A new release today states that Bobby Flay and Mario Batali would be joined by Emeril Lagasse and White House Executive Chef, Cristeta Comerford to take part in a competition. The challenge was issued by First Lady, Michelle Obama; Use the White House kitchen garden to produce a meal for America.

The battle will premiere January 3, 2010 at 8 pm EST.

The chefs will be asked to use the produce from the White House garden to create a locally based menu. They will be asked to choose and harvest  ingredients to use to create a menu that uniquely represents America.

Judging the contestants will be:

• Nigella Lawson
• Natalie Coughlin
• Jane Seymour

It’s going to be interesting to see what they come up with!

image: sxc

Post from: Baking Delights

I just got the news this morning that the author’s copies of the book are on their way. I should be receiving them sometime in the next week.

With being just a week post thyroidectomy I am feeling overwhelmed, flustered, excited, and dismayed. How’s that for a combination? I am feeling very well but my energy drains sooner than usual and it has been hard to keep up with my writing and editing duties. Trying to behave so that I will heal properly and quickly, and I am not so great at that either.

I have set up a site for the book, Everything Cookies and Brownies. This is still my primary recipe site, of course(!)but I wanted to  have a place where readers could go with questions or where I could let you know about errors I found, etc.

So, I am looking for a couple of bloggers that are interested in reviewing the book? I am not sure how many people are going to want to review it, and I only have so many copies, so if you will leave me a comment and a link to your blog I will get back to you, ‘k?  I will even autograph the copy for you…if I can still write. I have used a keyboard for so long I am not sure!

Anyway, thanks so much, y’all. You have been so supportive, so awesome, and so amazing through this past couple of years that I couldn’t have done it without ya. {{{Gargantuan Group Hug}}}}}}

image: Amazon

Post from: Baking Delights

O.k…I know, Saturday blogsurfing hasn’t been happening.  I miss it.  You miss it.  My schedule is packed tighter than a Pork Terrine right now. Seriously.

But, better late than never, right?

I have been hungry for sweets as you will be able to tell when you check out these amazing posts.  Sorry for the lack of commentary.

Orange Pudding Cake (Cookerati ) I have made a lemon version, and a chocolate version..but I haven’t had an orange version in eons decades a long time.  I am imagining this made iwth clementines or blood oranges.

Cheesecake Stuffed Chocolate Dipped Strawberries (Abby Sweets) And the award for best use of cheesecake goes to…..

Cherry Crumb Cream Cheese Bars (Bunny’s Warm Oven)  Run, don’t walk.  Oh yum.

If you haven’t taken a look at the Baking Delights Flickr group lately you really should!  And while you are there, join us! Amazing photography.  Everyone else does a pretty good job too.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Champagne Frosting (Creative Confectionary)  Chocolate? Champagne? I am so there.

Oreo Crunch Brownies (Eat Me Delicious)  You know those days where the whole thing stinks and you just want to go home, grab something good, a movie like Princess Bride, and veg? Well, here’s the good thing to grab.  Just slap a scoop of cookies and cream ice cream on it.

Cinnamon Espresso Cake (Vanilla Sugar)  This is what I want for breakfast tomorrow.

Warm Cream Cheese Snickerdoodle Tart (Peabody) Wow.  Peabody’s stuff is always amazing.  This is a step beyond that…

Simply Adorable Lemon Cupcakes ( Kitchen Wench)  These really are seriously (and simply) adorable.  Check out the marziapn bees.

Artisan Sweets is a new discovery for me, although I am sure everyone else knew about it…anything on this blog, anything…just pick one.

That’s it, folks.

Image:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I figured that I was pretty safe because I make my own peanut butter but apparently not.  How are you going to know where the peanuts were roasted? Grr…makes me mad!

But…all is not lost!

If you have a blender or food processor and a few minutes you can make some tasty alternatives to peanut butter.

There are all kinds of nut butters. You can even buy some of them at the health food store or specialty store. Some of them are:

• Cashew Butter (YUM)
• Sunflower Seed Butter
• Hazelnut Butter
• Soy Nut Butter (not the butter in the dairy case, this is usually by the peanut butter)
• Macadamia Nut Butter
• Brazil Nut Butter
• Almond Butter
• Pumpkin Seed Butter
• Walnut Butter
• Pecan Butter
• Pistachio Butter

And then there are the combination butters…Almond Macadamia, Pecan Cashew…you get the idea.  You can toast the nuts first, or use them raw.  It is totally up to your taste.

All you need to do is to add a cup or so of nuts to your blender and process to a powder.  Now let the blender run while adding a little oil.  Just keep on until you get a consistency that you like.  Taste and adjust the salt.

