Cooking 101

Have I used that title before?

The other day I volunteered to help take a meal to a teacher who had major surgery. I offered to make dessert. I kept wondering when I was going to be told the date we'd take a meal so I could go shopping.

One of my friends called me and said, "We're taking the meal tomorrow. Do you want to drive over together?"

Short notice (not her fault), but luckily I had all the ingredients on hand for an oatmeal cake. I had no clue what types of dessert this teacher liked, but oatmeal cake is one of my favorites. The cake is "from scratch" but easy and very moist. The other thing I like so much about the cake is that it has an easy but yummy coconut icing (icing is pushing it, but I don't know what else to call it. Glaze, maybe?).

Even though this is one of my favorite desserts, I don't make it a lot. You make the cake in a 13x9 inch pan. Since Paul doesn't love it (he's a chocoholic), I'm left eating it by myself so a lot of it goes to waste.

While I was making it, I kept finding myself scheming up ways to keep some of it for myself. But I didn't have two square pans (one to keep and one to share). I just wanted one piece.... I was so tempted, and I told Paul what my thoughts were. He was sane enough to talk me out of it. Thankfully, the angel on my shoulder (Paul) beat out the devil on my shoulder.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, you're supposed to pour the glaze over it and then put it under the broiler. There are only 3 ingredients in the glaze - coconut, butter, and evaporated milk.

While it was cooking under the broiler, I poured out the rest of the evaporated milk because I knew I didn't need it for anything. As I was pouring it out, I thought it looked a little dark. I checked the can for a date. It said " 14 Oct 06" Did that mean it expired in 2006 or on Oct 6, 2014? I smelled the empty can, and it did have a sour smell (but it wasn't chunky pouring out of the can). I had Paul check it too, and he didn't know what to do.

I pulled the cake out of the oven before the glaze was finished cooking. I flaked a little coconut off and tasted it. I *think* it tasted okay, but I couldn't be sure. All I could think about was that maybe the evap. milk expired in 2006. So......................................... I threw the cake away. :(

Just so you know - the can of evaporated milk was NOT buried way back in my pantry. It was right at the front like I had just bought it (and I do purposefully overstock my pantry over the holidays). That's why I didn't check the date before I used it - I assumed it was one of the many things that I had recently bought.

I started over and made Magic Cookie Bars instead. Luckily, I had all the ingredients on hand. When they came out of the oven, I needed them to cool before I put the lid on the pan so that condensation didn't collect in the pan. I took the pan downstairs with me so I could babysit it while it cooled (we have cats in the house that can't be trusted). After it cooled, I took it back upstairs and snapped the lid on.

Hours later, while watching tv, I heard a crash. I rushed upstairs to find that one of the cats had pushed the pan off the counter. The pan landed upside down and the lid popped off, but the bars were intact and had not touched the floor. If I had had to make dessert #3, I might have had a hissy fit!

I put the bars in the frig for safe keeping and cut them into bars the next day and delivered them on a pretty snowman plate. Whew!

The other lady that went with us to deliver the meal (and who has a culinary degree) said I could have used that evaporated milk. :(

Well, it didn't smell right so I guess I'm glad that I started over. As soon as I get back to the grocery store, I'm buying more evaporated milk and making myself an oatmeal cake! Yum!

Living with a Genius

Sometimes, it is hard to live with a creative genius. I thought I'd give some props to my dear husband.
I 've already told about his fun treasure hunts. Very creative! Now to the next thing -
Whenever there is a potluck at work, he comes home and announces his meal responsibility to me - usually the night before...after I've finished cooking....when I'm ready to put my feet up. Ugh! I've gotten really tired of this, and he knows it. But last week, he gave me plenty of notice that he had volunteered to take my special caramel brownies to work. I bought all the ingredients that we would need. Then I told him that I would help HIM make the brownies.
We watch Food Network quite a bit, but he still has trouble moving around the kitchen. It's fun to watch.
When we get to the part about adding the chocolate morsels, he gets a crazy idea to substitue m&m's! I said it sounded like a fine idea, but I couldn't predict how they would turn out since I had never done it that way.
We did it his way, and the brownies were more fabulous than usual! I think the outer shell of the m&m's kept the chocolate from melting all the way and there was a nice chocolate chunk in each bite. Now, why couldn't I have thought of this?
Oh well, I enjoyed the results!
We've decided to make the brownies once a month and change up the ingredients each time. Next time, I think we'll use white chocolate morsels (and maybe macadamia nuts). And caramel, lots of caramel.

Best Waffle Recipe from the Best Cookbook

I can't claim to be the best waffle maker because my waffle iron does all the work. It sets its own temperature, it sets the cooking time and beeps when the waffle is ready, and it provides the exact measurement for waffle batter. And the recipe is not my own either, but I did make one addition that Paul and I think improved the original recipe. I got the recipe from my red Better Homes and Garden New Cookbook, copyright 1989. I think every kitchen should have this cookbook. It has 19 chapters, lists meat cooking times, weights and measures (2 cups = 1 pint), lists emergency substitutions, and has a "special helps" chapter. This is my "go-to" cookbook when I question other recipes (3 cups of flour sounds like too much, what does my red cookbook say), when I can't remember how many minutes to boil an egg (I can't keep little bits of info like this in my head; I start wondering if it is 4 minutes, 7 minutes or some other amount and you have to get it exactly right if you don't want a raw yolk), and when I need directions on how to make a cup of coffee (I just learned how in the past year or so).
Here is the recipe with my one * addition:

The Best Waffles
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white granulated sugar *
2 egg yolks
1 3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup cooking oil
2 egg whites
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. In another bowl, beat egg yolks and add milk and then oil. Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Stir just til combined but still slightly lumpy.
In a small bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form (tips stand up straight). ***I think the beaten egg whites are the key to making these the best waffles. I think it adds a crispness to the waffle. I am lazy and do not beat my egg whites with a mixer. I use my hand and a fork and my muscles give out before stiff peaks form. I just add whatever consistency I get to the waffle batter. Gently fold egg whites into waffle batter, leaving a few fluffs of egg white. DO NOT OVERMIX.
Pour 1 to 1 1/4 cups batter onto grids of a preheated, lightly greased waffle maker. Close lid quickly and do not open during cooking. Bake according to manufacturer's directions. Makes 3-4 waffles (I find that it makes about 5 waffles).
Yummy!