Raspberry Cake

I haven't been cooking much lately (I mean obviously I eat, but there is nothing exciting enough to post) and I certainly haven't been baking thanks to the Atlanta heat, lack of paycheck, desire to save on my electric bill, and overabundance of chocolate (still have stuff from Valentine's Day that I should probably be working on). So I decided to post a few of my favorite recipes, recipes that I've had requested every time I make them. And probably the most requested is raspberry cake; I haven't made it lately, but I'm thinking I'm going to next weekend for my birthday celebration since it is the one cake everyone (except vegetarians, there's gelatin in it) like; I have friends who hate chocolate, friends who are allergic to peanuts, friends who hate frosting (and really, you have to have a pretty special cake for it to be right without frosting), but magically, everyone likes this. It is the easiest recipe ever and so perfect for summer picnics.

1 package white cake mix
1 small package raspberry gelatin
10 oz frozen sweetened raspberries undrained (usually a plastic container)
4 eggs
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c hot water
Frosting:
1 carton whipped topping (I use light)
10 oz frozen sweetened raspberries
In a large bowl, combine dry cake mix and gelatin. Add raspberries
with juice, eggs, oil, and water. Beat until well blended. Pour into
greased 13x9 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes. Cool
before frosting.
Frosting: Fold whipped topping into raspberries. Spread over cake.
Refridgerate for 2 hours before serving.
Cook's note: I prefer to refridgerate the cake and frost right before
serving because it doesn't keep well.

Gnocchi with Red Pepper Sauce

My lemon basil gnocchi was tasty, but I ate all the veggies before I could make more, so I decided to get right into the roasted red pepper sauce. I made a roux with cream and flour, then added some milk. I did not add enough cream, so it was kind of lumpy, but it turned out okay. Then I pureed a roasted red pepper and threw it in, pressed a clove of garlic, added a frozen basil cube (from Trader Joe's), and it tasted... bland. Oh, I'm supposed to add salt... added salt and pepper, then it tasted salty and bland. So I threw two more cloves of garlic, another pureed pepper, some cayenne pepper powder, another basil cube, but it still tasted like it was missing something. The something was probably white wine, but I do not have the money to buy wine, so I just dealt with it, added some fresh spinach and (al dente) steamed asparagus, and poured it over the gnocchi and it was actually pretty good. The light, vague lemony flavor of the gnocchi complemented the sauce well (so on it's own, it needed some sort of tart/acid flavor, like wine) and almost made eating asparagus tolerable :-P. It still could have used more garlic and/or onions though. Oh well, I got two tasty dinners out of it.

Zuni Ricotta Gnocchi

So here it is, the first Daring Cooks challenge. I will without a doubt make this again, it was phenomenal, as many others said, little pillows of deliciousness. Because I'm not an actual daring cook, I have the advantage of reading the posts of everyone else, to learn from their mistakes (and have inspiration from their sauces). I added a pinch of lemon zest and some nutmeg, but unfortunately, the pinch of lemon zest was not small enough, as they tasted a little bit too lemon-y. But they really were wonderful, super light and fluffy and cheesy with a lemon flavor. So tasty. Because of the extra lemony-ness, my first version was an attempt at a lemon basil sauce with veggies, but I didn't want to make a cream sauce since the gnocchi were themselves a little creamy. I really don't like zucchini or squash, but I've had a similar dish (potato gnocchi with summer veggies and lemon basil sauce) at Maggianos where I could tolerate them and they were on sale and I need to eat more veggies, so I threw them in it and tried to eat them that way. And it worked! I cooked them up with a little extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice (the other half of the lemon after I made ricotta) two cloves of pressed garlic and a basil cube and sauted them until they were kind of brown and translucent. I heated up a similar sauce and poured it over the top, but it was a little too acidic. It actually would have been really good without the additional sauce (not that it was bad with the additional sauce, just a little acidic, especially on the veggies, it was good on the gnocchi). And I have extra veggies, so... Actually in a few days I'll try making a roasted red pepper cream sauce with spinach and asparagus (which I also do not like but want to be able to eat) with some of the leftover gnocchi. Yum. I might actually be able to eat the leftover veggies because they are in such a tasty sauce.

A few other notes. The instructions say to make sure the ricotta is dry. I had no problem with this because I made it myself, so I really would encourage that. It's super easy and pretty cheap (and milk is even cheaper this week at $2 a gallon). Also, in step 2 it says to mash up the cheese and if you see any curds to push it through a strainer. I didn't think there were any lumps... until I had added the eggs and the cheese. So I would recommend pushing it through a strainer even if you don't think you need to. It didn't ruin them, but I did find a lump in a piece of gnocchi, not really a big deal, but, well it was there. So here's the recipe:

The inaugural May 2009 Daring Cooks' Challenge was brought to us by Ivonne of Creampuffs in Venice and Lis of La Mia Cucina
We have chosen a recipe from the stunning cookbook by Judy Rodgers, named after her restaurant, The Zuni Café Cookbook.
On the surface, this is a very straightforward recipe. The challenge is in the forming and handling of the gnocchi. What you do with the recipe, in terms of variations, is up to you.

