Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
I hope you all have happy, fun, and safe New Year's Eve celebrations. The past year has been really fun, especially with the birth of this blog. I have loved getting to know you all and sharing stories and recipes with you. Hopefully you enjoy reading them, and I look forward to sharing more and learning more from you in 2009. Happy New Year!!!
Grilled Pork Tenderloin
(Adapted from Epicurious)
2 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 (1-lb) pork tenderloin
Mince garlic and mash to a paste with 1 teaspoon salt using a large heavy knife, then stir together garlic paste, rosemary, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl. Pat pork dry and rub all over with paste. Marinate, uncovered, at room temperature 20 minutes.
Pre-heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Cook the tenderloin, turning over occasionally until a thermometer inserted diagonally into the center of the pork reads 150 degrees. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
(From The Good Housekeeping Step-by-Step Cookbook)
1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
8 ounces large shallots, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a roasting pan or large baking sheet, toss the carrots, parsnips, and shallots with the olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper until evenly coated. Roast for 25-40 minutes, or until vegetables are tender when pierced with a knife.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash
Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash
(Adapted from Itzy's Kitchen)
1 medium acorn squash
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 links spicy chicken sausage, casings removed and crumbled
5 or 6 slow roasted tomatoes
1 or 2 tablespoons red wine
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash, cut side up in an 8x8 baking dish. Add about a 1/2 inch of water to the dish, cover with foil and bake the squash for 40-50 minutes until the squash is fork tender, but not mushy.
While the squash is cooking, saute the onions and garlic in a large pan with some olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Add the sausage and cook through. Add the tomatoes, and a few splashes of wine, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan.
Remove the squash from the oven. Drain the water. Turn the oven up to 400 degrees. Fill each squash half with the sausage mixture. Top each half with mozzarella and bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden.
Monday, December 29, 2008
I'm ba-aaacckkk!!
So, I spent the last four days in Kona, Hawaii. The big island is really nice, but unfortunately I couldn't escape the rain that has been plaguing LA...although, this time it was warm rain. The first full day (Christmas Eve), I got doused by a rainstorm while visiting the volcano park, but we did manage to see this beautiful double rainbow before the heavens opened up on us.
Christmas day was nice and relaxing spent at a couple of beaches before the rain came.
The next day we were up early for a trip to Kealaekua Bay (which has my sis' name in it!) to kayak and snorkel. Without going into details, there was an episode of me getting out of the kayak where I resembled a beached whale. I definitely worked up an appetite that day which was great because we went to a luau that night. Here is a pic of my plate piled sky high with food. I promise there were veggies and fruit on this plate underneath all the meat. Bonus was the fire dancer being kinda hot!!
The last full day we drove the entire circumference of the island. Here's a pic of me at the (supposed) southern most point on earth and we also did another trip to the volcano, but the air quality was so bad, we didn't get to go too far in. Let me tell you, the smell was enough to keep thousands away.
We finished with an earlier dinner at Merriman's which focuses on locally grown, organic, and sustainable ingredients...just my kind of place! It was a great dinner (lamb pita and fries), before heading out to our delayed flight and nearly missing my connection to LA.
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. I literally headed from the airport straight to the farmers market so I am looking forward to bringing you some great food in anticipation of the New Year's celebration. I hope you have the whole week off, but if not, I hope it is a short one and that you get to enjoy a New Year's Eve with wonderful people you love.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
December Daring Bakers: French Yule Log
This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux. They chose a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.
Fear paralyzed me when I saw that the recipe was 18 pages long (which I later came to realize as mostly full of filler). As I said before, it called for things I had never made like creme brulee, ganache, praline, and dacquoise. I was so scared that I seriously contemplated opting out of this one, but my competitive side got the best of me. Hello! This is a challenge, of course I had to take it on. After reading through the recipe several times, I figured out the flavors I wanted to incorporate into my log. I am a sucker for cinnamon so I decided to go with the mostly dark chocolate flavors with a cinnamon milk ganache insert and a cinnamon creme brulee. Since the daquoise was almond in flavor, I decided to use almond in my praline (hence the almond brittle which I turned into the paste for that layer)
One of the things I love about being a Daring Baker is that there are so many people to help you and guide you through the process. One of the bakers gave a timeline of what order to prepare the various components of the log so that is how I was able to organize myself. Another big thing (one of the most exciting things to happen all year) is that I was finally able to get the STAND MIXER I have been coveting for months. When I first started cooking, I was very scornful of the stand mixer. I figured that people baked and cooked for years without it, so why would it not be possible for me to do the same. That was until a week ago, when I got mine. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen making the various components of this dessert, but my life was made infinitely better by the use of my spanking new stand mixer (which was worth the trip to the ghetto Target). The other thing that helped was a kitchen scale which was another recent purchase. So much of this recipe was in ounces and grams and instead of trying to do conversions, I just figured it out on this handy kitchen tool. This was a pretty exhausting process and even though I wanted to take pictures of each step, I just didn't have the time since I was trying to bang this out before I left on my trip.
