Yesterday’s Views – pick a or b
Ok, one one hand, I’m no fountain of virtue in the food department. Rather, I have become a firm believer that one must indulge one’s own very deepest desires in the joy department. Whoever decided that we must be subject to great and constant repression of our own true loves in deference exclusively to some dry, vacant degree of practical responsibility and mundanity for the duration of one’s days on this earth must have been seriously distorted. I believe God made us to indulge in our own and his gifts bestowed upon this earth while we reside here – those of creativity and joyfulness. You can see from this blog where mine come from – flowers, hummingbirds, butterflies, yellow labs, and mischief in the kitchen with the miraculous fruits of God’s trees, vines and other plantings.
This may, on some or more days, involve partaking on a continuum beginning with conceiving, to ogling, to making and sometimes to eating: cake, cookies, custards (including frozen) and various and sundry other baked gems. So be it – as these definitely occupy a big part of my intrinsic-passion department, somewhere in the lobes and connections. To deny them would be to deny a huge part of me – and that feels just plain wrong. And, so, as I prepare my dedications for 2017 – a minimum of one indulgence per day is on top of the list. It doesn’t necessarily have to be food-related. One must always have something to look forward to – and to say “ooooh!” or “omg” about!
Kit lounging contentedly in our back yard on CC July 2016-little did we know
and, Harley posing angelically for the Christmas Card photo (don’t be fooled by that adorable cum innocent-looking face):
As I begin to look to close out this year of writing, cooking and baking, and photographing over the next few days, I can see clearly from my own daily expressions where I get my own personal vocational joyfulness from. In 2016, we sadly lost our most beloved pet, Kit. This hit me like a ton of bricks and sent me into a spiral of despair. And then, just after a few weeks, she sent me a link over the internet connection from heaven – literally and figuratively, to our new love bug, mischievous as she is, the notorious Harley Q. Hanley. (All of our pets’ middle names have been and will be Quincy, beginning with Peabody).
Harley has brought a great deal of life into our home and our lives – and in addition to being the sweetest, most playful dog, we never know what she may do when left to her own devices. Our latest event involved returning home from Christmas Eve dinner and finding that she’d eaten three sticks of butter and a raw egg off the kitchen island – leaving nary a clue but a few minuscule egg shells found on the rug by the table which you basically needed a magnifying glass to spot! That was after she’d swept off the topping of my cookie crumb-sugared cranberry topping of my cake on 12/15 – see post. One thing we’ve learned about Harley – she is very adept at the clean sweep.
So, re: yesterday’s two photos of the day, the ones up top – the first one represents what’s outside my window right now – and pretty much how I look and feel at this point – dried, shriveled, out waistless. The second one represents my lifeline and idea of perfect happiness – from Australia -express thanks to mattersofthebelly.com. Going through and being tossed about between these two extremes in the space of a little bit of time is jarring. I’d definitely prefer to stay where those peaches are in my own mind. I’m so glad for this image – it lifts me up even though I am not there. To think that someone is noshing down on those juicy babes right now brings me great joy and makes me appreciate all the more the times of year when they are plentiful.
Oh well, three More Days of 2016 and here I sit. Both of my kids have flown off to Florida now and here I am in NJ. Um, what’s wrong with this picture? Let’s just say that I can see myself wandering for months in bare feet and shorts and camera over some tropical destination loaded with flowers and birds, yes I can. It would no doubt need to be a large destination to keep me busy over the course of the next say, 4 months. Australia seems to be my target as I keep seeing these exquisite photos of the fruits of the season over there.
I awoke this morning with continuing thoughts of sweet indulgences. Let me just say I am barraged with impulses to indulge in certain seasonal dishes, mostly from the sweet kitchen at this dark time of year. There is undoubtedly some deficit position in my brain chemistry that is wailing to be attended to and re-balanced as we struggle through these dreary days. I was temporarily elated over a sunny afternoon the other day. Otherwise, it’s been quite dismal this week and I have to turn to other occupations to keep me busy.
Yesterday, in the am, I took to the kitchen to make a deliciouso stack of gluten-free pancakes. I continue to be inspired by the fresh cherries I have found in Whole Foods over the past week.
My son is a big fan of Sarabeth Levine’s Lemon Ricotta Pancakes and when he goes out to brunch with his friends in New York, this is what he has. I wanted to see if I could do a version I felt good about in the gluten-free category. These are clearly a winner! If you can’t find cherries, there are many good substitutes in the store now – even the ubiquitous Driscoll’s strawberries or raspberries will do in a pinch. If you have to, pick the most fragrant of these – never those with green stem-areas and plump robust-looking raspberries. These may not be optimal, but they will have to do.
yesterday’s indulgence
GLUTEN-FREE ORANGE RICOTTA BUTTERMILK PANCAKES WITH FRESH CHERRIES – adapted from Sarabeth Levine – serves 2
1 cup King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Flour mix
1 tsp baking powder
pinch fine sea salt
zest of one half large navel orange
2 extra large eggs, separated
3/4 cup whole milk ricotta
1 tablespoon good floral honey
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 tbsp butter, melted fresh cherries, pitted and halved
dusting of confectioner’s
sugar warm maple syrup
butter for the pan and for topping the pancakes
Preheat a large skillet or grill over medium low heat. Spread a modest amount of butter over.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and orange zest.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, honey, almond extract, buttermilk and ricotta until smooth and creamy.