Zuni Ricotta Gnocchi

Source: From The Zuni Café Cookbook
Yield: Makes 40 to 48 gnocchi (serves 4 to 6)
Prep time: Step 1 will take 24 hours. Steps 2 through 4 will take 1 hour.
Tips:
- If you can find it, use fresh ricotta. As Judy Rodgers advises in her recipe, there is no substitute for fresh ricotta. It may be a bit more expensive, but it's worth it.
- Do not skip the draining step. Even if the fresh ricotta doesn't look very wet, it is. Draining the ricotta will help your gnocchi tremendously.
- When shaping your gnocchi, resist the urge to over handle them. It's okay if they look a bit wrinkled or if they're not perfectly smooth.
- If you're not freezing the gnocchi for later, cook them as soon as you can. If you let them sit around too long they may become a bit sticky.
- For the variations to the challenge recipe, please see the end of the recipe.
Equipment required:
• Sieve
• Cheesecloth or paper towels
• Large mixing bowl
• Rubber spatula
• Tablespoon
• Baking dish or baking sheet
• Wax or parchment paper
• Small pot
• Large skillet
• Large pan or pot (very wide in diameter and at least 2 inches deep)
Videos that might help:
- Judy Rodgers' Gnocchi Demo
- Making Fresh Ricotta Demo
- Making Ricotta Gnocchi
For the gnocchi:
1 pound fresh ricotta (2 cups)
2 large cold eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 or 3 fresh sage leaves, or a few pinches of freshly grated nutmeg, or a few pinches of chopped lemon zest (all optional)
½ ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated (about ¼ cup very lightly packed)
about ¼ teaspoon salt (a little more if using kosher salt)
all-purpose flour for forming the gnocchi
For the gnocchi sauce:
8 tablespoons butter, sliced
2 teaspoons water
Step 1 (the day before you make the gnocchi): Preparing the ricotta.
If the ricotta is too wet, your gnocchi will not form properly. In her cookbook, Judy Rodgers recommends checking the ricotta’s wetness. To test the ricotta, take a teaspoon or so and place it on a paper towel. If you notice a very large ring of dampness forming around the ricotta after a minute or so, then the ricotta is too wet. To remove some of the moisture, line a sieve with cheesecloth or paper towels and place the ricotta in the sieve. Cover it and let it drain for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can wrap the ricotta carefully in cheesecloth (2 layers) and suspend it in your refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours with a bowl underneat to catch the water that’s released. Either way, it’s recommended that you do this step the day before you plan on making the gnocchi.
Step 2 (the day you plan on eating the gnocchi): Making the gnocchi dough.

If the ricotta is too wet, your gnocchi will not form properly. In her cookbook, Judy Rodgers recommends checking the ricotta’s wetness. To test the ricotta, take a teaspoon or so and place it on a paper towel. If you notice a very large ring of dampness forming around the ricotta after a minute or so, then the ricotta is too wet. To remove some of the moisture, line a sieve with cheesecloth or paper towels and place the ricotta in the sieve. Cover it and let it drain for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can wrap the ricotta carefully in cheesecloth (2 layers) and suspend it in your refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours with a bowl underneath to catch the water that’s released. Either way, it’s recommended that you do this step the day before you plan on making the gnocchi.
Step 2 (the day you plan on eating the gnocchi): Making the gnocchi dough.
To make great gnocchi, the ricotta has to be fairly smooth. Place the drained ricotta in a large bowl and mash it as best as you can with a rubber spatula or a large spoon (it’s best to use a utensil with some flexibility here). As you mash the ricotta, if you noticed that you can still see curds, then press the ricotta through a strainer to smooth it out as much as possible.
Add the lightly beaten eggs to the mashed ricotta.
Melt the tablespoon of butter. As it melts, add in the sage if you’re using it. If not, just melt the butter and add it to the ricotta mixture.
Add in any flavouring that you’re using (i.e., nutmeg, lemon zest, etc.). If you’re not using any particular flavouring, that’s fine.
Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the salt.
Beat all the ingredients together very well. You should end up with a soft and fluffy batter with no streaks (everything should be mixed in very well).
Step 3: Forming the gnocchi.


