Rosemary, Lemon Cornmeal Cake by The Careless Cook

  

Ok, I confess.  I looked though a few recipes, then branched out this way and that, like a squirrel crossing a road in heavy traffic.  But, as I always say, a recipe is only a suggestion.  In the end, successful cookery is a battle waged by your brain and eyes, creative spirit and appetite.

 

A kitchen is the proper place to piddle, to try this and that, following your own path, whether it leads to accolades and cheers from a grateful nation, or the gloom of despair, as your former friends toss down their napkins and stomp out the front door.  I have had no stompers recently, but I haven’t been dating in a long time.  Even then, it wasn’t the food.

 

Shall we begin?  Don’t be so hasty!  In the evening, it’s first time for Martinis, or in the morning, something like spicy tomato juice…wink, wink.

 

Rosemary Lemon Cake

Oven to 350ºF or 180ºC

 

Ingredients

 

1 cup yellow cornmeal

3 cups flour

2/3  cup sugar

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

½ cup powdered sugar  (plus more to dust the cake)

1 ½ tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup vegetable oil (I used Canola oil)

½ cup melted butter (I used salted butter)

2 generous tablespoons honey

2 ½ cups full fat oat milk, or buttermilk, or plain milk (I like the cream-like flavor of Oat-Ly brand oat milk)

4 eggs

2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves finely chopped (remove the stalks OF COURSE!)  I do it the easy way and use scissors to trim the leaves off the stem.

 

Puttin’t it Tee-gether

 

In a large bowl, put all the dry ingredients, including the chopped rosemary leaves, and mix well.

 

In another large bowl, put all the wet ingredients, including the honey and melted butter. Mix well.  I used an electric handheld mixer.

 

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until fully blended.

 

Pour the batter into a well greased 13 x 8 baking pan and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the edges are browned.  If you’re not sure, use the knife test. A quick stab in the middle should come out clean.

 

Note:  If you and your guests have kept the Martini glasses filled, the cake will be of little importance, but they will cheer you anyway.  Should you be so unfortunate as to run out of vodka, gin, vermouth and olives however, better make sure the cake is damn good!

 

It will be!  Trust The Careless Cook!

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Biscuits à l'Orange (orange cookies)

 

Biscuits à l’Orange:  Orange cookies by the Careless Cook

 

I like cookies.  Perhaps it’s a throwback to childhood when I followed my mother around the kitchen.  Ah the aromas! And the excitement for a child!  Often she let me stir, or when things were too difficult for my childish fingers, she would explain and show me what she was doing and why she was doing it, this way and that.  And, of course, with pies and cakes and especially cookies, she let me lick the bowl.  Magic words when she handed me the dough covered spoon or the beaters, or the spatula. I’ve written earlier about my mother’s recipe for sugar cookies.  Never saw that?  Never made her sugar cookies?  Ah, I pity you for your loss.

Mom's Sugar Cookies

 

Today I have another cookie recipe, but this one didn’t come from my mother’s kitchen.  Matter of fact, it didn’t come from anyone’s kitchen but mine.  Bold statement, not having been in everyone’s kitchen. But, hyperbole is my stock in trade.

 

These cookies require little time to make, have few ingredients, cook fast, and the icing on top is so simple even an idiot can make it. I proved that.

 

 As Mark Twin famously said, “Reader, suppose you were an idiot.  And suppose you were a member of Congress.  But, then I repeat myself.

 

Biscuits à l’Orange (Orange cookies)

Heat oven to 325ºF or 160º

Ingredients

 

2 cups all purpose flour

2 sticks butter (a cup)

1 cup fine sugar (I put regular sugar in my electric coffee grinder)

2 tablespoons of grated orange rind

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon of milk

 

The icing

2 cups powdered sugar

½ cup of milk, or maybe a little more. Be careful; you’re not making soup!

candied orange rinds for decoration (Make these while the cookies bake:  See below.)

 

Make the Cookies

 

Use a hand-mixer or food processor to cream the butter and sugar.  Add the flour and orange rind, mix well, then add the milk.

 

Roll out the dough to about a quarter inch thickness and cut into rounds.  I used a well-washed tomato paste can, with both ends removed, which gave me 28 cookies.  Put the cookie rounds on a baking sheet and slap ‘em in the pre-heated oven.  Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges are just barely starting to brown.  Note:  check the cookies once or twice on the way to 15 minutes! Every oven heats differently.

 

Candy the orange rinds

  

Cut a few tablespoons of orange rinds into very small pieces (see cookie photo)

Put them in a small pan or skillet.  Add a half water, half sugar solution and cook on low heat for about ten minutes.  Discard the sugar solution and put the candied rinds on a plate to dry and cool.

 

When the cookies are ready, move them to a room temperature surface or a cooling rack.

 

When the cookies are cool, dip or paint on the icing and immediately add some cooled candied orange rind on top of the soft icing for decoration.

 

If you didn’t make enough cookies, now you have a problem because your unruly guests will eat these by the handfuls and then want to take a bunch home.

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Rustic Lemon Coconut Pie

Some have asked about my cooking process. Short answer:  eclectic at best. And rustic.  Rustic covers so many short cuts. The godsend for a sloppy cook.

Here are the lyrics and the melody from my Saturday afternoon pie making:

1. Suddenly decided I wanted to make a pie.

2.  What kind of pie filling do I have?  Ah, lemon and cherry.

3.  Lemon sounds good, but I need to doctor it a bit.....hummmmmm.... 8 oz.cream cheese?  And I can add some grated lemon rind for freshness.....and I think I'll toss in some sweetened coconut flakes.....feeling a bit tropical today.  Sun is out.  Add a half-cup of sugar.

4.  Many recipes call for a couple of eggs.....ok, no problem.

5.  Wait a sec!  I need to make a pie crust.  Ok, I can do that, but no way I'm going to let it sit in the refrigerator for an hour.

6.  Easy pie crust in the food processor:  2.5 Cups flour, 1 stick chilled butter, 8 oz of Crisco, 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Think I'll add a couple of Tablespoons of sugar. 3-4 drops cold water.

7.  Hit the button.  Done!  Roll it out.  Put it in my oversized pie plate.  Make room and slide it in the frig while I make the filling.  

8.  Using the same food processor, but rinsed and dried.

9.  Bam!  Pour the filling in the pie. Paint the crust with some egg yolk and slap it in the preheated 350ºF oven for 35 minutes.

Out it comes, but too hot to cut…..well dang!  My mouth was already aquiver.  Ah, well, cooked pie goes back in the frig…I can wait, I think.

Wine is open.  That’ll help with the waiting…Should have had a yen for cookies…woulda been quicker….eat ‘em straight from the oven.  Don’t even need a plate.  How long has that pie been in the frig???