Decorative Shortbread Cookies

Going through our DVR on Saturday, I came across a Barefoot Contessa episode in which Ina invites her friend over to show her how to make decorative shortbread cookies. Reminiscent of my mother's Halloween Cookies, I decided to give it a go. The cookies were a lot of work. Not because it took a long time to make the dough or icing (it was super fast) but because I made the whole recipe (I would suggest cutting the recipe in half unless you want 40 iced cookies hanging around). Decorating a few different types of cookies can be difficult with all the food color mixing and prep work that you have to do so I would suggest picking one shape and sticking to it, at least for your first time. Below is the recipe as I wrote it.

Decorative Shortbread Cookies:

For the Dough:

Mix together:
24 ounces all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt

Then cream together:
3/4 lb butter
2 1/4c sugar
Add 3 large eggs
1tbs vanilla extract

Add in dry ingredients

Wrap in plastic and chill until firm
Roll to 1/8th of inch thick
Bake 350 degrees for 8-12 min

Makes 35-40 cookies

Icing for outlining (royal icing):
1 lb confectionary sugar
3 large egg whites
1/2 tsp lemon juice
Beat with paddle on medium speed until thick.

To make flood icing:
1/4 cup of royal icing
1tsp egg white
Consistency of maple syrup. Add more egg white if need be.

First outline the cookie using the royal icing in the same color that you will use for the whole body of the cookie. Then use a brush (#12 artist brush works best) to push the flood icing around on the cookie and cover up to the edges. Let dry (maybe overnight or a few hours) and then you can use more royal icing in different colors to make the details.

Kick*ss Cupcakes!

The other day we were walking to a friend's for dinner and couldn't think of anyplace down Columbus to pick up a little something for dessert. As luck would have it, right across from Mistral and ClubCafe was the Kick*ass Cupcake foodtruck!

Somehow we'd managed to never indulge in Boston's new obsession with foodtrucks, and it was right about time! There was a nice array to choose from, and everything was perfectly clear on the big menu on the side of truck. We decided on a "green monster", crème brûlée, cookie dough, and fluffernutter, with the "green monster" being a chocolate cupcake with a beer ganache center topped with Sam Adams Cream Stout frosting and cocoa nibs. How bad could that be?

A few hours later after finishing up dinner we were ready to dive in! Despite it being fairly late in the day, the cupcakes were still nice and fresh-tasting, not at all dry. The crème brûlée cupcake was a vanilla cupcake with a pastry cream center covered with caramelized raw sugar and a dollop of fresh whipped cream – really tasty and actually kind of light!

The cookie dough cupcake consisted of chocolate chip cookie dough in a vanilla cupcake and vanilla buttercream frosting with chocolate sauce. While good, I think it could have used a much bigger hunk of cookie dough, as I could hardly taste any. Nonetheless it was quickly devoured.

The green monster cupcake’s best part was the frosting – so rich and creamy and with just a hint of that Sam Adams cream stout taste! I’m not the biggest fan of chocolate cupcakes, but somehow with the rich beer ganache center I was able to choke it down :-)

Lastly, and actually everyone’s least favorite, was the fluffernutter, modeled after those horrifyingly unhealthy sandwiches of our youth. The chocolate cupcake with sweet peanut butter center and marshmallow frosting drizzled with Fluff could have used just a bit more of all of those things.


At $3 a cupcake, the tasty treats are a little pricey, but I'd certainly have another go and try some of their other fun concoctions like the Mojito, Cinnamon Chai Pecan Sticky, or the Ginger Peach Bellini cupcakes! There are certainly worse things than being able to pick up a delicious cupcake while simply strolling around the city :-) I’d be curious what their permanent spot on Davis Square is like!

Pigna di Pasqua

It's been a tradition in my family since the 1800's to make pigna for Easter. Most of the time, when you hear of Italian pigna, it's a bread with yeast in it. However, when my family makes it, it's a type of cookie, very similar to Greek koulourakia. I'm not quite sure why ours is different, perhaps there is Greek influence in Southern Italy that carried over?

