Monthly Archives: March 2009

Spinach, Pear, and Walnut Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette

March 21, 2009

I’ve been eyeing the bottles of POM juice at the grocery for some time now, trying to figure out what use I could put that much pomegranate juice to (besides just drinking it of course). Pure pomegranate juice is expensive and I didn’t want to have any excuse to waste it. On our trip to the Outer Banks last week we had lunch at a little gourmet deli where I ordered a spinach salad and pomegranate blueberry vinaigrette. After one bite I knew I had to create my own! While I found the vinaigrette recipe on a web search (at Oprah.com of all places), I put together my own ingredients for the salad base. Baby spinach, semi-firm pears, tart dried cranberries, crumbled feta cheese, and crunchy walnuts combine beautifully together. The bright ruby pomegranate vinaigrette is aromatic, sweet, and my favorite dressing yet! I’ve had this salad every day now since I first made it. I can’t stop eating it. I can’t stop thinking about eating it. Thank goodness there is some left from dinner last night…lunch can’t come soon enough! Because I’ve still barely made a dent in the bottle of POM sitting cheerily on the top shelf of my fridge, there will be more pomegranate recipes to come. I’ll probably experiment with a few more dressings as well. Until then, happy POM dreams!

INGREDIENTS
6 oz. baby spinach
2 ripe (but still firm) Bartlett pears, thinly sliced
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Vinaigrette:
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. pomegranate juice
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. honey
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Divide spinach among 4 serving bowls. Top with pears, walnuts, feta, and cranberries.

2. To make the vinaigrette combine pomegranate juice, vinegar, honey in a small bowl. While whisking, drizzle in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

NOTE: DO NOT use a food processor to make this dressing. It will completely change the color and texture of the dressing- it just doesn’t work!

3. Serve salad drizzled with vinaigrette, or on the side.

Serves 4.

White Chocolate Chunk Chocolate Cookies

March 20, 2009

These cookies hit the spot when you’re craving something sweet but are bored of plain chocolate chip. They are notoriously soft and chewy and chocolaty! I’ve haven’t tried this yet, but I often read about bakers who freeze cookie dough in little balls and then pop them onto the pan and into the oven when they are wanting homemade cookies. (Because they are frozen, you will have to increase the baking time.) I think next time I make a batch (should work for just about any cookie) I’ll freeze half of it for future use. Talk about convenience! You’ll want to flash freeze them separately on a sheet pan for an hour or so before throwing them in a bag together. This prevents them from sticking to each other and becoming one frozen solid mass. If anyone tries this let us know how it goes.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups white chocolate chunks

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Add the vanilla. Combine the cocoa, flour, baking soda, and salt and gradually stir into the creamed mixture. Finally, fold in white chocolate chunks. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffy but still soft. Cool on a wire rack.

Makes 4 dozen cookies.

(Adapted from All Recipes)

White Bean Chicken Chili

March 15, 2009

Of all the chili recipes I’ve ever tried, this is my favorite. Chicken and white beans in a savory green chile and onion broth….Mmmm! And it doesn’t have to simmer all day…15 minutes and dinner is on the table. Using a rotisserie chicken is the best option because it’s pre-cooked AND will already have unbelievable flavor! Several components of this recipe can be adjusted the way you like it: use more or less of the garlic, cayenne (for even more heat add jalapenos), and broth. Optional garnishes include fresh cilantro, Cheddar cheese, and green onions. This hearty albino chili will warm your toes and sooth your soul.

INGREDIENTS
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onions (red, white, or yellow), diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 4-oz cans diced mild green chiles
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (adjust according to desired heat)
3 cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 whole rotisserie chicken or 4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
8 cups chicken broth (use more or less depending on how thick you want your chili)
cilantro, dried or fresh (optional)
green onion, sliced for garnish
Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, shredded for garnish
salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onions until translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in green chiles, cumin, oregano, and cayenne pepper (and cilantro if you are using dried).

2. Add 6 cups of chicken broth, beans, and chicken. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for at least 15 minutes. Add more chicken broth to achieve desired thickness. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Garnish with green onion, cheese, and cilantro. Serve hot.

Serves 8.

