Holiday Bake Sale

My kids' primary school is a little eager to kick off the holiday season.  It just hosted the annual Christmas Fair this past weekend.  I suppose that with no reality check of Thanksgiving to get in the way, the steam roller that is Holiday Madness starts right after Halloween.

One of my British friends came up with the brilliant idea of hitting up the local grocery store for some bakery boxes.  We were able to sell loads of cupcakes by giving customers the option to get a package of 4.  Don't they look cute and festive? 

Making these is a snap.  You just need:

Red Velvet Cake mix
Foil cupcake wrappers
Ready-made icing (I used Pilsbury Vanilla) and
Candy canes
Optional:  pastry bag with star tip

I know, I know.  Cake mix?!  Ready-made icing?  I must admit that I usually rely on such terrible tactics for bake sales. 

1.  Bake the cupcakes and freeze them until ready to use.  (You could do this 2 weeks in advance, if you wanted.)
2.  On the day of the bake sale or holiday fair, line up the cupcakes on paper towels or wax paper.
3.  Squirt the icing out of a pastry bag if you want or spread on with an off-set spatula.  (I used the star tip, but these would be super pretty with the ribbon or circle tip as well.  You are only limited by your imagination.)
4.  Crush some candy canes by putting them into a Ziploc bag and then wacking with a rolling pin or some such tool.  (I used the handle of my kitchen shears because they were right on the table already).
5.  Sprinkle candy canes on cupcakes.  Pack into boxes and watch them sell out right before your eyes!  Don't worry about the fact that the cupcakes are frozen...they will thaw about 2 hours after you take them out of the freezer.  By the time you decorate all of them, pack them up and drive them over to the school, you're probably home free!

Note:  Other fun decorations would include holiday Peeps...I've noticed that they come in snowman and Christmas tree options.

Butternut Squash and Pear Soup with Vanilla Bean Specks

The first little sniffles and coughs of the season have started to resonate through the house.  My kids, however, are really tired of chicken noodle soup from previous years.  So this fall, I had resolved to introduce some new soups into the recipe stash.

This is largely lifted from Molly Wizenberg's version of Butternut and Pear Soup with Cider and Vanilla Bean, except I didn't use any cider and I didn't use a separate pan to infuse the vanilla bean into the cream.  My sink was already full of dirty dishes...I didn't need to introduce a saucepan to the growing pile.

3 Tbs olive oil


1 2-lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces (4 generous cups)


2 firm-ripe pears, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)


1 medium yellow onion, peeled and coarsely chopped


3 cups good-quality chicken broth


½ tsp salt


½ cup half-and-half (I used 1/2 cream and 1/2 milk)


1 vanilla bean


Fresh chives, finely chopped, for garnish

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-low heat. Add the squash, pears, and onion, stir to coat with oil, and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes, until the onion is soft and transparent and the pears are starting to fall apart.

Add the broth and bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.  Then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer the mixture, partially covered, for about 30 minutes, until the squash is tender.

Puree a third of the mixture in a food processor (or use an immersion blender).  Once it's pureed, then add another third, puree, and then the final third.  I like to make sure that the feeding tube at the top of the processor is open so the steam from the hot liquid can escape.   (I don't know what happens if you process an entire pot's worth of hot liquid in one shot without a vent; it seems like a bad idea).

Before you put the soup back into the pot, pour the half-and-half (or cream and milk) into the pot (don't worry about the remains of squash and onions left in the pot...this is all going to become soup anyway).  Scrape the contents of a vanilla pod into the half-and-half and warm until it is steaming and smells heavenly.  (You can also chuck the vanilla pod itself into the half-and-half while this is happening, just remember to take it out before you serve it).

Pour the soup back into the pot and stir.  Serve, garnished with chives.  You can also use a little more cream to make a decoration on the soup (like a happy face or a flower to cheer up a sniffly little sweetie).  I usually just put a little bit in a Ziploc bag, snip off a corner with scissors, and squirt onto the soup.  You'd be surprised how eager your kids are to eat something with a happy face on it.  

Yield: 4-5 servings

Say Fromage...

One of the highlights of my Paris experience this past week was a visit to Alleosse, the famous cheese shop.  Believe it or not, I was looking for this store and actually passed it the first time walking down the street.  How does someone miss a pink cheese shop?  Picture throngs of food stalls, fruit carts, shoppers purchasing their wares for dinner, seafood mongers calling to customers, the aroma of rotisserie chickens and fries wafting through the market, and you might get a sense how that would be possible.  The market at Rue de Poncelet is quite an experience, one that merits its own entry.

And here is where I introduce my good friend Audi Girl, a dangerous specimen with my passion for food and Major Obvious' obsession with cars.  Audi Girl and I joined the queue that spilled from the shop into the street.  She was anxious to try some brie, while I had a couple of other cheeses in mind to purchase.  As we entered the shop, we were completely overwhelmed.  The store was packed with cheese everywhere!  Cases, shelves and nooks were crammed with delicious possibilities.   The smell was also incredible.  Almost every cheese came with a little tag that said, "Cru Lait," which means raw milk.  That's right, nothing was pasteurized here!  Hence, the lovely, funky smell that only can be found in a lovely French cheese shop.  Audi Girl whispered,  "I don't see Brie anywhere."  She was right, even though we were surrounded by a million cheeses, none of them had the label "Brie."  I had faith, though.  "They've got to have it."

