Shrove Tuesday doesn’t have to include pancakes. Today is really about gorging on rich foods before the 40-day fast of Lent. Pancakes just happen to be cooked in grease, filled with eggs and topped with more decadence.  It’s okay to think beyond the griddle. Any rich, fatty food will do.

For pancake enthusiasts, these recipes will cover you from main to dessert:

• Potato Latkes: Savoury and easy to make. These classic pancakes are great topped with sour cream or apple sauce.
• Zucchini Fritters with Dill Tzatziki: I think these are my favourite savory pancakes of all time. Maybe it’s the topping. Maybe it’s the spicing.
• Chocolate Waffles: The waffles aren’t too sweet since you are likely going to load them up with syrup. A nice dessert to close out Pancake Tuesday.

But for those who want  their fat in a different form, why not flirt with clotted cream? Boldly striking another item off my Culinary Bucket List, I made a batch. What’s clotted cream? Only the most decadent topping you can imagine. It’s gently heated cream that thickens into a rich, spoonable consistency. Often eaten on scones, you can dollop it on fruit. Or pancakes. Or anything else you fancy. There is nothing low-cal about this. But isn’t that the point today?

I got the idea from Make the Bread, Buy the Butter: What you Should and Shouldn’t Cook from Scratch by Jennifer Reese. She describes clotted cream as “the love child of butter and whipped cream” and says it’s worth travelling to England for. As my planned trip to the British Isles this summer is being postponed, I decided not to wait, and I made my own. Having conquered the elusive clotted cream, I guess I’ll just have to go across the pond for the scotch.

Review in Brief

This will appeal to: Anyone who wants to take control of their kitchen, and cooks who just want to stretch their DIY list. When I say Reese covers amost everything, I mean it. From salt pork to lard, kimchi to mascarpone cheese, this book’s got it covered in 120+ recipes.

It will also appeal to anyone wanting to save a few dollars. Reese has done the research — and includes dollar amounts —as to whether or not a home version is worth the time and effort. And the verdicts aren’t always predictable. I was surprised to see burritos and crystallized ginger are better off purchased, while creme brulee is worth it only if you have the torch — and you know I do!

Must try recipes:

• Graham crackers (they are on my culinary bucket list, too)
• Fruit vinegar
• Worchestershire Sauce (You can make this stuff at home?)

Biggest delight: While I loved the information, I also I loved the humour. This book could easily have slipped into preachy, self-righteous territory. But it doesn’t. Reese keeps it light and keeps it real. But be warned, reading about all the possible homemade items will turn every trip to the grocery store into a potential culinary challenge. Once you crack the cover, I bet you can’t make just one.

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It’s time to strike another item off my Culinary Bucket List. In an uncharacteristic display of patience, I tackled preserved lemons. They require endurance, not because they are hard to make, but because they take 4 weeks to cure.

In the meantime, to scratch my immediate-gratification itch, I started a Tumblr — a place to stuff all those little items I can’t clutter up the blog with. It’ll be a home for stray thoughts, non-food shots (which don’t necessarily translate to cats), and food shots that aren’t good enough for Foodgawker but tell a story I want to share. I’m still figuring it out, but if you care to pop by I have added a link to the far right of the menu bar. Go on. Click it. I dare you.

Anyway, I started researching preserved lemons before the whole Tumblr thing sidetracked me. Traditional recipes range widely. Some have bay leaves and pepper corns — even cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods and chili peppers. Some call for Meyer lemons, which I cannot find for the life of me. Others require unwaxed, thin-skinned lemons. Not sure I can get those either.

Marching boldly ahead, I compared techniques. Some sterilized the jars in boiling water. Others used a hot oven. Others just tossed everything into a jar and let the acid in the lemons kill the germs. Not sure the Internet is ready for that.

Even how you handle the lemons wasn’t set. Some sliced, while others merely slit the fruit before stuffing the insides with salt. Regardless of the source, all recipes called for salt, lemon juice and time. So I began.