The first part I made was the praline paste for the Praline Crisp insert. I also decided to go ahead and make the gavottes (lace crepes) versus using Rice Krispies. The only snag is that I didn't have enough of the gavottes once I had finished that part, so I made up the difference using Special K. Even though my praline layer was very crumbly, it was one of my favorite parts of the recipe. I am glad, that I had a lot of it leftover because it made quite an addictive snack.
The next day, I tackled the bulk of the log. First up was the creme brulee insert. As I mentioned, I wanted cinnamon flavors in my log so I made a cinnamon creme brulee. It was a simple recipe, but the cooking temperature and time was not only a problem for me, but for most of the Daring Bakers. I ended up cooking it at (approximately) 210 for the first hour and then at 275 for another 30 or so minutes until it set.
While the creme brulee was baking, I attacked the dark chocolate mousse. The only other mousse I have made was an incredibly simple recipe. This chocolate mousse recipe was waaaay more involved. I had to make a pate a bomb (what?) and whip cream, and soften gelatin, and do all sorts of unmentionable things. I messed up a couple of times in the mousse recipe. Instead of bringing the cream to a boil in my double boiler, I added the cream and chocolate at the same time. I ended up needing way more cream than the 2 tablespoons called for to make it a smooth mixture. Also, I used powdered gelatin. In the recipe it says to "follow the instructions on the box" for powdered gelatin. I can prove to you, my box didn't come with instructions. When I mixed the gelatin with the chocolate, I had a really unappetizing mix with a whole bunch of liquid on the top, which I skimmed a lot of off before I folded in the whipped cream. After a while, I thought I was going to have to restart the whole thing, but magically it came together. It was delicious too. In retrospect, I wish I had added a little bit of cinnamon flavor to the mousse, but again it was delicious the way it was.
Next up, daquoise. Da-WHO?? This little almond cake was one of the easiest parts of the recipe and also one of the tastiest. I just did the straightforward almond daquoise recipe and could not have been happier. I was so glad to have some of the cake left over to munch on while I waited for the partially assembled log to freeze and make the ganache.
So second to last, I made the cinnamon milk ganache. This was actually not as difficult as I thought it would be. It called for making a caramel out of sugar, adding cream to the caramel and then adding that mixture to some chocolate and then some butter. One bit of advice, do not (not even for a second) walk away from the sugar while it is caramelizing. One bathroom break and you could have an almost burned caramel...not that I would know from experience.
Once I had these layers complete, the actual log assembly was pretty straightforward. Mousse, creme brulee, mousse, praline, mousse. Freeze for a couple of hours...make ganache, top with dacquoise and freeze overnight. Next day, make the icing and re-freeze the log. My log was very uneven so I "decorated" it with leftover praline. I think it's quite ugly, but the taste of this was amazing. Tony came over and we enjoyed the log together. It is verrrry rich. We could only eat a little bit at a time, but it was fantastic.
The recipes below are the components I used. Check out the Daring Bakers blogroll to see the other combinations people came up with.
Daquoise Biscuit (Almond Cake)
Equipment: 2 mixing bowls, hand or stand mixer with whisk attachment, spatula, baking pan such as a 10”x15” jelly-roll pan, parchment paper
Note: You can use the Dacquoise for the bottom of your Yule Log only, or as bottom and top layers, or if using a Yule log mold (half-pipe) to line your entire mold with the biscuit. Take care to spread the Dacquoise accordingly. Try to bake the Dacquoise the same day you assemble the log to keep it as moist as possible.
2.8 oz (3/4cup + 1Tbsp / 80g) almond meal
1.75 oz (1/2 cup / 50g) confectioner’s sugar
2Tbsp (15g) all-purpose flour
3.5oz (100g / ~100ml) about 3 medium egg whites
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar
Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner's sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).
1. Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner's sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).