The recipe is quick and easy to make. After making the dough, we braid it into the shape of a crown of thorns and put colored eggs around it (to symbolize life after death). Then we make little cookies to go around the crown in shapes like fish or infinity signs or other shapes that have religious significance. It's a simple cookie, not too sweet and good as a quick bite at breakfast or even to dip into your after dinner coffee. Below is the recipe I use from my Grandmother. It should make 2 crown of thorns and a few trays of cookies, you can half it for one family:

Pigna Di Pasqua

2 ½ lbs flour
2 cups sugar
7/8 cup oil
4 rounded Tbsp baking powder
¼ glass milk
8 eggs

Mix eggs, milk & sugar. Add oil slowly & beat very well. Add flour & knead. Shape and brush with an egg wash. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until lightly brown

Use raw eggs to decorate ---making a fish ( several individual sized ones) or crown of thorns (usually three eggs spaced around it).

Mamie Eisenhower's Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Every year around this time, it seems I am given or happen upon this recipe. Supposedly, it is Mamie Eisenhower's very own Pumpkin Chiffon Pie. After reading the ingredients and directions, I decided this year, I would give it a shot. It looked extremely easy and hey, if it was good enough for the President, it's good enough for me. It only took a few minutes to whip up (I confess I used frozen pie-crust) and I let it chill for a few hours before diving in. To my delight it was great! Below is the recipe in case you need something quick and easy for this Thanksgiving or for a Fall dinner.

Mamie Eisenhower's Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Ingredients:

1 env. plain gelatin

4 tbsp. cold water

1 cup brown sugar

3 eggs, separated

1/2 cup milk

1-1/2 cups canned pumpkin

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/4 tsp. allspice

3 tbsp. granulated sugar

1 baked 9" Pie Shell

Directions:

Soak gelatin in water for about 5 minutes. Combine brown sugar, egg yolks, milk, pumpkin, salt and spices in top of double boiler. Cook over boiling water, stirring until thickened. Remove from fire. Add gelatin, stir until thoroughly dissolved. Chill until mixture begins to set. Beat egg whites quite stiff; gradually add sugar while continuing to beat until stiff. Fold the meringue into pumpkin mixture. Pour into baked pie shell and chill until set.

Macaron Party

Earlier this year, we had a macaron-making party. It was our first time, and we were a little nervous; but, in the end, we had some fantastic little pastries. It is definitely worth the effort. Here are a few snapshots.

Macaron Party

Cookie Swap!

Recently, we went to our first cookie swap. It was fantastic, and I hope it becomes a holiday ritual.

Unfortunately, I don't have all of the recipes to share, but I do have a photo of some of the goodies we got to bring home. We took P's now-famous biscotti (12 o'clock on the photo below), and we were glad to know that recipe #5 is a keeper.

Below, you can see what came home with (starting at 1 o'clock and going clockwise) "comic fortune" cookies, chocolate "crackles," chocolate-covered mint cookies, macarons, peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies, fig pinwheels, and orange/ginger slice-'n'-bake cookies (unfortunately, you're not able to see the latter). The event was a great success, and I think the bar has already been set very high, so we'll have to start getting ready for next year now. ;-)

I am going to try my hardest to get the recipes for the macarons and the fig pinwheels so they can become part of my own cookie repertoire! ;-)

Ginger Pear Upside-Down Cake

I had some pears from my parents' trees in Vermont, and I wanted to do something special with them. I found a recipe for a Ginger Pear Upside-Down Cake and decided to give it a whirl. It was good and pretty nice-looking and easy to make. I think I would add a bit more spice to the actual cake though...either that or make some more of the "topping" as a sauce one could drizzle on top of each slice. Give it a try and let me know if you have any suggestions!


Ginger Pear Upside-Down Cake
Adapted from Leslie Mackie’s Macrina Bakery & Café Cookbook

For the topping:
3 Tbs salted butter, at room temperature
½ cup light brown sugar
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
4-5 medium to large ripe pears, peeled, cored, and quartered lengthwise

For the batter:
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup light brown sugar
2 Tbs peeled, grated ginger
3 large eggs
2/3 cup molasses
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk


Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Oil a 9-inch springform pan, and line the bottom with a 10-inch circle of parchment paper.

To make the topping: combine 3 Tbs butter, ½ cup brown sugar, cinnamon & salt in a medium saucepan. Melt the butter over medium heat for about 1 minute; then pour the mixture into the prepared springform pan, completely coating the parchment paper. Place the quartered pears on top of the butter-sugar mixture, lining the pieces up tightly in a decorative circle so that none of the bottom shows through.

