Poodleful is the New Martha

Lifetime Movies

2008-06-23T11:01:00.004-05:00

I know that this borders on an obsession, however, I feel as if there are some interesting feminist gems to be mined from LMN. Last night, for example, I watched, with my beautiful stepdaughter an older lifetime movie--The Eyes of a Stalker. This older film, I thought it was definitely from the 80s, but actually it was made in 1995 has a very classic, more formulaic structure than many lifetime movies. In this film, a young college girl is being stalked by a professor, albeit a pseudo professor, who is described as a "wily legal consultant" whatever that is. He hangs around the courthouse and campus offering people advice on how to use the small claims courts--(Everyone keeps saying, 'Hey Dr. Prime--I took your small claims class a couple of semesters ago!' What?!) At the beginning of the movie, the viewer is told that two years prior the heroine's father died, leaving her and her mother (who is a judge) to cope with life together.

So far, look at the elements: 1) The heroine (Beth) begins the movie as a ninny basically, but by the end of the film, thanks to the supportive relationship she has with her mother, Martha, who is formidable and the struggles she goes through, she becomes empowered and determines to make the stalker stop ruining her life.

2) The men in the film--her father, by all accounts a real prince, is dead. Her love interest is a jerk for a lot of the film and is always acting like Beth has brought the stalker upon herself. Stephen the Stalker is a "smooth" weirdo who is, in my opinion, very well cast. The only other male character is an old wizened PI who Beth's straightlaced mother initially resists but eventually comes to trust. Essentially, none of the men in this movie can be trusted, except for the most seemingly untrustworthy one--the PI.

3) May I venture to call this a Lifetime network Bildungsroman? The trajectory of the plot--young kid who learns some valuable lessons and becomes a woman certainly seems to qualify.

One interesting moment is when Martha tells Beth that she can't believe she is hanging around with the PI, and Beth says that he is "nice". Martha tells her that this is her problem--she is too nice for her own good. The interesting point about this encounter is that both women learn from each other--Martha learns eventually to overcome her prejudices and stereotypes, and Beth learns that she needs to toughen up a little.

To me this is exactly the kind of film that one expects Lifetime to make. It is much harder for me to categorize some of their other movies. I mean, why are women so interested in really sick crimes, and the aftermath of such crimes? (Eg Amber's Story)I guess there is something about what women relate to and the unimaginable but it is less obvious why these movies belong on a television station dedicated to women. Same with the movies where a women is the mayhem-maker, (eg the Trophy Wife's Secret). What fuels these kinds of fascinations? It seems to me that Lifetime producers thought that they would be making more movies like Eye of the Stalker and fewer movies like the Trophy Wife's Secret or that crazy one I reviewed previously about the cheerleader turned porn star. Man as enemy seems more like what you would expect all Lifetime movies to have as a common theme, but surprisingly, lots of times this is just not the case.

Dinner last Night

2008-03-04T09:18:00.002-06:00

Okay, actually this is dinner last week but it was really good.

BAVARIAN SAUERKRAUT AND SAUSAGE DINNER

Ingredients
4 cups uncooked medium egg noodles (about 8 ounces)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup sliced onion
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
2 cups sliced peeled Granny Smith apple (about 3/4 pound)
1 1/2 cups refrigerated sauerkraut, drained
1 (12-ounce) package chicken apple sausage (such as Gerhard's), cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup sherry

Preparation
Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain and set the noodles aside.
While the noodles are cooking, heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced onion and caraway seeds, and cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Add apple, sauerkraut, and sausage, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth and sherry, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook 5 minutes. Serve over the noodles.

Yield
4 servings (serving size: 1 1/4 cups noodles and 1 cup sausage-apple mixture)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 445(29% from fat); FAT 14.5g (sat 3.4g,mono 6.9g,poly 3.3g); PROTEIN 20.1g; CHOLESTEROL 114mg; CALCIUM 31mg; SODIUM 1118mg; FIBER 9g; IRON 4.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 59.9g

Cooking Light, DECEMBER 1999

It was so good however, that Clancy and I ate it all, it is supposed to serve at least four..or two in our house.

Dinner Last Night

2008-02-27T12:15:00.002-06:00

I am sick of eating horrible food. For the past several months, I have been dieting wildly, trying to lose the last ten stubborn pounds of baby weight. Somehow this meant that I should only eat 800 calories a day of Lean Cuisines and soup...And then I would break my diet and pig out. I plead with Clancy not to cook, because I knew that I would eat too much because it is always so good. So I finally gave up. I have lost in the end probably 5-6 pounds. Not too many to go.

I have been cooking all week, which has not just benefited me but P. and even M. as well. And, I have been able to cook delicious things really fast, which is a requirement for me since I work all day. It is amazing what you can do in 20 minutes, and a simple home cooked meal makes everyone in my house happy.

Here is what we had last night:

PORK CHOPS WITH A GINGER CHERRY GLAZE

Use any variety of fruit preserves if you don't have cherry on hand. Serve with egg noodles tossed with chopped fresh parsley.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
4 (4-ounce) center-cut boneless pork chops, trimmed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup cherry preserves
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon bottled ground fresh ginger (such as Spice World)
1 teaspoon seasoned rice vinegar

Preparation
Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper; add to pan. Cook 4 minutes on each side; remove pork from pan.
Combine preserves and remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Add preserves mixture to pan; reduce heat, and cook 2 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Return pork to pan; cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Yield
4 servings (serving size: 1 pork chop and 2 tablespoons sauce)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 275(26% from fat); FAT 7.8g (sat 2.6g,mono 3.4g,poly 1g); PROTEIN 23.5g; CHOLESTEROL 67mg; CALCIUM 19mg; SODIUM 453mg; FIBER 0.1g; IRON 1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 26.8g

David Bonom , Cooking Light, MAY 2006

I cooked up some couscous instead of egg noodles (although I do passionately love egg noodles) and made a simple green salad and it was done. For the salad dressing, I added a splash of the delicious chimichurri my brother and his fiancee brought back to us from Argentina and the salad was totally transformed from something ordinary into something extraordinary.

Outsider Art

2008-02-25T12:56:00.003-06:00

By Minnie Adkins

My Etsy Purchases

2008-02-20T17:09:00.000-06:00

M. & P.'s Room Redecoration

2008-02-20T17:02:00.004-06:00

We recently painted M. and P.'s room pink and hung a pretty little chandelier. Now, I have to figure out if I should take the time to wallpaper the back of their closet door. (It will look cute, but our landlord won't like it, which leads to the point that we rent, and do not own our apartment...which makes me feel so torn about wallpapering my own closet, for the same reasons.)

