I know, I you’re thinking “But she shared this recipe before over a year ago at Camille Maurice’s website!” Fact is, it’s a favorite recipe of mine and so many people missed it the first go-around. I wanted to have posted it here so that it is easily found within the recipes section of ABCD Design.
When I was a kid we never started our holiday bakery session until Christmas Eve. It became our tradition. My mom only would bake this cake once a year. Of course, I changed the “rules” for this recipe once it changed hands ten years ago. I bake up this this sweet cake-like bread at the start of October and continue to bake new loaves through my last holiday bakery session of the year. The nostalgic taste of this bread brings back so many memories ~ it’s amazing how food can do that, isn’t it?
ABCD’s easy as pie Pumpkin Bread Recipe

What you’ll need from the market:
3 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
4 Eggs, Beaten
1 15oz can of pumpkin (you can use plain pumpkin – OR – pumpkin pie filling for a little extra Fall flavor)
3.5 Cups of Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
2 Teaspoons of Baking Soda
2 Teaspoons of Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cloves
1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of Nutmeg
1 Teaspoon of Allspice
2/3 Cup of Water

Optional Ingredients: 1 Cup chopped nuts – OR – A package of Nestle Tollhouse Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips

Method: Set your oven to 350

In a large bowl, combine Sugar, Vegetable Oil, 4 Beaten Eggs.

Stir in a Can of Pumpkin.

On the side, combine Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt, Ground Cloves, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Allspice. Incorporate the dry flour mixture into the wet pumpkin batter. Add Water at the end.

If desired, at this point you can add 1 Cup chopped nuts. Want something better yet? Skip the nuts and put in a package of Nestle Tollhouse Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips – DELICIOUS!

In the oven it goes…
Bake in a greased and lightly floured loaf pan – OR – place in muffin tins.
Bake in the oven at 350 for an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. You’ll bake it slightly longer for the loaf and for a shorter amount of time if you prefer the muffin sized portions.
It’s a favorite seasonal treat to all who taste it. I am sure this pumpkin bread will become one of your super-easy, I need to bake something up quick, no-fail, go-to Fall baking treats! ~E N J O Y ~

5 Comments » Posted by ABCDDesigns / Uncategorized and totally delicious dishes

Epicurious has put together a pumpkin primer that illustrates all the different ways to prepare this soon to be in-season treat. From savory to sweet and everything in between, these recipes and tips for one of Fall’s best ingredients must not be missed!
Who wouldn’t want to try their hand at tasty dishes like Spiced Pumpkin Loaves with Whipped Cream , Pumpkin Cannelloni with Clams and Sage Brown Butter, Pumpkin-Seed Crusted Trout, or Pumpkin-Pecan Pie with Whiskey Butter Sauce? I can smell pumpkin in the oven now…

11 Comments » Posted by ABCDDesigns / Uncategorized and Where to eat? and totally delicious dishes

The first set of boxes that I unpacked -after our move last weekend- were my notebooks from the chef training program at the Natural Gourmet Institute. (I completed the program during the Spring and Summer of 1999 -Eeeeks! I am getting old!) The Natural Gourmet is focused on health supportive cooking. The curriculum focus is to prepare whole foods; mainly vegetarian meals prepared with seasonal, local, and organic ingredients, whole grains, and natural sweeteners. On occasion, we had classes that introduced meat preparation. We discussed the pros and cons of eating wild vs farmed fish, various ways to prepare hormone and antibiotic-free chicken, and ways to prepare organic egg dishes. They were teaching us how to be locavores – before it was trendy. Such foresight, no?Gravad lax is a traditional Scandinavian method of curing salmon with salt, a little sugar, and dill for a few days. There is no cooking involved. The salt will simply “cook” the salmon for you in the refrigerator. I assure you, once you’ve had homemade Gravad Lax, you’ll pass on anything other than the real deal. The recipe that I am sharing with you today is adapted from Anne Willan’s La Varenne Pratique, with more health supportive ingredients in place of some of the originals.

