yogurt queso with cilantro cream

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If I had a hot tub the first thing I’d fill it with would be rainbow sprinkles so I could reenact all of those Instagrams that people take at the ice cream museum. When that gets sticky and buggy the second thing I’d fill my hot tub with would be queso and then I’d throw a B.Y.O. chips party for all of my friends. Imagine sitting around a bonfire but instead of a fire in the middle it’s a hot tub of queso, that would be the life. Now imagine that the queso is just slightly healthier, almost enough so that you could maybe actually eat a whole hot tub of it by yourself and you don’t actually need to share it with your friends. That’s yogurt queso! It's really inauthentic and I got afraid to post this after reading the truth about queso, so this is really a queso-inspired yogurty cheesy dip (I hate the word "dip" for some reason???) but it's tasty! And a little tangy from the yogurt and I love eating it with the extremely thick and salty and sometimes even chewy potato chips from the deli section of Hugo's, our nearest grocery store. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️ 

Yogurt Queso with Cilantro Cream

serves 6-8

Ingredients

2 tb unsalted butter

1/2 small purple onion, finely chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped, plus more for serving

1/2 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped

Kosher salt

1/4 c (32g) all-purpose flour

1 c (240g) whole milk

4 oz jack cheese, shredded

1 c (225g) greek yogurt (whole, 2%, or fat free), divided

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Black pepper

1/4 bunch cilantro, finely chopped, plus more for serving

Clues

In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, jalapeño, and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring, until soft, about 7-10 minutes. Stir in the flour and continue cooking for another minute. Add the milk and cook, stirring, until the mixture is thick and coats the back of a spoon. Add the cheese, stirring until melted, and then add 2/3 cup yogurt, the cayenne, crushed red pepper, a few turns of pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. To make the cilantro cream, mix the cilantro with the remaining 1/3 cup yogurt and a pinch of salt and a few turns of pepper. Serve the queso warm with the cilantro cream dolloped in the center. Top with additional fresh cilantro, chopped bell pepper, black pepper, and a sprinkle of cayenne.

This recipe was cut from Short Stack Yogurt. Preorder it now! 

pretzel challah bagel dogs 🥨 🌭

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I pretended to be Lindsey Vonn this weekend at the ski hill in Bemidji! And by that I mean, we went skiing. Finally! Because it was a tropical 34º. And then any time I was scared going down the black diamond, I just said “Lindsey Vonn” out loud and that helped me be courageous.

(Should we try that with other things? Should we just shout “Ina Garten” any time we’re getting a bundt cake out of the pan?)

Now that we’ve graduated from the tiny cute Bemidji hill, we are in the market for a slightly taller more aggressive Midwest ski hill so that we can try and work our way up to Whistler. We hear Lutsen is good, but I really just want any place that will force me to earn an après ski hot tub/cheese fry combo.  

On Sunday night we made guacamole and quesadillas and went across the street to the Eggparents’ and watched three quarters of the Vikings… not… doing… so….

Uhhh…

I think that it is too soon to mention football in the state of Minnesota…

But if, say, we decided we were due for a party to watch a Justin Timberlake concert that’s sandwiched between two halves of a big sports event, then these pretzel challah bagel dogs would certainly be on the menu, no? Pigs in blankets have been on the menu of every halftime concert viewing party throughout history, from packed bashes in Harlem with the Juilliard double bass section, to percussion basement parties in Short Hills at Sam’s house, to the few parties that we’ve thrown here on the farm. They’re a must. The reason for the season.

Remember when I went through my pretzeling phase? That was fun in kind of a dangerous way, I still have the bottle of lye in my cabinet, but in the past few years now I’ve opted to go the baked baking soda route when I make pretzels. You bake a bunch of baking soda at a low temp for like an hour and that increases its intensity, and then you put that into a bath for your pretzels. It’s more intense than just using regular baking soda (which equals more pretzel flavor) but less intense than lye (which equals less risk of burning off your esophagus). And I find it makes pretzeling things way more accessible, so accessible that when Kristin came to visit for a weekend with her Packers fan fiancé a few months ago and we decided we wanted to make pretzel dogs for the game, we didn’t feel the need to *not* stay out until 2am in order to be alert enough in the morning to handle risky chemicals. 

(More reading on baked baking soda here)

These doggos are in a sweet eggy challah blanket that stays so nice and soft and takes beautifully to its pretzel shell, and then they’re sprinkled with everything bagel topping because if you don’t have a huge jar of it on hand by now, are we even bffs?????? (I used to measure this out but now I just buy a bunch of minced dried onion, minced dried garlic, poppy seeds, and sesame seeds and dump them into a deli container with a few really good pinches of kosher salt, that’s it. Caraway seeds are optional.) These things combine three of the best carbs, the only thing that could possibly make them better would be to add my fourth favorite carb, the potsticker. Or maybe pretzel challah bagel potsticker dogs sound like too *much*.

