Grandma's Kitchen Table

French Fridays with Dorie: Pumpkin-Gorgonzola Flan

      The eighth recipe I made for French Fridays with Dorie, from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table cookbook, was Pumpkin-Gorgonzola Flan, found on pages 146-147.  I wasn't going to make this...in fact, I told pretty much everyone that I wasn't going to make this one as I am not the biggest pumpkin fan in the world, and it did not seem to me that pumpkin and Gorgonzola (an Italian blue cheese, which I do love) went together in the marrying kind of way in a recipe. 

      I firmly resolved to sit this one out...until I made pumpkin muffins this weekend and ended up with a half a can of pumpkin left over and no place to really go with it.  Gorgonzola was sitting in the fridge, along with eggs, cream, and walnuts.  And, then, well who doesn't have salt and pepper hanging around? 

      So I made the recipe.  Combine the pumpkin, eggs, cream, salt & pepper and whirl it about in the blender.  Pour into ramekins, and dot with cheese, sprinkle the walnuts on top.  What could possibly be easier? 

      It baked, it cooled to room temperature, I took my blog photo, and we ate it.  Well?  It was good, I'm happy I made it.  Skeptic no longer.  Now you can all say, "I told you so!"  Because you did.  And you were right.  Lesson:  Probably best not to doubt Dorie.

      If you would like to learn more about this group, you can click here. Enrollment is open, feel free to follow along officially or unofficially. The group posts weekly on Fridays.

CEiMB: Sesame Teriyaki Chicken Thighs and Orange Pistachio Wild Rice Salad

      The recipes chosen this week for CEiMB, using Ellie Krieger's book, The Food You Crave, were free choice, meaning we had a chance to pick any recipe that we hadn't had a chance to make that had already been made by the group.  I chose to make Sesame Teriyaki Chicken Thighs, found on page 209 and here, and Orange-Pistachio Wild Rice Salad, found on page 147 and here, and I served them with plain steamed asparagus glistened with a tiny bit of butter. 

      The chicken was wonderful, definitely a repeat, easy and tasty.  The wild rice salad was also wonderful, definitely a repeat.  Weeknight recipes with a bit of flair.

      Next week's assignment is Tortellini Spinach Soup from Ellie's book So Easy, on page 90, chosen by Bri of Yoshimi vs. Motherhood.  You can find the CEiMB blogroll here.

Friday's Favorites Fare

READING:  Things on Sam Houston, don't ask...just got on a kick about something, his name came up, and I was off and reading on Sam Houston for some reason. Someone had to do it.   

LISTENING TO:  My friend Nancy doesn't care for some of my taste in music, so in her honor, it's all Mozart all day.  Better than Axl and Def?  Who's to say?

COOKING BYTES:  Tired of making desserts...it happens every year at some point, usually when everyone else is gearing up for lots of holiday desserts, and it has reached that point again this year...thinking this might need to be a dessert-free week or two. 

FAV NEW FIND:  Not necessarily a new find, but I love, love, love having Matt and Mark home for four days in a row...very relaxing and nice.

FAV THING THIS WEEK:  Believe it or not, today we managed to get the house all decorated for the holiday season, so that feels lovely to have all that finished before the busy choir gigs, swimming gigs, and holiday festivities have us all running to and fro.  Matt's friend Reyn came over and helped decorate...photo is Matt and Reyn in front of the tree in the foyer.

GOING TO:  Spend time with family as Mark's family is all in town for the Thanksgiving holiday, so that means some sort of doings each day.  Swim practice and choir practice and Mass serving for Matt as well.  I might get some time to cook/bake.  Lots of Big Ten sports to watch...IU/Purdue tomorrow at noon, the Oaken Bucket game, IU hoops tonight but delayed broadcast until tomorrow, Hawks tonight live.  Might actually do some Christmas shopping.  Going where the wind takes me this weekend.

PRAYING FOR:  Safe travel for everyone on the road this holiday season...yes, especially you...please join me. 

Tuesdays with Dorie: Hidden Berry Cream Cheese Torte

      Thanks to The Powers That Be over at our main website for Tuesdays with Dorie our pick from Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook was free choice this week in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday.  We could pick anything we wanted from the rewind list, i.e. recipes that have been chosen already and ones, that for one reason or another, we did not, or could not, make when they were chosen, or perhaps ones that were made before one joined the group. 

