Tea, a Drink with Jam and Bread

We're talking tea today.
Because tea is awesome. Hungry and trying not to snack? Have a cup of tea.
Sore throat and achy all over? Tea.
Feeling a little blue? Chilled from walking in the cold November air? Sharing a story with a friend?
Tea, tea and tea is the answer.

Let me be clear. Tea is no substitute for my morning coffee. That is a sacred thing.
Tea is for later in the day. When I need something warm and soothing to accompany me through the afternoon, there's nothing like a having a hot mug of tea in my hand.
There are so many different kinds of tea but I've settled on a couple that are my favorites...

Celestial Seasonings Honey Lemon Ginseng Green tea with white tea added for a smoother taste.
Tulsi Tea Red Chai Masala, which is an African red tea with classic, warm chai spices. A little spicy, very warm.
Numi Decaf Ginger Lemon. Very gentle flavor, but not at all dull.
The Republic of Tea Get Lost herb tea. This is supposedly for "weight control" (which is what attracted me to it at first, of course) but I love the taste. It's another red African rooibos tea with plenty of orange and cinnamon notes. Could be my favorite.

Sometimes a cup of tea needs a little snack to go with it. I'm not talking about the whole British tea time thing, just a bite or two (like, say, a mignardise). Crusty toast with a little jam works just fine, or a molasses cookie. Ok, chocolate chip if you insist.

What kind of tea do you like?

Giveaway Winner

Sometimes Blogger and I just don't get along.
I try to be nice and polite all most of the time, really I do.
I try to patient, which is not at all easy for me.
And I think I'm a good listener.

But Blogger, why oh why do you continually throw roadblocks in my way, frustrating me to no end?
Please. You think I don't have enough frustration already in my life?

Just let me upload one video to show my dear readers who won the giveaway.
Is that too much to ask?

Apparently it is. I have tried five times.
So, no video of my daughter randomly choosing a name and reading it aloud.
You'll have to trust me.

The winner of the Mignardise apron is Diane at 2 Stews.
Diane - send me your address and I'll get it in the mail to you asap.

Thanks to everyone for playing!

Now if I could just get Blogger to play nice too.

It's My Blog-iversary!

Hey friends - it was a year ago this week that I embarked on the little adventure I call Mignardise. Time sure flies when you're having fun.

So what have I accomplished here? Let's take a look...

87 posts

To my great surprise, 24 of them were savory recipes and 21 were for sweets. Ha! I could have sworn I was heavy on the cakes and brownies, but I guess not. I might have to make that up to you.

What was your favorite?

My top three picks are Love and Pancakes, Birthday Sushi with Cake and Ode to Ina.

But the posts that generated the most comments were Celebrating World Nutella Day, Just a Bite and the recent Cinnamon Apple Cake.

98 subscribers

Thanks to each and every one of you. I truly appreciate the support and the faith you have in me.

What about the rest of you? Reminder - it's free! Just put your email in the box on the right. You will get a confirmation from Feedburner in your email. Click "confirm" and Mignardise will appear in your inbox whenever there's a new post. That's all there is to it. Please don't make me beg.


What I've used (approximately)
160 sticks of butter
12 pounds of sugar
5 pounds of chocolate (seems low, doesn't it? Maybe it was more.)


What I've gained
6 pounds (give or take)

Favorite photo

I am still firmly in the amateur category when it comes to food photography. I wish I was better at it and some day I will be. Just not now. Too busy cooking, eating, writing. Oh yeah, and my kids.
There are many blogs out there that have absolutely gorgeous food photos. Check out Food With Style for a taste of them.

I do have one photo of mine I love. Take a look at it here.

The Best Thing I Made All Year
Savory: Coconut Curry Chicken Soup, better than my grandma's chicken soup. But then again she wasn't Asian.
Sweet: Gianduja Straciatella Gelato, the winner, hands down.

