This was the beginning of it all. Way back in middle school, before I realized how much I really did like cooking, I made blueberry scones for a class project. I've never been the same since. 

Perfecting a recipe is kind of tedious. You make a little change here, a little change there, hope you can remember how the final product differed, and start all over again. I don't do this. I usually tweak in large ways, for example, replacing blueberries with cut up dried mango and adding cayenne and lime. But I have decided that in my lifetime I will perfect this recipe. 

I don't even particularly like blueberries that much. Fresh ones, that is. But put them in the right baked good and they can be divine. 

These scones were not that 'right baked good.' My tweaks in seeking perfection backfired (I'm going to blame it on the altitude). I tried adding egg whites, which, to me at least, drastically changed the flavor, especially since I always decrease the amount of sugar. Also, I sort of managed to fill the oven with smoke (again, blaming the altitude and its ability to mess with proportions). 

But, since I am basically Martha Stewart, I managed to salvage the scones. A little quick thinking, some open windows and a pathological need to not fail saved the day. I've made better, but these are definitely still worth eating. Or scarfing. Whichever eating method you prefer. 

That's right; I'm hopping on the summer blogging bandwagon. This is just the first of what I hope will be many, many, posts about ice cream, frozen yogurt and sorbet. 


I reclaimed an old ice cream machine from the give-away pile and got to work. 

If there is one flavor I love almost more than any other, it's coffee. So naturally my first ice cream would be of the coffee variety. And I say variety because I added a little crunch in the form of almonds and chocolate chips. 

A lot goes into making ice cream. At least, it was a lot more than I thought it was. First I brewed a small, strong dose of french press coffee since I don't have an espresso machine. Then I threw that in a sauce pan with some whole milk and heavy cream and let it boil. Then I added the secret ingredient. Or at least, the ingredient I was surprised to see in so many recipes: egg yolks.  

I was trying to make ice cream, not frozen custard! But it is my understanding that the egg yolks are what make a good ice cream especially creamy, so I met myself in the middle and added four yolks. (Some recipes call for up to 12...or some other ridiculous number.) First I added a little bit of the hot liquid to the yolks, then added that mixture back to the original. 

You then simmer this liquid down until it ambiguously 'coats the back of the spoon.' Or reaches a certain temperature. I am still without a thermometer, so I had to take the less accurate route. After reaching what I hoped was the coating stage, I cooled the liquid for two hours. 

Then the magic happened. The magic that is facilitated by the world's tackiest kitchen appliance. I poured in my not-quite-cold-enough liquid and waited for the pre-frozen metal cylinder to go to work. Now, the box says that you only need to crank the handle once every 2-3 minutes and that in 20 minutes you'll have ice cream. Let's just say that I am impatient, probably spun it more than I should have, and it took closer to 40. 

Once it reached a decent frozenness, I stirred my mixings into it, loaded it into a tupperware and stuck it in the freezer. 

The next day I had ice cream. Hard as a rock ice cream. I think the water content in the coffee changed the consistency of the ice cream, because it was less creamy and more crystalline. I also may not have boiled it down enough. But once it softens a bit, it's just as tasty and satisfying as ice cream should be. So, summer, bring it on. 

I decided to make tortillas on Wednesday for three reasons: It was Cinco de Mayo, I hadn't posted anything in a while, and it was the last day of classes ever in my undergraduate career. 


I've been making tortillas for a little over a year now. My theoretical recipe is lifted from the Food Network site and has an approx. ratio of 3:1:1/3. It's easy to remember- 3 cups of flour, one cup water and 1/3 cup oil. You mix them all together, let the dough sit for 30 min, then roll and palm it as flat as you can. 


Whenever I've made tortillas before they always end up too thick and too chewy. So this time I decided to try a little something different. I used three different kinds of flours: blue corn meal, whole wheat, and an unbleached all-purpose. 

I knew the coarse grind of the corn meal would help break up the gluten development of the other flours, which would help ease them into flatter tortillas. 

The whole wheat was used for its coarse grain and health benefits. 

To the three flours I added about one cup water, into which I dissolved some salt; this was not enough to evenly moisten them, so I added a few tablespoons of milk. 

