One thing leads to another...

Don't you love when you start one thing and then all of a sudden it morphs into a totally new direction?  Well such a thing happened to me last night.  I found this beautiful recipe for simple berry tarts on a blog called Love, Cake (lovecommacake.com). 

First, let me say that this is a great tart recipe.  The dough came together so easily, rolled out like a champ, and finished in the oven beautifully.  The tarts were not sweet which allowed the berries to really be the star.  I used blackberries and raspberries. The recipe called for lemon thyme to pair with the berries which was lovely.  I could have just cut out my six little tart shells, baked them in the oven, and been a very happy girl.  BUT, as I was rolling out the dough it seemed like I still had so much dough left over (in fairness the dough rolled out so easily I probably got excited and rolled it too thinly) I thought to myself "Self, what are you going to do with all this extra dough?" Bing (the noise my head makes when I am smart :) )  So I grabbed some brown sugar, butter, and cardamom.  I then melted the butter, mixed the sugar and spice together, and Lo and Behold - the cutest darn cardamom rolls you have ever seen!  (they are the size of a quarter - a quarter of the guilt!)

The tarts were great, yeh, yeh but while I was waiting for the tarts to bake, I treated myself to hot, molten buttery, caramely, doughy happiness!
The tart dough didn't need to rise so it took no time at all.  It was a little crispy, a little flakey but still had structure.  They were DELICIOUS!  Kudos to Love, Cake for the tarts and kudos to little cardamom surprises on a Wednesday night!
Have you had a good baking surprise lately?

Mighty Minis!

We all know that good things come in small packages.  So often though we get sucked into buying a cute little kitchen tool because of its size, only to get it home and realize while it is in fact adorable, it doesn't fuction like its larger counterpart. 

One of my favorite things to share with customers is that we don't "dumb down" our mini tools.  Tovolo Mini Tongs use the same engineered mechanism as our larger tongs.  The Mini Scoop & Spread is the same material and strength as the larger Scoop & Spread just shrunk down to the perfect mustard jar size.  Our Mini Whisk is as balanced for its intended tasks as our larger whisks and will be one of your favorite go-to tools in your kitchen. 

The "Mighty Minis" are the right size when you need precision for picking up Prosciutto wrapped asparagus spears at your next party or creating perfectly fluffy scrambled eggs for breakfast. If you are looking to get the very last little bit of jelly out of the jar so that you can confidently call your kid's sandwich PB & J and not just PB, the Mini Scoop & Spread is your best friend. Do you make smoothies in in the morning?  Want to get the last little bits out of the bottom of your blender?  Let me introduce you to our Mini Spatula - can I get a whoop whoop? Icing cupcakes?  Look no further than Tovolo's 4" Icing Spatula to get the best swoop of frosting.
Have one of our Mighty Mini Tools?  What's you favorite?
 

 

 

Mighty Minis:

Mini Spatulas set of 2

Mini 4" Icing Spatula

Mini Turner Tongs

Mini Tongs

Mini Waffle Tongs

Mini Whisk

Mini Egg Whisk

Mini Cookie Turner

Mini Scoop & Spread

Chocolate Chip Cookie Goodness

 

 

 

 

 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Those three little words everyone wants to hear...chocolate chip cookies.  Just writing the words make my mouth water.  The smell of tiny morsels of love baking in the oven brings back happy childhood memories of being in the kitchen with my mom.  They are one of the first things I learned to bake.  I consider myself to be a pretty competent baker.  I have made some fancy and impressive desserts in my life but when I am in need of something comforting, delicious, and an unquestionable crowd pleaser I make Chocolate Chip Cookies. 

Simplicity is best.  Use good butter, good vanilla, good chocolate, and fresh eggs, and whatever you are making will be delicious.  I have modified my recipe over the years; sometimes I add cinnamon to the chips, sometimes I use chunks of chocolate, sometimes nuts, and most recently I have been adding coarse sea salt before they go in the oven.  Joy the Baker does a great recipe with dark chocolate, pistachios, and smoked sea salt that makes my heart sing.  It is 10:30 in the morning right now and if I went into the Tovolo kitchen and whipped up a batch of cookies they would be gone before noon.  GONE! 

