I finally have kids who are old enough to make me a birthday cake!  I can’t remember the last time someone made me a homemade birthday cake.  That’s the problem with being the person who usually bakes all the cakes.  No one ever bakes for you.  Which is frankly, disappointing.

Usually my best friend brings me a yummy cake, but this year my 10 year old son baked me a cake.  Not a complicated cake, not a fancy decorated cake.  But a truly delicious cake!  He got the recipe from Molly Wizenberg’s A Homemade Life, which is a beautiful book, full of great stories and recipes.  Molly also has a great blog called Orangette which you should check out.

This is the cake she made as her wedding cake.  It’s called the Winning Hearts and Minds Cake.  It has a lot of chocolate, some eggs, butter and a whopping 1 Tablespoon of flour.  It is fine to make it in advance and freeze it (Molly says it’s better that way) and is easy enough that your kid can make it all by himself!

I took this opportunity to teach him how to make easy parchment circles to line a cake pan – and we took pictures so that you could learn too!  Actually I learned this from this amazing little book called Grandma’s magic scissors.  It’s a paper cutting book and if you have any remote interest in making amazing paper snowflakes you should definitely buy it.  You’ll find yourself cutting paper snowflakes with intertwining hearts and snowmen and women in no time (and I’m not crafty).  But the one thing I took away from this was how to cut an easy circle  – which is the first step in making a snowflake and a cake.

Fold the paper over like this, then cut off the bottom part (that is single ply)

fold the triangle in half, then fold the corners down from the center .. . like this.

once again cut off the edge that is hanging over.

Fold it in half with the open crease in the middle.  Now put the point in the middle of the pan and cut off the hanging over edge.  This makes it the right size for your pan.

unfold it and place it in your sprayed cake pan.  Now spray the parchment and you’re good to go.

Now you need to chop some chocolate.  A kid can do this (or any other chopping ) once they’re like 6 or 7 depending on the kid.  You need to give them a big sharp knife (reallly, it is the best way) and show them how to keep their fingers out of the way.  Putting your hand on top of the knife is one sure way.

Then you put the chocolate in a double boiler (mine is a metal bowl on top of a pan of water) and melt it with the butter. . . then add the sugar.

Off the heat you let it cool a few minutes then add the eggs, one by one.

Pour it into your prepared cake pan and bake it a while.  When it comes out the center will be almost not jiggly and it might look like a failed souffle.  It’s not a souffle, it’s not a failure.  It’s a cake and it will be delicious!

At this point you can wrap it in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze it for a while just bring it to room temperature before you serve it and whip some cream.

It’s very fudgy. . .

And very yummy. . .

Winning Hearts and Minds Cake from A Homemade Life

7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 3/4 sticks butter cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar

5 large eggs

1 Tablespoon flour

lightly sweetened whipping cream for serving

Preheat the oven to 375  Grease an 8 inch round pan and line with parchment paper, spray the paper too.

Melt the chocolate the the butter in a double boiler or the microwave, however you feel comfortable.

When the mixture is smooth add the sugar, stirring well to incorporate.  Set the batter aside to cool for 5 minutes.  Off the heat add the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each addition.  Add the flour and stir to mix well.  Pour into the pan and set the timer for 20 minutes, it may need 2 or so more minutes after that.  The center should be slightly jiggly and the cake will look like it fell in the middle, that’s how it’s supposed to look.

Let it cool 15 minutes in the pan then invert onto a plate, and back onto another plate so it’s right side up.  If you’re wrapping and freezing the cake put plastic wrap on the bottom plate to make it easier for yourself to wrap the cake later without cracking it.

The cake can be kept in plastic wrap for 3 days at room temp, refrigerated for 5 days, or frozen for up to a month.  Defrost at room temperature fully wrapped for 24 hours and always serve at room temperature.

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This is not the dish to serve at a fancy dinner party.  It’s messy.   There is usually sucking involved (both of fingers and shrimp shells).  Things can get stained.  It’s also not cheap.  My kids can put it away – and you need good shell-on shrimp.  I usually make a 2 pound bag for my family of 5 and I’ve never had any leftovers. . . ugh does that make us look bad? 

This is basically shrimp marinated and sauteed in a garlick-y, onion-y, olive oil-y sauce that is soo good.  This is every one of my kids favorite meal – that’s what they all tell me anyway. 

