Sweet Indian Dumplings

After two tries at deep frying without injury, I think I can call myself a professional. Even when these wontons inflated to the point at which I thought they just might explode, sending scalding hot stuffing in the direction of my eyes, I kept my cool. These fried wontons come to you courtesy of the last page of May's Gourmet magazine. Believe me when I say that I was thinking about them even in Africa. I thought they might make the perfect appetizer for Sarah's slumber party. I chose the vegetarian variety, for which I already had nearly all the ingredients (I substituted coconut milk for actual coconut meat). However, I was a bit disappointed with the quantity of stuffing required for the wonton (it was probably me not following the directions). The recipe said it made 24 wontons, but I only came out with 18 with a meager teaspoon of the savory-sweet coconut sauce dropped in the middle of each round. My adaptation of the recipe adjusts the issue. Indian Sweet Coconut Dumplings: adapted from Gourmet 2 cups coconut milk 1/2 cup brown sugar 4 tablespoons blanched and chopped almonds 4 tablespoons sultanas 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom 24 round wonton wrappers Combine all ingredients (aside from wonton wrappers) in a small saucepan on medium heat. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer until sauce is thickened and liquid has nearly evaporated, it should take 15 to 20 minutes. Remove sauce from heat and let cool. Lay the wonton wrappers out on a flat surface. Spoon a heaping teaspoon of sauce onto the middle of the wonton. Using a brush, spread water on the edge of the wonton wrapper. Fold wonton in half and pinch shut. Bring about 2 cups of vegetable oil to a boil in a medium frying pan--it should be about an inch deep in the pan. Carefully drop the stuffed dumplings into the hot oil, turning with a slotted spoon to brown both sides. Remove from oil when browned--it should take less than 5 minutes.

French-style Yogurt Cake

I nursed a craving for orange-flavored baked goods all last week. It wasn't until Saturday that I had time to fulfill it. This is another recipe from Orangette Molly's A Homemade Life, which you all should read. (With additional inspiration from my friend Jess at Cake and Cup.) The weekend was simply great. I had the apartment to myself and spent Saturday cleaning and then rewarded myself by baking, and I even squeezed in some time to write before heading off to a slumber party at Sarah's (yes, I'm 25 and going to slumber parties--I love my life). I do such a horrible job of scheduling time for writing what I want to write (aside from the contents of this blog). I have mastered the art of procrastination. I have two stories due at work this week for trips I went on about a year ago. I turned in a story to The Reader yesterday that was originally due on Friday at 8 a.m. Without an impending deadline and a serious time crunch, I cannot produce. But what I do produce under the time crunch is probably not as good as if I started earlier.

Baking is different. You can procrastinate and you could try to make shortcuts, but everyone will know. Baking takes a set amount of time. In this case, prep time (which is a bit more subjective) and then 35 minutes to bake. And that's it. It's time you either have or you don't.

French Yogurt Cake with Orange: from Orangette 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder dash of salt 2 teaspoons orange zest 1/2 cup whole-milk yogurt (plain) 1 cup granulated sugar 3 large eggs 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil 1 tablespoon orange juice For Syrup: 1/4 cup orange juice 1/4 cup powdered sugar For Icing: 1/2 cup powdered sugar 2 tablespoons orange juice Preheat oven to 350. Butter the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt and orange zest. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar and eggs until smooth consistency. Add the dry ingredients and stir. Pour in the oil and mix. Drop in just a dollop of orange juice. Pour batter into cake pan and bake on center rack for 25 to 35 minutes--my oven always takes 35.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the powdered sugar and orange juice for the syrup. When cake is finished, pull out of oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Dump out onto a plate, flip right side up on to another plate and transfer to wire rack--which, as of this recipe, I decided I must invest in. Place a piece of parchment paper under the rack. While the cake is still a bit warm, pour the syrup over it. In the same small bowl, mix together the powdered sugar and the juice for the icing. Pour over cooled cake while it's still on the wire rack. Allow icing to set and then carefully transfer cake to serving platter.

