Big News!

Biscotti

This is my favorite Dorie recipe so far. I've recently discovered that I love biscotti in the morning with my cup of coffee and have been buying pre packeged biscotti's at the store. I am psyched that I can now make killer biscotti at home and I hope to make it a weekly ritual.

These are lemon and I love them...

Apple Cider Traditions

I'm infamously stubborn about traditions. I am the one in my family that refuses to let anyone forget or get out of participating in the events that happen annually. Sometimes to the point of ridiculous. At 25 years old it might not be necessary to read Christmas stories aloud before bed on Christmas eve to my 24 year old brother, his 25 year old girlfriend and my 28 year old boyfriend and yet I persist.

One of the best traditions that I insist we continue is making apple cider at my aunt and uncle's house. Not only do I love apple cider, but their home is beautiful in the fall and loaded with apple trees. I also love the process of gathering apples, chopping, and pressing. The tradition started with my mom, brother and I some 20 years ago.

Big Cooking Weekend!

I had a big weekend filled with great cooking and baking projects mixed in with adventures with friends on a beautiful Maine fall day.

It started with an inspiration from Tastespotting: a breakfast casserole. Layers of potatoes, cheddar cheese, eggs and bacon baked with cream until bubbly.

I then spent a rainy afternoon watching movies and looking up recipes online to use up some chicken in the fridge. The solution was my first and really yummy attempt at General Tao's Chicken

The next morning was a canoe trip to the cranberry bog where we mucked around in cold water up to our knees and picked oodles of wild cranberries

To help ward off the chill of cranberry picking we put together a huge seafood chowder. We had the meat of five lobsters leftover in the freezer as well as some shrimp and haddock to use up. It fed six of us and we had enough for lunch the next day. We followed this with a campfire in the backyard.

Finally, I had to bake something using the cranberries! I made some awesome brownies a la Dorie Greenspan and a cranberry hazelnut sauce. They were awesome. I was so excited to try these that I was pulling bowls of chowder away from people still chewing and demanding we start desert!

Creme Brulee With Dorie

We had a great time making Creme Brulee and watching the VP debates. We also really like drinking and playing with the blow torch...





They were quite good. We never managed to eat any like civilized people, rather we tested each one to determine just the right amount of sugar and depth of browning needed to create the best crust. Four spoons sharing individual cups until we were filled to the gills.

Eating Through New Orleans

We did our best to eat all things quintessentially New Orleans...and it was delicious! Clockwise starting at the top left: Daily Special from the Praline Connection: fried catfish, jambalaya, collard greens and cornbread; James and his first oyster shooter at the French Market; One Fancy Hurricane (Meyers dark rum, pineapple, orange and cranberry juice) I drank several others on Bourbon St. that didn't look or taste at as nice as this, jambalaya and sausage from French Market, fried shrimp and what are they called? at French Market; Collard Greens at The Praline Connection; room serviced oyster po'boy; the best roasted oysters from Acme Seafood; shrimp gumbo and red beans and rice from Acme Seafood; me with a frozen coffee and beignets at Cafe Du Monde; alligator sausage from the Praline Connection.

We certainly ate more than this but these are the things I was able to photograph. James grew impatient about having his food grow cold while I took 30 pictures in varying arrangements!

Home again and about to embark on Creme Brulee. I made a special trip to the local chef's store and bought tiny little cups to make this in and my ordered family over this evening to enjoy.