Lovely Ladies

Ever since I was a very little girl (3 years old to be precise), I have had a Ladybug cake for my Birthday. So naturally, when I had my own daughter I adopted my Mom's approach to a Ladybug cake tradition. One thing I love about the "tradition" component is that there is never any question about what kind of cake there will be at the party--regardless of the party theme. My Mom always made a pound cake (from a box) and made her own indulgent cream cheese frosting. As odd as this combo sounds it truly is perfect. I have tried numerous pound cake recipes over the years and a few years ago settled on a sour cream pound cake recipe adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book. It has less butter than most pound cakes and that portion of the fat seems to be made up for with the addition of sour cream which maintains a bit more lightness than most pound cakes. I also make a cream cheese frosting and whip it up to a nice fluffiness. The cake is baked in a glass (heat tempered) bowl then flipped out and frosted after cooling.

There are numerous ways you can decorate the cake--spots can be made with any form of licorice (favorite among the girls in this particular family) or Jr. mints for those non-licorice fans out there.

One year we had a little extra fun and made some babies! hmmm, that sounded odd...

Sour Cream Poundcake

Oven 325

• 1 c. butter (room temp)
• 6 eggs
• 1 c. sour cream
• 3 c. white flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 c. sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. Allow eggs and sour cream to stand at room temp about 30 minutes. Butter 2.5 & 1 qt pyrex glass bowls. Combine flour, baking powder & soda and set aside.
2. In mixing bowl beat butter on high for 1/2 minute and then gradually add sugar, beating about 10 minutes or until very light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs one at a time. Add in dry ingredients and sour cream alternately beating at a low speed till just combined. Pour batter into prepared bowls.
3. Bake at 325 for a looooong time. Sometimes it can take 90 minutes or so to bake through. Tops will be golden and form a crack and when toothpick is inserted it will come out clean. Cool cake on rack in pan for 20 minutes. Remove from bowl, cool, and frost with this perfect Cream Cheese Frosting.

What's the "rule" in your house?

Speaking of interruptions, one of the realities of having kids at your feet in the kitchen is that they are a lot closer to the floor than you are.  And they put everything in their mouths.   Before I had kids, I would watch babies on the beach picking up whatever they could find and putting it in their mouths and I would wonder "how do those parents stand it?"  Three kids and one dog later...

We don't usually let him help with cleanup of faces, just floors and high chairs, but he does come in handy.  

Now, we keep our floors relatively clean, and the dog usually gets to anything we drop before a kid can, but the truth is that when I see my kids grab something off the floor, in the split-second before it gets to their mouth, my question has become "will that make them very sick?"  In other words, the "five second rule" has gone out the window.  It's really more of a "less than a minute" rule, but every now and then they'll find something that has been on the floor for who knows how long.  So I was very happy to see this justifying a "30-second rule."  But even better is this decision tree, created by two bloggers at SF Weekly.  What's the "rule" in your house?

Spring

People say we don't have seasons here in San Diego, but we do!  Spring here just happens to be a lot like winter.  And Summer.  Still, every April, I get the same feeling of lightness and renewal as I did growing up in Northern California, only instead  mud and dirty snow clinging to the side of the road, we enjoy the 80 degree weather with our

Asparagus

Butterflies

And baseball

I always roast asparagus.  Not very creative, I know, but it is so simple and quick, and it brings out everything that is good in this oft-ruined vegetable.  One recent guest called it a revelation.  A revelation!  I'm not sure about that, but it is really delicious.  Even better when dipped in compliments and garnished with feelings of superiority. 

I buy the thinnest asparagus I can find and try to eat it within two days.  Preheat oven to 450.  Rinse and snap off the ends.  Place asparagus on lined (or not, your choice) baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle generously with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, toss with your hands to coat, and pop into the oven for about 15 minutes.  The time will vary depending on the thickness, but you want the ends to get just brown and crisp.  That's it!

Home Improvement & the "Interubbers"

Indeed we have moved into a new home! In order to get cooking we just need to have a few things in order. The knives. My ever-blossoming, in-house handyman came up with this perfect solution. I love how they are handy, and out of reach to kidos and truly take up no usable work space whatsoever. Brilliant. We'll be using your services much more in the future, dear handy-man.

So here I am --with my first official entry into the world of blogging and I must tell you how it came down this morning. I mentioned it to my 2nd grade daughter--that I was going to be doing a blog about cooking with my sister--our own "website" as I described it to her. "It's called Cooks, Interrupted" I told her. She pondered this for a few seconds and then very innocently asked, "am I the interrupter?" The conversation then moved into a debate (which is just a nice way to say disagreement) over who was the "interubber" as my Boy argued he should get the title. Hands down, little fellow, you are the prime interubber in this home.

Carrot Cake

This is the best Carrot Cake out there.  Period.

The recipe is a family classic, and in my humble opinion, should not be messed with in any way.  The coconut and pineapple are essential, but the flavors aren't overwhelming.  Even my coconut-hating husband loves this cake.  And I've managed to last 12 years without him figuring out what's in it (granted, he's not the most perceptive when it comes to cake), and I don't plan to spill those beans any time soon.  

