Archives for the 'chocolate' Category
Chocolate amaretto torte…and 5 sordid facts
I’m a lucky girl, I bake my birthday cake and when I turn it out onto the rack I discover a heart-shape on the bottom of the cake. Yep, that’s right…it’s my birthday weekend. I’ll actually turn 47 on Monday but in this family we celebrate for a whole weekend. It usually involves a movie, dinner, bookstore, scones…all the delights of our modern world, and all with my 3 favorite people on earth. As an added bonus my best buddy Teresa came for a visit and we yakked and giggled and shopped…it was great.
Speaking of great, this torte is fabulous. It reminds me of the See’s dark chocolate, marzipan…my first/second favorite See’s in the world (it’s involved in a mortal deadlock with my other favorite, the scotch mallow). If you love dark chocolate and almonds this cake is for you. It’s moist and dense, and full of flavor. I actually followed the recipe exactly and it really does take only 15 minutes to put it together and worth every single second. Look it up in Dorie Greenspan’s book, Baking, From My Home To Yours and give it a try. But ignore the part about whipped cream for a topping…this cake just cries out for a scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream.
Leena over at Leena Eats tagged me for the 5 sordid facts meme and since it’s my birthday I will comply…her wish is my command…mostly because she wants to name her first child bacon and I wish my name was bacon. Here goes…
- I love the smell of fresh money…literally. When we lived in SF in the 80’s the ATM’s would be filled every Friday with brand new fresh $20s and I’d make a withdrawal and then take a moment to inhale the sweet scent of fresh money…good times!
- Brett who??? I live in Wisconsin, but I’ve never watched the Green Bay Packers play football…it’s just not my deal.
- Kozy Shack Rice Pudding is fabulous and I love it. When I made my own rice pudding it just sucked.
- I love earthworms…not to eat, but to hold in my hand, and for the great work they do in my flower garden.
- I absolutely adore the concept of time travel. As a result I’m an avid fan-girl of Dr. Who and I can’t count the number of times that I wished for my very own Tardis.
Cheers my friends…have a good weekend.
Light as a feather…tiramisu
As a young girl, me and my friends would have slumber parties and invariably we’d play Light As A Feather. In case you aren’t familiar, it’s a game where one girl lays down on her back and all the other girls gather around her and together lift her body off the ground, each girl using only one finger on each hand, all the while chanting “light as a feather, stiff as a board”. Of course those words were chanted in a tone meant to conjure the dead from their graves…as dark and dank a voice that a 12 year old girl can produce. We never succeeded in lifting anyone…instead we’d dissolved in giggles and then pull out the Ouija Board. Later, near midnight we’d have a séance and trying to bring Mary Worth back to life. At one point it was believed Paul McCartney was dead (remember “Paul is dead”) and so we tried to talk to his spirit.
All of this was brought to mind with one bite of this tiramisu…all because the phrase “light as a feather” popped instantly to mind the minute it hit my tongue. I love tiramisu but I’ve always had it at restaurants, I’ve never actually made it before. So I did the usual and searched the interwebs, combing through the series of trucks moving through tubes until I found Adam’s delightful recipe at Amateur Gourmet. I like his version because it didn’t involve whipping any egg yolks…I wanted easy. Well this is easy, light, delicious, and tasty. I made several substantial changes to the recipe, mostly to soften the coffee flavor because GH is a bit of a wuss when it comes to coffee flavored desserts. Either way…you’ll agree it’s light as a feather…but not stiff as a board.
Tiramisu
printer-friendly recipe
8 ounces mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon brandy
8 ounces heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup of espresso
1 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 packages of Italian style lady fingers
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate
6 ounces milk chocolate
Allow the mascarpone to come to room temperature. Beat the brandy and 1/4 cup of sugar into the mascarpone until it is smooth. Set it aside.
Put the cream, 1/3 cup of sugar, and 2 teaspoons vanilla into a bowl and mix with a whisk on high until soft peaks have formed. Set it aside.
Combined the hot espresso and the 2 tablespoons of sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the skim milk and stir. Set aside.
Grate the two types of chocolate using a food processor or a grater. Keep them separate.
Fold the mascarpone and whipped cream into each other (gently).
Dip a ladyfinger into the coffee mixture, count one beat, then turn it over, count another beat, and remove it and place it into a 9″ x 9″ pan. Repeat this until the bottom of the pan is lined with soaked ladyfingers.
Layer on half of the mascarpone/whipped cream combo, smooth it out with an offset spatula. Sprinkle the bittersweet chocolate.
Add another layer of the soaked ladyfingers, the rest of the mascarpone/ whipped cream combo, and finally the grated milk chocolate. Wrap well with saran wrap and refrigerate several hours or even better, overnight. Serves 9 to 12 depending on the size of the serving.
Yes we can
What does politics have to do with food? Everything. For instance, our agricultural policy impacts international trade, food and nutrition assistance programs for the poor and elderly, environmental preservation, food safety, and the well-being of rural communities. The Farm Bill includes billions of dollars of subsidies that often go to huge mega-farms, not farmers. Here in Wisconsin we get to vote on Tuesday, if you live elsewhere and haven’t had your primary yet then check out this list to see when it’s your turn.
Vote in your state’s primary election:
- Tuesday, February 19: Hawaii, Wisconsin
- Tuesday, March 4: Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont
- Saturday, March 8: Wyoming
- Tuesday, March 11: Mississippi
- Tuesday, April 22: Pennsylvania
- Saturday, May 3: Guam
- Tuesday, May 6: Indiana, North Carolina
- Tuesday, May 13: West Virginia
- Tuesday, May 20: Kentucky, Oregon
- Tuesday, June 3: Montana, South Dakota
- Saturday, June 7: Puerto Rico
Check out Obama on the issues.
Check out the NY Times Election Guide 2008 for full coverage of the voting and issues.
Check out the Yes We Can video:
Here’s a double chocolate, pecan muffin that screams “yes we can” have chocolate for breakfast. Choose the chocolate for your audience…I made these specifically for Dexter so I used milk chocolate, but semisweet or bittersweet would be even more fabulous. They got rave reviews form everyone and they’re the perfect match for a cup of coffee.
Yes We Can Muffins
printer-friendly recipe
4 ounces milk chocolate
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 1/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 12 cup muffin tin or line it with paper muffin cups.
Melt the butter and the chocolate. Add the milk, egg, sugar, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold the liquid and the dry ingredients together, add the pecans and gently, and minimally stir them in. Fill the muffin tin and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes and then remove the muffins from the pan.
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