Fredericksburg's Cotton Gin Village

Once in awhile, a place where you stay makes such a lasting impression that you remember it many months later. The Cotton Gin Village, in Fredericksburg, Texas, is one of those places for me.

Talk about a step back in time! I entered my two room suite through the front door of an 1800s cabin that had been imported, piece-by-piece, from Kentucky. It was one of several that ringed a small waterfall and garden area and were tucked amidst a blacksmith shop and antique cotton gin.

An old stone fireplace, a copper sink surrounded by a hand-turned coffee grinder and tin cups, a handmade bed quilt , black and white wall portraits in rustic wood frames, and cabinets with distressed paint finishes enhanced the old-fashioned ambience inside. But no detail was left untouched in the area of modern comfort either. I lounged in a jacuzzi tub each evening and enjoyed homemade biscuits and scones, fresh fruit and yogurt each morning. 

Modern satellite television hid inside an antique armoire and a modern coffeemaker provided a nice jolt of caffeine every day. The Cotton Gin Village was a place I really didn't want to leave and vowed to visit again.

Carrot Mint Cupcakes

Since I've missed several weeks of cupcake-making this summer, I've decided to extend my summer to the fall solstice. That means I have about three more cupcake recipes to share with you. I'm having a blast 'pushing the envelope' with these recipes and I hope that you are too. 

Today I decided to skip my traditional carrot cake recipe - with walnuts and crushed pineapple - (see the entry, http://visualtraveler.blogspot.com/2008.07/bugs-best.html) in favor of a different flavor profile. The only problem with this blog entry is that I forgot to take photos throughout the process of making them, so you'll have to use your imagination a bit.

The addition of garden-picked mint adds a 'fresh' character to the sweetness of carrots, without overpowering them. And I bet that you'll love the delicate texture of these little cakes as much as you like the flavor combo. In fact, they're a favorite from the entire summer of baking. See if you can stop at just one!

Carrot Mint Cupcakes
Makes 14-16 cupcakes

1/2 cup oatmeal, ground in food processor
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
3/4 cups canola oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups carrots, grated in food processor
3 tablespoons fresh mint, minced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dry ingredients, from oatmeal through salt. Add canola oil and eggs, stirring to incorporate. Fold in grated carrots and mint.

Place cupcake papers in pans. Fill individual cupcake papers 2/3s full. Bake 25 minutes.
Remove cupcakes from pan 5-10 minutes after removed from the oven. Take off baking papers when cupcakes are completely cooled.

VOE - If you see oil on the cupcake papers and the cupcakes are quite soft they're perfect.

Ice with:

1 1/2 tablespoons lowfat cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
(optional: milk to enhance creaminess, up to 2 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons carrots, grated
2 tablespoons mint, minced
additional carrot gratings for garnish

Cream together the cream cheese, butter and sugar. Stir in carrots and mint. Cool in refrigerator for 15-20 minutes. Top each cupcake with about 1 tablespoon of the icing.

Mozzarella - Made in Kansas City

My good friend, Jasper Mirabile, is always on the move whether he's working at his family's 55-year-old restaurant, Jasper's (as well as Marco Polo's Italian Market), hosting a radio show or charity event, or making favorite dishes on television. He also is a chef ambassador for Wisconsin Cheese and works closely with our local Hen House Markets.

On Saturday, my camera and I visited the nearest Hen House to see Jasper make fresh mozzarella cheese on-site. This isn't your run-of-the-mill sliced or grated mozzarella; this stuff is ultra soft with a lighter mouth-feel and a more delicate flavor.

Jasper's 'tools' included long black rubber gloves, very hot water in a stainless steel bowl and fresh milk curds. An assistant added water as needed and cut small samples for our little group of appreciative onlookers.

Jasper dipped each piece of curd in hot water and then stretched and kneaded it while submerged. He removed the curd from the water, molded it into a ball, checked its appearance and texture, and stretched it some more outside of the bowl. Jasper molded the curd into a ball again and repeated the process for each piece, until it felt and looked just right. When a mozzarella ball reached perfection, he dropped it into an ice bath, until it could be packaged for sale later on.

