Quick Winter Tomato Soup

Trade secret: my tomato soup is just my marinara sauce with some cream & veggie stock added and more pureed. Both are super quick and cheap, so I end up eating a lot of them. this time I got all fancy and ate it with little grilled cheese sandwiches with roasted red peppers and spinach.



Quick Wintry Tomato Soup

few tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 big/2 medium cloves garlic, minced
~1 tbs dried basil, oregano, or whatever else you got
~1 tbs brown sugar
1 big can crushed, diced, or pureed tomatoes
~1/2 tiny can tomato paste
1 - 2 cups vegetable broth
1/4 - 1/2 cup whole milk/half & half/cream

Heat up your olive oil on medium and toss in the onions, plus some salt. Saute, stirring frequently, until browned and carmelly (even burnt in places is good). Add the garlic, spices, and sugar, stir, and saute another minute or two. Then dump in all of the tomatoes, paste, and broth and simmer on medium for ~20 minutes (or until it loses that raw tomato taste). If it's still too acidic after cooking for good amount of time, you can add a TINY bit of baking soda to neutralize the acid (if you add too much it will be totally flavorless and scary). You can also try adding more sugar to balance it out. Puree the whole deal, then adjust salt & pepper and add your dairy to taste. Enjoy with crackers, bread, grilled cheese, etc!

Asparagus & Eggs w/ Hollandaise

No recipe today - recipe for hollandaise is available here: http://holla-bread.blogspot.com/2010/11/breakfast-dinner-eggs-florentine-ish.html, and the rest is just fried eggs and steamed asparagus with salt, pepper, and a bit of (excessive but delicious) truffle salt. this is also a favorite healthy-ish proteinful breakfast of mine with no hollandaise and the yolks left runny so you can dip the asparagus tips in them.

Madeleines

madelienes are my second favorite cookie (after amaretti), though really they're more like little cakes. they look extra fancy but don't take much more effort than any other cookie, so they're good for impressing people. if you don't have a madeliene pan, you could make little muffin-shaped cakes with a muffin pan.

I've found that with all sweet baked goods, adding enough salt is very important for optimal tastiness. i didn't put quite enough in the dough for these, so i sprinkled it on top after glazing them, which worked fine. you could even use some course sea salt for an interesting textural element. the lemon glaze here is optional, as is the almond extract.



Almond & Lemon Madeleines
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
splash of vanilla extract
splash of almond extract
dash of salt
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1/3 cup granulated sugar for decoration

juice of 1 lemon
few tbs confectioner's sugar

Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Beat the eggs with the extracts and salt until light and airy. Add the sugar gradually while beating and keep going (~5 minutes with a beater, 10 by hand) until it's thickened and forms ribbons. Fold in the melted butter and the lemon zest, then pop the dough in the fridge for about an hour (you can freeze it, covered, for ~30 min to speed it up, stirring a few times to keep the edges from freezing). Preheat to 375, then spoon the dough into your pan (don't push it down to fit the molds). Bake about 15 minutes until golden and springy. Unmold and let cool on a wrack.

Optional glaze: melt together the lemon juice and sugar, and then cook until reduced by half. dip the cooled madelienes into the glaze and let dry again on the cooling rack (put something under it to catch the drips). enjoy!

Lemon Tofu & Sesame Swiss Chard

I made this tofu recipe once a few years ago and I have no idea why I waited so long to make it again. The way it's made (deep-fried tofu dipped in a cornstarch-thickened sauce) can be applied to many different flavors as well, and you could also make it a meal by thinning out the sauce with some soy sauce and/or water and then adding steamed vegetables along with the tofu. This recipe makes enough sauce for two blocks of tofu, so go ahead and make more or save it for later.

I improvised the swiss chard to go with it after a very nice fellow bought it for my at a farmer's market, but when I ended up tasting it I realized it I had eaten it a long time ago. When I was in the third grade my best friend, Julie, was second-gen Chinese, and whenever I went over to her house her mom struggled to find vegetarian things to make for me. One thing I always ended up eating was sesame- and garlic-flavored sauteed greens. I remember pouring the cooking liquid over my sticky rice when I finished, which is how I ate it today. Yum.



Lemon Tofu
1 block tofu
cornstarch

1 lemon
1 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
thumb-sized hunk of ginger, minced
1 tbs cornstarch

vegetable oil for frying

Cut your tofu into shapes of your choosing, then wrap it in paper towels or a cloth and press it while you prepare the sauce.

Combine the juice from the lemon, vegetable broth, soy sauce, ginger, and cornstarch in a saucepan. Whisk over medium heat and cook until thickened (don't overcook, or your sauce will take on that gross snot-like consistency of bad reheated chinese food) - if it gets too thick you can add a bit of water or broth.

Heat up about an inch of oil on high. Mix some cornstarch on a plate with salt and pepper, then roll your dried tofu pieces in it. Deep fry in a single layer(I did two batches for one block of tofu) until golden brown. Remove the tofu to a paper towel/newspaper to drain, then drop it all in the warm sauce, mix it around to coat, and use a slotted spoon to scoop it out of the sauce and into a bowl. Best eaten immediately while the tofu is still crispy, but it's also good the next day.



Quick Chinese Sauteed Swiss Chard

veg oil & sesame oil
1 big bunch swiss chard, washed and chopped (keep in the stems!)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 tbs soy sauce
toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Heat up a tiny bit of veg oil plus a tiny bit of sesame oil in a nonstick pan (if you do all sesame oil you risk burning it... but I never had so it's probably ok). Toss in your swiss chard and garlic at the same time, plus some salt. Stir-fry until it's all wilted and soft, then top with the soy sauce and some toasted sesame seeds if you've got them.

Candied citrus slices

An easy recipe with tasty results! Unfortunately I couldn't really eat these because the chewiness-sugariness combo triggered my sensitive teeth, but they're very tasted and have a great texture if you get them right. Plus, pretty!



Candied Citrus Slices
some citrus, cleaned and sliced very thin
sugar
water

heat up equal amounts water and sugar in a wide pot, stirring frequently. When it's dissolved, toss in your citrus. Cook until you think it's ready (the sugar should be boiled down to a thick syrup and the fruit will be visibly candied - translucent and glossy. pull out the slices with tongs and set them on a cooling rack over a pan to catch all the drippy sugar. if you want, you can continue to cook the sugar to make a citrus-flavored caramel (add some butter and cream at the end to keep it from hardening).

Pizza, revisted

One of the first posts we ever made on this blog was pizza
, but since then we've been using a different recipe for the crust that I like a lot more. it's from the breadbaker's apprentice, and it makes an awesome crumb. recipe below, plus a recipe for the basic tomato sauce that i use for pizzas & pastas.





