If you give a mousse some cream

The snow forecast lead all the schools in the area to declare today a snow day well in advance, so yesterday I rushed home to make preparations....er, actually, I rushed home to make mousse. Same thing, right? I went to my neighborhood Italian market to pick up ricotta cheese and whipping cream. Let it snow! First, 2 cups part-skim ricotta with 3 TBSP unsweetened cocoa. My addition, which I highly recommend for a BIG flavor bump, is a bit of espresso powder. Throw these things in the food processor until heavenly smooth. Then scoop out every last morsel with your Pampered Chef scraper and put into a big bowl. Put 2 large egg whites (best if they're at room temp, but I couldn't wait), 1/2 cup sugar (I used less), and a pinch of salt into a glass bowl on top of a little pan of simmering water. (Your bowl shouldn't touch the water---and don't boil the water, just let it simmer.) Whisking the whole time, cook until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is warm---around 3 minutes.

Then, take the glass bowl out and use an electric mixer to beat the egg white mixture until it forms stiff peaks.

To prove they are stiff peaks, hold the bowl upside down over Lucy's head and watch her squirm.

Yep, those are some stiff peaks.

Then FOLD a big dollop of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Ahhhh, folding.....a favorite technique that I could drive into the ground, so will try not to here. If you don't know the technique, google it up and be sure to follow it for best results.

Scoop the mousse into 6 small bowls, like these cute Willow House ramekins my sister sent me. We love ramekins! Now, here comes the hardest part of the recipe: Chill for 3 hours. Harrumph.
When the torturous 3 hours is almost done, drag your daughter into the kitchen to see the delight of whipping real cream (I'm embarrassed that she says she only knows the taste of Cool Whip---really? Granted, we really don't eat much of either at our house, but obviously I've been a most neglectful parent). I taught her the trick of chilling the beaters and stainless steel bowl--I put them in the freezer at the same time I put the mousse in the fridge, a bit of overkill but if I didn't do it then I would forget. Add a couple of tablespoons of confectioners sugar and about 1/2 tsp of vanilla, and let her rip on medium speed for ..... I don't know how long, probably less than 2 minutes, just until decadently soft and luscious. Grab a couple of mousse ramekins out of the fridge, top with big dollops of whipped cream, and sit back and contemplate another snow day.
Here's Lucy eating nachos while waiting for the mousse to chill. Lovely headgear.

Lucy's Roasted Vegetables

Yesterday during a mid-day emergency refresher stop at Starbucks I asked Lucy to name three of her favorite foods. Of course the little high achiever wanted to know how general or specific she should be. After I told her it didn't matter, she named pasta, roasted vegetables, and fruit. Here's what she said about roasted vegetables: "I like the way you do them, but what I really mean is the ones to put on a sandwich." So today I roasted her a bunch of vegs specifically to put on sandwiches this week. I didn't think to take the "before" picture until I had already sliced the eggplant and salted it on paper towels to draw out a lot of the water. The main difference between these and the vegetables I usually roast are how they're cut (these are all done in long, thin slices) and that I used a lot more olive oil than usual.
Eggplant, yellow squash, red and green bell peppers, red onion, and carrots. For Lucy.

Fruit Loops

Last week at my WeWa meeting we reviewed a list of in-season fruits and veg, and I've been hungry for pineapple ever since. SCORE! Today I picked one up at Apple Farm, my fruit and veg market, for $1.99. Big mistake. I should have bought at least 2, probably 3---considering that I had to stop and eat the very first piece I cut, before I could even continue. Sweet, juicy, perfectly ripe...in fact, perfect in every way. I quickly put the rest in the fridge for L and me to nibble on, hopefully for a few days, but I kept thinking how much someone with little fat 3-year-old fingers would love to have one of those rings for a snack. So, if you have some of those little fat fingers at your house (or even if you don't!) look for a fresh pineapple this week, and enjoy.

Since I used to avoid buying whole pineapples because I didn't know how to prepare them, I thought it might be good to throw a visual tutorial in here.

Thank you, Pampered Chef apple corer!

By the way, I have a big pineapple corer/slicer from The Pampered Chef, but I find it easier to just use my big Santoku Chef's Knife.

Happy New Year on a Plate

Black-eyed peas: you knew it had to be. Frozen---my current preference, as they are fresher tasting than dried. I don't care for canned so much.

Brussel sprouts: roasted, from frozen. This was an expansion of the required greens genre, for us southerners. First time I used frozen, and they're not as good as using fresh...a little mushy inside. Maybe because when roasting fresh ones, you can cut them in half first. Anyway, I accomplished my two goals: having something a little bit along the lines of greens, and using up something from the freezer.

Baked sweet potato: perfection, topped only with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. There was one left in the basket, perfect for L and me to split.

Brown rice: a base for the peas, leftover from the fridge.

Cornbread: from the freezer, fried.

If you notice a theme here, yes, I'm working on the end-of-year and out-of-cash-after-the-holidays plus it's-just-a-good-thing-to-do-every-once-in-a-while cook out of the freezer, pantry, and fridge-a-thon. Try it: you'll feel thrifty, and you'll eat up a lot of good stuff you forgot you had. Next on my list? Scallops stir-fry with garlic, bell peppers, scallions, brown rice, and haricot verts. I wish I hadn't just eaten so I could fix it now.

All the best for 2011!