2. Sift the flour into the mix.
3. Beat the eggs whites, gradually adding the granulated sugar until stiff.
4. Pour the almond meal mixture into the egg whites and blend delicately with a spatula.
5. Grease a piece of parchment paper and line your baking pan with it.
6. Spread the batter on a piece of parchment paper to an area slightly larger than your desired shape (circle, long strip etc...) and to a height of 1/3 inches (8mm).
7. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for approximately 15 minutes (depends on your oven), until golden.
8. Let cool and cut to the desired shape.
Dark Chocolate Mousse
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Equipment: stand or hand mixer with whisk attachment, thermometer, double boiler or equivalent, spatula
Note: You will see that a Pate a Bombe is mentioned in this recipe. A Pate a Bombe is a term used for egg yolks beaten with a sugar syrup, then aerated. It is the base used for many mousse and buttercream recipes. It makes mousses and buttercreams more stable, particularly if they are to be frozen, so that they do not melt as quickly or collapse under the weight of heavier items such as the crème brulee insert.
Ingredients:
2.5 sheets gelatin or 5g / 1 + 1/4 tsp powdered gelatin
1.5 oz (3 Tbsp / 40g) granulated sugar
1 1/2tsp (10g) glucose or thick corn syrup
0.5 oz (15g) water
50g egg yolks (about 3 medium)
6.2 oz (175g) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1.5 cups (350g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
1. Soften the gelatin in cold water. (If using powdered gelatin, follow the directions on the package.)
2. Make a Pate a Bombe: Beat the egg yolks until very light in color (approximately 5 minutes until almost white).
2a. Cook the sugar, glucose syrup and water on medium heat for approximately 3 minutes (if you have a candy thermometer, the mixture should reach 244°F (118°C). If you do not have a candy thermometer, test the sugar temperature by dipping the tip of a knife into the syrup then into a bowl of ice water, if it forms a soft ball in the water then you have reached the correct temperature.
2b. Add the sugar syrup to the beaten yolks carefully by pouring it into the mixture in a thin stream while continuing to beat the yolks. You can do this by hand but it’s easier to do this with an electric mixer.
2c. Continue beating until cool (approximately 5 minutes). The batter should become thick and foamy.
3. In a double boiler or equivalent, heat 2 tablespoons (30g) of cream to boiling. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until melted and smooth.
4. Whip the remainder of the cream until stiff.
5. Pour the melted chocolate over the softened gelatin, mixing well. Let the gelatin and chocolate cool slightly and then stir in 1/2 cup (100g) of WHIPPED cream to temper. Add the Pate a Bombe.
6. Add in the rest of the whipped cream (220g) mixing gently with a spatula.
Cinnamon-Milk Ganache Insert
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Equipment: pan, whisk. If you have plunging mixer (a vertical hand mixer used to make soups and other liquids), it comes in handy.
Note: Because the ganache hardens as it cools, you should make it right before you intend to use it to facilitate piping it onto the log during assembly. Please be careful when caramelizing the sugar and then adding the cream. It may splatter and boil.
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar
4.5oz (2/3 cup – 1 Tbsp / 135g) heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2.7 oz (75g) milk chocolate, finely chopped
3.2 oz (90g) dark chocolate, finely chopped
3Tbsp + 1/2tsp (45g) unsalted butter softened
1. Make a caramel: Using the dry method, melt the sugar by spreading it in an even layer in a small saucepan with high sides. Heat over medium-high heat, watching it carefully as the sugar begins to melt. Never stir the mixture. As the sugar starts to melt, swirl the pan occasionally to allow the sugar to melt evenly. Cook to dark amber color (for most of you that means darker than last month’s challenge).
2. Heat the cream with the cinnamon (use the quantity of cinnamon you want to infuse the cream, a pinch is the smallest amount suggested) until boiling. Pour cream into the caramel and stir thoroughly. Be very careful as it may splatter and boil.
3. Pour the hot caramel-milk mixture over the milk and dark chocolate. Wait 30 seconds and stir until smooth.
4. Add the softened butter and whip hard and fast. The chocolate should be smooth and shiny.
Praline Feuillete (Crisp) Insert
Preparation time: 10 minutes (+ optional 15 minutes if you make lace crepes)
Equipment: Small saucepan, baking sheet (if you make lace crepes).
Double boiler (or one small saucepan in another), wax paper, rolling pin (or I use an empty bottle of olive oil).
