This Cookie Dough Was Made for Eatin'

Well I'm happy to report I've been much more productive lately in the kitchen and I've tried some new recipes. Saturday after a trip to the huge local farmers market, I made refrigerator pickles. Last Wednesday I made something sweet and chocolaty as I awaited the premiere of Bravo's Top Chef: Just Desserts. I can already see that show is going to be a lot of drama. I was a little disappointed that I didn't get to see more of the contestants working in the kitchen, but maybe that will change after some eliminations.

Feeling a little adventurous I chose to make Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles. I say adventurous because I sometimes put off trying recipes that are messy or finicky. Overall this was an good recipe for a casual evening. A simple recipe, but not necessarily quick, because you have to chill the dough twice just to finish making them, and then chill again after they've been dipped in chocolate. I should mention no eggs are involved so this is a perfect treat for cookie dough lovers!

This was my first experience making truffles and I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, I made a chocolate mess but it was fun. When it was time to start dipping I had planned on using a plastic fork with the center tines removed. After a few tries where I struggled to easily drop the truffle off the fork and onto wax paper, I decided to dig in with my hands. Using my hands was easier and felt natural to me. I enjoyed it so much more and really felt like I was making something. Chocolate art.

Now, the truffles tasted great straight from the refrigerator but I was concerned that this recipe wouldn't work well if I brought them to a party. Party food usually sits out at room temperature for an hour or more, so I decided to do an experiment. My husband and I tasted 4 truffles at 15 minute intervals with disappointing results. After just 15 minutes the truffles centers were gooey and soft and we both decided the only way we'd want to eat them is if they were well chilled.

Truffle recipe from : Love and Olive Oil

Pickle results in 2 weeks! I am (not so) patiently waiting.

A Slow September

My kitchen hasn't been very busy these last two weeks. At least not in a way that inspires me to grab the camera. Over Labor Day weekend my husband and I took a trip to visit family, and since coming home I haven't felt much like cooking. Something about long trips always throws me off of my routine, be it cooking, exercising, or cleaning. My husband has been picking up my slack and made the salmon in the photo. I jokingly named it "Magic Salmon" because he doesn't really follow a recipe but it usually comes together with great results. The glaze basically contains fresh ginger, garlic, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar and red pepper. My small contribution was the Asian inspired sauteed spinach.

I jazzed up some boxed organic mac & cheese last night. Does that count for anything? It was pretty good actually. We had some fresh cherry tomatoes lying around so I halved them and generously tossed them into our bowls of macaroni, along with some crumbled bacon, fresh white pepper and a light sprinkle of 2% shredded cheese. Then I popped our bowls into the microwave to melt the cheese and warm the tomatoes. Comfy and quick, sometimes those are the best recipes.

Tonight I'm excited for the premiere of Top Chef: Just Desserts. I've really had an interest in baking recently so I can't wait to see the chefs in action. Perhaps I should whip up something sweet tonight. Is it wrong to eat dessert while watching a show about dessert?

Olive Bread and the Perfect Wife

Much of my growth in cooking started with my marriage three years ago. All of a sudden I was a wife. Wives are different right? I was now the woman of the house apartment. I felt compelled to magically and instantly transform myself into a Martha Stewart clone. I decided that just being myself wasn't good enough. I had to have a cleaning schedule, a meal plan with the perfect recipes, and be prepared for guests at any moment. I had a vision built from fairy tales and magazines.

My husband was and is wonderful and more understanding than I could ever ask for. All of the pressure I felt was from my own desire to be perfect. So, I spent a lot of time that first year feeling inadequate. It was a single recipe for olive bread that gave me the nudge I needed.

Growing up, my cooking experiences were fairly limited. Mom wasn't in the kitchen baking pies from scratch and teaching me her trusted recipes. If we ate as a family it was usually pasta, grilled cheese, or something quick involving ground beef. As I got older I cooked enough to satisfy a meal (or a brownie craving) but it usually involved boxes, cans, or the microwave. Holidays were about the only exception.

So, when I became a married woman I decided I had to know everything. I began my cookbook collection. I love cookbooks. One ambitious day I decided to make bread. I had been reading Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking and couldn't resist the sound of warm, crusty bread flecked with Kalamata olives. I wanted to try and make something real and without shortcuts.

Deep in the middle of the recipe I got pretty hard on myself. I was upset that I was doing all of this hard work when I was certain that the bread wouldn't even turn out. Did I mix the dough too much? Did I knead it right? Had it risen enough? I had no idea what I was doing in my tiny apartment kitchen. I had zero knowledge of bread-making and my anxiety was getting the best of me. I just knew that I badly wanted to impress my husband.

More than four hours later, this was the finished product:



I was so proud of this. I still am. I made bread for the first time and it even looked like the cookbook picture. It was delicious.

The olive bread sparked something in me that I had forgotten, and still at times forget. I can do more than I allow myself to believe. Perfection is an illusion.


(P.S.- The bottom of the bread was badly burned)