Twinkie Trifle - A Completely Silly Bit of Foodie Fun

I needed a dessert that went together quickly, where most of the prep could be done in advance, and would still appeal to a variety of eaters.

So I decided to revisit a dessert I did years ago, with a slightly different take:  a Twinkie Trifle.

Let's first define what an English trifle is:  "a traditional English layered dessert featuring sponge cake or ladyfingers soaked in sherry or fruit juice, layered with custard, fruit (fresh or jelly), and topped with whipped cream, often garnished with nuts or cherries."

My American trifle used the iconic Twinkie, that golden sponge cake filled with a white cream center.

Picture courtesy of Wikipedia.

I bought a big box with 16 Twinkies in it, individually wrapped.  That was one prep step completed.

For a custard, I bought a big box of instant pudding; the flavor was chocolate fudge.  I mixed it with milk the day before I needed the dessert so it had time to set up in the refrigerator.  I used just a little less milk than the recipe called for to make sure it was thick.

I used fresh strawberries, sliced and lightly sprinkled with powdered sugar.  Again, I did this the day before the gathering.  The next day, the berries had released a lot juice, which was my goal.

Also the day before, I whipped heavy whipping cream with just a little bit of powdered sugar.

So all the prep was done, and just before I needed the dessert, I assembled it in a glass serving bowl.

The layers were:  Twinkies, pudding, strawberries, repeat all.  Then I spooned the whipped cream over the top and sprinkled sliced almonds.  The shape tilted inward, so I didn't fill the entire bowl as that would have been too much.

Pictures!

Bottom layer.

Pudding layer.

Fruit and whipped cream on top.  Did I forget to take a picture of just the fruit layer???

Nutty.

Notice that the second layer of Twinkies were broken up into smaller pieces than the first layer had them.

Some of my guest tasters don't consume alcohol, so I didn't sprinkle the Twinkies with anything.  

Once it was assembled, I served it up.

The Verdict

Despite my best efforts, it was pretty sweet.  It was fun to look at, brought laughter at the table because I used Twinkies, and we all tried it.

I liked it, especially with the strawberries.  The nuts were a nice touch, adding a crunch to an otherwise soft dessert.  Some of my guest tasters enjoyed it, too, although we were already pretty full from the preceeding dinner.

Success!

However, there were leftovers, which were so much better the next day.  I believe that the liquid from the fruit had soaked into the Twinkies overnight.  This seemed to even out the sweetness factor, making the entire dessert much better and appealing.  Success again!

Years ago, I made this with milk chocolate pudding and canned cherries.  I cooked the juice the cherries were in to thicken it with cornstarch and added a little sugar and orange liqueur.  Once that cooled, I put the cherries back into the juice.  I also sprinkled the Twinkies with a little orange liqueur.  I think I put some powdered ginger in the whipped cream, too.  That was also a fun and tasty dessert.

You can see this is a playful dessert that you can adjust to suit your tastes and preferences.  Use the concept of an English trifle to guide your choices.  Let me know what you did!

Pudin de Lolita, Lolita's Pudding -- a Pinedo recipe

On page 215 is this pudding, dedicated to Lolita.  I wish I knew who she was.  There are other puddings dedicated to other women, some of whom are clearly Encarnación Pinedo's nieces.  This could be to one of her nieces who was referred to by a nickname.  Or it could be to a family friend or cousin.  

What is intriuging about it is that it is a sweet pudding (one and a half pounds of sugar!!!) but it also has meat in it.  It reminds me of the old (early 1800s and prior) ante recipes.  They were originally designed to be served at the beginning of the meal (thus ante or "before") which did have meat and sugar in them.  Later they were declared to be desserts, and typically did not have meat in them.  Pinedo put several ante recipes in her book.  I made one previously, which you can view by clicking here:  Ante de Camote y Pina - A Luscious Dessert with Sweet Potatoes and Pineapple (pg 16).