Trying to be authentic, I tried the score-and-stuff technique, but whole lemons didn’t fit  into the jar, so I sliced the suckers up.

Unsure if my lemons were adequately de-waxed or had thin enough skins, I made a single jar. If all goes horribly wrong, I will have a lone container of disappointment to contend with. If I triumph, I can do it all over again and start a podcast while I bide the time.

In a matter of minutes, I had a jar of lemons in salty juice. It is now quietly preserving away in the pantry. Depending on my mood, I will either shake it vigorously or up-end it once a day. For four weeks. Between Tumbls.

While all variations were clear on what to do with the lemons once they were preserved, the only aspect of preserved lemons they didn’t address was what to do with the seeds. It’s as if no one but me gets lemons full of seeds.

So I removed them.

Next month? Roasted Moroccan chicken, or a tagine. What would you do with a jar of preserved lemons? Have you made preserved lemons? If so, share your tips.

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Despite my passion for chocolate, I have never been a huge Valentine’s Day fan. I try to ignore it, not because I am cynical about love, but because I believe affection, gifts and surprises should be dictated by the heart, not the calendar. Or at least that’s my normal stance. But Rouxbe Online Cooking School is having a limited-time-only Valentine’s Day special and I think it’s worth promoting.

Why? Because:

a) Life’s too short to eat bad chocolate. Rouxbe has a fabulous section on chocolate, including how to read a label. Watch the trial video in the Rouxbe widget at the bottom of the post before you buy your sweetheart chocolate. I guarantee you and the recipient will be happy with the results.

b) Unlike my gym membership, I actually visit Rouxbe’s on a regular basis. I use it to refresh my memory, learn new skills and further my culinary education — which may be in part why I’m not at the gym as often as I should.

c) I want to plug some of my old content using the Valentine’s Day Chocolate theme as an excuse.

The fine print: I’m a Rouxbe affiliate. As such, I can offer you specials like the $100 off a Rouxbe Online Cooking School one-year membership or e-card. And hugs. Here’s how it works. You sign up for the membership. They give you unlimited access to their site for a year. I give you a hug.

The deal: Buy a Rouxbe e-card or a new membership before midnight PST on Feb. 14 and save $100 off the unlimited-access Annual Tuition Plan. Treat yourself or a loved one. Then surf Rouxbe content 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s kind of like the all-hours gym that way. Only without the sweat socks.

And for those who love chocolate, here are some links to recipes from my archives.

Triple-Chocolate Brownie Cookies. This one’s from Mairlyn Smith’s Healthy Starts Here! and is one of those recipes where health nuts and chocolate addicts can gather at the table in peace. The biggest worry with this recipe is that people will fight over who gets the last morsel. If in doubt, I do. It keeps things simple that way.

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. These are nothing like Mairlyn’s healthy treats. Butter, and lots of it, form a base with white flour and chocolate chips. Nothing redeeming here. Other than taste. I made these for my cousin Donna who came all the way from Seattle for my sister’s wedding. Yes, they’re that kind of treat.

Double-Double Chocolate Cake: This Canadian classic is a ribbon winner from The Harrow Fair Cookbook by Moira Sanders and Lori Elstone. It calls for a Tim Horton’s double-double. If you can’t buy one, a strong brewed coffee with double cream and double sugar will do. While the coffee is usually reserved for adults, the cake pleases kids and grown ups alike.

Chocolate Wontons: When chocolate and caramel isn’t enough, add a chunk of banana and deep fry. This Bob Blumer special got me eating banana without complaint, which is quite the accomplishment. From his amusing and mind-bending book Glutton for Pleasure, this is for those who like to eat dessert first.

Chocolate Chipotle Brownies: Like a little heat with your chocolate?These sweet, smoky and slightly warm brownies are a wonderful mix of tastes. The backstory on these involves seduction — Cherly at 5 Second Rule‘s photos made me do it. The results? Brownies and a $112 ice cream maker. But that’s another story for another time.

