When life hands you snow… make snow cones

Alright, I consider myself a Northern girl through and through. I love the snow and the cold, shoveling, skiing, snowmen, the whole bit. But this has been the worst winter ever with feet upon feet of snow, no melting, and unbearable bitter cold.

The cheerful snowman we built a few weeks ago has been buried alive

We’ve received so many National Weather Service announcements that today’s warning of wind chills in the -30’s and risk of frostbite in minutes just feels like a routine weather report.

My city has literally given up on attracting tourists – our website now redirects them to Key West instead

With a 1-year-old at home and no feasible way to go outside, the whole family has developed a pretty serious case of cabin fever. So this week, I decided it’s time to make something good out of all of this mess. A couple of days ago, I brought in a big tray of snow (like everyone else, I have obscenely large piles of pristine snow covering my yard and patio). Evee and I played in it, measuring and scooping and tossing our snow creations around the kitchen floor. We made mini snowmen using a gingerbread cookie cutter. But Evee’s favorite activity? Eating it. I bet no one saw that coming 😉

So this gave me an idea. Eating snow on its own is plenty of fun, but let’s face it, the real novelty wore off a few months ago. But how about making snow cones? Those are probably my favorite carnival treat, and snow cones have such a tropical, summery feel that they’re sure to chase away some of our winter blues. So I asked the internet whether it’s ok to eat snow and was assured that it was safe, as long as you use common sense and steer away from obviously polluted patches.

Next I wondered where I could get snow cone syrup, and I found out that you can buy it in gallon jugs for just a few bucks from Amazon, etc. But that’s not my style. So I went to the grocery store, bought a few classic packets of Kool-Aid, and we made snow cones!

If only we had those little umbrellas…

I just made a simple syrup on the stovetop (1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, bring to a boil) and added a packet of Kool-Aid. I didn’t do any googling, but I would bet that there are more sophisticated recipes out there. I happened to have a squirt bottle lying around the house which worked perfectly for syrup application. I grabbed a bucketful of pristine snow, filled everyone’s glasses and squirted some syrup on top. It was that simple. The results were quite tasty and everyone had a lot of fun.

Snow cones in the dead of winter help revive that long-lost summer feeling

Bring it on, winter!

Luxembourg Weihnachtsstollen (okay, really it’s German… either way, it’s delicious)

In 2007, I spent a semester at my university’s campus in Luxembourg.  Another American student, Anna, and I spent a couple months living in a homestay with a very wonderful woman.  Mme Neuser lived alone in a house whose backyard abutted the train station, and I think she took great joy in having the bedrooms of her grown children filled once again with young people.

Here is Anna and Mme Neuser at the breakfast table in her kitchen.  Mme Neuser spoiled us when it came to breakfast; she was an early riser, and somehow managed to judge by the sounds of us getting ready upstairs when to time everything so that she was pouring our tea and warm toast popped up from the toaster just as we came down the stairs.  She would then put out a decadent breakfast spread: Nutella and blackcurrant jam for the toast, little cheeses, and all sorts of goodies…  Did I mention we were spoiled?

In early December, two amazing things happened to me in that house.  St. Nicholas left candy for me outside my door on Dec. 6th, and Mme Neuser’s Weihnachtsstollen appeared at the breakfast table.

I knew right away that if I learned anything from my time abroad, it was going to be to learn how to make this divine Christmas bread.

Getting the recipe was actually a pretty complicated process.  Mme Neuser was primarily francophone, although it was generally easier to communicate with her limited English than my extremely limited French.  So although she could write out the recipe for me (in German, of course), she could not translate it for me.  For that I took it to one of the administrators at my campus, a Luxembourgoise woman who was amazing enough to not only translate it, but to recognize which ingredients I might have difficulty finding back in America and spent a significant amount of time explaining what some of them were to me, even going so far as to recommend that I scout them out in the grocery store so that I would know exactly what I was looking for when I attempted the recipe at home.  This was an absolutely invaluable tip; it helped me not only ID the ingredients but to pin down the precise amounts for things like “a packet of baking powder” or “one bottle of lemon extract.”

