Unassuming Chocolate Cookies

19Nov09

These little guys don’t look too threatening. But then you realize that over the course of one episode of Gossip Girl you’ve eaten approx. 57 of them. Then you remember the 1/2 cup of dough that you ate before they were even baked, and on top of that you had to eat at least 5 or 6 that crumbled as you transferred them to the cooling rack. That’s when you realize these little guys completely snuck up on you and pulled the wool over your eyes. Because dang, they’re really, really, really good. Even two days later they’re still that good (if you have any left, that is). I saw these on Shannalee’s site, Food Loves Writing, a couple weeks ago and made a mental note to try them. I modified a tiny bit (read: was too lazy to go get the correct ingredients and subbed what I did have), and here’s what I got.

Unassuming Chocolate Cookies (makes approx 48 small cookies)
2 cups Flour
1 cup Cocoa
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 1/4 cup Butter (2 1/2 sticks) – room temp
2 cups Sugar, plus 1 cup for coating
2 eggs
2 tsp Vanilla

Mix together the dry ingredients. In another bowl, beat the butter, 2 cups sugar, eggs, and vanilla until creamy and fluffy. Mix the two together – dough will be sticky but should absorb everything.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or so. When cold, preheat oven to 350, and portion out the leftover sugar for rolling the balls of dough in. Drop dough by the rounded teaspoons into the sugar, and roll around to coat.

Place an inch and a half apart on a silpat- or parchment paper-lined cookie tray. Bake for 7-8 minutes. Cool on the tray, then on a rack. Devour.

Filed under: cookies, dessert   |  1 Comment

Steak and Spinach Pinwheels

18Nov09

On our first Valentine’s together, Chris and I attempted to make stuffed flank steak with sun dried tomatoes and cheese, with a fancy fondue for dessert. The steak roll was so salty it was inedible and I totally messed up the rice that was supposed to go with it… I don’t think we even made it to the fondue. We may have gotten China Panda instead, I don’t even remember. Anyway, a lot has changed since then, and this stuffed flank steak was not only edible, but pretty darn good. Creamy, cheesy spinach is a steakhouse staple, so I figured why not cook the two together and save some hassle.

Steak and Spinach Pinwheels (serves 2-3)
1 lb – 1 1/4 lb Flank Steak
3 cups Spinach leaves, stems trimmed
1 clove Garlic
1/2 Yellow Onion
1 – 2 cups Parmesan/Ricotta Cheese Mix
1 Egg
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil
BBQ Sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray’s)

Preheat to 425. Start by butterflying the steak–slice it in half, with the grain, but don’t go so far as to detach the halves. It should open into a rectangle that can be rolled up–see the photo. Next, make yourself into a human food processor (or, you know, use an actual food processor) and dice up the spinach, garlic, and onion really really reaaaalllyyy fine. To that, add the cheese and egg, and season with salt and pepper.

Unfold the steak and layer the spinach stuffing on top, leaving about half an inch on each side. Roll up in the same direction as the cut (so the grain of the meat goes from end to end), and secure with kitchen string. Heat an oven-proof saute pan over medium-high heat with a couple Tbsp of olive oil. Sear the steak roll on all sides until brown, 6-8 minutes. Smother the steak with BBQ sauce. Place the pan with the steak in it, in the oven and continue to cook 10 minutes, then turn the steak, and cook for 10 more, or until 125 degrees for medium-rare. Let rest for 10 minutes so the juices absorb, then slice into the roll to produce pinwheel medallions!

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Salmon with Caper Vinaigrette

17Nov09

I wanted to share this recipe up because it’s so easy to make (a lot easier than taking a good food photo when it’s dark out!), and really good. Salmon and capers have always been linked in my mind; my mom always made them together when I was younger, and so many delicious recipes use the combo. (Mom’s is a recipe for another day!) The salty, pickled taste of those little guys goes perfectly with the creamy salmon, and especially well with this recipe’s roasted vegetables. All in under 25 minutes!

Salmon with Caper Vinaigrette (serves 3-4, adapted from Real Simple, October 2009)
1 cup Rice, uncooked
1 bulb of Fennel (aka Anise), thinly sliced
1-2 Red Peppers, thinly sliced
S&P
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 – 1 1/4 lb Salmon Filet (with or without skin)
For the Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup Capers, roughly chopped
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Vinegar (apple cider or red wine vinegar works best)

Preheat to 400. Cook rice according to package. Place the peppers and fennel in a roasting pan and toss with 2 Tbsp Olive Oil and salt and pepper. Roast for 5 minutes. Season fish with salt and pepper, and nestle it in among the veggies in the roasting pan. Continue to cook another 14-16 minutes until salmon is opaque throughout. Serve over rice, and mix the vinaigrette together and spoon over everything.

