Ode to the Tomato

There is really nothing like a good tomato.

I learned at a young age that I loved tomatoes and that a good one can be hard to find.  We used to get farm stand tomatoes at a place up the road from our house, but it unfortunately became a Walgreens.  Until college the only respite I found from the mealy, unripe tomatoes at the grocery store was the introduction of the Ugly Ripe heirloom tomatoes to Publix Supermarkets.

Then I was introduced to farmer's market and slowly learned more about the pleasure and importance of getting your produce locally.  My tomato addiction then skyrocketed when we grew our own cherry tomatoes 2 summers ago in New England.  I can eat them like candy.

So imagine my excitement to learn that tomato season in St Croix starts in December and is now going full force.  We got the best of New England's growing season and then we move to the tropics and get to experience the deliciousness of tomato peak season again.

There are many ways that I like to eat tomatoes.  Cherry tomatoes straight from the Ziploc bag I bought them at the farm stand in, popped one after another into my mouth on the ride home.  This amazing Fresh Tomato Lasagna that has a bechemel sauce that is to die for.  Panzanella salad, a green salad, in pasta, with eggs. 

But my favorite way to eat a tomato is a way I also learned at a young age, from my dad.

A fresh ripe tomato is delicious just as is, sliced, sprinkled with salt and pepper.  I prefer to eat it straight from the cutting board with my hands, while still standing at the counter.  Completely satisfying as a mid afternoon snack or while cooking dinner.

In recent years I've started using sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  The small amount of spice brings out the sweetness of the beautifully ripe tomato perfectly. 

Below is a pictorial account of the Best Way to Eat a Ripe Tomato.

Baking and Baby Catchin' in the Caribbean

So a lot has happened in a year.

We moved.  To a tropical island in the Caribbean.  St Croix in the US Virgin Islands to be exact.  So I now bring into the world tiny Cruzans, who prefer reggae to nursery rhymes.

One lovely vista, from the easternmost point on the island.

It is definitely different.  I still work in a hospital, one that is working hard to get up to state side standards, but we do work with slightly less.  There are some things we just don't have because they are too expensive and some things we seem to run out of.  Another interesting thing is that patients are charged for each individual thing, down to gloves or gauze.  It sure does make you think about conserving items.

Babies still come out the same way down here and I have had some lovely births.  There are epidurals, but in the two months since I have been working here I have not yet had a patient who had one.  This is multifaceted.  The reason I like is that woman here come in knowing they can do it without and then just do.  It's amazing what your body can do when you eliminate something as an option.  Another reason is lack of availability and/or willingness of anesthesia to do it.  This is the reason I don't like.  Some of the anesthesiologists won't do epidurals and then some won't do it based on type of insurance.  Medicaid in the VI has some major financial issues and runs out of money early in the year, leaving the hospitals with the only choice of providing free care to Medicaid patients.  This leads to the hospital having less money, etc.  So some anesthesiologists will not do the service if they feel like they won't get paid.  It is an unfair reality here.

More on birthing differences in the VI later.

J and I also just got hitched!  It was lovely and perfect.  An intimate affair with immediate family and close friends, the beach, a farm, and good food.  The good food part was a must.  I was determined to eat and enjoy the food and beverages.

We did hire a caterer for the appetizers and dinner but I wanted part of it to be homemade by us.  So we made all the desserts!  J is not a fan of traditional wedding cake, so we made the decision early on that we would do a pie table and when St Croix became our new home and wedding location, my sister (also an avid baker) suggested we shoot for tropical style desserts.

So the day before the wedding, my mom, my sister, 3 close friends and I did some major baking. There is something so satisfying about the act of baking these desserts together and then watching people enjoy them the next day.  This is, of course, one of my favorite parts about cooking for others!  Also, communal cooking kind of rocks - it's easier and much more fun than cooking solo.

We made a Pumpkin Cheesecake (not really tropical but J's favorite), Lime and Ginger Cheesecake (no-bake and very refreshing), French Coconut Pie, Coconut Cream Pie with Chocolate Crust, and a Banana Cake with Dark Chocolate and Crystallized Ginger which my sister made into an amazing layer cake held together and topped with a Chocolate Ganache.

Photo courtesy of Jeremy Cooke

I love that word- ganache.  It just sounds delicious.  We actually saved the top layer of the banana cake - it's wrapped up and in the freezer for our 1 year anniversary.

