Brown Butter Pumpkin Layer Cake

When the Fine Cooking arrived last month I took one look at the cover and new I had. to. make. that. cake! I finally got around to making it for Rob's 30th Birthday Party and we LOVED it!!! With the cream cheese frosting it makes for a good breakfast (or coffee cake!) too. It does take several hours (2-3 depending on how good you are at multitasking), but we definitely thought it was worth it.

I made it again for Thanksgiving and the mayhem fairies came to help! I pulled the pumpkin puree out of the freezer and made the cake the night before Thanksgiving. I went to bed so proud of myself and smug thinking of the leisurely morning I had created for myself. I should have gotten out of bed one of the first three times I woke up in the middle of the night, but instead I forced myself back to sleep. The fourth time I could distinctly smell my pumpkin cake.....hmmm, it smells good, but I shouldn't still be able to smell it....alas, I had set the cakes on top of the stove to cool overnight and didn't realize one of the burners was still on!!! So, at 5am I made two more cakes and we had a triple layer Brown Butter Pumpkin Layer Cake for dinner. The extra layer was yummy, but this cake it so rich that I would stick with two!


Makes one 9-inch cake
Modified slightly from Fine Cooking, September 2010

Pumpkin Puree
2 tsp. olive oil
1 medium-large Sugar Pie pumpkin, cut in half from stem to bottom and seeded

Cake
3/4 cup butter; more for the pans
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar*
2 large eggs
1/3 cup buttermilk


Topping
3 Tbs. butter
1 1/3 cup pecans
1 cup unsalted, raw, hulled pepitas
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar*
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Tbs. chopped crystallized ginger**


Frosting
1/2 cup butter
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar*
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar


Make the pumpkin purée

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Brush a 9x13-inch baking dish with the oil. Put the pumpkin halves in the dish cut side down and bake until tender when pierced with a fork, about 45 minutes. Let cool. Peel the pumpkin and purée the flesh in a food processor until smooth. You’ll need 1 1/2 cups of the purée for the cake. Refrigerate or freeze any remaining purée for another use.***


Make the cake

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9-inch round cake pans with removable bottoms.

Melt the butter in a heavy-duty 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally until the butter turns a nutty golden-brown, about 4 minutes. Pour into a small bowl and let stand until cool but not set, about 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and cloves. In a large bowl, whisk 1 1/2 cups of the pumpkin purée with the granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and buttermilk until very well blended. With a rubber spatula, stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Gently whisk in the brown butter until completely incorporated. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.

Bake the cakes until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 28 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove the pan sides and cool completely.


Make the topping

Melt the butter in a heavy-duty 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the pecans and pepitas and cook until the pecans brown slightly and the pepitas begin to pop, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle in the brown sugar and salt and stir until the sugar melts and the nuts are glazed, about 2 minutes. Stir in the ginger. Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool in the skillet.****


Make the frosting

Melt the butter in a heavy-duty 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally until the butter turns a nutty golden-brown, about 4 minutes.  Pour into a small bowl and let stand until cool but not set, about 15 minutes.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter, cream cheese, and brown sugar on medium-high speed until light in color and the brown sugar has dissolved, 2 minutes. Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar and continue beating until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.


Assemble the cake

Put one cake layer on a cake plate. Spread 1/2 cup of the frosting on the layer. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the nut mixture over the frosting and top with the second layer. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Arrange the remaining topping in a ring 1-1/2 inches in from the edge of the cake and serve.*****

Notes:


* As usual, I didn't have any brown sugar in the house, so I used regular old white sugar and added some molasses to it (about 1 tablespoon molasses per cup of sugar). 


** The first time I made this cake, I tried to chop the ginger up in the food processor and ended up with a gooey ball of crystalized ginger. The taste was fine, but I don't think that was the intent of the recipe. The second time, I coarsely chopped it with a knife., That worked much better and we really liked getting small bursts of ginger flavor when eating the cake. 


***My pumpkin made enough puree for 3 of these cakes. I froze the extra pumpkin and the second and third (see story above for the Thanksgiving debacle) were much faster to make. 


