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...

According to the Random Integer Generator, Laurie from That's Not What the Recipe Says is the winner of the Christmas plate giveaway. Congratulations Laurie!! Please email me your address [dishingupdelights AT gmail DOT com] so we can get you your plates. Thanks to all who entered I hope you have a wonderful and happy Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year, and whatever else you celebrate!! I hope to do another giveaway soon :)

Here are your random numbers:

8

Timestamp: 2008-12-20 08:06:12 UTC

Last Chance!!!

Ok ya'll...today's the last chance to enter my holiday giveaway and/or get a 15% discount on Delight.com. What are you waiting for? Entries must be received by midnight tonight and it's open to US residents only so you better get on it!!! Happy Holidays!!!

Images from Delight.com

Slow Roasted Tomato Soup

Weird things are going on in Southern California. The heavens have opened and rain is pouring down. Cold temperatures have hit and snow has hit abnormal levels. While a trip to the farmers market brings the normal fall/winter foods of root vegetables, winter squash, and wonderful greens, there are also still tons of berries, asparagus, and other foods that people in say, Illinois only see in the middle of summer (think, figs). This time of year tends to be a time of excess and I am no exception. I am just feeling stuffed full of things that I don't normally eat. For example, yesterday, my friend and I made plans to have a long, boozy lunch at Saddle Ranch. While the food at Saddle Ranch is nothing special (besides GINORMOUS portions), the bottomless mimosas and bloody marys for ten bucks are nothing to laugh at. My friend stood me up for TV star drama, but I ended up eating way too much of my bland (4 egg!!) omelet and having several mimosas on my own. By the time I got home, my body was begging me...pleading with me to please be nicer to it. I am trying not to cook too many things before I leave for Hawaii in five days, but I still have to get through the next few days and weekend. A quick browse through my freezer led me to a rather large bag of slow roasted tomatoes. As I mentioned, we still have berries and asparagus at our farmers market, but tomatoes are one of things that have disappeared almost completely. I am so glad I thought to buy a bunch of them every week when they were in season and put them through the delicious slow roasting process.

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.

Pesto Pizza with Shrimp

I still have pizza dough left from my October Daring Bakers! I also had pesto left from when I made pesto pizzas at Halloween. I knew I wanted to do another pesto pizza and I thought shrimp would be a nice topping this time. This was delicious and fast since I already had everything ready. This was so good that instead of saving some for my work lunch the next day, I ate the entire pizza in one sitting. I KNOW!! Little miss piggy! It was that good though. Clearly from my picture (and all my other pizza recipe pictures), I am incapable of rolling a pizza dough into a round shape. I have come to enjoy the look of the misshapen pizza though. Oh, and I am still looking for help on how to create an "About Me" tab, separate from my Blogger profile. Any and all help is appreciated!

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.

Parmesan Thyme Crackers

I feel like every food blogger who has picked up Ina Garten's new book has made this recipe. Well of course I had to jump on the bandwagon! Over the weekend, I went to a (very long) birthday party and I made these crackers to add to the munchies table. I also made the POM Cheesecake, but I was a little less successful with the topping which was a little runny and leaked on me in the car ride over. The only other crackers I have made are the ones I did for my first Daring Bakers challenge and this was a completely different cracker. They are buttery and flavorful and sooooo good! I mean, this is just getting ridiculous. Does Ina ever make a bad recipe? These are really simple too and I am sure extra dough freezes well so go ahead and make a double batch! Oh, random question, but if any of you have Blogger expertise and can tell me how to make an "About Me" section, I will love you to pieces! And PS, did you notice that those chicks on The Hills went to Lemonade on last night's ep, and they went to Palihouse where I had my birthday...yes, I am still watching The Hills, please don't judge. The "reality" may be laughable, but at least they have good taste in lunch and drink spots!

Don't forget about that giveaway and the discount on Delight.com!

Parmesan Thyme Crackers
(From Ina Garten)

1 stick butter at room temperature

4 ounces grated Parmesan

1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/4 cup flour

With an electric mixer, cream the butter for 1 minute. The mixer should be on low speed as you add the cheese, thyme, salt and pepper. Once combined, add the flour and continue to mix until the dough is in large crumbles, should take about 1 minute more. You can add 1 teaspoon of water if it's too dry.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and press it into a smooth ball. Roll into a 9" log and wrap the log in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 4 days.