Tips

• Keep your healthy, fresh nut butter tightly covered and refrigerated for best flavor.
• Make it in small batches.
• If you like it sweetened you can add a little honey or sugar.
• Keep it on the runny side.  It will thicken in the fridge.
• Use organics
• Seed butters go rancid faster than nut butters
• Don’t use discolored or funny looking seeds
• Use it tablespoon for tablespoon like peanut butter

You have not experienced a sandwich until you make a walnut butter and orange marmelade sandwich on carrot raisin bread.  Seriously.

Look, why worry? This is like the second peanut butter recall in two years.  Obviously there is a problem with the system! Buy raw peanuts and make your own peanut butter, or buy other nuts to use.  Your peanut butter addicts will more than likely adjust the change to cashew or pecan butter better than you think!

image:SXC

Post from: Baking Delights

My week has gotten away from me.  Personally, I would like to go back to start over again, starting with about 5 a.m. Monday morning.

Why?

Because that was the time I was at Panera Bread in Cedar Hill, Texas gnoshing on all sorts of amazing food, slurping coffee in my brand new coffee cup and chatting with Jason Russel (Gen, Mgr.), Stan Sears (comedian Bakery Training Specialist), and Krista Moberg (Marketing).  And I had a blast.

These people LOVE their jobs, and to me that says a lot about Panera.

Now, the deal was that I was going up there to live blog yesterday morning but we had ice and everything was shut down.  This is Texas, land of ice-o-phobia.  A half inch of snow will close schools.  To be honest, though, this was not a half inch of snow, it was pure ice and I wan’t driving 20 miles in it. Nope.

So I missed out on that but have plans to reschedule, I will let you know.  I do have several coffee cups and coupons to give away.

Anyway.  I had planned on doing a sort of photo-diary of Monday morning.  There was a lot about Panera that I didn’t know even though I had been there alot.

I did review their coffees on Kettle and Cup.

First of all, I am a bread freak.  I will admit to the occasional foray into high protien dieting to lose a few pounds quickly but good bread is the holy grail to me.  I have been baking bread since 1974 when I taught myself how to do it.  There are few types I haven’t tried (yet) and, while I am not the master at it that many people are, I know a bit about it.  I loved the soup and sandwiches at Panera but it never occured to me to go there to buy bread when I did not have time to bake it…DUH.

Stan has about ten years on me in the bread baking department.  Not only was he friendly and funny but he shared his knowledge easily and naturally.  I did not know that the reason that bread is scored is because back in the day of community ovens it helped the various bakers know whose bread was whose.  How cool is that?

Stan talked as he deftly made various cuts in the numerous styles of breads that he was getting ready for the ovens.  A cinnamon and raisin loaf was topped with cinnamon and sugar mixed with sugar crystals.  The crystals add a nice crunch to the topping, and they looked alot like turbinado sugar.  I asked him about the cinnamon that they used and he said he thought it was Ceylon Cinnamon.

Marye: So how does someone become a baker for Panera? Do they need culinary school?

Stan: No, we train our bakers.  They train for 5 weeks.  The fifth week they have to go through an entire baking without help.  They have to get a certain amount of points to become a baker.  And then, every month they are evaluated.  They have to keep their points up.

Marye: How does the baking work?

Stan: The bakers come in at 11:00 p.m. or so.  They bake until 6:00 a.m.  The dough is made locally in Grand Prairie (that is for us, each bakery has a nearby place where the dough is actually mixed.) and then transported to the individual stores every morning.  The dough proofs for the day and then is baked fresh that night.  Nothing is frozen.

Marye: And then, at the end of the day, what happens to the left over bread?

Stan: Panera donates nearly everything, I would say that 95% or more of the unsold bread and other items goes to the various food banks and local food pantries.

Cherry Danish

That theme seems to run through Panera’s mission.  Jason Russell, the general manager, said basically the same thing, and added: Panera believes in giving back to the community.  Really giving back not just taking.  We get involved in fund raising events and donate to other things as well.  If someone has a charitable event going on they just need to come and talk to me.  We will see what we can do to be involved.

At that point the three of them began to relate various stories of Panera’s involvement in community.

Individual sized Pineapple Bundt Cake

Individual sized Lemon Poppyseed Bundt Cake

Then Jason began to bring out plates of food. Oh. My. Gosh.

Pecan Braid

First it was the pecan braid.  An individual pastry of laminated dough, filled with a ground pecan and cinnamon filling, buttery light, and topped with a donut like glaze and half a pecan.

I took one bite and I don’t know what kind of look I got on my face (ecstasy perhaps?) but Stan grinned and said, “we use plugra in that.”

