Mr. Lesley Cooks

It Takes All Kinds

One of my past secrets is that I was once an exalted leader (aka president) of a local chapter of the National Association of Accountants, a wild and crazy bunch of guys. In a survey we asked what we could do to increase meeting attendance.  One of the responses was about our Social Hour, which we had recently decreased to 30 minutes.  The suggestion was to pare it back to 15 minutes since it was so hard to do.

 

I took my first wife to our annual Christmas party where she met some of my colleagues.  She was so impressed that she asked why we forced ourselves on innocent, unsuspecting people like herself, and wanted to know why we just didn’t melt into the wallpaper where we really belonged. 

 

Meeting artists is a little difference experience.  Among Lesley’s student’s last weekend was a woman who entertained us with her whistling that she had just learned at age 39.  There was also someone who had raced camels. The wife of a retired Coast Guard captain regaled us with stories I could never repeat here, while another commissioned Lesley to make a pendant that incorporates a picture of her parents as high school sweethearts.

   

I’m afraid artists would never make good accountants:  too much personality.

Molten Chocolate Cakes

Softened butter and sugar, for the ramekins

8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into bits

2 tablespoons milk, but half and half works better

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch processed is preferable

3 large eggs, separated, at room temperature

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/4 cup sugar

Whipped Creme Topping, made with 1 cup heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar whipped together.

1. Lightly butter the insides of six 6-ounce custard cups, sprinkle with sugar to coat, and tap out the excess.

2. In a medium stainless steel bowl placed in a skillet of hot, not simmering, water, melt the chocolate and butter, stirring often, until smooth. Remove from the heat. Measure 6 tablespoons into a small shallow bowl (a cereal bowl is perfect). Add the milk and stir well. Place in the freezer while preparing the rest of the recipe. Stir the cocoa and egg yolks into the remaining chocolate-butter mixture.

3. In a grease-free medium bowl, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the sugar until the peaks are stiff and glossy but not dry. Fold about one-quarter of the egg whites into the cocoa mixture, then fold in the remaining whites. Spoon the batter into the cups, filling them half full. Set the remaining batter aside.

4. Remove the chocolate-butter mixture from the freezer; it should be firm. Using a dessert spoon, scrape up the mixture and roll into 6 truffle-like balls (they do not have to be perfectly round). Embed a truffle into the center of each custard cup, top with equal amounts of the remaining batter, and level the tops. Place the cups on a baking sheet. Cover the cups with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (The cakes can be prepared to this point up to 3 days ahead, covered, and refrigerated.)

5. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400°F.

6. Bake until the cakes are puffed and cracked and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out gooey, indicating that the truffle is melted, about 12 minutes. Let the cakes cool for 3 minutes.

7. Run a thin knife around the inside of each cup to release the cake. Protecting your hands with a towel, invert a cup in the center of a dessert plate to unmold the cake. Repeat with the remaining cakes. Serve immediately with a dollop of whipped cream topping.

Tom

A Blissful Experience

Here we are at Art Bliss in Northern VA, where Lesley is teaching.  I took her on a fun ride to Baltimore to pick up Adele last night.  They are both still trying to recover from the Beltway and I-95.  I brought some cookies with us.  One of the recipes is below.  I thought I had already posted it, but here it is.

 

 Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

3 cups rolled oats

1 cup dried cranberries (or other dried fruit)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients. Add to butter mixture and stir until well blended. Add dried cranberries. Drop by teaspoonful onto parchment covered baking sheet. Bake about 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly golden. Cool.

Enjoy!! 

Tom

Another Low-Carb Recipe

 

  

Shortly after my first wife and I moved to Northern Virginia we bought our first TV, black and white, of course.  Yes, color TV had been invented. The first weekend after we bought it we spent in bed just watching whatever came on.  There used to be a lot of old black and white cartoons in the mornings.  I remember one of Mickey Mouse and these three mice who pretended to be blind so they could beg money from folks on the street.   They sang this song about “We don’t have to work.”  Well it took me about forty years to get there, but now I don’t exactly have to work (for pay). I never cared much for the Popeye cartoons, but I do like spinach.  This is my idea of a healthy treat.

 

 

Spinach Gratin

 

 

1/2 stick unsalted butter

4 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large)

1/4 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg

1 cup heavy cream

2 cups milk

3 pounds frozen chopped spinach, defrosted (5 (10-ounce) packages)

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese

 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

 

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 15 minutes. Add the flour and nutmeg and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Add the cream and milk and cook until thickened. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the spinach and add the spinach to the sauce. Add 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

 

Transfer the spinach to a 2 quart baking dish and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan and the Gruyere on top. Bake for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve hot.