For a laugh... Remembering the Pillsbury Doughboy!

Who authored this gem of a piece is unknown to me.

 

Just for a laugh and to put a smile on your face.

(and just remember, he's really not going anywhere)

The Pillsbury Doughboy passed yesterday of a yeast infection and

trauma from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71.

 

 Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities

turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth,

Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker,

The Hostess Twinkies [yes, back from their vacation],

and Captain Crunch. The gravesite was piled high with flours.

Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly desribed Doughboy

as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded.

 

Born and bread in Minnesota, Doughboy rose quickly in show business,

but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a

very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes.

 

Despite being a little flaky at times, he still was a crusty old man and

was considered a positive roll model for millions.

Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, three children:

John Dough, Jane Dough, and Dosey Dough, plus they had one in

the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.

 

The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.

 

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 



Spring Has Arrived!

Spring has arrived!

I love Spring. 

Flowering bulbs begin to pop out of the earth after their winter chilling...

Trees are blossoming (my Meyer lemon tree is loaded)...

Birds are chirping...

 

I'm often annoyed at the retail stores for "pushing" us into the

next holiday or the next season too early...

but Spring is always welcomed and as of the 20th we are here...

and Pottery Barn is showing off it's Spring line.

I'm always excited to see what they come up with

and secretly wish they carry over something from the

year before that I wished I had bought - but didn't!

Pottery Barn never fails to disappoint!

Beautiful arrangements of birds in nests...

in a picnic basket!

Plenty of bunnies, including wine bottle decor...

and  not to be missed are their gorgeous tablesettings!

I particularly like the orange, green, and pink napkins

they use here.  The middle of the table is left neutral and

the flatware in the cafe glasses are a surprise.

Now let's just sit back and continue to watch

the earth come alive and enjoy the beauty of Spring!

 

Thank you for visiting.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

 

 



Flourless Chocolate Cake on St. Paddy's Day

I was taught in culinary school different ways to use a flourless chocolate

cake.  A flourless chocolate cake is just that - flourless.
Instead of using flour, egg whites are whipped and added to the

chocolate batter instead of dry flour ingredients like we are
more familiar with. After taking out of the oven, the cake
will deflate leaving a moist spongy-like cake.

I like to "stamp" different-shaped pieces out of the flourless chocolate

cake, depending on what I am wanting to make and use them for.

I recently made this cake and "stamped" out hearts as a garnish for a

dessert I made for my sorority.  You can see that post here.

The top-right photo above shows those hearts which I also added a

drizzle of chocolate to, to dress them up and add to their flavor,

since the dessert they were garnishing was not chocolate.

 

I had some of the cake not used when making the hearts and placed

that remaining cake into the freezer. I pulled it out of the freezer

and decided to use it for this small tiered St. Paddy's Day cake. Well,

actually, I had the thought to pull the cake out of the freezer because...

the other day I had lunch with a friend at Opera Cafe and Patisserie

and had to bring home a few mini-macarons - in GREEN!

I thought to use a little macaron to top this little tiered cake.

Then eat the rest! Ha!

I pulled the cake out of the freezer, pulled out my circle cutters,

and while the cake was still quite cold, cut out the needed circles.  

I used the 2 1/2" - 58 mm cutter. 

I cut out more than I needed because the cake can get

quite moist and a little sticky as it thaws, making it sometimes

difficult to take out of the cutters in one piece.

I also had some buttercream in my freezer which I took

out one day before to bring back to room temperature,

then re-whipped it, and added the color green.

This was actually quite easy to put together. Nothing fancy here.

Piped a dab of buttercream on the plate to anchor the cake,

placed the first cake layer on top (using my offset spatula),

piped a swirl of buttercream,

 placed the second cake layer on top,

piped another swirl of buttercream, and

placed the final third layer of cake on top.

 

Althought I was planning on topping it with a final swirl of

buttercream and the green mini-macaron, I thought

it looked a bit plain and need more chocolate. (Right?)

I decided to drape it with some ganache.

For the ganache,

I placed semi-sweet baking chocolate into a bowl along with some cream.

I microwaved it for 45 seconds, then stirred until it became smooth,

shiny, and the pouring consistency I wanted.  Sorry, but I didn't measure.

