Vietnamese Marinated Chicken & Banana Coconut Pudding

These are the recipes promised from the Hot Sour Salty Sweet book review/family meal post.

For the chicken, I based the marinade on the recipe for Vietnamese Must-have Table Sauce, which has fish sauce, lime juice, rice vinegar, sugar and garlic in it, but varied the flavour a bit by using some lemongrass powder.

Vietnamese Marinated Chicken

1/2 cup fish sauce
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp lemongrass powder
8 - 10 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Combine the marinade ingredients in a large ziplock bag. Add the chicken and marinate in the fridge for about an hour. Discard the marinade and cook the chicken. I baked mine in the oven at 400F for about 20 minutes, but this would work great on the BBQ, too.

Although I totally winged this recipe, it was the best dish of the HSSS meal! Though salty, it was offset by the tartness of the lime and the sweetness of the sugar. The chicken was juicy and succulent. The family thought it was a hit, too.

For dessert, I made a Banana Coconut Pudding inspired by a recipe from the sweets sections of HSSS, but instead used a shortcut provided by the lovely folks at Jello: coconut cream pie filling.

Banana Coconut Pudding

2 - 3 large bananas
1 box Jello coconut cream pie filling/pudding, cooked according to package directions and cooled slightly
1/2 cup toasted coconut

Slice bananas and layer in the bottom of a 2 quart dish. Pour the pudding over top and smooth. Sprinkle the toasted coconut on top of that and serve.

Ridiculously easy, but a perfect end to a great meal!

Enjoy!

101 Uses for a Roast Chicken #13: Dirty Rice

I see ads all the time for Zatarain's rice mixes, and a couple of weeks ago, my local overpriced grocery store had them on sale and I decided to take the opportunity to try one out. I didn't, however, read the instructions until I got home, so I didn't know I would be adding beef to the mix. But luckily, I had a better idea! When I made stock for my tofu soup, I froze the shredded chicken for a future use, and thought it would go well in this dirty rice mix.

I was right!

I had the perfect amount of chicken left over and added it to the rice mix when you're directed to add the beef. The flavour was excellent. The rice mix, though Cajun in origin, wasn't too spicy for me and tasted great. This was a really good meal that I'd definitely do again!

Pancake Tuesday 2009

OK, so last night was Pancake Tuesday, AKA Shrove Tuesday, AKA Mardi Gras, AKA Fat Tuesday. Traditionally, this day marks the 40-day lead up to Easter and the beginning of Lent on the Christian calendar. Here is a nifty CBC article talking about how Pancake Tuesday came about.

Growing up, we always had a pancake dinner on Pancake Tuesday, courtesy my mother, who made fantastic pancakes in an ancient electric frying pan she got as a wedding present but left in my custody when she moved to the UK over a decade ago (this piece of kitchen equipment got lost in the black hole of my divorce nearly four years ago, but I can tell you that until then, that electric frying pan was still working perfectly and I miss it a lot). Since moving back into the bosom of my family nearly three years ago, I've made a point of trying to keep the Pancake Tuesday tradition alive with my dad, brother and SIL. I make the pancakes and my dad usually provides the sausages. Yesterday was no different.

Did I make lovely, fluffy homemade pancakes as I usually do? No. I have a reason and it has to do with my laundry. My dryer is broken and I needed to use my brother and SIL's laundry facilities today. Shan picked up most of my laundry last night, but I had another load to take over on foot today, plus I didn't want to haul over pancake mix, my jug of milk, eggs, etc., so I took the path of least resistance and caved and used an "add water only" Aunt Jemima mix purchased at the local overpriced grocery store.

In the end no one cared. It was Pancake Tuesday, after all, and the point is PANCAKES. And pancakes we had in abundance. Everyone was happy, especially me. I officially think Pancake Tuesday is a way better celebration than Christmas.

Feasting with Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet

Last May I reviewed Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid's Beyond the Great Wall, and for the review I made a huge family meal with a menu and recipes taken from the book. It was a hugely successful meal, and BtGW is still on my shelves, still one of the nicest books I own. At Christmas, I was given an Amazon gift certificate by a very generous friend, and one of the books I chose was the volume written before BtGW by the same authors. On Saturday, I made a Vietnamese meal for my family - and it was another resounding success.

