Black Bean and Corn Salsa Recipe

Black bean  salsa/A Cook and Her Books

I’m sure I’m not the only who finds themselves hummin’ a little Gershwin in these sultry late spring days. After the trees leaf out, but before the tree frogs start their thrumming, a chorus of “Summertime, and the livin’ is easy, fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high…” plays through my head. The song, as I’m sure you know, is from George Gerswhin’s Great American Opera, “Porgy and Bess,” set in sweltering summery Charleston. The songs are grand and glorious and so infectious that I tend to forget that I’m not exactly Jessye Norman when it comes to musical ability.

And yes, I do know all of the words, and I will sing them off-key at the drop of any hat.

Here’s a summertime recipe, a little salsa that I put together with ingredients from my pantry and the farmer’s market ~ canned black beans, fresh tomatoes and corn make for an easy and delicious salsa that can be a snack, or on a sultry summer evening with the proper beverage, a meal.

Bean and Corn Salsa

1 can black beans, drained

3 or 4 tomatoes, chopped, or 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

3 or 4 scallions, chopped

Kernels scraped from 1 ear corn

1 clove garlic, minced

2 sweet mini peppers, chopped

1 jalapeno, seeds & membranes removed, chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon or 1 lime

Salt and pepper to taste

Cilantro, chopped, optional

One avocado, diced, optional

1.       Combine all ingredients. Adjust seasonings and serve with tortilla chips. Refrigerate leftovers.

A Yank's Take on British Flapjacks

British flapjacks with almonds. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Welcome to 2013, the Year I Will Be Organized. There, I've said. I mean it and I intend to follow through. The hot zones in my house will be de-cluttered, the laundry list of chores and honey-do's will be whittled down, and I will be ready for whatever the future holds.

I'm already charged up about this project because I found a keeper of a recipe - British Flapjacks - in a March 2010 Bon Appetit that's been sitting in my bedroom for lo these nearly three years. Until this week, I hadn't made the first recipe from the magazine, but this week, in my quest to get organized, I finally made these fantastic cookies. The recipe is from Molly Wizenberg, of the Orangette blog, and is part of a sweet essay about backpacking through Europe and discovering flapjacks, not the pancake, but a cookie.

The cookie is simply butter, brown sugar and oatmeal with Lyle's Golden Syrup. I found Lyle's Golden Syrup at my local Publix and jumped on it like a lion on a hyena carcass. I looked over my shoulder lest anyone see me - how long until the inventory gods realize their mistake and take away the golden syrup? Golden syrup is somewhat like corn syrup, molasses or honey, but way more delicious. Look for the Lyle's to make these cookies, but in a pinch, I'd tinker with a combination of honey and corn syrup.

British flapjacks. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 I've made a batch of these cookies each day for the past three, and everyone I share them with says the same thing - they are wonderful. Like the best granola bar ever. I think it's the golden syrup. Our palates are so attuned to honey, white sugar and corn syrup that the slightly molasses taste of golden syrup stands out. To the oats and brown sugar, I added my favorite sliced almonds, and there you have it, flapjacks.

British flapjacks with almonds
 ~ adapted from Bon Appetit

Repeat after me: 1/2 cup, 1/2 cup, 1/4 cup, 1/4 cup, 2 cups. That's all you need to know to make these from memory. That, and keeping Lyle's Golden Syrup on hand.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, save wrapper for greasing pan
1/2 cup brown sugar (dark or light, packed)
1/4 cup Lyle's Golden Syrup
1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 cups quick-cooking oats (not instant or old-fashioned)

1. Preheat oven to 350. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine butter, sugar and syrup. Stir frequently

until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat.

2. Use butter wrapper to grease an 8 X 8 X 2 square baking pan.

3. Stir almonds and oats into sugar mixture. Spread into greased pan. Bake in 350 for 25 minutes. Cool for 5
minutes, then cut into four squares. Cut each square into 4 triangles. Cool completely before serving. Store leftovers in airtight container at room temperature.

British flapjacks with almonds. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

And now that I've committed the recipe to memory, I guess I can continue with my organizing and pass the magazine along. Except for the recipe for lasagna bolognese that caught my eye...

Text and images copyright 2013, Lucy Mercer.