And I have this horrible storage problem on my hands. Why do small children have so much stuff? And, because of my horrible internet shopping hesitations, I can't find a good solution. So, for the moment all of their stuff is living in Z.'s room. Why is it that I can't make internet purchases?

On the other hand, I made my first purchases from Etsy, so wish me luck! Etsy has all kinds of wonderful handmade things. I ordered some lovely art and a pair of unicorn bookends.

Fun in Austin

2008-02-19T13:50:00.003-06:00

Clancy and I had a long weekend in Austin, and I had a great time. I reconnected with my good friend Ted, who had Clancy and I over for a delicious dinner at his and his boyfriend Joel's amazing house, went antique shopping all over town and drank too much several nights in a row. Plus I fit in a trip to Neiman Marcus Last Call where I bought some new adorable True Religion jeans that are already falling apart.
I purchased a lovely danish mid century candleabra, I will post pictures later.

I really missed my babies, though. P. split her lip open yesterday. We were shopping later, and I looked at her, and she looked so sweet and sad. She was cradling a baby doll, and her fingernails were all caked with dirt, and then she had a river of snot falling down her nose, and a gigantic fat lip. I don't know if she will ever look like such a toddler again.

Back to Austin, I think if you visit, you ought to eat as much Tex Mex as possible. I ate twice at my favorite taqueria Chango's where they make the flour tortillas right before your eyes and douse the burrito with lots of delicious homemade salsa. And I had margaritas at Guero's where they make the best margarita in the world. I don't know exactly how they do it, but the lime juice is somehow not too tart and the tequila is not overpowering, and the cocktail has no real sweetness.

Clancy and I also went to Zoot, where we had our first date, but I was so drunk that I can't properly review it, however I was not all that impressed with the food. I faintly remember some only half good rabbit sausage. It tasted kind of like they were competent sausage makers but you could tell that they did not make sausage for a living.

The Many Fears of M.

2008-02-13T12:59:00.003-06:00

M. is a fearful child, I guess terrified is the more appropriate word. Clancy and I had to throw away the book Mommy Doesn't Know My Name, because on one page, Hannah, the heroine, appears to be a chickadee. M. is quite terrified of chickens because, she insists, of their pointy beaks. Sometimes when I read to her, I will look at her, and she will be covering her face with her little hands. The book The Monster at the End of the Book really just about sent her over the deep end. (Straight to the garbage).

She is also terrified of skeletons and skulls, so the current trend of skull decorated clothing has presented numerous problems. Once she even told me that she was scared of the food at the grocery store. I think only Clancy and I could have produced such a fearful little thing. I have always been extremely scared of all kinds of things, when I was young I bordered on total OCD, I thought that my fears wouldn't materialize SO LONG AS I took five steps to get to my bed, had five pillows in my bed, kept my silverware pointing towards myself at all meals, and spelled words out in my head in complicated patterns all related to the number five. I am better now, perhaps due to the extremely large dose of Zoloft that I take every day.

And Clancy is no better, he has fears related to supernatural phenomenon, while my fears are more along the lines of scary thoughts about murderers. And the two of us have very regular, unreasonable anxiety related to fears about our careers and lives.

The worst part about all of this is that when I was a little girl, I can remember admiring my parents and thinking about how fearless they seemed. They weren't afraid that my dolls were going to watch me and kill me when I fell asleep. I couldn't wait to grow up so that my fears would dissolve like theirs seemed to have. But now that I have grown up, unfortunately I am just as scared of aliens (my one predominant supernatural type fear) as I was when I was a little girl.

Poor M. I really wish that she hadn't inherited this unfortunate quality from us.

2008-02-04T15:26:00.000-06:00

Jack the Wolf by Yvonne Jagtenberg

2008-02-04T15:08:00.000-06:00

This book is a good read for someone who is just about to, or has just started preschool. Jack, the main character is very shy and scared when he arrives on the first day at his new school, particularly because everybody else already knows each other and has the hang of things. But, then Jack gets to pretend he is a wolf, and all of the children are scared of Jack. Jack is thrilled by this turn of events, and wants another turn at playing the wolf.

I think that this book speaks to a very human feeling. When you are hurt by someone, you want them to know what it feels like, and so you try to hurt them back. I think it is particularly a feeling that small children can relate to--see previous post. When M. grabs something from P., P.'s instinct is to bite, unfortunately for M. And it is more than mere self defense, P. wants to make M. in the same way that M. angered her.

Or when Clancy and I fight, so many of our remarks, once we are in the heat of the argument are just intended to cause reciprocal pain.

Jack feels the same way when he puts the wolf mask on. He is finally able to reciprocate the intimidation that he felt from the other children. I like how the author doesn't make any moral judgments about the pleasure Jack takes in scaring the other children. It is successful because children can relate to it. M. makes me read this one every night.

M & P

2008-02-04T15:05:00.000-06:00

Little M. and P. have been fighting like cats and dogs all weekend. M. gave P. a totally unprovoked bite, and ceaseless scratching and screaming has plagued my house.

And another Monday morning. Two tiny girls screaming in my ears when I was trying to leave the house this morning. It was totally brutal.

2008-01-31T16:50:00.000-06:00

Margaret at the Barack Obama KC Townhall.

Online shopping

2008-01-31T16:45:00.000-06:00

Why can't I ever buy much when I shop online? Although I am sure that Clancy would disagree with me, if he had any idea of the volume of furniture, children's clothes, expensive women's shoes and handbags and other products that I look at, without actually purchasing much, he would be impressed.

I think maybe it is because you have to go through so much effort to check out. I have suffered many online purchase regrets, too, but I don't think that this is the reason. For example, the beautiful looking purple plastic silverware I bought from Moss that is no stronger than the disposable spoons I use every day to eat my oatmeal with. Or the imposter Higgins glass ashtray I purchased on EBay.

Presidential Candidates Favorite Reads

2008-01-29T12:35:00.001-06:00

Hillary Clinton: Little Women, The Poisonwood Bible

Barack Obama: Song of Solomon, Moby Dick

John Edwards: The Trial of Socrates

Mitt Romney: BATTLEFIELD EARTH ??? What is this guy thinking?

John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls

Monday Morning

2008-01-28T09:16:00.000-06:00

I hate Monday mornings. I know alot of people do, but I just miss the girls so much on Mondays. This morning was really awful I was sitting on the couch, because Margaret asked me to sit for a few minutes, and as soon as I sat down, they were both in my lap. And, then I tried to get up a few minutes later, and I got one off but then when I reached to release myself from the death grip of the other, Portia climbed right back in my lap. I was imprisoned by my children. Literally. Imprisoned by wiggly little girls who refuse to let me stand up. Boo. It was awful to extract myself and head out.