I did end up adding a little more cream for a better pouring consistency.

But, no, I never put it back into the microwave.

I then lightly poured the ganache over the little tiered cake

and left it to drip down its sides. 

 Lastly, I added one last swirl of buttercream

then topped it off with the mini-macaron.

Yum!  I just love cake and I just love buttercream.

And, the macarons are just a very special treat.

 

Here is the recipe:

 

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Source - Southerner At Heart

 

10 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (not chips)

10 oz. butter

10 large egg yolks

3 oz. sugar

8 large egg whites

3 oz. sugar

 

Melt chocolate and butter together. Whisk egg yolks and 3 oz. sugar in a separate bowl. Fold in melted chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Whip egg whites and 3 oz. sugar to medium peaks. Fold chocolate mixture into egg white mixture. Spread into a half-sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Bake 350 degrees until center is set. Let cool completely in pan.

 

Enjoy!

 

Thank you for visiting my blog!

 

This week I will be joining

Rattlebridge Farm's Foodie Friday

 

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

 

 

 



What's for Dinner? Bleu Cheese Gnocchi

Here is a standby dish that is helpful for one of those days

when you've spent the day doing other things and hadn't

even thought about what to fix for dinner:  

Bleu Cheese Gnocchi with Spinach.

Anyone can work wonders with one of these in the pantry. 

This Gnocchi comes vacuummed-packed and is not refrigerated.

There are different brands and I have seen them at WalMart

as well as World Market.  They have a pretty long shelf

life which makes them a great item to keep in the pantry.

Once cooked, they are delicious tossed with fresh tomatoes, basil, and

olive oil or any other favorite sauce of your's.

 

I am making this gnocchi with bleu cheese and spinach.

I began by bringing a large pot of water to boiling.

I cook these packaged gnocchi the same as I do freshly made gnocchi:

I pour all gnocchi into the boiling water and they sink to the bottom.

Each piece of gnocchi will rise to the top when it is fully cooked.

 

While the gnocchi are in the boiling water, I spread the sour cream into

the bottom of the baking dish, then grate the parmesan evenly over that.

Once all the gnocchi have risen to the top, I add all the fresh baby

spinach, give it a quick stir, then immediately drain into a collander.

The gnocchi and wilted spinach is then added to the baking dish

on top of the sour cream/parmesan mixture...

 ...then stirred to fully combine.  The bleu cheese is now

crumbled over the top.  Tonight I used a a Stilton bleu cheese

because that is what I had in my refrigerator but any favorite bleu

cheese will work just fine.  The baking dish is now placed under the boiler

until hot and the bleu cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

 

This dish is very rich, very filling, and very delicious!

 

 

Bleu Cheese Gnocchi

Adapted/Converted from BBC Good Food Mag./October 2004

Serves 4

 

1 lb. gnocchi

one ready-bag of baby spinach

3 1/2 oz. sour cream

4 tablespoons grated parmesan

soft bleu cheese, crumbled

 

Cook the gnocchi in a pot of boiling water according to package directions.  They are done when they rise and float on the top of the water.  When all have risen to the top, plunge the spinach into the same water, then immediately drain through a colander and shake off any excess water.

 

Put the sour cream in a small baking dish with the grated parmesan cheese. Add the hot, drained gnocchi and spinach and give everything a good stir.  Crumble the bleu cheese over and season with ground pepper.

 

Slide the dish under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and golden. Serve immediately.

 

Enjoy!

 

I will be joining

Rattlebridge Farm's Foodie Friday

 

Thank you for visiting!

 

Fondly,

~Karen



 

 





Valentine's Wishes!

I have been having a good time changing photos

using the Waterlogue app on my iPad.

Here is a Waterlogued photo of me with a dozen red

roses I received from my sweetie for Valentine's Day today!

(He knows I love flowers!!)

 

Here's wishing all of you a Happy Heart's Day

and may your day be overflowing with all things pink and red!

 

Happy Valentine's!

 

Fondly,

~Karen



Queen's Valentine's Dinner

Each year, a Valentine's Queen is elected in my sorority

chapter.  She is a gal who gives of herself her friendship,

is supportive, and is a gal we can look up to and see

a smiling face.  She is a true sorority sister in every way.

 

She gets to wear our chapter's coveted Queen's Crown...

