Iron Cupcake Challenge

This past weekend I was asked to be on a panel of judges for The Iron Cupcake Challenge held at The Green Apple Bistro in Moorestown, New Jersey. My judging companions were E of Foodaphilia and Vince Frank of Swanky Bubbles. We all had a lot of fun judging, and, believe it or not, picking a winner was extremely difficult.

The Iron Cupcake Challenge is a local meetup group where any local bakers and food enthusiasts can join for a monthly cupcake face-off. Kati Angelini of Kati's KupCakes organizes the event the NJ/Philly area where each month a new ingredient is presented, and all participants bake their interpretation of the ingredient in cupcake fashion. Proceeds go to a different charity each month (Ronald McDonald House was this month's recipient), and the victor goes home with a crown and a $100 check.
Judges' table.

Next month's cupcake challenge flavor is pumpkin (hello, Autumn!) and the event will be held at The Pop Shop (hello, 30 varieties of grilled cheese!) in Collingswood, NJ. If you think you've got what it takes to be the next Iron Cupcake Champion, join up and pony up the $15 entry fee. You know you've always dreamt of winning a local bake-off!

Iron Cupcake Challenge: Moorestown
The Pop Shop, 729 Haddon Ave., Collingswood, NJ 08108
Sunday, October 25, 5 pm

Ba Le

It's funny how you get in the habit of stopping into a place to pick up one thing and never sample any other items from the menu. For me, such is the case with South Philly's Ba Le, a chain bakery and restaurant that sells a wide range of Vietnamese baked goods, desserts, meats, ready to eat meals, Banh Mi, bubble tea, and many other treats I don't know how to pronounce. Ba Le has always been my Washington Ave. stop for avocado bubble tea, and that's about it...until I decided to try their vegetarian Banh Mi, one of twelve varieties of Banh Mis they offer.Sweet and mildly spiced fried tofu strips, pickled daikon and carrot strands, a cucumber spear, jalapeno slices, and a couple cilantro springs are nestled in a freshly baked baguette slathered liberally with sweet mayonnaise. The soft-on-the-inside and crispy-on-the-outside baguette (so crispy the sandwich was loud!), and the addictive sweet fried tofu really make Ba Le's Banh Mi a standout amongst other Banh Mis I've recently tried.Ba Le bakes their baguettes on site, and sells them in packages of four for only a few bucks, so next time you're jonesin' for a Banh Mi (so simple to make at home), drop by and pick up few baguettes. Rice flour is used in Vietnamese baguettes, so the rolls are a little different than a traditional French baguette, and a whole lot different than a hoagie roll, so getting the real deal really makes a difference when building a Banh Mi. Our bag of four baguettes were not as ultra crispy as the baguette the sandwich Ba Le made me, but still very good. And look at me! I went back to Ba Le and tried something other than the bubble tea. Plucked a container of Mi Xao Chay, stir fried vegetarian egg noodles with tofu, veggies, and vinaigrette, from the deli case and dined happily at home. Making progress at eating Ba Le!

Ba Le Bakery and Restaurant
606 Washington Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19147
215-389-4350

SqaureBurger

There's a bit of a burger craze going on in Philly right now, what with people lining up to try Garces' $24 foie gras-topped Whiskey King burger at Village Whiskey, Stephen Starr slashing lunchtime burger prices at Butcher and Singer, and PYT's Tommy Up declaring burger war via social media and email. Of course, this craze is all about the meat burgers, so where does that leave me? Out sampling the veggie burgers, of course!

Veggie burgers are normally not my meal of choice, so I'm a little embarrassed when people ask me, a vegetarian and food blogger, what my favorite veggie burger around town is, and I have no answer. I hope to one day have a good answer to that question, and attending Burger Club Philly "meatings" organized by the Burgerbaroness of fries with that shake has helped me on the quest.

Let's start with Stephen Starr's veggie burger from SquareBurger, the fast food burger shack located in the newly renovated and kid-friendly Franklin Square across the way from the park's carousel and Philadelphia themed mini-golf course.

Only open seasonally, with changing hours depending on the time of the year (hey, a website would be helpful Stephen!), you better pony up before the end of October November 15 end of the day, November 1 (dude, keeps changing dates!), if you want a taste of Stephen Starr's West Coast style burger (read: small patty, potato bun, minimal toppings), and be willing to wait in long lines at lunch when the weather is nice.

