Palmabella's Passions

I love to bake anytime of the year, but especially at Christmas! I kicked off this year's kitchen marathon with 30 mini-loaves.

Cranberry Orange Bread with Grand Marnier Glaze

1 1/2 c. unsalted butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
4 eggs
1 c. orange juice
1 cup sour cream
2 T. orange zest
2 t. vanilla
4 c. flour
1 T. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 c. dried cranberries

Glaze: 2 c. powdered sugar and 7-8 T. Grand Marnier

Preheat over to 330 degrees. Butter 2 6 cup loaf pans, or 6 mini-loaf pans.
Cream butter and sugar for 3 min. on medium speed of mixer. Add eggs one at a time. Add orange juice, sour cream, orange zest and vanilla until blended.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture and cranberries to wet mixture. Do not over-mix. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 60 min. for mini-loaves, 70 min. for large pans.

In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar and Grand Marnier. Glaze should have consistency of maple or corn syrup. Thin with more Grand Marnier if necessary. Let breads cool 10 min. Poke top with skewer and pour glaze over.

*For Cherry-Almond Bread, substitute 1 c. milk for orange juice, omit orange zest, and substitute 2 t. of almond extract for vanilla.
Use 1 1/2 c. halved dried cherries and 1 c. chopped almonds. Use Amaretto instead of Grand Marnier.

Next I made two batches of shortbread. This year I dipped the corners in chocolate and toffee chips.

Old Fashioned Scotch Shortbread

1 pound (4 sticks) butter
3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup Rice flour (found in Asian section of any market)

Cream butter and sugar. Stir together 2 kinds of flour and add half at a time. Form six balls of dough and spread in a jelly roll pan. Flatten evenly with hands. Prick all over with fork. Run tines of fork across dough in both directions (creating pattern on top). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. While still warm (after about 10 min.), cut into 1x2 inch rectangles.

"World's Best Cookies" really ARE! Brad has always been a chocolate chip fan, but these are definitely MY favorite and at least tied for first place with him!

World's Best Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 cup oil
1 t. vanilla
3 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 c. crushed Rice Krispies or Corn Flakes
1 cup oats
1 c. coconut
1 package Heath toffee chips

Cream butter and both sugars. Add egg, oil and vanilla. Add remaining ingredients. Spoon onto ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork. Bake at 325 for 11-12 min.
Makes six dozen.

I made three kinds of candy this year. First was Peppermint Bark:

Next I made Microwave Caramels with seasalt! They are so delicious and EASY!
Here is the recipe:

http://www.countryhome.com/food/giftsfromkitchen_ss2.html

Finally, I made two batches of my annual toffee. It would not be Christmas without this stuff around! I have been making this for at least 30 years!

Toffee

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 1/3 cup blanched almonds

Toffee is easy to make, but you must be prepared to STIR for a long time (at least 25 minutes)!

Here is a step-by-step of the process:

Melt all three ingredients in a skillet over med. high heat.

As you keep stirring, it will eventually thicken, and turn a lovely caramel color. The almonds will begin to pop. That is time to remove from heat.

Pour the mixture quickly onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and press it down flat with a spatula, spreading it as far as possible.

Sprinkle a package (12 oz.) of chocolate chips over it.

Spread the chocolate quickly. Toffee is still spreading farther in pan.

Quickly sprinkle with sliced almonds.

Chill several hours or overnight. Then break into small pieces. Keeps well for months in the refrigerator.

I dislike chocolate. Call me crazy, call me lucky, but I am a caramel or vanilla or lemon girl! However, I do live with a chocoholic, and my friends Joy and Roxanne cannot get through a day without the dark stuff. I like making this cake for occasions because it isimpressive looking, and I won't be tempted to eat any!

Start by making the two ganache fillings, as they must sit at room temp for 12 hours
(make them the night before you want to make the cake).

White chocolate ganache filling:

In a sauce pan, heat 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream over medium-high heat until it just begins boiling. Remove from heat and pour over 8 oz. of chopped white chocolate in a bowl. Whisk until smooth. Let sit for 12 hours at room temp. covered with plastic wrap.

Milk chocolate ganache filling:
Repeat process with 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream and 8 oz. chopped milk chocolate or chocolate chips.

Cake:

2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. plus 1 Tablespoon good quality cocoa
1/4 c. milk
2 1/4 c. sifted cake flour
3/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 3/4 c. sugar
2 t. vanilla
3 large eggs

Spray two rimmed cookie sheets with butter-flavored spray. Cut and place parchment paper with edges slightly longer on two sides. Spray again. Heat oven to 350.

1. Sift cocoa into medium bowl. Stir in 1/4 c. plus 2 T. boling water until smooth. Gradually whisk in milk. Set aside to cool.

2. Sift flour, baking soda and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

3. In mixer bowl, cream butter on low until fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar, scraping down sides of bowl. Add vanilla.

4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. With mixer on low, gradually add alternating amounts of flour mixture, and cocoa mixture, starting and ending with flour. Divide batter evenly into two prepared pans. Level with offset spatula.
Bake at 350 until cake springs back when felt. 16-20 min.

Dark Chocolate ganache glaze:

16 oz. chopped dark chocolate
2 c. heavy whipping cream

Place chocolate in a metal mixing bowl. Bring cream to just boiling, remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Place about 3/4 c. of chocolate mixture
into smaller bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for 1 hour. Leave remaining ganache at room temp (uncovered).

Assembly:

Cut each cake (using ruler) into three even rectangles. (Mine were 4 3/4" wide.)
Alternate white chocolate and milk chocolate ganache between layers.

Trim any uneven edges, and brush away any crumbs.
When dark chocolate ganache in fridge is consistency of buttercream, "seal" cake in chilled dark chocolate ganache. This step is optional, but will give finished cake a more professional, smooth, glossy look. Frost with chilled ganache on all sides.

Using a soup ladle, "pour" room temp. ganache around cake edges first, then top, using spatula for a smooth shiny coat. There will be enough for two coats. Let dry about 20 min. between coats.

After first coat:

After second coat:

If you'd like to "decorate" at this point, you can add seasonal accents, or leave it plain. I used a little green fondant to make holly leaves, sprinkling them with green edible glitter, and added fresh currents. CAREFULLY, (as it is heavy), using a cake lifter, or two large metal spatulas, move to serving plate or tray (rectangular), and refrigerate.

TA DA!

In ANOTHER moment of insanity, I bought the train cake pan at Williams-Sonoma. I decided to launch it for my houseguests after Christmas. The recipe is a simple vanilla cake batter, and the pan does the rest. I made the cake (train cars) the night before, and kept them refigerated in tupperware over night. Now for the fun part...decorating the Christmas train.

I collected various candies as soon as I bought the pan, as well as "point and shoot" cans of frosting, licorice for the tracks, cookie Christmas trees, and a good supply of powdered sugar for "snow". Each car would be different, and it would give me something fun to do as my guests were making their way south from Fresno through holiday traffic on I-5!

Here are close-ups of the cars:

Everyone enjoyed the train as centerpiece on my kitchen table, but I had so many other desserts each night our guests were here, that we never ATE THE DAMN TRAIN!

Brad and had a silly conversation one night thinking of other themes for the cake pan:

A Slow Travel Train
Circus Train with animal crackers
International Train (flags from different countries)
Wine Train
Patriotic Train

It will probably be a while before I do this again.

As much as I love to bake cakes and desserts, I have never attempted making bread. I have been dying to try the no-knead recipe Chris posted on the Slow Talk Food Board. Today was the day! I made dough last night, let it rise until this morning at 10:00, sit until 12:00, and baked it in my new Le Creuset dutch oven! The kitchen smelled divine, and it tasted great! We each had a slice (mine slathered with butter), and then made a killer open-faced sandwich with soprasatta.

Here is my first EVER beautiful loaf:

Here are the some slices that show the texture. Try it yourself, or come visit to experience the TASTE!

Here is the RECIPE:

No-Knead Bread

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting (I used bread flour, and now I'm trying 1/3 whole wheat, 2/3 bread)

1/4 teaspoon instant yeast (I used Active Dry and it worked fine)

1 1/4 teaspoons salt (I followed the recommendations on the other message board and upped this to 1.5 teaspoons)

Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water (1.5 is enough with bread flour), and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball.

Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. (Next time I'm using parchment paper--the dough sticks to the towel.) Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. (It's important to use a pan with a tight lid to keep the steam in. I used my 5.5 quart Le Creuset dutch oven. If you use this kind of pan, either remove the knob from the handle or wrap it in thick layers of foil to keep it from being damaged by this very hot oven.)

When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.

Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Yield: One 1 1/2-pound loaf.

Diva, here is my beautiful new Dutch oven I used to bake the bread:

It is diet time again! I am NOT really a carboholic. As Brad says, I only eat bread because it is a vehicle for fat: butter, cheese, mayo, whatever. But take away butter, and I would never eat bread again. Since I TRY not to clog my veins intentionally, I usually only have a piece of good bread if we go out to dinner, and then I HAVE to HAVE butter on it. I only buy bread when Brad is home to eat it, or it sits, and gets thrown out. Desserts, I can usually take or leave. I DO like ice cream, gelato, panna cotta, and anything caramel. I OCCASIONALLY enjoy a cookie, but am much more fond of cheese, meats, and salty snacks. I do love pasta in all forms, and they are off the menu for the next month! Ditto for potatoes, risotto and other carbs. I need a month of fruits, veggies, soup, fish, chicken, and magic muffins!

I first learned this recipe about 16 years ago when I was attending Weight Watcher's.
I won a bet that I could lose 25 pounds in three months (ANOTHER January diet...), and won a trip to Maui from my ex husband. I believe these muffins kept me on track.
They also helped me eat breakfast, a meal I almost always skip, having just coffee in the morning. One of these muffins keeps me full most of the day. We ended up buying a beachfront condo, I eventually gained back the weight, got a divorce, but I still have the condo, and the muffin recipe!

"Magic" Muffins (The basic recipe before substitutions)

5 c. flour
5 t. baking soda
2 t. salt
4 eggs, beaten
A 15 oz. box of Raisin Bran Flake cereal

*3 c. sugar
*1 quart buttermilk
*1 c. oil

Mix all ingredients in a LARGE mixing bowl. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.
Batter keeps in fridg for up to 6 weeks.
Makes 4 dozen

* For "Magic Diet Version"

Substitute honey for sugar
Reduce buttermilk by 3/4 c.
Substitute 1 1/2 c. applesauce (no sugar added) for oil

The recipe makes a LOT of batter!

I froze 3 dozen muffins, and gave some away.

Kim, one of the Moderators on Slow Travel, gave me the "scoop" on calorie and Weight Watcher's counts:

Kim says:
"With the weight watcher subsitutions you're at 140 calories and 3 points but that's with sugar instead of honey (the caloric content is negligable so it's a taste issue, though honey does add a bit of fiber).

With the honey, you raise the calories to 155 but it's still 3 points on Flex.

Now, I did it with the oil instead of the applesauce and kept the honey and you get 192 calories = 4 points.

Lastly, and how I'd love for you to try it would be with honey (for moisture and fiber), 1/2 cup oil (b/c everything needs a bit of fat) and 3/4C applesauce - it comes out to 174 calories, still 3 points though and 15% fat.

Oh and this assumes unsweetened applesauce. Also, use canola oil instead of vegie oil. How's that?
Kim"

Thanks, Kim!

There is nothing magical about these muffins, in fact, I really don't even LIKE muffins. The last time I ate one was in May, 2006, when I was bored out of my mind at a conference. A Starbucks low-fat muffin is 360 calories. A blueberry muffin is 400 calories. These make me full, have fiber and fruit, and are only 155 calories. And I DO LIKE THESE!

MAGIC would be sticking to it long enough to knock off 20 pounds!

The most wonderful new place opened close to my neighborhood! I have been waiting for a year, and it is worth the wait! Though I live in an affluent community, there is nowhere to get decent Italian products! There are lots of Jewish deli places, but no Italian products outside of the chain grocery stores. There is a "designer cheese shop" on El Paseo, our version of "Rodeo Drive". On my last trip there, I bought a pound and a half of cheese, signed the credit card while chatting, and found out on the way to the car, I had just spent $76.00 for two pieces of cheese. I have NOT been back!

Our new Palm Desert treasure is a brand new Bristol Farms!!! (Those of you in LA, San Francisco or Orange County already know how exciting this is)!

http://www.bristolfarms.com/home.html

On my first visit, this week, I spent an hour just walking around the store with my camera. I was AFRAID to get a shopping cart, as this is a potentially DANGEROUS place for my diet! They have a "bar" for EVERYTHING!

Coffee Bar
Juice Bar
Sushi Bar
Panini Bar
Gelato Bar (be still my heart!)
Soup bar (8 kinds)
Chocolate Bar (they are dipping fruits and making confections in front of you)

There is a fabulous floral section (like an upscale florist, with an unbelievable selection of plants, flowers, topiaries, gifts)

There is a cafe.

There is a meat carving station (you can eat there, or buy by the pound and take it home). I thought I was back at a porchetta stand in Italy!

The butcher shop is wonderful.
The deli is spectacular.
The fish selection is amazing.
The produce is beautiful.
The housewares/cards/kitchen gadgets is perfect!
The wine ROOM will knock Brad's socks off. There were SHELVES just from Piemonte!
Did I mention the bakery?
But my FAVORITE is the CHEESE. Oh my goodness!

This section was just for CHEDDAR!

Here is the Parmesano:

Here is the Italian cheese section. Stuff I haven't ever seen or heard of!

These are cheeses from France and all things blue!

Tomorrow I'll show you more...

I only bought a few items on my first scouting trip. I was trying to behave. We are going back this weekend to show Brad the store. My fist BF dinner was grilled lamb kebobs, a big green salad and risotto made with that pot of soup I'm getting pretty sick of!

Since cheese is a diet NONO right now, let's see the healthy stuff! The produce area of the store was also wonderful!

The Heirloom Tomatoes were "pretty as a picture"!

The artichokes were HUGE!

The strawberries were perfect!

This is a BAD BLOG! Now I am starving. Am I craving a nice big healthy salad?
No! I was thinking more about the PIZZA BAR!

Tomorrow, I'll show you the bakery, deli, and wine!

To all of you who have sent me encouraging messages about sticking to my diet, thanks, but I don't deserve them! I was so good the first week. I was even relatively good the second week (post first visit to Bristol Farms). I was SO BAD over the weekend! Where are the gremlins? I need several sad face ones here. I GAINED weight. I'm back on muffins, yogurt, and soup today through Thursday, then Vegas!

Today's photos are of the BF bakery. HOWEVER my dangerous place, as predicted, was the cheese! Brad and I sampled 4 kinds with salami on our Saturday night "picnic dinner"! I did abstain from wine (for all the good it did me!).

Back to the bakery: Here are SOME of the breads:

The cakes were fun (AND EXPENSIVE):

Here were three of my favorites: The Aquarium

The Black and white daisies (chocolate):

And the elegant white chocolate torta!

Of course there are the usual cookies and pasteries.

There are fresh hot cinnamon rolls, lots of bagels, and a "Cupcake Bar".

If you read the "Six weird things about me", you know chocolate doesn't do it for me. I think many of you would enjoy the Chocolate Bar, where they are pouring, rolling, dipping, and making chocolate confections while you watch. (I found the lobster tank MUCH more entertaining).

Finally, if you just want to smell the chocolate, this huge fountain as you enter the store, does a good job of spreading the aroma around the immediate area. See the big open bakery area through the plexiglass?

The most delicious item I sampled over the "diet killing weekend" was a cherry flavoured BRIE!

OK, so I've been a little over zealous with the Bristol Farms thing! I promise this will be my LAST blog on this new store (but I took so many photos)!

Here are the last dribs and drabs. Brad teases me often about my dislike of olives. He swears I cannot be Italian if I do not eat olives (I do love good olive OIL).
Here is the Olive Bar at BF:

Along with a "Teriyaki Bar" and a large Sushi Bar, there is a "Seafood Salad Bar".
I think I will sample that shrimp-mango salad on the end for guests in February.

I have completely avoided the gelato! It is nowhere near as appealing as an Italian gelato selection, but it's all we have in the desert! It has been too cold to even consider, but spring weather is coming...

I loved looking at their little stuffed wedges of brie. Good idea to make yourself for a pretty appetizer. Here are some stuffed with salmon or tomato/basil. I'm thinking apricot, fig, berries...or maybe that jar of walnut-sage pesto!

Brad was happy with the wine selection. This photo show about half of the selections.

OK, that's IT for the Bristol Farms tour! On to life, Italy, travel, and Palma's quirky ideas!

On Friday, February 2, we will be joining a large group of Slow Travellers for a wine and food GTG in Paso Robles, California! Twelve of us will be sharing a rental house, http://www.cottageatcapitolhill.com/, where large group meals will take place. Brad and I will be staying at the house with Shannon, Colleen, Marcia and David, Beth, Marta and George!

Friday night kicks off the weekend with a pizza dinner, and meeting old and new friends.

Saturday's wine tasting agenda is as follows:

11:30 AM Wild Horse Winery
12:45 PM Castoro Cellars, Templeton. Shannon will be serving up cheese, pate and bread at this stop.
2:15 PM This is where the group will split up! There are four wineries to choose from.
4:00 PM Back to the house for the party.

I am going to hit the shops in Cambria in the morning ( and a BEAD store). I will meet the group (and see how much fun they are having) at Castoro Cellars. Well, I might need a snack! Then I'm back in downtown Paso to check out the Olive Oil shop and cheese store, and maybe a nap. I'm guessing Brad will need one before the party!

I'm bringing crab lasagna for Saturday night's dinner. We made two big pans last weekend, and they are waiting in the freezer!

Crab Filling:

1 lb. fresh crab, cleaned
1 c. ricotta
1 egg
3 chopped green onions
1 T. butter
7 oz. gruyere cheese, grated
zest of one lemon
salt and pepper

Sauté green onions in butter for 2 min.
Combine with crab and other ingredients in a bowl.

Bechamel sauce:

6 T. Butter
6 T. flour
4 c. milk
salt and pepper to taste

In med. saucepan, over med. heat, melt butter and flour, cooking for 2 min.
Whisk in milk. Cook, stirring until thick and boiling. Set aside.

Makes one 9x13 pan or 7-8 individual ramekins

Layer:
Béchamel sauce
Sheet of fresh pasta
Crab filling
Parmesan cheese
Repeat

Depending on pasta. If you use homemade pasta that is very thin, you will have 4-5 layers. If using purchased semolina pasta sheets, it will be 3-4 layers.
On very top, end with pasta, béchamel, parmesan, and pine nuts.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Can be made the day before and refrigerate until baking.

This is a quick, easy recipe from Biba Gaggiano's cookbook, "Trattoria Cooking".
The recipe is called Bucatini all Amatriciana Bianca, but I used a pasta shape that I had called, "cellentani".

1/4 c. olive oil
2 T. unsalted butter
1/4 lb. thickly chopped pancetta
pinch of dried red pepper flakes
salt to taste
2 T. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. grated pecorino romano cheese
1 lb. pasta (I used above amounts for 1/2 lb of pasta)

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When butter foams, add pancetta and red pepper. Cook 2-3 min. until pancetta is golden. Boil pasta until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water when draining pasta. Add pasta to the skillet. Stir in reserved pasta water, parsley, and cheese. Mix over low heat until pasta is coated. Serve hot with more cheese if desired. YUM!

Sometimes you just feel like something goopy, cheesey and comforting! Well, I do, anyway! This recipe comes out about once a year for a night like that. Brad loves it too!

