Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

(Fried Clams from Seattle’s Beloved Chain, Ivars)

I eluded to it before but now with less than one month away it is time to talk about Northwest Noshings.
When I moved to the Pacific Northwest from desert Arizona I had no idea the variety of culinary treats I was in for. My first time at a farmer’s market out here was jaw dropping. The farmers market was not just dried chilies and citrus fruit. The shear variety of mushrooms was insane.(Speaking of mushrooms if you want a chance to win 2 lbs of fresh morel mushrooms you should enter the contest over at Marx Food). The strawberries were red inside…the ones we got in AZ had a ton of white in the middle. I personally don’t eat tomatoes but I can tell by just looking at them that Washington tomatoes kick Arizona tomatoes ass…and they have all the heirloom variety that don’t cost and arm and a leg..and another leg.
Many times I have made something that I wanted to share with my readers but it just really didn’t fit into the genre of my blog. Plus I get A LOT of emails(really, we are talking hundreds here people) asking me if all I do is sit around and eat breads and sweets…they want to know if I eat “real” food. Yes, we eat real food. I tend to eat real food…my husband eats sloppy joes.
Add on to that, many a local person asks me where they should eat and I decided to make a food blog dedicated to all things Pacific Northwest. So starting June 1st(2008), I will have another food blog(yes, I am insane) that will be recipes and restaurant reviews…and not just limited to the Seattle area, and get this…no sweets or baking(gasp). Northwest Noshings will not be updated nearly as often as Culinary Concoctions is(my head might explode if it was) but will have a post a week.
In order to celebrate my new food blog I am having a give away to one lucky person(winner will be chosen randomly) out there in blogland. You will be receiving a lovely Pacific Northwest gift pack. So if a cookbook from our local celebrity chef, local chocolate, spice rubs and what not sounds like something you are up for then all you need to do is leave a comment on this post.
Thanks for being a reader of Culinary Concoctions by Peabody and I hope to have you as a reader of Northwest Noshings.

Cheers,
Peabody

(Bacon Wrapped Scallops in a Blackberry Reduction inspired by Purple Cafe and Wine Bar)

“What is the stuff in the fridge that looks like raw cookie dough?” My husband asked with hopeful anticipation.
“It’s a Peanut Butter Torte…you’ll like it.”
And with that my husband finally got to eat something he liked…peanut butter and chocolate.
As you can see from the pictures I changed mine up a bit. First off I did not use Oreo cookies like the recipe called for, I used Mother’s Peanut Butter Gauchos…I was going for more peanut butter than chocolate on this one. I also omitted the cinnamon, nutmeg and chopped peanuts on the inside of this dish because I knew my hubby would not be going for that. And for presentation I did a couple smaller ones in mini spring forms but the one you are seeing was made using a cylinder.
The Peanut Butter Torte chosen by Elizabeth of Ugg Smell Food is extremely easy and other than the refrigeration time can be put together fairly quickly. This dessert is very rich. I really could only eat a few bites each time I went to eat it. And you know if I think it is rich, it is rich!
Be sure to check out the other TWD Peanut Butter Tortes.

Peanut Butter Torte
¼ cup unsalted peanuts
½ c. mini chocolate chips (or finely chopped semi sweet chocolate)
24 Mother’s Peanut Butter Gaucho cookies, finely crumbed or ground in a food processor or blender
½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt
2 ½ c. heavy cream
1 ¼ c confectioners’ sugar, sifted
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 ½ c salted peanut butter – No surprise…I used Jif
2 tablespoons whole milk
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
Getting ready: center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch Springform pan and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.
Put the Peanut Butter Gaucho crumbs, melted butter and salt in another small bowl and stir with a fork just until crumbs are moistened. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the spring form pan (they should go up about 2 inches on the sides). Freeze the crust for 10 minutes.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a rack and let it cool completely before filling.
Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, whip 2 cups of the cream until it holds medium peaks. Beat in ¼ cup of the confectioners’ sugar and whip until the cream holds medium-firm peaks. Scrape the cream into a bowl and refrigerate until needed.
Wipe out (do not wash) the bowl, fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment if you have one, or continue with the hand mixer, and beat the cream cheese with the remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until the cream cheese is satiny smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, and the milk.
Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir in about one quarter of the whipped cream, just to lighten the mousse. Still working with the spatula, stir in the crunchy peanut mixture, then gingerly fold in the remaining whipped cream. Fold in the mini chocolate chips.
Scrape the mouse into the crust, mounding and smoothing the top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight; cover with plastic wrap as soon as the mousse firms.
To Finish The Torte: put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Leave the bowl over the water just until the chocolate softens and starts to melt, about 3 minutes; remove the bowl from the saucepan.
Bring the remaining ½ cup cream to a full boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and , working with a a rubber spatula, very gently stir together until the ganache is completely blended and glossy.
Pour the ganache over the torte, smoothing it with a metal icing spatula. Scatter the remaining ½ cup peanuts over the top and chill to set the topping, about 20 minutes.
When the ganache is firm, remove the sides of the Springform pan; it’s easiest to warm the pan with a hairdryer, and then remove the sides, but you can also wrap a kitchen towel damped with hot water around the pan and leave it there for 10 seconds. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Source: Adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan

I have a friend with a 9 year old daughter…who is going on 40. She is far more mature than me and I sometimes forget she is a kid. Until I watch her eat. She loves candy. Lots and lots of candy.
One day when I was there giving her mom some cooking tips, she was sitting at the table eating Strawberry Milkshake Whoppers. I had seen them out at Easter time in a giant bag. And though I did want to try them as I love the original Whopper I didn’t want to buy a whole bag because if I didn’t like them I would be stuck(it was like a 64 ounce bag!). So I asked A if I could have one of those Whoppers and of course she gave me one(well 5 to be exact). Darn tasty, but I knew it was the type of candy you could easily make yourself sick on…unless of course you are 9.
More importantly it got me thinking about a cake. For the last year or so I toyed with making a chocolate cake with chocolate marshmallow frosting and chocolate Whoppers. But this got me thinking about Strawberry. So off I went to make it. The original one I made was with pink and white polka dots. I spent much time getting those dots just right, only to have the cake destroyed by 9 and 10 year olds in a matter of minutes…I should have known better. I didn’t take any pictures of the cake for the blog because I wanted to bring them a whole cake.
But when I wrote about the cake in my Live Journal I had several friends who had interest in the recipe and to see pictures. So I went to make it again. I didn’t do polka dots as Helen(my less evil twin) made polka dots the very same day I made the first cake…we really do share the same brain cell some days(she seems to get it more than I do though :P). This time I just marbled the cake that way if it was destroyed I would not be so distraught.
This cake is sweet as you can guess it but actually tasty if you take it in small doses…kids on the other hand will eat a giant piece no problem.

Strawberry Milkshake Whopper Marshmallow Cake

Classic White Cake(recipe follows)
Marshmallow Frosting(recipe follows)
Strawberry Milkshake Whoppers(two 6 ounce boxes)

Classic White Cake

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 large egg whites (3/4 cup)
3/4 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

pink food coloring

Set rack at the middle level in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
Butter the bottom of two 9-inch round. Line bottom with parchment or waxed paper.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Combine egg whites, milk and vanilla extract. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture then add half the milk mixture. Continue to alternate beginning and ending with flour mixture. Scape the bowl and beater often. Take 1/2 of the batter out and place into a separate bowl and set aside. Add 3 drops of pink food coloring to the remaining 1/2. Blend until the batter is pink in color.
Divide the white cake between the two pans. Then add the pink. Using a knife swirl the cake batters together for a marbled effect.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, OR until the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Flip cake over onto a rack and remove parchment or waxed paper. Let cake cool completely before frosting.

Marshmallow Frosting:

4 egg whites
1 ½  cups sugar
½  cup light corn syrup
pinch of salt
2 tsp vanilla
6 drops pink food coloring

Using a large bowl, preferably the top of a double boiler, mix eggs, sugar, corn syrup ans salt until combined. Place the bowl over simmering water ans whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is hot, about 3 minutes(be careful to not make it too hot since you are using eggs and don’t want them to scramble). Remove heat and beat 5-7 minutes until frosting is cool and stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla. Add food coloring and beat until all the color is incorporated.

