Goodbye 2011

It's New Year's Eve 2011.  In a couple of hours it will be 2012. I get to enter 2012 with one hellava cold.  That nasty, deep, bronchial cough that makes me sound like a barking sea lion. And the requisite sinus headache, plugged up nose.  It's such a joy.

Fortunately, I really don't care about New Year's as a holiday.  It was fun when I was a kid and I even had a reasonably good time in my hotel days... Most of them, anyway.  There was the year at the Hyatt in Tahoe where some yahoo decided to throw his glass into the huge floor-to-ceiling fireplace at the end of the casino area.  Within minutes, hundreds of glasses were being hurled in the general direction of the fireplace.  Shattered glass everywhere.  It was a mess.  The Hyatt in Cambridge was another story.  Totally civilized.  All managers were scheduled to work. We were all in our tuxedos, women in gowns, and we just wandered in and out of the various parties and festivities.  A suite overlooking the atrium lobby was set up for us with an open bar and tons of food.  Very civilized, indeed.

Our last going-out-on-New-Year's-Eve was 2003 in New York.  We spent a fortune on a room at the Millennium Hilton, tickets to see The Producers - the night Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane returned - and planned to walk the half-block to Times Square to watch the ball drop.  The show was one of the most fun I've seen.  Alas, we were barred from walking that half-block to Times Square by some of the nastiest police I have ever had the misfortune to deal with.  We ended up heading back to our hotel downtown and having free champagne with the bartender, manager on duty, and a couple of other folks.  It was rather nice.

And the last time we have ventured out.

So here we are entering into 2012. My 60th year.

Other than the aches and pains, I don't feel like I'm approaching 60.  Of course, having never been 60 before, I'm not sure what it's supposed to feel like, but if cocky, reasonable self-assured, and extremely opinionated are traits, I'm definitely there.

2012 is looking to be a great year.  We just bought tickets to Italy for a 2-week vacation in June and will be staying in apartments in Rome and Florence - no hotels, thankyouverymuch.  Real bedrooms and real kitchens, and living rooms!  We'll be traveling with my baby sister and her partner and their three girls. We have our copy of Rosetta Stone Italian so we can at least try and ask a question or two in the language of our host country.  We'll also be bringing technology with us to get us through when pantomime and charades fail us.  It's gonna be a fun time.

Our last meal of 2011  tonight was another loaf of homemade bread and a big pot of beef stew.

We are the wild and crazy guys, eh?  But with this dang-nabbed cold, anything else would be a waste.  Besides, we're not Hoppin' Sauerkraut Greens Pork Pickled Herring folks.  We'll leave the superstitions to the superstitious and eat what we like. (I'm going to roast a freebie turkey tomorrow...)

The bread was the same as I made the other day.  That little bit of rye flour makes all the difference in the world.

And the stew was just stew.  I don't have a recipe for it - I just make it.

So Happy New Year to all, and a joyous and prosperous 2012.  The prosperous part probably won't happen because our government has sold its soul to Wall Street for personal gain, but there's always the hope that America will wake up in time for the 2012 elections and vote those bastards out of office.

Yeah...  And my cold will be over tomorrow.

 

 

 


Cassoulet and Fresh-Baked Bread

 

I have been thinking about a cassoulet for months.  A real cassoulet - with duck confit and everything.

Today, I made my cassoulet!

In its most base form, a cassoulet is French baked beans.  But - in true French style - the lowly bean is elevated to dizzying gastronomical heights.

It is a treat, indeed.

There are probably as many recipes for cassoulet in France as there are ravioli in Italy, so I didn't feel the need to strictly follow any one recipe.  I went for a bit more technique than strict ingredients, but the end result was just fine.

The recipe here is from Gourmet magazine from about 10 years ago.  I changed it by using canary beans instead of white, adding about 8 ounces of Ventreche - French pancetta - and only using one duck leg.   I also cut the water back to 5 cups to start, along with the 2 cups of broth.  I didn't have any parsley, either, and didn't feel like getting dressed and going to the store. (Damned cold!!)

But parsley or no, it came out just fine.

