From Patty's Pantry -Food blog recipe ideas party tips etiquette simple recipes

Angel Food Cake

Jul 102007

I spent this past weekend perfecting Angel Food Cake. After making 30 individual cakes for gift baskets, I definitely think I have it down pat. I feel badly for those who received one of the first ones I made. I think this is one of those ideal summer desserts light & fluffy and perfectly accompanied by any summer fruit. I made mine with a lemon glaze. In my eyes I think this is a perfectly healthy dessert. Happy Birthday Ronny!

10 Egg Whites

1 1/3 Cup of Sugar

1 Teaspoon of Cream of Tartar

1 /2 Teaspoon of Salt

1 1/3 Cup of Flour

1/3 Cup of Sugar

1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract

1 Teaspoon of Almond Extract

1 Teaspoon of Lemon Extract (optional)*

Lemon Glaze

2 Cups of Confectioners Sugar

Â¼ Cup of Water

Juice and Zest of one large Lemon

1 Teaspoon of Lemon Extract

Preheat Oven 375

In a large metal Bowl whip egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until soft peaks form. Then add (1 1/3 Cup of Sugar) 1/3 a cup of the time. Peaks will become glossy and firmer. Then add the extracts and beat again. In a separate bowl sift the flour and 1/3 cup of sugar- to make sure fine and there are no clumps. Add the flour mixture a third a cup at a time and fold into the egg whites. ( I find it easier to have leverage when I am folding the egg whites and put them in the sink- this is also helpful just because I am not that tall.) Now place batter into Angle Food Cake. Try and make sure there are no air pockets with the batter and gently smoothe out the top. Bake for 45 minutes until golden brown on top.

Let the cake cool completely, remove from pan and place the top of the cake on serving dish. Now the top of the cake is smooth and pour glaze over cake and let is drizzle down the side.

*While I was making so making different batches I thought it would be fun to add the lemon extract turns out I liked it. Also,I was making a lemon glaze to go on top so I thought it was perfect! But in traditional Angel Food cake does not usually cal for the Lemon Extract.

Texas- Corn Muffin Recipe

Breakfast, Recipes, Sides No Comments »

Jun 282007

Last week and again this week, I was in Texas. Now, I had not been to Texas, since my dad decided to drive cross country when I was 18 months old. (I do not believe that counts) After visiting a few cities- Austin, Dallas, and Houston, I have a new obsession. It is not BBQ, Cowboy Boots, or Beef but the CORN MUFFIN. My mom and sister, Mera, loved them growing up but I could always do without. I could not get enough of them, to the point I asked for a recipe at one restaurant. (I am still working on getting it, hopefully by early next week I will have it to share.) Until then, here is another one I have worked on. Perfect for summertime BBQs and definitely an American tradition as the Fourth of July is next week.

1 Cup of Flour

Â¾ Cup of Cornmeal

Â¼ Cup of Honey

1Â½ Teaspoon of Baking Powder

Â½ Teaspoon of Baking Soda

1 Teaspoon of Salt

2 Eggs

Â½ Cup of Sour Cream

1 Stick of Butter

1 Cup of Milk

1 Cup of Corn

1 Cup of Cheddar Cheese

1 Medium Yellow Onion Chopped and SautÃ©ed*

1 Tablespoon of Chopped JalapeÃ±o Pepper

Preheat 425

In a bowl mix together Butter, Sour Cream, Eggs, and Honey until they are well combined. Adding in Flour, Cornmeal, Baking Soda, Baking Powder, and Salt mix this together until combined and incorporate the Milk. Last stir in Corn, SautÃ©ed Onions, Jalapeno Pepper, and Cheddar Cheese. Distribute evenly into muffin pan. Bake for 25 minutes and will make between 12-14 Muffins.

*When I sautÃ© onions I will first start by letting them simmer in water for about 5 minutes. And then brown them with a little olive oil and butter. I find this way it uses a lot less oil and butter because it is not so quickly absorbed.

How To Roast Peppers

Sides, Tips, Terms & Tools 1 Comment »

Jun 282007

How to roast a pepper, is a lot simpler than one might imagine. Whenever a recipe calls for something to be skinned, my initial reaction is EEK! That will require a lot more work, but that is not always necessarily true. There are so many fun recipes that work with roasted peppers or just adding them to any sandwich or salad. So here is how I roast my peppers.

