Pumpkin Toffee Cake Bites - January Secret Recipe Club

Secret Recipe Club time!  I'm really glad I signed up for this because right now obligation is what is getting me in the kitchen.  Still busy, still almost walking.  BUT I do have almost full rotation back, can walk without a limp (with shoes on when I'm concentrating, eep), and had my first impact workout at therapy last week.  I'm working hard, people!

Today's recipe comes from Ashley at Cheese Curd in Paradise.  A new mom with a flair for the recipe redo, I was drawn to her improv cooking challenges.  In particular, I tried out the Heath Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake because the combination sounded heavenly!  Instead of a large cake with the swirls of cream cheese, I made another one of my tiny desserts with my new brownie bite pan.  Which shows you are never too old for toys at Christmas, they just grow up with you...

This was also one of the first times finally getting to break out my beautiful aqua blue stand mixer, which has improved my baking a million fold.  I am an impatient person, so the option to leave butter and sugar to cream for five minutes while I take care of everything else I need to do for the recipe is my favorite.  Creaming with the butter this time was a combo of regular and brown sugar that gives the cake a moist, light base while cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg spice the batter.  For the canned pumpkin, I have to give a full endorsement to the 365 brand Pumpkin from Whole Foods.  As a person who doesn't love pumpkin, I have never been disappointed by the brand.  Go for the good stuff here, please.

Once the tiny cakes were baked up and cooled, I whipped cream cheese and lightly sweetened it to act as a quick frosting.  I sliced the cakes in half and layered cake, cream cheese, and then toffee bits.  They were cute little bites filled with flavor!  Thanks, Ashley, for the inspiration!

Almost Back to Two Legs...

Just wanted to give you guys a quick update on my progress.  I'm going back and forth from my boot and sneakers with crutches based on how I'm feeling.  I had a bit of a set back over Thanksgiving involving cooking pasta and the dishwasher door, total accident.  The ankle got tweaked a little bit and I assumed I could still function as I had been up to that point.  Mistake.  I spent Thanksgiving day at the island with a cutting board and ignored orders to sit back down whenever I tried to help.

I got to therapy the next week and had so much bruising that I couldn't finish out.  They told me I needed to take it easy and of course I ignored it in favor of my experiments and finishing my proposal for my thesis project.  Another mistake.  It got to the point where even walking in the boot was painful and I knew I needed to step back and take a break.

So in that vein, I'm going to set a limit for myself to start blogging again regularly only when I feel like I can handle everything.  School is crazy right now due to my candidacy exam and I really need to save what limited energy I have for my work.  I love cooking and I miss it so much, but right now I don't want to jeopardize any progress that I'm making.  Thanks for the support during what has been the hardest three months of my life.  I'm lucky to have great people in my life, especially my family who has had to put up with an increasingly frustrated lady as I've lost the humor about the situation.  

I'm still talking about food and my adventures in #broken on twitter @sarah_toasty and I'll be back as soon as I can!   I've got a lot of great ideas to revamp in the new year, so I hope you'll stick around to see what I come up with!

Curry Chicken Burger - November Secret Recipe Club

Today is Secret Recipe Club day!  I had Jane from Jane's Adventures in Dinner.  She is an accomplished baker and loves a good burger re-do.  Her philosophy on the "twisted" burgers?  Take everything she loves about a certain dish and put it between two slices of bread.  For example, her Beef Curry Burgers are based on take-away curry that she loved while living in England.  Curry paste, chutney, ginger, cilantro, and grated carrots all got mixed into ground beef to recreate one of her favorite dishes.

I am a big fan of the re-do, so I thought I would run with her curry burger and translate it into some of my favorite Thai flavors.  To approximate a red curry, ground chicken is combined with red curry paste (or sriracha) lime zest, onion, garlic, ginger, and cilantro.  I made a quick peanut sauce to accompany the burgers and topped them with crunchy red bell pepper and carrots.

