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December 29, 2008
Better than Dick in Box
This year, one of the favorite Christmas gifts I received was not a dick in a box, but a cupcake in a jar. It was the day after Christmas. Daisy and I had a lot of catching up to do. We went to one of the bars that did not exist when I still lived in Portland, ME. I hid from a fellow high school classmates for a variety of reasons. I drank more beer than I should have for reasons I will not say. I was told things I cannot repeat. But then I was invited to see Daisy's new apartment. I went. It was lovely -- complete with views of the bay and with a cute pug who loves to cuddle. As I was leaving, she handed me two jars. Each jar was jammed with cupcake. I was told she had baked the cake in the jar. When the cake jars were removed from the oven she screwed on the lids. As the cakes cooled, the vacuum sucked the lid down and preserved the cupcake freshness. The cupcakes can be kept, unrefrigerated in the jar for up to six months. We say, can now, frost later.
[hats off to Cupcakes Take the Cake]
Posted by Cakehead at 03:20 AM | Comments (0)
December 22, 2008
Great Food Inventions: The Cupcake Sandwich
"Do you know about the cupcake sandwich?" he asked.
I was at a birthday party. The platter of cupcakes sitting next to me was going uneaten. I needed an efficient way eat what was to be my dinner for the evening without getting frosting on my face and frock.
The cupcake sandwich was the solution of genius:
'It's easy," he said. "Rip off the bottom half of the cupcake and stick it on top."
It looks like a miniature whoopie pie. Your own delectable sweet. frosting sandwich.
Meet the inventor here.
Posted by Cakehead at 12:14 PM | Comments (1)
December 12, 2008
ASK CAKEHEAD: Orange You Glad to Have these Money Saving Tips?
Dear Cakehead,
This warmer-than-it-should-be Thanksgiving weekend, my grandmother informed me that she often freezes fresh oranges and grapefruits sent to her by relatives in warmer climes. Some months (or years?) later, she works this frozen citrus up into marmalade and other unspecified victuals. Being a lover of fresh fruit, and homemade jams concocted out of fruit fresh off the tree, I was a bit dismayed to hear of this use of fresh fruit. But my question: does my grandmother, being a daughter of the Depression, know something I don't know about how to use fresh citrus most thriftily--should I be freezing my tangelos and keylimes now that we're in recession? Clarification and recipes eagerly awaited.
Sincerely,
Lemonhead Wishing He'd Frozen His Assets
Dear Lemonhead,
People who came of age during the Depression do love their freezers. There is nothing my grandmother does not freeze. Cheese, yogurt, apples, I could go on. The link between freezing and the Depression era is an interesting one that I'm still investigating.
If it's a thrifty approach to making marmalade that you seek, there is a case to be made both for and against freezing. The pro-freezer school would suggest that by freezing your citrus, the cellular walls are broken down with the thaw. This breakdown means the time the ingredients spends on heat can be reduced by about five minutes. We're not sure whether you cook with gas or electric, but we're certain that there are savings with the five minutes shaved off cooking time. And although not a monetary reason, research shows that frozen oranges are easier to slice up.
The pro-fresh fruit school would argue that you will need to pay for about 10% more fruit to make a proper marmalade that is not runny. Also, freezing tends to reduce the pectin levels so you'll need to add the juice of one large lemon to each 1lb 2oz of fruit if making marmalade. So you could save paying the cost of a lemon by using fresh fruit. We've also heard reports that if working with frozen fruit, you will need to invest in more sugar.
Five minutes of electric/gas cooking versus 10% more fruit, a large lemon and extra sugar. We would rule with sticking with fresh fruit in these tough economic times. And we'll be sure to update when we know more about the Depression era love of the freezer.
In the meantime, here is a historic recipe for marmalade that has survived many a depression, recession and repression.
Happy marmalading,
Cakehead
Damson Marmalade Recipe:
Hannah Woolley's 1670 recipe for marmalade made with damsons. She said of the recipe that it is, “very pleasant and beneficial to all ingenious persons of the female sex.”
Marmalade of Damsons, 1670
Take two Pounds of Damsons, and one Pound of Pippin apples pared and cut in pieces. Bake them in an Oven with a little Ginger, when they are tender, pour them into a Cullender [sic], and let the syrup drop from them, then strain them, and take as much sugar as the Pulp doth weigh, boil it to a Candy height with a little water, then put in your Pulp, and boil till it will come from the bottom of the Skillet, and so put it up. [from The Old Foodie]
Posted by Cakehead at 12:27 AM | Comments (1)
Sock it to Me with some Flavored Sake
This year I need to get creative with my Christmas gift giving. My loved ones seem to have everything they need and I need to be thrifty. An especially hard one to shop for is my sister-in-law. In the past I've added to her toe sock collection. But her sock drawer is spilling over. The only other idea that stuck was to purchase several cases of Smirnoff Ice Wild Grape wine cooler. She can't get enough of the stuff, rejecting the flavors of beer and wine. I do want to make her happy, despite the uncontrollable gag reflexes I have with one sip.
Last week I sampled a new beverage that I think we would enjoy sipping together. Sake2me is a slightly sweet beverage with 7% alcohol made from Junmai sake. It's in the same "spirit" as a wine cooler, but without the malt liquor and the nasty flavors. The four flavors are: ginger mango, green tea, yuzu citrus and asian pear. When sipping the ginger mango I'm convinced that it's my favorite flavor, but when I tried the yuzu citrus, it climbs the charts to number one. I like to think of it as a flavored dessert wine. When she tries it, Smirnoff Ice will be forgotten.
Posted by Cakehead at 12:03 AM | Comments (1)
December 10, 2008
Crash the Casper
The market has crashed and so should you. Crash your friends' holiday parties, that is. We have already lined up a whole roster of holiday parties that were booked before the official recession announcement was made. We're not going to disclose where we've been or where you're going. We just wanted to pass along this recession-era activity tip.