Place Strawberry Milkshake Whoppers(I used two XL boxes found at Target) into a large sealable plastic bag. Keep a couple out for decorating. Taking either a pan or a meat pounder, smash them up into pieces. Set aside.
Place one cake layer on cake plate. Take one cup of frosting and spread it out evenly onto the layer. Sprinkle Whopper pieces onto the frosted portion of the layer.
Place the second layer on top of the frosted layer. Use remainder of frosting to frost top and sides of cake.
Use the remaining Whopper pieces to decorate the sides of the cake.
Serve the day of, as the marshmallow frosting will get very stiff if it sits around.

Source: Cake recipes adapted from Food Network.com, frosting recipe adapted from Cupcakes Galore by Gail Wagman

I bet you have been saying to yourself, isn’t it playoff hockey? Why haven’t we heard Peabody talk about it then? Why it is your lucky day!
First an update on my own teams. Calgary…out. Sigh. Flyers…surprisingly in and up 3-1 in the series so things are looking good to make it to the Eastern Conference finals.
Sadly I predict that the Penguins and the Red Wings will make it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, with, and I hate to even type it…the Red Wings winning. Ugh. I could be wrong. I have only been wrong once in the last 8 years now…and that is when Calgary lost to Tampa Bay.
Anyway, I will now go on my rant. Other than food blogs, I read hockey blogs. There is nothing I hate more than when I read people saying that their team DESERVES to win the cup this year. No one deserves to win the cup except the team that actually does. It does not matter if you had the best season in franchise history…if you did, that is why they give out the President’s Trophy…to say good job. But when playoffs roll around, it’s anyone’s game…and that is what makes it special.
Your team has 7 games to get it done. If they don’t get it done in that time they don’t deserve to move on. Don’t bitch about the call the referee made in the 3rd period that made you lose the game. Your team lost the game. They get paid to win games, no matter what the circumstance. That is their job….their million(s) dollar job.
I was crushed beyond all belief when Tampa Bay won game 7 against Calgary. You can ask my husband, I cried for hours and moped for days. I really thought it was their year. But they didn’t get it done, and they had more than ample opportunity to do so. And so, sadly, they did not deserve to win that year….Tampa Bay did.
So the nice girl you know here in food blogging world is actually less than nice in the hockey world to those stupid enough to write on their blog that their team deserved to win.
And speaking of deserving things. After a long day of super Spring cleaning the house I decided I deserved a little treat of my own. Not a giant silver cup to hoist over my head, but a key lime mousse parfait. I still had leftover key limes from my pie making day and so decided to do something with that. Combine that with my giant flat of strawberries that needed to be dealt with. What you get is a tart, silky mousse that meets a sweet ribbon of fresh strawberries that took a little bath in some sugar and lime juice. Followed by the tart and silky mousse again….and so on.
I’ll be sure and keep you posted about the Flyers as I know you will be on the edge of your seat waiting to hear all about it.

Key Lime Mousse and Fresh Strawberries Parfait

Key Lime Mousse:
2 TBSP water
1 tsp unflavored gelatin
½ cup unsalted butter
¾ cup sugar
3 TBSP grated key lime zest
½ cup fresh key lime juice
pinch of salt
6 large egg yolks
¾ cup heavy whipping cream

Pour water into a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the water. Let stand for about 10 minutes, until softened. Place bowl in a large bowl of hot water, and stir until gelatin has dissolved and the liquid is clear.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large heavy saucepan over medium-low heat. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the sugar, zest, lime juice, and salt. Whisk in the yolks until smooth. Cook the mixture, stirring constantly, until it thickens and leaves a path on th back of a wooden spoon when a finger is drawn across it, don not allow this mixture to boil.
Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the gelatin mixture, and immediately pour through a strainer into a bowl. Let cool to room temperature, whisking occasionally.
Beat the cream with an electric mixer on high speed in a large bowl just until the cream forms stiff peaks. Add the cream to the lime mixture in 3 batches, gently folding it in with a whisk or rubber spatula.

Macerated Strawberries

2 cups sliced strawberries
¼ cup sugar
1 TBSP key lime juice

Throw all the ingredients into a bowl. With a fork lightly mash strawberries to bruise them and release their juices. Let sit in fridge for 2 hours.

To make parfaits:
Place in alternating layers, mousse then strawberries, mousse than strawberries and then mousse. Or really however you would like to layer them.
Makes about 3 servings in stemmed glasses.
Refrigerate, loosely covered, for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days, until set and thoroughly chilled.

Source: Adapted from Luscious Lemon Desserts by Lori Longbotham