Magazine Monday #82: Pumpkin Coconut Pound Cake

In addition to having a lot of frozen rhubarb on hand to use up before I move at the end of September when I move to the coast, I also have a ton of pumpkin in the freezer I really don't want to go to waste, either. I have a lot of pumkin recipes kicking around, and this one I have had in my binder for a few years; it's from Cooking Pleasures Magazine, which I used to get with my membership in the Cooking Club of America. I let my membership to this lapse a few years ago because it was getting too expensive with all my other various subscriptions (which have also gone by the wayside by now, too) but I still have quite a few recipes I've saved I want to try.

I made this last week and gave it to some family members to eat; I certainly didn't need an entire cake hanging around my house, especially as it was my birthday and I knew I was going to have lots of leftovers from my celebration (more about that later). I did take one slice, however, just to taste. I'll give you my critique after the recipe! Originally, this recipe is accompanied by a creamy vanilla sauce, but I didn't do that. I also didn't add the pecans as I had just used mine up in another project.

Pumpkin-Coconut-Pecan Pound Cake, from Cooking Pleasures Magazine

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 can (15oz) pumpkin puree (I used 2 cups of my own pumpkin puree)
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut (I used unsweetened)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease & flour a 12-cup bundt pan. In a large bowl, beat the butter until light & fluffy. Beat in the sugar until light & fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin & vanilla until well combined. Mixture will look curdled.

2. In another bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. At low speed, slowly add them to the wet ingredients. Fold in coconut & pecans.

3. Spoon into prepared pan & bake...about an hour or so, or until done.

4. Cool & serve!

Now I really liked the combination of pumpkin & coconut. I love both flavours and they work well together. But this cake wasn't super pumpkin-y, which was disappointing. The colour was a bit pale. I also over-baked this slightly, so it was a bit dry. My bad for sure. The taste was good and I would try this again, just perhaps with a bit more pumpkin in it and I'd be a little more careful with the baking time.

If you make it, let me know how it goes!

Magazine Monday #81: Peanut butter, chocolate chip, and bacon cookies

I have to admit, until today, I hadn't ventured into the whole chocolate-bacon flavour combination craze. But as is common with me, strange cravings come upon me suddenly, and I get to thinking about recipes I've come across that didn't appeal to me at first glance but all of a sudden seem like something I just have to have right now. This recipe was one of those times.

Thank God - and my mom! - for Food Network Magazine! In the most recent issue, they had a recipe for peanut butter, chocolate chip, and bacon cookies, and so I made them this afternoon when a craving inserted itself into my brain.

The recipe is here.

Usually not a fan of savoury items paired with chocolate, these cookies were awesome! In fact, I think they could have used more bacon than what the recipe called for. I didn't put the chilli powder in the dough because I thought that was going a bit too far and seemed a bit too weird, but the bacon paired with the peanut butter and chocolate was just great. The cinnamon was a perfect little hint of spice. My dad came over and I fed him some, and he thought they were the oddest combination of ingredients out there - and he couldn't taste the bacon. So next time, more bacon! Also, I had to add a few tbsp of milk to the dough as mine was too dry to form into balls.

Other than that, a totally keeper recipe!

Magazine Monday #80 and 101 Uses for a Roasted Chicken #27

I'm on a bit of a pizza kick lately, and as mentioned in the previous post, I'm trying to use up things in my freezer. I still have a bunch of that roasted chicken from a catering gig last month frozen, and so I decided to make pizza with it - again! - and use a new pizza dough recipe I came across in Food Network Magazine, a publication I really look forward to receiving each month.

Yesterday, in addition to making blueberry crumble, I made a chicken, red onion, kalamata olive, and mushroom pizza. It was delish!

The pizza dough recipe is here, and it came from the March 2011 issue of the magazine. I really liked this recipe. It made enough that I could divide it in three portions and put the other two in the freezer, and it was quite a light crust that bubbled up attractively when baked.

