2 pounds peeled seeded butternut squash, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 6 cups)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt plus additional for sprinkling
7 large eggs
2 1/4 cups half and half
6 tablespoons dry white wine
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 day-old baguette (do not remove crust), torn into 1-inch pieces (about 10 cups)
1 cup chopped shallots (about 4 large)
1 package of soy-chorizo
8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss squash with 1 tablespoon oil on rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse salt; bake until squash is tender, turning with spatula occasionally, 20 to 25 minutes.
Whisk eggs in large bowl. Add half and half, wine, mustard, and 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt; whisk to blend. Add baguette pieces; fold gently into egg mixture. Let soak 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add shallots and sauté until soft, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add soy-chorizo and saute 2 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
Generously butter 13x9x2-inch baking dish. Using slotted spoon, transfer half of bread from egg mixture to prepared baking dish, arranging to cover most of dish. Spoon chorizo over bread. Spoon half of squash over bread and kale; sprinkle with half of cheese. Repeat with remaining bread, squash, and cheese. Pour remaining egg mixture over bread pudding.
Cover bread pudding with foil. Bake 20 minutes. Remove foil; bake uncovered until custard is set and bread feels springy to touch, about 20 minutes longer.
Preheat broiler; broil pudding until cheese browns slightly, about 2 minutes. Cool 5 minutes and serve.
400 grams pasta (I prefer linguini or similar, but choose your favorite)
1 pint tomato passata (or crushed tomato)
½ small Spanish onion
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon small capers
1/3 cup black olives, sliced
3-5 anchovy fillets packed in oil, finely chopped
½ teaspoon dried chilli flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 dried bay leaf
1 tablespoon olive oil
Prepare pasta as usual. Meanwhile:
Heat oil in a large skillet, and saute onion. Add garlic, anchovies and chilli flakes and cook for another minute, mashing anchovies slightly. Add tomato paste and passata, cook for 1 minute. Add oregano, capers, olives and bay leaf then turn down heat to simmer until pasta is ready. Sauce should thicken a little and anchovies will disintegrate. Combine sauce and pasta, serve with plenty of grated parmigiano.
Note: for a vegetarian version, omit anchovies and add 1 extra tablespoon of capers.
1 cup fresh mint leaves, washed and well dried
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, washed and well dried
4 garlic cloves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds
1 cup Asiago or Parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Place the mint, parsley, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse several times to roughly chop the garlic and the herbs.
With the motor running, pour the olive oil in a slow stead stream through the feed tube of the machine. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl several times while adding the oil.
Add the almonds, cheese, salt, and pepper and pulse until the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute more.
Use immediately, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
5 cups chicken stock or vegetable broth
2 cups shelled fresh or frozen petite green peas
1 head butter (Bibb) lettuce (about 4 cups loosely packed)
3 tablepsoons chopped fresh mint leaves
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Fresh mint pesto
creme fraiche, to garnish
Melt the butter and olive oil together in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until soft and transluscent, about 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and celery and cook for about 5 minute more.
Add the broth and the peas and bring to a low boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes. Add the lettuce and simmer until it is tender, about 2 minutes more. Stir in the mint, salt and pepper and remove from heat. Cool slightly.
Working in batches, laddle soup into the jar of a blender and puree until smooth.
Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm with a dallop of creme fraiche and a spoonful of mint pesto.
1/2 cup of shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of fresh chopped parsley
1/2 cup of chopped green onions
1/4 cup of rice vinegar
1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons of sugar
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 garlic cloves
Combine parmesan cheese, parsley, green onions, vinegar, mustard, sugar, olive oil, salt and garlic cloves in a blender. Puree until smooth. Use as a dressing for salad.
1 tablespoon of instant yeast
1/2 cup of warm water (100F to 110F)
1 teaspoon of sugar
4 1/2 cups of flour, divided
1 cup of mashed sweet potatoes (can substitute mashed pumpkin if preferred)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup of plain yogurt
1/2 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of melted butter
1 tablespoon of powdered orange rind
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
cooking spray
filling (see below)
1. Combine yeast, water and 1 teaspoon of sugar in a large bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon until yeast is dissolved and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes.
2. Add 1/2 cup of flour and mix for 2 minutes. Add mashed sweet potatoes, egg, yogurt, sugar and butter mixing until combined. Add orange rind, salt, baking soda and remaining flour, 1 cup at a time. Stir with a wooden spoon or with your hands until the dough forms. Knead gently, if needed, to bring the dough together.
