"There is no problem that cannot be solved with cake. It’s the right answer to everything." At least, that is what Molly Wizenberg says in her book, A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table.
When I read this, I immediately wrote it down. It sounds simple, but I do believe it’s true. Food for most people is comfort. That is one of the reasons I like to cook – to make those around me happy. It makes me happy too!
While I’m not the biggest fan of cake, I do believe chocolate eases every ache. So, I took Molly’s words and my love of chocolate and decided to share my Chocolate Cake recipe … This recipe is super easy and very versatile. I dream about this cake. Really, I do. I will often have dreams about cooking, but I had this particular dream about 15 years ago in which I had made this cake for a party. I woke up that morning and had to make it! It is nothing less than moist, chocolaty, goodness. Enjoy!
Update (8/7/11): I tried a variation of this cake last night for my anniversary and yum! Earl Grey Lavendar! I bought earl grey lavendar tea off the shelve and let the tea steep extra long with 4 tea bags in 2 cups of water. I used the tea in place of water in both the cake and the frosting. I absolutely love tea, almost as much as I love chocolate - the combination of the two was wonderful!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Bread, Bread, Bread!
For those of you who know me, know that I don’t eat bread often … For some unknown reason, I get the hick-ups every time! However, I love bread. David loves bread. Ally loves bread.
I was amazed when I did a cost comparison for bread made at home vs. bread purchased in the store. David and I broke it down and found that we were averaging $4.30 a loaf at the grocery store. We then took the cost of the flour, yeast, etc. and figured out the cost per loaf at home is approximately $1.80 per loaf! Wow!
This really got me excited to figure out as many bread recipes as I could and to pledge myself to never buy bread from the grocery again, only to be met by complete failure. I had tried making bread for weeks, with flat loaves every time.
As a result of my absolute despair, David and Ally enrolled me in a bread making class, where I found out that my water was not warm enough to activate the yeast (must be 110 to 115 degrees). Alas, the weight was lifted from my shoulders and the bread frenzy began.
The class at Sur La Table was awesome and the instructor did a great job at providing us with a basic Sourdough recipe that could be transformed into everything. And the nice thing is that the machine does all the work for you, there is no hand kneading necessary.
My favorite variation is the dinner loaf … When you do the final rise add rosemary, Beecher’s cheese, roasted garlic and then sprinkle kosher salt across the top of the loaf after you put on the egg wash. Yum! Yum! Yum! This bread is definitely worth the hick-ups :)
I was amazed when I did a cost comparison for bread made at home vs. bread purchased in the store. David and I broke it down and found that we were averaging $4.30 a loaf at the grocery store. We then took the cost of the flour, yeast, etc. and figured out the cost per loaf at home is approximately $1.80 per loaf! Wow!
This really got me excited to figure out as many bread recipes as I could and to pledge myself to never buy bread from the grocery again, only to be met by complete failure. I had tried making bread for weeks, with flat loaves every time.
As a result of my absolute despair, David and Ally enrolled me in a bread making class, where I found out that my water was not warm enough to activate the yeast (must be 110 to 115 degrees). Alas, the weight was lifted from my shoulders and the bread frenzy began.
The class at Sur La Table was awesome and the instructor did a great job at providing us with a basic Sourdough recipe that could be transformed into everything. And the nice thing is that the machine does all the work for you, there is no hand kneading necessary.
My favorite variation is the dinner loaf … When you do the final rise add rosemary, Beecher’s cheese, roasted garlic and then sprinkle kosher salt across the top of the loaf after you put on the egg wash. Yum! Yum! Yum! This bread is definitely worth the hick-ups :)
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Cooking Camp!
Many thanks to Anne, Ally’s gracious host and cooking teacher, who was brave enough to take seven children into her own home for this camp - filling her kitchen with laughter, good food and amazing smells.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Welcome!
I grew up in a house where everything came out of a box, the freezer or the microwave. Then, I met my husband. He grew up in a house where everything was homemade, organic, and above all ... yummy! The first year of our marriage, my mother-in-law took a brave step and bought me the Joy of Cooking for Christmas. At first, I wondered what kind of hint this was? And then, I started cooking and I haven't stopped since!
Now, I love to cook. There's a very large part of me that takes great comfort in making people happy with food. It's like a big wooly sweater on a snowy day. It's love, it's comfort, it's fun, it's social, it's me :)
Now, I love to cook. There's a very large part of me that takes great comfort in making people happy with food. It's like a big wooly sweater on a snowy day. It's love, it's comfort, it's fun, it's social, it's me :)
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