Coconut Macaroon Cake

I'm a huge fan of coconut. I can remember when my Dad used to impulsively buy sweetened coconut flakes and we'd tear it open and eat the stuff straight out of the bag with our hands. (Each of us have always had a huge sweet tooth.) Mounds and Almond Joy were among my favorite candies, and I looooved macaroons. (That's macaroons, with a ROON, not macarons, with a RON, although many pronounce the latter like the former. Wrong, wrong, wrong. They are completely different confections.) Flipping through the April issue of Martha Stewart Living I found a recipe for a coconut cake that combines both cake and macaroon and immediately decided it would be the perfect dessert for Easter dinner.

The only problem? Mr Minx hates the texture of grated coconut. He says it's like eating plastic shavings. He does like the flavor of coconut, however, so he said he'd force himself to eat it if he had to. Now that's a good husband.

The way the recipe read, it seemed like it would be a coconut-flavored cake layer topped with a layer of macaroon. I figured he could just cut off the top and eat the bottom. Alas, the macaroon layer was heavy and sunk down into the batter, which, containing leavening, rose up and around the shredded coconut. So while there were cake-y bits within the cake, the shredded coconut pretty much permeated everything.

He ate it anyway, and I promised that I'd try it again, omitting the macaroon-y bit altogether. The bottom part, flavored with both coconut oil and Coco Lopez, might be an interesting base for a pineapple upside-down cake. Or just fine on it's own.

Here's the cake recipe, from the Martha Stewart web site.

I didn't have heavy cream on hand to make her recommended chocolate sauce. I wanted something runnier anyway, that could be made well in advance and didn't need heating to loosen up before drizzling. I found David Leibovitz' recipe online and added some sour cream and vanilla, just because I felt it needed more flavor.

Chocolate Sauce (adapted from David Leibovitz)

1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-processed)
2 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons sour cream

Whisk together the water, sugar, corn syrup, and cocoa in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Once it starts to simmer, remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips until melted. Whisk in the vanilla and sour cream and allow sauce to cool to room temperature. Pour into a squeeze bottle and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Drizzle over cake. Or squeeze directly into your mouth--I won't tell.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta and Apple

During the tasting at B&O American Brasserie last month, chef Matthew Kane told us that his brussels sprout dish was inspired by one he tasted at Geoffrey Zakarian's now-defunct South Beach restaurant, Tudor House. It involved creme fraiche, mustard, and apples, and Kane borrowed heavily from those elements to create his own version.

I happened to find Zakarian's recipe (posted on his Facebook page) and was determined to make something that resembled Kane's. Sorta.

Kane's version involved bacon. I didn't want to buy bacon because I'd feel compelled to make the entire package and then eat the entire package, so I used the pancetta from Zakarian's version (which comes in much smaller amounts and thus is somewhat less lethal). It was hard to tell that Kane's version had creme fraiche on it at all, but if I had used the same proportion of sprouts to sauce in Zakarian's version, my sprouts would have been white and soupy. (As it turns out, my local supermarket didn't have creme fraiche at all, so I used sour cream.) Zakarian's recipe also called for deep-frying both the sprouts and the pancetta. While that's nice to do if one has a fryolator handy, there's no reason for a home cook to deep fry vegetables when oven roasting does a swell job of producing crispy and flavorful near-burnt bits. And Zakarian's recipe called for two apples, which is an insanely large amount for something that is basically going to be used for garnish. After all, 8 cups of brussels sprout halves shrinks down to about 4 or 5 cups after cooking, and a medium-sized apple produces almost a cup of julienne pieces. He also calls for a cup of apple cider to be reduced down to one tablespoon. It's spring, so cider isn't available. Also, that seems somewhat wasteful for a home cook. Just use something else flavorful and sweet, like agave syrup.

My version, with all of its adjustments, was pretty good. I think I preferred Kane's use of bacon over Zakarian's pancetta, and the vinegar flavor wasn't as obvious in Kane's version. If you put my dish and Kane's side by side, I'm sure there would be little or no resemblance. After all, I'm not a professional chef! But still...I liked my dish, and I will definitely make it again (with bacon).

Sorta Kane, Sorta Zakarian Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta and Apple

8 cups of halved brussels sprouts
Olive oil
Salt
4 pieces thinly sliced pancetta
1 tablespoon agave syrup
1/2 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1/2 apple, cut into julienne pieces (eat the other half)

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place the brussels sprouts in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet with sides. Sprinkle on a few glugs of olive oil and a couple pinches of salt and toss well with your hands to make sure everything gets coated.

Place the pancetta on another foil-lined baking sheet with sides.

Put both pans in the oven. After about 5 minutes, using tongs, stir the brussels sprouts and flip the pancetta pieces. After another 3 minutes, remove the pancetta from the oven. It should be browned and crisp (if it seems more greasy than crisp, a few minutes of draining on a paper-towel-lined plate should crisp them up).

Continue cooking the sprouts, turning them occasionally, until they are tender and the leaves have brown spots and some are brittle and crispy (mmm!).

Remove sprouts from oven and place into a large bowl.

