Dining with the Bloggers - September 7th

I can't believe how fast the summer went! There is still some warm weather yet to be enjoyed and the abundant September produce to look forward to, but there are signs everywhere that autumn is on the way. The kids are back in school, the lawn is a tad browner, the garden is looking a little scraggly, and Dining with the Bloggers is back!

This year promises to be an exciting one for Dining with the Bloggers, but I can't tell you why just yet. For now you'll have to be content to read about the delicious dishes that Zarah and I have sampled from the wide, wide world of food blogs.

I have been interested in cooking Indian food for some time now. I have long been reading and drooling over my numerous cookbooks on the subject, but only recently have I finally given it a try. As a a true novice, I am glad to have found that there are a number of food blogs that focus on Indian cuisine and that provide wonderful recipes and helpful tips.

At Mahanandi, Indira has a beautiful blog with many tempting recipes and gorgeous photos. In addition to traditional recipes, Indira also posts recipes that make use of vegetables that she can buy where she now lives - here in the US.

This week I tried two of Indira's recipes: tomato rasam and Guggullu. Because I didn't make it to the farmers market this week and couldn't find any really ripe tomatoes in the grocery store, I used canned tomatoes for the tomato rasam. It was very good - not as clear as what I've had in my local Indian restaurant (probably because my canned tomatoes were packed in puree) and sweeter than I remember, but spicy and delicious. Its spiciness took me by surprise - I don't normally think of black pepper as packing a punch like that!

The Guggullu was wonderful as well. A beautiful mixture of black-eyed peas, chili pepper, tomato, red onion and corn that is seasoned with turmeric and lime juice. Although Indira provided this recipe as an example of her "yogi diet", with its filling beans and corn, that burst of lime, and definite eye appeal, this dish will not leave you feeling deprived in any way.

I have no idea what Zarah has up her sleeve this week, so you'll just have to stop by and find out for yourself!

Mondays with Maida - Petites Trianons

Page 73 in the old book / page 119 in the new book

Petites Trianons fall somewhere between brownies and cake. The batch I made was cakey and a little drier than I would have liked. I baked them for exactly 28 minutes as prescribed by Maida, but I can't help but wonder if I should have taken them out a little sooner. She describes them as "small, plain, fudgelike squares similar to Brownies...", but they were fudge-like in taste only.

These bars are easily mixed in a saucepan, so this was truly a no-fuss recipe. I bought a big chunk of Callebaut baking chocolate (sold by the pound in Whole Foods) which I used for these and will be using for the next few recipes. The cookies tasted great, but I'm not sure I can detect the difference between a good baking chocolate and an "ordinary" baking chocolate (such as Baker's or Hershey's). It would be interesting to do a side by side comparison some time. It has been a while since I last made brownies and I must say, there are few things in this world that smell as good as chocolate and butter baking together - no matter which kind of baking chocolate you use!

I wouldn't choose to make these again because I prefer a moister brownie, but if you like cakey brownies, you can't beat this recipe for simplicity.

Even though this wasn't a stunning debut for the bar cookies, I think everyone was pretty happy to be getting their chocolate fix again...

Suzanne: "This was a cakey brownie and a little dry. The brownie did not have a rich dark chocolate flavor that I like in a brownie. Rating - 3.0"

Denny: "Very good. I liked the cake-like texture very much. Very good. Rating - 4.2"

Laura: "Moist, yummy, & TASTY! Rating - 4.0"

Phil: "This 'cookie' was exactly as Cathy advertised - like brownies, but a little cakier. My sample was a smidge dry, with a subtle but lasting after taste of fine chocolate. Was expecting something a little more elegant with this moniker but c'est la vie. Rating - 3.3"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.6

Next week - All-American Brownies

Nutrition Facts

My New Favorite Plum

Actually, I'm not sure I had a favorite before. I preferred red to black, but the grocery store never described them in any more detail, much less named them. But at the farmer's market everything's got a name, and this beauty is called Elephant Heart. Sweet, tangy, and unbelievably juicy, with gorgeous red flesh. I got three in a basket of mixed plums, but you can bet I'm going to buy a whole basket of them next week!

My Favorite Drop Cookies

Chocolate Banana Cookies didn't make my list of favorites, but this is my favorite cookie photo so far

39 different cookies. It's quite possible that I've tried more cookie recipes in the past 10 months than in all the time prior to that. Making a batch of cookies every Sunday evening has become part of the rhythm of my weekends and something that has brought me great pleasure.

Not to say there haven't been some magnificent flops along the way. The ones that come to mind are 24-Karat Cookies and the cookie I will never live down - Poppy-Seed Wafers. There were near-disasters too - those cookies where I had to throw out a goodly portion because they stuck to the foil or burned.

But in between, there have been lots of good cookies and, yes, some mediocre ones. They start to run together after a while, but a few stand out and will no doubt be making encore appearances at my house.

With one exception, what follows is not an ordered list - it's hard for me to compare a cookie I tried two weeks ago with one I tried 6 months ago. There is one cookie that I keep thinking about, though, so I'd have to say that it is my favorite drop cookie. But first, the runners up...



Connecticut Nutmeg Hermits - nothing flashy, but definitely habit-forming



Date-Nut Wafers - sweet, crispy, chewy, with cinnamon, walnuts and dates. What more could you want in a cookie?



Date-Nut Rocks - hmmm... another date-nut cookie, maybe there's a pattern here.



Tijuana Fiesta Cookies - these were such a surprise to me - unusual and unusually good.


Which brings me to my favorite cookie so far...


Pumpkin Rocks - soooo good, wish I had some now. Crunchy outside, soft inside, loaded with nuts and raisins, and topped with a lemony glaze... mmmmm. As I said before, though, there's one caveat: these cookies are really best the day they are made.

Finally, just in case you're late to the party, all these cookies are from Maida Heatter's Book of Great Cookies. All the recipes are also included in a later compilation called Maida Heatter's Cookies. I recommend all Maida Heatter's books, but her cookie book is obviously near and dear to my heart.

Mondays with Maida - Vanilla Butter Wafers

Page 70 in the old book / page 98 in the new book

These cookies were incredibily easy, with just the most basic of cookie ingredients: butter, vanilla, sugar, egg, and flour. And yet, I'm still not sure that they came out the way they were supposed to. I'm certain they didn't end up shaped as Maida intended...