Raspberry & Rhubarb Galette: This one doesn’t actually contain chocolate, although you could add some. I’m putting it here for those rare creatures who don’t like chocolate. Like my Dad. It’s one of his favourites, so I’m including it for the berry and fruit lovers in the crowd.

Got a favourite chocolate recipe? Leave a comment — with a link if you have it. Share the chocolate love. Hugs all round.

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This is how much of a sugar addict I am. I drove an hour on a dark, cold, rainy January night just so I could sample smoked sugar.

What’s smoked sugar you ask? It’s sugar. That’s been smoked.*

As eager as I am to try new sweets, I am equally entrenched in my culinary dislikes. Without hesitating, I will tell you I don’t like custard, I don’t like caviar and I don’t like chives. And it’s not just things that start with the letter c, either. Foie gras, beets, parsnips, liver, and truffles (the fungus, not the chocolate) don’t make it into my kitchen. But I was so eager to taste smoked sugar —the final dish of a full-course meal — I was willing to throw myself into the unknown.

And so, I grabbed my camera, packed up my notepad and drove to the Old Prune in Stratford, Ontario (yes, that Stratford – home of Justin Bieber for those who find the name familiar). There, I sampled a meal prepared by Tuscany’s rebel chef, Paolo Lopriore, assisted and served by student chefs from the Stratford Chefs School. I expected to learn about smoked sugar. I ended up learning about myself.

The first dish was an amuse-bouche. It was a hollowed out egg filled with steamed egg custard, topped with tobiko roe (sushi caviar) and dotted with chives. Faced with three hated ingredients, I pondered washing it down with the sparkling wine they’d just served.

To my surprise — and relief — the amuse-bouche was lovely. The custard was velvety, not eggy. The chives were subtle, and the red roe wasn’t the least bit fishy or salty. I ignored the wine bubbling away at my elbow and, in as lady-like a manner as I could, scraped every last bit of custard out of that shell. Lesson learned: Custard, properly made, isn’t eggy. Roe doesn’t have to taste like pickled tapioca and chives, used sparingly, are actually a lovely highlight.

Next up was the Beef Carpaccio with Black Truffles.

As you can see, the beef was raw — something I actually don’t mind. It practically melted under my fork. And the truffles? Being almost as large as the beef slices, there would be no hiding one under a lettuce leaf if I found them too pungent. To my surprise, the herbs in the greens, not the truffles, stood out, jumping from nutty to bitter to spicy. Lesson learned: I no longer need to add the “chocolate” disclaimer when I say I like truffles.

In between the courses was bread…

Delicious, airy, chewy, homemade bread. I’m ashamed to say, the homemade bread tempted me as much as the beef. It was perfect. Just perfect. It’s the kind of bread that makes you wonder how store-brand sandwich loaves sell a single slice. I wanted to eat the entire platter, slathered with butter. But I didn’t. Instead, I took one little piece and nibbled, furiously taking notes to keep my hands busy.

Next up, Risotto with Pecorino, Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar.

The risottos was decadent. For the liquid, Lopriore used a special infusion made with rice wine vinegar, white wine, onions and beurre blanc that took a whopping four pounds of butter. All that fat stood up to the aged-balsamic reduction. And once again, I scraped the plate clean.  Lesson learned: Still a carb addict. Move on.

I knew I’d like the risottos, so for me, the big surprise was the wine — Unico Pecorino. It was crisp and light and had hints of candy apple. This wine paired so perfectly with the risotto, I nearly pulled out my iTouch to see if it was available and how much it would set me back. (Ontario residents, the LCBO had a nifty app, LCBO On the Go, which will let you search wines by keyword, barcode and/or location. I’m happy to report the LCBO nearest me has 12 bottles of Pecorino on hand. Price: $17.95/bottle.)  Lesson learned: Italian wine come in colours other than red.