Hot Sour Salty Sweet takes us on a culinary journey through southeast Asia and encompasses dishes from not only Vietnam but Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Burma, and southern China. These countries and their widely varied cultures have on thing in commong: the Mekong River and its tributaries. As with BtGW, HSSW is part cookbook, part travel book, and part photographic ecstacy. The authors blend recipes in with stories of their travels throughout the region and epic photography that'll just make you want to jump on the next plane to Asia. It's on par with BtGW for sure, and I'm just as stoked about having it on my shelves. The recipes were also just as fabulous.

I decided on a mainly Vietnamese menu consisting of (recipes without page numbers are my own):

Salad Rolls
Must-have Vietnamese Table Sauce (p. 28)
Vietnamese Herb and Salad Plate (p. 68), which included Carrot & Daikon Pickled Salad (p. 85)
Deep-fried Rice Balls (p.105)
Baked Vietnamese Chicken*
Aromatic Lemongrass Patties (p. 251)
Banana & Coconut Pudding*

* Recipes to appear in a forthcoming post.

The idea behind the herb & salad plate is, as the authors describe in the recipe: "to wrap, to accompany, to enhance, or to alter the other dishes, or [the herbs and veggies] are simply eaten on their own. The salad platter gives each person a chance to vary tastes and textures, mouthful by mouthful, as the various herbs and salad vegetables complement the cooked food with fresh flavours."

My herb and salad plate included:

Fresh Mint, basil, and cilantro
Lettuce leaves
Lime wedges
Carrot & Daikon Pickled Salad
Bean sprouts
Cucumber slices

Well, it certainly isn't lettuce season in these parts, I can tell you that. The lettuce at the local overpriced grocery store was crappy and expensive, so head lettuce it was. Other than that, this was a fresh, attractive way around which to centre a meal.

The Aromatic Lemongrass Patties were not a recipe from Vietnam, but from Laos. They were really easy to make and tasted great. I didn't use fresh lemongrass, but opted instead to go for a less expensive alternative, lemongrass powder. My local ovepriced grocery store sold this powder in its bulk section, so I decided to try it out. Although I think it lacked the punch of fresh lemongrass, it was certainly aromatic and tasty.

Aromatic Lemongrass Patties (adapted by me)

1lb ground pork
2 green onions, finely chopped
salt & pepper
1 tbsp lemongrass powder

Combine all ingredients by hand and form into small patties (I got about a dozen because I used some of the ground pork for my Dad's salad rolls since he won't eat shrimp). Grill on BBQ or indoor grill for 6 - 7 minutes per side, or until cooked through.

I rarely deep fry anything, but I was compelled to do so by the recipe for Deep-fried Jasmine Rice Balls, also a dish from Laos, though the authors say they might originally be Vietnamese. These treats are apparently common street food in Laos and Vietnam, and normally they're served with herbs, pork, and a sauce. They went perfectly with the herb & salad plate.

Deep-fried Jasmine Rice Balls (adapted slightly by me)

1 large egg
4 cups cooked jasmine rice
1/2 tsp each salt
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1 tsp lemongrass powder (I had exactly this amount remaining after making my other dishes with it)
Oil for deep-frying

In a large bowl, combine rice, coconut, seasonings. Add the egg and mix together by hand so egg is evenly distributed throughout the rice mixture. Using wet hands, form into 10 - 15 balls. I chose smaller ones since I was deep-frying in my wok.

You'll need enough oil to get a depth of 1 1/2 - 2" in the bottom of whatever pan or wok you use. Heat to the oil shimmery. Drop a small clump of rice in to see what happens: the oil is ready when the rice sinks and then immediately rises back to the surface, while gently browning. Slide the balls carefully into the oil and fry, in batches, until deep golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve with herb & salad plate and Vietnamese Must-have Table Sauce.

Here is a round-up of the rest of the meal:

Shrimp salad rolls, containing bean threads, lettuce, carrot, mint, and shrimp. I served these with a Thai peanut dip I had kicking around my fridge in addition to the Must-have Table Sauce.