After the milk I added the oil. This time I used olive oil, which I have never tried before, usually I just use vegetable. 1/3 cup was a little too much oil this time, I think because of the milk addition, but it wasn't really a problem.

After letting it sit I dumped it onto my Roll-Pat, began tearing chunks off of it and, using my extensive Play-Doh skills, managed to make about a dozen flat rounds. While doing this I had the skillet already heating on the stove, since these cook the best on immediate and high heat. If you're going to try this yourself, I recommend flattening a few before going back and cooking one, since giving each tortilla a little time to relax helps it stay nice and thin. The pan doesn't need to be oiled because of the oil already in the tortilla. They should unstick themselves after a few seconds, making it extremely easy to utilise any flipping skills you may possess. 

These were definitely the best tortillas I have made to date, but they still have kinks I'll be spending the rest of my life working out. The blue corn definitely helped the overall texture and the olive oil added some flavour. 


If you're going to try and make these yourself, just know that they will not be anything like store bought tortillas. They are chewier, dense and in no way the uniform circles that machines produce. But they are a fun project and a versatile food. Not to mention the fact that from tortillas you get tortilla chips...and it is guacamole season. 


-Bizzle

Inspiration: what is it? For me it is an ingredient I have had bumming around my pantry for a while. This week's inspired ingredient was dried fig. 

This recipe just came to me while I was pondering how to use these whole, beautiful figs in a baked good. I wanted to use other flavours that would pair well with the figs, were reminiscent of the Mediterranean and were already on my shelf. 

I made a simple pie crust, sweetened slightly, to wrap the figs in. Then I took some coconut butter, mixed it with brown sugar, lime juice and ground ginger, and spread it out on little rounds of dough. I topped the filling off with a single fig and wrapped them up. 

I don't know if it was the dough itself or the size of my pockets, but the majority of them fell apart as soon as they hit the heat. The ratio in the filling between coconut butter and sugar was too low as well; I had oil dripping out of these and filling the pan. 

The above was one of the successful ones. When I placed them on the sheet I had pictured them staying fully pinched shut, hiding the fig completely, but I quite liked the way the pastry just gently fell away, revealing the fig underneath. 

These tasted much better the day after I made them. The filling lost some of the oiliness and the sugar became slightly chewy. I would really like to work with this recipe some more, especially perfecting the pie dough. There is at least one flavour element missing and I would like to find a way to add a little more color, even if it is as an embellishment. 


-Bizzle

Another day, another scone recipe. This is the second time I have tried out this combination in scone form, and I hardly doubt it will be the last. The inspiration behind this scone lies in some random snack food The Weng and I picked up in Oxford one day. Ever since then this idea has been floating around my head as an interesting and different flavour combination. 

Like I noted in my last post, it is easier to make true scone texture when you cube the butter beforehand. Here are my prepped butter cubes and mango pieces, sitting pretty in my new mise en place bowls. 

I used dried sliced mango from Trader Joe's. I just snipped them up with my herb shears while I ate breakfast and voila! Prepped main ingredient. I haven't ever tried cooking with fresh mango, but I just don't think it would work as well. Too much liquid, perhaps too much acidity- if you want to try it however, let me know how it goes. 

The other two star ingredients of this recipe: lime and cayenne. I don't know all the ins and outs of the 'chili' debate, but I use cayenne because it has a distinct heat without adding too much pungency. 

I love colour! Anyways, I used a little bit less sugar than normal, mostly because the dried mango is cured with sugar and I wanted the other flavors to have a solid place in the overall taste. I think I could have used more zest (I used 1 lime's worth) or perhaps a drop or two of lime oil. 

I used the drop-method this time because...well, because I felt like it. I just like the way haphazard food looks and feels in my hand. Plus, this is fun in a sneak- broken-bits-off sort of way. 

Yum. Understated with a lingering bloom of cayenne. Eating them right out of the oven really highlights the cayenne, so if you're weary of the combo, make them anyway and just wait until they're cool to nosh. 


-Bizzle

I love scones. I love eating scones and I love making scones. So it's about time they made their appearance on this blog. 

The main ingredient in these scones is that alien creature pictured above. It's a dried hibiscus flower my friend and I picked up on a whim at Trader Joe's. Now, they may look totally foreign, but they taste quite normal. Rather like a less tart version of a dried cranberry. 

