Dinner Tonight- Baked Pasta

Just before Christmas we had dear friends over for dinner and they requested this dish. It is supposed to be made with spaghetti, I decided to try something different and used spiral-shaped pasta instead, and it was not as good in my opinion. I will stick to spaghetti from now on.

Ingredients: 

1lbs. spaguetti

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 lbs. ground beef

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper

6 button mushrooms, sliced ( clean mushrooms with damp paper towel before slicing)

2 minced cloves of garlic

2 (14.5oz) cans diced tomatoes

1 (15oz) can tomato sauce

2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 1/2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend

Directions: 

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. 

In a large Dutch oven, cook beef and garlic salt over medium-high heat until beef is browned and crumbly. Drain; set aside.

In the same pot, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, mushroom, and garlic, saute until tender. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Add beef, bring to a boil. Remove from heat. 

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 13x9 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/2 cup sauce on bottom of prepared pan, Top with half of spaghetti noodles, half of spaghetti sauce, and 1 cup of cheese. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients, ending with cheese. Bake for 15 minutes, or until  cheese melts.

                                  The main dish.

We served it with a simple homemade white bread; and had tomato brushetta ( made by Dear Husband) and olive tapenade ( store bought) to top it up.

Bolo Formiga ( Coconut/Chocolate Cake)

I haven't posted anything in a while, I have been on vacation and doing a whole bunch of nothing. One would think that with more time in my hands I would post more, but it turns out the less you do the less you want to do! Anyways, yesterday some Brazilians friends and I had a small get together and I brought one my favorite cakes from my childhood, bolo formiga ( which translates into Ant Cake because the sprinkles on top look like ants are crawling on it). I decided to bake it on a bundt pan to look pretty, and it was, but it was also too heavy for that pan. Next time I will stick to a regular 9x13.

Ingredients:

4 eggs

2 cups of sugar

2 cups of flour

1 cup of milk

1 cup shredded coconut

3/4 cup chocolate sprinkles

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 cup butter

Ingredients for the Frosting:

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 can milk ( I use the condensed milk can for measuring)

1/2 chocolate powder ( I use Nesquik)

1/4 cup butter

Directions for  the cake:

Beat eggs and sugar until creamy. Add flour and milk alternating them, starting and ending with the flour. Beat well. Then stir in coconut, chocolate sprinkles, and baking powder. Bake at 350F on a greased and floured pan for about 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove cake from pan and finish cooling on a wire rack.

Directions for frosting:

In Brazil this frosting is called brigadeiro, and is something that everybody grows up learning how to make, as it is a staple dessert made very often. It can be eaten alone, as frostings, fillings, flavored with fruit....the possibilities are endless. It actually deserves its own posting, I will work on that.

Back to the directions: put all the ingredients on a pot over medium-high heat and stir it non-stop for about 30 minutes, until it resembles pudding consistency and feels "spreadable"

Pour the frosting on top of the cake, top generously with chocolate sprinkles and enjoy!

Nutty Caramel Corn

Last Sunday the Brazilian community had a Christmas party here in Central Texas, potluck style. Dear Husband and I brought turkey and cranberry sauce. For no reason other than  I was feeling like it, I decided to make some Nutty Caramel Corn to give out as party favors. Because we had 22 families present I made 2 batches, which was no big deal since it is really easy and fast. The only thing is that because it yields a lot four hands are really needed to stir the syrup with the popcorn, and I am lucky Dear Husband was eager to help me.

I am going to post the basic recipe but keep in mind you can customize it according to your taste, add more sugar, less peanut butter, different types of nuts - just make sure you don't skip the vanilla or the baking soda at the end, as they make the final product come together.