      I hadn't a clue what I was going to choose until my pal Nancy said, "I'm going to make the Hidden Berry Cheese Cake Torte, on page 240-242."  Leslie thought that sounded good as well, so I was in.  It did not involve chocolate, and it had my favorites, fruit and cream cheese, so it didn't take me long to jump in on also choosing this one. 

      This one was made back in the second week of the group's existence (January 2008), a couple of months before I joined.  Click here for the recipe.  Leslie and some others had trouble with the top browning, so Nancy tried making it with foil tented over the top for the baking time and it did not get brown and rubbery this way.  I decided I was going to do mine that way as well as in the book, the torte is pictured with a clean smooth light colored filling, so I was happy with the result and it tasted great.  You guessed it, we were doing all this on Twitter so we could compare notes.  Leslie did hers first so we all benefited from her experience and tips.

      I used strawberry preserves for the jam in the recipe, and I am guessing the guys are going to eat this with whipped cream on the top, but why???  It is absolutely delicious just as it is, no need for anything further.  Is it a repeat?  Possibly.  With tortes in general, I find that the crusts are just too thick or chunky or heavy or something...so I might not use this particular crust again for those reasons.  (Of course, this could be a reflection of my torte-making skills, or lack thereof, as well.)  It was good, it's just that for my personal tastes, it's just a bit much...something lighter would be perfect.

      Next week:  Tania from Love Big, Bake Often has chosen Devilish Shortcakes, found on page 425. TWD blogroll found here.

IHCC: Fall Favorites: Giada's Butternut Squash Soup with Fontina Cheese Crostini

      The seventh week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Fall Favorites, so I chose Giada's Butternut Squash Soup with Fontina Cheese Crostini, recipe on page 52-53, in the Giada at Home cookbook. You can also find the recipes here. 

      I love soup, you are getting that by now, right?  I promise to pick something different for next week.  Really, I do eat more than soup, it's just that when I see a great looking soup recipe, it's hard to resist passing it up.  And, well, the theme was Fall Favorites, and what says "Fall" more than Butternut Squash?! 

      Ingredient list for the soup:  Butternut squash, onion, carrot, garlic, olive oil, butter, chicken broth, fresh sage leaves, salt, and pepper.  It goes together easily, cooks on top of the stove, and gets whirred about with the immersion blender when everything is nicely soft in texture.  I love that her version does not include cream and yet it tastes perfectly creamy.  Delicious, definitely a repeat. 

      The crostini ingredient list:  Baguette slices, olive oil, fresh sage leaves, Fontina cheese.  Easy, quick, and delicious. 

      Next week's theme is Potluck, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

BBA: Pugliese

      The twenty-ninth Bread Baker's Apprentice challenge (from the book by the same name authored by Peter Reinhart) is Pugliese, and is found on pages 222-226.   

      This is a two-day dough: a small amount of time on the first day to make the biga and let it rise for a couple of hours and then into the refrigerator for an overnight stay.  Ingredient list for biga:  bread flour, yeast, water. 

      The next day you take the biga out to warm for about an hour and mix it with the other ingredients and then do the fold and stretch method 3 times with 30 minute intervals before it rises for two hours.  After this rise, it is taken from the bowl, carefully cut into two sections (you can see I'm not that great at getting even halves, no matter), and make boules, letting those rise each in a proofing bowl for another 90 minutes.  After that time, you carefully turn it out onto the cooking surface, slash the top, and bake for about 25 minutes, using techniques shown in the book for hearth baking.
      Can you believe the holes I got on my very first try???  I couldn't believe it either, not bad for a first try. 

      The dough recipe made two one-pound loaves.  Ingredient list for bread dough:   Duram flour and Bread flour (or Bread flour only which is what I used), salt, yeast, mashed potatoes, and water. 

      Delicious.  Really really good.  Definitely a repeat, another one of my favorites so far.  

      You can visit the main group and marvel the breads.  I'm getting there...Slow and Steady.  Our next challenge:  Basic Sourdough Bread, found on pages 233-235.

BBA: Potato Rosemary Bread (Rolls)

      The twenty-eighth Bread Baker's Apprentice challenge (from the book by the same name authored by Peter Reinhart) is Potato Sweet Bread (Rolls), and is found on pages 219-221.   

