cucina girl

Greens alla Carbonara (a compromise)

2012-01-22T10:00:00.000-06:00

It’s an almost nightly discussion—what to have for dinner. My meat-loving husband wants something…well, meaty and hearty, and I want something leafy and green. Since I do most of the cooking and we don’t buy a lot of meat, I usually win on the dinner front. However, I almost never object to a bit of bacon or sausage for some extra flavor (and we almost always have a bit tucked away in the freezer).

The following dish was born out of my desire for something a little healthier and Brian’s love for traditional spaghetti alla carbonara.

For this version, I went heavy on the eggs and light on the bacon, with a big helping of sautéed greens. Brian agreed that it wasn’t any less satisfying than the Roman classic.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara with Leafy Greens
printable recipe
Serves 2.

4 ounces whole wheat spaghetti
2 eggs
1 ounce freshly grated parmigiano reggiano
1 large bunch tendergreen mustard* or other cooking green
2 teaspoons olive or grapeseed oil
1 ounce bacon, finely chopped
5 small garlic cloves, whole with skins removed
freshly ground black pepper
salt

Set a large pot of water to boil. Beat the eggs in a bowl. Set aside.

To prepare the greens, remove the tough ends of the stalks (if any) and roughly chop the greens.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high in a 12-inch skillet. When the oil is hot, quickly sauté the greens with a couple pinches of salt. (This should be fairly quick, almost like stir-fry.) When the greens are wilted, remove from pan and set aside. Lower heat to medium.

Add the bacon. When the fat begins to render, add the garlic cloves. Sauté, stirring occasionally until bacon is cooked and garlic is browned. Remove from heat. Remove garlic and press through a garlic press or chop. Add back to pan.

In well-salted, boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente. Before draining, scoop out about ½ cup cooking water. Drain pasta.

Return the pan to medium heat. Add pasta to and about ¼ cup cooking liquid to bacon. Toss over heat for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add half of parmesan and beaten eggs and quickly toss to coat pasta. If needed for desired consistency, add a bit more cooking water. Add lots of ground black pepper, most of the remaining parmesan, and the greens. Toss to combine.

Serve immediately topped with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

*I came across this locally grown green at our co-op, where it was simply labeled “tender greens.” A staff member assured me that it was a good cooking variety. Some searching revealed that this green is in the mustard family and is often called “tendergreen mustard greens” or “tendergreen mustard spinach.” The bunch I bought was quite long and slender and fairly pale green in color. For a green related to mustard, it was surprisingly (and pleasantly) not spicy.

Roasted Turnips and Sweet Potatoes

2012-01-12T12:15:00.000-06:00

It's been two months since my last post. I could tell you about how busy it's been and about the queue of recipes I've been meaning to post (which I will get to eventually), but for the sake of actually getting something posted, I'll just offer the following:

It's a recipe. I made it last night. It's simple and winter-y and satisfying, and the sweet potatoes are just the right compliment to the spicier turnips. The ingredients (except the salt and olive oil) came from the last delivery of our winter CSA.

Roasted Turnips and Sweet Potatoes

printable recipe

Serves 2-3.

8-10 small turnips (or 4-5 medium)
2 small sweet potatoes
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 teaspoons olive oil
5-6 leaves sage, finely chopped (about 2 teaspoons)
6 small cloves garlic, whole in skin

Preheat oven to 400F.

Halve the vegetables lengthwise and slice into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. In a 9x13 baking pan, toss all ingredients except the garlic. Add the garlic (whole and still in the skin).

Bake in preheated oven for about 45 minutes, stirring halfway through, until vegetables are tender and edges are browned.

Remove dish from oven. Remove garlic from skins and roughly chop. Gently fold chopped garlic with the rest of the vegetables. Serve immediately.

Cannellini Crostini

2011-11-15T00:54:00.001-06:00

This was another of the dishes served at my sister’s baby shower. Once again, I made a large batch for the party, but am posting a scaled-down version here.

I've been really into using dried beans lately. Their simplicity, versatility, heartiness, and economy are unparalleled. And they can be turned into and endless variety of dips and spreads that are an inexpensive addition to any party menu. The rosemary makes this version particularly nice during the winter.

The method for soaking and cooking dried beans can be found in a previous post on using dried garbanzo beans for hummus (also linked below).

Cannellini Crostini

Makes about 3 dozen crostini.

2 cups cannellini beans, soaked and cooked (from 6.5 ounces dry beans)

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 small sprig rosemary (½ minced, ½ whole on stem)

1-2 cloves garlic

salt, to taste

sundried tomatoes, sliced into thin strips

1 baguette or other rustic bread, sliced about ¼-inch thick (I used Peter Reinhart’s whole wheat pain all’ancienne.)

Optional: Rub bread slices with the cut side of a clove of garlic, brush lightly with olive oil, and toast in a 350° oven until golden brown – 10-15 minutes.

Heat oil over medium heat in a small pan. Then add whole garlic clove and rosemary (minced and whole). Simmer garlic and rosemary in oil for about 5 minutes.

Remove any large pieces of rosemary and set aside. Press (or mince) the cooked garlic clove.

In a medium bowl, combine oil, garlic, and beans. Beat with electric mixer until they begin to form a cohesive mass. (Don’t puree, leaving some whole beans adds nice texture to the spread.)

Season with salt, to taste.

Spread a small amount (2-3 teaspoons) on toasted baguette slices and top with a sliver of sundried tomato.

Variation: Serve as a dip/spread in a bowl with crackers, pita, or bread on the side.

Mini Quiche with Chard and Red Onion

2011-11-14T23:45:00.001-06:00

I made these for my sister’s baby shower, and they were a huge hit! I made a large batch for a total of about 150 mini quiches. The recipe below is scaled down for a smaller audience.

Mini Quiche with Chard and Red Onion

Makes about 60 mini quiches.

Crust
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
2½ sticks unsalted butter (20 tablespoons), cut into ½-inch pieces
6-7 tablespoons ice water

Combine the salt and both flours in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine.

Add butter and pulse until all the butter is coated in flour and the largest pieces are the size of small peas.
Add the water, a few tablespoons at a time, and pulse until the mixture forms a cohesive mass.

Turn out onto a floured surface. Gather and press the dough into a ball. Add flour or water if the dough is too sticky or too dry. Divide into 3 pieces. Form each piece into a ball, flatten into a ½-inch thick disk, and refrigerate for at least one hour (and up to two days).

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Lightly grease 3 mini muffin tins (24 cups each, 1¾-inch diameter muffin cups), or you can reuse one muffin tin.

Remove chilled dough from refrigerator, one piece at a time. On a well flour surface, between two pieces of wax paper or plastic wrap, or on a pastry mat, roll the dough until it is 1/16 inch thick.

Using a small round cookie or biscuit cutter (2 to 2½ inches in diameter), cut circles from dough. Gently press the circles of dough into mini muffin tins.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. The crust will not be completely cooked at this point, but should be set and barely beginning to brown on the edges.

Allow to cool in the pan for 3-4 minutes. Then carefully remove to cool on a wire rack.

Filling
1 small bunch of chard, washed and chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
½ large red onion, chopped
4 teaspoons butter
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
¾ cup whole milk
¾ cup cream
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
pinch nutmeg (freshly grated, if possible)
4 oz freshly grated aged goat cheese, or other flavorful cheese (I used Midnight Moon “Cypress Grove,” and it was perfect.)

Preheat the oven to 350°F

Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange par-baked shells on the parchment paper.

In a large pan over medium, heat 1½ teaspoons of oil. And chopped chard and cook, stirring, until wilted – about 3 minutes. Remove chard from pan and set aside.

Add butter to the pan. When melted, add chopped onion and a pinch of salt. Cook onion over medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes, until translucent, soft, and sweet. Removed from heat; add to chard and gently toss to combine.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, yolks, milk, and cream; salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Divide chard mixture between the par-baked pastry shells. Top each with a sprinkle of cheese and about a tablespoon of egg. Alternatively, you can stir the vegetables and cheese into the egg mixture and divide evenly among all pastry shells.

Bake for about 14 minutes, until mixture is just set.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

An Eco-Friendly Baby Shower

2011-11-12T22:45:00.000-06:00

In just a few short weeks, I’m going to be an aunt! I can’t wait!

Back in September, I helped plan and catered a baby shower for my sister. The menu was designed to be eco- and pregnancy-friendly, with a focus on high-quality, seasonal, organic ingredients for mama, baby, and guests.

The invitations were printed on recycled paper produced with “100% green hydroelectric power” (great paper and great customer service).

Beverages were served in mason jars that will be re-used for canning.

The Menu

Mini quiche (recipe): whole wheat pastry crust, wilted rainbow chard, caramelized red onions, Cypress Grove “Midnight Moon” goat cheese.
Cannellini bean crostini: from dried beans; with rosemary, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and sundried tomatoes.
Spinach salad: dried cranberries, toasted pumpkin seeds, “Bellavitano Raspberry” cheese, and homemade balsamic vinaigrette.
Carrot cake: with cream cheese frosting; made with organic ingredients; icing dyed with natural, vegetable-based food coloring.

Baby Cake

2011-09-14T22:50:00.000-05:00

This cake was my last big baking project in my DC kitchen. I was going to do a “wordless Wednesday” post, since we’ve been so ridiculously busy lately getting ready for the move and getting in some quality time with our friends (and the city) before we go. But I couldn’t help myself…

I’ve been in this kitchen for just over three years, but I’ve learned so much in it. My blog was born here, and there’ve been lots of other firsts along the way.

A little over a year ago, I made my first-ever three-tiered cake for a post-wedding party for a couple of my favorite people. This past weekend, I made my last cake in DC for that same couple’s baby shower!

Getting the frosting color just right.
(I’m wearing a Caps t-shirt for the occasion. How Washingtonian of me.)

