When Life Gives You Sliced Lemons...

About a month ago, mom came home from a church function with a huge container of leftover sliced lemons. She knew that I loved lemons and wondered if I could use them to bake anything. The problem was that they were sliced. Can't really juice them. Can't really zest them. (At least not without cutting up my fingers.) Luckily, like any good Kitchen Window reader, I remembered preserved lemons from NPR. This weekend, the lemons were ready, but I still had to figure out what to do with them.

Preserved lemons are pretty versatile and can simply be added to a number of dishes. However, I wanted to try a recipe that actually called for them. After looking for preserved lemon recipes, I very quickly learned that a Moroccan tagine was the way to go.

Many tagines are either chicken or lamb based. Although I am not vegetarian and not averse to cooking with meat, I don't really enjoy cooking meat, so I wanted something different. However, the vegetarian options I found didn't look quite like what I wanted. So despite having never tried a tagine before, I combined 3 or 4 recipes to come up with a combination that sounded good to me. This is roughly that recipe.

*Note: There may be no salt in the recipe, but it turns out quite salty because of the salt in the lemons.

Red Potato Tagine

1.75 pounds red skin potatoes
1 small onion grated and squeezed dry
1/3 cup grated tomato
1/3 large onion thinly sliced
3/4 red pepper sliced
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 gloves garlic
1 tsp ginger
1 preserved lemon (I wasn't sure what that meant. I used about the equivalent of 1/2 a whole lemon)
2 Tbsp parsley
1 Tbsp cilantro

1. Boil the potatoes for 3 minutes. Then, pour out the water. Thickly slice the potatoes into a bowl of cool water.
2. Saute the grated onion in olive oil in a 2 quart saucepan for 3 minutes.
3. Add tomato and spices, and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add potatoes, onion, and red pepper and cook for 2 more minutes. Mix everything together well.
5. Pour in 1 3/4 cup water. Bring to a boil. Then, cover and bring down to a low simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Add parsley, cilantro, and preserved lemon. (To use the preserved lemon: Remove from jar. Rinse with cold water. Coarsely chop. It will be quite soft and salty.) Cover again and simmer for 25 more minutes.
7. You may uncover and boil a bit more to remove some of the excess water.

Lamingtons

I discovered these Australian delights during freshman year. They were so good that I made a second batch only a couple of weeks later. When you consider that I'm not much of a cake fan, that's rather impressive. Now, this is my go-to cake recipe, whether I am making lamingtons or just need a birthday cake. It is quite butter rich causing it to be dense enough to hold up to coating in chocolate and coconut for absolute deliciousness.


When I first made these, I described them to my friend Kristen over dinner. Of course, this meant that she had to try one. Once I brought one to her, she laughed in surprised. Although she had never eaten a lamington before, she recognized it from Possum Magic, an Australian children's book. The book has an illustration of the main character, a possum, eating a gigantic lamington!

I have never made a full recipe, since I try to accommodate whatever size cake pan I happen to have. Thus, the measurements that I provide are a bit imprecise. If you are worried about exactness, check out the recipe at NPR.

Lamingtons
adapted from Greg Patent on NPR

Cake

just under 1 1/4 cups bleached all-purpose flour

a bit less than 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 stick + a tad salted butter, at room temperature

1 (barely overfilled) cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

3/4 cup whole milk (I used skim in this case, and it turned out fine. However, I usually choose to buy a small bottle of whole milk for this recipe.)

Chocolate sauce

2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tablespoons salted butter, melted

1/3 cup boiling water

2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

To make the cake, adjust an oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 9 x 2–inch baking pan, dust it with flour, and knock out the excess flour.

Whisk the flour and baking powder together in a medium bowl.