Cassoulet

  • 1 lb dried white beans (preferably Great Northern)
  • 8 1/4 cups cold water
  • 2 cups beef broth
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 2 cups chopped onion (3/4 lb)
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped garlic (6 large cloves)
  • 1 (3-inch) piece celery, cut into thirds
  • 3 fresh thyme sprigs
  • 1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 3 fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs plus 1/2 cup chopped leaves
  • 1/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
  • 1 (14-oz) can stewed tomatoes, puréed or finely chopped with juice
  • 4 confit duck legs (1 3/4 lb total)
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil (if necessary)
  • 1 lb cooked garlic pork sausage* or smoked pork kielbasa, cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices
  • 2 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (preferably from a baguette)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

preparation

Soak and cook beans

Cover beans with cold water by 2 inches in a large bowl and soak 8 to 12 hours. Drain in a colander.

Transfer beans to a 6- to 8-quart pot and bring to a boil with 8 cups cold water, broth, tomato paste, onion, and 2 tablespoons garlic. Put celery, thyme, bay leaf, cloves, parsley sprigs, and peppercorns in cheesecloth and tie into a bundle with string to make a bouquet garni. Add bouquet garni to beans, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until beans are almost tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in tomatoes with juice and simmer until beans are just tender, about 15 minutes more.

Prepare duck and sausage while beans simmer:

Remove all skin and fat from duck legs and cut skin and fat into 1/2-inch pieces. Separate duck meat from bones, leaving it in large pieces, and transfer meat to a bowl. Add bones to bean pot.

Cook duck skin and fat with remaining 1/4 cup cold water in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until water is evaporated and fat is rendered, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until skin is crisp, 3 to 6 minutes more. Transfer cracklings with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, leaving fat in skillet. (You should have about 1/4 cup fat; if not, add olive oil.)

Brown sausage in batches in fat in skillet, then transfer to bowl with duck meat, reserving skillet.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Make bread crumb topping:

Add remaining tablespoon garlic to fat in skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in bread crumbs and cook, stirring, until pale golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in chopped parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cracklings.

Assemble casserole:

Remove bouquet garni and duck bones from beans and discard, then stir in kielbasa, duck meat, remaining teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Ladle cassoulet into casserole dish, distributing meat and beans evenly. (Meat and beans should be level with liquid; if they are submerged, ladle excess liquid back into pot and boil until reduced, then pour back into casserole dish.) Spread bread crumb topping evenly over cassoulet and bake, uncovered, in lower third of oven, until bubbling and crust is golden, about 1 hour.

 

It really worked on every level.  Rich, flavorful, creamy, meaty, and filling.  I was surprised at just how much duck meat was on that one leg and I still got a fair amount of cracklin's for the bread crumbs.  More would have been nice - but what I had worked.

And a big cassoulet called for a fresh loaf of bread.  I went to my lazy-man's loaf - James Beard's French Loaf - his Cuban bread.  I tweaked it a bit and added a bit of rye flour .  Came out excellent!

 

His original recipe makes two loaves.  I cut it down for one.

James Beard French-Style Bread

Ingredients

  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 1 cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 1/2 cup rye flour
  • 3 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
  • 1 egg white, mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water

Directions

Combine the yeast with sugar and warm water in a large bowl and allow to proof. Mix the salt with the flour and add to the yeast mixture, a cup at a time, until you have a stiff dough. Remove to a lightly floured board and knead until no longer sticky, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary. Place in a buttered bowl and turn to coat the surface with butter. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1½ to 2 hours.

Punch down the dough. Turn out on a floured board and shape into a long, French bread-style loaf. Place on a baking sheet that has been sprinkled with the cornmeal but not buttered. Slash the tops of the loaf diagonally in two or three places, and brush with the egg wash. Place in a cold oven, set the temperature at 400°, and bake 35 minutes, or until well browned and hollow sounding when the top is rapped.

I do have to admit that we ate well, tonight.

Now...  if this damned cold would just go away...


Christmas Stollen

I love walking into the house and finding Victor in the kitchen.  It always means we're in for a gastronomic treat.  I tend to get most of the credit for cooking, but Victor is a fantastic cook.  It's not unlike when Ruth and I worked together.  Being the showman, I tended to get a lot of the credit for things, but it was Ruth who consistently came up with the brilliant ideas.

