A heart to heart and some Flambeed Pineapple and Coconut Cakes

I had a conversation a couple of days with someone about running a food blog. The biggest issue I think for most food bloggers is being able to find time in the middle of a hectic day. This is especially true for those without all the fancy studio lighting - you have to be at home in the middle of the day just to get a half decent photograph. I usually try to get to school early, work like crazy and take off at 3.30pm so I can catch the last glimmer of light. I'm really anal about making sure I finish work before I leave though, and lately that has gotten quite irksome and tedious.

The one thing I've noticed about successful blogs like The Pioneer Woman, Smitten Kitchen, Tartelette, etc. etc. is that most of them either work from home or live a life where they are supposed to cooking all the time. They're all chefs, food writers or stay-at-home photographers. It can get quite disheartening after a while especially if you're trying to match your point-and-shoot with the cameras that these bloggers have that can trace Martian life and pick up radar pulses from the next galaxy.

I run a food blog because I love cooking and eating, I love having things come out of the oven and being able to look at it like an incredible achievement (I HATE baking bread because it takes too damn long!). It makes me happy when people tell me they like my cooking, or better yet, when they tell me my personal recipes are their favourites. Does that make me shallow and selfish in some way? Perhaps, but then I'm happy when the people I'm feeding are happy. And if I dare say, about 80% of the time think I am able to make a given recipe a whole lot healthier without compromising on taste (take that, Ina Garten!).

So why do you run a food blog? I think it's an interesting discussion and I would like to know why you do what you do!

In the meantime, enjoy a cautionary video of me trying hard not to burn down the house (and the dog) while making flambeed pineapples! May include some profanity and a barking dog. No animals or fingers were hurt in the making of this video.

Flambeed Pineapple and Coconut Cakes
Makes about 24 little coconut cakes, 4 servings
Adapted from The Organic Seasonal Cookbook

For the coconut cakes
3 oz. (about 2 cups) unsweetened coconut flakes (I used a reduced fat kind from Whole Foods)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 stick butter (vegan option, use Earth Balance or Saffola), melted and cooled slightly
1 egg, beaten

For the flambeed pineapples
1 tbsp butter
2 15 oz. cans of pineapple chunks in juice
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup Carribean rum or light rum

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, mix together the coconut and sugar. Slowly drizzle in the melted butter, stirring to combine. Add in the beaten egg and use a spatula to mix together the ingredients.

Use a dariole mold or a shot glass (I used a 2cl jigger!) to mold the coconut mixture into little pyramids on the prepared baking sheet. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes until the coconut cakes are browned.

To make the flambeed pineapples, melt the butter in a stainless steel or cast iron pan. Strain the pineapple chunks to discard the juice and saute the chunks over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add in the sugar and cook for another 4 minutes until the pineapples start to caramelize and are soft but not mushy. Pour in the rum and give the pan a quick shake, and set the rum alight (Be careful here! Please remember to stand back from the flames and don't attempt this if you're not quick!).

Serve with the little coconut cakes and vanilla ice cream when the flames have died down.

Orange and Almond Tart

As promised, here is the orange and almond tart from yesterday's Easter lunch. I'm much too tired today to go into all the details of concocting this, so I will leave you with words of wisdom: This is the easiest tart you will ever make. 'Nuff said.

P/S: And it tastes like exploding blobs of citrus too! And it can be made dairy-free! And no crazy pastry-making!

(I couldn't resist the temptation, sorry for the missing slice!)

Orange and Almond Tart
Adapted from The Organic Seasonal Cookbook
Makes 6 servings

1 store-bought frozen pie pastry shell

1 unwaxed organic orange
1 stick butter (Earth Balance or Saffola also works)
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup ground almonds (or almond meal)

To make the filling, put the orange in a saucepan, cover with water then simmer for 40 minutes, covered, until completely soft. Let the softened orange cool slightly, then cut in half and remove the seeds. Put in a food processor and whiz to a puree. Add the butter, sugar, eggs and almonds and whiz again until smooth.

Unroll the pastry shell over a 8" tart tin. Anchor the edges of the pastry overhang to the side of the tart tin and prick with a fork all over. Pre-bake in oven at 425°F for 10 minutes.