This was a chicken recipe that I totally whipped up on my own, using the Must-have Table Sauce as a guide. It was the best part of the meal! I'll be posting the recipe soon - I promise!




I didn't quite know what to serve for dessert as the sweet recipes didn't look like they'd go over well with my family, but a recipe for Bananas in Coconut Cream caught my eye on page 298. I made my own, quicker, cheaper version using Jello's coconut cream pie filling. A recipe for this will be posted soon, too. This was a great dessert, actually, and as you can see, I am not above resorting to using such shortcuts at all - but only once in a while!



As with BtGW, I highly recommend Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet. It's pricey, but it's worth it. It's not just a book, it's an experience!

To see the rest of the pictures, a nice and convenient Flickr set has been created for your viewing pleasure, here.

Magazine Monday #29: Paprika Roast Chicken with Sweet Onion

As you all know, I love roasting my own chickens and doing all kinds of things with the meat and bones. Usually, I season my chicken with salt, pepper, and some garlic powder before roasting. Sometimes I stuff the cavity with fresh herbs and/or garlic cloves. Well, the Feb. 2009 issue of Gourmet Magazine had a recipe in it for roast chicken with paprika and sweet onions that caught my eye, and I decided to make it on Friday night for my dinner.

The recipe is here.

Now, I didn't cut up my chicken as the recipe specifies, and I didn't use cayenne pepper because I don't like it. Instead, I used a full teaspoon of cinnamon and smeared the rub all over the chicken. I stuffed the cavity with some onion and left the rest of the onion to roast in the pan with the chicken.

This smelled amazing as it cooked, and it was a very tasty way to do chicken. I served mine with roast potatoes and green beans. It was a far out meal! And the best part is that I have left-overs to use up and I have another carcass to make soup with - woo-hoo!

Family Feasting

I thought, for a quick Friday post, I'd share with you some food made by other members of my family. We recently had a huge family feed and my SIL and my dad provided most of the food. My brother BBQed, and I brought some of my mini marble cakes for dessert.




My SIL, Shan, made these super yummy shrimp salad rolls, served with a homemade dipping sauce made with soy sauce, rice vinegar, and garlic.











Shan also made this soba noodle salad with a dressing made from fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, and garlic.









Dad made this green salad full of all kinds of goodies (many of which, like the cherry tomatoes and blue cheese, I wouldn't touch with a 10-foot pole,but it's a nice-looking salad nonetheless).













The main star of the evening was my dad's buffalo burgers, which were fantastic, as usual. The guy does a great burger, I must say.






And then where was this...We still have no idea what it is. Well, obviously, it's a sausage, but Dad couldn't tell us what it was. He was cleaning out his freezer when he found a package labeled "B.U. & Onion Sausage." He assumed it was buffalo sausage, but as Jem and I sliced one opened, we were pretty sure this was no buffalo sausage. The meat wasn't dark enough. And it certainly wasn't beef. My dad was at a loss, but he said it had to be some kind of game meat if it wasn't buffalo or beef. Whatever it was, it was kind of bland.


Have a great weekend, everyone!

Double Chocolate Muffins - Suitable for Home Bakers!

A couple weeks ago, I posted a work recipe for Double Chocolate Muffins that yields around four dozen commercial sized muffins. I realize not everyone wants to do the math to reduce that kind of recipe, so I actually found a similar recipe in The Essential Baking Cookbook, and made a batch for the friend with the new baby I mentioned in the English Muffin Bread post. Yes, you will need self-raising flour, but it's easily found in most grocery stores. I usually use Brodie XXX brand, but I found Gold Medal brand in the States for a decent price, too.

Double Chocolate Muffins (adapted by moi)

2 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1/2 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs
150g/5oz butter, melted and cooled
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare muffin tins.
2. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and the sugar together in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre.
3. Whisk together the eggs & buttermilk and pour into the well. Add the butter and fold gently together until just combined. Do not overmix - the mixture might still be lumpy.
4. Scoop & bake for about 25 minutes or until done.

I got a baker's dozen of regular sized muffins plus a dozen mini muffins.

And they were soooooooooo good! I like them way better than my work recipe, actually: fudgier and cakier and richer.

Enjoy!

