Daring Bakers: Filled Meringue Coffee Cake

March 27, 2011 baking , daring bakers 2 Comments
Filled Meringue Coffee Cake

The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake, a gorgeous brioche-like dough rolled jellyroll style around a whipped meringue and various fillings, shaped into a wreath and baked. "The cake is light and fluffy, barely sweet, the meringue miraculously melts into the dough as it bakes leaving behind just a hint of sweetness and adding to the perfect moistness of the cake."

One thing that is nice about the Daring Bakers is that there is a forum where people post their finished products for others to see and get advice. By mid-month a good many of the bakers have theirs done and it is good to scroll through to see what people chose to fill their versions with. Some really follow the instructions, so go way off on their own, but all help to give you ideas of the possibilities out there. 

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I'm a Chocolate Snob!

March 25, 2011 chocolate , thoughts 0 Comments

Yes, I am a chocolate snob.  You will only see me buy a chocolate bar out of desperation.  If I need a quickie chocolate fix, I’ll reach for a bag of peanut M&Ms.  But if I have the cash and a good quality chocolate is in the vicinity, I’ll pay for it.  This isn’t to say I never buy American.  I will buy/eat See’s or a chocolate shop’s chocolate. I should say that I’m talking milk chocolate, since I don’t care for dark chocolate.  I just have a real preference for European chocolate.

Why?  It turns out that most American companies just don’t take the time and care to make quality chocolate.


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Crockpot Wednesday: Brunswick Stew

March 23, 2011 chicken , crockpot 1 Comments
Brunswick Stew
Rating: 5/5

This week I am featuring a recipe from my friend, Ann, over at Sacatomato. Ann has a cookbook out called Hands-off Cooking. Now if you are following these crockpot posts then you are probably looking for easy recipes that require the least amount of effort possible. Ann's cookbook is perfect for you. Although they are not all done in a crockpot, many of them could be. But only two in the book specifically say they are for the crockpot. 

I've made quite a few of the recipes and there are definitely some I come back to time and again. One of them is the Lentil Soup with Greens and Sausage. I like to use a hot Italian sausage and kale in mine. That makes it zesty and full of nutrients. One that really surprised me was the Pork Chili with Sweet Potatoes. Not tomato based and made with a bit of maple syrup, this chili will make you realize that you can really think 'out of the box' to use ingredients not normally associated with chili.

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Roxy

March 19, 2011 0 Comments
Roxy Restaurant & Bar on Urbanspoon

Updated Post:
I’m at Roxy with BFF again. This time it is girls’ night out with another friend and we are here for dinner on a Friday. It’s 6 p.m. and the place is packed. It’s been a few years since my last visit and I’m a bit shocked by the obvious popularity. After a half hour wait we are finally seated. 

No pictures this time. I will tell you the food was fabulous! So that’s why it was so bustling!

We started off with the Roasted Piquillo Peppers - stuffed with braised beef, Laura Chenel goat cheese, roasted tomato ancho chile sauce and toasted pumpkin seeds. YUM!  We received three good sized peppers in a bed of sauce. Inside there was luscious, rich shredded braised beef and then the ends were plugged with the goat cheese, which was melting from the heat. The melted cheese gave a creaminess to each bite with a tang and a bit of heat of chile. BFF was practically licking the plate clean of sauce.

We each chose different entrees and they were all fantastic. I had the braised short rib which in hindsight was not the best choice after just eating some of it stuffed into the peppers. But I received a nice sized portion that was oh-so tender. It was served with some roasted veggies and a bit of mashed potato.

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Why Americans Will Never Embrace Train Travel

