Ladies and gentlemen (but mostly ladies), we have a winner! It's my pleasure to announce that Jeannie Hensel will soon be receiving a package from Tate's Bake shop! Congratulations, Jeannie! I hope your son loves these delicious treats. Please email me at gluttonforlife (at) gmail (dot) com and include your mailing address so I can pass it along to Tate's.The rest of you can console yourselves by ordering some Tate's cookies and brownies here, or by whipping up a batch of these delectable carrot cake cupcakes, which can easily be made gluten-free should you so choose. I'm really sorry I don't have a photo of the final frosted version, but sometimes life takes precedence over blogging. (Rarely, but sometimes!) I made these last week for Stephanie's birthday, from the same low-fat recipe I used to make her cake last year. The cupcake version also went over like a house on fire—and why not? These babies are rich but fluffy, loaded with carrot and pineapple, studded with golden raisins, slicked with an irresistible cream cheese frosting and finished with a sprinkling of candied ginger. Bring it, Tate's!
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I woke up yesterday with an enormous zit on my chin. One of those under-the-skin whoppers that can really mess with your head—literally. Mine is practically tilted to one side. TMI? It was all because of a sudden influx of cheese into my life—starting with that truffled gratin at Eataly, followed by an aged gouda with cumin, then some extra sharp Sicilian pecorino and culminating with an unhealthy dose of cream cheese frosting while creating a birthday cake for the lovely Stephanie. Too much cheese—or dairy in general—inevitably leads to the dreaded blemish. It's my body's (humiliating and uncomfortable) way of letting me know it's had enough. I'm hoping that cutting out flour, sugar and dairy, while amping up the green juice and vegetables, will right my ship. Now, back to that cake. Stephanie has been losing weight by eating low-fat for the better part of a year, and weeks ago she put in her request for an appropriate carrot cake to be served at her birthday dinner. (The rest of the dinner featured this tasty bouillabaisse.) I was determined to bake something that lived up to my gold standard from the original Silver Palate cookbook, a divine confection made with corn oil, whole eggs, walnuts and coconut, and frosted with dreamy swirls of cream cheese-&-butter icing. Delicious, yes, but hardly low-fat. How then to replicate the rich texture and flavor without derailing my friend's diet?
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The last of the tomatillos came off the vine this week. You know they're ripe when the papery husk grows tight. I love how these are tinged with lavender. They're a different kind than the smaller, all-green ones we harvested last year, though they have the same vegetal yet citrusy flavor. I whipped up a large batch of sauce—a slight variation on my usual recipe—some of which I'll use for enchiladas, and the rest will be frozen. The light, tangy sauce is chunky with bits of onion and pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) and is beautifully spiced with jalapeño, garlic, cumin and coriander.