Cream | Friends Food Fun

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Helenka got a request for a recipe for pancakes. Not just any pancakes, of course, but special ones from Hawaii. I, being curious and all that, had to do some research first on what was a Hawaiian pancake? I found the main difference was the sauce poured over the pancakes (a Macadamia nut one). Well, in our typical fashion and not to be outdone by the absence of Macadamia nuts (cause they are expensive), we tried to find a recipe that met most of the requirements. I got the bright idea of “How about we combine two recipes into one!” We had French Toast on the show before and the sauce was just incredible; plus it had bananas in it. Coincidence? I think not. The original used a vanilla bourbon and caramelized banana sauce (but we did the old switcheroo for this recipe by replacing the bourbon with a banana liqueur). I’m posting the macadamia nut sauce recipe, too. Who knows: if we find a good source for this wonderful nut, I may just make it the original way.

For the pancakes, I found a recipe that fit the bill quite nicely. (link) They were so fluffy and delightful; plus, with the sweet banana sauce, we knew that once we finished we would be in a state of sugary bliss (I think we both slept really well that night [Helenka concurs, wazzz verrry sleeepy]).

This was a fun exercise and we’d like to do it again. So, if you have a request, give us some details and we’ll see if we can whip up something special … just for you.

Till next time,
Enjoy!
B&H =:)

Helenka’s Notes:

Yes, we love requests, but this one threw us for a loop because what do we know about Hawaii (except for those amazing Macadamia nuts)? But, hey, I think we ended up with a fabulous result. And … and … we got to have ::adopts that happy, little-girl voice:: “breakfast for dinner again”.

In all honesty, I can’t contribute too much to this blog post because, as I mentioned during filming, pancakes weren’t a part of my upbringing. But I’m willing to learn. So, I asked myself, “Self, what other fruits and goodies would make yummy pancakes? The bananas were perfect for incorporating into the batter, as the fruit is fibrous and doesn’t release excessive moisture. But that shouldn’t mean that you can’t use other fruits. You’ll just have to exercise a little care.

Variations:
If you follow the original directions and mix the ingredients without any fruit, then I could see the following being folded in gently:

blueberries (I know, so traditional), with slivered almonds and a dollop of Greek yogurt or sour cream instead of a cooked sauce
chopped apricots (because they’re dense-fleshed, too), with pecans and rum
chopped fresh peeled figs (either green or black), with hazelnuts and hazelnut liqueur
chopped not-quite-ripe nectarines (lightly dusted with flour first to prevent sticking), with cashews and orange liqueur
plumped raisins and cranberries with nutmeg, cinnamon and brandy

and, to end on a silly note, chocolate chips, with a mint and chocolate liqueur sauce and garnished with sprigs of fresh mint

I just realized that I’ve gone the “Let’s have breakfast for dinner FOR DESSERT route!” Do I feel guilty about that? ::shakes head:: I thought you all knew me better than that by now.

Anyway, this recipe is for Mary. I hope you enjoy making it (uh … them … considering the substitutions and variations). I’m just sorry we couldn’t provide you with matching Hawaiian weather!

Our source for the banana pancakes (with a slight modification of using buttermilk) came from polynesiankitchen.blogspot.com

Banana Pancakes

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk (we substituted buttermilk)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 ripe bananas, mashed (place bananas in Ziploc bag, zip and squish!)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
dash of cinnamon, if you like

1. Combine flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together egg, milk, vegetable oil and bananas.
2. Stir flour mixture into banana mixture; batter will be slightly lumpy. [Evil editor missed the “in a separate bowl” part and Brian mixed everything in one bowl. It turned out just fine!]
3. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Cook until pancakes are golden brown on both sides; serve hot.

The original recipe for the sauce we used came from the “Cook This Not That” book with a modification from us (using banana liqueur).

Vanilla Banana Liqueur and Caramelized Banana Sauce
(We dare you to say that 3 times fast!)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons banana liqueur
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup crushed walnuts
2 ripe but firm bananas sliced into ¼ inch rounds
¼ cup 2% milk

1. Heat the butter in a medium pan (nonstick if you have it) over medium heat. Add the banana liqueur, then stir in the brown sugar till dissolved. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes until you see bubbles.
2. Add in the walnuts and cook for another 2 minutes; gently add in the banana slices and heat through.
3. Stir in milk, then turn heat down to low and keep warm.

