As a follow-up to last Friday's Open Thread, we thought we'd let you know how cooking for the parents went:
Swimmingly.
I had MGR and dad on the grill with a couple of organic Obe rib-eyes, slathered in a dried wild mushroom and garlic spice-rub, while I was in the kitchen assembling goat-cheese and herb ravioli (made the fresh pasta earlier in the day), and a salad with shaved fennel, red oak leaf lettuce, pears, and spicy sweet pecans. MGR and I did the babycakes together and they were pretty unreal. I had to go lay down because they gave me heart palpitations. I'm not kidding.
Don't be mad: we forgot our camera, so there are no photos. Do not follow my lead. Keep the photos of your meals coming!
[Disclaimer: the above photo of Nigella's Babycakes, via www.blue-room.com, bares little resemblance to our version - unfortunately this fellow does not show the featured molten center.]
Sounds delicious. I love fennel in salads. Glad you had a good meal and visit!
What a funny little moment: I saw that picture and thought, "Somebody else has the same ugly flooring in their kitchen as we do?" The colour balance in that picture is a lesson in why you should not paint the walls and ceiling of your kitchen bright yellow, no matter how cheery you think it looks.
Sorry for no pictures of the insides of the babycakes, but you must understand that they are so delicious that once people started eating them, there was no getting a camera anywhere near the plates. This post has an image, obviously snagged from some professional, that shows it off better: http://www.livejournal.com/community/bakingfrenzy/5560.html
LOL. Sara-Kate, I think I feel that same way everytime I attempt any dish from a Nigella Lawson cookbook. Everything is just so over-the-top rich. (And highly-caloric and super-fatty to boot.)
With regard to the babycakes -- what kind/size ramekin do you use?
JP
The recipe calls for 6 oz. ramekins. I used my 4 oz. ramekins with no ill effects (slightly smaller cakes).
d o u think one could get away with using a muffin pan? i don't actually have ramekins. maybe in a ban marie?
Kristian,
Sure, try it out. Let us know! And TAKE PICTURES!
Nigela's recipe says that you can make the batter ahead of time, refrigerate it, then bake it at the last minute.
Has anyone tried to do this in two stages? I love recipes that help you avoid that last minute crunch when you have guests.
I'll try this out. It sounds wonderful for a dinner party.