White Chicken Enchiladas:

One pint low-fat cottage cheese
One pint low-fat sour cream (Light)
1 can Ortega chopped green chilies, drained
1 pkg. (10) flour tortillas (Low-fat or whole wheat)
4 cooked and diced chicken breasts
2 c. grated cheese: mixture of jack and cheddar
Additional cup of grated cheddar for top

Mix the cottage cheese, sour cream and chilies together. Spoon a little of this "sauce" in bottom of a 9x13 pyrex baking dish. In each tortilla, spoon a heaping spoon of cottage cheese mixture, some chicken, some cheese, and roll up into an enchilada. Top with remaining sauce, and additional cheddar cheese. Bake at 350 for 30-35 min.

They are filling. Serving size is ONE ENCHILADA. Serve with a crisp salad.

On Saturday, we ran a few early morning errands, and by 10:30 we were off to Los Angeles. Our first stop was a bead shop, where I purchased beads for three new pieces of jewelry: some red coral to mix with my black coral beads, three strands of beautiful yellow citron stones, and some peachy polished nuggets. 30 minutes in and out! We arrived at Dennee's lovely home by 1:50. She and Ubaldo had prepared some delicious appetizers and a chilled bottle of prosecco we shared on the patio. We had a brief, but fun visit before heading to the Slow Travel GTG at Mozza, 5 minutes away.

We spent two hours with "old friends" Marcia and David, Juday and Bill, and Carole. Today we also met new friends, Roy (Carole's husband), and Robert and Peg. Though we were at two tables, we were able to connect with everyone.

We started with wine and some shared Tuscan bean bruschetta. I enjoyed a Tokai, while Brad had Dolcetto. After much deliberation over choices, and anticipation, it was finally "Pizza Time"! Here is my "Bianco" with fontina, smoked pecorino and crisp sage! Check out Nancy Silverton's thin bottom crust with a terrific high edge too!

The pizzas we had included Brad's fennel sausage with carmelized red onion and panna, Carole's fungi misti, fontina, taleggio and thyme, Marcia's goat cheese, arugula and bacon, Robert's Margherita with mozzarella di bufala, (rumor has it he ate TWO pizzas after running 12 miles that morning), and a couple of duplicates.

Dessert consisted mostly of gelato (David tried the meyer lemon gelato pie), and biscotti. I had caramel gelato, sitting on a pizelle with a drizzle of caramel sauce and very salty peanuts on top. It Tasted like a sea salt caramel! What a lovely break from a week of dieting! (I SO deserved it after a horrible visit to the dentist yesterday!)

Here are the food photos of the pizzas and dessert:

Here are photos of the pizza.

Artichoke-Gruyere Chicken (for two)

Preheat oven to 350
Dip two boneless, skinless chicken breasts in egg, then lightly flour.
Brown them in 2 T butter and 1 T olive oil for about 6-7 minutes per side.
Remove from skillet and place in an oven-proof baking dish.
Add to skillet:
1 can artichoke hearts (packed in water), chopped
1/4 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. cream
salt and pepper
Cook for 5-6 minutes to reduce liquid
Pour over chicken breasts.
Top each breast with 1/4 c. grated gruyere, and bake for 15 minutes until cheese is melted.

It was Wednesday, and Brad would be home for dinner. The nights he's not here, I typically eat "diet food", a salad, or leftovers. I am finished with clients at 7:00, so I wanted to do something delicious, but simple and quick. I bought fresh pork chops that morning. Hmmm, looked like either asparagas or a salad for a veggie, but I was sort of tired of salad.

After a look in the pantry, and fridge, here's what I came up with:

Pork chops with gorgonzola sauce (Silver Spoon cookbook)
Sauteed apples with wine
Grilled asparagas

Pork with Gorgonzola

Saute trimmed pork chops in 2 T butter 5- 6 minutes per side (depending on thickness) adding black pepper
Remove chops from skillet
Add 5 T. white wine to pan and reduce
Add three oz. gorgonzola to reduced wine, and stir until melted.
Pour sauce over pork chops

Saturday we had an enjoyable dinner at a La Quinta hotspot called Amore' Ristorante Italiano.

http://www.amore-dining.com/

We dined with Carole and Roy from Laguna Beach, and their friends, Barbara and Gary.
The couples were in town for the Pacific Life Tennis tournament (and shopping for the girls!)

The restaurant is an a contemporary building with underlit glass entry, rounded walls of windows, a nice bar area, and a patio. We ate outside on thr terrace, and it was a pleasant 80 degrees most of the evening.

For my starter, I had a delicious crab-endive salad garnished with raspberries.

Brad's pasta carbonara was disappointing. Too much cream, little pancetta, and no eggy taste! Other starters included Carole's Heirloom tomato salad, and a couple of Caesar salads.

Entrees were varied. Check out photos of my delicious "Veal Porcini" with prosciutto and smoked mozzarella. (what diet?) Brad had Veal Picatta, and the ladies enjoyed an attractice John Dory. Love those round "slanted toward you" plates!

Wine flowed, and nobody even considered dessert! I had a delicious cappucino!
Gary looks like he enjoyed the vino!

Here are photos of the food..

Sunday night we visited the home of our friends, Jan and Les. They travelled to Italy with us in 2005 for three weeks, and we are planning another trip together in 2008. Their longtime friends, Ann and Gary, are in town for the week, so we all got together for dinner.

We started with wine and appetizers at Jan's. Look at this gorgeous platter. Jan and I were a BAD influence on each other at those ceramics shops in Tuscany, Vietri, Ravello and Positano!

We went to dinner at another popular La Quinta Restaurant, Arnold Palmers. Yes, Arnie has a home close by, and there is even a putting green off the patio, where you can practice while waiting for dinner!

http://www.arnoldpalmers.net/

The food is comfort food with a flair! There is a whole section on the menu of "Arnie's Favorites" like Mac and cheese (with lobster), lots of blue cheese dishes, and the most amazing homemade crinkle potato chips with blue cheese dip you ever tasted.

We chose lighter/healthier alternatives. The group was pleased with crab bisque with a pitcher of "add your own Sherry", grilled salmon, lamb chops, beef tournados with shrimp, a pork chop with applesauce, and beef medalions with blue cheese.

Here is Brad with Ann and Jan:

Here I am with Gary and Les:

I was dressed in green for my 7 a.m. haircut appointment! After morning errands, Brad will grill the corned beef I boiled last night, marinated in BBQ sauce, and wrapped in foil. It makes a tasty crust, chars off any remaining fat, and is delicious for sandwiches on fresh rye bread!

My table has been set for two weeks! I looking forward to taking out the Easter stuff tomorrow! I am feeling quite LUCKY, so maybe we'll visit the casino later!

Here is a "light" St. Pat's dessert:

8 oz. "light" cream cheese
1/2 c. powdered sugar (or Splenda)
7 oz. low-fat lime yogurt
zest from one lime
8 oz. Cool Whip

Whip ingredients together and pour into a graham cracker crust, or dessert bowls.
Chill. Makes 6 servings.

Today is my monthly bookclub luncheon. I am bringing dessert. I haven't baked anything for a month, during the pseudo-diet. Our book this month was "Beach Music", by Pat Conroy. I really enjoyed the family saga, which takes place in South Carolina, and Rome. I decided to make a "Southern Cake", so I whipped out my dusty copy of Paula Deen's, "The Lady & Sons Too", and found:

Sour Cream Caramel Cake

1 c. butter
3 c. sugar
6 eggs
2 3/4 c. flour
1 t. salt
1/4 t. baking soda
1 c. sour cream
1 Tbl. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 3 9" round cake pans (or one 9x13).
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
Sift together flour, salt and baking soda. Alternately add flour mixture and sour cream to the batter. Stir in vanilla. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake for 25-35 min. (I baked mine for 30.) Bake 45 min. if using rectangular pan. Let cool in pans for 15 min., then turn on to racks to cool completely.

Easy Caramel Icing

2 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. butter
1/2 c. evaporated milk
1/2 t. vanilla 4 c. powdered sugar

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, and milk.
Cook over low heat until butter melts. Increase heat to medium, and cook for two more minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Whisk in powdered sugar, a cup at a time until smooth. Let cool slightly before frosting cooled cake.

I may bring home a piece for Brad, but THIS CAKE would not be safe at my house!

I tried this recipe from the March, 2007 Italia magazine.

Dough:

2 t. dried yeast
350 ml water (Approx 11 oz.)
2 1/4 c. flour (500 g.)
1 1/2 t. salt
3 T. olive oil

Filling:
8 oz. Gorgonzola cheese (I used Cambazola)
8 oz. Mozzarella cheese
10 fresh basil leaves

Top:
1/2 sea salt
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
1-2 T. olive oil

Sprinkle yeast into 250 ml. (approx a cup) of water, leave for 5 minutes. Stir to dissolve. Mix flour and salt together in a large bowl, making a well in the center. Pour in the yeasted water and the oil. Mix. Add remaining water 3 T. at a time if needed. Dough will be sticky.

Turn dough onto floured surface. Knead until smooth (about 10 min.). Put dough into an oiled bowl, and cover with a cloth. Let rise until doubled (1 1/2 hr).

Punch down dough and divide in half. Form each half into a ball by pressing down on it with your hands while rotating it into an even round shape. (5 minutes). Let rest for 10 minutes.

Roll one ball into a 10 inch circle and place on an oiled baking sheet of pizza pan. Top with cheeses and basil leaves. Roll out second ball of dough, and cover pizza, sealing the edges. Cover with a towel and let rise again for 30 minutes.

Using fingers (I used end of a wooden spoon), form "dimples" all over top. Sprinkle with the coarse salt, and spread olive oil over top. Put a piece of rosemary in each dimple. Bake in preheated oven (425) for 30 min. until golden.

This is a keeper, although I would cook it 5 minutes less! I will also try other fillings and sage leaves instead of basil.

I am SO far behind on this blog, and have much to share, but had a very busy week. Though it is now four days later, I will blog about last weekend.
On Friday, my friend, Jan, and I went to a bead show in Ontario, CA. We spent several hours browsing, choosing, and buying our new bead treasures. We both need more jewelry like an additional 20 pounds, however, we continue to amuse ourselves by making endless necklaces, bracelets, earrings to match every outfit in our bulging closets. Sometimes we work in reverse. We make a piece of jewelry, and then must find an outfit to match it!

After a happy shopping day (no bead show photos), I came home to prepare dinner for Good Friday. My childhood Catholic upbringing does not allow me to survive the guilt I would have if I ate meat on this day. Even though the Pope let us off the hook from the childhood Friday fish night (or Mac and Cheese if we were lucky), YEARS ago, I am a creature of habit.

I made this recipe from March '07 Bon Appetit:

Pan-Seared Scallops in Lemon Cream Sauce:

I reduced the recipe to these amounts for two:

zest from 1 lemon (or curled, long piece of rind)
2 chopped shallots
3/4 c. white wine
1 clove crushed garlic (I used minced)
1 c. whipping cream
1/2 t. tumeric
1 lb. sea scallops
1 T. butter
1 T. olive oil
juice from 1 lemon

Combine wine, lemon zest, shallots, garlic in small saucepan. Boil and reduce to 1/2 c. (about 15 min.). Add cream and tumeric, and boil until mixture thickens, and is reduced to about 3/4 c. (13 min.). Strain mixture, remove solids. Add
juice from 1 lemon, salt and pepper to sauce. Meanwhile saute scallops in butter and olive oil, 2-3 min. per side. Pour a pool of sauce on plate, and arrange scallops on top. Drizzle with remaining sauce.

We had these with fingerling potatoes and a green salad.

For dinner, we had the delicious pasta with shrimp, gruyere sauce and veggies from Jerry's Blog. I substituted leftover asparagas and grated zucchini for the peas in his recipe. It was quite a hit! Jerry and I must have the same taste in food, as we seem to like all the same recipes, and continue to share each others' "keepers".

8 ounces dry pasta
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
5 ounces shredded Gruyère cheese, divided
1 tablespoon butter
24 ounces large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 1/2 cups frozen green peas, thawed(or any veggie)

Preheat oven to 375

In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta according to package directions - drain well when done.

Gradually whisk together flour, salt and milk. Pour into Dutch oven and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook until slightly thick, whisking constantly - about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 3 ounces of cheese.

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and garlic - cook just until the shrimp are beginning to turn opaque - about 1-2 minutes. Mix in wine and pepper - cook until the shrimp are almost done - about 1 minute.

Toss together the pasta, shrimp mixture, and peas into the cheese mixture until well coated.

Scoop mixture into a 9 x 13" baking dish lightly coated with nonstick spray. Scatter the top with the remaining 2 ounces of cheese. Bake until cheese melts and begins to brown - about 20 minutes.

Makes about 6 servings.

Hot Crab Dip: (I doubled this)

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 can crab
2 green onions, chopped
1 c. grated sharp cheddar
1/4 c. grated Romano cheese
enough mayo to blend (1/2 c.)
Black pepper

Combine ingredients and bake at 350 for 30 min. Serve with crackers.
Leftover crab dip is great on French bread, under the broiler. (Brad's Sunday dinner)

Brie-Prosciutto-Fig Jam Tartletts

Use frozen phyllo appetizer cups. Fill each half full with small amount of brie. Saute chopped proscuitto with olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar (I use FIG balsamic), and a little green onion. Fill cups with cooled and drained proscuitto. (At this point you can freeze if making ahead) Top with fig preserves and bake at 350 for about 7 min. for cheese to melt. They are great to have in the freezer (just add jam).

Artichoke-Lemon Pesto Lasagna (no photo...too busy eating it!)

Fresh sheets of pasta

Filling:
16 oz. ricotta
2 containers of Trader Joe's Lemon-Artichoke pesto

2 bricks of Gruyere cheese, grated

Parmesan, or Romano cheese

Bechamel Sauce:

6 T. butter
6T. flour
4 c. milk
salt and pepper to taste

Make filling. Make bechamel sauce. Begin layering by putting some bechamel on bottom of lasagna pan. Layer of pasta, Bechamel, Artichoke filling, parmesan. For the next layer, only pasta, bechamel, and gruyere. Repeat with layers of filling (3 total), and gruyere (2 total).

Lemon-Blueberry Trifle:
(Can be made 2 days ahead)

Lemon curd: (or cheat and used 2 jars of purchased lemon curd)
1 1/3 c. sugar
3/4 c. (1 1/2 cubes) unsalted butter
2/3 c. fresh lemon juice
1 T. lemon zest
1/8 t. salt
5 eggs, beaten

Lemon Syrup (or cheat and use limoncello)
1 c. water
1c. sugar
1/3 c. lemon juice
1 T lemon peel

Filling
8 oz. cream cheese (room temp)
3/4 c. sugar
2 1/4 c. whipping cream
1/4 t. vanilla

3 half-pint baskets of fresh blueberries

12 oz. pound cake, cut into cubes (frozen like Sara Lee)

For curd: Combine first 5 ingredients in saucepan. Stir over med heat until butter melts and sugar is dissolved.Remove from heat.Gradually whisk in eggs. Return to med-low heat, continue whisking until it thickens (don't boil) Strain through seive, cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight.

For syrup: Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat and simmer 5 min. Cool.

Filling:Beat cream cheese, 1/2 c. sugar, 1/4 c. cream and vanilla in large bowl until smooth. In another bowl, beat 2 c. cream, 1/4 c. sugar until peaks form. Fold in 2 additions into cream cheese mixture.

Puree 1 containter of berries with 1/4 c. lemon syrup. Transfer to bowl and add 1 1/2 container of berries (save half a basket for garnish), mashing with fork or potato masher for a chunky puree.

Assembly:
Arrange 1/3 of cake cubes in bottom of trifle dish or high glass bowl. Drizzle with 7 T of lemon syrup (or just use lemoncello) Spoon 1/3 of cream cheese mixture (2 c.), spread to sides of dish.Spoon half of berry puree, spreading to sides. Spoon half of lemon curd (1 1/4 c.), spreading to sides of dish. Repeat with 1/3 cake cubes, 7 T lemon syrup, 1/3 of cream cheese filling,remaining puree, remaining cake, 7 T syrup, remaining lemon curd. Spread remaining cream cheese filling over top and "decorate" with remaining berries and a lemon slice. Cover and chill overnight.

As I patiently wait for this year's return to Italy, and the weather at home gets warmer, I can't help but think about the warm days ahead in Tuscany and Umbria. When I think of hot days in Italy, then the next logical leap for me is GELATO!

Brad and I have sampled our share of gelato in various parts of Italy, and we do have a top three list: In third place is the gelataria just outside Castellina in Chianti. Second would have to be Il Paradiso in Camiogli, and numero uno is Gianni in Bologna. These are all up for reconsideration, as I plan on spending some time at GROM in Florence this summer. We've enjoyed gelato from Piemonte to Puglia, and Venice to Capri. Since I haven't been cooking lately, I thought I'd just blog about what I'd LIKE to be eating!

Wherever there is a photo of Brad and I with gelato, his will ALWAYS have chocolate, and mine will either be a vanilla or crema based flavor with the closest thing to caramel I can find, or something fruity.

I even love the signs and logos for the Gelateria shops!

I also love the NAMES of flavors. At Gianni in Bologna, they have names that make me smile BEFORE I choose a flavor: "L'Avvocato" (the attorney) is chocolate and nuts. There is a "Nessuno me capisce" (no one understands me), and "La Prima Volta" (the first time). Maybe they need someone to sample and name new flavors? I'd be happy to work for room and gelato!

How do you eat gelato? Brad is quick! I am the SLOWEST gelato eater I've ever seen. Brad swears he could reread War and Peace while I finish a double scoop!

In looking back on our Italy photos for a couple of trips, I see almost as many pictures of us with gelato, as there are of me with coffee, or Brad with wine!
Hmmmm... I think I need all three each day in Italy!

There are different ways to judge gelato. TASTE, of course is most important. I appreciate a variety of flavors, or at least something unusual or new to try. Appearance, or an attractive display is always a nice plus, but, not necessarily a predictor of quality. "Location, location, location..." will bring foot traffic, and usually raise prices, but it IS nice to have a gelateria close to your hotel, or "on the way home" from a vacation rental. Speaking of prices, of course it is least expensive to walk off eating your cone or cup of gelato. Brad is funny about this. About every 5th day, he wants his gelato in a GLASS BOWL, and wants to eat it at a table with a coffee or other beverage, and a nice big glass of ice water. I do NOT argue this point. I will eat gelato ANYWHERE, and ANYTIME!

Last fall, I was so excited about the gelato at Gianni in Bologna, I took pictures of all 48 flavors! Sure enough, I have enough gelato photos for a whole Slow Photo Album!
My favorite flavor EVER is that layered caramel one on the Bologna photo called "Gianni 6". YUM! There are no calories or fat grams in this album!

http://www.slowphotos.com/photo/showgallery.php?cat=4125&page=1&ppuser=327

I left for Scottsdale at 7:30 a.m., and arrived at our Marriott Suites by 11:30 (with one Starbucks stop). After checking in, I hit Nordstrom and bought two skirts and a pair of black sandals. From there I visited favorite shops in the Borgota (a shopping center modeled after an Italian village), Seville Center, and the Marketplace. It was 105 degrees, and by 4, I headed back to my room and cranked down the air conditioning. After ordering a snack and a drink from room service, I joined the Slow Travel Thursday chat, then took a nap. I got a phone call from Brad at 6:15 saying he had missed his flight to Phoenix! (This happened two years ago when we also came to Scottsdale for our birthdays.) He would be on the 7:30 flight, which was running late! So much for our 8:30 dinner reservation. I settled in by the pool with a diet coke and my book (after Googling restaurants under "late night dining"). Brad also did some research, and came up with plan B for dinner. He arrived at 9:50, and we were at "Twisted" by 10:15.