Filed under: few ingredients, healthy, quick, supper   |  Leave a Comment

Fat & Chewy Favorite Cookies

12Nov09

Warning: these cookies could cause you to gain like, 10 pounds, overnight. Just a head’s up. They’re the size of a baseball pre-cooked, an inch+ think out of the oven, and chock full of walnuts and chocolate chips. Just the way a cookie should be. Last winter, I had the pleasure of visiting Levain Bakery on New York’s Upper West Side, to sample some of their cookies. The first thing you’ll notice if you go there, is the line out the door. The next? Vats and vats of cookie dough behind the counter, and last but not least? The enormous, 6 oz, two-hands-needed, golden brown, soft, chewy, delicious cookies. At something like $4.50 a pop, it’s practically a meal. It took about 4 hours to eat mine, nibbling pieces a little at a time as we walked through Central Park, and did some serious shopping. (It was the perfect energy bar, if you ask me.) So, logically, once I was home, I had to try and make my own. It’s harder than it seems! You can’t just throw a huge gob of traditional cookie dough on a cookie sheet and expect it to stay thick. You just get very large/wide cookies that way. After a few tries, though, I think I got down. So now I’ll share with you. The secret, in my opinion? Lots of extra flour, and cold cold dough.

Fat & Chewy Favorite Cookies (makes 10)
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted Butter – cold
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
2 medium-large Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla
1 1/3 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 cups Chocolate Chips
1 cup Walnuts, chopped or crushed
3 – 3 1/2 cups Flour (yup, you read that right)

Preheat to 350. Start by cutting the butter into cubes with a knife, to help you get started on mixing it in (make sure it’s cold, right out of the fridge). Using a pastry cutter or a hand mixer, work the butter into the two sugars. Beat until well combined and on the way to fluffy – but not past the point where the butter starts to warm up. Add in the eggs, straight from the fridge so they’re cold, and vanilla, and stir to combine with a wooden spoon. Add the baking powder and salt and make sure they get well incorporated. Now add your chocolate chips and walnuts (yes, before the flour!). Once everything is incorporated, start adding the flour, one cup or so at a time. Some days I can get the dough to take all 3 1/2 cups, some days it only wants 3 cups before it starts to get crumbly. You don’t want crumbly dough, so stop adding flour when the dough is stiff and not sticky, but still holding together. Adding the chocolate chips and walnuts before the flour helps to make sure they get incorporated. Adding them after the flour can cause the dough to come apart, or can cause some of the toppings to get left behind at the bottom of your mixing bowl. Divide into 10 sections, try not to use your hands too much (it will warm the dough and smooth the surface, which doesn’t lend well to the final look of the cookie). Each dough ball should be just slightly smaller than a baseball (these are big cookies here, kids!).

Pop ‘em on a cookie sheet (be sure to use parchment paper or a silpat – no greasing the pan!! This helps the cookies to stay together and not spread.) Bake at 350 for 18 minutes. The insides should still be gooey – they’ll firm up as the cookies cool. If you like the tops to be slightly more brown, turn on the broiler for just a minute or two (stand nearby and watch so they don’t burn). Cool on the pan for a minute, then transfer to a rack, or dig in! Look out, though, you might not be able to eat a whole one at once Keep dough that’s waiting to be used in the fridge to stay cold. You can even freeze the dough balls and bake later, up to two weeks!

Filed under: cookies, dessert, finger food   |  4 Comments

Butternut Squash Soup with Fried Sage

05Nov09

My my. I know there have been a higher than normal number of orange-colored soups appearing here as of late (like this and this). But bear with me just one more time because this one is a keeper. For real. Keeper! Yum! This butternut squash soup is so low in calories, and so rich with sweet, tangy flavor – what’s not to love? The pureed squash itself makes this dish smooth and creamy, and the apple cider and sage leaves give it dimension. We’ll be eating this again!