And it happens at home, too.  Victor and I are very different cooks, but we're fortunate that we like to do different things.  We have different "patience levels"  and generally complement one another's styles.

Walking into the kitchen, I was greeted with a very slowly-rising Christmas Stollen!  I love stollen but hadn't made my favorite Stollen recipe from our friend Luigi this year.  That recipe makes about 8 loaves.  Victor found another recipe online and decided to give a single loaf a try.

I had a container of fruitcake fruit - I hadn't made my fruitcakes or Christmas Pudding, either - so he used that along with some raisins.

It came out fantastic!

The recipe calls for a marzipan center.  We did have almond paste in the cabinet - for the amaretti I didn't make - but he decided to go without.

It was perfect, nonetheless.

The original recipe comes from the Dorchester Hotel in London...   Victor's heading off to London in a couple of weeks and will be staying in Mayfair not far from the Dorchester...  (I'm not jealous.  Really. I'm. Not. Jealous.)  But I digress...  Perhaps he can pop in and see if they have any available at High Tea...  Or something.

(DEEP breath... Not  jealous. Not jealous. Not jealous...)

Christmas Stollen

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
  • 2/3 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 tablespoon salt
  • 1/3 cup butter, softened
  • 2 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 1/3 cup currants
  • 1/3 cup sultana raisins
  • 1/3 cup red candied cherries, quartered
  • 2/3 cup diced candied citron
  • 6 ounces marzipan
  • 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the egg, white sugar, salt, butter, and 2 cups bread flour; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has begun to pull together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead in the currants, raisins, dried cherries, and citrus peel. Continue kneading until smooth, about 8 minutes.

Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the marzipan into a rope and place it in the center of the dough. Fold the dough over to cover it; pinch the seams together to seal. Place the loaf, seam side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C), and bake for a further 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow loaf to cool on a wire rack. Dust the cooled loaf with confectioners' sugar, and sprinkle with the cinnamon.

It's a very dense dough and doesn't rise the same way as a traditional yeast bread does, so don't panic if it's not looking exactly how you think it should.

It should still come out just fine.

We had two power outages while this was in the oven and it still came out perfect!

 

 

 


Feed A Cold Feed A Fever

Ah...  there's nothing like a day-after-Christmas-cold to bring out the Grinch in me.  Sore throat, achy, nose running a mile a minute... Bah!  Humbug!

But if ya do have to catch a cold the day after Christmas, having Victor make Chicken Soup really does make it all feel better.

It was a simple, basic soup - the perfect type for slurping.  Really rich broth and plenty of vegetables.

Really, really good.

It was also the perfect antidote to the Feeding Frenzy that was Christmas.  We ate well, boys and girls.  Really well.

We started with crab, smoked salmon, and shrimp  and then came the clams and linguine.

Fried tilapia and baked cod in wine...

To round the evening out - and to make sure we had the requisite seven, mussels in a spicy marinara...

Simply exquisite.

There were way too many cookies, homemade candies, cheese cake... not to mention the Christmas morning breakfast that seemed to go on for hours...

It was fun.

And speaking of fun...

Even the two Nonna's got into surfing the 'net on the iPad...  I'm not sure what they were watching here, but a browser history showed someone did a search for "Chippendale Dancers."


Aunt Dolores' Rum Balls

One of my favorite Christmas memories are Aunt Dolores' Rum Balls.  Auntie made them every year and every year we would be allowed "one" and then we would sneak a whole bunch more.  Well - maybe one or two more.  The Rum Balls were really good - but so was all of the other stuff.  Lots of candies and cookies we only saw at Christmas.  It was fun going over to their high-rise apartment.  Running up and down the stairs, dropping noisy bottles down the trash chute, pushing every button in the elevators.

We were darling children.  Really, we were.

But back to the Rum Balls...

The recipe is extremely easy to make and it doesn't take much time to dip them, either.  And they are so worth the time!

Aunt Dolores made hers with Vanilla Wafers and always rolled them in powdered sugar.  They were little snowballs with a kick.  My mom gave me her recipe and one year I decided to chocolate dip them. They were fabulous!  Rum Ball Truffles!  I've been chocolate dipping them ever since.