Hummingbird Muffins with Cream Cheese Glaze

Hummingbird muffins with cream cheese glaze. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 There's a lot of buzz over the name Hummingbird Cake, a classic Southern layer cake made with bananas, pineapple, pecans and cinnamon, frosted with cream cheese icing. For many years, it was the most requested recipe at Southern Living magazine, but their website doesn't offer an explanation for the whimsical name. I did find two plausible possibilities - the cake is so good that folks gather round the cake like hummingbirds to nectar. Or, my favorite, banana and pineapple are native to Jamaica and its national bird is the hummingbird. 

Either way, it's a delicious cake and well worth the effort if you're looking for a showstopper cake for the holiday table. Here's the link to Southern Living's original recipe. 

I decided to take the small view and make hummingbird muffins - moist banana muffins with chopped pecans and chopped dried pineapple. Can't forget the frosting, in this case, a sweet cream cheese glaze. Give this a try and tell all partakers that no actual hummingbirds were harmed to bake these muffins.

Hummingbird Muffins with Cream Cheese Glaze

Yield 1 dozen muffins

1 cup sugar

½ cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 1/3 cup (3 medium) bananas

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup pecans, finely chopped

¼ cup dried pineapple, finely chopped

Cream cheese glaze

1.       Heat oven to 375. In a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat sugar, oil and eggs until light colored and foamy. Add mashed banana and beat well, batter will have a few lumps.

2.       In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add pecans and dried pineapple. Stir dry mixture into wet mixture and mix until just combined, less than 12 strokes needed.

3.       Use baking spray or liners (or both) in a muffin pan and fill each cup just to the top. Bake at 375 for 20 to 25 minutes. Muffins are done when the tops spring back after gently pressed, or when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Glaze with cream cheese glaze. Store leftover muffins in refrigerator, bringing to room temperature before serving.

Cream cheese glaze

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temp

½ cup powdered sugar, sifted

2 teaspoon vanilla

3 to 4 tablespoons milk

1.       Using a whisk or an electric mixer, whip the cream cheese until it is soft and smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar, whisking until it is free of lumps. Add vanilla, then milk, until the glaze is the proper consistency.

2.       Glaze hummingbird muffins. Store leftover muffins in fridge, bring to room temperature before serving.

  Text and images copyright 2012, Lucy Mercer.

Banana cupcakes with chocolate sour cream ganache

Banana cucpakes with Chocolate Sour Cream Ganache. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 Just a recipe today, a cupcake that I make from time to time to put in my daughter's lunchboxes. The banana cake on its own is very good, moist and fruity. But add the dark chocolate and it becomes a real treat. Bananas and dark chocolate kind of cry out for each other - the sometimes overwhelming sweetness of the fruit needs the tempering effect of dark chocolate. Don't let the word ganache scare you - it's just a fancy French way of saying unbelievably easy and delicious frosting. Once you make this frosting, you'll never be tempted by the canned stuff ever again.

Banana Cupcakes

2 large ripe bananas, mashed, yielding 1 cup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs, at room temperature
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (1 stick + 2 tablespoons)
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt  

1. Preheat oven to 350. Prepare muffin tins with nonstick spray and/or cupcake liners. In a bowl, stir together bananas, sour cream and vanilla. 

2. In a mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until creamy and light-colored. Add eggs and mix for one minute. Scrape down sides of bowl, then mix for one additional minute.

3. In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients. Add one third of dry ingredients to batter, mixing until combined, then add half of the banana sour cream mixture, mixing and scraping again. Add half the remaining dry ingredients, mix and scrape. Add remaining banana sour cream, mix and scrape, and finish with the last of the dry ingredients. 

4. Divide mixture among muffin tins. Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes. Begin checking at 25 minutes. Cupcakes are done when the centers bounce back when pressed with the tips of your fingers. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack. When cool, frost with sour cream ganache.       

Chocolate Sour Cream Ganache

4 (3 oz) bars semi-sweet chocolate, broken up
1 2/3 cups sour cream, low-fat is fine

1. Place chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and zap at 50 percent power for 30 seconds. Stir and repeat for 30 second intervals until completely melted. When thoroughly melted, gradually whisk in sour cream. Frost cupcakes and store leftovers in fridge.


Text and images copyright 2012, Lucy Mercer.