To make the batter: cut 2 sticks of butter into 1-inch pieces, and put them in a large mixing bowl. Add ¾ cup brown sugar, and cream the mixture on medium speed for 3-5 minutes, until it is smooth and a pale tan color. Add the grated ginger, and beat 1 minute more. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating on low speed and making sure that each egg is fully incorporated before adding another. When all the eggs have been added, slowly pour in the molasses and beat to fully mix. The mixture will look as though it is “breaking” or curdling, but don’t worry—it will come together when the dry ingredients are added.

In a separate medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to fully combine.

Alternately, add small amounts of flour and buttermilk to the batter, stirring and folding with a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are just absorbed. Do not overmix the batter. Pour and scrape the batter into the pear-lined pan, smoothing the top with a rubber surface. The pan will be nearly full.

Carefully transfer the pan to the center rack of the oven, and bake for about 1 hour and 45 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the cake’s center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Cover the pan with an upside-down serving plate; then carefully invert them together. Release the sides of the pan, and lift it away. Gently lift the pan’s base off the cake, and peel away the parchment paper. Allow the cake to cool for a half hour or so, and serve warm, with whipped cream.

Yield: One big cake, likely serving 10-12 people

San Francisco: Day 1 or "It's My Birthday I Can Consume as Many Calories as I Want to"

This morning we hopped aboard Virgin America and made our way to one of our favorite cities, San Francisco. We have had this trip planned for awhile now. Our goal is mainly to explore the wineries of Napa Valley. We head out to Napa on Monday but until then we're happy to take in some of San Fran's signature treats. As today was/is my birthday, we decided we could splurge and eat all the stuff we love and not worry about how many evil calories we were putting into our bodies. Our first stop? In-N-Out Burger over by Fisherman's Wharf. We've written about In-N-Out before so I won't repeat too many details but for those of you who are not familiar with the joint, it's a fast food burger restaurant that specializes in fresh ingredients. The burgers taste great, the cheese actually melts on the burger and it's a much higher quality than McDonald's or Burger King. After our burgers I decided we needed to treat ourselves to some ice cream. As luck would have it (and as I planned it), Ghiradelli Square was just around the corner. After feigning interest in the store just to get a piece of free chocolate, we headed upstairs to the ice cream parlor for some sundaes. We both ordered the Gold Rush sundae which came with vanilla ice cream slathered in peanut butter sauce and rich hot fudge. Nuts and a cherry were sprinkled on top of fresh whipped cream to give the sundae it's delicious crown. Well, after all that we decided a long walk was in order and we meandered our way over to the Mission district. The Mission district is known for it's Mexican food, more specifically, the Mission Burrito. The Mission Burrito was invented in the Mission and is basically a huge burrito so filled with toppings and delicious goodness that it has to be wrapped and contained in a tinfoil sheet. The Mission Burrito supposedly was first invented at El Faro, a small restaurant on the corner of 20th and Folsom St. There, they simply call it the Super Burrito and as luck would have it, we discovered it was invented on this very day, Sept. 26th, way back in 1961. Well, the gods themselves couldn't have planned it better: me, eating a super burrito, on my birthday which just so happened to fall on the same day as the day the super burrito was invented. Perfect! Bry and I both ordered the super burrito, mine with chicken, his al pastor, both with everything on it. True to it's name, the super burrito was super....and by super, I mean big. Not only was it filling, it was satisfying and delicious.The perfect end to the perfect day. Stay tuned, we still need to try San Fran sour dough and a few other things before we head out to Napa!

Wylie's Bread Pudding

For Pudding

6 eggs

1 pint of heavy cream

1/2 cup of sugar

1 loaf of Italian bread

cinnamon & nutmeg

butter

For Sauce

1 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of bourbon

1/3 cup of karo or maple syrup

Mix together eggs, cream, sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg. Cube loaf of Italian bread and let it soak through in the egg/cream mixture. Pour into a baking dish. Cut slices of butter and place on top of the soaked bread. Bake at 350 for 35-45 min. until it is brown & crispy on top. For sauce, mix sugar, bourbon, and syrup in a sauce pan. Heat until the mixture comes to a slight boil.

Serve and enjoy!

I am excited to share Wylie's highly coveted bread pudding recipe which graced the table of many a Circle Drive party. As Wylie is not one easily forgotten, Bryan & I felt this would be an apt tribute.

