spicy italian hot chocolate

In a past life, I lived all over the world. I was gone from months a time - missing birthdays, alone on holidays. Instead the cobblestone streets of Milan were my home. The dewy humid air of Singapore cradled me at night. The rice wrapped in pandan leaves from the streets of Phucket were afternoon snacks. Sometimes its hard to find comfort in a culture that is so other.

It's all good and well to romanticize travels abroad in foreign countries - wandering from street to street imagining your artifice of a life there. After a month, the romanticism starts to drift away and those long walks become lonely walks. I tried to find comfort in the similarities. While in Milan I would go to Via Brera sit and sip on Italian hot chocolate. It reminded me of New York in the winter. It tasted better than any hot chocolate  I had state side - it was more than enough to transport me home. It was better than home, it was new and old coming together to create something that was all mine. So here is to thick and creamy Italian hot chocolate, to new and old, and to creating something that is all yours. 

RECIPE: SPICY ITALIAN HOT CHOCOLATE

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/4 cup of half and half
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of espresso
• 4 tablespoons of sugar
• 3 ounces of bittersweet chocolate (60% to 80% cacao) - finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon of cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper powder

DIRECTIONS:

1. Whisk together 3 tablespoons of half and half with the cornstarch. The cornstarch tends to clump together - whisk until smooth. 
2. In a saucepan, heat the remaining half and half to a simmer over medium heat. Add the sugar and espresso then whisk. 
3. Then add the cornstarch mixture and whisk until the half and half has slightly thickened - approximately 30 seconds to 1 minute. 
4. Reduce the heat to low, add the finely chopped chocolate and whisk until smooth. Add the cayenne pepper and mix in. 
5. Serve hot and top with whipped cream if desired.

lemon + rosemary ricotta pancakes

For more than one reason, I've been longing to stay in bed all day. It doesn't help that the cold is starting to creep in. The only good reason to get out of bed is for a nice comforting breakfast. Pancakes, waffles, french toast, coffee and tea, I cannot ignore the delights of breakfast. In full disclosure, I whole-heartedly campaign for breakfast at all meals. I've gladly welcomed waffles to the dinner menu, enjoyed a pancake for lunch, and french toast bread pudding for dessert. Though I can indulge in a plain old pancake sans syrup; sometimes you need to fancy up your breakfast to feel fancy yourself. It encourages and uplifting to indulge - and quite frankly it helps me get out of bed on those down days. 

RECIPE: Lemon & Rosemary Ricotta Pancakes (adapted from a Williams-Sonoma recipe)

INGREDIENTS: 

• 1.5 cups of cake flour
• 1 tablespoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1 lemon
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 cup of skim milk
• 1 cup of ricotta cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Separate the yoke and egg whites of your 3 eggs into 2 small bowls. Zest the lemon until you have 1 tablespoon of lemon zest. Then juice the lemon. 
2. With a whisk, mix together the ricotta, egg yolks, milk, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice until smooth. 
3. In a medium sized bowl, mix the cake flour, rosemary, baking powder, and salt. Then combine the dry mixture with the wet mixture. Using a wooden spoon, stir until combined.
4. In a larger bowl, whisk the egg whites until frothy. Continue to beat until they begin to slightly peak. 
5. Add 1/3 of the egg whites to the batter, folding them in gently with a rubber spatula. Once combined, add the remaining egg whites by folding them into the batter until combined. 
6. Heat your griddle or pan to medium heat, spray with non-stick spray or drag butter across the surface. Pour 1/4 to 1/3 cup of batter onto the heated surface. Cook until bubbles start to collect on the top (1 to 2 minutes), then flip. Cook until golden brown. Repeat until batter is gone. 
7. Serve with syrup and hot tea with lemon! 

roasted butternut squash ravioli

Are there any Food Network fans out there? Before we cut our cable, we used to religiously watch Alton Brown's Good Eats and the occasional Iron Chef. If you're not familiar with Alton Brown, he's definitely worth a look. Sadly, the show is no longer, but viewing previous episodes will entertain you (because he's a pretty funny guy) and also spark the analytical side of your brain when it comes to food. You get scientific descriptions, explanations, puppet shows and particle theories of matter; how fun is that? 

And speaking of fun, who knew pasta was so easy to make? I didn't! My handmade raviolis could use some pretty-ing up, but wow were they delicious. On the next round, I'm going to use more filling and roll the pasta out a bit thinner, but keep all the ingredients the same. They're tasty, they're fun and the perfect comfort food.

Pasta:  

• 3 cups of all purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt

1. Beat the eggs in a large mixing bowl. Add oil, water, and salt. Mix them together.
2. Add flour one cup at a time, mixing throughly. By the third cup you may need to knead the dough by hand.
3. Once the dough is to the correct consistency, wrap in plastic and chill for 1 -2 hours.

Ravioli Filling:  

• 9 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons minced shallots
• 1 cup roasted butternut squash puree
• Salt
• Freshly ground white pepper
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus 2 ounces
• Pinch nutmeg
• 1 can sliced black olives
• 1/2 cup pine nuts
• 4 tablespoons fresh cilantro

Directions:

In a large sauté pan, over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the shallots and sauté for 1 minute. Add the squash puree and cook until the mixture is slightly dry, about 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cream and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 3 tablespoons cheese and nutmeg, to taste. Season with salt and pepper. Cool completely.  

