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Fresh Pasta with Italian Sausage Herb Sauce

Breads May 7, 2013 Leave a comment

Fresh pasta, made simply from eggs and Tipo flour, is one of the best (and most fun!) ways to take a simple dinner and make it restaurant quality. There is something so special about fresh pasta; the taste and texture are completely different from even the best dried pasta out there. If you have a pasta press, it’s actually fairly easy to make, even for a week night dinner!

The boyfriend and I have date night every Thursday, where we leave the office at 5 (calendar is blocked off and it’s the only day of the week we leave at a normal hour) and come home to make dinner together. As soon as we get home, he starts on the drinks (he’s a killer bartender too! I know, I’m pretty lucky) and I start prepping whatever it is we’re going to make.

We’ve made fresh pasta many times now, and find it easy to get it done within an hour. The boyfriend will start mixing the dough while I get the sauce started. This recipe is what we made last week, and it was a huge hit – we even ate the leftovers for dinner that weekend! I was really happy with the depth of flavor in the sauce: slightly spicy, sweet from the tomatoes and full of flavor from the various herbs. The pasta turned out perfectly – cooked for 3 minutes, which left it with a slight bite and nice chewiness.

Next time you have a dinner and have a little bit of extra time, consider making this. Depending on the particular shape of pasta you make and what flavors you crave, you can put any sort of sauce on top – this is just a suggestion and something that I really enjoyed.

Pasta Recipe

Makes roughly 1/2 pound of pasta, more than enough for two people. Easy to double.

300 grams Tipo flour (or 00 flour) — these are in the bulk bins at Whole Foods
3 eggs

Step One, Set the Well:

Measure out the flour and put directly onto a clean counter top. Make a well in the middle. Crack the eggs into the well in the middle. Slowly start mixing in the flour, taking care not to let the well break, but as you can see in the picture, it doesn’t always work that well.

Mix together until it’s all incorporated.

Step Two, Knead:

Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes. Cover and let rest for half an hour.

Step Three, Press the Pasta:

Cut the dough into small-ish chunks to press. Using a pasta maker on the largest setting(we use a pasta maker attachment on a Kitchen Aid), start running the dough through. We will run the dough through twice on each level until level 4 on the flat press. Next, get the attachment that cuts the shape you want. For this, we used the fettuccine one. As it gets cut, sprinkle flour on the cut pieces, otherwise it will stick together and will be difficult to get apart.

Step Four, Boil:

Boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water for three minutes. Top with your favorite sauce and eat!

Sausage and Herb Sauce

1 can of diced San Marzano Tomatoes (I highly recommend this brand)
1/2 pound of bulk Italian Sausage
1 cup crimini mushrooms, chopped
1 large shallot, diced
Handful of fresh Oregano and Basil, finely chopped
Salt, pepper, and crushed red chili flakes (optional and to taste)

Step One, Brown:

Brown the sausage in a large frying pan on medium high heat. Drain the excess fat.

Add the shallots and cook until translucent. Add the mushrooms and cook for two to three minutes.

Step Two, Merry the flavors:

Add the tomatoes, herbs and seasoning. Lower the heat to medium low and cook for at least 20 minutes, but longer is better when it comes to sauce.

Step Three, Serve:

Top the pasta with the sauce, and add some fresh grated Parmesan cheese. Garnish. EAT!

Banana Dulce de Leche Empanadas

Breads May 6, 2013 Leave a comment

Empanadas. You sweet (or savory) little pockets of deliciousness. I can’t get enough of you. You are convenient in that you’re handheld and easy to eat, and when made correctly are a party of flavor. It’s no wonder then that the Empanada is supposed to be the next ‘Cupcake’ or ‘Macaroon’ of the dessert world.

Like many of the other recipes on here, this is just one flavor profile out of seemingly endless combinations. Banana and dulce de leche didn’t seem to be all over the internet like other flavors yet, so I thought I’d give it a go and create my own, but friends, the possibilities are ENDLESS. Nutella and banana? Vanilla cream and pears? Strawberry rhubarb? Think of all the fun you can have with them!

