Chocolate Pudding From Dorie Greenspan

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download2 1/4 cups whole milk
6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into 4 pieces
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Bring 2 cups of the milk and 3 tablespoons of the sugar to the boil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.

While the milk is heating, toss the cocoa, cornstarch and salt into the bowl of a food processor and pulse to blend; turn the dry ingredients out onto a sheet of wax paper.  Place the egg, yolks and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar in the bowl and process for 1 minute.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the remaining 1/4 cup milk.  Process for a few seconds, return the dry ingredients to the bowl and pulse, just until blended.

With the machine running, slowly pour in the hot milk, processing to blend.  The mixture will be foamy, but the bubbles will disappear when the pudding is cooked.  Return the mixture to the saucepan, set the pan over medium-high heat and, stirring without stop, cook for about 2 minutes, or until the pudding thickens and one bubble rises to the surface – the pudding should not boil.  Scrape the pudding into the processor, add the remaining ingredients and pulse until everything is evenly blended.

Pour the pudding into six 1/2-cup bowls.  If you don’t want a skin to form on the tops of the puddings, press a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface of each pudding.  (As you can see, I let the skin the form – we like it that way chez us.)

Chill for at least 4 hours before serving plain or topped with heavy cream, whipped or not.  Makes 6 servings

Celery Soup- Bon Appetite from Phyllis Keating

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12308928433_46006b141a_b1 head celery, stalks chopped, leaves reserved
1 large waxy potato, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
Kosher sal
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
¼ cup fresh dill
½ cup heavy cream
Flaky sea salt (such as Maldon) and olive oil (for serving)

Combine celery, potato, onion, and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat; season with kosher salt. Cook, stirring, until onion is tender, 8–10 minutes. Add broth; simmer until potatoes are tender, 8–10 minutes. Purée in a blender with dill; strain. Stir in cream. Serve soup topped with celery leaves, sea salt, and oil.  servings: 4

Salmon Cakes from the splendid table

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Salmon Cakes

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • 4 stalks celery, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
  • 2 (14-ounce) cans salmon, drained
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
  • 2 tablespoons capers
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon crab boil seasoning (e.g., Old Bay Seasoning)
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Melt the butter in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, and bell pepper and cook until the veggies are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. In a large mixing bowl, mash the salmon, using a fork, until no large pieces remain. Add the onion mixture, parsley, capers, Worcestershire sauce, crab boil seasoning, mustard, eggs, and panko. Mix together until well combined. Form into 12 patties. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the cakes and cook until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Serve these with fresh lemon wedges!

Sauteed Oyster Mushrooms from epicurious

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  • 1 tablespoon vegetable/olive oil
  • 1 pound small oyster mushrooms (any large ones cut into 1-inch pieces), stems trimmed
  • 2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Sauté mushrooms with 1/2 teaspoon salt until golden, about 8 minutes. Add vinegar and sauté until evaporated, about 1 minute. Season with salt, then transfer to a plate to cool. Serve at room temperature.

cooks’ note: Mushrooms can be made 4 hours ahead and kept at room temperature.

 

Jane Grigson’s Celery Soup from food52

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  • 12308928433_46006b141a_b1/2 pound celery, chopped (4 large stalks about 2 cups)
  • 1/2 onion chopped 
  • 1-2 diced small potatos
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 cups veggie stock
  • 1/2 c. cream, half and half or milk
  • About 1 teaspoons dill weed * (2 teaspoons for fresh dill)
  1. Stew celery, onion, and potato gently in the butter in a covered pan for 10 minutes. Don’t let the vegetables brown. Add stock or water, s & p to taste and 1/2 teaspoon of dill weed. Simmer for 20 minutes.
  2. Blend or purée the soup.  Add cream. Bring slowly to just under the boil, and more dill weed if required.
  3.  Serves 4, 6 if the rest of the meal is fairly copious

Notes:  * I only used 1/2 tsp dill as I thought more would be overpowering.  I used an immersion blender.

 

Nancy Silverton’s Pizza dough

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DOUGH
2 tablespoons plus 1/2 packed teaspoon active dry yeast
3 3/4 cups bread flour
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt

TOMATO SAUCE
One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnishing
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons sugar
Sea salt and dried or fresh oregano, for garnishing

  • MAKE THE DOUGH In a medium bowl, crumble 1/2 teaspoon of the yeast into 1/2 cup of lukewarm water. Let stand until the yeast dissolves, 3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of the bread flour until incorporated. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until the sponge is bubbly and thickened, 12 to 18 hours.
  • Lightly coat a large bowl with olive oil. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the sponge with 1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons of lukewarm water. With the mixer at low speed, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of yeast and 3 1/4 cups of bread flour and mix until combined, scraping down the side of the bowl, 2 minutes. Add the salt and mix at medium speed until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, 7 minutes. Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and knead into a ball; transfer to the prepared bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until the dough has doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
  • Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Fold the top and bottom of the dough toward the center, then fold in the right and left sides; flip the dough over and return it to the bowl, folded side down. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 hour.
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and divide into two pieces. Shape each one into a ball and transfer to the baking sheet; brush the tops with oil. Loosely cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 1 hour.
  • MEANWHILE, MAKE THE TOMATO SAUCE In a food processor, puree the tomatoes until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients except the garnishes.
  • Preheat the oven to 500°. Roll or press out dough.  Put on parchment paper spread with corn meal. Spread 3 tablespoons of the sauce all over the dough.  Bake the pizzas for about 15 minutes, until the bottoms are crisp and golden. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with sea salt and oregano; serve hot. Repeat with the remaining dough and sauce.