I planned ahead and spread the baking and assembly out over two nights, but I probably should have taken three. The night before the shower was a late one (and appropriately so, since pretty much every other big baking project I’ve ever done has kept me up until the wee hours) – but it was totally worth it.

For the cake, I went with a 12-inch base tier of Cooks Illustrated’s “Fluffy Yellow Layer Cake” and a 9-inch top tier of Cooks Illustrated’s Sour Cream Fudge Layer Cake, which didn’t rise anywhere near as much as I thought it should and was more like a brownie or flourless torte than a layer cake. I ended up needing to make a second batch (which also didn’t rise much) to get the height I wanted for the top tier – but the flavor was amazing. The frosting was a basic vanilla buttercream.

Post-cake chaos…
I don’t know what I’m going to do without this island.

Are you really taking my picture at 3 o’clock in the morning?

The top. Inspired by this design.

Detail.

Shower time!

I’m certainly going to miss my kitchen and excuses to make huge cakes for my DC friends.

Only 14 days until our big move…

Celebration and Anticipation

2011-08-30T17:33:00.001-05:00

As August draws to a close, we have so many reasons to celebrate: birthdays, anniversaries, coming out of two natural disasters (within 5 days) unscathed, and anticipating the beginning of a brand new chapter of our lives!

August has always been one of my favorite months. Yes, it’s hot. Yes, its arrival means that summer freedom is coming to a close and school will soon be back in session. But it’s also the month of my birthday! (And my mom’s; I love that we share the same day.) For over a decade, it was also the month of an annual extended family beach trip. And for the last three years, it’s been the month of Brian’s and my wedding anniversary. So it’s a great month.

This year August was even more eventful than usual. I spent almost every weekend working on a film (rather than my usual sleeping in and going to the farmers market and cooking and blogging). I was also in the midst of a will-we-or-won’t-we-be-moving-across-the-country-next-month quandary, which was causing me more than a little anxiety.

Happily, everything seems to be turning out even better than we’d hoped.

A couple of days before my birthday, I was offered a wonderful and unique opportunity for a new job at an organization whose work I admire and that is actually in the same field as my graduate degree. (Imagine that.) I accepted the position on the morning of my birthday, which happened to also be the same day as my first earthquake ever. Maybe it means that this coming year is going to be particularly …. vibrant? Moving? Earth-shaking? Or maybe it doesn’t mean anything.

The new job means a new city and a cross-country move. Actually, we’re moving back home. We’ll be within driving distance of our families, close to lots of friends, and finally in a position to get a house with a yard, where I’ll finally get to grow some vegetables of my own(!).

I've learned a lot in my 5 years in DC. We’ve enjoyed our city life, but we’re at a point where being close to our families is a priority, where the comforts and ease of small-town living are more alluring, and the inconveniences of the city are starting to outweigh the advantages. A five- to ten-minute commute is also pretty appealing.

Guess what? I blew them all out in one breath.

Our destination town is Fayetteville, where Brian and I first met and where we both attended the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is a charming place nestled in the beautiful Ozark Mountains. It’s a top college town and boasts a lively arts scene, a brand-new American art museum (nearby), and a 60-stall farmers market. It’s a place where college football passions run high and cost of living runs low. It’s also the home of some of my favorite people in the world.

Oh, but it does get hot there. And there’s no Trader Joe’s within a 199-mile radius. (The closest one is exactly 200 miles away. I checked.) Whole Foods is 180 miles away. I’m already anxious about where we’ll find our favorite cheeses. (Yes, I mean you, Santa Teresa.) Is it possible to buy cheese online? On the upside, there is a great locally owned natural foods store (a co-op, in fact) that I’m excited to explore.

September 28 will officially be our last day in the District.

John F. Kennedy said that “Washington is a city of Southern efficiency and Northern charm.”

He knew what he was talking about, and there are a number of things we won’t miss about the city, including the WMATA with its myriad problems and those of the DC/MD/VA drivers who refuse to use their blinkers or turn their lights on in the rain.

On the other hand, there are plenty of things we will miss about DC. I’ll miss my kitchen and its humongous island (but hopefully I’ll find a new one with equally excellent counter space). We’ll miss having the year-round Dupont farmers market and our neighborhood14th and U farmers market, Ethiopian food, and great grocery stores. We’ll miss the U Street Corridor; wine happy hour and bocce at Vinoteca; fried oysters and gypsy jazz at 1905. I’ll miss the shopping (but not the inconvenience of getting there). We'll miss impromptu weekend trips to New York City that don't require a plane ticket. We’ll miss the view from our rooftop deck and seeing the Washington Capitals play live. We’ll miss the parish we’ve grown to love and the beautiful Masses at the Basilica. Most of all, we’ll miss our DC and New York friends. But we'll have great excuses to come back and visit.

So, here’s to August 2011, and all that the next year has to offer!

Fresh Lima Beans

2011-08-29T09:00:00.000-05:00

Lima beans are not sexy. No one gets excited about lima beans, right? What child – or adult for that matter – doesn’t feel a little put-off by the thought of a can of lima beans?
But have you ever had fresh lima beans? Like right-off-the-farm fresh? If you had, you might just think lima beans were pretty fantastic.

I’d been wanting to try them fresh since I came across them at the market last summer. I was determined not to miss them this time, so I snagged the first pint I saw.

Here are a couple of simple, quick, healthy recipes that exemplify the philosophy that food doesn’t have to be complicated to be amazing. A few fresh, quality ingredients and a few minutes in the kitchen are all you need. This small batch lasted the two of us through 2 ½ meals, but it can also be doubled or tripled for a larger group. You can jump to the recipes by clicking the links below.

Cooking Fresh Lima Beans
Rustic Lima Beans with Sausage and Bread
Lima Beans and Pasta

Note: Raw lima beans must be cooked before they are eaten.

Cooking Fresh Lima Beans

Yield about 2 ½ cups.

10 ounces (about 2 cups) fresh lima beans (or more)
2 cups of water (per 10 ounces of beans)
¼ teaspoon salt (per 10 ounces of beans)

Rinse beans. Combine beans and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and continue boiling for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse beans.

Add salt and ½ cup water and boil an additional 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow beans to cool in water (which allows them to absorb the salt).

Rustic Lima Beans with Sausage and Bread

The white wine adds a nice brightness and elevates to another level this otherwise very basic dish.

Serves 2 as a main course.

1 ½ cups cooked lima beans
2 teaspoons olive oil
½ medium yellow onion, chopped
2 teaspoons butter
4 ounces fresh sausage (I used North Mountain Pasture’s Lincolnshire sausage, seasoned with sage, mace, and ginger. Yum.)
½ cup dry white wine
1 clove garlic, cut in half

8 slices baguette or other rustic bread
extra virgin olive oil, for brushing

Rub bread slices with one half of garlic clove and brush lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Arrange (oiled side up) on broiler-safe baking dish and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 4-5 minutes.

Add sausage and cook, stirring and breaking into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until very little pink remains. Add butter, beans, ½ clove garlic and white wine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until wine is cooked off.

Meanwhile, turn broiler on high and toast bread until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes. (Watch the bread closely, as it can go from “almost there” to burnt in no time.)

Serve beans and sausage warm alongside toasted bread.

Lima Beans and Pasta

I particularly love this dish because it’s like a non-soup version of pasta e fagioli, evoking similar flavors and nostalgia.

Serves 3.

1 cup cooked lima beans
2 teaspoons olive oil
½ medium yellow onion
1 ounce bacon, chopped fine
6 ounces fresh tagliatelle or dried fettuccine
½ cup passata (strained tomatoes)*
salt
pepper
1 ounce parmesan, freshly grated

Fill a medium saucepan about ¾ full of water and set to boil.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally for 2 to 3 minutes. Add bacon and cook until onions are translucent (about 8 minutes).

Stir in passata and season with pepper. If your tomato puree did not already have salt added, season with salt to taste.

When water is boiling, cook pasta a minute or two short of al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking liquid and drain pasta. Add pasta and cooking liquid to bean/sauce mixture and cook down for 1-2 minutes. (The starches in the pasta water and the cooking help the sauce stick to the pasta.

Serve topped with freshly grated parmesan.

*Passata (or strained tomatoes) is a staple in Italian kitchens. It’s made from raw tomatoes “passed” through a sieve (hence its name) and packaged without any additives. Strained tomatoes are becoming more and more common in American grocery stores. Boinaturae and Pomi are both great brands. You can also make your own from fresh tomatoes! If you can’t get strained tomatoes, substitute tomato puree or plain tomato sauce.

Homemade Hummus from Dried Garbanzo Beans

2011-08-01T09:00:00.004-05:00

Getting away from canned foods has meant learning to cook with dried beans. There are a number of advantages to cooking with dried beans versus canned beans: they’re much cheaper, have more flavor, are free of BPAs, and contain only the amount of salt that you add yourself.

Because using dried beans requires that I plan in advance, getting into the swing of it has been slow-going. The first time I cooked with dried beans, I was nervous, but the beans turned out great, and I was so excited about how easy the process was; I resolved to cook dried beans again soon.

Weeks and weeks went by, and before I knew it, I was feeling nervous and reluctant again. But I finally made myself do it. Once more, I was amazed at how easy it was. “I must do this again soon!” I told myself. Can you guess what happened next? I forgot about dried beans.

One of my issues was that they tell you soak the beans “overnight,” but they don’t tell you what to do with them the next day. Well, dear recipe writer, some people don’t have the luxury of staying home all day to cook beans. They have to leave the kitchen and go to work. What are they supposed to do with the beans in the mean time? Let them continue to soak? Will something bad happen to them if they keep soaking? Can I put the whole pot in the fridge? Do I drain them and put them in the fridge? Drain them and leave them on the counter?