I thought I did "place the dough neatly and carefully", but nonetheless my cookies failed to "bake into perfect rounds". I opened the oven halfway through the allotted time in order to reverse the cookie sheets and was startled to see thin layers of dough floating on top of a sea of bubbling melted butter. Even when the cookies were done, there was still an excess of melted butter. Although the dough contains a high proportion of butter (1/2 cup butter to 1/3 cup flour), the dough appeared to be of a normal consistency before baking. Perhaps the excess butter was intentional (maybe it was necessary to achieve the browned edges?), but it sure turned me off to these cookies.

I came so close to throwing them in the trash - I put them in the storage container, then started to take them out, then put them back in, then stood there undecided for quite some time. At last, I packed them up, having decided that at least I need to get the cookie panel to taste them. When I brought them into work the next day, I handed out cookies to those on the panel and then, after initially hiding the rest in my office, decided to put the cookies out in their regular place (but without the usual email announcement). I was amazed to see that by afternoon, they were all gone.

Even more surprising, they didn't get a zero...

Suzanne: "I enjoyed this thin buttery wafer. It had a hint of lemon in the flavor. It would have been a great cookie if Cathy had put two of the cookies together with chocolate in the middle. Yum! Rating - 3.5"

Denny: "Too much butter, but I like butter and don't eat enough of it. Rating - 3.8"

Terri: "A buttery delight - wafer thin, chewy, and delicious with tea. This would be a good cookie with a fruit dessert. Rating - 3.0"

Phil: "A wafer thin, buttery cookie with an absence of sweetness. Not a first pick but might be a nice accompaniment to a sorbet or coffee ice cream. As wafer cookies go, stick with the praline with pecans or Norman Rockwell oatmeal varieties sampled previously. Rating - 2.8"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.3

That's a wrap for drop cookies! Next week the bar cookies begin with Petites Trianons. The contest was a bust (no entries), but tomorrow I'll tell you which were my personal favorites from among the drop cookies.

Nutrition Facts

Cinnamon

A little while back I made my first Penzeys purchase. I needed a large quantity of poppy seeds (for those awful Poppy Seed Wafers) and had calculated that buying several McCormick's bottles would be more expensive than buying an 8-ounce bag from Penzeys, even with shipping figured in. Of course, that was based on the assumption that I wouldn't go on a buying spree at Penzeys. But how could I not?

Actually, I think I showed admirable restraint. I bought some black peppercorns (which I needed anyway), some shrimp and crab boil (I need to keep working on liking shrimp, don't I?), and four kinds of cinnamon. I don't even remember why I was looking at the cinnamon now, but at some point while reading about the different varieties I decided it would be interesting to try them all and do a little taste test.

As soon as they arrived, I covered each label with paper marked with a letter - A, B, C and D. I put the jars up on a shelf and out of mind.

In the US, the term cinnamon may be used to refer to the bark of several species within the genus Cinnamomum. In fact, most of what is sold as cinnamon in the US is Korintje Cassia (C. burmannii) imported from Indonesia. True cinnamon, or Ceylon Cinnamon (C. verum or C. zeylanicum), is not typically found in US grocery stores, though it may be purchased in specialty shops and can be ordered from Penzeys and similar sites. My order also included China Cassia (C. cassia or C. aromaticum) and Vietnamese Cassia (C. laoureirii). There is another member of the Cinnamomum genus that is used in food - Indian Cassia (C. tamala or C. tejpata) - though it is the leaf of this variety of cassia that is most commonly used.

Cinnamon and cassia have been used in cooking for thousands of years. There are references to them in the Bible, and in Egypt they were used for embalming. They were once very, very expensive - so much so, that elaborate (and untrue) stories arose concerning the effort required to collect the spices. According to Herodotus, cinnamon and cassia were gathered in Arabia, apparently at great peril to those doing the gathering. Cassia was said to grow in a shallow lake with frightful winged creatures roosting nearby. No one knew where cinnamon grew, but the twigs were found in the nests of large birds. The nests were precariously perched on steep cliffs which couldn't possibly be scaled by any man. To collect the sticks, the Arabians would leave large chunks of ox carcass under the nests. The birds would carry these to their nests which would then collapse from the weight, and fall to the ground where the Arabians waited to gather the cinnamon sticks.

Today, cinnamon or cassia sticks come from the inner bark of upper branches and are quite mild in flavor compared to ground cinnamon. The bark used to produce ground cinnamon comes from lower side branches (grade B) or from the main trunk (grade A), which are older and have a much stronger flavor. Higher grades of cinnamon have a higher percentage of volatile oils in them.

Today I finally got around to conducting my taste test. I tried to be somewhat methodical about it. First I sniffed each one to try to characterize the aroma of each. At the same time I took note of the appearance. Then I tried to mix each with some hot water and see which if any "balled up". The reason for this test is that Korintje Cassia has a higher percentage of gum (mucilage) and tends to ball up when mixed with hot water, while the other types form a thick suspension. Finally, I mixed each with some sugar (one part cinnamon to two parts sugar) and tasted.


Clockwise from top left: China Cassia, Ceylon Cinnamon, Korintje Cassia, and Vietnamese Cassia

The Ceylon Cinnamon (C. zeylanicum) was immediately identifiable by its relatively pale color and mild flavor. It has a light, cinnamony flavor but with none of the heat of the other varieties I tasted. Its aroma is very faint, not at all sharp, but recognizably cinnamon.

The Vietnamese Cassia (C. loureirii) was at the opposite end of the spectrum. The aroma didn't seem as sharp to me as the China Cassia, but it was spicy hot to taste! It was my least favorite because I felt the heat overwhelmed the flavor, but the real test would be how it tastes when used in cooking. Interestingly, Penzeys recommends that you use two thirds the amount of cinnamon called for when you use Vietnamese Cassia.

China Cassia (C. cassia) is deep brown in color and has a sharp cinnamony scent. It has a nice, warm cinnamony taste - spicy, but with more of a slow burn. The heat builds in your mouth, but to me was less powerful than either the Vietnamese Cassia or the Korintje Cassia. Penzeys says that this is their best seller that it is spicier than Korintje.

Korintje Cassia (C. burmannii) is what I know as cinnamon. It is medium reddish brown in color and has a bright cinnamon aroma. It has a nice cinnamon flavor with a little fire - spicy and bright.

We've reached the end of my post, but I expect this is just the beginning of the story. I would have liked to have made four batches of cinnamon buns and done side by side comparisons, but that just wasn't feasible. I'll report back from time to time as I use these different types of cinnamon. I'm sure I'll find reasons to love them all!

Mondays with Maida - Tijuana Fiesta Cookies

Page 68 in the old book / page 96 in the new book

Phil suggested that everyone might like these so much because we were on the rebound from those awful Poppy-Seed Wafers. There might be an element of truth to that, but they were awful good. Not only were they good, they were unusual - quite different in flavor from any spice cookie I've ever had.