**** The first time I made this cake, I took the skillet off the stove, set it aside, and didn't even think about it again until I was assembling the cake. A lot of the buttery, sugary goodness of the topping hardened into a brittle and stuck to the skillet. The second time, I learned from my mistakes and let the skillet on the stove. The burner was off, but the heat from the oven below kept the topping from fusing to the pan. 


***** The first time I made the cake, I had extra topping so I covered the sides with it too. The second time, I stuck just to the top. Either way was good, but the second option was a bit less messy! Especially when trying to travel!

Everyday Chocolate Cake

This is a super easy cake recipe to have in your back pocket for a weeknight dinner party. The cake is rich and the sprinkle of confectioners sugar at the end gives it a bit of presentation (without taking any time). I started making this cake last summer and have probably made it half a dozen times already. Now that we're heading into winter (i.e. chocolate season = my favorite!) it will be a "go to" recipe even more.

Everyday Chocolate Cake
modified slightly from Smitten Kitchen who adapted it from Magnolia Bakery At Home
http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/08/everyday-chocolate-cake/
makes 12-14 servings

1/2 cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) butter, softened*
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar**
1 Tablespoon molases**
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 cup milk***
1 Tablespoon yogurt***
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (6 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (2 5/8 ounces) Dutch cocoa powder (see above for a natural cocoa adjustment)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Butter and lightly flour a 9×5x3-inch loaf pan. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat well, then the milk, yogurt, and vanilla. Don’t worry if the batter looks a little uneven. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt together right into your wet ingredients. Stir together with a spoon until well-blended but do not overmix. Scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan on a rack for about 10 to 15 minutes, at which point you can cool it the rest of the way out of the pan. Serve with whipped cream and fresh berries, if you’re feeling fancy.

Notes:

The original recipe calls for the following, but I never never have them on hand, so I decided to write the ingredient list above with the ingredients I actually use. So here are my substitution notes. 


* Unsalted butter. If you use unsalted butter make sure to add 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the flour mixture.


** The original recipe called for 1 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup granulated sugar.


*** The original recipe called for 1 cup buttermilk. Since I never have buttermilk on hand and am forever asking  Rob, "what's that substitution for buttermilk again??" I decided I should write the recipe up the way I always make it, with milk and yogurt. I do have to say that I am quickly falling in love with buttermilk and have started buying it regularly. My problem is that I never use it all before it goes bad. I am going to have to develop a list of buttermilk recipes! 

Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

This is an easy, light, and fresh cake for summer.

Raspberry Buttermilk Cake
modified from Gourmet, June 2009
makes 6 servings

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 cup fresh raspberries (about 5 ounces)

Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle.

Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in vanilla. Add egg and beat well.

At low speed, mix in flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined.

Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter raspberries evenly over top and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar.

Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.

Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10 to 15 minutes more. Invert onto a plate.

Papa Byrne's Pickles

I think in reality this is my grandfather's mother's recipe. You can play with the proportions of garlic and dill to get pickles that taste exactly the way you like them. We prefer our pickles crunchy and eat them within 6 months or a year.

Makes 4 quarts

Cucumbers, preferably whole, but cut up to fit the size of your jars if necessary
3-4 cloves of garlic per quart
3-4 stalks of  dill per quart

Brine:
12 cups water
1 cup salt
2 teaspoons alum
6 cups apple cider vinegar

Clean/sterilize the jars and lids, either in boiling water or the dishwasher.

Combine first three brine ingredients and bring to a boil. Add the vinegar and return to boil.

In the mean time, fill the jars with cucumbers, garlic and dill. When the brine is ready, pour into jars, completely covering the cucumbers, but with approximately 1/4 inch of free space remaining at the top of the jar. Secure the lid and place into a water bath that completely covers all of the jars.

Boil the jars for 5-15 minutes. The less you boil the crunchier your pickles will be, but there seems to be some debate about how long is long enough. I am going to go with 5 minutes this year and aim for crunchy pickles!

Smoked Pork Roast

I love smoked pork product! There's just something about the hunk of pork smoking away in the back yard for an entire afternoon that makes me sooooo happy. This rub recipe came from our friend Jody. I modified it a bit and have used it on chicken, pork, and venison. In fact, one recipe makes enough rub for 2 roasts, or 1 pork roast and two chickens. We made the latter last weekend. Chicken for a backyard dinner party on Saturday night and pork for Sunday dinner with the family. 