Using a pasta roller or a rolling pin, roll pasta dough into a thin sheet. You may need extra flour for dusting so the dough does not stick. Cut the pasta using a ravioli maker, stamp or press to create your favorite shape. 

Place 2 teaspoons of the filling in the center of each pasta square. Moisten the edge around the filling with water and place the counterpart of your ravioli on top, encasing the filling. Press around the edges to ensure the two pieces adhere together. 

Add the pasta to pot of boiling salted water. Cook until al dente, about 2 to 3 minutes or until the pasta floats and is pale in color.  Remove the pasta from the water and drain well. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle black olives and pine nuts and combine well. Season the pasta with salt and pepper. Place some of the pasta in the center of each serving plate and garnish with fresh cilantro and remaining 2 ounces of grated cheese.

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pumpkin mini donuts

Happy November! I hope everyone had a fantastic Halloween. We took our 2-1/2 year old trick or treating for the first time, enduring unusually frigid winds and rain. It was a good thing both she and our 3-month old wore warm fleecy costumes, or it would have been kind of miserable. We had a blast!

I don't think I have to tell you why I made these mini donuts. This crisp chilly air has paved the way for warm woolly sweaters, tall boots, chunky scarves and other things that make you cozy (and hot chocolate). For me, it's cooking soups and baking with pumpkins, cinnamon, apples and nutmeg – they're the loveliest ingredients during this season. If you're more of a summer person, you may not enjoy them as much as I do, but I can't help but fall in love with the vibrant fiery hues, and the shift from warm to cool always feels so refreshing.

As soon as I discovered that mini donut tins existed, I knew I needed to get one. I love donuts (well, who doesn't?) and the fact that they are baked makes me feel slightly less guilty eating them. Let's just ignore the fact that they're slathered in melted butter and dipped in cinnamon and sugar. Just try them. They are melt-in-your-mouth good, and so hilariously easy.

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Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• cinnamon and sugar, for rolling
• 1/2 cup butter, for dipping

Instructions

1. If using a donut maker, turn it on to preheat. Otherwise, grease a mini donut pan or baking sheet and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix together the dry ingredients.
3. Beat in the pumpkin, eggs, milk, and butter until well combined.
4. Fit a pastry bag with a large tip and fill with the donut batter. Alternately, fill a large ziploc bag and snip off the end.
5. Pipe into the donut maker, donut pan, or just pipe in circles on a greased cookie sheet. The dough is thick enough that it should stay in the general shape you pipe it in while in the oven.
6. If using the donut maker, cook for about 3-5 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick.
7. If using the oven, bake for about 10-12 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
8. Cool on a wire rack.
9. Melt the 1/2 cup of butter in a small dish and mix together cinnamon and sugar in a second dish for dipping.
10. Dip the donuts in the butter and then the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
11. Store in an air-tight container. Try not to eat all of them at once!

basil sopapilla bites with raspberry sauce

Sopapilla ... it's just fun to say. Sopapillas are a traditional dessert served in South America. They are a bit like beignets and doughnut holes. Don't be confused, they are not fancy - in fact it is often referred to as "quick bread." You will not find them at a New Orleans cafe or any fine dining establishment. They take different forms in each country they are served in: flat discs, golf ball shaped or palm sized rectangles. As a tribute to my Bolivian family members, I am making petit sopapilla bites.

This is a quick and easy recipe that will provide you with bite sized sweets on the quick. 

INGREDIENTS: 

• 1 envelope of active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon of sugar
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup of warm milk
• 2 tablespoons of canola oil
• 2 2/3 cup of all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of basil finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter 
• more canola oil for frying
• honey & sugar for dusting
• 1 pint of raspberries
• 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of cornstarch

DIRECTIONS

1. Pour the active yeast into the bowl of your standing mixer, add the warm water to the active yeast. Let this sit for 10-15 minutes until it looks frothy and bubbly. 
2. Add sugar, milk, and 2 tablespoons of canola oil. Mix with the paddle attachment. 
3. Sift in the flour, basil, and salt. Mix on low speed until dough forms approximately 1 - 2 minutes. Let this sit for 10 minute. 
4. In a large skillet or pan, bring 1 1/2 inches of canola oil to 340 degrees. Using a tablespoon, spoon out small pieces of dough and drop them gently into the oil. Fry each side for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. You can fry 4 pieces at a time. 
5. After frying remove from oil and baste in the melted butter. 
6. Dust the bites with honey and sugar in a separate bowl. 
7. To make the sauce, heat raspberries, 1/3 cup of sugar, and lemon juice in a saucepan for 5 minutes. 
8. Once the raspberries start to breakdown and creates a juice, remove from heat and remove the seeds by straining through a fine mesh strainer. 
9. Heat sauce in saucepan and stir in cornstarch. Stir until combined then remove from heat and pour over sopapillas.