Beat the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add 1/4 cup of the sugar and the vanilla and beat for 30 seconds. While beating, gradually add the remaining sugar. Scrape the bowl and beater, then beat for 5 minutes on medium-high speed. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with the milk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and beating only until smooth. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the cake is golden brown and pulls away slightly from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in its pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then cover the cake pan with a wire rack and invert the two. Remove the pan, cover the cake with another rack, and invert the cake again to cool completely right side up.

Drape the cake loosely with a kitchen towel and leave at room temperature overnight.

To make the chocolate sauce, in a medium metal bowl whisk together the confectioners' sugar, cocoa, butter, and boiling water until smooth. Set the bowl into a pan of very hot water to keep the sauce fluid. Spread the coconut in a shallow dish or pie plate. Drop a piece of cake into the chocolate sauce and use two long-tined forks to turn the cake quickly in the sauce to coat all surfaces. Lift the cake out of the sauce, letting excess sauce drip back into the bowl, and transfer the cake to the bowl of coconut. Use your fingers to sprinkle the cake with coconut, rolling it around to coat all surfaces well. Remove the cake from the coconut and set it on a wire cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining cake. Leave the cakes on the wire racks to dry for 1 to 2 hours before serving.

Lemony Geometric Goodness

"A triangle of pie is the best way ever discovered to round out a square meal," according to the Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook.

Ever since I received this cookbook from Nana, I've meant to try a recipe. However, with a table of contents with everything from custard pies to cake pies to a whole chapter devoted just to pie toppings, picking a place to begin is not easily done. Thankfully, my friend Brooke has raved about lemon chess pies for the past two years. She couldn't believe that I was a Southerner who had never tasted one. Well, I righted that by baking one earlier this week.

And I have to agree with Brooke. Lemon chess pies really are delicious (though fairly sweet), and Southerners and Northerners alike need to try one.

Lemon Chess Pie a la the Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook:

Unbaked 9 inch pie shell (*I made a regular shortening and butter crust rather than our family's traditional oil. I also added a bit of lemon zest to the dough)
2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cornmeal
4 eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup milk
4 Tbsp. lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice

Combine sugar, flour, and cornmeal in large bowl. Toss lightly with fork to mix. Add eggs, butter, milk, lemon zest and lemon juice. (*Note: You're adding dairy and lemon juice together, so of course, it will curdle, but don't worry, it still tastes great.) Beat with rotary or electric beater until smooth and thoroughly blended. Pour into pie shell.

Bake in moderate oven (375 degrees F) 35 to 45 minutes or until top is golden brown. Cut pie while warm.

(Two last notes: It is probably best to refrigerate any extras rather than leaving on the counter indefinitely. Second, the cookbook recommends serving with unsweetened whipped cream. Mom, Dad and I thought that the pie did just fine without it.)

Condiments

I believe that what you wear should tell a story. Right now I'm wearing a tank top and a skirt. It's my first real tank top, bought at the mall around with my friend Allison. Skirt, one I made from a favored pattern. Even though it's the wrong type of fabric for the pattern, I knew I wanted to make it work.

I like what's dressing up my food to have a story too. The best stories come when you make it yourself. If food is your clothing, then condiments are the jewelry, adding the sparkle that sets everything off. I haven't tried ketchup--it requires more tomatoes and canning than I have, but I'll venture into other condiments.

Today I made mayonnaise for the first time. The process of making it accentuates how it is FAT. All the more reason to only have a small amount at a time. I think the recipe below makes about a cup of mayo, but I'm not certain. At one point when the blender didn't look like anything was happening I took a step over to the sink to rinse something. Mayo explosion! Be warned.

Mayonnaise in my Blender

(adapted from More With Less)

Whirl in blender:

1 egg

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon paprika

Add 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Now for the FAT!

Start your blender. Carefully remove cover (or just cap if you can pour in) and SLOWLY pour in

1/4 cup of oil. (I used olive oil.)

Then add 1 Tablespoon vinegar. (I used white vinegar.)

Finally, and still slowly, add another 3/4 cup of oil.