We had a hard time getting the chicken fully cooked in the smoker, so we finished it off in the oven at 350F after letting it smoke for abut 4 hours. The pork on the other hand was done in 4 hours. Since the chicken finished in the oven we had a bunch of pan juices left over. Sunday morning I made a vinegar sauce with the chicken pan juices. 


We sliced the pork because it was a bone-in ham roast and it sliced nicely; we served it with the vinegar sauce. This would also make a great pulled pork. 


Rub
2 whole, dried ancho peppers, seeds removed
3 Tablespoons whole black pepper corns
3 Tablespoons course salt
¼ cup paprika* 
3 cloves garlic
1 onion

Blend all ingredients in a food processor. Make sure to start with the peppercorns, ancho peppers, and salt before adding the other ingredients; otherwise you'll end up with a bunch of whole peppercorns and you want them to be ground up.

Rub the paste onto your meat*. If you're cooking chicken, make sure to get the rub under the skin. Smoke the meat until it reaches the correct internal temperature*.

Notes:
*You can use any combination of sweet and/or smoked paprika. Jody likes to use 1/8 cup smoked paprika with 1/8 sweet paprika, but I only had sweet paprika last weekend and that was great too. 


*If you want to make the vinegar sauce below, save out 2 teaspoons of the rub for the sauce. 

Vinegar sauce
1 cup broth/pan juices, cooled and fat removed from the top
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons leftover rub

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer over medium heat for about an hour, or until the sauce reaches a taste/consistency that you like. With vinegar sauces, everyone has a different level of vinegar love :)

Chocolate Lavender Tart

This dessert is so fast to make (honestly about 30 minutes), but it tastes and looks amazing! Fancy dessert coming through!!

For crust
5 ounces vanilla wafers (about 40)
3 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder


For filling
1 cup whipping cream*
2 teaspoons dried lavender blossoms
12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate*
1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon butter


Preheat oven to 350°F.

While butter is melting, grind vanilla wafers in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Add butter, honey, and cocoa powder and mix until well combined. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom (not up sides) of prepared tart pan. Bake until set, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Bring cream and lavender just to boil in small saucepan. Reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes.

Place chocolate in medium saucepan. Strain hot cream mixture into saucepan with chocolate. Stir over medium-low heat just until melted and smooth. Add cocoa powder and remaining 1 tablespoon butter; stir until melted and smooth.

Pour chocolate mixture over crust in tart pan. Chill at least 45 minutes (chocolate will be slightly soft after 45 minutes and firm after 2 hours). Cut into wedges and serve.


Notes:
*Original recipe says the tart can be made 1 day ahead, but I've eaten it three days later and it was still wonderful. Cover and keep chilled. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.


*The first time I made the tart I made this tart with whipping cream and the taste was incredible, but Rob and I thought it was a bit to firm - more like eating a bar of chocolate than a tart. Also, I never have heavy whipping cream on hand, so I tried it a second time with whole milk. Sadly, the tart never set completely. So I am going to keep working the whole milk angle and we'll see if I can't make it work. I'll certainly update the post when I am successful. 


*Original recipe calls for chocolate chips, but I've used both chocolate chips and big chunks of baking chocolate and both have worked well. 

Springtime Quiche

I am pleased to report that almost everything in this early spring quiche was grown in the front yard, purchased at the farmers market (and therefore grown in someone else's yard) or found in the local undisclosed woods. We made it last week and it was an awesome picnic dinner while mushrooming!

