What I do on a Lazy Friday: Make Carrot Cake

Posted on June 9, 2012 by chezsylvia

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It has been a long time coming.

I needed this more than anything else.

The pull was irresistible, I had to succumb to its pull.

Lazy Friday, you win.

I started the day by sleeping in.  Sleeping in, for me, meant 7:30am.  I convinced myself that I didn’t need to go on a run that morning, and I should take a rest day since I was sore from Crossfit on Thursday.  It didn’t take much, but I was convinced.

I ate a simple breakfast, and took my time getting ready for the day.  Then out the door I went for a little shopping trip out in Mount Kisco.  After doing my part to help the economy, I was hungry.  Instead of doing my usual grab and go, or going home to eat whatever I could pull together, in the spirit of the lazy Friday, I opted for stopping in my favorite breakfast place to give their lunch a try.

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Wobble Cafe and their Trivia Pursuit Cards.

Dining alone is tough.  But, at the Wobble Cafe, I felt at home as I munched on my grilled Munster with tomato on multigrain with fries.  I’ve been craving a grilled cheese, and this hit the spot.

Once I got home, I started my cake.  My brothers birthday was this past Monday, and due to all of our busy schedules, he never got a proper birthday cake.  As a baker, this was inexcusable.  He needed a cake, and I needed to make one for him.

He loves Carrot Cake, and he loves Cashews.  I have never made a Carrot Cake, nor have eaten many Carrot Cakes to know what I good one tastes like. This was going to be interesting.

A recipe I found via the Huffington Post incorporated cashews into the carrot cake. I figured this would be a good one to start with.

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Baked Eggs and Red Kale

Posted on June 3, 2012 by chezsylvia

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Wednesday is farmers market day in White Plains.  Usually this means I take my lunch break and go wander up and down Court Street trying to figure out what I want to make for dinner that night.  This time a sign that said Red Kale caught my eye.  It was more like purple kale, but I figured, I had to try this.

As I was walking back to the office, I had it in my head that I was just going to saute some kale and scramble it in with some eggs.  Simple.  Then later, I thought about baked eggs.  To me, whenever I saw a recipe for baked eggs, it usually had some spinach, meat and an egg in a ramekin and baked until the egg was set.  That’s something different.  So, instead of spinach, I’ll just use some of this red kale.

Now, when I cook on the weekdays, I cook willy nilly and just toss stuff together and hope it works out.  This is no exception, which is why I have no quantities or measures specified.  Just eyeball it, wing it, and do what feels right.  It almost always works out and will be amazing.  If not, oh well, at least it gets the job done (it’s something to eat).

First, I prepped the kale.  I ripped off the leaves from the stems and into bite sized pieces and washed the pieces.

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I also minced a clove of garlic, and cut up four slices of bacon.

I melted some butter and brushed the bottom and sides of a 9″ cake pan with the butter.  Then I lined the bottom with some bread and set it aside.

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I preheat the oven to 400 degF, and I tossed some chickpeas (canned, drained) in some olive oil, salt and pepper and threw them into a pan.  Once the oven came to temperature, I put the chickpeas into the oven to roast them a bit.  About 10 minutes.

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In the mean time, I sauteed the kale.  First, put the bacon into the cold pan.  Put the pan over medium heat and cook the bacon until it is just about crispy.  Toss in the garlic and cook for just a minute.  Then put in the kale and saute until the kale is wilted.  Remove from the heat.

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In the cake pan with the bread, drizzle about three to four tablespoons of heavy cream over the bread.  Layer the sauteed kale and bacon over the bread.  Crack four eggs on top of the kale.  Grate some Parmesan cheese over the eggs and put into the oven until the eggs are set (about 20 minutes to half an hour).

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Once out of the oven, let it sit for about five minutes.  It should be able to slide right out of the pan onto a plate.

Cut up into quarters and serve with some chickpeas.

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Easy Peazy right?  It’s kind of like a breakfast pizza.  The bread crust toasted up in the pan with the heavy cream had an almost french toast characteristic to it.  The kale, bacon and egg topping made it like a savory french toast.  The chickpeas were a lovely addition and rounded up the meal.

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Totally tasty right out of the oven, but also pretty decent as lunch leftovers.

Totally.

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I am the Beast, and I made a Cheesecake with no oven

Posted on May 28, 2012 by chezsylvia

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When I was much younger, Beauty and the Beast was my favorite Disney movie, and Belle was my favorite princess.  Or really “Princess” since she was not one by birth, and really, was the Beast a Prince or just a Lord of a Castle, because where was the kingdom in all of this?  Anyway, I guess the reason why I liked her more than lets say, Ariel, was probably because I must have identified with her more (and I was not a mermaid).  She liked to read, she was different than the other girls, and in a way, she wasn’t entirely helpless and harping on and on about some man to come around and save them.

