Things Will Be Changing Around Here...Introducing baby dumplings!

Wow!  It has been 9 months since I've posted anything!  Life has been busy!  Last summer-winter I took on an all-consuming project with a small start-up company in Seattle, where I curated and tested hundreds of recipes, styled and photographed each and every one and had no time for my sweet Honey Dumplings, sorry about that!

Here it is already spring, flowers are blooming, rhubarb is the star ingredient and berries and stone-fruit are right around the corner!  Summer is nearing and we (T & I) are thrilled to announce that we are growing a family of our own.  In just a couple of months, we will be 3!

I've been busy, sewing, painting, knitting, reading, researching everything from vaccines to breastfeeding and meeting pediatricians to post anything about food lately.  In fact, cooking and food have become a very low priority to me for the majority of my pregnancy, besides the scent of it all, the actual cooking has been so tiring! For the first time in my life I finally understand why some people just don't enjoy cooking!  A very strange time for my relationship with food, since the majority of my lifetime has revolved solely around food and all that it entails!  In fact, during my first trimester my husband and I went on a trip to a lovely little cottage nestled into the hillside above the Puget Sound and for one of our dinners we had the option of having a 9-Course Chef Tasting menu, and I opted for a simple bowl of soup, bread and cheese.  What!?! Exactly, what I thought!  Throughout my pregnancy, I have been ruled by the little one growing in my belly.  She determines when I eat, how much and what tastes good!  Most food that I don't typically include in my diet is ever-present now.

During this last trimester, I'm regaining some of my taste preferences!  Grainy bread, greens and fish.  Then there are days that she rules and it's cheese, whole milk (ugh!  I was a kid that never liked milk and now I drink it nearly everyday!), yogurt, fruit and beef.

So alas, I wanted to let you know that I am here and will continue to be here, although I may not post as frequently as I did once upon a time.  Also, things will be changing as I'm sure you've suspected!  baby dumplings will be a place within this blog for all things related to baby, from activities to food.  They'll still be the occasional dinner party menu and all of that fun food but my aim currently and for the near future is simplicity with a focus on baby!

Cheers to you all and Happy Spring!
xoxo
V.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope that your day is a sweet one!

XOXO

Valentine Sweets

Spicy...Salty...Bitter...Sweet...Creamy.

Surprise your Valentine with a homemade treat.  I bake my pots de creme in oven-proof latte bowls, it's tres romantique when served with 2 spoons.  Top it off with Victoria's Salted Caramel Sauce, freshly whipped cream & grated chocolate.  Check out Chili Chocolate Pots de Creme for my full recipe.

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Sweet Tradition

One of the sweetest traditions of a wedding reception is the cutting of the cake, which of course involves feeding one another cake.   How romantic is that?  Our wedding cake was a nutty version of Strawberry Shortcake, luscious almond cake layered with whipped cream and strawberries.  Cloaked in vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream.  We most certainly had a gluten-free option for the groom and all of those gluten-free bellies out there!  T's favorite, my chocolate cupcakes with a fat dollop of vanilla buttercream. YUM!

Gorgeous Dahlias from our local farmer were a simple and colorful garnish to our homemade wedding cake.

Our Wedding Day!

It's official, T and I are married!  The past few months have been busy....planning, preparing, cooking, baking and celebrating!  Not leaving a spare second for personal writing.  Sorry about that!  We had a blast, and feel incredibly blessed to have such loving friends & family. Thank you Everyone for spending the day with us!

Grazie mille Bryan for your gorgeous photography!

Mr. & Mrs. G

Our Wedding Cake Tastings

While many couples go to wedding cake tastings in bakeries; we've been holding our own private tastings in the comfort of our home. I've been testing different versions of our cake for a couple of months now and with just 63 days to go, the ruling is in.... gluten free almond cake with ruby red summer strawberries and vanilla whipped cream.  T and I didn't have the patience to create the whole cake, so stopped when we had our own version of Strawberry Shortcake.  Yes, you heard that right, he' not only tasting, he's in the kitchen with me, using his designing skills to decorate the layers with berries.

For our wedding the cake will be all dolled up with a classic swiss meringue buttercream.

Alas, another check off our list!