And don’t even get me started on savory! I roasted some Anaheim Chilies and a Jalapeno, threw them together with some Monterey Jack cheese and made the most delicious little pockets of cheesy goodness I’ve had. Yeah, that good. That will be its own post though on another day..

I hope you enjoy these! Tell me what you think, what your favorite combination might be and how they turned out for you.

Dough Recipe:

(Prep time: 15 minutes mixing and rolling, an hour to chill)

4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup shortening or butter (cold, cut into small cubes)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup cold water (may not need all the water)

4-5 cups frying oil

Filling Recipe:

(Prep time: an hour to cook the dulce de leche, and some time to chill before filling)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2-3 bananas, sliced

Step One, Cut the fat!

Combine the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Add the shortening or butter, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or crumbling with your fingers into the flour. The result should be small pebbles of dough and fat. Add the water, slowly, and continue mixing by hand. This part is key to a successful empanada dough – you need to mix it as little as possible, to keep small pieces of fat together. This is what makes the final dough tender and flaky. Of course, you want to mix it to where it will all come together.

Once it’s mixed, form into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for one hour before rolling out. This will give you time to prep the filling.

Step Two, Dulce de what?

Sure, you can buy dulce de leche in a can, ready to go. That’s cool if you are trying to save time. If you have more time and want to take it a step further, grab a can of sweetened condensed milk. Grab a small sauce pan, put about an inch or two of water in it and cover with a glass bowl that fits over it. That’s creating what’s called a ‘double boiler’. The key to this is to not let the water touch the bowl, and to monitor the water levels closely to make sure you don’t run out and scorch the pan.

Add the condensed milk to the bowl once the water is simmering. Let cook, on simmer, for 40 to 50 minutes, until golden brown. This took so long for me. I had to re-fill the pot and nearly burned my finger off while doing it, so be careful! You can clearly do this ahead of time and store it in the fridge for later use, which is what I did.

Step Three, Rollin’, Rollin’ Rollin’

Now it’s time to stuff your empanadas. Grab that dough that has been chilling, cut it roughly in half, and cover the second half to chill while you work with the first half. Roll out onto a clean surface. Cut even circles out of the rolled out dough. I used a biscuit cutter, and experimented with a mini-tart pan that made bigger empanadas. Find the size that works for you!

Step Four, Fill ‘em up!

Slice two bananas, and grab the dulce de leche. Put a small spoonful of the sauce, with a couple banana slices on each round of dough.

Fold in half, taking care to make sure no filling spills out and the sides are pressed into each other nicely. You can now roll up the edges by hand, or use the tines of a form to press down all around them.

Step Five, Fry time:

It’s totally optional to fry these. You can be a bit healthier and bake them – I would suggest baking at 375 degrees for 10 minutes, and then check on them every few minutes after that, until they are golden brown.

Fill a large, deep sauce pan or larger with oil (I used Canola, but Vegetable or Corn would work just fine). Heat to 350 degrees, and gently set in a few empanadas. They should turn golden brown within a minute and a half. Remove from the oil, set on a rack and immediately sprinkle with sugar.

Step Six, Consume all the Empanadas!

Enjoy!

Crepe Cake

Cakes, Sweet April 27, 2013 Leave a comment

Mmm, crepes. Is there a yummier dessert than a hot, fresh crepe filled with something like nutella and fresh fruit, covered with whipped cream? It’s such an indulgent food, something you usually have at a french bistro on special occasions. So, to make an old favorite even more special (and more elegant), I present to you – the crepe cake.

What could be better than stacking over 16 of these yummy crepes, adding flavored whipped cream (or whatever your heart’s intent), and brûlée-ing the top? Not much. Let me tell you. This is such a fancy sounding dessert, but fairly easy to make once you master the crepes. You don’t need a special crepe pan (though I’m sure it makes it easier!) – all you need is a 10″ frying pan, a silicon spatula and a little patience.

