I can survive a day without baking

What does one bring to a BBQ? This is the question that I don't tend to wonder about too much. I always bake. Always. So this time I decided not to bake. It feels uncomfortable and I am fighting the urge to go back on my decision. What I did whip up was a little batch of Alabama Caviar. I wish I had a Southern grandmother with a recipe box full of butter-filled, dressing-soaked, cheese-drenched delicacies served with a side of all the family secrets you can dream of. I don't, but I do have a family recipe for hummus. Many of my favorite recipes come from a friend of mine who does happen to have a Southern grandmother or two, and he was the one who introduced me to Alabama Caviar (and Chocolate Wet Cake and Grits a Yaya and a whole other mess of not-good-for-you food that takes me back in a second to the halcyon days of grad school). It's very satisfying when making Alabama Caviar to put all the ingredients together and then dump a bottle of cheapo salad dressing over top of everything and know, without a shadow of a doubt, that it will be delicious. I like to serve with Tostitos Scoops chips because you can eat more of it at a time. It's like a little mini edible bowl for the caviar- super classy.

Alabama Caviar
3 16-oz cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed of all juice
1 small jar chopped pimentos, juice included
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced, green part only
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
3 canned or fresh jalapeño chiles, chopped*
1 firm, ripe, chopped tomato
2 cups vinaigrette (1 bottle Italian dressing- Kraft or Wishbone, nothing fancy)
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed or minced

In a large bowl, stir all ingredients very well. Refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours, preferably overnight, in a sealed or covered container. The longer it sits, the better it gets!

*If you are going to chop by hand, wear gloves. I didn't and it makes it hard to take contact lenses out later.

Bucket List #2

I was sleepy yesterday when I got home from work so I took a little nap. For 15 hours. I woke up this morning and thought, ooh I should go to yoga! I just slept for a day and a half! I thought I had 10 pre-paid classes so I called the yoga studio and found out they expired in February (five months after I bought them last September). Fabulous. So then I thought, oh I'll go anyway. What I did instead (in my yoga clothes): Went and got iced coffee (a medium of course) filled with crunchy sugar and then meandered my way to the new Krispy Kreme. I'm not a big doughnut person, even though I love dessert for breakfast, but their doughnuts are pretty darn good. Problem is, I got tricked - I did not get a hot doughnut even though the hot doughnut sign was flashing. I was robbed! Bucket list #2 completed, with less excitement than I was hoping. Just a plain old doughnut.

Bucket List #1

The first item on my Au Revoir Philadelphia Tour has been completed, as I watched the Reds beat the Phillies in the 9th inning. I mean the Reds winning was not part of the bucket list per se, just attending the baseball game. I have a little bit of a hard time at baseball games, as much as I love them because, a. I can't really see the field due to poorly corrected vision and b. get distracted by hot dogs and expensive beer. So delicious. Bucket List #1 begs to be followed by numbers 2, 3, and 4... which leaves me with the rather large responsibility of cramming in many exciting things into a summer. I'm thinking at the very least, visiting the new Krispy Kreme, taking a walk along Kelly Drive, spending a day at the art museum, spending five minutes at the Mutter Museum (medical oddities), spending 15 more dollars on my Tria card, etc. etc. and so on. As long as none of the activities involve the level of sodium in Chickie's and Pete's crab fries, I'm game!

The lovely view of City Hall and Avenue of the Arts as I rose out of the heavily spritzed with eau de urine SEPTA tunnel:

Smith Island Cake

A Smith Island Cake is the official state cake of Maryland. It's also ridiculously complicated looking, which of course makes me want to make it. I like triumphing over detailed desserts and then breezily saying, "Oh, it was no big deal at all! I just threw it together." (See photo of kitchen below). Smith Island is an island on the Eastern Shore. I've never been there, although I did make my mom take me to Crisfield which is close by because I really liked the book Homecoming (and its follow up Dicey's Song) which are set there. The books are tragic. But there is still something alluring about life on the Eastern shore. I have always had a secret desire to work in a crab picking factory there. I think I'd be good at it.

So this cake: 8 to 10 yellow cake layers, with chocolate icing and peanut butter cups in between. It's supposed to be 10 layers but due to some messy math and inexact use of my kitchen scale, I ended up with 9 layers. I am not super upset about this given the directions for the cake included "you will know the cake is done when you put it up to your ear and you don't hear sizzling." Baking is so much less exact than people believe it to be (says the girl who measured out cake batter by ounce on a kitchen scale so the layers would be even). I am proud to say I only sustained one large and painful burn on my arm (which I will not post a picture of), which is not bad given I rotated 9 cake pans 3 times each. If only I would use pot holders, which make me feel like a lobster with fine motor control problems, instead of dishtowels. If only. I'll post a picture of the inside of the cake later. It would be seriously unclassy to show up to a social event with a slice of cake cut out already.

The dishes! Mom! Help!