For the past few years, I've also been making them with chocolate cookies instead of the traditional vanilla wafer.  I've also made them with ginger snaps and graham crackers.  I've also used Bacardi rum (Auntie always used Bacardi) and I've made them with Meyers Rum (really good) and with Jack Daniels (also really good!)  This year, I used Bacardi because we already had it in the house.

Aunt Dolores' Rum Balls

  • 1 cup ground vanilla wafers
  • 1 cup sifted powdered sugar
  • 1 cup chopped nuts – pecans or walnuts
  • 2 tbsp cocoa
  • 1 1/2 tbsp white corn syrup
  • 1/4 cup rum or bourbon

Mix all ingredients. Mix syrup with bourbon.  Mix with fork. Roll into ball – then roll in powdered sugar. Store in tight container. Put wax paper in between layers.


Danish Pastries and Brunch with Friends

We had our annual Christmas with Linda and David, today.  It is always a fun time and we always think up some fun foods to have with them.  They do the same when we hit their home in July.  It's a twice-a-year food-fest that we all really enjoy.

Victor came up with the idea of a huge Lox-and-Bagels platter.  Smoked salmon, bagels, cream cheeses (as in plain, garlic, herb), red onions, capers, sliced tomatoes, olives, chopped eggs...  Plus thin-sliced whole-grain rye bread and fresh berries with a honey and poppy seed creme fraiche.  Sparkling beverages and lots of coffee.

But to start, we had fresh-from-the-oven Danish pastries.

I've already told the story of learning to roll Danish pastry when I was a mere child 50 years ago.  And then there was the making of thousands upon thousands of sweet rolls on the aircraft carrier... Like riding a bike, you just don't forget.

The Danish were a lot of fun.  A lot of work, but a lot of fun.  And...  I made the full batch of dough knowing I was only going to use a fourth of it today.  The rest is for Christmas Morning!  It will be fun to have while we're opening gifts.

The Danish were light, buttery, soft, and downright delicious!  They were a bit misshapen, but that was because I was trying for a shape I only had a vague recollection of.  Because I made the miniature Danish, they didn't retain the shape as well as if they had been full-sized.  For Christmas I'll just do a traditional roll and work on the other shape some other time.

I used the recipe from The Love To Bake Pastry Cookbook from Fantasia Confections in San Francisco, written by founder, Ernest Weil.

As I've noted before, Mr. Weil was a great baker, but his recipe-writing can be a bit daunting.  It is important to always read through recipes completely before starting anything - and especially important with these.

The Danish Pastry is composed of several recipes and then a final set of instructions for putting them together and baking them.

It's not difficult.  It is time-consuming.  Everything needs to be made in advance of the rolling out and baking, but it can also be made the day before - or in several steps over several days.

Danish Pastry Dough

Butter Rich & Flaky... Use to Bake Your Favorite Coffeecake or Pastries

Preparation Time:  To prepare the coffeecake is time consuming and involves an overnight process, but to have the aroma of fresh baked coffeecake is worth the effort.
Yeild: 4 Wreathcakes or 4 Danish Krinkles or 3 to 5 Bundt Kuchen, depending on the size of the tins, or 20 4" Danish Pastries or 30 3" miniature Danish pastries or 20 Pecanrolls or any combination.

Advance preparation:
Depending on your choice of coffeecake you have tyo prepare baking pans.

Equipment:
Upright electric mixer, rolling pin, baking pans.

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/4 cup milk (heated to approx. 120)
  • 2 packages active dry yeast
  • 2 tsp. sugar
  • 2 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 whole egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1/2 cube butter, melted (2oz)
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 cubes butter (10oz)
  • 2 tbsp butter

Procedure:
Heat milk to approx 120 and pour into mixing bowl with dough hook attached.  Add yeast, 2 tsp. sugar, 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour and stir well.

