"O" is for Oatmeal and that's good enough for me!

 National Oatmeal Cookie Day is TODAY!!!

I love Oatmeal cookies especially Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies!!! If they have raisins, I’m out but my Mom loves raisins (I think that she adds more raisins then are in the recipe!) I like the cookie to be soft sometimes but I love the hard crunch kind that is just that little bit over cooked. They are great for milk and mush (will explain later). My Mom stole her Oatmeal cookie recipe from the Quaker box (well I guess it is not stealing if they but it on the box), it’s a good, solid, consistent recipe that’s easy too (see below).

When I was little my Mom would get the gumbo sized carton of plain oatmeal cookies from Shop Rite and they were always hard, almost like a stale cookie. Those were my favorites, even better then home-made!!! I don’t know what I loved then so much but I did. Shop Rite changed their recipe or something years back and now the cookie even when stale does not have the same snap as it did before.

I just generally love a harder cookie, stale Oreo’s are amazing, they really absorb the milk which is just the way I like them. When I was little my Dad would make mush every night for his dessert. I don’t know anyone who makes this and some people (my Mom) think its gross but I enjoy it. Mush is when you get a coffee mug fill it to the brim with broken up cookies. You really got to fill the mug with as much cookie as possible, leaving little open space. Then you pour in milk to fill the gaps. You let it sit a second and use a spoon to mush it all together. It should look the consistency of lumpy, thick baby food. You can use all one cookie or mix it up, my Dad was a fan of mixing in 2 types of cookies (Oreo’s and Chips Ahoy!) but I was a one cookie kind of girl (Oreo’s or Oatmeal). I also made my mush a little looser, less cookie more milk more of a milkshake with mixin’s consistency. Neither my Dad nor I make mush any longer but I have fond memories of it and whenever I have a stale cookie and dip it into some milk, it fills the urge to make mush!

Another variation on the Oatmeal Cookie is Ben & Jerry’s Oatmeal Cookie Chuck Ice Cream. It is amazing and one of my favorite Ice Creams!!! It is best fresh scooped but in the grocery store carton is also great and would suffice!!!

Quaker Oat’s Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Total Time: 28 minutes | Prep: 20 minutes | Cook: 8 minutes | Yield: 4 dozen | Level: Easy

Ingredients

• 1 stick and 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
• 1 cup raisins or other mixin’s

Preparation

Heat oven to 350°F.

In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy.

Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.

Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. HIGH ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENT: Increase flour to 1-3/4 cups and bake as directed.

Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown.

Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Mixin’s

Stir in 1 cup chopped nuts.

Substitute 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or candy-coated chocolate pieces for raisins; omit cinnamon.

Substitute 1 cup diced dried mixed fruit.

Variations

Bar Cookies

Total Time: 50 – 55 minutes | Prep: 20 minutes | Cook: 30 – 35 | Yield: 24 bars | Level: Easy

Press dough onto bottom of ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until light golden brown.

Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. Store tightly covered.

DLS = Damn Light Sleep

For me DLS = Damn Light Sleep ... understand that like many, when I'm tired I cannot form proper, full sentences.  There is only one cure I know for DLS when you have to be at work on Monday morning ... COFFEE!!!

And not that weak water crap, that a lot of these convenient stores try to pass off as coffee but the real stuff. You all should know my feelings on coffee and my favorite coffee from my post Coffee!!! on February 25, 2013.

In a recent episode of Kim and Kourtney Take Miami on E! (I know not everyone likes the Kardashians but this was really funny) Khloe gets hooked on Cuban Coffee, an espresso shot which is sweetened with demerara sugar as it is being brewed.  It is really funny how addicted to Cuban Coffee she gets, even going to look for some at 4am after being up all might because of a cup she had earlier that day.  Now that's the kind of Coffee that cures DLS!!!  If you want to read about the incident, here you go: Khloe Kardashian fired up on Cuban coffee as Koko may be axed by 'X Factor' USA (Video)

To end this lovely post here is an Ode to Coffee by Ranjit Nair's limericks:

Ode to Coffee

O! coffee, where art thou
When I need thee now?
In thy many flavored blends
A hot cup would be godsend.

