Zucchini Bread

10 June, 20138 July, 2014Marissa

This recipe comes from an old cookbook of my mother’s. It’s been used so much that the front and back covers are missing and the page for zucchini bread is so stained it’s getting hard to read. I’m not sure if it’s because of the original recipe or just the slight adjustment’s we’ve made, but I’ve never seen or tasted zucchini bread quite like this. It’s dark and moist and has a really nice texture.

I made these loaves to take for after-church snacks, but we accidentally left the plate at home. It’s not going to be too much of a hardship to eat them all by ourselves though, and it does freeze pretty well if we need to pop some of it in the freezer.

Zucchini Bread

3 eggs

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup oil

2 tsp. vanilla

2 ½ cups flour (I use 1 cup whole wheat, 1 ½ cup all-purpose)

2 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp salt

3 tsp. cinnamon

2 cups grated, raw zucchini, no seeds (frozen or fresh works equally well)

1 cup chopped walnuts

Beat or whisk the first four ingredients in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix with a silicon spatula or wooden spoon. Mix in nuts and zucchini.

Pour batter into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350°F for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Sabbath In The Woods

1 June, 201316 November, 2014Marissa

This Sabbath is our local church group’s bi-annual meeting in a log cabin (it’s a very nice cabin made out of old pine electric poles with meeting room and a kitchen). We have a potluck (I baked blond brownies) and, if the weather holds, we’ll have a chance to go walking on some lovely hiking trails.

I don’t think there’s any better place to spend the Sabbath than surrounded by the beauty of God’s creation. “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handywork,” and the same can be said of the earth (Ps. 19:1).

For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse (Rom 1:20).

This passage always amazes me. It seems to be saying that even if we didn’t have the Bible, there’s enough evidence in the world around us to reveal God. And yet, the people who spend their lives studying the world come up with some pretty bizzar theories to explain away God. For example, here’s a passage from Michio Kaku’s Physics of the Impossible:

There are scores of “accidents” involving the constants of nature that allow for life. Apparently, our universe lives in a “Goldilocks zone” of many parameters, all of which are “fine-tuned” to allow for life. So either we are left with the conclusion that there is a God of some sort who has chosen our universe to be “just right” to allow for life, or there are billions of parallel universes, many of them dead. (page 240-241)

What amazes me is that when confronted with the option to believe in God or the multiverse, so many people would rather believe “there are trillions upon trillions of possible universes” (page 239). If this version of string theory were correct, these universes are like soap bubbles floating in “eleven-dimensional hyperspace. These bubbles can join with other bubbles, split apart, and even pop into existence and disappear” (page 239). And apparently this makes more sense than believing in God.

Perhaps Dr. J Budziszewski was right when he said, “Though it always comes as a surprise to intellectuals, there are some forms of stupidity that one must be highly intelligent and educated to commit” (Escape from Nihilism).

Potato Soup and Bread

29 May, 20138 July, 2014Marissa

Chunky Potato Soup with my unimpressive bread

I tried something new for dinner last night. I’d been feeling like potato soup and a nice crusty bread for days, and finally decided to make it. I couldn’t find a potato soup recipe I really liked, so I combined elements from this recipe and this recipe. I must be getting better at doing this, because it was such a hit I’m not going to have to do any more tweaking.

For the bread, I started with this Rosemary Olive Oil Bread recipe. But since I had no rosemary (and the texture reminds me of pine needles) I altered the recipe a little. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out quite like I hoped. I thought it was a complete failure, but the rest of my family said they liked it. Or, more specifically, my brother told me “Maybe I like it ’cause it tastes like flour and I like eating flour.” Needless to say, I’ll be doing more work on that recipe.

Speaking of working on bread recipes, I’m going to start experimenting with gluten-free, egg-free breads leavened with baking soda. I like a cooking challenge, so this is going to be interesting.

Chunky Potato Soup

3 cups/ 4 potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 small carrot, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

½ cup sour cream

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped chives

½ cup shredded cheese

In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes, carrot, broth, and dried seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Add 1-3/4 cups milk. Combine flour with remaining milk; stir to form a smooth paste. Add to soup, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Add a small amount of hot liquid to sour cream; stir to mix. Gradually add to soup, stirring constantly; heat through but do not boil. Add fresh herbs. Remove from the heat; stir in cheese until melted.

Applesauce Cake With Cinnamon Frosting

4 May, 20138 July, 2014Marissa

I’ve been writing two blog posts, but I decided on this one for today, since it’s been a while since I posted anything about food (and I know about half my subscribers are more interested in cooking than commentary). We opened a can of our homemade applesauce yesterday that tasted a bit scorched, so I decided to bake with it. Hence, the Spiced Applesauce Cake will be coming to church with us today and shared at the snack table. I confess, I ate some for breakfast this morning. It tastes good warm, but it’s even better after cooling overnight.

