Who invited the hooker?

Question: If I can't exactly pull off this dress -

Or look like this in this dress -
Am I allowed to get married in Argentina? If so, where can I find a dress that does not require invasive plastic surgery? Also, it would be great if I could try on said dress instead of having it made from scratch since I can't draw you a picture of what I want. I actually need to see and touch it before agreeing to wear it. Also, please don't ask me questions about every detail of my wedding when I enter your store - just direct me to the non-porn star section. Thank you.

Um, ps - I only want that sheer fabric used for the veil, not to display my non-cleavage.


Also - Can I have directions to the nearest papeleria with letterpress invitations?

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I'm the kind of person who likes to keep chocolate chip cookie dough on hand in case of emergencies. Now I just need to find one of those break-in-case-of-emergency glass boxes to keep in the freezer. I baked up the last of a batch I had chillin' last night for dinner at Judi's. (Delicious corn pie, by the way Jud). It's nice to be able to make something homemade even when you've worked a full day.

Since I'm watching my waistline, it will be a while before I re-stock this staple but I wanted to share this well-traveled recipe. It's an Alton Brown recipe that I found on Joy the Baker's blog. I love them both. Wouldn't dinner with the two of them be such a special treat? I always hoped that I would run into Alton when I went grocery shopping in Atlanta since many of his shows included scenes from familiar stores, but no luck. And Joy always has such great stories to go with her featured recipes, which are insanely delicious. Our dinner would go like this - Alton would start explaining the scientific properties of our dinner and Joy would tell him to just eat it, we still have chocolate cake to get to. That's what I love about each of them. Wow, what wild fantasies I have.

I've made the recipe several times following the directions to the T, but for this latest batch I was short on baking soda. I only had half of what the recipe calls for, so I used half baking powder. It made the cookies even better! I also chop up chocolate instead of using chips, so they're actually chocolate chunk cookies.


Here is my slightly modified version:

• 226 g. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 1/4 c. bread flour
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt (original recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of kosher salt)
  
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
  
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• 2 T milk
• 1 1/2 t.vanilla extract
• 2 c. semisweet chocolate chunks
  

Melt butter and set aside. Sift together flour, salt, bs, and bp, set aside. Cream butter and sugars on medium speed, add egg, yolk, milk, and vanilla. Slowly add flour mixture and finally stir in chocolate chunks. Chill for at least 15 minutes before scooping out onto baking sheet. The original directions advise you to use parchment paper and I do sometimes, but you can also use a non-stick sheet - just be sure to get the cookies off quickly so that they stop cooking.

Bake at 190C (375F) for 14 minutes, turning the pan halfway through cooking time for evenly baked cookies. The directions also make 6 big cookies per sheet, but smaller ones taste just as great. If you opt for smaller cookies, bake for 12 minutes.

I freeze the dough in airtight containers for up to a month - they don't seem to last that long though. ;)

Veggie Pot Pie

Holy crap, people. I made this like two weeks ago and am just now getting around to posting. My tardiness is no reflection on this dish, however, it is simply delicious. Comfort food at it's best, which is extremely necessary now that it's winter. I think that I must have seasonal confusion disorder (yeah, I made that up). It's officially winter now - in June. And there's no Christmas? And my July birthday is now a winter event? I keep forgetting birthdays and other yearly occurrences that I have come to associate with seasons. How could it be Father's Day already? Isn't that in June...wait.

So while it 'tis the season for sweaters, and a few extra pounds could come in handy to fight the chill, I have my upcoming wedding in the first days of spring, so... yeah. I'm hungry and I forgot your birthday. Sorry. Don't worry though, I'll make it up to you at one of my three (repeat three) receptions.

As I mentioned, I made this a few weeks ago and now all I can do is dream about it. All of that flaky, buttery goodness isn't going to look so hot on my bridal ass. Oh hell, maybe I'll make it with just the top crust.

