Ode to Charcuterie Plates!...and Rubin Morales

Meet the newest member of our family, Rubin Morales! The photos were taken after I looked high and low for him. I must have not looked high enough because I found him in the closet on top of a stack of Ray's hats. Anyways, I digress...

We recently had the great pleasure of having another equally as food saavy couple join us for dinner. I have to admit it was just as refreshing as the Torrentes they brought.

G and F came to check out our new pad and were sweet enough to bring Torrentes, (my FAVORITE wine in the entire world) some olives, this deliciously nutty Dutch hard cheese whose name escapes me, AND a good buck bamboo plant as a housewarming gift. Best dinner guests ever!

Funnily enough I happened to be working on a cheese plate to serve them when they arrived; with our powers combined we made an ultimate one.

***Quick tip...if you are in a bind like I was with a totally stale baguette in the final hour before my guests arrived...run the baguette under water really quickly and toss in the oven at 350 until the outside is crusty and golden brown, roughly 7 minutes depending on how much baguette was left. The inside will be soft and chewy and no one will know your dirty little secret!

Shown clockwise in this photo: some french baguette toasts I drizzled in olive oil, olives marinated with roasted red peppers, that deliciously nutty hard cheese previously mentioned, pork and chicken pâté, smoked gouda, Humbolt Fog (an out- of-this-world goat cheese punctuated with a hyphen of divine vegetable ash), turkey pepperoni (less greasy than the regular), and finally a ramekin of this cheese marketed as "Farmer's Cheese." That name means absolutely nothing to me; however, to give it some context: it has the texture of ricotta, with the tang of a goat cheese and a final low note reminiscent of cottage cheese.

It was all a perfect prelude to a simple dinner of baked salmon with grilled leeks, basmati rice, and a spring mix salad with homemade vinaigrette. For dessert we had apple pie a la mode with some green tea to wash it all down.

Thanks, friends for a lovely dinner...à la prochaine!

Rosh Hashana Sformato with Amaretto Whipped Cream

Shana Tova, to my fellow Jews! What better way to greet the new year than with chocolate, liqueur, and fresh whipped cream??

I had the good fortune of being invited to Rosh Hashana dinner out in Maryland at friend's family's home. As to avoid looking gauche I, of course, brought a new dessert that I had tried out. Little did I know there would be 10,000 people there, so lucky for me the dessert didn't last very long. So by default it was a seemingly huge hit. Sformato is sort of like a cakey-pudding/brownie-mix-without-salmonella sprinkled with sliced almonds served with a sweet, almond liqueur whipped cream. I have to admit it was out of control delicious. I will definitely be making this recipe again.

2 cups whole milk

1 cup sugar

16 oz good semisweet chocolate

vanilla

1 packet of gelatin

4 large eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup sliced almonds

For the Whipped Cream:

1 small carton of heaving whipping cream

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

splash of almond liqueur

Preheat oven to 350. Butter 2 quart casserole dish that can fit into a roasting pan. I will explain why in a moment. Begin melting chocolate in double boiler. Do this by putting a glass bowl over a pot of boiling water. Make sure bottom of the glass bowl does not touch the hot water directly. Turn off heat once chocolate is melted. Keep over steaming water.

In the meantime, simmer 1 1/2 cups whole milk, sugar and splash of vanilla in saucepan. Once simmering and sugar dissolved, turn off heat. In a small bow, mix packet of gelatin and remaining 1/2 cup of cold whole milk for about 2 minutes. Add milk and gelatin to hot milk and sugar mixture stirring constantly until gelatin is dissolved. Add this mixture to glass bowl of melted chocolate stirring until all contents are fully combined.

Lightly beat the four eggs in separate bowl. Ladle 3 tablespoons or so of the hot chocolate and milk mixture into the eggs and whisk until mixed well. This will temper the eggs to avoid scrambling them once they are added back into the chocolate. Add eggs to the hot chocolate and milk mixture; whisk CONSTANTLY to avoid egg scramble. If you find the mixture has become lumpy, run it through a strainer before pouring into casserole dish.

Once in the casserole gently sprinkle the top with almonds until the top is lightly covered. To create steam bath for the casserole pour boiling water in the roasting pan to halfway up the casserole dish. Place in oven for about 1 hour and 20 minutes. The reason for the steam bath is cook the ingredients gently. This will create the soft souffle-esque texture. The sformato will still be a little giggly when it is taken out, that is fine. Let cool for 30 minutes before serving.

For the Whipped Cream:

Begin whipping the cream on low with an electric mixer. Increase speed as the cream begins to stiffen to avoid Mrs. Doubtfire Whipped Cream Facial. Begin adding amaretto liqueur and powdered sugar; mix until soft peaks are achieved. Soft peaks are when you pull the whisk out and the cream holds its shape; the tip will curl down.

Use a large serving spoon to serve sformato since it is quite soft; add a dollop of whipped cream and enjoy.

Happy New Year!