March 13, 2011 thoughts , trains 3 Comments
You might have taken the Capitol Corridor train to the Bay Area, but taking an   Amtrak train to a distant destination is a much different experience. I endured such an experience in January a couple of years ago when I decided to take the train to Salem, OR instead of drive. Based on that trip, I can see why Amtrak is always in financial trouble. America will never embrace train travel if it stays the way it is now.
Delays are the number one issue that needs to be overcome. Trains are much worse than airlines for staying on time. My departure from Sacramento was an hour late. That was a good day. Often times it can be a lot worse. I was supposed to leave at midnight and ended up leaving at 1 a.m.  When I woke up the next morning, we had apparently lost another hour. The reason for most of the delays...freight trains. Amtrak leases the tracks from Union Pacific. That means they have to give way to freight trains whenever there is a right-of-way issue. Freight trains are LONG and SLOW. We lost more time along the way. My arrival changed from 3:30 to 5:30. I was lucky. The next day’s train apparently broke down in the middle of the mountains and sat for eight hours! It was so late that instead of going to Seattle, it stopped in Portland and bussed the people to Seattle (and the reverse) so that the next day’s train could be on schedule if it departed from Portland. Lucky for me because that was my return train home!
The second problem with train travel is it is boring. They need to have airline type seats with the monitors in the seatbacks and some movies. On my way home I had finished my knitting and reading. It was pitch black, outside so I ended up taking a sleeping pill and going to sleep at 8:00. Luckily there were no further delays and we arrived on-time at 6 a.m.
There are some good things. The observation car is nice during the day to look at the scenery. On the way up some volunteers got on at Klamath Falls and gave trivia and history of Oregon all the way to Eugene. The snack bar was O.K. It offered snacks that went up to microwaveable pizzas, etc. The dining car was nice too. I only tried breakfast, so I don’t know the quality of the entrees, but they did include things like lamb shanks and Angus burgers. The coach seats recline really far and there is plenty of leg room and a leg rest that flips up. 
One tip I got from the papers and from another passenger—if you want to get a sleeping cabin, don’t book it in advance. Instead, get on board and then inquire after departure. Sometimes you can get them at a discount. The guy I talked to got his for just $50. But I think it depends on if you get a nice conductor or not. When I inquired for my return trip he told me $129, so I passed. 
In my opinion people should have priority over freight. Who cares if a load of lumber is two hours late? If they could take care of that and add some entertainment on the trains, people would be more willing to use the trains to travel.
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Pho Bac Hoa Viet

March 12, 2011 restaurant , review 2 Comments
Pho Bac Hoa Viet on Urbanspoon

Pho Bac Hoa Viet - pho w/ steak, flank, and tendon

I only learned about six months ago that Pho is pronounced as Fuh. Don't ask me how to pronounce the rest of the name. But that's not what is important when you judge a restaurant. It's the food that matters. 

Located in Rancho Cordova just off the freeway at the Bradshaw exit, Pho Bac Hoa Viet restaurant is large. On a Sunday night it was pretty busy with patrons with big bowls in front of them. We took a seat at a booth and perused the lengthy menu. There are plenty of versions of pho, or soups, but there is also a large amount of both Vietnamese and Chinese dishes. 


Pho Bac Hoa Viet - shrimp spring rolls and strawberry lemonade

I started with a request for strawberry lemonade and was thrilled to receive an excellent one. This wasn't just a lemonade filled with a strawberry syrup. This was real strawberry puree so that there were bits of strawberry that sank to the bottom. 

I also asked to try the shrimp spring rolls. The menu says two, but they are two cut in half so that you actually have four large rolls to dip into the peanut sauce. These rolls were big and filled with lettuce and rice sticks. I was just a bit disappointed that the shrimp were little and sliced in half. I like my protein and would have liked whole pieces.

I was here for the signature item, though, and went with a pho with rare steak, flank, and tendon. I just couldn't do tripe since I've never experience tripe that I like. The server asked me if I wanted the small or large size. I opted for the small and am I glad I did. The bowl that arrived was large in my book and was filled with ingredients. A noodle soup should have noodles and this one did. There was an abundance of them, tender and chewy, long and thick. There were plenty of the meats and veggies as well. I found the broth a bit on the bland side so I spiced it up with a bunch of pepper oil. There was also a side plate of more things to add to the soup - mushrooms, sprouts, and herbs. 


I couldn't finish my small and wondered about a large. But if you are into food challenges, they recently had one to eat a giant bowl in an hour. It was 2 lbs of noodles and 2 lbs of meat and if you ate it it was free and you got your picture on their wall of fame. There are plenty of pictures up there, but only a handful that are in the successful section. 


There is a second location of this restaurant in Folsom at 602 E. Bidwell Street.
Follow them on Twitter and Facebook.
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Fantastic Cuban Pork Chops

Fantastic Cuban Pork Chops

March 11, 2011 entree , pork 1 Comments
If you watch the Food Network than you probably know who Guy Fieri is. If you don't watch it, then you'll know him as the spokesperson for TGI Fridays. Anyway, I've never been impressed by him. As far as I was concerned, he was all showman and no substance. He's got that appearance and personality that makes him perfect for TV, but I really didn't give him much credit in the chef category. He calls Northern California home and has two restaurants here. One, Tex Wasabi, has mediocre food and reviews and so I haven't even bothered to go there. His newest, Johnny Garlic's, just opened in Roseville and so I will have to trek out there some day to check it out. Haven't seen any reviews on it yet.