Veggie Pot Pie

• All butter crust, made partly with wheat flour
• 1 T. butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
  
• 1 carrot, sliced thin and cubed
  
• big handful of mushrooms, sliced (I browned these on the side, but it isn't necessary)
  
• 1 large potato, cubed
• (Peas or corn would be great also - I ran out of room)
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• Salt (about 1/2 t. depending on saltiness of stock) & pepper to taste
• 1 T. cornstarch
• 1 T. soy sauce

The crust was a bit tricky - I substituted 1/2 c. of white flour with wheat flour and almost lost it all. You'll definitely want to sift the wheat flour or use pastry wheat flour if it's available to you. It takes more than double the amount of ice water - just keep adding until it sticks together enough to wrap. I had to let it warm up slightly to roll out - and it wasn't pretty, but it did work. Although it was troublesome, I'd do it again because it adds an extra layer of crunchy to the crust. Use more salt than sugar for the crust of this savory pie.

Melt butter over med heat and add onions and garlic, cook a few minutes before adding additional veggies. I don't have a proper pie plate so this is all that I could get in, but you could definitely add other veggies. Add a bit of olive oil to pan if needed - saute until the veggies start to get soft (about 5 minutes). Add stock and seasonings, bring to a boil then drop to a simmer. Dissolve cornstarch into soy sauce (add a drop of water or stock if necessary) and then stir into pot - cook another few minutes until mixture thickens.

Add mixture to pastry lined pie pan and cover with top crust, seal edges. Bake on high heat - 205C (400F) for 30 minutes. Rotate half way through cooking time. Mmm..super tasty TV dinner.

Blended Chickpea Soup

It's nearly winter here and I'm experimenting with hearty soups. Most chickpea soup recipes have a Moroccan influence and are spiked with curry powder, but we're fresh out. Still, there is plenty of room for herbs and spices as you see fit!

I really loved the texture of Butternut Squash Soup so I aimed for something similar with this recipe. It worked out well - try it!

• 2 T. EVOO
  
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1 1/2 c. vegetable stock
  
• 1 can (350 g) chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 t. cumin
• S&P and paprika to taste

Saute onion, garlic, pepper and carrot in EVOO on med low heat for 10 minutes. Add cumin and 1 c. stock and simmer 5 minutes. Blend chickpeas, 1/2 c. veg stock, and lemon juice in food processor, add veg mixture and puree. You can return to the pot at this point, add seasonings and simmer another 10 minutes. Serve with pita chips.

Breakfast of Champions

Sometimes I wake up craving pancakes. Usually in my dreams the pancakes are syrup soaked and served with veggie sausage links. But we don't have maple syrup or fake sausage here. Luckily, pancakes are quite versatile. You can stick just about anything in a pancake. When I was in college, I loved visiting my Aunt Kelly for pancake day - she had an assortment of add-ins and toppings (chocolate flavored readi whip, OMG!).


Since it's nearly winter here, I added in some blackberry jam in place of the actual fruit. And Guille requested chocolate chips. For toppings, we had honey and powdered sugar. Yes, I could have made fresh whipped cream but making pancakes from scratch before having coffee is a feat in itself.


I found this basic recipe here, but let me know if you have a favorite buttermilk recipe, like from Silver Skillet in Atlanta. I plan to try making some with lemon zest in the future.

• 2 c. flour
• 2 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. sugar (my addition)
  
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 1/2 c. milk
• 2 T. (28g.) melted butter

Sift together flour, bp, salt and sugar. Combine egg and milk in a separate bowl and stir into flour mixture, add melted butter. You can combine your add-ins at this point or you can go ahead and ladle batter into your warmed, greased (I used spray) non-stick pan and then add them to your raw pancake - but push them in a little. I added small drops of jam to the cooking pancake, so that I would have little bursts of blackberry. Chocolate chips are easier to combine with the batter.

I prefer to cook on med low heat for a more even pancake (this takes 3-4 minutes per side). Flip when it's browned to your preference. A lot of people like to keep pancakes warm in the oven until they're all ready to serve, but we eat them as they come off the griddle. I also halved the recipe for just the two of us - and scrambled the other half of the egg. yum.