Look Mom, No Hands! Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

So I've been on this dessert baking rampage recently with deplorable results. I made a chalky, crumbly chocolate ganache cake and a goopey peach cobbler. Defeated, war-torn I was. But I stood up, wiped the flour from my cheeks and licked the ganache from my whisk and, well...called my mother. Ray's favorite dessert/the only sweet thing he will eat is Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. So I employed Mom to recite to me her ultimate Carrot Cake recipe. My hand cramped up while writing the seemingly extensive ingredient list but it was all worth it. I followed the recipe as religiously as I could (I have this physical inability to follow a recipe) and let's just say my tummy was happy and my ego restored.

I had two critiques of my cake: (1) there was not enough cinnamon and I perhaps could have added nutmeg to make it more fragrant and extra divine. (2) I foolishly forgot to WAIT to put my second cake on after frosting the first. Since it's a two layered cake make sure they are completely cooled. I would also refrigerate the bottom layer after it's frosted before adding the second. I, like usual, was too over zealous and stacked my cakes prematurely and the frosting ended up squishing out the sides making the differentiation between the layers unnoticeable. Overall though it was a hit. Check out the recipe:

Cake:

3 cups flour

3 cups granulated sugar

1tsp salt

1T baking soda

1 T cinnamon

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

4 eggs, beaten lightly

1T vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups walnuts chopped

1 1/2 cups shredded coconut

¾ drained crushed pineapple

1 1/3 cup pureed carrot

Preheat over to 350

sift dry ingredients together,

add oil, eggs, vanilla,

fold in walnuts, coconut and crushed pineapple

Pour into two greased 9 inch cake rounds

Place in the middle rack and bake for 30-45 minutes

The cake will be golden brown and the corners will pull from the sides

Cool completely before frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting

2 8 oz packages of cream cheese at room temp

1 stick butter, room temperature

3 cups confectioner’s sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup shredded coconut (optional)

Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth

add vanilla

slowly add in sugar

Make Your Man Love You Steak Dinner

This was one of the last meals we had in our old apartment. My man was craving meat and I think I delivered! It's filet mignon, boursin mashed potatoes (see earlier Father's Day post for recipe), garlic broccollini and for a personal and feminine flair, a simple caprese salad.

I seared the filet mignon seasoned with only salt and pepper in a cast iron pan and finished them in the oven until perfectly medium rare. I pulled them off and set them aside. It's always key to let meat sit for 10-15 minutes before serving, especially red (and expensive!) meat for the juices to reincorporate.

The sauce pictured is the inspiration for the "Make Your Man Love You Forever" title. A food critic/best friend of mine told me that after she pulls the meat off of the stove she adds a container of creme fraiche to deglaze the pan. The creme fraiche mixes with all of the delicious fatty bits of meat and melts in to pure divinity. I added thyme to mine to add more flavor and woodiness and it was spectacular. Thanks, Mullete!

In case you are wondering what creme fraiche is, it's a tangy soft french cream most comparable to sour cream, but much more delicate. You can find it in the specialty cheese section for about $6. It's worth trying out! I add it to pasta dishes to make an instant cream sauce and it's fabulous. Its tanginess adds another dimension of flavor to whatever you add it to!

As for the caprese salad, it is the quintessential salad at my house at home and I can never get enough. For this one I put down a bed of spring greens, diced red onions and of course the sliced mozzarella and tomatoes. I salted and peppered them generously but I didn't pour the balsamic vinegar and olive oil until we sat down. If you do it too early, as with ANY salad dressing, it makes the lettuce leaves soggy.

The broccoloni I did super simple with a splash of olive oil and two garlic cloves. I detest floppy veggies so with this method they soften only slightly on the outside and they keep their color. Broccolini tastes and looks very similar to broccoli with longer stems and less florets. They're an attractive alternative although apparently not related.

The way to his heart is through his stomach, right? Enjoy!

"Corn on the Cob"

This is by far my most amazing food feat: cupcakes in the guise of corn on the cob. Too cute for words, I know. I found the idea in this cupcake book I stumbled upon at a specialty bookstore. It was as if the gods had heard my prayers and gifted me with this totally useless but equally precious cupcake decorating book. I was saved and it only took me $ 16.95.

I made the cupcakes from a box of cornbread muffin mix, jazzed up with a can of creamed corn, a half cup of sour cream and one cup of cheddar cheese baked according to the box. The frosting was two packs if cream cheese and powdered sugar and a teaspoon of lemon juice. For the kernels I used yellow, white and butter flavored jelly beans. The "pad of butter" is actually a yellow saltwater taffy candy and the "parsley flakes" are green sugar crystals. I put three each in corn trays and pierced the ends with corncob handles.

My only advice if you decide to do this is to make sure you do it in an air-conditioned house. I did in my Cape Cod kitchen with no air and everything was sliding of the frosting. I almost lost my marbles over that one. Oh, and don't drink coffee that day either because I finally finished them, my hand flinched and I dropped them face down on the table. I died. Cute though, eh?