The banana cake is actually from Molly Wizenberg's drool inducing Banana Bread with Chocolate Chunks and Crystallized Ginger Recipe.  She has a vegan version on her recipe index, but the one I always use is from her book - A Homemade Life.  I have never met another banana bread recipe like this.  In the past I have made it into muffins and it comes out incredibly moist, so it seemed ideal for a cake.  The bananas were local - some picked from a farm up the road from us and some from a Rasta run street side fruit stand when I realized we were a bit low.

The Pumpkin Cheesecake is a riff off of The Cheesecake Factory's recipe found here.  I adapted the Lime and Ginger Cheesecake from the Mango, Lime and Ginger Cheesecake found in Woman's Day.  The Coconut Cream Pie with Chocolate Crust was found by my sister on Martha's website (as in Stewart).

The one that I'm going to share with you today is an incredibly simple, yet rich French Coconut Pie.  This recipe was given to me by by mother.  She had been given the recipe by a friend years ago and raved about the resulting pie.

French Coconut Pie
Ingredients
Filling
1 1/2 cup sugar
6 oz canned coconut (be sure this is canned coconut and not coconut milk or cream of coconut)
1/4 lb (1 stick) butter
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

Pie Crust- I used half of this Pate Brisee recipe from Martha Stewart
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes
1/8 cup ice water, plus more if needed

Make pate brisee according to recipe and set aside in fridge for an hour prior to use.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix filling ingredients together in a medium sized bowl.  Roll out pie crust and press into a pie or tart pan.  Cut off excess and crimp edges.  Place filling in unbaked pie shell and place in oven.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes to 1hour in the center of oven.   Baking time varies depending on how the oven runs so watch

French Coconut Pie can be enjoyed warm or cold.  It is very rich, so cut small pieces.  It is even better on the second day.

Not gone...just detoxifying

December was a whirlwind of baking, crafting, packing and planning - as I'm sure it was for all of you.  Now that I'm back in New England for good, I'm kicking off the year with a detox diet.  Partner in Crime is joining me in this one, which really makes it easier to do. 

After all off my different diet schemes over the years, it's a little hilarious to hear him complain about the food he misses.  We hardly ever have any bread in the house, unless it's homemade or for a special occasion, but you should hear this guy yearning for a loaf of bread.  On day#2!  I'm not trying to be mean, I can relate from other diets.  It just makes me feel like we are both human, when before I felt like I had no willpower.  And that's funny sometimes.

So three reasons we need to detox.
1)  The discovery of Oreo Truffles - which are not only ridiculously easy to make, they are absurdly delicious.  A jar of these babies makes an excellent holiday gift (they occasionally don't make it to the recipient in cases of last minute pre-detox desperation).  Sorry Bo & Carol - it was for the greater good.  Make them for someone and I guarantee they will ask for the recipe.  Find it here.

Truffles pre-refrigeration. I like how you can see my reflection in the background.

Ready to eat!

2)  Berkshire Brewing Company's Coffee Porter - which has become my favorite beer of the moment.  It tastes great with an Oreo truffle or two.

3)  I am determined on making the traveling team for my roller derby league and feel that reigning in my eating for the new year can only help.

Despite the extra work that goes into the detox diet, I am doing quite well.  The diet is Whole Living Magazine's 28 Day Challenge and focuses on removing common allergens, sugar, processed foods, caffeine and alcohol from your diet.  Then you gradually begin adding dairy, soy, and wheat back in. 

I'll be sure to share some whole food, healthy recipes soon!

Post Thanksgiving-Thanksgiving Meal

As the Baking Midwife was busy this year helping babies into the world, we celebrated a day late.  We had a quiet Thanksgiving sans turkey as opposed to last year when I hosted a large meal for 9. 

Big meals are great for the festivity and conversation, but quiet is nice too.  More time for dwelling on food, drink and each other.

Here is our meal in photos.

Cranberry Chutney cooking

Cranberry Chutney finished

Mashed Potatoes - a little lumpy unfortunately

Rustic Herb Stuffing

Goat Cheese Souffle

Yeah that was my plate - Yum!

Some of our favorite Belgian Beer to wash it all down

Mashed Sweet Potatoes for the Dessert

Coconut-Sweet Potato Pie

MMHMM!

The recipe for Cranberry Chutney comes from All Recipes.  This is the second year I've used it and it's great for those guests who don't like the typical taste of cranberry sauce.

Both the recipe for the Mashed Potatoes and the Rustic Herb Stuffing came from the November issue of Bon Appetit.  I left out the celery and Swiss chard from the Stuffing because Partner in Crime wanted a standard no frills stuffing and I'm not a fan of celery. 

The Coconut Sweet Potato Pie recipe came from the Minimalist on the NY Times.  It was good, better cold in my opinion although it says to serve it at room temperature.

