You Were Thinking Zig, But I Zagged

I don’t really have it in me to blog about the steak- realizing that by even saying this I’m making it sound like it’s going to be exciting or something, which it likely will not be- so I’ll continue to jump around in time like some too-clever-by-half pomo filmmaker and give you the dessert from a couple of days ago, when friends came bearing some of the takeout Pakistani food from the rednecky mini-mart near their house that changed hands recently. A couple of decent curries, rice cooked with black peppercorns, cloves, and copious butter, and not-bad salad for 8 bucks an order. Hard to argue, especially given the scarcity of edible South Asian food in these here parts.

I made dessert, though it is still an open question whether it makes the kids more or less wild; they get so amped up with asking for it every ten seconds that the minute of respite while they inhale it hardly seems like enough of a payoff. I think I prefer no sweets, since their disappointment is less shrill than their begging. But this time around, I cored some gala apples and popped them in a baking dish with the last of the fortified Australian muscat, cinnamon stick, star anise, maple syrup, black pepper, and a little brown sugar. When they were all soft, I strained the liquid into a pan and reduced it into what would have been a thick, gooey caramel given enough time, but instead–due to constant nagging from the little people–was merely an almost-caramel sauce. We scooped the last of some coconut-vanilla ice cream on top and set to. It was blessedly quiet for about a minute.

Subscribe

5 Comments

  1. The Spiteful Chef
    March 12, 2009

    There is really no end to how much I love dessert. Scrumptious! Although your use of the term “aksing” makes me wonder if you’ve gone ebonics, yo?

  2. Heather
    March 13, 2009

    This is itself a respite from all of your usual savory, umamilicious miracle-fridge soups. I love your desserts.

  3. Brooke
    March 13, 2009

    Oh that sounds so good. I could handle some coconut vanilla ice cream right about now.

  4. Brittany
    March 13, 2009

    fucking little shits, ruining the sauce.

    I jest. But seriously, I think that sauce is done. I love caramel to bits, but there is something about apple-y reductions. They sort of maintain more pop if not allowed to fully caramelize.

    That looks gooey and perfect and delicious. JMO (yup. I went there)

  5. peter
    March 17, 2009

    Kristie: Hey, those “Hooked on Ebonics” tapes really help dorky white guys like me sound gangsta.

    Blanche: I do too, and yet I hardly ever make them.

    Brooke: It was coconut-based, so dairy-free. Some are better than others, but the good ones are really good.

    Brittany: I was going for a caramel apple kinda thing, but it ended up not sucking.

Comments are closed.