Ingredients

White Layer Cake:
• 1 2/3 cup cake flour
• 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, softened
• 4 large egg whites, room temperature
• 3/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon
Buttercream:
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, room temperature
• 1/4 cup pomegranate juice, optional
Toppings:
• pomegranate seeds, as needed to decorate

Instructions

Cake:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2- 6 inch cake pans. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix with a paddle attachment on low speed. Add butter and mix on low speed until crumbly.
3. In another bowl, whisk together egg whites, milk, vanilla, and lemon zest. Slowly add to mixer on low speed. Mix until low speed until batter is thoroughly combined. Divide equally between the two prepared cake pans.
4. Bake for 30-40 minutes until cake springs back when touched and toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for a couple of minutes. Run a mini offset spatula around the cake and unmold. Let cool completely on wire rack before splitting cakes in half.
Buttercream:
5. In the bowl of stand mixer, whisk together egg whites, sugar, and salt. Set over a bain-maire and continue to whisk until the temperature of the mixture registers 120 degrees F on a thermometer.
6. Return bowl to stand mixer. With a whisk or paddle attachment, beat mixture at medium-heat speed until it cools to slightly warmer than room temperature, about 80 degrees F. Reduce speed to medium and add butter one tablespoon at a time.
7. Once all the butter has been added, increase speed to medium-high speed and continue to beat until buttercream is light and fluffy. If using pomegranate juice, whisk into buttercream. Whisk at high speed until juice is incorporated in. The mixture my separate but it will come back together with whisking.
Assembly:
8. Slice each cake into two equal halves. Place one cake slice on a cake turntable. Spread about 1/4 cup of buttercream on the cake using a small offset spatula. Spread buttercream evenly and allow a little to extend over the edges of the cake. Sprinkle a rounded tablespoon of pomegranate seeds over buttercream, follow with another 1/4 of buttercream and spread evenly. Repeat with remaining layers.
9. Create a "crumb coat" layer around the cake to seal in any crumbs. Chill cake in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.
10. Generously coat the chilled cake with more buttercream frosting. Spread the frosting until cake is coated and smooth. Chill cake if not serving, immediately. Let cake sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before serving, to allow buttercream to soften. Top with pomegranate seeds before serving.

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter, sliced into tablespoons
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking power
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cardamon
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a sauce pot, melt butter over medium heat. It is best to have butter cut into similar sizes/shapes so they melt evenly. Once butter has melted, continue to heat until butter, swirl pan occasionally to equally distribute heat. Butter will eventually bubble and foam up. Continue to swirl pan as needed. At this point, the bottom of the pan should have brown bits. Be careful not to burn the butter. Remove butter from heat once the butter smells nutty and has a nice fragrant aroma. Let brown butter cool for 5-10 minutes, until warm to the touch (not burning hot).
3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, ground cardamon, orange zest, and salt. Set aside.
4. Once butter has slightly cooled, add brown sugar and granulated sugar. Whisk to combine. The sugars should melt into the butter creating a thick and creamy paste. Add eggs one at a time. Whisk until combined.
5. Add flour mixture to butter all at once. Fold with a spatula to incorporate dry ingredients. When dry is almost combined, add the chocolate chips and mix in.
6. Using a cookie scoop or two spoons, scoop out mounds of cookie dough. If the dough is too soft/too warm and spreading too much, chill cookie dough in the fridge for 5-10 minutes. Place cookie mounds on prepared baking sheet, giving mounds enough room to bake and slightly spread. Bake for 12-15 minutes until cookies have spread out and are a nice golden brown. Let cool in pan for a couple seconds before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