When this mixture bubbles in about 5-10 minutes, add the salt, sugar, lemon zest, vanilla, egg, egg yolk, and melted butter.  Stir on the lowest speed for about 1 minute.
Continue on slow speed and add 2 1/2 cups of the 3 cups of flour.  Mix on slow speed for 2 minutes.  Scrape bottom and sides of bowl with plastic spatula.  Turn mixer to slow speed and slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour.  You may have to add an extra 1/4 cup of flour.  Take the dough from the mixing bowl and place on a well-floured tabletop.  Shape into a rectangle and let rest for 10 minutes.  In the meantime, take out of the refrigerator the 2 1/2 cubes of butter cut into small pieces.  Sprinkle 2 tbsp of flour all over the butter.  With your hands, mix flour and butter to make pliable to place on dough.

Three Fold Process for dough

It was easier to reproduce the book pages than try and explain this!

Vanilla Butter Cream

Ingredients:

  • 4 large egg whites
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp vegetable oil
  • 3 cubes unsalted butter, soft (12 oz)

Equipment and Utensils:
Upright or handheld mixer, wire whip, plastic spatula, medium size pot for water bath, candy thermometer.

Procedure:
Place bowl of the electric mixer in a pot filled with enough water to submerge the bowl 1/3 of the way in the pot.  Combine egg whites, sugar, salt, and vanilla in this bowl and heat to approx 165 while constantly mixing with a wire whip.  This might take 3 to 4 minutes.  Remove from the heat and attach the bowl to the electric mixer.

Using the wire whip attachment, run on medium speed until the mixture cools down to 120 (approx 1 minute.)  Then run an additional 2 minutes on hgh until a stiff meringue forms.  Stop the machine and p[lace 1/3 of the meringue into a small bowl and set aside.  Run the mixer on medium speed and gradually place in small amounts, the butter and oil into the rest of the meringue.  When the ingredients are incorporated and smooth (without any lumps) add the meringue that was set aside.  Run the mixer on medium speed approx 2 minutes until all is incorporated.

Use within 2 days if kept at room temperature.  Stored in a closed container and refrigerated, it will keep for up to 5 days.  It is not recommended to freeze.  Before using, bring to room temperature and mix with a wire whip until smooth, soft, and easy to apply.

Butter Streusel

Yield:  Approx 5 cups

Ingredients:

  • 2 cubes unsalted butter (8 oz)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 whole egg, beaten

Equipmemnt and Utensils:
Food processor, upright mixer with flat beater, or mix by hand.

Procedure:
Cut up the cold butter into small pieces and place with all the other ingredients except the egg into the bowl of the food processor.  Pulse until it forms a coarse meal and then dd the egg.  Continue pulsing until the mixture forms small crumbs.  If it is too dry, add 1 egg yolk.  Palce on a tray to allow for drying and set aside until ready to use.  If there is any left over you can keep it covered in a container for a few days at room tyemperature or you can freeze it or make only half the recipe.

Apriocot Glaze:

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 cup apricot jam

Procedure:
Combimne the water and sugar in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Add the apricot jam and bring back to a boil.  Remove from the heat and press through a sieve.  Set aside until needed.  To apply, heat until hot enough to brush on Danish Pastries or wreath cake.

Danish Pastries

Yield: 21 individual 4" Danish pastries or 30 3" individual miniature Danish Pastries.

Advance preparation:
Preheat oven to 375.
Since it takes 2 to 3 hours for the dough to be ready to be baked, preheat the oven 2 hours after you start making the Danidh pastries.

Ingredients:

  • 1 full recipe Danish dough rolled to 24" x 16" rectangle
  • 2 cups Vanilla Cream
  • 1/2 cup sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon

Toppings:
Your choice per pastry

  • 1 or 2 tbsp jam, custard, or butter streusel
  • Fresh fruit such as berries, or slices ofpeach, apricot, or apple
  • 2 whol;e eggs beaten in a small bowl
  • 1 cup apricot glaze

Optional:
For raisin Danish use 2 cups raisins

Equipment and Utensils:
3 to 4 12" x 16" baking trays lined with baking paper, offset metal spatula, small bowl, pastry brush, rolling pin.

Procedure:
Dust board with flour and place the 24" width of dough horizontally on the board.  Spread the butter cream on the dough and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar, leaving about a 1 1/2" margin, without filling at the bottom edge of the dough.  Brush this part with egg.

Starting at the top, roll the dough down to form a long roll, pressing the end of the dough down onto the egg-brushed part to seal the roll.  The seam of the roll should end up on the bottom.