A Buenos Aires Engagement

Guille & I spent a lovely, unseasonably warm weekend in Buenos Aires to celebrate our 4th year anniversary. To my surprise, we returned home as fiances. :)

The weather was perfect for a celebration drink at Milion. The prices are a little ridiculous for Argentina, but anything goes in this town where metropolitan chic and the third world collide. Our drinks were around 25 pesos each but it was fun and the atmosphere is unique.

The Bar

A REAL Cosmo and a little bling

For real Frozen Mojito


And since we were throwing caution to the wind, we had a late dinner at Cafe San Juan - it looks like a normal bodega but the food will surprise you. Our helpful innkeeper recommended it as a local secret and made our reservations. There are 2 dinner seatings on weekends at (around) 8 and 11.

(Fotos de Guia Oleo)

The server presented the chalk board menus at our table and it was a little weird deciding so fast, but there were only a few veggie options so that helped. We shared a tapa dish and an entree, as we heard that the portions were large (and pricey) along with a half bottle of wine. I assume that the menu changes daily - we had bruschetta with sun-dried tomatoes and brie (SO much brie!) and crepes with goat cheese and basil in a creamy tomato sauce. Seriously, it was amazingly delicious and plenty for two. So much that I declined dessert, GASP!


I also have a confession to make - to satisfy my craving for real mac and cheese we popped into Hard Rock Cafe for merienda. And I don't regret it! (Though that probably added to my inability to stomach dessert later that night.)


Since it was sunny, we wondered over to Puerto Madero for a stroll along the river. There's not much else to do since it's an over-planned and under-populated upscale neighborhood but it made for a great walk and we did find Tea Connection, where we enjoyed a couple pots of tea - Indian Chai and Sweet Vanilla, to be exact. And had some time for ring pics.

Yay! What a wonderful weekend!

Biscotti Two Ways

When I said that the Joy of Baking was my best friend, I meant it. This biscotti rocks. I often whip up only half of a batch or else split the batch into 2 logs to make shorter cookies. I also cut them into 1/2 inch pieces to make biting easier.

Almond Chocolate Chunk Biscotti

• 3/4 c. (110g) almonds
• 3/4 t. baking powder
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1 3/4 c. flour (I use half wheat, half white)
  
• 2/3 c. (135g) sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 110g semi-sweet chocolate, cut into chunks

Blanch almonds (see below), roughly chop and toast slightly. Blanching isn't necessary (especially if you are able to purchase peeled almonds) but I did notice that it made a difference, and I liked it. Set aside to cool.

Whisk together bp, salt and flour and set aside. Use mixer (med high) to combine sugar and eggs until thick and pale (about 5 minutes), add vanilla. Slowly add flour until completely incorporated. Stir in chocolate and almonds.

Pour/spoon the batter out onto parchment-lined baking sheet and form into a log (or 2 logs for shorter biscotti) about 12 inches (30cm) long. It helps to have damp hands when spreading out the dough. Seriously, you will want to use parchment paper for this so don't forget to pick some up the next time you're at the store. Bake at 180C, 350F for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. I pick it up by the paper and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes.


Slice as thick as you like, on the diagonal, and bake on each side for 10 minutes or until it reaches your desired level of crispiness. Try to save some to dip in your morning coffee.

Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti
The recipe and directions are the same, just swap out your add-ins. I use half wheat flour for this recipe too - it gives it an extra level of crunch.

• 3/4 t. baking powder
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1 3/4 c. flour (I use half wheat, half white)
  
• 2/3 c. (135g) sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. (6og) shelled, unsalted pistachios, roughly chopped
• 1/2 c. (50g) dried cranberries
  

Blanched Almonds
It is blanch or blanche? Well, whatever. It didn't work great for me. Apparently you're suppose to place your almonds in boiling water for only 1 minute, then drain, then slip off the peels by squeezing the nut between your thumb and forefinger (I ended up putting more work into it by picking off the peels). Then pat dry.

My advice? Do it in small batches - the peels are more likely to slip off when hot. I also re-submerged some in boiling water and waited another minute. This worked better but maybe they were a little soggy. It didn't seem to matter though, as I toasted out the moisture. I prefer the blanched version, as you're not choking on almond peels stuck in your throat all night. Especially in green beans with almonds. Yay! Eat nuts.