Six for Saturday: Charities

So there are a lot of charities that have caught my eye in the past few years. Soon I will have my credit cards paid off, and I will hopefully be donating to them on a regular basis. (There's even a charity below that doesn't ask for money—just coupons!)

1. Caring with Coupons. This charity was started by one woman in the South. It is a coupon network that takes advantage of coupons that allow items to be purchased for free. (Item costs $2 and coupon is for $1, but the store will double the coupon, etc.) The items are donated to people who have been hurt by the tornadoes. This only requires the cost of a stamp! (Thanks to dianapantz for the heads up!)
   
   
2. CASA for Children. CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates. This helps foster children find safe, permanent homes. You can donate money or volunteer. There are sectors of this organization in most big cities (such as CASA of Philadelphia). I've always wanted to help kids in the foster system. Until I have the resources to actually take in foster children, I think this will be a great way for me to help.
   
   
3. Kiva. This site allows you to participate in microcredit loans that are being distributed world-wide. You choose a loan recipient, donate $25, they pay you back, and then you loan again. $25 can make a huge difference!
   
   
4. Charity: Water. $20 can get a person clean water ($5,000 is enough to get a community of 250 people clean water). Lack of clean water/sanitation causes 80% of diseases and kills more people than all forms of violence combined. 90% of the 42,000 deaths that occur every week from lack of clean water/sanitation are to children under 5 years old.
   
   
5. Feed the Children: U.S. Programs. While it's great to help those abroad, we need to make sure that every person in America (the richest country in the world) has enough food. Donate some money or build a Kid's Stuff Shoe Box to help feed the 12 million children in the U.S. who may not have enough food today.
   
   
6. Red Cross. You can't forget about the Red Cross. It seems like everyone donates and maybe your money could be put to better use elsewhere. But think about it: who's always there when disasters happen and people need food, clothing, shelter, etc.? It's the Red Cross.

Mrs. Hattrick's Delicious Dip

At the only Hattrick bash I've been to, Mrs. Hattrick made this amazing dip that everyone couldn't stop eating. It was simply amazing, so I asked her what it was. It was sour cream and taco seasoning. That's it. So, I've been making it ever since. I think I've finally improved it to my liking. Measurements are approximate.


Difficulty: Easy
Yields: about 2 cups

1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vidalia onion, diced
1/4 cup taco seasoning
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together. All ingredients can be adjusted to taste.

Fresh Tomato Salsa

I followed one of the "Cooks Notes" that suggested using beefsteak tomatoes (because they're so delicious in Jersey). I didn't have any serrano chiles, so I used some of that squeeze-tube chili pepper that I keep handy when I don't have time to go to the store or the fresh herbs and spices are looking pretty sad. I used a generous tablespoon, but vary it to taste. Also, I don't like recipes that want you to add water, so I used about a tablespoon of lime juice (because of the runniness of the beefsteaks, or I would have added a little water in addition if using the plum tomatoes). I also used vidalia onion.

Difficulty: Easy

Yeilds: about 1 1/2 cups

1/2 pound plum tomatoes, halved crosswise, seeded if desired

2 serrano chiles, minced (including seeds)

1/2 cup finely chopped white onion

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

3 tablespoons water

Finely chop tomatoes. Transfer to a bowl, along with any juices. Stir in remaining ingredients.

"Cook's Notes"

• The salsa can be made up to 6 hours ahead and refrigerated, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.
• We use plum tomatoes because they're less juicy than regular tomatoes, but if you don't mind a runnier salsa, substitute good ripe beefsteaks.
• White onion, rather than yellow, is traditionally used in Mexican cooking because it has a sharper, cleaner, brighter flavor, especially raw.

Devil's Food Cake with Brown Sugar Buttercream

This devil's food cake is surprisingly light and fluffy. I made my batter into about 24 cupcakes (see Cook's Notes). They are done when a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs stuck to it. They will be rather squishy when hot. Be careful when removing if you have to take them out when they're hot (I only have one cupcake pan, so I had to in order to get the next set going). As they cool, they will firm up.

I've never actually made buttercream before, let alone using this meringue-candied sugar method. I also don't have a kitchen thermometer, which could have caused a problem. Thank God for the internet! Approximately 240˚F sugar is considered the "soft ball" stage. This means that when you drop a little of the boiling sugar into room-temperature water, it will almost immediately form a ball of sugar. Scoop it out of the water and make sure that the ball starts to flatten a little when pulled out. If it's hard and doesn't flatten, you've missed the "soft ball" stage. If the sugar kind of just falls to the bottom of the water but doesn't start to clump, keep cookin'! Don't worry about overcooking the sugar while you're testing the soft ball—240˚F is the very high side of the soft ball stage. Making this frosting was a little nerve-wracking, but it was soooooooooo worth it. This meringue-based frosting stuff is the smoothest I've ever eaten. I'm never making anything else ever again! (There are many variants of this recipe in the Gourmet Cookbook.)

Difficulty: Medium

Yeilds: 1 cake or 24 cupcakes

1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)

1/2 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/4 cups packed dark brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs

Brown Sugar Buttercream (recipe follows)

Put racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter cake pans and line bottoms with rounds of parchment or wax paper. Butter paper and dust pans with flour, knocking out excess.

Whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder in a medium bowl until smooth, then whisk in milk and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt into another bowl.