What’s most fun about this recipe is that you can change the flavor combinations, fillings, toppings to whatever you most enjoy! For this one, I used limoncello and lemon curd. You could easily use Nutella and layer bananas, use Grand Mariner in the cream, cover the top with chocolate ganache, or even just simply add some cinnamon. There are endless combinations! I highly encourage you to change the filling recipe up to something you love, and share with me your experience!

Crepe Recipe:

Inspired by Epicurious

6 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, divided
1 cup all-purpose flour

Step One, Combine:

Combine all of the above ingredients in a blender until smooth. Meanwhile, have a crepe pan or large frying pan heating.

Step Two, Crepe:

Before starting the crepes, set up a station where you can put the done crepes. I used a cookie sheet with parchment paper. You can stack the hot crepes on top of each other without them sticking.

Pour about 1/4 c of crepe batter into a buttered pan on medium heat. As soon as you pour, quickly spread the batter around the pan so the crepe cooks evenly and is thin.

Cook on that side for one minute. Flip. Cook for about 30 seconds more. Repeat until you run out of batter.

Filling Recipe:

2 1/2 cups chilled heavy cream
1 cup confectioners sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon of a liquor of your choice: I used Limoncello.
2 tablespoons lemon-curd (optional)

Again, this is the time you can put whatever your heart desires into the recipe. Play around and share what you come up with!

Step three, Beat:

Add the whipping cream to a stand mixer and beat until medium firm peaks. Add sugar and fillings, and beat until firm peaks.

Step four, Assemble:

Now is the time to put the whole thing together. Start with a crepe on the bottom, and spread some filling. Repeat, layering until you run out of crepes, ending with a crepe on the top. Chill for a minimum of 4 hours, up to 24.

Step five, Consume:

Enjoy this cake!

Lemon Curd-Raspberry Cake with Whipped Cream Frosting

Cakes, Sweet April 16, 2013 Leave a comment

For me, Spring has officially beaten summer in the battle for favorite season. My neighborhood has been full of gorgeous flowers and chirping birds; it’s just such a great time of year. Once Easter rolls around, spring is in full flight and just begs for you to be outside (at least in California). When my good friend invited us over for her family’s traditional Easter brunch, I knew I had to make something that was fit for the season.

Lemon cake with a light whipped frosting is the perfect way to celebrate spring. Lemon is such a bright, clean flavor and you can pretty much make any dessert into a lemon dessert (see Cinnamon Pull-Apart Bread, add Lemon). Making a cake is always considered a big to-do, and is perfect for a family gathering, so lemon cake became the obvious choice. As I thought more, the cake came together with lemon curd and raspberry filling, and dense lemon cake (through the help of lemon pudding mix!). I couldn’t wait to get started and, obviously, to devour it.

This recipe is a bit involved, but it’s worth the time! There are three different parts: the cake, the filling and the frosting. I started with the cakes, and once they were in the oven, started making the curd and frosting. You need to make sure each part is completely cool before putting together.

Recipe:

Cake: Yield: 2 x 8″ round layers (Inspiration here)

Ingredients:
1 3/4c granulated sugar
1 (3 oz) package lemon pudding mix
1 c butter, softened
4 eggs
3 c sifted cake flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 c whole milk, room temperature
1 tbls vanilla extract
Juice and zest of 2 lemons (zest first, then juice)

Step One: Cake: Sift and Mix

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two round 8-inch pans, tapping out the excess.

Sift and whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.
In a large bowl or Kitchenaid, cream the sugar, pudding, and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. This usually takes about three to five minutes.

Add the eggs, one by one, mixing well after each.
Add the wet & dry ingredients to the creamed mixture by alternating–beginning and ending with dry ingredients and mixing just enough after each addition to incorporate, but not overmix. Add the lemon juice and zest last (to prevent the milk from curdling).

Step Two: Divide and Bake!

Divide the batter in the pans.

