Showering a Baby

Posted on March 21, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

Firstly, the term “Shower” when referring to a party held for either a new baby, or pre wedding, is strange.  I don’t care what anyone says.

Secondly, I was given the greatest compliment the other day.  A friend of a friends Mother (whom I had never met before today) said to me “Where do you work? You NEED to open you’re own bakery. It’s a sin to not share this with the world.  I will be there.” It literally almost made me cry because I’ve been internally worried that the stuff I make isn’t good enough.  Or that I think it’s better than it actually is.  However you look at it, I needed the ego boost/confirmation of my talents. I don’t know why it’s different, but I find it easier to believe strangers over my close friends and family on how good my creations are.  I guess it’s because I think that a complete stranger has no reason to “be nice” or–forgive the pun–sugar coat their opinions.  They don’t know me from Adam, so if the things I make aren’t great, they have no qualms about telling me so.  It was nice so to have the opposite happen.  So thank you, Crystal’s Mom and Dad, for the compliments, I’ll let you know when my shop opens!

On that end, I spent the week baking and preparing for Megan’s shower.  4 Kinds of cookies, and of course a lovely cake–Dark Chocolate with Peanut Butter Mousse Filling and vanilla buttercream.  I only ate a small piece, but when I speak the words “dang! this is good cake” I’ve even impressed myself.

Finally I would just like to say what a joy it is to have my friend Megan back in town, and I wish her and her husband Mark nothing but unending happiness and joy when their girl Mia arrives.  I can’t wait to be her Pseudo-Mom and shower her with love, wisdom and happiness.

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What’s in a Name?

Posted on February 17, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

I was on my way to work this morning, and for whatever reason this thought popped into my head (I think I was listening to a commercial on the radio.)  It is funny how certain professions lend themselves to become the title you call someone.  At my work, there is a loyal customer; a sweet elderly man who is now retired, but who used to be a Judge here in town.  There are some that still address him as just “Judge.”  I find this to be perfectly acceptable.  Then it occurred to me that we do the same thing with the word, Chef.  It is entirely appropriate for me to address someone who dons their whites and has command of their kitchen as such–in fact, I’d say that it is a sign of respect.  “Yes Chef.”  The thing I like most about both of these “jobs as names” is that they are unisex.  Which makes me very happy.  Though both positions and both titles come with a certain level of authority, respect, and an order to them.

I was trying to think of other instances for this, and the commercial I heard was for a law firm, but you wouldn’t say to someone “Hey Lawyer, good to see you” would you?  What about Banker, IT Guy, or Builder? They don’t really work.  Anyone have suggestions as to things that people do that you might call them by?  Soldier, Seaman and Marine come to mind……..

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Holy Molecular Gastronomy Batman!

Posted on February 8, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

Short but sweet: El Bulli was this amazing restaurant in Spain.  It closed last year 😦  This restaurant in Chicago called Next is carrying on the tradition.  If you love food, can appreciate good craftsmanship, and think artistry comes in many forms, watch the video.  (Shedding a tear is fine.)  That is all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_EVr9CQKNo&feature=youtu.be

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F$&K Cupcakes

Posted on February 1, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

To any of you who know me personally, you know that I generally DESPISE the stupid cupcake craze/trend/frenzy/silliness…..need I go on?  All that being said, there is a time and place for them.  In certain situations the tiny, individually wrapped vessels lend themselves to a useful out come.  Enter-Tres Leches cupcakes.

If you know what 3 Leches is, then you can see where I’m going with this.  A white cake, that after being baked, is soaked in a mixture of 3 milks (sweetened condensed, evaporated, and 1/2 & 1/2).  You poke a million holes into the cake once it’s cooled, and pour the mixture over the cake, so it soaks it all up.  Here’s why the cupcake form works for this: The paper cups hold all that tasty milk in, no dripping, no spilling, and no dry cake from milk running out everywhere (there is a saturation point here people.)  It beats over baking normal cupcakes and having them turn out mouth-suckingly dry.  The only down side I found was how much of a pain-in-the-ass it was to get those damn cakes to suck in all the milk-took a couple hours of slowly pouring and re-pouring it over them.  Next time I might tear a small, single hole off the top and just pour straight through that.  Or I could use a syringe-if it works for a hunk of meat…… Said hole just gets covered by frosting anyway.