For our main dish I served a Goat Cheese Souffle.  Souffles are a great entree for a special occasion at a vegetarian's table.  Every time I make one I marvel at how simple it is to make and how delicious it is.  The I wonder why don't I make these more often.  I got my recipe from a vegetarian cookbook that I've been using for years, really since early college.  It's one of those cookbooks that I'm pretty sure are sold off the bargain rack at Barnes and Noble.  But it has done me well time and time again.

Here is the recipe.

Goat Cheese Souffle
Adapted slightly from Vegetarian:  The Best-Ever Recipe Collection by Linda Fraser

Ingredients
3 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 c milk
nutmeg
grated Parmesan cheese, for sprinkling
1 1/2 oz herb and garlic soft cheese, like Boursin
5 oz firm goat cheese, diced
6 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
salt and black pepper

*Serves 4

Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat.  Add the flour, stir to mix well, and the cook until sandy brown, stirring occasionally.  Then pour in half of the milk, stirring vigorously until mostly smooth.  Add the remaining milk, a pinch of salt and a few dashes each of nutmeg and black pepper.  Reduce heat and simmer gently for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Butter a 1 1/2 quart souffle dish and sprinkle with Parmesan.

Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in both the goat and soft cheeses.

Separate eggs and place egg whites into a medium sized bowl.  Beat or whisk until frothy.  Then add cream of tartar.  Continue to beat, increasing the speed.  Soft peaks will form, beat just a little longer until stiffer peaks form that flop over a bit. 

Take a large spoonful of the egg whites and mix in with cheese sauce.  Then pour cheese sauce into bowl with remaining egg whites and mix with a spoon until just combined.

Pout mixture into prepared souffle dish and bake for 25-30 minutes until puffed on top and golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Squashed

There are days when I am so busy at work that I can't remember what month it is.  Days where I spend 24 complete hours awake on Labor and Delivery and I never make it off the locked unit.  Not even to go down to the cafeteria.

There have been too many days like that recently, which is why I'm only just getting around to telling you about this Chili that I made on Halloween.
 

It's a black bean chili that I've been making since college, great for the crisp autumn weather or a one of those freezing cold February days in New England.  I prefer black beans to kidney beans for the taste.   This particular chili has a tangy flavor, it melds together sweet and just a tad spicy.

The day before Halloween, J and I had one of those incredible meandering days.  Our plan was to go and visit some good friends who just had a new baby.  I happened to know of a great place to eat breakfast, a picturesque farm near where they lived so we started the day off there.  Mmmm...sweet potato pancakes and veggie sausage with, of course, maple syrup from the farm.  We still hadn't heard from the new parents so went off to explore a town nearby that at first seemed a little underwhelming.  Clearly an old mill town, it was beautiful but seemed to lack any points of interest.  That is until we came across the old York Theatre, which has been converted into a bowling alley.  It still has much of the original architecture and is apparently haunted. 

I promise there's a point to this story.  A few games later, we heard from our friends and went for some cuddle time with Julia.  Afterwards, we decided to head up to Brattleboro, VT for the remainder of the afternoon, since we were so close.  We ate dinner at Firework's Restaurant and I enjoyed an arugula salad with roasted butternut squash, lentils, and goat cheese. 

The roasted butternut squash was perfect and got me thinking about using it with my Black Bean Chili.  Apparently this is not too novel of an idea, but it was for me.  Delicious too.

Of course, you have to add the cheese and sour cream!

Black Bean Chili with Butternut Squash

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup yellow onion, chopped

1/2 lb frozen bell peppers, stir fry mix or about 2-3 red, yellow and green peppers, chopped

1 cup cubed fresh butternut squash

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp oregano

2 15-oz cans black, beans, drained

2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes and green chiles

2 Tbsp tomato paste

Cayenne pepper optional

Using a large stock pot, heat oil over medium heat for approximately one minute.  Add onion, bell peppers, butternut squash, garlic, cumin and oregano and mix together well.  Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until onions are translucent, peppers are limp and squash is just beginning to soften.  

Add 1 1/2cans of black beans, both cans of tomatoes, tomato paste and and 2-3 dashes of cayenne pepper.  Stir well.  Bring to a boil, then adjust temperature so that mixture is bubbling slightly.

Simmer for about 10 minutes.  With the leftover black beans, mash them up well, and after 10 minutes, mix in and cover.  Simmer for an additional 15 minutes or until squash has softened.  Add salt, pepper, and more cayenne pepper to taste.

Serve over rice or alone, with a dab of sour cream and some shredded cheese.  