V & T's Strawberry Shortcake

Birthday Lunch

We spent a long afternoon at La Boucherie in celebration of my birthday. We started off with the pate plate; pork liver pate with pistachios, a salty rich head cheese and a buttery pork rillette. Accompanying this lovely charcuterie platter was Island made goat cheese, cornichons, dijon mustard, peach confiture & Bill's bread. The salted pork rillette was my favorite, slathered on slices of Bill's bread followed by the tart crunchiness of a cornichon.

Gluten-Free & Vegan Birthdays

August is a big month for birthdays in my family. We celebrated both Travis' birthday & his mom's birthday this weekend. The Babycakes cookbook has been a big hit since the banana bread, so I baked Babycakes' Chocolate Cupcakes for Travis' birthday dessert. For his mom's cake I went with Babycakes' Double-Chocolate Crumb Cake.

Love Is In The Air

This weekend we celebrated our lovely friends', Gunilla & Zak's Wedding Vow Renewal Ceremony.

Travis was such a trooper, preparing the coolers and ice-packs for the long trip from LA to Bonny Doon. We arrived after 6 hours of car travel and the tiers were still chilled. Excellent job sweetie!

Our bucolic gift was inspired by Spanish ingredients, as Spain is where the two were married the first time around. Almond Mocha Kisses; Almond cake layered between silky Mocha Buttercream and Vanilla Whipped Cream with Strawberries.

Happy Anniversary you two!!
Skaal!

A Cause For Celebration!

Travis and I celebrated our 10th Anniversary this weekend with Anniversary Meatballs & Potato Gnocchi. It's quite rare that I get to spend time with Travis in the kitchen, he usually leaves this bit up to me, outside of the mornings that is, he makes scrumptious egg bits (eggs somewhere between fried & scrambled) for breakfast!

We celebrated in the kitchen with potatoes, food mills, pecorino, olive oil, bittersweet Valrhona chocolate, loads of garlic and basilico! I'm sure most of you can tell I adore cooking, it's my passion as well as my livelihood. I also adore Travis, as most of you know, so mix the two together and it's like the first sip of champagne; tart & honey effervescence, cooling & warming, blissful tiny bubbles dancing so delicately on the tongue.

No measurements here, everything is done by feel and scent, so a handful of basil a pinch or two of nutmeg, a scoop of flour. A fitting menu for the two of us, tiny meatballs with handmade potato gnocchi and Valrhona Chocolate Souffles for dessert.

Buon Appetito!

Thinking Outside of The Heart-Shaped Box

I couldn't resist using my new heart cupcake form. So I made Travis' favorite gluten & dairy-free muffins today, Bittersweet Banana Cupcakes. Sorry I cannot share the recipe yet as it's a recipe for my cookbook, but by all means checkout Dorie Greenspan's Cocoa-Nana Bread, it will do, although gluten & dairy are included!

Buckwheat Buttermilk Hearts

An offering of whole grain buckwheat hearts for Saint Valentino's month of romance. A fitting shape for love and health.

Incorporating whole grains into your diet may take a little adjustment for your taste buds, but you'll notice a constant flow of energy throughout the day. Rather than the peaks and valleys of a refined white flour diet.

Butter & Sweeten up with pure maple syrup, honey or jam.

To a romantic & healthful Valentine's Day!

Buckwheat Buttermilk Heart Pancakes
Makes 6 Large Hearts

3/4 C buckwheat flour
1/4 C wholewheat pastry flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/2 t sea salt
1 Large egg
1 1/4 C buttermilk

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F and place an oven-proof platter on the center rack.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt.

In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the egg. Stir this buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture until smooth.

Pour the batter into a large measuring cup with a spout or bowl with a spout (this makes it easier for pouring free-form hearts).

Heat a medium saute pan with a drizzle of olive oil over medium-low flame.
Pour the batter into the pan forming a heart shape, of course a traditional circle will do!

Tiny bubbles will begin to form, flip over once the tiny bubbles begin to pop, about 1-2 minutes. Cook the other side for a minute or so and then place on the platter in the oven to keep warm before serving.

Serve with pure maple syrup, butter/yogurt & berries!

Candied Ginger Applesauce

This creation is slightly sweeter than I meant for it to be, so if you are looking for a traditional applesauce reduce the sugar a bit, try 1 cup instead of 1 & 1/2 cups. This is lovely baked into a tart shell for a quick Gingery Apple Tart, dolloped over Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, or simply spooned out of the jar as is, yummmmm!