...and a Queen's Valentine's Dinner is given in her honor.

 

Her dinner was given at a sorority sister's home the other night.

The sister hostess set a lovely table made the dinner. She asked me

to make the dessert.  Days prior, I asked our Queen what

her favorite dessert was.  She responded with "cupcakes".

The dinner was going to be a plated-sit down dinner so I opted for

Creme Brulee with dinner and Cupcakes saved for later in the evening.

The red and pink cupcakes rested beautifully on the piano while we ate dinner.

The Valentine's dinner began with festive salads plated

on the table when the sorority sisters arrived.

We each sat down with our choice of red or white wine

to a delicious entree of chicken, roasted potatoes, and green beans.

I made Creme Brulee in shallow ramekins garnished with

raspberries, mint, and a flourless-chocolate cake heart

cut-out and drizzled with chocolate.

 

Here is the evening's actual dinner menu:

 

Mixed Green Salad w/Beet-Infused Goat Cheese Hearts

Chicken Parmesan w/Marinara Sauce, Avocados, and Mozzarella Cheese

Roasted Red Potatoes

Steamed Haricots Verts

Creme Brulee w/Flourless Chocolate Cake Heart Garnish

Rose-Piped Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

 

The dinner was delicious!

After a lively dinner, we settled into the livingroom, each exchanged

Valentines, then ate the cupcakes - leaving four for the

Queen to take home to her family.

 

It was a fun evening and one we all look forward to every year.

 

I hope you enjoyed this post and thank you for visiting!

 

I will be joining

Susan's Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursdays.

Feel free to go on over and check out all the tablescapes linked there.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

Honey Lavender Ice Cream

I love how in the movie It's Complicated, Meryl Streep confesses that

when she can't sleep at night she makes Lavender Ice Cream.

I can SO relate.  Lavender Ice Cream, when you make it, has the

wonderful aroma of lavender as it steeps in the cream.  When you eat it,

Lavender Ice Cream has its distinct flavor of lavender and

the richness of the cream.  It is just lovely to eat and

a little bit of heaven in my book! 

 I have tried many variations of Lavender Ice Cream.

A really good one is this Honey Lavender Ice Cream which is

sweetened by honey not granulated sugar. 

The honey gives it another added flavor dimension. 
I have made different variations using different milks
with different fat contents. I just really like this one.
It's just pure decadence!

Be sure to use dried lavender used for culinary uses which

insures no pesticides have been used on the lavender.

Some grocery stores sell it as well as gourmet specialty stores.

I'm sure you can find it on the internet as well.

My jar of Culinary Lavender came from
 Nicole's Market & Cafe in South Pasadena.

Although it does require a counter top ice cream maker,

it is not difficult to make, and once put into a container like this
and stashed into the freezer, it is a special sexy treat waiting in

the freezer for any quiet but sexy evening in front of a fire. 

Perfect for lovers (or just yourself!) in the month of February!

 

Here is how it is made:

 

Honey Lavender Ice Cream

Recipe source: Gourmet Mag / Sept. 2003
Makes apx. 1 quart.

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half-and-half
2/3 cup mild honey
2 tablespoons dried edible lavender flowers
2 large eggs
1/8 teaspoon salt
Special equipment: a candy or instand-read thermometer; an ice cream maker

Preparation:
Bring cream, half-and-half, honey, and lavender just to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, then remove pan from heat. Let steep, covered, 30 minutes.

Pour cream mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and discard lavender. Return mixture to cleaned saucepan and heat over moderate heat until hot. Whisk together eggs and salt in a lage bowl, then add 1 cup hot cream mixture in a slow stream, whisking. Pour into remaining hot cream mixture in saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 170 to 175 degrees Fahrenheit on thermometer, about 5 minutes (do not let boil).

Pour custard through sieve into cleaned bowl and cool completely, stirring occasionally. Chill, covered, until cold, at least 3 hours.  Freeze custard in ice cream maker. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden.

Cook's notes:
To cool custard quickly after straining, set bowl in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and stir until chilled. Custard can chill up to 1 day before freezing.

Enjoy and thank you for stopping by!

 

This week I will again be joining

Rattlebridge Farm's Foodie Friday

 

Fondly,

~Karen