Black and White Wednesday-Meringue

Mixing egg whites for meringue

Submitted to Black and White Wednesday

Recipe for Sans Rival Cake - Daring Bakers

On Friday, I spoke of everything in moderation and trying to eat healthy most of the time.  Well, I'm sure you can appreciate that this lovely cake fits in the "occasional treat" category here at Eat Little, Eat Big.  Last month I joined an adventuresome group of bloggers who try monthly challenges to expand our culinary aperture and to get out of our comfort zone.  Catherine of Munchie Musings was our November Daring Bakers’ host and she challenged us to make a traditional Filipino dessert – the delicious Sans Rival cake!

This cake is based on what I perceive to be fairly traditional French pastry principles:  layers of dacquoise (nut meringues) held together with a decadent butter cream frosting.  Using a sharp serrated knife, I sliced the Sans Rival into very thin slices, getting about 24 slices from the cake.  I wrapped each in wax paper and then froze in a freezer bag.   We enjoyed a piece of cake when it was made and then another one later in the week.  I took some pieces to a dinner party where it was well received.   It freezes very well and I'm patting myself on the back here that we didn't eat it all over the course of a couple of days!

Two of the four dacquoise layers

Building the cake

Finished Sans Rival Cake

Catherine gave us options for the cake (adding in cocoa for a chocolate version) but I went with the traditional cashew dacquoise and vanilla flavored butter cream frosting.  I do think chocolate meringues with hazelnut or mocha flavored icing would be awesome.  At the dinner party, we were wondering if you could use Nutella!?

Yield: 12-24 slices (depending on how you slice it)

Time: About 2-3 hours (I used disposable 9" cake tins so I could cook all the layers at once)

Ingredients:

Dacquoise

• 10 large egg whites, room temp
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 cups chopped, toasted cashews (divided)
• Parchment paper, butter and flour for pan(s)

Butter cream frosting

• 5 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1¼ cup (2½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract (I would add another 1/2 tsp next time)
• Raspberries for decorating (optional)

Method:

Dacquoise

Note: You will need four layers which, depending on how many pans you have, you may have to bake in batches. Be sure to use fresh parchment paper and cooled pans for each batch or use disposable pans as I did (still with parchment paper and butter/flour).

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Line cake pan bottoms with parchment paper and butter and flour the sides really well.
• In a large clean, dry glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites on medium until foamy (2 mins.). 
• Sprinkle with cream of tartar. Gradually add sugar, a couple of tablespoons at a time, continuing to beat now at high speed until stiff shiny peaks form.  (about 7-10 mins.)
• Fold in 1 1/2 cup of the nuts, reserving the remainder to use for decoration.
• Divide meringue into four equal parts. Spread in pans, evenly to edges. 
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the meringue from the baking pans while still hot; allow to cool slightly. Peel off the parchment paper while it is still warm.
• When cool, trim edges so that all 4 meringue layers are uniformly shaped (serrated knife works best).

Butter cream frosting

• Beat egg yolks at high speed until the yolks have doubled in volume and are a lemon yellow.
• While yolks are beating, put the sugar and water in a heavy pan and cook over medium heat, stirring the sides down until all the sugar is dissolved and the syrup reaches 235°F on a candy thermometer (or thread stage).
• With the mixer on high, very slowly pour the syrup down the sides of the bowl into the egg yolks.  Continue beating on high until the mixture is ROOM TEMPERATURE (about 15 mins). 
• Still on high, beat in the soft, room temperature butter a tablespoon at a time. 
• Add flavoring after you beat in the butter.
• Refrigerate the buttercream for at least an hour, and whip it smooth just before you use it.

Assembly

• Set bottom meringue on serving plate with a dab of butter cream to hold it in place. 
• Spread a thin layer of butter cream and then place another meringue on top. Repeat with a thin layer of butter cream, meringue, thin layer of butter cream, meringue, and finally butter cream the top and sides. 
• Decorate with reserved nuts and raspberries (if using).
• Store in fridge.  
• To freeze, slice into thin pieces, wrap in wax paper and then place in freezer bag.  Stays fresh at least 2 weeks.  Remove from freezer to come to room temp prior to serving.