Ingredients:

3 packages plain microwave popcorn

1 cup salted peanuts

1 cup roasted almonds

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cups butter, cubed

3/4 cup corn syrup ( I used light)

3/4 cup peanut butter ( I used creamy)

1/2 cup molasses ( spray the measuring cup with a little cooking spray, this works for the corn syrup as well)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup pecan halves

Directions:

Pop popcorn in the microwave as usual. After all bags are popped put it all in a very large bowl, remove the unpopped kernels and add the pecans, mixing well. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, combine the peanuts, almonds, brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, peanut butter and molasses. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla and baking soda ( mixture will foam, pretty cool).

Add hot syrup mixture to popcorn and toss to coat, this is where you need 4 hands due to large amount. Be aware it will be sticky, but you can spray your hands with some cooking spray to make your life easier. Spread onto parchment paper, wait ten minutes until it cools, break into chunks for easy storage and consumption.

                  In take-out boxes ready to be gifted.

                   In the pan, a delicious sticky mix.

At the end, after adding vanilla and baking soda, ready to be mixed with popcorn.

              Cooling on parchment paper.

Pao-de-Queijo( Brazilian Cheese Bread)

This is comfort food at its best! A light, gluten-free bread that is light and fluffy and Oh So Tasty! In Brazil we usually eat it in the morning with our coffee, or in the afternoon with tea. Here in the US the expats serve it as an appetizer. But I promise you it's good anytime with anything! I made some last night for our baby-shower planning get together, but forgot to add salt! That's what happens when one tries to do too much in too little time. So we added salt as we ate, it was still good but not as good as the 'real' thing. Oh well there is always time.

There are as many versions of pao de queijo as there are Brazilians, I like this one because it's so light. But it yields a lot, about 48 little breads. When making 1/2 recipe use 3 eggs.

Ingredients:

5 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup milk
3 cups tapioca flour ( called polvilho in Portuguese)
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese ( I always use DiGiorno)
1 tablespoon salt

Direction:

Preheat oven to 375F. Blend all the ingredients together in a blender, pour into greased mini-muffin pans. Bake for 18 minutes. Enjoy!

                     These are best when fresh out of the oven!

Lemon Cake

I had a girl's get together last night, it is always so much fun to eat and talk thru the evening. I am only sorry I work, otherwise I could do it every day! Imagine the possibilities! Back to reality, yesterday's gathering was particularly special, as we were planning for the upcoming baby shower of a dear friend. Stay tuned for the goodies that we will  be making for that occasion.
I baked a new lemon cake recipe, and as Dear Husband put it " It's a keeper!" Sooooo moist and bursting with delicious lemon flavor.

Lemon Cake ( Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients for the cake

1 cup butter ( no substitutes), softened
3 cups sugar
6 eggs
5 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon lemon extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups sour cream

Ingredients for the Icing:

1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in lemon juice, peel and extract. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternatively with sour cream. Beat just until combined.

Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350F. for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

For icing, in a small mixing bowl, beat the sour cream and butter, until blended. Gradually add confectioner's sugar. Beat in lemon juice and peel. Drizzle over the cake. Store in refrigerator.

 The final product. I didn't have time to let the cake cool completely before icing it, therefore it melted and feel on the pan.

                     My fancy lemon squeezer LOL.

                           Zesting the lemon.

Pumpkin Bread

One of my favorite things about fall is baking with pumpkin. The cool weather combined with the sweet aroma of pumpkins makes for such a cozy feeling. I wish it could be fall all year- althought I probably wouln't appreciate it as much.
I decided to bake some pumpkin bread a couple of nights ago since I still have some frozen pumpkin puree left over from the giant pumpkin I baked the other day. I had to substitute walnuts for pecans because I accidentaly burned my walnuts, that's what happens when one doens't pay atttention! I must take charge of the ADHD in me. Despite that it came out pretty good, nice and moist. Speaking of moist, because the pumpkin was frozen and thawed it was very liquidy, so I added a little less oil than the recipe called for. Another thing I always do, even when the recipe doesns't call for it, is lightly toasting my nuts, it really enhances the flavor.

