Sour Cream Ebelskiver Doughnuts

What's an ebelskiver, you may ask?  Good question.  We'll get there.

But first, an alternative title to this blog post:

No One Got Me a Babycakes Doughnut Maker For My Birthday.




(isn't it CUTE???)

But that actually turned out to be good news... because, COME ON!! ME with a doughnut maker in the house? Yes, they are better for you than store-bought doughnuts because you're making them with your own fantastic ingredients and they are not deep fried, but COME ON!! It would be as bad as unlimited potato chips in my house. There are some things I just Can't Stop Eating.

ANYhoo... where was I??

Oh, yeah... my birthday. I do have to tell you now that I received THE most phenomenal presents EV-ER!! Really and TRULY!!  And it was the Best Birthday Ever!!  So don't cry for me because I didn't get a doughnut maker. I didn't (cry, that is...).

Instead, I Got Creative.

I found the doughnut recipe which I had I printed out back when I thought someone was getting me a doughnut maker for my birthday (hmmm... I DO keep bringing it up, don't I?! ;)... and, as I was when I first saw the ads for the gadget, I was CRAVING THEM from looking at the photo.

And then I realized: I can make pseudo-doughnut HOLES with my ebelskiver pan.

NOW you can ask: What is an ebelskiver? It's this pan:




I got mine from Williams-Sonoma and, like many of my foodie gadgets, they get put away after the excitement dies down, not to be brought out again into the light of day for many many moons (yes, this WOULD have happened to my doughnut maker... you know, the one I didn't get for my birthday...).

In fact, I bet if YOU have an ebelskiver pan, you're feeling a little bit guilty about making that investment and then ignoring it for so long. I Hear You.  I, personally, was tired of the pancake batter ebelskivers... and yet OH SO EXCITED when I thought of DOUGHNUT EBELSKIVERS!!

And so, I took the print-out of the Babycakes Doughnut Maker Recipe and I proceeded to make these DELICIOUS DOUGHNUTS.

{[(erf ~ I have made a commitment to not spell doughnuts as donuts, but I must say, my fingers do NOT want to put that g before the h for some reason and I have to keep correcting it and it would have been easier if I had just given in and called them DONUTS from the very beginning... BUT NOW I'VE COME TOO FAR TO TURN BACK!!)]}.

Oh, are you still waiting for the recipe?  Well, if you have stuck with me for this long, here it is:

Babycakes Sour Cream Doughnut Recipe, 

Adapted for Ebelskiver Use

Ingredients:

1⅓ cups all-purpose flour
⅓ cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup sour cream
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
(I used less vanilla and added a large-ish dash of nutmeg to the ingredients and IT IS SO YUMMY!!)

Directions:

Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.

In separate bowl whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour liquid ingredients into dry ingredients. Whisk vigorously until smooth.

Fill each ebelskiver reservoir with enough batter to fill it up. Proceed as you would with the pancake-batter ebelskivers, but continually turn them around and around, as the filling of this batter is much thicker and takes longer to cook through thoroughly (I turned the heat down and let them cook, rotating them to get all the sides covered).

Coat with powdered sugar or cinnamon-sugar, as desired (or better yet, dredge them in that melted butter that you're using to butter the ebelskiver reservoirs and THEN coat them with cinnamon sugar!!).

Note added 11/29/2011:  I just made these and forgot the sugar AND the oil.  The no-sugar doughnuts were still edible and delicious, as I just dipped them in a little more cinnamon sugar ~ then I added sugar to the rest of the batter.  But I honestly do not notice the absence of the oil at ALL ~ in fact, they seem to hold together better without any oil in them.  So, yeah ~ mine will be made sans oil from now on! 

Yes.  Please. More. Please.

And yes, this is when I put them in a margarita glass and took them out on our deck for their photo shoot.  They cooperated so nicely.

As always, EnJOY!
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Noodles. Momofuku Noodles. Momofuku Noodle Bar.