Speaking of frosting, I didn’t stick with tradition, I went with chocolate.  I’ve had this craving for 3 milk cake and chocolate frosting for months, that’s what sparked this whole escapade (side note: every time I think of that word, Janet Jackson pops into my head.  Thank you pop culture.)  It was good, and as my friend Levi said, “I like that you didn’t pile it on 2 1/2″ thick.”  Which, incidentally, is my other huge problem with cupcakes.  Why, do they pile on frosting like a beehive hair do?  You can’t pick up the tiny cake to eat it, let alone take a bite out of it without A smooshing your nose in frosting or B knocking the entire thing onto the floor/ground.  It’s like knocking your scoop of ice cream off the cone when you were 4 and watching it melt on the hot, summer pavement.  Goodbye little bubble gum balls.

So there you have it, aside from these 3 Leches cupcakes, I don’t really get any others.  Thank you to all my guinea pigs who I made eat one.  And to my very good friend who said “This is one of the loveliest things I’ve ever eaten” you are a rock star!  Granted she said that about the Meyer lemon tart I gave her 6 weeks ago, and she took the mini lemon meringue pie to the bathroom in order to eat it in private.  Guess I’m doing something right.

3 Milk Cupcake

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Made With ♥’s

Posted on January 28, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

By now I’m sure most of you are familiar with the term “Comfort Food.”  It’s a funny thing, this comfort food.  It means any foods, especially those we grew up with, that bring us comfort as an adult.  Meals your mother would make perhaps, usually some typical American style food, like meatloaf, fried chicken with mashed potatoes and milk gravy, beef and vegetable soup and corn bread muffins.  Ok, those may be more mine than everyone else’s, but you get the point.

There are things I remember from my childhood that I am sure made me into the person I am today in regards to food.  Watching my mom saute onions and ground beef on the way to becoming goulash or spaghetti.  Or when she would make those butter cut-out cookies I’ve mentioned before.  Then there was all the times I would sit on the couch with my father on the weekends watching PBS.  We’d sit and watch This Old House and The New Yankee Workshop, then it was onto Yan Can Cook, Justin Wilson, and so on.  My Father was stationed in Taiwan during the Vietnam War and when he came home he created these dishes.  We call it “Dad’s Chinese” for lack of a better term.  Simple, delicious dishes, but certainly not the American Comfort Food I was talking about, yet still it is a comfort food.  Flavors from my childhood that I crave, and relish in when I taste them again.  Sense memory (an acting term coined by Strasberg) but it certainly applies to food.

I was in 5th grade, it was afternoon, and I was walking back to my desk from the bathroom at the back of the temp building.  All of the sudden, right in the middle of the room it smelled like Vanilla Cake Batter.  Who knows where that smell came from in such a strange place, but when it happened I was instantly taken back to my kitchen when my mother would bake a cake for one of our birthdays.  Of course, now that smell takes me back to 5th grade in Ms Austin’s temp.

Comfort food, it’s made with love, by people who care about us and want to nurture us-our minds and our bodies.  I believe good food made with love makes you happier and when you’re happier, you’re healthier.  As we got older, but still lived in

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It Happens to Everyone

Posted on January 21, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

I have a confession to make, sometimes I try new recipes, and they don’t work out on the first try.  Shocker, I know.  How could the girl who’s been cooking her whole life, went to culinary school, and has worked in a restaurant for 12+ years let that happen?  It happens, I can give you some reasons, but it’s just one of those things.

The other day I decided to try this new cookie recipe, in honor of National English Toffee day, for english toffee oatmeal cookies.  Here’s the thing, I didn’t think it through, I hadn’t made toffee since I was a teenager, and I forgot to adjust the cooking temperature for high altitude, so it burned. 

For dinner, I decided to make some enchiladas, only problem is I’ve never made them before, at least not with homemade sauce.  Second problem, I put too much flour in the sauce (a friends’ recipe, that had no measured amounts, but still).  I got ahead of myself, and it was like eating red paste.

