Inspired by California-Mediterranean cuisines and farmers markets, I cook healthy, flavorful dishes that are easy-to-prepare yet elegant. I write for Zester Daily, One for the Table, Luxury Travel Magazine, Huffington Post & New York Daily News. My latest Amazon eCookbook is 10 Delicious Holiday Recipes. My handcrafted chocolates are available at www.dchocolates.com.
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Showing posts with label Easy-to-Make Recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Easy-to-Make Recipes. Show all posts
I love challah, the egg bread traditionally eaten on Fridays for Jewish shabbat. But our family never finishes the entire loaf. The bread is so good, I looked for other ways to enjoy it.
Challah makes great French toast. A slice of dense challah absorbs the frothy egg and milk and still retains it shape. Cooked on a hot carbon steel pan with a pat of butter, the outside gets crusty as the inside stays custard-moist. A drizzle of warm maple syrup on top and we have a delicious breakfast.
So leftover challah is not a bad thing. It's a good thing.
The French toast got me thinking. How else could I use challah? I always loved bread pudding. So why not challah bread pudding?
I could have made the dessert in small cups, but I like to make bread pudding as a cake. The result was spectacular. The easy-to-make dessert is perfect for dinner parties, Oscar watching parties, Super Bowl Sunday, birthdays and anniversaries.
Challah Bread Pudding Cake
At our neighborhood bakery, a full-sized challah loaf weighs 24 ounces. The recipe uses half a loaf to make enough for 8-10 people. If you need to make more for a party, the recipe can be easily doubled or tripled. Whatever you need.
The challah should be day old or even a week old. If you aren't going to make the bread pudding cake for awhile, place the challah into an airtight bag and freeze for up to two months. When defrosting, brush off any ice crystals that may have accumulated on the bread. For heavy cream, I prefer to use Trader Joe's because there are no additives. The heavy cream I see in markets, even ones that are high-end, has chemicals added. Buy good quality chocolate without flavorings or nuts. Trader Joe's sells one pound bars of Belgium chocolate that are good. After opening the package, keep unrefrigerated in a sealed bag for freshness. If the chocolate turns chalky, discard. Use one 9" round baking pan at least 3" tall or two 6" baking pans at least 3" tall. Do not use a spring form pan because it will leak during baking.
The baking pan needs to be at least 1" taller than the amount of batter because the cake will rise as it cooks. Freezing the buttered, parchment lined baking pan for 15 minutes helps when you remove the cake from the pan after baking. So the challah pieces do not get mushy, as quickly as the toasted bread is coated with the custard, pour the mixture into the baking pan.
Serves 8-10
Time to prepare 30 minutes
Time to bake 60-75 minutes depending on the size of the baking pan and the oven
Ingredients
12 ounces day old challah, torn apart into 2" pieces
1 tablespoon sweet (unsalted) butter
4 eggs
1 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
1 pint heavy cream, preferably Trader Joe's
1 cup dark chocolate at least 60% cacao, finely chopped
½ cup roasted almonds, roughly chopped (optional)
¼ cup powdered sugar
½ cup shaved dark chocolate
Directions
Preheat oven 350 F.
Place torn up challah pieces on a baking tray. Place in oven for 15 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool.
Place the baking pan on a piece of parchment paper, trace
the shape of the pan with a pencil and use scissors to cut the parchment paper to size.
Melt butter. Using a pastry brush, paint the bottom and sides of the pan(s) with the
melted butter.
Place parchment paper round(s) onto the bottom of the baking pan. Paint the top
of the parchment paper. Place baking pan with parchment paper in freezer for at least 15 minutes.
In a large bowl, with a whisk mix together eggs and sugar. Add heavy cream. Mix well. Add
chopped chocolate. Add chopped almonds (optional). Mix together and add toasted challah pieces. Toss well to
coat.
Pour into the buttered pan with parchment paper and place in
to 350 F pre-heated oven.
Bake 45-60 minutes or until top is lightly browned. Remove and
place on a wire rack to cool.
As the cake cools, it will shrink away from the sides of
the pan.
Place your hand over the top, flip over and remove the cake. Flip over so the parchment paper is on the bottom and place on
the wire rack.
Once cooled, the cake can be placed in plastic wrap and an airtight plastic bag and refrigerated or frozen. Refrigerated the cake will keep fresh for 2 days. The cake can be kept frozen for up to a month.
Before serving, preheat oven 250 F, remove the parchment paper, place on a
baking sheet, place into oven for fifteen minutes. Remove and dust with shaved chocolate and powdered sugar.