BBA Pizza Dough
Makes 6 medium pizzas

4 1/2 cups flour (bread flour is best)
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp yeast
1 3/4 cups cold water

Mix the dry ingredients, then add the water and start mixing with your hands. Once it's homogenous, dump the dough onto a floured cutting board, wash your hands, and start kneading it. Keep your hands wet throughout the process to keep them from getting doughy. Knead for A LONG TIME. When it's done, the dough should be smooth, springy, and tacky but not so wet that it sticks to the cutting board or your hands - you can add more flour/water as you go to achieve the right texture. If you want you can cut the dough into 2 balls and knead them separately to make it easier.

Cut the dough into 6 equal sections. Roll into balls, dust with flour, put on a floured cutting board with at least a few inches between each one, cover with a plastic bag, and let rest in the refrigerator at least overnight and for up to 2 days.

On the day you're making the pizza, take the dough out 2 hours before baking time. Squish the balls into flat discs, and then let them rise, covered (to prevent the surface from hardening). 20 minutes before bake time, put a baking stone in the oven and preheat to as high as your oven will go. then grab a pizza lump, stretch it to a circle (don't use a rolling pin - you'll crush the bubbles!), out in on a floured baking sheet or cutting board, top with ingredients (no need to roll the crust - it puffs up on its own), and slide onto the top pizza stone. bake for about 10 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned.



Basic marinara

1 small onion, diced
~1 tbs dried oregano and/or basil (optional)
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
~2 tbs brown sugar
1 big can crushed tomatoes

heat up a bit of olive oil in a pot. Saute the onions with some brown sugar and salt (and optional oregano/basil) on medium, stirring frequently, until light brown. toss in the garlic and cook another minute, then add the crushed tomatoes. cook everything on low heat for a long time (40 minutes?), stirring often - you can add more water if it gets too thick. taste and adjust - it will need lots of black pepper, probably more salt, and maybe more sugar to balance the acidity. if it is really too acidic, you can add a TINY BIT of baking soda or powder to neutralize it, but beware - if you add more than a pinch your sauce will be creepily flavorless. If you're putting this on pasta, I would puree it afterward to make it smooth.

Vegetable Quiche

the psych program at Adelphi served us quiches at orientation last week, and since then the idea of more quiche has been nagging at the back of my mind. Quiche is great in many ways, other than just being delicious. It's a kitchen-sink food, requiring nothing other than staples (flour, eggs, milk, butter) and whatever leftover bits of food you have around, but you can also make it super fancy with the right ingredients. And this version is somehow both very healthy, since about 1/2 of the volume comes from a bunch of chopped up vegies, and very unhealthy, since the other half is pretty much butter and cheese. You can modify this many ways and still get a good quiche - you can sub yogurt for the creamcheese, cream or half-and-half for the milk, add more eggs and less vegies if you like a more omelette-like texture, and use whatever types of cheese you want.



Basic Pie Dough
makes 1 bottom shell - if making a full covered pie, double it
1 1/4 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and chopped into small pieces
2-4 tbs ice water

The easiest way to do this dough by far is in the food processor, but I think you do get slightly better results doing it by hand. Either way, all it involves is cutting the butter into the mixed flour and salt until you get a crumbly texture of tiny balls of cold butter covered in flour (rather than melted and mixed completely). If a food processor, just dump it all in together and pulse a few times, stir to get up the bottom stuff, and pulse a few more times until it's crumbly. By hand, use a pastry cutter (MUCH EASIER) or a fork to chop the butter into smaller and smaller bits while mixing to coat it in flour. Once it's all gravely, add a bit of cold water and mix. You want it to be wet enough to hold together when you press it, but NO WETTER, and you don't want to overmix and give it enough time to melt and become homogenous. Once it holds together, press it into a ball, flatten that ball into a disc, wrap it up in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour.

When you're ready to quiche, preheat to 400, take it out of the fridge, roll it out to a diamter that is a few inches more than the diameter of your pie dish, and press it into the dish. I forgot this vital next step which caused a minor quiche disaster - WRAP THE WHOLE THING IN TIN FOIL, pressing it against the edges (so it matches the countors of the pan), then poke holes all over with a fork. this keeps the side from collapsing in on themselves and the bottom from puffing up. pop it in the oven and bake it for about 10 minutes, until it has firmed up a bit but has not browned at all.

Vegetable Quiche
1 pie crust (recipe above or you can use store-bought)
3 oz cream cheese, room temp
1/3 cup milk
3 eggs
2 cups finely chopped vegetables (i used broccoli, onion, spinach, and carrots)
3/4 cup assorted cheeses (i used feta and goat cheese)

Preheat oven to 425°.

Depending on the vegetables you're using, saute whatever is raw and cruncy until al dente. Frozen spinach can just be thawed and well-drained (if using exclusively spinach you'll need about 10 oz to fill the quiche).

Beat the cream cheese and milk together with a fork until homogenous, then beat in the eggs (don't overmix - they should be streaky). Mix in vegies and cheeses. Pour mixture into prepared crust and bake until crust is golden brown and filling is set, about 25 minutes. Cool a bit before serving. Best if eaten in the next day or two so it doesn't get soggy, and best reheated in the oven or a toaster oven. Enjoy!

"paella"

This dish started off as mexican tomato rice and ended up somewhere in between that and a paella. it's got the vegetables and the arborio rice, but chili powder instead of saffron, and it wasn't made in a paella pan; instead, i turned the non-stick pan i was using up on high at the last minute to brown the bottom a bit. if you want to get it extra-crunchy, you could put the whole thing in the oven in a cast-iron pan and bake it to finish. If you want it more like mexican rice, just replace the arboria with normal rice and cook it as you would normal rice (add all of the liquid at once and cover). it would also be good with some green beans or kale added to the mix - just cook them separately and add them at the last minute.



Mexican Rice-Paella Hybrid

1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup arborio rice
1 small can crushed or diced tomatoes
chili powder or paprika to taste
few dashes chipotle powder
some saffron or turmeric (optional - will make it yellow)
1/2 can chickpeas
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
~1 cup frozen peas
1 lime

Heat up some olive oil in a pan and cook your onions with some salt until translucent. Toss in the garlic and arborio rice and cook until everything has started to brown. Add the tomotoes and spices and cook for another few minutes. Add about a cup of water or vegetable broth and cook until it has fully absorbed into the rice, and repeat (like making a risotto). When the rice is getting close to done, stir in the chickpeas, artichoke hearts, and peas (you want them in there long enough to absorb some flavor, but not so long that they fall apart). Keep up the process until the rice is done, adjust salt and spice, and serve with some lime juice squeezed over top. Enjoy!

Brian & Ana's Wedding Cake

Not yet ready to take on a cake large enough to feed 100 hungry warriors, i made the secondary "special" cake for my brother's wedding that was eaten by family and the wedding party while the rabble got sheet cake. i was pretty terrified of this cake collapsing, but it turned out totally disaster-free. i kept the design simple because i have no piping skills, and i magically managed to guess my sister-in-law's favorite cake flavors! it could have been prettier, but everyone said it tasted amazing. the recipes below will make enough for one two-layer cake - i multiplied them as necessary for the 6-layer (3-tier) wedding cake. Be forwarned that the stabilized whipped cream filling is gelatin-based so it needs to be started a few hours ahead of time to set. you could also sub in regular whipped cream as long as your cake latyers are very thin (so it won't squish out to the side when you assemble the cake).