It's been really difficult to get me in the kitchen during the transition from boot to walking, but this completely motivated me.  At the end of the day, I'm exhausted and stressed and all I can think about is two bags of frozen peas sandwiching the ankle and a bowl of salsa and chips.  I constantly feel frustrated by how much I can't do yet.  People stare at me when I'm out and all I want to do is blend in to the city like normal.  The people who pitch for charities downtown all come up to me now because, and i QUOTE, "You can't run away from us!"  Yes, people that happened.

So thank you, Jane, for giving me a great way to be creative.  Be sure to check out all of the other group B submissions!

Herbed Zucchini Bread

There is something to be said about open-style galley kitchens.  My beautiful kitchen is complete with cherry cabinets, black granite counters, gas stove, and accents of chrome with full view of the entire great room.  It is my favorite spot in the condo, which should surprise absolutely no one.  But it has become something else for me, the place where I'm trying my damnedest to get back on both of my feet.  I got cleared to start weight bearing a few days ago and it has gotten to the point where I can start almost putting all of my weight on the ankle.  I will pace back and forth in the kitchen with my arms out, using the counter tops to catch me when I inevitably fall over.  But I'm getting so close!

This weekend, I got to take my first crutch-walk in my neighborhood.  I went to my favorite cafe for coffee and croissants followed by a visit to my farmers market on the way home.  What used to be a usual Saturday has become such a luxury and I'm so thankful to be getting back to normal.  To be independent.  And mostly, to smell garlic cooking in my kitchen again.

That fragrant perfume is currently wafting through my living room, a reward from my trip to the farmers market.  I got huge local garlic, just picked leeks, the last of the zucchini, and a lot of new vendor friends because my large metal accessories attract a lot of conversation.  Using these three items as inspiration, I combined my family's zucchini quick bread recipe with the idea from Ruth Reichl to pair zucchini and marjoram.

I basically took my sweet version, removed most of the sugar, and replaced it with melted leeks, garlic, and dried herbs.  I slowly sauteed the leeks in an obscene amount of butter to soften the texture, added finely minced and intensely scented garlic, and revived dried marjoram and thyme in the last few minutes of cooking.  I let the leeks cool (while resting, I could do things in about 15 minute intervals) and then combined it with shredded baby zucchini (seeds and skin included due to baby-ness), eggs, olive oil, and buttermilk.  After gently folding in the dried ingredients, I baked it low and slow to ensure the bread stayed moist and the zucchini was completely cooked.

As the bread was baking, the smell was intoxicating enough to draw my sister out of her room (okay, some of it was Gossip Girl).  She was certainly skeptical of a savory version of a Toasty classic but I definitely think that I won her over!  Because zucchini bread is not complete without cream cheese, I quickly mixed in some finely minced sundried tomatoes and schmeared it over a still warm slice.

I'm really proud of this bread and can't wait to have a slice with lunch!

Watermelon Cilantro Granita - October Secret Recipe Club

Inaugural Secret Recipe Club post!  This was supposed to happen last month, but unfortunately I broke my ankle and had surgery the day of my first reveal.  Oops, sorry SRC!  But no fear, my post was covered and I'm ready and raring to go for October!  Well, more puttering than raring but you get it.

The blog I was assigned is an adorable four-sister venture called Crumbs and Chaos.  It is run by Becca, Emily, Kate, and Megan and there are so many recipes I want to try!  The ladies have lovely baked goods, a focus on seasonal food, and highlight their fellow bloggers every week with their 5 on Fridays posts.  Bonus - the incredibly creative children's parties like the Minnie Mouse Party and the Spiderman Party.  I loved the Caramel Apple Cinna-minis for their tiny package of big fall flavors, the innovative Apple Pie Salsa that would perfectly pair with some baked pie crust pieces, and the supremely simple but flavorful Mongolian Beef Lettuce Wraps.  However, I don't have a crock pot or two legs to stand on so I chose something that was simple and fast so that I wouldn't hate my kitchen by the time I was finished.  Enter Watermelon Granita!