Another great thing about this dish is it is a very low effort meal.  Thaw and brine the shrimp for 20 minutes, whizz up the sauce in the blender and marinate the shrimp in it for a half an hour or an hour. Chuck it all in a frying pan and 5 or so minutes later you’re good to go.

You need to serve this with things that can sop up sauce. . . white rice, naan bread, or baguette come to mind.  A nice side of garlic sauteed broccoli will tie it all together.

If your kids can’t shell shrimp – just tell them they can’t have any because you want to eat too.

They’ll learn really fast.   Anyone who has watched me pit pounds of cherries for my kids can just stop laughing now – I’ve got to put my foot down somewhere.

Make sure to put out little bowls for shrimp shells.  Otherwise they’ll get all mixed back in and be entirely unappealing.

Garlic Shrimp adapted from The Bon Appetit cookbook

4 servings (I have to double it for 5 people. . .)

1/2 cup olive oil plus a few tablespoons later on

1/2 cup coarsely chopped white onion

3 garlic cloves

1 teaspoon kosher salt

lots of black pepper

about 1 pound of the biggest shrimp you can afford, shells intact (they amp up the flavor of the dish and are worth the effort), deveined and frozen (buy them frozen)*

Puree 1/2 cup oil, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper in blender until almost smooth.  Place the brined shrimp in their rinsed out bowl and marinate them for about an hour at room temperature.

Heat a few Tbsp. olive oil in a heavy large skillet over high heat.  Add the shrimp and all of the marinade and sautee until shrimp are just opaque in the center.  Serve with their sauce over rice.

*I always, always brine my shrimp and it makes them taste soo good.  I mix  1/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup chili powder (mc cormack’s in a giant bottle from BJ’s) and 1/2 c. diamond kosher salt in my big white bowl (I think it holds 10 cups of water) Use hot water, throw in the frozen shrimp and wait 20 min. Drain, but don’t rinse. . . there will be chili powder left on the shrimp, this is o.k.  This tip is from the awesome Lynne Rosetto Caspar of the Splendid Table Radio show. 

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I love quiche.  My kids love quiche, My 4 year old actually ate the majority of all these quiches. . .(and when I say majority I mean he ate 4 slices for dinner one night – and 2 for lunch the next day) Quiche is a pretty safe bet for a light lunch or dinner for family or company.  It goes so well with a nice salad on the side and can be adapted to whatever you have in the fridge.  Sometimes I make quiche with cream, sometimes, half and half, sometimes milk, and sometimes yogurt – you can even use ricotta cheese.  If you use a store bought pie shell quiche is insanely easy.  If you make the crust yourself it can be insanely good though. . .I probably use a store bought crust 80% of the time, I’ll be honest.  It’s still delicious, and can then be thrown together in 5 minutes, baked and eaten.

I don’t usually use a recipe for quiche, but I tried to pay attention the last time I made them so I can give you some basics.  This is the pie crust I use – I love it so.  I encourage you to try it, it’s quite simple and easy to make and roll – my kids even helped me and nothing catastrophic happened.

You can put whatever you like in a quiche.  My kids love mushroom quiche – just sauteed mushrooms, and they like it with cheddar cheese.  I like spinach and feta quiche, you could throw some roasted red peppers in there.  Broccoli and cheddar with sliced tomatoes on the top is great.  The old standard is gruyere cheese, sauteed onions, and crumbled bacon – yum.  Basically if you have a cooked vegetable you can throw it in a quiche – use your imagination (and your judgement).  It is important to season the vegetables while you’re cooking them.  They won’t season themselves in the pie crust.

Quiche

Once you have your pie crust in the pan (or your pie crust out of the freezer) you need to fill it.  Here’s what I generally do:

4 eggs, a large pinch of salt (probably a half to a teaspoon or so) and a cup of plain whole milk yogurt. (this is pretty flexible, you can use as little as 2 eggs or as many as 5, and you can use any of the liquids I mentioned above.  We like the slightly tangy flavor yogurt gives).

Whisk this together in a container.

Scatter whatever grated cheese you like over the bottom of the shell (don’t compact it, you want it light and airy so the eggs can seep all through it).  You want about a cup or so of cheese.

Top with the vegetables of your choice (or meats I suppose. . . never tried that)

Pour in the egg mixture.  Decide if you’re going to put your hands in there and mix it around or just pop it in the oven and hope for the best. . . I always find myself giving it a little mix.

Bake at 400 for about 30-40 minutes.  It will be puffed and not jiggly when it’s done.

Serve warm or at room temperature with a salad.