It was on TV the other night.  It was the first time I’ve watched it since I was a kid.  I still think Belle was the best of the princesses, but I don’t think she really followed through on why I liked her so much.  In the beginning of the movie, she goes on and on about how she wants to get out of this small town rut.  Apparently this means move into the Castle next door and live there happily ever after as a princess.  Is that what she meant by adventure?

Fairy tales seem so innocent and simple when you are young.  One day you will meet Prince Charming and ride off into the sunset, happily ever after.  But is it that easy?  Maybe, now that I am older, I find I identify more with the Beast than with Belle.

Leeroy enjoying this 60 degree day.

A Beast, like this guy.

I mean, let’s think about this.  I’ve built up this little kingdom (a life) filled with people I care about and care about me, regardless of my lack of beauty, and put up with my less than nice persona.  Perhaps because I was not the nicest person to some boys, I’ve been cursed and am destined to be alone (karma).  My rose signifies that point in which all hope will be lost and my cat lady status will be permanent.  Gaston really represents all other women who are beautiful, and have this way about them that make men trip over themselves to be near (except my guy, of course).

So, basically my only hope is to lure and falsely imprison some guy into my world, hoping that he sees past my mean and scary facade and falls in love with me, despite mysef.  Somehow that doesn’t sound like a good plan (or a legal one, for that matter).

Plus, does anyone think about all the servants who were dishware and tucked into the cupboard at the time the spell was broken?

Odd how fairy tales seem a little different when you’re older.

But, enough of that and onto something sweet!

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This whole week I’ve been playing the, what can I make with all the random leftovers I’ve been keeping in my fridge that need to be used or will need to be thrown out, game.  Today’s challenge: a block of cream cheese I bought a month ago, a carton of heavy cream, and some strawberries taking a turn for the worse.  To make this even more interesting, the heat and humidity basically also means I really do not want to turn on the oven.

How about the No-Bake Cheesecake from http://www.joyofbaking.com?  The recipe is super simple and doesn’t require anything special.  I decided to make a chocolate graham cracker crust just to make it a little more interesting.  Plus, as always, cut down on the sugar a bit.

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Honey & Mustard Salmon

Posted on May 19, 2012 by chezsylvia

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This past week has been a bit rough of this old bird.  I’ve just been feeling so run down during my workouts, like everything is much more of an effort than it used to be, and I was pulling in split times much slower than I used to.  Common theory is that I’m overtraining, which is possible, although, I just didn’t believe it (3 days running, 2 days crossfit, 2 days rest…isn’t a lot is it?).  I also figured it might also be attributed to what I was or wasn’t eating.

That day at work, while I was wondering what I wanted for dinner that night, I suddenly found myself craving salmon.  Salmon sounded good.  Protein and Omega-3 right?  This was when I suddenly remembered this dish my mom makes that I love.  It was simply some salmon chunks marinated in a honey mustard marinade and cooked with some scallions.  Simple, only three ingredients.

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My shutter speed was….fast?

Posted on May 14, 2012 by chezsylvia

A few months ago I decided to enter one of my favorite photographs from my Alaska cruise last year into the Westchester County Amateur Photographers Contest.  I had entered the year before, but my picture didn’t quite make the first cut, so this year when I got the email notifying me that I now had to spend money to print, mat, frame and hang my picture in the Greenburgh Public Library for the month of May, I was excited!

Entering the front...it got really windy suddenly

Having never had a photo selected for any sort of public display before (work functions don’t count), I was really honored to even be selected.  I pretty much knew I didn’t have a prayer to win any of the prizes.  I was just tickled to have something hanging up somewhere where people who would see it would not be related to, friends with or work with me.

The opening reception was this past Saturday.  It was to start at 2pm at the library and that was when they would announce the winners.  I was delayed due to some very last minute cookie making for a function I was attending later that evening, so I missed the awards ceremony.  All of Greenburgh must have turned up at this event because when I finally got there around 2:30, there wasn’t a single parking space available!  I ended up parking across Route 119 and having to dodge traffic to get back over.

Well, my suspicions were right.  The other photographs were by far better than mine.  I thought this was supposed to be an amateur contest!  Most of these photographs were practically on the professional level, which just goes to show the amount of talent these folks had.  The theme of the day seemed to be birds and macro pictures of insects.  I really wondered which of the photographs won, as I made a turn about the room picking out the ones I wouldn’t mind having hanging up on my walls at home.

Photo Contest

I think it’s time to go do more traveling to build up my portfolio for next year!  As they say, practice makes perfect right?

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Peanut Butter Banana Cookies that are “healthier”

Posted on May 6, 2012 by chezsylvia

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A bunch of my friends and family chipped in and got me a brand spankin new Macro lens for my camera.  However due to some logistical issues I needed to wait another week until its arrival.  I was like a little kid waiting for Christmas.  When was this lens coming?  Is it here yet?  How many more days?

Finally, it arrived.  And A, who delivered it, demanded cookies as a delivery fee.