Spiced Pumpkin Bread ( Epicurious Recipe)

Ingredients

3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 16-oz can solid pack pumpkin
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts ( optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour two 9x5x3 inch loaf pans. Beat sugar and oil in large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl. Stir in pumpkin mixture in 2 additions. Mix in walnuts, if desired.

Divide batter equally between prepared pans. bake until tester inserterd into center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool.

                                   Loaves cooling on rack. Yum!

                                 I love the color of the fresh pumpkin.

                                 Going into the oven.

Dinner Tonight- Lentil Soup

Dear Husband has been wanting lentil soup for the past 12 years, and I finally decided to make it tonight. The reason I postponed so much is that I do not like it, so I had a frozen while DH, mom and dad ate the soup. They swore it was awesome and totally delicious. We made our no-knead bread to go with it- I did have some of that and it was yummy as usual.

Here is the recipe: 

Ingredients: 

- Some oil ( about 1 tablespoon)

- 1 carrot, diced

- 3 stalks of celery, diced

- 1 large onion, chopped

- 4 cups chicken stock

- 4 cups water

- 2 chicken bouillons

- 1 lbs. Italian sausage, mild, casing removed and cut into chunks

- 2 cans diced tomatoes

- 2 cups of dried lentils, soaked over 8 hours

- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper ( or less if you don't like spicy)

- 1/2 teaspoon oregano

- 1/2 teaspoon thyme

- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

- 2 bay leafs

- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

In a saucepan, saute oil, onions, carrots and celery. When tender throw in a large dutch oven with the chicken broth, water and chicken bouillons. In the saucepan brown the sausage, when done put sausage into dutch oven and remove grease from saucepan. Add  tomatoes with its juice, lentils, and seasonings. Simmer about 1 hour or until lentils are tender. Remove about 1/3 of soup ( do not remove sausage nor bay leaves) into the saucepan, and blend it with an immersion blender. Return it to the pot. Remove the bay leaves and serve!

                                      Ready to be eaten!

   Sauteing onions, celery and carrots, sausage ready to be browned next.

                               Soup simmering away

                          Mom and dad enjoying it.

Pumpkin Pie

What can I say? After a lot of research I ended up using the exact same recipe I have been using for years. I thought of substituting evaporated milk for condensed milk but Dear Husband doesn't like his desserts very sweet, and since I make this pie for him, I decided to keep it simple the way he likes it. I did however used my fresh pumpkin puree instead of the one in a can, and it did make a difference! It was more aromatic and creamier.

                  Ready to go into the oven.

So it turns out I forgot to take a picture of the pumpkin pie. But here is a group picture, sugar-free chocolate cake on the left ( baked by my mom). pecan pie on the right and pumpkin on top.

Pecan Pie

This is my absolute favorite pie of all times, I could eat it day and night. I make it every year but I have to say this was the best one yet. I did a lot of researching on the web, and based upon my experience selected this recipe.

I made sure I toasted the pecans before hand, I put them on the bottom of the pan as opposed to mixing them with the sauce. 

But I think that what made it really special was the fact when the pie was settled but still warm I brushed it with a mix of light corn syrup and rum. Oh my goodness, it made it look professional and tasted like heaven. 

However, I am ashamed to say I did not made the crust. I have yet to get a gist of how to get it all flaky and buttery, and decided Thanksgiving was not the time to go around experimenting. I will work on improving my technique this coming year so hopefully I will have an awesome recipe to share in 2011. 

            Lightly toasting the pecans to release the oils.

                       My super-helpful nieces arranging the pecans on the pan.

                              Ready to go into the oven. 

So it turns out I forgot to take a picture of the pecan pie. But here is a group picture, sugar-free chocolate cake on the left ( baked by my mom). pecan pie on the right and pumpkin on top.