Vegetable and Cheddar Quiche
modified from from the cooks garden by Ellen Ecker Ogden
makes 6 servings

Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
12 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/3 cup ice water, as needed

Filling:
1 cup whole milk
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon fresh sage
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
pinch of salt
grind of black pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons butter
10-15 stalks asparagus, finely chopped
1 medium leek, white and light green parts sliced
6-8 morel mushrooms, roughly chopped
10-12 stalks swiss chard, thinly shredded*

Make Crust:

Process flour, sugar and salt in a food processor. Cut the butter in with the pulse function until the mixture resembles coarse corn meal. With the machine running, gradually add water until the dough holds together. Gather the dough into a ball and refrigerate 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375F. Roll crust into an 11- to 12-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch spring form pan (or pie plate). Prick the dough in several places with a fork. Line the dough with aluminum foil and pie beans. Bake until the dough looks set but not browned, about 12 minutes. Remove foil and beans and let crust stand until ready to fill. Sprinkle cheddar cheese evenly onto the bottom of the crust while it is still warm.

Make Filling:

Saute leeks, mushrooms, and asparagus in butter until leeks are soft and just starting to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Steam swiss chard until cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and squeeze as much water as possible from the chard. Add vegetables to the crust, on top of the cheese.

Whisk the milk, eggs, thyme, sage, salt and pepper until combined. Pour mixture over the vegetables in the crust and top with parsley.

Bake until a knife inserted in the center of the filling comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving warm.

*Notes:
I think the absolute key to eating swiss chard is chopping it into thin slices. Before cooking, I shredded the chard into 1/4 inch slices, like when shredding cabbage for cole slaw. And then I cut those slices in half so they weren't too long.

Rhubarb Tart

I love spring and the Farmers Market! Saturday morning was the first Farmers Market of the season and Saturday evening was the Kentucy Derby! What a great day! I bought rhubarb in the morning and took this rhubarb tart to a Derby party in the afternoon. I made this tart what seems like every weekend last spring and so excited to continue the tradition.

We ate the leftovers on Sunday with vanilla ice cream and it was still d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!

Rhubarb Tart with Brown Butter Streusel
serves 8 to 10
modified from Bon Appetit, January 2004

Crust
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 egg yolk
3 to 4 tablespoons chilled whole milk

Streusel
9 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup almonds
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon molases (or 3/4 cup brown sugar)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup all purpose flour

Filling
2 pounds rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices rhubarb (about 4 cups once sliced)
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

For crust:

Blend flour, sugar, and salt in processor. Using on/off turns, cut in butter until coarse meal forms. Add egg yolk and 3 tablespoons cream. Blend until moist clumps form, adding more cream if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball. Press enough dough into 10-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom to make 1/4-inch-thick crust. Pierce crust all over with fork. Chill at least 2 hours*. Bake cold crust at 375F until golden brown, pressing with back of fork if crust bubbles, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 350°F

For streusel:

Grind almonds in a food processor until they are finely chopped. It is ok to have some slightly bigger pieces, but you are looking for a nice almond meal. Cook butter in large skillet over medium heat until golden*, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix in almonds, sugar, and cinnamon. Add flour and stir until moist clumps form. Cool completely. (Crust and streusel can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately and chill.)

For filling:

Toss all ingredients in bowl to blend. Let stand until filling looks moist, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Spoon filling into warm crust. Crumble streusel over. Bake until filling is bubbling and streusel is crisp and brown, about 1 hour. Cool tart on rack 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.


*Notes:
I have to be honest here. I never chill my pie crust for 2 hours. Maybe it would make an absolutely melt my heart pie crust if I did, but honestly I just wouldn't make pie that often if I had to chill the crust for 2 hours. Instead, I stick it in the freezer and give it as long as possible, but usually thats only 15 or 20 minutes.

I have made this tart several times and I think this was the very first time I actually let the butter get brown enough. Just before it gets dark, the butter will start to foam, a lot, whcih makes it hard to see the color. I let it foam for maybe 30 to 60 seconds until, while stirring very quickly with a spatula, I was able to see that the butter was starting to get a deep brown.

St Louis Gooey Butter Cake

So, If there is anyone in the world that does not follow Smitten Kitchen religiously, they are missing out on so many good meals! I made Deb's St Louis Gooey Butter Cake last night for the dinner party and it tastes just as good as it looks. This was an "oh my god, this might be the best thing I've ever tasted and there's not ANY chocolate in it" moment. I will make this again...and again.

We only had 5 for dinner last night and ate half the pan. I also must say that the cake was still very palatable this morning with my cup of coffee. The gooey-ness seems to have lessened, but the taste, oh the taste, is still incredible!