Some Like It Hot

Before going to Africa I went to this lovely place called Ohio for a culinary weekend at the Hide Away Inn. I don't want to talk about the details of the weekend--in fact I'd like to forget the details of that weekend. However, the inn was adorable and the food--oh my--I could not wait to finally have time in my schedule to make this soup and salad. Thai food usually comes with a kick that, when well done, simply wakes up the taste buds to enjoy the lime-ginger-lemongrass-curry flavors that dominate Thai dishes. I've heard it said (so I can't take credit for this analysis) that Thais have perfected the sweet-spicy-savory flavor combinations. Cucumber Salad:
1 large cucumber
3 green onions, finely sliced
1/4 cup diced red pepper (I used green bell peppers--they are half the price of the red peppers for no reason that is apparent to me)
1/2 cup of fresh cilantro (I tore my cupboard apart and still couldn't find even dried cilantro, it's fine without)
1/4 roughly chopped dry-roasted peanuts (didn't have this either)
2 tablespoons lime juice (or juice from 1/2 a lime)
2 tablespoons fish sauce (don't mind the smell, your food won't taste that bad)
1/2 teaspoon oyster paste
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Wash and dice the cucumber. Add spring onion, peppers, and cilantro and peanuts (if you have them) to the cucumber in a large bowl.

In a separate, smaller bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients with a fork or whisk to make a dressing. If it turns out you don't have oyster paste lying around but you do have musaman curry paste collecting dust in the cupboard, replace oyster paste and cayenne pepper with curry paste (something likely to be incredibly spicy if it's anything like this curry). The substitution worked out perfectly. Coconut Lime Soup: 2 14-ounce cans of coconut milk
2 cups water
2 tablespoons minced ginger root
4 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons fish sauce (this is what Thais use instead of salt, fyi)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
dash of cayenne pepper
1 green onion, thinly sliced

Bring coconut milk and water to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Mince ginger root in a garlic press and add to stock. Stir in lime juice, fish sauce, turmeric powder and cayenne pepper. Season to taste. Add half of the green onion. Simmer soup for 10 to 15 minutes. Serve and garnish with remaining green onion.

Like Mother, Like Daughter

My mom invited me over for lunch yesterday. She promised salmon (it's actually trout), and I came running. She could have given me beef stroganoff and I would have come (well, maybe not, I hate beef stroganoff). The meal turned out perfectly: butter lettuce salad, topped with sauteed trout and dill with an olive-oil-lemon-juice dressing. But there was a moment or two, when the kitchen filled with smoke, that we thought that was the end of the fish. Could there be any question about where I get my cavelier carelessness in the kitchen? Obviously it's courtesy of my mother. Salad with Trout and Dill: butter lettuce 1 filet of trout (or salmon--my mom declared that salmon has a better taste) a couple sprigs of fresh dill from a potted plant in your mom's yard drizzle of olive oil juice from half a lemon (per salad) dash of salt and pepper My mom cooked the fish (scale side down) in a skillet without any oil or butter but with the lid on so that the steam would cook the top of the fish. Even though it burned the scales, the thick part of the filet was still a bit raw, so she cut it up and sauteed it for a few minutes until it was flaky. Mint Sun Tea: one-gallon glass jug one gallon of water four or five tea bags (depending on how strong you like it) big handful of fresh mint leaves sun Fill the jug with water (the jug cannot be opaque). Toss in the tea bags near the top and throw in the mint leaves. Leave the jug with the tea and the mint outside in the sun all day. Bring it inside and pop it in the fridge. Serve over ice.

Alternative BLT

The beautiful thing about not being in school and thus a recipient of a summer holiday is that summer begins when you choose. I chose May 2, the date of my departure to Africa. Now that it's summer, I can do things like go to the Farmer's Market, do the Taco Ride and eat tomatoes. I know this tomato was grown in a greenhouse. I know. But I couldn't resist.

My original plan was to make an avocado-chicken dish using this tomato, but when I finally finished gardening at 8 p.m. I was ready to eat, stat. And whenever hunger takes ahold of me like that I make poached eggs and douse them with salt and pepper. This is a variation on the BLT that replaces bacon with eggs, the only thing better would be a BELT. The sandwich is super easy to make, the hardest part is eating it.

Egg-Lettuce-Tomato Sandwich

To poach an egg, heat about 2 cups of water in a skillet. Add to cracked eggs to the water before it is boiling, being careful not to break the yokes. The eggs should be about half submerged in water. Cover the skillet to allow the steam from the simmering water to cook the top of the eggs. I like my eggs over easy. To get perfect consistency, remove the eggs from the heat and the skillet once the bright yellow of the raw egg turns a foggy yellow color. This means that the thin layer of egg white on top of the yolk has been cooked.

To make the sandwich, toast bread and top with lettuce, tomato and poached egg. Finish off with salt, pepper and parmesan cheese.