I soon realized that “overnight” was code for “8 to 10 hours.” Oh, okay, so I can soak them while I’m at work and cook them when I get home! Perfect. Except that I have to actually remember to put them in the pot before I leave in the morning. I’ve found that it helps to leave the bag of dried beans sitting on top of my purse the night before. Nine times out of 10, I’ll realize that they’re there for a reason (and not because I need to take them to work). Even though I figured out this little soak-the-beans-while-I’m-at-work trick months ago, I still get a little panicky every time I read “soak the beans overnight.” I just have to keep reminding myself that they can soak by the light of day.

Almost a year later, I’m finally starting to get this dried bean thing; I’ve cooked them twice this week! Twice! In one week! I feel very accomplished. On Wednesday, we made a pot of black beans to go with our turkey taco salad, and yesterday we made hummus!

One of the great tragedies of the months and months it took me to come to terms with dried beans was that, in all that time, I didn’t make hummus. We love hummus around here. It’s been a go-to party appetizer for years. It’s easy, quick*, healthy, filling, inexpensive, and always a hit. Brian has been talking about having hummus for months, but if you know me, you know that nothing but the most dire circumstances will motivate me to buy premade anything I am capable of making from scratch. So it was a great relief to finally make hummus again!

*Preparing the dried beans takes time, but if you cook a big pot (see below), you can freeze them to have on hand whenever you feel like whipping up a batch of hummus!

Homemade Hummus (from dried beans)

Preparing the Beans
This recipe makes about 6 cups of beans (2.5 pounds) – enough for 3 batches of hummus. It can easily be halved or doubled.

1 pound (2 cups) dried garbanzos beans (a.k.a. chickpeas)
½ teaspoon salt (optional)

Pick through the beans, removing any dark or shriveled beans. Rinse thoroughly in a colander or mesh strainer.
In a medium-sized pot, cover the beans with cool water and soak for 8-10 hours.

Drain the beans. Return beans to pot and cover with water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil and cook for about 2 hours, until the beans are tender. Add water, as needed, the keep the beans covered.

When the beans are cooked, remove from heat and stir in ½ teaspoon salt, if using. Allow the beans to cool for 30 minutes. They will also soak up the salt during this time.

Drain the beans. (If desired, you can reserve the cooking liquid to thicken soup.)

Set aside what you will be using immediately and freeze the rest. The most convenient way to do this is to freeze 2-cup portions in freezer-safe containers.

(Frozen beans can be thawed at room temperature, in a bowl of warm water, or in the microwave.)

Making the Hummus
Yield about 4 cups.

2 cups (12 ounces) cooked garbanzo beans
In a pinch, you can sub canned beans (2 cups drained).¼ cup tahini (sesame paste)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons water
juice of 1 lemon (2-3 tablespoons)
1 clove of garlic
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. If the hummus is too dry, add water and/or olive oil to reach desired consistency.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: If you prefer your hummus particularly garlicky or lemony, feel free to adjust to taste.

(Healthier) Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-07-17T12:23:00.001-05:00

Most days, I spend most of my time thinking mostly about food. Buying it. Chopping it. Mixing it. Cooking it. Eating it. The bounty of summer makes it easy to eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Lately though, I’ve been harboring an irresistible urge to bake something sweet. I deftly staved it off several times last week by grilling veggies or whipping up a pasta dish or other relatively healthy dinner item. On Friday, I finally decided that if I was going to succumb to the desire, I was going to make the most of it by attempting to create a slightly healthier version of a baked treat.

These cookies contain 25% less butter and about 17% less sugar than traditional chocolate chip cookies. And they’re made with mostly whole grains: whole wheat flour in place of half of the white flour and a generous amount of oatmeal. Of course, the true measure of a good cookie is the resulting flavor and texture, and these are not lacking in either. They boast the ability to satisfy even the most discriminating palate – buttery, sweet, moist, chewy, chocolatey, with a bit of crunch. Their hearty yet delicate texture is just as good on day 3 as it is fresh out of the oven. The cookies can easily stand on their own without the addition of chocolate, or they can accommodate any number of other additions, such as dried cranberries or walnuts.

In a word, they’re perfect. I like them even better than traditional chocolate chip cookies.

Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield 60 2" cookies.

1 cup whole wheat flour (“pastry” flour if you have it, but I used the standard variety)
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ⅓ cup rolled oats (not quick-cook)
1 cup bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
optional additions: ½ cup dried cranberries or raisins; ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Combine the flours, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir and set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugars. Add the vanilla, eggs, and milk and beat until well combined.

Add the flour and mix until just combined. Stir in the oats, chocolate chips, and any other additions.

Using a small cookie scoop or a spoon, distribute dough balls (about the size of a heaping tablespoon) about 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until just beginning to turn golden around the edges. Be careful not to overcook them. (In my oven, 8 minutes and 30 seconds was the perfect amount of time.)

Wait about 2 minutes before removing to a rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The cookies keep well stored in an airtight container for several days.

Red, White, and Blue Scones

2011-07-02T13:49:00.001-05:00

Just in time for Independence Day, a breakfast (or anytime) treat in patriotic colors.

I had my first scone at the campus bakery my freshman year of college. It was moist and flaky, slightly cakey, and just the right amount of sweet; in other words, love at first bite. I must have caught them on a good day because I’ve heard several people say that they didn’t like scones (campus bakery variety included) because they always thought they were too dry and crumbly. Not so with this homemade version.

Even though I had every intention of trying my hand at scone-making, it took me ten years to finally do it! It turns out that they are easy and quick and can take as little as 30 minutes, start to finish. Perfect for whipping up on a lazy Saturday (or holiday) morning.

This recipe is fairly flexible and can accommodate a variety of fruit/flavor additions. I usually prefer my scones with dried cranberries and orange zest, but 4th of July weekend and the abundance of fresh berries at the market called for a little something extra. The sweetness of the fresh blueberries is a nice compliment to the tart cranberries and the orange zest infuses the entire dough with a hint of citrus.

Red, White, and Blue Scones (Blueberry-Cranberry Scones)
adapted from “Classic Currant Scones” from The Joy of Cooking

Yield 8 scones.

2 cups flour
⅓ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter, very cold and cut into ¼-inch pieces
½ cup heavy cream
1 large egg
1 heaping teaspoon orange zest (from ½ medium orange)**
½ cup dried cranberries*
¾ cup (4 ounces) fresh blueberries

for topping
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1-2 tablespoons coarse raw sugar

*I went with a combination of dried and fresh fruit because I didn’t want to create too much extra moisture in the batter. However, based on my results, I think it would work well to substitute seasonal fresh berries, such as raspberries or (pitted and quartered) cherries, instead of dried cranberries.
**Lemon zest also works well in place of the orange zest.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

In a large bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using two knives or a pastry blender, cut in butter until the butter pieces are well coated in flour and about the size of small pebbles. (Do not allow the butter to become fully blended with flour or form a paste.)

In a separate bowl, whisk together cream, eggs, and orange zest.

Very carefully fold the blueberries and cranberries into the dry ingredients.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and gently fold together (using a spatula or wooden spoon) until all the flour is moistened. Use your hands to gather the dough and press against the sides of the bowl to collect any remaining bits of batter and form a cohesive ball. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into an 8- to 9-inch disk. Cut into 8 wedges using a bench scraper or butter knife.

Place scones at least 2 inches apart on a large baking sheet. Brush tops with cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Bake for 12-15 minutes until tops are golden and the centers are set.

Cool on a rack for 5-10 minutes and serve warm. (Or serve at room temperature.)

Cannelloni with Chard

2011-06-26T13:51:00.000-05:00

The original title of this post was “manicotti with chard.” I never really knew the difference between manicotti and cannelloni but assumed they were simply two regional or dialectical names for the same thing. I chose “manicotti” for this dish because I’ve always liked the way it feels to say it. The combination of the open ‘o’ [ɔ] and the double ‘t’ [t.t] in the “-otto” suffix (plural -otti) is onomatopoetically tied to the meaning of the suffix – a meaning appropriate for this dish.

If I may go off on a brief linguistic tangent, one of the many things I love about the Italian language is its use of diminutive and augmentative endings. There are two primary augmentative endings in Italian: -one and -otto. While -one purely means “big,” -otto connotes something slightly different: a rounder, sometimes chubby sort of largeness – just like it sounds! The point is that I called this dish “manicotti” simply because I liked to the think of the stuffed tubes of pasta as chubby little “sleeves” (maniche=sleeves).

In doing some research for this post, I was surprised to discover that there is absolutely no mention of manicotti in any of my Italian cookbooks. This includes a number of books dedicated solely to pasta (and even detailing dialectical variations of pasta names). My go-to Italian dictionary (Garzanti Linguistica) defines a manicotto as (1) a sleeve usually made of fur and open on both ends (i.e. a handwarmer) or (2) a cylindrical joint used to connect two tubes or to transmit rotary motion between two coaxial shafts. There is no official culinary meaning of manicotti in Italian, and the accepted definitions don’t sound like something I’d want on my dinner plate.

On the other hand, Garzanti Linguistica defines a cannellone as a fat tube of stuffed pasta, dressed with sauce and baked. Cannellone is made up of the root word canna (meaning cane, reed, or tube) with both a diminutive (-ello) and an augmentative (-one) ending. A bit simpler. And more appetizing.

You may argue that you have, in fact, eaten manicotti at an Italian American restaurant and that it wasn’t, in fact, a mechanical part or a winter accessory. It has been Brian’s experience that Italian-American restaurants use the term cannelloni for meat-stuffed pasta tubes and manicotti for those stuffed with vegetables and cheese. Others argue that the distinction is based upon whether or not the pasta is ridged or whether it comes as flat sheets or pre-made tubes. Some say that one is savory and the other sweet or that manicotti are traditionally made with crepes rather than pasta (this may be specifically Southern Italian or Argentinian-Italian). In order to avoid confusion, I’ll stick with reputable sources and go with the term cannelloni.