Twisted has been open only three months. We ordered wine, and were brought a complementary pretzel appetizer.

Our appetizers were both great. I had ravioli gnudi in basil olive oil, and Brad had a spicy gazpacho with "Pueblo pesto".

Our entrees both could be categorized as "jazzed up comfort food". Brad had "Pepper, Coriander Crusted Pork Tenderloin" stuffed with goat cheese and cranberries, with carmalized sweet garlic green apples and pomegranate red wine reduction.

I had "Rocky Mountain Range Meatloaf". At the bottom of the stack was a thick gorgonzola stuffed crostini, served open face with a large serving of meatloaf of organic buffalo, lamb, and wild boar; with Serrano bacon and Creole Sauce.

Brad cleaned his dessert plate of a Triple Layer Ancho chili chocolate cake with chipolte chocolate mousse and dark chocolate ganache. I had one of his berries and coffee! It was after midnight, and I was in a food coma!

Even with the delay, Brad had a very nice birthday!

We chose the casual patio dining at the Roaring Fork for our Friday night's dinner. We have passed this restaurant many times on Scottsdale Blvd, and the patio coverd with tiny white lights, and outdoor fireplaces always looked charming.

http://www.roaringfork.com/ScottsdaleAZ/roaring_fork_dining_menu.html

We shared an appetizer of shredded pork with chilies, onion and cheese, melted in a little black kettle, served with hot flour tortillas.

Brad had seabass with butternut squash risotto, and I enjoyed my pecan-crusted rack of lamb with cheesy potatoes. We drank a bottle of an Oregon Pinot Gris. Then we managed to save room for a scoop of passionfruit and raspberry gelato on our way home.

We had our "end of season" dinner with friends, Jan and Les, on Saturday night. They will leave the desert next week to spend the next few months at their home in Vancouver Washington. We have already noticed a drastic change in traffic, and a general emptyness around town, as the snowbirds and Pacific Northwest residents leave town for the summer. This is both good and bad. It takes much less time to drive around town, there is always a convenient parking space in busy parking lots like Trader Joe's, but we miss our friends and our social life decreases considerably as many leave to escape the desert summer heat. The good news is more down time, pool time, and time for Brad and I to enjoy just being with each other, and our own vacation to Italy!

We had a fabulous "Goodbye Dinner" at Blend Restaurant in La Quinta.
http://www.blendrestaurant.com/

We started with seared Foie Gras, and Brad's steamed mussels in a green Thai curry and coconut lobster sauce.

Then we had a wedge salad with smoked bacon, tomatoes and a "Cool Bleu Dressing".

Our entrees were a grilled ribeye with asparagas, roasted shallots and fingerling potatoes, and Brad's pan-seared venison chop with port foie gras sauce, turnip, potato, and onion.

Desserts shared with the table included a passionfruit panna cotta with blueberries, and a caramel and banana mousse tart with banana ice cream.

Brad and Les, the red wine lovers, enjoyed a bottle of Oregon Pinot Noir, while Jan and I sipped our lemon drops and some Pinot Grigio.

An easy dinner on the BBQ:

Marinate shrimp in: light soy sauce, honey, hot red pepper flakes, and a teaspoon of olive oil. Grill for a minute or two on each side.
We had these with mango and blackberries with honey yogurt, and Maytag blue cheese slaw. Sweet and salty!

We had a wonderful early dinner at Trilussa, an Italian restaurant in Cathedral City, with Slow Travel friends, Nancy (Nancyhol) and Bill. After a glass of wine or prosecco, we made our menu selections. Conversation was lively about travel, Italy, pets, wine, and life in general!

We started with antipasti and salads. I had bruschetta with garlic and olive oil, Brad had carpaccio (gearing up for Italy), and Nancy and Bill had two beautiful salads. Nancy's was chocked full of gorgonzola and walnuts. Nancy brought their LAST bottle of vino rosso from Montalcino to share with us! This was even more lovely, since I MET Nancy and Bill, last year on the street in Montalcino!

Our entrees were pasta for the ladies, and veal for the guys. I had linguini carbonara (my favorite in the desert outside of my own), and Nancy had lasagna, "fatta di casa".
Brad had veal Limone, and Bill had his veal smothered in mushrooms.

Yes, we had a little room left. It was 105 degrees outside, and we needed to "practice"
the daily gelato habit, so be sure to check out our refreshing desserts!

We enjoyed great company, good food and wine, and made it home in time for the LAST episode of the Sopranos! A wonderful evening!

Here are the food photos:http://www.slowphotos.com/photo/showgallery.php?cat=4136

How about a break from the jewelry? I finally fixed us a nice dinner. We had lamb chops on the BBQ, zucchini, and Brad's favorite baked orzo.

Baked Orzo:

1 cup cooked orzo
2/3 c. light sour cream (I used half low-fat cottage cheese this time)
1 can diced green chilies
salt and pepper to taste
4 oz. grated pepper jack cheese

Stir together first four ingredients with half the pepper jack. Top with remaining pepper jack cheese. Bake at 350 for 35 min.

We've been home a week. My body is on California time, my ankles are "normal", and I have survived a week of work and usual errands. My heart, soul, and most of the time, my brain, remain in Italy. Brad is as bad as I am in his Italy withdrawal. Normal things annoy us that didn't used to...like drivers, like competitiveness, like neighbors who don't say hello.

Friday night, Brad got home late, so we went out for a quick bite at 9 p.m.. As we were leaving the restaurant at 10:00, we looked at the traffic on a busy street. There was a tattoo parlour open, on the block where we parked our car. There were fast food restaurants on two corners. We both got the same sad look in our eyes. I said, "Let's go to the piazza. Oh, there ISN'T one!" No passiagiata for us. We went home and talked about some of the things we missed: the attitude, the beauty, the simplicity, the people, the warmth, the fresh local food, the sharing, the wine, the families out at night... I could go on for pages.

OK, so we live HERE! I decided to have an Italian evening at home on Saturday...and Sunday. I need to stop whining!

We had a truely lovely meal. We sat on our "terrazza" by the pool, with soft Italian music, wine, and twinkling lights in our olive trees. We made strozzapreti together (recipe to follow). We had a wonderful watermelon salad with watermelon, mozzarella, fresh basil, red onion, drizzled with Mauro's wonderful Umbrian olive oil. We drank wine. We laughed. We smelled the rosemary bushes next to us. We planned future trips. We sat outside until we had enough room to eat panna cotta with fresh peaches soaked in Ameretto. We WERE Italian.

According to one legend, these ricotta and spinach dumplings were named when a gluttonous priest ate too many too quickly. Another story says that wives would customarily make the pasta for churchmen as partial payment for land rents (In Romagna, the Catholic Church had extensive land properties given in rent to farmers), and their husbands would be angered enough by the venal priests eating their wives' food to wish the priests would choke as they stuffed their mouth with it. There are different recipes for the dish and it's ingredients vary from Emilia-Romagna to Tuscany. I used a recipe from Lidia Bastianich, which sounded closest to the dish I enjoyed at Osteria di Cinghale Bianco in Firenze.

I began with a large 12 oz. bag of baby spinach leaves from Trader Joe's.

Though the spinach leaves are pre-washed, I washed the leaves thoroughly again, drained them in a colander, put them in a large pot, with just the water that clung to the leaves from rinsing. Place the pot over high heat, and cook until the little water at the bottom begins to steam (about a minute). Add a little salt, cover the pot, and cook for another two minutes. The spinach should be tender, but still bright green. Immediately drain the spinach in a colander and rinse under cold water until it is cool enough to handle. Squeeze as much water out as possible, so it is a very dry ball of spinach, about 1 cup. (I did this ahead, and refrigerated it.)

Chop the spinach in a food processor. Lidia's recipe called for 1/2 cup, but I used all of it to get the green color I had experienced in Firenze.

In the food processor, beat two eggs. Add the chopped spinach and blend. Add 10 oz. of ricotta, 1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, 5 T. of breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg. Blend. (I chilled this mixture for an hour before we were ready to make dinner, and it may have made it even easier to roll into balls).

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Fill a plate with a handful of flour. Take about a tablespoon of filling, roll into about a one inch ball, and roll in flour, tapping off excess. Place these on a teatowel covered pan. The recipe made about 30 balls. I flash froze half for another meal, and we ate 7 or 8 for our entree. One recipe would feed four.

When you have made all the balls, melt 1/2 cube of butter with about 12-15 fresh sage leaves over medium heat. Throw the strozzapreti into the boiling water. Cook for 1 minute after they rise to the top. (about 3 minutes total). Use a slotted spoon to remove and drain strozzapreti. Place in serving dishes, and top with browned butter and crisp sage leaves. Add additional parmignano if desired. YUM!

Sunday gave us time to make and enjoy another great dinner. Brad is really enjoying cooking together. He chops, grates, stirs, sautees, kneads, and basically does whatever task I ask of him to help me get several things done at the same time. We started with prosciutto and melon (Brad had some, and I decided to save mine for my lunch at work on Monday).

We had a yummy spinach salad with peaches and pine nuts with a peachy dressing.

Our entree was risotto with sausage, carrots and sage.

Dessert was a Florentine Cheese Tart.

We ended the meal with a hoarded bottle of Brachetto di Acqui. We have two bottles left! It is SO refreshing in this heat!

Actually, I did it my mom's way.

I have learned a lot about eggplant parmiggiano this week on the Slow Talk Food Message Board (for Premium Members only). There has been an informative and passionate discussion going on (also known as the Great ST Eggplant War).
It inspired me to make eggplant parmiggiano for dinner.

Slice two large eggplant (10 to 12 slices each). Wash and sprinkle with salt. Let drain in a colandar for 30 min. Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet. Dry eggplant slices thoroughly patting with paper towels. (My mom used to lay them out on the patio table to dry in the sun.)

Dredge eggplant slices in flour, dip in egg, then coat in breadcrumbs. Fry coated eggplant slices quickly in hot oil.

Drain on two layers of brown grocery bags.

I used a quart of sauce I had in the freezer. Put a thin coating of sauce in bottom of baking pan. Layer fried eggplant slices with sliced fresh mozarella, sauce, grated parmignano, chopped fresh basil. Repeat. (I made one for dinner, and one to freeze.)

Bake at 350 for 40 min. That's my pretty new baking dish from Orvieto!

It was 108 degrees yesterday, and after some pool time, I had an uncontrollable urge to bake. This requires turning on the oven in my otherwise cool and air-conditioned kitchen! I wanted to make something that at least SOUNDED cool and refreshing.

My friend Jerry, has been sipping rum in the Slow Travel chat room. It sounded good. I recently discovered a wonderful blog called Cream Puffs in Venice. Ivonna, or "Cream Puff", lives in Toronto, Canada, loves to bake, and has fabulous recipes to share. That is where I found these Mojito cupcakes! Just scroll down this category to find the recipe.

These start with a wonderful buttermilk cake recipe that is flavored with dark rum. Then they are infused with a butter, rum, lime zest and mint glaze. Finally, they are topped with a cream cheese butter cream frosting FULL of lime zest. "Cream Puff"
made mini cupcakes. I used regular muffin tins, and the recipe made 28 cupcakes.

Brad tells me they're great. I'm being GOOD, so I have not tasted one (although I did taste the frosting)! I will bring them to work on Monday.

Thanks, Cream Puff! These are keepers!

Jerry, THIS ONE is for you! (Don't worry, I froze some for you!)

I love peaches. I have been thinking about a peach dessert since I got the August Cucina Italiana. They had a beautifully presented "Meringata with Peaches in Syrup" that was my inspiration for this recipe. Mine looks a lot like this, but the bottom and middle layers are completely different.

For the cake (bottom) layer, I used a butter recipe yellow cake mix, substituting peach juice for the water, and baked it according to package directions, using two 9" springform pans. (I froze one layer for another time.) After cooling the cake for 5 minutes, I poked holes, and infused it with some Amaretto.

Next, I made a peach mousse layer:

Add one cup of boiling water to a 3 oz. package of peach jello (I used half od a 6 oz package).

In a blender or food processor, blend 3 fresh, sliced, peeled peaches with 2 T. honey and 1 T. almond extract. Add to hot jello. Chill for 1 1/2 hours.

Whip 1 cup heavy whipping cream (may substitute Cool Whip here). Beat chilled peach puree-gelatin mixture on high speed for 4-5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream. Chill for 1 hour. (At this point, you may spoon into glasses for a light, refreshing dessert all by itself.)

After mousse has chilled for an hour, carefully spread over cake layer. Chill again before decorating with fruit.

Peaches in syrup:
The recipe says to combine 3 cups of water with 1 1/4 cup sugar, and boil whole peaches for 3 minutes. I used 4 cups of water (to cover them in my pan), and reduced sugar to 1 cup. If I made this again, I would only boil the peaches for 2 minutes.
Cool, drain, remove pit, and slice into thirds.

Garnish top of cake with peaches, berries, meringues (I bought mine at Trader Joe's), or dollops of whipped cream, mint leaves, and powdered sugar.

We had a nice relaxing weekend and I got the baking out of my system for a while. We ran errands, had pool time, and enjoyed seeing the Bourne Ultimatum. On Sunday, after a trip to Costco and a nap, I was back in "a cookin' mood". I bought two luscious veal chops, and prepared them with what I had in the kitchen, or the garden.

Palma's Stuffed Veal Chops:

Marinate the chops for 2 hours in:

8 sage leaves (chopped)
2 sprigs of rosemary
a splash of balsamico
enough Evoo to coat in a ziplock bag
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Cut a pocket in each veal chop. Sear each chop for 1 1/2 minute per side on the BBQ.

In a small pan combine:
1 c. chicken broth mixed with 1 T. veal demi glace, 4 sage leaves, and 1 rosemary sprig. Bring to a boil and reduce by half.

Stuff each pocket with two small slices of fontina (2"x1"), and three sage leaves. Secure pockets with toothpicks.

In a skillet with 1 T. butter and 1 T. olive oil, cook chops for 4 minutes on one side, then add reduction. Turn over and cook and additional 4 minutes (for medium on thick chops).

Delicious!

Company for dinner? Want an easy, foolproof, dessert that most will LOVE? This is my standby summer fruit tart.

My delightful Godson, Casey and his girlfriend, Sarah, are visiting! We have been relaxing in the pool, sipping cocktails, and eating well.

Dessert was the hit of last night's dinner, though everything else was also enjoyed.
With each bite, Sarah would smile and say, "I'm SO happy right now!" Casey and Sarah decided to "be happy" again with fruit tart for BREAKFAST this morning!

Our patio dinner included chicken Saltimbocca, zucchini, risotto and watermelon salad.

Here is the tart recipe:

Crust:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened and sliced

Filling: 
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened 
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping: 
Fresh strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, or whatever fruit is in season.

Glaze: 
1/2 can frozen limeade concentrate 
1 T cornstarch 
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice 
2-3 T granulated sugar

(Enough glaze for one 12" tart)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the crust: In a food processor, combine the confectioners' sugar, flour, and butter, and process until the mixture forms a ball. With your fingers, press the dough into a 12-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, taking care to push the crust into the indentations in the sides. Pat until the crust is even. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until very lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

Cut fruit and arrange attractively on top of tart.

For the glaze: Combine the limeade, cornstarch, lime juice, and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until clear and thick, about 2 minutes. Let cool. With a pastry brush, glaze the entire tart. You will not use all of the glaze.
Keep the tart in the refrigerator. Remove about 10 minutes before serving.

My Godson, Casey, came for a visit, and brought his girlfriend, Sarah, for us to meet. Sarah and I bonded instantly, finding we had much in common: enjoying food and shopping (among many other things)! We spent two days and evenings talking and laughing in the pool, eating and drinking well, and sharing family stories.

Sarah was interested in learning to make "real" Italian meat sauce. I was happy to teach my methods! We had a large pot of sauce simmering (ragu of pork shoulder meat), and I made a simple ricotta filling for some packaged manicotti. Casey and Sarah stuffed the manicotti, and helped make dinner. They also did all the kitchen clean-up both nights of their visit! It worked for me! We had salad with balsamic dressing, mozzarella balls wrapped in prosciutto, and cherry tomatoes with shaved parmesan, and the pork meat from the sauce. We drank the Barolo that Casey and Sarah brought, and the kids polished off last night's fruit tart for dessert!
It was a lovely two-day visit that was quite a treat for THIS happy Godmother!

Yesterday I received a wonderful surprise in the mail. Deborah, a Slow Travel friend, was inspired to send me two books! She had a book signing in her bookstore, and thought of me after reading my blog entry on "Missing Italy". Deborah, herself an accomplished cook and baker, sent me an autographed copy of Rosalie Fiorino Harpole's Rosalie Serving Italian! Besides the wonderful recipes, Rosalie shares stories of growing up in her large Italian family. Many of the recipes are very close to all the tastes and flavors I grew up with. This is a perfect addition to my Italian cookbook collection! (I'll tell about the second book in another blog post.)Thank you Deborah!

Here is the first recipe I made from the book: Frittata

Frittata

2 T. olive oil
1 T. butter
1 large potato, or 4 red potatoes, unpeeled and sliced thin
1 small onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t. sea salt
1/4 t. ground black pepper

6 eggs beaten
2 T. half and half
1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella
1 T. fresh chopped parsley
3-4 basil leaves, shredded (optional)

freshly grated parmesan to garnish
parsley or basil to garnish
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Put oil and butter in 10" oven-proof skillet.
Saute the potatoes, onion and garlic. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fry over medium heat until potatoes are tender, 8-10 minutes.

Beat eggs with half and half until fluffy. Fold in cheeses and parsley. Pour egg mixture over potatoes and cook undisturbed for about 2 minutes, until eggs begin to set and bubble, but are still runny on top. Add basil if desired. Place skillet in oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove skillet and transfer frittata onto a large round serving plate. The frittata should easily slide out of pan. Garnish with parmesan, parsley or basil, salt and pepper. Cut into pie slices. Serves 6.

* Notes:
This was a lovely memory of my mom's frittatas. The scent of cooked eggs with potatoes, onions, and Romano cheese, brought me back about 45 years! While other kids had PB&J sandwiches, I had frittatas in my lunchpail.

*I added a few slices of salami, at Brad's request, and used fontina cheese instead of mozarella. We ate the WHOLE THING for dinner!

Friday we leave for San Diego for a Slow Travel weekend. On Friday evening, we are looking forward to dinner with Jane and Ken. On Saturday, we will pick up Shannon, and meet Marcia and Dave, Cheryl and friends at Del Mar Racetrack. Saturday night we will meet up with Krista, Steve, and anyone else who can make it to The Vine for dinner. Hence the name of the event, "Pinot and Ponies", (even thought the ponies will come first).

At Shannon's request, I baked a savory torta, that my mom called "Pizza Rustica". This is a hearty dish full of eggs, ricotta, salami, prosciutto, ham, mozarella and pecorino!
In my family it was a holiday dish, traditionally made at Easter. Here is the recipe:

Dough

3 c. flour
1 stick unsalted butter
¼ c. olive oil
2 T. sugar
pinch of salt

Crust:
Combine flour, sugar, salt. Cream butter and blend with dry ingredients.
Stir in oil. Add 1/3-1/2 c. ICE WATER (1T. at a time ) until dough is consistency of pie crust. Knead, chill wrapped in plastic for 30 min. Roll 2/3 of the dough into a circle and place inside a 10” springform pan leaving an inch of overhang. Chill shell and the other half of the dough.