Because of the unusual spices in this recipe, I was afraid I was setting myself up for another disaster. But I need not have worried, these cookies have a wonderful warm spicy taste. The anise is what you taste first, but it is supported by the ginger and molasses and the other spices (coriander, cinnamon, and cloves) as well, though they are less distinct.

Some people didn't really enjoy the noticeable presence of whole anise seeds and crushed coriander. If you make these (and I recommend that you do!), depending upon your intended audience, you may want to try grinding the anise seed before adding it. I used a mortar and pestle to crush the coriander, but next time I'll probably substitute ground coriander. I did like the whole anise seed though.

I had a little trouble getting the proper consistency for the icing. I used more sugar and less milk than called for and it still wanted to run off the cookies. Next time I think I'll start with 2 cups of sugar and play it by ear with the milk.

It's so nice to have a happy cookie panel again...

Suzanne: "This was a soft cookie with the definite taste of anise. If you don't like licorice you won't like this cookie. The cookie had too many different tastes. I prefer a crunchier cookie. I did like the icing and the pecan on top. Rating - 3.0"

Denny: "Another one that I wouldn't normally like but I rate them a 4. Very good even with the anise which I don't like. Rating - 4.0"

Laura: "Moist, yummy cookies. Loved the spices! Rating - 4.0"

Phil: "A delightful discovery -- soft almost fluffy cookie with a strong melange of interesting spices (aptly refered to as exotic by Maida) with a noticable zip of anise. Seemed to wake up a range of taste buds I didn't remember having. Rating - 4.4"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.9

Next week - Vanilla Butter Wafers

Nutrition Facts

Pesto Chicken with Yellow Squash

Last weekend my famer's market purchases included some more of those wonderful baby yellow squashes and a packet of basil leaves. Originally I thought I would make pesto chicken with the squash on the side, but then I decided that yellow squash slathered in pesto sounded pretty great too! What I ended up with was chicken and yellow squash in sort of a deconstructed pesto sauce. I liked it very much, though there are a couple of things I would do differently next time. Also, though I really enjoyed the leftovers, this dish is best the first time around when the pesto is still fresh.


Pesto Chicken with Yellow Squash

juice of 1 lemon
2 tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breast halves
1 1/2 - 2 oz basil leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt
3 or 4 small yellow squash, sliced
toasted pine nuts
parmesan cheese

I was hoping to get nicely carmelized chunks of chicken, so I chose to cut the chicken into approximately 1-inch chunks, marinate them, then thread them on skewers and broil. I did get some nice carmelization, but I also dried out the chicken. Next time I think I would marinate and broil the breast halves and then cut them into chunks after cooking.

Clean the chicken and cut into cubes if desired. Place the breast halves or cubes into a large ziploc bag. Combine the lemon juice with the olive oil, cayenne and salt in a small bowl. Pour the mixture over the chicken in the bag. Squeeze out the air and seal the bag. Smoosh the chicken around so that it is coated all over with the lemon and oil mixture. Lay the bag in a dish so that chicken is in a single layer and refrigerate for 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the pesto in either a blender or food processor: first process the garlic and basil, then with the blender or processor running, pour in the olive oil through the opening in the top. Season to taste with salt.

Broil or grill the chicken. I sauteed the squash, but if you're grilling, you might grill the squash as well. If you're using breast halves, cut the chicken into 1-inch chunks. Combine the chicken, squash, and pesto. Garnish with shaved parmesan cheese and toasted pine nuts.

Mondays with Maida - Poppy-Seed Wafers & A Contest!

Page 68 in the old book / page 96 in the new book

I won't beat around the bush... these were bad. The recipe calls for 5 ounces of poppy seeds which, with just a cup of flour, is an awful lot of poppy seeds. They are not attractive cookies either. Suzanne thought they looked moldy and someone else said they looked "herby". There are some chopped raisins in them, which provides slight relief from all those poppy seeds, but not enough to make the cookies palatable. Somehow (by the second day) they were all eaten, but I didn't get any positive feedback on these.

The ratings from the cookie panel were the lowest ever. Both Denny and Terri were out, so we're only hearing from three this week (thank goodness!).

Suzanne: "This is not a cookie that you want to immediately pick up and eat. There are so many poppy seed, the cookie looks moldy. It has that grey-green look. The taste is just okay. It definitely has a long lasting taste, since after you finish the cookie, your tongue keeps finding poppy seeds hidden in your gums and teeth. Rating - 2.0"

Laura: "Laura doesn't care for poppy seeds. Thanks anyway. Rating - 1.0"

Phil: "Sometimes that's the way the cookie crumbles -- bitter, bitter, bitter, in spite of an occasional raisin. Even a competent cook could not salvage this dreadful cookie. Plus anyone consuming all those poppy seeds can forget about passing the drug screen for Department of Homeland Security any time soon (if that's your poison). Rating - 0.0"

Overall rating by the panel - 1.0


So, on a more cheerful note... Only two more drop cookies to go! To celebrate the end of the first chapter in the book, I've decided to sponsor a little contest. The prize will be a copy of the old book: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Cookies.

To enter you must write a brief cookie review "in the style of Phil" - whatever you decide that is. You may make or buy the cookie, but the post should include a photo, some background about where the recipe or cookie came from and the review - which you may attribute to Phil if you wish. Email me a link to your post by August 23rd. Phil has kindly agreed to judge the entries. I will announce the winner and post a list of the entries (possibly with some comments from Phil) on Tuesday, August 30th. Please feel free to enter even if you already have a copy of the book - you can give it to a friend or bestow it upon one of the other entrants.

Next week - Tijuana Fiesta Cookies

Nutrition Facts

Childhood Meme-ories

Nupur at One Hot Stove recently tagged me for this latest meme. Out of curiosity I decided to trace the thing back as far as I could. Lo and behold, I found the instigator of this on-line chain letter - Brad Warbiany. The original post, dated June 1st of this year, was titled Time to Unleash a Plague and his blog (actually a group blog) is aptly called The Unrepentant Individual. So now that everyone is feeling warm and fuzzy, on to my childhood memories...

In tracing this back I discovered that it took a slightly different bent once it hit the food blog world. As the book meme was transformed into a cookbook meme, so did "The Five Things I Miss From My Childhood" become "Childhood Food Memories". I've decided to go with the original theme, "Five Things I Miss From My Childhood", rather than the food-centric theme. Also, I've dropped the "The" because I sort of doubt my list will be the only or even the top five things I miss from childhood.