Note: Feuillete means layered (as in with leaves) so a Praline Feuillete is a Praline version of a delicate crisp. There are non-praline variations below. The crunch in this crisp comes from an ingredient which is called gavottes in French. Gavottes are lace-thin crepes. To our knowledge they are not available outside of France, so you have the option of making your own using the recipe below or you can simply substitute rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K for them. Special note: If you use one of the substitutes for the gavottes, you should halve the quantity stated, as in use 1oz of any of these cereals instead of 2.1oz.
If you want to make your own praline, please refer back to the Daring Baker Challenge Recipe from July 2008.
To make 2.1oz / 60g of gavottes (lace crepes - recipe by Ferich Mounia):
1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk
2/3 Tbsp (8g) unsalted butter
1/3 cup – 2tsp (35g) all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp / 0.5 oz (15g) beaten egg
1 tsp (3.5g) granulated sugar
1/2 tsp vegetable oil
1. Heat the milk and butter together until butter is completely melted. Remove from the heat.
2. Sift flour into milk-butter mixture while beating, add egg and granulated sugar. Make sure there are no lumps.
3. Grease a baking sheet and spread batter thinly over it.
4. Bake at 430°F (220°C) for a few minutes until the crepe is golden and crispy. Let cool.
Ingredients for the Praline Feuillete:
3.5 oz (100g) milk chocolate
1 2/3 Tbsp (25g) butter
2 Tbsp (1 oz / 30g) praline
2.1oz (60g) lace crepes(gavottes) or rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K
1. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
2. Add the praline and the coarsely crushed lace crepes. Mix quickly to thoroughly coat with the chocolate.
3. Spread between two sheets of wax paper to a size slightly larger than your desired shape. Refrigerate until hard.
Cinnamon Creme Brulee Insert
Preparation time: 15 minutes + 1 hour infusing + 1 hour (+) baking
Equipment: Small saucepan, mixing bowl, baking mold, wax paper
Note: The vanilla crème brulée can be flavored differently by simply replacing the vanilla with something else e.g. cardamom, lavender, etc...
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (115g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
1/2 cup (115g) whole milk
4 medium-sized (72g) egg yolks
0.75 oz (2 Tbsp / 25g) granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
1. Heat the milk, cream, and scraped vanilla bean to just boiling. Remove from the stove and let the vanilla infuse for about 1 hour.
2. Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks (but do not beat until white).
3. Pour the vanilla-infused milk over the sugar/yolk mixture. Mix well.
4. Wipe with a very wet cloth and then cover your baking mold (whatever shape is going to fit on the inside of your Yule log/cake) with parchment paper. Pour the cream into the mold and bake at 210°F (100°C) for about 1 hour or until firm on the edges and slightly wobbly in the center.
5. Put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to firm up and facilitate the final assembly
Dark Chocolate Icing
Preparation time: 25 minutes (10mn if you don’t count softening the gelatin)
Equipment: Small bowl, small saucepan
Note: Because the icing gelifies quickly, you should make it at the last minute.
For other gelatin equivalencies or gelatin to agar-agar equivalencies, look at the notes for the mousse component.
4g / 1/2 Tbsp powdered gelatin or 2 sheets gelatin
1/4 cup (60g) heavy cream (35 % fat content)
2.1 oz (5 Tbsp / 60g) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (50g) water
1/3 cup (30g) unsweetened cocoa powder
1. Soften the gelatin in cold water for 15 minutes.
2. Boil the rest of the ingredients and cook an additional 3 minutes after boiling.
3. Add gelatin to the chocolate mixture. Mix well.
4. Let cool while checking the texture regularly. As soon as the mixture is smooth and coats a spoon well (it is starting to gelify), use immediately.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Mele Kalikimaka
Monday, December 22, 2008
Pancetta and Cinnamon Waffles
Pancetta and Cinnamon Waffles
(From Giada De Laurentiis)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
4 ounces pancetta, diced
1 package Trader Joe's waffle mix
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup maple syrup
Special Equipment: a Belgian or conventional waffle iron
Preheat and lightly grease a waffle iron.
Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook until brown and crispy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the pancetta to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, combine waffle mix, eggs, vegetable oil, water, cinnamon, and salt. Using a whisk, blend the ingredients together until smooth. Stir in the pancetta. Pour the batter, using the amount recommended by the waffle iron manufacturer's instructions, into the preheated waffle iron. Cook waffles for 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown.
