Chocolate Beet Cake

I am always on the lookout for a few things. Vintage ikats from Central Asia,  chocolate recipes, and new ways to get my daughter to eat vegetables (she is a real steak frites kind of kid). When I read Maria Verivaki’s recipe on chocalate beet muffins I was intrigued. Unlike Maria, I didn’t have to hide the beets from my daughter, she was very interested in the very redness of it all. After all, red is mommy’s favorite color. But, she is not so keen on nuts. Or, I should write she is very keen on peanuts, and putting them up her nose so deeply that expensive doctor visits are required… So, I hide nuts and not veggies in recipes!

The first cake I made had walnuts, following Maria’s recipe. They were detected and the cake refused. So, I tried again and altered the recipe. Maria’s recipe worked beautifully but, as always, I felt the need to change it up a bit! The addition of beets makes a beautifully deep brown cake that is incredibly moist and a little earthy tasting! And just in time for that dreaded Valentine’s Day….

Chocolate Beet Cake

The Cake:

• 6 ounces unsalted butter
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup beets, cooked and pureed
• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking power
• a pinch of salt
  

The Glaze:

• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 5 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1/4 cup confectionar’s sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400º
2. Prepare a 10″ pan, or the equivalent
3. In a bowl, mix all the dry ingredients.
4. In a large bowl placed over a pot of boiling water, melt the butter and chocolate. The bowl gets hot, so handle with with care!
5. Once melted, remove from heat. Stir in the sugar.
6. Add the eggs and then the beets and mix.
7. Add the dry ingredients and thoroughly mix.
8. Pour into your prepared baking pan and bake for 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
9. Let cool and turn out onto your serving dish.
10. To make the glaze first scald the cream, then add the butter and chocolate. When the chocolate is melted, add the sugar and quickly stir. Let the glaze cool a bit before pouring over the cake.

Who said chocolate cake couldn’t be the slightest bit healthy?

a tuna melt

I never manage to grow, and thus pickle, enough jalapeños. This year was no exception and I finally broke down and bought a giant tin of jalapeños en escabeche. Life is alright now. And after a late night and full morning of working, jalapeños have a special way of perking up the rest of the day.

A tuna melt. Or, a glorified grilled cheese sandwich. Tuna, cilantro, onion, capers, and lots of pickled jalapeños. Add barely enough mayonaisse to bind. Slice your favorite cheese and your favorite bread. You know what to do…

my 10 minute soup

A few days of sunshine after a week of rain created the perfect weed pulling opportunity. The ground was so saturated that weeds came out clean from the roots with the gentlest of tugs. The most prolific weed is the oxalis, the sour grass known and loved by children, with its bright yellow florescent flowers that really clash with just about everything. But more important than clashing colors is their very tallness. In the right conditions, they can grow very long stems and engulf  “proper” plants.  This weekend I liberated my one bed of winter greens from the suffocating yellow blooms,  and excavated a bed of Italian greens I planted from seed in the late fall. Suddenly, my garden became a treasure trove of greens! Mizuna, bok choi, Russian kale, Lacinato kale, frisee, mustard greens, radicchio Treviso, the beautifuly variegated radicchio Castelfranco, a few very small  puntarelles, and a two perfectly blanched pan di zuccheros. Yes, I love winter greens and chicories. Except for some of the chicories, most of the other greens are of the cut and come again variety. In fact, except for the puntarelle and the pan di zucchero, I treat the chicories as cut and come agains, too! Freshly harvested winter greens are fantastic alone but especially when you can just have a nibble from this plant and that one. And with a nice mix on hand, this is a perfect soup to make.

This is a very humble soup. Bread, garlic, olive oil, greens, and parmesan. If you want to add pancetta to the greens, go for it. Toasted pinenuts are also a great addition. I guess, this is a gardener’s soup. It taste best when a variety of greens are combined. I happened to have a jar of truffle paste given to me by my friend Franco, Mr. Exotic Edibles, which I added.

Green Winter Soup

• Leafy winter greens, and lots of them. I filled a salad bowl and it served 3!
• A good bread, I used a miche from Trader Joe’s
• Olive oil
• Garlic, 2 cloves peeled and chopped
• Grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper

1. Thoroughly wash your greens, spin, and finely chop.
2. In your largest sauté pan, heat some olive oil and gently cook your garlic.
3. Add the greens and about a cup of water.
4. They will cook quickly, with a gently stir once or twice. Salt and pepper as you like.
5. Once perfectly wilted, turn off the heat. Do not drain! You will use the “broth.”
6. While greens are cooking, thickly slice and start toasting the bread. (This happens to be a great soup to make on the open hearth) I usually make two slices of bread per person.
7. When all the bread has been toasted, you can start assembling the soup.
8. Place one piece of toast in each bowl, add some greens, repeat.
   