Chocolate Chip Cookies are invaluable for bargaining.  (I wonder if that's how the phrase Bargaining Chip was stared? Hum?). Never underestimate the power of warm chocolate chip cookies to influence people into doing what you want or to throw in a little something extra for you every once in a while.  Benevolent Cookie Power.

People remember people who bring cookies.

Basic Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp good vanilla like Neilsen Massey

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt (if you are adding salt to the top, if not use 1 tsp of salt in the dough)

12 oz. (more or less) chocolate chips or chopped chocolate. 

Let's talk chocolate - You can change the whole look and taste of your cookies based on the chocolate you choose to use. Chips are great and easy - semi- sweet is traditional, milk chocolate chips make the cookies sweeter, 60+ % cacao will make them taste richer.  If you choose to use chopped chocolate, rough chop it otherwise you could end up with chocolate cookies. One of my favorite variations on this classic is using Theo Chocolate Dark Chocolate Salted Almond bars - less chocolate makes it into the actual dough but I am a happier baker.  😄. Nuts in cookies can be polarizing so know your audience.  I almost always prefer to toast the nuts a little before using them. It adds a warm, roasty flavor to the dough and the heat helps pull out the natural nut oils. 

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy, add eggs until fluffier. Add vanilla.  Measure flour, baking soda, and salt into a small bowl and add it to the butter mixture until incorporated.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough (I used a scoop) onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 10 mins or until desired doneness.  If it were up to me they would never be baked but if you have to bake them make sure they are a little underdone in the center for gooeyness. 

 

 

 

Farmer's Market Junkie

Tovolo is based on Seattle - a wonderland of food and drink.  Seattle has an abundance of great food from all over Washington as well as our neighboring states.  We have farmers, ranchers, foragers, vintners, brewers, and fishermen.  Seattlites are incredibly spoiled not only in the quality of food but the diversity of products available to us.  I am a Farmer’s Market junkie.  I love when I see a vegetable I have never seen before, take it home, and realize I have been missing its deliciousness my whole life. 

Creating a meal based around amazing seasonal produce like Dragon Beans, purple potatoes, and Romanesco Broccoli, together with fresh Alaskan Salmon on a summer's night and my life is good. 

There is a great respect for food in the Pacific Northwest.  I think part of that respect comes from a ingrained work ethic. Washington is not that old (I am from the East Coast where my home town was founded in 1623) and the people that settled here were tough!  They used the land and sea for survival and I think you can taste it in the food.  We also have a stellar international community that influences the way we cook.  In walking distance of my house there are six Thai restaurants, 3 Vietnamese, 2 India, and a Hawaiian restaurant.  I also have several Farm to Table dining spots, 5 pizza joints, 4 sushi bars, and a great little Taquirea.  :)

On any day, if you are feeling farmer's market deprived, you can go down to Pike Place Market.  It is a touristy spot for sure but as a local it is still revered as the best place in the city to get the freshest produce, fish, and flowers.  True locals don't go on Saturdays and we don't wait in line at the "original" Starbucks but we still love the Market. (There are literally 15 other Starbucks in a 6 block radius as well as countless other coffee shops.) Huh?

Ode to a Mud Pie

There is a whole generation that eats dirt.  They have enjoyed eating dirt since they were little kids.  Apparently, it was a big birthday party activity.  This explains alot about the younger generation.

As I have eluded to in previous posts, I am one of the oldest in my office.   As we were talking about what topics we could talk about on social media for Spring, the idea of making Dirt Cups was thrown into the mix.  I thought the suggestion of making something that looked like dirt was a little odd but who am I to judge odd.  :)

So today, I made my first Dirt Cup!  I am not going to lie - they were pretty darn cute.  First, you make chocolate pudding (don't judge me but it was from a box), mix in some whipped cream, dish it into a cup (preferably clear), and then add crushed chocolate cookies on top to resemble dirt.  Voila!  Adorable!  But wait - there's more!  You "plant" gummy worms, mini gummy frogs, chocolate rocks, and gummy butterflies to create your garden of choice.  We bought bunny Peeps, chick Peeps, jelly beans, and speckled eggs for the Easter inspired gardeners.  For the healthier (ahem) people, we rounded out the pleathera of sugar with mint sprigs which were actually adorable. 

