Millet Polenta Blackberry Muffins

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Anita!
This post is because of our friend Will, who got accepted to Case med a couple of months ago.  We’ve known him for over a year as a classmate in the masters program, and for a semester as one of our anatomy lab TA’s.  Now we’re hoping to get to haze him as a first year medical student!
A year ago he made these delicious muffins as a “thank you” for some MCAT study materials.  The original sweet and crunchy muffin comes from The Cheeseboard Collective Works, a book published by its namesake bakery in California.  But it was Will’s idea to add cornmeal and berries, creating a texturally perfect arrangement of the original.  We’re pretty sure that’s what he’ll also do as a med student — take a good opportunity and do something delicious? amazing with it.
A attempt was made to get permission to post the recipe by contacting the Cheese Board Collective, without success.  But if you do get a hold of the book, Will recommends changing the millet to 1/4 parts polenta and 3/4 parts millet.  In addition, he says that using frozen berries will prevent them from bleeding into the tender flesh of the muffins. 
 
Okay fine, he didn’t say “tender flesh”.
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Posted in Breakfast, Snacks | 2 Comments

Death By (Mint) Chocolate Cookies

Posted on February 27, 2011 by Ari

We’re currently at t-minus 12 hours until our neuro/psych/musculoskeletal exam, and given that I can’t quite recite the DSM-IV criteria for all the personality disorders, I’m gonna keep this post short and sweet (pun intended), and haul my butt back to studying.
For those of you who don’t know, tomorrow is a pretty important day for me and Anita. It marks the last exam of our 2nd year of medical school, the first day of our 3rd year (upon completing and *knock on wood* passing said exam), the last day of “classroom learning” for…well…forever, the first official day of board study period, and Anita’s return to the world of simple carbohydrates (aka, sugar). In honor of these milestones, I decided to make up for the many desserts with which I’ve tempted Anita since her no-sugar pledge, and bake a cookie that will help her quickly forget the many months of abstinence…well that, and, as I’ve mentioned many times before, studying makes me crave junk food. That said, I proudly present to you the “We’re-Going-to-Rock-3rd-Year Double Chocolate and Mint Cookies”.

(Adapted from Une Gamine dans la Cuisine)

What you need (makes about 40 cookies):

  • 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup baking cocoa
  • 2 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3 cups mini chocolate chips (semi-sweet or bitter-sweet)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 cups butter (4 sticks) cut into chunks
  • 4 eggs at room temp
  • 1/2 tsp mint extract

What you need to do:

  1. Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt) in a bowl and set aside.
  2. In a different bowl, combine the butter and sugar using a hand mixer. Mix until it reaches a fluffy consistency. This takes about 5 minutes.
  3. Beat in one egg at a time (mix between each addition).
  4. Beat in the mint extract.
  5. Mix in the dry ingredients in 4 batches (beat between each addition).
  6. Using a spatula, fold in the chocolate chips.
  7. Refrigerate in a covered bowl for 8 hours (the dough is really sticky so this helps when it comes time to form the cookies).
  8. Once refrigerated, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and line the cookie sheet with parchment paper (or use non-stick spray if parchment paper isn’t available).
  9. Divide the dough into meatball sized balls (that’s a unit of measurement, right?) and flatten slightly before placing on the cookie sheet.
  10. Bake for 14 minutes.
  11. Cool before eating (I’m speaking from experience here).
  12. Enjoy!
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Posted in Dessert | 11 Comments

Sesame Coleslaw

Posted on February 23, 2011 by Anita!
When I started medical school, no one ever told me how hard anatomy would be.  Sure, I was apprised of the volume of subject material (truly: in 2011 I’ve forgotten more about the intrinsic muscles of the foot than I will ever know about anything else).  What I wasn’t aware of was how bad I would be at dissection.  The textbooks detailed the aesthetics of the final product, but the directions were regrettably abstract.  Only the perfectionists and artists in our class seemed to fare well.  Ari and I even got to do it twice because of the masters of anatomy; unfortunately, I never got past the chop suey skill level.
Over winter break I decided to construct a coleslaw to pair with the Smitten Kitchen Southwestern Pulled Brisket.  Wasn’t sure how to go about shredding the cabbage, but I was too proud to ask for help.  I began hacking away at the vegetable much in the way I executed most of anatomy lab — at the wrong angle with a dull knife.