Unpopular opinion: I’ve been preferring full-sized hot dogs for pigs in blankets over lil smokies. Two reasons: 1. It’s easier to find full-sized hot dogs/sausages that don’t contain unpronounceable ingredients, 2. It’s easier to get a good bread : wiener ratio. Lil smokies are too skinny and make it too easy to have too much breadiness. You can always cut big hot dogs down into party-sized slices, but the thickness of a full-sized wiener really helps us with what we’re trying to achieve here.

*Keeps a straight face*

pretzel challah bagel dogs

makes 16

ingredients

challah:

2 1/4 tsp (1 envelope) active dry yeast 

3/4 c (178g) warm water, 105-110ºf 

1 tsp plus 1⁄4 c (50g) sugar

3 1/2 c (448g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 tsp kosher salt 

2 large eggs 

1/3 c (66g) flavorless oil

 

Baking soda bath:

1 c (230g) baking soda

 2 c (472g) water

 

16 precooked hot dogs/sausages/veggie dogs

Egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with a splash of water

everything bagel topping (see above)

ketchup and mustard, for serving

clues

in a medium bowl, combine the yeast, warm water, and 1 teaspoon sugar and give it a little stir. let it sit for about 5 minutes, until it becomes foamy on top. 

in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine remaining sugar, flour, and salt. in a separate bowl, beat together the eggs and oil.

add the yeast mixture and then the egg mixture to the flour and stir to combine. Knead either in the stand mixer or by hand on a floured surface, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking, for 7 to 10 minutes, until smooth and just slightly sticky.

Grease the inside of a large clean bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover again with the towel and let the dough rise for 2 to 3 hours, until doubled in size.

While the dough is rising, bake your baking soda. Preheat the oven to 250ºf, spread the baking soda out on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 1 hour. Let it cool and set it aside until after you've shaped your dogs. (Even though the baked baking soda isn't as strong as lye, it could potentially irritate your skin, so avoid touching it once it's out of the oven.)

Increase the oven to 375ºf. line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

split the dough into 16 equal portions and keep it covered when you're not working with it. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll out a long skinny snake and wrap it firmly and evenly around a hot dog. Roll it back and forth on your work surface a couple of times so that the coils of the dough stick together, and then place it on a baking sheet. Continue with the remaining dough and hot dogs, placing them 1 1/2" apart on the baking sheet. Cover and let rise for 20 more minutes.

Make the baking soda bath: place the baked baking soda in a large bowl or casserole dish and add the 2 cups of water. Stir it to dissolve the baking soda (I've never been able to get all of it to dissolve, so a few baking soda chunks are totally ok as long as they don't stick to the dough). Using gloved hands or tongs and working in batches, immerse the dogs into the mixture for about 2 minutes on both sides. Pat them dry with a paper towel and place them back on the baking sheet. Brush with the egg wash, sprinkle with everything bagel topping, and bake until golden brown; begin checking for doneness at 16 minutes. Let cool slightly, serve with ketchup and mustard and enjoy! 

 

-yeh!

sprinkle pony piñata cake!

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in celebration of bojack season 4, but actually in celebration of bethy's kiddos' birthday a couple of weeks ago, i made a pony cake! it was one of the most satisfying cakes to make because i truly can't really think of a better way to spend a sunday afternoon than by piping one million tiny frosting dots onto a miniature dala horse shaped funfetti cake and watching bojack. it's how i imagine adult coloring books are satisfying for people but this one was edible. and i think this also marked the first time i actually used my ikea mini dala horse cake pan, which i'm sad to say doesn't appear to be available for sale anymore. but i'll sell you mine for a million dollars.

when bethy requested a piñata inspired cake with succulents, i immediately thought of this lil guy and went at it with the food coloring. she also needed a small smash cake and do you know what makes the perfect smash cake? cutting two 3" layers out of the center of a four layer cake, and do you know what makes a perfect piñata cake?! filling the center cutout with m&m's. it was a perfect win/win/win.

you'll essentially need a batch and a half of sprinkle cake, a bunch of m&m's (rather, i used a mix of m&m's and trader joe's candy chocolates which are the prettiest colors), and i topped it with some edible dirt that was basically ground pretzels, cocoa powder, sugar, and coconut oil. and roses and succulents! duh.

sprinkle piñata cake

makes one 4-layer 8" cake

ingredients

for the cake:

3 3/4 c (476g) flour

6 tb (48g) constarch

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tb baking powder

1 1/2 c (338g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 1/4 c (450g) sugar

6 large egg whites

6 tb (75g) flavorless oil

1 1/2 tb clear imitation vanilla (i prefer mccormick brand)

1 c + 2 tb (270g) whole milk

3/4 c (144g) rainbow sprinkles (artificially colored cynlinders, not nonpareils, sanding sugar, or anything naturally colored)

 

for the frosting:

2 1/2 c (562g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 c (720g) powdered sugar

1/4 tsp kosher salt

2 tsp clear imitation vanilla

3 tb whole milk

 

for filling + decorating:

m&m's (or other candy, as desired), food coloring (i like americolor's nifty fifty set)

clues

to make the cake:

preheat the oven to 350ºf. grease and line the bottoms of four 8-inch cake pans and a mini pony pan (if you don't have a pony pan, you can leave it out).