Macadamia Nut Sauce (optional to the sauce above and original to the banana pancake recipe)

1 cup macadamia nuts
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cream
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ teaspoon lemon juice

Grind macadamia nuts in a food processor until fine. Place nuts into a medium saucepan and fry over medium high heat for 5 min or until fragrant. Remove from pan, and set aside. Lower heat to medium and add the butter, stirring until melted. Stir in flour and cook 1 min. Slowly pour in milk and cream, constantly whisking the whole time. Add sugar, salt, vanilla to the pan. Cook 5 min or until thickened, stirring constantly. Stir in lemon juice. Pour sauce into a serving dish. Serve warm and sprinkle the Macadamia nuts on top of each serving.

httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCRFavg1FFc
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I love soups so we thought, after the French Onion Soup recipe which we tried previously, it was time to try another one (I had to give these guys another chance or two on soups). I was really interested in making this one as, back in April, I attended a friend’s birthday celebration at Fressen, a vegetarian restaurant here in Toronto. They had the most amazing Butternut Squash Soup, so I just had to learn how to make it myself. The recipe we were following is not vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination as it calls for chicken broth as the base. BTW I used an organic low sodium broth which I found to be the best if you are looking for a good low sodium option. Yes, that means more label reading and comparing the various brands. Memory is a funny thing because I know exactly where to go in the store to find it but not the name. [Helenka pipes in ever so helpfully: I thought it was PC Biologics.][Brian’s note – hmm no unfortunately the PC brand still had a high quantity of sodium] Another ingredient added to this lovely soup was bacon (so definitely not vegetarian). I should not be surprised any longer at what goes into various dishes these days to result in some terrific flavour combinations. Speaking of flavours, I used Helenka as a Guinea Pig before filming the show. We were playing around with some hot sauces (Sidebar Note: I think we need to to do a show just on spicy stuff). She explains a bit more what we were up to below.

Well, enjoy the soup because we certainly did (though it’s not quite like the Fressen one as they are famous for theirs, so I guess I will have to make another trip there). [Evil editor’s sardonic comment: “Oh what a hardship.”] [Brian’s comment : Well its a tough job but someone’s gotta do it 😉 ]

Have yourself a great week and let us know if you tried to recreate something you liked watching and/or reading!

Enjoy!
B&H =:)

Please note: We try and review the recipes in the cookbook; however, in an effort to respect copyright, we are not able to reproduce the actual printed recipes here. If you do have the book, please follow along with us!

Review: Butternut Squash Soup

Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)

Before our filming, Brian had already baked the butternut squash along with an extremely generous sprinkling of nutmeg as well as a titch of salt and pepper. He then sautéed some bacon, chopped onion and chopped apple. The onion, apple and ginger were added to the organic soup stock and squash before being puréed. When he plated it (bowled it???), he added the following garnishes: a drizzle of whipping cream (as we didn’t have The Book’s suggested non-fat sour cream), a dusting of cayenne and a spoonful of crunchy, crispy bacon in the centre. Go ahead. I dare you to ask me how good this was!

Mind you, I was suffering from blue!lips because I’d taste-tested three different hot sauces (chipotle, habanero and hot mango) before we began filming. And, then, I still preferred the cayenne, as per the suggestion from The Book. In any case, this was an exceptional comfort food for a day that wasn’t as warm as the previous day had been. The final lingering note on the palate was that of nutmeg. And I can’t imagine the soup having quite the same impact if Brian had not included the ginger. He made an excellent call for the inclusion of both as well as their proportions.

Brian made another wise choice to deviate from The Book (yes, we say we’re cooking and reviewing, folks, and we take the reviewing portion seriously). First of all, Brian saved himself the chore of transferring some; of the stock together with the squash, onion and apple into a blender because he merely added these three ingredients <u>into</u> the cooking pot and used an immersion blender. These gadgets are such a time-saver. But that wasn’t the only thing. Because Brian did the entire pot of soup, we ended up with a mixture that was almost completely blended. If we’d done it The Book’s way, there would have been a top layer of clear broth and we thought that would have been unappealing, both visually and to the taste.

By accident, we found that some of the diced apple had not been fully blended; so we thought that, the next time we make this soup, we should only blend half the apple and add the other half as a chopped garnish. Finally, Brian’s bold gesture with the nutmeg paid off. Otherwise, we feel the soup would have been a bit … timid. And, as we’ve already learned the hard way (see our review of French Onion Soup ), timid does not equal delicious food.