And then came the bread sticks. Oh, the bread sticks.

 

The students made them. I am dead jealous and ate at least three. Maybe more. I wasn’t counting.

While I scattered crumbs across the table, I jotted down a one-word note: Otto.

I have been to exactly one celebrity restaurant in my life — Mario Batali’s famed OTTO in New York. They served bread sticks, too. Commercial ones in paper wrappers. That sat on the table. In a glass. For me, this reduced the famed restaurant to just another pizza joint.  Lesson learned: Small details leave big impressions.

The main was Rabbit Ragout, Artichokes and Potatoes.

While pleasant, rabbit lives up to the cliché. It tastes like chicken. In a nose-to-tail approach, the chef included the kidney and liver. The kidney was okay, but in keeping with its nature, a bit rubbery. As for the liver, having shifted my opinion on custard, caviar, truffles and chives, I was willing to be a liver convert. Am I?

No.

One bite was all I could manage. And there was no hiding the half-eaten liver on my otherwise clean plate. I eased my guilt with another break stick. Lesson learned: Even if Julia Child herself came back from the grave with the sole purpose to cook liver just for me, I wouldn’t eat it. Okay, I probably would — just to be polite — but I wouldn’t like it. It’s not the chef. It’s me. Or more accurately, it’s liver.

And then the dessert I had come for. Semifreddo with Smoked Sugar.

It a neat visual loop, the final dish mimicked the elliptical shape of  the amuse-bouche. It came sprinkled with fennel pollen and dark licorice, and was garnished with fennel leaves. The smoked sugar was in the semifreddo, not on it, as I’d imagined. The dessert was creamy and had the smokiness of bacon but without the salt edge. I found the fennel distracting at first, but by the time I had finished the dish, I realized I liked it quite a bit and  would happily have eaten more. Lesson learned: I do not have the patience to smoke sugar, but it’s a wonderful alternative to the bacon-flavoured sweets now out.

At the end of the meal, Chef Paolo came out to greet the guests. With limited English on his part and no Italian on mine, we had an awkward and brief conversation with lots of gestures. I think smoked sugar was his idea. I can’t say for sure. Regardless of where the idea came from, it’s a good idea. A very good idea. I predict it’s just a matter of time before some culinary entrepreneur bottles it. I also predict that entrepreneur won’t be me.

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Email. Some days I love it. Some days I hate it.

And I was hating it something fierce  recently when my computer insisted it had to “rebuild” my inbox and in doing so resent random emails from March 2010. This elicited confused responses from the unintended victims recipients. I spent the weekend  cautiously checking email and wondering when the next “What’s going on?” email would arrive.

In an effort to keep the Universe in check, a stray email landed in my inbox the same week. A subscriber, intending to forward one of my posts to a friend, inadvertently sent it back to me. Even though she doesn’t eat wheat (or sugar or desserts), she still subscribes to my blog and was sharing a bread recipe with a friend who bakes — along with some very kind words.

To balance out all the carbs I post, here is a grain-free, low-carb, spicy, vegetable-packed, semi-protein-based soup. Indra, this one’s for you. It does have 1 tsp of sugar for balance, but if you omit it the recipe will hold its own.

To everyone else, if you got a random email from me. Ignore it. My computer went insane. If you didn’t, have some soup. My stove is working just fine.

Review in brief

Bored soup lovers will enjoy the innovative recipes and varied styles in this single-subject book. Recipes  range from a clear classic consommé to “meal in a bowl” soups with more than two dozen (easy to get) ingredients. Chock full of vegetables, game, seafood, fruit, nuts and cheese, there will be something for everyone.

Must try recipes

•  Mango, Cilantro and Pomegranate Soup: They had me at mango. This unusual chilled soup takes five minutes to make and is bursting with fresh flavours. Not exactly a winter-time treat, but come summer? Hand me a spoon.
• Seven-Grain Bread: Yes, bread. This book offers 10 bread recipes and this one — with bulgar, polenta, quiona and millet — is an intriguing change from the usual store-bought offerings.
• Creamy Pistachio Soup: With cardamom, coriander and pistachios, this pastel green soup is a delicate, fragrant change of pace from the standard Indian soup.