She Who Lived to Tell of Smoke that Thunders, Trumpeting Elephants and Laughing Hyenas

I made it. I'm back and sitting at my desk in Omaha, Neb., eating the only thing left in my cupboard (that took less than five minutes to make): I've gone through my emails, discovered (to my joy) that Neko Case will be coming to town in June (along with Bowerbirds and St. Vincent--could life be any better) and sifted through more junk mail than I realized I receive. After some 36 hours of traveling, I am in a bit of a daze and microwave popcorn is the best I can do. But wow, what a trip. There was something completely new at every bump in the very bumpy road. And my friends, the sky, the sky. I cannot describe the sky, the vastness, the colors, the clouds going on forever and forever amen. Though right now I am content with my indoor plumbing, Iron & Wine and to move only at the pace that the Earth turns--at least for the moment.

Africa or Bust

In less than 24 hours, I will be boarding a plane to start on what amounts to a 24 hour trek over land and sea to the fabled continent of Africa. This is something I never thought would happen. I love to travel, but I have sort of just written off destinations like Africa and Patagonia and Australia--too far, too expensive, too many great things to see closer to home. But sometimes the universe works in the direction of poor, assistant editors working one-and-a-half (great) jobs to pay the bills, and said universe (in the form of a benevolent editor in chief) draws your name from a pot to go on the trip of a lifetime at the tender age of 25. Additionally, the universe invites your 50-something-year-old father (whose only trip abroad has been to various points in Canada) to join you on the trip. And even though said father snores and obsesses about details such as batteries, swine flu and withdrawing money from ATMs, you cannot wait to experience something of this magnificence with one of the greatest people in the world (second only to my mother). I don't know that I can describe how incredibly blessed I feel to get to go on a trip like this for my job. To be honest, I've been so busy lately I haven't had much time to think about it. (I haven't even packed yet.) You may be interested in the details of my epic voyage. Tomorrow we wake up and fly to Johannesburg, South Africa, spend the night there and fly to Livingstone, Zambia, the following day. Victoria Falls (the above photo) is on the Zambia/Zimbabwe border (we will not be heading to Mugabe's Zimbabwe). Then we will be trekking to the Okavango Delta in Botswana to do a safari. We'll be gone for about 12 days, returning to Omaha on May 14. I'll catch you on the flip side. Image of Devil's Pool at Victoria Falls courtesy of Huffington Post (who probably stole it from someone like National Geographic)

Spaghetti Squash = Magic

Now that I've taken account of the contents of my pantry, I realize empying is something that has got to happen but will be impossible to complete before Saturday. I have a potato in there that has probably established roots--I was too afraid to look.

I did a decent job of emptying out these jarred Mediterranean items. I've had the capers for well over a year (probably why they don't taste good anymore). But in the process of cleaning off my counter I discovered an amazing new gourd: the aptly name spaghetti squash.

There are so many just weird things this earth produces. Gourds are kind of weird in general. And the spaghetti squash is definitely not the weirdest out there. But it's pretty sweet that you can boil a halved and de-seeded squash just like pasta, let it cool a bit and then scrape the sides and it looks like spaghetti. The flavor of this squash is really mild, so it goes with any sort of sauce you might put with regular, wheaty pasta.

Spaghetti Squash with Tapenade: from Food and Wine 1 spaghetti squash 1 cup coarsely-chopped almonds >1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted 1 tablespoon capers couple sun-dried tomatoes 1/4 cup scallions 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon olive oil salt and pepper handful or so crumbled feta cheese You'll want to toast or blanch the almonds if they aren't toasted already. So pre-heat the oven the 350. Toast whole almonds for 5 to 7 minutes, then pulse in the food processor until coarsely chopped.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil--both halves of the squash will need to fit in the pot, so make sure it's big enough. Slice the spaghetti squash in half and spoon out the seeds. Place carefully in boiling water and simmer until al dente--about 12 minutes. Remove and place upside down to cool while you make the tapenade. Once cooled a bit, using a fork, scrape the insides. It will magically form little strips of squash--don't ask questions of Mother Nature, just enjoy.

In a food processor, pulse pitted olives, capers, tomatoes, scallions, lemon juice and a bit of olive oil (anchovies also often go in tapenades).

In a bowl, toss the squash, almonds, feta cheese and tapenade with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle with salt a pepper. Serves four as a salad.

And I'll confess here that I am not at all a fan of tapenade. I've made variations before, and I just don't like it, so if you're looking for a good alternative to that sauce, toss squash with feta, salt, pepper, almonds, lemon juice, olive oil and some herbs.

Best Of Food Eaten

I haven't passed a milestone. I completed 100 blog entries several months ago, and I've long passed the six month mark. The reason for my Best Of list is because I was in Ohio last weekend and I'm going to Africa (yes Africa!) this weekend, and I hereby refuse to go grocery shopping. So tomorrow expect some seriously random pasta or egg dishes whilst I clean out my pantry. But in the meantime, feast on some the favorite recipes from the blog. (Disclaimer: This list is completely arbitrary based on the dishes I deem to be your favs and mine. And there are only eight, not 10. Deal.)

