A toast to Michael

June 26, 2009 | Posted as Drinks at 5:19 pm | (1) Comment »

Truly a sad day for millions of Michael Jackson fans around the world- but as with any death, I think this time is best spent celebrating the life of the recently deceased. That his death headlined on nearly all news sources, that people stopped working and condoled with each other, just goes to show how many lives he’s touched. Through watching his sometimes crazy life, yes- but most importantly, through his music.

Because, right now anyway for me, it’s all about his music.

And so we toast Michael Jackson today, with this appropriately named cocktail, the Moonwalk. It’s a little fruity, a little floral, elegantly bubbly, and very fabulous. Much like the King of Pop himself.

Moonwalk Cocktail Recipe

1 part grapefruit juice
1 part Grand Marnier
1 part rose water
Chilled champagne

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake well, and strain into a wine glass. Top off with champagne.

The Perfect Martini

June 24, 2009 | Posted as Drinks at 3:11 am | (1) Comment »

I hardly ever have a drink these days. The occasional glass of wine to accompany a meal, sure- and maybe one or two glasses of Bailey’s on the rocks at get-togethers with girlfriends… but nothing like when I used to go out to clubs and bars. In those days, one of my favorite ever things to order was a Martini. With an olive, maybe two. Can you tell that I love olives? Delicious.

Because we like to entertain regularly, we keep our home bar pretty well-stocked- and the other night I felt myself hankering for a perfectly made Martini. And here’s what I did:

Perfect Olive Martini Recipe

1 oz dry gin
1 oz sweet vermouth
1 oz olive juice or brine (straight out of the jar of olives… yep)
ice cubes
1 or 2 olives

Fill your cocktail shaker halfway with ice cubes. Pour gin, sweet vermouth and olive juice into it, cover, and shake well. Strain into a martini glass, and add olive(s). It’s shaken, not stirred (cue James Bond music).

Making two of these and handing one to my husband as he walked in the door made me feel very worldly and grown-up somehow.

Quick Caramel Apples

June 18, 2009 | Posted as Candies & Truffles Recipe at 4:34 pm | Comments »

I realize that caramel apples may not exactly be what comes to mind when you think of quick sweets to prepare, but trust me- this recipe is easy. And tooth-achingly delicious. And- because you use honey instead of sugar- quite possibly good for you. Let’s get started, shall we?

First, you need apples. I had small fuji apples on hand, but feel free to use any apples of your choice. Golden delicious, granny smith… indeed, if you like the combination of sweet and tart, try going with a good crispy green apple. Make sure your apples are cold. This recipe made me around six caramel apples- but I like to lay my caramel on thickly.

Then get your other ingredients in line: a cup of heavy cream, half a teaspoon of kosher salt, and a cup of honey. Oh, and some good sturdy popsicle sticks. That’s it. Didn’t I tell you this would be easy?

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat mat (I used the latter). Spear each apple through with a popsicle stick, and set aside.

In a heavy saucepan, heat the heavy cream and kosher salt just until tiny bubbles start forming. You’ll want to use medium-low heat for this. Do not bring this to a boil. Not yet, anyway. Stir in the honey gently- then bring to a boil. Once it boils, reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. If you have a candy thermometer, you want it to reach 250F degrees, or until nice and thick but still quite liquid. Remove from the heat immediately.

Dip each apple in the caramel. Optionally, roll the apple in some chopped nuts after doing so. Place on your parchment-lined baking sheet, and let set. It doesn’t take very long to set. Mmmm.

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Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs

June 15, 2009 | Posted as Eggs at 1:17 pm | (1) Comment »

I’m a little embarrassed that it’s taken me this long to perfect the hard boiled egg. There’s the expression “she can’t even boil an egg”- but I promise you that before today, I have been able to boil an egg- just not a perfect one.

Before today, I tried everything. I added vinegar to the water to prevent the whites from oozing out of the cracks in the shells (and I always, always seemed to have cracked shells!) I added salt to the water to make it easier to peel them. I tried keeping the water on a low simmer before lowering the eggs in. And it was always a hit and miss- some eggs were better than others, some almost perfect… but I never had a day when all the eggs were perfectly hard-boiled, and easy to peel. Until today.

So here’s what I did: I placed the eggs in an unheated saucepan, covered them with cold water, put the saucepan on the stove and turned the heat on to medium-high. Then I waited.

As soon as it started boiling (and I’m talking a good, rolling boil here), I switched the heat off, set my kitchen timer to ten minutes, and went to check Facebook.

After ten minutes, I drained the eggs from the water, and dumped about two cups of ice on them. This gave them a good shock. After they were all nice and shocked and quite cool, I peeled them. When you peel them this way, they are perfect. The peel, membrane and all, comes right off- and you are left with perfectly boiled, shiny egg, with a very moist, creamy yolk within. You’re welcome.

Make it yourself: Fettucine

June 9, 2009 | Posted as Make it Yourself at 7:01 am | (1) Comment »

A new feature on this site: make-it-yourself recipes for things you ordinarily wouldn’t! And I’m starting things off with one of the most daunting make it yourself things of all: fettucine.

I realize it’s daunting because I resisted making pasta at home for a long, long time. Why bother, when there was so much good, dried pasta around? Pasta made by machine, so every strand was perfect? Pastas made by real Italians, who would certainly know more than I on the subject?

Here’s why to bother: because homemade pasta rocks. That’s not an overstatement- if you’ve never tried freshly made pasta, your head will explode from how deliciously different it is from the dried, packaged stuff.

And you know something else? I don’t even own a pasta machine. Just a good old rolling pin.

Ingredients:
300g semolina flour
3 whole eggs
a pinch of salt
1000ml or one liter of water

Mound the flour on a flat, clean surface. I use a large wooden chopping board.

Make a well in the pile of flour with a spoon or your hand. Afterwards, pour the eggs into the well and use a fork to mix. Add the salt.

Knead the mixture to make the dough… until it is smooth and firm. When done, cover with cling wrap until you ready to work with it. At this point, I usually stick it in the fridge to give it some time to rest and chill.

When you’re ready, roll it out thinly, and slice into fettucine strips.

This pasta takes about two minutes to cook, and it is heavenly.