Uh ..yeah.

Before I had that finished another plate appeared in front of me.  This time it was a Ciabatta Breakfast sandwich with applewood smoked bacon, free range eggs, and aged Vermont white cheddar.

“All natural” I was told by someone…had I not been in a dreamy state of Nirvana at that moment I could probably tell you who.  Alas, I can’t.  The ciabatta was fresh and chewy, with perfect grill marks.  The bacon was crisp and cooked and the cheese was salty cheddar perfection.  I allowed myself two bites and then the next plate appeared.  I could certainly get used to that!

Cheddar and Jalapeno Bagel

Artichoke Spinach Souffle in Croissant

Stan looked at the plate. “That is our new cheddar and jalapeno bagel.  ”

Krista: Aren’t we introducing a new breakfast sandwich or something on that?

Jason:Yep.  Next month, I think.

Their conversation sort of buzzed because I was tasting the bagel.  Chewy.  Perfect texture.  Spicy but not hot and ….

Stan: They have salsa swirled though them.  We steam the bagels.  We don;t have the room to boil them but steaming does the same thing.  They are never frozen.

I have been to New York.  I have lived on the Northeast coast.  This was a bagel.  The right size, not too big, not too tiny.

The next plate held an artichoke and spinach souffle in a croissant crust. Rich, creamy, warm perfection.  Stan told me that the day bakers make these every 1 1/2 hours so that they will be fresh.  The croissant was the perfect light crust to the souffle.  It was brilliant.

I ended with a cup of organic yogurt and pecan granola with strawberries. That was incredible.  I had a couple of bites and brought the rest home to the youngest three, Sean, Nick, and of course, Chef Kyrie.  They licked the plates.

A baguette, loaf of raisin bread, and other items came home with me.  My kids thought that Christmas had come again.

Panera Bread Bakery and Cafes have free wifi.  Their coffee is better than..you know whose.  And the food served is fresh, really fresh.  If you have read Kettle and Cup much you know that I have been less than enthusiastic about Starbucks pastries.

All of their items are all natural.  They use organic when feasible.  For example, I did some checking on the coffee roaster they use.  VERY ethical.  The coffee beans are not certified organic but only because there is a non-certified organic fertilizer used as well as a fungicide.  The coffee is fair trade and ethically grown.

Kudos to Panera.  I was impressed.  I will definitely be blogging from there when I need a break from my kitchen…and I will be buying bread from there when I am pushed for time.  I loved it.

Dallas area readers, I will let you know when I am going to be live blogging over there, so we can set up the giveaway.  If you could, just leave a comment and let me know that someone from this area reads?

Many thanks to Stan, Jason, Krista, and the rest of the Panera crew.  I had a blast. 

Images:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

You see, growing up in the Dallas area, being (at that time, the bohemian 1970s) rather the precocious teenage artist, and convincing people (easily) that I was a European college student on a study program in the United States meant that I spent a lot of time on Oak Lawn, at Oak Lawn parties, and taking pictures of the Melrose and surrounding area.

When I got the chance to go there the other day and have lunch, to see the restoration, and to interview Chef Jeff, well I was drooling at the chance jumping up and down with excitement interested in seeing the changes. The food was amazing.

Honeydew Lemonade

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup with Blood Orange Foam

Mom’s Meatloaf with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Honey Glazed Baby Carrots

And Pastry Chef Rafael Torano’s Lime Nouvelle Cheesecake with Strawberries

It was amazing.  Did I say amazing?

Afterwards I had a few questions for Chef Jeff, who is amazingly incredibly approachable.

Marye: I love the idea of the Southern Comfort Menu.  I do think that Nouvelle American Cuisine is returning to comfort foods with unique touches.  I enjoyed the garlic mashed potatoes very much.  They had an unusual mellow taste and although I am pretty sure the garlic was roasted I thought that perhaps it was an heirloom variety as well?  Do you use heirloom produce varieties over others when you get the chance?

Chef Jeff: The garlic is an Elephant variety and is from Gilroy, California. I use as many heirloom products as I can afford and get my hands on.

Marye: What is your feeling on using locally grown ingredients?

Chef Jeff: I feel it is extremely important to use local sustainable products. The more support we as consumers can give to farmers we will better support a local business/economy as well as influence and educate the palettes of the consumer (s).

Marye: What inspired you to create the Southern Comfort Menu?

Chef Jeff:The region and its perception of “comfort” food. The foods of the south are big and warm. ,

Marye:Each dish that came from the kitchen today was more beautiful than the last.  The plating techniques that you use are very Asian with almost an architectural  look to them. Where do you come up with the design ideas…the creative synergy between ingredients and platescape?

