TWD Fresh mango (bread) muffins

I was intrigued when I first found out that Fresh Mango Bread was the TWD (Tuesdays with Dorie) recipe for this week. I’ve made many banana, apple, cranberry, blueberry, carrot and even a zucchini bread, but mangos in a loaf never crossed my mind.

When I read the recipe, I suspected that the subtle flavor of one diced mango would not be very prominent in the bread, so I looked for ways to make it more mango-ey. And as my family already knows, in true Dragana fashion, I just had to put my twist to it: the raisins had to go – they’re way too pedestrian! What I found were delicious, sweet and intensely flavored dried mango pieces. To 1/2 cup of chopped dried mango, I added just enough rum to cover them. Later, I added 3 tablespoons of the soaking rum to the batter (I’m never in favor of discarding good liquor!). I reduced both the sugar to 3/4 cup and the ginger to 1 teaspoon – after all, it’s all about the mangoes, right? I came away with 12 moist and tasty individual muffins.

Thanks to Kelly at Baking with the Boys for selecting this recipe. You can find the original recipe on her blog. After the TWD chocolate onslaught in April, this was a refreshing change. Topped with lightly sweetened whipped cream, diced crystallized ginger, freshly grated lime zest and a chunk of dried mango, these muffins are a winner! Just ask Carolina!

Prijatno!

FBI Rukavice (Gloves) and Medena’s Moist Yogurt Cake!

When I first discovered food blogs last year, I was happy to see several wonderful blogs by my fellow Slavic sisters! These ladies can bake, shake, dice and shoot (pictures, of course!) with the best of them.

I am thrilled to be connected to the talents of Marija, Medena, Vera, Maslinka, Maxiene, and other great bakers and cooks at NikkiL, Nlo and Cuisine by Monsoon. Reading their posts brought back memories of food I ate as a child when my sweet Baba (grandmother) lived with us in South Africa. She was the primary cook in the family while my parents ran the family business.

FBI is an acronym for Food Blog Inspection. Rukavice (gloves) is the Slavic version started by Mamajac of Cooks and Bakes blog. This month, at Marija's recommendation, we inspected Medena's blog, Cafe Chocolada.

I have already made several of Medena’s recipes and none have disappointed! Her blog is colorful and informative and full of traditional desserts from the ‘old’ country. Fabulous!

When I first saw Medena’s: Moist Yogurt Cake with Tart Cherries, I immediately thought of my friend Beth. Beth is a lover of anything tart – green apples, green bananas, lemon filled desserts and anything with cranberries. Beth loves cranberries - I’ve even taught her to enjoy them raw! Cranberries are loaded with antioxidants, fiber and vitamin C. I guess that’s where she gets the energy to run her diminutive body all over the tennis court and chase all the balls down, even when she’s playing a doubles match! A real go-getter, you’ve got to love her!

So, with Beth in mind, I substituted cranberries for the tart cherries. I decided to make a small 6” cake for her and 12 muffins for the rest of the tennis team. The muffins and cake were moist and fluffy when baked, thanks to the addition of yogurt.

Here are my additions to the original recipe: I added 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (to get an extra ‘rise’), 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind and1 teaspoon lemon juice to the batter. Instead of the vanilla sugar, I added 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence.

I topped the cake and muffins with my Cream Cheese Icing:

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups confectioner’s (powdered) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

1 tablespoon lemon juice

In a mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy and combined. Add sugar, essence, lemon rind and juice. On low speed, beat until just combined. Raise speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Ice cakes or pipe on muffins.

Prijatno!

TWD Fresh Ginger and Chocolate Gingerbread ‘volcanoes’ and the John Legend concert.

It’s time for another TWD dessert, but first… John Legend charmed the pants off of me at the Verizon Theatre on Saturday night!  He is a young R&B/Soul artist with an angelic face and a distinctive voice, warm one minute, and raw the next.  Romantic, sexy and very elegant (no excessive Bling!), he is a refreshing contrast to the other new young artists (Kanye West could use a lesson on humility and grace from him).  

Well-spoken and highly communicative, Legend knocked all sense out of a giddy Aggie sophomore sitting next to me and the rest of the well-dressed audience (swagga sistuh!).  Legend’s official site allowed me to link directly to his videos (the coolest for computer challenged moi!)  Listen here:  http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1885429856/bclid8711344001/bctid458993325

And here: http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1885429856/bclid8711344001/bctid1364233662

This week’s recipe from Dorie Greenspan’s book, Baking, From My Home To Yours, was chosen by Heather of Sherry Trifle.  The recipe was pretty straight forward and gained respect from me from the outset because one of the ingredients is my favorite - buttermilk (think moist, moist, moist).  I omitted the stem ginger and coffee and decided to make individual portions (for easier distribution to the neighbors!).  I finished each with a drizzle of chocolate sauce, a dollop of whipped cream and a chunk of crystallized ginger.  All lined up, they reminded me of erupting volcanoes!  I had the cutest, sweetest and most elegant model of the Pacific Rim of Fire on my kitchen counter!   Thanks Heather!

Prijatno!

Dorie’s delectable Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins!

I do not have much time to write tonight, but I did manage to make Dorie’s moist and delectable corn muffins this morning. Move over Aunt Jemima – make way for these tasty delights! If you have not made corn muffins from scratch yet – this is an easy recipe to begin with.

The inclusion of buttermilk in the recipe immediately won me over! I hail from a culture where buttermilk and yogurt are consumed on a daily basis and are credited with longevity (I’m hoping for the same!). When used in baking, they add lots of moisture and sometimes a little tang. Pair buttermilk or yogurt with hot corn ‘mush’ or polenta and, in my humble opinion, you have a wholesome breakfast that beats any over processed cereal from a box.

I was lucky enough to pick several small red bell peppers from our garden less than a week ago (such are the perks of mild Houston winters). I chopped a couple up and they added beautiful color and flavor to the muffins. I used frozen corn and added 3 more tablespoons to the batter. I used only 1 tablespoon of sugar because I like my savory muffins less sweet. In the absence of a fresh jalapeno, I chopped up some pickled slices from the relish shelf in the refrigerator. They provided just the right amount of heat. Cilantro is my favorite herb, so I jacked up the amount by about 1/2 tablespoon.

When combined, I noticed that the batter was quite thick and foamy and I suspected that the baking soda was already reacting to the the acids in the buttermilk, getting the leavening process underway. I baked the batter in three different size muffin pans for variety and when they came out, the first thing I did was devour a couple with a chilled glass of buttermilk. They were very flavorful and moist – the perfect breakfast treat!

Moist and flavorful!

Thanks to Rebecca of Ezra Pound Cake for suggesting Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins on page 6 of Baking, From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.

Prijatno!