Disclaimer: This is not health food. I haven't figured out the points, but sufficient to say you should not eat more than 1 or 2 pieces. Rob ate 3 last night and thought 4 might make him sick. That being said, I ran out of white flour while making the cake portion and used 1/4 cup whole wheat flour instead. The dessert still tasted amazing. I think next time I will try half white and half whole wheat for the cake and maybe even make it to 100% whole wheat flour. I would stick with white flour for the topping though and I went to the store while the cake was rising and bought more flour.

Here is a link to the original post. You really should go there, she takes some awesome photos.
http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/03/st-louis-gooey-butter-cake/

And here is the recipe with my minor modifications.

St Louis Gooey Butter Cake
makes 24 pieces (which really only serves about 12 people)


For the cake
3 tablespoons milk at room temperature
1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
6 tablespoons butter at room temperature
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

For the topping
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon corn syrup (recipe says light corn syrup, but I only had dark)
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Confectioners’ sugar, for sprinkling.

Make the cake dough: In a small bowl, mix milk with 2 Tablespoons warm water. Add yeast and whisk gently until it dissolves. Mixture should foam slightly.

Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat in the egg. Alternately add flour and the milk mixture, scraping down sides of bowl between each addition. You could switch to a dough hook at this point, but I stuck with the paddle attachment and it worked just fine. Either way, beat the dough on medium speed until it forms a smooth mass and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Press, stretch and nudge dough into a buttered 9-by 13-inch glass baking dish at least 2 inches deep. Cover dish with plastic wrap or clean tea towel, put in a warm place, and allow to rise until doubled, 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Make the gooey topping: Heat oven to 350 degrees. To prepare topping, in a small bowl, whisk corn syrup with 2 tablespoons water and the vanilla. Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy, 5 to 7 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat in the egg. Alternately add flour and corn syrup mixture, scraping down sides of bowl between each addition.

Spoon topping in large dollops over risen cake and use an offset spatula to gently spread it in an even layer. Bake for approximately 30 until the top of the cake is a golden brown and does not jiggle. Cake will rise and fall in waves and have a golden brown top, but will still be liquid in center when done. Allow to cool in pan before sprinkling with confectioners’ sugar for serving.

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

We had a small foods dinner party last night and I tried to recreate this incredible goat cheese and "red" sauce dip I had a couple of weeks ago at a tapas restaurant in Chicago. I thought it was made from tomatoes and red peppers (the color really tipped me off) but unfortunately I didn't pay enough attention to the subtle flavors....this is a good challenge for me!

Same, this was not, but this was a really good and flavorful and versatile sauce that i will definitely make again! I already have lots of ideas about how to use the leftovers. These ideas include: pasta (this sauce was made to be poured over pasta!), grilled zucchini (I can't wait for spring!), couscous with roasted root vegetables, and over polenta. I also want to try thinning it down with some olive oil and vinegar and trying it as a salad dressing. The only thing I will consider playing around with next time is garlic. I love garlic and think this sauce could handle one or two cloves.

The sauce recipe came from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison with a few minor modifications. The dip and other concoctions and toasted pita chips are my own.

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
modified from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, by Deborah Madison
makes about 2 1/2 cups

3 red bell peppers
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, minced
3 Tablespoons chopped basil (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried)
1 teaspoon dried marjoram (or 1 Tablespoon fresh, chopped)
salt
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup crushed tomatoes
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups vegetable broth or water
2 to 3 teaspoons white wine vinegar (optional)
1 Tablespoon butter (optional)

Roast peppers in an oven on broil. Watch closely and remove peppers when skin starts to look loose and parts have turned brown. Run peppers under cold water until cool enough to handle and peel the skin off. Then, coarsely chop the peppers.

Place the olive oil, onions and half the herbs in a medium skillet. Place the skillet on the stove and warm pan on med-high heat. When the oil is warm, add the peppers and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until the onion is soft, about 10 minutes. Add the wine and cook until its syrupy (about 5 minutes), then add the tomatoes, tomato paste and broth. Simmer, covered. for 25 minutes.

Puree the sauce in a food processor (or blender).

