Ginger Snaps Results

All three cookie brands purport to be made with real ginger and molasses. However, each had a very distinct flavor profile and texture.

The Giant Eagle brand was the least expensive, and it showed. While the box in the bag was easiest to open, and the appearance was good (grainy with lots of nooks & crannies to hold the milk), the flavors didn't pop. These are easy ones for kids or the unadventurous to snack on straight (without milk). A safe bet, but nothing exciting. When dipped in warm milk, the cookie crumbled quickly, so it was a good thing I had a plate to catch the soggy, falling pieces as I tried to quickly get it to my mouth.

The Nabisco brand was next. While the outer box was the same as the Giant Eagle brand, the bag was much harder to open and tried to tear when I pulled the seam apart. These cookies are much lighter in appearance, with a smooth texture. Not appealing at all to look at. Little ridges in the tops looked like they had been done with a press, not a natural striation from the baking and expansion process. The flavor on these was really very good, though, with the ginger coming out loud and clear (a little heavy for most folks, I'd guess, but I liked it). These would be a good pie crust base. Dipped in warm milk, the lack of natural nooks & crannies was a problem. They softened nicely, but the milk didn't penetrate very far into the cookie, so the ratio of cookie to milk was off.

The Archway brand was the most expensive of the three (by almost a dollar, I recall). The bag was more reminiscent in shape of the old-fashioned paper-style bag of my childhood, but clearly they've made changes in the material (all plastic) to lock in the freshness longer. The seams came apart smoothly, without having to apply too much pressure (the kind that makes your bag of chips open in a confetti-like explosion -- we've all been there, right?). The cookie appearance was dark, a little lighter than the Giant Eagle brand, with less uniformity. Nooks and crannies abounded. Could this be the cookie I was looking for? Why, yes. And, the flavor was a great balance between the molasses and ginger, both of which stood out well. The best part was the milk test. Dipped in warm milk, these crunchy cookies soaked in the liquid perfectly, but left a slightly chewy center. Not quite as good as home-made (though nothing can ever touch the wondrous pleasure I got from sinking my teeth into a fresh molasses cookie from the Pennsylvania Dutch farmer's stand at the Ardmore market in college). The only downside to these cookies is that there is no box to easily seal them, once opened. However, a thick rubber band courtesy of the USPS (we get them wrapped around our mail every day) does the trick very well, and allows you to see how much you still have left. More pricey, but a best-buy in my book.

Have any ideas on things you'd like to see comparison-tasted? Let me know and I'll try to fit it in my ever-expanding tummy.

Ginger Snaps Taste Test

When the urge hits for store-bought cookies and milk, I generally don't go for Oreos or Chips Ahoy. No, my number one preference is most often the lowly ginger snap.

Years ago, there were some wonderful versions available of these small, hard, sweet and slightly spicy cookies that softened beautifully in lightly warmed milk, going from military crisp to melt-on-the-tongue creamy soft in mere seconds. The biggest disappointments were the ones that would simply disintegrate and float down in ugly, unhappy mealy bits to the bottom of the glass. The best of the lot, though, would hold together just long enough for you to lift the cookie gently from the milk, flip your wrist and quickly wrap your lips around the cookie (and the tips of your fingers) to catch stray drips of milk. Then, you get the trifecta of texture -- milk-softened edges, chewy center and a tiny crispy bit that remained dry between your dunking fingers.

I recently had a Ginger Snap moment and ran to the store to pick some up. This only happens about every other year or so, and I was disheartened to find that the traditional paper-bag style was gone from the shelves. I don't even remember the brand, just that the bag was light brown and printed with "Ginger Snaps" in dark brown, old-fashioned script.

What to do? None of the choices scattered along the cookie aisle were familiar, though the brand names were. Being in a decadent mood, I decided to try three of the choices and do a comparison. So, I dutifully picked up a box each of the Giant Eagle and Nabisco brands, and a bag of Archway. And, I have the perfect excuse -- I need share my findings in the blog!

When I got home, guilt set in. What would Brian think about this? It certainly looked as if I was having some sort of mega-craving, instead of simply wanting to conduct a slightly less-than-scientific experiment. Later, when he wandered into the livingroom, where I had the three samples lined up on the table with a glass of warm milk in front of me, he simply shook his head and sighed. Good man, that one.

I smiled, tried (and failed) to explain what was behind this show of excess, and set about my task with relish. Next up? Results and photos! -- Yes, I'm determined to figure out how to download from my little camera and then upload to this site. Wish me luck!