OK, so here we go...

I miss devouring books the way I did when I was a kid. Now, there never seems to be enough time and, well, I can't stay awake.

I miss family vacations, especially our camping trips along the Skyline Drive. Maybe it was the relaxed pace, the crazy double-solitaire games under the gas lantern, eating outdoors every night, the black bear sightings, buying penny candy and souvenirs at the camp store, the nature talks at the amphitheatre, hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows... oh who am I kidding? It was all wonderful... well, except maybe for the coin-operated showers that cut off after 5 minutes!

I miss the feeling I used to get when we would eat at McDonald's - and it wasn't guilt! Back then, there really were golden arches, they actually posted the number (in millions) of burgers sold, and you didn't enter the restaurant - you made your purchases at a counter and sat on a yellow and white tiled bench on the side of the building, ate at home, or ate in the car. I liked it best when we ate in the car. My sister, brothers, and I would sit on the tailgate of the station wagon and watch for a train to go by as we consumed our burgers, fries and shakes. It didn't matter that the pathetic burger couldn't be tasted under the pickles and ketchup - it was all about the fries and chocolate shakes!

I miss that last-day-of-school elation. I've occasionally felt it in the more recent past as I left work just before a vacation, but it doesn't come often enough these days!

I miss Saturday mornings watching cartoons and playing with blocks. I know you probably think I'm reaching back into my infancy for this one, but my sister, brothers and I "played blocks" for years. It was engineering, role-playing, and creative play all rolled into one. Perhaps best of all it was a shared tradition. Our block collection, which resided in a large basket, started as a purchased set or two, but grew over the years thanks to my Dad's many carpentry projects. Over time, certain structures evolved and made regular appearances (most notably the pancake factory). In addition, certain blocks took on certain functions and heaven help the visiting friend who didn't conform!

Well, that was fun - thanks Nupur! I'm going to break the rules and not list the links and not tag anyone. I invite you to share what you miss from childhood in the comments of this post or feel free to tag yourself - I just don't want to be the bad guy!

Mondays with Maida - Butterscotch Molasses Cookies

Page 66 in the old book / page 97 in the new book

The notes with this recipe say that these cookies are easily mixed in a saucepan. If easily means in an uncomplicated way and without much chance of messing it up, then yes, they are easily mixed. But if easily means throw stuff in the saucepan, give it a few little stirs and voila, you have cookie dough, then I'm sorry, they are not easily mixed. This is a stiff dough stirred by hand - you will feel the burn. Think upper body workout.

The dough is not at all sticky and too stiff to simply drop from the spoon. I found myself shaping it into balls with two spoons. This wasn't difficult, but it would be just as easy to roll it in your hands into balls.

These cookies are simple and good, but not great. Sweet and slightly chewy, they have attractive, crackly tops. I thought they tasted more like molasses than butterscotch. In fact, they tasted much like a ginger snap and some assumed they were ginger cookies despite the fact that there is no ginger in them.

This one received mixed reviews from the cookie panel...

Suzanne: "The cookie was crunchy on the outside and chewy in the middle. This was a good cookie, not great, but good. This cookie was heavy which means one was enough. You felt full after eating the cookie. Rating - 3.0"

Denny: "No offense, but could've been sugar cookies except for all your work. Rating - 2.7"

Laura: "Maybe it was just the one I took, but my cookie was a tad dry. Not bad, but not my favorite thus far. Rating - 2.0 (sorry)"

Phil: "A blue collar kind of cookie which knows that if you're going to consume a couple of hundred calories you should know it. Simple flavors, sweet, with a little chew. Rating - 4.2"

Overall rating by the panel - 2.9

Next week - Poppy-Seed Wafers (Mohn Cookies)

Nutrition Facts

A Weekend in Vermont

A weekend in Vermont with Bob and Chuck - what could be better? I've been waiting for this ever since Sicily! Mondays with Maida will be posted a little later on Monday than usual. Have a great weekend everyone!

Mondays with Maida - Raisin Oatmeal Cookies

Page 65 in the old book / page 93 in the new book

I'm afraid that this last of the oatmeal drop cookies is still not what I'm looking for in an oatmeal cookie. Judging by the ratings and comments of the cookie panel, it isn't what they're looking for either.

This dough is very thin - almost like a batter - and there's just enough of it to hold together the oats, raisins, and currants. The instructions say to bake these for 17 to 20 minutes, but I found that they smelled and looked done after 14 minutes. When freshly baked, the cookies are slightly crunchy on the outside and chewy inside. I didn't eat one the next day, but they appeared to have lost their crunch by then. I used the old fashioned rolled oats this time, but even that didn't elevate these cookies above the very ordinary.

Brace yourselves. Here's the cookie panel...

Suzanne: "What can I say? This was not my favorite cookie. Actually it tasted like a granola bar in the form of a cookie. It was a little dry so I actually ate the raisins for moistness. Yuk! Rating 2.0 (for effort)"

Denny: "Not my favorite so I'd give it a subjective 2.9. Rating - 2.9"

Terri: "A chewy (almost molasses) taste with lots of raisins! A flat cookie ~ could have used more oatmeal. Rating 3.0"

Phil: "A very wholesome, dense cookie which would be a great companion for that rare wilderness adventure (in lieu of that last handful of trail mix). Tastes a bit like a soft granola bar. If your not in survival mode pass on this one. Rating 2.7"

Overall rating by the panel - 2.7

Next week - Butterscotch Molasses Cookies

Nutrition Facts

IMBB 17 - Minted Tea Sorbet

I don't know if it was Santos talking about restaurants in Guam serving a simple syrup with iced tea or the mint growing like a weed in my garden, but the first thing, the only thing, that came to mind when I tried to figure out what to make for IMBB 17 was a tea sorbet.

When Clement announced the theme for this IMBB - tasteTea - I was at a bit of a loss as to what I should make. I am familiar with and enjoy tea as a beverage, but I don't think I've ever cooked with it before. I'm sure there are many uses for tea in cooking and I can't wait to learn about them when I read the other IMBB entries. My entry, however, is really just a little twist on that familiar summertime beverage, iced tea.

I made an earlier attempt at this sorbet which turned out to be too bitter. What was interesting about this first attempt was that I had started out with a milder and sweeter mixture, but when I tasted it I thought the tea wasn't coming through enough, so I added some more very strong tea. The resulting mixture tasted really wonderful and perfectly balanced before freezing, but after freezing it didn't taste sweet enough and the tea flavor was much too strong.