All in all, a sad day in the world of cooking, and aside from the saving grace of not inflicting it upon anyone else but me, it was no fun.  Here’s the good news: I’m not perfect, far from it, and nothing says that to me like having two failed recipes in one day.  Thanks for the reality check Wednesday, you’re awesome!

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Speaking of Sushi……

Posted on January 18, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

My Father had a birthday the other week, and he had this request-one he’s made before.  He wanted as a whole family, to make our own sushi.  I’m sure it was more of an adventure for him, to figure out just what goes into the whole process.  Let me say, it was an adventure at that.

My sister, father and I went shopping, first to Costco, then we got some tasty Pho for lunch, and then we went to the Asian market.  Let me just say, that we over bought.  By the end of the process we had enough food for 10 people, and there were five of us eating.  All told, there was delicious made from scratch Miso soup (is was really tasty, if I say so myself), 8 rolls (8-10 pcs per roll), and 34+ pieces of Nigiri and Sashimi.  Aside from the fact that I couldn’t find the rice cooker instructions and over cooked the rice it went off without a hitch.  I even got my brother in on making stuff. ” Logan, find a recipe for the spicy sauce in a spicy tuna roll. Hey, why don’t you make the sauce too?  Hey, help me roll some of these.”  If you’ve ever met my brother all 3 of those things being done without major begging is a serious feat.

We certainly didn’t go hungry that night, because to top it all off I made mini lemon meringue pies-we decided they could be called either 3 or 5 Bite Pies (depends on how big your bite is).  I like the sound of Five Bite Pies, but that’s just me.  Maybe we’ll never make sushi for ourselves again and maybe we’ve started a new tradition, either way it was a fantastic day, and now we’ve got a much better idea as to what the heck is involved.  And now, here are the many pictures of the many items we put together.

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A Few Rules to Live By

Posted on January 13, 2012 by chefgullywhumper

In honor of Michael Pollan’s new book Food Rules I decided to write down a few of my own that I like to live/eat/cook by.  Some are about healthy eating, some are just about doing what makes you happy-not to be confused with trying to find happiness in food.  I mean this in a sort of “I’m miserable on this diet, I hate eating this to make me healthy” kind of way.  I believe that if you don’t like what you eat, no matter the nutritional value found in it, there will always be a disconnect between your soul and the way your body absorbs the nutrition.  That said:

1) Most things are better with chocolate, especially chocolate chips.

       I put chocolate chips in anything I think it will taste good with. Ice cream, cheesecake, cookies, bread pudding, just a handful of frozen ones on a hot summer day.  Dark chocolate is better for your health (and I think taste buds) but man, are they just plan tasty.

2) It is ok to indulge every so often.

    Going all out with a hamburger, fries, milk shake, beer, etc once in a while is good for you.  see-eating what makes you happy. 

3) Eating an entirely vegetarian meal is good for you.

         Despite our American Heritage, you don’t need meat at every meal, or to be the mainstay at said meal.  Once in a while, just eat some really tasty vegetables, or soup, or a nice dinner salad.  You can always make them taste a good.  Personal exceptions being eggplant and tofu.  I don’t care what anyone says, it’s like eating a sponge, no matter what you do.

4) Try everything, once

    As my parents always said, taste buds change, and you need to try everything once, sometimes every once in a while.  In 2nd grade my teacher had everyone bring in different foods to class for a whole week.  It is how I found out about artichokes, and Nori.  The Nori I didn’t like, so as I grew up and sushi became popular I didn’t think I would ever like it.  Now, I love sushi, but can still do without the Nori on most rolls-more because of the texture than the flavor.  Either way you cut it, it’s good to branch out and give your taste buds a little jolt of a new flavor.

5) Share meals with people you love.

    Gathering around a table with a group of family members or friends is a lost art, and I wish more people would cultivate the practice.  It’s about community, communication and relationships.  Not to mention, studies (don’t ask me which ones though) have shown that when you eat with a group, you tend to not over eat-good news if you’re worried about your waistline.  Laugh with your friends (also good for your waistline), cook and share a meal, and see what sort of fun you can have.