L.A. Burdick: Handmade Chocolates

Waiting for some friends in Harvard Square today, we came across a small chocolatier called L.A. Burdick. I had never heard of them before, but a few people in our group had--apparently, they are pretty well known, and so we decided to go in and try a few select pieces.



L.A. Burdick is probably most well known for it's two "signature" items: chocolate penguins and chocolate mice. Both signature items are whimsical and very cute. The penguin is dark whipped lemon ganache with almond arms, dressed in dark and white chocolate. The mice come in three varieties: dark, milk, and white chocolate. Burdick also offers a variety of other hand-made chocolates, everything from almond chamomile to honey caramel truffles. At over $50 a pound, each piece ends up being about a buck. The mice and penguins are more expensive at $2.5 and $3.5 a piece respectively.


We decided to get a dark chocolate mouse (chocolate ganache with freshly squeezed orange juice, covered in dark chocolate), a Richelieu (a milk and dark chocolate interior with cherry liquor, cherries and cumin seeds), a fig (milk and dark chocolate interior with a balanced flavor of fig and port wine), an Orinoco (dark-milk interior, Caribbean spices, run and coca nibs, covered in chocolate and sprinkled with nibs), a lemon spice (whipped rum and lemon ganache, enrobed in milk chocolate and topped with grated Trinidadian spices), and an almond chamomile (roasted almond and chamomile tea, dark chocolate enrobed).


All of the chocolates were very good. However, we were disappointed in the intensity of the flavors. For example, in the Orinoco we expected a burst of Caribbean spices and yet, we tasted none. Upon further reading of our little chocolate pamphlet, I discovered that for L.A. Burdick their main goal is to give center stage to the world-class chocolates that they use in their recipes:

"We are careful not to mask their (the chocolates) complex flavor with the complimenting ingredients. If the spices, herbs, fruits, coffee and teas are too strong, you can't taste the variety of chocolates we cook with."

Ah-ha! That makes perfect sense then. The other ingredients are there as subtle hints to bring out the flavor of the chocolate, quite like when certain foods are paired with wines...the wine, not the food, is the star attraction. I must admit though, even after this explanation, I would have preferred that the other ingredients still be a bit stronger...I mean, why else label something chamomile is you can't even taste a hint of it? You might as well add the ingredients but not list what they are and people would think it was just wonderful dark chocolate. That's just my two cents.

Overall, we thought L.A. Burdick's chocolate was good, but it didn't blow us away. It was delicious chocolate but nothing truly unique. For the price, I would prefer Choco-Lee's in the South End. As for the signature mice? Besides the cute factor, they're not worth the hefty price tag...I've had better chocolate in Paris for cheaper.

Final Biscotti Recipe (Attempt #5)

It's my fifth and last attempt at trying to replicate the Mike's Pastry biscotti and you know what? I think I got as close as I'm ever going to get. These biscotti I made tasted great. Bryan's suggestion of adding ginger was a wonderful one. Below is the tweaked recipe....how exciting!

Peter's Biscotti

1 1/2 CUPS ALMONDS (CUT IN HALF AND LIGHTLY TOASTED)
2 EGGS
1 CUP OF SUGAR
1 CUP OF LIGHT BROWN SUGAR
1/2 CUP OF OIL
2 TSP CINNAMON
1/2 TSP GROUND CLOVES
1 TSP GROUND GINGER
2 TBSP WATER
2 1/2 CUPS OF FLOUR
1 CUP OF ALMOND MEAL
2 TSP BAKING POWDER

Lightly toast the almonds. While they are toasting, mix the rest of the ingredients in mixing bowl. When ingredients are mixed well, add the almonds. Shape the dough into 2 rolls. Flatten the rolls slightly (into about 3/4" high). Put them on a floured baking sheet. Brush the tops with egg yolk. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove from oven, let cool for 5 minutes then cut them into biscotti, lay them on their side and lightly toast them by placing them back in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Let cool and serve. As they cool they will become harder.

Biscotti (Attempt #4)

After posting my "Biscotti (Attempt #3) entry", my friend e-mailed me to say her (directly-off-the-boat-Italian) mother had a fantastic quaresimali recipe that she could give to me if I wanted to try it out. Well, of course I did! How could I not! The recipe looked very promising, and I was super excited about it because it included CLOVES! Cloves are one of my favorite spices, they remind me of Christmas and German mulled wine. I can tell that Mike's Pastry biscotti have some cloves in them so this recipe looked like it could be the one that came closest to the ever elusive North End secret.

