Cinnamon buns

Half of the programs on the Food Network drive me crazy! But there are a number that I do enjoy, and get some inspiration from. This past week on the Barefoot Contessa, Ina was making a quick version of cinnamon rolls using puff pastry dough. Mmmm!

I decided to make 24 mini rolls, rather than 12 standard. Good idea in theory, but it ended up not being so swift in practice. I overfilled the muffin tins with the brown sugar & butter mixture, and in the course of baking, their cups raneth over, and burning sugar became smoke and filled my kitchen, causing the smoke detectors to go off. Whoops! Well, at least I know they work, seeing how I was in Morocco when the time changed, and didn't install new batteries. Needless to say, the cats did NOT like all the noise, and I still have a couple windows open and ceiling fans going, an hour and some later. At least it's a warm February night....

So if you're inclined to bake, take a look at the recipe. Here's what I did differently. Walnuts instead of pecans and instead of raisins. Added a about 2 tablespoons of mini chocolate chips to the filling. And if I had to do it all over again, I'd use about half to two-thirds of the initial butter & brown sugar that you put in the bottom of the muffin tins (at least for the minis). These baked in about 18 minutes. After the smoke, I turned the oven off and let them sit in there for about 5 minutes.

Yummy! Very nice and sugary/glazed on the outer part, and still very squishy in the middle. Can't really go wrong with a little chocolate. I would put them on a tray before putting them in the oven. Fortunately, I have an oven liner on the bottom rack of my oven, which should make this cleanup process much easier. I would make these again! No yeast, no dough rising. Almost no fuss, no muss!

Sazon

I had dinner at the interior Mexican spot Sazon last Friday night, and admittedly, I should have written this post when the food descriptions were a little fresher in my mind. I arrived just after 8pm to meet a friend. There was a guitarist playing music near the front door. As it was a Friday night, it was packed. And loud. And the musician. Great.

There's no formal host(ess) stand, so patrons just kind of wait inside the door. There didn't seem to be one person in charge of hosting, because at least three of the waitstaff came by and said there was seating available on the front patio, but as it was colder out, I said I'd like to wait for an indoor table. Other people came in, most of whom did go out to the patio which apparently has space heaters. Again, there's no one in charge of the seating, so to someone who does not frequent Sazon, it seemed completely disorganized. I had probably only been there 5 minutes (though it seemed much longer) when my friend arrived. We waited probably another 5 - 10, before getting seated, though the man who was clearing the table went first to a group that came in after us. (They politely said we had been there first, though I would have politely told the man that we had been there first if they had not... again, no one in charge...)

The physical space inside is not huge, and there is a bar that takes up about a quarter of the interior space along the back wall. There were maybe 15 - 18 four-top tables; didn't go out on the patio, so not sure how big it is out there. There's papel picado and sombreros lining the walls, and I think a neon beer sign on or near the bar. Casual atmosphere, appropriate decorations. The food is decidedly interior (as in authentic) Mexican, as opposed to Tex Mex. Looking on the back of their menu, they actually have a mission statement and a bit about their food, something that you usually don't see, and I find a nice & educational touch.

Turned out my friend had eaten a huge late lunch, and wasn't hungry. I had an early lunch and was starving. Chips (tasty, not greasy) & salsa (basic red, fresh, but otherwise fairly non-descript) arrived as we sipped on Mexican beers. I ordered one of their house specialties, the Cochinita Pibil, which is pork mixed with achiote and spices, and baked in banana leaves; it was served with grilled red onions, rice, black beans, and what they refer to as plantain chips. When the waiter asked what kind of tortillas (flour or corn) I wanted, I asked his preference, and he quickly responded that they make their corn tortillas there. If you can tell from my (ooops!) blurry picture, it's an attractive looking plate. There's no real complaints about it, but I think the pork was lacking in major flavor. Their plantain chips were thicker cut (half-inch in diameter) than what I would consider a normal "chip" in terms of bagged potato or even plantain chips, and to me it wasn't mashed and fried enough, at least how I like them! The tortillas were made with white corn, and were extremely tender, almost like flour tortillas. No real problems with the dish, but I am not sure that I would order it again.

I've been to Sazon maybe 2 or 3 other times, and I've always enjoyed it. I was glad to see they were packed on a Friday night in January (though it made parking more difficult), and hope that they will survive a slow economic period, though there were no indications that anyone in there was concerned about the local economy. It's a place I would gladly go back to, and explore other regional dishes. (And if you look at the contacts page on their website, you can see a much more focused picture of the cochinita pibil.)

