Honey Cornbread Muffins, and My Thanksgiving Meal

I am sure this post will find most of you in full-force preparation for the big Thanksgiving Day feast - maybe you are doing last minute shopping, fine-tuning your menu with new dishes, or arguing with Aunt Sarah about who's stuffing recipe is better.  Or maybe you aren't a planner, and are just counting down the days and dreaming of golden brown turkeys covered with rich gravy, gooey sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and pumpkin pie with whipped cream.  Either way, I feel pretty certain that you are awaiting the big day with major anticipation.   

Me?  I am doing none of the above, because I already had my big Thanksgiving meal this past weekend.  Since I wasn't able to head home to be with my family this year, I knew I had to gather together with my San Diego family to eat, drink, and be merry.  For me, Thanksgiving really isn't Thanksgiving unless I am seated at a table, surrounded by people I love, laughing and smiling while I eat warm, filling food.  

My friends were more than happy to accept my invitation for dinner, and for many of them, it would the the first of two Thanksgivings.  Knowing they would be able to have turkey again took some of the pressure off as far as cooking goes, but anyone who knows me, will tell you that I can't help but go all out.  So I brought a little fall spirit inside with festive table decorations, I made the most of the space in my tiny apartment, and I cooked up a storm.  I even got a special Turkey Day Feast meal for my favorite little puppy.  We crowded as many people as could possibly fit around my table, and we dug into the feast.

Here was my Thanksgiving Menu: 

Guest Post: A Smarter Way to Make Brioche

Hey there!  I know by now you probably think I have fallen off the face of the earth, but the reality is that I have disappeared into the black whole known as "My Dissertation."  You think I'm kidding, but it's true.  I finally scheduled my Ph.D. defense for early September, so I am basically working day and night to get everything finished.  Right now, time is not something that I have, and my life has become completely consumed by science.  A sad story, I know.  But instead of cueing the world smallest violin playing the world's saddest song, I decided to bring in some friends to help me pick up the slack so that I can still bring you great recipes and beautiful food.  

Starting today through the middle of September, I will be featuring some guest posts from talented bloggers and wonderful friends.  I am thrilled that the first guest post today is from my good friend Marie, of Meandering Eats, a fellow San Diegian (and scientist!) whom I first met this year when we both attended a photography workshop by Todd and Diane of WORC.  We instantly hit it off, talking non-stop on the drive to and from LA, and we have been happily chatting ever since.  

I am really excited that Marie decided to share a recipe for brioche with you today, partially because I have never made brioche myself so I have something to learn too, but mostly because she brought me a loaf to try.  And it was amazing. Honestly, if it is possible to have bread-envy, I have it right now. Marie's brioche was so much better than any bread I have ever baked.  I told her she could bake four more loaves... and give them all to me. (Who says I have to share?)  But what I really love about this recipe is that Marie shares a smarter way to make brioche, by breaking down the recipe into easy steps that can be completed before and after a normal workday.  So you thought you needed to devote a whole weekend to making bread?  Think again.  And so, without further ado, I will leave you in the very capable hands of expert-bread maker Marie! 

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When Amanda asked me to guest post, I jumped at the opportunity, but little did I know I’d face a case of “photographer’s block”. No matter how I photographed this brioche, it didn’t come out quite as I hoped.


Great. It was like being asked to play in the New York Philharmonic and all I could manage was a kazoo.


At the 11th hour, I finally took the images I felt would showcase this lovely brioche recipe and its incredible flexibility. That’s largely thanks to the fact that you can mold the rise times to your schedule. With a busy workweek, I was able to keep the bread rising at home, come home and bake it, then photograph.
Brioche is fantastic at any time, but it’s especially good for breakfast. Pair it with Amanda’s Summer Strawberry Preserves or splurge on a high-end brand of butter. When it begins to stale, use it for French toast. The recipe’s from Baking With Julia, one of my favorite cookbooks by Julia Child and Dorie Greenspan based on the show by the same name. There were many bakers contributing recipes to the book and this one is from Nancy Silverton of the famed La Brea Bakery and Pizzeria Mozza.

The original recipe called for a 30-45 minute rise for the sponge, a 2-hour first rise for the dough, an overnight (at least 4-6 hours) second rise after the dough was deflated from the first rise, and a final two hour rise after the nanterre (the bumpy loaf shape) was formed. And as much as I love baking bread, it can be hard to manage the timing of all of these rises. I found that the dough worked really well if, after the overnight rise, the nanterre was shaped and the loaf pan refrigerated for the day.


My game plan:


Evening: Make dough, first rise, place in the fridge overnight (needs about 3 1/2 hours, with 30 minutes of that active preparation).


Next morning: Divide dough into segments, place in loaf pan, refrigerate, go to work.


Following evening: Come home from work, take dough out, give it a final rise, and bake.


With this plan, the brioche can be made as a side for dinner or saved for breakfast the following morning.

Pasta with Scallops, Beurre Blanc, and Chive Buds

Sometimes life has a funny way of inspiring me. 

Last weekend, I had planned to make some smoky shrimp kebabs for a friend's birthday barbeque, so I headed down to Catalina Offshore.  I was hoping to score some nice large shrimp (about the 16-20 per pound size) that I could marinate and use for juicy kebabs, but it turned out that they had everything but what I needed.  Since I was there anyway (and they sell the most sustainable seafood in San Diego) I decided to pick up some of their bay scallops - I didn't really have a plan for them, but at $6.25 a pound, they were an inexpensive indulgence.   

Catalina Offshore bay scallops, sourced from sustainable fisheries in Mexico.

