French Macarons

For our final, Natalie and I made French Macarons.  We made three different types, chocolate with chocolate filling, vanilla with vanilla filling, and vanilla with chocolate filling.

The recipe we used made 20 whole macarons

For macarons shells:

1 1/8 cup ground almond

3/8 cup egg whites, refrigerated for 24 hours

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

4 tablespoons granulated sugar

For vanilla filling:

2 large egg whites

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup softened butter (cut in pieces)

1 tsp vanilla extract

For chocolate filling:

1 3/8 cup chopped dark chocolate

5/8 cup heavy cream

Directions for macaron shells:

1.       Food process almond and powdered sugar for about 2 minutes.

2.       Whip egg whites until bubbly. Slowly add granulated sugar. Continue to beat until stiff.

3.       Add food coloring and almond mixture into egg whites and fold until smooth.

4.        Fill piping bag and pipe onto baking sheets. Use a knife to smooth the macarons.

5.       Let sit for 1 hour, and then bake at 300 degrees F for 10 minutes.

Directions for vanilla filling:

1.       Mix two egg whites with ½ cup of granulated sugar.

2.       Put egg whites and sugar in heat-proof bowl and set over a boiling put of water.

3.       Once heated, remove egg and sugar from heat.

4.       Whip eggs until foaming, add clumps of butter and beat until extremely thick.

5.       Add vanilla extract to taste

Directions for chocolate filling:

1.       Bring cream to a boil

2.       Chop up chocolate and put in a heat proof bowl

3.       Pour hot cream over chocolate and let sit for a minute

4.       Mix the almost melted chocolate all together

5.       Put in the fridge to cool for at least 10 minutes

xoxo, Natalie and Talia

Yummy Breakfast

This weekend I had an especially good morning. It was daylight savings so I was able to sleep in an extra hour and to top it off I had waffles for breakfast. They were absolutely amazing! They were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. I wish I could wake up to them every morning!!

Meat Day!

On Tuesday Chef Laurie brought in Steak, Top Sirloin, and Pork.  The steak was seared on the highest flame on both sides and then put in the oven for a short period of time.   After it was cooked it was cut into square chunks.  The steak went in the blink of an eye.  The top sirloin was used for a beef stroganoff.  The meat was cut into small pieces and cooked on the stove.  It was combined with sour cream, dill, and pasta.  The pork was the third and final meat.  It was pounded thin and coated with a layer of flour then egg.  It was then covered with bread crumbs and oven fried.  It was so good!  This was one of my favorite weeks!

xoxo,
all of us.

Cupcakes

 

This weekend I decided to make vanilla cupcakes. I also made my absolute favorite frosting, cream cheese frosting. To me, buttercream frosting is too sugary and sweet, but cream cheese frosting is the perfect amount of sweetness with the cream cheese takes the edge off. Just having a vanilla cake with vanilla frosting looked too boring so I decided to add a variety of sprinkles to give them a little bit of color. The cake was deliciously moist and was a thousand times better than any box mix. And the cream cheese went absolutely perfectly with the cake. Overall it was a very successful dessert.

~Elizabeth

Meat Day

One of the meat days that we had was all about fish. The wasabi and tuna was delicious, and the wasabi added a nice kick. I also liked the scallops. When they were cooking they smelled delicious. But my favorite side we made that day was the homemade tortilla chips. They were just ordinary flour tortillas, but baking them in the oven and adding olive oil, salt, paprika, and cumin made them delicious! I was surprised because they were so much better than their store counterparts. This is definitely something that I would make at home!!
xo xo,
Talia, Natalie, Elizabeth

Chicken and Farro

On Friday we tasted chicken and farro. The chicken was delicious and very tasty. It was crispy on the outside from being baked with olive oil but still moist and tender on the inside. The rub of herbs on the outside was very flavorful. The farro had bacon bits and was tossed with olive oil.
~ Talia, Natalie, Elizabeth

Ombre Mini Cakes

I made mini ombre cakes last night. I mostly just wanted to make them look nice but they tasted pretty good as well! I just made a simple white cake batter then separated it into three bowls. I added 10 drops of a blue food coloring in the darkest bowl, 5 drops in the medium bowl, and 1 in the lightest. I wasn't completely satisfied with how the colors looked; I would have liked the lightest color to be even lighter, but it turned out fine. Also, I would have measured the three layers better because one of the layers was much thinner than the others but it wasn't too noticeable. Once the layers were done baking I made a vanilla buttercream frosting for them. Then I leveled out the tops, cut out the cakes with a glass, and stacked them with frosting in between the layers and on top. I would use a bigger frosting nozzle if I did it again. Overall they turned out nice, but it was just a regular cake and I would have liked a little different flavor if I did it again.
I also mashed the extra bits together in layers and made another cake.

