Monthly Cooking Thread - June 2021

[Jamestown1630]

Tarta de Santiago – or St. James Cake – is a traditional Spanish cake from Galicia made with almonds and flavored with cinnamon, lemon zest, and sometimes sweet wine or brandy. I found it on Albert Bevia’s YouTube channel, ‘Spain on a Fork’ (lots of nice recipes here):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JesYuzdlu_s

Underneath the video, ‘Show More’ includes the full recipe and a link to a pattern for a St. James Cross stencil that you can make for the powdered sugar top decoration -

or you can buy a nice birch wood stencil on Etsy that comes with recipes:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/841418990/tarta-de-santiago-cake-stencil-st-james?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=tarta+de+santiago&ref=sr_gallery-1-1&organic_search_click=1

Another very nice website for Spanish food is Spanish Food.org. Under ‘tapas’, they have a version of a classic potato and tuna tapa salad – 'Ensaladilla Rusa' (o 'Olivier'):

http://www.spanish-food.org/

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When my brother and I were small, every birthday my grandfather baked and brought us the most delicious lemon cake I’ve ever had – really strong lemon flavor, thick lemon icing, and with those silver dragées (very bad for your teeth :-) sprinkled over. I always assumed it was made from scratch – his wife didn’t cook much or very well, and he really liked to cook – but I have never been able to reproduce that cake.

In fact, I’ve only been successful at cake baking with a couple of recipes. But recently I found directions on how to make a box cake mix taste like a from-scratch home made cake. There are slightly different versions of this, but basically you take a boxed cake mix, and follow the directions; but ADD an extra egg; replace the water with MILK in the same amount; and replace the oil with DOUBLE the amount of melted butter.

I’m wondering if anyone has ever tried this, and how it turned out.

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One of two cakes that I have always had good luck with is the Chocolate Ganache cake from the authors of the ‘Loaves and Fishes’ cookbook by Devon Fredericks and Susan Costner (which book is extremely expensive now, if you can even find a copy. I don't own it, but the cut-out copy I saved in my recipe binder looks like it came from a magazine.).

You can make this ahead, keep in an airtight container in fridge, and glaze with the ganache on the day you serve.

Chocolate Ganache Cake Makes one 8-inch cake

1/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature

1 cup sugar

4 extra large eggs at room temperature

1 16-ounce can Hershey's chocolate syrup

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

For the ganache

1/2 cup heavy cream

8 ounces good semisweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon instant coffee granules

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the chocolate syrup and vanilla. Add the flour and mix until just combined. Don't overbeat, or the cake will be tough.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until just set in the middle. Don't overbake! Let cool thoroughly in the pan.

For the ganache, cook the heavy cream, chocolate chips and instant coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally.

Place the cake upside down on a wire rack and pour the glaze evenly over the top, making sure to cover the entire cake and sides. You can tilt the rack to smooth the glaze. (I would chill this in the fridge to slightly harden the glaze; bring to room temp shortly before serving.)

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

Isn’t that used in making rat poison?

But I think it’s also used as medicine...

[mylife]

Oops, that’s cinnamon

[leaning conservative]

My mom was reading a profile in southern living and this socialite....maybe Bunny something, said she always keeps Duncan Hines mixes and cheese staws in her pantry for guests.

[Jamestown1630]

I’ve never been good at cheese straws; but this is just as tasty and easily freezes for future entertaining emergencies:

Olive Cheese Puffs

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Ingredients:

2 Cups grated, sharp Cheddar Cheese

¼ lb. Butter (one stick from a pound)

1 cup of Flour, salted to taste (I usually don’t use salt; the olives and cheese are enough)

pinch of Cayenne

Jar of Pimento-Stuffed Olives

1.Blend together in a food processor the grated cheese, butter, and flour.

2.Process until dough comes together in a ball.

3.Chill, covered, for about 20 minutes before forming puffs. (You don’t want it to get too hard. When I’ve tried making the dough the day before and doing the balls the next day, it’s been very subpar. You want to make the balls the same day that you make the dough, and chill just a bit, to get it firm enough to handle well.)

4.Pinch off a ball of dough, about an inch in diameter, and pat it into a thin disc in your palm; then place an olive in the middle. Pinch up the dough to cover the olive, and roll between your palms until smooth. (Or, dough can be rolled out to ¼ inch thickness, cut into 2 inch squares, and each square wrapped around an olive - but that’s too much trouble for me, and usually results in too much dough.)

5.Place puffs on a cookie sheet and bake 15 minutes. ( I usually use parchment paper on the sheet.) Then remove to a wire rack to cool.

(To freeze unbaked, freeze on cookie sheet and remove to freezer containers when hard. When ready to bake, allow 3-5 minutes extra baking time.)

[lizma2]

My Grandma made everything (including her noodles and sausage) from scratch.

Spent hundreds of hours helping her and learning from her. She’s the reason I love cooking.

My favorite cake was from her.

