Random recipe: Warm Chocolate Souffle Cakes

Posted by random olio

Sometimes you just need something sweet. It has been a rough week. There have been days this week where by the end of the day I could no longer formulate a complete sentence. In a meeting yesterday I kept starting a thought and was not able to finish it. It was after 5 pm, and someone in the meeting mentioned that it was due to Daylight Savings Time. (I sure hope so.) In any case, sometimes when you just hit your limit you need a bit of warm chocolate to make things better. Like Mary Poppins said: “Just a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down.” Last night I needed just a spoon full of warm chocolate to make it through the rest of my day.

Warm Chocolate Souffle Cakes (Found in a recent issue of Portland Monthly Magazine)

(Makes a dozen 6 oz cakes)

15 oz bittersweet chocolate (at least 64 percent cacao)
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
6 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup and 1/2 cup sugar, separated
1 pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly butter 12 individual baking dishes (6-8 oz) or spray with nonstick vegetable spray. Set a large metal bowl over a saucepan filled with an inch or two of simmering water to create a double boiler. Melt chocolate and butter in bowl over low heat. Set aside and cool to room temperature.

2. Place egg yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. With the mixer on medium speed, add 1/2 cup sugar and a pinch of salt, and mix until yolks are slightly thicker and lighter in color, 2-3 minutes. Then using a spatula, fold the beaten yolks into the chocolate and set aside.

3. Wash and dry mixer bowl. Add egg whites and whisk on low speed, gradually adding half of the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar. Increase speed to medium, and whisk until whites form soft peaks, 3-4 minutes. Slowly add the rest of the sugar, increase speed to medium-high, and whisk until stiff peaks form, 30 seconds to a minute longer. In three additions, fold the whites into the chocolate-yolk mixture until just combined.

4. Fill baking dishes three-quarters full. Bake until just set and a bit jiggly in the center, 12-14 minutes. Serve immediately. (It’s delicious with vanilla ice cream drizzled with honey.)

Not too hard. We actually cut the recipe in half because we did not think we could eat the dozen mini cakes fast enough, so we only made six. They are so worth the time (and really not a complex recipe at all). I love the congealing that happens with warm chocolate cake-like items with cold vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

Taking risks

Posted by random olio

Do we take enough risks in life? We take risks everyday. It might be in a meeting where you have to be courageous and say the tough things to another co-worker. It might be with a spouse or loved one, where you might need to be brutally honest with them about something and you know it is going to be a tough conversation. Most of the times when we open our mouth we take risks, it just might depend on how calculated we are before the risk is obvious to us.

You might take a risk by going on the blind date, or walking into a room with hundreds of people and you only know a few of those people. A risk really depends on what scares you, makes you uncomfortable, or maybe a bit squeamish. It means you might just be outside of your comfort zone.

How often do you take risks? Hopefully more often than not. If we do not take risks, we do not move our lives forward. If we remain comfortable, we rarely grow. That is what life is really about — allowing the risks we take to potentially change us and make our lives better. Yet, we do not know if that will happen if we do not put one foot in front of the other and take a risk.

What would a risk look like to you?

Skeletons + love

Posted by random olio

Sometimes videos that go viral make you laugh. Others make you cry. Some just make you think. This one made me think and made me cry. If you have not seen it yet, the “skeleton video” as it is being called is one that promotes conversation about love and diversity. It is definitely one that is worth taking the time to watch. “One Love” by Macklemore in the background only encourages more emotion inside.

Be sure to check out the website behind the video: Love Has No Labels.

No More Complaining

Posted by random olio

Often I think we do not even realize we do it. We complain about how little sleep we got the night before, the guy that is driving too slow on the road, how a co-worker treated us. We might complain about the wilting lettuce that came on our salad, or how cranky we feel. It is almost second nature for us to complain. I am just as bad as the next person. I think about it though. I try to watch myself and see when I am complaining. I wonder what life would look like, feel like, or sound like if we did not complain. Would we all sound like Pollyanna?

This Fast Company article, “What It’s Like to Go Without Complaining For a Month” is an interesting idea. I know it would not be easy to do, and yet why not? Does the Pollyanna vibe feel odd to us because someone who does not complain feels fake? Does that mean that our society is so immersed in the idea of agonizing over the hand that we were dealt, that it is almost very strange to imagine not sharing our qualms, experience, and drama with our co-workers, family, and friends? Is it the drama that encourages to complain? Or is it the storytelling and community that comes along with going into all the gory details of all you went through getting your take out last night at your neighborhood Chinese restaurant?

Often I think individuals do not realize they might be complaining. We are all storytellers at heart. I am an addict of a good story. I love to laugh and while I am not one to make fun of someone’s misfortune I do love when a story weaves and explores what someone might have had to go through – even if it all happens in the process of complaining.

While I do not think I have it in me (yet) to go an entire month without complaining. I am going to *try* to be conscious about my complaints. For someone who is very free with my thoughts and what is on my mind, I could do a better job filtering the complaints. I should probably spend some time thinking about the list of ideas in the Fast Company article that are tips for complaining less.

Are you with me?

Random recipe: Cheesy Spaghetti Squash

Posted by random olio

One of our favorite restaurants in Portland, Ox, has the most amazing Spaghetti Squash. I had never had spaghetti squash until a few years ago at my first visit to Ox. Their version is: Coal-Roasted Spaghetti Squash, Toasted Garlic, Lemon, Aged Goat Cheese. You had me at goat cheese. I am a fan of almost anything with goat cheese. Last week, Chris, tried a new recipe we found for spaghetti squash. It was good, very good. Do not be deterred by how much description is below. It is actually much easier than it looks.

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Cheesy Spaghetti Squash
Creamy spaghetti squash with cheese and herbs, topped with crunchy panko. Serves 4.
Found: Megan (I Eat Therefore I Cook)

Ingredients

1 Large Spaghetti Squash
1/2 TBSP Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese,
1/4 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
2 TSP Fresh Thyme, Chopped
1 TSP Fresh Oregano, Chopped
1/2 TSP Pepper
1 TSP Garlic Powder
1 TSP Onion Powder
1 TSP Paprika
1/4 cup Panko

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pierce squash with knife a couple of times. Place on baking sheet and place in oven for about 1 hour, or until the squash is easily pierced with a knife.
Turn up oven to 400 degrees.
Let cool and slice in half. Remove seeds from squash with spoon. Scoop out squash insides into a large bowl. Add olive oil, mozzarella cheese, thyme, oregano, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika. Mix together until evenly distributed.
In a 8 by 8 glass baking dish, place squash mixture in pan. Spread evenly. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top evenly. Sprinkle panko on top evenly. Place in oven and cook until panko becomes golden brown, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately and enjoy.
Note: We skipped step 1, and cut the squash in half, placed face side up with wax paper on top, and put in the microwave for 20 minutes, then went right to step 3.

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Let me know if you try to make it, and if you do what you think!