finding time for cooking | for the time-starved or curious culinary adventurer

Paul Hollywood’s Chelsea Buns

June 17, 2020

It’s hard to tell you how magical these chelsea buns are. Fragrant spices, tart and chewy fruit with a whiff of bourbon, citrus tang. Soft, pillowy dough. Sweet icing. It was truly revelatory.

I’ve wanted to try these out, and decided that Paul Hollywood’s recipe had to be where I start…I only know about them from the Great British Bake-Off, so feels fitting.

What is a chelsea bun?? Chelsea buns aren’t really a thing in the U.S…at least as far as I’m aware. I’d certainly never heard of them before I started watching the Great British Bake-Off.

They are a currant sweet bun from the 1700s, once favored by royalty. Made basically the same way as a cinnamon roll, but stuffed with dried fruit instead and usually with some citrus zest in there. They’re a real British staple.

(Side note, I just went down a rabbit hole about the difference between currants, raisins, and sultanas, soooo…)

And I’m so glad I’ve tried them out, because they were so worth it!

If you’re looking at the ingredients list and thinking “whoa, that’s intense!”…don’t be put off by it. It’s not nearly as complicated or intense as it looks, I promise. I just like to write detailed instructions because I think it makes life easier…and I have step-by-step photos throughout the post so you can see how everything should look.

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10-Minute Stovetop Pink Grapefruit Curd

June 4, 2020

Anyone who knows me well will tell you that I am a lover of all things grapefruit. Citrus things in general are up my alley, but there’s something special about a ruby red or pink grapefruit flavor. So after I first tried my hand at a lemon curd and was blown away by its ease and flavor, I knew that a pink grapefruit curd was in my future.

The bright, sweet, soft flavors of this curd are inextricably associated with early spring for me.

As I fiddled with getting this recipe just right, we got a stretch of cool but sunny days, pink flowers popping out on the trees, and the neighborhood lawns turning a rich green. It’s a happy flavor tied to a happy time.

This pink grapefruit curd is a super simple adaptation of this simple lemon curd recipe. The technique is exactly the same, but I had to tweak the ingredient amounts slightly for both this and my blood orange version (coming soon!).

Because the grapefruit and the blood orange are softer, sweeter citrus flavors vs. the intensity and tartness of lemon, you need to back off slightly on both the sugar and butter in order for the real flavor of the fruit to shine through. It pairs really well with strawberries, raspberries, and the like.

Naturally this curd will be yellow, because the pink juice can’t win out against the egg’s yolk. If you want it to be pink, just add a TINY drop of food coloring (I prefer this gel coloring set and use it all the time). READ THE POST

Chetna’s Easy Chicken Curry

May 25, 2020

So here’s the thing. This is not the most photogenic dish. It’s just not. But MAN, it packs a wallop of a flavor punch. This easy chicken curry recipe from Great British Bake-Off contestant Chetna is healthy and simple, but (most importantly) totally delish.

Now, some folks may ask why there’s no curry powder in it, if it’s a curry. But actually curry powder is a largely Western invention and addition, and “curry” is just a larger class of dishes. You can read a bit more about it here since, as a white American farm girl, I’m not the expert 🙂 Suffice to say, this is a curry!

You may look at the total preparation time and think, “ain’t nobody got time for that on a weeknight”. And maybe that’s true, but what I love about this recipe is that the hands-on time isn’t much, and the first several steps go in stages with plenty of time in-between to prep…so while the oil heats up chop your onions, while the onions cook chop up your tomatoes, etc.READ THE POST

Easy Sesame Chicken

May 19, 2020

How have I not tried this recipe before?! An easy sesame chicken recipe should be my catnip.

This is one of those things that has sat on my Pinterest board for a couple years now, and every week I look at it and then pass it over for something else. Why? I have no idea.

Sesame chicken is my jam when I get Chinese food. But over the winter break I decided to give it a try since it looked simple and I was already making a dessert as well. And I’m so glad I did—this recipe is simple, delicious, and mostly healthy. You can add whatever veggies you want and it can be ready in the time it takes to cook your rice.

The one major change I’ve made is to double the sauce recipe…I like my sesame chicken SAUCY. But I’ve kept the original amounts in the recipe below, and then I just always double it.

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“If Egg Nog Was Good” Bourbon Milk Punch Cocktail

May 14, 2020

A few months ago, if anyone had told me I’d be obsessed with a cocktail that includes bourbon and dairy (with the exception of a boozy milkshake), I’d have thought they were crazy.

But here we are…

What is a milk punch?

So apparently “punch” is from the Sanskrit word pañc, which means “five”…five ingredients, in this case. I can neither confirm nor deny but that sounds pretty cool. A milk punch is a classic but flexible cocktail formula: generally including liquor, sweetener, milk and/or cream, and vanilla, usually with a nutmeg garnish. There’s more fascinating milk punch history here.

