Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Demarle Party at Home



This week I hosted a Demarle at Home cooking party. My friends and I sat around watching a cooking demo and we also did a recipe exchange. For those not familiar, Demarle at Home is a direct sales company that allows customers in the U.S. to enjoy Silpat products from France, not readily available in our stores. Sure there are Silpat mats and versions of Silpat in the U.S. market, but to have the other high-quality silcone/woven glass molds and mats one usually has to order through high-end online stores and often at higher costs. I was excited to see these products demonstrated in my home and have already been enjoying my sister’s Flexipan flower petal mold to bake muffins and single-portion size quiches. Here is a link to Demarle at Home where you can browse their catalog and shop:
http://experience.demarleathome.com

I have also included below our recipes from the evening.

Black Bean Chipotle Soup served at the party – Go to January Archives on the blog and at the end of the Very Local Chez Carrie post, you will find the recipe.

Texas-Sized Blueberry Muffins submitted by Corrin
(Makes 8 large muffins)

2 ½ c flour
2 t baking powder
½ t salt
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ c sugar
3 eggs
¾ c milk
1 t vanilla
2 ½ -3 c fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in mixing bowl and set aside. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy with mixer. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Add milk and vanilla to wet mixture. Slowly add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just blended. Gently fold in blueberries. Fill Flexipan Texas Muffin Tray or muffin tray of your choice. Place on Perforated Baking Sheet if using Flexipan product. Fill muffin trays half full and bake for 35 minutes or until lightly golden.
 
Oatmeal Cake with Icing submitted by Judy

1 ¼ c boiling water
1 c quick cook oats
½ c butter
1 c white sugar
1 c brown sugar
2 eggs beaten
1 1/3 c flour
¾ t baking soda
 ¼ t salt
½ t cinnamon

Pour water over oats and let stand while preparing rest of mixture. Cream butter, add sugars, and continue creaming. Add beaten eggs. Sift flour, soda, salt and cinnamon. Add oat mixture and dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Pour into your choice of Flexipan mold or greased and floured square cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

Icing
¼ c milk
6 T butter
¾ brown sugar
1 c coconut
1 c nuts (pecans suggested)
1 t vanilla

Mix all ingredients and pour over warm cake. Put under broiler (remember to transfer to broiler safe plate if using Flexipan mold) until mixture bubbles and browns slightly.

Spinach Salad submitted by Judy

1 lb fresh spinach
1 can sliced water chestnuts
2 hard-boiled eggs shredded
½ lb bacon diced
¾ c bean sprouts
Note: Other ingredients can be added such as grape tomatoes.

Dressing
1 small diced onion
1 T Worchestershire sauce
½ c salad oil
½ c white sugar
¼ c ketchup
2 T apple cider vinegar

Mix above ingredients in blender or by hand with whisk. Mix dressing several hours before serving over salad to let flavors mellow together and keep at room temperature.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

The New Eggshell Bistro

Eggshell Bistro, in the heart of Carmel, is on Indianapolis Monthly's list of best new restaurants this year. I peeked in as I picked up cupcakes at Holy Cow Cupcakes next door. I love the look of this breakfast/lunch bistro. The first thing you notice is its cheery yellow metal chairs and its progressive edge. I looked in the bakery case and decided to pick up a few lemon poppy seed scones. They had a limited menu listed on a chalkboard. I was intrigued by its look and paid the steep $8 for my two scones on a fancy tablet where my bill appeared. Once home I tried out the scones which were pretty good, maybe a little eggy and probably not worth the price. I will put this on my list as a place I would like to go to try a meal without the toddler. I suspect however that I will find it overpriced and perhaps not quite as good as I would expect from its sophisticated face.

Eggshell Bistro on Urbanspoon

Casa Grande in Castleton

After a brief hiatus I am back on the restaurant scene.  We were taking a friend out to eat, who had moved out to LA a few years ago. We were looking for a decent restaurant with pleasant atmosphere that was also OK for kids. When taking out-of-town visitors to eat out, I am quickly reminded of the limited good food choices. I strongly felt this again last evening. With Cooper's Hawk fully booked we headed to Casa Grande for Mexican. It is housed in the former Max and Erma's behind the mall. When I walked in, I immediately liked the place. It was a notch above most Mexican restaurants as far as decor. It had well-appointed booths, tile, and rich-looking wooden banisters and tables. In-house chips and freshly made salsa were on the table. Also served with the chips is ranch dressing??  The chips and salsa were very good and were starting to quickly fill our bellies. The freshly made guacamole next to us made me want to order it. It was abundant and beautiful in color. Service was prompt and our entrees appeared in better than average time. The entrees, though, were average - not bad but not that good. My  husband's beef fajitas were large in portion, comprised of thin strips of meat and a variety of bell peppers coming with a side of rice or beans and a small smattering of shredded iceberg lettuce. My vegetarian enchilada dish featured a bean burrito, cheese enchilada and bean tostada with a few shreds of lettuce all which were very average. The food seemed spare for $8 and was very bland. My daughter made the mistake of ordering the cheese pizza from the kids menu which came out with white soft squishy dough. Even after sending it back, it returned too pale. The dessert menu was limited.

Atmosphere - 8
Service -8
Price - 6
Presentation - 6
Food - 6
Overall - 6
Casa Grande Mexican Grill on Urbanspoon