      This is a two-day dough: a small amount of time on the first day to make the biga and let it rise for a couple of hours and then into the refrigerator for an overnight stay.  Ingredient list for biga:  bread flour, yeast, water. 

      The next day you take the biga out to warm for about an hour and mix it with the other ingredients for a two hour rise, form into bread or rolls, let it rise another hour or two.       The dough made 18 rolls of 2 ounce size and they were brushed with olive oil before they baked for 25 minutes.  Ingredient list for bread dough:   Bread flour, salt, pepper, yeast, mashed potatoes, olive oil, rosemary, and water.  Delicious.  Definitely a repeat, one of my favorites so far.  

      You can visit the main group and marvel the breads.  I'm getting there...Slow and Steady.  Our next challenge:  Pugliese, found on pages 222-226.

Friday's Favorites Fare

READING:  Bits and pieces of a stack of things I have around here that I just wanted to read bits and pieces of...historical in nature, all of it.   

LISTENING TO:  Guns N Roses...it started with November Rain and then I just kept going as I have too many favorites to just pick one or two, yes, it's true.

COOKING BYTES:  Reading up on Afghan cooking for this month's My Kitchen My World...am thinking this one is doable.  Leslie, Margaret, and I are cooking Indian food every now and again together on Twitter, so photo is the shrimp curry and spicy cucumbers that we made last week...Naan was supposed to have accompanied it, but...well, I sort of forgot until it was too late to make it.  Weekends can be like that with a lot of ballgame action and all.

FAV NEW FIND:  It's college basketball season...always love college basketball season.

FAV THING THIS WEEK:  Subbed at Guerin all week, which is always enjoyable for me.  This week was particularly fun as the football team became regional champs last week so this week they got to go to semi-state and the students are just so excited.  Little Bitty GCHS won a regional championship, what a fun thing for them all! Unfortunately they lost the semi-state game 20-22, a heartbreaker.

GOING TO:  Watch a lot of Big Ten Football and Big Ten teams in Basketball action, get caught up with cooking and baking since I have been out of the kitchen all week during the days, Pippin and Vash have vet appointments so two of us will wrestle them there and back, CHS Dad's Pancake breakfast for the boys on Saturday morning, a couple of Twitterbakes, getting the house ready for Thanksgiving next week (how did that get here so quickly??), and general bits of other things, maybe even get the outdoor Christmas lights put up while the weather is good even though we won't light them up until after Thanksgiving.  Matt loves to do those and he does a great job.

PRAYING FOR:  Kids with cancer...please join me. 

CEiMB: Cioppino

      The recipe chosen this week for CEiMB, using Ellie Krieger's book, So Easy, was by Margaret of Tea and Scones and is basically a fish and seafood soup called Cioppino.  It can be found on page 199 and also here. 

      We like a good soup around here.  We love seafood and fish as well.  The soup was good, I am happy we made it and tried it, but probably not a repeat.  Definitely not the fault of the recipe at all...we just happen to like our soup and fish/seafood separately.  We did like it the night we ate it, but it just didn't have enough "wow" factor to inspire me to make this particular recipe again. 

      The soup was easy to make and comes together quickly for a busy weeknight dinner.  The ingredient list is:  Onion, Celery, Garlic, Thyme, Bay, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, Tomato Paste, Dry White Wine, Tomatoes, Fish Stock, Red Wine Vinegar, Salt, Pepper, Shrimp, Scallops, Halibut, and Parsley (which I didn't have so I threw on some fresh thyme leaves instead). 

      Every single ingredient is one we like, guess we just don't really care for wet fish, which sounds strange, but all acts of finickiness sound strange to others, right?  I can think of many other recipes I would rather make with halibut, scallops, or shrimp.  Thanks for the pick, Margaret, as I would have made it sooner or later because I am all about the soup recipes and trying new ones, I hope you loved it as I know how much you love your seafood/soups/stews down there in Louisiana!   

      Next week's assignment is to choose our own recipe for Thanksgiving week.  You can find the CEiMB blogroll here.

Bake! Lemon Crumb Bars

      The third recipe that I made from Bake!  by Nick Malgieri was the Lemon Crumb Bars, found on pages 14-15 (Sweet Tart Dough) and page 196 (bars).  This was another Twitterbake that Phyl and I had a chance to do this weekend, my recipe choice this time, but then you probably all figured that out already as it is lemon and all. 