So...the most interesting pork chop recipe I came across was Guy's Cuban pork chops. The recipe looked good and so I decided to give it a try. IT WAS THE BOMB! I will be keeping this recipe and doing it again because it was so delicious and pretty easy and straightforward to do. I also used his side dish of Sofrito Mashed Potatoes. They were also good but made so much that I've got a huge amount still left over.

The pork chops are marinated in orange/lime/vinegar for a few hours. Then you coat them with a spice blend, sear them, and then make a sauce from the pan drippings, onions, and more juice and wine. The mixture of the citrus and the spice blend was so zesty and flavorful. Then add the high quality pork that I had and it was a superb meal all around. Highly recommended.

Because it was a birthday dinner I didn't think quick enough to take pictures before we devoured it. I also served steamed green beans and then flan for dessert. Everyone raved and wished there had been more. My huge pork chops I thought were going to be too much and instead we ended up wanting seconds! I will be making this again soon.
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Sandra Dee's

March 11, 2011 review , 0 Comments
Sandra Dee's Barbeque & Seafood on Urbanspoon

My boss is from Louisiana. His wife is from the same place that Sandra Dee hails from. Needless to say, we go at least once a month to SD's for lunch. It's the closest thing to home for him. Not perfect, but close enough. For the rest of us, it's pretty good and we aren't going to be so picky.

Thursdays the special is their fried chicken. For years I always ate ribs and hot links and my coworkers raved on the chicken. I finally tried it and was astounded. So moist on the inside, and coated with a great coating with a bit of zip. Just goes to prove that even if you have a favorite item on a menu, you've got to try something new once in a while.



The choices were varied. Here is a picture of the above mentioned fried chicken. The same coating was used on the shrimp as well. Everyone agreed it was spicy and delicious. We even had a couple more Southerners in the group who were very happy with their food.



Jeni chose a shrimp po-boy. This is a sandwich that my co-worker always orders and is another item I need to try. Like the chicken, I'm sure I'll be a convert.



I was in the mood for ribs. I always have to get the hot BBQ sauce in the side and carefully take tiny dips. It is just way too hot. The ribs are a little on the dry side and so you do need sauce. I always get the spicy corn and mac and cheese as my sides.



If you are a hot links lover, then these are for you. I don't know how Al could eat them with the hot sauce poured all over the top! HOT! I love their hot links except for the fact that they slash them before grilling, so the juices are all gone and they are on the dry side.

Mary, our Southerner for the evening, was very happy with the hush puppies. Overall everyone seemed satisfied, after the food finally arrived...

One thing you should definitely know about SD's is that service is slow. Especially if you order the fried chicken. You better be patient. It's often a problem when we go for work lunches. Don't go here if you have a time crunch.
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Laser Lipo - 5 Weeks Out

Laser Lipo - 5 Weeks Out

March 10, 2011 laser , laser lipo 14 Comments

No, I'm not ready to show you pictures yet. Mostly because I forgot to take the camera with me to my follow-up appointment. I'll have to get a friend to take them for me. But also because I'm still not reveal-ready yet.

Last time I left you on this topic, I was just a couple of days out from the actual surgery. I can tell you that I stopped taking any pain medication (Tylenol) after day 4. I just didn't have a  need for it. Yes, I was still tender and sore, but it was never anything that was unbearable to me. And excessive use of Tylenol is bad for your liver (any drug is, but Tylenol has significant documentation).

Even after two weeks I could already see that my side muffintop was gone. That alone is great. But even today, at week 5, I'm still a bit swollen in the abs and still slightly tender. I'm a bit surprised by how long the tenderness is lasting, but not concerned. Again, it's bothersome, but not unbearable. 

The second biggest side effect is the osmotic-edema.
With the tumescent technique, there is always a certain amount of blood-tinged anesthetic solution which remains beneath the skin where the fat has been suctioned. This blood-tinged fluid causes bruising and the post-operative swelling known as "osmotic-edema". 
Basically the fluid that was left in your body and didn't get drained out needs to be reabsorbed and flushed via your lymphatic and circulatory systems. Until it's all reabsorbed, it sits there and creates firm lumps. The reason for using compression garments (which must be worn for several weeks) is to force the absorption of the blood-tinged anesthetic solution into the body's blood vessels. 