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He wanted cookies?  He got cookies.

So, I made cookies, and I played with the new lens. So much to learn! A lot of my pictures had this issue where only a spot would be focused, and the rest of it was blurry. Depth of field issue? Hmmm, something to figure out!

The cookies I made are simple.  They are these peanut butter cookies I found on 101cookbooks.com.  There are no eggs, no butter, no sugar and no mixer needed!  Awesome Possum!

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I even went as far as to make my own peanut butter to use for this.  Really back to basics.

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Taking what I got to make what I want: Banana Brown Rice Pudding

Posted on May 4, 2012 by chezsylvia

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This week has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster.  So many things going on!

First, I got good news at work.  Really good news, like news I’ve been waiting for kind of good news.  Yet, with good news come more thinking.  Thinking about my future.

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When it comes to the future, everything seems so fuzzy.  How do I know where I want to end up?  How do I get there?  What do I need to figure all of this out?  This isn’t just in terms of career, but also for health and happiness too.  Career I’m working on, I still have control, health is getting there, but happiness?  Whoa….that’s a tall order.  This might take take a bit…

While I contemplate that one, let me tell you about my recent rice pudding adventure.

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Breakfast for Dinner Party: Breakfast Pizzas and then some

Posted on April 29, 2012 by chezsylvia

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As I was approaching my big 30th birthday, I hemmed and hawed between all sorts of ways I wanted to spend my birthday.  I was having a bit of a bi-polar type crisis over it.  One day I’d be thrilled and thinking about throwing a party, and the next I’d freak out and wonder about possibly skipping town for the weekend or doing nothing at all.

Ultimately I decided on putting my favorite things together.  I love throwing my little dinner parties, and this was a great reason to have another one.  I love breakfast.  So, I threw them together and had a Birthday Breakfast for Dinner Party at ChezSylvia.

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Thirty, Flirty and…Little Piggy Bread!

Posted on April 24, 2012 by chezsylvia

More sunset

The movie 13 going on 30 was on TV the other day.  I do enjoy the movie, but in this viewing I was a little perplexed in why this girl needed to be thirty.  I kept thinking “honey, when you’re 29, then come talk to me about turning 30”.  But it got me thinking.  What was the rush being 30?  Was there really an allure to being  “thirty, flirty and thriving”?

I guess when your in your twenties, it was all about observing the world and all the ticks of how society worked.  Basically we were learning the ropes and testing the waters of true adulthood.  Thirty is where you take what you have learned and make it your own.

Therefore, instead of looking back to see what goals I have accomplished prior to starting a new decade, Ive decided to look at things a little differently.  I decided to look forward.

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Things I Look Forward To In My Thirties

Finding my niche career wise. I am no longer a naive rookie fresh out of school. Ive been laying low for too long. It’s time I carve out a place in the world for myself.

Being strong. Physically, mentally and emotionally. One needs to be in order to be comfortable in her own skin.

But, also learning to be vulnerable. Sometimes for people to really see you, you have to show a little weakness to remind them (and myself) that I am human.

Taking (calculated) risks. Just because I’m in my thirties doesn’t mean I’m settled in for life.

Enjoying the benefits of being single.  Turning thirty single, doesn’t mean I am branded and shunned by society (entirely).  Being single in my thirties will be different than in my twenties.  Why?  Resources and a better appreciation for sense of self.  I am continually evolving and since I have no one to answer to by myself, I can do it all!

Not a huge list, but a basic backbone for all my new adventures to build upon!

And a little treat to leave you with:

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One of my favorite breakfast items in Hong Kong has a literal translation of Little Piggy Bread.  It is delicious, and absolutely not good for you in the slightest (but I would contend that it is better for you than an American sized muffin).

Little Piggy Bread

Gather:

1 Portuguese Roll, split in half.

Pat of butter

Sweetened Condensed Milk for drizzling (maybe about a teaspoon)

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Go Forth and:

Toast the roll.

Butter the toasted roll.

Drizzle sweetened condensed milk all over the buttered toasted roll.

Enjoy with a cup of hot tea!

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Ricotta Cheese….kinda sorta

Posted on April 21, 2012 by chezsylvia

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I love Ricotta Cheese.  No joke.  I will eat it straight out of the container.  I will shamelessly lick the bowl when it’s farm fresh at a classy restaurant.  I put way too much in my baked ziti, and I love it in my baked goods.

So, when a friend of mine sent me a recipe she tried from the New York TImes, I had do this.

Now, the kinda sorta.  Ricotta means recooked (according to Wikipedia).  Ricotta cheese is generally made from the whey that results from the production of other cheeses.  The real difference between Ricotta cheese and other more traditional cheeses is that Ricotta is made from the coagulation of other milk proteins whereas regular cheeses are made from the coagulation of casein.  So, technically since this cheese is not made from leftover whey, it’s not really ricotta.  But, seriously….close enough.

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