Hot Carb Love -- Spicy Scalloped Potatoes

Before the leftovers from our first batch of scalloped potatoes were even finished, panic began to set in. Whatever would we do when they were all gone and we had no instant carb fix in the fridge? With a half sack of potatoes left and another block of sharp cheddar cheese in the fridge, it didn't take long to put scalloped potatoes on the dinner agenda again.

This time, we had a lovely collection of fresh piquin peppers we've been growing in a pot under our bedroom skylight. Very hot, these little firecrackers are, and very tasty! Originally, Brian thought he had planted a form of habanero pepper with no heat (Red Soave, I believe they're called), but as the buds began to ripen, it was clear we had something else on our hands.

One morning, before the sun was up, Brian thought he'd taste one to see what was developing, and surprise! I was still in bed and could swear I heard him actually say, "OW!" (though that has been denied vehemently). It was pretty unexpected, and I think it was the first time I've ever seen a pepper make him sweat (again, denied, but I know what I saw).

Anyway, with a rather large collection of piquins ripe and ready to go, these scalloped potatoes were going to simply glow. This time, under the influence of a rather different kind of potato urge -- couch-related -- I left Brian to his own devices in the kitchen. To tell the truth, while we love to cook together, I suspect he enjoys cooking alone equally.

Instead of the cast iron, he used a very large, stainless, shallow soup pot. The diameter of the pot was larger, so the finished dish was not as deep and so the dish cooked more evenly. However, the yogurt was not strained this time, so it could have been creamier. Making up for that in spades, though, Brian added a handful of chopped fresh piquins to the mixture and then increased the shredded cheddar on top to 2 cups. The spiciness of this batch is helping it to last longer (too spicy for me to eat two servings in a row).

Hmmm... the urge is overtaking me again... off to partake in some Hot Carb Love!

Pure Carb Love -- Scalloped Potatoes

Happy New Year everyone! My first resolution is to get in the habit of posting regularly. If nothing else, it will help remind me of special meals and times playing in the kitchen. Now, if I could only get used to the photo posting piece (maybe I can manage that for the next post).

As a fitting start to 2008, rather than digging into diets, we're giving in to the fun of food.

A few nights ago, Brian and I were in the throes of wintertime carb cravings. A sack of russet potatoes in the pantry and a fresh block of extra sharp cheddar cheese from the West Side Market sang their siren song.

So, we opened the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook -- which is close to passing Joy of Cooking for our favorite -- and found a delicious-sounding recipe for Scalloped Potatoes. Ah!... the perfect solution for a chilly, wet evening.

The recipe itself wasn't very fancy, and we were short a few ingredients, so the usual modifications began even before we started.

First, I love potato skins, so ignored the skinning and just rinsed and sliced the potatoes about 1/8" thick -- about 2.5 lbs. in all.

Not having a cup of cream in the fridge, and definitely not in the mood to go out to the grocery, I substituted 1 cup of plain yogurt that I placed in a coffee filter & strainer over a bowl to remove some of the liquid and make it more creamy.

Brian was eager to use his cast iron pan instead of the called-for dutch oven. I could see it was going to be a tight fit, but who was I to complain? We've never had a bad result from using cast iron.

I had found several shallots in the pantry that needed to be used, so we ditched the onion and instead chopped 3 shallots and 3 cloves of garlic, and softened them in 2 Tablespoons of butter in the pan. OK, softening was called for, as well as adding the garlic later, but the shallots and garlic ended up going in together, and then we accidentally carmelized them while I was distracted playing with the food processor blades. Never fear, only potatoes were cut! All was happy accident, as it turned out. Then we added a bit of thyme, salt and pepper to the pan.

To that, we added the potatoes, 1 cup Kitchen Basics chicken stock (the only brand we'll buy anymore and much more flavorful than the broth called for in the recipe) and the strained yogurt. Completely forgot the bay leaves -- a travesty when you consider that we're in the spice business and have more of those things than we know what to do with. We covered and cooked for 10 minutes on the stovetop (forgetting to stir at first, so we actually let it cook another 5 minutes after stirring). Rather than transferring into another pan (more dishes!), we simply sprinkled 1 cup of shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese on top and put the pan directly in the oven at 425 for 20 minutes, then another 5 with the broiler on to give it a little more bubble & browning on top.

As you can see, our slight alterations continued to stack up. The key to that is not freaking out if you can't do the recipe exactly as written. Sure, sometimes it's a flop, but most of the time we've found something wonderfully unexpected.

This was a pretty good batch of scalloped potatoes, but you can never have too much cheese, and it definitely needed a little heat, so before we even finished the first plate-full, we decided to try it again, with even more changes!

I've got to tell you. Sometimes there's nothing more satisfying than homemade scalloped potatoes. That night, even Brian went without meat for a few servings of pure carb love.