Raspberry-Almond Cake with Whipped Cream Filling

The Cake
Adapted from Dorrie's Perfect Party Cake

2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
4 egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tsp almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter and line two 9-x-2-inch round cake pans.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Whisk together the milk and egg whites.

Beat together the sugar, lemon zest, almond extract, and butter until very light.
Add one-third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed, followed by 1/2 of the milk-egg mixture. Continue alternating until both are gone and beat another few minutes to aerate.

Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cakes are springy. Transfer to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up.

Stabilized Whipped Cream Filling
Adapted from here

2 cups milk
1 cups heavy cream
1.5 tbsp sugar
1.5 tbsp vanilla
1.5 packets(each 10 g) gelatin

sprinkle the gelatin over 1/4 cup water and allow to gel. Heat the milk, sugar, and vanilla just to boiling, then take off of the heat, stir in the gelatin, and let cool, first at room temp and then in the fridge. when its ready (maybe 3 hours later), the consistency should be similar to a panna cotta. beat the gelled milk until it is smooth. Whip the cream to stiff peaks, then gently fold the two mixtures together until homogenous. pour over the bottom cake layer and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Raspberry Filling: cook down 1 bag frozen raspberries with sugar to taste until jam consistency - you can substitute jarred raspberry jam, but it will be sweeter and less tangy. smooth a thick layer of raspberry filling over the whipped cream filling, then place the second cake layer on top.

Almond frosting: I have always avoided buttercream on cakes because I can never get it stiff enough not to squish and slip and melt everywhere, but I finally solved the problem by discovering decorator's frosting. it's usually only available in stores that have a specialty cake-making section, and it's very stiff as it's intended to be used for decorations rather than all-over frosting. to get the right consistency, i mixed about 1/2 decorator's frosting with 1/2 regular buttercream, and then added a bunch of almond extract. if your cake is only 2 layers frosting consistency will matter less, so go ahead and use the store-bought or any home-made that works for you. You can also just top the cake with more of the whipped cream filling (though it won't be as pretty).

Slivered almonds (optional): press into the frosting-covered sides of the cake.



Tiered Wedding Cake Assembly

I thought this part was going to be extremely difficult, but it turned out to be not so bad at all. The way I did it was to made the three cake tiers the night before (each one a 2 layer cake as described above) and then assemble them the morning of the wedding. Essentially, my cake strategy was to make 3 carboard discs to match my cake layers, wrap them in tin foil, and poke a hole going through the center of each. To assemble, I put the bottom layer of the cake on its disc and poked 4 straws through the cake in a square around the center and cut them to be just a tiny bit taller than the cake layer itself. these served as supports for the next-largest disc, which i then placed on top of the straws, put on the cake layer, and inserted a wooden skewer going through the center of both layers to stabilize them horizontally. I repeated with the final layer and then used frosting and raspberries to cover up the gaps better the layers. To eat, you just pull the straws out as you go. there are many helpful diagrams and videos online to help with this stuff, just google "how to assemble a wedding cake."

Oaxacan Black Mole

Forgot to post this recipe long ago, and I'm trying it again soon, so here it is! This is Rick Bayless' Top Chef Masters-winning, 20-some ingredient, labor-intensive mole. it took Gabe and I hours to make and left us with burning eyes and lungs from the chile smoke and black splatter stains all over our oven and cabinets, but it was totally worth it. one of the most complex things i have ever tasted. The below version is slightly simplified from Bayless' recipe and vegetarianized. See here for one application - would also be good as a sauce for quesadillas, enchiladas, or chiles relleno.

Oaxacan Black Mole

6 ounces dried mulato chiles
4 ounces dried pasilla chiles
1 dried chipotle chile
1 corn tortilla, torn into small pieces
2 1/4-inch-thick slices of white onion
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
About 2 cups vegetable oil
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup pecan halves
1/4 cup peanuts
1/4 cup almonds
About 10 cups broth
1 1/2 pound tomatoes and/or tomatillos, roughly chopped
2 slices stale bread, toasted until very dark
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
A scant teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 ripe banana
3 ounces chopped dark chocolate
Salt to taste
~1/4 cup sugar

Pull out the stems (and attached seed pods) from the chiles, tear them open and shake or scrape out the seeds, collecting them as you go.

Scoop the seeds into an ungreased medium-size (8- to 9-inch) skillet along with the torn-up tortilla, set over medium heat, turn on an exhaust fan, open a window and toast your seeds and tortilla, shaking the pan regularly, until thoroughly burned to charcoal black, about 15 minutes. Now, scrape them into a fine-mesh strainer and rinse for 30 seconds or so, then transfer to a blender.

Roast the onion slices and whole, unpeeled garlic cloves under the broiler until very dark, flipping halfway through. Cool the garlic a bit, peel it and combine with the onion in a large bowl.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat up the 2 cups of the oil in a wide pan begin frying the chiles a couple at a time: They'll unfurl quickly, then release their aroma and piquancy (keep that exhaust on and window open) and, after about 30 seconds, have lightened in color and be well toasted (they should be crisp when cool, but not burnt smelling). Drain them well, gather them into a large bowl, cover with hot tap water, and let rehydrate for 30 minutes, stirring regularly to ensure even soaking. Drain, reserving the soaking liquid.

While the chiles are soaking, toast the seeds and nuts. Spread the sesame seeds onto a baking sheet or ovenproof skillet, spread the pecans, peanuts and almonds onto another baking sheet or skillet, then set both into the oven. In about 12 minutes the sesame seeds will have toasted to a dark brown; the nuts will take slightly longer. Add all of them to the blender along with 1 1/2 cups of the broth and blend to as smooth a puree as you can. Transfer to a small bowl.

Without rinsing the blender, combine the tomatoes and tomatillos with another 1/2 cup of the broth and puree.

Pour into another bowl. Again, without rinsing the blender, combine the roasted onion and garlic with the toasted bread, cloves, black pepper, cinnamon, oregano, thyme, banana and 3/4 cup broth. Blend to a smooth puree and pour into a small bowl.

Finally, without rinsing the blender, scoop in half of the chiles, measure in 1/2 cup of the soaking liquid, blend to a smooth puree, then pour into another bowl. Repeat with the remaining chiles and another 1/2 cup of the soaking liquid.

