Not Derby Pie

The third installment of “what’s for [catered] brunch?” begins with a tip on cooking for a crowd. When cooking for a crowd — especially if it’s folks you don’t know personally — I always try to size up the guests during the menu-planning stage, so that I can be sure I’m cooking dishes that’ll go over well, even if I don’t care much for them. When Rocco DiSpirito was on Top Chef a couple weeks back, he announced (inappropriately, if you ask me) that he loves bacon; every chef but one presented a bacon dish. The chef that didn’t actually made something that sounded pretty tasty, but he lost because Rocco likes bacon. Also: my friend Julia regularly cooks chicken when she hosts lunch, even though she’s veg, because her guests like chicken and she aims to please. It makes sense: cook for the crowd, not necessarily for yourself.

While I don’t always follow this rule, I tend to stick with it when I don’t know the people I’m cooking for, as with the catered brunch from a few weeks back. And since I know that most people love creamy, gooey things, I opted for a (relatively) easy stuffed french toast recipe from Martha. It’s basically thick slices of french toast that are stuffed with a mixture of apricot jam and cream cheese. Not my cup of tea, nor my mom’s, but boy was it the crowd favorite. As usual, we made some key adjustments after tasting the filling, because we found the combo of cream cheese and apricot jam somewhat flat and lacking in character. A generous confetti of lemon zest and a fair sprinkle of lemon juice made all the difference. We made enough that there were three for each person; five courses notwithstanding, people did the job and polished off nearly all the french toast. Watching the guests rave, my mom and I took one of the end pieces, put it on a plate, sliced two little bites off, and each tried it. We looked at each other, bobbed our heads in agreement that it tasted as we expected, and then laughed as we acknowledged that neither of us particularly liked it. But hey, the guests were happy. More than happy.

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Missing your grill right about now? I sure am, and I never even had a grill. But nothing says “miss your grill” like cold, wet, winter nights.

Enter Ina Garten, my favorite Food Network dame and partner in butterlove. Her bbq sauce is the real thing, lemme tell you. By the looks of the recipe, you’d think she was joking: you’ll need nearly 10 bottles of already-processed sauces and goops to make her sauce. But when it’s done, you’ll see that she was serious all along. Laced with onions, generously spicy and perfectly sweet-tart, this sauce is way, way tastier than the sum of its (very processed) parts. Trust me.

Serious BBQ Sauce
From The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
Makes 1 ½ quarts

1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion (1 large onion)
1 T. minced garlic (3 cloves)
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup tomato paste (10 ounces)
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup honey
½ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 cup Dijon mustard
½ cup soy sauce
1 cup hoisin sauce
2 T. chili powder
1 T. ground cumin
½ T. crushed red pepper flakes

In a large saucepan on low heat, sauté the onions and garlic with the vegetable oil for 10 to 15 minutes, until the onions are translucent but not browned. Add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer uncovered on low heat for 30 minutes. Use immediately or store in the fridge.

Have you bid yet? Go bid! Go! Now! 🙂

Among the many perks of being a food blogger is the opportunity to really make a difference. The formidable Pim of Chez Pim has developed a fantastic annual fundraising campaign that raises money for the UN World Food Programme. Here’s what Pim has to say about Menu for Hope:

Menu for Hope is an annual fundraising campaign hosted by me and a revolving group of food bloggers around the world. Five years ago, the devastating tsunami in Southeast Asia inspired me to find a way to help, and the very first Menu for Hope was born. The campaign has since become a yearly affair, raising funds to support worthy causes worldwide. In 2007, Menu for Hope raised nearly $100K to help the UN World Food Programme feed the hungry.

Each December, food bloggers from all over the world join the campaign by offering a delectable array of food-related prizes for the Menu for Hope raffle. Anyone – and that means you too – can buy raffle tickets to bid on these prizes. For every $10 donated, you earn one virtual raffle ticket to bid on a prize of your choice. At the end of the two-week campaign, the raffle tickets are drawn and the results announced on Chez Pim.

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Remember that time I catered a breakfast?
For a starter, we served greek yogurt and granola parfaits with a drizzle of honey and some fresh berries. This course took some time to plate up — what with all the layers, and making sure no smudges of yogurt got on any of the beautiful parfait glasses — but the only baking, of the granola, was done in advance.

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We’re chock-full of special occasions here at NDP. Two weekends ago, we celebrated with D and E as they hosted their first Friday night dinner as a married couple. It so happens that D and I were the first people to host D and E as a [not-yet-married] couple about a year ago, so Friday night we came full circle. D and E really went all-out and made a brisket, which was totally delicious. Needless to say, there was a ridiculous amount of other food, also super tasty. I had been asked to bring dessert. Now you know that non-dairy desserts have given me ulcers in the past — no, silly! Not eating them, just thinking and thinking about what to make til I’m blue in the face and dizzy and, well, ulcer-y — but this time, I was determined to figure something out. I’d planned on the very appropriate Mexican wedding cookies, but they’re either totally dairy or totally not kosher (from the use of lard), so that was out. But ever since getting back from the Middle East, where baklava is totally ubiquitous and consistently excellent, I’ve been meaning to try my hand at crafting my own.

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Catering? Moi? Uh, NO. Not exactly. I’m flighty, forgetful, and a host of other wonderful things that don’t mix with catering. And yet, today, my mom and I cooked and served brunch to a party of 8 at their home. The brunch was an item that my mom had offered in a silent auction at work; I’m a sucker for all things food-related, so when mom enlisted my help, I happily agreed.

Can I tell you how utterly shocked I am that brunch today went PERFECTLY? I mean, without a hitch. Not a single issue. Nothing forgotten, undercooked, overcooked, gross-tasting; everything plated on time, ready to go, delicious. I’m in awe of my beginner’s luck. In awe, I tell you.

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File this under “things I’ve always wanted to make but thought I needed an excuse.” Not that they’re actually so hard, but let’s face it — nothing is easier than simple chocolate chip cookies, or my go-to dessert of late, chocolate pudding. It’s just that the recipe is very specific, and one must strictly adhere to it, or else the resulting cookie will be dense and tough. But follow the instructions, and your afternoon tea date will thank you. These cookies are the height of elegance, with their flaky texture and caramelized-sugar crust. They’re just the right amount sweet, and very crispy. They might be small and light, but I dare you to eat just one.

As you know, I’m always on the lookout for excuses to tackle culinary challenges. Bryce’s PhD soiree gave me one such excuse, so thank you, Dr. J!

On another note, looking at the recipe just now, I realized that it essentially calls for an easy puff-pastry dough layered with cinnamon sugar. Now I’ve never made my own puff pastry, but I think this is a very user-friendly way to fake it — so I’ll be filing this under techniques; the next time I need puff pastry, I may just make this dough.

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