Outsider Art, Kind of

2008-01-03T11:21:00.000-06:00

Glitter Monkey, by Travis Strange

Lifetime Movie Review

2008-01-02T10:38:00.000-06:00

So, over the break, I somehow managed to fit in a Lifetime movie marathon. Below I describe my favorites.

CASUALTIES OF LOVE: THE LONG ISLAND LOLITA STORY

This film is truly a LM classic, starring Alyssa Milano as Amy Fisher. The sheer amount of acid wash makes it entirely worth watching. I was totally wishing I had Joey B.'s denim jacket and poor Mary Jo's mile high white acid wash jeans. The acting is classically bad, and there really is no plucky heroine, which breaks the classic LM formula, as previously described. But, the story was so sensational that Lifetime could not help itself from making this movie.

It is kind of funny, I think that the director tried to be as neutral as possible, because at different points in the movie, you feel sorry for all of the different characters. First, of course, you feel sorry for Mary Jo Buttafuoco, but then she starts to get all righteous and her desire for vengeance is more important to her than the maintenance of the family business, and I started to feel like, wait a minute here Mary Jo, the family business is important. And we all know Amy is going to go to prison, it is just a question of how long.

You also feel sorry for Amy (momentarily I might add) because she is so young and stupid, and she gets herpes. Which is just sad. But, her prostitution and ridiculous ideas soon turn you against her.

And Joey, you feel sorry for him, because he made a mistake and boy does he end up paying for it. The director leaves the whole relationship between Joey and Amy very vague, so the audience is never quite sure what happened between the two of them, although you suspect that Amy is not lying when she is talking to her high school cheerleader chum about all of the places that they had "encounters".

But his refusal, time and time again to admit that he had an affair is frustrating and tedious.

I tried to watch the Nora Roberts' adaptations, but I just couldn't stomach it. Even with Heather Locklear, a semi bona fide actress. (I still miss the Melrose years.) Lifetime does better, I think to make movies that are either based on true incidents, or movies that are created solely with the Lifetime viewer in mind.

For some reason, the older that the LM is, the more I like it. I think it is because they date themselves so badly the older ones are more amusing. Plus, then you can tell yourself that you are watching it in a truly ironical fashion, and although you are sucked in, it is because you are so amused.

SHATTERED INNOCENCE

This film is another classic, and I just checked and it is playing again on 1/13. This is the true story about an all American cheerleader turned "actress" (I mean drug addicted porn star). You watch the demise of Shauna Grant as she spirals deeper and deeper into the world of cocaine and porn films.

This movie is based on a true story, which you can tell by weird details like when Shauna shows her nude pictures around to her kid sisters on a visit home. No writer would come up with that, I don't think.

Thank You Whoorl

2008-01-02T10:31:00.000-06:00

I now have hair model hair, thanks to the continuing advice of Whoorl. She makes very good recommendations for hair styles and products.

I just purchased some Frederic Fekkai glossing mist on her recommendation. I think she actually uses the glossing cream, however the mist is really good and makes my hair nice and shiny. And she gave some smart directions about how to use a flat iron, which I also found to be enormously helpful.

In case of an Emergency

2007-12-12T22:05:00.000-06:00

Courtney by John Burningham

2007-12-06T22:08:00.000-06:00

Courtney is one of my favorite children books ever. John Burningham is the author of many great children books, including The Magic Bed, Avocado Baby and Aldo. I think that Courtney is the best one of the bunch. It is just as amusing as Avocado Baby (which is about a little baby who eats avocados and becomes really strong and scares away some robbers) but more thoughtful. At the opening of the book, the children of the family want a dog. Their parents tell them to make sure and pick a "pedigreed dog." The children then take the dog that noone wants, Courtney. Their parents are very mad until Courtney opens his large traveling case and cooks dinner, waits on the family in a white waiter's suit, plays the violin while they eat and juggles for the baby (my favorite part).

He spends all of his time with the family and even saves the baby from a fire, but when he leaves, the parents immediately forget all of his virtues and insist that they knew he would leave all along because he had no pedigree. Then, the children are at the beach floating in a dinghy that gets lost at sea, and mysteriously they make it back to shore, after their parents first becoming frantic.

Whenever I think about this book, I think about how Burningham has made Courtney into a Christ figure. The only people who believe in him are the children, but then he ends up being this amazing individual, making them happy--literally saving their lives. Then, as soon as he appears he disappears--again paralleling Jesus' death and resurrection--cuz the kids at the end are saved by a mysterious something that the reader just knows is Courtney.

John Burningham always tells a story from a slightly odd view. Aldo, for example is, I find a sad and sort of menacing book. And The Magic Bed is similarly odd. The parents are always, in one way or another the enemy, which is definitely a common children's book technique (consider any Roald Dahl plot) but unlike Roald Dahl there is never any humor associated with their shortcomings or villainy, which is sort of odd considering their audience.

Anyway, I appreciate the fact that Burningham has made a ratty old pound dog into a Christ figure. I also like how Courtney first impresses the family with his range of tricks--violin playing, juggling etc. He really is humble in appearance only. And here, Burningham has really managed to pack alot into a little book.

READ THIS

2007-12-05T08:50:00.000-06:00

Here is an article about the demise of the entree. I am a wholehearted advocate of eliminating the entree at restaurants myself--at least the humongous portions that are typical of American entrees.

Another Piece of Outsider Art

2007-12-03T22:08:00.000-06:00

By Georgia Henkel

Supernatural Brownies

2007-12-03T21:44:00.000-06:00

The NYTimes recipe for supernatural brownies is the best brownie recipe I have ever tried. They remind me of a cakier, less dense miles of chocolate. They really are better the day after you bake them, and there are so few ingredients that the quality of your ingredients makes a significant difference. Click here to go to the recipe.

I was recently reading somewhere, I believe in America's Test Kitchen cookbook that Jacques Pepin claimed that chocolate tastes better when it is not heated to as high of a temperature when it is cooked. And, America's Test Kitchen did some research, and he is right. This seems fairly obvious if you eat one of these brownies right out of the oven.