So for my second attempt I went back to my original sugar and water measurements, but added one more teabag. After freezing, all the flavors came through and the sorbet was pleasantly sweet. This is very easy and very tasteTea!


Minted Tea Sorbet

3 cups water, divided (I used bottled water)
4 tea bags (I used decaffeinated Typhoo, a black tea)
1 cup sugar
a handful of mint leaves
juice from 1 lemon

Bring 2 1/2 cups water to a boil. Pour into a bowl over teabags. Let steep for 5 minutes, then remove teabags (press out water in bags before discarding). Add mint leaves. Mix 1/2 cup water and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the sugar syrup and lemon juice to the tea. Refrigerate mixture for several hours or overnight. Remove the mint leaves, then freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.


Thanks to Clement for hosting what I'm sure is going to be a really great IMBB!!!

Plum Crumble

I bought a small box of these little guys last week at the farmer's market. I have no idea what they're called (if you do, I'd love to know), but each is a little bigger than a cherry tomato - about the same size as those "cocktail tomatoes". They're only slightly sweet, nicely tangy near the skin, but overall just so-so. There were eight left on the counter when they fell under my gaze and I decided it was time to use them up.

I made a spontaneous little crumble mixture without consulting a cookbook. I measured things only so that it might be repeatable should it be successful. And, as will become apparent when you read further, the measurements were decided upon with simplicity in mind rather than any culinary imperative. Sometimes I luck out with this slap dash approach (sometimes I don't - I am in the midst of my second attempt at my IMBB creation, which I'm not sure will even get done in time, let alone taste good) and this was one of those times.

Who knew those little plums would be such tangy wonders once they were baked? I was afraid the ratio of crumble to plum was a little too high, but it's perfect. I had meant to add nuts, but forgot. I don't miss them, but I still think they would be a nice addition.


Plum Crumble

8 little plums, pitted and cut up
about 1 1/2 tsp cold butter
2 tbs flour
2 tbs oatmeal
2 tbs light brown sugar
a pinch or two of cinnamon
a few grates of nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 F

Rub the butter into the flour with your fingers. Add the oatmeal, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and rub a little more to combine. Put the plums in a small baking dish (I have stonewear dishes, so I used a soup bowl), sprinkle 2 tbs of the oatmeal mixture over, and toss to combine. (At this point I was thinking I should have put in a bit more cinnamon, so I sprinkled some cinnamon sugar over the top.) Spread the remaining oatmeal mixture over the top of the fruit. Bake for about 25 minutes or until thick, bubbly, and starting to brown on top.

Yellow Squash Summer Cake

When I go to the farmer's market, I almost always buy more produce than I can consume in a week. The variety, the quality, the seasonality, and the fact that the market is just once a week put me in this "last chance" mode where I buy things because they appeal to me, but give little thought to how they will be used. So it was last weekend when I bought a pound of beautiful baby summer squash.

As you might have guessed, a week later they were still in my refrigerator. I'm going to be out of town for a few days later in the week, so I decided that this weekend I would stay home from the farmer's market and try to use what I have on hand. My goal this evening was to use up that summer squash and some ricotta cheese. I did run to the grocery store to buy some basil, but that and the shallot I sort of arbitrarily decided to throw in were the only ingredients I didn't have on hand.

Why "summer cake"? Well, it sort of looks like a cake, though it probably bears more resemblance to a quiche or gratin. But it has no crust and is firmer and more uniform in texture than a gratin, and... well... it needed a name. So why not "summer cake"?

I was very happy with how the summer cake turned out. It's not at all heavy and the tomato sauce complements it nicely. It may seem a crime to grate up all those baby summer squashes for something like this, but the smaller squashes are firmer and have more yellow. As a result the cake had better color and texture. I'm sure it would still be very good with larger squash, though. In fact, you could go in many directions with this - changing the vegetables, herbs, and/or cheeses.


Yellow Squash Summer Cake

for the summer cake:
1 lb yellow squash
olive oil
1 small to medium onion, diced
2 sections of shallot, chopped
3 large eggs
1 cup ricotta cheese (I used part skim ricotta)
1/2 cup milk (I used skim milk)
1/3 cup grated Pecorino Pepato (only because I happened to have it and it was already grated - I originally planned to use Parmesan)
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup fresh whole grain bread crumbs (I used spelt bread)
1 - 2 tbs chopped basil leaves

for the sauce:
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tbs olive oil
28 oz can of tomatoes in puree
pinch of red pepper flakes
salt
basil

Preheat oven to 375 F

Butter a 10" round quiche or pie plate (I think a 9" square pan would probably work as well). Coat with 2 or 3 tbs of the bread crumbs. Coarsely grate yellow squash and set aside. Sauté the onion and shallot in a little olive oil over medium heat until starting to brown. Set aside to cool. Lightly beat eggs in a large bowl with a whisk. Add ricotta and stir with whisk until smooth. Whisk in milk. Add salt, cheese and remaining bread crumbs and whisk again. Place grated squash in a clean kitchen towel and twist to wring out excess moisture. Add squash, onions and shallots to egg mixture and stir with a large spoon to combine. Scrape mixture into baking dish and place on middle rack of preheated oven. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, or until starting to brown around the edge and firm in the middle. Allow to cool for a few minutes before slicing.

Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until translucent (use the same pan you used earlier to sauté the onions and shallots in - you don't even need to rinse it out). Coarsely cut up the tomatoes (I cut out a little bit around the stem and then cut each plum tomato crosswise into four to six slices) and add them and the juices/puree to the pan along with the salt, red pepper flakes, and some chopped basil (reserve a few basil leaves to add later). Bring to a simmer and then reduce heat to medium low. Simmer about 30 minutes until thickened. Tear a few more basil leaves into pieces and stir into the sauce.

Mondays with Maida - Oatmeal Molasses Cookies

Page 64 in the old book / page 92 in the new book

I think I'm feeling a little let down by the oatmeal drop cookies in this book. Not one of them fits my idea of the perfect oatmeal cookie... thick, loaded with raisins (sorry Suzanne!), crunchy outside, moist and chewy inside. This week's cookies - Oatmeal Molasses Cookies - are no exception. Like the cookies from the last two weeks, they are thin and crunchy. In addition to the oats, they've got nuts and coconut in them and they are flavored with molasses and vanilla.

One thing I've been doing that I hadn't mentioned before, is using quick oats rather than the old fashioned rolled oats. I've done this mostly because I wanted to use what I had on hand, but I can't help but wonder if any of these cookies would have been better with the rolled oats. I tend to think not, since the weakness has been flavor rather than textural interest. But for you traditionalists... I do intend to use the old fashioned rolled oats in next week's cookies!