Biggest delight: The intro section that encourages you to experiment. It’s full of suggestions on how to thicken, enrich, puree garnish and even rescue soups. Sure, it’s got pantry suggestions and tips on how to use up leftovers, but the recipe planners made me wish I’d thought of that feature first. Looking for a vegetarian recipes? Not only does it list the 90+ recipes– with a few enticing photos– it gives the cooking time and page number.

Other planners in Soup focus on chilled, hearty, healthy, spicy, main meals and quick recipes. Once you make your selection, each recipe includes prep and cooking times as well as freezing notes. If you can’t find a soup to suit your mood, schedule and diet, then maybe, just maybe, it’s time to admit you just aren’t a soup person.

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What’s happening to me? The minute I went to photograph this dessert I thought, “Rats! I should have made the cobbler in a cast iron frying pan. It would have looked so much more rustic.”

Great. It’s not enough that I’m criticized for being a food snob. Now I’m about to push myself into a whole new level of visual elitism.

Be warned. Not only can this thought process harm your wallet, it can lead to culinary disaster. Using the correct pan size is crucial in baking. Believe me, I’ve scraped enough batter off the bottom of my oven to know you can’t cram big cake batter into a small cake pan. My only solution was, “Don’t do it.” But with an 8-inch cake stand and loads of recipes for 9-inch cakes, I needed a proper fix.

Fortunately, I surround myself with smart people.

The solution: According to Anna Olson, you need to maintain the depth of the batter to avoid spillage. To do this you need to know:

• the surface area
• the percentage of batter the smaller pan holds

To double check my math, I turned to my cyber-friend Laura Laing, author of Math for Grownups: Relearn the Arithmetic You Forgot from School. (Adams Media © 2011). Ironically, the math I needed wasn’t found in her kitchen section. Instead, I found the required formula in two places. The first — surface area — was illustrated in the gardening section*. Technically, area = pi multiplied by the radius of the circle squared. But I can’t figure out how to type the squared symbol, so I’m going to settle on  A= π x r x r. For easy calculating, I’m rounding pi to 3.14.

First, I need to know the surface area of both pans:

• Surface area for 9-inch round pan = 3.14 x 4.5 x 4.5 = 63.58
• Surface area for 8-inch round pan = 3.14 x 4 x 4 =  50.24

Now I need to now the percentage of the smaller pan. For the ratio formula, I flipped to the section on crafts. Who knew knitting could be so handy? Here’s how much surface area the 8-inch round pan offers versus the 9-inch pan.

• 50.24 / 63.58 x 100 = 83%

That’s 80% in my world. In order for the recipe to work, the 8-inch pan should hold only 80% of the batter intended for the 9-inch pan. So, you pour 80% of your batter into the 8- inch pan. (Use a scale to do this.) This ensures the height of the batter is approximately the same as the original recipe intended, and your cake won’t spill over.

And just what do you do with the remaining 20%? Anna says to bake cupcakes. I’d likely just end up eating it by the spoonful.

But wait. There’s more!

This is where math ends and the alchemy begins. Anna says you have to reduce the baking time “slightly”. How much is that? It depends on too many factors to calculate accurately. Reduce the baking time by 5 to 10 minutes, check the cake, and estimate additional cooking time from there  — if needed.

So, will my 10-inch cast iron frying pan work for the cobbler? Let’s see.

• Area of 9-inch square pan = 9 x 9 = 81
• Area of 10-inch round pan = 3.14 x 5 x 5 = 78.5
• Percentage of batter the 10-inch pan will hold = 78.5 / 81 x 100 = 96.9 %

Close enough for me. Think I’ll go make another batch and test the theory in the real world.