Grandma’s Buttermilk Cake

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cream together:
1 cp. butter
2 cps. sugar

Add:
4 eggs yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Sift:
3 cps. cake flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tatar

Add alternately:
1 cp. buttermilk

Then:
Fold in 4 stiffly beaten egg whites.

Pour into 9” tube pan or 2 7” springform pans.

Bake 50 to 40 minutes.

Topping

3 Tbl butter
1/2 cp. brown sugar
1 cp. chopped pecans
3 Tbl cream

Place under boiler for 1-2 minutes.

Since the pan/scamdemic I’ve been make this into cupcakes.

My neighbor and his kids been helping me with my lawn and snow shoveling and pay him back with these. They love em.

[lizma2]

When I was a kid, we made a weekly trip to the local Kroger. My parents would put us kids in the cereal isle and do their shopping.

We would spent our time examining the best free prize in the cereals we liked and decide on that week’s cereal. Coco-Krispies and Captain Crunch usually won.

Best thing about Kroger was their Chicago style Italian Beef. Fantastic.

Found out recently Harris Teeter is part of Kroger.

Found about 30 years ago an Italian beef recipe on Prodigy. Great substitute.

[Jamestown1630]

Seems to be vainilla - (bay-nee-yah).

I once went into an ethnic store and asked the checkout lady how to say ‘avocado’ in Spanish. She looked at me very oddly.

I should have known....but I wasn’t thinking (that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.)

[Jamestown1630]

I always liked Wheat Chex and Rice Crispies (Snap, crackle, pop!)

[Twotone]

I love lemon bars & I read about a simple way to make them: simply blend a can of lemon curd with a cake mix (yellow? lemon? can’t remember). I found it too thick to mix easily so I added an egg & a quarter cup of water. What resulted wasn’t really a lemon bar, but the softest lemon cake I’ve ever had. Yum!

[kalee]

I soak vanilla beans in bourbon and I prefer it to anything I buy.

[Grammy]

"What the difference between Mexican vanilla and regular?

Came across an article discussing how expensive vanilla extract has become and it suggested buying vanilla bean pods and soaking them in vodka. Sounds good to me!"

Mexican vanilla has lots of non vanilla ingredients and the regulation of its production is iffy. Mexican cured beans (not necessarily from the country) are cured on a hot surface, as opposed to Bourbon cured beans, which are steam cured (nothing to do with the alcohol.)

Beans are crazy expensive, so it you want to get into making your own vanilla go to facebook (I know, I know... f book) and join the Vanilla bean co-op. They have fabulous beans at really reasonable prices and all the information you could need to get started. That said.... my new addiction means I have about 2 gallons of vanilla(various types of beans and booze) aging in my closet. Boy, is it good!

[mylife]

for yalls sweet tooth...

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/jun/01/throw-the-ingredients-together-with-reckless-abandon-guardian-readers-on-their-tastiest-foolproof-bakes?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark

[Jamestown1630]

My husband used to buy all of our spices and herbs at the Bloomsburg Fair every year, from a company called ‘The Spice Man’. The big flood in 2011 seemed to disrupt things, and he didn’t see them there any more; but they are online.

Considering the cost of vanilla extract in the grocery store and what a small amount you get, $2.50 per bean doesn’t seem that high - and once you make it and seal and store properly, it’s going to last a very long time.

http://www.the-spice-man.com/shop/vanilla-bean?rq=vanilla%20bean

https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a99489/how-to-make-vanilla-extract/

[boatbums]

Sounds like my grandpa. Mom said whenever he cooked he used EVERY pot and pan they had and the kitchen was a shambles afterward. But he was a good cook, she said, as he used to be one when he was in the Navy.

I'm just like you, though, I have to clean as I go.

[Grammy]

"Considering the cost of vanilla extract in the grocery store and what a small amount you get, $2.50 per bean doesn’t seem that high - and once you make it and seal and store properly, it’s going to last a very long time."

I have paid between $10-$15 per ounce. It depends greatly on the bean types but they run maybe 8-15 beans per ounce. The way to get good vanilla is to plan 1 ounce of beans per cup of liquor. Once your vanilla has aged sufficiently, you can transfer it to a new bottle and use the beans again. My favorite so far is the vanilla I made in a locally distilled bourbon. It's fun to see what the different beans create.

[Jamestown1630]

It’s so much easier to clean as you go!

The only people who don’t do it are those who know that there’s somebody coming behind them to clean up - their attitude is, ‘What, Me Worry?’ :-)

[Cvengr]

About $1/oz in Tijuana, BC Mexico in 12oz bottles.

[Jamestown1630]

Thanks!

[boatbums]

Anyone try using vanilla bean paste instead of vanilla extract? Anything I should know before I try it?

[boatbums]

Bingo! ;o)

My mom used to get irritated at me when she would cook dinner because I would always try to clean up around her as she went along. I just hated having to still be cleaning the kitchen long after dinner is fixed and eaten and everyone is settling in for the evening.