Suzanne is back from vacation, but Terri is stepping in for Phil, who is out with a cold. I neglected to collect Laura's comments, so I may be updating this post if I get them later. Here's the panel...

Update - I've added Laura's comments and recalculated the overall rating...

Suzanne: "My first question to Cathy when I heard the word 'oatmeal', was if there were raisins in them. I was pleasantly surprised to find out there were no raisins. This would be a great dunking cookie in coffee or milk since the cookie is crunchy. The walnuts are an added treat. Rating - 4.0"

Denny: "Another Rockwell favorite? Crunchy which I like. I also like the ingredients but really couldn't taste them. I guess you gotta like bland cookies to be a great artist. Rating - 3.0"

Terri: "A delicious mix of coconut, walnuts and molasses make this a flat, crunchy and sweet cookie. Reminds me of a granola bar type texture. Once again, delicious with coffee. Rating - 3.5"

Laura: "Tasty but a tad dry - probably because I was out on Monday and got it a day late. Rating - 3.0"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.4

Next week - Raisin Oatmeal Cookies

Nutrition Facts

A Second Helping of Indian Home Cooking

Tonight I prepared two dishes from Suvir Saran's Indian Home Cooking: Ground Beef with Spinach and Fresh Mint (Hara Keema) and Cucumber Raita (Kheere Ka Raita).

I especially enjoyed the Raita and found that it was quite easy to prepare. I used nonfat Greek Yogurt which has a wonderfully creamy consistency that I hadn't thought possible in a nonfat yogurt. The sizing of the yogurt was a bit of a puzzle to me, though. The 500g container claimed to have 3 1/2 cups in it. I needed 2 1/4 cups for this recipe, but when I measured the yogurt using a measuring cup, I found that I actually had only 2 cups or so.

I had a little trouble with the Ground Beef and Spinach recipe. It instructs you to bring 2 inches of water to a boil in a large saucepan. Ordinarily I wouldn't think twice about that type of vague directive in a recipe, but in this recipe a subsequent step calls for you to puree the spinach in a blender "with any remaining water". I agonized over this for a while and finally decided to put just one inch of water in my 3-quart saucepan. When it was time to puree the spinach, I had serious misgivings about putting all that water into the blender. I should have followed my gut and put the spinach and just a little of the water in the blender. But no, I had to slavishly follow the recipe. So instead of a green paste I had a watery green soup. The recipe says to add the green paste to the beef mixture and simmer for 5 minutes. Since I was adding green soup instead of green paste, it was clear I would have to cook it much longer in order to cook off all that water. I'm not sure how long I actually did cook it, but it was more than half an hour and maybe as much as an hour. The end product was still a little watery, but it was well after 10:00 and I needed to eat!

I enjoyed the dish, but not as much as the corn curry I made last week. I wonder if the long cooking affected the flavors of the dish. It was spicy hot, but the more subtly flavored spices weren't very noticeable - though I did get a blast of cardamom when I bit into a pod! I would think that long cooking of the greens in the green paste - spinach, cilantro, and mint - might have killed their bright fresh taste. Ah well, at least I know how to fix it next time!

Blogging by Mail - Special Delivery from Australia!

I was so excited to find my Blogging by Mail package in my mailbox last night, that even the fact that the mailman had jammed the too-big package into my too-small mailbox (WHY does he do that???) didn't dampen my mood. Fortunately, I was able to pry it out without damaging it, and when I got a good look at it I realized it had come all the way from Australia. I didn't immediately recognize the name of my benefactor, but once I got into the package I found the familiar name of her wonderful blog, Grab Your Fork, and put that together with her very familiar alias: Augustus Gloop.

While I would be thrilled to receive a package like this from anywhere, I was especially thrilled to get one from outside the US. I anticipated that the treats would be new and unusual for me and looked forward to getting a taste of another country. AG's package delivered with a variety of Australian sweets and even one savory.

Her homemade Anzac Biscuits are delicious and crunchy and have a wonderful flavor that belies their simple ingredients. The biscuits were packed in a great little box and came complete with a history of their beginnings, something about their namesakes the ANZACS, and a report of this year's Anzac Day ceremonies in Gallipoli. These biscuits are truly an Australian specialty!

AG also sent along some other sweets which were new to me: a package of Tim Tams, a Cherry Ripe bar, and some Minties. I had of course heard of Tim Tams before, since they seem to pop up on food blogs from time to time (usually with everyone swooning over them), but this is my first chance to try them. AG so thoughtfully enclosed a complete guide to the Tim Tam Slam that had me laughing out loud...







I've tried it, but I'm afraid I have not yet perfected the technique. It may not have helped that I had just pulled the Tim Tams from the refrigerator. I put the Tim Tam in my mouth before the tea had actually travelled the length of the cookie, since the bottom part of the biscuit was threatening to fall off into the tea. The Tim Tams are out of the refrigerator now, warming up in preparation for another attempt later today. I am willing to keep trying until I have the Tim Tam Slam perfected!

The other sweets are also very yummy. The Cherry Ripe bar is much like a Mounds bar except that it is a little thinner and has bits of dried cherry mixed into the coconut filling - what a great idea! The Minties are chewy, minty (obviously!), and almost buttery. Very good and as AG said, habit forming!

There was one final Australian specialty enclosed - some individual packets of Vegemite. AG also included some instructions on how best to enjoy this salty condiment - spread thinly over heavily buttered toast. I plan to follow her advice closely, though I admit I am not looking forward to trying the Vegemite with quite the same enthusiasm I had for sampling all the other goodies!

Finally, AG enclosed a clip-on koala bear who is now perched on my monitor as a constant reminder of my new (and very thoughtful) friend in Australia. Thank you very much Helen!!!

Mondays with Maida - Oatmeal Snickerdoodles

Page 62 in the old book / page 91 in the new book

I think snickerdoodle lovers will love these cookies, but others may find them a little plain. They are small, thin and crunchy, with cinnamon inside and out.

These were easy to make, but the method given doesn't result in especially attractive cookies. The cookies are dropped and then sprinkled with the cinnamon-sugar mixture. I think the more traditional way of making snickerdoodles is to form them into balls and then roll the balls in the cinnamon and sugar. If I were to make these again, I think I'd try that approach.