I love granita for its ease of preparation, its versatility, and (in my versions) a balance of tangy and sweet flavors.  The basic idea is to combine juice from any fruit(s), sweeten with a touch of sugar or simple syrup, freeze, and scrape (read: fluff) with a fork to create a light and airy frozen treat.  The key is to find the balance in the "base" of the granita before freezing by slowly adding the lime juice and simple syrup and tasting in between.  I chose cilantro and lime to complement my watermelon base, simple and unadorned flavors.

And you may be asking me, "Sarah, why are you doing a frozen dessert when my google reader and facebook is filled with apple and pumpkin recipes?"  Well, first of all, I made this last week when it was still 70-80 degrees out in DC so I could still comfortably wear shorts outside.  I hadn't taken my boots out of their boot shapers since April.  But most of all because it was barely fall yet.  This week, I feel like it is finally time to flood me with all things pumpkin and spice yet here I am with a granita.  Oh well, win some lose some.  Thanks, Crumbs and Chaos, for the inspiration!

Life on One Leg

Just wanted to check in after receiving lovely well wishes from the comments and my facebook page.  Surgery went well, everything is back in place!  I'm officially bionic, with a plate on my fibula and a screw holding the rest together (yes, I finally got the nerve to look at the before and after X-rays).  Long scars to be expected, but luckily it will be boot season when I get out of the (boot) cast!

In terms of getting back to real life, it's a process.  Getting around is not great, but I'm getting a baller ab and arm workout whenever I'm crutching.  Birthday party had to be cancelled, but I had a really fun night with my kickball team for the last game of the season on my actual 25th.  Let me tell you, crutches are definitely a conversation starter at a bar.  Working with surgeons means you can't skip recovering from surgery, so I'm doing half days as much as I possibly can without getting scolded.  I'm writing and studying at home while the experiments I had running have watchers and are going well.

I've started a little notebook with all of the food ideas in my head for when I get back.  The day I broke everything, I had just brought home a beautiful new stand mixer (life goal accomplished) and it is dying to make its debut.  For now sandwiches and raviolis are about all I can manage, but believe me the second I feel comfortable enough I'll be back!

Thanks again go to my family for putting up with gimpy me.  Appropriate to start a countdown for when I can walk again?  I'm thinking yes.

Missing in Action... Or why I am really really stressed

Just wanted to issue a blog-pology for being missing in action. It was first because I thought I could do everything without having Internet in the condo until little Toasty moved in. Mistake. I am a researcher in every aspect of my life and had a series of failures because I could not fully explore an idea before I tried to cook. Good food, but nothing I was proud enough to share.

And then Thursday night happened. I am a short girl who loves a tall ridiculous shoe, so of course I've had my share of rolled ankles. I was trying to get home after kickball and slipped in a puddle, dislocating it after years of pressing my luck. I flagged down a guy on a bike who found me a cop to hold the ankle in place until I could get to the emergency room. I am a squeamish person so even I don't know how many bones are broken because I refuse to see the x-rays. Monday I am headed into surgery to put everything back into place.

I want to thank little Toasty for being amazing and taking care of all of the gross talk for me in the ER, my dad for racing up to DC and taking care of me, and my mom for getting me my favorite foods and trashy magazines and anything else I need.

I am trying to look on the bright side of this in terms of getting ready for quals for my PhD candidacy but I'm itching to get back into the lab. I need to take care of myself and my work right now, so unfortunately I'll be taking a brief sabbatical from blogging.

Thanks to everyone who has supported me so far and I'll hope you'll come back when I do!

Celery Root Mash - Foodie Friends Friday with Farm Girls Glitz and Glam

I (would like to) think I am a fairly low-maintenance girl.  I'm a wash-and-go hair kind of girl and normally only ever manage to slap on some BB cream and a little mascara before I leave the house.  But the one thing I love?  Any body lotion or bath gel or scrub that smells like vanilla.  I use and abuse my legs every day bike commuting so I like to pamper them a little to show off what I've worked hard for!  This week Foodie Friends Friday is being sponsored by Farm Girls Glitz and Glam, who are giving away Lavender Scrub to the top votes!  (Which means you should probably come back to vote on Sunday if you love a good scrub...)