*I actually cut an 11" circle and press it into the bottom of the springform pan. Then I cut long strips to go around the inside edges of the pan, pressing them to fit like this:

Filling

2 lb. ricotta
9 eggs, beaten
½ lb. procsuitto (chopped)
½ lb. ham (chopped)
½ lb. salami or soprosatta (chopped)
1 ½ lb. grated mozzarella
6 oz. grated Pecorino Romano
½ t. pepper

Filling
In a LARGE bowl, combine eggs and ricotta. Stir in meats, cheeses and pepoper. Spoon into shell. Roll remaining dough to top and pinch edges. (I usually make a lattice top, or for Christmas, I cut out holly or tree shapes and overlap them on top in a design) Brush top with egg wash. (one egg yolk and 1 t. water). Bake at 350 1hr. 15 minutes. May be served warm or at room temp.

Here is what it will look like after an egg wash. I did no top crust this time.

Can you read my dough letters? Look closely!

By 8:30, I had consumed a mug of hotel coffee, and a venti Starbucks nonfat latte. I was capable of complete sentences, so we met Ann and Scott, our gracious chauffeur for the day. We headed to meet the rest of the group at the Farmer's Market coffee truck. I passed on more coffee, deciding to hold off until our next stop with a restroom.

The Trout Lake farmer's market was wonderful! There were lots of produce booths, flowers, cheese, herbs, and vinegars, chocolates, bread, and a few crafts. I LOVE to look at food! It was sunny and cool (for us), with just a hint of fall in the landscape. For some reason, I get very excited when I see pumpkins, and fall colors, as it is one of the most beautiful times of the year, and I associate the foods with family, sharing, and a bountiful harvest. Way before Thanksgiving, I begin to feel blessed, grateful and generous! It makes me want to nest even more than usual! It is almost time for butternut squash soup, pumpkin ravioli, and apple crostadas! People ask, "Do you dream in color?" YES! I dream of foods in all their glory!

Brad gathered our spinach for our pasta course, and I found FABULOUS, huge bunches of sage (I forgot to take a photo) for a dollar each! I can't even tell you what I spend on sage a month at home! I've tried growing it, but the leaves burn in my yard even in shade! I must try again!

Ann found the most wonderful pomegranite vinegar. I must order some! Next year I will bring no scrapbooks and an extra EMPTY piece of luggage!

I'm having a Slow Travel party in six weeks. It may sound early, but this weekend we began cooking ahead for the event on October 20. I'm not going to share the whole menu YET, but let's just say I'll be making 18 items for at least 43 people. This requires some planning. I do as much as possible ahead of time, so I've been emptying my freezer in order to FILL IT UP!

This weekend Brad and I made 192 lamb meatballs (plus a few for dinner in order to taste test)! We made mint pesto to go with them.

We used 7 pounds of ground leg of lamb. Here is the recipe for a 1 lb. batch:

1 pound ground lamb
1/3 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/4 c. chopped Italian parsley
1 egg yolk
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/3 c. grated parmigiano cheese
several mint leaves, chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper

Here is Brad mixing the ingredients into the meat as I added them.

I rolled 192 meatballs while he worked on his "Party To Do List".

We fried the meatballs quickly in hot olive oil.

We let them drain completely and cool on paper towels.

Then they went off to the freezer, and we had some for dinner with the fresh mint pesto!

Since I've been emptying the freezer in preparation of filling it for the upcoming GTG, I decided to clean out my fridge on Sunday morning. I found an over abundance of fruit, along with a forgotten puff pastry sheet in the freezer. Hmmm.

Slow Travel members Diana B., Jan, and Lesfaye have all posted similar recipes/instructions on their "tart or whatever you call it". I decided to treat my sous chef, Brad to this for breakfast. I had a peach, several figs and a variety of jams and preserves.

Pre-cook a puff pastry sheet for about 10 minutes in a buttered pie pan at 400 degrees.

Spread it with a little jam or preserves (I used the last of a jar of boysenberry), the cut fruit. Fold over the pastry in whatever shape you like, and brush pastry with an egg white. Bake 10-12 more minutes until dough is golden and crisp. It was a great breakfast for two, and we had the rest for dessert!

I love to read and try new recipes. I read at least four food magazines a month, but many wonderful recipes are posted on Slow Travel. There are many great cooks and even chefs as members, so each day you may find something new. It is fun to try recipes from people all over the world, and then meet them if possible! This week, I seem to be using LOTS of recipes from Slow Travel friends.

We were invited to a pot luck dinner Sunday night, and I was to bring a pasta dish. The hostess was going to grill mahi-mahi and beef. I made a recipe Colleen found in Food and Wine magazine in June, 2007:

Pasta with Zucchini and Yogurt

1 lb. farfalle (bow tie) pasta
4 zucchini, grated
1 c. Greek Yogurt
1/2 cube of unsaltedbutter (1/2 cup)
1 cup Parmigiano or Pecorino-Romano (and more for serving)
freshly grated nutmeg

While pasta is cooking, melt butter In a large skillet. Remove from heat. Stir in yogurt and cheese, salt and pepper to taste. One minute before pasta is done, through grated zucchini in with the pasta. In a minute, drain pasta and zucchini together. Toss with yogurt mixture. I added lemon zest from 2 lemons to the yogurt-cheese mixture. In another pan, I sauteed some shrimp in butter, and tossed those in before serving.

It was a BIG hit!

My apologies to those of you who were looking for new posts, or trying to leave a comment. This blog's host, Slow Travel, moved it's server this week. We couldn't blog for a couple of days, and it lost a few of my previously published comments somewhere in cyberspace. I did NOT delete anything.

We had a delicious dinner Wednesday evening with another Slow Travel friend's recipe. Judith, who lives in Umbria, teaches cooking classes, and often shares her wonderful recipes. This one is Cotellette alla Crema di Limone. I used turkey cutlets for the recipe, and we had broccolini and orzo with it. Delicious! Check out her blog, Think On It.

This recipe is ambitious. If you have never made it before, you will have to get over two fears:
1. Fear of fillo dough (or phyllo)
2. Fear of using LOTS of butter

These are crispy fillo dough triangles filled with whatever filling you like. You can make spinach and goat cheese, mushroom-sausage, crab, or anything you like!
I used this, which is very similar to my "Pizza Rustica" recipe:
This was enough for TWO boxes of fillo dough, and made 168 panzarotti to freeze

2 c. ricotta
4 eggs
3/4 c. grated Romano cheese
8 oz. chopped prosciutto
8 oz. chopped salami
1 lb. grated mozarella
salt and pepper to taste

1 lb. butter (yes, I said POUND!)
2 boxes frozen fillo dough

Thaw fillo dough overnight in the fridge (works best), or two hours on the counter. Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl for the filling.

There will be 2 rolls of fillo sheets in a box. Only open one at a time. Unroll one package (leave the other in the fridge until you are ready for it). Cover sheets with wax paper, and then a wrung out wet dishtowel. Melt a cube of butter, and use a silicone pastry brush. I make mine on a plastic pastry mat. Take one sheet of dough and lay the rectangle horizontally. Brush with butter. Lay a second sheet on top. Brush with butter. (about 2 dips with the pastry brush per sheet...not too much, or they will be greasy).Cut horizontally into four strips (the long way). Put a small amount of filling at the end of each strip of dough, and fold into triangles, like a flag. (I make my little globs of filling triangle shaped, so they fold easily, and fill the whole little panzarotti, which will come out flatter, with filling to the corners.) Place these on a disposable cookie sheet.

Repeat, keeping fillo sheets covered, and butter hot. If a sheet rips, or sticks, don't worry. The fillo is very forgiving. "Glue" the broken one on top or patch with the butter. If sheets crack, you don't have them covered. If them stick, or get too moist, take the damp towel off for a few minutes.

Cover with foil, and freeze filled cookie sheets. Thaw for an hour, and bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes, until golden and crisp.

I made Brad an early Anniversary dinner on Friday night. We both love rack of lamb, and I have cooked many over the years. This was the BEST I ever made, and the recipe came from September's Bon Appetit. It is Gordon Ramsey's (Hell's Kitchen's screamer) Cheese and Herb-Crusted Rack of Lamb. His recipe is for three racks, so I will post the amounts I used for one:

3/4 c. fresh breadcrumbs made from sourdough bread
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
2 T. chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 T. chopped fresh thyme
2 T. chopped fresh mint (I used 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary instead because I like it!)

One 1 3/4 to 2 lb. rack of lamb with most of the fat trimmed off
1-2 T. prepared English mustard (I used Dijohn)

Toss first 5 ingredients in a food processor until finely chopped and mixed together. (I added sea salt and freshly ground pepper.) Toss with 1/2 T. olive oil.

Preheat oven to 425.

Score lamb: Using a sharp knife, cut diagonal cuts on fat side of lamb rack, spacing about an inch apart. Make cuts in opposite direction, forming a diamond pattern. Heat 1 T. of olice oil in skillet, over high heat. Salt and pepper lamb, and place, scored meat side down into oil. Cook until golden (about 5 minutes). Let cool until you can safely touch meat.

Rub mustard over meat, and on sides. Coat with crumb-herb mixture, pressing to adhere. Place in a foil-lined baking pan, and cook at 425 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes for medium-rare, or until meat thermometer registers 135 for medium-rare. (Can be done up to 6 hrs. ahead and chilled.) Let cooked roast stand 5 minutes, then cut into chops and serve.

We had ours with a dab of mint pesto, smashed red potatoes, and steamed artichokes with garlic aioli.

I just HAD to share this video with my gelato-loving friends. Enjoy!

Nonstick foil

1 cup butter (no substitutions)

2 1/2 cups packed brown sugar 

1 cup light-colored corn syrup 

One 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla
Line a 9x9-inch baking pan with nonstick foil or buttered foil, allowing edges to hang over sides of pan; set aside.
In a large microwave-safe bowl combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and condensed milk; cover loosely with parchment paper. Microwave on 100% power
(high) for 4 or 5 minutes* or until butter starts to melt. Whisk to combine mixture. Microwave on high for 4 or 5 minutes* more. Whisk well. Microwave an additional 4 or 5 minutes*. Whisk gently. Add vanilla. (Note: Bowl may get hot as mixture cooks; use hot pads to handle.)
Pour caramel mixture into the prepared pan. Chill for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until just firm. Using foil, lift block of caramel from the pan. Use a buttered knife to cut into 1-inch squares.

*I used a 9x13 pan to get smaller caramels to dip in dark chocolate. After dipping, I sprinkled a little sea salt on top of the chocolate.

One batch of caramels cut into "petite" squares made over 200! I found it easier to work with the caramel "slab" when I kept it in the freezer. I'd cut a strip, cut into squares, dip about 20 caramels in chocolate, put them in the freezer to firm up, then put them in candy papers, and repeat.

I hosted this month's Book Club Lunch. We read One Thousand Splendid Suns, by Kahled Hosseini. It was an excellent, but very sad story about women and family relationships in Afghanistan during the past thirty years of political struggles.

I served two appetizers while we were chatting and discussing the book: hot spinach-artichoke dip, and a cheese spread with pears. For lunch, we moved to the dining room and began with a little cup of thick broccoli soup. Oh how I love to set a table with a new set of dishes! Here are the "Zucca" plates from Montefalco.

Next we had a spinach salad with peaches, carmalized onions, pancetta, and pomegranites with a pomegranite vinegarette. This was a slight varieation of Jen's salad at the Vancouver GTG. It was a HUGE hit (and pretty too).

Our entree was a ramekin of "Cheese Monger's Mac 'n Cheese from September's Bon Appetit.None of us were able to put a dent in our entree, so everyone took their's home. I had two last minute cancellations, so a couple husbands (not mine) got the extras for their dinner.

Finally, for dessert, I experimented with Diva's Tiramisu Brownies. Brad was happy with the results!

I've been quietly scrapbooking a GTG album all week, as I have "cooked ahead" everything that can be cooked ahead. I had a large chunk of gorgonzola leftover from the ravioli, and remembered this great recipe I learned from Judith when she posted it on her blog over a year ago! The scrapbook is almost done, and I had an urge to cook. I love the cheesy smell coming from the oven when these bake. Better than chocolate chip cookies for me!

Gorgonzola Cookies (makes 4-5 dozen)

7-8 ounces of gorgonzola
4 ounces of soft butter
1/3 cup of flour
1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (peperoncini in polvere)
3 cups of protein breakfast cereal flakes, but make sure they aren't sugar frosted!
(Palma used bran flakes and smashed them.)

Mix the gorgonzola and the butter together (You may use a food processor or mixer.) Mix in the rest of the ingredients. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and form each one into a long roll about 1" (2.5 cm) in thickness. Do this on a piece of plastic wrap and the wrap will help you roll them out evenly. Seal your gorgonzola ropes in the plastic and refrigerate for half and hour or more.

Heat the oven to 325 F (160+C) and cut the rolls into 1/4 inch slices, placing them on big baking sheets (placca di forno) with plenty of room between them. One sheet at a time, bake them for 12-15 minutes, and using a spatula, remove them to cooling racks. Done!

You may store in sealed container in fridge, or freeze. You may reheat before serving if you want them to crisp again. These are GREAT with a glass of wine.

So far, the MOST requested recipe is for the Cippolini onion dish:

I doubled this:
3 pounds cipolline onions, stem and root ends trimmed
1 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup Cognac
1 cup dried apricots
40 cooked and peeled unsweetened chestnuts (I used a jar from William-Sonoma,
but Trader Joes has them frozen during the holidays)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the onions and blanch for 30 seconds. Drain in a colander under cold running water. Slip off the papery skins and pat the onions dry.

In a large, deep skillet, combine the chicken stock with butter, vinegar and sugar. Cover and bring to a boil. Add the onions, cover and cook over moderately low heat until crisp-tender, about 15 minutes. Uncover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are covered with a deep-golden caramel, about 30 minutes longer; add a few tablespoons of water as the liquid evaporates.

Add the Cognac, prunes and chestnuts to the onions and cook just until heated through. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a serving bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of water to the skillet and scrape up any caramel stuck to the bottom and sides. Pour the sauce over the onions, and serve.

*I made this dish two days beore the party, adding apricots and chestnuts to the carmelized onions. The night of the party, I added the cognac, and reheated the dish for 20 minutes.

Fig-Port Reduction Sauce (William-Sonoma) I doubled this.

20 dried mission figs, sliced in quarters with stems cut off
Soak in 1 c. port for an hour, reserve liquid

Use drippings from pork in a sauté pan with:
reserved port from figs.

Bring to a boil, stirring. Reduce heat to medium and add:
2 T. veal demi-glace
figs
¾ c. chicken stock
2 tsp. balsamic fig vinegar (or regular balsamic vinegar and some fig syrup)
¼ c. honey

Simmer 30 minutes until thicker and reduced by half Whisk in butter, one T. at a time.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Brie with Fig Jam:

This is a no-brainer appetizer. Fill a baking dish with brie with the top rind cut off.
Spread fig jam on top. Bake at 350 until melted (about 20 min.) OR microwave for 3-4 min.

Thankful Butterscotch Cake
Recipe from: Inspired by Ingredients
by Bill Telepan, Andrew Friedman,
Cookbook Heaven at Recipelink.com

Servings: 16 to 20

BUTTERSCOTCH FILLING: (* I one and a halfed the filling recipe from past experience.)
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup corn syrup
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
3 cups cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoon dark rum

CAKE LAYERS:
3 1/3 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
18 tablespoons (2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons) butter, softened at room temperature
2 1/4 cups granulated brown sugar (Domino Brownulated or very fine turbinado)
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup dark rum
1 cup milk

BUTTERSCOTCH FILLING
Put all of the filling ingredients except the vanilla and rum into a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Have another pot of a similar size ready and on the side. Over medium-high heat, melt the sugars, stirring continuously until the butterscotch boils. Once the mixture comes to a boil, stir frequently, taking care not to scrape any sugar crystals from the sides. Cook at a full boil until the mixture reaches 242 degrees F.
Immediately pour the butterscotch into the empty pot. (Do not scrape the sides or bottom of the cooking pot, which would cause the filling to crystallize.) From a height, add the vanilla and rum. It will steam (and burn you if you aren’t careful) right away. Stir to combine. Cool the filling for 20 minutes. It should be thick yet pourable.
CAKE LAYERS
Cut ten 8-inch circles (or squares if using square pans) of parchment or waxed paper. The baking will progress more quickly if you have at least three 8-9 inch cake pans. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk lightly to combine. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachments, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Lower the speed and add half of the flour mixture. Blend well. Add the vanilla, rum, and milk. When the liquid is just combined, add the remaining flour mixture and beat until smooth.
Fill each cake pan, three at a time, with a heaping 1⁄2 cup of batter. Use a spatula to evenly spread the batter in the bottom of the pans. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the cakes spring back when lightly touched. Cool the layers in the pans slightly, remove, wipe the pan sides clean, and continue to fill and bake. You will need 9 layers.
Line the inside of a clean, dry cake pan with plastic wrap. If the plastic wrap sticks out above the rim of the cake pan, fold it over the outside of the pan. Peel the paper from one cake layer and place the layer upside down in the pan. Ladle about 1⁄4 cup of warm filling over the cake. Top with another cake layer, paper removed. Continue ladling the filling evenly over each layer. The cake will grow higher than the cake pan as you fill. Don’t worry if the edges of the cakes are a bit ragged; they will be trimmed before coating the outside of the cake. Just make sure the cake layers are evenly stacked. It’s difficult to move a layer once it has been placed on the filling. If the butterscotch filling becomes too thick to pour easily, heat on low. Do not top the last cake layer with butterscotch. Chill the cake for at least 1 hour; it must be completely chilled to trim the edges.
Place an 8-inch circle of parchment on top of the cake. Carefully invert the cake onto a cake cooling rack. Remove the pan and lift off the plastic wrap. Hold a long sharp knife against the side of the cake. Trim off about 1/4 of an inch evenly all around, making sure you are not tilting the blade. The size should be uniform, not wider at the bottom than the top.
Gently spread (reheat the butterscotch if too thick) and pour over the top and sides of the cake. Let stand until the coating is firm. Slide a metal spatula under the cake and place on a serving platter. Keep chilled, but serve at room temperature. This cake is best if made a day ahead, and keeps beautifully for 5 days.

Fig and Fennel Bread Bon Appetit February 2002

1 1/4 c. warm water
1 T. sugar
1 envelope or 2 1/4 t. dry yeast
3 c. bread flour
1 c. rye flout (I used whole wheat)
1 1/2 c. dried calimyrna figs, chopped
2 T. fennel seeds
1 T. salt

Mix warm water, sugar, and yeast in small bowl. Let stand about 10 minutes until it bubbles. Combine dry ingredients and half the figs in large bowl of mixer, fitted with paddle attachment. On low speed, gradually add yeast mixture until all flour has been incorporated. Replace paddle with dough hook, and knead until smooth and elastic. Then knead by hand on counter for about 5 more minutes. Place in and oiled bowl, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel, and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour).

Turn dough onto work surface, and knead gently until deflated. Knead in remainder of figs. Shape into one large loaf, or two long thin loafs (for mini slices). Brush rimmed baking sheet with oil. Cover with plastic wrap, kitchen towel, and let rise again until almost doubled (35 minutes).

Preheat oven to 375. Bake about 45 min. Cool on rack.

It was yummy for breakfast with cream cheese and fig jam.