I really enjoyed this challenge.  If you are interested in more information about the Daring Kitchen challenges, here is the website.

Printable recipe

Recipe for Greek Chicken with Tzatziki-Win a Trip to Greece!

I hope that photo makes your mouth water...mine is and it is only 8 am here as I'm typing this!  Of course, if you are still stuffed from Thanksgiving and really can't think about food, just save this and check it out later! 


If you look up at the top of the page, you'll see the statement about what my blog is all about:  "Celebrating the delights of good healthy food and special treats! Sharing recipes, information and experiences."  That pretty much sums up my and Mr. ELEB's philosophy on good living and living a healthy life.  Everything in moderation.  Most of the time we eat healthy.  He runs, I bike.  We moved to Maui so we could enjoy the outdoors every day of the year.


And, part of good living is enjoying a splurge now and then...like this weekend that we enjoyed at the Kapalua Food and Wine Festival or this chocolate torte.  But most of the time, we try to stick to the healthier side of life.


Today's recipe fits in the "good healthy food" category and, always a bonus, it tastes fantastic!  



Yield: 6 servings
Time: 60 minutes including marinade time


Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into large chunks
• 1/3 cup coconut (or olive) oil
• freshly squeezed juice of 2 lemons (about 1/4 cup, reserve 1 TBSP)
• 2 tsp vinegar (red wine, rice, champagne etc)
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 TBSP dried organic no salt seasoning (I use Kirkland brand-mix of 21 spices and other ingredients including onion, garlic, pepper, parsley, mustard seed, coriander, rosemary, cayenne pepper...)
• 1 cup Fage plain non-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 cup grated cucumber, squeezed dry in paper towels
• 2 tsp fresh chopped dill weed
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Salt and pepper

Method:

• Mix the oil, juice-reserving 1 TBSP, vinegar, and seasonings together and marinate the chicken for 30 minutes (I find any longer than that changes the texture of the chicken and we don't like it as much)
• While the chicken marinates, mix the remaining ingredients together for the tzatziki including the 1 TBSP reserved lemon juice-adding salt and pepper to taste-and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Remove chicken from marinade and pat excess marinade off with paper towels.
• Bake for 15 minutes on a rack over a baking pan (see technique here).
• Serve with tzatziki and Greek Salad.

Tender, flavorful chicken with a tangy yogurt sauce.  Mmmmm.  Add the Greek salad for a filling healthy meal.


As part of the Foodbuzz Featured Publisher program, I have been entered for the chance to win a trip to Greece courtesy of FAGE. You too can enter to win one of three trips to Greece by entering the FAGE Plain Extraordinary Greek Getaway here: http://www.fageusa.com/community/fage-greek-getaway


Printable recipe
Recipe inspiration adapted slightly from Katherine Martinelli's blog

Black and White Wednesdays: Bread

Amazing whole grain bread in Ireland, 2011

Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays


I hope you have a great Thanksgiving and that you have a chance to catch your breath and reflect on all the things to be thankful for this year.

Recipe for Mushroom Lasagna-Meatless Monday

This should really be a "Meatless Sunday" or "Meatless Day Off" recipe, it took much longer than I had anticipated.  I don't know if it was just an off day for me or what but I can usually multi-task my way through most any recipe in no time.  This one took a while and felt very sequential.  Don't get me wrong, it is fabulous and well worth the work required but I'd hesitate to recommend it for a work night meal.



This was my first time using "no boil" lasagna noodles.  I thought they were fine, no real difference that I could tell from regular noodles. (These are softened quickly in boiling water which made trimming them to the oval shape of my dish much easier).  Have you tried them?