Here's the cookie panel - Suzanne is still on vacation, but will be back next week:

Terri: "If you like French toast, you'll enjoy Oatmeal Snickerdoodles. A flat, chewy cookie with a great cinnamon taste. Delicious with coffee. Rating - 4.0"

Denny: "I'd give them a 3, but they taste like Norman Rockwell's favorites. Equally uninspiring. Rating - 3.0"

Laura: "My favorite so far! The perfect amount of crunch! You can go wrong with cinnomon! 10 of 5. Rating - 5"

Phil: "Not quite up to par with the oatmeal competition so far. A dense, crunchy cookie with good but not remarkable flavor. Rating 3.2"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.8

Next week - Oatmeal Molasses Cookies

Nutrition Facts

Finally!

"My Sister's Favorite Corn Curry" - from Indian Home Cooking

I love Indian food and have managed to accumulate several cookbooks on the subject over the last couple of years. I've poured through them many times and imagined what all those great looking dishes might taste like. But for some reason, I've always been a little overwhelmed by the lists of ingredients and what appeared to be fairly complicated recipes. I kept putting off actually trying one.

I got a little nudge a couple weeks ago when I saw Suvir Saran, author of Indian Home Cooking, at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. I came home inspired and pulled out his cookbook to peruse yet again. Then last weekend, as I have before, I selected a recipe (this time a corn curry), purchased the necessary ingredients, and even made a trip to an Indian grocery to get a few things. But I didn't make it.

Tonight, with corn, curry leaves and a chile pepper growing old in my refrigerator, I knew it was now or never. I figured I had nothing to lose (except possibly an hour or so), but I wasn't even sure the corn would be any good.

In spite of everything - my week-old grocery store corn, not enough corn (once I had cut the corn from the cobs I had only 3 of the 4 cups needed for the recipe), and a whole wheat tortilla instead of a chapati on the side - the curry was wonderful. It had a rich creamy base and layers and layers of flavor.

I've picked out another recipe... maybe next weekend?

The Hostess with the Mostest

I am in awe of Nic's energy and big heart. As you probably know, she just hosted the Oh, Honey edition of Sugar High Friday, but you may or may not be aware that she also just organized and is currently hosting something new called Blogging by Mail. Twenty two participants are exchanging packages of homemade goodies and other treats this month and Nic plans to do another round-up in August after everyone has received their package. In the meantime, though, she sent some treats to every single participant herself! Mine arrived Thursday with some wonderfully spicy homemade ginger cookies, JBz chocolate candies, and grapefruit flavored green tea. I am enjoying them all immensely. Thank you Nic!

SHF 10 - Oh, Honey!

If there was an award for the sweetest little meme, it would no doubt go to Sugar High Friday, created by Jennifer and hosted this time around by Nic. The theme for this tenth edition of SHF is honey.

I seem to go through honey really quickly these days, so I generally buy two or three pound containers of the grocery store variety. I actually have no complaints about this most ordinary of honeys and am quite fond of its flavor, but today I was shopping in a high end grocery store and was seriously tempted by some pricier varieties ... raspberry flower, sage, Tupelo, etc. I haven't succumbed yet, but when I do, I can't think of a better way to use it (except perhaps on some toast) than as the sweetener and flavor base for some ice cream.

I normally put the name of my recipe in the title of my SHF and IMBB posts, but I can't decide what to call this. My original concept was an ice cream based on Chai. Because I was using mostly milk and very little water, I was a little timid about raising the temperature too high and the flavors from the spices and tea were not fully extracted. The spiciness is hardly noticeable over the strong honey flavor, but I was still very happy with the outcome.

I'd like to experiment with this some... the first way would be to try some things to bring out the spiciness more. I could increase the spices, leave them to steep overnight, include them with the water and ginger at the beginning, or I could replace half the honey with either sugar or some other milder liquid sweetener - like Lyle's Golden Syrup. I really liked the texture of this ice cream and wonder if the honey contributed to that in any way. It never froze hard and it didn't develop a grainy texture. It was really refreshing - not especially creamy, almost watery as it melts in your mouth - but not at all icy.

Another way to go with it would be to leave out most of the spices and try some of those varietal honeys. So many possibilities!


Chai or Honey Ice Cream - you decide!

This is exactly as I made it. It was delicious, not very spicy, with a strong honey flavor.

1/2 cup water
3 quarter-inch slices of ginger
1/2 cup half and half
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup honey
3 cardamom pods cracked open
1/2 cinnamon stick
4 cloves
5 peppercorns
2 tea bags

Place the water and ginger slices in a saucepan and bring water to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the half and half, milk, honey, and spices. Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring often (actually, I stirred constantly - not sure if that's necessary or not). You want to get the mixture hot, but don't want it too hot or a skin will form as it cools. Using Alton Brown's Vanilla Ice Cream recipe as a guide, I decided to bring the temperature to 170 F. At that point, remove the pan from the heat, add the tea bags and allow the mixture to steep for 5 minutes. Strain and refrigerate overnight. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions and then harden for an hour or two in the freezer before eating. Enjoy!

Norman Rockwell's Oatmeal Wafers

Page 61 in the old book / page 90 in the new book

These are beautiful, large, thin cookies with a delicate crunch and an interesting name. Maida Heatter's note explains "They are a favorite of Norman Rockwell, the great illustrator of Americana."

I liked these a lot. They are not overly sweet and have a wonderful texture. I think the walnuts I used were a little less flavorful than normal and didn't have that slightly astringent bite you normally associate with walnuts, so the flavor of the cookies was a little bland. With better nuts, though, I think they would be outstanding.

These were very easy to make. I used parchment on the cookie sheets as I normally do, but for these cookies I'd say it is essential.

Here's the cookie panel - Terri is filling in for Suzanne, who is on vacation this week:

Terri: "These wafer-like cookies (1/4 inch thick) are a wonderful combination of nuts, oatmeal and a great buttery flavor. Chocolate chips would make them perfect! Rating - 4.5"

Denny: "Obviously Norm got his inspiration elsewhere. I'd give them a 2.9, rather ordinary. Good but ordinary. Rating - 2.9"

Laura: "Yummy crispy oatmeal cookies... my favorite, so far. Rating - 5"

Phil: "A flying saucer like wafer with a crater like surface. Great choice for those sci fi or NASA gourmands. This thin, chewy cookie is not as sweet or sticky as the Praline wafers (previously reviewed) but more a buttery fusion of yummy yet hard to decipher ingredients. Rating - 4.5"

Overall rating by the panel - 4.2

Next week - Oatmeal Snickerdoodles

Nutrition Facts

Piazza Armerina and Caltagirone

I guess it's not quite correct to title this post Piazza Armerina and Caltigirone since we only visited the Villa Imperiale del Casale in Piazza Armerina and didn't see the town itself at all. In fact, until just now I had thought Piazza Armerina was the Villa Imperiale del Casale. However, my Michelin Green Guide has set me straight. The villa is just outside Piazza Armerina and the historic center of Piazza Armerina, with its Baroque cathedral, is apparently worth a visit in itself.