I used Giada's recipe for panna cotta. This recipe makes 6 servings. (I made it 8 times...lol)

1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1 c. whole milk

Sprinkle gelatin over milk in a saucepan, and let sit for 5 min. Turn on heat to med high, and stir until ALMOST boiling. Turn down heat and add:

3 c. heavy cream
1 T. sugar
1/3 c. honey
a pinch of salt

Stir over med heat for about 2 min. until sugar and honey are melted. Cool in fridge for 10 min. until cool enough to pour into serving glasses. Chill overnight.

I served it with 3 toppings: Caramel, Fudge, and a berry sauce. The caramel and fudge were Mrs. Richardson's (from a jar).

The berry sauce is very simple:
Defrost 2 10 oz. containers of raspberries and or strawberries in syrup. (I used one of each). Drain syrup into a small pan with 2 T. cornstarch and a T. of lemon juice. Bring to a boil. It will be thick. Stir in berries and keep covered in fridge.

Bittersweet Cheesecake Torte (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Baking 2007)

2/3 c. whipping cream
8 oz. dark chocolate (chopped)
Nonstick cooking spray
2 boxes of your favorite brownie mix
3 8 oz. packages of cream cheese (softened to room temp)
3/4 c. sugar
2 t. vanilla
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3 oz. milk chocolate, melted
3 oz. white baking chocolate, melted
(optional) chocolate "pencils" or rolled cookies to garnish

1. For ganache: In a small saucepan, heat cream over med-high heat until just boiling. Remove from heat. Add 8 oz dark chocolate. Don't stir yet. Let stand 5 min. Then stir until smooth, and transfer to bowl. Cover and chill 2-3 hours.

2. Prepare two 9 1/2" cake pans by spraying with cooking spray, and preheat oven to 350. (I used a 10" springform...same pan twice for brownie layers). Make brownies according to package directions, EXCEPT, only bake for 25 min. until outer edges are done. Cool, and remove from pans.

3. In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and beat until combined. Beat in eggs until combined. Divide mixture evenly into two bowls. Into one bowl, add 3 oz. melted milk chocolate. Add melted white chocolate to other half of cream cheese mixture. Stir each until smooth.

4. Preheat oven to 350. Wrap heavy foil around an 8" springform pan, making sure doil come at least an inch up the sides of pan. (I used a 9 1/2" springform.) Using a sharp knife, cut (using the pan bottom as a guide) the brownie layers the size of the springform you are using, Place one of the brownie layers in your foil-wrapped pan. Pour over the chocolate cheesecake batter. Place the next brownie layer on top. Add the white chocolate cheesecake batter. Place your filled springform pan into a large roasting pan. Pour enough water around the edges to go up the sides half way. CAREFULLY, place roasting pan in oven, and bake for 60 min. Carefully remove pan from water (I poured water out so I could get my potholders around springform). Cool in pan for 15-20 min. Using a small, sharp knife, loosen cake from edges of pan. Cool for another 30 min. Remove springform edges, and cool completely on wire rack. Cover and chill overnight.

Remove ganache from fridge. Beat with electric mixer until smooth and fluffy enough to spread. If it is stiff, add a splash of cream. Spoon into pastry bag, and pipe decoratively on top of cheesecake using large star tip, and make mounds around edge of cake.

For chocolate "pencils" (I ordered them from Bristol Farms bakery by the box), I used a little ganache as "glue" around the edges of cake, then stuck them on, close together. You can break them into any height.

We began the evening with Mango Martinis (basically a lemon drop with a float of mango nectar)

Dinner was stuffed veal chops, baked pumpkin polenta, and stuffed acorn squash.

Acorn Squash with Sausage-Cornbread Stuffing:
(Tweaked from the original recipe from: Better Homes and Gardens Our Best Holiday Menus 2007)

To serve 4:
Two acorn squash cut in half and scopped out
1 mini-loaf of cornbread (make from a mix, or buy some cornbread)
2 chichen-apple sausages removed from casing
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/4 c. chopped dried apricots
4 fresh sage leaves, chopped
1/3 c. chicken broth
1 T. butter, melted

1. Make or buy cornbread. I bought a mini-loaf from Bristol Farms.
2. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray. Cut acorn squash, scoop out seeds, season with salt and pepper, and bake (flat sides down) at 350 for 30 min.
3. In a skillet, cook sausage, onion, and celery until sausage is browned. Drain off fat. Stir in sage and dried apricots. Cube the cornbread, and toss with sausage mixture.
Drizzle with chicken broth and melted butter.
4. Fill squash centers with stuffing. Cover and bake later, or bake now at 350 for 30 min. If you make and stuff squash ahead, cover with plastic wrap and keep in fridge, but take out 30 min. before final baking, so squash is at room temp.

From: Better Homes and Gardens Our Best Holiday Menus 2007

2 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. sugar
3/4 t. salt
3/4 c. butter
4 oz. grated cheddar (one cup grated)
3/4 c. cold water
2 1/2 lbs. apples, cored and cut into slices (I used 6 Granny Smith)
1/4 c. sugar
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. flour
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 T. suagr, or sanding sugar
less than 1/4 c. apple jelly (I used a heaping spoon of pomegranite jelly), melted

Pastry:
1. In a large bowl, stir together 2 2/3 c. flour, 1/4 c. sugar, and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until pieces are pea-sized. Stir in cheese. A tablespoon at a time, stir in ice water, moistening a section of the flour mixture with a fork. Push moistened pastry to side of bowl. Keep repeating until all the flour mixture is moistened. Form pastry into a ball, then flatten into a large disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refridgerate at least an hour or overnight. Let pastry sit at room temp a few minutes before rolling it.

2. Preheat oven to 350. On a slightly floured surface, roll pastry to about a 15-16 inch circle. Carefully transfer pastry to either a 10-11 " oven-proof skillet, or a 9-10" deep dish pie pan. (I used a quiche pan.)

3. For filling, in a large bowl, toss apples with 1/4 c. sugar, lemon jiuce, 2 T. flour, and cinnamon, until combined.

4. Mound filling into crust, and bring up edges of pastry toward center, pleating dough as necessary to keep it flat against the filling. Brush top of pastry with a egg, and sprinkle with sanding sugar (or regular sugar). Cover filling that is showing with foil, and bake for 30 min. Remove foil, and bake 30-35 minutes more, until crust is golden.

5. In a small saucepan, melt jelly over medium-low heat (I melted it in the microwave), and brush over filling. Cool slightly, and serve warm or at room temp. If desired, serve with vanilla ice cream.

We attended a birthday cocktail party last night, where I was to bring an appetizer. I wanted to try a new recipe. (From The Best of Fine Cooking: Appetizers Holiday 2007)

Make a big pot of polenta. (8 c. water, 3 c. polenta 1 t. salt. Cook 30 min.)

Divide polenta into three equal size bowls.

Cover a jelly roll pan with plastic wrap.

In first bowl, add 6-8 oz. pesto. Stir well, and spread in pan.

In second bowl, add 2 T. butter, and 1/4 c. grated parmigiano cheese. Stir well, and spread over green layer.

In third bowl, and a jar of roasted red peppers (pureed) OR a jar (drained) of pimentos that you pureed. Stir well, and spread over plain polenta layer.

Cover with plastic wrap, and chill overnight. (Do this the day before you want to serve the appetizers.)

Cut appetizers into any shape with a cookie cutter that is deep enough to go through all three layers. Place cutouts on a clean cookie sheet, and sprinkle with grated parmigiano. Broil until cheese begins to brown (2-3 min.) Garnish, and place on serving platter. I used grape tomatoes and Italian parsley leaves. You could use olive slices, green chilies, sour cream, pimento, red pepper cut out, marinara sauce, etc.

Tomorrow...step-by-step apricot roses to garnish platter!

This VERY simple garnish, takes less than 5 minutes, can be done ahead, and lasts for days! Here is the step-by-step:

It takes about 6-7 dried apricots for each rose. Choose plump ones for best results.

1. Cut each apricot in half down the side, with a small sharp knife.

2. Lay apricots halves on a sheet of waxed paper (or parchment paper). Fold paper over to cover, and roll flat with a rolling pin.

The halves will become the "petals" of the rose. The cut side is the "stickier side".

3. Take the smallest "petal" and make the center of the rose. Hold it tightly with one hand.

4. Add a petal at a time, using "sticky" side to overlap around the center of the rose.

5. When rose is the size you want, stick a toothpick through the bottom (where your fingers were holding it together) and set it in the freezer for 30 min (or up to 3 days) on a paper plate. I think they look nice in a cluster of three. I add lemon leaves, and use them to garnish a platter or plate.

Enjoy the "Ohhhs and Ahhhs"!

This might be a new favorite! The balance of flavors is wonderful, and I have TONS of rosemary growing like weeds in my yard. Cindy Ruth posted this recipe (from epicurious.com) on the "Cookie Swap" recipe thread on Slow Talk. I kept the ingredients the same, but simplified the technique. It is a keeper!

ROSEMARY SHORTBREAD

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 1/2 sticks(3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons mild honey
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Garnish: rosemary sprigs

Preheat overn to 300 degrees F.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, and rosemary in a bowl.
Mix together butter, honey, and confectioners sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at low speed, then add flour mixture and mix until dough is smooth. (My butter was really soft.) Gather dough into a ball and transfer to a lightly floured surface, adding a little flour if necessary. Knead slightly if necessary. (My dough did not need kneading, so I skipped the floured surface, and went straight to the pan.)

Press into two 9" UNgreased cake pans (or one larger one). Score dough into design by making "lines" with a fork. Repeat in opposite direction. Press rosemary sprigs lightly into dough if desired for garnish. I used 25 tiny sprigs per pan. Sprinkle with tablespoon of sugar. Bake 20 minutes. Cool in pan on rack for 5-10 minutes, then cut into squares with a sharp knife, and remove from baking pan(s).

Enjoy with a cup of coffee, tea, or prosecco!

This is a wonderful holiday recipe: (Adapted from Taste of the South: Christmas Cooking Southern Style Special Issue 2007)

3 1/2 c. half and half
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 3/4 c. sugar
2 T. soft butter
3 T. Grand Marnier (or orange juice)
1 1/2 T orange zest
1/2 c. dried cranberries
10 1/2 c. bread cubes (I used 2/3 a loaf of French bread mixed with 4 croissants)

Preheat oven to 350. Generously grease (I used butter flavored cooking spray) a 9x13 baking dish.

In a mixing bowl, blend all ingredients except bread and dried cranberries. Beat on medium speed until well-blended. Put bread cubes in baking dish, and pour liquid mixture evenly over top. Sprinkle with dried cranberries, and press down with your hands, so all the bread is coated. Cover with foil.

Bake for 1 hour. Turn oven up to 400, and remove foil. Bake an additional 10-15 min.
Let cool for 15 min. Drizzle with Orange Glaze.

Orange Glaze:
2 c. confectioner's sugar
2 T. Grand Marnier
2-3 T. milk

Stir together until smooth. I poured the glaze into a small zip-lock bag, sealing the zipper. Cut off a tiny corner of the bag, and drizzle glaze onto cooled bread pudding.

Shannon posted a recipe for Cheddar-Date Biscuits on Slow Talk. I am not a big fan of dates (even though they are grown and sold everywhere here in the desert). I of course thought...FIGS!

Cheese Date Biscuits!

1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated (about 2 c. packed)
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 t. cayenne
1/2 t. salt
1/4 c. milk
1 8 oz. package whole pitted dates

Preheat oven to 375F. With a mixer beat together butter and cheese. Mix in flour, cayenne and salt. Add milk and stir until stiff dough forms. Wrap 1 tablespoon dough around each date, completely incasing date and forming small cylinder. Place on ungreased baking sheet (can be made ahead and refridgerated.) Bake until golden, about 15 minutes.

I had cheddar, some blue cheese, and I ALWAYS have figs, so I decided to do a little taste test. I made half a batch using cheddar dough, and half a batch using blue cheese dough.

*In the blue cheese biscuits, I reduced the salt by half, and replaced the cayenne with ground black pepper. I also had half a cup of half&half (leftover from the bread pudding), and used this instead of milk, as I hate to use the skim milk for my coffee in baking.

Brad and I had the results for dinner with our butternut squash soup from Jerry's blog. (WHAT did I used to cook before Slow Talk recipes and food blogs?)
Butternut Squash Soup with Apple, Sage and Bacon

Results: Brad and I both LOVED the blue cheese-fig taste combination the best. I will use the rest of the blue cheese dough to make and freeze these tomorrow. The cheddar dough is wonderful, but I wouldn't combine it with figs. I'm thinking I'll use the cheddar dough with something else as the "surprise" in the center...a slice of apple? A piece of rolled up prosciutto? We shall see.

I needed to plan a quick meal...! Hmmm. I had mozzarella, I had mushrooms, I grabbed a "Boboli" at the store, and we had a very yummy, garlicy, and fast pizza dinner! Marta's photo inspired me. Brad didn't seem to notice there was no meat on his plate!

We landed in Oakland at 2:05 on Thanksgiving Day. By 3:15, I was sipping a lovely lemon drop with a splash of Chambord (the house cocktail), at Garibaldi's.

It was wonderful to see our old friends, Roxanne, Charlotte and Cindy, as well as Cindy's extended family! Lots of laughter, wine, and good food...the theme for the weekend!

Brad started with a yummy crab bisque, and I had a simple endive salad with blue cheese and pomegranites. Our entrees were lovely (no turkey at THIS table!).
Here is my ribeye, smothered with mushrooms, cipolini onions, and pancetta.

Brad really enjoyed his squash ravioli with truffles on a bed of chard!

Dessert was a simple choice. Brad had "chocolate budino" (espresso gelato drenched with caramel sauce and topped with tons of assorted nuts), and I had panna cotta with cranberries.

Last year, of course I tried the 14 hour rising "bread that ate the internet" recipe, and ended up with a lovely green Le Cruset dutch oven (that I could hardly lift into the oven). Now, with this new, quick, lasts in the fridge for two weeks dough, we can have fresh bread, pizza, foccacia, etc. ANYTIME!

Here's the first crusty warm loaf:

The texture and taste were great!

For those of you who are not Slow Travel Premium Members (and why AREN'T you, I might ask???), or who may be "Google challenged", here is the recipe:

Adapted from “Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day,” by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007)
Time: About 45 minutes plus about 3 hours’ resting and rising

1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
6 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour, more for dusting
Cornmeal.

1. In a large bowl or plastic container, mix yeast and salt into 3 cups lukewarm water (about 100 degrees). Stir in flour, mixing until there are no dry patches. Dough will be quite loose. Cover, but not with an airtight lid. Let dough rise at room temperature 2 hours (or up to 5 hours).
2. Bake at this point or refrigerate, covered, for as long as two weeks. When ready to bake, sprinkle a little flour on dough and cut off a grapefruit-size piece with serrated knife. Turn dough in hands to lightly stretch surface, creating a rounded top and a lumpy bottom. Put dough on pizza peel sprinkled with cornmeal; let rest 40 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough or refrigerate it.
3. Place broiler pan on bottom of oven. Place baking stone on middle rack and turn oven to 450 degrees; heat stone at that temperature for 20 minutes.
4. Dust dough with flour, slash top with serrated or very sharp knife three times. Slide onto stone. Pour one cup hot water into broiler pan and shut oven quickly to trap steam. Bake until well browned, about 30 minutes. Cool completely.

Yield: 4 loaves.

Variation: If not using stone, stretch rounded dough into oval and place in a greased, nonstick loaf pan. Let rest 40 minutes if fresh, an extra hour if refrigerated. Heat oven to 450 degrees for 5 minutes. Place pan on middle rack.

We were having pork chops. I wanted something warm and savory to go with it. I browsed through a few recipes, and then I tweaked a few things in a recipe from Emeril, and came up with this:

Two large bags of fresh spinach leaves
2 T. olive oil
One half onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can quartered artichoke hearts (in water), chopped
1 T. basil
1 T. parsley
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
4 eggs
2 c. cream
1 1/2 c. milk
1 T. lemon juice
8 oz. brie (rind removed, cubed)
1 c. grated gruyere (4 oz.)
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 baguette day-old French bread, cubed

Preheat oven to 350. In a pot of boiling water, cook spinach 30 seconds (just until wilted). Rinse, dran, and squeeze all water out. Wrap in paper towels to drain more before chopping.

Heat olive oil, and sautee onions on medium high heat until golden. Add garlic, herbs, and half of salt and pepper for a minute, and the drained, chopped artichokes for 2 more minutes. Set aside.

Combine eggs, cream, milk, lemon juice, remaining salt and pepper, and whisk in a large bowl. Add brie, gruyere, remaining salt and pepper, and half of parmesan. Toss cubed bread and chopped spinach into cream mixture, mixing thoroughly. Pour into a greased baking dish, and top with remaining parmesan. Bake 1 hour at 350.
8 servings. DELICIOUS!

*Next time I make this (for a December dinner party), I'm going to try baking it in large muffin cups, for crunchy individual servings!

I have to admit I LOVE butter. A couple of weeks ago, I laughed at Jerry when he told me he had been buying and hoarding butter for holiday baking, and had 25 pounds of it in his fridge! (At the time I had ten pounds hoarded, and of course I had to buy more the next time I went to Costco and Trader Joe's.)

At the register in Trader Joe's with lots of nuts, figs, chocolate, and BUTTER in my shopping cart, the clerk asked me about the eight pounds of butter. He wanted to know if I was making HIM cookies. I shared that I had a friend who had 25 pounds of butter ready. (I'll let Jerry tell you how much FLOUR he bought!)

The clerk, proceeded to tell me that they have a regular customer, who lives in the mountains, an hour from here, and comes to the store on the first Saturday of every month to buy 35 pounds of butter. EVERY MONTH. I asked if they were bakers. He said "No". I asked if they had a cookie company from their home. Again the answer was "No." He said they were a "little old retired couple", and they CONSUME it. So that is over a pound a day!!! I asked if they looked healthy. He said they were NOT overweight, and seemed quite active. Hmmmmm. I'll just leave the speculation to you!

I MAY still run out! I have baked 50 dozen holiday treats SO FAR..., and it is only December 6. I have lots more to bake next week!

So far I've made:
3 batches of shortbread
2 batches of "World's Best Cookies"
2 batches of "Cherry-Pistachio Cheater Cookies"
2 batches of Peanutbutter-Chocolate Balls
2 batches of Oreo-Cream cheese Balls

Oh how I love this time of the year!

A holiday weekend to South Coast Plaza (now our fourth year, and starting to feel like a tradition), often includes dinner at my favorite Orange County Italian restaurant, Antonello's. It is decorated to the max, with lights, wreaths and holiday greenery everywhere, There food is amazing, and again, this year I ordered the pasta pinwheels with pink and bechemel sauce. Two sheets of pasta (long like lasagna noodles) are spread with a fontina, prosciutto, ricotta filling, then rolled up into a spiral, and served with the two beautiful sauces. I was already full after Brad and I shared a calamari appetizer, so I barely made it through one spiral, but luckily, there was a fridge in our hotel room.

We decided to order one dessert for the four of us to share. Here was the best canoli I've ever tasted. (It's tucked back there behind the sauces, fruit, and spun sugar!)

I love make-ahead meals for company. Since I'll have a housefull next week, I thought I'd share this one. I "tried it out" on Brad last Sunday, and it was a keeper!

Puff Pastry Omelet (Serves 8-10)

Thaw a box of puff pastry. Roll out on floured surface and cut as shown in photo.
Scramble a dozen eggs with whatever you like: cheese, onion, bacon, sausage, prosciutto, etc. Spread half of cooked eggs down the center of each puff pastry sheet, and braid strips together. (Freeze now...or continue and eat) Bake at 350 for 25 min.
Remove from oven and brush with an egg wash (one beaten egg). Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and continue baking for 10 min. One package of puff pastry makes two.

