Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes

I had a chunk of Valrhona in my pantry and I found a good use for it last night. Valrhona is a high grade French chocolate, I use it for cooking and baking. It is more expensive than regular baking chocolate, but not outrageously so and it is certainly worth the price as the quality is superb.

I kind of forgot about this recipe and haven't made it in a long time. I am not sure where I picked this recipe up, I scrawled the recipe down on a piece of notebook paper and I keep it in my 3-ring "sweets" binder. It does not require very many ingredients, but you should use good quality bittersweet chocolate. In a pinch, I have used semi sweet chocolate chips instead of bittersweet chocolate. The better the chocolate, the more rich the dessert will be.

I assembled the ingredients for this before I put steaks on the grill. I whipped it up after dinner and by the time we had the kitchen cleaned up, dessert was ready.

Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes

1 stick butter
1 T. flour + 1 t. flour
4 oz chopped bittersweet chocolate (semi sweet may be substituted)
2 large eggs
2 egg yolks
1/4 C. sugar
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 450.
Line a muffin tin with 4 - 6 foil muffin liners. I like to use the big foil muffin liners, so I usually only make 4 large molten chocolate lava cakes. You could use smaller liners and make 6 small lava cakes (but that would be sad, go for the bigger size).

Spray the foil muffin liners (if using) generously with non-stick spray. Alternatively, you could butter several ramekins but I found the foil liners much easier to handle.

Over a low flame, melt the butter and chocolate together, set aside.


Meanwhile beat the eggs, egg yolks, sugar and salt until light and thick. You can use your mixer or do this by hand with a whisk. Add the melted chocolate and mix well to combine. Stir in the flour. Divide among the muffin tins or ramekins and bake at 450 for 6- 7 minutes. The centers should still look a bit jiggly when you get these out of the oven, that is OK.


Let the cakes sit for at least 5 minutes before plating and serving. Excellent with vanilla ice cream or coffee flavored gelato. Best served warm.

Moroccan Inspired Stuffed Acorn Squash

It has been cold in Austin lately, colder than it has been in years so I've been told. I bought an acorn squash about a week ago thinking I would make some kind of soup out of it. But then I stumbled upon this recipe. I decided to make a few tweaks and cut the recipe down to serve only two. I used ingredients I had on hand and the squash was very tasty. It made a lovely presentation, not to mention the fact it made my kitchen smell wonderfully exotic.

Moroccan Inspired Stuffed Acorn Squash

1 acorn squash, cut in half, long ways
2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
2 mild Italian sausage links
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped fine
1 large garlic clove, minced
pinch cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
1/4 cup orzo
1/4 cup quinoa
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
2 tablespoons of pecans, chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro, minced
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Spray a baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and place squash cut side down. Bake for 35 minutes. While the squash is baking, prepare the filling.

In a deep skillet over a medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Remove the casing from the sausages and break the links into small chunks. Add Italian sausage, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a sprinkle of salt to the skillet.

Cook until brown (about 5 to 7 minutes), drain meat, leaving juices still in the pan, and place sausage in a bowl. Add onions to the skillet and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.


Add the quinoa and orzo, and stir until combined. Pour in the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-18 minutes. Fluff quinoa and orzo, add the cooked meat, cranberries, pecans, cilantro, add salt and pepper to taste. After the acorn squash has baked, remove it from the oven and scoop out the soft flesh with a spoon. Leave about 1/4 inch thick shell. Chop the scooped out flesh into chunks and add it to the filling mixture. Spoon the filling mixture into the squash bowls. There will be a generous amount of filling for each squash half. Bake for 15 minutes. Serves two.

Wine Cube = Genius

My husband knows me really well. At Christmas one of his presents was a portable, disposable four pack of wine called the Wine Cube - seriously, how cute is this?! It is the made by Trinchero Family Estates out of Napa. And it is darn cute. Not only is it eco-friendly, it is super easy to transport. The label says each single sized serving offers grab and go convenience. I can imagine the possibilities. I could stick this in my back pack or even my purse!

I decided to have a little wine tasting tonight to try it out. This is like a juice box for grown ups. Each wine cube is 250 ml (approximately 8.5 ounces, or a generous pour as I like to say). The wine is not bad, it is a bit fruity and has a smooth finish. I could totally see myself sneaking one of these into the pool next summer. Heh.

The box says this product is only available at Target. Yeah, another reason to love Target! I think this retails for around $9.99, so it is very reasonably priced to boot. I give the Wine Cube and my hubby two thumbs up!

