BC Family Style – Ryan Bakes It

Recipe #22 Challah French Toast

Published on December 16, 2020March 16, 2021 by RJLeave a comment

This recipe can be found in Family Style, page 187.

This one of the first recipes I made from the Breakfast category that I actually I ate for breakfast! I had made Chocolate Banana Crumb Cake recipe last month which came from the Breakfast section.

This recipe has so much potential, but sadly I did not execute it well. First, I used bread that was too soft and got soggy really quickly. This led to not having crispy edges on the French toast during the cooking process. However, the flavor is present and tastes amazing! I was just missing that slight crispness around the edges.

This is a recipe I’d make again with sturdier bread. It is a quick meal and I can see it impressing someone if it’s executed properly.

The taste of the orange and vanilla was really prominent which was a nice change for me. Granted, I’m accustomed to frozen French Toast, so anything would be better than the box.

I will be taking the next couple of weeks off from cooking. Yes, even with Christmas on the way. But, I will just be too busy. Plus my brother is coming home and I haven’t seen him in a while.

I do plan to make some posts over the next two weeks. First, I will be reviewing another one of Ina’s cookbooks sometime next week. I’ll also make a post about the dessert recipe I try from the new cookbook I bought over the weekend.

Now, it’s time for me to get ready for the snow!

Until next time….

Recipe #14 Parmesan Chicken

Published on November 1, 2020November 22, 2020 by RJLeave a comment

This recipe can be found in Family Style.

One of the recipes I made for Saturday dinner was parmesan chicken. But, I have a confession to make. I bought the wrong cheese! Instead, I bought a combination of grated Pecorino Romano NOT Parmesan. So, since I kind of messed up the title ingredient, by review won’t be too long.

This recipe is very simple to make since it is essentially fried chicken cutlets. However, the addition of cheese to the bread crumbs is what really sets it apart. And if I’m being honest, I think the Pecorino Romano cheese added even better flavor than the parmesan would have.

I also decided not to serve this recipe with the recommended salads greens and lemon vinaigrette. But, it is still worth trying. It’s a simple meal than can be any night of the week and can easily accommodate and please a large group of friends.

Did I make sides for this? Yes, yes I did! I made two basic recipes: mashed potatoes and a separate carrot dish. Those reviews are coming tomorrow!

Happy November, by the way!

Recipe #8 – Pumpkin Banana Mousse Tart

Published on October 5, 2020November 22, 2020 by RJ4 Comments

From Barefoot Contessa Family Style! page 151

Nothing says Fall in New England like pumpkin! And what better was to celebrate a very “fall” weekend with a pumpkin tart?

(Not to mention I got to use my new tart pan again — I need to get its monies worth!)

So I found that Ina’s recipe for Pumpkin Banana Mousse Tart only needed a few additional ingredients from the grocery store. Plus I wanted to make a tart to try to redeem myself from the last one…..

Well now that I have made it and tried it, this one did turn out much better than the chocolate mousse tart I tried to make last weekend. However, I think there is still room for improvement.

The empty tart shell….much thicker and more even than the first one I made last week.

In contrast to last week’s tart recipe, this one called for gelatin which did help the mixture firm up quickly and nicely. However, I think the pumpkin mixture had to cook for an additional few minutes over the double boiler.

This ended up being a good recipe for me to learn from. Not only did I have another chance to improve my tart shell making skills, but I also received experience working with a double boiler. I have only a double boiler setup a few times in my life. Once when I made a homemade herbal medicine salve and the other was when I melted orange colored chocolate for Halloween.

While the double boiler worked fine the previous times since I only needed to melt something, I think I need more experience actually using it to cook/heat something well. To be honest, I think the real issue here is the fact that I do not let eggs cook long enough to allow things to thicken.

Overall this week’s tart was tasty. I was able to taste the banana throughout even though there is only one banana in the whole tart. The orange zest also made my tongue jump for joy since it was a nice, unexpected flavor profile that you wouldn’t automatically associate with a pumpkin dessert.

This tart did require A LOT of dishes, but will make a nice substitute for a pumpkin pie at the Thanksgiving table. One of the nice things about the tart over a traditional pumpkin pie is that the mousse tart is creamy and lighter than a pumpkin pie.

Since I did not feel like fighting with a piping bag, I decided to just spread the whipped cream on top of the already chilled tart. I then attempted to sprinkle the orange zest over it, but the zest was rather juicy, so it didn’t spread too well. Oh well! Still tasted good!!