When life throws you lemons... make Amalfi Lemon Cake!

i 💖 lemons... the fruit, the ade, the scent, everything!  So when in Amalfi last year, all the restaurants and bakeries have lemon desserts because of Amalfi growing such large and beautiful lemons.  Our favorite (yes... we went there every day while in Positano) was Collina.  Espresso and a cannoli... the best! 

This cake is DELICIOUS!  moist, simple, not overly sweet, and takes no time to make.  I hope you enjoy it as much as i.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup medium ground cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/2 cups whole blanched almonds (or you can buy raw and peeled)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large lemon
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup cold whole milk
• 2 large eggs at room temperature

• powdered sugar (reserved for the topping)

1. Preheat the over to 325 degrees and spray a 9 inch springform pan with baking spray.  I also put a piece of parchment paper and lined the bottom of the pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt, and set aside.
3. Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor with a steel blade and pulse the almonds with the sugar, until the almonds are finely ground.
4. Cut the ends off of the lemon, and then cut the rest of it into chunks (including the remaining peel), discarding any seeds.
5. Add the lemon to the almond mixture and process until blended.
6. Add the olive oil, milk, and eggs, and process for 1 minute.
7. Add the cornmeal mixture and pulse until mixed, but DO NOT over mix.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
9. Cool completely and then remove the cake from the pan and cool to room temperature on a wire rack.
10. When completely cool, dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar.

You can always dry lemons, which is how i topped the cake, or use pieces of rind for decoration.

 

It may look simple... but it's delicious!

Bon appetito!

Yes, Mom... it's National I Love Food Day!

Are you like me... there's just too many to list!

The following are my favs, and in no specific order...

1.  See's dark chocolate scotchmallows

2.  Hot cinnamon rolls with raisins (Fred's has the best!)

3.  Toast with something savory and something sweet (cottage cheese and fruit or honey)

4.  Onion rings (well done, of course)

5.  Grilled salmon where it's crispy on the outside

6.  A yummy veggie salad with a little drizzle of olive oil, lemon & salt

7.  A deliciously BBQ'd hamburger, rare

8.  Tropical fruits

9.  Delicious tomatoes, red onions, basil, israeli feta and herbs

10.  Melon with cottage cheese

11.  Ice cold, crispy fresh veggies

12.  A white pizza with extremely thin and well-done crust (pref. Pizzeria Mozza)

Yes, i do love food!

Now please tell me... what are your favorites?

Bon Appetit!

It's December 28th... National Chocolate Candy Day!!!

My absolute favorite is See's Dark Chocolate Scotchmallow.

It's a thick layer of caramel, with an absolutely perfect honey marshmallow sitting on top of it, and then dunked in a beautiful thick coat of dark chocolate.  Yummm.

 You can even keep them in the freezer, and they're just as delicious when you go to eat it.

Now tell me... what's your favorite?

 

Delicious dark chocolate bark

I've been making dark chocolate bark for a few years, and it's always a winner!  Although keep in mind, as most cooks and bakers will tell you, you can't skimp when it comes to the quality of your ingredients.  Inna Garten say you have to use a good bottle of red wine even if you're just cooking with it.  And legendary chef and restauranteur Daniel Baloud will tell you that you must use a high-quality bread and butter when making a croque monsier.  So with this bark, i've used both Scharffen Berger's 70% bittersweet chocolate, and Valrhona's 70% Guanaja chocolate.  And then everything else was the best quality i could find, from the sea salt to the marcona almonds and even the dried organic blueberries.  The only "run of the mill" item i used was Trader Joe's roasted coconut chips, but i must say they were delicious and not too sweet.

I imagine you can top the bark with anything, but adding some sea salt to the top seems to be a winner.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of dark chocolate (or whatever kind of chocolate you like), finely chopped
• 1-1/2 c. roasted marcona almonds (not in oil)
• 1/2 c. dried blueberries
• 1 c. roasted coconut chips
• coarse sea salt - for sprinkling

If you need to temper the chocolate, please start here.  Otherwise, melt your chocolate slowly, and you should use chips, which are not meant to temper.  I melt the chocolate on a make-shift double-boiler, or in the microwave oven.

Once it melts, remove it and using a silicone spatula, spread it onto a parchment or silicone-lined baking sheet.  Sprinkle with sea salt and whatever other ingredients you decide to use.  I've done it with just chocolate and sea salt and it's absolutely delicious and decadent.  Refrigerate for at least an hour so that it sets.  You can then break it up into whatever size you want.

Bon appetit!

Summer Berry Crumble

This is based on the apple crumble i made in the past, but since berries are so sweet and delicious (and i forgot to buy apples) i doubled up on the berries and used all strawberries and blueberries.  I also used whole wheat flour instead of regular white flour, and demerara instead of brown sugar... my attempt to make it a bit healthier in a natural way.  And then i decided to get creative and made an individual serving in a small dish.  This might be fun to do with a small dinner party.  Now the question... is this crumble as good as the last? 
 

