So far, I remain unsponsored and sorry about that.

If any local restaurant owner or chef wants to pay me (in food or gift certificates) to write about how awesome his or her fare is, I'm open to the idea. Especially if that restaurant is Buttermilk Channel. Because, that's where Matt got the dinner we ate for his birthday a few weeks ago, and it was resplendent -- moist chicken with a slightly salty breading, cheddar-filled waffle wedges, a thin and sweet syrup (tasting slightly of balsamic vinegar?) bread & butter pickles, coleslaw, and candied/bacon-flavored almonds. I now wish to try everything on the menu, once I can stop hyperventilating with delight.



While we're on the subject of Matt's birthday party, take a gander at the snack and appetizer buffet he assembled. This is some serious snack curation. Well done, birthday boy. Well done.


p.s. Does anyone else have 7 or more friends named Matt?

Further Adventures in Snack Curation

[It's Poetry Tuesday, and I owe you one, but I'm so far behind in my blogging that I hope you'll forgive a couple of non-poetic posts today.]

A few weeks ago, the time came for me to curate (they say "host") the snacks during "Coffee Hour" (actually about 20 minutes) after church. I was instructed to bring enough light snacks for 40 people, milk, and juice. Cookies were suggested as the snack in the instructing email, but since I still had hundreds in the freezer from my holiday cookie party, I would have taken cookies as my offering even if they hadn't been given as the example.

The congregants in attendance ate over 160 cookies in about 15 minutes flat. I was glad I'd baked an extra batch of Mrs Fields with walnuts that morning. Sugar, peppermint snap, Nutella cranberry, and coconut Joe Frogger cookies rounded out my selection.

One of my favorite things about serving a variety of cookies to a large group of people is that everyone can have his or her own favorite. Each kind of cookie is "the best" to at least one person -- and usually to several. I think this is how attraction works in our non-cookie-oriented romances, too. Human hearts and attraction meters vary widely and wildly. No matter what you look or taste like, there's someone out there who is really into that.



P.S. Though I was the host and responsible for the treats that day, I appreciated the generosity of an unnamed churchgoer who dropped off two Trader Joe's tarts [one chocolate almond (my favorite and pictured above), one lemon] to bulk up the buffet.

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth...

...but DO put gift cookies in your mouth!

I was pleased and delighted to attend Tim and Holly's wedding last weekend. They were married on a roof that has never looked so lovely (and I've been on it for a number of raucous parties), surrounded by friends, family, and an evening sky which seemed to have ceased its raining precisely to accommodate our celebration.




A week or two before the wedding, Holly asked me if I might be able to provide some cookies for the reception. She applied no pressure. She didn't need to. I am a cookie baker by nature -- and I'm still in my "off season." I happily agreed to spend a couple of nights baking as my gift to the couple and their guests.








For this occasion, I thought it would be good to provide sweets both delicious and a bit "mature." Holly herself suggested chocolate or oatmeal as possible themes. I chose to go with both ideas, and make two flavorful favorites from last year's Cookie Party menu: Salty Oatmeal Cookies (sprinkled with sea salt) and Chocolate Butter Cookies With a Mint Glaze (pictured, in progress, above and below this paragraph).






(photo by Dan)


Ultimately, I was thrilled with how both varieties turned out, though I didn't snap pictures of the oatmeal cookies until the big day. And on that night, when they joined the buffet? The photo sits atop this post.

I checked in with the duo a few times during the evening -- the cookies, not the couple! Both seemed to be well-received by guests (Tim and Holly looked like they were having fun, too). I did prefer one (again, we're talking cookies here). The oatmeal were my personal favorite, but I heard from others who liked the chocolate more. You should probably try both recipes. It's only fair.

One thing that had concerned me was whether I had made the cookies in enough quantity. Told Tim and Holly were expecting around 110 people, I made just under 150 of the oatmeal cookies (which were much bigger), and more than 300 (I kept losing count) of the small chocolate butter cookies. It turns out this was plenty -- even more than enough. I should have mentioned to the happy couple how well any uneaten cookies would freeze.

All the concerns about quantity and size and flavor faded in the end. What mattered was how much fun everyone had celebrating H+T. It wasn't about the cookies at all, and I knew that. But, returning home after such a sweet and savory evening, I was still happy my sometimes-obsessive love of baking could be harnessed and used to honor lovely friends.