I followed the recipe ingredients exactly, adding not one, not two, not three, but four cups of chopped toasted almonds! Thank God Trader Joe's has good prices on nuts! I added the cloves (I ground them myself) and the dough already tasted delicious. I did veer from the recipe a bit when it came to forming the rolls of dough. Instead of 4 rolls, I made 2 rolls that were probably longer and wider than the recipe intended but I didn't think this would change the cook time since I kept the height of the rolls the same. I baked them and then cut them and then baked them again. We barely could wait for them to cool before we tried them out. They were delicious. I very much want to share the recipe with everyone but I want to get permission first since it's a family recipe.

These biscotti/quaresimali tasted and looked the most like Mike's that I've made so far. There are delicious and the recipe really needs no changes to it but since I am now officially obsessed with exactly replicating the Mike's biscotti I am going to try three changes.

One-I am going to substitute one regular cup of flour with a cup of almond meal.
Two-Instead of 4 cups of almonds I'm going to use 3.
Three- I'm going to add a bit of ginger.

I think these changes may bring me as close to Mike's as I can get. Once/if I get permission, I will post the recipe because, like I said, it's incredibly delicious and everyone who tried them (including my 90 yr old Polish grandmother) loved them. Rumor has it that Bob (the baker of the Reine de Saba cake) is attempting to make them for his office on Monday!

....And I got permission....
QUARESIMALE

4 CUPS ALMONDS (CUT IN HALF AND LIGHTLY TOASTED)
2 EGGS
1 CUP OF SUGAR
1 CUP OF BROWN SUGAR
1/2 CUP OF OIL
2 TSP CINNAMON
1 TSP CLOVES
2 TBSP WATER
3 CUPS OF FLOUR
2 TSP BAKING POWDER

Lightly toast the almonds. While they are toasting, mix the rest of the ingredients in mixing bowl. When ingredients are mixed well, add the almonds. It will seem like a lot of almonds, but the dough will rise and encompass the almonds. Shape the dough into 4 rolls. Flatten the rolls slightly (into about 3/4" high). Put them on a floured baking sheet. Brush the tops with egg yolk. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 375 degrees. If you want more crunchy cookies, cut them into biscotti, lay them on their side and lightly toast them.

Biscotti (Attempt #3)

I. Found. It. (I think). Finally, I figured out why I couldn't replicate the same flavors as the biscotti from Mike's Pastry that my family loves. It's because it's a special biscotti with a special name. Two weeks ago, when I went to Mike's Pastry, I was smart enough to actually read the labels underneath the biscotti and saw that the type of biscotti I was trying to replicate was called: Quaresimali, AKA:Almond Lenten Biscotti.

With my new found knowledge, I looked up a few recipes online and found out they were all pretty much the same so I picked the one that had pictures and started to try it out. Now, stupidly, I didn't follow the recipe exactly. It calls for whole almonds that you toast and pulverize 1/4 of them and chop the rest. I didn't have a whole pound of almonds but I did have almond meal so I used that for the pulverized almonds but I forgot to toast them. For the chopped almonds, I used almond slices because that's all I had. I also altered the size in which you make the dough rectangles from three 15x4 logs to only two 15x4 logs, I thought three logs would stretch the dough too thin and make the biscotti too flat. Now, if you follow the original recipe, this may not be the case so I'll have to make another batch to check that out.

My Biscotti came out tasting wonderfully and extremely close to the Mike's Pastry ones. The color was finally that nice brown color and not the pasty yellow that the other recipes produced. B says that he still thinks they add some ginger so maybe I will try that. I plan to do a second batch, only this time I'll follow the recipe exactly that way I can see if all the baking times etc are correct. Once I do that I will post the recipe for everyone with any modifications needed. In the meantime, below are my first attempt at the recipe. Notice, the biscotti are a bit thin and almonds not very chunky. Can't wait to try this again and do it the right way! Ha!

Russian Plum & Almond Tart

This week marks another one of our (what seems to be monthly now) ethnic dinner parties. So far we've tackled everything from German, to Indian, to African food. This week is Slavic week. I was in charge of making dessert. I came across a simple recipe for a Russian Plum and Almond Tart. It's quick to make, looks pretty, and tastes good. How bad can that be?! Below is the recipe. Enjoy!

