OOPS! Okay...I'm late...profuse apologies. I thought this month's DB post was due on Thursday 30 Oct...not Wednesday 29 October...and technically, it still is the 29th...Oh well...that's what happens when you're off in all directions.As you've probably noticed, many home pizzarias magically popped up this week, thanks to the late, great Shar of What Did You Eat? and the very wonderful Rosa of Rosa Yummy Yums. They decided to challenge us to make pizza dough by hand, and in the fashion of true pizzaiolos. I have a favourite pizza dough recipe, courtesy of (the once divine, but now demoted since her last cookbook) Delia Smith, but every once in a while go in search of another. When in those moods I whole heartedly approach the new recipe...only to quickly morph into my comfort zone. Yes, I followed the DB recipe...okay, I halved it, and used my handy pan, but still it was followed. Much to my surprise it worked...even the special flippy pokey tossy method. It didn't fall to the floor and it didn't end up on the ceiling...okay...no worries about that, I am 5'1". Instead of making three pizzas, I decided to make two largish ones...heck...it was eDay...and well, you know what I think of eDays (and yes, I'll probably treat the US election in a similar fashion).The dough was thinnish and tasty and held the far-too-many toppings I loaded onto it. I'll probably come back to it and play with it some more.And my toppings? Well...I went for pickable--as in bits I can pick off the top as I'm transfixed to the results ticker, and then wolf down the bready bit during lulls. Salami, onions, black olives, garlic, jalepenos, cheese and tomato sauce. If I had anchovies, they'd be added as well...From this:
To this:
And here's how:
If you ever have dinner with my parents, you'll inevitably be asked "do you want ketchup?"
It doesn't matter if you are having hamburger or roast turkey, the question will be asked by My Dear Little Cardamummy. If your plate arrives without ketchup, my father will ask my Mum why she didn't give you any ketchup.
Quite honestly, I think they substitute "ketchup" for any sort of flavouring condiment: mustard, pickles, barbecue sauces, gravy, (etc). But they do seem to go through an awful lot of squeezy bottle ketchup. An awful lot.
I've never had anything but store-bought squeezy bottle ketchup, either in squeezy bottles or in little packets. I'm not a big fan--far too sweet for my liking.
When I went on my canning and preserve-making spree this year--and asked our lovely Dana for some advice. She pointed me to homecanning.com's pages for advice and recipes. And there, while perusing, I found a recipe for tomato ketchup.
Well...it was tomato season...so why not? As per my other canning adventures, I made a half-batch of ketchup.
It's a very easy process, in line with making tomato sauce--different spicing of course. Unlike storebought ketchups, this one is thickend the old fashioned way...by reducing the volume insted of using thickeners such as cornstarch.
My word...it takes a long time. And it's quite messy. Well, no...ketchup isn't messy, I'm messy. I suppose it's a good thing I didn't take my camera over...no evidence as to the reddish-orange splotches and spills all over my mum's nice white tiles.
Even my mother was getting tired of waiting. Her seemingly unending aria of "Is it done yet? Is it done yet?" came in through the doorway. I turned it into a duet, with my counterpoint of "No, it's not. No, it's not."
The diva she is (hey, I had to get it from somewhere) made the declarative statement while stomping her little feet "This takes too long and it's not worth it."
I looked at her and said "Let's see how it tastes." She harrumphed.
Well...a week later we tried it.
"Oh! This is so much better than what we get in the store. I'm glad we did this," was my Mum's response.
"It needs more sugar, " declared my (diabetic) father.
It is good ketchup. It's not too sweet and you can taste the cloves and allspice (and the hot chilli pepper I tossed in). It has pizzazz and personality. In fact I call it "the good ketchup," to be used only when it can show itself off and not just for any old hamburger or Milk Calendar Recipe.
I'll be using it judiciously this year--next year I'll make a whole batch.
cheers!
jasmine
"No, Darling. I make lemon cake from scratch," without sounding like a snobbish, self-aggrandising foodish twit?
I suppose I could drop the "Darling."
Did I actually say the above? Ummm...I think so.A wonderful and delightful friend of mine and new blogger called me up last week looking for a recipe for lemon pound cake that used lemon-flavoured gelatine powder...and I believe the above was my answer.
May I please hide behind my laptop now?
Gosh...I know certain people in my life think I'm a bit of a food snob--which I vehemently deny--but gee...the above, while not damning evidence, doesn't look very good.
Truthfully, I've only made lemon loaves with real lemons. I'd never even thought of using flavoured gelatine in a cake. I Googled it and sent her this recipe--which I think suited her needs. Heh...you learn something new every day.
But now I have a bit of a palate-worm going...lemon loaf...actually, a lemon poppyseed loaf, to be specific. To be even more specific, a lemon poppyseed loaf with cream cheese icing.
The problem with plalate-worms is they are never satisfied until they are satsified. And they can't be fooled with substitutes. In other words, a lemon drop after a sandwich won't send mine on its merry way. If anything, these pallid substitutes only anger it and make the craving even more specific.
Early on, it could disappear by virtue of getting the specific foodstuff, premade from the grocer's, made from a pouchmix or tumbled out of a gas station vending machine. But palate-worms have incredible stamina...and they seem to get stronger with each passing day...hour...minute.
Mmm....lemon poppyseed loaf. Whereas lemon-flavoured powdered gelatine is not in my pantry, lemons, poppyseeds, flour, eggs, butter and yoghurt are....well, the dry goods are in my pantry--the rest live in the refrigerator.
I have several lemon poppyseed cake recipes--some are like a light, slightly lemony angelfood, studded with seeds, while others have a heavier crumb. I settled on a slight modification of Nigella's Lemon-Syrup Loaf Cake. The result was a sunshiney crumb, soaked in glisteny, extra lemony goodness. I also decided to forego the cream cheese icing--the syrup glimmered so nicely, I didn't want to cover it up.
The palate-worm, I'm happy to say, has been sated and is off to find its next victim...
Oh...and for those of you who are wondering...yes, I made this during the craptastic weekend, between the serrated knife incident and the fire. Yes, I wore one of those thin, surgical glove-like things, to protect my booboo from the lemon juice. Which really didn't help at all, as I clipped the end of the finger (I have small hands and even the size small gloves have too much room) and the juice worked its way in...
Lemon Poppyseed Loafadapted from Nigella Lawson's Lemon-Syrup Loaf Cake, from How To Be A Domestic Goddess, p13.
125g unsalted butter
175g sugar
2 eggs
1 lemon, zested and juiced
170g cake flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda1/2 tsp salt
1 dspn poppyseeds
60ml plain yoghurt
75g icing sugar
Preheat the oven to 180C/375F; butter and line a 23cm/9" loaf tin with parchment and set aside.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Stir in the poppyseeds and set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs and zest. Mix in the yoghurt and then fold in the flour mixture. Pour into the loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes.
About 20 minutes in, start making the lemon syrup by melting sugar into the lemon juice over medium-low heat.
When an inserted cake tester comes out cleanly, take the loaf out of the oven and prodigiously perforate it with your weapon of choice. Pour the syrup overtop and let it all soak in. Let the cake cool in the tin before removing it otherwise you run the risk of the cake falling apart.
cheers!
jasmine