This can all be done ahead. At least a few hours ahead of time, but I am guessing it's more like up to a few days ahead of time. I'll let you know as I use the leftovers this week.

The recipe then says: Season to taste with vinegar and butter. Reheat before serving and stir in the remaining herbs at the last minute. I forgot to do both of those steps! But I will try them next time :)

I set the sauce aside and went about making other dishes for dinner. Then about 30 minutes before the guests arrived, I put the sauce in a 6-inch round oven proof dish and placed slices of goat cheese on the top. I baked the sauce in the oven at 350F for about 20 minutes, until the cheese melted slightly and the sauce was bubbling.

In the meantime, I made pita chips. Cut each pita into approximately 8 wedges. Lightly brush them with olive oil and salt (this is optional). Bake in the oven at 350F for 3-4 minutes, then flip the pita chips and bake for another 3-4 minutes or until they are toasted and crunchy.

Scallion Ginger Soup

I came across this incredible broth recipe in the recent issue of Everyday Food and it reinforced my love for Martha Stewart!

Update: Made it again with diced chicken, asparagus, mushrooms, green onions and rice noodles = AWESOME! And took pictures :)

Scallion Ginger Broth
modified from Everyday Food, March 2010
makes 4 cups (2 servings for us)

1 teaspoon oil
4 scallions, white parts halves lengthwise and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces, green parts thinly sliced for garnish
1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into match sticks
1 garlic clove, cut into match sticks
4 cups broth (we used chicken, but you could easily use vegetable broth too)
1 Tablespoon fish sauce

Stir ins*
1 to 2 ounces rice noodles
1 Tablespoon oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 inch piece of ginger, minced
1 pound shrimp**
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
2 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 Tablespoon fresh lime or lemon juice

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high. Add scallion whites, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, until scallions begin to soften, about 3 minutes.

Add broth and fish sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until flavors are blended, at least 5 minutes. Cook shrimp while broth is simmering.

In a large saute pan, heat oil over medium- high heat. Add shrimp, garlic and ginger and saute approximately 3 minutes, until the shrimp is nearly cooked through and has turned slightly pink. Add soy sauce and cook for 1 minute more, until soy sauce has reduce to a glaze. Remove pan from heat and add sesame oil and cilantro. Divide the shrimp mixture amongst the serving bowls and set aside.

Add rice noodles to the broth and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Ladle the soup into the bowls, on top of the shrimp mixture. Squeeze or drizzle lemon or lime juice into the bowl. Garnish with remaining scallions.

Notes:
*This broth was amazingly simple and fresh tasting with a nice bit of spice. You could all a whole myriad of stir ins during the simmering phase of cooking. Suggestions (from both Everyday Food and myself) include: carrots, mushrooms, tofu, thinly sliced beef or pork, shredded chicken, udon noodles, bean sprouts, broccoli. The list could really go on and on!

**We cooked a whole pound of shrimp because that was the size of our defrosting package. You could get away with 1/2 pound for 2 people, or double the broth and serve 4.

Chocolate Molten Cakes

These are one of our favorite birthday "cakes" these days. Easy to prep ahead and then bake when everyone is done with dinner. This allows for about 20 minutes for presents, digestion, etc. 


Modified from The Modern Baker, by Nick Malgieri
makes 7 individual cakes with extra vanilla sauce for later (still exploring the **best** way to use this extra sauce....suggestions welcome!


Creme Anglaise
2 cups whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
5 egg yolks


1. Combine milk, sugar, and vanilla bean in a medium saucepan and whisk to mix. Place over medium heat and bring to a full rolling boil. Meanwhile, set a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and place nearby for later use. 


2. Whisk the egg yolks together in a small bowl. When the milk mixture boils, whisk about 1/3 of the milk mixture into the egg yolks. Return the remaining milk mixture to a boil and, beginning to whisk before pouring, pour the yolk mixture into the boiling liquid. Whisk constantly until the liquid thickens slightly, 10 to 15 seconds, after adding the yolks. It won't be very thick - most of the thickening occurs while its cooling, Remove the pan from the heat, never ceasing to whisk. Quickly strain the sauce into the prepared bowl. Remove the strainer and whisk the sauce for about 30 seconds to cool it down to the eggs won't scramble. Cover the bowl and refrigerate. Since I am usually traveling, I pour the sauce into a quart jar and refrigerate. 