The Best Thing I Ate All Week
This is the title of a new feature I'm introducing. It'll probably be on Sundays or Mondays, and it's exactly what it says. It may be something I made. Or not.

You're invited to join in too. Leave a comment telling us the best thing YOU ate all week. I really do want to know.

What's In It for You
I had these lovely Mignardise aprons custom-made just so I can give them away. To be eligible to win, all you have to do is leave a comment of any sort (except nasty) in the comments section of this post by the end of the day Monday, October 19. If you're not sure how to do that, read this.
A winner will be chosen at random. If you don't win this time, don't worry. There'll be more giveaways in the coming year.

Goals
 To connect with you who love good food and appreciate a good story.
To get you to try something new that my family and I love.
To make some new friends, even though we may never meet.
To challenge myself in the kitchen for your sake.
To make you smile.

How am I doing so far?

A Celebration and What's for Dinner Tonight

In two weeks, it will be the blog-iversary of Mignardise.
What? You never heard that word before?

It means I'll have been writing this lovely little blog for a whole year.
What should we do to celebrate?
I have a few ideas...

Subscribe and/or become a follower!
My goal is to have at least 100 subscribers by October 14. Help me, if you haven't already. Put your email address in the little box to the right and you'll receive all Mignardise posts in your email. No obligation, no cost. And again, many thanks to you who have already made my day.

Make a comment and win!
I'll be having a giveaway of something special. I can't tell you what it is yet. But stay tuned. In order to be eligible, you'll have to leave a comment. You could practice by leaving one on this post.

New features!
Be on the lookout for a couple of new weekly features, including one you can participate in too.

Cake!
What's a blog-iversary without cake? Haven't decided on which one, but I promise to challenge myself in the baking department. This shouldn't be too hard.

While you wait for the big day, here's a recipe you've got to try. I've made it twice and both times I've been amazed at not only how easy it is, but how good. It's  been a big hit with the kids, but it's nice enough for company.

Chinese Glazed Pork Tenderloin
adapted from Cook's Country


Serves 4-6


2 pork tenderloins, 1 1/2 to 2 lbs. total

1 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder

salt and pepper

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup dry sherry

3 Tbsps. Hoisin sauce (find it in the Asian section)

2 Tbsp. light brown sugar

1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Pat pork tenderloins dry with paper towels. Season with five-spice powder, salt and pepper.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it just starts to smoke. Cook tenderloins until well-browned all over, 5-7 minutes.

Whisk together water, ketchup, sherry, hoisin, sugar and ginger in a medium bowl. When pork is browned, reduce heat to medium and add sauce mixture. Cover and cook, rolling tenderloins occasionally, until meat registers 145 degrees, about 10-12 minutes. Transfer pork to a cutting board, tent with foil and let rest 5 minutes.

Simmer sauce and any accumulated pork juices until thickened, about 3 minutes. Slice pork and transfer to a serving platter. Pour sauce over pork and serve.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation - Part 1

The family and I just got back from our vacation in northern California. We had so many wonderful experiences, it's hard to know where to start.

There was the beautiful Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate Park.

The Chinatown walking tour.

The visit to our friends' vineyard in Sonoma.

All that will be shared in future posts. Today will be all about the Ferry Building, a must for anyone who loves food.

Who could that be?

I insisted this be the first stop on our first day. While Bob stayed in and did some work (these vacations don't just pay for themselves), I took the kids on the street car that runs along the Embarcadero, to breakfast at the Ferry Building. Before the Golden Gate and Bay

Bridge were built, this was the transportation hub of the city, ferrying millions of people across the bay.

Now it is foodie paradise, with stall after stall of artisanal foods that seem too pretty to eat.

We sat outside, enjoying a French breakfast at Boulette's Larder.

Yes, the food is overpriced and the service indifferent (authentically French I guess), but it was magical to sit outside on a sunny morning in the shadow of the Bay Bridge. The French press coffee was strong and dark. The eggs were deliciously creamy and my multigrain cereal came with an array of extras presented in small wooden boxes.