I cannot keep awake
Without a short coffee-break.
With thy life-giving aroma
Save me from going into a coma.  

Java, Colombian or French Roast
Thy every flavor, I will toast.
To the end thy loyal slave
Three cups a day I will always crave. 

(Inspired by a very sleepy seminar)

Marc Murphy is a Horse Meat Eater!!!

Marc Murphy is a executive chef, restaurateur and television food personality.  He owns Landmarc with locations in TriBeCa and in the Time Warner Center, and Ditch Plains in the West Village.  He is best know for his regular judging spot on the Food Network series Chopped.

He is also a Horse Meat Eater!!!

and I have a problem with that.  In the interview below he talks about how its not a big deal to eat horse meat because he grew up in Italy eating it.  How it is common place to see horse meat on menus in France and Italy.  He even goes to say he would serve it to friends, if they wanted it and that the only reason he will not put it on his restaurant menus here in the US is because no one would buy it, on the basis that we don't want to eat our pets.

In the Forbes article How Safe Is That Horse Meat? by Vickery Eckhoff, Contributor, dated June 18, 2012, I quote:

Good fact-checking is essential when it comes to horse slaughter, especially the long list of drugs present in U.S. horse meat, including Phenylbutazone, which causes cancers that are fatal to humans, particularly babies.

Phenylbutazone (or “bute”), is a painkiller used legally by more than 85% of U.S. horse owners to treat everyday soreness and inflammation, but banned completely in food-producing animals, including horses, by the Food and Drug Administration and related agencies in Canada, the UK, and the EU. Interestingly, in 1949 it was used to treat gout and rheumatoid arthritis in humans, but was later banned when its carcinogenic effects were discovered.

In their report, Association of phenylbutazone usage with horses bought for slaughter: A public health risk, Dr. Nicholas Dodman, Dr. Nicolas Blondeau and Dr. Ann Marini describe Phenylbutazone’s adverse effects on humans such as aplastic anemia and leukemia.

Their lengthy 2010 study, which appeared in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology, analyzes the presence of bute in slaughter horses; the government’s inadequate drug testing methodology; and the USDA’s failure to ensure the removal of the vast majority of horses treated with banned substances from the food chain, among other topics. 

Now how bout them apples!!!  Go head tell me its ok to eat horse meat!  When you get a disease from ingesting bute, and you cry about it, I will laugh at you!!!

 

National POUND Cake Day!!!

National POUND Cake Day!!!

POUND Cake is so yummy and delicious but can be very heavy if not prepared correctly.  The concept is simple, 1 lb of sugar, 1 lb of flour, 1 lb of butter, and 1 lb of eggs, all you need to do is add or subtract evenly across the board to make larger or smaller batches.  The 1:1:1:1 recipe is great for novice bakers but a real pro knows how to make a POUND cake, a POUND cake, without that heaviness.

My Mom has a recipe for POUND cake (recipe below) that is delicious and light with this perfectly sweet flavor that is not too sweet but not, not sweet enough.  I think it has to do with the confectioners sugar vs using regular sugar.  I also think that the the lightness is due to the fact that the recipe does not follow the 1:1:1:1 ratio.

For me the best way to eat POUND cake is with a little more confectioners sugar dusted on top, some macerated strawberries and homemade fresh whipped cream (recipe below).

My Mom's POUND Cake 

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes - 1 hour 45 minutes | Prep: 15 minutes | Cook: 1 hour - 1 hour 30 minutes | Yield: 16 to 20 servings | Level: Easy

Ingredients

• 1 pound of butter
• 1 box of confectioners sugar (1 pound)
• 6 eggs
• 3 cups sifted flour (measured after sifting)
• Pinch of salt
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla (extract)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour pan, I prefer a angel food pan (similar in shape to a bundt pan but has a smaller hole in the center and taller sides)

Cream butter and sugar.

