masala sweet potato scramble

Tomorrow is May Day (what?! how?!) and I'm feeling re-energized, re-inspired and re-motivated. This could be the result of having Monday off from work. It could be that Kelsey is back from her week of Kansas wedding planning and we can watch Parenthood again. It could be the Good Lord's undeserved mercy. It could be because the bike trail looks like this again (also see previous example):

To celebrate all this goodness, I bring you the latest in a series called: Combine Things that Taste Good to You and Call It Breakfast (or lunch/dinner/apps 'n' taps). As always, the trick is to be as daring as you can. The more random and unexpected the ingredients, the better.

You know what else is random? I now have a bunch of friends that went to the University of Delaware. How 'bout that.

For me, culinary creativity and courage comes most easily when I have very few ingredients to work with. If you keep some key things (like sweet potatoes) on hand at all times, it is easy to scrounge up the rest. Here is what I pulled from the fridge this morning:

Why not eat leftover masala chickpeas for breakfast, I ask you? This stuff is the bee's knees.

Now go forth with boldness. Tonight, black bean burgers. Look out! 

(Disclaimer: All images in this post were lovingly edited in Instagram, which is a bit inconsistent with color but arguably the laziest? cleverest way to turn camera phone pics into photography.)

With love.

Shameless St. Patrick's Day brownies

I won't further bemoan my recent lack of downtime, because I have been busy with some really fun things. I also won't deny that I miss cooking and writing, nor will I apologize for publishing a post that is now more than a month outdated. It may break some blogging etiquette to jump around chronologically, but I'm here to throw convention out the window. These boozy brownies were delicious. And who says you need a holiday to bake with beer, anyway?

My fondness for St. Patrick's Day (and Guinness) is due in large part to the six weeks I spent in Ireland in 2007. That's where I first tried the creamy stout and fell in love with everything Irish.

As I walked down the block to pick up a bottle from the enclosed-glass corner store, I reminisced about sharing a pint with my mama when she joined me in Galway. I would love to know what that 21-year-old pixie-headed version of me would think of this urban life I'm living. I bet she thought I'd live in Ireland by now.

When I returned home with that ubiquitous black bag, I opened the bottle and measured out one cup, then poured the rest into a couple pint glasses to toast the holiday with Kels, while the reserved cup reduced by half on the stove.

The other ingredients are pretty standard for fudgy brownies: chocolate, butter, eggs, vanilla, sugar, flour. The Bon Appetit recipe calls for a good bit of salt, which is a lovely touch. You know how I feel about salted chocolate.

Lindsey was in town that weekend, all those many moons ago. (Kelsey wasn't engaged yet! KU was still playing in the tournament! Grandma and Grandpa had yet to see Philly! I hadn't heard my new favorite song 1,000 times!)

My sisters whisked the eggs, sugar and vanilla together, then I added melted chocolate and the Guinness concentrate.

These babies baked for more than an hour before they weren't a jiggly mess. The reviews on the recipe said it might take longer if you don't let the beer reduce enough. It's quite possible that was my problem -- I don't claim to be the most detail-oriented baker. I will say, the long-awaited results were worth it.

Especially with the decadent stout/chocolate/butter glaze. Do I even need to say that?

To add some credibility to the meal, we first ate some refreshing pasta primavera from our trip to South Philly's Italian Market.

Then we indulged in this chocolaty, slightly salty, delightfully stouty dessert. Don't feel bad about baking these in late April. Sláinte!

Guinness Brownies
From Bon Appetit

1 c. stout (such as Guinness)
16 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped, divided
1 c. plus 2 T. unsalted butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 large eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. kosher salt, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x9-inch baking pan with foil and coat generously with non-stick spray.

Bring stout to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 12-15 minutes. Let cool. Reserve 1/4 cup.

Melt 12 ounces chocolate and 1 cup butter (in the microwave or a double-boiler) until smooth. 

Whisk eggs, vanilla and sugar in a large bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in chocolate and 1/4 cup reduced stout. Fold in the flour and 1 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake brownies until surface begins to crack and toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs, 45-60 minutes (depending on how well you followed directions about reducing the stout). Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool for at least 20 minutes. Remove from pan using the foil.

For the glaze, melt remaining 4 ounces of chocolate and combine with 1/4 cup reduced stout, 2 tablespoons butter and 1/4 teaspoon salt; whisk until blended, then pour over brownies. Let stand at room temperature until glaze is set, about 40 minutes, or use your better judgment and eat immediately.


With love.

Of Montreal

As much as I like this little blog of mine, quality time with visitors (and sleep) will always win out. I'm not sure if it was encouragement or justification I felt listening to this wonderful TED Talk last night, in which Susan says that 'solitude is a vital ingredient in creativity.' All I'm saying is there is probably a correlation between more guests and less writing. So I am using this period of solitude as my parents, grandparents and Linds fly out, and Ken flies in, to post a photographic retrospective of the last time he was here, about a month ago, when we drove to Montreal, Quebec.

We convinced customs that we weren't fugitives in Kelsey's VW Rabbit.

We marveled that we could drive nine hours and end up in this lovely French city.

We took many photos.

We ate crepes and dumplings and poutine and everything bagels.

We hiked up a treacherously icy slope to get a better view. And then slid back down.

We visited this Biosphere, without really knowing why it's there.

We drove home in time for dinner...cheesesteaks.

With love.