Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

My step-father’s birthday was the other day & I made a cake that included some of his favorite things: chocolate and peanut butter.  I used the Smitten Kitchen’s recipe, changing only a few things.

Ingredients & Directions:

• 2 C Flour
• 2 1/2 C Sugar
• 3/4 C Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 C Vegetable Oil
• 1 C Sour Cream
• 1 1/2 C Water
• 2 T Distilled White Vinegar
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 Eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well.

Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed.  Don’t be worried, the mixture is also very watery looking.

Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks and let cool completely.

Here are three ways to make Peanut Butter Frosting (#3 is from Smitten Kitchen’s recipe).  I don’t like cream cheese, so if I am not feeling ambitious or am running short on time I always make option 1.  Sandra Dee-ing my way into culinary excellence.

Peanut Butter Frosting #1

• 2 Cans of Whipped White Frosting
• 1 C Peanut Butter

Mix together and use.

Peanut Butter Frosting #2

• Wilton Buttercream Icing
• 1 C Peanut Butter

Mix together and use.

Peanut Butter Frosting #3

• 10 Oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 2/3 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a commercial brand (because oil doesn’t separate out)

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.

Frost each layer of cake and then frost the top & sides, making sure the sides are smooth.  The top will be covered with a glaze so don’t worry about it too much.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

• 8 Oz Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 3 T Smooth Peanut Butter
• 2 T Light Corn Syrup
• 1/2 C Half-and-Half

In the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.

Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips.

Cut & serve the cake.  We ate about half of the cake in about two minutes it was that good.

(Steven)

Chicken Cutlets with Tomatoes & Capers

This recipe has been on my list of things to make since I saw Chelsee at We are not Martha make it a few months ago.  Well, I finally made it & I am not sure what took me so long.  Sage is one of my favorite underused herbs and I was so excited that this just complimented the chicken so well.  Also, at this point I am sure everyone knows about We are not Martha, but if not you really should check them out.  Susie & Chelsee are great people and their site is amazing.

Ingredients & Directions:

• About 8 T Olive Oil
• 4 Cloves Garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 C Halved & Washed Grape Tomatoes
• Salt
• 8 Chicken Cutlets
• Flour, for dusting
• Fresh Sage Leaves
• 1/3 C White Wine
• 3 T drained capers
• 4 handfuls of fresh greens (I used baby arugula)
• crushed red chile flakes

Pound the cutlets a bit till they’re a little flatter.  Lightly dust the chicken with flour on both sides, and set aside.

Heat half the oil with garlic in a large nonstick frying pan.  Add the tomatoes with a little salt and fry over high heat until they start to pucker.  Pour the oil and tomatoes out together into a little bowl and set aside.

Add the remaining oil to the pan.  Heat over medium heat. Add sage, and place chicken directly on top of sage leaves, frying until the underside of the chicken is golden and the sage is sticking to the chicken.  Turn over and season with salt.  Cook until the new underside is golden. 

Add the wine, tomato mixture, and capers.  Let it bubble up and evaporate a bit, then put the lid on and leave for a couple minutes before serving.

Lay chicken atop greens and top with some of the tomato caper pan sauce. Garnish with red pepper flakes if desired.  I served it with a small portion of jasmine rice.

(Steven)

Macaroni & Cheese

One of my favorite comfort foods is Macaroni & Cheese, homemade obviously. My favorite recipe, and I have tried a few is Martha Stewart’s version.  I was reading this article on addictive mac & cheese and want to test out these other versions, but in the meantime I made Martha’s again.

Ingredients & Directions:

• 6 T Butter
• 5 1/2 C Milk
• 1/2 C Flour
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 4 1/2 C (about 18 ounces) Grated Sharp Cheddar
• 1 1/4 C (about 5 ounces) Grated Pecorino Romano
• 1lb Pasta
• Panko, for topping.  (check out original recipe for Martha’s topping)

Grate all of your cheese in advance.

In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, heat milk. Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet over medium heat. When butter bubbles, add flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Slowly pour hot milk into flour-butter mixture while whisking. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick.

Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in salt, nutmeg, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and cheese. Set cheese sauce aside.

Boil pasta according to directions or preference.  Stir macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce.  Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Scatter panko over the top.

Bake until browned on top, about 30 minutes. Transfer dish to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes; serve.

I served it as a side dish with some steak tips and a small Greek salad (not pictured because I ate it).  Next time I am thinking of making a mac & cheese bar so I can add different things (bacon, lobster, caramelized onions) to each small serving.  I can’t wait.

(Steven)

Finding the Best Arancini in Boston pt. 2: Tavolo

There’s a lot of things I don’t like doing without Steven. These things include a) drinking on weeknights b) participating in snarky Gchats c) judging people on OkCupid. It’s like being ripped apart from my Siamese twin – it pains me to go through these activities alone.

