Seasonal – Page 13 – morestomach

meringue cups + mango curd

Published on June 24, 2015June 23, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach14 Comments

growing up i never had dessert after dinner,
maybe an apple or orange slices.
sugar and sweets were for
Special Occasions,
they were not on the forefront of
gma’s menu planning for the week.
now that i’m ~~a grown up~~ in charge of my diet
dessert is a must.
on the evenings we don’t have
anything sweet to nibble on
i feel a loss,
like,
bereft.
my waistline has suffered
my sweet tooth is more ferocious
i don’t know which was worse –
with or without!
just kidding,
that’s a no brainer.

meringue cups + mango curd
gluten free, lactose free

*note: it was super hot and muggy the days i made these. if i were to serve this at a party, i’d make the morning of and pipe just before serving. you want the meringues to be light and crispy with just a touch of chew. doing it the way i did it allowed the meringues to be a little on the chewy side and not enough of the crisp. the winter, when the air is chill and dry, would be best for the over night method i used this time.

5 egg whites, at room temp
1/4 -1/2 cup sugar, sweetness level entirely up to you, depending on how sweet the curd is
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

preheat oven to 300F. prepare baking sheet with parchment paper.

in a clean mixing bowl using a the whisk attachment, mix the egg whites for about a minute. add the cream of tartar and then incrementally add the sugar. you’re going for stiff peaks, this could take up to 15 minutes. take your time, scrape the bowl to ensure you get all the sugar. you’re done when you’re able to turn the bowl over and nothing falls on your face.

fill piping bag, if you’re feeling fancy add a tip, though i don’t think it’s necessary. on the prepared baking sheet, pipe a base and then stick to the edge of the base and work your way up to make a cup/nest. keep going until done, i think i ended up with about 40.

bake for 20 minutes, lower heat to 250F and bake further 15 minutes. turn off off, ignore overnight.

mango curd
lactose free

1-2 mangos, depending on size, ending up with about 1 cup mango puree
1/8 – 1/4 cup sugar, depending on how sweet you want it to be
pinch of salt
1 egg yolk
zest of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lime
4 TBL ghee
juice of half lemon

in a sauce pan, mix the mango puree with the egg yolk on low heat. whisk steadily until warmed through, you don’t want to scramble the yolk. add in the flavors: sugar, salt, zests and lemon juice. raise heat to medium and keep whisking until further thickened. turn off the heat and add in the ghee, mixing thoroughly.

set aside to cool, if needed, strain through a fine mesh sieve.

allow to cool and then fridge. will keep for about a week.

to assemble:
you can be fancy and pipe the curd into the meringue cups, or you can be lazy like me and use a small spoon to fill the curd in.

BAM!

1 year ago: 3 veggies dumplings in spicy sauce
2 years: baked yeast s’mores donuts

other curd and/or meringue desserts:
citrus curd mille feuilles – dairy free
meyer lemon bars – lactose free
chocolate meringue kisses – gluten free, dairy free
strawberries + cream pavlovas – gluten free

cayenne chocolate ice cream

Published on June 10, 2015June 9, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach38 Comments

making ice cream at our house is a production
— a happy one
but a production nonetheless
i’ll ask dw to put our ice cream canister thing in the freezer
which means we play frozen food tetris
to make room for it.
we’ll return to whatever we were doing:
washing the dishes
playing crossword puzzles
5 minutes will pass,
sometimes hours.
then the question will come up:
what flavor are we making??
likely i don’t have a flavor in mind,
not exactly.
dw is always game for whatever i concoct,
as long as it’s not chocolate + fruit
i know, i know, I KNOW.
during a recent very quick skim of pantry items
we kept it simple.
kinda.

cayenne chocolate ice cream
makes about 3 1/2 cups

*note: the spicy kick creeps up on you. you’re busy savoring the creaminess and cold and chocolate and then there’s heat. it’s not unpleasant.

4 egg yolks, from large eggs
scant 1/2 cup coconut sugar
3 cups lactose free half/half (this was on hand, i’d make this with canned coconut milk, or any plant/nut based milk)
1/2 TBL cornstarch or potato starch
3-4 TBL good quality cocoa powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)

in a saucepan gently heat the half/half with the sugar and cocoa powder, medium heat. whisk until warmed though and the sugar has incorporated. in a bowl have your egg yolks ready. ladle in a bit of the warmed milk, whisking the yolks all the while. add in another 2 ladle-fuls and whisk. the temp of the yolks should be warmed through. add the yolk mixture to the saucepan, but leave about a ladle-ful in the bowl, and continue whisking all the while. the mixture will thicken slightly.

for the remaining mixture in the bowl, add the cornstarch or potato starch and mix until incorporated. add to the saucepan. mix some more.

sprinkle a dash or two of cayenne pepper, i would say it was about 1 tsp, but use at your discretion to your liking.

pour into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. allow to cool completely, ideally overnight.

when ready, pour into ice cream maker and churn according to machine’s instructions.

BAM!

