wallopingteaspoon

Feeding the Baby – Mushroom and Ground Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Beth Somers — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 02:33:47 +0000

My Facebook feed is rampant with babies. Every third post is either a photo of a half-naked cherub in a bubbly bathtub or or a disturbing account about dirty diapers. I’m not sure when it happened, but at some point in the recent past, most of my friends got together and decided it was time [...]

Lamb Cake 2012

Beth Somers — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 17:12:26 +0000

I’ve done my fair share of talking about and making lamb cakes: decorating hundreds every season at Tags Bakery, their history in a Chicago Sun-Times article in 2010, and how to successfully bake one on the Wilton blog last year. With all of that floating around on the interwebs, it hardly seems necessary to repeat [...]

Pastries in Soho

Beth Somers — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 02:06:50 +0000

Last Thursday, I had a revelation. Around 2:15 in the afternoon, I was sitting outside on the charming patio of a swank bakery in New York City. I was midway through a pastry tour of Soho, an elective part of the International Association of Culinary Professionals annual conference. We’d already stopped at Jacques Torres to [...]

Red Snapper En Papillote

Beth Somers — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 01:13:09 +0000

The last few weeks were gonzo, but that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped eating. For a while, everything I consumed revolved around cupcakes or the individual components that comprise a cupcake. I spent an entire week in Los Angeles, staying in a hotel that was directly across the street from Border Grill, but I was too [...]

One-Word Wednesday: Tuxcake

Beth Somers — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:00:27 +0000

Tuxedo Cupcake. For black-tie occassions only.

Orange Cake For Dad

Beth Somers — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:57:52 +0000

A couple of weeks ago my Dad celebrated his 70th birthday. Bare with me…I’ve had a glass of wine, and I’m about to get sappy. My dad is one of the best people on the planet. Of course, as his favorite child (my words, not his), I may be biased. But I think a lot [...]

One-Word Wednesdays: Sammich

Beth Somers — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 02:28:33 +0000

Have you entered yet for your chance to win a copy of The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes, Second Edition by Judith Finlayson? Because you should! Click here for the rules and to give yourself a fair shot. It could be your lucky day!

Guinness-Braised Lamb Shanks + A Giveaway!

Beth Somers — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:52:28 +0000

It doesn’t matter that Chicago is experiencing an apocalyptic “un-winter,” where daytime temperatures have been considerably higher than freezing, bordering on spring-like. It doesn’t matter that a year ago, the city (including my car) was buried under several feet of snow. And it definitely doesn’t matter that I haven’t wiped out once on a patch [...]

Having a Laugh

Beth Somers — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:45:23 +0000

It’s been one helluva week. It’s the kind of freight train week that doesn’t stop for anything, when more to-dos get added to the list, even though nothing is getting crossed off. Not much time for cooking, or at least cooking anything notable. I even missed One-Word Wednesdays because I didn’t have an interesting photo [...]

Japanese Gyoza – I Just Can’t Get Enough

Beth Somers — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:25:36 +0000

My friend Brian and I dine out together frequently. Whenever we go out for sushi, I try to order gyoza, half-moon shaped dumplings filled with pork, shrimp and cabbage. Without fail, Brian mocks me (he’s a little heavy-handed with the sarcasm, but so am I), saying that I should leave all of the room available [...]