Optional side dish - a warm fire and cozy slippers.

No Baking for this Midwife

I discovered my oven (which has been giving me some issues recently) was no longer lighting and heating (it's gas) this past Tuesday in the throes of a baking session.   Luckily only the dry ingredients of the pumpkin muffins had been mixed when I checked the oven and realized it was not preheated or heating at all.  This is the story of that day and what I made instead.

So I tried to light the pilot, which I assumed had gone out, only to discover that this gas oven has an electronic ignition for the oven and cannot be lit manually.  This is a rental house, and the oven much predates us, so I had to discover all this info laying on my stomach looking into the broiler with a headlamp strapped to my head and then rushing up to google gas stoves pilot light systems.

Even though we are mere tenants in this humble abode, we entered into a strange arrangement where we are in charge of all the appliances.  Yes you read that right.  This included the washer and dryer which were broken right away when we moved in.  Unbeknownst to us the washer had a massive leak!  J attempted a load of laundry only to find all the water that emptied into the washer, empty onto the floor.  So we purchased a new washer and dryer.  These things were on there last legs.  Oh and I almost forgot about the ghettofication of the dryer!  It had a latch on it to keep it shut because it wouldn't stay shut on it's own anymore.  These were just a few of the nightmares we faced moving into our house.

For the first few weeks, we felt like Tom Hanks and Shelley Long in The Money Pit.  So when something like this happens and the landlord is unwilling to even give a recommendation of someone to call, it's not surprising.

As great as it would be to have a brand new oven, that is not the plan.  Sears is coming out on Wednesday and I'm hoping for a simple fix.

So back to Tuesday when I first discovered my predicament.  Halfway into whole wheat pumpkin muffins with plans for Tarte aux Oignons for dinner, I had to come up with a new plan.  Luckily it did not affect the stovetop so we made bean and cheese quesadillas for dinner.

I also quickly came up for an oven less dessert.  Chocolate Covered Banana Bites with Crystallized Ginger - Yum.  Easy and delicious.

Chocolate Covered Banana Bites with Crystallized Ginger
Ingredients
3 medium to large ripe bananas
6 oz dark chocolate (I used Ghiradelli 60% dark chocolate chips)
2-3 pieces of crystallized ginger, thinly chopped

Serves 4

Cut banana into 3-4 chunks.  Line a platter or a baking sheet with wax paper.

Boil about a cup of water in a medium sized pot.  Once water is boiling place heat proof bowl or double boiler over boiling water with chocolate chips in it.  Stir chocolate chips constantly until they are completely melted and smooth.  Add crystallized ginger and mix in.

Using a fork or toothpick, take each banana chunk and one by one, coat in melted chocolate and place on wax paper.  When all pieces of banana have been coated, place platter of chocolate covered bananas in the fridge for the chocolate to set.

Pumpkin Curry Soup

Soup equals comfort.  We nurse it when we're sick and take it it's hearty warmth when the temperature starts to dip down in the fall.  I'm pretty sure it actually carries curative properties.   

It's usually pretty easy to throw together and is perfect as a main course or a side dish.

This particular soup - Pumpkin Curry - blends together the mild sweet of pumpkin and the robust kick of curry powder.  I got the recipe from a midwife, Susan, that I worked with for about 2 years.  She used to make it for her kids when they were younger.

I've served it with Thanksgiving dinner two years in a row with rave reviews and J and I enjoy it a few times each fall.  It's excellent next to a grilled cheese sandwich (think Chipotle Cheddar on Sourdough) but great on it's own as well.

The pumpkin can be fresh pumpkin puree or from a can (just make sure its canned pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling).  I prefer using fresh pumpkin puree.  There are several ways to accomplish this but I roast a sugar pumpkin (halved, removing seeds and pulp) in the oven at 350F for 45 min-1 hr until soft.  Then you scoop out the flesh and puree in blender.  You'll have enough for this recipe and maybe one or two other pumpkin delicacies (pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin pancakes).  For alternative ways to cook a pumpkin go here

Pumpkin Curry Soup

1 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 cup butter (can be cut it down to a tablespoon or so, and olive oil if needed)
1 tsp curry (more to taste)
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 to 1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
3 cups vegetable broth or stock (Both work)
2 cups (16 oz) pumpkin puree (see above note)
1 cup light cream
 
Saute onion and garlic in butter until soft.  Add seasonings, cook 1 minute. Add broth, boil gently 15-20 minutes.  Add pumpkin and cream, stir in, blend in blender, then heat for serving.

Note--it is fine served right away, but better prepared a day in advance. You can blend at whatever stage is easiest.