Thanksgiving

Yesterday was Thanksgiving here in the USA and I should have posted this then, except I was too exhausted to do so! Not easy to prepare such a huge meal. And I didn't do everything by myself, here is a list of what we had and who made what: 

1. Turkey- Dear Husband, he used Alton Brown's recipe, the same we have been using for years, and it came out fabulous.
2. Gravy- Dear Husband, his specialty, sorry I have no idea what he puts into it or how he goes about making it. I've never paid enough attention. Maybe next time.
3. Stuffing- Dear Husband, it was white bread with pecans, cranberries, celery and onions. Cooked everything on the stove top then baked it. My favorite!
4. Rice- Me. Yes, I know, the pilgrims did not eat rice but I just had to have it. I made a casserole out it, cooked the rice as usual then added cranberries, corn , topped it with mozzarella cheese and broiled it.
5. Cranberry Sauce- Me. I made the recipe I had already posted here, but this time I cooked a little less so it was softer, very nice. 
6. Mashed Potatoes- Dear Husband and I. Team work, best spuds ever!  Our secret? A ton of cream and butter, oh so tasty!
7. Sweet Potato Casserole, Peas, and Assorted Vegetables- Sister-in-Law. She is in charge every year, and I am sure they were delicious, I wouldn't know because I don't eat vegetables. Oh yes, I am aware of  the health benefits and all. But I really hate how they taste and smell.
8. Rolls- Mom. She made them from scratch and they were awesome. I can only hope to be half the baker she is one day. 
9. Appetizers- Mom-in-Law. We had different types of shrimp and sauces, and an extra yummy crab and cream-cheese filled wonton thingy, super yummy. You didn't think we were only having all of the above, right?
10. Apple Pie- Dear Husband, he doesn't really have a recipe, just kinda experiments with different flavors every year, and always changes the amounts. 
11. Pecan Pie- Me. Here is the recipe. 
12. Pumpkin Pie- Me. For the recipe click here. 

So it might look like I did not do a lot work, however for Dear Husband's dishes I did all the prep work, chopping, peeling etc... I also washed a ton of dishes, because I only have one dishwasher and so many dishes. In addition we had to move furniture around to accommodate everybody, clean all the silver, set the tables and serving stations...only ten people but still time consuming. Not complaining, just explaining. We do it every year and love it, a tradition we hope to continue for many years to come. 

 I like to serve big meals buffet style so there is plenty of room to move around the main table.

                        The main table.

     Stuffing in the front, mashed potatoes on the left, sweet potato casserole on the right.

                 The main attractions: 20.5 lbs. turkey.

        Rice casserole in front, veggies in the back and left, rolls on the right.

          Brinning the turkey.

                Roasting the turkey. 

                          All-American apple pie.

Flan

In Brazil, like in the rest of Latin America, we love flan. It looks fancy  but is a breeze to make! Here is the recipe I use, passed down to me by my mom:

- 1 can condensed milk ( I always use La Lechera)
- 2 cans of milk ( use the condensed milk can for measurement)
- 4 eggs

Blend it all well and pour it into a caramelized spring form pan.

There are several techniques to caramelize a pan, I like to pour some sugar ( remember, it will be your caramel sauce, if you like a lot of sauce put a lot of sugar) into the pan, place it directly on top of the fire on the stove, and melt it.Caution: sugar dissolves quickly, so don't leave your pan unattended for even one second! Once it's all melted work quickly to coat all sides of the spring form pan with the sugar, as it hardens fast.

After you have poured the blended mix into the caramelized spring form pan put it on a water bath, and cook it on low temperature for about 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into it comes out clean, and you feel that your flan is at the desired consistency.
Cool it completely before turning it onto a platter and serving it. I usually cool mine overnight, in the fridge.

The caramelizing of the pan might sound a little intimating to some but I promise it's super easy and totally worth it!

Pumpkin Cake

Tonight I decided to use some of that pumpkin I pureed over the weekend, and found a recipe I had saved a long time ago but had never gotten around to making it. It is from Cooking Light. I made a couple of modifications and it came out terrific! The house smelled incredible, and Dear Husband couldn't wait to eat it, he nearly burnt his tongue. 