We're having ours with monkey bread and citrus salad. Buon Appetito!

Cream Cheese Almond Cake with Almond Pastry Cream

Cake:
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese
3 c. sugar
6 eggs
3 c. flour
1t. almond extract
1 T. Amaretto
1 recipe of Almond Pastry Cream (for filling and frosting)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 3 9" cake pans. Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar, beating until fluffy. Add 2 eggs at a time, alternating with 1 cup of flour at a time. Repeat with remaining eggs and flour. Stir in almond extract and Amaretto. Divide evenly into three prepared pans. Bake 25 minutes. Cool in pans for 10-15 minutes, then remove and cool completely on wire racks.

Almond Pastry Cream

3 c. half and half
3/4 c. chopped (or sliced) toasted almonds
1 1/2 t. almond extract
2 vanilla beans, split
3/4 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. cornstarch
6 egg yolks
1 T. butter

In a saucepan, combine half and half, almonds, almond extract and insides of vanilla beans over medium-high heat until mixture boils. Reduce heat to medium-low.
In a medium bowl, combine sugar, and cornstarch. Add egg yolks, whisking until smooth. Gradually add 1/4 of hot half and half mixture to egg mixture, whisking constantly. Then add all of bowl back into saucepan of hot half and half. Continue to cook, whisking constantly until thick and beginning to boil. Remove from heat. Whisk in 1 T. of butter until melted. Put mixture in a plastic bowl, and cover with plastic wrap, pressing gently so wrap touches mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Refridgerate 2 hours, or until cool.

Frosting:

8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup butter
10 c. powdered sugar
2 T. Amaretto
1 1/2 cups of almond pastry cream
Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add powdered sugar, and Amaretto. Fold in Almond Pastry Cream

Assembly:
Spread 3/4 cup of almond pastry cream between layers. Top each layer with some slice toasted almonds. Frost sides and top of cake with frosting (I reserved a little frosting before adding almond pastry cream to pipe around base of cake, as almonds would clog pastry bag tip.) Garnish with sliced toasted almonds.

Yes, I'm still baking. Our "family" arrives soon, so the eating frenzy is not QUITE over until New Years! The good news is that while I LOVE to bake, I do not have a sweet tooth. I have actually LOST over five pounds this month! (Must be all that cooking and dish washing!)

This will be served for breakfast tomorrow with berries and those do-ahead puff pastry cheesy-bacon scramble egg thingies. (I need a better name for that recipe!)

Cream Cheese Cherry-Vanilla Pound Cake (Taste of the South's: Christmas Cooing Southern Style)

1 1/2 c. butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 c. sugar
5 eggs
3 c. flour (plus 1/4 c. for cherries)
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
Two 10 oz. jars of maraschino cherries, drained and chopped
1 vanilla bean, slpit and scraped

Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour a 10-cup bundt pan. In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar, beating until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a medium bowl, combine 3 c. flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating until combined. Stir in scraped vanilla bean seeds.

In a small bowl combine cherries and 1/4 c. flour. Toss to coat. Stir in to cake batter. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake 1 hour and 20 min., or until a wooden skewer comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10-15 min. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Here is an Eggnog Pound Cake (from one of Williams-Sonoma seasonal mixes).
This is for dessert with eggnog ice cream and optional caramel sauce!

OK, just one more CAKE this year...I promise! (I said nothing about any other desserts!)

The January soup diet is coming...soon!

Breakfast Sunday was a big hit with Shannon's recipe for Eggnog Panettone Bread Pudding! We served it with sausage and citrus salad (orange slices tossed with maple syrup and sprinkled with coconut).

One 1 1/2 pound box panettone, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes (about 8 cups)
6 large eggs
1/3 c. baking sugar
4 c. eggnog
1 T vanilla
1 t. pumpkin pie spice
pinch nutmeg
powdered sugar for garnish

1) one day before preparing the pudding, place the panettone cubes on a baking sheet and let stand at room temp. overnight, or until the cubes are dried out.
2) The next day, butter a 9 X 13-inch baking dish. Arrange the cubes in the dish.
3) In a large bowl, beat the eggs with an electric mixer on medium speed or a whisk until frothy. Add the baking sugar and beat for 3 mintues, or until thick and light lemon colored. Add the eggnog, reduce speed to low, and beat to combine. Add the vanilla and spices and mix.
4) Ladle the eggnog mixture over the panettone cubes, using your fingers, if necessary, to distribute the ingredients evenly. Cover with foil and refridgerate overnight.
5) The next morning remove the dish from the fridge one hour before baking and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Use a wooden spoon to push the cubes downand evenly distribute the eggnog mixture. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Open the oven door and wearing heavy oven mitts, push the panettone down with a wooden spoon. The remaining liquid will rise. Spoon it evenly over the cubes. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes more or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out barely clean. Let rest 10 minutes, then sprinkle with powdered sugar.

With only hours left in 2007, I tried a new recipe on December 30, that was my absolute favorite dessert of the year.

Salted Caramel Cheesecake (from Food and Wine)

Cheesecake:
1/2 lb. cream cheese (room temp)
1/2 c. sugar
3 large eggs (room temp)
1/2 c. sour cream

Caramel:
6 T. light corn syrup
1/2 c. plus 2 T. sugar
3 T. unsalted butter
1/2 c. heavy cream
Fleur de sel

Make cheesecake: Preheat oven to 325. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, then beat in sour cream. Pour batter into 5 ramekins or custard cups.

Set the ramekins in a pan (I used a roasting pan) in center of oven. Add enough hot water to reach half way up sides of the ramekins. Bake cheesecakes for 10 minutes, until edges are set, but still jiggly in center. Turn off oven and leave cheesecakes in for 1 hour. Transfer ramekins to a rack and cool completely.

Meanwhile, make caramel. In a heavy medium saucepan, heat corn syrup. Stir in sugar and cook over moderately high heat, undisturbed, until a deep amber caramel forms (about 9 min.). Take off heat, and carefully stir in butter until melted. Stir in cream in a thin stream. Transfer caramel to a heatproof pitcher and let cool. Stir in 3/4 t. of fleur de sel.

Pour 1 1/2 T. of caramel over each cheesecake and swirl to coat tops. (If caramel is too thick, microwave at 10 second intervals.) Chill 3 hours. Sprinkle with a little fleur de sel just before serving.

*Can be made up to 2 days ahead.

1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. butter
6 large zucchini, grated
3 c. chicken broth
3/4 t. sea salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1/2 t. nutmeg
1 c. cream or half and half
3 oz. cream cheese

Saute chopped onion in butter until soft. Add grated zucchini and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and then turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add salt, pepper, nutmeg. Return soup to processor or blender and blend until smooth, or use an immersion blender. (If making ahead, stop here.) Before serving, add cream or half & half, and cream cheese. Heat until cream cheese is melted and soup is smooth.

I finally made my first recipe from Gina DePalma's Dolce Italiano.
I have an overload of Meyer Lemons, so I decided to try using half regular lemons, and half Meyer in the recipe. You use EVERY part of the lemons, so Gina recommends using ones without too thick a rind. I used two smaller tart pans, from one batch of pasta froglia and one recipe of filling. The result was one tart for us, and one for a friend.
Tangy and delicious!

See the little chunks of orange-colored Meyer Lemon rind?

Delicious with whipped cream:

In November, I blogged about the "5 Minute Bread". In the book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007), there is a very similar recipe for pizza dough. This dough (which takes no more than five minutes plus resting and baking time) is SO easy! You can make pizza, foccacia, and stuffed breads or calzone.

The recipe is exactly like the bread recipe, EXCEPT, substitute 1/4 c. of the flour with olive oil, and add a T. of sugar. I decided to try a stuffed bread on my first try with it.

I made the dough the day before, and left it sitting in my fridge. Then I took about a third of the dough, spread it into a rectangle on a large cookie sheet (with some cornmeal...I used polenta on the bottom), and covered the dough with 3 oz. of prosciutto.

Then I added a thin layer of fig-pear preserves, and 5 oz. of St. Andre cheese.

I rolled up the dough, with seam side down, formed it into a circle, then cut slits half way through. I brushed the top with olive oil and added some sprigs of rosemary.

Here it is after baking for 30 min. at 400 degrees. (Next time I would line the baking sheet with parchment, as a little jam oozed out.) Makes 8 servings. (6 are now in the freezer!)

YUM!

I have an aversion to tomato-based sauces (except my ragu, or a Bolognese sauce), so I am always happy to try a new recipe for ribs that has no tomato products. This was based on a recipe from February, 2008 Food and Wine.

Preheat oven to 300. Line a roasting pan with foil. Remove membrane from bone side of a rack of ribs with a sharp knife.

Combine the following, and rub on ribs:
sea salt
chopped garlic
paprika
black pepper
Mesquite smoke spice blend

Bake, covered with foil for 1 1/2 hours. Pour pan juices into a small saucepan and return ribs (covered) to oven for another 30 minutes. Again pour off any additional pan juices. Add 4 oz. of apricot preserves to saucepan, and reduce, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Glaze ribs with apricot mixture, and bake another 30 minutes (basting again with apricot sauce half way through) OR broil for 10 min. on each side with apricot sauce.

We also had artichokes and white cheddar stuffed potatoes.

We discovered Rosemary's restaurant about eight years ago on a weekend visit to Las Vegas. I was there for a therapy conference during the week, and Brad flew in from Oakland on a Friday. He read an article about up and coming chefs in the Southwest Airlines' magazine. We decided we'd check out Michael and Wendy Jordan's restaurant, far off the strip on Sahara Blvd. We had such an outstanding meal, we were hooked, and have returned every year since. Check out their website here.

We began with a cocktail.

We were brought a tiny appetizer of asparagas bread pudding with balsamic reduction.

For our first course, we shared an appetizer of barbequed shrimp over Maytag blue cheese slaw. (You can also order the delicious slaw as a veggie side dish.)

Hugo’s Texas BBQ Shrimp with Maytag Blue Cheese Slaw
Serves 6

Ingredients:
36 each shrimp peeled and deveined
2 cups shrimp poaching liquid, well seasoned
2 cups Hugo’s Texas BBQ Sauce *recipe follows
½ head green cabbage, shredded thin
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup Maytag Blue Cheese (plus ¼ cup for garnish)
3 each green onions, shaved thin
To taste fresh ground black pepper and kosher salt

Method:

In a shallow baking dish, combine the shrimp and poaching liquid. Place in the freezer and every 15-30 minutes gently break up the poaching liquid as it begins to freeze. When all the liquid is frozen place the contents into your vacuum bag, remove all the air and seal. Meanwhile set up your steamer and turn heat to low. Place your packet of shrimp into the steamer basket and cover. Cook until done, about 7-15 minutes. In a large bowl combine the cabbage, mayonnaise, blue cheese, ½ the green onions and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper and taste. When the shrimp are ready, cut open the bag and drain well. On large plates put the slaw down first. Place 6 shrimp per plate around the slaw with one on top. Sauce each shrimp with the BBQ and garnish with a little more blue cheese, green onions and black pepper on the rim.

Hugo’s Texas BBQ Sauce
Makes 1 quart

Ingredients:

10 oz Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
10 oz Kikkoman soy sauce
1 each lemon, juiced/strained
10 oz Hunts tomato puree
4 TBSP dark brown sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Method:

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a small saucepan and on medium heat stir to dissolve the sugar (this is the base). Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes, remove from heat. In a large saucepan heat the cream and simmer just until it begins to coat a spoon. Stir in some of the BBQ base until you like the flavor, usually about equal parts. Bring mixture back to a boil and simmer again until it coats a spoon. Strain through a fine mesh strainer. Hold warm until needed.

Our entrees were a bone-in ribeye with cippolini onions, mushrooms in an amazing apricot reduction sauce, and seared sea scallops on a bed of parsnip-potato puree, with an apple cider beurre blanc, crispy prosciutto, and fried parsnip strips. Fabulous!

We were too full for dessert, but were served a plate of dolci for two (with lemon bars, peanutbutter balls and chocolate bites) with our coffee.

We really enjoyed Tony, our interesting and top notch waiter, who made my evening even more perfect by speaking to me in Italian. Another top notch meal at Rosemary's!

I needed to make dinner AND work until 8:45PM. Luckily, I see my clients footsteps from my kitchen, so I could prep everything before 5:00, preheat the oven as my 5:30 client drove up, and run in the house before my 7 PM client to put the pork roast in the oven.

Brad got home at 8, and put in the prepared potatoes and carrots. I was done with clients at 8:45, and we ate at 8:50.

We had pork roast, Cheddar-Sage potatoes, and Jerry's Honey Roasted Carrots.

Cheddar-Sage Potatoes:

3 large russet potatoes, sliced thinly and boiled until tender, drained
1 T. butter
8-10 sage leaves, chopped
1 c. cream (I used half and half)
3 oz. cheddar cheese
3 oz. white cheddar
salt and pepper to taste

Cook sliced potatoes until tender. Saute sage leaves in butter. Layer half the potatoes, half the cheese in a greased 3 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with half the sage, salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining potatoes, cheese, sage, salt and pepper. Pour cream over top. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

I was asked to bring a dessert to a dinner party. I didn't know who all the guests would be, so I decided to bake something I would like, and hope for the best. Of course, there are a NUMBER of recipes I've been wanting to try from Gina DePalma's Dolce Italiano.

I took the liberty of combining a couple recipes into a "custom edition"! I was thinking of a cheese filled tart, and was hooked by the "Three Cheese Tart (with Chocolate and Orange)", combining cream cheese, marcapone, and ricotta. But this recipe called for a chocolate crust, and a chocolate-orange topping, and Palmabella doesn't like chocolate (unless it is overpowered by caramel).

I used Gina's "pasta frolla", a sweet pastry crust I have made before. I "blind baked" it for 25 minutes before adding the cheese filling, then followed the recipe. When cooled, I topped the tart with a VERY SPECIAL jar of Jerry's "Blueberry-meyer lemon preserves" . Perfeto! This creamy (and easy) filling will become a favorite keeper.
I can see it tooped with all kinds of fresh summer fruits or berries in the future!

This topic could take DAYS, as I took photos of everyone's food!

We met on Sunday morning for brunch at 10. Going through wine withdrawal, many of us began with their version of peach bellinis.

24 attended brunch, but there were spots for 23 at the table. We originally arrived a little before 10, didn't see many cars, and Brad decided to hit the ATM around the corner. When we got back, right at 10, the table was full, so we sat NEXT to the large group, at "the Naughty Table". If you know Brad and I well, this is very funny, because I am ALWAYS early, and he always gets everywhere "in the nick of time". It turned out fine, as our wonderful friends at the big table, included us in conversations, and we could see everyone, take photos easily, and hear everything that was going on. We were definitely not left out!

The food was amazing: Brad enjoyed his "Shrimp and Grits". I tasted it, in order to prepare for Savannah. It was spicier and yummier and saucier than I was imagining.

I ordered the Crab Cakes Benedict. The two fat crab cakes on top of puff pastry, with eggs and hollandaise were delicious. I really liked the idea of the little puffs of pastry instead of large, filling English muffins. (Remember, I see bread as a VEHICLE for protein or fat.)

Tomorrow I will post more tempting Artisan brunch creations! It was a lovely way to end our weekend before our long drive home. We had great weather until San Bernadino, then hit really ugly rain, very heavy sheets of it, and it was difficult to see the road. The last leg, we were in two cars, as I had left mine in Pasadena on Friday when I picked Brad up at work. We made it home safely, had a quick nap, and saw the exciting end of the Superbowl.

Slow Travelers are not slouches when food is concerned. We have a group of great cooks and good eaters!

After bellinis, part of the group began with an appetizer of "Smoked Gouda and Porter Fondue, garlic toast, andouille sausage, and broccolini". (no photo)

Here are a few more selections of entrees from the Artisan Brunch menu:
"Bananas Foster Malted Waffles, Vermont Maple syrup, Meyers Rum, walnuts, housemage sausages"

"Ranch style eggs, blue corn tortilla chips, Spanish chorizo, avocado, spicy ancho chili gravy"

"Wild mushroom omlet, sweet cream, Cypress Grove Goat Milk Cheddar, pancetta potato cakes"

"Duck Confit Enchiladas, wild mushrooms, tomatillo, lime creme fraiche, black bean gratin"

"Kentucky Hot Brown, house roasted turkey, grilled tomatoes, bacon, cheddar mornay"

Can you see why we were happy and full campers? By the way, the COFFEE was great!

I was dying to try my new Tangerine olive oil. I had chicken breasts in the freezer, fresh oranges, and risotto in the pantry. This is what I came up with:

Tangerine-Orange Risotto with Chicken
3 T. Tangerine olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1 1/2 c. arborio (or carnoroli) rice
3 1/2 c. fat-free chicken broth
1/2 can frozen orange juice concentrate
zest from one orange (divided)
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese

2 T. tangerine olive oil
3 chicken breasts
some of the orange zest
salt and pepper to taste

Cook onion and garlic in tangerine olive oil til soft. Add rice, and cook, but do not brown. Stir orange juice concentrate into hot chicken broth, and add to rice in batches, letting each addition soak up liquid before adding more, and stirring between additions.
While risotto is cooking, saute chicken in tangerine oil with salt, pepper, a spoon of orange juice concentrate, and orange zest until browned on both sides. Remove from heat and cut into smaller (bite-sized) chunks. When risotto is finished, stir in orange zest and parmesan cheese. Serve chicken over risotto.

We enjoyed the citrus flavor of the risotto and the chicken.

Easy, and just the way Mom made it!

The key is GOOD CHEDDAR! Depending on where you live, use the best you can get. I like Wisconsin (and I have a source), but NY, Vermont, or Tillamook from Oregon will do.

1. I use TWO POUNDS of cheddar per pan. Yes, I said 2 pounds. If you are worried, don't make this. If you make it, use the cheese. Cut cheese into 1" x1" slices. I counted. I had about 180 slices...not too thick.

2. Make a white sauce (bechamel). I use 3T. of butter, 3T of flour, 1/4 t. salt for each cup of milk. For this batch of 1.5 lbs of penne, I used 4 c. of milk. Melt butter, flour and salt. I also add pepper. Add milk and stir until it boils and thickens. Remove from heat.
*Do NOT use skim milk (I used 2%), but skim milk is what we drink and use in coffee or on cereal. I made myself remember to buy a quart of what we call "real milk"
(While it is cooking, boil your pasta.)

3. Pour half of drained penne into baking dish (9x13). Toss with half of bechamel. Top with 1/3 of cheese. Stir remaining drained pasta into pan of sauce to coat well. Spread in pan. CRAM in the rest of the cheese. Use it all.
It looks like this unbaked:

Bake at 350 for 35-40 min.

I will be blogging about Valentine's Foods all week. Brad assures me, that since we are blogging everyday in February, that he is eating better than usual!

We started things off yesterday with heart-shaped raspberry scones with Jerry's homemade black raspberry preserves. I used my favorite scone mix (hey, I was busy baking bread...), and crammed the dough into a heart cookie cutter on the baking sheet. Repeat.

For lunch: Turkey, bacon, brie panini!

This is a pretty pink-swirled cake for Valentine's Day (especially if there are any other non-chocolate lovers out there).

I used THIS recipe from Williams-Sonoma. I don't have that cute little rose cupcake pan, so I made it in a heart-shaped springform pan. You could dust the top with powdered sugar, and serve it with berries. Berries AND whipped cream...MY favorite! You could be "good", and just have the berries for dessert, and take the cake to work or to a lucky Valentine friend!

