Two-Tone Delight

October is a very fine month. Death brings bright splashes of color to deciduous trees, soft sweaters warm skin on chilly mornings, and squash grows fat and ripe. Today's recipe, Two-Tone Cheesecake, showcases the Sugar Pie Pumpkin. Unlike it's common counterpart, the Field Pumpkin, Sugar Pie Pumpkins are sweeter and more tender, better for eating than carving jack-o-lanterns.

Two-Tone Cheesecake
Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups crushed cinnamon graham crackers
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup melted unsalted butter

Combine cracker crumbs and sugar. Incorporate the melted butter. Press into bottom and sides of a springform pan using your hands. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 7 minutes.

Cheesecake:

• 3 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tbs. granulated sugar
• 3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 8oz can pumpkin (or fresh pumpkin, baked and mashed)
• cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves to taste
• preheat oven to 350

Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Blend in eggs one at a time. Fold in the sour cream.

Remove 1 1/2 cups of this mixture and spread it on your graham-encrusted springform pan.

Add the pumpkin to the remaining cream cheese mixture. Add spices and mix together. As a rule of thumb, use more cinnamon than any of the other spices and use ginger the least. Add roughly equal amounts of nutmeg and cloves. Take it easy, and taste often until your tongue sings with joy.

Spread pumpkin mixture on top of cheesecake layer. To prevent cracking, place your springform pan in a water bath prior to baking. Bake for 1 hour (the center should be set, but jiggle like Jello). Turn off oven and open door. Let cheesecake slowly cool for about 20 minutes before removing from oven. This will also prevent cracking. Refrigerate several hours before serving.

Mouth Orgasm

When you undertake an intense cooking project, you tend to smell like your cooking. For example, after chopping onions and garlic and cilantro for salsa, you hands will smell of onion, garlic, and cilantro for days afterwards, even after repeated washings. Yesterday, I toasted some spices that Jesse bought for me in India and created my own Garam Masala. The aromatic toasting of spices penetrates your skin, your clothes, your hair. I awoke this morning smelling of fresh Indian seasonings. It was beautiful.

Yesterday, the Blue Plate Spectaculars witnessed miracles in the kitchen. I believe we should drop out of college and open an Indian restaurant. Who knew we had the mastery of Indian cooking deep within ourselves, waiting to be released?

Amy. Oh Miss Amy. How you outdid yourself. She made 3 delightful appetizers. The first was fried plantains, drenched in liquid caramel and spotted with chocolate. Second there was a deep orange mash of beans, spices, and mango, tantalizing our taste buds. And finally, Amy's own concoction of Mango, spices, and Tamarind Chutney. Lorenzo exclaimed, "This is the best thing I have put in my mouth in a long time." Had I been wearing socks, I'm sure they would have been knocked off.











Lorenzo whipped up some mojitos to keep us cool in the heat of the kitchen. He muddled sugar and mint, topped it off with rum, and added a splash of club soda.

Mike and I collaborated on the main courses. Mike made an outstanding (and delightfully spicy) curry dish with baked eggplant, lots of garlic and ginger, and yogurt. It was creamy and packed a kick. When preparing eggplant, be sure to lightly salt it before placing it in the oven. The salt draws out the bitter juices from the vegetable, making it mellow and perfect for drawing in the flavors of spices.

He also made Batsmati rice, following a recipe given to him by a real-life Indian grandmother! Grandmothers know there stuff. The rice gets cooked with lots of cumin, peas, red bell pepper, and onion. It was perfect for soaking up all of the pungent sauces.

Because I enjoy a good challenge, I decided to make Navratan Korma, featuring a homemade Garam Masala spice mix and homemade Paneer. Making cheese is an empowering experience. Watching milk and lemon juice transform into an Indian staple right before your eyes is incredible, and to know that you did it with your very own hands...mmmm-hmm.

I hate to toot my own horn, but it was AMAZING! Mostly because I followed an awesome recipe, but I followed it well my friends, I followed it well. If you would like to follow it too, here is the link for Garam Masala and Navratan Korma. I did not use Saffron in my Garam. Also, for the Korma, I could not find a Bottle-neck Gourd or Cluster beans. I tried out some funny Asian squash that looks like an Indian Bottle-neck Gourd, but it was very plain tasting, so next time I make the dish, I'll leave it out. Also, instead of sauteing the dry fruits in ghee and then re-incorporating them into the dish later, I just continued sauteing them with the onions, which gave the nuts a nice, roasted flavor. And don't garnish with cream, it simply melds with the sauce and is unnecessary.