Growing up in Los Angeles, and this was many years ago, the
closest I got to an Italian meal was opening a can of Chef Boyardee SpaghettiOs.
Only when I moved to Providence to teach at Rhode Island College did I
experience authentic Italian cuisine. Living close to Federal Hill, the
historic center of the city’s Italian community, I had easy access to Italian
delis that imported cheeses, pastas and charcuterie directly from Italy. Every
block had a small bakery making cakes, pies, cookies, breads and pastries
according to recipes handed down for generations.
I discovered cannoli filled with ricotta cheese studded with
flakes of bittersweet chocolate. Twice baked biscotti with almonds. Pastry
cream filled zeppole, a fat doughnut of sugared dough, baked or deep fried. I
loved them all, but my favorite was a seashell shaped pastry, the deliciously crisp
sfogliatella.
What makes this Tuscan pastry so famous is a crunchy
flakiness outside and a sturdy, sweet ricotta cheese filling inside. Imagine
the best croissant with a thick custardy filling. And, by the way, the “g” is silent, so
sfogliatella is pronounced “sfo-li-a-tella.”
Holiday baking
Some recipes are best saved for the holidays or special
occasions when helping hands are available to join in the cooking. Making
tamales on your own isn’t easy, but at holidays when you are joined by friends
and family, the repetitive work becomes social and fun. The same for making
Chinese dumplings filled with savory ground pork and spices.
For me, I’m making sfogliatelle with my family. Happily the
pastry can be made in stages, so the work can be spread out over several days. The
dough and ricotta filling can be made on separate days and refrigerated.
Assembling the sfogliatelle can be saved for yet another day. And, the
completed, unbaked pastries can be kept in the freezer for months, available on
a moment’s notice to brighten an afternoon tea break or a weekend dinner party.
Executive Pastry Chef
Federico Fernandez
For years I searched for an easy-to-follow recipe without
success. When I was told that Chef Federico Fernandez of Bianca Bakery (Platform, 8850 Washington Blvd., Culver City California 90232) would demonstrate making sfogliatelle, I jumped at the opportunity.
Born in Buenos Aires, Fernandez is a worldly student of
South American, French and Italian cuisine. His pastries have been served at
some of the world’s most elegant hotels and restaurants, the Park Hyatt, the Marriott Plaza,
the Fontainebleau, the Four Seasons and, now, Bianca Bakery. Before we met, I admired his work
on Instagram. His elegantly beautiful pastries are amazing.
Making sfogliatelle requires patience, muscle work and an
attention to details. Demonstrating how to make sfogliatelle for the YouTube video on Secrets of Restaurant Chefs, the
very affable Fernandez showed how the process can be fun. I enjoyed the passion
he puts into baking. He is an artist with a soul and a good sense of humor.
While he worked, he filled my head with technical details about the art of baking
and fed me samples that put me into culinary heaven.
Sfogliatelle
All-purpose flour could
be used, but that would be a mistake. Fernandez uses bread flour because its
higher gluten strength gives the dough more elasticity. That allows the dough
to be worked repeatedly to create sfogliatelle’s characteristic flaky layers.
In the video, Fernandez
uses a recipe to make 50 sfogliatelle. Not that he bakes that many at one time.
He freezes the unbaked pastries, taking out each morning only the number he needs
for the hotel’s breakfast service. Freezing does not diminish the quality of
the sfogliatella which are freshly baked before serving.
To make his
sfogliatelle, Fernandez includes semolina flour in the dough to add color and
texture. He also uses semolina in the filling because that is a traditional
ingredient and because Semolina gives the filling density as well as its
characteristic yellow color. By contrast, pastry cream which is not as dense
would melt when the sfogliatelle are baked in a hot oven.
Fernandez uses a room-sizedRondomat sheeter machine to
flatten and stretch the dough. “Little by little,” as he says in the video, the
dough softens and thins. At home you will use a rolling pin and a lot of elbow
grease. Have friends help with the process or take breaks. If you want to rest,
place a damp kitchen towel over the dough.
Creating multiple
layers gives the pastry its distinctive crispy, flaky quality. This is the most
labor intensive part of the process. The result is worth the effort.
If you do not have a
small rolling pin, pick up a ½ - ¾ ” dowel, 5-6” in length from a lumber yard
or hardware store. When you get home, sand the dowel and treat with a light
film of safflower oil. Dry and clean before using.