The only modification I've ever made is to omit nuts from 1/2 of a batch when serving to a group of kids.  While all of my kids have eaten nuts and nut butters starting before 1, it seems like there are more and more parents out there holding off on nuts until well into the second year, and more and more kids suffering from nut allergies (I have my theories about how those two things - limiting exposure and a rise in allergies - are related, but that's a subject for another time).   I made the mistake of  serving them all with nuts on C's second birthday and one mom had to explain to her poor little guy that he had to wait till he got home to have a treat! 

Carrot Cake

• 2 Cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 t cinnamon
• 1t salt
• 1t soda
• 3 cups shredded carrots (about 4 large or 6 small) (use a food processor to make it easy)
• 2 t vanilla
• 1 small can crushed pineapple
• 1 cup vegetable oil (I use canola but any mildly flavored oil will do)
• 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
• 5 eggs
• 1 cup chopped nuts (roughly chopped for cake, finely for cupcakes)
• Cream Cheese Frosting

1) Preheat overn to 350.

2) Mix all dry ingredients thoroughly in bowl.

3) Mix all wet ingredients thoroughly in large bowl -or-if you're making cupcakes, place all wet ingredients except eggs in bowl of 11-cup food processor and process until finely chopped, then add eggs and vanilla and process to mix completely.

4) Combine wet and dry ingredients.

5) If you're making cake, prepare two 8-inch cake pans or 1 bundt pan by buttering and flouring and placing a circle of parchment paper in the bottom of each (not for bundt).  If you're making cupcakes, line 24 regular or 48 minis.

6) Pour (or scoop, for cupcakes) the batter into your pan and tap on counter to remove air bubbles.

7) Bake at 350 degrees until tester comes out clean, approximately 

• 1 hour for bundt
• 40 minutes for cake
• 30 minutes for regular cupcakes
• 20 minutes for minis

8) Cool completely on wire racks, then frost with cream cheese frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 16 oz cream cheese, at room temp
• 1/2 cup butter, at room temp
• 2t vanilla
• 4 cups confectioner's sugar

1) Beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla in mixer with paddle attachment until fluffy, scrape down sides.

2) Add 1 cup sugar at a time, mixing thoroughly and scraping down sides between each addition.

3) If you want to pipe it onto your cupcakes or cake, add a bit more confectioners sugar, up to 1/2 cup, and then place frosting in gallon ziplock, zip it up, and cut a corner.  If you want to do something fancy, put a tip in the bag before the frosting.  If you want to just slosh it on there, I wholeheartedly approve of that too:

 

Chili

This is a great quick and easy "pantry" meal. I just experimented one day with the idea of Chili and, since everything is better with bacon, decided to throw some in along with my standard chili ingredients.   

I suppose that chili purists will think this is sacrilegious because it has both meat and beans and tomatoes.  I have it on good authority meat is evil.  Or beans are blasphemous.  Tomatoes?  How DARE I!!  Seriously, there are people out there who elevate chili to biblical status.  I am not one of them.  Beans - good.  Meat - good.  Tomatoes - good.  Bacon - good.



Chili with Meat, Beans, and Bacon

Ingredients:

4 slices humanely-raised, uncured bacon (I like Nieman Ranch), cut into small pieces
2 T olive or other oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 lb organic ground beef
1 clove garlic, diced
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground chili powder (less or more, to taste - this gets hotter as it cooks, so be careful!)
1 t dried oregano or 2T fresh, chopped
 2 cups prepared kidney beans (or 1 large can)
2 cups diced jarred or canned tomatoes and their juice
Approx 1 cup beef broth (I use "Better than Bullion")
Flat-leaf parsely, chopped

Method:
1) Saute bacon in large skillet until soft and starting to crisp
2) Add oil, onion, and ground beef, and saute until beef is cooked and onion is soft
3) Add garlic, cumin, and chili powder and saute for another minute or so
4) Add beans, tomatoes, and broth and stir
5) Simmer for 10 minutes until beans are heated through - you can make this WAY in advance and keep it warm on very low heat, covered, or in a slow cooker.
6) Garnish with parsely and serve with bread or chips.

This is great for kids, parties, and cold winter or spring days.  But mostly, this is man food:

Baby Food...and Belinis

Part I

Ok, I'm energized, motivated, ready to go

Seriously.  On a roll.  Not tired at all.

Ok, almost done.  Thank God.

 

Ohmygod it's midnight, what am I doing? 

Phew, done!  I AM SUPERMOM!!  

Oh, wait, now I have to fill 100,000 ice cube trays....Please just let me go to sleep...

Part II

Ok, little one, yummy!  Pears!! Open wide!!!!  Please open wide?  Please?  

No seriously.  THE SPOON IS NOT BETTER THAN THIS FOOD!!   Do you have any idea how hard I worked to make this?  

*sigh* didn't think so.  At least you're cute.

 THE END

Updates

Well, in the chaos that has been life for us over the last few months, what with a new home for P, new job for me, the Holidays, sick kids, etc. etc. etc., we've been terrible about updating this notebook.  I just published a bunch of photos and will set about posting the recipes over the next couple of weeks.   Between that and the 40 or so other meals for which I've yet to upload pictures, I'm looking forward to inundating all 3 of you who are reading.