Today's recipe is a super fast substitute for plain old mashed potatoes.  Peel and chunk a celery root and a couple of potatoes, boil it up, and mash.  The only thing that takes a little time is cleaning up the root, be sure to have a very sharp knife to avoid any slippage while handling that hunk of root.  After I mashed it up, I already had the oven going so I put it in a little souffle cup, sprinkled with a little parmesan cheese, and baked for a few minutes to brown the top.

Easy peasy, just like linking up to our party!

Avocado and Tomatillo Soup

One of the best parts of sticking around DC after graduation has been having most of my friends from college still here.  A few weeks ago, a bunch of us went out to the new Mike Isabella mexican restaurant Bandolero to catch up, have margaritas on tap, and enjoy Top Chef alum fare.  And it was GOOD!  Duck confit in the queso fundido, crazy delicious tacos, and the dish that completely caught my eye tomatillo and avocado gazpacho.  It was a cold and creamy soup with tiny pieces of tequilla-soaked watermelon and orange sprinkled throughout like jewels.  After the soup got passed around the table for everyone to try, I finished it slowly because I knew I wanted to recreate the dish myself.

I was reminded of the dish a couple of weeks ago when Bandolero was doing demos at the Dupont farmer's market so I picked up some fresh tomatillos and got to work!  After taking off the outer husk, I removed the core and then used my food processor to buzz them all up.  I strained the pulverized tomatillos through a sieve and then used a stick blender to add avocado, sour cream, lime juice, and garlic.  Topped with teeny pieces of watermelon and orange supremes, it was a beautiful and healthy dinner without the trek to M street!

Girls night is headed to dim sum soon, expect barbecue pork buns to follow that one!

Hangover Hash: Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #6

I think your body gets moving amnesia.  That is I never seem to remember how stressful moving is until it smacks me in the face (ugh, and back) again.  Maybe it was the rapid fire move in and move out every semester in the first two years of college that have given me the ability to black it out and think of it positively until I'm in the throws.  The place is coming together little by little, but since my room is slightly smaller this time around and I am missing one last bookshelf to put the little things away I feel like I'm living in a large treehouse surrounded by trinkets.  Tea light holders, camera equipment, beach reads, belts and sunglasses in cloth shopping bags, they all still need homes.  And even though the kitchen is together, the concept of making yet another mess in the place is daunting.

But this recipe, oh it was worth it.  It solves the ever present problem - what to do with leftover french fries?  This has been floating around in my head ever since a ladies beach weekend when we were all making breakfast after wine and barbecue the night before.  Some of the ladies had brought home their leftovers, including fries and delectably smoked meat, and wanted to put it in their breakfast.  The fries didn't turn out as hoped and the idea of fry-based hash popped into my head to solve the problem (and has been floating around ever since...).

The worst part about leftover fries is how soggy they are, so I thought I would use rendered bacon fat to bring them back to life.  After cutting them into home fry sized pieces, I added them to a pan of onions and bell peppers also cooked in the bacon fat.  After the fries had been revived I added super spicy salsa, avocados, the crisped bacon, and a little cheddar cheese.  Topped with a sunny-side egg with a delicious runny yolk, this breakfast will cure anything that ails you!

Ps Ladies, this recipe serves two so it would be perfect to seal the deal with that new guy the first morning he stays over (get it, girl).  This is my answer to engagement chicken, the "be my boyfriend" breakfast.

This week's hosts for the linky party are:

Tracy at Busy Vegetarian Mom

Robyn at Robyn's View

Angie at A lil Country Sugar   

Sarah at Everything in the Kitchen Sink

Michelle at From Calculus to Cupcakes

Marlys at This and That

Lois at Walking on Sunshine

Lindsey at Family Food Finds  

Cindy at Cindys Recipes and Writings

Keira at Luscious Delights

Tami at Food Forays

R Dawn at Spatulas on Parade

Amber at Mama's Blissful Bites

Ericka at Chef Picky Kid