I had a wonderful plan for dinner last night. I had some chicken kebobs all put together and ready to be thrown on the grill when I got home. I wanted to make the Blueberry and Strawberry Buttermilk Cake that was posted on Pinch My Salt (thanks Nicole!) as a perfect summer dessert. I figured I’d pick some greens from my little container garden so we’d have a salad. It was a beautiful plan.
That’s when reality stepped in. After visiting a bit with my husband, I was ready to set the plan in motion. I went outstide to turn on the grill so it could heat while I prepared the batter for the cake. And, you guessed it, it wouldn’t light. I think I may have inadvertantly left the gas turned on a tiny bit so there wasn’t any. I fruitlessly pressed the ignition button several times…nothing. Grrrr.
Okay…now what’s for dinner? I didn’t want to try grilling the kebobs indoors…they really cried out for a real grill. Hmmm. Well, I figured we could still have the planned dessert. I put together the batter while thinking about what else to make. It’s a lovely, simple recipe and the batter came together easily. I put it into a square pan (rather than the round pan suggested) and popped it into the oven.
Meanwhile, I had figured out an alternate entree. I had some skinless/boneless chicken thighs in the frig waiting for an idea. I quickly lined a quarter sheet pan with a couple of layers of aluminum foil and layed out the thighs. A liberal sprinkling of salt, some pepper and lavish paprika. Then I dotted each with a dab of butter. I placed the pan under the broiler for about 5-6 minutes.
During this lull I contemplated side dishes. I popped out to the “garden” (I have a tiny yard with a bunch of containers holding tomato, cucumber, pepper, butternut squash, lettuces and herbs) and picked some lettuce and a nice little cucumber. Okay, salad taken care of! Then I remembered two things: 1) I had some cooked rice that I had frozen in the freezer (Mark Bittman had a great article on freezing stuff) and 2) I “forgot” to put the berries on top of the cake. Yes, that’s right, the berry cake was berry-less.
I checked the cake (it had been baking for about 15 minutes) and it was still very soft so I went ahead and put the berries on top and kind of smooshed them down a little with my hand. This is what comes of reading a recipe too fast…you might miss a thing or two. Back in the oven it went. Within a minute or 3, I remembered I hadn’t sprinkled with sugar…so, opened the oven, grabbed a spoonful of sugar and sprinkled. Sheesh.
I turned the thighs, sprinkled with more salt, paprika and butter. Back under the broiler for another few minutes. By now I had placed the frozen rice into the microwave and it was, theoretically, defrosting. When I opened the microwave to pull it out I learned an important lesson: don’t touch really hot, steamy stuff with your bare hand. Boy that was hot. I pulled the mostly defrosted rice out, sprinkled it with salt and pepper and a little olive oil, mixed it well with a fork and put it back in to heat through.
Now the cake and the chicken thighs were done and both were removed from the oven. The cake to cool on a rack and the thighs to rest. While the thighs rested, I made a quick oil and vinegard dressing for the salad (basically I just plated the greens and some cucumber slices, applied a little salt and pepper and drizzled with olive oil and a touch of cider vinegar. Then I sliced the thighs cross-wise and added that and the rice to the plate. While the cake cooled, I served up our little dinner. I briefly explained the whole plan snafu thing to my husband and, after tasting the thighs, said that my “alternate plan was better than most people’s plan.” He’s a keeper.
Once dinner was finished, the cake was cooled. I dished each of us a piece and garnished with whipped cream (have I mentioned that I keep a nitrogen charged canister with cream at the ready in my refrigerator?). The cake was delightful. The berries had only sunk in a bit but that was actually fine. The late addition of sugar created a nice little patina on the top. My husband’s verdict? ”I could eat this everyday!”
I actually really the like how your cake looks with the half-sunken berries and the sugar crust! Great job on the last minute alternate dinner plan! Sometimes the best meals are ones thrown together at the very last minute
Ain’t that the truth! Planning is highly overrated
[...] with the Blueberry and Strawberry Buttermilk Cake from Pinch My Salt. It was a key element in my Unplanned Dinner. I don’t think that post really did it justice. It is a very simple cake to put together. [...]