9. I added a big dollop of truffle paste to the broth, gave a quick stir, and then poured the broth evenly in each bowl.
10. Add the grated parmesan.
11. Serve immediately!

Once the greens are washed and chopped, this is a very fast soup to make. This isn’t just a recipe for the Frugal Foodie but also one for the Busy Foodie!  It is hearty and satisfying, and a perfect meal with your favorite bottle of red wine. Some guests have even been known to  pour a little of their wine on top, but I never do…

A cookie for saints, misfits, and sick children.

Anyone who knows me knows I love quinces. Quince blossoms are my favorite, and the fruit is just so… utterly divine! At once sweet, tart, tangy, with a deep lemony apple aroma. And when cooked it turns the most amazing pink color, which deepens with cooking time. It is also a flavor from my childhood, I used to eat it both raw and in the well known paste form, membrillo. Every year I make trays and trays of cotognata, and jar upon jar of quince jam, jelly, and chutney. And a chicken and quince b’stilla is just about one of the best things on the planet…  Yes, I am slightly mad for quince!

This was a very “at home” week. My darling girl was sick and I was frantically trying to keep her spirits up while not stressing about life’s stresses. This week also happened to be the first anniversary of Saffron Paisley.  I think I needed this cookie more than she did, she would have preferred something with chocolate or Nutella but I did not offer any choices in the cookie making department. We are going to make Crumbly Quince Cookies! She is still young enough that the tone of my voice can create interest and enthusiasm.

The Recipe!

Cookie:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 scant tablespoon baking powder
• 2/3 cup cold unsalted butter
• 1 egg
• zest of one lemon
• quince jam… or your favorite jam, but it has to be a favorite

Crumbly topping:

• 2/3 cups toasted rolled oats
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon real vanilla!
• 3 tablespoons butter

1. Preheat your oven to 400º
2. Combine the dry ingredients for the cookie and cut the butter in, or, crumble with your fingers. Add the egg and the lemon zest and mix well.
3. Press the dough into a buttered 8 inch square pan.
4. Spread the jam, evenly and generously.
5. Prepare your crumbly topping and spread over the jam.
6. Bake for 25 minutes.
7. Let cool completely.
8. Cut into 9 squares, and then each piece diagonally.

This cookie keeps well for a few days in an airtight container and I think it is even better the next day…

Enjoy!

Handmade Fennel Stencil (and photo) by Design Inspiration

A very aromatic plant of the umbelliferous family, whose seeds smell of aniseed, especially in southern Italy. Fennel is eaten like celery. It is not unusual to see working people with a bunch of fennel under the arm adn making their lunch or dinner of this, accompanied by bread.

The smell, which to begin is pleasant, becomes unpleasant because of the excessive use made of it by Neapolitans who put it in everything.

Alexandre Dumas

Le Grand Dictionnaire de Cuisine

Gardening and preserving brings unexpected surprises. Today I went out to harvest some winter greens, started nibbling on some fennel fronds, looked down and… a bulb! Yes, a fennel bulb in early February. I dug it up, took it inside, cleaned it  (reserving the fronds), and took a nibble. Hurrah! Unexpectedly, a taste of summer. Fortunately, I pack jars of dry farmed tomatoes to last the year and with friends coming over for dinner, my favorite quick and easy fennel dish suddenly appeared on the menu!

Fried Fennel in Tomato Sauce

• Fennel
• Tomato Sauce. If from a tin, I prefer whole or diced tomatoes, pureed and heated.
• Parmesan cheese
• Egg, mixed with salt and pepper
  
• Flour
  
• Olive oil
  

1. Trim fennel, leaving the bulb intact but removing long stems. Carefully trim the base, as well.
2. Slice in 1/8 inch slices, lengthwise.
3. In a sauté pan, heat olive oil.
4. When oil is ready, dip slices in egg mix and then in flour.
5. Carefully place in sizzling oil and cook until both sides are golden brown and fennel can be easily pierced (but not mushy!)
6. Remove with a slotted spoon, place on a paper towel, and carefully blot.
7. Place on serving dish, add a little tomato sauce, and some grated parmesan… presto!

Enjoy!

Fennel with Tomato Sauce...

While watching La Strada and devouring a Barcelona Bar, I suddenly realized the date. Could it be? Yes, indeed. A year ago I started my blog. It was a cold night, my back was hurting, a sick baby lay next to me, with a new laptop beside me, and a traveling ex which meant no break for another 2 weeks. I could not reconcile the physical stillness and quietude that accompanied a sick child with the zillion ideas racing through my head. And there, my new laptop sat, shiny new and fast with lots of memory… Saffron Paisley was born.