Plum and Almond Tart

Ingredients:

Crust
1 1/2 cups plain flour
3.5oz chilled butter
4 tbsp sour cream

Topping
2oz softened butter
1/4 cup sugar plus 2 tbsp for sprinkling on top
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup ground almonds
6 plums
1/2 cup plum jam
4 tbsp flaked almonds


To make the crust:
Sift the flour into a mixing bowl. Add the butter and mush flour and butter together with your fingers until everything is fully incorporated and looks like breadcrumbs.

Add in the sour cream, one tablespoon at a time, and mix to form a soft dough. Wrap the dough in serane wrap and chill for 30 minutes. (The dough is a dryer pastry dough than normal.)

To make the topping:
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Alternate adding in the eggs and ground almonds

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Roll out the pastry dough so it fits in a 12" round tart dish. Pour the almond mixture into the tart dish. Cut down the pastry dough so there is just enough to fold down a bit to create an edge (about 2cm). Cut each plum into quarters (make sure to remove the pit) and arrange on top of the tart in a nice design, skin side up.

Bake the tart for 30-40 minutes or until browned.

Warm the plum jam (15-20 seconds in the microwave) and put through a sieve to remove any large chunks of fruit. Brush over the top of the tart. Sprinkle the flaked almonds on top and glaze again.

Serves about 8 people

Biscotti (Attempt #2)

So after tasting the almond biscotti from Mike's Pastry, I decided to alter the recipe I used before. This biscotti tastes sort of like gingerbread (Mike's Pastry biscotti tastes of ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and other holiday spices) to me. One thing that is a major difference this time is that I mixed everything by hand. A few websites I read on the subject said to never use a mixer when making biscotti (if you are attempting my first recipe on here, then by all means, use the mixer since those biscotti are more like anisette toast anyway). Another thing I learned is how to shape the dough into rolls better. Before, I was making the dough into small "loaf" shapes. This time, I shaped the dough into a neat,wide and low-profile rectangle, patting down the top and making the sides straight. This produced wonderfully traditional shaped biscotti. I think this is as far as I can take my own recipe. I really want to see if Mike's will sell their biscotti recipe...there's just something about the texture and taste that you can't replicate at home. Below is my very own recipe

Peter's Biscotti

Dry Ingredients:

2 2/3 cup flour
1/2 t salt
2 t baking powder
1 T ground cinnamon
1 t ground nutmeg
1/4 t allspice
1 T ginger
Almonds

Wet Ingredients:

3 eggs beaten well
1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
1 T vanilla extract
2 t almond extract
2 T dark molasses
1 stick melted butter


Directions:

Sift together dry ingredients except the almonds in a bowl, set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients together.

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, stirring with a wooden spoon.

After batter is mixed, add the almonds (about 2 handfuls)

On an ungreased cookie sheet (I use a silpat), scoop batter out and form into wide-rectangles (recipe will make about 2), make sure to flatten the top and not make them too high (you should put flour on your hands so the batter doesn't stick to them too much).

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Remove from oven, let cool for 5 minutes and baste with an egg wash. After egg wash appears dry, cut the now-puffed up rectangle into slices and lay the slices cut side down on the cookie sheet (if you are using a silpat, remove the silpat for this second baking).

Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Remove from oven and let cool.

Enjoy!

Lookout Farm

This weekend, Marco wanted to go strawberry picking for his birthday so we made out way to Natick, MA and stopped off at Lookout Farm owned by the Belkin Family. Established in 1651, Outlook farm is one of the oldest working farms in the country. The farm has apple, peach, pear trees as well as strawberries to pick! For strawberry picking, it'll cost you 8 bucks per person plus $5.99 for a pint or $10.99 for a quart basket. To get to the strawberry fields (forever...ha ha) you have to hop on a "train" and ride for about 5 minutes, you'll get a tour along the way and get to see a lot of fruit trees too.

The strawberry fields are decently sized but not too much to look at at first glance. Once you get off the train and start to actually inspect the plants though, you'll find a ton of ready-to-eat, ripe strawberries that are so juicy they explode in your mouth. Store-bought berries don't compare.

After we went picking, we came home and made the Barefoot Contessa's Strawberry Country Cake which everyone seemed to really enjoy. You can get the recipe here.