Spiced Applesauce Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Frosting (makes enough for 2-3 cakes)

5 oz cream cheese, softened

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup confectioners sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8- or 9-inch square or round cake pan (alternately, a double-batch can be baked in a 13”x9” baking dish).

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices.

Beat butter, brown sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer at high speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in applesauce. At low speed, mix in flour mixture until just combined, then stir in walnuts (if using).

a piece of applesauce cake cinnamon cream cheese frosting — a piece of Applesauce Cake

Spread batter evenly in pan and bake until golden-brown and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake to loosen, then invert onto a plate (larger cakes can be left in pan). Reinvert cake onto a rack to cool completely.

Beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy. Sift confectioners sugar and cinnamon over cream cheese mixture, then beat at medium speed until incorporated. Spread frosting over top of cooled cake.

More Cheesecake, No Sugar

18 April, 201330 April, 2013Marissa

Between writing about cheesecake yesterday and baking one today, I have cheesecake on my mind. Ergo, here’s another recipe, this time sugar-free. I came up with this recipe for a friend who loves cheesecake but can’t eat sugar or artificial sweeteners (which I refuse to use anyway).

The entire cake is sweetened with honey. This crust can be a little hard to work with, but the taste is worth the extra effort. The first time I baked this, the crust stuck to the bottom of the pan and people were scraping it off to eat by itself. The filling has a really nice texture, even smoother than a regular cheesecake, and the honey taste isn’t overpowering.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a photograph of this cheesecake. I found a picture on Google, though, which looks similar to mine. Most other recipes top honey cheesecakes with honey or caramel before serving, but I’ve never done that with mine. I think it would be way too sweet.

Honey Cheesecake

Crust

1 cup walnuts, ground
2 Tablespoons honey
¼ cup butter
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
add flour as needed to hold it together (about 1/2 cup)

Mix crust and press into 9-inch spring-form pan. (crust is sticky, so I line the pan with aluminum foil). Bake at 325°F for 5-10 minutes.

Filling

3 (8-oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
¾ cup honey
3 eggs, at room temperature
¼ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

While crust is baking, beat cream cheese and ¾ cup honey with a mixer in large bowl at medium speed until smooth, scraping down bowl’s sides occasionally, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time; beat in cream and vanilla. Beat in flour, cinnamon and salt. Pour into crust.

Bake at 325°F for about 1 hour or until lightly browned and a little puffed. Cheesecake will jiggle in the center but will set as it cools. Cool on a wire rack 2 hours. Once cool, you should be able to lift the cake and peal off the aluminum foil. Cover and refrigerate.

The Way To A Man’s Heart …

17 April, 20138 July, 2014Marissa

I may have discovered compelling Biblical evidence to support the old saying, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”

While reading Song of Solomon this morning, I noticed that my study Bible had a note that “Thou hast ravished my heart” (Song 4:9) could also be translated “Thou hast taken away my heart.” I thought oh, that’s so cute, and looked up the Hebrew word. According to the lexical aids in my Bible, lâvav (H3823) can also mean “to be wise, be intelligent (Job 11:12); to make cakes (2Sam. 13:6, 8).”

So, what I’m getting from this is that it is wise to bake cakes and thereby capture a man’s heart.

I have tried this approach in the past, to no avail. I comfort myself by thinking this is due to the lack of single men in the local church areas rather than a flaw in my cooking, and still have high hopes for my cheesecakes.

I’m particularly proud of this turtle cheesecake. You won’t find this particular recipe anywhere else, because it’s one of my own. A friend of mine talked me into trying Fazoli’s turtle cheesecake, and I promptly went online to try and find a similar recipe. After browsing recipe sites unsuccessfully for an hour, I decided I’d just come up with my own.

Turtle Cheesecake

Crust

1 cup chocolate graham cracker crumbs
¼ cup melted butter
3 tablespoons caramel ice cream topping

Mix cracker crumbs and butter. Press into a greased 9-inch spring-form pan. Drizzle caramel over crust.

Filling

3 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
3 eggs

Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over caramel layer in crust.

Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim.

Topping

3 tablespoons hot fudge
3 tablespoons caramel syrup
¼ cup chopped pecans
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels

Melt hot fudge and drizzle with caramel syrup over cooled cheese cake. Sprinkle with pecans and chocolate morsels. Refrigerate 4 hours.