Maybe she went to Portland after all...

Another of our research colleagues is graduating her pediatric gastroenterology fellowship program and moving on to a position in Maine.  Apparently her arrival at the new facility has been delayed and lo and behold she has been nominated for young investigator award as part of an upcoming research celebration for work tied to obesity and lower school performance in children.  Fatter kids may turn out dumber in other words. Nonetheless it was supposedly confirmed that she would be around today at cake hour so our provider went out and bought a special cake at the Vienna bakery - one of our favorites - in honor of the graduating fellow.

Always a favorite!

We were happy to combine our time for sweets with honoring our associate and friend.  There was only the slightest little problem in that she did now show up.  So there we were sitting with a cake with a congratulatory message and an absent honoree.  Oh well - that didn't stop us and we dug in.

Good looking chocolate mouse cake!

Well decorated with a special inscription!

Crushed chocolate on the sides adds to the joy!

Special message for our colleague..wherever she was!

The cake was a chocolate mousse cake.  This is always a good choice and a bizarre nutritional argument could be made that because the mousse is made largely of egg whites this is a source of protein in addition to a crap load of carbs.  That is stretching it, however.  Vienna Bakery does this cake well, however.  It uses a light chocolate whipped cream frosting, garnishes it with chocolate and white chocolate shavings and then has two cake layers surrounding the mousse.  It is sweet but not heavy and goes great with a cup of java.  We easily enjoyed it even in the absence of our graduate.

Not too much cake bu lots of mousse!

Just imagine all that protein!

That is interesting is that the person being feted is one and the same as the person who brought in the lovely fruit and ice cream for last Friday's cake hour as sort of a final contribution.  On that day she had to leave due to a problem with an infant child so we missed her then too.  This makes now two times that she was featured and not present.  Maybe she finally made it to Portland. Think of all the lucky children!  If not---where the hell was she!

Homemade Apple PIe with tales post colonoscopy

One of our amateur bakers has come through again.  She has bestowed upon us many a cake hour creation of various kind. Most of them have been very good cakes made with creativity and ambition.  Today however she tried her hand at a good homemade American Apple Pie.  This was made from scratch crust and all.  It is tempting to just pick up one of those premixed pie crusts but our baker would have none of it.

Nothing like a homemade pie!

Nice golden crust on top...

...and all around!  No burnt crust to be had here!

As you can see it looked gorgeous.  It fit perfectly into its dish and was evenly browned on the top and the bottom.  This in itself is admirable as these things tend to get overcooked and burned a lot. The apples on the interior were nicely cooked with appropriate cinnamon and were not overly sweetened.  The latter being a flaw in a lot of apple pies. Also, all too frequently the apples are not well cooked but that was not the case here.  The crust was soft and moist without being mushy neither on the top nor on the bottom.  Pie crust is not an easy task so kudos to the cook for taking on learning how to make the perfect one. We'll be the guinea pigs any old time.

A bit of ice cream would have been perfect!

Ample amounts of cinammon apples!

Today we heard either the sorrowful or comical tale of what not to do post-colonoscopy. Presuming one undergoes the procedure and afterwards is still under the influence of some anesthesia, who would opt to go to a meeting and discuss a manuscript for publication.  Not many but apparently there is one out there who did.  As the item was the first thing on the agenda it probably did not seem like such bad idea - in there and then out to rest up and let the aftereffects of the procedure wear off.  Unfortunately the discussion of said manuscript got moved to a later slot on the agenda meaning a quick visit turned into a prolonged one. Watching the unfortunate person try to stay awake must have been interesting to say the least.  It was probably more fun than checking your electronic device at cake hour again or was he just checking to see if his coif was okay.

Mirror, mirror on my iPhone...

In case a hospital in Portland, Maine comes looking for a pediatric gastroenterologist we have no idea where the person is but apple pie might figure in.

Portland? I'll get thee someday if I'm not researcher of the year!

German Chocolate Cake and what's with homecoming?

German Chocolate Cake is sort of an American tradition. It doesn't really show up anywhere in Germany and I have been there a lot. But that's not surprising because it is actually named after a man named Sam German and was originally called German's chocolate cake.  We have had this several times before but haven't seen one recently so it was a nice surprise to encounter at cake hour.

Bringing back a favorite!

It's the all American German Chocolate Cake

As you should know it s a layered chocolate cake filled and topped with a coconut-pecan frosting. The filling and/or topping is a caramel made with egg yolks and evaporated milk; once the caramel is cooked, coconut and pecans are stirred in. Usually a chocolate frosting is spread on the sides of the cake and piped around the circumference of the layers to hold in the filling. 