Above all else, I really, really, REALLY don’t like eating arancini balls without him, especially when we’ve both pledged TOGETHER to find The Best Arancini in Boston.  I would feel cheated on if I found out through Tumblr gossip that he had gone on a solo adventure without me.

But last Friday night, I suffered a brutal surprise attack when my waiter at Tavolo in Dorchester told me with a glint in his eye that they were featuring – you guessed it – arancini balls on the menu as a special that evening. A few moments of confusion passed. I mean, I never want to be that girl who passes up arancini but I also, like, value my friendship with Steven and didn’t want to hurt his feelings. Soon I started to sweat, my heart was pounding, my palms were sweaty and my date was wondering what the eff was going on.

But don’t worry, my moral dilemma quickly passed and I ordered the arancini with gusto, but not before texting Steven a picture of them with the caption “OMG OMG LOOK” written over it.

His response: “Omg I’m dying.” It was like he was really there.

My date had never tried an arancini ball before (I know, I know) and he couldn’t have had a better first experience. These were perfectly proportioned, hot, and crispy on the outside with macaroni and cheese-looking rice on the inside and melted mozzarella cheese in the middle.

It honestly doesn’t get much better than this as far as arancini goes. Now, I’m not trying to make Steven feel bad, but these are in the running for my favorite arancini balls in Boston. Tavolo is now basically tied with Teatro and their Arancini with Short Ribs & Truffle Aioli. Big statements, I know, but these were near perfect.

If anyone in Boston hasn’t been to Tavolo, hop on the red line and ride it out to the Ashmont stop ASAP. Yes, it’s a long ride, but it’s so worth it. Plus, the restaurant is right next to the T stop, so I don’t want to hear any bitching about possibly getting shot, ok?

Until the next (non-solo) arancini adventure,

(Guest Blogger Alison)

Tilapia Fish Cakes & Med Month

I made dinner for my mother for Mother’s Day instead of an actual gift.  She wanted a full course meal, from appetizer to dessert.  The appetizer I decided to make was a Tilapia Fish Cake.  The reasons are twofold.  We both love fish cakes and it’s Med Month over at one of our favorite places Oldways.  The month of May is Mediterranean Month, “a time to explore and celebrate the delicious, healthful approach to eating and drinking inspired by life in the Mediterranean region.” 

Ingredients & Directions:

• 1 lb Tilapia (or another white fish)
• Salt & Pepper
• 2 T Lemon Juice
• 2 T White Wine
• 1/4 C Capers
• 1 T Parsley
• 1 Egg, beaten
• 1/4 C Mayo
• 1/4 C Panko, or more if needed
• 1/4 C Flour
• 3 T Oil

Salt and pepper the fish, drizzle with lemon juice & wine and steam until the fish is thoroughly cooked and flakes easily, about 5 - 10 minutes. Drain the liquid. Break up the fish, leaving some large clumps and wait for the fish to cool to room temperature.

While fish is cooling, in a small bowl mix the egg and mayo.

Once the fish has cooled place in a food processor, add the capers and parsley, panko, and the mayo-egg mixture, and gently mix everything together. If the mixture looks too wet, add a little more panko.

Form into small cakes. Cover and chill for 30 minutes or overnight.

After chilling, add the flour to a plate and dredge both sides of the cakes with flour. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Cook the cakes until the outsides are crisp and browned, about 4 - 5 minutes per side.

I served it on a small dollop of fresh tartar sauce.  I will be sure to add a little garnish next time so my presentation looks a little more complete (ok Mom?).

We also wanted to take a moment to offer our sympathy to Oldways on the loss of their founder & president K. Dun Gifford.

(Steven)

Pepper Jack Potatoes

I was craving potato skins.  You know the kind that they have a restaurants with bacon & cheese?  Well, unfortunately I didn’t have any bacon in the house (I know that’s terrible right?).  I created these Pepper Jack Potatoes as a side for dinner and I was pretty happy with how they came out.

Ingredients & Directions:

• 4 Potatoes
• 1/4 C Diced Onions
• 1 C Shredded Pepper Jack Cheese
• Salt & Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Dill Weed (I would have used Rosemary if I had it)
• 1/2 C Milk (add more if mixture is too thick)
• 8 T Butter (I’m getting all Paula Deen on you!)
• 1/2 C Cheddar Cheese (not pictured) for topping

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Bake the potatoes directly on the rack of the oven for 1 hour, or until tender and cooked through.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack for 15 minutes.  Once cooked & cooled, cut potatoes in half and hollow them.  Put all the scooped out potato in a large bowl or food processor.

Mix potato, onion, pepper jack cheese, milk, dill, butter, salt, & pepper until well blended.

Scoop mixture into hollowed potatoes.  I cooked them on a pan with aluminum foil so it would be easier to clean later.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese over potatoes.