Homemade applesauce recipe (microwave version)

Homemade applesauce. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

This time of year, I end up with a glut of apples, from friends, grocery store sales and trips to North Georgia apple barns. Homemade applesauce is an easy and kid-friendly recipe to help use up these beautiful apples. My favorite recipe uses a microwave for the heavy lifting - easier than risking burning on the cook-top. Forgive the hippy-dippy instructions - this is more of a method than a recipe.

Homemade Applesauce in the Microwave

1. Peel, core and coarsely chunk six or eight apples. A mix of varieties works best. My last batch included Galas and Red Romes. I even use apples that are a bit past their prime, including the iffy bruised apples in the bottom of the apple bag - just cut out the bad parts.

2. Place apples in large, tall container suitable for the microwave. I use a tall gallon container. Pour apple juice (if you have it, water if you don't) to cover apples by about a third.

3. Place container in microwave and zap at full power for five minutes. Stir and zap for five minutes more. This may require more zapping, just check to make sure the apples are cooked through. Stir in a few tablespoons of butter and sugar, if needed. Let cool and puree in food processor.

4. If you simply must have cinnamon, then spice it up by all means. I like it straight, no sugar added. Warm applesauce makes a first-rate side dish for most kid dinners. It's delish also with a pancake and bacon supper.

Apple tree at Mercier Orchards. Lucy Mercer/ A Cook and Her Books

Look for more pictures of Blue Ridge and Mercier's here.
More apple recipes:

French thin-crust apple tart
Classic apple dumplings
Short-cut apple dumplings
Apple Crisp
Apple Blondie, aka German Apple Cake

Three more recipes that use apples:

Morning Glory Muffins
Mulligatawny
Kid-friendly sushi

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer.

Candy Corn

Brach's Autumn Mix by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

I opened my first bag of Halloween candy today - Brach's Autumn Mix. I like candy when  it's around, but I don't crave it. I like Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (you know you're in the South when folks call them "Ree-Cees") and Tootsie Rolls and a few handfuls of candy corn.

How about you, what's your favorite candy of the season? Leave a response in the comments section.

Sweet tea peach scones



Scones with tea-soaked peaches by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books


Summer in the South means sweet tea and peaches, at least for this Georgia girl. But two weeks past Labor Day means that the peaches are fading fast. One way to keep the sweet, floral peach flavor in my baked goods is to use dried peaches. I chopped up a package, soaked them in the table wine of the South - sweet tea, and added them to my buttery buttermilk scone recipe. Oh, my heavens, these are good.





Peaches by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 
Sweet tea and peach buttermilk scones

My favorite tip for tender scones is to shred chilled butter into the dry ingredients. I just use an ordinary grater, the kind I use for shredding rat-trap cheddar cheese, and run the chilled stick of butter across it. The resulting butter curls are uniform and perfect for blending into the flour mixture.

1 (6 oz.) package dried peaches
1/2 cup sweet tea
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup unsalted butter, frozen
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
Milk or cream for glazing
Turbinado, demerara or sparkle sugar for glazing

1. Dice dried peaches by first slicing them into thin strips, then chopping crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces. Use your sharpest chef's knife. A bit of cooking spray on your knife might also help. Place diced peaches into a microwave safe bowl, add 1/2 cup sweet tea and zap in microwave for 1 minute. Remove from microwave and let cool on counter while preparing the scone dough.

2. In a batter bowl, mix dry ingredients together. Using a regular grater, shred the chilled butter and with a light hand, gently mix the shavings into the dry ingredients. Using your hands and a gentle, quick touch, make sure the butter is evenly distributed throughout the flour mixture.

3. Pour in the buttermilk and stir gently with either a wooden spoon or my instrument of choice, a silicone spatula. If mixture seems dry, add additional buttermilk until a cohesive dough forms. The dough should be slightly wet and sticky, but not overly so.

4. On a floured countertop, press dough into a rough 12 X 6 inch rectangle (helpful shaping instruction visuals may be found on my blueberry scone post here). Spread soaked peaches onto dough, using your hands to press the fruit into the dough. Fold into thirds, letter-style. Press into 12 X 6 rectange again and fold letter-style again. If any little peach guys pop out, just press them back into the dough. Press again into a 12 X 6 rectangle and cut into 16 triangles. Place scones on a lined baking sheet. The scones can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 24 hours.

4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Carefully brush each wedge with buttermilk or cream and sprinkle turbinado sugar over the top. Bake at 400 for at least 15 minutes. They may need a bit more time, depending on your oven, convection, etc. Scones are ready when they are golden brown on top and bounce back when touched lightly in the center.