It's been a great weekend of food around here, that's for sure!

Magazine Monday #79 (on a Saturday): Guy Fieri's Soft Pretzels

Strange cravings are upon me these days, and while going through a pile of magazines taking up space on my coffee table, this soft pretzel recipe by Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives host Guy Fieri caught my eye. I have recently become a Triple D (or, as I like to call it, D3) fanatic. I don't know why it took me so long! Where has this show been all my life! It took a while for Guy to grow on me, but grow on me he has, and now I am addicted. This is probably another reason I wanted to make this recipe.

Unfortunately, I didn't think too much of Guy's soft pretzel recipe, which came in the January/February issue of Food Network Magazine. The recipe is here.

Lately, I have been practicing making bagels, which are boiled. I have posted before (here and here) about some pretzels I've made that are also boiled. I have to say, I much prefer that recipe and the boiling method over this non-boiled pretzel by Guy. Guy's are tasty for sure, and I enjoyed the stuffed ones (I used homemade pesto and mozzarella cheese to stuff mine), but they are, essentially, a pretzel-shaped bun without that nice chewy texture.

So, I'd give this a miss. Sorry, Guy! I love you, but this wasn't my cup of tea!

Magazine Monday #78: Sweet & Salty Cookies

Sometimes I just see stuff in a magazine and I HAVE to make it, no matter what. This recipe from the most recent issue of Canadian Living was one of those recipes.

OMG, this is now my new favourite cookie! It called for candy covered chocolate pieces, and I though that the Easter-coloured M&Ms would be perfect. They were. I used crushed up pretzel twists.

Awesomesauce and a half!

Pancake Tuesday 2011

Tonight was one of my favourite nights on the calendar: Pancake Tuesday. AKA Shrove Tuesday, AKA Mardi Gras, AKA Fat Tuesday. As usual, I had a dinner, but this year it was only my dad and me. Because he likes things made with whole grains, I made whole wheat and oatmeal pancake recipe, and because I don't have a griddle or a frying pan of decent size, I turned these into waffles. My dad, as usual, supplied some locally-made sausages & bacon. In this case, they were buffalo English sausages, and the bacon was something a friend of his was experimenting with, but it was way too salty for my taste and it cooked up very strange, causing quick burning & a lot of smoke. There must have been something in the curing solution that made this happen. And of course there was tons of maple syrup!

The recipe for the pancakes/waffles is here, from the February 2008 issue of Gourmet Magazine. and also constitutes my third magazine recipe of the week! I am three for three! I'll be submitting this to Magazine Monday for sure! The recipe turned out great and I'd definitely make them again.

Happy Pancake Tuesday everyone! :)

Magazine Monday #77: Flaky Biscuits

Wow, two recipes in two days - go me!

I just whipped some borscht out of the freezer for dinner tonight and needed something to go with it, so I flipped through my clipped recipes and found a biscuit recipe I hadn't tried yet.

This is it. It is, once more, from Canadian Living, this time the May 2010 issue.

I added fresh dill from my AeroGarden and some grated cheddar cheese, and they were fantastic hot out of the oven! This is one of the nicest biscuits I've ever made, I think. Definitely keeping this in my repertoire!

Magazine Monday #76: Egg & Shrimp Sandwiches

My AeroGarden containing the herb mixture is doing great, I am happy to report, especially the dill. In fact, I have so much dill I'm not sure what to do with it all. I might start drying it for a rainy day. Tonight I am planning a dilly pasta for dinner, and now I am obsessed with finding recipes with dill... Dill bread? Dill biscuits? Dill cookies??? There is so much dill I don't know what to do!

So, in an effort to use a teeny bit of what I have on hand, I decided to make this sandwich today for my lunch. This is the Open Faced Shrimp & Egg Sandwich, made on a toasted bagel, from the June 2010 issue of Canadian Living Magazine. The recipe is here.

Very easy, very tasty. And it hit the spot. You can't beat fresh dill - unless you have too much of it and it beats you!