Chef Jeff: It’s a gift. HaHa. I design plates that are fun to look at as well as taste great. My past experiences have shaped my style. I worked in San Francisco and L.A for a number of years, so my style is very “west coast”.

Marye:What does a typical day look like for you?

Chef Jeff: I spend most of my time managing. Doing administrative things such as budgeting and planning for the business, 70% of my day is comprised of this and the remaining 30% is managing staff and executing food.

Marye:When you cook for yourself what do you make?

Chef Jeff:It depends on how tired I am and what my family wants to eat. I typically ask my children what they want to eat. Then we shop for product and spend the day cooking and teaching. My children, Evan and Olivia love to know the history of the foods they are eating.

Marye: What are the three ingredients you feel everyone should have in their kitchen?

Chef Jeff: Olive oil, garlic and onions (yellow).

Marye: What do you see as being the food trends of 2009?

Chef Jeff: Foods that are wholesome, simple, identifiable, delicious and affordable.

Marye: Everyone has a guilty pleasure, even executive chefs.  Whether it is oreos and milk, a snickers bar, or kraft mac and cheese from the box, what is yours?

Chef Jeff: I am nuts for my wife’s peanut butter cookies.  Dangerous, very dangerous!

Marye:Could you possibly share one of your recipes with our readers?

Chef Jeff: Not sure if you want a baked good or a savory recipe. Attached are recipes for our chocolate stout cake and calamari salad. The Salad is a collaboration with Chef Stephan Pyles. We created this salad when I was the Executive Chef at Hotel ZAZA. P.s. We also serve this salad in our world famous Library Bar and it is complimentary every Wednesday.

———————————-

Yes, there are two recipes.  I will be posting them over the weekend, so check back.   Chef Jeff Moschetti is not only a wonderful chef, but a really, amazingly nice person.  I had one of the most memorable and enjoyable afternoons ever!  Amazing.

If you would like to see more pictures of the hotel itself, check out my article Romantic Dallas Hotels.  There is a slideshow with images I took of the architecture and surrounding area.

Images: Warwick Melrose Hotel, Used by permission.

Post from: Baking Delights

Imagine a crunchy snack that satisfies your sweet tooth, is totally organic and sugar free and provides the equivalent of three servings of fruit in each snack sized bag.  Now imagine you could pick it up at Whole Foods, Wild Oats, or Amazon…for around $2 a bag.

So I guess this must be a dream come true, right?

I liked this stuff.  I really felt kinda sad when I gave the bags to the kids after I did my initial tasting for the review.  I mean I love my kids and all, but…

I really did not expect to like these a whole lot.  I think dried fruit is o.k. but the whole chewy leathery thing can put me off unless I am backpacking.  Since I don’t normally back pack in the house I leave the dried fruit for the kids.

The difference with this is that it is freeze dried.  So instead of leathery you get crisp and crunchy and the flavors are bright and natural.  According to the information I got with the packages the freeze drying process preserves more of the nutrients than just plain old drying.  And check it out, the apple still has a peel on it!

My kids scarfed them down.  Seriously, you could not have gotten those packages away from them with a handful of M&Ms to lure them…and M&Ms are the lure of choice around here.  In fact, since each one of my children were three weeks (yes, three weeks) late (except Erin, she was on time due to an impatient mom, a concerned doctor, and an armful of pitocin) Marc and I often joked about holding a bag of M&Ms on my lap to see if it would get labor to kick in…

But I digress, terribly.  The truth is these snacks are really good, and they are really different.  Great lunch box items.

Funky Monkey comes in four flavors:

Purple Funk- Crunchy banana and acai flavored snack sweet with a tangy aftertaste.  I liked this but not as much as some of the others.  It may be because I think that acai is the Paris Hilton of the fruit world.  A little too over promoted for what it delivers.  My kids didn’t care for these at all.

Carnaval Mix-Banana, pineapple, apple, papaya, and raisins  Nice mix, sweet and crunchy with the occasional texture variation of the chewy raisins.  This was delicious, but predictable.

JiveALime- Pineapple and lime.  Very sweet ripe pineapple with tangy lime.  Sort of like that candy that you have to suck the sour off to get to the sweet part.  My kids love that stuff! If you have an Airhead addict at your house this may tempt them away.  These were my kids favorites.

Bananamon- My favorite.  Sweet banana and cinnamon.  I could eat the entire bag.  When I was a kid I used to eat corn flakes with bananas in it and cinnamon toast on the side.  This is sorta like that.  Only not.  If I was really going to treat myself I would add about 1/4 cup pecans to the mix.