Congratulations, Holly and Tim! Happy eating!


p.s. The rest of the food/drink provided during the reception? What an amazing buffet and bar. Well, well done. My cookies were in the finest company. I wish I had a photo of Renee's outlandish date, pear, and almond cake. Too much goodness. I nearly burst, in the happiest way.

Menu Curation: First Birthday

(photo by Dan)

My best baby friend is one! I met up with her and some other admirers in the park Wednesday night to celebrate. I thought I could tempt her with some snacks, so I toted blueberries, healthy crispy rice cupcakes, gelled-juice jigglers, and homemade soft pretzels.

Hero seemed happy I was there. My menu wasn't such a hit, though.

• Blueberries (which at other times she has adored) got smushed between thumb and forefinger, then rejected. A plus: she loved smushing them.
  
• We'll speak more of the disastrous crisped rice cakes when I post this week's CSA wrapup. Though Hero actually did eat some, they were a mess.
  
• The jello didn't interest her at all, texturally speaking. She just shook her head at me. [Aside: I went home and absent-mindedly stuck the jello in the freezer, creating something amazing.]

It's not like the girl didn't have anything to eat. Her mom and grandma made a delicious carrot cake, which Hero really enjoyed. She also tried and seemed to like bites of my soft pretzels. We adults loved them even more, and they didn't last the evening. You might want to make some yourself.





Soft Pretzels
Recipe from The Petit Appetit Cookbook: Easy, Organic Recipes to Nurture Your Baby and Toddler by Lisa Barnes
Makes 48 2-3 inch pretzels

This recipe is milk free, nut free, and vegetarian. 2 pretzels have 80 calories, if you're interested. It's a good to make with older kids who can roll and shape dough, paint on egg, or sprinkle salt!

1 1/2 c. warm water
2 packages active dry yeast
2 T. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
coarse salt, poppy seeds, or sesame seeds for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 425 F. I used a baking sheet with a silicone mat, but you could also use parchment paper on the baking sheet.

Put the yeast in a large bowl with the warm water. Stir until yeast is dissolved. Add the sugar, salt, flours, and one of the eggs. Stir with a fork to combine into a dough. Turn out onto a floury surface and knead until it is elastic (maybe 2-3 minutes), adding a little more flour if it's very sticky.

Tear off small pieces of the dough and roll into any shape you want (classic pretzels, circles, hearts, twists). You know what would be cute? Xs and Os -- they stand for "hugs and kisses" AND you can play edible tic-tac-toe!

Place an inch or two apart on your baking sheet. Brush with the second egg (beaten) and sprinkle with whatever you want to sprinkle them with.

Bake 8-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with your favorite mustard.

Gentlemen at snack.

From the blog of Matt Cassity:
Wednesday — Poker night. August won. I made a menu of snacks curated by Jenny.

---

True. My new occupation: Snack Curator.

Here are the items we discussed as possible poker night snacks.

Matt's restrictions:
Savory
Vegetarian
No stove top or microwave
(He does have a toaster oven and a crock pot. I didn't even utilize the crock pot. Next time.)

Idea one: Cheese toasts. You can put garlic or different spices on them. Or just cheese. I don't think he made these, but thinking about them made me want some.

Idea two: Globe grapes scooped out and filled with goat cheese then the goat cheese part can be dipped in chopped, salted pistachios. Matt couldn't find globe grapes so did this with cherry tomatoes.

Idea three: Provencal Olives (recipe below)
If you have 24 hours, you can refrigerate this mixture (anywhere from 24 hours to 1 week) and then strain the liquid off before serving:
3 c. black or green whole olives (not canned)
4 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 T. sherry vinegar
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp ground black pepper (coarsely ground)
salt
1 T. chopped fresh (or 1/2 T dry) rosemary
1 1/2 T chopped fresh (or 3/4 tsp dry) thyme

Idea four: Union Square Care Bar Nuts (recipe below)
preheat (toaster) oven to 350 F
On baking sheet (or toaster oven equivalent), spread 1 1/4 lbs assorted unsalted nuts (Matt featured the Brazil nut, which is a crowd-pleaser of a nut if there is such a thing.)
Toast in oven until golden, about 10 min.
While toasting, in large bowl mix:
2 T. coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
2 tsp packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp coarse salt
1 tsp. unsalted butter, melted
Toss nuts with mixture. Serve warm.

There was also some discussion of figs.