If the dough becomes too soft, refrigerate for 309 minutes before cutting.  otherwise, slice approx 21 slices of Danish rolls and place on 2 or 3 baking trays far apart.  They will almost double in size.  Brush the top with egg.  Set the trays in a warm, draft-free environment so the pastries will almost double in size.  Aftyer approx 30 minutes you can top the pastries with your favorite toppings. (Check to see if you have any leftover toppings or fillings from previous baking, so you can use them.)  The doubling in size can take 1 to 2 hours.

Bake at 375 fopr approx 15 to 20 minutes until the pastries are golden brown (miniature Danish, 12 to 15 minutes.)  With a metal spatula you can lift up the bottom of the pastries to see if they are baked.  Take tray out of the oven and brush with the hot apricot glaze. (Be careful not to disturb the toppings.)

Danish pastries are best served fresh and warm.  They can be kept frozen for 2 months, boxed and well-wrapped in foil, and reheated in foil before serving.

It looks daunting.  It's not.

And they really, really taste good!


Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti

Chocolate Walnut Biscotti

 

We've been baking Christmas cookies forever.

At one point we were literally making thousands of them and buying flour and sugar in multiple 25-pound bags.

We probably still make more than the average family, but we have cut waaaaaaay back.  Time, money, and old age are all catching up.

But what we lose in quantity, we definitely gain in quality.  The cookies are better than ever.

We have the family favorites that we definitely have to make every year and we've had a niece and nephew come down and assist for the past few years.  But while we always make the traditional cookies, we usually make a couple of different cookies each year, just because.  Last year we went on a bit of a German binge and made Springerle cookies and Pfeffernüsse cookies - both excellent.  This year, we're back in Italy with Chocolate Biscotti.

Victor reworked his Uncle Rudy's biscotti recipe for these.  Actually, we have reworked that recipe a dozen times for a dozen different variations.  The original is for a traditional anise cookie - that is still the family favorite - but the macadamia nut orange, the almond, and now chocolate are always big hits.

This variation is outstanding!  And easy to make.

Chocolate Walnut Biscotti

  • 2 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cube butter (4 oz)
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 cup chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Sift together dry ingredients.  Cream sugar and butter, add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla.  Stir in flour and cocoa.  Stir in nuts and chocolate.

Divide dough in half.  Shape into logs.  Place on greased cookie sheets and bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes.

Cool completely.  Slice into 1/4 to 1/2″ slices and toast on both sides in 350° oven.

These really did come out awesome!  And they're simple to do.

There are more cookies on the horizon and a special Danish pastry I want to make for Christmas morning.  I'm going to be experimenting with it this weekend...

50 years ago - and yes, that is a long time ago - I worked in a neighborhood donut shop/bakery/coffee shop and we made a Danish pastry called a Butterhorn.  I have not seen this particular Danish for years and even doing a Google search hasn't resulted in the Danish I remember.  I have a Danish Pastry recipe from Fantasia Bakery in San Francisco that I have made before and a butter streusel recipe so Saturday after work I shall be making pastry.  It's an hours-long process of rolling, folding, and chilling.

But they're gonna be good!  I just know it!

 

 


Fantasia Confections, Revisited

Six years ago I sent away for a cook book straight out of my childhood.

My very first job was in a neighborhood bakery out in the Sunset District of San Francisco - The Donut Center and European Bakery.  On the other side of the park in Laurel Village was Fantasia Confections.  We made donuts, Danish pastries, fantastic coffee cakes, cookies, and a few cakes.  Fantasia made the high-end stuff.  Fancy-looking, over-the-top decorated cakes, tortes, tarts, tea cakes... The owner, Ernest Weil, worked at Blum's downtown and created the famous Blum's Coffee Crunch Cake before opening Fantasia in 1948.  I also worked at Blum's circa 1967 and it holds the distinction of being the very first job I was ever fired from.  (I was a mouthy smart-ass even back then...)

But I digress...

The cook book was everything I hoped it would be - and more.  Recipes written by a baker - not a cook book author.  The layout could be a bit disconcerting at first for someone who has not worked in a production bakery before.  The "instructions" for creating something are a collection of "recipes" for the different components.  But once you see the logic, it's extremely easy to navigate.  Another nice thing is you may create several different recipes to assemble the finished product.  You actually get to focus on each recipe independently.  It's much less intimidating!