2010 Food Goals

So I've been thinking about my diet and things I want to try with food in the coming year. I've only lived in Austin four months but it hasn't taken that long to realize what a culinary wasteland Cincinnati was. Going to the grocery store here is such a joy. I don't have to hope and pray the grocery will have cilantro or a decent piece of fish. There are choices, such nice choices. And no excuse not to cook something fabulous. One of my favorite places to shop is Central Market, it isn't as overwhelming or as expensive as Whole Foods. Their produce is off the charts. It is also a nice place to graze on a Saturday.

Anyway, back to the year at hand. A new year, in a new state with so many things to try and do. Here are some things I've set as goals for 2010:

1. Eat less processed food and less refined sugars. I've gotten pretty good at not eating candy bars, soda, chips and assorted junk food. I still need to wean myself off canned soups and the occasional frozen prepared meal. If it is convenient, it probably isn't good for you at all. Too many chemicals and way too much sodium is not good. I'm trying to eat freshly made foods without chemicals.

2. Try new vegetables and fruits, eat the rainbow. I have a list of veggies and fruits I want to try. For example, last night for the first time in my life, I ate brussel sprouts and I really liked them - a bit of a shocker. I followed this recipe and it was delicious. My husband still refuses to touch brussel sprouts, but I am a new fan. On my short list to cook this year is kohlrabi, beets, rutabaga, passion fruit, papaya, black eyed peas and scotch bonnets. Also, I want to cook more lentils. They are so delicious, high in fiber and easy on the wallet.

3. Join a CSA. I belonged to a CSA (community sustained agriculture, a farm) back in Ohio. I loved getting my box of veggies every week. The farmer would surprise me with fresh picked strawberries or fresh eggs and tender lettuces. It was fun to see what I would get and what I would cook up with the ingredients each week. I am looking in to joining a CSA in Austin. It is a great way to get fresh, seasonal produce while supporting your local farmer. Go to Local Harvest to find one in your area.

4. Do not eat junk at work. People mean well, but they bring total crap to work. And then it is 10:30 a.m., you are starving and there it is. Not good. I just need to stay out of the kitchen at work.

5. Keep a food journal. I lost 30 lbs last year following Weight Watchers and an integral part of the weight loss was keeping track of everything I ate. You've heard about this a million times, but it really does work. Having to write it down made me skip the second or third cookie, or the second glass of wine after work.

6. Try a new recipe at least once a week. I have a mountain of recipes to try. I need to make the time to shop for the ingredients and spend the time to cook something new. I sometimes get stuck in a cooking rut, trying a new recipe per week will help me keep things from becoming blah.

So that is what I'm thinking about for this year. I look forward to trying new things and sharing my successes (and the failures!) with you.

Orange Marmalade & Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast

This is a special occasion breakfast. I made these last Sunday and my husband wondered why I didn't put them on my blog. So, I made these again on Christmas morning just for him (well, OK to put on the blog too). You can make these to impress overnight guests or to treat yourself on a lazy Sunday morning. I usually serve these with maple syrup but I’ve also made blackberry syrup to drizzle on top. They are amazing with blackberry syrup or warmed up blackberry preserves.

This makes 4 nice sized servings.


Orange Marmalade and Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast

3 large eggs
¾ C half & half
1.5 teaspoons honey
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla
Zest of one orange
Juice from one half of an orange (fresh squeezed)
Pinch of cinnamon or cardamom (optional)
3 oz cream cheese
3 Tablespoons orange marmalade
Challah bread (can use French bread as a substitute)
Butter

Into a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, half and half, honey, salt, vanilla, orange zest, orange juice and the cinnamon or cardamom (optional, I use a pinch of cinnamon).


In another small bowl, beat together the cream cheese and marmalade until combined.
Cut bread into 1” thick slices. Then, with a small sharp knife, make a deep pocket in the bottom of the bread (I cut a deep slit, enough to allow a large spoon in). Carefully stuff each piece of challah bread with 1 generous tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture. Place the stuffed bread into a deep sided casserole dish.

Pour the egg mixture evenly over the challah.
Let the mixture sit 5 minutes, then gently flip the bread and let the bread rest for another five minutes. The idea is to let the egg mixture soak evenly and deeply into the bread.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

Cook the French toast until each side is well browned. Serve with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar or the syrup of your choice.