Kitchen shears are a culinary tool I currently covet, especially when it comes to things like dried hibiscus. The knife eventually did the job but it took way more time than it should have. 

The second main ingredient in these scones is an ample amount of orange zest. I was hoping to use the candied orange peels from a couple of posts ago, but nature worked a little dark magic on those and they were no longer fit for consumption. Hence, the punch of citrus had to be brought in by something else. 

Another tool I wish I had was a pastry cutter. Normally I use my hands to cut the butter into the flour; one time this resulted in butter melted more than I desired and little cakes rather than little scones. This time I used hands and a pair of forks and I think it worked alright. The scones came out with the right texture at least. 

The majority of the time I make scones I tend to use the drop method, resulting in lumpy, irregular and crumbly scones. This time I chose to go with the wedge style, mostly because I thought it would fit on my Silpat better. 

The hibiscus didn't add much flavour to the scones but the little bit of chewy texture adds a lot to the overall feel of the scones. The downside of the hibiscus is that they are pretty expensive. I recommend that if you're going to spring for them at all, find a recipe that capitalizes on their shape when whole. Otherwise, use some other dried fruit. 

The best way to eat scones, and the world standard, I believe, is with tea. Add some milk and sugar to that tea and you will have an authentically British afternoon. 


-Bizzle 

Today's post is extremely monochromatic. If any of you have a phobia of the color orange, I'd stop now and go catch up on the latest episode of whatever TV show happens to be your guilty pleasure (I have about 7 myself). 

I knew my last post's creation would create a plethora of 'worthless' orange peels as well as yielding their fruit, so my mind started thinking of ways that would result in less waste. Or, less compost for my friends' cute little worms. 

In the end I decided to go with candied orange peel since I couldn't think of anything else and really, what else is there to do with orange peel? I started by filleting most of the excess pith off the peel and then thinly slicing them. I then boiled them twice, rinsing in cold water after each boil, as per Giada's instructions. 

After the second quick boil and rinse I again put them into boiling water, this time with added sugar. I don't think I compensated for the extra water I put in to cover the peels and ended up with not enough sugar. My peels didn't really ever dry, even after a couple of stints in an hot air blasted oven. 

Right after I pulled them out of the sugar water mixture, about 15 minutes, I sprinkled with a little more sugar and waited. Meanwhile, I kept the sugar water on the stove and reduced it. I simmered it down to a little more than a 1/4 of its original volume. The final product is slightly bitter thanks to the peels but retained the nice orange flavour. It has a nice caramel flavour to it as well, a perfect accompanying dark note. 

I'm excited to try it out the next time I feel moved to make pancakes. But don't let its name restrict you! It would also be good over ice cream, as a flavoring for coffee (Orange Mocha Frappuccino's anyone?), or even spooned over cereal in place of honey. 


-Bizzle

Nearly a week ago I bought a bag of blood oranges at the local market. I had never really had one before but I remembered seeing them all over the blogosphere. So I jumped on the opportunity. Then I searched for all those recipes that were vaguely prompting me to cook and discovered that most of the ones I had seen were for things like sorbet. Hm. Here in New England we are still in the throes of winter. (Also I do not own any sort of ice cream machinery.) So then I went and raided the plethora of recipes that is Martha Stewart's website and discovered a recipe for Grapefruit Upside-Down Cake. Perfect! 

I modified the recipe a bit, by which I mean I didn't actually follow the recipe but just the steps. Instead of using grapefruit I used blood oranges, normal oranges and Minneolas. The Minneolas were my favourite to peel because of the little hollow between the peel and the fruit.

Also, I am telling you all right now that I often take the lazy way out. Instead of doing the "professional chef" thing and slicing the peel off then sectioning the oranges with my knife so that there was no connective tissue, I just put down the actual sections. Yeah, it makes the cake harder to cut, but frankly, it was way easier. If you have and want to take the time to do that, go right ahead. 

I even broke out the electric hand mixer one of roommate's mothers bought for us when she saw me making whipped cream by hand. Cakes are fussy, which is why there are so many muffin recipes on this blog and not cakes. 