It seemed important to start the morning with something healthy, because after that it became a sugar free-for-all.

Recchiuti Chocolates

After you eat all that sugar, you know you need a carb to balance it out. So we stopped at Acme Bread, where each loaf tastes as good as it looks.

And what's bread without a piece of cheese?

And friends, all this was before noon...

We returned to the Ferry Building that evening for a fantastic dinner at The Slanted Door, an upscale Vietnamese place. Lucky for me, the whole family likes Asian food, as much as I do.

It's hard to say which we liked better - the pork spareribs in a sticky honey-hoisin sauce or the oven-roasted Manila clams in a dreamy broth laced with thai basil and chilies. Both were incredible. I had to arm wrestle my son for the last sparerib, and the daughter who claims not to like seafood suddenly took a liking to the clams.

I would have taken pictures of the rest of our dishes, like the Niman Ranch Shaking Beef and Caramelized Tiger Prawns, but the savages at my table would have left me with nothing.

It was that good. And by the way, the service was excellent too.

As a perfect ending to the meal, and to our first day in San Francisco, guess what was for dessert?

Mignardises.

Just a Bite

In honor of the new look of Mignardise, I've made you a mignardise.

These petite brownie buttons are a perfect little bite of sweetness. They're great after dinner with coffee.
Or anytime you have a craving for just a taste of something sweet. Like after breakfast or lunch. Or when you get home from the gym. Or just before bed with a glass of milk.

It's sort of  like eating dessert, but not really. Because it's just a bite.

Brownie Buttons,  adapted from Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsps. all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

1/2 stick (4 Tbsps.) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

2 1/2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 large egg

For the glaze, you'll need 2 oz. white chocolate, finely chopped.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350. 

Lightly butter two mini-muffin tins, each with a dozen cups, (or one with two dozen cups, like I have) and place them on a baking sheet.

Whisk the flour and salt together.

Melt the butter, chocolate and brown sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over very low heat, stirring frequently with a heatproof spatula. Keep a close eye on it so it doesn't overheat or burn. When the mixture is smooth, remove from the heat and allow to cool a minute or two.

Stir the vanilla and egg into the chocolate mixture. When the mixture is well blended, add the flour and stir just until it is well incorporated. You should have a smooth glossy batter.

Spoon the batter into 18 of the muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Fill any empty cups with a bit of water (this will allow the pan to heat evenly).

Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the tops spring back when touched. Transfer the pans to cooling racks before carefully releasing the buttons. Cool to room temperature.

To make the glaze,

Melt chocolate in a small heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir constantly, and don't leave it for even a minute - white chocolate scorches easily. As soon as the chocolate is smooth, remove from heat.

Dip the tops of the brownie buttons into the chocolate, one by one. Give it a little twirl so you can get the swirl of chocolate in the center, and any excess drips back into the bowl.

You could add...

- a bit of orange zest mixed with a tsp. of sugar to the brownie batter

- some chopped crystallized ginger to the top

- some coconut on top

Or whatever comes to mind that you think will make them extra-special.

And remember, they're small, so it's ok to eat two.

Candyland and Other Games

Last Friday night, the Senior Auction and Talent Show was held at the local high school.
And since my oldest is a senior, I, along with many others, put hours upon hours into the planning and execution.

Our theme was "Game On!". We used board games as decorations all over the gym.
Parcheesi welcomed the guests.

For a small fee, you could have your friends "arrested" and sent to a Monopoly jail.
Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200.

And the food area was, of course, Candyland. There were dinner offerings, but it was the incredible spread of sweets that drew the crowd in.

Homemade gingerbread men, made by Wendy, who organized all the food.

Sugar cookies, made to look like Monopoly cards and Scrabble tiles, from Cookies by Juju . This talented baker also moonlights as a middle school teacher.

Colorful pails of assorted candy.

And a very rich Cream Cheese Pound Cake, made by me! You can find the recipe for it here. 

