Morning At Tanque Verde Ranch

A recent press trip offered me an opportunity to explore Tanque Verde Ranch, located outside of Tucson, AZ. The combination of gorgeous natural and manmade landscape coupled with early morning light creates captivating images. Sometimes, photos really do tell a story:

Falling for Gourmet's Pumpkin Cheesecake

In early summer 1983, at age 28, I became engaged. That fall, I married my husband, Mark.  Although I was an avid Gourmet reader, I often thought the recipes looked more complicated than I wanted to deal with. One grabbed my eye, though, and remains in my recipe file to this day - Pumpkin Cheesecake Supreme. It has become a centerpiece of Thanksgiving celebrations with family and fall dinners with friends.

I've got to admit I have a tough time sticking with even the best recipe because I love to 'play' in the kitchen. So it probably won't surprise you to know this is one of the very few times I've ever made the topping for this cheesecake; or that I didn't bother to buy pecans when I always have walnuts on hand. We also prefer cheesecake with a lower crust, only. But I've printed the original recipe and your dessert won't taste terribly different from mine. Maybe you'll also be a little adventurous with it yourself, after trying the original version. :)

Thanks, Gourmet, for a recipe that has served me well through 26 years!


Pumpkin Cheesecake Supreme
Makes 12-16 servings

For the shell:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 stick tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (VOE - 1/2 recipe for bottom crust, only)

For the filling:
1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, softened
3/4 granulated sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
5 large eggs
2 cups pumpking puree
1 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup heavy cream

For the topping:
2 cups sour cream combined with
1 tablespoon sugar &
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup pecan halves, toasted lightly

Make the shell: In a bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter until the mixture resembles meal, press the mixture onto the bottom and one inch up the sides of a buttered 9-inch springform pan, 3 inches deep. Chill shell for one hour.

Make the filling: In a  large bowl with an electric mixer beat the cream cheese until it is smooth, beat in the granulated sugar and the light brown sugar, a little at a time, and beat the mixture until it is fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, add the pumpkin puree, the cinnamon, the nutmeg , and the cream, and beat the filling until it is combined well.

Pour the filling into the springform pan and bake the cheesecake in the middle of a preheated moderately slow oven (325 degrees F.) for 1 hour and 45 minutes. Let the cheesecake cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes.

Add the topping: Spread the sour cream mixture over the cheesecake and bake the cheesecake in the moderately slow oven for 5 minutes more. Let the cheesecake cool in the pan on the rack and chill it, covered, overnight. Remove the sides of the pan, transfer the cheesecake to a serving plate, and garnish it with the pecans.

A Gourmet Meal With Ruth Reichl

The meal began with Onion and Fennel Bisque and Wolf Blass 2006 Eden Valley Riesling.

For the next course, we had Brussels Sprout Salad with Walnuts and Pecorino, and Stag's Leap Winery 2006 Napa Valley Chardonnay. The first main course featured Orecchiette with Rabbit Ragu and Penfolds 2005 'Bin 2' Shiraz/Mourvedre,and the second main was Braised Pork Osso Bucco with Sauerkraut and Penfolds 2004 'St. Henri' Shiraz.

By the time dessert arrived - Old Fashioned Apple and Raisin Dumplings and Penfolds 'Club' Tawny Port - I had become so engrossed in the meal and conversation that I forgot all about my camera.

Chef/Owner John McClure of Starker's Restaurant in Kansas City, Mo. had carefully selected each dish from the landmark new Gourmet TODAY cookbook in honor of special guest/past editor of Gourmet magazine, Ruth Reichl, who was gracious, warm and highly approachable. The evening's 'co-host' was renowned local independent bookstore, Rainy Day Books.

Reichl talked about the 1,000-recipe book into which she had put so much time and effort. Apparently, several conversations with her son, Nick, planted the seed. Reichl says he became an omnivore at age nine, and also enjoyed helping her in the kitchen. After Nick attended one semester of college, he moved to a dorm with a kitchen and began cooking in earnest. That's when Reichl learned that supermarkets - versus smaller New York specialty stores - had changed in recent years; Nick had no problem finding imported cheese or a wide variety of rice on grocery store shelves.

So Reichl and her team bought everything at the supermarket that 'surprised' them and began to create recipes. They also kept in mind how many people are now vegetarians. It's a far-different book from previous Gourmet cookbooks.

"This is an amazing time in American food," Reichl said. "These are all new recipes. Our mission, at Gourmet, has always been to get people back into the kitchen, which will make a huge difference in the future of [our country]." 

Food & Fun at the Kansas State Fair

I attended the Kansas State Fair for the first time, a couple of weeks ago. What a cool event! If you can't find something to do here, you're not trying very hard. There are dozens of rides and activities for kids of every age, and an equal number of livestock displays and competitions spread throughout the 10-day fair. Visitors can listen to live music, check out a nostalgic car show beneath the trees in Gottshalk Park or watch cowpokes attempt to shoot balloons mounted on construction cones as they zip around an indoor arena on horseback.
But my favorite part of the event is the food. You could eat your way through this fair and rarely repeat the menu even if you attended every day. Sample the state's best adult beverages at the Kansas Wine & Beer Garden. Purchase a tall, freshly squeezed cherry limeade or crunchy fried green tomatoes. Chow down on a bierock or - my personal favorite - a small block of vanilla ice cream drenched in hardened chocolate, topped with crushed peanuts. If you've never visited your state fair before, you don't know what you're missing.