A favorite recipe gets a new shape! I posted this LAST February when I fixed this for a book club lunch. This year, I gave it a new shape in my heart-shaped tart pan. This peppery dough makes one of the tastiest savory crusts I've ever had! It really does melt in your mouth, and no mixer or other equipment is necessary.

TART CRUST
The crust can be made ahead and don't forget to chill the dough TWICE (the dough before rolling out, and again in the tart pan).

The filling is quick and easy! I just zapped the asparagus for 3 min. in the microwave.
I may have used a wee bit more than the listed 1 cup of gruyere too (where is that guilty face emoticon?)

FILLING

I had enough dough and filling for an extra mini tart to bake and freeze (and take to work for lunch on a LONG Monday).

We enjoyed half of our tart for a quick dinner with a citrus salad.

I tried this recipe I found on the Williams-Sonoma website. Of course, THERE, they are called CHOCOLATE-Amaretti Heartbreakers. Yes, I deleted the dark chocolate and the coco powder, and doubled the amaretti! No syrup necessary. They are great with just powdered sugar and fruit. The amaretti gives them a very subtle crunch.

Ingredients:
3 large double amaretti (or 6 amaretti from 3
paper-wrapped packets)
2 oz. high-quality bittersweet chocolate
5 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. double-acting baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup cocoa, preferably Dutch process
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
2 eggs
Confectioners’ sugar, sweetened whipped
cream, ice cream and/or hot fudge sauce for
serving (optional)
Directions:
Place the amaretti and bittersweet chocolate in the work bowl of a food processor or in a blender and process until pulverized; set aside.

Preheat a waffle iron. If you’d like to serve the waffles warm, preheat an oven to 350°F.

Melt the butter; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, granulated sugar and cocoa. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, vanilla, almond extract and eggs until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir with the whisk to combine. Fold in the amaretti-chocolate mixture and the melted butter.

Lightly butter or spray the grids of the waffle iron, if needed. Brush or spray the grids again only if subsequent waffles stick.

Spoon out 1/3 cup of batter (or the amount recommended by the manufacturer’s instructions) onto the hot iron. Use a metal spatula or wooden spoon to spread the batter evenly over the grids. Close the lid and bake until just set. Bake these slightly less than you do other waffles because chocolate has a tendency to burn easily. There’s no need to worry, but you do want to keep an eye on these. Transfer the finished waffles to a cooling rack while you make the rest. If desired, just before serving, warm the waffles briefly, about 2 minutes, in the oven. They’re good at room temperature, too.

Serving: You can present a full five-of-hearts to each person, shaking a dusting of confectioners’ sugar over the entire waffle and then scooping some whipped cream or ice cream onto the center. Hot fudge sauce is both luscious and luxurious over these. Broken into individual hearts and filled with ice cream, these make fabulous sandwiches. Makes about 10 full five-of-hearts or about six 6 1/2-inch round waffles.

Adapted from Waffles from Morning to Midnight, by Dorie Greenspan (Weldon Owen, 2001).

Our menu was geared for something special, that I could also pull off on a long work day (10 to 6:30 with two 1 hour breaks between clients).

Filet mignon with gorgonzola and balsamic reduction sauce
Polenta hearts with mozzarella and marinara
Broccolini with almonds, bacon and raisins
Chocolate tart

The steaks were all last minute. Sear meat for two minutes per side. Top with crumbled gorgonzola. Bake for 15 minutes in a 450 oven (for medium rare).

I made the polenta in the morning, and left it in a sprayed 9x9 cake pan to chill. While the steaks were searing, I cut hearts and topped them with mozzarella. I baked them right along with the filets and added the microwaved marinara at the last second.

While those steaks and polenta hearts were baking, I sauteed broccolini in a drizzle of oilve oil, adding almonds, raisins, and bacon (that was already cooked).

I made the balsamic reduction during an afternoon break and reheated it. This is my standard recipe:
1 c. balsamic
1/2 c. port wine
3 T. brown sugar
Bring these three ingredients to a boil, and reduce to 1/2 cup. Remove from heat and stir in 2 T. butter until butter melts.

I made the tart crust and filling in the morning before work, then added the chocolate and decorated it during an afternoon break. I used the old standard fruit tart recipe, substituting tempered chocolate for fruit. (I think the chocolate ruins it, but Brad was a happy camper, and this saves me lots of extra calories!)

This is the first BOMB recipe of 2008. It looked good, smelled great, and tasted fine, but the texture was NOT as advertised. I won't bother sharing the recipe (from a bread cookbook).

Brad "Kneaded" a workout.

I was still hopeful.

We each tasted a small slice when it was cooled. The rest went into the trash. But I promised a week's worth of "heart foods", and this is the end of it! Out with the red, and in with the GREEN!

This is what I threw together to try out my new lime olive oil from Pasolivo:
I sauteed some garlic and green onions in 2 T. of the lime oil, then cooked scallops, and added some red chili flakes, lime zest, and salt and pepper. I served it with a spicy chili sauce (mix mayo with a generous pour of Szechwan chili sauce).

We also had a limey orzo salad:
3 c. cooked orzo
zest from one large lime
2 zucchini, grated (raw)
8 oz. grated pepper jack cheese
toss with a little lime olive oil

Another easy, quick dinner!

Crust:

1/3 c. butter
1 c. flour
1/3 c. sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger powder

Heat oven to 350. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat, stirring until it just begins to foam and turn golden. Remove from heat and stir in flour, sugar, cinnamon and ginger. Mix well with a fork, and press into bottom of an ungreased 9x9 baking pan.

Filling:
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. sugar
3/4 t. baking powder
1/4 c. flour
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger powder
2 T. brown sugar
2 apples, peeled and sliced into small chunky cubes (slices cut in half)

Combine first 7 ingredients, then stir in apples to coat. Spread mixture over crust in pan.

Topping:

1/4 c. flour
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. oats
1/4 t. cinnamon
3 T. cold butter, cut into small cubes

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, blending in butter with a fork. Sprinkle crumble mixture over apple mixture in pan. Bake at 350 for 40 min. Cool on rack. Makes 9 servings.

We had a quick dinner. I worked late, and prepared a yummy baked fennel dish that Brad could pop into the oven for a half an hour. I had fresh shrimp cleaned and ready to go. He did the rest.

3 large fennel stalks, (white part cut off core and sliced)
splash of olive oil
1/2 c. cream
3 T. sour cream
1/2 c. grated parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

Saute fennel in olive oil until tender and slightly browned on each side. Transfer to baking dish. Combine cream, sour cream and half of cheese. Pour over fennel. Top with remaining cheese and bake at 400 for 35 minutes until fennel is tender.

Brad made the shrimp. I saw oil, garlic, and a splash of white wine go into the pan.

We're going to an Oscar Night Party, and I'm bringing dessert!

I made the Mile High Chocolate Cake from January '08 Gourmet Magazine.

Hope dinner is good, as I KNOW I'm not interested in all that chocolate!

I've been "crazy busy" lately, and I'm embarrassed to say, we haven't seen even ONE movie in the last several months! My favorite part of the festivities is the red carpet fashion nonsense!

I've been "forced" to endure chocolate desserts since before Valentine's Day! I have been a good girl and baked chocolate treats for others. I don't eat them! I've been craving a light, springy dessert that I will LIKE! I decided to make this for today's book club pot luck lunch (with a slight variation).

Meyer Lemon Cake with Lavender Cream

I followed the recipe using Meyer lemons for both the cake and filling. I also used some of my tangerine olive oil for part of the olive oil in the cake. It looks great.
I did omit the lavender, and used Italian lemon honey and Meyer lemon zest for the whipped cream. I can't wait to try it. I will let you know how it turned out!

Crab Cakes (I have seen many recipes, but none exactly like MINE)

8 oz. fresh crab meat
1 green onion, chopped
1 slice of bread, crusts cut off, torn into tiny pieces (I used ciabatta)
2 T. mayo
1 T dijon mustard
1 1/2 t. Old Bay seasoning
1 egg, beaten

Mix all of ingredients. Form into patties and chill for a few minutes. Fill a quart or sandwich size ziplock bag with potato chips, and smash them. I use Hawaiian Chips (or kettle chips). Smash them into tiny crispy, greasy crumbs! Now roll those chilled crab cakes in the potato chip crumbs and fry them quickly in some hot olive oil. Just a couple of minutes on each side for a wonderful crunchy crust with no additional salt needed.

I think my spices are out of control. No, I KNOW they are! We are supposed to toss and replace them after a year or so, right? I think I might have some that were purchased when I was..., well, never mind!

Here is ONE area of pull out spices, an easy reach while standing at my stove. Why are there 3 jars of ginger, and NO nutmeg? When I need nutmeg, I go over here:

I love my "test tubes" from Dean and DeLuca. Brad got them for me one of our first Christmases together. Well, THAT was 11 years ago! I have refilled the mustard and cinnamon. The thyme is always empty, and I ALWAYS use the fresh rosemary and basil from my yard. There are juniper berries and four kinds of peppercorns. What the heck are "fine herbs"? It must be time to toss "herbs for meat" and "herbs for fish".
I can refill these with my Italian herb blend. I am fairly certain I have never used "anatto". Does anyone know what it is? Where is the damn nutmeg? I can NEVER find the nutmeg! I can toss the cinnamon, as I just bought a huge Costco jar.

Then we have the baking section in my pantry. The vanilla is multiplying: "REAL" vanilla extract, the big jar that someone smuggled back from Mexico, the "condensed paste" from Sur la Table that I use for special recipes, and the Costco size box of vanilla beans I bought at Christmas.

You don't want to know about the various jars of sea salt. You really don't want to hear about extracts or sprinkles or food coloring! It must be almost time to dye eggs!

Another quick Wednesday night dinner: grilled veal chops, artichoke and mashed potatoes. I worked until 7:30, Brad got home at 8:30, and we managed to eat by 8:45. I think of it as dinner "on Italian time". I had the artichoke steamed, the potatoes boiling, and the veal chops had marinated all day. Brad turned on the grill when he walked in the door, had a glass of wine, and we caught the last 15 minutes of American Idol.

I baked these buttermilk vanilla cupcakes last night. This morning, I made vanilla buttercream frosting, and decorated the cupcakes. I used grapefruit-flavored jelly candies I found at Trader Joe's, and gumdrop spearmint leaves. I sliced the triangular grapefruit candies in half, then cut the triangles in half with scissors. I put some of the "petals" sugared side up, and some down. They ARE pretty, aren't they?

Make lemon pasta!

Brad walked in with these from our tree. BIG puppies! Hmmmm, what can I do with them? Another lemon cake? Nah, we just had one. I peered in the fridge and decided I could throw a few ingredients together for a lemon pasta sauce. I cooked my FAVORITE pasta: FAT spaghetti with a whole down the center. (I could do a whole blog on the various names for these, but I will call them bucatini.)

I took a scoop (serving spoon) of marscapone cheese, the zest from two lemons, a splash of milk, and a handful of grated Romano cheese and stirred it in a small pan util almost boiling. I added more lemon zest, and a little more cheese, and we had a very tasty lemon pasta!

Bailey's Chocolate Mousse Pie (From "Master Cook")

Make a chocolate crumb crust from chocolate wafer cookies or smashed Oreos, or buy a "Ready Crust".

1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1 t. vanilla
3/4 c. milk
3/4 c. Bailey's Irish Cream liquore
6 oz. chocolate chips
2 c. frozen whipped topping (Cool Whip)

Sprinkle gelatin over milk in a saucepan. Let sit for 1 min. Stir over low heat until gelatin is dissolved (4 min.) Add chocolate, and stir until chocolate is all melted. Stir in vanilla and remove from heat. In five minutes, add Bailey's and stir. Chill chocolate-Bailey's mixture, and when mixture thickens enough to form mounds when dropped from a spoon (it looks like chocolate pudding, about 50 min.), fold in Cool Whip, and turn into crust. Chill 4 hours. Garnish as desired or add more Cool Whip before serving if you like.

Cook a corned beef, simmering with spices, as directed, but remove 30 minutes early.
When cool, place in a large zip-lock bag with half a bottle of BBQ sauce. Let it marinate all day or over night. Heat the BBQ. Wrap corned beef in foil and heat through on BBQ (turning twice) for 30-35 min. Slice and serve.

Happy St. Joseph's Day! The swallows will return to Capistrano today.

On "Palma Sunday", we had dinner with Slow Travel friends Carole and Roy, Barbara and Gary, and my friend, Roxanne, who was visiting. We ate at Pacifica, a great seafood restaurant in Palm Desert. I began with a pomegranate martini.

The food was great, and I took NO photos! We sampled several entrees: seabass in a Thai coconut sauce, swordfish in lobster sauce, shrimp stir fry, whitefish with spinach, calamari, and an assortment of fresh salads. Good wine flowed.It was a lovely evening!

We had a lovely evening last night with Slow Travel friends, Kim and Chris, who are visiting from New Jersey. Glad to share our sunny temperatures in the 80's!

It was a balmy night, so we enjoyed appetizers and prosecco by the pool during sunset, until Brad made it through traffic from Pasadena. Dinner started with pear-gorgonzola ravioli in brown butter-sage sauce and a King Estate Pinot Gris.

Next: salad with mangos, raspberries and starfruit with a passionfruit dressing.

The entree was veal saltimboca and broccolini with almonds, raisins and bacon, and a Barolo Brad has been saving. (Guess I'm really starting to think about Rome.)

Back to the patio for dessert and coffee. Limoncello blast cake!

I love my candy bees! (Yellow M&Ms, black jelly candies, almond slice wings and licorice antennae.)

We were so busy eating, drinking and talking, we forgot to take a photo of US!

There was plenty of good food on our Easter Sunday.

We started the morning with some fresh buttermilk biscuits.

They soon became Prosciutto Benedict.

We had Easter dinner at Fiona and Steve's: pork roast, lots of great salads and fruit.

Finally, Lemon Olive oil cake with lemon curd filling and lemon-honey whipped cream for dessert!

There was not a chocolate bunny, egg or jelly bean in sight!

Another quick, "Work Late on Wednesday" dinner:

Ida made this for Easter, and I have been craving it ever since. It is from The Hali'Maile General Store Cookbook by Chef Beverly Gannon (from my favorite restaurant in Maui).

Warm Gorgonzola Potato Salad: (I halved the recipe)

2 lb. red potatoes (about 20 small ones)
2 T. olive oil
1 c. sliced shitake mushrooms (I used regular mushrooms)
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 c. chopped chives
1/2 c. crumbled gorgonzola cheese (I used 6 oz.)

Cut and boil potatoes for about 10 min. until tender. In a saute pan, heat olive oil and saute mushrooms over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. If mushrooms dry out, add a little chicken broth. Toss with onion, chives, and potatoes. Add gorgonzola and toss again, keeping it warm in a 350 oven until serving. Serve warm.

*I made it in the morning, kept it covered in fridge without adding the cheese. 20-25 minutes before serving, I added gorgonzola and put baking dish in a 350 oven for 20 minutes, melting the cheese.

We ate it with Korean ribs (Trader Joe's), and glazed carrots I put in the oven at the same time as the potatoes.

Dessert was another quick no-brainer made with stuff I had around the kitchen.
Pre-made pastry shells, a jar of lemon curd (I like home-made better, but hey, I was working!) and some cream cheese softened with powdered sugar and lemon honey.
Fill the tart shells (or frozen phyllo cups) with cream cheese mixture, top with lemon curd, and berries or whipped cream.

When NOT in Rome, YET, eat it anyway!

It is said that this sauce came from the charcoal workers in the Appenines to sustain them during their long days of work. Others say, the pepper looks like charcoal dust, giving the dish its name. I like to use my favorite dried pasta, buccatini, instead of spaghetti for this dish.

1 lb. pasta
1 T. olive oil
2 T. butter
6 oz. chopped pancetta
5 eggs (or 4 eggs and one yolk) at room temp
4 oz. heavy cream
salt and black pepper
1 1/4 c. freshly grated cheese (half Parmesan and half Pecorino Romano)

Beat eggs and cream together with a pinch of salt. Heat oil and butter in a large saute pan, and cook pancetta until fat is transparent, but not too crisp. Cook pasta until al dente, and drain pasta water into serving dish to keep bowl warm. Pour hot pasta into pancetta pan and stir well to coat. Remove pan from heat, and stir in eggs, cream a some of the cheese. Work quickly. The eggs will coagulate when they come in contact with hot pasta. They should not look scrambled or raw, but creamy. Add the rest of the cheese and toss with black pepper. Empty serving bowl of hot pasta water and serve. Delicious!

After making the Warm Gorgonzola Potato Salad the other night, I continued browsing through Beverly Gannon's wonderful Hali'imaile General Store Cookbook.
I found this recipe for "Coulibiac of Opakapaka with Passion Fruit Hollandaise" to try for dinner last night.
I really made a simplified version like this:

2 sheets frozen puff pastry (I always keep Trader Joe's in my freezer, but Pepperidge Farm is very good.)
a 2 lb Opakapaka fillet (may use salmon, halibut or sole) I used three chunks of fresh Alaskan halibut.
2 T. each of fresh basil, thyme, and chives
salt and pepper
2 T. melted unsalted butter
4 c. fresh spinach (I used a bag)
an egg yolk beaten with 1 T. water for an egg wash

Duxelles:
2 T. unsalted butter
2 chopped shallots
1 lb. finely chopped mushrooms (I used Baby Bellas)

Thaw puff pastry according to package directions (TJ's takes 10 min.)
Place 1 sheet on a floured surface. Season fish with thyme, basil, chives, salt and pepper, and set aside. Saute shallots in butter over medium heat. Add spinach, and cook for about 2 minutes (just until wilted). Squeeze out any moisture, and lay down the center of the puff pastry. Top with seasoned fish.

Make Duxelles: Melt butter in a saute pan over low heat. Add shallots and mushrooms, and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt. Let cool for a few minutes. Top fish with mushroom mixture using a slotted spoon to avoid too much moisture.

Top with second sheet of puff pastry, cutting away extra dough, and crimping the edges. Use scraps of dough cut in strips to decorate top, or make cut outs with a cookie cutter. Carefully move to a baking sheet. Brush with egg wash, and place in the fridge for 1 hour to chill. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Let sit for 5-10 minutes while you make the hollandaise.

I cheated on the hollandaise. Here is what I did (EASY and delicious):

Mix the following in a blender:
3 egg yolks (room temp)
1 t. sea salt
some freshly ground pepper
1 T. lemon juice
a sprinkle of cayenne pepper

Blend those together. With blender on, slowly pour in one stick of unsalted butter, melted and very hot (from microwave) Add 2 T. of either guava or passionfruit jam (Lilikoi). Pour over slices of coulibiac on serving plates.

* When I said I simplified the recipe, this is what I left out: There is supposed to be a layer of chive crepes under the spinach and fish. I decided there were ENOUGH steps to the recipe, and we didn't need them. The only thing I might change is if I made this for guests, I would make individual ones with portion-sized pieces of fish, instead of one large one which made 5-6 nice sized portions.

I tasted this at Lady and Son's in Savannah, and promptly bought Paula's cookbook:

I needed a quick dessert to take to a Good-bye party at work, SO..........

Sweet, rich, tastes like butter, cream cheese and sugar (it IS butter, cream cheese and sugar!) This can be made with any flavor cake mix, and Paula gives lots of ideas of tastes to try including chocolate, lemon and pumpkin! A small square goes a long way, but two of those little guys somehow ended up staying at OUR house!

HERE is the recipe. Yields 20 bars.