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These are wonderful coconut cupcakes.  They’re Ina Garten’s actually, and I think she is quite famous for them.  I’m not surprised they’re so delicious!  I was in a gourmet store once and they were selling Barefoot Contessa products, one of which was a coconut cupcake mix. They were giving out free samples that day and let me just say.  Dont’ buy the mix – you want to make these from scratch.  Also, don’t be afraid of all the butter.  These are special occasion cupcakes. . . Easter, birthdays, brunch (that’s a special occasion, right?).  The recipe makes a TON of frosting, so you can either be generous (really generous) with it or try to scale it down.  I haven’t been too successful with the latter, but I can say that strawberries dipped in the leftover frosting are quite delicious. . .My kids wanted to dye the coconut green and decorate them with jelly beans for Easter.  I couldn’t bring myself to dye the beautiful white coconut, but I did let them put jelly beans on the tops, I just took them off before I ate them.  I’m not a fan of chewy/crunchy decorations on my cupcakes – are you?  My kids don’t seem to mind the corrupting texture of them. . . and I don’t mind as long as they are big enough that I can pull them off.   Please try these cupcakes if you like coconut.  You won’t be disappointed.

   Lots of Frosting – more than this even. . .

Small hands make them look pretty.

Cupcakes, lots, and lots of cupcakes.

Very small hands sometimes make them look not so pretty (and leave finger holes, euch – “yes you can taste test this one”)

Coconut Cupcakes from Ina Garten ( you can find and also print the recipe on the Food Network page)

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

For the frosting:

• 1 pound cream cheese at room temperature
• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 1/2 pounds confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 ounces of coconut.

Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner to the top with batter. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners’ sugar and mix until smooth.

Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.  Add jelly beans if your kids are standing next to you, jelly beans in hand looking at you with big doe eyes.

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These might be the best veggie burgers I’ve made – and in 23 years as a vegetarian I’ve made quite a few.  I saw these on Cara’s Cravings a blog I find myself cooking from frequently.  The goat cheese flavor is very mild, so if you want it pronounced you should put some on top too.  I changed these slightly (de-veganized them by adding egg, if you want the vegan version try Cara’s website – it’s great).  I served these on homemade rolls made from soft whole wheat dough from Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day which were really great, almost like a whole wheat brioche bun.

The first night I served them as burgers on buns.  The next day – since my kids ate so many brussel sprouts and buns that they didn’t have room for any burgers- I had one in a salad with goat cheese, pecans and craisins. The next day, and the day after that I packed one on a bun cold for a lunch, they were great every time.

The other half of this post is: (whiny voice) “Mom he ate all the brussel sprouts!”

A year or so ago I discovered the art of roasting brussel sprouts. . . it’s not really an art, it’s really quite easy.  This has led to this complaint every time I make them, some kid (or husband) complaining that they didn’t get enough  of them.  Give it a try if you too would like to enjoy this unlikely phenomenon.

Wash the brussel sprouts and slice them in half (feel free to include some cauliflower if you want. . . it won’t be as delicious as the brussel sprouts, but it’s good).  Toss them with  a little olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl, and throw them on a sheet pan – cut side down.  Roast them at 375 for about 30 minutes. . . a little less brown than pictured below would be good, but not much, they won’t look pretty but they’ll taste great.

Lentil-Goat Cheese Burgers  from Cara’s Cravings

1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup dried lentils
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion (150gm)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large carrot, grated
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs (30gm)
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning blend
1 egg

Place lentils, water, and bay leaf in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, until lentils are tender. Remove bay leaf. If all of the water has not been removed, drain the lentils. Set aside and let them cool.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onions the onions, garlic, and carrot for 5-8 minutes, until softened. Season with salt and pepper. Add the balsamic vinegar, increase heat to let it reduce, and then set aside until lentils are done.
Combine the lentils, sauteed vegetables, and remaining ingredients in a food processor, and pulse several times to combine. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes, or overnight.
Heat a skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray over medium-high heat. Divide the lentil mixture into four equal portions, and shape each portion into a patty. Place the patties on the skillet and cook for 10-12 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Printable Recipe

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On Monday I was sitting with my kids at breakfast and talking about what I wanted to make that day:  bread, sugar cookies and sesame noodles.  “Sesame noodles!  YES!”  was the reply.  Yes, I did say sugar cookies before that. . . these are that good.  In spite of the hint of heat from the hot sesame oil I have never met a kid that didn’t like these. . . even toddlers.  They’re just all around yummy and exactly what you want in a sesame noodle – but somehow most recipes never quite hit that mark.  This one does.