      The Sweet Tart Dough recipe went together for me even better this week, I had more of an idea how to handle it. 

      The crumb topping (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and butter) was easy to make and it baked separately from the lemon filling, which was fun, the only downside being that it tastes so good that I kept sampling a wee bit here and there while the lemon filling and crust were baking. 

      The lemon filling itself (eggs, lemon zest, fresh lemon juice, and sugar) was incredibly easy to make. 

      It all baked and then the crumb topping was sprinkled on the top, baked another five minutes, and left to cool before cutting into bars. 

      How did it taste?  Wonderful!  I will keep this recipe close at hand for future need...sometimes one just needs several lemon bar recipes when the urge strikes.  This is a really good one, not one of those gooey ones that get you all sticky when you try to eat it, not puckery lemon, but just nice solid lovely lemon flavor.  This recipe would be easy enough to do a half as well. 

      Get the book and Bake! with us, we will even let you choose recipes in rotation with us, yes, we will!  

IHCC: Kid at Heart: Giada's Hearty Tomato Soup with Lemon and Rosemary with Taleggio and Pear Panini

      The sixth week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Kid at Heart, so I chose Giada's Hearty Tomato Soup with Lemon and Rosemary, recipe on page 44-45, as well as Taleggio and Pear Panini, recipe on page 56, both in the Giada's Kitchen cookbook. You can also find the recipes here and here. 

      I love soup.  I think I could have soup every single lunch and never get tired of it...wait, I already do have soup for lunch much of the time and I never get tired of it.  When I was in elementary school I think that is pretty much all I ever ate for lunch:  Campbell's Tomato Soup and a Grilled Cheese Sandwich...it was my favorite lunch, and while I have stepped up a bit from canned tomato soup and sandwiches made with Wonder bread and Kraft Singles from my childhood, I still love a great tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich. 

      When the theme for this week was "Kid at Heart," I knew exactly what I was going to make.  The Hearty Tomato Soup with Lemon and Rosemary is wonderful.  The photo in the book had one very nice dollop of whipped rosemary lemon cream perched on top, so I did that and it started melting before I could get my photo...oh, well, I tried.  It was great all melty like that as there are hot pepper flakes in the soup, so the cream cools the heat down a bit while adding more lemon and rosemary flavor.

      Ingredient list:  Tomatoes, Carrots, Onion, Cannellini Beans, Garlic, Chicken Broth, Bay Leaf, Rosemary, Red Pepper Flakes, Salt, Pepper, Cream, Lemon Zest.  It goes together easily.  Delicious, definitely a repeat. 

      The panini sandwich ingredient list:  Ciabatta Bread, Olive Oil, Taleggio Cheese, Pears, Honey, Salt, Pepper, and Fresh Spinach. 

      Oh, my goodness was this a great sandwich!  I don't have a panini press, so I just made grilled cheese sandwiches with it and it worked just fine.  This one is definitely a repeat, actually, we are having it again tomorrow for lunch as Mark was very happy with it as well. 

      Next week's theme is Fall Favorites, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

Friday's Favorites Fare: Signed, Sealed, To Be Delivered Next August

READING:  Various pieces on armistice for WWI...it seemed fitting for the week with Veteran's Day and all.

LISTENING TO:  Soundtrack from The Big Chill    

COOKING BYTES:  Getting caught up on various blog-alongs and guys are enjoying the food from it all.  It's my plan that when Matt goes off to college he wants to return home regularly for home cooking.

FAV NEW FIND:  Seven of the senior swimmers have committed to colleges for swimming and signed their letters of intent this week.  In photo at top:  Sam going to University of Kentucky; Lauren and Matt are going to Indiana University; Mike is headed to Iowa; Kiernan is going to swim at Xavier; leaving Rhiannon and Carly to apply their considerable swimming efforts up at Purdue.  I would say The Big Ten is being represented fairly well by this year's class of seniors with 5 of the 7 going to Big Ten schools.  Harrison committed to Princeton, and he is not pictured here as he goes to Brebeuf High School so his official signing was over there this week.  

FAV THING THIS WEEK:  Watching Matt sign his letter of intent committing to Indiana University for college.  The "real" signing took place in our dining room at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, the first day of signing...once signed, it was faxed to the IU athletic department, and the original copy was sent to them by US Mail. 