Homemade Gravad Lax Recipe
What you’ll need from the market…
To cure the fish:
3 Tablespoons coarse salt
2 Tablespoons maple granules (you should be able to find these at markets like Whole Foods)
12 crushed black peppercorns
1 large bunch of dill
2 thick wild salmon fillets that are the same size, about 12 ounces each

Sauce Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons dry mustard
2 Tablespoons rice syrup
3 Tablespoons chopped dill

Method:
1) Sprinkle the salt, maple granules and peppercorns on the cut side of the salmon fillet
2) Cover with sprigs of dill, using the entire bunch.
3) Lay the other fillet on top, cut side down and head to tail so that the fish is an even thickness.
4) Set a heavy board or weighted plate on top of the salmon. Cover loosely and refrigerate for at least two days. Turn the salmon over every twelve hours. Baste with the juice that is drawn out by the salt.
5) Drain the fish and discard the seasonings and dill. The salmon will keep for 1-2 days in the fridge.

Scandinavian Mustard Sauce Recipe
Method: Make a paste with the 2 Tablespoons dry mustard 2 Tablespoons rice syrup. Stir into the 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise. Add 3 Tablespoons chopped dill. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

{images 1, 2, 3,}

2 Comments » Posted by ABCDDesigns / Uncategorized and totally delicious dishes

Every time I follow a @WhimsyAndSpice link on twitter – I am delighted to see the glorious photographs that Jenna posts at her blog, Sweet Fine Day. Without fail, I find the images quite inspiring. Yesterday, Jenna posted not only her beautiful food photography, but also shared a wonderful Summer recipe for Individual Sour Cherry Pies. I haven’t tried the recipe -yet!- but no worries, it’s bound to be a good one. Jenna’s husband is an incredibly talented pastry chef!P.S. Ever since I shared my Vodka Slush Recipe at the Daily Grommet, there has been a swirl of bloggers asking me to write guest posts for them. I have to say, it’s wonderfully fun to get out in the blogisphere and meet new people! I was honored that Paloma from La Dolce Vita Blog asked me to take part in her fabulous series called “10 things I Can’t Live Without.” If you’d like to know the 10 things that ABCD can’t live without, click here to see the post. Have a fantastic weekend!

6 Comments » Posted by ABCDDesigns / totally delicious dishes

Tori from The Daily Grommet blog recently asked her favorite hostesses to share their most delicious cocktail recipes – and to my pure and utter delight – ABCD was amongst her list of Hostesses with the Most-esses! I gave my cocktail recipe list a thought for about 0.000001 seconds before I realized “This is where I need to share the magic of the frozen vodka slush.”
Each year, I make a huge batch of frozen vodka slush around Memorial Day. I keep it in the freezer for impromptu entertaining on our roof-top throughout the hot Summer months. I must admit, our guests are always thoroughly impressed when something so delicious is just waiting in the freezer for them and can be enjoyed at a moments notice.

Frozen Vodka Slush
Recipe Notes: Prepare this recipe a day or two in advance so the slush can freeze and be extra delicious when served. You also may want to double the recipe -yes, it’s that tasty- so pick up 2x’s the ingredients when you’re at the market!

Ingredients:
8 cups water
3 cups white sugar
juice of 2 lemons
juice of 2 oranges
one 48oz can of pineapple juice
one 12oz can frozen Minute Maid grapefruit juice
one 12oz can of frozen Minute Maid lemonade
26oz Vodka (I prefer Ketel One)

Method:
First, make a simple syrup. Boil 8 cups water and stir in 3 cups white sugar. Continue to stir until the sugar incorporates with the water, for about 15 minutes. Let cool.

In a separate bowl, combine the juice of 2 lemons, 2 oranges, 1 48oz can of pineapple juice, 1 12oz can frozen Minute Maid grapefruit juice, 1 12oz can of frozen Minute Maid lemonade and 26oz Vodka.

Once the simple syrup is cooled, add the juice/vodka mix to the syrup. Stir and transfer into an air-tight tupperware container(s) with lid(s). Freeze.

When your guests arrive, stir the slush and fill the glass half-full with frozen vodka slush. Fill the rest of the glass with diet 7-Up. Enjoy!

Oh, and that reminds me of another frozen cocktail I shared here on ABCD Design well over a year ago – I just wouldn’t ever want you to forget about it - It’s been loved and adored by many of my friends over the years: My Frozen Margarita Recipe!

14 Comments » Posted by ABCDDesigns / Entertaining and Thank You For The Mention and Uncategorized and totally delicious dishes