The Lederman Kitchen

You might remember a few Saturday's ago, Brian and I had a feast.  He made Cacio e Pepe with homemade pasta and mushroom bruschetta.  And for dessert, I made Strawberry Shortcake.  Well, here it is, and it was good.  So, if you're in need of a festive summer dessert, give it a shot. Strawberry Shortcake I made half of the recipe and it still made 4 very large shortcakes.  The directions also said to use a food processor, but I managed with a bowl and spoon since that is all I have over here. (measurements are for 1/2 recipe) 1 1/2 cups flour 1/4 cup sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/3 teaspoon salt (just guess) 6 tablespoons of butter, cut into small pieces 1/4 cup light cream 1 egg 1/4 teaspoon vanilla First, preheat the oven to 375°F. Then mix flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together.  Add butter and mix until you have pea sized butter remaining. In another bowl, wish together 1/4 cup cream, the egg and va...

As I mentioned in my previous post , I owed Brian a good dinner when he returned from his work trip. We had a surplus of leeks and I was determined to use them up.  I came across a recipe for Potato & Leek Flatbread with Greens from Real Simple, and decided to give it a shot.  We hadn't made a pizza since we moved and it used to be a weekly staple. I admit, I was a little nervous based on the limited ingredients for a pizza, but it turned out really good.  And, since we've finally had a few warm days here in Dublin, we were able to eat on our patio and enjoy a glass of Rose!  Perfect. Ingredients: 1 pound pizza dough - I made mine from this recipe  (which is still my favorite homemade pizza ever) 2 small leeks, white and light green parts, cut into strips 2 medium red potatoes, thinly sliced (A mandoline would be really helpful with this!) 1 teaspoon fresh thyme 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil sea salt and black pepper 1 c...

I pulled this one out of the archives of posts we never posted.  That said, this was made back in San Francisco.  A delicious treat for any occasion, or just to satisfy your sweet tooth after dinner. Ingredients   3/4 cup slivered almonds 1 cup butter or margarine 1 cup sugar 3 tablespoons boiling water 2 tablespoons light corn syrup 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips First, sprinkle the almonds on a baking sheet and bake at 300 for 15 minutes or until they get brown.   When finished, leave 1/2 cup on pan and set aside the other 1/4 to use for the topping.  If you prefer, you can chop these into smaller pieces. While the almonds are baking, in a saucepan, over low heat, cook butter and sugar for 5 minutes.   Then add water and corn syrup and bring to a boil, keeping the heat at medium Cook, stirring occasionally, until a candy thermometer reads 300°F, which is hard crack stage.  This is the part that t...

Although we haven't been blogging about it, we've been cooking almost all of our meals over here.  I've definitely been doing more cooking than usual. Last night I was trying to use up some lettuce and pasta shells that we had from earlier in the week, and came across a Martha Stewart recipe, Pasta with Sausage, Leeks & Lettuce .  I only needed to buy 3 ingredients, perfect! I have to admit, Brian helped/advised a little but I did most of the heavy lifting. And the outcome?  In Brian's words, "The best dinner we've had yet".  Nothing like a little kitchen confidence for me.  It's definitely one for the recipe box.

I had a week off work between the holidays, so I decided to try and pickle some veggies.  Brian has been obsessed with picked veggies ever since we went to Argentina where all cheese plates were huge and filled with every type of veggie, pickled. My Veggies, all pickled This is what cheese plates in Argentina look like! I went to the Farmer's Market in search of in season veggies to pickle and came home with cauliflower, green beans, radishes, carrots and ginger.  Then I did some research for Quick Pickle recipes.  Since I had all day, I decided to try a different recipe for each veggie. Here are the recipes for the best 3.  Let's not talk about the radishes or ginger.... Lemony Pickled Cauliflower 2 pounds cauliflower 1 cup apple cider vinegar 1 cup water 2 teaspoons sea salt 1 small lemon, sliced 1 large garlic clove, sliced 1/4 teaspoon peppercorns First wash the cauliflower and break or cut it into florets In a la...

Cowboy cookies have always been on the top of my list of cookies my mom makes.  They are a crowd pleaser and instant hit.  Who doesn't like an oatmeal, chocolate chip cookie with nuts?  They happen to be Brian's favorite too. So, when he was at work on his 30th birthday, and I was at home with the day off, I had to bake some up and deliver them to his office. But don't feel bad for him - working on his 30th Birthday.  We had a surprise 30th Bday brunch for both of us in Portland with my family (thanks Jenn).  And we're having a Birthday party in SF for him next weekend as well. Cowboy Cookies 1 cup white sugar 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup unsalted butter 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 2 cups flour 2 cups oatmeal 6 ounces chocolate chips 1 cup slivered almonds or crushed walnuts, or omit This one is pretty simple.  Blend first seven ingredients with a mixer. ...