A Stack of Dishes

Something good is cooking...

bakery

The After Feast- and Gingerbread

by

Stacks of Dishes with my morning Gingerbread
The gathering was easy and the company divine. Good food, delicious laughs and familial ease. It was a lovely day, one of the nicest I’ve had with my family in awhile. We were a small group, so there was plenty of opportunity to share and really get to speak with one another. My children are adults now and starting to point themselves into different directions. It’s one of the hardships when pulling together large groups. I love to entertain large raucous crowds, it’s so nice to “see” everyone, but I always leave feeling like I didn’t get a chance to really visit.
Yesterday was a sweet day for visiting. The sunny afternoon was filled with relaxed talk while my Mother and my son leaned back into couches, Olivia danced with herself in the corner as we put the desserts together, and my Uncle Joe told me stories of my Grandfather- who passed when I was too young to know him- as I put on the coffee. Priceless ease.
My favorite time, once the evening is over, is the quiet morning after. I’m a bit of a pain in that I really don’t like people cleaning up my kitchen. It’s not that I’m such a control freak or anything, it’s that there is something beautifully zen about the sound of soapy water, and the clattering of dishes and silver while I review the events of the evening. There is ceremony in the storing away of platters and serving pieces- my loved things amongst loved ones, now put to rest until the next gathering. As I look around there are remnants of the evening imprinted in the dents in the pillows, crumbs on the carpet, and scattered smudgy wine glasses. It all tells a story, and every story touches me. Beauty.
The morning held no rush for me. Everyone had headed off into the evening to their own homes so I was left to myself in the morning light to putter and fuss. This year for Thanksgiving my fiancee is at home in Louisiana with her family. It’s hard to juggle families and holidays. I know so many that have to do it, it’s not like I can complain really, it’s just that she is also my family, and it’s hard to be separated. This fact just made my morning that much quieter and that much more introspective.

Late yesterday, after finishing all my dinner preparations, I had a small chunk of time and a half a can of pumpkin left over. Since the oven was already on I pulled together a tasty Gingerbread for my after-feast breakfast. A simple homey tea cake.

This quick bread is SUPER moist with a nice mellow hit of molasses and a tender bite of ginger. The pumpkin doesn’t reveal itself, it merely adds moisture and depth. As you can see it slices quite nicely and could even do with a toasting and a pat of butter if that’s your preference.

I sliced mine up super thin to enjoy with my milky latte. It was a nice quiet moment in the morning light, before I began my post feast ritual.

Morning After Moist Gingerbread
makes one 4″x11″ loaf~ enough to serve 8-10
 
.5 can pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
2 large eggs
.5 c vegetable oil
.75c water
.5 c molasses
1c white sugar
1.75c all purpose flour
2 t baking soda
1 t salt
1t ground cinnamon
1t freshly grated nutmeg
2T freshly grated ginger
 
Preheat oven to 350˚ and grease 4″ x 11″ loaf pan
 
In medium bowl combine pumpkin, eggs, oil, water, molasses and sugar. Stir smooth.
 
In large bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
 
Pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl and stir just until incorporated. This makes a fairly wet batter.
 
Gently spoon into the loaf pan and spread evenly.
 
Place pan into the center of the preheated oven and bake. After ~40 minutes test for doneness- Gently pressing on the top of the cake. When it is springy to the touch is it done. Alternatively use a toothpick to poke into center of cake. When the toothpick comes out clean it’s done.
 
Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before removing from the pan.
 
 
 
 
 
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
 
 

 

Before the Rush- Healthy Pumpkin Cookies for Thanksgiving Breakfast

by

Earlier this year I resolutely put my foot down about not preparing Thanksgiving dinner. I have since had to pick that foot right back up. My initial reaction was to groan- but it did not take long for me to get excited about pulling together a meal for my dear ones.

The challenge really is to host 8 adults in my teeny NYC apartment with my teeny NYC apartment kitchen. It will work. I’ll borrow chairs, rearrange my office and use my desk (which is a dining table), and have a “barn raising” of a holiday table. There is space in my living room/dining room/kitchen to set up the table in advance- but then there would be a literal elephant in the room which we can do without for the entire evening.

Nah, we’ll hang around my coffee table, the kitchen is open to the entire place (thankfully) and we can commune and visit and cook together. When the bird is ready, I’ll enlist everyone’s help to pull in the table, set china and linens and start the feast.  I’m sure the Indians kept house in just this way when the Pilgrims arrived. The family huddled around the fire, while the women bustled about- something like that… Anyway, it’s what I’ve got. I’m lucky, my family all likes each other.

