Things have been simple around here lately. My next recipe is proof of that.
Life has been busy. Cooking has been light. The focus has been on fruits and vegetables. Especially before we take off to the Big Island in a few weeks where all bets will be off. I can’t visit Hawaii without consuming a fair amount of kalua pork, rice, and mac salad.
So breakfasts like these have been common.
I’m a believer that booze make desserts better. Whether it’s beer, wine, or spirits, there is just something about the richness and flavor they add to things like cookies and cakes.
Around the holidays, my go-tos are bourbon and rum. For these cookies, I went with rum. Gold rum. Jamaican gold rum, to be exact.
I had orange jam leftover and I thought the best way to put it to use would be pairing it up with some cookies.
Butternut squash and I have been familiar with each other for quite some time. The standard pie pumpkin? We go way back. Even the kabocha and I have shared many moments together.
But I have to admit that the Delicata squash and I are embarking on a fairly new relationship.
To date, I think I have purchased one. As in a single squash. It’s been so long ago that I don’t even remember what I did with it.
I know it sounds crazy. With a winter squash obsession like mine one would expect I’d be an expert at working with them all.
Well, I’m getting there. It’s finally the Delicata’s time to shine.
These candied ginger scones are made with almond and spelt flours. Fresh lemon zest brightens the flavor for summer and zucchini keeps each bite soft and tender.
I’m happy to say that Fake Food Free has transitioned to the Substack Newsletter called Every Corner of the World.
I hope to see you there.
I promise I won’t spend all summer talking about the heat. But I also won’t fool myself into thinking this is going to be easy. 100 degree temps June through about October is going to take some getting used to.
Even more so because I am not a summer person. Summer has always been my least favorite season of the year. I’m all about fall. I even love the cold temps of winter, although I’m glad that I now get to drive to the snow versus having it come to me.
Despite my cool weather preferences, the one thing summer has never done is kept me from baking. I still gladly fire up the oven. That’s what the air conditioner is for, right?
This delicious pie is the final post in my series, Thanksgiving Cooking for Two. You’ll find the other recipes in this special series at the end of this post.
I am a huge pumpkin pie fan. I know it can be hit or miss with some people, but that’s not the case for me. If you line up a selection of pies, I might give chocolate meringue a second glance, but I will always pick pumpkin.
There is a catch, though. I’m not crazy about the traditional, out of the can pumpkin, type of pie. My grandmother’s recipe will always be my favorite and if I can’t have that, well, it’s a pumpkin pie that I’ve gotten creative with.
First, roasted, pureed pumpkin. It makes such a difference and it’s completely worth the minimal effort. Then, it needs a wow factor — a variation in the spices, a gingerbread crust, maybe a meringue topping. Give me any of those and pumpkin remains number one.
I’m happy to say that Fake Food Free has transitioned to the Substack Newsletter called Every Corner of the World.
I hope to see you there.
I can’t get enough of foods in bowls.
There is something about having several tasty ingredients in one container that is drizzled with a sauce or dressing and topped with condiments that creates my idea of a perfect meal.
The combinations are endless, but I find that I’m most often drawn to those that don’t make complete sense. The more random the ingredients, the more I want to eat them.
Take this creation, for example. A chickpea seems like an odd thing to combine with Korean chili powder and cucumbers, but somehow it works.
This hot tea combines ginger and black peppercorns for a slightly spicy drink that will warm you up. A recipe I learned from friends while living in Brazil, it is a non-alcoholic twist on the Quentão we used to drink there during the winter.
During one of the Julys we spent in Brazil, I helped a friend host a party for her English students and she made this tea. I know what you are thinking — hot tea in July? But remember, U.S. summer = Brazil winter, and where we were in the south, it did get pretty fall-like.
It is a non-alcoholic version of the warm wine drink, Quentão, that is enjoyed during Festas Juninas celebrations. This drink, often described as a mulled wine, was made in large volumes with very, um, affordable wine and often cachaça so it’s surprising that I liked it, but the spicy flavor of the fresh ginger won me over.
