Category Archives: Cheese

twd: baking with julia: pizza rustica

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this baking challenge is certainly going to get me to make recipes i never would have otherwise.

take this "pizza" rustica.

i approached the recipe with extreme caution. i knew i could get behind the ingredients in the filling: prosciutto, ricotta, cheese, more cheese.

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but baked in a sweet pie crust?

with a fancy-pants lattice top?

i mean, julia and dorie, are you for real?

i cut the recipe in half and baked the pie on a sunday and waited (waited! me!) until tuesday when i would have friends over to help me judge and consume what i feared would be calorie-bomb without much of a payoff.

well, i take it all back.

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this was a delicious recipe. i mean. ricotta. mozz. parm. prosciutto. done. and the salty filling contrasted really nicely with the sweet crust. which – and we all know my fear of rolling pins – was easy to put together in the food processor, did not require time to chill, and was reasonably forgiving when it came to assembly.

the recipe omits an egg wash for the crust, which i added when i reheated because who wants a pale pie? it ended up a little toasty around the edges and a little pale in the middle where the filling sunk during the first and second trip to the oven.

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goat cheese ice cream with drunken figs

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fact: last weekend, the somm and i were eating grapes by the side of the road, looking out over vineyards and scrubby forest.  it smelled like the california of my childhood, like dust and sunshine and chaparral.  it was warm.  and it felt possible to be anyone or do anything we could imagine.

today: it's raining.  it's wednesday.  it's the last week of farmer's market for us deprived east coasters.

luckily, there isn't much that some homemade ice cream can't fix.

we're back to the ice cream book.  we're proving that ice cream is TOTALLY a fall food. 

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especially when it comes marbled up with your momma's drunken fig jam. 

drunken figs . . . bright with citrus and just a hint of cognac to round out and deepen the flavor. 

but, i didn't want to use it all. 

did you know i'm a hoarder?  seriously.  especially in the refrigerator region of the house.  so many tiny tupperware containers with the last traces of something delish. 

the original recipe suggested using roasted red cherries.

cherries, sadly, are not a fall fruit.

luckily, my cupboards are another food hoarder's paradise, full of random jars of condiments i purchased, perhaps after a glass, perhaps two, of wine, perhaps in a certain little town in a certain state near and dear to my heart.  jars that, upon sober reflection, i have no idea what to do with.

thus i found: a jar of apricot-fig chutney.  it was spicy . . . like pumpkin pie spicy.  warm cinnamon and nutmeg and just a hint of heat from white pepper.

victory.  i split my batch in two . . . double the fun.

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goat cheese ice cream might sound weird, but trust me, it works.  it's sweet and creamy, but has a great hit of that goat cheese tang.  kind of like cheesecake.  but lighter.  and colder.

just the thing to brighten up a gray fall day.

Jeni's Goat Cheese Ice Cream

Find the recipe here. Use whatever fruit spread catches your fall heart's fancy. 

momma’s kitchen

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i’ve been traveling.  traveling places where other people do the dishes for you.

aren’t parents glorious?

we drank a lot of wine.  a lot.  (evidence above)

we went to a baby shower.  i tried to ignore my thumping womb and focus on the champagne and nibbles.

it was like the real martha stewart had catered.

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out of control pretty.  want more?

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oh, california. who lives like this?  this home is a funky, arty wonderland of found objects.

my momma’s garden is pretty rock star too, though.  they have fountains and roses and herbs.  the other week, she made ice cream using passion fruit and macadamia nuts from her front yard.

how do you have passion fruit growing in your FRONT YARD for, like, a decade and not know?

oh, yeah, because you’ve been too focused on the glorious bounty from your tangerine, lemon and avocado trees.

california.  some day, my friend, some day.

in the meantime, i visit.  and make messes.

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i also make crostini.  toasty bread + ricotta + squash + lemon & herbs = winning.

just don’t over toast your bread (ahem, i mean burn it to a sad black crisp) unless you have the worlds best momma to run to the store to buy you more.

what?  me?  spoiled?  whatever do you mean.

back to the crostini and how i earn my keep.  i took some shortcuts.  it worked out.  you should make this.  it is pretty foolproof.

the irish pasta-maker?  he took no short cuts.

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100 percent homemade, hand-cranked spaghetti.  who lives like this?  amazing.

he even has his own kitchen mascot.

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don’t be fooled by how sweet she looks at rest.  this happy beast considers herself a lapdog.

mom kept up her own with some tasty french 75s.  neat trick i learned – with a spill-proof container, equal parts sugar and water and elbow grease, you can make simple syrup without adding yet another dirty saucepan to the growing pile in the sink.

see?  totes considerate of others.

anyway, that woman makes a mean cocktail.  luckily, i think it’s genetic.

we finished up with another winner of a simple, foolproof recipe.  banana tartes tatin.  (julia child rolls over in her grave.)

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find a pan.  smear the bottom with butter.  sprinkle with brown sugar.  layer banana slices.  top with thawed puff pastry.  bake.

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it’s great with vanilla ice cream.  better when eaten with your loving family.

Squash & Ricotta Crostini

Adapted from Bon Appetit

  • 1 baguette
  • 2 cups butternut or acorn squash, in cubes
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 cup ricotta
  • 1 lemon – zest & juice
  • Salt & pepper
  • Herbs, chopped (recommended: basil, sage, thyme, tarragon or a mix)

Ghetto Hilary Version: Slice your squash in half.  Remove seeds.  Cover flesh end in plastic wrap.  Microwave until soft.  Start with 5 minutes in the microwave, then add time until done.  Let cool unless you are like me and just burn your finders all over the place.  Scoop flesh out into a saute pan – warmed with warm olive oil.  Mash it together.  Saute a couple of minutes with brown sugar and a dash of salt.

Normal Version: Peel and chop squash into 1/2 inch cubes.  Toss with oil, salt, and brown sugar and roast at 400 degrees until brown and caramelized, about 30 minutes.

In a medium bowl, mix ricotta with lemon zest, just a squeeze of lemon juice and salt and pepper.

Slice the baguette.  Toast under broiler, both sides.  Takes just a few minutes per side.  Don’t ignore it, don’t be like me.

Ghetto Hilary Version:  If you have the mashed squash, spread some of that on the baguette, top with a dollop of ricotta, then chopped herbs.

Normal Version: If you have adorable cubed, roasted squash, start with a smear of cheese, then squash then herbs.

Why does the order matter?  I don’t know.  I’m OCD.  Do what you like.  🙂

 

Banana Tartes Tatin

From Epicurious.com 

  • 4 bananas
  • 4 tbsp butter, softened
  • 8 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 sheet puff pastry

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Slice bananas on the diagonal.  Smear butter on the bottom of a 8×8 pan (or use 4 ramekins!).  Sprinkle with brown sugar.  Add banana slices, slightly overlapping.  Top with puff pastry.  Bake about 20-25 minutes until golden brown and bubbly at the edges.

Note: The traditional tartes tatin is made with apples.  You caramelize them on the stove with butter and sugar, then top with pastry and finish in the oven.  I think the oven-only version works because bananas are already so soft and sweet.  But I bet some fruit would also work with this oven-only approach – raspberries, strawberries, mango – so explore!  It is SO SO SO easy.  If you’re ready for the skillet version, I’ve made one with tomatoes (admittedly in the middle of amazing tomato season) that was so good and different as a dessert – sweet but acidy and completely surprising and elegant.