Fill a small pot with water and bring to a boil. When it boils, salt the water generously and keep it at a simmer. You will use this water to test the first gnocchi that you make to ensure that it holds together and that your gnocchi batter isn’t too damp.
In a large, shallow baking dish or on a sheet pan, make a bed of all-purpose flour that’s ½ an inch deep.
With a spatula, scrape the ricotta mixture away from the sides of the bowl and form a large mass in the centre of your bowl.
Using a tablespoon, scoop up about 2 to 3 teaspoons of batter and then holding the spoon at an angle, use your finger tip to gently push the ball of dough from the spoon into the bed of flour.

At this point you can either shake the dish or pan gently to ensure that the flour covers the gnocchi or use your fingers to very gently dust the gnocchi with flour. Gently pick up the gnocchi and cradle it in your hand rolling it to form it in an oval as best as you can, at no point should you squeeze it. What you’re looking for is an oval lump of sorts that’s dusted in flour and plump.
Gently place your gnocchi in the simmering water. It will sink and then bob to the top. From the time that it bobs to the surface, you want to cook the gnocchi until it’s just firm. This could take 3 to 5 minutes.
If your gnocchi begins to fall apart, this means that the ricotta cheese was probably still too wet. You can remedy this by beating a teaspoon of egg white into your gnocchi batter. If your gnocchi batter was fluffy but the sample comes out heavy, add a teaspoon of beaten egg to the batter and beat that in. Test a second gnocchi to ensure success.
Form the rest of your gnocchi. You can put 4 to 6 gnocchi in the bed of flour at a time. But don’t overcrowd your bed of flour or you may damage your gnocchi as you coat them.
Have a sheet pan ready to rest the formed gnocchi on. Line the sheet pan with wax or parchment paper and dust it with flour.


You can cook the gnocchi right away, however, Judy Rodgers recommends storing them in the refrigerator for an hour prior to cooking to allow them to firm up.
Step 4: Cooking the gnocchi.
Have a large skillet ready to go. Place the butter and water for the sauce in the skillet and set aside.
In the largest pan or pot that you have (make sure it’s wide), bring at least 2 quarts of water to a boil (you can use as much as 3 quarts of water if your pot permits). You need a wide pot or pan so that your gnocchi won’t bump into each other and damage each other.
Once the water is boiling, salt it generously.
Drop the gnocchi into the water one by one. Once they float to the top, cook them for 3 to 5 minutes (as in the case with the test gnocchi).

When the gnocchi float to the top, you can start your sauce while you wait for them to finish cooking.
Place the skillet over medium heat and melt the butter. Swirl it gently a few times as it melts. As soon as it melts and is incorporated with the water, turn off the heat. Your gnocchi should be cooked by now.

With a slotted spoon, remove the gnocchi from the boiling water and gently drop into the butter sauce. Carefully roll in the sauce until coated. Serve immediately.


Note: they say you can experiment with adding things like onions or sundried tomato to the gnocchi, but this gnocchi is pretty delicate, so they might break apart when cooking. So be careful!

Daring Cooks + Homemade Ricotta

Okay, I'm just so excited about this recipe that I can't contain myself. Those of you who know me know that I am very good at stalking online (and once I get excited about something, I'm somewhat one-track mind about it, case in point my Experimental Brownies which I spent a week dreaming up and procrastinating my homework, and I do need to try again. This time they might even end up milk free.) Well I've done a couple Daring Bakers recipes, and they were fun and I learned something from them (like that maybe grad students with limited equipment/space are not destined to be daring, haha), but I love baking. Now The Daring Kitchen also includes The Daring Cooks (who post the 14th of every month), which is probably better for me, since I'm not quite as comfortable with cooking as I am with baking (really, look through the recipes in this blog: mostly breads, brownies, cookies, muffins, and the few Daring Bakers recipes I've tried, and on the cooking side we have a few simple soups and sauces). Plus, it allows me to try my hand at being creative (with a whole blogroll of people who have already done it, so I can seek inspiration from them).

Well this month's challenge is Ricotta Gnocchi. After succeeding at lasagna, I was planning on eventually trying gnocchi, and hey, a recipe fell on my lap. Plus this is a cheese version, which is lighter than the traditional potato, preferable for summer. Since it's been posted, I've probably spent hours trying to figure out the perfect sauces. Then I decided to put it off because I'm currently broke, but I've been too obsessive about it, I just need to do it. Plus, it's largely stuff I already have (which means it's relatively inexpensive stuff), and I realized I don't have anything planned for dinner next week. But in terms of sauces I've decided that I can't decide, so I'm going to make small amounts at a time, and try a variety. Two that I am particularly excited about are a lemon basil sauce (I've failed at this very many times, but after learning how to properly make a roux, I think I might be able to get it right) with a tidge of lemon zest in the gnocchi, and a sweet gnocchi (replacing the parmesan cheese in the gnocchi with powdered sugar and lemon zest) with a strawberry sauce. I also intend on trying this in a few weeks, again with a roasted red pepper cream sauce with spinach (and maybe asparagus). I'll figure out another sweet one, I have many ideas (strawberries and kiwi with a maple syrup glaze, some sort of sticky honey/nutmeg and ginger? sauce, that one might be weird, I'm putting it off because I want to taste the gnocchi first). Anyway, I'm really excited about this (obviously).