Magazine Monday #75: Three Seed Biscuits

This recipe from Canadian Living's November 2010 issue caught my eye. Biscuits can really be indulgent in my world because they are so buttery, so fluffy, so good. These looked healthy, so I could enjoy them with a little less guilt than normal. I made them yesterday to go with the borscht I made & froze last week. They were excellent! I didn't have any sunflower seeds on hand, so I put in poppyseeds. Also, I didn't have any wheat germ, so I substituted quick oats.

The biscuits were great, nice & crunchy, and right out of the oven, they were a perfect accompaniment to the soup! This morning, I had a left over one with eggs for breakfast, and I have one more to enjoy later on, perhaps with some jam.

This keeper recipe is here.

Magazine Monday (on a Friday) #73: Molasses Oat Bread

I'm trying hard to get back into making my own breads, just to keep my grocery bills low and to help me feel productive. For the last few weeks, I've managed to do this, and I'm also making two at a time so I can freeze one for later, too.

I came across this recipe for Molasses Oat Bread in the November 2010 issue of Canadian Living Magazine, in a segment on bread machine breads. I didn't use a bread machine, of course, just my regular method.

I'm not the biggest molasses fan in the world, but I fancied it for some reason. And it turned out quite well in the end. I didn't have any whole wheat flour on hand, so I just used white. It's sweet but not overly so, and will be just fine with a nice bit of ham & Swiss cheese!

Magazine Monday # 72: Bobby Flay's Toasted Coconut Cake

On Dec. 21 I had my annual Solstice feast and for dessert I had a really hard time choosing what to make. There were so many great magazine recipes to choose from, but eventually I settled on this little number by Bobby Flay, which appeared in the holiday issue of Food Network Magazine.

There were a lot of steps to this cake, but it was overall quite simple despite the lengthy recipe. And I have to say it was quite possibly the most ridiculously amazing cake I've ever made. I'm not kidding - I've made a lot of great cakes, but this one took the...er cake. There were no leftovers at all.

I will definitely be keeping this in my repertoire, but I did one thing different: I didn't make a coconut simple syrup. The cake was so moist that I didn't feel it needed to be brushed with anything. I was also far more liberal with the Malibu I went to the liquor store specifically to purchase (I only go in there when looking for baking & cooking ingredients and I don't know my way around at all, so luckily the staff is quite helpful there even though I get funny looks from time to time). Also, the buttercream was way too buttery. I would probably use half a cup less the next time, and I had a lot leftover, too. The coconut custard was divine; there was some of that leftover too, which I just spooned from the bowl.

The recipe is here. I was so impressed with this recipe that with an Amazon gift card I got for Christmas courtesy my good friend Charlie, I ordered the new Bobby Flay's Throwdown cookbook. I'm very much looking forward to receiving it because I enjoy the show a lot.

Magazine Monday #71 (Yes, a day late): Asian Pork Burgers with Hoisin Mayo

I really am enjoying the subscription to Food Network Magazine my mom got me for my birthday. I've been craving a burgers lately, and a recipe in the most recent issue of FNM caught my eye. It's actually a recipe for Asian meatball subs, but because I'm not in the mood these days to putz around making finicky things like meatballs (or at least making meatballs seems like a rather finicky activity to me right now) I decided to turn these into burgers. I think ground pork makes such excellent burgers - moist, juicy, and the flavour of the meat is mild & neutral enough to add all kinds of flavourings to it that work very well. You might recall the Curried Pork Burgers I made a while back; they have become a favourite of my brother & SIL. They might like this pork burger, too, as might you!

The recipe is here.

Frakking fantastic! Now, I made some adjustments. I didn't use any bread or milk or eggs as filler in my burger meat; I have moved away from doing that after reading Bobby Flay's burger book, and quite frankly, I think the burgers are better without all that stuff in them. I've never had a burger fall apart or crumble during cooking so I don't think it's necessary to add eggs & bread crumbs etc. I also didn't use the Asian chili sauce, and I broiled my burgers instead of frying them.

