Blog - biscuits and such
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Carolina Blue Russians

I just want to say this- Go Heels. We may have lost tonight, but we played a great game against big odds. One of our star players was on the court on a sprained ankle, another was out with a fractured wrist. We had a few freshman on the front lines and as a team, they held their own. It was not the blowout that it could have been, and while I always want a Carolina victory, I was proud watching them play. And the best part? Because it’s a young team, I know that I’ll be drinking a lot more Carolina-colored cocktails next year.

I learned yesterday that North Carolina’s state beverage is milk. And as Dan and I were brainstorming what Carolina-blue cocktail we could drink tonight to watch the game I thought “what if we made blue white russians- it would be the perfect marriage of the state beverage and the state’s oldest public university.” I thought, that would be so hilarious and weird. And then I said it out loud to Dan. And then I thought… that’s no weirder than drinking blue Gatorade, let’s do this. And they were awesome. And weird. Also… milk?

Carolina Blue Russians

1 shot espresso liquor

2 shots vodka

1/4 cup cream (or half and half)

2-4 drops blue food coloring

Combine espresso liquor and vodka in a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a glass. Top with cream. Stir in food coloring. Enjoy.

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Ginger Rhubarb Pi(e)

Happy Belated Pi(e) Day! This past Wednesday, March 14th, was one of my favorite math-related holidays. Only because it is also a holiday that involves pie. 3.14, pi, that mathematical constant that only a handful of showoff kids ever knew *all the numbers of, is celebrated on March 14th (3.14) by eating pie. At least that’s how we celebrate it.

*clearly not all the numbers, because it goes on forever. I remember something from math. Sort of.

This year we decided to use the occasion of Pi(e) Day to celebrate another wonderful cause, the 2012 B’Eat More Pie Fest. For those of you who don’t remember (or who have blocked my incessant discussion of it last year from your mind), I am the co-founder of Baltimore’s own pie festival. Last year the festival was small (we had about 135 attendees), fun, and a huge success. This year we’re in a bigger space and we’re planning a bigger festival with bigger goals. To help us reach the goals and make a sizable donation to the charity the fest benefits, we’re launching today an indiegogo campaign. If you feel so inclined, check it out. Also note that every time that video jumps is because I’m a doofus.

This year for pi(e) day I was able to snag some rhubarb, which I combined with candied ginger for a pie that was light, tart, and the perfect contrast to the months of cream and mousse pies we’ve been eating over here. I even got up at six am on Wednesday morning to candy the ginger, which either exhibits dedication or a need to get my head examined.

Ginger Rhubarb Pie

candied ginger:

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

20-30 pieces thinly sliced ginger

pie dough:

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 sticks butter, cold

1/4 cup shortening

1 tbsp sugar

Pinch of salt

1/4-1/2 cup cold water

filling:

10-12 stalks rhubarb

Juice of 3 limes

2 tbsp corn starch

1/4 cup sugar

Start with your dough. Combine dry ingredients. Add shortening and incorporate with your hands. Cube butter and work in with your hands until the consistency is like cornmeal. Stir in water, a little at a time. Only add as much as needed to form a ball. Wrap and chill in the fridge for at least one hour.

Thinly slice your ginger. Put in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Drain and repeat. Then add 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water to the pan. Bring to a boil and let boil until the syrup thickens, approximately 15-20 minutes. Let sit in the liquid for at least an hour.

To make the filling thinly slice the rhubarb. Combine with remaining ingredients.

Roll half your dough out and place into pie dish. Pour in filling. Chop up the candied ginger and sprinkle throughout. Preheat your oven to 350.

Roll out the other half of the dough and either cut into shapes or roll into one large piece. If you’d like a pie with a top, lay the rolled out dough over the pie and press the two sides together. Cut slits in the top for ventilation. If you’d like shapes cut them out and lay them over the top.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.

B’Eat More Pie Fest from elena rosemond-hoerr on Vimeo.

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Kale Chips

Lately, I’ve felt a little bit underwater. Between a demanding workload, travel (for work and for fun) messing with my schedule, and life starting to feel like it was going faster than I could keep up, I’ve felt unraveled. It’s not a great feeling, but it happens. And when it does, I often spiral into a pit of comfort food and slouching before I realize what’s happened and drag myself out. This week, I’m working on dragging myself out.

When I’m feeling lazy or overwhelmed or unmotivated I like to turn to something I know will get me excited. This week I decided to read one of my favorite books, Born to Run, again. About a year and a half ago I read it for the first time and was so motivated and inspired that I started running, seriously. I’ve loved every minute of it… I was always a swimmer and an active person, but until I trained my body to run in a barefoot style, I was never able to run injury free. Watching my body get stronger as I accumulated miles has been amazing. I’ve been running consistently for quite some time, even through bouts of laziness or ennui, but that isn’t always enough. One thing I love about Born to Run is that it focuses on the nutrition aspects of successful distance running as well as the technique. So, after rereading the book on the flight home, I felt a new motivation to delve back into nutrition.

Don’t worry, I’ll still be recreating the fried chicken eggs benedict we had in San Diego and posting a recipe for Pi(e) Day. Over the years I’ve learned enough about our bodies and nutrition to know that everything in moderation is fine. But lately it’s been more burgers than arugula, and this week I’m trying to reboot the system. So I thought, as I recover from our (amazing) trip and try and get my head on straight, I’d share a quick and easy recipe for kale chips. I made a huge batch last night and I’ll be snacking away on these all week.

Kale Chips

1 bunch of kale

Olive oil

Sea salt

Red pepper flakes

Slicing around the thicker veins and stems, cut your kale down into 2″ squares. Place in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle on a tsp of sea salt, a dash of red pepper, and toss. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake at 300 for 20 minutes. It took me three of four batches to get through a large bunch of curly kale.

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