Pie

This weekend I was reading my food memoir when I was hit with inspiration and hunger. My food memoir is all about pie, so I really wanted to eat some pie. I was lucky to find a recipe where I had all of the ingredients, and didn't look too hard to make. That recipe was for Cocounut Cream Pie.

I started out with the crust, and that turned out fine. In fact, it ended up being the best part of the pie. The filling not so much. I found out that you have to be really patient and wait until the filling actually cooks before putting it in the crust, and also you need to make sure you don't burn the sugar. I found out that to make a pie you have to have a lot more patience then I did.
~Elizabeth

Wednesday Grains

Today there were several pastas and grain that were delicious. First, was a sort of pad thai dish that had an amaing combination of flavors. The pasta was cooked perfectly and covered in a thick peanut sauce. I thought that the sauce was a little too spicy, but the overall effect of the dish was good.

Next, was an orzo salad. I have never had orzo before, and it was really tasty. I really liked the combination of the cheese in the salad as well.

The carbonora salad was especially creamy and savory. The bacon in it gave the dish an interesting flavor. I would never have thought of putting bacon and pasta together, but I really enjoyed it.

Finally came my all time favorite salad of the day, the curry and barley salad. The barley was soft, and tasted like the rice I used to love when I was a kid. I could have eaten that salad all day long. To top it off, the almonds made the dish go from fantastic to amazing. A single bite full of soft, fluffy barley and the crunchy roasted flavor of the almonds was perfection!

~Elizabeth

Snickerdoodle Muffins 09/15/12

On Saturday, Elizabeth and I made snickerdoodle muffins.  We found the recipe last week but we did not have anytime until yesterday to make them.  The recipe called for flour, butter, sugar, eggs, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, nutmeg, cream of tarter, and sour cream.  We put a cinnamon and sugar mixture in the muffin liners to give it a snickerdoodle flavor and then put the batter in and sprinkled more of the mixture on top.  We made baby muffins and regular sized muffins.  The baby muffins took about 15 minutes to cook and the regular muffins took about 20 to 25 minutes to cook.  They were very hard to get out of the pan after we cooked them because they were kind of crumbly.  They did not taste like a real snickerdoodle, but they were not bad.  I would make them again, but use a variation with buttermilk.

Elizabeth's fish seemed to like them!

Asian Chicken Salad Recipe 09/13/12

Asian Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

¼ cup vegetable oil

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 (8 ounce) package dried spaghetti noodles

¾ package of garden salad mix

1 boneless chicken breast-diced

3 green onions, chopped

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Directions:

1.       Prepare the dressing by combining the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, vegetable oil, and rice vinegar in a salad dressing carafe. Whisk the mixture together; then put it in the fridge until ready to use.

2.       Put a pot of water to boil. Once it has boiled break the noodles in half and put them in the pot for about 10 minutes. One they are completely cooked drain the water, and set aside the noodles to cool.

3.       Oil a skillet and place the pieces of chicken on them. Stir the pieces around until they are completely cooked.

4.       Cook the sesame seeds in the oven for 8-10 minutes.

5.       In a large bowl combine the salad, cooked chicken, green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and pasta. Then drizzle the salad dressing over the top to your liking.

Salads! 09/12/12

Today's salads were absolutely amazing! The first salad was a leek salad. I have never had leeks before, so this was a new experience. The leeks were sort of slimy, and I haven't quite decided whether I liked them or not.

The barbecue chicken salad, I didn't expect to be sweet. The corn added sweetness to each bite. I also liked the crunchiness of the chip like pieces. I did like the overall flavor of the salad.

The pomegranate seed and feta cheese salad was very good. The goat cheese was slightly salty, which went really well with the lettuce.

My all time favorite salad of the day, today was the Ceasar Salad. I absolutely love Ceasar Salad, and this one hit the top charts. The lettuce was crunchy and juicy, and the homemade croutons were to die for. Each bite of the croutons was full of a buttery aroma, but the one thing that pushed it over the top was the garlic. I never thought that Ceasar Salad would taste good with garlic in them, but it was probably the best salad I ever tasted! It seems to me that every day the salads just keep getting better and better!!
~Elizabeth

Salads! 9/11/12

The first salad we tried was the Asian Chicken Salad. It had noodles, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, and a sweet and sour dressing. The best part was the combination of the noodles and the vegetables. The noodles were so yummy and the best salad of the day!

The next salad we had was a bean salad. We liked the edamame and the beans, and the dressing on top had a unique flavor. The seasoning also added a certain bite to every mouthful. We thought at first that the edamame would be mushy, but it actually was crunchy and made the salad have a pleasing texture.

The third salad was feta and eggplant spinach salad. The feta cheese and spinach combination was mouthwatering and amazing. The lemon juice viniagrette paired perfectly with the spinach and eggplant. Altogether the salads today added interesting and unique flavors and textures while still being truly delicious.

xoxo
Talia, Elizabeth, and Natalie

Cupcakes with Elizabeth!