When I pulled the cake out of the oven the whole middle had sunk and the cake itself was rather more brown than I was expecting. I think I used too much brown sugar in proportion to white. I also used some whole wheat flour in the batter, so although I wasn't expecting a nice yellow, I was surprised when it came out looking the way it did. 

But despite its major pitfall and unusual color, this cake was amazing. Although I'm beginning to think anything that contains butter and sugar is probably going to taste pleasant. There was a little too much butter and sugar involved in the recipe than I normally allow for, but because I'm not used to cakes and especially wanted this one to be a success, I went for it. And let me tell you, all of my roommates (and I) are glad I did. 

This is going to be a short post because most people would not like to wax eloquent on their failures. I don't either necessarily, but I didn't want this picture to go to waste. 

I also didn't want all my hard work to have been in vain either. Although 'hard work' in this case is open to interpretations. Anyway, on to the food. I was attempting to create dairy-free muffins for the sake of sharing to a class of eager playwrights, one of whom is allergic to milk. I admit I was a little frazzled whilst in the process of combining things and made a few mistakes. One of which was introducing lemon zest into the wet ingredients before the eggs. The other of which was assuming coconut butter would 'mash' in the same manner as real butter. One of these mistakes is the culprit for what is  seen here:

That's right. Prematurely denatured egg pieces. Or, in rather more laymen's terms, my eggs curdled. At first I thought it was the lemon zest, but the more I think about it, the more unlikely that seems. But now I believe it was the small amount of coconut butter I had to melt in a timely fashion, aka microwave. Pouring hot oil into a mixture with eggs that hadn't been fully incorporated was an oversight on my part. But, in my defense, I've never baked with coconut butter before and I was nervous (there is a cute boy in the class I was baking these for). 

Now because I said 'short' post I will leave you with just a few final thoughts. The muffins, despite their weird blotches of obvious egg, weren't too bad. Taste wise they were fine although they did leave the slightest oil aftertaste (afterfeeling?). I didn't take them to class because they didn't live up to my imaginary impress-upon standards but my roommates are enjoying them as we speak. 

There is a chance I will try again soon which will of course mean another post about them. In the meantime, non-existent readers (hello? are you out there?), I seek advice on baking with rock hard coconut butter. 

-Bizzle

Here at The Brooding Life... I have no hubby, no boyfriend, and no date with which to celebrate Valentine's Day. I just have a couple of roommates and a lot of time on my hands. Which is why I decided to do a little baking and make Banana-Coconut Muffins to munch on while we watch RomComs and the Olympics. 

Now, I don't like my bananas ripe. I buy a bunch of green bananas, thinking that I will be able to eat them all in the very small time frame between just coming out of being green and before they start to brown. I always fail. Which is why our freezer is now home to an extensive collection of these brown beauties. 

One of my favourite things to eat made with these old bananas are my Mom's Banana Chocolate-Chip Muffins. She makes them for me whenever I come home from college and they are usually devoured within a few days. But today I didn't have any chocolate-chips. But Lord, did I have bananas. I also had some coconut lying around. 

And thus a recipe was born. I threw together the mushed bananas, some coconut and the various quick-bread essentials. Although this time I included a new trick. I like dense food. But I also like light, fluffy food. Especially airy muffins. Which is why today I whipped the whites of my two eggs and then folded them in last, right before I tinned my mixture. I had an inkling this would help my muffins puff, and it did. 

I didn't put a lot of sugar in this recipe because I am sick of overly sweet muffins. I also believe that Americans need to learn to cut back on their sugar intake, especially the processed stuff. Also, it totally justifies eating one with butter and honey on top, since there isn't a ridiculous amount already baked in. 

So, Happy Valentine's Day everyone. Do something non-commercial for your love (or loves, or likes, or anyone you might appreciate) this year and bake for them. Remember, it doesn't have to be a complicated recipe or even a recipe at all. It can be a veritable hodgepodge of on-hand ingredients, as long as it's made with good intent. 
-Bizzle

This post is dedicated to my Mommy, whom I love very much. And who 'bought' me a nice, brand new, exciting set of mixing bowls from Williams-Sonoma for Valentine's Day. Thanks Mom, I love you.