why do i cook?

i saw this title on another food blog and my heart lept. i didn't read the entry, because my own ideas were percolating...but something about that title caused me to stop and reflect...

why do i cook?

because the act of creation is freeing,

relaxing,

empowering.

because taking things

that by themselves

are one thing,

and bringing them together

to make something else

amazes me every time.

the eggs i scramble one morning,

can be a crepe the next morning,

or cookies by the afternoon.

the buttermilk in my fridge

can marinate onion slices for onion rings,

or add richness to cakes.

why do i cook?

because i learn something every time.

not just about food,

but about life.

the focus it takes to spoon

a single teaspoon of batter

into a mini-cupcake liner

shows me how even the little things

deserve our attention.

the planning required

to transport 120 of said mini cupcakes

120 miles

already frosted and decorated

without them tipping

and still being able to handle them

speaks volumes

of all the intricate planning

God does

on behalf of us

every moment of the day.

my almost complete inadequacy in frosting anything

used to be complete inadequacy.

and i learn that some things

just need practice.

so though this blog will give recipes,

tips,

and tricks,

the reason i cook

is because it is one more way God shows me who He is,

and one more way i can love others.

by the way, the mini cupcakes i did this weekend are:

triple chocolate cake (using mini chocolate chips due to the mini nature of the cupcake)

martha's lemon cake

each kind was frosted with this

cream cheese frosting (though i added a few tablespoons of milk for spreadability)

the frosted triple chocolate version were decorated with three upright, regular-sized semi-sweet chocolate chips.

the frosted lemon cupcakes were decorated with three lemonhead candies.

each batter only needed 11-12 minutes in the oven at the recommended temperature.

roasted pecans

i never really liked pecans growing up. maybe it was my child's palate. maybe it was my disdain for odd things in my baked goods (nuts and raisins are members of the "odd things" family). hard to say why. and even now, a plain pecan is nothing to write home about, much less grab a handful and curl up on the couch for a snack.

but these....ooooooh, these. they are amazing chopped up on a salad. incredible sprinkled over mashed yams. and a tempting, delicious grab-a-handful kind of snack.

and they're really easy!

roasted pecans

original recipe

1 pound raw pecans

2 Tbsp butter, melted

2 tsp sugar

salt to taste

preheat oven to 325-degrees. spread pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet. bake pecans for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes until pecans are browned--be careful not to burn them! during the last round, melt butter and sugar together in the microwave. stir to combine butter and sugar--all the sugar may not dissolve.

put hot pecans in a heat-safe bowl and drizzle with butter/sugar mixture. stir until all pecans are coated. spread pecans back out on the baking sheet and sprinkle with just a little bit of salt. stir to combine. taste. add more salt if needed, but you really need less than a teaspoon total.

let pecans cool. eat as is or chop up and sprinkle wherever you would like.

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how to seed a pomegranate without stains or beatings

hello, allow me to introduce myself. i am your new best friend.

oh beautiful pomegranate seeds...so tasty, so delicious, soooooo difficult to obtain! whether creating a staining mess or beating the tar out of the peel whilst flinging juice everywhere--is it really worth it? how much stain remover must one buy when one just wants the sweet nectar of a pomegranate?

i tell you, NONE! here, my dear reader, i will reveal the secret to stain-free, beating-free, flinging-free adventure of getting to pomegranate seeds. sorry kids, you'll have to take your aggression out on a different source. hold on to your hats--here we go!

fill a bowl 3/4 full with cool water. be sure to use a bowl big enough to fit the whole pomegranate as well as your two hands.

cut each end off the pomegranate--just need enough off each end to get access.

then, and this is important, score the peel several times by cutting into the peel just enough to break the outer layer, then drag the knife from top to bottom.

now plunge your scored pomegranate along with your two hands into the cool water.

begin peeling back the outer layer, breaking the shell along the score lines.

run your thumb and/or finger across the pomegranate seeds to loosen them from their shell.

see how those lovely, lovely seeds drop to the bottom of the bowl?

and that icky, icky pith floats to the top?

and see how the peel is lacking those seeds it so desperately holds onto?

and notice still how very little juice has leaked out and colored the water?

ah, yes, hang in there. you're almost to the promised land.

keep prying and rubbing until all the seeds are loose.

see how all the seeds are at the bottom, and all that pith is floating?

what's more--see how my little fingers hold no stain?!?!

(they are pink because i used freeeeeeeeezing cold water!!)

and though the water is tinged pink,

no stain, no mess, no beating the tar out of fruit.

it's a beautiful thing!

i put the seeds on a paper towel to dry them a bit before tossing them in a bowl to snack.

elapsed time: 10 minutes.

number of stains: 0

number of tasty, tasty pomegranate seeds: fewer and fewer as i munch away.