Now, on with the recipe…

I’ve been pleased to find chard (aka Swiss chard, rainbow chard, etc.) almost year round at the farmers market, so we’ve eaten a lot of it throughout the winter months and into spring and early summer. I was recently looking for a new way to use chard and found myself with tub of local ricotta and all the ingredients for a baked pasta dish: a jar of my passata, a few eggs, some flour, and cheese…and ecco: cannelloni with chard! It’s a subtle but important variation on the often all-too-familiar baked pasta with spinach.

Cannelloni with Chard Cannelloni con Bietola

Yield 8 cannelloni. Serves 4.

pasta
6 ounces fresh pasta dough (~½ batch of homemade pasta all'uovo),
cut into 8-10 6"x8" sheets
sauce
12 ounces passata (or tomato puree)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped (about 6 large leaves)
¼ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

filling
5-6 ounces chard
olive oil
1½ cup (about 14 ounces) ricotta
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 ounces whole milk mozzarella, freshly grated
2 ounces parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped (about 6 large leaves)
⅛ teaspoon salt
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

topping
½ ounce finely grated parmesan

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Preheat oven to 375°F.

Wash chard and allow to drain (but do not dry completely). Roughly chop chard. In a large skillet, heat a small drizzle of oil over medium heat. Add chard and cook, stirring frequently until wilted, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, stir together sauce ingredients and set aside.

In another medium bowl, stir together filling ingredients (including cooled chard) and set aside.

Salt the now-boiling water and cook fresh pasta sheets for 3 minutes, or until al dente. (If using dried pasta, cook until al dente, according to package instructions.) Drain and gently toss with a small amount of oil (to prevent sticking).

In two 2-quart casserole dishes or one 9"x13" baking dish, spread about ¼ cup of sauce.

Working with one sheet at a time, lay pasta out on a flat surface (taking care not to tear it). Spread with ¼ cup filling and, starting with a short end, roll the pasta into a tube and place in baking dish.

Repeat with remaining pasta and filling. Top cannelloni with remaining sauce and bake for 30 minutes. Top with remaining parmesan and bake another 5 minutes.

Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Garlic Scape Pesto

2011-06-16T11:23:00.000-05:00

One of the many wonderful things about shopping at the farmers market is that it inspires me to try new things. I’m generally a rather adventurous eater, but the grocery store is so overrun with familiar products that I hardly notice the unfamiliar ones. Faced with the comparatively small number of in-season selections at the farmers market, the unusual and unfamiliar catch my eye. Chances are there’s someone at the stand who can advise me on how to use whatever I pick up, and if I forget to ask, there’s a wealth of information online.

Among my culinary firsts this spring are garlic scapes. A garlic scape is the stalk part that grows up from the garlic bulb, which is developing underground. Apparently the stalk is cropped off in the spring so that all of the plant’s efforts can be concentrated into growing the garlic bulb itself. It’s baffling to me that I’ve never seen garlic scapes in the supermarket. I mean, a garlic plant is a 2-for-1 deal, so why isn’t anyone taking advantage of it? My confusion was only compounded when I actually tasted the scapes.

Garlic scapes are milder than mature garlic. Every bite is infused with that wonderful garlicky flavor, but it won’t jump out and bite you if you get too close. Chopped and pan-fried garlic scapes have the appearance and texture of cut green beans or cooked asparagus.

But the best way to enjoy these curly green curiosities? Pesto!

Garlic scapes with a touch of basil and lemon. It’s like a warm afternoon sun tempered by a cool spring breeze. Try it. You’ll see what I mean…

Garlic Scape Pesto

Serves 4

8 ounces pasta, fresh or dried
5 garlic scapes (about 3½ ounces/100g), plus 3-4 garlic scapes for garnish*
¼ cup almonds (1¼ ounces/35g)
small handful basil (½ ounce/14g)
½ cup freshly grated parmesan (1 ounce/28g)
½ teaspoon lemon zest
scant ½ cup olive oil
pinch of salt

*Note: Sautéed garlic scapes add additional texture to the final dish, but the pesto can be made without them.

Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast almonds, tossing frequently, until lightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Remove and discard bulb and top of garlic scapes. Chop five scapes into 1-inch pieces. In a food processor combine chopped garlic scapes, toasted almonds, basil, 6 tablespoons parmesan, lemon zest and olive oil. Process, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Stop before pesto becomes a smooth puree; it should still have a bit of texture.

For the garnish, heat a small amount of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cut remaining garlic scapes into 1-inch pieces. Add to skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until tender and well browned. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil. Salt well and cook pasta until al dente. Before draining, reserve ½ cup of cooking liquid.

Add pesto to the now-empty pot and stir in half of the reserved cooking liquid, adding more as needed until pesto resembles a thick sauce. Toss pasta with pesto over medium heat for 1-2 minutes.

Serve topped with sautéed garlic scapes and parmesan cheese.

Late Spring Fever: Fava Bean Crostini

2011-06-14T10:00:00.000-05:00

I was first introduced to fava beans seven years ago at an Italian professor’s home on the outskirts of Siena. We had them whole with young Tuscan pecorino and thick, partially-crystallized Acacia honey. Since then, I’ve remembered fondly how the little bits of earthy springtime paired perfectly with the tangy, buttery pecorino and sweet honey.

Although I’d encountered the mention of fava beans and recipes for their use over the past several years, my thoughts of them were merely passing fancies, and I never took the initiative to seek them out. When we stumbled upon them at the farmers market Saturday, I jumped at the chance to take a few home and rekindle the old flame.

I thought I’d dress them up a bit in the hopes of building something a little more lasting this time around. (Luckily, my husband was all for it.) The result was the following recipe for a refreshing fava bean puree, which we had as a main course on homemade whole wheat baguette rounds with 4 different types of pecorino*, alongside a salad of local red leaf lettuce, spring onions, and “sweet slice” cucumbers.

*I am admittedly a bit infatuated with pecorino. (Can it still be considered infatuation if it’s been going on for close to a decade?) When the grocery store was out of my favorite – Santa Teresa Pecorino Sardo (a young pecorino aged 30-40 days) – I picked up a few others just for fun. They were: Pecorino Romano, Fulvi (aged 10-12 months), Pecorino Toscano (slightly younger, aged 6 months), and Cacio de Roma (another young pecorino aged about 30 days). We had a bit of Santa Teresa left in the fridge, so we were able to compare all four. Although Santa Teresa is still my favorite, I thought the 6-month-old pecorino toscano went best with the fava bean puree.

Fava Bean Crostini

Yield about 32 crostini. Serves 8 as an appetizer or 4 as a light main course.

for the bread
1 whole grain baguette or other rustic loaf (about 12 ounces)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove

for the puree
14-16 ounces shelled fava beans (1 cup shelled and peeled)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 medium garlic clove
2 teaspoons fresh mint or fresh basil, chopped
½ teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt

for serving
4 ounces pecorino (young or aged), thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Slice the bread into ¼- to ½-inch thick diagonal slices. Peel garlic clove and cut in half. Rub cut side of garlic onto the top cut side of each slice. Brush slices with olive oil and arrange on a baking sheet.

Bake for about 5 minutes, until the tops are lightly browned. Set aside.

Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to boil. Add fava beans and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and immediately submerge beans in ice water until cool. Drain beans and peel off the tough outer layer. (The easiest way to do this is to carefully pinch off the outer layer of one end of the bean and squeeze the opposite end so that the bean pops out.)

In a food processor, combine peeled fava beans, ¼ cup olive oil, garlic, mint or basil, lemon juice and zest, and salt. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor bowl, as needed.

Divide the puree evenly between the slices of bread (about 2-3 teaspoons per slice). Serve topped with a small slice of pecorino.

back to basics: homemade pasta all'uovo

2011-06-09T10:00:00.000-05:00

Some of my earliest and most cherished memories of my grandmothers revolve around their homemade pasta. It’s no wonder, then, that I love making my own. The smell of flour mixing with fresh eggs, the feel of the soft, smooth dough, the thin, silky ribbons that fall from the plates of the pasta machine. And the taste. There is absolutely no comparison between fresh egg pasta and dried pasta from the supermarket. Brian says (and I would agree) that one of the best things about homemade pasta is its mysterious ability to melt in your mouth while remaining perfectly al dente.

There are lots of things that can be done with a basic pasta recipe. From spaghetti to fettuccine, lasagne to cannelloni, farfalle to orecchiette. You can play with adding spices and herbs to the dough. I love the combination of black pepper fettuccine with scallops in a white wine sauce. Saffron pasta is a Milanese classic and squid ink pasta a Venetian tradition. I’ve even seen pasta made with cocoa.

Although the main ingredients are always the same (flour and eggs), the proportions can vary significantly. I’ve seen recipes that call for as many as nine egg yolks or as few as one egg per cup of flour. Much depends on the type of flour and the desired consistency of the pasta. After years of experimenting, I’ve found the proportions that I like best. Give it a try and feel free to adjust as you see fit.

This explanation is fairly long. Use the links below to jump to different points within the recipe:

Making the Dough
Using a Pasta Machine
Rolling and Cutting by Hand
Drying
Cooking
Storing

Pasta all'uovo, fatta in casa (Homemade Egg Pasta)

Yield 1 pound pasta (dried). Serves 8.

Ingredients
3 (375g) cups all-purpose flour (or “tipo 00” if you can find it), plus extra for dusting
1 teaspoon salt
4 large to extra-large eggs (The fresher the better; if you can get free range eggs from a local farmer, do!)

Making the Dough
Measure the flour onto a clean countertop. Using your fingers or a fork, mix in the salt. Form the flour into a mound and make a well in the center.

Crack one or two eggs into the well.

Use a fork to gently beat and incorporate, drawing flour from the insides of the well, taking care not to break through the wall completely. (Don’t worry if you don’t get this right the first time. I spent plenty of time chasing egg across countertops before I got it right.)

When the egg resembles a thick paste, add the next one and repeat, incorporating it with the egg and flour from the sides of the well until the mixture resembles a thick paste once again. Repeat with the remaining eggs.

