My sister's cooking homework: assignment one

Remember a few weeks ago when I wrote about my sister's lack of cooking skills? Well, she has completed part one of the homework assignment I gave her and I must say, I am very impressed! I'm proud of my sis for facing her fears and firing up the oven once again.

This is the Orange Chicken she made. She even garnished! Here is an excerpt from her email to me:

Well, I thought I would try the orange chicken first...Peanut sauce to come tomorrow! I was amazed at how the orange chicken came out. It was moist...not dry or burned! That was a first in a long time. I paired the breast (the chickens, not mine) with a light salad with citrus dressing and berries. The marinade was great, and super easy!

Excellent job, Jacke! I only wish I could have joined you for dinner!

So now comes assignment two, the peanut noodles. Jacke writes, "I will let you know how the peanut sauce goes. There was only one ingredient I am confused about...and I have no idea what it is. Coriander?? Where would I even find that?

Corriander is the seed of the same plant that produces leaves we know as Cilantro. You can grow Cilantro very easily at home and it will go to seed within a matter of weeks. You can also buy it in any grocery store in the area where spices are sold. Coriander has a citrus and spice smell and it becomes more aromatic when it's crushed. Coriander is sold in both seed and ground forms. It is an excellent spice to pair with slightly sweet vegetables like carrots (carrot and coriander soup is amazing).

Very berry pies

I've been baking pies for over 20 years and I've never made a lattice crust! I even have the correct tool to make it. So, when the opportunity to make a few pies came around, I decided to try a lattice crust. I made four small pies instead of one large one so I could practice the lattice making a little bit. The one that turned out the best went to my friend Jocelyn for her birthday.

The lattice didn't turn out too bad! Here is a photo of the pies, pre-oven.

















The pie crust is my family recipe and the filling consisted of a mix of organic, frozen cherries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. To thicken the filling I used flour and sugar. That's it!

If you are curious about pie baking and want to give it a try for the first time, I suggest starting with the Betty Crocker Cookbook recipe for Apple pie. It's a no fail recipe and will give you a good opportunity to learn how pie crust behaves and how filling should look. Master the recipe and from there, you can start getting creative with fruits and spices to come up with your own seasonal pies that are sure to delight.

An excellent pie cookbook to have in your library is the Pie and Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. The book has a diverse collection of crust and pastry dough recipes as well as creative fillings and baking tips and techniques.

Grilling Pizza

Friday night we had our friends George and Monica come by the house. George, and my husband Kevin, are both grilling enthusiasts (as I'm convinced many men are) and have been wanting to try out grilled pizza so a few months back we scheduled "the experiment." Our friends Kelly and Bill have grilled pizza at home and gave me some good tips to pass along to George and Kevin prior to their adventure (thank you!).

George and Kevin organized the entire meal right down to the grocery shopping. The bags of organic vegetables, logs of goats cheese, and yeasty home made crust that showed up in our kitchen blew Monica and I away! We were eager to taste their grilled creations.

So, Monica and I scattered while George and Kevin worked on prepping dinner.

We heard no noises.
No glass breaking.
Didn't hear anyone shout "CALL 911!"

When we did reemurge in the kitchen we were greeting by the aroma of basil, grilling crusts, and two glasses of very tasty Mourvedre from Edna Valley Vineyard. Kevin and George have proven themselves to be highly skilled grillers.

What surprised me the most was how well the home made crust held up on the grill versus the Boboli crusts. I thought the result would be the exact opposite. Both the Boboli and home made crusts were placed directly on the grill grate (well olive oiled first) and lightly grilled on both sides before being topped and regrilled for a short period of time. The next time we try Boboli crusts we are going to get the grill bricks that Bill told us about.

We are looking forward to grilling pizza again soon!



The home made dough being shaped

dough hits the grill, side one
















freshly grilled dough, ready for toppings
















Prosciutto, goats cheese, and fig





















olive oil, red pepper flakes, tomato, basil, and mozarella

I didn't want to love you!

Dear Kara of Kara's Cupcakes,

Back in 1999 when I moved to San Francisco I brought with me my love of cupcakes. I had visited Magnolia in the early days of their vanilla cakes and my goal was to perfect butter cream was born. I made cupcakes often for friends, colleagues... anyone who would take them and test my sugar to butter ratios.

As my cupcake frenzy continued several people commented how I should open a shop of my own selling my cakes. I never had the courage to do it but you did! I didn't want to love you because you beat me to "the dream."

Last evening I tried my first Kara's Cupcake and I had to sneak over to the pretty pink box and get another sample of your deliciousness. I felt like I was back in high school, chasing that guy in with the Monte Carlo that I was told to stay away from.

Your Vanilla Butter Cream is divine. I don't know how you get such a consistency and frosting height without a melted collapse! The cream is so light - like whipped butter - and smooth! WOW! I'm not even going to attempt to figure out how you do it... I'll leave it to you, the professional.

So, good job, Kara! I love your cupcakes and will certainly be back to your store soon!

Sincerely,
The Housewife





Kara's Cupcakes
Marina
3249 Scott Street (at Chestnut)
San Francisco, California 94123
hours
mon-sat 10am-7pm
sun 10am-6pm

Ghirardelli Square
900 North Point
San Francisco, California 94109
hours
mon-wed 10am-7pm
thu-sat 10am-9pm
sun 10am-6pm