If you bring these noodles anywhere – and they are great to bring to picnics, since they are served at room temperature – you might as well just print out the recipe and bring it with you.  Everyone always asks for it.   That’s how I got it in the first place, I ate them and then begged for the recipe.

I got this recipe from my brother’s ex-girlfriend. . . a Vineyarder.  For those of you non-native to New England a Vineyarder is someone who lives on the island of Martha’s Vineyard.  My brother followed this lovely girl out there for a few years, which made visiting a logistical feat even though he lived in the same small state as we do and was not technically all that far away.  There’s something about driving an hour, parking your car, boarding a schoolbus (with babies rollicking around un-car-seated)  then taking a boat, then getting in another car, that makes visiting even the most fun uncle not very attractive with small children.  I know that for many people who vacation on the Vineyard this is all part of the fun.  I don’t get it. 

The Black Dog restaurant is an institution on Martha’s Vineyard.  I’ve never been.  This recipe reputedly comes from the restaurant.  I looked in their cookbook, but the recipe doesn’t match exactly. . . Once you have Soba noodles and the other ingredients in the house this can be a pantry recipe.  If you don’t have soba you can substitute spaghetti (actually when I first had them that’s how they were made), but it won’t be quite as good – soba don’t absorb the sauce as much as spaghetti, which can get dry as it sits.  When Iooked in the Black Dog cookbook I noticed that they make a great quantity of the sauce and say it keeps in the fridge for 2 weeks or more. . . they also suggest serving grilled chicken and broccoli mixed in with the noodles for a complete meal.  Just a suggestion.

     I just discovered buying peeled garlic.  LOVE IT! Whiz it in the food processor alone to mince it.

   Specialty ingredients you may not have but should get. . .

    Soba noodles, pretty and delicious.

                                  One happy kid.

Printable Recipe

Sesame Noodles Chien Noir

serves about 6

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup tahini

1/4 cup warm water

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp. sugar

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

2 cloves minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp. chili oil (to taste)

2 tsp. sesame oil (the chinese kind with deep flavor)

1/2 cup green onions (my kids won’t eat it if I put these on it so I always leave them off, but nice idea)

16 oz. soba noodles

Process all ingredients but the green onions and noodles in a food processor.  Boil the noodles in salted water for 4-6 minutes until cooked, then rinse in cold water until cool-ish.  Pour the sauce over the noodles and mix.  Garnish with green onions before serving.  Serve at room temperature. 

              The self-christened Buck the Naked Guy eating sesame noodles.

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I saw these on a blog I’ve baked from before. . . always enjoy Beantown Baker.  These looked so appealing, and no rolling involved!  I like sugar cookies, but somehow rolling them out, then rolling the scraps seems to never end. . . especially (and I hate to admit it) when your kids are “helping” you.  Sometimes it’s fun, but I always seem to want to get out of it.  These cookies seemed like the perfect solution.  Yummy sugar cookies with frosting, cut into cute bars.  You bake this in a jelly roll pan (they were thick, actually a half sheet might work even better. . . ) and it makes a lot of cookies.  These would be perfect to make when you need to bring a ton of cookies somewhere.  All the kids that ate them wanted more (well except for my buttercream hater – who hates buttercream?  My daughter of course).

You just bake a huge square cookie, frost it, cut it into cute little squares and eat.

Sugar Cookie Bars – from The Repressed Pasty Chef via Beantown Baker
1 cup butter; room temp.
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp soda
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each egg. Add vanilla & mix well.
In a separate bowl combine flour, salt & soda & stir with a whisk to combine. Add to wet mixture and mix just until combined.
Spread on a greased baking sheet (I lined my jelly roll pan with parchment paper).  The dough is thick and this can be tricky.  You want to spread it as best you can with a spatula or your hands and then spray the bottom of a flat measuring cup with cooking spray and press it flat.
Bake for 10-15 min, until light golden brown or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely and frost.

Frosting:

Frosting
1/2 cup butter at room temp
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
4 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp milk
food coloring (optional)

For frosting combine butter and shortening until smooth and creamy.

Add vanilla and salt.

Add powdered sugar in 1-2 cup increments until combined, then add milk & mix until smooth and spreading consistency.

Spread over cooled cookie (and add sprinkles), then cut into bars.

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This creamy and nutritious soup is based on a soup of the same name from The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman.

