy Beef, Bean and Rice Skillet
2 tablespoons oil (I used sunflower oil; Gerard uses olive oil) 1 yellow onion, diced 1 red bell pepper, diced (Gerard uses a green bell pepper) 1 pound ground beef 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped 2 teaspoons oregano (I used Mexican oregano, but "regular" Mediterranean oregano is fine) 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice (I omitted this) 1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground red (cayenne) pepper (I used about 3/4 teaspoon) 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 cup long-grain white rice 1/4 cup tomato paste 1 bay leaf 1 (15- to 16-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained (Gerard uses black beans) 2 limes, divided use 8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (Gerard uses Swiss or low-moisture mozzarella) 1 avocado, for serving Fresh herbs such as oregano, cilantro and/or watercress, for serving (I used oregano from my herb garden)
In a large oven-safe skillet (I used a 10 1/2-inch cast-iron skillet) heat the oil over medium high heat until shimmering. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to soften. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it into crumbles, until the beef is no longer pink and the pepper and onion are tender. Add the garlic, oregano, cumin, cayenne, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Push the mixture to one side of the skillet. To the now-empty side add the rice. Cook, stirring to coat the rice in the pan drippings, but keeping it separate from the beef mixture, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir everything together. Cook 1 minute. Add the bay leaf and 2 cups water and stir well. Bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut 1 of the limes into wedges; halve, pit and slice the avocado and pull the herb leaves from the stems. Set aside.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Discard the bay leaf. Stir in the beans. Zest the remaining lime directly into the skillet and then cut it in half and squeeze in the juice from both halves. Stir well. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top and transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and bubbly, about 10 minutes.
Serve topped with sliced avocado and herbs with reserved lime wedges for squeezing on the side.
Makes about 6 servings.
Cauliflower Parmesan, Front Burner, Feb. 1
Cauliflower Parmesan
1 head cauliflower
Olive oil
Salt and ground black pepper
1/2 to 1 cup red sauce such as
pizza sauce or marinara
1 cup shredded low moisture
mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons freshly grated
parmesan
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh
basil and/or flat-leaf parsley
(I used both)
Crushed red pepper flakes,
optional
Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Trim away and discard any leaves from the cauliflower. Cut the head vertically (through the stem) into 3/4- to 1-inch thick slabs. The slices on each end may fall apart. Keep those florets. Arrange cauliflower planks in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and arrange the pieces in little piles. Brush the planks on both sides with olive oil; drizzle the piles, if any, with oil. Season everything with salt and ground black pepper. (I was able to cut three planks, plus two small piles of pieces from a smallish head of cauliflower.) Roast, flipping once, until cauliflower is tender and golden, about 30 minutes. Remove pan from oven.
Set oven to broil. Top each cauliflower plank and pile with about 2 tablespoons (or more if you like it saucy) marinara sauce and then the mozzarella, divided evenly among each plank/pile, and then the parmesan.
Return cauliflower to oven and broil until cheese is bubbly and golden, about 3 minutes. (I left mine in just a little longer because the frico -- the crispy bits of melted cheese -- is one of my favorite parts.) Serve topped with basil/parsley and red pepper flakes, if desired.
Makes 2 to 4 servings.
Recipe adapted from delish.com
VIDEO ONLINE
Preparing Cauliflower Parmesan
arkansasonline. com/21burner
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Poblano Soup, "Latinisimo" cookbook story, Oct. 4
Geo's Crema de Chile Poblano (Creamed Poblano Soup)
4 poblano peppers 2 cups chicken broth 2 cups heavy whipping cream 1 cup whole milk 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon powder 1 tablespoon cornstarch, optional (see note) 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes 6 ounces cubed panela cheese OR fresh mozzarella, optional
To roast the peppers: Place whole peppers directly over the flame of a gas stove, turning them as their skins blacken. Or slice the peppers in half and place them on a baking sheet cut-side-down. Broil them for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft and charred. (This is the method I used. I then tented them with foil while they cooled, which helps loosen the charred skin.) Once cool enough to handle, peel, stem, seed and de-vein the peppers. Gutierrez makes a point to say: Resist the temptation to rinse roasted peppers while peeling them as you will wash their flavor off.
Place the poblanos, chicken broth, cream, milk, bouillon and cornstarch (if using) in a blender; blend until smooth, about 1 minute. (My blender isn't large enough to blend this much liquid, so I blended my mixture in two batches.) Transfer mixture to a medium pot set over medium-high heat; bring to a simmer, keeping an eye on the soup so it doesn't boil over. As soon as it comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer slowly for 10 to 15 minutes or until slightly reduced. Slowly, stir in pieces of butter (a few at a time), until melted. Serve the soup hot, topped with cheese, if using.
Note: Without the cornstarch, this soup is quite thin. If you like a thicker soup, add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to the blender at the start of the recipe.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Fleur de Paradis cocktail, National Cocktail Day cover story, March 22
This drink is a delight. It's not too heavy, but still packs a punch with layers of floral and fruity flavors. Be sure to use a floral-forward gin rather than juniper forward gin here. Use any edible flower you have available for garnish, or skip the garnish entirely. A twist of grapefruit peel would work well, too.
Fleur de Paradis
2 ounces gin (a floral, less
juniper-y gin works well
here, such as Hendrick's,
Plymouth or Bluecoat)
3/4 ounce elderflower liqueur
1/2 ounce grapefruit juice,
freshly squeezed
1/2 ounce lemon juice, freshly
squeezed
1/4 ounce simple syrup
1 dash orange bitters
Chilled sparkling wine
Edible flowers such as violets,
pansies, grape hyacinths
or redbud blossoms for
optional garnish
Combine the gin, elderflower liqueur, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, simple syrup and orange bitters in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled. Double-strain into two coupe or cocktail glasses. Top with the sparkling wine.
Garnish with an edible flower, if desired.
Makes 2 drinks.
Recipe adapted from Liquor.com
Jalapeno-Cheese filled Turkey Meatballs (Burner)
Fried Pickles (Burner)
Cream Biscuits (wire)
Tomato Soup (Burner or Idea Alley)