//It's not excessive if you can find a way to use it

There's an old Spanish saying that goes something like, "When life gives you leftover tres leches, you make potes de crema con la papaya y los arándanos." (The person who came up with the saying was apparently bilingual as well.) Well, when the tres leches pear muffin experiment had ended, I realized I had enough milk leftover to make 3 additional cups! Dumping out so much liquid seemed like such a waste, so I decided to do something about it.

Potes de Crema con la Papaya y Los Arándanos

* 3 cups of tres leches (1 cup cream, 1 cup whole milk, 1 cup condensed milk)
* 10 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate
* 3 tbsp of dark hot chocolate powder (I used Godiva, a gift from Mr. ProNerd)
* 5 egg yolks
* 1 half of a ripe papaya, de-seeded and scraped out with a mellon baller
* 1/2 cup of blueberries
* Garnish: mint leaves

Special equipment: small pots, ramequins, champange flutes, or elongated drinking glasses.

In a large saucepan heat the tres leches mixture until it is boiling. Remove from heat. In a medium-sized heatproof bowl, whisk the five egg yolks until just beaten. In a large heatproof bowl, dump the chocolate chips and the cocoa powder; stir until incorporated.

Temper the egg yolks with some of the hot milk, and then gradually pour the yolks into the large sauce pan, whisking constantly. Cook the custard on medium-high heat until it's thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 4 minutes). Pour the sauce over the chocolate and let it sit for 2 minutes, then stir until smooth. Transfer that mixture to a blender and puree until it is extremely smooth. After that's done, get out your glasses/ramequins/what have you and pour the chocolate custard into them. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (preferably overnight). Take the potes de crema out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before you intend to serve them and then garnish them with the papaya balls, blueberries and mint.

//Muffin Day

"You know what eating this dessert is like? It's like... taking that initial first bite of food after several days or weeks of starvation. It's at that moment you remember all that's wonderful about a meal and that you're thankful for being given it."

That statement came mere moments after my fork tines had delivered the first nibble of Oba's carrot cake tres leches to my mouth, but before the tip of my tongue had started to slowly scavenge the corners of my lips for any runaway bits. Well aware that I still had at least 20 more bites before the dessert was demolished, I was suitably impressed enough that I wanted to savor all that I could. It was more akin to the traditional Indian variation of the dessert in texture and taste — less flour, full of fine carrot threads, and moist from the three milks — than what Betty Crocker tries to pass off as cake. Sitting in its own pool of cold spiced syrup, crumbled nuts and minced carrots, and topped with (I think) whipped creme fraiche, Oba's take was as aesthetically pleasing as it was wipe-the-bowl-clean-with-your-finger scrumptious. This isn't the first time I've given them a crumb-encrusted sticky thumbs up, though. Their warm banana-cream cheese malassadas also come highly recommended by me (as well as practically everyone who works there: "Everything on the dessert menu is awesome... but the malassadas? I dream about those," one of servers once told me.)

It's not usual for me to dream about food, but I do have a tendency to do a post-nom analysis, wherein my mind will try to reconstruct how a particular dish was possibly made — from the ingredients down to the temperature it was cooked at. The work of Oba's pastry chef was commendable enough that evening that I stayed awake in bed until 1:00 trying to unravel the taste combinations present in the carrot cake. I did this not because I wanted to recreate the dish; rather, I wanted to see if I could use his ideas as a springboard for a future creation of my own. As such, I decided that this week's muffin ought to be an homage to the person who always manages to create such superlative desserts.

Pear Tres Leches Muffins with Saffron

* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup granulated raw cane sugar
* 1/4 cup light brown sugar
* 1 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
* 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
* 2 ripe large pears
* A good pinch of saffron
* 2 tbsp water
* 1 tsp of cinnamon
* 1 tsp of cardamon
* 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place the oven rack in the middle of the oven. Butter or spray a 12 - 1/2 cup muffin pan.

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cardamon. Set aside. Cut pears. Put the pinch of saffron in the 2 tbsp of water and let it sit for about 5 minutes. In a separate bowl whisk together the three milks and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a medium-sized bowl combine the sliced pears, eggs, melted butter, and saffron. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, lightly fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined and batter is thick and chunky. (The important thing is not to over mix the batter. You do not want it smooth. Over mixing the batter will yield tough, rubbery muffins.) Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins.

Bake about 20 - 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Halfway through the baking process, take a few fans of pear slices and add them to the top of the muffins. Place on a wire rack to cool for five minutes and then remove muffins from pan. When the muffins have mostly cooled, dunk them in the tres leches at least twice, with each dip spaced ten minutes apart. Refrigerate until you're ready to serve them.