So the first step of this is to make ricotta, which is the picture. I'm super excited about it. However, everyone else says it smells really good (it doesn't) and the picture, well, it looks like ricotta, but it is kind of disgusting. Oh well, I'm sure it tastes good.
So this is what I did:
Homemade Ricotta Cheese
Ingredients:
1 quart skim milk (all recipes called for whole, but I really don't want to buy whole milk or eat the super high fat ricotta it would make and most recipes had comments that it worked with skim)
1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
Cheesecloth! (not really an ingredient, but you can get it at the grocery store and might not have it on hand as equipment)

1. Bring milk, cream, salt to a simmer in a heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally
2. Once the mixture is simmering, add lemon juice, turn down heat so it doesn't reach a hard boil.
3. After a minute stir
4. After a minute (or a little longer) it should pretty much all be curds and whey. Pour mixture into into cheesecloth lined colander in a bowl, and let it strain for an hour at room temperature.
5. Place in an airtight container overnight.

So I forgot to buy cheesecloth, but instead used one of my thin dish towels (muslin maybe? I'm not sure what muslin is, but some recipes said you could use muslin or cheesecloth and i thought it worked pretty well). I was worried the cheese would stick to it, but it didn't seem to (of course it's not done yet).

The ricotta is supposed to be really dry for the gnocchi and everyone said making it yourself is the best way to ensure that. And it might actually be cheaper, milk was on sale last week, making a quart $.75, the lemon was 33 cents but I needed the zest anyway, and the cream was $1.39 for a cup, but I would buy it for the sauce anyway and probably end up wasting half (I rarely use cream), so it's $2.47 minus whatever I would have bought and wasted anyway (lemon zest, possibly half a cup of cream), which I think is cheaper than store bought ricotta. Plus, you are supposed to use "fresh" rather than the overly processed grocery store kind if possible, which would mean a trip to the farmer's market for some more expensive fresh stuff. Plus this actually takes less time since you don't need to drain it as long (okay, it saves fridge space for less time) and don't need to go to the farmers market? But really, when DON'T I need to go to the farmers market (noting I've been in Atlanta since August and have only been there 4 times).

A Spin on Tuna Salad

So I actually talked to my hair dresser about tuna salad when I was home getting a hair cut (she has cut my hair since I was about 3, so I know her pretty well). I told her i just make the standard tuna: tuna (white albacore packed in water in the bag, not the can), mayo, celery, green onions if I have them, maybe some almonds on top (or pineapple by suggestion of a friend). I mean, it's decent, but nothing spectacular. But if I want tuna it works. She told me about a recipe she was inspired by when she was in Jamaica. I couldn't find a Jamaican recipe, so I winged it. It's missing something... salt? Maybe. But something else. I'll try throwing cumin in it. I just found a blog that talks about the wonders (and flexibility) of cumin. She puts it in chocolate pudding! I'm going to try that. Wow, this paragraph was full of ideas that aren't organized very well.

And it's getting hot in Atlanta. It's only 80 and I'm drained all the time; I'm worried about what summer will bring. Then again, it's the humidity combined with the high pollen count and the heat is probably what is getting me. One of those things will not be around in a month.

But the heat and low energy require high protein/high fiber COOL lunches. And tuna is the perfect option. And as we know, I have trouble eating veggies, so I packed this with them:

1 package tuna, drained
Half a green pepper diced
1-2 Tbsp cilantro (or maybe more, it's pretty green) chopped
1/2 red onion diced
1 plum tomato
Juice of 1/2 lime (the other half is in Corn Salsa, that I crave almost weekly in summer)

Note there is not oil or mayo in this. To keep it together, I blended it (and chopped the onion and green pepper) in my Magic Bullet.

To be honest, it doesn't really taste like tuna at all. The onion is really strong (are they really strong at this time of year? all of them I've found have made me cry, even red and vidalia onions, which I'm usually fine with), and this bunch of cilantro tasted especially plant-y, as opposed to cilantro-y (as in it tasted like a leaf, rather than having the distinctive cilantro flavor). So the tuna salad is a little... strong. I guess it just tastes like a plant-y onion. But really, I'm okay with that at this time of year. I might play with it a little, until I get a really good recipe, especially since tuna is a staple for me in summer.