(Sorry for the blur; these are camera phone pictures.)
A lover of lemonade, the menu suckered me with "homemade" lemonade, but I was disappointing to receive pink lemonade that tasted like it was from a mix. I guess I mistook the term homemade for fresh squeezed. Homemade means nothing nowadays, apparently.

Fries are skin-on shoestring, and adequately nice. A Gardenburger was pulled out of the sack to be grilled up for my veggie burger, which, for some reason, is more expensive than the meat burgers!!! A Gardenburger from a finer dining establishment, or even a grub pub, would get the snub from me, but SquareBurger is a tiny shack in a park, and is about what is expected, although, really, I expect there not to be a veggie burger at such places.Melted American cheese, ketchup, yellow mustard, diced onion, and pickle relish are all the toppings available, but, if you're a mayo freak like me, please see the condiment packets along the counter railing. The smell of all these classic fast food burger condiments along with the grilled squishy potato bun remind me of the off-the-menu Burger King Veggie Whopper (that's a Whopper without the meat) that is many road traveling vegetarians' savior and dirty little secret.
On an earlier occasion I tried the Cake Shake blended with vanilla ice cream, half and half, butterscotch sauce, and crumbled TastyKake Butterscotch Krimpet, and I do not like! You either love sucking wet cake through a straw, or you don't. Most do. I don't.

This time I went with the Butterscotch Sundae made with Jack and Jill vanilla ice cream, butterscotch sauce, whipped cream, TasteyKake Butterscotch Krimpet, crushed Heath bar, and maraschino cherry. Kids will love this unsophisticated sundae, but I need something more interesting. Really, I got this sundae to try the TastyKake, a local, Philly, preservative-loaded cake maker that is near and dear to those who grew up on it. I respect local pride and nostalgia, but I missed the love boat by 30 plus years to be endeared to anything TastyKake.

Best veggie burger in town? No, but it'll do in a pinch when hunger pains strike while playing mini-golf with your nieces and nephews.

SquareBurger
Franklin Square
200 N. 6th St., Philadelphia, PA 19106
cash only

Garlic Nutritional Yeast Popcorn

Thought I'd share with you a simple snack that has been rocking my world lately. Yes, it's popcorn with nutritional yeast, and, yes, even non-vegetarians (nutritional yeast is almost exclusively found in vegetarian pantries for some reason...something about B vitamins) go gah-gah for the stuff when it's sprinkled on popcorn, but I thought this would be a good reminder to all who have loved and forgotten to pick up this snack habit again, and maybe even enlighten a few who are out of the pop corn + nutritional yeast = yum loop.

The popcorn recipe has a few more flavoring ingredients than the cheesy tasting nutritional yeast; there's also salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. This combo was actually first made by a friend for a pre-hiking snack, and the only thing I could think about after eating this snack was getting back to the car to finish off the bag of popcorn. And then replicating the recipe back at home.We've been popping corn on the stove in a lidded pot with a couple teaspoons of oil in the bottom, which is so incredibly simple, if not a little scary the first time you try it. Oil + popcorn + lidded pan over medium-high heat = popped corn in a few minutes. Try it! The only way to fail is if you walk away from the stove and burn the kernels, but you'd never do that, right! (My popcorn looks burned, but it's not; the black bits are just the outside of the black popcorn kernels.)

If you'd like to skip the oil, I recently tried this trick where you stick popcorn kernels in a paper bag and throw the bag in the microwave for a few minutes (just like microwave popcorn!) and it pops right up, no oil used at all!

I find the nutritional yeast and other flavorings stick better to the popcorn if there's a little oil or butter used in the popping, so prefer the stove-top method. Also, putting the popcorn in a large bag with the nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and garlic powder and giving it a vigorous shaking helps immensely in getting the flavor in all the nooks and crannies.

