RSS Feed

Tag Archives: Food

Pie Season! Feast!

Posted on September.6.2012 by Flavorphilia

Image

My homemade chocolate pie :)

 

Admit it.  You love pie.  

This canvas for goodness of sweet and savory alike primarily piques my interest in the fall, when my oven stays warm with the need to hone my Thanksgiving throw down skills.  My pie experiments range from crusty switches to hybrid filling creations – and really everything in between.  

I am not a pie purist.  If it’s in a pie dish, it’s a pie.  If you can cut it into a lovely triangle shape, it’s a pie.  If you name it a pie and it doesn’t have either of the afore-mentioned criteria, I’m not gonna hate.  It’s a pie if you want to call it a pie ;-)

Image

I borrowed this from another blogger – it’s perfect! It looks homey and delicious! The recipe is different than the one my mom made, but it’s similar. My mom didn’t use sour cream. I bet the addition is yummy!!

I had a horrifying experience with pie as a wee child.  My mom tried to make a pie.  She used a graham  crust, Jell-o pudding, canned fruit, and made a pie.  You’re wondering:  how could that be bad?  Who wouldn’t LOVE a pie made with Momma’s loving hands?  Well, me.  I thought a pie should be shaped like a TRIANGLE.  Mom put my pie on the plate, and it fell apart.  I was devastated, and I wanted PIE.  This wasn’t pie.  What was this?  It was tasty, but it wasn’t pie.  

It took years of therapy to alleviate the type-A tendency, and I’m proud to admit today, I’d happily just TAKE the pie, eat it, and not concern myself with it’s level of isosceles triangular perfection. 

I did want to know how the pie on TV was so perfect, and what they did to get a pudding pie to firm up so well.  Here’s an ode to my Momma’s pie, and turning it into a triangle :-)

  • No bake:  Add 4oz of cream cheese and 1/4 cup of powdered sugar to the pudding mix.  Mix well, and refrigerate overnight before adding fruit to the top.

 

  • A wonderful base recipe for baked pudding-texture pie is: 1 – 14oz. can of Sweetened Condensed Milk whipped into 5 egg yolks.  Add whatever sounds delicious to your pie.  My Chocolately Chocolate pie above uses this base, plus 8 oz of melted dark chocolate,  Image  

a tablespoon of Ghirardelli unsweetened cocoa, Imageand a teaspoon of vanilla.  It was delicious.  It wasn’t overly sweet, the texture was inexplicably airy yet dense, and it cut into a perfect triangle.  Soul soothing!  

 

 

1 Comment

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Yes… MORE Cupcakes!

Posted on April.14.2012 by Flavorphilia

Image

For those who follow my posts online, it would seem as though I feed my children cupcakes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  And that I give them an occasional cookie from week to week for the times we’re still baking cupcakes.  WELL!  It isn’t entirely untrue.  Sometimes we eat dessert before dinner.  I think it’s a testament to my unyielding fist bump to freedom!  Two shots in the air for all of us who say, “Goodbye, convention.  Hello, cupcakes!”

Last night, I did it again.  A dear family friend was hosting a little 6 year old visitor, and asked if I was going to do any baking soon.  I didn’t have my usual stock of ingredients, and I wanted to go shopping to get something crazy-great for the special guest.  However, it turned out that she’s actually leaving TODAY, and last night was our only chance to meet her.  So I jumped up and said, “Give me 45 minutes!”

In the refrigerator, I had some left over blueberry compote from my “Pancake Tuesday.”  I thought it would make a DELICIOUS mix-in for the simple cake batter.  I added sour cream and orange zest to the batter as well, and a little bit of vanilla yogurt.  When I tell you the cake was moist, light, and delicious… it’s only because I need to find some better adjectives for yummy cake!  It.Was.TASTY!

The important part of this entire post is the frosting.  I’ve been perfecting the fluffy confection for the last several months, and I think it’s finally perfect.  Here’s my favorite basic frosting recipe of alllll time!  (For the cupcakes pictured, I omitted the cream cheese and added orange zest and almond extract – it was perfect with the blueberry swirl!)

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Milk

5 Tablespoons of Flour

2 Tablespoons of Cream Cheese

1 Teaspoon of Vanilla

1 Cup of Softened Butter

1 Cup of Granulated Sugar

Directions:

1.  Whisk the milk and flour in a small saucepan.  Cook through on medium heat until the mixture is viscous – thick like a brownie mixture.