Bake 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes clean when inserted into the center. Let cool on racks for 10 minutes before removing from pan to cool completely.

Lemon Curd-Raspberry Filling (Inspiration here):

4 large eggs
1 c granulated white sugar
1/4 c fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)
4 tbls unsalted butter (room temp)
1 tbls lemon zest
1 package fresh raspberries

Step Three: Curd: Don’t let it Curd-dle

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, whisk the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice until blended. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick and 160 degrees F (~10 mins). Remove from heat. Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk into the mixture until the butter has melted. Add the lemon zest and let cool.

The lemon curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Cover immediately with plastic wrap (so a skin doesn’t form) and refrigerate for up to a week. When you’re about put on the cakes, add the package of cleaned, halved raspberries and gently mix in.

Whipped Topping:

Ingredients:

1 tsp gelatin powder
4 tbls cold water
2 c whipping cream
pinch of salt
8 tbls confectioner’s sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Step Four: Whipped Cream Frosting: Mix it good!

Sprinkle gelatin over cold water in small bowl to soften (about 5 minutes). Scald 4 tablespoon cream; pour over gelatin, and stir. Refrigerate until consistency of unbeaten egg white (about 30 minutes. If it becomes too firm, make sure to really beat it in the mixer before adding the wiping cream as it won’t fully break apart. My frosting had little bits and pieces of the gelatin, which make the cake look less polished).

Using a hand-mixer, beat until smooth. Whip remaining cream. Add salt, sugar, vanilla, and cream of tartar; beat in gelatin mixture.

Step five: All together now:

Put the cake together. Lay the first round on whatever plate you’re going to use, add some of the lemon curd mixture, leaving about a half inch around the perimeter. Fill the remaining ½ inch with whipped cream frosting. Put the top layer on. Cover with whipped cream frosting, garnish with lemon slices or raspberries, or whatever your heart desires.

Step Six: Let them eat cake! Best eaten day of. Enjoy!

Tartine Sourdough (Attempt #1)

Breads, Savory April 7, 2013 Leave a comment

I’ve been making a loaf or two of sourdough bread every weekend for about two months now. My starter has been going for a bit longer. None of my attempts have been blog worthy though, until now.

Living near San Francisco’s Tartine bakery, I know what amazing sourdough bread should taste like. It’s chewy, sour and salty in the middle, and crisp, dark crust on the outside. They’ve really mastered the art of bread there, so when I saw the Tartine Bakery book, I knew I had to learn from that.

I don’t have many pictures, because the loaf was, admittedly, not pretty on the outside. I was surprised to see how bubbly and chewy the inside was though! And the flavor – salty and sour, though I could have used more sour. This loaf was the closest I’ve come to sourdough as I know it.

Tartine style bread making is about time and tenderness. For this loaf, I took the mother starter and got a part of it out on Wednesday, for baking on Sunday. I fed it twice a day, every 12 hours with equal parts water and rye flour.

When it was time to start the dough, I followed the Basic Country loaf instructions. The two things I learned from this was a wet dough, while hard to manage, seems to produce better flavor and more bubbles and that you don’t need to knead the dough much at all, just let it rest A LOT. All in all, the dough rested for about six hours.

Another really important piece of bread making that I learned from this book is how to use a dutch oven to capture steam. Since home ovens aren’t steam injection ovens, it’s nearly impossible to get the right amount of moisture in the air. To fix that, the book suggests using a dutch oven with a lid, that you preheat in the oven for 20 minutes, then bake with the lid on for 20 more. After that, take the lid off and let the loaf bake for 10-15 minutes more to crisp up.

So here it is. I’m looking forward to many, many more loaves. I’m going to play around with the mixtures, the starters, the combination of flours.

In the mean time, here’s a BLTA made from the bread. Can’t wait to share more with you!

Dutch Crunch (Tiger Bread)

Breads, Savory March 18, 2013 Leave a comment

In the Bay Area, dutch crunch is a staple. You can find it in grocery stores and delis, fresh from the bakery and it’s always readily available. Before I moved here though, I had never heard of this type of bread, let alone knew how to make it!

