coconut caramel clusters

Caramel is my achilles heel. I manage to pull it off only about half the time. In fact, whenever I attempt it, I always make sure I have extra ingredients on hand in case I need a redo. I've tried to make caramel many times, and when I mess up, it's obvious that I've done so. But even when I think I get it right, I'm never certain that I have. 

I made caramel for the first time a few years ago, using a recipe from Simply Recipes. It's the only time I've managed to pull it off successfully- and know it. I guess it was beginner's luck, because caramel has been my nemesis ever since.

Without meaning to, I continued to make homemade versions of Girl Scout cookies last week. This time, I made Coconut Caramel Clusters, a recipe from Baked Elements. I have three Baked cookbooks, and while I'm drawn to the glossy pictures and the creative recipes, I'm not sure how I feel about the cookbooks. Some of the recipes seem hit or miss, but maybe that's just me. And they're pretty high maintenance, so when there's a miss, it's really annoying. 

These bars look really good, and they are, but they are strange. For one, the caramel making process was quite time consuming and a little unorthodox (this is true of some of their other techniques). But perhaps more importantly, the caramel hardens so much that the only way we can eat these is to first heat them up in the microwave for a few seconds. It is impossible to eat them otherwise. Aside from that peculiarity, they are quite good, but very rich. And without a doubt, better than the Girl Scout cookies, Caramel Delites (previously known as Samoas). 

lemon chicken and broccoli

When life hands you lemons (or you buy a big bag from Whole Foods because it is cheaper in the long run than buying just the two that you really need), you make lemon chicken. 

The recipe is from a blog called Appetite for China. Of course, we substitute fake chicken for the real thing (we use Morning Star chicken strips). I roasted some broccoli with sliced garlic, and then tossed it with chili garlic paste, sambal oelek, and sesame oil.

pizza

It's the end of the quarter, so we haven't had much time or energy to cook. We are getting smarter about managing mealtime during this hectic time. Each week, instead of cooking 2 or 3 times like we normally do, we cook once and then eat off the leftovers we've stashed in the freezer from previous meals. 

This week, we thawed out leftover pizza dough (made earlier in the quarter when we made Thai Chicken pizza), and topped it with jarred marinara, kalamata olives, sun dried tomatoes, chopped garlic, and mozzarella. After pulling it out of the oven, I topped it with arugula from our garden. We ate the pizza with a salad made of romaine and carrots with a homemade lemon-garlic dressing.

mint chocolate chip shorts

I joined Girl Scouts when I was 7, and even though I was a Girl Scout for many years thereafter, I remember my first meeting as being rather traumatic. I was a shy kid, and I didn't want to go. I didn't know anyone. There were tears, but I think that what finally lured me to stay was the promise of a cupcake (there was always a snack at these meetings, albeit not a healthy one). And so I stayed, and the only thing I remember  (aside from the cupcakes with luscious swirls of frosting) was that I made a sit-upon (a portable seat that you sit on) with newspapers and a heavy duty trash bag.

I remained a Girl Scout after that first meeting and throughout high school. Like anything, Girl Scouts is what you make of it. Most people think it's only about the cookies, but it's so much more than that. It's about empowering girls, providing them with opportunities to try new things, and helping them to develop their self-confidence. 

I was very active in Girl Scouts--I earned a lot of badges and awards, and I went to Girl Scout Camp. In high school, I was a junior counselor at the day camp, and in college, I worked at the resident camp (twice in Minnesota, and twice in South Carolina). Being a Girl Scout has left me with many, many fond memories and experiences, and I'm certain that it has shaped the person I have become. For example, I was a shy kid, and public speaking terrified me. But in Girl Scouts, I didn't think twice about standing up in front a group and giving a speech or leading a song. Because I was able to develop this skill in a safe space among my peers, I was much more comfortable standing up in front of others when put in non-Girl Scout situations. 

Of course, I can't talk about Girl Scouts without mentioning the cookies. I sold a lot of these, and even though I was a Girl Scout for so many years, I don't go crazy for the cookies. For example, I have never understood the appeal of the Thin Mints (there, I said it). Maybe it's because that for me, the cookies aren't a once-a-year occurrence that they are for most people. I mean, back in my day, when we had extra boxes of cookies, we didn't sell them in front of grocery stores; we (my parents) had to eat the costs. And at Girl Scout camp, there were always lots and lots of cookies. So for me, cookies were always around, all year long.

Though I could take or leave the cookies, whenever I see Girl Scouts selling them, I usually buy a box or two. It's not really that I want the cookies, it's that I want to support the Girl Scouts, and I like the memories the cookies represent. But this year, I haven't purchased any cookies, because here's what happens: I eat one or two, and then forget about the rest and then they go stale and I have to throw them out.

A couple weeks ago, Drew and I passed by some girls selling Girl Scout cookies, and we had this exchange:

Drew: You know, you usually buy a couple boxes, but haven't this year.

Me: Oh, I've never had any cash with me, and they don't take credit cards.

Drew: Well, you didn't ask me if I had any cash.

Me: Oh yeah...

Drew: I think I know the real reason why you haven't bought any cookies. It's because you think you can do it better.

I'd be lying if I said he wasn't right. Girl Scout cookies are good, but they're not mind blowing or anything, and I think homemade versions would be superior. I feel really bad typing this, and a part of me fears that my Gold Award will be revoked. I haven't been proactive about making homemade versions of my favorite cookies; rather, I just happen to come across recipes that are reminiscent of thin mints or caramel delites.  