2. Add the cream cheese and melt into the mixture.

3.  Cool the mix completely.

4.  In a large bowl, whip the butter and sugar together until it resembles whipped cream.  It will take about 5 minutes on medium to high hand mix speed.

5.  Add the teaspoon of vanilla to the cooled flour mixture.  (I use vanilla bean paste)

6.  Whip the flour mixture into the butter mixture.  Keep whipping – at least 5 minutes.  Make sure to use a spatula and keep ALL the mixture in the whipping process.  It’s easy to miss a sugar granule or two :)

7.  Taste the frosting, and try to save some for the cake :)

www.flavorphilia.com

1 Comment

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Wedding Food: Blinded By the Light!

Posted on April.9.2012 by Flavorphilia
Wedding Food: Blinded By the Light!

Food, glorious food!  For my backyard vintage intimate gathering, the food is king of my love celebration.  Of course, there’s much more to the reception than the food.  But as usual, it’s ALL I can think about, and I’m going CRAZY trying to make some final decisions.  The problem:  EVERYTHING sounds amazing.  Every theme, every dish… it all looks gorgeous, and … well… I just can’t decide!  I asked a “chef friend” for some ideas.  It was mostly a fantastic conversation about food.  I still haven’t made a choice, but he made me feel SO much better about it!

Food stations, perhaps?  I think it’s a glorious idea!  This tapas-style reception is great if your guests have the myriad of eating habits that keep popping up, as well.  The vegetarians, pescetarians, vegans, lactose free, gluten free, just-eat-something-and-smile guests will find something they can truly enjoy, and not endure the “singled out” feeling of the veggie plate that happens so frequently in banquet settings.

International street food and global cuisines are the hot topics for the themed stations.  Brides and grooms are even using food trucks at their receptions!  Stations are also a fantastic way to have some fun with the menu, and deliver some surprises to your guests.  Savory cupcakes are a revelation, and will enamor your guests with presentation and tastiness.  Think: mini meatloaf with whipped mashed potato icing, or lasagna cups.  They offer exciting, different, and innovative foodstuffs with a homey flavor profile of familiarity creating the perfect duet of something old and something new.

Meatloaf Cupcakes from "Celebration Goddess"

The plated dinner, though traditional, always remains the ultimate statement of grace and elegance. Multiple courses and phenomenal service add touches of sophistication.  Chef Carlos Snipes, a St. Louis native, and formerly of The Crowne Plaza in Clayton, is currently at the St. Regis in Houston at the Galleria.  “Plating style really makes a difference,” says Chef Snipes.  “You can take a basic menu and make it fantastic with a bold presentation.  For example, at St. Regis, we place the protein in the center of the plate instead of the side.  Everything is worked around the center, and it looks incredible.  Everyone always raves about the plating at St. Regis.”

“People love buffets and hors d’oeuvres,” says Chef Snipes.  Giving your guests choices is the key to making certain they’re sated and raving about your fabulous party.  Work with your catering manager to maximize the floor layout, and setting up multiple buffet stations if you have a large number of guests can be crucial for a great event flow.

The dessert portion of the reception is gaining momentum, and quickly becoming the highlight of the evening.  There are a myriad of things to do outside of the traditional wedding cake.  I’m baking my own cupcakes and mini desserts.  Everyone thinks I’m crazy! LOL!  But seriously… it’s only family, so for the small crowd, my goals are attainable.  I’m making Strawberry Lemonade cupcakes and Black & White cupcakes.  Look out for the Flavorphilia wedding cupcake blog!! :-)

“Candy bars.  I’m all about the candy,” jokes Chef Snipes.   Candy bars are fun and can offer an aesthetically pleasing variety to the standard dessert line up.  Individual wedding cakes at each reception table for guests to self-serve are also something to consider.  It’s another way to get guests mingling and peeking at each table’s cake.  And if they’re all different flavors, it will be fun to share across the tables!

My homemade dark chocolate cupcakes

Gorgeous Wedding Reception Candy Bar from "Creative Consultants"

No reception is complete without giving the bar the once-over.  An absolute-must:  signature cocktails in your wedding colors.  It’s the final opportunity to make a definitive statement at your wedding reception.  And use the bar as a muse for food display ideas!  Anything served in a shot glass is an instant hit.  Go crazy!  Have fun!  It’s YOUR night!  I’m absolutely taking my own advice on this one :)

1 Comment

Posted in Flavorphilia, homemade, Menu, St. Louis, Wedding and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Soup for YOU!