      Then today, Friday, the high school had a "fake" official signing ceremony where the athletes all "signed" a blank piece of paper and have their photos taken as if they were actually signing, etc.  It was fun...the swimmers really enjoyed it.  Now it all seems real.  (Photos below:  The Three Boys: Kiernan, Matt, and Mike at the signing; Matt and Lauren both going to IU.)

GOING TO:  Watch the opening game tonight for IU Basketball season, so we are more than eager to have that getting underway, another game on Sunday, with the IU football game sandwiched between on Saturday at noon.  This time of year when there is both Big Ten Football and Big Ten Basketball going on, we tend to watch a lot of ballgames...no complaints here. 

PRAYING FOR:  Please join me in praying for cancer patients going through chemo and radiation...that all that pain and suffering brings favorable results.

French Fridays with Dorie: Roast Chicken for les Paresseux

      The seventh recipe I made for French Fridays with Dorie, from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table cookbook, was Roast Chicken for les Paresseux, found on pages 200-201 (photo on page 198).

      This recipe is for an easy roast chicken, translating as "for lazy people," which means that it is simple to make, requires no fuss, and is done in time enough that you can make it on a busy weeknight.

      Ingredients include: Olive oil, baguette slices (for resting the chicken upon while it cooks, and while Dorie might enjoy eating the bread at the end of the cooking time, I found it unappealing as it was soaked with chicken fat/juice, etc., and was part of that whole "wet bread" thing I don't care for, it's just a personal thing, no reflection on the recipe/Dorie), whole chicken, rosemary, thyme, oregano, garlic, dry white wine, baby potatoes, carrots, and shallots. It all went together in a flash and cooked for 90 minutes in a 450 degree oven.
       The chicken turned out wonderfully moist and delicious. Can't think of a reason not to make this over and over again...it's easy, has simple ingredients, and tastes delicious.

      If you would like to learn more about this group, you can click here. Enrollment is open, feel free to follow along officially or unofficially. The group posts weekly on Fridays.

CEiMB: Whole Wheat Pasta Salad with Walnuts and Feta Cheese

      The recipe chosen this week for CEiMB, using Ellie Krieger's book, The Food You Crave, was my selection and is Whole Wheat Pasta Salad with Walnuts and Feta Cheese.  It can be found on page 137 and also here. 

      We like a good pasta salad here, so when it came around to my choice again, I was looking at all the pasta selections that had not been chosen so far.  This one sounded great and after making it, I can say, this is one great pasta salad recipe, worth repeating time and again.

      The ingredient list is not long:  pasta, walnuts, feta, red onion, spinach, walnut or olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.  

      I had some at room temperature just after I assembled it, delicious.  I had some cold from the frig, delicious.  I had some the following day just to see how well it held up, delicious.  It holds up very well, something you could make the day before and have on hand for a gathering with no problem at all.  Definitely a repeat.   

      Next week's hostess is Margaret of Tea and Scones, she selected Cioppino on page 199 of  So Easy.  You can find the CEiMB blogroll here.

IHCC: Out of Italy: Giada's Onion Soup with Fontina and Thyme

      The fifth week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Out of Italy, so I chose Giada's Onion Soup with Fontina and Thyme recipe. You can find the recipe here. 

      The first thing to know is that I am a French Onion Soup nut.  I almost always order it when I go out to eat, I am very picky about finding really good FOS, and I have made more varieties/recipes/kinds of FOS than probably almost anyone you know personally, unless you know a lot of chefs. 

      When it came time for this week's theme, I hadn't a clue what I would choose, but I saw that one of the other members chose this soup and I lost all thoughts of doing anything else.  Why would I not want to make it so that I could taste and compare it to all the others I have tried?  You can see from the recipe, if you have clicked over on it already, that it is simple, requires only a few ingredients, and pretty much follows your typical French Onion Soup recipe. 

      How did it stack up with my favorites?  Hmmm...well, if one is just sitting down to a bowl of it, it was good.  If one is going to compare it with others when deciding if one will make it again, the answer would be "no."  It wasn't bad, it just wasn't the caliber of FOS that I have been accustomed to making/eating.  The recipe calls for Vidalia onions, which, are just too sweet for me after they cook down a little...sweetness not something I value highly in a soup.  The seasonings of thyme, salt, pepper, a little olive oil, were just so-so.  The bread cubes were okay, but I prefer mine toasted a little to keep them from getting really soggy, not a fan of wet bread.  The cheese of choice in this recipe was Fontina, which I did not think stood up well to my usual favorite, Gruyere, which has a slightly nutty flavor and is a strong addition to the flavorings.  The Fontina is a little bland in this regard. 