My family watched in horrified silence for a couple of minutes before my mom offered to show me the right way to cole a slaw.  It turns out that I was trying to work from the outside of the globe in, when in fact you need to start from the core out.  Although I was resentful of the advice at the time, this lesson has aided every subsequent cabbage encounter.
I’m sure a lot of you already have this basic skill, but I’ve prepared a mini tutorial (see below) to facilitate your cabbage dissection experience, should you not.  Ari, would you be interested in co-producing a Netter’s of chopped vegetables?
Ingredients (adapted from the Simply Recipes Asian Coleslaw):
  • 3/4 shredded cabbage
  • 3-4 carrots chopped into matchsticks
  • 2 Tbsp tahini (or peanut butter)
  • 2 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 2-3 tsp powdered ginger
  • 1 tsp salt
  • Ground black pepper, sesame seeds, and some chopped cilantro
  • Bean sprouts (optional addition suggested by Ari, the whitest Asian I know)

Do not be intimidated by the cabbage. We will soon probe its inner depths. Look! It even dressed up in some garnish for you.

Outer covering shed, all warmed up.

Take a wedge out of the cabbage in the region of the core...or what I like to call "thing I can eat while cooking."

Split the remainder of the globe in half. You want to start from the center to the outer edge when making sections. Seemingly teleological tendrils will fall from your knife to the cutting board.

A close-up of the plane you'll be working with.

The only way this could be made easier is for someone to grow a cabbage-carrot hybrid so you could shred them at the same time. Oh and PS, put the rest of the ingredients in a small bottle or tupperware and shake. You can dress the coleslaw ahead of time. It might be best to shred the cabbage a day before you eat it to let it soften minimally.

Garnish with sesame seeds.
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Posted in Salads, Vegetarian | 8 Comments

Sweet and Spicy Brussels Sprouts

Posted on February 20, 2011 by Ari

In case you can’t tell by now, Anita and I are not exactly the kind of people that steer clear of vegetables. I wouldn’t say that we have a “vegetarian household” (we’re always sure to have a least 1 package of ground turkey in the freezer), but we both definitely appreciate a large helping of veggies…and I’m not just talking about your nice, “friendly” vegetables (e.g. tomatoes, lettuce, etc.), I’m talking about the mean, green, cancer fighting machines known as brussels sprouts.
“We kids feared many things in those days – werewolves, dentists…Sunday School – but they all paled in comparison with Brussels sprouts.”
 -Dave Barry
Now, popular culture would have us believe that brussels sprouts are nothing more these disgusting little green balls of feet flavored mush that were put on this earth to haunt us as children…I would definitely have to disagree with this thought. I’m not saying I sit there craving boiled brussels sprouts with nothing on them, but if you prepare them the right way, they are absolutely delicious (and nutritious)! As I venture even closer to the first official day of my board study period (t minus 8 days and counting), I find myself craving more and more junk food, and having to try even harder to convince my stomach that a salad really is just as tasty as a slice of cold, day old pizza. With that in mind, I have continued my search for quick and healthy dishes that trick my body into thinking it’s getting something with zero nutritional value. Here’s one that my stomach, and the stomachs of many die-hard brussels sprout haters, have deemed a winner.

What you need:

  • 1 lb brussels sprouts (I used frozen)
  • 3 tbs vegetable oil
  • 1 tbs whole mustard seeds
  • 4 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp crushed red pepper (more or less depending on desired spice factor)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp sugar

What you need to do:

  1. Steam your brussels sprouts until they’re tender (or if you’re lazy like me, just guy the frozen kind you steam in the bag), and set aside.
  2. Heat the oil in a frying pan, and once it starts to bubble add the mustard seeds.
  3. As soon as the mustard seeds start to pop, add the garlic and heat until they turn a light brown.
  4. Add the crushed red pepper and heat for a few seconds.
  5. Add the brussels sprouts, salt and sugar and stir.
  6. Turn the head down and let the brussels sprouts continue cooking for 3-4 minutes.
  7. Add a little sriracha and enjoy!
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Posted in Snacks, Vegetarian | 1 Comment