In preparation for our food gardening project I checked out Pintrest and WOW the Dirt Cup inspriation out there is amazing!  These little cups would be perfect for your Easter table or a Spring luncheon, or a kid's birthday party.  You can get as fancy as you want or make it as simple as spending some quality kitchen time with a little one.  The decorating options are limitless!  Show us your Dirt Cup Garden!

www.tovolo.com

Dr. Honey Bear's Magic Elixir

 

Dr. Honey Bear’s Magic Elixir

The world we live in is a Petrie Dish.  Winter (Spring, some of Fall) in Seattle goes from damp, to wet, to soggy, and back to wet.  We have days in the 30’s and days in the 50’s and that back and forth makes everybody on the verge of sick.  Our office is one big open room and we are separated by short cube walls about three feet high.   It is really nice that you can see everyone and conversation flows throughout without having to get up from your desk.  It also means that the germs travel between us like happy tourists on a sightseeing tour. 

Several of us have been taken down by “The BUG” in the last week or so.  It is curious that more of us are sick since the beginning of January, even though still slave to our resolutions of eating much healthier, cutting down on alcohol consumption, and exercising more.  As a team, we decided it was the lack of alcohol in our systems causing the rampant scourge.   Solution: A medicinal concoction one part herbal, two parts good Bourbon. 

With a little experimentation and a lot of taste testing: I give you Dr. Honey Bear’s Magic Elixir.

Ingredients:

2 cups Bourbon of choice – I prefer Bullit or Stagg for mixing

1 oz loose leaf Chamomile Tea (or a tea bag)

1 tsp freshly grated ginger

3 Tsp honey

3 Tsp fresh lemon juice

Tovolo Tea Infuser - the owl makes me happy

Mason Jar (because we're fancy)

Sphere Mold (optional)

Add Chamomile tea to the Bourbon in a glass jar and let steep for at least 4 hours. Then grate ginger, lemon juice, and  honey to the Bourbon in the mason jar.  Shake. Shake. Shake some more and then pour over your favorite Tovolo ice shape.  It is not guaranteed to make you better but it won't make you worse. :)

 

 

 

 

The Great Burger Debate

Burgers are Americana.  We all know that hamburgers didn't originate in the USA but we as a culture have perfected them.  Burgers (as they are now known) have become a source of pride and creativity.  As a nation, we have world class chefs using their vast culinary knowledge to create edible masterpieces between two pieces of bread, toast, rolls, buns, brioche, pretzels, etc.  There are restaurants dedicated to the art of burgers - Hubert Keller, Tom Colliccio. Careers are made on a signature burger ala Spike Mendleson.  Every American has an opinion on the subject and as a culture we are deeply divided.  Is a burger better grilled, fried, pan-seared?  Should it be rare, medium rare, or well done?  Don't even get me started on the ratio of fat to lean meat or what proportion of blended cuts make the very best burger.  If the burger is not beef, is it a burger? Personally, I love lamb or bison burgers but I tend to be on the gameier side of things.  There is a restaurant not far from me called Uneeda Burger - good name - that does a lamb burger with tempura lemons, arugula, and manchego cheese that makes me weak in the knees...great burger. 

To prove my point, I asked my office mates to shoot me an email of what makes a perfect burger and wow are we some passionate folks!  Everyone was VERY specific!  Some gave me childhood burger memories.  Some went the regional fast food route like Flamer's or The Habit in Northern California or the legendary butter burgers from Culver's in the Midwest.  There were burgers of lamb, wild boar, no sirloin, only sirloin, one made an argument for chicken but if it isn't ground and formed into a patty. I am not sure it counts.  There were a lot of opinions on bacon - from the number of appropriate slices to whether it should be in the burger or on top.  There was a great variety of cheeses expressed: blue, cheddar (sharp and mild), American, butterkase (sophisticated group), and manchego. There were more onion fans than I expected and fries were an essential component for many.   As a whole, we were split on vegetables.  My favorite part of reading the emails was the emphatic nature in which the descriptions were written.  I highly encourage to recreate this debate in your own office or book club or wherever your people gather - it is highly entertaining!

Ok - it's your turn now.  What's your perfect burger?

Burger guide ala Tovolo:
Elliot Bay Brewery
www.elliottbaybrewing.com
Stanich's
http://www.stanichs.com/
A'town Bistro
www.atownbistro.com/
Lola's
http://tomdouglas.com/index.php/restaurants/lola
Uneeda Burger
http://www.uneedaburger.com/menu.html
The Habit
http://www.habitburger.com/