Add eggs, one at a time.

Add vanilla, salt, and flour.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 1 to 1.5 hours depending on your oven.

Homemade Fresh Whipped Cream

Total Time: 5 minutes | Prep: 5 minutes | Cook: N/A | Yield: 2 cups | Level: Easy

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (extract)
• 1 Equal artificial sweetener 

Directions

Pour the heavy cream into a large bowl.  Be aware that as the cream is whipped it will double in size, so make sure the bowl is big enough.

Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and Equal. The Equal will keep the cream from falling.  Adding a little more sugar to thicker, but don't add too much.

Using a wire whisk or beater, whip the mixture together until you get soft peaks.

Always taste as you go so that you do not make it too sweet or not sweet enough.  If more sugar is needed it needs to be added before the soft peaks are created.

If you lift the whisk out of the cream and a small peak comes up with it, you're there.  If using a electric beater, start on a low speed and gradually move up to high.  Do not over beat the cream or you will make butter instead of whipped cream.

Serve and enjoy.

National Chocolate Soufflé Day

Today is National Chocolate Soufflé Day

Chocolate Soufflé I made over the summer!
(recipe below)

I love soufflé! I mean real soufflé not that molten lava cake from 1987. Many people do not know the difference between the 2, which is way so many restaurants get away with saying lava cake is soufflé. Part of the problem is that people think soufflé sounds fancier (and it does) then lava cake and think hey these people don’t know any better and I can up charge for soufflé.

Real soufflé (French: [su.fle]) is a lightly baked cake made with egg yolks and beaten egg whites combined with various other ingredients and served as a savory main dish or sweetened as a dessert. The word soufflé is the past participle of the French verb souffler which means "to blow up" or more loosely "puff up"—an apt description of what happens to this combination of custard and egg whites.

Every soufflé is made from two basic components:

• a French crème pâtissière base/flavored cream sauce or purée
• egg whites beaten to a soft peak meringue

The base provides the flavor and the whites provide the "lift". When it comes out of the oven, a soufflé should be puffed up and fluffy, and it will generally fall after 5 or 10 minutes (as risen dough does). In popular culture you can see references to soufflé, specifically sitcoms, cartoons, children's programs and comedies. Due to soufflés' tendency to collapse quickly upon removal from the oven, often the gag involves a loud noise or poke causing the soufflé to collapse.

Molten chocolate cake or lava cake is a popular dessert that combines the elements of a flourless chocolate cake (sometimes called a chocolate decadence cake) and a soufflé. Some other names used are chocolate fondant pudding, chocolate moelleux and chocolate lava cake.

The US-based chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten claims to have invented molten chocolate cake in New York City in 1987, but the French chef and chocolatier Jacques Torres has disputed that claim, arguing that such a dish already existed in France. According to Vongerichten, he pulled a chocolate sponge cake from the oven before it was done and found that the center was still runny, but was warm and had both a good taste and a good texture. Regardless of who invented the dish, Vongerichten has been credited with popularizing it in the United States, and it is now almost a de rigueur inclusion on high-end restaurant dessert menus.

Molten lava cakes are always baked in ramekin dishes and have four main ingredients: butter, eggs, sugar, and chocolate. The butter and chocolate are melted together, while the eggs are either whisked with the sugar to form a thick paste, producing a denser finished product; or are separated so the egg whites can be whipped into an egg foam to provide more lift (and thus a lighter cake) when the mixture is baked.

Simply put the difference between Soufflé and Lava Cake are that a soufflé will collapse and will not have a molten inside but a light, airy texture throughout. And a lava cake can be removed from its baking vessel, has a rich, dense texture with a molten, ganache like center.