In my 20s I had aspirations for both an academic and culinary career. Then I got married, and though I still thought those two paths possible, somehow I got sidetracked. This happens, more often than not. But now, or a year ago, in my late 30s (ahem), all I could think about was writing. Just writing about all the things that matter to me… And that is what I’ve been doing. And I refuse to be discouraged by the fact that the post that gets the most hits is about Skype sex.

How to measure progress? Today my daughter is sick, the same stillness and quietude reigns, and the same desire to write persists. My ex is away,  5 weeks this time, and I am as overwhelmed and stressed as a year ago. And my back still hurts! Where is the progress? I have to look closely, for it is there, unquestionably. Getting through the year, √. Happy healthy kid, √√√√√. Dating, sort of, √√√.  Sleeping better, √√. Drinking less coffee and booze,      . Creative juices still flowing, √√√√√.  Feeling strong and capable, √√√√√. Endless possibilities, √√√√√. Things to write about and do, alone and with my daughter, √√√√√√√√√√.

The best part is that Saffron Paisley exists, is part of a community, has a rockin’ set of friends, and is supported and followed and read and even, unimaginably, has some very loyal fans! Who knew?! And for those things, I am very grateful. Thank you.

Years ago I had the most delicious pasta dish at Oliveto. It is one of two pasta dishes that stand out in my mind as utter perfection. It was a cold rainy winter day but somehow I managed the 1 1/2 hour trek to Piedmont. Oliveto is one of my favorite restaurants, it is like coming home. Great food, friendly staff, and the exuberance of Chef Canales always set the stage for a memorable evening. I was pregnant at the time and my appetite was off the charts. Yes to salad, yes to the salumi platter, with a the addition of a few slices of mortadella. Their mortadella is of the melt in your mouth variety, ever so light. And all made my Chef Bertolli. And yes to anything else… But what I really wanted was a bowl of pasta. Oliveto grinds the flour for their pasta. Freshly ground flour for freshly made pasta is something to experience, especially if making pasta from different grains. So, on this cold rainy winter day pigeon liver and sage on buckwheat pasta was on the menu. That dish just rang true that evening. Hearty, earthy, dramatic, aromatic… Reflective of the weather,  a winter dish.

After a week of continued rain, which in California either sends its residents into a depressive state or hibernation, this dish came to mind. Yesterday was a very rainy day, and it also happened to be my daughters half birthday. Yes, we celebrate 1/2 birthdays. All her mates were in school or unwilling to leave their house, so no one came over for cupcakes and a playdate. But I did want to at least make a special dinner for my little girl who happens to love chicken liver and sage! Well…

Chicken Liver and Sage Pasta

• Chicken livers
• Garlic
• Fresh Sage, whole branches, and some chopped.
  
• Olive oil
• Buckwheat pasta
• Salt and plenty of black pepper

This is the simplest and quickest of dishes to prepare. A no recipe recipe. Add as little or as much as you like. Bring your pasta water to a boil, I used spaghetti noodles, and cook as instructed. Heat your saute pan with olive oil, place the peeled garlic and fresh sage bunches. Fry until garlic is brown. Remove garlic and sage. Add the chopped sage and chicken livers and a splash more of olive oil. Cook livers until evenly brown and cooked through but still soft, do not overcook! Turn heat off. Add drained pasta when ready, toss, add salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.

The dish was as I remembered. The heartiness of the buckwheat pasta is perfect for the liver, and the sage adds a sweetness and earthiness to the dish. The Fairy devoured her pasta with two hands and immensely enjoyed the company of her chicken liver loving Aunties (who, as all good aunites,  are not discouraged by rain!).  In the end, not a bad 1/2 birthday. And there was still room for chocolate cupcakes and candied ginger.

Rosa chinensis Mutabilis

At no other time of the year do I dream more about my garden than now. Partly because the leaves have fallen off most everything, and partly because this is the time of year to buy and plant roses and fruit trees. Yesterday my daughter and I enjoyed tea in the garden, and she wanted to make a cake. Garden cakes always involve foraging for flowers (her interpretation of flour). I watched as she wandered through the garden. She found some borage, lots of oxalis, and Mutabilis! Yes, despite being January, Mutabilis is blooming.

Rosa chinensis Mutabilis is a China rose that dates to 1894, she is considered a heritage rose. She is a lovely thing. Five petaled with softly cupped single flowers. She starts a light yellow, moves to a coppery pink, and ends a lucious deep pink.  She is accompanied by glossy green finely toothed leaves on long canes. She is gorgeous, and smells fantastic. In fact, she is sometimes called Rosa odorata. She is very bushy, and in the proper environment can easily grow to 7 feet. In my garden she lives under the nectarine tree and spends most of the year in the shade. Not the best place for the previous tenant to have planted her, but she thrives. She is a happy 3 feet tall and I am loathe to move her. So, there she will remain!