Restaurant Review: Trail's End Cafe

As I mentioned in my review of Castlegar's The Element, that city isn't the local mecca for fine dining. But, it does have way more going for it than Trail, I have to say. Trail, which is closer to me than Castlegar by about 20 minutes, has the very famous Colander (which I vented about here), a pub that sells average food, and maybe one other place that I've heard good things about but haven't gotten around to trying yet. But there is one very good restaurant that is always full and serves really great food, and it's called the Trail's End Cafe (no web site, unfortunately). I've eaten there twice and haven't been disappointed either time.

My most recent trip was for lunch with a couple of girlfriends. We got there after the lunch rush so the dining room, located on the main floor of an old house in downtown Trail, was quiet.

The lunch menu consists of sandwiches, salads, and some gourmet pizzas. On my first visit, a few months ago, I had the BBQ chicken & mango wrap, and it was excellent. This time, I opted for my all-time favourite, the turkey club on ciabatta bread, and I had it with a side Caesar. It was excellent. The sandwich was $10.50.

My two friends each had the turkey, brie, and cranberry sandwich; one had a side Sonoma salad (greens, sun-dried tomatoes, blue cheese) and the other had the soup of the day, which was cream of garden vegetable (Trail's End also always has on offer a Hungarian mushroom soup that is rich and creamy and has lots of nice paprika in it; I had this with my wrap on my first visit and it was great). This sandwich also has strawberries in it and it's served on multi-grain bread. My friends were very happy with their choices. I think their sandwiches were $9.50.

I wanted dessert, and I can honestly say to you that Trail's End has the best dessert selection around: Grand Marnier Creme Brulee, Peanut Butter & Chocolate Pie, cheesecake, a decadent chocolate cake with a Tiramisu topping, and some others are among the choices. I opted for the Peanut Butter & Chocolate Pie. It came nicely plated and was really wonderful, but for $6.50, I thought it was a little pricey.

Trail's End also does dinner, and they have a good-looking dinner menu. I would definitely recommend this eatery over the Colander any day of the week, but you'll have to shell out quite a bit more money, though. Ah, well; I think it's worth it.

Thumbs up!

Tofu Tuesdays #2: Tofu & Veggie Chow Mein

While perusing the tofu section of my local overpriced grocery store this past week in anticipation of this post, I was confronted by a selection of tofus that looked quite a bit more interesting than the regular stuff - soft, firm, etc. There was a flavoured tofu that was red in colour, but the packaging didn't say what the flavouring was. Then I spied this package of fried tofu that piqued my interest. Yes, it's higher in fat, but I thought it would be more interesting than the pedestrian tofus next to it.

I also had most of a package of fresh egg chow mein noodles left over from my last Tofu Tuesday installment, and on the back there was conveniently printed for me a chow mein recipe. Hence, this week's Tofu Tuesdays idea was born!

Fried Tofu & Veggie Chow Mein

1 package fried tofu, cubed
1/2 bag coleslaw mix (I love this stuff; it's perfectly chopped for stir fries, and it contains both green & purple cabbage, as well as carrots)
1/2 onion, sliced
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 can sliced water chestnuts
1 package fresh egg chow mein noodles
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1/4 cup broth (I used beef, which I admit seems contrary since this is a vegetarian dish, but sue me - it's what I had on hand)
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp sesame oil

1. Boil chow mein noodles until soft; drain. (The package claims all I had to do was run them under hot water. The package is a liar. Running them under hot water was inadequate, and I found that boiling the noodles for a few minutes worked much better). After draining, I cut my noodles with my kitchen shears to make them a manageable length.

2. Heat some oil wok, and when it's hot, add veggies and stir fry until tender. Add tofu. Add noodles.

3. Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl and add to the stir fry. Combine well.

The fried tofu had a chewy exterior that was a bit more pleasant than its unfried counterpart, and the flavour was mild enough to blend in well with the other ingredients in the chow mein. I'd definitely use this again (and it was cheaper, too). All in all, this was a great meal!

Bon appetit!

Magazine Monday #28: Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato...Something...

Today's recipe was a bit of a flop, but it was also a lesson in improvisation. I just got the latest edition of Clean Eating Magazine, and the recipe for Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Spread caught my eye. It seemed simple enough so I decided to make it on the weekend.

Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Spread (adapted slightly by me)

6 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (the original recipe specifies "not packed in oil" but that's all I had. If you have the dried ones, just soak them in some boiling water for 5 minutes, drain, chop)
6 oz low fat Greek-style yogurt
4 oz low fat cream cheese
3 tbsp black olives, seeded & chopped (I used Kalamata)
1/2 tsp dried oregano
ground black pepper, to taste
1 clove garlic, grated

Whiz the yogurt & cream cheese in blender until smooth. Mix in everything else by hand. Season to taste.

Seems simple enough, right? But, my spread was really runny and, though it tasted really great, it simply wasn't spreadable or even dip-able. Even after chilling overnight, the spread didn't tighten up at all. I used 3.5%MF yogurt, and I think it was a little runny for some reason. I can't explain the consistency any other way.

So, I had to do something with this. The note at the end of the recipe recommended all kinds of ideas for the spread, and so I thought I would turn this into a nice pasta salad.

Pasta Salad with Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Dressing

1 recipe Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Spread
2 cups penne or other short pasta, cooked & drained
3 cups chopped veggies of your choice (I used red pepper, cauliflower, green onion, and diced zucchini)

Rinse the pasta off under cold water after you've cooked it. Add it to the veggies in a large bowl. Add the dressing. Combine. Enjoy.

Well, there you go: proverbial lemons into proverbial lemonade!

Becoming a Localvore: Local Eggs

One of the things I wanted to do to help green up my kitchen and my eating was to buy local eggs. The eggs at the local overpriced grocery store are not necessarily local and they are most definitely overpriced. The cheapest eggs, which are, honestly, the ones I usually buy because I'm on a budget, also come in a non-recyclable styrofoam container. The yolks are pale yellow and the eggs are pretty tasteless. They go for $2.79 - $2.99/dozen. The next cheapest ones are $4.99/dozen. I get way better eggs from Wally World in Colville, WA, for a far better price.

Luckily, there are a couple of people who sell eggs from their farms in this area, and one of them happens to be a co-worker of my SIL's. My SIL regularly gets eggs from this gal, who lives right near the border in a small farming community called Paterson, which is about a five minute drive from town. These eggs come from free-range chickens who are not pumped full of chemicals at all, and she charges $3/dozen. I got my first dozen last Monday!

These eggs are beautiful, huge, and have bright yolks! I am in egg heaven!

Lunch at Rancho Chico

Another week, another cross-border shopping spree! More cheap butter and dozens of choices of ice cream flavours! And course, what cross-border shopping spree to Colville, Washington, would be complete without a lunch at Rancho Chico? Well, it just doesn't happen, I can tell you that much.

After receiving our tortilla chips, pico de gallo sauce, and cabbage salsa, I had a tough decision ahead of me. I'd been regularly ordering the seafood chimichanga, but needed a change, so this time I ordered the chicken chimichanga instead, and man was it good. Served with sour cream and guacamole - it hit the spot.

My SIL went for the seafood chimi and was not disappointed. This comes with a cheese sauce as opposed to the sour cream and guacamole, and it has real crab meat in it! You don't find that everywhere these days.

For dessert, there is no dessert menu, but everyone is served a deep-fried tortilla triangle smothered in some kind of syrup, sprinkled with cinnamon, and topped with whipped cream and fruit coulis. It's just the sweet little bite you need after a really filling meal.

Lunch for two came to $18.18. You just can't beat that, can you?

Valentine's Cookies

So I caved into societal pressure and got all Valentines-y this week. No, I didn't buy chocolate (that comes after Saturday when the chocolates go on sale everywhere). I decided to make heart-shaped cookies. Call me crazy. I even spent a whole 99 cents on a heart-shaped cookie cutter! Go me!

The recipe I used was the Cocoa Sugar Cookies from Canadian Living. You may recall that I used this recipe at Christmas, when I made these cookies. It was a very smart move for me to purchase red and white sprinkles at Christmas time because they can also be used at Valentine's Day. Again, go me!