Smith Island 10-Layer Cake
Icing
2 sticks butter
2-12 oz. cans evaporated milk
8 heaping Tablespoons unsweetened Cocoa
2 lbs. confectioners Sugar

Cake
2 cups sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into chunks
5 eggs
3 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
1 cup evaporated milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup water

8 large Reese's peanut butter cups, frozen and processed in food processor into powder/small chunks

Cream together sugar and butter. Add eggs one at a time and beat until smooth. Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix into egg mixture one cup at a time. Don't overmix. With mixer running, slowly pour in the evaporated milk, then the vanilla and water. Mix just until uniform. Use nonstick spray to coat however many 9 inch cake pans you have. I put about 6 oz/3/4 cup of batter into each pan. Spread it around so it is evenly distributed. Make it slightly higher on the edges than the middle to create a more even layer. Bake cakes at 350 for 8 minutes. The recipe suggests 3 layers at a time. I did 4, and had to bake longer until they were finished. I baked 4 at a time for maybe 12 minutes. Let cool for five minutes and carefully remove cakes (using a knife or spatula to loosen) to finish cooling on a rack. Wash pans and repeat until all layers are baked.

Start making the icing when the first layer goes in the oven. Melt butter. Stir in evaporated milk (off heat). Whisk in cocoa until smooth, return to heat and cook on low heat for approximately 10 minutes. Don't let it boil. Remove from heat and whisk in confectioners sugar slowly. Cook slowly until thickened and will stick to back of a spoon/form a ribbon when you drizzle a spoonful.

To assemble:
Take one slightly cooled layer and spread with 1/3 to 1/2 cup frosting. Pour it in the middle and spread out to sides. I probably under iced mine in the layers in between because I had a ton of icing left over. So be generous. Don't worry if it drips off the sides. Sprinkle with 1 heaping tablespoon peanut butter cups. Add another layer, frosting, etc until you get to the last layer. Pour the frosting on top and let it drip down the sides, spread it around the sides, pour more on, even it out again, make it look pretty, etc. Sprinkle peanut butter cups on top for decoration and beautification.

A few of my favorite Philly foods

I like visiting new restaurants. And ordering different things off of the menu so I can try everything. Due to their deliciousness, I have re-ordered all of these dishes multiple times. In fact, in some cases, it is the only dish I have ever had at the restaurant. They are that good.

good dog burger at good dog
It's a burger stuffed with Roquefort cheese, served with sweet potato fries. Sublime.

La Tur cheese at Tria
A combo of goat cheese and stinky cheese.

Pappardelle Tartufate at Melograno
This dish. Oh my goodness. I will miss it more than anything in Philly. From the restaurant menu: Wild mushroom sauce infused with truffle oil, sprinkled with Tuscan pecorino cheese & walnuts.

Garrotxa with Garlic Dulce de Leche at Amada
The cheese is good, but the garlic dulce de leche it is served with is divine. Surprising combination but so perfect.

Pimientos de Padron at Amada
Fried peppers with lots of salt. Simple but compulsively eatable.

Pommes frites at Monk's Cafe
They're magical fries. With a really good dipping sauce.

Huevos Rancheros at Honey's Sit and Eat
I almost don't even know how to do justice to this dish. It's literally brunch perfection.

Sea Salt, Thai Coconut Milk, Chocolate, Burnt Sugar, and/or Dulce de Leche Gelato at Capogiro
Fancy gelato. They love giving tastes of the flavors. I always order the same thing but I always try lots of flavors first.

Chicken Tikka Masala and Saag Paneer at Ekta
Best.Indian.Food.Ever.

Cashew Deliciousness

Someone brought these to a Christmas cookie swap I had in grad school. I can't remember to who(m)? I owe credit, but I do remember it was about a million degrees in my apartment. Christmas in Miami is HOT. Every holiday in Miami is hot, really.

The last time I made these I added a couple of tablespoons of dulce de leche to the batter, which I think makes them extra delicious. I did not do that this time and they are sadly, only plain old delicious. If you like the salty sweet thing, definitely try them. And I imagine if you don't feel like food processing cashews and oil, you could probably just substitute maybe a cup-ish (maybe 1 1/2 cups) cashew butter. But who knows. Be adventurous in the kitchen!

Cashew Caramel Cookies
(3 dozen)

1 2/3 c flour
1/2 tsp coarse salt
2 1/2 c roasted salted cashews
2 tbls plus 1 tsp canola oil
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c packed light-brown sugar
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
24 soft caramel candy cubes (7 oz)
1/4 c heavy cream (I used skim milk)

Preheat oven to 350. Sift together flour and salt; set aside. Coarsely chop 1 cup cashews, set aside. Process remaining 1 1/2 cups cashews in a food processer until finely chopped. Pour in oil. Process until creamy, about 2 minutes.

Put cashew mixture, butter, and sugars in bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, gradually mix in flour mixture and reserved chopped cashews.

Using a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop or a teaspoon, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake 6 minutes; gently flatten cookies. Bake until bottoms are golden, 6-7 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.

Melt caramels with cream in saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth. Using spoon, drizzle caramel mixture over cookies, let set. store airtight in single layers up to 3 days.

Out of hundreds there were 6

My parents got a dog after my sister and I left for college despite our many requests. It's clear who the favorite child is. Sam, who is a beagle/basset mix, does a perfect downward-facing dog (a yoga move for the uninitiated). He also does not enjoy having his photo taken and is a tidge bit hyperactive. I took about 100 photos of him this weekend, most of which ended up being of his rear end. My only goal for the weekend other than passing the exam, was to get a picture of Sam doing downward dog. This is the closest I got.

Looking regal and bored (but not at least not displaying his hind end):

These are the Chagrin Falls:

If you look closely you can see Sam's tail sticking out of the bushes:

These are my minis. They call me AnnaNicole because when the smart looking fella on the left was little he talked really fast and squished together Aunt Nicole into AnnaNicole. It stuck.

It is no wonder to me that his mama is such a good photographer, with him as her subject!