Lovebird Attack on Basil

This morning, I got up and went into the living room to put some water on to heat for coffee.  I looked over at the lovebird cage on the windowsill, and the cover was on, as usual (we put it [...]]]>

Lovebird Attack on Basil

This morning, I got up and went into the living room to put some water on to heat for coffee.  I looked over at the lovebird cage on the windowsill, and the cover was on, as usual (we put it on during the night so the birds don’t wake up too early and wake us up too).  Then, I looked next to the cage, to check on our little basil seedlings.  We had been attempting a second crop, since in Xiamen, the weather is warm all year round.  To my shock and horror, one of the basil seedlings was flopped over on its side, the stem terribly mangled and holes in its leaves.

Oh my goodness!  Something has attacked and disfigured the basil!

That’s when I saw the culprits, perched on the side of a flowerpot.  Two little, naughty, rainbow-colored, peachface lovebirds.

Honey!  The birds got out!  And they’ve mangled the basil!

Chris finally managed to get the birds back in their cage.  Mrs. Waffles, the pleasantly plump lovebird, went in easily with a little bit of gastronomic temptation.  But Mr. Waffles, the sly, adventurous one, didn’t give in so easily.

We do let them out occasionally, but not right near the plants.  Somehow, they had managed to unclip the door and slide it open, and crawled out from under the birdcage cover.  They’re smart little suckers.  And they were loving it.  They were in a heaven of windowsill herbs.  And they didn’t attack the old crop of basil, oh no…they knew where the good stuff was.  They just had to attack the tender new young basil plants.

Do you think this poor innocent basil will ever recover?

In the meantime, I’ve brought you a super fast pasta dish.  Great weeknight food.  Penne with a lemony ricotta-basil sauce.  Yes.  Basil.

Penne with Lemon, Ricotta and Basil

Use the freshest ricotta you can find, or if you want to, you can make your own!  It’s surprisingly easy.

3/4 cup fresh ricotta cheese
zest of one lemon, grated
juice of one lemon
3 tbsp butter
½ pound penne
½ cup packed fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Cook the penne in a pot of salted water until al dente, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain and set aside.

In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter, and whisk in the ricotta, lemon juice and lemon zest.  Moisten with some of the reserved pasta water to make a sauce-like consistency.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss the pasta with a bit of olive oil.  Divide among plates and top with sauce and basil.  Serves 2.

How easy was that?

I have a love-hate relationship with lemon-flavoured things.  I can’t stand, for example, yellow gummy bears or yellow skittles, or anything with fake lemon flavour.  I also don’t particularly like the colour yellow.  It reminds me of ugly grocery store flyers and dollar [...]]]>

I have a love-hate relationship with lemon-flavoured things.  I can’t stand, for example, yellow gummy bears or yellow skittles, or anything with fake lemon flavour.  I also don’t particularly like the colour yellow.  It reminds me of ugly grocery store flyers and dollar stores, and I especially hate it on cars…or pants.

But I love, love, love naturally lemon flavoured things.  Lemonade, for instance, made with fresh lemons.  Cranberry-lemon muffins.  And Orangette’s lemon yogurt cake.  The smooth creamy pale yellow batter was so beautiful, it stole my heart when I was mixing it, and the contrast between the tart lemon glaze and the sweet lemon cake completed the seduction.  I might just have to paint my walls that perfect pale yellow colour.

Ok, quick confession.  The first time I made this cake, I overbaked it, even though Orangette’s recipe specifically said not to!  But although the cake turned out drier than it was supposed to be, it was the perfect accompaniment to a steaming cup of tea.  The second time I made it I actually baked it properly.  My oven must have been running hot, because it took just under 25 minutes instead of the recommended 30-35.  I don’t really like super syrupy cakes, so instead of making a thin glaze that soaked into the cake, I made a thicker glaze that stayed mostly at the top of the cake.  The cake had two contrasting layers of lemon flavour – one sweet and cakey, and the other tart and syrupy.  You can adjust how thick you want your glaze by simply changing the amount of lemon juice and using a bit more or less powdered sugar.

This lemon cake would be the perfect canvas on which to throw a handful of cranberries, or maybe some poppy seeds.  It’s great plain though, as the true flavour of the lemon shines through.

Orangette’s recipe gives the measurements in “jars”, which refers to the glass yoghurt jars typically used in France to measure the ingredients for this kind of gateau au citron, but I’ve changed the measurements to cups just to make it easier.

Lemon Yogurt Cake
From Orangette

½ cup plain yogurt
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp grated lemon zest
½ cup oil

Glaze:

Juice from 2 lemons
¼ cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine yogurt, sugar and eggs in a bowl until blended and smooth.  Add flour, baking powder (I always mix my bp in the measuring cup with the flour first), and zest, and mix till just combined.  Add the oil, and keep mixing it until it turns into a smooth, creamy batter.

Bake in a buttered 9-inch round pan for 25-35 minutes (depending on your oven).  When the top is just getting a little bit golden, test with a toothpick.  If it comes out clean, you’re good to go.  Cool 15-20 minutes – the cake should pull away from the edges of the pan and should turn out nicely onto a plate.  Mix the lemon juice and powdered sugar to make the glaze, and when the cake is cool, spoon it over the cake and let it absorb.

Lemony yumminess is yours!

My modifications:

I only had sweetened plain yogurt – they don’t have unsweetened local yogurt here in China – so I reduced the sugar to ¾ cup.  Also, for the glaze, I used the juice from only 1 lemon, which made the glaze thicker.  The local yogurt here was super runny – more like drinkable yogurt, so I added an extra ¼ cup to make sure there was sufficient fat to make the cake stay moist.

Also, we don’t have an oven here in China, so all my cakes are baked in a tiny little Chinese toaster oven.  That’s why they often turn out striped, or rise unevenly (hard to avoid when the top of the cake is an inch from the heating element!).  But no matter what they look like (and I think the crack on the top of this cake is adorable), as long as they taste good, no complaints!