2. From four purees to mole. In a very large (8- to 9-quart) pot (preferably a Dutch oven or Mexican cazuela), heat 3 tablespoons of the lard or oil (some of what you used for the chiles is fine) and set over medium-high heat. When very hot, add the tomato puree and stir and scrape (a flat-sided wooden spatula works well here) for 15 to 20 minutes until reduced, thick as tomato paste, and very dark (it'll be the color of cinnamon stick and may be sticking to the pot in places). Add the nut puree and continue the stirring and scraping until reduced, thick and dark again (this time it'll be the color of black olive paste), about 8 minutes. Then, as you guessed it, add the banana-spice puree and stir and scrape for another 7 or 8 minutes as the whole thing simmers back down to a thick mass about the same color it was before you added this one.

Add the chile puree, stir well and let reduce over medium-low heat until very thick and almost black, about 30 minutes, stirring regularly (but, thankfully, not constantly). Stir in the remaining 7 cups of broth, the chocolate , partially cover and simmer gently for about an hour, for all the flavors to come together. Season with salt and sugar (remembering that this is quite a sweet mole and that sugar helps balance the dark, toasty flavors).

In batches in a loosely covered blender, puree the sauce until as smooth as possible, then pass through a medium-mesh strainer into a large bowl.

Ginger Tofu Noodle Bowl

This recipe is nothing special in terms of sauce (your basic ginger-garlic-soy), but it did introduce me to an awesome way of cooking tofu that I've never been able to do before because I didn't own a really nonstick pan. Browning without oil is results in a tofu that is not only super healthy, but also super chewy and delicious. This recipe then adds a sweet, sticky sauce, but just the browned tofu would be great in all kinds of noodle dishes and salads (especially for those who are wary of raw tofu).



Ginger Tofu Noodle Bowl
Makes ~3 servings

1 block tofu, sliced however you like and DRAINED THOROUGHLY

1/2 cup soy sauce
~3 tbs brown sugar
2-3 tbs rice wine vinegar
1 clove garlic
a hefty chunk of ginger

3 servings thin rice noodles (read the package)
1-2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbs soy sauce

3 small carrots, cut into matchsticks
1 small cucumber, cut into matchsticks
cilantro

Heat up a wide nonstick pan on medium-high. Place the drained tofu slices on it and brown on both sides (it will take a while, so you can do other stuff while you wait, just check periodically).

Meanwhile, whizz together the soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, garlic, and ginger in a food processor, or if you don't have one, mince up the garlic and ginger and stir them together with the other ingredients. Adjust to taste, then put it in a pot over medium-high and simmer until the sugar is dissolved and it is slightly reduced.

Make the noodles according to the package - some soak in hot water, some need to be boiled. When they're done, toss them with the sesame oil and soy sauce. You can also lightly steam the carrots if you want them to be less crunchy.

When the tofu is browned, add a little bit of the sauce to the pan and flip the tofu around in it to coat both sides. You want enough sauce to thoroughly coat the tofu, but it shouldn't be filling up the pan (I added a bit too much and my tofu was very sour-sweet). Turn the heat down to medium and let the sauce bubble and disapear, flipping the tofu when the sauce has carmelized on one side (you want it brown, not black). Serve the tofu alongside the noodles, carrots, and cucumbers, with cilantro on top (forgot it in the picture, oops) and extra sauce for dipping on the side (or just be lazy and pour it over everything). Enjoy!

Dill-licious Matzo Ball Soup

Some food are hard to vegetarianize. I was worried when I started this soup that without the traditional fatty chicken broth it would be bland and boring. The solution I arrived at was to kick up the other flavors in the dish - specifically the onions, black pepper, and dill - in order to make an intense, spicy broth. The result was delicious (can't bring myself to make the pun twice). This recipe is also paradoxical because it makes a traditional passover soup that you can't eat for passover, due to the addition of baking powder. The original recipe didn't call for it, so you probably don't need it, but I decided to add it in just to make sure that my matzo balls were very light and fluffy.



Matzo Ball Soup
(makes about 10 matzo balls or 3ish servings)

1/2 cup matzo meal
2 eggs
2 tbs oil
2 tbs broth, water, or seltzer
1/2 bunch dill, finely chopped*
1 tsp baking powder
salt & lots of pepper

3 cans (~6 cups) vegetable broth
1/2 bunch of dill, roughly chopped*
1 medium onion, diced
~5 carrots, diced

*if you didn't buy it in a pre-packaged grocery store bunch, use your judgment but don't skimp.

Make the matzo dough by combining all of the first list of ingredients. taste and adjust the seasoning. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Heat up the vegetable broth. Add in the onions and dill and simmer for a few minutes. Add in the carrots and simmer until they're soft (don't overcook them, mushy carrots suck!).

Heat up a largish pot of water. When it's boiling, turn it down to a gentle boil. Roll the matzo dough into small balls (they double or triple in size when cooked. aim to make around 10) and drop them into the water. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes, or until cooked through. All the matzo balls to the soup and serve. Enjoy!

Carly's Birthday Dinner

Some recipes at the bottom! No recipe for the raviolis this time, but, an important discovery: wonton wrappers! they have them frozen at Asian markets. They taste almost as good as fresh pasta dough and they are an ENORMOUS time saver.

Menu:

Bread & Antipasti (including my favorite type of olives!)



Salad with Risotto Cakes and Tomato-Basil Dressing (recipe here)



Basil, Arugula, & Pea Ravioli with Lemon Butter



Torta Caprese (a totally rich and delicious chocolate-almond cake)



Recipes


Balsamic Pears & Gorgonzola

1 tbs butter
3 pears, on the firmer side, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
few dashes cinnamon (or spices of your choice)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Heat up some butter on medium. Toss in your pears, add sugar & cinnamon, and saute until they soften up a bit. Add the balsamic and simmer for a few minutes, until it has reduced and become more thick & gooey (but keep it mind it will firm up a lot more as it cools). Let cool a bit, then plate with some slabs of gorgonzola and serve with bread or crackers. You could also strain the pears and put them in a salad with crumbled blue cheese and walnuts, then use the reduced balsamic to make a dressing.


Torta Caprese


9 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup butter
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon almond extract
1 ¼ cup sugar
1 ½ cups ground almonds*
6 eggs

*on grinding almonds, if you don't already have them pre-ground: don't just put them in a food processor and grind! they will turn into almond butter... i have learned from experience. add a little bit of flour and sugar to absorb some of the oil so you can grind it up fine without it forming a paste, and stir frequently to shake up the stuff clumping at the bottom.

Preheat to 350. Line and/or grease a spring-form pan.

Melt the chocolate and butter together over a double-boiler. Take off the heat and whisk in the cocoa powder, almond extract, and sugar. Mix in the ground almonds, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Pour into the pan and bake for about 45 minutes - take it out RIGHT when its firm on top, because it will be extra delicious if it's slightly gooey in the middle (like brownies). Cool and serve with almond whipped cream or icecream. Store at room temperature to preserve the texture - it will get much thicker and drier if you refrigerate it. Enjoy!

Spicy Sweet Potato Hash

Ok, so an improvised use-whatever-is-in-the-house vegie hash is not exactly haute cuisine, but this was so surprisingly delicious that I had to record it so I do it exactly the same way next time.