Ingredients

• 3 1/4  cups  all-purpose flour
• 1  tablespoon  baking powder
• 2 1/2  teaspoons  ground cinnamon
• 1  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1  teaspoon  ground nutmeg
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1 1/2  cups  fresh or canned pumpkin puree
• 1/2  cup  applesauce ( I didn't have any, used vegetable oil instead)
• 1 1/2  cups  granulated sugar
• 1/2  cup  stick margarine, softened
• 3  large egg whites (only had 2 eggs, so used both of them whole)
• 2  teaspoons  vanilla extract
• Cooking spray
• 3  tablespoons  dark or light brown sugar
• 1  tablespoon  dark rum
• 1  teaspoon  skim milk
• 3  tablespoons  powdered sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine first 6 ingredients; set flour mixture aside. Combine pumpkin and applesauce; set aside.
Beat granulated sugar and margarine in a large bowl at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about 5 minutes). Add egg whites and vanilla, beating well. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with pumpkin mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Pour batter into a 12-cup Bundt pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan.
Combine brown sugar, rum, and milk in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat until brown sugar dissolves. Remove sugar mixture from heat, and add powdered sugar, stirring with a whisk. Spoon glaze over warm cake.

Cranberry Sauce

One of my favorite things about this time of the year is cranberry sauce. I absolutely love it! Its rich sweet and tart flavor is incredibly satisfying. Every year I make several batches and freeze them to eat throughout the year ( well it really only lasts until about February) with chicken or pork.

Tomorrow we are having a Thanksgiving potluck at work and I thought I would take some to share. I will also be making more for actual Thanksgiving next week and then some more for a X-mas potluck in December. Yum!

It's really so easy to make:

- 4 cups fresh cranberries, washed and sorted ( throw away the blemished ones)

- 2 cups of water

- 2 cups of sugar

- some orange zest or orange juice

Bring water and sugar to a boil, add cranberries. Stir every once in a while and after they "pop" mash them up with a wooden spoon. No need to add pectin, cranberries are naturally rich in it. When you have reached your desired consistency add the orange juice or zest, turn it off and you are done!

See? It couldn't be any simpler. And it tastes so much better than a canned one, once you eat this you will never want to have that again.

Easy No Knead Bread

Here is the link for the amazingly easy no knead bread. This is our go-to recipe, it's virtually fool proof, the only thing is that it needs to get started a day in advance, so it requires some planning. During the winter we bake it several times a week, every time we eat soup or stew.

http://www.aresrocket.com/bread/

Enjoy!

                      Mixing the ingredients.

                          Letting the bread rise.

                       Going into the oven in a dutch oven.

Dinner Tonight-Seafood Pasta

Both Dear Husband and I love seafood, so we decided to make seafood linguine. Dear Husband wanted mussels, but our fishmonger was out of it, so he settled for Littleneck Clams instead. And I chose huge sea scallops.

We did not use a recipe for this, but this is more or less what we did:

• Soaked the clams in water.
• Drained the clams and let them rest in the fridge for a bit.
• Made a sauce out of beer, finely diced shallots, onions, tomatoes, garlic, butter, thyme, banana peppers ( just because we had a ton in the yard) bay leaf, salt and pepper.
• We steamed the clams just until they opened, and got them out with a spider.
• Meanwhile, we cooked the linguine until it was al dente. We drained it and put it back in the pot.
• We took about half the clam sauce and dumped into the pasta, adding lemon zest and parsley. The rest of the sauce we poured over the clams. 
• As for the scallops, I rinsed them, patted them dry, and put them in a smoking hot cast-iron skillet along with some olive oil and butter. I added some kosher salt and let it cook for two minutes in one side, turned them over and cooked for an additional minute. They came out perfect!