The questions I had with this recipe are:  Exactly what kind of pudding is it?  She offered a variety of pudding styles, from boiled to steamed to baked to baked in a bain marie.  She mentioned using crumbled bread, so is it like a bread pudding?  But with the requirement of cream and eggs, presumably lots of them, I wondered if it were more like a baked custard.  I still don't know exactly what a "kettle cup" is, but I presume it is around what we call 2 cups or 16 ounces.  She said three kettle cups, which is six of our cups.  That is a lot of cream!  

I decided to create it as a custard pudding, with the eggs and cream being the major support and the other ingredients making it interesting.  I was very tempted to bake it in a bain marie, but decided she would have specified that if she felt it was important.  Puddings like this need to be baked in a very low oven so the custard doesn't curdle or cook up like scrambled eggs.  I also chose to interpret a kettle cup as one of our 8-ounce cups, at least at the beginning of making the recipe, until I saw how the thing was going together.  Then I would adjust as needed.

She did mention early in the pudding section that puddings should be put into shallow baking dishes.  Instructions noted!

Her recipe

My Translation

My Redaction

1 pound sliced almonds

1 1/2 pounds sugar

8 ounces chicken breast, already cooked

3 cups cream

1/2 ounce butter, melted

1/2 cup bread crumbs

6 large eggs, separated

For crumbs: I started with two 3-inch diameter rolls, broken open to dry, & pounded in the mortar.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.  Butter the inside of a large, shallow ceramic dish.  (See Notes.)

Chop the chicken breasts into about 1/4-inch pieces.  

In a large bowl, mix the cream and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved.  Add the melted butter and mix well.

Separate the eggs.  Beat the yolks well and then mix them into the cream mixture.

Mix the bread crumbs into the cream mixture.

Mix the chicken and almonds into the cream mixture.  

Whip the egg whites to stiff.  Fold them into the cream mixture.

Fill the baking dish.  

Bake for 1 hour (see Notes), until the center jiggles when the pan is shaken but stops when the movement stops, and the top is browned.  

Let cool at least a little before serving.

Chopped chicken.

Cream, sugar, yolks, and breadcrumbs, all mixed.

With the chicken and almonds.

With whipped egg whites.  That is one full bowl!

My Notes

Instead of two chicken breasts as she specified, I decided the one really big one I had on hand would suffice.  I weighed it instead of counting the quantity.

The chicken breast was previously cooked on a grill after being rubbed with olive oil and ground black pepper.  There was not a lot of seasoning on the piece I chose, so I don't think the pepper influenced the flavor of the dish.

I did some reading in my Ratio book by Michael Ruhlman in order to get a sense of how many eggs were "necessary."  Believing this would be a custard-like dish, I decided to use 6 eggs for 3 cups of liquid, giving a ratio of 12 ounces eggs to 24 ounces cream.  Keep in mind that eggs are very carefully sized for us, whereas Señorita Pinedo made do with whatever eggs were available to her.  They could have been all different sizes.

I had no idea how much volume the recipe would make, so I ended up using two ceramic baking dishes; one held 2 1/2 liters and the other 2 liters.  It helped to use a ladle to move the batter into the dishes.  

I thought it was done after 45 minutes of cooking, but once I broke through the crust on the top, the middle looked liquid, so I put it back in the oven for another 15 minutes.  It is possible it was ready at 45 minutes -- it was browned and it certainly smelled good.  

Ready for the oven.  Two full baking dishes.

After 60 minutes of baking time.

The Verdict

Letting the pudding cool a little seemed to give it a chance to set up in the middle.

The browned top was a crunchy crust.

My first bite was ... interesting.  Wow, was it sweet!  But the flavor of the meat came through, which was intriguing when combined with the almonds and the sweet.

The custard I expected was more like the matrix which held together the chicken and almonds.  It was not dense; I suspect because of the whipped egg whites.  

It tooks a few bites before I really liked it.  My mouth had to adjust to the concept of meat and sweet.  But then I liked it.  The almonds added a nice crunch.  