Hunker down, movie watching season is approaching, so I wanna know your favorite popcorn recipe? Garlic Nutritional Yeast Popcorn
makes 2 sit-in-front-of-TV servings

I never measure anything when making this popcorn, but did for this post. Normally, I just glug some oil in the pan or add some butter, add enough popcorn kernels to just cover the bottom of the pan, cover, and pop, then add nutritional yeast, salt, garlic powder, and black pepper to taste without any type of measuring device.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
2 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
20 cranks of the black pepper mill

• Add vegetable oil to 4-quart lidded pot, then add popcorn kernels.
• Cook over medium-high heat, shaking pan occasionally to move kernels around and avoid burning. When popping subsides to about 3 seconds between pops, remove from heat. (Because I don't normally measure and often use a smaller 2-quart pot, the popped corn often does not have enough room and starts to push the lid up. Don't freak. Just have a bowl nearby to pour some of the popped corn into, then continue cooking the unpopped kernels in the pot with the lid on.)
• Pour popcorn into a large bag along with the nutritional yeast, salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Shake the bag to distribute the ingredients, then pour the popcorn out into a serving bowl.
  

Moshulu Brunch

I've always wanted to dine on the Moshulu, that big four-masted barque docked in the Delaware River at Penn's Landing, so was excited when a friend booked a Sunday brunch reservation at Moshulu for her husband's birthday (he likes boats, and the Independence Seaport Museum is also right next door).
Inside the funky smelling boat (is that smell that greets you at the door the Delaware River or the nearby dessert bar?) with slanted floors and linen-topped tables is where you'll be dining for brunch (top deck dining is available at the Bongo Bar and Deck). The atmosphere is country club meets swanky hotel buffet meets not-so-lavish Titanic. Most diners are straight out of church, or a gathering of the entire extended family.

The $35 Three-Course Champagne Brunch includes the all-you-can-eat First Course Buffet, an entree off the menu, and the all-you-can-eat Grand Dessert Display, and let's not forget the all-you-can-drink champagne, mimosas, and bellinis!

Buffets bring out the gorge in most, and I did eat more than usual, but decided not to get my money's worth of food, but instead get my money's worth of mimosas! That was my buffet strategy, at least. I went with a mixed salad (it's make your own), green bean and tomato salad, and scone off the buffet table. Also on the buffet: muffins, danishes, sweet breads, bagels, assorted cream cheeses, jams, pasta salad, potato salad, assorted soups, fruit, meat, cheese, olives, and others.A dining partner's buffet plate of lobster bisque, pasta salad with sun dried tomatoes, salad, and nuts. For my entree I ordered the portobello panini from the lunch side of the brunch menu. Not a bad panini at all, with balsamic vinaigrette and basil pesto aioli giving the mozzarella, tomatoes, and portobello a good kick. The hand cut and fried chips, unfortunately, were limp.
Already stuffed to the gills, I hit the dessert bar stocked with cookies, marshmallows, fruit, and cakes for dipping into the chocolate fountains (plural!). Assorted parfaits, custards, tarts, petit fours, and cakes are plentiful. I can't argue with dessert, and I won't argue with Moshulu's all-you-can-eat dessert buffet. Their creme brulee was actually better than most!

With the exception of the limp chips that accompanied my entree, nothing at Moshulu's weekend brunch was bad. Nothing was mind blowing either. Moshulu's Sunday Champagne Brunch offerings are on par with any country club or nice hotel, and will fit the bill for your next family gathering -- something for everyone and all-you-can-eat/drink. Plus, you're dining on a more than a century-old boat with an amazing history, which is pretty cool!

I'd say, as a Philadelphian, it's your civic duty to visit the Moshulu at least once, just to say you've done it. If brunch is not your thing, they also do lunch and dinner daily. Next trip, I'm snagging a seat in the Bongo Bar on the deck solely for the spectacular views of the city and the Ben Franklin Bridge.

Moshulu
Penn's Landing, 401 S. Columbus Blvd., Philadelphia, PA 19106
215-923-2500
Champagne Brunch: Sun, 10:30 am-2:30 pm
Lunch: daily, 11:30 am-3 pm
Dinner: daily, 5:30-10:30 pm
Bongo Bar and Deck: Mon-Fri, 5:30-10pm; Sat and Sun, 11:30 am-8:30 pm

I Got Ribbed Off

The rain stayed away and the crowds came out for the all-you-can-eat ribs, brisket, and other grillables from local professional and amateur teams at A Full Plate's Annual Rib Cook-Off this past Saturday, and what a great time it was!

FYI, the "I Got Ribbed Off" in the title of the post refers to the cute bovine T-shirts with the same saying being sold at the event.
All teams were required to grill ribs, so there were lots of those to be had, although some teams ran out of food quickly with the hungry people chowing their way full force through the crowd. Ribs, Brisket, Anything Goes, and Vegetarian were the four categories teams could enter into the judging, and, let me tell you, the food went fast!

As a judge for the Professional Vegetarian category (there was also an Amateur Vegetarian category), I wasn't allowed in the festival area so as to keep my peepers off the goods and keep the blind judging truly blind, so when my duties were over and I did get a peek at the competitors' tables, much of the food was already gone!
A Full Plate kept the buffet sides and desserts coming, though. E's mini red velvet cupcakes are too cute, and her oatmeal creme pies are one of my all-time favorite desserts she makes. Coleslaw, mac and cheese, baked beans, and brussel sprout salad were a few of the items off the all-vegetarian buffet we picked up.
Carnage from the Professional Vegetarian judging table.

Being a judge in the Professional Vegetarian category was a lot of fun, but I took the job seriously, thoughtfully scoring each entry on presentation, creativity, and taste. I think the Vegetarian category and the Anything Goes category (didn't judge Anything Goes) were truly the most interesting, with each entry being so different from the next. These categories weren't just plate of ribs, one after the other. Vegetarian and Anything Goes were where the grill masters could really use their creativity and bring something special to the table.

With first and second place winners in both amateur and professional divisions of four categories (Ribs, Brisket, Anything Goes, and Vegetarian), as well as a people's choice award, my little, end-of-the-day, non-note-taking brain just can't remember who won what, except for the category I judged and the people's choice award (that award went to Sonata), so you'll just have to wait for the official announcements. (Updade: and here they are.)
Tower Investments took home the second place prize in the Professional Vegetarian category with a grilled vegetable sandwich that was truly delicious -- and I encounter many grilled veggie sandwiches. Who'd a thunk a property developer could turn out good grub!
Q BBQ and Tequila took home the first place prize in the Professional Vegetarian category with grilled caramelized onions and mushrooms with toasts topped with herbed and sweetened goat cheese. This really was the tastiest vegetarian dish of the day in my opinion (and apparently others'), and Q deserved the win.

No pictures or prize, but Mermaid BBQ, 2008's first place rib winner and people's choice winner, made tiny bbq seitan sliders topped with chunky blue cheese dressing that was simple, but delicious. If I had the power (sadly, I have none) to grant a third place prize, I'd award it to Mermaid Barbecue.

I had a lot of fun and can't wait til next year! Check out a few more of my pics on Flickr.

North Bowl

Visited the swanky (but, not so swanky it needs a dress code) and approachable lil' bowling alley, North Bowl, in Northern Liberties a while back for some bowling on Shabbas in the name of charity. Us do-gooders packed the house, but I hear a reservation is always a good idea at North Bowl, as is at any bowling alley, urban or suburban, during prime time.

Bowling is always a good time, but I don't take it seriously (my scores are in the gutter). I do take food seriously, even if it's junk food, and North Bowl takes their junk food -- tater tots, corn dogs, quesedillas, mac and cheese, wings, and burgers, just to name a few -- seriously. Or just about as seriously as you'd want while bowling drunk (full bar is in effect). Not drinking? Have a bowl of miso soup, or Ceasar salad. And end it all with an ice cream sandwich or funnel cake.

Oh, man, does this platter of perfectly fried, hand-dipped, vegetarian, mini-corn dogs, and crispy Tater Tots bring on flashbacks of summer lunches prepared by my brother when I was a young'un! Ketchup and yellow mustard! Perfection! As a note, before ordering the vegetarian corn dogs, a friend in the neighboring aisle leaned in to recommend the veggie corn dogs over the meat corn dogs, saying the veggie ones are less greasy.I'm a sucker for trying vegetarian wings or any faux facsimile of meat. It's fun, not weird, to me. North Bowl's toothsome seitan wings with overly sweet and salty Asian sauce (buffalo sauce is also available) killed it in the fun department by skewering the perfectly tapered wheat meat nuggets with short and stout wooden bones. Loved the wooden handle to hold onto as I tore into the wings. Best fake version of wings I've seen yet!
Hankerin' for some more Tater Tots we delved into the more creative Tater Tot concoction on the menu, and came out with the Spanish Tater Tots topped with fried hot peppers and onions, and paprika aioli. The paprika aioli was pretty tasteless and greasy, and the toppings were just a distraction from the Tots that were what we all really wanted. My suggestion: go straight up Tater Tots. It's classic!

Not pictured, but I also sampled a huge plate of cinnamon pretzel bites drizzled with a sweet glaze. It's a huge plate o' carbs best eaten while hot, not to come back to cold after you've bowled a few rounds.

Next game, it's mac and cheese time! How could I have been so remiss?

North Bowl
909 N. 2nd St., Philadelphia, PA 19123
215-238-BOWL
Mon-Fri: 5pm-2am
Sat-Sun: 12pm-2am
21 years and over after 9pm

A Full Plate's 3rd Annual Rib Cook-Off

A Full Plate's 3rd Annual Rib Cook-Off will be taking place this Saturday, September 12 in Northern Liberties, and should be a rib-a-licious afternoon with both professionals and amateurs competing.

For $20 you get entry into the fest which includes food, drink samples, and live entertainment. Besides the grillables offered up from competitors, samples of Stoudt's beer and ROOT Liqueur will be pouring along with a full buffet of vegetarian side dishes courtesy of A Full Plate Cafe.

And you know what really rocks about A Full Plate's 3rd Annual Rib Cook-off? There's a vegetarian round of the competition!!!!

I'll be there lending my vegetarian expertise as a judge, and would love to see you, so come on down a check out the fun.

A Full Plate's 3rd Annual Rib Cook-Off
Saturday, September 12, 1 pm
$20 includes all you can eat
$10 extra includes all you can drink
N. Hancock St. (behind The Piazza at Schmidts)

Cheddar Apple Pie

Even though I'm not an apple pie fanatic (funny, because there's already an apple pie recipe on this site), the internets and the glossies told me to make a Cheddar apple pie. First, I bookmarked a recipe for cheese straws, a staple Southern party snack, where a commenter mentioned using cheese straw dough as pie crust, which I thought was quite clever. Then, the September issue of Gourmet featured a recipe for essentially the same idea, an apple pie with a cheddar crust.

And, so, I listened to the hints and made an apple pie with Cheddar crust.
Wanna know how to make a pie off-the-charts fattening? Add a block of cheese! (I plugged the recipe into a calculator, and you don't even want to know.)

Gourmet's recipe calls for white Cheddar, but I went with orange because I wanted the eater (that would be me!) to really know that Cheddar was in the crust. While baking, the crust heats up and cheesy goodness wafts through the kitchen, so I was prepared for a cheese assault, but, really, with a forkful of apple and crust together, apple overpowers the crust. But nibble on the crust alone, and it tastes like a cheese cracker.

This would be a great pie for lovers of melted Cheddar on top of apple pie. But I would still melt a slice of Cheddar on top for ultimate cheesiness. And to meet your daily requirement for fat in one go.
Cheddar Apple Pie
adapted from Gourmet
serves 6-8

I found the dough was prone to cracking when rolling it out, so had to do lots of pinching to mend it back together. I blame the cheese. I also added more salt to the crust to make it more cracker-like.

Crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, coarsely grated
1 stick cold butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup cold vegetable shortening
6-8 tablespoons ice water

Filling
6-8 large apples (mixture of sweet and tart, although I like all tart), peeled, cored, and sliced
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter, cut into bits

• Stir together flour, salt, and cheese in a large bowl, or pulse in a food processor. Add butter and shortening and blend with your fingers, or food processor, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Pour 6 tablespoons over mixture and stir or pulse until incorporated. Squeeze a handful of dough to see if it holds together. If not, add more water.
• Divide dough in half, then form each half into flat 5-inch disks. Individually wrap the dough disks, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
• Toss apples with sugar, flour, lemon juice and salt until evenly coated.
• Roll out one piece of dough on a lightly floured surface to fit a 9-inch pie pan. Repeat with the other piece of dough.
• Line a pie pan with one of the dough rounds, then fill the shell with the apple filling. Dot with pieces of butter, then cover with the remaining pie dough. Trim edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then press edges to seal and fold under. Cut vents in top of pie.
  
• Bake on a hot baking sheet in a 450 degree oven for 20 minutes. Reduce oven to 375 degrees and bake until crust is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Cool to room temperature before serving.