I put a lime sugar glaze on it, with some lime zest. I highly recommend this cake - it's absolutely delicious and easy to make.

The auction was a great success - many thanks to all who attended and all who made it such a fun event. You know who you are.

COMING SOON... a new look for Mignardise! Watch for my redesign - it'll still have the flavor of Mignardise, but with more elegance and charm. Check back soon!

About

I'm all about the food. Eating it, writing about it, reading about it, talking about it, thinking about it.  And cooking it. I have no formal training whatsoever, and I don't claim to be an expert. But I feel comfortable and happy in the kitchen, either experimenting or cooking up an old favorite.

What I do know has come from many  sources - friends, a huge collection of cookbooks, an addiction to cooking magazines, the Food Network (hello Tyler Florence!) and other food bloggers. 

There's so much out there to taste! 

  I love anything hot and spicy, loaded with garlic and ginger and lime and chilies. I love all things Italian, from ribollita to granita. Je t'aime the art of French pastry (such as a mignardise) and the cafe life of Paris. I love a cold glass of Torrontes from Argentina and a prickly pear margarita from Arizona. And I love the flavors of my little corner of America - maple, fresh seafood, tomatoes from the September farmer's market.

And chocolate. Anything chocolate. You'll find me coming back to all kinds of chocolate recipes over and over. I just can't quit it. Nor do I want to.

Thanks for visiting me at  Mignardise.  I hope you'll enjoy what you see here, make comments and ask questions. I hope you'll visit often, or better yet subscribe (it's free!).

 And thanks for humoring me. It's not often I get to say whatever I want and no one interrupts.

What is Mignardise anyway?

Mignardise is something, charming, graceful and pretty, often referring to a sweet with your coffee after dinner. It feels good in your mouth when you say it out loud.
Mignardise may be a fancy French word, but it is also a new blog about food - all the food I love to eat, make, bake, read about, talk about and serve. Some of the things I love: chocolate, all baked goods, coffee, almonds, lemons, sweet potato fries, lobster rolls and onion rings. Most of these things are not mignardise at all, but I plan to write about them anyway. Food does not have to be precious, just delicious. A homely no-bake cookie is as worthy as a French macaroon from Laduree.

I'm told that as a child I was a picky eater. Maybe I wasn't offered anything worth eating. In my suburban home, a vegetable was chosen out of the freezer before dinner, an icy rectangle of green served with the t-bone steak or baked chicken. Dessert was the highlight, a square Pepperidge Farm cake also fresh from the freezer. My mother did not know how to cook any other way, nor did she have any desire to learn. But I did. When I was in college, a dear friend gave me The New McCall's Cookbook for my birthday, and I started to cook in the tiny kitchen of our off-campus apartment. Nothing extravagant or unusual, but I found the process to be truly enjoyable. And I became more adventurous and interested in all things food. This was the early '80's when the term "foodie" was not yet in use. Martha Stewart was catering bar mitzvahs in Connecticut and the only chef that most people could name was Boyardee.

Twenty-something years later, I am married and the mother to three great kids and the world's best dog, living life the way it should be. Martha rules the world. My cookbook collection has grown exponentially. I love to cook for my family, but not every night. When I don't, we eat burritos or bibimbap from local restaurants. I love to bake - for the lacrosse team, the football team, the birthdays and classroom celebrations, for myself. I hang out with my neighbor drinking wine and snacking on lemon-artichoke pesto and baguettes from Rosemont Market. I am constantly thinking about what I'm going to make for the next book group meeting, the Halloween party, the cookie exchange, for dinner tonight. I bike, walk and work out with a guy named Big Joe so I can continue to eat as I like.

Mignardise is definitely a work in progress. I'll be posting a couple of times a week. I hope you'll join me for stories, recipes, photos and more. I hope you'll comment on what you like. I hope you'll ask questions. Most of all, I hope you'll enjoy what I have to offer. Say "mean-yar-deez", and tell your friends.