————-

1 year ago: diy sperm cornhole
2 years ago: vegan strawberry sweet biscuit

other ice cream concoctions:
coffee chocolate chip ice cream – lactose free
peppermint chocolate chip ice cream – lactose free
spiced coconut pecan ice cream – dairy free
strawberry ice cream + almond waffle cones – dairy free
tangerine ice cream – lactose free
not interested in ice cream, try the spicy pudding version

overnight steel cut oats

Published on March 2, 2015March 1, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach4 Comments

at the time of this post writing
it’s the first day of march
it’s also snowing
actually, i can hear the snow hitting the roof
so it’s sleeting
or, the sky is shitting
winter storm advisories are the norm
i’m contemplating yet another soup/stew to make for lunch
and i’m making plans for another week
of oat breakfasts

overnight steel cut oats
serves 2-3, depending on how hungry you are

note: i make this every night, there are recipes out there where you can make a week’s worth of oats but i’d rather make it fresh every night before bed. it’s so quick and easy, and we can re-use the containers/bowls, rather than having week’s a worth of dishes for two to contend with.

2 cups water
1/2 cup steel cut oats
generous pinch of salt
optional: 1/3 cup raisins. i find that adding them after the oats have cooked is OK but i like the plumpness the raisins take on when they’ve soaked overnight

night before:
in saucepan bring water to a boil
add in oats and salt and let boil for a minute. if it boils rapidly, stir and move around burner, but keep for a minute
remove from heat, lid and go to bed

morning of:
reheat the oats on low (i usually do this step while packing lunch or making coffee)
stir to fluff up the oats

if eating right away:
portion into bowls and top with whatever you want
we’ve topped with fresh fruit (in pics, we used frozen blueberries from over the summer, pomegranate seeds and kefir milk), raisins and brown sugar. for crunch we have added slivered almonds

if transporting to work/elsewhere
portion into to-go containers
in separate containers add your toppings
when at work, the oats may still have some warmth (it’s usually at the perfect for me) but you can reheat in microwave, and top according to preference

BAM!

crochet | mama’s easy hat GIVEAWAY

Published on February 26, 2015February 24, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach6 Comments

unless you live outside the US,
or don’t care,
we’ve been in the midst of
a hard winter:
record low temps
fluctuating day temps
fallout from the sky that won’t quit.
so for two weekends in a row
dw+i stayed in:
we park gandalf friday night
and don’t start him up again till monday morn.
there may have been some half-hearted cleaning
serious Blue Blood viewing
(because TOM SELLECK)
i even slept in till 9am once, or twice.
i managed to finish a book
then this hat happened.

i’m not a hat person,
it’s the round face,
flat & short hair thing.
but i had a skein
of a single color
purchased out of the country
so something had to be done with it.
as it were
i had to add a white border
as i ran out of the purple.
it’s a chunky hat,
i can’t say if it’s warming
and when dw saw me wearing it
he got all bob marley-ish.
because i’m not gonna wear this
and it’ll be spring in a month anyway
i’m giving this away.
to anyone, in the US,
or otherwise.

someone will randomly be picked
from here, or,
from ig, or,
from fb
ends COB monday.
just answer this:

what book are you currently reading??

this is the pattern.

other yarn creations:
crocheted broomstick lace infinity cowl – original crochet pattern
crocheted mine craft beanies – link to pattern
crocheted ombre granny square baby blanket – no pattern, but link to inspiration
crocheted owl rattle – link to pattern
crocheted viking hat – link to pattern
knitted wedding shawl – link to pattern

african chicken stew

Published on January 29, 2015January 28, 2015 by Lan | MoreStomach14 Comments

we’ve been working,
like it’s a regular work week.
which isn’t out of the ordinary.
i mean,
there are no holidays this week.
but you see,
there was supposed to be a blizzard
of epic proportions.
friends.
we were misinformed.

the one thing the meteorologists
got correct though:
freezing temps.
on sunday, after making our
weekly soup,
experimenting with egg tarts,
and other chinese new year prep work
i had it in my head to make
another pot of soup
because
i figured a snow ~~day~~ ~~week~~
warranted comfort in a bowl.
we didn’t get the former,
but the latter was just fine.

african chicken stew
loosely adapted from simply recipes
makes 6 servings

4 drumsticks, about 1.25 lbs.
olive oil
1/2 large onion, sliced or diced, either way
3″ piece of ginger, peeled and minced
4 garlic cloves, chopped roughly
4 carrots, rough chopped into chunks
2 parsnips, rough chopped into chunks
1 15-ounce can of fire roasted diced tomatoes, we use muir glen
4 cups chicken stock (i used the last of my bullion cubes + water to equal 4 cups)
2-3 generous TBL peanut butter, honestly, i don’t remember but that seems about right
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1 TBL coriander seeds, roasted and then ground
1 tsp cayenne, or to taste
Salt and black pepper

season chicken drumsticks. brown in a bit of olive oil in a large pot. set aside.

in same pot, add more olive oil if you need to, add in the onions and saute for a few minutes. your goal is to brown the onions and pick up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. season with salt & pepper. add in the garlic and ginger, as well as the ground coriander and cayenne, mix through.

add in the broth, crushed tomatoes, peanut butter and peanuts. stir until the peanut butter is thoroughly incorporated. last, return the chicken drumsticks to the pot, nestle them in. cover & simmer on low for about an hour.

after an hour, remove the drumsticks. add in the carrots and parsnips. cover and simmer. when the drumsticks are cool enough to handle, remove all the meat off the bones, shred and return back to the pot. stir and simmer till the vegs are tender, but not mushy. adjust seasoning if needed.

serve with rice, or as is, which is how we ate it.

BAM!