The Pink Apron has moved!

If you've wondered why my posts are infrequent lately it's because I've been working on an all new The Pink Apron blog.  I still have some things to finish up but for all intents and purposes I'm up and running!!!  Check me out at my new address here.  I will no longer be posting here except to remind people to check me out at my new digs so if you want to keep reading about my culinary adventures come check out the new look and URL.  Thanks for all your support and readership.  I look forward to sharing the next leg in my blogging journey with you.

Melon Banana Smoothie

The first day I joined Equinox, my new gym, I treated myself to a post-workout smoothie in their cafe. I was drawn in by the intriguing name - Brainiac - and two of the ingredients: melon and banana. I love melon but find it isn't very common as a smoothie ingredient so I was curious of what kind of smoothie it would yield. As you can probably tell by my attempt to recreate it, it was delicious. It tasted fresh, clean and flavorful, just like the fruit itself. I didn't have all the ingredients in the original on hand so this is an approximation, but I find it tastes really good. The flavors are well balanced and provide a nice sweetness without being cloying. I like to juice the melon in my juicer to eliminate chunks and seeds but you could just as easily throw in melon pieces to create this smoothie or puree it first in blender or food processor and use that instead. Making the juice and freezing it in cubes, however, is a great way to get the body of a frozen smoothie without the watered down flavor of ice.

The one challenge I have when making smoothies is they seem to go down as quickly as they were made. Because of this, I like to drink them out of something special that encourages sipping. Sometimes it's a wine glass or a mug, but this morning I opted for one of my small cherry blossom glasses that I picked up in Tokyo. The glass only holds about 1/2 a cup so it forces me to slow down and also allows for refills.

Melon Banana Smoothie

Yields one 1 1/4 cup smoothie

Ingredients:

-1/4 cup apple cider or apple juice

-1/4 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt (I like Stonyfield Farm Organic Yogurt)

-1 banana, cut into slices

-1/4 cup cantaloupe juice, freshly juiced or frozen into ice cubes for a thicker smoothie

Method:

Add all ingredients to the blender and process until smooth. If you find your smoothie is too thick you can add additional apple cider/juice until you achieve the consistency that you desire.

Baking for the Troops (Month 3)

Baking for the troops was so rewarding in April and May that it was never a question of whether or not I would participate again this month.  This time to add a twist I decided to do a themed box.  Since it's just starting to get warm here in Boston a summer themed box came to mind.  Thinking about summer also tends to bring me back to childhood, which made me think of two things: camping and baseball.  While I am not particularly into either anymore, my summers as a kid were full of trips to our cabin in Colorado and Minnesota Twins games.  With this theme in mind I whipped up S'more Brownies, Slacker Jacks (Alton Brown's answer to Cracker Jacks) and the wild card, and Banana Crunch Jar Cakes.  Okay, so the last recipe had nothing to do with summer.  I just happen to love bananas so it is rare that I will bake and not have a single recipe that contains bananas.  From the samples I munched on these were all pretty yummy.  I'm hoping the soldier I sponsored will enjoy them and you will too.  You can find the Slacker Jacks recipe here and the rest of the recipes below.

S'more Brownies

This recipe was the culmination of so many I found online.  Most involved stirring marshmallows and graham cracker chunks into the batter.  However, I wanted one that would look more like a traditional s'more so a graham cracker crust on the bottom and a layer of mini marshmallows on top of the brownie seemed to be the answer.  I am not incredibly big on marshmallows so I only used a cup but if you love them you could easily increase the amount to two cups.

Yields one 9x13 pan of brownies

Ingredients:

Crust:

-3 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs

-2/3 cup white sugar

-3/4 cup butter, melted

Brownie:

-1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

-1 teaspoon salt

-1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

-6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

-5 large eggs

-1 1/4 cups light brown sugar

-1 cup granulated sugar

-2 teaspoons vanilla

-1 cup mini marshmallows

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375˚F.  Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan with 2-inch-high sides with butter or cooking spray.

Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter until well blended.  Press the mixture into your 9x13-inch pan.  Bake for 7 minutes.  Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350˚F.

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  Combine chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe container and microwave at 50% power until melted.  Stir until smooth and well combined.

Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl to blend.  Stir in the chocolate mixture, then dry ingredients.  Pour batter into the prepared pan over the crust.  Dot with mini marshmallows.  Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Banana Crunch Jar Cakes

This yummy whole grain cake is baked in jars for individual treats that ship well.

Yields about 16 cakes in 4 ounce jars

Ingredients:

Cake:

-1 cup (3 1/4 cups) oat flour

-1 cup whole wheat flour

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

-2/3 cup (5 ounces) packed light or dark brown sugar

-2 large eggs

-1 cup (8 ounces) mashed bananas (2 large or 3 medium bananas)

-1/4 cup (4 ounces) plain yogurt, non-fat to full fat

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-1/2 cup (1 7/8 ounces) slivered almonds

-1 cup (6 ounces) chocolate chips

Crunch Topping:

-3/4 cup (2 5/8 ounces) old-fashioned rolled oats

-1/3 cup (2 1/2 ounces) packed light or dark brown sugar

-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-2 tablespoon (1 ounce) unsalted butter, melted

-1/4 cup (1 ounce) slivered almonds

Method:

Grease 16 4-ounce canning jars.  Preheat the oven to 350˚F.