Posted on November.17.2011 by Flavorphilia

This is “Aunt Nei Nei’s Famous Potato Soup.”  And be on the lookout for MORE FlavorPhilia soup recipes throughout the season!  Soup is a forgiving dish.  Unless an ingredient is burned or turned, you can usually doctor any errors made in seasoning.  It’s a perfect dish for the Midwest winter, and feels cozy and comfortable.

OK!  The Soup!

Ingredients

  • 5 lbs. peeled and chopped potatoes (I use Yukon Gold, sometimes red)
  • 1 standard Package of thick Peppered Bacon
  • 1 cup finely diced celery
  • 1 cup finely diced carrots
  • 1/2 cup of chopped parsley
  • 2 cups finely chopped onion (I use yellow)
  • 4 Cloves of fresh garlic, crushed &  finely chopped
  • Rosemary, to taste
  • Salt, to taste
  • Fresh Cracked Black pepper, to taste
  • 2 Chicken or Vegetable Bouillon cubes
  • 8 tablespoons butter (1 stick of REAL butter!!!)
  • 2 Cans of Evaporated Milk
  • 8 oz. of Heavy Whipping Cream
  • Whole Milk (to consistency – usually a quart)
  • Garnish:
    • Freshly Grated Cheese (your taste)
    • Sour Cream
    • Chopped Scallions
    • Bacon

Directions

  1. Boil potatoes in salted water until soft in a large stock pot.
  2. While the potatoes boil, fry bacon until crispy, & reserve bacon fat.  Place crisped bacon to the side.
  3. Drain potatoes, & hold.
  4. In a LARGE stock pot, heat rendered bacon fat with the butter.  Add carrots, celery, onions, rosemary, parsley, garlic, chicken bouillon, salt & pepper & cook until tender.
  5. Stir in potatoes & crumbled peppered bacon.
  6. Add the dairy to preferred consistency, and let it stew together for a while – until you can’t stand it any more, and you have to eat it! (At least 30 minutes, simmering)

And use what you like.  Substitute the rosemary for sage.  Use white instead of yellow onions… or LEEKS!  Whatevs!  (I mean, the yellow onions are so sweet and melty, but… to each his own!  (Speaking of onions, see my roasted garlic and onions below!!  In the soup, it’s divine!  In ANYTHING, it’s divine!)  I’ve also subbed veggie bacon for the real bacon, and vegetable bouillon for the chicken.  I’ve omitted the parsley.  I’ve used buttermilk, half and half… you name it, I’m sure I’ve done it.  BUT, the recipe above is the one everyone keeps coming back to devour.  We almost NEVER have leftovers :)

Leave a comment

Posted in Flavorphilia, Food, homemade, soup, St. Louis and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

I Didn’t LOVE the Balls… But I LIKED Them :)

Posted on November.5.2011 by Flavorphilia

Perhaps it’s my methodology.  Perhaps it’s the extreme over-sweet coating lingering in the back of my throat long after swallowing.  Perhaps I simply need some PRACTICE.

Cake balls are ALL the rage, and I’m not nailing it.

My friend B came over one Tuesday morning, and brought this bad-a$$ cake ball book.

Bakerella ‘Cake Pops’

Cake Pops: Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for More Than 40 Irresistible Mini Treats

SO!  We got to work.  We practiced our ball creations.  We made some bad-a$$ frosting, and MAN!  Our cake balls were good when we made them.  Super sweet, but good.  The thing is:  we dipped them in Ghirardelli chocolate. (It’s my fave!)  Now, ANYTHING dipped in chocolate will be delish, but MAN… I’m tellin ya!  HUZZAH!   We baked a yellow cake mix.  B mixed up some homemade buttercream, and I added vanilla bean paste.  It’s the nectar of the gods… totally made my entire life worth living.  Seriously.  If you don’t have vanilla bean paste in your kitchen, RUN. Don’t walk, RUN.  RUN to your nearest grocer or GOOGLE it, for heaven’s sake.  It’s SO almost 2012, and you CAN find it!

But I digress.

Back to the balls.

SO.  B and I made some pretty good balls.  They were lacking in consistency, and I didn’t have Popsicle sticks to try making the POPS.  But they were tasty.  When I made them on my own, I had a couple of challenges.  First, I think my initial ball size was too big.  They wouldn’t stay on the stick!  So, I read the book again, and of course, she directs you to a precise quarter-size ball.  Yes, my balls were WAY too big.  Story of my life!  Anyway, I found my consistency to still lack the staying power I really wanted, and I added some cream cheese to my buttercream, and placed the smaller balls in the freezer.