To accompany the pasta we made some rustic Italian bread, so delicious and crunchy just the way you get at nice Italian bakeries, I will post that recipe separately.

                                      Scallops over seafood linguine.

                               Clams steaming in the sauce- it smelled GREAT!

 Clams ready to be served- the sauce was terrific for dumking a hot, buttered slice of bread in.

                               Our rustic Italian bread, made from scratch.

Apple Squares

Dear Husband loves apples, and they are so yummy right now, I decided to bake him bars- I got the recipe from Phyllis Hoffman Celebrate Fall 2009 magazine.

Mom's Apple Squares- makes about 25 servings

3 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 cups chopped unpeeled Braeburn or Gala apples- I used Braeburn

1/2 cup chopped walnuts- I toasted them lightly on a skillet to release the oils.

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sifted confectioner's sugar

1 tablespoon butter, softned

2 to 3 tablespoons whole milk- I used 2 1/2 of Half & Half

Preheat oven to 350F. Coat a 15x10-inch jelly roll pan with nonstick baking spray with flour; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine eggs and salt. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until frothy, about 1 minute. Add sugar and oil; beat until blended. In a small bowl. combine flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add to egg mixture; beat just until blended. Fold in apples, nuts and vanilla. Pour into prepared pan; spread evenly.

Bake 30 minutes or until lightly browned and set. Cool on a wire rack.

In a medium bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, butter, and enough milk to achieve a spreadable consistency. Spread over cake ( I drizzled it). When frosting has set, cut cake into bars.

Pumpkin Puree

When I was a little girl back in Brazil, there was no canned pumpkin ( as a matter of fact, I still don't think there is) so my mom used to peel the pumpkin, cut it in cubes and boil it on the stove forever, which was messy and time-consuming.

Last night I was watching Chow on my Roku and came across a much easier way to get the pulp. Since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I decided to give it a try, after all fresh ingredients are always better than canned ones. So I went to my local grocer and got a Cinderella pumpkin, the recommended variety. . I came home and wrapped it really well in aluminum foil, put it on a baking sheet and stuck it a 200F, pre-heated oven. I then turned the timer for 9 hours ( because the pumpkin was so huge) and went to bed. I woke up this morning and it smelled so good! When the timer went off I turned the oven off but left the pumpkin in there for another hour or so while I cooked something else.

When I removed the pumpkin from the foil it was super easy to peel it, it pretty much cracked open by itself. Dear Husband and I proceeded to scoop out the seeds and strings, and after that it was a breeze to get to the pulp. The whole ordeal only took about 20 minutes and it was a very neat job, because of the foil. The baking pan was so clean it did not even need to be rinsed, it went straight back into the drawer.

As for the pulp, I blended it with an immersion blender for about two minutes, they were so soft already. It kinda looked like baby food at the end. 

And for 99c I now have 12 cups of pumpkin puree! I froze ten in batches of 2 cups each, and left 2 cups out to use this week...I guess I will be spending a lot of time googling " pumpkin recipes" :-) Please let me know if you have a good one!

                      The whole uncooked pumpkin ready to be wrapped into foil.

                   Removing the strings and seeds from the cooked pumpkin.

                                             Scooping out the pulp.

Dinner Tonight-Pork Roast

I know I started this blog for baking, sweets in particular, however I do enjoy all types of cooking and since everyone has to eat dinner every night, I decided to start a new feature- Dinner Tonight. Because let's be frank, the worst thing about cooking dinner is deciding what to make. I hope this gives people some ideas. I know I love to go to other blogs to get inspired.

I asked Dear Husband what he wanted for dinner and he said pork loin, dilled new potatoes and green beans.