Fill the pre-bake tart shell with the orange filling and bake at 350°F for 40 minutes until the filling is firm. Remove from the oven and let cool. Serve the tart in slices with good vanilla ice cream.

Piña Colada Sorbet

A quick fix for a hot summer day: Canned pineapple cubes mixed with 1/2 cup light rum, 1/4 cup light coconut milk and blended in a food processor to yield a Piña Colada Sorbet. Pour blended pineapple mix into a bowl and freeze for at least 3 hours until set. Remove and blend again into a pulpy mix and serve on top of a wheat cracker drizzled with 1 tbsp light coconut milk, top with light whipped cream and a cherry.

To make the shape, I used a cleaned empty tomato paste can. The results were less that stellar, I should have frozen the sorbet in the can.

Raspberry and Lime Ice Cream

Bath soak and dessert. The end.
Raspberry and Lime Ice-Cream
Calorie count not needed

2 large scoops double churned French vanilla ice cream
1/4 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp powdered sugar
1/4 cup raspberries
1/4 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp grated lime zest

1. Toss raspberry with 1/4 of lime juice and powdered sugar.
2. Scoop ice cream into bowl and spoon raspberry over ice cream.
3. Drizzle with remaining lime juice and top with lime zest.
4. Serve with whipped cream on the side.

Ginger-Orange Cake

Note: I'm procrastinating with work by baking, cooking and shopping for baking and cooking.

This recipe is from the Pillsbury Fast and Healthy Cookbook which surprisingly makes no mention of any Pillsbury products, marshmallow man or otherwise.


I modified the recipe to the Ginger-Orange bars by cutting down on sugar, omitting the molasses and using soy milk and a tablespoon of lemon juice instead of buttermilk. I would recommend using buttermilk if you can, it gives the bars its softer, crumblier texture. I also used a little less margarine and substituted that with applesauce. The result was NOTHING like that of the book, it turned out a little dry due to the lack of butter, but I think it made a pretty darn good dessert after the eggplant salad. Instead of using a thick frosting to spread over the cake, I added a bit more orange juice to make a runnier sauce and drizzled it over the cake and raspberries on the side.

Included is a picture of the jerk chicken panini that the boyfriend had from dinner which he made from scratch by marinading a chicken fillet in chives, onion powder, allspice, nutmeg, lime juice, oil and red pepper flakes. Hurrah Brian! Your disdain for eggplants has paid off in panini wages.


Ginger-Orange Cake (Adapted from Pillsbury Fast and Healthy Cookbook)
Makes about 15 bars (each bar is 2x2 inch square, 130 cals)
Prep time = 25 mins
Cook time = 2o mins

Bars
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup softened butter
1 egg
2 tbsp applesauce
1.25 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 cup soy milk & 1/2 tbsp lemon juice (or use 1/2 cup buttermilk instead)
1/8 tsp minced ginger
1.5 tsp grated orange peel

Frosting
1.25 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp margarine or butter, softened
1/4 tsp grated orange peel
2 tbsp orange juice

Rum and Raisin Ice Cream

So after the spicy dinner today, I thought it would be a good idea to have some ice cream to stave off the heat from both dinner AND the weather outside. Yes, I live in Seattle and I love talking about the weather. 7 months a year of drabby skies will turn you into a meteorological nerd too.

This quick and easy recipe is great as an after dinner alcoholic fix (be forewarned, this ice cream recipe might be 80 proof, I think) and goes well with with a cup of espresso and whipped cream. I used fat-free double churned ice cream from Breyers, while the boyfriend had the soy one by So Delicious.


Rum and Raisin Ice Cream
(Serves 1, 200 cals)

1.5 tbsp rum
1.5 tbsp dark Thompson raisins
2 scoops vanilla ice-cream

1. Soak raisins in rum for at least 20 mins (you can do this overnight for softer raisins)
2. Put all ingredients including raisin-rum mixture in blender or food processor and blend until raisins are finely chopped
3. Spoon into little bowls and freeze until set, about 1/2 hour

Serve with fresh blueberries and a dollop of whipped cream, or turn it into an affogato by brewing some espresso and gently pouring it over the ice cream.