It was sweet, as I said, and it was rich.  I will have more, as will my guest taster who was trying to guess all that was in it and thought there was some fruit in it.   He certainly enjoyed it.

In thinking about this blog post, I had trouble deciding if it was a dessert (but it had meat in it!) or a side dish (but it was sweet!).  My guest taster thought you could have it as either, depending on what you wanted for the meal.  I think that is good advice.  

I then shared this with two other guest tasters.  One, quite the foodie, thought it wasn't very sweet at all (I was astonished) and liked that because he doesn't really like sweet foods.  He also felt, at first, that it had undercooked bread in it but then later decided that wasn't it and it wasn't a problem.  He loved the nuts and how crunchy they were.  He was surprised to know there was meat in it.  

The other guest taster did not enjoy the food.  He felt his mouth was "conflicted" because of the meat and sweet combination.  It was "okay" but not something he would want to repeat.  But he did think that he could get used to it if he other opportunities to try it.

Success!

It was just as good warmed up the next day.  Maybe even better, as I got more of the custardy part in each spoonful.

I hope Lolita would be pleased with my result.

If I were to do this again, I would use half the amount of chicken and almonds, and I would use about 1/3 of the amount of sugar.  But I would still use the same amount of cream and eggs and bread crumbs because my mouth kept wanting more of that matrix around the meat and nuts.  I think changing the amount of butter is optional.

If I did this as a modern "upgrade," I would reduce the amount of sugar a lot, try using whole milk instead of cream, and consider using raisins as a delightful bit of chewy sweet.  But still use chicken, because I think it surprises people, and that is always fun.

Playing With Fire - Chicken Thighs and a Chicken and Veggie Stew

A recent cold day gave me the opportunity to build a fire in my fireplace, which of course means cooking!

I didn't have any particular recipe in mind, I just wanted to play and see what I could make.  Also, I wanted to try out my new fireplace crane.

Lovely, no?

It is important to manage your fire and hot coals supply before, during, and after cooking.  You always have to be thinking ahead and considering, "Do I have enough to cook now?  Will I have enough later?  How quickly are the coals burning out and do I need to put fresh wood on the fire to start making more?"

A lot of these answers depend on the wood you are using and the foods you are cooking.  With practice, you can assess the situation quickly and adjust as needed.  When I do historical food demonstrations, I start with charcoal, which is easier to haul and use than chunks of wood.  

Sometimes I see television shows or movies portraying cooking with fire as a pot over robust flames (ahem, Star Trek Voyager and Neelix's kitchen!) but that gives you little control over the cooking process.  You need to be able to adjust the heat by moving coals in and out, sometimes under the pot but sometimes on top of or next to.  When I cook when flames are present, the pot is usually off to the side while the contents are stirred often and the pot rotated to offer the cooler side to the fire.  In very old kitchen setups, you will see areas where a few coals can be placed on bricks and the pot is set on a grate over them.  With this, you can get very gentle heat for delicate cooking.

So I lit the fire and waited for the coals to form.

This wood popped cinders often.  Note the small black chunks on the tile.

Then I pulled some coals towards me and started preheating my Dutch oven.

Those coals are HOT!

Into the pan went olive oil.  I had prepared the boneless, skinless chicken thighs by rolling them in breadcrumbs spiced with pepper, cinnamon, garlic powder, and paprika.  The following picture reminds me that you should always have a plan for where you will set your utensils.  I don't want to put them on the tiles.  In this case, the tongs rested on the plate that held the meat.  Sometimes you need a separate plate or bowl, depending on how many tools you are using.  

Gloves with leather palms work well for heat protection and are easy to put on or take off.

I used the tongs to put the thighs in the pan and wiggled them a little to help keep them from sticking.  They started sizzling immediately.  

(Note:  I learned the wiggle technique from Hank Shaw's website, "Hunter, Angler, Gardener, Cook", found here:  https://honest-food.net/  Look at his post for "How to Sear Fish."  Credit where it is due!)

I checked them often, and when the downside was browned, I flipped them and moved the pan further from the heat so they could cook thoroughly.

