vinegar – The Kitchen Illiterate

Double-Coconut Cream Pie

[Update: Think this pie looks delicious? Enter to win a copy of Desserts from the Famous Loveless Cafe by Monday, September 5, 2011 at 8 am.]

Last June I received a cookbook to review from Library Journal that immediately sparked my urge to get into the kitchen and make something sweet. Desserts from the Famous Loveless Cafe is a tribute to classic Southern treats like Chess Pie and Hummingbird Cake, desserts I’ve heard of but never tried. The book is due out in September, and is a really lovely collection.

One of the first things that caught my eye is this Double-Coconut Cream Pie. I’ve always wanted to make a Coconut Cream Pie. Just the phrase evokes warm summer days and a clean apron tied around the waist and preferably a picnic at which this lovely pie can be presented. Fourth of July weekend provided just such an occasion.
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Quinoa and Bean Salad

I must admit that quinoa and I have been slow to warm to each other. It sounded like the ideal food for a mostly vegetarian diet: It’s a grain and also a complete protein. [Updated: It’s not a grain! It’s actually a seed. Ah, research…] And it’s fast and easy to cook. But for some reason, the love just wasn’t there. This quinoa and bean salad, though, might have tipped the scales strongly in favor of quinoa. And it’s a perfect summer meal, as it involves very little actual cooking! I can’t wait to eat this again.
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Spinach and Clementine Salad

So far, February has been a little hectic. I’ve been traveling a lot for work (who knew being a librarian would involve so many hotel rooms?), and luckily I’ve been able to combine that work travel with visits to friends and family. I got to spend a week in the Bay Area, and even got to go to Santa Cruz for a quick day trip, a place which still has the ability to make me blissfully happy, even though they are doing massive construction on my old dorm. Oh nostalgia, you are a powerful beast.

Of course, all this traveling has involved a lot of restaurant meals, and I don’t complain about that. But I do miss my kitchen when I’m away, and frankly, when I return I’m not usually in the mood to be wildly experimental with my food. No, I’m a homebody at heart, and being away makes me long for familiar dinners, like my very favorite chicken enchiladas. But the days of heavy restaurant food also make me crave light, fresh salads, and this winter-friendly spinach and citrus salad absolutely does not disappoint.
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Homemade Cheese Crackers

I have a serious weakness for Cheez-its. Even if I managed to cut all other processed foods out of my diet, I could never give up Cheez-its. I once ate an entire box by myself in one sitting. I probably shouldn’t admit that, huh? Anyway, when I saw a recipe for homemade cheese crackers on the King Arthur Flour Baker’s Banter blog I knew I had to make them. I immediately went online and bought their Vermont Cheese Powder and when I finally had some free time I headed straight to the kitchen to bake up some (perhaps a little bit healthier) cheese crackers.
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Spaghetti with Kale and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This is the dinner that almost wasn’t. I started out with an entirely different meal in mind, one that involved mushrooms and squash and greens. But I baked the squash too long and it became dried out and tasteless, and when I sauteed the mushrooms with the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes the whole mixture very quickly became burnt, bitter, and inedible. Exasperating! I almost resigned myself to eating plain spaghetti with butter when I realize I could probably still salvage the kale and at least get some vegetable matter into my dinner.

And you know what? This turned out surprisingly awesome. The sun-dried tomatoes added a sharp sweetness to the slightly bitter kale, and I finished the whole thing off with a small amount of white balsamic vinegar, which added just the right edge. I love it when a salvaged dinner becomes something delicious in its own right.
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