Yield: 6 servings
Time: 2 hours 15 minutes


Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried shiitake mushrooms
• 3 TBSP olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup plus 2 TBSP finely chopped onions
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup fruity red wine (or whatever you have open or on hand)
• 2 TBSP butter
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 TBSP all-purpose flour
• 2 cups low fat milk
• 9 no-boil lasagna noodles (may need more or less depending on shape, size of serving dish)
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Cooking spray
• Optional: herbs for serving

Method:

• Pour 2 cups boiling water over the dried shiitake mushrooms and soak for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, pour mushrooms and liquid through a fine colander or strainer lined with paper towels that has been positioned over a bowl to catch the liquid.
• Squeeze all liquid out of mushrooms into bowl and reserved 1 1/2 cups of soaking liquid.
• Trim stems from mushrooms and discard stems.  Chop mushrooms.
• Heat 1 TBSP olive oil in skillet over medium heat and add 1/2 cup chopped onions.
• Cook until translucent, about 3 minutes.
• Add garlic, stir for 30 seconds and then add in the shiitakes and button mushrooms.
• Cook about 5 minutes until softening and releasing some fluid.
• Add in the wine and bring to a boil on high heat.
• Stir in reserved mushroom liquid, thyme and salt and pepper (to taste).
• Simmer/low boil until liquid is reduced by half, about 15 minutes.
• Stir in butter and taste again for salt and pepper and add if needed.
• While mushrooms are cooking, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat in a heavy saucepan.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Put a saucepan of water on to boil.
• Add remaining onion to hot olive oil and cook until softened, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in flour and whisk for 3 minutes until smooth.  Do not brown.
• Add in milk and continue whisking until smooth and thickened.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, whisking often.
• Add salt and pepper to taste and stir sauce in to the cooked mushroom mixture.
• Spray a 2 quart casserole dish with cooking spray.
• Spread a few TBSP of mushroom sauce over the bottom of casserole dish.
• Place 3 (or number needed for 1 layer) lasagna noodles in boiling water just until softened and pliable.
• Drain noodles briefly on paper towels and trim if needed to fit casserole dish.
• Place noodles over sauce in casserole dish and top with 1/3 of remaining mushroom sauce.
• Sprinkle 1/4 of cheese over sauce.
• Place 3 (or more) additional noodles in boiling water until softened.
• Drain and trim as above.
• Place noodles over first layer and top with same amount of mushroom sauce and cheese as first layer.
• Cook final layer of noodles, drain, trim, and place over 2nd layer.
• Top with remaining sauce and cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• Remove foil and bake additional 5-10 minutes until slightly browned.
• Cook for 10 minutes then cut into portions and serve, garnished with herbs if desired.

This is definitely a wonderful recipe and "fancy" enough for company.  After all that work, I sort of wished I had a few people to serve it to.  Mr. ELEB and I enjoyed it and as usual, he appreciated my efforts in the kitchen!


Printable recipe
Adapted slightly from NY Times recipe

In case you haven't decided on dessert for Thursday: Nantucket Cranberry Pie (Cake)

Pizza Party!

If you have followed the blog for a while, you know I am a fan of Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois' "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" and "Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day".  After following their recipes on line, I finally bought the books and have had fun making artisan bread following their method for no knead bread.


When I was in Atlanta recently, I had the opportunity to meet the authors and receive a copy of their new book  "Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day". 

Hey, there is something wrong with my wine glass!

I've spent some time going through the book and we had a small pizza party this week where I tried out the Master Recipe.  I was a little nervous as we are used to at least partially whole wheat pizza dough and this was made with all white flour.  Silly me.  It was an amazing crust!


We made a simple mozzarella, tomato and sage (for something different instead of basil) pizza and a pear, prosciutto, and blue cheese pizza.  Served with a simple salad and some wine, voilà, the makings of a perfect evening.

Dough freshly mixed

Dough ball

Pear, prosciutto, and blue cheese pizza with pine nuts and asiago cheese

Simple mozzarella and sauce with sage pizza

Wow was that good!

If you haven't seen the book yet (what are you waiting for?) here is a link to the master dough recipe (I halved it and had enough left over for at least one more 2 person pizza after our party).  Make sure you get UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour...a lot of what the grocery stores carry is bleached and the authors tell us that the bleaching takes out some of the protein which messes with the chemistry of the dough.  Who knew?  That is only one thing I like about the book, in addition to fabulous recipes, all kinds of helpful information about ingredients.  For more of what I like about the book, here is my review on Amazon.  (I received the book as a gift from the authors, the opinions are mine).