Voila!

They were GORGEOUS!  I failed to photograph this time, but I promise I will be attempting again.  I used the white chocolate candy coating, and pink sugar sprinkles with strawberry cake.  Now.  The CAKE ball portion was delicious.  But I think… I just don’t like white balls.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food, St. Louis and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Dinner on a dime…

Posted on August.24.2011 by Flavorphilia

Totally kidding. But seriously, I’ve actually COOKED dinner for the last several nights. I don’t know how to act with TIME in the kitchen… last night, I made gardein chick’n scallopini on angel hair pasta with this DELICIOUS saucy stuff. It had sauteed onion & garlic, diced tomato, basil, kalamata olives and green olives, capers, artichoke hearts, spinach, and “mama sug” flavor!! It was SO good. Seriously, it tasted JUST like chicken!!! And WOW. It was GOOD!

Tonight, I browned butter and crushed some almonds, roasted the almonds, and placed salted, peppered, and paprika’d flounder filets in the sautee pan on the crunchy nuts. We had the flounder with left-over angel hair (plus pesto) and lemon butter broccoli.

What has gotten into me?

I’m really enjoying LIFE. It’s refreshing to have a life outside my day-job. I’m humbled by my luck to have beautiful babies, a fantastic life partner, and a job that takes care of me and gives me time for the things that matter most. I don’t feel worthy, but I’m thankful constantly that THIS is MY life! I can’t believe it!

I had a flavorful dinner TWO nights in a row. Whoda thunk? I’m happy!

2 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
Posted on August.20.2011 by Flavorphilia

“The time has come,” the Walrus said,
“To talk of many things:
Of shoes–and ships–and sealing-wax–
Of cabbages–and kings–
And why the sea is boiling hot–
And whether pigs have wings.”

excerpt from “The Walrus and The Carpenter”
by Lewis Carroll
(from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872)

If pigs had wings, I’d probably eat them.  Which brings me to the revival of my pre-pregnancy eating habits: The Hearty Pescetarian.  I’ve reveled in filet, meatballs, pork steak, bacon, sausage, ribs… *sigh*  And it’s reveling in me.  It’s reveling all over my thighs and my rear end.  And my gut.

Loving all things flavorful as I do, tomato soup sounded SUPER delicious this week.  And a mean, hearty tomato soup is filling, delicious, and good for the bod.

Cover the bottom of a stock pot with olive oil, and warm on  medium heat.  Dice 5 pieces of veggie bacon, and throw in to sizzle and flavor the olive oil.  Then, add a whole large diced sweet yellow onion, and cook until translucent.  Add 1 clove of pressed garlic. Salt & pepper to taste.  Add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, and stir into the mix with 2 cubes of frozen basil cubes.  Then, add 2 big cans (28 ounce) of fire roasted diced tomatoes, and 1 big can of crushed tomatoes.  Stir in 2 tablespoons of vegetable soup base.  Throw in about 1 cup of frozen spinach.  Salt & pepper to taste.  Allow all the tomatoes and onions to simmer together.  Now, I use evaporated milk, fat-free half & half, and a little whole milk to make my soup creamy and delicious.  Some peeps freak at the use of dairy, so… whatevs.  Use what you’d like!

On the not-so-healthy side, we also had grilled cheese… :)  Freshly sliced sourdough, meunster cheese, pepper jack, and veggie bacon.  I LOVE using a little stone-ground mustard and sharp cheddar with my sourdough, but Omar was the brainchild of this one.  It’s tasty!

With recipes like this, who needs chicken?  ”Not I!” said the little red hen.

Yummy! Chunky soup for the chunky soul!

Posted in Food, Menu, pescetarian, soup, St. Louis, St. Louis Restaurant, Vegan, Vegetarian and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments

Junk Food Blues

Posted on July.19.2011 by Flavorphilia

In elementary school, there was a silly song we sang in Music.  And I remember, “I’ve got that rumblin’ tumblin’ down in the stomach junk food bluuuuues…”  At the time, I was loving all the foods in the song, but today I’m really understanding the rumblin’ tumblin’ part.  Ahhhh… adulthood.  It adds a new dimension to all things once sweet and innocent.

Life has been SUPER hectic lately.  Of course, with a crazy schedule comes HORRIBLE eating habits.  If I’m too busy to cook, I can order pizza or “Shiity Wok” Chinese and have it delivered.  I can run to one of several fast food joints, and go through the drive through.  SPEAKING OF WHICH… why is there NO drive through with good food?!!