When the final egg has been mostly incorporated, use your hands to gather the dough and any remaining flour into a ball. Knead. If the dough is too dry, add water, a few drops at a time until you’ve incorporated all the dry flour.

Continue to knead for 4-6 minutes, until dough is smooth and homogeneous. (It won’t be very elastic at this point.) Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes.

After resting, the dough will be supple and elastic. Cut the dough into fourths. Set aside one fourth of the dough and rewrap the remaining 3 pieces.

Using a Hand-crank Pasta Machine
Secure the pasta machine to your countertop and set the roller plates to the widest setting. Flatten the dough as much as possible, using your hand. It should be no more than ½-inch thick. Dust both sides with flour.

With one hand, feed the dough through the roller plates of the pasta machine, turning the crank with the other hand.

Fold the dough into thirds (like a letter) …

…and feed through the pasta machine(with folds perpendicular to the rollers).

Repeat the process of folding and turning 2 to 3 more times, until the dough is smooth and about the width of the rollers.

Decrease the thickness setting one notch. Roll the pasta through again.

Repeat this process (no folding), decreasing the thickness setting one step at a time, until you reach the desired thinness. (For most shapes, the thinnest setting works best. However, I’ve found that for spaghetti, the next thicker setting is best.)

If the dough gets tacky at any point, dust it with flour.

As the pasta gets longer and thinner, it becomes more and more of a juggling act to feed the dough, turn the crank, and catch the dough as it comes out. However, with a bit of practice, you’ll find what works best.

Before rolling to the final setting, dust both sides with flour. I usually cut the dough into shorter lengths (2 or 3 pieces) to make it easier to handle. It will approximately double in length, so keep that in mind when deciding how to cut it.

The final dough sheet(s) should be smooth, elastic and almost translucent. Dust the dough lightly with flour and cover with plastic wrap, wax paper, or a damp, lint-free towel while you proceed with the remaining three pieces of dough.

If making lasagna, manicotti, or cannelloni, cut dough sheets into 9-12 inch lengths, depending on your preference (and pan size). Proceed with drying.

Cutting a Basic Shape: Fettuccine
Prepare a place to dry the finished pasta.

Once you’ve rolled out all the dough, attach the fettuccine-cutting plate to the machine.

Uncover one sheet of dough, trim to desired length (10 inches is standard but we like ours a bit longer), dust both sides with flour, and carefully feed it through the machine. (Don’t throw away the scraps.)

Hang to dry (or toss with flour). Proceed with remaining dough.

Using a Rolling Pin

Although a pasta machine makes the process easier and the results more consistent (and is a great investment if you plan to make pasta fairly regularly), having one is by no means a requirement. A rolling pin and a sharp knife work just fine.

Dust ¼ of dough with flour and roll away from you with rolling pin, extending and flattening the dough. Rotate the dough 90 degrees every few strokes.

If the dough shrinks back, cover with plastic and allow to rest for 5 minutes. (Resting allows the gluten to relax.) Resume rolling. Repeat resting period, if necessary.

The final hand-rolled dough will not be quite as thin as can be achieved using a pasta machine. (Mine were about 1/16- and 1/32-inch, respectively.)

However, the dough should still be elastic and fairly translucent.

Cutting Fettuccine by Hand

Dust dough with flour and roll as tightly as possible into a cylinder.

Using a very sharp paring knife, cut dough into approximately ¼-inch pieces.

Unroll, toss with flour, and set aside to dry.

Drying the Pasta

You can buy a rack specifically for drying pasta, but there are also a number of ways to improvise a drying rack.

My grandmother used a clean broom handle suspended between two chairs.

I use plastic clothes hangers suspended from a pot rack or kitchen cabinets. (If not cooking immediately, after about and hour, remove the pasta carefully from the clothes hangers and lay out on a cooling rack to finish drying. If left on the hanger longer, they become too brittle and break in half when removed from the hanger.)

You can also simply toss the pasta with flour and spread it out over a floured surface. (A lint-free towel over a cooling rack works well.)

Cooking the Pasta

Allow pasta to dry slightly before cooking (to prevent sticking).

Cook fettuccine for 3 minutes in well-salted boiling water. Hand-cut pasta should be cooked 1-2 minutes longer.

Hand-cut pasta on left. Machine-cut pasta on right.

Storing the Pasta

Pasta must be completely dry before storing.(Depending on thickness and drying method, I usually let mine dry 8-48 hours.)

Store at room temperature in an airtight container. The dried pasta will break easily, so it’s best to store it in something rigid (i.e. an airtight food storage box or a zipper bag inside a shoebox). The pasta will keep this way for a few months.

The Scraps

There will inevitably be trimmings and other bits of dough aren’t long enough to serve as fettuccine. These scraps are great for soups! Dry and store as above.

Zucchini-Ricotta Rolls

2011-06-03T08:45:00.000-05:00

I can’t believe how long it’s been since my last blog post. I really have been cooking these past two months, but all I have to show for it are several scribbled, half-finished recipes and about a thousand photos. Hopefully a few of them will make it up here soon. In the interest of actually finishing this one, I’ll keep it short and to the point.

These zucchini-ricotta rolls are ridiculously good and inspired by the first farmer’s market zucchini of the year and some leftover ricotta (from Keswick Creamery). They make an easy-but-impressive, refreshing summer appetizer.

Zucchini-Ricotta Rolls
Zucchini-Ricotta Rotolini

Serves 4-6 (about 24 rolls).

5 ounces ricotta
juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
10 basil leaves, finely chopped
1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

2 medium zucchini
olive oil or grapeseed oil, for grilling

Heat a grill pan over medium heat. (The thin strips of zucchini are probably too delicate for an outdoor grill.)

Stir together ricotta, lemon zest and juice, chopped basil leaves, and extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste. Set aside.

Using a peeler or mandolin, slice zucchini very thin (about 1/16 inch). Gently toss zucchini strips with oil, a few pinches of salt, and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

Grill zucchini in batches over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, depending on thickness. The thinnest strips will not need to be flipped. When zucchini is tender and well marked, remove to a plate or platter. Continue with remaining zucchini.

To make the rolls:
Place 1-2 teaspoons of ricotta mixture at the end of each zucchini strip. Roll.

Serve zucchini rolls at room temperature.

(They are also great served hot: place rolls in a casserole dish and heat in the oven at 350⁰F for 8-10 minutes.)

back to basics: tomato sauce

2011-03-29T13:55:00.001-05:00

My slowly-but-surely expanding recipe index boasts its fair share of fancy birthday desserts, tales of holiday culinary escapades, newly-discovered vegetables, and the occasional weeknight meal. I realized recently, however, that it’s sorely lacking in the fundamental recipes of my Italo-American kitchen. In an attempt to remedy this situation, I’m getting back to basics.

In this ongoing “series,” I’ll take an occasional breather from new recipes and share some of my old standbys that provide the foundations for lots of other dishes. I hope that these posts (like many of my others) might also demonstrate just how possible it is to cook real food, from scratch on an almost daily basis.

This particular recipe holds a special place in my heart, as it kept my now-husband well fed for many months when he was living in a champagne city on a beer budget. (Spending thirty dollars on groceries every two weeks is a feat anywhere, let alone New York City.) This recipe is also one of the first that I developed on my own, and although it has changed a bit over the years, it’s essentially the same as it was a decade ago.

And now, if I may further extol its virtues: This sauce is inexpensive, easy, quick, incredibly versatile (as is or with any number of small adjustments), and it can easily be doubled or tripled to feed a larger crowd or freeze for future use. It’s worlds better than any store-bought counterpart, making the extra bit of time and effort well worth it.

Tomato Sauce

Yield: 1 quart (about 8 servings).
Keeps in the refrigerator for about a week. Freezes well!

½ medium-large onion
2 small-medium carrots, peeled
1 stalk of celery
2-4 medium cloves of garlic
handful of fresh parsley (6-8 sprigs)
2 tablespoons olive oil
28 ounces (large can or jar) of whole peeled tomatoes*
6 ounces (small can or jar) of tomato paste*
12 ounces (1 ½ cups) water (plus more as needed)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
parmesan cheese, freshly grated

optional additions
finely chopped basil, thyme, and oregano (fresh or dry)
or 1 teaspoon dried Italian spice blend
2-4 tablespoons heavy cream**
½ cup red wine***

*For the first time, I made this recipe with home-canned tomatoes! In place of the store-bought tomatoes above, I used the following:

two 17-ounce jars of whole tomatoes canned in water (½ of the water drained)
18 ounces passata (tomato puree); omitted the water

Basically, you want a about 46 ounces of “liquid tomatoes” – whether that be 28 ounces whole canned tomatoes and 6 ounces of paste plus 12 ounces water , 46 ounces of of passata, or some other combination of tomatoes.

Pulse in a food processor or finely chop onion, carrot, celery, 2 cloves of garlic, and parsley. Heat olive oil in a 4-quart pot and sauté the chopped veggies for about 10 minutes, until vegetables are soft and onions are translucent.

Add all tomatoes/paste/puree (and water, if using), crushing any whole tomatoes in your hand as you go. (You want the sauce to have enough liquid that it can simmer for a while and not get too dry.)

Bring sauce to a boil, and reduce to a simmer. Let sauce simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add herbs and spices, if using. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

If you’re a garlic-lover, add up to 2 additional cloves of minced or pressed garlic.

For a smooth sauce, remove from heat and puree using an immersion blender or a food processor.

If serving with pasta, about five minutes before sauce is finished, cook pasta in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain pasta and return to cooking pot. Add desired amount of sauce (about ½ cup sauce per 2-ounce serving of pasta) and stir gently over medium heat for about 2 minutes. You may also add parmesan cheese at this time (reserving some for sprinkling on top).