I was surprised to find something that really does taste better if it cools--usually I gobble up everything when it is still so hot that I have to leave my mouth open and breathe for the first thirty seconds. The chocolate loses its flavor when it is really hot but when it cools, the brownies sink slightly and the chocolate flavor intensifies. This makes me really worried about chocolate souffles. I love chocolate souffles, but there is no way to serve them any way except for very hot. Have I, all this time, loved a sub-par chocolate dessert? I have been worried that I have just been romanticizing them--there is something so nice about eating a nice puffed up chocolate souffle full of creme anglaise.

Clancy and I used to make them every Sunday when Margaret was a baby and we lived in Lawrence. I would make the souffles, and he would make the creme anglaise. And then we would sit at our kitchen table and hold the baby and look at how cold it was outside and eat them (two each).

Anyway, back to the brownies--I made them twice in one week. The first time I used good quality, but not excellent semi sweet chocolate along with nestle semi sweet chocolate chips and regular light brown sugar. Yesterday, I used Scharffen Berger chocolate and muscovado sugar, as recommended by the NYT, and they were better (I didn't think they could get any better, but seriously they did).

And, please do cover them, I was too lazy to return to the kitchen last night and cover them, and they got slightly stale at the edges, although they retained their moist dense centers.

P.S. You can just cut them in the pan right after you bake them, you need not follow the slightly odd saran wrap-cutting board instructions.

A Notable Children's Book

2007-11-28T11:46:00.000-06:00

I get so tired of so many children's books. Why are they SO SO boring so much of the time? Please read this one to your children. It is really good. The illustrations are very nice and Lucas is a good writer.

Being shy is hard, but totally natural. I always want to blend in to my surroundings just like Halibut, and often Margaret does too, so I know that she totally related to him. Plus he looks so adorable in his suits that match even his armchair in his own home, when he stays there alone. Lucas shows a picture of Halibut in his suit and armchair and explains that he mostly likes to stay inside. In a single picture and a few words, Lucas demonstrates that Halibut is not even transparent to himself--in order to feel shy around yourself, there have to be multiple selves that one is composed of. That opacity to oneself is one of the most interesting things I think about the self. The ability to not know parts of you, or for one part of yourself to be shy around another part of yourself. And to make all of that into something that everyone understands is so good.

And then at the end, Halibut inadvertently makes himself stand out at a garden party. His gold and silver suit is a wild success and ends up providing him with the means to make a living by opening a suit-making store. Of course--this is a nice message, "overcome your fears and people will love you." Maybe it is a little cliche, but still very well done.

Another Piece of Outsider Art

2007-11-26T13:54:00.000-06:00

By Chris Clark, one of my favorites.

Thanksgiving Update

2007-11-26T12:56:00.000-06:00

Over the lovely long Thanksgiving weekend, we cooked alot of different things. I made a pumpkin pie that was so good that I ate three large pieces, some amazing scones, and yorkshire pudding. Clancy's prime rib was also excellent.

Pumpkin Pie
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen
Show:
Follow That Food
Episode:
Follow That Feast

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed 1 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten 1 cup half-and-half 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional 1 piece pre-made pie dough Whipped cream, for topping
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.
For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.
Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream.

I made the crust from America's Test Kitchen cookbook, and it was exactly as promised--easy to handle and roll out. I find that it is often incredibly difficult to roll out a pate brisee and then pick it up and put it in a tart pan or pie pan.

And Deb, over at Smitten Kitchen had a post about America's Test Kitchen's scone recipe so I had to (1) buy the cookbook and (2) make the scones. They are PERFECTLY DELICIOUS. See Deb's post http://smittenkitchen.com/2006/11/dream-a-little-dream-of-scone for some pictures and comments about the scones. I had previously been using a Joy of Cooking recipe, and the America's Test Kitchen recipe was infinitely better.

As for the Yorkshire pudding, I screamed when I saw them cooking in the oven, all puffed up and golden. I have never tried Yorkshire pudding previously, so I was expecting an actual custard kind of thing, not a giant puffy beautiful roll kind of thing. They are so easy to make, and very impressive. I used reamekins instead of a muffin tin, which worked very well.

I was as happy as this guy.

YORKSHIRE PUDDING

1/3 cup plus 4 tablespoons of beef roast drippings

6 eggs

2 cups milk

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 10 cups of the muffin tin with a teaspoon of the dripping fat. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs until frothy. Whisk in the milk and remaining drippings. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt together. Whisk the egg mixture into the flour mixture and mix well. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake the pudding for about 50 minutes, undisturbed. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

Some Thanksgiving Gifts for Poodleful

2007-11-21T13:39:00.000-06:00

All available at Liza Sherman Antiques.

Thanksgiving Menagerie

2007-11-21T12:45:00.000-06:00

I am sitting here in my office watching the snow swirl around the twenty-fourth floor. It is lovely. So, what is Poodleful making for Thanksgiving?

A rib roast, yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes, some other vegetable...not sure yet, pumpkin pie, apple tart, and something for my lovely vegetarian stepdaughter.

"Why no turkey, hater?" you may be saying. For me, if I am to celebrate a holiday about eating, I want to eat something that I enjoy, and turkey is not at the top of my list, maybe it is an appropriate diet food, but not something that I want to indulge in. I honestly feel the same way about pumpkin pie, but Clancy LOVES it, so I guess I have to make it. If it was up to me I would make these cupcakes, which are delicious.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

These cupcakes are super moist from all of the pumpkin. I think that I ate 6 in a row immediately after making them.

I am not sure anyway about the cupcake's place at the Thanksgiving table.

I made a lovely fall centerpiece that I will post pictures of ASAP with dried flowers. And, we will be using my Grandmother's lovely bavarian china, which should look nice as well.

Lifetime Movies

2007-11-12T12:27:00.000-06:00

I have a sad addiction to Lifetime movies. Why is this, I always wonder. What is it about a Lifetime movie that I find to be so interesting and entertaining. I usually consider myself to have pretty good taste in movies (some of my faves include The Seventh Seal, Seven Samurai, The Barbarian Invasions, Badlands) but not when it comes to Lifetime. I will even rewatch the same Lifetime movie if it reappears.

I tell myself that I appreciate the irony of Lifetime movies, the bad acting, predictable plots, plucky heroines, but I am never sure if I am being honest with myself. My sophisticated sense of humor and subtle appreciation of the cultural underpinnings from whose loins Lifetime movies spring, I tell myself separate me from the normal viewer. I am a "metaviewer"--I watch Lifetime movies while imagining the "typical" viewer enjoying herself, jumping at all of the plot twists and turns, feeling empathy for the hard done by heroine, but no this is not true. I AM the typical viewer, who am I kidding? I am a young television watching mother who spends a lot of time around the house.