Spicy Sweet Potato Hash

1 sweet potato, diced into 1/2"ish cubes
1 small onion, diced
1/2 can black beans, drained of the gooey grossness
kale, chopped, a few big handfuls (it will reduce a lot when it cooks)
lots of regular chili powder
few dashes chipotle chili powder
moderate amount of cumin
moderate amount of cinnamon
salt & pepper
chopped cilantro/parsley
sour cream

Heat up just a little bit of oil in a nonstick skillet or preferable a cast-iron. Start the potatoes cooking on medium until they start to soften up (NOT fully done). Add the onions, turn up the heat, and cook for a few minutes until things start to get browned. add the black beans, kale, spices, and salt & pepper and cook until you've got a nice dark char on the potatoes, tasting and adjusting spices. at the last minute, stir in some cilantro (or parsley, for those unfortunate genetically challenged individuals for whom cilantro tastes like soap). Top with sour cream and enjoy!

Dilled Cous Cous Cakes with Artichoke Salad

The original recipe for this called for bulgur rather than cous cous, no mustard, and raw veggies rather than charred. I'm sure it would be good that way too... but not AS good. it also called for breading the cakes before frying, but I tried it both ways and found the sans-breading version more delightfully crunchy - just make sure you have a serious pan that won't stick (OMIGOSH I AM SO IN LOVE WITH MY NEW CAST IRON). The artichoke salad part of this was awesome and would be great stirred into pasta or cous-cous directly with some extra dill or mint.



Dilled Cous Cous Cakes with Artichoke Salad

1 cup water or veggie broth
2 tsp dried dill or 4 tsp chopped fresh dill
1 cup cous-cous
1 whole egg + 1 yolk
2 tbsp mayonnaise or yogurt
1 tbs grainy mustard
salt and pepper

1 can artichoke hearts, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into smallish chunks
1/2 medium onion, cut into smallish chunks
some feta, use your judgment but don't skimp

small bunch fresh mint AND/OR dill, chopped

1/2 cup plain yogurt (Greek would be good but not necessary)
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Bring your liquid to a boil with the dill in it. Stir in the cous-cous, remove from heat, cover, and let sit for a few minutes, then fluff with a fork. Mix in egg, mayo/yogurt, mustard, salt & pepper. If it seems too wet to form into patties, stir in some breadcrumbs or flour. Pop it in the refrigerator while you prep the veggies, which will help it stick.

Heat up some oil in a nonstick pan (pref cast iron!!) Toss in the peppers and onions , salt and pepper them, and adjust the heat - you want it hot enough to char the veggies while maintaining some crunch, so don't stir them very often. Grilling a whole pepper and some onion slices and then chopping them would also be a good way to go. When they're ready, take off the heat and stir in the artichoke hearts and feta. You can stir some fresh chopped dill or mint into the salad, or save it to top the fritters.

Mix the lemon juice and yogurt.

Heat up some more oil in a pan on medium-high - if it's very nonstick use just a thin coating, if it's not so much add about a quarter inch layer. When its ready, take out your dough and form it into small patties, squishing to make them hold together. fry as many as will fit in the pan on both sides until brown (I found the almost black ones the most crunchy and delicious). drain a bit on papertowel if they're oily. Make a pile of artichoke salad, put some fritters on top, add some dollops of lemon yogurt and top with chopped fresh dill and/or mint. Enjoy!

Wedding Cake for Courtney

Cakewalk was supposed to be the test kitchen for Courtney's wedding cake, but none of the chocolate cake recipes we tried were up to our standards. Beatty's Chocolate Cake, held accross the internet to be the chocolatiest, moistest chocolate cake of them all, tasted to us only mildly chocolately with a nice but unremarkable texture. it seems that to maintain the structural integretity of a chocolate cake, there's only so much pure chocolate you can pack in (a flourless cake would not hold up as a layer cake). Unwilling to settle, we scrapped the pure chocolate cake plan and turned to an alternative: the chocolate stout cake. a friend made a delicious version for cakewalk, and we have made it in cupcake form in the past. the guinness adds a depth of flavor that makes up for the lack of chocolate intensity, and keeps the crumb airy and moist. we added another layer of flavor complexity by adding chai spices to the cake and upped the chocolate with a layer of ganache. finally, i decided to avoid the Buttercream Problem altogether by option for a mousse topping, which both holds its shape better and created a nice light contrast to the heavy chocolate base. i was quite proud of the final flavor combination.

the most important and trying part of this cake, however, was the decoration. there are stunning examples of henna-decorated cakes online, masterpieces that i cannot believe were made by human hands. i decided to keep it simple and to use a paintbrush, as i have never developed any piping skills. the final result was pretty lumpy and unprofessional up-close, but quite lovely at a distance and in the dim light of courtney's evening wedding. despite the hours of cramping wrists and sugar-tongue, it made me want to do it all over again. i will surely be dedicating a good deal of time to researching more effective techniques in preparation for my brother's wedding this august!



Chocolate Chai Cake


CAKE:

4 cups all purpose flour
4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
~1 tbs cinnamon
~1 tbs cardamom
~1 tbs ginger

2 cups unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
2 cups stout (such as Guinness)

4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups sour cream


Preheat to 350°. Line and grease two 8" cake pans.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl to blend.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, then whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Cool slightly, then stir in the stout.

Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and fold in, being careful to get all of the streaks of flour incorporated. Divide batter equally between the pans and bake about 30 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. cool in pans for a bit, then invert to a rack and cool completely.

My strategy for stacking the cake was to line a 9" springform pan with tall pieces of parchment so that they stuck up a few inches above the top of the pan to make walls, taping them to make a smooth circle shape. This also left a bit of space around the edges for the mousse to fill in.

GANACHE:

8 oz chocolate
1/2 cup cream


Heat the cream (don't boil), add the chopped chocolate, let sit for a minute, then stir.

Spread over the first layer of cake, put in the freezer for a while to harden a bit, then place the second layer on top.

WHITE CHOCOLATE CHAI MOUSSE:

2 cups prepared strong chai, sans sugar
8 oz White chocolate
½ c milk
2 1/2 teaspoon gelatin powder
5 tablespoons milk
2 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

CAKEWALK

The List:

2 Chocolate Cake w/ White Frosting & Sprinkles
Black Forest Cake (chocolate cake brushed with cherry liqueur and topped with ganache, whipped cream, and cherries)
Chocolate Cake w/ Chocolate Frosting & Ganache
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake (chocolate cake frosted with nutella and topped with chopped hazelnuts)
Reese's Cheesecake
Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake
Strawberry Cake
Lemon Cheesecake
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Mexican Hot Chocolate Flourless Cake


Reese's Cheesecake



2 cups oreo crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
4 8-oz packages cream cheese, room temperature
5 eggs, room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup cream
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 bag mini peanut butter cups

1/2 cup peanut butter
6 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream

Preheat to 350°. Stir together the oreo crumbs and melted butter - add more butter if you can't make crumb lumps with your fingers. Press into the bottom of a spring form pan and bake for 10 minutes.