Apparently we’re in the midst of a milk punch revival. I’d never really heard of them until recently, and then all of the sudden started to notice them on menus. I first tried a clarified milk punch (having a major moment) at George’s Bar in Louisville, and it was amazing! I am, however, too lazy to clarify milk myself…

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Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake With Peanut Butter Glaze

May 10, 2020

One day I had a day dream. I dreamed of a dark, moist, bittersweet chocolate bundt cake paired with an intensely peanut butter glaze. Like SUPER peanut butter-y, that kind of sweet/salty combo that’s amazing.

Problem was, finding a glaze that matched my vision was way harder than I thought it would be. Finally after quite a bit of digging, this came onto my radar, and with a few tweaks it was absolutely perfect.

This was one of the first things I baked after the “shelter in place” orders started, and I quickly realized how dangerous my stress baking habit was going to be. Thankfully I dug up the willpower to take two pieces for myself and gift the rest to a co-worker…with a 6-foot distance 🙂

I often find bundt cakes dense and dry, but this cake is the complete opposite…rich but light, super moist, almost fluffy. The glaze is a little sticky, but keeping it from getting too sweet helps the textures and flavors balance out. And the chocolate and peanut butter combo can’t be beat.

I love how easy this cake is to whip up as well! Other than just mixing up the chocolate portion ahead of time, this cake batter comes together in just a few minutes, then is in the oven with very little hands-on effort.READ THE POST

Grilled Zucchini & Corn Pizza With Marinated Feta

May 3, 2020

This grilled zucchini pizza tastes of SUMMER to me. And after a chilly, rainy spring, I sure am ready for some summer. For fresh grilled corn on the cob, tomatoes bursting with flavor, strawberries that actually *have* flavor. And grilled pizza with silky grilled zucchini, charred corn, and salty fresh feta.

And the added benefit of not heating up the house…

I first figured out grilled pizza last summer, and once I “cracked the code”, I was obsessed with trying out different topping combinations. My favorite grilled pizza dough recipe gives you a peek at some of my favorite combos so far.

And this was one of them…I just didn’t get around to getting it posted for a bit, and then the summer bounty of zucchini and corn was out of season. It seemed cruel to post it and taunt you all with delicious produce that could never live up to its potential. So here we are headed into another summer.

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A Classic “Brown Derby” Cocktail

April 27, 2020

I was first introduced to the Brown Derby cocktail over a decade ago at an amazing little secret speakeasy called Prohibition.

Hidden behind a red London-style phone booth, I was transported to a time of jazz, silent movies, and delicious boozy drinks. I’d never really been around cocktails, but I was a convert.

Last weekend (for work reasons) I had Derby on the mind. The Kentucky Derby, that is. It’s the time of year when all of Louisville would have normally horse fever. Except it isn’t.

The horses won’t run on the first Saturday in May for the first time since World War II, and a lot of folks here are feeling the void of that spring rite. So the other night I decided to try whipping up a Brown Derby cocktail in honor of the Derby.

No, they’re not technically related, but that’s how my brain works 🙂

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Rye Port Manhattan Cocktail

April 19, 2020

Given the gloomy, chilly spring weather we’ve been having here, my cocktail game has had more of a fall vibe, and it seemed time for me to finally tackle one of the great classic cocktails, the Manhattan. Since I can’t ever just do the thing straightforward, I’m going with a rye port Manhattan.

Because, here’s the thing—I don’t like Manhattans. I think it’s because of the sweet vermouth that provides the distinctive flavor, which I don’t like. So I went looking for a Manhattan without vermouth, something that maintains that iconic flavor but that I actually *like*. Enter delicious ruby port…

What is a Manhattan cocktail?

The standard Manhattan has remained remarkably consistent over the nearly 150 years it’s been around. A basic Manattan is two parts rye whiskey, one part sweet vermouth, two dashes of bitters, and served “up” (chilled but no ice) with a cherry or twist (lemon peel).

The original might have actually been equal parts rye and vermouth, which for someone like me who does NOT like vermouth or sweet vermouth sounds especially gross.READ THE POST

10-Minute Stovetop Lemon Curd

April 15, 2020

The real question for this week is, why have I not made lemon curd before?!

I feel like you all are terrible friends for not making me try this earlier. Because, GUYS, this lemon curd is so easy and so delicious, and takes less than 10 minutes. You can do it while you’re waiting for your coffee to brew, or…other things that take around 10 minutes? I don’t know at this point. Regardless, it’s fast.

This lemon curd is quite sharp, but light and creamy. It’s perfect as a filling in simple crepes, topping a pavlova, or swirled through yogurt. Go nuts…layer it between cakes, spread it on toast, top coconut milk ice cream with it.

You might also like this pink grapefruit curd!

In doing some research, I picked up a couple tips that were helpful (and mentioned in the recipe card below). First, don’t use aluminum cookware because it reacts with the lemon juice. I used a small stainless steel saucepan, which works perfectly. It’s important not to use too much heat…a good medium flame should work.

And then I recommend stirring together the sugar with the egg, and then add the juice right as you’re putting on the heat. If you add the juice to eggs without the sugar, the acid in the juice will “cook” the eggs and you’ll get those little white bits.

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