//A new take on an old favorite

For someone whose childhood spanned the late 80s-mid 90s — the height of the Rice Krispies Craze, — nothing evokes memories of elementary school better than those treats. The little sticky-sweet morsels of happiness were a staple at every holiday class party, so much so that my 2nd grade teacher once sent us home with a note before our Halloween party asking if parents could bring other goodies instead. (Despite her best efforts, each child still went home with four squares... and that was after we'd done all but gnawed the legs off the table that supported our class' sugar buffet of diabetic-inducing proportions.)

Though Wikipedia says that Rice Krispies Treats have been around since 1939, they rose to super popularity during my childhood, as that's when Kellogg's introduced pre-made individual squares. The manufactured kind are sufficient if you're in dire need of a quick Krispies fix, but overall I find them to be unpalatable, so I don't eat the treats unless I make them. The variation I whipped a few mornings ago used the standard Kellogg's ratio of cereal to marshmallows and butter. However, I took some creative liberties and incorporated three different cereals into the mix because doing so made them sturdier for coffee dunking.

Three Flavors Rice Krispies Squares

* 2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
* 2 cups Cinnamon Toast crack Crunch
* 2 cups Cookie Crisps
* 10 ounces of large marshmallows (preferably homemade)
* 3 tbsp of butter

In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Add the various cereals and stir until well coated. Using a buttered spatula or wax paper, evenly press mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with either butter or cooking spray (I used butter). Cool. Cut into 2-inch squares.


I used a 9 x 9 Pyrex pan because I wanted extra thick squares

//An old dish gets cozy with an original one

Tradditional Italian Cioppino

* 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil or almond oil
* 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
* 1/4 tsp saffron threads
* 2 cans of petite diced tomatoes
* 1 cup water
* 1 tbsp drained capers
* 1/2 tsp granted lemon zest
* 1/2 tsp granted orange zest (I used blood oranges)
* 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
* 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
* 1 tsp hot red pepper flakes
* 1 tsp kosher salt
* 1 lb jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
* 2 1/2 lbs of mussels, scrubbed well and beards removed if attached
* 1 loaf of artisanal bread (I chose to use a boule of rosemary olive oil bread from the La Brea bakery)

Heat oil in large deep skillet or Dutch over over medium-high heat until hot. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.

Add saffron, undrained tomatoes, water, capers, lemon zest, orange zest, lemon juice, orange juice, red pepper flakes, and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 10 to 15 minutes until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally.

Add shrimp and simmer until shrimp is just cooked through, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer shrimp with a slotted spoon to a bowl and set aside. Add mussels to skillet and return liquid to a simmer, cover and cook, just until mussels open wide. (Discard any mussels that remain unopened after 8 minutes.) Return shrimp to skillet.

Cut into the top of the boule (reserve top), scoop out most of the dough, and then spoon the cooked cioppino into it. Serve immediately.





Red Meets Green; Esctasy Ensues

* 1 head of broccocini, washed and patted dry
* 1 cameo apple, thinly sliced
* 2 stalks of celery, cut
* 2 blood oranges, 1 peeled and separated into segments, the other cut in half
* 1 round of linguica sausage, sliced width-wise
* 1/2 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Slice the stem off the broccocini and arrange it on plates. Artfully arrange the orange, apple, and celery slices. In a frying pan over medium-high heat, cook the smoked linguica sausage until it begins to "bulge." Remove from heat and in the same pan sautee the shrimp with a little salt and pepper; add the juice of one blood orange. Cook until the shellfish turns pink and the juice has reduced to a syrup. Place shrimp and sausage on top of the salad, and drizzle some of the blood orange sauce over the salad. Optional: Add fresh ground pepper.

//Spicing up winter

Homemade gumbo over pan fried tilapia and apple brown bottom cornbread

I was reading February's edition of Gourmet and noticed that they had an ingredients list for gumbo ya-ya. Not a recipe, just a list of things to include. Recently I've had a lot of luck making sauces and roux, so I thought it was time to expand into stew territory. Admittedly I would have liked to have made a curry first, but I wasn't in the mood to hunt down kaffir lime leaves. Gumbo seemed like the next best thing, as it's just as complex a dish to make, and it also makes a perfect wintertime meal. I also liked the challenge of making gumbo for the first time sans instructions; that I'd have to rely on what culinary knowledge I already possessed in order to make the dish just right.