The Heroine--Lifetime movie heroines, though they vary widely in age, attribute, profession etc. always have a few common characteristics. Unfortunately, they usually find themselves in a horrible predicament--a detective hot on the trail of a murderer and the murderer is HER son; a teenage kid whose drug abusing mother is unfit to take care of her kids so she must adopt her siblings at age 15; a detective hot on the trail of a serial murderer and the murderer's mother works in HER office, but she is having trouble scraping together enough evidence to pin it on her (there are alot of these kind); a mother whose ex husband fakes his and his son's death in order to kidnap her son. In the face of these horrible disasters, the heroine always 1) is appropriately shocked 2)then scraps everything together, puts together all of the pieces 3) finds herself or the party on whose behalf she is acting in even more danger due to her intelligence and diligence and 4)saves the day.

The Villian: Either a dumb but mean man, or a sick and twisted conniving kind of woman. Men in Lifetime movies are even more superficial than the women. They are either physically evil (the raping, murder in cold blood type, but without any intellect) or totally flat and "perfect" for the heroine (the winsome dumb-bunny neighbor, the sweet but dumb, always count on the woman detective partner). The truly evil villians of Lifetime movies are almost always women--see above examples, the mother who comes in and out of her four children's lives at her leisure, sometimes forgetting to feed them for days, continuing to date the same dumb-bunny that tried to rape her daughter, the scorned ex-wife who arranges for a young women to seduce and once he is totally hooked abandon her ex husband, the mother who never thinks any woman is good enough for her son and so emotionally bullies him into murdering his girlfriends.

The things that every Lifetime viewer must find to be appealing deep in her psyche are the ability of women to be extremely cruel to each other, and the violence. Violence is a common element in lots of movies, I think there must be some kind of psychological benefite to watching violence acted out in movies. I think the settings are also appealing, the heroines always find themselves in some ordinary woman kind of setting.

Some Outsider Art

2007-11-09T13:34:00.000-06:00

I love Outsider art. I want to amass a large collection of it for my home. Here is a nice piece by the Beaver.

How To Iron

2007-11-09T12:56:00.000-06:00

Ironing is an important skill in a homemaker's repertoire. However, I really never have any time to iron. In the morning, I sleep until approximately 8 when our nanny arrives and then the girls and I wake up and I run around, throw some clothes on, brush my teeth and leave.

I know that I should iron in the evening after I put the girls to bed, but I am always too tired to go and iron at that time.

A number of years ago, my mother purchased a beautiful, expensive German iron for me. I used it all of the time, briefly, and ironed everything in our house, including our sheets. A good iron is a real luxury to have because if it is heavy enough and hot enough then you only have to iron the item once. If you have a cheap iron, you will find that you must iron and reiron the item over and over in order to eliminate the wrinkles.

Then, when I started working, I told myself that I would iron every day, and bought all of these expensive clothes that have to be ironed. I quickly realized though that the best work clothes are ones that require no ironing, and so now I live in sweaters and polyester pants. Dry cleaning is another no no because I just never have time to make it to the cleaners. Further, the iron is a real hazard around small children, so yet another reason to avoid ironing like the plague that it is.
Below is a list of

Some Ways to Avoid the Iron

1. Buy lots of sweaters.

(Both available at Barney's Coop)

2. Do that hang your clothes in the bathroom while you take a shower trick.

3. Take the item of clothing, throw it in the dryer with a washcloth that is damp and let them dry together.

4. Work clothes, I hate work clothes. You only wear them to work, where other work people see you, they don't care you don't care, if you are like me, you spend 90% of your time alone in your office anyway, so the point is buy work clothes at Target. I have a pair of work slacks from Target that cost a whopping $12.00 that I covet BECAUSE I don't have to iron them.

5. If you take two minutes to hang your dry clean only clothes between wears instead of throwing them on the floor of the closet, like I do, then you will save yourself the trouble of ironing.

6. If something appears only slightly wrinkled, try it on! You will be surprised by how those wrinkles are less noticeable once the clothes are on your body.

7. When you shop, you MUST take the ironing factor into consideration. You aren't going to start ironing if you don't already, no matter how much you love the item.

If you must iron, then make sure you heavily sprinkle water on the item first and let it sit for awhile, it will take out much of your work.

Wallpaper Menagerie

2007-11-08T14:52:00.000-06:00

I have a new love for wallpaper. This lovely wall design and others are available at http://rompbklyn.com/products.php?categoryId=17. I am going to have to get one for the girls' room.

Poodleful and Her Nanny

2007-11-08T12:54:00.000-06:00

Today's post, which was originally going to be about ironing (I will return to The Art of Ironing for the Modern Woman--don't worry) caused me to start thinking about my maternal grandmother, my Nanny. My Nanny is the ORIGINAL Martha Stewart--but more sophisticated. She is a housewife extraordinaire, not only were my mother and her sister's nightgowns, sheets and underwear always ironed, their whole wardrobes were all handmade by her.

She is a whiz at all kinds of crafts--she had extensive experience with floral arrangements, interior design and gardening in addition to her sewing skills. Additionally she is a woman of letters, she and my grandfather loved to read to one another, and she has an envious book collection. She is always up to date on current events and I think the only bone I have to pick with her is her great affection for the Republican party. My husband always swears that it is a historical difference of ours, and that if she had to rechoose today, she would be a democrat. I don't know...unfortch she is pretty committed to even the most reprehensible Republicans.

Anyway, I am so grateful to have her love and influence in my life. I still feel guilty for telling her that I didn't like the way that she wallpapered her bathroom when I was a little girl--she essentially decoupaged the walls with many many scraps of different wallpapers (she didn't care if I didn't like it..she was probably even relieved, Margaret, while beautiful and charming is not my advisor for matters of taste).

Pizza Bella

2007-11-06T13:53:00.000-06:00

Several new restaurants have opened in Kansas City lately.

Pizza Bella: Pizza Bella is a new restaurant from the owners of 1924 Main. Poodleful likes 1924 Main (kind of) and is even less fond of Souperman (which is owned by the same outfit) but she LOVES Pizza Bella. Since it opened, a mere two months ago, Poodleful and her family have visited a number of times and tried, she thinks, every pizza, which is no good for her wasteline. She highly recommends the pizza with all of the different cheeses--not usually her kind of thing, but the ricotta on this pizza pie is so creamy and delicious it could be mistaken for a cheese less humble. And the prosciutto pizza with an arugula blend is also really really good. They also serve a delicious octupus salad and their roasted brussel sprouts are also nice. On the other hand, the chorizo on the chorizo pizza has nothing in common with good Spanish chorizo--it tastes like they cut up a hot dog and used it as a topping.