Once translated, I then had to convert the units for everything from the European-style weight-based measurements to the American-style volume measurements.  (Thank goodness for the internet!)  I’ve managed to make this Stollen a couple of times now, so without further adieu, here is the recipe for Mme Neuser’s Christmas Bread, as closely interpreted as I can manage it.  (I’ll follow the actual recipe up with notes on finding the ingredients and making it.)

Ingredients

(Weight-based or Euro-style measurements in parentheses)

• 4 cups (500 gr) flour
• 2 1/2 tsp (1 packet/11 gr) baking powder
• 1 cup (200 gr) sugar
• 1 Tbsp (1 packet/7.5 gr) vanilla sugar, OR 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 4 1/2 – 5 1/2 Tbsp (~60-80 mL) almond extract
• 1 1/2 Tbsp (20 mL) lemon extract
• 1/8 tsp (2 dashes) cardamom
• 1/8 tsp (2 dashes) nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp (2 dashes) cinnamon
• 2 eggs
• 5 1/2 Tbsp (75 gr) unsalted butter
• 1 container (8 oz) fromage blanc
• 1 3/4 cups (250 gr) raisins, soaked in rum overnight then drained (these will inflate to ~2 cups after soaking)
• (4 1/2 -) 5 1/2 Tbsp (~60-80 ml) rum extract OR rum reserved from draining raisins
• 2 cups (250 gr) candied fruit
• 2 – 2 1/4 cups (250 gr) chopped hazelnuts
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1 box (7 oz) marzipan

For the topping:

• 3.5 Tbsp (50 gr) melted unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup (50 gr) powdered sugar

Directions

• Mix flour and baking powder in a very large bowl.
• Make a depression the center, and add all other ingredients except the marzipan.
• Mix and knead until smooth.  (That’s right; get involved!)
• Form dough into a flattish oval shape.  Place marzipan in the middle of the oval, and fold it up to be roughly loaf-shaped with the marzipan in the center.
• Place on a baking sheet and bake at 285F (140C) for up to 75 minutes, or until a light golden brown.
• While hot, cover with melted butter and then powdered sugar.
• Once Stollen is cool, wrap in tin foil.  It can keep for up to 5-6 weeks.

So it is fairly easy to make once you’ve tracked down all the ingredients.  Where I live in Connecticut, I can actually make this with just one trip to my regular Stop & Shop.  But if your local grocery store doesn’t carry everything, most ingredients can be found at a place like Whole Foods or other specialty grocery, and I’ve tried to include potential substitutions above even if you can’t find everything.

Now, some more detailed notes on ingredients and potential substitutions:

First up, vanilla sugar.

Here are two examples of packets of vanilla sugar; they contain approximately the same amount.  The one on the right is the very last packet from a supply that I bought at the grocery store in Luxembourg and then hoarded away because I wasn’t sure I would ever encounter such a thing again.  On the left is one I found in the States; maybe at Whole Foods.  So it does exist, though I wouldn’t count on finding it.  There are two options if this isn’t available: first, just substitute vanilla extract.  There is so little vanilla sugar in such a large loaf that it probably wouldn’t make a difference anyway.  The second option, which I hope to do someday just because it sounds cool (even if it won’t really taste any different than using regular vanilla extract), is to make your own, by storing some sugar in a small container with a real vanilla bean for a long time.