Hai Ky on Oltorf & New Sweet Treats on S. Lamar

Let's start off by saying that I DID go for a 45 minute walk this morning, in the 70-something degree weather, this fine January morning. Which left me hungry. Fortunately, I had already arranged to meet a friend for pho, as other friends at work yesterday were talking about it, giving me that craving.

Hai Ky is a great little inexpensive place to meet your needs. Located on Oltorf, just before Burleson, it's in a relatively non-descript strip mall. We go in, sit, and are immediately brought menus, and asked what we want to drink. Having discussed it on the way there, we knew we wanted the crispy eggrolls and rangoon to start off, but we need another minute for the entrees. The very mellow (but polite) waiter (oh yeah, there is a head shop in the same strip center...) comes right back with the waters, and takes the rest of our orders. I will have the #13 -- Pho Tai, which is with eye round steak, and my friend has opted for #82 -- Mongolian Tofu.

The appetizers come fast... still hot from the fryer, but not just dripping with grease. The rangoon are shaped differently than how I've seen them in the past -- these are in half-moons, like dumplings, rather than in a wonton/tortellini shape. The cream cheese inside is screaming hot, but they are delicious. The eggrolls are tightly rolled, with a kinda mushy blend of pork, shrimp, and veggies. I think it's all pureed together, then put into the wrappers. They're tasty, but nothing to get excited about.



Our main dishes come when we're still blowing on the appetizers to cool them down. My #13 pho bowl is a large steaming bowl of broth, with thin vermicelli rice noodles on the bottom, very thin cuts of eye round steak, some veggies, and a side plate with a lime wedge, fresh bean sprouts, thai basil, and sliced jalapenos. It's a lot of food. Come to think of it, the waiter did ask me if I wanted the small or large when I ordered... didn't know I had a choice! I opted for the small. I still have leftovers. The broth is nice, you can taste the star anise in it. The meat is good and fresh, by now completely submerged in the broth, and hence cooked all the way through; when it was brought to the table, I could see bits of pink in the meat where the hot broth hadn't hit it yet. I use my fork to get at the noodles, and the Asian soup spoon to slurp at the broth. Nice contrast of textures and flavor.

The #82 tofu dish is quite lovely too. There is a next of crispy fried egg noodles on the bottom of the plate, topped with 1/4 inch slabs of the tofu, which has been nicely char-grilled, like they do pork. Great flavor to it between the grilling and the sauce, and lots of sauteed green onions and chives accompany it. So as we're sitting there eating, my friend asks me if I've been to the new Pie Slice bakery on S. Lamar. No, I hadn't, nor have I been to the new Moonlight Bakery, also on S. Lamar. So we hatch a plan... she'll pay for our lunch (a whopping $16 and change), and I'll pay for our desserts. And off we go!

We go to Moonlight first... sort of in an odd location, next to Batteries Plus, but it must be working for them, as we were part of a small wave of 4 separate customers that descended at the same time. Painted in nice bright colors, a lovely glass case of the day's treats welcomes you. There were cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls (2 kinds), palmiers, croissants, kolaches... the eyes got REAL big, and the stomach said "oh no!". After much oohing and ahhing, we settled on a palmier and chocolate croissant, which we split, and a couple cookies for me to take to our hairdresser friend, who I had an appointment with in an hour. I've nibbled on the palmier, which is heavenly! It's really crisp (no sogginess here!), buttery, and flaky, just as it should be. I only took a little bite of the croissant so far because I am so full, but it too seems lovely -- you can see all the layers, and it tastes like good quality semi-sweet chocolate on the inside.

Then up the street to Pie Slice... these 2 spots are no more than a half mile apart, and both on the west side of Lamar. (For those who know where the Horseshoe Lounge is, Pie Slice is in the building directly north of HL, between it and La Feria.) Pie Slice offers pies, cakes, muffins, cookies, and a few other sweets, as well as having a full-service menu with everything from breakfast tacos to pizza to sandwiches and salads. The desserts in the case looked fantastic. It didn't take too long though to decide on a piece ($4.25) of the chocolate espresso pie. A rather generous sized piece was cut, put into a box, and off we went. So back to my house, were we we dove right in! It was fantastic. Now those who know me, know I am picky about pies because of the crust -- a crust makes or breaks the pie. I love baking my own pies, because I really like making the crust, call me crazy! This pie had a fantastic crust -- chocolate chips, walnuts, and a touch of cinnamon in it. And you could taste some butter, though I think it probably had some shortening in it too for the flakiness. The filling was a dense chocolate mousse with a noticeable espresso flavor, but not overpowering. Then, it was topped off with real whipped cream. OH MY GOD. I really can't wait to go back and try more. A friend who I saw over the weekend has been in there a couple of times for the "real" food, and had good things to say about it, so that bodes well. (Sorry, photo's a bit out of focus.)