I love the crust they developed!

Notice that I put a lid on the pan at this point.  Remember how I said the wood was popping a lot of cinders?  I tell you, cinders taste bad and you want to keep them out of your food as much as possible.   I needed a long time to get the meat's interior cooked, which means exposure to cinders.  Cover your pans as often as possible.  Some of my pans didn't come with lids, so I use lids that I do have to cover them, even if they don't fit well.  I'm also in the process of making ceramic lids that will fit them.  

The pan is getting heated on one side now, but the bricks were pretty warm and the pan was still hot.  I was confident that the thighs would cook as I wanted them to.  I also reduced the number of coals in the cooking area.

When they were done, they had released juices into the pan.

Smelled good!

The thighs were cooked all the way through, maybe more than I would normally cook them, but they were still moist and tasty.

I decided last minute to make a gravy out of the pan juices.  I added more breadcrumbs and adjusted the spicing (including salt) to enhance the flavors.  This I cooked in the Dutch oven but on my stove.

A very thick gravy.

The meal consisted of chicken thighs topped with gravy, whipped sweet potatoes, and cranberry sauce.  You can find the recipe for the sweet potatoes by clicking here:   Cardamom-Scented Sweet Potatoes.

MMMMMM!

A very lovely meal indeed.

Hey!  I still had fire and coals and the time to make something that cooked slowly (while I enjoyed the meal).  So I made a chicken and vegetable stew and utilized the crane.

This time I used my large kettle (not the giant one you see in the corner of the fireplace).  I put in olive oil, chopped chicken thighs, and chopped onions.  I cooked them over hot coals, covered but checking them and stirring often, until the onions were transluscent.  A few times I rotated the kettle to warm up the cool side.

This is one of those situations when you need to think ahead about where the utensils would be placed  and where the hot lid would go while I was stirring and checking.  A nearby clean pot held the spoon when it wasn't in my hand, and the same pot held the lid when I was stirring the food.

The lid is too big, but it worked.

Then I added the rest of the ingredients, all canned: corn, garbanzo beans, green beans, tomato sauce.  I didn't throw any spices in until later.  I included the liquid from the green beans and corn, too.

After everything was stirred, up onto the crane it went!  Online reviews of the crane said it could hold a lot of weight, but I was worried anyway.  What if it pulled out from the wall?  Well, it didn't, and I was glad.  I built up the fire and put a lid on the kettle.  It was high enough that the live fire wasn't overheating the food.  

Lid went on after this picture was taken.

The beauty of the crane is that I don't have to lean into the fireplace and lift a heavy kettle up and out.  Safer, for sure, and easier on my back and arms.  It swings the kettle over to me, and I just need to lift it off the hook and set it on the hearth.

Aside from the occasional checking to see how the fire was doing and to stir the stew, I ignored the cooking process.  A lovely slow-cooking process ensued; I was looking for the tomato sauce to darken, which means it is well-cooked.

At some point I added spices:  pepper, garlic, salt.  After about three hours (or so), the stew was ready.

We ate it the next day, which allows the flavors to meld and develop.  Always a good thing to do with stews.

Of course it was good!  Success, twice!

It is always fun to play with the fire and cook something.  I'm hoping for another cool day in the near future so I can do it again.

Cheers!

Huevos con queso - Eggs with Cheese, a Pinedo recipe

It's time for a Pinedo recipe!  If you are new to this blog, I translated Encarnación Pinedo's 1898 cookbook, El Cocinero Español (The Spanish Cook) and am attempting to get it published.  In the meantime, I cook from it and post the attempts here on the 15th of the month.  I also publish them on my Pinedo-only blog, "The Spanish Cook Without Equal", found here:  https://pinedo1898.blogspot.com/ 

Today's recipe is on page 127, "Huevos con queso" or "Eggs with Cheese."

My Translation

Keeping in mind that she was cooking over fire; the idea of browning with a hot fire is equivalent to broiling in an oven.