Combine agave, sour cream, mustard, and vinegar in a bowl. Season to taste. Toss sauce with brussels sprouts. Top with pancetta and apple. Serve immediately.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

13.5% Wine Bar

Back sometime before last Christmas, I purchased an Amazon Local deal for 13.5% Wine Bar. We had every intention of using it around the holiday, perhaps during our annual pilgrimage to see the Miracle on 34th Street. Instead, we went to Arthouse, next door, and I can't remember why, Soon, the months slipped by until I realized our deal was about to expire. Before it was too late, we got ourselves to Hampden to enjoy the drinks, appetizers, and entrees to which we were entitled.

Honestly, I'm not much of a wine person. I used to think I preferred reds to whites, but now I feel the opposite. I prefer wines that are bright, crisp, and cold to tannic red vinos that are usually served entirely too warm. And I would much rather have a beer or cocktail than a glass of wine. And though I could have tried any alcoholic beverage on the menu as part of my deal, I started off with a glass of Chateau Gaillard Gamay, a bright rose with a lovely strawberry aroma. Mr Minx, who does prefer reds, had a fruity Reunion Malbec.

For our first courses, I chose the braised pork belly with cabbage. While it could have been a bit warmer in temperature, the pork belly was lusciously fatty and tender. The cabbage accompaniment had been dosed with vinegar, which cut the fattiness nicely, and the crispy shallots added a nutty, burnt-onion crunch. The sauce was very subtle, and I wouldn't have called it a bbq sauce at all.

BBQ Pork Belly: braised pork, red wine BBQ sauce, shaved cabbage, crispy shallots

Mr Minx's duck confit spring rolls were slightly less successful. While the rolls were greaseless and contained a nice amount of duck, they perhaps resembled actual Chinese carry-out spring rolls a bit too much. He felt that they fell flat, and the pungent mustard sauce was the dish's saving grace.

 Duck Confit Spring Rolls: cabbage, red onion, ginger, sriracha honey mustard

His entree, the confit chicken carbonara, was pretty damn good. While the menu listed fettuccine, the pasta he received was actually papardelle, but no matter. The rich sauce, gilded with a raw egg yolk, had just the right balance of smoky and cheesy flavors, and the pasta was silky and well-cooked. The shreds of chicken were completely superfluous, albeit tasty.

Confit Chicken Carbonara: fettuccini, grana padano, fresh egg

I had the lobster and grits. I love shrimp and grits, pretty much every version I've ever tried, and thought that lobster and grits had to be even better. While I enjoyed the dish overall, and it certainly was pretty, it was not without its problems. The grits were what I think of as breakfast-style, lumpy and plain, not creamy and rich. The lobster was extremely salty and a bit overcooked. But the peas tasted fresh and spring-y (the last time we had fresh peas in a restaurant, they were elderly starch-blobs) and the charred lemon added just the right amount of acid.

Lobster & Grits: spring peas, buttermilk grits, charred lemon, lobster jus

I enjoyed my glass of wine so much, I had a second, as did Mr Minx. While the meal was a tad uneven, we enjoyed the experience. The black leatherette chairs at 13.5% are plump and comfortable, making it too easy to sit back and enjoy yet another drink. We were able to snag a table behind a short wall so we could take flash photos without being too obnoxious. And our waitress/hostess was dynamite. I would not be averse to going back to enjoy one of the restaurant's cheese flights with a wine flight to wash it down.


Posted on Minxeats.com.

Skirt Steak and Watermelon Radish Tacos

We almost never see skirt steak in the average supermarket, so when we did see it, we bought one and tossed it in the freezer for later. And then promptly forgot about it.

Digging through the freezer some months later for something else entirely, I stumbled upon the skirt steak and figured it was high time to put it to use. I wanted to make something fajita-like (the word fajita actually refers to skirt steak) but not exactly. After an inspirational online search, I thought something in an Asian vein might be tasty and put together a marinade with various Asian elements like miso, rice wine vinegar, and soy sauce. I also added honey for sweetness and a ton of garlic. Because what doesn't taste good with a ton of garlic? (Don't tell me--chocolate cake.)

After briefly contemplating frying some onions, I was lazy and chopped scallions to use raw. I also saw this to be a good time to use the watermelon radish we bought at MOM's Organic Market a few days earlier. Quick pickling seemed like the way to go. And of course, homemade corn tortillas, because they are so easy and better than store bought.

The resulting tacos had nicely spiced and garlicky meat, and a nice sweet/tartness from the pickle. I stirred some powdered coconut milk (from a trip to H Mart) into a bit of Greek yogurt to use in place of crema, and threw together a simple tomato and scallion salsa. However, the best addition to the steak-and-radish taco was a bit of crumbled feta cheese, which added a nice bit of funky saltiness.

Marinated Skirt Steak

1 tablespoon red miso
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sriracha
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 1-lb skirt steak

Combine first six ingredients in a bowl. Place the steak in a zip-top bag and pour the marinade over. Massage the marinade into the steak for a few seconds, then close the bag, making sure to squeeze out as much air as possible. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.

When ready to cook, preheat your broiler. Place oven rack in highest position. Remove steak from marinade, wipe off any chunky bits and place steak onto a baking sheet with sides. Broil 3-4 minutes per side, to medium-rare. Remove steak from oven and allow to rest 5 minutes before cutting against the grain into thin slices.

Serve as a filling for corn tortillas, with some pickled radishes, feta cheese, and sour cream or crema.

Pickled Watermelon Radish

1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 watermelon radish, cut into thin rounds

Combine vinegar, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the radish and toss well to coat all radish pieces. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Drain liquid before serving.














Posted on Minxeats.com.