What NOT to Do NY-style Cheesecake

This is entitled What NOT to do because my experience was sort of a comedy of errors minus me being amused by my inadequacies. I'm not unfamiliar with the ways of cheesecake making but it IS a pretty complicated dessert. Some tips before you even get started:

1) it takes a WICKED long time as in 30 minutes to prep, 1.5 hours to cook, 1 to cool and 6 to refrigerate...so make it when you have time. I obviously make it 2 hours before I need it and then turbo freeze the damn thing, but try to allow enough time for it to set properly.

2)experiment with what you put in it as in: biscotti instead of graham crackers (aHMAZing), ricotta instead of only cream cheese, goat cheese instead of ricotta, add honey, liquors, anything everything can go instead cheesecake EXCEPT some Italian-style have you spice it up with toasted almonds. I actually don't recommend this as decadent as it might sound. It gives a weirdly chewey texture to the crust and can make it too nutty to the point where people might ask if there's peanut butter in it. ew. Using biscotti is the best compromise because there are almonds in it and usually almond flavor/paste.

3) USE A HAND MIXER!!! you might ask "well..what else would I use?" I tried to get fancy and use my new Cuisinart (thanks mom!) but the cream cheese gets caught and doesn't mix evenly...hence where my comedy of errors started. A hand mixer you can tackle the cream cheese knots more effectively.

OK the recipe I used today:

Crust:

preheat oven to 350

1 tablespoon melted butter

3 T. sugar

1 2/3 graham cracker crumbs or 2 packages of biscotti cookies crushed

-Blend cookies/crumbs and sugar until mixed, add butter

-add mixture to a spring form pan that is DOUBLE wrapped in foil...stay tuned to find out why

-pack crumbs down into the pan and bake until golden brown at 350, should be roughly 12-15 minutes. Reduce baking temperature to 325 for the filling

While that's baking/cooling...

2 8oz things of cream cheese

1 15 oz container of ricotta..if you are standing confused at the dairy section hint: it's the small one..I always forget this then I feel obligated to make lasagna with the extras.

1 tsp vanilla extract..do NOT pour extract when you are hungry or caffeinated..(my hand shook and I dropped a new bottle in..shh!)

1 1/4 C sugar

4 large eggs room temperature

-Beat the two cheeses together, add sugar and extract and liqueur if you are a drunk. Then one at a time beat in eggs.

-Transfer to the cooled crust. Make sure the foil it tight before adding the filling.

-Put the spring form pan in a roasting pan and fill the roasting pan 3/4 the way up with warm/hot water. The steam and boiling water will cook the cake.

-Bake at 325 for roughly and 1 hour and 15 minutes. The filling will still be jiggly, but should have darkened in color slightly. Cool for one hour before placing in the frig for 6 hours.

Simple Strawberry Sauce:

-package of frozen strawberries

-splash of water or liqueur

-2 T sugar or 1 T strawberry jam

let everything simmer until liquid dissolves. Let sit several minutes before serving to thicken

Fine Investment Father's Day Rockfish

Ok first, forgive the lack of blogging!! But anyhoo, for Father's Day I took him to St. Michael's MD (GO THERE!) I set him up with a fishing guide through the Chesapeake and sent him on his merry way. Lucky for me he caught three HUGE Rockfish (Striped Bass, where I'm from). He couldn't take them back on the plane so I invited some of my girlfriends over and made a super simple Parmesan Rockfish AND to celebrate summer, a feta and watermelon salad.

Parmesan & Parsley Fish:

Start marinating it ASAP. Don't stress if these only means like, 30 minutes...just get on it!

-preheat over to 350

-2 large garlic cloves crushed-2 filets of rockfish (or any other white fish)

-the juice of 2 lemons

-2 tsp salt and pepper

-3 tsp olive oil

- 2 shakes of chili flake if you want to KrAZy

-put in ziplock and stick in frig

after it's chilled again, place in oiled glass dish and sprinkle with grated parmesa

n cheese and fresh chopped parsley.

Fish doesn't take long so I put in last minute: depending on thickness bake for 11-13 minutes

**WiLd SiDe:turn on the broiler at the end for 2 minutes to brown the top

They will love you Forever Boursin Mashed Pots:

Depending on guests a lot 1 large potato per 2 people

-quarter and boil potatoes, drain

add:

-salt/pepper

-1 garlic clove

-3/4 foil of Boursin herbed cheese

-2 T butter

-2 T sour cream

-splash of milk or cream

-mix with mixer/masher..not excessively though, that will make them too glossy

I-Am-A-Sex-MaH-Cheen Watermelon and Feta Salad:

Vinaigrette:

-1 part lemon juice

-2 parts Extra Virgin olive oil

- 1 tsp salt/pepper

-1 tsp sugar

-the leaves of 4 thyme sprigs

-5 raspberries, optional

-splash of any good quality fruit juice in the frig (lemonade, limeade,raspberry juice)

Mix all together in blender until smooth. If it's too sweet, add one more lemon and/or pepper. Too tart, more olive oil, then more sugar. Add to a package of Spring mix lettuce, then serve with a slice of watermelon and a feta cube. (Don't do an herbed feta..too many guests at the flavor party..)