Oven preheated to 350. Cut the log into 3/8" rounds with a sharp knife and place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 22 minutes until lightly golden brown. Cool on racks and serve.

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette in Rosemary Pie Crust

To say I was a waste of space yesterday would be putting it lightly. Sure, I made it to the farmers market and Trader Joe's, but then I came home and watched three episodes of Top Chef while wrapped in two sweaters wearing my Ugg scuffs. I was starving all day and seriously thought about walking over to Chaya to pick up a burger, but guilt and my low bank balance got the better of me. I came across this recipe because several food bloggers had been making it, so I decided to give it a shot and make it my afternoon project. I recently made another round of rosemary pie dough so I used that instead of the written pastry crust, but otherwise, I followed this recipe exactly. It is insanely delicious. I mean, how can you go wrong with sweet caramelized onions, butternut squash and cheese?! There was also a nice kick from the cayenne pepper (which instead of stirring into the onions, I just tossed with the butterut squash mixture because in true to me form, I didn't read the directions all the way through). Even with the pre-made pie dough, this recipe requires a bit of time, so it's best to save it for a weekend project, but seriously, you should try it. Can you believe there is only a little over a week left until Christmas?? I am definitely looking forward to an easy work week and then two weeks off!!

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.

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Sage Butter

I planned to make this dish several weeks ago, but other things kept coming up that I wanted to try instead. However, I really want to make some space in my freezer and I had just enough pumpkin to make this. I have never made my own pasta before, so this was a nice and simple introduction to that world. Now, I want to get a pasta roller and make all sorts of things. As if I need another thing to clutter my odd kitchen. As usual, I made a couple of mistakes, but overall this turned out well. I forgot to add the salt and nutmeg called for in the original recipe to the pumpkin mixture, but I salted the pasta water well enough, that it made up for it. Since I am not the hugest fan of nutmeg, I didn't feel like I was missing anything. Remember that thing I said, about not being all there lately, this was classic, but it ended well. This is a pretty hearty dish so if you're looking for something filling on a cold night, this could definitely fit the bill.

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.

Vanilla Bean Scones

You may be asking yourself (or me) "didn't you just make scones a few weeks ago?". Well, I did, but I love scones and I have been wanting to try this version for a while. I am totally obsessed with those mini vanilla bean scones at Starbucks and even though they are pretty inexpensive (75 cents per scone), I wanted to see if I could at least try to find a way to replicate this recipe if and when Starbucks decides to discontinue those bad boys. I have a bajillion vanilla beans so I thought this would be a good use for one. I based this recipe on the pomegranate cream scones I made a few weeks ago. Instead of doing a vanilla bean icing a la Starbucks, I just brushed the tops of the scones with cream and gave them a pretty liberal sprinkling of vanilla sugar. These turned out really well. I OD'ed a little on the cream in the scone recipe (used a little more than what I wrote) because my dough wasn't coming together. Instead of staying in the lovely triangles I cut them into, the scones looked more like question marks, but the flavor was really similar to the Starbucks version. Also, I don't feel guilty about eating these because I know exactly what went into them. Although, with the few cents I am saving, I may be picking up a Cinnamon Dolce Latte one of these weekends...

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.

Kale Salad with Parmesan and Lemon

I'm so glad I came across this recipe on The Kitchn the other day. I didn't pick up much at the farmers market last weekend, but on an impulse I bought a head of kale. I really want to make kale chips again, but they have now been requested for our New Year's Eve potluck/slumber party so I am saving it until then (really looking forward to that by the way!). This is a really good, easy recipe to make if you're having a dinner party and want a nice light starter. Just make this first, and then let it sit for a while to let the flavors come together while you get everything else going. Of course this recipe didn't call for pomegranate seeds, but I thought the contrast of colors looked pretty in the picture. Looks like Christmas, huh? I didn't use all of the dressing that I made, but I like this kind of dressing with spinach a lot so that's what I used the leftovers for. I hope you have a wonderful weekend full of holiday parties and cheer and don't forget to enter my giveaway!

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.