In a bakery, you don't make pastry cream for cream puffs.  You make pastry cream, and pull it out of the refrigerator when you're going to fill cream puffs - or make a Boston Cream Pie, fill Maple Bars, or whatever.  One item is used in many different concoctions.  The cook book is set up that way and it's a pleasure for me to recall those days of yesteryear when that's the way I worked.  It's also great for people who aren't master chefs.  As Ernest Weil states, "Not everyone is born to be a perfect pastry chef, so just relax and enjoy the learning experience."

So...  the reason for this walk down Memory Lane?!?  We have friends coming over next weekend for our annual Christmas Get-together and we decided to do a Brunch.  And I thought homemade Danish pastries would be fun to make.  Homemade Danish means the recipe from Fantasia - since I don't have the one from The Donut Center.  It's extremely versatile and is used for everything from classic Danish to butterhorns, bear claws, and coffee rings - a breakfast cake I haven't seen in years. It is a classic recipe requiring lots of butter, folding, rolling, and refrigeration - and it has to be made the day before.

I have several ideas running around the ol' brain right now - including coffee rings for Christmas...

The possibilities are endless...

The cook book is currently out of print, but you can download a full 248-page .pdf version of the book for making a $25.00 donation to one of several non-profit chlidren's organizations in the bay area and beyond.  Details are on their website: www.lovetobakecookbook.com.

It could be a great Christmas gift for your favorite baker and a worthwhile donation at the same time!

 


Creamy Chicken

Tonight's dinner was brought to you by Brussels Sprouts.

My original idea was chicken sandwiches on little rolls, but I espied the stalks of fresh brussels sprouts and just had to have one.  They (seriously) are my most favorite vegetable, after all...

The chicken sandwiches morphed into a creamy chicken because, well...  one just doesn't have brussels sprouts with sandwiches.  I mean...  really.  How gauche.

For the chicken, I sauteed some cut-up chicken breasts with mushrooms, added about a half-cup of heavy cream, a cup of chicken broth, and a pinch of salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  I thickened it with a bit of cornstarch.

I sliced the brussels sprouts and threw them into a skillet with a pat of butter.  I let them cook and caramelize and added a pinch of salt and pepper to them, as well.  They didn't need anything else.

The chicken was served over mashed potatoes.

It was perfect comfort-food!  Mashed potatoes, creamy chicken, and the best - and most versatile - vegetable on the planet.

 


Patty Melts

When was the last time you had a patty melt?  It's definitely been a while for me. I think the last one I had was at the local diner  Maybe a year or more ago.

So when I got home today and Victor said he was craving a patty melt, I knew just what to do.  Start frying onions.

The secret to a good patty melt is the onions.  Cooked in butter until they're deep golden-sweet.   I had a small red onion and a small yellow onion.  I sliced them both up and let them cook for about 30 minutes.

I fired up the grill and grilled the burgers, brought them in, put the sandwiches together - with American cheese - and set them into a hot skillet.

They were dynamite!

They were even better than I thought they were going to be - and I knew they were going to be good!

Gooey cheesy-oniony heaven.

The potatoes were over-kill.  I think I ate three of them.  I was focused on that burger and didn't want to put it down.

It really was that good.

So if you haven't had one of these in a while, I highly recommend you taking the time to make one.

And go easy on the potatoes.


Rigatoni and Rye

The plate is a bit messy but the food was oh, so good!

We've had these huge rigatoni in the cabinet for quite a while and tonight, Victor decided we needed use them up and help get the cabinets clear since the flour and sugar has started arriving for Christmas Cookies.

While we cook all the time, this time of year we really start cooking all the time.

Part of it is simply to help warm the house, I think.  It's nice and toasty with the oven and the stove going.  But it's also "the season" for massive amounts of home-cooked goodies.

We have taken a pact that we are seriously cutting back on the cookie production.  We were making thousands upon thousands of cookies at one point, buying flour and sugar in 25 pound bags.  We have been seriously scaling back for a few years, now, but even as we cut back we find reason to make something new.