3. Place dough in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover loosely, and let rise in a warm place (85F), free from drafts, about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk.
4. Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and roll into a 10- x 18-inch rectangle. Spread evenly with Filling, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll up dough, jelly-roll fashion, starting at 1 long side. Cut into 12 slices, and arrange in a lightly greased 15 x 10 inch baking pan. Cover loosely, and let rise in a warm place (85F), free from drafts, for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400F.
5. Bake rolls at 400F for 17-20 minutes until lightly browned and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
6. Remove rolls from oven, and invert onto a baking sheet. Invert again, onto a cooling rack or a serving platter. Let cool 20 to 30 minutes. Serve warm.
Filling
1/4 cup of melted butter
3/4 cup of light brown sugar
1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
In a small bowl, combine butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped (can sub in chocolate chips + a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder)
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon extract of your choice (I like mint or almond), optional
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (increase to 1 tsp. if omitting additional flavoring)
Pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter 8x8x2-inch metal baking pan. Stir butter and chocolate in small saucepan over low heat until smooth. Set aside. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add chocolate mixture, flour, peppermint and vanilla extracts and salt; stir until just blended.
Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Cool slightly.
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch or arrow root powder
2 cups almond milk (or 1 cup milk and 1 cup cream)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix the sugar, cocoa powder, salt and starch together in a small bowl. Set aside. Heat the milk in a small saucepan until bubbles form around the edges. Take out a cup of the liquid and whisk rapidly into the dry ingredients, then add everything back into the pan. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, just until it thickens. This will only take a couple minutes. Stir in vanilla, and serve. Yum!
One gluten-free pie dough recipe (using one cup sorghum flour and one-half cup rice flour instead)
¾ cup whole milk
¾ cup cream
¼ teaspoon dried lavender buds
7 ounces high-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
4 large egg yolks
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons baker’s sugar (extra-fine white sugar)
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Form the tart dough according to the recipe. Let it chill for a few moments in the refrigerator before working with it. Pat the dough into a tart shell (or, in the case of these, into a dozen tiny tart shells), attempting to make the bottom of the tart as thick as the sides. If the dough becomes unworkably sticky, put it back chill. When you have finished the tart dough, set it aside, preferably in the refrigerator.
Poke some holes in the bottom of the tart shell, lightly, with a fork. Bake the tart shell in the oven for about thirty minutes, or until it has turned golden brown. Remove it from the oven and set it aside to cool.
In a small saucepan, bring the milk and cream to a boil. Add the lavender, stir the buds in, and take the pan off the heat, immediately. After the lavender milk and cream have rested for ten minutes, strain the liquid of the lavender. Turn the burner on medium. Return the milk-cream to the saucepan and put the chocolate pieces in the liquid. Let the chocolate sit and melt for three minutes, and then whisk the concoction together.
In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together, gently. When they have come together, pour in the chocolate-cream mixture, slowly, whisking all the while. When this has become a coherent mixture, pour the chocolate filling into the tart pan. Fill the tart just enough to come to the top.
Chill the tart in the refrigerator for at least an hour, and preferably more, before serving it. Take it out of the refrigerator an hour before serving it, so that it is not icy when you try to cut it.
1 gluten-free pie/tart dough, pre-baked at 375° for about 30 minutes
1 ½ ounces bittersweet chocolate
4 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 cup baker’s sugar
1 cup lemon juice (you could also use a mixed citrus juice to make this a citrus curd)
10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Melting the chocolate. Melt the chocolate over medium-low heat. (You can use a double boiler, if you have one, or a stainless steel bowl over a pot of boiling water.) When the chocolate has melted, pour it on the bottom of the crust and spread it evenly with a rubber spatula. Chill the dough in the refrigerator until the chocolate has solidified.
Making the curd. Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and lemon juice together in a large saucepan, on medium heat. Be sure to stir continuously. (starting with a whisk and finishing with a rubber spatula, for a smooth curd) The curd is done when you can run your finger through the thick curd on the back of the spatula, and it parts like Moses just parted the Red Sea.
Finishing the curd. Remove the curd from the heat. Add the butter to the curd, bit by bit, and stir to make it all smooth. Pinch in the salt and you’re done.
Finishing the tart. Allow the curd to cool completely. Pour it into the tart shell. Chill the tart in the refrigerator, ideally overnight.