The classic caramel coconut pecan topping.!

Nice ridge of chocolate frosting to finish the top!

Today's offering fit the bill and was largely as expected however there was a variation that we had not encountered before which had crushed chocolate and shaved coconut added to the outside of the cake that gave it a speckled appearance different from the usual chocolate frosting.  This was creative and since it added more coconut to the cake a tasty addition.  This was a commercial cake but fresh and moist as it should be.  We did notice that it said it was made with Belgian chocolate so does that make this German Belgian Chocolate Cake.  Who cares?

Crumbled chocolate, coconut and nuts on the sides - a new twist!

Moist chocolate cake with frosting between the layers.

This is/was homecoming weekend for the University football team with all the celebration that ensues. Apparently it is not as festive as it is in some high schools and is to some extent mainly to get the alumni to show up to make donations.  In high schools there is the game and then the obligatory homecoming dance that some places take very seriously. This caused some to wonder out loud why the football team is showered with this homecoming tradition and not the other sports teams.  When they come back from the road is that also not a homecoming? If you have a crappy football team but a champion lacrosse team why wouldn't their homecoming be the featured event.  Could there also be a basketball or baseball homecoming especially since those sports play more games anyway.  And why is there only one designated homecoming when the team is back and forth.  This could be some basis for discussion but chances are it would go nowhere. It is just one of those ritual things that gets done with no questions asked..until cake hour that is!

Thanks for the treats - sorry you weren't there!

 
Instead of a cake today we had a lovely fruit medley of berries and grapes and with it some nice vanilla ice cream.  It was a nice treat and we are fine whenever someone opts not to bring a cake but some other wholesome sweet instead.  This also allows those with a gluten allergy to join in. Not that we are insensitive it's just the way that it is that cakes are made with flour which contains that pesky gluten!

It doesn't have to be a cake!

Good old Friendly's!

Great fruit mélange in a bowl from Ikea!!

The berries were nicely presented in a wooden bowl courtesy of Ikea. They were good and sweet as were the grapes and the ice cream was a hit complement.  As our colleague who brought the goodies is going to be leaving soon we were looking forward to enjoying her largesse and her company prior to her departure. Unfortunately family life intervened and because of concern over an accident involving an infant child our friend had to rush off for reassurance so we got to enjoy the goodies with the colleague in absentia. But family comes first and cake hour somewhere else down the list of priorities - for some. Fortunately the kid was fine so we could enjoy everything without any subsequent guilt feelings.

Fresh and delicious!

A tasty gluten free treat!

The merits of regular routine checkups was part of the discussion today.  Some people were questioning the value of going to the doctor and being weighed or tested too frequently.  The scenario was described thus - you go to the doctor, you are weighed and find out you weigh more than expected and respond "why did you do that, now I'm depressed."   The same could be said for blood pressure monitoring. So is it better to know or would everyone feel better no knowing. The answer to that could have grave consequences for the health care system.

Some new cookies to try out!

We occasionally stop by and pick up some cookies at a local gourmet store..."Gourmet Heaven".  The name is a bit of a stretch but they do have some good products and also a decent variety of imported things.  Some of them are like Ritter Bars that are somewhat plebian in Europe but become "gourmet" when brought over here.  They also become a lot more expensive!

Two types of cookies today!

Cookie Place doing social service work!

We have no idea who Cindy is but we'll try the cookies!

They usually have some different kinds of cookies. Today we sampled a few from "The Cookie Place" and also some from "Cindy's Homestyle Cookies". The two made for a good contrast.  We got a mixed selection from "The Cookie Place."  http://cookieplace.org/home.htm.  This is a nonprofit that makes cookies and  does social work in the process. The selection included some obligatory flavors including chocolate chip, macadamia chip, oatmeal raisin, and peanut butter.  These cookies are good and indeed are deemed best in Rhode Island by some.  They are good and pretty standard in size, texture and taste. They are not extraordinary but a good investment if you are hankering for some sweets and they serve a good cause.

We went for the assorted!

And this was the assortment!

Can you guess the types of cookies!

Cindy's Homestyle Cookies we had not seen before. The packaging, which consisted of a plastic cylinder, was interesting and allowed you to see what was inside.  These were different than those from The Cookie Place.  We suspect that they probably had a proportion that leaned toward more butter and sugar and away from flour.  As  result they were flatter and had a bit more of the brown or caramelized sugar taste.  They were regrettably a little light on the chocolate chips but most commercial cookies are.  We did like these and the two made for a nice contrast.

Seemingly baked well done compared to The Cookie Place!

A few more chocolate chips might be in order!

