Thin and Rich Chocolate Frosting

I must have cut the one out of the paper at least 20 years ago. To ice a 2-layer cake:

• In a saucepan (or glass bowl if you're going to microwave), melt 3 oz. chopt unsweetened chocolate, then stir in 6 T. roasted almond oil,
  
• Blend 1/2 cup sugar with 1 T. cornstarch, then add this to the pan
• Whisk in 1/2 c. milk
• Bring this to a boil over moderate heat, whisking. (Or microwave it for about 30 seconds to boil it)
  
• Remove pan from heat and stir in 1 t. vanilla
• Let mixture cool, stirring the frosting "every so often"
• Frost the cake when the icing is lukewarm and still spreads easily
  

Mexican Chocolate Cake

I went over to my friend Madeleine's house last night and she made the most delicious chocolate cake. It had cayenne and cinnamon to make it spicy and, I suppose, more like Mexican chocolate. I loved it! The recipe is below:

* 1 1/2 cups flour, sifted
* 1 cup sugar
* 4 Tbsp. cocoa powder
* 1 tsp. baking soda
* 1 tsp. cinnamon
* 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
* 1 tsp. vanilla extract
* 1 Tbsp. distilled white or white wine vinegar
* 5 Tbsp. vegetable oil
* 1 cup cold water

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9-inch cake pan.
• In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and baking soda. Stir in the cinnamon, cayenne, vanilla, vinegar, oil, and water. Mix until just combined.
• Pour into the prepared cake pan and cook for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool.

Makes 8 to 10 servings


Chocolate sauce

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine ingredients in a saucepan over LOW heat, stirring constantly.

Food model

I haven't been cooking anything interesting (or successful) lately, so I'm posting a photo of one of Mom's and one of Jody's dishes--stuffed acorn squash and sweet potato fries. They were delicious--thanks for the recipes, ladies!

Robin's new blog . . .

http://theoldpianostudent.blogspot.com/

Are we cool or what?

Look to your left - an even 100 for 2009!

Adventures in squash

I have been on a bit of a winter squash kick of late. Branching out from the traditional butternut and acorn squash, I have tried delicata, kombucha and buttercup squashes. This week I add two more to the list: red kuri and sweet dumpling. I tried the red kuri last night. Its more like a traditional pumpkin then kombucha, but still quite different. It isn't as sweet as an acorn squash and it has a nice nuttiness to it. Kind of hard to describe. The flesh was a vibrant orange-red and it was totally roasted after an hour. I just ate it plain this time but next time I'm going to try making a soup! It would also probably make great pie. I will let you know how the sweet dumpling compares. So far, my favorite new squash is the buttercup. I think it is the cupcake of the squash world.
Next on the list: spaghetti squash.

Sweet Potato Sticks

Peel and cut 2 sweet potatoes into fat french fry shapes. Put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Cover with about 1/4 c. olive oil and sprinkle on 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper, 2 or 3 minced garlic cloves, and 1/2 tsp paprika. Roast in a 450 oven for about 25 minutes or until the edges start to crisp and blacken, turning once with a spatula halfway through.