8: Salmon with Aioli and Leeks - or The day I conquered emulsifying. This was a great recipe that I really improvised on.

7. Cranberry-tangerine Muffins - I actually didn't think these muffins were anything spectacular, but as it turns out it's the only cranberry-tangerine combination on the World Wide Web.

6. Sauteed Asparagus - Another recipe that seems like nothing special to me. But I think it's the simplicity of this side that makes it stellar. And considering the copious amounts of limp asparagus in the world, we could use a recipe that let's the vegetable shine.

5. Potato Latkes - Come time for a Jewish holiday I get a lot of hits my site for this recipe. The best part: It can be made ahead of time and reheated. 4. Sour Cream and Onion Dip - Ohmygosh, this dip is insanely fantastic. Served the same night as the latkes (must have been some party), I was scrapping the bowl to get the last of the dip around 2 a.m. 3. The Seyler Family Eats Out - We've gone to Amsterdam Falafel, McDonald's and Thai Pepper. It's always an experiment in family dynamics. Call me Narcissus, but I still laugh when I read that Amsterdam Falafel entry.

2. Tortellini Soup - This recipe is legendary in our family.1. Amaretto Biscotti - Hands down the best thing I've made all year (and probably ever will make). So soft but still biscuit-y like biscotti is supposed to be.

Let Them Eat Yellow Cake

The saying "it's a piece of cake" means that something is easy. Not just easy, easier than a piece of cake. What I want to know is what about making a cake is easy? Eating cake--totally doable. But what it takes (at least for me) to go from beginning to end with a layer cake cannot be described as easy. I am a disaster with layer cakes. I tried to list and describe my many failures in the baking department (specifically cake baking), but the list is too long and the stories too complicated. I've had frosting all over the counter and broken cake layers and never once a beautiful, perfectly frosted, cake that's cooked through. But I do love a mess, so here we go. Megan's birthday is Saturday. There was no way I wasn't going to make her a cake. She's a great roommate, among the best. She always loves the stuff I cook. And by god, she is going to have a yellow cake with chocolate frosting if it's the last thing I do. To achieve this goal, I knew I had to do something I so rarely do. Something I find difficult. I would have to follow the directions.

When the directions said to sift the flour, I sifted the flour. (That's how much I love you Megan, I sifted flour for you.) I used two separate bowls (ones I still haven't cleaned). I even rotated the cakes in the oven halfway through. I never do that.

Except I'm not perfect. And neither is this cake. When the directions said to cut out parchment and spray the cake pans, I ignored it because we don't have parchment or Pam. I thought butter would do the trick. Well, it didn't. Tapping and shaking and gravity only worked on one of the layers. Right now, the last cake layer is sitting upside down on the kitchen counter, still attached to the cake pan. I might try singing songs to coax it onto the plate, but I'm not too optimistic at this point about not breaking the second layer into several pieces. However, the redeeming factor with cakes is that enough frosting and no one will ever know.

Yellow Cake: from Joy of Baking 6 large egg yolks 1 cup milk 2 teaspoons vanilla 3 cups flour, sifted 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1 T and 1 t baking powder 3/4 teapsoons salt 12 tablespoons unsalted butter Frosting: Betty Crocker chocolate frosting knife Preheat oven to 350. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks, vanilla and 1/4 cup of milk. According to JoyofBaking.com, the difference between white cakes and yellow cakes is that yellow cakes us yolks and white cakes use the entire egg. Fascinating. In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add softened butter and blend with an electric mixer on low increasing to high for up to a minute. Add the rest of the milk and mix again, starting on low and increasing speed. For easy removal post-baking, cut out pieces of parchment paper to fit into cake pans, spray pans and paper with Pam. Gradually add in the egg mixture, beating until the batter is smooth. With a spatula, transfer batter to two 9-inch round cake pans. Even out the batter by giving the pans a good shake. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Rotate cakes halfway through. Allow layers to cool before removing from pans. When the cakes are cooled, I use a knife to run around the edge of the cake between the cake and the pan. Using a serving plate, place the plate upside down on top of the cake pan, with the top of the plate facing the cake. Carefully turn the pan and plate over in your hands so that the plate is right side up and the pan is upside down. Tap on the bottom of the cake pan to loosen the cake. Do this to the other cake. Ice the cake (I have no advice to give here). Eat the cake.