The (Surprising) Henderson House Inn and Retreat Center

There's a surprising 'neighborhood' in tiny Stafford, Kansas. From the outside, Henderson House looks like nothing more than a beautifully restored 1905 National Register of Historic Places home, with a nicely painted sign. But it's only one of multiple buildings that comprise Henderson House Inn and Retreat Center, located less than an hour outside bustling Hutchinson.

The equally impressive Spickard House lies on the opposite corner. Guests also may stay at Littlefield House, just down the block, or at Weide House, which anchors the next intersection. The entire 'neighborhood' provides dozens of beds and multiple private baths amidst Victorian luxury and modern convenience. At Spickard House, guests from all houses eat breakfast on lace and linen-topped dining tables, which range from egg casserole - a comfort-food concoction of shredded hash browns, eggs, and cheese - to large, homemade cinnamon rolls.

But owner, Clare Moore, had more in mind than a traditional bed and breakfast when he assembled his neighborhood. That's why he also purchased an antique church and added a pavilion to the back of Littlefield House, with meeting rooms for up to 125 people, WiFi, a commercial kitchen and contracts available for multiple meals and refreshments. Moore also offers Murder Mystery or Wings N Wetlands Weekends (Quivira National Wildlife Refuge is nearby) and encourages wedding or hunting gatherings.

The Henderson complex is perhaps Stafford's busiest neighborhood - and it's best kept secret.

Strawberry Rosemary Cupcakes

About a month ago my neighbor, Ron, offered me unlimited access to his outdoor pots of herbs because, "I know you're a good cook." I appreciated the complement enormously and finally took him up on his offer this week. On a drizzly afternoon I just 'had' to have some of his rosemary, and went through the garden gate with measuring cup in hand.

It took another couple of days before I used the lovely stuff, but the results were worth the wait. I combined the rosemary with fresh organic strawberries, again capitalizing on late summer flavors.

But when I tasted this batter I wasn't impressed. Then I realized I'd left out the sugar. Once I added it and as the berries released their natural juices, the batter became much softer and easier to work with - and made adding the rosemary a snap.

It spooned easily into the cupcake papers, which had their own ideas about how to behave. They just couldn't seem to sit in the tin without gathering a bit around the edges. However, by the time the baking was done, most cupcakes looked fairly uniform.

And by the time I'd put on the icing, I was delighted with the light texture and just-right sweetness. See if you agree.

Strawberry Rosemary Cupcakes

Makes 12-13 cupcakes

1/2 cup oatmeal, ground
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup olive oil (VOE: This oil enhances the fruit's sweetness and herbal flavor)
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup strawberries, diced
6 tablespoons fresh rosemary, minced (VOE: When working with rosemary, discard any pieces that seem a bit woody and/or resistant to your knife cuts.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together the first six ingredients. Add eggs, olive oil and butter, combining thoroughly. Fold in strawberries and rosemary.

Fill cupcake papers approximately 3/4 full and bake for 25-27 minutes. Remove from pan and papers about 10 minutes after baked. Allow to cool completely and then ice with:

1 1/2 tablespoons low-fat cream cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1/4 cup strawberries, minced
2 tablespoons rosemary, minced
minced strawberries for garnish

Combine cream cheese and butter and cream together with confectioners sugar. Fold in strawberries and rosemary. Garnish center of each cupcake with bits of strawberry. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

VOE: This icing recipe will be very 'looose,' resembling a thick glaze. Reduce both the cream cheese and butter by 1/2 tablespoon for a thicker consistency.

Lisa's Garlic Chicken Pizza

A number of years ago, on a Christmas Eve when both of our teenage daughters wanted a little extra time with friends, we ordered a take-and-bake garlic chicken pizza rather than making our own dinner. It's been a favorite of our family's ever since and remains a Christmas Eve tradition.

But that doesn't mean we restrict our orders to the holiday season. And as of last night, nor does it mean we have to order a garlic chicken pizza in order to enjoy eating one. That's because I set out to recreate the signature garlic cream sauce in my kitchen. We quickly proclaimed the experiment a close approximation to the original we had grown to love.

Before I made the cream sauce, I removed a pizza crust from the freezer, diced some cooked chicken, minced several green onions and sliced a handful of cherry tomatoes moments after I plucked them from our front garden. Then I mashed cloves from half of a garlic bulb through my garlic press and began to make a basic white sauce.

I looked at a coupon from the pizza store and discovered they use three cheeses on their garlic chicken pizza - although there was no mention of which cheeses. I pulled out some lowfat cream cheese and grated Parmesan to add flavor and depth to my sauce. It worked beautifully. Enjoy:

Lisa's Garlic Chicken Pizza

Serves 2-3

1 pre-made pizza crust

cloves from half a bulb of garlic

4 green onions, minced

1 1/2 cups cooked chicken, diced

6-8 cherry tomatoes, diced

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup of lowfat milk

2 tablespoons lowfat cream cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan

salt to taste

additional Parmesan for topping

Over medium high heat, melt butter. Stir in flour until smooth. Raise heat to high and add milk, stirring constantly until it becomes thick like gravy. Return to medium high heat and stir in cream cheese so it is fully incorporated. Add garlic, Parmesan cheese and salt to taste. Allow to cool and thicken further, for about 20 minutes.

Spread sauce across pizza crust. Top with chicken, green onions, and tomatoes. Sprinkle more Parmesan over the top and then bake according to crust instructions. Right before removing from oven, set under broiler until top is golden brown.

VOE - We're try to go easy on dietary fats, but feel free to add several handfuls of grated mozzarella to the top if you want. We suspect that may be the 'third cheese' used by our favorite pizza chain.