Butter Cookies

I'm giving Paula Deen and Ina Garten a run for the money in the butter department with this post. A couple of years ago, I took a holiday baking class at the Midwest Culinary Institute in Cincinnati. The teacher was one of the former owners of the Virgina Bakery. The Virginia Bakery was a Cincinnati institution on Ludlow Avenue in Clifton for many years. Sadly, it closed in 2000. This recipe was one of the recipes we learned to make. I like this recipe because it yields a large amount of cookie dough and I get to measure flour and sugar with my kitchen scale. Measuring with a scale is much more precise than measuring with measuring cups. Plus it is an excuse to acquire another kitchen gadget. This butter cookie has a wonderful, rich buttery taste. Great for your holiday party tray.

The recipe yields a whopping four pounds of cookie dough. I have no idea how many cookies you will get out of this recipe - it depends on the size and shape of the cookies you roll and cut out. The dough freezes well, so you could make a batch of this to have on hand for upcoming holiday events. Just divide it up and freeze it.

Butter Cookies

1 pound butter (4 sticks, unsalted butter, at room temperature)
1 pound sugar
2 eggs
2 t. vanilla
1 pound, 8 oz. all purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. salt



With a kitchen scale, weigh out the dry ingredients. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.


In a stand mixer, cream together the butter and the sugar at low speed for 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl a couple of times during this process. Beat in two eggs and the vanilla.
Sift in the dry ingredients, one cup at a time until combined. Be careful, do not overmix the dough.
At this point, you can immediately roll the dough out and bake it. I prefer to shape the dough into a ball and refrigerate until chilled.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, roll the dough out onto a floured surface and cut into shapes. Roll the dough about 1/8" thick. I like to roll out a small amount of dough and cut out 4 -5 cookies at a time. Bake at 350 for approximately 10- 12 minutes or until the bottom of the cookies are light brown. Cool completely and frost as desired. I usually use Martha Stewart's royal icing recipe or a milk fondant icing to dip the cookies in.
The dough freezes well and will keep in the freezer for up to 8 weeks.

Millie's Turtles

You can't have Christmas in my house without homemade turtles. This is another recipe handed down from my mom, Millie. Of course, her turtles always turn out better than mine. I am getting better at the caramel - years of practice paying off. Don't be afraid to try this recipe. With the right tools, equipment and time, you can turn out beautifully delicious homemade caramel turtles.

First some tips and pointers:
Use a heavy bottomed pan. I use a great old copper pot that I got at an estate sale years ago. Copper is the best conductor of heat. Use the heaviest pot you've got, even a pressure cooker pot will do.
Also, use a good candy thermometer. You have to cook the caramel until it reaches the soft ball stage. You can't guess - it must reach the soft ball stage and you have to cook it s-l-o-w. Basically, you must stir and stir and watch the candy thermometer. When you think you can't stir anymore, when you think your arm is going to fall off, then you are almost at soft ball stage (approximately 238 degrees). Most good candy thermometers will have the soft ball stage indicated on the side.
Lastly, don't try to make caramel when it is humid out. Humidity is the death of good caramel - it won't set up. A dry day is best. Don't make this recipe on a rainy day, it really could affect the results.

This recipe makes about 40 nice sized turtles.

Millie's Turtles

Foil cupcake holders
Pecans
2 sticks of real butter (please do not even think of using anything but real butter)
2 C light brown sugar
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (I use Eagle Brand)
1 C white Karo syrup
12 oz semi sweet chocolate

Prepare the foil wrappers - separate about 40 foil cupcake holders and place on rimmed baking sheets. Spray each foil holder with a generous amount of nonstick spray. Place 2-3 large pecan pieces into each foil cupcake holder.
In a heavy pot, place 2 sticks of butter and 2 cups of light brown sugar.

Over medium heat, melt the butter and sugar. Just before the mixture begins to boil, add 1 cup Karo syrup and the can of sweetened condensed milk. Over medium heat, stir and cook the caramel mixture and bring it to a slow boil - stirring constantly. Using a candy thermometer, continue to stir and cook the caramel over medium low heat until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage. Do not rush this process, it will take over 15 minutes or so of stirring. Be careful stirring the caramel, it can burn easily.
Once the caramel hits the soft ball stage (238F), remove the caramel from the heat. Working quickly, ladle the caramel into the prepared foil cupcake holders. I use about 1/8 C. of caramel per turtle.
Let the caramels harden up and set (about an hour). Melt the chocolate chips over a double boiler and swirl a generous dollop of chocolate onto each caramel. Allow to firm up before placing in containers to store. Keeps at room temperature about a week or you can keep them in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.

On a holiday platter