Ingredients

• 16 oz gemelli macaroni, or pasta of your choice
• 4 oz pancetta, or bacon
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 cups mixed shredded cheese (parmesan, asiago, fontina, mild provolone)*
• 6 Tbsp grated pecorino romano cheese
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Fill a large pot with water. Salt to taste. Bring to a boil. Cook pasta in boiling water according to package directions. Drain pasta.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
3. In a large sauce pan, add about a tablespoon of oil. When oil is warm, add pancetta. Cook until pancetta fat has been rendered and meat is browned and crisp. Remove cooked pancetta and drain over a paper towel lined plate. Leave oil and fat in sauce pan.
4. Whisk together flour, milk, and cream. Add to sauce pan and let come to a boil.
5. In another bowl, combine all cheeses together. Reserve 1/2 cup of cheese for topping, add remaining cheese to sauce pan. Stir and cook until cheese melts. Remove from heat.
6. Add cooked pasta and cooked pancetta to sauce pan. Toss to coat pasta in cheese sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Divide pasta between serving bowls. Sprinkle reserved cheese mixture over pasta. Bake 20-25 minutes until cheese on top has melted and begins to brown. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Ingredients

• one 4-6 pound chicken
• peanut oil, or canola oil for deep-frying
Chicken Brine:
• 2 lemons, sliced
• 1/2 bunch flat-leaf (Italian) parsley (2 oz)
• 1/2 bunch thyme (1/2 oz)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 6 cloves of garlic,halved
• 2 Tbsp black peppercorns
• 3/4 cup kosher salt
• 1 gallon water
Coating:
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp onion powder
• 2 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp cayenne
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 quart buttermilk
Other components:
• rosemary and thyme sprigs for garnish
• fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Chicken Brine:
1. In a sauce pot, combine all the ingredients except for the water. Add 1/2 gallon of water. Bring to a boil and stir until salt dissolves. Remove from heat. Add remaining 1/2 gallon of ice cold water. Brine should be cold before using. If the ice cold water has not cooled down brine, place in fridge until chilled.
2. Cut chicken into 10 pieces consisting of: 2 legs, 2 thighs, 4 breast quarters, and 2 wings.
3. Pour cold brine into a container large enough to hold chicken. Add chicken, cover, and chill for 10-12 hours.
Buttermilk Fried Chicken:
4. Remove chicken from the brine. Rinse clean under running cold water. Pat dry with paper towels or allow to air-dry. Let it come to room temperature before using.
5. Fill frying pot with at least 2 inches of oil (do not let oil come to more than 1/3 up sides of pan). Set thermometer in pot and heat oil up to 320 degrees F.
6. Take two baking sheets. Line both sheets with parchment paper, and set a cooling wire rack over one. Set aside.
7. To make the flour coating, whisk together flour, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Divide among two shallow bowls. In a third bowl, add buttermilk. Season with salt and pepper.
8. When the oil is almost at temperature, dip chicken thighs in first bowl of flour. Shake off excess flour, dip into buttermilk and allow excess liquid to go back into the buttermilk bowl. Dip into second bowl of flour, coating both sides of chicken. Place in 1st parchment line baking sheet. Continue with other thigh.
9. Gently lower thigh into the hot oil. If temperature of oil dips, adjust heat to get back to 320 degrees F. Fry 10-13 minutes, carefully moving the chicken around the oil, keeping track of the oil temperature and turning over chicken as necessary. Cook until coating is golden brown, very crispy, and chicken has an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Once thighs are done, transfer to cooling wire rack with the skin-side up. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.
10. Meanwhile, coat the chicken legs in the same fashion.
11. Once drumsticks are cooked, increase oil temperature to 340 degrees F. Coat chicken breasts and wings. Fry breasts for 7-10 minutes, until cooked through and crisp. Transfer to rack, and season with sea salt and pepper. Cook wings for 6-8 minutes.
12. After you are done frying the chicken, add the rosemary and thyme to the hot oil. Be careful because any moisture/water from the herbs will cause the oil to splatter. Cook for a couple seconds until herbs are crisp and warm. Serve with chicken.
13. Note: chicken should be cooked to 165 degrees F. If you want to reheat chicken before serving, place in a 400 degree F oven for a couple minutes to warm chicken and re-crisp the crispy coating.