Three men in white chef's jackets were standing at attention, ready for action.  When it was finally our turn, I requested "Brie de Meaux" and our assistant called out, "Brie de Meaux!  Oui, madam!"  Then he reached into a vast glass case and pulled out an enormous wheel.  He motioned with his hand where I might want it cut.  I nodded, and he cut.  Then, he wrapped.  Next?  "Camembert."  He pulled out a smaller wheel and asked me something in rapid French.  I thought he was asking me if I wanted to buy the whole thing, so I asked, "C'est possible...demi..." and made cutting motions with my hands.  He replied that he could definitely do that, cut and wrapped it.  At this point, Audi Girl whispered in my ear, "He was asking which day you were going to eat it."  Oops.  Well, we were definitely going to eat it today.  No matter.  Onto the next cheese!  "Neufchatel, sil vous plait."  Repeat, show for inspection, wrap.  Is that everything?  Yes, we're done, thank you.  He prints out a little ticket, then I realize that I need to stand in another line.  I came to learn that Parisians often stand in line twice at shops.  So I presented my ticket to the cashier, at which point he miraculously produced a little pile of wrapped cheeses, all the correct ones I had requested.  Audi Girl was impressed, "I was wondering how they were going to keep track of our cheeses!"

So what was our favorite?  The Brie de Meaux was Audi Girl's and Major Obvious' favorite.  I preferred the softer and tangier Camembert.  But our best cheese find was at Cafe Angelina two days later.  Audi Girl ordered a plate that came with some Brillat-Savarin.  Fresh and snowy white, it tasted like the butteriest cream cheese ever.  Now I know what to ask for next time at Alleosse!

By Jove! Tearoom, Burwell, Cambridgeshire

Dr. Tex was gracious enough to treat us to a sumptuous tea at By Jove! tearoom, a charming English house nestled in Burwell.  I loved the enormous sandwiches (the "fingers" that inspired these likely belonged to the Jolly Green Giant), the homemade cake, and the iPod dock secreted behind a vase of flowers.  There are also two little gift shop rooms that sell hilarious things like hand-knitted tea cozies, notebooks with the Queen of England's portrait on the cover, and tartan passport covers.  (Oddly enough, there were also Wizard of Oz mint tins, which did not strike me as either British or tea-related, but oh well).  

Each of us had the traditional set afternoon tea which came with the aforementioned enormous "finger" sandwiches (egg salad, tuna salad, and cucumbers with butter), a ridiculously large "slice" of cake of your choice, two raisin scones served with clotted cream and jam, and tea or coffee.   I was warned to come hungry, so I made a point of eating nothing all day long in an effort to "conquer" this tea.  Well, I managed to devour all of the sandwiches and one of the scones, but I ended up taking home the cake for Major Obvious and the kiddies to share.  Oh, and I took home the other scone, too, but I ended up eating it before I had a chance to tell anyone about it.  These things sometimes happen.

The Rose & Crown, Snettisham, Norfolk

On our way back from Norfolk Lavendar, we stopped off at The Rose & Crown.  This charming gastropub serves up an incredible variety of delicious food.  Skyscraper-high cheeseburgers on ciabatta with bacon, matchstick French-style fries (no thick English-inspired chips here, to the delight of Sweet Pea), crispy pork belly served alongside grilled peaches, sauteed scallops and halibut on a bed of black risotto...everyone found something delicious to devour.  We even had the opportunity to try something new...the scallops and halibut were served with a side of marsh samphire.  It seemed odd to eat these vegetables, as they looked like the plastic plants that one would find in someone's aquarium.  But this sea plant consisted of pods along a rosemary-like stalk that exploded with salty flavor when we bit them.  Complete with a children's menu, friendly staff, and a fun layout made up of multiple little rooms, The Rose & Crown is a fabulous lunch stop and we look forward to going again.

Dinner in Edinburgh...With Kids!

We ate a lot of Italian and Scottish food while in Edinburgh, but it seemed that our favorite stop might have been at Mussell Inn.  It was so much fun sitting outside during a calm summer evening and watching Sweet Pea devour mussell after mussell.  Our server was duly impressed when he saw her empty mussell pot, "Where are you putting it?  You're so tiny!"  

If you find yourself in Edinburgh, you might want to stop off at Martone for some homemade gelato and pizza.  Centotre, located in a gorgeously restored Georgian mansion, offers freshly made pastas and fun activity packets for kids.  

Scottish Brunch and Tea

I just spent the past several days in Edinburgh, Scotland with the family.  Perhaps our favorite activity was eating brunch or having tea there.  This wonderful city has no shortage of places!  We loved our butternut squash risotto at Always Sunday (served on top of a butternut squash half so that you just scoop out more squash while you're eating the creamy rice). Major Obvious and the kids enjoyed munching on bacon and Belgian waffles at Treacle while watching reruns of Streetfighter cartoons.  I particularly loved the smoked salmon sandwiches and shopping at eteaket, where the kids were delighted to partake in their first "babyccinos" (steamed, foamy milk with swirls of cocoa on top).  The hog roast sandwiches at oink are super tasty as well.