can't nail it down
bean desires and a better flourless cake
How’s everyone doing, on a scale of ‘hanging in there’ to ‘every day is a nightmare I can’t wake up from’? I don’t know how to explain where I’m at, mentally, except to say that I’m considering starting Breath of the Wild for the third time, instead of, I don’t know, finishing either of my two 95% complete runs, playing literally any other video game, or doing anything else constructive with my free time.
Over the weekend I did finish the sweater I’ve been working on, which is exciting. It’s definitely still chilly enough, at least in my house, that I should have at least a few weeks of wearing it ahead of me. And once I dig my bike out, maybe even a few weeks after that— days when it feels warm enough to enjoy being outside get cold pretty quickly once that speed-induced breeze hits your face. It looks like the sun’s coming back for a bit, but I hope you’ll still enjoy reading about the things I made during a solid week of rain.
Because February is so short, the last weekend of the month came about before I’d even considered what cake to make. I didn’t want to go out for ingredients because Jeff had taken the car to go skiing, so I was limited to what I already had in the house. I found this flourless chocolate wave cake in my bookmarks, from Claire Saffitz’s Dessert Person. I was excited to make it because she, too, finds a lot of flourless chocolate cakes to be overly sweet and ganache-like, so this lighter version looked more to my taste.
I opted for a half recipe baked in a 6” pan so that Jeff and I wouldn't have to be responsible for an enormous chocolate cake getting more stale with each passing day. Also I didn’t want to commit to putting half of my dozen eggs into a single baked good. The cake came together easily with just a few other ingredients, and my only gripe was that I had to look up the video to see what type of sugar is used to whip the eggs (it’s granulated, but meringues sometimes use powdered sugar, so I wanted to be sure). The recipe recommends the addition of amaretto or dark rum; I chose amaretto as a complement to the almond flour.
This cake is uniquely lovely: soft and moist in the centre almost like a brownie, but with delicate, fluffy edges and a crackly top. The way it melts on your tongue is fantastic, and the flavour isn’t overly rich, either. Jeff picked up a pint of vegan black forest ice cream at Earnest on his way home, and we served a scoop of that on the side. The cake was so excellent that part of me regrets making such a small one, but the texture does suffer if it’s not eaten within the first three days of making it, so I’m telling myself it’s for the best.
In the freezer I found the last container of a huge batch of pomodoro sauce I made in August, and it was the perfect excuse to make something I love but rarely feel I have time for: the deliciously savoury tempeh meatballs from Isa Does It. The book also includes a stellar marinara which I make often, but making the meatballs and sauce the same day is more of a weekend activity. These vegan meatballs come together more quickly than you’d think if the sauce is already made. The recipe can easily be halved since most tempeh comes in 8oz packages; I prefer smaller meatballs so I still got 10 or 11 out of a half batch. But the meatballs are pretty versatile if you do want to make a full batch and freeze some— in stew or with miso gravy, and I won a cookoff once by serving them like Italian polpette with crostini to pick up the extra sauce.
I really recommend an all-soybean, softer tempeh like Tempea or Noble Bean here; Green Cuisine or ones that have grains in them can be too crumbly to hold together well. This was my first time making these with Tempea and I was really happy with the texture I got. I also tried them in the oven this time instead of a frying pan, rolling each one in oil before baking at 400°F for about 20 minutes. I prefer the frying pan because the outside doesn’t dry out as much, but they were still good, and it kept my two large burners free to heat the sauce and cook the noodles while they baked.
Is it weird to crave the general idea of beans? I dunno, but I made a huge pot of white beans this week because I just really wanted to eat some dang beans. I used half of them in making a version of this white bean and herb casserole with tuna. Although I make it fairly often, I never make it exactly as written (it’s too dry) and I’ve never made it exactly the same way twice. The ‘optional’ rosemary is a must, but the type of other herbs and cheese are variable, and I usually add in some capers or a dash of wine vinegar. Since I almost always serve it on toast I skip the potato chip topping, and bake for about 12 minutes at 425°F, then broil to brown the cheese (cheddar and parmesan this time). On an evening following a late afternoon flash thunderstorm, this was so comforting.
With the other half of the beans, I made a fire-roasted tomato and white bean soup. This recipe was the inspiration, and the people commenting on it being underwhelming didn’t deter me: if you see a recipe that you think has too few ingredients, it’s okay to add whatever else you like! It’s a base! In addition to the copious amounts of garlic, I used most of my usual tomato soup ingredients: a bit of thyme and basil, brown sugar, some coconut milk, a hefty pinch of chili flakes.
I obviously had already rinsed and drained the beans since they were made the day before, but even using canned beans I don’t know that I’d use all the liquid in the soup— broth seems easier to control in terms of how thin or thick you want the soup to be. This turned out really flavourful, a creamy, hearty, and less acidic variation on a traditional tomato soup. Grilled cheese remains the perfect accompaniment.
Also this week, I made the gochujang glazed eggplant again, this time using fried shallots (I didn’t have enough green onions) and served on a bed of rice. It was just as delicious and I know I’ll come back to this recipe often. And I tried my squash mac and cheese using roasted spaghetti squash— it was good! However because the spaghetti squash strands won’t melt into the sauce the way a squash purée does, the dish needs a little extra pasta water so that the sauce stays creamy while it bakes.
Media:
Are you tired of reading about humans and their relationship to meat? I’m not! I appreciated the depth of history in this piece by Ligaya Mishan, about the implications of giving up (or eating less) red meat in a society that has for so long embraced beef as a symbol of strength and prosperity. How did beef come to dominate the American narrative when cows are not native to the Americas? Does the rise in popularity of meat alternatives, like Impossible and Beyond, that strive to mimic the real thing imply that we are only able to give up meat if we feel that we aren’t actually “giving up” anything? Why have Westerners viewed those who subsist more on grains and vegetables as paradoxically weaker (because meat is necessary for strength and virility) and more powerful (because a meatless diet implies an austerity and stamina which meat eaters lack)? This is a really interesting and informative article and I hope you’ll check it out.
I also got a shoutout (just by name, not newsletter) in Abigail Koffler’s This Needs Hot Sauce this week— she tried my suggestion of what to do with a wheel of camembert. You should too, the next time you have one around!
Thanks for reading— if you enjoyed this newsletter, please smash that like button below, or share it with someone new! I like providing this to you for free, but it does still involve time and effort, so donations I can use towards cookbooks or future treats are much appreciated. Anyway, we definitely live in a capitalist hell when even a stuffed duck needs a job.