My recipe for Paneer is as follows:

• 1/2 gallon whole milk
• 2 1/2 tbsp. lemon juice

Heat the milk in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. You want it to come to a boil. When it starts to boil, it will foam and quickly rise to the top of the pot. Remove from heat before you have a great big mess on your hands. Mix in the lemon juice and stir for a couple of minutes. Curds will begin to form (chunks). Let sit for 10 minutes to further curdle. Line a colander with a fine hand towel or several layer of cheese cloth. Pour the milk into the colander. When it's cool enough to handle, tie the ends of the cloth together and squeeze out the excess milk. Leaving it in the towel, place it on a plate and place another plate on top of it, weighted down by something (be creative). Let sit for 20 minutes. Move to the refrigerator. Stays good for 4 days.

Mixed Beginnings

So of course I'm way behind in posting. Oops. Blue Plate has already had it's second meeting, or should I say "dinner party," and I've yet to post about the first! Until now...

As I mentioned earlier, we took a crack at some New Mexican dishes a couple of weeks ago. I made Labor Intensive Beans, Lorenzo made Chile Rellenos, Mike prepared a salad with Red Chile Honey Mustard Vinegrette, and Alberto made a Mexican Bread Pudding called Capirotada. Here is the beautiful plate of comida.

My so-called Labor Intensive Beans were a bit of a disappointment. I cooked pinto beans with a mixture of roasted green chiles, a roasted serrano pepper, blackened tomatoes, sauted onions and garlic, and fresh cilantro. They were somewhat plain. A bit better the next day after sitting in the fridge overnight, but still not nearly as fabulous as they ought. I blame chef Mark Miller of Coyote Cafe, as he inspired this recipe. If you would like to send him hate mail, you may do so here .

Lorenzo's Chile Rellenos were made with a flourless egg batter. This makes them gluten-free (if it weren't for the peppers, this would be for you, B2). For some fantastic gluten-free recipes, check out Gluten Free Goddess. After roasting Green Chiles in the oven (for roasting instructions, see here), they are stuffed with jack cheese and coated in an egg batter. The batter is made with egg whites that are beaten until they're so stiff you can turn the bowl upside down and dance with it. Then they are fried in oil.



Mike's salad was a combination of lettuce, cilantro, tomato, jicama, corn, onion, cheddar cheese, and a delicious homemade dressing. I don't like creamy dressings, they are too rich for me. But I enjoyed this one. His primary ingredients were Dijon mustard, honey, and Chimayo Red Chile.

Following dinner, we had dessert. Capirotada. Repeat after me: cap-ear-oh-tada. The smell of Alberto's Capirotada baking in the oven made one wonder if perhaps he sprinkled a little bit of aromatic heaven on top. It was that good. A combination of whole wheat bread, eggs, milk, sugar, trail mix, and spices provided a perfectly sweet finish. The photo doesn't do it justice.

Intoducing...The Blue Plate Spectaculars!

UNM's brand new, unofficial, culinary club has finally become a reality. We call ourselves the Blue Plate Spectaculars and this is our mascot. Actually it's just Alberto wearing my Flan Fuerte
mask, but it's the thought that counts, right? Speaking of Alberto, I suppose I should introduce the members of Blue Plate. First there is Lorenzo, a pre-med like myself. This whole kitchen catastrophe was his idea. Then there's Mike. He's a line cook at Flying Star, and so we all idolize his knife skills. And of course there's Alberto, who can cook even better than he can mascot. Amy has proven worthy of alcohol-food pairing and then there's me. For our first culinary adventure, we met at my casa and cooked some New Mexican specialties. You can see Mike in my dining room, toiling away with his salad while Amy observes. The first meeting was a success. Check back tomorrow to see the evening's menu and our mad plating skills!

Dedicated to Gary Scales

These chocolate-chip cookies will save your soul. They can resurrect Elvis, bring the sweetest fruits to your barren lands, and make Dick Cheney smile. By God, they are fantastic! Don't believe me? Feast your eyes! (and try the recipe)















I'd like to claim that I developed this recipe myself, but I have quite a distaste for dishonesty. So instead I'll thank my old roommate, Nena, for stealing this recipe from our local Co-op's bakery.

Recipe:

• preheat oven to 375 degrees
  
• 1/2 lb. butter
• 1/2 lb. Earth Balance (vegan butter)
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 cups evaporated cane juice
• 4 eggs
• 1/8 cup vanilla extract
• 6 cups flour
• 1/2 tbs. baking soda
• 1/2 tbs. sea salt
• 3 1/4 cups good-quality chocolate chips

In a very large bowl, cream together the butters and sugars. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and sugar. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and give your arms a good workout until thoroughly combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Drop by 1/3 cup full onto cookie sheets. Lightly press them out with the palm of your hand. Leave a lot of room between cookies (only add 3-4 cookies per sheet). Bake until done, about 10 minutes.

