Almond Clouds for Passover

Last night I was invited to the home of a dear friend for Passover Seder. I might have been raised Catholic, but I know enough about Passover to know the food rules, which left me in a bit of a dilemma. As a cook, I never go to anyone's home without bringing something from my own kitchen. So what to do? Flourless chocolate cake just seemed too common. So after scouring through recipes I came up with a winner - Almond Clouds. They're easy, don't take much time, and were a huge hit!

10 ozs almond paste
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/8 teaspoon fiori di sicilia (available from King Arthur flour) you can also substitute lemon oil or additional almond extract

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, mix the almond paste, salt and sugar until crumbly. In a small bowl beat the egg whites until frothy (they will be easier to add to the almond paste mixture). With the machine running, gradually add the frothy egg whites. Then add the extracts. You should have a sticky "dough". Drop the dough by scant tablespoons on a parchment lined baking sheet. Make 3 small indentations in each cookie with your finger (it makes for a pretty design) and cover each with a generous sprinkling of powdered sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven on the middle rack for about 20 minutes, until the edges are a little brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking tray.
Makes approximately 30 cookies.

Traditions in the Kitchen

Everyone has a food memory. You know what I’m talking about - the smell or taste of something that transports you to another place in another time. Every year my mother makes the same Christmas cookies my grandmother always used to make. And even though my mother’s aren’t exactly the same, that comforting aroma floating out from the oven transports me to my grandmother’s apartment in the Bronx when I was just a little kid.

Chocolate Decadence

Sometimes you just need chocolate. Deep, dark, intense, I don't care how many calories are in it chocolate. It happens to the best of us.  I've given up fighting that desire when it strikes. It's just not worth the battle, since I always lose. So I decided if I'm going to indulge, I'm going to INDULGE. And what's a better chocolate indulgence that a brownie?  I went to one of my favorite websites these days, www.kingarthurflour.com, and while they have several different brownie recipes, I went for the basic and classic - fudge brownies. They did not disappoint.

Good use of a snowy day

Today it's snowing. And snowing. And snowing. Get the picture? It's REALLY snowing. I started off this snowy day with irritation. A haircut appointment that had to be cancelled and can't be rescheduled till next week. An appointment at the chiropractor that had to be cancelled, and my neck is already complaining. And worst of all, I'm supposed to be cooking at an event at Rustico (www.rusticocooking.com) and I had to cancel because it was impossible to travel into the city.
So I indulged in irritability for about an hour, and then decided there were plenty of ways to make use of this snowy, snowy day. And I headed for the kitchen.
Now I'm usually one to watch the calories when I bake - always looking for low fat, no fat, low calorie, healthy.......but I guess the cranky start to the day got the better of me, and I threw caution to the winds and broke out the butter to make a sinfully rich Cinnamon Streusel Swirl Coffeecake. The picture's not the best (lack of natural light on such a dreary day) but believe me, this cake's a keeper. I'm happy to share the recipe with you. It's adapted from King Arthur Flour, and it's worth every single calorie

Streusel topping
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt (if you use unsalted butter)
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, melted
Filling
1 cup brown sugar, light or dark
1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch process or natural
1/4 cup chopped pecans
Cake
3/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon salt (1 ¼ teaspoons if you use unsalted butter)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1 1/4 cups milk (anything from skim to whole)
3 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan, or two 9" round cake pans.
 2) Make the topping by whisking together the sugar, salt, flour, and cinnamon. Add the melted butter, stirring till well combined. Set the topping aside.
3) Make the filling by mixing together the brown sugar, cinnamon,  cocoa powder and chopped pecans. Note that the cocoa powder is used strictly for color, not flavor; leave it out if you like. Set it aside.
 4) To make the cake: In a large bowl, beat together the butter, salt, sugars, baking powder, and vanilla until well combined and smooth.
5) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6) In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream or yogurt and milk till well combined. You don't need to whisk out all the lumps.
 7) Add the flour to the butter mixture alternately with the milk/sour cream mixture, beating gently to combine.
 8) Pour/spread half the batter (a scant 3 cups) into the prepared pan(s), spreading all the way to the edges. If you're using two 9" round pans, spread 1 1/3 cups batter in each pan.
 9) Sprinkle the filling evenly atop the batter.
 10) Spread the remaining batter atop the filling. Use a table knife to gently swirl the filling into the batter, as though you were making a marble cake. Don't combine filling and batter thoroughly; just swirl the filling through the batter.
 11) Sprinkle the topping over the batter in the pan.
12) Bake the cake until it's a dark golden brown around the edges; medium-golden with no light patches showing on top, and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 55 to 60 minutes for the 9" x 13" pan, 50 to 55 minutes for the 9" round pans. When pressed gently in the middle, the cake should spring back.
13) Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for 20 minutes before cutting and serving. Serve cake right from the pan.