I can’t get enough of ginger flavored treats during the holiday season. These cookie bars are a recreation of one of my favorite cookies made with fresh ginger and molasses!
This past summer, I discovered my favorite cookie. It’s sold at Blue Bottle Coffee in Oakland. I’ve always been a fan of gingerbread-like desserts, but this cookie takes it to a new level. It’s made with fresh ginger and ground black pepper. It’s slightly crunchy on the inside, but soft and chewy on the inside. Darn near perfect when it comes to cookies.
When I tried it, the idea of both fresh ginger and black pepper in a cookie were new to me. I’ve wanted to try making something similar ever since. I think creating the right cookie texture is going to take me much more practice than I am able to commit to this holiday season, so I went the easy route and incorporated the flavors into a bar.
It’s certainly not an exact replica, but for someone who can’t get enough gingerbread this time of year, these chewy, spicy cookie bars hit the spot.
Makes: 16 bars
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp turbinado sugar
2 tbsp molasses
1 large egg
½ tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 cup white whole wheat flour
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground clove
Prep
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 x 8 inch baking pan lightly with unsalted butter.
In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, coconut sugar and 1/3 cup of the turbinado sugar. Cream together on medium to medium-high speed, about 2 minutes. Add the molasses and mix for about 30 more seconds, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.
Add the egg and mix 30 more seconds. Mix in the fresh ginger.
In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. With the mixer on low, gradually add the dry ingredients. Increase the speed to medium and mix just until all ingredients are combined.
Transfer the cookie dough to the prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon of turbinado sugar.
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until the edges begin to brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely and cut into 16 bars.
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Two of my favorite condiments are served beside sushi. First, it’s that pleasantly spicy wasabi. Second is the pickled ginger. I could eat that ginger on just about anything. It has crossed my mind that I could probably make it at home, but I have never searched for a good recipe. Fortunately, now I don’t have to because this time around a good recipe found me.
All summer I have been browsing the pages of one amazing cookbook. It contains recipes for pickled everything! Or at least it seems like just about everything. The Joy of Pickling: 250 Flavor-Packed Recipes for Vegetables and More from Garden or Market by Linda Ziedrich
Disclosure: This cookbook was sent to me for review purposes by The Harvard Common Press. I was not required to post about it and I received no compensation for doing so.
Wai San is a potato-like root vegetable that I discovered at an Oakland Farmers market several years ago. It turned out to be delicious addition to this ginger coconut soup!
I watched the mass of shoppers hover around the table for at least 10 minutes before I mustered up enough courage to elbow my way in and take a look. I was surprised to see a knobby, speckled, skinny root vegetable staring back at me. I had no idea what it was and given all the hustle around me, I doubted I’d get an answer even if I asked.
I walked away, but it didn’t take long for my curiosity to get the better of me. Finally, on my last lap through the Farmers Market there was a lighter crowd swarming the vendor. I stepped up, analyzed the unfamiliar root, and I caught his eye. I asked what it was. He responded twice with the proper name, and I’m sure my face revealed that not only could I not hear over the people, but that I also couldn’t understand him.
His next response was, “Chinese potato. You cook it like potato in a soup.
Sold. I grabbed up a handful and he nodded in acknowledgement that I only needed a few for soup.
After a bit of research, I think I finally found the name for this new-to-me vegetable. I say – I think – because it wasn’t easy to come by. I have found a couple of blogs which identify it as Wai San.
It’s long and thin, and almost looks like it has dots. Check.
When it’s peeled, its starch is sticky and a little glue-like. Check.
It boils up like a potato, yet it has a blander flavor. Check.
If you happen to know it by another name, please let me know in the comments. I’d love to learn more about it.
This being my first attempt at cooking with Wai San I didn’t want to get too adventurous. I stuck to the recommendation for soup, and I wasn’t let down.
Cut into small pieces, it takes less time to cook than potato. It has a similar texture, but it’s less starchy. It’s almost like a cross between a carrot and a potato, but with little flavor. That is, until you mix it with the ginger, coconut milk, and shrimp in this soup. Then it becomes all kinds of delicious.