More variations on the scone theme:

1. Scones for breakfast (1/2 recipe buttermilk scones)
2. Raspberry scones
3. Cream cheese and apricot scones
4. Pineapple and ginger scones
5. Blueberry and lemon scones (includes shaping instructions and pictures!)

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer.

Gad Zukes! It's Time for Zucchini Bread!

Zucchini by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

When life gives you zucchini, you don't have much time to muck about. You can make zuke soup, Mollie Katzen's ZuCanoes, ratatouille, and zucchini bread, but you better be fast because fresh zucchini only lasts a few days before shriveling to primordial ooziness. Here's a zucchini bread that yielded two loaves, one big, one small. The large one made breakfast toast for a week. The baby loaf made the kids at work happy for about 10 minutes. Then they asked what I would bring tomorrow. Something about orange scones...

Zucchini Bread by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Zucchini Bread

adapted from "Bon Appetit, Y'all" by Virginia Willis

1 cup canola oil

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla

4 zucchini, peeled and grated, yielding 2 cups

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease two loaf pans with baking spray or cooking oil. I used one medium and one small loaf pans, you may do well with just one large loaf pan.

2. In a bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, whisk together.

3. In a measuring cup, place the oil, eggs and vanilla and stir together.

4. Add the wet to the dry mixtures, stirring just until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s).

5. Bake until golden brown, with the cracked spine along the top, about one hour. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for about five minutes, then turn out of the pan. Keep at room temperature, well-wrapped, for a few days.

Buttermilk scones for breakfast



Brown-sugar topped buttermilk scones by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 I've made some lovely scones lately, blueberry- and raspberry-filled gems, luscious apricot pastries, another version with ginger and pineapple. These sweet biscuits are always appreciated around my house, but there are times when I don't need 16 buttery treats sitting on my counter, waiting for someone to devour them. This is why I developed the buttermilk scone half recipe, using less than one stick of butter and creating just enough pastries for my family to enjoy and maybe a few to bring to work. This version also takes about half as much time to assemble, so it's easier than ever to whip these up for breakfast.

Here's the recipe and if using fruit, be sure to follow the step-by-step folding technique in the Blueberry Lemon Buttermilk Scone post.

Buttermilk scones ready for the oven by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Buttermilk Scones Half Recipe


Yield: 8 scones
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 (6 tablespoons) stick unsalted butter, chilled or frozen

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons buttermilk (whole if you can find it)

1. In a batter bowl, mix dry ingredients together. Using a regular grater, shred the cold butter and lightly mix the shavings into the dry ingredients. Using your hands and a gentle, quick touch, make sure the butter is evenly distributed throughout the flour mixture.

2. Pour in the buttermilk and stir gently with either a wooden spoon or my instrument of choice, a silicone spatula. If mixture seems dry, add additional buttermilk until a cohesive dough forms. The dough should be slightly wet and sticky, but not overly so.

3. On a floured countertop, press dough into a rough rectangle and if using fruit, follow shaping instructions here. Cut into 8 triangles. Place scones on a lined baking sheet. The scones can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 24 hours.

4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Carefully brush each wedge with buttermilk or cream and sprinkle sugar over the top. Bake at 400 for at least 15 minutes. They may need a bit more time, depending on your oven, convection, etc. Scones are ready when they are golden brown on top and bounce back when touched lightly in the center.

Lemon Glazed Cookies



Lemon Glazed Lemon Cookies by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 It's easier to bake in the summer than the colder months. I know that sounds strange, but with the busy-ness of the school year, baking projects tend to be rushed and compartmentalized, without the spontaneous "gee, I think I'll bake cookies today" moments that I love. So, even though it heats up the house, we're baking cookies today - the homemade slice and bake kind. And they're lemon - which is turning out to be my theme ingredient this year - lemon glazed tea loaves, lemon ice cream, lemon pound cake, lemon pudding...


Glazed Lemon Cookies


adapted from Susan Purdy's The Family Baker

Yield: about 40 cookies

Cookie dough

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 egg

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Zest of 1 lemon

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Glaze

3/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1. For the cookies: In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and well blended. Beat in the egg, lemon extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Scrape down the bowl and beater and add flour, confectioners' sugar, cornstarch and baking soda, beating everything together until fully incorporated.