Place waffles onto serving plates. Sprinkle with the chopped walnuts and drizzle with maple syrup. Serve immediately.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Caramelized-Apple and Pecan Pie
Scroll down to the bottom to see a picture of Raul's best turkey ever. Let me tell you, watching him lug that 25 pound turkey to the car from the farmers market was not a pretty site, but apparently it was one of the stars of the Thanksgiving dinner.
Caramelized-Apple and Pecan Pie
(From Bon Appetit November 2008 via Epicurious)
Crust:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
5 tablespoons (about) chilled orange juice, divided
1 large egg white, beaten to blend
Apples:
1 1/2 cups (packed) golden brown sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, diced
3 Albemarle Pippin apples or Fuji apples (1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds), peeled,quartered, cored
Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1/4 cup light corn syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup coursely chopped pecans, toasted
For crust:
Blend flour, sugar, and salt in processor 5 seconds. Add butter. Using on/off turns, blend until butter is reduced to small pea-size pieces. Add 4 tablespoons orange juice. Blend, using on/off turns, until moist clumps form, adding more juice by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 1 hour. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
Roll out dough on floured surface to 14-inch round. Transfer to 10-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Cut off all but 1/2 inch of dough overhang. Fold dough edge under and crimp decoratively, forming high-standing rim. Freeze 10 minutes. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate crust.
Brush inside of crust with enough beaten egg white to coat.
For apples:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk brown sugar and butter in large ovenproof skillet over medium heat until butter melts, sugar dissolves, and mixture comes to boil. Boil 1 minute, whisking constantly. Remove from heat. Arrange apples, rounded side down, in syrup. Bake 15 minutes; turn over. Bake until just tender, about 20 minutes longer. Transfer apples to paper towels to cool slightly. Whisk syrup in skillet until smooth. Cool slightly and reserve. Maintain oven temperature.
For filling:
Mix sugar, flour, and salt in small bowl. Place eggs in medium bowl. Gradually whisk in reserved syrup from apples. Add corn syrup, vanilla, and sugar mixture; whisk until smooth. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into crust. Arrange apples, rounded side up, atop filling.
Bake pie until filling is set in center, covering edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover loosely with foil and let stand at room temperature.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Almond Brittle
Wooohooo!!! As of yesterday at 4PM-ish I have the next two weeks off! Besides my trip, I am planning on spending a lot of time in the kitchen. However, my posting for the next week or so will be light due to the fact that I won't really be around until after Christmas (besides this weekend). I did manage to squeeze in time to make this candy which I plan on sharing with my friends in the spirit of the holiday. Remember back when I stated that I suck at candy making? Well, I attempted that pepita brittle four times before I decided to call it a day and declare the brittle the winner. My best attempt looked like this:
This was so annoying and I blame the recipe because even the switch to refined sugar (from organic) yielded these results. After all the failed attempts and a waste of a whole lotta sugar, I wasn't so sure I wanted to attempt another candy recipe so soon, but I had pretty decent results when I made last month's caramel, that I decided to give it another go. This time, the recipe only took me two tries. The first time, I toasted the almonds first, but realized that they toasted a lot when I added them to the sugar mixture. The first batch came out tasting good, but slightly burned. I immediately tried it again with un-toasted almonds and thought this was the better tasting of the two. I think the only change I would make next time is to add a little bit of salt to the mix to give it another dimension.
I borrowed this recipe from the Daring Bakers' July Challenge who got it from Carole Walter.
Almond Praline
(Adapted from Carole Walter)
1 cup slivered raw almonds
2/3 cup Sugar
Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly butter.
Put the sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet. Heat on low flame for about 10-20 min until the sugar melts around the edges. Do not stir the sugar. Swirl the pan if necessary to prevent the melted sugar from burning. Brush the sides of the pan with water to remove sugar crystals. If the sugar in the center does not melt, stir briefly.
When the sugar is completely melted and caramel in color, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts with a wooden spoon and separate the clusters. Return to low heat and stir to coat the nuts on all sides. Cook until the mixture starts to bubble. **Remember – extremely hot mixture.** Then onto the parchment lined sheet and spread as evenly as possible. As it cools, it will harden into brittle. Break the candied nuts into pieces.
And the Winner Is...
Here are your random numbers:
8
Timestamp: 2008-12-20 08:06:12 UTC
Friday, December 19, 2008
Last Chance!!!