On Sunday, Elizabeth and I made cupcakes.  We made a basic vanilla cake batter with buttercream frosting. The batter was very simple. It called for eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla extract, flour, baking powder, and a bit of milk.  It took about 30 minutes to cook.  It turned out evenly cooked and really yummy.  The buttercream frosting was simple too.  It had butter, sugar, milk, and vanilla in it.  This turned out well on our first attempt.  To top the cupcakes off, we made a fondant.  It was made from corn syrup, shortening, for which we substituted butter, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar.  We then frosted the cupcakes and mixed food coloring in with the fondant.  We set aside two lumps of fondant. One had red food coloring mixed in and the other had yellow.  We then made small spheres of red and yellow.  We put the red and yellow spheres on small white cylinders made from leftover uncolored fondant.  These turned out as small, stubby mushrooms.  After all the mushrooms were made we painted the the white frosting with green food color (I found the gel to work better than the liquid food color).  We used a silicone egg brush to paint the frosting.  The bristles made a grassy looking pattern.


The finished product!

This week in Food for Thought we are studying salads. Today three inventive and creative salads were brought for us to sample. Here are those three salads that I throughly enjoyed.

Green Bean Salad: The green beans and peppers give the salad a delicious crunch, while the avocado contrasts with the crunch by giving it a creamy texture. I really enjoyed the dressing that was on the vegetables, and the combination between te flavors. Finally the red onion added a nice kick to the end of each bite.

Macaroni Salad: The little bites of pasta were fun to eat, and cooked to perfection. They weren’t crunchy like overcooked pasta or too soft. I wasn’t a huge fan of all of the olives in the pasta, but the sauce was really good. I thought the ratio of mayonnnaise to the rest of the sauce was a good amount. I am not a huge fan of mayonnaise and I don’t like it when macaroni salads have too much. This salad miraculously found the right ratio. It would have been the perfect accompiament to a summer barbecue.

Garden Salad: The garden salad was nice and refreshing although I felt that it would have tasted better if it had been refridgerated. The cucumber was mouthwatering, and perfectly crunchy and crisp. They tasted even better because they were from a home garden. I am normally not a fan of balsamic viniagrette, but I enjoyed the combination of the dressing and the fresh vegetables. I am a fan of salads, and these ones definitely became top ones on my list!

~Elizabeth

Salads! 09/10/12

Today in class we tasted three different salads: a green bean salad, a macaroni salad, and garden salad.

The green bean salad had green beans, avocado, tomato, and red onions. Usually we don't like avocado, but this time it tasted great. The green beans were fresh and crisp and the onions added a nice touch.

The macaroni salad had macaroni, mayonnaise, and olives. It was creamy and would go nicely with a summer barbecue. However, we found that the olives overpowered the rest of the flavors.

The garden salad was made of butter lettuce, fresh, homegrown cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, bell peppers, and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. The balsamic vinaigrette was tangy and it completed the salad.

Overall the garden salad was the best.

xoxo,
Talia and Natalie

Bean Sauce Noodles 09/07/12

Today we mixed up our usual meal of rice and stir fry with noodles and a warm, sweet and salty sauce made of soy beans with tofu and pork. I also topped it off with sliced cucumber, egg, bean sprouts, and sprinkled with a sour red wine vinegar. All of the different flavors may seem over the top, but they go wonderfully together.

Quince Jam and Tortas 09/07/12

In class today we had quince jam, sweet olive oil tortas, and Iberico cheese. The cheese was silky smooth and creamy, while the quince jam had a sweet grainy texture. Paired with the sugar dusted tortas both were delicious. I especially liked the sweet and savory combination of the cheese and the cracker. It was an interesting experience because I have never had tortas or quince jam before. The quince jam was a little too sweet for me, but I did really enjoy the cracker and the cheese.

Leftovers 09/06/12

My mom makes dinner most nights and all four of us sit down to eat together.  Tonight however, my mom was under the weather and could not make a yummy meal, so I had leftovers from last night.  I heated up a bowl of pistou soup which consisted of leeks, rainbow Swiss chard, cannellini beans, carrots, celery, and penne pasta with a chicken broth, topped off with Saltines. It was great the first night and even better the second.

Easy Reheat 09/06/12

I am usually an extremely busy person, so having time to come up with dinner is limited. Most days  I just have enough time to throw something in the microwave. Unfortunately, a lot of microwave meals are unhealthy and don't taste good. That's why I like preparing a meal over the weekend when time is more available, and then reheating leftovers for dinner during the week.

My favorite, and easiest dish to have is Quiche. It is quick and easy to heat up while still retaining its delicious flavor. In the picture above, my Quiche has a whole wheat pie crust and two cheeses, cheddar and pepper jack. It is full of vegetables like onions and spinach, and it pairs well with homemade potato salad and raw vegetables. Quiche is delicious, easy to prepare, and makes enough to last the week, so it is a good meal. However, I have found what makes it a great meal is the secret of adding fresh bacon to the mix.