Beat cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time. Add sugar, peanut butter, vanilla and cream and mix. Pour half of the mixture into the crust, add a layer of reese's cups, then top with remaining cheesecake mixture. Bake for about an hour, until the edges are set but the middle is still a bit jiggly - if you cook it too long it will crack. Cool slightly then put it into the refrigerator for at least an hour.

For the topping: heat the cream (don't boil). Add in the chopped chocolate, let sit for a minute, then stir. Pour over the cheese Chop up the chocolate and melt it in a double boiler (or microwave). Cool slightly then add all but 1 tablespoon of cream. Stir and then pour over the cheesecake. Put in the freezer while you prep the peanutbutter. Melt the peanutbutter briefly in the microwave, then pour in a decorative pattern over the chocolate. Top with more reeses if you want (they'll melt into the cake if you put them on before cooling the ganache). refrigerate for at least 4 more hours before slicing. enjoy!



Raspberry Cheesecake


this also makes a good standard plain cheesecake if you leave out the raspberry swirl, and a good lemon cheesecake if you add in more lemon juice and zest.



2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
pinch salt

10 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed
3 tbsp. sugar

32 ounces cream cheese
1 cup granulated white sugar
3 tablespoons AP flour
5 large eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup cream
2 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla extract

for the raspberry puree: place the thawed berries and sugar in a sauce pan and simmer to reduce by half. Strain or puree until smooth.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the graham cracker crumbs and butter, adding more butter if necessary to make the crumbs squishable. Press into the bottom and sides of a springform pan and bake 10 minutes.

Beat together the creamcheese, sugar, and flour. Add the eggs one at a time. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the cream, lemon zest, vanilla extract and beat until incorporated.

Remove ½ cup of the filling and mix it with the raspberry puree. (If you want a more flat cheesecake than my bumpy example, mix a greater proportion of the cheesecake batter with the raspberry puree to get a more consistent texture throughout). Pour the cheesecake filling over the cooled crust, pour raspberry filling in a swirl on top, and use a toothpick to make a pattern. Place the cheesecake pan on a larger baking pan and place in the oven. Bake for 60 - 90 minutes or until the edges are firm and the center is still wobbly.

Let cool slightly, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours before slicing. enjoy!



Mexican Hot Chocolate Flourless Cake


i think this was my favorite thing we made (though i didn't get to taste everything). i am a sucker for the spice-and-chocolate combo, but it is also awesome without - the cake is like the best brownie you've ever had, crispy and crunchy on top and gooey-fudgy in the middle.



16 ounces good quality bittersweet (not semi-sweet) chocolate, roughly chopped
4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 cups sugar
12 eggs
2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1+ tbs cinnamon (optional)
a few dashes cayenne, to taste (optional)

Preheat to 350. Line and grease a springform pan.

Melt the butter and chocolate together in a double boiler. Turn off the burner but keep the bowl over the heat and whisk in the sugar to dissolve. Remove from the heat and add the eggs one at a time, whisking constantly to prevent them from cooking. Sift the cocoa powder and spices into the chocolate and mix.

Pour batter into prepared springform pan and bake for about 40 minutes, until a crust has formed on the top but a fork still picks up some gooey crumbs. Cool and enjoy!

Aushak: Afghani Leek Dumplings

This is a vegetarian adaptation of an Afghani dish that i stumbled upon while browsing food porn. The original version stars a very rich meat sauce, so if you try to serve this to some Afghanis they may well be highly disappointed. This version is light and herbal, a very nice summer dinner. Some recipes call for all leeks and some for all scallions, so either is probably fine - we used a mixture.

Aushak

1 butternut squash

1 package wonton wrappers OR 1 recipe pasta dough, rolled as thin as you can get it and cut into circles
2 bunches scallions, minced
1 leek, finely chopped
1 tsp red pepper flakes

16 oz yogurt
1 lemon
some mint, sliced
some pine nuts, toasted

Start by prepping the squash: preheat your oven to 400. Chop the squash in half and rub the cut sides with a bit of oil, brown sugar, salt, and pepper, then cover with tin foil. Bake until soft but not falling apart, maybe 20 minutes? I've never timed it.

While the squash bakes, make your dumpling filling by sauteing the leeks and/or scallions with the red pepper flakes in a bit of olive oil. you don't want to turn them to mush, just cook them a few minutes to make them less crunchy. let cook, then make the dumplings by putting a bit of filling on 1/2 of each circle, folding it over, and sealing the edges with water.

When the squash is ready, take it out and let it cool for a few minutes, then carefully dice it into cubes.

Mix the lemon juice and yogurt to taste, plus a little bit of water to make it runny and sauce-like.

Boil your dumplings, layer them on a plate, and top them with yogurt sauce, cubed butternut, toasted pine nuts, and mint. Enjoy!


1. Thinly slice the green parts of the scallions only reserve white and light green parts for another use). Place in a bowl with the red pepper flakes and olive oil.
2. Get out the wonton wrappers and a bowl of water. Lightly moisten the edge of the dough with some water, then place a teaspoonful of the scallion mixture in the center and fold up the dumpling, pressing the edges firmly to seal. Place on a patter and continue to work making dumplings, until you use up all the filling or lose patience. Do not let the dumplings touch each other or they may stick, separate layers with some wax paper. Can be done 1 day ahead of time.
3. Let yogurt come to room temperature. Add the lemon juice and salt and thin the yogurt so that it is a pourable consistency. This will depend on your yogurt, but I usually add 1/2 cup up to 1 cup of yogurt. Choose a large serving platter and spread a thin swipe over yogurt over the bottom of the platter.
4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, let it boil gently and not too vigorously. Add the dumplings, 4-5 at a time, and boil just for 1-2 minutes, or until the dough is tender. Transfer to the platter, trying not to let the dumplings crowd together or they will stick together. Drizzle a little bit of yogurt between layers of dumplings to prevent sticking.
5. When platter is full, drizzle the top with some more yogurt, and top with diced candied pumpkin, mint, and pine nuts. Serve immediately.

b) 2 lbs chopped peeled pumpkin or butternut squash, olive oil, 3/4 cup sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Cube pumpkin into 2 inch chunks, toss with oil to coat, then roll in sugar to coat. Cover dish in foil and bake in oven until tender, about 30 minutes. Use as desired in either of the recipe variations above.