Breakfast at our House

Don't you love days when you have time to make and eat a good breakfast? L and I are both breakfast eaters. I've heard her say many times that she can't believe how many kids at school don't eat any breakfast, and how in the world do they make it until lunch? Although I don't do new year's resolutions, I did work last year on going to work later---which had the added benefit of giving me time to make a more substantial breakfast many days. I like the idea of my little baby girl (don't tell her I said that) running off to the bus with a full tummy. And since I've become a whole wheat pita nut, nothing is easier than throwing an egg inside along with some lettuce and tomatoes and whatever else---but always with a good shake of Cavendar's Greek Seasoning. Today's filling was chopped up Morningstar Farms "sausage" patties and fried eggs, mixed up with lots and lots of Dijon and Spicy Brown mustard. We each had a clementine with it.

You know what they say: The most important meal of the day.

'Tis the SEASON

Ahhhhh. The car is dug out of its blizzard-ness, and so are we. Lucy is cruising around Soho with a couple of friends and her camera (at least, I guess she is...she was supposed to text me when her train got to the city...hmmmmm), the robot is vacuuming, and the vegetables are roasting in a 425 degree oven. Surely all is right with the world. The initial idea with the butternut squash was to roast it with some spices and red onion, and then make soup. But who am I kidding? Now that I smell it, there's no way I will puree any of the roasty, carmelized goodness that will come out of the oven. I LOVE any kind of roasted veg by itself; over a whole grain like bulgur, whole wheat couscous, or quinoa; over whole wheat pasta with a fresh grind of black pepper and parmesan cheese; and two days later for lunch in a whole wheat pita along with a smear of tahini-free hummus and whatever else happens to be left over in the fridge.
I almost was going to give you the specific low-down on how to roast the cauliflower, but I did that on an earlier post and don't want to show the full level of my dementia by repeating. Although, if ever there was anything to repeat about, it's roasted cauliflower. Ever since Melissa started making this a few years ago, it's one of the things I crave and can't get enough of its nutty deliciousness.
Since this post is supposed to be about seasoning, just let me say two things about the salt and pepper that flavors the cauliflower. 1. If you don't already have it, stop what you're doing and go to the grocery store and buy KOSHER SALT. Use it EVERY time you salt something (unless you use sea salt, but that's lots more expensive), except for baking; it's preferable to use Morton's plain-old salt for baking. But Kosher salt is waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy better for all your other cooking---a significant flavor bump you'll come to appreciate. 2. Use FRESHLY GROUND PEPPER from a pepper mill for all your cooking. Just do it. I keep a one-handed pepper mill at the stove to make life easier, and I use my Pampered Chef silicone funnel to re-fill it, or otherwise I have a huge mess on my hands and little peppercorns everywhere.
After Thanksgiving I made a little business trip to Hartford CT and found myself near a Penzeys spice store, where I bought one of their new spice blends, Arizona Dreaming. The ingredients label reads, "spices (must be the secret part), ground ancho, onion, garlic, paprika, citric acid, lemon peel, chipotle pepper, red pepper, jalapeno, cocoa, natural smoke flavoring." I've been using it on everything where I want a little kick, and my butternut squash will be particularly tasty.Speaking of which....in the time it's taken me to write to you, both the cauliflower and the squash are out of the oven. You know it's a good day when I have two Pampered Chef bar pans full of roasted goodness calling my name. Go roast yours.

Trail Mix Cookies

A while back Leslie gave me what Lucy and I have dubbed "The Magic Cookbook," because EVERY recipe you make from it is guaranteed to be super-successful (read as absolutely delicious.) We LOVE that cookbook. Well, for my Christmas Miss Lucy outdid herself when she located the new HEALTHY version of this cookbook. We were both so excited to have it....YIPPEE! There is even a recipe for the incredible Tarte Tatin that Leslie makes from the other book, with pears from her own trees. I've spent the last few days snowed in and reading every single recipe. So, why did I choose a cookie recipe as my first thing to try? There are tons of recipes for healthy grains, soups, and stir-fries, but I had to start with COOKIES after pigging out on sweets galore for the past two weeks. Well, they are delicious.

Trail Mix Cookies

1 cup (3 oz. if you weigh instead) old fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup (2 3/4 oz.) whole wheat flour

1/4 cup (1 1/2 oz.) all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp baking soda

5 TBS unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup (7 oz) packed brown sugar

1/2 cup dried cherries, cranberries, or raisins

1/2 cup unsalted sunflower or pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup peans, walnuts, or almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk oats, flours, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda together in a bowl.

2. In a large bowl, whisk melted butter, egg, and vanilla together. Stir in sugar until smooth, smearing any remaining clumps of sugar against side of bowl. Stir in the oat mixture until just combined, then stir in cherries, seeds, nuts, and chips.

3. Working with 1 heaping TBS of dough at a time, roll into balls and lay on parchment/pan, spaced 2 inches apart.

4. Bake one sheet at a time, until edges are set and beginning to brown but centers are still soft, puffy, and underdone, 12 to 16 minutes; rotate halfway through baking. NOTE: On my metal baking sheet with parchment, I baked for 8 minutes, rotated, and baked for 5 minutes more. On my Pampered Chef stone bar pan without parchment, I baked for 8 minutes, rotated, and baked for 8 minutes more.

5. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then serve warm or transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. NOTE: You should have seen Lucy's face when I brought her a plate of two warm cookies and a glass of milk!

Because lower-fat cookies don't store well, I baked a little more than half the dough and shaped the rest into balls and froze them on a baking sheet, then transferred them to a zip-lock freezer bag labelled: "Trail Mix Cookies #10. Do not thaw. Bake 12-16 minutes at 350."

Don't you love having your own home-made cookie dough in the freezer?