Next up, the extracts.  Now, almond extract isn’t tricky because it’s hard to find–it should be located in any baking aisle–but simply because of the vast quantities involved here.  I’ve included a range in my list of ingredients above, but Mme Neuser’s recipe calls for the upper end of the range, 5 1/2 Tablespoons.  Which is an awful lot of those tiny little bottles, which cost about $5 a pop.  Every time I make this I think I must’ve done the conversion wrong and check my math on it about twenty bajillion times.  So this is one area I tend to skimp a little on (though I sort of hate myself for not going all out).  4 1/2 Tablespoons of almond extract is exactly two of those little 1 oz. bottles.  One of these days I’m going to plan ahead and buy some almond extract in bulk, and that year, I’ll put the full amount in my Stollen.

I’ve also found it impossible to find rum extract.  I’ve found imitation, but I’d personally rather substitute real rum (even if the concentration is off) than use the fake stuff.  I’ve done this substitution two different ways; sometimes I try to keep the amount of liquid the same, and other times I put quite a bit more rum in to try to maintain the flavor that the extract would provide.  Both worked, so this is a matter of personal preference.

This is what a container of fromage blanc looks like.  (It’s wäisse kéis in German; both translate literally as “white cheese”.)  The preponderance of fancy cheese aisles makes this a lot easier to find than even a few years ago; my Stop & Shop carries it, but if your regular grocery store doesn’t carry it, it can be found at Whole Foods.  Alternatively, I’ve read that you can make a substitute by combining equal parts yogurt and cottage cheese.

Everything in the bowl, prior to mixing!

The final ingredient, marzipan, isn’t that unusual, but it sure is a lot more familiar to Europeans than Americans.  It comes in a foil tube inside a box, like so:

Once you remove it from the foil, you have to roll & squish it a bit (like a play-dough snake) to lengthen it to the size of your loaf.

Putting it in the center…

And all rolled up, ready to bake!

Mmmm, powdered sugar everywhere.

So there you go, Weihnachtsstollen or Christmas bread.  I love this so much, and hope to continue making it year after year, with warm thoughts of a woman who spoiled me as if I were her own grandchild.

Baking with a toddler

I don’t have the energy for a long thoughtful blog post today, but I have a short message I would like to share as a tip for parents (and future parents) of toddlers: Let them help. Toddlers are so eager to learn and to expand their roll as full members of the community that they are desperate to help you with all tasks and chores. While their skills are less-than-fully-developed, and their eagerness is disastrously over the top, I have found that it’s best to let them roll up their sleeves and pitch in.

Christmas time is generally a time of crafting and cooking overload, so it’s the perfect opportunity for your toddler to make a mess of whatever projects you’ve set out to do. I’ll share our crafting endeavours at a later date, but today I’d like to give you a glimpse of the mama-toddler-cooking-partnership.

Mixing
I’ll measure out a cup of flour, and Evee will dump it in the bowl. Sounds simple, right? Wrong. Maybe she’ll dump it in the bowl. Maybe she’ll dump it on the floor. Or on her head. Or drink out of the measuring cup as though it’s a bowl of soup. Get over it. And at our house, we salvage as much as we can off the floor or shake it out of her hair directly into the bowl, add a pinch or two to make up for our lost flour, and keep mixing. To those who actually eat our baked goods: you have been warned. Cleanliness is no longer a factor for the mama-toddler-baking-team.

Sampling the dough
Or as Evee says “Try! Try!” This is the absolute most important step in any baking project. The contents of the bowl must be tried at every and all steps. Raw flour will be consumed in mass quantities. Pure salt must be tasted. Chocolate chips, naturally, must be sampled with the fervor befitting an unpopular monarch’s official taster.

Assembly
Evee makes the most even, round and well spaced cookie balls imaginable. She will not slow you down at all. And she never goes back to the “sampling the dough” stage when we are ready for the assembly stage. I’ll admit that she’s helping make a pretty nice criss-cross pattern on these peanut butter cookies:

Sprinkles
Ah, sprinkles. The arch nemesis of toddler parents striving for sane holiday traditions. The levels of disaster, mess and pure sugar consumption in the previous baking steps are nothing compared to adding sprinkles to sugar cookies. My only advice here is to have a drink to loosen up your inhibitions before tackling sprinkles. I’m still pulling sprinkles out of my boots a week after we baked these cookies.

