Archive for the ‘holidays’ Category
Real Ghost Stories…Grab a Flashlight!
My friend Tui of Mental Mosaic has organized a Halloween-themed blog carnival, True Spooks 2011: True Ghost Stories.
Read on...Birthday Carrot Cake Recipe
Perhaps some of you thought I was off tending puppies yesterday or maybe even early birthday celebrating. Don’t I wish.
What I was really doing was nearly pulling my hair out over the inexplicable continued crap Internet connection I have. Ever since it went out about 10 days ago, it’s been on and off — and yesterday was completely off. Right now it’s touch and go (can’t access many pages), but I’m keeping positive.
And aside from causing me stress regarding work, it’s *completely* thrown off my blogging schedule. Argh.
Guess you’ll have to wait another year for today’s originally planned post. Or I’ll just save it for NaBloPoMo . . . with which I sincerely hope Telecom Italia cooperates.
So here is What’s Cooking Wednesday: the Birthday Edition — a day late for Wednesday, but just in time for my birthday! Woohoo!
For anyone who’s curious, I’m 31 today. So send any e-cards in large font please. Hah!
Now, back to the originally scheduled post:
For my birthday, I always have this chocolate cake. It’s my absolute favorite cake in the whole world — especially when my mom makes it.
But I’ve been feeling a little daring lately, in the mood for something different. And that, for me, means carrot cake.
I love carrot cake, haven’t had it in at least four years, and besides, isn’t it just a great autumn cake, spicy and orange and brown and cream cheese icing and yum?
I have never made a carrot cake before, and I’m not entirely sure why not. Probably because my mom isn’t particularly fond of it, so she never passed on a recipe, and goodness knows I stick to the recipes of experts around these parts.
So I turned to these Internets and went for the first recipe that came up. I know. Really selective right? Well you see, I had been going over what I thought would go into a carrot cake in my head, and this recipe fit that, especially with the adjustments listed in the comments. So I made my own tweaks, and below is what I came up with.
This cake is delicious. It’s a subtle carrot cake, and by that I mean it’s not at all like some store- or restaurant-produced cakes that make me feel like I’m eating a scented candle. I like my spices subtle, so if you like them stronger, you might want to adjust. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that if you think you don’t like carrot cake, you should give this one a go.
Also, the original recipe had pecans. Some people in the comment section switched to walnuts, but I didn’t add any nuts at all; I’m not a fan of nuts in my cakes in general. But this would’ve been *fabulous* with raisins so I’ll make an effort to find them before I make this again.
My Birthday Carrot Cake
4 eggs
1 c white sugar
1 c brown sugar
1 ¼ c vegetable oil
3 tsp vanilla 2 c flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp nutmeg
3 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
3 c grated carrots
1. Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C). Grease and flour 9 x 13 inch pan (or, as I did a 6 muffin/cupcake pan and a small loaf pan).
2. Blend together eggs, sugars, oil, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt and add to mixing bowl a little at a time. At this point, the mixture will be really thick, almost pasty. Now you’re ready to stir in the carrots.
4. Pour into pan(s), and put in the oven. The original recipe says 40-50 minutes for a full-sized cake. My muffins took about 20 minutes, and the loaf pan about 40. Just make sure to always test with a toothpick in the center—if it comes out with no batter, you’re good.
For amateur bakers, the other trick is the “spring back to the touch test,” which says, not surprisingly, that the cake should spring back to your touch. I find this one a big dangerous though as you can sink the top of your cakes and muffins/cupcakes pretty easily, so I always use a toothpick.
5. Remove from oven and let cool before icing.
Cream Cheese Icing
The measurements in the original recipe looked really off to me so I used a tried and true cream cheese icing recipe that I’ve made before. You might want to play with this too according to your tastes and how much icing you like (I don’t use much). In fact, on the cake, I just sprinkled some confectioner’s sugar on top. Look it’s snowing in October in southern Italy!
8 oz softened cream cheese
4 tbl butter
1 ½ c powdered sugar
½ tsp vanilla
Beat everything together until smooth and to your desired consistency.
Grating the carrots makes this one a little labor intensive, but it’s worth it, especially if you’re making it for someone special — like for yourself. Come on, show yourself a little love this Love Thursday!
Happy Love Thursday and buon appetito!
Edited to add a request:
If you leave birthday wishes for me,
please leave the date of your birthday too (no year required!)
so I can return the wish.
buon compleanno mia!
Mia Rose and her stinky toes,
Green/blue eyes, and button nose.
Princess gowns, tiaras, and sparkly heels,
Cheerleading skirts, bracelets, and ear-piercing squeals.