This was mozzarella without brine or aging, and a refrigerator life of only a few days. Jasper so appreciates the technique and quality of freshly made mozzarella that he and his staff now make it in their restaurant. What a way to make meals more interesting and tasty for customers.

Pineapple Parsley Cupcakes

I never know where inspiration will come from before I create a new recipe. This cupcake evolved from several sources. First, I mentioned the possibility of pairing pineapple with green chiles and a close friend immediately put on a sour face. Next, I remembered the fabulous Pineapple Cilantro Sorbet offered this summer by Christopher Elbow Chocolates but decided I didn't want to copy his creativity outright. Finally, a bunch of parsley stared at me from the back of the refrigerator. I had chosen my flavor combo for the week.

I mixed up my batter, poured it into cupcake papers, and then popped the pans in the oven. But the adventure had just begun. I've often heard that baking is unforgiving compared to most other cooking - you've got to measure and get the right proportions to end up with good results.

Although I wouldn't exactly call these bad results the cupcakes clearly 'fell' while in the oven. My best guess is that there was a bit too much liquid in the batter, which caused the cupping effect.
But, after all, they are called cupcakes.

And the cupping effect is a great thing for icing lovers because you end up with an extra dose of the creamy stuff in each bite.

So I'm satisfied with the experiment. The cake was moist and light and the whole combo had just the right amount of pineapple and parsley. Give these a try and let me know what you think!

Pineapple Parsley Cupcakes

Makes 16-18 cupcakes

1 3/4 - 2 cups pineapple chunks, fresh or canned with juice reserved

1/2 cup oatmeal, ground

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg and two egg whites

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup parsley

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In food processor, chop pineapple fine; set aside. Grind oatmeal in processor and then add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, egg, oil, vanilla yogurt and parsley. Blend well, transfer to a bowl and stir in pineapple.

Fill cupcake papers 3/4s full and bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in pan, and then remove while still in cupcake papers. Cool completely. Carefully remove from the papers. Spoon icing into 'cups' and then enjoy.

Icing

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

2 tablespoons lowfat cream cheese, softened

2 cups confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons pineapple juice

3 cubes pineapple, minced fine

1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons minced parsley

Blend together butter, cream cheese, sugar and pineapple juice with a spoon. Stir in pineapple and parsley.

Thanks Monica - Tamarita Cupcakes

As I mentioned in another recent post (A Tamarita from Modern Spice), tamaritas have quickly become one of my favorite cocktails. They're so simple and refreshing! Cupcake lover that I am, I recently set out to create a version that pays homage to this delightful beverage. First I made one recipe of tamarita as a liquid for the batter. When the batter wasn't thin enough, I made another tamarita and added it.

What emerged from the oven was a dozen light and airy cupcakes with not nearly enough classic tamarita flavor. I would have to do something about that pronto.

(When my husband mentioned it looked like the 'naked' cupcakes were smiling I wondered if that was because I've finally returned to my summer cupcake pilgrimage, after my fall three weeks ago.)

My husband also noted that tequila offers little flavor and I suddenly had the answer to my flavor challenge. The next time I will add one traditional tamarita to the batter but then substitute more of the flavorful ingredients for tequila in the second recipe - i.e., one additional tablespoon, each, of the chutney, sour mix, and triple sec instead of the alcohol.

When competing against sugar in the icing, the tamarita flavor again fell flat, so I added more chutney to the mix.

The flavors in these cupcakes are far more subtle than those in the cocktail, but still quite good - a little sweet with a little heat. See what you think and let me know!

Tamarita Cupcakes
Makes one dozen

1/2 cup oatmeal, ground to flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup yogurt
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon tamarind-date chutney
1 recipe, tamarita (see below)
1 recipe, revised tamarita - substitute one additional tablespoon each of chutney, triple sec and sour mix in place of tequila
____________________________________________________________________________

Tamarita recipe

1 1/2 ounces (3 tablespoons) tequila such as Cuervo Gold
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) triple sec
1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) store-bought tamarind-date chutney (see note)
1 1/2 ounces (3 tablespoons) sour mix
lemon wedge for garnish - for this recipe, squeeze into cocktail


Note: please do not use tamarind extract, tamarind paste or fresh tamarind juice in this recipe; it will not give you the right taste. The tamarind-date chutney has just the right mix of sugar and spice to really play up the taste of the tamarind.
___________________________________________________________________________

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grind oatmeal in food processor. Mix with all other dry ingredients. Add eggs, yogurt, canola oil, tamarita, revised tamarita, and chutney, combining thoroughly.