Butternut Squash Soup with Fried Sage (serves 4-6, from Food Network Magazine, October 2009)
1 Butternut Squash
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3/4 cup Shallots, diced
3 1/2 cups Chicken Stock (or veggie)
1 1/2 cup Apple Cider
1/2 tsp Freshly Grated Nutmeg
S&P
2 Tbsp Butter
8-10 Sage Leaves

Peel the skin off the squash and cut into cubes, discarding seeds and pulp. Set the cubes to steam (10-15 min) or roast at 400 degrees (45 min). Meanwhile, heat up the oil in a large stock pot. Add the shallots and saute until tender. When tender, pour in the stock and cider, and bring to a boil. When the squash is tender, add it to the pot, along with the nutmeg and salt and pepper. Continue to heat over a medium flame. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. When hot, place the sage leaves, soft side up, in the butter and fry until fragrant (about 45 seconds). Add 5-6 of the leaves to the soup pot, and reserve the rest for serving. Use a standard blender to puree the squash chunks (remove them from the soup a few at a time, and return to the soup when pureed.) Or use an immersion blender and get it all over with at once. (Hey Santa, I could use an immersion blender ) Serve hot with the remaining sage and crusty bread and optional creme fraiche or sour cream to stir in!

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Mom’s Christmas Cookies

03Nov09

When I was younger, I didn’t want much to do with any kind of cookie that wasn’t chocolate chip. Lucky for my Mom. She got these cookies all to herself until around my senior year of high school, when I decided to try one. And then proceeded to eat the rest. For some reason, dried cranberries were as bad as raisins, in my book, back then. Welp, that changed! These taste nothing like oatmeal raisin cookies – trust me! I hate that kind! There is nothing worse than biting into what you think is an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie to find flavors of cinnamon and raisin. Now, I’m OK with cinnamon raisin bread, but don’t you go putting raisins in my oatmeal cookies. Yuck. This recipe sticks to chocolate chips, walnuts, and craisins. MUCH better! I love these, Mom loves these, Chris loves these, friends love these, and the co-workers love these. Good sign, right? You will too!

Mom’s Christmas Cookies (makes about 3 dozen)
2 sticks of Salted Butter, room temp
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp Vanilla
1 3/4 – 2 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 1/2 cup Oatmeal
1 cup Chocolate Chips
1 cup Walnuts, smashed
1 cup Craisins

Preheat to 375. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until combined. Stir in the vanilla, then add the flour and baking soda, and the oatmeal. Dough should be not too sticky. Add in the chocolate chips, walnuts, and craisins. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, or a silpat.

Bake 7-11 minutes (check often after 7 minutes) or until tops have puffed up and are golden brown. Let cool on cookie sheet 5 minutes, then remove to rack to cool completely. Transfer to cookie jar and hide in a really good spot where no one but you can find them!

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Swiss Chard Gnudi over Earthy, Wild Mushrooms

02Nov09

I’m not a huge mushroom fan. I like to wonder who first saw a mushroom and thought that it would be good to eat. Especially the kind that grow on… ahem… manure. But Chris loves them, and so I am trying to learn to love them too. This dish is a really good step on the way. I think they were maybe the best part of the dish. The flavor they impart to the broth is so earthy and dirt-like (in a good way, promise!). It’s very natural and forest-y. And I didn’t quite understand what that meant until I ate this dish. If you don’t like mushrooms, this is probably a flavor you haven’t experienced before. It’s not the kind of flavor you get from cream of mushroom soup, or slimy mushrooms on a pizza. (Both of which I still would not like to eat.) But this is good, really good. The recipe is from Bon Appetit (whose recipes have yet to let me down), October 2009 issue.

The recipe is involved, and might be best left to a weekend meal. You prepare half of it a day ahead, so plan accordingly. There are three main parts, each prepared separately, then assembled at the end: the broth, the gnudi, and the mushrooms.

Swiss Chard Gnudi over Earthy, Wild Mushrooms (serves 4-6, slightly adapted from Bon Appetit)
1 bunch Swiss Chard, stems sliced into match sticks, leaves chopped finely
1 cup Ricotta Cheese (I used part-skim, it was fine)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1 large very finely chopped shallot
1 large egg
S&P
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 cup Flour plus more for shaping dumplings
6 cups Chicken Broth
2 Shallots, sliced
1 lb Mushrooms (I used white button and portabella), stems trimmed and reserved, caps thinly sliced
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp EVOO

Do 1 day ahead: For the Gnudi, blanch the chopped leaves of Swiss Chard for 3-4 minutes in boiling water, drain, and squeeze very dry. Combine with ricotta, parmesan, shallot, egg, S&P, nutmeg, and flour. Stir to combine until evenly distributed. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Do 1 day ahead: For the broth, boil the broth with the shallots and mushroom stems, until liquid is reduced to about 3 cups (about 45 minutes). Drain the liquid and discard the stems and shallots, reserving the flavored broth. Refrigerate overnight.