Spinach-Artichoke Ravioli & Tiramisu

after having this ravioli-based dinner party, i had an awesome idea. i thought to myself, how can i capture the deliciousness of home-made ravioli without the hours of labor cutting, filling, and sealing each individual ravioli? then it came to me: one huge fucking ravioli. will report back as soon as the first prototype has been constructed.

this was the first time i made genuine tiramisu in like 5 years and oh my god it is still my favorite dessert and homemade is so much better than anything i've ever had in a restaurant. i would love to have been there on the day when one chef was like, man this custard is pretty alright i guess, but is there some way we could make it even richer? could we add like some whipped cream in here? and maybe some cheese? and then zabaglione was born. this food is aproximately 5,000 calories per square inch, so make sure you invite over a lot of friends to share.


Spinach Pasta Dough

1/2 block frozen spinach
2 tbs olive oil
2 1/2 cups flour
3 eggs

defrost your frozen spinach and then squeeze or press it to get out as much water as possible. either finely chop it or (preferably) puree it in a food processor with the olive oil. whisk it together with the eggs. put the flour in a big bowl, make a well in the middle, and pour in the spinach-egg mixture. gradually incorporate the two. once it's formed a loose ball, transfer to a floured surface and knead it for a really really long time, adding flour as needed to keep it from sticking. you'll know it's ready when it's very smooth and springs back when you press it with your fingers. let it rest for at least ten minutes before rolling it out.

Artichoke Ravioli Filling

1 can artichoke hearts, finely chopped
1/4 cup ricotta (drain the water if its watery)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small bunch scallions, finely chopped (optional)
salt & pepper

Mix it all together (a food processor will do the trick if you don't want to do all of that chopping - but don't puree it to mush), then saute it for just a few minutes. let it cool and get to work on your ravioli.



Classic Tiramisu

Chocolate Cupcakes with Guiness, Whiskey, & Irish Cream

This ideal St. Patty's day recipe is all over the internet, but I think the original recipe that's been circulating can be improved in a few ways. First, it needs more whiskey than called for in the ganache for the taste to show up, and it's also easier to handle and eat the cupcakes if the ganache is a bit more firm than in the original. Second, the method of making the frosting by adding irish cream liquor into a regular frosting base ends up with a frosting that is not firm enough, doesn't taste that much like bailey's, and is super sweet. I improvised a solution to this by stirring the flavoring ingredients for irish cream liquor into the frosting rather than the liquor itself. i've made these two years in a row now, the first time with the original and the second with the recipe below, and the updated version was waaay better.




Chocolate Cupcakes with Guiness, Whiskey, & Irish Cream
original recipe from www.smittenkitchen.com

1 cup Guinness
1 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups AP flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

8 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1+ tbs whiskey

2 cups home-made or store-bought plain buttercream frosting
2+ tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
2+ tbs whiskey
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat to 350°. Line 24 cupcake cups.

Melt the butter together with the Guinness. Whisk in the cocoa powder to make a smooth goo.

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a big mixing bowl. Beat together the eggs and sour cream, then beat in the beer-chocolate mixture. Add flour mixture and fold in until homogenous. Divide among the cupcake tins, being careful not to fill more than 3/4 of the way. Back 15+ minutes until a fork comes out clean and cool on a rack.

To make the ganache, heat up the cream on the stove but don't let it boil, then pour it over the chocolate shards and the butter. Let it sit for a minute to melt, then stir it until smooth. Stir in the whiskey to taste.

Once the cupcakes are moderately cool, scoop little holes in each of them and fill them up with ganache. we ended up with extra ganache, which we ate in a bowl with the cupcake innards. refrigerate the cupcakes while you work on the frosting to set the ganache.

For the frosting, just add the cocoa, whiskey, and vanilla to the frosting to taste. resist the temptation to frost before the ganache is set - it will inevitably get mixed up with the frosting (this mistake is visible in the photo of my cupcakes above).

Enjoy!

Samosas, Mimosas, Samoas

A great success of a party, culinarily and funkily! Recipe for mimosas is unnecessary (juice+champagne dudes), recipe for samosas is previously posted, and recipe for samoas follow. honestly, i would not recommend making these unless you're interested in a long-term baking/dish-doing adventure (or you're throwing a theme party that hinges on their presence). they were awesome, probably as good as the real thing, but they take a lot of steps and a lot of dishes. so save them for a boring rainy day in girl scout off-season.



Samoas
makes ~30 big and ~50 small cookies

4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cup butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Up to 4 tablespoons milk

3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

12 ounces good-quality chewy caramels, unwrapped

3 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon salt

8 to 12 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are fine)


Preheat to 350°

Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar with the vanilla until fluffy. mix in the flour mixture (use your hands if you don't have an egg beater, spoon will not be strong enough). Add a few tablespoons of milk if it's too dry to come together, but don't let it get sticky and wet - you want it as a dry as possible without falling apart.

cut the dough into a few pieces for easier handling. roll each piece out on a piece of parchment or wax paper to about 1/4" thickness. press another piece of wax paper on top and refrigerate for a half hour or so.

Preheat to 350. Take out your rolled dough sheets and cut out circles using the top of a cup or whatever is handy. if you have something the right size to make holes in the middle, go for it (we used the bag of a frosting tip attachment... the cap of a highlighter would also work). gather up the scraps and re-roll it out to make more circles. put the cookies on lined baking sheets - they can be pretty close together cause the refrigeration keeps them from expanding. bake 10-12 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300. Pour out your coconut on two making sheets and toast until lightly browned, stirring as necessary (the edges will probably brown before the middle). Meanwhile, melt your caramels on the stove with the milk, stirring until totally dissolved. when the coconut is ready, mix it in to the caramel. carefully spoon and press the mixture onto your cookies (they are fragile).

melt the chocolate on a double-boiler and dip the base of each cookie in it, then set the cookies on waxed paper or baking parchment. if you have extra chocolate, you can put it in a bag and squeeze it over the cookies to make them pretty (we ran out). refrigerate until the chocolate is completely set and the cookies peel off easily. Enjoy!

Butternut Squash & Spinach Lasagna

i wanted to make lasagna because of my excitement over our new pasta machine, but unfortunately all of carefully-crafted home-made noodles were drowned in all of the delicious cheesy, squashy mush. i would reccomend either using store-bought noodles, which are naturally thick and chewy, or rolling out your home-made noodles thicker than usual and maintaining a high pasta-to-filling ratio. otherwise a totally delicious recipe, and i was happy with the changes i made from the original (more garlic and cheese!).

our recipe only made enough filling to make a bread-loaf-pan worth of lasagna, so we used the rest to make a traditional red-sauce lasagna in another pan. below i've doubled the measurements so that there should be enough of everything to fill a standard lasagna pan.



Butternut Squash & Spinach Lasagna

1 box lasagna noodles or about 3 c flour worth home-made noodles
2 medium butternut squash
1 head garlic
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
3 c whole milk
1/3 cup parmesan
~2 cups ricotta
1 egg
1 small bag shredded mozzarella (or equivalent amount fresh sliced mozz)
2 huge bags of baby spinach, or equivalent amount other greens (we used some turnip greens), washed and chopped
1/2 - 1 lemon

pre-heat your oven to 400. If you are home-making your noodles, or using boxed ones that require parboiling, prep them now. For home-made noodles, parboil VERY briefly and then shock under cold water before using.