      All in all, it just did not have the kick or depth of flavor that I love in a really good French Onion Soup.  I am happy I made it, though, just to taste and see, and none of it went to waste...it just wasn't a Top Ten for me. 

      The next week's theme is Kid at Heart, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

IHCC: Chocolate Cravings: Giada's Espresso Caramel Bars

      The fourth week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Chocolate Cravings, so I chose Giada's Espresso Caramel Bars recipe from Giada At Home cookbook, pages 181-182. You can also find the recipe here. 

      Those who have been cooking/baking with me awhile know by now that chocolate is not my favorite ingredient by a long shot.  It is, however, a favorite ingredient around here with the guys, so I am always happy to try something new along those lines that I think they might enjoy.  They are coffee drinkers as well, so combining the flavors of coffee and chocolate with a well-loved ingredient like caramel, seemed like just the sort of treat they would enjoy.  They did indeed. 

      It went together quickly, although there were three separate components to make, the chocolate topping, the caramel middle (I absolutely love making homemade caramel), and the cookie-like crust.  Apparently, it was delicious and I will definitely be making this one again. 

      The next week's theme was Out of Italy, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Not-Just-For-Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread Cake

      Thanks to Jessica of Singleton in the Kitchen for her Tuesdays with Dorie pick of Not-Just-For-Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread Cake, found on pages 208-209 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook.  You can also find the recipe on Jessica's site here. 

      Jessica is all about fruit in things, so I knew I could count on her to pick something fresh, fruity, and in season for this week.  Her choice fits all that and more, it has a sweet crunchy cookie outside that pairs wonderfully well with the tart/sweet cranberry filling. 

      The recipe is easy.  We made the cranberry jam filling from scratch which is so much fun because the little cranberries have a symphony of popping going on while you are stirring it, takes very little time to do that, maybe ten minutes start to stop.  After the cranberry jam, you make a shortbread dough, again, maybe ten minutes start to stop, and chill it for about 20 minutes, roll half of it out to fit your pan, fit it into the pan, plop the cranberry filling on top, roll out the other half of the dough and place it on top, brush it with a little water and sugar and it goes into the oven to bake.  It smells absolutely lovely...like Thanksgiving morning!
      Usually I get the guys to weigh in on the recipes, but no need this time...I will make it again as I really loved it.  They can weigh in on it later...I have no doubt in my mind that it will be a sure hit with them as well. Top Five for me...thanks for a wonderful Dorie pick, Jessica!  

      Next week:  Whitney, April, and Elizabeth from Celestial Confections have chosen Cranberry Lime Galette, found on pages 364-365. TWD blogroll found here.

Bake! Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Tart

      The second recipe that I made from Bake!  by Nick Malgieri was the Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Tart, found on pages 14-15 (Sweet Tart Dough) and page 19 (filling). 

      This was Phyl's choice as I got to choose the first recipe, so it only seemed fair that he got to select the second one.  I have never had Sweet Potato Tart or Pie before, let alone make one from scratch, so I was happy with the choice because I knew I would be learning something new.  We set a time for a Twitterbake and Margaret joined in as well. 

      It all went together easily and was such a pretty color with the sweet potatoes.  Ingredient list for dough:  Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder, Salt, Butter, and Eggs.  Ingredient list for filling:  Sweet Potatoes, Sugar, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Salt, Eggs, Cream, and Vanilla. 

      It baked for about an hour, cooled, and was enjoyed plain and with whipped cream, because, well, you know...guys here are all about the whipped cream. 

      The tart crust was wonderful and the filling was milder than say a pumpkin pie, which I liked, Mark said he thought I should spice it up a little more next time, but he did enjoy it.  I think he was comparing it to pumpkin pie spice because he dearly loves pumpkin pie.  Maybe I can just make cinnamon whipped cream for him next time.  Matt liked it very much. 

      Now I can say I have had, and made, Sweet Potato Pie/Tart!  Delicious!  Definitely a repeat.  Get the book and Bake! with us.