Do 1 hour ahead: Scoop the dnudi dough, 1 tsp at a time onto a plate with flour:

Using floured hands, coat the dumplings and shape into ovals, mounds, or peanut shapes. Whatever you like! You should end up with about three dozen. Place on a floured cookie sheet (or parchment paper) and refrigerate an hour before cooking.

When ready: Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet, and add the olive oil. Set the broth to heat up. Boil a large pot of salted water. To the skillet add the chopped swiss chard stems, and the sliced mushroom caps. Saute 7-8 minutes, then divide onto serving plates. To the boiling water, add the gnudi. As soon as they float they are done; remove them with a slotted spoon to the serving plates. When all gnudis are cooked, pour the hot broth over each dish and serve with extra parmesan cheese!

Filed under: pasta, supper, veggie   |  2 Comments

Swiss Chard and Gruyere Stuffed Turkey Breast

29Oct09

Every single food magazine I’ve gotten this month has featured turkey. Turkey for Thanksgiving. How to cook it, how to serve it, what to serve it with, what to do with the leftovers. 1-2 months of food magazines dedicated to one 2-hour meal. Granted, it may be one of the biggest meals of the year, but really? Come on. Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where many families have traditional recipes. For us, it’s the one meal we don’t turn to a magazine or cookbook to produce. We cook a turkey, dad makes cornbread stuffing and fresh cranberry relish, and there are always mashed potatoes. Just a couple of years-old recipes needed. So what, pray tell, am I supposed to do with those 4+ magazines devoted to the Turkey Day meal? Well, I figured, why not make those recipes now. Turkey still tastes good, I assure you, even if it’s not Thanksgiving. So here’s my first Thanksgiving recipe in October. Maybe there will be more to come…

Swiss Chard and Gruyere Stuffed Turkey Breast (serves 5-6, from Food Network Magazine, November 2009)
1 cup Arborio Rice, cooked
2 lb Swiss Chard, stems removed, chopped fine
1/2 lb Pancetta, diced
2 cloves of Garlic
4 oz Gruyere, diced
1/2 cup Fresh Basil, chopped
1/4 cup Fresh Parsley, chopped
1/2 cup Scallions, chopped fine
Lemon Zest (from 1 Lemon)
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
S&P
1 Turkey Breast, boneless, skin on, 3-4 lbs
EVOO
3 cups White Cooking Wine
Also Needed: Cooking twine, roasting pan

The directions for this recipe are pretty simple, but do take time – set aside an hour or so to assemble, and another hour to cook. Stuffing could be made the night before, then assemble and cook the turkey the next night.

In a large pot of salted, boiling water, boil the chard for 3-4 minutes until tender. Drain and squeeze dry. Combine first ten ingredients, through the nutmeg. S&P to taste. This is the stuffing. The original recipe called for 4 eggs to be mixed into the recipe. I didn’t and it turned out fine. If you want to add the eggs, do it right before you assemble and cook the turkey!

Preheat to 400. Remove the skin from the turkey, and save it. Try not to punture it. Butterfly the turkey breast and pound into a 1/2 thick rectangle. Place the stuffing in the middle, and wrap into a log. Use the reserved skin to cover the overlap where the sides of the turkey breast meet up. Tie with the cooking twine (or if you’re like me and don’t have any, use a few pieces of thread braided together).

Well, that’s not a very pretty picture. But you get the point! It’s ok if the stuffing kind of spills out the ends. Pull some skin over and secure with a toothpick, if you can. Otherwise just let it be. Place the turkey roll in a roasting pan (note: not what’s pictured above!), and rub the EVOO and S&P onto the outside. Fill the bottom of the pan with the white wine and 2 cups of water. Insert an oven-safe thermometer, and roast at 400 for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the thermometer says 160 in the meat. Let stand 15 minutes before slicing, so the juices absorb. Don’t skip this!! Slice into rounds, and serve with the remaining juices from the pan. Mashed potatoes and green bean casserole optional!