I can not begin writing about Momofuku Noodle Bar without first stating how much I love this life of walking the path of my sons' passions with them. MY world has been expanded exponentially BECAUSE of being a partner in my children's unschooling lives, and working with them joyfully to fulfill their needs/desires.

Going to David Chang's Momofuku Noodle Bar was TRULY one of the highlights of Sam's culinary-rich and food-passionate life (right up there with the time we ate at Martin Picard's Au Pied de Cochon in Montréal). Along with Anthony Bourdain, these are the chefs that inspire Sam and influence his cooking (and for whom he has great respect).

And our time there was nothing less than divinely-blessed! Every time we hear something about Momofuku, it goes along with comments about how difficult it is to get a table, how long the lines are to get into the place, and how crowded it is. These are not things we desire to bring into our lives, and so we AVOIDED going for a very long time. But one day, because I was going to the city to pick up Jake from F.I.T. anyway, Sam joined me and we decided to just DO THIS. Yes ~ the excitement was palpable because finally ~ we were going to experience Momofuku Noodle Bar.

It was Pouring Rain. Yes, this is the summer of Pouring Rain. And this was even BEFORE Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee and all of the devastation and flooding that they brought to our area. And so our plan of parking at F.I.T. and taking the subway to Momofuku didn't feel very fun in the Pouring Rain. We decided to park and take a cab... but as I took a left off of the West End Highway, I Just Kept Driving East. I didn't stop at F.I.T. I said to Sam, "Looks like we're driving to Momofuku!"

Drive we did and that's where we encountered Divine Intervention #1: a parking spot. A parking spot ON the STREET!! A parking spot on the street just around the corner from Momofuku. A parking spot on the street just around the corner from Momofuku that cost me TWO DOLLARS!!! A parking spot on the street just around the corner from Momofuku that cost me TWO DOLLARS in NEW YORK CITY!!

Divine Intervention #2: no line out the door. At prime lunch time.

Divine Intervention #3: LOADS of available tables inside!!

Divine Intervention #4: We were seated at the counter in front of the cooking stations. Yes, aspiring Chef Sam was at his Dream-Come-True restaurant and he had a front row seat to the culinary ACTION. This was better than either of us had imagined.

UNTIL...until we tasted the food. Oh.My. Oh my my my. Yes. Yes. That pork bun IS as fantastic as we imagined. It is 1,000X BETTER than we imagined. Un-Be-Lievable!!

One word of caution: as excited as you may be about taking that first bite, LET IT COOL!! Sam and I burned the roofs of our mouths BADLY. (worth it, though)

The heat of the pork, the luscious richness of the pork fat, the coolness of the cucumbers, the *Feels-Like-I-Am-Loved* nurturing of those steamed buns. This is something that needs to be experienced, especially if you are a pork fan, as Sam and I are.

And THEN.  Well, yes, we ordered way more food than we really needed.  But we had been waiting for this experience for a LONG time!  And THEN came the ramen.

In David Chang's new magazine, Lucky Peach, he has an egg chart that shows how long to cook an egg and what it looks like when cooked that long.  On the chart at the 60°mark, he says, "This is my favorite egg here. Almost raw. Perfect in soup - it's what we put in our ramen..."  It also says, "It breaks as soon as it's touched."

I tested that and yes. Yes it does.

We love ramen for the fantastic separate components of it, and how they come together to make one delectable taste sensation.  Sam STILL craves David Chang's ramen, weeks later.

One of the specials they were having on the day we were there was pork and kimchi tamales.  Sam was intrigued and outraged and impressed ~ combining Chang's Asian influence with a Mexican tamale!!  The audacity!!  The brilliance!!  Oh yeah.  This was going to be good.


When they arrived looking so darn cute, I said, "Look, Sam! Little presents for us from David Chang!"

And oh yeah ~ They.Were.Good.

It will not be too soon when we are able to venture back to Momofuku Noodle Bar...  Even though the amount of food we ordered was enough for an entire family of six, Sam did a good job of finishing it all up...

Not only his ramen, but mine as well.

Thank you, David Chang, for your deliciousness AND for feeding the flames of my boy's culinary passion.