Special equipment
2 large, sturdy rolling
pins
1 small rolling pin or
½ - ¾ ” dowel, 5-6” long Wooden spoon Wire whisk
A large work surface
A heavy duty electric mixer
1 metal ring, 3 ½”– 4” in
diameter, the ring of a small spring-form pan will do nicely
Parchment paper or Silpat sheets
Yield: 10 -12 sfogliatelle
Time: 4 hours + refrigeration
overnight for the dough
The Dough
Sfogliatelle are
famous for being deliciously crisp. Three things create that wonderful quality,
a dozen+ paper thin layers of dough with fat between the layers and using bread
flour with more gluten to create thin, stretchable sheets of dough.
For the fat, unsalted
butter can be used, but Fernandez recommends an equal mix of unsalted
butter and Sweetex Z or Crisco because butter melts too easily. Please note
that Sweetex is an artificially sweetened fat. Fernandez uses a different
product, Sweetex Z which has zero trans fats. Even though fat is essential to making the sfogliatelle's layers crisp, in the heat of a 400F oven, the fat all but disappears.
Ingredients for dough
4 cups bread flour
2 cups semolina flour
3 teaspoons kosher salt
1 ½ tablespoons honey
1 cup + 1 tablespoon water
4 cups unsalted butter, room
temperature or 2 cups unsalted butter + 2 cups Crisco or Sweetex Z
½ cup all-purpose flour for dredging when assembling the
sfogliatelle
¼ cup
powdered sugar for dusting before serving
Ingredients for ricotta filling
2 ½ cups whole milk
½ rounded tablespoon fresh orange zest, avoiding all the
bitter white pith
1 ½ cups white sugar
1 ½ cups semolina
5 egg yolks
1 ¾ cups cow’s milk ricotta cheese
Directions
Before making the dough, whip the unsalted butter or
unsalted butter and Crisco or Sweetex Z in a mixer for ten minutes using the
paddle attachment so it is very soft and fluffy. Use at room temperature.
Making dough with layers using a “simple fold”
In a mixer fitted with a hook, combine the two flours, salt
and honey. Blend on a low speed to mix well, then slowly add water. Continue
blending on a low speed about 10 minutes. Increase the speed and blend another
2 minutes.
Touch the dough in the bowl of the mixer. If it feels too
dry, add a small amount of water. Turn on the mixer and incorporate the water.
Be careful not to add too much water. If the dough becomes soggy, you cannot
add more flour.
Transfer the dough from the mixing bowl to a work surface.
Work the dough with your fingers until it is in the shape of a fat log. Wrap
the dough with plastic wrap and let rest 10 minutes on the counter. Do not
refrigerate.
After resting, remove the plastic wrap. Dust the work
surface with bread flour and position the log in front of you, the long way.
Use the rolling pin to roll the dough away from your body. The log of dough
will flatten and elongate.
To create layers, fold 1/3 of the dough from the end closest
to you onto the middle. Fold the other 1/3 from the opposite end on top of the
first fold. This is called a “simple fold.”
Roll out the dough. Flip the dough over and rotate it
clockwise a quarter turn. Press down on the folded dough with your hands. Roll
out the dough again. Allow the dough to relax a minute or two before making the
next simple fold.
After folding, rolling out, flipping and rotating the dough 15
times, you will have created dozens and dozens of delicate layers. Cover the
dough with a damp kitchen towel. The dough needs to rest and so do you. Take 10
minutes and have a cup of tea.
Making fat dough thin
Now that you have created layers
and made the dough softer, the dough needs to become thinner.
Fernandez uses a Rondomat dough sheeter. He can handle a
large recipe because the mechanical rollers do the physical work of rolling out
the dough into a sheet almost thirty feet long. In your kitchen, you will use a
rolling pin and a lot of upper body strength. But even though you are using a
smaller recipe, your sheet will still be quite large. As you roll and thin the
dough, it will spread in length and width so clear your counter for this step.
You will need the space.
Sprinkle bread flour on the work surface. Make a simple fold
one time, then roll out the dough. Because the sheet will become too large for
the work space, you will wrap the dough around the second rolling pin.
Once you have rolled out all the dough and accumulated it on
the second rolling pin, check the thickness. If it is not yet paper thin, roll
the dough out again. You may have to do this step several times until the dough
is paper thin. Once all of the paper thin dough has accumulated on the second
rolling pin, you are ready for the next step.
Adding fat for crispness
In order to create croissant-like flaky layers, a fat is
required. Using your hands, apply a thin film of room temperature butter or the
mixture of butter-Crisco or Sweetex Z on the work surface.