Notes

Ingredients

Chocolate Cake:
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 1/2 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 3 Tbsp light brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch, sifted
Dark Chocolate Mousse:
• 1 gelatin sheet
• 4 1/2 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup heavy cream, cold
White Coffee Mousse:
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 3 Tbsp whole coffee beans
• 1 tsp vanilla paste
• 1 gelatin sheet
• 4 1/2 oz white chocolate, finely chopped, 43% cocoa butter
• 3/4 cup heavy cream, cold
Other Components:
• unsweetened cocoa powder, to dust
• shaved dark chocolate
• shaved white chocolate

Instructions

Chocolate Cake:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform mold. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, melt together finely chopped chocolate and butter at half power for 60-90 seconds. Stop every 15 seconds to stir mixture. Continue to heat until mixture is smooth and melted. Make sure microwave is at half power, otherwise the chocolate will burn. Alternatively, melt chocolate and butter over a bain-marie.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and brown sugar. Beat until airy and light in color. Stir in vanilla and slightly cooled chocolate-butter mixture.
4. In another bowl, whisk together egg whites and salt. Beat until soft peaks. Gently fold egg whites into cake batter in three additions. Add sifted cornstarch and gently fold in until even distributed.
5. Pour batter into prepare cake mold. Bake for 15-20 minutes until top of cake springs back when touched and toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool slightly in pan before unfolding. Let cool on wire rack. The cake will slightly shrink in diameter.
6. Carefully remove parchment bottom. Cut cake to fit inside an 8-inch ring mold. Line ring mold with plastic cake wrap. Gently place cake at the bottom of the mold. Set aside as you prepare chocolate mousse.
Dark Chocolate Mousse:
7. Bloom gelatin sheet in a bowl of cold water for 3 minutes. Once soft, squeeze out excess water from gelatin sheet. Add gelatin to milk. Microwave for 10-15 seconds until gelatin has melted and milk is warm to the touch. Set aside.
8. Melt chocolate using microwave technique at half power or use a bain-marie. Let melted chocolate cool for 3-5 minutes.
9. Pour warm milk into melted chocolate in three additions. Use a rubber spatula to stir and combine mixture.
10. Beat cold heavy cream with an electric mixer to soft peaks. Gently fold whipped cream into chocolate batter in three additions.
11. Pour chocolate mousse on top of chocolate cake and level with a small offset spatula. Refrigerate cake as you prepare white chocolate coffee mousse.
White Chocolate Coffee Mousse:
12. In a small saucepot, bring milk and coffee beans to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 30-45 minutes. Strain milk and discard coffee beans.
13. Similar to previous mousse, bloom gelatin sheet in a bowl of cold water. Squeeze out excess water and place gelatin in coffee milk. Microwave for 10-15 seconds until gelatin has melted and milk is warm to the touch.
14. Melt white chocolate using microwave technique at half power or use a bain-marie. Let melted chocolate cool slightly, then add milk mixture in three additions. Mix to combine.
15. Whip cold heavy cream using an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Gently fold whipped cream into white chocolate mixture. Pour mousse on top of dark chocolate mousse and refrigerate overnight.
16. Before serving, dust top of cake with sifted cocoa powder and shaved chocolate. Carefully remove ring mold, unwrap cake, and serve.

Notes

Ingredients

• Homemade Bagels, recipe here
• pizza/marinara sauce of your choice
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• sliced pepperoni, cut into small squares
• pancetta, cooked, see photo in post for explanation
• dried oregano
• freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Adjust oven rack to top third of oven. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Slice bagels in half. Spread marinara sauce on cut side of bagel. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Arrange pepperoni and pancetta on top of cheese. Sprinkle lightly with oregano and black pepper. Add a little more cheese on top. Place on prepared parchment paper. Repeat with remaining bagels.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Notes