Got a tricky kitchen calculation need solving? Ask away. With my calculator and a book of handy formulas, I’m unstoppable.

* For those who are curious about the book, the kitchen section in Math for Grownups help you can calculate how many tomatoes will fit in a jar, convert common measurements, estimate how long it takes to defrost a turkey (and then cook it!) and allow you to fiddle with measuring spoon fractions.

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One of the items on my culinary bucket list was granary bread. I wanted to create my own version of a seed-loaded hearth bread I used to get from a local bakery. Their bread was dense without being heavy — something you could sink your molars into and chew with satisfaction. The seeds crunched while the crumb yielded. It’s was a stand alone snack or the perfect outer limit for a hearty sandwich. You could toast it up or devour it at room temperature. (Confession: I often ate a fresh slice while another slice toasted.) It delivered sweet honey and savoury cheese with equal ease. Able to perform its duties at both extremes, it was the perfect bread for a Gemini like me.

And then they changed the recipe.

Finding a homemade replacement proved challenging. I fiddled with no-knead versions, adding seeds and whole wheat flour. While the results looked right, something was off. My sister gnawed on a slice and kindly informed me it “tasted healthy.”

I was aiming for delicious. Or addictive. Or amazing. I’d have settled for yummy, or even not bad. But healthy? In my family that’s code for sawdust.

After scouring the web and local library, I found only one recipe with a similar ingredient list to the bakery’s. It wasn’t called granary or hearth bread, as I’d imagined. Instead it was descriptively dubbed Many-Seed Bread.

I’ve made three loaves. There’s half a loaf left.

This isn’t a quick-make bread, but it isn’t a labour of love either. In the Gemini tradition, it’s a balance. While it requires a bit of planning, you can refrigerate the dough for up to four days — so you are never more than a few, non-active hours away from a fresh loaf of healthy bread. And I mean that in the best possible way.

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If you read my 2012 Culinary Bucket List, you’ll see I have a lot of baking to do. In case a from-scratch cake is on your list, I thought I’d start the new year off with some baking tips I learned from Camilla V. Saulsbury, author of Piece of Cake and 750 Best Muffin Recipes. Knowing she could provide me with enough information to fill my pantry, I asked her to narrow it down to 3 Dos and 3 Don’ts for perfect cakes. Camilla obliged.

So pull out the MixMaster and find a clean apron. We’ve got some baking to do.

3 Biggest Cake Baking Mistakes

1. Compacting flour: Scooping flour into a measuring cup directly from the bag can add so much extra flour through compaction that it actually changes the outcome of your recipe.

The fix: Aerate the flour by spooning it into a dry measure and then leveling it off with a knife. Weighing is the best method, but that’s another issue for another day.

2. Old leveners or spices. If your baking powder or baking soda is too old, your cake won’t rise properly, if at all. Past-their-prime spices won’t deliver the flavour.

The fix: If you don’t use these ingredients much, buy them in small quantities. When you do replace them, write the purchase date on the bottle/package. Toss spices after 6 to 12 months  and baking powder after 1 year. Some sources say baking soda will keep indefinitely, but if in doubt, stir a spoonful some into white vinegar. If it doesn’t bubble enthusiastically, toss it and buy new. Likewise, baking powder is still active if it foams when added to hot water.

3.  Cutting back on the sugar: Reducing the amount of sugar called for in a recipe won’t just cut calories. It will trim the taste and mess with the texture of the cake. Because sugar liquifies when heated, it keeps the cake tender and moist. This, in turn, affects the taste since the moisture carries flavour.

The fix: Don’t mess with the sugar. Camilla says, “Go for a smaller piece or for a walk.”

3 Best Practices

1. Buy an oven thermometer. Not all ovens read accurate. Most are out by as much as 50°F. Oven thermometers are available at hardware stores, grocery stores and specialty kitchen shops. You can get one for about $10. Not only will it will save your cake, it will save you the cost of calibrating your oven.