Ingredients -

• 1 cup of demerara or brown sugar
• 1 cup of rolled oats
• 1 cup of whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• 6 fuji apples, peeled and sliced
• 1 large basket of blueberries
• 1 2 large baskets of strawberries
• 1/2 cup of white sugar
• 2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, oats, flour and melted butter and mix until crumbly. 

Place half the mixture in a baking dish.

Spread apples and berries over mixture.
Sprinkle with white sugar and cinnamon.
Top with remaining crumb mixture.
Bake 40-45 Minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with vanilla schlag (whipped cream) or vanilla ice cream.  In fact, a little of both is great!

Berry crumble for one... or be nice and share it with someone for a smile.

By the way, this posting is after i served the berry crumble, and this was a hit!  It was completely devoured as was the schlag.  I'm a happy blogger.  :)

Buon appetito!

Yummy Chocolate Pumpkin Bread-Puddin'

The best dessert, but oops... i forgot to add the schlag for the photo op!

This is it!!!

I think this must be my very favorite dessert to make, because...

• it's so easy;
• chocolate... bread... what more does a person need/want?
• people haven't stopped asking me for the recipe!  

I made some slight modifications to Bobby Flay's Pumpkin Bread Pudding, such as using freshly made dulce de leche (OMG!  you can eat it with a spoon directly from a jar in the fridge!) with fresh whipped cream instead of Bobby's Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce and Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise.  Also, i did the ultimate... i added small chunks of dark chocolate bits.  Oh... and i substituted brioche rolls instead of his pumpkin bread. The modifications can be endless.  I'd love to know what you're going to do to make it your bread pudding!

NOTE:  As good as this dessert is, and as good as it may look, i continue to forget to add the whipped cream (schlag) and powdered sugar to the one plated for pictures.  Just imagine... 

  
Ingredients -

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
• 6 large egg yolkls
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons pure maple syrun
• 1 cup pure canned pumpkin puree
• 2 tablespoons bourbon
• pumpkin bread  I prefer brioche or about 10 brioche rolls
• chopped semi-sweet chocolate chunks
• sprinkling of walnuts
• confectioners sugar (just to sprinkle on top)
• Dulce de leche (recipe to follow)
• Fresh whipped cream, or schlag

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F°. 

Combine the cream, milk, vanilla bean and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer.

Whisk together the yolks, sugar, maple syrup, and pumpkin puree in a large bowl.
Slowly whisk in the hot cream mixture until combined, remove the vanilla pod, and whisk in the bourbon.
Strain the custard into a clean bowl.  (I have no idea what this is for, so i didn't do it.)

Scatter the bread cubes in a buttered 9 by 13-inch baking glass baking dish.
Pour the custard over the bread, pressing down on the bread to totally submerge it in the custard.
Let sit for 15 minutes to allow the bread to soak up some of the custard.

Place the pan in a larger roasting pan and pour hot tap water into the roasting pan until it comes half way up the sides of the glass dish.
Bake until the sides are slightly puffed and the center jiggles slightly, about 1 hour.

Remove from the oven and water bath and cool on a baking rack for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Spoon some of the bread pudding onto a plate and drizzle with the dulce de leche.
Top with freshly whipped cream.
Bread pudding is best served warm.

Buon appetito!

Get ready for the BEST dessert I've ever made...

Princess Cake - the most delicious combination of sweets.

as delicious as this is, 

     i did not make it,

          and it's not the dessert i've been talking about for over the past week.

Each Thanksgiving i focus on something, and hope to turn it into something special.

Last year it was the butternut squash soup with pancetta, thanks to Laurence's discovery of one of his favorite comfort foods while going to NYU.  (Ok... and thanks to Tom Colicchio's, Wichcraft and its fine selection of reasonably priced food that brings a smile and warms the belly of many looking for good, comfort food while away from home.)

This year i focused on pumpkin bread pudding.  I'd like to say more, but i'll wait until you can read the recipe before i say what's in it and what accompanies it.  

The few days before Thanksgiving i make the dish and bring it to work.  That night i work at refining it and, yes, bring another one to the office.  Based on reactions, i was able to tell when it was a hit!  Mom wants the recipe, Colleen wants the recipe, and Jess wants to share it with a teacher.  Audrie said Georg thought it was the best dessert i've ever made.  I love making something that everyone loves to eat.

Now i have to sift through dozens of photos and turn them into pretty viewing for you.  I also feel i owe it to this delicious dessert that i give it the recognition it deserves.  So before this weekend is over, i'll have the pictures and recipes posted.  All three parts of the dessert are easy and delicious.  It's probably going to take me more time to blog it than to make it.

I hope this posting has you looking forward to reading about this yummy dessert!