Spiced Blueberry Chutney from anediblemosaic.com

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  • IMG_59821 cup frozen blueberries (no need to thaw)
  • 2 tbsp onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) blueberry vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/2 tsp honey
  • 2 tablespoons golden raisins (sultanas)
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground mustard powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground fenugreek
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
  1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan.
  2. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then turn heat down and simmer uncovered (or with the lid ajar to help prevent blueberry juice from spattering everywhere) until the blueberries and onion are softened but not mushy, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature before serving (it will thicken as it cools).
  4. Store refrigerated in a lidded glass jar for up to 2 weeks.

Pancotto (Tuscan Bread Soup)

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pancotto_IMG_6138_food52

  • 1/2 pound (250 grams) stale white bread (Italian style loaf), crusts on
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1/2 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 small carrot, finely chopped
  • 1 celery stick, finely chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp marjoram
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1 pinch salt
  • pinch chili flakes
  • 1 teaspoon dried chile (or chopped fresh chile)
  • 4 cups (1 liter) water or veggie stock 
  • 3/4 cup (80 grams) finely grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese, divided
  • Handful of fresh parsley
  1. Roughly chop the bread into chunks, pass under some cold running water quickly to soften (but not soak), and crumble into pieces. Set aside.
  2. Add the olive oil to a large casserole or soup pot, and gently saute the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic with a pinch of salt until softened but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the chile and water and bring to a boil. Add herbsLet simmer gently until the vegetables (in particular the carrot) are cooked through and the broth is fragrant, about 10 minutes.
  3. Add the bread and cook until the soup has become thick and creamy with the appearance of oatmeal, about 10 minutes. Stir through half the cheese and remove from the heat. Let sit a further 5 to 10 minutes, covered, before serving in shallow bowls with the rest of the cheese sprinkled on top, some herbs, and a drizzle of olive oil.  Serves 4

 

Sipping Chocolate from food52

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15592864174_11b891eb0e_b2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon honey
3 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon orange zest

  • Add all of the ingredients to a medium saucepan and heat on low, stirring with a whisk until the chocolate has melted.
  • Continue to heat until the sipping chocolate has turned a nice dark brown color and is warm (10 to 15 minutes), stirring occasionally. Do not heat the milk to boiling.
  • Strain the sipping chocolate into 4 cups. Serve immediately.  serves 4

Dorie Greenspan’s Hot and Cold Chocolate

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  • 2015_0202_dorie_greenspans_genius_hot_chocolate_as-208 15818222153_9437fb4ee3_b3cups (750 grams) whole milk
  • 1/3cup (80 grams) water
  • 1/3cup (65 grams) sugar
  • 6ounces (175 grams) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
  1. To make hot chocolate: Bring the milk, water, and sugar just to the boil in a medium saucepan. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chocolate. The hot chocolate needs to be blended at this point. At Ladurée, this is done with a hand-held blender (also called an immersion blender). If you have this tool, leave the hot chocolate in the saucepan and whip it with the hand-held blender for 1 minute. If you don’t have a hand-held blender, transfer the chocolate to a traditional blender and whip on high speed for 1 minute. (When blending hot liquids, be sure to remove the center insert from the top of the blender, and cover the top with a folded kitchen towel to allow steam to escape.) The chocolate should be served immediately, while it is still very hot and frothy. Alternatively, you can pour the chocolate into a container to cool; the cooled chocolate can be reheated or served chilled. (The chocolate can be made up to 2 days ahead and kept tightly covered in the refrigerator.)
  2. To reheat chilled hot chocolate: Working in a medium saucepan over low heat, warm the chocolate, stirring gently, just until the first bubble pops on the surface. Pull the pan from the heat, whip the chocolate for 1 minute with a hand-held blender (or in a traditional blender), and serve immediately.
  3. To make cold hot chocolate: Chill the hot chocolate until it is very cold, then stir in 3/4 cup (200 grams) cold milk. Whip the cold chocolate for 1 minute with a hand-held blender (or in a traditional blender). Serve the cold hot chocolate over an ice cube or two.
  4. Keeping: Once blended, the hot chocolate can be cooled and refrigerated in a tightly sealed jar for 2 days; reheat gently, or serve as cold hot chocolate.
  5. Cold hot chocolate makes a fabulous ice cream float. Greenspan whips the cold chocolate to froth, pours it into a tall glass — beer glasses are great for this — and adds ice cream. While the traditional go-with-chocolate flavors, like vanilla, coffee, vanilla-fudge, and chocolate in all its renditions, are always good, her favorite floatable flavor is Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia. serves 4