2. Use the correct pan size. Substituting pan sizes can change the surface area of your cake, depth of batter and, ultimately, the finished product. Trust me. If you pour batter intended for a 9-inch pan into an 8-inch one, gooey cake is only the start of your problems. You’ll end up with your head in the oven scraping cake off surfaces you never imagined batter would spill.

If you don’t have the pan called for, consider investing in the right size. If time or money are an issue, here are a couple of close-enough substitutes for common pan sizes that will save your cake and keep your oven clean.

• 8-inch round = 7-inch square pan
• 9-inch round pan = 8-inch square pan
• 10-inch round pan = 9-inch square pan

3. Use room temperature eggs and softened butter. Is this really necessary? Not entirely, but it does make a difference. Room temperature eggs will give you the best volume, while softened butter adds to the elasticity of the batter. If your butter is too soft the batter won’t get the same rise. If it’s too hard, it won’t mix in properly. But even Camilla admits she doesn’t set the butter and eggs out for the required half hour. Instead, she uses the following cheats:

For butter:

There are lost of fixes, from putting the butter between layers of plastic wrap and beating it with a rolling pin, to cutting it into cubes and nuking it on low in the microwave. But the easiest method, least likely to cause injury or melted butter is…

Give a grater a quick spritz with no-stick spray, then grate the cold butter onto waxed paper. In 3 minutes it will be softened perfectly. Clean up? Pour some boiling water on the grater and wipe it dry.

For eggs:

Put the eggs in warm, not hot, water, for 30 to 60 seconds. And you’re ready to bake.

Got any baking tricks you care to share or cake crimes to confess? If you plan to use these tips, what flavour cake will you test drive them on?

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It’s January. Has been for a few days. I know I’m a bit late with this but, oh well, here goes anyway…

Every year I swear to myself I will post more often. I will get better at my photos. I’ll be a better blogger. These vague goals slip through my fingers like typos on a smartphone. Last year I promised, “I’m not going to let Life derail me again.” Hmmmm. That one’s still on the table.

Instead of chastising myself for the missteps, I’ve decided to look back at some of the things I’ve learned since starting this blog. The things that brought me a sense of accomplishment. The things I have carried forward into my culinary life on a regular basis. Baby step by baby step, I’ve reclaimed the kitchen. I now simmer my own chicken stock, whip up salad dressings from what’s hanging out in the fridge, churn unbelievably rich ice cream, and make a scratch version of rum cake that should be served with a breathalyzer. I’ve conquered my fear of pastry to the point where I am riffing on galettes like I knew what I was doing. Even better? I’m no longer ashamed to serve my chocolate truffles to guests in good lighting, and boast to anyone who will listen about the the red and white wine jellies in my pantry — made with my very own apple pectin. Hell, I’ve even served homemade eggnog at Christmas AND turned it into ice cream. Ho ho ho.

What’s on for 2012?  Besides a wing and a prayer, I’ve set my sights on a few items. As you can see, my list is not very long or all that exotic. No item here is based on a dare or uses one-upmanship as the key ingredient. There will be no roast suckling pig, no homemade sausage or artisanal cheese. I will not be dabbling in molecular gastronomy or flambéing anything — at least not intentionally. This is just a list of things I want to make in the next year. Some are here because I can’t find a decent ready-made version. I want to tackle a few to save money (says the woman who spent $112 so she could make cinnamon ice cream). And others are listed for the best reason of all — Just Because.

Charmian’s Bucket List

(In no particular order, to be completed by December 31, 2012. Author reserves the right to revise on a whim.)

• Palmiers
• Clotted cream
• Pasta
• Graham crackers
• Granary bread  Many-Seed Bread
• Sourdough bread
• Preserved lemons (and then do something Moroccan with them)
• Popovers
• Hot and Sour Soup
• Tacos shells
• Onion Bhaji
• Vegetable Pakoras
• Profiteroles (added Jan 4 thanks to Lisa MacColl)
• Turtle Ice Cream (added Jan 4 thanks to Robin)

I’m sure I’ll think of other things once I hit “post”, but for now this carb-heavy list should keep me out of mischief.