Black and White Wednesdays: Sail Away

Sailing out of New York on the QM2, 2011


Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays.  Go check out all the other fun black and white photographs!

Recipe for Beef Braised in Rooibos Tea with Sweet Potatoes - Daring Cooks

Do you enjoy a good challenge?  Me too, so I joined the Daring Kitchen-a group of hundreds of cooks around the world who come together each month to try something new in the kitchen.

Sarah from Simply Cooked was our November Daring Cooks’ hostess and she challenged us to create something truly unique in both taste and technique! We learned how to cook using tea with recipes from Tea Cookbook by Tonia George and The New Tea Book by Sara Perry.

I chose to make the beef stew, made using Rooibos tea.  Now, I'd never tried Rooibos tea and had never cooked using tea so this was truly "something new in the kitchen" for me.

Rooibos tea is also called red tea and it is an herb indigenous to South Africa.  According to the information on the Numi tea box, it is rich in antioxidants and known for its calming effects. (not sponsored)

Here is the recipe which I followed to the letter (which is unusual for me but part of the challenge!)

Time: 2 1/2 hours

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1¼ pounds stewing beef, trimmed and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 5 rooibos tea bags
• 1 quart just-boiled water
• 5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 4 strips unwaxed orange peel, pith removed (the peel of about half an orange)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 inches fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• 4 small sweet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• ¾ cup mild honey (optional)
• cilantro (coriander) leaves, to garnish
• salt and pepper, to taste

Method:

• Season the beef and coat in the flour. 
• Heat the oil in a large stock pot and then brown the beef on all sides.
• Add the onions and celery. Put on a tight fitting lid and let soften for ten minutes. 
• Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook for one minute. 
• Meanwhile, place the tea bags in a heatproof pitcher and pour over the water. Allow to steep for four minutes. Then remove the tea bags and pour the tea into the stock pot. Add the red wine vinegar, orange peel, cinnamon sticks, and ginger. 
• Lower the heat and cover. Let the stew simmer for 2 hours, until the beef is tender. 
• Add the sweet potatoes, honey (if using), and season with salt and pepper. Cook for a further 30 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft. 
• Serve garnished with chopped cilantro.

The outcome?  REALLY good.  The only changes I would make when doing this again, is to reduce or omit the orange peel-it was slightly overpowering to us-and use chunks of sweet potato instead of slices.  But otherwise, it is a keeper recipe and I'd encourage you to also give this a try!

Share with us in the comment section if you have cooked with tea.

Printable recipe

Recipe for White Bean and Salmon Burgers

The photo didn't turn out very well (they really weren't burned) but this white bean and salmon appetizer did!   I made the bite sized ones for an appetizer to take to a dinner party and then Mr. ELEB and I had "regular" sized patties the following night for dinner.  Great both ways!

Yield: 16 appetizer pieces and 2 meal size patties
Time: 20 minutes


Ingredients:

• 1 large garlic clove
• 8 oz. salmon
• 1 can white beans
• 1/4 cup chopped scallions
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill (plus more for sauce)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Salt
• Creme Fraiche, sour cream or non-fat Greek yogurt mixed with additional dill, and lemon slices for serving

Method:

• In a food processor, add 2 oz. of the salmon with 1/2 cup beans and the garlic.
• Pulse until well blended.
• Add remaining salmon, beans, scallions, dill and a sprinkle of salt and pulse until roughly chopped and beginning to come together (but not until mushy).
• Shape into appetizer or meal size patties and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes.
• To cook, heat enough olive oil to cover bottom of pan over med-high heat.
• Add patties and cook about 3 minutes per side for appetizer size, 5 minutes per side for meal sized ones.  Add additional oil if needed.
• Drain briefly on paper towels and serve with lemon slices, salt and dill sauce.

This is another Bittman recipe from The Food Matters Cookbook, page 378 (a similar recipe here).

Printable recipe

Black and White Wednesdays-Tea

A daily respite on our recent trip to the UK and Ireland. 

Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays

Recipe for Cheesy Chicken Penne Pasta. Secret Recipe Club!