Last year it was Springerle cookies and Italian Torrone.  I know that between now and Christmas there will be a couple of cookie recipes I just have to make.  I'm already working on another variation of the Peppermint Cupcakes.  Cutting back.  You ought to see us when we just go for it with abandon...

So, to make room in the cabinets for the ingredients for the cookies we're telling ourselves we're not going to make, Victor made a fabulous pasta dish.

And we served it with the Rye Bread I made yesterday.

The bread is from James Beard's Beard on Bread.  It is one of the best bread books around.  I can bake a loaf of bread in my sleep, but I have a couple of bread books I still reference all of the time.  If you pay attention, they are foolproof.

I cut the recipe in half as I just wanted one loaf.  It's really good - and unlike what he says in the beginning, it's quite easy to make.

James Beard's Rye Bread

A pleasant rye bread of good texture and interesting flavor. It is rather difficult to make but worth the trouble. This recipe makes two loaves in 8½ × 4½ × 2½-inch pans; or if the dough seems firm enough, it can be baked in one or two free-form loaves, in which case I would suggest letting the formed loaves rise and then very carefully inverting them (right onto hot tiles, if you have them) just before they are baked. This gives a better finished loaf.

Yield : 2 free-form or regular loaves

Ingredients

  •  1 package active dry yeast
  • 3 tablespoona honey
  • ¼ cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
  • 1 cup warm milk combined with ½ cup hot water
  • 2 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1 heaping tablespoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
  • 2½ cups rye flour
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, or more if needed
  • ¼ cup cornmeal
  • 1 egg white, beaten lightly with 2 tablespoons water

Directions

Dissolve the yeast and honey in the warm water, and allow the mixture to proof for 4 or 5 minutes. Combine the warm milk and hot water with the softened butter and add to the yeast mixture along with the salt and caraway seeds. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When you have added about 4½ cups the dough will become difficult to stir and will be quite sticky, but continue to add the remaining flour a tablespoon at a time. Scrape out the dough onto a floured board, and using a baker’s scraper or a large metal spatula, scrape under the dough and flour and fold the dough over. Continue to lift and fold, and with your free hand start pressing down and away from you on these folded areas, adding more flour as needed to dust your hands and to sprinkle the board. After 2 or 3 minutes of this procedure you can eliminate the scraper. Flour both hands and knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is soft, velvety, and elastic.

Shape the dough into a ball and place in a well-buttered bowl, turning to coat with the butter. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free area to double in bulk, which will take from 1 to 2 hours. Punch down, turn out on a lightly floured board, and divide into two equal pieces. Let the dough rest 2 or 3 minutes, and then shape into two loaves, either free form or for well-buttered 8× 4× 2-inch loaf pans. If you are making free-form loaves allow them to rise, covered, on a buttered baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal until almost doubled in size, and then quickly invert them and brush with the egg white and water mixture. Otherwise, let the loaves rise, covered, in their pans until they have doubled in bulk and then brush the tops with the egg white and water mixture. Bake at 400° from 45 to 50 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped with the knuckles. Cool thoroughly on racks before slicing.

I made one single free-form loaf.  It came out great.

And now to start thinking about all those cookies we're not going to make...


Gooey-Cheesy Chcken Sandwich

One of the great things about Fall around here is the drop in humidity.  That means crispy, crunch baguettes.  And crispy crunch baguettes mean ooey-gooey sandwiches!

I am definitely a sandwich-lover.  I love different things between - or on top of - different breads.  I love the concept.  I love everything about them.

The concept for this sandwich started with a sandwich my friend Ruth made years ago - mushrooms and a cheddar cheese with caramelized onions.  It was yum.   For this incarnation, I started with a small wedge of pepper jack cheese.  A mild cheese with a bit of spice but nothing overpowering. It's a great melter.

I sauteed mushrooms and slices of chicken breast with a tiny bit of butter and olive oil. When it was pretty much cooked through, I added a pinch of S&P and a couple of tablespoons of enchilada sauce I had in the 'fridge.  When it was all hot, I stirred in the shredded cheese.

Onto baguettes it went with fries on the side.

It was properly ooey-gooey with lots of crunch.  Substantial and filling.

Sandwiches are my friend.