2. Dust a countertop with a small amount of flour and turn dough out. Knead lightly and shape into a log. I like a square cookie, so I square the edges. You can divide the dough into two logs, if that works better for your refrigerator. Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least two hours or overnight. You can also double wrap the dough logs, place in a freezer container, label and freeze for up to 2 months. If using frozen dough, set out on counter while the oven preheats, to make the dough easier to slice.

3. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350. Line baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper. Place cookie dough log on a cutting board and use a sharp knife to slice 1/4-inch slices. Place on prepared baking sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 or until the cookies are a light golden brown on the edges. While cookies are baking, make glaze by combining lemon juice, confectioners' sugar and lemon zest. Use a spatula to gently remove the cookies from the baking sheet and place them on a wire rack set over wax paper or foil (to catch drips) to cool slightly. Use a brush to spread glaze on cookies while they're still warm. Let cookies dry and place them in airtight containers for storage.  It's a good idea to put parchment paper or waxed paper between the layers of cookies.

My favorite banana bread

Banana Bread by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Banana bread is a humble but reliable creation, and because it uses dead-ripe bananas, it's the frugal baker's best friend. There are hundreds of variations of this basic quick bread, probably the first baking project most young cooks will try at home. I'm not the most accomplished baker, but after 30 years in the kitchen, I still make banana bread. Primarily due to the fact that we always buy bananas at the store, and frequently they get too ripe for our tender palates. I have a drawer in the bottom of my freezer where I stash the overripe fruit. Every now and then, especially when I have buttermilk on hand, I will make this easy banana bread and enjoy it warm from the oven, crumbly and tender, with a cup of tea. And maybe a shmear of softened cream cheese.


This recipe is from a cookbook from Pleasant Hill, the Shaker community in Kentucky. Appropriately, it's a simple bread, not gussied up with spices or nuts or chocolate, although it could be a blank canvas for experimentation. I usually double it, to use up more bananas and buttermilk. The instruction for adding the leavening is unusual - first add one cup of flour, then stir baking soda and salt into the remaining flour before adding to the batter.

Best Ever Banana Bread

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 bananas, mashed, to equal 1 cup

2 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup buttermilk

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

Cream butter and sugar in bowl with electric mixer. Beat in eggs and bananas. Add one cup of the flour and half of the buttermilk alternately. Add salt and soda to remaining flour. Stir in second flour mixture and end with remaining buttermilk. Turn into well-greased 9 X 5 loaf pan. Bake at 325 for one hour (per cookbook, mine take up to 1 hour and 15 minutes to bake).

Rock this guac

Guacamole with chips by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

I love the way supermarkets are designed for impulse buyers. From the glistening red ripe strawberries just inside the door, to the cartoon character cereal at kid eye-level, to the intoxicating scent of roasting chicken wafting from the deli at 5 p.m., it's all there to make me shove my shopping list to the bottom of the Vera and give in to temptation. The strawberries, at 2 for $5, usually make their way into the buggy, (after I turn the package upside down to check for signs of slushiness or mold). I usually avoid the kiddie cereal, but the roast chicken is another matter. I make an excellent butter-roasted chicken, but it's easier and less expensive to buy the roasted bird in the cute bag with a handle.

My other impulse buy is avocados, directly behind the strawberries in my market. The pebbly exerior of a Hass avocado hides the creamy celadon flesh, and I take my time selecting the fruit, picking up only the glossy, heavy ones that just barely give when gently pressed. I buy exactly two, because the sign says 2 for $3, and eat them over the next four days, each morning spreading half on a split whole wheat bagel - my favorite breakfast.

.

Perfectly ripe avocadoes by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books.

When I'm feeling flush, and when the avocados look especially good, I'll buy extras and make guacamole, the essential smashed avocado dip. There are lots of variations out there, pureed, whipped and loaded with everything from tomatoes and onion to bacon and olives. (And in the context of loaded guacamole, this bacon version by Susan Russo is to live for). My favorite guac, however, the kind I make for just me and my family, my own rockin' guacamole, is really very simple. And like the simplest recipes, attention to technique and ingredients can mean the difference between everyday and out of this world.

My Guacamole

enough for my family of 4, multiply p.r.n.