Place the rolling pin with the sheet of dough on the back of
the work area.
Keeping the sheet attached to the rolling pin, pull forward
on the dough and lay a length of the unbuttered sheet on the work surface. Use a
sharp knife to trim off and discard the rounded end of the dough so the edge
facing you is square.
Spread a thin layer of fat onto the sheet of dough on the
work surface.
Start a new roll. As Fernandez shows in the video, use your
fingers to lift the end of the buttered dough off the work surface and roll it
away from you.
To unwind another length of dough from the rolling pin, lift
the roll of buttered dough and bring it back toward you.
Continue that process, pulling dough from the rolling pin
onto the work surface, spreading on fat and adding that length to the buttered
roll, until you have buttered all the dough.
As you create the buttered roll, the ends will become
untidy. No worries. You will trim those later.
When you have applied fat to all of the dough, the roll will
be in the shape of a large log. Give the entire log a final coat of fat, seal
with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Ricotta Filling
You can make the
sweetened ricotta filling and refrigerate in an air-tight container for up to
three days until you are ready to assemble the sfogliatelle.
Directions
Combine whole milk and white sugar in a pan over low heat. Whisk
to combine. Add orange zest. Increase the heat.
When the mixture boils, add semolina all at once and whisk well.
The mixture will thicken quickly. Cook 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently to
combine. Avoid burning.
Switch to a wooden spoon when the filling becomes
paste-like. Continue stirring. Reduce heat. Cook another 3-4 minutes. Remove
from heat.
Use a spatula to transfer the thickened mixture into the
mixer bowl. Be certain to scrape off all of the batter that has accumulated on
the sides and bottom. Allow to cool for a minute.
On the mixer, use the paddle attachment to aerate the
filling. Run the mixer at a low speed for a minute. Increase the speed and run
for another 2 minutes.
To prevent splattering, before adding the egg yolks, stop
the mixer and lower the bowl. Add yolks.
Change the mixer speed to low. Mix for a minute. Increase the speed and run
another 2 minutes.
Once the filling is creamy, use a spatula to scrape the
sides of the bowl and incorporate all of the mixture. Run the mixer again at higher
speed.
Add ricotta using the low speed and, once incorporated,
increase the mixer speed to high. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again
for 10 minutes on medium to aerate the filling.
Once the filling is creamy, allow to cool. If not using
immediately, place in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to three
days.
Assembly
When you make the
individual sfogliatella, work in batches of four. Plastic wrap and refrigerate
the other sfogliatelle so the fat doesn’t soften.
Organize an assembly
line on the counter with the four sfogliatelle rounds, the bowl of ricotta
filling, the small rolling pin, the metal ring, a large spoon and all-purpose
flour in a bowl.
The mini-rolling pin
makes flattening out the dough faster and easier but if one is not available,
use your fingers to stretch out the dough.
Directions for assembly
Preheat oven to 400F.
Remove the buttered dough from the refrigerator and unwrap.
Lightly flour the work surface. Use your hands to press,
stretch, roll and reshape the log. Roll the log back and forth and squeeze with
your hands, keeping the shape round until the diameter is reduced to 2 ½”.
Using a sharp chefs knife, remove 1” of the uneven dough on
both ends and discard. Cut the log into ½” thick rounds.At this point, the slices can be plastic
wrapped, refrigerated and stored for a day or two.
Working with one piece at a time, shape the dough into a
round with your fingers and lightly dredge in the all-purpose flour.
Place the dough on the work surface. Use the small rolling
pin to flatten the dough until it is half again as large as it was. If the
layers come apart, press them back together.
Adding the filling is easy. Use your fingers to soften and
slightly stretch the middle of the dough. Make a circle with your thumb and
index finger. Lay the thin round of dough over the opening between your thumb
and finger. Create a cone shape by gently pressing the center of the dough into
that opening.
Spoon two large tablespoons of ricotta filling into the cone
and center of the dough. Fold the dough over the filling. Press the edges of
the dough together and create a conch-shell shape. Lay the sfogliatella on the
work surface.
Use the metal ring to trim the ragged
front edge of the dough.
Line a sheet pan with a piece of
parchment paper or a Silpat sheet. Place the sfogliatelle on the sheet pan with
½” spacing between them.
Baking
If you want to save
any of the sfogliatelle for later use, refrigerate or freeze them as described
below.
Directions for baking
If serving right away, place the
parchment paper covered sheet pan in the preheated 400F oven and bake 35
minutes, checking that the sfogliatelle brown but do not burn.