So I've had these lumps for weeks. When I went to my one month appointment the nurse said I needed to drink more water, massage the area, heat it with a heating pad, and come back for a Velashape treatment to help loosen those lumps for absorbtion.
VelaShape™ features the combination of Bi-Polar radiofrequency (RF), Infrared Light Energy, plus Vacuum and Mechanical Massage. The combination of these energies increases the metabolism of stored energy, increases lymphatic drainage and reduces or shrinks the size of the actual fat cells and fat chambers.
In this treatment the nurse took a paddle that vacuumed up and then treated the area. It was a bunch of quick thumps as she moved along my abdominal area. Because of my sensitivity, it was a bit uncomfortable. But it only took about 15 minutes and I was done. I was told to continue to drink a lot of water. This may be part of why it is taking a while for me - I'm not a big water drinker. It's a lot of effort for me to even remember to drink. 

I'll give you all another update in about another 6 weeks. By that time I should be flattening out and really seeing the results. My next follow-up, though is not until the six month mark.
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Crockpot Wednesday: Soda Shortcuts

March 09, 2011 crockpot , 0 Comments
This week I was asked to do a guest post for my friend Kimberly over at Poor Girl Eats Well. She’s in the middle of moving and needed a bit of a break from blogging duties during the move. Welcome to her readers. If you want to see past Crockpot Wednesday posts, do a search for crockpot in the search bar (left column).

I wanted to keep consistent with Kimberly’s theme of easy meals on a budget. I decided that I would share with you a few quick, even desperate, recipes that I learned from my 13+ years selling Pampered Chef. After all, PC says that homemade doesn’t have to mean made from scratch, it just means it is made at home! PC is known for doing what that Sandra Lee chick does way before she showed up on TV. They take shortcuts cooking by using grocery products.

For instance, this week’s recipe comes from my friends, Scott and Michelle.  I was over for poker night (I’m the only woman cleaning out the guys) and they had made pulled pork sandwiches. Thing is, all they did was put the pork butt into the slow cooker with a bottle of good quality root beer.  Then when you served it you poured on some BBQ sauce. So simple and yet delicious!

That was when I remembered all the other PC shortcut recipes. Sodas are great to have on hand for desperation cooking. Colas, in particular and like the root beer, have the acidity and carbonation to tenderize the meat but also the caramel/molasses flavor used in so many recipes. The key to making the recipes great is adding the veggies and extra spices you want.

Here are some examples:

Pot roast = can of cola + can of cream of mushroom soup (even better, add a package of onion soup mix)
BBQ = can of cola + 2 cups of ketchup
Baked ham = ½ liter of coke

I don’t have children but know it often happens that a child tells their parent at the last minute, “Mom, it’s my turn to bring cupcakes to class tomorrow.” No problem if you have a box of cake mix and a can of soda lying around. You don’t need to do anything else but mix those two things together. The carbonation gives the batter extra lift for a nice fluffy, moist cake. Think about the combos:

Chocolate cake + cola
Chocolate cake + cherry cola
White or yellow cake + lemon lime, grapefruit, or orange soda
Spice cake + Dr. Pepper

For the frosting you can blend together 4 cups of powdered sugar + 6 T butter + 3 T soda

So those were brief descriptions of what is possible when you are either low on cash, ingredients, time or all of the above.  Having staples in your pantry including some cans of soda can really come in handy.  For those who want a little extra information with doctoring up the above mentioned combos, here are more detailed versions:

PULLED PORK
6-8 lbs pork butt
1 can/bottle of root beer

Place ingredients in slow cooker and cook for 8 hours on low. Remove pork and set aside. Save 1/3 cup of juices and toss the rest. Using two forks, carefully shred the pork. Return to slow cooker to keep warm on warm setting.  Serve on buns with BBQ sauce and cole slaw.

BARBECUE SAUCE
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. vegetable oil
2 c. catsup
1 can cola
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. Mustard
2 T. Vinegar
Saute onions and garlic in oil until translucent. Add remaining ingredients.
Simmer 30 minutes until thick.

CROCKPOT ROAST
3-4 lb. roast, cheap cut
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cola
1 pkg. onion soup

Put on low for 8 hours. If you want it thicker, when done stir in a tablespoon of flour.

BAKED HAM
1 ham
1 can cola or cherry cola
Cloves (not powdered)

Put ham in deep pan on aluminum foil. Pour Coke over. Pierce the entire ham with clove spikes about ¼ inch apart. Bake at low temperature (300 degrees) for 2-2 1/2 hours. Baste occasionally with pan juices. Coke will turn into syrup.

P.S. I wanted to add that I found these great new Earth Gains Thin Buns. They are only 100 calories each and reduces all that bread. I really liked them.
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