Everyone in our family liked this soup.  The creaminess actually comes from the chickpeas and vegetables, and there’s kid-pleasing pasta stirred in at the end.

4 small or 2 large carrots, sliced

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 tsp. dried rosemary

1box chicken broth

1/3 cup orzo (or small pasta of your choice)

2 Tbsp. olive oil

In a large pot sautee the vegetables and garlic in the oil for a few minutes until they’re soft.  Add the rosemary(you can put this in a tea ball or cheesecloth satchel if you don’t want the rosemary in your finished soup.  My kids complained about it, I’d probably do it that way next time) and chickpeas and cover with stock.  Simmer covered for about half an hour and then puree.  If you have an immersion blender now is the time to use it.  If not, let the soup cool a little and then puree it in batches in the blender.

In the meantime cook the pasta.

When ready to serve stir the pasta into the soup and enjoy.

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Happy St.  Patrick’s Day everyone.  Bet you didn’t know I’m an Irish citizen.  Yup, it’s true.  It’s funny because I’m Sicilian American with a side of Polish.  But it seems that if you marry a guy from Dublin and then bear a few Irish kids, they’ll hand you a passport, isn’t that good of them?   In terms of Irish food, it doesn’t have a stellar reputation, although that is getting better.  My mother-in-law has always been a great cook though, as have all the women in my husband’s family.  So I think I have experienced it at it’s best.  I’ve always eaten really well in Ireland.

Speaking of the Irish kids by the way, when I got married I confidently told my mother-in-law they would be dark.  Dark genes dominate – right, Gregor Mendel?  So this is my first kid – and proof that Sicily was conquered many times and there are recessive genes to beat the band in me – or something to that effect.  Yeah.  I was wrong.

Looks like he should be in a Godfather movie right?

this was the next one. . . again. . .

Finally a darker Italianate kid:  or as my grandfather delicately put it “that one’s got Guinea eyes!  Them other ones they Irish.”  yeah, that.

So we’re not big St.  Patrick’s day celebraters around here.  We’ve probably taken our cue from my husband, who insists that this is an American thing.  Well so what anyway, what if it is?  My kids asked me to do something this year, so I’m making an Irish dinner:  bangers and mash.  The Irish do love their sausages.  I’ve got this bread on the side.  I should have gotten Lucky Charms for breakfast, just to irritate my husband. . .

Let me start off by saying I am not a huge fan of Irish brown bread.  But my husband is wild about it.  He is not a  picky eater, he’ll try anything, and he’s not prone to nostalgia for his homeland.  Except for this bread, he craves it.  I adapted this recipe from Darina Allen’s recipe and just kept working at it until he said it tasted like his grandmothers.  This is high praise.

Unlike most recipes I see around this has no butter or eggs in it.  It’s very simple, you don’t even need a mixer for it (as a matter of fact I killed the bowl on my Kitchen Aid with this recipe.  Now I just do it by hand.)  Now I need to tell you what to expect.  Irish brown bread is dense, but tender and nutty, the crust can be tough, but I’ll share my mother-in-law’s secret so you won’t break a tooth.  It’s best with butter and soup, or butter and marmalade.

Put 4 Tbsp. bran into a one cup measure, then cover with flour.  Heap your baking soda.

Mix it all up.

Form it into a flat disc.                                  Cut a cross, not all the way through, but deep.

Bake it until it’s golden brown.                               Wrap it in a towel to cool.

Cut it in half, then quarters, then slice.               Add some butter.

Printable Recipe

Irish Brown Bread

makes 2 loaves

4 scant cups white flour – start one with 4 Tbsp. wheat bran.

4 scant cups whole wheat flour

1 large handful oats

1-3 tsp. (level) salt depending on which kind of salt you’re using and how salty you like it

2 rounded (heaping) tsp. baking soda

3 – 3 1/2 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450

Get out your largest bowl.  Put the dry ingredients in it.  Mix them up.  Pour in the buttermilk and mix it up.  You can start with a spoon, but you’ll need to finish with your hands, gently.  It will form a ball.  Put the ball on the counter and cut it in half.  form both into balls then flatten into a disc on a silpat or lined baking sheet.  Then use a knife or dough scraper to deeply cut a cross going the full length of the bread across each loaf.  Bake at 450 for 15-20 mionutes.  Reduce heat to 400 and bake for 20-25 minutes.  Wrap in a clean towel to cool, this will steam the crust and avoid dental injury.

To cut, cut it along the cross lines into four sections, then cut the sections into thick slices.

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