4 avocados
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Roma tomato, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. You will need a sharp chef's knife or paring knife, and a spoon. Slice avocadoes in half along the length. Using a spoon, remove and discard the pit. Use the knife to make 1/2 inch cuts through the flesh, diagonally left to right, then right to left. Scoop flesh of three avocados into a bowl. Reserve flesh of fourth avocado.

2. Pour lime juice over avocados, and smash until the mixture is dip-like, but still chunky. Add garlic, diced tomato and salt and pepper to taste. (I go easy on the salt because of the salty tortilla chips). Add reserved avocado flesh, gently stirring in the chunks. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with tortilla chips.

Browning is the nemesis of all avocado preparations and I have three solutions: First of all, if you're making this dip ahead of time, place guacamole in a container that is deeper than it is wide, creating as little surface area exposure as possible, squirt some lime juice overall (remember the other half of the lime?) and place plastic wrap directly on exposed, lime-y surface, pressing into corners. Cover with lid and refrigerate.

My second tip, one I haven't tried yet, is from Bon Appetit, where they suggest cutting avocado, then rinsing in cool water. I'll experiment and report back.

My third solution, the obvious one, is to make the guacamole right before serving and to eat every last bite so there's nothing to store. No guacamole, no browning.
That's about it. What do you like in your guac? Do you have a nifty no-browning avocado solution?


 “Get Grillin’ with Family Fresh Cooking and Cookin’ Canuck, sponsored by Ile de France Cheese, Rösle, Emile Henry, Rouxbe and ManPans.”

The Big Tahini Hunt



Butterbean hummus and crudites by Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

 Remember the Berenstain Bears' book "The Big Honey Hunt?" Somewhere in my stack of childhood books lies the vintage tale of Papa Bear and Brother Bear in search of honey. I needed the bears this week when I went in search of tahini, the used-to-be uncommon, now flat-out difficult-to-find ingredient essential to making the perfect hummus.

Tahini is simply ground sesame seeds, similar in texture to natural peanut butter, with a quicksand-like bottom and slick of oil on top. Tahini is what gives hummus its characteristic sesame taste and smooth as butter texture. I fuss and moan about my suburban grocery stores, and wonder why they put peanut butter and jelly next to the bread instead of the aisle with pickles, but I've always managed to find tahini when on the organics aisle when I needed it. Until now. A check of local supermarkets turned up nary a jar of the sesame paste.

And so I arranged for a side trip to Trader Joe's on my latest excursion into Atlanta, feeling certain that TJ's, with its pink sea salt and sunflower seed butter, would have a jar of tahini to spare. Except I couldn't find it. I wandered up and down the aisles twice before asking the earnest young man shelving vinegars, and he said, to my astonishment, that nobody has tahini. Nobody can get it. Something about a sesame seed shortage and don't even bother going to Whole Foods and Kroger and Publix, because they can't get it either.

Wow! I should tell them about Publix at Ansley Mall, my next stop, because right there, in the organics section, two kinds of tahini, Krinos and Joyva. I bought the can of Joyva and joyfully came home with my prize, ready to make butterbean hummus, a signature recipe of Watershed Restaurant. The thing about butterbean hummus is that it's made with lima beans, not the smaller pearl-y ovals that I consider butterbeans. I departed from the directive and used baby limas and I cut the recipe in half, because goodness knows, the original recipe will serve two parties of stevedores, with leftovers. The recipe is delicious, by the way. It is incomparably smooth, the silkiest hummus ever.

Butterbean, (or for authenticity's sake), Baby Lima Bean Hummus

adapted from Chef Scott Peacock's recipe on Food Network

1/2 pound dried baby lima beans

3 cloves garlic, peeled

1/3 cup tahini

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, beginning with the smaller amount then tasting before adding more

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 to 1 cup extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1. Spread the beans on a rimmed baking sheet and pick through. Rinse them and place in a pot and add cold water to cover by two inches. Bring to a boil and simmer until they are tender. Remove from the heat and let cool. Drain, but be sure to reserve the cooking liquid.

2. In a food processor, place beans and puree until smooth. Add garlic and tahini and puree again. Gradually add oil and process until mixture is close to the desired texture. Add lemon juice and process, then reserved cooking liquid, a little at a time, until desired consistency. Season to taste.

3. Serve with crudites such as carrot sticks, celery sticks, sliced radishes and cucumbers.

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer.