*more rules to be added as I see fit, or make them up-whichever comes first.

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2 New Cookie Recipes, No Microphone

Posted on October 12, 2011 by chefgullywhumper

Well, here I am, back on my feet (no matter the painful rehabilitation) and cooking.  The other week I was standing at my stove, making dinner, and I was smiling from ear to ear with joy.  This past weekend, I made cookies as a thank you to my building mates for being nice about holding open doors, and making sure the 100 yr old elevator kept working.  The first kind you know about, triple chocolate cookies are a gift from the gods.

The other two recipes are new ones.  I had to try out my captive idea of Oatmeal Date, and they were fabulous.  I am now set with the task of trying to make that recipe in Gluten Free form, so I went out today and bought Oat Flour.  Because if it isn’t made for an oatmeal cookie, nothing is.  I still have to try it out though-wish me luck!

The third was a recipe I found in a magazine while waiting for my cars’ oil to be changed.  It’s not very often you find a Better Homes & Gardens magazine in the Auto Shop lobby.  It was a nice change from the staples of Car and Driver and Motor Trend.  The recipe is for a Rosemary Orange Thumbprint cookie.  It sounded unusual and tasty enough that I copied the recipe down for future experimentation.  After a little high altitude tweaking they turned out delicious.  Definitely something to add to the recipe book.  Who doesn’t love a good thumbprint cookie anyway?  They’re so versatile and interchangeable with flavorings, short dough is also, it seems, a gift from the gods.  The only problem I’ve found so far, is that no one in my building has given me any critique, nor my friend who got to sample them too.  For now, you’ll just have to trust in this Super-tasters abilities to discern a good thing when it crosses my tongue.  Happy baking!

The BHG recipe can be found here  I added 1/4 c more AP flour, and 1 egg to the creamed mixture.

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Oxymoron

Posted on September 1, 2011 by chefgullywhumper

I’m watching a morning news show and a bit came on about “how to get your kids to eat more vegetables.”  They were using words like “Food Manufacturer’s” and “Food Industry” and it go me thinking.  What the heck does manufacturing food have to do with growing a vegetable in the dirt?  Seriously.  One of the mothers said, “my kids will only eat fresh vegetables if they can dip them in hummus.” What’s wrong with hummus?  Healthier by a mile than Ranch Dressing, protein, fiber, antioxidants galore.  Then it went on to promote a new version of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese that has freeze-dried cauliflower in the pasta.  FYI,  is NOT fresh.

It just makes me quiver at all these parents out there who do a half-assed job at parenting.  I see it everyday at my job, dealing with the public.  Here’s something to remember, that I didn’t like my parents for as a kid, but thank them every day for as an adult:

YOU ARE THE PARENT! Your job is to raise your kids to be a productive member of society, including manners.  Your job is to teach them the skills to A. keep them alive and healthy B. to pass along when they have kids.  I am a firm believer in firmness, if my parents told me to do something, you did it or faced the punishment.  If they had chores for us, we did them.  It was not all fun and games, but that’s the way it worked and that’s how we learned.  If we complained about what they made for dinner, then we had to make dinner for the family one night, plan, cook and clean-up afterwards.  That happened once for me, and I learned my lesson.  You either shut up and eat what was prepared, or suggested other items and helped make them.  When I was younger, if you didn’t want what they made, you went to bed hungry (missing one meal will NOT kill your child.)

The other great thing my parents did was plant a vegetable garden, yes as a kid in the summer the last thing I wanted to do was go outside and weed the garden with the bugs and sweat dripping down my face, but you know what it did? It taught me that fresh, garden vegetables and fruits tasted better than ANYTHING you bought in a grocery store.  It taught me that if you put in hard work, you get a better reward.  That vegetables grow in the ground, they do not come in a can, in a freezer bag, in a plastic container, from a laboratory, or for that matter, inside pasta in macaroni and cheese.

So THANK YOU Mom and Dad, and to my Grandparents passed, because you taught me how to be a productive member of society, to appreciate hard word, to know where my food comes from, and most importantly, instilling in me a love of real food-not all the industrialized, manufactured crap that hides the good stuff behind powdered, orange “cheese.”

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