Additionally, Pizza Bella is a really good place to take your small children, as the service is fast and the waitstaff seems happy to see kids around. Additionally, it is very fairly priced. The restaurant itself is cute too with red plastic chairs and place mats that have the menu on the back.

In short, Poodleful could eat at Pizza Bella twice a week for the rest of her life and you would hear no complaints.

How to Roast from the Acclaimed Author of How to Sell

2007-11-05T09:01:00.000-06:00

Because it is November, I would like to offer a meditation on roasting. The Pilgrims apparently favored roasting, so when you serve roast turkey this year do not fret about somehow being inauthentic, or somehow misconstruing the tradition. Please open this link to review a letter written from the Pilgrims about the "first" Thanksgiving dinner.

I find this letter to be particularly amusing because the Pilgrim author seems so concerned to let the audience know that they are living high on the hog over here in America. Jamestown, Roanoke--HA HA--those people are obviously just poser Pilgrims who don't have our good luck. We DEFINITELY made the right decision to come here on an extremely long journey by boat to celebrate our weird Puritan religion and fight terrible weather conditions, native populations, and mutiny among ourselves. Anyway, it sounds like quite a celebration they had themselves.

Technically speaking, roasting is a cooking method that utilizes dry heat in order to cook the meat or vegetable. Roasting often causes a caramelization of the surface of the food. A roast chicken is like an omelette in so far as it is an easy thing to seriously screw up, an extremely difficult thing to do correctly and accordingly is an easy way to measure the skills of a particular chef.

In order to offer the best advice about roasting, I interviewed Clancy Martin, celebrated author of How to Sell, who also happens to be an expert roaster.

1) What is the most difficult thing about roasting?

Knowing your oven (its real temperature). Make sure you roast different things in it so you know what the actual roasting temperatures and times are. Make sure you have time to baste if basting is recommended (and with chickens you should always baste).

2) What is the best advice for roasting?

Turn your chicken. Spend lots of time preparing whatever it is you are going to roast. The most important stage of roasting is the preparation before it goes in the oven. Also, because it will continue to cook after you remove it from the over, err on the side of underroasting. If necessary you can always pop it back in for another ten minutes.

3) What are the preparations for roasting?

Varies from meat to meat. Make sure you ahve an hour you can dedicate to whatever you are roasting before it goes in the oven. Make sure you have string for tying. make sure you have butter, garlic and fresh thyme (you will use these on many things you roast). make sure you salt and pepper whatever you are roasting.

4) How do you get the skin to be just right?

Preparation before it goes in the over. For chicken, basting, turning the bird every 15-20 minutes, and watching. If a chicken isn't crisping, you can always roast and turn under the broiler at the very end.

5) Tell me about pan gravies.

Pan gravies take practice. The most important step is spooning off the fat. Caramelize at medium heat, then deglaze with a little room temperature and simmer down to half the volume.

Dearest Poodleful, Regards, Emily Post

2007-11-02T16:36:00.000-05:00

Poodleful believes that the basic rules of entertaining in the '00s have not changed significantly in many years.

However, through the many guests she has had over for dinner, she has some modern advice for fellow hosts and hostesses.

1. One of Poodleful's favorite tips is: Have the guests over AFTER the little darlings are in bed. Poodleful has entertained both ways, with children awake and with children asleep and has discovered that the evening is much more enjoyable for everyone if the two year old is getting her forty winks. Poodleful usually asks guests to arrive for dinner shortly after 8 PM.

2. An entree and a dessert are sufficient for guests. Poodleful and her husband have experimented with the number of courses many times. Some poor guests have suffered through six or seven courses at her earnest but misguided hand. If you must, Poodleful feels like a simple salad, served either before or after the entree is allowable.

3. If you are the guest, please be sure to take something to your hostess. While Poodleful thinks fresh flowers are nicest, if you know that your host and hostess drink, a bottle of wine is also very nice (try to by something original--not expensive but not the cheapest most obvious selection either).

4. Seating arrangements: Traditionally, it goes man-woman-man-woman. But, Poodleful likes to mix things up sometimes, and just to be original, sit woman-woman-man-man, or any other variety. Poodleful feels as if the traditional arrangement is slightly stuffy and kind of awkward at times. And the most important thing about etiquette is that it is supposed to make others as comfortable as possible.

5. Avoid the following foods unless you know your guests fairly well: beets, turnips, shellfish, veal, foie gras, pate, mincemeat pie (Poodleful just included mincemeat pie on the list because she has always HATED it), mushrooms, lots of hot red pepper flakes and any other foods that are not popular with more or less everyone. While you cannot satisfy everyone's palate, there is nothing worse than watching guests fake love for your offerings because they feel as if they have to.
This comes from Poodleful's concrete experience.

6. Lock your dogs (except for Poodleful) in the bathroom close to the time that your guests are scheduled to arrive. Not everyone loves Fluffy as much as you do. (Although everyone loves Poodleful, seriously.)

7. This may seem obvious, but if you are the guest, than MAKE sure that you compliment the chef on their food, whether or not you like it. There is nothing more disappointing than receiving pointers and criticisms about a meal that you have lovingly prepared for a guest. (Poodleful does not mind criticism if she is close personal friends to the guest, this is mostly applicable to fairly formal circumstances.)

A Pepto-Bismol Birthday Bash!

2007-11-01T14:48:00.001-05:00

Well, no actual pepto-bismol was involved. But, Poodleful decided that the best way to celebrate Margaret (3) and Portia's (1) respective birthdays was by throwing a large combination birthday party that had a "pink" theme. Overall, I felt that the party was wildly successful.

First, I drew up a guest list. I totally ignored the advice often given for children's birthday party guest lists--invite as many children as your child is turning. Here that would have been four guests (3+1). I invited fifteen children and all of their parents, and even some of our friends who are childless, and my whole family came from out of town.

Second, I arranged the entertainment. Margaret really adores puppet shows, so I secured a puppeteer to come to the party and give a performance. The other main attraction was the cotton candy machine that we rented. They are very easy to use, although not very nice looking.