The idea sort of built on itself from there. Traditionally gumbo is served over plain steamed rice, but that's boring. It occurred to me that cornbread would be nice alternative, because its size and thickness makes it good for plating, and its inherent mild sweetness would complement the spiciness of the gumbo. Then I thought, "What could I do to make standard Marie Calender's out-of-the-box cornbread even better? I could layer the mixture over a pre-cooked vegetable or fruit before baking it. Okra is an obvious choice, but it would be too soft. If I went the fruit route, I'd want to use a versatile one that's neither too sweet nor too tart... one that has also been paired with meat before. What about apples? Yes! Apples!" Apples at the bottom of the bread would create an excellent progression of flavors. (FYI: I'm about to get a bit analytical.) Though plating-wise the dish would go gumbo-fish-cornbread, the act of stabbing into the dish with my fork tines meant I would sample the cornbread, not the gumbo, first (i.e., the layers would be reversed). By making apples the foundation of the dish, the taste experience would go from sweet, to slightly sweet (cornbread), to mildly savory and spicy (the fish), to very savory and spicy (the gumbo). In that moment I think got in touch with my inner haute cuisine chef.

So I went ahead with the apple idea (specifically, Fuji and Cameo, as both varieties are mildly tart, hearty, and don't turn to mush when heated like Red Delicious do). Broiling the bottom of the cornbread after it had cooled a bit crisped up both the bread and the fruit. I also sauteed the linguica sausage before I plopped the pieces into the gumbo. The act frying up the meat first unlocked its flavor potential and enhanced the savoriness of the stew. The grease left behind meant that I didn't have to oil the pan when it came time to cook the fish; it also meant the fish had a nice smokey taste to it. As for the gumbo itself, I purposefully sweated every vegetable before I added the flour and chicken stock. First into the pot were the onions with half a stick of butter. After they had turned translucent, then came the garlic; 5 minutes later, the celery stalks; another 3 minutes passed before I tossed in the diced bell peppers. By the time I added the 3/4 cup of flour (which I let brown and clump up a bit before I gradually added the stock), my olfactory senses had been overloaded with wonderful smells. I also couldn't have been more spot-on as far as the spices go: 2 teaspoons of Creole seasoning, 2 teaspoons of chili powder, 1 teaspoon of fresh thyme, three bay leaves, and salt and pepper to taste.

As an aside: leftover cornbread is great for breakfast.

//Coaxing spring into arriving

Butterfly Cupcakes with Honeydew Melon Filling and Matcha Green Tea Frosting

Vanilla Cupcakes:

* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature (1 1/2 sticks)
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 4 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/4 cups milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pan with paper liners; set aside. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In another mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until incorporated and scraping down sides of bowl, beat in vanilla.

Add flour mixture and milk alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Scrape the sides and bottom of bowl to assure the batter is thoroughly mixed. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling papers about 2/3 full. Bake on the center rack of the oven until tops spring back to touch, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Honeydew Melon Filling:

* 1 cup of honeydew melon, diced
* 1/4 water
* 1/4 sugar
* 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Mix the water and the diced honeydew in a small saucepan and cook on medium for 4 minutes. Combine the sugar and the cornstarch in a separate bowl, and then whisk into the honeydew mixture. Stir liberally for about 5 minutes until the filling has thickened; remove from stove top and then cool.

Matcha Green Tea Frosting:

* 10 tablespoons of butter, softened
* 1 cup powdered sugar
* 1 tablespoon matcha green tea powder (available at places like Whole Foods)

In a large bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar until it reaches a frosting-like consistency. Add the matcha green tea, a tablespoon at a time (be sure to scrape down the bowl multiple times so that the powder is fully incorporated). Ideally, you should make this 5 minutes before you plan to frost the cupcakes. If you're making it in advance, cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature about 30 minutes before you intend to use it (give it a good stir, too).

Additional items: Pretzel rods and twists, jelly beans, and blue food coloring.
Equipment needed: Two 12 cup muffin pans, an offset spatula, one plastic ziploc bag for piping frosting, one melon baller, and an electric mixer.

How to assemble: Wait until the cupcakes have completely cooled, and then proceed to use the mellon baller to scoop out some of their middles. Spoon in the filling. Using the offset spatula, frost the cupcakes. Adding the butterfly-esque parts is easy as pie; use the visuals I've provided as a guide.







Key Lime Pie Filled Cupcakes with a White Chocolate Glaze

Key Lime Pie Filling:

Note: You can use store-bought pie filling. The best one by far is Dr. Oetker; however, Jell-O is an acceptable substitution as well.