Serve topped with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

**Variation 1: Tomato Cream Sauce
Remove sauce from heat and stir in heavy cream to taste (start with a tablespoon, and add more as desired). Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

***Variation 2: Tomato Sauce with red wine
When you add the tomatoes, add ½ cup red wine. Continue cooking as usual.

A few other ideas:

- Tomato sauce with a dash of balsamic vinegar (added in last 5 minutes of cooking), farfalle, parmesan cheese, and fresh basil.

- Tomato sauce with gemelli pasta and sautéed mushrooms, topped with parmesan and lots of fresh basil.

- Tomato sauce with dried Italian spices, gemelli, spicy Italian (chicken) sausage, and parmesan.

- Tomato cream sauce (recipe above) with a can of tuna and any short, tubular pasta shape. (Brian’s go-to variation when he lived in New York: an inexpensive and tasty way to get some extra protein!)

Tiramisù Meringue Cake

2011-03-23T09:10:00.001-05:00

Last week, we continued the accidental tradition of inventing a new dessert in honor of Brian’s birthday. He began brainstorming weeks in advance, starting out somewhere around chocolate mint whoopie pies and ending up at dacquoise. Brian said he wanted something like a cake but with more texture, remembering the layered Doberge; cake we had at a Mardi Gras party. From there, we got around to dacquoise because I thought the meringue would provide the consistency he was looking for. The decision finally came down to the fact that we had some mascarpone we needed to use. He was glad to relinquish control over his birthday dessert to give me a chance to experiment. Happily, it turned out to be just what Brian wanted – a nice combination of creamy and firm and some of his favorite flavors. I was surprised by how much it resembled tiramisù – the flavors, though rearranged, had a similar effect. The major difference was that, unlike soaked ladyfingers, the meringue retained most of its original texture, softening just enough from the moisture in the filling to be perfectly fork-friendly.

A note about the name: The resulting recipe is technically not dacquoise, since I ended up not using any nuts in the meringue, so we decided “meringue cake” would be more appropriate.

Tiramisù Meringue Cake

Note: Because the meringue needs time to dry and the final cake needs time to set in the freezer, it’s best to make the meringue a day or two in advance.

for the meringue (adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
¾ cup sugar
4 egg whites
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 ounces dark chocolate (preferably 60% cacao)

for the filling 8 ounces mascarpone
3 egg yolks
⅓ cup sugar + 2 tablespoons sugar
1¼ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons (1½ ounce) espresso (or strong coffee), chilled

for the glaze
2 ounces dark chocolate (preferably 60% cacao)
1 teaspoon butter
1-2 tablespoons heavy cream

for the meringue
With racks in upper- and lower-middle positions, heat oven to 225°F. Line 2 half-sheet baking pans with parchment paper. Draw two 8-inch circles on each sheet of parchment paper and turn over.

Break chocolate into pieces and chop very finely, or pulse in a food processor until finely chopped. Set aside.

In a small bowl, stir together sugar and cornstarch.

In stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg whites, vanilla, and salt on high speed until soft peaks just begin to form (about 30-45 seconds). Reduce to medium speed and add sugar mixture in a slow, steady stream. Scrape down bowl and return mixer to high speed.

Beat until stiff, glossy peaks are formed (30-45 seconds).

Gently fold in chocolate.

Drop ¼ of meringue in the center of each of the 4 circles. Use an offset spatula in a circular motion to evenly spread meringue to the edges of the circles. Smooth the tops.

Bake for 1 to 1½ hours until meringues are dry, rotating the sheet pans (top to bottom and front to back) after 30 minutes. Turn off oven and, keeping oven door closed, allow meringues to continue drying until cool, another 2 to 3 hours or as long as overnight. If not using immediately, store meringues in two gallon zipper backs, separated by parchment paper. (You can use the same paper used to bake them.)

for the filling
Combine 3 egg yolks and ⅓ cup sugar in the top bowl of a double boiler (or other heatproof bowl). Whisk until yolks are thick and pale yellow. Set over a pot with 1-2 inches of barely simmering water. Whisk constantly until egg mixture is warm and very thick, 5-6 minutes. Set aside to cool, stirring frequently.

Using a handheld mixer (or my personal favorite, an immersion blender with whisk attachment), whip cream. When it begins to thicken, add remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form.

Stir egg yolk mixture and mascarpone together in a medium bowl. Fold in about ⅓ of whipped cream. Set aside.

Into remaining whipped cream, fold chilled espresso.

to assemble
On a serving plate, spread ⅓ of mascarpone mixture onto 1 round of meringue.
Then spread ⅓ of espresso cream. Top with second meringue round and repeat: ⅓ of mascarpone, ⅓ of espresso cream. Top with third meringue round and remaining ⅓ of mascarpone and espresso cream. Top with fourth meringue round.

for the glaze
Melt chocolate and butter over a double boiler (or in the microwave). Remove from heat and add a small amount of cream until the chocolate reaches desired consistency (depending on whether you prefer to spread or drizzle the chocolate over the cake).

Spread or drizzle the chocolate over the top of the cake.

Allow cake to freeze for at least 2 hours before serving (for easier slicing/serving). If the cake has been in the freezer for more than 8 hours, allow to thaw at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before serving.

If you want to put candles on it, melt some extra chocolate when you remove the cake from the freezer to serve. Drop a small dollop of chocolate for each candle, allow to harden for 20-30 seconds and press candles into chocolate.

St. Louis-Style Pizza

2011-03-19T10:00:00.000-05:00

The subtitle of this post should be something like “Imo’s Pizza for the Purist.”
I mean “pure” in the sense that it’s made with all-natural ingredients, including real cheese.

Brian has plenty of food memories from his growing-up years in St. Louis. Among them is a preference for super-thin-crust pizza with melty, flavorful cheese and sweet, oregano-laden sauce, usually in the form of Imo’s pizza (topped with pepperoni or bacon and mushrooms). It’s tough to find anything like it anywhere but St. Louis. In fact, the cheese used on Imo’s pizza is a St. Louis original, obtainable only from online merchants in most parts of the country. It’s called “Provel,” and it creates controversy wherever it goes.

Outside of St. Louis, Provel is most certainly divisive, the major point of contention being that Provel is not actual cheese, but processed cheese (much like American or Velveeta). On the package, it’s described as “pasteurized process cheddar, swiss and provolone.” In my experience, the majority of St. Louisans are Provel devotees. However, even in the St. Louis area (and I just discovered -- coming soon to DC!), there has cropped up a small franchise of pizzerias called “Pi” who unabashedly protest fake cheese.

We had the opportunity to eat at one of these St. Louis pizzerias when visiting Brian’s family last year. It was a great time – craft beer on tap and delicious pizza (thick or thin crust). And I’m a big fan of their focus on sustainability.

When we make a trip back to St. Louis, we inevitably have a meal of Imo’s pizza at Brian’s request. It’s quite good, as delivery pizza goes, and Brian’s nostalgia for the pizza outweighs any protest I might have over the processed the cheese. It’s only once a year.

This year, as Brian’s birthday drew near, we set out to achieve Imo’s-like pizza using high quality ingredients and no processed cheese. Luckily, Cook’s Country magazine had already developed a recipe, which had been subsequently posted on stltoday.com and shared with us by Brian’s dad. It was a great place to start.

The first time, we followed the recipe to the letter – except for the Provel substitute, which called for American cheese. It didn’t quite make sense to go to the trouble of avoiding one processed cheese just to replace it with another. Instead of CC’s blend of American and Monterey Jack, we used sharp provolone, white cheddar, and Swiss cheeses with some whole milk mozzarella thrown in for its melting properties. We decided that the smoke flavor called for by Cook’s Country gave the cheese a chemical aftertaste, but the sharp cheddar and provolone did the trick without the added smoke.

The crust on a St. Louis-style pizza is super thin and yeast-less. It does its job but is nothing to write home about. (That is, unless you’re from St. Louis.) The crust is unremarkable in the sense that it exists merely as a vehicle for the toppings. While many St. Louisans appreciate its texture, it does not boast any of the fabulous chew or multi-dimensional flavor of a yeast-fermented/-risen crust. With a chemical leavening (baking powder) rather than yeast, it can be made in about one-tenth of the time of traditional crust. No rise and very little kneading are necessary, making it the quickest and easiest from-scratch pizza crust you’ll ever find.

For our second attempt, I reduced the oregano and eliminated the sugar from the pizza sauce. (I’ve never trusted a tomato sauce with added sugar.) My home-canned tomatoes were plenty sweet on their own.

Brian says the pizzas were spot-on. About as close as we could get to the real thing without actually ordering Imo’s.

St. Louis-Style (Imo’s) Pizza with real cheese
(sauce and crust recipes adapted from Cook’s Country as published on stltoday.com)

Makes 3 10-12” pizzas (depending on crust thickness).

Sauce
1 cup (8 ounces) jarred or canned tomato sauce (passata)
3 tablespoons tomato paste (preferably double concentrated)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano

Cheese
all cheeses should be grated
1 ¾ cups sharp provolone
1 ½ cups sharp white cheddar
½ cup Swiss cheese
½ cup whole milk mozzarella

Dough
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 475°F, with pizza stone (or inverted baking sheet) on lower middle rack.

Whisk together all sauce ingredients and set aside.

Toss grated cheeses and set aside.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder and salt. Combine water and oil in a small bowl or measuring cup; then stir into flour mixture until dough starts to come together. Knead a few times in the bowl or on a lightly floured surface. Dough should be uniform but does not need to be perfectly smooth.

Divide dough into 3 equal pieces. Working with each piece separately on a lightly floured surface, form into a ball, press flat, and use a rolling pin to roll dough into a circle or rectangle, turning and stretching as you go, until desired thickness is reached. The crust should be very thin. (Ours was 2mm thick, cooked.) If dough shrinks back to smaller size, allow it to rest for 5 minutes, then roll again. (If you have room, begin rolling out another piece while the first one rests.)

Transfer dough to parchment paper. Top with 1/3 of sauce, 1/3 of cheese, and any additional toppings you desire. (Our favorite combos include salame/kalamata olives/red onion and mushroom/bacon. Plain cheese is good, too!)