I loved these burgers so much I totally indulged and ate two! The Asian flavourings were wonderful, and I loved the crunch of the chopped chestnuts in them. I loved the bean sprout topping, too - also crunchy and tasty. As for the hoisin mayo...OMG...AMAZING! It was one incredible burger for sure, and that mayo was the cherry on the proverbial sundae.

Definitely give these a try if you're looking for a change in your same old, same old burger repertoire!

Magazine Monday #70: Lemon Loaves!

OK, I got a great deal on lemons from the States recently (yes, you can bring certain types of fresh produce across the border, but stop off at Canada Customs on the way down to find out what you can & cannot bring home; tropical fruits are OK) - something like 2lbs for $3.50. This is an unreal deal since lemons are ridiculously expensive up here and if I'm lucky, I might be able to find a 2/99¢ sale, but I guarantee you the lemons will be crappy.

So, I brought all these lemons home and proceeded to not really know what to do with them. I'm a single person who lives alone; I was tempted to make a lemon pie, this one or a meringue, but seriously, I didn't want to eat it all myself. So, I made stuff I could freeze and pull out if I have company (which doesn't happen often).

The first thing I made was this lemon poppy seed loaf from Canadian Living. The original recipe has them as mini bundt cakes, but there is a variation in the recipe saying you can make it into a loaf, too. What issue is a mystery to me; the date was clipped off when I took the recipe from the magazine and the web site doesn't mention the date, either. Delicious! But a warning: there is too much batter for the specified loaf pan. I wound up getting a really ugly-looking, flat-topped loaf because the batter came right up to the rim of the loaf pan. But the texture and richness was lovely.

On a lemon roll, a couple of days later, I decided to make another Canadian Living recipe, this time the Lemon Yogurt Loaf from the September 2010 issue of the magazine. I had a bit of a disaster, though: my oven element began sparking away most alarmingly, and caught some piece of debris on fire. The loaves were almost done, but not quite, so I had to stick them in the toaster oven to finish baking. Disaster averted, but now I'm ovenless until the element can be replaced, and since the whole appliance is a total dinosaur, I'm worried they don't make the part anymore. (Check out The Dino here.) Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of these loaves before I wrapped them up tightly and put them in the freezer!

Oh, I also made a roast chicken with lemon, but that is a post for another time!

Magazine Monday #69: Sesame Chicken with Snow Peas - and Hostessing Duties

Thanks to my mom, I now have a subscription to Food Network Magazine! I love it!

After a series of heavy meals around Thanksgiving, I craved something lighter. I found a deal on snow peas at LOGS, and after a cross border shopping trip a few weeks ago, I finally had some chicken breasts on hand. And I found a recipe for this meal, which is actually supposed to be a healthier version a take-out dish, nutritionized by Ellie Krieger. I actually adapted the recipe to suit me more, leaving out the chili paste and doing this as a stir fry instead of steaming the snow peas separately. It was a tad bland, however. I love the idea of this recipe but next time I'll have to up the flavour a bit to make it pop a bit more.

The recipe is here.

This week I am also hosting Magazine Monday in order to help my good buddy Creampuff out, so here is a run-down of the other magazine recipes that were submitted by busy foodies intent on getting through their piles of magazine clippings!

Lynn of I'll Have What She's Having made Summer Rolls with Peanut Sauce from Gourmet Quick Kitchen.

Lorie of A Savory Nest made Roasted Winter Vegetables with Feta from the March 2010 edition of Food & Wine.

Sue of Couscous & Consciousness made Fig & Blue Cheese Wontons from Dish Magazine's spring 2004 issue.

The awesome Heather of Girlichef made two things: Currywurst Sauce from Saveur and Bacon & Four Cheese Mac from the Oct. 2010 issue of Family Circle.