Peter's Favorite Ice Cream Flavor for Summer 09

For the past two summers, my favorite ice cream has been the cinnamon ice cream from Picco's in the South End.  This year however, we have a new winner!  If you haven't had it yet, you MUST run out and buy it asap.  My favorite new ice cream flavor (for summer 2009) is....(drum roll please):  Mission to Marzipan.  A new Ben & Jerry's flavor this ice cream is a must for anyone who loves Marzipan (and for those who aren't too sure, it's still delicious, I promise!). 

(image courtesy of Benandjerrys.com)

Red Velvet Cake and Pralines

It seems that I'm in a southern kind of mood.  After a successful attempt at baking a red velvet cake (I used the recipe from the cookbook, Heirloom cooking with the Brass Sisters) I decided to try my hand at pralines from a recipe in a Williams-Sonoma cookbook.  Either I cooked the sugar a bit too long (I wanted to get that nice brown color) or we stirred the mixture too long but my pralines ended up being a hardened mass of pecans.  I was so disappointed but we were still able to salvage the candy coated nuts and will use them as a topping for ice cream or another cake.  If any southerner out there knows of a fantastic praline recipe, send it our way!

Biscotti (Attempt #1)

On my quest to find the perfect biscotti recipe, I came across the following one from our North End Italian Cookbook. I tried it out (my first biscotti attempt ever) and it came out pretty well. To me, they tasted more like anisette toasts (like the ones from Stella D'oro) but they were good nonetheless. The recipe from my book was not very exact. I ended up adding a lot more flour and baking the biscotti a lot longer to dry it out but I made note of that below (in italics). Give them a try and tell me what you think.

Biscotti
(from "The North End Italian Cookbook," adapted by Les Gourmands du South End)

Yield: 2 Dozen Large or 45 Small

Ingredients:

2 cups flour (you will probably need about a cup more)
0.5 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 eggs, well beaten
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1.5 tablespoons anise extract
1 cup nuts (optional) (I used pecans)
0.5 cup dried fruit (e.g, cranberries) - (optional)
0.5 cup miniature chocolate chips (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF
2. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. Beat together eggs, sugar, melted butter, and flavorings on medium speed.
4. Blend dry mixture into egg mixture on slow speed until smooth and firm. Add more flour if dough is too soft to handle. (You should expect this.)
5. Remove from mixer onto floured board or counter.
6. Gently knead dough, adding more flour as needed.
7. Knead in any of the optional ingredients you choose to incorporate.
8. Cut dough into three parts and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. (I used a Silpat Nonstick Silicone Baking Mat.) Form into three log shapes, each about 6" long; flatten slightly.
9. Bake in hot oven for 25 minutes with cookie sheet in the middle rack. Watch for burning bottoms. (With the silpat, I did not experience any burning.)
10. Cool loaves on rack for 5 minutes. Then, while still warm slice them into half-inch slices, using a serrated knife.
11. Place the slices cut-side-down on a baking sheet. Return to oven and bake at 350º for 10-15 minutes. (I think they will need to bake for at least 40 minutes to dry them out biscotti-style.)
12. Remove from oven once desired doneness is achieved. Let cool (they'll get crunchier as they cool). Enjoy!


If you aren't getting that nice browned crispiness typical of biscotti, I found that, after baking the biscotti in the oven, if you then put them in the toaster oven on bake at 300ºF for 5 minutes, you can get a nice light brown color and crispness to them.

Peter's Easy Molten Chocolate Dessert

This is a super easy recipe that makes for an awesome finish to any dinner party. The whole recipe takes about 25 minutes (including prep and baking time). Make the moltens right before you want to eat them because you'll want to serve them straight out of the oven. The top will be a nice chocolate crust but when you dive, a rich mouth-watering pool of gooey chocolate will emerge.

Ingredients
1 stick butter
1 1.5oz Hershey bar
2oz 100% cacao unsweetened chocolate (Ghirardelli is much preferred)
1 handful semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 (2/3 to 1-cup capacity) ramekins

Directions
Put a baking sheet in the oven on the middle rack and Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Butter the inside of ramekins or spray with butter Pam spray.

In a double boiler, melt all the stick of butter and all the chocolate together. Once melted, set aside and let cool for a few minutes.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, flour, and sugar. Beat in the chocolate/butter mixture.

Divide the batter evenly into the four ramekins.

Bake for about 20 minutes. The tops should look cooked but underneath will still be gooey.

Let your guests eat the dessert right out of the individual ramekins. Just make sure you warn them that the ramekins are still hot.

Easy, and trust me, absolutely delicious.