Uncured Calabrese salame and local red onion.

Use a pizza peel or the back of a cookie sheet to transfer pizza to the preheated stone or baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cheese is melted and crust begins to crisp and brown.

Repeat rolling/topping/baking process with remaining pieces of dough. Serve pizza cut into two-inch squares.

(Dough can be made in advance; wrap tightly and refrigerate for up to 2 days.)

Gooey, melty UNprocessed cheese.

crema gianduia: homemade chocolate hazelnut spread

2011-03-14T08:30:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, we made our very own chocolate hazelnut spread. Luckily, Lent has arrived, or we’d still be hovering over the jar with our spoons out…but I’m sure we’ll be ready to dig back in once these forty days are up.

All the chocolate-hazelnut recipes posted across the blogosphere in honor of Nutella Day last month got me thinking about attempting to make my own again. A well-timed article in La Cucina Italiana magazine provided the impetus and guidance I needed to get started. For my first batch, I followed the recipe exactly as written.

The recipe had only 5 ingredients, took less than half an hour to make, and left me wondering what in the world had gone wrong with my last attempt.

The La Cucina Italiana recipe called for 8 ounces of milk chocolate to 5 ounces of toasted hazelnuts and Chef Karen DeMasco’s special touch, coarse Demerara or turbinado sugar (for a bit of crunch). It comes out to 29.5% hazelnuts. (If you’ve followed my Nutella study, that’s a significantly higher proportion of hazelnuts than contained in either the Italian or American versions of Nutella.)

Although it was an excellent variation on the chocolate-hazelnut-spread theme (it tasted almost exactly like the filling of one of my favorite candies), we prefer our gianduia like we prefer our chocolate: dark.

For round two, we created three different adaptations, one with 3 ounces of dark chocolate added to the the original recipe, one with 4 ounces each dark and milk chocolate, and one with all dark chocolate (plus a little extra oil to replace the missing fat). While all three were good, the clear winner was the half-and-half version. The dark chocolate gave it just the extra boost it needed to balance out the hazelnuts, and the milk chocolate kept it creamy and more spreadable than the other two.

Gianduia (chocolate hazelnut spread) adapted from recipe in La Cucina Italiana

makes about 1½ cups

4 oz good quality milk chocolate*
4 oz good quality dark chocolate (54%)*
8 oz raw hazelnuts
2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tsp dark brown sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ grapeseed oil

*For the chocolate, we used Whole Foods’ organic, fair trade.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Spread hazelnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until fragrant and just beginning to brown. The skins should also begin to visibly loosen.

Meanwhile, break chocolate into pieces and combine in the bowl of a food processor with all remaining ingredients, except the grapeseed oil.

Remove nuts from oven and allow to cool slightly. Using a tea towel, rub hazelnuts a handful at a time to remove the bitter skins. (It’s okay if they don’t all come off.)

Add warm hazelnuts to bowl of food processor.

Puree. With the processor running, add the oil in a slow, steady stream to emulsify. Continue blending until mixture is smooth. (The spread will not become perfectly smooth but will retain small flecks of hazelnuts and sugar for a slight crunch.)

Transfer to an airtight container and allow to thicken (at room temperature for about 2 days, or in the refrigerator for 1 hour.)

Tip: For faster thickening, remove spread from refrigerator after 20-30 minutes. Stir. Let rest for 2 minutes. Stir again.

Spread keeps at room temperature for up to three months. To soften slightly for spreading, microwave for 5-10 seconds.

a tale of two King Cakes

2011-03-08T15:22:00.000-06:00

It’s Fat Tuesday! In anticipation of the lean season of Lent, I spent the weekend getting some baking out of my system.

Growing up, the arrival of Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras/Carnevale usually brought a batch of my mother’s King Cake (adapted from a recipe she got from a friend years ago). The cake is basically a huge cinnamon roll with purple, green, and gold sugar on top and a plastic baby hidden inside. What could be better than a big, sweet ring of cake, cinnamon, butter, and brown sugar?

I never questioned the cake's authenticity until a few weeks ago, when we were treated to a weekend of authentic, New Orleans-style Mardi Gras parties thrown by the Mystick Krewe of Louisiana. During one late-night gathering as they were cutting the King Cake, my Louisianan cousin commented that it just wouldn’t be authentic King Cake without cream cheese filling. I had never heard of such a thing, but sure enough, the cake was filled with cream cheese. The texture of the cake struck a lovely balance between cakey and flaky. I was surprised by how much I liked it (and was tempted to go back for more).

When it came time to make my own King Cake this year, I wanted to try it with cream cheese and decided to do some experimenting. The King Cake has a long, often disputed history, and the various incarnations of the traditional pre-Lenten treat are endless. In New Orleans, there are probably as many versions as there are bakers. I sifted through lots of recipes, very few of which included the desired cream cheese. I finally found an Emeril Lagasse recipe on foodnetwork.com. I figured if anyone had an authentic recipe, he would.

A few hours of kneading and rising later, I had a 1/2 batch of Emeril's cream-cheese-filled King Cake and a full batch of my mom's recipe, with various filling variations.

The two doughs were quite different. For the same amount of water, butter, yeast, and salt, my mom’s recipe called for 2 eggs, 7 cups of flour, and a cup of water. Emeril’s, on the other hand, called for 5 egg yolks, only 5 cups of flour , and no water. My mom's came out more like a traditional cinnamon roll (fluffy and spongy with a moist chew) and Emeril's more brioche-like with a lighter mouth-feel and a drier crumb.

my mom’s recipe is on the left; Emeril’s on the right

I loved the cream cheese filling. The problem with Emeril's was that the lemon zest and nutmeg in the dough combined with the cream cheese filling made the whole thing taste like apples. I have no problem with apples. They are one of my favorite foods. But if I want an apple-stuffed pastry, I'll make an apple-stuffed pastry.

The problem with the family recipe was that once I'd tasted Emeril's dough, I realized how much it was really just a cinnamon roll. I like cinnamon rolls, but as with the apples, I was going for something all little different. It was certainly just a texture rather than a flavor issue. I liked both the butter-pecan-cinnamon-brown sugar filling and the cinnamon-brown sugar-cream cheese filling I had tried, but I wanted a dough more similar to Emeril’s.

Unfortunately I didn’t have the time or the audience for a third batch of King Cake, so I wasn’t able to come up with my ideal recipe. I supposed it will have to wait until next year. Instead, I’ll offer the recipes I used and some ideas if you feel like experimenting yourself.

You can find Emeril’s original recipe here. If I were to make it again, I would omit the nutmeg and lemon from the dough and add cinnamon and brown sugar to the cream cheese filling. I’d also sub milk and vanilla extract for the lemon juice in the glaze. It would look a little something like this:

King Cake with Cream Cheese Filling (adapted from Emeril’s King Cake)

Dough
5 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
4 tsp instant yeast (or two packages active dry yeast)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F)
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
5 egg yolks

Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, softened slightly
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup chopped pecans (optional)

Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-4 tablespoons milk

Decorating Sugar
½ cup granulated sugar, divided in three (Color each with a few drops of yellow, green, or red/blue food coloring and toss with a fork in order create yellow, green, and purple decorating sugar.)

Plastic baby or coin

In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast, sugar, butter, egg yolks, and milk. Stir to combine. (If using active dry yeast, you must wait for the yeast to activate before adding the dry ingredients. After several minutes, the mixture should begin to bubble.)

Add the flour and salt. Stir until dough begins to come together. Then, either mix with dough hook on lowest setting for 5 minutes (until dough pulls away from side of bowl and becomes smooth), or turn mixture onto floured surface and knead by hand for 5 minutes until dough is smooth, adding flour as necessary to prevent sticking.

Place dough in a large, oiled bowl, turning dough over once so that all sides are coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow dough to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1.5 to 2 hours.

When dough is almost finished rising, combine the cream cheese and ½ cup powdered sugar in a small mixing bowl. Mix well.

In another small bowl, stir together cinnamon and brown sugar.

When dough has risen, turn onto floured surface and roll until about 30 inches long by 6 inches wide.

Spread the cream cheese in a wide strip down the center of the dough. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture and optional pecans.

Bring the two long edges together and use your fingers to press dough together, sealing all sides completely.
Place dough on a greased baking sheet seam side down and carefully shape into a ring.

Cover the ring with a damp tea towel or flour sack cloth and set in a warm place to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Make the glaze: In a small bowl, combine 2 cups powdered sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk. Whisk or beat until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add more milk 1 teaspoon at a time.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Once dough is risen, remove towel and use a sharp knife, sharp scissors, or a lame to make several slits around the top of the ring. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Allow the cake to cool partially, then insert the plastic baby or coin into the ring from the bottom so that it is completely hidden by the cake.

While cake it is still slightly warm, drizzle with glaze.
Sprinkle with colored sugar, alternating purple, green, and gold

Once cool, cut the cake into individual pieces and serve.

Alternatively, if you prefer a cinnamon roll-style cake, go with the following tried and true recipe. There are two filling options – one with cream cheese and one without.

King Cake (cinnamon-roll style)

Dough
3 ½ cups (16 oz) all-purpose flour, sifted
¼ cup (25 g) granulated sugar
2 tsp instant yeast (or 1 package active dry yeast)
1 tsp salt
½ cup water
½ cup milk
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter
1 egg

Filling Option 1
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup chopped pecans (optional)

Filling Option 2
½ cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup powdered sugar
8 oz cream cheese, softened

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 tablespoons milk

Decorating Sugar
½ cup granulated sugar, divided in three (Color each with a few drops of yellow, green, or red/blue food coloring and toss with a fork in order create yellow, green, and purple decorating sugar.)

Plastic baby or coin

Sift and measure flour. In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together sugar, yeast, salt, and 1 cup flour. In a small sauce pan, heat milk, water, and butter over low heat until butter is melted and liquids are warm. Set aside and allow to cool slightly (to about 110 degrees F).