EnJoy.
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(Photo at top and recipe for Momofuku pork buns found here.)
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Baked Tortilla Stack with Grilled Tomato and 3-Colored Pepper Salsa

A funny thing happened on Sam's way to finding some MEAT for dinner...

He did not find any.

Instead, he tapped into his passion for cooking and creating and took a look at what we DID have and came up with a FABULOUS dinner.

He started out asking, "If I grill some tomatoes and peppers for salsa, would you want to have some nachos with me?"

Umm...yes, please.

And then, while he was grilling, I saw that we had LOADS of corn and flour tortillas.  I knew that I wanted whatever he was making for dinner, not just an appetizer... and so I asked him if he was interested in trying out a baked tortilla stack... a nacho pie of sorts...

He was!  And so we began creating.

It's quite simple, and perhaps you've even made one before.  But we had not, as Chef Sam usually leans toward the more gourmet end of the cooking spectrum.  But lately, his culinary preferences have been shifting toward loving simplicity.

So we layered the bottom of a casserole dish with corn tortillas (tore them up to make them fit).  Spread some refried beans on those.  The next layer was flour tortillas.  On top of those went Sam's AMAZING and BEAUTIFUL salsa!! 

And we also added some shredded cheese.  Another layer of corn tortillas, topped with more refried beans.  And then flour tortillas topped with more shredded cheese was the final layer.

Into the 400 degree oven for 1/2 hour, then under the broiler to give that top layer of cheese a nice finish, and we were eating this deliciousness.

We saved Sam's salsa to top off the finished product, and also found some guacamole!  If we had sour cream, that would have been a lovely addition, as well. 

After Sam grilled the tomatoes and mashed them for the salsa, he noted that it was too watery. So we strained them. And we were left with some BEAUTIFUL and DEEEELICIOUS tomato juice...to which I added some sea salt, hot sauce and a splash of tequila. It was truly delicious and refreshing and oh so pretty.

EnJoy.

Aruuuuugula Pesto. Yummmmm.

It's quite simple. Even though its name is not. Arugula. Eruca sativa. Also known as rocket, roquette, rugula and rucola.

And yet it is simply and utterly delicious. I do believe I love arugula pesto better than basil pesto.

And it all started with a dive diner.

We pass by the Circle E Diner in Hancock, NY every weekend on our way to our river cabin on the Pennsylvania side of the beautiful Upper Delaware River. That diner is ALWAYS packed. There are ALWAYS people parking and walking in. And every time, I am scratching my head and wondering WHY. I went there once. And it was horrible. It gave me a very uncomfortable feeling inside and the food was bad diner food.

And so when our friends chose to vacation in the country near us and they chose to dine at the Circle E Diner one evening, they told me about their pleasant surprise with the menu! They informed me that the diner has *gourmet nights* from Wednesday to Saturday!! They described their entree, and I was SHOCKED and yet drooling. It sounded fantastic.

My friend ordered the butternut squash ravioli with arugula pesto.

I can't say that I have been to the Circle E Diner since that conversation a few weeks ago (I still haven't been able to go in after my last experience there), but the thought of arugula pesto would not leave my brain or my intrigued palate. One day, I just happened to have all the ingredients in my home, and I just HAPPENED to stumble upon some GORGEOUS all-natural butternut squash ravioli in our local Hannaford supermarket. And after our CSA pick-up of heirloom tomatoes (yes, I had fresh mozzarella and basil in the fridge already!), dinner was served.

This is my artistic interpretation of the ingredients that make up the arugula pesto:

Recipe ~

About 6 ounces of arugula.
Cloves of garlic to taste...I used 2 large ones (fresh garlic, too!!...yum!!)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup grated Parmegiano-Reggiano (I only had a block of Parmesan in the fridge, and that was fantastic enough...)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Season w/salt and pepper to taste.

OH.MY.GOODNESS.DEEEEELICIOUS.

EnJoy.

Peanut Butter - Black Sesame Seed Cookies

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...also known as: "HELP! I CAN'T STOP EATING THESE!!"

