my first pie without grandma's coaching: strawberry/pear - just in time for the big easter dinner! i know for a fact that i'll use less strawberry jam next time (this one is super juicy) but i am quite sure the crust is perfectly flakey as the leftover bit was cooked with some sugar and cinnamon dusted on top and devoured. omigod, i'm the pie-maker!3/27/2005 02:00:00 AMas part of my sort-of cooking with an iron skillet theme, i impressed my parents and grandmother this morning with dutch baby pankcakes for grandma's last meal before going back home to hawaii. they were served piping hot with fresh organic lemon juice sqeezed on top, ghee and powdered sugar (don't forget to sift!).
with all the eggs in them (two per serving) it's quite a protien punch. we were comfortably full for the ride to the airport and back (despite some minor traffic). Here's the recipe so you can try them at home. Don't forget to peak (my oven has no window) in the oven and watching the rising magic while cooking!
Dutch Baby Pancakes
Can be made in two 6-inch cast-iron skillets, or a single 10- or 11-inch one. Serves two.
Ingredients:
4 tbs. unsalted butter
4 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup half-and-half
Topping:
4 oz clarified butter (or, if you're not into clarifying, simple melted butter will do)
Juice of 1 lemon
Powdered sugar
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Divide the 4 tbs. butter between two 6-inch cast-iron skillets, and melt it over low heat.
In a blender, whir together the eggs, flour, and half-and-half.
Pour the batter into the skillets over the melted butter. Slide the skillets into the oven, and bake for 25 minutes.
Remove the puffed pancakes from the oven, transfer them to a plate or shallow bowl, and pour on clarified butter, sprinkle on lemon juice, and dust with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.3/21/2005 12:30:00 PMyea for funky rings! here's a selection i just got from the super-cool carrot box:
(only that last one in lime, mine is actually purple)
and here's a glass one i bought in action - white and purple striped:
3/14/2005 10:48:00 PM
i really enjoyed the sticky sweet gothic art of mark ryden at the pasadena museum of california art during last week's art walk.
i also learned while touring the norton simon museum that when degas originally exhibited the young dancer, aged fourteen the sculpture featured a human-hair wig with a ribbon (and a tulle skirt) coated in wax before it was re-cast in bronze. apparently the public had an adverse reaction to the gothic sculpture so he tucked it away in his apartment until his death.3/13/2005 12:03:00 AM