Jamie of Life's a Feast made a beautiful French Apple Flognarde (AKA a clafoutis) from Saveurs' Sept./Oct. edition.

Ranjani of Four Seasons of Food made Peanut Butter & Banana Bread from Cooking Light's Oct. 2010 issue.

Jan over at Kitchen Heals Soul made Pumpkin & Spinach Lasagna from the Jan. 1998 issue of Food & Wine Magazine.

Thanks for entering, everyone!

Edit @ 9:15pm: We have a late addition! Melissa of It's the Way She... made Rustic Spinach & Cornmeal Soup from this month's Bon Appetit.

Magazine Monday (on Tuesday, not to mention a record!) #68: Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake

Of course, just as I start getting back into the swing of things, I go away for a few days, but there will be lots to post here when I get back.

Anyway, I managed another magazine recipe for the week, which is a record: two in seven days is not the norm, as we all know. In fact, it's two in four days to be precise. Well, it was Canadian Thanksgiving here on the weekend so I made a nice dessert to take to a friend's for dinner on Sunday night, and since I have a ton of pumpkin in my freezer, and there was a special pumpkin section in the Oct. 2010 issue of Canadian Living, I just had to take advantage of all these planets aligning for me.

The recipe for the Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake I made is here.

OMG - this was so fantastic I barely have words. It was a huge hit, and I even had enough left over from Sunday night's dinner to serve my dad for dessert at our own little Thanksgiving celebration last night. He doesn't like pumpkin that much and even he loved it! This cake was really moist and flavourful, and the crunch of the pecans was wonderful. It was perfectly spiced. I didn't make the rum glaze, but instead served this with some sweetened whipped cream and some caramel sauce I've had hanging out in my fridge for ages. It was perfect!

Definitely a keeper!

Magazine Monday (yes, on a Saturday!) #67: Pulled Pork

Long have I wanted to make pulled pork, but alas, the availability of the proper cut of pork - the butt, which is the shoulder - and the cost of said cut, has always put me off. Enter cross border shopping! On a recent trip across the border to get some good deals on all kinds of things, I found a 1.5lb pork picnic roast for a few bucks. Perfect size for one person!

The recipe I used came from Canadian Living's December 2005 issue, found here. It's a slow cooker recipe, which was perfect because this past week was seriously busy for me and I needed a no-brainer kind of meal.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed, which rarely happens with Canadian Living recipes. I didn't care for the sauce at all; it was not zippy or tangy, and it was way too thick for my liking. Also, I found the pork difficult to shred. The roast came with one of those handy-dandy blue dot devices that pops out when the meat is done, and so I took the roast out when I saw that happen. Apparently, according to my SIL, I needed to overcook the roast in order to facilitate easy shredding. I didn't know that; the recipe only said cook until pork is tender.

Anyway, I am eating this still - it's provided me with at least four meals. I served it with a tomato-y rice and black bean side dish and some nice creamy coleslaw.

Next time, I'll be trying a different recipe, though.

Magazine Monday #66: Brown Sugar & Chocolate Chip Pound Cake with Maple Espresso Glaze

So, I was invited to a friend's for dinner last week, and I offered to bring dessert. I have a ton of rhubarb in the freezer, but my friend's husband is not a fan. Plan B involved blueberries, but that was a no-no, too. Plan C kinda fell into my lap during a ransacking of my recipe binder. I just happened upon this recipe from the October 2007 issue of Bon Appetit Magazine, and I had all the ingredients on hand.

This is one frakking fantastic cake, people! It was a huge hit at dinner, and I had some left over to munch on when the urge arose. And arise it did. This makes one awesome midnight snack, I can tell you for sure.

The recipe is here.

I used dark brown sugar, not the golden kind. I actually prefer the darker sugar because it has more flavour and it's a little richer. I really think it makes a difference in the taste & texture of my baking.

When I made the glaze, at my friend's house, I added too much liquid, and it came out more as a sauce. I was totally OK with that and so was everyone else!