For the icing, I had a bunch of cream cheese icing (recipe here) left over from my brother's grad cake, which I made last April (icing freezes well, though this got a little lumpy upon thawing). What can I say? I don't like throwing things away! In the end, I got unpretty but quite delicious cookies to share with my family this weekend.

Enjoy!

Mini Marble Cakes

A sugar craving came upon me quite suddenly and because I'm cheap and am trying my best to make as much from scratch as possible, I decided to feed my craving by making some cake. But, I didn't want a whole bunch of cake kicking around because I am trying to watch what I eat. Really. Stop laughing! So, I decided to make half a cake recipe and utilize my nifty new mini loaf pan. The recipe I used was my own adaptation of the Marble Bundt Cake recipe from my new favourite cookbook, Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. The recipe halved well and made exactly 6 mini cakes, though the forms were slightly over-filled.

Mini Marble Cakes

For the chocolate swirl:
3 oz semi sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp instant espresso powder

For the cake:
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 /2 cup butter, softened
1 cup + 2 tbsp sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

1. To make the chocolate swirl, melt the chocolate, cocoa, and espresso powder in the top of a double boiler and mix until smooth. Set aside to cool.

2. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease & flour mini loaf pan. (I did not do this - big mistake. I sprayed my pans very generously but the cakes didn't come out of the pan very well at all)

3. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt.

4. Cream butter until very smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you add all this stuff. Beat everything for 30 seconds.

5. Add sour cream & vanilla and beat until just incorporated. Add dry ingredients in three additions, scraping bowl after each addition, and beat until just incorporated. Don't overmix.

6. Put 1/3 of the batter in a bowl and add the chocolate mixture until smooth.

7. Spread half of the vanilla batter in the bottom of the mini loaf pans. Dollop the chocolate batter on top, then dollop the rest of the vanilla batter on top of that. Using a knife of mini offset spatula, swirl the batters together slightly and then even out the tops.

8. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until done. Let cool slightly before de-panning.

Apart from the de-panning fiasco, this recipe turned out beautifully. The cake wasn't too sweet and was wonderfully moist. They don't look like much, I know, but this was not for anyone other than me and my craving, so I don't care how they looked in the end. I'll freeze the leftovers for when the need strikes again.

Remember that you can double this recipe to make a full-on marble bundt cake. Or how about cupcakes? There are all kinds of possibilities.

Enjoy!

English Muffin Bread

You might remember my homemade English Muffins from December - the ones that didn't turn out to look like any English muffin I know of (but were tasty with Christmas morning Eggs Benny nonetheless). Well, recently, my good blog friend Cherie of Cause I Believe in You posted a recipe for English Muffin Bread, and I thought this was a great idea: the taste and texture of an English Muffin, but in the highly convenient form of a loaf! Excellent. I have a friend who just had a baby, and I went to visit on the weekend. Since I have heard through various grapevines that women with new babies love to be gifted with food because they're tired and overwhelmed, I thought my friend might like some home baking instead of a casserole (which I am terrible at making). Since this recipe makes two loaves, I kept one for myself and took one to my friend.

The recipe can be found on Cherie's blog here.

I didn't get a batter out of this, but rather a dough. I didn't knead. And the result was quite marvelous: taste and texture of an English Muffin, though a little denser. Excellent toasted with jam - just like an English Muffin! Hooray!

Thanks, Cherie!

Magazine Monday #27: Dutch Baby

Who can resist a name like this? I have no idea why this oven pancake is called Dutch Baby, and the Canadian Living web site gives no explanation whatsoever. I was intrigued, though, and decided to have this for dinner last night. I used to have a great recipe for Finnish Apple Pancake, which was similar, only used apples and was more fluffy...Alas I didn't get custody of that cookbook when I got divorced...Ah, well.

The recipe for Dutch Baby, which appears in the March 2009 issue of CL, can be found here. Making this was simple and fast, and it turned out great!

As I was making this and watching it bake - a fascinating process, actually - I was struck by how similar this is to Yorkshire Pudding. And, indeed, it actually tasted a lot like Yorkshire Pudding, too.

The serving suggestion involved icing sugar and lemon, but who are we kidding here? Is this a pancake or not? I served this with butter, maple syrup, and bacon!