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Chocolate on Chocolate Cake

23Oct09

We’ve been eating a lot of apple desserts lately, but when Katie’s birthday came around, I kinda figured that if the cake didn’t have chocolate in it, it wasn’t gonna fly. I was right – in some instances, if it’s not chocolate it’s just not worth the calories. Well, let me tell you, this one is worth every last calorie. And then some. It’s chocolate on chocolate, and moist and rich and dark. Really? It doesn’t get much better. Sadly, I’m not sure who first wrote down this recipe. I learned it from my Aunt Peggy, who is known to compose recipes entirely in her head and leave them there for a long time before writing them down (someday I’ll make some of her scones to put on here). This may or may not be originally from Maida Heatter.

Chocolate on Chocolate Cake (makes one 8-9″ cake)
1 cup Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/8 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Butter (1 stick)
1 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Vanilla
1/2 cup Cocoa
1/2 cup Milk
1 Tbsp Instant Coffee
4 oz Choco Chips (semi or bittersweet)
2 oz Butter, cut up

Preheat to 350. Mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar and then add the eggs and vanilla and stir to combine. To the butter mixture, add the cocoa powder and mix until evenly distributed. Don’t overmix this recipe. Add half the milk to the butter mixture, and then half the dry ingredients, then the rest of the milk, then the rest of the dry ingredients. Dissolve coffee in 1/2 cup boiling water. Add coffee slowly to the batter, while hot. Batter will be thin! Butter and dust with cocoa the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch cake pan. Pour the thin batter into the pan, and bake for 30-40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. Don’t overbake. Cool completely on a rack.

For the frosting, in a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Take off the heat, and add the butter one piece at a time, stirring until melted. Pour over the cooled cake and smooth out quickly! Yum!

Filed under: dessert   |  5 Comments

Harvest Pumpkin Soup

15Oct09

There was a day, about two years ago, that I decided to scrap the leftovers I had brought to work for my lunch, and go out and get something warm instead. This was unusual, as I don’t like to spend money on lunch, but it must’ve been fate because I ended up at Au Bon Pain, getting the pumpkin soup, and my Autumns haven’t been the same since! Now I wait for fall to roll around for the Pumpkin Spice lattes at Starbucks, and the Harvest Pumpkin Soup at ABP. I’ve tried other pumpkin soups – at Whole Foods, even Wegmans, and of course several I’ve made at home, but nothing has compared. Not even close. Well, this fall I am working in a different town and *gasp* there is no ABP here! So I buckled down for a day of trying flavors and techniques, and didn’t quit until I developed this recipe for Au Bon Pain’s Harvest Pumpkin Soup (or at least my version of it!). It’s perfect. I love it. I hope you will too!

Harvest Pumpkin Soup (developed to mimic Au Bon Pain’s. serves 4)
~2-lb Sugar Pumpkin
~2-lb Kabocha Squash, or Buttercup Squash
S&P
4 Tbsp Butter (salted)
1 cup Sweet Onion, diced
1/2 cup Carrots, diced
1/3 cup Celery, diced
1 tsp Ground Ginger
1 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon
1 1/2 Tbsp Tomato Paste (concentrated)
1/4 cup Brown Sugar, packed
4 cups Vegetable Broth (I use the little squares that you mix with boiling water)
1 cup Half & Half

That green one is the Buttercup squash. Kabocha squash looks and tastes similar. Preheat your oven to 400. Slice the pumpkin and squash from stem to bottom and remove seeds and pulp. Season with S&P and roast on a cookie sheet for 45 – 60 minutes, or until tender.

Ten minutes before the pumpkin and squash are done roasting, in a large stock pot, melt the butter. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and saute until the onions are soft and translucent. Then add the ginger, cinnamon, tomato paste, and brown sugar. Stir to combine heat over medium until the sugar is dissolved. Add the vegetable stock and bring the pot to a boil. When the pumpkin and squash are tender (pumpkin may be more so than the squash), scoop out all of the flesh and add it to the pot, along with the Hald & Half. Return everything to a boil. Using a slotted spoon, scoop out as much as you can of the vegetables and pumpkin and squash, and liquify it using a blender (or if you have an immersion blender, that would be perfect for this). Return the liquefied veggies to the pot. You don’t have to blend the entire pot – just however much you want to that you’re comfortable with the consistency of the soup. When everything is smooth and heated through, taste and add salt or cinnamon as needed. I added about a 1/2 Tbsp of salt and a dash or two more cinnamon. It was perfect.

Total time needed is around an hour or an hour + 15 minutes. Not bad! I will probably be making this again in a couple weeks. Seriously it’s so good I’ve been eating leftovers cold out of the fridge. I may or may not be hiding the rest from my boyfriend, to keep it all to myself… You’ve got to try this!

Filed under: supper, veggie   |  8 Comments