Mutabilis is freely used as a landscaping plant where I live. At first, I have to admit, I was annoyed that such a beauty had to live next to the ATM. I snobbily viewed landscaping plants as second class specimens but someone in Santa Cruz has been very busy these last 5 years, planting not only Mutabilis but also gorgeous lavendars and olive trees. I guess, the forager in me is happily anticipating the foraging potential… If you are looking for a rose, or if you have room in your garden for one more plant, I highly Mutabilis. Even though all the literature says she is prone to disease, in my experience she has always thrived and under very varied conditions.

Some places where I buy roses:

1. Vintage Roses

2. Roses of Yesterday and Today

Entomatada with Broccoli Rape

Everyone has a dish and this is mine. You know, the dish you can eat for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, middle of the night kind of dish. The dish you often eat alone, standing in the kitchen. The dish that never lets you down, can always be prepared  quickly, and always leaves you happy and satisfied. The dish you want to share with friends but don’t because it is so humble, so simple, so lacking in art or skill… And certainly the dish you make when you arrive at your home after traveling. And though the dish in your life doesn’t have to be defined by culture or a culinary tradition, it often is.  After all, the flavors must be deeply rooted in memory, taste, history, and psyche if it is to be your “dish.” Recently my friend Marlena came to visit and I knew, I felt deeply, that if anyone could appreciate my dish, it would be Marlena… And a one pan meal, ready in 3 minutes? What could be better?

Entomatadas

• 

  Humblest of ingredients...

  Corn tortillas

• Eggs
  
• El Pato Sauce (it is spicy)
  
• Olive oil
  
• Salt
• Variants or additions: refried beans, greens, huitlacoche, queso casera, sauteed hibiscus blossoms…

This is a one pan meal, unless you wish to make some additions. In that scenario, cook or reheat your filling. One reason I like this dish so very much is because it is so easy to customize it based on my mood, or hunger! And, if cooking for others, special requests are not a concern. This is essentially a layered dish, so built it as high as you like. You choose for a light meal perhaps two tortillas, one egg, and a layer of beans. Or more tortillas, eggs, and different additions. Entirely up to you! This dish is built on the plate in which it is served, of course. If making for more than one person, I suggest making them simultaneously. Keeps both, or more, warm and you can sit and enjoy together, of course.

1. Heat pan. Drizzle some El Pato sauce onto your plate. Heat tortilla, you can add a bit of oil if you like. When tortilla is hot, place on your plate.
2. If you have an addition (greens, beans, etc…), place over the warm tortilla. Now your egg, your choice of  how you cook it, I like mine pretty runny. When cooked to your satisfaction, place over plated tortilla.
3. Repeat! Finish with more sauce and a dash of salt. Yes, that easy.

A clean plate must mean she liked it!

Do you believe in fairies? If you believe, clap your hands!

J.M. Barrie

My daughter and I spend a lot of time in the garden. Tending the veggies, clipping the rose bushes, weeding, not mowing the so called lawn, watering and running through the sprinkler, swinging on the hammock, keeping the primula theater alive, blowing bubbles, bouncing on the trampoline, painting at her easel, having tea parties under the canopy by the fig tree, yelling at the scrub jays to keep out of our garden, leaving acorns out for the squirrels  and water for Moxie, our cat. And, most importantly, tending her shoe garden. She loves to water and arrange and rearrange all the potted plants. Recently, in a moment of “I need to simplify my life,” I went through her closet (um, not mine!) to clear some things out. After all, kids outgrow everything so fast, and I still had shoes from when she was a newborn. Naturally, I kept my favorite and then one of each pair. Clearly, I’m not good at cleaning out the closet. But I didn’t know what to do with the one shoe that I had decided to get rid of. I couldn’t possibly pass one shoe along to friends or donate, and I couldn’t throw it away! So, the shoe garden was born.

How to make a shoe garden:

• gather old shoes
• find objects throughout your house than you really like AND will weather
• keep it seasonal! we added pumpkins and gourds that look like swans, our favorite
• succulents
• succulent potting mix

1. Prepare your vessels. If you have any waterproof shoes, like rainboots, make some holes at the sole to allow for proper water drainage.
2. Pair your succulent with your shoe. This is very serious business and requires some thought. I used trailing succulents for the rainboots, and took into careful consideration the shape and color of leaf with the design and color of the shoe. Do your best to create your own style.
3. Depending on the shoe, add some succulent potting mix to the shoe, carefully filling the toe cavity.
4. Place the succulent carefully in the shoe, and fill the remaining space with more potting soil.
5. Continue until all shoes are filled.
6. Water carefully.

Once your shoes are properly filled and watered, you can arrange your shoe garden where you like. I recommend a spot where you can it admire it from a window or door, and where it has plenty of room to grow.