Cakes
5 ounces 70% bittersweet chocolate, cut into 1/4 inch pieces*
10 Tablespoons butter (1 1/4 sticks), cut into 10 pieces
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour


Seven 4-ounce molds, buttered and floured
(We have smooth glass bowls that we use for this, but you could also use porcelain ramekins or aluminum foil molds.)


1. Half-fill a saucepan with water and bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat. Combine the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and place over the hot water. Stir occasionally until melted.


2. Whisk the eggs and egg wolks together by hand in the bowl of an electric mixer. Whisk in the sugar, then the butter and chocolate mixture. Place the bowl on the mixer and mix on medium speed with the paddle for 1 minute. Remove the bowl and whisk in the flour by hand. 


3. Fill the molds to within 1/4 inch of the top. This is the best point to travel with the cakes. I've tried bringing the batter in the mixing bowl and filling the molds later and I don't think it works as well. We place all of the bowls in a 9 X 13 baking pan for travel. Although, without the mixing bowl you wont get this...


















4. Bake at 400F for 10-12 minutes. Meanwhile, pour the creme anglaise onto plates. 

5. At 10 minutes, check to see if center of the cake is still liquid. The cakes are done when the center has just set. In my oven this usually takes about 20 minutes. When you think they are done, unmold one cake to test. If they are done, remove from the over and unmold quickly onto plates. 


EAT IMMEDIATELY! Like you'll be able to resist for even a few minutes....

Butterscotch Pudding

I was craving butterscotch last weekend and came across this butterscotch pudding recipe. I used a dusty bottle Kentucky Bourbon I found in the liquor cupboard and I don't think my brown sugar was dark enough, so I will continue to improve upon this one....but it was still really good!

From David Lebovitz
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2008/02/a_butterscotch.html
Serves 4 to 6

4 tablespoons butter
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2½ cups whole milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons whiskey or scotch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan. Add the dark brown sugar and salt, then stir until the sugar is well-moistened. Remove from heat.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch with about 1/4 cup of the milk until smooth (there should be no visible pills of cornstarch), then whisk in the eggs.

3. Gradually pour the remaining milk into the melted brown sugar, whisking constantly, then whisk in the cornstarch mixture as well.

4. Return the pan to the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently. Once it begins to bubble, reduce the heat to a low simmer and continue to cook for one minute, whisking non-stop, until the pudding thickens to the consistency of hot fudge sauce.

5. Remove from heat and stir in the whiskey and vanilla.

6. Chill thoroughly before serving.

Venison Pot Roast

I am vowing to make pot roast at least once a month from here on out...well, at least in the winter months. This hit the spot tonight!!

Pot Roast with Winter Root Vegetables
modified from Bon Appetit, February 2008
Serves 8 to 10

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon (packed) brown sugar
3 to 4 pounds venison, in large pieces (or one big roast)
2 Tablespoons bacon grease
2 cups dry red wine
4 large onions, quartered
2 shallots, peeled
12 garlic cloves, peeled
8 large carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
5 medium parsnips, cut into 1-inch pieces
5 stalks celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
10 sprigs fresh thyme, or other herb

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix first 6 ingredients in small bowl. Rub spice blend all over venison.

Melt bacon grease in a dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add venison and cook until browned on all sides, about 12 minutes total. Transfer venison to a plate. Add red wine and remaining thyme to pot; bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Boil until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Place venison back in the pot. Add onions, shallots, garlic, carrots, parsnips, celery on top of the venison.

Cover pot, transfer to oven, and roast approximately 2.5 hours. Check the pot after 1 hour and stir. Add water by 1/4 cupfuls if dry. Check the pot after 2 hours to make sure there is still enough cooking liquid.

During the last 30 minutes, make mashed potatoes.