It's that time again!  I'm really enjoying the opportunity to participate in the Secret Recipe Club.  It is a collection of bloggers who secretly pick a recipe from another's blog and cook and post about it.  Not only is it fun to spook around on someone else's blog but it is also a treat to see who had your blog for the month and what they picked to cook.

This month my assigned blog was The Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch authored by Shelby, a wife and a mom to two grown boys, Justin and Christopher. Now, coincidence or what?  I'm a wife and a mom to two grown boys, Justin and Christopher.  Okay, Shelby lives in NY and I live in Maui, so not everything is spookily the same but, I'm just sayin'! 


Shelby has some awesome recipes on her site.  Like I've been into an Indian kick lately, she's been into an Asian one.  I definitely have plans to try her honey and sesame chicken some time soon but for today I chose her cheesy chicken penne pasta.

Time: 55 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

·         8 oz. whole wheat penne pasta

·         1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces

·         1 TBSP olive oil

·         Salt and pepper

·         1 shallot, chopped

·         1 clove garlic, chopped

·         1 cup organic vegetable broth

·         ¾ cup fat free half and half

·         6 oz. gruyere cheese, shredded, divided

·         1 cup frozen English peas

·         1/3 cup homemade breadcrumbs

·         Cooking spray

Method:

·         Cook pasta according to package directions for al dente.

·         Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

·         Heat olive oil over medium-high heat and when hot, add chicken that has been seasoned with salt and pepper.

·         Cook chicken for about 4-5 minutes, until browned.

·         Add in shallot and garlic and lower heat to medium and cook 5 additional minutes.

·         Add broth and bring to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

·         Add half and half and simmer an additional 5 minutes.

·         Stir in 5 oz. of the cheese and cook until melted.

·         Stir in peas and drained pasta.

·         Spray casserole dish with cooking spray and add pasta/chicken mixture.

·         Top with breadcrumbs and then remaining cheese.

·         Bake for 25 minutes or until top has browned and casserole is bubbly.

I made very few changes to the original recipe, which Shelby adapted from another blogger (isn't recipe blogging great!), the main one being using fat free half and half instead of heavy cream.  We really enjoyed this casserole!  I used 365 Organic Whole Wheat Penne which we find to be very tasty and with none of that cardboard taste some whole wheat pasta has (unsponsored). 


If you wanted to make this a bit more decadent, I think adding in some bacon would be amazing and make it reminiscent of a carbonara.  Enjoy!


Printable recipe

Recipe for Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Scone Muffins

When I'm out for my morning bike ride, I sometimes have some creative ideas for the kitchen.  Take these scone muffins...I wanted to make something portable for a brunch time snack.  Thinking about what was on hand during my ride, I came up with the idea of using a package of King Arthur Scone Mix as a base for some savory muffins.  These were really good and around 180 calories each!

Ingredients:

• 16 oz scone mix
• 1 large egg
• 1 ¾ cup low fat buttermilk, plus more for brushing
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup chopped Canadian bacon
• 1 cup egg whites, cooked with 1/3 cup chives, chopped
• ¾ cup shredded low fat cheddar cheese
• Baking spray
• Fleur de Sel (or other large crystal salt)

Method:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Add egg, salt, and buttermilk to scone mix and mix until well moistened.
• Stir in bacon, eggs, and cheese.
• Spray 12 cup muffin tin with baking spray.
• Divide batter between muffin cups.
• Bake in upper third of oven for 20-25 minutes until browning on tops.
• Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes on a rack.
• Brush tops with buttermilk and sprinkle with Fleur de Sel.
• Cool 10 more minutes and remove from pans.
• Serve warm or store in airtight container and serve room temperature or reheated (cut in half and cook 20 seconds in microwave).

You could do the same thing with your favorite muffin batter or quick bread mix.  The texture of these was great, I'm sure from the scone mix (which makes up great scones by the way-unsponsored).  The salty top was a nice touch, so don't skip that part.  

These transported well, reheated well, and tasted great.  I'm claiming this recipe to be a home run!

Printable Recipe

Black and White Wednesdays: Cork

Submitted to Black and White Wednesdays