Images from Delight.com
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Slow Roasted Tomato Soup
This is a really simple soup. I decided to go vegan on this one and use some home made vegetable stock. I thought I would jazz it up (and make it a less puke-y color) by garnishing it with some fried garlic (garlic lightly fried in olive oil until golden, season with salt...save the oil), and some fresh parsley and leaving a couple of whole tomato slices in there (if you squint, you can see them). Since my stock and tomatoes were already pretty well seasoned, I went very light on the seasonings in the soup. I kind of just threw things in that I needed to use up. This was such a tasty soup and so light. Of course, I really like a lot of my food to have a little kick so the red pepper flakes added a nice background heat. I was pleasantly surprised by the garlic chips on top which is something I have never tried before and thought I had kind of failed at, but they were delish. Cold, rainy night...warm soup...does it get better?
You only have two more days to enter my Christmas giveaway and receive a discount on Delight.com! Better hop to it!
Slow Roasted Tomato Soup
(By Esi)
10 slow roasted tomatoes
1 medium onion, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 shallot, minced
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 or 2 sprigs fresh thyme
Dash of dried oregano
Dash of dried red pepper flakes
2 cups vegetable stock
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Garlic chips for garnish (optional)
Flat-leaf parsley for garnish (optional)
In a large stock pot, heat some olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and shallot and saute until translucent, about ten minutes. Add the garlic and thyme sprigs and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, if they are frozen, cook until heated through.
Add the vegetable stock. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until all of the flavors have come together.
Remove the sprigs of thyme. Carefully ladle the soup into a blender and pulse until blended, leaving some chunks if desired. Serve warm, topped with fried garlic and/or parsley if desired.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Pesto Pizza with Shrimp
Don't you want some cute plates for Christmas? Find out how to win them, here! There's also a 15% discount for the amazing site, Delight.com.
For the pesto:
1 1/2 cups fresh basil
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 teaspoon salt
For the pizza:
1 ball pizza dough
Shredded mozzarella
Shrimp
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Pesto
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees
In a skillet, heat olive oil and add the shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and cook the shrimp, just until they are pink on the outside (they will continue to cook in the oven). Set aside to cool slightly.
To make the pizza, spread a thin layer of pesto over the dough. Top with mozzarella and then top with the shrimp. Brush the edges of the dough with olive oil. Bake 8-10 minutes until the cheese is melted and the edges are browned.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Parmesan Thyme Crackers
Don't forget about that giveaway and the discount on Delight.com!
Parmesan Thyme Crackers
(From Ina Garten)
Monday, December 15, 2008
Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette in Rosemary Pie Crust
Check out the Menu for Hope V on Chez Pim. Find out what you can do to help people less fortunate...then...
Don't forget to enter the giveaway!!
Click here for the galette recipe. The dough recipe is below.
Rosemary Pie Crust
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
2 tablepoons-1/4 cup, ice water
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
Kosher salt
To make the dough:
For the pastry, mix the flour, salt, and rosemary in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. With the motor running, add the ice water; process only enough to moisten the dough and have it just come together. Dump the dough out onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to one hour.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter
You know what else? This would look really good on Christmas plates! Click here to find out how to win a set.
Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter
(Adapted from Cookthink)
1/2 cup pumpkin purée
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large egg yolk
6 tablespoons whole wheat flour
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
5-8 fresh sage leaves (depending on the size, mine were small)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan
Stir the egg yolk into the pumpkin. Add the whole wheat flour, then half the all-purpose flour and stir just to combine the flour with the pumpkin. Add the remaining flour a little at a time, stirring, until the mixture forms a dough.
On a floured work surface, knead the dough two or three times to firm it up, taking care not to overwork the dough or the gnocchi will be tough. Separate the dough into four pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
Again, on a floured work surface, roll each ball out into a long dowel shape, about an inch in diameter. With a fork or pastry knife, cut the dowel into 2-inch pieces. Roll each piece across the back of a fork with your thumb to form a small indentation on one side and ridges on the other. Toss the finished gnocchi with flour.
Bring a large pot of water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil over medium-high heat.
Meanwhile, prepare the sauce: melt the remaining butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter melts, add the sage leaves and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Shake the pan around until the butter lightly browns, then remove the pan from the heat so the butter doesn't burn.
Add the gnocchi to the boiling water and cook them until they rise to the surface, 4-6 minutes per batch. Put the butter back over medium heat if it has cooled. Drain and add the gnocchi to the skillet with the butter and sage and toss to coat. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Vanilla Bean Scones
Have you entered the giveaway yet? Click here for the deets.