Hot, cross bunnies: The s'moral of the story

 
 

 

Just in case you haven't been out lately, I'll prepare you for what you'll see in the grocery stores: lots and lots of Peeps, sugar-coated marshmallow chicks and bunnies in colors from a pink worthy of a Mary Kay rep's Cadillac to intense neon yellows, reds and oranges. I love Peeps in all their forms and look forward each spring to sacrificing a few peeps for the ultimate s'more.

Peeps S'mores

1. Layer graham crackers, chocolate bar (I used Green & Black's Organic Milk Chocolate Toffee Bar), peep. Place on paper plate or microwave-safe plate.

2. Microwave for 12 seconds, no need to cover. YMMV (your microwave may vary)

3. Top with second cracker, squish and enjoy.

The s'moral of the story: Mmmmmmmmmm!

Peeps have a fun website - http://www.marshmallowpeeps.com/ and, of course, a Facebook page.

 What's your favorite Peep? Do you cook with Peeps?

Crispy, sweet date candies

Crispy date balls. Lucy Mercer/A Cook and Her Books

Anyone else remember these sweet treats from their childhood? I'm revisiting the Christmas treats of my youth this year, making orange-pecan-coconut balls, and this no-bake treat. It's a smooth date filling combined with crunchy Rice Krispies and rolled in confectioner's sugar. There's a lot of variations out there, but I'm a purist, sticking to the recipe on the back of the Amport Dates package. Be sure to buy two packages for this recipe.

Date Balls 

2 (8 oz.) packages pitted dates (Amport brand)

1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup)

1 cup brown sugar

4 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups Rice Krispies

Confectioner's sugar or coconut for rolling

1. In a saucepan, mix together butter, water, dates and brown sugar. Cook over medium heat until dates disintegrate and form a paste.

2. Remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in 2 cups Rice Krispies. Let mixture cool until it can be comfortably rolled into balls. I used a 1-inch scoop and rolled the balls in confectioner's sugar or coconut. Store in an airtight container.

Look for more ideas for gifts from the kitchen like orange pecan coconut balls , roasted almonds and my never-the-same-way-twice snack mix on A Cook and Her Books. Looking for Christmas cookies? Try Scottish Shortbread and Macadamia Tassies.

Christmas cut-out cookies

This is the Christmas cookie of my childhood. Somewhere in my mom's kitchen is a mimeographed (if you don't what this is, ask a teacher nearing retirement-on-years) copy of this recipe. It was given to her at a Tupperware party sometime in the 70s and has been baked by either her or me every year since. These cookies have a distinctive aroma and taste that I assume comes from the cream of tartar, an unusual ingredient for cookies, but readily available in most supermarkets. These cookies are buttery and sweet, and the dough, while a bit stiff when cold, rolls and cuts beautifully, without a lot of spread in the oven.

You have to sacrifice your kitchen when you decorate these cookies, but to minimize the damage, be organized before inviting the kids in the room. Wax paper on the counters (cheaper than parchment), lots of bowls of icing and shakers of sprinkles. Let the cookies dry for about an hour before putting them in containers and be sure to layer with wax paper.

Christmas Cut-Out Cookies

3 cups confectioner's sugar

2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon almond extract

5 cups flour

2 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1. In a mixer, cream sugar and butter, add eggs and flavorings. Mix in dry ingredients until dough forms. Pack in an airtight container and refrigerate two hours or overnight. I use a rectangular container and "slice" dough when I'm ready to bake.

2. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375. Cut off a 2-cup portion of dough and roll out on floured countertop. Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes and place on cookie sheets lined with either a Silpat or parchment paper. Bake each sheet of cookies at 375 for 7 minutes. They will be just brown and delicious. Let cool on wire racks until ready to decorate.

Tips for Success

1. Remember to dip cookie cutters in flour to prevent dough from sticking.

2. Re-roll scraps with scraps, not fresh dough.

3. To quickly cool a baking sheet in order to fill it up with the next batch, remove liner and run pan under cold water. Dry, replace liner, and place cookies on it.


Icing

This is one of those times when you don't really need a recipe: Get a bowl, carefully pour a pound of confectioner's sugar in it. Using a whisk, stir in milk a tablespoon or two at a time until mixture reaches the desired spreadability. I use food coloring to tint small bowls of the icing. Gels will give purer, more intense color. Use a toothpick to swirl little globs of the coloring gel (look for Wilton brand) into the bowls of icing. 

Text and images copyright 2011, Lucy Mercer.

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