Anyway, great stuff.  Highly recommended.

images:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I wish I could call this Calvados Chicken Normandy but I can’t.  I didn’t have any Calvados but I did have a nice bottle of Crown Royal that a customer gave to Marc a couple of years ago.  What can I say? We don’t drink very much.

I wanted to make a cider reduction for this chicken and I thought that the whiskey would give it a nice mellow depth.  I was not disappointed at all, and the Hot Pepper Jelly was a brilliant touch if I do say so myself.

The flavors in this are sweet and tangy with leaving just the hint of a burn in your mouth.  Very complex and it goes perfectly with the chicken.  Add a nice artisan sour dough, a good salad with bleu cheese, and a perfect bittersweet chocolate truffle for dessert and you will think you have been transported to the French countryside.  Try a fruity  wine with this, something even a little sparkly..like a 2006 Henry Estate – Muller-Thurgau.

Whiskey Chicken Normandy

• 6 chicken breasts, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 2 Empire Apples or other sweet cooking apple, chopped and cored but not peeled
• 1 red onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup organic, unfiltered apple cider
• 3 tablespoons red pepper jelly
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1/4 cup whiskey or Calvados
• Olive oil

1. Grill the chicken breast in the grill pan for about five minutes on each side, or until you have good grill marks.  Place in a casserole dish that has been wiped with olive oil.
2. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes, until chicken registers 180 on a meat thermometer.
3. Meanwhile saute the onions and apples in a little olive oil until they begin to get tender.  Add cider, jelly, vinegar, and whiskey and allow to reduce, simmering about 10 minutes.  Stir in butter.  Taste and adjust seasonings.
4. Plate the chicken, add a few tablespoons of the pan drippings to the apple reduction and then spoon apples and sauce over the chicken breasts.
5. Serves 6

image: (c)2009 marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I had heard of grill pans before but I figured that we had a nice gas grill, we live in Texas, and there was no need for a grill pan.

Boy…was I wrong.

You see last Fall one of the local stores gave you points for every so much spent in grocery dollars.  As you can imagine I came away from that promotion with a whole new set of nice pans..including a grill pan.

I used it to make chicken breast for a recipe I am posting later..But wow…it really gave he meat a nice flavor and texture.

If you haven’t thought about getting one, or you don;t know about them, or even are just not sure let me encourage you…they are awesome!

Convinced?  Chicken steaks, hot dogs….you name it.  Get the great grill marks and everything. Seriously, if you can get one of these….do!

Image:(c)2009maryeaudet

Post from: Baking Delights

Did ya ever wake up, stumble to the kitchen bleary eyed, and wish that Mrs. Cleaver would meet you at the kitchen door, wearing a crisply starched apron, and holding a plate of steaming muffins, fragrant bacon, and fresh, seasonal fruit?

Yeah. Me too.  Is there anyone that actually likes cooking breakfast? I think not.

So, I thought that this edition of Saturday blog surfing I would concentrate on great breakfast ideas.  Things that caught my eye on the Internet, things that seemed like they would be worth getting out of bed for on a cold morning even if Mrs. Cleaver wasn’t anywhere around and the kitchen was dark, dismal, and messy.

Vee, who has a delightful blog called Tea and Scones, has this Tropical Christmas Bread that looks worth waking up for whether it is Christmas or not!

Take the Cannoli makes sour cream and banana pancakes.  These look amazing and I would certainly wake up for them.  Especially if someone else made them for me.

Bunny and Carol from Bunny’s Warm oven make cherry rolls. These are very much like cinnamon rolls but with cherry filling.  They look cheerful, like they would fit right in on a table covered with a red gingham cloth in a kitchen scented with brewing coffee.

Banana Yogurt Bread on Eating, Etc seems like it would be one of those breads that you could make ahead and enjoy for a few days because it would stay moist.

Simmer till Done has Caramelized Banana French Toast. Why are you still reading MY blog, didn’t you hear me say caramelized. banana.  french.  toast.?

Mango and Coconut Mueseli at Not Quite Nigella seems like it would be a great choice when you were feeling crunchy.

The Delicious Life comes through for all of the breakfast lovers in the world with Strawberries and Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast.

My Rose and Cinnamon Scones that I snuck in over at Kettle and Cup are really good for breakfast, brunch, or tea.

Sweets, Savories, Etc. does Challah…mmmmmmm

I did have one more but somehow the computer got knocked when I was editing and I lost the whole link. I have no clue what it was or where it was…sigh. Probably because I haven’t had breakfast yet!

image:marye audet (c)2009 all rights reserved

Post from: Baking Delights