Brush each pepper with a little olive oil, place on a baking sheet and bake in oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and either place them in a brown paper bag or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap. Let them cool, it is much easier to handle when they have cooled down (at least ten minutes). The skins will just peel right off and remove the center seeds. Now they are ready to do what you please with! They will keep for about 1 week.

Definitely a great color to use for next week on the 4^th of July!

Top Ten- Fun Hostess Gift Ideas

Ideas, Top Ten 2 Comments »

Jun 222007

Summertime is filled with many weekend getaways and other fun social
activities there are many times when one is a guest or hosting. On many occasions
I have been asked what should I bring? Here are few ideas: Let’s say a
top ten list of different hostess gifts. So often it is not the dollar amount it is just the thought and gesture that matter. Please let me know if there
are any ideas of ones you like to give or receive? Also in this month
issue of Domino magazine they had a list of different ideas that I
thought were also fun hostess gift ideas.

1. Sending Flowers in advance
2. A bottle of wine, champagne, specialty Beer, or a pound of fresh coffee – but then you could wrap in a dish towel or something fun.
3. Kitchen gadgets – Wine openers, Candy Thermometers Random little items are always fun to receive.
4. Hand Cream – this is one of my favorite dinner party hostess gifts I received. I thought it was so sweet and thoughtful to bring hand cream
5. Candles/ Soaps something that you don’t always think of buying yourself
6. Make it yourself- do you have something you make that is your specialty? Well make that and package it up nicely- jams, cookies, candies etc.
7. A Grocery Bag
8. A specialty item from your area- is there a special store that sells chocolates a bakery known for something? One of my favorites the Cinnamon Babka Bread from Dean and Deluca… I think it is to die for and have definitely brought it on many occasions.
9. Wrap a bunch of fun magazines together, guilty pleasures you sometimes don’t indulge. They make for great poolside and beach reading.
10. I have a sweet tooth! Once I received a large bag of all kinds of candy. The next day I brought it into the office to share and heard, ” Why don’t I have friend that would bring me a bag of candy???”

Strawberry Mojito

Drinks, Fruit, Recipes 3 Comments »

Jun 182007

I mentioned the strawberry mojito on my entry about Strawberry Bruschetta I recieved many respones wanting to hear more about the Strawberry Mojito. Mojito’s are one of my favorite drinks and at one of my favorite little restaurants in New York, Barbossa they serve all different kinds of fun mojitos. This is where I was introduced to the Strawberry Mojito.
1/2 of a lime
10-12 mint leaves torn

3 strawberries
3/4 oz simple syrup or 2 teaspoons of sugar
2 oz white rum
Club soda
In a 10 or 12 ounce glass add juice of lime, mint, 2 strawberries and simple syrup. Muddle ingredients with a twisting motion. (This will releases the essential oils in the mint and lime.) Fill the glass with ice, rum, and last strawberry cut into smaller pieces and shake well. Top off with club soda. And now you can enjoy one of my favorite summertime drinks!

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin Recipe

Breakfast, Fruit, Recipes, Sweets 3 Comments »

Jun 142007

It was not until I had my first Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin that made me
realize, I like muffins. I love Lemon to the point growing up my mother
would constantly ask the dentist if I had destroyed the enamel on my
teeth from my level of Lemon intake? Alas, Lemon and I are simpatico! These also can be frozen and then you can have a tasty breakfast treat whenever you feel like it.

1 Cup of Sugar plus 2 Tablespoons to top muffins before baking
Â½ Cup of Softened Butter
2 Eggs
1 Â½ teaspoon of Vanilla
Â½ Cup of Buttermilk
2-3 Lemons Zest from two lemons and juice from 2-3 lemons
2 Â½ Cups of Flour
1 teaspoon of Baking Powder
1 teaspoon of Baking Soda
Â½ teaspoon of Salt
Â¼ Cup of Poppy Seeds
Preheat Oven 375

In a mixing bowl mix together sugar and butter until well combined.
Followed by beating in each egg, vanilla, and the butter milk. In
separate bowl, mix together flour, baking Soda, baking powder, and salt add
the dry ingredients into the wet mixture and make sure fully combined.
Lastly add the lemon juice, zest, and poppy seeds and mix well. Evenly
distribute the batter into lined muffin tins. Will make 12 muffins.
Sprinkle the top of each muffin with remain 2 tablespoons of sugar and bake
for about 18-20 minutes.