Allow to cool. Dust with powdered
sugar before serving.
Refrigerating and Freezing
If reserving for use within 72
hours, keep the sfogliatelle on the parchment paper covered sheet pan. Lay
another parchment paper on top and seal the sheet pan in a plastic bag.Place in refrigerator. Remove before serving and bake as directed
above.
If reserving for even later use,
place the plastic bag covered tray with sfogliatelle into the freezer. Once
frozen, remove the sheet pan. Put the frozen sfogliatella into an airtight bag.
They will keep up to six months in the freezer.
Baking After Freezing
Remove from the freezer the
number of sfogliatelle you want to bake.
Place on a parchment paper lined
sheet pan, cover with parchment paper and seal in a plastic bag. Refrigerate
for one day so the sfogliatelle defrost slowly.
Prepping for Thanksgiving reminded me of my mother's kitchen. Thanksgiving was her favorite holiday when my sister and I would join her in the kitchen and friends and family gathered around the table to share a meal.
She grew up in a household with her mom, dad, brother and four step-brothers from her dad's first marriage. Hers was a blended home in New York city with a lot of advantages and many disagreements. I think that's why she enjoyed Thanksgiving in her own home. No sibling rivalries, no mother looking over her shoulder to tell her how to make the turkey.
Brussels sprouts were always on the table for Thanksgiving. She was of the boiling-vegetables-school. She did that with beets, broccoli, carrots and Brussels sprouts. My wife and I are of the roasting-is-better method of cooking vegetables, especially Brussels sprouts.
Shopping for Brussels sprouts this week at the farmers market, I noticed that they were difficult to locate and they were priced at $4.50-5.50 a pound, higher than usual.
If you find small sized ones, they are good to cook whole or cut in half (top to root/bottom). The larger ones are best shredded, cutting from the top to the bottom-stem part so that most of the slices hold their shape.
In either case, the seasoning can be as simple as a drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of freshly ground black pepper and a sprinkling of sea salt. As a side note, do not use iodized salt. If you like kosher salt, only use Diamond Crystal brand without additives.
I wish my mom were with us Thursday. I'm certain she would like the roasted sprouts.
Have a great Thanksgiving.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts - Whole
Yield: 4 servings
Time: depending on size 30-45 minutes Ingredients
1 pound Brussels sprouts, washed, stems trimmed of any brown spots
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with a Silpat sheet, parchment paper or aluminum foil.
In a mixing bowl, toss Brussels sprouts with olive oil and seasonings.
Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes, turning them every 10 minutes for even roasting.
Serve hot.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts - Shredded
Yield: 4 servings
Time: depending on size 30-45 minutes Ingredients
1 pound Brussels sprouts, washed, stems trimmed of any brown spots
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with a Silpat sheet, parchment paper or aluminum foil.
To shred, place a Brussels sprout on the cutting board, stem side down. Slice from top to stem so the slices keep their shape. In effect you have created a cross-section of the vegetable.
In a mixing bowl, toss Brussels sprouts with olive oil and seasonings to coat well.
Spread the shredded sprouts on a lined baking sheet. For crispy edges, avoid layering the sprouts on top of one another.
Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes, turning them every 10 minutes for even roasting. Because they are cut, there should be browning on the edges. Be careful not to burn them.
Serve hot.
Variations
Before serving, sprinkle with bits of crisp bacon.
Before serving add 2 tablespoons charred onion slices.
Before serving sprinkle on 2 tablespoons crushed roasted hazelnuts.
Thanksgiving is almost upon us. With the guest list finalized and all your favorite recipes organized, there is only one unanswered question: what to do with the turkey liver?
Even people who love chicken livers view turkey liver as too much of a good thing.
Whoever has the job of prepping the turkey on Thanksgiving Day frequently looks with bewilderment at the large double-lobed liver in the bag tucked ever so neatly inside the turkey.
My mother prepared chicken chopped liver using a shallow wooden bowl and a beat-up, double-handled, single-bladed mezzaluna knife that her mother had given her.
While she prepared the chicken, she put me to work.
As a 9-year-old, I would sit on a stool with the wooden bowl on my lap, rocking the mezzaluna back and forth, chopping up the livers and hard-boiled eggs.
Periodically my mother would check on my progress and, when everything was reduced to a fine chop, she would retrieve the bowl, add melted chicken fat and mix everything together.
Continue pulsing and adding small amounts of olive oil until the pate is creamy. Depending on the size of the turkey liver, you might use more or less of the olive oil. Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt and pepper.