Gingery Applesauce
Makes 5 Pints

7lbs Farmers' Market Apples (a mixture of crisp, tart, sweet & soft. such as granny smith, jonagolds, galas & golden delicious)
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups organic sugar
2/3 cup crystallized ginger, minced
1 t sea salt
1/4 t ground cinnamon
1/4 t ground ginger

Combine lemon juice and water in a large stockpot. Peel, core and cut apples into 3/4-inch chunks; place apple chunks into lemon water immediately to prevent browning. Add sugar, crystallized ginger, salt and spices. Stir over medium-high heat for a few minutes to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat once the apples are soft and a touch translucent. Mash the apples using a potato masher or fork to desired consistency. I like mine a bit chunky.

Process as you normally would for preserving. If you are unfamiliar with preserving, simply ladle the applesauce into hot clean 1-pint glass canning jars, leaving 1/2-inch space at the top. Remove the air bubbles by placing a wooden spoon into the jar against the glass on the sides, move up and down to release any bubbles. Wipe the jar threads and rims with a damp clean cloth. Cover with hot lids; secure with screw bands. Place in a pot of boiling water and process for 20 minutes. Remove jars onto a towel covered counter top. Cool completely. Make sure that the lids have properly sealed, by pressing into the center of the lid, it should not move, if by chance the lid hasn't properly sealed then pop into fridge and eat within a week or two.

Cookie Parcels

It's that time of year. When the world falls in love with cookies. The house is warmed by baking off batch after batch, and the scent of buttery sweetness settles into every nook and cranny.
This year I packaged my cookies into little old-fashioned parcels, reminiscent of old world sweet shops. I snugly secured cookies into a brown paper lunch sack and dressed it up with a label and silk ribbon.
Happy Baking & Happy Holidays!

Bittersweet Coconut Kisses

Christmas in LA is always a funny time of year! Although it has been a bit chilly at night, the temperature during the day is still inching into the upper 70's F. The weather isn't throwing me off too much this year, as I've been working on all sorts of fun homemade gifts and we already have our tree up and decorated.

This year I've taken up knitting, thanks to my friends Whitney & Jamie for having a beautiful baby girl. I felt the need to give it a second chance. So I took lessons in a proper knitting studio, rather than on a train to Cinque Terre (where one can easily lose focus due to the stunning scenery). Thanks Whitney for trying! I've now fallen in love with it and had knitting fever for most of the summer. So of course I'm attempting knitting a handful of gifts this year.

As of late, our house looks like Christmas elves have taken over. The kitchen table is a giant workstation, where stuffing stockings, wrapping gifts & I must admit a bit of magic takes place. It seems as though every other day I'm baking batches of cookies for the cookie monster that has taken over Travis' studio.

As for my homemade gifts, here are some pictures of my most recent creations. Decadent Bittersweet Coconut Kisses lipbalm. Yummy! It is of course edible, which I believe anything one wears on one's lips should be.

Above you'll find one of my favorite ways to create applesauce, studded throughout with Crystallized Ginger and a traditional way to wrap up those holiday cookies!

Happy Holidays!

August Birthdays

Birthday Buttercream

Fig & Berry Jam

Preserving Summer

A two day process somehow makes preserving Summer's bounty a breeze. My good friend Whitney gave me this storybook of recipes, Preserving Memories: Growing Up in My Mother's Kitchen by Judy Glattstein, last Christmas along with a tin full of a delicately scented rose crabapple jelly (so divine) and a sweet and spicy apple butter.

Glattstein's book is like having a good friend in the kitchen with you. She shares her recipes with stories. Think of when you've received a recipe from a friend....It's typically sent along with a little tidbit, a memory or why it is a favorite. She adds a personal touch to everything from Peaches to Pectin.

Today I made a couple of her simple recipes, Fig Jam and Strawberry Jam. Somehow, my third time around preserving left me with no jitters. I didn't fear, chipping or breaking the jars when they tapped and danced their way around the bottom of my pot (my first time preserving I padded the inside of my pot with dish towels). I didn't worry about my missing canning vessel (Travis and I couldn't squeeze it in our car this past Christmas so it's sitting at his parents' house in Seattle). Nor did I fret about the consistency of the jam prior to canning.

I did sweat! Stirring and stirring over a bubbling vat of sugar and fruit will do that, especially when the weather is in the 90's. I must admit I'm happy to sweat for this treasure of sweet Summer.

While cleaning up, the pop pop pop of my properly sealed jars made me a believer in Glattstein's simple approach to preserving.

Birthday Cake