Fill cupcake papers 3/4s full and bake for 25 minutes until golden brown. Do not overbake. When completely cool, add icing:

2 tablespoons low-fat cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons butter, softened
3 1/4 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 recipe revised tamarita
2-3 teaspoons tamarind-date chutney, to taste*
*VOE - Taste for spicy heat and decide how much you want after spreading some on one of your completed cupcakes.

Not Exactly Cupcakes - Homemade Pizza

It has been awhile since I offered a new cupcake recipe to the blog. Baking is more difficult with a broken bone chip in my left arm from falling two weeks ago, but I hope to return to baking mode soon. In the meantime, I thought you might enjoy seeing the dynamite vegetarian pizza that my husband, Mark, and I created last evening.

With our basil plant growing out of control, I had every intention of slathering some fresh pesto across the ready-made crust we purchased on Saturday. I never seem to lose interest in this luscious sauce that we've made for 25 years - especially when the basil just came from the garden - but Mark thought otherwise. So I rummaged through the cupboard and found a large can of crushed tomatoes in heavy puree, which could serve as sauce if I added seasonings.

Then I had him open the cans of tomato and artichoke hearts because I can't use a manual can-opener at the moment (this is the first time in my life I've ever thought about buying an electric opener, but only in passing!). Mark diced a small zucchini, and the artichoke hearts into bite-sized pieces. He minced some onion and garlic and sauteed them lightly as I headed to the garden for some fresh basil leaves to use as garnish.

I covered the crust with tomatoes and sprinkled oregano generously across the sauce. Zucchini and artichoke heart slices came next, followed by the garlic and onion. I nearly covered everything with a large handful of fresh basil leaves and, finally, we laid strips of sliced mozzarella across the top. Seven minutes on bake and 3 more on broil yielded a healthy and satisfying dinner. Thank heaven Mark was there to transport the pan from oven to counter and cut our large slices!

VOE - We like red onion on our pizza because it seems to add some extra sweetness. Another nice topping for homemade pizza is black olives. Shrimp is a nice add-on too, especially with pesto :)

Horchata Chases Away Summer Heat

Fruit-rich sangria, icy margaritas, chilled Pinot Grigio, or a frosty bottle of draft beer - they're all great thirst quenchers during steamy summer days and nights. A tall glass of iced tea or lemonade is another way to chase away the heat. But in recent years, one of my favorite summer beverages has been horchata, an especially popular drink in Spain and Mexico.

According to the book, The Food Lover's Companion, these refreshing coolers are 'drinks made by steeping nuts, grains or chufa (nuts) in water. They're usually lightly sweetened with sugar and sometime spiced with cinnamon. Horchatas are generally served cold or at room temperature.'

A family-owned restaurant near our house, Tarahumara Mexican Food, makes a fabulous and huge version of horchata, which I have relished several times since summer began. However, I hadn't tasted horchata elsewhere within an hour of home, until last week.

During a lunch visit to Pachamama's in Lawrence, Kan., I ordered horchata as a liquid dessert after I enjoyed a serving of Wakarusa Farms Mushroom Tart. Opened in 1996, the restaurant is known for its innovative cuisine using fresh ingredients and was named one of Zagat's World's Top Restaurant 2009/2010. So when the menu mentioned Cardomon Horchata dusted with jicama, I wasn't surprised by their inventiveness.

The only problem is that when you're using fresh ingredients the ones you want sometimes aren't available - or affordable - in this case, the jicama. So the chef prepared my horchata with cinnamon and orange instead. Pretty in a glass at the table, it also quenched my thirst from a 'to-go' cup as I returned to a steamy, rainy July day.