Broil until the cheese is melted, bubbling and beginning to brown, about 3 minutes.  Remove potatoes to platter, sprinkle with parsley (chives are popular too) and serve immediately.

Mia (My mother’s cat) was staring longingly at the potatoes.  I don’t blame her, but we didn’t share.

(Steven)

Orange Breakfast Muffins

I am still reading cookbooks as part of my reading goal for the year.  I recently finished reading Nigella Bites by Nigella Lawson (I love her).  The very first recipe in her cookbook spoke to me as I started reading, so much so that I ran to the kitchen and made these muffins immediately.

Ingredients & Directions:

• 6 T Butter
• 1 2/3 C Flour
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 C Sugar
• Zest of 1 Orange
• 1/3 C plus 1 T Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
• 1/3 C plus 1 T Milk (orig. recipe called for whole, I used 2%)
• 1 Egg
• Paper Baking Cups

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  I made the orange zest using a food grater since my zester is packed away right now.  Melt butter and set aside. 

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, & orange zest in a large bowl.

Mix the orange juice and milk in a large measuring cup and whisk in the egg and then the cooled, melted butter.  This mixture will become very thick.

Now pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients mixing with a whisk.  The batter will be lumpy, but that is how it should be.

Spoon the mixture equally into the muffin cups and bake for about 15-20 minutes.  Remove from the muffin pan once don and cool on a wire rack.

I served these warm with one of my favorite jams.  The Wild Maine Blueberry Jam from Stonewall Kitchen is one of the best jams I have ever had.  Everything they make is delicious and whenever I go up to York, Maine I always stop there and stock up.  You should also check out their blog & follow their twitter.  While you are following twitter pages, you can also follow Two Coast Table on twitter too!

(Steven)

Two Coast Table Update

Meg & I mostly write about stuff we cook & places we eat, but we have some exciting news.  Meg & her boyfriend are moving from Portland, Oregon to New York City in a few days.

This means we will be cooking on the same coast.  We have decided, at least for now, to keep our blog title the same, because you would not believe how long it took us to come up with that one.  We almost started a celebrity stalking website instead.  We’ll probably need a new tagline, but this is a great opportunity for the both of them that they couldn’t pass up.  Anyway, what this means mostly is that Meg will be absent from posting for a little bit while she is traveling across country again and then getting settled.  You will have to read only my posts and recipes for a little while.

I am so excited to have Meg just a few hours away now and can’t wait to visit her.

(Steven)

Fried Asparagus Raviolis

I had these wraps from Nasoya that I needed to use and I have been dying to make some sort of raviolis with them.  I looked in my refrigerator to see what I could use and pulled out what you see in the picture below.

Ingredients & Directions:

• Bunch of Asparagus
• 1 T Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
• Nasoya Wraps
• 1/4 Onion (or Shallot) diced
• 1/2 C Asiago Cheese (you could substitute)
• Oil for frying

Clean and then brake off the ends of the asparagus.  Chop them up and put them in the Magic Bullet (you can use a food processor or a blender) along with the lemon juice, onion (diced), & asiago cheese. 

Mix until it is thoroughly blended and there aren’t anymore asparagus chunks left in the mix.

I put the wraps out on on a cutting board (I use it so it is easy to clean later). Scoop a small tablespoon full of the mix on to each wrap. 

Pinch the corners closed with some water and set aside until the pan of oil is hot.

Once oil is hot drop the raviolis in and fry until golden on both sides.  About a minute or so on each side.

Put them on a paper towel to soak up some of the oil while they cool down.

I served them plain, but I think they may be good with some kind of sauce, probably a hollandaise might be nice.  These were really good for tsomething that I just pulled out of the refrigerator to make. and I will be making them again.

(Steven)

Deviled Eggs with Bacon

I have been craving deviled eggs for so long now.  I finally caved in and made them this past weekend and it was so worth the wait. Well, not really, I could have really used them two weeks ago when I was dreaming about them, but I digress.

Ingredients & Directions:

• 4 Lg. Eggs
• 4 T Mayonnaise (I may have squeezed a little extra since I love mayo)
• 1 tsp Mustard (I used Grey Poupon)
• 1 Pinch Cayenne Pepper
• Salt & Pepper
• 2 T chopped Bacon
• Dill, for garnish

Place eggs in a large saucepan. Cover them with cool water by 1 inch. Slowly bring water to a boil over medium heat; when the water has reached a boil, cover and remove from heat. Let sit 12 minutes.

Peel the eggs, halve lengthwise and scoop the yolks into a medium bowl, reserving the egg whites. Mash the yolks with the mayonnaise, mustard, cayenne, & bacon. Season with salt and black pepper.

Spoon (I actually used a plastic sandwich bag with the end cut off to pipe them in) the yolk mixture into the egg white halves and sprinkle with the dill.

These seriously satisfied my craving and I am thinking about making more this weekend.

(Steven)