Third, party decorations were fairly elaborate. I made tissue paper pom poms that hung at different lengths above the party table. I made pennant flags from a variety of pink fabrics that I purchased at Hancock Fabrics. My mother and I made crepe paper roses. We purchased piles of pink candy, and created paper flower/candy bouquets to adorn the table. We dressed the table with a pink crushed velvet piece of fabric trussed with reems of pink ribbons. Directions for the pom poms and pennants follow. Finally, we served some light food items--Matt's famous quesadillas; a bowl full of strawberries, pomegranate seeds and balsamic vinegar; french bread and goat cheese; a barbie birthday cake and a chocolate tart (inspiring my mad tart trend described in my October 30th post); kir royales for the grownups and a pitcher-ful of shirley temples and pink lemonade for the kids.

TISSUE PAPER POM POMS
supplies: tissue paper, scissors, ribbon, pipe cleaners, stapler

1. Procure several different colors of tissue paper. Each pom pom requires 6 sheets.

2. Take six sheets of tissue paper, and fold them accordian style. Tie center with pipe cleaner. Holding the accordian closed, as if it was one narrow strip, cut off the ends into either round or pointed shapes.

3. Release the strip, and pull the tissue paper sheets apart on either side, forming a puffy ball.

4. Attach string to pipe cleaner in the middle and hang pom poms from the ceiling on different length strings.

I used many shades of pink and orange, and they looked very pretty.

Pink Pennant Banners
supplies: several different patterned fabrics, pink bias tape, newspaper, ruler, sewing machine.

1. Create a pennant flag pattern. (This is very easy--just use a ruler to draw an isosceles triangle on a piece of newspaper.

2. Fold your pieces of fabric in half and pinning the pattern to the folded pieces of fabric, cut out many pennant shapes. (For each pennant, I would recommend around 14.)Remember that you want each pennant shape to have two pieces, hence the folding in half. Once you get going, this part takes no time at all.

3. Take the two pieces of fabric and turn them so that the back of the fabric is facing outwards. Use sewing machine to sew a running stitch down the two long sides of the isosceles, leaving the short third side open.

4. Once you have completed sewing all pennants, turn them right side out, and iron. I used a pencil to really push the bottoms of the pennants into points.

5. Use straight pins to pin the pennants, one after another, to the middle of the bias tape. Once all pennants are pinned, sew a running stitch down the middle of the bias tape.

This project took me approximately two late night hours (no rest for the wicked or for working mothers either), one hour of which 1 year old Portia was awake.

Matt's Awesome Quesadilla Recipe

2007-11-01T14:24:00.000-05:00

My brother, Matt made these quesadillas for my daughters' birthday party last month and they were a HUGE hit. Additionally, I plan on bringing them to the law office "Mexican Party" next week. Kids and adults alike gobble them up.

Just chop up 3/4 of a small onion and sautee in oil until soft.
Add chopped red bell pepper and maybe a jalapeno halfway through. Add a little garlic if you feel like it. Also, throw in some frozen corn too.

In another pan, sautee your chicken. I prefer to use the chicken tenderloins. I like to season the chicken with a little Adobo (definitely), some chili powder, salt and pepper, and a touch of cumin. Don't overcook the chicken. Pull it while it's still moist and shred it with some forks. After this combide your vegetables and chicken and throw some chopped cilantro in there too.

There you have it...just melt some butter and brush it on one side of a tortilla and throw it face down in a skillet. On one half of the tortilla, sprinkle a little jack cheese down, add the chicken mixture and add some more cheese on top. Fold the tortilla over and flip when golden brown. These should be fine to warm up in the oven and keep covered in foil.

Some Parisian Restaurant Recommendations

2007-11-01T09:10:00.000-05:00

Well, Poodleful, as the modern homemaker eats in restaurants almost as frequently as she eats at home. (Who, on a daily basis has time to cook when you don't get off of work until 5:30 and your children have 7:30 bedtimes?).

And, being a modern homemaker, her professional life calls for her to often have expensive lawyer type lunches too. So, she believes that restaurant reviews are just as important to Martha-types as recipes. So she will begin with some Parisian restaurant reviews. (Poodleful is really not a francophile-she swears..she is a poodle, yes, who likes to bake tarts, yes, and has recently been to Paris, but she swears that this will NOT be a francophile blog.)

Poodleful and Clancy went to Paris recently to celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary. It was a wonderful trip without the children. We stayed in an apartment in the 10th arrondissement, which was perfectly located--away from tourists, interesting working class neighborhood within walking distance of the Marais.

After extensive research and an honest assessment of our budget (medium, enough money to eat where we wanted, but not enough to go to any Arpeges) I determined where we would eat. I try not to use recommendations from the guidebooks because they are always full of tourists. Nothing against tourists, I just hate to always go to restaurants that have the "tourist buzz". So thank you Pim, Chocolate and Zucchini and Chowhounds. The restaurants that I believe you must eat at if you are traveling to Paris anytime soon are as follows:

L'As du Falafel. L'As du Falafel, located in the Marais has been reviewed and praised rather extensively. And, all of the praise is very well deserved. L'As du Falafel is located on a narrow Paris street surrounded by diamond stores and other falafel restaurants. Get there early, and grab a seat in the restaurant and watch the cooks make the falafels.

I ordered a standard falafel. They brought me an extremely large pillowy pita stuffed with a mountain of food. I began to eat it and the best thing was that every bite is different. You begin with the cool lettuce and tomatoes/onion/herb salad on top and as you keep eating you encounter warm hummus and the hot falafel. And the whole thing is drenched with a yogurt sauce. I covered mine with warm (flavored not temperatured) spicy harissa from a ketchup bottle on the table. The whole thing costs 5 euros.

Le Comptoir du Relais. Le Comptoir is really really good. We could not procure a dinner reservation (unsurprisingly) so I gave up on the idea of eating there at all. Then one day, Clancy and I were walking around the left bank when we ran into it. We weren't hungry however, so we decided to stop and have a coffee. Clancy ordered gazpacho, so we could try something. During the day, Le Comptoir is a bistro that takes no reservations. A family came and sat beside us (they were really cute with their two kids) and they ordered something very quickly, in French.

Moments later (well, probably not moments, this is Paris, minutes...hours...) the waiter returned with a tin bucket full of different kinds of sausages. Knives were stuck in the sides of the sausages (all cured, dried sausages several feet long) and you could just cut off as much as you liked. The dad started to cut off bits of different sausages for his wife and two sons, and before long his friend and his friend's little scottie dog joined them. Of course the dog loved the sausage too.

Our gazpacho was delicious. It was very thin and soupy, with small peeled yellow an red grapeseed tomatoes hidden in the bottom. I love peeled tomatoes, they taste so good and are so pretty, all covered with spidery veins. The best part was that there was a lot of garlic prepared in several different ways. It was sliced across lengthwise, and some of it had been fried, some was baked and some was pickled.