And of course there's a story...

Dave and I are going down to NYC tomorrow and Jake and Sam have chosen to stay home (to play WoW, to keep the woodstove stoked and the house warm, to care for the doggies...). I was going to go out today and get them some groceries, but I really just was *stuck*. And I know when I'm not feeling *right* about something ~ even something as seemingly simple as going out to the grocery store, I know to just Not Do Anything.

So that's what I did. Or didn't do.

Sam got up at about 10:30 and I discussed it with him...and the snow just kept snowing and the wind just kept blowing and my *feeling* to Not Do Anything felt confirmed. Plus, with leaving my boys tomorrow, I was not feeling good about leaving them today. I wanted to be WITH them today.

So I asked if they could get by ~ happily ~ on the food we have here in the house. It seems like the larder is low, yet the cupboards are not empty and the pantry is even well-stocked. So I began rummaging around to see what I could find for them. Sam, being the meat-man, approved of the skinless chicken thighs I took out of the freezer for him.

I noticed the bread was low, and so I started to get things around to make a loaf. My boys have been loving rye and pumpernickel lately, and I remembered I had rye flour in the cupboard. So I checked my book *Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day* and yes, they had an awesome recipe for rye bread. And then on the back of the bag of organic rye flour, I noticed a recipe for pumpernickel bread! And I had all of *those* ingredients, too! So, I mixed up a batch of *that*, too.

While the doughs were rising, I knew I wanted to make some sort of cookie for Jake and Sam for tomorrow. I, personally, had a peanut butter cookie craving. However, I couldn't find a lot of peanut butter in the cupboard. So down to the pantry I went. While I was down there, I rummaged around to see what else I could bring up for them. I found some Paula Deen Vidalia Onion Peach Grilling Sauce that I thought Sam could use on his chicken thighs. I found some black sesame seeds that I had bought a long time ago. I remembered I had once made sesame seed shortbread and thought I could make *black* sesame seed shortbread if I couldn't find more peanut butter. And alas ~ no...I could *not* find more peanut butter.

So back upstairs I went, looking one last time in our cupboard for more p.b. THERE IT WAS!! The WHOLE TIME!! I sat down to the computer and googled *black sesame seed cookie recipe* and guess what came up... GUESS!!! YES!!! This one for PEANUT BUTTER-Black Sesame Seed Cookies! Both of my wishes came true in one recipe. And if I had found the peanut butter on the first look-through, I wouldn't have brought up the black sesame seeds.

These cookies have no flour. They are magic. And they are SO delicious. And gorgeous. And delicious. And cute.

So...as always... EnJoy...










p.s. ~ when my honey came home at noon-time, bringing Jake home after going to a meeting and taking my Jeep into the shop quick and picking up our trash to take to the landfill and then going back to another meeting and then to the office to do more work, he said to me, "I'm so glad you didn't go out. Don't do it ~ it's just so windy and cold out. I can pick up any groceries we may need before I come home tonight." He's My Love.


p.p.s. ~ Chef Sam discovered we had all of the ingredients necessary for jambalaya with chicken thighs. Genius. He made it tonight and just finished washing all the dishes (8:40 p.m.) and he's SO looking forward to being *off* tomorrow and just eating his delicious creation.

p.p.s. ~ the rye bread is THE BEST RYE BREAD we have ever eaten.

OK...time for the cookie recipe...

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Peanut Butter - Black Sesame Seed Cookies (I made a double batch today)


* 1 cup creamy peanut butter (not natural)
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1 large egg
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 5 tablespoons black sesame seeds (why measure, really?...just lots and lots of black sesame seeds!)


Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in upper and lower thirds.

Beat together peanut butter and sugar in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until combined well, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg and baking soda until combined well.

Place sesame seeds in a shallow bowl. Roll packed, level teaspoons of dough into balls, then roll in seeds to coat. Arrange balls about 1 inch apart on 2 ungreased baking sheets.

Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through, until puffed and cracked, about 10 minutes.

Cool on baking sheets 2 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool.

EnJOY.
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