Vanilla Bean Scones
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons vanilla sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
6 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
Seeds from 1 vanilla bean
1 large egg
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream, plus extra for brushing
Vanilla sugar for sprinkling
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and work it into the flour mixture with a pastry blender until it resembles a coarse meal.
In a small bowl, beat the egg, vanilla beans, and the cream together with a fork. Add to the flour mixture and mix with your hands or a wooden spoon until the dough just comes together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat the dough into a round, about 1-inch thick. Cut into equal sized wedges. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops of the scones with cream and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Bake until golden, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Kale Salad with Parmesan and Lemon
Oh! Visit Tony's blog to see you know who on Ellen the other day!
Kale Salad with Parmesan and Lemon
(Adapted from The Kitchn)
1 small bunch kale, washed, trimmed of stems, and leaves sliced into thin ribbons
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, shaved
1 lemon, juiced
1-2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Pomegranate seeds for garnish (optional)
Toss the kale with the cheese. In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice and olive oil and pour over the salad. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Let the salad sit at room temperature for an hour before serving. Top with pomegranate seeds before serving, if desired.
All I Want for Christmas...Is a GIVEAWAY!
Well, the nice people at Delight.com are offering my readers a 15% discount. Just enter the code: DishingDelight (case sensitive) at checkout. They are also letting me host my first giveaway! One lucky reader will win a set of the White Christmas Vintage Plates so you can have your Christmas dinner in style. All you have to do to be eligible is leave a comment about one or two things you would like to give and/or get this year. Giveaway is open to US residents only, and comments must be received by midnight PST, December 20th to be eligible. Good luck!
Images from Delight.com
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Orzo with Bacon and a Fried Egg
Orzo with Bacon and a Fried Egg
(Slightly Adapted from Mang0 & Tomato)
Orzo
3 slices of bacon, chopped
1/2 onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 egg
Cilantro, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orzo and cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large pan, cook the bacon until almost crispy. Add the onions and garlic to the pan with bacon and cook until the onion and garlic are tender. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Add the cooked orzo to the bacon mixture and toss until everything is combined. While the orzo mixture is combining, lightly fry and egg until the whites have set and the yolk is slightly runny.
Serve with the egg on top of a bed of the orzo mixture and garnish with cilantro.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
POM-Tastic!
Last week, I got the idea to make a pomegranate granita. I mean, I have done everything else with pomegranates, why not a boozy granita as well? You get your antioxidants and your buzz in one swoop :) I used quite a bit of vodka in this recipe. If you're not down with that amount, or want to make this a virgin granita (which will freeze better), just replace the vodka with water.
I recently came across this pomegranate jam on TasteSpotting that I knew I would have to try. We often talk about preserving our summer harvest, but clearly, I love pomegranates so much, I thought it would be an excellent way to preserve some of the winter harvest. Well, unfortunately for me, the recipe didn't go exactly as planned. I blame my roommate who was hovering around my space while I was trying to recreate culinary genius. Whatever the problem, before I knew it, I had created pomegranate caramel instead of pomegranate jam. Fortunately for me, it was really good!
(When I still thought it could pass for jam)
(The resulting caramel candy)
Pomegranate Bellini
Proseco
Pomegranate juice
Pomegranate seeds
Fill a glass with proseco. Add a splash of pomegranate juice and top with pomegranate seeds.
Pomegranate Granita
1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
3/4 cup vodka
1/4 cup water
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
Whisk together all of the ingredients in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Pour into an 8x8 baking dish and place in the freezer. Chill for at least 4 hours, scraping the top every hour. Can be done overnight.
To serve, layer a glass alternately with pomegranate arils, granita, and then top with more arils. Serve immediately.
Pomegranate Carmel Candy
1 3/4 cups pomegranate juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
Combine pomegranate juice and sugar in a large pot over moderate heat. Stir frequently until the sugar dissolves, turn the heat to medium high and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Skim off the pink foam as necessary.
Add the pomegranate seeds and lemon juice and cook for another 30 minutes.
Check for consistency by dropping a spoonful of candy on a chilled plate. When you tilt the plate, if it stays in a mound and not run, the candy is done. Alternately, you can cook the mixture until dark amber in color.
Pour into an 9-inch baking dish lined with greased aluminium foil. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Use a pizza cutter to cut the candy into pieces. Alternately, you can break the candy into pieces once it has completely cooled.