Cornsilky blond hair pulled back in a pony,
Your birthday dinner will be delicious with Nana’s macaroni.
Eight years you’re here, from baby to young girl,
They’ve passed like a blur–an awesome pink whirl.
I wish you many happy things for the coming year,
That breeze you feel? It’s me–I’m near!
My favorite niece you’ll always be,
Even though they say you’re just a little pujie.*
(drawing by P’s niece, Sara, age 9.)
Happy, happy birthday and first day of school!
Baci e abbracci
Aunt Shell
*Family joke. My grandmother used to call something smelly a “pujack” which she told us was a smelly goat; it’s been shortened for Mia, because, you know, she’s little and all.
Eleven Years Ago Today…
I was working at a certain family amusement park, passing out laser guns and explaining why it’s not appropriate to hit people in the darkness of the game room, when from the corner of my eye I noticed my brother–in blue hospital scrubs carrying something blue in his hand– and my mother–bearing fried food–approaching.
I knew this surprise family visit, capped by my brother’s beaming (and I do mean *beaming*) face could only mean one thing:
I had a nephew.
My sister-in-law had called the night before to say her water broke and that she was going to the hospital, but that bouncing baby boy didn’t make an appearance until after one in the afternoon the following day.
And since then he’s provided countless smiles, laughs, hugs, and kisses as well as the all-important concept of “hugging you down,” a bear hug/tackle best carried out on the floor and with a running start.
Some of my fondest memories involve my nephew, my now-deceased grandfather, who was sure that he was the only one that could get the little guy to sleep (he was right for a while there) and Kit-Kats, which Pap insisted were not candy because of the wafers involved (that made them cookies, and OK to give him darn it!).
I can’t believe eleven years have passed since that wonderful day when you taught me that I really was a “baby person” after all. Amazing what a cooing smile can do.
And so to Michael, my favorite nephew, I wish you a happy, happy birthday and a year full of joys, big and small; I only wish I could be there to share this day with you (except for the getting braces part–you’re on your own there).
I miss your hug-me-downs terribly.
And don’t let Manny do this to your cake!
Baci e abbracci
Aunt Shell
what’s cooking wednesday: cuoricini di merluzzo in bianco
My fellow Americans…Happy Fourth of July!
In grand tradition, we probably should be firing up the grill for hot dogs and hamburgers (yes, we have them both here, buns and everything!), but back home we also ate a lot of hardshell crabs to celebrate, so we’re going to keep with the seafood theme for this week’s What’s Cooking Wednesday.
Unfortunately, we don’t have good crabs here (they’re so tiny!) but we do have excellent cod.
This dish is called “Cuoricini di Merluzzo in Bianco,” which is literally “Small Hearts of Cod in White.” Sounds romantic doesn’t it?
First, let me explain a little about cod. The best description of the different types in Italy I’ve found is here, and it’s broken down like this:
merluzzo: fresh cod
baccalà: conserved, in pieces, under salt (many Italian-Americans have this for Christmas Eve but even more of you probably recognize this as a name from a certain gangster TV series that recently ended)
stocco: dried and sold whole
I believe we’d call “cuoricini di merluzzo“cod medallions–round pieces about the size of the palm of your hand.
Note here that we’re talking about “pieces of cod” as opposed to “codpieces.” Hah! Go ahead, click on it. I’ll be here when you get back.
We used frozen cod because someone had given me a bag, but you could also do this with fresh fish (haddock as well, in which case my mom would probably call it “Poor Man’s Lobster”).
This recipe is so easy and so delicious, there’s no reason you shouldn’t try it–unless you don’t like cod of course. It’s great and light for the summer with a simple salad on the side, or you can do it as part of a larger meal with this as an appetizer.
Cuoricini di Merluzzo in Bianco
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 kg frozen cod medallions (about eight)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
salt to taste
water, enough to cover cod in pan
juice of a lemon for serving
Defrost cod (submerge in cold water if you’re in a hurry).
Put olive oil in pan over medium heat, add garlic and allow to cook for a minute or two.
Add cod, salt, and parsley, and let cook on one side of the fish for a few minutes (you’ll see it start to brown a bit in spots), then flip.
Turn down heat to low, add enough water to come up to the fish but not cover completely, and let cook for 20-25 minutes. The sauce will be boiling, so just let it as such, giving the pan a shake every so often, until it thickens enough for you.
Serve hot with sauce from pan poured over the fish.
Garnish with a good squirt of fresh lemon juice and a sprig of fresh parsley.
Buon appetito!
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[tags]merluzzo, cod, cuoricini di merluzzo, cod medallions, fish, recipes, cooking, what’s cooking wednesday[/tags]
Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
Calabria Guidebook
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