We will keep you updated with reports of who is serving up the most lavish food spreads and where the liquor flows most abundantly. Even if you aren't liquid, it doesn't mean you should slurp up the liquid.
Posted by Cakehead at 11:05 PM | Comments (0)
Breast-shaped coke bottles
breast-shaped coke bottles
This year I spent Thanksgiving with two of my favorite lesbians. They prepared a beautiful spread of food and then another. There were few moments when we weren't shoveling food into our mouths. While rifling through the fridge to find something cold and liquid to wash down all that I had eaten, my eyes became transfixed. Sitting between a container of sour cream and a tube of Pillsbury cookie batter sat a bottle of Coke. I had never seen a bottle shaped like this before. These bottles of Coca Cola classic were in the shape of breasts! The Coca Cola marketing department is trying to appeal to lesbians. The only thing missing on the label was a rainbow and pink triangle.
Posted by Cakehead at 01:42 AM | Comments (2)
Pork Barrel Butchery in Tough Economic Times
photo from Alaina B's flickr
When a friend invited me to attend a pork butchering class at the Brooklyn Kitchen, I couldn't resist. While our government is sharpening their knives to carve out pork barrel spending, my mouth was watering thinking about how much pork belly I'd be lugging home after the half pig was butchered in front of our eyes.
The class was led by Tom Mylan, the butcher for Brooklyn eating establishments, Marlow & Sons, Diner and the Bonitas. With a knife belt saddled to his side and a whole half pig before him, I was excited just to learn how to dice up and prepare the pig pieces. But like more and more Americans, I have been without a paid gig for over a month now. Longing for steady work, I allowed myself to get swept away in a fantasy where I become an old world butcher. "Everybody needs a butcher," I told myself, momentarily forgetting my vegetarian lover. "Even in a recession."
By the end of the butchering class, my notebook was loaded with scrawled notes documenting the constant stream of advice about how to cut, cure and cook the meat. My brain was full. So much for my fallback career as a butcher. It would take a lot more than a three hour crash course to master this knife wielding art.
We drew numbers to determine the order that me and my fellow classmates would select our cuts of meat. My friend chose 1. I chose 2. While the pigs kidneys were sauteed and served, I chose first the sirloin tip, then the pork belly and finally the Boston butt for pork pulling. I could have stayed for another round but my arms ached from the weight of the meat. I headed home to cure, not trim the fat.
Posted by Cakehead at 12:57 AM | Comments (0)
December 03, 2008
ASK CAKEHEAD: A Mash Hole is Made
Dear Cakehead,
I must thank you for coming through with delicious suggestions in such a timely manner. I am pleased to report that I prepared a batch of mash holes my myself and my husband this evening. Can you believe it? Breakfast for dinner! But it proved a wholesome and balanced meal, since we dressed the mash holes with katsup.
For others interested in preparing this dish, I would warn that I encountered a couple of dilemmas: 1) with the potatoes a little crumbly after sitting in the fridge for the past couple of days, I added a bit of milk to achieve a proper consistency. Careful not to add too much liquid! I did, but fortunately could turn to the remaining leftovers to balance out my error; 2) take care not to make the mash holes too thick; I did and it made the flipping process a bit cumbersome. As an afterthought, I wonder if mixing an egg into the potato mash before making the "donuts" might make the consistency a bit more conducive to forming the balls. Just something to consider.
I've attached a photo for your interest.
Love,
a contented Mrs. Potatohead
Posted by Cakehead at 02:00 AM | Comments (0)
December 02, 2008
ASK CAKEHEAD: Mash Holes & other things to do with your leftover potatoes
Dear Cakehead,
I'm at wits end. Please do advise me: what am I to do with the
excessive amounts of mashed potatoes that I have remaining from
Thanksgiving? Soup? I'm not a fan of shepherd's pie nor the vegetarian
alternative, "gatherer's pie." Please advise. I would really prefer
that those buttery carbs don't go to waste.
Love,
Mrs. Potatohead
Dear Mrs. Potatohead,
We're delighted that you have raised this post-Thanksgiving quandary. We've heard consistent reports that homes across the country are eliminating mashed potatoes from the Thanksgiving spread. This is blasphemy in our book and we're glad to hear that you're not contributing to this strange inexplicable trend. But perhaps the snubbing of the mashed potato explains your leftovers.
Fear not. We have two suggestions. Each will create a destination for the superfluous spuds. (Please forgive the vague measurements. We're not sure how many cups of mashed you have on your hands).
1. Breakfast - Egg in a Mash Hole
If you've driven the Mass Pike you've witness the inept driving abilities of the Mass Hole species. If you get a Mass Hole out of his vehicle, we're sure you'd find a lovely Massachusetts resident who will just love this ode to them.
Heat olive oil in a sauce pan. When the oil is hot, form a donut shape with your mashed potato and place it in the hot oil. Crack open an egg into the "donut" hole. When the egg is cooked to taste season with salt and pepper, then flip the mash donut and egg. Cook to taste.
2. Hors d'oeuvre - Parsley Parm Potato Croquettes
Wash, dry and finely mince 1/2 a bunch of Italian parsley (for every 5 cups of mashed). Mix the chopped parsley, 2 Tbs. of Parmesan cheese and a minced clove of garlic with your mashed potatoes. Beat one egg in separate bowl. With a spoon, form potato mixture into 1 inch balls. Dip balls in egg. Roll in finely chopped bread crumbs. Heat 1/2 inch of peanut oil in a saucepan. When the oil is hot, saute croquettes, rotating until all sides are golden.
Good luck!
Cakehead
Posted by Cakehead at 12:41 AM | Comments (1)