I came across one such recipe in my new cookbook, Baking Out Loud by Hedy Goldsmith. She promises that her Mint Chocolate Chip Shorts are evocative of the Thin Mints, and they certainly come very, very close. But as she promises, this version is a lot better than the pre-packaged kind.

tempeh helper

This is embarrassing to admit, but I went through a brief period of time between college and grad school in which I had a strange fascination with Hamburger Helper. I don't really remember much about it. Some co-workers were surprised that I'd never had it before, and though they weren't exactly singing its praises, I felt like I missing out. And so I made Hamburger Helper a few times, once with actual hamburger, but the rest of the times with veggie crumbles. I don't remember what kinds I made, and though I didn't think they were horrendous, they didn't become a habit, largely because I was horrified at the high sodium content.

I had forgotten all about Hamburger Helper until sometime last year, when I purchased "Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast and Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, author of many vegan cookbooks and blogger over at Post Punk Kitchen. 

This version is far superior to any boxed version. Sure, the "cheese" here is fake, but you are lying to yourself if you think it's real in the boxed version. Anyway, this version is made with tempeh, and it's super easy to make, which is perfect when it's the end of the quarter. Or really anytime you need a fast and easy meal.

Drew roasted some carrots with...oh dear, I wasn't paying attention, but they were a bit spicy. I also made these biscuits.

muffuletta, roasted leeks and potatoes

It's the end of the quarter, and you know what gave it away?  It wasn't the stress or fatigue, but rather, our slacker eating habits. Last week, we ate out a few times, which is pretty uncharacteristic.  This week, we were prepared, and we pulled homemade lasagna (made earlier in the quarter) from our freezer and next week, we'll do the same and eat soyrizo, corn, and black bean enchiladas.  

Despite being tired and busy, we did manage to make muffulettas.  I don't know the provenance of muffulettas, but I know the main components are cold cuts, cheese, and a marinated olive salad.  Our version is a vegan version made with roasted eggplant, spinach, and roasted red peppers, in addition to the olive salad.  The recipe is from Veganomican, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, who blogs over at Post Punk Kitchen.    

I adore Moskowitz, and I have all of her cookbooks (and she has published many of them).  Many people are skeptical of vegan cooking and baking, but Moskowitz's cookbooks show you that it's easy and super tasty (okay, except for Veganomicon, which is a bit labor intensive).  I have never been disappointed with her recipes.  

The olive salad is addictive, and fortunately, there is a bit leftover, which is perfect for eating with the leftover bread you scoop out to make the gigantic sandwich.  I've been lucky in the past- I've been the one to assemble the sandwich by myself, but this time Drew and I did it together, so I had to share the leftover olive salad with him.  But I shouldn't complain- he did let me have the last bite. 

Drew roasted leeks and potatoes, both of which were amazing.  Usually, leeks aren't considered a side dish (apparently they are in England), but after eating Drew's leeks, I'm baffled as to why not (we had intended to make a leek and potato soup, so that's why we had the leeks).  Drew par-boiled the potatoes first, so they were extra crispy after baking them.  It's a bit high maintenance, but worth it in the end.

tofu reubens, baked beans, macaroni salad

Sometime last year, Drew and I went to a cooking demonstration given by Chef Tanya Petrovna, the mastermind behind Native Foods, a fast-casual, vegan chain. While cooking, Chef Petrovna told us that when she was a child, she was baffled upon learning that a friend hated spinach. But then she went to her friend's house and was served spinach...from a can. No wonder her friend hated spinach! Food from a can or a box is infinitely inferior than fresh, and it is unfortunate that we swear off a food simply because we haven't eaten it in its optimal form. 

I'm guilty of this too. Prior to meeting Drew, there were a few foods I had virtually sworn off because I thought I didn't like them. It turns out that I just didn't particularly care for the canned versions, and two of those foods were showcased in our meal last week: sauerkraut and baked beans.

Let's start with the sauerkraut. I began making sauerkraut in the past year or so because 1) I kept reading about how easy it was to make; 2) I am intrigued with making foods that we normally buy; 3) it sounded like an interesting experiment; and 4) I wanted to know what it was really supposed to taste like. Last spring, I got a new cookbook called The Homemade Pantry, by Alana Chernila, who blogs at Eating From the Ground Up. I was drawn in by her stories and her pictures, and of course, her recipes. She show you, among lots of other things, how to make cheese, yogurt, crackers, bread, granola, twinkies, oreos...and sauerkraut. So I finally gave sauerkraut a whirl, and I'm glad I did. I massaged about 3 pounds of cabbage  (a combination of red and green) with kosher salt to extract its liquid, put it all into a giant glass jar, weighted it down to extract more brine, and let it do its thing in the closet for 4 days (you can ferment it from 3 to 10 days). Homemade sauerkraut is so good and so much better than what you'll find in a can or a jar. 

There's not a whole lot you can do with sauerkraut, but fortunately, we love tofu reubens:

Drew is a fan of baked beans (canned and homemade), but I'm not such a fan of the stuff from a can. We've experimented a bit with different recipes, and one we keep going back to is the one for the Yard House's BBQ Baked Beans, a recipe published in the Los Angeles Times. We double the amount of beans the recipe calls for, as I'm not a fan of "bean juice."