I know that the internet is groaning with cranberry sauce recipes, pumpkin pie, turkey etc- Nothing wrong with any of that. It’s just that breakfast that morning tends to get lost in the sauce. It’s tricky right? You’re hungry and all, but you know you’ve got some serious eats heading your way soon- and you don’t want to get in trouble for opening the fridge too many times…

Enter my healthy pumpkin oat cookies. At the ready for all lazy wakers. Just get that coffee going, set out the plate and there you go. All holiday like with it’s pumpkin and spice, and hearty and healthy to get the day off to a good start. You can make them in advance too. They freeze nicely so you don’t need to be mixing and baking first thing.

Happy Thanksgiving all. Much to be grateful for these days- and still so many that need grace and support.

Keep those home fires burning.

Healthy Pumpkin Oat Breakfast Cookies
You can add into this an array of different things. Switch the nuts for raisins or dried cranberries etc.
 
Makes 12-14 cookies
 
.5c canned pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1 large egg
1t vanilla
3T vegetable oil
2T molasses
.5c white sugar
.75c white flour
1.5c rolled oats
.25t baking powder
1.5t baking soda
.5t salt
1.5t ground cinnamon
.25t ground nutmeg
1c toasted walnuts
 
 
 
Preheat oven to 350˚ and prepare 2 cookie sheets.
 
In a medium sized bowl combine the pumpkin, egg, vanilla, oil, molasses and sugar. Stir to combine.
 
In a larger bowl sift together the flour, bp, bs, salt and spices. Add the oats and stir.
 
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir well. It will make a stiff batter. Gently add the nuts.
 
Drop large spoonfuls of the batter onto the baking sheet and spread into a flat-ish disk. 
 
I had some leftover pumpkin seeds that I put on top, but you can omit these.
 
Bake in the center of the oven for approximately 12 minutes. Test by gently pressing on the cookies. They should feel firm to the touch.
 
Allow to cool before diving in.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

SAVEUR Magazine’s Birthday Present to Me & the BEST Chocolate Cake EVER

by

Dark chocolate birthday cake

If’s official, I am over the hill- and I will be honest, I am loving the view from up here! Last week heralded a demi-century of loops around the sun. Of course this is mind boggling for a woman who still has conviction that she is 25 years old- but now that I’ve passed the mark- I think it’s pretty awesome.

This past year has been especially wonderful and all indications are that this trend will continue. Thank you to everyone who has supported this blog. It has given back to me in ways that I never have imagined and that just tickles me to no end. I really love writing and cooking, and I promise I will be around for awhile.
The big announcement that I alluded to in my last post is that the very day before my birthday SAVEUR magazine chose me as one of their “Sites We Love” (!!!!)
Nov 8, 2012

Sites We Love: A Stack of Dishes

Gorgeous photos? Check. Engaging writing? Check. Seriously inspiring recipes, tips, and culinary curiosity? Check, check, and check. The best food blogs all seem to have a lot in common—but what separates them out are the strong personalities behind them. In our Sites We Love series, we sit down with some of our favorite bloggers to find out how they do it—and why it’s as much fun for them as it is for us.

Needless to say I am overjoyed and over the moon!!!! I am humbled to be in such astute and talented company as well. I did not see this coming, and it will certainly go down in history as one of the dandiest birthday presents ever!

Unfortunately I am having trouble with the code for the badge, so I will have that up soon as we sort out the glitch.

I am making dinner tonight for another Scorpio pal of mine and so we are having my favorite chocolate cake. For those who have tasted my chocolate wedding cake, I regret to inform you that this is not the same recipe (sorry, trade secret), but this version is pretty close and sensational. Rather than icing I whipped up some sweetened whipped cream, which is a fantastic foil to this dark rich cake.

Dark Chocolate Cake
3 tiered 9″ cake, enough for 15 servings
 
2c boiling water
1c unsweetened cocoa powder
2.75 c all purpose flour
2t baking soda
.5t baking powder
.5t salt
1c unsalted butter, room temperature
2.25c sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1.5t vanilla
 
Preheat oven to 350˚. Grease and flour 3 9″ pans and set aside.
 
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat moderately until light and fluffy. Do NOT minimize this step. 
 
Add eggs one and a time on low and stir until incorporated. It will look grainy and mucky. Stir in the vanilla.
 
In large mixing bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, bs, bp and salt and stir to combine.
 
Add the egg/butter mixture into the bowl, then add the hot water in 3 stages and stir smooth.
 
Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake until the centers spring back from the touch.
 
The average baking time is 30 mins- but please don’t go by that. The best rule of thumb I can give you, is when you start to smell the cake it’s “getting there”. Alternatively, at 20 minutes check on it every few minutes until it’s done. 
 
Please don’t over bake this yummy cake.
 
Cool completely before frosting with whipped cream.