Definitely a keeper recipe that I think I'll go back to time & again!

Magazine Monday #65: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

When my brother & SIL were moving out of the place next door, I found a copy of Kootenay Woman Magazine, a freebie that comes in our mailboxes every so often. This recipe was on the back cover, and it caught my eye as I was putting it in the recycling bin. I made it the other day, making one significant substitution: I put espresso powder in place of the cinnamon. WIN! It was awesome. I kept about a dozen cookies for myself and took the rest into work, where they were much appreciated.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp espresso powder (original recipe says 1 tsp cinnamon)
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups quick oats
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

350F oven. Cream, combine, scoop, bake. Makes about 3 dozen cookies formed with a #70 cookie scoop.

Delish!

Magazine Monday #64: Sour Cream Chocolate Crumb Cake

This recipe comes from the latest issue of Canadian Living Magazine. I made it the other day because I was in a serious PMS state and I needed cake NOW! I had the ingredients on hand, except the 3oz of dark chocolate, but I saw that there was a handy variation at the bottom of the recipe using chocolate chunks instead of chocolate, and since I had some chocolate chips on hand, I used those in addition to a small amount of Skor bits I had hanging around my freezer! This cake totally hit the spot!

Sour Cream Chocolate Crumb Cake

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
3oz bittersweet chocolate, melted (or 1/3 cup chocolate chunks or chips)

Topping:

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
1/2 cup butter, melted & warm
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup ground almonds

1. For the topping, in a bowl stir together sugars, cinnamon, salt; stir in butter. Stir in four and ground almonds, using hands to press the mixture together.

2. For the cake, in a large bowl beat butter & sugar until combined. Beat in egg & egg yolk. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Stir into butter mixture alternately with sour cream, making 3 additions of flour mixture and 2 of sour cream. Stir in chocolate (or chips/chunks).

3. Spread in parchment-lined 8" square cake pan. Crumble topping evenly over batter. Bake at 350F until done. Cool & serve.

This was delicious, but two caveats I found for you: one is that I needed a 9" pan for this as 8" was not going to be big enough. Second, there was a lot of crumble topping - almost too much. But it was crunchy & tasty & I'd definitely make this recipe again!

Magazine Monday #63: Pasta With Shrimp & Cilantro-Lime Pesto

This recipe comes from the July 2010 issue of Bon Appetit, my subscription for which has just run out. As mentioned previously, I will not be renewing. Anyway, the recipe came from the RSVP section, where readers request recipes they've tasted at various restaurants around and about, and in this case, the reader who requested the recipe tried the original dish at Tejas Texas Grill & Saloon in Hermantown, Minnesota. It caught my eye because I love cilantro and an entire pesto made from this ingredient was just too good to pass up! I was not disappointed! This was a fantastic dish. I even invested in a mini of tequila!

Pasta With Shrimp & Cilantro-Lime Pesto

1 1/4 cups, packed, fresh cilantro leaves, plus more chopped for garnish
1/4 cup green onions
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp chopped seeded jalapeno (which I skipped because I don't like them)
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb linguine
1 lb uncooked medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
3 tbsp tequila
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (original recipe calls for Cotija cheese, but this is the boonies, man - good luck finding that anywhere around here)

1. Blend 1 1/4 cups cilantro & next 4 ingredients in a food processor until a course puree forms. Gradually add oil as machine runs. Season with salt. (NB: I did not use the full amount of oil.)

2. Cook linguine & drain.

3. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp & cook until almost opaque in the centre, about 3 minutes. Remove the skillet from heat; add tequila. Return skillet to heat and stir until sauce is syrupy, about 30 seconds. Add pesto; stir to coat. Remove from heat.

4. Add sauce to pasta & gently combine. Serve with extra cilantro & sprinkled with feta. Should serve 4.

Awesome, tasty, and easy. I'll definitely be making this again, next time with a margarita, perhaps!

Enjoy!