I made Diva's (Judy) "Chicken Under a Brick" (Pollo al Mattone) the other night. You can read how on her website.
It was delicious with creamy polenta and sauteed zucchini. I first ate this dish in Lucca on my first trip to Italy in 1987. I used LOTS of fresh sage, and boned chicken thighs, and cooked it on the stovetop. The skin was crispy and delicious, the chicken stayed juicy.

I ate this as a first course last summer at Cibreo in Florence. It was their potato-ricotta version. Judy posted a recipe for me on her blog, Under a Tuscan Stove. I served it to our guests last night for a first course, garnished with some pesto, parmesan and sage.

Cibreo Sformata

500 grams / 1 pound ricotta
3 large eggs
150 grams / 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
nutmeg
150 grams/ 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt

( in cibreo’s cookbook it is made with additional 2 kg of spinach, washed cooked down and finely minced) Now it is made with mashed potatoes. I have made it like the appetizer version which is with chopped herbs
.
Butter a pan, the batter makes either the flatter appetizer one or the higher “flan” first course. Either an 8x8 or a rectangular loaf pan.
Bake uncovered at 350 to let form a film on top about 5 minutes.
Cover with foil and finish baking for 40 minutes for the higher one.
It is like a quiche,when the knife comes out clean it is done!

We had Jan and Les over for a casual dinner Sunday night. I have been promising Les pasta carbonara, his FAVORITE, for months! We started with ricotta sformata, delicious prosciutto-wrapped grilled asparagus that Jan brought, and a bottle of Oregon Pinot Gris.

Next we enjoyed one of my favorite summer salads: spinach, fennel, oranges, and red onion with citrus vinegarette.

When I put Dolce Italiano on my Christmas list (because I had already read it cover to cover in Barnes & Noble), I also was wise enough to put the mini bundt cake pan from Williams-Sonoma on my list too. Brad LOVES grappa, so I figured he'd want me to make these enough to pop for the pan as a "stocking stuffer". My plan worked!

I decided to try out three different flavors:

See that pretty bottle of grappa? I once HAND CARRIED two of those suckers home from Italy. One was a gift for my cousin, Gary. The other, I figured would make a lovely centerpiece when empty with a single stem Casablanca lily in it.

The cork was stuck. I tried a corkscrew (too fat). I tried an ice pick (no luck). I tried a skewer, and ended up with half a cork and the skewer attached in the bottle!

I made three syrups:

I added a vanilla bean to the grappa, and lemon zest to the limoncello.

My batter grew to a huge amount. I divided it equally into three bowls. I added grappa to one, Amaretto to the second, and limoncello and zest to the third before folding one-third of the egg whites to each. I ended up with 22 mini cakes! All three cakes were delicious, but the lemon was voted #1, with the Amaretto a close second place. Next time I may try Frangelico.

We took a "day trip" to Redlands, CA (about 50 minutes away) to try a restaurant I recently heard about, Farm Artisan Foods. It was a wonderful treat!

The restaurant is smart looking with a clean, simple decor, nice bar, white tablecloths, and a single calla lily on each table.

The Farm opened in 2003, and is owned by my friend, Elizabeth's, son-in-law, Roberto Argentina. Roberto was born in Brindisi, Italy, and grew up on his family's farm. After being a theater major during his university days in Texas, he moved to Chicago and trained for his career as a chef with Chef Keith Luce, a former chef at the White House. He moved to southern California and worked with the fabulous Chef Joachim Splichal.

We were welcomed by our waitress, Colleen, with hot, fresh focaccia. The lunch special included choices of an appetizer, an entree, dessert AND a glass of wine, ALL for $25.00!

I began with a beautiful salad with a mustardy dressing, wedge of brie, and lovely presentation of veggie garnishes on the plate.

Brad started with lentil soup that he enjoyed. The lentils were in a light briny broth.

Another Sunday, and a great recipe for Father's Day! We baked "Obsessive Ricotta Cheesecake" from Dolce Italiano. It is a creamy cheesecake using both cream cheese and ricotta.

I had some lemon curd left over from another recipe we had for breakfast, so since the cheesecake had lots of lemon zest, and drizzled some of the lemon curd on top.
Delicious! Next time, I'll try it with berries.

My turn to host of one my book clubs. One group meets at lunch time. Sometimes we potluck appetizers for lunch, and some months the hostess decides to do it all. Last month I joined a second book club that meets in the evening. The first thing I was told is that "we are not about eating, we are about discussing books". I love to read, but I am definitely all about food. I went to the first meeting in May, and brought my own Starbucks. There was no eating. I offered to host the June meeting. Hmmmmm.

Ever since I baked the chocolate hazelnut cookies 2 weeks ago for Sunday Slow Bakers (No, I did not sample even one!), I have been craving a cookie. Brad long ago polished off the chocolate ones I left him, after bringing most to the office for their usual Monday morning treat in Group Supervision. I decided to bake Martha Stewart's cookie of the month with flavors I love! These may be one of my favorite cookies ever! They are bursting with flavor, simple to make, and pretty too! Definitely a keeper!

Lemon-Glazed Candied-Ginger Cookies

They went well with a lemon-glazed zucchini cake and fresh organic lemonade for the book club evening meeting on a day that was 117 degrees! I feared being voted off the island. The first guest arrived and said, " I KNEW you would make something!"
Since she was a therapist, I told her it was a cultural issue. I'm Italian, and I would rather poke my eye out than have guests and not serve them anything. I will not force food on anyone (encourage, maybe...) but the zucchini cake and cookies were enjoyed or taken home to spouses or kids by all but 2 members. I am still in the book club!

We discussed Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez and Kristin Ohlson. This is a fascinating story of an American woman who goes to Afganistan to start a beauty school to empower women who live in a culture of fear, oppression by men, and marriages that are frightening by western standards. We all enjoyed this book and learned much about women in this country.

Deborah Rodriguez fought many battles and had constant challenges, before and after marrying "Sam", her Afghan husband. She certainly lived the saying, When life gives you lemons...make lemonade"!

I saw a lamb-basil sausage at the grocery store, and thought, "That sounds like a fun risotto!"

I started the usual way, with a chopped onion in a little butter. I added a cup of canaroli rice for a minute or two, then began adding chicken broth. Meanwhile, I blanched half a bag of fresh spinach for about 30 seconds in boiling water, drained and got all the water out. When it was nice and dry, I threw it into the food processor with lots of fresh basil, and about 1/4 cup of ricotta I had left over from something. I continued to add chicken broth to the rice, and cooked the sausage in a separate pan (without the casings). When the rice was done, I stirred in the spinach mixture, some parmigiano, and the sausage. Oh, my goodness, a new favorite one dish meal was born!

We used the rest of the spinach in a salad with some fruit and a citrus dressing.

For dessert: lemon sorbet with some lemon curd.

Cherries in Rome:

Cherries in Montelpulciano:

Cherries in Palm Desert:

Last week, I made this for Brad. As it involved chocolate, I didn't taste it, but did eat some of the yogurt-panna cotta filling in a bowl! When I saw this recipe in the Martha Stewart's Living magazine, I thought it was a very pretty dessert, and wanted to try the chocolate crust with a layer of "painted on" melted chocolate. The filling is a simple panna cotta with plain yogurt. It can be decorated with any fruit. I omitted the mint from the panna cotta filling, and Martha's tarts are much more beautiful, decorated with currants (out of season) or tiny wild strawberries.

recipe:

Here is a close-up. Don't forget to pit those cherries!

BBQ 4 ears of corn (wrapped in foil with a little butter) and let cool.
Cut corn off cobs and place in bowl with juice 0f three limes and a couple cloves of chopped garlic.
Add:
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
4 ounces grated pepper jack cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Dressing:
!/4 c. mayo mixed with one teaspoon ancho chili powder

I brushed the scallops with lime olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill 3-4 minutes on each side.

Cheddar-Bacon Corn Muffins:

Preheat oven to 350.
Stir together dry ingredients:
1 c. flour
1 c. cornmeal
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/2 t. salt
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
pinch of cayenne pepper

In another bowl combine:
2 large eggs, beaten
1 c. sour cream
2 green onions, chopped
4 oz. melted butter
crumbled bacon (about 4-5 slices, cooked and crumbled)
1 c. grated cheddar

Mix wet ingredients into dry, and stir until just blended. Pour into paper lined muffin tins and bake about 20 minutes.

Lots of berries! What to do? Make a pie!

Crust: (From Bon Appetit)

2 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 T. sugar
3/4 t. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
5 T ice water

Whisk flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Add cold butter cut into small cubes using a pastry blender, until small, pea-size lumps form. Add ice water, one tablespoon at a time and mix with your fingers to blend. Gather dough together, and form into two balls. Flatten two balls of dough, and wrap in plastic wrap to chill for at least 30 minutes. (Can be made and chilled up to 2 days ahead.)

Assembly:
Roll out one ball of dough to a 12 " circle for bottom crust. Fold in half, and carefully place in a 9 " pie dish. Trim dough to a 1/2-1 " overlap. Make filling.

Filling: (From Williams-Sonoma Pie and Tart book)

1 c. sugar
2 T cornstarch
2 T instant tapioca
6 c. berries (mixed or your favorite kind)
1 T cold unsalted butter

Rinse berries, and let dry in a single layer on paper towels. In a small bowl, mix together sugar, cornstarch, and tapioca. Place berries in a large bowl and sprinkle with sugar mixture. Toss to coat. Immediately transfer to pie dish with bottom crust in place. Dot with butter.

Roll out second disk of dough, trimming edges evenly, and cut out 5 or 6 small circles, leaf, heart or star shapes with a knife or small cookie cutter for "vents".

Carefully position second round of pastry over top of filling, and bring up bottom crust dough to crimp edges together.

Sprinkle top crust with an additional teaspoon of sugar.
Refrigerate pie until the dough is firm (30 min.)
Preheat oven to 350, and place pie on a cookie sheet with rack in bottom third of oven.
Bake until filling is thick and bubbly and crust is golden (about 60 min.) Cool on a wire rack. Serve at room temp, or heat for 10-15 minutes and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Since Brad started his new job (this is his fourth week), he is in charge of dinner on Wednesday nights, because he is home from work earlier than I am finished with clients in the casita! He has planned simple dinners (and hopes I come up with a dessert for him), shopped for his ingredients, set the table, cooked, and cleaned up. I love waiting to see what he will do!

Since he has been in this "cooking mood", I love seeing him look for recipes online, or in a grilling magazine. Ego got him some BBQ toys for Father's Day.
He is already great with grilled corn on the cob in foil, but now he has a handy dandy corn holder, and one for sausages/hot dogs. He bought himself some apple wood chips for our 4th of July ribs.

It seems he will soon be making "beer can chicken", and trying out his new rib rack for the slow cooking ribs with a rub, and his version of "Carolina Honey Ribs" on Friday.

Week one of Wednesday Brad's night, we had grilled chicken with mangos, onions and pineapple.

Week two, BBQ shrimp, asparagus, and bread to sop up the dipping sauce.

Week three, he made bbq veal scallops with grilled cherry tomatoes in the arugula salad (and even his own dressing). I forgot to take a photo.

I barbequed a pork loin marinated in olive oil, and lots of thyme. The peach sauce was delicious! We also had haricot verts with pancetta and sliced almonds, and some leftover polenta.

Peach Sauce:
2 peached, peeled and chopped
2 T lemon juice
2 T honey
red pepper flakes
black pepper
thyme

Bring peaches, lemon juice and honey to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes. Let cool slightly, and add seasonings. Serve warm over pork or chicken.

Dessert was made from leftovers! Leftover berries, leftover marscapone from last Sunday's semifreddo, and leftover pie crust dough from my blackberry pie!
I whipped the 2 oz. of marscapone with a little cream, and a sprinkle of fat free vanilla instant pudding. I could have used a little sugar and vanilla, but the pudding mix makes a great fruit dip when mixed with cool whip and Kahlua...HONEST!

I cut stars from the pie crust dough, and baked them for about 15 minutes until they started to crisp, then covered them with powdered sugar. You could use leftover puff pastry too. For being thrown together at the last minute, it made quite a nice dessert!

Today, I'm cooking up a storm for our guests for 4th of July weekend. Hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday!

We began with Babbo breadsticks and cheese spread with our triple berry cosmos before dinner. Then we ate Brad's BBQ ribs! LOTS of ribs!

Warm gorgonzola potatoes with portabello mushrooms:

Fennel-orange-spinach salad:

We are RARELY home on the 4th of July, but when we are, this dish is a must! It is my favorite jello salad from childhood, called "Raspberry Velvet", made into a flag:

After much wine, a front row seat and patriotic songs on the front lawn of Palm Desert's fireworks, we were home for an evening swim and desserts.

Berries with marscapone creme, and puff pastry stars:

AND....the FINALE... Creme filled cupcakes with sparklers!

Everyone is still asleep. They are still in a food coma. I weighed myself, and didn't gain an ounce. I think the cook gets more exercise than everyone else. I ate very little all day. I had two glasses of wine, and lots of diet Pepsi. I had berries and no appetizers. I love the fennel salad. I've had the potatoes many times. I do love my raspberry velvet though.

Right now, there is a beautiful monkey bread baking in my oven with cinnamon topping that smells heavenly.

I wanted something different for dinner. I decided to try to create something I had seen once on a menu in southern Italy. I really wanted to try this beautiful curly pasta, and I had an over-abundance of zucchini!

Grate 4 zucchini.
Chop 1/2 a yellow onion.
In a saucepan, add 1/4 c. chicken broth to onion and 3/4 of the zucchini (reserving 1/4 of zucchini). When broth heats to boiling, add a sprinkle of saffron, and stir.

Take this mixture and process in a food processor or blender with 3 T cream, and 4 oz. marscapone or cream cheese. (You may make this ahead, and keep in a sealed jar in fridge for up to 3 days. If made ahead, only grate 3 zucchini, and grate the fourth while pasta is boiling.)

Cook and drain pasta. Heat sauce, and toss with pasta and reserved grated zucchini.
Sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Delicious!

I love good jam, and the flavor of almonds. I ran across this in my Williams-Sonoma book, Pie and Tart.

This was quite a hit with my weekend guests! Here is this wonderful recipe:

Italian Almond Tart

Our friends, Charlotte, Cindy and Roxanne were here over the weekend, and left Monday after lunch. The house is very quiet. No one is in the pool. We had so much fun laughing and talking, and EATING! I have lots of leftovers, but we are never eating again. It is a day of watermelon, naps and laundry!

Here we are at "The River" on Saturday night on "The Babe Wagon".

On Sunday, I fixed brunch for the gang. We had an "Italian Amond Tart" (scroll down to yesterday's blog), a fritatta with gouda, bacon, green onions, and basil, and lemon-ricotta fritters with lemon curd.

To make the fritters:

Combine the following in a large bowl:

1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. cake flour
1 T. baking powder
1 t. sea salt

In another bowl, whisk together:

4 large eggs
1/4 c. sugar
1 lb ricotta
zest of 2 lemons
1/2 t. vanilla

Add wet mixture to flour mixture. Heat 3 inches of vegetable oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until it reaches 350 degrees. Using a small ladle or ice cream scoop, drop small amounts of dough into hot oil, turning 2-3 times until evenly golden brown on all sides. ( I drained them, and kept them on a platter in a warm oven until all the fritters were done.) Sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve with lemon curd.

Here they are before the powdered sugar:

They are also good with jam! Because I love my friends, I shared a jar of "Jerry Jam"!

Sunday we spent the day in or near the pool from brunch on. It was HOT! My friends were trying for a marathon tan, continually putting on 30 sunscreen, and timing 20 minutes on a side on a raft, or just in a t-shirt in the shady corner of the pool. I promised no swim shots of their lily white Bay Area bodies. I look like I am a new ethnicity! (I might suggest "Princess Big Gut of the Desert" this weekend...) We kept hydrated. Gallons of water and 46 soft drinks were consumed over the weekend. Friday, we had berry cosmos. Saturday, we drank wine and went out to dinner. Sunday was margarita night before dinner.

I thought I was making quite a simple dinner. Early in the day, Brad grilled me PERFECT corn, partly charred for my corn salad. Later he would sear scallops with lime olive oil, salt and pepper to go with the corn salad. I'd make some cheesy sage polenta (the only thing I had to COOK), and watermelon salad: a simple summer dinner. I already had lemon tiramisu chilling in the garage fridge.

At 5 we served margaritas and brie with fig jam, a little salami, and some blue castello cheese with crackers, as everyone wanted to eat around 8:30.

Cheesy-Sage Polenta

Spray pan with cooking spray.
Heat oven to 350.
Combine:
6 c. water
1 1/2 t salt
1 ½ c. polenta
Bake uncovered for 40 min.

Stir together:
3/4 c. sour cream
1 c. parmesan cheese
2 c. grated gruyere
lots of chopped sage (20 leaves, fried in butter)
salt, pepper and nutmeg
Stir into cooked polenta.
Bake 25 minutes.

Watermelon Salad
Combine watermelon, mozzarella, mint, and drizzle with a little olive oil, and a sprinkle of red chili flakes to make the flavors pop!

For some reason, the fans went wild. It must have been the combination of spicy, tangy, hot, cold, creamy, icy, etc. We had flavors of mint, sage, ancho chili, lime, jalapeno, garlic, etc. all going on at once. I thought it was all good, but they insisted it was the BEST dinner ever. I was amazed at that, as I can think back on other favorites of mine. Then Brad said, it WAS the best dinner ever! My vote is still out on that, but I'm glad everyone enjoyed the food!

Here is a taste of the triple lemon tiramisu!

4 c. flour
1/3 c. sugar
1 package dry yeast
6 T unsalted butter (room temp)
1 t. salt
2 eggs (at room temp)
1/2 c warm milk

To make the dough, with the paddle attachment on the mixer, combine 2 cups of the flour, the yeast stirred into 1/2 c. warm water, granulated sugar and salt. Add the warm milk and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the butter, eggs and beat for 1 minute. Switch to the dough hook. Beat in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead on low speed until soft, smooth and springy, about 5 minutes. Transfer to an oiled deep bowl and turn once to coat. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

When the dough has risen, put it on a floured surface, and cut into 50 small pieces.
Roll these into balls, and roll in 1/4 cup sugar and 1 t. cinnamon, and put them into a greased bundt pan. Pour glaze over the whole pan. Cover again and let rise another 1 1/2 hours, OR overnight in fridge, and then 1 1/2 hrs. in the morning before baking.

Glaze:

3/4 c. sugar
2 t. cinnamon
6 oz. butter
2 T. light corn syrup
2 T. water

Combine all ingredients and cook until sugar is dissolved. Pour over balls of dough, before second rising.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes . Let sit in pan for 5-10 minutes on a rack, then flip warm loaf on serving plate. Serve warm.

I promised my friend, Cindy, a lesson on "5 Minute Bread" from Jeff Hertzberg's wonderful book:

I made two loaves for lunch, one plain, and one with a garlic-herb filling that I ordered from King Arthur Flour.

We had a very happy lunch crowd!

I had WAY too many berries! I had never made jam before, but thought, how hard could this be? So I got some jars and pectin at the grocery store, and I had sugar and berries. The rest was easy. In less than an hour I had 9 jars of "Frutti di Bosco", or "mixed berry" jam, using up all my strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. That still left lots of blueberries. Brad stopped for more jars, and in the morning there were 9 jars of blueberry jam!

Step 1: Sterilize the jars and lids.

Step 2: Boil the fruit, sugar, and lemon juice.

Step 3: Add pectin.

Step 4: Fill jars, and put them back into the large pot of boiling water for 5-10 minutes.

You have jam! How cool is that!