We ate at Le Comptoir several more times and everytime it was excellent.

The best restaurant was the one right at the end of our street. It was a little neighborhood cafe that was always packed with locals. When we first arrived, all bleary eyed and jet-lagged we went there after dropping off our luggage. We ordered three pates, and a salad. The salad was very special, it had warm elements and cold elements (bacon, eggs, frisee, lettuce pickles onions) and was covered with a mustardy vinaigrette. The three pates were delicious also. Even though smoking is no longer allowed in French cafes, everyone smoked and the management didn't care.

Well, time for a telephone conference.

Chocolate Tart, Three Ways

2007-10-31T11:51:00.000-05:00

I have, as of recently been experimenting with baking chocolate tarts. The first recipe I used was from the back of the Bellwether Farms creme fraiche wrapper.

Chocolate Tart
½ cup milk
7 ounces finely chopped bittersweet chocolate
1 large egg yolk
7.5 ounces Bellwether Farms crème fraîche

Lightly whip egg yolk with the crème fraîche and set aside. Bring milk to a boil, stirring continuously. Turn off heat and add chocolate to milk. Stir mixture until chocolate is completely melted. Slowly add egg and crème fraîche mixture to chocolate mixture and stir until thoroughly mixed. Place chocolate mix in 9-inch pastry shell and place in preheated oven at 325° oven for 25 minutes.Remove tart from oven and cool to room temperature. Chill in refrigerator for at least one hour before serving.

The second recipe was a pear and chocolate ganache tart.
Chocolate Pear Chocolate Tart
For the crust- 150 g flour- 20 g unsweetened cocoa powder- 85 g butter- 85 g sugar- a splash of milkFor the pears- 3 large ripe pears- 100 g sugarFor the ganache- 100 ml crème fleurette (whipping cream)- 150 g dark chocolate- 2 egg yolks- 40 g butter

Start out by making the chocolate crust. This is a twist on my mom's no-fail "pâte sablée", a gift of a recipe for which my gratitude shall shine eternally. In a food processor, mix the flour, the cocoa powder and the sugar. Add the butter, cut up in small pieces. Mix until you get coarse sand. Add a splash of milk and mix again. Pour the sandy dough into a pie pan (ideally non-stick with a removable bottom, otherwise butter the pan first), and use the heels of your hands and your fingers to spread and press the dough until it lines the whole pan.

Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F). Cut out a circle of parchment paper to the size of your pie pan, put it on top of the dough, and spread baking marbles or dry beans over it. This is to prevent the crust from rising. Put the dough in the oven to bake for about 20 minutes, until it's cooked. It is a little hard to tell as you have baking marbles all over it, so you're just going to have to trust your guarding angel. Let cool, then remove the marbles and the parchment paper.

Prepare the pears : peel them, cut them into quarters and core them. Put them in a large saucepan, cover with water, sprinkle the sugar and bring to a slow boil. Cook for ten minutes, until the pears look translucent. Drain thoroughly.
Then comes my very favorite step, making the ganache filling. In a medium bowl, break up the chocolate in very small pieces. Set the egg yolks aside in a separate bowl, and dice up the butter. In a small saucepan, heat up the whipping cream until small bubbles start to form. Remove from heat. Add in the pieces of chocolate and stir with a fork until melted. Add in the yolks, and stir again thoroughly. Add the butter, mixing it in with the fork until no lumps remain. Marvel at the luscious chocolate cream you have created.

Assemble the tart : pour the ganache on the pie crust, and arrange the pear pieces on top. Carefully put the tart in the refrigerator for the ganache to firm up, a couple of hours should suffice. Take the tart out fifteen minutes before serving.

The third recipe was a caramel-chocolate tart that was adapted from the Gramercy Tavern's pastry chef, Claudia Fleming.
Chocolate Tart Dough: 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa 1 large egg yolk 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
Caramel Filling: 1/2 cup water 2 cups sugar 1/4 cup light corn syrup 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter 1/2 cup heavy cream 2 tablespoons creme fraiche

Chocolate Glaze: 1/2 cup heavy cream 3 1/2 ounces extra-bittersweet chocolate, chopped A pinch fine sea salt, such as fleur de sel

To prepare the tart dough, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and confectioners' sugar until combined, about 1 minute. Add the cocoa and beat until incorporated. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and beat until smooth. Sift in the flour and beat on low speed until just combined. Scrape the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a disk. Wrap and chill until firm, about 1 hour, or up to 3 days. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the tart dough 3/16-inch thick. Using a 2 1/2-inch round cutter, cut out 24 rounds of dough and press them into mini-muffin tins or 2 dozen 2-inch tart pans, trimming away any excess dough; prick the dough all over with a fork. Chill the tart shells for 20 minutes. Line the tart shells with foil and fill with dried beans, rice, or pie weights.

Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer or until the pastry looks dry and set. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Remove cooled shells from tart pans and transfer to a plate.

To prepare the filling, place the water in a large saucepan. Add the sugar and corn syrup and cook the mixture over medium-high heat, swirling the pan occasionally, until you have a dark amber caramel, about 10 minutes. Carefully whisk in the butter, cream, and creme fraiche (the mixture will hiss and bubble up so stand back), whisking until smooth. (The caramel can be made up to 5 days ahead and refrigerated). Divide the caramel among the tart shells while still warm (or reheat the caramel in the microwave or over low heat until it is pourable) and let sit until the caramel is set, at least 20 minutes.

To make the glaze, in a saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Place the chocolate in a bowl. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate, add a pinch of sea salt, and let sit for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Pour some of the glaze over each of the tarts while it is still warm. Let the glaze set at room temperature for at least 2 hours before serving.

Of the three tarts, the first was the best. However, the tart shell from the caramel chocolate tart was probably the best tasting shell, and very easy to make in the Kitchen Aid. But, unfortunately the tart itself tasted like a candy bar, I think, which was disappointing as it took all day to make. There was way too much caramel, but this may have been my fault for two reasons, first I adapted the recipe from small tartlets to one large tart, and second, I am just not all that fond of caramel.

But even my husband, the caramel lover felt that there was too much caramel. I felt particularly sorry for our guests, one of whom said "Wow, this is great, I think that I am going to throw up later." Definitely not the reaction I was hoping for.

First Entry

2007-10-31T11:46:00.001-05:00

Well, here is the maiden posting. My name is Poodleful, and I am a small furry red poodle. I have had many adventures, not limited to my ability as a pilot, cooking with MFK Fisher, and driving a motorcycle around the country with nothing but a backpack.