Hot Mess

I vowed with perfect absolution that I would never do it again. And then I did it again. All week. I made a messipe of a recipe, and then I took that proverbial rolling pin and slugged myself with it, and tore off my apron in indignation, and cried because I'm not Giada DeLaurentiis. Neither my cleavage nor my cooking skills can compete. I always thought I was a competent cook, but then I got married and the question of What am I having for dinner became What are we having (funny how that happens...) and it turns out that fiesta bowl after fiesta bowl (a savory medley of frijoles negros, cheese, and salsa) is not acceptable. The?

So for awhile I begged out of cooking dinner for fear that my husband would scoff at the offerings. So I played the damsel in distress card, then the long commute home card, then the I'm in school card, followed by the I'm a damsel in distress with a long commute home from grad school AND I'M PREGNANT FEED ME NOW card, and after I showed all those cards, I became a desperate housewife mother of one who actually likes to meal plan. So here I am, planning meals and cutting coupons, and just forming a regular conga line up and around the islands of produce and enjoying my time at the groceria.

But after I come home from market, I oftentimes do what I did yesterday, and that is to reenact Pearl Harbor Day in my kitchen. I made some kind of waffle for Baby Girl and it tasted much like the chalky pasty goop into which you sink your teeth for the dental mold. Lovey Loverpants swooped in to try a bite (against the voodoo powers of my fingers trying to keep him at bay) and he laughed, "Uh, Kenny, did you use a little too much baking powder?") Hmm, could be.

So I'm trying mightily to close out the 3948038490 Mozila Firefox tabs I have up in my brain, trying not to attempt to read the news, do downfacing dog, and caramelize onions all at once. I want to enjoy the blessing of my family, and to enjoy the ritual of cooking, and to not be so hasty and wasteful, seeing as haste makes waste, and causes your family to waste away when all there is to eat is chalky waffle bites for dinner.

***

And if I still can't master the art of cooking, I'm going to go hang out at PBK and at least look good in the kitchen.

Messipe/Recipe: Non-mushy Peach Cobbler

This recipe is inspired by one found in Cook's Illustrated which I read like a nail-biter mystery Ohmygoodness, will they be able to find the right baking temperature for the Stroganoff or not! The magazine won't let me link to their recipe online, so I will adapt the Kendra's Illustrated version for this blog's purposes. A nod to P-Dub for the photo tutorial.

For the filling: 8 ripe but firm peaches 1/3 c granulated sugar 1 1/4 tsp corn starch pinch table salt pinch cinnamon

Topping: 1 c unbleached all-purpose flour 1/3 c plus 1 tsp granulated sugar 1/3 c brown sugar pinch salt 2 tsp vanilla extract 6 tbsp unsalted butter 1/4 c oats 1/4 c flax seed

For Filling: Cut up peaches into wedges and then half the wedges so peaches are bite-sized. Toss sugar over peaches and stir together. Let peaches stand for at least 30 minutes (I put mine in fridge for a few hours). Drain peach juice into bowl, whisk together with cornstarch, salt, cinnamon. Reincorporate juice mixture with peaches, transfer to 8 inch square glass baking dish.

While peaches macerate, you can work on yon topping!

For the topping: (Food processor helps) Combi flour, sugars (reserve 1 tbsp for topping the topping), vanilla and salt in bowl. Add butter, oats, flax seed. Mixture should still be fairly clumpy.

Now, we are first going to prebake the topping. Transfer topping mixture to some parchment paper or tin foil and place on baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, until topping is brown.

Once you have prebaked the topping, sprinkle topping on top of peaches in even layer. Sprinkle remaining tbsp of sugar and bake at 375 for 25 minutes.

Let cool for at least 15 minutes. Serve with ice cream or you will have no friends.

Recipe: Variation on La Enchilada

When I first started reading about breastfeeding and the extra calories I was going to have to consume, I thought, in the voice of Mike Myers a la "Wayne's World," I am so sure? I should be so lucky. 500 additional calories just to maintain a healthy supply? It seemed too good to be true. Even though the amount of spontaneous Irish jigging, blushing, worrying about the long-term effects of chewing too much sugarless gum, and, oh, all the exercising I do on a daily basis should SHOULD escalate my metabolism, but I'm just not one of the blessed. I need to subsist off of iceberg lettuce and Bacos and go live in a bikram yoga studio in order to lose weight. But guess what? Now that I'm nursing exclusively? I walk a block down the street after eating a 10 foot sub sammy and I? Am. Famished. Oh, I am so hungry. And the cruel folly of it all is that there is no opportunity during the day whilst baby wrangling to eat anything of sustenance. Mmm! This lunch of three bites of yogurt and a raisin is SURELY enough to tide me over. So naturally my eyes get a little googley and sometimes I can be quite cranky for whole afternoons at a time. And by the time Lovey Loverpants gets home, and this is where I ::breathe:: stop embellishing, if he so much as attempts to put his coat on a hanger instead of just dropping it on the floor so he can take Baby Girl off of my hands so I can stuff my wide gaping starving maw with something delicious and nutritious...like the following, I might just monkey freak out on him.

From Laura's beautiful blog, I share with you:

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

I've made this recipe twice and it has turned out so well (Natch, since Irish Lass Knows Potatoes) and it is even man-pleasin' if you use words like "smash" instead of "whip" and "cook with garlic for a really long time" instead of "saute."

2 t. oil 1 clove garlic 1 small onion 4 sweet potatoes, diced 2 c. cooked black beans, with a little cooking water 2 c. chopped greens (kale, spinach) sea salt and pepper 2 c. enchilada sauce (I can buy canned) 8 tortillas 8 oz. sour cream

Saute onion, garlic and add diced sweet potatoes. Cook about 10 minutes until tender. Stir in beans and greens. Cook about 5 minutes until greens wilted, may need to add water. Season with salt and pepper. Cover 9 by 13 dish with a little sauce. Scoop some filling in each tortilla and spoon sour cream in. Roll up and place in pan and cover with sauce. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

Pair with yellow rice (or stick the rice IN the enchilada before you bake). Ay caramba!