Nana's Mustard

I haven't made this in the new apartment yet, but it's only a matter of time. It's great sweet-sour, spicy mustardy deliciousness.

Mix: 1/4 c. ground mustard
1/4 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
Dash of salt

Heat to boiling: About 1/3 c. brown vinegar

Stir in enough vinegar into dry ingredients to right consistency.

Add: 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric

Let season one day to develop flavor.

Note: Turmeric is a strong yellow dye, so be careful about getting it on your clothes.

Summer Vegetable Tart

Last night, mom and dad were tired, so I offered to cook dinner. Since we had gone to the farmer's market the previous day, fresh vegetables sounded like a good main dish, and being the baker that I am, I decided on a tart.

Crust
1 1/2 cup flour (I used ~1/3 cup wheat and the rest white)
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons water

Mix all of the above ingredients, but the water. After texture is reasonable, add the water and form dough. Refrigerate for 15 minutes while starting on chopping vegetables. Then, roll out and put in tart or pie plate. Blind bake for 17 minutes at 375 F.

Filling
tomato
zucchini
onion
red pepper
spinach
garlic
olive oil
grated cheese

Quickly, saute the zucchini in the olive oil, but then remove and set the zucchini aside. Then, add the garlic and onions to the olive oil and saute. Add in the red pepper and finally the spinach.

Once the crust has been blind baked, cover the bottom of the crust with tomato. Then, layer the zucchini. Sprinkle a small amount of cheese over the tart. Next, cover the zucchini with the sauted onion, red pepper and spinach. Finally, top with cheese.

Bake for another 10 minutes. Then, let the tart cool slightly, and serve.

Lemon Pasta

Tonight, I wanted a light, summery pasta. This worked out well:

Ingredients:
-Serving of penne
-1/2 a lemon
-3 to 4 basil leaves
-chevre

Cook the pasta according to directions. Douse the pasta with the lemon juice before serving onto a plate. Wash and tear the basil leaves, and scatter them throughout the pasta. Crumble chevre on top.

Quite simple and quick but worth repeating.

(And just for the record, blackberries for dessert pairs well.)

Found Them!

I found Grandma Gerri's recipe cards! We need to send her goodies next Christmas. Or  this summer.

Ladyfingers

3/4 cup Margarine

4 Tablespoons confectioners sugar

2 cups self-rising flour

3 Tablespoons cold water

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup nuts

Mix together. Grease pan. Bake at 250º-350º. Roll in confectioners sugar

Cheese Krispies (4-5 dozen)

2 sticks oleo

1 package (8 oz.) Cracker Barrel sharp cheese, grated

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon red pepper

2 cups plain flour

2 cups Rice Krispies (not used by Gmom)

Mix well and fold in Rice Krispies. Pinch off a teaspoons worth at the time and mash with fork. Bake at 350º for 10 minutes.

Pecan Pound Cake (3 loaf pans)

5 cups of pecans (chopped)

1 pound margarine (Walmart) softened

3 cups sugar

4 cups plain flour; sifted

1/2 cup self-rising flour; sifted

eggs (8 medium/ 7 large) 3/4 cup, rest of 2 cups milk

1 Tablespoon vanilla

Cream together margarine and vanilla. Add ~1/3 of the flour. Add cup of eggs and milk and beat. Add another third of the flour. Add the last cup of eggs and milk. Add the final third of flour. Fold the nuts in. Grease and flour pan. Bake at 300º for approximately 90 minutes. When it pulls from the side of the pan, then it's done.

Pecan Pie

Recipe pastry

2 eggs beaten

1 cup dark Karo syrup

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons melted margarine

1 cup pecans (whole)

Roll pastry, line pan.

Mix eggs, syrup, salt, sugar, vanilla, butter, etc. together. Fold pecans in last.

Bake in 400º oven for 15 minutes. Reduce to 350º and bake 30-35 minutes longer.

Happy cooking!