Culinary Goods

So, I made this up. I’m awesome. It's awesome. It gets a 9.  Here is what I did: Chocolate Cake, layered with peanut butter mousse, frosted with dark chocolate ganache. Chocolate Cake 1 cup cocoa I use dutch process 2 cups boiling water 2 3/4 cup sifted flour I sift this first, then measure, it’s 350 grams 2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1 cup butter I usually do 50/50 oil and butter to keep it moist 2 1/2 cups sugar I did a generous 1 1/2 cups sugar 4 eggs 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla I increase this to 2 tsp. Make the chocolate water and cool it. You cream the fat and the sugar for about 4 minutes, then add the vanilla. Add eggs one at a time. Add dry, alternating with chocolate water in 3rds, ending with flour. Flour, water, flour, water, etc. This makes 3 9-inch pans or 3 8-inch pans with enough leftover for 4 cupcakes. Bake at 350 for about 18-25 minutes. Peanut Butter Mousse 2 ounces cream cheese, softened I am generous with this 1/3 cup (1.5 ounces) ...

I should call this dammit caramel sauce since that's what I kept saying when I made this. This honestly is a very basic recipe, but I messed it up a total of 3 times before I got it right. I overcooked it the first time, added the butter instead of the cream by accident the second time, so it seized up on me, and then undercooked it the third time. The recipe says to cook it to the amber stage between 8-10 minutes, but mine was closer to 6 minutes, so just watch it carefully. This was really good and gets a 7.5. This came from the Layered cookbook. 3/4 C. granulated sugar 2 TBS corn syrup 1/2 C cream at room temperature (it MUST be at room temperature or your caramel will seize up) 2 TBS unsalted butter, diced 3/4 tsp. sea salt 1 tsp. vanilla Okay, you will add the sugar and corn syrup with 2 TBS water in a saucepan and mix it until combined. Turn the heat to high and let it sit. You can swirl it occasionally, but don't stir it. Cook it until it gets to the amber st...

This picture makes me exceptionally sad, but this cake makes me happy, so I'm okay with that. This was really good and gets an 8. It came from the Layered cookbook. Muscovado Cake 3 1/4 C. cake flour 2 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1 C. unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 C firmly packed muscovado sugar Smith's didn't carry this, so a quick Google search told me that I could use brown sugar instead.  1/2 C. granulated sugar I used 2 TBS 2 TBS honey 1 TBS molasses 2 tsp. vanilla 3 large eggs 2 large egg yolks 1 C. plus 2 TBS buttermilk Oatmeal Cookie Dough Frosting 1/2 C. unsalted butter, at room temperature 1/3 C. firmly packed brown sugar 1/3 C. quick-cooking oats, slightly toasted 1/4 C. flour 1/4 C. chocolate chips 1 tsp. plus 2 TBS whole milk 1/2 tsp. vanilla 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. almond extract 1 C. confectioner's sugar Cream Cheese Glaze 4 oz. cream cheese, softened 1/2 C. confectioner...

I have been missing 1-2 components of this recipe both times I've made it, so I can't give this a very confident eating yet. The first time I made them I didn't have any buttermilk because Smith's was completely out, and it was 2 days before Christmas, so there's no way I was going to another store to track some down. I had all the ingredients the second time, but I think my club soda was flat, and the carbonation is necessary in making these airy. Because this is a tried and true recipe from The Food Lab cookbook, I'll try again and give it a more definitive rating. Basic Dry Pancake Mix (you can obviously use this for pancakes or waffles) 10 ounces (2 C.) all purpose flour 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 sp. baking soda 1 tsp. Kosher salt 1 TBS sugar You basically mix all these ingredients and set aside. Basic Quick Waffles 1 recipe Basic Dry Pancake Mix 2 large eggs 1/2 C buttermilk 4 TBS unsalted butter, melted 1 C ice-cold club soda 1 tsp. vani...

This is another recipe from the Tartine cookbook and I really liked it. These are somewhere between a brownie and a cake in terms of texture, and they have great chocolatey flavor. I give them a 7.5 Chocolate Friands  (from  Tartine ) Batter: 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 16 tablespoons (1 cup) unsalted butter 1½ cups + 1 tablespoon (11 ounces) sugar I used 1 1/4 C. ¾ cups (3.75 ounces) all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons cornstarch ¼ teaspoon salt 4 large eggs Ganache: 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped ⅔ cup heavy cream Here's a link to the directions:  http://www.crumblycookie.net/2011/08/18/chocolate-friands/

I have no picture for this, but it’s a turkey. And it is tasty and John makes the best I’ve ever had, so here is how he does it: package fresh sage package fresh rosemary package fresh thyme 2 sticks of butter zest 2 oranges 1 tablespoon sea salt Make herb butter from zest, salt, and diced up herbs (you will use about half of them) cut up oranges and remaining seasonings and put in turkey rub butter under skin putting some on outside as well. Use apricot beer 2 bottles to start. cook high 375 for first hour then lower 250 until you hit 175 internal temp watch liquid level and add more beer as needed. gravy use cornstarch to thicken and salt and poultry seasoning to taste.

So, this had a lot of potential. It is so easy to make a roast in a pressure cooker. Also, the glaze looks gloppy in the picture, but it's not. It's smooth and the perfect texture. We found this recipe from melskitchencafe, and it was pretty good—probably a 7.5: Sweet Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin {Slow Cooker + Instant Pot} 2 to 3 pounds boneless pork loin or pork sirloin roast, trimmed of large fat pockets 1 teaspoon ground sage or poultry seasoning We did poultry seasoning 1/2 teaspoon coarse, kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper I used less than this 1 clove garlic, finely minced or crushed I quadrupled this 1/2 cup water or chicken broth I used chicken broth, and if you do instant pot, you need a full cup Glaze: 1/2 cup brown sugar, light or dark 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar I think this is too much. I would do half of this 1/2 cup water 2 tablespoons soy sauce https://www.melskitchencafe.com/sweet-balsamic-glazed...

This looks hideously ugly because it’s a blob of cheese that got smashed in the fridge and it’s covered in plastic wrap. But, don’t let that fool you. So, this original recipe came from John’s mom, but I’ve changed it over the years. This cheeseball is fantastic, and I make it every Christmas, and I wonder why we don’t eat it all year long. It’s my personal favorite (I would give it an 8), so here you go: Cheese Ball Package cream cheese 1 ¼ cup sharp cheddar cheese Bunch green onions, chopped fine 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce ½ tsp. seasoned salt 1/8- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder generous shake of onion powder squirt of dijon mustard Mash this all together. Roll in chopped pecans.