I LOVE real food… I’d PREFER to eat real food.  WHY isn’t it out there?  How come the options are Sonic, White Castle, Taco Hell, or Jack in the Crack?!   You know what drive throughs would be great?  St. Louis Bread Co.  Subway.  CHIPOTLE!  Mmmmmm… Yum.  Why don’t we have fresh, fast and healthy food in the midwest?!  As a mommy, I NEED THE DRIVE THROUGH!  Is there anyone interested in a business venture?  LOL!  I’m only half-joking.  Maybe 1/3.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food, Menu, St. Louis, St. Louis Restaurant and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Sanctuari-a-Go-Go!

Posted on May.23.2011 by Flavorphilia

I love this joint!  Every time we go, it gets better & better.  (So often, this is not the case.  How refreshing! )

Tonight, we had Wicked GOOD Shrimp (among a few other things!)  It was spiced to perfection!  I wanted to keep soaking up the sauce with more bread once the shrimp was gone, but I just didn’t get drunk enough to beg our server for more bread.  And I can’t go without getting the Cabrales Cigars… a “Spanish blue cheese & leek fondue, rolled into phyllo cigars then pan seared; accented with sherry-raisin sauce.”  There’s probably a negligible amount of crack mixed in with the sherry-raisin sauce.  I’m just sayin.

Usually, I’m not a big carnivorous diner.  However, due to the urging of my Sister’s boyfriend, I tried the Smoked St. Louis Ribs.  WOW!  They’re definitely smoked, and served with a house-made (<– yes!) guava barbecue sauce.  The flavor was unlike any barbecue I’ve had.  It was distinctively barbecue, but with a “ska band” vibe.  Super tasty!

The key element to enjoying a night out is SERVICE.  (Well, it’s MY key element!)  Our server was knowledgeable, thorough, and all-in-all awesome.  But several peeps stopped by to make sure we were happy.  Sanctuaria is FILLED with awesome servers, and it’s obviously a team.  Impeccable – and makes for a great experience.

Fall-Off-The-Bone Good!

Good company.  Good food.  Good night :)

Leave a comment

Posted in Food, Menu, St. Louis, St. Louis Restaurant, Uncategorized and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

The Last Supper

Posted on May.21.2011 by Flavorphilia
What’s With Chicken, Anyway?

  Yes, it’s trite.  I couldn’t help myself ;)

In all sweet seriousness, this question is something to chew on for a moment.  What if this were your last meal on earth?  What would you choose?  Right this second, I’m crunching on some roasted pistachios.  And while tasty, it’s not my first preference.   Let’s hope Mr. Camping is incorrect… and I still have time to consider what I’d actually choose.  It’s so tantalizing to ponder: of ALL things on earth, what would I choose?! 

It’s too overwhelming.  My little brain races with possibilities.  Do I go simple or elaborate?  Pig out, or savor the decadent and divine??  *sigh*  Let’s thank heaven I don’t have to think about it. 

My mind wanders to Death Row.  Somewhere in the world, someone is making final preparations for his last breath.  I wonder what they’re asking to eat? 


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_meal
 

Here are some notable choices:

  • Karl Eugene Chamberlain: A variety of fresh fruit and vegetables, cheese, lunch meat, deviled eggs, six fried cheese-stuffed jalapeños, a chef salad with ranch dressing, onion rings, french fries, a cheeseburger, two fried chicken breasts, barbecue pork rolls, an omelet, milk, and orange juice.
  • Karla Faye Tucker: Banana, peach, and garden salad with ranch dressing.
  • Murl Daniels: Orange juice, grape juice, fried chicken, fried oysters, chili, potatoes, Limburger cheese, bread and butter, vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup, chocolate cake and coffee.
  • Philip Workman: He declined a special meal for himself, but he asked for a large vegetarian pizza to be given to a homeless person in Nashville, Tennessee. This request was denied by the prison, but carried out by others across the country.\
  • Adolf Eichmann declined a special meal, preferring a bottle of Carmel, a dry red Israeli wine. He drank about half of it
  • Dennis Wayne Bagwell: Medium rare steak with A1 Steak Sauce, fried chicken breasts and thighs, BBQ ribs, French fries, onion rings, bacon, scrambled eggs with onions, fried potatoes with onions, sliced tomatoes, salad with ranch dressing, two hamburgers, peach pie, milk, coffee, and iced tea with real sugar.

2 Comments

Posted in Food, Menu, St. Louis and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
← Older Posts
→
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 27 other followers

%d bloggers like this: