megan hitz: my great grandmother rose's famous carrot cake

happy easter!

spring is here! our cold, brown, wintery city is washed clean with spring rain and warmed by glimpses of springtime sun. flowers are starting to bloom and trees are sprouting green overnight. i love the seasons, especially those short, but magical, few transitional days when one finally slips into another.

growing up on a farm, seasons, especially spring and summer, meant lots of work and many, many hours spent outdoors in the dirt. my family is practically made of hard work and we all somehow ended up with at least one extremely green thumb. from my earliest days, at the close of winter, i remember listening to my dad discuss new seed varieties, ground preparation and planting schedules. and my mom, a master gardner, would begin planning her acre plot of "garden" which included a vast array of vegetables, flowers, berries, herbs and tubers.

ever since moving to the city, i have itched for a garden full of fresh things. while, it will certainly never be like home, i am blessed with a little plot of dirt in our private courtyard behind our apartment. for the past few years, i have dabbled with herbs, a few potted flowers and even tried to coax a tomato plant or two. this year, after many pleadings for our outdoor space to be spruced up, our landlord offered me a bundle of cash and the opportunity to buy, plant and maintain our little slice of green. needless to say, my trowel and spade were in hand before the ground had thawed!

this week, me and my roommates ventured to brooklyn, loaded a gypsy-cab full of plants and high-tailed it back to the city. i enjoyed an afternoon of shoveling, side-stepping our toads and soaking in that wonderful wet-earth smell. it might not be my dad's sprawl of farm land or my mom's eden-of-a-garden, but getting dirty and helping our spring be a little more full of life was all this green-thumb needed.

in the spirit of spring and the hope of easter, i am sharing a bit of a family secret with you. i give you my great grandmother rose's carrot cake! it may be one of the best cake recipes in my possession (no, really) and i make it even better by topping it with a perfect cream cheese frosting. also, i recently discovered candied carrot shavings as the perfect garnish. i hope it brings a bit of my family garden to your easter feast!

carrot cake

3 eggs

2 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable/canola oil

2 tsp soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

3 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

1 small can of crushed pineapple (& juice)

2 cups grated carrots

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

1 cup raisins (optional)

1 cup coconut

* cream eggs, sugar & oil together well. add vanilla. blend well.

* add dry ingredients mix in (do not over mix).

* stir in remaining items.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes. test center of cake. dont over bake...edges should be starting to pull away from pan edge. edges turn golden brown.

cream cheese frosting

8 oz cream cheese -softened

1/4 cup butter -room temp

16 oz (or one small box) of confectioner sugar

lemon zest and a drop of lemon juice to taste.

whip together for 2-5 minutes. frost cooled cake.

candied carrot garnish

1 cup grated carrots

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup granulated sugar for coating

for the garnish, stir 3/4 cup sugar and 3/4 cup water in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. add grated carrots and simmer 4 minutes. put remaining sugar in a bowl. remove carrots from syrup with a slotted spoon and toss in sugar to coat. toss occasionally as they cool. separate on wax paper and refrigerate until ready to use. garnish frosted cake. enjoy!

megan: sweet-and-spicy meatballs

happy spring!

(well, i for one am insisting on it being spring despite the cold day and snowflakes in the forecast.)

it has come to be routine, over the past three years, that when new year's eve hats are thrown out, empty champagne bottles are recycled and the last bits of crunchy evergreen are cast to the curb, a new running season commences! don't stop reading. i am certainly not one of those annoyingly athletic types, but i do run. and i like it -- quite a bit, actually.

this hasn't always been the case. it all started in october of 2008. i was tired of the routine gym workouts and so was my bank account. with the holidays looming before me, i had two choices 1. eat all that amazing food and get pudgy around the middle. or 2. eat all that amazing food and run. outside. in ny winter weather.

sigh...the scales were tipped, all puns intended. my fate had been decided. i would become a runner. my 2009 resolution was to run a half marathon by the end of the year (that's 13.1 miles for you non-runners). so, my first winter training began. to date, i happily have 3 half marathons and a myriad other, smaller triumphs under my brooks. currently, i am preparing for my 4th half marathon, taking place in two weeks!

how does this have anything to do with food? running, or more specifically, training, makes a runner incredibly, non-stop hungry! and when logging 20-30 miles a week, a girl needs to make sure she is getting enough protein for muscle rebuilding, not to mention plenty of carbs to fuel you up the harlem hills and down the hudson river. last week i went on a quest for meals that would do just that. i discovered (and slightly tweaked) this great sweet-and-spicy meatball recipe. it involves fresh pineapple, crunchy green veggies and really easy meatballs.

while you may not be registering for a half marathon anytime soon, this will keep you moving! stay tuned for next month's easter post!

ingredients:

1-1/2 pound ground beef

1/2 whole onion, diced very finely

1 whole egg

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1 teaspoon kosher salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (more to taste)

1/4 cups all-purpose flour )

oil for frying

2 whole green bell peppers, seeded and chopped roughly

1-1/4 cup fresh pineapple chunks

2 cups beef stock or broth

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 cups sherry (or white vinegar)

1/3 cups sugar

1 tablespoon flour/cornstarch (or more to thicken to desirable consistency)

salt to taste

*serve over brown rice, noodles or quinoa

combine ground beef, diced onion, egg, salt, pepper, breadcrumbs, and crushed red pepper. mix with hands until combined. roll meat mixture into small balls (walnut sized) and place on a cookie sheet. freeze on the pan for 15 minutes to firm.

mix together beef stock, soy sauce, sherry (or vinegar), sugar, and flour. set aside.

heat canola oil over medium-high heat. roll meatballs in flour, then fry in two batches until nice and brown, about two minutes per batch.

remove meatballs and set aside on a separate plate.

pour off oil from pan and return pan to medium high heat. when pan is hot, throw in the chopped green peppers and cook for one minute. add pineapple to pan and cook for one minute, stirring gently. add snap peas to pan for one minute more.

pour in stock/soy sauce mixture, then add meatballs. stir gently to combine and allow to cook and bubble for a few minutes, or until sauce is thickened. add salt and crushed red peppers to taste -the more the better in my opinion!

serve over steamed brown rice or quinoa. enjoy!

Megan: Homemade Granola

happy february!

while our white northeastern winter is here to stay, i have devoted my spare minutes to cozy nooks, comfort food, hot cups of tea and good books. this month, I have been consuming green tea (with a drop of honey and a squeeze of fresh lemon) by the gallon while pouring over my new gifted copy of julia child's my life in france. julia child is simply adorable. i can't help but fall a little more in love with mrs. child with each page turned. while my new food heroine captures my heart, i also can't help the growls that erupt from my stomach as i read in great detail of her journey to concoct the perfect hollandaise sauce, her discovery of the best method to cook the most succulent coq au vin and her hunt for aged cheese wheels to accompany her fresh strawberries. o, julia...

well, needless to say, reading can make you hungry. the perfect cozy-nook-tea-in-hand-whilst-reading-snack? sweet, crunchy, fiber-filled and packed with protein - granola! one of my favorite personal creations is a very simple, tried-and-true granola recipe (i mentioned i was from oregon, right?) this time, i tweaked it slightly, adding dark chocolate, dried cranberries and pomegranate seeds to make it valentine's day ready.

i hope you enjoy it. stay warm, well-read and cozy this month!

ingredients:

2 tbl olive oil

2 cups rolled oats

1/3 butter

2 tbl honey

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 cup raw almonds

1/2 cup salted and roasted cashews

1 cup dried fruit (i chose to use a cranberry and pomegranate mix).

1 cup dark chocolate chips

heat oven to 350.

heat oil on medium heat in large deep skillet. add rolled oats and almonds stir (about 5 minutes) until oats and almonds are toasted and starting to brown. empty into deep baking dish and set aside.

melt the butter on medium heat, add the honey and brown sugar. stirring constantly for 5 minutes, until bubbling.

mix oats and almonds and cashews into the butter mixture and stir well. add fruit.

empty contents into the baking dish and bake for 8 minutes. remove from oven and let cool. once cool, add chocolate chips and mix well.

happy snacking!

Contributor: Megan Hitz

1. What's your name:

Megan Hitz

2. Tell me a little about yourself...

I grew up on a farm in the beautiful Willamette Valley of Oregon. Studied design in Seattle, and moved to New York six years ago to pursue a job in Fashion. I have a heart for people, a strong Christian faith, a need for adventure and an amazing appetite for good food!

3. What's your favorite pass-time and why?

Anything outdoors...hiking Oregon mountains, swimming in any natural body of water, camping in Woodstock, biking city streets, sipping the perfect glass of Riesling at a bustling New York street cafe, wandering Central Park... I love the outdoors, it makes me feel alive. Nature is beauty and i find it very inspirational.

4. What's on your plate currently?

well, as i write this i literally have a plate in front of me - its contents: fresh spinach, white bean and basil hummus all wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla. In my drawer for later is an Organic dark chocolate bar, with cherries and almonds (from Whole Foods!)

5. What do you hope to contribute to the reader?

Hopefully, a natural and exciting approach to the sweet things in life!

6. When did Baking/Cooking become your top priority?

i have always loved baking from a young age. My mother is an amazing cook and baker - i have fond memories of pulling a stool up in the kitchen as she rolled out fresh pie crust, or mixed cookie dough. Baking (and gradually cooking) has become more of a priority since living on my own here in the city - where bakers (and cooks) are few and far between!

7. What are 5 items you cannot live without?

Water, My little Blue Bike, an Oven, Flour, and Good Chocolate

8. What's your motto you live by?

Don't eat Fake Food.

9. Your favorite song to belt out in any given situation?

Ha! Sara Mclachlan's "i will remember you"

10. What was the hardest obstacle to overcome?

Getting the Yeast to Froth!

We are so excited to have Megan as a contributor to Herban Flavor. Megan has a fresh take on Baking, and creativity that i am sure you will all enjoy. Megan is the perfect fit to our Herban Culture...