A Recipe For Being GREEN – Bring Your Own Grocery Bag

Ideas 1 Comment »

Jun 102007

The Green Movement has been around for a while. But defiantly in the past year has gained momentum finally in the United States. The New Bank of America Building being built in NYC is completely GREEN receiving platinum LEED standing. The Economist Last issue was on â€“ How business is tackling climate change. Positive initiatives are taking place. But here is one for the kitchen. I know some people have been doing this for a while but next time you go to market to pick up your groceries why not bring your own BAG.
Living in NYC I would usually bring a backpack to the grocery store it just makes it easier to carry groceries home and up flights of stairs! Recently, I received this great grocery bag, as a gift, it is the Trader Joeâ€™s grocery bag. When I opened it there were many envious individualsâ˜º Thank you Mary! (It was explained to me this could also double as a beach bag) I am a big believer that it is all the little things that matter and taking your own grocery bag to the store is a start! Otherwise it will end up in the city landfill.
I thought this was a great gift and I will probably be giving it to others. It could make for a fun hostess gift.

Strawberry Shortcake Recipe- Simple Individual Dessert

Fruit, Recipes, Sweets 1 Comment »

Jun 062007

Now the last strawberry recipe Strawberry Bruschetta was a little different so here is more
of a classic, Strawberry Shortcake. These shortcakes are great because they
also could be served as a breakfast biscuit with jam and butter!
This is a simple recipe for making an individual dessert.

Shortcake
1/2 Cup of Sugar
2 Cups of Flour
2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/2 Cup of Butter
1 Egg (beaten)
2/3 Cup of Buttermilk (a little extra to brush tops of Shortcakes)
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla

Preheat Oven 450

In a mixing bowl with your hands mix together butter, sugar, flour and baking soda- until butter is evenly blended in. Then add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined and can form a ball. Pat out the dough (about 1-1.25 inches thick) on a floured surface and with a 2.5 inch circular cookie cutter cut shortcakes and place on baking sheet. Brush the top of each shortcake with Buttermilk. Bake for 15-18 minutes until golden brown on top. Makes about 12 shortcakes

Strawberries
4 Cups of quartered Strawberries
1/4 Cup of Sugar
1 1/2 Cups of Whipped Cream

Mix Sugar and Strawberries- let stand for at least 1/2 hour to release the juices from the strawberries.

Assemble the Strawberry Shortcakes
Cut the shortcakes in half (width wise) on bottom half place a 1/3 cup of strawberries top with the other half of the shortcake and finish off with a dollop of whipped cream!

Strawberry Bruschetta- Simple Dessert Recipe

Appetizers, Recipes, Sweets 6 Comments »

May 302007

In California the strawberry season is going strong and the season has just begun back here. Growing up in Southern California one of my favorites memories was during strawberry season going to the local stands on the side of the road and picking up flats of strawberries. There are a million and one fabulous recipes with strawberries. One that I just had last night a Strawberry Mojito. This recipe is similar to the Strawberry Mojito in that it is combining Mint with Strawberries. This is a great refreshing light dessert for the summer or easily could be served as a hors d’oeuvres.

2 Cups of cut Strawberries
1.5 Tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar
1-2 Tablespoons of sugar- (if really fresh will need less sugar)
2 tablespoons of Chopped Mint
Spread
3 tablespoons of softened unsalted Butter
2 teaspoons of Cinnamon Sugar
12 slices of either a Baguette or Brioche (1/2 inch thick)

Preheat oven 350
In a bowl mix together strawberries, vinegar, sugar, and mint. Let sit
for at least a half an hour before assembling. In a separate bowl mix
together butter and cinnamon sugar and let stand preferably for at
least a day but if time does not permit, no worries. Spread each piece of
bread with cinnamon butter and bake for 15 minutes. Let stand for a few
minutes Top each piece of bread with strawberries and ready to serve.

Vegetable Side Dish Recipe – Parmesan Asparagus

Recipes, Sides 2 Comments »

May 212007

Asparagus can be found year round, but the height of the season is March through June. There are numerous ways in which you can prepare this vegetable, but this is my favorite. When picking asparagus try to avoid the ones whose stalks are white. (This does not apply to white and purple asparagus.) Two other little facts. Asparagus is part of the Lily family and can be mircrowaved.

Pre Heat Oven 375

1 bunch of Asparagus
2-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons of grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt and Pepper

On a baking sheet place Asparagus and drizzle the olive oil evenly over stalks. Followed by sprinkling the Parmesan Cheese and salt and Pepper. Bake for about 10-12 minutes. Watch them while baking because you do not want them to over cook they should be tender not mushy.

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