The pot roast tasted amazing, but is lacking color and crunch. Next time I will to roast some carrots and parsnips on a baking sheet during the last 30 minutes, so they are a bit crispy, and add them to the serving platter.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup

I've had this soup stuck in my head for weeks, but lost the recipe. I re-found it in an old issue of Fine Cooking on Saturday morning and got straight to making it.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup
modified from Fine Cooking, January 2009
Makes 14 cups, about 8 servings

2 T oil
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
6 cups cooked black beans*
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3/4 tsp salt


Saute the onions over medium heat in a large pot. Cook until starting to soften and brown slightly, about 8 minutes.

Add the garlic, coriander, cumin, pepper, and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 second.

Add the broth beans, sweet potatoes, salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until sweet potatoes are tender, at least 15 minutes. I simmered for at least 30 minutes, it might have been closer to an hour because I really wanted the flavors to blend.

Puree 3/4 of the soup, leaving the remainder chunky. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Served topped with a dollop of yogurt and a slice of lime**.

Notes:
* 6 cups of cooked black beans = four 15.5 oz cans OR 2 cups dried beans
** The original recipe called for plain yogurt, but I used a toasted cumin yogurt recipe from smitten kitchen and it was awesome! See the original recipe at
http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/01/black-bean-soup-toasted-cumin-seed-crema/
Take 1 Tablespoon cumin seeds and toast them in a dry pan on the stove for about 60 seconds until they start to brown. Grind them up and mix them into 1 cup yogurt, sour cream or creme fraiche. I used greek yogurt.
** I didn't have any limes, but I bet a squeeze of fresh lime juice would be really good. Rob was wishing for more spice, but I really like that you can taste the sweet potato. I suppose you could add some cayenne pepper or jalapenos.

Mango Pineapple Tart

I went to a wonderful dinner party last night. The host was serving Wahoo (tropical fish) and lobster and asked me to bring dessert. It's Michigan and January and we're eating a tropical feast!

I also discovered this really great tart crust and a quick and easy way to make custard! The whole vanilla bean is key! 

Mango Pineapple Tart

modified from Bon Appetit, June 2003

serves 12

Crust

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup toasted almonds

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 egg yolk

1 teaspoon (or more) water

1/2 teaspoon almond extract*

Filling

2 cups whole milk

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

6 egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

3 1/2 teaspoons rum*

Assembly

1/4 pineapple, halved lengthwise, cored, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices

1 mango, peeled, halved, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices

1/4 cup fruit preserves, melted*

Make the filling:
Heat milk in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Bring to simmer.

Whisk yolks, sugar, and cornstarch in large bowl to blend.

Gradually whisk hot milk mixture into yolk mixture; return to saucepan and whisk over medium heat until thick and beginning to bubble, about 8 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl. Cool slightly; mix in rum. Press plastic wrap onto surface of custard. Chill until cold. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.)

Make the crust:

Chop nuts in a processor until they are finely ground. Add flour, sugar, and salt and mix until well blended. Using on/off turns, cut in butter until pea-size pieces form. Add yolk, 1 teaspoon water, and extract; using on/off turns, blend just until moist clumps form, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill.

*Roll out dough between 2 lightly floured sheets of waxed paper to 1/4-inch thickness. Peel off top sheet of paper. Invert crust into 11-inch round tart pan with removable bottom. Peel off paper; press dough into pan. Trim edges. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake crust until golden, about 25 minutes. Cool. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap and store at room temperature.)

Assemble the tart:
Remove vanilla bean from filling. Whisk filling just until smooth; spread in crust. Arrange pineapple and mango slices in concentric circles atop filling. Brush fruit with preserves. (Tart can be assembled 3 hours ahead. Refrigerate.)

***Notes:
1. The original recipe called for macadamia nuts, but lots of the reviewers on epicurious complained that your couldn't taste the macadamia nuts over the almond extract. I didn't have any macadamia nuts on hand anyways, so I used almonds. The almond extract taste is pretty strong and I think we'll try the crust next time without it.

2. The original recipe called for dark run, but all I had was the clear stuff, so I used that and it worked out just fine.

3. The original recipe called for apricot preserves. I used strawberry and it tasted great. I imagine you could use whatever preserves you have on hand.

4. Alternatively, you could just press the dough into your tart pan. I did it this way and my only complaint is that the corners of the crust were too thick. But the crust is really good, so the thick crust isn't a deal breaker.