To make the cake batter:

Whisk together the flours, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
Cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, stopping to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl between additions. Mix in half the dry ingredients until moistened, then mix in the bananas, yogurt, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then add the remaining dry ingredients and the nuts and chips, if using, mixing until evenly moistened. Fill the jars 1/2 full with batter.
To make the topping: Combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt into a small mixing bowl until well blended. Stir in the melted butter until the moisture forms large crumbs; stir in the chopped nuts. Sprinkle the batter in the jars.
Bake until the edges pull away from the jars and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.  Remove the jars, one at a time from the oven; place a lid on, then a ring and screw down tightly. Use HEAVY-DUTY mitts, the jars are hot!  Place the jars onto your counter top to cool. You'll know when they've sealed, you'll hear a "plinking" sound. If you miss it, wait until the jars have cooled completely then push down on the lids, they shouldn't move at all.

Note: If you are sending these it is crucial that the batter not overflow.  I recommend filling a single jar and baking it as a test before filling and baking the rest.

Lobster Taste on a Shrimp Budget

I enjoy the expression “Champagne taste on a beer budget” even though it’s not so fitting as I don’t drink beer. However, it does describe me for the better part of my twenties (Not that they are over yet). However, I’d like to think that due to a lot of hard work and money management that I’ve at least worked my way up to a fine craft beer or in my case, a local hard cider.
One of my favorite splurges is not champagne but lobster. Whenever I find it on a menu relatively affordably I cannot help but order it. Lobster Mac & Cheese, Lobster Ravioli, Lobster Rolls, Steamed Lobster…you name it, I love it. When it comes to cooking at home, however, lobster rarely makes it on the menu. I don’t always want to go through the effort of buying and cooking a live lobster and shelled meat is unnecessarily pricy. Because of this I was understandably excited to have discovered langoustines in the freezer case at my local Trader Joe’s.
What are langoustines? At a general level they have been called cousins of lobsters and are small crustaceans described as being sweeter than lobster but the size of a shrimp. At their best they are said to be more subtle in flavor and delicate than the better known Maine lobster. The version sold at Trader Joe’s are small and shelled making them perfectly convenient for cooking at home.
Last time I bought a bag I made Langoustine and Angel Hair, roughly following a recipe from Emeril. This time I wanted to make something light and more portable for a lunch at work. I decided to adapt a Cooking Light recipe for Lobster Wraps with Lemon Mayonnaise. This recipe only has eight ingredients, many of which I tend to have around the house, so it made for a convenient and relatively affordable recipe. It was also an interesting one to try out with the langoustines since the meat would be simply adorned making it easy to really taste it and hard for any “off” flavors if any to hide.
The result was quite tasty. I’m sure these weren’t the cream of the crop of langoustines so I didn’t find them to be as rich or nuanced as lobster, but for a weekday sandwich they were a great stand in. Overall though the meat was pretty good quality and had no ‘fishy’ flavors to it, but also doesn’t have a terribly distinctive flavor. I loaded my sandwich up with fixings because I happen to have a weird thing for iceberg lettuce and tomatoes but you could certainly skip these if you wanted to be all about the meat.
Langoustine Wraps with Lemon Mayonnaise
Serves 4
Ingredients:
-¼ cup light mayonnaise (I like homemade or Hellman’s)
-2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
-1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
-1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
-3/4 cup chopped seeded tomato
-12 ounces langoustine meat, defrosted if necessary
-4 (2 – to 3-ounce) whole wheat wraps or flatbreads
-1 cup shredded romaine lettuce
Method:
To prepare lemon mayonnaise, combine 1/4 cup mayonnaise, chives, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper; stir well.
Combine lemon mayonnaise, tomato, and langoustines; stir well. Divide the langoustine mixture evenly among wraps. Top each serving with ¼ cup shredded lettuce. Roll up jelly-roll fashion.

Eating Mindfully

Today I have the day off work because my office is moving from the North Shore of Massachusetts to Boston on Monday.  Because of this they needed the day to move our stuff so we got a freebie.  This meant that not only did I get to sleep in but I also got the rare treat of a noon Vinyasa class with my favorite instructor.  At the end of the class while we are in Savasana or corpse pose she passes out 'self-care cards' which include messages like strength, self-love, play, etc.  Though I know it is all up to chance, I always seem to get a perfect card and it sets the tone for my day.
Today my card was about mindfulness and finding great joy in the simple things.  Being a foodie, it was hard for me not to bring this message back to eating and food.  It made me realize how often I rush through the act of eating or making food.  Sure it's easy to slow down when you're on vacation or having a fancy meal.  You tell yourself you won't be in The Russian River Valley again so you relish the feeling of drinking a cool Chardonnay while gazing across acres of wine plants.  Or you eat your $50 duck confit with slow, thoughtful bites.  And yet when it comes to a morning iced coffee or a sandwich for lunch it's easy to glaze over the whole experience and rush so you can get onto the next thing.  I happen to the worst offender of this, often slurping a smoothie down hastily in minutes and then searching the bottom of my cup for a missed sip or two.  Our modern life it seems is the opposite of mindful eating.  So many modern food products are developed purely for their ability to be eaten while stopped at a light or prepared in under 15 minutes.  Can you blame us for not being fully present when we eat?