Meanwhile, I have eaten more than intended today! I think I need to go for another walk before I eat another sweet potato burger and fruit for dinner! Oh, and my hairdresser friend gobbled down the Moonlight cookies and said they were fantastic too. So while E. Oltorf has always been a Vietnamese food destination, S. Lamar is becoming the homegrown-bakeries hot spot! All the better for me, in my 'hood!

Sweet Potato Burgers

 

 

So, I found this recipe online, and while it sounded a little odd, I really liked the idea. I've tweaked it a bit, so here's my version that I made last night. It came out as a nice, hearty vegetarian meal! The sweet potato definitely gives it a the denseness needed, and surprisingly, it held together without egg or other binding agent. I rushed the caramelization of my onions, so they didn't come out quite as I had hoped, but still tasty!

Sweet Potato Burgers (makes 4 medium burgers)

olive oil for sauteeing
2 medium yellow onions, sliced into rings
1 medium sweet potato (or yam), approx. 1 pound, washed & cubed (you can leave the skins on)
1/2 of a red onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp chipotle chile powder
1/4 tsp Spanish smoked paprika (the hot, not the sweet)
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
few grinds of fresh black pepper
1 - 2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped (or use flat leaf parsley if you don't like cilantro)
1/2 cup pecans, toasted & coarsely chopped
whole grain buns (or bread of choice...I used challah bread rolls)
mayo, bbq sauce as condiments

-- In a large, heavy skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil; add sliced yellow onion. On medium-low heat, allow to onion to cook slowly, gradually browning and caramelizing. Remove from heat when done.(You can add a touch of salt to help draw out moisture, and a touch of sugar to help sweeten the deal.)
-- As onions cook, place sweet potatoes in a small saucepan, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and let simmer for about 10 minutes or until tender. Drain, run a little cold water over them to stop the cooking, drain again, and set aside.
-- As sweet potatoes, cook, heat a medium skillet over medium heat, and add a tablespoon of oil. Add chopped red onion, cooking about 5 minutes until becoming translucent and tender. Add garlic, and saute for 2 minutes, then remove from heat.
-- In a food processor, combine oats, cinnamon, chile, paprika, coriander, cumin, salt & pepper; pulse a few times until the oats are finely ground.
-- Add sweet potatoes, onions/garlic, and cilantro, and pulse until well combined. Stir in pecans.
-- Form mixture into 4 medium patties.
-- To cook, heat a large, preferably non-stick skillet, with a little bit of oil over medium heat. Cook about 3 minutes per side, or until browned.
-- Serve on buns (I like mine toasted, with a little mayo & bbq sauce, and the caramelized onions on top. Enjoy!

The next go-around, I may saute the sweet potato a bit after boiling/steaming so they get a bit more texture to them. Actually, roasting them from the get go may be the way to do it! Adjust the spices to your comfort level. If you don't want so much cumin, use less... there are no rules here!

(More) Sugar Mama's!

Mmmm. Cupcakes. How can you ever get tired of them? Last night was the fabulous wedding of a lovely friend at Thurman's Mansion, adjacent to the Salt Lick. A delcious BBQ dinner was had by all! (See the Salt Lick post from a few days back.)

Instead of having a traditional cake, the bride & groom went for a charming tier of Sugar Mama's cupcakes! We had 4 chocolate varieties, from bottom to top in the photo:
-- the James Brown, a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting
-- the Black and Tan, a Guinness cupcake with Bailey's Irish cream cheese frosting
-- German Chocolate, chocolate cake with pecan, coconut & caramel frosting (also the bride's favorite, and this was the top-tier topper)
-- the Peanut Butter Cup, a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter chips, and pb buttercream frosting

The two vegans in attendance were also extremely pleased with the mint chocolate and ginger lemon cupcakes. Sugar Mama's came out and set up everything -- thank you!!!! -- and now I have to return the cupcake stand to them. Maybe I should pick up something while I am there...