My Redaction

Per serving:

butter

1 slice bread

1/4 to 1/3 cup shredded cheese

1 egg

ground pepper

ground nutmeg

The butter asked politely to be included.

Melt butter in frying pan.  Add slice of bread, sprinkle most of the shredded cheese on the bread, break open the egg, and gently let it sit on top of the cheese.  Sprinkle the egg with the rest of the cheese and then with pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Set heat to low, cover the pan, let cook for 6 to 10 minutes or until egg is cooked almost to your liking.  When the egg is nearly cooked, place pan under the broiler for a minute or two to finish melting the cheese and brown it a little.

My Notes

She didn't say to use butter on the pan, but I did anyway.

I used mozzarella cheese, although I think a stronger flavored cheese would be good, too.

I tried this twice.  The first time the heat was 2 of 10, I did not cover the pan, and after nearly 45 minutes, the egg was not cooked and the bread was toasted too much.  I put a lid on it and let it cook a few minutes more before broiling it.  The result was an egg that was overcooked (I like runny yolks) and dry toast.  Not exciting.  My guest taster didn't realize that there were any spices on it, and I had trouble tasting them even though I knew they were there.

Build the bread stack in the pan.

Bread and cheese

Bread cheese egg.

Bread cheese egg cheese spices.  Use more spices.

After about 30 minutes of cooking.  The cheese melting but the egg is still uncooked.

After cooking under the lid for about 10 minutes.  Egg is cooked.

Under the broiler for less than two minutes.

Overcooked, in my opinion.

The Verdict

The second time the heat was set a little higher, 4 of 10, and I covered the pan.  After 8 minutes the egg was nearly done but the toast was burnt (ugh).  I didn't broil it because I didn't want to cook the toast any further.

I also used more spices, but not too much.  

What I got was an egg that was cooked just right and toast that was blackened on the bottom and not tasty.  I could taste the spices, which I liked.

Attempt #2, after about 8 minutes cooked under the lid.

Egg is just right.  Toast is burnt.

My conclusion:  use the lower heat and cover the pan.  No one wants to wait 45 minutes or more to eat their egg and toast.

So success?  Almost but I'm not sure I can really count it as such yet.  With a little practice I could get the timing just right and really enjoy it.

I think this would be a good meal to serve a crowd with these modifications:  Heat the oven to 350 degrees F, use a cookie sheet and set up each serving on the sheet so you can cook a bunch at a time.  You might not need to broil them but the broiler is right there if you do.  While one batch is cooking, set up the next.  

This also seems like a good camping recipe, since you get toast and an egg with one pan (and a lid!) and one cooking run.

Cranberry Calavo Salad - Addendum!

I was wandering around one of my favorite parts of the internet:  archive.org AKA The Internet Archive.  Since my interest lie in historical cooking, this site is a treasure trove of resources.  It is fascinating to explore!  Sometimes what I find is what I hoped to find, other times I find something completely unexpected.

This adventure was learning more about Genevieve Callahan and the columns she wrote while food editor of Sunset Magazine.  In looking for those, I stumbled across the recipe and description of the Cranberry Calavo Salad.  What is exciting is that it is given as pictures!

Here it is, as found by clicking this link.  Note that their scan of the pages cut off the title.

Cut calavos length-wise; peel and dress with lemon juice-

With French cutter, cut balls from canned cranberry jelly --

Peel and section oranges; cut segments in halves -

Pile cranberry balls and orange pieces in calavo shells --

Add French dressing, and serve on lettuce.

So I was close in my rendition.  I did one big spoonful of cranberry sauce, not balls.  (I used whole berry sauce, so for balls I think you would need the jellied cranberry sauce that was uniform in consistency.)  I also sliced my calavo halves instead of using them as a bowl.  I did not cut my orange segments in two.

But I also loved the way my presentation looked, I think I would like it better than hers.  (I'm just a little biased on that point!)

While looking around even more, I found variations that skipped the orange segments and used smoked turkey pieces or ham with the avo and cranberry.  These recommend putting the French dressing on the side.

What fun!