Anyone who knows me knows that the only thing I like about winter is the food. I love warm, comfort food. My idea of the perfect Sunday in winter is putting up a huge pot of slowly simmering stock and letting the aroma waft through the house for the entire day. Or filling my slow cooker with beef short ribs and a hearty red wine. It’s truly the only thing that makes the cold weather bearable. And sometimes, it actually makes the cold weather fun for me. (yes, I am the one who stays back at the ski lodge drinking hot chocolate while everyone else is falling off their skis, getting cold, wet, snow in their boots, with red, runny noses.....but I digress)
However, after several months of cooking these comforting, soul-satisfying dishes, I start to get a little yearning for the lighter foods of warmer temperatures. Something a little cheery, reminding me of warm sunshine. And when I think of warm sunshine, I think lemon. So I decided to make a limoncello cake. Limoncello is a liqueur from southern Italy, made with Sorrento lemons, sugar and alcohol. It’s very refreshing when served chilled, and can be quite potent. The alcohol burns off in the cake, but if you prefer to have the cake without alcohol, simply substitute more lemon juice for the lemoncello.

So if winter is getting you down - hang in there. A little bit of lemony sunshine is sure to brighten your day!

8 servings

cooking spray
1 cup plain yogurt (I use non fat)
2 eggs
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1/2 of a juicy lemon)
2 tablespoons lemon zest (use a microplane)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup limoncello liqueur
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 pinch salt (optional)
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon limoncello liqueur
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare an 8-inch cake pan with cooking spray.
Whisk together the yogurt, eggs, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, and 4 tablespoons limoncello in a large bowl. In a separate large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet. DO NOT OVER MIX or the cake will be tough. Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake in the preheated oven until top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.
Stir the powdered sugar, 1 tablespoons of limoncello, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of water together in a small bowl until smooth. Poke small holes all over the top of the still-warm cake with a fork or toothpick. Spoon the glaze over the cake and spread with the back of a spoon. The glaze will seep into the cake and add moisture.


Amount Per Serving  Calories: 394 | Total Fat: 11.4g | Cholesterol: 55mg

The word celebrate conjures up different images for most people. For some, it’s the image of party hats and streamers. For others, it’s the pop of a champagne cork. For me, it’s food. Birthday, anniversary, holiday - my first thought is ok, what should we cook! And at this time of year, that cooking becomes baking.
The world is divided into two types of people - those who cook, and those who bake. I am a cook. Sure, I have three or four dessert recipes that I make really well and always rely on, but baking really isn’t my thing. Except at Holiday time. That’s when I throw caution to the winds, break out the big Kitchen Aid mixer and place an order with King Arthur for 20 lbs. of flour (they really do have the best flour - kingarthur.com).
For some reason baking is more fun to do with family than cooking (I guess the aroma of gingerbread is more pleasing than garlic and onions), and everyone seems to gravitate to the kitchen when they hear the clanking of the measuring spoons, cups and bowls, in anticipation of a sweet treat.
These cookies are very simple, and not too sweet - perfect with a glass of milk or a cup of hot cocoa.
Brown Sugar and Spice Cookies

6 tablespoons butter, softened
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 egg
1 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Topping:
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 350. Using a wooden spoon or a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Add molasses and the egg, and mix well. In a separate bowl mix together the rest of the ingredients (flour through allspice). Mix the flour mixture into the butter mixture until you have a soft dough. Pinch off some dough and roll a ball between your palms about 1 inch in diameter, and place on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Continue until all the dough is used up. (these cookies do not spread much so you can place them fairly close together) Gently press down on each ball with your palm so they’re slightly flattened. Sprinkle the topping mixture over the cookies, and bake approximately 10 minutes (check them after 8 minutes). Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool.
You can play with the spice in these cookies to suit your taste - too much “gingerbread”? - omit the molasses and reduce the ginger to 1 teaspoon. Want to sneak in some fiber for the kids? - reduce the white flour to 1 1/4 cups and add 1/3 cup whole wheat flour.

Feeding Friendship

This week I have been reminded of how our friendships need to be fed - both literally and figuratively, both good and not so good.
My friend Charles has colon cancer. His diet now is something new to me, this non-residue diet that is the opposite of the way all of us strive to eat. No fiber, no whole grains, no beans, no raw fruit or vegetables. So I'm trying to research recipes for him, so he'll at least have something tastier than boiled chicken and white rice. Next week is his birthday party, and I'm thrilled to be doing the cooking. I'm feeding our friendship, literally and figuratively.
My friend George's father was hit by a car the other day, and is in the hospital. George's mother just had surgery on her shoulder and can't move her right arm (what's that saying - when it rains, it pours?). So yesterday I spent hours cooking for her so she'll have some food in her kitchen when she comes home from visiting at the hospital. I dropped the food off to her late yesterday, and her smile let me know I was feeding more than just her stomach.
Last night 7 of us went out to eat at Joe's Shanghai in Chinatown to celebrate my friend and co-worker Raquel's 30th birthday. It was a happy occasion made even happier by good food and great company. Raquel's delight at being with friends still has me smiling. (that's all of us at the top of the page)
When we cook for the people we care about, we're doing so much more than just providing sustenance, we're feeding and nurturing relationships that mean the world to us.
So cook something for someone you love. It doesn't have to be gourmet or fancy or unusual and different. And if you really can't bring yourself to turn on the stove, go out and break bread together. Just make sure no matter how you partake, you add a big heaping cup of caring.