* 4 large or extra large egg yolks
* 1 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
* 1 tablespoon of cornstarch
* 1/2 cup fresh key lime juice (approximately 12 Key limes)
* 2 teaspoons grated lime peel, green portion only

Use an electric mixer and beat the egg yolks until they are thick and turn to a light yellow, don't over mix. Turn the mixer off and add the sweetened condensed milk. Turn speed to low and mix in half of the lime juice. Once the juice is incorporated add the other half of the juice and the zest, continue to mix until blended (just a few seconds). Transfer to a medium saucepan and cook until bubbles bring to form. Remove from the heat, allow to sit for 5 minutes, then stir and place in the refrigerator. You will have A LOT of filling, so be prepared to use the leftovers to make a pie or tart... or just eat it straight from the pan.

White Chocolate Glaze:

* 5 ounces white chocolate, melted
* Optional: Sprinkles

Melt the white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl for 45 seconds. Pull the bowl out and stir it until all the chips have melted.

How to assemble:

Use the mellon baller directions typed above. When it comes time to glaze the cupcakes, simply turn them upside down and dip them in the hot white chocolate. Transfer to a plate or cookie sheet so the white chocolate may harden.

//Here comes the sun

It rained pretty much nonstop from Thursday afternoon until early this morning; as usual, the Valley got the worst of it. The torrential downpour going on in the San Fernando Valley caused a lot of the streets to flood, which in turn caused accidents, which then led to increased amounts of traffic and frustration. The freeways proved to be no better — limited visibility from the heavy precipitation and back splash coming off each car's tires. Don't get me wrong; I like the rain. What I don't like is feeling as though I'm taking my life in my hands the moment I get on the 101 Freeway.

Additionally, I had a long day at work on Thursday . Not bad, just long. Though the day's dreariness hadn't left me dispirited, it hadn't helped mitigate the multiple project bumps that had vexed me, either. I knew I it was going to be one of those Stay At Home kind of evenings the moment I set foot outside the office, so I planned accordingly (read: I performed a mental inventory of what I had stocked in my pantry, and tried to remember if I had a book available that hadn't already been read or reread to death.)

At home I pulled a Joanne Fluke novel from one of my bookshelves, a package of white candy melting wafers from the back cupboard, and prepped the kitchen for some experimenting. I reasoned that whatever I made, it ought to involve warm colors and be cheery... sunny, even, so as to compensate for the atramental skies and dismal day.



Zucchini Curry Bread with Red Peppers and Mozzarella
(A variation of Closet Cooking's Zucchini Bread with Roasted Red Peppers and Feta.)

* 3 large zucchini (2 grated, 1 thinly sliced using a mandoline)
* 1 red peppers (chopped)
* 3 tablespoons curry powder
* 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)
* 1 teaspoon oregano
* 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 2 eggs
* 1 cup all purpose flour
* 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions:
Mix the zucchini, red pepper, curry, mozzarella, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and eggs in a large bowl. Mix the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and oregano in a bowl. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Pour the batter into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until a toothpick pushed into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Note: Momentarily pull the loaf pan out of the over at 30 minutes into the baking process so that you may arrange the zucchini slices on top of the bread.)



"Pinkies"

* 1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, melted
* 1 cup white chocolate, melted
* 3 cups sugar
* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
* 5 eggs
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* Red food coloring

Heat oven to 350°F.(325°F. for glass baking dish) and melt the butter and the white chocolate together in the microwave. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Stir together butter-white chocolate mixture, sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Add eggs; beat until well blended. After the wet ingredients have been combined, add as many drops of red food coloring as you like. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt; blend well. Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool completely in pan on wire rack; cut into squares.

(I have it on good authority from my good friend Michael Shapiro that the Pinkies I made were well-received.)



Good Morning Muffins (a no-brainer... name aside, they even look like mini-suns!)

* 2 cups flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 carrots, shredded
* 1/2 cup coconut, shredded
* 3/4 cup crushed pineapple (reserve juice)
* 3 bananas, sliced
* 1 teaspoon nutmeg
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* The aforementioned pineapple juice
* 1/2 cup icing sugar
* 3 tablespoons sugar

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl; in a separate bowl, add the carrots, pineapple, coconut and bananas together. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl, then beat in the eggs and vanilla extract. Gently fold all of the ingredients together, careful not to overmix the batter. Spoon the mixture in to a greased muffin pan and bake in 375F oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes. While that's going on, mix the pineapple juice with the icing sugar and pour over the muffins. Sprinkle the muffins with the sugar. Broil the muffins until the sugar on top bubbles, about 2 minutes. Be careful and watch them to make sure that they do not burn.


The best part about Muffin Day? The delivery that follows. Uncertain about the weather, I dressed the Muffins in raincoats. (The top one went to Mom.)










(Update: It's raining again.)