A Delightful Slice of 3.1459265

Pie Town, New Mexico, with a population of roughly 65, is home to a lowly two restaurants–The Daily Pie and the Pie-O-Neer. It is also home to the annual pie festival. These people clearly love pie. And since I love pie as well, and free camping, I traveled with some friends from New Mexico Tech to this tiny village to indulge in a slice of heaven. The pie festival featured a pie baking contest, which I would have entered without a second thought had I realized it. Siona, however, submitted her own creation–a prickly-pear and strawberry pie. Unfortunately, it didn't place. Can the judges be trusted?

On the bright side, we enjoyed a day of bizarre and exciting activities, including a pie-eating contest (and no, I did not enter) and a horny-toad race. You read correctly, a horny-toad race. An ethnographer would have a field day with this one. And of course, there was PIE.

The first slice to enter my mouth was purchased on the fair-grounds from a pie stand. The crust, which was thick and rustic, had a fine taste. My cherry filling, however, was from a can. Hugely disappointing. It wasn't even good canned pie filling. But I suppose that's what you get for $2 a slice. Next I headed over to the Pie-O-Neer to try the famed, and Smithsonian-featured, New Mexico Apple Pie. This pie is an intriguing combination of apples, green chile, and pine nuts. Mmmm-mm. I had it a la mode. It would have been better warm, but the filling was a great play of flavors. Sweet and hot go together like Bonnie and Clyde. Some other award-winning sweet and hot flavor combinations in the Land of Enchantment include the Red Chile Dark Chocolate Pate from Santa Fe's Chocolate Smith on 2nd St. and Heidi's organic Raspberry, Ginger, and Red Chile Jam from Heidi's Raspberry Farm in Corrales. So much food, so little time.

I would have liked to have tried a slice of Pie from the Daily Pie, but there just wasn't any room left in my guts. There's always next year...

Pizza & A New Beginning

I love food, I love cooking. I love food blogs. This is my humble contribution. I can't guarantee frequent updates, but I'll do my best. What is beginning as one young woman's blog will hopefully morph into a group effort, updated by a club of young people like myself who are dedicated students by day and culinary crusaders by night.

Until then, here is a simple pizza recipe. I threw this together with my roommate Nena earlier this summer. I am shamed by the packaged pizza crust, but alas, we were low on time and couldn't wait for dough to rise. I imagine, however, that this would be divine with a crispy, wheat crust.

This pizza is topped with a slew of vegetables and crumbled feta cheese in lieu of mozzarella. Instead of a tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar, fresh garlic, a few spices, and olive oil are drizzled on the crust and over the toppings. We opted to use some delicious olive oil infused with spices and peppers that Jesse procured for me in Greece. It suited the pizza well as it has a Mediterranean flair. Despite the store-bought crust, it was mouth-watering. Nena deserves most of the credit.

Ingredients:

• pizza crust
• portobello mushrooms cut in 1/4" slices
• 1/2 red bell pepper and 1/2 green, roasted (recipe follows)
• small jar marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
  
• crumbled feta cheese
• several cloves garlic, minced
• balsamic vinegar
• extra virgin olive oil
• dried herbs such as basil, oregano, and rosemary
  

Directions: Brush pizza crust/dough with olive oil. Sprinkle on garlic. Cover dough with a single layer of portobello mushroom slices. Add sliced peppers and chopped artichoke hearts. Lightly sprinkle dried herbs of choice (don't go crazy). Then add a healthy layer of feta crumbles. Drizzle the feta with balsamic vinegar and place in preheated 450 degree oven. If you are using a homemade crust, feel free to use a baking stone for crispness. Bake 15 minutes or until crust is done to your liking. Eat. Say, "Yum."

Roasting Peppers: Preheat your oven's broiler. Brush whole bell peppers in olive oil and place on baking sheet under broiler. Turn peppers during cooking to ensure that skin blisters and turns black on all sides. This can take up to 40 minutes, depending on your oven. When the skin has blackened, remove the peppers from the oven and place in a paper bag or large bowl with a lid for 15 minutes and seal shut (this will make the skins easier to remove). Peel the skins off the peppers and slice open. Remove seeds and veins. Peppers prepared this way can be frozen for future use.