Got a food-based wish list of dishes you’d like to try? What’s on yours?

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It’s almost noon on the day before Christmas Eve and I’m not finished my shopping. Not by a long shot. I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess  I’m not the only one who needs the born-of-fear adrenaline to face the holiday crowds. Or maybe you’re too disorganized busy to get it done during calm, shopper-sparce early November — like some people I know and resent.

So, for those who need some last-minute gift ideas for the cooks in your life, here are my suggestions. You can purchase them from the tranquility of your home, glass of spiked eggnog in one hand and a computer mouse in the other.

   Rouxbe Online Cooking School

Yes, I’m an affiliate, but I’m also a client. Even after three years, I still use this resource often to brush up on my skills or find the answer to a question. Thanks to Rouxbe, I make my own stock, sharpen my own knives and carve poultry without embarrassing myself. The site is iPad and iPhone enabled so you can learn without being glued to your computer.

Until midnight December 25, 2011, they’re offering $100 off a membership or up to $20 off individual lessons. Here’s sample of previous Rouxbe lessons I’ve featured, or click here to see the Rouxbe holiday offer.

Eat Your Books

I am kicking myself, just kicking myself for not buying the lifetime membership when I had a chance. I now pay $2.50 a month to use this site and it’s worth every penny. What’s Eat Your Books? Only the best way to search your cookbooks. Sure, you have to invest a bit of time entering the titles in your collection, but once that easy task is done you won’t spend any more time flipping through dozens of cookbooks. Whenever you run out of meal ideas or don’t know what to do with the 10 pound bag of kumquats you were given, just head to the database and see what recipes on your shelf fit the bill.

iPhone, iPad, iThingy Apps

Handy, portable, open all hours. I love apps. Of course I’m biased, but I recommend two created by my highly knowledgeable writer friends.
iSpice
Price: $1.99

This comprehensive dictionary of herbs and spices from around the word was compiled by my friend Monica Bhide, author of Modern Spice. Each entry contains an informative description, colourful slideshow, links to recipes and YouTube instructional videos, as well as links on where you can buy the spice in question. To find a spice, scroll through the 100+ entries listed alphabetically or play roulette with the slideshow of stunning photos and see where you land. Even though I write about food for a living, I discovered a few new spices within minutes.

Be sure to check the app’s comment section periodically. Not only are people posting really good questions, I’ve learned that asafetida isn’t always gluten-free. This section is likely to grow as the app gains users.

Wifi needed? Not for the spice information or slideshows. Recipe links and YouTube videos require an internet connection.
Who will it appeal to? Adventuresome home cooks and recipe developers.
Worth buying for: The buying link for hard-to-find spices.

Asian Ingredients 101
Price: $0.99

This niffy little app examines nearly 100 common and not-so-common spices, sauces and essential ingredients used in Asian cuisine. The app’s creator, Pat Tanumihardja, is the author of The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook: Home Cooking from Asian American Kitchens and provides users with just the right mix of context, instruction and inspiration.

Like iSpice, the app is published by Sutro Media, so the two have similar layouts. There’s the familiar alphabetical listing of ingredients as well as a slide show, but given the wider range of the entries, you can also sort by category such as condiments, fruits, noodles, vegetables and grocery store sections. Regardless of how you select the ingredient, you’ll find out how it’s used as well as get buying and storing tips.

Wifi needed? No. Just download and use.
Who will it appeal to? Anyone who wants to cook more Asian or Asian-inspired meals.
Worth buying for: The scope of information.

Hopefully between these ideas you’ll find something in your price range that brings joy and good food to those you love. Got any other ideas? Leave them in the comments section. I’m now off to finish my non-foodie shopping.

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