In a third bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Mix egg-yolk mixture into the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until blended. Add 1/3 of the egg whites and fold in with a rubber spatula. Add the remaining egg whites and fold in until smooth and blended.
Drop by large spoonfuls onto the heated pan. Cook on one side until the underside is a nice medium brown. Flip over and cook until pancakes are cooked through.
Remove the pancakes to serving plates and top with butter and the fresh cherries. Drizzle warm maple syrup over all. Dust with a very light dusting of confectioner’s sugar.
Serve immediately with copious amounts of fresh mimosas.
Today, I feel compelled to return to the subject of Egg Nog. Champagne and Oysters may be on tap for Saturday night, but before we get there, I’m going to do a little mischievous experimentation with the two recipes below. I may not have access to those peaches shown above, but I may continue to play with my unexpected and cheerily tasty fresh cherries………
I would definitely add freshly grated nutmeg into the custard here. And, I will sub in some mascarpone, as in Daniel Humm’s recipe, for some of the heavy cream in the epicurious recipe.
EGGNOG ICE CREAM – recipe courtesy Epicurious.com
YIELDMakes about 1 1/2 quarts
1 cup whole milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 large egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups chilled heavy cream
3 tablespoons dark rum
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Special equipment: an instant-read thermometer; an ice cream maker
Garnish: freshly grated nutmeg
Bring milk and salt to a boil in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Remove from heat.
Whisk together yolks and sugar in a bowl, then gradually add 1/4 cup hot milk, whisking. Add yolk mixture to milk remaining in pan in a slow stream, whisking, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until mixture is slightly thickened, coats back of spoon, and registers 175°F on thermometer, 3 to 5 minutes. Immediately pour through a fine-mesh sieve set into a clean bowl and stir in cream, rum, vanilla, and nutmeg. Chill custard, covered, until cold, at least 2 hours.
Freeze in ice cream maker, then transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden, at least 2 hours. Soften slightly in refrigerator before serving, about 20 minutes.
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My fresh cherry supply – YES, in December – right here in NJ – can be subbed in here for the peaches. I actually did see some peaches around in this past week – but, I’m not game.
Roasted Peaches with Mascarpone Ice Cream – recipe courtesy Food and Wine Magazine
“Every house has an herb garden,” says Daniel Humm of Ticino, the southern region of Switzerland. Accordingly, he infuses roasted peaches with honey-rosemary syrup. The mascarpone in the ice cream reveals the strong Italian influence on Ticino’s cuisine.
ICE CREAM
4 large egg yolks
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups whole milk
1 cup mascarpone (7 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Pinch of salt
PEACHES
2 cups dry white wine
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 rosemary sprig
4 large, ripe but firm peaches—peeled, halved and pitted
In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the egg yolks with 3/4 cup of the sugar at medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 minutes. In a saucepan, combine the milk with the remaining 2 tablespoons of the sugar and bring to a simmer. Slowly beat the warm milk into the egg yolks at low speed. Scrape the custard into the saucepan. Cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, about 5 minutes; don’t let the custard boil.
Pour the custard into a bowl set in a larger bowl of ice water and whisk in the mascarpone, lemon juice and salt. Let stand until chilled, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes.
Pour the custard into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer the mascarpone ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.
In a large saucepan, combine the white wine, honey, water and sugar and bring to a boil. Boil until reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Add the rosemary sprig and let stand for 10 minutes; discard the rosemary.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Arrange the peaches in an 8-by-11-inch baking dish. Pour the rosemary syrup on top and roast the peaches until tender, 40 minutes, basting and turning the peaches occasionally.
Scoop the mascarpone ice cream into bowls and top with the peach halves. Spoon the warm poaching liquid over the fruit and serve right away.
The ice cream can be frozen for up to 2 days. The peaches can be roasted up to 8 hours ahead; let stand at room temperature before serving.
So, there’s my little indulgence-plan for the day. Everyone should have something great to look forward to each and every day. Life shouldn’t be drudgery and boring. I’m busy planning trips, food and photog adventures for each and every day of 2017. Stay posted! Ciao. A bientot. (hint, hint)
my paper whites in the window
fresh cherries and a tangerine went into the salad last night