Variations

The Book gave several options for creating other puréed soups, adding the following ingredients to a chicken broth base:
white beans, chopped fresh rosemary;
canned tomatoes, half-and-half, chopped fresh basil;
sautéed mushrooms, half-and-half;
black beans, fresh lime juice, cumin and cayenne.
I find the last one especially exciting and vibrant because of the inclusion of lime juice. [::yells offscreen:: “Oh, Brian, can we make that one soon?”][::B yells back:: “Ok sure no problem lets set it up!”]

Although all of the soups above are intended to be heated, I can see the tomato and the black bean ones as refreshing chilled alternatives on a hot summer’s day.

Personally, I believe I have made some exceptional puréed soups over the last thirty-five years. Three (oops, make that four) in particular stand out. The first was a cream of chicken and vegetable soup without a hint of cream in it. I used to poach a whole chicken and traditional veggies in stock. After cooling and defatting the stock, I’d add the meat from the chicken and the veggies to it, then blend. It was a wonderful soup to have in the winter. Definitely comfort food. I used to keep quite a quantity of it in the freezer, in individual bowls.

The second soup (also chicken, but in a completely different presentation) included an ingredient that wasn’t ripe enough the first time I made it. I combined cooked chicken with chopped avocado and whipping cream before blending. The only problem was that my avocado was still hard. Was that enough to deter me? Why, of course not! I was determined to bend that avocado to my will. I just cooked it until it softened enough so that I could chop and blend it. This was a luscious, cold soup. A little rich because of the whipping cream, but definitely a taste of luxury!

The third soup was wild cream of mushroom with the mushrooms being gathered during the walks my friends (of the spur-of-the-moment pizza experience) and I used to take in the Annex. Of course, they were amateur mycologists (mushroom experts). And, hey, I’m still here! I’ve made the soup many times over the decades, though I’ve only used store-bought ‘shrooms.

The fourth is not technically a puréed soup, but I figure there are enough ingredients that do get smushed up (hee, unprofessional but very descriptive cooking terminology) that I’m counting is as one. When I purchased my Oster Kitchen Centre in the mid 1970s, it came along with a terrific cookbook and the recipe for Gazpacho in it is the best I’ve ever had. Why? Because the recipe calls for the inclusion of not only red wine vinegar, but also red wine. And, of course, all of the other yummy chopped vegetables, along with black olives (the California kind). Nothing better on a horribly hot day.

And I can’t believe I nearly forgot the most sensational puréed soup I’ve ever made in my life. It was for one of Brian’s and my “Holiday Extravaganzas”. I believe this meal included Lobster Américaine (whose sauce was made of equal parts sherry, brandy, whisky and cream – but that’s another extraordinary tale). The soup was cream of asparagus. After cooking the asparagus until tender in water, I snapped off the tough ends (I’d kept them on during the cooking process for additional flavour), then forced the stalks through a sieve with a spoon. It took me Three Hours of manual labour but it was so worth it. In fact, I judged my soup to be superior to the one I’ve had at Opus Restaurant on Prince Arthur. Mine tasted like cold, silken velvet. Of course, the fact that I’d garnished it with a dollop of crème fraïche and caviar merely enhanced its already divine status.

So, you’ve read what The Book suggests and some of the soups I’ve made. Don’t be afraid to take a chance on ingredients and seasonings. You may just end up amazing yourself and your guests!

Returning to the squash soup, just to end this post, I believe this was an incredible way to enjoy squash. Between the ginger and nutmeg, along with the onion and apple, The Book’s authors get two thumbs up (or else scraping the bottom of the pot to get the very last drop), but only because of our variations!

And one final addition. Since writing the review, I’ve found it simply too unbearably hot to shop or cook or eat or…. So I’ve been tackling my small mountain of canned food (mmmm, spicy peanut sauce on tuna or on scrambled eggs or….). One of the cans was Wolfgang Puck’s Cream of Butternut Squash Soup. What a coincidence. Or not. Well, it’s safe to say that I judge our soup to be much better as the overwhelming taste of Mr. Puck’s commercial contribution was more of chicken than squash.

Cooking time (duration): 120

Number of servings (yield): 4

Meal type: lunch

Culinary tradition: USA (General)

My rating:4 stars: ★★★★☆

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Friends Food Fun

Tag Archives: Cream

FFF – EP 33 ‘ONOLICIOUS BANANA PANCAKES (WITH A BANANA LIQUEUR SAUCE)

Ep – 17 Butternut Squash Soup

Review: Butternut Squash Soup

Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)

Variations

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