And today would not be complete without a classic chocolate soufflé recipe. This is one I found on FoodNetwork.com and have made many times with great success and wide praise.

Chocolate Soufflé

Total Time: 50 minutes | Prep: 30 minutes | Cook: 20 minutes | Yield: 6 individual servings | Level: Intermediate

Ingredients

• 7 ounces finely chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus for preparing the molds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons warm water
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 8 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Confectioners' sugar for garnish

Directions

Brush 6 (6-ounce) ramekins with soft butter, then coat with sugar. Put the prepared ramekins in the freezer. (This can be done a day ahead.)

Set an oven rack in lower third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Put the chocolate and butter in a medium heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with an inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching, the water. Stir the chocolate occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Set aside.

Combine the egg yolks and warm water in the bowl of a standing mixer or large bowl and beat until frothy. Gradually add 2 tablespoons sugar, and continue beating until ribbons form, about 5 minutes. Very lightly fold the yolks into the chocolate mixture. (Rinse the bowl well, if using for beating the egg whites.)

Remove prepared ramekins from freezer. Put the egg whites in the bowl of a standing mixer, or large non-reactive bowl, add the lemon juice. Beat on medium until frothy; then gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and increase speed to high. Beat until the whites hold a stiff but not dry peak.

Working quickly, fold about a third of the egg whites into the chocolate to lighten; then fold in remaining whites until blended. Gently ladle or spoon the soufflé mixture into the ramekins, and place on a baking sheet. (Level off the surface with a straight edge, scraping any excess mixture back into the bowl.)

Immediately bake until the soufflé rises about 1 1/2 inches from the ramekins, and the tops are touched with brown, about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, dust with confectioners' sugar and serve immediately.

MyPlate Initiative

Has anyone read about the First Lady's MyPlate initiative.  I have read a little on it and checked out the website.  The website is very difficult to maneuver and not user friendly but the graphics are appealing.  If they put some time and effort in their website, it could really help the movement, I got frustrated with it in less than 5 minutes then x-ed out.

As for the movement itself, its is a good way to figure out how much of what to eat and it has included some good lists of what are fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, dairy, and fats (empty calories).  The dividing up the plate concept has been used by every Nutritionist I have ever met, and it really is a good concept in explaining portions.  Most Nutritionist have explained it as half the plate is vegetables, a quarter grains, and a quarter proteins.  The way MyPlate is set up is a little different and is a little confusing because most of the food plans do not match the MyPlate divided plate concept.  The concepts is that your meal is a quarter fruits, a quarter vegetables, a quarter grains, a quarter proteins, and cup of dairy, but most of the daily food plans have more proteins and grains being consumed daily than fruits and vegetables, by almost double.

MyPlate does not address the size of the plate, America plate size has increased dramatically over the last 50 years. If you eat a quarter of a plate of grains it is a lot more food on a 12" round then a 9" round, and what if it is a square plate?  Square plates hold more food.  This is not addressed by MyPlate and it should, ever Nutritionist I know addresses it with their patents.  If you want more on how portion size has changed, check out: Portion Size, Then vs. Now - By: Liz Monte.

I think the MyPlate initiative is great in theory but needs a little tweaking for it to be a viable long term healthier eating plan for American's.

Horse Meat Burger served at a Pub!!!

Can you tell if a burger is a horse, of course, of course?

This news segment makes me sick and so does the pub that is serving it.  How could you!!!  EAT A HORSE!!!  Horses are beautiful animals not, dinner!!!  I guess some people feel the same way about cows, pigs, and other animals and they call themselves vegetarians   Since I will not eat horse, what am I considered ... a non-equine-arian!!!  Besides the fact that eating horse is taboo, it is unsafe.  Ingesting bute can have a serious negative effect on human health!!!  People need to do their research, horse meat in not regulated like beef or pork, ans could be very harmful and can cause allergic reaction if ingested.