As much as I hate seeming cliche, I think it's amazing how much you can discover when eating slowly and with purpose.  Suddenly you realize the "forbidden food" isn't quite as magical or tasty as you thought it was.  Or you realize just how complex a piece of fruit can taste when it's fully ripe and in season.  It makes us much more in tune with our likes and dislikes and in a sense, the natural course of things.  My challenge to myself today and to you if you choose to accept is to eat just one thing meaningfully.  It doesn't matter if you don't have any special meals planned and in fact, it makes for a better excercise.   Just try it on one food and if you have time, leave a comment about what you discover.

TGIF everyone!

Shallot Strata with Ricotta and Prosciutto

I hate to see good food go to waste so I'm a fan of any dish that gives leftover ingredients a new lease on life. Strata is one of those fabulous dishes. I've actually been craving it since a Tomato Goat Cheese Strata was featured on Tri to Cook so I knew immediately that was what I wanted to do with some of my homemade ricotta cheese. It also just so happened that I had some leftover Focaccia bread, a few free range eggs, milk, Mozzarella cheese (store bought), veggies, and prosciutto. My recipe came together from there and I happen to love the flavor combination. However, strata is so versatile that you could easily tailor it to your likes and dislikes. Want to use egg substitute instead of whole eggs? Strata accommodates that. Don't desire meat? No problem, it's completely customizable. Some day I would even love to have a strata party and allow people to combine pre-soaked bread with their choice of goodies before baking it in ramekins for personalized, individual dishes (I'm a huge fan of petite foods). This one I baked off in my new Emile Henry baking dish that I got over the weekend for 50% off at the Williams-Sonoma Outlet. Anyway, this is quite the tasty recipe. Typically I would load up on more veggies, but I wanted to make use of what I had in the refrigerator.

Shallot Strata with Ricotta and Prosciutto
Serves 4
Ingredients:
-2 shallots, chopped
-¼ cup chopped green peppers
-½ cup very thin slices prosciutto or ham, chopped
-2 tablespoons water
-1 ¼ cups fat-free milk
-⅛ teaspoon dry mustard-1/16 teaspoon black pepper
-2 large eggs
-½ cup ricotta cheese
-½ cup mozzarella cheese
-5 ounces (1/2-inch) cubed focaccia

Method:
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, peppers and prosciutto, and sauté 5 minutes or until onion begins to brown. Add water; cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 additional minutes or until the onion is very soft.
Combine the milk, mustard, pepper, eggs and cheeses in a large bowl, and stir with a whisk until mixture is well-blended. Stir in the onion mixture. Add bread, tossing gently to coat.

Arrange the bread mixture in a single layer in a small baking dish or pie plate. Cover strata, and chill 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350° F.
Uncover strata. Bake at 350° F for 45 minutes or until set (I like mine nice and crispy on top but moist and tender in the middle). Enjoy with your choice of condiments.

And more cuteness...

Homemade Ricotta Pt. 2

Tonight marked my second attempt at homemade ricotta. I finally found citric acid at the warehouse store of http://www.beer-wine.com/, which is located in Woburn, Massachusetts. I also picked up starter cultures for Formage Blanc and Thermophilic cultures (used in making Italian cheeses). While I didn't have any specific plan in mind for those cultures I figured it didn't hurt to pick them up while I was in the neighborhood since they keep for up to two years in the freezer. I also learned from an employee there that apparently wine making can be quite easy. Perhaps I'll take that on, if I ever master cheese.

Anyway, armed with my citric acid I was now able to make the ricotta recipe from Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll. Her recipe involved combining 1 gallon of milk with 1 teaspoon citric acid (reduced in 1/4 cup cold water) and 1 teaspoon salt. I was then instructed to heat the milk to 185˚-190˚F until the curds separated and the water was no longer milky. At this point I was to turn off the heat and let the pot sit, covered and undisturbed for 10 minutes. This seemed easy enough, especially compared to the previous method which required a lot of resting time.

Everything seemed to be going well except that my curds never floated like some of the pictures I saw online, despite my being patient and armed with an instant read thermometer. I also wasn't attentive enough in my stirring which led to some curds sticking to the bottom and darkening. They still taste good, but ruin the pure white appearance of the cheese, making it look instead like it was flecked with cinnamon. I didn't end up with the full 1 1/2 - 2 lb. yield, but I did come MUCH closer this time, getting about 14 ounces. Again, the flavor is good, sweet, rich and milky. I was expecting the cheese to taste a little more gamey or earthy since I had been told that the cows just started on pasture, but it mostly tasted like sweet, clean milk. Being the perfectionist I am I'm not quite where I would like to be skill-wise, but I am slowly getting there.

Next up will be a dish that I made with some of the homemade ricotta. Stay tuned.