(Loosely adapted from All Recipes)

German Chocolate Cake

March 14, 2009

My mom baked this delectable German Chocolate Cake for my 23rd birthday this weekend! I had asked that my cake be made from scratch, in hopes that it would be worthy to post. And as you can see, it was incredible! Thanks mom, for putting up with all my particular food requests and for the best birthday cake a girl could dream of! My coconut-hating husband finished off a rather large slice and I couldn’t stop reaching for more (not-so-stealthily stealing forkfuls from the center)! Hey, anything goes on your birthday!

German chocolate cake (which is actually made with German chocolate- fancy that!) is 99% about the frosting. The cake base needs to be moist, but the frosting really steals the show! Slather that sweet chewy coconut and crunchy chopped pecans in a caramel-like sauce over every inch of the cake. If you happen to have extra (not likely), this frosting is quite enjoyable by the spoonful!
As you can see, I forgot to take a photo before 23 candles made their way into the top of the cake. So my photographed slices are full of funny-looking candle holes! And you might notice that they were taken outside. Yes, that is my driveway you see. It was much too dark the night we celebrated to take a decent indoor picture, so I hauled my birthday cake out to the front porch in the morning to get a decent shot! So here’s to birthdays, bad photography, and another year of baking bliss!

INGREDIENTS

Cake:
1/2 cup water
4 (1 oz.) squares German sweet chocolate (Baker’s brand)
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 egg yolks
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 cups cake flour (or you can use all-purpose)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
4 egg whites

Frosting:

1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 can evaporated milk
3/4 cup butter
4 large egg yolks, beaten
2 cups flaked coconut
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Chocolate Ganache:
4 oz. semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)
1/4 cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 3 9-in. round pans. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a small saucepan, heat water and 4 oz. chocolate until melted. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, cream 1 cup butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in 4 egg yolks one at a time. Blend in the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, mixing just until incorporated.
3. In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then quickly fold in remaining whites until no streaks remain.
4. Pour into the prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely.

5. To make the Filling, in a saucepan combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter, and egg yolks. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut, pecans and vanilla. Cool until thick enough to spread.

6. Spread filling between layers and on top of cake. Let set before serving.

7. To make the chocolate ganache, bring heavy cream to a simmer over medium heat. Place chocolate in a small bowl and pour simmering cream over top. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. Drizzle over cake.

Makes one 3-layer 9-in. round cake.
(Adapted from All Recipes)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

March 10, 2009

Several days ago I wrote a lengthy, detailed post about this cookie recipe and lost it all to a faulty Internet connection. I’ve finally returned to try again, but I’m still pouting over my wasted time and creativity. I’m positive this post will be much worse than the original which was sucked into the void of cyberspace. But I suppose that even if my blurb about these chocolate chip cookies is not a literary masterpiece, it won’t change the fact that they they are (it’s a fact) fantastic!


These are the cookies that I grew up on. By the time I was old enough to operate the oven I had the recipe memorized (and still do) and was baking them by the batchful. They were the first treat I ever baked my then-boyfriend, now-husband (wink, wink) and continue to be a staple in his diet. No two batches are ever alike. Sometimes they turn out crunchy, sometimes flat, often puffy and chewy and perfect (variations are due to the temperature of the butter, cooking time, altitude, etc.). Sometimes we use M&M’s or butterscotch chips or peanut butter chips or a combination of all of the above.

The tattered recipe card I committed to memory so many years ago claimed that they were the original Mrs. Field’s recipe. I’ve never had a Mrs. Field’s cookie and so I can’t tell you if they taste the same. But like Mrs. Field’s we sometimes spread the entire bowl of batter onto a large pizza pan and bake a giant cookie. It makes a great alternative to birthday cake, decorated with icing, candles and all!

To achieve what I believe is the pinnacle of cookie perfection: make sure to slightly under bake your cookies. Take them out of the oven before they brown. Err on the side of too-gooey rather than overdone. The cookies will set up as they cool and stay moist and chewy for days (stored in an airtight container).

INGREDIENTS
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
12 oz. (2 cups) chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until smooth with an electric mixer. Add eggs and beat until light and fluffy. Stir in the baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, and mix until well incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips by hand. 

3. Drop into rounded spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 8-12 minutes (depending on the size of your cookies), until they just start to turn golden on the edges. (They might still look doughy in the center, buy they will set up once cooled.)

4. Immediately remove from the cookie sheet to cool on a wire rack. They keep well for several days at room temperature (in an airtight container) or for several weeks in the freezer.

Makes 2 dozen large or 4 dozen small cookies.

(My mom’s recipe.)