Friday's Favorites Fare

READING:  Various pieces, parts of books, online things, etc. on the WWII Atlantic Charter and personalities participating therein.  Fascinating stuff.  I know what you are thinking, so just don't say it and be happy for me.

LISTENING TO:  Mellencamp    

COOKING BYTES:  The new Ina cookbook found its way to my doorstep but it is getting wrapped up for Christmas...I think.  That's the plan now anyway. Patience is a virtue, right?

FAV NEW FIND:  All the CSC Senior Swimmers committing to their various favorite college swim programs...so much fun to hear where they are all going to college.  Signing is next Wednesday...I know I will be so excited and I also know I will cry (tears of joy for all their successes and future endeavors and tears of sadness at the thought of all of them going different directions next year).   

FAV THING THIS WEEK:  Carving jack-o-lanterns out of pumpkins as a family last Sunday...the last year we will all be together doing this.  (See above photo:  Alex, left, Mark, center, Matt, right.)

GOING TO:  One of those Speedo/Tux weekends....Matt has an IYC concert on Friday night, swimming on Saturday and Sunday mornings in our Fall Frenzy meet, which means parents work the meet as well as attend, then Matt has choir rehearsal again Sunday afternoon, and whatever else we can fit in between all of that.  Hoping to Twitterbake a couple of times over the weekend.  Oh, and the Hoosiers and the Hawkeyes play football at noon on Saturday...always love a HooHawk game.  (And, a sneak preview to my post who is going where to college next week, Mike V. has committed to Iowa to swim...so much fun for me to think of him there...definitely making a trip to see him swim in IC next year!)

PRAYING FOR:  Please join me in praying for troubled teens, might be the thing that keeps all their parents on this side of sanity.

IHCC: Giada's Tuscan White Bean and Garlic Soup

       The third week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Potluck, so I chose Giada's Tuscan White Bean and Garlic Soup recipe from Giada's Kitchen cookbook, page 46. You can also find the recipe here. 

      It is the beginning of soup weather around here and soup potlucks are my favorite!  Soups, salads, crusty bread and rolls, be still my heart. 

      Ingredient list:  cannellini beans, garlic, butter, olive oil, shallots, sage leaves, chicken broth, cream salt, and pepper.  It went together quickly and was delicious.  I will definitely be making this one again. 

      The next week's theme was Chocolate Cravings, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

French Fridays with Dorie: Spicy Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup

      The sixth recipe I made for French Fridays with Dorie, from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table cookbook, was Spicy Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup, found on pages 98-100.  This group started in October with the first five recipes chosen by Dorie herself.  I had completed four of them, so here is the last one for October, a little out of order, but nonetheless sincere as this was a really great soup! 

      Ingredients include:  Star Anise, coriander seeds, white peppercorns, onion, garlic, fresh ginger, dried red chiles, chicken broth, unsweetened coconut milk, brown sugar, salt, chicken breast meat, Chinese noodles, lime juice (and I left out fish sauce, replacing it with soy sauce as we do not care for fish sauce, and I replaced the cilantro with chives for the same reason).  There were also some "optional garnishes" so I dotted Hoisin Sauce on the top, delicious! 

      I just love really good soup for lunch, and this would be a really good soup to make time and again.  It has a spicy fun kick to it that feels refreshing and fresh.  The flavors together are excellent. 

      It looks complicated with all the ingredients, but it definitely is not, just took a bit for me to get all the ingredients located in the same place at the same time.  Definitely worth it, definitely a repeat.  

      If you would like to learn more about this group, you can click here.  Enrollment is open, feel free to follow along officially or unofficially.  The group posts weekly on Fridays.

French Fridays with Dorie: Pommes Dauphinois (Potato Gratin)

      The fifth recipe I made for French Fridays with Dorie, from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table cookbook, was Pommes Dauphinois (Potato Gratin), found on pages 360-361. 

      Ingredients include:  Idaho potatoes, heavy cream, garlic, salt, pepper, and Gruyere cheese (or your cheese of choice), as well as optional herbs, which I forgot to add so I didn't have any of those in there this time. 

      The garlic gets infused into the cream and warmed, the potatoes are thinly sliced, it all comes together very quickly, mine took about an hour to cook, and while I thought the amount of cream would make it too thin, it did not, it all soaked into the potatoes for a lovely, lovely, "One really can't be eating this too often for health reasons" taste.   Definitely a repeat, your discretion as to how often.  