Why do you need a disclaimer for something called "Fruit and Nut"

Thank goodness for airport duty free shops.  Regardless of whether you really with to buy any of the routine stuff they offer - like perfumes - that are more expensive in duty free than anywhere on the street, they are at least a good place to grab a quick souvenir or treat if you are inclined it bring something back from abroad. If you've been to Heathrow airport in London, or probably other major UK airports, you've probably seen the truly ubiquitous color of Cadbury Chocolate.  It is sold everywhere and indeed some of the largest chocolate bars that I have ever seen are Cadbury Milk Chocolate bars at Heathrow - up to 2kg.  Incidentally, the other thing that is really obvious at Heathrow duty free are the enormous warning signs that read "Cigarettes will kill you" and things like that. Purple wrapped chocolate and warnings of death by cigarettes may be the most lasting impressions travelers get from Heathrow.

Still in the duty free bag or whatever!

It's Cadbury Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut!

A British College with the British treat made in France!

One of our colleagues was returning from across the pond and picked up some Cadbury treats.  I would be remiss at this point if I did not point out, that as every Brit will tell you, the Cadbury made for the UK is very different in taste than what is made for the United States.  There is definitely a difference in taste and texture. Cadbury products for the US are made by Hershey which may explain why they are more Hershey like in consistency. The stuff we had today was actually made in France and clearly intended for widespread distribution given the number of languages on the back most of which were not legible. 

At least it wasn't made by Hershey!

Clearly intended for worldwide distribution.

By appointment to H.M. the Queen...still British wherever it is made!

What we got was a bag of little treats labeled fruit and nut. These were small individually wrapped milk chocolates containing chopped up pieces of raisins and nuts.  They tasted typically of Cadbury Dairy Milk and neither the fruit nor the nuts were particularly overpowering.  They were a nice compliment to coffee. We did find it interesting that every wrapped piece had the disclaimer "Contains Nuts" on it. You would think that a piece named "Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut" would obviously contain nuts but apparently an extra warning is needed for those who might have nut allergies.  Better safe than sorry. Fortunately it was not as big or as explicit as the cigarette warnings. I don't suppose there would be a lot of enthusiasm for a food product with a big label that said "Nuts can Kill You!"

This is what a chunk looked like!

Though it's called Fruit and Nut they still have to tell you this..

An interesting way to serve rice and beans

Today we had something very interesting... unusual even.  It was a sticky rice cake covered with sweetened crushed red beans.  No one had every heard of let alone imagined such a thing but it is apparently of Korean origin but also familiar in Japan and somewhat in China.  This should not be too surprising to our aficionados as we know full well that a lot of "sweets" from the Far East are made from or include some form of red beans.  This can take the form similar to gelatin or it can be as pasted used as the filling for a sweet roll or something similar.  It may seem strange given what western culture is used to but it is pretty routine for Asian culture.  Since a lot of these things are eaten while drinking it all seems to fit together somehow.

What's in the pans?

Why sticky rice cake with red bean crumble!

Nicely sliced and packaged!

Our chef remembering her Korean heritage~

Not unlike a slice of pizza!

Basically what we had to day was a sticky rice "cake" that was dusted on top with cooked and the pulverized red beans.  The bean "powder" - more like a brittle actually - was sweetened a little with sugar. The rice "cake" part was not.  This was clearly not going to whet anyone's appetite for a sickeningly sweet afternoon treat and American generic birthday cake manufacturers should take note.

The white part is the rice and the top is the crushed red beans

It does not look that bad at all!

We were told this was not easy to make and that it involved some very delicate mixing of rice flours  with water gradually added but not so that it gets too wet.  Somehow it is then placed into sieve from which the water drains and from there we don't know because we really did not understand how this would all come together. But that is irrelevant since our chef knew and wanted to expose us to this special concoction that she remembered having when she was younger.

When you microwave steam it the rice part expands!

This may look like crushed Heath Bar but it is crushed red bean!

The taste was not bad - a little bland was the rice part - but the crumbled red bean topping did sweeten it up a bit and I do mean a bit.  It was rather dry however.  We learned that is it supposed to be steamed prior to serving which we attempted to emulate by putting it in the microwave. That did not necessarily work and tended to make it a little hard to bite into.  Taking our cue from the steam part we put in covered in the microwave with a little water on the plate.  This did the trick - sort of.  What we did notice is that the steam caused the "rice cake" part to expand so it was more of a cake although to much steaming turned the bean crumble to mush.  We did decided that it was better served this way though not the exact serving technique.  It was well received, however, and the effort was certainly applauded.  We got a promise that next time it will be correctly steamed and served so that we enjoy the full effect. We can't wait!!