But man, we look great baking these with our brand new Christmas aprons hand made by the lovely and talented fellow blogger, A!

Happy Holidays everyone 🙂

Hayl’s Veggie Enchiladas (FODMAP-Friendly)

I first made this when we had a group of friends over to our apartment, and one of them demanded the recipe–which meant I had to write it down!  I’m glad I did, because I’ve gone back to this recipe several times.  It can serve a large group, or–as Steve and I like to do with our busy schedules–it can make leftovers that will last all week.

Note about FODMAPs:  For several years I struggled on and off with stomach issues, until a doctor recommended I try eating a low-FODMAP diet, where I restrict my overall intake of several food groups.  This has helped me enormously and given me a sense of empowerment over my own health.  The downside?  As a former vegetarian, there’s not a lot of meat-free dishes I can eat these days–so here I’ve made my own.  Every person following a low-FODMAP diet has to find their own balance, and this is a recipe that works for me, but it is not entirely FODMAP-free.  To further reduce the FODMAPs, use corn tortillas, reduce the amount of onion, and instead of garlic powder, use garlic oil to sauté the veggies.  If you’re sensitive to lactose, use cheddar cheese instead of a mix–you’ll want to avoid the softer white cheeses, which have more lactose.

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 different colored bell peppers, cut into chunks (note: green peppers are not okay on a FODMAP diet, but red, orange, and yellow are safe choices)
• 1-2 large zucchini, cut into half-slices
• 8 oz sliced mushrooms
• 1 1/2 cups frozen or canned corn
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, partly drained
• 8-10 large tortillas
• 1 (28 oz) can enchilada sauce
• 1 package (4 cups) shredded Mexican cheese
• ~1 teaspoon dried cumin
• ~1 teaspoon garlic powder
• chili powder (to taste)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Heat oil in a large pan and add onion.  Sauté for about 5 minutes, until they’ve just started to brown.  Add peppers and zucchini, sauté for a few more minutes.  When they’ve started to brown, add mushrooms.

Add seasonings.  (I hardly ever measure spices–I just use generous amounts of cumin and garlic powder, and not-quite-so generous amounts of chili powder because I’m a baby when it comes to spicy things.)  In a 9×13 baking dish (that’s been lightly oiled or sprayed with cooking spray), assemble tortillas by adding cooked veggies, corn, a little bit of tomato, and a little bit of cheese.  Roll them up and place them seam-side down in the pan, side by side.  (Reserve some of the sautéed veggies and half the diced tomato to put on top).

Then spoon the reserved veggies over the top.

Pour the enchilada sauce over everything, making sure it’s evenly distributed in the pan.  Top with the rest of the cheese.

Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.

Enjoy!

Chicken Bruschetta Bake!

For my first recipe.. I made a really simple and quick dinner for Tommy and I. It was actually on the back of a Stove Top stuffing box!

Chicken Bruschetta Bake (Prep: 10 mins, Cook: 30 mins)

Ingredients: 2 medium chicken breasts (or a one large one!)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 box Stove Top chicken stuffing
1/2 cup water
2 cloves garlic (I added extra.. I love garlic!)
1 tbsp dried basil
1 cup mozzarella cheese

To start, preheat the oven to 400F. Add the stuffing, garlic, water and tomatoes in a bowl and mix until blended. The stuffing will get a little soft.

In a casserole dish, or in my case a 13×9 pyrex dish, layer the chicken, basil, and cheese. (Here is where Tommy says I could have put in double the cheese.. and I probably should have)

Then you put the stuffing mixture on top and bake for 30 mins!

It was so easy to make and really tasty! It’s a lighter meal, so it didn’t fill Tommy up as much as he wanted. 🙂 I was pleasantly surprised by this recipe and I hope you guys try it!

-A