Now my problem was, I was excited about getting awesome scallops, but I still needed those shrimp; I had bought some pretty nice tiger prawns from the Asian market before, so I zoomed over there to continue my quest.  

(At this point I should probably mention that this was all happening early Saturday morning, at which time the Asian market is packed with families, old ladies, and generally no white girls like me.  I consider myself pretty fearless, but let me tell you, no matter how small he is, when an ancient Chinese man gives you a stern look that says, "What the hell are you doing in my market," it can make you shake in your boots.)  But I was on a mission, so I got in line, found exactly the shrimp I wanted, and headed to the checkout.  

On my way, I was (predictably) distracted by one magical treat after another, until I found I had wandered over to the produce section.  Immediately, these chive buds caught my eye because I had never seen them sold like this before.  I impulsively bagged them and added them to my cart, figuring some internet research would clue me in on how to cook them.   

Bundled Chinese chive buds from the Asian market.

Stems of the chives aren't hollow - making them a bit stiffer - and the flower buds are white.

Rosemary Rice Krispie Treats, and a Weekend at Camp

Last weekend I was able to get out of town and head up to the San Bernardino Mountains for a few days.  

I attended Camp Blogaway - a getaway weekend for food bloggers, recipe developers, and photographers that is organized by the lovely Patti Londre.  The weekend serves as our time to enrich our sense of community and connect with one another and learn ways to improve and enhance what we love to do.  I truly enjoyed making new friends, catching up with old ones, and being surrounded by people who love and appreciate food (and all that good food stands for) as much as I do.  It was food for my soul (pun intended) to be in an environment surrounded by genuine people that have true passion.  And of course, the blue skies and clean air didn't hurt.          

Anytime I go out to the mountains in So Cal I always feel like I am going home; the real 'forests,' green grass, and birds chirping take me back to the Midwest where I grew up.  I definitely felt like that this past weekend, but I also felt a different sense of belonging that you can only really get when you are with a group of caring, like-minded people.  That sense of family was even further reinforced when we listened to Cheryl and Susan talk about their community of readers, and about how our online families extended beyond the connections we made with each other at camp to include each one of YOU that faithfully reads our blogs.  And for that I want to say thank you - for being part of my family - for supporting me when life is hard, for laughing with me when life is amazing, and for always appreciating good food and good friends.     

Swedish Cinnamon Butterhorns (Kanelbullar)

Doesn't this look like the perfect weekend breakfast?  Warm cinnamon and sugar rolls, straight out of the oven, a little bit of sweet fruit, and a warm cup of coffee... All enjoyed while relaxing in your pajamas with the morning paper or your favorite magazine.  Yes, that is my idea of a perfect weekend breakfast.  Of course, I would like these butterhorns any day for breakfast, but I find the weekends allow for the time needed to savor a simple European sweet bread such as this. 

Swedish Cinnamon Butterhorns, or Kanelbullar, are the Scandinavian equivalent of the American cinnamon roll.  Translated, Kanelbullar literally means cinnamon (kanel) bun (bullar or bulle), and it is an appropriate name since these are delicately spiced with cinnamon and less sweet than their American cousins.  These breads can be shaped in a spiral like a traditional cinnamon roll, or in a crescent like the ones I have here.  While almost all American cinnamon rolls are topped with a sticky sweet glaze, Kanelbullar can stand on its own or it can be dressed up with a little powdered sugar or a traditional glaze.

I first made these rolls almost four years ago now, when I decided that I would impress my Norwegian boyfriend with my baking prowess.  (Not that I had a lot of baking prowess four years ago, I think I was blinded by love.)  He was returning home from a summer trip to Norway, and I wanted to surprise him with something I knew he would appreciate so I headed to the library and checked out The Great Scandinavian Baking Book.  I figured if an authentic recipe was to be had, I would find it there.  

Of course, when I paged through the cookbook, the problem ended up being that I found too many great recipes and had trouble choosing!  I finally landed on these Kanelbullar which seemed easy to make and didn't have any bells or whistles to trip me up.  I got it right on the first try, and when my boyfriend arrived from the airport he promptly ate four of them.  I suppose that means they got the seal of approval.

Spiced Pear and Cranberry Pocket Pies

When I was little, I remember eagerly waiting for my dad to come home from grocery shopping.  He would unload all the big bags full of fruits, vegetables, and canned goods, and I would always be peeking to spy the inevitable sweet treat that he had snuck in with the rest of the healthy groceries.  We didn't eat many 'gourmet' foods back then (this was in the pre-foodie era), so the sugary surprise might have been some Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pies, or maybe some Swiss Rolls, and I can remember eating Entenmann's Raspberry Danishes on dozens of occasions.  I would usually gobble up a slice of Entenmann's danish after school, but those plastic-wrapped Little Debbie treats usually made their way into my lunch bag since they were perfectly portable.

And speaking of wrapped, lunchbox treats, I can't forget about all the Hostess Fruit Pies that I used to eat!  My memory of whether or not we had fruit pies at home is slightly foggy, but I do know that I could get them with my lunch if I ordered from the school cafeteria.  I remember I could never quite decide which flavor to get, but I could be sure that the filling would be super sweet, oozing, and not at all 'made with real fruit.'  The pie 'crust' was waxy, chewy, and also laden with sugar.  As a kid, this was exactly the way I wanted it.  

Nowadays, I prefer more adult-type treats, but that doesn't mean I need to completely shake off my childhood addiction to snack cakes.  For grown-ups and kids alike, a dessert that will give you the tasty goodness of a slice of pie in a compact hand-held form is delicious and just plain fun.  Plus, there is the added aspect that it is yours, and only yours; it is your own personal pocket pie and you don't have to share it with anyone.