Dutch crunch is such a fun bread – it’s super soft on the inside, as it’s usually made with a soft white bread recipe, and then crunchy on top, which gives it great texture. The neat texture on top also gives the bread another name: tiger bread. I really like how this topping makes the patterns on top that really look like a tiger’s markings.

I found out this weekend that dutch crunch is really easy to make. As long as you have a few specific ingredients, it’s an easy way to make a normal loaf of bread more tasty and prettier!

Dutch Crunch Topping

Use this topping on any of your favorite basic white bread recipes. This can be applied to any size/shape loaf or rolls. This is for one large loaf, or a bunch of little rolls.

1 tbsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp oil
½ tsp salt
3/4 cup rice flour
Several drops of sesame oil (optional)

Step one, Mix:

Mix together all of the dutch crunch topping ingredients once your loaf/rolls have finished proofing and are ready to go in the oven.

Step two, Apply:

Apply a thick layer of the mix on top of the loaf.

Step three, Bake:

Bake according to the instructions in the recipe that you chose for the bread.

Step four, Consume:

Easy, ‘Mmm’-inducing Flourless Chocolate Cake

Cakes, Sweet March 12, 2013 1 Comment

My favorite dessert is flourless chocolate cake. It’s one of those desserts that I order every single time it’s on the menu. I’ll scan the list, spy the flourless chocolate cake and immediately stop reading. Done deal!

There is something so decadent and rich about the flourless chocolate cake. The lack of flour seems to give the chocolate all the room to stand out. Since there are so few ingredients, you’ll often find these made with the best chocolate, which only makes it that much better. I always thought that this was a terribly advanced cake to make, and that it was one of those ‘only when you dine out’ sort of desserts. Oh boy, I was so wrong.

This is one of the easiest, fanciest and most delicious desserts I’ve made. Five ingredients. Ten minutes of prep. Twenty minutes of baking. Voila! You’ve got yourself a perfect cake to take to a dinner party, or to sit down with while watching the Bachelor. I just loved it. And you will too.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

4 ounces chocolate chips/pieces (preferably really high quality. I used what I had on hand, which was 65% bittersweet Ghirardelli. I would highly suggest using a dark, bittersweet chocolate)

3/4 cup sugar

1 stick room temperature butter

3 eggs

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Step one, Prepare:

Get all of the ingredients out and measured.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, and line a cake pan with parchment paper. You’re going to use a double boiler (small sauce pan, with a small amount of water simmering, with a bowl on the top of it that sits just above the water) to melt the chocolate. Put the saucepan on the heat and start simmering.

Step two, Melt:

Add the 4 ounces of chocolate and the stick of butter to the bowl in the double boiler. Whisk together until fully melted. Take the pan off the heat. Add the sugar, and mix until all melted. Add in the eggs, one at a time, whisking vigorously to make sure the eggs don’t cook and to make sure they are fully incorporated.

Step three, Sift:

Sift the cocoa powder into the chocolate mixture. Mix well. Pour into prepared cake pan

Step four, Bake:

Bake for 20 minutes, or until cake is firm in the middle. Remove from oven, let cool fully.

Step five, Consume!

I enjoyed this cake with some powdered sugar and cocoa powder sprinkled on top, but you can let your imagination run wild: fruit coulis, whipped cream, ice cream, caramel or chocolate ganache and sea salt. The list is endless!

This cake can be kept wrapped in the refrigerator for up to a week. Enjoy!

latestloaf

Fresh Pasta with Italian Sausage Herb Sauce

Banana Dulce de Leche Empanadas

Crepe Cake

Lemon Curd-Raspberry Cake with Whipped Cream Frosting

Tartine Sourdough (Attempt #1)

Dutch Crunch (Tiger Bread)

Easy, ‘Mmm’-inducing Flourless Chocolate Cake

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