in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking powder.

in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. add the egg whites, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. add the oil and the vanilla.

with the mixer running on low speed, add the dry mixture and the milk in two or three alternating batches and mix until just barely combined, using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the sprinkles until they're evenly distributed. distribute the batter between the pans. 

bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. begin checking the pony for doneness at 15 minutes and the cakes at 25 minutes.

let cool in the pans for 10 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.

to make the frosting: 

in a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth and then gradually beat in the powdered sugar. add the salt, vanilla, and milk and beat to combine.

to assemble:

once the cakes are cooled, use a biscuit cutter to cut out 3" circles from the centers of two of the layers. use these circles to make a mini cake! or just eat them. place one of the uncut layers on a plate or cake board and spread on a layer of frosting, then stack up the two cut layers on top of that with a layer of frosting in between. fill the hole to the top with m&m's, frost the top of the cake and then top it with the remaining uncut cake layer. frost it all over.

decorate your pony as desired: decorate one side of him while he's laying flat on a pan, refrigerate so the frosting firms up, and then stick wooden skewers in the legs. use these to attach him to the cake, and then once he's upright, decorate the other side.

add flowers, succulents, sprinkles, dollops, or any other decorations that you'd like and serve!  

-yeh!

p.s. michigan friends!! i'll be at the harbor springs festival of the book next week!! get your tickets here and let's hang!!! 

choose your own adventure bloody marys

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throughout my year of making molly on the range, i had a lot of shoot days where my primary task was taking a few options for beauty shots of the five or six dishes that were on the schedule for that day. most of the shoot days fell in the winter, when the days are extra short around here, so that was silly and took a lot of advanced planning, but in general it wasn't too unlike photographing a blog post. there was more pressure knowing that the photos would get put on paper, however at times it was actually physically easier than shooting a blog post since i knew there wouldn't be much room in the book for many more angles and process shots, beyond one final beauty of the finished dish. 

but! there were also a few different kinds of shoot days that involved people (!) and festive wardrobes (!) and entire party setups, captured by chantell! we had a bonfire, a harvest party, a dumpling party, a brunch party... they were much bigger productions than blog posts and there were a lot of moving parts to coordinate, like humans and props and making sure all of the humans showed up in seasonally appropriate attire (which didn't necessarily reflect which season it actually was. for example, don't ask when we shot the holiday party... the answer is not "around the holidays.") it was a lot like planning a real party! so fun. a little more stressful because if something went wrong i couldn't just spill the punch bowl, call the cops, blame it on the neighbors, and get it out of my life. these were parties that'd live on in physical form. 

one of my favorite parties was our brunch party, modeled on our town brunch club. brunch club member emeritus kristin came up all the way from minneapolis, eggsister came from fargo, farmhouse pottery sent such gorgeous props, and we ate so many of my favorite recipes from the book. (i've strategically included a few preview shots of these up above but the little labels depicting what they are are hidden because those are secrets until the book comes out! #october4 #pleasepreorder) bloody marys were obviously involved but sadly the recipe didn't make the book. 

so here they are now, in honor of sherrie's end of summer #drinkthesummer party, which you all need to check out because i am thirsty and needing to pee just looking at these titles: salty melon slush, garden tonic punch, and jalapeno watermelon cooler to name a few!

i think i make a good bloody mary because savory drinks excite me sooo much. it's like cold boozy soup and--bonus!--you get a serving of vegetables. this recipe is fun because it gives you a good base recipe which you can spice up based on whichever fancy hot sauce you have hiding your fridge. and then depending on what hot sauce that is, that's what you call it. harissa bloody mary, zhoug bloody mary, sambal oelek bloody mary, sriracha chipotle obscure-hot-sauce-in-an-unmarked-bottle-that-you-found-in-your-bag-after-a-long-night-of-tequila-in-tijuana* bloody mary... the world is your hot sauce oyster and impressing your brunch guests is just a few shakes away! 

(*this is fictional, it never happened, stop worrying, mum)

choose your own adventure bloody marys

makes about 6 servings

ingredients

4 c tomato juice

1 c vodka

4 cloves garlic, smashed

1 1/2 tsp celery salt, plus more for garnish

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp ground caraway seeds

1 tsp ground horseradish

1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce

1 tb lime juice

black pepper 

hot stuff ***

garnish:

celery stalks

lime wedges

pickles 

bacon

***This is the essence of this recipe, what makes it. Open up your refrigerator, find the fanciest spicy situation that you have, and then add it to taste. This will be the title of your Bloody Mary. Harissa Bloody Mary. Sriracha Bloody Mary. Zhoug Bloody Mary. Sambal Oelek Bloody Mary. Or a combination.

clues

In a pitcher, mix together the tomato juice, vodka, garlic, salt, sugar, caraway seeds, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, a few turns of black pepper, and hot stuff. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. To serve, give 6 glasses a celery salt rim job and distribute the mixture evenly. Garnish as desired with celery stalks, lime wedges, pickles, and bacon. 

-yeh!

molly on the range is out october 4 and you can pre-order it now!