Chop your squash however is easiest for you (i find simply in half works). brush it with olive oil and salt and pepper it up. remove 2 cloves from your head of garlic, then slice off the top edge of it (to expose the cloves inside their skins) and rub it with olive oil and place it on the tray. roast everything until soft. scoop/peel the squash and puree it. adjust seasoning and set aside.

make the bechamel by melting the butter in a pan, adding the flour, and cooking for a minute. Add the milk and then simmer for a long time until it is quite thick... about glue consistency. Stir in most of the parmesan, saving a few tablespoons. then puree it with all of the roasted garlic (obvs with the skins removed). season and set aside. turn the oven down to 350.

heat up a bit of olive in in a pan. mince the two reserved cloves of garlic and toss then in. add the greens, plus the juice from about 1/4 of the lemon, and season with salt and pepper. cook until JUST wilted, only like 30 second for spinach and a few minutes for sturdier greens. Set aside.

mix the ricotta, egg, juice from about 1/4 - 1/2 of the lemon, and salt and pepper to taste.

build your lasagna by pouring some bechamel in the bottom of the pan and the starting with a layer of noodles. next add a layer each of squash puree, ricotta, greens, and mozzarella, and then repeat (order does not matter). be moderate about the amount of filling or it will turn into a pile of mush wheh it is baked. end with a layer of noodles, followed by a bit of bechamel and then sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the top. bake your lasagna for about 40 minutes covered in tin foil, then remove foil and bake for another 15 without it (place under the broiler for extra bubbly goodness). enjoy!

Horseradish mashed potatoes & asparagus w/ parsley dressing

Just made these for dinner and it was sooo good. Very simple ways to make basic potatoes and veggies more exciting, and the two went together better than I thought they would. Make it in the summer and grill the asparagus, or swap in summer squash.



Horseradish mashed potatoes

8ish medium potatoes, peeled and cut into evenly-sized chunks
4 tbs butter
1/4 - 1/2 cup cream or half-and-half
2-4 tablespoons horseradish, wasabi, or mixed
salt and pepper to taste

Boil yer potatoes until tender but not falling apart and mash 'em up with everything else.

Roasted asparagus with parsley sauce

1 bunch asparagus
1 bunch parsley
2 lemons
2 large or 3 small cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

turn the oven up to 400. trim yr asparagus and lay it on a baking sheet with a tiny bit of oil and some salt and pepper. Roast for about 15 minutes, or until it's tender without getting shriveled and crispy.

Meanwhile, puree your parsley and garlic with the juice from the lemons (you can chop everything up fine and mix it together if you don't have a blender or food processor). stir in the oil and season to taste. When the asparagus is ready, dress it and enjoy!

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

The last time I made cinnamon rolls, I used a very complex recipe from BBA using brioche dough that required me to get up waaaay too early in the morning. This recipe was much easier and just as delicious, although it does still require you to wake up an hour prior to breakfast time. The original recipe called for a powdered sugar glaze, but I opted for an improvised caramel glaze instead and was very happy about the decision.




Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

4 large egg yolks
1 large egg
1/4 cup sugar
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup buttermilk
~4 cups flour
1 pkg instant dry yeast
1 tsp kosher salt

1 cup brown sugar, packed (white will do in a pinch)
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
pinch salt
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
¼ c finely chopped walnuts (optional)

Whisk together the egg yolks, egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add the yeast, salt and ~2 cups of the flour and stir to combine. Add another cup of flour and start kneading, adding flour until the dough is very soft but not sticky - keep coating the outside of the dough lightly with flour and pressing to prevnt it from stick to your hands. The less flour you add, the more tender the rolls will be. Once the dough is very smooth, put it in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled, 2-3 hours.

Gently stretch the dough into an aproximately 18x12" rectangle, being careful not to punch it down too much. Brush the surface with melted butter and then sprinkle the sugar, cinnamon, and optional nuts evenly over the surface. Roll the dough up as tightly as possible, pinch the seam, and place it seam-side-down. Using a fast sawing motion, slice the log into 10 even pieces. Place the pieces close together in a buttered baking dish (don't worry if the dish isn't filled). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, wake up a little more than an hour before you want to eat. Place the dish in an unheated oven (sans plastic wrap) and place a dish full of boiling water below them. Let rise 1/2 hout until they're puffed up a bit. Take them out of the oven and preheat to 350. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden on the edges.

While the rolls bake, prepare:

Caramel glaze

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
6 tbs butter
~1/2 cup cream or half-and-half

Heat the sugar and water over medium in a heavy-bottomed pan, stirring constantly until it is dissolved. then STOP STIRRING and let it boil, monitoring constantly. Let it get golden brown but no darker than that (it will burn very quickly). remove from the heat and stir in the butter, then slowly whisk in the cream. Let cool and then poor over the rolls.

Actually successful naan!!

Last week we fed our Brooklyn family Indian food as thanks for giving us shelter, and for the first time ever we made naan that was soft and puffy like the restaurant kind, as opposed to the usual thick, pizza-dough-like results. No surprise that the winning recipe came from Manjula, and my guess is that the awesome texture can be attributed to the high proportion of fats in the dough (yogurt AND oil). Oh Manjula, why do we ever stray from your side?

Soft, puffy, buttery naan

1 tsp active dry yeast
3/4 cups lukewarm water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
pinch baking soda
2 tbs oil
2 1/2 tbs yogurt
2 cups AP flour

Dissolve the yeast in the water. stir in the salt, sugar, and soda. Stir in the yogurt and oil, then gradually incorporate the flour. Knead until very smooth and elasticy. Let rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours, until almost doubled.

Heat the oven as hot as it goes with a baking stone in it (baking sheet will work but not as well). Push the dough down and divide it into 6 parts. Turn the oven to broil, roll each piece into a ball, dust with flour, and let rest for 10 minutes.

Roll each piece of dough out into a thin circle (thinner = softer and puffier), lay it out on your baking stone, and let cook until puffy and brown. When you take it out of the oven, immediately put it under a cloth so that the steam will keep it soft. Repeat with each piece. Brush the naan with melted butter before serving. Spiced butter or butter with sauteed garlic and/or onions would also be nice.

Pasta-machine linguine with garlic cream sauce

SO EXCITED about gorgeous new pasta machine we received for gift day that we immediately had to make linguine... but it can totally be made by hand as well (that's how we did it for three years). Recipe for awesome pasta dough is here.


Basic garlic cream sauce

1 stick butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup romano or parmesan
salt and (lots of) pepper to taste

Melt all of the butter in a heavy-bottomed pan and toss in your garlic. Saute until fragrant but NOT AT ALL BROWN. Stir in the half and half and when it's hot, stir in the cheese. Season and adjust the proportions of everything. Enjoy with pasta and some leafy vegetables to help with all of those artery clogs.