Anyhoo... we only saw the villa. The villa is Roman and was built sometime in the late third or early fouth century AD. It was destroyed by fire, flooded in mud and was not unearthed until the late 1800's. What people come here to see are the mosaic floors. Somehow, in spite of the earlier devastation, they were amazingly well preserved. To tour the villa, you walk around on elevated platforms. The whole thing is enclosed in a plexiglass housing.



There are fascinating scenes from everyday life, the hunt and special occasions. I had taken the picture above thinking it showed the preparation of some food following the hunt, but after consulting Michelin I've learned otherwise. It portrays the offering of a sacrifice to the goddess of the hunt, Diana. That's her on top of the pillar on the right, and the guy I thought was cooking on a stove is really burning incense.



The picture above is from the Room of the Ten Girls. Those may look like bikinis, but actually the women are shown in their underwear. Really - that's what they wore while doing gymnastic exercises.

It had been threatening to rain all morning, but fortunately it held off until just after we returned to the car. That first downpour was nothing compared to what we encountered as we arrived in Caltagirone. For a few minutes the rain and hail came down so hard, Chuck had to pull the car over. Later in the afternoon while we were in a shop there was another downpour which created an impressive "river" that flowed down a narrow stairway adjacent to the shop.

Caltagirone is probably the biggest ceramics producer in Sicily. As you drive into and walk around town you see evidence everywhere of what they do. The most dramatic example of this is the huge staircase (Scala di Santa Maria del Monte) in the center of town where each riser is decorated with a different row of tiles. Ceramics shops line both sides of the staircase.



While in Caltagirone we shopped, ate lunch, and shopped some more. I neglected to make any notes about our lunch, so I don't remember where we ate. I do remember I had ravioli (which was fine, but not noteworthy), "Murder She Wrote" (dubbed in Italian) was on the TV, and Bob got food poisoning there.

We left Caltagirone happily burdened with our latest ceramics purchases and headed on to our hotel in Ragusa.

Next time - Ragusa

Smithsonian Folklife Festival

The Smithsonian "castle"

There are some advantages to living near DC, including one that had completely escaped my notice up until last week. The Smithsonian Folklife Festival has been going strong for 39 years (almost as long as I've lived here), but it wasn't until this year that I paid it a visit. Actually, two visits.


Alice Waters' edible school garden

This year one of the themes was "Food Culture USA". I think food has always figured into the festival programs, but it has been a footnote rather than the focus. For instance, this year Oman and the Forest Service were two of the other programs and each included a series of presentations related to food. In the "Kitchen Oasis" tent you could sit in on "Coffee, Dates and Hospitality" or "All About Halwa". In the "Camp Foodways" tent, presentations included "Cooking in the Field" and "Catfish". But I only gave these parts of the festival a passing glance, for "Food Culture USA" had more than enough to monopolize my attention.

OK, I'm going to drop some names now... Paul Prudhomme, Lidia Bastianich, Sheila Lukins, Joan Nathan, Lisa Yockelson, Emeril Lagasse, Todd English, Alice Waters, Suvir Saran, and more, so much more! I wish I could have seen them all, but I felt fortunate to see as much as I did. I saw Paul Prudhomme, Susan Belsinger, Suvir Saran, and Lisa Yockelson.


Susan Belsinger


Lisa Yockelson


Paul Prudhomme


Suvir Saran

Each gave a 45 minute cooking demonstration/talk and answered questions. The format they used sometimes worked well and other times seemed forced - a Smithsonian staff member or volunteer sort of acted as an emcee, introducing the cook, bantering with them, and calling on people with questions - but the presentations were informative and the speakers/cooks were interesting, funny, and down-to-earth. I also attended two presentations by "home cooks" (neither was a professional chef or food writer) which weren't as entertaining or informative, but which were still enjoyable. Joan Nathan was the co-curator for the program and judging from what I saw, she did a great job. I just wish they could do this every year!


camels on the Mall

It's not that I'm hoarding or anything...

That's about 15 pounds of blueberries. I've also given away a little over 3 pounds and have probably eaten that much myself. Oh, and I made blueberry jam today.

I've got a bumper crop... and that's with no bird net... yay!!

Mondays with Maida - German Oatmeal Cookies

Page 60 in the old book / page 94 in the new book

These are soft, slightly spicy oatmeal cookies loaded with raisins, dates, pecans, and chocolate chips.

Making these cookies was easy and uneventful. Maida Heatter's note that accompanies the recipe refers to them as "real old-fashioned cookie-jar cookies" and I would agree. In taste and texture they remind me of some banana cookies my mom used to make, even though they have no banana in them. I thought they were very good.

'Tis the season for vacations and the cookie panelists are no exception. Both Denny and Phil are vacationing this week but will return next week.

Suzanne: "This cookie had so many things in it that it masked the taste of the raisins. The chocolate chips made the cookie. Yeah chocolate! Rating - 3.8"

Terri: "A delicious combination of chocolate chips, pecans, raisins and oatmeal make this chunky cookie a great mix of textures. Seemed a tad bit dry, not a moist type cookie. Rating - 4"

Laura: "Sweet, tasty and a little bit of everything - nuts, chocolate, raisins, etc. Yummy goodness. Rating - 4"

Overall rating by the panel - 3.9

By the way, just wanted to call attention to the Top Ten list that I recently set up. Now that the cookie panel has rated a little over ten different cookies, I will maintain a list of the ten most highly rated cookies with links to the original posts. You'll find a link to the Top Ten list in the sidebar along with the links to the Mondays with Maida archive and nutrition facts.

Next week - Norman Rockwell's Oatmeal Wafers

Nutrition Facts

Souvenirs: Cannoli

I didn't bring anything home from Agrigento, except photographs, memories, and a new-found taste for cannoli. Someday I will make my own cannoli (once I overcome my fear of deep fat frying), but for now I'll have to make do with store bought. Actually, my original plan was to purchase cannoli shells and some good ricotta and make my own filling. However, when I stopped in a nearby Italian market, I found the shells but not the ricotta. At the register I spied a sign that said "Cannoli - $1.99", so I abruptly changed my plans, returned the shells to the shelf and requested one cannoli (well, technically I guess that would be one cannolo). The shell was dense, but not crispy. The chocolate was nearly tasteless. The filling was pleasantly sweet, but had little else to recommend it. It just wasn't the same. So sad.