      If you would like to learn more about this group, you can click here.  Enrollment is open, feel free to follow along officially or unofficially.  The group posts weekly on Fridays.

CEiMB: Mushroom, Onion, and Basil Pizza

      The recipe chosen this week for CEiMB, using Ellie Krieger's book, The Food You Crave, was selected by Joanne at Apple Crumbles  and is Mushroom, Onion, and Basil Pizza.  It can be found on page 176 and also here. 

      We like pizza around here...I always think of pizza as sort of guy food, teen food, kid food, so those groups being well-represented, chances of making and serving a pizza to everyone's satisfaction is pretty good.  This pizza was no exception.  The guys loved it.  The girl?  Well, let's just say that I have been making homemade crusts from various yeast doughs recently and am becoming rather spoiled in the pizza crust department.  This recipe uses one of those pre-made pizza crusts that comes in a tube in the refrigerated section of the grocery market.  Not my favorite. 

      The toppings were fine, caramelized onions, mushrooms, garlic, cheese, tomato sauce, and I did sub roasted peppers for the sun-dried tomatoes because, well because, sun-dried tomatoes here fall into the "chick food" category for some reason and the guys don't particularly like them...read that the guys pick them out and toss them aside, so no real reason to be putting those on in the first place.  I also left off the basil on the top because we are just really tired of basil right now.
      It was a good pizza, not a great pizza because of the crust, but a good pizza.     

      Next week's hostess is Me!  I selected the Whole Wheat Pasta Salad with Walnuts and Feta Cheese on page 137 of  The Food You Crave.  You can find the CEiMB blogroll here.

IHCC: Giada's Chicken Florentine

      The second week theme for I Heart Cooking Clubs, featuring chef Giada De Laurentiis, was Served Family Style, so I chose Giada's Chicken Florentine recipe from Giada's Family Dinners cookbook, page 89. You can also find the recipe here.

      Loved this recipe, it was easy, quick, delicious, and a wonderful week night dinner. I served it with steamed broccoli and baked sweet potato fries, because the guys here are all about a weekly serving of baked sweet potato fries.

      Ingredient list for the recipe is not long: boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, salt, pepper, flour, shallots, garlic, dry white wine, heavy cream, parsley, and spinach (it called for frozen, but I used fresh sauteed just a little as that is how we like it).  It went together in a flash.  Definitely a repeat.

The next week's theme was Potluck, come join in, just leave your link at the I Heart Cooking Clubs site.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Peanuttiest Blondies

      Thanks to Nicole of Bakeologie for her Tuesdays with Dorie pick of Peanuttiest Blondies, found on page 119 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook.  You can also find the recipe on Nicole's site here. 

      These treats were easy to put together, have peanuts and chocolate chips in them, and are guaranteed to please the peanut butter-chocolate chip crowd.  We are a divided household in these matters, the divided half that subscribes to the peanut butter-chocolate chip fan club, thought these were very good indeed.     

      Next week:  Jessica from Singleton in the Kitchen has chosen Not-Just-For-Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread, found on pages 208-209. TWD blogroll found here.

French Fridays with Dorie: Marie-Helene's Apple Cake

      The fourth recipe I made for French Fridays with Dorie, from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table cookbook, was Marie-Helene's Apple Cake, found on pages 431-433. 

      Ingredients include:  flour, baking powder, salt, apples, eggs, sugar, rum, vanilla, and butter.  This was an extremely easy recipe to put together, I followed the instructions exactly.  That said, her photo in the book and mine look slightly different to me.  It looks like she has more batter portion than apples, so I am thinking that either my eggs were not as large as the ones she used or that my apples were larger than the ones she used because mine turned out to be more apples than batter, not really looking like a cake.  I will try it again with a full-size version as we have had quite a few baked items around lately, so I just made two small mini cakes (4" springform pan size), using half the recipe.  Maybe my results will be different doing it that way.        Then again, the taste was wonderful and we all enjoyed it very much just as it was...very moist and full of apples!  Although the guys are not much into cakes, they loved this dessert.  Definitely a repeat either way.     

 

      If you would like to learn more about this group, you can click here.  Enrollment is open, feel free to follow along officially or unofficially.  The group posts weekly on Fridays.