For the pork I made a real simple paste: garlic cloves, chopped onions, fresh rosemary, olive oil, white wine and salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste; and blended it for a couple of minutes. Sorry I didn't measure anything, but I was after a garlicky taste so I loaded up on it. You only need enough liquids to make it a thick paste, you don't want it to be runny. I then took my pork loin, and after ridding it of excess fat, poked a lot of holes in it with a knife. Next I poured the paste onto the loin and made sure it got into the holes, rubbing it all over. I marinated it for a couple of hours in a plastic container, and put it on a roasting pan along with some more white wine. I used a Moscato I had open in the refrigerator but it was too sweet, next time I will try a drier wine or just some chicken stock. I then roasted it at 350 degrees for about an hour ( I had a 1.2lbs loin), turning and basting every 15 minutes or so. You want your pork to be cooked but not overdone, as it gets dry and rubbery. Pink with no running juices is good.

Dear Husband used the pan drippings to make gravy, but that's his specialty, I have no idea how he did it...maybe he will get inspired and post it here on a comment.

For the potatoes, I wanted the "New Potatoes" variety but they did not have it at my local grocer, so I bought small red potatoes instead, and it was fine. I put them into a pan with just enough cold water to cover it, and then boiled them until a fork inserted into the potatoes came off easily. To serve we coated them with butter and dill( they were NOT peeled).

The green beans got their ends snapped off, and were boiled until tender but with a little bit of a "bite" left, the way Dear Husband likes them.

And of course, being from Brazil, I just had to cook rice. I sauteed chopped onions, olive oil, salt and minced garlic, added the rice, pan fried it for a little bit, then added cold water. You need two cups of water per cup of rice. I brought it to a boil on high heat with the pan uncovered, once it was nearly done I turned the heat down and put a lid on the pan. Perfect rice every time. I like to use the " Bastami" variety.

                                        The pork loin before going into the oven, with the paste on.

                                                                   Dinner was yummy!

Chocolate Cake- Ugly but Oh So Tasty!

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and we will have a small celebration at school, so I naturally decided to bake a cake to celebrate the occasion. The cake itself is chocolate, from a recipe I have had forever, made from scratch. I did cheat on the filling, as I was tired after working, having a book study meeting after-school, running to the grocery store and making dinner. Short story long, I simply mixed cool-whip and blackberry jam. It came out mousse-like, very tasty in a tart kind of way. 

I made buttercream to ice the cake with, and that's where my problems started. The cream itself was fine, but when I started to add color ( I wanted navy blue) I soon realized it was going to be a disaster..I added the entire tube of blue gel coloring but it still came out baby-bluish. I need to take an art class to learn how to mix colors!

I then proceeded to assemble the cake and realized it was looking very much like the tower of Pisa. Hum, what's a girl to do? I tried to even it out by cutting, but it came out way less than perfect. The final disaster came when I was icing, I just could not get it to have that professional smooth look. Good thing I have signed up for 4 cake decoring classes! Obviously I need them. So I made myself feel better by thinking of this as a "before" cake, so I can look back and see how far I've come! Let's hope I have not just jinxed myself and  that it actually happens. 

Here is the cake recipe: 

- 4 eggs

- 2 cups of sugar, sifted

- 2 cups of flour, sifted

- 1 cup of boiling milk

- 5 tablespoons of cocoa powder

- 1 tablespoon of baking powder

Beat the egg whites until it reaches a stiff consistency. Add the yolks and the sugar and beat well. Add the flour and the cocoa powder, mix well and add the hot, boiling milk over it and keep on mixing it. Add the baking powder and mix it lightly onto the batter. Bake for 30 minutes on a pre-heated 350 oven ( I usually pre-heat mine for about 20 minutes).  You can bake it on a 13x9 pan or two small round ones, don't forget to divide the batter evenly in this case. 

The frosting was buttercream.

This is what your egg whites need to look like before you start adding the other ingredients onto the batter. By the way, if you don't have one, go ahead and purchase a Kitchen Aid mixer. Best tool ever! Totally worth the cost.

To check and see if the cake is done, insert a skewer into it, if it comes out clean it's done.

               The cake filling, before the second cake was added on top.

                            The final product, my poor little ugly cake.