Gradually add liquid to dry ingredients and beat with paddle attachment at medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add egg and 1 cup flour and beat at high speed for 2 minutes. Gradually add enough of remaining flour to make a stiff dough. Switch from paddle attachment to dough hook and knead on low speed for 5 minutes until smooth (or turn dough onto well-floured surface and knead by hand for 5-10 minutes until smooth). Add flour as needed to prevent sticking.

Place dough in a large, oiled bowl, turning dough over once so that all sides are coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow dough to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 ½ hours.

When dough is almost finished rising, prepare filling:

Filling 1
In another small bowl, stir together cinnamon and brown sugar.

Filling 2
Combine the cream cheese and ½ cup powdered sugar in a small mixing bowl. Mix well. In another small bowl, stir together cinnamon and brown sugar.

Turn dough onto floured surface, punch down, and knead about 5 times. Divide dough into two pieces. One at a time, roll out each piece of dough until about 20 inches long and 6 inches wide.

Spread butter or cream cheese over entire surface of dough and top with cinnamon/sugar mixture (and pecans, if using).

Starting with the long side of the dough, roll into a spiral and pinch edges to seal. Repeat with second piece of dough.

Twist each piece of dough and place on greased baking sheet. Press ends together, forming one large ring with the two halves.

Cover the ring with a damp tea towel or flour sack cloth and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Make glaze: In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk. Whisk or beat until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add more milk 1 teaspoon at a time.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Once dough is risen, bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Allow the cake to cool partially, then insert the plastic baby or coin into the ring under one of the folds. While cake it is still slightly warm, drizzle with glaze. Sprinkle with colored sugar, alternating purple, green, and gold.

Once cool, cut the cake into individual pieces and serve.

valentine cookies, pure and simple

2011-02-14T21:01:00.001-06:00

I love making sugar cookies. It’s one of my favorite things and one thing I always regret not doing if I let a holiday go by without them. For this reason, in the middle of my third week of a new job, after several of the busiest, longest days of the year, and three days before one of the organization’s biggest events of the year, I decided to make my annual Valentine’s Day sugar cookies. I knew I would be sad if I let February 14 pass without a batch of heart-shaped cookies in varying shades of pink. I know what you’re thinking. I’m crazy. I don’t deny it. In my defense, I cut out a couple hours of the process by skipping the buttercream piping and sticking with a simple glaze.

I was particularly looking forward to making the cookies because I’d finally broken down and shelled out the $18 for all-natural food coloring. I arrived at this point for a number of reasons. First of all, we try to keep our diet free of artificial ingredients, including artificial colors. Until now my cookies were all-natural and mostly organic—except for the food coloring. On top of my growing concern with consuming artificial ingredients, at some point during the past year I developed the unfortunate ability to taste the chemicals in my dyed frostings. This sensitivity became difficult to overlook. And the more food coloring I used (e.g. to achieve rich colors like red and black), the worse it was.

I was quite pleased with the way this year’s cookies turned out, rushed though they were. I didn’t go for a full-on red but stuck with shades of pink. I think the all-natural food coloring was well worth the expense, especially given the fact that it should last me at least 6 months, maybe longer.

Four drops of all natural red food coloring in one batch of glaze went from this:

To this:

I also experimented with adding raspberry puree to the glaze for some extra oomph.

I loved the flavor. Next time I’ll try replacing most of the milk in my glaze recipe with the berry puree for an even deeper shade of pink.

I’m happy to say that the only thing “added” to these cookies is love.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Nutella Day!

2011-02-05T13:21:00.001-06:00

It’s World Nutella Day, and we’re celebrating!!!

Nutella by the spoonful.

Nutella for breakfast spread on homemade “abbracci” cookies.

Nutella in this recipe from La Cucina Italiana Magazine: Biscotti Farciti alla Nutella (Nutella Cookie Sandwiches).

These cookies are the perfect combination of salty and sweet and have Nutella both in the dough and sandwiched between the cookies! Yum!

And the day’s only halfway through!

Check out all my posts on Nutella or my personal favorite, an in-depth comparison of Italian and American Nutella!

Want more Nutella Day fun? See the World Nutella Day website and the sites of Nutella Day co-hosts, Sara Rosso (Ms Adventures in Italy) and Michelle Fabio (Bleeding Espresso).

torta salata alla zucca e gorgonzola (pumpkin-gorgonzola tart)

2011-02-04T08:00:00.004-06:00

This is the fourth post in a series: “what to do with a ten-pound pumpkin.”
This recipe was inspired by an Italian friend, Valeria, who was also cooking with a large leftover pumpkin this week. Her description of the contrast between the sweet pumpkin and sharp gorgonzola got me really craving the combination. Normally a tart like this would call for pieces of cut up pumpkin, rather than a puree, but I couldn’t resist giving it a try. This is a great variation and just one more of the many ways to use fresh pumpkin puree!

Torta Salata alla Zucca e Gorgonzola (Pumpkin-Gorgonzola Tart)

Serves 6

crust
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 eggs
⅛ tsp salt
¾ cups (90 grams) whole wheat flour
¾ cups (95 grams) all purpose flour
water

filling
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 cups (about 3 ounces) chard or other winter greens
3 eggs
⅔ cup milk (preferably whole)
¼ tsp salt
several grinds of black pepper
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
2 oz crumbled gorgonzola
1 ¼ cups (10 oz) fresh pumpkin puree (see here for recipe)
1 ½ oz (about 1 cup) freshly grated parmesan

for the crust
Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a mixer, beat together the butter and mustard on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating on medium speed between each addition. Add flour and salt. Mix until well combined and a mass of Dough begins to form. If the dough is too dry, sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of water and mix again. Add additional water a teaspoon or two at a time, until dough begins to come together into a unified mass.

Dump the dough onto a lightly floured countertop (or dough mat) and form into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic and allow to rest in refrigerator for about 30 minutes. (At this point, the dough can be refrigerated for several days or frozen for 2-3 months.)

Roll dough flat, into the shape of your baking dish (i.e. in a circle for a 9” pie plate or tart pan) about 1 ½ inches bigger on all sides (12-inch diameter for a 9” pie plate). Dough should be between 1/16 and 1/8 inch thick.

Carefully transfer dough to baking dish and press into corners. Fold excess dough under and/or use to patch any tears in the dough. If desired, flute edge of crust.

Line the dough with a piece of parchment paper (or lightly greased aluminum foil) and fill with pie weights or dry beans. Parbake for 15-20 minutes. (While crust is baking, begin preparing the filling.)

Once crust is mostly cooked, carefully remove the weights and parchment paper. (They will be hot!) Set crust aside and proceed with the filling. (Leave oven on.)

for the filling
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium and cook the onion until translucent and beginning to brown (about 5-10 minutes), add the greens and cook until wilted (1-2 minutes). Remove from heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, ⅛ tsp salt, pepper, and nutmeg. In another bowl, stir together pumpkin, remaining ⅛ teaspoon salt, and parmesan.

Layer the onion and greens on the bottom of the crust, spread the pumpkin puree on top, and slowly pour the egg mixture over it.

Using a spoon, very gently swirl the mixture so that some of the pumpkin is drawn to the surface. Sprinkle evenly with crumbled gorgonzola.

Bake at 350°F for 30-45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is cooked through.

Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

2011-02-02T13:04:00.005-06:00

For part three of the “what to do with a 10-pound pumpkin” series, I decided to make pumpkin whoopie pies. This was my first attempt at any type of whoopie pie; I devised a recipe based upon my pumpkin bread and adjusted ingredient ratios by comparing a handful of other recipes. I offer 3 variations on the cream cheese filling – classic vanilla, almond, and molasses (“brown sugar”).

This would be a great recipe to make with children. The pies are lots of fun to assemble, and the fact that they’re rather humble-looking to begin with means that they’re hard to mess up. Happy baking!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

2 cups (14 oz) light brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
1 ¼ tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp cinnamon
1 ½ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp cloves
¾ tsp ginger
1 ¼ tsp salt
3 cups (24 oz) fresh pumpkin puree (see here for recipe)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients (flour, leavenings, salt, and spices) in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients in two additions, mixing on lowest setting after each addition. Stir in pumpkin on lowest setting.

One a cookie sheet (or half sheet pan) lined with parchment paper, drop batter by 1-3 tablespoon scoops, working quickly to prevent batter from spreading too much. Take care to space the scoops at least 2 inches apart (or more for larger “cookies”).

A cookie scoop works best for consistent shape and size. I used three different sizes (approximately 3 Tbsp, 2 Tbsp, and 1 Tbsp each). Adjust baking time depending on cookie size: 13-14 minutes for large, 12 minutes for medium, and 10 minutes for small.

Allow to cool on parchment paper for 5 minutes before removing to cooling rack. Once cookies are cool, proceed with filling.

Cream Cheese Filling (Vanilla, Almond, or Molasses)
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
4 Tbsp (½ stick) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
pinch of salt
flavoring of choice*
              1 tsp vanilla extract or
              1 tsp almond extract or
              1-2 tsp blackstrap molasses (start with 1 tsp & taste) + 1 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add sugar and salt. Mix well, starting at lowest setting and gradually increasing speed to medium-high. Add flavoring.

Spread filling onto flat side of cookie and press flat side of second cookie on top. Set completed pies on wax paper.

Whoopie pies can be served immediately but will hold their shape best when chilled in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

*All three of the filling variations work equally well. The vanilla is classic, the almond is a fun twist, and the molasses is something a little different. I like that the molasses offsets the sweetness of the filling. And since brown sugar is just sugar with molasses (either unrefined sugar or refined sugar with molasses added back in), putting molasses in the filling essentially turns it into “brown sugar” cream cheese filling, which has some depth that the others lack.

If using molasses, take care that you don’t add too much and overpower the pumpkin flavor.