Beat together butter and sugars in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in flour and cocoa mixtures alternately in 3 batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture (batter may look curdled).

Divide batter among pans and smooth tops. Place two pans in middle of oven and one pan in the bottom (do not put the top pans directly above bottom pan). Bake, switching position of pans halfway through baking, until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cakes comes out clean and layers begin to pull away from sides of pans, 20 to 25 minutes.

Cool layers in pans on racks for 10 minutes, then invert onto racks, remove paper, and cool completely.

Put 1 cake layer right side up on a cake plate and spread with about 1 cup buttercream. Top with another layer, right side up, and spread with another cup buttercream. Top with remaining layer and frost top and sides of cake with remaining buttercream.

"Cook's Notes"

• The cake layers can be made up to 2 days ahead and kept, well wrapped in plastic wrap, at room temperature. They can also be frozen for up to 1 week. Thaw, still wrapped, in the refrigerator.
• The cake can be assembled up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated in a cake keeper or loosely covered with plastic wrap (use toothpicks to hold wrap away from frosting). Bring to room temperature before serving.
• The batter can also be baked in two 9-by-2-inch round cake pans for 25 to 30 minutes; in a 13-by-9-inch baking pan for 35 to 40 minutes; or in a 12-cup Bundt pan for 35 to 40 minutes. Or it can be used to make cupcakes: bake in twenty-four (1/3- or 1/2-cup) muffin cups for 20 to 25 minutes.

Brown Sugar Buttercream

3 large egg whites, left at room temperature for 30 minutes

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

3 sticks (3/4 pound) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons and softened

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Combine egg whites and salt in large bowl.

Stir together brown sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over moderately high heat, washing down sides of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water.

As soon as sugar reaches a boil, start beating whites: with an electric mixer at medium-high speed, beat whites until frothy, then add lemon juice and beat and medium speed until whites just hold soft peaks. (Do not beat again until sugar syrup is ready.)

Meanwhile, continue boiling sugar syrup until it reaches 238˚-242˚F on a thermometer. Immediately remove from heat and pour into a heatproof 1-cup glass measuring cup. Slowly pour hot syrup in a thin stream down side of bowl into egg whites, beating constantly at high speed. Continue to beat meringue, scraping down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary, until cool to the touch, about 6 minutes. (It's important to cool meringue properly before proceeding.)

With mixer at medium speed, add butter one piece at a time, beating well after each addition until incorporated. (If meringue is too warm and buttercream looks soupy after some of butter is added, chill bottom of bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice and cold water for a few seconds, then continue to beat in remaining butter.) Continue beating until buttercream is smooth. (Mixture may look curdled before all of butter is added, but it will come back together before beating is finished.) Add vanilla and Beat for 2 minutes more.

"Cooks Notes"

• The buttercream can be made up to 1 week ahead and refrigerated, covered. It can also be frozen in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Bring to room temperature (do not use a microwave) and beat with an electric mixture until smooth before using.

Six for Saturday: Ann Arbor Edition

I love living on the East Coast—and I wouldn't go back to live in Ann Arbor, let alone any Michigan city—but there are some things I do miss about it. Here are a few...

1. The Diag. I miss walking through the Diag. I guess it's close to walking through Rittenhouse Park, but it's so much bigger and there are buildings and arches and wonderfulness. And a brass M! There's always flower blooming and a flag blowing in the breeze. Beautiful. It's probably UM's most attractive feature. Okay, maybe tied for first with the Law Quad.
   
   
2. The State & Michigan Theatres. Being able to walk to the movies is awesome. And having them play a wide variety of movies (not just Big Momma's Fast/Furious Focker). If only they would make the Westmont Theatre into an amazing place like these!
   
   
3. UM Libraries. With dozens of libraries and over 10 million books, the library system is world-class. And there's always a table (somewhere) to park yourself and study what you've found (or whatever else you've brought along).
   
   
4. Totoro & Sadako. I miss the cheapness of Ann Arbor sushi. With Totoro's amazing $8 lunch special and Sadako's all-around low prices, I ate sushi pretty much everyday. Also, the Dragon Ball at Sadako is something I have never seen elsewhere. It's ice cream (my favorite for this is green tea) stuffed inside a hollow sphere of cakey goodness, then dipped in tempura batter and deep fried. Amazing? I think I might need a stronger word for it...
   
   
5. No Thai! There is much Thai food at No Thai!, despite it's name. Supposedly, the gentleman who owns the establishment's name is No. My absolute favorite is the Gang Gai. It's a coconut milk and red curry sauce with green peppers, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots. You can get it with any type of meat, but my favorite is tofu because it soaks up the delicious sauce. And their rice is always cooked to perfection. Now, I know what you're thinking: there are Thai food places everywhere. Yes, there are. But none of them have this sauce. I would probably pay hundreds of dollars for the recipe—I certainly spent more than that buying food from No Thai! Their Thai iced tea has also spoiled me for all other versions.
   
   
6. TCF Bank. I know it's kind of weird to say, but I loved working at TCF. Despite the fact that we had monthly goals to meet and bonuses that would be lost if we fell short, I never really felt pressured to push all kind of ridiculous things on people. Also, I was good at it and my skill was appreciated. My bosses were all kind people that wouldn't yell at you when you screwed up, but would actually take the time to help you figure out what happened and how to fix it. And I loved the customers (except for a select few). Good times. If I could find a job again with all of these qualities, I would be really happy.